Justine Dandy

Role of motivation, self‐efficacy and parent support in adolescent structured leisure activity participation

An increasing body of research supports the positive physical, social and psychological health benefits of adolescent involvement in structured out-of-school leisure activities. Analysis of data from 1280 12–17-year-old Western Australian metropolitan high school students, found that several factors were associated with adolescent involvement in structured leisure activities, including parent support of the activity (both active and passive), intrinsic motivation and self-efficacy. There were no significant gender differences in the rate of participation or hours spent participating in structured leisure activities overall. More female than male students, however, were involved in structured creative activities and male students spent significantly more time involved in structured physical group activities. Recommendations for supporting adolescent involvement in structured leisure activities are discussed.

Academic expectations of Australian students from Aboriginal, Asian and Anglo backgrounds: Perspectives of teachers, Trainee-teachers and students

There are ethnic group differences in academic achievement among Australian students, with Aboriginal students performing substantially below and Asian students above their peers. One factor that may contribute to these effects is societal stereotypes of Australian Asian and Aboriginal students, which may bias teachers’ evaluations and influence student outcomes. A questionnaire assessing academic expectancies for hypothetical students from different ethnic groups was administered to 55 experienced teachers and 144 training teachers. A measure of self-expectancies and group expectancies was administered to 516 school students. The findings revealed that Asian students were expected to perform better in mathematics and expend greater effort than Aboriginal and Anglo-Australian students. In turn, there were higher expectancies for mathematics performance for Anglo-Australian students compared with Aboriginal students. We discuss the potential implications of these stereotypes for students’ school achievement, particularly the risk that negative implicit stereotypes might result in these students being directed to special education.

The Refugee Experience of Social Cohesion in Australia: Exploring the Roles of Racism, Intercultural Contact, and the Media

In this article we examine factors that enhance or disrupt social cohesion for refugees in communities in Perth, Sydney, and Murray Bridge. The data, from 54 interviews and focus groups with 138 people, are drawn from a larger study using Jensons multidimensional framework of social cohesion. We found that racism, intercultural contact, and the media had multiple and interrelated effects on aspects of social cohesion such as belonging, participation, and inclusion. The findings demonstrate the utility of the multidimensional framework for understanding refugees’ settlement experiences and outcomes and highlight key areas for policy and practice in refugee resettlement in Australia.

Perceptions of pregnancy experiences when using a community-based antenatal service: A qualitative study of refugee and migrant women in Perth, Western Australia

BACKGROUND Equality of care in pregnancy is important for all women, however can be difficult for healthcare providers to achieve. It has been found that culturally and linguistically diverse women born overseas generally have lower satisfaction with pregnancy care than women born in the host country. AIM Using a phenomenological framework, and models of care as a conceptual framework, this study explored the perceptions of care experienced by refugees and migrant women of culturally and linguistically diverse backgrounds who had participated in a community-based antenatal programme specialising in maternity care of multicultural women. METHOD Informants were twelve women aged between 23 and 44 years of age; one woman was 33 weeks pregnant, other women had given birth in the six months prior to data collection. Semi-structured interviews were conducted, using interpreters for women who spoke little or no English. Data were analysed using thematic analysis. FINDINGS Four main themes were identified; Social Support, Gaining of Knowledge, A Holistic Service, and New Opportunities. CONCLUSION Using a community-based antenatal service specialising in maternity care of women from culturally and linguistically diverse backgrounds enabled the needs of refugee and migrant women to be recognised and met, and therefore enhanced their perception of the pregnancy experience.