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Dr Jane Waite

Lecturer in PsychologyJane Waite 001

School of Life & Health Sciences

Aston University

Birmingham B4 7ET

Phone: +44 (0) 121 204 4307 

 

Room: SW410e

Email:j.waite@aston.ac.uk

Follow me on Twitter: @waite_aston

 

I joined Aston University as a lecturer in 2017, having spent the previous four years working at the Cerebra Centre for Neurodevelopmental Disorders as a research fellow and clinical psychologist.

My research focuses on understanding the development of mental health difficulties, and improving the identification of these difficulties, in people with intellectual disabilities and neurodevelopmental conditions. My research team are developing clinical assessment tools and interventions for minimally verbal individuals with intellectual disability and minimally verbal autistic children and adults.

I am passionate about dissemination of research findings to families and clinicians, and I am lead for an online resource that facilitates this process for people with rare genetic syndromes (www.findresources.co.uk).

  • BSc with First Class Honours in Psychology, University of Birmingham, 2007
  • PhD, University of Birmingham, 2011
  • ClinPsyD, University of Birmingham, 2013

2017 – date: Lecturer in Psychology, School of Life and Health Sciences, Aston University.
2013 – 2017: Editorial Assistant, Journal of Intellectual Disability Research.
2013 – date: Honorary Research Fellow, Cerebra Centre for Neurodevelopmental Disorders, School of Psychology, University of Birmingham
2013 – 2017: Research Fellow, Cerebra Centre for Neurodevelopmental Disorders, School of Psychology, University of Birmingham.
2010 – 2013: Trainee Clinical Psychologist, Black Country Partnership NHS Foundation Trust.

Abnormal Psychology

Clinical Psychology of Intellectual Disability

My research focuses on the following areas:

  • Identifying factors that influence mental health in people with rare genetic syndromes, autism and intellectual disabilities
  • Identifying mental health difficulties in people with intellectual disabilities who are minimally verbal and cannot self-report
  • Adaptation and development of mental health interventions for people with intellectual disabilities
  • Describing the cognitive, emotional and behavioural characteristics of people with rare genetic syndromes and intellectual disabilities
  • Parents’ perceptions of emotional and behavioural difficulties in people with intellectual disabilities

Current:

  • Developing a parent-led anxiety intervention for minimally verbal autistic children. Autistica Future Leaders Award. £98,000. Waite, J (PI). November, 2018.
  • Person and environmental characteristics associated with anxiety in minimally verbal individuals with autism. Fully funded PhD studentship. Waite, J. (Supervisor). Baily Thomas Charitable Fund. £77,595. 
  • Expanding accessible resources for neurodevelopmental disorders. Waite., J et al. (PI). Aston Impact Fund. £4545.38.
  • Ten-year longitudinal follow-up of people with Runbinstein-Taybi syndrome: Predicting mental health outcomes. Waite, J. et al. (PI). Lejeune Fondation. € 19,993.
  • Personal characteristics, mental health and well-being in Bardet-Biedl syndrome. Waite, J. (PI). Baily Thomas Charitable Fund. £75,969.60.
  • Towards improved assessment of mental health difficulties in people with an Autism Spectrum Disorder. Waite, J., (Joint PI) et al. Autistica. £166,000.
  • Developing a clinical screening tool for anxiety in children with severe to profound intellectual disabilities. Waite, J. (PI), Liew, A., Oliver, C., Crawford, H., Ruddick, L. Birmingham Children’s Hospital Research Foundation. £41,227.
  • Intervening through information in Rubinstein-Taybi syndrome. Waite, J. (Co-I). University of Birmingham, £2,000.

Previous (2013-2016):

  • A novel knowledge exchange package for rare genetic syndromes. Economic and Social Research Council Impact Acceleration Account. Waite, J. (PI) et al. £9,646.76.
  • Long-term memory (LTM) capacity in people with Rubinstein-Taybi syndrome. Waite, J. (PI) et al. Memory and Learning Theme, University of Birmingham. £2,500.
  • Development of a DVD: Cognitive characteristics of Rubinstein-Taybi syndrome. Baily Thomas Charitable Fund. Waite, J. (PI). £500.
  • The Development and Evaluation of a DVD for Challenging Behaviour. Birmingham Community Healthcare NHS Foundation Trust. Waite, J. (Co-I) et al. £25,000.
  • Challenging and Adaptive Behaviour in Lowe Syndrome. Lowe Syndrome Foundation. Waite, J. (Co-I) et al. £67,300.

Georgina Edwards, Aston University. Georgina is investigating factors associated with the development of mental health difficulties in autistic people who have severe to profound intellectual disability. 

Co-supervision of projects conducted by:

Andrea Thomas, University of Birmingham. Andrea is investigating the behavioural phenotype of CHARGE syndrome.

 

PhDs supervised to completion:

Rachel Royston, Cerebra Centre for Neurodevelopmental Disorders, University of Birmingham. Rachel investigated the factors that lead to anxiety in people with Williams syndrome.

HPCP Registered (PYL30539)

British Academy of Childhood Disability

Committee Member - Society for the Study of Behavioural Phenotypes                           

Editorial Board – Journal of Intellectual Disability Research (JIDR)

  • Cressey, H., Oliver, C., Crawford, H. & Waite, J. (2019). The phenomenology of temper outbursts in Lowe syndrome: Comparisons with Prader-Willi syndrome. The Journal of Applied Research in Intellectual Disabilities, in press.

    Royston, R. Waite, J., & Howlin, P. (2019). Williams syndrome: recent advances in our understanding of cognitive, social and psychological functioning. Current Opinion in Psychiatry, in press.

    Waite J. & Hennekam. R. (2018). The Behavioural Phenotype of Rubinstein-Taybi Syndrome. Sage Handbook of Developmental Disorders.  

    Vereenooghe, L., Flynn, S., Hastings, R. P., Adams, D., Chauhan, U., Cooper, S. A., ... & Waite, J. (2018). Interventions for mental health problems in children and adults with severe intellectual disabilities: a systematic review. BMJ open, 8(6), e021911.

  • Pearson, E, Waite, J & Oliver, C 2018, 'Differences in the information needs of parents with a child with a genetic syndrome: A cross-syndrome study' Journal of Policy and Practice in Intellectual Disabilities. DOI:10.1111/jppi.12231

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Aston University
Birmingham
B4 7ET
UK
+44 (0)121 204 3000