Sexual well-being and ageing: a study of older Australian women. This research addresses important issues of ageism and sexism that together affect older women's health and well-being. The findings will inform the link between aging, sexuality and more general dimensions of health and well-being and advance our understanding of issues central to policy and services for older Australians.
Working from home: New media technology, workplace culture and the changing nature of domesticity. New media technologies are often marketed as liberating people from the workplace, providing flexibility in meeting work obligations. Communication technologies in particular make working from home increasingly possible: laptops, mobile phones and PDAs make any space a potential site for paid labour. This research studies the effect of new media technologies on how work is performed, where and by w ....Working from home: New media technology, workplace culture and the changing nature of domesticity. New media technologies are often marketed as liberating people from the workplace, providing flexibility in meeting work obligations. Communication technologies in particular make working from home increasingly possible: laptops, mobile phones and PDAs make any space a potential site for paid labour. This research studies the effect of new media technologies on how work is performed, where and by whom, to gauge their impact on the community more broadly. It also asks whether these new relationships to work raise the prospect of changing traditional attitudes to the work performed in and outside the home by men and women.Read moreRead less
Does developmental noise have an epigenetic basis? One's ultimate phenotype is the result of a combination of genotype and environment, and includes a poorly understood component termed ?developmental noise?. The molecular basis of developmental noise remains unknown, but it appears to be established in early development and to be retained for the life of the organism. We propose that the molecular basis of developmental noise is the epigenetic state of the genome. The stochastic nature of th ....Does developmental noise have an epigenetic basis? One's ultimate phenotype is the result of a combination of genotype and environment, and includes a poorly understood component termed ?developmental noise?. The molecular basis of developmental noise remains unknown, but it appears to be established in early development and to be retained for the life of the organism. We propose that the molecular basis of developmental noise is the epigenetic state of the genome. The stochastic nature of the establishment of epigenetic state, combined with its heritability during mitosis, provides all the essential components for developmental noise. If our hypothesis proves correct, our work will have a major impact on the understanding of one of the most basic concepts in genetics.Read moreRead less
Farmers of the Future: the Challenges of Feminised Agriculture in India. Neoliberal economic policies are fundamentally transforming the social landscapes of rural India, causing a deep agrarian crisis. The agrarian changes accentuate the unequal consequences for poor women and men in relation to: production (labour, tenure); livelihood and food security; access to and ownership of assets such as land and water and access to agricultural innovations and institutions. This multiscalar project inv ....Farmers of the Future: the Challenges of Feminised Agriculture in India. Neoliberal economic policies are fundamentally transforming the social landscapes of rural India, causing a deep agrarian crisis. The agrarian changes accentuate the unequal consequences for poor women and men in relation to: production (labour, tenure); livelihood and food security; access to and ownership of assets such as land and water and access to agricultural innovations and institutions. This multiscalar project investigates the causes and consequences of feminisation of agriculture in India’s transitioning economy in order to understand how gender roles and relations are being re-shaped in communities and households in diverse socioeconomic and cultural contexts and agro-ecological areas.Read moreRead less
Structured Writing Tasks: Examination of the process of change as indicated by cognitive-behavioural models of trauma. Research demonstrates that structured writing about past upsetting experiences is beneficial for physical and psychological health. The aim of this study is to identify the process of change responsible for these benefits. Three processes, based on trauma theory, have been identified (exposure, devaluation, and benefit-finding) and are manipulated within the writing paradigm. T ....Structured Writing Tasks: Examination of the process of change as indicated by cognitive-behavioural models of trauma. Research demonstrates that structured writing about past upsetting experiences is beneficial for physical and psychological health. The aim of this study is to identify the process of change responsible for these benefits. Three processes, based on trauma theory, have been identified (exposure, devaluation, and benefit-finding) and are manipulated within the writing paradigm. This study will test these processes in predicting future health benefits. It will increase the effectiveness of the writing paradigm for the general population, provide manualised variations of the writing paradigm based on trauma theory, examine patient-matching variables, and provide a base to conduct research in clinical populations.Read moreRead less
The sociology of health data for sexuality and gender diverse people. This project aims to investigate the sociological dimensions of digital health data for sexuality and gender diverse people with complex health needs. It employs qualitative and co-design methods to engage with sexuality and gender diverse people, advocates, clinicians, decision-makers, and health data designers. The project expects to generate much-needed knowledge about the participation of sexuality and gender diverse peopl ....The sociology of health data for sexuality and gender diverse people. This project aims to investigate the sociological dimensions of digital health data for sexuality and gender diverse people with complex health needs. It employs qualitative and co-design methods to engage with sexuality and gender diverse people, advocates, clinicians, decision-makers, and health data designers. The project expects to generate much-needed knowledge about the participation of sexuality and gender diverse people in health data systems, with respect to trust, disclosure, stigma and prejudice. Expected outcomes include insight for enhancing health data systems for sexuality and gender diverse people. This project should provide significant benefits for the promotion of inclusive, safe and useful health data systems.Read moreRead less
A Cultural and Intellectual History of Automated Labour . This project will trace how debates about labour automation have been shaped by cultural depictions of work, from the eighteenth century to today. It will produce new knowledge about how people have viewed industrial transformation, from the steam engine to modern forms of labour saving - electronic, digital, biological, and artificial intelligence. The project will combine historical study with an examination of the way artists and write ....A Cultural and Intellectual History of Automated Labour . This project will trace how debates about labour automation have been shaped by cultural depictions of work, from the eighteenth century to today. It will produce new knowledge about how people have viewed industrial transformation, from the steam engine to modern forms of labour saving - electronic, digital, biological, and artificial intelligence. The project will combine historical study with an examination of the way artists and writers have responded to labour automation. Expected benefits include informing public debate about the future of work, and shaping policy in arts-science museums and laboratories. Outcomes will include publications, public forums, conferences, training of research students and international collaboration. Read moreRead less
Scalable, high throughput microfluidic platforms for tissue specific biomaterials development and tissue genesis. The co-development of novel biomaterial platforms and new generation production methods for tissue analogues will provide the necessary stimulus for improved and more relevant methods of enhanced repair or regeneration of diseased or damaged tissues. These outcomes will result in faster time-to-market new generation therapeutic products for Australia and the world. These advances wil ....Scalable, high throughput microfluidic platforms for tissue specific biomaterials development and tissue genesis. The co-development of novel biomaterial platforms and new generation production methods for tissue analogues will provide the necessary stimulus for improved and more relevant methods of enhanced repair or regeneration of diseased or damaged tissues. These outcomes will result in faster time-to-market new generation therapeutic products for Australia and the world. These advances will have a significant impact on our healthcare costs and the quality of life for all Australians.Read moreRead less
Support or sales? Medical device representatives in Australian hospitals. Medical device representatives provide crucial support to clinicians using complex medical equipment. However, their obligation to maximise sales conflicts with their support role. Increasing uptake of devices potentially impacts patient safety and healthcare costs, making it important to understand the involvement and influence of device representatives. The proposed research will investigate the ethical and legal impacts ....Support or sales? Medical device representatives in Australian hospitals. Medical device representatives provide crucial support to clinicians using complex medical equipment. However, their obligation to maximise sales conflicts with their support role. Increasing uptake of devices potentially impacts patient safety and healthcare costs, making it important to understand the involvement and influence of device representatives. The proposed research will investigate the ethical and legal impacts of device representatives in Australian hospitals, leading to new knowledge and innovative ethical and legal analyses of their activities. Benefits include a policy framework, new standards for managing device representatives’ interactions, and clarity about ethical and legal obligations of clinicians and institutions.Read moreRead less
Veteran suicide: investigating the historical and social dimensions . This project aims to address veteran suicide by conducting an historical and cultural analysis of the ways government, the military and the community have understood, governed, and serviced veterans from 1914-present. This project will generate new knowledge, moving beyond orthodox medical and cultural assessments to explore wider historical, cultural and sociological relations of veteran suicide, including civil military rela ....Veteran suicide: investigating the historical and social dimensions . This project aims to address veteran suicide by conducting an historical and cultural analysis of the ways government, the military and the community have understood, governed, and serviced veterans from 1914-present. This project will generate new knowledge, moving beyond orthodox medical and cultural assessments to explore wider historical, cultural and sociological relations of veteran suicide, including civil military relations, and the influence of the veteran sector and families and community. The project will develop an innovative survey that will form the foundation of a longitudinal social health and wellbeing dataset on veterans, and contribute to policy and service provision to reduce veteran suicide and improve their wellbeing.Read moreRead less