School of Psychology, Speech and Hearing

Dr. Dwain D. Allan is the founding director of Taiwhanga Whakahaere Hinengaro – The Mind Control Lab at the University of Canterbury and a leading expert on the psychology of success. His work focuses on how we can change, direct, and harness the power of the mind to unlock greater potential and achieve success in a world of accelerated flux. He is especially interested in the subjective aspects of the mind — and, more particularly, the profound but hidden influence they exert on objective reality. In addition to his core research programme, Dr. Allan is a recognised authority in the fields of human–AI interaction, social robotics, systems science, and the relationship between the mind and social technology products.

Beyond academia, Dr. Allan is a respected founder, board member, advisor, and go-to expert for success-motivated individuals. Clients include world-class founders, CEOs, executives, athletes, coaches, and thought leaders, whom he teaches how to use his models and methods. Unsurprisingly, therefore, Dr. Allan has a special interest in producing scholarly knowledge that is both theoretically important and practically useful.

His iwi affiliations include Ngāi Te Rangi, Ngāpuhi, Ngāti Raukawa, and Ngāti Whakaue.

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Research Topics:

→ Success Psychology

→ Mindsets and Self Beliefs

→ Mental Performance and Psychological Thriving

→ Mind and Behaviour Change

→ Psychological Interventions

→ Meaning and Mental Representation

→ Placebos and Self-Fulfilling Prophecies

→ Plasticity and Change

→ Confidence and Self-Efficacy

→ Psychological Construction and Perceptual Control 

→ Computational and Theoretical Neuroscience of Feedback

→ Drive and Motivation

→ Peak Performance and Coaching Psychology

→ Executive and Leadership Psychology

→ Social Influence and Cyberpsychology

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UC Research Commitments:

→ Societal Resilience

→ Sustainable Futures

→ Technology for Real-World Benefit

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Media Keywords:

→ Psychology 

→ Success 

→ Beliefs 

→ Mindsets

→ Achievement 

→ High-Performance

→ Mental Performance

→ Mental Wellbeing

→ Winning

→ Flourishing 

→ Thriving

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📌  Dr. Allan is not currently considering PhD students. If you're interested in working with the lab, please complete the Lab Membership Form → HERE. 

Sarah Christofferson, Ph.D., is an Associate Professor in Clinical Psychology at the University of Canterbury, New Zealand, and a Registered Clinical Psychologist. Her research interests include the therapeutic and systemic prevention of sexual abuse, assessment and treatment approaches for people who have sexually offended, strategies for measuring therapeutic change, and the valid integration of change into risk evaluations.

Kua tawhiti kē tō haerenga mai, kia kore e haere tonu

He nui rawa ō mahi kia kore e mahi tonu. 

You have come too far not to go further

You have done too much not to continue

Dr Megan Blakely is a researcher in the psychology of work, specialising in how people interact with complex sociotechnical systems. Her work integrates human factors, organisational psychology, and systems thinking to understand how technology, leadership, organisational design, and governance influence human behaviour, safety, wellbeing, and performance.

Her research investigates how work systems, organisational structures, leadership, and emerging technologies influence human behaviour, safety, wellbeing, and performance. Drawing on human factors, organisational psychology, systems thinking, artificial intelligence, governance, and behavioural science, she examines how the design of sociotechnical systems shapes both human capability and human vulnerability. Human factors recognises that people have both remarkable strengths and inherent cognitive, physical, and social limitations, and that failures are often consequences of system design rather than individual shortcomings.

A particular focus of her research is the psychosocial risks emerging from the rapid adoption of artificial intelligence and other advanced technologies. She examines how work design, cognitive workload, trust in automation, decision-making under pressure, role ambiguity, and organisational governance influence worker wellbeing and performance. Her work argues that AI should not simply automate tasks but should be designed to complement human strengths, accommodate human limitations, and create conditions in which people can perform safely, effectively, and sustainably. Rather than viewing human error as the primary problem, her research explores how poorly designed technologies, governance arrangements, and organisational systems can unintentionally set people up to fail, and how human-centred design can create more resilient, ethical, and productive workplaces.

A central theme throughout her work is understanding how work systems can be designed to support the wellbeing and performance of diverse workforces. Her research examines leadership, organisational culture, psychosocial wellbeing, diversity, equity and inclusion, neurodiversity, and evidence-based approaches to organisational change. She is particularly interested in how organisations can create environments where people with different backgrounds, identities, abilities, and ways of thinking are able to contribute and succeed. Within the New Zealand context, her work also considers the implications of Te Tiriti o Waitangi, bicultural practice, and culturally responsive approaches to organisational and technological design.

Alongside her academic research, Dr Blakely works with organisations to translate evidence into practice, supporting the design and implementation of human-centred systems, AI governance, organisational change, and workplace innovation. Her work bridges research and industry, helping organisations make better decisions about technology, people, and work through practical, ethical, and evidence-informed approaches.

Overall, her research seeks to understand and improve the relationship between people, technology, and organisations, delivering meaningful, practical, and sustainable impact for workers, organisations, and society.

My primary research area is Motivational Interviewing - its efficacy, practice, training and implementation. Motivational Interviewing is a collaborative conversation for strengthening a person's motivation for change or growth.

My other areas of research include culturally responsive practice and teaching; clinical supervision and competency assessment in clinical psychology; health behaviour and mental health.

My training is in clinical audiology and reserach. I am part of a thriving research group, which includes researchers from several countries, master's level and PhD level students. My approach towards research is collaborative and interdisciplinary. I enjoy supervising research students from various health-related disciplines, particularly from audiology, speech/language pathology and psychology. 

Kate grew up in Palmerston North and the wider Manawatu region. She attended the University of Canterbury, graduating with a Bachelor of Speech and Language Therapy in 2007, completed her Master of Speech and Language Therapy in 2008 and PhD in 2023. Kate has worked as a Speech-Language Therapist in hospital settings around Aotearoa | New Zealand and Australia with a focus on Adult Health, before taking up a position of Clinical Educator at the University of Canterbury in 2013. Kate is one of the Clinical Educators teaching into the Clinical Papers as part of the BSLP, MSLP and MSc in Speech Sciences programmes.

Kate's research focuses on the scholarship of teaching and learning, and on communication in speech-language pathology and audiology. Kate has a particular interest in reflective practice, ākonga learning, and communication with older adults and their whānau. Kate has experience designing and conducting both quantitative and qualitative studies, including thematic analysis, interview-based studies, and observational research in clinical and educational settings. Kate's work also examines innovative training approaches and technologies such as artificial intelligence and virtual reality to support ākonga skill development. Kate is particularly interested in how learners transfer knowledge from training environments into real-world practice.

My research examines children's and adolescents' social, emotional, and behavioural development, with a focus on youth mental health and parenting. I also have expertise in research design, statistical modelling, and psychological measurement.