People

The Appleton Institute boasts around 30 professional researchers, research students and support staff across a broad range of talents, skills and specialist areas.

Enquiries to the Institute are welcome from all prospective partners, including Australian and international universities, government departments, corporate entities and industry groups.

Academic Staff

Professor Drew Dawson
Director, Appleton Institute
08 8378 4507
drew.dawson@cqu.edu.au

Drew established the sleep research group at the University of Adelaide in 1992, which since then has grown to become the largest behavioural sleep research group in Australia. In recent years Drew has broadened his research interests to include Safety Science, Applied Psychology, Human Factors and Safety Management Systems, and Cultural Anthropology. Having built a broad multidisciplinary team Drew formed the Appleton Institute in January 2012.

Associate Professor Sally Ferguson
Assistant Director, Appleton Institute
Sally.ferguson@cqu.edu.au
08 8378 4508

Sally’s research has focussed on circadian rhythms and how they are influenced by the environment, particularly light. Basic research projects supported by the NHMRC and ARC have focused on the relationship between the temperature system and sleep, and the effects of naps on performance. Sally has also conducted a number of government and industry-driven research and consultancy projects. The majority of these have investigated the effects of hours of work (specifically shiftwork patterns) on sleep and performance, and methods for reducing the fatigue-related risk associated with shiftwork.

Associate Professor Greg Roach
Sleep & Circadian Physiology
Greg.roach@cqu.edu.au
08 8378 4515

Greg is interested in the effects of sleep deprivation on recovery sleep and circadian physiology. He is involved in conducting forced desynchrony protocols whereby participants are removed from any external time cues (such as watches, television and the day/night cycle). Greg has also been involved in the mathematical modelling of fatigue during shiftwork, particularly in the aviation industry where multiple timezones add complexity to the circadian rhythm. Recently Greg has also become involved in investigating the effects of sleep on exercise physiology, working with elite athletes such as the Australian Cricket team.

	Associate Professor Matthew Thomas Human Factors and Safety Systems 08 8378 4509 Matthew.Thomas@cqu.edu.au Matthew has a background in Human Factors, having completed his PhD in the area of training system design in 2000. His research interests focus on human error, non-technical skills, and the design of error tolerant systems. He has an established consultancy and publication record in these areas and is currently involved in a range of projects with industry partners in aviation, healthcare, and rail. He has been developing innovative approaches to simulation-based training and assessment and specialises in the area of Non-Technical Skill development and Threat and Error Management. He has taught in the area of Safety Science and Human Factors in Australia, New Zealand and Singapore.
	Associate Professor Verna Blewett Occupational Health and Safety 08 8378 4511 V.Blewett@cqu.edu.au Verna is an ergonomist specialising in organisational design and management. She researches: the management of occupational health and safety; participative processes at work; organisational culture; organisational change; and power relationships at work, particularly for disadvantaged groups such as refugees, migrants and young workers.
	Dr Sarah Blunden Research Fellow in Paediatric Sleep 08 8378 4513 S.Blunden@cqu.edu.au Sarah Blunden is a Post-Doctoral Research Fellow at the Appleton Institute, specialising in Paediatric sleep. She has spent the past 10 years researching, treating and lecturing on children's sleep both nationally and internationally, as well as delivering education and information sessions to the community, educators and health care professionals. Sarah is recognised as an authority on children's sleep and is widely published in the field.
	Dr Charli Sargent Research Fellow in Sleep & Circadian Physiology 08 8378 4515 Charli.Sargent@cqu.edu.au Dr Charli Sargent is a Post-Doctoral Research Fellow at the Appleton Institute. Since completing her PhD in August 2006, Dr Sargent has been involved in two major areas of research (i) field-based studies examining the sleep/wake behaviour of elite athletes, and (ii) laboratory-based studies examining the relative impacts of sleep, wake and body clock on metabolic function, eating behaviour and neurobehavioural performance.
	Dr David Darwent Research Fellow in Sleep & Circadian Physiology 08 8378 4515 D.Darwent@cqu.edu.au David is is a Post-Doctoral Research Fellow at the Appleton Institute. He is interested in the effects of sleep deprivation on recovery sleep and circadian physiology. He has also been in investigations into the effects of sleeping locations at work on sleep quality, and in the use of mathematical fatigue models.
	Dr Sophia Rainbird Research Fellow in Cultural Anthropology 08 8378 4518 S.Rainbird@cqu.edu.au Sophia is a cultural anthropologist with interests in the themes of risk, resilience and safety in the rail industry and also in forced migration.
	Dr Danielle Every Research Fellow in Social Psychology 08 8378 4521 D.Every@cqu.edu.au Dr Every is a social psychologist in the areas of social change, social inclusion and social justice. She specialises in research on the language of advocacy and anti-racism, the social impacts of immigration, and work, education and health for refugees and asylum seekers. Her work has been published internationally in journals such as the Journal of Refugee Studies, Nations and Nationalism, Discourse and Society, and in edited books, including Language Discourse and Social Psychology, published by Palgrave MacMillan.
	Dr Kirrilly Thompson Research Fellow in Cultural Anthropology 08 8378 4512 Kirrilly.Thompson@cqu.edu.au Kirrilly is a cultural anthropologist with varied research experience and interests. As well as working in ethnography and applied psychology she has experience in human-animal interaction and human factors.
	Dr Jessica Paterson Research Fellow in Applied Psychology 08 8378 4519 Jessica.Paterson@cqu.edu.au Jessica completed her PhD in Psychology in 2010 investigating the consequences of sleep loss and shift work for mood regulation. Since then, Jessica has conducted multiple research and consulting projects with the health care, transport and manufacturing industries. Jessica is interested in the experience of fatigue, workplace culture and psychosocial wellbeing for health care workers and in the relationship between sleep and mental illness. Jess also runs the monthly Appleton Institute Seminar Series, starting in August 2012. Each month (typically on the last friday of the month at 3pm) a guest speaker or Appleton Researcher will present to an Adelaide academic audience. See the news page for more details.
	Dr Xuan Zhou Research Fellow in Sleep & Circadian Physiology 08 8378 4525 X.Zhou@cqu.edu.au Xuan completed his PhD in 2012, focussing on how sleep-wake patterns affect people’s performance capacity. He is primarily interested in research into the human circadian rhythm and response to external zeitgebers.
	Dr Anjum Naweed Research Fellow in Human Factors and Safety Systems 08 8378 4520 Anjum.Naweed@cqu.edu.au Anjum leads four research projects with the CRC for Rail innovation and managing a high fidelity train simulator. His main research activities are in cognitive performance, simulation, and collision avoidance based human factors, particularly in the area of rail operations.
	Dr Christopher Bearman Senior Research Fellow in Human Factors and Safety Systems Program Director - Safety Science Program 08 8378 4514 C.Bearman@cqu.edu.au Chris Bearman's research involves conducting industry-focused studies in laboratory and field settings with the aim of creating results that have both a strong theoretical underpinning and a robust application to industry. This involves working closely with industry partners and government organizations around the world. Chris also supervises a number of PhD, Masters & Honours students in the Safety Science and Human Factors areas.
	Dr Bradley Smith Research Fellow in Human and Animal Psychology B.P.Smith@cqu.edu.au Bradley obtained a PhD in animal behaviour from the University of South Australia. His research focused on the behaviour and cognition in captive dingoes. Bradley remains actively involved in research projects concerning animal behaviour. Bradley joins the Appleton Institute as a post-doctoral research fellow working on a Bushfire CRC funded project – Awake, Smoky and Hot (ASH). The project is a collaboration between CQUni and Deakin Uni, and will investigate the effects of occupational and environmental challenges on volunteer firefighter performance.
	Dr. Marcus Cattani Adjunct Senior Lecturer in Occupational Health and Safety 0439 955367 M.Cattani@cqu.edu.au Marcus has worked in the Safety Science, Occupational Health and Safety, and Environmental profession for over 20 years. His PhD research assessed occupational exposure levels to a hazardous chemical, and the behaviour of the workers which influenced their exposure. Marcus has an ongoing interest in the behavioural aspects of worker exposure to safety and health hazards, leadership influence on workers and how organisations can prevent harm to their workers. He has worked in the mining, chemical and engineering industries as well as an academic and consultant.

Research Support Staff

	Ganesh Balakrishnan Research Officer in Human Factors and Safety Systems 08 8378 4526 G.Balakrishnan@cqu.edu.au
	Jared Grunwald Research Officer in Human Factors and Safety Systems 08 8378 4516 J.Grunwald@cqu.edu.au
	Hayley Etherton Research Officer in Psychology 08 8378 4529 H.Etherton@cqu.edu.au
	Larissa Clarkson Research Officer in Fatigue and Shiftwork 08 8378 4522 L.Clarkson@cqu.edu.au
	Ellie Piggott Research Officer in Fatigue and Shiftwork Research Officer E.Piggott@cqu.edu.au
	Dr Stuart Baulk Communications Coordinator 08 8378 4529 S.Baulk@cqu.edu.au Stuart takes care of all of the online communications materials for the Appleton Institute, including the general and project-specific website, facebook, twitter and LinkedIn sites. He is also involved in develop the Fatigue Risk Management online course which is a component of the Safety Science, Rail Safety Management and Fatigue Risk Management teaching programs.

Administration Staff

	Daxine Waterman Centre Manager 08 8378 4517 D.Waterman@cqu.edu.au
	Lilla Alexander Senior Academic Services Officer 08 8378 4524 L.E.Alexander@cqu.edu.au
	Dayna Roberts PA to Professor Drew Dawson 08 8378 4523 D.M.Roberts@cqu.edu.au