Jacinta Hawgood

Jacinta Hawgood is a Senior Lecturer and Program Director of Suicidology at the Australian Institute for Suicide Research and Prevention, Griffith University, where she has worked for over 20 years. She is a clinical psychologist and suicidologist who has devoted her career to understanding the experiences of those who experience psychological pain, especially in regards to their lived experience and trajectory of both vulnerability and resilience in regards to suicidality. Her research and clinical interests are in psycho-social and person centred suicide risk assessment processes, personal suicide stigma, the impacts of client/co-worker suicide on the worker, and suicide prevention training design and evaluation.

Her PhD (candidate) is in the area of suicide risk assessment and the feasibility and validity of the Systematic Tailored Assessment for Responding to Suicidality (STARS) interview protocol. She is the lead author of STARS protocol published first in 2015 and most recently updated in 2018.

In 2001, Jacinta and Emeritus Professor Diego De Leo developed the Graduate Certificate in Suicide Prevention and Master of Suicidology Programs, the first of their kind in the world. Jacinta has worked clinically with suicidal people for over 20 years and has supervised other psychologists in this domain for over a decade. She has provided expert advice and guidance on suicide risk assessment, and other suicidology topics to state and national government departments and private organisations. She has presented research findings at a range of state, national and international conferences, has co-authored and edited a book, book chapters, and numerous peer-reviewed articles and government reports in the field.

Jacinta is a non-executive Director of the Board of Suicide Prevention Australia, and Mates in Construction (Qld/NT), and a member on several national and international advisory boards regarding suicide prevention.