Developing An Effective System Of Child Protection In China. Theis project will be of benefit Australia in the following aspects: (1) It will provide Australia greater knowledge of child protection practices in a major East Asian society, where kinship and family networks play an active role in protecting children within their own communities. (2) It offers a unique opportunity for Australia to demonstrate its commitment to utilising its own research to the benefit of a major developing country ....Developing An Effective System Of Child Protection In China. Theis project will be of benefit Australia in the following aspects: (1) It will provide Australia greater knowledge of child protection practices in a major East Asian society, where kinship and family networks play an active role in protecting children within their own communities. (2) It offers a unique opportunity for Australia to demonstrate its commitment to utilising its own research to the benefit of a major developing country with which it is establishing strong linkages across many activities. (3) It will strengthen the existing connections among Australia higher educational institutions, Chinese government and non-government organizations, and international NGO.Read moreRead less
Finding the pathways to crime prevention for socially disadvantaged communities: theory, evidence and practice. Long-term scientific evaluations of interventions that 'get in early' before crime problems emerge or become entrenched have consistently shown that such approaches work. However, governments and community agencies struggle to use this evidence to mount effective programs in areas of concentrated disadvantage because the evidence comes in the form of 'program packages' rather than mode ....Finding the pathways to crime prevention for socially disadvantaged communities: theory, evidence and practice. Long-term scientific evaluations of interventions that 'get in early' before crime problems emerge or become entrenched have consistently shown that such approaches work. However, governments and community agencies struggle to use this evidence to mount effective programs in areas of concentrated disadvantage because the evidence comes in the form of 'program packages' rather than models of practice that take account of local contexts and the challenges involved in achieving effective and sustainable engagement with local people and institutions. This project will show how models of effective crime prevention practice for disadvantaged communities can be developed, tested and implemented on a large scale in an economically efficient way.Read moreRead less
Pathways to Permanency: A Study of Foster Care Reunification Outcomes. Internationally Child Welfare Services emphasise intensive work with biological families to prevent abuse, to shorten the length of placements when protective care is needed, and to increase rates of reunification with of children with parents. In a three year follow up study the research will undertake a systematic analysis of the process and circumstances in which family reunification is likely to lead to safety and posit ....Pathways to Permanency: A Study of Foster Care Reunification Outcomes. Internationally Child Welfare Services emphasise intensive work with biological families to prevent abuse, to shorten the length of placements when protective care is needed, and to increase rates of reunification with of children with parents. In a three year follow up study the research will undertake a systematic analysis of the process and circumstances in which family reunification is likely to lead to safety and positive outcomes for children and those in which success is less likely. It will generate evidence-based knowledge about reunification decision making and identify policy implications of responding effectively to children in need of short term foster care.Read moreRead less
Research Utilisation in Child Protection Policy: Understanding and Conceptualising the Role of Research in Social Policy Development. The findings of this project will have significant benefits for vulnerable children and families by enhancing the capacity for research-informed policy in child protection. In this way, the project will also have significant flow-on economic benefits for Local, State and Federal Governments by decreasing the social and economic costs associated with child abuse an ....Research Utilisation in Child Protection Policy: Understanding and Conceptualising the Role of Research in Social Policy Development. The findings of this project will have significant benefits for vulnerable children and families by enhancing the capacity for research-informed policy in child protection. In this way, the project will also have significant flow-on economic benefits for Local, State and Federal Governments by decreasing the social and economic costs associated with child abuse and neglect. Research funding will have a greater impact by the increased understanding this study will provide about how research can be more effectively used in policy.Read moreRead less
Transition from school to work: A longitudinal investigation of unemployment, underemployment, alienation, social exclusion and mental health in young people. This project will provide detailed insights into the early identification of young people most likely to experience poorer outcomes in the later years of school and in the transition to the workforce or higher education. The findings have implications for State and National policies relating to the healthy development of young Australians ....Transition from school to work: A longitudinal investigation of unemployment, underemployment, alienation, social exclusion and mental health in young people. This project will provide detailed insights into the early identification of young people most likely to experience poorer outcomes in the later years of school and in the transition to the workforce or higher education. The findings have implications for State and National policies relating to the healthy development of young Australians; the enhancement of school completion and retention rates, and school-based strategies to facilitate young people's transition to the workforce. The study will further gain comparative insights into the experiences of students in coeducational vs. single-sex environments, private vs. public schools, and in regional as opposed to metropolitan areas. Read moreRead less
Transition from school to work: A 10-year longitudinal study of unemployment, underemployment, social exclusion, and mental health in young people. This project will provide detailed insights into the early identification of young people most likely to experience poorer outcomes in later years of school, higher education and the workforce. The findings have implications for State and National policies relating to the healthy development of young Australians, the enhancement of school completion/ ....Transition from school to work: A 10-year longitudinal study of unemployment, underemployment, social exclusion, and mental health in young people. This project will provide detailed insights into the early identification of young people most likely to experience poorer outcomes in later years of school, higher education and the workforce. The findings have implications for State and National policies relating to the healthy development of young Australians, the enhancement of school completion/retention rates, and strategies to facilitate young people's transition to the workforce and management of unfavourable work experiences. The study will further gain comparative insights into the higher education and work outcomes of students from coeducational and single-sex environments, private and public schools, and from regional and metropolitan areas. Read moreRead less
Strengthening Relationships for Young People in Residential Care. Young people in residential care face major challenges in forming positive relationships, many having experienced adults as a source of threat rather than safety. This project aims to investigate practices within therapeutic residential care that enable or limit young people’s identity formation, positive social connections, safety and wellbeing. This research will generate nuanced knowledge informing interpersonal and institution ....Strengthening Relationships for Young People in Residential Care. Young people in residential care face major challenges in forming positive relationships, many having experienced adults as a source of threat rather than safety. This project aims to investigate practices within therapeutic residential care that enable or limit young people’s identity formation, positive social connections, safety and wellbeing. This research will generate nuanced knowledge informing interpersonal and institutional change. Expected outcomes include improved approaches to therapeutic care and to methods for enabling the participation of young people in care in matters that may change their life trajectory on exiting care. Expected benefits include more responsive policies and frameworks for practice.Read moreRead less
Employment literacy:young people, job readiness and employability in Western Australia. This research will construct a model of employment literacy - a novel concept moving beyond notions of employability and social literacy - by developing a critical understanding of the personal and social characteristics that comprise a job ready young person among the clients of a range of employment services in Western Australia. Job readiness and employability are widely used to describe the desired outcom ....Employment literacy:young people, job readiness and employability in Western Australia. This research will construct a model of employment literacy - a novel concept moving beyond notions of employability and social literacy - by developing a critical understanding of the personal and social characteristics that comprise a job ready young person among the clients of a range of employment services in Western Australia. Job readiness and employability are widely used to describe the desired outcomes of employment programs, but are inadequately defined and measured. A model of employment literacy will enhance the academic literature and provide assistance to young people and organisations seeking to integrate employability skills into training and employment programs.Read moreRead less
Re-conceptualising citizenship and the commodification of labour: the experiences of young casual workers in the South Australian labour market. This qualitative study addresses existing gaps regarding the nature and strength of workplace voice and agency of young casual workers in South Australia especially at a time when the growth of casual employment is reviving the notion that human labour is returning to commodity status. This study considers the implications for skill and training, gend ....Re-conceptualising citizenship and the commodification of labour: the experiences of young casual workers in the South Australian labour market. This qualitative study addresses existing gaps regarding the nature and strength of workplace voice and agency of young casual workers in South Australia especially at a time when the growth of casual employment is reviving the notion that human labour is returning to commodity status. This study considers the implications for skill and training, gendered aspects of labour market regulation, and potential forms of effective advocacy to assist young casual workers to workplace citizenship and long-term employment from their perspective. The study has theoretical and policy implications.Read moreRead less
The Extent and Cost of Kinship Foster Care of Orphans in Rural China. This project will explore the extent of kinship foster care provided to orphaned children in rural China. It will also, for the first time, estimate the costs of kinship care, by modifying Australian budget standards research to suit conditions in rural China. The project will combine a strong research team with a leading international non-government agency working in China and will draw on support from government officials fr ....The Extent and Cost of Kinship Foster Care of Orphans in Rural China. This project will explore the extent of kinship foster care provided to orphaned children in rural China. It will also, for the first time, estimate the costs of kinship care, by modifying Australian budget standards research to suit conditions in rural China. The project will combine a strong research team with a leading international non-government agency working in China and will draw on support from government officials from the Ministry of Civil Affairs. The results will be used to estimate child poverty among the target group and will provide a knowledge base for future research in the area.Read moreRead less