Kate Mulgrew

Biography

Dr Kate Mulgrew is a senior lecturer in psychology and Deputy Head, Research, of the School of Health and Behavioural Sciences. She has previously worked at Australian Catholic University and Queensland University of Technology as well as consulting with eating disorder support services. Dr Mulgrew currently supervises a number of research students including Honours, Masters, Doctorate, and PhD students.

Dr Mulgrew's primary research interest is the role of social media in body image concerns. She is interested in how social media can both be harmful and helpful to users, and in particular, how positive body image interventions can help to buffer negative media effects.

Professional membership

• Associate Editor, Body Image: An International Journal of Research

Awards

• USC Advance Awards, 2016: AQT award for Advancing Quality Teaching. Awarded for teaching staff and teaching teams who engage students in a quality learning experience by applying rich and engaging teaching approaches that substantially improve students' learning experiences. Awarded to Dr Kate Mulgrew as the team leader and the PSY102 teaching team
• USC Advance Awards for Learning and Teaching: Advancing the Student Experience, 2015, University of the Sunshine Coast

Potential research projects for HDR and Honours students

• The role of attention and memory bias in maintaining dysfunctional health behaviours (eg body image, exercise etc.)
• The effects of the media on males and females body image
• Cognitive factors underlying chronic pain

Teaching areas

• Human Associative Learning
• Personality and Assessment
• Cognitive and Perceptual Psychology

Expert Media Commentary

Dr Kate Mulgrew's specialist areas of knowledge include health psychology (body image, diet, exercise, eating disorders) and cognitive psychology (biased attention and memory in body image and chronic pain).