Rate My Professor Sarah-Jane Robertson

Sarah-Jane Robertson serves as Senior Research Administrator in the Research and Enterprise Office at the University of Otago, providing administrative, financial, and IT support to the research community. She is part of the Research Administration Team and has been involved in coordinating events such as the RSNZ Marsden Fund roadshow. Previously, she held the role of Research Administrator in the Department of Women's and Children's Health within the Dunedin School of Medicine, Division of Health Sciences. In 2018, Robertson received the Excellence in Research Support award in the Women's and Children's Health category at the Health Research Excellence Awards, which celebrate research partnerships between the Dunedin School of Medicine and Southern District Health Board.

Robertson has made significant contributions to developmental psychology research at the University of Otago's Department of Psychology, co-authoring several peer-reviewed publications focused on children's episodic memory, autobiographical memory development, parent-child reminiscing, and narrative identity. Key publications include 'Coaching in maternal reminiscing with preschoolers leads to elaborative and coherent personal narratives in early adolescence' (Journal of Experimental Child Psychology, 2020, with E. Reese et al.); 'Origins of adolescents' earliest memories' (Memory, 2019, with E. Reese); 'Telling the Tale and Living Well: Adolescent Narrative Identity, Personality Traits, and Life Satisfaction Across Cultures' (Child Development, 2017, with E. Reese, Y. Chen et al.); 'Development in the Organization of Episodic Memories in Middle Childhood' (Frontiers in Behavioral Neuroscience, 2013, with Y. Chen et al.); and contributions to 'The Role of Whānau (New Zealand Māori Families) for Māori Youths’ Acute Responses to Stress' (Developmental Psychology, 2020, with T. Neha et al., where she managed the project and coding). Her work supports longitudinal studies tracking narrative development from childhood to adolescence, aiding data collection, transcription, and coding efforts. These contributions have been acknowledged in multiple theses and papers from the University of Otago, highlighting her role in facilitating high-impact research in child development and well-being.