UNSW Canberra Public Service Research Group welcomes new directors
Published on the 08 Feb 2023 by Leanne Hew
Jim Rooney stand behind Helen Dickinson who is seated on a chair
Professor Helen Dickinson and Associate Professor Jim Rooney have just begun as the latest directors of the UNSW Canberra Public Service Research Group. Source: UNSW Canberra
“Partnership, knowledge mobilisation and quality academic work” – these are just some of the things the Public Service Research Group (PSRG) excel at and will continue to cultivate under new directorship.
Professor Helen Dickinson and Associate Professor Jim Rooney have begun as the latest PSRG directors. Together, along with a talented group of researchers and collaborators, the team are looking forward to contributing to “both theory and practice around public policy implementation in 2023”.
“PSRG brings together a group of interdisciplinary researchers who are interested in both theory and practice around public policy implementation,” Professor Dickinson said.
“Our research group is interested in what happens once policies are put into place, given that we know there is often somewhat of a gap between the intents of policy and what happens once it is implemented,” she said.
“We undertake a number of different activities such as research, consulting, teaching and knowledge mobilisation to better understand these processes and to support the various actors involved in policy implementation processes.”
Professor Dickinson and Associate Professor Rooney hope to continue bridging the gap between policy research and practice through researcher expertise and unique problem solving.
A diverse and knowledgeable team of researchers make up the PSRG – a significant factor that enables the team to develop and maintain high quality collaborations with each other and their stakeholders.
“All PSRG colleagues are intensely passionate about the areas they work in and always go the extra mile to make a difference and move debate and practice forward,” Professor Dickinson said.
“PSRG have never been about just one or two people at the top and has always been a team endeavour. It’s such a pleasure to work with such a talented group of people and think about how best to support them and I always feel energised after meeting with the group,” she said.
Looking into the future, Associate Professor Rooney looks forward to seeing the PSRG leveraging off their substantive achievements in 2022 as well as “developing new strategic collaborations at state and federal tiers of government”.
“We will continue work around topics like the future of flexible work, gender equity, financial instruments in the environmental protection space, workplace health and safety, criminal justice, and a whole lot of diverse and interesting areas,” Professor Dickinson said.
Visit the Public Service Research Group website for opportunities to collaborate or stay up to date with the latest research and publications on Twitter.