Influences on farmer suicide in Queensland and New South Wales. Australian farmers have been identified as being at high-risk of suicide. This project will provide direction for targeted suicide prevention strategies by quantifying the individual and environmental factors that place farmers at higher risk of suicide, as well as the protective factors that may buffer against suicide and suicidal behaviours.
Improving the physical and oral health of people with severe mental illness: using Normalisation Process Theory to support new practices. The physical health of people with severe mental illness is extremely poor, often due to inadequate attention to their health needs by health professionals in primary care and the public mental health system. This project will focus on how practices can be changed to improve the health of this population and increase their access to preventative healthcare.
Understanding and preventing mental health difficulties in young Australian men using the Internet. Mental health is a major public health problem in Australia. Young men are particularly vulnerable to suicide, drug and alcohol problems and yet fail to seek appropriate help. The Internet is currently accessed by 85% of Australia's youth and yet very little evidence exists which examines the capacity of the Internet to engage young men and promote help seeking. This project will build an evidence ....Understanding and preventing mental health difficulties in young Australian men using the Internet. Mental health is a major public health problem in Australia. Young men are particularly vulnerable to suicide, drug and alcohol problems and yet fail to seek appropriate help. The Internet is currently accessed by 85% of Australia's youth and yet very little evidence exists which examines the capacity of the Internet to engage young men and promote help seeking. This project will build an evidence base which explores how innovative on-line strategies and social marketing can effectively promote help seeking behaviour and improve mental health outcomes for young men. Read moreRead less
What's in the music? A lifespan model of emotional and musical creativity in therapeutic song writing. Composing songs as a form of therapy is a recent innovation in music therapy practice. This study examines the health benefits of original song writing for people with varying debilitating health conditions and those adjusting to injury, trauma or pending death. The results of this study will improve health service and delivery by music therapists.
Implementation and evaluation of a program to reduce alcohol and related problems among farm men and women. Farming is pivotal to Australia's food production and economy; yet farm communities are under great stress. The Sustainable Farm Families program aims to strengthen rural communities across Australia, and our project will add an important component to it by producing an evidence-based strategy for encouraging farm men and women to adopt more positive alcohol-related behaviours that will l ....Implementation and evaluation of a program to reduce alcohol and related problems among farm men and women. Farming is pivotal to Australia's food production and economy; yet farm communities are under great stress. The Sustainable Farm Families program aims to strengthen rural communities across Australia, and our project will add an important component to it by producing an evidence-based strategy for encouraging farm men and women to adopt more positive alcohol-related behaviours that will lead to better physical and mental health. We expect that our project will reduce the level of dangerous alcohol consumption and enhance the economic, social and cultural fabric of rural Australia.Read moreRead less
Investigating older Australians' beliefs about and understanding of mental health and their practice of relevant protective behaviours. Healthy ageing and mental health are acknowledged national priorities. This project will generate new knowledge relating to older Australians' mental health literacy and the motivators and barriers influencing their engagement in protective behaviours. The resulting communications strategy will provide tangible outcomes for the industry partners to utilise. The ....Investigating older Australians' beliefs about and understanding of mental health and their practice of relevant protective behaviours. Healthy ageing and mental health are acknowledged national priorities. This project will generate new knowledge relating to older Australians' mental health literacy and the motivators and barriers influencing their engagement in protective behaviours. The resulting communications strategy will provide tangible outcomes for the industry partners to utilise. The project will thus produce knowledge advancement and tools for practitioners, both of which will enhance public welfare and reduce long-term healthcare costs. While this project focuses on older Australians, those of all ages will benefit from a communications campaign that provides individuals with knowledge to protect and strengthen their mental health.Read moreRead less
Identifying Models of Personal and Community Resilience that enhance Psychological Wellness: A Stanthorpe Study. There are significant mental health problems in rural and remote Australia. Researchers in Australia are only just beginning to investigate mental health, and prevention is identified as a primary focus. A new innovative approach to mental health prevention is identifying and using characteristics that will enhance individual and community psychological wellness. Resilience has been i ....Identifying Models of Personal and Community Resilience that enhance Psychological Wellness: A Stanthorpe Study. There are significant mental health problems in rural and remote Australia. Researchers in Australia are only just beginning to investigate mental health, and prevention is identified as a primary focus. A new innovative approach to mental health prevention is identifying and using characteristics that will enhance individual and community psychological wellness. Resilience has been identified as one of those characteristics. The aim of this project is to work collaboratively with key stakeholders from a rural community (Stanthorpe in South East Queensland) to develop, implement, and evaluate a model that enhances psychological wellness in rural people and communities.Read moreRead less
Personal experiences of depression and recovery; an Internet resource for the public and policy makers. The economic, health, a social and personal cost to the Australian community of depression constitutes a public health concern of undoubted significance. Debates in both policy and public arenas are hampered by a lack of comprehensive reliable evidence about factors underlying depression and more importantly recovery from depression. The data gathered from this project will establish an evide ....Personal experiences of depression and recovery; an Internet resource for the public and policy makers. The economic, health, a social and personal cost to the Australian community of depression constitutes a public health concern of undoubted significance. Debates in both policy and public arenas are hampered by a lack of comprehensive reliable evidence about factors underlying depression and more importantly recovery from depression. The data gathered from this project will establish an evidence base and a platform for incorporating lay perspectives on depression and recovery into the currently existing discourses on depression into web based resources providing information to people searching information about depression, its treatments and recovery pathways.Read moreRead less
Discovery Early Career Researcher Award - Grant ID: DE140101588
Funder
Australian Research Council
Funding Amount
$392,459.00
Summary
Do physical activity and electronic screen behaviours influence cognitive and psychosocial development in preschool children? Levels of physical inactivity and screen-based entertainment are alarmingly high among preschool children, yet little is known about the independent effects of these behaviours on cognitive and psychosocial development during early childhood. This project will investigate the associations between physical activity and screen-based entertainment and cognitive and psychosoc ....Do physical activity and electronic screen behaviours influence cognitive and psychosocial development in preschool children? Levels of physical inactivity and screen-based entertainment are alarmingly high among preschool children, yet little is known about the independent effects of these behaviours on cognitive and psychosocial development during early childhood. This project will investigate the associations between physical activity and screen-based entertainment and cognitive and psychosocial development in preschool children. The findings will identify how much and which types of these behaviours influence developmental outcomes in young children. This knowledge will benefit parents, educators, health professionals and governments to develop and implement evidence-based strategies and policies to give young children the best start in life.Read moreRead less
Mental Health First Aid Training for Teachers: Development, Evaluation and Dissemination. The project aims to provide teachers with training that will assist them to recognize mental health problems which are developing in students and to take appropriate action so that the student gets professional help.