Social and Behavioral Sciences Commons^™

Drug Users’ Experiences Of A Residential Rehabilitation Program In Western Australia: A Thematic Analysis Of Drug Users Lived Experiences, Michelle Fullam

Theses: Doctorates and Masters

In the last decade, there has been a marked increase in the awareness of drug use and drug-related crime in Australia. As a result, the demand for drug treatment services has increased and 14 recognised government-funded services are now available in Western Australia (WA). The goal of these services is to reduce drug use through full-time intensive programs that are usually residential. This type of drug treatment has been shown to be effective in reducing drug use and promoting pro-social lives post-treatment. However, little is known of the experiences of participants in this type of treatment in WA. As such, …

Exploring The Experience Of Separation In Australia: Perspectives From Formerly Married And Cohabiting Parents, Sarah M. Barbas

Theses: Doctorates and Masters

The increase in separation and divorce rates during the 20th century brought with it many far-reaching social implications for all involved, sparking a high level of interest among researchers. Most research in this area has been approached from stress frameworks that have conceptualised separation and divorce as a stressful life transition that individuals must adjust to. Yet, attempts to understand separation and divorce to date have been dominated by quantitative methods that have resulted in a relatively static and objective understanding of this experience; particularly in Australia. Furthermore, although international rates of divorce are declining, rates of separation following cohabiting …

An Appraisal Of Experiences Of Climate Change And Adaptive Response To Heat Stress By Farmers In Rural Ghana, Kwasi Frimpong

Theses: Doctorates and Masters

With the increase in average global temperatures, heat-related illnesses and deaths have unfolded as occupational and health issues. Periods of high to extreme temperatures are becoming more common and are a leading cause of weather-related deaths in many countries. In agricultural settings of African countries, heat stress is a major concern as many smallholder farmers work outdoors with limited access to cooling systems even in their resting and living environments. This study, conducted in the Bawku East part of Northern-East Ghana in 2013, examines, in the context of climate change, the trends and impacts of heat stress on smallholder farmers, …

Alexithymia In A Psychiatric Population: Stability And Relationship With Therapeutic Outcome, Lauren Mcgillivray

Theses: Doctorates and Masters

Alexithymia has been defined as a personality construct that involves difficulties identifying and describing feelings, as well as an externally oriented thinking style and impoverished fantasy life, which places individuals at risk for various psychopathologies. For psychiatric populations, it represents an obstacle to therapeutic success. Despite extensive research, there is no consensus on the prevalence rate of alexithymia in the general psychiatric population and no data on alexithymia prevalence in the Australian general psychiatric population. In addition, there is inconsistency in the literature regarding the role of alexithymia in therapeutic intervention and a lack of robust studies involving control or …

Duet For Life: Is Alexithymia A Key Note In Couples’ Empathy, Emotional Connection, Relationship Dissatisfaction, And Therapy Outcomes?, Pamela D. Mcneill

Theses: Doctorates and Masters

Alexithymia is an emotion-related construct involving difficulties identifying, describing, and processing emotion, which hinder the capacity to provide empathy, and the development of emotionally connected intimate relationships. To date, there has been minimal investigation of the impact of alexithymia on community couples’ relationships, no associated examination of clinical couples, and no consideration of therapists’ knowledge of alexithymia as a source of influence in couple therapy outcomes.

Studies 1 and 2 investigated alexithymia in 170 community couples and 17 therapy couples, respectively, in association with their empathy provided, empathy received, emotional connection components (i.e., turn toward, turn away, turn against, positive …

Learning From The Experts: Qualitative Study Of The Lived Experience Of Mental Illness, Zdenka Bartova

Theses: Doctorates and Masters

Severe mental illness has a profound effect on the affected individuals yet it does not necessarily prevent them from leading a meaningful and fulfilling life, and therefore recovering. Recovery has received a great interest in clinical and consumer research yet little is known about how those individuals who do not primarily identify with recovery respond to the concept and come to accept it as something that is personally meaningful. Using a qualitative approach following the principles of Gadamer’s (1975) hermeneutics, the present study explored people’s subjective experience of mental illness with the aim of identifying factors related to their views …

An Analysis Of Treatment Retention And Attrition In An Australian Therapeutic Community For Substance Abuse Treatment, Mark Robert Porter

Theses: Doctorates and Masters

Research undertaken in the last three decades has consistently reported that the length of time spent in inpatient and outpatient alcohol and other drug (AOD) treatment programs predicts treatment success (De Leon, Melnick, Kressel, & Jainchill, 1994; Hubbard, Craddock, & Anderson, 2003; Simpson, Joe, Fletcher, Hubbard, & Anglin, 1999). However, treatment attrition rates are high and present a major problem for improving treatment outcomes. Various factors that have been reportedly associated with increased AOD treatment attrition rates include being female, younger clients, clients using methamphetamines, and clients with elevated psychopathology scores. The aim of this thesis is to improve understanding …