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Katy Jones

Research Fellow, Faculty of Medicine & Health Sciences

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Teaching Summary

-Adolescent drug misuse and the developing brain

-Univariate and Multivariate Statistics

-Communication Skills

Research Summary

My current research interests include:

  • Developmental aspects of addiction including adolescent initiation of substance use, mental health and impulsivity
  • Health and wellbeing of drug users including day to day functioning, sleep quality and cognitive deficits
  • Psychological addiction to cannabis and correlates with mental health
  • Intervention development including treatment engagement
  • Forensic aspects of mental health and addiction including borderline personality disorder

My current research focusses on the interaction between various substances and the impact of drug use on the brain. I am also interested in the implications of such drug use for biological processes such as sleep and the subsequent effects of sleep loss on cognitive functioning, wellbeing and mental health.

In addition to my biological focus I am interested how sociological factors feed into addiction including economic disadvantage, social support, treatment engagement and education.

Recent Publications

  • BLAGROVE, MARK, SEDDON, JENNIFER, GEORGE, SOPHIE, PARROTT, ANDREW C, STICKGOLD, ROBERT, WALKER, MATTHEW P, JONES, KATY A and MORGAN, MICHAEL J, 2011. Procedural and declarative memory task performance, and the memory consolidation function of sleep, in recent and abstinent ecstasy/MDMA users. Journal of psychopharmacology (Oxford, England). 25(4), 465-77
  • SOLOWIJ, NADIA, JONES, KATY A, ROZMAN, MEGAN E, DAVIS, SASHA M, CIARROCHI, JOSEPH, HEAVEN, PATRICK C L, PESA, NICOLE, LUBMAN, DAN I and YÜCEL, MURAT, 2011. Reflection impulsivity in adolescent cannabis users: a comparison with alcohol-using and non-substance-using adolescents. Psychopharmacology.
  • SOLOWIJ, NADIA, JONES, KATY A, ROZMAN, MEGAN E, DAVIS, SASHA M, CIARROCHI, JOSEPH, HEAVEN, PATRICK C L, LUBMAN, DAN I and YÜCEL, MURAT, 2011. Verbal learning and memory in adolescent cannabis users, alcohol users and non-users. Psychopharmacology. 216(1), 131-44
  • JONES KATY A, NIELSEN SUZI, BRUNO RAIMONDO, FREI MATTHEW and LUBMAN DAN I, 2011. Benzodiazepines and Violence: Their role in aggression and why GPs should prescribe with caution Australian Family Physician. 40, 1-5 (In Press.)

Past Research

I completed my PhD at Swansea University investigating recreational ecstasy use and it's effect on sleep and cognition in 2009. Following this I completed a one year post doc working with Dr Nadia Solowij at the University of Wollongong (Australia). We investigated the effect of adolescent cannabis use on neuropsychological functioning including impulsive decision-making and verbal memory.

I then moved to Melbourne to work as a senior research fellow at Turning Point Alcohol and Drug Centre, a treatment clinic and academic research centre. During this time I managed two large-scale projects, the first focussed on long-term drug abuse including injection and misuse of prescription medication and offending behaviours. While the second was concerned with early intervention for alcohol abuse by the design of a manualised motivational intervention that could be delivered over the telephone.

Future Research

My broad goals for future research are:

  • To investigate the nature and consequences of drug use in both adolescent and adult populations
  • To investigate daily functioning and motivation for use in drug users using actigraphy and ambulatory monitoring
  • To measure cognitive performance and interactions with personality (in particular impulsivity) in drug users
  • To develop interventions and strategies to reduce drug use at an early stage
  • BLAGROVE, MARK, SEDDON, JENNIFER, GEORGE, SOPHIE, PARROTT, ANDREW C, STICKGOLD, ROBERT, WALKER, MATTHEW P, JONES, KATY A and MORGAN, MICHAEL J, 2011. Procedural and declarative memory task performance, and the memory consolidation function of sleep, in recent and abstinent ecstasy/MDMA users. Journal of psychopharmacology (Oxford, England). 25(4), 465-77
  • SOLOWIJ, NADIA, JONES, KATY A, ROZMAN, MEGAN E, DAVIS, SASHA M, CIARROCHI, JOSEPH, HEAVEN, PATRICK C L, PESA, NICOLE, LUBMAN, DAN I and YÜCEL, MURAT, 2011. Reflection impulsivity in adolescent cannabis users: a comparison with alcohol-using and non-substance-using adolescents. Psychopharmacology.
  • SOLOWIJ, NADIA, JONES, KATY A, ROZMAN, MEGAN E, DAVIS, SASHA M, CIARROCHI, JOSEPH, HEAVEN, PATRICK C L, LUBMAN, DAN I and YÜCEL, MURAT, 2011. Verbal learning and memory in adolescent cannabis users, alcohol users and non-users. Psychopharmacology. 216(1), 131-44
  • JONES KATY A, NIELSEN SUZI, BRUNO RAIMONDO, FREI MATTHEW and LUBMAN DAN I, 2011. Benzodiazepines and Violence: Their role in aggression and why GPs should prescribe with caution Australian Family Physician. 40, 1-5 (In Press.)
  • JONES, KATY A, BLAGROVE, M and PARROTT, A C, 2009. Cannabis and Ecstasy/ MDMA: empirical measures of creativity in recreational users. Journal of psychoactive drugs. 41(4), 323-9
  • JONES KATY A, BLAGROVE MT, PARROTT AC, 2008. Sleep, energy and self rated cognition across 7 nights following recreational ecstasy/MDMA use Sleep and Hypnosis. 10, 16-28

School of Community Health Sciences

The University of Nottingham
Medical School
Nottingham, NG7 2UH

telephone: +44 (0) 115 823 0208
fax: +44 (0) 115 823 0214
email: chs-enquiries@nottingham.ac.uk