Celebrate. Remember. Fight Back. Episodic Volunteering for Non-Profits. This project seeks to improve the policy and practice of volunteer involvement in the non-profit sector. Non-profit organisations rely on volunteers, and their capacity to deliver vital community services is threatened by the decrease in long-term, continuous volunteering and increase in episodic (short-term, flexible) volunteering. The interdisciplinary project aims to use mixed methods (qualitative interviews and quantitat ....Celebrate. Remember. Fight Back. Episodic Volunteering for Non-Profits. This project seeks to improve the policy and practice of volunteer involvement in the non-profit sector. Non-profit organisations rely on volunteers, and their capacity to deliver vital community services is threatened by the decrease in long-term, continuous volunteering and increase in episodic (short-term, flexible) volunteering. The interdisciplinary project aims to use mixed methods (qualitative interviews and quantitative surveys) and multiple perspectives (volunteers and staff who manage them) to develop an episodic volunteering definition; to explore the economic and social impact of episodic volunteering, and to develop a theoretical model of volunteer retention. The findings are intended to provide an evidence base and recommendations for non-profit sector policy and practice.Read moreRead less
Young people bereaved by domestic homicide. Far-reaching decisions are made about the future of a child bereaved by domestic homicide, including where they should live and whether they should have contact with the perpetrator. Practitioners and policymakers lack empirical and theoretical input to guide these decisions. This fellowship draws upon young people's, caregivers' and professionals' perspectives on children's living arrangements, relationships and identity development post-homicide. It ....Young people bereaved by domestic homicide. Far-reaching decisions are made about the future of a child bereaved by domestic homicide, including where they should live and whether they should have contact with the perpetrator. Practitioners and policymakers lack empirical and theoretical input to guide these decisions. This fellowship draws upon young people's, caregivers' and professionals' perspectives on children's living arrangements, relationships and identity development post-homicide. It expects to generate a theoretical model of children's outcomes as well as actionable advice for policymakers and practitioners. The main benefit will be enhanced capacity to support children, families and professionals in the context of domestic homicide in Australia and abroad. Read moreRead less
Networks, neighbourhoods and newborns: defining household and local area influences on social connectedness, to understand pathways to health. Being socially connected is good for your health, but why? This project will compare social connections in Boroondara and Hume, to explore the influence of neighbourhoods on networks. With this information the project will consider potential pathways to better health outcomes, needed by agencies working to promote neighbourhood connectedness and health.
Collective Self-Regulation in Complex Social-Ecological Systems. This project plans to investigate the necessary supports and drivers for self-regulation for environmental purposes. Sustainable human uses of natural resources are central to meeting contemporary challenges to humanity such as deforestation and climate change. However, the complexity of the social and ecological interdependences tests the human capacity for collective self-regulation – ordinary citizens’ regulation of their own be ....Collective Self-Regulation in Complex Social-Ecological Systems. This project plans to investigate the necessary supports and drivers for self-regulation for environmental purposes. Sustainable human uses of natural resources are central to meeting contemporary challenges to humanity such as deforestation and climate change. However, the complexity of the social and ecological interdependences tests the human capacity for collective self-regulation – ordinary citizens’ regulation of their own behaviours for a greater good. The project aims to investigate the importance of establishing a common ground for collective self-regulation, the process of common ground formation in complex social-ecological systems, and how best to achieve this critical condition for sustainable ecological practices with a view to informing public discourse and policy-making for sustainable living.Read moreRead less
Co-evolutionary dynamics of culture and social structure. Solutions to contemporary societal problems require cultural transformations, namely widespread changes in the ideas and practices of community members. This project will establish a new social scientific framework for the analysis of such transformations. Outcomes will aid future policy planning to steer the course of broader societal change.
Testing an Integrative Model of Interpersonal Partner Aggression. The project aims to conduct: 1) a developmental test (i.e., from childhood to adulthood), and 2) a dyadic longitudinal test of an integrative model of intimate partner violence (IPV). The project is significant as it addresses 4 key IPV research limitations. These are the lack of: 1) focus on relationship dynamics; 2) longitudinal research on couples; 3) developmental tests of IPV; 4) research on same-sex couples. Expected outcome ....Testing an Integrative Model of Interpersonal Partner Aggression. The project aims to conduct: 1) a developmental test (i.e., from childhood to adulthood), and 2) a dyadic longitudinal test of an integrative model of intimate partner violence (IPV). The project is significant as it addresses 4 key IPV research limitations. These are the lack of: 1) focus on relationship dynamics; 2) longitudinal research on couples; 3) developmental tests of IPV; 4) research on same-sex couples. Expected outcomes include a comprehensive suite of assessments to effectively detect and support couples at risk of IPV and self-help resources to combat IPV. Benefits include the development of an integrative framework to identify couples most at risk of IPV and guide the development of interventions and policy to reduce IPV.Read moreRead less
Expanding concepts of harm and their implications. This project aims to document how the meanings of psychological concepts – mental disorder, trauma, abuse, prejudice, and bullying, among others – have changed in recent decades. Their meanings now refer to a broader range of phenomena than before. Using experimental and computerized text analysis, this project will document these historical changes in the scientific literature, the culture at large and the general public. It aims to clarify the ....Expanding concepts of harm and their implications. This project aims to document how the meanings of psychological concepts – mental disorder, trauma, abuse, prejudice, and bullying, among others – have changed in recent decades. Their meanings now refer to a broader range of phenomena than before. Using experimental and computerized text analysis, this project will document these historical changes in the scientific literature, the culture at large and the general public. It aims to clarify the cultural dynamics that drive ‘concept creep’, proposing that it reflects a rising sensitivity to harm, and examine the complex social implications of expanded definitions of harm. It expects to evaluate major cultural shifts in how the public understands harm and vulnerability.Read moreRead less
Discovery Early Career Researcher Award - Grant ID: DE160100761
Funder
Australian Research Council
Funding Amount
$387,000.00
Summary
Rethinking Positive Emotion Regulation. This project aims to explore and challenge assumptions about the ‘right way’ to regulate emotions, articulating a new theoretical perspective on appropriate expression and suppression of positive emotion. People generally assume there are social benefits to expressing positive emotion and social costs to suppressing positive emotion. This project introduces a new perspective on emotion regulation that recognises that different contexts may call for differe ....Rethinking Positive Emotion Regulation. This project aims to explore and challenge assumptions about the ‘right way’ to regulate emotions, articulating a new theoretical perspective on appropriate expression and suppression of positive emotion. People generally assume there are social benefits to expressing positive emotion and social costs to suppressing positive emotion. This project introduces a new perspective on emotion regulation that recognises that different contexts may call for different strategies. The project plans to test whether the positive emotions we think bring us closer can actually worsen social relations, and whether suppressing positive emotion, long believed to have negative social effects, can bring people closer in unexpected ways.Read moreRead less
Enhancing Australia's Social Connectedness and Emotional Well-being. This project aims to redefine scientific understanding of why social connections are good for well-being, conceptualizing it as a process that involves successful regulation of emotions and behaviour. Effective social interventions require precise understanding of psychological process: the project will supply this understanding and leverage it to develop evidence-based interventions that grow social and emotional skills. Expec ....Enhancing Australia's Social Connectedness and Emotional Well-being. This project aims to redefine scientific understanding of why social connections are good for well-being, conceptualizing it as a process that involves successful regulation of emotions and behaviour. Effective social interventions require precise understanding of psychological process: the project will supply this understanding and leverage it to develop evidence-based interventions that grow social and emotional skills. Expected outcomes include generation of a novel literature at the intersection of social- and self-regulation and methodological innovations in the study of social connections. Significant benefits include creation of applied interventions with the potential to provide a ‘social cure’ for Australia’s loneliness problem.Read moreRead less
Collective self-regulation: the case of climate change mitigation. Solutions to contemporary societal problems such as climate change mitigation require cultural transformations, namely, widespread changes in the ideas and practices of community members. This project will examine how people may achieve this in part by regulating their own temptations and actions for the good of the community.