The utilisation of social science research in policy development and program review. This project will enhance the use of evidence in social policy and improve the relevance of applied social research. It will produce new insights into factors affecting the success of evidence-based decision-making by examining social research utilisation within various agencies at federal and state levels. National and community benefits centre on how to improve the policy uptake of social research. This will c ....The utilisation of social science research in policy development and program review. This project will enhance the use of evidence in social policy and improve the relevance of applied social research. It will produce new insights into factors affecting the success of evidence-based decision-making by examining social research utilisation within various agencies at federal and state levels. National and community benefits centre on how to improve the policy uptake of social research. This will contribute to the development of improved support systems to enhance the consideration of evidence-based policy. Outcomes will be applicable to governments, policy-makers and academics in Australia and abroad. Ways to improve research partnerships between academic social scientists and public sector agencies will be identified. Read moreRead less
Preventing Early Academic Problems By Improving Working Memory: Translational Randomised Trial
Funder
National Health and Medical Research Council
Funding Amount
$831,085.00
Summary
Learning difficulties are common and can cause school failure and poor self-esteem. They are associated with specific problems with temporarily remembering and using information (‘working memory’). Research suggests that improving working memory might improve academic achievement. We will study this intervention in a large group of primary school children who have poor working memory. If successful, the intervention will provide a way to improve the learning skills of these high-risk children.
Transforming tobacco policy to deliver societal benefits. This project aims to develop new regulatory options for tobacco to minimise the legal market while avoiding the adverse societal and economic impacts of transferring consumer demand to illegal tobacco products. It addresses a significant current concern about a growing illegal tobacco market and seeks to improve understanding of the impact of tobacco control policies on the illegal market, and the societal impacts. The project also seeks ....Transforming tobacco policy to deliver societal benefits. This project aims to develop new regulatory options for tobacco to minimise the legal market while avoiding the adverse societal and economic impacts of transferring consumer demand to illegal tobacco products. It addresses a significant current concern about a growing illegal tobacco market and seeks to improve understanding of the impact of tobacco control policies on the illegal market, and the societal impacts. The project also seeks to draw insights from illicit drug policy to understand potential consequences of greater restrictions on the legal tobacco market. The expected outcomes include an enhanced monitoring system for illicit tobacco and policy recommendations to achieve government goals of reducing smoking rates.Read moreRead less
Developing new methods for building health policy capacity in Australia. This project will contribute to improving the capacity for policy analysis, development and evaluation in the health policy workforce and state health jurisdictions in this country. Building health policy capacity will enable the Australian health system to more effectively address current and emerging challenges including an ageing population, increasing incidence of chronic disease, pressures for cost containment, continu ....Developing new methods for building health policy capacity in Australia. This project will contribute to improving the capacity for policy analysis, development and evaluation in the health policy workforce and state health jurisdictions in this country. Building health policy capacity will enable the Australian health system to more effectively address current and emerging challenges including an ageing population, increasing incidence of chronic disease, pressures for cost containment, continuing poor Aboriginal health and emerging threats to Australia's public health, health security and National Health Strategy.Read moreRead less
An assessment of late night alcohol restrictions in Queensland. An assessment of late night alcohol restrictions in Queensland. This project aims to assess the effect of 2.00am cease of alcohol service for licensed venues across Queensland, identify modifiable elements and develop policy advice. Alcohol-related harm is a major social order issue which requires evidence-based policy. Using the most sophisticated models to date—including outlet density, enforcement, demographic variables and other ....An assessment of late night alcohol restrictions in Queensland. An assessment of late night alcohol restrictions in Queensland. This project aims to assess the effect of 2.00am cease of alcohol service for licensed venues across Queensland, identify modifiable elements and develop policy advice. Alcohol-related harm is a major social order issue which requires evidence-based policy. Using the most sophisticated models to date—including outlet density, enforcement, demographic variables and other variables—this project will build unique datasets, including archival data, foot-traffic counting, key stakeholder and patron interviews, to evaluate the effect of alcohol restrictions and identify policy lessons for other jurisdictions in Australia and internationally.Read moreRead less
Effective clinical handover communication: improving patient safety, experience and outcomes. Improving written and spoken communication in clinical handover will significantly reduce critical incidents in hospitals. The link between communication and critical incidents in hospitals is well documented. One third of the $2 billion p.a. direct financial costs to Australia of critical incidents, is attributed to poor communication between clinicians. National and international governments and heal ....Effective clinical handover communication: improving patient safety, experience and outcomes. Improving written and spoken communication in clinical handover will significantly reduce critical incidents in hospitals. The link between communication and critical incidents in hospitals is well documented. One third of the $2 billion p.a. direct financial costs to Australia of critical incidents, is attributed to poor communication between clinicians. National and international governments and health agencies have targeted clinical handover as critical in safe, effective health care. This project will generate new knowledge of handover to significantly improve patient safety and enable health professionals to enhance their communicative practices, thereby improving the quality of the patient journey through the hospital system.Read moreRead less
The Power of Giving: Australian Women Philanthropists, 1880-2000. This collaborative project with the National Foundation for Australian Women explores the changing extent and nature of Australian women's philanthropic giving since1880. It will test the hypothesis that these activities both reflected broader constructions of gender and shaped civil society and public policy. The outcome will be enhanced understanding of changing gender relations, and elite women's identity, and a greatly expande ....The Power of Giving: Australian Women Philanthropists, 1880-2000. This collaborative project with the National Foundation for Australian Women explores the changing extent and nature of Australian women's philanthropic giving since1880. It will test the hypothesis that these activities both reflected broader constructions of gender and shaped civil society and public policy. The outcome will be enhanced understanding of changing gender relations, and elite women's identity, and a greatly expanded knowledge of the third sector. Given women's increasing wealth, such an understanding is not only of scholarly interest but is crucial for the nonprofit sector, including our industry partner, and for government interest in promoting philanthropic giving in Australia.Read moreRead less
Infrastructure project delivery: a life cycle evaluation model for public private partnerships. Governments continue to embrace public-private partnerships so as to obtain value for money and provide financial accountability to taxpayers. This project will determine the most appropriate way to engage the private sector in infrastructure delivery and develop a dynamic life cycle evaluation model to ensure projects are delivered effectively and efficiently.
Protecting while they prosper? Organisational responses to whistleblowing. This project aims to examine the adequacy of organisational responses to whistleblowing (employee reporting of wrongdoing). So far, research into public-interest whistleblowing has revealed much about the incidence, significance and experience of whistleblowers. This project now extends the research to the other side of the issue — the organisations. By comparing employee and managerial experience in multiple public and p ....Protecting while they prosper? Organisational responses to whistleblowing. This project aims to examine the adequacy of organisational responses to whistleblowing (employee reporting of wrongdoing). So far, research into public-interest whistleblowing has revealed much about the incidence, significance and experience of whistleblowers. This project now extends the research to the other side of the issue — the organisations. By comparing employee and managerial experience in multiple public and private sector organisations in Australia and New Zealand, the project intends to identify the factors that influence good and bad responses across a range of institutions; provide a clearer basis for reform of policies, procedures and law; and set benchmarks for comparative research worldwide.Read moreRead less