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melanie_bussey_2011BPE(New Brunswick) MSc (New Brunswick) PhD (Otago)
Tel +64 3 479 8981
Email melanie.bussey@otago.ac.nz
ORCID https://orcid.org/0000-0002-5746-3861
ResearchGate
Twitter @bussey_melanie
Google Scholar

Background

Melanie is a Professor in Biomechanics and Director of the Motion Analysis Research Lab in the School. She is originally from the East Coast of Canada, where she studied Kinesiology and Athletic Therapy at the University of New Brunswick (BPE and MSc) before transplanting to New Zealand in pursuit of her PhD in Clinical Biomechanics. Recently she was appointed as an Adjunct Professor to the School of Rehabilitation Sciences, University of Saskatchewan, Canada.

Melanie's work has been funded by the Health Research Council of New Zealand, Otago Medical Research Foundation, Maurice and Phyllis Paykel Trust, University of Otago, Sport Science New Zealand and the Spondyloarthritis Research Consortium of Canada.

Teaching

Research

Melanie's research interests are focused on Sports Biomechanics, particularly the impact of musculoskeletal pain and injury on neuromuscular function. The long term goal of this work is to improve athlete re-conditioning for return-to-sport while reducing the risk of recurrent injury.

Postgraduate Students

  • Jim Webb (PhD): Professor Melanie Bussey, Professor Stephanie Woodley
  • Corry Perrett (PhD): Dr Peter Lamb, Professor Melanie Bussey
  • Janelle Romanchuk (PhD): Professor Melanie Bussey, Dr Peter Lamb, Dr Cam Ross
  • William White (MSc): Professor Melanie Bussey
  • Jayden Pinfold (MPhEd): Professor Melanie Bussey, Professor John Sullivan
  • Eamon Riley (BSc Hons): Professor Melanie Bussey

Completed Students

  • Daniela Aldabe (PhD Clinical Biomechanics)
  • Divya Adhia (PhD Clinical Biomechanics)
  • Marcelo Peduzzi de Castro (PhD – Deferred)
  • James Kennedy (MPhEd Clinical Biomechanics)
  • Joanne Trezise (MPhEd Sports Biomechanics – Professor Roger Bartlett Co-Supervisor)
  • Rhys Thorp (MPhEd Sports Biomechanics – Co-Supervisor)
  • Yu Tanabe (Tsukuba University Japan – Co-supervisor)

Melanie is currently seeking highly motivated graduate students who have an interest in one of the following topics: Mechanics and control of the pelvis (focus on pelvic floor and hamstring muscles) or Sports related concussion (impact mechanisms and neck muscle control/function). Please consult the University of Otago scholarships webpage to check eligibility for international and domestic student scholarships.

Visit the University of Otago scholarships webpage

Publications

Bussey, M. D., McGeown, J. P., & Dempsey, S. (2026). Sensitivity of brain injury criteria to anthropometric scaling assumptions in instrumented mouthguard data. Journal of Biomechanics, 204, 113378. doi: 10.1016/j.jbiomech.2026.113378 Journal - Research Article

Bussey, M. (2025, November). Protecting players, preserving the game: The science of head impact and resilience. University of Otago, Dunedin, New Zealand. [Inaugural Professorial Lecture]. Other Research Output

Blyth, R., Galea, O., Bussey, M., Ahmed, O. H., & Sole, G. (2025). Spare the brain: Female football players' perspectives of heading the ball, concussion knowledge and attitudes: A qualitative study. Science & Medicine in Football. Advance online publication. doi: 10.1080/24733938.2025.2584090 Journal - Research Article

Tierney, G., Tucker, R., Tooby, J., Starling, L., Falvey, É., Salmon, D., … Bussey, M., & Allan, D. (2025). Peak power: A severity measure for head acceleration events associated with suspected concussions. Sports Medicine. Advance online publication. doi: 10.1007/s40279-025-02308-0 Journal - Research Article

Bussey, M. D., Salmon, D., Nanai, B., Romanchuk, J., Gomez, R. M., Tong, D., Sole, G., … Falvey, É. (2025). Contact role and tackle characteristics shape head acceleration exposure in male community rugby: A cohort study utilising instrumented mouthguards. Sports Medicine. Advance online publication. doi: 10.1007/s40279-025-02314-2 Journal - Research Article

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