Rate My Professor Emily Freeman

Associate Professor Emily Freeman serves in the School of Psychological Sciences within the Faculty of Science at the University of Newcastle. She earned her PhD in Psychology and Bachelor of Science (Psychology) with Honours from the same institution. Freeman's research specializations encompass child development, memory and attention, and clinical psychology, with particular emphasis on father-child rough-and-tumble play and its links to children's physical development including balance, strength, coordination, and agility, as well as improvements in nonverbal communication skills, emotion regulation, prosocial behaviour, reduced emotional and behavioural problems, and working memory performance. Her investigations also cover early life stress effects on working memory, father-inclusive parenting programs, childhood obesity prevention targeting fathers, metacognitive monitoring of working memory, and its relationship to academic achievement in children.

Freeman's career at the University of Newcastle spans from Research Associate in Science & IT (2012-2013) and Senior Researcher at the Family Action Centre (2009-2012), through Senior Lecturer in the School of Psychology, to her current role as Associate Professor. Earlier positions include Research Associate at The Ohio State University Department of Psychology (2008-2009) and The University of Adelaide Faculty of Health Sciences (2009). She received the 2022 Women in Research Fellowship to enhance children’s social, emotional, and cognitive wellbeing; 15 Year Service Award from the College of Engineering, Science and Environment (2021); School of Psychological Sciences Award for Excellence in Teaching Innovation (2021); School of Psychology Award for Best Honours Supervision Practice (2019); and School of Psychology Award for Most Improved Student Feedback (2018). Key publications include 'The Relationship between Father–Child Rough-and-Tumble Play and Children’s Working Memory' (2022), 'A Systematic Review of Father–Child Play Interactions and the Impacts on Child Development' (2021), 'Preventing and treating childhood obesity: Time to target fathers' (2012), 'Rough and tumble play quality: Theoretical foundations for a new measure of father–child interaction' (2013), 'The impact of behavioural parent training on fathers' parenting: A meta-analysis of the Triple P-Positive Parenting Program' (2011), and 'Working Memory Power Test for Children' (2019).