Intercommunication and persona: the intercommunicative public self

Through two concepts, this paper investigates how online culture is shifting our understanding of media, communication and what could be described as the public sphere. The concept of intercommunication is developed to explicate how online culture blends what has often been seen as separate domains: there is now a higher fluidity between what is seen as media and what is seen as a form of communication. In effect, there is now an interpersonal mediation of communication through social media where what we like and dislike is shared and exchanged. The result of this different structure of communication is a transforming public sphere that highlights how the personal dimension of communicationis privileged. To unpack this shifted structure of media and communication, the paper develops the concept of persona. Persona, as a structure and presentation of personal identity for different publics, helps us understand how the individualhas to present themselves strategically and tactically in this intercommunicative world. Through a series of examples that analyse memes, social network identity, and communication, and new iterations of what could be construed as private,public, and professional identity, the paper investigates this emerging "intercommunicative public self.”

Gender differences in conference presentations: a consequence of self-selection?

Women continue to be under-represented in the sciences, with their representation declining at each progressive academic level. These differences persist despite long-running policies to ameliorate gender inequity. We compared gender differences in exposure and visibility at an evolutionary biology conference for attendees at two different academic levels: student and post-PhD academic. Despite there being almost exactly a 1:1 ratio of women and men attending the conference, we found that when considering only those who presented talks, women spoke for far less time than men of an equivalent academic level: on average student women presented for 23% less time than student men, and academic women presented for 17% less time than academic men. We conducted more detailed analyses to tease apart whether this gender difference was caused by decisions made by the attendees or through bias in evaluation of the abstracts. At both academic levels, women and men were equally likely to request a presentation. However, women were more likely than men to prefer a short talk, regardless of academic level. We discuss potential underlying reasons for this gender bias, and provide recommendations to avoid similar gender biases at future conferences.

Trustworthiness: self-assessment of an institutional repository against ISO 16363-2012

Today, almost every document we create and the output from almost every research-related project, is a digital object. Not everything has to be kept forever, but materials with scholarly or historical value should be retained for future generations. Preserving digital objects is more challenging than preserving items on paper. Hardware becomes obsolete, new software replaces old, storage media degrades. In recent years, there has been significant progress made to develop tools and standards to preserve digital media, particularly in the context of institutional repositories. The most widely accepted standard thus far is the Trustworthy Repositories Audit and Certification: Criteria and Checklist (TRAC), which evolved into ISO 16363-2012. Deakin University Library undertook a self-assessment against the ISO 16363 criteria. This experience culminated in the current report, which provides an appraisal of ISO 16363, the assessment process, and advice for others considering embarking on a similar venture.

Amyloid peptide self assembly in protic ionic liquids

Overall, this thesis presents the novel approach of using carefully selected PILs to both control amyloid fibril formation and inhibit/dissolve Aβ fibrils through induced helical transitions. These results provide insights into future PIL-mediated protein studies and the potential application of PILs in AD pathogenesis.

Persona as method: exploring celebrity and the public self through persona studies

Researching persona is a study in the production, dissemination and exchange of public identity. One starting point in the process is to look at the production of the presentation of the self online, which allows for a particularly valuable way of exploring celebrity and public personalities. In order to advance on this point, this article examines three emerging and complementary methods of persona studies that work to capture different elements in the production of public identity. In the following we provide an introduction to the research currently being generated using three intersectional methods as a primer to the study of persona. We first present an adaptation of interpretative phenomenological analysis for the investigation of online identity as a means for understanding the strategic and negotiated agency that constructing a public persona entails. Second, we outline the potential for methods of social network analysis and data visualisation to contribute to the investigation of networked structures of public identities, and to further explore the assembly of a professional persona in the creative and niche paratextual industry roles enabled by social media. Finally, to explore reputation and relational cultural power we consider how persona is constituted by connections, adapting prosopography – an historical method for identifying relational status in a community – to the study of current public production of the self and relational reputation as a form of cultural field. All of these techniques are equally useful for the direct study of celebrity persona, and function dynamically together as means to access the wider dimensions of public persona.

A pilot, multisite, randomized controlled trial of a self-directed coping skills training intervention for couples facing prostate cancer : accrual, retention, and data collection issues

PURPOSE: To examine the acceptability of the methods used to evaluate Coping-Together, one of the first self-directed coping skill intervention for couples facing cancer, and to collect preliminary efficacy data. METHODS: Forty-two couples, randomized to a minimal ethical care (MEC) condition or to Coping-Together, completed a survey at baseline and 2 months after, a cost diary, and a process evaluation phone interview. RESULTS: One hundred seventy patients were referred to the study. However, 57 couples did not meet all eligibility criteria, and 51 refused study participation. On average, two to three couples were randomized per month, and on average it took 26 days to enrol a couple in the study. Two couples withdrew from MEC, none from Coping-Together. Only 44 % of the cost diaries were completed, and 55 % of patients and 60 % of partners found the surveys too long, and this despite the follow-up survey being five pages shorter than the baseline one. Trends in favor of Coping-Together were noted for both patients and their partners. CONCLUSIONS: This study identified the challenges of conducting dyadic research, and a number of suggestions were put forward for future studies, including to question whether distress screening was necessary and what kind of control group might be more appropriate in future studies.

Notions of place, space and identity in rural teacher education

This chapter explores the concepts of space, place, and identity through a selfstudy narrative lens that focuses on the importance of rural within these conversations. Current research into teacher education acknowledges the signifi cance of context and how it matters in terms of teacher preparation; this chapter examines context in terms of the impact of working in a rural context and the differences and similarities of rural to other contexts. The overarching framework for this chapter will be on myself as a rural teacher educator and how this bounds and is bounded by my own identity and experience ‘growing up rural’ in Australia. I will also outline my own emerging research into self-study as a methodology and how this adds to my role as a teacher educator within rural communities. Firstly however, I will explore the concepts of place and space and how this guides my own rural self-study.

Self-determination and collective responsibility in the secessionist struggle

The often violent emergence of new independent states following the end of the Cold War generated discussion about the normative grounds of territorial separatism. A number of opposing approaches surfaced debating whether and under which circumstances there is a right for a community to secede from its host country. Overwhelmingly, these studies placed emphasis on the right to secession and neglected the moral stance of secessionist movements as agents in international relations. In this book Costas Laoutides explores the collective moral agency involved in secessionist struggles offering a theoretical model for the collective responsibility of secessionist groups. Case-studies on the Kurds and the people of Moldova-Transdniestria illustrate the author’s theoretical arguments as he seeks to establish how, although the principle of self-determination was envisaged as a means of gradually bestowing political power upon the people, it never managed to realize its full potential because it was interpreted strictly within a framework of exclusionary politics of identity.

Patient self-management in chronic heart failure – establishing concordance between guidelines and practice

 Chronic heart failure (CHF) is a progressive and debilitating disease with a broad symptom profile, intermittently marked by periods of acute decompensation. CHF patients are encouraged to self-manage their illness, such as adhering to medical regimens and monitoring symptoms, to optimise health outcomes and quality of life. In so doing, patients are asked to collaborate with their health service providers with regard to their care. However, patients generally do not self-manage well, even with specialist support. Moreover, self- management interventions are yet to demonstrate morbidity or mortality benefits. Social network approaches to self-management consider the availability and mobilisation of all resources, beyond those of only the patient and healthcare providers. Used in conjunction with e-health platforms, social network approaches may offer a means by which to optimise self-management programmes of the future.

Evaluating discussion board engagement in the MoodSwings online self-help program for bipolar disorder: protocol for an observational prospective cohort study

BACKGROUND: Online, self-guided programs exist for a wide range of mental health conditions, including bipolar disorder, and discussion boards are often part of these interventions. The impact engagement with these discussion boards has on the psychosocial well-being of users is largely unknown. More specifically we need to clarify the influence of the type and level of engagement on outcomes. The primary aim of this exploratory study is to determine if there is a relationship between different types (active, passive or none) and levels (high, mid and low) of discussion board engagement and improvement in outcome measures from baseline to follow up, with a focus on self-reported social support, stigma, quality of life and levels of depression and mania. The secondary aim of this study is to identify any differences in demographic variables among discussion users.

METHODS/DESIGN: The present study is a sub-study of the MoodSwings 2.0 3-arm randomised controlled trial (discussion board only (arm 1), discussion board plus psychoeducation (arm 2), discussion board, psychoeducation plus cognitive behavioural therapy-based tools (arm 3)). Discussion engagement will be measured via online participant activity monitoring. Assessments include online self-report as well as blinded phone interviews at baseline, 3, 6, 9 and 12 months follow up.

DISCUSSION: The results of this study will help to inform future programs about whether or not discussion boards are a beneficial inclusion in online self-help interventions. It will also help to determine if motivating users to actively engage in online discussion is necessary, and if so, what level of engagement is optimal to produce the most benefit. Future programs may benefit through being able to identify those most likely to poorly engage, based on demographic variables, so motivational strategies can be targeted accordingly.

Autobiographical memory and depression: identity-continuity and problem-solving functions indirectly predict symptoms over time through psychological well-being

The aim of this study was to assess the longitudinal associations between adaptive autobiographical memory functions and depressive symptoms. Consistent with the proposed mechanisms of change underpinning cognitive-reminiscence therapy (CRT), it was hypothesised that more frequent adaptive reminiscence would lead to increases in psychological resources over time and indirectly affect depressive symptoms through this pathway. A sample of 171 young adults (mean age=25.9years, SD=3.5) completed measures of how frequently they utilised autobiographical memory for identity-continuity and problem-solving purposes, depressive symptoms and personal resources (self-esteem, self-efficacy, meaning in life and optimism) at two time-points. The results of structural equation modelling supported the model of indirect influence between reminiscence functions and depression through these psychological resources. These findings clarify the effects of adaptive autobiographical memory on depressive symptoms in young adults and indicate potential benefits of interventions such as CRT.

Self-practice and self-reflection in training of psychological interventions and therapist skills development: A qualitative meta-synthesis review

© 2015 Australian Psychological Society. Objective: The use of self-practice and self-reflection has been proposed as an efficacious strategy in the training of therapists. It has been argued to enhance therapist skills, and a key factor in the development of expertise. This systematic literature review investigated the effect of self-practice and self-reflection on therapist skills development. Method: Studies were identified through Medline, Academic Search Complete, PsychINFO, PsycARTICLES, Proquest, ISI, CINAHL, Cochrane, and Scopus databases. Additional studies were identified through lateral searches of relevant papers' reference lists and direct correspondence with authors of unpublished material. The selection criteria were studies that investigated the effect of self-practice and/or self-reflection on therapist skill development. There was no restriction on sample sizes, design of studies, dates of publication, or peer-reviewed papers. All studies were published in English. Results: Ten studies were included in this review. A thematic analysis was undertaken to analyse qualitative data. Due to inconsistency in the variables investigated across the quantitative studies, quantitative results were not subject to a meta-analysis but simply reported. Finally, qualitative and quantitative data were juxtaposed in a meta-synthesis. Conclusion: The meta-synthesis revealed inconsistencies between the qualitative and quantitative literature and a gap in relation to declarative knowledge. Methodological limitations across studies are discussed and recommendations for future research provided.

Identifying educational priorities for occupational therapy students to prepare for mental health practice in Australia and New Zealand: opinions of practising occupational therapists

BACKGROUND: The effective preparation of occupational therapy students for mental health practice is critical to facilitate positive consumer outcomes, underpin optimal practice and support new graduates' professional identity. This project was established to determine a set of 'educational priorities' for occupational therapy students to prepare them for current (and future) entry-level practice in mental health, from the perspective of mental health occupational therapists in Australia and New Zealand. METHODS: The study included two phases. In Phase One, participants identified what they considered to be important educational priorities for occupational therapy students to prepare them for practice in mental health. For Phase Two, an 'expert panel' was assembled to review and rank these using a Policy Delphi approach. RESULTS: Eighty-five participants provided educational priorities in Phase One. These were grouped into a total of 149 educational themes. In Phase Two, the expert panel (consisting of 37 occupational therapists from diverse locations and practice settings) prioritised these themes across three Delphi rounds. A final priority list was generated dividing educational themes into three prioritised categories: 29 'Essential', 25 'Important' and 44 'Optional' priorities. Highest-ranked priorities were: clinical reasoning, client-centred practice, therapeutic use of self, functional implications of mental illness, therapeutic use of occupation and mental health fieldwork experience. CONCLUSION: The priority list developed as part of this project provides additional information to support the review of occupational therapy curricula across Australia and New Zealand to ensure that new graduates are optimally prepared for mental health practice.

Future integrated factories: a system of systems engineering perspective

The manufacturing sector has gone through tremendous change in the last decade. We have witnessed the transformation from stand alone, manual processes to smart and integrated systems, from hand written reports to interactive computer-based dashboards. Future integrated factories will operate as a system of systems through intelligent machines, human factors integration, and integrated supply chains. To effectively operate and manage these emerging enterprises, a systems science approach is required. Modelling and simulation is recognised as a key enabling technology, with application from stakeholder engagement and knowledge elicitation to operational decision support through self-tuning and self-assembling simulations. Our research has led to the introduction of effective modelling and simulation methods and tools to enable real time planning, dynamic risk analysis and effective visualisation for production processes, resources and systems. This paper discusses industrial applicable concepts for real-time simulation and decision support, and the implications to future integrated factories, or factories of the future, are explored through relevant case studies from aerospace manufacturing to mining and materials processing enterprises.

Mulher, identidade e auto-estima: elementos teóricos para uma reflexão critica

Partindo do pressuposto de que os mitos sociais femininos participam da construção da identidade e da auto-estima da mulher, buscamos levantar questões pertinentes a estes aspectos. Consideramos, especificamente, neste trabalho uma etapa singular da vida da mulher, na qual ela se sente confinada ao universo doméstico, não mais desempenhando as funções femininas engendradas a partir do imaginário social. Observa-os que em alguns casos esta situação caracteriza um momento de crise, no qual a mulher, frequentemente perde a perspectiva do futuro, o que vai influenciar seu modo de “estar" e "atuar" no mundo, ficando ameaçados seu sentimento de identidade e auto-stima. Para uma melhor compreensão do mundo da mulher, incluimos um capitulo sobre algumas contribuições existentes nas diferentes disciplinas (Biologia, Sociologia, Antropologia, História e Psicologia), pois consideramos fundamental uma abordagem multidisciplinar para o estudo proposto. Ao longo do desenvolvimento deste tema, confirmamos a importância e pertinência deste estudo, principalmente neste momento de profundas transformações sociais. Por isso, justificamos a continuidade do nosso trabalho, sugerindo a realização de uma pesquisa empírica a fim de ampliar as colocações aqui feitas, além de contribuir para a práxis do psicólogo neste campo.