Zachary Cohen
@depressionlab.bsky.social
assistant prof. Personalized Treatment Lab @uarizona clinical psychology, intervention science. Precision Mental Health/Digital Therapy. Dad+Husband. He/him.
Pinned
Zachary Cohen
@depressionlab.bsky.social
· Dec 17
Interpretation Issues With the Patient Health Questionnaire Instructions
This survey study assesses whether responses to the Patient Health Questionnaire reflect symptom frequency and severity.
jamanetwork.com
1/n Out today in @jamapsychiatry.com: Interpretation Issues With the Patient Health Questionnaire Instructions. We find troubling variability in whether people think they should respond based on the frequency of the Sx or the frequency of being bothered by the Sx.
jamanetwork.com/journals/jam...
jamanetwork.com/journals/jam...
Reposted by Zachary Cohen
New preprint! We investigate the risk of algorithmic bias (across race/ethnicity, gender, and their intersection) in machine learning models predicting suicide attempts across 3 clinical settings in over 1.2 million patients.
osf.io/preprints/ps...
osf.io/preprints/ps...
OSF
osf.io
February 10, 2026 at 3:52 PM
New preprint! We investigate the risk of algorithmic bias (across race/ethnicity, gender, and their intersection) in machine learning models predicting suicide attempts across 3 clinical settings in over 1.2 million patients.
osf.io/preprints/ps...
osf.io/preprints/ps...
Reposted by Zachary Cohen
⚠️ Despite all the hype, chatbots still make terrible doctors. Out today is the largest user study of language models for medical self-diagnosis. We found that chatbots provide inaccurate and inconsistent answers, and that people are better off using online searches or their own judgment.
February 9, 2026 at 5:08 PM
⚠️ Despite all the hype, chatbots still make terrible doctors. Out today is the largest user study of language models for medical self-diagnosis. We found that chatbots provide inaccurate and inconsistent answers, and that people are better off using online searches or their own judgment.
Reposted by Zachary Cohen
Have you been interested in any of the set theory stuff I've been doing recently? Wondered at all how you can get in on the fun? Here's an R package @nicolasleenaerts.bsky.social and I built called 'setweaver.' This vignette should get you up and running. Yay :)
cran.r-project.org/web/packages...
cran.r-project.org/web/packages...
setweaver
cran.r-project.org
February 5, 2026 at 5:52 PM
Have you been interested in any of the set theory stuff I've been doing recently? Wondered at all how you can get in on the fun? Here's an R package @nicolasleenaerts.bsky.social and I built called 'setweaver.' This vignette should get you up and running. Yay :)
cran.r-project.org/web/packages...
cran.r-project.org/web/packages...
Reposted by Zachary Cohen
Thrilled to announce the Oxford Psychological Networks Summer School (OxPNS)!
This is the first-ever psychological network analysis workshop in the UK, to be held in magical Oxford from June 22-26, 2026.
To apply and for more information, please visit: oxfordpns.com
A brief thread 🧵
This is the first-ever psychological network analysis workshop in the UK, to be held in magical Oxford from June 22-26, 2026.
To apply and for more information, please visit: oxfordpns.com
A brief thread 🧵
February 2, 2026 at 2:39 PM
Thrilled to announce the Oxford Psychological Networks Summer School (OxPNS)!
This is the first-ever psychological network analysis workshop in the UK, to be held in magical Oxford from June 22-26, 2026.
To apply and for more information, please visit: oxfordpns.com
A brief thread 🧵
This is the first-ever psychological network analysis workshop in the UK, to be held in magical Oxford from June 22-26, 2026.
To apply and for more information, please visit: oxfordpns.com
A brief thread 🧵
Reposted by Zachary Cohen
Alison Luchs, who has worked at the National Gallery of Art for 47 years, agreed to learn Gen Z slang and make videos because she wanted to raise interest in the museum’s art.
She never expected to slay. https://wapo.st/45BXc3S
She never expected to slay. https://wapo.st/45BXc3S
January 29, 2026 at 1:01 PM
Alison Luchs, who has worked at the National Gallery of Art for 47 years, agreed to learn Gen Z slang and make videos because she wanted to raise interest in the museum’s art.
She never expected to slay. https://wapo.st/45BXc3S
She never expected to slay. https://wapo.st/45BXc3S
Reposted by Zachary Cohen
Looking for a postdoc in #computationalpsychiatry? Apply here to join an interdisciplinary team and work with a large longitudinal transdiagnostic dataset
postdocs.yale.edu/posts/2026-0...
@RobbRutledge @xiaosigu @DrChrisPitt @PearlsonGodfrey @ACNPorg @YaleMed
postdocs.yale.edu/posts/2026-0...
@RobbRutledge @xiaosigu @DrChrisPitt @PearlsonGodfrey @ACNPorg @YaleMed
Computational Psychiatry Postdoctoral Associate Opening at Yale School of Medicine, Department of Psychiatry
postdocs.yale.edu
January 26, 2026 at 6:21 PM
Looking for a postdoc in #computationalpsychiatry? Apply here to join an interdisciplinary team and work with a large longitudinal transdiagnostic dataset
postdocs.yale.edu/posts/2026-0...
@RobbRutledge @xiaosigu @DrChrisPitt @PearlsonGodfrey @ACNPorg @YaleMed
postdocs.yale.edu/posts/2026-0...
@RobbRutledge @xiaosigu @DrChrisPitt @PearlsonGodfrey @ACNPorg @YaleMed
Reposted by Zachary Cohen
We're doing summerpsych.com again this year!
PhD curious undergrads, come hang out at the CSI lab, help us push forward a project and develop your social science chops Applications are due March 1st:
PhD curious undergrads, come hang out at the CSI lab, help us push forward a project and develop your social science chops Applications are due March 1st:
the Summer Internship
summerpsych.com
January 22, 2026 at 9:39 PM
We're doing summerpsych.com again this year!
PhD curious undergrads, come hang out at the CSI lab, help us push forward a project and develop your social science chops Applications are due March 1st:
PhD curious undergrads, come hang out at the CSI lab, help us push forward a project and develop your social science chops Applications are due March 1st:
Reposted by Zachary Cohen
I kept reading EMA studies claiming to test etiological theories of AUD, but I realized they never actually measured how people experience AUD in their daily lives. So we set out to see what we could learn with existing data.
1/19
journals.sagepub.com/doi/10.1177/...
1/19
journals.sagepub.com/doi/10.1177/...
Seven Symptoms Over Nearly 4,000 Days: Item-Level Variability in the Psychometric Properties of Daily Alcohol Use Disorder Symptoms in Young Adult Drinkers - Kevin M. King, Dahyeon Kang, Megan E. Schu...
People experience symptoms of alcohol use disorders (AUD) in their daily lives, including more impairment-based symptoms (e.g., hazardous use, interpersonal pro...
journals.sagepub.com
January 19, 2026 at 8:21 PM
I kept reading EMA studies claiming to test etiological theories of AUD, but I realized they never actually measured how people experience AUD in their daily lives. So we set out to see what we could learn with existing data.
1/19
journals.sagepub.com/doi/10.1177/...
1/19
journals.sagepub.com/doi/10.1177/...
Reposted by Zachary Cohen
If our theories have to do with people's daily experience then we really need to know how well we're measuring daily experience.
So we need more of what Kevin's team is doing here! Just because your item has the right words in it doesn't mean you know what it measures, or how well.
So we need more of what Kevin's team is doing here! Just because your item has the right words in it doesn't mean you know what it measures, or how well.
I kept reading EMA studies claiming to test etiological theories of AUD, but I realized they never actually measured how people experience AUD in their daily lives. So we set out to see what we could learn with existing data.
1/19
journals.sagepub.com/doi/10.1177/...
1/19
journals.sagepub.com/doi/10.1177/...
Seven Symptoms Over Nearly 4,000 Days: Item-Level Variability in the Psychometric Properties of Daily Alcohol Use Disorder Symptoms in Young Adult Drinkers - Kevin M. King, Dahyeon Kang, Megan E. Schu...
People experience symptoms of alcohol use disorders (AUD) in their daily lives, including more impairment-based symptoms (e.g., hazardous use, interpersonal pro...
journals.sagepub.com
January 19, 2026 at 9:52 PM
If our theories have to do with people's daily experience then we really need to know how well we're measuring daily experience.
So we need more of what Kevin's team is doing here! Just because your item has the right words in it doesn't mean you know what it measures, or how well.
So we need more of what Kevin's team is doing here! Just because your item has the right words in it doesn't mean you know what it measures, or how well.
Reposted by Zachary Cohen
We're hiring! The Computational Clinical Science Lab @ Yale is seeking a full-time lab manager/research coordinator to start in early summer 2026.
For more information about the position and to apply: forms.gle/LtQwVgPUfaGk...
Please share widely & consider applying!
For more information about the position and to apply: forms.gle/LtQwVgPUfaGk...
Please share widely & consider applying!
forms.gle
January 13, 2026 at 4:45 PM
We're hiring! The Computational Clinical Science Lab @ Yale is seeking a full-time lab manager/research coordinator to start in early summer 2026.
For more information about the position and to apply: forms.gle/LtQwVgPUfaGk...
Please share widely & consider applying!
For more information about the position and to apply: forms.gle/LtQwVgPUfaGk...
Please share widely & consider applying!
Reposted by Zachary Cohen
Interested in research on depression in youth? New opening for a full-time research assistant in our lab (webbslab.com) to work on a range of projects focused on the causes & treatment of depression in teens. Come join our growing lab. Please RT and share! Apply⬇️
webbslab.com/job-postings
webbslab.com/job-postings
January 9, 2026 at 9:28 PM
Interested in research on depression in youth? New opening for a full-time research assistant in our lab (webbslab.com) to work on a range of projects focused on the causes & treatment of depression in teens. Come join our growing lab. Please RT and share! Apply⬇️
webbslab.com/job-postings
webbslab.com/job-postings
Reposted by Zachary Cohen
Here is NIMH
There were 51% as many new R01s in FY25 as in FY24.
Note the large increase in RF1 multi-year awards.
10/n
There were 51% as many new R01s in FY25 as in FY24.
Note the large increase in RF1 multi-year awards.
10/n
October 1, 2025 at 4:08 PM
Here is NIMH
There were 51% as many new R01s in FY25 as in FY24.
Note the large increase in RF1 multi-year awards.
10/n
There were 51% as many new R01s in FY25 as in FY24.
Note the large increase in RF1 multi-year awards.
10/n
"From Innovation to Implementation: Artificial Intelligence in Cognitive Behaviour Therapy Training and Supervision" New paper led by Roz Shafran, with contributions from a ton of leading experts on AI in mental health (and also, for reasons unclear, me) www.sciencedirect.com/science/arti...
From innovation to implementation: Artificial intelligence in cognitive behaviour therapy training and supervision
Artificial intelligence (AI) can transform mental health care globally by improving the efficiency, consistency, effectiveness and accessibility of tr…
www.sciencedirect.com
January 8, 2026 at 10:26 PM
"From Innovation to Implementation: Artificial Intelligence in Cognitive Behaviour Therapy Training and Supervision" New paper led by Roz Shafran, with contributions from a ton of leading experts on AI in mental health (and also, for reasons unclear, me) www.sciencedirect.com/science/arti...
Reposted by Zachary Cohen
After 5 years of data collection, our WARN-D machine learning competition to forecast depression onset is now LIVE! We hope many of you will participate—we have incredibly rich data.
If you share a single thing of my lab this year, please make it this competition.
eiko-fried.com/warn-d-machi...
If you share a single thing of my lab this year, please make it this competition.
eiko-fried.com/warn-d-machi...
WARN-D machine learning competition is live » Eiko Fried
If you share one single thing of our team in 2026—on social media or per email with your colleagues—please let it be this machine learning competition. It was half a decade of work to get here, especi...
eiko-fried.com
January 7, 2026 at 7:39 PM
After 5 years of data collection, our WARN-D machine learning competition to forecast depression onset is now LIVE! We hope many of you will participate—we have incredibly rich data.
If you share a single thing of my lab this year, please make it this competition.
eiko-fried.com/warn-d-machi...
If you share a single thing of my lab this year, please make it this competition.
eiko-fried.com/warn-d-machi...
Happy new year? www.nature.com/articles/d41...
Point of no returns: researchers are crossing a threshold in the fight for funding
With so little money to go round, the costs of competing for grants can exceed what the grants are worth. When that happens, nobody wins.
www.nature.com
January 5, 2026 at 3:58 PM
Happy new year? www.nature.com/articles/d41...
Flagging the U of A's Provost's Postdoctoral Fellows Program (PPFP) for any ECRs who might be interested...
provost.arizona.edu/provosts-pos...
provost.arizona.edu/provosts-pos...
Provost’s Postdoctoral Fellows Program (PPFP)
provost.arizona.edu
January 5, 2026 at 3:54 PM
Flagging the U of A's Provost's Postdoctoral Fellows Program (PPFP) for any ECRs who might be interested...
provost.arizona.edu/provosts-pos...
provost.arizona.edu/provosts-pos...
Reposted by Zachary Cohen
Cool study in JAMA Psychiatry confirms what many have suspected for a while: PHQ (depression questionnaire) instructions are widely misinterpreted by patients. It is unfortunate that a questionnaire as shitty as PHQ-9 has become so ingrained & ubiquitous
jamanetwork.com/journals/jam...
jamanetwork.com/journals/jam...
Interpretation Issues With the Patient Health Questionnaire Instructions
This survey study assesses whether responses to the Patient Health Questionnaire reflect symptom frequency and severity.
jamanetwork.com
December 23, 2025 at 3:09 PM
Cool study in JAMA Psychiatry confirms what many have suspected for a while: PHQ (depression questionnaire) instructions are widely misinterpreted by patients. It is unfortunate that a questionnaire as shitty as PHQ-9 has become so ingrained & ubiquitous
jamanetwork.com/journals/jam...
jamanetwork.com/journals/jam...
Reposted by Zachary Cohen
Our university press team asked me a few questions in regards to the new chair on Mental Health & Data Science. I sketch a bit of a vision on the importance of transdisciplinary work, and some obstacles to overcome.
www.universiteitleiden.nl/en/news/2025...
www.universiteitleiden.nl/en/news/2025...
Transdisciplinary work is fantastic, but requires dedicated efforts from all sides to understand each other’
Eiko Fried has been appointed professor of Mental Health & Data Science. This combined chair neatly fits the view that understanding complex mental health issues require the integration of statistical...
www.universiteitleiden.nl
December 19, 2025 at 8:18 AM
Our university press team asked me a few questions in regards to the new chair on Mental Health & Data Science. I sketch a bit of a vision on the importance of transdisciplinary work, and some obstacles to overcome.
www.universiteitleiden.nl/en/news/2025...
www.universiteitleiden.nl/en/news/2025...
Reposted by Zachary Cohen
1/ Our paper years in the making is finally out!
TL;DR even very strong effects (d=1.00) can be attenuated by sampling from populations where there is variability in their likelihood of natural improvement (e.g., mild depression cases remitting on their own)
www.sciencedirect.com/science/arti...
TL;DR even very strong effects (d=1.00) can be attenuated by sampling from populations where there is variability in their likelihood of natural improvement (e.g., mild depression cases remitting on their own)
www.sciencedirect.com/science/arti...
Effects of patient response pattern distributions on comparisons of psychosocial treatments for major depressive disorder
The pharmaceutical industry has paid more attention to potential variability in depressed patients' ability to benefit from antidepressants vs. placeb…
www.sciencedirect.com
December 18, 2025 at 3:30 PM
1/ Our paper years in the making is finally out!
TL;DR even very strong effects (d=1.00) can be attenuated by sampling from populations where there is variability in their likelihood of natural improvement (e.g., mild depression cases remitting on their own)
www.sciencedirect.com/science/arti...
TL;DR even very strong effects (d=1.00) can be attenuated by sampling from populations where there is variability in their likelihood of natural improvement (e.g., mild depression cases remitting on their own)
www.sciencedirect.com/science/arti...
Nice writeup of our new study in @jamapsychiatry.com by Kyle Mittan, a colleague here at @uarizona.bsky.social
news.arizona.edu/news/confuse...
news.arizona.edu/news/confuse...
December 17, 2025 at 5:13 PM
Nice writeup of our new study in @jamapsychiatry.com by Kyle Mittan, a colleague here at @uarizona.bsky.social
news.arizona.edu/news/confuse...
news.arizona.edu/news/confuse...
1/n Out today in @jamapsychiatry.com: Interpretation Issues With the Patient Health Questionnaire Instructions. We find troubling variability in whether people think they should respond based on the frequency of the Sx or the frequency of being bothered by the Sx.
jamanetwork.com/journals/jam...
jamanetwork.com/journals/jam...
Interpretation Issues With the Patient Health Questionnaire Instructions
This survey study assesses whether responses to the Patient Health Questionnaire reflect symptom frequency and severity.
jamanetwork.com
December 17, 2025 at 5:11 PM
1/n Out today in @jamapsychiatry.com: Interpretation Issues With the Patient Health Questionnaire Instructions. We find troubling variability in whether people think they should respond based on the frequency of the Sx or the frequency of being bothered by the Sx.
jamanetwork.com/journals/jam...
jamanetwork.com/journals/jam...
Inviting submissions to a new special issue on precision and personalized treatment approaches led by @cherilev.bsky.social and @aaronjfisher.bsky.social! It’s gonna be a fantastic collection so send us your favorite new work :) www.sciencedirect.com/special-issu...
Behavior Therapy | ScienceDirect.com by Elsevier - Behavior Therapy | ScienceDirect.com by Elsevier
Read the latest articles of Behavior Therapy at ScienceDirect.com, Elsevier’s leading platform of peer-reviewed scholarly literature
www.sciencedirect.com
December 17, 2025 at 4:23 AM
Inviting submissions to a new special issue on precision and personalized treatment approaches led by @cherilev.bsky.social and @aaronjfisher.bsky.social! It’s gonna be a fantastic collection so send us your favorite new work :) www.sciencedirect.com/special-issu...
Reposted by Zachary Cohen
Are you working in the personalized treatment/ precision medicine space?
If so my co-editors & I would love to review your work for a new SPECIAL ISSUE in Behavior Therapy on personalization in mental health.
More info here:
www.sciencedirect.com/special-issu...
@depressionlab.bsky.social
If so my co-editors & I would love to review your work for a new SPECIAL ISSUE in Behavior Therapy on personalization in mental health.
More info here:
www.sciencedirect.com/special-issu...
@depressionlab.bsky.social
Behavior Therapy | ScienceDirect.com by Elsevier - Behavior Therapy | ScienceDirect.com by Elsevier
Read the latest articles of Behavior Therapy at ScienceDirect.com, Elsevier’s leading platform of peer-reviewed scholarly literature
www.sciencedirect.com
December 17, 2025 at 1:28 AM
Are you working in the personalized treatment/ precision medicine space?
If so my co-editors & I would love to review your work for a new SPECIAL ISSUE in Behavior Therapy on personalization in mental health.
More info here:
www.sciencedirect.com/special-issu...
@depressionlab.bsky.social
If so my co-editors & I would love to review your work for a new SPECIAL ISSUE in Behavior Therapy on personalization in mental health.
More info here:
www.sciencedirect.com/special-issu...
@depressionlab.bsky.social