A benefit-cost analysis of the Early Years Education Program. This project undertakes a benefit-cost analysis of the Early Years Education Program (EYEP). EYEP is an innovative early years education and childcare program for children at risk of abuse and neglect that is being trialled by the Children’s Protection Society in Melbourne. The use of the randomised evaluation method in the trial, the innovative and extensive nature of EYEP, the inter-disciplinary research team, and the breadth of dat ....A benefit-cost analysis of the Early Years Education Program. This project undertakes a benefit-cost analysis of the Early Years Education Program (EYEP). EYEP is an innovative early years education and childcare program for children at risk of abuse and neglect that is being trialled by the Children’s Protection Society in Melbourne. The use of the randomised evaluation method in the trial, the innovative and extensive nature of EYEP, the inter-disciplinary research team, and the breadth of data collection, provide the opportunity to complete a high quality benefit-cost analysis that will be internationally unique. Results from the study have the potential to influence the design of childcare and education for 30,000 at-risk children in Australia, as well as informing approaches in regular childcare.Read moreRead less
Family business and succession planning: dynamics, barriers and strategies. This research will generate better strategies, protocols and policies for family business succession planning, tailored to the Australian context. Family businesses constitute about 70-80 per cent of Australian businesses, and $4.5 trillion in business value. It is estimated that $3.5 trillion of business value will change hands in the next decade as the post-war generation of business founders moves on. Yet surveys rout ....Family business and succession planning: dynamics, barriers and strategies. This research will generate better strategies, protocols and policies for family business succession planning, tailored to the Australian context. Family businesses constitute about 70-80 per cent of Australian businesses, and $4.5 trillion in business value. It is estimated that $3.5 trillion of business value will change hands in the next decade as the post-war generation of business founders moves on. Yet surveys routinely show that family businesses indefinitely defer succession planning, placing businesses and their stakeholders at risk of acrimonious conflict and business failure. This research will contribute towards the National Research Priority goals strengthening Australia's social and economic fabric and ageing well, ageing productively.Read moreRead less
Intergenerational Disadvantage: Causes, Pathways, and Consequences. This Project aims to prevent poor Australian children from becoming poor adults by developing scientific evidence and creative policy approaches to overcome entrenched disadvantage. The Project will generate new knowledge on how social assistance dependence is linked across generations using new Australian data. Expected outcomes are the identification of i) the causal link between parents’ and children’s social assistance depen ....Intergenerational Disadvantage: Causes, Pathways, and Consequences. This Project aims to prevent poor Australian children from becoming poor adults by developing scientific evidence and creative policy approaches to overcome entrenched disadvantage. The Project will generate new knowledge on how social assistance dependence is linked across generations using new Australian data. Expected outcomes are the identification of i) the causal link between parents’ and children’s social assistance dependence; ii) the pathways through which youths overcome disadvantage; and iii) the role of family structure in transmitting disadvantage. Transforming the evidence base, the findings will have significant benefits in redesigning the Australian social safety net, promoting social and economic mobility.Read moreRead less
Financial decision making in late adulthood. The project aims to examine links between cognitive changes and financial decision-making in late adulthood and also to assess the preparedness of the elderly to combat financial risks due to age-related cognitive decline. Further, it intends to examine how age, education, wealth, health, and other environmental factors influence transfer of financial decision-making responsibilities to spouses or others. It is expected that the research will provide ....Financial decision making in late adulthood. The project aims to examine links between cognitive changes and financial decision-making in late adulthood and also to assess the preparedness of the elderly to combat financial risks due to age-related cognitive decline. Further, it intends to examine how age, education, wealth, health, and other environmental factors influence transfer of financial decision-making responsibilities to spouses or others. It is expected that the research will provide a greater understanding of how cognitive functioning and other factors affect older adults’ financial capacity and willingness to delegate decision-making responsibilities. This understanding could be used to inform policy initiatives to protect elderly individuals and their family members from the risk of financial mismanagement.Read moreRead less
Predicting the diagnostic performance of individuals and organisations. Predicting the diagnostic performance of individuals and organisations. This project aims to address diagnostic error in advanced technology systems, by providing a mechanism to assess and improve individual diagnosticians’ performance. Organisations that rely on their employees’ diagnostic skills rarely assess them once the operators become qualified, so there is no basis for interventions that might prevent diagnostic erro ....Predicting the diagnostic performance of individuals and organisations. Predicting the diagnostic performance of individuals and organisations. This project aims to address diagnostic error in advanced technology systems, by providing a mechanism to assess and improve individual diagnosticians’ performance. Organisations that rely on their employees’ diagnostic skills rarely assess them once the operators become qualified, so there is no basis for interventions that might prevent diagnostic errors affecting thousands. This research tests a new method of assessing diagnostic skills based on how skilled operators respond to cues. This project will test how employees’ diagnostic skills change and whether this change corresponds to measures of organisational performance. This research is expected to provide organisations with a tool to pre-empt diagnostic errors that could minimise costs to the economy.Read moreRead less
Increasing organisational capacity of community residential units to facilitate ageing in place for people with intellectual disability. Unique challenges face the disability, aged care and health sectors because of the increased life expectancy of people with life-long intellectual disability (ID) and the likelihood of their premature ageing. Although this group is recognised by Federal and State governments as requiring specific and special service arrangements, little is known about adapting ....Increasing organisational capacity of community residential units to facilitate ageing in place for people with intellectual disability. Unique challenges face the disability, aged care and health sectors because of the increased life expectancy of people with life-long intellectual disability (ID) and the likelihood of their premature ageing. Although this group is recognised by Federal and State governments as requiring specific and special service arrangements, little is known about adapting disability and aged care services to their needs. This research will inform the development of policy and programs in the disability, aged care, and health sectors. The research aims to improve the capacity of disability group homes to respond to the health and ageing issues of older people with ID,to improve their quality of life.Read moreRead less
Community Foundations of Resilience of Young People. Understanding and promoting resilience in young people is one of the most important health priorities of the Federal Government. The proposed project advances resilience research in a new direction. It is highly innovative in bringing together a research team from disciplines and professional knowledge domains that generally do not inform each other, to fill the conceptual gap in current knowledge around care, control and social resilience usi ....Community Foundations of Resilience of Young People. Understanding and promoting resilience in young people is one of the most important health priorities of the Federal Government. The proposed project advances resilience research in a new direction. It is highly innovative in bringing together a research team from disciplines and professional knowledge domains that generally do not inform each other, to fill the conceptual gap in current knowledge around care, control and social resilience using an applied community development project and a methodology of engagement with young people, to bring about social change.Read moreRead less
Breaking the cycle: the role of housing and support in resolving chronic homelessness. The Australian Government aims to reduce homelessness by half by 2020 and to offer supported accommodation to all rough sleepers by 2020. Chronically homeless people are often part of an impoverished underclass, largely excluded from the labour force and other mainstream institutions. This research will lead to improvements in service delivery and program designs and will link them to the wider areas of housi ....Breaking the cycle: the role of housing and support in resolving chronic homelessness. The Australian Government aims to reduce homelessness by half by 2020 and to offer supported accommodation to all rough sleepers by 2020. Chronically homeless people are often part of an impoverished underclass, largely excluded from the labour force and other mainstream institutions. This research will lead to improvements in service delivery and program designs and will link them to the wider areas of housing policy and social inclusion. The findings will directly contribute to the National Research Priority, promoting and maintaining good health and the priority goal strengthening Australia's social and economic fabric.Read moreRead less
A community based social identity approach to loneliness. Loneliness across Australia is a deep concern. Social prescribing is a novel community-based approach to managing loneliness, however it is unclear when and in what circumstances it is effective. This project aims to test a social identity approach to loneliness, incorporating longitudinal, cross-sectional, and experimental methods to understand how best to engage isolated people in group programs. The expected benefits of this project ar ....A community based social identity approach to loneliness. Loneliness across Australia is a deep concern. Social prescribing is a novel community-based approach to managing loneliness, however it is unclear when and in what circumstances it is effective. This project aims to test a social identity approach to loneliness, incorporating longitudinal, cross-sectional, and experimental methods to understand how best to engage isolated people in group programs. The expected benefits of this project are to produce a validated social prescribing model that can be implemented in multiple settings across Australia in order to reduce loneliness, strengthen communities, and guide more appropriate uses of health services.Read moreRead less
The role of the internet in building social capital amongst homosexually active men: virtual communities in HIV prevention. Social capital comprises features of social organisation such as civic participation, norms of reciprocity and trust in others that facilitate cooperation for mutual benefit, including health and wellbeing. The proposed research focuses on the role of the internet in producing the networks that engender social inclusion and community connectedness. There is scepticism about ....The role of the internet in building social capital amongst homosexually active men: virtual communities in HIV prevention. Social capital comprises features of social organisation such as civic participation, norms of reciprocity and trust in others that facilitate cooperation for mutual benefit, including health and wellbeing. The proposed research focuses on the role of the internet in producing the networks that engender social inclusion and community connectedness. There is scepticism about whether the 'virtual community' of the Internet can build social capital. The study will explore the potential benefits as well as harms to those homosexually active men who use the internet to access health information, meet sexual partners and build friendships that affirm gay identity and community inclusion.Read moreRead less