Dr. Tanya Lazor began her postdoctoral fellowship at the CTN+ in 2023, under the supervision of Dr. Sergio Rueda at the Centre for Addiction and Mental Health. During her fellowship, Tanya has drawn on her training in mental health and behavioural psychology to investigate a behavioural economics intervention to prevent cannabis use disorder among people living with HIV in Ontario who use cannabis.
“I have always been interested in studying mental health and the psychology of behaviour,” said Dr. Lazor. “I completed my BA in psychology and received more in-depth training in mental health assessment and interventions during my Masters in Social Work. My clinical exposure to mental health assessment and intervention sparked my interest in learning more about various aspects of mental health, particularly as it pertains to chronic health conditions.”
Behavioural economics analyzes both psychology and economics to understand why people do the things they do, even if those activities don’t seem expected or rational given the information available.
But getting to where she is today has not been totally straightforward.
“Like many researchers, the path I took to get here has had many interesting (and valuable!) twists and turns,” Dr. Lazor explained.
When she first graduated from university with a degree in Psychology, Dr. Lazor tried her hand at market research, before transitioning to clinical research after two years.
“Supporting clinical research activities in a hospital setting helped me recognize my interest in working directly with patients in a helping role. This is when I pursued my Masters in Social Work. After that, I took on some clinical social work roles, always splitting my time between these roles and my clinical research activities,” she said.
Knowing that she wanted her future career to involve a combination of both social work and research, Dr. Lazor embarked on her PhD in Health Services Research at the University of Toronto and her subsequent postdoctoral fellowship at the CTN+.
“Each of these experiences have exposed me to different research methodologies and improved my understanding of how a clinical research project moves from initiation through to completion and knowledge translation.”
During her time with the CTN+, Dr. Lazor is taking an existing behavioural economics intervention, which has already been shown to effectively mitigate substance use behaviours, and adapting it for use among people receiving HIV care in Ontario who have self-identified problematic cannabis use.
But why this project?
“I have previously explored mental health outcomes among people living with other chronic health conditions and so a better understanding of mental health outcomes among people living with HIV was a seamless next step,” said Dr. Lazor.
She explained that using cannabis for symptom management is commonly reported by people living with HIV, making her research particularly relevant in Canada, where cannabis has been legalized for recreational use.
“I am interested in gaining a better understanding of the impacts of cannabis use on mental health outcomes in this group, and exploring effective, accessible interventions for people looking to mitigate use that they feel is problematic,” Dr. Lazor continued.
In all, Dr. Lazor’s goal with this postdoctoral project is to explore the intervention’s feasibility, including mode of administration, recruitment strategies, retention, and adherence. Pre- and post-intervention assessments will capture any changes in cannabis use and mental health outcomes, and the ultimate findings will help determine whether the chosen intervention can be evaluated on a larger scale with the overall aim of mitigating the development of cannabis use disorder.
In addition to finding an intervention that will best benefit people living with HIV who self-identify as having a cannabis use problem, this CTN+ project forms part of a larger picture for Dr. Lazor and her career as a whole.
“I am focused on securing a role as a Clinician Scientist, and with every project, I see an opportunity for more learning. I plan to apply my learnings from my postdoctoral project to future studies that expand on the findings and contribute to the growing body of research in this field,” she said. “Beyond that, I hope to effectively engage in knowledge translation and exchange strategies in a way that connects my research findings with those who need it most, to maximize the impact of my work.”
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Applications are currently being accepted for the 2025/26 Postdoctoral Fellowship Awards competition. Click here to find out more.
Written By:
Hannah Branch
Ms. Hannah Branch joined the communications department in the fall of 2019. She holds a degree in Human Biology from the University of Birmingham and has over eight years’ experience working in science and health. Starting her career as commissioning editor of two medical journals, Hannah has since worked in other medical communications and PR roles, developing training materials and campaigns across a variety of health care areas.
