Exploratory surgery of the female psyche

The thesis explores the visual narrative concerning a journey of empowerment for women. To enable the journey to advance the inquiry is directed into two areas. The first area is female gender, which is argued to be socially constructed and implicit in the marginalisation of women in western society. The second area is ‘feminine authority’, which is gained by developing an understanding and acceptance of the characteristics which have historically been considered as belonging to the feminine. Granting these characteristics agency would recognise their authority and assist in the elevation of the female to a position of equality in western society. Beginning from a feminist position, the research supported the belief that the female is marginalised in western society. It also confirmed the notion that empowerment and authority can be attained by women if they actively pursue the following; • Explore their own psychology beyond the existing socially constructed gender roles. • Develop an understanding of their feminine self by applying Jung's theories on individuation and archetypes. • Expose the underlying patriarchal influence in western epistemology and science by challenging existing deeply held cultural and scientific beliefs and by actively contributing as feminists to the areas of epistemology and science. Archetypal myths of the ‘feminine’ have developed from an androcentric position. They enforce and perpetuate gender imbalance which contributes to the disenfranchisement of women in western society, ‘Individuation’ is a process in which a person explores aspects of themselves to bring forth parts of their unconscious into their conscious mind in an attempt to gain a deeper understanding of themselves. As a consequence the consciousness develops closer links with archetypal memories which assists the exploration. The ‘true feminine’ is the feminine not restricted or defined by the dominant androcentric view. Knowledge of the feminine empowers women to address the marginalisation of the female in western society and assists in the process of gaining female authority. This enquiry also investigated the four stages of female psychological development with regard to patriarchal influences. Of particular importance is the second stage of psychological development where the female identifies with historically perceived inferior characteristics of the female. This is when she rejects her connections with the primacy of female power and her deep connections with nature which were inherited from archaic times. It is at this stage that she absorbs the myths associated with western patriarchal society which effectively disempower her. Western epistemology, with its emphasis on ‘objective’ investigation and empiricism contributes to the support for and promotion of ‘inferior’ female gender. This type of investigation is brought into question when areas of research into primates and human evolutionary theory is shown to develop from an androcentric view. Western knowledge has associations with power and justice and power is commonly associated with dominance. Regard for ‘truth’ and ‘absolute’ can be viewed as key elements in the support for knowledge and its associations with power. Knowledge has historically maintained suppression of individual experience which promotes a universalised account. This suppression of beliefs other than the dominant authority maintains the existing dominant social structure. Foucault's view of the genderised or inscribed body alerts us to areas where dominance, resistance and power play a part in maximising masculine power and control. Gender becomes an instrument of power within the existing patriarchal structure. Gender, knowledge and power are identified as areas obstructing female empowerment. Part 3 of this exegesis examines the imagery which embodies the visual narrative. Particularly, the harlequin image, its historical background and connections with ancient mythology including reference to Jungian psychology. The harlequin image is developed sequentially in the earlier black and white drawings on paper. These drawings contained a female figure which was often placed in juxtaposition with a Venus or goddess image, reference was also made to ‘eve’ and the ‘siren’. These elements provided the framework which enabled the harlequin image to emerge and evolve. The narrative developed with an understanding of the ‘feminine’ aspects of the psyche which resulted in the harlequin acquiring the elevated authority of a goddess. The Harlequin evolved from my need for symbolic representation of the female psyche. It represents contradiction and dualism. It is a composition of opposites, reflects masculine and feminine traits, the dark and light of the conscious and unconscious mind, it houses both comic and sinister elements, is a trickster and menace. The costume, colours and patterns are expressive elements conducive to fragmentation and layering within the composition of the paintings. Jung examined the harlequin in Picasso's paintings. He concluded that as Picasso drew on his inner experiences the harlequin became important as a symbol; it was a pictorial representation from the unconscious psyche. It travelled freely from the conscious to the unconscious and represented the masculine and feminine, chthonian and apollonian. The final painting in the series, a triptych, completes the narrative and stands alone as a salutatory work. It unites the series by combining existing compositional devices and technique while making reference to imagery from previous works, ‘The Three Graces Victorious’, expresses the authority of the feminine. It completes a victorious stage of a journey where the harlequin is empowered by archaic memories and knowledge of the psyche. The feminine is hailed, elevated and venerated. Other elements which assist in expressing the visual narrative are; colour, technique and influence. Colour is explored and its use as an emotive devise in expressionism. Paul Klee's writing on the use of colour and it's symbolic meaning and Julia Kristeva's investigation on colour from a psychoanalytic and semiotic view are also discussed. To indicate influences and connections within my oeuvre, reference is also made to the following: Jasper Johns' for his use of imagery in his ‘Four Seasons’ series with it's reference to a journey of maturation and Louise Bourgeois' work which deals with issues of gender, memories and past journeys. Although ‘The Three Graces Victorious’; the concluding painting for the investigation is celebratory and represents a finality to the thesis, it points to further areas that impede feminine development and need future examination. Reference is made to a continuation of the exploratory journey by plotting the Harlequin/Goddesses future directions. Although the Harlequin/Goddess is empowered with newly acquired authority, her future journey does not need to be bound by mathematics or limited by rationality. She does not require power to dominate or gender structures to subjugate, but requires limitless boundaries and contexts. The Harlequin/Goddess's future journey is not fixed.

Women clinical nurses' constructions of collegiality : an ethnomethodological study

This research is about a shared journey of being together. It involved thirteen women nurses (including myself) in a process approach to working with data collected through audio transcriptions of conversations during group get-togethers, field notes and journalling over twelve months. The project was conducted in a large acute care metropolitan hospital where the ward staff interests lie in a practice history of the medical specialty of gynaecology and women's health. Prior to commencement ethical approval was gained from both the University and hospital ethics committees. Accessing the group was complicated by the political climate of the hospital, possibly exaggerated further by the health politics across the state of Victoria, at a time of major upheaval characterised by regionalism, rationalisation and debt servicing. In order to ascertain women clinical nurses' constructions of collegiality I adopted an ethnomethodological approach informed by a critical feminist lens to enable the participants to engage in a process of openly ideological inquiry, in critiquing and transforming practice. I felt the choice of methodology had to be consistent with my own ideological position to enable me to be myself (as much as I could) during the project. I wanted to work with women to illuminate the ways in which dominant ideologies had come to be apprehended, inscribed, embodied and/or resisted in the everyday intersubjective realities of participants. The research itself became a site of resistance as the group became aware of how and in what ways their lives had become distorted, while at the same time it collaboratively transformed their individual and collective practice understandings, enabling them to see the self and other anew. Set against the background of dominant discourses on collegiality, women's understandings of collegiality have remained a submerged discourse. Revealed in this work are complex inter-relationships that might be described by some as collegial!, but for others relations amongst these women depict alternative meanings in a rich picture of the fabric of ward life. The participants understand these relations through a connectedness that has empathy as its starting point. In keeping with my commitment to engage with these women I endeavoured to remain faithful to the dialogical approach to this inquiry. Moreover I have brought the voices of the women to the foreground, peeling away the rhizomatic interconnections in and between understandings. What this has meant in terms of the thesis is that the work has become artificially distanced for the purposes of academic requirements. Nevertheless it speaks to the understandings the participants have of their relationships; of the various locations of the visible and invisible voices; of the many landscapes and images, genealogies, subjectivities and multiple selves that inform the selves with(in) others and being-in-relation. Throughout the journey meanings are revealed, revisited and reconstructed. Many nuances comprise the subtexts illuminating the depths of various moral locations underpinning the ways these women engage with one another in practice. The process of the research weaves through multiple positions, conveying the centrality of shared goals, multiple identities, resistances and differences which contribute to a holding environment, a location in which women value one another in their being-in-relation and in which they stand separately yet together.

Spatial and temporal disparities in aurally aided visual search

Research over the last decade has shown that auditorily cuing the location of visual targets reduces the time taken to locate and identify targets for both free-field and virtually presented sounds. The first study conducted for this thesis confirmed these findings over an extensive region of free-field space. However, the number of sound locations that are measured and stored in the data library of most 3-D audio spatial systems is limited, so that there is often a discrepancy in position between the cued and physical location of the target. Sampling limitations in the systems also produce temporal delays in which the stored data can be conveyed to operators. To investigate the effects of spatial and temporal disparities in audio cuing of visual search, and to provide evidence to alleviate concerns that psychological research lags behind the capabilities to design and implement synthetic interfaces, experiments were conducted to examine (a) the magnitude of spatial separation, and (b) the duration of temporal delay that intervened between auditory spatial cues and visual targets to alter response times to locate targets and discriminate their shape, relative to when the stimuli were spatially aligned, and temporally synchronised, respectively. Participants listened to free-field sound localisation cues that were presented with a single, highly visible target that could appear anywhere across 360° of azimuthal space on the vertical mid-line (spatial separation), or extended to 45° above and below the vertical mid-line (temporal delay). A vertical or horizontal spatial separation of 40° between the stimuli significantly increased response times, while separations of 30° or less did not reach significance. Response times were slowed at most target locations when auditory cues occurred 770 msecs prior to the appearance of targets, but not with similar durations of temporal delay (i.e., 440 msecs or less). When sounds followed the appearance of targets, the stimulus onset asynchrony that affected response times was dependent on target location, and ranged from 440 msecs at higher elevations and rearward of participants, to 1,100 msecs on the vertical mid-line. If targets appeared in the frontal field of view, no delay of acoustical stimulation affected performance. Finally, when conditions of spatial separation and temporal delay were combined, visual search times were degraded with a shorter stimulus onset asynchrony than when only the temporal relationship between the stimuli was varied, but responses to spatial separation were unaffected. The implications of the results for the development of synthetic audio spatial systems to aid visual search tasks was discussed.

Towards an integration of theories of achievement motivation

This thesis investigated children's school achievement in terms of an integration of three theories of achievement motivation. The three theoretical outlooks were expectancy-value theory (EVT), implicit theories of intelligence (ITI), and flow theory (FT). The first of two studies was an exploratory investigation of the effectiveness of each theory independently and combined to predict children's achievement in four school subjects. The subject areas were maths, reading, instrumental music and sport. Participants were 84 children (40 females and 44 males) aged 9 to 10 years, one of each child's parents, and school teachers of each child in the four subject areas. All data were collected through questionnaires based on the three models. The results indicated that EVT and FT but not ITI accounted for a significant amount of the variance in children's achievement, including effects for subject area and gender. A second confirmatory study tested EVT, FT and an integrated model for the prediction of achievement in maths, reading and instrumental music. The participants were a further 141 children (74 females and 67 males) aged 10 to 11 years, and a parent and teachers of each child. Data collection using questionnaires occurred early in the school year (Timel) and approximately five months later (Time2). For EVT, children and parents’ competence beliefs were significant predictors of children's achievement in each subject area. Females tended to believe themselves more competent at reading and instrumental music and also valued these subjects more highly than boys. Modeling results for flow theory indicated that children's emotional responses to classes (happiness and confusion) were significant predictors of achievement, the type of emotion varying between subject areas and time periods. Females generally had a more positive emotional reaction to reading and instrumental music classes than males did. The integrated model results indicated significant relationships between EVT and flow theories for each subject area, with EVT explaining most achievement variance in the integrated model. Children's and parents’ competence beliefs were the main predictors of achievement at Timel and 2, Subject area and gender differences were found which provide direction for future research. Anecdotal reports of parents and teachers often attest to individual differences in children's involvement in various school domains. Even among children of apparently similar intelligence, it is not uncommon to find one who likes nothing better than to work on a mathematics problem while another much prefers to read a novel or play a musical instrument Some children appear to achieve good results for most of the activities in which they are engaged while others achieve in a less consistent manner, sometimes particularly excelling in one activity. Some children respond to failure experiences with a determination to improve their performance in the future while others react with resignation and acceptance of their low ability. Some children appear to become totally absorbed in the activity of playing sport while others cannot wait for the game to end. The primary research objective guiding the current thesis is how children's thoughts and feelings about school subjects differ and are related to their school achievement. A perusal of the achievement motivation literature indicates several possible models and concepts that can be applied to explain individual differences in children's school achievement. Concepts such as academic self-concept, multiple intelligences, intrinsic and extrinsic motivation, self-beliefs, competence beliefs, subjective task values, mastery and performance goals, ‘Flow’ experiences and social motivation are just some of the constructs used to explain children's achievement motivation, both within and between various activity domains. These constructs are proposed by researchers from different theoretical perspectives to achievement motivation. Although there is much literature relevant to each perspective, there is little research indicating how the various perspectives may relate to each other. The current thesis will begin by reviewing three currently popular theoretical orientations cited in achievement motivation research: subjective beliefs and values; implicit theories of intelligence, and flow experience and family complexity. Following this review, a framework will be proposed for testing the determinants of children's school achievement, both within each of the three theoretical perspectives and also in combination.

Prevention of body concerns and risk behaviours in adolescent boys

Overall, this thesis was designed to explore the nature of adolescent boys' body image, the effects of body image on body change strategies and psychological adjustment, and the factors that influence body image. The first study examined body image in 362 adolescent boys. Body image was considered in terms of attitudes to different body parts and attributes, including, lower, middle and upper body, as well as weight, shape and muscles. The relationships between Body Mass Index (BMI), body image, sociocultural messages, psychological adjustment and body change strategies, including strategies to decrease weight and increase muscles using food and exercise, drive for thinness, bulimic attitudes and behaviour, excessive exercise, food supplements to lose weight, increase muscles and steroids, were also investigated. Multiple regression analyses were used to examine the role of body image, sociocultural messages and psychological adjustment to predict satisfaction with different body attributes and body change strategies. The findings from study one led to the development of a program aimed at preventing the development of unhealthy attitudes and behaviours among adolescent boys. Study two involved the implementation and evaluation of this prevention program. One hundred and twenty one boys participated in the program. The program was based on social-cognitive theory, and included a focus on accepting differences and the development of self-esteem. The boys who participated in the program indicated some change in existing attitudes and showed less development of risk behaviours relative to the control group. The implications of the findings from this thesis in relation to future research, as well as the prevention of adolescent boys' body image problems are discussed.

Repressed spaces : the poetics of agoraphobia

In this intriguing and witty survey, Paul Carter tours the cultural history of agoraphobia. By analyzing the way people have negotiated open spaces from Greek and Roman times to the present day, he finds that "space fear" ultimately results from the inhibition of movement, and shows how this discovery can provide lessons for today’s urban planners and architects. Along the way, he asks why Freud repressed his agoraphobia, and examines the work of various theorists including Le Corbusier, Benjamin, and R.D. Laing, as well as artists such as Munch, Lapique, and Giacometti.

Options for change in the Australian cervical cancer screening program in context of HPV detection and vaccination

Introduction:
Cervical cancer screening has been implemented for over a decade in Australia and has significantly reduced the mortality and morbidity of the disease. The emergence of new technologies for cervical cancer, such as the Human Papillomavirus (HPV) vaccine and DNA testing has encouraged debate regarding the effective use of resources in cervical cancer prevention. The present study evaluates the cost-effectiveness, from a health sector perspective, of various screening strategies in the era of these new technologies.

Methods:
A stochastic epidemiological model using a discrete event and continuous algorithm was developed to describe the natural history of cervical cancer. By allowing one member of the cohort into the model at a time, this micro-simulation model encompasses the characteristics of heterogeneity and can track individual life histories. To evaluate the cost-effectiveness of the HPV vaccine a Markov model was built to simulate the effect on the incidence of HPV and subsequent cervical cancer. A number of proposed screening strategies were evaluated with the stochastic model for the application of HPV DNA testing, with changes in the screening interval and target population. Health outcomes were measured by Disability-Adjusted Life-Years (DALYs), adjusted for application within an evaluation setting (i.e. the mortality component of the DALY was adjusted by a disability weight when early mortality due to cervical cancer is avoided). Costs in complying with the Australian updated guidelines were assessed by pathway analysis to estimate the resources associated with cervical cancer and its pre-cancerous lesion treatment. Sensitivity analyses were performed to investigate the key parameters that influenced the cost-effectiveness results.

Results:
Current practice has already brought huge health gain by preventing more than 4,000 deaths and saving more than 86,000 life-years in a cohort of a million women. Any of the alternative screening strategies alter the total amount of health gain by a small margin compared to current practice. The results of incremental analyses of the alternative screening strategies compared to current practice suggest the adoption of the HPV DNA test as a primary screening tool every 3 years commencing at age 18, or the combined pap smear/HPV test every 3 years commencing at age 25, are more costly than current practice but with reasonable ICERs (AUD$1,810 per DALY and AUD$18,600 per DALY respectively). Delaying commencement of Pap test screening to age 25 is less costly than current practice, but involves considerable health loss. The sensitivity analysis shows, however, that the screening test accuracy has a significant impact on these conclusions. Threshold analysis indicates that a sensitivity ranging from 0.80 to 0.86 for the combined test in women younger than 30 is required to produce an acceptable incremental cost-effectiveness ratio.

Conclusions:
The adoption of HPV and combined test with an extended screening interval is more costly but affordable, resulting in reasonable ICERs. They appear good value for money for the Australian health care system, but need more information on test accuracy to make an informed decision. Potential screening policy change under current Australian HPV Vaccination Program is current work in progress. A Markov model is built to simulate the effect on the incidence of HPV and subsequent cervical cancer. Adoption of HPV DNA test as a primary screening tool in the context of HPV vaccination is under evaluation.

An integrative model of relationship functioning

This thesis presents an integrative model of relationship functioning, delineating the factors that significantly influence the way in which couples experience lasting and satisfying relationships. Given that marital relationships are complex, multiple intra and interpersonal factors need to be considered in order to better understand the pathways which lead to healthy relationship functioning. The integrative nature of the model is therefore argued to capture the intricate dynamics inherent in couple functioning. The portfolio provides four case studies of different loss experiences which are linked by the theme of disenfranchised grief which is deemed an important issue to deal with in therapy.

The relationship between stress and the symptomatology of fibromyalgia

Fibromyalgia is an unexplained but often debilitating syndrome, characterised primarily by widespread pain. This thesis provides direct evidence that physical and emotional stress exacerbates pain, fatigue and other symptoms of Fibromyalgia and supports the assertion that symptoms may be related to disordered stress-response mechanisma in the human brain. The professional portfolio presents four clinical case studies that demonstrate the utility of Acceptance and Commitment Therapy (ACT) in the psychotherapeutic treatment of people with chronic illness.

The impact of violent video-games on cognition, affect and personality

This research investigated the impact of playing violent videogames. Aggressive or anxious responses were most likely: when the player perceived the violence in the games to be extreme, when the player experienced a heightened sense of becoming 'absorbed' into the game, and during a relatively brief exposure to the game. The portfolio explores the use of manualised interventions in psychology research and practice. Four illustrative case studies regarding the efficacy and effectiveness of adapting manualised interventions for clients with chronic health conditions are presented.

Viewer characteristics, film context and habituation/desensitisation to filmed violence

This thesis comprises three studies aimed at examining viewers' responses to filmed violence. The first focused on habituation, the second desensitisation and the third compared the paradigms. Results indicated that several factors influence how an individual responds to filmed violence and provide some insight into the impact of repetitive exposure to media violence. The portfolio presents four case studies emphasising the difficulties for assessing risk and associated interventions in the client population of individuals found not guilty because of mental impairment. This as an area of fundamental discord between psychology and law.

Supporting bereaved individuals

This research found that grief-related beliefs contained elements of a traditional stereotypic view. Further, a bereaved individual's general way of coping influenced how others expected them to grieve. Finally, aspects of both a bereaved individual and support provider were found to impact the willingness of individuals to offer bereavement-related support.

Child-related information processing in step-parents : investigating the Cinderella effect

This thesis examined the over-representation of step-parents as perpetrators of child physical abuse. Results suggested a number of differences between step- and biological parents in attachment, information-processing, and disciplinary practices. Results were used to formulate a model of step-parental abuse, which has potential implications for the prevention of child physical abuse. The professional portfolio presents four cases from forensic practice in which predictions about further criminal behaviour are made. These cases are then used to discuss several practical questions that may be posed by psychologists who are considering which approach (clinical or actuarial) to use.

The development of young adolescent boys' weight and shape concerns

This thesis' longitudinal study found that young adolescent boys' reported significant concerns with their weight and shape, particularly with respect to having a more muscular but lean physique. The strongest predictors of high body dissatisfaction, among boys, were poor perceptions of their sporting ability and low self-esteem. The portfolio examines the use of Single Session Therapy (SST) suggesting that SST can effectively reduce waiting lists and provide a single and complete intervention that is effective in approximately 50% of cases.

Condom use

The thesis is based upon tests of a model for predicting condom use. Anticipation of negative emotions following unprotected intercourse was the strongest predictor of intention to use condoms. Interventions which encourage people to consider the emotions they would experience following unprotected intercourse may prove valuable in promoting condom use.