Dr. Sébastien Grenier is a clinical psychologist, research fellow (FRQS) at the research centre of the Institut universitaire de gériatrie de Montréal, and Director of the Laboratory on studies of late-life anxiety and depression (LEADER). His research concerns the benefits of cognitive-behavioural therapy (CBT) in treating late-life anxiety and different associated disorders, including depression, cognitive disorders and fear of falling. Dr. Grenier was in private practice for about ten years at the Laval anxiety clinic before becoming a professor.

My research projects focus on improving treatment for people with severe mental illness, either by creating new treatments, evaluating needs or training mental health workers. For instance, I have collaborated on creating and validating group interventions in cognitive behaviour therapy to improve self-esteem or the symptoms of people suffering from psychoses. My current research bears mainly on first-episode patients, but I am also interested in patients with longer clinical histories.

My current research looks at the impact of cognitive behaviour therapy on the symptoms and functioning of people after a first psychotic episode (CIHR grant); profiles of first episodes who follow or ignore treatment recommendations for their psychosis (MSFHR grant, Norma Calder); the impact of motivational interviews on treatment persistence among first-episode patients; care and clinical profiles, and the creation of group treatment, for people suffering from psychoses as a result of methamphetamine abuse (CIHR grant); the impact of cognitive behaviour therapy for psychosis on an incarcerated psychiatric clientele; support for employment (CIHR grant) and education for people with severe mental illness; cognitive remediation related to social functioning among people with psychoses and cognitive deficits. I am also interested in the stigmatization of psychosis and knowledge transfer in the community.

I essentially try to better understand the links between affect regulation and psychopathology, mainly by studying mental functioning (mentalization, alexithymia). Part of my work bears on the theoretical analysis of these themes, using a mainly psychoanalytical approach that integrates elements of theories of emotion. I also conduct empirical research using a number of methodological strategies: discourse analysis (quantitative and qualitative), creation and use of questionnaires, experimental tasks, etc. I created a grid for verbal elaboration of affect (GÉVA), a verbal measurement of affect mentalization, a central part of many research projects.

Research themes:

• Mentalization and affect regulation
• Exploration of forms of alexithymia
• Study of affect mentalization in psychopathology, particularly depression and borderline personality disorder
• Analysis of the role of sadness and positive emotions in mentalization
• Assessment and treatment of mental functioning

My research lies at the crossroads of health psychology and clinical psychology.

In my current work, two lines of research can be distinguished. First, I am trying to identify the psychological repercussions of disease, taking account of the central aspects of quality of life and adjustment to the illness.

I am interested in measuring and detecting the emotional distress and psychopathological repercussions of disease. This modelling and the subsequent measurement are an essential step leading to psychological intervention. Second, I study relations between patients and caregivers, through concepts like empathetic understanding. I am trying to define and measure clinical empathy, to understand the factors promoting and inhibiting empathy, and to assess the health effects of clinical empathy.

In particular, I am developing research in the field of cancer and psychosocial oncology, taking account of the impact of and adjustment to illness for the individual, couples and family. Accordingly, my work concerns both child and adult psychology.

My work is based on a constant back and forth between research and practice, so as to ask clinically relevant research questions and to enrich clinical activity with new data.

My laboratory is based at the CHU Sainte-Justine research centre, where I am responsible for the quality of life theme of the Centre of Excellence in Immunology-Hematology-Oncology. This team also welcomes doctoral candidates, post-doctoral fellows, and MSc and honours thesis students.