Social and Behavioral Sciences Commons^™

The Alpha Band Of The Resting Electroencephalogram Under Pulsed And Continuous Radio Frequency Exposures, Nick Perentos, Rodney Croft, Raymond J. Mckenzie, Irena Cosic

Faculty of Social Sciences - Papers (Archive)

The effect of GSM-like electromagnetic fields with the resting electroencephalogram (EEG) alpha band activity was investigated in a double-blind cross-over experimental paradigm, testing the hypothesis that pulsed but not continuous radio frequency (RF) exposure would affect alpha activity, and the hypothesis that GSM-like pulsed low frequency fields would affect alpha. Seventy-two healthy volunteers attended a single recording session where the eyes open resting EEG activity was recorded. Four exposure intervals were presented (sham, pulsed modulated RF, continuous RF, and pulsed low frequency) in a counterbalanced order where each exposure lasted for 20 min. Compared to sham, a suppression of the …

Usability Testing Of Asthmawise With Older Adults, Pippa Burns, Sandra C. Jones, Don Iverson, Peter Caputi

Faculty of Social Sciences - Papers (Archive)

There are many reasons why online self-management education is attractive to both patients and providers. AsthmaWise, an online self-management program, was developed using a Moodle platform, to enable older adults to learn asthma self-management skills. This study aimed to improve AsthmaWise through conducting: usability testing with a sample of end users; a cognitive walk-through undertaken by an independent health researcher; and assessment of content readability. A Perceived Health Web Site Usability Questionnaire score of 67% was achieved, indicating that there were usability issues that needed to be addressed. The cognitive walk-through and readability assessment identified unique issues that were not …

Asthma In Older Adults: The Need For Asthma Health Promotion Interventions, Uwana Evers, Sandra C. Jones, Peter Caputi, Donald C. Iverson

Faculty of Social Sciences - Papers (Archive)

Asthma is a serious health issue for older adults. Among Australians aged 55 years and older, asthma prevalence, morbidity, and mortality are relatively high by international comparison and compared to other age groups. As people age, the diagnosis of asthma becomes more complicated, primarily due to comorbid conditions. Treatment and self-management are also more difficult in this age group due to the different medications prescribed for multiple conditions. At the same time, older adults do not perceive that they are susceptible to developing asthma, and they do not consider asthma to be a particularly serious disease, especially compared to other …

Flash Illusions Induced By Visual, Auditory, And Audiovisual Stimuli, Deborah Apthorp, David Alais, Lars T. Boenke

Faculty of Social Sciences - Papers (Archive)

When two objects are flashed at one location in close temporal proximity in the visual periphery, an intriguing illusion occurs whereby a single flash presented concurrently at another location appears to flash twice (the visual double-flash illusion: Chatterjee et al., 2011, Wilson & Singer, 1981). Here, for the first time, we investigate the time course of the effect, and directly compare it to the time course of the auditory (sound-induced flash illusion) effect, for both fission (single test flash, double inducer) and fusion (double test flash, single inducer) conditions, across stimulus onset asynchronies (SOAs) of 30 to 250 ms. In …

The Interrelations Among The Perception Of Parental Styles And Psychological Well-Being In Adolescence: A Longitudinal Study, Farnaz Shahimi, Patrick C. L Heaven, Joseph Ciarrochi

Faculty of Social Sciences - Papers (Archive)

This longitudinal study aims to examine the relationships between the perception of parental style, hope, self-esteem and Eysenck's psychoticism dimension throughout the span of four years. The sample was composed of 884 students from the Wollongong Youth Study, which commenced when students entered high school. During the course of the 4 years of the study, each participant completed the test booklets each time data was collected. Data was analyzed using one way ANOVA, Post-hoc test, Repeated Measurement, Pearson and Partial Correlation and General Linear Model in order to provide the aims of the study. The mean score of hope and …

Patron Offending And Intoxication In Night-Time Entertainment Districts (Pointed): A Study Protocol, Peter Miller, Amy Pennay, Rebecca Jenkinson, Nicolas Droste, Tanya Chikritzhs, Stephen Tomsen, Phillip Wadds, Sandra C. Jones, Darren Palmer, Lance Barrie, Dan I. Lubman

Faculty of Social Sciences - Papers (Archive)

Risky alcohol consumption is the subject of considerable community concern in Australia and internationally, particularly the risky drinking practices of young people consuming alcohol in the night-time economy. This study will determine some of the factors and correlates associated with alcohol-related risk-taking, offending and harm in and around licensed venues and night-time entertainment precincts across five Australian cities (three metropolitan and two regional). The primary aim of the study is to measure levels of pre-drinking, drinking in venues, intoxication, illicit drug use and potentially harmful drinking practices (such as mixing with energy drinks) of patrons in entertainment areas, and relating …

Practicing Critique, Attending To Truth: The Pedagogy Of Discriminatory Speech, Valerie Harwood, Mary Lou Rasmussen

Faculty of Social Sciences - Papers (Archive)

Teaching in university education programmes, can, at times, involve the uncomfortable situation of discriminatory speech. A situation that has often occurred in our own teaching, and in those of our colleagues, is the citation of homophobic and heterosexist comments. These are comments that are more likely to occur in foundation subjects such as philosophy and sociology of education. The occurrence of such situations has prompted debate regarding ‘silencing words that wound’. This has prompted the question, ‘should we keep students from stating such discriminatory speech?’ Our article takes up this issue, and considers it from the perspective of the importance …

The Nutrition And Enjoyable Activity For Teen Girls Study: A Cluster Randomized Controlled Trial, Deborah L. Dewar, Philip J. Morgan, Ronald C. Plotnikoff, Anthony D. Okely, Clare E. Collins, Marijka Batterham, Robin Callister, David R. Lubans

Faculty of Social Sciences - Papers (Archive)

Background Obesity prevention among youth of low SES is a public health priority given the higher prevalence of youth obesity in this population subgroup. Purpose To evaluate the 24-month impact of a school-based obesity prevention program among adolescent girls living in low-income communities. Design The study was a school-based group RCT, the Nutrition and Enjoyable Activity for Teen Girls (NEAT Girls) intervention. Setting/participants The study involved 12 secondary schools located in low-income communities in New South Wales, Australia. Participants were 357 adolescent girls (aged 13.2±0.5 years). Intervention The 12-month multicomponent intervention was guided by social cognitive theory and involved strategies …

Development Of A Short Measure Of Psychological Recovery In Serious Mental Illness: The Stori-30, Retta Andresen, Peter Caputi, Lindsay Oades

Faculty of Social Sciences - Papers (Archive)

Objective: To develop a brief measure of stage of psychological recovery from mental illness by identifying the best-performing items of the 50-item Stages of Recovery Instrument (STORI). Method: Item response modelling was used to identify a short form of the full-length STORI. The resulting items were subjected to factor analysis to further refine the subscales. A second data set was used to confirm the construct validity of the new measure. A correlational analysis was conducted to examine relationships among the five subscale scores. Results: Analyses identified 30 items that represented the five stages of the full STORI. The five stage …

Objectively Measured Sedentary Behavior, Physical Activity, And Plasma Lipids In Overweight And Obese Children, Dylan P. Cliff, Anthony D. Okely, Tracy L. Burrows, Rachel A. Jones, Philip J. Morgan, Clare E. Collins, Louise A. Baur

Faculty of Social Sciences - Papers (Archive)

Objective: This study examines the associations between objectively measured sedentary behavior, light physical activity (LPA), and moderate-to-vigorous physical activity (MVPA), and plasma lipids in overweight and obese children. Design and Methods: Cross-sectional analyses were conducted among 126 children aged 5.5-9.9 years. Sedentary behavior, LPA, and MVPA were assessed using accelerometry. Fasting blood samples were analyzed for plasma lipids (high-density lipoprotein cholesterol [HDL-C], low-density lipoprotein cholesterol [LDL-C], total cholesterol [TC], and triglycerides [TG]). Results: MVPA was not related to plasma lipids (P > 0.05). Independent of age, sex, energy intake, and waist circumference z-score, sedentary behavior and LPA were associated with HDL-C …

Exploring The Application Of Computer-Assisted English Learning In A Chinese Mainland Context: Based On Students' Attitudes And Behaviours, Jinjin Lu, Paul Throssell, Han Jiang

Faculty of Social Sciences - Papers (Archive)

Computer-assisted language learning (CALL) has played an important role in language curriculums for Chinese schools and university over two decades; however, few researchers rare focused on this applicable tool from students' views. Based on theories of human agency, it is essential to know people' attitudes and acceptance of the information technology (Rogers, 1983). Hence, this paper explores university students' attitudes on the widespread teaching and learning approaches utilising computer-assisted language learning in the subject university in mainland China. Data was collected by using both quantitative and qualitative methods. Current computer-related behaviours were investigated by using a questionnaire; while their attitudes …

How Physically Active Are Children Attending Summer Day Camps?, Michael W. Beets, Robert G. Weaver, Aaron Beighle, Collin Webster, Russell R. Pate

Faculty of Social Sciences - Papers (Archive)

Background: Summer day camps (SDC) represent one of the largest settings, outside the academic school year, where children can engage in safe, enjoyable physical activity (PA). Yet, little is known about this setting and how active children are while attending. Methods: System for Observing Play and Leisure Activity in Youth was used to categorize PA of boys/girls as Sedentary/Walking/Vigorous across multiple days (8 AM to 6 PM) in 4 large-scale community-based SDCs. Contextual characteristics of type of activity, activity management, equipment, and in/outdoors were collected simultaneously; Mixed-model regression analyses examined associations between PA categories and contextual characteristics. Results: A total …

Improved Prognosis For Borderline Personality Disorder: New Treatment Guidelines Outline Specific Communication Strategies That Work, Brin F. S Grenyer

Faculty of Social Sciences - Papers (Archive)

Until recently, borderline personality disorder (BPD) was considered to be a chronic ongoing condition with a poor prognosis and no effective treatment. However, the tide of research and clinical opinion has turned, and the prognosis for this disorder is now considered improved for most patients if one of a number of effective evidence-based treatments is implemented.

Is Quality Of Diet Associated With The Microvasculature? An Analysis Of Diet Quality And Retinal Vascular Calibre In Older Adults, Bamini Gopinath, Victoria M. Flood, Jie Jin Wang, Elena Rochtchina, Tien Y. Wong, Paul Mitchell

Faculty of Social Sciences - Papers (Archive)

It is unknown whether diet quality is associated with microvascular structure. The present study aimed to investigate the relationship between diet quality, reflecting adherence to dietary guidelines, with retinal microvascular calibre in older adults. The dietary data of 2720 Blue Mountains Eye Study participants, aged 50þ years, were collected using a semi-quantitative FFQ. A modified version of the Healthy Eating Index for Australians was developed to determine total diet scores (TDS). Fundus photographs were taken and retinal vascular calibre measured using computer-assisted techniques and summarised. After adjusting for age, sex, BMI, mean arterial blood pressure, smoking, serum glucose, leucocyte count …

Asthmawise - A Field Of Dreams? The Results Of An Online Education Program Targeting Older Adults With Asthma, Pippa Burns, Sandra C. Jones, Donald C. Iverson, Peter Caputi

Faculty of Social Sciences - Papers (Archive)

Objectives: The aim of this study was to establish the feasibility and acceptability of an online asthma self-management program developed for older Australians with asthma. Methods: AsthmaWise, an internet education self-management program, was piloted for a 3-month period at the beginning of 2012. Participants were recruited using both online and offline strategies and were required to complete surveys, both pre- and post-intervention, in a repeated measures design. Results: Matched data were collected from 51 participants; the results showed AsthmaWise to be a feasible and acceptable method of delivering asthma education to the target population. Self-reported measures showed an increase in …

'Get Your Life Back': Process And Impact Evaluation Of An Asthma Social Marketing Campaign Targeting Older Adults, Uwana Evers, Sandra C. Jones, Donald C. Iverson, Peter Caputi

Faculty of Social Sciences - Papers (Archive)

Background: Asthma in older adults is underdiagnosed and poorly self-managed. This population has little knowledge about the key symptoms, the prevalence among older adults, and the serious consequences of untreated asthma. The purpose of this study was to undertake a multifaceted evaluation of a social marketing campaign to increase asthma awareness among older adults in a regional Australian community. Methods: A cohort of older adults in an intervention region (n = 316) and a control region (n = 394) were surveyed immediately prior to and following the social marketing campaign. Campaign awareness, message recall, materials recognition, and actions taken as …

Investigating Synergies Between Literacy, Technology And Classroom Practice, Lisa Kervin, Irina Verenikina, Pauline Jones, Olivia Beath

Faculty of Social Sciences - Papers (Archive)

The ways educators incorporate technologies into their classroom literacy experiences and the implications these present for professional practices have been the focus of discussion for some time. We believe it timely to re-examine these debates in a period of 'digital reform' as we consider the realities teachers report as they use technology as a tool in literacy classrooms. In doing this, we acknowledge the potential of new technologies such as laptops, wireless connectivity, Interactive White Boards and mobile communication devices to reshape pedagogic activity within primary classrooms but aim to capture the reality reported by active practitioners. In this paper …

Integrating Fluent Pronunciation Use Into Content-Based Esl Instruction: Two Case Studies, Amanda Baker

Faculty of Social Sciences - Papers (Archive)

This paper examines the teaching practices of two ESL teachers who integrated pronunciation instruction into intermediate-level, content/task-based, oral communication courses in an Intensive English program. These practices are analysed according to five categories of pronunciation instruction: Language Awareness; Controlled Practice; Guided Practice, Fluency Development and Free Practice. The fourth category, Fluency Development, is defined based on the work of Nation and Newton (2009), who list, among several criteria, pressure to perform at greater speeds or at least "more smoothly" as central to improving learner fluency. Based on classroom observations, interviews with teachers and student questionnaires, the degree to which the …

Preliminaries To Haptic-Integrated Pronunciation Instruction, William Acton, Amanda Ann Baker, Michael Burri, Brian Teaman

Faculty of Social Sciences - Papers (Archive)

This paper reports on aspects of a haptic (movement plus touch) integrated system for classroom pronunciation instruction. It is based, in part, on established pedagogical practice in the use of somatic/kinesthetic techniques such as gesture in language instruction (Acton, 1984, 2012; Celce-Murcia, Brinton, Goodwin & Briner, 2010; McCafferty, 2004), and management of vocal resonance in singing and voice training (Lessac, 1997). The pedagogical method is designed for use by relatively untrained instructors and is generally best delivered through video with classroom follow up. Relatively recent research and development in haptics, especially in the areas of gaming, prosthetics and robotics, provides …

Effects Of Simultaneously Observing And Making Gestures While Studying Grammar Animations On Cognitive Load And Learning, Lysanne S. Post, Tamara Van Gog, Fred Paas, Rolf A. Zwaan

Faculty of Social Sciences - Papers (Archive)

This study examined whether simultaneously observing and making gestures while studying animations would lighten cognitive load and facilitate the acquisition of grammatical rules. In contrast to our hypothesis, results showed that children in the gesturing condition performed worse on the posttest than children in the non-gesturing, control condition. A more detailed analysis of the data revealed an expertise reversal effect, indicating that this negative effect on posttest performance materialized for children with lower levels of general language skills, but not for children with higher levels of general language skills. The finding that for children with lower language ability, cognitive load …

The Experience Of Transitioning Two Adolescents With Asperger Syndrome In Academically Focused High Schools, Roselyn M. Dixon, Kathleen Tanner

Faculty of Social Sciences - Papers (Archive)

Adolescents with Asperger syndrome (AS) are increasingly being placed in academically focused high schools. These students, although academically able, may not be coping with the wider classroom and social demands of transition to, and within, the high school environment. Schools are keen to enrol these students. However, there appears to be a gap between the rhetoric and the reality relating to the varying perceptions of key stakeholders. In this paper we present the results of a study of the perceptions of key stakeholders in the transition of two students with AS into two academically focused high schools. Eight participants were …

Pre-Service Teachers' Attitudes Towards Overseas Professional Experience: Implications For Professional Practice, Mohan Chinnappan, Barbra Mckenzie, Phil Fitzsimmons

Faculty of Social Sciences - Papers (Archive)

Reforms in Australia about the education of future teachers have placed a high degree of emphasis on the development of knowledge and skills that are necessary for practitioners who will ply their trade in culturally rich and diverse classrooms (Ramsey, 2000). There is now a broad consensus from key stakeholders (Australian Institute for Teaching and School Leadership, 2012) that pre-service teachers need to be provided with a range of opportunities that are grounded in classroom practices including exposure to teaching students overseas. The aim of this mixed mode study (Creswell, 2012) is to better understand the skills and knowledge that …

Longitudinal Levels And Bouts Of Sedentary Time Among Adolescent Girls, Valerie Carson, Dylan P. Cliff, Xanne Janssen, Anthony D. Okely

Faculty of Social Sciences - Papers (Archive)

Background Adolescent girls are one of the most sedentary demographic groups. A better understanding of their accumulation of sedentary time is needed to inform future interventions. The purpose of this study was to examine the longitudinal levels and bouts of objectively measured sedentary time accumulated during different days of the week and periods of the weekday among a large sample of adolescent girls. Methods The results are based on 655 adolescent girls from the Girls in Sport Intervention and Research Project. Levels and bouts of sedentary time were derived from accelerometer data collected at baseline and 18-month follow-up. Total, weekday, …

Predictive Validity And Classification Accuracy Of Actigraph Energy Expenditure Equations And Cut-Points In Young Children, Xanne Janssen, Dylan P. Cliff, John J. Reilly, Trina Hinkley, Rachel A. Jones, Marijka Batterham, Ulf Ekelund, Soren Brage, Anthony D. Okely

Faculty of Social Sciences - Papers (Archive)

Objectives

Evaluate the predictive validity of ActiGraph energy expenditure equations and the classification accuracy of physical activity intensity cut-points in preschoolers.

Methods

Forty children aged 4–6 years (5.3±1.0 years) completed a ~150-min room calorimeter protocol involving age-appropriate sedentary, light and moderate-to vigorous-intensity physical activities. Children wore an ActiGraph GT3X on the right mid-axillary line of the hip. Energy expenditure measured by room calorimetry and physical activity intensity classified using direct observation were the criterion methods. Energy expenditure was predicted using Pate and Puyau equations. Physical activity intensity was classified using Evenson, Sirard, Van Cauwenberghe, Pate, Puyau, and Reilly, ActiGraph cut-points. …

Assessment Might Dictate The Curriculum, But What Dictates Assessment?, Phillip Dawson, Margaret Bearman, David J. Boud, Matt Hall, Elizabeth K. Molloy, Sue Bennett, Gordon Joughin

Faculty of Social Sciences - Papers (Archive)

Almost all tertiary educators make assessment choices, for example, when they create an assessment task, design a rubric, or write multiple-choice items. Educators potentially have access to a variety of evidence and materials regarding good assessment practice but may not choose to consult them or be successful in translating these into practice. In this article, we propose a new challenge for the Scholarship of Teaching and Learning: the need to study the disjunction between proposals for assessment "best practice" and assessment in practice by examining the assessment decision-making of teachers. We suggest that assessment decision-making involves almost all university teachers, …

Varying Task Difficulty In The Go/Nogo Task: The Effects Of Inhibitory Control, Arousal, And Perceived Effort On Erp Components, Nicholas Benikos, Stuart J. Johnstone, Steven J. Roodenrys

Faculty of Social Sciences - Papers (Archive)

Similar to other executive functions, inhibitory control is thought to be a dynamic process that can be influenced by variations in task difficulty. However, little is known about how different task parameters alter inhibitory performance and processing as a task becomes more difficult. The aim of this study was to investigate the influence of varying task difficulty, via manipulation of reaction time deadline (RTD), on measures of inhibitory control, perceived effort, and task-related arousal (indexed by skin conductance level). Sixty adults completed a visual Go/Nogo task (70% Go) after being randomly assigned to one of three task difficulty conditions: High, …

Self-Forgiveness, Shame, And Guilt In Recovery From Drug And Alcohol Problems, Breanna J. Mcgaffin, Geoffrey C. B Lyons, Frank P. Deane

Faculty of Social Sciences - Papers (Archive)

Background: People with drug and/or alcohol problems often experience feelings of shame and guilt, which have been associated with poorer recovery. Self-forgiveness has the potential to reduce these negative experiences. Methods: The current study tested theorized mediators (acceptance, conciliatory behavior, empathy) of the relationships between shame and guilt with self-forgiveness. A cross-sectional sample of 133 individuals (74.4% male) receiving residential treatment for substance abuse completed self-report measures of shame, guilt, self-forgiveness, and the mediators. Results: Consistent with previous research, guilt had a positive association with self-forgiveness, whereas shame was negatively associated with self-forgiveness. Acceptance mediated the guilt and self-forgiveness relationship …

The Relationship Between Coach Leadership, The Coach-Athlete Relationship, Team Success, And The Positive Developmental Experiences Of Adolescent Soccer Players, Stewart A. Vella, Lindsay G. Oades, Trevor P. Crowe

Faculty of Social Sciences - Papers (Archive)

Background: The goals of participation youth sports are primarily concerned with the facilitation of positive youth development as opposed to outright success. Consequently, there are strong theoretical and empirical links between sports coaching and athlete development. Transformational leadership behaviours, in particular, have been theoretically linked to positive developmental outcomes within a youth sport context, while the coach-athlete relationship is a key tool used by coaches who aim to teach life skills to young athletes. Outright team success has also been shown to correlate with important developmental variables such as a mastery climate and athlete perception of youth sports coaches. Aims: …

The Effects Of A Multi-Component Higher-Functioning Autism Anti-Stigma Program On Adolescent Boys, Jessica J. Staniland, Mitchell K. Byrne

Faculty of Social Sciences - Papers (Archive)

A six-session higher-functioning autism anti-stigma program incorporating descriptive, explanatory and directive information was delivered to adolescent boys and the impact upon knowledge, attitudes and behavioural intentions towards peers with autism was evaluated. Participants were seventh-, eighth- and ninth-grade students (N = 395) from regular classes in a mainstream school. Two-eighth-grade classes were randomly allocated to the intervention condition and all remaining students were either allocated to the no-intervention peer or no-intervention non-peer condition. The anti-stigma program improved the knowledge and attitudes, but not the behavioural intentions of participants towards their peers with autism. Knowledge and attitudinal changes were maintained at …

Regulation Of Alcohol Advertising: Policy Options For Australia, Sandra C. Jones, Ross Gordon

Faculty of Social Sciences - Papers (Archive)

A systematic search of academic databases was conducted to identify all refereed papers published between 1990 and 2012 on the regulation of alcohol advertising in Australia and three comparison countries (New Zealand, Canada and the UK). This paper reviews the codes that apply to alcohol advertising in each of the four countries, research into the effectiveness of these codes, and the small body of research into consumer attitudes towards alcohol advertising regulation. This review adduces considerable evidence that alcohol advertising influences drinking behaviours, and that current regulatory systems based on co-regulation and voluntary regulation (as is the case in Australia) …