Policy and Research

The initial McCaughey Centre policy research priorities agenda focuses on five key social and economic determinants of mental health and community wellbeing, namely:

• Freedom from violence
• Freedom from discrimination
• Social inclusion and connectedness
• Economic participation and security
• Healthy and sustainable environments

The Centre also supports policy research leading to improved understanding of the determinants of mental health and community wellbeing effecting key population groups: men and women; children and young people; older people; indigenous communities; refugee and migrant communities and people with disabilities.

Key policy and research activities undertaken by the McCaughey Centre include:

• Collecting and publishing evidence about community wellbeing trends
• Identifying and assessing new policy ideas and initiatives
• Designing and implementing policy impact research projects
• Building the knowledge, skills and capacity of community organisations and policy makers
• Building collaborative research and policy development partnerships

An initial Centre priority is to produce an integrated series of policy review documents providing concise, up to date overviews of key policy trends and directions in relation to each of our five priority areas.

The Centre will also develop and implement a range of strategic policy research projects with a focus on understanding the impact of particular policy initiatives on improving mental health and community wellbeing outcomes.

Freedom from Violence

The World Health Organisation defines violence as ‘the intentional use of physical force or power, threatened or actual, against oneself, another person or against a group or community, that either results in or has a high likelihood of resulting in injury, death, psychological harm, mal-development or deprivation.’

Evidence linking freedom from violence with mental health and wellbeing outcomes:

• Intimate partner violence is responsible for more ill health and premature death in Victorian women aged 15-44 than any other preventable risk factor including high blood pressure, obesity and smoking (VicHealth 2004).
• 57% of Australian women report experiencing physical violence or sexual assault by a man over their lifetime (Mouzos and Makkai 2004).
• One in six young people between the ages of 7 and 17 are bullied by their peers each week in Australian schools (Rigby, 2002).

McCaughey Centre policy research initiatives focusing on the objective of ‘Freedom from violence’ include:

• The development and publication of indicators and data sets in relation to trends around violence, safety and security
• Policy reviews and research projects providing evidence of the effectiveness of policy strategies in reducing violence.
• Knowledge exchange initiatives including forums, conferences, short courses and publications disseminating information about trends and policy initiatives in relation to reducing violence.
• Supervising post graduate student projects focusing on reducing violence.

References:

VicHealth 2004: The Health Costs of Violence: Measuring the Burden of Disease Caused by Intimate Partner Violence: A Summary of Findings, Victorian Health Promotion Foundation, Melbourne
Mouzos, J. and Makkai, T. Women’s Experiences of Male Violence: Findings from the Australian Component of the International Violence Against Women Survey, Australian Institute of Criminology, Research and Public Policy Series, No. 56., Canberra, Australia
Rigby, K.2002  ‘A Meta Evaluation of Methods and Approaches to Reducing Bullying in Pre Schools and Early Primary Schools in Australia, 2002, Commonwealth Attorney General’s Department , Canberra 2005.

Freedom from Discrimination

Discrimination is the process by which members of a socially defined group within a broader community are treated unfairly as a result of their membership or affiliation with that group. The most common forms of discrimination are based upon race and ethnicity, religion, gender, sexual preference, disability, age and social class.

Evidence linking freedom from discrimination with mental health and wellbeing outcomes

• In a recent review of research studies on the effects of discrimination 38 of 47 studies found a clear association between racial and ethnic discrimination and mental illness (Krieger 2000).
  

• Recent research studies on the effects of discrimination show strong correlations between racial discrimination, wellbeing, self esteem, psychological distress, depression and anxiety (Brown et al, 2000; Williams and Williams-Morris 2003).

• Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people consistently report higher rates of unemployment, poorer educational outcomes and lower rates of home ownership (Australian Institute of Health and Welfare 2004).

McCaughey Centre policy research initiatives focusing on the objective of ‘Freedom from discrimination’ include:

• The development and publication of indicators and data sets in relation to trends around discrimination and respect for cultural diversity.
• Policy reviews and research projects  providing evidence of the effectiveness of policy strategies in reducing discrimination
• Knowledge Exchange initiatives including forums, conferences, short courses and publications disseminating information about trends and policy initiatives in relation to reducing discrimination
• Supervising post graduate student projects focusing on reducing discrimination and promoting cross cultural understanding

References:

Krieger, N. 2000, ‘Discrimination and Health’ in Berkman, L. Kawachi. I eds. Social Epidemiology, Oxford University press, Oxford.
Brown, R, Measuring self perceived racial and ethnic racial and ethnic discrimination in social surveys, Sociological Spectrum, 21, 377-392
Australian Institute of Health and Welfare 2004, Australia’s Health 2004, AIHW, Canberra

Social Inclusion and Connectedness

A socially inclusive society is one where people feel respected, safe and secure, and where their basic needs are met so they can live in dignity.  Social exclusion is being shut out of the key social, economic, political and cultural systems and processes of the society in which people live.

Evidence linking social inclusion with mental health and wellbeing outcomes

• There is extensive international evidence that social support, social networks and opportunities for community engagement and participation are important foundations for mental health and community wellbeing (Wilkinson and Marmot 2003)
• Nearly 16% of Australian households cannot afford to participate in social activities such as family holidays, having a night out or having family or friends over for a meal. (Saunders 2003)
•  Lower levels of social trust have been associated with higher rates of most causes of death, including heart attacks, cancer, stroke, unintentional injury and infant mortality. (Kawachi and  Berkman 2001).

McCaughey Centre policy research initiatives focusing on the objective of ‘Social inclusion and connectedness’ include:

• The development and publication of indicators and data sets in relation to trends around social inclusion
• Policy reviews and research projects providing evidence of the effectiveness of policy strategies in promoting social inclusion
• Knowledge Exchange initiatives including forums, conferences, short courses and publications disseminating information about trends and policy initiatives in relation to social inclusion
• Supervising post graduate student projects focusing on reducing discrimination and promoting social inclusion.

References:

Saunders P 2003, 'Can Social Exclusion Provide a New Framework for Measuring Poverty?', Social Policy Research Centre Discussion Paper 127, SPRC, Sydney.
Kawachi I & Berkman LF 2001, ‘Social ties and mental health’, Journal of Urban Health 2001; 78(3):458-467.
Wilkinson, R. and Marmot, M. 2003, Social determinants of Health: The Solid facts, 2nd Edition, World Health Organisation, Geneva

Economic Participation and Security

Access to educational opportunities, income and employment security are necessary pre-conditions to ensuring the wellbeing of individuals and families.  There is also increasing evidence of the link between workplace stress, mental health and wellbeing.

Evidence linking economic participation and security with mental health and wellbeing outcomes:

• Economic factors including income are prime contributors to individual mental health and wellbeing (Shields and Price 2001)
• Unemployed people experience higher levels of depression, anxiety and distress as well as lower self esteem and confidence (McClelland and Scotton 1998)
• People with low education levels, low status occupations and low incomes have relatively poorer mental health than their higher status and more affluent counterparts.  (VicHealth 2006). 
• Participation in education is a key means of reducing risk of social exclusion and poverty (BSL 2004).
• Australian and international research shows increasingly strong linkages between workplace stress and mental health and wellbeing outcomes (La Montagne, Shaw, Ostry and Keegal 2006)

McCaughey Centre policy research initiatives focusing on the objective of promoting ‘Economic participation and security’ include:

• The development and publication of indicators and data sets in relation to trends around economic participation and security.
• Policy reviews and research projects  providing evidence of the effectiveness of policy strategies in promoting economic participation and security.
• Knowledge Exchange initiatives including forums, conferences, short courses and publications disseminating information about trends and policy initiatives in relation to economic participation and security.
• Supervising post graduate student projects focusing on economic participation and security.

References:

Shields MA & Price SW 2001, ‘Exploring the economic and social determinants of psychological health’, Discussion Paper No. 396, Institute for the Study of Labour, Bonn p2.
McClelland A & Scotton R 1998, ‘Poverty in Health’, in Fisher R & Nieuwenhuysen (eds) 1998, Australian Poverty: Then and Now, Melbourne University Press, Melbourne, pp185-200.
ABS 2004, Labour Force, Australia, Cat. No. 6202.0, Australian Bureau of Statistics, Canberra.
Brotherhood of St Laurence (BSL) 2002, Unemployment and Poverty: Facts and Suggestions for the Future, BSL, Melbourne.
LaMontagne AD, Shaw A, Ostry A, Louie AM, and Keegel T 2006 Workplace Stress in Victoria: Developing a Systems Approach. Melbourne: Victorian Health Promotion Foundation. Available at www.vichealth.vic.gov.au/workplacestress

Healthy and Sustainable Environments

Healthy and sustainable environments are one of five McCaughey Centre priority research areas

"Nature’s goods and services are the ultimate foundations of life and health.  Health risks are no longer merely a result of localised exposures to traditional forms of pollution.  They are also a result of broader pressures on ecosytems, from depletion and degradation of freshwater resources to the impacts of climate change.  Like more traditional risks, the harmful effects of the degradation of ecosystems are being borne disproportionately by the poor".

Former World Health Organisation Director General Lee Jong-Wook.

The McCaughey Centre's initial work in relation to Healthy and Sustainable Environments focuses on the mental health and wellbeing impacts of climate change, and on strategies for dealing with these challenges.

See the August 2007 newsletter from the Climate Adaptation - Science and Policy Initiative (CASPI) for current news and information on local activity around healthy and sustainable environments.