Digital Commons Network^™

Delayed Discharges From An Adult Intensive Care Unit (Icu), Teresa Williams

Theses: Doctorates and Masters

Introduction - Maximising efficient and effective use of resources without compromising quality of care is essential in the current healthcare climate. Intensive care unit services are one of the most resource intensive and therefore expensive services within a hospital. Because intensive care unit services comprise a significant portion of hospital costs and resources, appropriate utilisation of intensive care units is imperative. The occurrence of delayed discharges and the reason for the delays is important as they impact on the efficiency and effectiveness of intensive care unit services. Patients who no longer need intensive care unit care block beds for impending …

A Study Of Subject Omission In The Spoken Language Of Indonesian Primary School Children Aged 6 To 12 In Jakarta, Endang Sutartinah Soemartono

Theses: Doctorates and Masters

This study investigates the occurrence of subject omission in spoken Indonesian spoken as a first language by primary school children in grades one to six and aged between six and twelve years in Jakarta. It also investigates the developmental stages of subject omission, and the effects of age, gender and degree of formality on the occurrence of empty or null subjects. Since the acquisition of language is ongoing during the students' primary schooling, this study also considers how null subjects in Indonesian may have an impact on learning and teaching at school. The omission of subjects occurs independent or matrix …

Scratching Protest: A Study Of Graffiti As Communication In Universities In Thailand, Sirach Lapyai

Theses: Doctorates and Masters

This study examines the production of campus graffiti as an alternative communication channel and opportunity for Thai students in three universities in three different parts in Thailand. The writing of graffiti is deemed an illegal activity in Thailand, which makes its prevalence on the Thai university campus an intriguing issue. To understand why Thai university students so readily indulge in an illegal activity this thesis investigates student graffiti through an analysis of graffiti as anonymous resistance from students to authoritarian power exercised on campus and as an escape from sociocultural taboos and cultural oppressions that Thai society places on youth …

The Impact Of Leisure-Sport Facility Design On Customer Satisfaction, Alvin Y. Lee

Theses: Doctorates and Masters

Marketing, retailing, organizational behavior and consumer behavior textbooks often mention the effects of servicescape atmospherics, physical design and decor elements on facility users. Service managers also recognize it as being an important aspect of their businesses. Yet, in marketing, there is surprisingly little research that is based on theoretical models which predict customer reactions to the different elements in the servicescape. Even less has been done to explore the effects of servicescape elements on customer satisfaction and behavioral intentions. This thesis focuses on selected aspects of Bitner's (1992) servicescape framework and explores the effects of layout. accessibility, aesthetics, electronic equipment, …

Fall Risk Assessment : A Prospective Investigation Of Nurses' Clinical Judgement And Risk Assessment Tools In Predicting Patient Falls In An Acute Care Setting, Helen Myers

Theses: Doctorates and Masters

Falls are a significant problem in acute care, hospital settings, and can have serious consequences, especially for older patients. Fall prevention has therefore been recognised as an important area for research and intervention. In order to target interventions and use resources effectively, a major strategy of many fall prevention programmes has been the development and/or use of risk assessment tools to identify patients who are at high risk of falling. Although many tools have been developed, few have been rigorously tested, and there is currently no evidence to support the clinical utility of fall risk assessment tools. There is a …

Strategies For Effective Virtual Education Delivery In Thailand, Nalinee Thongprasert

Theses: Doctorates and Masters

An increasing number of Thai universities arc using information and communication technologies to support virtual education delivery (VED). The main purpose of this study was to examine the strategies used by Thai universities to adopt the concept of ''virtual education delivery" as an education tool. The study attempted to determine the critical factors that influence success in implementing Thai VEDs, and identified the ways to facilitate such adoption. These factors were synthesised with Thai environmental and cultural factors to develop a strategic framework which can be used to assist universities in Thailand to achieve more effective implementation of VEDs. The …

Boys' Perceptions And Experiences Of Their Placement In A Secondary School Remedial Program : An Examination Of Self-Esteem, Attitude, Motivation And Reading Achievement, Angela Milmoe

Theses: Doctorates and Masters

Remedial EngIish education has long focused on the development of students reading and writing skills, but research suggests that greater emphasis may need to be placed on affective factors such as self-esteem, motivation, attitude and perception. The influence of such 'non-cognitive' factors on any adolescent student's literacy development is often underestimated. For students experiencing difficulties in literacy, the interaction between perceived ability of degree of success in literacy and the affective factors often impact negatively on self-esteem, attitude and motivation. The relationship between self-esteem, attitude, perception, motivation and literacy needs to be explored, especially when dealing with students with literacy …

Alcohol Restraint Television Advertisements Targeted At Adolescents : A Three-Way Comparison Of Reinforcement Styles On Attitude To The Advertisement, Attitude To The Cause And Attitude To The Act, Neil Robinson

Theses: Doctorates and Masters

Adolescent binge-drinking is an area of great concern in Australia as it is with many other developed countries around the world. Every year in Australia, Commonwealth and State health authorities invest considerable resources into trying to address this issue and the results have been described as being at best, mixed. Health promotion initiatives such as school programmes, media promotion and health programmes coupled w1th restrictions on supply of alcohol are all used to try and curb the incidence of adolescent binge drinking. In recent years television advertising has specifically been used to try and curb the incidence of adolescent binge-drinking …

A Study Of Destination Attractiveness Through Tourists' Perspectives : A Focus On Chiang Mai, Thailand, Chompunoot Morachat

Theses: Doctorates and Masters

This study seeks to gain insights into the overall attractiveness of a destination by applying the multi-attribute Fishbein model. This approach has been carried out twice before in the international context and this dissertation contributes further to the concepts of destination attractiveness especially through the application of multi-attribute models of measurement and analysis with the context of localisation. It also adds to the body of knowledge on the understanding of tourism product preference and perceptual attitudes held by tourists from specific geographical origins to the South-East Asian region, specifically within Thailand. The study investigated (i) tourists' perceived overall attractiveness of …

The Intergenerational Transmission Of Violence? : The Self-Report Of Physical Abuse In Childhood Among Violent And Non-Violent Offenders, John Dockerill

Theses: Doctorates and Masters

This study examined the parental disciplinary history of male offenders to explore the relationship between report of childhood physical abuse and subsequent violent offending, based on the concept of intergenerational transmission of violence. The study also examined the relationship between reports of childhood physical abuse and juvenile delinquency together with an examination of the links between physical abuse and anger. Finally, this study explored the relationship between witnessing aggression to other family members and the motivation for subsequent violent offending (hostile motivated versus instrumentally motivated). Social learning theory provided the theoretical basis for this research. The underlying premise is that …

The Role Of Stereotypes In Age Discrimination In Hiring: Evaluation And Intervention, Eyal Gringart

Theses: Doctorates and Masters

As the number of older adults grows, governments find it increasingly harder to support them through social and health care services. One solution to this problem is for older adults to remain in paid employment longer. However, older workers are discriminated against due to negative stereotyping by employers. Previous research has found that older females experienced greater discrimination than did older males. In order to address the issue of hiring discrimination against older adults a progressive two-stage research project was conducted. Using a questionnaire that was developed especially for this project, Study One explored the stereotypes held about older workers …

Developing A Catalogue Of Errors And Evaluating Its Impact On Software Development, Indrit Troshani

Theses: Doctorates and Masters

The development of quality software is of paramount importance, yet this has been and continues to be an elusive goal for software engineers. Delivered software often fails due to errors that are injected during its development. Correcting these errors early in the development or preventing them altogether can, therefore, be considered as one way to improve software quality. In this thesis, the development of a Catalogue of Errors is described. Field studies with senior software engineering students are used to confirm that developers using the Catalogue of Errors commit fewer errors in their development artifacts. The impact of the Catalogue …

Individual Differences In Interpersonal Dependency In Older Adults: Development Of A Measure And Its Evaluation In Health Care Services, Deborah Gardner

Theses: Doctorates and Masters

Increasing dependency in older age is conceptualised differently by various disciplines. Psychologists have contributed to the understanding of dependency in older age by describing and explaining the functionality of dependency across the life-span. Psychological research has also examined variables (such as the responses of carers to-the dependent behayiours of older people) that exacerbate dependent feelings and behaviours (Baltes, 1996), but it has not included an individual difference measure of interpersonal dependency. According to Rosowsky~ Dougherty, Johnson and Gurian (1997), an understanding of the ways that personality style affects older adults' engagement and reception of health services would assist providers in …

The Service Delivery Process : An Examination Of How Consumers Evaluate Technology-Assisted Service Encounters In The Retail Banking Industry, Catherine W. Munene

Theses: Doctorates and Masters

This study examined consumers' perceptions post-adoption of technology and how these perceptions affect their levels of dis/satisfaction and their continued use of technology·assisted service encounters. To this end, this study investigated the criteria that consumers in Western Australia's retail banking industry are likely to use when evaluating banking transactions involving EFTPOS, ATM, telephone, and Online banking modes. II examined whether these criteria changed with the mode of electronic banking in use and whether the significance of the criteria changed with

consumers' demographic characteristics. In addition, this study explored whether consumers who use these modes of electronic banking experience the paradoxes …

School University Partnerships : What Do The Schools Want?, Laurie Brady

Australian Journal of Teacher Education

The growing perception of a need for robust school university partnerships to improve the quality of teacher education, and to promote learning outcomes for school students, has been given further impetus by the Ramsey recommendations in Quality Matters (2000). This article briefly reviews the literature on both professional development schools, and recent school university partnership initiatives in Australia, and reports a survey of all state primary school principals in NSW, on their support for a broad range of school university partnership activities. The findings indicate strong and uniform support for the full range of activities including supervision and mentoring, collaborative …

Globalisation: Building A Partnership Ethic For An Ecopedagogy In Western Australia, Geoffrey Lummis

Australian Journal of Teacher Education

This paper accommodates teachers with an interest in environmental education and links associated with Society and Environment, Science, and Technology and Enterprise learning areas. The role of globalisation and its impact upon environmental education reform are discussed. The Western Australian Curriculum Framework (Curriculum Council 1998) and the potential problems of metalanguage that a teacher faces when considering environmental reform are introduced. Several paradigms are introduced to underscore the complexity faced by initiating what I term ecopedagogy. Finally, four key principles that position a case for an ecopedagogy built upon a partnership ethic are offered. The principles are elaborated as: • …

Is There A Place For Social Work Within Rural Schools, And What Can It Look Like?, Kris Robertson

Theses : Honours

The impetus for this research followed my social work placement in a rural high school in the Southwest area of Western Australia. The aim of this research is to identify a role for school social work in relation to practice in rural schools, and to develop a conceptual framework for practice. The literature review sought to demonstrate a need for such services by demonstrating the issues for youth in rural areas. The claim was that providing such a service in rural areas would address issues of access and equity, in line with social justice principles. The results of this research …

Are Sri Funds Different From Non-Sri Funds, From A Financial Asset Perspective?: Evidence From Some Australian Sri Funds, Ingebjørg Kristoffersen

Theses : Honours

Socially Responsible Investment (SRI) has seen a remarkable growth in recent years – primarily in the US and UK, but also in other markets including Australia. This growth, along with the development of corporate social responsibility, is suggested to be a result of increased awareness in social, environment and human rights issues. The literature offers several suggestions as to how SRIs and SRI funds may differ from other investments, as financial assets. It has been suggested that SRIs are more likely to represent smaller stocks, and also more likely represent growth rather than value stocks compared to non-SRIs. Furthermore, different …

The Impact Of Television Reports Of Prison Escapes On Anxiety : A Comparison Of Two Age Cohorts, Sofia Fisher

Theses : Honours

Television has been identified as being a major contributor to anxiety and fear of crime. The major aim of this study was to compare the level of state anxiety experienced individuals after viewing one of three versions of a television report related to prison escapes. The second aim was to determine if there were any differences in levels of anxiety between two age cohorts: middle-aged (35-45 years) and older-aged (65-75 years). A total of 120 participants were recruited using a snowball technique and randomly assigned to one of three groups using a lottery method. Participants completed demographic and attitudinal questionnaires, …

Claremont Cameos: Women Teachers And The Building Of Social Capital In Australia, Lynne Hunt, Janina Trotman

Research outputs pre 2011

The centenary of Edith Cowan University is a significant event in the history of Western Australia: it celebrates the opening of the State's first tertiary institution, Claremont Teachers' College, in 1902. Being a primary teachers' college, most of its students were young women. This book, Claremont Cameos, tells their story. It is a storyline that stretches from the 'Stolen Generation' of Aboriginal children to Freud; it touches on the discovery of rare orchids and recounts the development of a fashion empire. Environmentalism, feminism, discrimination, resistance and commitment form part of the fabric of the book. The women's stories are powerful, …

What Makes It Into The News: A Close Look At How News Sources At 6pr And 720 Abc Radio Influence News Selection, Angela Businoska

Theses : Honours

One of the roles of journalists today is to select the newsworthy stories from the endless amount of information which flows into their media organisation's newsroom. So, what is news and how do journalists decide what makes it and what docs not, in the news each day? Past and present research on this topic has thus far attempted to provide a formula, or consistent approach to the news selection process. To date, these newsroom studies have often been based at an international level, with results primarily originating from interviews with journalists themselves. This suggests that there are still many aspects …

The Use Of Photographic Caricatures To Examine The Development Of A Perception Of Facial Attractiveness, Bronwyn J. Struthers

Theses : Honours

Throughout the human population, there is remarkable agreement as to what constitutes an attractive face. The consistency of attractiveness ratings across age, gender and culture has led to a search for an underlying construct that determines facial attractiveness. Langlois and Roggman (1990) proposed the "average is attractive" hypothesis arguing that facial attractiveness is determined by the level of averageness of facial features. Langlois and Roggman (1990) created composite faces to examine this hypothesis but their methodology was criticised, particularly because the technique used to create the composites tended to remove facial flaws and blemishes. This led to the argument that …

Developing Evaluation Frameworks For Assessing Quality Ict-Based Learning In Higher Education, Ron Oliver, John Hedberg, Barry Harper, Sandra Wills, Shirley Agostinho

Research outputs pre 2011

This paper describes the evaluation of high quality learning designs which are being selected for possible redevelopment in a National Project funded by the Australian University Teaching Committee (AUTC). The project focuses on "Information and Communication Technologies (ICTs) and Their Role in Flexible Learning" and is evaluating over 50 projects with a view to developing a range of software tools, templates and/or guidelines based on those that are deemed to be effective ICT-based learning projects. The approach is unique in that it tries to pinpoint the key attributes of ICT-based projects that make them suitable for application in other contexts …

Designing For Reflection In Online Courses, Ron Oliver, Janice Herrington

Research outputs pre 2011

Reflection can be described as both an individually-mediated and a socially-mediated process. In this paper we describe an online unit in a Graduate Certificate of Online Learning that has been designed to enhance the opportunities for students to reflect on their learning. Rather than being promoted as a learning strategy to supplement the unit curriculum, reflection has been integrated fully within the course design. Students are encouraged to reflect as they complete their chosen project (reflection-in-action) and in a more sustained and extended manner (reflection-on-action) as they write up their experiences in an article of publishable quality. The technology and …

Formalising The Description Of Learning Designs, Ron Oliver, Barry Harper, John Hedberg, Sandra Wills, Shirley Agostinho

Research outputs pre 2011

This paper describes an activity being undertaken by researchers involved in the AUTC funded Project: Information and Communication Technologies and Their Role in Flexible Learning. The project is seeking to investigate and develop generic and reusable frameworks for the provision of technology-enhanced high quality learning experiences in higher education. To achieve this, the researchers have been exploring ways to formalise generic descriptions of some learning designs that foster knowledge construction and problem solving. This paper provides a summary of the work that has been undertaken and describes the generic descriptions that have been developed in this process.

Exploring The Development Of Learning Communities In Online Settings, Ron Oliver, Christopher Brook

Research outputs pre 2011

This paper discusses the notion of community as an outcome of working within an online environment. In particular, the paper explores the concept of users' development of a sense of community as an outcome of working within an online environment designed to support the professional and personal development of its users. The paper discusses previous research, which has explored the development of a sense of community and reports a study that investigates the development of a sense of community among users of a community-oriented site supporting teachers' professional development. The data gathered in this inquiry provided evidence that the users …

Promoting Student Learning Through Peer Tutoring - A Case Study, Barnard Clarkson, Joseph Luca

Research outputs pre 2011

The literature abounds with information about peer tutoring and the benefits that it can bring to student learning. This case study sought to explore ways of using peer tutoring to enhance the learning experience of a group of higher education students in a multimedia course, who had access to learning resources in an online environment. It illustrates how easily and effectively the basic principles of peer tutoring can be adapted and implemented following explicit guidelines from the literature.

Scaffolding The Development Of Students' Cognitive Self-Regulatory Skills, Joseph Luca, Mark Mcmahon

Research outputs pre 2011

No abstract provided.

Enhancing The Quality Of The Student Experience Online: Revisiting The Imperative Of Learning As Socially Based, Catherine E Mcloughlin, Joseph Luca

Research outputs pre 2011

Delivery of quality educational services and opportunities is becoming increasingly more complex as Web-based learning tools and support structures continue to evolve. Although much effort is devoted to examining the use of technology to teach course content, an emerging area of some importance in online teaching is how to enhance the student experience of learning and communicating online. Associated with this is the creation of social and supportive environments for learning when there is little face-to-face contact between distance learners and their teachers. This paper provides a framework and a set of strategies that can be used to create a …

Did The World Really Change On 9/11?, Lelia Rosalind Green

Research outputs pre 2011

In setting myself the question 'Did the world really change an 9/11 ?', I tie myself into two discussions. The first is an exercise in comparing and contrasting perceptions around the pivotal date of September 11, 2001: what was the world 'really' like prior to the attacks on America (as they came to be called) and what is it 'really' like now? The use of the word 'really' here flags the operation of value judgements; any estimation of change around this event is laden with personal perspectives. The second discussion is the one I deal with first: is there a …