Scottish Graduate School of Social Science

Sgoil Cheumnaichean Saidheans Sòisealta na h-Alba
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Scottish Graduate School of Social Science

Sgoil Cheumnaichean Saidheans Sòisealta na h-Alba

Studentship opportunity

All Studentship Opportunities

How can telephone CPR instructions be more effective and less distressing? Exploring the views of lay-responders with recent lived experience.

This studentship is funded by the ESRC through the Scottish Graduate School of Social Science (SGSSS)

Institution
University of Stirling
Pathway
Health, Wellbeing and Communities
Studentship
Open Collaborative
Mode of study

Full-time / Part-time

Application deadline
4pm, 14 April 2022
Applications are due 24 March 2026, 5 pm GMT and
References are due 26 March 2026, 5 pm GMT

Project details

Out-of-hospital cardiac arrest (OHCA) is common and serious: UK survival is only ~10%. Immediate cardio-pulmonary-resuscitation (CPR) increases survival but is often not provided, even when ambulance services provide telephone instructions. Lay-responders encounter barriers to delivering CPR AND can experience significant distress. Currently, there is NO high-quality evidence about how telephone-CPR instructions are perceived by lay-responders. Social support theory, which posits emotional, practical, informational and appraisal support may help to optimise CPR instructions.

The aim of the proposed PhD is to investigate lay responders’ recollections and interpretations of CPR instructions to identify what was helpful/unhelpful in (i) achieving timely CPR and (ii) minimising caller distress.

Engaging with people who have recently provided CPR in an OHCA, the PhD will address the following research questions:

  1. What do lay-responders recall about the CPR instructions they were given and how does this relate to time elapsed since the OHCA event?
  2. What aspects of the call-handler interaction do lay-responders perceive as having been helpful, unhelpful, surprising or distressing at the time and in the period since the event?
  3. How do peoples’ recollections of telephone CPR instructions at up to 3 months after the OHCA, compare with the objective record of events at the time of the OHCA
  4. How does the content/style of instruction (relationship, emotional, practical, informational and appraisal support) relate to levels of psychological distress experienced after delivering CPR?
  5. What do people with lived experience of OHCA and of receiving telephone CPR instructions consider would be helpful modifications to the instructions

Methods: Mixed-methods, with a substantial qualitative component

Collaborative Partner: Sudden Adult Death Trust (SADS UK)

Supervisory Team:

About the University

The successful applicant will be co-located across the Division of Psychology and the Centre for Healthcare and Community Research (CHeCR) at the University of Stirling.

Division of Psychology
Stirling Psychology delivers world class scientific research and in REF2021 were rated 2nd in Scotland for research impact. The Division aims to foster basic research in the science of mind and behaviour, linked to direct impacts for society. Research strategy in the Division focuses on the development of inter-disciplinary multi-methods approaches with academics working collaboratively across three research themes: Cognition in Complex Environments; Behaviour & Evolution; and Health and Behaviour Change. A common thread across all research projects is a desire to develop theoretical understanding of behaviour in complex real-world settings.

Centre for Healthcare and Community Research (CHeCR)
Formerly part of the Chief Scientist Office Nursing Midwifery and Allied Health Professions Research Unit, CHeCR is a multidisciplinary research centre which aims to conduct impactful, interdisciplinary research that enhances healthcare practice, improves community well-being, and informs policy at local, national, and international levels. CHeCR research focuses on building a strong evidence base to improve frontline service delivery across unscheduled, emergency, primary, and secondary healthcare settings and on enhancing health and well-being in communities while reducing strain on healthcare services.

The University of Stirling
The University of Stirling is committed to providing education with a purpose and carrying out research which has a positive impact on communities across the globe – addressing real issues, providing solutions, and helping to shape society. Stirling is 4th in Scotland and 43rd in the UK for research impact, with 87% of its research having an outstanding or very considerable impact on society – and more than 80% rated either world leading or internationally excellent (Research Excellence Framework 2021).
More than 17,000 students study with the University of Stirling globally, with over 140 nationalities represented on its scenic central Scotland campus alone. The University – also home to 1,700 staff – is ranked first in the UK and top three in the world for its campus environment (International Student Barometer 2022, wave two). Ranked first in the UK and top five in the world for its sports facilities (International Student Barometer 2022, wave two), Stirling is Scotland’s University for Sporting Excellence. Its world-class facilities provide the perfect training environment for the University’s sports scholars – many of whom compete at the highest level, including at the Olympics and Commonwealth Games – and for students, staff, and the wider community.

Eligibility

Applicants must meet the following eligibility criteria:

  • Applicants must hold or be predicted a First or a good 2:1 undergraduate degree in the social sciences, or have relevant comparable experience.
  • Applicants can have a Masters degree, however this is not a requirement.
  • The applicant must also show demonstrable interest in the topic area under investigation.
  • Applicants can study part-time or full-time

Applicants must be able to demonstrate they have the interpersonal skills required to undertake data collection in this very sensitive context.

Experience or knowledge of the out-of-hospital cardiac arrest context would be advantageous.

Funding

As per guidance published by UKRI in October 2020, a maximum of 30% of all studentships awarded can be made to international students, with the remaining 70% going to home students. 

Residential Criteria

To be classed as a home student, applicants must meet the following criteria:

  • Be a UK national (meeting residency requirements), or
  • Have settled status, or
  • Have pre-settled status (meeting residency requirements), or
  • Have indefinite leave to remain or enter.

For more on the UKRI eligibility guidance, click here

As per guidance published by UKRI in October 2020, a maximum of 30% of all studentships awarded can be made to international students, of which SGSSS has now awarded for the 2021/22 round of studentship awards. As such, this opportunity is only open to home students.

Residential Criteria

To be classed as a home student, applicants must meet the following criteria:

  • Be a UK national (meeting residency requirements), or
  • Have settled status, or
  • Have pre-settled status (meeting residency requirements), or
  • Have indefinite leave to remain or enter.

If you do not meet the criteria above, you will be classed as an international student and will not be eligible to apply. To establish if you would be classed as a home student, please see pages 4 and 5 of the UKRI eligibility guidance here.

Award details

The scholarship is available as a +3.5 (3 year PhD and placement) or a 1+3.5 (Masters year, 3 year PhD, and a placement) studentship depending on prior research training. This will be assessed as part of the recruitment process, however you can access guidance here to help you decide on which to apply for. The programme will commence in October 2026. The full ESRC studentship package includes, as advised by ESRC:

  • An annual maintenance grant (stipend)
  • Fees at the standard institutional home rate
  • Students can also draw on a pooled Research Training Support Grant (RTSG)

Other information

The studentship has been co-funded by the charity Sudden Arrhythmic Death Syndrome UK (SADS UK).

IMPORTANT information if you are an international student applying to this studentship:

Please note that this studentship covers home fees only. To qualify for home fees, applicants must be a UK national (meeting residency requirements), or; have settled status, or; have pre-settled status (meeting residency requirements), or; have indefinite leave to remain or enter. For projects based at Glasgow Caledonian University, University of Dundee or University of Stirling, successful international applicants are liable for full international fees. These universities will not waive the difference between home and international fees. This means that if you are successful and accept a studentship at one of these universities, you will be liable to pay additional fee costs, and funding will not be available from SGSSS beyond the home fee level already covered. Please note that for visa purposes, you will have to demonstrate that you can pay the difference in fees (the exact amount will vary by university, but this could be around £15,000 per annum).

How to apply

  1. Applicants must register on SGSSS Apply, completing their Equal Opportunities data.
  2. Applicants must apply via SGSSS Apply, uploading the following documentation:

    • Application Questions (answered within SGSSS Apply, no upload needed)
    • Academic transcripts
    • Academic prizes
    • Referee information
    • CV
    • Other information (if required by the advert)
We strongly encourage applicants review the applicant guidance document for more on the process. 

Please Note:

  • This is not an application to the relevant University, this is an application for SGSSS (ESRC) funding.
  • Students do not need a Masters/PhD offer from the relevant University before they can apply for funding, i.e. this studentship.
  • If successful in obtaining the SGSSS (ESRC) studentship, students can only start the funded studentship once they have an unconditional Masters/PhD degree offer from the relevant University. It is your responsibility to find out the University’s application process, including when you need to secure your offer, as SGSSS plays no role in this process.

This studentship opportunity will open for applications on 9th June.

Apply now via SGSSS Apply

Selection process

Applications will be ranked by an internal institutional selection panel, and you will be notified if you have been shortlisted for interview on 3 April. Interviews will take place on 13 April.

This studentship award is subject to the successful candidate securing admission to a PhD programme within the University of Stirling. The successful candidate will be invited to apply for admission to the relevant PhD programme.

Contact details

Name
Team SGSSS
Email
SGSSS Team (for questions on the application portal, only), for any questions on the project, email the supervisory team (see details in abstract above)

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