Designing 'other' citizens into the city: Investigating perceptions of architectural opportunities for wildlife habitat in the Brisbane CBD

Traditional perceptions of the human-animal relationship in the urban context typically see the spatial rejection of wildlife from the built environment and limiting of biodiversity conservation programs to areas of natural reserve. As urban growth places further spatial demands on natural habitat and contributes to continued global biodiversity loss, the recently introduced conservation approach of reconciliation ecology makes a call promoting ecological stewardship through embedding wildlife habitat within human dominated areas. Coinciding with this, the architectural sphere has seen a recent trend of design investigation addressing artificial animal habitat as features of the built environment. Although these precedents are currently a niche and scattered trend they show potential to address the human-animal dualism challenging the framework of reconciliation ecology. This research explores the role design plays in influencing perceptions of urban wildlife habitat, particularly considering the need to create and communicate value around wildlife biodiversity as a component of urban cultural place-making and ecological literacy. The study purpose sets out to establish a set of approaches and cultural preferences with which to direct further classification and development of this architectural trend. Brisbane is utilised as a case study city, as a locale containing proximities of relatively high wildlife and human populations in an urban setting and an established legislative biodiversity heritage and ethic. Through use of a qualitative and quantitative questionnaire targeting Brisbane residents, the research methodology established that although respondents perceptions generally aligned with traditional prejudice against wildlife around human buildings, artificial habitat intervention would be supported within the CBD provided it allowed for adequate distancing of humans from wildlife and conformed with contextual surroundings, or otherwise addressed habitat through redevelopment at an urban scale. As such further research directions for artificial habitat should focus on integration of artificial habitat as a component of façade design or green infrastructure programs.

Public use and perceptions of emergency departments: A population survey

Objectives To inform demand management strategies aimed at reducing congestion in EDs by: (i) identifying public use of EDs, decision-making and reasons; and (ii) measuring acceptance of alternative care models. Methods A cross-sectional telephone survey of a random sample of Queensland population aged 18 years or older residing in a dwelling unit in Queensland that could be contacted on a land-based telephone service was conducted. One person per household was selected according to a predetermined algorithm to ensure sex and regional balance were interviewed. The main outcome measures were: ED use, attitudes towards ED staff and services, and alternative models of care. Results The final sample included a total of 1256 respondents (response rate = 40.3%). Twenty-one per cent attended EDs in the preceding 12 months. The decision to attend was made by patients (51%), health and medical professionals (31%), and others (18%). The main reasons included perceived severity of the illness (47%), unavailability of alternative services (26%) and better care (11%). Most respondents agreed with more flexible care models of service delivery including incentives for general practitioners (90%), private health insurance coverage for ED use (89%), and enhanced roles for paramedics and nurses. Conclusions Main reason for attending ED is perceived severity of illness, followed by lack of alternative care. The majority of both consumers and the public are in favour of more flexible care models. However, further research is necessary to detail those alternatives and to test and validate their effectiveness.

Destination brand performance measurement over time: Tracking consumer perceptions of a competitive set of destinations over a 10 year period

There has been a paucity of research published in relation to the temporal aspect of destination image change over time. Given increasing investments in destination branding, research is needed to enhance understanding of how to monitor destination brand performance, of which destination image is the core construct, over time. This article reports the results of four studies tracking brand performance of a competitive set of five destinations, between 2003 and 2012. Results indicate minimal changes in perceptions held of the five destinations of interest over the 10 years, supporting the assertion of Gartner (1986) and Gartner and Hunt (1987) that destination image change will only occur slowly over time. While undertaken in Australia, the research approach provides DMOs in other parts of the world with a practical tool for evaluating brand performance over time; in terms of measures of effectiveness of past marketing communications, and indicators of future performance.

Adolescent self-reported physical activity and autonomy: A case for constrained and structured environments?

The provision of autonomy supportive environments that promote physical activity engagement have become popular in contemporary youth settings. However, questions remain about whether adolescent perceptions of their autonomy have implications for physical activity. The purpose of this investigation was to examine the association between adolescents’ self-reported physical activity and their perceived autonomy. Participants (n = 384 adolescents) aged between 12 and 15 years were recruited from six secondary schools in metropolitan Brisbane, Australia. Self-reported measures of physical activity and autonomy were obtained. Logistic regression with inverse probability weights were used to examine the association between autonomy and the odds of meeting youth physical activity guidelines. Autonomy (OR 0.61, 95% CI 0.49-0.76) and gender (OR 0.62, 95% CI 0.46-0.83) were negatively associated with meeting physical activity guidelines. However, the model explained only a small amount of the variation in whether youth in this sample met physical activity guidelines (R2 = 0.023). For every 1 unit decrease in autonomy (on an index from 1 to 5), participants were 1.64 times more likely to meet physical activity guidelines. The findings, which are at odds with several previous studies, suggest that interventions designed to facilitate youth physical activity should limit opportunities for youth to make independent decisions about their engagement. However, the small amount of variation explained by the predictors in the model is a caveat, and should be considered prior to applying such suggestions in practical settings. Future research should continue to examine a larger age range, longitudinal observational or intervention studies to examine assertions of causality, as well as objective measurement of physical activity.

Development of brain structural connectivity between ages 12 and 30: A 4-Tesla diffusion imaging study in 439 adolescents and adults

Understanding how the brain matures in healthy individuals is critical for evaluating deviations from normal development in psychiatric and neurodevelopmental disorders. The brain's anatomical networks are profoundly re-modeled between childhood and adulthood, and diffusion tractography offers unprecedented power to reconstruct these networks and neural pathways in vivo. Here we tracked changes in structural connectivity and network efficiency in 439 right-handed individuals aged 12 to 30 (211 female/126 male adults, mean age=23.6, SD=2.19; 31 female/24 male 12 year olds, mean age=12.3, SD=0.18; and 25 female/22 male 16 year olds, mean age=16.2, SD=0.37). All participants were scanned with high angular resolution diffusion imaging (HARDI) at 4 T. After we performed whole brain tractography, 70 cortical gyral-based regions of interest were extracted from each participant's co-registered anatomical scans. The proportion of fiber connections between all pairs of cortical regions, or nodes, was found to create symmetric fiber density matrices, reflecting the structural brain network. From those 70 × 70 matrices we computed graph theory metrics characterizing structural connectivity. Several key global and nodal metrics changed across development, showing increased network integration, with some connections pruned and others strengthened. The increases and decreases in fiber density, however, were not distributed proportionally across the brain. The frontal cortex had a disproportionate number of decreases in fiber density while the temporal cortex had a disproportionate number of increases in fiber density. This large-scale analysis of the developing structural connectome offers a foundation to develop statistical criteria for aberrant brain connectivity as the human brain matures.

Changes in anatomical brain connectivity between ages 12 and 30: A HARDI study of 467 adolescents and adults

Graph theory can be applied to matrices that represent the brain's anatomical connections, to better understand global properties of anatomical networks, such as their clustering, efficiency and "small-world" topology. Network analysis is popular in adult studies of connectivity, but only one study - in just 30 subjects - has examined how network measures change as the brain develops over this period. Here we assessed the developmental trajectory of graph theory metrics of structural brain connectivity in a cross-sectional study of 467 subjects, aged 12 to 30. We computed network measures from 70×70 connectivity matrices of fiber density generated using whole-brain tractography in 4-Tesla 105-gradient high angular resolution diffusion images (HARDI). We assessed global efficiency and modularity, and both age and age 2 effects were identified. HARDI-based connectivity maps are sensitive to the remodeling and refinement of structural brain connections as the human brain develops.

Development of the 'rich club' in brain connectivity networks from 438 adolescents & adults aged 12 to 30

The 'rich club' coefficient describes a phenomenon where a network's hubs (high-degree nodes) are on average more intensely interconnected than lower-degree nodes. Networks with rich clubs often have an efficient, higher-order organization, but we do not yet know how the rich club emerges in the living brain, or how it changes as our brain networks develop. Here we chart the developmental trajectory of the rich club in anatomical brain networks from 438 subjects aged 12-30. Cortical networks were constructed from 68×68 connectivity matrices of fiber density, using whole-brain tractography in 4-Tesla 105-gradient high angular resolution diffusion images (HARDI). The adult and younger cohorts had rich clubs that included different nodes; the rich club effect intensified with age. Rich-club organization is a sign of a network's efficiency and robustness. These concepts and findings may be advantageous for studying brain maturation and abnormal brain development.

Addressing the road trauma burden in China: Exploring attitudes, behaviours, risk perceptions and cultural uniqueness

As China continues to motorise rapidly, solutions are needed to reduce the burden of road trauma that is spread inequitably across the community. Little is currently known about how new drivers are trained to deal with on-road challenges, and little is also known about the perceptions, behaviours and attitudes of road users in China. This paper reports on a pilot study conducted in a driver retraining facility in one Chinese city where people who have had their licence suspended for accrual of 12 demerit points in a one year period must attend compulsory retraining in order to regain their licence. A sample of 239 suspended drivers responded to an anonymous questionnaire that sought information about preferred driving speeds and perceptions of safe driving speeds across two speed zones. Responses indicated that speeds higher than the posted limits were commonly reported, and that there was incongruence between preferred and safe speeds, such that a greater proportion of drivers reported preferred speeds that were substantially faster than what were reported as safe speeds. Participants with more driving experience reported significantly fewer crashes than newly licensed drivers (less than 2 years licensed) but no differences were found in offences when compared across groups with different levels of driving experience. Perceptions of risky behaviours were assessed by asking participants to describe what they considered to be the most dangerous on-road behaviours. Speeding and drink driving were the most commonly reported by far, followed by issues such as fatigue, ignoring traffic rules, not obeying traffic rules, phone use while driving, and non-use of seatbelts, which attracted an extremely low response which seems consistent with previously reported low belt wearing rates, unfavourable attitudes towards seatbelt use, and low levels of enforcement. Finally, observations about culturally specific considerations are made from previous research conducted by the authors and others. Specifically, issues of saving face and the importance and pervasiveness of social networks and social influence are discussed with particular regard to how any future countermeasures need to be informed by a thorough understanding of Chinese customs and culture.

Linking client and employee perceptions of the organization: A study of client satisfaction with health care services

Client satisfaction with health care services has usually been researched in terms of socio-demographic and predispositional characteristics associated with the client. The present study included organizational characteristics as predictors of client satisfaction with health care services. Participants in the research were clients and employees of an Australian public-sector health care organization who responded to separate client and employee questionnaires. Hierarchical regression analyses indicated that, after controlling for a number of client characteristics, organizational characteristics, as perceived by employees, accounted for a significant proportion of additional variance in client satisfaction with health care services. Results of the present study provided some support for the proposition that employee perceptions of the working environment should be considered in a more comprehensive understanding of client satisfaction with health care services. Limitations of the study highlight practical difficulties in the assessment of client outcomes and methodological complexities in linking individual and organizational processes.

'There is nothing that identifies me to that place’: Indigenous Women’s Perceptions of Health Spaces and Places

This chapter provides an overview of the gendered realities of Indigenous men’s and Indigenous women’s lives and gendered Indigenous health perspectives. It offers the nurse some examples of the role of the nurse in working within gendered Indigenous health care.

How religiosity influences consumption: The impact of consumer religiosity on perceptions of psychological and social risk

For some people, religion is an important influence in decision-making. This thesis investigates the relationship between the religiosity of consumers and their perceived risk in adopting new products. Two studies gathered data from religious consumers living in Saudi Arabia, Australia, Canada, New Zealand, the UK and the USA. The results confirm the significant impact of religion on perceived risk, and suggest why this may lead to delays in adoption. Theoretically, these studies provide a better explanation of how religion influences consumption decisions, and offer brand managers options to improve the adoption of new products in religious markets.

Undergraduate public health students and perceptions of qualitative research: A trajectory of understanding from airy fairy to a valuable tool

Many undergraduate public health students enter introductory qualitative research units with limited or negative perceptions of qualitative research, potentially compromising learning outcomes. Unit teaching, structure and assessment provide opportunities for students to develop positive perceptions of qualitative research. Through a mixed-methods study of undergraduate public health students enrolled in a qualitative research unit, we establish students’ perceptions of qualitative research at the commencement and conclusion of the unit, and determine the critical teaching and learning events which contributed to positive changes in students’ perceptions. This study demonstrates that the structuring of an introductory qualitative research unit around varied opportunities for experiential learning provides a positive introductory learning experience and enables undergraduate public health students to recognise the real-world uses and value of qualitative research.

Local experiences, global similarities: Teacher perceptions of the impacts of national testing

Since 2008, Australian schoolchildren in Years 3, 5, 7 and 9 have sat a series of tests each May designed to assess their attainment of basic skills in literacy and numeracy. These tests are known as the National Assessment Program – Literacy and Numeracy (NAPLAN). In 2010, individual school NAPLAN data were first published on the MySchool website which enables comparisons to be made between individual schools and statistically like schools across Australia. NAPLAN represents the increased centrality of the federal government in education, particularly in regards to education policy. One effect of this has been a recast emphasis of education as an economic, rather than democratic, good. As Reid (2009) suggests, this recasting of education within national productivity agendas mobilises commonsense discourses of accountability and transparency. These are common articles of faith for many involved in education administration and bureaucracy; more and better data, and holding people to account for that data, must improve education...

NAPLAN, MySchool and accountability: Teacher perceptions of the effects of testing

This paper explores Rizvi and Lingard’s (2010) idea of the “local vernacular” of the global education policy trend of using high-stakes testing to increase accountability and transparency, and by extension quality, within schools and education systems in Australia. In the first part of the paper a brief context of the policy trajectory of National Assessment Program – Literacy and Numeracy (NAPLAN) is given in Australia. In the second part, empirical evidence drawn from a survey of teachers in Western Australia (WA) and South Australia (SA) is used to explore teacher perceptions of the impacts a high-stakes testing regime is having on student learning, relationships with parents and pedagogy in specific sites. After the 2007 Australian Federal election, one of Labor’s policy objectives was to deliver an “Education Revolution” designed to improve both the equity and excellence in the Australian school system1 (Rudd & Gillard, 2008). This reform agenda aims to “deliver real changes” through: “raising the quality of teaching in our schools” and “improving transparency and accountability of schools and school systems” (Rudd & Gillard, 2008, p. 5). Central to this linking of accountability, the transparency of schools and school systems and raising teaching quality was the creation of a regime of testing (NAPLAN) that would generate data about the attainment of basic literacy and numeracy skills by students in Australian schools.

A preliminary analysis of teacher perceptions of the effects of NAPLAN on pedagogy and curriculum

This paper reports preliminary survey findings of Western Australian and South Australian teacher perceptions of the impact of NAPLAN on curriculum and pedagogy in their classroom and school. The paper examines how teachers perceive the effects of NAPLAN on curriculum and pedagogy and whether these perceptions mediated by the teacher’s gender, the socioeconomics of the school, the State and the school system in which the teacher works. Teachers report that they are either choosing or being instructed to teach to the test, that this results in less time being spent on other curriculum areas and that these effects contribute in a negative way to the class environment and the engagement of students. This largely agrees with a body of international research that suggests that high-stakes literacy and numeracy tests often results in unintended consequences such as a narrow curriculum focus, a return to teacher-centred instruction and a decrease in motivation. Analysis suggests there is a relationship between participant responses to the effect of NAPLAN on curriculum based on the characteristics of which State the teacher taught in, the socioeconomic status of the school and the school system in which they were employed (State, Catholic, and Independent).