Research
The Gender Equity Initiative has three main research interests and a range of research programs that capture these themes.
Research Program 1 – The mental load
This research program is investigating the mental load; the thinking work we do that combines cognitive and emotional labour. While there are theoretical understandings of the mental load, there is a dearth of quantitative research. This project expects to develop a consistent and reliable measure of the mental load and an understanding of its impacts on Australian families and mental wellbeing.
Research Program 2 – The impact of technological changes on the future of women at work
Technological advancement, automation and artificial intelligence will be increasingly utilised in our day-to-day work lives. This research program aims to identify how women will be impacted by these shifts, and what skills they require to be competitive in the future of work. This includes the exclusion of young women in STEM. Understanding women’s unique experiences is critical given that the future of work will equate to job loss in specific industries and occupations, and shifts in tasks and skills and we know that women cluster in certain industries and occupations.
Research Program 3 – Measuring sources of discrimination and bias at work
Women and caregivers face bias at work in various ways. This research stream investigates how caregiving can have a significant impact on workplace inequality, how gendered myths limit workplaces' sustainable engagement with employees, and organisations' ability to meet future of work challenges, and how organisations can recognise and mitigate gender bias and in data to ensure effective decision-making.
Research Project – Puzzle Simulation
This research project involves simulating real-life situations where individuals solve short puzzles to evaluate their proficiency in problem-solving. Our goal is to assess how people tackle puzzles within real-world scenarios. You will choose a game - Sudoku, word search, or spot-the-difference - which should 10-15 minutes to complete.
PhD Research - Immigrant Mothers' Mental Load
This project investigates the experiences of immigrant mothers’ mental loads as they relocate from the Global South to the Global North in search of a better quality of life. Through a cross-disciplinary approach of sociology, gender, and migration studies, and community-informed research, this work will inform more equitable, sustainable and effective integration initiatives to better support immigrant mothers in their settlement in their new homes.