The winner of the Prime Minister's Macdiarmid Science Prize for an emerging researcher is breaking ground in how we understand and manage anxiety.
Dr Olivia Harrison works in the University of Otago's psychology department, where she leads a lab combining neuroscience with fields like physiology and computational modelling to learn more about what is going on in our bodies when we are anxious.
She says anxiety, globally, is on the rise, and New Zealand has the fourth-highest prevalence worldwide.
She joins Emile Donovan to reflect on this milestone achievement.
Dr Olivia Harrison received the Prime Minister's Macdiarmid Emerging Scientist Prize for 2025 at an awards ceremony on Tuesday 6 May. Photo: Rebecca McMillan
