Griffith’s research beacons bring disciplines together to find solutions to the world’s most pressing challenges
Violence is experienced unequally. Safe individuals and communities grow safer, while others are repeatedly harmed. Despite reported long-term declines in overall global and national rates of violence, up to one billion children and an estimated 243 million women aged 15–49 years are subject to violence every year. While #BlackLivesMatter highlighted racial violence, state-sponsored police and correctional services staff bias and brutality is exposed as endemic. As a result, inter-generational trauma fuels ongoing cycles of inequality and violence.
In 2022, Griffith established the Disrupting Violence Beacon to install interventions in support of:
- harm minimisation in vulnerable communities
- prevention for at-risk individuals
- just systems that reduce recidivism and support survivors’ recovery.
Griffith has a strong track-record when it comes to understanding and preventing violence. With one of the biggest criminology academic communities in the world, Griffith ranked first in Australia for Law and Criminology in the 2021 ShanghaiRanking’s Global Ranking of Academic Subjects. Griffith is also one of just a few Australian universities that’s ‘well above world standard’ for Criminology research, according to the Federal Government’s Australian Research Council’s Excellence in Research for Australia (ERA) assessment. Law and Legal Studies and Policy and Administration at Griffith were additionally found to be ‘above world standard’ in the latest ERA results.
Disrupting Violence Beacon Leadership Team
Professor Christine Bond
Understanding Violence Theme Lead
Dean, Learning Futures Griffith Online, Office of the Pro Vice Chancellor (Learning and Teaching)
Associate Professor Sameer Deshpande
Translation and Innovation Theme Lead
Social Marketing, Department of Marketing
Professor Sara Davies
Access to Justice Theme Lead
International Relations, Griffith Asia Institute
Dr Ana Borges Jelinic
Research Fellow and Psychologist
Violence Against Women, Migration, Psychology
Dr Amy Young
Research Fellow
Violence Prevention, Child Rights, Gender-Based Violence, Domestic and Family Violence
Our Members
A/Prof Steven Baker
School of Health Sciences and Social Work
Social Work, Human Computer Interaction, TechnologyA/Prof Debbie Bargallie
Griffith Centre for Social Cultural Research
Race and Racism
Professor Andy Bennett
School of Humanities, Languages and Social Science
Music and Youth
Dr Edwin Bikundo
Griffith Law School
International and Comparative Law, Legal Theory
Dr Sebastian Binnewies
School of Information and Communication Technology
Apps, Natural Language Processing, AI Fairness
Professor Jennifer Boddy
Dean (Sustainable Development Goals Performance)
Climate Change, Disasters, and Domestic and Family Violence
Professor Paula Brough
Centre for Work, Organisation and Wellbeing
Organisation Psychology
Dr Carys Chan
Department of Employment Relations and Human Resources
Work-life Interface, Flexible/Remote Working, Self-Efficacy
Dr Karen Crawley
Griffith Law School
Law, Culture & Aesthetics, Feminist Legal Theory
Dr Dominique de Andrade
Griffith Criminology Institute
Substance Misuse and Offending Behaviour among High Risk Populations
Dr Simon Degroot
Queensland College of Art and Design
Mural Arts, Diverse Communities
A/Prof Timo Dietrich
Department of Marketing
Behaviour Change, Gamified Education
Ms Bobbi-Lea Dionysius
Griffith Film School
Impact Producing, Social Impact
Dr Rachel Dioso-Villa
School of Criminology and Criminal Justice
Wrongful Convictions and Miscarriages of Justice, Sociology of Forensic Science
Dr Outi Donovan
School of Government and International Relations
Conflict and Post-Conflict Peacebuilding
Dr Febi Dwirahmadi
Centre for Environment and Population Health
Disaster Risk Reduction, Climate Change Adaptation into Community Practices
Mr David Fannon
School of Health Sciences and Social Work
Domestic Violence, Male Perpetrators, Perpetrator Behaviour Change Interventions
Professor Ernest Foo
School of Information and Communication Technology
Secure Cryptographic Protocols, Network Security Applications
Associate Professor Patricia Fronek
School of Health Sciences and Social Work
Social Work in Health Emergencies, International Social Work in Child Protection and Alternative Care
Dr Nathan Garland
School of Environment and Science - Applied Mathematics and Physics
Computational Modelling of Plasmas, Integration of High-Quality Atomic Input Data into Plasma Modelling Frameworks
Dr Keiran Hardy
School of Criminology and Criminal Justice
Counter-terrorism Law, Countering Violent Extremism, Radicalisation, Intelligence Whistleblowing, Cyber-Terrorism
Associate Professor Danielle Harris
School of Criminology and Criminal Justice
Research, Treatment and Prevention of Child Sexual Abuse
Dr Emma Heard
Creative Arts Research Institute
Social Equity and Social Determinants of Health
Associate Professor Peter Hegedus
Griffith Film School
Social Justice, Human Identity, Place and Belonging
Professor Sarah Joseph
Griffith Law School
Australia and International Human Rights Law
Dr Alexis Kallio
Queensland Conservatorium and Creative Arts Research Institute
Music Education, Criminology and Qualitative Inquiry
Professor Susanne Karstedt
School of Criminology and Criminal Justice
Cross-National and Cross-Cultural Comparisons of Crime and Justice
Dr Natalie Lazaroo
School of Education and Professional Studies
Cultural Citizenship, Socially-Engaged Performance, Arts-Based Research
Dr Joe Liang
School of Health Sciences and Social Work
Psychosocial Wellbeing of Vulnerable Individuals and Groups Across Lifespan Development
Associate Professor Rebecca Loudoun
Department of Employment Relations and Human Resources
Effectiveness of Workplace Health and Safety Interventions
Associate Professor Robert Mason
School of Humanities, Languages and Social Science
History of Coloniality and Migration in Australia and the Asia-Pacific
Professor Donna McAuliffe
School of Health Sciences and Social Work
Applied Ethics and Professional Practice in Social Work
Professor Kristina Murphy
School of Criminology and Criminal Justice
Procedural Justice
Professor Silke Meyer
School of Health Sciences and Social Work
Domestic and Family Violence, Women and Children's Safety, Wellbeing and Recovery, Men's Accountability as Perpetrators and Fathers, Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Communities
Professor Analise O'Donovan
Pro Vice Chancellor of Griffith Health
Effective Training of Clinical Practitioners, Positive Psychology, Trauma
Dr James Ogilvie
School of Criminology and Criminal Justice
Intersection of Mental Illness and Offending, Interventions to Reduce Reoffending
Dr Emma Palmer
Griffith Law School
International Criminal Law within SouthEast Asia, Gender Issues
Professor Martine Powell
School of Criminology and Criminal Justice
Investigative Interviewing
Professor Halim Rane
School of Humanities, Languages and Social Science
Islamic Studies, Islam-West Relations
Dr Katherine Reid
School of Health Sciences and Social Work
Children and Young People with Mental Health Concerns, Childhood Abuse, Trauma and Neglect
Dr Tasha Riley
School of Education and Professional Studies
: Social Justice Issues in Education, Disrupting Sexual and Gender-based Violence, Arts-based Research and Narrative Inquiry, Indigenous and Anti-racist Education
Professor Susan Harris Rimmer
Griffith Law School
International Human Rights Law, Climate Justice, Gender Equality
Dr Judy Rose
Griffith Institute for Educational Research
Gender Inequality, Domestic and Family Violence, Addictions (Gambling, Substance Use), and Child/Familial Wellbeing
Professor Leonie Rowan
School of Education and Professional Studies
Education, Social Justice, Social Risk, Wellbeing and Belonging, Gender, Diversity
Professor Sharyn Rundle-Thiele
Department of Marketing
Social Marketing and Behavioural Science
Professor John Rynne
School of Criminology and Criminal Justice
Australian and International Criminal Justice Systems
Dr Diksha Sapkota
Griffith Criminology Institute
Mental Illness and Domestic Violence, Interventions to Improve Mental Health and Reproductive Health among Vulnerable Women including Offending Mothers and Minority Groups
Dr Elise Sargeant
School of Criminology and Criminal Justice
Criminal Justice Institutions including Police and Corrective Services, Procedural Justice and Legitimacy
Dr Nicola Sheeran
School of Applied Psychology
Health Communication, Domestic and Family Violence (particularly Reproductive Coercion), Adjustment to Parenting
Associate Professor Olivera Simic
Griffith Law School
Transitional Justice, International Law, Gender, Crime
Professor Parlo Singh
School of Education and Professional Studies
Educational Equity and Social Justice
Professor Bela Stantic
School of Information and Communication Technology
Data Analytics, Efficient Management of Complex Data Structures, Big Data
Dr Samid Suliman
School of Humanities, Languages and Social Science
Migration, Security, Mobility, Development and Climate Change
Dr Lauren Terzis
School of Health Sciences and Social Work
Social Work, Financial Behaviours Among Immigrants
Dr David Tuffley
School of Information and Communication Technology
Social Impacts of Technology, Software Engineering, Cybersecurity, Ethics, Futurism, Communication
Dr Kate van Doore
Griffith Law School
International Child Rights, Orphanage Trafficking, institutionalisation
Associate Professor John Wang
School of Information and Communication Technology
Data Management and Analysis, Machine Learning, Knowledge Representation, Algorithm Design
Professor Rebecca Wickes
School of Criminology and Criminal Justice
Neighbourhood social processes and their effects on crime and other social problems in Australia
Dr Glenn Woods
School of Health Sciences and Social Work
Intercultural Research with Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Peoples
Advisory Board
Professor Cindy Shannon (Chair)
Deputy Vice Chancellor (Indigenous, Diversity and Inclusion)
Griffith University
Dr Rick Brown
Deputy Director
Australian institute of Criminology
Dr Yann Colliou
Access to Justice Program Manager
Terre des Hommes
Kate Connors
Deputy Director-General, Justice Policy and Reform
Department of Justice and Attorney-General, Queensland
Mick Gooda
Former Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Social Justice Commissioner
Professor Phillip D Jaffé
Director
Centre for Children’s Rights Studies
Member
United Nations Committee on the Rights of the Child
Dr Claire Walker
Principal Advisor
Murridhagun Cultural Centre
Our values
Justice
Disrupting Violence beacon values access to justice, recognising that it is critical for victims and survivors. And for ensuring that systems and institutions discourage and counteract violence.
Collaboration
Disrupting Violence beacon prioritises intersectional and inter-disciplinary work.
Diversity
Disrupting Violence beacon values and recognises diversity in culture and identity and aims to prioritise the voices and experiences of Australia’s First Nations Peoples.
Survivors
Disrupting Violence beacon values and listens to the voices of people impacted by violence and in particular aims to improve the lives of end users of research.
Innovation
Disrupting Violence beacon values aspirational work that is unconstrained by conventional modes of thinking.
Sustainable Development Goals
The Disrupting Violence Beacon is aligned with the United Nation's Sustainable Development Goals ( SDGs ) and committed to tackling global challenges around gender equality, reducing inequalities, and peace, justice and strong institutions.
Related centres and institutes
Centre for Investigative Interviewing
Griffith Youth Forensic Services
Institute for Integrated and Intelligent Systems
MATE Motivating Action Through Empowerment
Policy Innovation Hub
Social Analytics Laboratory
Violence Research and Prevention Program
Griffith Criminology Institute
Law Futures Centre
Creative Arts Research Institute
Contact us
Please contact us if you have any questions about Disrupting Violence.