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Exploring What Men's Perception Of A 'Good' Family Is, And How This Understanding Shapes Their Roles And Functioning Within Their Family, Grahame L. Paull

Theses : Honours

This study was based on the belief that the dynamics of personal relationships is the basis of social life and personal well-being. There is growing support in the literature however suggesting that the gap between men's family relationship functioning, and their ideals of how life ought to be is widening. The purpose of this research therefore was to explore through men's own experiences what their perception of a 'good' family is, and how this understanding shapes their roles and functioning within their family. Using the three concepts of family as a symbolic structure of meaning, masculinity and cognition, as the …

Fathers' Self-Perceptions Of Their Parenting Role Identity And Its Impact On Levels Of Father-Child Involvement: A Comparison Of Married And Contact Fathers, Natasha M. Vawser

Theses : Honours

It has been extensively documented that contact fathers decrease involvement with their children after divorce (Amato & Booth, 1996). Role theory purports that this pattern of father involvement after divorce is a result or contact fathers experiencing parental role ambiguity. The constraints of visitation make it difficult to maintain parental roles previously performed in the marriage (Ihinger-Tallman, Pasley & Buchler, 1993). American research has provided support for role theory: however no known equivalent research has been conducted on Australian contact fathers. This study replicated Minton and Pasley's (1996) research with 46 contact and 64 married fathers. Participants completed the Self-Perceptions …

Constructing Compatibility : Managing Breastfeeding And Weaning From The Mothers' Perspective, Yvonne Louise Hauck

Theses: Doctorates and Masters

Breastfeeding involves phases of initiation, continuation, and weaning. Research to date has focused upon its initiation and continuation rather than the later phases, when the child is weaned from the breast. Selective aspects relating to weaning have been explored to determine infant feeding practices such as the timing of food introduction. However, that research has focused upon developing countries where the impact of infant feeding patterns and weaning practices have a significant impact on infant growth and child health. The weaning process or final phase of breastfeeding from the mothers' perspective has not been examined within the western world. In …

International Review Of Women And Leadership: Special Issue 1999, Jane Long (Ed.)

Research outputs pre 2011

The centenary of women's suffrage in Western Australia in 1899 has presented many moments to reflect upon and evaluate women's experiences, to recognise and respond to the diversity of women's lives and concerns. This special issue of the International Review of Women and Leadership is one contribution to a year's activities marking that centenary.

Millicent Poole's preface discusses the genesis of these papers in a successful series of seminars in 1998 hosted by the Centre for Research for Women which attested, each fortnight, to the energy, intellectual rigour and vibrancy of participants. Poole contextualises the seminar series by pointing out …

Self Concept: Mothers And Their Children, Leanne D. Wood

Theses : Honours

Over the past 30 years divorce has been on the incline, resulting in more children living in one parent families, the majority headed by single mothers. The study of the impact of divorce and outcomes for children and their mothers has become increasingly important. According to many researchers, the study of self-concept is considered to be one of the best indicators of a person's psychological adjustment and wellbeing (Hattie, 1992; Ford, 1985). Studies have neglected to consider self-concept as a major focus and consider the relationship between the child's self-concept and their mother's self-concept. This study focuses on single mothers …

"Family" As Constructed By Adoptees After Making Contact With Their Birth Families, Adrianne Moloney

Theses: Doctorates and Masters

Legislative changes during the 1980s and 1990s opened confidential adoption files of the past enabling many adoptees and relinquishing parents to establish contact. This study examines the way in which the meaning of family is constructed by adoptees who have made contact with their birth relatives, and how these constructions were altered after contact. The ways in which biological and social definitions of family are constructed and contested in these settings is explored. Sociological definitions of family are discussed and the gap between ideal notions of 'family' and the lived experience of 'family' is explored. The study focuses on the …

Nonresidential Father Perception Of Father-Child Relationships: An Exploratory Analysis Of Family Functioning, Wendy J. Nicholls

Theses : Honours

Nonresidential father experiences of family life with their children lack attention in the literature. Nonresidential fathers often suffer considerably, as they attempt to continue their parenting role with limited access lime. Consequently, their relationships with their children may suffer, sometimes resulting in visitation ceasing altogether. Father contact is important to the developmental and psychological well-being of children, yet is often hindered by restricted access, distance, parental conflict and the father's emotional state. Nonresidential father perspectives of family life with their children are explored in this study, to gain insight into nonresidential father experiences. This study replicated a study conducted by …

Developmental Tasks And Learning Processes Which Influence Life-Satisfaction In Retirement, Robin F. Clarke

Theses: Doctorates and Masters

This study identified the developmental tasks undertaken by eight retired males during the retirement transition, described the processes of! earning and adjustment and discussed their influence on life-satisfaction. The study was an exploratory, descriptive case study, designed as an initial investigation into the phenomena of retirement in the 1990s. A qualitative design was appropriate to the study for it permitted the investigation of a wide range of inter related variables. The major instrument was a semi-structured but open-ended interview designed to gather comprehensive data relevant to understanding the retirement experience. An iterative process was used, which involved interviewing each participant …

Work And Family: Bibliography: 1969 - 1994, Catherine Smith (Ed.)

Research outputs pre 2011

1994 was designated by the United Nations as International Year of the Family, with the theme for the year as Family: resources and responsibilities in a changing world. The Year of the Family was intended to stimulate international national and local actions to strengthen families as 'the smallest democracy at the heart of society'...

...Edith Cowan University recognised the International Year of the Family by undertaking a range of activities designed to promote discussion and debate. The range of activities recognised the University's role as an educator, employer and community member. This Bibliography represents just one of the activities undertaken …

Intercountry Adoptive Families In Western Australia: The Well-Being Of Their Four To Sixteen-Year-Old Adoptees, Trudy Rosenwald

Theses : Honours

The study investigated the well-being of 283 four to sixteen-year-old intercountry adopted (ICA) children in general and in relation to two specific adoption variables. The sample represented 80% of the estimated 4-16 year old ICA population of Western Australia (W A). Well-being was defined in terms of competence, happiness, health and problem behaviours. The primary source of information was Achenbach's parent reported Child Behavior Check List (CBCL) as used by the Western Australian Child Health Survey (WACHS). Bowlby's attachment theory provided the theoretical framework for the prediction that adoption after the age of 6 months, and the experience of adversity …

Do Women Retire? : A Feminist Critique Of The Social Construction Of Retirement, Pamela Weatherill

Theses : Honours

This research comes as a response to the paucity of discussion on women's experience of retirement. In consideration of the relationship between work and retirement, this study examines what a feminist perspective on women's experience of work can contribute to the androcentric conception of retirement. Women's experience of work is shaped by many forces, most particularly by the ideology of motherhood and the sexual division of labour. Together, these factors have ensured that women and men experience both paid and unpaid work in quantitatively and qualitatively different manners. While the construction of retirement has been around the largely male experience …

A Comparative Study Of The Migration Experiences Of Filipino And Thai Brides In Western Australia, Belinda Greensill

Theses : Honours

Bride migration which includes unpaid labour migration is a new development in international labour migration. The factors which have contributed to recent increases in bride migration from developing counties in the South East Asian region to post-industrialised countries include changes in the international economic system and the international division of labour, and popular stereotypes of Filipino and Thai women, and conservative notions of women1s domestic roles which are prevalent in Australia. This study focuses on Filipino and Thai bride migration to Western Australian within the context of international labour migration. Most of the literature on Filipino and Thai female migration …

A Qualitative Evaluation Of A Bereavement Service: An Analysis Of The Experiences Of Service Consumers And Providers, Ruth Marquis

Theses: Doctorates and Masters

Human service evaluation has become an important consideration in service delivery due to an increased demand for accountability by funding bodies. Time constraints, financial constraints and political interests, however, influence the implementation and outcomes of evaluation projects. As a result, quantitative methods are most frequently used. Information obtained as the result of quantitative studies which are politically expedient may present a superficial view of a program and overlook the fundamental issues of program delivery which are important to participants. Identification of the valued aspects of program involvement and areas of unmet need from participants' perspectives may remain unknown as a …

Not Guest Speakers But Peer Tutors: The Role Of Adoptive Parent Organisations In The Western Australian Preparation For Adoptive Parenthood Education Programme, Maureen Anne Roberts

Theses : Honours

This study was undertaken as a partial requirement for a Bachelor of Health Science (Health Education) Honours. It examines the role of two Western Australian adoptive parent organisations, Australia for Children Society (AFC), and the Adoptive Parents Association (APA), as peer tutors within a Preparation for Adoptive Parenthood Education Programme (PAPEP). The sample consisted of one group which attended a workshop held by AFC and one group which attended a workshop by APA as part of the PAPEP. Measurements of interactions between Prospective Adoptive Parents (PAPs) and between PAPs and workshop presenters were made through observations. PAPs' satisfaction with the …

Someone's Daughter, Someone's Worker, Someone's Girlfriend, Someone's Wife: Young Women And Multiple Transitions, Jennie Buchanan

Theses : Honours

Although obviously involved in the life of their communities, young women have been largely overlooked in youth studies specifically and sociological research in general. Where young women are mentioned in the literature they are discussed using theories and frameworks designed to explain young men's position. It is assumed within these studies that somehow one's gender has little impact on their social situation. Clearly traditional theoretical approaches to the study of youth do not take into account the multiple transitions experienced by young women. This thesis sets out to question existing literature in youth studies. The notion that youth is a …

Parent Indicators Of Quality Care In Out Of School Hours Care In Western Australia, Vicki Banham, Allison Picton-King

Research outputs pre 2011

An Investigation into the identification of indicators of quality care for outside school hours was undertaken.

Data was derived from a survey of 252 parents with children currently attending after school care in W.A., and compared with the indicators of quality developed by the Joint Review of the Commonwealth Department of Community Services and Commonwealth Public Service Board on Outside School Hours Care, Vacation Care and Adventure Playgrounds. Although parents identified specific indicators of quality care, the findings were consistent with those of the Review.

Comparing these findings with the extensive current research on pre-school care indicators of quality, suggested …

Quality Of Life Issues In Residential Services For Elderly People : Perceptions Of Service Providers, Val Roche

Research outputs pre 2011

The report contains feedback from a study undertaken by students enrolled in the Residential Care Unit, a part of the A.D.A. Working with the Aged course. The subject for study was "Quality of life in residential services for elderly people. This was seen as an important area for investigation because the number of elderly people will increase to 15 per cent of Australia's population by the year 2021, and it is likely that even with more community support services, some people will need residential care...