(on sabbatical)

Dr. Jinette Comeau

Associate Professor

Phone: 4554
Email: jcomeau5@uwo.ca
Website: http://www.jinettecomeau.com

Academic Appointments

Associate Professor, Department of Sociology, King’s University College at Western University

Adjunct Assistant Professor, Department of Sociology, Western University

Associate Scientist, Children’s Health Research Institute, Division of Children’s Health and Therapeutics, Lawson Health Research Institute, Western University

Education

• Ph.D. Sociology – Western University
• M.A. Sociology – Western University
• B.A. First Class Honours Sociology – Mount Allison University

Teaching

• Sociology 3306 – Investigating the Social World: Quantitative Methods
• Sociology 2205 – Statistics for Sociology
• Sociology 3346 – Sociology of Mental Health
• Sociology 3369 – Building Healthy Communities (Experiential Learning)
• Sociology 4485 – Committing Sociology (Advanced Experiential Learning)

Research

My program of research is closely linked to my personal objectives and commitment to improve the mental health and life prospects of disadvantaged children. Informed by social stress theory and situated within a life course perspective, my program of research uses innovative quantitative methods to investigate 1) inequalities in emotional and behavioural development among children exposed to social and economic adversities; 2) the effects of early life environments on mental health outcomes in adulthood; and 3) the persistence of economic and mental health inequalities across generations. A primary goal of my program of research is to generate evidence to inform policy and program development to reduce inequalities in children’s mental health at a population level.

I am the recipient of the Early Career Excellence in Research Award (2022) and King’s Research Excellence Scholar Grant (2023) at King’s University College.

Grants

Intergenerational Persistence of Mental Health Disparities Related to Poverty: Breaking the Cycle of Disadvantage. Principal Investigator: Jinette Comeau. King’s University College Research Excellence Scholar Grant: $10,000. 2023-2024.

Parental Employment Quality and Child Mental Health: Triangulating Evidence from General Population Surveys. Principal Investigator: Faraz Vahid Shahidi. Co-Investigators: Anne Fuller, Katholiki Georgiades, Jinette Comeau, Arjumand Siddiqi, Gita Wahi, Andrew Pinto. Edwin S.H. Leong Centre for Healthy Children Catalyst Grant Competition: $72,005. 2023-2024.

Childhood Antecedents to Youth Mental Disorders: A Birth-Cohort Study Using Population-Based Health Administrative Data. Principal Investigator: Kelly K. Anderson. Co-Investigators: Jordan Edwards, Jinette Comeau, Piotr Wilk. Children’s Health Research Institute Mental Health Grant Competition: $84,456. 2022-2024.

Intergenerational persistence of social assistance receipt: Pathways of risk and resilience. Principal Investigator: Jinette Comeau; Co-Investigators: Andrea Willson, Kim Shuey, and Tracy Smith-Carrier. Social Sciences and Humanities Research Council Insight Development Grant: $49,952. 2021-2023.

Longitudinal effects of neighbourhood environmental factors on children’s health: Development of the Paediatric Healthy Living Index for Southwestern Ontario. Principal Investigator: Piotr Wilk; Co-Investigators: Jinette Comeau, Anna Gunz, Matthew Meyer; Collaborators: Michael Courey, Eric Lavigne, Brianna McKelvie, Ben Spycher, and Ana Vicedo-Cabrera. Children’s Health Research Institute, Scientist Innovation Grant: $113,940. 2020-2022.

Childhood food insecurity and healthcare utilization in Ontario: A proof-of-concept study using linked survey and health administrative data. Principal Investigator: Kelly Anderson; Co- Investigators: Jinette Comeau, Kristin Clemens, and Salimah Shariff. Children’s Health Research Institute: $10,000. 2020-2021.

Mental health related emergency department use among children in Ontario: A linked population and health administrative data study. Principal Investigator: Jinette Comeau; Co-Investigators: Kelly Anderson and Piotr Wilk. Children’s Health Research Institute: $10,000. 2020-2021.

Selected Publications

Anderson, Kelly K., Clemens, Kristin K., Le, Britney, Zhang, Lixia, Comeau, Jinette, Tarasuk, Valerie, Shariff, Salimah Z. 2023. “Household food insecurity and health service use for mental and substance use disorders among children and adolescents in Ontario, Canada”. Canadian Medical Association Journal 195: E948-55.

Herbert, Laura, Comeau, Jinette, Smith, Carrie, Smith-Carrier, Tracy, Saxby, Christopher, Botelho, Natashia. 2022. “Child maltreatment and economic outcomes in adulthood: A systematic review”. Children and Youth Services Review 144: 106711.

McKenzie, Katarina, Comeau, Jinette, and Reid, Graham J. 2022. “Examining the interactive effects of family- and neighbourhood-level socio-economic characteristics on children’s sleep beyond the effects of residency and neighborhood violence”. Sleep Health 8(5): 458-466.

Comeau, Jinette, Duncan, Laura, Smith, Carrie, Smith-Carrier, Tracy, Georgiades, Katholiki, Wang, Li, Boyle, Michael H. 2021. “The joint association of family-level inadequate housing and neighbourhood-level antisocial behaviour with child mental health problems”. Children and Youth Services Review 122: 105874.

Comeau, Jinette, Duncan, Laura, Georgiades, Katholiki, Wang, Li, Boyle, Michael H. 2020. “Social assistance and trajectories of child mental health problems in Canada: Evidence from the National Longitudinal Survey of Children and Youth.” Canadian Journal of Public Health 111(4): 585-593.

Comeau, Jinette, Georgiades, Katholiki, Duncan, Laura, Wang, Li, Boyle, Michael H. and the Ontario Child Health Study Team. 2019. “Changes in the prevalence of child and youth mental disorders and perceived need for professional help between 1983 and 2014: Evidence from the Ontario Child Health Study.” Canadian Journal of Psychiatry 64(4): 256-264.

Boyle, Michael H., Georgiades, Katholiki, Duncan, Laura, Wang, Li, Comeau, Jinette, and the 2014 Ontario Child Health Study Team. 2019. “Poverty, neighborhood antisocial behaviour, and children’s mental health problems: Findings from the 2014 Ontario Child Health Study.” Canadian Journal of Psychiatry 64(4): 285-293.

Waddell, Charlotte, Georgiades, Katholiki, Duncan, Laura, Comeau, Jinette, Reid, Graham, O’Briain, Warren, Lampard, Robert, Boyle, Michael H., and the 2014 Ontario Child Health Study Team. 2019. “2014 Ontario Child Health Study findings: Policy implications for Canada”. Canadian Journal of Psychiatry 64(4): 227-231.

View my full list of publications.