Dr Jessica Oliva ~ Senior Lecturer, Psychology

Dr Jessica Oliva is a Senior Lecturer in Psychology at James Cook University based at the Townsville campus. Her research interests include owner-dog attachment, dog social cognition, empathy, speciesism, connectedness to nature and mindfulness. Inspired by her own experiences adopting a shelter dog, Bonnie, she completed a PhD at Monash University in 2015 investigating the role of the neuropeptide, oxytocin, in human-dog bonding and communication. She then completed a Post-Doctoral fellowship at the Institute of Research in Semi-chemistry and Applied Ethology (IRSEA) in France, investigating the efficacy of Dog Appeasing Pheremone (DAP) versus oxytocin, in dog social cognition, and the influence of human attachment. She has also worked as a Post-Doctoral researcher at the Parent-Infant Research Instititue where she was involved in federal government funded projects to treat perinatal ill mental health. Before arriving to JCU, Dr Oliva worked as a Lecturer in Psychology at Monash University in Melbourne, and research supervisor at the Institute of Social Neuroscience where collectively she supervised 20 Honours projects to successful completion.

Teaching

• PY1101: Exploring Psychology: from Brain to Practice (Level 1; TSV)
• PY1102: Exploring Psychology: from Perception to Reality (Level 1; TSV)

Interests

Research

• human-animal interactions
• oxytocin
• canine science
• attachment
• speciesism
• empathy
• mindfulness

Experience

• 2020 - Research Supervisor, Institute of Social Neuroscience (Melbourne, Australia)
• 2019 to 2020 - Lecturer, Monash University (Melbourne, Australia)
• 2017 to 2020 - Post-Doctoral Research Officer, Parent-Infant Research Institute (Melbourne, Australia)
• 2017 to 2019 - Senior Online Instructor, Monash University (Melbourne, Australia)
• 2016 to 2017 - Post-Doctoral Fellow, Institute of Research in Semiochemistry and Applied Ethology (Apt, France)

Research Disciplines

• Social and personality psychology (5205)
• Clinical and health psychology (5203)
• Applied and developmental psychology (5201)

Socio-Economic Objectives

• Expanding knowledge (2801)

Awards

• 2014 - Federation of Neuroscience (FENS) Young Investigator Award
• 2014 - International Society for Anthrozoology Travel Award
• 2012 - Monash Research Graduate School Travel Award
• 2011 - Australian Postgraduate Award

These are the most recent publications associated with this author. To see a detailed profile of all publications stored at JCU, visit ResearchOnline@JCU. Hover over Altmetrics badges to see social impact.

Journal Articles

• Lau R and Oliva J (2023) Woeful Walks? Dog Walking Not Associated with Mindfulness or Loneliness in Australians Living Alone During a COVID-19 Lockdown. Anthrozoos, 36 (1). pp. 99-115
• Oliva J and Cobb M (in press) Sniffing out what Australians know and believe about Drug Detector Dogs. Journal of Applied Animal Welfare Science, pp. 1-15
• Gemmill A, Oliva J, Ericksen J, Holt C, Holt C and Milgrom J (2022) Web?based treatment for depression in pregnancy: a feasibility study of Mum2BMoodBooster. BMC Psychiatry, 22.
• Gibson P and Oliva J (2022) Public perceptions of Australian assistance dogs: happier and better used than companion dogs. Journal of Applied Animal Welfare Science, 25 (1). pp. 18-30
• Nikcevic J and Oliva J (2022) What’s in a dog? Children learn and apply mindfulness similarly with and without a dog. Human-Animal Interaction Bulletin, 11 (1). pp. 36-53
• Oliva J and Lau R (2022) A qualitative insight into the removal of the Australian COVID-19 lockdowns on dogs and cats, and their owners. Pet Behaviour Science, 13. pp. 1-15
• Oliva J and Johnston K (2022) Development of the pet owner connectedness scale. Anthrozoos, 35 (4). pp. 545-557
• Johnston K and Oliva J (2021) COVID-19 Lockdown Landslides: the negative impact of subsequent lockdowns on loneliness, wellbeing, and mental health of Australians. Asia Pacific Journal of Health Management, 16 (4). pp. 125-133
• Mengoli M, Oliva J, Mendonca T, Chabaud C, Arroub S, Lafont-Lecuelle C, Cozzi A, Pageat P and Bienboire-Frosini C (2021) Neurohormonal profiles of assistance dogs compared to pet dogs: what is the impact of different lifestyles? Animals, 11 (9).
• Oliva J and Green T (2021) Dog tales: mindful dog interactions evoke similar experiences to dog assisted mindfulness meditations. Animals, 11 (7).
• Oliva J and Johnston K (2021) Puppy love in the time of Corona: dog ownership protects against loneliness for those living alone during the COVID-19 lockdown. International Journal of Social Psychiatry, 67 (3). pp. 232-242
• Lockyer J and Oliva J (2020) Better to have loved and lost? Human avoidant attachment style towards dogs predicts group membership as ‘forever owner’ or ‘foster carer’. Animals, 10.

More

ResearchOnline@JCU stores 20+ research outputs authored by Dr Jessica Oliva from 2010 onwards.

The map shows research collaborations by institution from the past 7 years.
Note: Map points are indicative of the countries or states that institutions are associated with.