Bullying claims by female Liberal MPs routinely dismissed by colleagues, new research finds

University of Adelaide psychologists found female Liberal MPs were undermined, silenced and discredited by the way those in their own party treated their accusations.

The peer-reviewed study was published on Thursday in the Australian Journal of Social Issues.

The paper was published as Labor continued to battle allegations the late senator Kimberley Kitching was bullied by senior party figures.

Researchers looked at the responses from men and women to:

That violence includes threats, intimidation, injury, rape, sexual harassment, economic controls, and sexist language and behaviour.

They also made the point that having a growing number of women in politics was not proof that gender equality had been reached.