School of Arts and Humanities

Dr Catriona Stevens

Cat is Forrest Prospect Research Fellow in the School of Arts and Humanities.

Background

Dr Stevens has expertise in the sociology and anthropology of ageing and aged care, migration and ethnicity, and in Chinese studies. Her current research, supported by the Forrest Research Foundation, addresses some of critical challenges faced by the Australian aged care sector.

Cat is working with Vice Chancellor’s Professorial Research Fellow Loretta Baldassar in developing a new research Lab in the School of Arts and Humanities at ECU. This new team is leading research in social care across the life-course, contributing social science perspectives and methodologies to the creative and caring professions. This approach is targeted at the development of a social supports category in the aged care sector to facilitate collaborative communities of care that extend people’s support networks at every age, with a particular focus on:

1. Social and Cultural Care
2. Diverse and Migrant Communities
3. Music and Arts Engagement, and
4. Digital Ageing and Inclusion

Prior to joining ECU, Cat was Manager of Research Engagement with the Social Care and Ageing (SAGE) Living Lab at UWA . She has significant experience in applied social research through collaborations, evaluations and consultancies with government and NFP sector partners.

Professional associations

• International Sociological Association (RC31 Sociology of Migration and RC28 Social Stratification)
• The Australian Sociological Association  (Thematic Group memberships: Ageing; Migration, Ethnicity and Multiculturalism)
• Chinese Studies Association of Australia
• National Accreditation Authority for Translators and Interpreters (Chinese>English)

Awards and recognition

• 2021 - Jean Martin Award (TASA Biennial Award for Best PhD Thesis in Sociology)
• 2021 - Chinese Studies Association of Australia Thesis Prize (Runner up)
• 2021 - Forrest Prospect Fellowship
• 2020 - Murdoch University College of Arts Business Law and Social Sciences Teaching Award
• 2019 - UWA Higher Degree by Research Achievement Prize (Qualitative Research Category)
• 2019 - TASA Postgraduate Conference Scholarship
• 2019 -  Murdoch University College of Arts Business Law and Social Sciences Teaching Award

Research areas and interests

Labour migration and migration policy: Cat’s current research, funded by the Forrest Research Foundation, seeks to understand the experiences of migrants working in aged care and to develop policy responses to support recruitment, retention, and the delivery of quality care to older Australians. This work builds on her expertise in labour migration. Her PhD research, an ethnography of recent trade-skilled migration from China to Perth titled Unlikely settlers in exceptional times, explored how social class shapes opportunities, choices, and trajectories through the migration process in the context of a changing policy environment. In 2021 this dissertation received the Jean Martin Award from The Australian Sociological Association (TASA) and was also awarded runner up in the Chinese Studies Association of Australian Best PhD Thesis Prize.

Transnational ageing and caregiving: Cat was a Research Associate on the ARC Discovery Ageing, and New Media led by Baldassar and Wilding (Latrobe) responsible for the China-born sample. Cat currently collaborates on the Decentering Migration Knowledge (DEMIKNOW) project, which brings together four research entities in Canada, India, China and Australia, to create new knowledge about migration scholars from the Global South and North. DEMIKNOW research compares family migration decision making in these four contexts with a focus in Australian on transnational grandparenting.

Abuse of the older person: In 2020-22 Cat led research funded by the WA Department of Communities into responses to the abuse of older people in Western Australia. She a CI on the No More Shame project led by Professor Bianca Brijnath at the National Ageing Research Institute (NARI). This study aims to remove stigmas and improve the recognition of, and response to, elder abuse by health providers. that will trial an elder abuse screening instrument in 2023-25.

Qualifications

• Doctor of Philosophy, The University of Western Australia, 2020.

Research Outputs

Research Projects

• BEFRIENDING WITH GENIE: An intervention to reduce loneliness and increase social support and service access for people living with dementia and their caregivers from CaLD backgrounds, National Health and Medical Research Council, MRFF - Dementia, Ageing and Aged Care Mission, 2023 ‑ 2027, $1,480,065.
• No More Shame: Changing health providers recognition and response to elder abuse to reduce associated stigma, National Health and Medical Research Council, MRFF - Dementia, Ageing and Aged Care Mission, 2022 ‑ 2025, $75,733.
• DemiKnow – Decentering Migration Knowledge through an international coalition of research centres in migration, Toronto Metropolitan University, Grant, 2022 ‑ 2024, $12,620.
• Guide to interviewing older people and identifying/responding to abuse, Northern Suburbs Community Legal Centre, Grant, 2023, $20,000.
• Home Care Client and Family Caregiver Experience, Southern Cross Care (WA) Inc, Grant, 2023, $69,209.
• Understanding our migrant aged care workforce to create safer, healthier futures for older Western Australians, Forrest Research Foundation, Research Fellowships, 2022 ‑ 2023, $95,518.

Research Student Supervision