Associate Professor Sarah Wendt 

I am a Senior Lecturer in the School of Psychology, Social Work and Social Policy and member of the Research Centre for Gender Studies. I research violence and abuse against women, particularly domestic violence, child sexual abuse, and abuse of older people. My book "Domestic Violence in Rural Australia" (Federation Press)examines how living in rural environments and communities shape experience and perceptions of domestic violence. I supervise PhD students researching violence against women. I teach social work theory and practice in the Bachelor and Masters of Social Work. Before I joined the University of South Australia I worked as a social worker in the field of domestic violence.

Google Scholar Citations

• Social Work Theory
• Reflective Practice
• Violence and Abuse

Australian Association of Social Workers

Research Centre for Gender Studies

PhD Social Sciences

Bachelor of Social Work (1st Class Honours)

Bachelor of Arts (Gender Studies)

• Violence against women
• Domestic violence
• Child sexual abuse
• Qualitative methodologies
• Feminist theory
• Rurality

Wendt, S (2012), Engaging with sea-change and tree-change families over time, Chapter 12, in Maidment, J. and Bay, U. (eds), Social work in rural Australia: enabling practice, Allen & Unwin, NSW.

Wendt, S., Tuckey, M., & Prosser, B. (2011) Thriving, Not Just Surviving, in Emotionally Demanding Fields of Practice, Health & Social Care in the Community, doi: 10.1111/j.1365-2524.2010.00983.x

Wendt, S., Cheers, B., Lonne, B. Francis, K. & Schiller, W. (2011) Exploring social workers' personal domains in rural practice, Journal of Social Work 1468017310382323, first published on February 21, 2011 as doi:10.1177/1468017310382323.

Wendt, S. & Hornosty, J. (2010), Understanding Contexts of Family Violence in Rural, Farming communities: Implications for Rural Women’s Health, Rural Society, 20, 1, pp: 51-63.

Wendt, S. (2010), Building and Sustaining Local Co-ordination: An Australian Rural Community Responds to Domestic and Family Violence, British Journal of Social Work, 40 pp: 44-62,

Bagshaw, Dale; Brown, Thea; Wendt, Sarah; Campbell, Alan; McInnes, Elspeth; Tinning, Beth; Batagol, Becky; Sifris, Adiva; Tyson, Danielle; Baker, Joanne and Fernandez Arias, Paula (2010), The Effect of Family Violence on Post-Separation Parenting Arrangements, Family Matters, No. 86, pp: 35-47.

Wendt, S. & Seymour, S. (2010) ‘Applying Post-structural Ideas to Empowerment: Implications for Social Work Education, Social Work Education, 29, 6, 670-682.

Wendt, S. (2009), Domestic Violence in Rural Australia, The Federation Press, Annandale, NSW.

Wendt, S. (2009), Constructions of Local Culture and Impacts on Domestic Violence in an Australian Rural Community, Journal of Rural Studies, 25, 2, pp: 175-184.

Bagshaw, D. Wendt, S. & Zannetinno, L . (2009), Preventing the Abuse of Older People by their Family Members, Stakeholder Paper, Australian Domestic and Family Violence Clearinghouse, University of New South Wales.

Wendt, S. & Boylan, J. (2008) Feminist Social Work Research Engaging with Poststructural Ideas, International Social Work, 51, (5), 599-610.

Wendt, S. (2008) Christianity and Domestic Violence: Feminist poststructural perspectives, AFFIFIA: Journal of Women and Social Work. 23 (2), 144-155.

Jamieson, S. & Wendt, S. (2008) Exploring Men’s Perpetrator Programs in Small Rural Communities, Rural Society, 18 (1), 39-50.

Wendt, S. and Cheers, B. (2004) Rural Cultures, Domestic Violence, and Stories from a Rural Region, The Australian Feminist Journal: Women Against Violence. Issue 15, special rural issue, 1-11.

Wendt, S. and Cheers, B. (2004) Rural Cultures and Domestic Violence: Stories From South Australian Wine Country, Rural Social Work. Special issue from the International Conference on Human Services in Rural Communities, 9, December, 97-105.

Wendt, S. and Cheers, B. (2002) Impacts of Rural Culture on Domestic Violence, Rural Social Work 7(1), 20-30.

Wendt, S. Taylor, J. and Kennedy, M. (2002) Rural Domestic Violence: Moving Towards Feminist Poststructural Understandings, Rural Social Work, 7 (2), 26-35.

I am able to provide media comment in the following areas of expertise:

Discipline: Social Work & Social Policy

• Domestic violence
• Child sexual abuse