The subjective wellbeing of 'at-risk' indigenous and non-indigenous Australian adolescents

Quantitative comparisons of subjective wellbeing (SWB) between samples of Indigenous and non-Indigenous Australian adolescents are scarce. This paper contributes to this literature by studying adolescents 'at-risk' of disengaging, or who have already disengaged, from school, their families or society. A three-group cross-sectional comparative design was employed, comparing Indigenous (N = 3,187) and non-Indigenous (N = 14,522) 'at-risk' adolescents with a mainstream sample of Victorian high-school students (N = 1,105). Age and gender differences in SWB within the three groups were also explored. All participants completed the Personal Wellbeing Index-School Children (PWI-SC), which measures SWB. Mean SWB was significantly higher in the mainstream sample than in both the Indigenous and non-Indigenous 'at-risk' groups. However, within the at-risk adolescents, the Indigenous sample scored higher than the non-Indigenous. In the mainstream sample, male and female SWB did not significantly differ, whereas males scored higher than females in both at-risk groups-with males scoring higher on all seven PWI-SC domains. Finally, in all three samples, a decline in SWB from early to mid-adolescence was observed. This suggests that mid-adolescence is a challenging time for all young people as they approach adulthood. The implications of this research for educational and government policy concerning youths in Australia is discussed. For example, the importance of obtaining normative data that will assist in the identification of young people who are most at-risk for experiencing low personal wellbeing and who are in the greatest need of support. © 2014 Springer Science+Business Media Dordrecht.

Traditional indigenous Australian stories for children

 The thesis explores how Aboriginality is portrayed in texts that offer specific representations of Indigenous Australian culture through traditional story or legend. It examines a selection of texts from the twentieth century and make observations about the significance of these postcolonial publications in transforming reader understanding of Indigenous traditional culture

Body image importance and body dissatisfaction among Indigenous Australian adolescents

Despite their elevated risk of health problems and a propensity to be more overweight or underweight relative to the other members of the Australian population, there has been no previous investigation of body image concerns among Indigenous Australians. In this study we investigated the level of body image importance and body image dissatisfaction among 19 rural Indigenous adolescents (7 males, 12 females) and 28 urban Indigenous adolescents (15 males and 13 females). Our hypotheses that there would be gender differences in body image importance and body image satisfaction were not generally supported. However, males placed more importance on muscle size and strength than females, and rural participants placed more importance on weight than urban participants. Comparison to existing data obtained from Caucasian adolescents suggested that Indigenous youth may be less concerned and dissatisfied with body weight and shape. These results are discussed in relation to findings from studies of non-Indigenous adolescents, and Indigenous health issues. The limitations of the current study and the need for further studies are also discussed.

Sociocultural influences on body image concerns and body change strategies among Indigenous and Non-Indigenous Australian adolescent girls and boys

Sociocultural messages about the ideal body build have been studied predominantlyamong White adolescent girls. In the current study we examined the relationships between perceived sociocultural influences, body image concerns, and body change strategies among 47 (22 boys and 25 girls) Indigenous Australian adolescents. These relationships were compared to those from 47 non-Indigenous adolescents (predominantly from an Anglo-Saxon background), who were matched on gender, age, and school grade. Overall, the sociocultural influences were found to be associated with body image concerns and body change strategies among both cultural groups. The only exception was that the sociocultural influences were not associated with the Indigenous girls levels of body dissatisfaction or body image importance. These findings are discussed in relation to past studies of White and Black girls.

Indigenous Australian accountants : why so few? A historical and cultural perspective

At a time when there is a growing call for Indigenous Australians to become self-sustainable and self-governing (Smith, 2002, Dodson & Smith, 2003, Martin, 2003) the very small number of Indigenous Australians in the accounting profession raises the question "why so few?" The number of Certified Practicing Accountants and Chartered Accountants of Australia is approximately 150,000 and to date only nine (9) qualified Indigenous Australian accountants have been located, representing 0.006%. This paper analyses the barriers faced by Indigenous Australians within the context of theories of cultral identity and colonisation of Australia. These theories are propounded as a means of exploring why there are so few Indigenous Australians represented in the accounting profession. An overview of colonial rule implemented by the British government from settlement of Australia in 1788, through to modern day Australia will be forwarded in an effort to draw out the implication of colonial rule on the development of Indigenous Australians whilst paying particular attention to the cultural identity of Indigenous Australians and the influence this has had on their career choices.

Coetzee's haunting of Australian literature

In June 2006, the Good Weekend, the magazine supplementing Saturday’s the Age in Melbourne, ran the following cover story by Catharine Lumby: “Worried TV will turn your child into a zombie?” The cover featured a science-fiction image of a boy’s upturned face. Televisions were reflected in his pupils, giving them the effect of being square instead of round. The message, though, was ultimately non-alarmist with the subheading already instructing “Relax. It’s all good”. Stories like this appear regularly in the press, and while I am not interested in debating whether TV is good or bad for children, I am interested in the popular image of children—or, for that matter, adults—as being akin to zombies when they watch TV, if only because something similar happens when we read books. Although it is not as fashionable to talk about it, we become emptied of ourselves, possessed by something other.

Making the pedagogic relay inclusive for indigenous Australian students in mathematics classrooms

Many students are unsuccessful in the study of school mathematics, not because of some innate ability, but because of pedagogical practices. Bernstein (1996) has argued that pedagogy serves as a mechanism for cultural reproduction, so that for those students whose cultures are different from that represented in and through pedagogy, the task of constructing school mathematics is made more difficult. The paper explores the ways in which a teacher changes the pedagogic relay in order to be more inclusive of her students. Her practice is informed by understanding the ways in which pedagogy is a subtle tool for marginalization in mathematics.

In dialogue with A.D. Hope: dialogue three: politics and poetics of Australian literature

[Hope was largely responsible for the inclusion of Australian Literature as a separate subject of study in universities. Yet his role in debates on modernism in the Australian context was controversial and he remains one of the main figures who fought for a particular kind of poetry that he saw some modernist methods, experiments, and theories destroying. Dialogue Three aims to hear his side of the story as Hope has become, in many circles, the embodiment of what is euphemistically called ‘the dead white male,’ a title attributed to him long before his actual death in July 2000. Is it the case that Hope’s opposition to ‘free verse’ or his view that men and women know separate metaphysical worldviews or his poetic focus upon European philosophical and literary traditions are sexist, obsolete, or reactionary?
See Dialogue One for details of the following exchange.]

Shades of grey : reflections on researching indigenous Australian issues

This paper contains our reflections and responses to a recent research project which sought to understand the meaning of anger in Indigenous Australian prisoners. Throughout this project the authors became increasingly aware of the essential ambiguities inherent in Indigenous research practice: the potential for our research to reproduce inequities and contribute to the colonisation of knowledge, the demands for academic accountability, the juxtaposition of world views and the central importance of difference. Our aim throughout this project has been to examine our responses to the process of indigenous research practice. This paper contains reflections that may assist others who might embark on indigenous qualitative research and those interested in theorizing the production of knowledge.