Search

Copyright of Urban Policy & Research is the property of Routledge and its content may not be copied or emailed to multiple sites or posted to a listserv without the copyright holder's express written permission. However, users may print, download, or email articles for individual use. This abstract may be abridged. No warranty is given about the accuracy of the copy. Users should refer to the original published version of the material for the full abstract. (Copyright applies to all Abstracts.)

When researching with or about families in home-based research, there are numerous unexpected ethical issues that can emerge, particularly in qualitative research. This paper is based on reflective accounts of four homed-based research projects, two in the UK and two Australia, which examined ethical dilemmas identified when engaged in home-based research with young children. Using a synergy of ecocultural theory and Foucauldian ideas of Heterotopia as theoretical conceptualisations, the authors employed reflective lenses to guide their approach, and examine dilemmas and complexities when conducting research in the home. We argue that, to address ethical dilemmas, researchers need to problematise and reflect upon the nature of respectful approaches and the ethical implications of their behaviours. We conclude that, although ethical codes are valuable when researching families at home, researchers should plan for and forefront their methodological approaches in ways that are family-centred, whilst also framed by practices that are ethical, respectful and reflective to the situated contexts of family's ecologies and heterotopias. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This article summarises Australian research into separated and divorced fathering. It attempts to take stock of what is known in order to identify research gaps for the development of a forward-looking research agenda. My hope is that the piece will encourage more considered empirical attention to postseparation fathering. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Widespread social changes over the last half century have been reflected in changes in family forms. These changes have resulted in increased family diversity which, in turn, is reflected in the more diverse living arrangements experienced by children as they grow up. This paper is the first to provide reliable national estimates of the extent to which the living arrangements of Australian children have changed. Using relationship and fertility histories from the nationally representative Household, Income and Labour Dynamics in Australia household panel survey (HILDA), the analysis describes the changing patterns of living arrangements of 12,441 children between 1946-2001. Its methodology allows the examination of the different living arrangements experienced by children during the first 15 years of life and avoids the static analysis that relies on point-in-time estimates. Furthermore, unlike analysis that relies on official birth and divorce statistics, the present analysis is able to identify family changes experienced by children as a result of parental separation. Thus, it takes into account transitions related to parental cohabitation as well as marriage. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper describes the diversity of family forms within a sample of 455 families parented by same-sex couples and same-sex attracted sole parents from Australia and New Zealand. Around one-third of this sample had conceived at least one of their children while in a previous heterosexual relationship. The remaining two-thirds had conceived at least one child within a same-sex relationship or while they were single. Among this group, the largest proportion was women who conceived using home-based self-insemination with a known donor. A smaller proportion of women had conceived through clinic-based insemination or assisted reproduction with a known or unknown donor. There were 60 male participants in the sample. Around 20% of these men were raising children they had conceived through a surrogacy arrangement; the rest had conceived their children within previous heterosexual relationships or through donor arrangements with single women or lesbians. Around 50% of participants described their family form in terms of a two-parent model, where they and their partner were their children's only parents. Around 34% were sharing care of their children with ex-partners, either a previous heterosexual (opposite sex) partner or a previous same-sex partner. Around 10% described themself as their child's sole parent. In large part, participants in this study were not creating radically new family formations, with around half of all participants describing their family in terms of a two-parent 'nuclear' model, albeit a model involving parents of the same gender. However, pathways to conception and/or parenthood did reflect nontraditional patterns. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The author proposes that a new definition of household, called extended family household, be added to the Australia Bureau of Statistics (ABS) to encompass the complex familial structures of indigenous societies. The nuclear family structure, which is considered a starting point by the ABS, is not a natural outcome of aboriginal Australian kinship systems. The paper focuses on the complexity of cultural translation involved in evaluating the data from the ABS Indigenous Enumeration Strategy and uses case studies to analyze responses.

Drawing on my involvement as an academic in the campaign that resulted in the introduction of paid parental leave in Australia in 2010, I describe what is involved if academics choose to be activists, the dilemmas which are encountered and the barriers which may be put in their way. I also consider the career tensions academics may experience when participating in the public sphere. My experience in advocating for improving policies relating to women and work shows that while managing the tensions can be difficult, academics may find additional intrinsic reward and make a significant impact if they take an active role in translating their research into public policy. In 2020, the COVID-19 experience highlights, more than ever, the need for academics to provide their expertise in community, work and family research to inform better policy and practice. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This article presents various family research reports from Australia. The Australian Divorce Transitions Project examines the superannuation assets of divorcing couples. The paper concentrates in particular on the growing importance of superannuation as a component of family wealth,the uneven distribution of superannuation entitlements between men and women, and the limits to the powers of the Family Court in dealing directly with superannuation assets. The paper reports findings from the Australian Divorce Transitions Project: data concerning the incidence of superannuation amongst the couples surveyed; how much couples knew about their own and their partner's superannuation; the absolute and relative importance of superannuation as a family asset and the way in which superannuation was taken into account, if at all, on divorce. Working Paper No.19 examines meanings and expectations of family life and support for people aged 50 to 70, focusing on social relations between generations. Age cohorts and family life stage are not synchronous, so this age group represents a broad range of family and personal change, with conflicting roles and priori- ties in accommodating needs of both younger and older generation family members.

This article presents abstracts of research papers, government policy and practice literature on family and social issues in Australia. To mark the International Year of Older Persons this bibliography provides an overview of research dealing with families and older people. The main purpose of "Interim Report: Prepared for the Minister for Family Services," is to provide a summary of the work undertaken to date by the Conference for Older Australians in preparing for the 1999 International Year of Older Persons. A number of key themes and issues important to older people have been suggested as priority areas for consideration during the International Year. According to "Valuing Older Australians: Federal Budget Submission 1999-2000," the Council on the Ageing has responded to the 1999 International Year of Older Persons by publishing this submission to the federal government for the 1999-2000 budget. The Council on the Ageing has prepared this year's Commonwealth Budget submission from the point of view that there is a crisis of confidence amongst older people.

The article provides updates on "Growing Up in Australia: The Longitudinal Study of Australian Children (LSAC)." The third round of interviews for LSAC have been underway for most of 2008. Meanwhile, the paper "How Important is Marriage to Australians' Health, Wealth and Happiness?" has been presented by Linda Bencic. Furthermore, a paper on "Determining the Effects of Housing Costs on the Well-Being of Australian Families" has been presented by Sebastian Misson.

The article focuses on the home page of the Australian Institute of Family Studies which is now accessible via the World Wide Web. Like most Web sites, the Institute's Home Page will be an ongoing project and a means of reporting on the Institute's activities, of disseminating information from its databases and resource collections, and promoting the development of networks with other organisations concerned with family research and policy. The inaugural March 1996 version offers information about the Institute, the Institute's research program, information services and projects. Plans for the addition of new items in the next financial year include access to the Institute's library catalogue, to selected abstracts from the Australian Family and Society Abstracts database, and to databases and full text documents from the National Child Protection Clearing House. The full text of selected Institute publications and papers will also be made available, for example, the papers from the Institute's forthcoming Australian Family Research Conference.

The article presents information about recently published books related to family. The book "Social Capital and Public Policy in Australia," edited by Ian Winter, offers a number of different routes into discussions on core questions about community by drawing together contributions from authors who write from a diversity of professional experiences, academic disciplines and political positions. Chapters provide insights into the origins of the concept of social capital in classical economics, sociology and political philosophy. They illustrate the practice of social capital in different arenas, and they examine how social capital relates to public policy, including health, education and social welfare. "Family Panel Survey Update," a new briefing paper outlines some of the design proposals that have been developed for the Australian Family Panel Survey. The survey represents a major research undertaking by the Australian institute of Family Studies that will help the Institute meet its principal task of identifying and understanding factors affecting the stability and well being of Australian families.

The article features the Australian Institute of Family Studies web site on various worldwide family research and family policy resources. Australia is one of the top ten countries for Internet use, making the World Wide Web an effective medium to disseminate research and policy information on Australian family issues. There are a number of new features on the Australian institute of Family Studies Web site--all part of this year's planned improvements and new developments. A new page to record presentations and conference papers by Institute staff gives a more informal view of the Institute's research activity before published reports are available. The Family Court site has an extensive collection of information for clients, lawyers and students of family law.

This article identifies various worldwide family research web sites. The Australian Institute of Family Studies' web site continues to grow to the extent that a review, redesign and revamp of its structure have been underway over the last few months. All pages now have a consistent look with navigational headers and footers and colour coding for key areas to assist movement between main pages such as Research, Information, Publications and Conferences. They have introduced a Media Releases page that records formal media releases to the press. The Institute's Publications page has been redesigned for easier use. The main page now lists all publications in chronological order, with the most recent first, and whether the title is available in hard copy or online. The Institute's Australian Family & Society Abstracts data base, which records the literature of family and social issues in Australia via citations and abstracts, now offers direct access to many documents available in full text on the World Wide Web. For example, Institute publications, many government documents, conference papers and journal articles. When an online document is available, an active Internet link will appear after the citation leading database users directly to the online document. INSET: Adolescent relationships and wellbeing study.

This article presents information on contemporary developments that matter to families. Compiled from reports provided by a panel of corresponding consultants with expertise in the many dimensions of family research and policy making, the article provides a snapshot of family research and policy issues from a range of research perspectives and geographic locations around Australia. Research on indigenous families is a mainstay of work at the Centre for Aboriginal Economic Policy Research, Canberra, Australia. Using census analysis and ethnographic techniques, a series of recent working papers on the economic status of indigenous households and families has clearly illustrated the continuing socio-economic disadvantage of indigenous sole-parent families. Furthermore, the income poverty among indigenous families with children, in 1991, is such that nearly half of all indigenous children, compared to around 18 per cent of other families, were in families with incomes below the poverty line. INSET: Family matters corresponding consultants..

The aim of this study is to examine the strategies majority language-speaking parents use to support the development of the minority language in families who follow the pattern of exposure known as one-parent-one-language (OPOL). In this particular pattern of raising a child bilingually, each parent speaks only their own native language to their children. Previous studies concerned with language development in children raised under the OPOL pattern primarily focused on how input from the minority language-speaking parent affects minority language development, leaving the role of the majority language-speaking parent largely unexplored. To address this gap, a case study was carried out on three families in Brisbane, Australia, who reported following the OPOL pattern. Video and audio recordings were taken, along with interviews using an elicited recall task based on the recordings to gather data on the families' language practices and motivations. The results of the qualitative analysis suggest that, in these families, the majority language-speaking parent plays an important role that extends beyond the provision of input in the majority language and may contribute to fostering minority language development and maintenance. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Wildlife tourism experiences are often promoted for their ability to enhance visitors' conservation knowledge, attitudes and behaviour; yet, studies exploring the long-term influence of such experiences are rare. This research explores the impact of a wildlife tourism experience and post-visit support on families' adoption of conservation practices following their visit. In Stage 1, barriers and benefits associated with six conservation practices were identified and incorporated into the design of post-visit action resources. Two hundred Australian families visiting Mon Repos turtle rookery in Queensland, Australia, were assigned to either a treatment group (given post-visit support) or a control group (no support). Three months after their visit, families in the treatment group were significantly more likely to report changes in their conservation knowledge; their attitudes towards protecting wildlife and the natural environment; and the frequency with which they picked up litter. Treatment families also adopted significantly more conservation practices than the control group. Implications for wildlife interpretive practice and visitor management at wildlife tourism sites are discussed. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This article is based on a recently completed study of fertility decision-making in Victoria, Australia. Drawing on semi-structured interviews with 100 women, it explores how dominant discourses of mothering influence women in their life decisions about children. While much research indicates that all women negotiate dominant ideals of good mothering, our findings suggest that such stereotypes need to be further broken down, since women with and without children respond to different aspects of such ideals. For women who have children, images of the 'good mother' are less prevalent than pragmatic concerns about how to manage mothering Women without children, in contrast, understand mothering as all-encompassing and potentially overwhelming These findings suggest that Australian women share ideals and assumptions about mothering with their counterparts in the United Kingdom and the United States, but they also point to an increasing gap between how mothering is viewed and how it is practised. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The Australian Twin Registry (ATR) has, since the late 1970s, enrolled more than 30,000 pairs of all zygosity types and ages willing to consider participation in approved research studies. Its core functions are the recruitment to, and maintenance of, an up-to-date database containing contact details and baseline information, and the management of fair and equitable access so as to enhance medical and scientific research. The ATR has facilitated more than 430 studies producing 525 peer-reviewed publications using a variety of designs including classic biometrical twin and twin family studies, co-twin control studies, intervention studies, longitudinal studies, and studies of issues relevant specifically to twins. The ATR is supported for 2004 to 2009 by an Australian National Health and Medical Research Council (NHMRC) Enabling Grant, a new form of funding which recognizes the importance of long-term support for shared national resources. New initiatives include: integration with the Western Australian Twin Child Health (WATCH) cohort and the new Western Australian Twin Registry (WATR); foundation of a cohort of mothers and their twin children recruited from the time of diagnosis of the multiple gestation (match); a national Twins Festival run in collaboration with the Australian Multiple Birth Association (AMBA); promotion of the ATR at medical conferences; and fostering an active network of researchers from a range of disciplines and providing financial support for new researchers to attend international twin research workshops. Consistent with its mission statement, the long-term goal of the ATR is to make twin studies a standard component of medical and scientific research. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The article discusses several developments concerning the Australian Institute of Family Studies. The institute invites registrations from people wishing to attend the sixth Australian Institute of Family Studies Conference, to be held at the Carlton Crest Hotel in Melbourne from November 25-27,1998. The conference will provide a valuable forum for those interested or involved in family research, the development of family policy, or providing services to families in Australia. The conference will focus on family issues in Australia and feature the presentation and discussion of findings of the Institute's own studies, along with work from other researchers, government bodies, service providers and community organizations. It reports that over 150 presentations will be made during the course of the conference. The conference will include keynote addresses, papers, symposia, display and discussion poster presentations, and workshops. All have been grouped into the following broad themes. The article also presents information on family values and family relations, effects of divorce on family members, demographic change, life courses and family futures, and others.

From Australian data an investigation is made of the ages at which children leave home, and the socioeconomic and demographic variables which influence these. Particular emphasis is given to the differences in experience between sons and daughters, and between children who leave home for marriage and those who leave for other reasons. Overall, daughters leave home when about two years younger than sons, and a higher proportion of daughters leave home for marriage than for other reasons compared with sons. For each sex, the average age at leaving home is youngest when the reason for leaving is education or a job, and oldest when the reason is marriage. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]