The 36th annual conference of the Psychological Society of Ireland was held over the weekend in Derry, the first time it took place in the North.
More than 400 delegates were told of findings from research on a wide range of topics from the experiences of older people and the homeless to the personality profiles of workplace bullies, and the attitudes of GPs towards depression and suicidal behaviour.
The conference was told of research into the effectiveness of drug treatment programmes which used psychological profiles of users to assess the suitability of rehabilitation programmes.
It was carried out in collaboration with the Health Research Board, by Paul Cahill and Brendan Bunting of the University of Ulster's school of psychology.
It profiled almost 7,000 people who went through drug treatment programmes in 2000. "The type of programme upon which the user is put is often as much influenced by outside factors, such as the socio-economic background, as much as it is by the needs of the user, " Paul Cahill said.
He said a "lack of co-ordination" meant that less serious users, or those with "experimental tendencies", can be put on programmes with drug addicts. With more resources programmes could be tailored to meet individual needs.