Health Sciences

Social Psychology, Sociology

I am a psychologist by discipline but I discovered very early that rigid quantitative methodologies were of limited use in understanding adolescent sexual diversity; lesbian health; intellectual disability and sexuality. I am a social researcher who enjoys using a creative mix of quantitative and qualitative methodologies in my work. Where the quant data gives an association, the qual data helps to understand the whys of those connections.

I have been researching with same sex attracted young people for over 12 years, including the Writing Themselves In Reports (1998; 2005) two large national studies on the sexual health and well being of this group.

I am interested in the social determinants of health and moving beyond describing deficits and problems with these young people to documenting the creative ways that they work to reframe discourse and their worlds to provide positive healthy ways of thinking about being sexual. I am also interested in safe spaces and how they are created.

My work is framed by feminism and I often use critical discourse analysis, particularly in regard to resistance.

Title: POSH Interviews – funded by Vic Health,

This project follows 30 same sex attracted youth over two years, looking at their strategies for dealing with critical events in their lives.

Title: Evaluation of Xtribe: a sex and health positive website for men who have sex with men - funded by Gilead Science, an ARCSHS collaboration with Victorian AIDS Council.

This is an evaluation of an innovative sexual health website for men who have sex with men.

Title: Evaluation of Phase 2 of the What is this hepC thing? - funded by DHS collaboration with The Alfred.

In this project we evaluate the usefulness of value adding the What is this HepC thing Internet activity buy adding class notes and making available the activity and notes on CD Rom.

Title: Internet chat rooms STI awareness, screening and testing outcomes – funded by DHS, collaboration with The Alfred.

In this project we evaluate the usefulness of an internet chat room intervention to encourage men at risk of STIs to be tested.

Hillier, L., Johnson, K., and Traustadóttir, R. Researching with people with intellectual disabilities. In M. Pitts, and A. Smith (Eds.), Researching the Margins. London: Palgrave Macmillan.

Hillier, L., Mitchell, A., and Mallett, S. Duty of care: researching with vulnerable young people. In M. Pitts, and A. Smith (Eds.), Researching the Margins. London: Palgrave Macmillan.

Hillier, L. & Mitchell, A. (forthcoming) ‘It was a useful as a chocolate kettle’: same sex attracted young people and sex education in school. Sex Education

Hillier, L. & Harrison. L. (2007) Building realities less limited than their own: Young people practising same sex attraction on the Internet. Sexualities. 10(1) 82-100.

McNair, R. Gleitzer, M. & Hillier, L. (2006) Challenging research: methodological barriers to the inclusion of lesbian and bisexual women in Australian population-based health research. Gay and Lesbian Issues in Psychology Review, 2(3).

Hillier, L. (2005) Safe spaces: the up side of the image problem for same sex attracted young women playing Australian Rules football. International Journal of Football Studies (Special issue on Women’s Football), 8(2), 51-65.

Hillier, L. & Mitchell, A. (2004) Shifting the discourse about same sex attraction from the moral to the safety and rights arenas: a collaboration between research, the community and those who liaise between them In C. Bailey, D. Cabrera and L Buys (eds) Social change in the 21 st century: 2004 conference proceedings

Hillier, L. & Harrison, L. (2004) Homophobia and the production of shame: Young people discovering the fault lines in discourse about same sex attraction. Culture, Health and Sexuality, 6(1), 79-94.

Hillier, L., De Visser, R., Kavanagh, A. & McNair, R. (2003) The association between licit and illicit drug use and sexuality in young Australian women. Medical Journal of Australia , 179 , 6, 326-327.

Hillier, L. Johnson, K & Harrison, L. (2003) Sex secrets and desire; people with an intellectual disability living safer sexual lives. Network: Journal of the APS College of Community Psychologists, 14 (1), 45-52.

Johnson, K, Frawley, P., Hillier, L. & Harrison, (2002) Living safer sexual lives:research and action. Tizard Learning Disability Review, 7( 3)

Harrison L, Johnson K, Hillier L & Strong, R (2001). Nothing about us without us: the ideals and realities of participatory action research with people with an intellectual disability. Scandinavian Journal of Disability Research, 3 (2), 56-70.

Hillier, L. (2001) I'm wasting away on unrequited love: gendering same sex attracted young women's love sex and desire. Hecate, 27(1), 119-127.

Dempsey, D., Hillier, L. & Harrison, L (2001). Gendered [s]explorations among same sex attracted young people in Australia . Special Issue of on Gay, Lesbian and Bisexual Young People. Journal of Adolescence: 24, 67-81

Hillier, L. & Rosenthal, D.A. (2001) Invited Editors. Journal of Adolescence: Special Issue of on Gay, lesbian and bisexual young people.

Hillier, L., Harrison. D. & Dempsey, D. (1999) Whatever happened to duty of care? : same sex attracted young people's experiences of discrimination and abuse at school. Melbourne Studies in Education. 40(2), 59-74.

Harrison, L. & Hillier, L. (1999) "What should be the subject of sex education ?" Discourse: Studies in the Cultural Politics of Education, 20(2), 279-288.

Hillier, L., Dempsey, D. & Harrison, L. (1999) "I'd never share a needle [but I often have unsafe sex]": considering the paradox of young people's sex and drugs talk. Culture, Health and Sexuality, 1 (4), 347-361 .

Hillier, L, Harrison, L. & Bowditch, K. (1999) "Neverending love" and "blowing your load": The many meanings of sex to rural youth. Sexualities: Studies in Culture and Society. 2 (1), 69 - 88

Hillier, L., Horsely, P. & Kurdas, C. (forthcoming 2005)) In J. A. Nieto (Ed.) Sexuality in the Pacific , Madrid : AECI (Asociación Española de Coperación Internacional) and the AEEP (Asociación Española de Estudios del Pacífico).

Hillier, L., de Visser, R., Kavanagh, A. &McNair, R. (2004) The drug use patterns of heterosexual and non-heterosexual women: Data from the Women's Health Australia study. In D. Riggs and G. Walker (eds) Out in the Antipodes , Perth : Brightfire Press

Frawley, P., Johnson, P., Hillier, L. & Harrison (2003) Living Safer Sexual Lives: a training and resource pack for people with learning disabilities and those who support them . Brighton UK, Pavilion Publishing Ltd.

Hillier L (2002). 'It's a catch 22': Same-sex attracted young people on coming out to parents. In SS Feldman & DA Rosenthal (Eds), Talking sexuality: Parent-Adolescent Communication. New Directions for child and adolescent development - Series. Jossey-Bass: USA.

Mead, J. and Hillier, L. (2004) GenerationQ: a community development project supporting same sex attracted and transgender young people in Brimbank. Brimbank: Good Shepherd Youth and Family Services.

Hackney, S. & Hillier, L. (2004) Wayout, central Victorian youth and sexual diversity project: Final report and evaluation to accompany video. Kyneton: Cobaw Community Health Centre.

Walker, S. & Hillier, L. (2004) Knox gay and lesbian youth project: final report and evaluation . Knox: Knox City Council.

Dyson, S., Dalton , D., Mitchell, A. & Hillier, L. (2003) Conducting effective sexual health and relationships education with young people in schools: factors for success: a literature review. Melbourne : Australian Research Centre in Sex Health and Society.

Cummings, R, Hillier, L & Price, B. (2003) Slipping through the net: an innovative HIV and gonorrhoea education research and evaluation strategy. Victorian HIV/AIDS Service, Infectious Diseases Unit, The Alfred and The Australian Research Centre in Sex Health and Society. Melbourne .

Dyson, S., Mitchell, A., Smith, A., Dowsett, G., Hillier, L. & Pitts, M. (2002 ) Don't ask don't tell. Hidden in the crowd: The need for documenting links between sexuality and suicidal behaviours among young people. Melbourne : Australian Research Centre in Sex Health and Society.

Johnson, K., Strong, R., Hillier, L. & Pitts, M. (2002) Screened Out! Women with disabilities and cervical screening. Cancer Council, Victoria.

Hillier, L., Kurdas, C. & Horsley, P. (2001) "It's just easier": the Internet as a safety-Net for same sex attracted young people. Australian Research Centre in Sex Health and Society, La Trobe University, Melbourne.

Johnson, K., Hillier, L., Harrison , L. & Frawley, P. (2001) People with an intellectual disability: Living safer sexual lives. Australian Research Centre in Sex Health and Society, La Trobe University, Melbourne.

Email l.hillier@latrobe.edu.au

Phone 9285 5360