Affective influences social thinking and behaviour: A social neuroscience approach. Affective states have a major influence on how people think and behave in everyday life. However, the psychological and neural mechanisms producing these effects remain incompletely understood. This project will investigate how external situations and internal cognitive and neurological mechanisms interact to facilitate or inhibit affective influences on judgments and behaviour. The project will also develop and ....Affective influences social thinking and behaviour: A social neuroscience approach. Affective states have a major influence on how people think and behave in everyday life. However, the psychological and neural mechanisms producing these effects remain incompletely understood. This project will investigate how external situations and internal cognitive and neurological mechanisms interact to facilitate or inhibit affective influences on judgments and behaviour. The project will also develop and test an innovative information processing theory of affective influences, and develop new empirical methods for measuring the cognitive and behavioural consequences of affect. Studies will also investigate the influence of affect on clinical, organisational, educational and health outcomes, and on various real-life behaviours.
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Social psychological, personality, and neural processes underlying anger, aggression, and health. The Australian Institute of Criminology estimates the cost of assault, sexual assault, and homicide in Australia at over $2.5 billion per annum. Despite these enormous costs, very little is known about the cognitive and neural mechanisms guiding these phenomena. This research will also provide cues regarding risk for domestic violence. Understanding domestic violence is especially significant bec ....Social psychological, personality, and neural processes underlying anger, aggression, and health. The Australian Institute of Criminology estimates the cost of assault, sexual assault, and homicide in Australia at over $2.5 billion per annum. Despite these enormous costs, very little is known about the cognitive and neural mechanisms guiding these phenomena. This research will also provide cues regarding risk for domestic violence. Understanding domestic violence is especially significant because it is the leading cause of homicide among women in Australia. The insights gained from this research may lead to substantial social (e.g., stronger social fabric, reduced crime) and economic benefit (e.g., reduced spending on healthcare and crime).Read moreRead less
The social and cognitive functions of affect. Dealing with affective problems represents a major challenge in clinical, health, organisational and counselling psychology. Yet the role that affective states play in thinking, judgments and many everyday social behaviours remains poorly understood.. This project will produce direct national and community benefit by developing a new, integrative theory of affective influences on thinking and action, and exploring the functions and processing consequ ....The social and cognitive functions of affect. Dealing with affective problems represents a major challenge in clinical, health, organisational and counselling psychology. Yet the role that affective states play in thinking, judgments and many everyday social behaviours remains poorly understood.. This project will produce direct national and community benefit by developing a new, integrative theory of affective influences on thinking and action, and exploring the functions and processing consequences of affect in everyday settings. The real-life consequences of affect infusion in applied areas will also be explored. The project will also contribute to Australia's research capability by training doctoral and postdoctoral students, and fostering international research collaboration.Read moreRead less
Improving asthma device use: Innovative models for inter-professional practice. This project falls within the goals of National Priority 2: promoting and maintaining good health. This project has the potential to affect every individual accessing health care in the Australia. Through its approach to and focus on improving the use of asthma medications this project will impact on: the quality use of medicines and health outcomes for patients. Through its focus on health professional relationships ....Improving asthma device use: Innovative models for inter-professional practice. This project falls within the goals of National Priority 2: promoting and maintaining good health. This project has the potential to affect every individual accessing health care in the Australia. Through its approach to and focus on improving the use of asthma medications this project will impact on: the quality use of medicines and health outcomes for patients. Through its focus on health professional relationships and interdisciplinary approach to community health care it will result in: improved interprofessional relationships and a model of collaboration which has the potential to be implemented on a broad scale in the community.Read moreRead less
Children's Intergroup Prejudice: The Roles of Cognitive Representations and Self-presentation. Research indicates that intergroup prejudice remains a problem in most Australian schools. For example, children as young as 5-6 years assign negative attributes to indigenous Australians and Pacific Islander children, they prefer not to play with these children, and they do not even want them living nearby. The proposed research will examine the possible basis of age effects in these attitudes. It wi ....Children's Intergroup Prejudice: The Roles of Cognitive Representations and Self-presentation. Research indicates that intergroup prejudice remains a problem in most Australian schools. For example, children as young as 5-6 years assign negative attributes to indigenous Australians and Pacific Islander children, they prefer not to play with these children, and they do not even want them living nearby. The proposed research will examine the possible basis of age effects in these attitudes. It will have a substantial national benefit because it will increase our understanding of this insidious social phenomenon and provide a basis for developing an intervention that will minimise a problem that has the potential to devastate community relations.
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Regulating anger: Cognitive reappraisal, emotional suppression, and post-event rumination. Australians bear the substantial psychological, social, and economic costs associated with unrestrained anger. Anger problems are associated with school and work difficulties, poor social relationship quality, alcohol and drug use, financial and legal difficulties, premature cardiovascular mortality, and clinically significant mental health problems. Anger and aggression also cause much harm to society th ....Regulating anger: Cognitive reappraisal, emotional suppression, and post-event rumination. Australians bear the substantial psychological, social, and economic costs associated with unrestrained anger. Anger problems are associated with school and work difficulties, poor social relationship quality, alcohol and drug use, financial and legal difficulties, premature cardiovascular mortality, and clinically significant mental health problems. Anger and aggression also cause much harm to society through crime, domestic abuse, and workplace violence among others. The Australian Institute of Criminology estimates the cost of assault, sexual assault, and homicide in Australia at over $2.5 billion per year. The insights gained from this research may help ameliorate these negative consequences of anger.Read moreRead less
Practical methods to evaluate school breakfast programs. This innovative project will provide a doctoral student with the opportunity to develop in-depth academic research within the practical constraints of field-based program evaluation. The candidate will develop a practical methodology to evaluate community-based programs, specifically school breakfast programs in New South Wales. The outcome of the project will be an evaluation protocol, set of tools and reporting proforma that can be appli ....Practical methods to evaluate school breakfast programs. This innovative project will provide a doctoral student with the opportunity to develop in-depth academic research within the practical constraints of field-based program evaluation. The candidate will develop a practical methodology to evaluate community-based programs, specifically school breakfast programs in New South Wales. The outcome of the project will be an evaluation protocol, set of tools and reporting proforma that can be applied by volunteers and teachers to evaluate school breakfast programs. The research process undertaken by the candidate also will be applicable to the development of evaluation methodologies of a range of community-based programs.Read moreRead less
Narrative Social Influence: Narrative Communication as an Effective Means of Public Health Campaign. Mass media has been used for public health campaigns with varying degrees of success. This project aims to improve their effectiveness in modifying public attitudes and behaviour to reduce the risk of life style diseases such as cancer, stroke, and heart disease. In particular, the project investigates the effectiveness of narrative as a means of social influence by examining whether it can effec ....Narrative Social Influence: Narrative Communication as an Effective Means of Public Health Campaign. Mass media has been used for public health campaigns with varying degrees of success. This project aims to improve their effectiveness in modifying public attitudes and behaviour to reduce the risk of life style diseases such as cancer, stroke, and heart disease. In particular, the project investigates the effectiveness of narrative as a means of social influence by examining whether it can effectively communicate an appropriate health promoting behaviour to the public, while encouraging people to disseminate the message to others interpersonally, so that not only mass media but also the community itself acts as an agent of social influence.Read moreRead less
Influence of Narrative Content and Context of Anti-smoking Public Health Messages. By improving the effectiveness of public health campaigns such as those aimed at smokers, we can inform people about healthier ways of living, and encourage them to adopt healthier life style choices. This should reduce the risk of life style diseases such as cancer, stroke, and heart attack. This project will contribute to the promotion and maintenance of good health in the Australian community by facilitating pr ....Influence of Narrative Content and Context of Anti-smoking Public Health Messages. By improving the effectiveness of public health campaigns such as those aimed at smokers, we can inform people about healthier ways of living, and encourage them to adopt healthier life style choices. This should reduce the risk of life style diseases such as cancer, stroke, and heart attack. This project will contribute to the promotion and maintenance of good health in the Australian community by facilitating preventive health care and help to reduce the medical cost not only to those who may fall victim to the diseases, but also to their families, communities, states, and Australia as a whole.Read moreRead less
Peer Rejection and the Maladaptive Social Behaviour of Children and Adolescents. Research indicates that peer rejection has serious negative effects on child and adolescent victims. However, little research has addressed the likelihood that peer rejection also has negative consequences for others in the social environment, through its instigation of maladaptive social behaviours such as bullying and ethnic prejudice. Given the incidence of the latter behaviours in primary and secondary schools, ....Peer Rejection and the Maladaptive Social Behaviour of Children and Adolescents. Research indicates that peer rejection has serious negative effects on child and adolescent victims. However, little research has addressed the likelihood that peer rejection also has negative consequences for others in the social environment, through its instigation of maladaptive social behaviours such as bullying and ethnic prejudice. Given the incidence of the latter behaviours in primary and secondary schools, the aim of this project is to conduct a program of research to test an integrative model of the impact of peer rejection on the maladaptive social behaviours of children and adolescents, with a particular focus on ethnic prejudice and bullying.Read moreRead less