Protect, prepare and engage: Does extracurricular activity participation offer sustained benefits for youth? Organized extracurricular activities such as sport and music have the potential to promote healthy development and to reduce the levels of risk behaviours in teenagers. However, current research evidence, often based on middle-class youth in the US, is inadequate for making policy recommendations for improvement to the after-school lives of Australian youth. This study will offer insight ....Protect, prepare and engage: Does extracurricular activity participation offer sustained benefits for youth? Organized extracurricular activities such as sport and music have the potential to promote healthy development and to reduce the levels of risk behaviours in teenagers. However, current research evidence, often based on middle-class youth in the US, is inadequate for making policy recommendations for improvement to the after-school lives of Australian youth. This study will offer insight into the long-term benefits of making a diverse selection of organised activities available to Australian teenagers, and will improve our understanding of which aspects of participation are most likely to enhance their social and educational opportunities.Read moreRead less
The role of extracurricular activity participation in promoting healthy development of Australian youth. Organized extracurricular activities such as sport and art have the potential for promoting healthy development and reducing the risks faced by teenagers. However, current research evidence, often based on middle-class youth in the US, is inadequate for making policy recommendations for improvement to the after-school lives of Australian youth. This study will offer insight into the importanc ....The role of extracurricular activity participation in promoting healthy development of Australian youth. Organized extracurricular activities such as sport and art have the potential for promoting healthy development and reducing the risks faced by teenagers. However, current research evidence, often based on middle-class youth in the US, is inadequate for making policy recommendations for improvement to the after-school lives of Australian youth. This study will offer insight into the importance of making a diverse selection of organized activities available to Australian teenagers, and will improve our understanding of which aspects of participation are most likely to enhance their social and educational opportunities.Read moreRead less
The effects of maternal attachment, marital satisfaction and sensitivity to infants on infants attachment and adjustment: A longitudinal-structural equation study. This study will examine how family and attachment factors effect the adjustment of infant at 24 months of age. A longitudinal study, using structural equation method, will examine how maternal attachment and marital satisfaction when infants are 4 months of age will effect maternal parenting behaviors two months later, and how all thr ....The effects of maternal attachment, marital satisfaction and sensitivity to infants on infants attachment and adjustment: A longitudinal-structural equation study. This study will examine how family and attachment factors effect the adjustment of infant at 24 months of age. A longitudinal study, using structural equation method, will examine how maternal attachment and marital satisfaction when infants are 4 months of age will effect maternal parenting behaviors two months later, and how all three of these measures will effect infant attachment 6 months later. It will then examine how all four of these measures will effect the adjustment of infants 12 months later. The study will have important implications for early intervention and prevention of psychological problems in infants and children.Read moreRead less
Normative study of a checklist of emotional and behavioural disturbance in adults with intellectual disability. People with intellectual disability (ID) are three times more likely to suffer mental illness than the general community, making this a bigger problem than schizophrenia. They are a great burden to their carers and cost to the community but their mental health problems remain largely untreated. This study aims to conduct the largest and most comprehensive survey of the mental health ....Normative study of a checklist of emotional and behavioural disturbance in adults with intellectual disability. People with intellectual disability (ID) are three times more likely to suffer mental illness than the general community, making this a bigger problem than schizophrenia. They are a great burden to their carers and cost to the community but their mental health problems remain largely untreated. This study aims to conduct the largest and most comprehensive survey of the mental health of adults with ID that has been undertaken internationally to date. The population will cover the age span of late adolescence (16 years) through the transition to adult life then through to the elderly. The research will establish the prevalence and nature of mental illness and potential risk factors in a large representative population of adults with ID.Read moreRead less
A biopsychosocial model of exercise dependence, steroid use and disordered eating among adolescent boys. Recent evidence suggests that hazardous body change strategies adopted by adolescent boys are a major problem. This study validates a biopsychosocial framework to explain the development of exercise dependence, steroid and food supplement use, and disordered eating among at risk adolescent boys. A longitudinal experimental design will be employed. Late maturing boys, who are also less popular ....A biopsychosocial model of exercise dependence, steroid use and disordered eating among adolescent boys. Recent evidence suggests that hazardous body change strategies adopted by adolescent boys are a major problem. This study validates a biopsychosocial framework to explain the development of exercise dependence, steroid and food supplement use, and disordered eating among at risk adolescent boys. A longitudinal experimental design will be employed. Late maturing boys, who are also less popular with peers, are expected to demonstrate high body dissatisfaction, low self-esteem and high negative affect and maladaptive body change strategies. The result of this study will inform treatment programs for these behaviours.Read moreRead less
Redefining bullying and adjustment to school: Japanese and Australian. School violence is an all too prevalent physically, socially, and psychologically damaging aspect of the everyday life of a significant portion of school students around the world. The aim of this collaborative Linkage Award is to compare Australian and Japanese school students's understanding of bullying, its stability over time and its association with school adjustment. This comparative research breaks new ground in inve ....Redefining bullying and adjustment to school: Japanese and Australian. School violence is an all too prevalent physically, socially, and psychologically damaging aspect of the everyday life of a significant portion of school students around the world. The aim of this collaborative Linkage Award is to compare Australian and Japanese school students's understanding of bullying, its stability over time and its association with school adjustment. This comparative research breaks new ground in investigating the particularly damaging form of bullying known as indirect/relational bullying. The research is part of a larger international consortium including China, Canada and Korea. The outcomes from this research will be reported back to the consortium, presented at international conferences , published and used to inform school intervention programsRead moreRead less
Antisocial behaviour in young Australian adults: Social and economic influences. Antisocial behaviour is prevalent in Australia and imposes large social and economic costs. Currently, much of the crime prevention research has been conducted overseas. The findings of this study will provide important insights into the development of antisocial behaviour from childhood and adolescence through into young adulthood in the Australian context. By better understanding how factors such as unemployment, ....Antisocial behaviour in young Australian adults: Social and economic influences. Antisocial behaviour is prevalent in Australia and imposes large social and economic costs. Currently, much of the crime prevention research has been conducted overseas. The findings of this study will provide important insights into the development of antisocial behaviour from childhood and adolescence through into young adulthood in the Australian context. By better understanding how factors such as unemployment, alcohol-related entertainment, and sporting participation influence antisocial behaviour in young adulthood, prevention and early intervention programs can be developed to target specific subgroups. In this way spending on criminal justice systems can be reduced and a safer, more harmonious community can be fostered.Read moreRead less
Investigating positive developmental transitions in emerging adulthood within the Australian Temperament Project cohort: Models, temporal patterns and predictors. Follow-up of the Australian Temperament Project (ATP) cohort provides a rare opportunity for robust investigation of positive development in emerging adulthood. High rates of risk taking and health disruption characterise this period. Identification of successful personal and social adjustment characteristics will reveal the potential ....Investigating positive developmental transitions in emerging adulthood within the Australian Temperament Project cohort: Models, temporal patterns and predictors. Follow-up of the Australian Temperament Project (ATP) cohort provides a rare opportunity for robust investigation of positive development in emerging adulthood. High rates of risk taking and health disruption characterise this period. Identification of successful personal and social adjustment characteristics will reveal the potential for positive development to prevent or ameliorate adjustment difficulties. Analysis of the extensive ATP dataset will identify child and adolescent predictors of positive development. The resulting knowledge of the role of earlier life characteristics and circumstances for positive development can help frame new health promotion initiatives. The study will also advance theory by developing an integrated model of positive development.Read moreRead less
What factors influence the development of antisocial behaviour in Australian adolescents? Antisocial behaviour is prevalent in Australia and imposes large social and economic costs on our communities. Once entrenched, antisocial behaviour and related problems often continue throughout life. Currently, much of the research in this area has been conducted overseas. The findings of this study will provide important insights into the development of antisocial behaviour from childhood to adolescence ....What factors influence the development of antisocial behaviour in Australian adolescents? Antisocial behaviour is prevalent in Australia and imposes large social and economic costs on our communities. Once entrenched, antisocial behaviour and related problems often continue throughout life. Currently, much of the research in this area has been conducted overseas. The findings of this study will provide important insights into the development of antisocial behaviour from childhood to adolescence in the Australian context. By better understanding how antisocial behaviour develops, prevention and early intervention programs can be developed to target specific subgroups. In this way spending on juvenile and adult criminal justice systems can be reduced and a safer, more harmonious community can be fostered.Read moreRead less
Peer Rejection and the Maladaptive Social Behaviour of Children and Adolescents. Research indicates that peer rejection has serious negative effects on child and adolescent victims. However, little research has addressed the likelihood that peer rejection also has negative consequences for others in the social environment, through its instigation of maladaptive social behaviours such as bullying and ethnic prejudice. Given the incidence of the latter behaviours in primary and secondary schools, ....Peer Rejection and the Maladaptive Social Behaviour of Children and Adolescents. Research indicates that peer rejection has serious negative effects on child and adolescent victims. However, little research has addressed the likelihood that peer rejection also has negative consequences for others in the social environment, through its instigation of maladaptive social behaviours such as bullying and ethnic prejudice. Given the incidence of the latter behaviours in primary and secondary schools, the aim of this project is to conduct a program of research to test an integrative model of the impact of peer rejection on the maladaptive social behaviours of children and adolescents, with a particular focus on ethnic prejudice and bullying.Read moreRead less