Rachel Searston

Rachel Searston is a Senior Lecturer in Psychology at the University of Adelaide, affiliated with the Faculty of Health and Medical Sciences and School of Psychology. Her research focuses on expert decision-making and communication in high-stakes fields like forensic science, policing, healthcare, and space exploration. Supported by an ARC Early Career Industry Fellowship, her work bridges cognitive science with practical industry applications.

Education includes a PhD in Cognitive Science from the University of Queensland and a McKenzie Postdoctoral Fellowship at the University of Melbourne. Key research areas include optimizing expert performance through rigorous methodologies like signal detection theory and expert-novice comparisons. Collaborations with organizations such as the Andy Thomas Centre for Space Resources and national police agencies address real-world challenges in forensic analysis, medical AI communication, and space cognition.

Awards include the ARC Early Career Industry Fellowship (2023–2027) and the University of Melbourne McKenzie Fellowship (2017–2020). Grants include projects on forensic print analysis ($403,153), lunar exploration situational awareness ($100,000), and AI-driven decision support ($100,000). She coordinates the Psychology Honours program and teaches courses on cognitive science and research methods.

• Key Research Themes: Expert credibility, decision optimization, communication of uncertainty in AI.
• Lab: Expert Cognition Lab explores novel environments (space) and legal/health contexts.