Improving academic outcomes by moderating anxiety in children with autism. The project aims to investigate links between anxiety and academic enablers for children with autism. As a group, these children are currently achieving at lower rates than their peers, with implications for their future social and economic wellbeing. Effective interventions to improve educational outcomes are lacking. This project will investigate how anxiety, a commonly occurring condition in autism, impacts attitudes a ....Improving academic outcomes by moderating anxiety in children with autism. The project aims to investigate links between anxiety and academic enablers for children with autism. As a group, these children are currently achieving at lower rates than their peers, with implications for their future social and economic wellbeing. Effective interventions to improve educational outcomes are lacking. This project will investigate how anxiety, a commonly occurring condition in autism, impacts attitudes and behaviours that facilitate students’ participation in and ability to benefit from academic instruction in the classroom. Findings are intended to provide an evidence base for the development of an intervention suitable for use by service providers to increase academic achievement in children with autism.Read moreRead less
Responding to the rural skills crisis: Modelling volunteer motivations and incentives to attract retired/semi-retired professionals to volunteer in rural areas. This project contributes directly to Promoting and Maintaining Good Health: Ageing well, ageing productively by placing a high value on the skills of older Australians and encouraging them to remain productive into retirement by sharing these skills. This project will also strengthen the social and economic fabric of rural communities by ....Responding to the rural skills crisis: Modelling volunteer motivations and incentives to attract retired/semi-retired professionals to volunteer in rural areas. This project contributes directly to Promoting and Maintaining Good Health: Ageing well, ageing productively by placing a high value on the skills of older Australians and encouraging them to remain productive into retirement by sharing these skills. This project will also strengthen the social and economic fabric of rural communities by addressing the identified national priority area of skills shortages in rural areas by providing rural councils with a means to access skilled professionals to assist them in enhancing their economic and social sustainability. Further, use of sound, well-tested psychological theories of individual decision making will enhance the validity and applicability of the model.Read moreRead less
Understanding reactions to diversity initiatives in organizations: An intergroup perspective. Current policy and legislation promote diversity in organizations,
however employees often react negatively to diversity initiatives
that assist specific groups (e.g., women). Explanations attributing
negativity to individual factors (e.g., self interest) or to broad
organizational culture are limited. Diversity initiatives highlight
differences between the beneficiary and non-beneficiary group(s) ....Understanding reactions to diversity initiatives in organizations: An intergroup perspective. Current policy and legislation promote diversity in organizations,
however employees often react negatively to diversity initiatives
that assist specific groups (e.g., women). Explanations attributing
negativity to individual factors (e.g., self interest) or to broad
organizational culture are limited. Diversity initiatives highlight
differences between the beneficiary and non-beneficiary group(s) and
a comprehensive model should incorporate an intergroup perspective.
It should also recognise the legitimising role of justice-based
concerns. In testing such a model, this project will contribute to
theories of intergroup relations and their interplay with social
policy, and to the development of strategies to manage workplace
diversity.
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Responding to self-conceptual uncertainty: Orthodoxy, diversity, and social identity in groups and society. Some groups in society are ethnocentric and xenophobic, embracing orthodoxy, homogeneity and hierarchy. They suppress diversity and dissent. Other groups embrace diversity, and are wary of homogeneity and hierarchy. Project explores the social psychology of identity and group membership, to answer the question why some groups are orthodox whereas others are diverse. Uncertainty about one's ....Responding to self-conceptual uncertainty: Orthodoxy, diversity, and social identity in groups and society. Some groups in society are ethnocentric and xenophobic, embracing orthodoxy, homogeneity and hierarchy. They suppress diversity and dissent. Other groups embrace diversity, and are wary of homogeneity and hierarchy. Project explores the social psychology of identity and group membership, to answer the question why some groups are orthodox whereas others are diverse. Uncertainty about one's group identity is aversive; automatically motivating identification with groups that are distinct entities with sharp boundaries, consensual properties, and homogeneous membership. However, internally diverse groups can also be distinct (often better functioning) entities. Buffering of automatic reactions to uncertainty may favour diverse over orthodox groups.Read moreRead less
The impact of emotional intelligence and styles of conflict resolution on performance in high and low stress situations. Research from 1980 reveals that organizations in Australia do not deal well with conflict (Hollis & Cunnington, 1980). Recent research has revealed similiar shortcomings within Australian organisations (Lewis et al., 1997). Improving the effectiveness of individuals in resolving conflict is vital for organisational effectiveness in both the private and public sectors. In par ....The impact of emotional intelligence and styles of conflict resolution on performance in high and low stress situations. Research from 1980 reveals that organizations in Australia do not deal well with conflict (Hollis & Cunnington, 1980). Recent research has revealed similiar shortcomings within Australian organisations (Lewis et al., 1997). Improving the effectiveness of individuals in resolving conflict is vital for organisational effectiveness in both the private and public sectors. In particular, functional conflict can contribute to organisational innovation, creativity and productivity. The understanding gained about the links between emotions and conflict resolution in this research will assist in identifying and improving the skills that contribute to better conflict resolution and consequentially better performance within organisations.Read moreRead less
Newcomer socialisation: Examining the processes predicting changes in organisational identification over time. The project examines factors that maximise the retention of new employees and optimise their well-being. It seeks to understand factors in the organisational socialisation process that lead to an increase in organisational identification and an optimal utilisation of employees' skills and capacities. The project contributes to efforts designed to promote and maintain good health and str ....Newcomer socialisation: Examining the processes predicting changes in organisational identification over time. The project examines factors that maximise the retention of new employees and optimise their well-being. It seeks to understand factors in the organisational socialisation process that lead to an increase in organisational identification and an optimal utilisation of employees' skills and capacities. The project contributes to efforts designed to promote and maintain good health and strenghten Australia's social and economic fabric. Read moreRead less
Improving Team Performance: The Role of Emotional Intelligence in Team Training. Increasingly organisations are searching for ways of improving team performance. Recent research shows that emotions play a central role in increasing organisational commitment and performance. In particular, the newly developed notion of emotional intelligence is promoted as a method of enhancing performance however these claims often lack empirical support. In this project, the role of emotions in team-based wor ....Improving Team Performance: The Role of Emotional Intelligence in Team Training. Increasingly organisations are searching for ways of improving team performance. Recent research shows that emotions play a central role in increasing organisational commitment and performance. In particular, the newly developed notion of emotional intelligence is promoted as a method of enhancing performance however these claims often lack empirical support. In this project, the role of emotions in team-based work settings will be examined, together with the impact of emotions on performance. The study will assess interventions designed to assist employees in public and private organisations to gain the necessary emotion-based skills to improve their performance in teams.Read moreRead less
A framework for adapting child interview protocols in complex cases. This project aims to develop–in collaboration with Aboriginal and other industry co-researchers–a ‘how to’ framework for effectively adapting standard child abuse interview protocols to accommodate the complexities that create barriers to disclosure. Complex cases necessitate interview adaption, but it requires systematic guidance and an interdisciplinary, practitioner-driven approach to be effective. This innovative framework ....A framework for adapting child interview protocols in complex cases. This project aims to develop–in collaboration with Aboriginal and other industry co-researchers–a ‘how to’ framework for effectively adapting standard child abuse interview protocols to accommodate the complexities that create barriers to disclosure. Complex cases necessitate interview adaption, but it requires systematic guidance and an interdisciplinary, practitioner-driven approach to be effective. This innovative framework is expected to have long-term benefits for services that support children’s well-being, through improvements in the quality of evidence underpinning decisions. By enhancing interviewer capability, there will also be fewer cases prematurely exiting the justice system before forensic interview or investigation.Read moreRead less
Self-regulation in very low birthweight/very preterm 2 and 4 year olds: A comparison study. Increasing numbers of extremely low birthweight children are surviving, and the majority go on to have learning problems. The difficulties these children experience and the resources that are devoted to the task of improving their academic skills have personal, social and economic costs. This project will assist in the identification of areas of difficulty that contribute to their problems in learning, es ....Self-regulation in very low birthweight/very preterm 2 and 4 year olds: A comparison study. Increasing numbers of extremely low birthweight children are surviving, and the majority go on to have learning problems. The difficulties these children experience and the resources that are devoted to the task of improving their academic skills have personal, social and economic costs. This project will assist in the identification of areas of difficulty that contribute to their problems in learning, essential for developing effective interventions. Success will bring substantial benefits at both the level of the individual and of society. The study will be undertaken by a PhD candidate as part of a multidisciplinary team, an experience that will provide an exceptional training in research with vulnerable children.Read moreRead less
The development of the capacity to delay gratification in children with an intellectual disability. Individuals with intellectual disability have difficulty managing their behaviour when they need to wait for a goal, particularly when there are other temptations. This is detrimental to their development, as the capacity to delay gratification has been shown to be important for later developmental outcomes, such as academic achievement, personal relationships and emotional competence. In the fi ....The development of the capacity to delay gratification in children with an intellectual disability. Individuals with intellectual disability have difficulty managing their behaviour when they need to wait for a goal, particularly when there are other temptations. This is detrimental to their development, as the capacity to delay gratification has been shown to be important for later developmental outcomes, such as academic achievement, personal relationships and emotional competence. In the first phase the proposed study will investigate factors thought to contribute to this difficulty, including language ability, use of appropriate strategies and maternal support. The second phase will develop, implement and evaluate a parent training program aimed at increasing children's capacity to delay gratification. Read moreRead less