Professor Hunter's research takes place at the intersection between mental health and developmental psychology, and applies theoretical models of stress and coping within a social ecological framework to understand the psychological and social wellbeing of children and young people. At GCU, he leads the Child and Adolescent Heath research group, and is a member of the Substance Use research group too. He is an Associate Editor at both Stigma and Health and the International Journal of Bullying Prevention.

Current research interests include violence reduction, loneliness, and mental illness stigma and involve collaborations with Prof Steve Houghton, Prof Pam Qualter, Dr Nicola Cogan, Dr Pamela Jenkins, Dr Bryan McCann, the Mental Health Foundation, See Me, the Scottish Association for Mental Health, and the Scottish Violence Reduction Unit.

Current student collaborators are:

• 2021- Annamae Burrows (PhD funded by GCU). This PhD will focus on how young men ‘do friendship’ and cope with loneliness, with and without alcohol.  [Lead Supervisor: Prof Carol Emslie]
• 2021- Lea Delfmann (PhD funded by Marie Skłodowska-Curie Innovative Training Network as part of the HealthCascade project; based at Ghent University in Belgium). Lea will develop, implement, and evaluate a school-based intervention to promote healthy behaviour in adolescents using a co-creation approach. [Lead Supervisor: Dr Maïté Verloigne]
• 2020- Rebecca Johnson and Rachel Taylor (PhDs co-funded by the Mental Health Foundation). The studies relate to children and young people's mental health, including mental illness stigma experiences of adolescents, how these can be assessed, and how they relate to peer-victimisation.  [Lead Supervisor for Rachel: Dr Nicola Cogan, based at University of Strathclyde]
• 2020- Edith O’Dowd, Pollyanna Valente and Sara Mackey are working collaboratively on DPsych projects focussing on stigma relating to substance use.
• 2020- Fern Copland, Matthew Siami, and Robert Barrett are working collaboratively on DPsych projects focussing on paternal mental health in the perinatal period.
• 2017- Sofia Pimenta’s PhD is examining how young people cope with symptoms of mental illness and how they cope with symptoms disclosed to them by friends.
• 2017- Stefania Pagani’s PhD is evaluating the Mentors in Violence Prevention program in Scottish Schools (studentship co-funded by Police Scotland's Violence Reduction Unit).