Breastfeeding self-efficacy and alternative techniques to overcome maternal or infant breastfeeding challenges : a retrospective descriptive study

Background: Breastfeeding is the internationally accepted ideal in infant feeding. Ensuring mothers and babies receive optimal benefits, in both the short and long term, is dependent upon the successful establishment of breastfeeding in the first week. Many maternal and infant challenges can occur during the establishment of breastfeeding (Lactogenesis II). There are also many methods and devices (alternative techniques) which can be used to help, but the majority do not have an evidence-base. The mother.s self-confidence (self-efficacy) can be challenged by these unexpected circumstances, but understanding of the relationship is unclear. Method: This descriptive study used mail survey (including the Breastfeeding Self-Efficacy Scale . Short Form) to obtain the mother.s reports of their self-efficacy and their breastfeeding experience during the first week following birth, as well as actual use of alternative techniques. This study included all mothers of full term healthy singleton infants from one private hospital in Brisbane who began any breastfeeding. The data collection took place from November 2008 to February 2009. Ethical approval was granted from the research site and QUT Human Research Ethics Committee. Results: A total of 128 questionnaires were returned, a response rate of 56.9%. The sample was dissimilar to the Queensland population with regard to age, income, and education level, all of which were higher in this study. The sample was similar to the Queensland population in terms of parity and marital status. The rate of use of alternative techniques was 48.3%. The mean breastfeeding self-efficacy score of those who used any alternative technique was 43.43 (SD=12.19), and for those who did not, it was 58.32 (SD=7.40). Kruskal-Wallis analysis identified that the median self efficacy score for those who used alternative techniques was significantly lower than median self efficacy scores for those who did not use alternative techniques. The reasons women used alternative techniques varied widely, and their knowledge of alternative techniques was good. Conclusion: This study is the first to document breastfeeding self-efficacy of women who used alternative techniques to support their breastfeeding goals in the first week postpartum. An individualised clinical intervention to develop women.s self-efficacy with breastfeeding is important to assist mother/infant dyads encountering challenges to breastfeeding in the first week postpartum.

Cracking the code : a checklist to complement CRAs for first year Justice students

It is well recognised in the literature on first year higher education that there is a need for Universities to provide further support and development in student learning skills and engagement. Assessment and feedback is an area with differing expectations and understandings among academics and students (e.g. AUSSE, CEQ). Consistency and explicitness in academic feedback is fundamental in assisting students in their transition to university education and learning. This poster captures the progress of an 18 month funded by the Faculty of Law Teaching and Learning Grant scheme (QUT). The project sought to develop and trial an assessment checklist/diagnostic tool to accompany Criteria Referenced Assessment sheets for students within the School of Justice, Law Faculty, Queensland University of Technology (QUT).The checklist was trialled across four units in the School of Justice (Law faculty) amongst an estimated cohort of over 600 students undertaking single and dual degrees.

Self-Government and the fashioning of resilient personae : legal education, criminal justice, and the government of mental health

This paper explores attempts to shape resilient personae through relations of self-government, and highlights the way that this features as part of advanced liberal forms of rule. As an example of this process, it focuses on the way that undergraduate law students are encouraged to fashion resilient personae throughout their legal studies, so as to avoid, or effectively respond to, experiences that may have a detrimental effect on their mental health. This paper argues that the production of such resilience relies on students being encouraged to take up psychologically- and biomedically-infused subject positions, becoming well-disciplined subjects, entrepreneurs of the self, and even virtuous persons. It highlights that the fashioning of resilient personae in this way involves extensions to the targets and practices of self-government and reinforces advanced liberal government. The paper then suggests how insights into fashioning resilience in this context can inform further research on resilience, particularly resilience produced within criminal justice professionals.

Phase two of the National Credit Reforms : examining the regulation of payday lenders

This study seeks to analyse the adequacy of the current regulation of the payday lending industry in Australia, and consider whether there is a need for additional regulation to protect consumers of these services. The report examines the different regulatory approaches adopted in comparable OECD countries, and reviews alternative models for payday regulation, in particular, the role played by responsible lending. The study also examines the consumer protection mechanisms now in existence in Australia in the National Consumer Credit Protection Act 2009 (Cth) (NCCP) and the National Credit Code (NCC) contained in Schedule 1 of that Act and in the Australian Securities and Investments Commission Act 2001 (Cth).

Unlocking black box models of leadership effectiveness: Exploring alternative research and policy metaphors

There is an intimate interconnectivity between policy guidelines defining reform and the delineation of what research methods would be subsequently applied to determine reform success. Research is guided as much by the metaphors describing it as by the ensuing empirical definition of actions of results obtained from it. In a call for different reform policy metaphors Lumby and English (2010) note, “The primary responsibility for the parlous state of education... lies with the policy makers that have racked our schools with reductive and dehumanizing processes, following the metaphors of market efficiency, and leadership models based on accounting and the characteristics of machine bureaucracy” (p. 127)

The power of historical causal components involved in engaging at risk youth at three alternative schools

This article addresses the causal powers associated with the social phenomena of alternative schooling for youth at risk. It stems from a doctoral thesis, Alternative Schooling Programs for At Risk Youth – Three Case Studies which addresses wider issues integral to alternative schooling: youth at risk, alternative schooling models, and literacy. This article explores one aspect of alternative schooling: the historical causal factors involved in the establishment and continuance of three alternative case study models in Queensland, Australia. By adhering to Bhaskar’s transformational model of social activity (TMSA) , social structures and individuals will be analytically distinguished to uncover their separate causal powers and how these have effected the establishment and continuance of three alternative schools.

Predicting psychologists’ intentions to integrate complementary and alternative therapies (CAT) into their practice.

This study assessed the validity of a scale measuring psychologists' attitudes towards complementary and alternative therapies and compared the attitudes of psychologists with a previous sample of psychology students. The scale, derived from existing measures for medical professionals and previously tested on a sample of psychology students, was completed by practising psychologists (N = 122). The data were factor analysed, and three correlated subscales were identified, assessing the perceived importance of knowledge about available therapies, attitudes towards integration with psychological practice, and concerns about associated risks of use. This structure was similar, but not identical, to that found in a previous sample of psychology students; however, psychologists expressed more concern for risks associated with integration and were less likely to hold a positive attitude towards integration. This scale will be useful in gauging changes in psychologists' attitudes towards integrative practice over time.

Integrating complementary and alternative therapies into psychological practice : A qualitative analysis

Although complementary and alternative therapies (CATs) are utilised widely for treating psychological disorders, little research has examined psychologists' beliefs about integrating CAT into psychological practice. Six practicing psychologists and six psychology students were interviewed about their CAT integration beliefs, in particular integrating CAT into clinical practice via recommending CATs, offering referrals to CAT practitioners, or undertaking training to utilise CATs within psychological practice. Guided broadly from a theory of planned behaviour perspective, participants raised a number of costs and benefits, discussed referent groups who would influence their decisions, and suggested motivators and barriers for integration. A number of additional themes were raised, including risks, such as the possibility of litigation and the need for clear Society guidelines, as most participants were unclear about what constitutes appropriate practice. Identifying these themes serves as an important initial step to informing discussion and policy for this emerging practice issue within psychology.