Impact of perceived second-hand consequences related to alcohol use on college students' drinking behavior intent: a test of feasibility

This article presents the results of an experiment designed to determine the impact of a group discussion about second-hand consequences of alcohol use on college students' intentions to consume alcohol. Participants were students enrolled in two large Community Health courses at a large Midwestern university (n = 184). After randomization of class sections into an intervention or a control group, intervention group students participated in a class discussion on the negative consequences college students experience as a result of other students' drinking behavior, prior to answering survey questions regarding their drinking behavior intent. Compared to controls who completed the questionnaire only, intervention group participants reported intent to limit themselves to fewer drinks per drinking occasion (p = .003) and fewer drinks per week (p = .004). The effects of the brief educational intervention were analyzed using structural equation modeling, to test the feasibility of a hypothesized intervention mechanism.     

Machine gaming in Sydney clubs: characteristics of the supporting resident populations

This research provided background for surveys and interviews in later stages of a 3 part project. It aimed to identify, from secondary research, sociodemographic characteristics which tend to support registered clubs and their machine gaming activities in the Sydney Statistical Division. Using multiple methods including Pearson's Product Moment correlation, Principal Components factor analysis, and stepwise regression, the study profiled Sydney populations which spend highly on gaming machines. The most important sociodemographic predictors of Sydney statistical local areas where per capita gaming machine expenditure is high are large proportions of the adult resident population who were born in Malta, Greece, Lebanon, China, Italy, Vietnam, Yugoslavia, India or the Philippines; have no vocational or tertiary qualifications; or are unemployed.     

Examining the effectiveness of health and safety committees and representatives: a review

The establishment of a health and safety committee in the workplace and/or the appointment of an elected health and safety representative is believed to foster employee participation and consultation in the workplace. Despite an emphasis within the Australian occupational health and safety legislation towards employee participation in relation to health and safety issues, there is little known about the effectiveness of the strategies used to involve workers in health and safety matters in the workplace. There is anecdotal evidence published in relation to the implementation of health and safety committees and their effectiveness in the Australian workplace. Few opinions however are substantiated by empirical evidence. Significantly more research has been conducted on the role of health and safety representatives in Australia. This paper presents the findings of a review of the literature and identifies the factors that are considered to impact on the effectiveness of workplace health and safety committees and representatives. Several factors are described as being fundamental to the effective performance of committees and representatives. These factors include management commitment, communication, training and information, union involvement, the infrastructure of an organisation, committee processes and the involvement of professional experts. It is concluded that the effectiveness of health and safety committees in Australia is unexplored and it is unknown if these committees achieve the purpose for which they were established. Recommendations are made for future research to be conducted to test the current anecdotal evidence and assumptions associated with the operation and effectiveness of health and safety committees.     

Occupational stress as it relates to higher education,individuals and organizations

This study examined through survey research methodology the degree to which, faculty, administrators and program coordinators, working in higher education, experience stress at work. The Occupational Stress Indicator was used, composed of four compound factors: sources of occupational stress, individual characteristics, coping strategies and the effects of stress. Preliminary findings showed that occupational stress has a negative impact on the degree of satisfaction with their achievement, value and growth, being strongest with faculty and coordinators, (dissatisfaction with career opportunities, personal growth, skill utilization). Another significant outcome was the dissatisfaction of faculty with the organizational design, structure and processes (communication, change implementation, motivation, supervision style, participation in decision-making). All possess individual characteristics of the Type A Scale; they all considered major sources of pressure in their jobs to be their relationships with others, home/work interface, their need to achieve personal and corporate success. Occupational stress has affected their state of health.     

Can advising lead to meaningful relationships?

Schools have increasingly implemented advising programs as a means of linking students with caring adults. Although this approach is promising, its success depends on adequate funding; the full commitment of administration, staff, and parents; and a thoughtful definition of the procedures for achieving the goals.     

Empathy, intimacy, loneliness and locus of control in child sex offenders: a comparison between familial and non-familial child sexual offenders

There has been relatively little previous research examining differences between subgroups of child sex offenders. In this study, we compared a group of familial and non-familial child sex offenders attending a community based treatment program on a number of relationship dimensions thought to be important in explaining offending. No statistically significant differences were found between these groups on measures of general empathy, intimacy and loneliness, although non-familial offenders were found to have higher levels of cognitive empathy and a more internal locus of control than familial offenders. These findings are discussed in terms of their possible implications for service delivery.     

Blurring the lines for learning: the role of out-of-school programs as complements to formal learning

As debates continue over the effectiveness of after-school programs, we need to create stronger links between schools and out-of-school activities. Where do such connections begin? How can we integrate skill-building and academic competence into the out-of-school-time context?     

Effects of multicomponent training on functional fitness in older adults

The purpose of this study was to evaluate the effects of a 9-week supervised multicomponent exercise program on functional fitness and body composition in independent older adults. Forty-two adults age 60-86 years were randomly assigned to an exercise or a control group and were evaluated before and after training. The training program consisted of 3 sessions of walking, strengthening, and flexibility exercises per week. The multicomponent training program resulted in significant (p < .005) improvements on the chair stand, arm curl, 6-min walk, and up-and-go tests. The findings of this study indicate that a 9-week training program increased upper and lower body strength, aerobic endurance, and agility/dynamic balance in older adults. The most affected components of functional fitness were lower body strength and aerobic endurance. There was no effect of the 9-week training on body composition.     

The effect of 6 months training on leg power, balance, and functional mobility of independently living adults over 70 years old

Where strength training has been used in conjunction with functional-task training in older people, not only have there been improvements in leg strength but also improved function has been measured (e.g., Skelton & McLaughlin, 1996). Many studies use participants from care homes rather than community dwellers. We investigated changes in leg power, balance, and functional mobility in community-dwelling sedentary men and women over 70 years of age (n = 6 for training group [TR]; n = 10 for control group [CN]). Progressive training took place over 24 weeks using seated and nonseated exercise. For TR, leg power increased 40%, from 108 +/- 40 to 141 +/- 53 W (p < .01); dynamic balance increased 48%, from 22.3 +/- 7.9 to 33.1 +/- 6.1 cm (p < .01; functional reach); and functional mobility increased 12%, from 7.46 +/- 1.32 to 6.54 +/- 1.41 s (p < .05; timed walk). CN showed no significant change. In conclusion, a community-based exercise program led to large improvements in leg-extensor power, dynamic balance, and functional mobility.     

When caregiving ends: the course of depressive symptoms after bereavement

This study describes depressive symptoms among caregivers following bereavement and connects these trajectories to earlier features of caregiving using life course and stress process theory. Data are from a six-wave longitudinal survey (five years) of spouses and adult children caring for someone with Alzheimer's Disease. The analytic subsample (N = 291) is defined by death of the care-recipient after the baseline interview. A latent class mixture model is used to identify distinctive clusters of depressive symptoms over time. Of the four trajectories identified, three represent stable symptom levels over time, with two-thirds being repeatedly symptomatic (medium symptom levels), compared to two smaller groups of repeatedly asymptomatic (effectively absent of symptoms) and repeatedly distressed (severe symptoms). In contrast, about one in five caregivers experiences improved emotional well-being over time, the temporarily distressed, who progress from severe to moderate symptom levels. Caregivers with few symptoms before bereavement tend to maintain these states afterwards, but emotionally distressed caregivers tend to become more distressed. Role overload before bereavement substantially increases the odds of following an unfavorable trajectory afterwards, whereas self-esteem and socioemotional support play protective roles. These results demonstrate that caregivers are not uniform in their emotional responses to bereavement, but follow several distinct trajectories. These trajectories are linked to their previous experiences as caregivers, in particular exposure to stressors and access to resources. These findings suggest that intervention during caregiving may facilitate adaptation following death of a loved one.