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Dr Ciarán Shannon

Photo of Ciaran Shannon

Assistant Course Director Doctorate in Clinical Psychology

Email: ciaran.shannon@qub.ac.uk

Address

Room 03.508, David Keir Building
School of Psychology
Queen's University Belfast
Belfast, BT7 1NN
Northern Ireland, UK

Telephone

+44 (0)28 9097 4283

Profile
Teaching
Research
Publications

Biography

BA (hons) Psychology 1987 - 1991 (University College Dublin)

MA Applied Psychology 1991 - 1992 (University College Dublin).

D. Clin. Psych 1992 - 1995 (QUB)

Consultant Clinical Psychologist (Psychosis Specialism), Northern Health and Social Care Trust. 2001 - to date

Assistant Director for the Doctorate in Clinical Psychology, Queens University Belfast (Joint appointment) 2008 - date

Admin/Professional Roles

I hold a number of roles and appointments:

Assistant course director for the D.Clin.Psych. in QUB (placement co-ordinator and selection co-ordinator)

Consultant Clinical Psychologist in Northern Health and Social Care Trust.  My clinical practice is primarily in the area of delivering cognitive behaviour therapy for psychosis.  I have a particular expertise in delivering trauma focused CBT within this population. This has been a clinical and research interest for the last ten years. I supervise and have supervised a broad range of professionals within this approach - cognitive therapists, psychiatrists, clinical psychologists and applied psychology trainees.  I also contribute to service development within this area.

Other Professional roles include:

Member of the editorial board of "Psychosis: Psychological, Social and Integrative Approaches" (Journal of The International Society for the Psychological Treatments of the Schizophrenias and other psychoses).

Chair of Board of Directors of "Rehability" (a mental health charity focusing on the social needs of people with severe mental health difficulties).

Member of the executive committee of the Mental Health, Learning Disability and Ageing Translational Research Group (funded by Research and Development Office for Northern Ireland).

Member of Threshold's Research and Training Committee (a mental health charity focusing on providing therapeutic communities in NI.

Member of the Northern Ireland Psychosis and Trauma Research Network http://trauma-psychosis.co.uk/

While I contribute to many modules on the D.Clin.Psych.  my  main specialist teaching interest is in Severe Mental Illness including:

Models  of severe mental illness

Causes of psychosis

Models of mental health services

Treatment approaches for psychosis (including CBT)

My main research interests lie in the area of the links between traumatic experiences and psychosis.

Hoy, K., Barrett, S., Shannon, C., Campbell, C., Watson, D., Rushe, T., Shevlin, M., Bai, F., Cooper, S., & Mulholland, C. (in press). Childhood Trauma and Hippocampal and Amygdalar Volumes in First Episode Psychosis.  Schizophrenia Bulletin.

Lok, A., Shannon, C. & Dempster, M.  (in press).  A survey of clinical psychologists to explore their decision to supervise trainee clinical psychologists.  Clinical Psychology Forum.

Shannon, C., Maguire, C., Anderson, J., Meenagh, C. & Mulholland, C.  (2011). Enquiring about Traumatic Experiences in Bipolar Disorder: a case note and self- report comparison.  Journal of Affective Disorders, 133, 352-355.

Hanna, D., White, R., Lyons, K., McParland, M.J., Shannon, C. & Mulholland, C.  (2011). The structure of the Beck Hopelessness Scale: A confirmatory factor analysis in UK students.  Personality and Individual Differences, 51, 17-22.

Shannon, C., Douse, K., McCusker, C., Barrett, S. & Mulholland, C. (2011).  The association between childhood trauma and memory functioning in schizophrenia. Schizophrenia Bulletin, 37 (3), 531-537.

Mowlds, M., Shannon, C., McCusker, C.G., Meenagh, C., Robinson, D., & Mulholland, C. (2010).  Autobiographical Memory Specificity, Depression, and Childhood Trauma in Bipolar Disorder. British Journal of Psychology, 49, 217-233.

Dorahy, M., Shannon, C., Mulholland, C., & Middleton, W.  (2009) A Phenomenological Study of Auditory Hallucinations in Schizophrenia and Dissociative Identity Disorder: The effects of childhood trauma.  Journal or Nervous and Mental Disease, 197, 892-898.

Davidson, G., Shannon, C., Mulholland, C. & Campbell, J.  (2009).  A longitudinal study of the effects of childhood trauma on psychosocial functioning and psychiatric symptoms in people with severe mental illness. Journal of Trauma and Dissociation, 10, 57-68

Beattie, N., Shannon, C., Kavanagh, M., & Mulholland, C. (2009). Predictors of PTSD Symptoms in Response to Psychosis and Psychiatric Admission. Journal of Nervous and Mental Disease.  Journal or Nervous and Mental Disease.  197 (1), 56-60.

Kerrigan, K., Davidson, G., & Shannon, C. (2008).  Empowerment, quality of life and service satisfaction: comparisons between a hospital and community placement group.  Irish Journal of Psychological Medicine, 25 (2), 40-45.

Mulholland, C., Boyle, C., Shannon, C., Huda, U., Clarke, L., Meenagh, C., & Dempster, M. (2008). Trauma effects schizophrenia presentation in Northern Ireland.  Schizophrenia Research, 102, 278-282

Maguire, C., McCusker C., Meenagh, C., Mulholland, C. & Shannon, C. (2008).  The Effects of Trauma on Bipolar Disorder: The Mediational Role of Interpersonal Difficulties, PTSD & Alcohol Dependence. Bipolar Disorders, 10, 293-302.

Dorahy, M., Shannon, C., & Maguire, C. (2007). The Troubles-Related Experiences Questionnaire (TREQ): A clinical and research tool for Northern Irish samples. Irish Journal of Psychology, 28, 185-195.

Klewchuk, E., McCusker, C., Mulholland, C., & Shannon, C.  (2007). Cognitive Biases in Chronic Schizophrenia:  The Effects of Traumatic Histories.  British Journal of Clinical Psychology, 46, 333-345.

Spence, W., Mulholland, C., Lynch, G., McHugh, S., Dempster, M., & Shannon, C.  (2006).   Rates of childhood trauma in a sample of patients with schizophrenia as compared with a sample of patients with non-psychotic psychiatric diagnoses.  Journal of Trauma and Dissociation, 7 (3), 7-22.