Elise Callagher

“I’m Back to Myself Again”: A Lived Experience-Centred Approach to Cognitive Recovery After Concussion

Elise Callagher profile-picture photograph

Elise Callagher

PhD Student
School of Psychological Sciences

Profile

Elise is a doctoral candidate and trainee in the Clinical Psychology programme at Te Herenga Waka - Victoria University of Wellington. She is supervised by Dr Josh Faulkner, Associate Professor Hedwig Eisenbarth, Professor Debbie Snell (University of Otago), and Professor Alice Theadom (Auckland University of Technology).

Although most people recover from a concussion within weeks, a significant proportion continue to experience cognitive difficulties, such as forgetfulness, slowed thinking, and trouble concentrating, for months or even years. Elise's research asks what recovery looks and feels like from the perspective of those living through it and uses these lived experiences to develop a person-centred way of measuring cognitive recovery. This work also aims to better understand what drives prolonged cognitive difficulties. She works closely with clinical services to support the translation of this research into routine concussion care across Aotearoa New Zealand. Prior to her doctoral studies, Elise worked as a care worker in community and residential settings. This sparked her passion for neuropsychology and her commitment to improving outcomes for people living with cognitive challenges and other difficulties.

Qualifications

Bachelor of Science in Development Studies and Psychology 
Bachelor of Science with Honours in Psychology (First Class)

Research Interests

Concussion / Mild Traumatic Brain injury (mTBI), Cognitive complaints, Clinical Neuropsychology, Co-design, Qualitative methods, Psychological flexibility

PhD Topic

"I’m Back to Myself Again”: A Lived Experience-Centred Approach to Cognitive Recovery After Concussion

Supervisor/s

Dr Josh Faulkner

A/Prof Hedwig Eisenbarth

Publications

Roche, M., Faulkner, J. W., & Callagher, E. (2026). A scoping review and research agenda: Psychological flexibility and wellbeing in organisations. Applied psychology. Health and well-being, 18(2), e70139. https://doi.org/10.1111/aphw.70139

Faulkner, J. W., Callagher, E., Snell, D., Nielsen, K., Cairncross, M., & Theadom, A. (2024). Evaluation of a biopsychosocial education resource for mild traumatic brain injury: a mixed method exploratory study. Frontiers in neurology, 15, 1429928. https://doi.org/10.3389/fneur.2024.1429928

Labs

Neurorecovery and Contextual Sciences (NRCS) Lab