Staff Research

School of Psychology, Victoria University

Staff Research Areas

Professor Jill Astbury

Professor Dorothy Bruck

Head of Department. BA (Hons), Teachers Certificate (Tasmania), PhD (La Trobe), Registered Psychologist.

Sleep pathology. Factors influencing sleep and sleepiness. Psychosocial aspects of chronic illness. Human behaviour in fires.

Dr Denise Charman

MA (Melbourne), PhD (Melbourne), MAPS, Member of the Colleges of Clinical and Health Psychologists, Registered Psychologist. Chair of the commitee for the Society of Psychotherapy Research.

Clinical and health psychology especially diabetes. Psychotherapy research and issues related to the utilisation of health services, especially primary care settings. Clinical research methodologies and evidence-based practice.

Associate Professor Suzanne Dean

BA (Hons), MA (Melbourne), PhD (Melbourne), MAPS, MBCP, Registered Psychologist.

Clinical psychology including psychotherapy. Family relationship systems especially attachment theory approaches. Aboriginal and other multicultural issues. Learning difficulties.

Dr Michelle Earle

Dr Gordon Emmerson

BSc, MS (SW Missouri State), PhD (Kansas State), Registered Psychologist, MAPS.

Hypnosis. Ego-State Therapy. Pain. Migraine.

Associate Professor Adrian Fisher

BAppSc, GradDipPsych (WAIT), MS PhD (Illinois).

Community psychology (social cognition; psychological sense of community). Independent living and quality of life. Applied social psychology. Issues in teaching and learning. Social identity and social change.

Anne Graham

BA (Hons), MA (Melbourne), Registered Psychologist, MAPS, MBCP.

Clinical psychology - suicidal behaviour. Psychological change processes. Group therapy. Organisational issues in health and welfare contexts. Adjustment to life transitions. Migration and cross-cultural issues.

Heather Gridley

BA, DipEd, MA (Melbourne), GradDipEdCouns (RMIT), Registered Psychologist, MAPS, MBCP.

Supervision of psychologists. Ethics and professional practice. Qualitative and applied research. Women's health. Community psychology.

Jo Grimwade

BA (Hons), DipEd, MA (Melbourne), Registered Psychologist, MAPS.

Examination of the practices of professionals in service delivery from the point of view of the reflective observer. Deconstruction of psychological research programs. Anti-quantitativist approaches to clinical research. The built environment as metaphors of the mind.

Associate Professor Bernadette Hood

DipAppSc (RMIT), BSocSc MLit (Psychology) (New England), PhD (Victoria University).

Psychobiology. Women's health and health service delivery. Anxiety.Sleep disorders.Cognitive behavioural therapy.Teaching/learning in higher education.

Andrew Jago

Henk Jarring

B.A. Monash University M.A. Prelim (H.P.S.), Melbourne University M.A. Utrecht University, Netherlands

Anthy Kapsalakis

BBSc, DipEd Psych, M.Psych (Child and Educational), MAPS, Registered Psychologist.

Developmental psychology. Gifted children. Play and language. Bilingualism. Children's services.

Dr Wally Karnilowicz

BSocSci (FIT), DipEd (Hawthorn), MSc, PhD (Illinois).

Social psychology. Research methods. Disability services delivery.

Dr Gerard Kennedy

DipClinHyp (ASH), Grad Dip Mntl Hlth Sci (Clinical Hypnosis) (Melb), BBSc (Hons) La Trobe, PhD (Psychology) La Trobe.

Sleep and sleep disorders. Circadian rhythms in humans and animals. Health psychology. Anxiety and depression. Academic stress and performance. Human relations and romantic attachment. Alcohol and drug abuse.

Dr Marion Kostanski

BA DipEd BEd (Counselling), MPsych (Monash), MAPS, Registered Psychologist. Psychosocial development. Dysfunctional eating behaviours. Psychotherapy and counselling processes. Interpersonal and group dynamics.

Romana Morda

BBSc (La Trobe), Dip Ed Psych (Monash), M.Psych (Monash), MAPS, Registered Psychologist

Developmental psychology - especially social development of children and adolescents, children with disabilities. Leadership. Delivery of early childhood services.

Professor Sandra Lancaster

Dr Keis Ohtsuka

BA, MA (Sophia), PhD (Illinois), MAPS, Registered Psychologist.

Cognitive/psychology instruction and learning. Reading comprehension. Textual mental models. Reader inference and question asking. Bilingualism and memory. Cultural awareness and appreciation. Decision-making processes in risk-taking behaviours (such as gambling or the use of drugs).

Dr Jenni Rice

BBSc(Hons), PhD (La Trobe), Registered Psychologist, MAPS.

Social and clinical psychology. Psychology of adoption and foster care. Psychology of gender & feminist psychology. Environmental psychology. Health Psychology. Research methods.

Associate Professor Jenny Sharples

BBSc, MPsych (La Trobe), Registered Psychologist, MAPS, MBCP.

Clinical; community and health psychology. Chronic illness. Women's issues. Cross-cultural issues. Qualitative research methods.