Professor Sharon Bessell
Areas of expertise
- Sociological Methodology And Research Methods 160807
- Human Rights And Justice Issues 220104
- Government And Politics Of Asia And The Pacific 160606
- Economic Development Policy 160505
- Legal Ethics 220105
- Studies Of Asian Society 169903
- Public Policy 160510
- Social Policy 160512
- Gender Specific Studies 169901
- Human Rights Law 180114
- Professional Ethics (Incl. Police And Research Ethics) 220107
- Other Studies In Human Society 1699
- Policy And Administration 1605
Research interests
Children and Childhood
- Children’s participation in decision making and children’s citizenship
- Rights-based social policy for children
- Children in the care and protection system (out-of-home or foster care)
- Child labour in Southeast Asia and the Pacific, particularly in Indonesia
- Children’s participation in community and community development
- The physical and emotional punishment of children in Southeast Asia and the Pacific
- Child protection and rights-based policy
- Children-centred education
- Research with children: Ethics, methodologies, methods
Gender
- Gender and poverty
- Gender analysis
- Gender and political representation (focusing on Indonesia)
Country/Regional focus
- Southeast Asia, especially Indonesia and the Philippines
- Pacific, especially Fiji
- Australia
Researcher's projects
Current Projects
Assessing development: designing better indices of poverty and gender equity
Contributing to development worldwide, this research raises Australia's global standing and helps fulfil the values and responsibilities of the Australian people. It strengthens the basis for gender-related and poverty-related policy development and service delivery within Australia and helps correct the current over-emphasis, in measuring domestic gender inequity, on the more privileged women. Because severe poverty and radically unequal gender relations burden many of our South East Asian and Pacific neighbours, development aid remains an important plank of our foreign policy. By providing better tools for measuring poverty and gender inequity, this project can improve our understanding of our region and augment the impact of our aid.
Funded by an ARC Linkage Grant of $1,098,000 over three years, commencing in late 2009.
Collaborating researchers: Professor TW Pogge; Dr S Bessell; Ms JE Hunt; Dr CH Barry; Dr Y Liu; Professor AM Jagger; Ms J Sloane; Ms A Banze; Professor FA Castillo
Collaborating/Partner Organisations: International Women's Development Agency, Oxfam Southern Africa Regional Office, Philippines Health Social Science Association, University of Colorado at Boulder
Administering Institution: The Australian National University
Children, Community and Social Capital in Australia
This research will explore children’s views and experiences of community and will increase understanding of community and community strengthening initiatives from a child-centred perspective. It will contribute to policies and programs being responsive and child-inclusive. Based on children’s lived experiences and perspectives, we will develop a framework that will be used to analyse community strengthening and social inclusion policies from a child-centred perspective. Our methodology is based on collaboration with communities and values children’s knowledge and contribution.
Funded by an ARC Linkage Grant of $91,722 over three years, commencing in Feburuary 2010.
Collaborating researchers: Dr S Bessell, Professor J Mason, Ms A Michaux, Dr A Nevile
Partner Organisations: The Benevolent Society, NAPCAN
Administering Institution: The Australian National University
Developing Child-Inclusive Policy in Fiji
This research explore the views and priorities of children and young people in Fiji on policy issues that are relevant to them. The first phase of this research focuses on children and young people’s views on education. As part of this research the Children and Young People’s Forum on Education in Fiji was held in June 2009, in collaboration with Save the Children Fiji.
Read the report from the Children and Young People’s Forum [PDF, 2346KB] on Education in Fiji.
What does children’s and youth participation mean for children and adults?
Focusing on the Australian context, which particular emphasis on children and young people who have experienced the care and protection system, this project explores the attitudes and experiences of both adults and children in relation to children’s and youth participation in decision-making processes.
What is valued about childcare
A detailed study of one childcare centre, this research explores what children (aged four and five years), parents and staff consider to be good quality child care.
Recently completed research projects
Children's agency in communities: A review of the literature and the policy and practice context (2008)
Dr Sharon Bessell, Professor Jan Mason (University of Western Sydney), Jarrah Hoffman-Ekstein and Annette Michaux (The Benevolent Society), Marie Fox (NAPCAN)
Funding Source: ARACY/ARC NHMRC Research Network Seed Funded Collaboration
This project explored the children’s roles and engagement with their communities, examining the way in which children have been represented in the literature, policy and practice relating to community strengthening.
View Report authored by Jarrah Hoff-man-Ekstein
View Presentation by Sharon Bessell and Jarrah-Hoffman-Ekstein
Children’s experiences and views of physical and emotional punishment (2005-06)
Dr Sharon Bessell, Dr Harriot Beazley (University of Queensland), Dr Judith Ennew (Knowing Children, University of Malaya), Associate Professor Roxana Waterson (National University of Singapore)
Funding Source: Save the Children Sweden
This research records what 3,322 children from eight countries in the Southeast Asia and the Pacific region told researchers about everyday, common violence - both physical and emotional - used as punishment against them. It used a systematic, scientific approach, which sought information about children’s knowledge, experiences and views, using appropriate methods through which they could express themselves easily and without being harmed.
View the monograph
View the research protocol [PDF, 1044KB] (including details of our methodology, methods used and ethical considerations
Child Labour Work Book: Rights-Based Situational Analysis Data Collection and Report Writing (2006)
Funding Source: Save the Children Sweden
Dr Sharon Bessell and Dr Judith Ennew (Knowing Children, University of Wales Swansea)
This research resulted in a Work Book, designed to be used in any country in the world, provides tools and step-by-step instructions on what data to collect and where to find it. Clear directions are provided on writing a situation analysis on working children and child labour, within overall national contexts. Such contextual situation analysis will develop better understanding of the circumstances of working children, and result in focused programme responses for better protection of working children and the fulfilment of their rights.
View Child Labour Workbook
Publications
- Mason, J & Bessell, S 2017, 'Children's Lives: Taking Account of the Social', Children and Society, vol. 31, no. 4, pp. 257-262pp.
- Bessell, S 2017, 'The Role of Intergenerational Relationships in Children's Experiences of Community', Children and Society, vol. 31, no. 4, pp. 263-275.
- Bessell, S 2017, 'Money matters...but so do people: Children's views and experiences of living in a 'disadvantaged' community', Children and Youth Services Review, pp. -.
- Bessell, S 2015, 'The Individual Deprivation Measure: measuring poverty as if gender and inequality matter', Gender and Development, vol. 23, no. 2, pp. 223-240.
- Abebe, T & Bessell, S 2014, 'Advancing ethical research with children: Critical reflections on ethical guidelines', Children's Geographies, vol. 12, no. 1, pp. 126-133.
- Beazley, H, Bessell, S & Waterson, R 2014, 'Sustaining the energy: A celebration of the life of Judith Ennew', Children's Geographies, vol. 12, no. 1, pp. 118-125.
- Crawford, J, Bessell, S, Hunt, J et al 2014, 'The future of poverty measurement: Introducing the individual deprivation measure', Development Bulletin (Canberra), no. 76, pp. 16-21.
- Bessell, S 2014, 'Betrayal and broken ties: British child migrants to Australia, citizenship and identity', in Fiona Jenkins, Mark Nolan, Kim Rubenstein (ed.), Allegiance and Identity in a Globalised World, Cambridge University Press, Cambridge, United Kingdom, pp. 381-404.
- Bessell, S 2013, 'Child-Centred Research Workshops: A Model for participatory, rights-based engagement with children', Developing Practice, vol. 37, pp. 11-20.
- Beazley, H, Bessell, S, Ennew, J et al 2011, 'How are the human rights of children related to research methodology?', in Antonella Invernizzi and Jane Williams (ed.), The human rights of children: From visions to implementation, Ashgate Publishing Ltd, UK, pp. 159-178.
- Bessell, S 2011, 'Participation in decision-making in out-of-home care in Australia: What do young people say?', Children and Youth Services Review, vol. 33, no. 4, pp. 496-501.
- Bessell, S 2011, 'Influencing international child labour policy: The potential and limits of children-centred research', Children and Youth Services Review, vol. 33, no. 4, pp. 564-568.
- Abebe, T & Bessell, S 2011, 'Dominant discourses, debates and silences on child labour in Africa and Asia', Third World Quarterly, vol. 32, no. 4, pp. 765-786.
- Bessell, S 2010, 'Increasing the Proportion of Women in the National Parliament: Opportunities, Barriers and Challenges', in Edward Aspinall and Marcus Mietzner (ed.), Problems of Democratisation in Indonesia: Elections, Institutions and Society, Institute of Southeast Asian Studies (ISEAS), Singapore, pp. 219-242.
- Bessell, S 2010, 'Do rights make a difference? The evolution of policy for children in out-of-home care in Australia', in Ann Nevile (ed.), Human Rights and Social Policy: A Comparative Analysis of Values and Citizenship in OECD Countries, Edward Elgar Publishing, Cheltenham, UK & Northampton, MA, USA, pp. 201-223.
- Bessell, S 2010, 'Methodologies for gender-sensitive and pro-poor poverty measures', in Sylvia Chant (ed.), The International Handbook of Gender and Poverty: Concepts, Research, Policy, Edward Elgar Publishing, Cheltenham, UK, pp. 59-64.
- Bessell, S 2006, 'Ethical Research with children: The time for debate is now', Communities, Children and Families Australia, vol. 1, no. 1, pp. 43-49.
- Gal, T & Bessell, S 2009, 'Forming Partnerships: The Human Rights of Children in Need of Care and Protection', International Journal of Children's Rights, vol. 17, pp. 283-298.
- Bessell, S 2009, 'Research with Children: Thinking about Method and Methodology', Involving Children and Young People in Research Think Tank, ed. Conference Program Committee, NSW Commission for Children and Young People, Sydney Australia, pp. 17-28.
- Bessell, S 2009, 'Child labor in Indonesia', in Hugh Hindman (ed.), The World of Child Labor: An Historical and Regional Survey, M E Sharpe Inc, Armonk NY, pp. 898 - 904.
- Bessell, S 2009, 'Strengthening Fiji's Education System: A view from key stakeholders', Pacific Economic Bulletin, vol. 24, no. 3, pp. 58-70.
- Bessell, S 2009, 'Children's Participation in Decision Making in the Philippines: Understanding the attitudes of policy-makers and service providers', Childhood: a global journal of child research, vol. 16, no. 3, pp. 299-316.
- Beazley, H, Bessell, S, Ennew, J et al 2009, 'The right to be properly researched - research with children in a messy, real world', Children's Geographies, vol. 7, no. 4, pp. 365-378.
- Bessell, S 2009, 'Indonesian Children's Views and Experiences of Work and Poverty', Social Policy and Society, vol. 8, no. 4, pp. 527-540.
- Bessell, S & Petueli, L 2008, 'Fiji', in Irving Epstein (ed.), The Greenwood Encyclopedia of Children's Issues Worldwide: Asia and Oceania, Greenwood Publishing Group, Westport, pp. 143-167pp.
- Bessell, S 2007, 'Children, Welfare and Protection: A New Policy Framework', in Ross H McLeod and Andrew MacIntyre (ed.), Indonesia: Democracy and the Promise of Good Governance, Institute of Southeast Asian Studies (ISEAS), Singapore, pp. 138-156.
- Beazley, H, Bessell, S, Ennew, J et al 2006, What Children Say: Results of Comparative Research on Physical and Emotional Punishment of Children in Southeast Asia and the Pacific, Save the Children Sweden, Bangkok.
- Bessell, S 2005, 'Women in Parliament in Indonesia: Denied a Share of Power', in Yvonne Galligan and Manon Tremblay (ed.), Sharing Power: Women, Parliament, Democracy, Ashgate Publishing Ltd, Aldershot, pp. 7-24.
- Bessell, S 2005, 'Indonesia', in Yvonne Galligan and Manon Tremblay (ed.), Sharing Power: Women, Parliament, Democracy, Ashgate Publishing Ltd, Aldershot, pp. 7-24.
- Bessell, S 2004, 'The Trafficing of Children: Rethinking the Issues through a Human Rights Lens', Development Bulletin (Canberra), vol. 66, pp. 22-26.
- Robinson, K & Bessell, S 2002, 'Introduction to the issues', in Kathryn Robinson, Sharon Bessell (ed.), Women in Indonesia: Gender equity and development, Institute of Southeast Asian Studies (ISEAS), Singapore, pp. 1-12.
- Bessell, S & Robinson, K, eds, 2002, Women in Indonesia: Gender, Equity and Development, Institute of Southeast Asian Studies (ISEAS), Singapore.
- Bessell, S 2001, 'Social Cohesion and Conflict Management: Rethinking and Issues through a Gender Sensitive Lens', in Nat J. Colletta, Teck Ghee Lim, Anita Kelles-Viitanen (ed.), Social Cohesion and Conflict Prevention in Asia. Managing Diversity through Development, The World Bank, Washington, D.C., pp. 183-.
- Bessell, S & Thomas, P, eds, 1999, Education for Sustainable Development: Getting it Right, Australian National University, Canberra.
- Bessell, S 1999, 'The politics of Child Labour in Indonesia: Global Trends and Domestic Policy', Pacific Affairs, vol. 66, pp. 353-372.
- Bessell, S 1999, 'Adolescents and Family Planning: Issues and Debates', Development Bulletin (Canberra), vol. 47, pp. 36-39.
Projects and Grants
Grants information is drawn from ARIES. To add or update Projects or Grants information please contact your College Research Office.
- Understanding and Assessing Childhood Poverty in Indonesia (Primary Investigator)
- Valuing the Past, Sustaining the Future (Primary Investigator)
- Improving wellbeing through student participation at school (Secondary Investigator)
- Children, Community and Social Capital in Australia (Primary Investigator)
