Diversity: A longitudinal study of how student diversity relates to resilience and successful progression in a new generation university

This project used the voices of diverse cohorts of students to describe their learning journeys as they progressed through the later years of their degree and into the workforce. The project combined quantitative data from a large student sample with qualitative data from a series of case study narratives to document the students’ perceptions about their learning experiences, the factors underpinning progression in their studies and their transition into the workplace. The project has attempted to answer the question: does diversity matter? Do students of different diversities progress differently, and are there differences in the factors enhancing progression and developing resilience that can be linked directly to diversity? In this project, successful students are those who have completed first year and have progressed to their second or final year of their undergraduate degree. The rationale for the study arose from: • the need for institutional policies and practices to better reflect the increased student diversity they serve • our lack of knowledge about how the behaviours and strategies that diverse students use translate into resilience and progression to graduation and into the workforce • the importance of understanding the diverse ways those successful students navigate through their learning journey, often in the face of multiple responsibilities and commitments..

Mode of prostate cancer detection is associated with the psychological wellbeing of survivors: results from the PiCTure study

Purpose: Many men with prostate cancer are asymptomatic, diagnosed following prostate specific antigen (PSA) testing. We investigate whether mode of detection, i.e. ‘PSA detected’ or ‘clinically detected’, was associated with psychological wellbeing among prostate cancer survivors. Methods: A cross-sectional postal questionnaire was administered in 2012 to 6559 prostate cancer (ICD10 C61) survivors up to 18 years post-diagnosis, identified through population-based cancer registries in Ireland. Psychological wellbeing was assessed using the Depression Anxiety Stress Scale-21. Logistic regression was used to investigate associations between mode of detection and depression, anxiety and stress, adjusting for socio-demographic and clinical confounders. Results: The response rate was 54 % (3348/6262). Fifty-nine percent of survivors were diagnosed with asymptomatic PSA-tested disease. Prevalence of depression (13.8 vs 20.7 %; p < 0.001), anxiety (13.6 vs 20.9 %; p < 0.001) and stress (8.7 vs 13.8 %; p < 0.001) were significantly lower among survivors diagnosed with PSA-detected, than clinically detected disease. After adjusting for clinical and socio-demographic factors, survivors with clinically detected disease had significantly higher risk of depression (odds ratio (OR) = 1.46 95 % CI 1.18, 1.80; p = 0.001), anxiety (OR = 1.36 95 % CI 1.09, 1.68; p = 0.006) and stress (OR = 1.43 95 % CI 1.11, 1.85; p = 0.006) than survivors with PSA-detected disease. Conclusions: These findings contribute to the ongoing debate on benefits and risks of PSA testing and may be considered by policy makers formulating population-based prostate cancer screening policies. The relatively high prevalence of negative psychological states among survivors means that a ‘risk-adapted approach’ should be implemented to screen survivors most at risk of psychological morbidity for psychological health, and mode of detection could be considered as a risk stratum

Are caregiving responsibilities associated with non-attendance at breast screening?

<p>Abstract</p> <p>Background</p> <p>Previous research showed that deprived individuals are less likely to attend breast screening and those providing intense amounts of informal care tend to be more deprived than non-caregivers. The aim of this study was to examine the relationship between informal caregiving and uptake of breast screening and to determine if socio-economic gradients in screening attendance were explained by caregiving responsibilities.</p> <p>Methods</p> <p>A database of breast screening histories was linked to the Northern Ireland Longitudinal Study, which links information from census, vital events and health registration datasets. The cohort included women aged 47 - 64 at the time of the census eligible for breast screening in a three-year follow-up period. Cohort attributes were recorded at the Census. Multivariate logistic regression was used to examine the relationship between informal caregiving and uptake of screening using STATA version 10.</p> <p>Results</p> <p>37,211 women were invited for breast screening of whom 27,909 (75%) attended; 23.9% of the cohort were caregivers. Caregivers providing <20 hours of care/week were more affluent, while those providing >50 hours/week were more deprived than non-caregivers. Deprived women were significantly less likely to attend breast screening; however, this was not explained by caregiving responsibilities as caregivers were as likely as non-caregivers to attend (Odds Ratio 0.97; 95% confidence intervals 0.88, 1.06).</p> <p>Conclusions</p> <p>While those providing the most significant amounts of care tended to be more deprived, caregiving responsibilities themselves did not explain the known socio-economic gradients in breast screening attendance. More work is required to identify why more deprived women are less likely to attend breast screening.</p

Introduction to the JESP special issue on regional megatrends

This Special Issue contains six papers, each providing a very different contribution to the stock of research on regional Australia. As has been the case with the previous Special Issue of JESP, these papers were linked with themes and presentations given at the annual Sustainable Economic Growth for Regional Australia (SEGRA) conference; which, in 2014, was convened at Alice Springs

Managing mining communities and sustainable development: a central Queensland case study

Coal mining is growing rapidly to meet global demand within the Bowen and Surat Basins of Queensland. The mining sector, while recognised as a major contributor to both Queensland and Australia’s economy, exerts significant and diverse social impacts on the regions that host the mines. However, mines have a typically limited life and it is necessary to manage mining and the impact of mining on communities from a whole-of-mine-life perspective. This paper identifies the strategic issues facing the ongoing development and socio-economic sustainability of the Bowen Basin region during the characteristic “boom and bust” cycles of mining. The paper firstly provides a brief socio-economic characterisation of the region and its mining sector, and follows with a discussion on topics including social wellbeing, hard and soft infrastructure, housing, health, education, attraction/retention, families and women, Indigenous peoples and community development. Issues are then raised on the adequacy and currency of data for policy development and planning. Finally, recommendations are then presented for addressing each of the issues raised.The work highlighted two difficulties when working with sustainable development data in the region. Firstly, the rapidly-changing nature of the mining sector leads to rapid fluctuations in regional statistics, making it very difficult to obtain, collate and report these accurately before the status quo has changed. Secondly, gross inconsistencies between the approach, coverage and style of figures used by different reporting bodies makes comparative studies difficult. This work was conducted in the closing stages of 2008 – the juncture at which a relatively long-lived mining ‘boom’ began to face a substantial decline in the global economy. Nevertheless, by highlighting the vulnerabilities featured in regions hosting mining activities (e.g., a lack of appropriate health and housing infrastructure and services), the data in this paper are critical to informing regional development and community wellbeing, regardless of the current ‘boom’ or ‘bust’ cycle being experienced.Partnerships and regional coordination between industry, government and the community are important, especially those that take a regional and multidisciplinary approach. Positive outcomes can be achieved from community-driven initiatives in particular – and ultimately, the desired outcome of these is where townships can develop in a complementary and coordinated way that benefits industry together with the region and the individual communities that host industrial activity

Proceedings, 10th Queensland Weed Symposium : 'Celebrating 20 years : managing weeds in a climate of change', 26-29 July 2009, Capricorn Resort, Yeppoon, Queensland

Proceedings of the 10th Queensland Weed Symposium, 26-29 July 2009, Capricorn Resort, Yeppoon, Queensland