Macleod and the offence of defrauding the company in one-person businesses: the divergence between legal principle and logic widens

The recent High Court decision in Macleod v R establishes that a director and sole shareholder may be convicted of fraudulently applying a company's property even though the person has consented to the personal use of the company's property. It is contended that while this decision is consistent with the weight of precedent, it is wrong in principle. The decision implies that corporations are not only separate legal entities, but that they are highly virtuous legal entities -- incapable of being imbued with the dishonest intentions and activities of the individuals controlling the company.

Editorial : when do repeated intrusions become stalking?

Stalking is a prevalent crime which can significantly compromise the victim's quality of life. It occurs when one person repeatedly inflicts on another unwanted contacts or communications which induce fear. Many of the behaviours associated with stalking overlap with common, albeit irritating, experiences (e.g. being persistently telephoned or approached for a date). The difficulty for victims is recognizing the difference between brief episodes of intrusiveness or social awkwardness, and the beginnings of a more persistent campaign of harassment. This study sought to define empirically the foremost juncture at which instances of intrusiveness can be distinguished from persistent stalking which is ultimately damaging to the victim's psychosocial functioning. The results indicate that continuation of unwanted intrusions beyond a threshold of 2 weeks is associated with a more intrusive, threatening and psychologically damaging course of harassment. Recognition that 2 weeks is the watershed between brief, self-limiting instances of intrusiveness and protracted stalking allows an opportunity for early intervention to assist victims of this crime.

Recent indigenous theatre in Australia:the politics of autobiography

Over the past decade Australian theatre has seen an increased profile for works written and created by Indigenous artists. This paper looks at the development of Indigenous theatre in Australia and considers how increased mainstream production opportunities have facilitated this expansion of Indigenous theatre practice. Based on the textual analysis of a number of key works, this paper looks at the development of the one-person show as the dominant genre for Indigenous theatre practices, and investigates the relationship between autobiography and the celebration of ‘otherness’. This study argues that this theatre work represents a shift away from conventional representations of Aboriginality towards a more self-determined expression of political identity.

How farmers learn : different approaches to change

This paper presents findings of an Australian study that investigated how farm- management teams go about learning to manage their businesses, including how they learn in order to make strategic and tactical changes. The Australian farming context is one of increasing complexity and risk that demands greater sophistication and professionalism in farm management. Learning is related to increased capacity to manage successful change. Farm-management teams employ four different learning patterns when making changes to their management and marketing practices. Learning patterns are termed local focussed, people focussed, outward looking and extensive networking. These patterns appear to be related to ongoing learning practices of farm-management teams as well as to learning for change. Local focussed management teams learnt for change by accessing only local sources (including government extension services) or a single individual. People focussed farm-management teams preferred to learn for change principally by seeking information and advice on a one-to-one basis from more than one person, most frequently experts, but often other farmers. The remaining farm businesses accessed a variety of sources. The group classed as extensive networkers accessed a large number of varied sources in learning for change. Others who used a less extensive range were termed outward looking.

Comorbidity of cardiovascular disease, diabetes and chronic kidney disease in Australia

This is the first report of a projected series regarding the comorbidity of cardiovascular disease (CVD), diabetes and chronic kidney disease (CKD) in Australia. Comorbidity refers to any two or more of these diseases that occur in one person at the same time. The questions to be answered in this report include: 1. How many Australians have comorbidity of CVD, diabetes and CKD? 2. What is the proportion of hospitalisations with these comorbidities? 3. How much do these comorbidities contribute to deaths? 4. What is the magnitude of comorbidity in the context of each individual disease? 5. Are there differences in the distribution of these comorbidities among age groups and sexes?

Consumer socialization agency: implications for family decision-making about holidays

This paper investigates the influence young adult children living at home have over parents' holiday decisions. "Consumer socialization agency" (CSA) was developed as a measure to capture the intercession or mediation one person accepts from another person about consumption issues. The analysis was conducted through a dyadic method, which involves collecting data from and analyzing data about pairs of people (dyads); in this case, parents and their children. CSA was related to family size and gender+ but more closely related to family communication style. Families fostering an open, issue-based communication style seem to have the highest likelihood of children socializing parents. © 2014 © 2014 Taylor & Francis.

Disciplinary proceedings against doctors who abuse controlled substances

Study examined 27 reports from disciplinary tribunals against medical practitioners who abused narcotic analgesics (often combined with other drugs of addiction) between 2010 and 2015. The study covered all States and Territories except Tasmania (no reports were accessible for this jurisdiction. The reports revealed that 12 medical practitioners were in their 40s; five in their 30s; and one person still in the 20s. Although majority were General Practitioners (15 out of 27), other medical specialties were also represented. Self-administered Pethidine was the most prevalent opioid (11 out of 27), and was the only drug used alone. Morphine was self-administered by six doctors; the same number used high doses of Panadeine Forte, Codeine and Codeine Phosphate, and Fentanyl was abused by five doctors. Surprisingly, fewer medical practitioners appear to use such opiates such as Propofol, Tramadol and Tramol, Oxycodone and Endone. The examination of cases suggests lack of consistency in the imposition of professional sanctions and penalties by the relevant tribunals. The study concludes that disciplinary tribunals should apply the test of proportionality in the form of ‘reasonable necessity’ when deciding whether to remove or suspend the addicted medical practitioner from the Register.

A longitudinal study of older couples coping with chronic conditions

 This study involved a longitudinal investigation of how older couples cope with chronic illness. The study found that one person’s chronic illness affects the wellbeing of both members of the couple. Ensuring that both members of the couple are supported when a chronic illness is experienced is important to optimise the psychological health of this vulnerable cohort of Australians.

The making of modern scientific personae: the scientist as a moral person? Emil Du Bois-Reymond and his friends

This article examines the notion of the 'scientist as a moral person' in the light of the early stages of the commodification of science and the transformation of research into a big enterprise, operating on the principle of the division of labour. These processes were set in train at the end of the 19th century. The article focuses on the concomitant changes in the public persona and the habitus of scientific entrepreneurs. I begin by showing the significance of the professional networks that were built up and maintained to further a group's research ideas and the careers of its members, thus demonstrating one condition on which depended their practice of science and their ability to earn a living. This leads to a characterization of the changing styles of work, thought and life, and to a consideration of public perceptions and of the ways in which a new self-image of scholarship and science was fashioned. A critical discussion of the public role of these mandarin scientists follows in order to highlight the strains created by the commodification of science at a time of international tensions and conflicts, when shared beliefs in scholarly cosmopolitanism were subverted by appeals to science and scholarship to work in the service of one's own nation as its 'courtiers'. Various considerations of peculiar analogies between national styles of research and the style of social organization are then noted. In the final section, the article queries the long-term impact of these developments on the ideal of the scientist as a 'moral person'. Taking a cue from Max Weber and pursuing reflections by Zygmunt Bauman on 'science moralized', I argue that the emergence of a type of 'specialists without spirit' was an unintended but fatal consequence of the changes in research practices promoted by scientific entrepreneurs such as Du Bois-Reymond. I conclude that the temptation to sever the ties to a general ethos of civil virtues lay in the rationalization, specialization and potential de-humanization of the objectifying scientific outlook once advocated for its efficiency.

The shifting meaning of persecution in the Australian refugee law: How much must one suffer to be deserving of asylum?

Legislative changes to the meaning of persecution in Australia in the context of refugee law - courts' approach to what constitutes persecution in conflict with Parliament's understanding - level of harm that a person must endure in order to be eligible for refugee status - narrow definition of persecution should be adopted such that only those asylum seekers whose subsistence is imperilled should qualify as refugees.

An insight into implementing person-centred active support

This paper provides reflections on the implementation of an active support staff training programme for staff working in community residential facilities for adults with an intellectual disability. Outcomes for the people with an intellectual disability were consistent with recent research findings indicating that active support can lead to improved opportunities for participation in everyday activities within the home. We propose that the success of the training programme was largely influenced by three key elements: ensuring that there is expertise in, and support for, this approach to service provision among key service managers, provision of in vivo one-to-one practical staff training in addition to classroom-based theoretical input, and inclusion of elements of person-centred planning approaches in combination with active support. Future research should focus on how best to maximise the effectiveness of active support staff training.