The structure and dynamics of social contact for human disease transmission models. The methodological advances of this project will enable new insights in important social research. They will not only add significantly to national capacity in the modelling of complex social systems but they will also yield practical scientific outcomes in a significant policy domain in Australia and overseas. In Australia, response to diseases such as HIV, HCV and TB need new approaches, and the threat of pan ....The structure and dynamics of social contact for human disease transmission models. The methodological advances of this project will enable new insights in important social research. They will not only add significantly to national capacity in the modelling of complex social systems but they will also yield practical scientific outcomes in a significant policy domain in Australia and overseas. In Australia, response to diseases such as HIV, HCV and TB need new approaches, and the threat of pandemic influenza is significant. Read moreRead less
Special Research Initiatives - Grant ID: SR0354799
Funder
Australian Research Council
Funding Amount
$10,000.00
Summary
Complex networked social systems. A recurring contemporary theme across many social science disciplines is the significant role of social networks in shaping the course of interpersonal interactions and their cascading social consequences. The aim of this Initiative is to build a multi- disciplinary Research Network spanning the social and mathematical sciences that can develop a new interdisciplinary science of networks and network-based social processes. The Network's aims will be twofold: f ....Complex networked social systems. A recurring contemporary theme across many social science disciplines is the significant role of social networks in shaping the course of interpersonal interactions and their cascading social consequences. The aim of this Initiative is to build a multi- disciplinary Research Network spanning the social and mathematical sciences that can develop a new interdisciplinary science of networks and network-based social processes. The Network's aims will be twofold: first, an interactive and accessible state-of-the-art research capacity in theory, methods and models for network processes; and, second, the capacity to apply new forms of network understanding to the design and evaluation of innovative intervention strategies for system-level community change.Read moreRead less
Australian Jurors' Perspectives on Expert Evidence. This inter-state, industry and research collaborative project will shed light on how courts, lawyers and experts can best work together to assist juries in their decision-making task. With the cost of a criminal jury trial running well in excess of $20,000 per day, policy-makers are keen to find ways of improving the efficiency of criminal trials. Improving the performance of the jury system will benefit the Australian community by enhancing th ....Australian Jurors' Perspectives on Expert Evidence. This inter-state, industry and research collaborative project will shed light on how courts, lawyers and experts can best work together to assist juries in their decision-making task. With the cost of a criminal jury trial running well in excess of $20,000 per day, policy-makers are keen to find ways of improving the efficiency of criminal trials. Improving the performance of the jury system will benefit the Australian community by enhancing the quality and reducing the cost of the criminal justice system. By intimately involving the judges and forensic scientists in this project we maximise the potential for the results of our research to be adopted by those in a position to improve the jury system.Read moreRead less
Knowledge sharing in teams. There is considerable interest in understanding principles governing effective management and sharing of knowledge in organisations. Members of organisations acquire much knowledge from external sources, other staff, practice, and experience, which, if shared efficiently, makes a significant difference to performance. This project focuses on the team, the basic unit in modern organisations. Four studies are proposed to examine antecedents of knowledge sharing, the re ....Knowledge sharing in teams. There is considerable interest in understanding principles governing effective management and sharing of knowledge in organisations. Members of organisations acquire much knowledge from external sources, other staff, practice, and experience, which, if shared efficiently, makes a significant difference to performance. This project focuses on the team, the basic unit in modern organisations. Four studies are proposed to examine antecedents of knowledge sharing, the relationship between amount and type of knowledge shared and team performance, identification of different knowledge-sharing roles taken by team members, and the effect of several highly active knowledge sharers on team performance. The findings will add to the literature on communication and information exchange in organisations, and will point to strategies for implementing effective knowledge sharing practices.
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Evidence-based improvement of statistical inference practices in psychology and other disciplines. The commonest ways that many researchers currently draw conclusions from their data have been shown to be inefficient, and often used incorrectly. This project will develop new, better statistical representations and software tools for data analysis. It will evaluate and demonstrate the effectiveness of these. Wide adoption of these techniques and tools will enhance the international reputation ....Evidence-based improvement of statistical inference practices in psychology and other disciplines. The commonest ways that many researchers currently draw conclusions from their data have been shown to be inefficient, and often used incorrectly. This project will develop new, better statistical representations and software tools for data analysis. It will evaluate and demonstrate the effectiveness of these. Wide adoption of these techniques and tools will enhance the international reputation and competitiveness of Australian psychological science. Adoption by Australian researchers across the social and behavioural sciences, and in other disciplines including medicine, economics and ecology, will improve the efficiency and effectiveness of Australian research, with consequential wide-ranging benefits to the Australian community.Read moreRead less
Theory and applications of Bayesian and likelihood analyses for finite mixture, random effect and multinomial models. The expected outcomes of the project are: to establish the scientific
value of modern Bayesian methods for statistical inference in a wider
range of applications than previously available, to contribute to the greater unification of the current theories of statistical inference which are to some extent in conflict, and to provide a set of Bayesian analytic tools implemented in ....Theory and applications of Bayesian and likelihood analyses for finite mixture, random effect and multinomial models. The expected outcomes of the project are: to establish the scientific
value of modern Bayesian methods for statistical inference in a wider
range of applications than previously available, to contribute to the greater unification of the current theories of statistical inference which are to some extent in conflict, and to provide a set of Bayesian analytic tools implemented in widely available, free and open-source statistical software.
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Distinguishing categories and dimensions: Taxometric investigations. This project aims to apply and refine promising new methods for classifying psychological variations. These "taxometric" methods detect categories and locate their boundaries, enabling improved taxonomies of personality and mental disorder. They will be used to examine whether personality disorders are discrete categories or fall on a continuum with normal personality, and whether people mentally represent social groups accordi ....Distinguishing categories and dimensions: Taxometric investigations. This project aims to apply and refine promising new methods for classifying psychological variations. These "taxometric" methods detect categories and locate their boundaries, enabling improved taxonomies of personality and mental disorder. They will be used to examine whether personality disorders are discrete categories or fall on a continuum with normal personality, and whether people mentally represent social groups according to qualitatively distinct ontological assumptions. The statistical validity of these methods will be comprehensively assessed. The project should help to resolve enduring questions about psychological classification and deepen our understanding of social stereotyping.Read moreRead less
Do director board appointments predict whether CEO pay is in line with company performance? Increasing pay differences between CEOs and the average working Australian have resulted in a less equitable and economically divided society. This issue has reached a critical point as taxpayer money is now needed to fund stimulus packages and finance companies facing insolvency while CEO pay on average has remained unchanged or increased. This inequity has the potential to cause social and political ins ....Do director board appointments predict whether CEO pay is in line with company performance? Increasing pay differences between CEOs and the average working Australian have resulted in a less equitable and economically divided society. This issue has reached a critical point as taxpayer money is now needed to fund stimulus packages and finance companies facing insolvency while CEO pay on average has remained unchanged or increased. This inequity has the potential to cause social and political instability. This research will provide much needed knowledge of how to address this issue including pay benchmarks, knowledge derived from international practice, corporate governance indices as well as understanding of how widespread pay norms have developed.Read moreRead less