Branch Overview

The DHAP Prevention Research Branch (PRB) conducts behavioral and operational research to develop, test, synthesize, and package sustainable interventions to prevent HIV transmission. The Branch's activities include formative research to better understand risk behavior and intervention needs of high-risk populations, intervention research to test efficacy and effectiveness of behavioral interventions, operational research to improve delivery of interventions in real-world settings, and synthesis of prior research findings to inform HIV prevention research and programs. In addition, PRB is involved in technology transfer efforts to increase the use of effective behavioral interventions in prevention programs. PRB is a multidisciplinary group that includes behavioral scientists, epidemiologists, health scientists, psychologists, and anthropologists. The Branch is divided into 3 teams: Intervention Research Team, Operational Research Team, and Research Synthesis and Translation Team. PRB has a 2008 operating budget of $10 million/year and more than 20 research and demonstration projects managed by Branch staff.

Position Overview: Behavioral Scientist for Research Synthesis and Translation Team (RSTT) and Intervention Research Team (IRT), Prevention Research Branch (2 positions, shared between 2 teams)

To provide a broad array of prevention research training and experience, the fellows will work with senior scientists/mentors to develop and evaluate individual-, group-, or community-level interventions and will be involved in systematic reviews and meta-analyses to identify evidence-based public health practice for communities of color. The goals of these projects are to increase HIV testing, tackle stigma and barriers to prevention efforts, reduce HIV-risk behaviors, and ultimately decrease HIV transmission and infection in communities disproportionally impacted by the HIV epidemic, particularly African American and Hispanic communities. More specifically, the fellows will spend one third of their time acquiring various basic research skills including, but not limited to, training on qualitative and quantitative coding, research synthesis, and meta-analysis; learning about the CDC’s Institutional Review Board (IRB) and Office of Management and Budget (OMB) processes; and attending scientific presentations, meetings, and training. The fellows will also spend one third of their time working closely with their IRT mentor on a project related to developing or testing the efficacy of new and previously untested interventions to reduce the risk of HIV acquisition and/or transmission specifically for at-risk African-American and Latino populations. Finally, the fellows will work one third of their time with their RSTT mentor on systematic reviews and meta-analysis to monitor and evaluate various HIV prevention efforts and strategies for communities of color and identify interventions that work for those communities.. The fellows will attend in-house trainings on research synthesis, assist in (and later lead) systematic reviews, participate in DHAP-wide efforts to promote evidence-based HIV prevention practice, participate in current intervention projects, assist with qualitative and quantitative research needs, and present research findings at meetings. Click here for information on the research synthesis activities.

Successful applicants for these positions should have an earned Ph.D. or equivalent in health, social, or behavioral sciences and have training or experience with behavioral research in HIV prevention.

Proposed Initial Projects

Mentors will be selected based on the research interest of the fellows. The fellows will meet with their IRT and RSTT mentors to determine basic research training needs and develop a plan for the entire 2-year training period. For IRT, the fellows will work on 1 behavioral intervention study with community research partners and Branch scientists. Specific activities may include research protocol development, study design, data collection and analysis, and technical assistance to study sites. For RSTT work, fellows will first receive in-house training on qualitative coding, data abstraction, and critical appraisal of HIV behavioral intervention evaluation studies. They will use this training as well as their knowledge to assist other team members in conducting systematic reviews to identify effective behavioral interventions and in developing and testing new interventions for communities of color. Once the fellows acquire needed skills and become familiar with the projects and databases, they will be given lead roles in conducting a systematic review that addresses HIV behavioral prevention in minority communities (e.g., African American heterosexual men and women, or African American men who have sex with men).