Emily Stevens

Dr Emily Stevens is a Senior Research Officer within the Family Law, Family Violence and Elder Abuse Research Team at AIFS. As a Family Sociologist, Emily’s expertise on the complexities of family dynamics and relationships informs her work on family law, family violence and elder abuse. 

Emily’s research is driven by a goal to understand how public policies and services for families constrain and/or enable certain responses, opportunities, and ways of being for families. Emily’s PhD thesis investigated the experiences of fathers who had taken leave around the birth of a child, using the Australian government’s Dad and Partner Pay policy as a case study. This research provided important insights into how parental leave policies shape the ways in which fathers practice parenthood. 

Emily has published her research in the Journal of Family Studies and the Journal of Family Policy and has taught Family Sociology and social research methods at the university.

Most recently in her role at AIFS, Emily contributed to the Evaluation of the Small Claims Property Pilot and the Evaluation of the Legal Aid Commission Trial, both commissioned by the Attorney-General’s Department.