Developing rights-based standards for children having tests, treatments, examinations and interventions: using a collaborative, multi-phased, multi-method and multi-stakeholder approach to build consensus
- Authors: Bray, Lucy , Carter, Bernie , Kiernan, Joann , Horowicz, Ed , Dixon, Katie , Ridley, James , Robinson, Carol , Simmons, Anna , Craske, Jennie , Sinha, Stephanie , Morton, Liza , Nafria, Begonya , Forsner, Maria , Rullander, Anna-Clara , Nilsson, Stefan , Darcy, Laura , Karlsson, Katarina , Hubbuck, Cath , Brenner, Maria , Spencer-Little, Sian , Evans, Kath , Rowland, Andrew , Hilliard, Carol , Preston, Jennifer , Leroy, Piet , Roland, Damian , Booth, Lisa , Davies, Jean , Saron, Holly , Peck, Blake
- Date: 2023
- Type: Text , Journal article
- Relation: European Journal of Pediatrics Vol. 182, no. 10 (2023), p. 4707-4721
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- Description: Children continue to experience harm when undergoing clinical procedures despite increased evidence of the need to improve the provision of child-centred care. The international ISupport collaboration aimed to develop standards to outline and explain good procedural practice and the rights of children within the context of a clinical procedure. The rights-based standards for children undergoing tests, treatments, investigations, examinations and interventions were developed using an iterative, multi-phased, multi-method and multi-stakeholder consensus building approach. This consensus approach used a range of online and face to face methods across three phases to ensure ongoing engagement with multiple stakeholders. The views and perspectives of 203 children and young people, 78 parents and 418 multi-disciplinary professionals gathered over a two year period (2020–2022) informed the development of international rights-based standards for the care of children having tests, treatments, examinations and interventions. The standards are the first to reach international multi-stakeholder consensus on definitions of supportive and restraining holds. Conclusion: This is the first study of its kind which outlines international rights-based procedural care standards from multi-stakeholder perspectives. The standards offer health professionals and educators clear evidence-based tools to support discussions and practice changes to challenge prevailing assumptions about holding or restraining children and instead encourage a focus on the interests and rights of the child. What is Known: • Children continue to experience short and long-term harm when undergoing clinical procedures despite increased evidence of the need to improve the provision of child-centred care. • Professionals report uncertainty and tensions in applying evidence-based practice to children’s procedural care. What is New: • This is the first study of its kind which has developed international rights-based procedural care standards from multi-stakeholder perspectives. • The standards are the first to reach international multi-stakeholder consensus on definitions of supportive and restraining holds. © 2023, The Author(s). **Please note that there are multiple authors for this article therefore only the name of the first 30 including Federation University Australia affiliate “Blake Peck” is provided in this record**
Pairwise approach for analysis and reporting of child's free sugars intake from a birth cohort study
- Authors: Nguyen, Huy , Ha, Diep , Dao, An , Golley, Rebecca , Scott, Jane , Spencer, John , Bell, Lucinda , Devenish-Coleman, Gemma , Do, Loc
- Date: 2023
- Type: Text , Journal article
- Relation: Community Dentistry and Oral Epidemiology Vol. 51, no. 5 (2023), p. 820-828
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- Description: Objectives: The prospective cohort design is an important research design, but a common challenge is missing data. The purpose of this study is to compare three approaches to managing missing data, the pairwise (n = 1386 children), the partial or modified pairwise (n = 1019) and the listwise (n = 546), to characterize the trajectories of children's free sugars intake (FSI) across early childhood. Methods: By applying the Group-based Trajectory Model Technique to three waves of data collected from a prospective cohort study of South Australian children, this study examined the three approaches in managing missing data to validate and discuss children's FSI trajectories. Results: Each approach identified three distinct trajectories of child's FSI from 1 to 5 years of age: (1) ‘low and fast increasing’, (2) ‘moderate and increasing’ and (3) ‘high and increasing’. The trajectory memberships were consistent across the three approaches, and were for the pairwise scenario (1) 15.1%, (2) 68.3% and (3) 16.6%; the partial or modified pairwise (1) 15.9%, (2) 64.1% and (3) 20.0%; and the listwise (1) 14.9%, (2) 64.9% and (3) 20.2% of children. Conclusions: Given the comparability of the findings across the analytical approaches and the samples' characteristics between baseline and across different data collection waves, it is recommended that the pairwise approach be used in future analyses to optimize the sample size and statistical power when examining the relationship between FSI in the first years of life and health outcome such as dental caries. © 2022 The Authors. Community Dentistry and Oral Epidemiology published by John Wiley & Sons Ltd.
Young children’s experiences with yoga after school
- Authors: Martin, Beverly , Peck, Blake , Terry, Daniel
- Date: 2023
- Type: Text , Journal article
- Relation: Journal of Occupational Therapy, Schools, and Early Intervention Vol. 16, no. 2 (2023), p. 194-211
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- Description: Currently, little is known about the lived experiences of children who participate in yoga, particularly using their own words. This study provides insights into how young children aged 6 to 10 years old were able to understand their bodies within a yoga space. The purpose of this study was to investigate young children’s lived experiences of yoga through qualitative interviews. Parents of children engaged in yoga were also interviewed to gain a sense of their point of view about the experiences of yoga for their children. Results indicated yoga had assisted children to find, and express joy, and fun by moving their bodies into different shapes. The physical and psychological difficulty of some of the yoga shapes assisted children to develop a persistent mind-set which enabled them to transfer knowledge to different contexts, such as difficulties at school, and finding ways to relax, and be with themselves. Yoga as an activity after-school develops strategies such as resilience, and assists in other contexts such as school, and family. The parents’ described how they were looking for techniques to help calm their children, and how challenging this was with the constant stimulation of everyday activities. The findings suggest that yoga may have a place in the school curriculum for the purpose of teaching students’ simple coping skills when experiencing feelings of stress, and anxiety, and assist with controlling their behavior. © 2022 Taylor & Francis.
Adiposity as a risk factor for sport injury in youth : a systematic review
- Authors: Toomey, Clodagh , Whittaker, Jackie , Richmond, Sarah , Owoeye, Oluwatoyosi , Patton, Declan , Emery, Carolyn
- Date: 2022
- Type: Text , Journal article , Review
- Relation: Clinical Journal of Sport Medicine Vol. 32, no. 4 (2022), p. 418-426
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- Description: Objective: To determine whether high or low adiposity is associated with youth sport-related injury.Data Sources: Ten electronic databases were searched to identify prospective studies examining the association between adiposity [body mass index (BMI) or body fat] and a future time-loss or medical attention sport-related musculoskeletal injury or concussion in youth aged 20 years and younger. Two independent raters assessed the quality (Downs and Black criteria) and risk of bias (Joanna Briggs Institute Critical Appraisal Tool). Random-effects meta-analyses were used to calculate pooled odds ratio [95% confidence interval (CI)] of injury.Main Results: Of 11 424 potentially relevant records, 38 articles were included with 17 eligible for meta-analyses. In qualitative synthesis, no clear association was identified between adiposity and any sport injury; however, 16/22 studies identified high adiposity as a significant risk factor for lower-extremity injury. Meta-analyses revealed higher BMI in youth with any sport-related injury and lower BMI in youth who developed a bone stress injury (BSI) compared with noninjured controls. The pooled OR (95% CI) examining the association of BMI and injury risk (excluding bone injury) was 1.18 (95% CI: 1.03-1.34). A major source of bias in included articles was inconsistent adjustment for age, sex, and physical activity participation.Conclusions: Level 2b evidence suggests that high BMI is associated with greater risk of youth sport injury, particularly lower-extremity injury and excluding BSI or fracture. Although pooled mean differences were low, anthropometric risk of injury seems to be dependent on type and site of injury in youth sport. © 2021 Wolters Kluwer Health, Inc.
Improving hamstring flexibility through physical education based interventions : a systematic review and meta-analysis
- Authors: Vigo, Cristian , Myller, Kyle , Sánchez, Adriano , Ayan, Carlos
- Date: 2022
- Type: Text , Journal article , Review
- Relation: Archivos de Medicina del Deporte Vol. 39, no. 1 (2022), p. 50-61
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- Description: Flexibility is recognized as a strong marker of physical health in children. Scientific research has indicated that there is a worldwide decline in children's physical fitness, including a reduction in flexibility levels. It has been suggested that a lack of flexibility in youth may be responsible for several health complications, including back pain, injury risk, and posture problems. Physical education (PE) classes are part of the school curriculum, which are an ideal setting to improve children physical fitness levels. The purpose of this systematic review and meta-analysis was to investigate whether incorporating a stretching component during regular PE classes can improve flexibility in school children. Three electronic databases were searched systematically until June 2019 for studies analysing the effects of interventions performed during PE classes aimed to improve the flexibility levels of school children (6-18 years). The critical appraisal was carried using PEDro and MINORS scales and a meta-analysis was performed. Seventeen studies of moderate-to-high methodological quality were included in the review and 14 in the meta-analysis, pooling 874 participants. The interventions showed significant improvements in the flexibility of the children, although the relative influence of genre could not be further analysed, due to the fact that insufficient data was reported. The meta-analysis for the hamstring flexibility resulted in a significant moderate effect. Flexibility levels can be improved through the incorporation of stretching interventions during PE classes, since flexibility is a key health-related physical fitness componentFurther research is needed on the effects of such interventions on trunk and upper body flexibility. © 2022 Authors. All rights reserved.
Maternal trauma but not perinatal depression predicts infant-parent attachment
- Authors: Galbally, Megan , Watson, Stuart , van Ijzendoorn, Marinus , Tharner, Anne , Luijk, Maartje , Lewis, Andrew
- Date: 2022
- Type: Text , Journal article
- Relation: Archives of Women's Mental Health Vol. 25, no. 1 (2022), p. 215-225
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- Description: Understanding if maternal depression is a predictor of infant-parent attachment classification is important to furthering knowledge about the early pathways and predictors of socio-emotional development. Yet few studies that have utilised the Strange Situation Procedure, the gold standard for measurement of infant-parent attachment, have examined antenatal depression as a predictor of attachment, and none has also included a measure of maternal trauma. This study uses data on 224 women recruited in early pregnancy and followed up until 12 months postpartum. Maternal depression was measured in pregnancy using the Structured Clinical Interview for the DSM and repeat Edinburgh Postnatal Depression Scale as well as Stressful Life Events scale across pregnancy and postpartum including items on domestic violence. A past history of trauma was measured using the Childhood Trauma Questionnaire. Attachment was measured using the Strange Situation Procedure (SSP) at 12 months postpartum. We found that maternal depression was not associated with insecure or disorganized attachment. However, a maternal history of childhood trauma and current domestic violence both predicted insecure-avoidant attachment at 12 months, whereas increased number of stressful life events prior to conception and in pregnancy was associated with insecure-resistant attachment. Neither trauma, past or current, nor depression predicted disorganized attachment. In the first study to have included measures of antenatal depression, maternal childhood trauma, and current stressful events as predictors of infant attachment measured using the SSP, we found maternal experiences of past and current trauma but not depression were significant predictors of infant-parent attachment security.
Network analyses of Oppositional Defiant Disorder (ODD) symptoms in children
- Authors: Gomez, Rapson , Stavropoulos, Vasileios , Gomez, Andre , Brown, Taylor , Watson, Shaun
- Date: 2022
- Type: Text , Journal article
- Relation: BMC Psychiatry Vol. 22, no. 1 (2022), p. 263-263
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- Description: Based on parent and teacher ratings of their children, this study used regularized partial correlation network analysis (EBIC glasso) to examine the structure of DSM-5 Oppositional Defiant Disorder (ODD) symptoms. Parent and teachers (N = 934) from the general community in Malaysia completed questionnaires covering DSM-5 ODD symptoms. The most central ODD symptom for parent ratings was anger, followed by argue. For teacher ratings, it was anger, followed by defy. For both parent and teacher ratings, the networks revealed at least medium effect size connections for temper and argue, defy, and argue, blames others, and annoy, and spiteful and angry. Overall, the findings were highly comparable across parent and teacher ratings, and they showed a novel understanding of the structure of the ODD symptoms. The clinical implications of the findings for assessment and treatment of ODD are discussed.
Participation and dropout of Hockey New South Wales participants in 2017 and 2018: a longitudinal study
- Authors: Owen, Katherine , Foley, Bridget , Eime, Rochelle , Rose, Catriona , Reece, Lindsey
- Date: 2022
- Type: Text , Journal article
- Relation: BMC Sports Science Medicine and Rehabilitation Vol. 14, no. 1 (2022), p. 103-103
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- Description: Sports have a focus on increasing participation, which contributes to increasing population levels of physical activity, social cohesion and longevity of the sport. The primary aim of this study was to examine reasons for drop-out of a popular team sport in Australia, Field Hockey and identify opportunities to increase participation. This longitudinal study obtained routinely collected registered player data from Hockey New South Wales over two consecutive years, and survey data from registered players who dropped out. Logistic regression models identified demographic subgroups who were more likely to drop out of sport, and the reasons for dropping out. In 2018, 8463 (31%) of hockey players did not return to play hockey after the previous season and 805 (10%) of these completed a survey. Specific groups who were more likely to stop playing included 5-6 years (OR: 2.1, 95% CI 1.8-2.6 reference: 12-17 years), females (OR: 1.1, 95% CI 1.0-1.2 reference: males), Indigenous (OR: 1.2, 95% CI 1.1-1.4 reference: non-Indigenous), most disadvantaged (OR: 1.1, 95% CI 1.0-1.2 reference: least disadvantaged) or regional and remote (1.1, 95% CI 1.0-1.2 reference: major cities). Top reasons for drop out were medical/age (17%), change in circumstances (16%) and high cost (13%), lack of time (13%) and lack of enjoyment (7%). Although Hockey successfully reaches a large proportion of underrepresented groups in sport, these groups are more likely to drop out. Sports should consult these groups to develop enjoyable, flexible, and modifiable versions of the game that are appropriate to their needs.
School ground pedagogies for enriching children’s outdoor learning
- Authors: Green, Monica , Rayner, Michelle
- Date: 2022
- Type: Text , Journal article
- Relation: Education 3-13 Vol. 50, no. 2 (2022), p. 238-251
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- Description: Despite teacher interest in wanting to engage students in learning beyond the classroom, many don’t have the skills or confidence to do so. Drawing from an earlier study that examined outdoor, environmental and sustainability pedagogies across three Australian primary (elementary) schools, this paper presents and examines two teaching and learning vignettes from one of the study schools to investigate the impact of outdoor pedagogy and children’s learning in a school ground environment. The place-based study used a set of semi-structured interviews with the school’s gardening/environmental teacher as well as children’s reflective workbook entries to explore how outdoor learning was enabled and scaffolded by the teacher. Findings indicate that school ground pedagogies, particularly when framed by self-directed learning tasks increases student autonomy, efficacy and achievement. The implication of the findings is important for increasing teacher capacity to incorporate locally-based curriculum and pedagogy in school ground settings to enrich children’s outdoor learning. © 2020 ASPE.
The influence of probiotics on gastrointestinal tract infections among children attending childcare : a systematic review and meta-analysis
- Authors: Ahmad, Hafiz , Peck, Blake , Terry, Daniel
- Date: 2022
- Type: Text , Journal article , Review
- Relation: Journal of Applied Microbiology Vol. 132, no. 3 (2022), p. 1636-1651
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- Description: Current literature related to the impact of probiotics on the incidence of gastrointestinal tract infections (GITIs) has shown mixed results and no systematic review available with pooled analysis exists. Thus, the aim of this systematic review was to provide contemporary evidence regarding the overall and strain-specific influence of probiotics in preventing GITIs among infants and children attending childcare centres. The review shortlisted 18 RCTs after screening through the initial search results of 779 articles. However, only 15 trials were deemed eligible, addressing at least one outcome in the pooled analysis. It is concluded that the supplementation of probiotics (overall effect) may reduce the risk of GITI episode by 26%, with Lacticaseibacillus paracasei, Limosilactobacillus reuteri and Lacticaseibacillus rhamnosus GG being specifically potent probiotic strains in reducing GITI episode, duration of infection and absence from childcare respectively. There is insufficient evidence to determine the effect of Bifidobacterium animalis subsp. lactis BB-12 based on the findings of the trials included in this review. © 2021 The Society for Applied Microbiology
Viral load monitoring for people living with HIV in the era of test and treat: progress made and challenges ahead – a systematic review
- Authors: Pham, Minh , Nguyen, Huy , Anderson, David , Crowe, Suzanne , Luchters, Stanley
- Date: 2022
- Type: Text , Journal article
- Relation: BMC public health Vol. 22, no. 1 (2022), p. 1-1203
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- Description: Abstract Background In 2016, we conducted a systematic review to assess the feasibility of treatment monitoring for people living with HIV (PLHIV) receiving antiretroviral therapy (ART) in low and middle-income countries (LMICs), in line with the 90-90-90 treatment target. By 2020, global estimates suggest the 90-90-90 target, particularly the last 90, remains unattainable in many LMICs. This study aims to review the progress and identify needs for public health interventions to improve viral load monitoring and viral suppression for PLHIV in LMICs. Methods A literature search was conducted using an update of the initial search strategy developed for the 2016 review. Electronic databases (Medline and PubMed) were searched to identify relevant literature published in English between Dec 2015 and August 2021. The primary outcome was initial viral load (VL) monitoring (the proportion of PLHIV on ART and eligible for VL monitoring who received a VL test). Secondary outcomes included follow-up VL monitoring (the proportion of PLHIV who received a follow-up VL after an initial elevated VL test), confirmation of treatment failure (the proportion of PLHIV who had two consecutive elevated VL results) and switching treatment regimen rates (the proportion of PLHIV who switched treatment regimen after confirmation of treatment failure). Results The search strategy identified 1984 non-duplicate records, of which 34 studies were included in the review. Marked variations in initial VL monitoring coverage were reported across study settings/countries (range: 12–93% median: 74% IQR: 46–82%) and study populations (adults (range: 25–96%, median: 67% IQR: 50–84%), children, adolescents/young people (range: 2–94%, median: 72% IQR: 47–85%), and pregnant women (range: 32–82%, median: 57% IQR: 43–71%)). Community-based models reported higher VL monitoring (median: 85%, IQR: 82-88%) compared to decentralised care at primary health facility (median: 64%, IRQ: 48-82%). Suboptimal uptake of follow-up VL monitoring and low regimen switching rates were observed. Conclusions Substantial gaps in VL coverage across study settings and study populations were evident, with limited data availability outside of sub-Saharan Africa. Further research is needed to fill the data gaps. Development and implementation of innovative, community-based interventions are required to improve VL monitoring and address the “failure cascade” in PLHIV on ART who fail to achieve viral suppression.
Exploration of the specificity of motor skills hypothesis in 7–8 year old primary school children : exploring the relationship between 12 different motor skills from two different motor competence test batteries
- Authors: Sigmundsson, Hermundur , Newell, Karl , Polman, Remco , Haga, Monika
- Date: 2021
- Type: Text , Journal article
- Relation: Frontiers in Psychology Vol. 12, no. (2021), p.
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- Description: This study examined the specificity hypothesis by examining the association between two specific motor competence test batteries [Movement Assessment Battery for Children (MABC) and Test of Motor Competence (TMC)] in a sample of young children. In addition, we explored the factorial structure of the MABC and TMC. A total of 80 children participated in the study (38 girls and 42 boys) with a mean chronological age of 7.9 years (SD 0.55). The correlation between total score MABC and total z-score TMC was r = 0.46. In general, low pair-wise correlations (r2 < 0.20) between the different motor tasks were found. The highest correlation was between the placing bricks and building bricks r = 0.45 (TMC); the stork balance and jumping in squares r = 0.45 (MABC). These low pair-wise relations of items are consistent with findings from younger and older children's age-related motor competence test batteries. Principal components analysis (PCA) showed that the 1st component accommodated 25% of the variance and was dominated in the top five variable weightings by items of the MABC test; whereas the 2nd component accommodated 12% of the variance with the higher weightings all from the TMC test. The findings provide evidence with children for specificity rather than generality in learning motor skills a viewpoint that has predominantly been driven by adult learning studies. The PCA revealed that the MABC and TMC are testing different properties of children's motor competence though in both cases the variance accounted for is relatively modest, but generally higher than the motor item pair-wise correlation. © Copyright © 2021 Sigmundsson, Newell, Polman and Haga.
Policies and practices of early childhood education and care during the COVID-19 pandemic: Perspectives from five countries
- Authors: Visnjic-Jevtic, Adrijana , Varga Nagy, Anikó , Ozturk, Gulsah , Şahin-Sak, İkbal , Toran, Mehmet , Sánchez-Pérez, Noelia
- Date: 2021
- Type: Text , Journal article
- Relation: Journal of Childhood, Education & Society Vol. 2, no. 2 (2021), p. 200-216
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- Description: The COVID-19 pandemic, which affects all areas of life, has also affected children in need of education and care. It is of great importance to develop policies that take into account the best interests of children in this process. In this review article, the policies developed for early childhood education and care during the pandemic period in five countries (Australia, Croatia, Hungary, Spain, and Turkey), how they are implemented, the problems that arose, and the solutions produced are discussed. As a result, the COVID-19 pandemic has revealed that we need to focus on eliminating the educational inequalities, set policies for the welfare of children on foundations that are more realistic, rebuild teacher training, and improve the welfare of families. Priorizating the best interests of the child in the policies to be developed and building the social ecology on justice will ease overcoming the crises that will be faced.
Mother-child interactions during shared reading with digital and print books
- Authors: Ozturk, Gulsah , Hill, Susan
- Date: 2020
- Type: Text , Journal article
- Relation: Early child development and care Vol. 190, no. 9 (2020), p. 1425-1440
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- Description: This study explored the quality of interactions in mother-child shared reading with a print book and with an electronic book on an i-Pad. The study involved a Turkish mother and her 5-year-old son who were observed at home when reading the printed book Ay'ı kim çaldı? (Who stole the moon?) and its exact digital match. The shared book reading interactions were analysed in terms of (a) the amount of talk with the different book formats and (b) the content of the mother-child talk including the focus of the talk, expansion of ideas and behavioural-related talk. The results revealed that print book reading engaged the child in higher-level thinking compared to digital book reading. There was greater frequency of non-immediate talk in the print book reading compared to the digital book reading. Also, results suggested that the digital book encouraged more behaviour-related talk related to negotiating the book sharing routine.
‘You can’t hear a child you don’t see’ : Frontline workers’ perspectives on engaging young people in out-of-home care in the decisions affecting their lives.
- Authors: McRae, Lynda
- Date: 2020
- Type: Text , Thesis , PhD
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- Description: Traditionally, young people in out-of-home care have been marginalised from the most important decision-making processes that affect their lives. A compelling, contemporary evidence base confirms that this dilemma persists despite the ratification of young people’s participation rights in legislation and policy, which has grave implications for young people’s wellbeing, the quality of decisions and subsequent interventions. This place-based, participatory action research drew on the perspectives of case and program managers at the frontline of out-of-home care service delivery in Inner Gippsland to provide unique insights into the barriers and opportunities to increased inclusion of young people in the decisions being made about them. The study was supported through a university–industry research collaboration within the Inner Gippsland Children and Youth Area Partnership. This thesis contends that a confluence of factors in response to unprecedented demand on the Inner Gippsland child welfare service system has significantly eroded the time and opportunity for face-to-face practice between workers and young people, which is fundamental to the facilitation of young people’s engagement in decision-making. The research process was underpinned by a blend of critical theory and the capability approach. New insights were developed to advocate for diverse, context-specific interventions and broader system reforms to expand the capacity for workers to engage in face-to-face practice with young people. An authorising environment that legitimises participatory practice is required to support connections between workers and young people. This thesis argues that the alignment of rights-based participation principles with critical components of the system—policy, performance management regimes, compliance and administrative practices and professionalisation strategies—could transform decision-making processes for young people. This is especially vital for a growing cohort of young people who live in out-of-home care. Keywords: participation, decision-making processes, face-to-face practice, children, young people, critical theory, capability approach, action research, out-of-home care research
- Description: Doctor of Philosophy
An Australian adaptation of the strengthening families program: Parent and child mental health outcomes from a pilot study
- Authors: Burn, Michele , Lewis, Andrew , McDonald, Louise , Toumbourou, John
- Date: 2019
- Type: Text , Journal article
- Relation: Australian psychologist Vol. 54, no. 4 (2019), p. 261-271
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- Description: This is the first pilot study to examine the Australian adaptation of the Strengthening Families Program (SFP), a manualised family intervention recommended internationally in evidence reviews to improve family functioning and child mental health. The study compared two versions (8 vs. 14-session) and longitudinally evaluated outcomes for child emotional and behavioural difficulties, and parental psychological distress. Fifty-eight families from disadvantaged primary schools in regional Victoria with children 8-12-years (80.6% of initially enrolled families, 62 parents and 74 children) completed the program and evaluation measures. Measures were repeated at pre-, post-, and 3-month follow-up and included the Kessler 6, the Strengths and Difficulties Questionnaire, and subscales adapted from the Longitudinal Study of Australian Children and Communities that Care Youth Survey. The program showed significant reductions in child difficulties and parental psychological distress from pre- to post-measurements that were sustained at follow-up. Reductions in parental psychological distress were significantly associated with reductions in child difficulties at follow-up. The 8- and 14-session formats were not found to be significantly different in reducing child difficulties or parental psychological distress. Effect sizes for the Australian version were similar to those reported in previous U.S. trials. Findings support the feasibility and effectiveness of an Australian adaptation of the SFP. The current study is unique in identifying similar outcomes for shorter and longer versions of the intervention. It is recommended that the 8-session Australian version is examined in a larger randomised controlled trial where children present with behavioural and emotional problems.
Australian media and Islamophobia : Representations of asylum seeker children
- Authors: Patil, Tejaswini , McLaren, Helen
- Date: 2019
- Type: Text , Journal article
- Relation: Religions Vol. 10, no. 9 (2019), p. 1-14
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- Description: Australian media invests considerable attention in asylum seekers and their children, especially those arriving by boat. In this paper, we provide an analysis of Australian newsprint media published during the term of Australia's Gillard's government (2010-2013). This period is critical as it coincides with rising numbers of boat arrivals to Australian shores, fear towards Muslims, and growing Islamophobia. At the time, there were government promises to move children from offshore immigration detention into community-based detention, that would involve living among mainstream Australian society. A data set of 46 articles from major Australian newspapers articles was subject to a discourse analysis of representations of children in both the written texts and in silences. Manipulative tactics of 'risk framing' and 'dispersed intentionality' were identified as discursive acts aimed to confuse compassion and deviancy with respect to asylum seeker children presumed to be from Islamic backgrounds. We argue that this was achieved through binary characterizations in which Muslim parents and people smugglers were constructed as deviant alongside intentional silences, that may have otherwise elicited compassion for asylum seeker children. We propose that this period of media reporting is foundational to understanding the rise of Islamophobic discourses and the implication of Muslim children in Australia.
Depression across pregnancy and the postpartum, antidepressant use and the association with female sexual function
- Authors: Galbally, Megan , Watson, Stuart , Permezel, Michael , Lewis, Andrew
- Date: 2019
- Type: Text , Journal article
- Relation: Psychological Medcine Vol. 49, no. 9 (2019), p. 1490-1499
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- Description: There is an established relationship between depression and sexual functioning in women. However, there is limited research examining the relationship between perinatal depression and sexual functioning. This study draws on the Mercy Pregnancy and Emotional Wellbeing Study and reports on 211 women recruited in early pregnancy and followed to 12 months postpartum. Women were assessed for depression using the Structured Clinical Interview for the DSM-IV, repeated measurement of depressive symptoms using the Edinburgh Postnatal Depression Scale and sexual functioning using the Female Sexual Functioning Inventory. Data were also collected on antidepressant use, mode of delivery, history of childhood trauma, breastfeeding and partner support. Women showed a decline in sexual functioning over pregnancy and the first 6 months postpartum, which recovered by 12 months. For women with depression, sexual functioning was lower throughout pregnancy and continued to be lower at 6 months postpartum than those without depression. Ongoing depressive symptoms at 12 months were also associated with lower sexual functioning. Sexual functioning was not predicted by mode of delivery, antidepressant use or childhood trauma. Breastfeeding predicted lower sexual functioning only at 6 months. Higher partner support predicted higher female sexual functioning. Pregnancy and the postpartum are a time of reduced sexual functioning for women however, women with depression are more likely to have lower levels of sexual functioning and this was not predicted by antidepressant use. In women with perinatal depression, consideration of the impact on sexual functioning should be an integral part of care.
Frog bogs, turbines and biodiversity : bringing children's sustainability knowledge to life through handmade artefacts
- Authors: Green, Monica
- Date: 2019
- Type: Text , Book chapter
- Relation: Educational researchers and the regional university : agents of regional-global transformations p. 153-172
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- Description: Globally, sustainability is a complex and contested term with multiple meanings and interpretations. This chapter highlights research that was undertaken by a FUGuE (Federation University Australia Gippsland) academic who used a participatory arts-based methodology to frame research with Gippsland children involved in sustainability education. The study originated from the author's involvement in the Regional Centre of Expertise in Education for Sustainable Development (known as RCE Gippsland), a global network of formal, non-formal and informal education organisations responsible for the mobilisation of education for sustainable development (ESD). Drawing on RCE Gippsland's inaugural Sustainable Schools Expo, an event that supports primary school students to engage in sustainability themes and workshops and share their respective education for sustainability initiatives, the study involved working with children who were keynote Expo speakers. A key innovation of the study was the use of sustainability artefacts created by children, which represented their sustainability learning and knowledge and were used in recorded dialogical conversations. Findings from the study highlight regional children's well-developed views about the state of the world, including their concern for humankind's impact on planetary sustainability and the subsequent decline of ecological systems locally and globally. Further to this, the immersion of regional children in places where they lived and learnt was highlighted as integral to their sustainability knowledge and understanding. The chapter concludes with a discussion about the methodological contributions of the study and its capacity to illustrate the voice of regional children and their place-oriented lifeworlds. © Springer Nature Singapore Pte Ltd. 2019. All rights are reserved.
Histories of the Ballarat District Orphan Asylum, Ballarat Orphanage and Ballarat Children’s Home, 1866-1983
- Authors: McGinniss, David
- Date: 2019
- Type: Text , Thesis , PhD
- Full Text:
- Description: The thesis outlines the development of three children’s residential institutions on the site of 200 Victoria Street, Ballarat East: the Ballarat District Orphan Asylum (1866-1909), the Ballarat Orphanage (1909-1968), and the Ballarat Children’s Home (1968-1983). These institutions are the historical precursors to the contemporary community service organisation now known as Child and Family Services Ballarat, or simply Cafs. The thesis focuses particularly on the shifting cultures of these institutions, to identify waves of change, surging and receding to form long patterns of alternating reform and repose. Established ways of operating overlapped with new and developing ideas, to create a dynamic environment constantly negotiating its relationships with government, communities and of course the families and children who came to rely on them. As a result, when transformative change occurred, it was difficult for leaders and policy-makers to recognise it as such at the time, as it was often experienced more as crisis and response. This provides a useful set of historical examples for current leadership and practitioners to learn from. Most critically, however, it locates the thousands of children who were institutionalised - eating, sleeping, playing, learning and working – as central to the narrative formation of identity for the historic institutions themselves, the contemporary organisation they have become, and the communities of Ballarat and beyond. Children were sent to these institutions from all over Victoria and Australia and made their homes in many different places when they left. Nevertheless, the stories and lives of the children from these institutions and the adults they have become are a key part of contemporary collective identity. The institutions are remembered with complex and contradictory mixtures of regret, loss, trauma and fondness, reflecting the mixed legacies that these institutions have left in contemporary Ballarat and beyond.
- Description: Doctor of Philosophy