The increase in popularity of group work in higher education has been accompanied by an increase in the frequency of reports of students not equally contributing to work within the groups. Referred to as ‘free-riders’, the effect of this behaviour on other students can make group work an unpleasant experience for some. Of most frustration to students is receiving the same mark as their fellow non-contributing group members despite producing much of the group’s work. Identifying free-riding behaviour early on in a project can help reduce the impact it has on other group members. What can also be identified is that free-riding behaviour is not necessarily due to apathy or a deliberate attempt to do as little work as possible. Numerous underlying reasons can lead a student to not contribute equally to a group even if he or she is willing. This study involved surveying students (N = 205) from all faculties of an Australian university and asking them of their attitudes towards group work. Free-text responses from the students were thematically analysed, and results showed that free-riding was the greatest concern across all disciplines.

BackgroundThe concept of resilience has captured the imagination of researchers and policy makers over the past two decades. However, despite the ever growing body of resilience research, there is a paucity of relevant, comprehensive measurement tools. In this article, the development of a theoretically based, comprehensive multi-dimensional measure of resilience in adolescents is described.MethodsExtensive literature review and focus groups with young people living with chronic illness informed the conceptual development of scales and items. Two sequential rounds of factor and scale analyses were undertaken to revise the conceptually developed scales using data collected from young people living with a chronic illness and a general population sample.ResultsThe revised Adolescent Resilience Questionnaire comprises 93 items and 12 scales measuring resilience factors in the domains of self, family, peer, school and community. All scales have acceptable alpha coefficients. Revised scales closely reflect conceptually developed scales.ConclusionsIt is proposed that, with further psychometric testing, this new measure of resilience will provide researchers and clinicians with a comprehensive and developmentally appropriate instrument to measure a young person's capacity to achieve positive outcomes despite life stressors.

This study was a randomised control trial with a waiting control group. It was designed to evaluate the effectiveness of a 6-month, group-based diabetes prevention programme, The Healthy Living Course and assess whether participation in the programme led to changes in modifiable risk factors for type 2 diabetes among an already at-risk pre-diabetic population. Individuals designated at risk for diabetes by their general practitioners (GPs) were screened using an Oral Glucose Tolerance Test. Volunteers (N = 307) with pre-diabetes were assigned to an intervention or wait-control group in the ratio of approximately 2 : 1. The sample was pre-tested on biochemical, anthropometric and self-report behavioural, cognitive and mood variables and post-tested either at the end of the educational/support-based lifestyle programme or the end of the wait period. The intervention group significantly improved their diabetes knowledge, motivation to change, positive affect, healthy eating and activity levels and showed significantly greater reductions in weight, body mass index, waist circumference, diastolic blood pressure and fasting plasma glucose in comparison with controls. The intervention group also changed their diagnostic status from pre-diabetes to non-diabetes at a greater rate than the wait group (43% vs. 26%) who received standard care from their GPs.

A style of coping with stress is described which has been observed in cancer patients and in highly dependent, insecurely attached individuals. This coping style includes the suppression of negative emotions and avoidance of support seeking. It is suggested that this pattern of responses is potentially dysfunctional insofar as it tends to perpetuate distress and may increase vulnerability to a broad range of illnesses. These considerations provide the basis for a provisional conceptual model, which links avoidant attachment style to the regulation of negative affect and to symptoms of psychological and physical ill-health. This is tested on a sample of young adults under stress and predictions from the model are largely supported.

Background The popularity of videoconferencing platforms has skyrocketed during the COVID-19 pandemic, however, there have been concerns regarding the potential for video calls to promote appearance dissatisfaction, as individuals are exposed to their reflection on camera for extended periods. Objectives The current study characterized current video usage behaviors and their relationship with appearance dissatisfaction and interest in aesthetic procedures in the general population. Methods An online survey was completed by 335 adults currently living in Australia. Multiple aspects of video usage were assessed, including engagement in ‘video manipulation’ techniques to enhance appearance and the focus of visual attention while on video calls (ie, on self or others). The Dysmorphic Concern Questionnaire was administered to determine if video use behaviors were associated with greater body image disturbance. Results Over 1/3 of participants had identified new appearance concerns while on video. Dysmorphic concern was associated with self-focused attention, greater engagement in video manipulation behaviors, and increasing appearance concerns due to their time on video calls. Individuals who identified new video-based appearance concerns reported greater interest in obtaining future beauty treatments (eg, waxing) and aesthetic procedures (eg, non-surgical procedures such as anti-wrinkle injections). Conclusions This is one of first empirical studies to report the potential consequences of video call usage for increasing appearance dissatisfaction and dysmorphic concern, and to demonstrate a link between the use of video calls and interest in cosmetic procedures.

Objective: During the COVID-19 pandemic, Australia implemented widespread closure of beauty and cosmetic services to control the virus spread. The effect of these restrictions is unknown, given that beauty services are widely used for stress relief or to enhance confidence. The current study explored the relationship between engagement in appearance-focused behaviors and distress regarding beauty service closure. Participants with high and low levels of dysmorphic concern were compared to determine whether COVID-19 restrictions may affect these groups differently. Method: An online survey was completed by 216 participants living in Australia. Questions addressed engagement in appearance-focused behaviors during the COVID-19 pandemic and attitudes toward beauty service closure. The Dysmorphic Concern Questionnaire (DCQ) was used to group participants by low and high dysmorphic concern. Results: Appearance-focused behaviors decreased in the low DCQ group (n = 163) during the COVID-19 pandemic, while such behaviors in the high DCQ group (n = 53) remained unchanged. Individuals who were living alone, younger, reported higher dysmorphic concern and greater distress over beauty service closure engaged in more frequent appearance-focused behaviors (R 2 = .57, p < .001). The high DCQ group reported greater distress over beauty service closure and increased desire to obtain future beauty treatments. Discussion: While COVID-19 restrictions may have provided a break from societal appearance pressure for those with low dysmorphic concern, appearance-focused behaviors persisted in individuals with high dysmorphic concern. A greater understanding of the long-term impacts on appearance-related distress is needed to determine mental health priorities emerging from the COVID-19 pandemic.

BackgroundSelf-monitoring of symptoms is a cornerstone of psychological interventions in bipolar disorder (BD), but individuals with lived experience also value tracking holistic outcomes, such as quality of life (QoL). Importantly, self-monitoring is not always experienced positively by people with BD and may have lower than expected rates of engagement. Therefore, before progressing into QoL tracking tools, it is important to explore user perspectives to identify possible risks and benefits, optimal methods to support engagement, and possible avenues to integrate QoL self-monitoring practices into clinical work.ObjectiveThis study aimed to conduct a qualitative exploration of how individuals with BD engaged with a Web-based version of a BD-specific QoL self-monitoring instrument, the QoL tool.MethodsA total of 43 individuals with BD engaged with a self-management intervention with an optional Web-based QoL self-assessment tool as part of an overarching mixed method study. Individuals were later interviewed about personal experiences of engagement with the intervention, including experiences of gauging their own QoL. A thematic analysis was used to identify salient aspects of the experience of QoL self-monitoring in BD.ResultsIn total, 4 categories describing people’s experiences of QoL self-monitoring were identified: (1) breadth of QoL monitoring, (2) highlighting the positive, (3) connecting self-monitoring to action, and (4) self-directed patterns of use.ConclusionsThe findings of this research generate novel insights into ways in which individuals with BD experience the Web-based QoL self-assessment tool. The value of tracking the breadth of domains was an overarching aspect, facilitating the identification of both areas of strength and life domains in need of intervention. Importantly, monitoring QoL appeared to have an inherently therapeutic quality, through validating flourishing areas and reinforcing self-management efforts. This contrasts the evidence suggesting that symptom tracking may be distressing because of its focus on negative experiences and positions QoL as a valuable adjunctive target of observation in BD. Flexibility and personalization of use of the QoL tool were key to engagement, informing considerations for health care providers wishing to support self-monitoring and future research into Web- or mobile phone–based apps.

Homeless, Anglo-Australian and Greek-Australian 16-year-olds were questioned about their sexual behaviour and sexual beliefs. Measures of sexual risk-taking included type of behaviour, condom use and number of partners. Drug risk was assessed by extent of i.v. drug use, and sharing and cleaning needles. Sexual beliefs included self-perceptions of sexual anxiety, arousal, exploration and commitment. In addition, motivations for engaging in, or avoiding, sex were elicited. The behaviour patterns of homeless adolescents placed them at considerable risk of HIV infection for both sexual and drug risk, and significantly more so than their home-based peers. Gender stereotypic self-perceptions were reported, and homeless and Anglo-Australian youths demonstrated a more masculine style in their self-perceptions than were Greek-Australians. Preferred motivations for sex differed, with homeless youths less concerned about the consequences of sex and more with self-gratification than the home-based adolescents. For homeless girls, higher levels of sexual risk were predicted by perceptions of greater arousal and by less concern about the consequences of sexual activity. Implications for targeted interventions are discussed.