Profile image of Stefanie Sharman

Dr Stefanie Sharman

STAFF PROFILE

Position

Associate Head of School (Teaching and Learning)

Faculty

Faculty of Health

Department

School of Psychology

Campus

Melbourne Burwood Campus

Qualifications

Graduate Certificate of Higher Education, Deakin University, 2011
Doctor of Philosophy, Victoria Univ. of Wellington, 2003
Bachelor of Science, Victoria Univ. of Wellington, 2002

Contact

Research interests

Dr Sharman has two main research interests in the area of memory:

  1. How people can come to remember experiences that they never actually had.
  2. The impact of interviewing (e.g., by police) on people's memories for events that they experienced or witnessed.

Teaching interests

Memory and cognition, research methods

Units taught

HPS203/773 The Human Mind (Unit chair)

Knowledge areas

Autobiographical memory

False memory

Source monitoring

Cognition

Investigative interviewing

Conferences

Brubacher, S., Scoboria, A., Sharman, S. J., & Powell, M. B. (2012, March). Adult witnesses suggestibility across various question types for present and absent details. Paper presented at the Annual Conference of the American Psychology-Law Society, Puerto Rico.

Powell, M. B., & Sharman, S. J. (2012, May). Improving the quality of professionals contemporaneous notes taken during interviews about alleged child abuse. Paper presented at the 5th Annual Meeting of the International Investigative Interviewing Research Group, Toronto.

Sharman, S. J., & Powell, M. B. (2012, May). Adult witnesses suggestibility across four types of leading questions. Paper presented at the 5th Annual Meeting of the International Investigative Interviewing Research Group, Toronto.

Awards

2001 Royal Society of New Zealand Travel Award

2002 School of Psychology PhD Scholarship, Victoria University of Wellington

2005 Vice Chancellors Postdoctoral Fellowship, University of New South Wales

Projects

* Interviewing children about repeated events

* Interviewing adults about repeated events

* The impact of different types of misleading questions on eyewitness recall

* Motivated false memories

Publications

Filter by

2024

Witnesses' susceptibility to misleading post-event information delivered in a social media-style video

S Sharman, M Danby, A Gray

(2024), Vol. 32, pp. 100-110, Memory, Oxford, Eng., C1

journal article
2023

Laypeople's perceptions of the effects of event repetition, reporting delay, and emotion on children's and adults' memory

M Danby, S Sharman, C van Golde, H Paterson

(2023), Vol. 31, pp. 205-217, Memory, Oxford, Eng., C1

journal article

The effects of episode spacing on adult's reports of a repeated event

Meaghan Danby, Stefanie Sharman, Celine van Golde, Helen Paterson, Rachel Watkins

(2023), Vol. 31, pp. 1-11, Memory, London, Eng., C1-1

journal article

Exploring adults' dietary reporting accuracy using a repeated events framework

Stefanie Sharman, Melissa Hayden, Meaghan Danby, Justine Derbyshire

(2023), Vol. 37, pp. 876-888, Applied Cognitive Psychology, London, Eng., C1

journal article

Open-ended initial invitations are particularly helpful in eliciting forensically relevant information from child witnesses

Meaghan Danby, Stefanie Sharman

(2023), Vol. 146, Child Abuse and Neglect, Amsterdam, The Netherlands, C1

journal article
2022

Factors influencing the perceived credibility of children alleging physical abuse

M Danby, S Sharman, B Klettke

(2022), Vol. 29, pp. 1-15, Psychiatry, Psychology and Law, London, England, C1

journal article

The effects of recalling generic versus episodic information first on adults' reports of a repeated event

M Danby, S Sharman, G Claringbold

(2022), Vol. 36, pp. 460-467, Applied Cognitive Psychology, London, England, C1

journal article

Mental context reinstatement improves adults' reports of additional details from two instances of a repeated event

S Sharman, M Danby, L Christopoulos

(2022), pp. 1-12, Memory, London, Eng., C1

journal article

Testing an Evaluation Tool to Facilitate Police Officers' Peer Review of Child Interviews

M Danby, S Sharman, B Guadagno

(2022), pp. 1-15, Journal of Police and Criminal Psychology, Berlin, Germany, C1

journal article

Adult Mock Sexual Assault Witness Perceptions and Non-Verbal Behaviors Across Different Interview Frameworks

M Ali, S Brubacher, S Sharman, M Powell

(2022), pp. 1-28, Journal of Forensic Psychology Research and Practice, Abingdon, Eng., C1

journal article

Suggestive questions reduce the accuracy of adults' reports about one episode of a repeated event

S Sharman, M Danby

(2022), Psychology, Crime and Law, C1

journal article
2021

Situational Characteristics Uniquely Associated With Children's Exposure to Intimate Partner Violence

S Sharman, K Coomber, R Mayshak, A Curtis, S Hyder, A Walker, P Liknaitzky, P Miller

(2021), Vol. 36, pp. NP11087-NP11105, Journal of Interpersonal Violence, United States, C1

journal article

Discussions about child witness interviews during Australian trials of child sexual abuse

A Pichler, M Powell, S Sharman, N Westera, J Goodman-Delahunty

(2021), Vol. 22, pp. 938-952, Police Practice and Research, C1

journal article

Police officers' perceptions of specialist training, skills and qualities needed to investigate sexual crime

P Tidmarsh, S Sharman, G Hamilton

(2021), Vol. 22, pp. 475-490, Police Practice and Research, C1

journal article

Inconsistencies in complainant's accounts of child sexual abuse arising in their cross-examination

A Pichler, M Powell, S Sharman, S Zydervelt, N Westera, J Goodman-Delahunty

(2021), Vol. 27, pp. 341-356, Psychology, Crime and Law, C1

journal article

Interviewers' perceptions of interviewing Aboriginal Australian children

M Danby, B Guadagno, S Sharman

(2021), Vol. 22, pp. 1356-1375, Police Practice and Research, C1

journal article

The Effect of Specialist Training on Sexual Assault Investigators' Questioning and Use of Relationship Evidence

P Tidmarsh, S Sharman, G Hamilton

(2021), Journal of Police and Criminal Psychology, C1

journal article

How does self-regulated learning influence formative assessment and summative grade? Comparing online and blended learners

J Broadbent, S Sharman, E Panadero, M Fuller-Tyszkiewicz

(2021), Vol. 50, Internet and Higher Education, C1

journal article
2020

A review of the use of special measures for complainants' evidence at trial

A Pichler, J Goodman-Delahunty, S Sharman, M Powell, N Westera

(2020), pp. 467-518, Child Sexual Abuse: Forensic Issues in Evidence, Impact, and Management, B1

book chapter

Association between interview quality and child sexual abuse trial outcome

A Pichler, S Sharman, M Powell, N Westera, J Goodman-Delahunty

(2020), Vol. 35, pp. 395-403, Journal of family violence, New York, N.Y., C1

journal article

Changing Police Officers' Attitudes in Sexual Offense Cases: A 12-Month Follow-Up Study

P Tidmarsh, G Hamilton, S Sharman

(2020), Vol. 47, pp. 1176-1189, Criminal Justice and Behavior, C1

journal article

Narrative practice may foster comfort but not enhance cognition in adult witness interviews about a mock sexual assault

Sonja Brubacher, Stefanie Sharman, Nina Westera, Hamida Zekiroski, Meaghan Danby, Martine Powell

(2020), Vol. 31, pp. 814-821, Journal of Forensic Psychiatry and Psychology, Abingdon, Eng., C1

journal article

The effect of question type on resistance to misinformation about present and absent details

S Brubacher, S Sharman, A Scoboria, M Powell

(2020), Vol. 34, pp. 1323-1334, Applied Cognitive Psychology, London, Eng., C1

journal article
2019

The effects of episode similarity on children's reports of a repeated event

M Danby, S Sharman, S Brubacher, M Powell

(2019), Vol. 27, pp. 561-567, Memory, England, C1

journal article

Challenges in translating interview protocols for alleged child victims of sexual abuse to different languages: A case study

C Navarro, T Knight, S Sharman, M Powell

(2019), Vol. 94, Child Abuse and Neglect, England, C1

journal article
2018

A Comparison of Responses to Substantive Transition Prompts in Interviews With Children

B Earhart, M Danby, S Brubacher, M Powell, S Sharman

(2018), Vol. 23, pp. 221-225, Child Maltreatment, United States, C1

journal article

Other misconduct evidence in appeals against conviction in child sexual abuse trials

S Mills, S Sharman

(2018), Vol. 25, pp. 944-956, Psychiatry, psychology and law, London, Eng., C1

journal article
2017

Professionals' Perspectives about the Challenges of Using Interpreters in Child Sexual Abuse Interviews

M Powell, B Manger, J Dion, S Sharman

(2017), Vol. 24, pp. 90-101, Psychiatry, Psychology and Law, England, C1

journal article

The Relationship Between Children's Age and Disclosures of Sexual Abuse During Forensic Interviews

C Leach, M Powell, S Sharman, J Anglim

(2017), Vol. 22, pp. 79-88, Child Maltreatment, United States, C1

journal article

Legal representatives' opinions regarding psychologists engaging in expert witness services in Australian courts and tribunals

E Gianvanni, S Sharman

(2017), Vol. 24, pp. 223-232, Psychiatry, psychology and law, London, Eng., C1

journal article

Children's reasoning about which episode of a repeated event is best remembered

M Danby, S Brubacher, S Sharman, M Powell, K Roberts

(2017), Vol. 31, pp. 99-108, Applied cognitive psychology, London, Eng., C1

journal article

The influence of empathy and self-presentation on engagement with social networking website posts

R Mayshak, S Sharman, L Zinkiewicz, A Hayley

(2017), Vol. 71, pp. 362-377, Computers in Human Behavior, C1

journal article

Characteristics of successful and unsuccessful appeals against conviction for child sexual abuse

S Mills, S Sharman

(2017), Vol. 24, pp. 655-669, Psychiatry, psychology and law, Abingdon, Eng., C1

journal article

Differential effects of general versus cued invitations on children's reports of a repeated event episode

M Danby, S Sharman, S Brubacher, M Powell, K Roberts

(2017), Vol. 23, pp. 794-811, Psychology, crime & law, Abingdon, Eng., C1

journal article

The effects of one versus two episodically oriented practice narratives on children's reports of a repeated event

M Danby, S Brubacher, S Sharman, M Powell

(2017), Vol. 22, pp. 442-454, Legal and criminological psychology, London, Eng., C1

journal article
2016

Factors related to the accuracy of self-reported dietary intake of children aged 6 to 12 years elicited with interviews: a systematic review

S Sharman, H Skouteris, M Powell, B Watson

(2016), Vol. 116, pp. 76-114, Journal of the academy of nutrition and dietetics, Amsterdam, The Netherlands, C1

journal article

A qualitative evaluation of the challenges faced by dieticians when interviewing children

S Sharman, M Powell, H Skouteris

(2016), Vol. 100, pp. 80-85, Appetite, England, C1

journal article

Identifying the characteristics of child sexual abuse cases associated with the child or child's parents withdrawing the complaint

L Christensen, S Sharman, M Powell

(2016), Vol. 57, pp. 53-60, Child Abuse and Neglect, England, C1

journal article

Identifying the characteristics of child sexual abuse cases that exit the criminal justice system before the forensic interview

L Christensen, S Sharman, M Powell

(2016), Vol. 18, pp. 104-114, International journal of police science & management, London, Eng., C1

journal article

The impact of negative online social network content on expressed sentiment, executive function, and working memory

R Mayshak, S Sharman, L Zinkiewicz

(2016), Vol. 65, pp. 402-408, Computers in Human Behavior, C1

journal article
2015

Professionals' views on child sexual abuse attrition rates

L Christensen, S Sharman, M Powell

(2015), Vol. 22, pp. 542-558, Psychiatry, psychology and law, London, Eng., C1

journal article

Disrupting the encoding of misinformation delivered in closed specific and open presumptive questions

S Sharman, C Boyd, M Powell

(2015), Vol. 22, pp. 535-541, Psychiatry, psychology and law, Abingdon, Eng., C1

journal article

Police and Prosecutors' Perceptions of Adult Sexual Assault Evidence Associated with Case Authorisation and Conviction

E Darwinkel, M Powell, S Sharman

(2015), Vol. 30, pp. 213-220, Journal of Police and Criminal Psychology, C1

journal article

Psychologists as expert witnesses in Australian courtrooms

E Gianvanni, S Sharman

(2015), Vol. 22, pp. 920-926, Psychiatry, psychology and law, London, Eng., C1

journal article

The effects of practice on children's ability to apply ground rules in a narrative interview

M Danby, S Brubacher, S Sharman, M Powell

(2015), Vol. 33, pp. 446-458, Behavioral sciences and the law, Chichester, Eng., C1

journal article
2014

The relationship between investigative interviewing experience and open-ended question usage

M Powell, C Hughes-Scholes, R Smith, S Sharman

(2014), Vol. 15, pp. 283-292, Police practice and research : an international journal, Abingdon, England, C1

journal article

An examination of police officers' beliefs about how children report abuse

C Hughes-Scholes, M Powell, S Sharman

(2014), Vol. 21, pp. 127-138, Psychiatry, psychology and law, Abingdon, Eng., C1

journal article

Does extensive free narrative prompting minimise the effect of mental reinstatement on children's recall of events?

E Darwinkel, M Powell, S Sharman

(2014), Vol. 21, pp. 351-359, Psychiatry, psychology and law, Abingdon, England, C1

journal article

Mental context reinstatement or drawing: which better enhances children's recall of witnessed events and protects against suggestive questions?

M Gentle, M Powell, S Sharman

(2014), Vol. 66, pp. 158-167, Australian Journal of Psychology, Richmond, Vic., C1

journal article

The effect of different types of leading questions on adult eyewitnesses with mild intellectual disabilities

P Bowles, S Sharman

(2014), Vol. 28, pp. 129-134, Applied Cognitive Psychology, Hoboken, NJ, C1

journal article
2013

Does free recall moderate the effect of mental context reinstatement instructions on children's cued recall?

P Dietze, S Sharman, M Powell, D Thomson

(2013), Vol. 19, pp. 881-891, Psychology, crime and law, Abingdon, Eng., C1

journal article

Do cognitive interview instructions contribute to false beliefs and memories

S Sharman, M Powell

(2013), Vol. 10, pp. 114-124, Journal of investigative psychology and offender profiling, West Sussex, England, C1

journal article

Does the cognitive interview promote the coherence of narrative accounts in children with and without an intellectual disability?

M Gentle, R Milne, M Powell, S Sharman

(2013), Vol. 60, pp. 30-43, International journal of disability, development and education, Abingdon, Eng., C1

journal article

Assessing the effectiveness of the cognitive interview for children with severe intellectual disabilities

R Milne, S Sharman, M Powell, S Mead

(2013), Vol. 60, pp. 18-29, International journal of disability, development and education, Abingdon, Eng., C1

journal article

Using personal landmark events improves judgements about time, but not contents, in autobiographical memory

M Zwartz, S Sharman

(2013), Vol. 27, pp. 286-290, Applied cognitive psychology, West Sussex, England, C1

journal article

A review of the impact of different types of leading interview questions on child and adult witnesses with intellectual disabilities

P Bowles, S Sharman

(2013), Vol. 21, pp. 205-217, Psychiatry, psychology and law, Oxford, England, C1

journal article

Errors in the identification of question types in investigative interviews of children

M Powell, M Benson, S Sharman, B Guadagno, R Steinberg

(2013), Vol. 15, pp. 144-156, International Journal of Police Science and Management, Dalby, Isle of Man, C1

journal article
2012

A comparison of adult witnesses' suggestibility across various types of leading questions

S Sharman, M Powell

(2012), Vol. 26, pp. 48-53, Applied cognitive psychology, West Sussex, U. K., C1

journal article

Skill in interviewing reduces confirmation bias

M Powell, C Hughes-Scholes, S Sharman

(2012), Vol. 9, pp. 126-134, Journal of investigative psychology and offender profiling, West Sussex, England, C1

journal article

Police officers' ability to play the role of the child during investigative interview training

S Sharman, C Hughes-Scholes, M Powell, B Guadagno

(2012), Vol. 14, pp. 312-321, International journal of police science and management, Isle of Man, England, C1

journal article
2011

Current negative mood encourages changes in end-of-life treatment decisions and is associated with false memories

S Sharman

(2011), Vol. 25, pp. 132-139, Cognition and emotion, Abingdon, England, C1

journal article

Children's ability to estimate the frequency of single and repeated events

S Sharman, M Powell, K Roberts

(2011), Vol. 13, pp. 234-242, International journal of police science & management, Dalby, Isle of Man, C1

journal article

Retrieval-induced forgetting of performed and observed bizarre and familiar actions

S Sharman

(2011), Vol. 58, pp. 361-369, Experimental psychology, Cambridge, Mass., C1

journal article

Improving the quality of professionals' contemporaneous notes taken during interviews about alleged child abuse

M Powell, S Sharman, R Cauchi

(2011), Vol. 5, pp. 317-327, Policing, Oxford, England, C1

journal article

Context reinstatement effects in children's cued recall of strongly and weakly associated word pairs

P Dietze, S Sharman, M Powell, D Thomson

(2011), Vol. 28, pp. 91-100, Australian educational and developmental psychologist, Nedlands, W.A., C1

journal article
2010

Do people's motives influence their susceptibility to imagination inflation?

S Sharman, S Calacouris

(2010), Vol. 57, pp. 77-82, Experimental psychology, Cambridge, Mass., C1-1

journal article

Mood and retrieval-induced forgetting of positive and negative autobiographical memories

C Harris, S Sharman, A Barnier, M Moulds

(2010), Vol. 24, pp. 399-413, Applied cognitive psychology, West Sussex, England, C1-1

journal article

High prevalence information from difference sources affects the development of false beliefs

C Van Golde, S Sharman, I Candel

(2010), Vol. 24, pp. 152-163, Applied cognitive psychology, West Sussex, England, C1-1

journal article
2009

Imagination equally influences false memories of high and low plausibility events

S Sharman, A Scoboria

(2009), Vol. 23, pp. 813-827, Applied cognitive psychology, Bognor Regis, England, C1-1

journal article
2008

Imagining nice and nasty events in childhood or adulthood : recent positive events show the most imagination inflation

S Sharman, A Barnier

(2008), Vol. 129, pp. 228-233, Acta psychologica, Amsterdam , The Netherlands, C1-1

journal article

False memories for end-of-life decisions

S Sharman, M Garry, J Jacobson, E Loftus, P Ditto

(2008), Vol. 27, pp. 291-296, Health psychology, Washington, DC, C1-1

journal article
2006

Should I believe this? Reality monitoring of accounts of self-experienced and invented recent and distant autobiographical events

S Sporer, S Sharman

(2006), Vol. 20, pp. 837-854, Applied cognitive psychology, Bognor Regis, England, C1-1

journal article
2005

Using source cues and familiarity cues to resist imagination inflation

S Sharman, M Garry, M Hunt

(2005), Vol. 120, pp. 227-242, Acta psychologica, Amsterdam, The Netherlands, C1-1

journal article

Discriminating adults' genuine, imagined, and deceptive accounts of positive and negative childhood events

A Barnier, S Sharman, L McKay, S Sporer

(2005), Vol. 19, pp. 985-1001, Applied cognitive psychology, Chichester, England, C1-1

journal article

Explain this : explaining childhood events Inflates confidence for those events

S Sharman, C Manning, M Garry

(2005), Vol. 19, pp. 67-74, Applied cognitive psychology, West Sussex, England, C1-1

journal article

Memory on the beach : an Australian memory (and hypnosis) laboratory

A Barnier, R Bryant, L Campbell, R Cox, C Harris, L Hung, F MacCallum, S Sharman

(2005), Vol. 6, pp. 272-281, Cognitive processing, Berlin, Germany, C1-1

journal article
2004

Imagination or exposure causes imagination inflation

S Sharman, M Garry, C Beuke

(2004), Vol. 117, pp. 157-168, American journal of psychology, Champaign, Ill., C1-1

journal article
2003

The power of the spoken word : sociolinguistic cues influence the misinformation effect

L Vornik, S Sharman, M Garry

(2003), Vol. 11, pp. 101-109, Memory, Hove, England, C1-1

journal article
2002

Examining memory for heterosexual college students' sexual experiences using an electronic mail diary

M Garry, S Sharman, J Feldman, G Marlatt, E Loftus

(2002), Vol. 21, pp. 629-634, Health psychology, Washington, DC, C1-1

journal article

Funded Projects at Deakin

Australian Competitive Grants

A whole system approach to improving child witnesses' particularisation of sexual abuse offences

Prof Martine Powell, Dr Stefanie Sharman, A/Prof Kim Roberts

ARC Linkage - Projects Rnd 2

  • 2015: $16,964
  • 2014: $51,662
  • 2013: $98,676
  • 2012: $62,309

Other Public Sector Funding

A whole system approach to improving child witnesses' particularisation of sexual abuse offences

Prof Martine Powell, Dr Stefanie Sharman, A/Prof Kim Roberts

WA Dept for Child Protection - Western Australia

  • 2014: $50,000
  • 2013: $50,000
  • 2012: $50,000

Supervisions

Principal Supervisor
2021

Elena Gianvanni

Thesis entitled: Psychologists as Expert Witnesses in Australian Courts and Tribunals

Doctor of Philosophy (Psychology), School of Psychology

2020

Carolina Navarro Medel

Thesis entitled: An Assessment of the Applicability of an Adapted Model of Child Investigative Interviewing in Chile

Doctor of Philosophy (Psychology), School of Psychology

2018

Anne Sophie Pichler

Thesis entitled: The Relationship between Investigative Interview Quality, Trial Process, and Outcome in Cases of Child Sexual Abuse

Doctor of Philosophy (Psychology), School of Psychology

Cecile Patricia Boganin

Thesis entitled: The role of autobiographical memory in nonsuicidal self-injury

Doctor of Psychology (Clinical), School of Psychology

2017

Susan Louise Mills

Thesis entitled: An examination of appeals against conviction in child sexual abuse trials

Doctor of Psychology (Forensic), School of Psychology

Patrick Charles Tidmarsh

Thesis entitled: Training sexual crime investigators to get the "Whole Story"

Doctor of Philosophy (Psychology), School of Psychology

2016

Meaghan Claire Danby

Thesis entitled: Examining interview techniques to assist children's recall of repeated events

Doctor of Philosophy (Psychology), School of Psychology

Larissa Christensen

Thesis entitled: Pathway to justice: Examining the attrition of child sexual abuse cases

Doctor of Philosophy (Psychology), School of Psychology

Executive Supervisor
2016

Richelle Annette Mayshak

Thesis entitled: Emotional and Cognitive Interpersonal Processes Associated with Online Social Networking

Doctor of Philosophy (Psychology), School of Psychology

Co-supervisor
2016

Luke Leonard Hockey

Thesis entitled: An Exploration of the Relationship between Psychopathy and the MMPI-2

Doctor of Psychology (Forensic), School of Psychology

Associate Supervisor
2021

Emily Molyneux

Thesis entitled: Romantic Relationships and Attachment in People with Borderline Personality Disorder

Doctor of Psychology (Clinical), School of Psychology

2019

Rebecca Carver

Thesis entitled: The Influence of Adversity on the Narrative Construction of Identity

Doctor of Philosophy, School of Communication and Creative Arts

2018

Julia Kheng Mei Chan

Thesis entitled: The effects of sequential and simultaneous lineup procedures on confidence and accuracy of identity judgments

Doctor of Psychology (Forensic), School of Psychology

2017

Louise Nicole Steel

Thesis entitled: Considering Cognitive Skills in Forensic Practice

Doctor of Psychology (Forensic), School of Psychology

2014

Elli Darwinkel

Thesis entitled: Evaluation of Victoria Police SOCIT-MDC reforms for sexual assault investigation

Doctor of Philosophy (Psychology), School of Psychology

2013

Mia Gentle

Thesis entitled: The effectiveness of the cognitive interview procedure with child witnesses

Doctor of Psychology (Forensic), School of Psychology

2012

Gavin Ross Abbott

Thesis entitled: Schizotypy and Diminished Subjective Wellbeing: Social Cognition and Affect

Doctor of Philosophy (Psychology), School of Psychology