Dehumanization: Understanding the attribution of lesser humanness to others. The proposed research will contribute to an improved understanding of the subtle ways in which humanness is denied to members of some social groups. These processes contribute to intergroup antagonism and intolerance, and to a failure to take adequate moral account of other people's suffering. Understanding dehumanization can enhance our ability to recognize and overcome its manifestations in public life and the communi ....Dehumanization: Understanding the attribution of lesser humanness to others. The proposed research will contribute to an improved understanding of the subtle ways in which humanness is denied to members of some social groups. These processes contribute to intergroup antagonism and intolerance, and to a failure to take adequate moral account of other people's suffering. Understanding dehumanization can enhance our ability to recognize and overcome its manifestations in public life and the community. Scientifically, the proposed work will contribute to the nation's reputation as a world leader in the psychological study of intergroup relations.Read moreRead less
Sleep and circadian influences on mood and Autonomic Nervous System control of the heart. Most biological and behavioural processes have a 24-hour oscillation in activity. A critical question is whether this oscillation is a consequence of the sleep-wake cycle or the circadian system (our internal biological clock). This project will investigate circadian influence over two biological systems that have important influences over behaviour, the Autonomic Nervous System (ANS) and the Behavioural Fa ....Sleep and circadian influences on mood and Autonomic Nervous System control of the heart. Most biological and behavioural processes have a 24-hour oscillation in activity. A critical question is whether this oscillation is a consequence of the sleep-wake cycle or the circadian system (our internal biological clock). This project will investigate circadian influence over two biological systems that have important influences over behaviour, the Autonomic Nervous System (ANS) and the Behavioural Facilitation System (BFS). Specifically, we will investigate the relationship between circadian control of the heart and the induction and quality of sleep, and the circadian influence on aspects of personality (neuroticism) and mood (Positive Affect) that are related to the BFS.Read moreRead less
The structure and content of self-knowledge: When and how are implicit and explicit measures related and what do they tell us? Research has found clear links between individuals' beliefs about themselves and emotion, motivation, and behaviour. These beliefs also play a role in the development of and recovery from psychological illness. However, understanding has been limited by the use of explicit measures, which rely on our ability to 'know' everything about ourselves, and our willingness to di ....The structure and content of self-knowledge: When and how are implicit and explicit measures related and what do they tell us? Research has found clear links between individuals' beliefs about themselves and emotion, motivation, and behaviour. These beliefs also play a role in the development of and recovery from psychological illness. However, understanding has been limited by the use of explicit measures, which rely on our ability to 'know' everything about ourselves, and our willingness to disclose. We investigate how explicitly and implicitly measured self-knowledge affect emotion, motivation, and behaviour. As a result, we redress a major criticism of this research, and facilitate a greater understanding of the role of self-knowledge, including aspects that we are not able to articulate, in psychological well-being.Read moreRead less
An Investigation of Intersubjectivity: Music Therapy and Hospitalised Infants. A contingent relationship is vital for normal infant development. The Neonatal Intensive Care Unit, which supplies life-saving modern medical technology to very sick infants, is also an environment where contingency is rarely available to the infant . In this environment, a Music Therapist ?improvising? with the infant, can re-introduce contingency to the infant, and encourage infant self-regulation. This project inv ....An Investigation of Intersubjectivity: Music Therapy and Hospitalised Infants. A contingent relationship is vital for normal infant development. The Neonatal Intensive Care Unit, which supplies life-saving modern medical technology to very sick infants, is also an environment where contingency is rarely available to the infant . In this environment, a Music Therapist ?improvising? with the infant, can re-introduce contingency to the infant, and encourage infant self-regulation. This project investigates the efficacy of a Music Therapy intervention in improving infant health, and micro-analyses the interaction between infant and therapist in order to further understand the nature of the Communicative Musicality of the interaction.Read moreRead less
Emotion development and adolescent depression: An analysis of gender differences. This project will investigate the differing role of empathy and guilt in the development of depression over time. Consistent with Izard's emotion perspective, it is predicted that these emotions will become more strongly correlated with depression in the post-adolescence compared to the pre-adolescent years. This strengthening of association will be most marked for specific sub-groups (e.g. females compared to mal ....Emotion development and adolescent depression: An analysis of gender differences. This project will investigate the differing role of empathy and guilt in the development of depression over time. Consistent with Izard's emotion perspective, it is predicted that these emotions will become more strongly correlated with depression in the post-adolescence compared to the pre-adolescent years. This strengthening of association will be most marked for specific sub-groups (e.g. females compared to males; individuals scoring high on empathy and low on emotion regulation). The expected outcomes will lead to a more sophisticated understanding of the development of depression. They will have significant implications for the development/refinement of preventative/intervention strategies for depression during pre-adolescence.Read moreRead less
Special Research Initiatives - Grant ID: SR0354503
Funder
Australian Research Council
Funding Amount
$10,000.00
Summary
The Self and its Disorders: Humanistic, Psychiatric, and Neural Perspectives. Mental disorder fragments the self, distorts its development in adolescence, and obliterates it in old age. Because no one discipline can adequately understand the self and its pathologies, this Initiative aims to bring together researchers from the humanities and the sciences of the mind to investigate what mental disorder can reveal about the nature of the self, and what humanistic approaches to the self can contribu ....The Self and its Disorders: Humanistic, Psychiatric, and Neural Perspectives. Mental disorder fragments the self, distorts its development in adolescence, and obliterates it in old age. Because no one discipline can adequately understand the self and its pathologies, this Initiative aims to bring together researchers from the humanities and the sciences of the mind to investigate what mental disorder can reveal about the nature of the self, and what humanistic approaches to the self can contribute to its scientific study. A better understanding of diminished selfhood in mental disorder will lead to improvements in social policy and thereby to social and financial benefits for the community at large.Read moreRead less
Investigating the social brain: The neural basis of the link between depressed mood and social cognition. Mood and social relationships are amongst the most important determinants of well being, life functioning, and both mental and physical health. To understand how mood and social behaviour interact, this project will examine the brain mechanisms that are responsible for the impact of mood states on processing social threat stimuli (e.g., stimuli suggesting humiliation, rejection or defeat). T ....Investigating the social brain: The neural basis of the link between depressed mood and social cognition. Mood and social relationships are amongst the most important determinants of well being, life functioning, and both mental and physical health. To understand how mood and social behaviour interact, this project will examine the brain mechanisms that are responsible for the impact of mood states on processing social threat stimuli (e.g., stimuli suggesting humiliation, rejection or defeat). This work will have important implications for understanding vulnerability to recurrent depression, where these processes have been implicated in previous research. The high prevalence of these disorders, and the high cost that they represent to society, makes basic research of this type vital at this time.Read moreRead less
Conscious states in conscious creatures: A philosophical framework for the science of consciousness. Consciousness is a major research focus world-wide. Though Australia is well represented in the field, comparatively few Australian researchers have ventured into the philosophy of consciousness science. This project will consolidate Australian research scholarship in this foundational area of philosophy, and will also contribute to the emergence of an experimental science of consciousness. An un ....Conscious states in conscious creatures: A philosophical framework for the science of consciousness. Consciousness is a major research focus world-wide. Though Australia is well represented in the field, comparatively few Australian researchers have ventured into the philosophy of consciousness science. This project will consolidate Australian research scholarship in this foundational area of philosophy, and will also contribute to the emergence of an experimental science of consciousness. An understanding of consciousness is important for understanding a number of national health concerns such as schizophrenia, coma and epilepsy. This is a project in the philosophical foundations of consciousness science, but it has some potential to inform new research and therapeutic strategies in these areas.Read moreRead less