Ciara Mahon

Dr. Ciara Mahon serves as an Assistant Professor at Dublin City University's School of Psychology, where her research focuses on body image, self-compassion, and youth mental health interventions. She leads multistakeholder projects including large-scale school-based trials to address adolescent body image concerns through evidence-based programmes.

Her academic journey includes an Honours BA in Psychology from Trinity College Dublin, where she received the prestigious Trinity College Foundation Scholarship, followed by a PhD from Trinity College Dublin investigating social media's impact on adolescent body image and self-compassion's protective role.

Mahon's research explores factors fostering positive body image across the lifespan, with emphasis on intervention design for eating disorder prevention and social media-related mental health challenges. Her work integrates clinical psychology with public health approaches, prioritizing culturally adaptable school-based solutions for diverse adolescent populations.

Analysis of her 14 recent publications reveals dominant themes in body image intervention efficacy (particularly the BodyKind programme), socioecological influences on sexual victimization, and mental health disparities among sexual minority students. Methodologically, she employs cluster randomized trials, mixed-methods codesign, and analysis of national datasets like the My World Survey.

Her scientific recognition includes:

• Trinity College Foundation Scholarship

Mahon secured Principal Investigator funding through the Irish Research Council Postdoctoral Enterprise Scheme for a landmark 23-school trial (1,200 students) adapting the BodyKind programme with Jigsaw, Ireland's National Centre for Youth Mental Health. She also co-analyzed data from Ireland's My World Surveys involving 33,000+ participants.

She co-founded the Body Image Research Network Ireland (BIRN) to advance interdisciplinary collaboration and serves on the editorial board of the Body Image Journal, demonstrating leadership in shaping the field's research agenda.