Applied Psychology at UniSA
The School of Psychology has a vibrant team of researchers who aim to
conduct high quality cooperative psychological research to promote
well-being, quality of life and optimal functioning in individuals and
organisation in community, organisational and institutional settings.
The School of Psychology convenes the
Centre for Applied Psychological Research which comprises of two
main research groups; the Forensic Research Group and the Work and
Stress Research Group. The centre aims to develop strategies which
effectively deal with social and psychological problems arising at both
an individual and a systemic level, by conducting research that will be
of value in dealing with stress, distress, life changes, anger and a
range of problem behaviours.
With continuous growth in ARC projects and industry consultancies, the
school of psychology’s team of researchers have experienced continuous
growth in funding, global collaborations and resources. This development
has strengthened our expertise and capability for providing high quality
applied research for industry, government and the community on a local
and global scale.
Through collaboration we grow
We collaborate with international and national partners from leading Universities, organisations, government departments and not-for-profit organisation. Some of our current partners include:
- Shop Distributive & Allied Employees’ Association
- The NSW, Victorian and South Australian Police Associations
- Domestic Violence Prevention Centre (Gold Coast)
- The Office of the Guardian of Children and Young People
- Singapore Prison
- World Vision Australia
- Utrecht University
- Nottingham University
We value the diversity and prosperity of our collaborative work and look
forward to future engagement.
We measure ourselves through social impact and engagement
Our research has a notable impact on the community, addressing important issues concerning work stress, juvenile justice, Indigenous Australians, the unemployed and underemployed, anger management, treatment and rehabilitation for offenders and animal behaviour.
Recent projects include:
The Development of a Rehabilitation Framework for Juvenile Justice
Services
This research project led to the implementation of a new service delivery
model, case management model and the development of the Offender Needs
Inventory for Youth (ONIY) assessment tool. In 2007 the ONIY assessment tool
was adopted with training for all employees across the Youth Justice
Directorate in South Australia.
Key researchers:
Andrew Day, Kevin Howells, Debra Rickwood
The Psychology and Indigenous Australians: Effective Teaching and Practise
The intention of this investigation is to demonstrate that Indigenous
cultural competence should be regarded as core business for psychology, and
that developing skills in this area is an important extension to traditional
Psychology approaches. It is based on our understanding that psychology has
a crucial role to play in addressing Indigenous disadvantage. We anticipate
the developed courses will produce a new generation of psychologists and
academics who can work as partners with Indigenous people effectively.
Key researchers:
Rob Ranzijn,
Keith McConnochie, Wendy Nolan
Stress Prevention in the Victorian WorkCover Budget Sector
Stress in the workplace has substantial costs, for both the employee’s
health and wellbeing, and for the employer. This research relates to two
stress prevention students conducted in collaboration with the Victoria
WorkCover Authority, the Department of Education and Training, Department of
Human Services, the Australian Education Union, and the Community and Public
Sector Union. The results from the intervention trialled in this study
improved stress outcomes and improved psychological well-being, and reduced
time off from work following psychological injury. The principals from this
research have become core methods of operations for The Victorian Police
Department.
Key researcher:
Maureen Dollard
Transition from school to work: A longitudinal investigation of
unemployment, underemployment, alienation, social exclusion and mental
health in young people
This longitudinal investigation examines the transition of young people from
school into the workplace and/or higher education. It will provide important
insights into the psychological effects of unsatisfactory employment on
psychological well-being, as well as information concerning the social and
psychological factors enhancing young people's capacity to adapt to life
after school. The findings will assist policy-makers in targeting
interventions to those most affected by unfavourable work experiences,
assist in the early identification of underachievement at school, and inform
school-based career-counselling strategies designed to enhance retention
rates and ultimately longer-term work success.