Juvenile firelighters intervention program: Towards a best practice framework. Juvenile firelighting results in significant costs to life, property, and the environment. In Australia prevention programs are implemented by trained practitioners from fire services. This project examines the programs of urban, regional and rural fire authorities throughout Australia and focuses, using case study methodology, on the first Australian program, the JFAIP. JFAIP developments will be tracked over time an ....Juvenile firelighters intervention program: Towards a best practice framework. Juvenile firelighting results in significant costs to life, property, and the environment. In Australia prevention programs are implemented by trained practitioners from fire services. This project examines the programs of urban, regional and rural fire authorities throughout Australia and focuses, using case study methodology, on the first Australian program, the JFAIP. JFAIP developments will be tracked over time and place, with alternative theories for the program's impact and effectiveness tested. Validity will be assessed by triangulation of data from different sources. In this way, a framework of empirically-based best practice guidelines will be developed for future Australian programs and adaptations.Read moreRead less
Family Violence and Problem Gambling in Help-Seeking Populations: Prevalence, Comorbidity, Impact and Coping. The impetus for the current proposal emerged from concern expressed by the Partner Organisations (service providers) regarding the high levels of co-occurrence of problem gambling and family violence reported by their service users. The primary expected national benefits include informing the development of effective screening protocols at the Partner Organisations and other problem-spec ....Family Violence and Problem Gambling in Help-Seeking Populations: Prevalence, Comorbidity, Impact and Coping. The impetus for the current proposal emerged from concern expressed by the Partner Organisations (service providers) regarding the high levels of co-occurrence of problem gambling and family violence reported by their service users. The primary expected national benefits include informing the development of effective screening protocols at the Partner Organisations and other problem-specific community-based services. It will provide an evidence base to assist these organisations to design effective prevention programs and innovative and integrated individual and family services to reduce family impacts and enhance family coping. The project will contribute to the national priority area of promoting and maintaining good health.Read moreRead less
Increasing organisational capacity of community residential units to facilitate ageing in place for people with intellectual disability. Unique challenges face the disability, aged care and health sectors because of the increased life expectancy of people with life-long intellectual disability (ID) and the likelihood of their premature ageing. Although this group is recognised by Federal and State governments as requiring specific and special service arrangements, little is known about adapting ....Increasing organisational capacity of community residential units to facilitate ageing in place for people with intellectual disability. Unique challenges face the disability, aged care and health sectors because of the increased life expectancy of people with life-long intellectual disability (ID) and the likelihood of their premature ageing. Although this group is recognised by Federal and State governments as requiring specific and special service arrangements, little is known about adapting disability and aged care services to their needs. This research will inform the development of policy and programs in the disability, aged care, and health sectors. The research aims to improve the capacity of disability group homes to respond to the health and ageing issues of older people with ID,to improve their quality of life.Read moreRead less
The production, use and effect of social work research. This project aims to reform social work research to improve the quality and effectiveness of human services. The human services industry is vital to many people’s quality of life, but lacks innovation and struggles to demonstrate its effectiveness. Crucially for social work, research expands thinking about how to respond to social disadvantage. This project intends to examine the scope and quality of Australian social work research in child ....The production, use and effect of social work research. This project aims to reform social work research to improve the quality and effectiveness of human services. The human services industry is vital to many people’s quality of life, but lacks innovation and struggles to demonstrate its effectiveness. Crucially for social work, research expands thinking about how to respond to social disadvantage. This project intends to examine the scope and quality of Australian social work research in child protection, disability services, and aged care; assess the use of this research to the human services sector and its effect on generating innovation; and develop strategies to advance the production, uptake, and effect of social work research.Read moreRead less
Enabling engagement and inclusion: organisational factors that embed active support in accommodation services for people with intellectual disability. The study will investigate the processes and structures necessary to ensure frontline staff deliver high quality support to people with intellectual disability, which enables them to engage in meaningful activity. This knowledge will inform disability service organisation processes and provide indicators of structures necessary for effective servi ....Enabling engagement and inclusion: organisational factors that embed active support in accommodation services for people with intellectual disability. The study will investigate the processes and structures necessary to ensure frontline staff deliver high quality support to people with intellectual disability, which enables them to engage in meaningful activity. This knowledge will inform disability service organisation processes and provide indicators of structures necessary for effective services.Read moreRead less
Research Utilisation in Child Protection Policy: Understanding and Conceptualising the Role of Research in Social Policy Development. The findings of this project will have significant benefits for vulnerable children and families by enhancing the capacity for research-informed policy in child protection. In this way, the project will also have significant flow-on economic benefits for Local, State and Federal Governments by decreasing the social and economic costs associated with child abuse an ....Research Utilisation in Child Protection Policy: Understanding and Conceptualising the Role of Research in Social Policy Development. The findings of this project will have significant benefits for vulnerable children and families by enhancing the capacity for research-informed policy in child protection. In this way, the project will also have significant flow-on economic benefits for Local, State and Federal Governments by decreasing the social and economic costs associated with child abuse and neglect. Research funding will have a greater impact by the increased understanding this study will provide about how research can be more effectively used in policy.Read moreRead less
Strengthening Relationships for Young People in Residential Care. Young people in residential care face major challenges in forming positive relationships, many having experienced adults as a source of threat rather than safety. This project aims to investigate practices within therapeutic residential care that enable or limit young people’s identity formation, positive social connections, safety and wellbeing. This research will generate nuanced knowledge informing interpersonal and institution ....Strengthening Relationships for Young People in Residential Care. Young people in residential care face major challenges in forming positive relationships, many having experienced adults as a source of threat rather than safety. This project aims to investigate practices within therapeutic residential care that enable or limit young people’s identity formation, positive social connections, safety and wellbeing. This research will generate nuanced knowledge informing interpersonal and institutional change. Expected outcomes include improved approaches to therapeutic care and to methods for enabling the participation of young people in care in matters that may change their life trajectory on exiting care. Expected benefits include more responsive policies and frameworks for practice.Read moreRead less
COMMUNITY BASED COALITIONS FOR HEALTH, SAFETY AND WELLBEING: DEVELOPMENT OF A BEST PRACTICE MODEL. In recent years, governmental and non-governmental organisations have developed coalitions of professionals and community groups to advance health, safety and wellbeing. These coalitions in the fields of prevention, public health, community psychology and community development have to be evaluated and refined in order to maximize their potential. As a result, our project has two main aims: (1) To d ....COMMUNITY BASED COALITIONS FOR HEALTH, SAFETY AND WELLBEING: DEVELOPMENT OF A BEST PRACTICE MODEL. In recent years, governmental and non-governmental organisations have developed coalitions of professionals and community groups to advance health, safety and wellbeing. These coalitions in the fields of prevention, public health, community psychology and community development have to be evaluated and refined in order to maximize their potential. As a result, our project has two main aims: (1) To develop a framework for the evaluation of community-based coalitions for health, safety, and wellbeing, and (2) To develop a best-practice model for the effective creation and functioning of community-based coalitions for health, safety, and wellbeing.Read moreRead less
Developing child-centred family and community practice: Listening to boys aged 9-12 with behaviour problems about their social contexts and needs. Children's and family services seek to reduce risks to children and ensure their well-being through holistic, strengths-based, collaborative family and community practice. Yet services remain adult-centric; children are often seen as recipients rather than informants, as targets rather than shapers of change. This study with Anglicare Victoria will ex ....Developing child-centred family and community practice: Listening to boys aged 9-12 with behaviour problems about their social contexts and needs. Children's and family services seek to reduce risks to children and ensure their well-being through holistic, strengths-based, collaborative family and community practice. Yet services remain adult-centric; children are often seen as recipients rather than informants, as targets rather than shapers of change. This study with Anglicare Victoria will examine the contexts, content and effects of professional responses to boys aged 9-12 years with challenging, aggressive behaviour, chiefly through the voices of the boys themselves. Adapting participatory enquiry methods for an unusually young and troubled population, the study aims to better understand their experiences and also to demonstrate opportunities and methods for enhancing children's participation.Read moreRead less
SOCIAL WORK IN THE ENTERPRISE UNIVERSITY: A COMPARATIVE SURVEY OF AUSTRALIAN SOCIAL WORK EDUCATORS 1982 TO 2004. In an era when the nature of welfare practice and higher education are being radically transformed in a globalizing marketplace, the socio-demographic characteristics, education, research productivity and international linkages of Australian social work academics are of critical importance. This research proposes a national survey of current Australian social work educators in 2004, t ....SOCIAL WORK IN THE ENTERPRISE UNIVERSITY: A COMPARATIVE SURVEY OF AUSTRALIAN SOCIAL WORK EDUCATORS 1982 TO 2004. In an era when the nature of welfare practice and higher education are being radically transformed in a globalizing marketplace, the socio-demographic characteristics, education, research productivity and international linkages of Australian social work academics are of critical importance. This research proposes a national survey of current Australian social work educators in 2004, the results of which will be compared with a baseline survey carried out in 1982, and with other contemporary studies of Australian academics. Fifty in-depth interviews with a stratified sample of respondents will then explore key themes in the changing political eocnomy of the professions in their adaptation to the shifting higher education and community service environment.Read moreRead less