Charlotte Brownlow

Charlotte Brownlow is an Associate Professor of Psychology at the University of Southern Queensland, where she also serves as Dean of the Graduate Research School. With 25 years of teaching experience, she is based at the Toowoomba Campus and is actively involved in research and academic leadership.

Her educational background includes a PhD in Psychology from the University of Brighton and a BSc (Hons) in Human Psychology from Aston University. These qualifications have formed the foundation for her extensive career in psychological research and academic administration.

Professor Brownlow's research focuses on developmental psychology, disability studies, and autism, with particular emphasis on co-produced research with autistic communities. Her work examines the construction of autism through the lens of diversity politics and explores the conceptualization of space within autistic and neurodiverse contexts. She investigates how societal structures understand and value autistic individuals, challenging deficit-based narratives that dominate much autism research.

Her scholarly output demonstrates a consistent focus on autism research, with particular attention to how media representations frame autism as something to be avoided or prevented. Her 2017 article 'Why asking what causes autism is the wrong question' exemplifies her critical approach to autism research paradigms, challenging the medical model that seeks causal explanations while neglecting societal acceptance and accommodation.

• Member of The British Psychological Society (MBPsS)
• Member of The Australian Psychological Society (MAPS)
• Funding from The Leverhulme Trust

As Dean of the Graduate Research School, Professor Brownlow supervises research across multiple disciplines including Sociology, Psychology, and Public Health. Her research supervision spans numerous fields of research (FoR) codes, demonstrating interdisciplinary expertise. She has been actively involved in research collaboration and supervision, with particular focus on community-engaged research methodologies that center autistic voices.

Professor Brownlow is affiliated with the Centre for Health Research Experience and the Institute for Resilient Regions at USQ, contributing to institutional research priorities in health and community resilience. Her work emphasizes the importance of valuing autistic children and adults within society rather than focusing on causal explanations that often lead to parental blame narratives.