Life Sciences Commons^™

Biological Motion And Face Perception In Autism Spectrum Disorder, K Ruparelia, J O'Brien, J Spencer, Harold C. Hill, A Johnston

Faculty of Health and Behavioural Sciences - Papers (Archive)

Abstract presented at The 29th European Conference on Visual Perception, 20-25 August 2006, St Petesburg, Russia

Why Developing Trusting As Well As Trust Is A Leadership Priority, Deborah A. Blackman, Terence J. Froggatt

Faculty of Health and Behavioural Sciences - Papers (Archive)

The paper considers the relationship between leadership, trust and trusting. The examples given look at their role in developing and supporting the learning processes needed for knowledge development. Two qualitative research projects are analysed considering how leadership, trust, learning and knowledge are affecting each other. The importance of trust was clarified but, more importantly, the notion of trusting as a differentiated set of behaviours was identified. The paper concludes that developing trust is not enough, leaders need to ensure that the theories-in-use and the espoused theories of trust are in line and that, in order to engender trust, leaders must …

Collaborative Goal Technology: Theory & Practice, Samantha Clarke, Lindsay G. Oades, Trevor P. Crowe, Frank P. Deane

Faculty of Health and Behavioural Sciences - Papers (Archive)

Goal striving promotes hope and enhances motivation, which is important for psychosocial rehabilitation and recovery. The Collaborative Goal Technology (CGn is a new goal striving intervention that is used to support the autonomy and recovery processes of the person with a psychiatric disability. The CGT protocol and its utility are outlined. Theory and research from goal striving, motivation and mental health recovery domains that informed the development of CGT are described. A case example is also provided.

Supportive-Expressive Psychotherapy For Cannabis Dependence, Brin F. Grenyer, Nadia Solowij

Faculty of Health and Behavioural Sciences - Papers (Archive)

Supportive–expressive (SE) dynamic psychotherapy forms one variation of a number of psychotherapies that emphasize the importance of effective interpersonal relationships for psychological health (Grenyer, 2002a). The overall goal of SE psychotherapy is to help the client achieve mastery over their difficulties, gain self-understanding, and practice self-control over habitual drug use and related problems. From this framework, cannabis dependence is understood within the context of the client's interpersonal relationships, work, and social problems. The theory behind the SE approach emphasizes the formative influence of life experiences on the development of personality and on the genesis of problems, including habitual cannabis use. …

Using Acceptance And Commitment Training In The Support Of Parents Of Children Diagnosed With Autism, John T. Blackledge, Steven Hayes

Faculty of Health and Behavioural Sciences - Papers (Archive)

Parents of autistic children face enormous challenges, but very little attention has been paid to their psychological needs. Acceptance and Commitment Therapy (ACT) has previously been tested with parents as part of a comprehensive package, but not yet alone. The present study used a within-subject, repeated measures design to test the effects of a 2-day (14 hour) group ACT workshop on 20 normal parents/guardians of children diagnosed with autism. Parents were assessed three weeks before the workshop, one week before, one week after, and three months after. No significant change occurred while waiting for treatment, but pre to post improvements …

The Adverse Health And Psychological Consequences Of Cannabis Dependence, Wayne Hall, Nadia Solowij

Faculty of Health and Behavioural Sciences - Papers (Archive)

People who become dependent on cannabis are more likely than infrequent users to experience any of the adverse health effects that are caused by chronic cannabis use. Dependent cannabis use is rare in comparison with the more prevalent pattern of experimental and intermittent use (Bachman et al., 1997), but it may nonetheless affect as many as 1% of adults in the USA and Australia in any 1 year (Anthony et al., 1994; Hall et al., 1999a). Dependent cannabis users typically smoke two or more cannabis cigarettes a day over periods of years or decades in a minority …

The Configural Advantage In Object Change Detection Persists Across Depth Rotation, Simone K. Favelle, Stephen Palmisano, Darren Burke, William G. Hayward

Faculty of Health and Behavioural Sciences - Papers (Archive)

Although traditionally there has been a debate over whether object recognition involves 3-D structural descriptions or 2-D views, most current approaches to object recognition include the representation of object structure in some form. An advantage for the processing of structural or configural information in objects has been recently demonstrated using a change detection task (Keane, Hayward, & Burke, 2003). We report two experiments that extend this finding and show that configural information dominates change detection performance regardless of an object's orientation. Experiment 1 demonstrated the advantage that configural information has over shape and part arrangement information in change detection across …

The Economic Value Of Healthy Workers, Shirley A. Musich, M Spooner, S Baaner, D Hook

Faculty of Health and Behavioural Sciences - Papers (Archive)

Objective

1) To demonstrate the feasibility of a designed intervention in changing targeted health behaviors and 2) to evaluate the impact of changes in health risks on the two measures of job performance (a self-reported measure of health-related work impairment (presenteeism) and an objective measure of illness absenteeism).

Design

A pre/post study design (2004-2005) utilizing Health Risk Appraisal (HRA) data to assess changes in prevalence of individual health risks and changes in two productivity measures.

Setting and Subjects

Employees of a private insurance provider in Australia.

Measures

An HRA questionnaire was used to evaluate self-reported work impairment on different aspects …

Do We Encourage Health Or Illness? A Survey Of Exercise Rehabilitation Practices For Patients In Australian Renal Units, Y. White, B. Grenyer

Faculty of Health and Behavioural Sciences - Papers (Archive)

Background: People with end stage renal disease (ESRD) have been reported as having low levels of physical activity. Sedentary behaviours increase illness risks which may lead to burdens on the public health system which include costs of medical care. Research has established that exercise is reported to improve general health and wellbeing. Benefits include better aerobic tolerance, maintenance and improvement in physical function and capacity, and improvement in self-concept and well-being. These same improvements also occur in an exercising ESRD population, even though the improvements might be of less magnitude. Renal unit staff can have a major impact on patients …

Two Year Follow-Up Of A Community Gatekeeper Suicide Prevention Program In An Aboriginal Community, Frank P. Deane, Kim Capp, Caroline Jones, Dawn De Ramirez, Gordon Lambert, Beth M. Marlow, A Rees, Edwina Sullivan

Faculty of Health and Behavioural Sciences - Papers (Archive)

Few studies report long term follow-up of community gatekeeper training programs that aim to facilitate help-seeking for suicide and there are none in Aboriginal communities. This study aimed to determine long term effects of the Shoalhaven Aboriginal Suicide Prevention Program (SASPP), which used community gatekeeper training as its primary strategy. Following consultation with the Aboriginal community, a brief questionnaire and semi-structured interview was completed by 40 participants who attended a community gatekeeper workshop 2 years earlier. Fifteen of the 40 participants stated that they had helped someone at risk of suicide over the 2-year follow-up period. Intentions to help and …

Evolution And Sustainability Of The Helping Hands Volunteer Program: Consumer Recovery And Mental Health Comparisoins Six Years On, Frank P. Deane, Retta Andresen

Faculty of Health and Behavioural Sciences - Papers (Archive)

The Helping Hands program commenced in 1999 and partners volunteers with mental health consumers for support and to increase social contact, recreational and friendship opportunities. The aim of the present study is to describe the evolution and sustainability of the program over the first 6 years. A description of consumers accessing the program using recovery-oriented measures and traditional measures of behavioural functioning is also provided. Service data was collected on the development of the program, service utilisation, volunteer participation and funding patterns. Cross-sectional measures of recovery and baseline and follow-up Health of the Nation Outcome Scales (HoNOS) were collected on …

Synthesis And In Vitro Binding Of N,N-Dialkyl-2-Phenylindol-3-Ylglyoxylamides For The Peripheral Benzodiazepine Binding Sites, T. P. Homes, F. Mattner, Paul A. Keller, A. Katsifis

Faculty of Science - Papers (Archive)

A series of N,N-dialkyl-2-phenylindol-3-ylglyoxylamides bearing the halogens iodine and bromine were synthesised and their binding affinity for the peripheral benzodiazepine binding sites (PBBS) in rat kidney mitochondrial membranes were evaluated using [3H]-PK11195. Central benzodiazepine receptor (CBR) affinities were also evaluated in rat cortices using 3H-flumazenil to determine their selectivity for PBBS over CBR. The tested compounds had PBBS binding affinities (IC50) ranging from 7.86 nM to 618 nM, with all compounds showing high selectivity over the CBR (CBR IC50 > 5000 nM). Among the 12 compounds tested, those with a diethylamide group were the most potent. The highest affinity iodinated PBBS …

The Role Of Attention In Processing Configural And Shape Information In 3d Novel Objects, Simone K. Favelle, Stephen Palmisano, Darren Burke, William G. Hayward

Faculty of Health and Behavioural Sciences - Papers (Archive)

Recent research suggests that there is an advantage for processing configural information in scenes and objects. The purpose of this study was to investigate the extent to which attention may account for this configural advantage. In Experiment 1, we found that cueing the location of change in single object displays improved detection performance for both configural and shape changes, yet cueing attention away from the location of change was detrimental only for shape change detection. A configural advantage was present for each cueing condition. Experiments 2A and 2B examined whether the configural advantage persisted in conditions where attention was distributed …

Pop Promotions For Alcolhol: Increasing Brand Loyalty Or Just Increasing Binge Drinking?, Melissa Lynch, Sandra C. Jones

Faculty of Health and Behavioural Sciences - Papers (Archive)

The consumption of alcohol by young Australians in general, and at risky levels has increased. University students, as part of this group, display consistent and increasing risky drinking patterns. One key area of interest in understanding this situation is the use of alcohol advertising and marketing. Of particular interest to this research is the use of point-of-purchase promotions in licensed venues and the impact they may have on consumption. In order to help understand these promotions, focus groups were conducted with male university students between the age of 18 and 24 years from the University of Wollongong. Overall, the perception …

Ethical Issues In Social Marketing, Sandra C. Jones, Danika V. Hall

Faculty of Health and Behavioural Sciences - Papers (Archive)

"As a community ofprofessionals we have adopted no standards of ethics and it is probable that most of our community has not read or analysed the guidelines set up for either commercial advertising or commercial marketing" (Smith, 2001) Unfortunately, deciding what is ethical in social marketing (as in marketing in general) is rarely simple. In most cases, there is not a definitive right and wrong; for example, it is often the case that we are dealing with controversial products or sensitive behaviours (e.g., contraceptives and central practices) and/or two principles which are seen to be "right" by different groups are …

Importance Of Soy Protein And Isoflavone Intake For Protection Against Heart Disease, A Thorp, J Buckley, A Coates, Trevor A Mori, Jo Hodgson, Jackie Mansour, Peter Howe, Barbara Meyer

Faculty of Health and Behavioural Sciences - Papers (Archive)

Abstract presented at The 2006 Annual Scientific Meeting of the Nutrition Society of Australia, 29 November - 2 December, Sydney, Australia

Collaborative Action Research: Making It Happen, Victoria Traynor, Phillipa Baker, Joanna Defriez, Wilna Dirkse Van Schalykwyk, Julie Mcgarry, Deborah Thompson, Ruth Bartlett

Faculty of Health and Behavioural Sciences - Papers (Archive)

No abstract provided.

Does Landing Technique Displayed During Volleyball Training Replicate The Demands Of Competition?, C Wild, Bridget J. Munro, Julie R. Steele

Faculty of Health and Behavioural Sciences - Papers (Archive)

Despite chronic lower extremity syndromes being extremely problematic in volleyball internationally, there is a lack of research pertaining to the demands experienced by volleyball players in terms of landings performed during competition and whether these are replicated during training. Therefore, the purpose of this study was to examine the differences in landing mechanics displayed by volleyball players during competition compared to training. Video data (25 Hz) of the Australian Men's volleyball team were collected for three training sessions and two competition matches at the Asian men's Volleyball Championships in 2003. Frequency data for six players were analysed (Chi-square analysis) to …

Facts On Fats: What Are The Implications?, Jie J. Wang, Victoria M. Flood, Paul Mitchell

Faculty of Health and Behavioural Sciences - Papers (Archive)

We are delighted to see a cross-discipline review article by Chong, Sinclair and Guymer appearing in this issue of CEO (‘Facts on fat’, pp. 464–471). As the authors anticipate, this review provides valuable information to readers of the Journal, who are mostly ophthalmologists. We also believe that this cross-discipline review article will enable readers to better understand the roles of dietary fats, and be in a position to convey better quality information to their patients. Given that a possible association between dietary fatty acid intake and age-related macular degeneration is a current hot topic in the ophthalmic literature, this review …

Use Of Homework By Mental Health Case Managers In The Rehabilitation Of Persistent And Recurring Psychiatric Disability, Peter Kelly, Frank P. Deane, Nikolaos Kazantzis, Trevor P. Crowe, Lindsay G. Oades

Faculty of Health and Behavioural Sciences - Papers (Archive)

Background: Homework refers to between-session activities that are tied to therapeutic goals. Homework has been suggested as being an important clinical adjunct to case management practices, however, to date, research has not examined case managers’ use of homework. Aims: To identify the degree that case managers use homework within their clinical practice and explore the way it is administered with people diagnosed with a persistent and recurring psychiatric illness. Method: A survey was completed by 122 case managers (63% of those approached) comprising nurses, psychologists, social workers, occupational therapists and welfare/support workers. Results: Ninety-three percent of case managers implement homework, …

Infants' Discrimination Of Faces By Using Biological Motion Cues, Janine Spencer, Justin O'Brien, Alan Johnston, Harold C. Hill

Faculty of Health and Behavioural Sciences - Papers (Archive)

We report two experiments in which we used animated averaged faces to examine infants' ability to perceive and discriminate facial motion. The faces were generated by using the motion recorded from the faces of volunteers while they spoke. We tested infants aged 4 ^ 8 months to assess their ability to discriminate facial motion sequences (condition 1) and discrim- inate the faces of individuals (condition 2). Infants were habituated to one sequence with the motion of one actor speaking one phrase. Following habituation, infants were presented with the same sequence together with motion from a different actor (condition 1), or …

Visual Correlates Of Prosodic Contrastive Focus In French: Description And Inter-Speaker Variability, Marion Dohen, Helene Loevenbruck, Harold C. Hill

Faculty of Health and Behavioural Sciences - Papers (Archive)

This study is a follow-up of previous studies we conducted on the visible articulatory correlates of French prosodic contrastive focus. A two speaker analysis using an automatic lip-tracking device had shown that these correlates existed and were used in visual perception. However the articulatory strategies depended on the speaker. The purpose of this study was thus to extend the analysis to other speakers, examine the similarities and variabilities and try to identify global tendencies. We recorded five speakers of French with a 3D optical tracker using a 13 sentence (subject-verb-object) corpus and four focus conditions (S, V, O or neutral). …

Health Benefits Of Herbs And Spices: The Past, The Present, The Future, Linda C. Tapsell, Ian Hemphill, Lynne Cobiac, David R. Sullivan, Michael Fenech, Craig S. Patch, Steven Roodenrys, Jennifer B. Keogh, Peter M. Clifton, Peter G. Williams, Virginia A. Fazio, Karen E. Inge

Faculty of Health and Behavioural Sciences - Papers (Archive)

The purpose of this supplement is to provide medical and health professionals with a review of the health benefits of herbs and spices.

The University of Wollongong, partner organisation of the National Centre of Excellence in Functional Foods, managed the development of the supplement through a committee comprising Professor Linda Tapsell, Dr Craig Patch and Ms Virginia Fazio.

Key academics and clinicians with expertise in health and nutrition were invited to review the health aspects of predominantly culinary herbs and spices, using scientific search strategies and National Health and Medical Research Council guidelines for assessing levels of evidence.

The resulting …

Does Hero Always Help? Differences In Nutrient Intake Among Obese Subjects With And Without Type 2 Diabetes Mellitus Prior To Dietary Intervention, Sze Yen Tan, Lynda J. Gillen, Marijka Batterham, Xu-Feng Huang, Cassandra J. Quick, Yasmine Probst, Serina Faraji, Linda C. Tapsell

Faculty of Health and Behavioural Sciences - Papers (Archive)

Abstract presented at The 2006 Annual Scientific Meeting of the Nutrition Society of Australia, 29 November - 2 December, Sydney, Australia

The Effect Of A Low Glycemic Index Diet During Pregnancy On Obstetric Outcomes, Robert G. Moses, M J. Luebcke, Warren S. Davis, K J. Coleman, Linda C. Tapsell, Peter Petocz, Jennie C. Brand-Miller

Faculty of Health and Behavioural Sciences - Papers (Archive)

Abstract presented at The 2006 Annual Scientific Meeting of the Nutrition Society of Australia, 29 November - 2 December, Sydney, Australia

Effect Of Decorrelation On 3-D Grating Detection With Static And Dynamic Random-Dot Stereograms, Stephen A. Palmisano, Robert S. Allison, Ian P. Howard

Faculty of Health and Behavioural Sciences - Papers (Archive)

Three experiments examined the effects of image decorrelation on the stereoscopic detection of sinusoidal depth gratings in static anddynamic random-dot stereograms (RDS). Detection was found to tolerate greater levels of image decorrelation as: (i) density increasedfrom 23 to 676 dots/deg2; (ii) spatial frequency decreased from 0.88 to 0.22 cpd; (iii) amplitude increased above 0.5 arcmin; and (iv) dotlifetime decreased from 1.6 s (static RDS) to 80 ms (dynamic RDS). In each case, the specific pattern of tolerance to decorrelation couldbe explained by its consequences for image sampling, filtering, and the influence of depth noise.

Challenges To Temperature Regulation When Working In Hot Environments, Nigel Taylor

Faculty of Health and Behavioural Sciences - Papers (Archive)

The focus of this revuew us upon acute exposure to hot environments and the accompanying physiological changes. The target audience includes physiologists, physicians and occupational health and safety practioners. Using the principles of thermodynamics, the avenues for human heat exchange and explored, leading to an evaluation of some methods used to assess thermally-stressful environments. In particular, there is a critique of the wet-bulb globe temperature (WBGT) index, and an overview of an alternative means by which such assessments may be undertaken (the heat stress index). These principles and methods are combined to illustrate how one may evaluate the risk of …

Scaling Of Na+, K+-Atpase Molecular Activity And Membrane Fatty Acid Composition In Mammalian And Avian Hearts, Anthony J. Hulbert, Paul Else, Kurt Haga, Nigel Turner

Faculty of Health and Behavioural Sciences - Papers (Archive)

We have examined Na⁺,K⁺‐ATPase molecular activity and membrane fatty acid composition in the heart of six mammalian and eight avian species ranging in size from 30 g in mice to 280 kg in cattle and 13 g in zebra finches to 35 kg in emus, respectively. Na⁺,K⁺‐ATPase activity scaled negatively with body mass in both mammals and birds. In small mammals, the elevated enzyme activity was related to allometric changes in both the concentration and molecular activity (turnover rate) of Na⁺,K⁺‐ATPase enzymes, while in small birds, higher Na …

Illusory Scene Distortion Occurs During Perceived Self-Rotation In Roll, Stephen A. Palmisano, Ian P. Howard, Robert S. Allison

Faculty of Health and Behavioural Sciences - Papers (Archive)

We report a novel illusory distortion of the visual scene, which became apparent during both: (i) observer rotation inside a furnishedstationary room; and (ii) room rotation about the stationary observer. While this distortion had several manifestations, the most commonexperience was that scenery near Wxation appeared to sometimes lead and other times lag more peripheral scenery. Across a series ofexperiments, we eliminated explanations based on eye-movements, distance misperception, peripheral aliasing, diVerential motion sensitivityand adaptation. We found that these illusory scene distortions occurred only when the observer perceived (real or illusory) changesin self-tilt and maintained a stable Wxation.

Motivation, Psychological Distress And Exercise Adherence Following Myocardial Infarction, Angela Ljubic, Frank P. Deane, Robert Zecchin, Richard Denniss

Faculty of Health and Behavioural Sciences - Papers (Archive)

Fifty patients with myocardial infarction were recruited from a hospital based Cardiac Education and Assessment Program (CEAP) in Sydney, Australia. The Exercise Motivation Inventory-2 (EMI-2) and the Depression, Anxiety and Stress Scale (DASS) were administered prior to commencement in the program and re-administered by telephone interview at 5-month followup. Four exercise adherence measures were completed: attendance, exercise stress test, self-report ratings and a 7-day activity recall interview. There was a 46% adherence rate for MI patients during the hospital based CEAP. Of those individuals who completed CEAP, 91% obtained functional improvement on the exercise stress test. For the 38 patients …