Dr Lauren Pearson is a Postdoctoral Research Fellow and Equity Lead within the Sustainable Mobility and Safety Research Group in the School of Public Health and Preventive Medicine (SPHPM) at Monash University. Lauren is an applied transport and public health researcher, with expertise on the intersection between sustainable and active modes of transport, and gender equity. Her research exposes the untapped potential for increased active mobility (walking and bike riding) among groups often side-lined by transport systems that fail to meet their needs, particularly women.
Her vision is to unlock the potential of equitable active transport to realise the significant health, environmental, social and economic benefits of getting more people active as part of everyday. To do this, she uses mixed-methods research and participatory intervention development alongside deep partnerships with government and non-government organisations. She has pioneered the use of mixed-methods research and intervention mapping to understand the barriers women face for active mobility, and what kind of interventions can overcome these. This model of collaborative and equity-driven research has enabled rapid translation of her research findings, including significant policy impact within Australia and globally.
Lauren’s passion for creating accessible, inclusive environments for people of all ages and abilities to choose sustainable and actives transport modes drives her ongoing research in the field.
Selected publications or texts
- Pearson, L., Reeder, S., Gabbe, B., & Beck, B. (2023). What a girl wants: a mixed-methods study of gender differences in the barriers to and enablers of riding a bike in Australia. Transportation research part F: traffic psychology and behaviour, 94, 453-465.
- Pearson, L., Beck, B., Kalms, N., & Skouteris, H. PETAL Project: Unlocking young women’s access to bike-riding. https://doi.org/10.26180/27957414.v1
- Pearson, L., Berkovic, D., Reeder, S., Gabbe, B., & Beck, B. (2023). Adults’ self-reported barriers and enablers to riding a bike for transport: A systematic review. Transport reviews, 43(3), 356-384.
- Pearson, L., Gabbe, B., Reeder, S., & Beck, B. (2023). Barriers and enablers of bike riding for transport and recreational purposes in Australia. Journal of Transport & Health, 28, 101538.
- Pearson, L., Dipnall, J., Gabbe, B., Braaf, S., White, S., Backhouse, M., & Beck, B. (2022). The potential for bike riding across entire cities: quantifying spatial variation in interest in bike riding. Journal of Transport & Health, 24, 101290.
- Pearson, L., Page, M. J., Gerhard, R., Clarke, N., Winters, M., Bauman, A., … & Beck, B. (2025). Effectiveness of interventions for modal shift to walking and bike riding: a systematic review with meta-analysis. Transport Reviews, 1-32.