Jacqueline Frei
Jacqueline Frei is a Registered Psychologist and PhD candidate at the University of New South Wales, where her research focuses on the mental health literacy of primary school teachers.
She completed a Bachelor of Social Science (Psychology) at Charles Sturt University, Postgraduate Diploma in Psychology and Master of Philosophy (Psychology) at Macquarie University, and a Master of Psychology (Clinical) at the Australian Catholic University.
Jacqueline has extensive national and international research experience. She recently worked as a Research Associate at Yale University, where she coordinated a multi-site study investigating the use of firearm threat in domestic violence relationships. Jacqueline was previously at the Centre for Emotional Health, internationally renowned for anxiety research, working on various anxiety research programs for close to 10 years, and later joined the Black Dog Institute to work on a state-wide suicide prevention initiative. Jacqueline has also worked in tertiary education since 2015, guest lecturing on Public Health courses and teaching on Psychology, Criminology, and Early Child Development courses.
Jacqueline has also published peer-reviewed publications that explore adult social anxiety treatment, barriers for older adults seeking psychological treatment, and coping in people who self-harm. She has also presented at national and international conferences over the past 10 years. Taken together, Jacqueline has a wide range of research and clinical skills in the field of mental health and anxiety.
Kristy Goodwin
Dr Kristy Goodwin is an award-winning researcher, speaker, author, and mum on a mission to help parents and educators raise happy, healthy children and teens who thrive online and offline.
As a researcher and educator herself, she’s spent most of her professional career researching and speaking about the ways in which technology shapes children’s and teens’ wellbeing, health, and learning. She provides research-based but realistic advice and strategies to teachers and parents on how they can teach their children to use technology in productive and purposeful ways without reverting to phone bans or constant digital detoxes.
She authored the book Raising Your Child in a Digital World and has conducted numerous evaluations and research studies for the New South Wales Department of Education and Communities. Prior to becoming a speaker and consultant, she worked as an educator for 14 years with schools in both the public and private sectors. She also lectured at Macquarie University and University of Notre Dame and have completed a PhD on the impact of digital technologies.
Phil Tam
Dr. Philip Tam is a child psychiatrist, writer and researcher, currently in private practice in Sydney.
Originally from the UK, he has been a consultant child psychiatrist for 18 years, and is regarded as a leading authority in the emerging field of internet addiction in young people. He has over 25 publications, including book chapters and review articles, in leading national and international academic journals, and contributes regularly in the Media on various topics within child psychiatry and wellbeing. Dr. Tam is currently involved in a range of projects aimed at addressing internet addiction in young people, and is a member of the American Psychiatric Association's 'international working group' which is looking to classify Gaming Disorder as a mental-health condition. He is very proud and privileged to regularly and closely consult and collaborate with the team at The Research Institute for Children and Adolescents.
Emily Thorne
Emily Thorne is a registered psychologist, currently working within the private education sector.
With a Bachelor of Psychology (Honours) at Curtin University, and post-graduate studies in autism and education from the University of Western Australia, she is interested in helping people and systems to provide safe, supportive environments for all. Previous experience within child protection as a psychologist has contributed to her passion for incorporating attachment focused strategies into her work with children and families, particularly utilising the Circle of Security Parenting intervention as a registered facilitator. She is passionate about supporting and empowering parents to do their best during the journey that is raising little people and acknowledges the enduring role that school staff have in motivating the next generation.
Dianne Vella-Brodrick
Professor Dianne Vella-Brodrick (PhD) holds the Gerry Higgins Chair in Positive Psychology and is Deputy Director and Head of Research at the Centre for Wellbeing Science at the Melbourne Graduate School of Education, University of Melbourne.
She is a registered psychologist and Member of the Australian Psychological Society and College of Health Psychologists. She is also trained in sport psychology and coaching. Dianne is the inaugural Director of the Master of Applied Positive Psychology program and she founded the Positive Psychology Network in Australia. She is a Fellow of the International Positive Psychology Association (IPPA) and a member of the IPPA Council of Advisors. She was an inaugural Editor in Chief of the Psychology of Well-Being: Theory, Research and Practice journal (2011-2016) and has Co-Directed three positive psychology and well-being conferences. Dianne’s research interests include the development and evaluation of well-being programs particularly for young people in schools and for those in high performance environments. Emerging research programs being developed by Dianne also include how nature connectedness can restore wellbeing, and ways in which young people define and strive for success and how this affects their mental health. She adopts the latest technological innovations, co-design methods and biological indices to measure and promote wellbeing. Dianne has been involved in the development of numerous well-being measures and programs including the Wuzzup app, MoodPrism, Bio-Dash and Wellbeing Profiler. She has served as the Ethics Chair at the Melbourne Graduate School of Education (2014 – 2020) and is a keen educator in best practice standards.
Madeleine I. Fraser
Dr Madeleine I. Fraser is a Registered Clinical Psychologist and Senior Lecturer at Australian Catholic University (ACU, Strathfield campus). She specialises in the clinical application and research of self-compassion.
Dr Madeleine Fraser's research interests are in the areas of clinical and health psychology. She is passionate about self-compassion and cultivating a healthy and supportive way of relating to oneself, as opposed to harsh self-criticism. Madeleine completed the Doctorate of Clinical Psychology and Masters of Philosophy at Macquarie University and a Ph.D. at the University of Sydney titled “Self-Compassion in Adolescence: A Protective Psychological Framework for Relating to Oneself”. She more recently completed the Graduate Certificate of Higher Education at ACU. Madeleine is an active researcher of the Healthy Brain and Mind Research Centre.
Since 2015, Madeleine has been a full-time academic at ACU. She supervisors Honours, Masters and Ph.D. research projects in topics related to clinical psychology and with a particular focus on self-compassion. She is currently the course co-ordinator of the Clinical Masters in Psychology Program, responsible for the training of future generations of clinical psychologists. Madeleine was the recipient of the 2017 APS Sydney Branch Outstanding Lecturer in Psychology Award and was awarded the 2019 APS Early Career Teaching Award. Madeleine is a registered psychologist with clinical endorsement and a PsyBA accredited supervisor. She also maintains a small private practice, providing psychological assessment and treatment to members of the community.