Shelly Ben-David

(She, Her, Hers)

Associate Professor

Social Work

Other Titles: PhD, RSW
Phone: 250-807-9434
Email: shelly.ben-david@ubc.ca

Graduate student supervisor

Research Summary

Research interests include: youth mental health (e.g. clinical high-risk to psychosis, first-episode psychosis, anxiety, depression); early intervention in mental health; identity development and mental illness; cultural, relational, and community-based approach to early psychosis; digital divide among youth; mental health service use decision-making equity; and youth engagement in research.

Websites

Google scholar: https://scholar.google.com/citations?user=N6Jw4WEAAAAJ&hl=en

Researchgate: https://www.researchgate.net/profile/Shelly_Ben-David

Degrees

PhD in Social Work, New York University; MSc in Social Work, Columbia University; BSc in Psychology and Religion, University of Toronto.

Research Interests & Projects

Shelly is a 2019 MSFHR scholar awardee. The CREATE (Community-based research for equitable access to engaged) Youth Mental Health Research lab focuses on the prevention and early intervention of mental illness for youth and young adults, through the development of: 1) psychosocial interventions, and 2) decision-making tools designed to increase equitable access to mental health services for youth. She works closely with youth, young adults, families, clinicians, and peer researchers with lived experience of mental illness in the co-development of research questions, and involvement as partners at every stage of the research process. Shelly is part of the Foundry research and innovation team in BC. She is currently leading: 1) a SSHRC IDG funded research project looking at mental heath service use decision-making and engagement with services among youth and young adults attending a Foundry centre in BC, 2) a funded BC SUPPORT Unit Patient Engagement Methods Cluster project looking at the digital divide among youth accessing digital mental health technology in BC, and a 3) community-engaged research project addressing an identified gap in early psychosis intervention research regarding engagement with young people’s cultural beliefs and communities in Canada.

Selected Publications & Presentations

Selected Journal Articles

Higgs, R., Liao, A., Windsor, T., & Ben-David, S. (2023). Meeting in the middle: experiences of citizenship in community-engaged psychosis research. Journal of Public Mental Health, 22(1), 12-24.
Ben-David, S., Vien C., Ortiz R, Biddell, M, Gawliuk, M, Turner, S., Mathias, S., Barbic, S. (2022). Understanding mental health service use among a sample accessing integrated youth services: Applying the Unified Theory of Behavior. Journal of the Canadian Academy of Child and Adolescent Psychiatry. https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/35251192/
Ben-David, S., Amaro, A., & Munson, M. R. (2021). Experiences of Psychosis Among Transition-Age Youth Attending an Outpatient Clinic in a Low-Resourced Community. Journal of the Society for Social Work and Research, 12(2), 409-419. https://doi.org/10.1086/714312
Ben‐David, S., Kealy, D., Hanson, J., & Ortiz, R. (2021). Perspectives on personal identity in the early stages of psychosis: A survey of Canadian clinicians. Early Intervention in Psychiatry, 15(4), 1038-1043. DOI: 10.1111/eip.13026
Shahram, S., Smith, M., Ben-David, S., Feddersen, M., Kemp, T., Plamondon, K. (2021). Promoting Zest for Life: A systematic literature review of resilience against youth suicidality. Journal of Research on Adolescence, 31(1), 4-24. https://doi.org/10.1111/jora.12588
Thomas, E. C., Ben-David, S., Treichler, E., Roth, S., Dixon, L. B., Salzer, M., & Zisman-Ilani, Y. (2021). A Systematic Review of Shared Decision–Making Interventions for Service Users With Serious Mental Illnesses: State of the Science and Future Directions. Psychiatric Services, appi-ps. https://doi.org/10.1176/appi.ps.202000429
Ben-David, S., Kealy, D. (2019). Identity in the context of early psychosis: A review of recent research. Psychosis: Psychological, Social and Integrative Approaches. https://www.tandfonline.com/eprint/NJMHYZQ29A52NF58TPIF/full target=10.1080/17522439.2019.1656283
Ben-David, S., Cole, A. R., Brucato, G., Girgis, R., & Munson, M. R. (2019). A conceptual model of mental health service utilization among young adults at clinical high-risk for developing psychosis. Psychiatric rehabilitation journal, 42(1), 17. DOI: 10.1037/prj0000336
Ben‐David, S., Cole, A., Brucato, G., Girgis, R. R., & Munson, M. R. (2018). Mental health service use decision‐making among young adults at clinical high risk for developing psychosis. Early intervention in psychiatry. DOI: 10.1111/eip.12725
Narendorf, S. C., Munson, M. R., Ben-David, S., Cole, A. R., & Scott Jr, L. D. (2018). Race and gender differences in attitudes toward help seeking among marginalized young adults with mood disorders: A mixed-methods investigation. Psychiatric rehabilitation journal, 41(4), 277. DOI: 10.1037/prj0000312
Munson, M. R., Narendorf, S. C., Ben-David, S., & Cole, A. (2018). A mixed-methods investigation into the perspectives on mental health and professional treatment among former system youth with mood disorders. American Journal of Orthopsychiatry. https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/30507242
Munson, M. R., Narendorf, S. C., Ben-David, S., Cole, A., & Floersch, J. (2018). Integrated, Overwhelmed, and Distanced: Narratives of Mental Health Among Young Adults With Prior Public System Involvement. Journal of the Society for Social Work and Research, 9(3), 413-430. DOI: 10.1086/699223
Ben-David, S., Cole, A., Spencer, R., Jaccard, J., & Munson, M. R. (2017). Social context in mental health service use among young adults. Journal of Social Service Research, 43(1), 85-99. DOI: 10.1080/01488376.2016.1239595
Ben-David, S., Birnbaum, M. L., Eilenberg, M. E., DeVylder, J. E., Gill, K. E., Schienle, J., … & Corcoran, C. M. (2014). The subjective experience of youths at clinically high risk of psychosis: a qualitative study. Psychiatric Services, 65(12), 1499-1501. Doi: 10.1176/appi.ps.201300527

Selected Grants & Awards

2019 MSFHR Scholar awardee https://www.msfhr.org/understanding-service-use-decision-making-and-improving-engagement-among-youth-and-young-adults
BC SUPPORT Unit Patient Engagement Methods Cluster: Co-Pi’s Shelly Ben-David & Skye Barbic: “Bridging the digital divide and opening access to online research opportunities in youth and young adults living mental illness in British Columbia” (2019-2021) https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hA6FalH1AoQ
SSHRC Insight development grant 2018 competition: Shelly Ben-David PI: “Service utilization among youth: Testing a novel decision-making framework” (2018-2020)
UBC VP Research & Innovation- 2018 Collaborative Research Mobility Award: Shelly Ben-David PI: “Youth mental health, identity, and intervention: A collaborative Initiative” (2018-2019)
Fahs-Beck Fund for Research and Experimentation 2016: Shelly Ben-David Pi: “Mental health service utilization among young adults at clinical high risk for developing psychosis” (2016-2017)