Edith Cowan University

About: Edith Cowan University is a education organization based out in Perth, Western Australia, Australia. It is known for research contribution in the topics: Population & Tourism. The organization has 4040 authors who have published 13529 publications receiving 339582 citations. The organization is also known as: Edith Cowan & ECU.

Women and work‐life balance: is home‐based business ownership the solution?

Abstract: Purpose – This paper seeks to explore self‐employment through home‐based business ownership as a potential solution to the inter‐role conflict experienced by women attempting to balance dual work and family roles.Design/methodology/approach – Home‐based businesses (n = 626) were surveyed in Western Australia as part of a larger national study. Data were collected on operator and business characteristics, and specific home‐based business issues (e.g. reasons for preferring a home‐base, management and planning, growth facilitators and barriers). Four‐way comparisons investigating the dynamics of home‐based business ownership between male and female operators and operators with and without dependants were made.Findings – The attraction of home‐based business ownership is driven predominantly by the flexibility afforded to lifestyle and the ability to balance work and family. While these advantages were more salient for women than for men, gender per se was not a determining factor in why operators started a ...

Sex knowledge and sexual attitudes among medical and nursing students

Abstract: Objectives: The aim of this study was to assess the relationship between background and sociodemographic variables, attitudes toward controversial aspects of human sexuality and sex knowledge among medical and nursing students.Method: The study design was a questionnaire-based survey of medical and nursing students in Western Australia. Participants were first-through fifth-year medical students at the University of Western Australia and first-through third-year undergraduate nursing students at Edith Cowan University. Outcome measures were students' attitudes toward controversial aspects of human sexuality expressed on a five-point Likert scale and a modified version of the Kinsey Institute/Roper Organization National Sex Knowledge Test.Results: A significant relationship was found between certain background and sociodemographic variables, sexual attitudes and sex knowledge. The background variable most strongly related to both attitudes and knowledge was frequency of attendance at religious services of ...

Online Learning as Information Delivery: Digital Myopia

Abstract: In business and commerce, the concept of marketing myopia has been a useful tool to predict, analyze and explain the rise and fall of businesses. In this paper, we question whether the concept can also be used to predict the ultimate downfall of online learning in higher education, if universities continue to confuse their key mission—education—with the much more product-oriented aim of information delivery. The proliferation of information-based online courses is examined within the context of the limitations imposed by widely used course management systems, institutional impediments and other factors that encourage teachers to adopt information delivery in preference for more innovative, authentic pedagogies. Data and findings are reported from teachers and instructional designers who have been successful in offering complex and sustained tasks online.

Effects of Contract-Relax, Static Stretching, and Isometric Contractions on Muscle-Tendon Mechanics.

Abstract: Introduction: Loading characteristics of stretching techniques likely influence the specific mechanisms responsible for acute increases in range of motion (ROM). Therefore, the effects of a version of contract–relax (CR) proprioceptive neuromuscular facilitation stretching, static stretching (SS), and maximal isometric contraction (Iso) interventions were studied in 17 healthy human volunteers. Methods: Passive ankle moment was recorded on an isokinetic dynamometer, with EMG recording from the triceps surae, simultaneous real-time motion analysis, and ultrasound-imaging-recorded gastrocnemius medialis muscle and Achilles tendon elongation. Subjects then performed each intervention randomly on separate days before reassessment. Results: Significant increases in dorsiflexion ROM (2.5°–5.3°; P 0.05), whereas significant reductions in muscle stiffness occurred after CR stretching and SS (16.0%–20.5%; P 0.05). Increases in peak passive moment (stretch tolerance) occurred after Iso (6.8%; P 0.05). Significant correlations (rs = 0.69–0.82; P < 0.01) were observed between changes in peak passive moment and maximal ROM under all conditions. Conclusions: Although similar ROM increases occur after Iso and SS, changes in muscle and tendon stiffness are distinct. Concomitant reductions in muscle and tendon stiffness after CR stretching suggest a broader adaptive response that likely explains its superior efficacy in acutely increasing ROM. Although mechanical changes appear tissue-specific between interventions, similar increases in stretch tolerance after all interventions are strongly correlated with changes in ROM.