Academy Fellow

David Johnston is Professor of Economics at the Centre for Health Economics at Monash University. His research examines how economic, social and environmental circumstances influence people's health, wellbeing and opportunities in life, and how public policies can improve these outcomes. An overarching aim of his work is to produce evidence that informs public policy, particularly policies aimed at improving outcomes for vulnerable and disadvantaged populations.

A central focus of his research is mental health and wellbeing. His work has examined how employment, financial insecurity, family circumstances, childhood experiences and exposure to adverse events affect mental health and life satisfaction. Understanding these social and economic determinants is important for identifying the underlying causes of mental health inequalities and developing policies that improve wellbeing across the population.

Another major area of David’s research examines how environmental conditions and natural disasters affect individuals and communities. His work has investigated the effects of temperature, rainfall and extreme weather events on health, wellbeing and economic outcomes, as well as the longer-term consequences of disasters for individuals and families. This research contributes to understanding the social and economic costs of environmental change, including how these impacts vary across population groups, and provides evidence to inform policies aimed at reducing vulnerability and improving resilience.

David has also made important contributions to research on childhood adversity, including child maltreatment and family violence. Working with researchers across economics, public health and other disciplines, he has examined the causes and consequences of adverse childhood experiences, their effects across generations, and the potential for policies and institutions to reduce harm. This work highlights both the long-term costs of childhood disadvantage and the importance of early intervention.

Methodologically, David’s research draws on applied microeconometrics, causal inference and the analysis of large longitudinal surveys and linked administrative datasets. He uses natural experiments, policy changes and external shocks to investigate causal relationships, in addition to documenting associations between social circumstances and outcomes. These approaches have been applied across a wide range of questions concerning health, wellbeing, economic disadvantage and the consequences of public policies.

His research also makes contributions across disciplinary boundaries. Many of the questions he investigates sit at the intersection of economics, psychology, demography, public health and other social sciences. Through collaborations with researchers from these fields, his work contributes to a better understanding of how economic and social circumstances interact to shape people's health, wellbeing and opportunities throughout their lives. These collaborations also help connect research on individual behaviour and wellbeing with broader questions about social inequality, disadvantage and public policy.

1. Firouzi Naeim, P, Johnston, DW & Naghsh-Nejad, M 2026, 'Balancing work and care: How workplace factors can mitigate the gendered impacts of caregiving', The Economic Journal.

2. Ireland, A, Johnston, DW & Knott, R (2026), 'Impacts of extreme heat on labor force dynamics', Journal of Labor Economics.

3. Dzulkipli, AA, Black, N, Johnston, DW & Segal, L 2025, 'Safer in school? The impact of compulsory schooling on maltreatment and associated harms', The Review of Economics and Statistics.

4. Ireland, A, Johnston, DW & Knott, R 2023, 'Heat and worker health', Journal of Health Economics, vol. 91, article 102800.

5. Janke, K, Johnston, DW, Propper, C & Shields, MA 2020, 'The causal effect of education on chronic health conditions in the UK', Journal of Health Economics, vol. 70, article 102252.