THANK YOU FOR JOINING US IN HOBART
Across three topics: Clinical psychology and diverse contexts: people and places; The way forward: technologies and treatments; and Education and the clinical workforce, the program showcased how innovation and evidence-based practice were shaping the future of mental health care.
Delegates enjoyed a dynamic mix of presentations, workshops and panel discussions that supported learning, connection and professional growth.;
Set against the stunning backdrop of Hobart’s waterfront and mountain views, the 2026 College Conference is your opportunity to advance your practice, exchange ideas, and experience the best of clinical psychology in one of Australia’s most picturesque settings.
ADVANCE CLINICAL PRACTICE
Explore cutting-edge research and practical strategies, innovative therapies to the latest in psychological science, that elevate your clinical impact.
CONNECT & COLLABORATE
Engage in thought-provoking discussions with leading clinicians and passionate peers. Share insights, challenge ideas, and strengthen the future of mental health care.
EXPERIENCE HOBART
Immerse yourself in Hobart’s stunning natural beauty and vibrant culture while enjoying a conference that renews both your professional and personal spirit.
PROGRAM
Keynote Presentations
The Big Picture of Youth Psychotherapy: Take-homes from 60 Years of Research and a Challenge for the Future.
Drawing on 800+ trials, youth psychotherapy is more effective than usual care, strongest for anxiety and weakest for depression. Brief, simple and even digital or non-human delivery can work. Outcomes vary by social context, with inequities evident. Unexpectedly, therapies perform better in lower-income settings, and overall gains have not improved over time.
Targeting threat and reward processes for depression, anxiety and anhedonia: latest evidence for efficacy, mechanisms and community implementation
I will present our latest evidence regarding targeted psychological treatments for anxiety, depression, and anhedonia, drawing from findings from the research laboratory, research clinic and community implementation. Efficacy data demonstrate that not all psychological treatments are the same, as inhibitory retrieval models outperform standard habituation models of exposure therapy, and positive affect treatment outperforms conventional cognitive behavioral therapy. Mechanism data demonstrate specificity, as extinction prediction error learning explains treatment outcome from exposure therapy whereas fear habituation does not, and reward processes are significantly more strengthened by positive affect treatment than conventional cognitive behavioral therapy. Emerging data will be presented to suggest that personalized precision can be achieved by matching therapy to mechanism (rather than to symptoms). These mechanistically targeted treatments have been incorporated into scalable and personalized community implementation through our STAND (Screening, Tracking and Treating Anxiety and Depression) system of care. Evidence for STAND efficacy and enhancement by predictive decision-making algorithms will be presented, and directions of future research will conclude the presentation.
The Promise of MDMA Combined with Massed Exposure Therapy for PTSD
The pharmacotherapy and psychotherapy literatures for posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD) will be succinctly reviewed and discussed, focusing on cognitive behavioral treatments (CBT), and the various CBT techniques will be briefly described, including virtual reality exposure therapy. Pharmacotherapy and combination pharmacotherapy and psychotherapy treatments for PTSD will be discussed. Innovations in the treatment of PTSD, including medium of delivery and novel combination treatment will be presented. An intensive outpatient treatment model and pilot data will be presented. We have developed The METEMP Protocol for Massed Exposure Therapy Enhanced with MDMA for PTSD. This combined protocol and preliminary data will be presented.
Beyond Assumptions: Building Clinical Evidence that Reflects Autistic Experiences.
This presentation explores how neuroaffirming research can better reflect autistic experiences by moving beyond one-size-fits-all assumptions. Drawing on innovative methodologies and lived experience-informed evidence, it examines key wellbeing processes and their clinical implications for more personalised, affirming, and effective support for autistic individuals.
Conference Program Planning Committee
The Conference Program Planning Committee comprises experienced clinical psychologists guiding the development of a forward-looking, practice-relevant program. Drawing on expertise across diverse clinical contexts, emerging treatments, workforce development, and public and private sector practice, the committee supports the profession in navigating change and embracing opportunity.
Committee member
Committee member
Jennifer Langdon is a Clinical Psychologist and Behaviour Support Practitioner whose work bridges mental health, disability, and aviation psychology. She is the founder of Teen Pilot Down Under, a global youth aviation campaign promoting resilience, purpose, and possibility through the story of her son, Byron Waller, the youngest pilot who at 14yo flew around Australia and at 15yo flew around the world. Her leadership in this initiative has gained international recognition, combining aviation safety, youth empowerment, and psychological wellbeing under the banner From Patient to Pilot.
Jennifer also works in aviation psychology with major airlines and professional associations, providing early-intervention mental health support, pilot risk assessments, and evidence-based treatment to assist pilots and aviation personnel in safely returning to duty. Her work integrates psychological science with aviation human factors to enhance safety, wellbeing, and performance within complex operational environments.
In her clinical practice, Jennifer leads Psychologists and Counsellors Australia, a multidisciplinary team delivering assessment, therapy, and behaviour support across the lifespan. She combines neuropsychological insight with trauma-informed and developmental frameworks to achieve meaningful, person-centred outcomes.
A member of the National NDIS Advisory Group and the Clinical College of the Australian Psychological Society, Jennifer has helped shape national standards in disability and clinical practice. She is a former Chair and Secretary of the APS Brisbane Branch Committee and former Honorary Member of the Educational and Developmental Psychology Committee.
Jennifer supervises and mentors early-career clinicians and presents widely on assessment and treatment for aviation, autism, trauma, neurodiversity, and resilience.
Areas of Expertise
Committee member
Committee member
Dr Ali Kaine is a Clinical Psychologist with over 25 years experience working with military personnel and veterans. She has a PhD from the University of Adelaide and a Masters in Psychology from the University of New South Wales. She has a passion for mentoring and developing junior Psychologists and has pursued this passion as a Committee member of the APS College of Clinical Psychologists.
Areas of Expertise
Co-chair
Co-chair
Daniel is a Clinical Psychologist with a joint position in private practice and academia. His clinical and research interests focus on sexual wellbeing and LGBTQIA+ health equity.
Areas of Expertise
Committee member
Committee member
Jess Conroy is a Clinical Psychologist, PhD candidate at Charles Darwin University, and founder of Wild Hearts Psychology in Gladstone, Queensland. She works with adolescents and adults experiencing trauma, anxiety, mood, and personality-related difficulties, integrating ACT, CBT, Schema Therapy, DBT, parts work, and psychodynamic approaches. Jess has a background in teaching and higher education and now provides training on trauma-informed care, psychosocial safety, and mental health in regional and remote contexts.
Her clinical and research work focuses on understanding and supporting mental health and social safeness within a trauma-informed framework on both the individual and organisational level. Jess has worked across schools, community settings, private practice, and organisational consultation. Her current doctoral research examines how work–life balance, social connection, and psychosocial safety shape mental health for island staff, with the aim of informing more responsive, context-sensitive supports for workers in remote tourism environments.
Areas of Expertise
Committee member
Committee member
Dominique is a Clinical Psychologist and researcher working in public health in WA.
Areas of Expertise
Committee member
Committee member
I am an early career psychologist currently completing my clinical registrar program. After completing my clinical masters I went into government, and currently work in adult community and inpatient forensic services in Tasmania. I enjoy a cross section of psychology and looking at things with different lenses, with a particular current interest exploring the intersection between clinical and forensic psychology. While working towards my clinical endorsement I have been taking learning opportunities in the forensic space, especially around risk assessment, formulation of violence, and clinical treatment for reducing offending and relapse prevention. I have a chunky ‘to do list’ of modalities I am looking forward to learning more about, and love to keep my ears and eyes open for a good learning opportunity. I have been in a few different roles within the APS and the Clinical College, which has enabled me to give a voice to the interests and different needs of students and early career clinical psychologists.
Areas of Expertise
Co-chair
Co-chair
Dr Dixie Statham, is Professor of Clinical Psychology at Federation University, Ballarat, Victoria. She is a Fellow of the College of Clinical Psychologists (CCLP), and a member of the National CCLP Committee and the Victoria State Section. She is currently the Conference Committee co-chair for the CCLP Conference. Dixie has a strong and enduring interest in the education of psychologists and in supporting students, registrars, and early career psychologists to develop their professional identity, careers, and leadership skills in regional and rural communities. Her research in substance misuse, trauma, anxiety and depression, has produced 100+ co-authored peer-reviewed papers, which are closely aligned with her clinical interests. In clinical practice, Dixie works with CBT & Schema Therapy to provide assessment and treatment of complex, co-morbid disorders.
Areas of Expertise
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