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Farming struggles and triumphs: investigating the impact of a unique working environment on farming family well-being
Get PDFThis research aimed to investigate the impact of the unique work lifestyle of farming on the well-being of Australian farming families. Past organisational research suggests that role conflict and interference have a significant impact on well-being (Carlson et al., 2000; Danes et al., 2000; Greenhaus & Beutell, 1985). Previous research by the current author suggested that the work-home environment of farming families is unique and therefore warranted further investigation due to the potential link between the working environment and the poor mental health status of farming families of Australia (McShane & Quirk, 2009; Page & Fragar, 2002). Due to the limited availability of contextually-specific scales of stress, coping, and inter-role conflict for Australian farming families, this research sought to identify the work and lifestyle determinants of well-being through the development of farming family specific scales of stress, coping, and the work-home interface. The theoretical framework for the development of the scales followed the procedure outlined by Streiner and Norman (1989) and consisted of 6 separate studies, involving a total of 474 participants.
The first study involved interviews with 53 farming family members across Queensland and New South Wales. Interview data was analysed using Grounded Theory and Content Analysis. From this process additional themes of commitment to farming, identification with farming, adaptive and maladaptive characteristics of intergenerational farming, and farming family values were generated from the interview content alongside stress, coping, and work-home interface themes. Generated items (519 items) were prepared for the Item Reduction study which included 13 potential farming family scales pertaining to stress, coping, role interference and completion, intergenerational farming, and buffering characteristics. This study asked farming family members (N=65) to rate items for importance and relevance to the individual, with calculated means and frequencies used to reduce the item set. Items were then formatted for an Expert Review Panel (N=11) who assessed the reduced item set (246 items; n=6 scales). Expert Panel feedback, face validity, and internal consistency were used to further reduce the total item pool to 100 items. A pilot study (N=14) identified additional items for removal and finalised the item set (95 items) for the validity (N=278) and reliability (N=53) studies. The items were distributed across 5 scales and assessed against criteria for factor analysis, criterion validity, discriminant validity, internal consistency, and test-retest reliability. The resulting scales included the Farming Family (FF) Role Impact Scale (18 items), the FF Stressor Scale (29 items), the FF Cope Scale (25 items), the FF Buffer Scale (12 items), and the Intergenerational Farming Impact Scale (11 items). The scales adequately satisfied validation and reliability criteria including exploratory factor analysis (loadings >.3), internal consistency (Cronbach alpha >.8), and test-retest reliability (rho>.6 for 4/5 scales).
Scales of well-being indicated that though farming families reported low levels of psychological distress and moderate levels of life satisfaction, the population was at risk of burnout. Cluster analytical and structural equation modelling techniques were used to identify those factors which contributed to well-being. Overall, results suggested that stressors were the leading contributor to poor well-being and role interference played a key role in psychological distress and work burnout. However the negative impacts of role interference and farming lifestyle stressors were tempered by positive coping styles and the sense of purpose, commitment and value associated with farming. Recommendations were made for policy and health promotion developers to consider the connection to farming as an asset to improve well-being and sustainability of the farming communities and industry
Preparing for disaster: preparedness in a flood and cyclone prone community
No full textResearch suggests that the perception of a threat, high levels of self-efficacy, and high levels of social connectedness and trust may facilitate engagement in preparatory behaviours for severe weather events. To identify the psychosocial determinants of preparatory behaviours in cyclone- and flood-prone communities, a questionnaire was completed by 275 (103 males, 169 females, three not identified) participants from a north Queensland community. The results from this study show that perceived susceptibility to a future severe weather event, social connectedness, and self-efficacy significantly predict part of the variance in preparatory behaviour. Therefore communicating personal vulnerability to an event, providing information on how to undertake recommended preparatory action, and increasing engagement in the community may contribute to effective preparation at the community level
Creating and strengthening knowledge in agricultural medicine and rural health farming struggles and triumphs: the effects of a unique business environment
Get PDFThe number of farming families in Australia has been declining for the last 20 years. Climate change, government legislation and policies are adding to the challenges. This study investigated the impact of work-family role conflict on farming family well-being, effective coping strategies and positive aspects of lifestyle. As available assessment tools aren't culturally relevant, an additional aim was to develop measures of work-family conflict, stressors, and coping strategies for Australia.
The first stage involved semi-structured interviews of farming families (N=30) from across Queensland and South-Eastern Australia. Interviews were audio-recorded and qualitatively analyzed to identify items relevant to the following areas: lifestyle, work-home interface, stressors, coping. The second stage distributed this candidate pool of items to members of farming families (N=200) to assess their relevance and importance to this population. Preliminary results from interviews indicate lifestyle and good relationships are strong buffers for stress. Role ambiguity and property partnerships contributed to family conflict and dissatisfaction. Coping strategies included spending time with family, friends, and social drinking. Families perceive themselves as socially isolated from the Australian public and government due to their chosen occupation. There is a perception changes in the industry have had a negative impact on community connectedness, support, and gatherings, which has impacted negatively on satisfaction and lifestyle.
The number of farming families is decreasing and the industry is becoming increasingly difficult for farms to remain sustainable, yet some remain though primarily for lifestyle and children. The development of measures to assess stress and coping can help identify good and poor practices for farming families of Australia, giving guidance for those struggling and those considering entering the industry
Why come, why stay, why bother? The challenge of recruiting and retaining skilled workers in Northern Australia
Get PDFAttracting and retaining a workforce of appropriately skilled and educated workers to Northern Australia is a complex challenge that is likely to affect many new agricultural development proposals in the North. Experience from the ‘mining boom’ suggests there is a need to reimagine what constitutes resilient communities to underpin sustainable growth at a regional scale. In many cases, research suggests that though remuneration and access to services and infrastructure is foundational for workers who are contemplating the move to a region or remaining in a region, these factors are not necessarily the tipping point in the decision. For instance, drivers of these decisions can also include social (e.g. community, family), environmental (e.g. recreational) and aesthetic (e.g. attractiveness of town) factors. To further complicate matters, the drivers of the decision to move to a region may not be the same drivers for the decision to stay in a region for different workers. For example, though a FIFO work structure may be an attractive reason to initiate employment in a region, it may not be enough to stay in that job in that region. Therefore, the development of a skilled workforce in Northern Australia needs to be conceptualised more comprehensively and holistically. It needs to consider not only what is beneficial for the employer but also for the worker, their family and the local community. This presentation will discuss the complexities of workforce development in relation to the effect of different methods of employment on workers, the employer and the community. Examples will be drawn from a recent project that explored attraction and retention of skilled workers to the aquaculture industry in Northern Australia. Recommendations will be provided for approaching workforce development from a holistic and multi-faceted framework that ensures lasting economic and social stability within a community
Preparing for disaster: preparedness in a flood and cyclone prone community
Get PDFResearch suggests that the perception of a threat, high levels of self-efficacy, and high levels of social connectedness and trust may facilitate engagement in preparatory behaviours for severe weather events. To identify the psychosocial determinants of preparatory behaviours in cyclone- and flood-prone communities, a questionnaire was completed by 275 (103 males, 169 females, three not identified) participants from a north Queensland community. The results from this study show that perceived susceptibility to a future severe weather event, social connectedness, and self-efficacy significantly predict part of the variance in preparatory behaviour. Therefore communicating personal vulnerability to an event, providing information on how to undertake recommended preparatory action, and increasing engagement in the community may contribute to effective preparation at the community level
Predicting resilience in a rural community prone to natural disasters
No full textThe amount a community is prepared for a natural disaster impacts on their ability to be resilient during and after the event has occurred. Predicting the factors that influence the level of preparation can provide useful recommendations in increasing the level of resilience. The key variables that were investigated to predict preparation and resilience included social capital, self-efficacy and perceived threat. It was expected that high self-efficacy and high perceived threat would predict more preparation for a weather event and that this would be mediated by social capital factors. It was also expected that high levels of preparatory behaviour and perceived preparedness would predict high levels of resilience.
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A total of 279 participants from a cyclone and flood prone community in North Queensland completed the questionnaire package. The questionnaire asked participants about their previous experiences with extreme weather events, preparation, concern, perceived threat, self-efficacy, social capital and resilience.
It was found that only self-efficacy predicted preparatory behaviour (p < .00) and this was only mediated by social connectedness (p < .00). Furthermore, preparatory behaviour was found to predict perceived preparedness (p < .00) which predicted resilience (p < .00). Findings from this study suggest that increasing an individual's self-efficacy and social connectedness will increase the likelihood of the individual engaging in preparatory behaviours. This implies that greater social capital will contribute to improved community preparedness for a future weather event. The findings also imply that both physical and psychological preparations need to be made to be resilient to natural disaster. Thus it would be beneficial for individual interventions and disaster preparedness campaigns aimed at disaster prone communities to target increasing individual self-efficacy and community social capital factors in order to increase the preparation undertaken for a weather event
Going Beyond Counting First Authors in Author Co-citation Analysis
Get PDFThe present study examines one of the fundamental aspects of author co-citation analysis (ACA) - the way co-citation
counts are defined. Co-citation counting provides the data on which all subsequent statistical analyses and mappings
are based, and we compare ACA results based on two different types of co-citation counting - the traditional type that
only counts the first one among a cited work's authors on the one hand and a non-traditional type that takes into
account the first 5 authors of a cited work on the other hand. Results indicate that the picture produced through this non-traditional author co-citation counting contains more coherent author groups and is therefore considerably clearer. However, this picture represents fewer specialties in the research field being studied than that produced through the traditional first-author co-citation counting when the same number of top-ranked authors is selected and analyzed. Reasons for these effects are discussed
Variations on the Author
Get PDF“Variations on the Author” discusses two of Eduardo Coutinho’s recent films (Um Dia na Vida, from 2010, and Últimas Conversas, posthumously released in 2015) and their contribution to the general question of documentary authorship. The director’s filmography is characterized by a consistent yet self-effacing form of authorial self-inscription: Coutinho often features as an interviewer that rather than express opinions propels discourses; an interviewer that is good at listening. This mode of self-inscription characterizes him as an author who is not expressive but who is nonetheless markedly present on the screen. In Um Dia na Vida, however, Coutinho is completely absent form the image, while Últimas Conversas, on the contrary, includes a confessional prologue that moves the director from the margins to the center of his films. This article examines the ways in which these works stand out in the filmography of a director who offers new insights into the notion of cinematic authorship
Appropriate Similarity Measures for Author Cocitation Analysis
Get PDFWe provide a number of new insights into the methodological discussion about author cocitation analysis. We first argue that the use of the Pearson correlation for measuring the similarity between authors’ cocitation profiles is not very satisfactory. We then discuss what kind of similarity measures may be used as an alternative to the Pearson correlation. We consider three similarity measures in particular. One is the well-known cosine. The other two similarity measures have not been used before in the bibliometric literature. Finally, we show by means of an example that our findings have a high practical relevance.information science;Pearson correlation;cosine;similarity measure;author cocitation analysis
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