Self-control and pathologies of agency. This project will develop a philosophically and scientifically sophisticated account of the nature of self-control. This account will provide tools for allocating responsibility for failures of self-control and will contribute to the development of means for enhancing it, thereby aiding in addressing major social problems.
The role of reward expectancy and reward availability in appetitive motivation. This project will investigate the learning processes that help regulate our desire for rewards such as food and drugs and our decisions about when to pursue those rewards. The results will have implications for our understanding of normal reward motivation as well as interventions for maladaptive behaviours such as gambling and drug-taking.
Cognitive models of decision making in clinical populations. This cognitive science project aims to develop new methods for mathematical modelling of decision making, and to apply these methods to study decision making in people with problem drug use. Precise measures of the thought processes underlying decision making in drug users will help to direct efforts to prevent and treat drug problems.
Alcohol advertising to women in Australia. Young Australian women are drinking more and drinking in more harmful ways. At the same time, advertisers are using new media (such as social network sites) and messages (such as empowerment) to advertise alcohol to women. Using a combination of quantitative, qualitative and experimental methods, this project will explore how alcohol is advertised to Australian women (in both traditional and new media), and how this influences their alcohol-related atti ....Alcohol advertising to women in Australia. Young Australian women are drinking more and drinking in more harmful ways. At the same time, advertisers are using new media (such as social network sites) and messages (such as empowerment) to advertise alcohol to women. Using a combination of quantitative, qualitative and experimental methods, this project will explore how alcohol is advertised to Australian women (in both traditional and new media), and how this influences their alcohol-related attitudes and behaviours. Answering these questions is expected to enable development of recommendations for regulation of alcohol advertising messages, creation of counter-advertising/social marketing messages, and production of alcohol advertising literacy programs for secondary and tertiary students.Read moreRead less
Discovery Early Career Researcher Award - Grant ID: DE180100016
Funder
Australian Research Council
Funding Amount
$371,234.00
Summary
Hidden harm: Everyday alcohol consumption in Australian homes. This project aims to investigate how family and other factors in the home environment affect alcohol consumption and associated social harms. This is important because nearly two-thirds of Australian alcohol consumption occurs in the drinker’s own home but studies of drinking contexts have mostly focused on drinking on licensed premises. The project will use four diverse datasets to analyse individual and interactional patterns of dr ....Hidden harm: Everyday alcohol consumption in Australian homes. This project aims to investigate how family and other factors in the home environment affect alcohol consumption and associated social harms. This is important because nearly two-thirds of Australian alcohol consumption occurs in the drinker’s own home but studies of drinking contexts have mostly focused on drinking on licensed premises. The project will use four diverse datasets to analyse individual and interactional patterns of drinking in the home. Potential intervention points and policy measures to reduce harms from drinking will be developed from the project’s analysis. This project has the potential to reduce social and violence-related harms from alcohol consumption.Read moreRead less
Uncertainty and response control in the prefrontal cortex. This project will identify how complex behaviours come to be performed habitually. It is proposed that statistical certainty in the learning environment is a key determinant of automatic behaviour, that detection of uncertainty can restore voluntary control of behaviour and that this is an important function of the prefrontal cortex of the brain.
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
A community-based approach to the problem of underage drinking. This project will aim to reduce the frequency and amount of alcohol consumption, and alcohol-related harms, among young people aged 12-17 years by addressing social norms regarding underage alcohol consumption. Using a multi-component intervention it will engage the Illawarra community in strategies to encourage and empower young people not to drink.
Into the thirties: Persistence and social consequences of risky drinking. The aim of this project is to investigate the social contexts, roles and consequences of problematic alcohol use in adults aged 30, using long term longitudinal resources able to observe the development and corollary of alcohol use over time. It is posited that such drinkers entering their third decade of life persist in levels of problematic alcohol use typically associated with younger ages and that this leads to social ....Into the thirties: Persistence and social consequences of risky drinking. The aim of this project is to investigate the social contexts, roles and consequences of problematic alcohol use in adults aged 30, using long term longitudinal resources able to observe the development and corollary of alcohol use over time. It is posited that such drinkers entering their third decade of life persist in levels of problematic alcohol use typically associated with younger ages and that this leads to social consequences, such as gender specific risks, relationship conflicts and more severe long term effects. Outcomes from this project are expected to inform the generation of relevant prevention and intervention strategies aimed to address problem drinking in adult Australians.Read moreRead less
Drug using behaviours and beliefs, and associated harms, among gay and bisexual men. Gay and bisexual men have high rates of drug use. This cohort study will contribute to Australia’s response to drug use by identifying: risk factors for, and prevalence and incidence of, drug use and associated harms within this high risk population; the role of gay community norms in individuals' beliefs about and motivations for drug use; and, implications for HIV and HCV infection. The findings will help to b ....Drug using behaviours and beliefs, and associated harms, among gay and bisexual men. Gay and bisexual men have high rates of drug use. This cohort study will contribute to Australia’s response to drug use by identifying: risk factors for, and prevalence and incidence of, drug use and associated harms within this high risk population; the role of gay community norms in individuals' beliefs about and motivations for drug use; and, implications for HIV and HCV infection. The findings will help to better target, educate and support those at risk of drug use and associated harms. Read moreRead less