Brain development during adolescence and the emergence of depression: A longitudinal MRI study. Traditionally mental health services have focused on established disorders. Whilst significant gains in outcomes have been obtained in other areas of health by focusing on early intervention and prevention, in the mental health field this approach has been limited by the inability to predict who is likely to go on to develop serious mental disorder. This study will provide critical information for und ....Brain development during adolescence and the emergence of depression: A longitudinal MRI study. Traditionally mental health services have focused on established disorders. Whilst significant gains in outcomes have been obtained in other areas of health by focusing on early intervention and prevention, in the mental health field this approach has been limited by the inability to predict who is likely to go on to develop serious mental disorder. This study will provide critical information for understanding the risk processes that are operating during the critical phase of early adolescence, and will therefore make a fundamental contribution to our understanding of who, and what, to target in early intervention and prevention strategies.Read moreRead less
Charting the prevalence, time course and social-cognitive correlates of neonatal imitation. Imitation is something that we do naturally and often. However, because the necessary research has not been done, it remains controversial whether or not humans can imitate from birth and what role this may play for later developments. The proposed research aims to settle these issues through a comprehensive, longitudinal study of infant imitation and its relation to later-developing social skills. A trai ....Charting the prevalence, time course and social-cognitive correlates of neonatal imitation. Imitation is something that we do naturally and often. However, because the necessary research has not been done, it remains controversial whether or not humans can imitate from birth and what role this may play for later developments. The proposed research aims to settle these issues through a comprehensive, longitudinal study of infant imitation and its relation to later-developing social skills. A training condition will examine the viability of potential early interventions aimed at promoting social responding in infants and toddlers. This project will generate new knowledge about the development of early social skills and provide the foundation for new programs to enhance social development in typical and at-risk infants. Read moreRead less
Age Matters: Barriers and solutions to employment of older adults. With an ageing Australian population, research is needed to identify barriers that prevent older people being employed in the workforce. This project aims to identify whether employers use different standards when assessing the employability of younger and older workers and to develop strategies to overcome the use of different standards. This project will provide innovative ways for employers to implement successful strategies f ....Age Matters: Barriers and solutions to employment of older adults. With an ageing Australian population, research is needed to identify barriers that prevent older people being employed in the workforce. This project aims to identify whether employers use different standards when assessing the employability of younger and older workers and to develop strategies to overcome the use of different standards. This project will provide innovative ways for employers to implement successful strategies for promoting equal opportunity for older workers. Furthermore, this knowledge will assist policy makers and employment agencies. Finding ways to overcome barriers to older adult recruitment is of major significance for Australia's future economy and social well-being.Read moreRead less
The initiation, development, and maintenance of alcohol/tobacco use in adolescents: The role of associative memory. Alcohol abuse and tobacco misuse are common in Australian adolescents and its long-term health consequences are well established. Models of drug-related memory association predict drug use in adults. However, memory association models have not been applied to smoking behaviour, or to understanding adolescent alcohol/tobacco use over time. It is expected that memory associations ....The initiation, development, and maintenance of alcohol/tobacco use in adolescents: The role of associative memory. Alcohol abuse and tobacco misuse are common in Australian adolescents and its long-term health consequences are well established. Models of drug-related memory association predict drug use in adults. However, memory association models have not been applied to smoking behaviour, or to understanding adolescent alcohol/tobacco use over time. It is expected that memory associations will predict the development of alcohol/tobacco use and misuse, after accounting for viable alternative explanations of the association. Understanding the role that memory associations have in the development of alcohol/tobacco use should inform prevention programs for at-risk adolescents.Read moreRead less
Resilience and vulnerability in children with seriously ill siblings. Families of seriously ill children face heavy emotional and practical stresses. Behavioural, emotional and social problems are potential outcomes for the well children in the family, with a range of personal and familial factors likely mediators. The aim of this research is to assess factors associated with resilience and vulnerability among siblings of seriously ill children with a view to informing the work of the Carenet or ....Resilience and vulnerability in children with seriously ill siblings. Families of seriously ill children face heavy emotional and practical stresses. Behavioural, emotional and social problems are potential outcomes for the well children in the family, with a range of personal and familial factors likely mediators. The aim of this research is to assess factors associated with resilience and vulnerability among siblings of seriously ill children with a view to informing the work of the Carenet organization. A survey of parents and well siblings of ill children, plus interviews with target families, will be conducted. Proposed outcomes include a scholarly thesis and a practical booklet of coping resources for families.Read moreRead less
The etiology of social anxiety and its impact on development across the lifespan. Social anxiety is a distressing early-onset disorder often associated with other psychiatric conditions in later life. This study will extend our previous work that has identified factors associated with its onset. We propose that these factors and the social anxiety itself may disrupt psychosocial development, at the time of onset, and throughout the lifespan. We aim to investigate these innovative hypotheses thro ....The etiology of social anxiety and its impact on development across the lifespan. Social anxiety is a distressing early-onset disorder often associated with other psychiatric conditions in later life. This study will extend our previous work that has identified factors associated with its onset. We propose that these factors and the social anxiety itself may disrupt psychosocial development, at the time of onset, and throughout the lifespan. We aim to investigate these innovative hypotheses through a sequence of three studies, with adults, children and adolescents. The results will inform prevention and early intervention regimes, thereby reducing both the incidence of social anxiety and the burden of the disorder.Read moreRead less
Health and resilience in the preschool years: An innovative approach to early intervention. Given the prevalence of psychopathology in childhood, it is essential that we maximise the effectiveness of early intervention (EI). Drawing on theory and research highlighting the marked influence, on cognitive and socio-emotional development, of particular kinds of parent-child discussions about past experiences, this project aims to foster preschooler's achievement of key developmental tasks (emergent ....Health and resilience in the preschool years: An innovative approach to early intervention. Given the prevalence of psychopathology in childhood, it is essential that we maximise the effectiveness of early intervention (EI). Drawing on theory and research highlighting the marked influence, on cognitive and socio-emotional development, of particular kinds of parent-child discussions about past experiences, this project aims to foster preschooler's achievement of key developmental tasks (emergent literacy, emotion knowledge, attachment) by training parents and children in effective conversational styles. The research will (i) develop an innovative, theoretically-driven approach to EI, (ii) test this approach in clinical and nonclinical populations, and (iii) provide a strong test of social interaction theories of development.Read moreRead less
Linkage Infrastructure, Equipment And Facilities - Grant ID: LE0239381
Funder
Australian Research Council
Funding Amount
$100,000.00
Summary
Sleep-wake problems in people without primary sleep disorders. Portable sleep recording equipment will enable research to be conducted on sleep wake issues in people under a variety of conditions; such as those arising from substance intake (alcohol, nicotine, caffeine), life stage (menopause, elderly), developmental disorders (intellectual disability, autism, fragile X, ADHD) and other syndromes (chronic pain, depression). This is of particular significance given that sleep problems can cause ....Sleep-wake problems in people without primary sleep disorders. Portable sleep recording equipment will enable research to be conducted on sleep wake issues in people under a variety of conditions; such as those arising from substance intake (alcohol, nicotine, caffeine), life stage (menopause, elderly), developmental disorders (intellectual disability, autism, fragile X, ADHD) and other syndromes (chronic pain, depression). This is of particular significance given that sleep problems can cause daytime sleepiness, fatigue, poor vigilance, lack of attention, negative mood and poor memory. The establishment of this cross-institutional collaborative facility will permit ongoing scientific investigation of such sleep-wake issues with beneficial health and safety implications for community.Read moreRead less
Evaluation of a multidimensional cognitive enhancement training program for healthy older adults. The percentage of the Australian population aged 65 years and over is projected to increase considerably over the next 50 years. The increased number of older Australians will have a major economic cost in terms of income support and the provision of health services. It is of high socioeconomic importance, therefore, to promote functional independence in this group. The implementation of cognitive e ....Evaluation of a multidimensional cognitive enhancement training program for healthy older adults. The percentage of the Australian population aged 65 years and over is projected to increase considerably over the next 50 years. The increased number of older Australians will have a major economic cost in terms of income support and the provision of health services. It is of high socioeconomic importance, therefore, to promote functional independence in this group. The implementation of cognitive enhancement programs that may slow age-related cognitive decline and, thereby, maximise quality of life and independence for a long as possible will have significant national benefit.Read moreRead less
Growing up too quickly? Body objectification in adolescent and pre-adolescent girls (teens and tweens). The premature sexualisation of girls is seen as a major public health issue in Australia by government, welfare agencies and the general public alike. While the sexually objectified presentation of children in the media is well documented and unarguable, the consequences for individual psychological well-being are not. The empirical data base provided by the present project will allow the ide ....Growing up too quickly? Body objectification in adolescent and pre-adolescent girls (teens and tweens). The premature sexualisation of girls is seen as a major public health issue in Australia by government, welfare agencies and the general public alike. While the sexually objectified presentation of children in the media is well documented and unarguable, the consequences for individual psychological well-being are not. The empirical data base provided by the present project will allow the identification of girls who might be particularly vulnerable (or resilient) to the effects of objectification and sexualization, as well as suitable targets for intervention. Thus the research seeks to contribute to the well-being of adolescent and pre-adolescent girls (National Research Priority No. 2).
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