Prof Michael Bowen (USYD)Title: KNX100 and other small molecules that could: Developing prosocial compounds for disorders of the brain and mind Abstract: Challenges with social motivation, interactions, and communication are central to many disorders of the brain and mind, and are major barriers to improved functioning in others. For example, in substance use disorders, impairments […]

Prof Ben Newell (UNSW)Title: The many uncertainties of climate change: A psychological perspective Abstract: The one thing that is certain about climate change is that it is happening. The extent of its impacts, our ability to adapt, to mitigate and to plan are, however, all inherently uncertain. This is unfortunate because uncertainty can often cloud perception […]

Prof Andrew Lawrence (Florey)Title: Muscarinic Acetylcholine Receptors as a Novel Treatment Target for Alcohol Use Disorder Abstract: Despite the large socioeconomic burden of alcohol use disorders (AUD), therapeutic treatment options are limited. There is a need to characterise the underlying neurochemistry driving alcohol seeking to identify and evaluate novel treatment targets. To this end we conducted […]

Dr Jelena Brcic (University of the Fraser Valley)Title: Reported Psychological Growth Following Work in Extreme and Unusual Environments: Role of Perceived Stress and Coping Abstract: There are psychological, biological, and sociological constructs that emerge within extreme and unusual environments (EUE) that cannot be studied elsewhere. Post-Experience Change (PEC), which is significantly modelled after Post-Traumatic Growth (PTG), […]

Prof Paul Rhodes (USYD)Title: Eco-psychology: a critical paradigm in the climate emergency Abstract: This presentation makes the argument that mainstream psychological practice is not equipped to respond to distress associated with the climate emergency. This is because the field focusses on individual pathology, rather than ecological context. It remains reticent about activism and politics and […]