Research in the Department of Politics, Media and Philosophy
The Department of Politics, Media and Philosophy is recognised for its research in Australian and comparative politics, international relations, security studies, political theory, Asian studies, political economy including decolonial political economy, political history, journalism, philosophy, and gender, sexuality and diversity studies.
Our researchers use their findings to shape public debate, collaborate with industry and community partners, and inform public policy.
We have close links to the Centre for Global Security and La Trobe Asia, which together work to rethink how societies understand and respond to the complex security challenges of our time, including geopolitical tension, economic instability, climate disruption, information warfare, and public health pressures, all the while strengthening our engagement with Asia.
Research areas
We pride ourselves on our multidisciplinary approach to research, with expertise and collaborations across a range of research areas.
Our research is grouped into five key areas:
Our researchers explore several facets of Australian politics including the changing nature of electoral and party politics, constitutional conventions, political campaigns, political communication and the media, the experiences of migrants and Australia’s relations with its Asian and Pacific neighbours.
Key research questions include:
- What are the key factors shaping electoral campaigning and results in Australian elections?
- How does competition among the great powers affect Australia’s strategic priorities and the formulation of foreign policy?
- What role does the National Cabinet and Cabinet rulebooks play in Australian political governance?
- What are the triggers of constitutional ‘softening’ and how can we learn from previous instances of constitutional change?
- How can we improve our political system given the experiences of migrants to Australia?
- How are children represented in Australian political controversies?
Our researchers are experts on the politics of Indonesia, Thailand, India, the broader Asia-Pacific region and Russia. They examine the contours of democratic decline and growing authoritarianism in our region, issues of maritime and regional security, as well as the implications of geopolitical trends for Australia’s place in the region.
Key research questions include:
- What are the implications of Indonesia’s democratic decline for environmental politics?
- How can maritime security in the Indo-Pacific be enhanced?
- How and why did the Putin regime cultivate links with Russian neo-Nazis?
- How is India’s contemporary citizenship regime affected by the construction of economic migrants as ‘infiltrators’?
- How have Asia and the Pacific been militarised and what are the implications for security?
- How might an understanding of India's contradictory stance on women's rights inform the pursuit of peace and security in India?
In addition to practical skills in broadcasting, podcasting, reporting, commentating, documentary, journalism and social media, our researchers examine sports media issues, cyber racism, gender and fandom, women in sport, how to create fictional histories for documentaries and effective teaching for journalism students. Projects focus on the social impact of sports, sports media and strategies to contain misogyny and online hate speech.
Key research questions include:
- How do journalists address ethical issues that arise during reporting?
- How are Australian sports organisations responding to online hate through content moderation?
- How do Indonesian female journalists participate in gender activism?
- What are the impacts of redundancy and job-loss on journalism in Australia?
- How can historical fiction in podcasting and documentary promote an understanding of Australia’s past?
- How might online abuse of athletes be contained?
- How does media coverage reproduce gendered ageism in sport?
Our researchers are internationally recognised experts in ethics, epistemology and logic. Projects focus on epistemological and ethical issues raised by emerging technologies including artificial intelligence and neurotechnology, the nature of different forms of knowledge, and formal models of belief revision and decision making.
Key research questions include:
- What are the laws governing rational inference and decision making?
- How can feminist ethics and epistemology contribute to better outcomes in healthcare?
- What is the relationship between practical and theoretical knowledge?
- How should we define the concept of ‘disease’ and what implications do such definitions have for medical practices?
- How should we go about fairly aggregating the views of a diverse set of agents into a single, group-level judgement?
- Can virtual reality help us to better understand the experiences of other people?
Our researchers examine the role of emotions in the construction of transnational feminist solidarities, feminisms in the global South, intersections between queerness, decoloniality and activism, the sexual health of populations who are marginalised by sexual orientation or gender identity, HIV prevention, care and criminalisation, the effectiveness of sexual healthcare for Asian-born gay, bisexual and queer men, the racialisation of health outcomes, anti-racist educational practices, gender-based violence, sexualised online abuse, the role of women in government, the economics and politics of reproduction, reproductive justice, and the Women, Peace and Security agenda.
Key research questions include:
- How do social and structural factors shape sexual health outcomes across different queer communities?
- How do emotions influence feminist activism and the formation of feminist solidarities?
- How do race and racism shape public health responses to infectious disease outbreaks, and what are the consequences for marginalised communities?
- What strategies can be effectively used to support transnational feminisms?
- What can be learned from the intersections of queerness, decoloniality, and activism in feminist movements globally?
- How are ideas about money, love and belonging expressed by migrants through practices of supporting family back home?
- How do HIV prevention technologies shape the sexual practices and health decision-making of gay, bisexual and queer men?
- How do the perspectives of healthcare providers facilitate or hinder effective sexual healthcare for diverse populations?
- How has the concept of the family been analysed within the history of economics, and what effects has this had on societies? How have dominant economic and political approaches to birth control technologies shaped reproductive justice?
- How are gender boundaries enforced in online communities through gendered language, comparison, sexualisation and stigmatisation of non-normative femininities?
- How can contradictions in national approaches to women's rights inform efforts toward peace and security in varied places of the world?
- How has gender discrimination in sports media coverage influenced professional athletic careers?
Graduate research
Our Higher Degree Research program gives candidates the opportunity to join a community of researchers who use robust methods to address the most pressing political, social and ethical challenges of our time.
We have Honours, Masters and PhD opportunities, where candidates conduct high impact projects under the direction of experts in their field. PhD candidates also have the option of working with government, industry or the not-for profit sector in our Industry PhD.
Our graduate researchers are well supported by teams of at least two supervisors, Progress Committees and a carefully tailored milestone program.
They enjoy a vibrant research culture with reading groups, writing workshops, skills-based workshops, and an annual 3 Minute Thesis competition and Higher Degree by Research conference. Some also teach in the Department, preparing them for a career in academia.
Find out more about graduate research opportunities at La Trobe or contact the Department's Graduate Research Coordinator, Dr Yuri Cath.
School centres
Our staff make key contributions to the School's Climate Change Adaptation Lab.
The Climate Change Adaptation Lab takes a collaborative, multi-disciplinary, and reflexive approach to understanding the complex, more-than-climatic character of impacts, as they intersect in our daily lives.
Research centres
Our staff make key contributions to La Trobe University's institutes and research centres.
The Australian Research Centre in Sex, Health and Society conducts research and education on the social dimensions of sexuality, gender, health and human relationships. The Centre works collaboratively with other researchers, communities, community-based organisations, government and professionals to advance knowledge and promote positive change in policy, practice and people’s lives.
The Care Economy Research Institute was established in 2023 by La Trobe University in recognition of the crisis facing our care sectors, and our conviction that together researchers and industry partners can make a positive difference.
The Centre for Alcohol Policy Research is at the forefront of alcohol research. The Centre’s discoveries are used to promote and inform the development of evidence-based, effective alcohol policy in Australia and internationally.
The Centre for Global Security brings together researchers, practitioners and community partners to rethink how societies respond to today’s complex security challenges, from geopolitical tensions and economic instability to climate disruption, disinformation and public health pressures. By connecting expertise across disciplines and sectors, the Centre focuses on how different forms of security intersect, and how that understanding can inform practical, evidence-based action.
The Centre for Sport and Social Impact is shaping the future of Australian sport and physical activity through research and engagement with industry and government. Its research addresses significant health and social issues including physical inactivity, social exclusion, physical illiteracy, obesity, excessive alcohol consumption and gambling. The Centre supports its research partners to develop and deliver policies, strategies and processes to address these critical social issues.
The Centre for Human Security and Social Change works for inclusive social change. Staff work with a wide range of individuals, organisations and networks that are involved in social change with a particular, but not exclusive, focus on Indigenous Australia, the Pacific and Southeast Asia.