Rate My Professor Grace Walker

Dr. Grace Walker is a Postdoctoral Fellow in the Department of Psychological Medicine at the University of Otago, Christchurch, within the Division of Health Sciences. Of Ngāti Kahungunu and Ngāruahine descent, she earned her PhD in Psychology from the University of Canterbury and holds an MSc. Her research employs longitudinal data from the Christchurch Health and Development Study to explore life course outcomes, with a focus on psychosocial protective factors following cumulative childhood adversity and the housing-health nexus among Māori populations. Walker is a member of the Christchurch Data Health Science team, which advances accessibility of research outputs through the University of Otago's institutional repository, OUR Archive.

Key contributions include her role in the 2023 BJPsych Open systematic review, 'Protective factors for psychosocial outcomes following cumulative childhood adversity,' co-authored with Mary Buchanan, Joseph M. Boden, Zara Mansoor, and Giles Newton-Howes. Analyzing 28 studies from 23 cohorts, the review found social support protects mental health outcomes, educational aspects safeguard socioeconomic, mental health, and social results, and diverse personality factors mitigate mental health risks post-adversity. Walker conducted abstract and full-text screening, risk-of-bias and evidence quality assessments, and verified data extraction. In 2021, she co-authored 'Exploring the Factors Affecting Māori Home Ownership' in the New Zealand Population Review with Jay Whitehead, determining that at age 35, Māori home ownership correlates with stable long-term relationships, reduced welfare dependency, higher household income, lower substance dependency, and parental future aspirations at age 16, irrespective of cultural connectedness. She also contributed to 'An Exploration of the Māori Housing-Health Nexus' with Matthew Rout that year, examining related dynamics.