ProfDeborah Mitchison Crawford

Deb Mitchison is a clinical psychologist, researcher and educator. She has specialised in eating disorders since 2009. According to ScholarGPS, Deb is the #10 ranked eating disorder scholar globally, based on the productivity and citations of her work over the past 5 years. Deb's research focuses on understanding the prevalence, distribution, determinants, and health service use associated with eating disorders and related concerns. Primary methodological approaches that she employs includes population-based cohort studies, registry-based research, and program evaluations. Noteworthy research programs Deb has led/is leading include:

• The TrEAT Registry, which is the first registry for community-based eating disorder treatment registered on the Australian Register of Clinical Registries (ACSQHC-ARCR-279). This registry is a partnership with clinical leaders across eating disorder speciality clinics in Australia and New Zealand. Information collected in the registry is fed back to clinicians and services to support treatment monitoring, and the de-identified database is used by researchers. 

• The EveryBODY Study, a cohort study investigating eating disorders and associated risk factors among 5000 NSW adolescents over ther period 2017-2020. This longitudinal dataset has been used in 30 publications to date, including studies that have documented the prevalence of diverse eating disorders and muscle dysmorphia, and examined risk factors for developing eating disorders such as social media use and social fears.