The University of Wollongong (UOW) is an Australian public research university located in the coastal city of Wollongong, New South Wales, approximately 80 kilometres south of Sydney. As of 2023, the university had an enrolment of more than 33,000 students, an alumni base of more than 176,000 [LC1] and over 2,400 staff members including 16 Distinguished professors.
Pathological lying, also known as mythomania and pseudologia fantastica, is a chronic behavior characterized by the habitual or compulsive tendency to lie. It involves a pervasive pattern of intentionally making false statements with the aim of deceiving others, sometimes without a clear or apparent reason. Individuals who engage in pathological lying often claim to be unaware of the motivations behind their lies.
The classification of mental disorders, also known as psychiatric nosology or psychiatric taxonomy, is central to the practice of psychiatry and other mental health professions.
Psychiatry is the medical specialty devoted to the diagnosis, prevention, and treatment of deleterious mental conditions. These include various matters related to mood, behaviour, cognition, perceptions, and emotions.
Alexander ‘Alex’ Zelinsky, is an Australian computer scientist, systems engineer and roboticist. His career spans innovation, science and technology, research and development, commercial start-ups and education. Professor Zelinsky is Vice-chancellor and President of the University of Newcastle joining the university in November 2018. He was the Chief Defence Scientist of Australia from March 2012 until November 2018. As Chief Defence Scientist he led defence science and technology for Australia's Department of Defence.
The Illawarra Health and Medical Research Institute (IHMRI) is an independent health and medical research institute based in Wollongong, New South Wales.
Vidita Vaidya is an Indian neuroscientist and professor at the Tata Institute of Fundamental Research, Mumbai. Her primary areas of research are neuroscience and molecular psychiatry.
Elizabeth Scarr is an Australian scientist. Her research investigates the chemical changes in the brain associated schizophrenia and bipolar disorder.
Gustavo Turecki is a Canadian psychiatrist, suicidologist, neuroscientist who is a professor at McGill University in Montreal, Quebec, Canada. He holds a Tier 1 Canada Research Chair Tier in Major Depressive Disorder and Suicide. He is the sitting Chair of the Department of Psychiatry at McGill University, the Scientific Director of the Douglas Research Centre, and the Psychiatrist-in-Chief of the Centre intégré universitaire de santé et de services sociaux de l’Ouest-de-l’Île-de-Montréal. He works at the Douglas Mental Health University Institute, where he heads both the McGill Group for Suicide Studies and the Depressive Disorders Program, and is the co-director of the Douglas Bell-Canada Brain Bank.
Sara Dolnicar is a social scientist trained in Austria who researches market segmentation, sustainable tourism, and Airbnb. Since 2013, she has been a research professor of Tourism at The University of Queensland in Brisbane, Australia. She has been recognised by the Republic of Slovenia for her research achievements.
Roslyn Judith "Judy" Wilyman is an Australian anti-vaccination activist who came to prominence following the controversial award of a humanities PhD titled "A critical analysis of the Australian government's rationale for its vaccination policy" by University of Wollongong. The thesis came under heavy criticism from multiple directions, including medical professionals, due to claims within the thesis, including advancing a conspiracy theory whereby the World Health Organization (WHO) and the pharmaceutical industry supposedly conspire to promote vaccinations in the absence of evidence of safety and efficacy. The awarding of the degree created questions about the standards being applied and whether or not the thesis supervisors and examiners had sufficient knowledge to oversee the research, and led to calls for the university to review the doctorate. A number of individuals and medical organisations – including academics and researchers from other parts of the University of Wollongong – spoke out against the findings of the thesis, emphasising the need for vaccinations in order to prevent serious disease; and the University of Wollongong was criticised for a perceived lack of transparency in their doctoral process and an alleged failure to uphold standards of scholarship.
Charles L. Raison is an American psychiatrist and professor of psychiatry at the University of Wisconsin-Madison School of Medicine and Public Health as well as the Mary Sue and Mike Shannon Chair for Healthy Minds, Children & Families and Professor with the School of Human Ecology in Madison, Wisconsin.
Richard Allan Bryant is an Australian medical scientist. He is Scientia Professor of Psychology at the University of New South Wales (UNSW) and director of the UNSW Traumatic Stress Clinic, based at UNSW and Westmead Institute for Medical Research. His main areas of research are posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD) and prolonged grief disorder. On 13 June 2016 he was appointed a Companion of the Order of Australia (AC), for eminent service to medical research in the field of psychotraumatology, as a psychologist and author, to the study of Indigenous mental health, as an advisor to a range of government and international organisations, and to professional societies.
Sharon Anita Robinson is an Antarctic researcher known for her work on climate change and bryophytes.
Justin John Yerbury was an Australian molecular biologist who was spurred to follow a career in biological research when he discovered that his family has the genetic form of motor neurone disease (MND). He held the position of Professor in Neurodegenerative Disease at the University of Wollongong. He was diagnosed with MND himself in 2016, but continued to research until his death from the disease in 2023.
Mary Louise Phillips is a Pittsburgh Foundation-Emmerling Endowed Chair in Psychotic Disorders and Professor of Psychiatry and Clinical and Translational Science at the University of Pittsburgh School of Medicine. As the director of the Mood and Brain Laboratory, Phillips performs neuroimaging research designed to elucidate the neuropathophysiological basis of bipolar disorders and associated behavioral traits.
Judy Agnes Raper is an Australian chemical engineer and was previously Deputy Vice-Chancellor for Research and Innovation at the University of Wollongong. She has served as a National Science Foundation Director and led the Atomic Energy Research Establishment. She has been Dean & CEO of TEDI-London, a new engineering higher education provider since its incorporation in June, 2019.
Lindsay G. Oades is an Australian wellbeing public policy strategist, author, researcher and academic. He is the Director of the Centre for Wellbeing Science and a professor at the University of Melbourne. He is also a non-executive Director of Action for Happiness Australia, and the Positive Education Schools Association. He is a former co-editor of the International Journal of Wellbeing.
Glenda Marlene MacQueen was a Canadian medical researcher and medical college professor and administrator. She was vice-dean of the Cumming School of Medicine at the University of Calgary from 2012 to 2019.
