Projects per year
Personal profile
Biography
I am a Senior Lecturer in developmental psychology and Director of Undergraduate Education (on campus) in the School of Psychological Sciences at Monash University, Melbourne Australia.
I completed a PhD in the area of child neuropsychology at the University of Melbourne (2008) supervised by Professor Vicki Anderson and Professor Peter Anderson, and during this time spent three months as a Visiting Research Fellow at the Hospital for Sick Children in Toronto, Canada (2006) supervised by Professor Maureen Dennis. My postdoctoral research has been conducted at the Murdoch Childrens Research Institute (2008-2011) and University of Melbourne (2009) in Australia. I was a Swiss National Science Foundation Visiting Fellow at the Inselspital, Bern University Hospital (2011) in Switzerland collaborating with Professor Regula Everts, and a Department of Neuroscience Research Fellow at the Karolinska Institute (2011-2013) in Sweden supervised by Professor Torkel Klingberg. I established my research group at Monash in 2014.
Research interests
Research in my group aims to achieve a deeper understanding of:
1. Cognitive training in paediatric populations: Much of our work focuses on exploring the conditions under which training leads to sustained benefits and the application of cognitive training in paediatric populations.
2. Development of cognitive, academic and behavioural functions: We want to understand the variability in developmental outcomes for typically developing children and children with agenesis of the corpus callosum.
We conduct cohort studies and randomised controlled trials using a combination of measures, including neuropsychological, behavioual and clinical assessments.
Monash teaching commitment
PSY2071 - Developmental Psychology
Expertise related to UN Sustainable Development Goals
In 2015, UN member states agreed to 17 global Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) to end poverty, protect the planet and ensure prosperity for all. This person’s work contributes towards the following SDG(s):
Research area keywords
- child neuropsychology
- academic performance
- working memory
- cognitive training
- developmental cognitive neuroscience
- executive function
- mathematical performance
Collaborations and top research areas from the last five years
Projects
- 2 Finished
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Understanding ADHD in Indigenous Australian children using the Longitudinal Study of Indigenous Children (LSIC).
Bellgrove, M., Stefanac, N., Tiego, J., Jobson, L., Kirk, H., Spencer-Smith, M., Adams, K., Cornish, K., Coghill, D. R., Middeldorp, C. M. & Sciberras, E.
Australian ADHD Professionals Association Ltd
7/02/20 → 31/12/21
Project: Research
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Utilising digital training technology to support cognitive skill development and enhance learning in primary school children
Kirk, H., Cornish, K., Bellgrove, M., Spencer-Smith, M., Jobson, L. & Adams, K.
Monash University – Internal Faculty Contribution, Monash University – Internal Department Contribution
3/02/20 → 28/02/23
Project: Research
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A digital intervention to support childhood cognition after the COVID-19 pandemic: a pilot trial
Kirk, H., Spencer-Smith, M., Jobson, L., Nicolaou, E., Cornish, K., Melzak, E., Hrysanidis, C., Moriarty, C., Davey, B., Whyman, T., Bird, L. & Bellgrove, M. A., Dec 2024, In: Scientific Reports. 14, 1, 24 p., 14065.Research output: Contribution to journal › Article › Research › peer-review
Open Access -
Inhibitory control in children with agenesis of the corpus callosum compared with typically developing children
Soon, E., Siffredi, V., Anderson, P. J., Anderson, V. A., McIlroy, A., Leventer, R. J., Wood, A. G. & Spencer-Smith, M. M., 1 Jan 2024, In: Journal of the International Neuropsychological Society. 30, 1, p. 18-26 9 p.Research output: Contribution to journal › Article › Research › peer-review
Open Access1 Citation (Scopus) -
Therapeutic supports for neurodiverse children who have experienced interpersonal trauma: a scoping review
Kalisch, L. A., Lawrence, K. A., Baud, J., Spencer-Smith, M. & Ure, A., Dec 2024, In: Review Journal of Autism and Developmental Disorders. 11, 4, p. 733–755 23 p.Research output: Contribution to journal › Review Article › Research › peer-review
Open Access1 Citation (Scopus) -
Against the use of the Strengths and Difficulties Questionnaire for Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander children aged 2–15 years
Chau, T., Tiego, J., Brown, L., Coghill, D., Jobson, L., Montgomery, A., Murrup-Stewart, C., Sciberras, E., Silk, T. J., Spencer-Smith, M., Stefanac, N., Sullivan, D. P. & Bellgrove, M. A., Oct 2023, In: Australian and New Zealand Journal of Psychiatry. 57, 10, p. 1343-1358 16 p.Research output: Contribution to journal › Article › Research › peer-review
Open Access3 Citations (Scopus) -
Episodic and prospective memory difficulties in 13-year-old children born very preterm
Stedall, P. M., Spencer-Smith, M. M., Lah, S., Doyle, L. W., Spittle, A. J., Burnett, A. C. & Anderson, P. J., Mar 2023, In: Journal of the International Neuropsychological Society. 29, 3, p. 257-265 9 p.Research output: Contribution to journal › Article › Research › peer-review
Open Access5 Citations (Scopus)
Prizes
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Harold Mitchell Travelling Fellowship
Spencer-Smith, Megan (Recipient), 2011
Prize: Competitive Fellowships
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International Society for Pediatric and Adolescent Diabetes, Travel Scholarship
Spencer-Smith, Megan (Recipient), 2007
Prize: Prize (including medals and awards)
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Karolinska Institute, Department of Neuroscience Postdoctoral Research Fellowship
Spencer-Smith, Megan (Recipient), 2011
Prize: Competitive Fellowships
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Monash University, Jenny Redman Early Career Research Publication Prize for Psychological Sciences
Spencer-Smith, Megan (Recipient), 2016
Prize: Prize (including medals and awards)
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Murdoch Childrens Research Institute, Honorary Senior Research Fellow
Spencer-Smith, Megan (Recipient), 2011
Prize: Other distinction