Research Directions

Our fact sheets give an overview of research at the University. An archive of fact sheets for 2009, 2008, 2007, 2006, and 2005 is also available. For more information on each project, please see the fact sheet contact details. Media enquiries: Office of Public Affairs.

2010

Crossing thresholds in school biology (PDF, 88Kb)
Associate Professors Pauline Ross and Roy Tasker from the School of Natural Sciences, Dr Betty Gill, College of Health and Science, Dr Charlotte Taylor from University of Sydney and Lachlan Macquarie College, together with NSW Department of Education & Training have been awarded a UWS Research Partnership grant to investigate threshold concepts in biology in order to develop teaching approaches that are appropriate for diverse learners.

The impact of psychosocial assessments on mothers (PDF, 80Kb)
Associate Professor Virginia Schmied from the Family and Community Health Research Group and School of Nursing and Midwifery is investigating the process and impact of psychosocial assessments on women by midwives and child and family health nurses (CFHN) during their prenatal and postnatal visits. This research is funded by the Australian Research Council Linkage program in partnership with Karitane.

Service engagement for infants and their young mothers (PDF, 84Kb)
Associate Professor Virginia Schmied, Associate Professor Hannah Dahlen and Dr Christine Taylor from the Family and Community Health Research Group, together with Ms Jenni Hutchins from The Benevolent Society, has been awarded a UWS Research Partnership grant to investigate the characteristics of young mothers who seek support from services and who fare well and those who are at risk for poorer outcomes.

Breastfeeding and First-times Mums (PDF, 84Kb)
Associate Professor Virginia Schmied from the Family and Community Health Research Group and School of Nursing and Midwifery is researching what factors influence breastfeeding and other parenting decisions of first-time mothers. This research is funded by the Australian Research Council Linkage program in partnership with The Kids of Macarthur Health Foundation.

On a Sound Footing (PDF, 88Kb)
Associate Professor Chin Jian Leo and Dr Jia Zou from the Civionics Research Centre in collaboration with Prof. Buddhima Indraratma from the University of Wollongong, Dr Henry Wong from Ecole Nationale des Travaux Publics de l’Etat and Prof. Dennes Bergado from the Asian Institute of Technology, in partnership with Mr Robert Golaszewski of Penrith Lakes Development and Mr Tristan McWilliam of Coffey Geotechnics are investigating a new method for assessing the quality of compacted soil fills. This research is funded by Penrith Lakes Development Corporation, Coffey Geotechnics and the Australian Research Council through its Linkage Project grants scheme.

Caring and Social Capital (PDF, 81Kb)
Dr Debbie Horsfall from the School of Social Sciences and Associate Professor Rosemary Leonard from the Social Justice Social Change Research Group are exploring the effects of how caring for the elderly and terminally ill can contribute to the growth of relationships within a community. This research has been funded by NSW Department of Ageing, Disability & Home Care (DADHC).

Closing the Gap for Indigenous Students  (PDF, 100Kb)
Ms Virginia O’Rourke, Professor Rhonda Craven, Associate Professor Geoff Munns and Dr Gawaian Bodkin-Andrews from the Centre for Educational Research are investigating how including Indigenous cultures into teaching can help Indigenous students achieve positive results. This research is supported through an Australian Research Council Discovery Indigenous Researcher Development grant.

Motherhood with Rheumatoid Arthritis – Yes or No  (PDF, 80Kb)
Dr Tanya Covic, from the School of Psychology, Associate Professor Louise Sharpe and Professor Nicholas Manolios from the University of Sydney and Associate Professor Julie Pallant from the University of Melbourne are collaborating with Ms Diana Aspinall from the Arthritis Foundation of NSW to develop a decision aid tool to assist women with rheumatoid arthritis to make motherhood decisions.  This research is funded by the Arthritis Foundation of NSW and the Australian Research Council through its Linkage Program.

Community Housing (PDF, 91Kb)
Housing NSW has engaged Professor Peter Phibbs of the Urban Research Centre, along with research and management consultants Dr Alison Ziller and Ms Robin Hill, to write an Industry Development Framework for improved operations and services in the NSW community housing system. The project is funded by Housing NSW.

How Innovative Is Your VET? (PDF, 86Kb)
Dr Rob Dalitz, Professor Tim Turpin and Dr Phil Toner from CInIS (Industry and Innovation Studies) are examining the interrelationship between Vocational Education and Training (VET) and innovation. This research is funded by the National Centre for Vocational Education Research through its National VET Research and Evaluation Program.

It’s in the tone of your voice (PDF, 78Kb)
Professor Denis Burnham of MARCS Auditory Laboratories, along with researchers from Lancaster University, UK, and the Chinese University of Hong Kong, is investigating lexical tone perception in speech in a variety of tone languages. This research is funded by an Australian Research Council Discovery Project grant.

Advanced Model Updates for Systems Verifications and Modifications (PDF, 86Kb)
Professor Yan Zhang from the School of Computing and Mathematics has been awarded an Australian Research Council Discovery Projects Grant to develop a new system prototype for advanced computer aided system modification.

The Business of Climate Change (PDF, 86Kb)
Professor Bobby Banerjee from the College of Business, along with colleagues Professor David Levy from the University of Massachusetts and Drs Bettina Wittneben and Chukwumerije Okereke from the University of Oxford, is exploring the strategies employed by business and government to cope with the challenges of climate change. This research is funded by the Australian Research Council Discovery program.

Enabling Success at School (PDF, 100Kb)
Professor Rhonda Craven from Centre for Educational Research is leading a team investigating ways to foster positive behaviour and academic success in school children. The research team is working in collaboration with the NSW Department of Education and Training. This research is supported through an Australian Research Council Linkage Project grant.

Can acupuncture help pregnancy? (PDF, 79Kb)
Associate Professor Caroline Smith from the Centre for Complementary Medicine is researching the effects of acupuncture on assisted reproduction - fertility medicine. She is collaborating with researchers from IVF Australia and the Acupuncture IVF Support Clinic, NSW. This research is funded by the National Institute of Complementary Medicine through the Department of Health and Ageing.

It’s raining, it’s pouring (PDF, 84Kb)
Dr Ataur Rahman from the School of Engineering is undertaking a project that will support the revision of the Australian Rainfall & Runoff Handbook.  Stages I and II of the project are funded by the Department of Climate Change and coordinated by Engineers Australia.

Environmental and Social Responsibility in Small Business (PDF, 87Kb)
Professor Bobby Banerjee and Dr Fernanda Duarte from the College of Business are researching what challenges and opportunities arise from including social and environmental issues into the business plans of small and medium scale enterprises. This research is funded by the Australian Research Council Linkage program in partnership with Business Associates Network.

How Can Machines Negotiate? (PDF, 96Kb)
Dr Dongmo Zhang from the School of Computing and Mathematics in collaboration with researchers from the University of New South Wales and Dresden University of Technology, Germany is developing automated negotiation techniques for electronic trading systems. This research is funded by the Australia Research Council through its Discovery grants program.

A “Fair Go” – Interpreter Protocols in Courts and Tribunals (PDF, 83Kb)
Associate Professor Sandra Hale of the Interpreting and Translation Group will be researching interpreter protocols for courts tribunals across Australia. This research is funded by the Australasian Institute of Judicial Administration.

100 Patient Stories (PDF, 83Kb)
Dr Ann Dadich and researchers from the CInIS Research Group are working with a team of researchers from seven Australian universities to improve the communication and investigation processes for people involved in an unexpected event that resulted in harm while receiving healthcare – this includes patients, their carers and family members, as well as hospital staff. This national study is led by Professor Rick Iedema from the University of Technology, Sydney (UTS) and is funded by the Commonwealth Department of Health and Ageing on behalf of the Australian Commission on Safety and Quality in Health Care.

Going with the flow (PDF, 82Kb)
Associate Professors Anneke Fitzgerald and Terry Sloan and Dr Premaratne Samaranayake from the Centre for Industry and Innovation Studies Research Group along with Professor Simeon Simoff and Mr Mark Johnston from the School of Computing and Mathematics and Ms Amanda Larkin, General Manager  of Campbelltown Hospital are working to optimise patient flow in hospital emergency departments to reduce waiting time and increase bed availability. This Linkage project is funded by the Australian Research Council and Campbelltown Hospital.

Managing Olive Plant Pests (PDF, 80Kb)
Associate Professor Robert Spooner-Hart from the Centre for Plants and the Environment is researching which environmentally friendly pesticides should be used by Australia’s olive industry to control pests and diseases.  This research has been funded by The Rural Industries Research and Development Corporation.

Autonomous Welding Robots (PDF, 101Kb)
Dr Gu Fang from the School of Engineering will be researching the development of a robotic welding system that can perform quality tasks automatically and provide the necessary flexibility in performing low to medium volume welding productions. This research is an Australian Research Council Linkage Grant in partnership with the Automation Division of Lincoln Electric.

RUN and GROW e-learning (PDF, 89Kb)
Dr Geoffrey Lee, Associate Professor Robyn McGuiggan and Dr Yi-Chen Lan from the College of Business are collaborating with the NSW Department of State and Regional Development, (now Industry & Investment (I&I)) to develop a series of online training modules for small to medium enterprises (SMEs). This research is funded by I&I.

Culturally responsive family services (PDF, 83Kb)
Dr Susan Armstrong from the Social Justice and Social Change, is collaborating with Anglicare, CatholicCare and Interrelate Family Centres to provide research to support Family Relationship Centres in Parramatta and Bankstown to develop a culturally responsive model of family dispute resolution.

It’s worth how much!? (PDF, 85Kb)
Associate Professor John MacFarlane from the School of Computing and Mathematics in collaboration with the Office of the NSW Valuer General is continuing to develop and evaluate the NSW Mass Valuation System for land and property valuation.

Protective Hormones (PDF, 85Kb)
Professor Nikolaus Sucher of the Centre for Complementary Medicine is investigating the ability of hormones such as oestrogen and other similar natural compounds to protect the brain from degenerative disease by looking at their effects on a molecular level. This research is supported by a grant from the National Health and Medical Research Council.

Increasing Health Literacy for Australian-Vietnamese Women (PDF, 82Kb)
Dr Sansnee Jirojwong, Dr Sharon Hillege and Associate Professor Virginia Schmied of the School of Nursing and Midwifery with Professor Pranee LiamPuttong of Latrobe University  are developing multimedia educational materials to help Vietnamese-Australian women with gestational diabetes to improve their self-management of this condition. This project is supported by funding from the Department of Health and Ageing through the ‘Sharing Health Care Initiative’.