Dr Catherine Sebastian, from the Department of Psychology at Royal Holloway has been named as one of the Emerging Leaders in her field by the Medical Research Foundation, for her research into adolescent mental health.

The Medical Research Foundation is the charitable foundation of the Medical Research Council, and the Emerging Leaders Prize is an annual award to recognise outstanding researchers in the early stages of independent research who have already had an impact in their field and have demonstrated their potential to be the research leaders of the future.[1]

Catherine’s award of £5,000 will be used for leadership development in relation to her research in adolescent mental health. Catherine’s primary work explores how adolescents learn how to control their emotions and how this is relates to their mental health, with a particular focus on aggression a young person may express when feeling under threat.

Speaking of her award, Catherine said: “It’s such a great achievement to have been given this award, especially at a time when mental health and specifically the mental health of young people is a widely discussed topic.

“Mental health is not a visible thing, and so has often been overlooked and tabooed. However, it is important that we continue to learn and educate society on the importance of mental health, and to remove the stigma around certain conditions.

“I’m hopeful that my research will enable us to build a better understanding adolescent mental health, and help continue to drive the conversation on this topic.”