Psychology

Chae Rose

Lecturer, Psychology
chae.rose@jcu.edu.au

Lucy Bird

Postdoctoral Research Fellow
lucy.bird@jcu.edu.au

Nerina Caltabiano

Adjunct Professor
nerina.caltabiano@jcu.edu.au

Kannan Singaravelu Jaganathan

Lecturer Psychology
kannan.singaravelujaganathan@jcu.edu.au

Janine Lurie

Lecturer, Psychology
janine.lurie@jcu.edu.au

Liza van Eijk

Senior Lecturer, Psychology
liza.vaneijk@jcu.edu.au

Marie Caltabiano

Adjunct Professor
marie.caltabiano@jcu.edu.au

Kerry McBain

Associate Professor
kerry.mcbain@jcu.edu.au

Developing a psychology resource library (TAP Grant)

Klaire Somoray

https://www.jcu.edu.au/library/open/textbook-affordability-project-2024-2025/2024-textbook-affordibility-project-tap-grants

GenAI in the classroom: Transforming Assessment Practice

Brian Law

01 Jan 2025

Social support for perinatal mental health in Northern Queensland: A pilot randomised controlled trial

Brian Law

01 Sep 2025

The Bamboo Parenting Program is an online social support program for first-time mothers in the perinatal period. The program has been designed to prevent and reduce mental illness during this vulnerable period, and by leveraging social support, Bamboo targets one of the most significant predictors of mental health for perinatal women. The program pairs first-time mothers with volunteer mothers or with mother-nominated individuals, with support training provided in program. Pairs work together to navigate the critical and difficult perinatal period. Funding from this seed fund contributes to the evaluation of a pilot randomised trial in Northern Queensland.

The Bamboo Parenting Program: Mental Health Support for Mothers in Northern Queensland

Sam Teague

09 Sep 2025 - 09 Mar 2027

Bamboo is a social support WebApp program for mothers aimed at alleviating psychological distress during the perinatal period. The project involves a randomised pilot trial of Bamboo in a sample of mothers from Northern Queensland. The project will be undertaken across the 2025 calendar year.

Leveraging AI simulations for allied health education: Pilot study for Psychology

Klaire Somoray

01 Jul 2025 - 30 Jun 2026

IDA (Interactive Dialogue Agent) is a customisable LLM-powered virtual patient simulator with speech capabilities. IDA is specifically designed for healthcare education with built-in safety measures. This project will test IDA with psychology students to determine its effectiveness before expanding to other healthcare disciplines, ultimately providing students college-wide (and university-wide) dynamic and scalable simulations.

Youth Alcohol Use in the Digital Age: Harnessing longitudinal cohort data and living systematic reviews to inform prevention and harm minimisation

Sam Teague

01 Mar 2026 - 28 Feb 2031

Alcohol is a leading cause of disease burden in young Australians aged 15-24 years. The proliferation of digital technology and social media have seen concerning increases in access to alcohol among young people, yet the impacts of this accessibility are largely unknown. This project aims to identify and evaluate the risk and impact of increased access to alcohol on the physical and mental health of young Australians. We will do this through two scientifically rigorous methodologies. First, we will extend a 16-year Australian longitudinal cohort study that has assessed children’s health and development since birth, to create a new, in-depth survey in adolescence. This survey will be co-designed with consumers and partners, and will focus on emerging methods of how young people access alcohol, the influence of social media, and associated patterns of use and alcohol-related harm. The cohort was originally established to identify the antecedents of alcohol use in children and families, and thus has comprehensive data on individual, family, peer and community risk and protective factors that will inform key prevention targets in early development. This work will be complemented by a series of ‘living’ systematic reviews examining the impact of increased access to alcohol use on adolescent and young adult physical and mental health. We will use innovative artificial intelligence software to enable rapid updates as new evidence emerges, and to facilitate more seamless knowledge translation through our leading national partners headspace, the Australian Drug Foundation and ARACY. This project aligns with the key goals of the funding scheme and the Australian Medical Research and Innovation Priorities of: (1) preventative/public health research; (2) priority populations (young people); and (3) consumer-driven research. Results will inform approaches to public health, prevention and harm minimisation to reduce the adverse health impacts of alcohol on young Australians.