Anne Maree Taney

Anne Maree is a PhD student at The University of Queensland, based within Queensland Brain Institute. She holds undergraduate degrees in Community Services and Social Work, a Master of Suicidology, and a Graduate Diploma in Therapeutic Play. She has worked as a case worker for Youth Justice and a counsellor in school settings.

Anne Maree is particularly interested in the neurobiology of the brain and how this can be used to improve children’s sense of safety, connections to others, and learning. She is also passionate about global First Nations practices and traditions, preventing developmental trauma, and educating others about the long-term implications of adverse childhood experiences.

Anne Maree’s doctoral thesis is a case study of socioeconomic factors and childhood development in the community of Normanton in the Gulf of Carpentaria. Her research uses creative and culturally appropriate approaches to identify, map and amplify the strengths and resources within Normanton’s early childhood socio-ecological system. Through her PhD, Anne Maree seeks to raise awareness of early brain development and the influence of early positive and negative experience on children’s outcomes. Her goal is to provide a model for other communities to assess and mobilise strengths, and give voice to a place-based assessment of needs that considers existing strengths. 

Research Interests

• Early childhood
• Brain development
• Strength-based research
• Creative-arts based research