Australian Journal of Social Issues最新文献

This study provides a comprehensive analysis of several factors that potentially contribute to attitudes toward demographic (i.e., racial, ethnic and religious) diversity in 16 advanced economies, using data from a recent survey conducted by the Pew Research Center in 2021 (N = 16,254). Specifically, the study aimed to examine 12 potential covariates of anti-diversity attitudes, using Bayesian multilevel modelling. The results showed that the variables with the strongest positive association with anti-diversity attitudes were perceived domestic conflict (perception of greater conflict between different groups in one's country), being older and dissatisfaction with the way democracy works in one's country. The strongest negative covariates of anti-diversity attitudes were higher levels of education and perceiving discrimination as a problem. Household income was not associated with diversity attitudes, whereas being female was associated with more pro-diversity attitudes. The model was tested separately in Australia, and the results were generally consistent with the findings from the multinational sample. Perceived domestic conflict emerged as the strongest covariate of unfavourable diversity attitudes both in the overall sample and in Australia.

Ableist hate speech regularly appears in online comment-enabled articles on social media, whenever disability-related topics enter public discourse. In 2022, Dylan Alcott's appointment as Australian of the Year as a person with disability was widely celebrated. Despite this progress, we identified new forms of politicised ableism in online responses to his disability advocacy in this role. This research considers readership responses to an April 2022 Facebook post by an Australian tabloid publication. The post editorialised Alcott's Twitter response to the then Australian Prime Minister's comments on feeling “blessed” to have children without disability. Enmeshed within the usual ableist imaginary—“why would any parent want to have a child with disability?”—were new justifications for ableism associated with political “wokeness.” We analyse this emerging contour of politicised ableism in contemporary Australia to consider the complex patterns of progress toward social justice for people with disability.

In this paper, we discuss a rapid-fire study involving Indigenous and non-Indigenous stakeholders from the urban Indigenous health sector who collaborated to produce an “Urban COVID-19 Systems Map.” The map outlines the behaviours, actions and responses that stakeholders identified as mitigating or exacerbating COVID-19 risks in urban Indigenous communities. Data were collected and analysed during the height of the pandemic in 2021. We begin by introducing the characteristics of system thinking—the methodology that informed our research—and consider its use in Indigenous health research more broadly. We then outline our utilisation of system thinking and discuss how it was applied to the three workshops. System thinking contributes to collaboration and collective debate amongst stakeholders and aims to produce holistic understandings of complex problems, such as pandemics. This article provides a reflective overview of the benefits and challenges of applying system thinking in Indigenous health research whilst also sharing some of the research findings. We argue that centralising the voices of stakeholders, particularly Indigenous stakeholders, is critical to developing and implementing effective and culturally appropriate responses to pandemics and is equally as important to the preparedness for future pandemics.

Corporal punishment is associated with adverse outcomes; however, little empirical data exists about the state of corporal punishment in Australia. This paper presents the first national prevalence estimates of experiences of corporal punishment during childhood among Australians and its use as adults by Australian parents and caregivers. We also report community beliefs about the necessity of corporal punishment. Results show corporal punishment remains common in Australia. A high proportion of Australians (62.5%) experienced corporal punishment in childhood, including almost 6 in 10 (58.4%) young people aged 16–24. Approximately half of all parents surveyed (53.7%) had used corporal punishment. A quarter of Australians (26.4%) believe corporal punishment is necessary to raise children, 73.6% do not view it as necessaryThe use of corporal punishment and belief in its necessity are lower among younger people. Findings indicate the experience of corporal punishment remains unacceptably high in Australia but that the use of corporal punishment and beliefs about its necessity may be changing. These findings have significant implications for policy and practice in Australia. Changes in legislation could reduce this form of violence toward children. Relatively low rates of endorsement of the necessity of corporal punishment suggest the Australian community may be receptive to attempts for law reform in this area.

Better data are fundamental to improving the effectiveness of policies. Drawing on examples from nutrition, education, criminal justice and income support, I discuss how data access has contributed to policy improvements. Data linkage across departments can also help ensure that policymakers are focussed on the right policy goals, rather than merely those that are easiest to measure. As governments increase the rigour of evaluation, quality data will be crucial.

The prohibition of corporal punishment in Australia will require reform of the criminal law of assault to abolish defences in each Australian state and territory that permit the use of force on children for the purpose of punishment. This paper highlights the anomaly of those defences by undertaking a comparative doctrinal analysis with other Australian criminal law principles that excuse the use of force by parents and caregivers, including force for the purpose of management and control, and physical contact that is accepted by the community as part of everyday life. This comparison highlights the persistence in the corporal punishment defences of outdated notions of parental rights and authority over children, in contrast to broader trends in the law toward recognising that parents exercise responsibilities in the best interests of their children. In addition, this analysis confirms that abolition of Australian defences for corporal punishment will not criminalise parents and caregivers using force for purposes other than punishment.

Sexual revictimisation has devastating consequences for victim/survivors, yet there is limited research exploring women's experience of revictimisation in regional/rural areas. Using a community-based participatory research (CBPR) approach, this paper reports on a qualitative study that employed a material feminist lens and Nixon's theory of “slow violence” to explore women's lived experiences of sexual revictimisation. In-depth interviews were conducted with victim/survivors (N = 11) living in regional and rural areas of Australia. Findings show that the failure of family, community and services to respond appropriately to participant's disclosures of violence and abuse was deeply entangled with rural infrastructure, isolated landscapes, fear of social isolation, victim-blaming discourses, idealisation of men in the community and limited relationship and sexuality education (RSE) in schools. These components collectively formed a manifestation of “slow violence,” which accumulated over the participants' life spans and gradually normalised relational violence. This paper draws attention to a complex interplay of cultural, material and interpersonal elements, including the culture and spaces of rural/regional communities, that establish conditions enhancing the likelihood of women experiencing sexual revictimisation.

This study investigates associations between religious involvement and identity and attitudes related to domestic violence using nationally representative cross-sectional data from n = 1287 Australian adults in the 2018 Australian Survey of Social Attitudes (AuSSA). Linear regression models were used to analyse the association between religious involvement (frequency of service attendance and prayer) and identity (religious, spiritual or both) with attitudes related to domestic violence (patriarchal beliefs, failure to acknowledge domestic violence as an issue and trust in faith leaders' responses to domestic violence). Results showed that religious service attendance, frequency of prayer and spiritual/religious identity were associated with more patriarchal beliefs about gender roles. There was no evidence that religious involvement or identity was associated with failure to acknowledge domestic violence as a national issue. In contrast, frequent (but not infrequent) religious involvement and religious identity were associated with failure to acknowledge domestic violence in participants' own faith communities. Addressing patriarchal beliefs and acknowledgement of domestic violence within faith communities among those who regularly attend services, pray and identify as religious are key targets for action to address domestic violence and improve population health.

Article 12 of the United Nations Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities has been instrumental in driving the development of the concept and practice of supported decision making. An important feature has been the development of “supported decision making pilots.” This paper identifies, describes and analyses pilot programmes providing support for decision making for people with cognitive disabilities in Australia and internationally between 2016 and 2021. It finds that challenges included providing support for socially isolated people and adequately resourcing those programmes. However, most pilots reported positive outcomes for decision makers, adding to the evidence base for claims to be made about the positive impact of supported decision making on the lives of people with disabilities. The pilots demonstrate that, internationally, there is an emerging set of programmes that seek to promote supported decision making incrementally through developing focussed community awareness and practice. While still small-scale, time-limited and experimental, with different levels of rigour in practice and evaluation, they provide some foundation and a preliminary evidence base for larger interventions and reforms in the future.

Substance use during pregnancy is associated with poor neonatal outcomes. Women incarcerated during pregnancy may have a history of substance use, and their babies may be at risk of neonatal abstinence syndrome (NAS). This study examines the incidence of NAS and other outcomes in infants born to currently or formerly incarcerated women. Infants born between 1985 and 2011 in Western Australia were divided into three mutually exclusive groups: born to women incarcerated during pregnancy (n = 708); born within 9–24 months of the mother's release from prison (n = 651); and born to women who were never incarcerated (n = 17,712). The impact of the timing of incarceration during pregnancy was also examined. Neonatal outcomes (NAS, preterm birth, low birthweight, infant mortality and admission to special care nursery) were compared using logistic regression. Infants born to currently or recently incarcerated women had higher odds of all adverse outcomes than infants in the nonexposed group. Infants born to women incarcerated during the second or third trimester (but not the month of birth) had poorer outcomes than infants born to women incarcerated during the month of birth. The findings show that babies born to currently or formerly incarcerated women are equally likely to experience adverse neonatal outcomes. Enhanced maternal healthcare must be provided during incarceration and after release.