Discovery Early Career Researcher Award - Grant ID: DE180100471
Funder
Australian Research Council
Funding Amount
$354,171.00
Summary
Expecting the worst: psychosocial contributors to the nocebo effect. This project aims to propose and test a new model of the nocebo effect, a powerful psychological phenomenon in which negative expectations are thought to cause unpleasant or harmful side effects following an inert treatment. Nocebo effects can lead to treatment non-adherence, unnecessary GP visits, reduced quality of life, and increased health costs. Understanding how nocebo effects are formed will assist in the development of ....Expecting the worst: psychosocial contributors to the nocebo effect. This project aims to propose and test a new model of the nocebo effect, a powerful psychological phenomenon in which negative expectations are thought to cause unpleasant or harmful side effects following an inert treatment. Nocebo effects can lead to treatment non-adherence, unnecessary GP visits, reduced quality of life, and increased health costs. Understanding how nocebo effects are formed will assist in the development of strategies to minimise their occurrence with will benefit both individuals and the health system.Read moreRead less
RCTs on Trial: How Placebo Effects Could Undermine Double-blind RCTs. Double-blind randomised placebo-controlled trials (RCTs) are considered the gold standard for establishing treatment efficacy. However, there are both theoretical and empirical reasons to believe that they do not adequately control for the placebo effect. Cost and ethical considerations prevent researchers conducting actual double-blind RCTs with patients from exploring these issues. To address this gap, this project uses nove ....RCTs on Trial: How Placebo Effects Could Undermine Double-blind RCTs. Double-blind randomised placebo-controlled trials (RCTs) are considered the gold standard for establishing treatment efficacy. However, there are both theoretical and empirical reasons to believe that they do not adequately control for the placebo effect. Cost and ethical considerations prevent researchers conducting actual double-blind RCTs with patients from exploring these issues. To address this gap, this project uses novel experimental models to systematically test key aspects of the double-blind RCT methodology that are intended to control for the placebo effect. The project aims to provide essential data on the validity of these trials, thereby improving Australia's health and ensuring that Government treatment subsidies are well spent.Read moreRead less
Linkage Infrastructure, Equipment And Facilities - Grant ID: LE120100177
Funder
Australian Research Council
Funding Amount
$150,000.00
Summary
A flexible high throughput analytical system for psychopharmacology and drug discovery. A sensitive new liquid chromatography mass spectrometer will enable a team of leading researchers to detect drugs of abuse and therapeutic drugs in the brain and body as well as levels of hormones, peptides and neurotransmitters. This will enhance a large number of projects examining new treatments for addictive disorders and mental illness.
The role of threat expectancy and attentional bias modification in promoting attentional capture and disengagement in acute experimental pain. This study will test the effectiveness of a number of variants of a promising new treatment in changing responses to an experimental pain task, the cold pressor. The aim is to develop a novel treatment, with preliminary evidence for its efficacy, that can be tested as a treatment for the prevention and treatment of chronic pain.
Who may judge a book by its cover? This project aims to build a model of how and why people vary in their impressions of others and in the accuracy of these impressions. People readily form impressions of others from their faces and these impressions influence crucial decisions: election results, court case outcomes and partner choices. To build this model, the project will apply twin data and construct a psychometric test to measure variation in facial impressions. The research is expected to l ....Who may judge a book by its cover? This project aims to build a model of how and why people vary in their impressions of others and in the accuracy of these impressions. People readily form impressions of others from their faces and these impressions influence crucial decisions: election results, court case outcomes and partner choices. To build this model, the project will apply twin data and construct a psychometric test to measure variation in facial impressions. The research is expected to lead to insights into this aspect of social perception, and to identify the sources of atypical or inaccurate facial judgements. This has applications in health contexts (to identify social impairment) and in security contexts (for personnel selection).Read moreRead less
A social cure: how multiple social groups are key to health and wellbeing. Building on the increased recognition that social factors affect both mental and physical health, the research will examine how and when social identities and group membership determine wellbeing. The work is at the forefront of current societal concerns relating to coping with social disadvantage and life-transitions.
Enhancing outcomes for separated families by improving family mediation. More than 100,000 adults and 60,000 children experience family breakdown each year in Australia, which wreaks enormous personal, social, and economic costs. This project aims to develop more effective ways to mediate disputes over shared parenting after family breakdown.
Breaking the cycle of homelessness: an identity change approach to enhance resilience and well-being. This project will explore the factors that contribute to the development of well-being and resilience among those who are homeless. We focus on the importance of social connections in enhancing resilience, well-being and breaking the cycle of homelessness. Findings will inform best practice guidelines and policy in emergency accommodation centres.
Transformations in Human Visual Cortex - from Neural Input to Recognition. Human behaviour is dominated by the visual system. This project proposes to trace the M, P, K neural systems isolated through Red/Green, Blue/Yellow and luminance stimuli to investigate processing for percepts of and attention to colour, motion and form in neurotypical humans. Nonlinear magnetoencephalography (MEG) is intended to provide the temporal structure of the different neural streams that feed these percepts. MEG ....Transformations in Human Visual Cortex - from Neural Input to Recognition. Human behaviour is dominated by the visual system. This project proposes to trace the M, P, K neural systems isolated through Red/Green, Blue/Yellow and luminance stimuli to investigate processing for percepts of and attention to colour, motion and form in neurotypical humans. Nonlinear magnetoencephalography (MEG) is intended to provide the temporal structure of the different neural streams that feed these percepts. MEG based population receptive field analysis from virtual electrodes, will provide information about cortical feedback. A new theory of perception is expected to emerge, incorporating connections with contextual and top-down cognitive processes, furthering basic understanding.Read moreRead less
Discovery Early Career Researcher Award - Grant ID: DE160100864
Funder
Australian Research Council
Funding Amount
$382,536.00
Summary
Something from nothing: how placebo effects are formed and maintained. This project seeks to develop and experimentally test a new model of placebo effects that will unpack how expectancy, control, and conditioning combine to produce placebo effects. The placebo effect is a fascinating and important psychological phenomenon whereby improvement occurs following a sham treatment. Despite considerable evidence for placebo effects across various health, sporting, and educational outcomes, exactly ho ....Something from nothing: how placebo effects are formed and maintained. This project seeks to develop and experimentally test a new model of placebo effects that will unpack how expectancy, control, and conditioning combine to produce placebo effects. The placebo effect is a fascinating and important psychological phenomenon whereby improvement occurs following a sham treatment. Despite considerable evidence for placebo effects across various health, sporting, and educational outcomes, exactly how these effects are formed and maintained remains unclear. Greater understanding of the placebo effect would enable us to accurately evaluate health, educational, and sporting interventions and would facilitate the development of interventions that harness the placebo effect to improve outcomes.Read moreRead less