Qualitative research assistant

The USC Maternal Cannabis Lab is looking for students to support coding and analysis on the following qualitative research projects:

1. The experience of females who use nicotine and cannabis is limited, despite the unique health consequences these substances pose for females, and the observed higher rates of use of certain products in this population. As tobacco and cannabis trends rapidly evolve and females report increased use, it is critical to examine the individual and social contexts that contribute to why and how females use nicotine and cannabis. This project uses qualitative interviews (n = 30) to accurately capture young adult female use motivations and patterns of nicotine and cannabis use that are often limited in quantitative studies.

2. Cannabis is the most commonly used substance during pregnancy. Concerns that cannabis may interfere with fetal neurodevelopment resulted in the American Academy of Pediatrics and the American College of Obstetricians and Gynecologists to recommend that people refrain from cannabis during pregnancy. With the increased exposure to unsupported health claims from cannabis retailers and incomplete information about cannabis safety from maternal health stakeholders more information is urgently needed. This project uses qualitative interviews (n = 20) to understand the social environments that contribute to reducing the perceived risks of cannabis use during pregnancy and its impact on maternal health disparities among a cohort of Latina women.

Students will have the opportunity to be co-authors on papers developed from this dataset in future semesters.

· Previous experience with qualitative coding and/ or academic experience with graduate-level qualitative coursework
· Familiarity with qualitative coding software (i.e., ATLAS.ti, NVivo, Dedoose)
· Familiarity with maternal cannabis and/ or tobacco literature
· Willingness to expand theoretical and methodological knowledge
· Strong communication skills
· 4-6 hours/ week minimum
· Ability to work well within a team