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
Left Out and Missing Out: Towards New Indicators of Social Exclusion and Material Deprivation. This ground-breaking project will utilise academic knowledge and practical agency experience built up over decades to produce a new framework for identifying and measuring exclusion and deprivation in contemporary Australian society. It will generate new findings on public attitudes to the 'necessary requirements' needed to participate at all levels in society and the economy. It will examine the popul ....Left Out and Missing Out: Towards New Indicators of Social Exclusion and Material Deprivation. This ground-breaking project will utilise academic knowledge and practical agency experience built up over decades to produce a new framework for identifying and measuring exclusion and deprivation in contemporary Australian society. It will generate new findings on public attitudes to the 'necessary requirements' needed to participate at all levels in society and the economy. It will examine the population profile of the individuals and groups who are denied these opportunities, using both quantitative (survey) and qualitative (focus group) data, and its findings will complement existing data collections.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
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
The individual, the family and the state: expectations, intergenerational obligations and constraints in providing for old age. Intergenerational equity is a principle underpinning policy debates around financing retirement and care in older age. Enhanced understanding of this cohort's expectations and obligations will assist in policy development around financing retirement and paying for care that takes account of this cohort's expectations and obligations. Further, exploring the expectations ....The individual, the family and the state: expectations, intergenerational obligations and constraints in providing for old age. Intergenerational equity is a principle underpinning policy debates around financing retirement and care in older age. Enhanced understanding of this cohort's expectations and obligations will assist in policy development around financing retirement and paying for care that takes account of this cohort's expectations and obligations. Further, exploring the expectations underpinning intergenerational exchanges from this cohort's perspective will assist in understanding the dynamics around these exchanges and lay the ground work for future research into factors that facilitate cross-generation family functioning.Read moreRead less
Promoting Well-Being in Culturally and Linguistically Diverse Groups: Towards Evidence-Based Practice. In order to serve families from diverse communities properly, we require models of well-being that reflect the unique circumstances of their lives and culture. At present, the helping professions lack models of well-being that are sensitive to cultural diversity. Therefore, the study will develop models of well-being that are unique to four different cultural groups: Anglo-Australians, Vietnam ....Promoting Well-Being in Culturally and Linguistically Diverse Groups: Towards Evidence-Based Practice. In order to serve families from diverse communities properly, we require models of well-being that reflect the unique circumstances of their lives and culture. At present, the helping professions lack models of well-being that are sensitive to cultural diversity. Therefore, the study will develop models of well-being that are unique to four different cultural groups: Anglo-Australians, Vietnamese, Maltese and Italians. We will compare community members' conceptions of well-being with those of the professionals helping them. The research will produce theory regarding cross-cultural well-being and will inform practice as well.Read moreRead less
The health implications of uncertain child support payments for children in low-income single parent families. The study will clarify the implications of child support policy by focussing on the economic, social and health impacts for low-income children. These findings will: provide single parents, schools and communities with insight into the process of promoting the social inclusion of low-income children; enable schools and social welfare agencies to design programs and services to meet the ....The health implications of uncertain child support payments for children in low-income single parent families. The study will clarify the implications of child support policy by focussing on the economic, social and health impacts for low-income children. These findings will: provide single parents, schools and communities with insight into the process of promoting the social inclusion of low-income children; enable schools and social welfare agencies to design programs and services to meet the needs of low-income single parent families; provide data for continued child support policy review and development; and contribute to the evidence base for ongoing debates such as the effect of poverty on child social inclusion and how children experience social inclusion.Read moreRead less
Genetic Identity Testing and the Family: the articulation between biotechnology and family relationships, politics and policy. Genetic identity testing cuts to the very nature of the family itself. For the first time in human history, it is possible to identify paternity - and misattributed paternity - with reasonable certainty. Parentage testing has become a vehicle for the fathers? rights movement, and is influencing the management of child support policy. Governments are currently developing ....Genetic Identity Testing and the Family: the articulation between biotechnology and family relationships, politics and policy. Genetic identity testing cuts to the very nature of the family itself. For the first time in human history, it is possible to identify paternity - and misattributed paternity - with reasonable certainty. Parentage testing has become a vehicle for the fathers? rights movement, and is influencing the management of child support policy. Governments are currently developing broad policy frameworks on this issue. Yet there is almost no social research on parentage testing. This study will provide scope for Australian leadership in an area of study that will become progressively more important with the rapid development of DNA chip technology. 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
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