How style came to matter : do we need to move beyond the politics of representation?

In response to the increasing difficulties facing museums that attempt to work within a pluralist framework as a strategy for representing cultural diversity, this essay argues for the need to move beyond a characterisation of museum work as either progressive or conservative, pluralist or consensual. Central to my arguments is an attempt to extend our understanding of possible narrative structures in museums by focusing on questions of style as much as of content. I do this by looking back at two case studies in which questions around the political intent of narrative structures were determined as much by the form of the exhibition as by its content. This focus enables are cognition that fragmentary narrative styles are not by definition associated with alack of strong narratives. Quite the contrary. An alternative approach to exhibition making might therefore lie in an approach that moves away from eclecticism but does so not by returning to progressive, chronological narratives but by privileging an understanding of 'shared experience'. I attempt to open up what I mean by this term towards the end of the essay.

Leadership for socially just schooling: more substance and less style in high-risk, low-trust times?

This article argues that radical shifts in school governance arising from wider social, political, and economic relations toward what are described as high-risk and low-trust societies challenge past notions of leadership. I explore the tensions between the pluralism of postmodernist thinking and modernist notions of social justice that produce "predicaments" for school leaders through a series of paradoxes of educational management around centralized decentralization, markets and management, new educational professionalism, parental choice and community participation, and between the substance and style of leadership. The values underpinning the corporatization of public and private life most evident in education do not provide a satisfactory grounding for effective school leadership.

Habitual visualizer/verbalizer cognitive style: the impact of anxiety and depression

Imagery and verbal cognitive abilities appear to be differentially affected by psychopathology, yet research has failed to consider Paivio's proposition that people have habitual cognitive styles. The aim of this study was to establish habitual cognitive style (verbalizer/visualizer) among depressed, anxious, and control respondents and compare these to their imagery and verbal abilities in the state mode. A comparison of these groups confirmed that there were no differences in preferred habitual cognitive style. In the state mode, the anxious group demonstrated the highest imagery vividness and the depressed group the lowest. Both clinical groups demonstrated attenuated verbal reasoning and high levels of confusion. Within-groups comparison confirmed the attenuation of verbal ability for both clinical groups while the control group remained stable. All three groups demonstrated enhanced state imagery ability over habitual visual preference. This change was greatest for the anxious group followed by the control and then the depressed groups. The therapeutic implications of these findings are discussed .

Kim's style guide for the kinaesthetic boffin: an exercise in anti-communication

The following article refers to a performed paper, Did the Paradigm Shift for You, Darling? given as a collaboration between John Cumming, Yoni Prior, David Ritchie and me at the Double Dialogues Conference, Lines of Flight, at Theatreworks in Melbourne, November, 1997. The performance involved the staging of a mock analysis of a section of my choreographic work, Kim’s Style Guide for the Kinaesthetic Boffin, by three fictitious ‘critics’. The performance functioned as an implicit critique of three different approaches to interpreting dance. This article explores a theoretical position which supports that critique.

Factors associated with functioning style and coping strategies of familes with a child with an autism spectrum disorder

A survey of parents/caregivers of a child with an autism spectrum disorder (ASD) was conducted to examine the relationship between ASD characteristics, family functioning and coping strategies. Having a child with ASD places considerable stress on the family. Primary caregivers of a child with ASD from a regional and rural area in Victoria, Australia (N = 53) were surveyed concerning their child with ASD, family functioning (adaptability and cohesion), marital satisfaction, self-esteem and coping strategies. Results suggest that these caregivers had healthy self-esteem, although they reported somewhat lower marital happiness, family cohesion and family adaptability than did norm groups. Coping strategies were not significant predictors of these outcome variables. Results highlight the need for support programmes to target family and relationship variables as well as ASD children and their behaviours, in order to sustain the family unit and improve quality of life for parents and caregivers as well as those children.

Style wars: revolution in the suburbs?

Is there a revolution occurring in the Australian suburb? From a brief examination of demographic, economic, political and aesthetic changes, it appears that the suburbs of the new century are very different from those of the last. With the demise of key underpinnings of the older suburban form—the sexual division of labour, particular family forms, localised communities and bucolic private gardens—has gone an end to official support of the expansive suburb and a major shift in their politics, planning, economies and relationship to the CBD and other centres. With falling household sizes has gone a seemingly contradictory trend toward larger houses on smaller blocks of land. In the context of these many changes along with urban containment and consolidation, this paper argues that there is a convergence occurring between the design of inner, middle and outer suburban dwellings. The negativity long heaped upon the suburban bungalow by the custodians of taste is being revisited. The style wars are easing, as suburban homes increasingly resemble those appearing in densified cities across the nation.

The impact of management style on the employment relations of different sized organisations

Purpose of the research/paper: The views and values of managers are typically noted as being wedded to unitarist or pluralist ideals. This paper disaggregates these views and values by looking at the impact of various managerial styles on employment relations in different sized organisations.
Methodology: Conceptual with applied support from the secondary literature.
Findings: The paper concludes that large organisations confront conditions and contingencies which allow them to make certain choices about employment relations in ways that are not always available to small to medium sized organisations.

The influence of housing size, style and location on energy and greenhouse gas emissions

Concern about the growth of greenhouse gas emissions in Victoria has prompted the introduction of legislation to improve the thermal performance of the residential building envelope. Unfortunately, the size of the house is not considered in the rating tool that underpins the legislation. The energy embodied in the constructional materials is also not considered although it too is directly related to the size of the house. Another intrinsic factor relating residential housing energy and greenhouse gas emissions is the location of the residence and the travel preferences of the homeowner. The relationship between the operational, embodied and travel energy associated with a typical residential scenario in Melbourne over the last 50 years is examined in this paper. The analysis found that by the year 2000, the energy associated with work-related travel (44%) now exceeds the operational energy (37%). In terms of greenhouse gas emissions, the contribution from travel energy is almost double that from operational energy (28%).

Touch it, feel it and experience it: developing professional IS skills using interview-style experiential simulations

The IS education field has made increasing use of computerised experiential simulations, but few attempts have been made to create an authentic learning environment that combines and balances elements of video-based computer simulation with real-life learning activities. This paper explores the design principles used to develop a CD-ROM simulation where learners use interviewing skills to elicit system requirements from simulated employees in an authentic context. The employees are videoed actors who converse with each other and with learners within a dynamic interaction model. The paper also describes how we combined this simulation with other teaching approaches such as in-class discussions, student team work, formal presentations, etc.

Equity and access in an e-enhanced, international, university environment: learning style implications

Globalisation and technological development have simultaneously pressured universities to provide students with flexible and innovative learning options. Among the ways universities address these issues are by internationalising their curriculum and investing in educational technology. These changes have affected pedagogical and andragogical approaches and outcomes. Learning styles potentially affect the strategic approach of academics when utilising innovative technological tools in their teaching, which converges with internationalisation of the curriculum and a diverse student body to accentuate the issues of equity and access. The literature in this field is explored in context with the authors’ diverse experiences to provide policy makers, academics and other education stakeholders with a new perspective.