Objective: Regular breakfast skipping is related to unhealthy dietary behaviours, such as consuming an overall poorer quality diet and lower rates of physical activity, both of which are linked to a higher BMI. Adolescent breakfast skippers struggle with mental focus, sleep issues and lower grades. Solutions that can be implemented to overcome breakfast skipping are needed.Design: A systematic literature review was undertaken to identify programmes that aimed to increase breakfast eating. Following the PRISMA framework, studies were sourced to examine details of behaviour change, evidence of theory use and other important programme learnings and outcomes.Setting: Breakfast consumption empirical studies published from 2000 onwards.Participants: Nineteen empirical studies that aimed to improve breakfast eating behaviour.Results: Out of the nineteen studies examined, ten studies reported an increase in breakfast consumption frequency for the entire study group or subgroups. Seven studies found no change, one was inconclusive and one observed a decrease in breakfast frequency. Positive changes to the dietary quality of breakfast were observed in five of the studies that did not observe increased frequency of breakfast consumption. Only six studies reported using theory in the intervention.Conclusions: This evidence review points needed to extend theory application to establish a reliable evidence base that can be followed by practitioners seeking to increase breakfast eating rates in their target population.
1 June 2023 in Australian Journal of Social Issues
Indigenous employment has been the subject of numerous policies in Australia, with governments aiming to increase the workforce participation rate amongst Indigenous people in recent years. Indigenous‐owned businesses, formally defined as businesses that are at least 50% Indigenous‐owned, have been demonstrated in previous research to maintain substantially higher levels of proportional Indigenous employment than non‐Indigenous businesses. This suggests that Indigenous‐owned businesses maintain work environments that are more supportive of and conducive to Indigenous employment, meriting the influence of Indigenous‐owned businesses' workplace practices in future Indigenous employment policy design. Using administrative data from two Indigenous business registries (Black Business Finder and Supply Nation), this paper provides an updated empirical analysis of the Indigenous business sector. This paper demonstrates that Indigenous‐owned businesses of all sizes, industries, locations and profit statuses consistently average proportional Indigenous employment rates higher than the Indigenous proportional population. Of all the people employed in Supply Nation‐listed businesses, over 35% are Indigenous. The potential impact of the Indigenous Procurement Policy is illustrated by differentials in the size of businesses and their capacity to employ Indigenous staff. This paper provides analysis of the Indigenous business sector that can inform future policy direction for both Indigenous employment and Indigenous business policies.
3 July 2021 in Australasian Journal of Environmental Management
Koalas are an Australian icon, and their existence is under threat. Environmental protection efforts that centre on people are needed, ensuring the human dimension is considered in conservation efforts aiming to protect wildlife. This article reports process and outcome evaluation results for a social marketing program that aimed to reduce dog and koala interactions. This project aimed to leverage pilot study outcomes. Specifically, the program sought to embed koala aversion (the ability for a dog to avoid koalas) skills within one local government area. A total of 2013 dog owners were surveyed to assess program outcomes, with improved dog abilities observed following city-wide program implementation. Further evidence of program success was indicated in the process evaluation. Dog trainers and dog owners were satisfied, willing to recommend the program to other people, and they were willing to attend events in future. Lessons learned, implications, limitations of the current study and future directions are outlined.
Breakfast is considered an important meal, especially for people who are about to commence a long or demanding workday, and for roles that may involve physical tasks and a requirement to remain alert and vigilant in potentially high-risk situations. This study looks at breakfast consumption influences within two workplace institutional settings, namely military and mining. Semi-structured interviews were conducted with military personnel (n = 12) and mining employees (n = 12) to understand their breakfast consumption behaviour at work and at home, and the associated behavioural influences. The interview questions were framed by social cognitive theory. Overall, cognitive and environmental influences were the most prominent influences on breakfast consumption, less evident were behavioural influences. A negative stereotype of workplace institutional food services emerged as one of the most significant barriers to breakfast consumption for those already at work. Considerations of environmental influences on behaviour may need to be broadened beyond physical barriers and social influences, to include perceptions of the behavioural environment. Programs that aim to increase breakfast consumption must create areas where their employees want to go. Food systems need to ensure nutritious, quality, and appealing food is available. Interventions need to increase participants’ knowledge, improve their attitudes, and create positive expectations for breakfast.
BACKGROUND: Health promotion programs and interventions are designed to encourage behavioral changes in children, encouraging them to make safe and healthy life choices. This systematic review seeks to examine how social impact is measured in primary school health promotion interventions.METHOD: A systematic search and review process was used to identify and examine primary school health promotion interventions. The PRISMA guidelines were followed to source articles from 6 electronic databases reporting school health promotion programs or interventions in Australia, Canada, New Zealand, or the United Kingdom.RESULTS: A total of 77 studies were located, representing 55 health promotion interventions delivered in primary school settings. Of these interventions, only 8 (15%) measured or attempted to measure social impact, whereas another 8 (15%) alluded to social impact. The predominant theories reported were social based theories (theories which examine the social influences on people, environments, and behaviors) (n = 17, 59%), with almost a third not informed by an overt health promotion framework or model (n = 34, 59%). A systematic rating system identified some level of stakeholder engagement (n = 30, 53%).CONCLUSIONS: This systematic review highlights the need for social impact measurement within health promotion to illuminate the role of school programs in delivering lasting change.