Sociology
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ItemYoung People, the Internet, and Emerging Pathways into Criminality: A Study of Australian Adolescents(Zenodo, 2018-10-21)This article explores the ways in which young people experience the Internet as a potentially criminogenic medium. To date, little research has explored the possible links between the mundane, ubiquitous use of digital communication technologies by young people and involvement in delinquency in online contexts. The current empirical study seeks to address this gap, by investigating how a young person’s digital pursuits (i.e. relative access, technical competencies, and exposure to pertinent technologies, Internet sites and services), as well as various developmental considerations, are linked to delinquent online encounters – be they tentative engagements of a naïve or non-criminal kind or deliberate, more serious forms of technologically-mediated criminality. Drawing on data collected from a cohort of adolescents enrolled at a secondary school in a large Australian city, the results establish significant relationships between many of these concepts, but also flag that online delinquent encounters amongst young adolescents are unlikely to correspond with serious criminal involvements, with such activities being episodic and for the most part trifling. The results further highlight the need for a better understanding of the role of digital communication technologies on pathways into cybercrime.
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ItemThe manipulation of social, cultural and religious values in socially mediated terrorism(MDPI, 2018-05-22)This paper presents an analysis of how the Islamic State/Da’esh and Hizb ut-Tahrir Indonesia manipulate conflicting social, cultural and religious values as part of their socially mediated terrorism. It focusses on three case studies: (1) the attacks in Paris, France on 13 November 2015; (2) the destruction of cultural heritage sites in Iraq and Syria; and (3) the struggle between nationalist values and extreme Islamic values in Indonesia. The case studies were chosen as a basis for identifying global commonalities as well as regional differences in socially mediated terrorism. They are located in Asia, the Middle East and Europe. The integrated analysis of these case studies identifies significant trends and suggests actions that could lessen the impact of strategies deployed by extremist groups such as Da’esh, al-Qaeda and Hizb ut-Tahrir. We discuss the broader implications for understanding various aspects of socially mediated terrorism.
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ItemLocating the Judge within Sentencing Research(The International Journal for Crime, Justice and Social Democracy, 2017-05-22)Research into sentencing is undertaken from a range of theoretical, disciplinary and methodological perspectives. Each approach offers valuable insights, including a conception of the judge, sometimes explicit, often implicit. Little scholarly attention has been paid to directly interrogating the ways in which different research traditions construct the judge in the sentencing process. By investigating how different research approaches locate the judge as an actor in sentencing, theoretically and empirically, this article addresses that gap. It considers key examples of socio‐legal scholarship which emphasise the judge as operating within experiential, emotional and social, as well as legal dimensions. This growing body of research offers a more social, relational and interactive understanding of the judge in sentencing, extending and complementing the valuable, but necessarily limited, insights of other research approaches about the place of the judge in sentencing.
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ItemGay men's experience of surrogacy clinics in India(BMJ Publishing Group, 2015)Abstract: While growing numbers of Australian gay men are entering into 'offshore' surrogacy arrangements in order to become parents, little empirical research has been conducted with this population. This paper reports on a qualitative analysis of interviews with 12 gay men who had entered into surrogacy arrangements in India. The findings outline both positive and negative experiences in terms of support pre-‐conception, during the birth and post-‐birth. Changes to legislation in India mean that gay men can no longer access surrogacy services there, but it is important to understand the experiences of men who had previously accessed those services. The paper concludes by highlighting aspects of the data that demonstrate the particular experiences of gay men who undertake offshore surrogacy arrangements, especially with regard to their need for support and involvement in all aspects of the process. A more thoroughly developed network of care may help to facilitate such support and this may further increase the positive outcomes reported by gay men who form families through surrogacy arrangements.
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ItemAustralian Family Diversity: an Historical Overview 1960-2015(Flinders University, School of Social and Policy Studies, 2016)Over the past three decades, increasing attention has been paid to the diversification of Australian families, particularly with regard to both modes of family formation and family structure. Researchers have provided extensive accounts of, for example, lesbian mother families, families formed through surrogacy, grandparents parenting their grandchildren, and the lives of people who were donor-conceived. These accounts, among many others, have served to expand our understanding of what counts as a family, and the specific experiences and needs of a range of family groups. At the same time, however, changes in the political landscape have increasingly brought to the fore an emphasis upon one particular form: the heterosexual nuclear family formed through reproductive heterosex. As such, whilst on the one hand we have seen increased recognition and indeed celebration of family diversification, we have also seen something of a push back against this diversification. The present report was developed in order to facilitate a robust, empirically-based discussion of the topic of family diversification in Australia. The report highlights two key points that address both the fact of diversification outlined above, and concerns that have arisen in response to it: First, changes to the face of Australian families have been slow yet consistent over the past five decades. Such changes have been brought about by developments in the realm of reproductive science, legislative change, and shifts in public attitudes. In this sense, diversification reflects the reality of Australian society, rather than being the agenda of any one group. Second, despite changes to the face of Australian families, much remains the same. In other words, the information presented in this report highlights both continuity and change. In drawing upon data collected by, amongst others, the Australian Bureau of Statistics and the Australian Institute for Health and Welfare, available both publically and through request by the authors, this report presents an overview of key family-related areas. As such, it builds upon the significant work undertaken by the Australian Institute of Family Studies in their Diversity and Change in Australian Families report (de Vaus, 2004) by adding a historical component. Mapping changes and continuity across time provides researchers, policy makers, and members of the public with an informed understanding of Australian family diversification.
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ItemCare for Children with Migrant or Refugee Backgrounds in the School Context(Cambridge University Press, 2016)While teachers are increasingly being asked to provide ‘care’ for students in their classrooms, very little research has explored what care might look like for students with migrant or refugee backgrounds. This paper reports on the findings of a study conducted with children when they began school in Australia in the Intensive English Language Program (IELP), with a focus on how care might be provided and defined. Participants were 63 migrant or refugee children (15 refugee students and 48 migrant students; 35 males and 28 females) aged between five and 13 years of age (M = 7.40 years, SD = 2.39), and 14 IELP teachers (10 women and four men). The aims of the broader study of which this paper forms one part were to explore experiences at school through a mixed-methods, participatory methodology. The current paper takes a deductive approach, and focuses specifically on the relationships between students and teachers as one dimension of care for students. We found that students had positive relationships with their teachers, and reported feeling safe at school. Teachers reported some challenges in relation to their relationships with students, particularly in the case of students with refugee backgrounds. We suggest that the concept of care for children with refugee and migrant backgrounds needs further work, particularly in mainstream education settings.