Understanding recent Australian trends in alcohol consumption and harms. This project aims to provide critical insight into recent trends in alcohol consumption and related harm in Australia. Many indicators of harm from alcohol have increased dramatically in the past decade, while drinking behaviours appear largely unchanged. This project aims to investigate two potential explanations for these trends: that apparent increases in rates of alcohol-related harm are driven by operational or adminis ....Understanding recent Australian trends in alcohol consumption and harms. This project aims to provide critical insight into recent trends in alcohol consumption and related harm in Australia. Many indicators of harm from alcohol have increased dramatically in the past decade, while drinking behaviours appear largely unchanged. This project aims to investigate two potential explanations for these trends: that apparent increases in rates of alcohol-related harm are driven by operational or administrative practices rather than by increases in actual harm; and that stable per-capita consumption data obscures divergent drinking behaviours, with increases among heavy drinkers driving increasing harm rates. The project aims to inform alcohol policy debates, which rely on robust trend data.Read moreRead less
Enhancing the Technology Transfer Capability of Australian Univerities. This project aims to assist in achieving enhanced University capability in technology transfer which is regarded by government as cruicial to improving national innovation performance. I seeks to identify the determinants of effective technology transfer and provide in-depth understanding of the social process involved in transferring both inventions and associated scientific knowledge from universities to corporationss. Emp ....Enhancing the Technology Transfer Capability of Australian Univerities. This project aims to assist in achieving enhanced University capability in technology transfer which is regarded by government as cruicial to improving national innovation performance. I seeks to identify the determinants of effective technology transfer and provide in-depth understanding of the social process involved in transferring both inventions and associated scientific knowledge from universities to corporationss. Employing a contingent effectiveness model, the research will focus on the characteristics of the transfer agent, the transfer recipient, the transfer medium, the transfer object and the demand environment. Results and recommended strategies will be communicated to university and industry managers and government officials.Read moreRead less
Careers of misconduct. This project aims to understand how legal and health practitioners named in multiple misconduct allegations make changes to their practice. Regulation exists to prevent poorly performing practitioners from doing further harm, yet little is known about the extent to which this is happening. Expected outcomes of the project include a better understanding of how regulation can be used effectively as a tool to promote the interests of consumers of legal and health services. Be ....Careers of misconduct. This project aims to understand how legal and health practitioners named in multiple misconduct allegations make changes to their practice. Regulation exists to prevent poorly performing practitioners from doing further harm, yet little is known about the extent to which this is happening. Expected outcomes of the project include a better understanding of how regulation can be used effectively as a tool to promote the interests of consumers of legal and health services. Benefits will include recommendations to legal and health practitioner regulators about how regulatory interventions can be improved to better protect the public.Read moreRead less
The impact of small business policy systems on small firm innovation and competitiveness in critical industry sectors. This research will examine the proposition that small business policy systems affect the structure and strategy of SMEs and in turn the sectors within which SMEs innovate and specialise. It will involve an analysis of SME policy systems; sectors of SME specialisation based on patent data, annual reports and firm web sites; and a longitudinal study of the strategy and structure o ....The impact of small business policy systems on small firm innovation and competitiveness in critical industry sectors. This research will examine the proposition that small business policy systems affect the structure and strategy of SMEs and in turn the sectors within which SMEs innovate and specialise. It will involve an analysis of SME policy systems; sectors of SME specialisation based on patent data, annual reports and firm web sites; and a longitudinal study of the strategy and structure of 29 case study firms in 3 sectors in 3 countries based on in-depth interviews and focus groups. Findings will provide a basis for improved policy advice concerning the mechanisms for encouraging small firm innovation and competitiveness in critical sectors.Read moreRead less
Ending long-term homelessness permanently: How to make effective links between housing and long-term support. Australian services for homeless people typically provide short to medium-term assistance and accommodation. This approach struggles to meet the complex needs of the long-term homeless. Recently there has been considerable government investment in new approaches to end long-term homelessness, but evidence supporting the efficacy of these approaches is limited. This project builds on a fo ....Ending long-term homelessness permanently: How to make effective links between housing and long-term support. Australian services for homeless people typically provide short to medium-term assistance and accommodation. This approach struggles to meet the complex needs of the long-term homeless. Recently there has been considerable government investment in new approaches to end long-term homelessness, but evidence supporting the efficacy of these approaches is limited. This project builds on a four year Randomised Controlled Trial of the Journey to Social Inclusion pilot-program which was designed to end long-term homelessness. The project aims to track participants for an additional two years. The research aims to provide new knowledge on what practices and factors generate positive outcomes and what factors and practices sustain positive outcomes.Read moreRead less
The role of the front line in welfare to work. This project aims to examine the front-line in Australia's primary site of welfare reform - the Job Network. Developed within the genre of street-level policy research, the project intends to examine that point of the policy process where actual outcomes are generated - a site which is largely overlooked in policy research, but which is integral to a comprehensive understanding of how policy works. From the perspective of the long-term unemployed, t ....The role of the front line in welfare to work. This project aims to examine the front-line in Australia's primary site of welfare reform - the Job Network. Developed within the genre of street-level policy research, the project intends to examine that point of the policy process where actual outcomes are generated - a site which is largely overlooked in policy research, but which is integral to a comprehensive understanding of how policy works. From the perspective of the long-term unemployed, the research will explore what works in the relationship between clients and their case managers. It will also explore the experiences of engagement and re-engagement with employment as a consequence of Job Network assistance.Read moreRead less
Socially Responsible Indicators for Policy, Practice and Benchmarking in Service Organisations. The Australian Government, while attempting to limit the spiralling costs of the welfare state, has encouraged market principles and practices in service organisations. This has raised value dilemmas and administrative tensions for education and welfare organisations who, while committed to social justice and social responsibility, have to operate efficiently and effectively. This research aims, thr ....Socially Responsible Indicators for Policy, Practice and Benchmarking in Service Organisations. The Australian Government, while attempting to limit the spiralling costs of the welfare state, has encouraged market principles and practices in service organisations. This has raised value dilemmas and administrative tensions for education and welfare organisations who, while committed to social justice and social responsibility, have to operate efficiently and effectively. This research aims, through the identification and analysis of tensions between social and economic value orientations in the workplace, to develop a values framework and key socially responsible indicators for the improvement of policy, decision making and practice within the Industry Partners and the wider service sectors.Read moreRead less
The role of a national human rights inquiry: impact on attitudes, research, policy and community development. This project will investigate the social impact of a Human Rights and Equal Opportunity Commission Inquiry in Australia: The Inquiry into Remote and Rural Education. It will seek to identify the processes and mechanisms through which such inquiries mediate between rural, state, national and international community expectations and demands and the extent to which they contribute to social ....The role of a national human rights inquiry: impact on attitudes, research, policy and community development. This project will investigate the social impact of a Human Rights and Equal Opportunity Commission Inquiry in Australia: The Inquiry into Remote and Rural Education. It will seek to identify the processes and mechanisms through which such inquiries mediate between rural, state, national and international community expectations and demands and the extent to which they contribute to social change. This is an innovative project that is attempting for the first time to evaluate whether and how such inquiries have been able to influence subsequent research in the area and contribute to changes in policy at national, state and local levels.Read moreRead less
Material well-being in the Australian welfare state. This project will use Australian Bureau of Statistics data on incomes, wealth and time use to construct a picture of material well-being in contemporary Australia. The results will show how material well-being relates to stages in the life cycle, to family types, and to relative affluence and relative poverty. Comparisons will be drawn between these results and a similar Australian study based on data from the late 1980s. International compari ....Material well-being in the Australian welfare state. This project will use Australian Bureau of Statistics data on incomes, wealth and time use to construct a picture of material well-being in contemporary Australia. The results will show how material well-being relates to stages in the life cycle, to family types, and to relative affluence and relative poverty. Comparisons will be drawn between these results and a similar Australian study based on data from the late 1980s. International comparisons will also be attempted. The findings provide important guidelines for public policy and especially for welfare policy.Read moreRead less
Education and training and regional networks: the implications for outcomes and governance. The project will investigate local learning and employment networks (LLENs) that have been established in Victoria. It will analyse the effectiveness of networks in delivering education and training services and improving outcomes for young people. The inter- and intra-action of networks, and their relationships with government in policy formation will also be analysed. The project is located in a majo ....Education and training and regional networks: the implications for outcomes and governance. The project will investigate local learning and employment networks (LLENs) that have been established in Victoria. It will analyse the effectiveness of networks in delivering education and training services and improving outcomes for young people. The inter- and intra-action of networks, and their relationships with government in policy formation will also be analysed. The project is located in a major and unique innovation in education and training, and for the first time will apply meso level theory and methodology in this area of public policy. It will provide new findings on effectiveness of networks in education outcomes.Read moreRead less