Description:
Becoming a father is a profound change in a man's life that is not always planned or wanted. Little is known about the subjective experiences of men who become fathers unintentionally or reluctantly. The aim of this research was to explore how men who did not intend to have children discuss their feelings about becoming a father in an online, anonymous environment. We sought insights into emotional responses, appraisals of family functioning, and relationships with infants. Data were collected from two Reddit forums for new and expectant fathers, r/Daddit and r/Predaddit. Approximately 2600 posts and 21,000 comments were extracted from the period between January 2019 and March 2020. We employed a two-stage methodology, blending big data techniques and qualitative analyses. Stage One included extraction and data preparation for topic modelling Stage Two was an adapted approach to thematic qualitative analysis. Topic modelling revealed 49 topics of which 6 were relevant thematically to unintended fatherhood. Men's communication in these were then classified within three domains: 1) Men's Concerns included their mental health, problems bonding with baby, their relationships with family and partner, and finances 2) Men's Affective Experiences existed on a spectrum of complex emotions including regret, resignation, ambivalence, acceptance, and excitement and 3) the Purpose of Communication included asking for and offering advice, normalisation, and perspective. Online forums like Reddit provide a unique opportunity for fathers who did not intend to have children to normalize their experience by expressing concerns and emotions in a pseudonymous environment. This study highlights the supportive environment that online discussions offer to fathers, and particularly unexpected fathers who may face stigma or barriers in other settings.
Description:
Assertions about common characteristics across the Tasman Sea, together with hints at subtle differences, have coloured accounts of Australia and New Zealand through to the twenty-first century. In some more recent descriptive accounts, however, the difference have lost their subtlety and come to count for more than commonality, to the chagrin of at least one historian James Belich. " From Chapter"
Description:
A copy photograph of "Oakenshaw Park”, Eaglehawk Creek, Glengarry, owned by James Lang (c.1839-1911) with the Lang family, horse and dog out front. This is part of the original homestead built near Eaglehawk Creek, which no longer exists. The building on the left was moved to the new homestead that was built in 1893 nearer the Glengarry North Road, and was used as one of the outbuildings in the courtyard.
Description:
A copy photograph of "Oakenshaw Park”, Eaglehawk Creek, Glengarry, owned by James Lang (c.1839-1911) with the Lang family, horse and dog out front. This is part of the original homestead built near Eaglehawk Creek, which no longer exists. The building on the left was moved to the new homestead that was built in 1893 nearer the Glengarry North Road, and was used as one of the outbuildings in the courtyard.
Description:
The paper will report on an ongoing research project being conducted by the authors, on behalf of the Australian National VET Equity Advisory Council (NVEAC), in which we are required to conduct “a review and analysis of effective models and underpinning principles for gathering and responding to feedback from learners, particularly disadvantaged learners”. The term “learner voice” is used throughout the NVEAC documentation to describe engagement with students of vocational education and training. But the “voice” that has unashamedly dominated the policy discourse in vocational and adult education and training in recent decades has been that of business and industry. Recently, however, particularly in England during the final term of the New Labour administration, and increasingly is some Scandinavian and European countries, a renewed emphasis on policies of social inclusion has introduced the notion of “learner voice” into policy considerations. Especially important are the voices of learners who are perceived to be disadvantaged or marginalised. In Australia, too, discourses of both inclusion and human capital have led to policies of involving students, their interests and their views in some way in the education project. The engagement of students with the tertiary education sector and institutions has come to be regarded as a way of promoting students’ learning by making their education and training more relevant to, and inclusive of, their “needs” while simultaneously contributing to the more efficient utilisation of human capital in an increasingly competitive national economy. Such inclusiveness, therefore, is promoted as facilitating the twin virtues of equity and efficiency, and is seen by some as having the potential to empower learners and transform their learning experience, and also to transform and expand Vocational Education and Training (VET) and Adult and Community Education (ACE). The paper will critically examine the dynamics of the vet policy framework and the range current practice in relation to learner voice. It will particularly emphasise contradictions in both practice and policy in relation to who speaks and with what authority, and who listens to what effect.
Description:
Background: In the development and delivery of pre‑registration baccalaureate nursing programs, universities must address both the needs of industry and the registering authorities that regulate health professional practice. Balanced with this, providers of education at this level also wish to deliver an experience to students that they both value and enjoy. Objective: This paper describes the findings of a study examining these factors in the first year of four pre‑registration programs at a rural campus and outreach centre of one Australian university. Design: A descriptive, exploratory survey was employed in this research, which is drawn from a larger study into entry pathway, success and academic experience. Results: Results indicate that students found units such as fundamental nursing subjects and law most enjoyable and valuable. Units with a sociological foundation were considered less enjoyable and valuable. Overall, students recognised the value of the bioscience units while contrarily not expressing enjoyment of this aspect of their studies. Conclusions: These findings have implications for nurse educators in respect of the content and delivery of pre‑registration nursing programs. As first year students, the participants may have been focused on learning fundamental nursing tasks, lacking an understanding of the breadth of knowledge required for their professional role. Future research into aspects of nursing studies found to be most valuable may provide a different perspective if conducted in the period post graduation.
Description:
Based on recently proposed definitions, “choking under pressure” (i.e., choking) is defined as a critical deterioration in the execution of habitual processes as a result of an elevation in anxiety levels under perceived pressure, leading to substandard performance. Researchers have provided descriptive choking models (i.e., self-focus and distraction models) with the self-focus model receiving the most empirical support, however, no one has offered explanatory models that may answer the question “why does choking occur?” Thus, the present paper is an amalgamation of three interconnected studies that, in part, examined the psychological characteristics of “choking-susceptible” athletes using qualitative interviews, which helped to develop an explanatory model of choking. A total of 174 experienced athletes completed three psychological inventories to purposively sample 14 choking-susceptible athletes who participated in a series of single-case designs that included both low- and high-pressure phases. After the experimental phase, participants were interviewed about their experience and content analyses were conducted. Common choking-related themes were increased public self-awareness, fear of evaluation/failure, and self-monitoring techniques. Further qualitative cross-case analyses provided evidence for a preliminary self-presentation model of choking that link public self-awareness, anxiety, and conveying a positive self-presentation, which will be discussed.