What's In A Conversation? Discourse Correlates Of Concepts In The Conversational Model Of Psychotherapy
Funder
National Health and Medical Research Council
Funding Amount
$240,952.00
Summary
How and why does therapeutic talk assist people with mental health disorders to change and restore their sense of self? How do psychiatrists read the potential for such change in the discourse of their patients? This collaborative project, between psychiatry and linguistics, investigates the role of language in providing both strategies for change and evidence of change in the Conversational Model of psychotherapy. The project will examine the linguistic patterns that occur in the forms of talk ....How and why does therapeutic talk assist people with mental health disorders to change and restore their sense of self? How do psychiatrists read the potential for such change in the discourse of their patients? This collaborative project, between psychiatry and linguistics, investigates the role of language in providing both strategies for change and evidence of change in the Conversational Model of psychotherapy. The project will examine the linguistic patterns that occur in the forms of talk used by therapists employing the Conversational Model of Psychotherapy, in order to produce a better understanding of certain mental illnesses, and how they can be treated. Specifically, it will: 1. describe, linguistically, four key discourse categories of the Conversational Model that are taken as indicators of progress in patients with Borderline Personality Disorder 2. explain the therapeutic work of such discourse - what is it about these particular language resources that facilitates the observed changes in patients' discourse and mind? 3. assess the stability of key discourse categories of the Conversational Model, and test the ability of a linguistic profile to reliably distinguish between key therapeutic categories as used by different clinicians. The positive effects of Conversational Therapy on incidence of self harm, violence, hospital stays, drug use and self-reported symptoms in this group have been well documented and are especially impressive given that many of the patients in these studies had been turned away from other forms of treatment as unresponsive. By understanding better how this therapy works in a patient group that is typically resistant to treatment but responsive to this particular treatment, we hope to improve health outcomes for people diagnosed with Borderline Personality Disorder. In the longer term we expect this research to help improve techniques for enhancing the mental health of Australians more generally.Read moreRead less
Use Of Expression Profiling To Identify Genes Influencing Cardiovascular Risk In The Norfolk Island Population Isolate
Funder
National Health and Medical Research Council
Funding Amount
$697,409.00
Summary
This study will use a unique population isolate from Norfolk Island. We aim to identify genes that play a role in cardiovascular disease risk. Norfolk has a population of ~1200 permanent residents, most of whom are direct descendents of 18th century English Bounty mutineers and Polynesian women. We will undertake gene expression mapping to identify genomic loci that influence cardiovascular disease using samples from this population isolate.
Fine Scale Mapping And Identification Of The IBD1 Gene On Chromsosome 16
Funder
National Health and Medical Research Council
Funding Amount
$483,849.00
Summary
One of the greatest challenges facing contemporary gastroenterology is to understand the causes of the inflammatory bowel diseases (IBD). Studies on the prevalence, incidence and cost of IBD indicate that these diseases have considerable impact in Australia. On average, patients lose more than 13 days from work each year, and in hospital, IBD in-patients accounted for 7% of total admissions and 10% of total bed days at an average cost of $2600 per admission. We estimate that there may be more th ....One of the greatest challenges facing contemporary gastroenterology is to understand the causes of the inflammatory bowel diseases (IBD). Studies on the prevalence, incidence and cost of IBD indicate that these diseases have considerable impact in Australia. On average, patients lose more than 13 days from work each year, and in hospital, IBD in-patients accounted for 7% of total admissions and 10% of total bed days at an average cost of $2600 per admission. We estimate that there may be more than 10,000 Australians who suffer from IBD. The existence of a genetic predisposition to IBD is now well established, and there is strong evidence that the disease is complex, resulting from the interaction of a number of different genes. To date, one genetic localisation on chromosome 16 has been established in several different populations, and we have confirmed the importance of this localisation in the Australian population. We will further refine the localisation by fine scale mapping in the pericentromeric region of chromosome 16 by identifying and studying the inheritance of novel markers in the region. We will then identify and characterise the gene itself using several complementary appoaches that rely on differences at the molecular level between disease and normal tissue. This work is part of the international effort to identify all IBD susceptibility genes. Once that is achieved, approaches to explaining the interactions between the genes, their protein products and environmental triggers can be determined. Only when the mechanisms of these interactions are understood will the expectation of rational therapies based on an understanding of disease aetiology be possible.Read moreRead less
Validating And Optimising The Analysis Of Magnetic Resonance Physiology Data
Funder
National Health and Medical Research Council
Funding Amount
$91,725.00
Summary
Combined electroencephalography (EEG) and functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI) is used to detect the anatomical areas in the brain that show electrical activity. Several centres worldwide use this technique to localise the seizure focus in patients with epilepsy. However, there is a lack of validation of the currently applied techniques. Current analysis methods have been developed and validated for other fMRI paradigms, such as motor tasks. It is not known whether the same principles ar ....Combined electroencephalography (EEG) and functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI) is used to detect the anatomical areas in the brain that show electrical activity. Several centres worldwide use this technique to localise the seizure focus in patients with epilepsy. However, there is a lack of validation of the currently applied techniques. Current analysis methods have been developed and validated for other fMRI paradigms, such as motor tasks. It is not known whether the same principles are applicable and optimal for fMRI-EEG data. The proposed project aims at validating and optimising the analysis strategies for fMRI-EEG data.Read moreRead less