Name
Parres Holliday
Program
Master of Science in Health & Exercise Sciences
Research Supervisor
Dr. Heather Gainforth
Hometown
Cochrane, Alberta, Canada
Awards
- Canada Graduate Research Scholarship – Master’s
- Sir James Lougheed Award of Distinction, Government of Alberta
- Scholars Program, Canadian Behavioural Interventions and Trials Network
- British Columbia Graduate Scholarship
- UBC Okanagan Graduate Research Scholarship
- Bryce Carnine Memorial Prize
Grant collaborator:
- CIHR Planning and Dissemination Grant, Institute Community Support
Please describe your research.
My MSc thesis aims to take the next steps in the co-development of a smoking cessation intervention for individuals living with spinal cord injury. My thesis is based off of previous research completed by Dr. Kelsey Wuerstl as she partnered with Spinal Cord Injury British Columbia (SCI BC) based in Vancouver. Through her work, consensus-based recommendations have been established related to the development of this intervention. This partnership has continued through my thesis research as we aim to create learning tools to support Peer Health Coaches at SCI BC in the delivery of the recommendations. My research aims to co-design a blueprint that will outline necessary elements of both design and content for an e-learning course.
I am inspired by conducting health behaviour research, specifically in the Applied Behaviour Change (ABC) Lab here at UBCO, because of the intention and care that is at the forefront of all Dr. Gainforth’s research. Having the opportunity to not only gain skills in research but to also create meaningful partnerships with people who are directly impacted from this work really excites me! Being able to see the broader implications of my thesis and how it will hopefully help to positively impact the lives of people I have the opportunity to work alongside is not something you see everyday in research (yet)!
Why did you decide to pursue a graduate degree?
I decided to pursue my MSc in Health and Exercise Sciences because I fell in love with the research process while conducting my Honours’ thesis for my BSc (Psychology). I am extremely grateful for the numerous opportunities I had throughout my undergraduate degree to engage with various different forms of research at such a hands-on level here at UBCO. I have always been curious about the ‘why’ and I feel that studying behaviour change will continue to grow my curiosity. I am very passionate about learning in different capacities of my life and taking my education to this next level is something I knew early on in my undergraduate degree I wanted to do; it was just a matter of finding the right fit!
Why did you choose to come to UBC Okanagan?
I initially came to UBCO after completing the first year of my undergraduate degree at a college in Alberta. To be honest, the number one reason UBCO was on my list at that time was because I had grown up coming to the Okanagan in the summer and I thought going to university at the lake sounded like a pretty great option. I decided to stay here for my graduate degree after connecting with Dr. Gainforth, as I felt an immediate draw to the way in which research is conducted in the ABC Lab!
Where do you hope your research will take you next?
I am interested in continuing to conduct research in a setting that is integrated within a health organization or industry. I have really enjoyed all of the skills I have developed throughout my MSc related to behavioural intervention design and development and am interested in expanding my knowledge towards implementation.
Please share a little bit about yourself.
I enjoy being outdoors with my friends and family doing a variety of different activities, hanging out at the lake as much as I can, and reading a good book. I’m always looking for a new way to challenge myself or learn something new; whether it’s a new running route along the lake or trying to hit a golf ball. Oh, and of course touring all the amazing Okanagan wineries!!
What advice do you have for new graduate students?
Be open minded! It’s amazing to have goals and a vision of where you want to be and what you want to be doing, but chances are that will change!! I took a year off after my undergraduate degree and worked as a research coordinator for two fantastic supervisors here at UBCO. This taught me so much about myself and the research I was truly passionate about. It’s taken some time for me to differentiate between research I think is interesting and research I want to pursue a career in. If you had asked me at the start of my final BSc year, I would’ve said a year off was worst case scenario, but now, looking back, it was necessary to get me to the place I am now. Same outcome, different path!