A spatially sensitive approach to understanding the impact of public expenditure on social exclusion. This project seeks to assess the effectiveness of public expenditure in reducing social exclusion. It aims to develop innovative new forms of quantitative modelling using geographical information systems (GIS) to interrogate of the impact of government expenditure on social outcomes. The project will benchmark and measure the impact of public expenditure on social exclusion in the region of Nort ....A spatially sensitive approach to understanding the impact of public expenditure on social exclusion. This project seeks to assess the effectiveness of public expenditure in reducing social exclusion. It aims to develop innovative new forms of quantitative modelling using geographical information systems (GIS) to interrogate of the impact of government expenditure on social outcomes. The project will benchmark and measure the impact of public expenditure on social exclusion in the region of Northern Adelaide. The project will seek to develop new GIS technologies that for the first time will enable policy makers to allocate resources according to directly measurable needs and to evaluate the effectiveness of resource allocation in a small area.Read moreRead less
Involving children in social research: balancing the risks and benefits. There is a growing consensus that children's involvement in social research is important, but considerable uncertainty remains around children's inclusion in research on 'sensitive' issues, reflecting concerns about how to balance children's protection with their participation. Key to this are deeply embedded assumptions and beliefs about children and childhood, especially concerning notions of capacity, agency, vulnerabili ....Involving children in social research: balancing the risks and benefits. There is a growing consensus that children's involvement in social research is important, but considerable uncertainty remains around children's inclusion in research on 'sensitive' issues, reflecting concerns about how to balance children's protection with their participation. Key to this are deeply embedded assumptions and beliefs about children and childhood, especially concerning notions of capacity, agency, vulnerability, dependency and the like. This project aims to better understand and address the tensions between the protection of children and their participation in research, and to explore how ethics committees, parents, other gatekeepers and children themselves manage and navigate these tensions.Read moreRead less
Problem gambling: development and application of a new conceptual framework for aetiology and treatment. Around 470,000 Australians (3.3% of the adult population) are estimated to have 'significant' or 'severe' gambling problems. This project responds to the call for a new framework for theorising and researching problem gambling (Productivity Commission, 1999). Currently, the research literature is characterised by disagreement about definition, causes, and treatment. At the community level, di ....Problem gambling: development and application of a new conceptual framework for aetiology and treatment. Around 470,000 Australians (3.3% of the adult population) are estimated to have 'significant' or 'severe' gambling problems. This project responds to the call for a new framework for theorising and researching problem gambling (Productivity Commission, 1999). Currently, the research literature is characterised by disagreement about definition, causes, and treatment. At the community level, different stakeholder constructions of problem gambling have deadlocked debate. There is a clear need to re-think existing approaches. This project applies an innovative, social-scientific methodology specifically designed to analyse complex, real-world social problems in order to develop a new conceptual framework for understanding and treating problem gambling.Read moreRead less
Food/body encounters: New approaches and alternative solutions to obesity prevention and policy. There is growing recognition of the need for new ways to tackle the obesity problem, and for forms of intervention that move beyond the limitations of individual behavioural changes. This project provides a paradigm for re-orientating how we have come to know obesity by investigating the cultural and institutional processes that shape everyday food and activity practices. Understanding and intervenin ....Food/body encounters: New approaches and alternative solutions to obesity prevention and policy. There is growing recognition of the need for new ways to tackle the obesity problem, and for forms of intervention that move beyond the limitations of individual behavioural changes. This project provides a paradigm for re-orientating how we have come to know obesity by investigating the cultural and institutional processes that shape everyday food and activity practices. Understanding and intervening in these dynamics of social practice are central to the challenges of reversing trends in the prevalence of obesity.Read moreRead less
A 140,000 year insight into the imprint of climate and humans on Australia. Before the arrival of Europeans, two events shaped Australia's current landscapes and biota more than any others: climate change during the glacial cycle and the arrival of humans on the continent. However, the full scale of these events is not well understood. High resolution analyses of two continuous 140 000 year old sediment deposits will be used in this project to fill this void and answer fundamental questions abou ....A 140,000 year insight into the imprint of climate and humans on Australia. Before the arrival of Europeans, two events shaped Australia's current landscapes and biota more than any others: climate change during the glacial cycle and the arrival of humans on the continent. However, the full scale of these events is not well understood. High resolution analyses of two continuous 140 000 year old sediment deposits will be used in this project to fill this void and answer fundamental questions about how current Australian environments came to be.Read moreRead less
An ethnographic study of obesity risk in a disadvantaged community. This project will investigate how families who are seen as ‘at risk’ of developing obesity respond to Australia's largest obesity intervention, and if messages about healthy eating and increased physical activity are acted upon. Information gathered will provide an important context for what works (and doesn’t work) in obesity intervention.
Stopping domestic violence in urban and rural areas: evaluating and improving the effectiveness of domestic violence perpetrator programs. Domestic violence affects up to 36% of women (Mouzos et.al 2004). Its annual economic cost is $8.1b (Access Economics 2004). In 66% of cases children are present (Bagshaw et.al 1999). Effects on women and children are poor mental health, homelessness and impaired work/education performance (VicHealth 2004). As male perpetrators tend to be serial offenders (Ha ....Stopping domestic violence in urban and rural areas: evaluating and improving the effectiveness of domestic violence perpetrator programs. Domestic violence affects up to 36% of women (Mouzos et.al 2004). Its annual economic cost is $8.1b (Access Economics 2004). In 66% of cases children are present (Bagshaw et.al 1999). Effects on women and children are poor mental health, homelessness and impaired work/education performance (VicHealth 2004). As male perpetrators tend to be serial offenders (Hansen et al 2004), there are Australian programs to stop the violence. There are limited and contentious findings about their value and no published evaluation of programs in rural Australia. This research addresses these significant knowledge gaps and is nationally beneficial as the knowledge can ultimately reduce domestic violence prevalence.Read moreRead less
Australian family diversity: Individual experiences and public attitudes. Whilst Australian families continue to diversify, public perceptions and policies related to families appear entrenched in a normative understanding of family. This project will provide a genealogy of public and policy accounts of Australian families, map public perceptions of a diverse range of family structures and modes of family formation, and identify how differing cohorts of Australian families talk about their famil ....Australian family diversity: Individual experiences and public attitudes. Whilst Australian families continue to diversify, public perceptions and policies related to families appear entrenched in a normative understanding of family. This project will provide a genealogy of public and policy accounts of Australian families, map public perceptions of a diverse range of family structures and modes of family formation, and identify how differing cohorts of Australian families talk about their families. Together, these strands will produce a unified body of knowledge about Australian families that will allow for the identification of factors influencing public perceptions, and thus the development of policy initiatives aimed at recognising family diversity and challenging social norms.Read moreRead less
Linkage Infrastructure, Equipment And Facilities - Grant ID: LE0668334
Funder
Australian Research Council
Funding Amount
$158,844.00
Summary
Australian Policy Online Development Project. Australian Policy Online provides easy access to a large selection of research reports, papers and articles from centres and institutes throughout Australia. In 2006, the scope of APO's listings and its related research resources will be significantly broadened, increasing the value of the site to its users, including researchers in universities and the public service, journalists, teachers and students. Australia's relations with its neighbours in S ....Australian Policy Online Development Project. Australian Policy Online provides easy access to a large selection of research reports, papers and articles from centres and institutes throughout Australia. In 2006, the scope of APO's listings and its related research resources will be significantly broadened, increasing the value of the site to its users, including researchers in universities and the public service, journalists, teachers and students. Australia's relations with its neighbours in Southeast Asia will be a particular focus of this expansion, and the APO Briefings series of short, topical books will provide an additional, innovative publishing option for researchers. Read moreRead less
Acceptability of reclaimed water use in urban Australia: Establishing a baseline and variations based on experience, consultation and trust. Under current, prolonged drought conditions, with the reappearance of water restrictions in major cities, the widely identified need for research into social factors that affect public acceptance of water reuse is increasingly urgent. This project will produce national baseline data on the public acceptability of water reuse, and its predictors. This benc ....Acceptability of reclaimed water use in urban Australia: Establishing a baseline and variations based on experience, consultation and trust. Under current, prolonged drought conditions, with the reappearance of water restrictions in major cities, the widely identified need for research into social factors that affect public acceptance of water reuse is increasingly urgent. This project will produce national baseline data on the public acceptability of water reuse, and its predictors. This benchmark data will be compared with results from case studies of implemented or mooted water reuse projects, focusing on the impact of differing public consultation and other implementation processes in public acceptance of water reuse. The role of risk perceptions and trust in relevant authorities will be explored.Read moreRead less