The efficacy of a physical activity intervention in the management of psychological and physical symptoms among breast and prostate cancer patients. The vastly improved survival rates for breast and prostate cancer in recent years has resulted in an ever-increasing number of people living with a history of cancer. Treatment for cancer is often associated with negative side effects like fatigue, depression and sleep disturbance, and an overall impaired quality of life.
This project will assess ....The efficacy of a physical activity intervention in the management of psychological and physical symptoms among breast and prostate cancer patients. The vastly improved survival rates for breast and prostate cancer in recent years has resulted in an ever-increasing number of people living with a history of cancer. Treatment for cancer is often associated with negative side effects like fatigue, depression and sleep disturbance, and an overall impaired quality of life.
This project will assess the effectiveness of a physical activity program in alleviating these symptoms of treatment. The program will include regular walking and gentle resistance strength training.
The outcomes from the project will advance research by shedding light on which symptoms are most helped by physical activity, and how much activity is needed to gain these benefits.
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Growing up too quickly? Body objectification in adolescent and pre-adolescent girls (teens and tweens). The premature sexualisation of girls is seen as a major public health issue in Australia by government, welfare agencies and the general public alike. While the sexually objectified presentation of children in the media is well documented and unarguable, the consequences for individual psychological well-being are not. The empirical data base provided by the present project will allow the ide ....Growing up too quickly? Body objectification in adolescent and pre-adolescent girls (teens and tweens). The premature sexualisation of girls is seen as a major public health issue in Australia by government, welfare agencies and the general public alike. While the sexually objectified presentation of children in the media is well documented and unarguable, the consequences for individual psychological well-being are not. The empirical data base provided by the present project will allow the identification of girls who might be particularly vulnerable (or resilient) to the effects of objectification and sexualization, as well as suitable targets for intervention. Thus the research seeks to contribute to the well-being of adolescent and pre-adolescent girls (National Research Priority No. 2).
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Dynamic social systems and adolescent alcohol/tobacco use: A new cusp catastrophe model. This research will substantially improve our understanding of the development of adolescent high-risk behaviours. It will directly inform multimodal prevention strategies by demonstrating how substance use, peer factors, and parent relationships unfold over time. This is much needed because most prevention strategies are too simplistic to address complex precursors to alcohol/tobacco use. The research wil ....Dynamic social systems and adolescent alcohol/tobacco use: A new cusp catastrophe model. This research will substantially improve our understanding of the development of adolescent high-risk behaviours. It will directly inform multimodal prevention strategies by demonstrating how substance use, peer factors, and parent relationships unfold over time. This is much needed because most prevention strategies are too simplistic to address complex precursors to alcohol/tobacco use. The research will benefit health researchers in and beyond Australia who seek to understand behaviours that do not adhere to conventional assumptions. Collaboration with researchers from leading national and international centres will enhance Australia's research reputation and will attract postgraduates and researchers to Australia.Read moreRead less
The initiation, development, and maintenance of alcohol/tobacco use in adolescents: The role of associative memory. Alcohol abuse and tobacco misuse are common in Australian adolescents and its long-term health consequences are well established. Models of drug-related memory association predict drug use in adults. However, memory association models have not been applied to smoking behaviour, or to understanding adolescent alcohol/tobacco use over time. It is expected that memory associations ....The initiation, development, and maintenance of alcohol/tobacco use in adolescents: The role of associative memory. Alcohol abuse and tobacco misuse are common in Australian adolescents and its long-term health consequences are well established. Models of drug-related memory association predict drug use in adults. However, memory association models have not been applied to smoking behaviour, or to understanding adolescent alcohol/tobacco use over time. It is expected that memory associations will predict the development of alcohol/tobacco use and misuse, after accounting for viable alternative explanations of the association. Understanding the role that memory associations have in the development of alcohol/tobacco use should inform prevention programs for at-risk adolescents.Read moreRead less
Suicide prevention and management of deliberate self-harm: randomised control trial of an assertive engagement, brief psychotherapy and community linkage model. Suicide is the second commonest cause of death by injury in Australia. Suicide prevention is an important public health priority but rates remain high. People who have previously attempted suicide are most likely to kill themselves. Most suicidal people attend emergency departments where they get inadequate treatment for their psychologi ....Suicide prevention and management of deliberate self-harm: randomised control trial of an assertive engagement, brief psychotherapy and community linkage model. Suicide is the second commonest cause of death by injury in Australia. Suicide prevention is an important public health priority but rates remain high. People who have previously attempted suicide are most likely to kill themselves. Most suicidal people attend emergency departments where they get inadequate treatment for their psychological and social problems and remain depressed and suicidal. This project will test the effectiveness of a new psychological and social treatment to reduce the depression and link suicidal people with community supports. If successful, this treatment could be provided in any emergency department and help decrease suicide rates in Australia.Read moreRead less
Responding to fire-related stressors in the workplace: An examination of the role of social support from a group processes perspective. This research has significant national benefit and will result in basic and applied outcomes. At the basic level, the research will result in a better understanding of the way in which social support reduces the impact of stressors and stimulate new avenues of research in the fields of workplace stress and social identity. At a more applied level, the research p ....Responding to fire-related stressors in the workplace: An examination of the role of social support from a group processes perspective. This research has significant national benefit and will result in basic and applied outcomes. At the basic level, the research will result in a better understanding of the way in which social support reduces the impact of stressors and stimulate new avenues of research in the fields of workplace stress and social identity. At a more applied level, the research program will provide the grounding for a future intervention designed to reduce the social costs of workplace fires. It is expected that such an intervention would be associated with several economic and social benefits such as a reduction in sick leave, employee turnover, and losses in productivity, and improved outcomes for employees in terms of psychological well-being.Read moreRead less
Mindfulness-based emotional intelligence training: Evaluating its efficacy and mechanisms of change. Police officers often experience high levels of stress, low levels of morale and quality of work life, and high levels of health, alcohol, and family problems. We will evaluate the impact of an emotional intelligence program on improving well-being and workplace effectiveness. We will also investigate the mechanisms by which the intervention works. Ultimately, our basic goal is to understand how ....Mindfulness-based emotional intelligence training: Evaluating its efficacy and mechanisms of change. Police officers often experience high levels of stress, low levels of morale and quality of work life, and high levels of health, alcohol, and family problems. We will evaluate the impact of an emotional intelligence program on improving well-being and workplace effectiveness. We will also investigate the mechanisms by which the intervention works. Ultimately, our basic goal is to understand how human suffering can be reduced and our applied goal is to empower the NSW police to improve their own health and well-being.Read moreRead less
Knowing in advance: Effective strategies for preparing young children for novel experiences. To optimise cognitive and emotional development, it is critical to identify the influences on children's lives. How parent-child conversations about the past shape development is well understood, but scant research has examined how adult-child preparatory discussions influence children's experience and memory of future events. Our research addresses this gap. It has important implications in medical, edu ....Knowing in advance: Effective strategies for preparing young children for novel experiences. To optimise cognitive and emotional development, it is critical to identify the influences on children's lives. How parent-child conversations about the past shape development is well understood, but scant research has examined how adult-child preparatory discussions influence children's experience and memory of future events. Our research addresses this gap. It has important implications in medical, educational, and other contexts in which it is vital to ensure that information given in advance increases children's understanding of an experience. More generally, in specifying optimal parent-child interactions, the findings are also relevant to interventions aiming to enhance psychological and emotional resilience in the early years. Read moreRead less
Attentional and interpretive bias in anxiety: Concurrent expressions of a common selective mechanism, or independent mediators of anxiety vulnerability? The proposed research aims to determine whether two key cognitive biases recently shown to causally influence anxiety vulnerability, one involving selective attention to threat and the other involving the selective imposition of threatening interpretations on ambiguity, arise as concurrent manifestations of a common underlying causal mechanism, ....Attentional and interpretive bias in anxiety: Concurrent expressions of a common selective mechanism, or independent mediators of anxiety vulnerability? The proposed research aims to determine whether two key cognitive biases recently shown to causally influence anxiety vulnerability, one involving selective attention to threat and the other involving the selective imposition of threatening interpretations on ambiguity, arise as concurrent manifestations of a common underlying causal mechanism, or instead represent alternative causal pathways in the mediation of this emotional disposition. Resolution of this issue will significantly advance our theoretical understanding of the mechanisms that govern anxiety vulnerability, while also contributing directly to the development of new cognitive technologies designed to therapeutically modify such vulnerability.Read moreRead less
Multiple Perspectives of Eating Disorders in Girls. This study explores the subjective experiences of anorexic adolescent girls and the perspectives of their parents and other professionals to identify the beliefs and constructs underpinning the identification, management and experience of anorexia. Using a multi-method heuristic approach, we will analyse congruence and dissonance in perspectives, the mechanisms individuals and groups use to assert and justify their views and actions, and the r ....Multiple Perspectives of Eating Disorders in Girls. This study explores the subjective experiences of anorexic adolescent girls and the perspectives of their parents and other professionals to identify the beliefs and constructs underpinning the identification, management and experience of anorexia. Using a multi-method heuristic approach, we will analyse congruence and dissonance in perspectives, the mechanisms individuals and groups use to assert and justify their views and actions, and the reflexive impact of these on others. The study will generate basic knowledge to improve support for girls and families, development better preventative education and inform the education of professional in the field.Read moreRead less