Meet postdoctoral fellow, Dr. James Clay
Dr. James M. Clay is a Postdoctoral Research Fellow in the Department of Community Health and Epidemiology, collaborating closely with Dr. Mark Asbridge. Originally from the United Kingdom, Dr. Clay’s academic journey is marked by a deep commitment to interdisciplinary research and a drive to address pressing public health challenges. He completed his undergraduate and postgraduate studies in the UK, earning a BSc with first-class honors in Human Physiology and an MRes in Science from the University of Portsmouth, followed by an MSc in Social Research Methods at the University of Southampton. His doctoral work, also at Portsmouth as part of the ESRC (Economic and Social Research Council) South Coast Doctoral Training Partnership, focused on impulse control, stress, and alcohol use across acute, chronic, and lifetime stress exposures.
Dr. Clay’s interest in community health and epidemiology emerged as he became increasingly focused on population-level alcohol harms and the policy levers that can reduce them. In 2021, while completing his PhD, he received a UKRI/Mitacs Globalink Research Award, which supported his first collaboration with the Canadian Institute for Substance Use Research (CISUR) at the University of Victoria. This experience introduced him to Canadian alcohol policy research and ultimately led him to Canada, where he now works across Dalhousie University and CISUR, evaluating alcohol policy, advancing health equity, and exploring the broader relationship between alcohol and health.
Q: Can you describe your academic journey and how it shaped your approach to research?
My academic path has been interdisciplinary from the start. Training in physiology, psychology, and social research methods has given me a broad perspective on health and behavior. I combine behavioral science, population health, and advanced quantitative methods to examine alcohol consumption and harms across the life course. Open science principles—transparent workflows, preregistration, and reproducible analysis—are central to my work. This blend of disciplines and practices allows me to investigate how individual characteristics interact with broader structural and policy environments, ensuring that my research is both rigorous and relevant to real-world challenges.
Q: What are your primary research interests, and how do they connect to departmental strengths?
My research focuses on alcohol policy, alcohol and health, and the behavioral and structural determinants of alcohol use across the lifespan. I’m particularly interested in how psychological processes such as stress and self-regulation, as well as social and policy environments, influence drinking behavior, health trajectories, and health equity. This includes work on minimum unit pricing, the Canadian Guidance on Alcohol and Health, and other policy levers that impact consumption, emergency department visits, hospitalizations, and mortality.
My work aligns closely with the department’s strengths in health equity and data health systems. I use linked administrative health records, large national surveys, and advanced quantitative methods to model population-level risk and evaluate the impact of pricing reforms and other alcohol policies. I also maintain a parallel line of research on alcohol determinants, drawing on ecological momentary assessment, psychophysiology, and behavioral data to understand how stress and self-control processes contribute to drinking in daily life.
Q: Can you share an example of a project that addressed a community-identified need or structural determinant of health?
One project that stands out is my recent review of minimum unit pricing (MUP) and health equity. This work responded directly to community and policy concerns about how price regulation affects vulnerable groups. By synthesizing international evidence, the project highlighted who benefits most from MUP and how structural factors shape policy impacts. The findings have informed ongoing provincial policy conversations, demonstrating the importance of evidence-based approaches to alcohol regulation and their potential to reduce health disparities.
Q: What awards or recognitions have you received, and what do they mean to you?
I’ve received several research and teaching awards, including the University of Victoria Presidents Fellowship in Research Enriched Teaching, which supported the redevelopment of PSYC 345A: Drugs and Behaviour. My research has been recognized with a Top 1 Percent Most Cited Paper award from UVic, #1 Most Accessed and #3 Most Cited Paper of 2024 in the Journal of Studies on Alcohol and Drugs, and a Top 10 Most Cited Article of 2023 in Infant and Child Development. I’ve also been nominated for the Excellence in Research Award at Dalhousie. These honours affirm the rigor and policy relevance of my work and reinforce my commitment to transparent, impactful research.
Q: How do you approach knowledge translation and ensure your research reaches relevant stakeholders?
I prioritize clear and accessible knowledge mobilization through policy briefs, public-facing summaries, and targeted presentations to governmental and community partners. My work has informed policy discussions in British Columbia and internationally, including briefings to the BC Government, health authorities, and community organizations such as the Tk̓emlúps te Secwépemc First Nation and the Eastside Illicit Drinkers Group for Education. I also engage in science communication through media outlets, including an article for The Conversation that addressed myths about moderate drinking and the widely held belief in a J-shaped alcohol–health curve.
Q: What are your long-term research goals, and how do you envision contributing to public health policy?
My long-term goal is to develop a sustained, interdisciplinary research program that unites the strands reflected throughout my academic trajectory: behavioral mechanisms of alcohol use, population-level alcohol and health evidence, and policy evaluation. These elements together position me to contribute meaningfully to the department’s mission by producing evidence that reduces alcohol-related harm, supports vulnerable and underserved populations, and strengthens data-informed public health decision-making. Like much of Canada, the Maritimes face significant alcohol-related health burdens, and my analyses can help guide responses that are effective, equitable, and grounded in high-quality evidence.