Staff Research Associate I

Under close supervision of the PI and senior staff, the SRA I will:

- Assist with augmented psychotherapy trials that combine evidence-based PTSD treatments (e.g., exposure-based therapies) with medications targeting mechanisms underlying the disorder, including those that facilitate fear extinction .

- Help administer, pilot, and monitor remote psychophysiological fear-conditioning paradigms , including online and lab-based experimental tasks.

- Assist in setting up and monitoring psychophysiological recording sessions using systems such as Biopac and Lab Streaming Layer (LSL)-based data pipelines (training provided).

- Help acquire, process, and organize multi-modal psychophysiological signals , including electrodermal activity (EDA), electromyography (EMG), heart rate (HR), heart rate variability (HRV), facial coding outputs, and remote photoplethysmography (PPG) signals derived from video .

- Administer and score self-report questionnaires and, with training and supervision, assist with structured clinical interviews assessing PTSD symptoms, trauma exposure, mood, and sleep-related functioning.

- Help collect, process, and organize sleep-related data , including actigraphy and EEG-based measures (training provided).

- Assist with data management and basic analysis (e.g., entering data in REDCap, checking data quality, preparing spreadsheets, running simple scripts or analyses with supervision).

- Help with participant recruitment, screening, scheduling, and visit reminders , including phone, mail, and electronic outreach.

- Assist in maintaining regulatory documents (e.g., consent forms, logs) and support IRB-related tasks under the guidance of senior staff.

- Communicate professionally with Veterans, clinicians, and research team members to support smooth study operations.

- Track and update study logs , enrollment trackers, and visit windows; help prepare materials for progress reports and other study documentation .

- Provide general support for NCIRE and VA administrative processes , such as organizing study materials, assisting with onboarding of volunteers, and helping prepare meeting agendas or summaries.

- Bachelor's degree in Psychology, Neuroscience, Biology, Public Health, or a related field (required).

- Strong organizational skills , attention to detail, and reliability in following protocols and procedures.

- Excellent interpersonal, written, and verbal communication skills.

- Demonstrated interest in trauma/PTSD, fear learning, psychophysiology, and/or sleep-related processes (coursework, volunteering, or prior research experience are all helpful).

- Prior research experience (e.g., as an undergraduate RA, volunteer, or intern) is preferred but not required ; we are willing to train a highly motivated candidate.

- Interest in learning clinical research and clinical trial procedures (e.g., tracking visit windows, following standardized protocols, working with regulatory documents).

- Interest in learning psychophysiological data collection and analysis (e.g., Biopac , LSL , EDA, EMG, HR/HRV, facial coding, remote PPG from video); prior experience is a plus but not required .

- Comfort using basic computer tools (e.g., Excel/Google Sheets, REDCap, or similar ). Experience with MATLAB, Python, or R is helpful but not required -training and mentorship will be provided.

- Comfort working with Veterans and individuals with trauma histories , with sensitivity and professionalism.

The base wage range for this position is $24.11 - $28.87 per hour. The wage actually offered to a successful candidate will take into account various relevant and non-discriminatory business factors including, without limitation, the candidate's geographic location, job-related experience, knowledge, and skills, and education, as well as internal equity considerations.

A successful candidate may also be eligible to earn additional compensation including bonuses.

To apply, please complete your application in NCIRE's UltiPro system and email the following materials to Dr. Sabra Inslicht at sabra.inslicht@va.gov (with the subject line: STaR Lab SRA I Application):

We strongly encourage applications from individuals from diverse backgrounds who are excited to learn, grow, and help advance mechanistic science that can be translated into better-targeted, more effective care for Veterans affected by trauma .