Pat Dudgeon
Australian Aboriginal psychologist
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Through Psychology
Early life and education
Patricia Lynette Dudgeon has Bardi and Gija heritage.
She studied at the Western Australian Institute of Technology, Curtin University and Murdoch University, graduating with BAppSc, GDip (Psych), and Doctor of Philosophy (Psychology).
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Career
Dudgeon has been a prominent and influential member of the psychology profession since graduating in 1985 as Australia's first Indigenous psychologist. She was the first Indigenous convenor of the Australian Psychological Society (APS) Interest Group on Aboriginal Issues, People and Psychology, and the founding Chair of the Australian Indigenous Psychologists Association and remains a committee member.
Before joining the University of Western Australia (UWA) in 2007, Dudgeon was the head of the Centre for Aboriginal Studies at Curtin University for 19 years, leading the field in providing culturally appropriate education.
In 2007 she was appointed as research professor in the School of Indigenous Studies at UWA and director of the Centre of Best Practice in Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Suicide Prevention at the Poche Centre for Indigenous Health at UWA. She is lead chief investigator of a Million Minds grant.
During her career, Dudgeon has taken prominent leadership roles in national and state groups such as the National Mental Health Commission, the Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Leadership Group for the state and national Mental Health Commissions in Australia, is co-chair of the National Ministerial Aboriginal Torres Strait Islander Mental Health and Suicide Prevention Advisory Group to the PM&C and Department of Health, and is a member of the Gayaa Dhuwi (Proud Spirit) National Advisory Group, which was formed in 2020.
Honours and awards
- 2009: Inducted Batchelor Institute of Indigenous Tertiary Education's Hall of Fame
- 2013: Indigenous Allied Health Australia Lifetime Achievement Award
- 2013: Deadly Award for Excellence in Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Health in 2013
- 2019/20: Australian Psychological Society's President's Award for Distinguished Contribution to Psychology in Australia
- 2021: Fellow of the Australian Academy of Health and Medical Sciences
- 2023: Appointed Member of the Order of Australia
- 2024: Fellow of the Australian Academy of the Humanities
Other activities
As of 2024 Dudgeon is a patron of the Justice Reform Initiative