Cohabitation in Australia: Trends and Implications for Family Outcomes. The project will contribute to improvements in the economic and social well-being of Australian families and communities by increasing our understanding of changing pathways into relationships and the implications of these choices for later family outcomes. The national benefit from this will be realised in terms of more effective policies that promote relationship quality and stability. This will help reduce the social and ....Cohabitation in Australia: Trends and Implications for Family Outcomes. The project will contribute to improvements in the economic and social well-being of Australian families and communities by increasing our understanding of changing pathways into relationships and the implications of these choices for later family outcomes. The national benefit from this will be realised in terms of more effective policies that promote relationship quality and stability. This will help reduce the social and economic costs to the government and the community from poor relationship quality and relationship breakdown.Read moreRead less
Trends in Time: Work, Family and Social Policy in Australia 1992-2006. This project will contribute to the national priority goal of 'strengthening Australia's social and economic fabric to help families and individuals live healthy, productive, and fulfilling lives', within the National Research Priority of 'promoting good health and well being for all Australians'. It will provide sound new evidence for effective strategies fostering the policy goals of reducing stress on families, maintaining ....Trends in Time: Work, Family and Social Policy in Australia 1992-2006. This project will contribute to the national priority goal of 'strengthening Australia's social and economic fabric to help families and individuals live healthy, productive, and fulfilling lives', within the National Research Priority of 'promoting good health and well being for all Australians'. It will provide sound new evidence for effective strategies fostering the policy goals of reducing stress on families, maintaining fertility and encouraging women into paid work. Identifying measures that most support men and women to balance work-family commitments, to spend adequate time with their children and social networks, and most facilitate female workforce participation, will promote national wellbeing. Read moreRead less
Work/Life Balance, Well-Being and Health: Theory, Practice and Policy. This project links to the national research priority of promoting and maintaining good health in two ways. It establishes a new annual national measure of work/life balance, a critical element of good health and well-being, assisting understanding about work/life conflict and informing workplace and government policy responses to it, strengthening Australia's social and economic fabric. Deep study of work/life issues in the h ....Work/Life Balance, Well-Being and Health: Theory, Practice and Policy. This project links to the national research priority of promoting and maintaining good health in two ways. It establishes a new annual national measure of work/life balance, a critical element of good health and well-being, assisting understanding about work/life conflict and informing workplace and government policy responses to it, strengthening Australia's social and economic fabric. Deep study of work/life issues in the health sector will also inform recruitment, retention and well-being in the health workforce, with flow-on to the health system more broadly. The project includes analysis of 'pre-retirement' work/life issues, also linking to the 'ageing well, ageing productively' priority. Read moreRead less
The Work, Housing, Services and Community Project. Australian cities are bursting at their seams. Major new housing developments are being undertaken to meet housing demand. These new developments sit alongside existing developments and raise issues about socio-spatial integration. New developments attempt to meet changing work, housing, services and community needs. This project examines how they are succeeding, how workers and residents see the relationship between work, home, services, and th ....The Work, Housing, Services and Community Project. Australian cities are bursting at their seams. Major new housing developments are being undertaken to meet housing demand. These new developments sit alongside existing developments and raise issues about socio-spatial integration. New developments attempt to meet changing work, housing, services and community needs. This project examines how they are succeeding, how workers and residents see the relationship between work, home, services, and the community they want to live amidst, and what kinds of spatial alignments they seek. The project will assist urban planners, workplaces, service providers and the developer community, potentially improving the well being of men, women and children.Read moreRead less
Families on the Edge: Lived Experiences of Citizenship of Homeless Families. Families on the Edge will provide an in-depth understanding of the lived experiences of homeless families, comprising predominantly women and children, who are one of the most marginalised and under-researched groups in Australian society. The findings will enable governments and not-for-profit agencies to improve services for homeless families to improve their health and well being. They will also inform policy debates ....Families on the Edge: Lived Experiences of Citizenship of Homeless Families. Families on the Edge will provide an in-depth understanding of the lived experiences of homeless families, comprising predominantly women and children, who are one of the most marginalised and under-researched groups in Australian society. The findings will enable governments and not-for-profit agencies to improve services for homeless families to improve their health and well being. They will also inform policy debates about other approaches which draw on human rights and the rights/responsibilities of citizenship. The projects findings will provide a sound framework and empirical basis for improvements to legislation, policy and practice across a range of areas.Read moreRead less
Impact of parents' employment on children's well-being: The influence of employment quality, time and activities with children, and parenting practices. Most Australian children now grow-up in families where both their mother and their father are employed. Using a new national dataset, this research examines how parents' working conditions are related to children's well-being. It is proposed that parents' availability, resources, and family functioning mediate between parental employment and chi ....Impact of parents' employment on children's well-being: The influence of employment quality, time and activities with children, and parenting practices. Most Australian children now grow-up in families where both their mother and their father are employed. Using a new national dataset, this research examines how parents' working conditions are related to children's well-being. It is proposed that parents' availability, resources, and family functioning mediate between parental employment and child outcomes. The Growing-Up in Australia study (available in 2005) surveys 10,000 children, combining measures of child well-being, existing validated measures of work conditions and family functioning, with a new child-focused diary that measures time and activities undertaken with children. New knowledge generated will inform future policy development.Read moreRead less
Social disadvantage and economic recession: promoting inclusion and combating deprivation. The onset of recession in the wake of the global financial crisis has reawakened concern over inequality and exclusion. This project will feed directly into the government's new social inclusion agenda by providing a better understanding of the nature of social exclusion, its relation to location-specific and other dimensions of disadvantage, and the processes that trigger and sustain exclusion. A speciall ....Social disadvantage and economic recession: promoting inclusion and combating deprivation. The onset of recession in the wake of the global financial crisis has reawakened concern over inequality and exclusion. This project will feed directly into the government's new social inclusion agenda by providing a better understanding of the nature of social exclusion, its relation to location-specific and other dimensions of disadvantage, and the processes that trigger and sustain exclusion. A specially designed survey will be coordinated with other data collection activity to provide timely new information that will assist government and non-government agencies to promote social inclusion and tackle the root causes of disadvantage.Read moreRead less
Supporting families: Horizontal and vertical equity in the Australian tax-benefit system in historical and comparative perspectives. Tax benefit reform and equity between different groups are key policy concerns currently and for the foreseeable future. The tax-benefit system is under review, and the Global Financial Crisis has prompted debate on how tax-benefit policy can stimulate the economy while maintaining equity and promoting social inclusion. This project will put debate about tax-benef ....Supporting families: Horizontal and vertical equity in the Australian tax-benefit system in historical and comparative perspectives. Tax benefit reform and equity between different groups are key policy concerns currently and for the foreseeable future. The tax-benefit system is under review, and the Global Financial Crisis has prompted debate on how tax-benefit policy can stimulate the economy while maintaining equity and promoting social inclusion. This project will put debate about tax-benefit reforms and deficit reduction strategies in historical and an international comparative context. Results generated will provide a rich and comprehensive framework for assessing current and future policy options in areas that are closely aligned with the designated national research priority goals of a healthy start to life and strengthening Australia's economic and social fabric.Read moreRead less
The Impact of the Mobile Phone on Work/Life Balance. The telecommuncations industry exemplifies the frontier technologies that are at the heart of Australia's successful knowledge economy. Mobile phones are developing innovative capacities far ahead of consumer needs and requirments. For example, third generation technologies are currently seeking to find the 'killer application' that will provide them with a mass market. A profound understanding of the social dimensions of existing mobile telec ....The Impact of the Mobile Phone on Work/Life Balance. The telecommuncations industry exemplifies the frontier technologies that are at the heart of Australia's successful knowledge economy. Mobile phones are developing innovative capacities far ahead of consumer needs and requirments. For example, third generation technologies are currently seeking to find the 'killer application' that will provide them with a mass market. A profound understanding of the social dimensions of existing mobile telecommunications will provide insights for the development of new technologies and new services. It will provide the industry with a competitive advantage in a fast developing sector.Read moreRead less
Negotiating Transitions to Retirement. This project will track diverse pathways in work/retirement transitions, by analysing how the present policy mix accommodates shifts in labour markets, demographic shifts and shifts in households and income distributions. Focused on cohorts aged 45 to 64, it firstly analyses national data sets to track the impact of the current policy mix in terms of income security, industrial relations, housing, health, education and training and work/life. Secondly, i ....Negotiating Transitions to Retirement. This project will track diverse pathways in work/retirement transitions, by analysing how the present policy mix accommodates shifts in labour markets, demographic shifts and shifts in households and income distributions. Focused on cohorts aged 45 to 64, it firstly analyses national data sets to track the impact of the current policy mix in terms of income security, industrial relations, housing, health, education and training and work/life. Secondly, it draws on qualitative data to further examine how these transitions are played out. The research will develop a new policy matrix for older workers that addresses risk, social exclusion and social protection.Read moreRead less