Dr Alana FisherThe Matilda Centre for Research in Mental Health and Substance Use, University of Sydney  Title: Advancing shared decision-making in mental health and alcohol/other drug use conditions Abstract: Shared decision-making is widely-endorsed as the ‘gold standard’ approach to making healthcare decisions. Shared decision-making involves clinicians, patients (and others, e.g., family) partnering together to discuss […]

Dr Jemma ToddSchool of Psychology, University of Sydney  Title: Cognitive biases in pain and health: A dynamic perspective Abstract: It is important to attend to potential threat in the face of danger: doing so may save your life. However, there are plenty of instances when our cognitive bias system can go awry. Individuals with chronic […]

A/Prof Naomi SwellerDepartment of Psychology, Macquarie University Title: I (might!) listen, but I’m also watching: Effects of gestures on learning and communication Abstract: We often think of “communication” as meaning verbal interactions only, or perhaps the effect of a smile or a frown. Less frequently considered are the hand gestures that can co-occur with speech. […]

Dr Oren GriffithsCollege of Education, Psychology and Social Work, Flinders University Title: Effects of non-contingency on learning, attention and effort Abstract: Learned helplessness is one of the most widely recognized findings that psychology has produced in the public sphere. Much of the empirical work on this topic has focused on questions related to how repeated failure […]

Dr Khandis BlakeSchool of Psychological Sciences, University of Melbourne Title: On the causes and consequences of female sexualisation:  A nature/nurture approach that incorporates female agency. Abstract: The last decade has seen an increasing interest in the saturation of popular Western culture by representations of sex. What drives the proliferation of female sexualisation, and is this […]

Dr Laura BradfieldSchool of Life Sciences, UTS Title: Contextual regulation of reinstatement involving choice Abstract: Relapse to substance use disorder, overeating, or other maladaptive actions following abstinence and/or therapy is commonly modelled in animals, however, the majority of these studies employ procedures that are either Pavlovian, or involve only a single instrumental response. Therefore, the […]

Dr Robert HeireneGambling Treatment & Research Clinic, Brain & Mind Centre & School of Psychology, University of Sydney Title: How can we minimise the harms associated with online gambling? Insights from the account data of 40,000 gamblers and a randomised control trial of message prompts Abstract: Gambling online presents several unique risks to consumers including constant […]

Dr Vince PolitoDepartment of Cognitive Science, Macquarie University Title: Placebo or Panacea? Experiences and Beliefs of People who Microdose Psychedelics Abstract: Psychedelics are making their way back into mainstream science. High profile research teams are publishing findings in top journals showing that psychedelics can be used to better understand cognition, perception, neurobiology, psychopathology and wellbeing. […]

Dr Anne SwinbourneCollege of Healthcare Sciences, James Cook University Title: The interface of psychology, natural hazards and extreme events Abstract: The CSIRO/BoM State of the Climate 2020 report delivers an expected message: Australia is undergoing, and will continue to experience, long-term climate change. This will interact negatively with Australia’s preexisting vulnerability to extreme weather events and […]

Please join us this Friday 5 March for a special two-part colloquium: A celebration of the School’s ARC, NHMRC and MRFF grant winners. Join us in congratulating our colleagues who were awarded significant research funding in 2020. The first in our series of laureate talks given by grant winners – Prof Louise Sharpe, who, with co-investigators […]