Postcolonial atmospheres: recalling our shadow places

The book contains thought-provoking discussions on regional Australia's colonial and cultural heritage, and details innovative new methods for measuring cultural assets, as well as reflecting on fostering collaborations with peak cultural ...

Dingoes can help conserve wildlife and our methods can tell

Management of apex predators is among the most controversial wildlife management issues globally. In Australia, some ecologists have advocated using the dingo, Canis dingo, as a tool for conservation management, due to evidence that they suppress invasive mesopredators. Hayward & Marlow (Journal of Applied Ecology, 51, 2014 and 835) questioned the capacity of dingoes to provide benefits to native biodiversity due to their inability to eradicate foxes and cats. They also argued that indices of abundance commonly used in studies of mesopredator release by dingoes (namely, track-based indices) invalidate the conclusions of the studies. Hayward & Marlow caution conservation practitioners against incorporating dingoes into conservation programmes. Counter to their claims, we summarise research showing that the suppression of invasive mesopredators (cf. eradication) can enhance populations of native species and is therefore a meaningful conservation objective. We highlight literature supporting the hypothesis that dingoes suppress mesopredator abundance and activity, which in turn benefits native biodiversity. We show that Hayward & Marlow overlook many studies of carnivores that show track indices capture a large amount of the variation in the density of medium- and large-sized carnivores. Synthesis and applications. Practitioners cannot afford to wait to act given the perilous state of Australia's mammal species, and we argue that the evidence is sufficiently strong to justify managing dingoes for biodiversity conservation.

Our girth is plain to see: an analysis of newspaper coverage of Australia's future 'fat bomb'

The news media plays an important role in making visible and shaping public understandings of health and health risks. In relation to overweight and obesity, it has been suggested that the media is more likely to engage in alarmist reporting in a climate in which it is taken for granted that obesity is an 'epidemic'. This study analyses Australian media coverage of a report on overweight and obesity, Australia's Future 'Fat Bomb': a report on the long-term consequences of Australia's expanding waistline on cardiovascular disease, by one of Australia's leading health and medical research institutes. Our study found that the report was consistently framed across media outlets as showing that Australia is the 'fattest nation' in the world, having overtaken the Americans. This is despite the fact that the Fat Bomb study did not include international comparisons and was based only on data from middle-aged Australians. Because reports of increasing rates of obesity had already been widely covered in the media, the press needed to find a new way of signifying the problem, which was provided by comments made by its lead author in publicising the report. Consistent with previous research, there was a notable absence of critical commentary on the study and a failure to test the claims of its lead author. We conclude that this reporting could have contributed to a policy environment in which the perceived threat of obesity is deemed to be so great that efforts to contain it may be subjected to less scrutiny than they warrant. © 2011 Taylor & Francis.

Respecting our elders: evaluation of an educational program for adolescent students to promote respect toward older adults

The current project explored issues related to respect for older people, and then developed, implemented, and evaluated an educational intervention program for adolescents to raise understanding and improve attitudes toward older people. In Study 1, 46 focus groups were conducted, with participants (n = 211) drawn from older people, carers of older people, and adolescents to inform on issues related to the expression of respect to older people. The emergent themes were used to inform the design of the educational program delivered to adolescents and evaluated in Study 2. A total of 118 year-9 students were allocated to an intervention or control condition. The intervention group participated in 4 educational sessions focused on developing understanding of and respect for older adults, and promoting positive interactions with older people. Participants in both conditions completed measures of knowledge and attitudes to aging to determine whether the intervention had effected change at post-program and at 6-months follow-up. Analyses indicated significant improvements in knowledge, attitudes, and social skills related to older people in the intervention group compared to the control group. The findings from these studies provide a better understanding of what constitutes respect for older people, and a method for improving this in adolescents.

A monster that lives in our lives: experiences of caregivers of people with motor neuron disease and identifying avenues for support

BACKGROUND: A developing body of evidence has provided valuable insight into the experiences of caregivers of people with motor neuron disease; however, understandings of how best to support caregivers remain limited. AIM: This study sought to understand concepts related to the motor neuron disease caregiver experience which could inform the development of supportive interventions.

DESIGN: A qualitative thematic analysis of a one-off semistructured interview with caregivers was undertaken.

SETTING/PARTICIPANTS: Caregivers of people with motor neuron disease were recruited from a progressive neurological diseases clinic in Melbourne, Australia.

RESULTS: 15 caregivers participated. Three key themes were identified: (1) The Thief: the experience of loss and grief across varied facets of life; (2) The Labyrinth: finding ways to address ever changing challenges as the disease progressed; (3) Defying fate: being resilient and hopeful as caregivers tried to make the most of the time remaining.

CONCLUSIONS: Caregivers are in need of more guidance and support to cope with experiences of loss and to adapt to changeable care giving duties associated with disease progression. Therapeutic interventions which target these experiences of loss and change are worth investigation.