Our research impacts
Here, we list the outputs of our research activities since becoming a practice-research centre at La Trobe University in 2020. This includes academic publications, research reports, translation materials, and video recorded materials like webinars and other presentations.
Select the (+) to view the research projects within the research subject areas.
Commissioned by the Australian Defence Force, we conducted a four-part review to better understand the impacts of military service on family functioning and child/spouse relationships. This research-informed policy priorities for the sector and provided recommendations for effective support for Defence families.
In partnership with Beyond Blue, we conducted two rapid systematic reviews on the effectiveness of brief DMHIs (e.g., phone, web-based support) for youth (12 – 25 years) and adults (≥25 years) experiencing mild-to-moderate mental health concerns.
Mapping the influence of infant–parent relational quality on life course relationships
This systematic scoping review forms a part of a broader series (The Nurturing Early Relational Health Review Series), funded by the Paul Ramsay Foundation, aimed at advancing our understanding of early relational health and its impact on human development.
A project collaboration between La Trobe’s Business School and The Bouverie Centre.
Psychotherapy concepts can also apply to business‑to‑business relationships, so the researchers adapted a marriage‑therapy instrument to create a new Business Relationship Health Index (BRHI) based on the Global Assessment of Relational Functioning. Testing it on 500 U.S. B2B relationships, they found the BRHI to be a valid and reliable measure alongside established constructs such as satisfaction, trust, commitment, and performance.
The Bouverie research team conducted a systematic review of family-inclusive approaches in the treatment of patients with a dual diagnosis (i.e., co-occurring mental health concerns and alcohol and drug-related problems). The review summarised the treatments’ impact on the underlying conditions as well as the impacts on the relational wellbeing of both clients and their families.
The impact of Acquired Brain Injury (ABI) on families is well documented and there have been long-standing calls for a family focus in treatment. While there are useful frameworks to guide interventions with families in the context of ABI, there are no agreed-upon clinical guidelines to support practitioners in health and community services to deliver ABI-informed family-inclusive practice.
In collaboration with the Olga Tennison Autism Research Centre (OTARC), this feasibility study explores families’ experiences of the Walk-In Together (WIT) single session family therapy service for families referred to the Victorian Early Assessment Clinic (VEAC), as they progress through or complete an autism assessment for their young child.
This project is funded by an Australia Research Council Linkage Grant (LP210100181) and involves collaboration between La Trobe University, Relationships Australia South Australia, and the Federal Circuit and Family Court of Australia (the Courts).
The project harnesses the opportunity to learn prospectively from separating families engaged with the Courts. In a suite of studies, we are examining risk pathways, burdens, and costs of post-separation family violence, and the relative efficacy and cost-benefits of early family safety risk-screening and triage processes.
This project was carried out in partnership with Family Safety Victoria and was funded by the State Government of Victoria.
A range of programs and services are in place in Victoria’s women’s prisons to identify and support both victim-survivors of family violence (FV) and women who use violence. However, there is significant variability in access and uptake of these services.
This innovative project builds on The Bouverie Centre’s ongoing work in Single Session Thinking (SST) and the Walk-in Together (WIT) family therapy model to co-develop a First Nations–led WIT clinic. The initiative brings together First Nations Elders, family therapists, and researchers to create the WIT Workin’ with the Mob framework
The Family e‑Hub was developed through a dedicated PhD research program that set out to address a significant gap in mental health support for families. While decades of research show that family‑inclusive and systemic approaches can improve outcomes for many mental health conditions, access to family therapy is often limited by long wait times and service availability.
While the role of family relationships in trauma recovery is being increasingly recognised, few structured models exist to guide systemic family work in this context. This project explored how Single Session Thinking (SST; a brief, strengths-based therapy approach) can be adapted to support families recovering from traumatic experiences.
The Family Stories Study follows family members from 12-months after they begin their family therapy journey at Bouverie. We talk with adults, parents, and children about their needs and what’s most helpful for families during challenging times. These research insights will help ensure that families receive maximum benefit from our service.
Funded by the Department of Justice and Community Service, the Centre was funded to develop, pilot, and evaluate a family therapy service in Victoria’s two women’s prisons. The project offered evidence-based family-centred education and therapeutic services for women in prison and their families, to promote healing and consolidation of close relationships, in turn nurturing safe and secure environments for women to return to on release from prison.
MERTIL for Parents is a brief, universal online program developed to help parents understand the importance of relational trust in their child’s emotional and social development. This pilot project (the first evaluation of the parenting program) was led by researchers at The Bouverie Centre in collaboration with child and family service partners across New South Wales, Australia.
This project was funded by an internal La Trobe University Early Career Researcher Grant (ABC Grant) and was conducted in collaboration with Deakin University.
Adolescence marks the beginning of sexual and reproductive maturity, the start of the biological pathway to becoming a parent. However, the impact of the quality of first- and second-generation (G1–G2) parent-adolescent relationships on third-generation (G3) attachment status remains unclear.
The Bouverie Centre was funded by the Young People in Nursing Homes National Alliance (YPINHA) to conduct two qualitative studies to understand and help address the needs of young people living with and potentially supporting a parent with young-onset dementia (YOD).
In partnership with the Satellite Foundation and the Victorian Department of Health, the Bouverie research team completed a two-part study identifying the supports available for young people (≤25 years of age) whose home life included caring responsibilities for a family member with mental health and/or substance use issues.
Our rich collection of publications span various areas relating to family therapy.
Explore our major publications in the following areas from the last five years. For a more comprehensive listing of publications by our staff members, view their profiles.
- Poon, A. W. C., Harvey, C., Fuzzard, S., & O'Hanlon, B. (2019). Implementing a family‐inclusive practice model in youth mental health services in Australia. Early Intervention in Psychiatry, 13, 461-468. DOI: 10.1111/eip.12505
- Maybery, D., Goodyear, M., Reupert, A., Sheen, J., Cann, W., O’Hanlon, B., & Cuff, R. (2019). A mixed method evaluation of an intervention for parents with mental illness. Clinical Child Psychology and Psychiatry, DOI: 10.1177/1359104518822676
- O'Hanlon, B., Hayes, L., Perlesz, A., & Harvey, C. (2018). Understanding the complex family experiences of Behavioural Family Therapy. Journal of Family Therapy, 40, 45-62. DOI: 10.1111/1467-6427.12139
- von Doussa, H., Sundbery, J., Cuff, R., Jones, S., & Goodyear, M. (2017). ‘Let's Talk About Children’: Investigating the Use of a Family focused Intervention in the Gambling Support Services Sector. Australian and New Zealand Journal of Family Therapy, 38(3), 482-495.
- Goodyear, M., McDonald, M., von Doussa, H., Cuff, R., & Dunlop, B. (2018). Meeting the Intergenerational Needs of Families Where a Parent Has a Mental Illness. Journal of Parent and Family Mental Health, 3(2), 1.
- Maybery, D., Goodyear, M., Reupert, A., Sheen, J., Cann, W., Dalziel, K., ... & von Doussa, H. (2017). Developing an Australian-first recovery model for parents in Victorian mental health and family services: a study protocol for a randomised controlled trial. BMC Psychiatry, 17(1), 198.
- McIntosh, J.E. & Tan, E.S. (2017). Young Children in Divorce and Separation. Pilot Study of a Mediation based Parent Education Program. Family Court Review. Vol 55, 3. DOI: 10.1111/fcre.12291
- Butera-Prinzi, F., Charles, N., & Story, K. (2016): Holding Resilience in Trust: Working Systemically with Families Following an Acquired Brain Injury, Journal of Social Work in Disability & Rehabilitation, DOI: 10.1080/1536710X.2016.1220882
- Goodyear, M., Hill, T., Allchin, B., McCormick, F., Hine, R., Cuff, R., & O'Hanlon, B. (2015) Standards of practice for the adult mental health workforce: Meeting the needs of families where a parent has a mental illness. International Journal of Mental Health Nursing, 01/2015; DOI: 10.1111/inm.12120
Book
- M.F. Hoyt, M. Bobele, A. Slive, J. Young, & M. Talmon (Eds.), (2018). Single-Session Therapy by Walk-In or Appointment: Clinical, Supervisory, and Administrative Aspects. New York: Routledge.
- McLean, S.A. & McIntosh, J.E. (2021): The mental and physical health of family mental health practitioners during COVID-19: relationships with family violence and workplace practices, Australian Journal of Psychology, DOI: 10.1080/00049530.2021.1934118
- McIntosh, J.E., Tan, E.S., Greenwood, C.,Lee, J. & Holtzworth-Munroe, A. (2021) Profiling Mother and Father Reports of Safety Risks in a Post-Separation Cohort. Psychology of Violence. 11(1), 61–71. DOI: 10.1037/vio0000321
- McIntosh, J.E., Wells, Y., & Lee, J. (2016). The development and validation of the Family Law DOORS. Psychological Assessment, 28(11), 1516-1522. DOI: 10.1037/pas0000277
- McIntosh, J. E., Tan, E. S., Levendosky, A. A., & Holtzworth-Munroe, A. (2019). Mothers’ Experience of Intimate Partner Violence and Subsequent Offspring Attachment Security Ages 1–5 Years: A Meta-Analysis. Trauma, Violence, & Abuse. DOI: 10.1177/1524838019888560
- McIntosh, J.E., Schnabel, A., Youssef, G., Olsson, C. (2020). Pre-conception and perinatal predictors of offspring attachment disorganization: Advancing the replicated evidence. Development & Psychopathology, April 17:1-12.
- Clancy,E.M., McIntosh, J.E., Booth, A.T., Sheen, J., Johnson, M., Gibson, T., Bennett, R.N., Newman,L. (2020). Training maternal and child health nurses in early relational trauma: An evaluation of the MERTIL workforce training, Nurse Education Today, Volume 89. DOI: 10.1016/j.nedt.2020.104390
- Wells, Y., Lee. J. & McIntosh, J.E. (2018). Re-examination of the Family Law DOORS Risk Screen: Establishing Fitness for Purpose. Psychological Assessment. 30(8):1121-1126. DOI: 10.1037/pas0000581
- McIntosh, J.E., Lee, J. & Ralfs, C. (2016). The Family Law DOORS: Research and practice updates. Family Matters, 98, 34-41.
- McIntosh, J.E., Smyth,B., & Kelaher, M. (2015). Responding to concerns about a study of infant overnight care post-separation, with comments on consensus: Reply to Warshak (2014). Psychology, Public Policy, and Law, 21(1), 111–119. DOI: 10.1037/h0101018
- Sadowski, C., & McIntosh, J.E. (2015). A Phenomenological Analysis of the Experience of Security and Contentment for Latency Aged Children in Shared-time Parenting Arrangements. Journal of Phenomenological Psychology, 46(1), 69–104. DOI: 10.1163/15691624-12341285
- McIntosh, J.E., Opie, J., Greenwood, C. J., Booth, A., Tan, E., Painter, F., ... & ATPG3 MAC Lab and Consortium. (2023). Infant and preschool attachment, continuity and relationship to caregiving sensitivity: findings from a new population‐based Australian cohort. Journal of Child Psychology and Psychiatry. doi.org/10.1111/jcpp.13865
- McIntosh, J.E, Olsson, C. A., Schuijers, M., Tan, E., Schnabel, Le Bas, G., Painter, F., Higgs-Howarth, S., Benstead, M., Booth, A., Hutchinson, D. Exploring Perinatal Indicators of Infant Social-Emotional Development: A Review of the Replicated Evidence. Clinical Child Family Psychology Review. DOI :10.1007/s10567-021-00356-2
- Macdonald, J.A., Greenwood, C.J., Letcher, P., Spry, E., Mansour, K., McIntosh, J.E., Thomson, K.C., Deane, C., Biden, E.J., Edwards, B., Hutchinson, D., Cleary, J., Toumbourou, J.W., Sanson, A., Olsson. C.A. (2021). Parent and peer attachments in adolescence and paternal postpartum mental health: Findings from the ATP Generation 3 Study. Frontiers in Psychology, 12, p.1939, DOI: 10.3389/fpsyg.2021.672174
- Olsson, C.A., Hancox, R.J., Spry, E., Letcher, P., Youssef, G., Sligo, J., Macdonald, J. A., McAnally, H. M., Thomson, K., Romaniuk, H., Greenwood, C., Becker, D., Iosua, E., Hutchinson, D., McIntosh, J.E, Williams, S., McGee, R., Sanson, A., Patton, G. C. (2020). The Australian and New Zealand Intergenerational Cohort Consortium: A study protocol for investigating mental health and wellbeing across generations. Longitudinal and Life Course Studies. DOI: 10.1332/175795920X15792720930280.
- Thomson, K. C., Romaniuk, H., Greenwood, C. J., Letcher, P., Spry, E., MacDonald, J. A., McAnally, H. M., Youssef, G. J., McIntosh, J.E., Hutchinson, D., Hancox, R. J., Patton, G. C., Olsson, C. A. (2020). Adolescent antecedents of maternal and paternal perinatal depression: A 36-year prospective cohort. Psychological Medicine. Online first. DOI: https://doi.org/10.1017/S0033291720000902
- McIntosh, J.E., Schnabel, A., Youssef, G., Olsson, C. (2020). Pre-conception and perinatal predictors of offspring attachment disorganization: Advancing the replicated evidence. Development & Psychopathology, April 17:1-12.
- Letcher, P., Greenwood, C., Romaniuk, H., Spry, E., Macdonald, J.A., McAnally, H., Thomson, K.C., Youssef, G., Hutchinson, D., McIntosh, J.E, Sanson, A., Ryan, J., Edwards, B., Sligo, J., Hancox, R.J., Patton, G.C., Olsson, C.A. (2020) Adolescent and young adult mental health problems and infant offspring behavior: Findings from a prospective intergenerational cohort study, Journal of Affective Disorders. DOI: 10.1016/j.jad.2020.03.101
- Furlong, M. (2019). Dependence or Independence: Which Is the Dirty Word? Australian and New Zealand Journal of Family Therapy, 40, 255-271. DOI: 10.1002/anzf.1358
- Le Bas, G., Macdonald, J., McIntosh, J.E, Olsson, C., Greenwood, C., Hutchinson, C. (2019). The Role of Antenatal and Postnatal Maternal Bonding in Infant Development: A Systematic Review and Meta-Analysis". Social Development.
- Teague, S., Youssef, G., Macdonald, J., Sciberras, E., Shatte, A., Fuller-Tyszkiewicz, M., Greenwood, G., McIntosh, J.E, Olsson, C., Hutchinson, D. (2018). Retention strategies in longitudinal cohort studies: A systematic review and meta-analysis. BMC Medical Research Methodology, 18: 151.
- Tan, E.S., McIntosh, J.E., Kothe, E.J., Opie, J.E., & Olsson, C.A. Couple relationship quality and offspring attachment security: A systematic review and meta-analysis. (2018). Attachment and Human Development. Aug; 20(4):349-377 DOI: 10.1080/14616734.2017.1401651
- O’Connor, M, Chong, S., Hutchinson, D, Sanson, A, McIntosh, J.E., Olsson, CA, Goldfeld, S. (2019). Socioeconomic Disadvantage in Infancy and Academic and Self-Regulation Outcomes. Pediatrics, May 14 (5) e20182640; DOI: 10.1542/peds.2018-2640
- Booth, A., Macdonald J., & Youssef, G. (2018). Contextual Stress and Maternal Sensitivity: A Meta-Analytic Review of Stress Associations with the Maternal Behavior Q-Sort in Observational Studies. Developmental Review.
Conference Presentations
- McIntosh, J.E., Opie, J., Tan, E. S., Booth, A. (2017).Infant attachment security correlates, continuity and outcomes, and the influence of stress on care-giving sensitivity: New meta-analytic evidence. Symposium Presentation. International Attachment Conference. London.
- McIntosh, J.E., Ryan, J., Greenwood, C., Letcher, P. Olsson, C. and the ATP-G3 consortium. (2017). Offspring attachment in a three-generation cohort: emerging psycho-social and epigenetic signals. Individual Paper Presentation. International Attachment Conference. London.
- Greenwood, C., Youssef, G.J., Betts, K., Letcher, P., McIntosh, J.E, Spry, E., Hutchinson, D., MacDonald, J., Hagg, L., Sanson, A., Toumbourou, J., Olsson. C. (2019). A comparative analysis of modelling approaches: Alcohol and cannabis use from adolescence to young adulthood. Drug and Alcohol Dependence. DOI: 10.1016/j.drugalcdep.2019.05.001
- Damiano, S.R., McLean, S.A., Nguyen, L., Yager, Z., Paxton, S.J. (2020). Do we cause harm? Understanding the impact of research with young children about their body image. Body Image, 34, 59-66. DOI: 10.1016/j.bodyim.2020.05.008
- Reupert, A., Maybery, DJ., Bartholomew, C., Cuff, R., Foster, K., Matar, J., & Pettenuzzo, L. (2020) The Acceptability and Effectiveness of an Online Intervention for Youth With Parents With a Mental Illness and/or Substance Use Issue. Journal of Adolescent Health
- Reupert, A., Maybery, DJ., Bartholomew, C., Cuff, R., Duncan, Z., Foster, K., Matar, J., & Pettenuzzo, L. (2019) A web-based intervention for young adults whose parents have a mental illness and/or substance use concern: study protocol for a randomised controlled trial. JMIR Research Protocols
- Reupert, A., Bartholomew, C., Cuff, R., Foster, K., Matar, J., Maybery, DJ. & Pettenuzzo L (2019) An Online Intervention to Promote Mental Health and Wellbeing for Young Adults Whose Parents Have Mental Illness and/or Substance Use Problems: Theoretical Basis and Intervention Description. Frontiers in Psychiatry, 10:59
- Maybery, D., Goodyear, M., Reupert, A., Sheen, J., Cann, W., O’Hanlon, B., & Cuff, R. (2019). A mixed method evaluation of an intervention for parents with mental illness. Clinical Child Psychology and Psychiatry, DOI: 10.1177/1359104518822676
- McLean, S.A., & Paxton, S.J. (2019). Body image in the context of eating disorders. Psychiatric Clinics of North America, 42, 145-156.
- Thomson, K. C., Romaniuk, H., Greenwood, C. J., Letcher, P., Spry, E., MacDonald, J. A., McAnally, H. M., Youssef, G. J., McIntosh, J.E, Hutchinson, D., Hancox, R. J., Patton, G. C., Olsson, C. A. Adolescent antecedents of maternal and paternal perinatal depression: A 36-year prospective cohort. Psychological Medicine.
- McLean, S.A., Caldwell, B., & Roberton, M. (2019). Reach Out and Recover: Intentions to seek treatment in individuals using online support for eating disorders. International Journal of Eating Disorders, 52, 1137-1149. DOI: 10.1002/eat.23133
- McLean, S.A., Jarman, H.K., & Rodgers, R.F. (2019). How do “selfies” impact adolescents’ well-being and body confidence?: A narrative review. Psychology Research and Behavior Management, 12, 512-521.
- Elliott, A., Dokona, J., von Doussa, H. (2020). Following the River’s Flow: A Conversation about Single Session Approaches with Aboriginal Families. Australian and New Zealand Journal of Family Therapy, 41, 249-257 DOI: 10.1002/anzf.1423
- Moloney, B. (2014) A Black and White Model for Teaching Family Therapy: Empowerment by Degree. Australian and New Zealand Journal of Family Therapy, 35, 261-276. DOI: 10.1002/anzf.1066
Book
- Sundbery, J. (2016) Aboriginal drug service workers' experience of family therapy: Training and practice. Lap Lambert Academic Publishing.
Research Report
- Sundbery, J., Latham, R. (2018) Working side by side: a process of collaboration for Aboriginal and non-Aboriginal people, Australian Aboriginal Studies, 2, 71-76.
- Yager, Z., Gray, T, Curry, C, & McLean, S.A. (2020). Pre-service teachers’ gendered attitudes towards role modelling in health and physical education. Physical Education and Sport Pedagogy, 25, 67-78. (Q1; Impact Factor 2.035).
- von Doussa, H., Power, J., & Riggs, D. W. (2017). Family matters: transgender and gender diverse peoples’ experience with family when they transition. Journal of Family Studies, 1-14.
- Riggs, D. W., Power, J., & von Doussa, H. (2016). Parenting and Australian trans and gender diverse people: An exploratory survey. International Journal of Transgenderism, 17(2), 59-65.
- von Doussa, H., Peters, J., Lewis, G., and Caddick, A. (2016) The trans debate [online]. Arena Magazine (Fitzroy, Vic), No. 141, Apr/May 2016: 13-15.
- Griffiths, S, Hay, P. Mitchison, D., Mond, J.M., McLean, S.A., Rodgers, B., Massey, R., & Paxton, S.J. (2016). Sex differences in the relationships between body dissatisfaction, quality of life and psychological distress. Australian and New Zealand Journal of Public Health, 40, 518-522. DOI: 10.1111/1753-6405.12538
- von Doussa, H., Power, J., McNair, R., Brown, R., Schofield, M., Perlesz, A., . . . Bickerdike, A. (2015). Building healthcare workers' confidence to work with same-sex parented families. Health Promotion International, 1-11. DOI: 10.1093/heapro/dav010
- von Doussa, H., Power, J., & Riggs, D. (2015). Imagining parenthood: the possibilities and experiences of parenthood among transgender people. Culture, Health & Sexuality, 1-13. DOI: 10.1080/13691058.2015.1042919
- Riggs, D. W., von Doussa, H., Power, J., (2015): The family and romantic relationships of trans and gender diverse Australians: an exploratory survey, Sexual and Relationship Therapy, DOI: 10.1080/14681994.2014.992409
- Power, J., Schofield, M. J., Farchione, D., Perlesz, A., McNair, R., Brown, R., . . . Bickerdike, A. (2015). Psychological Wellbeing Among Same-sex Attracted and Heterosexual Parents: Role of Connectedness to Family and Friendship Networks. Australian and New Zealand Journal of Family Therapy, 36, 380-394. DOI: 10.1002/anzf.1109
Book Chapter
- Dunk-West, P., & Hafford-Letchfield, T. (2018). Transgender people negotiating intimate relationships. Riggs, D., von Doussa, H., & Power, P. In Sexuality, Sexual and Gender Identities and Intimacy Research in Social Work and Social Care (pp. 108-122). Routledge.