Lived experience drives research

A paper published by a Charles Sturt psychology PhD candidate, which is derived from her researcher thesis, has been recognised by a peak US psychology organisation. Chrissy Antonopoulos received the Harold Yuker Award for Research Excellence from the Division of Rehabilitation Psychology of the American Psychological Association (APA) in 2024 for her paper ‘Implicit bias towards people with disability: a systematic review and meta-analysis’. The paper was published in the APA journal Rehabilitation Psychology in 2023. Chrissy has lived with disability for most of her adult life and has experienced the effects of negative attitudes and stereotypes.

“My lived experience led me to pursue a PhD and write this paper on implicit bias towards people with disability. This paper found overwhelmingly that people with disability experience negative implicit attitudes and stereotypes, and such negative attitudes can limit people with disability achieving their goals and aspirations.”

Ms Antonopoulos said she hopes this research can contribute to change for the disability community, particularly in the areas of government strategy and policy around disability employment.