A Public Health Framework of Effectiveness: Evaluating the Framework for Telephone Counselling. The demand for telephone counselling is strong and while this form of counselling has face validity, there is no substantive research into its effectiveness for clients. This project aims to adapt the public health model to evaluate processes and outcomes of Lifeline - a generic telephone counselling service in Melbourne. The public health model of effectiveness, will, in turn, also be evaluated.
Discovery Early Career Researcher Award - Grant ID: DE210101107
Funder
Australian Research Council
Funding Amount
$412,744.00
Summary
Ahead of the Game: Balancing the Gaming Industry and Public Interest. This project battles the risks and embraces the benefits of digital gaming. There is a risk that one loses control of their gaming and prioritises it over other duties. This is offset by the benefits of using digital games for health. It is the first to decode and use the health data embedded in the connection between the gamer and their game persona (avatar). It does this by concurrently assessing important gamer, family, cul ....Ahead of the Game: Balancing the Gaming Industry and Public Interest. This project battles the risks and embraces the benefits of digital gaming. There is a risk that one loses control of their gaming and prioritises it over other duties. This is offset by the benefits of using digital games for health. It is the first to decode and use the health data embedded in the connection between the gamer and their game persona (avatar). It does this by concurrently assessing important gamer, family, cultural and game structure features. Findings will prompt the ethical growth of the Australian Health games industry and inform strategies to combat gaming disorder by tailoring games to users' needs. This will uniquely benefit Australians by re-directing this growing industry to better serve the public interest.Read moreRead less
Enhancing wellbeing and resilience within prisons: A psycho-educational approach for the missing middle. Many prisoners experience mental illness and psychological distress, which has been found to relate to repeat offending. Moreover, prison officers also experience high levels of anxiety and distress. This project aims to identify the mental health needs and factors that lead to psychological distress among prisoners and prison officers. Brief intervention programs intend to be developed to ad ....Enhancing wellbeing and resilience within prisons: A psycho-educational approach for the missing middle. Many prisoners experience mental illness and psychological distress, which has been found to relate to repeat offending. Moreover, prison officers also experience high levels of anxiety and distress. This project aims to identify the mental health needs and factors that lead to psychological distress among prisoners and prison officers. Brief intervention programs intend to be developed to address the needs of the ‘missing middle’ (those with elevated levels of distress who are not receiving services). The programs aim to be evaluated to determine whether they are preventing mental health deterioration among participants and whether the results reduce repeat incarceration for prisoners and increase job satisfaction and performance for officers.Read moreRead less
Developing useable markers of mental health deterioration. The project aims to improve risk management in mental health. Risk management in mental health is currently hampered because there is no nationally agreed set of markers of deterioration. One strand of the project aims to improve safety procedures by identifying the bases of decisions about adverse outcomes (i.e. symptom deterioration) and testing this knowledge to understand and predict other adverse events (e.g. non-suicidal self-injur ....Developing useable markers of mental health deterioration. The project aims to improve risk management in mental health. Risk management in mental health is currently hampered because there is no nationally agreed set of markers of deterioration. One strand of the project aims to improve safety procedures by identifying the bases of decisions about adverse outcomes (i.e. symptom deterioration) and testing this knowledge to understand and predict other adverse events (e.g. non-suicidal self-injury). A second strand aims to improve prediction of clinical deterioration and non-suicidal self-injury. By identifying ways to inform and implement decisions about risk management, the project intends to lay a foundation for the development of a nationally agreed set of markers for mental health deterioration to be used in occupational safety and health processes.Read moreRead less
A critical psychological investigation of nurses' experiences, understandings and perceptions of nursing eating disordered patients. This innovative project will investigate the experiences, understandings and perceptions of nurses working with eating disordered patients in hospital contexts. Nurses currently nursing eating disordered patients will be interviewed in depth using a semi-structured interview schedule. Interviews will be audio-recorded and transcribed verbatum. The interview transcr ....A critical psychological investigation of nurses' experiences, understandings and perceptions of nursing eating disordered patients. This innovative project will investigate the experiences, understandings and perceptions of nurses working with eating disordered patients in hospital contexts. Nurses currently nursing eating disordered patients will be interviewed in depth using a semi-structured interview schedule. Interviews will be audio-recorded and transcribed verbatum. The interview transcripts will then be systematically analysed using a qualitative discourse analytic methodology. The aim will be to identify the specific discursive resources that nurses use to frame and make sense of their experiences, understandings and perceptions of nursing eating disordered patients. The project has clinical and social scientific significance, and will contribute to improved treatment outcomes.Read moreRead less
Changing the lives of young Australians with emotional disorders using a simple three-step treatment based on cognitive-neuroscience insights. Anxiety and depression are emotional disorders that affect many Australian children and place them at risk of lifelong impairment. The latest evidence from cognitive science and neuroscience shows that these children have maladaptive thinking strategies that lead to avoidance and withdrawal. Capitalising on these basic science insights, this project exami ....Changing the lives of young Australians with emotional disorders using a simple three-step treatment based on cognitive-neuroscience insights. Anxiety and depression are emotional disorders that affect many Australian children and place them at risk of lifelong impairment. The latest evidence from cognitive science and neuroscience shows that these children have maladaptive thinking strategies that lead to avoidance and withdrawal. Capitalising on these basic science insights, this project examines a new treatment, referred to as the 'Emotional Flexibility Program', that targets childhood distress in three simple steps over just four weeks of treatment. This treatment could change the way childhood emotional disorders are treated and prevented, improve the quality of life for thousands of young Australians, and offset the associated economic burden of disease.Read moreRead less
Deakin Family Options: engaging youth with high prevalence mental health problems using family based interventions. Youth depression, anxiety and substance abuse are prevalent, distressing and costly problems impacting one in five young Australians. This collaborative project - called ‘Deakin Family Options’ - will evaluate a family based intervention in order to broaden the therapeutic approaches used for young people and their families.
Improving the identification of juvenile firesetters at high risk of recidivism. Young firesetters are not only responsible for some fifth of all fires, they also are at risk of becoming adult arsonists. Australian fire services provide educational programs for young firesetters but about a third may continue to light fires. This project will allow clarification of variables most associated with ongoing firesetting behaviour (recidivism), better prediction of high risk juveniles, understanding ....Improving the identification of juvenile firesetters at high risk of recidivism. Young firesetters are not only responsible for some fifth of all fires, they also are at risk of becoming adult arsonists. Australian fire services provide educational programs for young firesetters but about a third may continue to light fires. This project will allow clarification of variables most associated with ongoing firesetting behaviour (recidivism), better prediction of high risk juveniles, understanding of the predictive value of a screening tool, valid assessment of recidivism rates and an increased understanding of mental health agency involvement with firesetter families. These outcomes will help improve programs involving juvenile firesetters, thereby reducing arson and the high cost of uncontrolled fire.Read moreRead less
Behaviour and emotional problems in young children with developmental delay. This research will provide health professionals, researchers and service providers with a reliable and valid measure to assess behaviour in young children with developmental delay. This will be the first instrument of its kind worldwide. The study will provide the largest and most comprehensive survey of behaviour and emotional problems in young children with developmental delay internationally to date. It will provide ....Behaviour and emotional problems in young children with developmental delay. This research will provide health professionals, researchers and service providers with a reliable and valid measure to assess behaviour in young children with developmental delay. This will be the first instrument of its kind worldwide. The study will provide the largest and most comprehensive survey of behaviour and emotional problems in young children with developmental delay internationally to date. It will provide information on the types of treatment that are needed for these children and what support is needed for their families. The outcomes of this study have the potential to promote the best possible start in life and long term mental health of this group of at risk and disadvantaged young Australians.Read moreRead less
Hearing, social connectedness, and well-being of ageing adults in Australia. Hearing ability declines with age and hearing loss has a fundamental impact on an adult’s ability to communicate and, in turn, socially connect with others. This benchmark study aims to apply innovative, quantitative and qualitative methods to examine the real-world social connections of adults with hearing loss who use or do not use hearing aids. This project expects to increase understanding of the social impacts of a ....Hearing, social connectedness, and well-being of ageing adults in Australia. Hearing ability declines with age and hearing loss has a fundamental impact on an adult’s ability to communicate and, in turn, socially connect with others. This benchmark study aims to apply innovative, quantitative and qualitative methods to examine the real-world social connections of adults with hearing loss who use or do not use hearing aids. This project expects to increase understanding of the social impacts of age-related hearing loss and the relationship to hearing rehabilitation. The expected outcomes have the potential to guide research, policy, and practice for ageing Australians. This should provide significant benefits, such as reducing social isolation and enhancing the well-being of millions of Australians.Read moreRead less