85000 research outputs found
Sort by
Alexander Chaffers before the courts of Berlin
No full textThis chapter is about Alexander Chaffers (1821 – 1899), considered to be the very first vexatious litigant. Discussion includes his hearings at the City Court of Berlin.</p
Understanding the current situation of challenging clinical interactions for medical radiation undergraduates: An integrative literature review
No full textObjectives: The objectives of this review were to identify the causes, types, and effects of clinical interactions that medical radiation students (MRS) consider as challenging and assess available support and coping strategies during these challenging interactions. The overarching aim is to understand the current situation of challenging clinical interactions (CCIs) for MRS during clinical placement (CP).Key findings: A comprehensive literature search on PubMed, Scopus, Web of Science, Ovid Medline, CINAHL, ERIC, OpenDissertation, and ProQuest Digital databases for studies published from 2005 to 2024 found 133 studies, with 11 meeting the inclusion criteria. Most of the studies (n = 8) recruited medical imaging students with no study found for nuclear medicine undergraduates. The main cause of CCIs identified thematically was inadequate support and preparation, while three themes were identified for the types of CCIs: students' self-perceived challenges, clinical scenarios and situations, and unacceptable behaviours. Similarly, three themes were identified regarding the effects of CCIs: attitudinal changes, long-lasting effects, and professional identity development. The identified coping and support strategies were support from supervisors, educators, and students.Conclusion: Compared to nursing and medicine, the issue of CCIs has received little research interest in medical radiation education. This could result in increased attrition, while its potential to impede students' professional capability development cannot be underestimated. These CCIs and their effects need to be studied thoroughly with all stakeholders.Implication for practice: To enable MRS to achieve their clinical learning objectives, a major goal in the future will be to assess the effectiveness of the support and coping strategies available to all MRS during CCIs and to ensure the development of effective support strategies.</p
Outcome payer perspectives on social impact bonds as mediating instruments
No full textPurpose
The purpose of this paper is to examine how the practices, processes and expertise embedded within
Social Impact Bonds (SIBs) distinctively mediate the tensions between outcome payers’ competing and
contradictory programmatic discourses.
Design/methodology/approach
We use qualitative research methods and employ concepts drawn from the governmentality literature
to analyse interviews with SIB outcome payers.
Findings
SIBs are shown to challenge the degree of negative influence of biopolitics, neoliberalism and
financialization by highlighting a broader and more holistic set of influences. SIB operations pre-
empt and counteract perceived risks and are refined through a ‘learning by doing’ effect. In
contrast to other approaches to funding social interventions, the SIB structure attributes and
independently validates outcomes. Payments to investors are based on the achievement of outcomes
and are funded by the outcome payers. SIBs’ operational processes allow the responsibilities of the
various parties to be explicitly assigned and contracted. The interests are aligned, yet the
cultural differences harnessed.
Originality
This paper is one of the first to apply governmentality concepts to SIBs. By focusing on outcome
payers, the paper provides new perspectives on the practices, processes and expertise of governing
and the programmatic discourses of governing, as well as their relationship. The insights offered
are supported by one of the largest and most diverse empirical SIB samples including 34 interviews
where
43 individuals reflect on their experiences across 32 unique outcome payer organisations
Eagle Point Foreshore Hub
No full textBackground: This creative work contributes to research on the role of small-scale civic buildings in regional Australian towns, particularly how architectural design can support community services where resources are limited. Recent work by practices such as Workshop Architecture, Antarctica Architects and NMBW demonstrates ongoing interest in modest public buildings that consolidate multiple functions and reinforce local identity through familiar forms. The Eagle Point Foreshore Hub builds on this context by examining how a single project can integrate community, recreational and commercial activities while responding to the spatial and environmental circumstances of a township that has long lacked coordinated public infrastructure. The work forms part of a broader inquiry into how design-led approaches can strengthen everyday civic life in regional settings. Contribution: The project demonstrates how diverse programmatic requirements in a small regional community can be organised within a compact and coherent architectural arrangement. By colocating a community hall, public amenities, caravan park reception and retail elements, café and recreational facilities, the work shows how spatial efficiencies and shared interfaces can reduce overall footprint while improving public access to essential services. A taxonomy of local buildings established the prevailing scale and roof forms of the context. Dividing the building into two smaller volumes linked by a central public deck aligns the project with local massing patterns, while the use of recognisable gabled forms contributes to research on how vernacular references support community engagement and ease of use. The work offers insight into how architectural planning and material organisation can enable regional facilities to operate effectively with modest means. Significance: The project was commissioned through a competitive public tender process. It was shortlisted for the 2025 Australian Institute of Architects (AIA) Victorian Chapter Awards in the Public Architecture and Regional Architecture categories, exhibited at Monash University and Deakin University, and published through ArchitectureAU as part of the awards program.</p
#staystrongmelbs: Collective identity unleashed by an earthquake
No full textHumor is widely recognized as a way to process and deal with disasters and tragic events. This is particularly the case in our digital age: political controversies, wars, natural disasters, and other crises, such as COVID-19, often lead to the rapid proliferation of creative and amusing memes as a digital response mechanism, creating a sense of community and levity and an outlet for anxiety and frustration in participatory digital cultures. While it turned out to be relatively minor, the earthquake that shook Melbourne in September 2021 during the city’s sixth COVID-19 lockdown prompted an outpouring of multimodal humor on Australian social media, becoming a memetic moment (Smith and Copland 2022). Humorous tweets and memes began circulating just moments after the tremors stopped, and continued unabated for several days, much of it linking the earthquake to the lockdowns in Melbourne. Using multimodal digital discourse analysis, this article will analyze a selection of interconnected sociopolitical tweets, memes, and other online humor that circulated in the week of September 22, 2021, as a result of the earthquake. By focusing primarily on the semiotic, linguistic, and pragmatic elements (intertextuality, wordplay, incongruity), it will be shown how the humor in these multimodal examples was not just performing as a coping mechanism for the earthquake, but as a creative way of engaging with current political issues to create a sense of collective identity. This article will illustrate the construction of the social identity of Melbourne as a strong and resilient city following an earthquake experienced during the pandemic.</p
Clinical Evaluation of Electroacupuncture Combined with Mindfulness Meditation for Weight Management
No full textBackgroundThe global prevalence of obesity (body mass index ≥ 30 kg/m2) has reached epidemic levels, with approximately 32% of the global population classified as obese in 2022. Obesity adversely affects physical health and mental health. Obesity contributes to both direct healthcare costs and indirect economic burdens such as productivity loss. While weight loss can reduce these impacts, current strategies, including dietary restriction, physical exercise, pharmacotherapy, and bariatric surgery, face significant limitations. These include low adherence, undesirable side effects, and high relapse rates. Given obesity’s multifactorial nature, a multidisciplinary approach is recommended.Electroacupuncture (EA), a type of complementary medicine, is increasingly used for weight loss. Mindfulness meditation (MM) is a psychological approach that improves weight outcomes by addressing psychological factors. However, no studies have explored the combination of EA and MM as a strategy for weight management.AimsThis project aimed to evaluate the evidence on EA and MM in weight loss, and assess their safety, feasibility, and acceptability through systematic reviews, a pilot randomised controlled trial (RCT) and qualitative interviews.Phase 1 – Systematic reviewsThe first phase involved conducting systematic reviews to inform the development of a clinical trial protocol. An initial review performed a comprehensive literature search of 13 databases; however, this identified no existing studies of EA and MM combined for weight management.Subsequent reviews were conducted separately on EA and MM, a comprehensive literature search conducted across 13 databases. The acupuncture (ACU) systematic review included 17 systematic reviews on manual acupuncture (MA) or EA, with or without a co-intervention (CO). Meta-analyses of the eligible RCTs showed add-on effects on body weight and BMI, particularly when ACU was combined with a CO. Although no clear superiority between MA and EA was shown, EA’s consistent stimulation parameters were beneficial for research. The most frequently use ACU points identified across the reviews informed the selection of ACU points in the trial protocol: CV12 (Zhongwan), SP6 (Sanyinjiao), ST36 (Zusanli), ST25 (Tianshu), CV4 (Guanyuan), ST40 (Fenglong), CV6 (Qihai), CV9 (Shuifen), SP9 (Yinlingquan), and SP15 (Daheng).The MM review included eight RCTs where MM was the core component. MM showed comparable BMI reduction to diet and exercise, and significant weight loss when used alone. When combined with COs, MM improved five eating-behaviour outcomes, including eating disinhibition and food cravings. No adverse events were reported, supporting its safety.These reviews supported the feasibility of combining EA and MM, and informed the development of the trial protocol.Protocol developmentA three-arm RCT was developed: EA combined with MM (EAM); sham EA (SA) with MM (SAM); and EA alone (EAO). It had a two-week run-in period, 12-week intervention, and eight-week follow-up. EA involved weekly 30-minute treatments with needle stimulation using an electro-stimulator. SA used non-ACU points and a sham electro-stimulator. Outcome measures were body weight, BMI, waist–hip ratio (WHR), fat composition, and obesity-related quality-of-life questionnaires. This protocol was approved by RMIT University’s Human Research Ethics Committee (HREC 21457) and registered with the Australian New Zealand Clinical Trials Registry (ACTRN1261800064213) (Appendix C1).Phase 2 – RCTThe pilot RCT evaluated feasibility and safety. Recruitment began in March 2019 to March 2020. Participants’ eligibility was determined by inclusion and exclusion criteria (Appendix D4). Seven participants completed the trial before Coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) restrictions halted recruitment. No baseline differences were observed across groups. While no statistically significant differences in body weight or BMI were found between groups, reductions were observed in the EAM group. Quality of life improved in all groups, although not significantly. No serious adverse events occurred, indicating that combining EA and MM is safe.All participants completed the 12-week interventions; however, one participant withdrew during follow-up. Primary and secondary outcome data were successfully collected, supporting protocol feasibility. Despite this, recruitment challenges remained. A qualitative study was conducted to explore participant perspectives on using EA and MM for weight management.Phase 3 – Semi-structured interviewsThe qualitative study was approved by the RMIT College Human Ethics Advisory Network (CHEAN No. 23788) (Appendix C2) and conducted between October 2020 and April 2022. It included anyone who expressed interest in the pilot RCT, regardless of their trial participation. Interviews were conducted online with 22 individuals (including 4 trial participants) and found that, although knowledge of EA and MM was limited, attitudes were positive. EA and MM were viewed as natural therapies with fewer side effects. Participants reported generally positive experiences with the RCT protocol, but suggested improvements in ease of trial participation and offering a more comfortable treatment experience such as private treatment rooms and better parking options.Time-related factors, including travel and scheduling flexibility, significantly influenced willingness to participate. Findings suggested strategies included clearer safety communication, educational sessions, and after-hours appointments at multiple venues.ConclusionsThis project started with systematic reviews, whose findings informed the trial protocol design. Despite the COVID-19 challenges, a feasibility trial study and a semi-structured interview study were conducted. The findings suggested that combined EA and MM is safe, with participant compliance and acceptance demonstrating feasibility.Although statistical significance was not reached for most outcomes, trends favouring weight and BMI reduction were observed in the EAM group. Additionally, participants in MM groups (EAM and SAM) maintained stable weight and BMI during follow-up, suggesting a potential role for MM in post-intervention weight maintenance. These findings supported the feasibility of a full-scale RCT.The qualitative study further identified barriers and facilitators to participation, providing recommendations to improve future trial recruitment and retention. Strategies such as improving convenience, communication, and treatment environments may address recruitment barriers.In conclusion, this research contributes to the development of a multidisciplinary, cost-effective weight-management protocol that is safe, feasible, and potentially effective. Strategies have been developed to assist participant recruitment in future trials.</p
Wash My Soul in the River's Flow - A Celebration of First Nations Music and Legacy
No full textBackground Curated, organised and delivered by Gamilaraay woman and Lecturer in Music Industry Kat Nelligan, this creative work features a panel discussion and live music performances alongside a screening of the documentary film Wash My Soul in the River’s Flow (Philippa Bateman, producer/director). This performance celebrates the lives and legacies of Uncle Archie Roach (Gunditjmara/Bundjalung) and Aunty Ruby Hunter (Ngarrindjeri/Kokatha/Pitjantjatjara) and seeks to understand their ongoing influence on emerging First Nations songwriters and musicians. It asks the following research questions: 1) To what extent does legacy shape the creativity and opportunities available to First Nations songwriters? 2) To what extent can music support truth-telling in Australia while offering First Nations people meaningful ways to connect with culture? 3) To what extent have Aunty Ruby’s and Uncle Archie’s legacies influenced the careers of emerging First Nations songwriters? Contribution Indigenous research methods of yarning, as well as storytelling via song, were used to explore these questions in a live performance setting. The panel featured First Nations musicians from the mentorship program Singing Our Futures, and songs were performed by Uncle Archie and Aunty Ruby’s son, Amos Roach, and Kat Nelligan. Together, they offered unique perspectives on the importance of legacy in First Nations music and contributed to Indigenous Australia’s ongoing projects of truth-telling, voice, and self-determination through storytelling. Moreover, the event highlighted the importance of connection, representation and recognition of First Nations contributions to arts practices in Australia. Presented during NAIDOC Week, the performances and panel spoke directly to the 2025 NAIDOC theme: The Next Generation: Strength, Vision, Legacy. Significance In collaboration with RMIT Culture, the work was presented on 8 July, 2025, at The Capitol Theatre during NAIDOC Week. It was funded by the City of Melbourne (Quick Response Arts Grants) and was further promoted by the official National NAIDOC Organisation. The work received significant media attention on ABC Radio, 3KND Radio, Triple RRR, PBS, and Joy Media, and was promoted by International Women’s Development Agency and the Australian Conservation Foundation. It contributes in important ways to a growing body of creative works that honour the legacies of Uncle Archie and Aunty Ruby through film, music, and art, and represents a significant contribution to the celebration of First Nations creativity and storytelling in Australia.</p
Listening, Feeling, and Walking Along the Halterpaths: An Expansion of Soundwalking Practice Towards a Novel Method of Listening and Perceiving
No full textWorking from an ecological sound arts practice, this critical autoethnographical project seeks to understand and share a specific feeling I have experienced in natural environments from a very young age. Though unable to succinctly articulate its conflicting qualities (homely/uncanny, comfort/danger, excitement/grounded, thrilled/cautious), I believe it to be responsible for the way I relate to and impact the world around me. Using concepts that I have encountered, including Jacob von Uexküll’s Umwelten (our perceptual worlds contingent on our personal histories and biology), terroir (the geological, historical, and ecological qualities of the land experientially perceived), and the relational loop I found between them – that I call the Umterrweltoir – has brought me closer to being able to share my affective experiences through a negotiated site specific practice within ‘Wilson Reserve’, ‘Ivanhoe’, ‘Victoria’, Wurundjeri Woi Wurrung Country. Propelling this line of inquiry is an extrapolative theory, based on my own experiences and behaviour, that questions whether the way we feel while in natural environments influences how we behave in and thus impact them. This theory underpins the rationale behind this project; a longing to address the widespread disconnect between humans and their environments, and the importance this connection has for ongoing efforts to minimise or halt human-made climate change. These theories and experimental practical discoveries led to the production of various works collected under the title, the Halterpaths and the artistic framing devices used therein. These include; - aesthetic interventions to thematically stage specific areas of a site - storytelling and theatre involving costuming, performance, and lighting - estranged guidance and narrative within a soundwalk map and guidebook These were used in various combinations within the practical outcomes of this research which include: Behind all worlds (2020), Hibernaculum/Sleepers (2020), The Longest Night (2021), and Solitary Soundwalks ‘Wilson Reserve’ (2023). Through these works, this research broadens the field of sound art, and the practices of soundwalking and listening specifically, to include various ways of perceiving as well as expanding the content of what we listen to/perceive. In these works, I turn audience attention towards imagined sounds, memories of sound, how/what other beings might be hearing, and how the listener is affected by what they hear and/or ‘hear’. In this, a novel guided method of perceiving called halterpathic listening emerges.</p
Regulating CEO compensation: A remedy for corporate misconducts in China's state-owned enterprises
No full textThe growing compensation disparity between CEOs and employees has become a global concern, underscoring the need for regulatory measures to ensure fair and equitable remuneration practices. Drawing insights from China's government regulation of CEO compensation (GRCC) for state-owned enterprises (SOEs), this study investigates the impact of GRCC on fraudulent activities within SOEs. Using data from China's A-share listed firms between 2010 and 2022 and applying logit regression models within a difference-in-difference framework, our empirical findings show a significant reduction in fraud following the implementation of GRCC. Additionally, the effect of GRCC is more pronounced in local SOEs compared to their central counterparts. Channel analysis reveals that GRCC promotes CEO political promotion, improves the quality of internal controls, and alleviates financial constraints within firms, which collectively reduce fraudulent activities. The results remain robust across various endogeneity tests, parallel trend assumptions, propensity score matching, placebo tests and alternative variable measurements.</p
Nation by Design: Reimagining Singaporean Identity
No full textBackground Situated within communication design and cultural studies, Nation by Design: Reimagining Singaporean Identity examines how visual communication mediates the relationship between institutional nation-building narratives and lived experiences of belonging. Drawing from Skaggs (2017) and Kress and van Leeuwen (2005), the research engages design semiotics, national branding, and postcolonial identity formation, responding to scholarship on design’s civic agency (Tonkinwise, 2019) and Singaporean discourses of design and citizenship (Koh, 2021). Contribution Developed for Singapore Design Week 2025, the project comprised an exhibition, panel, and participatory workshop curated by Dr Regine Abos with Dr Nicola St John, Alan Fong, Mark de Winne, and Kristen Mah. Drawing on Fong’s archival analysis of state artefacts alongside student works from the RMIT–SIM Communication Design program, the events reframe national identity as a negotiated, living process. Through mapping, collage, and speculative remixing of national symbols, participants articulated belonging beyond official narratives. Significance The project advances new thinking on communication design as a civic medium, contributing to discourses on pluriversal design, civic imagination, and visual nationhood. Selected through a competitive process led by Design Council Singapore, Singapore Science Park, and OuterEdit, it featured at Singapore Design Week, with coverage in The Japan Times and a forthcoming panel transcript in the RMIT Design Archives Journal.</p