Narrative coherence in multiple forensic interviews with child witnesses alleging physical and sexual abuse

This study investigated the narrative coherence of children's accounts elicited in multiple forensic interviews. Transcriptions of 56 police interviews with 28 children aged 3–14 years alleging physical and sexual abuse were coded for markers of completeness, consistency and connectedness. We found that multiple interviews increased the completeness of children's testimony, containing on average almost twice as much new information as single interviews, including crucial location, time and abuse‐related details. When both contradictions within the same interview and across interviews were considered, contradictions were not more frequent in multiple interviews. The frequency of linguistic markers of connectedness remained stable across interviews. Multiple interviews increase the narrative coherence of children's testimony through increasing their completeness without necessarily introducing contradictions or decreasing causal‐temporal connections between details. However, as ‘ground truth’ is not known in field studies, further investigation of the relationship between the narrative coherence and accuracy of testimonies is required

Corrections education and employment assistance ‘down under’: current and emerging practices and paradigms

This article provides a view of contemporary Australia in terms of patterns of offending and incarceration, the characteristics of its correctional systems, vocational education and training (VET) within correctional settings, and post-release employment of prisoners and offenders serving community-based orders (CBOs). A two-year case study of employment assistance for 2,458 Australian prisoners and offenders serving CBOs was evaluated. The voluntary 12-month programme targeted participants at moderate to high risk of reoffending. Overall, employment outcomes were positive with more than one-third of registrations resulting in employment. Employment outcomes varied for gender and participant status (prisoner/offender). Recidivism outcomes were analysed for the whole programme and for a random sample of 600 prisoner participants. Results indicated a very low overall recidivism rate (7.46 per cent) for programme participants, and comparison of pre-programme and post-release recidivism showed reduced recidivism on three recidivism measures. The findings are contextualized in terms of current thinking and emerging practices in offender treatment, with a focus on reintegration as ecological system engagement and integrated systems of support as central to promoting positive lifestyle change

Measuring the social inclusion of people with a disability in Australia : the first national 1-in-4 poll

 Measuring social inclusion of people with a disability in Australia: the first national 1-in-4 poll. Moore, M; Hagiliassis, N; McGillivray, J; Wilson, E; Campain, R; Graffam, J. & Bink, M. The ‘1-in-4 poll’ is a regular survey of people with a disability in Australia, beginning in 2010. Each survey will deal with a different topic with the first survey focusing on social inclusion. Social inclusion means being included in a society where we feel valued, and can participate in work, social and cultural activities. This conference paper explains how the first survey was developed. This involved looking at information from other research about the social inclusion of people with disability in Australia compared with the general population. Most surveys to date lack information about people with a disability. Our survey draws on questions asked in other surveys and will enable a better understanding of social inclusion for people with disability in Australia. This conference paper will also report on the problems and solutions of developing a survey that is easy to use and meaningful to a large population of people with a disability including people with an intellectual disability. This survey instrument will enable people with a disability to have a say about their social inclusion. There are three versions of the survey including an on-line version that works with a range of assistive technologies, an Easy English version with pictures, and a standard print version. Results from the survey will be shared with government with the aim of improving social inclusion for people with disability The conference paper shows how we have designed a survey that enables a very wide range of people with a disability to give information about their participation in society

Cognitive apprenticeship in clinical practice: can it stimulate learning in the opinion of students?

Learning in clinical practice can be characterised as situated learning because students learn by performing tasks and solving problems in an environment that reflects the multiple ways in which their knowledge will be put to use in their future professional practice. Collins et al. introduced cognitive apprenticeship as an instructional model for situated learning comprising six teaching methods to support learning: modelling, coaching, scaffolding, articulation, reflection and exploration. Another factor that is looked upon as conducive to learning in clinical practice is a positive learning climate. We explored students’ experiences regarding the learning climate and whether the cognitive apprenticeship model fits students’ experiences during clinical training. In focus group interviews, three groups of 6th-year medical students (N = 21) discussed vignettes representing the six teaching methods and the learning climate to explore the perceived occurrence of the teaching methods, related problems and possibilities for improvement. The students had experienced all six teaching methods during their clerkships. Modelling, coaching, and articulation were predominant, while scaffolding, reflection, and exploration were mainly experienced during longer clerkships and with one clinical teacher. The main problem was variability in usage of the methods, which was attributed to teachers’ lack of time and formal training. The students proposed several ways to improve the application of the teaching methods. The results suggest that the cognitive apprenticeship model is a useful model for teaching strategies in undergraduate clinical training and a valuable basis for evaluation, feedback, self-assessment and faculty development of clinical teachers

Influence of the Environment on Participation in Social Roles for Young Adults with Down Syndrome

Background: The concept of disability is now understood as a result of the interaction between the individual, features related to impairment, and the physical and social environment. It is important to understand these environmental influences and how they affect social participation. The purpose of this study is to describe the social participation of young adults with Down syndrome and examine its relationship with the physical and social environment. Methods: Families ascertained from the Down syndrome ‘Needs Opinion Wishes’ database completed questionnaires during 2011. The questionnaires contained two parts, young person characteristics and family characteristics. Young adults’ social participation was measured using the Assessment of Life Habits (LIFE-H) and the influences of environmental factors were measured by the Measure of the Quality of the Environment (MQE). The analysis involved descriptive statistics and linear and logistic regression. Results: Overall, participation in daily activities was higher (mean 6.45) than in social roles (mean 5.17) (range 0 to 9). When the physical and/or social environment was reported as a facilitator, compared to being no influence or a barrier, participation in social roles was greater (coef 0.89, 95%CI 0.28, 1.52, coef 0.83, 95%CI 0.17, 1.49, respectively). The relationships between participation and both the physical (coef 0.60, 95% CI -0.40, 1.24) and social (coef 0.20, 95%CI -0.47, 0.87) environments were reduced when age, gender, behavior and functioning in ADL were taken into account. Conclusion: We found that young adults’ participation in social roles was influenced more by the physical environment than by the social environment, providing a potentially modifiable avenue for intervention

The life conditions of Australian ex-prisoners : an analysis of intrapersonal, subsistence, and support conditions

Successful reintegration of ex-prisoners into the community is multifaceted. The life conditions of 36 adult Australian ex-prisoners (20 male and 16 female) were examined via a questionnaire administered at 1 to 4 weeks post release, and a subset of 19 of the original respondents were interviewed again at 3 to 4 months post release. Interviews focused on intrapersonal conditions (physical and psychological health and substance use), subsistence conditions (housing, employment, and finance), and support conditions (social support, support services/program participation, and criminal justice support). The majority of ex-prisoners self-reported chronic physical and mental health problems as well as a history of substance use and/or current substance use. Although the housing conditions of ex-prisoners were largely favourable and constant, the employment and financial conditions of this group were generally unfavourable. Level of social support was variable. Theoretical implications and practical applications of the present investigation for reintegration theory are discussed