Rate My Professor Gemma Sharp

Professor Gemma Sharp is a Professor in the School of Psychology within the Faculty of Health and Behavioural Sciences at the University of Queensland. She is an NHMRC Emerging Leadership Fellow (2023–2028), Senior Clinical Psychologist, and leads the Body Image & Eating Disorders Research Program. Previously, she served as Associate Professor (Research) in the Department of Neuroscience at Monash University, where she established and led the Body Image, Eating and Weight Disorders Research Program since 2018. Sharp completed her PhD in Clinical Psychology at Flinders University in 2017, a Bachelor of Behavioural Science (Honours) in Psychology at Flinders University, Graduate Diploma in Psychology at the University of Adelaide, Masters degree in Oncology at the University of Cambridge, and Bachelor of Science in Molecular Biology and Bachelor of Science (Honours) in Microbiology and Immunology at the University of Adelaide. Following her PhD, she held a postdoctoral position at Curtin University and has extensive clinical experience in public and private sectors across Australia, including leading a private psychology practice since 2019.

Sharp's research investigates the aetiology of body image concerns and eating disorders across the lifespan, particularly in under-researched populations such as midlife women during perimenopause and individuals at higher body weights. She has developed pioneering digital health interventions, including the JEM™ chatbot for eating disorder prevention, ED ESSI™ for waitlist support, and the world's first online educational resource addressing eating disorders during the menopause transition. As Founding Director of the global Consortium for Research in Eating Disorders (CoRe-ED, launched September 2024), she unites researchers, clinicians, lived experience advocates, and industry partners. She is Principal Investigator on the University of Queensland's Eating Disorders Care project examining transitions from youth to adult services. Awards include the 2025 Association for Psychological Science Janet Taylor Spence Award, Fellowship of the Australian Psychological Society (2025), Academy of the Social Sciences in Australia Paul Bourke Award for Early Career Research (2022), and Australian Psychological Society Media Award for Public Engagement (2023). Key publications encompass 'Barriers and facilitators to treatment in severe and enduring eating disorders' (Lubieniecki & Sharp, Journal of Eating Disorders, 2025), 'Perceived Barriers and Facilitators of Use of Artificial Intelligence in Eating Disorder Treatment' (Sharp et al., 2025), and 'An online educational resource addressing eating disorders during the menopause transition: a brief evaluation study' (Sharp, 2025). Sharp contributes to national clinical practice guidelines for psychological evaluations in cosmetic procedures and AI use in psychology, alongside public outreach through podcasts, webinars, and media commentary.