Dr Bernadette Saunders

Prior to working at Monash, and recently, Bernadette has worked in the field of Medical Social Work, particularly in the areas of cancer and terminal illness. As part of her MSW at Monash, she conducted and wrote a report on a program evaluation at a foster care agency, and she published a non-commercial book on child abuse risk assessment.

In 1996, she was invited to join the Child Abuse & Family Violence Research Unit at Monash University (now Child Abuse Research Australia) as a researcher, and the Social Work department as a sessional tutor/lecturer. The Australian Research Council funded research project in which she participated explored risk assessment in child protection practice and the response of community professionals to mandatory reporting legislation. This, and subsequent, research at Child Abuse Research Australia resulted in publications in both national and international refereed journals on child abuse risk assessment; language and children’s rights; child abuse and the media; and the physical punishment of children. She also co-authored, with Chris Goddard, a chapter on child sexual abuse and the media, as part of a Queensland Crime Commission inquiry: Project Axis.

Bernadette was appointed as a Lecturer in Social Work in 2001, and has taught counselling skills; social work and health; child abuse; and she has been the lecturer responsible for SWK3260-Law for the past 6 years. She also supervises Masters and PhD students. She completed a PhD in 2005, funded by the Australian Research Council and The Australian Childhood Foundation as part of an Australian Post-Graduate Award (Industry). Her PhD research focused on legally sanctioned physical punishment of children, children’s rights, and the intergenerational transmission of family violence. Her current research projects include: ‘The serious abuse of children: A hospital study’ taking place in Victoria and Queensland, and research in conjunction with the Faculty of Law at Monash on law related to the physical punishment of children. Her most recent publications include the following:

Publications

BOOK (in preparation)

Saunders,B.J. and Goddard.C ‘Physical Punishment in Childhood: The Rights of the Child’, Chichester, Wiley.

CHAPTER IN A COMMERCIAL BOOK

Saunders, B.J. and Goddard. C (2005)‘The objectification of the child through language and physical discipline: The debate on children’s rights continues’, in J. Mason and T. Fattore (2005) (eds), Children Taken Seriously: In Policy and Practice, Jessica Kingsley, Birmingham.

NON-COMMERCIAL BOOKS AND GOVERNMENT AND NON-GOVERNMENT REPORTS

Saunders, B.J. and Goddard, C. (in preparation) ‘Severe’ or ‘Serious’ Abuse: A Discussion Paper, Child Abuse Research Australia, Monash University, Caulfield. 2002 Saunders, B.J. and Goddard, C. (2002) The role of mass media in facilitating community education and child abuse prevention strategies Australian Institute of Family Studies and National Child Protection Clearinghouse House, Melbourne, No 16. 24pp.

Tucci, J., Saunders, B.J. Goddard, C (2002) Please don’t hit me!: Community attitudes towards the “physical punishment” of children Child Abuse & Family Violence Research Unit, Monash University, Melbourne and Australians Against Child Abuse, Melbourne, 42pp.

Goddard, C., Saunders, B., Stanley, J. & Tucci, J. (2002) A study in confusion: Factors which affect the decisions of community professionals when reporting child abuse and neglect Child Abuse & Family Violence Research Unit, Monash University, Melbourne and Australians Against Child Abuse, Melbourne, 105pp.

Goddard, C. and Saunders, B.J. Child abuse and the media (2001) Australian Institute of Family Studies and National Child Protection Clearinghouse House, Melbourne, 24pp.

REFEREED CHAPTER IN A NON-COMMERCIAL BOOK

Saunders, B.J & Goddard, C.R., (2000) ‘‘Physical discipline’, child abuse and children’s rights: a contribution to the debate’, pp 112-130 in J. Mason & M. Wilkinson (Eds) Taking Children Seriously: Proceedings of a National Workshop, Childhood and Youth Policy Research Unit, University of Western Sydney.

CHAPTER IN A NON-COMMERCIAL BOOK

Goddard, C.R. & Saunders, B.J., (2000) ‘The role of the media’, pp73-127 in Project Axis – Child Sexual Abuse in Queensland: Selected Research Papers, Queensland Crime Commission, Brisbane.

REFEREED JOURNAL ARTICLES & REFEREED PUBLISHED CONFERENCE PAPERS

Saunders, B.J. & Goddard, C. (2007) ‘Some Australian Children's Perceptions of Physical Punishment in Childhood’, Children & Society, doi:10.1111/j.1099-0860.2007.00127.x

Saunders, B.J. & Goddard, C. (2007) ‘The importance of listening to children: A qualitative study on the use of parental physical punishment in childhood in Australia’, Social Development Issues – Special Issue – Child Protection Challenges Worldwide, 29(3):33-46.

Goddard, C., De Bortoli, L, Saunders, B.J. and Tucci, J. (2005) “The rapist’s shroud: Child prostitution”, Child Abuse Review.

Saunders, B.J. and Goddard, C.R. (2001) ‘The textual abuse of childhood in the English-speaking world – The contribution of language to the denial of children’s rights’, Childhood: A Global Journal of Child Research, 8 (4): 443-462.

Goddard, C.R & Saunders. B.J (2001) ‘Journalists as agents and language as an instrument of social control: A child protection case study’, Children Australia, 26 (2): 26-30.

Goddard, C.R & Saunders. B.J. (2000) ‘The gender neglect and textual abuse of children in the print media’ Child Abuse Review 9 (1), 37-48.

Goddard, C.R., Saunders, B.J., Stanley, J.R. and Tucci, J. (1999) ‘A Critique of Structured Risk Assessment Procedures’ Child Abuse Review 8 (4): 251-263.

REFEREED CONFERENCE ABSTRACTS & PUBLISHED CONFERENCE PAPERS

Saunders, B.J. (2008), ‘Sanctioned Domestic and “Disciplinary” Violence of Children and Their Siblings, Friends and Other Children at Home and in Public: The Impact on Children of Living with Lawful Physical Punishment’, Paper ISPCAN International Congress, September, Hong Kong SAR.

Saunders, B.J. and Mudaly, N. (2008), 'What Motivates Adults to Abuse and to Physically Punish Children? Australian Children's Perspectives', Paper ISPCAN International Congress, September, Hong Kong SAR.

Saunders, B.J., Tucci, J and Mudaly, M (2008), 'Children’s voices on abuse and violence' Symposium component ISPCAN International Congress, September, Hong Kong SAR.

Saunders, B.J. (2007) Violent ‘discipline’ of children’s siblings, friends and other children at home and in public: The impact on children of living with sanctioned physical punishment’, Paper presented at the ISPCAN European Conference, November, Lisbon, Portugal.

Saunders, B.J. and Goddard C. (2006) ‘Because there’s a better way than hurting someone: Some Australian children’s perspectives on ‘physical punishment’ in childhood’ Paper presented by Bernadette Saunders at the 16th ISPCAN Congress, 4 September, York, UK.

Saunders, B.J. and Goddard C. (2004)‘Violence disguised as discipline; the thoughts, feelings, and words of children’, Paper presented by Bernadette Saunders at the 15th ISPCAN Congress, 22 September, Brisbane, Australia.

Saunders, B.J. and Goddard C. (2004) ‘Violence disguised as discipline: The views and experiences of adults who have nurtured, or who work with children’, Paper presented by Bernadette Saunders at the 15th ISPCAN Congress, 22 September, Brisbane, Australia.

Saunders, B.J. and Goddard C. (2003) “Parents’ use of physical discipline: The thought, feelings and words of children’, Paper presented by Bernadette Saunders at the 9th Australasian Conference on Child Abuse and Neglect, 26 November, Sydney, Australia.

Saunders, B.J. and Goddard C. (2003) ‘The Textual Abuse of Children in the Press and in the Child Protection Community’, Paper presented by Bernadette Saunders at the 9th Australasian Conference on Child Abuse and Neglect, 27 November, Sydney, Australia.

Goddard C. & Saunders, B.J. (2002) ‘The significance of language: Gender neglect and textual abuse of children’. Paper presented at the 14th International Congress on Child Abuse and Neglect, Denver, Colorado, USA 7-10 July.

Stanley, J. Goddard C.R., Saunders, B. and Tucci, J. (2001) ‘Community professionals and reporting to child protection services’, Paper presented at the 8th Australasian Conference on Child Abuse and Neglect, Melbourne, 19-22 November, p.82.

Goddard C. & Saunders, B.J. (2001) ‘Textual abuse of children in the print media’. Paper presented at 27th Australian Association of Social Workers National Conference ‘Social Work in the 21st Century: Think Global Act Local’, Melbourne, 24 September p29

Saunders, B.J. and Goddard C. (2000) ‘Why is beating and emotionally degrading children condoned as “physical discipline”? Australia fails to implement the UN Convention on the Rights of the Child’. Paper presented at the BAPSCAN Congress 2000, York, United Kingdom, 18th September.

Goddard C. & Saunders, B.J. (2000) ‘The power of words: Gender neglect and textual abuse of children’. Paper presented at the BAPSCAN Congress 2000, York, United Kingdom, 20th September.