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Although much has been written on the first-year experience of students at higher education institutions, less attention has been directed to the expectations of students when they enter an institution for the first time. This paper provides additional insights into the expectations of students at an Australian university and highlights areas in which students' expectations may not necessarily align with the realities of common university practices. By providing opportunities for students to articulate their expectations, staff are able to use the responses for a constructive dialogue and work towards a more positive alignment between perceived expectations and levels of student satisfaction with their experience. (Contains 2 tables and 2 figures.)

Older adults were at particular risk for loneliness during the height of the COVID-19 pandemic. In this instance, the use of computers for communication (i.e. computer-mediated communication, CMC) may help to enhance older people's social interactions and relationships. In the present study, 113 community-dwelling users of CMC, aged 65 years and over, were surveyed in order to better understand the effects of CMC in addition to the individual characteristics contributing to patterns of online communication. An opportunity to examine the impact of the pandemic on CMC behaviours presented approximately 12 months after the initial study with 70 participants resurveyed. High levels of social functioning, in addition to good physical and psychological health, were reported by this group of digitally active users. A positive association between high CMC use and social functioning was noted, even after controlling for differences in personality, frequency of face-to-face communication, health, gender, and relationship status. Interestingly, the pandemic saw a reduction in weekly CMC use, although CMC-based behaviours remained unchanged. The present findings highlight the important role that technology has in facilitating and maintaining supports and, potentially, reducing social isolation by helping older adults stay in touch with family and friends. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The Male Depression Risk Scale (MDRS-22) is a self-report scale that assesses externalising and male-typical depression symptoms with promising psychometric properties reported in young-to-middle aged men. However, studies are yet to consider the psychometric properties of the MDRS-22 in older men. This study examined the psychometric properties of the MDRS-22 in both younger and older males and its relationship to prototypic depression symptoms and self-reported depression history. A community sample of younger (n = 510; 18–64 years) and older (n = 439; 65–93 years) males completed the original 82 MDRS items from which the MDRS-22 was derived, the Patient Health Questionnaire (PHQ-9), and provided information regarding previous depression diagnoses. Exploratory and confirmatory factor analyses were used to examine factor structure. Generalised linear models examined the relationship between externalised and male-typical symptoms with prototypic depression symptoms in younger and older men. Model fit indices demonstrated that the MDRS-22 performs well in older males. Results also revealed that the MDRS-22 is associated with prototypic depression symptoms and a previous depression diagnosis in both age groups. Results support the psychometric validity of the MDRS-22 as a measure of externalising and male-typical depression symptoms in older men. Use of scales such as the MDRS-22 may help to improve the detection of depression in men across the lifespan and may also identify factors that put men at risk of poor physical and mental health outcomes. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Objective: Investigate parents' recollections of resilience hindering experiences in the first year of parenthood. Background: The transition to parenthood is a significant period of change in the lifespan. Understanding the factors which undermine resilience during this process will help illuminate resilience theory and provision of perinatal support. Methods: We conducted a thematic analysis of in-depth interviews with 10 parents (including four fathers) and examined factors hindering resilience as a global theme within a broader thematic network. Results: We identified two organising themes; context which related to external experiences and relationships and appraisals which related to parents' internal attributions and experiences. We refined these organising themes into 24 specific resilience hindering factors including ambivalence about parenthood, fear of judgement, compromised self-care and relationship change. We also collated parents' suggested changes to structural supports such as providing a comprehensive overview of services available to new parents, having credible resources online, engaging fathers directly in perinatal care and a greater focus on postnatal support such as prioritising continuity of care and making longer hospital stays available. Conclusion: Our work illuminates parents' own thoughts about factors hindering resilience in the transition to parenthood and provides direct recommendations from consumers about improvements to provision of support throughout this critical period. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Objective: Investigate parents' recollections of resilience enhancing experiences in the first year of parenthood. Background: Resilience is a concept of emerging interest in transition to parenthood research. Little is known about parents' descriptions and experiences of resilience in the first year of parenthood and existing research is based on data about mothers only. Methods: We conducted a thematic analysis of in-depth interviews with 10 parents (including four fathers) and created a thematic network of factors which participants described as enhancing their resilience in the first year of parenthood. Results: The thematic network comprised a number of subthemes (such as personal skills and support structures), and 39 specific resilience enhancing factors. These included personal skills such as acceptance, compassion, assertiveness and help-seeking; sources of support with the most preferred source for parents their partner, followed by mothers, peers, and midwifery; and important engagement characteristics displayed by support providers including attunement to the parent's needs and good communication skills. Conclusion: Our work contributes to an important gap in the literature and identifies factors for future research to explore and develop. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Objective: To explore older Australians' experiences of using computermediated communication (CMC) to engage with their social networks and communities. Background: Use of CMC among older adults has been associated with favourable social outcomes. How older adults engage with others to foster these outcomes is less well known. Understanding this may be useful when developing programs to encourage older adults' use of CMC for social purposes. Methods: In-depth semi-structured interviews with 12 adults (five women, seven men; aged 69 to 81) were conducted. Interview questions focused on individuals' use of CMC to engage with online communities. Data were transcribed and thematically analysed. Results: Two overarching themes relating to a sense of Belonging and Support emerged. Belonging was most heavily emphasised, and included subthemes on how participants experienced their close social networks online, as well as their broader engagement with building interests and identity. Support arose to a lesser extent, and included subthemes relating to how CMC was used not only for the provision and receipt of such, but also to signal availability or need for support. Throughout, participants consistently weighed the benefits of CMC against the disadvantages. Conclusion: The findings highlight the importance of social networks and online communities for older adults and, in particular, how CMC facilitates feelings of belongingness and provides opportunities for reciprocal instrumental, emotional, and informational support. Future research needs to consider the importance of having a sense of belonging when describing the social functioning of digitally literate older adults. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

As older adults become a growing client base, all psychologists will need to prepare to work effectively with them. Those unfamiliar with geropsychology may be able to bolster their knowledge and confidence by accessing the clinical insight of psychologists who have increased exposure to this client group. Thus, this qualitative study explored Australian clinical psychologists' experiences of working with older adults. Participants were 13 clinical psychologists ranging in age from early 30s to late 60s. They worked in various private and public settings and reported familiarity with working with older adults as per predefined criteria (on average, having at least 25% of clients who were aged 65+ and having delivered psychological interventions to this client group for approximately 2 years or more). Individual semistructured interviews were conducted and data were subsequently analyzed using thematic analysis. Three overarching themes were identified regarding commencing psychotherapy (e.g., assessing older adults' suitability for psychotherapy), practices in psychotherapy (e.g., using wisdom as a therapeutic tool), and more personal matters for psychologists (e.g., managing ethical issues and reflection of personal values). The findings overall highlight that variations to the structure or content of psychotherapy may sometimes be necessary according to older adults' life experience, their experience of aging, and their broader environmental context. Therefore, to work effectively with older adults, psychologists must be prepared to skillfully apply knowledge about aging to their psychological practice. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Diffusion tensor imaging is often used to assess white matter (WM) changes following traumatic brain injury (TBI), but is limited in voxels that contain multiple fibre tracts. Fixel‐based analysis (FBA) addresses this limitation by using a novel method of analysing high angular resolution diffusion‐weighted imaging (HARDI) data. FBA examines three aspects of each fibre tract within a voxel: tissue micro‐structure (fibre density [FD]), tissue macro‐structure (fibre‐bundle cross section [FC]) and a combined measure of both (FD and fibre‐bundle cross section [FDC]). This study used FBA to identify the location and extent of micro‐ and macro‐structural changes in WM following TBI. A large TBI sample (Nmild = 133, Nmoderate–severe = 29) and control group (healthy and orthopaedic; N = 107) underwent magnetic resonance imaging with HARDI and completed reaction time tasks approximately 7 months after their injury (range: 98–338 days). The TBI group showed micro‐structural differences (lower FD) in the corpus callosum and forceps minor, compared to controls. Subgroup analyses revealed that the mild TBI group did not differ from controls on any fixel metric, but the moderate to severe TBI group had significantly lower FD, FC and FDC in multiple WM tracts, including the corpus callosum, cerebral peduncle, internal and external capsule. The moderate to severe TBI group also had significantly slower reaction times than controls, but the mild TBI group did not. Reaction time was not related to fixel findings. Thus, the WM damage caused by moderate to severe TBI manifested as fewer axons and a reduction in the cross‐sectional area of key WM tracts. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Objective: To systematically assess the relationship between computer‐mediated communication and social function in older adults aged 55 or older. Methods: Embase, PsycINFO and PubMed were searched (database inception to December 2018). Where available, effect sizes (correlation r) with 95% confidence intervals and P values were calculated for individual studies. Of 4,139 eligible articles retrieved, 17 studies involving a pooled sample of 17,640 participants were included. Results: Frequent computer‐mediated communication was significantly, albeit weakly, associated with higher levels of social support and connectedness (r range = 0.08 to 0.33, P < 0.05). One discrepant negative relationship was noted (r = −0.16, 95% CI [−0.30, −0.02], P = 0.03), involving a distinct sample of gamers. Conclusions: Computer‐mediated communication is related to amount of social functioning in older adults, although the causal nature of this relationship requires further longitudinal investigation. Sample confounds (eg socio‐economic status and successful ageing) may limit the interpretation of these findings. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Objective: Investigate the use of resilience theories in the transition to parenthood literature. Background: The transition to parenthood is a key developmental experience for many adults. Resilience is a unifying theoretical concept which incorporates many of the skills and resources linked with the transition to parenthood, but the uptake of resilience theory in this literature is unknown. Methods: We used a scoping review to examine the use of resilience theory in published transition to parenthood research. This included a systematic search of the literature, descriptive analysis of theories and methods used and an assessment of theoretical integration. Results: We identified 17 studies which met inclusion criteria. Explicit use of theory occurred in six studies and quality of theoretical integration was high for all of these. Resilience was seen as a desirable concept for mapping complex data, taking a holistic approach to psychological health and acknowledging environmental and systemic influences. We also identified 29 resilience supporting factors including positive self-concept, optimism, social support, family relationships, community services and social connectedness. Conclusion: Resilience is a useful concept for synthesising information about the transition to parenthood. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Objectives: To quantitatively review the literature comparing depressed mood, anxiety and psychological distress in caregivers (CGs) of older adults with Alzheimer's disease (AD) with non-caregivers (NCGs) Methods: Eighteen independent studies comparing AD CGs (N = 2378) with NCGs (N = 70,035) were evaluated in accordance with the Strengthening the Reporting of Observational Studies in Epidemiology (STROBE) guidelines. Standardised mean differences (Hedges' g) with associated 95% confidence intervals and p-values were calculated using a random-effects model. Results: Studies generally conformed to STROBE criteria in terms of their methodological and procedural detail, although data management issues that may contribute to methodological bias were identified. Pooled effect estimates revealed medium to large group differences in depression (gw = 1.01 [CI: 0.73, 1.29] p < 0.01) and anxiety (gw = 0.64 [CI: 0.39, 0.89] p < 0.01): AD caregivers reported higher symptom severity. Gender was a significant moderator: female caregivers experienced poor self-reported mood (gw = 1.58 [CI: 1.11, 2.05], p < 0.01), although this analysis was limited in power given the small number of contributing studies. Discussion: Caregivers of patients with AD experience poor mental health in comparison to the general population, with female caregivers being disproportionately affected. Further exploration of the psychosocial variables that contribute to these group differences is needed to inform effective support services and, in turn, help caregivers manage the emotional demands of AD. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The current study (N = 244) compared two independently developed and substantively different measures of self-confidence; a self-report measure, and a measure described as "online." Online measures are confidence-accuracy judgments made following each item on a cognitive task; in the current study, online measures were yoked to tasks of fluid and crystallized intelligence. The self-report and online measures had not previously been compared, and it was unknown if they captured the same self-confidence construct. These measures were also compared to self-efficacy and personality for the purpose of defining self-confidence as an independent construct, as well as to clarify the primary comparison. This study also aimed to replicate previous findings of a stable factor of confidence derived from online measures. An age comparison was made between a young adult sample (30 years and under) and an older adult sample (65 years and over) to determine how confidence functions across the lifespan. The primary finding was that self-report and online measures of confidence define two different but modestly correlated factors. Moreover, the self-report measures sit closer to personality, and the online measures sit closer to ability. While online measures of confidence were distinct from self-efficacy and personality, self-report measures were very closely related to the personality trait Emotional Stability. A general confidence factor--derived from online measures--was identified, and importantly was found in not just young adults but also in older adults. In terms of the age comparison, older adults had higher self-report self-confidence, and tended to be more overconfident in their judgments for online measures; however this overconfidence was more striking in the online measures attached to fluid ability than to crystallized ability. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

A case-study approach was used to determine the effectiveness of transitioning the spaced retrieval (SR) intervention to aged care facility staff to maintain resident goals achieved, with a further exploratory goal to investigate the effectiveness of training two functional goals simultaneously. Frequency, severity, distress, and disturbance caused by targeted problem behaviors were recorded at baseline, post-intervention, and 3-week follow-up for six clients with dementia in an aged care facility. Reductions in each area were found for four participants, including where two goals were trained simultaneously. Staff believed that barriers to maintenance of SR interventions would be staff time pressure, staff turnover, and staff forgetting to use the SR intervention. Despite this, the research shows that SR can be used successfully in aged care facilities to train single- and dual-functional goals and can be transitioned to staff, thereby reducing problem behavior associated with dementia. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Research into the concept of successful ageing, or ageing well, within the context of migration has become significant in cross-cultural gerontology and psychology. Given that attributes of successful ageing had been identified in published Western literature, it has been argued that these attributes commonly reflect Western perceptions. This study examined the 20 attributes identified by Phelan, Anderson, LaCroix & Larson (2004) as important to successful ageing, comparing the views of older adults with researchers? definitions. The sample consisted of 152 Anglo-Australians and 116 Chinese-Australians: English speaking (n = 68) and Chinese speaking (n = 48). Anglo-Australians and Chinese-Australians rated 13 and 14 of the 20 successful ageing attributes as important, respectively. Results also revealed that Anglo- and Chinese-Australians differed significantly on four successful ageing attributes. For Chinese speaking Chinese-Australians, heredity was rated as important to successful ageing compared to their English speaking and Anglo-Australian counterparts. The research contributes to greater understanding of the way in which people from different backgrounds view quality of life so as to better support positive ageing in minority groups. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This study explored the life experiences and views on successful ageing of older Australians. Semi-structured interviews were conducted with 21 participants consisting of 10 Chinese-Australians and 11 Anglo-Australians, aged 55 to 78 years. Data were analysed using Interpretative Phenomenological Analysis. Results revealed that both groups associated successful ageing with health and personal responsibility. Anglo-Australians regarded growing old gracefully and acceptance as important aspects of successful ageing, whereas Chinese- Australians valued financial security and an active lifestyle. The research highlights that a cross-cultural perspective is imperative for service delivery and policy development to promote the health and well-being of older Australians. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This study investigated barriers to help seeking for mental health concerns and explored the role of psychological mindedness using semistructured interviews with sixteen adults in a South Australian rural centre. Prior research-driven thematic analysis identified themes of stigma, self-reliance and lack of services. Additional emergent themes were awareness of mental illness and mental health services, the role of general practitioners and the need for change. Lack of psychological mindedness was related to reluctance to seek help. Campaigns, interventions and services promoting mental health in rural communities need to be compatible with rural cultural context, and presented in a way that is congruent with rural values. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The United Nations International Year of Older Persons (IYOP) in 1999 prompted the Australian Psychological Society (APS) to review its responsibilities and to consider the contribution of psychological research and practice to the wellbeing of older Australians. This article reports a series of recommendations for public policy, research, training and psychological practice, drawn from a larger Position Paper that addressed a spectrum of issues. The aim is to encourage psychologists to turn a critical gaze on themselves and to examine ways in which psychology can be used to promote successful ageing. The article begins with a definition of "successful ageing". This is followed by an examination of ageism and how this affects community expectations of older people and the quality of aged care services. Attention also is given to the low visibility of psychologists in service planning and delivery and to the overemphasis of much psychological research and practice on deficits and decline in later years. The International Year of Older Persons has come and gone, but the true test of its effectiveness will lie in evidence of longer-term changes in attitudes, policies and practices. Psychologists have much to contribute to these changes and to enhancing the wellbeing of older Australians. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Discusses the law and the education of the citizenry. Reasons on the unappealing introduction of law into the university; Education of university students on the 'introduction to law'; Advantages of the development of a general education course in law; Different organizational models for undergraduate law programs;.

Employee rights and employer awareness of areas of current conflict and sensitivity are the subjects of this paper. The focus is upon four areas: hiring, investigation of employee misconduct, firing, and post-employment decisions by management. [ABSTRACT FROM PUBLISHER]

A letters to the editor is presented in response to the article about how to assess a patient's medical decision-making capacity.

Objective: White matter (WM) changes detected using diffusion tensor imaging (DTI) are reportedly related to cognitive outcomes following traumatic brain injury (TBI), but much existing research is underpowered or has only examined general outcomes, rather than cognitive functioning. Method: A large sample of adults who had sustained mild, moderate or severe TBIs seven months prior ( N = 165) and a control group ( N = 106) underwent DTI and cognitive testing. Fractional anisotropy and mean diffusivity were calculated for 5 regions (corpus callosum: genu, body, splenium; fornix; superior longitudinal fasciculus) that recent meta-analyses identified as being affected by TBI and related to cognition following TBI. Memory, attention and executive functioning, which are often affected by TBI, were assessed. Results: Overall, mild TBI did not show significant WM or cognitive changes, relative to controls, but moderate to severe TBI was associated with large WM alterations (all regions) and poorer cognitive performance. No significant correlations were found between DTI findings and cognition in the moderate to severe group. Conclusions: The findings have shown that moderate to severe TBI leads to considerable WM and cognitive changes. Early and ongoing examination of mild TBI is needed to determine whether WM and cognitive changes are initially present and, if so, when they resolve. (PsycInfo Database Record (c) 2020 APA, all rights reserved).