Staff profile

Dr Jane Meredith Pierson BSc[Hons] PhD MAPS

Lecturer

Faculty of Health Sciences

School of Public Health and Human Biosciences
Department of Public Health

Melbourne (Bundoora)

 

Qualifications

BSc[Hons] PhD

Membership of professional associations

Member of the Australian Psychological Society

Area of study

Public Health

Brief profile

Current learning and teaching responsibilities centre on the co-ordination of several undergraduate subjects, taken by students studying a variety of courses across the University.  These include subjects which deal with the following: public health nutrition; gerontology; and the integration of evidence into clinical and public health practice. The subject that deals with evidence-based practice is a multi-disciplinary subject taken by most Faculty of Health Sciences students. Current research student supervision responsibilities centre on projects in the areas of nutrition and physical activity, acquired brain injury and rehabilitation, secondary prevention of cancer and psychosocial initiatives for people living with cancer. Current consulting activities include: evaluation of a state government initiative targeting childhood obesity.

Research interests

Chronic disease

- Please contact me to discuss a topic.

Dementia

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Disability

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Healthy Ageing

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Rehabilitation

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Teaching units

Co-ordination, and teaching and learning: HLT2IEP Integrating Evidence into Practice; PHE1BHN Public Health for Nutrition Studies; PHE3IGB Introduction to Gerontology

Teaching and learning: PHE4RMH Research Methods in Health; PHE4AIH Advanced Issues in Health

Consulting

Recent consultancy work and related activities have included: evaluation of the RACGP new training arrangements; evaluation of a state government initiative targeting childhood obesity; membership of

Recent publications

Nava, F., O’Halloran, P., & Pierson, J. (2010). Body image among children aged eight to thirteen and its relationship with participation in sports. Paper presented at a symposium of the International Congress of Applied Psychology 2010 (ICAP 2010), Melbourne July 2010,

Pierson, J. (2010). Data analysis in quantitative research. In Liamputtong P. Research Methods in Health: Foundations for Evidence-Based Practice. Melbourne: O.U.P.

Will, C. M., Rendell, P. G., Ozgis, S., Pierson, J. M., Ong, B., & Henry, J. (2009). Cognitively impaired older adults exhibit comparable difficulties on naturalistic and laboratory prospective memory tasks. Applied Cognitive Psychology, 23: 804–812.

Pierson J. (2007). Book review: Sleep disorders and their impact on public health. Australian and New Zealand Journal of Public Health, 31, 391.

Watts, R., Pierson, J. & Gardner, H. (2007). Coordination of the discharge planning process in critical care. Journal of Clinical Nursing, 16, 194-202.

Watts, R., Pierson, J. & Gardner, H. (2006) An insight into critical care nurses' beliefs about the discharge planning process: a questionnaire survey. International Journal of Nursing Studies, 43, 269-279.

Glamcevski, M. & Pierson, J. (2005). Prevalence of and factors associated with post-stroke depression. Journal of Stroke and Cerebrovascular Disease, 14, 157-161.

Watts, R., Pierson, J & Gardner, H. (2005). How do critical care nurses define the discharge planning process? Intensive and Critical Care Nursing, 21, 39-46.

Watts, R, Gardner, H & Pierson, J. (2005). Factors that enhance or impede critical care nurses' discharge planning practices. Intensive and Critical Care Nursing, 21, 302-313.

Pierson, J. (2004). The ageing brain: Developmental positives, pathology or both? Brain Impairment, 5, ii-v.

Tsang, E. Y. L., Liamputtong, P. & Pierson, J. (2003). The views of older Chinese people in Melbourne about their quality of life. Ageing and Society, 24, 51-74.

Pierson, J. (2002). Book review: A handbook of quantitative methods. Australian and New Zealand Journal of Public Health. Vol. 26, issue 4.

Kemp A.H., Pierson, J.M. & Helme, R.D. (2001). Quantitative EEG (QEEG) changes induced by odour detection and identification tasks: age related effects. Archives of Gerontology and Geriatrics, 33, 95-107.

Pierson, J., Goldman, S., Peterson, C., and Yaxley, L. (2001) Evaluation of patient treatment form for supervisors and registrars. Royal Australian College of General Practitioners, Melbourne.

Jasper, A., Peterson, C., Goldman, S., and Pierson, J. (2000). A pilot study to measure the level of registrar consultation and educational activity. An Outcomes Evaluation Unit publication, The Royal Australian College of General Practitioners, Melbourne.

 

Older publications

Pierson, J. M. (1999). Brain Damage. In: Psychology and Social Care, Messer, D.J., Jones, F. Jessica Kingsley Publishers.

Seal, E.C.J., Van Hintum C.J.A., Pierson J.M. & Helme R.D. (1998). Quantitative electroencephalography with serial subtraction and odour detection in the differentiation of Alzheimer's Disease and Vascular Dementia. Archives of Gerontology and Geriatrics, 27: 115-126

Widagdo, M.M., Pierson, J.M., & Helme R.D. (1998). Age-related changes in QEEG during quantitative tasks. International Journal of Neuroscience, 95:63-75.

Pierson, J. M. (1995). Brain damage. In: D. Messer and C. Meldrum (Eds.) Psychology for nurses and health care professionals. Prentice Hall/Harvester Wheatsheaf, pp. 211-226.

Mattingley, J. B., Pierson, J. M., Bradshaw, J. L., Phillips, J. G., &.Bradshaw, J. A. (1993). To see or not to see?: The effects of visible and invisible cues on line bisection judgements in unilateral neglect. Neuropsychologia, 31, 1201-1215.

Bradshaw, J. L., Phillips J., Dennis, C., Mattingley, J. B., Andrewes, D., Chiu, E., Pierson, J. M. & Bradshaw, J. A. (1992). Initiation and control of movement in those suffering from and at risk of developing Huntington's disease. Journal of Clinical and Experimental Neuropsychology, 14, 179-192.

Bradshaw J. L., Howard, M. J., Pierson, J. M. & Bradshaw, J. A. (1992). Effects of expectancy and attention in vibrotactile choice reaction time tasks. Quarterly Journal of Experimental Psychology, 44A, 509-528.

Pierson, J. M., Bradshaw, J. L., Meyer, T., Howard, M. & Bradshaw, J. A. (1991). Direction of gaze during vibrotactile choice reaction time tasks. Neuropsychologia, 29, 925-928.

Pierson-Savage, J. M., Bradshaw, J. L., Bradshaw, J. A. & Nettleton, N. C. (1988). Vibrotactile reaction times in unilateral neglect The effects of hand location, rehabilitation and eyes open/closed. Brain, 111, 1531-1545.

Bradshaw, J. L., Pierson-Savage, J. M. & Nettleton, N. C. (1988). Hemispace asymmetries. In H. A. Whitaker (Ed.) Contemporary Reviews in Neuropsychology. New York Springer-Verlag, pp. 1-35.

Wood, R. G., Bradshaw, J. L., Pierson-Savage, J. M., Nettleton N. C. & Bradshaw, J. A. (1988).  Vibrotactile stimulator for use with patients suffering from hemineglect. Medical and Biological Engineering and Computing, 26, 207-212.

Bradshaw, J. L., Bradshaw, J. A., Pierson-Savage, J. M. & Nettleton, N. C. (1988)  Overt and covert attention and vibrotactile reaction times Gaze direction, spatial compatibility and hemispatial asymmetry. Canadian Journal of Psychology, 42, 44-56.

Pierson-Savage, J. M., Bradshaw, J. L., Nettleton, N. C. & Bradshaw, J. A. (1988).  Vibrotactile reaction times as a quantitative assessment of aspects of unilateral neglect. In G. R. Gates (Ed.) Proceedings of the Twelfth Annual Brain Impairment Conference Developmental Neuropsychology, 12, 225-239. The Australian Society for the Study of Brain Impairment, Bethesda Hospital, Melbourne.

Bradshaw, J. L., Nettleton, N. C., Pierson, J. M., Wilson, L. & Nathan, G. (1987). Coordinates of extracorporeal space. In M. Jeannerod (Ed.), Neuropsychological and Neurophysiological Aspects of Spatial Neglect. Amsterdam North Holland, pp. 41-67.

Pierson-Savage, J. M. & Bradshaw, J. L. (1987). Mapping of extracorporeal space by vibrotactile reaction times A far-left-side disadvantage. Perception, 16, 283-290.

Bradshaw, J. L., Nathan, G., Nettleton, N. C., Wilson, L. & Pierson, J. M. (1987). Why there is a left-side underestimation in rod bisection? Neuropsychologia, 25, 735-738.

Bradshaw, J. L. & Pierson, J. M. (1985). Vibrotactile reaction times in left and right hemispace Stimulus and response uncertainty and gravitational and corporeal coordinates. In M. I. Posner and O. S. M. Marin (Eds.), Attention and Performance XI: Proceedings of the Eleventh International Symposium on Attention and Performance. Hillsdale, N. J. Erlbaum, pp. 221-237.

Bradshaw, J. L., Nathan, G., Nettleton, N. C., Pierson, J. M. & Wilson, L. E. (1983). Head and body space to left and right III: Vibrotactile stimulation and sensory and motor components. Perception, 12, 651-661.   Pierson, J. M., Bradshaw, J. L. & Nettleton, N. C. (1983). Head and body space to left and right, front and rear I: Unidirectional competitive auditory stimulation. Neuropsychologia, 21, 463-473.

 

Research projects

The following projects are being completed by my research (DrPH/PhD) students:

Fernanda Nava - Body image and participation in sport in children.

Christine Bakanis - Experiences of people with multiple schlerosis post-rehabilitation.

Pat Dobson - The development of a network of cancer support groups.

Jackie Behan - Early detection of skin cancer.