Dr. Saijun Zhang is an Associate Professor of Social Work at the School of Applied Sciences.
Research Interests
- Behavioral health
- Child and Family Well-being
- Computational Social Science
- Research Methodology
- Program Evaluation
Biography
Dr. Saijun Zhang is an Associate Professor of Social Work at the University of Mississippi. Prior to joining the university in 2017, he served as a Postdoctoral Research Associate and later as a Research Assistant Professor at the University of Illinois Urbana–Champaign from 2010 to 2017. Dr. Zhang’s research focuses on behavioral health, child and family well-being, computational social science, research methodology, and program evaluation. More recently, his work has emphasized advancing the application of data science and artificial intelligence to social and behavioral health research. He has published extensively in peer-reviewed journals and has led or contributed to numerous program evaluation studies and technical reports. His research has been supported by the National Institute on Drug Abuse (NIDA), the U.S. Department of Justice (DOJ), and other federal and state agencies. His recent work includes research education and data science workforce development in addiction science, school safety and climate improvement, integrated service initiatives addressing substance use disorders and intimate partner violence, and community-engaged research examining the service needs of individuals affected by substance use disorders.
Education
M.S.W Social Work, University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign (2012)
Ph.D. Social Work, University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign (2010)