Kate Lawrence

Dr. Kate Lawrence is a Senior Lecturer in Psychology at St Mary’s University, specializing in nutritional psychology and neurodiversity. Her research focuses on dietary and microbiome influences on mental health and cognitive function. She holds a BA from the University of Oxford and a PhD in Developmental Cognitive Neuroscience from UCL. She is a Fellow of the Higher Education Academy and serves on the Scientific Advisory Board for Chuckling Goat.

Dr. Lawrence’s research integrates psychology, nutrition, genetics, and neuroscience to explore psychological function across the lifespan. Notable areas include dietary interventions for ADHD and autism, microbiome impacts on behavior, and socio-emotional development. She has secured grants from UK Research & Innovation, The Waterloo Foundation, and other entities, totaling over £95,000 since 2018.

• Education:
  • Bachelor of Arts (BA) in Psychology, University of Oxford
  • Doctor of Philosophy (PhD) in Developmental Cognitive Neuroscience, University College London (UCL)

Her work has been published in 38 peer-reviewed articles, yielding an H-index of 20 and over 2,277 citations. She lectures on the Psychology BSc and Chronic Disease Management MSc programs and supervises students at all academic levels. Dr. Lawrence is also a research editor for the Nutritional Evidence Database and actively contributes to public science communication through talks and media engagement.

Awards:

• Fellow of the Higher Education Academy (HEA)

Dr. Lawrence collaborates in multidisciplinary teams, emphasizing translational science. Her recent projects include studies on motor signatures of autism and the microbiome’s role in ADHD symptomatology.