Child and adolescent mental health

Finding solutions, providing a voice, improving future life outcomes, and lending a calming influence in times of need are at the heart of our research around child and adolescent mental health.

The varied research areas show that child psychopathology can be influenced by many factors, among them genetics, family, social environments, substance abuse issues, and global events such as natural disasters and pandemics.

Solutions may lie in identifying and enhancing mechanisms of change, or in combining psychological treatment with pharmacological treatment.

Displaying the changing face of technology, some researchers even work in developing mobile apps to help adolescents through relationships breakdowns and other moments of heightened emotion.

Other experts work at the interface of Indigenous and Western treatments for mental health, with a pointed aim to reduce the instance of suicide.

National Centre For Youth Substance Use Research

Finding Solutions
Improving Futures
Advocating for Young People

Child and Youth Mental Health Research Group

Aims to improve outcomes for families with children and adolescents with psychiatric disorders.

Professor Christel Middeldorp

Her research interests involve the role of genetic and other familial influences on the development and persistence of psychopathology across the lifespan.

Professor Leanne Hides

A senior clinical psychologist with almost 20 years of clinical and research experience in the treatment of primary and comorbid substance use disorders in young people.

Dr Janni Leung

Committed to conducting high-quality rigorous research to generate empirical epidemiological evidence to inform decisions to prevent addiction-related harms in the population.

Associate Professor Maree Toombs

Maree’s expertise is in the mental health of Indigenous Australians and exploring the interface between Indigenous and Western research methodologies.

Associate Professor Vanessa Cobham

Associate Professor Matthew Gullo

A clinical psychologist and MRFF Translating Research into Practice (TRIP) Principal Research Fellow at the National Centre for Youth Substance Use Research.

Professor Jason Connor

A clinical and health psychologist with research interest in psychological and genetic factors contributing to addiction.

Professor James Scott

James has established a programme of research developing preventative strategies and cost-effective real-world interventions for mental illness in children and youth.

Emeritus Professor Jake Najman

With more than 500 publications to his name and over 14,500 citations worldwide, Emeritus Professor Najman has been one of UQ’s most prolific researchers across his 43 years of continuous service.

Explore our groups

Meet some of our researchers