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The Origin Story: My program of research focuses on the integration of evidence-based practices and interventions into nursing education and academic clinical settings to promote mental health and decrease anxiety and disordered eating and eating disorders among young adults. Throughout my early research career, I had primarily focused on the identification of biopsychosocial mechanisms underlying the development and maintenance of eating disorders. As I transitioned into my nurse faculty position, I witnessed the high levels of anxiety and disordered eating among undergraduate and graduate students, specifically nursing students, and their need for adaptive coping strategies that promote mental health. Thus, I pivoted to my current area of research.

So What?: Whole health begins with mental health. Nursing is a career path that tends to lead to intense and high-stress clinical environments that increases risk for burn-out, job dissatisfaction, poor job performance, and maladaptive coping skills. As a psychiatric nurse who is also a nurse educator and researcher, my program of research ultimately aims to promote adaptive coping strategies, and decrease anxiety and maladaptive coping skills (disordered eating, eating disorders), among nursing students as they pursue a career in nursing.

Goals: Identify your passion! Based on my undergraduate experiences, I developed a passion for research: asking questions, refining questions into research questions, and searching for the answers. During my clinical experiences, I embraced my passion for treating individuals with eating disorders. My ultimate goal as a psychiatric NP, educator and researcher, is to demonstrate the synergistic relationship between research and practice through the promotion of mental health among nursing students.

Find out more about Dr. Jennings Mathis' work here: https://sites.google.com/uri.edu/mathislab/home