Section: Overview
Overview
Key publications
Research funding
Supervising & teaching
Career

Key details

Areas of expertise

  • Young people and education
  • Preventive health
  • Eating behaviours
  • Education - schools and youth transitions
  • Survey research and methodology

Available to supervise research students

Available for media queries

About Nina Van Dyke

Nina is the Associate Director of the Mitchell Institute. Her current work focuses broadly on young people, the intersection between education and health, and equity.

Nina started her post-PhD career at the American Institutes for Research in California, working mainly in the area of education, and children and young people, with a particular focus on those from vulnerable backgrounds.

After moving to Melbourne in 2003, she conducted an evaluation of an education pilot program at the Brotherhood of St Laurence. She then moved to the topic of higher education at the Melbourne Institute of Applied Economic and Social Research. This was followed by a gradual shift to public health research, with senior positions at the Social Research Centre, headspace, Market Solutions, where she served as inaugural Director of the Social Research Group, and the Australian Red Cross Blood Service (now Lifeblood), where she headed up the Donor Behaviour group. She has been with the Mitchell Institute since Feb, 2019.

Current projects/areas of focus include:

  • youth transitions from school to further education, employment, or training
  • social mobility and breaking cycles of disadvantage
  • bullying and cyber bullying in schools
  • impact of COVID on the wellbeing of young people
  • definition, operationalisation, and measurement of "wellbeing"
  • eating behaviours
  • food environments

Nina also has particular interest and expertise in survey research and methodology.

Qualifications

  • PhD, University of California, United States, 2000
  • MA, University of California, United States
  • BA (Hons), Stanford University, United States

Key publications

Year Citation
2019 Van, Dyke., Van, Dyke., & Anderson, M. (190101). Student-centred senior secondary schooling: submission to the Review of Senior Secondary Pathways.

Year Citation
2023 Van, Dyke., Murphy, M., & Drinkwater, E. J. (230817). What do people think of intuitive eating? A qualitative exploration with rural Australians. PLoS ONE, 18(8 August),

doi: 10.1371/journal.pone.0278979

2023 Van, Dyke., MacDonald, F., Bajayo, R., Nguyen, C. D., Leung, C., & Francis, S. (230101). Development and Initial Validation of a School Self-assessment Tool to Measure the Extent to Which Schools are Prepared to Prevent and Respond to Cyberbullying and Other Challenges to the School Social Environment. International Journal of Bullying Prevention,

doi: 10.1007/s42380-023-00179-5

2022 Van, Dyke., Drinkwater, E. J., & Rachele, J. N. (221201). Improving the accuracy of self-reported height and weight in surveys: an experimental study. BMC Medical Research Methodology, 22(1),

doi: 10.1186/s12874-022-01690-x

2022 Van, Dyke., & Drinkwater, E. J. (220801). Intuitive eating is positively associated with indicators of physical and mental health among rural Australian adults. Australian Journal of Rural Health, 30(4), (468-477).

doi: 10.1111/ajr.12856

2015 Rickwood, D., Van, Dyke., & Telford, N. (150201). Innovation in youth mental health services in Australia: Common characteristics across the first headspace centres. Early Intervention in Psychiatry, 9(1), (29-37).

doi: 10.1111/eip.12071

Research funding for the past 5 years

Please note:

  • Funding is ordered by the year the project commenced and may continue over several years.
  • Funding amounts for contact research are not disclosed to maintain commercial confidentiality.
  • The order of investigators is not indicative of the role they played in the research project.

eSmart Schools Framework Outcomes Evaluation  Stage 2
From: The Alannah and Madeline Foundation
Other investigators: Dr Fiona Macdonald
For period: 2022-2022
Not disclosed

Education Innovation Hub
From: Victorian Higher Education Strategic Investment Fund
Other investigators: Ms Jacinta Ryan, Prof Anthony Watt, Dr Juliana Ryan, Dr Daniel Loton, Aspr Michael Spittle, Prof Andrew Smallridge, Dr Claire Brown
For period: 2021-2022
$8,841,000

Supervision of research students at VU

Available to supervise research students

Available for media queries

Currently supervised research students at VU

No. of students Study level Role
1 PhD Integrated Associate supervisor

Currently supervised research students at VU

Students & level Role
PhD Integrated (1) Associate supervisor

Teaching activities & experience

Nina was a Lecturer at the University of California, Santa Barbara and the University of California, Davis, in Political Science. She taught courses in Introduction to Quantitative Methods for Social Scientists, Public Opinion, and Political Psychology.

Key academic roles

Dates Role Department / Organisation
Feb 2019 - Oct 2023
Senior Research Fellow
Victoria University, Mitchell Institute
Dec 2016 - Jan 2019
Senior Research Fellow
Australian Red Cross Blood Service (Lifeblood)
May 2004 - Dec 2006
Research Fellow
Melbourne Institute of Applied Economic and Social Research
Sep 1998 - Jun 2000
Lecturer
University of California
Oct 2023 - Present
Associate Director
Victoria University, MItchell Institute
Show more academic roles
Dates Role & Department/Organisation
Feb 2019 -
Oct 2023
Senior Research Fellow
Victoria University, Mitchell Institute
Dec 2016 -
Jan 2019
Senior Research Fellow
Australian Red Cross Blood Service (Lifeblood)
May 2004 -
Dec 2006
Research Fellow
Melbourne Institute of Applied Economic and Social Research
Sep 1998 -
Jun 2000
Lecturer
University of California
Oct 2023 -
Present
Associate Director
Victoria University, MItchell Institute
Show more academic roles

Key industry, community & government roles

Dates Role Department/Organisation
Jun 2013 - Jun 2016
Director, Social Research Group
Market Solutions
Jan 2007 - Nov 2010
Senior Research Officer
headspace
Jun 2020 - Jun 2020
Principal Researcher
Social Research Centre
Jan 2004 - Dec 2004
Research Officer
The Brotherhood of St Laurence
Feb 2001 - Aug 2003
Research Fellow
American Institutes for Research
Dates Role & Department/Organisation
Jun 2013 - Jun 2016
Director, Social Research Group
Market Solutions
Jan 2007 - Nov 2010
Senior Research Officer
headspace
Jun 2020 - Jun 2020
Principal Researcher
Social Research Centre
Jan 2004 - Dec 2004
Research Officer
The Brotherhood of St Laurence
Feb 2001 - Aug 2003
Research Fellow
American Institutes for Research

Awards

Year Award
2020

People's Choice Award - best presentation - The Research Society (formerly the Australian Market and Social Research Society (AMSRS))

1993

Edgar Lane Prize for Best PhD Paper in Public Opinion/ Interest Groups - University of California

Professional memberships

  • Academic Member, Australian Association for Research in Education
  • Academic Member, American Association for Public Opinion Research

Media appearances

03rd June 2014

Sunday Nights with James O’Loghlin

ABC Radio - Sunday Nights with James O’Loghlin. (2014). Show on intuitive eating

16th June 2014

Why you should quit your diet and eat what you like

ABC Central West radio

18th June 2020

Is eating whatever you want the best thing for your body

Daily Life online magazine article