Social and Behavioral Sciences Commons^™

The Impact Of Sure Start Local Programmes On Seven Year Olds And Their Families, Edward Melhuish, Jay Belsky, Alastair H. Leyland, Angela Anning, Zarrina Kurtz, Jane Tunstill, Mog Ball, Pamela Meadows, Jacqueline Barnes, Martin Frost, Beverley Botting

Faculty of Social Sciences - Papers (Archive)

Sure Start Local Programmes (SSLPs), the forerunners to Sure Start Children's Centres, aimed to support young children and their families by integrating early education, childcare, healthcare and family support services in disadvantaged areas. The programmes' objectives were to improve the health and well-being of families and young children, so that the children would have a greater opportunity to do well in school and later in life. This study investigates child and family functioning in over 5000 families recruited from 150 SSLP areas, and makes comparisons with children and families in similarly disadvantaged areas not having a SSLP in order to …

Study Protocol: Using The Q-Steps To Assess And Improve The Quality Of Physical Activity Programmes For The Elderly, Ana I. Marques, Maria J. Rosa, Marlene Amorim, Pedro Soares, Antonio Oliveira-Tavares, Rute Santos, Jorge Mota, Joana Carvalho

Faculty of Social Sciences - Papers (Archive)

Background Aging is one of the most important and obvious phenomenon observed in our society. In the past years, there has been a growing concern in designing physical activity (PA) programmes for elderly people, because evidence suggests that such health promotion interventions may reduce the deleterious effects of the ageing process. Accordingly, a growing body of literature points to the importance of a sound approach to planning and evaluation in order to improve the quality of PA programmes. However, while numerous PA programmes have been designed for the elderly in recent years, their evaluation has been scarce. Quality management processes …

Once A Cultural Icon, Is Australia's Surfboard Industry Destined To Disappear?, Christopher Gibson

Faculty of Social Sciences - Papers (Archive)

Last October surfboard company BASE abruptly closed its factory on the Gold Coast, with the direct loss of 30 jobs. Since then, nearby D’Arcy Surfboards has announced it is shedding workers and downsizing from a state-of-the art, purpose-built factory into a backyard workshop. Is the surfboard industry yet another victim of the high Australian dollar? Dominating conversation on the future of Australian manufacturing has been talk of exports and the high dollar. Australia cannot compete in a race to the bottom for cheap labour. Even if the dollar drops substantially, the more complicated truth is that there are deeper structural …

Australia’S Rich Talk About Saving The Environment; The Poor Bear The Burden Of Doing It, Lesley Head

Faculty of Social Sciences - Papers (Archive)

Public housing tenants struggling with their bills will well understand NSW Community Services Minister Goward’s concern over the rising costs of nails and pots of paint. According to the minister, the carbon tax will push the price of household maintenance up; this is the reasoning behind an increase in public housing rents. But what’s fair about the state government passing its own carbon tax costs on to those least able to afford it?

Who’S Hunting Who? Misguided Responses To Shark Attacks, Leah Maree Gibbs, Andrew T. Warren

Faculty of Social Sciences - Papers (Archive)

The most recent fatal encounter between a shark and a surfer off the coast of Western Australia is a tragic loss of human life. It prompted a Western Australian government reaction to “hunt and kill” the individual animal responsible for the attack. But this is a misguided response, and it’s time we discussed better solutions.

A Systematic Review To Update The Australian Physical Activity Guidelines For Children And Young People, Anthony D. Okely, Jo Salmon, Stewart Vella, Dylan Cliff, Anna Timperio, Mark Tremblay, Stewart Trost, Trevor Shilton, Trina Hinkley, Nicola Ridgers, Lyn Phillipson, Kylie Hesketh, Anne-Maree Parrish, Xanne Janssen, Mark Brown, Jeffrey Emmel, Nello Marino

Faculty of Social Sciences - Papers (Archive)

The objective of this review is to inform Australian Government policy on the relationship between physical activity (including the amount, frequency, intensity, duration, and type) and health outcome indicators, including the risk and prevention of chronic disease and unhealthy weight gain/obesity, and to provide information to guide evidence-based recommendations that can be used to encourage healthy, active living in apparently healthy children and young people aged 5-17 years, and as a basis for monitoring physical activity on a population level.

Effect Of 6 Weeks Consumption Of B-Glucan Rich Oat Products On Cholesterol Levels In Mildly Hypercholesterolaemic Overweight Adults, Karen Charlton, Linda Tapsell, Marijka Batterham, Jane E. O'Shea, Rebecca L. Thorne, Eleanor Beck, Susan Tosh

Faculty of Social Sciences - Papers (Archive)

Abstract presented at the Dietitians Association of Australia 16th International Congress of Dietetics, 5-8 September 2012, Sydney Convention & Exhibition Centre, Sydney, Australia

Applying Linguistics In Making Professional Practice Re-Visible, Tom Bartlett, Honglin Chen

Faculty of Social Sciences - Papers (Archive)

Editorial: In their introduction to the first issue of the relaunched Journal of Applied Linguistics and Professional Practice ( JALPP), Sarangi and Candlin (2010) give two readings to the conjunction of 'applied linguistics' and 'professional practice' in the title, signalling two complementary agendas in applied linguistics research. The first agenda is to extend the study of language and communication to a wider range of professional contexts, i.e. to respecify the field of applied linguistics; the second is to contribute to the transformation and recontextualization of the professional practices of applied linguists in advancing knowledge and providing professional judgement. Following this …

Neoliberalising Adaptation To Environmental Change: Foresight Or Foreclosure?, Romain Felli, Noel Castree

Faculty of Social Sciences - Papers (Archive)

The UK's Government Office for Science has recently released an important report, produced by its internal think tank Foresight. Over seventy peer-reviewed studies have been commissioned and some 350 experts and `stakeholders' have been involved in creating Migration and Global Environmental Change (Foresight, 2011). Its lead authors have recently published a summary of the main conclusions in the leading scientific journal Nature (Black et al, 2011), and the report has already received extensive media coverage. By virtue of its scope and authorship, the report can be considered a milestone in the scientific and practitioner fields related to environment and migration. …

Voices In The Playground: A Qualitative Exploration Of The Barriers And Facilitators Of Lunchtime Play, Rebecca M. Stanley, Kobie Boshoff, James Dollman

Faculty of Social Sciences - Papers (Archive)

Objectives: To explore children's perceptions of the factors influencing their engagement in physical activity during the "critical" lunchtime period, using a social-ecological framework. Design: This study was an in-depth descriptive qualitative design. Methods: Fifty-four South Australian children aged 10-13 years participated in same-gender focus groups. Transcripts, field notes and activity documents were analysed using content analysis. Using an inductive thematic approach, data were coded and categorised into perceived barriers and facilitators according to a social-ecological model. Results: Children identified a range of environmental, social and intrapersonal barriers and facilitators. Bullying/teasing, the school uniform and school rules were exposed as explicit …

O Poder Da Pre-Escola: Evidencias De Um Estudo Longitudinal Na Inglaterra, Brenda Taggart, Kathy Sylva, Edward Melhuish, Pam Sammons, Iram Siraj-Blatchford

Faculty of Social Sciences - Papers (Archive)

In the discussion of research experience on the quality of early childhood educational services, this article documents the first two phases of a longitudinal study funded by United Kingdom Department of Education. The Effective provision of pre-school and primary 1997-2008 is the largest European study on the effectiveness of preschool education. The article describes its aims, the sample, methodology and key findings over the preschool period. It goes on to emphasize the importance of 'quality' in child care settings and how good quality is essential for the enduring benefits of pre-school up to age 11.

Time #1: What's Wrong With This Picture?, Marc De Rosnay

Faculty of Social Sciences - Papers (Archive)

Breastfeeding generally falls under the jurisdiction of mothers, so I decided to ask a group of mothers I see regularly on Saturday morning what they thought of the recent Time magazine cover portraying an attractive young woman, hand on hip, staring down the camera while her passive three-year-old dressed in cargo pants stands on a chair and suckles from her exposed left breast. What they told me was deeply reassuring.

Influences On Students' Dispositions In Key Stage 3: Exploring Enjoyment Of School, Popularity, Anxiety, Citizenship Values And Academic Self-Concepts In Year 9, Pam Sammons, Kathy Sylva, Edward Melhuish, Iram Siraj-Blatchford, Brenda Taggart, Rebecca Smees, Diana Draghici, Katalin Toth

Faculty of Social Sciences - Papers (Archive)

The Effective Pre-school, Primary and Secondary Education Project (EPPSE) has investigated the academic and social-behavioural development of approximately 3,000 children from the age of 3+ years since 1997. This Research Brief reports on students' dispositions when they were age 14 (Year 9) in six main areas: 'enjoyment of school', 'academic self concept' (English and maths), 'popularity', 'citizenship values' and 'anxiety'. It examines how these dispositions have changed during Key Stage 3 (KS3) and the relationships between dispositions and a range of individual student, family, home, pre-, primary and secondary school measures. It shows how school experiences help to shape dispositions, …

Influences On Students' Development In Key Stage 3: Social-Behavioural Outcomes In Year 9, Pam Sammons, Kathy Sylva, Edward Melhuish, Iram Siraj-Blatchford, Brenda Taggart, Diana Draghici, Rebecca Smees, Katalin Toth

Faculty of Social Sciences - Papers (Archive)

The Effective Pre-school, Primary and Secondary Education Project (EPPSE) has investigated the cognitive and social-behavioural development of approximately 3,000 children from the age of 3+ years since 1997. This Research Brief focuses on the relationships between a range of child, family, home, pre-, primary and secondary school characteristics and students' social-behavioural development in Year 9 at secondary school (age 14). It compares these latest findings with those found for social-behavioural development at younger ages, highlights the specific influences of secondary school on students' social-behavioural outcomes in Year 9 and changes in these developmental outcomes between the ages of 11 and …

How Feasible Are Lifestyle Modification Programs For Disease Prevention In General Practice?, Heike Schutze, Elizabeth F. Rix, Rachel A. Laws, Megan Passey, Mahnaz Fanaian, Mark F. Harris

Faculty of Social Sciences - Papers (Archive)

Vascular disease is a leading cause of death and disability. While it is preventable, little is known about the feasibility or acceptability of implementing interventions to prevent vascular disease in Australian primary health care. We conducted a cluster randomised controlled trial assessing prevention of vascular disease in patients aged 40-65 by providing a lifestyle modification program in general practice. Interviews with 13 general practices in the intervention arm of this trial examined their views on implementing the lifestyle modification program in general practice settings. Qualitative study, involving thematic analysis of semi-structured interviews with 11 general practitioners, four practice nurses and …

How To Think About Health Promotion Ethics, Stacy M. Carter, Alan Cribb, John P. Allegrante

Faculty of Social Sciences - Papers (Archive)

Health promotion ethics is moral deliberation about health promotion and its practice. Although academics and practitioners have been writing about ethics, and especially values, in health promotion for decades, health promotion ethics is now regaining attention within the broader literature on public health ethics. Health promotion is difficult to define, and this has implications for health promotion ethics. Health promotion can be approached in two complementary ways: as a normative ideal, and as a practice. We consider the normative ideal of health promotion to be that aspect of public health practice that is particularly concerned with the equity of social …

A Randomized Controlled Trial Of The Efficacy And Cost-Effectiveness Of A Brief Intensified Cognitive Behavioral Therapy And/Or Pharmacotherapy For Mood And Anxiety Disorders: Design And Methods, Denise Meuldijk, Ingrid V. Carlier, Irene M. Van Vliet, M E. Van Den Akker-Van Marle, Frans G. Zitman

Faculty of Social Sciences - Papers (Archive)

Background: Anxiety and mood disorders involve a high disease burden and are associated with high economic costs. A stepped-care approach intervention and abbreviated diagnostic method are assumed to increase effectiveness and efficiency of the mental healthcare and are expected to reduce economic costs. Methods: Presented are the rationale, design, and methods of a two-armed randomized controlled trial comparing 'treatment as usual' (TAU) with a brief intensified cognitive behavioral therapy (CBT) and/or pharmacotherapy. Eligible participants (N =500) of five Dutch outpatient Mental Healthcare Centers are randomly assigned to either TAU or to the experimental condition (brief CBT and/or pharmacotherapy). Data on …

Violence In West Papua: The Vulnerable Become Indonesia's Latest Target, Camellia B. Webb-Gannon

Faculty of Social Sciences - Papers (Archive)

Why has West Papua's non-violent student movement the West Papuan National Committee (KNPB) become the latest target of a campaign of terror in West Papua?

The Compass Study: Community Preferences For Prostate Cancer Screening. Protocol For A Quantitative Preference Study, Kirsten Howard, Glenn P. Salkeld, Graham J. Mann, Manish I. Patel, Michelle Cunich, Michael P. Pignone

Faculty of Social Sciences - Papers (Archive)

Background Prostate cancer screening using prostate-specific antigen (PSA) testing remains controversial. Trade-offs between the potential benefits and downsides of screening must be weighed by men deciding whether to participate in prostate cancer screening; little is known about benefit:harm trade-offs men are willing to accept.

Methods/Design The Community Preferences for Prostate Cancer Screening (COMPASs) Study examines Australian men's preferences for prostate cancer screening using PSA testing. The aims are to (1) determine which factors influence men's decision to participate in prostate cancer screening or not and (2) determine the extent of trade-offs between benefits and harms that men are willing to …

Occupational Therapy Discharge Planning For Older Adults: A Protocol For A Randomised Trial And Economic Evaluation, Kylie Wales, Lindy Clemson, Natasha A. Lannin, Ian D. Cameron, Glenn P. Salkeld, Laura Gitlin, Laurance Rubenstein, Sarah Barras, Lynette Mackenzie, Collette Davies

Faculty of Social Sciences - Papers (Archive)

Background: Decreased functional ability is common in older adults after hospitalisation. Lower levels of functional ability increase the risk of hospital readmission and nursing care facility admission. Discharge planning across the hospital and community interface is suggested to increase functional ability and decrease hospital length of stay and hospital readmission. However evidence is limited and the benefits of occupational therapists providing this service has not been investigated. This randomised trial will investigate the clinical effectiveness of a discharge planning program in reducing functional difficulties of older adults post-discharge. This trial will also examine the cost of the intervention and cost …

Superstorm Sandy Changed The Shape Of Connecticut, Peg Vanpatten

Wrack Lines

Superstorm Sandy, followed quickly by a Nor'easter, arrived in our region just in time to cancel Halloween. While the wind wasn't up to hurricane strength in most of Connecticut, its storm surges and high winds still caused plenty of damage.

Latino Voters 2012 And Beyond: Will The Fastest Growing And Evolving Electoral Group Shape U.S. Politics?, Sylvia R. Lazos

Scholarly Works

The author reviews two recent books, Marisa A. Abrajano’s Campaigning to the New American Electorate: Advertising to Latino Voters (2010) and Marisa A. Abrajano’s and R. Michael Alvarez’s New Faces New Voices: The Hispanic Electorate in America (2010). These books are part of a growing literature that scientifically studies the evolving Latino electorate, and attempts to answer difficult questions about this ethnic group’s electorate cohesiveness and how candidates might be able to influence the Latino electorate. A careful read of Abrajano’s recent books brings additional understanding to Latino voter behavior, and by implication, how this key group will influence the …

Resident Third Party Objections And Appeals Against Planning Applications: Implications For Higher Density And Social Housing, Nicole T. Cook, Elizabeth J. Taylor, Joe Hurley, Val Colic-Peisker

Faculty of Social Sciences - Papers (Archive)

This report examines two models of public engagement in planning approval processes - third party objection and appeal rights (TPOAR) and fast tracked planning - to see how they impact on housing supply, resident perceptions, and realisation of planning goals.

Nurse-Led Cancer Care, Moira Stephens

Faculty of Science, Medicine and Health - Papers: part A

In this issue of The Australian Journal of Cancer Nursing we focus on nurse-led cancer care. We have chosen three research studies in different settings, all of which demonstrate the impact of excellent cancer nursing and multidisciplinary care: an intervention enhancing survivorship for long-term survivors of Hodgkin lymphoma; a focus on the position of cancer coordinator-led care in a regional hospital and a project enabling nurse-led screening and interventions using a supportive care resource kit.

Exercise Counselling: When Undergraduate Practice-Based Learning And Community Outreach Combine, Everyone Appears To Be A Winner, Angela Douglas, Jennifer Wilkie, Herbert Groeller

Faculty of Science, Medicine and Health - Papers: part A

Abstract of paper presented at the 5th Exercise & Sports Science Australia Conference 2012.

Can You Get It Online? How To Enhance Professional And Clinical Learning Experiences For Exercise Physiology Students, Angela Douglas, Chris Brewer, Lisa Carrington

Faculty of Science, Medicine and Health - Papers: part A

Abstract of paper presented at the 5th Exercise & Sports Science Australia Conference 2012.

Interpersonal Complementarity In The Mental Health Intake: A Mixed-Methods Study, Daniel C. Rosen, Alisa B. Miller, Ora Nakash, Lucila Halpern, Margarita Alegría

School for Social Work: Faculty Publications

The study examined which socio-demographic differences between clients and providers influenced interpersonal complementarity during an initial intake session; that is, behaviors that facilitate harmonious interactions between client and provider. Complementarity was assessed using blinded ratings of 114 videotaped intake sessions by trained observers. Hierarchical linear models were used to examine how match between client and provider in race/ethnicity, sex, and age were associated with levels of complementarity. A qualitative analysis investigated potential mechanisms that accounted for overall complementarity beyond match by examining client-provider dyads in the top and bottom quartiles of the complementarity measure. Results indicated significant interactions between client's …

Alcohol Brand Websites: Implications For Social Marketing, Lance Barrie, Ross Gordon, Sandra C. Jones

Faculty of Social Sciences - Papers (Archive)

This paper presents the findings from exploratory research that explored young people's attitudes and responses to alcohol brand websites. In recent years alcohol marketing spend has increasingly shifted away from spending on advertising in traditional media to other channels such as Internet and social media (Gordon, 2011). Systematic reviews of the evidence suggest that alcohol marketing is associated with drinking behaviours (Anderson et al. 2009). Therefore, research on the nature and impact of marketing in such channels is warranted. The findings from this study can help inform upstream social marketing (advocacy, policy making) to regulate alcohol marketing (Hastings, 2007), and …

The Human Foveal Confluence And High Resolution Fmri, Mark M. Schira

Faculty of Social Sciences - Papers (Archive)

Abstract presented at the Vision Sciences Society meeting, 11-16 May 2012, Naples FL.

Effects Of Δ9-Tetrahydrocannabinol Administration On Human Encoding And Recall Memory Function: A Pharmacological Fmri Study, Matthijs G. Bossong, Gerry Jager, Hendrika H. Van Hell, Lineke Zuurman, J Martijn Jansma, Mitul A. Mehta, Joop M. A Van Gerven, Rene S. Kahn, Nick F. Ramsey

Faculty of Social Sciences - Papers (Archive)

Deficits in memory function are an incapacitating aspect of various psychiatric and neurological disorders. Animal studies have recently provided strong evidence for involvement of the endocannabinoid (eCB) system in memory function. Neuropsychological studies in humans have shown less convincing evidence but suggest that administration of cannabinoid substances affects encoding rather than recall of information. In this study, we examined the effects of perturbation of the eCB system on memory function during both encoding and recall. We performed a pharmacological MRI study with a placebo-controlled, crossover design, investigating the effects of Δ9-tetrahydrocannabinol (THC) inhalation on associative memory-related brain function in 13 …