Sally Hunt

Dr Sally Hunt is a Senior Lecturer at the University of Newcastle's School of Psychological Sciences, where she serves as the inaugural Convenor of the Master of Professional Psychology Program since 2019. With over 20 years of clinical and research experience in mental health, she specializes in comorbid mental health and substance use disorders, with a specific focus on women's health issues including problematic alcohol use and psychological birth trauma.

Dr Hunt's research interests center on developing evidence-based interventions for mental health and substance use problems, particularly those that can reach broad audiences through e-Health platforms. Her work investigates the interconnected nature of mental health and substance abuse, with special emphasis on understanding why women turn to alcohol as a coping mechanism for stress and trauma. She is actively developing assessment tools and interventions specifically designed for women to manage life pressures without relying on alcohol.

Her publication record demonstrates consistent focus on women's drinking behaviors, psychological birth trauma, and digital mental health interventions. The research shows evolving trends from foundational work on neurocognitive profiles in comorbid depression and alcohol misuse toward increasingly specialized studies on maternal drinking motives, birth trauma associations with alcohol use, and implementation of digital tools for mental health care. Her work consistently bridges clinical psychology with public health approaches to substance use disorders.

• 2020 DVC(A) Educator Innovation and Impact Award
• 2019/2020 Women In Research Fellowship
• 2018 Australian Rotary Health - Mental Health Impact Award
• 2017 School of Medicine and Public Health Staff Award for Early Career Research and Innovation Excellence

Dr Hunt actively supervises five current PhD students across topics including anxiety in Australian women, psychological birth trauma, domestic violence impacts, digital suicide prevention, and PTSD in children of veterans, while mentoring early-career psychologists. Her substantial research funding portfolio includes over $4.8 million across seven grants, most notably the $2.2 million Supporting Adolescent Boys Trial and the $909,585 NHMRC-funded trial of internet-based treatment for binge drinking and depression in young Australians. Her work with the Priority Research Centre for Brain and Mental Health demonstrates strong translational research connecting clinical practice with population-level interventions.