Major Research Highlights

The following information is an extract of the ReCAP 2006 Annual Report outlining the major research highlights for the School of Psychology in 2006.

Large US National Institute of Mental Health grant awarded for international collaborative research
The US National Institute of Mental Health awarded a grant of $US 2.4M to a consortium from Washington University, St Louis, the School of Psychology at Curtin and the Queensland Institute of Medical Research for a project entitled "The Molecular Genetics of Inattention in Australia". This project built on a current NIMH grant between St Louis, the Free University of Amsterdam and Professor David Hay and his colleagues at Curtin. This has been using advanced statistical methods and the resources of Professors Hay and Levy's (UNSW) Australian Twin ADHD Project to determine just how many genetically distinct types of ADHD there are. While ADHD is often portrayed at least by the media as hyperactivity, the most common form is actually the Inattentive type where the inability to concentrate is disruptive at home, school and in social relationships and this grant will focus on families where there is a severe form of the Inattentional type. Curtin is identifying the families and overseeing their clinical assessment, while QIMR carries out the molecular genetic work on the DNA from these families.

Sherryl Pope Scholarship from the Western Australian Perinatal Mental Health Research Program
Dr Rosie Rooney, Taralisa Di Ciano and Professor David Hay were awarded a grant of $15,000 from the Western Australian State Perinatal Mental Health Research Program for their project concerning the development of a culturally sensitive group intervention for postpartum women to prevent and reduce postnatal depression. These grants are awarded under the title of The Sherryl Pope Scholarships, in honour of the late Sherryl Pope, an active and committed researcher into perinatal mental health in Western Australia. The purpose of the projects is to guide the delivery and expansion of perinatal treatment services in Western Australia. All research projects give priority to CALD (Culturally and Linguistically Diverse) and Indigenous communities.

Section editorship for prestigious journal

In 2006 Professor Jan Piek was Section Editor for the journal Human Movement Science. This is a prestigious international journal in the field of human movement, with Professor Piek assuming responsibility for coordinating papers on the development of motor control and coordination.

Literacy teaching based on the evidence: What roles can speech pathologists play?
Dr Suze Leitão was invited to be chairperson of the Speech Pathology Australia Literacy Task Group, and authored the submission to the National Inquiry into the Teaching of Literacy. Dr Leitão also represented the profession as a member of the Reference Group of the Federal Inquiry.

Awards to staff for excellence in research
In 2006, staff from the School of Psychology were presented with two awards from the Division of Health Sciences for excellence in research conducted in the previous year. Dr Clare Rees was presented with the New Researcher of the Year Award, and the Australian Twin/ADHD Project won the Research Group of the Year Award. This group included Professor David Hay, Professor Jan Piek, Dr Neilson Martin and Dr Kellie Bennett, and numerous PhD, Masters and Honours students who worked as casual research assistants and volunteers on the project.