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Article
Publication date: 2 December 2014

David William Best, Gerard Byrne, David Pullen, Jacqui Kelly, Karen Elliot and Michael Savic

The purpose of this paper is to test the feasibility of utilising an Asset-Based Community Development (ABCD) model in the context of an Alcohol and Other Drug Therapeutic…

Abstract

Purpose

The purpose of this paper is to test the feasibility of utilising an Asset-Based Community Development (ABCD) model in the context of an Alcohol and Other Drug Therapeutic Community, and to use this as a way of assessing how TCs can contribute to the local communities in which they are sited.

Design/methodology/approach

This is a qualitative action research project, based on an evolving model in which key stakeholders from participating sites were instrumental in shaping processes and activities, that is a partnership between a research centre, Turning Point in Melbourne, Australia and two Recovery Services operated by the Salvation Army Australia Eastern Territory (TSA). One of these is the Dooralong Transformation Centre on the Central Coast of New South Wales and the other, Fairhaven, is in the Gold Coast hinterland of Queensland, Australia. The project was designed to create “rehabilitation without walls” by building bridges between the treatment centres and the communities they are based in, and improving participation in local community life. This was done through a series of structured workshops that mapped community asset networks and planned further community engagement activities.

Findings

Both of the TCs already had strong connections in their local areas including but not restricted to involvement with the mutual aid fellowships. Staff, residents and ex-residents still in contact with the service were strongly committed to community engagement and were able to identify a wide range of connections in the community and to build these around existing Salvation Army connections and networks.

Research limitations/implications

This is a pilot study with limited research findings and no assessment of the generalisability of this method to other settings or TCs.

Practical implications

Both TCs are able to act as “community resources” through which residents and ex-residents are able to give back to their local communities and develop the social and community capital that can prepare them for reintegration and can positively contribute to the experience of living in the local community.

Social implications

This paper has significant ramifications for how TCs engage with their local communities both as a mechanism for supporting resident re-entry and also to challenge stigma and discrimination.

Originality/value

The paper and project extend the idea of ABCD to a Reciprocal Community Development model in which TCs can act as active participants in their lived communities and by doing so can create a “therapeutic landscape for recovery”.

Details

Therapeutic Communities: The International Journal of Therapeutic Communities, vol. 35 no. 4
Type: Research Article
ISSN: 0964-1866

Keywords

Article
Publication date: 5 February 2018

Jan Wright, Gabrielle O’Flynn and Rosie Welch

Health education still tends to be dominated by an approach designed to achieve individual behaviour change through the provision of knowledge to avoid risk. In contrast, a…

2443

Abstract

Purpose

Health education still tends to be dominated by an approach designed to achieve individual behaviour change through the provision of knowledge to avoid risk. In contrast, a critical inquiry approach educates children and young people to develop their capacity to engage critically with knowledge, through reasoning, problem solving and challenging taken for granted assumptions, including the socially critical approach which investigates the impact of social and economic inequalities on, for example, health status and cultural understandings. The purpose of this paper is to explore the conditions of possibility for a socially critical approach to health education in schools. It examines the ways in which preservice health and physical education (HPE) teachers talked about their experiences of health education during their school-based practicum.

Design/methodology/approach

In total, 13 preservice HPE teachers who were about to graduate with a Bachelor of Health and Physical Education from a university in New South Wales, Australia were interviewed for the study. Five group interviews and one individual interview were conducted. The interviews were coded for themes and interpreted drawing on a biopedagogical theoretical framework as a way of understanding the salience of particular forms of knowledge in health education, how these are promoted and with what effects for how living healthily is understood.

Findings

The HPETE students talked with some certainty about the purpose of health education as a means to improve the health of young people – a certainty afforded by a medico-scientific view of health imbued with individualised, risk discourses. This purpose was seen as being achieved through using pedagogies, particularly those involving technology, that produced learning activities that were “engaging” and “relevant” for young people. Largely absent from their talk was evidence that they valued or practiced a socially critical approach to health education.

Practical implications

This paper has practical implications for designing health education teacher programmes that are responsive to expectations that contemporary school health education curricula employ a critical inquiry approach.

Originality/value

This paper addresses an empirical gap in the literature on the conditions of possibility for a socially critical approach to health education. It is proposed that rather than challenging HPE preservice teachers’ desires to improve the lives of young people, teacher educators need to work more explicitly within an educative approach that considers social contexts, health inequalities and the limitations of a behaviour change model.

Details

Health Education, vol. 118 no. 2
Type: Research Article
ISSN: 0965-4283

Keywords

Abstract

Details

Mental Health Review Journal, vol. 11 no. 4
Type: Research Article
ISSN: 1361-9322

Article
Publication date: 7 August 2023

Jacqui Cameron, Steven W. Bothwell, Ken Pidd and Nicole Lee

Risky alcohol use can reduce productivity at work and impact employees’ mental health and wellbeing. Several risk factors converge in male-dominated industries, which can increase…

Abstract

Purpose

Risky alcohol use can reduce productivity at work and impact employees’ mental health and wellbeing. Several risk factors converge in male-dominated industries, which can increase risky drinking and deteriorate mental health. This paper aims to explore the prevalence of risky drinking and psychological distress in a male-dominated industry compared with that in the general population.

Design/methodology/approach

Data were collected from four manufacturing sites in Australia. In total, 450 workers were invited to participate in a survey that measured drinking behaviours using AUDIT-C and psychological distress using the K10, along with demographics including age, gender, job role and ethnicity. The observed outcome measures were compared with general population data available through publicly available data sets.

Findings

Surveys were returned by 341 employees, of which 319 completed AUDIT-C. AUDIT-C and K10 scores were significantly correlated (R = 0.31, p < 0.0001). Hazardous drinking was more prevalent among workers than in Australian general population (66.1% vs 23.6%). Binge drinking was greater among workers than in the general population (25.4% vs 26.5%). The difference was higher among female workers than among male workers (35.1% vs 10.8%).

Originality/value

The findings of this study show a significantly greater risk of alcohol-related harm among workers in male-dominated industries compared with that in the general population. This risk is more pronounced among women, who also experienced greater rates of moderate and high psychological distress compared with those experienced by the general population. A fitness-for-work approach is proposed to minimise alcohol-related harm among workers in male-dominated industries. Moreover, male-dominated industries are proposed to consider the interconnectivity of other workplace health and safety factors.

Details

Advances in Dual Diagnosis, vol. 16 no. 3
Type: Research Article
ISSN: 1757-0972

Keywords

Article
Publication date: 12 September 2016

Gail Kinman, Andrew James Clements and Jacqui Hart

The purpose of this paper is to examine the well-being of UK prison officers by utilising a benchmarking approach.

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Abstract

Purpose

The purpose of this paper is to examine the well-being of UK prison officers by utilising a benchmarking approach.

Design/methodology/approach

The Health and Safety Executive (HSE) Stress Indicator Tool is widely used in the UK to assess key psychosocial hazards in the workplace encompassing demands, control, support from managers and co-workers, relationship quality, role and change management. This study utilises this approach to examine the extent to which a sample of UK prison officers meets the HSE recommended minimum standards for the management of work-related well-being. Levels of mental health and job satisfaction in the sector are also assessed using measures with extensive occupational norms. The psychosocial hazards that make the strongest contribution to mental health and job satisfaction are also considered.

Findings

Respondents reported lower levels of well-being for all of the hazard categories than recommended. Moreover, mental health and job satisfaction were considerably poorer among prison officers than other occupational groups within the emergency and security services in the UK. Considerable variation was found in the psychosocial hazards that predicted mental health and job satisfaction.

Practical implications

The high levels of stressors and strains experienced by UK prison officers gives serious cause for concern. Priority areas for interventions to enhance well-being in the sector are considered and areas for future research discussed.

Originality/value

This study highlights the wide-ranging benefits of a benchmarking approach to investigate work-related stressors and strains at the sector level.

Details

International Journal of Workplace Health Management, vol. 9 no. 3
Type: Research Article
ISSN: 1753-8351

Keywords

Article
Publication date: 1 April 2010

Sandra C Jones

Alcohol sponsorship of sport is common in Australia, with much debate about the appropriateness of linking sport with alcohol advertising and promotion. This paper provides…

2403

Abstract

Alcohol sponsorship of sport is common in Australia, with much debate about the appropriateness of linking sport with alcohol advertising and promotion. This paper provides examples of such sponsorships to appreciate the extent and nature of the complex relationship between sport and alcohol sponsors. The public health and policy implications of alcohol sponsorship of sport extending to creating a sporting competition purely to promote an alcohol brand are considered.

Details

International Journal of Sports Marketing and Sponsorship, vol. 11 no. 3
Type: Research Article
ISSN: 1464-6668

Keywords

Article
Publication date: 8 February 2016

Diana Clayton

This paper aims to explore how and why volunteers share knowledge and engage in other related knowledge activities. The paper offers an interpretation of participants’ multiple…

2095

Abstract

Purpose

This paper aims to explore how and why volunteers share knowledge and engage in other related knowledge activities. The paper offers an interpretation of participants’ multiple realities to enable a better understanding of managing volunteer knowledge, which ultimately underpins organisational performance and effectiveness.

Design/methodology/approach

A qualitative, hermeneutic phenomenological study of volunteers (n = 28) at UK music festivals was conducted through in-depth interviews (n = 9), diaries (n = 11) or both (n = 8). This interpretivist approach adopted purposive sampling to recruit participants through (social) media.

Findings

The findings illustrate how and why volunteers share knowledge that is attributed to a successful process of volunteering, which enables effective knowledge management and knowledge reproduction. Where volunteers’ motivations are satisfied, this leads to repeat volunteering. Knowledge enablers and the removal of barriers create conditions that are conducive for knowledge sharing, which have similar characteristics to conditions for continuance commitment. Where volunteers do not return, the organisation leaks knowledge.

Research limitations/implications

Although high-quality research standards were maintained, participant self-selection may result in overly positive experiences. Future research might explore the impact on knowledge sharing of negative volunteering experiences.

Practical/implications

Practical recommendations include factors that contribute to effective volunteer co-ordination and volunteering experiences, which are enablers for knowledge sharing. These fall within two categories, namely, areas for continuance (i.e. those aspects that should be maintained because they contribute to effective volunteer co- ordination and experiences) and areas for improvement (i.e. those aspects of volunteer co-ordination that are either currently lacking or require development or enhancement).

Originality/value

This paper’s original contribution is demonstrated through the use of hermeneutic phenomenological methods in the exploration of individuals’ perspectives of knowledge sharing in the context of temporary organisations. This paper provides value to academics studying knowledge management and volunteer management, and practitioners managing volunteers.

Details

Journal of Knowledge Management, vol. 20 no. 1
Type: Research Article
ISSN: 1367-3270

Keywords

Article
Publication date: 1 January 1985

Since the first Volume of this Bibliography there has been an explosion of literature in all the main areas of business. The researcher and librarian have to be able to uncover…

16649

Abstract

Since the first Volume of this Bibliography there has been an explosion of literature in all the main areas of business. The researcher and librarian have to be able to uncover specific articles devoted to certain topics. This Bibliography is designed to help. Volume III, in addition to the annotated list of articles as the two previous volumes, contains further features to help the reader. Each entry within has been indexed according to the Fifth Edition of the SCIMP/SCAMP Thesaurus and thus provides a full subject index to facilitate rapid information retrieval. Each article has its own unique number and this is used in both the subject and author index. The first Volume of the Bibliography covered seven journals published by MCB University Press. This Volume now indexes 25 journals, indicating the greater depth, coverage and expansion of the subject areas concerned.

Details

Management Decision, vol. 23 no. 1
Type: Research Article
ISSN: 0025-1747

Keywords

Article
Publication date: 17 November 2011

Nicole K. Lee, Jacqui Cameron, Angela Harney and Sandra Roeg

Dissemination of good practice information to practitioners is one of the great challenges of the substance abuse treatment sector. The authors' understanding of the process by…

276

Abstract

Purpose

Dissemination of good practice information to practitioners is one of the great challenges of the substance abuse treatment sector. The authors' understanding of the process by which research is translated is limited, but a whole of workforce approach is considered best practice. This paper aims to examine organisational change as a result of a workforce capacity‐building program over six months.

Design/methodology/approach

A total of 195 staff (nine service managers, 39 supervisors and 147 clinicians) in 13 alcohol and other drug (AOD) services across Australia participated in mental health screening and brief intervention training using PsyCheck. PsyCheck is designed to detect and address common mental health symptoms among drug treatment clients. The Dual Diagnosis Capability in Addiction Treatment (DDCAT) index was used to measure capacity before and after training.

Findings

There was no significant difference between baseline and follow‐up DDCAT scores; however, the level of PsyCheck implementation indicated improvement in DDCAT scores.

Practical implications

The results show that where organisations implement the program successfully, capacity improves; where the program is not well implemented, capacity reduces. Successful implementers report a number of common elements: the screening tool was implemented into routine assessment; there was a single onsite “champion” supporting the implementation; and they worked with the staff and persisted with the implementation even where there was initial worker resistance.

Originality/value

This paper provides the opportunity to assess workforce capacity building and the feasibility of utilising the DCCAT to measure co‐occurring mental health and substance use disorders in Australian AOD services.

Details

Advances in Dual Diagnosis, vol. 4 no. 4
Type: Research Article
ISSN: 1757-0972

Keywords

Article
Publication date: 10 December 2020

William Wingard Mude, Christopher M. Fisher, Roslyn Le Gautier, Jack Wallace and Jacqueline A. Richmond

South Sudanese people form the largest number of resettled refugees in Australia between 2003 and 2004. This study aims to explore how this community understands and responds to…

Abstract

Purpose

South Sudanese people form the largest number of resettled refugees in Australia between 2003 and 2004. This study aims to explore how this community understands and responds to health and illness. No study has specifically examined the concept of health and illness in the broader socio-cultural context of the South Sudanese people in Australia.

Design/methodology/approach

The design was a qualitative study using interviews and focus group discussions with 33 South Sudanese people in Adelaide, South Australia. Participants were asked to reflect on their understanding of health and illness and influences on their access and use of health and other services. Data were electronically audio-recorded, transcribed verbatim and analysed thematically.

Findings

Three main themes emerged from the analysis demonstrating complex and multifaceted views on health and illness. Participants described health as both a lack of disease and wider issues involving social belonging and participation, cultural well-being, living conditions and harmony in the society. They revealed that illnesses are predetermined by God or caused by a curse, breaking a cultural taboo, disharmony with the environment, community and ancestral spirits. Participants deeply tied their beliefs about illness causation and treatment to their historical, social and cultural lived realities, shaping their responses and health-care-seeking decisions.

Originality/value

The current study revealed a complex understanding of health and health-care-seeking practices amongst South Sudanese Australians. The multifaceted views of health and health-care-seeking practices underscore the importance of person-centred care for culturally and linguistically diverse people.

Details

International Journal of Migration, Health and Social Care, vol. 16 no. 4
Type: Research Article
ISSN: 1747-9894

Keywords

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