Responses to racism : a taxonomy of coping styles used by aboriginal Australians

The author takes up the challenge from social psychologists to explore the coping responses of those who experience racism. Previous attempts to provide taxonomies of responses to racism-discrimination-oppression are reviewed. An analysis of data derived from semistructured interviews conducted with 34 Indigenous Australians that explored experiences of racism and emotional and behavioral responses is reported, and a taxonomy of coping made up of 3 broad categories is presented. The defining feature of these categories is the purpose of the responses contained therein: to defend the self, to control or contain the reaction, or to confront the racism. It is argued that this may be a more useful way to understand responses to racism than taxonomies previously proposed.

Hope promoting strategies of registered nurses

Aim. This paper describes self-reported hope-promoting strategies used by Registered Nurses whilst providing care for older patients in acute and long-term care settings.
Background. The literature is replete with claims that Registered Nurses engage in hope facilitation with their patients. However, these claims are largely conjecture, with few studies empirically identifying the extent to which Registered Nurses use hope interventions with their patients. Further, some authors have questioned whether nurses have the necessary skills to undertake this vital aspect of care.
Methods. In this Gadamerian hermeneutic phenomenological study, undertaken in 2003 in Australia, we used in-depth audiotaped interviews to collect data with 14 Registered Nurses. The interviews were transcribed verbatim and analysed using the Turner method.
Findings. Whilst participants clearly reported that they engaged in hope facilitation with older patients, there were differences between the reported strategies used by Registered Nurses in acute and long-term care settings. Further, the strategies reported were not unique to hope promotion and have been variously described in the literature on caring, presencing, holistic nursing and therapeutic nursing.
Conclusion. It is clear that participants considered hope promotion to be a vital aspect of their care. However, the strategies that they reported were limited and not inclusive of many and varied suggestions emerging from published studies on hope promotion. Therefore, we recommend that nursing curricula, professional development and in-service education programmes place hope facilitation on their agenda and foster a culture in which promoting hope is seen as a vital aspect of nursing care.

The comparative energetics and growth strategies of sympatric Antarctic and subantarctic fur seal pups at Iles Crozet

The period of maternal dependence is a time during which mammalian infants must optimise both their growth and the development of behavioural skills in order to successfully meet the demands of independent living. The rate and duration of maternal provisioning, post-weaning food availability and climatic conditions are all factors likely to influence the growth strategies of infants. While numerous studies have documented differences in growth strategies at high taxonomic levels, few have investigated those of closely related species inhabiting similar environments. The present study examined the body composition, metabolism and indices of physiological development in pups of Antarctic fur seals (Arctocephalus gazella) and subantarctic fur seals (Arctocephalus tropicalis), congeneric species with different weaning ages (4 months and 10 months, respectively), during their overlap in lactation at a sympatric breeding site in the Iles Crozet. Body lipid reserves in pre-moult pups were significantly greater (t₂₈=2.73, P<0.01) in subantarctic (26%) than Antarctic fur seals (22%). Antarctic fur seal pups, however, had significantly higher (t₂₆=3.82, P<0.001) in-air resting metabolic rates (RMR; 17.1±0.6 ml O₂ kg^-1 min^-1) than subantarctic fur seal pups (14.1±0.5 ml O2 kg^-1 min^-1). While in-water standard metabolic rate (SMR; 22.9±2.5 ml O2 kg^-1 min^-1) was greater than in-air RMR for Antarctic fur seal pups (t₉=2.59, P<0.03), there were no significant differences between in-air RMR and in-water SMR for subantarctic fur seal pups (t₁₂=0.82, P>0.4), although this is unlikely to reflect a greater ability for pre-moult pups of the latter species to thermoregulate in water. Pup daily energy expenditure was also significantly greater (t₂₇=2.36, P<0.03) in Antarctic fur seals (638±33 kJ kg^-1 day^-1) than in subantarctic fur seals (533±33 kJ kg^-1 day^-1), which corroborates observations that pups of the former species spend considerably more time actively learning to swim and dive. Consistent with this observation is the finding that blood oxygen storage capacity was significantly greater (t₉=2.81, P<0.03) in Antarctic (11.5%) than subantarctic fur seal (8.9%) pups. These results suggest that, compared with subantarctic fur seals, Antarctic fur seal pups adopt a strategy of faster lean growth and physiological development, coupled with greater amounts of metabolically expensive behavioural activity, in order to acquire the necessary foraging skills in time for their younger weaning age.

Older and wiser?: a comparison of the learning and study strategies of mature age and younger teacher education students

'Non-traditional' students are increasingly a part of university populations. This study examined differences between mature age and younger university students in their learning and study strategies as measured by the Learning and Study Strategies Inventory (LASSI). Subjects were 21 mature age and 104 younger teacher education students enrolled in The Bachelor of Teaching (Primary) course at the Royal Melbourne Institute of Technology. Significant correlations were found between the students' LASSI scores and both their self-reported level of global skill and their perceptions of how difficult the course was. There were significant differences between the two groups in terms of their learning and study strategies, with mature age students reporting themselves to be using effective strategies more often, on average, than younger students. The validity and implications of these findings in terms of student learning, support and instruction in study and learning and in predicting academic success are discussed.

A longitudinal study of body change strategies of fitness center attendees

This study evaluated predictors of strategies to change weight and muscles among men and women who attend fitness centers. A questionnaire was completed by 107 men (mean age = 39.17, SD = 13.14), and 151 women (mean age = 35.31, SD = 11.38) who regularly attended fitness centers at two points in time, one year apart. The only unique predictor of body change strategies over time for men was body dissatisfaction predicting drive for thinness; for women, body dissatisfaction predicted strategies to lose weight, drive for thinness, use of food supplements to lose weight and levels of bulimia. Media messages also predicted drive for thinness and bulimia among women. These findings would suggest that attendance body dissatisfaction is an important factor predicting other normative and health risk behaviors among fitness center attendees, particularly women at a fitness center over a 12 month period was not generally associated with adverse health risk behaviors.

High culture, high context: online strategies of indigenous cultural enterprises

Indigenous Australians experience a great demand for their culture, but do not benefit sufficiently from its commercialization. Recent developments in digital and Internet technology have presented new commercial opportunities for mainstream enterprises and for greater interaction between global cultures. Indigenous Australians recognized these opportunities and have adopted Internet technology across a range of sectors. Very little is known about Indigenous -owned enterprises and their e-commerce practices, particularly in the lucrative cultural sector. This paper draws on a national online survey and enterprise case studies to examine approaches to, and perceptions of Internet commerce in Indigenous-owned culture sector enterprises. Cultural products (such as art, craft, dance, theatre and cultural tours) are not traditionally aligned with e-commerce which favours intangible and standardised, easily comparable products. However some Indigenous enterprises have been highly successful at increasing income and viability through the online medium. Because of the complex preconditions for selling Indigenous culture, transactions are rarely conducted fully on the Web. The research found that in examples of successful Indigenous e-commerce, cultural enterprises first establish social and cultural contexts before achieving economic gains. Social contexts are built online through relationships and communication, which underscore reputation, and transactions as 'experiences'. Online construction of a product's cultural context is used to ensure 'authenticity', which can act as a subtle alternative to online branding and trust.

The evidentiary strategies of Two Laws

This article examines the ways in which the documentary film Two Laws deploys a variety of strategies to represent the historical claim to land made in the early 1980s by the Borroloola people of Australia's Northern Territory. Cross-cultural collaboration between the indigenous people of Borroloola and two non-indigenous film-makers produced a film that combines a vigorous reflexivity with dramatic re-enactment and oral testimony. Importantly, the presentation of evidence in support of the land claim is achieved via a form communally devised by the Borroloola people based on their cultural needs and contingent on Borroloola social structure. In this way the so-called documentary truth claim and indigenous land claim intersect in Two Laws: for the Borroloola people, the filmic evidentiary truth claim functions in a direct way in support of their legal claim to their lands.

Comprehension strategies of above average English as a foreign language (EFL) readers

The study reported in this thesis is a single-shot case study, which aims to provide a detailed description ofthe reading comprehension strategies used by fifteen student teachers ofEnglish from Indonesian- and Javanese-speaking backgrounds in the last year of their four-year Strata-One study at a university In Yogyakarta, Indonesia. These readers were above average among their peers in that their average indexes of grades in Reading and Speaking classes were 3.22 and 3,34 respectively, while the average indexes ofthe peer group were 271 and 2.63, respectively, out ofa scale of 0 to 400. In addition, while students in this university may complete their study by course work or by research, these readers were all enrolled as research students. As studying comprehension strategies involves complex issues, a multi-method approach is required, not only for breadth of coverage, but also to allow for a check on the validity of individual methods. To achieve the goal of the study, thinka1oud tasks, retellings, a reading comprehensIon test, indepth interviews and observations were employed to explore the strategies used. An analysis of the recorded data indicates that these readers used thirty strategies classified under five clusters: infomiation gathering, information processing, text interpretation, comprehension monitoring, and comprehension utilisation. In general, readers started gathering information by silent reading, interpreted the text by an inference or a paraphrase, and ended the task by making selfreflections relevant to the text. Most readers managed to identify problems when they occurred, and monitored their comprehension when they doubted their interpretation, as could be seen from their rereading the text or vocalising its pail(s). When direct interpretation was difficult, readers associated the text with prior knowledge or interrelated parts of the text, The readers in this study share characteristics of both poor and good native readers, in the sense that there was evidence ofgood strategy use butthe readers did not manage to maintain it consistently. As a result, even the successful readers were not able to maximise their potential. The implication is that in order to develop students into independent readers, strategy instruction should be part of and appropriately embedded in, the reading instruction. There is a need not merely to teach strategies as such, but rather to teach flexibility in strategy use. While there was sufficient evidence that thinkaloud tasks and their complementary methods worked to achieve the goals ofthe present study, similar studies with different cohorts are suggested for crosschecks.

Language learning strategies of adult ESL learners using virtual independent learning environments

This case study explored the influence of the Virtual Independent Learning Centre on the preferred language learning strategies of adult immigrant English as a second language learners. Findings expand the understanding of English as a second language learners' use of language learning strategies within online independent learning environments.

The role of partners in shaping the body image and body change strategies of adult men : partners and male body image

The current study examined the relationship between perceived messages about the bodies of adult men from their sexual partners and the actual body image of these men. Interviews were conducted among 38 middle-aged men. Feedback from partners was generally complimentary, and the men were generally positive about their body image. Partners were seen to be more focused on a healthy body rather than a physically attractive body. The implications of these findings for better understanding the social influence on adult men to obtain a healthy body weight are discussed.

Long-term species, sexual and individual variations in foraging strategies of fur seals revealed by stable isotopes in whiskers

Background: Individual variations in the use of the species niche are an important component of diversity in trophic interactions. A challenge in testing consistency of individual foraging strategy is the repeated collection of information on the same individuals.

Methodology/Principal Findings: The foraging strategies of sympatric fur seals (Arctocephalus gazella and A. tropicalis) were examined using the stable isotope signature of serially sampled whiskers. Most whiskers exhibited synchronous delta C-13 and delta N-15 oscillations that correspond to the seal annual movements over the long term (up to 8 years). delta C-13 and delta N-15 values were spread over large ranges, with differences between species, sexes and individuals. The main segregating mechanism operates at the spatial scale. Most seals favored foraging in subantarctic waters (where the Crozet Islands are located) where they fed on myctophids. However, A. gazella dispersed in the Antarctic Zone and A. tropicalis more in the subtropics. Gender differences in annual time budget shape the seal movements. Males that do not perform any parental care exhibited large isotopic oscillations reflecting broad annual migrations, while isotopic values of females confined to a limited foraging range during lactation exhibited smaller changes. Limited inter-individual isotopic variations occurred in female seals and in male A. tropicalis. In contrast, male A. gazella showed large inter-individual variations, with some males migrating repeatedly to high-Antarctic waters where they fed on krill, thus meaning that individual specialization occurred over years.

Conclusions/Significance: Whisker isotopic signature yields unique long-term information on individual behaviour that integrates the spatial, trophic and temporal dimensions of the ecological niche. The method allows depicting the entire realized niche of the species, including some of its less well-known components such as age-, sex-, individual- and migration-related changes. It highlights intrapopulation heterogeneity in foraging strategies that could have important implications for likely demographic responses to environmental variability.

On Operating Strategies of the Fuzzy Artmap Neural Network: A Comparative Study

In this paper, the effectiveness of three different operating strategies applied to the Fuzzy ARTMAP (FAM) neural network in pattern classification tasks is analyzed and compared. Three types of FAM, namely average FAM, voting FAM, and ordered FAM, are formed for experimentation. In average FAM, a pool of the FAM networks is trained using random sequences of input patterns, and the performance metrics from multiple networks are averaged. In voting FAM, predictions from a number of FAM networks are combined using the majority-voting scheme to reach a final output. In ordered FAM, a pre-processing procedure known as the ordering algorithm is employed to identify a fixed sequence of input patterns for training the FAM network. Three medical data sets are employed to evaluate the performances of these three types of FAM. The results are analyzed and compared with those from other learning systems. Bootstrapping has also been used to analyze and quantify the results statistically. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR].