Psychology at University of Newcastle

16/06/2026

Congratulations Dr Emma Axelsson and PhD candidate Alyssa Quinn, whose paper entitled ‘Infants’ Social Evaluation of Helpers and Hinderers: A Large-Scale, Multi-Lab, Coordinated Replication Study’ has been recognised as the ‘most viewed’ and ‘most cited’ for its publication year in Developmental Science journal. The study brought together 37 baby labs worldwide (collectively called ‘Many Babies’) to see if infants' early social evaluation of helping and hindering behaviours was replicated on an international scale.

Notably, in June 2026, their study was discussed in the prestigious ‘Nature’ journal.

What amazing work with global impact!

Links below to the two papers:
https://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.1111/desc.13581
https://www.nature.com/articles/d41586-026-01727-x

If you'd like to take part in infant research in the Discipline of Psychological Sciences, please contact [email protected]

15/06/2026

Regular physical activity is a powerful, science-backed tool for improving mental health. It actively reduces stress and boosts overall mood. Pictured below are members of Psychological Sciences’ ‘Run Club’ who are practicing what they preach by getting active and enjoying the great outdoors! Looks like a perfect day for a run!

11/06/2026

We are excited to report that Psychological Sciences is involved in the new Global Sport and Movement Collaborative (GSMC) with Assoc/Prof Myles Young being appointed a Deputy Director!

This is a new initiative from the University of Newcastle which brings together world-class researchers, educators, and industry leaders to transform the future of sport, movement, and wellbeing. The GSMC is driving international impact through innovative, evidence-based programs that bridge research, education, and industry. From school classrooms to national health systems, their work is shaping how communities around the world engage with sport and movement.

Psychological Sciences staff and students are encouraged to get involved with the GSMC.. for more information: https://www.newcastle.edu.au/research/centre/global-sport-and-movement-collaborative

31/05/2026

Did you know that just under 0.5 million Australians are living with dementia and 1.7 million Australians are involved in their care? The annual Dementia Australia 'Memory Walk and Jog' raises vital funds for dementia support services and research. This morning, members of the Mind Body lab (MIBO) 'got active to beat dementia' and raised just shy of $2,000 towards this important cause!

28/05/2026

Introducing the newly formed Psychology at Work (PAW) research group. Spanning the psychology subdisciplines of organisational, social, personality, cognitive, cultural, and psychometrics, our aim is to use psychological science to address complex work problems. In today’s get together, our Honours students updated us on their thesis research, and we discussed the range of career/job options available post-honours year. It was a great opportunity to connect, learn about each other’s research, and get some puppy-love from Henry, our PAW mascot!

25/05/2026

Congratulations to Jacob Morrison on his PhD confirmation presentation entitled: “Re-exposure Effects of Naturalistic Stimuli on Memory and Functional Dynamics”. Pictured below with his supervisory team, Jacob’s PhD aims to explore and compare the acceptability, burden, and content validity of a naturalistic episodic memory task with neuropsychological measures that are typically used in Alzheimer’s drug trials. Additionally, his PhD aims to quantify behavioural and neural (fMRI) differences in novel and repeated film viewing of the naturalistic memory task.

A PhD candidate’s confirmation is an important milestone in the progression of their PhD program of research. It is also a great way for Psychological Sciences to hear about the breadth of innovative research that we, as a discipline, undertake.

Well done Jacob on reaching this important milestone!

21/05/2026

Congratulations to Professor Belinda Liddell on her ARC Linkage grant success! This collaboration between the UNSW Refugee Trauma and Recovery Program (https://www.rtrp-research.com/), the UON Migration Culture and the Mind lab, and Settlement Services International (SSI) will test how low-intensity interventions focused on mental health and wellbeing can be embedded into services to improve settlement outcomes for refugees in Australia. It will focus on the psychological mechanism of self-efficacy, which has been found to be important in terms of facilitating refugee adaptation during refugee settlement.

19/05/2026

Dr Jay Raman was recently involved in the following podcast, highlighting an important clinical research area. Great work Jay!

You can listen to the podcast on YouTube below.
Or via Spotify or Apple Podcasts (links in the comments)

In this episode of The Applied Mind, I sit down with Dr Jay Raman, a Clinical Psychologist, Senior Lecturer at the University of Newcastle and Founder/Direct...

15/05/2026

Congratulations to Dr Sharon Savage for her recent Dementia Australia award for her project entitled “GREAT for PPA”! This important project is about adapting an evidence-based cognitive rehabilitation program (called GREAT) so people with an atypical type of dementia, called primary progressive aphasia or PPA, can also access practical supports to enhance independence at home. Working with people with lived experience of PPA, families, clinicians, and the original GREAT team, the task over the next 3 years will be to create new versions of the resources, tailored to different PPA needs; build an implementation strategy; and then pilot the adapted program to test how well it works out in the real-world. She’s excited to start work on this next month, so stay tuned! More info: Sharon Savage | Dementia Australia

12/05/2026

Congratulations to our very own A/Prof Myles Young who has been awarded Citations for Outstanding Contributions to Student Learning at the Australian Awards for University Teaching! These awards honour the diversity of contributions made to the quality of student learning. For more information: https://www.newcastle.edu.au/news/2026/02/exceptional-educators-celebrated-in-national-teaching-awards