Restoring Meaning to Supervision Through a Peer Consultation Group in Rural Australia

The establishment of a cross-discipline peer consultation group in regional Australia is described. A research project, which explored the impact of the peer consultation on participants, using pre-group and post-group evaluation surveys along with data from an externally facilitated group evaluation session is discussed. Key findings reveal the value of access to varied modes of supervision; the importance of supervision not feeling like being subjected to surveillance; and the contribution that positive experiences of peer consultation have for our participants' well-being. The potential for improved connection and mutual benefits for practice and academia in sponsorship of professional peer consultation by regional universities also emerges from this research. The effectiveness of contemporary workplace counselling supervision arrangements, and of what, precisely, the enjoyment of engaging in case discussions in peer consultation groups is constituted are areas for more exploration.     

Romantic Relationships and Criminal Desistance: Pathways and Processes

In dominant theories of criminal desistance, marital relationship formation is understood to be a key “turning point” away from deviant behavior. Empirical studies supporting this claim have largely focused on the positive role of marriage in men's desistance from crime, and relatively few studies have examined the role that nonmarital relationships may play in desistance. Drawing on 138 longitudinal in‐depth interviews with 22 men and women reentering society from prison, this article extends the scope of desistance research by additionally considering the significance of more fleeting and fluid relationships, and the diverse processes through which romantic relationships of all sorts are linked with criminal behaviors. We present an empirically based typology detailing six processes, grouped within three conceptual categories, through which romantic relationships had their effects. These pathways include material circumstances, social bonds and interactions, and emotional supports and stressors. We also consider gender differences in these processes. While more tenuous bonds to marginally conventional partners would seem to exert little effect, as one of the few relationships and social roles available to many former prisoners, we found that they wielded important influence, if not always in a positive direction.     

From Health Crisis to Rights Advocacy? HIV/AIDS and Gay Activism in China and Singapore

The relationship between HIV/AIDS and gay activism has been primarily informed by the American experience and understudied in nondemocratic contexts. Drawing upon qualitative research on China and Singapore, we refine understanding of HIV/AIDS’ influence on the development of gay activism under authoritarian conditions, by examining the processes through which activist organizations interact with laws and regulations, political norms, HIV/AIDS funding, and government responses to both HIV/AIDS and collective organizing. We show how HIV/AIDS’ influence plays out in multiple patterns, depending on the strategic responses that gay activists select from a constrained range of options to shape their organizations’ destinies. Therefore, we provide insights for development agencies and international donors into whether and how international assistance intended to encourage activism and wider social change are mediated by political and legal controls on local activism.     

The Nonprofit Catallaxy: An Austrian Economics Perspective on the Nonprofit Sector

This paper examines the nonprofit sector from the perspective of the Austrian school of economic thought. In contrast to the traditional market failure approach, the Austrian school locates the role of the nonprofit sector in the facilitation of the spontaneous order and the utilization of local dispersed knowledge about the societal needs through a Hayekian “discovery procedure.” Another contribution of the Austrian school is in calling attention to the “calculation challenge” faced by the nonprofit sector, i.e., the reduced role of monetary signals as the informational basis for decision making. The calculation challenge brings up the important issue of societal feedback mechanisms operating in the nonprofit sector. It is shown that, in the nonprofit sector context, this challenge takes the form of the accountability problem.     

‘Just kids playing sport (in a chair)’: experiences of children,families and stakeholders attending a wheelchair sports club

Children who use wheelchairs have few opportunities to play sport with their able-bodied peers and siblings. This appreciative, qualitative study explored the experiences of children, families and stakeholders at a wheelchair sports club. Participant observation, research activities, focus groups and interviews were used. Sixty-three people participated (37 children, 14 stakeholders, 10 parents, two older siblings). Thematic analysis identified one unifying theme (realising potential) and four main themes: invisibility of disability; ambivalence and attraction of the chair; fun and fellowship; and thrills and skills. The Cheetahs created opportunities for meaningful participation in wheelchair sports for children with and without disabilities.     

Unanticipated ethical issues in a participatory research project with individuals with intellectual disability

The conduct of a participatory research investigation into the everyday literacy of adults with intellectual disability within the context of a PhD thesis highlighted issues related to the ethics of participatory research and the need to revisit and reconsider ethical guidelines around working with individuals with intellectual disability. Tensions were identified between participatory research ideology and the reality of research experiences, with additional issues arising due to disability in the first author.