Marissa Edwards

Marissa Edwards is an award-winning educator, mental health advocate, and researcher at the University of Queensland Business School. Marissa is known internationally for her advocacy work and regularly facilitates workshops about academic mental health at universities across Australia, Europe, and the United States.

She is the current Co-Editor of the Research Handbook of Academic Mental Health, to be published by Edward Elgar Press in 2024. She is also the co-founder and co-curator of Voices of Academia, a blog dedicated to academic mental health and well-being. Along with a team of researchers from the School of Psychology and the School of Education, Marissa received a 2022 UQ Excellence Award for research into PhD student well-being, engagement and research culture.

Building on her PhD research, in which she studied the decision-making processes underlying silence and whistle-blowing, her most recent research focuses on toxic work cultures associated with burnout and abusive behaviours (e.g., bullying and sexual harassment) in academia.

As an educator, Marissa has extensive experience lecturing in organisational behaviour, business ethics, and mental health promotion in the workplace. She is passionate about improving the first-year student experience and supporting students during their transition to university.