Bernadette Watson

Bernadette Watson is Honorary Professor in the School of Psychology at the University of Queensland, within the Faculty of Health and Medicine and Behavioural Sciences. She earned her Bachelor of Arts, Bachelor of Arts (Honours), and Doctor of Philosophy from the University of Queensland, with her 1999 PhD thesis titled Health communication: An intergroup perspective. Watson has built a distinguished career focused on health communication research, serving as a media expert on topics including bedside manner in medicine, communication in medicine, doctor-patient relationships, health communication, and quality of care and communication. She is available for supervision and has contributed extensively to advancing understanding of interpersonal and intergroup dynamics in healthcare settings.

Watson's research specializations encompass intergroup communication in healthcare, communication accommodation theory, patient-provider interactions, clinical handover communication, speaking up behaviours, and cross-cultural adaptation in health contexts. She has produced 149 works from 1998 to 2026, including 94 journal articles, 28 book chapters, 24 conference papers, 2 books, and 1 research report. Notable publications include book chapters such as Social psychology and language (Oxford Research Encyclopedia of Psychology, 2020, with Susan C. Baker and Cindy Gallois), Communication accommodation theory in institutional settings: opportunities for applied research (2019, with Jordan Soliz), and Intergroup communication and leadership in healthcare (2016, with Lori E. Leach et al.); and journal articles like Balancing good medicine and good communication: Doctors' perspectives on health consultations and how they accommodate to their patients (Health Communication, 2026, with Susan C. Baker), React, reframe and engage. Establishing a receiver mindset for more effective safety negotiations (Journal of Health Organization and Management, 2023, with Melanie Barlow et al.), and The application of communication accommodation theory to understand receiver reactions in healthcare speaking up interactions (Journal of Interprofessional Care, 2023, with Melanie Barlow et al.). Her funded projects include the ARC Linkage Project on Effective clinical handover communication: improving patient safety, experiences and outcomes (2011-2013), Queensland Health initiatives for mothers and babies (2009-2012), and UQ Collaboration and Industry Engagement Fund for health and safety perceptions of travellers (2010-2012).

Professional Email: bernadette@uq.edu.au