Our people

Professor Alexander S. Yeung

Institute for Positive Psychology and Education

Areas of expertise: educational psychology; self-concept; achievement motivation; measurement and evaluation; cognition and instruction; language learning; bilingualism; gifted and talented education; cognitive science; teacher education; primary education; secondary education; early childhood education; lifelong education; special education; bullying and violence; cross-cultural studies; Indigenous education

HDR Supervisor accreditation status: Full

ORCID ID: 0000-0003-3462-9475

Phone: +61 2 97014659

Email: alexander.yeung@acu.edu.au

Location:  ACU North Sydney Campus

Alex Yeung is a professor of the Institute for Positive Psychology and Education (IPPE). He was formerly Deputy Director of IPPE; Associate Professor in the National Institute of Education, Singapore; a Chief Curriculum Development Officer in the Hong Kong Government; a school teacher and a teacher educator. He completed his PhD in education at the University of New South Wales. He is an active researcher and is widely published in the most prestigious journals in his field. He has a strong track record of effectively and successfully conducting large-scale longitudinal research with mixed-method approaches.

For 50 years, Dr Alex Yeung has taught in various educational settings from preschool to tertiary levels, including higher degree research programs, high schools, associate degree programs, teacher education institutions, children’s play groups, adult education programs, and a police cadet training school. He is a registered teacher, a psychologist, a professional translator, a linguist, an international coach and referee in volleyball, and an educational researcher. He has taught over 2,000 students in teacher education, including more than 100 school principals, and supervised over 10 PhD students. He has a diversity of skills and expertise in various curriculum areas and has served as designer, administrator, assessor, and consultant in various educational programs and research projects. 

In research, he has served as Chief Investigator in various nationally funded research projects. He has a strong track record of successfully conducting large-scale research in Australia (15 ARC projects, Australian $5.925m), Singapore (10 funded projects, Australian $5.47m equivalent), and Hong Kong (4 funded projects, Australian $1.05m equivalent). He has published 7 books, 31 chapters in edited books, 120 refereed journal articles, and presented over 159 papers at international conferences. 

Select publications

Journal articles

• Dillon, A., Craven, R. G., Kaur, G., & Yeung, A. S. (2020). Support for Aboriginal and Non-Aboriginal Australian students’ wellbeing at school. International Journal of Educational Research, 99. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.ijer.2019.101520
• Kadir, M. S., Yeung, A. S., Ryan, R. M., Forbes, A., & Diallo, T. M. O. (2020). Effects of a dual-approach instruction on students’ science achievement and motivation. Educational Psychology Review, 32, 571-602. org/10.1007/s10648-018-9449-3 
• Lee, C., Yeung, A. S., & Cheung, K. W. (2019). Learner perceptions versus technology usage: A study of adolescent English learners in Hong Kong secondary schools. Computers & Education, 133, 13-26. doi.org/10.1016/j.compedu.2019.01.005
• Goodwin, A. L., Low, E. L., Cai, L., Yeung, A.S. (2019). A longitudinal study on starting teachers’ retention intentions: Do pre-teaching work experience and length of working years make a difference? Teaching and Teacher Education, 83, 148-155.
• Ngu, B. H., Phan, H. P., Yeung, A. S., & Chung, S. F. (2018). Managing element interactivity in equation solving. Educational Psychology Review, 30, 255-272. doi:10.1007/s10648-016-9397-8
• Kadir, M. S., Yeung, A. S., & Diallo, T. M. O. (2017). Simultaneous testing of four decades of academic self-concept models. Contemporary Educational Psychology, 51, 429-446. doi: 10.1016/j.cedpsych.2017.09.008
• Lee, C., Yeung, A. S., & Ip, T. (2017). University English language learners' readiness to use computer technology for self-directed learning. System, 67, 99-110. org/10.1016/j.system.2017.05.001
• Phan, H. P., Ngu, B. H., & Yeung, A. S. (2017). Achieving optimal best: Instructional efficiency and the use of cognitive load theory in mathematical problem solving. Educational Psychology Review, 29, 667–692. doi:10.1007/s10648-016-9373-3
• Arens, A.K., Marsh, H.W., Craven, R.G., Yeung, A. S., Randhawa, E., & Hasselhorn, M. (2016). Math self-concept in preschool children: Structure, achievement relations, and generalizability across gender. Early Childhood Research Quarterly, 36, 391-403. doi: 10.1016/j.ecresq.2015.12.024
• Mooney, J., Seaton, M., Kaur, G., Marsh, H. W., & Yeung, A. S. (2016). Cultural perspectives on Indigenous and non-Indigenous Australian students’ school motivation and engagement. Contemporary Educational Psychology, 47, 11-23. doi: 10.1016/j.cedpsych.2016.04.006
• Yeung, A. S., Craven, R. G., Mooney, M., Tracey, D., Barker, K., Power, A., Dobia, B., Chen, Z., Schofield, J., Whitefield, P., & Lewis, T. J. (2015). Positive behavior interventions: the issue of sustainability of positive effects. Educational Psychology Review, 28, 145-170. doi: 10.1007/s10648-015-9305-7
• Guo, J., Marsh, H. W., Parker, P. D., Morin, A. J. S., & Yeung, A. S. (2015). Expectancy-value in mathematics, gender and socioeconomic background as predictors of achievement and aspirations: A multi-cohort study. Learning and Individual Differences, 37, 161-168. doi: 10.1016/j.lindif.2015.01.008.
• Lee, F. L. M., Yeung, A. S., Tracey, D., & Barker, K. (2015). Inclusion of children with special needs in early childhood education: What teacher characteristics matter? Topics in Early Childhood Special Education, 35, 79-88. doi: 10.1177/0271121414566014
• Ngu, B. H., Chung, S. F., & Yeung, A. S. (2015). Cognitive load in algebra: Element interactivity in solving equations. Educational Psychology, 35(3), 271-293. doi: 10.1080/01443410.2013.878019

Projects

Selected studies with ARC funding

• 2021-2023, Australian Research Council, Discovery Scheme: Craven, Yeung, McKinley, Wallace, Turner, Hulme, & Pekrun, Enabling preschoolers’ literacy, numeracy and wellbeing (DP210100402). $771,651
• 2018-2020, Australian Research Council, Discovery Scheme: Lonsdale, Diezmann, Ntoumanis, Yeung, Maeder, Ryan, Beauchamp, & Noetel, Engaging students during the early years of secondary school (DP160102625). $590,000
• 2016-2019, Australian Research Council, Linkage Project: Craven, Dillon, Mooney, Yeung, Kickett-Tucker, Morin, & Samengo (The Scots College), Transforming lives and communities: Impact of quality Indigenous education (LP150100679). $307,000.
• 2014-2017, Craven, Yeung, Marsh, Huppert, Mooney, Sherwood, Seaton, Dillon, & McCloughan (NSW Department of Education and Communities), Cultivating capability: Explicating critical psychosocial drivers of educational outcomes and wellbeing for high-ability Aboriginal Students (LP140100481). $342,000

Selected industry funded studies

• 2019-2020, Craven, R. G., Ryan R., Ciarrochi, J., Yeung, A. S., Riley, P., & Atkins P. W., Sahdra, B., & Ko, H. Building Thriving Schools: Wellbeing at Rouse Hill High School (RHHS). $52,143

Appointments and affiliations

Appointments

• Professor, Institute for Positive Psychology and Education, Australian Catholic University, 2014-
• Associate Professor, University of Western Sydney, 2010-2014
• Associate Professor, National Institute of Education, Singapore, 2009-2010

Professional affiliations

• Member of Australian Psychological Society (MAPS)

Editorial roles

• Yeung, A. S., Brown, E. L., & Lee, C. (Eds.)(2012). Communication and language: Surmounting barriers to cross-cultural understanding, educational equity, and social justice. Charlotte, NC: Information Age Publishing.
• Member of the Editorial Committee of New Horizons in Education.

International journal review panel

• Psychological Bulletin
• American Educational Research Journal
• Journal of Educational Psychology
• Contemporary Educational Psychology
• Educational Psychology
• British Journal of Educational Psychology
• Emotion
• Asia-Pacific Journal of Teacher Education
• Social Development
• Learning and Individual Differences
• International Journal of Pedagogies & Learning
• Australian Journal of Guidance and Counselling
• International Journal of Educational Research
• Educational Research Journal
• International Journal of Literacies
• Translation and Interpreting
• Asia-Pacific Education Researcher
• Ethnic and Racial Studies
• The Australian Journal of Indigenous Education

Grant agency review panel

• Australian Research Council (ARC) grant assessor
• Research Grants Council, Hong Kong (RGC) grant assessor
• Ministry of Education, Singapore (MOE) grant assessor