Social and Behavioral Sciences Commons^™

Characteristics Of Power Quality Disturbance Levels In Australia, Sean Elphick, Vic Smith, Vic Gosbell, Robert Barr

Robert Barr

The Australian Long Term Power Quality Survey (LTNPQS) now covers 2,000 sites with a range of different characteristics including strength (related to fault level), line construction and dominant load type. This paper details the latest outcomes of the LTNPQS project in terms of both disturbance levels and reporting methods. A comparison of the differences between voltage, unbalance and harmonic THD levels at strong (close to transformer) and weak (towards the end of LV feeders) sites has been performed and significant differences have been found. A multivariable linear regression study has been undertaken in order to investigate the correlation between site …

The Retention, Revival, And Subjugation Of Indigenous Fire Knowledge Through Agency Fire Fighting In Eastern Australia And California, Christine Eriksen, Don Hankins

Christine Eriksen

This article explores the potential impact of training and employment with wildfire management agencies on the retention of Indigenous fire knowledge. It focuses on the comparative knowledge and experiences of Indigenous Elders, cultural practitioners, and land stewards in connection with “modern” political constructs of fire in New South Wales and Queensland, Australia, and California in the United States of America. This article emphasises the close link between cross-cultural acceptance, integration of Indigenous and agency fire cultures, and the ways in which knowledge types are shared or withheld. While agency fire fighting provides an opportunity for Indigenous people to connect and …

Foreign Aid Budget: Promoting Australia's Interests At The Expense Of The Poor, Nichole Georgeou, Charles Hawksley

Nichole Georgeou

A brief, critical discussion of the Foreign Aid provisions of the 2014-15 Australian budget of the Abbott government, published in the 'Academics Stand Against Poverty Oceania, 2014-15 Budget Response'.

Heavy Minerals In Modern Sediments Of The Minnamurra Estuary And Shelf Environment, Nsw, Australia, Rabea Haredy, Brian Jones, Adrian Hutton

B. G. Jones

Provenance and sediment distribution have been investigated in the Minnamurra estuary and the adjacent shelf in NSW, Australia. Heavy mineral assemblages in the sand fractions (63-250 f.lm) of 110 surficial sediment samples were assessed using microscopic and microprobe analyses. In addition to the dominant opaque minerals, twelve translucent heavy mineral species were identified. The translucent assemblage is dominated by pyroxene, zircon, tourmaline and hornblende. Statistical cluster analysis of heavy mineral percentages in the surficial sediments revealed the existence of five mineralogical facies: the upper fluvial part of the estuary, the Minnamurra spit and elevated inner sand terrace, the estuary inlet …

Late Quaternary Aeolian And Fluvial Interactions On The Cooper Creek Fan And The Association Between Linear And Source-Bordering Dunes, Strzelecki Desert, Australia, Timothy Cohen, Gerald Nanson, Joshua Larsen, B. Jones, David Price, Maria Coleman, Tim Pietsch

B. G. Jones

The Innamincka Dome and associated low-gradient fan in the Strzelecki Desert is the product of Cenozoic crustal warping that has aided formation of an extensive array of palaeochannels, source-bordering transverse dunes and superimposed linear dunes. These dunes have impeded the course of Cooper Creek and provided a repository of evidence for Quaternary climate change as well as the interactive processes between transverse and linear dune formation. At Turra, Gidgealpa and sites nearby are extensive fluvial and aeolian sand bodies that date from marine isotope stages (MIS) 8-3 and the Last Glacial Maximum (LGM) and are now surrounded or buried by …

Mapping Same-Sex Couple Family Households In Australia, Andrew Gorman-Murray, Christopher Brennan-Horley, Kirsten Mclean, Gordon Waitt, Christopher Gibson

Christopher R Brennan-Horley

The map (1:1,218,987) accompanying this report is the first to depict the distribution of same-sex couple family households across Australia. The map and the report contribute to emerging scholarship combining critical geographies of sexualities with quantitative techniques and GIS in order to advance the political claims of sexual minorities. The data were collected through the 2006 Census and obtained via consultation with the Australian Bureau of Statistics. These data included the number of same-sex couple family households for all Statistical Divisions across Australia and for Statistical Sub-Divisions within metropolitan capital cities. Geographical concentrations of same-sex couple family households were determined …

Gender Differences In Factor Scores Of Anxiety And Depression Among Australian University Students: Implications For Counselling Interventions, Vicki Bitsika, Christopher Sharpley, Therese Melhem

Vicki Bitsika

Anxiety and depression inventory scores from 200 male and female university students attending a private university in Australia were examined for their factor structure. Once established, the two sets of factors were tested for gender-based differences, revealing that females were more likely than males to report symptomatology associated with pain and fatigue, sleeping and digestive problems, psychomotor agitation, confusion, and pessimism. Implications for counsellors are discussed.

Manufacturing On The Move? Beyond The High Dollar In The Debate About Making Things In Australia - The Case Of The Australian Surfboard Industry - Ausccer Discussion Paper No. 2012/2, Andrew Warren, Chris Gibson

Chris Gibson

In October 2011 surfboard manufacturer BASE abruptly closed its factory on the Gold Coast resulting in the direct loss of 50 jobs. A few days later, nearby D’Arcy Surfboards also announced it was shedding workers and downsizing from a state-of-the art purpose built factory into a backyard workshop. Each business exported surfboards internationally and employed some of Australia’s best known surfboard-makers. The troubles facing these workshops added to those brewing at the very same in Australia’s steel, aluminium, automotive and garment industries. With renewed public debate and media commentary on the future of manufacturing, we now face a crisis in …

Toddler Milk Advertising In Australia: Infant Formula Advertising In Disguise?, Nina Berry, Sandra Jones, Donald Iverson

Don C. Iverson

The Marketing in Australia of Infant Formula: Manufacturers' and Importers' Agreement prevents manufacturers and importers from advertising infant formula. However, toddler milks, which share brand identities with infant formula, are advertised freely; and recent research suggests consumers fail to distinguish between advertising for infant formula and for toddler milk. This study examined whether Australian parents recalled having seen advertisements for 'formula'. Most respondents (66.8%) reported seeing an advertisement for infant formula, with those who had only seen non-retail advertising more than twice as likely to believe that they had seen such an advertisement as those who had only seen retail …

Defining Research Priorities For Pancreatic Cancer In Australia: Results Of A Consensus Development Process, Monica Robotin, Sandra Jones, Andrew Biankin, Louise Waters, Donald Iverson, Helen Gooden, Bruce Barraclough, Andrew Penman

Don C. Iverson

Introduction: Pancreatic cancer (PC) is the sixth leading cause of cancer death in Australia and the fourth in the United States, yet research in PC is lagging behind that in other cancers associated with a high disease burden. In the absence of agreed processes to reliably identify research areas which can deliver significant advances in PC research, the Cancer Council NSW established a strategic partnership with the NSW Pancreatic Cancer Network to define critical research issues and opportunities that could accelerate progress in this field in Australia. Materials and methods: The process consisted of five distinct stages: a literature review …

Contemporary Racism And Islamaphobia In Australia: Racialising Religion, Kevin Dunn, Natascha Klocker, Tanya Salabay

Natascha Klocker

Contemporary anti-Muslim sentiment in Australia is reproduced through a racialization that includes well rehearsed stereotypes of Islam, perceptions of threat and inferiority, as well as fantasies that the Other (in this case Australian Muslims) do not belong, or are absent. These are not old or colour-based racisms, but they do manifest certain characteristics that allow us to conceive a racialization process in relation to Muslims. Three sets of findings show how constructions of Islam are important means through which racism is reproduced. First, public opinion surveys reveal the extent of Islamaphobia in Australia and the links between threat perception and …

Australia's International Education As Public Diplomacy: Soft Power Potential, Caitlin Byrne, Rebecca Hall

Caitlin Byrne

Australia's international education serves as public diplomacy, essentially engaging and influencing public audiences in a way that progresses Australian foreign policy priorities and ultimately, national interests. The multidimensional and increasingly globalised nature of international education presents enormous opportunity for vital exchange and interactions between and with students, academics and communities via onshore and offshore modes of delivery. Positive experiences of exchange and the development of intellectual, commercial and social relationships can build upon a nation's reputation, and enhance the ability of that nation to participate in and influence regional or global outcomes. This is ultimately the essence of soft power. …

The Force Of Rudd: Promoting Australia’S Campaign For The United Nations Security Council, Caitlin Byrne

Caitlin Byrne

Australia’s Foreign Minister Kevin Rudd is pressing ahead on a high profile public diplomacy campaign to secure support for Australia’s bid to the United Nations Security Council (UNSC) for 2013-14. There is much to be said about the public diplomacy value of political leaders in such campaigns. Kevin Rudd is a case in point. Previously Australia’s Prime Minister, Rudd is already well known and regarded among political and intellectual elite audiences across the globe. Despite fall-out within Australia’s domestic political environment that saw him removed from the post of Prime Minister (and replaced by Julia Gillard), Rudd has slotted seamlessly …

Local History From 8000 Miles Away: Early Colac Court Records In The United States, Arthur Fraas

Arthur Mitchell Fraas

This article examines a volume of Colac court records from the mid-nineteenth century now held in the United States. It details the contents of the volume with an eye towards the nature of local justice in early Victoria and the ways in which legal records can provide a window into the past. In addition, the article calls attention to the increasingly global nature of local history studies. In sharing the story of this trans-oceanic ‘discovery’ and its subsequent digitisation, it provides a possible model for future directions in archival research.

Not Quite The Sum Of Its Parts: Public Diplomacy From An Australian Perspective, Caitlin Byrne

Caitlin Byrne

While public diplomacy has emerged as the subject of much attention internationally, Australia appears disengaged from the discussions and Australia’s public diplomacy program appears to be lagging behind. Closer examination of Australia’s public diplomacy program, coordinated by the Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade (DFAT) reveals that public diplomacy is not well understood within bureaucratic and academic circles; is lacking in strategic coordination, and is consistently under-resourced. Indeed, when it comes to Australia’s public diplomacy, it appears that the whole may not be greater than the sum of the parts.

The purpose of this paper is to examine the current …

Girls, Girls, Girls. A Study Of The Popularity Of Journalism As A Career Among Female Teenagers And Its Corresponding Lack Of Appeal To Young Males, Mike Grenby, Molly Kasinger, Roger Patching, Mark Pearson

Mike Grenby

Australian journalism programs have long reported a disproportionate number of female students and the industry is becoming increasingly feminised. The latest (2006) Census figures showed that, for the first time in Australian history, women outnumbered men in journalism and related occupations. While many researchers have commented upon the increased popularity of journalism as a career choice among young women and its decline in popularity among young men, none have undertaken a comprehensive project researching the reasons for this phenomenon. This study has addressed this gap in the research. The research team conducted an extensive literature review, surveyed 444 senior secondary …

Girls, Girls, Girls. A Study Of The Popularity Of Journalism As A Career Among Female Teenagers And Its Corresponding Lack Of Appeal To Young Males, Mike Grenby, Molly Kasinger, Roger Patching, Mark Pearson

Roger Patching

Australian journalism programs have long reported a disproportionate number of female students and the industry is becoming increasingly feminised. The latest (2006) Census figures showed that, for the first time in Australian history, women outnumbered men in journalism and related occupations. While many researchers have commented upon the increased popularity of journalism as a career choice among young women and its decline in popularity among young men, none have undertaken a comprehensive project researching the reasons for this phenomenon. This study has addressed this gap in the research. The research team conducted an extensive literature review, surveyed 444 senior secondary …

The Newsroom Versus The Lounge Room: Journalists’ And Audiences’ Views On News, Jeffrey Brand, Mark Pearson

Jeffrey Brand

In May 2001 the Australian Broadcasting Authority released the authors' report titled Sources of News and Current Affairs (ABA, 2001). The monograph consisted of reports from the Stage I study of journalists' views (Pearson & Brand, 2001) and the Stage 2 study of audiences' views (Brand, Archhold & Rane, 2001). These were independent publications focusing on the individual results from each stage of the larger study. Little comparison was made between the journalists' and audiences' views in the two reports. This paper provides a comparison and contrast of the views of news and current affairs producers and their audiences. The …

An Exploration Of Automobile Insurance Fraud, Robyn Lincoln, Helene Wells, Wayne Petherick

Wayne Petherick

This exploratory study analyses claiming behaviour within the automobile insurance industry. A local insurance company provided 32 automobile insurance claims thus permitting qualitative and quantitative analysis. This study enunciates non-fraudulent claiming behaviour as the sample included only a low number of suspected fraud cases. Variables contained within each of the claim files were analysed, as were the statements of the insured individuals. Each claimant is required to provide two written statements to the local insurance company and these statements were analysed for consistency and detail.

The overall findings revealed that claimants were generally employed, middle-aged males who were sober at …

Beyond The Middle: A Report About Literacy And Numeracy Development Of Target Group Students In The Middle Years Of Schooling, Allan Luke, John Elkins, Katie Weir, Ray Land, Victoria Carrington, Shelley Dole, Donna Pendergast, Cushla Kapitzke, Christa Van Kraayenoord, Karen Moni, Alistair Mcintosh, Diane Mayer, Mark Bahr, Lisa Hunter, Rod Chadbourne, Tom Bean, Donna Alverman, Lisa Stevens

Mark Bahr

The Report, Beyond the Middle: A Report about Literacy and Numeracy Development of a Target Group Students in the Middle Years of Schooling, provides a useful national coverage of approaches assisting the literacy and numeracy development of Australian students in Years 5 to 10.

The work was undertaken by a research team headed by Professor Allan Luke and Professor John Elkins from the School of Education, University of Queensland and is a study of the efficacy of middle years programmes in all States and Territories for improving teaching and learning, and student outcomes in literacy and numeracy.

The project involved …