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  • Dr Kirsty McDonald

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Dr Kirsty McDonald

Senior Lecturer

Staff Member Details
Email: kirsty.mcdonald@ecu.edu.au
Room: 19.3104  
ORCID iD: https://orcid.org/0000-0003-4501-8565

Dr Kirsty McDonald is a Senior Lecturer in the School of Medical & Health Sciences.

Current Teaching

  • SPS2516 Motor Learning and Control
  • SPS1530 Lifespan Growth and Development

Background

  • 2025-present: Senior Lecturer, School of Medical & Health Sciences, Edith Cowan University
  • 2025-present: Adjunct Senior Lecturer, School of Health Sciences, University of New South Wales
  • 2024-2025: Senior Lecturer, School of Health Sciences, University of New South Wales
  • 2020-2025: Visiting Scientist (Honorary Appointment), Neuroscience Research Australia
  • 2020-2024: Lecturer, School of Heath Sciences, University of New South Wales
  • 2018-2020: Postdoctoral Scholar, School of Engineering, Vanderbilt University
  • 2018-2020: Director of the Performance Laboratory, Vanderbilt University
  • 2016-2017: Visiting Scholar, Department of Kinesiology, The Pennsylvania State University
  • 2012:  Postgraduate Scholar (Biomechanics), Australian Institute of Sport

Professional Associations

  • 2025-present: Footwear Biomechanics Group
  • 2021-present: Australian and New Zealand Society of Biomechanics
  • 2020-present:  International Women in Biomechanics

Awards and Recognition

  • 2022: Early-Career Educator of the Year, School of Health Sciences, University of New South Wales

Research Areas and Interests

I sit at the intersection of health and engineering with a strong background in human biomechanics, motor control and physiology. My research program explores what humans seek to optimise in various movement contexts (e.g., metabolic cost, muscle fatigue, musculoskeletal loading, stability, pain, cognitive demands), and how we satisfy these competing objectives. I apply the insights gained from this work to improve the quality of life of people with movement disability, to enhance athletic performance and injury prevention and to promote increased physical activity engagement within the general population.

Qualifications

  • Doctor of Philosophy, The University of Western Australia, 2018.
  • Bachelor of Science with First Class Honours, The University of Western Australia, 2014.
  • Bachelor of Science (Exercise & Health), The University of Western Australia, 2012.

Research Outputs

2025

Journal Articles

  • Armitage, L., Turner, S., Ford, B., McDonald, K., Sparke, D., Kark, L. (2025). A prosthesis user perspective on interactions with their prosthetist during lower-limb prosthetic socket fitting. Prosthetics and Orthotics International, 2025(Article in Press), 9 Pages. https://doi.org/10.1097/PXR.0000000000000463.
  • Jung, D., Sturnieks, D., McDonald, K., Song, P., Davis, M., Lord, S., Okubo, Y. (2025). Treadmill belt accelerations may not accurately replicate kinematic responses to tripping on an obstacle in older people. PLoS One, 20(1), article number e0312261. https://doi.org/10.1371/journal.pone.0312261.

2024

Journal Articles

  • Teater, R., Zelik, K., McDonald, K. (2024). Biomechanical effects of adding an articulating toe joint to a passive foot prosthesis for incline and decline walking. PLoS One, 19(5 MAY), Article number e0295465. https://doi.org/10.1371/journal.pone.0295465.
  • Armitage, L., Kark, L., McDonald, K., Sparke, D., Ford, B. (2024). "A good socket fit can make you or break you": A multimethod study to explore the perceptions and experiences of socket fitting among people with lower-limb loss in Australia. Prosthetics and Orthotics International, 2024(article in press), article number 10.1097/PXR.0000000000000420. https://doi.org/10.1097/PXR.0000000000000420.
  • Molitor, S., Zelik, K., McDonald, K. (2024). Lower-limb dominance does not explain subject-specific foot kinematic asymmetries observed during walking and running. Journal of Biomechanics, 162(January 2024), Article number 111877. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jbiomech.2023.111877.
  • Santos, L., Freitas, S., Garbus, R., Silva, T., McDonald, K.,  alty, J., Latt, M., Pelicioni, H. (2024). The effect of dyskinesia on postural control, balance, gait, and fall risk in people with Parkinson’s disease: a systematic review protocol. Geriatrics Gerontology and Aging, 18(2024), article number e0000084. https://doi.org/10.53886/gga.e0000084_EN.
  • Ziemnicki, D., McDonald, K., Molitor, S., Egolf, J., Cruz, J., Lee, K., Zelik, K. (2024). Development and Preliminary Evaluation of a Bimodal Foot Prosthesis for Walking and Running. Journal of Biomechanical Engineering, 146(9), article number 91010. https://doi.org/10.1115/1.4065516.

2023

Journal Articles

  • Ziemnicki, D., McDonald, K., Wolf, D., Molitor, S., Egolf, J., Gupta, M., Zelik, K. (2023). Combining an Artificial Gastrocnemius and Powered Ankle Prosthesis: Effects on Transtibial Prosthesis User Gait. Journal of Biomechanical Engineering, 145(6), article number 61009. https://doi.org/10.1115/1.4056706.
  • Huang, S., Teater, R., Zelik, K., McDonald, K. (2023). Biomechanical effects of an articulating prosthetic toe joint during stair navigation for individuals with unilateral, below-knee limb loss. Journal of Biomechanics, 161(N/A), 111841. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jbiomech.2023.111841.
  • Teater, R., Wolf, D., McDonald, K., Zelik, K. (2023). Unilateral transtibial prosthesis users load their intact limb more than their prosthetic limb during sit-to-stand, squatting, and lifting. Clinical Biomechanics, 108(45139), article number 106041. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.clinbiomech.2023.106041.
  • Armitage, L., McDonald, K., Kark, L., Buller, A., Ford, B. (2023). Transtibial prosthetic socket fitting: Australian prosthetist perspectives on primary challenges, management strategies, and opportunities for workflow and technological innovation. Prosthetics and Orthotics International, 47(2), 194-203. https://doi.org/10.1097/PXR.0000000000000174.
  • Ebrahimi, A., Daniels, K., Gaffney, B., Banks, C., McDonald, K., Kessler, S., Maharaj, J. (2023). International Women in Biomechanics: Promoting, supporting, and sustaining the careers of women in biomechanics. Journal of Biomechanics, 146(44927), article number 111419. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jbiomech.2022.111419.

2022

Journal Articles

  • McDonald, K., Cusumano, J., Hieronymi, A., Rubenson, J. (2022). Humans trade off whole-body energy cost to avoid overburdening muscles while walking. Proceedings of the Royal Society B: Biological Sciences, 289(1985), article number 20221189. https://doi.org/10.1098/rspb.2022.1189.
  • McDonald, K., Teater, R., Cruz, J., Zelik, K. (2022). Unilateral below-knee prosthesis users walking on uneven terrain: The effect of adding a toe joint to a passive prosthesis. Journal of Biomechanics, 138(44713), article number 111115. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jbiomech.2022.111115.

2021

Journal Articles

  • McDonald, K., Teater, R., Cruz, J., Kerr, J., Bastas, G., Zelik, K. (2021). Adding a toe joint to a prosthesis: walking biomechanics, energetics, and preference of individuals with unilateral below-knee limb loss. Scientific Reports, 11(1), article number 1924. https://doi.org/10.1038/s41598-021-81565-1.
  • Ziemnicki, D., Caputo, J., McDonald, K., Zelik, K. (2021). Development and Evaluation of a Prosthetic Ankle Emulator With an Artificial Soleus and Gastrocnemius. Journal of Medical Devices, 15(4), article number 45001. https://doi.org/10.1115/1.4052518.

2020

Journal Articles

  • Yandell, M., Ziemnicki, D., McDonald, K., Zelik, K. (2020). Characterizing the comfort limits of forces applied to the shoulders, thigh and shank to inform exosuit design. PLoS One, 15(2), article number e0228536. https://doi.org/10.1371/journal.pone.0228536.

2019

Journal Articles

  • McDonald, K., Cusumano, J., Peeling, P., Rubenson, J. (2019). Multi-objective control in human walking: Insight gained through simultaneous degradation of energetic and motor regulation systems. Journal of the Royal Society Interface, 16(158), article number 20190227. https://doi.org/10.1098/rsif.2019.0227.
  • McDonald, K., Devaprakash, D., Rubenson, J. (2019). Is conservation of center of mass mechanics a priority in human walking? Insights from leg-length asymmetry experiments. The Journal of Experimental Biology, 222(9), article number jeb195172. https://doi.org/10.1242/jeb.195172.
  • Nicholas, J., McDonald, K., Peeling, P., Jackson, B., Dimmock, JA., Alderson, JA., Donnelly, CJ. (2019). Pole dancing for fitness: The physiological and metabolic demand of a 60-minute class. Journal of Strength and Conditioning Research, 33(10), 2704-2710. https://doi.org/10.1519/JSC.0000000000002889.
  • McDonald, K., Honert, E., Cook, O., Zelik, K. (2019). Unholey shoes: Experimental considerations when estimating ankle joint complex power during walking and running. Journal of Biomechanics, 92(43665), 61-66. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jbiomech.2019.05.031.
  • McDonald, K., Honert, E., Cook, O., Zelik, K. (2019). Ankle joint complex power during walking and running: effects of marker location, and shoe- vs. skin-mounted markers. Footwear Science, 11(sup1), S51-S52. https://doi.org/10.1080/19424280.2019.1606073.

2016

Journal Articles

  • Stearne, S., McDonald, K., Alderson, J., North, I., Oxnard, C., Rubenson, J. (2016). The Foot's Arch and the Energetics of Human Locomotion. Scientific Reports, 6(2016), article number 19403. https://doi.org/10.1038/srep19403.
  • McDonald, K., Stearne, S., Alderson, J., North, I., Pires, N., Rubenson, J. (2016). The role of arch compression and metatarsophalangeal joint dynamics in modulating plantar fascia strain in running. PLoS One, 11(4), article number e0152602. https://doi.org/10.1371/journal.pone.0152602.
  • Caulfield, S., McDonald, K., Dawson, B., Stearne, S., Green, B., Rubenson, J., Clemons, T., Peeling, P. (2016). A comparison of haemolytic responses in fore-foot and rear-foot distance runners. Journal of Sports Sciences, 34(15), 1485-1490. https://doi.org/10.1080/02640414.2015.1119300.
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