Cognition & Hormones

Exploring the link between reproductive hormones and cognitive function in women

Chief Investigator: Associate Professor Caroline Gurvich

Cognitive problems, including difficulties with attention, memory, problem solving and decision making, are a central and problematic feature of many conditions. Cognitive problems are often poorly characterised, poorly understood and poorly treated. The Cognition and Hormones Group is focused on characterising cognition in a range of psychiatric and women’s health conditions, with a focus on understanding the link between sex hormones, stress and cognition.

The Cognition and Hormones Group uses traditional neuropsychological testing, combined with eye tracking technology to clearly characterise cognition across diverse mental health and cognitive disorders including schizophrenia, depression and complex trauma disorders, as well as seeking to understand cognitive, mood and behaviour changes that can occur across the menstrual cycle and the menopause transition. Our Group researches biological and lifestyle factors that contribute to cognitive problems as well as cognitive health.

Featured Projects

Cognitive symptoms during menopause transition View

This research area seeks to better understand the perceived experience of menopausal ‘brain fog’ and characterise objective cognitive change across natural menopause transition, as well as during surgical menopause (for example in women who have their ovaries removed to reduce the risk of ovarian cancer).

Recent journal publications from menopause and cognition team:

Zhu C, Thomas EH, Arunogiri S, Spector A, Li Q, Gurvich C. Factors associated with subjective cognitive symptoms during the menopause transition. Menopause. 2025 Nov 4. https://doi: 10.1097/GME.0000000000002651. Epub ahead of print. PMID: 41186597.

Zhu C, Arunogiri S, Thomas EHX, Li Q, Kulkarni J, Gurvich C. The development and evaluation of a fact sheet resource for women managing menopausal-related cognitive complaints. Menopause. 2024 Nov 1;31(11):987-995. https://doi:10.1097/GME.0000000000002434. Epub 2024 Sep 10. PMID: 39255423.

Zhu C, Thomas EH, Li Q, Arunogiri S, Thomas N, Gurvich C. Evaluation of the Everyday Memory Questionnaire-Revised in a menopausal population: understanding the brain fog during menopause. Menopause. 2023 Nov 1;30(11):1147-1156. https://doi:10.1097/GME.0000000000002256. Epub 2023 Oct 2. PMID: 37788429.

Spector A, Gurvich C. Differentiating Cognitive Challenges During Menopause Transition From Dementia: Key Considerations. Australas J Ageing. 2025 Dec;44(4):e70102. https://doi:10.1111/ajag.70102. PMID: 41074674.

Ramachandra A, Thomas EHX, Vincent AJ, Hickey M, Warren N, Kulkarni J, Forrest LE, Bojadzieva J, Campbell A, Gurvich C. Subjective cognitive changes following premenopausal risk-reducing bilateral salpingo-oophorectomy. Climacteric. 2023 Dec;26(6):625-631. https://doi:10.1080/13697137.2023.2256659. Epub 2023 Dec 1. PMID: 37751773.

Furey RT, Thomas EHX, Kulkarni J, Gurvich C. Subjective versus objective cognition during menopause: A systematic review and meta-analysis. J Int Neuropsychol Soc. 2025 Jun;31(5-6):459-477. https://doi:10.1017/S1355617725101306. Epub 2025 Oct 22. PMID: 41122799.

Gurvich, C., Le, J., Thomas, N., Thomas, E. H. X., & Kulkarni, J. (2021). Sex hormones and cognition in aging. Vitam Horm, 115, 511-533. https://doi.org/10.1016/bs.vh.2020.12.020

Gurvich, C., Thomas, N., & Kulkarni, J. (2020). Sex differences in cognition and aging and the influence of sex hormones. Handb Clin Neurol, 175, 103-115. https://doi.org/10.1016/B978-0-444-64123-6.00008-4

Thomas, N., Gurvich, C., & Kulkarni, J. (2019). Sex Differences in Aging and Associated Biomarkers. Adv Exp Med Biol, 1178, 57-76. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-030-25650-0_4

Zhu C, Thomas N, Arunogiri S, Gurvich C. Systematic review and narrative synthesis of cognition in perimenopause: The role of risk factors and menopausal symptoms. Maturitas. 2022 Oct;164:76-86. doi: 10.1016/j.maturitas.2022.06.010. Epub 2022 Jul 3. PMID: 35878526.

Nilaweera D, Freak-Poli R, Gurvich C, Ritchie K, Chaudieu I, Ancelin ML, Ryan J. The association between adverse childhood events and later-life cognitive function and dementia risk. J Affect Disord. 2022 May 1;304:128-132. doi: 10.1016/j.jad.2022.02.062. Epub 2022 Feb 24. PMID: 35219735.

The Conversation Magazine Pieces

https://theconversation.com/does-menopause-hormone-therapy-increase-or-decrease-your-risk-of-dementia-heres-the-science-242111

https://theconversation.com/hot-flushes-night-sweats-brain-fog-heres-what-we-know-about-phytoestrogens-for-menopausal-symptoms-204801

https://theconversation.com/brain-fog-during-menopause-is-real-it-can-disrupt-womens-work-and-spark-dementia-fears-173150

Lay Audience Publication

Gurvich, C., & Jamadar, S. (2025). Are There Sex Differences in Cognition and Does It Matter? Psychiatric Times, 42(3), 12-13. https://www.psychiatrictimes.com/view/are-there-sex-differences-in-cognition-and-does-it-matter

ADHD in women View

Cognitive training in women's mental health View

Too stressed to think clearly? How adversity impacts mental health & cognition View

Early life adversity and significant or uncontrollable stress can have a significant adverse impact on higher order cognitive functions and can drive the development and exacerbation of mental illness. The overall objective of this program of studies is to better understand how early life adversity as well as different stress parameters influences mental health, emotional regulation and cognition, with a focus on memory and higher order cognitive functions. A secondary objective is to explore the biological and psychological factors that contribute to the resilience some people have when exposed to stressful or traumatic events, for example through exploration of coping strategies. One arm of this research has examined coping strategies during the COVID-19 pandemic.
Recent publications from the stress, mental health and cognition team:

Dobson, H., Malpas, C. B., Burrell, A. J., Gurvich, C., Chen, L., Kulkarni, J., & Winton-Brown, T. (2021, Feb). Burnout and psychological distress amongst Australian healthcare workers during the COVID-19 pandemic. Australas Psychiatry, 29(1), 26-30. https://doi.org/10.1177/1039856220965045

Gurvich, C., Thomas, N., Thomas, E. H., Hudaib, A. R., Sood, L., Fabiatos, K., Sutton, K., Isaacs, A., Arunogiri, S., Sharp, G., & Kulkarni, J. (2020, Oct 4). Coping styles and mental health in response to societal changes during the COVID-19 pandemic. Int J Soc Psychiatry, 20764020961790. https://doi.org/10.1177/0020764020961790

Thomas, N., Gurvich, C., Hudaib, A. R., Gavrilidis, E., & Kulkarni, J. (2019, Apr). Systematic review and meta-analysis of basal cortisol levels in Borderline Personality Disorder compared to non-psychiatric controls. Psychoneuroendocrinology, 102, 149-157. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.psyneuen.2018.12.009

Thomas, N., Gurvich, C., & Kulkarni, J. (2019). Borderline personality disorder, trauma, and the hypothalamus-pituitary-adrenal axis. Neuropsychiatr Dis Treat, 15, 2601-2612. https://doi.org/10.2147/NDT.S198804

Thomas, N., Hudaib, A. R., Romano-Silva, M., Bozaoglu, K., E, H. X. T., Rossell, S., Kulkarni, J., & Gurvich, C. (2020, Oct 4). Influence of cortisol awakening response on telomere length: Trends for males and females. Eur J Neurosci. https://doi.org/10.1111/ejn.14996

Cognition in schizophrenia View

Cognitive problems are a core feature of many mental illnesses, including schizophrenia. The goal of this research is to develop a better understanding of the mechanisms underpinning cognitive deficits in schizophrenia with a focus on the role of reproductive hormones (such as estrogen, progesterone, luteinising hormone) and reproductive status (such as menstrual cycle regularity vs. irregularity and menopause status).

Dean B, Thomas EHX, Bozaoglu K, Tan EJ, Van Rheenen TE, Neill E, Sumner PJ, Carruthers SP, Scarr E, Rossell SL, Gurvich C. Evidence that a working memory cognitive phenotype within schizophrenia has a unique underlying biology. Psychiatry Res. 2022 Oct 8;317:114873. doi: 10.1016/j.psychres.2022.114873. Epub ahead of print. PMID: 36252418.

Gurvich C, Thomas N, Hudaib AR, Van Rheenen TE, Thomas EHX, Tan EJ, Neill E, Carruthers SP, Sumner PJ, Romano-Silva M, Bozaoglu K, Kulkarni J, Rossell SL. The relationship between cognitive clusters and telomere length in bipolar-schizophrenia spectrum disorders. Psychol Med. 2022 Aug 3:1-8. doi: 10.1017/S0033291722002148. Epub ahead of print. PMID: 35920237.

Thomas EHX, Rossell SL, Gurvich C. Gender Differences in the Correlations between Childhood Trauma, Schizotypy and Negative Emotions in Non-Clinical Individuals. Brain Sci. 2022 Jan 29;12(2):186. doi: 10.3390/brainsci12020186. PMID: 35203947; PMCID: PMC8870285.

Gaillard A, Tan EJ, Carruthers SP, Gurvich C, Hughes ME, Neill E, Sumner PJ, Van Rheenen TE, Rossell SL. No influence of sex on the relationship between schizotypy factors and executive control across the schizophrenia spectrum. J Psychiatr Res. 2022 Apr;148:325-331. doi: 10.1016/j.jpsychires.2022.02.015. Epub 2022 Feb 17. PMID: 35193036.

Thomas N, Gurvich C, Hudaib AR, Gavrilidis E, de Castella RA, Thomas EH, Kulkarni J. Serum estradiol as a blood-based biomarker predicting hormonal treatment outcomes in women with schizophrenia. Psychoneuroendocrinology. 2021 Apr;126:105165. doi: 10.1016/j.psyneuen.2021.105165. Epub 2021 Feb 10. PMID: 33609856.

Gurvich, C., Hudaib, A., Gavrilidis, E., Worsley, R., Thomas, N., & Kulkarni, J. (2019, Feb). Raloxifene as a treatment for cognition in women with schizophrenia: the influence of menopause status. Psychoneuroendocrinology, 100, 113-119. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.psyneuen.2018.10.001

Thomas, E. H., Rossell, S. L., Tan, E. J., Neill, E., Van Rheenen, T. E., Carruthers, S. P., Sumner, P. J., Louise, S., Bozaoglu, K., & Gurvich, C. (2019, Mar). Do schizotypy dimensions reflect the symptoms of schizophrenia? Aust N Z J Psychiatry, 53(3), 236-247. https://doi.org/10.1177/0004867418769746

Thomas, E. H. X., Steffens, M., Harms, C., Rossell, S. L., Gurvich, C., & Ettinger, U. (2021, Jan). Schizotypy, neuroticism, and saccadic eye movements: New data and meta-analysis. Psychophysiology, 58(1), e13706. https://doi.org/10.1111/psyp.13706

Thomas, N., Gurvich, C., Hudaib, A. R., Gavrilidis, E., & Kulkarni, J. (2019, Oct). Dissecting the syndrome of schizophrenia: Associations between symptomatology and hormone levels in women with schizophrenia. Psychiatry Res, 280, 112510. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.psychres.2019.112510

Toh, W. L., Gurvich, C., Thomas, N., Tan, E. J., Neill, E., Van Rheenen, T., Sumner, P. J., Carruthers, S. P., Thomas, E. H., Hughes, M. E., Michie, P. T., & Rossell, S. L. (2020, Feb). The influence of gender on emotional aspects of auditory verbal hallucinations. Psychiatry Res, 284, 112642. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.psychres.2019.112642

Toh, W. L., Tan, E. J., Neill, E., Van Rheenen, T. E., Gurvich, C., Sumner, P. J., Carruthers, S. P., Thomas, E. H. X., & Rossell, S. L. (2020, Jun). Identifying the cognitive underpinnings of voice-hearing by comparing never, past and current voice-hearers. Acta Psychiatr Scand, 141(6), 553-562. https://doi.org/10.1111/acps.13169

Yolland, C. O. B., Carruthers, S. P., Toh, W. L., Neill, E., Sumner, P. J., Thomas, E. H. X., Tan, E. J., Gurvich, C., Phillipou, A., Van Rheenen, T. E., & Rossell, S. L. (2020, Dec 21). The Relationship between Negative Symptoms and Both Emotion Management and Non-social Cognition in Schizophrenia Spectrum Disorders. J Int Neuropsychol Soc, 1-13. https://doi.org/10.1017/S1355617720001290

HER Centre Australia

HER Centre Australia

Cognition & Hormones

Featured Projects

Cognitive symptoms during menopause transition View

Recent journal publications from menopause and cognition team:

The Conversation Magazine Pieces

Lay Audience Publication

ADHD in women View

Now Recruiting

Publications in Academic Clinical Journals

Published Pieces in The Conversation

Cognitive training in women's mental health View

Recent Publications

Too stressed to think clearly? How adversity impacts mental health & cognition View

Cognition in schizophrenia View

Hormones and the Mind View