Sharp group

Body Image & Eating Disorders - Sharp Group

Get in touch | Our people | Our work | Our achievements | Publications

The Sharp group studies body image concerns and body image related disorders, including eating disorders and body dysmorphic disorder. We focus on understanding the causes of the body image related disorders and developing novel treatments.

Sharp group
2023 Sharp group L - R: Alex Hu, Tanya Gilmartin, Nileshni Fernando, Gemma Sharp, Adriana Draganidis, Bronwyn Dwyer, Madeline West (Absent – Courtney McLean)

Get in touch

Whether you want to be involved in our research, you wish to study with us, or donate to our work, we would be delighted to hear from you.

Our people

Group Head

Our work

Body image concerns are very common. More than 43% of people in Australia are dissatisfied with their body appearance. Negative body image can lead to poor psychological functioning as well as risky behaviours such as extreme dietary and weight control behaviours, excessive exercise and the pursuit of aesthetic surgery.

Poor body image is also one of the strongest risk factors for the development of eating disorders which impact over 1 million people in Australia of all ages, genders and backgrounds. Unfortunately, less than 1 in 4 people ever receive treatment.

Our work focuses on understanding the causes and factors that influence the development of body image concerns and body image related disorders such as eating disorders and body dysmorphic disorder. These range from genetic profiles through to psychological factors (e.g., personality traits) and social factors (e.g., harmful social media content). We use a range of biological and psychological methodologies for these investigations.

Through our understanding of the factors that influence the development of body image related disorders, we are focusing on developing novel treatments, particularly online interventions. We use a range of digital mental health platforms such as mobile apps and conversational artificial intelligence agents like JEMTM Chatbot. Ultimately, we aim to deliver highly accessible and personalised treatments when people need it most.

Our achievements

Grants

  • A/Prof Gemma Sharp
    • National Health and Medical Research Council Investigator Grant Emerging Leadership 2 (CIA Sharp, 2023-2027)
    • Women’s Health Research Translation Network Grant (CIA Sharp, 2023-2024)
    • Telematics Trust Grant (CIA Sharp, 2023)
    • General Sir John Monash Foundation Collaborative Grant (CIA Sharp, 2022-2023)
    • Monash Institute of Medical Engineering Seed Funding Grant (CIA Sharp, 2022-2023)
    • Australian Psychological Society College of Clinical Psychologists Research Grant (CIA Sharp, 2021-2022)
    • National Health and Medical Research Council Early Career Fellowship (CIA Sharp, 2018-2022)

Awards

  • A/Prof Gemma Sharp - Academy of the Social Sciences in Australia Paul Bourke Award for Early Career Research (2022), Australian Psychological Society College of Clinical Psychologists Victorian Significant Contribution Award (2022), Club Melbourne Fellowship (2022), EMCR Best Paper Award - Applied Research - Society of Mental Health Research (2022), Association for Psychological Science Rising Star Award (2021) – see full list here
  • Courtney McLean - Young Investigator Poster Presentation Award Monash Translational Research Symposium (2022), 2nd place CCS 3 Minute Thesis Competition (2022), Finalist Peter Beumont ANZAED Young Investigator Award (2022)
  • Tanya Gilmartin - Finalist Peter Beumont ANZAED Young Investigator Award (2023)
  • Adriana Draganidis – Research Training Program PhD Scholarship (2023-2026)
  • Pranita Shrestha – Monash Data Futures Institute PhD Scholarship (2022-2025) (A/Prof Sharp is associate supervisor)
  • Nileshni Fernando - Blackbird Protostar Grant (2023)

Publications

Publications Highlights

Below are a selection of some of published studies reflecting our high impact work. A full list of our publications can be found here.

Recent publications