Investigating the Indirect Effects of Child-Targeted Food Promotion on Children's Diets. Obesity is forecast to cost the Australian community more than $58 billion in 2008. The prevention and reduction of obesity thus has the potential to create significant savings in terms of obesity-related treatment costs and impairments. Children have been identified as a population requiring particular attention in efforts to combat obesity. The proposed study will provide an enhanced understanding of the r ....Investigating the Indirect Effects of Child-Targeted Food Promotion on Children's Diets. Obesity is forecast to cost the Australian community more than $58 billion in 2008. The prevention and reduction of obesity thus has the potential to create significant savings in terms of obesity-related treatment costs and impairments. Children have been identified as a population requiring particular attention in efforts to combat obesity. The proposed study will provide an enhanced understanding of the role that food promotion plays in sub-optimal food choices made by children and their parents. The results of the study will be translated into specific public policy recommendations to assist governments and health agencies in determining appropriate courses of action to promote healthy diets among children and their families.Read moreRead less
A randomised controlled trial assessing the effects of a school-based sleep intervention in Year 6 and 7 students. Inadequate sleep is associated with a wide range of health problems in children, including obesity and poor performance at school. Children are sleeping less than ever before, and there is an increasing pattern of “yo yo sleeping” (sleep deprivation on school days followed by catch up sleeps on weekends). This study will trial a school-based program designed to improve the sleeping ....A randomised controlled trial assessing the effects of a school-based sleep intervention in Year 6 and 7 students. Inadequate sleep is associated with a wide range of health problems in children, including obesity and poor performance at school. Children are sleeping less than ever before, and there is an increasing pattern of “yo yo sleeping” (sleep deprivation on school days followed by catch up sleeps on weekends). This study will trial a school-based program designed to improve the sleeping habits of children. Better sleep is expected to result in improved alertness, better life satisfaction, and improved weight status.Read moreRead less
Normative study of a checklist of emotional and behavioural disturbance in adults with intellectual disability. People with intellectual disability (ID) are three times more likely to suffer mental illness than the general community, making this a bigger problem than schizophrenia. They are a great burden to their carers and cost to the community but their mental health problems remain largely untreated. This study aims to conduct the largest and most comprehensive survey of the mental health ....Normative study of a checklist of emotional and behavioural disturbance in adults with intellectual disability. People with intellectual disability (ID) are three times more likely to suffer mental illness than the general community, making this a bigger problem than schizophrenia. They are a great burden to their carers and cost to the community but their mental health problems remain largely untreated. This study aims to conduct the largest and most comprehensive survey of the mental health of adults with ID that has been undertaken internationally to date. The population will cover the age span of late adolescence (16 years) through the transition to adult life then through to the elderly. The research will establish the prevalence and nature of mental illness and potential risk factors in a large representative population of adults with ID.Read moreRead less
Implicit cognitive processing of environmental food and eating cues in obese adults. Obesity is a major public health concern in Western countries, including Australia. In focusing on implicit cognitive processing of environmental food and eating cues, this project addresses a factor that has hitherto been neglected in obesity research. The inclusion of a component that specifically addresses food-related cognitions has the potential to dramatically improve the success of weight-loss programs. A ....Implicit cognitive processing of environmental food and eating cues in obese adults. Obesity is a major public health concern in Western countries, including Australia. In focusing on implicit cognitive processing of environmental food and eating cues, this project addresses a factor that has hitherto been neglected in obesity research. The inclusion of a component that specifically addresses food-related cognitions has the potential to dramatically improve the success of weight-loss programs. Accordingly, our research has clear potential benefit for Australian national health and well-being, consistent with Research Priority 2: Promoting and maintaining good health. It will also contribute to the international profile of Australian social science and provide valuable research training opportunities for students.
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'Images of desire': An experimental cognitive approach to understanding and reducing food cravings. Food cravings are an important precursor to binge eating, a risk factor for both obesity and bulimia nervosa. Like many other Western countries, Australia has recently seen an alarming rise in these disorders. This project aims to investigate the imagery basis of food craving and develop effective techniques for its reduction. It has clear potential benefit for Australian national health and well- ....'Images of desire': An experimental cognitive approach to understanding and reducing food cravings. Food cravings are an important precursor to binge eating, a risk factor for both obesity and bulimia nervosa. Like many other Western countries, Australia has recently seen an alarming rise in these disorders. This project aims to investigate the imagery basis of food craving and develop effective techniques for its reduction. It has clear potential benefit for Australian national health and well-being, consistent with National Research Priority No. 2, "Promoting and Maintaining Good Health." The research will clearly contribute to the international profile of Australian social science and provide valuable research training for undergraduate and postgraduate students.Read moreRead less
Effects of omega-3 fatty acids and micronutrients on learning and behaviour of Indigenous Australian children from a remote community school. Indigenous Australian children have disproportionate health problems that are largely related to malnutrition, which affects physical health and may also impact on their emotional health, learning and behaviour. Indigenous Australian children in remote rural communities are performing well below national benchmarks, and the government has earmarked improve ....Effects of omega-3 fatty acids and micronutrients on learning and behaviour of Indigenous Australian children from a remote community school. Indigenous Australian children have disproportionate health problems that are largely related to malnutrition, which affects physical health and may also impact on their emotional health, learning and behaviour. Indigenous Australian children in remote rural communities are performing well below national benchmarks, and the government has earmarked improved education in this population as a top national priority. To date research has not addressed the impact of nutrition on learning in this population. Improving the nutritional status of these children could assist them to derive greater benefit from educational opportunities, and in turn greater equality of access to occupational opportunities later in life.Read moreRead less
Exploring resilience in relation to physical activity and dietary behaviours among children from neighbourhoods of low socioeconomic position. The link between social disadvantage and poor health, across a broad age range, is a serious public health challenge. Current interventions to promote healthy weight-related behaviours among young people ignore the motivators and barriers unique to demographic sub-groups, and are largely ineffective. The personal and socio-environmental correlates of heal ....Exploring resilience in relation to physical activity and dietary behaviours among children from neighbourhoods of low socioeconomic position. The link between social disadvantage and poor health, across a broad age range, is a serious public health challenge. Current interventions to promote healthy weight-related behaviours among young people ignore the motivators and barriers unique to demographic sub-groups, and are largely ineffective. The personal and socio-environmental correlates of healthy behaviours among young South Australians identified in this study are likely to be relevant to low socioeconomic neighbourhoods in other states and territories. As such, this study will offer new insights into intervention design that will give impetus to the efforts of researchers, policy makers and practitioners throughout Australia.Read moreRead less
Redefining bullying and adjustment to school: Japanese and Australian. School violence is an all too prevalent physically, socially, and psychologically damaging aspect of the everyday life of a significant portion of school students around the world. The aim of this collaborative Linkage Award is to compare Australian and Japanese school students's understanding of bullying, its stability over time and its association with school adjustment. This comparative research breaks new ground in inve ....Redefining bullying and adjustment to school: Japanese and Australian. School violence is an all too prevalent physically, socially, and psychologically damaging aspect of the everyday life of a significant portion of school students around the world. The aim of this collaborative Linkage Award is to compare Australian and Japanese school students's understanding of bullying, its stability over time and its association with school adjustment. This comparative research breaks new ground in investigating the particularly damaging form of bullying known as indirect/relational bullying. The research is part of a larger international consortium including China, Canada and Korea. The outcomes from this research will be reported back to the consortium, presented at international conferences , published and used to inform school intervention programsRead moreRead less
The prevalence and cross-cultural comparison of daytime sleepiness in adolescents. International research shows many teenagers have problems falling asleep and being sleepy during the day. This can be due to an irregular sleep pattern of insufficient sleep on school nights, and sleeping-in on weekends. These problems lead to poor outcomes, including poor school performance and negative moods. The aims of the project are to measure the extent of sleep problems in Australian teenagers and compare ....The prevalence and cross-cultural comparison of daytime sleepiness in adolescents. International research shows many teenagers have problems falling asleep and being sleepy during the day. This can be due to an irregular sleep pattern of insufficient sleep on school nights, and sleeping-in on weekends. These problems lead to poor outcomes, including poor school performance and negative moods. The aims of the project are to measure the extent of sleep problems in Australian teenagers and compare these to adolescents in the United States. Detection of teenager sleep problems in Australia could lead to significant community awareness and school policy developments as it has in the United States. Read moreRead less
Effectiveness of Intervention Strategies to Promote Physical Activity Among Insufficiently Active Adults. This project will determine the cost-effectiveness of 2 types of physical activity (PA) interventions based around the workplace. 480 participants will be randomly assigned to PA intervention groups or controls. Interventions are either a (1) self-regulated, pedometer-based program or a (2) semi-structured, 40-day initiation to more moderately-vigorous PA. Both are designed to increase self- ....Effectiveness of Intervention Strategies to Promote Physical Activity Among Insufficiently Active Adults. This project will determine the cost-effectiveness of 2 types of physical activity (PA) interventions based around the workplace. 480 participants will be randomly assigned to PA intervention groups or controls. Interventions are either a (1) self-regulated, pedometer-based program or a (2) semi-structured, 40-day initiation to more moderately-vigorous PA. Both are designed to increase self-efficacy and impact on positive PA behaviours. Long-term, behavioural change and job-related outcomes will be evaluated by following participants for 12 months after the interventions.Read moreRead less