Men's perceptions of health: Implications for the delivery of health education programs in Victoria
- Authors: Gracie, Neil
- Date: 2009
- Type: Text , Thesis , PhD
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- Description: The key issue of concern behind this study was that there have been recent concerns about the gender-based discrepancies in morbidity and mortality rates amongst men and the scant attention generally held by Australian men towards their own health and well-being ... the models of education that have emerged from this research as being appropriate for health delivery advice to urban, rural and disenfranchised men, suggest effective ways to reach out to Australian males.
- Description: Doctor of Education
Model free operational space control of mechanical manipulators
- Authors: Saleem, Muhammad Saad
- Date: 2009
- Type: Text , Thesis , PhD
- Full Text:
- Description: Doctor of Philosophy
Radical Tasmania: Rebellion, reaction and resistance: A thesis in creative nonfiction
- Authors: Hodder, Robert
- Date: 2009
- Type: Text , Thesis , PhD
- Full Text:
- Description: Radical Tasmania is a political history of radicals in Tasmania theorised and narrated in creative nonfiction.
- Description: Doctor of Philosophy
Resistance training efficiency : The efficacy of paired sets
- Authors: Robbins, Daniel
- Date: 2009
- Type: Text , Thesis , PhD
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- Description: A paired set (PS) refers to the coupling of exercises targeting agonist-antagonist muscle groups and performed coincidentally. Although PS have been prescribed by strength and conditioning coaches as a means of developing strength and power, scientific research investigating their efficacy is limited. The aim of this research was to investigate not only the efficacy of PS, but also their efficiency.
- Description: Doctor of Philosophy
The determinants of chief executive officer turnover in Chinese listed companies : An aspiration level and power perspective
- Authors: Pi, Lili
- Date: 2009
- Type: Text , Thesis , PhD
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- Description: This study focuses on the determinants of CEO turnover of listed companies in China, the largest transitional and developing economy in the world, where governance institutions and structures are evolving. Drawing on the strategic change, aspiration, and CEO power literature, a CEO turnover model and a set of hypotheses have been contructed.
- Description: Doctor of Philosophy
Topology of interconnection networks with given degree and diameter
- Authors: Pineda-Villavicencio, Guillermo
- Date: 2009
- Type: Text , Thesis , PhD
- Full Text:
- Description: Doctor of Philosophy
Where past and future are gathered : Representations of self and concepts of ageing in the twenty-first century
- Authors: Button, Loris
- Date: 2009
- Type: Text , Thesis , PhD
- Full Text:
- Description: This research project applies an analysis of identity, time and ageing to the practice-led project of investigating the way in which self portraiture may reflect and inform society's understanding of changing concepts of the ageing self in the early twenty-first century.
- Description: Doctor of Philosophy
‘Rough and ready’ : Makeshift, abstraction and the Australian patina
- Authors: Brooks, Terri
- Date: 2009
- Type: Text , Thesis , PhD
- Full Text:
- Description: Ned Kelly’s armour, the Eureka flag, and the premise that underlies the title of the most famous exhibition in Australian art history; the 9 by 5 Impression Exhibition held in Melbourne in 1889, are makeshift. This exegesis records the spirit of ‘making do’ or ‘makeshift’ in Australia’s post-settlement history including its manifestation in art. As this history is traced, the role of the harsh Australian landscape, and assertions of cultural convergence in post-settlement history, raised by historians including Russel Ward and Philip Jones are explored. Makeshift maps this country’s history of adversity, and popular bush story tellers, including Henry Lawson, contributed to makeshift flourishing in Australia and developing ‘everyday’ cultural associations.
- Description: Doctor of Philosophy
A longitudinal study of trauma, social and personality factors as predictors of post-traumatic stress symptom severity in student paramedics
- Authors: Armstrong, Kim Maree
- Date: 2008
- Type: Text , Thesis , PhD
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- Description: Previous research suggests student paramedics are among the professionals at highest risk of post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD). However, little research has been conducted examining duty-related post-traumatic stress symptoms (PTSS) and clinical levels of PTSD in this poplulation. The current study of 36 student paramedics undertaking university or job-based training is the first longitudinal investigation of PTSS and PTSD in this group.
- Description: Professional Doctorate of Psychology (Clinical)
Ahliat va Masir (roots and routes) : Narratives of identity and adaptation from Persian Baha'i refugees in Australia
- Authors: Williams, Ruth
- Date: 2008
- Type: Text , Thesis , PhD
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- Description: This study aims to discover what oral history narratives reveal about the post-migration renegotiation of identity for seven Persian Baha'i refugees and to assess the ensuing impact on their adaptation to Australia.
- Description: Doctor of Philosophy
An investigation into modification of the engineering properties of salt affected soils using electrokinetics
- Authors: Jayasekera, Samudra
- Date: 2008
- Type: Text , Thesis , PhD
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- Description: Soil salinity (due to ingress of excess amounts of dissolved salts in soil pores) and soil sodicity (due to excess amounts of sodium ions attached to the clay surface) are significant forms of land degradation in many parts of the world in particular in arid and semi arid regions. In Australia, soil salinity has long been identified as the major form of land degradation and the greatest environmental threat. Saline soils cover almost 6% of Australia’s land mass and impose severe threats on agricultural productivity and built infrastructure with an estimated annual loss of $250 million. In recent years, ‘soil sodicity’ is recognised as a far more significant form of land degradation and a severe environmental problem both in terms of affected land area and impact on the environment than is salinity as a problem in Australia. One third of Australian land mass is occupied by sodic soils costing an estimated $2 billion each year in lost production alone, with further significant impacts on the economy due to extensive damage to infrastructure facilities and the environment. [...]
- Description: Doctor of Philosophy
Conditions for global minimum through abstract convexity
- Authors: Sharikov, Evgenii
- Date: 2008
- Type: Text , Thesis , PhD
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- Description: The theory of abstract convexity generalizes ideas of convex analysis by using the notion of global supports and the global definition of subdifferential. In order to apply this theory to optimization, we need to extend subdifferential calculus and separation properties into the area of abstract convexity.
- Description: Doctor of Philosophy
Conducting suicide research in Australia in relation to the operation of Human Research Ethics Committees
- Authors: Macgill, Jennifer
- Date: 2008
- Type: Text , Thesis , PhD
- Full Text:
- Description: This thesis began with a research project on suicide that was abandoned after many hurdles were encountered in terms of reaching participants and after various applications to ethics committees. The ultimate research question was then recast as ‘Do Human Research Ethics Committees influence the conduct of suicide research in Australia?’ The conceptual framework for setting up the research was derived from literature on Critical Theory, Feminism and Weberian concepts of power and rationality. Subsidiary questions were then derived from this literature and the starting exemplar case of my own research attempts. These considered whether suicide research was problematic for ethics committees, the nature of the experiences of ethics committee members in making decisions regarding suicide research and whether the influences of disciplinary background, patriarchal medical dominance and pro-positivism were evident. In addition, questions were raised about whether and how other researchers who sought approval to conduct research into suicide-related issues were appraised. [...]
- Description: Doctor of Philosophy
Graphs and subgraphs with bounded degree
- Authors: Teska, Jakub
- Date: 2008
- Type: Text , Thesis , PhD
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- Description: "The topology of a network (such as a telecommunications, multiprocessor, or local area network, to name just a few) is usually modelled by a graph in which vertices represent 'nodes' (stations or processors) while undirected or directed edges stand for 'links' or other types of connections, physical or virtual. A cycle that contains every vertex of a graph is called a hamiltonian cycle and a graph which contains a hamiltonian cycle is called a hamiltonian graph. The problem of the existence of a hamiltonian cycle is closely related to the well known problem of a travelling salesman. These problems are NP-complete and NP-hard, respectively. While some necessary and sufficient conditions are known, to date, no practical characterization of hamiltonian graphs has been found. There are several ways to generalize the notion of a hamiltonian cycle. In this thesis we make original contributions in two of them, namely k-walks and r-trestles." --Abstract.
- Description: Doctor of Philosophy
Hybrid training approaches to Hidden Markov Model-based acoustic models for automatic speech recognition
- Authors: Huda, Shamsul
- Date: 2008
- Type: Text , Thesis , PhD
- Full Text:
- Description: Doctor of Philosophy
Leadership and career aspirations in female and male middle managers : A cross-cultural study in Malaysia and Australia
- Authors: Jogulu, Uma
- Date: 2008
- Type: Text , Thesis , PhD
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- Description: Western research dominates in areas of theories and models which describe organisational behaviours, human resource management and workplace participation. However the 21st century brings new challenges. Findings to-date suggest that attitudes and values are strongly culture specific therefore many facets now require re-thinking by human resource specialists and organisational behavioural theorists. For instance, the globalisation of the market economy has dramatically changed the contemporary business environment. As a direct consequence of the globalisation process, the nature of organisational structures and workforce diversity has also changed. Such changes may make the application of Western theories less relevant to explain behaviours and attitudes of contemporary employees around the world. Therefore, there is a need for expanding our cross-cultural understanding in order to provide practical knowledge to enhance people and business management so that organisations can remain successful nationally and internationally. Comparative cross-cultural studies are required to expand on Western theories and models. The present study acknowledged and regarded the importance of cross-cultural studies to date, and endeavoured to expand on the extant knowledge by providing specific information relating to two diverse countries. The aim of the research project is to examine two measurable areas of organisational behaviours namely leadership styles and managerial career aspirations of female and male managers in Malaysia and Australia to explore the similarities and differences between the groups. The study found differences within and between female and male managers in Malaysia and Australia in terms of leadership styles, perception of effectiveness, perceptions towards managerial career aspirations and perceived promotion opportunities during the quantitative and qualitative data collection stages. The study concludes by providing empirical evidence to refute the universality of Western theories and models in all cultures. The analysis of both quantitative and qualitative data revealed significant differences in terms of values, behaviours and attitudes of managers in the two diverse cultures which have important implications for work and employment. This suggests that Western theories and models of organisational behaviour and workplace participation are not universally applicable, appropriate or relevant in all cultural environments. Implications for theory and practice in the light of an enhanced cross-cultural understanding were recommended.
- Description: Doctor of Philosophy
Parent-mediated pathways to care for rural adolescents with depression
- Authors: Jamieson, Rachel
- Date: 2008
- Type: Thesis , PhD
- Full Text:
- Description: This research aimed to explore the role of parents in seeking help for rural adolescents with depression.
- Description: Doctor of Psychology (Clinical)
Reflective space : A personal journey towards a re-envisioning of the Australian landscape
- Authors: Donald, Colin
- Date: 2008
- Type: Text , Thesis , PhD
- Full Text:
- Description: Whilst the notion of the ‘Reflective Space’ could arguably encompass many conceptual positions and propositions, for the purposes of this research investigation the ‘Reflective Space’ referred to in the title of this exegesis will focus upon what I consider as an emerging and growing consciousness of the natural world. As a theoretical and conceptual construct, the investigation considers how this growing consciousness can be seen to be expressed through the medium of representations of the Australian landscape. This work considers a number of contemporary theoretical positions and a number of relevant social and political questions; it also acknowledges that within such spheres of reflection, the issue of being sustainable in relation to our interactions and perceptions of this natural world looms as perhaps one of the most pressing of our time. While it will be acknowledged that the depiction of landscape enjoys a long-standing tradition within the Australian cultural mind, the suggestion will be made that certain aspects of these visualisations can be seen to be ‘reflective’ of a visual, cultural and physical degradation, and indeed even an apprehension of the physical ‘space’ that is represented as landscape. The investigation considers and reflects upon what can be observed as contentious and ambivalent attitudes expressed towards landscape perceived through works of art. Strategies for adopting a perceptual visual ethic grounded within the concepts and principles of sustainability will be presented for consideration. By applying such modes of interpretation to perceptions of land and landscape depiction, new appreciations for the cultural ‘space’ that is landscape will be developed. Such understandings will consider and reflect upon the temporal nature of our natural world. The thesis is this: that to be able to think and act in a sustainable fashion in relation to our environment, our perceptions and interpretations of visualisations of landscape must include a recognition that the land is a ‘temporal’ space, in which past and possible futures are immanent in the present.
- Description: PhD (Visual Arts)
The determinants of capital structure in Chinese listed companies
- Authors: Shen, Gensheng
- Date: 2008
- Type: Text , Thesis , PhD
- Full Text:
- Description: Traditional financial theories see capital structure as a result of mainly financial, tax and growth factors (Modigliani & Miller, 1958). But corporate governance theories (Jensen & Meckling, 1976) and business strategy theories (Barton & Gordon, 1988) suggest that ownership structure and ownership concentration, product diversification and asset specificity may also influence capital structure. Focusing on the examination of the determinants of capital structure in Chinese listed companies, this research goes beyond financial factors and considered business strategy and corporate governance approaches, and their impact on capital structure, in a transitioning Chinese context where institutions, expertise and regulatory processes are different to, but converging on, Western approaches. A panel data set of 1,098 Chinese listed companies for the period of 1991 to 2000 was collected from published sources, and conventional and innovative econometric methodologies were used to model a range of relationships between capital structure and its financial and non-financial determinants. The statistical approaches used in this study included Ordinary Least Squares Model and also Linear Mixed Model, which is a powerful tool to examine panel data where independence of explanatory variables is not assumed. The analysis also involved Hox’s model building procedures to measure model fit. The capital structure of listed companies in both the Shenzhen Stock Exchange and the Shanghai Securities Exchange is positively related to a firm’s tax rate, growth and capital intensity and negatively related to a firm’s profit and size. Other financial factors such as tangibility, risk and duration are non-significant. The capital structure of listed companies, particularly in the Shenzhen Stock Exchange, is positively related to product diversification and negatively related to asset specificity. The capital structure of listed companies in the Shanghai Securities Exchange is positively related to government ownership and ownership concentration of the largest shareholder and negatively related to legal person ownership and ownership concentration of the ten largest shareholders. The data and modelling support financial and non-financial determinants of capital structure. In particular, information asymmetry, business diversity and asset specificity have a significant impact on capital structure. In addition the empirical work in the study supports agency cost explanations of debt and equity. Finally the research demonstrates that the two main financial markets in China, Shenzhen and Shanghai, have operated differently but are converging towards a common norm. The research contributes to the general field of capital structure and provides valuable insights into the nature of the Chinese firm and the evolution of the Chinese financial system.
- Description: Doctor of Philosophy
- Description: 2003006320
The experience of treatment via an internet-based cognitive behavioural self-help protocol for social anxiety disorder
- Authors: Hardwick, Damian
- Date: 2008
- Type: Text , Thesis , PhD
- Full Text: false
- Description: The aim of the present study was to gain an understanding of the experience of treatment via an Internet-based cognitive behavioural self-help protocol for social anxiety disorder. Participants were four adults, aged between 22-46 years, who fulfilled DSM-IV-TR crriteria for a diagnosis of social anxiety disorder.
- Description: Doctor of Psychology (Clinical)