‘Team Australia?’: Understanding Acculturation From Multiple Perspectives

In this paper we explore mutual acculturation among Australians from Indigenous, majority, immigrant and refugee backgrounds. Our aims were: to develop Berry’s acculturation scales for use in Australia and from multiple perspectives and to explore acculturation expectations and strategies from these multiple perspectives. We conducted in-depth interviews (n = 38) in Perth, Western Australia. We investigated participants’ views, guided by the two dimensions underlying Berry’s model of acculturation: cultural maintenance and intercultural contact, and models of culture learning. We found that participants had different acculturation expectations for different groups, as well as different preferred strategies for themselves, although most indicated a preference for integration. In particular, the extent to which groups were seen as voluntary to intercultural contact was regarded as an important factor; participants had considerably different expectations of Indigenous Australians than for immigrants to Australia. This was consistent with the strategies of most immigrant participants who regarded the responsibility for integrating as resting with them by virtue of their decision to migrate. The findings highlight the importance of the multi-way approach to investigating acculturation in multiethnic and post-colonial societies such as Australia and have been used to develop acculturation scales for future quantitative studies

An exploration of absconding behaviours from culturally and linguistically diverse psychiatric hospital patients in Australia

“This is an Accepted Manuscript of an article published by Taylor & Francis in [International Journal of Culture and Mental Health] on [19 Nov 2010], available online: http://www.tandfonline.com/10.1080/17542863.2010.488324.”United Kingdo

Using co-design to explore how midwives can support the emerging mother-infant relationship during the early postnatal period: Protocol for a mixed-method study

Background: The postnatal period can be a challenging time for women, with mothers experiencing a range of emotions. As a woman transitions to motherhood, she adjusts to a new sense of self and forms a new relationship with her infant. Becoming a mother is a complex cognitive and social process that is unique for each woman and is influenced and shaped by culture. The emerging mother-infant relationship is a significant factor in maternal well-being and infant development, with the bond between the mother and her baby being critical to the development of secure attachment. It has been recognized that the strength of this relationship is the main predictor of how well a child will do throughout life. There has been a global focus on the importance of the first 1000 days, with Australia identifying this as a national priority. Midwives are ideally placed to support mothers during the development of the mother-infant relationship, providing care through the early postnatal period, which has been identified as a sensitive period for the development of the mother-infant relationship.Objective: The aim of this study is to explore how midwives can support the emerging mother-infant relationship in the context of cultural diversity and develop an appropriate co-designed intervention in the early postnatal period.Methods: This study will use a mixed method approach, specifically the exploratory sequential design (intervention development variant). This study will be undertaken in 3 phases: 1 qualitative phase, which is followed by 2 quantitative phases. Phase 1 will include a scoping review to explore interventions that have influenced the development of the mother-infant relationship, and then, interviews will be undertaken with women exploring their early experiences of motherhood, followed by 3 co-design workshops. The workshops will engage with multilevel stakeholder representatives where, through partnership and participation, they will propose and develop an intervention to support the emerging mother-infant relationship. Phase 2 will develop and pilot 2 purpose-designed evaluation surveys to evaluate the co-designed intervention from the perspective of both mothers and midwives. Phase 3 will implement and evaluate the co-designed intervention using pre- and postmeasures and feedback from the purpose-designed surveys.Results: Phase 1 has commenced and is expected to be completed by August 2021. Phase 2 is expected to be completed by September 2021, with phase 3 commencing in October 2021. The study will be completed by March 2023.Conclusions: The results of this study will be shared with a variety of audiences and will contribute to the body of knowledge on the mother-infant relationship, potentially improving the understanding of this relationship for women and midwives. This may result in improved strategies for care, with mothers benefiting from enhanced experience and satisfaction during the early postnatal period

The role of midwives in supporting the development of the mother-infant relationship: a scoping review

Background: The mother-infant relationship is complex and dynamic, informing the psychological development of the infant through bonding and attachment. Positive early interactions influence the quality of this relationship. Midwives are well placed to support the developing relationship between the mother and baby, yet there has been limited research exploring the role of the midwife in this context. Aim: To explore interventions that have been provided by the midwife which support the development of the maternal-fetal or mother-infant relationship amongst a low-risk population from pregnancy, and up to six weeks postnatal. The review also sought to understand the types of interventions developed, format and delivery, outcomes measured and if cultural considerations had been incorporated. Methods: A scoping review of the research literature was undertaken using the Joanna Briggs Institute framework. Five online databases were searched for relevant articles published in English from 2000 to 2021. Findings: Sixteen articles met the inclusion criteria. Three themes emerged: (1) viewing the fetus as separate from the mother, (2) focused activities on the maternal-infant relationship and (3) targeted educational interventions. Discussion: Providing focused activities and targeted education during the pre and postnatal periods support the development of the mother-infant relationship. Significantly, there was insufficient research that considered the influence of culture in supporting the mother-infant relationship. Conclusion: Further research is required to develop interventions that include a diverse sample to ensure culturally appropriate activities can be integrated into care during pregnancy and/or the postnatal period provided by midwives

Socially assistive robots in health and social care: Acceptance and cultural factors. Results from an exploratory international online survey

Aim: This study explored the views of an international sample of registered nurses and midwives working in health and social care concerning socially assistive robots (SARs), and the relationship between dimensions of culture and rejection of the idea that SARs had benefits in these settings. Methods: An online survey was used to obtain rankings of (among other topics) the extent to which SARs have benefits for health and social care. It also asked for free text responses regarding any concerns about SARs. Results: Most respondents were overwhelmingly positive about SARs' benefits. A small minority strongly rejected this idea, and qualitative analysis of the objections raised by them revealed three major themes: things might go wrong, depersonalization, and patient‐related concerns. However, many participants who were highly accepting of the benefits of SARs expressed similar objections. Cultural dimensions of long‐term orientation and uncertainty avoidance feature prominently in technology acceptance research. Therefore, the relationship between the proportion of respondents from each country who felt that SARs had no benefits and each country's ratings on long‐term orientation and uncertainty avoidance were also examined. A significant positive correlation was found for long‐term orientation, but not for uncertainty avoidance. Conclusion: Most respondents were positive about the benefits of SARs, and similar concerns about their use were expressed both by those who strongly accepted the idea that they had benefits and those who did not. Some evidence was found to suggest that cultural factors were related to rejecting the idea that SARs had benefits

The psychological effects of migration on Persian women immigrants in Australia / Tahereh Ziaian.

Bibliogrpahy: leaves 288-306.xvi, 325 leaves : ill., maps ; 30 cm.Thesis (Ph.D.)--University of Adelaide, Dept. of Psychology, 200

The mental health of immigrant youth in Australia: A mixed methods investigation of the mental health and coping strategies of refugee and migrant youth.

This study is embedded within an Australian Research Council research collaboration titled “Rebuilding Life After Migration: Settlement experiences of migrant and refugee youth.” This collaboration includes partnerships with settlement and support services in South Australia, including the Australian Migrant Resource Centre and Multicultural Youth South Australia. Aim: The report will outline the results of a mixed methods investigation into the mental health outcomes and coping strategies of immigrant youth. Method: Investigators used a transformative research approach to survey refugee and migrant youth aged between 15-24 years on their settlement experiences, including their help seeking preferences. Focus groups were also conducted where immigrant youth were interviewed about the challenges they faced as refugee or migrant youth. Outcome: A detailed report comparing the mental health outcomes of refugee and migrant youth within South Australia will be provided. This will use the Strengths and Difficulties Questionnaire (Goodman 2001) total difficulties score to assess mental health, followed by a detailed quantitative and qualitative analysis of factors that may impact the mental health of immigrant youth. The synthesis of these results will form a detailed understanding of the experiences that may impact the mental health of immigrant youth and its application in interventions will be discussed