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In 2006 three primary schools and a community youth service "crossed borders" by forming a network to improve student educational achievement in a community experiencing high levels of disadvantage. Recognising that they lacked the capacity and resources required to counteract the numerous barriers to learning experienced by many of their students, the network set out to bring families and community together in a common goal; to improve education outcomes for students over the long term through a combination of community capacity-building and coordinating services for families in crisis. This paper reports on the outcome of parent focus groups conducted in 2007 as part of a broader research project to establish baseline data for the network's evaluation. The purpose of the focus groups was to elicit parents' views about raising children in the area, what they felt was required to maintain and enhance positive aspects of community life, address the issues they raised as concerns and the potential of the newly formed network to make a difference to them and their children. Five focus groups were conducted at the three network primary schools between July and October 2007. Twenty-eight parents participated across the three schools. This paper will present the findings of those focus groups, giving attention to the social construction of space and place in parents' responses, dissonances in the way parents discussed their community and the importance of lay knowledge in conceptualizing issues and developing responses to them. The way the ideas expressed by the parents have been taken up by the network in its forward planning will also be examined.

We are delighted to welcome you to the International Psychological Applications Conference and Trends (InPACT) 2016, taking place in Lisbon, Portugal, from 30 of April to 2 of May, 2016. Psychology, nowadays, offers a large range of scientific fields where it can be applied. The goal of understanding individuals and groups (mental functions and behavioral standpoints), from this academic and practical scientific discipline, is aimed ultimately to benefit society. This International Conference seeks to provide some answers and explore the several areas within the Psychology field, new developments in studies and proposals for future scientific projects. The goal is to offer a worldwide connection between psychologists, researchers and lecturers, from a wide range of academic fields, interested in exploring and giving their contribution in psychological issues. The conference is a forum that connects and brings together academics, scholars, practitioners and others interested in a field that is fertile in new perspectives, ideas and knowledge. There is an extensive variety of contributors and presenters, which can supplement the view of the human essence and behavior, showing the impact of their different personal, academic and cultural experiences. This is, certainly, one of the reasons there are nationalities and cultures represented, inspiring multi-disciplinary collaborative links, fomenting intellectual encounter and development. InPACT 2016 received 332 submissions, from 37 different countries, reviewed by a double-blind process. Submissions were prepared to take form of Oral Presentations, Posters, Virtual Presentations and Workshops. It was accepted for presentation in the conference 96 submissions (29% acceptance rate). The conference also includes: (1) A keynote presentation from Prof. Dr. Richard Bentall (Institute of Psychology, Health & Society of the University of Liverpool, United Kingdom); (2) Three Special Talks, one from Emeritus Professor Carlos Amaral Dias (University of Coimbra, Director of Instituto Superior Miguel Torga, Vice-President of the Portuguese Association of Psychoanalysis and Psychoanalytic Psychotherapy, Private practitioner of psychiatry and psychoanalysis, Portugal) and Prof. Clara Pracana (Full and Training member of the Portuguese Association of Psychoanalysis and Psychoanalytic Psychotherapy, Portugal), another from Emeritus Professor Michael Wang (University of Leicester, United Kingdom), and a third one from Dr. Conceição Almeida (Founder of the Portuguese Association of Psychoanalysis and Psychoanalytical Psychotherapy, and Vice-President of the Board. Member of the Teaching Committee, Portugal); (3) An Invited Talk from Dr. Ana Vasconcelos (SAMS--Serviços de Assistência Médico-Social do Sindicato dos Bancários de Sul e Ilhas, founding member of the Portuguese Association of Psychoanalysis and Psychoanalytic Psychotherapy, and member of NPA-Neuropshycanalysis Association, Portugal). Thus, we would like to express our gratitude to all our invitees. This volume is composed by the abstracts of the International Psychological Applications Conference and Trends (InPACT 2016), organized by the World Institute for Advanced Research and Science (W.I.A.R.S.). This conference addresses different categories inside Applied Psychology area and papers fit broadly into one of the named themes and sub-themes. To develop the conference program six main broad-ranging categories had been chosen, which also cover different interest areas: (1) In CLINICAL PSYCHOLOGY: Emotions and related psychological processes; Assessment; Psychotherapy and counseling; Addictive behaviors; Eating disorders; Personality disorders; Quality of life and mental health; Communication within relationships; Services of mental health; and Psychopathology. (2) In EDUCATIONAL PSYCHOLOGY: Language and cognitive processes; School environment and childhood disorders; Parenting and parenting related processes; Learning and technology; Psychology in schools; Intelligence and creativity; Motivation in classroom; Perspectives on teaching; Assessment and evaluation; and Individual differences in learning. (3) In SOCIAL PSYCHOLOGY: Cross-cultural dimensions of mental disorders; Employment issues and training; Organizational psychology; Psychology in politics and international issues; Social factors in adolescence and its development; Social anxiety and self-esteem; Immigration and social policy; Self-efficacy and identity development; Parenting and social support; and Addiction and stigmatization. (4) In LEGAL PSYCHOLOGY: Violence and trauma; Mass-media and aggression; Intra-familial violence; Juvenile delinquency; Aggressive behavior in childhood; Internet offending; Working with crime perpetrators; Forensic psychology; Violent risk assessment; and Law enforcement and stress. (5) In COGNITIVE AND EXPERIMENTAL PSYCHOLOGY: Perception, memory and attention; Decision making and problem-solving; Concept formation, reasoning and judgment; Language processing; Learning skills and education; Cognitive Neuroscience; Computer analogies and information processing (Artificial Intelligence and computer simulations); Social and cultural factors in the cognitive approach; Experimental methods, research and statistics; and Biopsychology. (6) In PSYCHOANALYSIS AND PSYCHOANALYTICAL PSYCHOTHERAPY: Psychoanalysis and psychology; The unconscious; The Oedipus complex; Psychoanalysis of children; Pathological mourning; Addictive personalities; Borderline organizations; Narcissistic personalities; Anxiety and phobias; Psychosis; Neuropsychoanalysis. The proceedings contain the results of the research and developments conducted by authors who focused on what they are passionate about: to promote growth in research methods intimately related to Psychology and its applications. It includes an extensive variety of contributors and presenters by sharing their different personal, academic and cultural experiences. Authors will be invited to publish extended contributions for a book to be published by inScience Press. We would like to express thanks to all the authors and participants, the members of the academic scientific committee, partners and, of course, to the organizing and administration team for making and putting this conference together. (Individual papers contain references.) [Abstract modified to meet ERIC guidelines.]

This paper discusses the use of theoretical premises in the design and implementation of a study of men's perceptions of fatherhood. Forty Australian fathers participated in small discussion groups over a 7-week period regarding contemporary fatherhood. Data were collected using questionnaires, including the Perception of Parental Role Scales, the Social Interest Index and Social Interest Scale, and the Lifestyle Scale. The experience of fatherhood was explicated using constructs from symbolic interactionism and individual psychology. By examining the data from these theoretical perspectives, a synthesis was created between issues which stem from social structures and those which exist at a personal level. Several findings emerged: (1) fathers perceived their highest frequency of involvement to be in meeting children's emotional needs; (2) 70 percent held values congruent with high social interest, cooperation, and altruism and valued fatherhood experiences related to sharing affection and experiences with their children; (3) most fathers experienced the balance of work, family, and leisure as problematic; and (4) lifestyle priorities indicated parenting style and contributed to involvement in the father role. The results indicated that an interdisciplinary synthesis requires clear links between theory, methodology, and data analysis. (Contains 22 references.) (KDFB)

In Australia, an exploratory study was grounded in U. Bronfenbrenner's ecological perspective of human development and his principles of reciprocity, affective tone, and developmental opportunity and developmental risk. It used D. Baumrind's (1979) work on child rearing styles (authoritarian, authoritative, and permissive) to explore the effect of the different styles on parent-child communication, in particular, the use of the phrase "How many times have I told you..." The purpose of this was to understand how children learn, while adopting a Vygotskian perspective of cognitive development, utilizing his concepts of "guidance,""social dialogues," and "internalization." Vygotsky, like Bronfenbrenner, emphasized the importance of language to the development of higher intellectual processes. The research question involved the parental perception of the intent of the target phrase, their perception of the effect of the target phrase on the child's developing self-concept, and the level of parental understanding of the term "self-concept." Participants were nine mothers and nine fathers, one participant per family with a child aged four to five. Data analysis revealed that the parents generally viewed the parent as teacher and the child as learner, but they lacked understanding as to how a child learns. The second concern raised was the parents' confusion regarding the way adults communicate with young children--do parents realize the seriousness of negative feedback on the young child's development? When parents were asked about their understanding of what self-concept meant, 56% provided an appropriate definition, but only 33% gave both an appropriate definition of the term and the approximate age by which self-concept is mostly developed. (Contains 63 references. Child rearing styles storyboards are appended.) (NKA)

This study examined the psychometric characteristics of a 62-item parenting questionnaire completed by parents from the United States, Australia, China, and Russia. Factor analyses yielded three global parenting dimensions for each culture which were consistent with D. Baumrind's (1971) authoritative, authoritarian, and permissive typologies. The global parenting dimensions were subsequently analyzed to assess their internal structures. For each of the three global dimensions, a number of specific parenting practice factors were identified and compared cross-culturally. The internal factors for the authoritative style were: (1) warmth and involvement; (2) reasoning/induction; (3) democratic participation; and (4) good natured/easy going. The factors for the authoritarian style were: (1) verbal hostility; (2) corporal punishment; (3) non-reasoning, punitive strategies; and (4) directiveness. The factors for the permissive style were: (1) follow through; (2) ignoring misbehavior; (3) and self-confidence. Quite similar parenting practice factors were found for authoritative parenting across cultures; for authoritarian and permissive styles there were substantial cross-cultural differences among the specific parenting practices. Factor scores of the global parenting styles and specific practices were correlated with preschool behavioral problem outcomes to assess the validity of the instrument's cross-cultural use. For the United States and Australian families, mother and father authoritativeness and authoritarianism were related to child preschool behavioral problem outcomes. (KDFB)

Child care in New Zealand and Australia has become a crucial part of the child-rearing system, and most preschool children spend a prolonged period in at least one away-from-home environment for a substantial part of the day. Because so many preschool children are exposed to a child care environment before entering school, the transition from child care to primary school is interesting to consider. In numerous studies teachers report that day care graduates are more aggressive in their first year of school than home-reared children. However, teachers often fail to discriminate between assertive and aggressive behavior, and this distinction for child care graduates is important. Children in child care tend to have infrequent contact and short interactions with caregivers, causing them to be more skilled in areas of social competence, including assertion skills. Child care graduates may also experience more anxiety when interacting with strange adults than with strange peers, and some teachers may misinterpret this anxiety as communicative incompetence. For a smooth transition from child care to school, beginning grades need to provide a child-centered environment and beginning grades teachers need to ensure that children are offered adult interaction which stimulates an atmosphere of cooperation, coordination, and continuity. Contains 25 references. (MM)

This journal consists of selected refereed papers from the third Annual Conference of the Australian Research in Early Childhood Education (1995). Contained in the publication are the following articles: (1) "Longitudinal Studies--Are They Worth It?" (Judith Cowley); (2) "Scripts for Learning: Reflecting Dynamics of Classroom Life" (Joy Cullen, Alison St. George); (3) "Identifying Dilemmas for Early Childhood Educators" (Sue Dockett, Kim Tegel); (4) "Investigating Young Children's Home Technological Language and Experience" (Marilyn Fleer); (5) "How Do Early Childhood Teachers Support Young Children's Learning?" (Ruth F. Gardner); (6) "Possible Effects of Early Childhood Music on Mathematical Achievement" (Noel Geoghegan, Michael Mitchelmore); (7) "Beyond Mr. Bubbles: An Analysis of the Public Image of Early Childhood Care and Education in Western Sydney" (Jacqueline Hayden); (8) "Dads, Data and Discourse: Theory, Analysis and Interpretation in Parenting Research" (Annette Holland); (9) "Staff Supervision in Long Day Care Centres in New South Wales" (Karen Kearns); (10) "Quality Talk in Early Childhood Programs" (Laurie Makin); (11) "Ritual and Pedagogy: How One Teacher Uses Ritual in a Pre-Primary Classroom Setting" (Carmel Maloney); (12) "Young Children Who Experience Domestic Violence: An Important Issue for Early Childhood Teachers" (Jennifer Smith, and others); (13) "Publication Opportunities for Early Childhood Academics" (Jennifer Sumsion); and (14) "Arts Games for Young Children" (Louie Suthers, Veronicah Larkin). (KDFB)