Dr Peta Callaghan
Senior Lecturer
School of Psychology
Faculty of Health and Medical Sciences
Eligible to supervise Masters and PhD - email supervisor to discuss availability.
I am a Critical Social Psychologist with research interests in social inequality, with a particular focus on environmental issues, racism and prejudice, and social identity. I employ a range of qualitative methodologies, from realist approaches such as content and thematic analysis to more constructionist methods, including discourse and critical discourse analysis. I hold an Education Specialist role, where I explore best-practice assessment in undergraduate psychology programs, academic staff well-being, and the impact of student evaluations on teaching practice. I am particularly interested in student-centred learning within capitalist education systems, examining how market-driven dynamics shape the student–teacher relationship.In my teaching, I prioritise applied, research-informed learning experiences, incorporating real-world problem-solving and critical engagement with contemporary social issues. I draw from Transformative and Relational pedagogies in my teaching approach, prioritising the student-teacher relationship to maximise student learning outcomes.
- My Research
- Career
- Publications
- Grants and Funding
- Teaching
- Supervision
- Professional Activities
- Contact
A Typology for Reflection for Assessment and Practice
Transitioning to Online Teaching for Academics during the COVID 19 Pandemic
SETs in Higher Education: From Student Perceptions to Teaching Practices.
Task allocation and the development of interpersonal skills in group work.
A Discursive Analysis of Online Data about the Voice to Parliament Referendum
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Appointments
Date Position Institution name 2019 - ongoing Lecturer University of Adelaide 2019 - 2019 Associate Lecturer University of Adelaide 2019 - 2020 Research Associate University of Adelaide -
Language Competencies
Language Competency English Can read, write, speak, understand spoken and peer review -
Education
Date Institution name Country Title 2004 - 2007 Southern Cross University Australia Bachelor of Psychology (Hons) -
Postgraduate Training
Date Title Institution Country 2009 - 2014 Doctor of Philosophy University of Adelaide Australia -
Research Interests
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Journals
Year Citation 2025 Pettersson, K., Marveggio, M. D., Callaghan, P., & Augoustinos, M. (2025). Fatalism, Evolution, and Interpersonal Attractiveness: Psychological Theories and Emotions in Incels' Constructions of Ingroup Identity and Outgroup Hate. European Journal of Social Psychology, 55(2), 342-356.
2025 Gladwin, A., Newell, S., & Callaghan, P. (2025). Exploring student motivations and perceptions towards Student Evaluation of Teaching (SET) systems: A Reflexive Thematic Analysis. Journal of University Teaching and Learning Practice. 2025 Kimber, E., Callaghan, P., & Riggs, D. W. (2025). Medicalization and beyond: Navigating patient and provider experiences of gender-affirming healthcare in Australia. International Journal of Transgender Health, 16 pages.
2025 Penfold, A., Callaghan, P., & Urry, K. (2025). Online Communities and Identity: Experiences of LGBTQIA+ Emerging Adults Engaging With LGBTQIA+ Online Content During the COVID-19 Pandemic (Mar, 10.1037/ppm0000529, 2024). PSYCHOLOGY OF POPULAR MEDIA, 14(1), 2 pages.
2024 Whitson, K. C., Callaghan, P., Thorpe, D., & Ejova, A. (2024). Three profiles of Australian climate change activism have both unique and overlapping motivators and barriers. Communications Earth and Environment, 5(1), 9 pages.
2024 Scholz, D., Taylor, A., Callaghan, P., & Strelan, P. (2024). An exploration of the efficacy of mental health and wellbeing education initiatives in secondary schools: triangulation of student and teacher perspectives. Australian Psychologist, 59(3), 275-289.
Scopus12024 Penfold, A., Callaghan, P., & Urry, K. (2024). Online communities and identity: Experiences of LGBTQIA+ emerging adults engaging with LGBTQIA+ online content during the COVID-19 pandemic.. Psychology of Popular Media, 14(1), 22-31.
Scopus12024 Halliday, S., Callaghan, P., Lavis, T., & Chur-Hansen, A. (2024). Best practice assessment methods for the undergraduate psychology program: A narrative review of the literature. Australian Journal of Psychology, 76(1), 2395521-1-2395521-18.
2023 Ziersch, A., Miller, E., Walsh, M., Due, C., Callaghan, P., Howe, J., & Green, E. (2023). ‘I really want to work for me to feel good myself ‘: Health impacts of employment experiences for women from refugee backgrounds in Australia. SSM - Qualitative Research in Health, 3, 9 pages.
Scopus72023 Dobek, P., Bowen, H., & Callaghan, P. (2023). Experiences and perceptions of military and emergency services personnel identifying as LGBTQIA+ and their families: a qualitative systematic review protocol.. JBI evidence synthesis, Publish Ahead of Print(9), 1847-1853.
2021 Due, C., Callaghan, P., Reilly, A., Flavel, J., & Ziersch, A. (2021). Employment for women with refugee and asylum seeker backgrounds in Australia: An overview of workforce participation and available support programmes. International Migration, 63(1), 16 pages.
Scopus10 WoS32015 Street, J., Callaghan, P., Braunack-Mayer, A., & Hiller, J. (2015). Citizens' perspectives on disinvestment from publicly funded pathology tests: a deliberative forum. Value in Health, 18(8), 1050-1056.
Scopus9 WoS9 Europe PMC52014 Mitchell, J., Callaghan, P., Street, J., Neuhaus, S., & Bessen, T. (2014). The experience of melanoma follow-up care: an online survey of patients in Australia. Journal of Skin Cancer, 2014, 429149-1-429149-7.
WoS13 Europe PMC112013 Callaghan, P., & Augoustinos, M. (2013). Reified versus consensual knowledge as rhetorical resources for debating climate change. Revue Internationale de Psychologie Sociale, 26(3), 11-38.
Scopus12 WoS92012 Callaghan, P., Moloney, G., & Blair, D. (2012). Contagion in the representational field of water recycling: Informing new environment practice through social representation theory. Journal of Community & Applied Social Psychology, 22(1), 20-37.
Scopus42 WoS38- Kimber, E., Callaghan, P., & Riggs, D. W. (2025). Medicalization and beyond: Navigating patient and provider experiences of gender-affirming healthcare in Australia (19 Jun, 10.1080/26895269.2025.2522257, 2025). INTERNATIONAL JOURNAL OF TRANSGENDER HEALTH, 1 page.
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Book Chapters
Year Citation 2019 Augoustinos, M., & Callaghan, P. (2019). The language of social inequality. In J. Jetten, & K. Peters (Eds.), The Social Psychology of Inequality (pp. 321-334). Cham, Switzerland: Springer Nature.
Scopus92018 Augoustinos, M., Due, C., & Callaghan, P. (2018). Unlawful, Un-cooperative and Unwanted: The Dehumanization of Asylum Seekers in the Australian Newsprint Media. In S. Gibson (Ed.), Peace Psychology Book Series (pp. 187-204). Cham, Switzerland: Springer International Publishing.
2018 Augoustinos, M., Callaghan, P., & Hastie, B. (2018). Apologising for past wrongs: emotion-reason rhetoric in political discourse. In L. Smith, M. Wetherell, & G. Campbell (Eds.), Emotion, Affective Practices, and the Past in the Present (pp. 105-123). London, United Kingdom: Routledge, Taylor and Francis.
Scopus62017 Augoustinos, M., Callaghan, P., Sorrentino, J., & Worth, A. (2017). Political leadership and social diversity: The everyday politics of race and gender. In C. Howarth, & E. Andreouli (Eds.), The Social Psychology of Everyday Politics (pp. 18-33). Oxon, UK: Routledge. 2016 Augoustinos, M., Callaghan, P., Sorrentino, J., & Worth, A. (2016). Political leadership and social diversity: The everyday politics of race and gender. In The Social Psychology of Everyday Politics (pp. 18-33). Routledge.
LTAG 2024 ($5000): Task allocation and the development of interpersonal skills in online group work.
Academic Lead for Assessment in Psychology
Course Coordinator:
- Psychology, Science and Society (Level III)
- Psychology in Society: Social psychology (Level II)
Course Author (online programs):
- Foundations of Psychology
- Social Psychology
- Research Methods, Design & Analysis (qualitative module)
- Applying Research Methods (qualitative module)
Course Development (Adelaide University)
- Psychology for Social Contexts (Course co-Lead and author)
- Psychology for Global Challenges (Course Lead and author)
- Psychology for Organisations and Communities (Course author)
- First Nations Core Course (Course author)
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Current Higher Degree by Research Supervision (University of Adelaide)
Date Role Research Topic Program Degree Type Student Load Student Name 2025 Principal Supervisor Perceptions of Qualitative Research in Psychology Doctor of Philosophy Doctorate Full Time Miss Juliana Wu -
Other Supervision Activities
Date Role Research Topic Location Program Supervision Type Student Load Student Name 2022 - ongoing Principal Supervisor Border closures’ impact on University of Adelaide students: exploring barriers and facilitators of support during the COVID-19 pandemic University of Adelaide Bachelor of Psychological Science Honours Full Time Julianne Rogers 2022 - ongoing Principal Supervisor Social Representations of Climate Change before and after the Black Summer bushfires of 2020 University of Adelaide Bachelor of Psychological Science Honours Full Time Mitchell Osborne 2022 - 2020 Principal Supervisor #ClimateCriminals: Discursive constructions of climate change prior to and during Black Summer University of Adelaide Bachelor of Psychological Science Honours Full Time Joseph Laranjeira 2022 - ongoing Principal Supervisor Online communities and identity: experiences of LGBTQIA+ young adults with LGBTQIA+ online content during the covid 19 pandemic University of Adelaide Bachelor of Psychological Science Honours Full Time Alex Penfold 2022 - ongoing Principal Supervisor Confirmation bias in legal decision-making: a qualitative/ thematic analysis University of Adelaide Bachelor of Psychological Science Honours Full Time Ellie Turner 2022 - ongoing Principal Supervisor Student and teacher experiences with the transition to online learning during the COVID-19 pandemic University of Adelaide Bachelor of Psychological Science Honours Full Time Sussan Vo 2022 - ongoing Co-Supervisor Perceptions and experiences of LGBTQIA+ emergency first responders' and defence force personnel's families: A qualitative meta-synthesis University of Adelaide and MESHA Bachelor of Psychological Science Honours Full Time Philip Dobek 2021 - ongoing Principal Supervisor Help-seeking experiences of young women with symptoms of anxiety and depression University of Adelaide Bachelor of Psychological Science Honours Full Time Madeleine Whyatt 2020 - 2020 Co-Supervisor Exploring the Impact of Employment on the Health & Wellbeing of Middle Eastern Refugee Women University of Adelaide Bachelor of Psychological Science Honours Full Time Gur Kaur 2020 - 2020 Principal Supervisor Anthropogenic Climate Change and Collective Action University of Adelaide Bachelor of Psychological Science Honours Part Time Kath Whitson 2020 - 2020 Co-Supervisor The Affective Practices of Incels: A Social Identity Approach to the Construction of Incel Identities University of Adelaide Bachelor of Psychological Science Honours Full Time Mark Marveggio 2019 - 2019 Co-Supervisor Negotiating Changing Identities: Migrant and Refugee Children’s Ethnic Identity Expression in Australia University of Adelaide Bachelor of Psychological Science Honours Full Time Tamina Islam
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Memberships
Date Role Membership Country 2022 - ongoing Chair Psychology and Research using Qualitative Analysis (PARQA) Australia 2022 - ongoing Member Australian & New Zealand Association for Health Professional Educators (ANZAHPE) Australia 2022 - ongoing Member Psychology Education Research Group (PERG) Australia 2022 - ongoing Member School of Psychology, Diversity and inclusion in teaching sub-committee Australia 2021 - ongoing Member Society of Australasian Social Psychologists (SASP) Australia 2021 - ongoing Member University of Adelaide, Pearson Alliance Community of Practice Australia
Connect With Me
External Profiles
