Associate Professor Melanie White

PhD (Queensland University of Technology)

Dr Melanie White is a Senior Lecturer in the School of Psychology & Counselling. Previous appointments include the University of Southern Queensland (Lecturer in Psychology) and the Centre for Accident Research & Road Safety-Queensland (CARRS-Q, Postdoctoral Research Fellow). Her teaching areas incude psychology units related to introductory psychology, physiological psychology, applied cognitive psychology, research design and data analysis, and addictive behaviours. Melanie holds a PhD from QUT in the field of behaviour genetics, where she examined molecular genetic and psychosocial stress interactions on impulsivity in young adults. Melanie’s research program is broadly focused on cognitive function, its development and impairment in young adults and contribution to risky behaviours. In particular, she is interested in the interplay between physiological and psychosocial (particularly stress) influences on impulsivity, executive function, personality, and complex behaviour. Her current studies are investigating these factors with risk perceptions, risky behaviours (including substance use and addiction), message effectiveness, emotional processing, learning, and driving behaviour, in both non-clinical and clinical (e.g., ADHD) populations. Research Grants & Awards 2013   Churchill Fellowship awarded by the Winston Churchill Memorial Trust. White, M.J.  Genetic Markers of Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder and Substance Abuse – Brazil. 2012: Wishlist Sunshine Coast Health Foundation grant: Benton, E., Mulgrew, K., Sharman, R., White, M.J. Effectiveness of an Attention Bias Modification program in reducing pain-related attentional biases and improving clinical outcomes in patients with persistent pain ($19,976) 2012: IHBI Centre for Youth Substance Abuse Research (CYSAR) Research Development Grant Scheme: White, M.J. & Voisey, J. Young adults’ cannabis use and mental health: Identifying and quantifying gene-gene-environment risk and protective influences ($14,940) 2011: Queensland Injury Prevention Council (PhD scholarship for student Sherrie-Anne Kaye) Individual differences in processing and accepting persuasive safe driving messages ($30,000) 2010: NRMA-ACT Road Safety Trust project grant: White, M.J. & Titchener, K. Reducing optimism bias in young novice drivers: the potential of accountability or insight experience interventions ($40,000) 2010: VicRoads industry funds to supplement NRMA-ACT Road Safety Trust grant: White, M.J. & Titchener, K. Reducing optimism bias in young novice drivers: the potential of accountability or insight experience interventions ($29,000) 2009: QUT Early Career Researcher Seeding Grant: White, M.J. Physiological, psychosocial and cognitive influences on driving: A simulator-based pilot study of executive function and stress effects in young adults ($9,927) 2008: QUT Institution of Health and Biomedical Innovation (IHBI) Injury Prevention & Rehabilitation seeding grant: White, M.J.  Young adults with ADHD at risk: parent observations of road behaviour and related risky behaviour contexts ($5,000) 2008: QUT Centre for Accident Research and Road Safety-Queensland (CARRS-Q) seeding grant: White, M.J. Young adults with ADHD on the road: a qualitative analysis of driving and motorcycle riding incident narratives($3,620)

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