Sandra Nakić Radoš
She is an Associate Professor at the University Department of Psychology. She earned her diploma from the University of Zadar (2006) and completed her PhD at the University of Zagreb (2011). She was a visiting scholar at the University of Sussex (UK) (2011), received training in cognitive-behavioural therapy, and earned a specialist postgraduate degree in clinical psychology at the University of Zagreb (2013).
She worked at the University of Zadar (2007–2008), then at the Department of Gynaecology and Obstetrics at the University Hospital Centre Sisters of Mercy until 2015, when she joined the Catholic University of Croatia. She was a vice-chair of COST Action on peripartum depression, where she coordinated the development of evidence-based clinical practice guidelines. She is co-editor of the Journal of Reproductive and Infant Psychology. She received the Voya Kondic Award from the British Scholarship Trust (2011), and the Rector’s Award for Excellence in Research (2024).
RESEARCH INTERESTS:
Peripartum mental health, especially peripartum depression and anxiety disorders, birth trauma and posttraumatic stress disorder, mother-infant bonding, peripartum stress, development and psychometric validation of questionnaires.
COURSES:
Theory of Psychological Testing; Conducting Psychological Research; Reproductive Mental Health; Basics of Cognitive-Behavioural Therapy; Preventive Programmes: Preparation, Implementation, and Evaluation
PROJECTS:
2024–2027 Collaborator on the project Uncovering Links between Peripartum Mental and Metabolic Health through Metabolomic and Genetic Analyses (LinkMe) (Croatian Science Foundation)
2023–2027 Management Committee member of the COST Action Maternal Perinatal Stress and Adverse Outcomes in the Offspring: Maximising Infants' Development (TREASURE) (COST European Cooperation in Science and Technology)
2022-2026 Principal investigator (PI) for Croatia of the project Understanding, predicting, and treating depression in pregnancy to improve mothers and offspring mental health outcomes (HappyMums) (Horizon Europe)
2022–2025 Principal investigator (PI) of the project Determinants, outcomes, and interrelation of mental and physical health during pregnancy and postpartum (MumHealth) (Catholic University of Croatia)
2021–today Principal investigator (PI) for Croatia in the international collaboration International Survey of Childbirth-Related Trauma (INTERSECT)
2020-2025 Lead of the Young Researchers’ Career Development Project – Training New Doctoral Students, DOK-2020-01-4127 (Croatian Science Foundation)
2019–2023 Vice-chair of the COST Action Research Innovation and Sustainable Pan-European Network in Peripartum Depression Disorder (Riseup-PPD) (COST European Cooperation in Science and Technology)
2019–2023 Management Committee member of the COST Action Perinatal Mental Health and Birth-Related Trauma: Maximising best practice and optimal outcomes (DEVOTION) (COST European Cooperation in Science and Technology)
2018–2023 Collaborator on the project Influence of maternal metabolic state on placental and neonatal serotonin system: from DNA methylation to protein function (PLaNS) (Croatian Science Foundation)
2018 Principal investigator (PI) of the project Parental mental health and contextual factors as determinants of parent-infant bonding (Catholic University of Croatia)
2017 Collaborator on the project Association between maternal emotional state in pregnancy and placental DNA methylation of serotonin-related genes (Catholic University of Croatia)
2016 Collaborator on the project Relationship between personality traits and ways of coping with stress (Catholic University of Croatia)
2008–2015 Research assistant on the project Postpartum depression – risk factors, early detection and therapy (Ministry of Science, Education, and Sports)
2006–2007 Research assistant on the project Psychophysiological and behavioural reaction to stress (Ministry of Science, Education, and Sports)
