Associate ProfessorKiran Pienaar

• Gender, sexuality and the body
• Social studies of drugs and narcofeminisms
• Sociology of health, with a particular interest in HIV
• LGBTQ+ identities and cultures
• Identity politics and digital publics
• Feminist theory
• Science and technology studies
• Posthumanisms

PhD, Masters and Honours supervision

Kiran welcomes inquiries to supervise Higher Degree (PhD and MA) and Honours students on the following topics:

• Trauma-informed care in drug treatment
• Narcofeminisms and drug use among women and gender minorities
• Sexual consent, drug use and intoxicated sex
• Gender, sexuality and the body
• LGBTQ+ identities and cultures
• The sociology of pandemics, e.g. HIV, COVID-19

Projects
Kiran's research program includes projects on gender, sexuality and drug consumption; COVID-19; and trauma-informed care. She has received a high commendation in Deakin's Mid-Career Researcher Award for her impactful research in critical drug studies and narcofeminisms. She is a Chief Investigator on a Discovery Project exploring trauma-informed care for alcohol and other drug-related issues. Kiran is also leading a project with colleagues at Deakin and La Trobe University on sexual consent and intoxication. She was the Principal Investigator on a Science & Society Network grant exploring the racial and cultural politics of Victoria's COVID-19 response, and its impact on diverse communities.  With colleagues at the University of Sydney and the University of New South Wales, she was a Chief Investigator on a Discovery Project titled 'Chemical Practices: Enhancement and Experimentation'. The project explored drug consumption in LGBTQ+ communities, with a view to generating new insights on the use of drugs to enhance or transform gender and/or sexual experience. Kiran was also a Chief Investigator on a Monash Interdisciplinary grant on online alcohol and other drug counselling.