Understanding selfie-editing apps in youth visual digital cultures. This project aims to investigate how young people navigate identity and body image concerns online through new digital editing tools provided by selfie-editing apps. The project expects to generate new knowledge about the literacies young people use in reading, evaluating and editing images of themselves, and the role of digital technologies in forming young people’s embodied identities, using an innovative participatory methodo ....Understanding selfie-editing apps in youth visual digital cultures. This project aims to investigate how young people navigate identity and body image concerns online through new digital editing tools provided by selfie-editing apps. The project expects to generate new knowledge about the literacies young people use in reading, evaluating and editing images of themselves, and the role of digital technologies in forming young people’s embodied identities, using an innovative participatory methodology. Expected outcomes include a new evidence base and youth-centred conceptual framework on the connections between youth selfie-editing, body image, and wellbeing. This should provide significant benefits in helping young people to better navigate body image and wellbeing in online cultures.Read moreRead less
Far Right in Australia: Intellectuals, Masculinity and Citizenship. This project will investigate male-dominated far right groups in Australia by looking at their intellectual underpinnings. The sociological focus is on how core ideas inflect tropes of masculinity and the phenomena of weak citizenship. This moves beyond a simple stereotype of angry, disenfranchised young men; to grasp the radical right-wing thinking that motivates them, and informs their hate rhetoric and actions. Using multi-me ....Far Right in Australia: Intellectuals, Masculinity and Citizenship. This project will investigate male-dominated far right groups in Australia by looking at their intellectual underpinnings. The sociological focus is on how core ideas inflect tropes of masculinity and the phenomena of weak citizenship. This moves beyond a simple stereotype of angry, disenfranchised young men; to grasp the radical right-wing thinking that motivates them, and informs their hate rhetoric and actions. Using multi-methods, we will explore attitudes, and use of transnational far right ideas to 'imagine' Australia. The project will generate new knowledge of how bonds of citizenship have weakened amongst men who define themselves at the margins; yielding insights into how masculinity is actively utilised as a recruitment mechanism.Read moreRead less
Challenging the neoliberal critique of deficit spending and public debt. This project aims to analyse the rhetoric of balanced budgets by examining its intellectual and political history and revisiting counterarguments. Expected outcomes from the project will include insights into the development of rhetoric based on analysis of archival, textual and interview-based data . Findings from the project will be published in online fora with wide readership in national and international policy circle ....Challenging the neoliberal critique of deficit spending and public debt. This project aims to analyse the rhetoric of balanced budgets by examining its intellectual and political history and revisiting counterarguments. Expected outcomes from the project will include insights into the development of rhetoric based on analysis of archival, textual and interview-based data . Findings from the project will be published in online fora with wide readership in national and international policy circles. The project has the capacity to provide insights into and benefits for policy discourse on government deficit-spending and public debt.Read moreRead less
The case for work. This project aims to make a substantial contribution to theoretical debates about the future of work. There is growing concern that technological advances will lead to a crisis of work in the near future and challenge the idea that work is central to social inclusion and personal development. This project will systematically map out and respond to the arguments against the centrality of work. The expected outcome is a significant reduction in complexity regarding fundamental a ....The case for work. This project aims to make a substantial contribution to theoretical debates about the future of work. There is growing concern that technological advances will lead to a crisis of work in the near future and challenge the idea that work is central to social inclusion and personal development. This project will systematically map out and respond to the arguments against the centrality of work. The expected outcome is a significant reduction in complexity regarding fundamental assumptions in debates on future work. The project will aim to advance the national conversation on a crucial issue of social and economic policy.Read moreRead less
Australia and Brazil in the Asian Century. This project aims to update a theory of trust that accounts for the growing international influence of the Chinese state. As the mining boom subsides, Australia and Brazil must expand their agriculture exports, especially to China, their leading trade partner. The Chinese government has proposed large-scale investments in both countries’ agriculture sectors, but allegations of tax evasion, hidden subsidies and neo-colonialism have fuelled distrust of Ch ....Australia and Brazil in the Asian Century. This project aims to update a theory of trust that accounts for the growing international influence of the Chinese state. As the mining boom subsides, Australia and Brazil must expand their agriculture exports, especially to China, their leading trade partner. The Chinese government has proposed large-scale investments in both countries’ agriculture sectors, but allegations of tax evasion, hidden subsidies and neo-colonialism have fuelled distrust of Chinese investors. This project hypothesises that these tensions stem from diverging approaches to building trust. This could inform academic and policy publications and lead to more informed and productive relations with Chinese partners.Read moreRead less
Anti-women online movements: Pathways and patterns of participation . This project aims to understand the influences shaping men’s attraction to anti-women online movements and patterns of participation within them. The project intends to advance sociological research on the endemic problem of anti-women movements advocating violence against women in online environments. Expected outcomes of this project include practical strategies for preventing and reducing participation by men in online move ....Anti-women online movements: Pathways and patterns of participation . This project aims to understand the influences shaping men’s attraction to anti-women online movements and patterns of participation within them. The project intends to advance sociological research on the endemic problem of anti-women movements advocating violence against women in online environments. Expected outcomes of this project include practical strategies for preventing and reducing participation by men in online movements responsible for the harassment and abuse of women and girls. By providing an evidence base and identifying key intervention points to inform policy making, this project should benefit women and girls who experience detrimental impacts on their democratic online participation and negative economic impacts.Read moreRead less
Young hospitality workers and value creation in the service economy. This project aims to investigate how labour performed by young people in the hospitality industry contributes to the creation of economic value. The project intends to examine the specific practices through which hospitality workers create value as well as the personal capacities and forms of identity that allow young people to become a successful part of the hospitality labour force. The knowledge gained in this project will i ....Young hospitality workers and value creation in the service economy. This project aims to investigate how labour performed by young people in the hospitality industry contributes to the creation of economic value. The project intends to examine the specific practices through which hospitality workers create value as well as the personal capacities and forms of identity that allow young people to become a successful part of the hospitality labour force. The knowledge gained in this project will inform current social and political debate about working conditions, wages and penalty rates in the service economy. This project will enhance growth and job creation within the service sector together with the quality of Australia’s service workforce.Read moreRead less
Democratic Resilience: The Public Sphere and Extremist Attacks. The project aims to explain responses to extremist attacks intended to sow division, and why some democracies prove fragile, succumbing to polarisation or exclusion of key groups, while others prove resilient by sustaining integrative, tolerant discourse. The project develops new knowledge through an innovative synthesis of cultural sociology and deliberative democracy to analyse nine cases of responses in the public realm to attack ....Democratic Resilience: The Public Sphere and Extremist Attacks. The project aims to explain responses to extremist attacks intended to sow division, and why some democracies prove fragile, succumbing to polarisation or exclusion of key groups, while others prove resilient by sustaining integrative, tolerant discourse. The project develops new knowledge through an innovative synthesis of cultural sociology and deliberative democracy to analyse nine cases of responses in the public realm to attacks. Expected outcomes include a new account of the democratic public sphere, and identification of how meaningful, civil communication whose health is vital to democracy, especially in a multicultural society, can be maintained. Benefits include identification of measures to counter extremist political disruption.Read moreRead less
Investigating Conversational AI: Development, Usage and Governance. The project aims to provide new and powerful understandings of the consequences of chatbot technologies in terms of economy, society and governance. In doing so it will enable an integrated approach to understanding the ecosystem of developers, users and regulators of conversational AI in the retail and services sector. Expected outcomes and benefits include breakthrough theory, publications, and significant contributions to aca ....Investigating Conversational AI: Development, Usage and Governance. The project aims to provide new and powerful understandings of the consequences of chatbot technologies in terms of economy, society and governance. In doing so it will enable an integrated approach to understanding the ecosystem of developers, users and regulators of conversational AI in the retail and services sector. Expected outcomes and benefits include breakthrough theory, publications, and significant contributions to academic research and policy discussions across science, government, and industry. This should also place Australia at the forefront of the international scientific community and policy regulation in a fast-emerging area of technological development.
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