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 & Context (language use). The organization has 4040 authors who have published 13529 publications receiving 339582 citations. The organization is also known as: Edith Cowan & ECU.

Climate Change From a Distance: An Analysis of Construal Level and Psychological Distance From Climate Change

Abstract: The public perception of climate change as abstract and distant may undermine climate action. According to construal level theory, whether a phenomenon is perceived as psychologically distant or close is associated with whether it is construed as abstract or concrete, respectively. Previous work has established a link between psychological distance and climate action, but the associated role of construal level has yet to be explored in depth. In two representative surveys of Australians (N = 217 and N = 216), and one experiment (N = 319), we tested whether construal level and psychological distance from climate change predicted pro-environmental intentions and policy support, and whether manipulating distance and construal increased pro-environmental behaviors such as donations. Results showed that psychological closeness to climate change predicted more engagement in pro-environmental behaviors, while construal level produced inconsistent results, and manipulations of both variables failed to produce increases in pro-environmental behaviors. In contrast with the central tenet of construal level theory, construal level was unrelated to psychological distance in all three studies. Our findings suggest that the hypothesized relationship between construal level and psychological distance may not hold in the context of climate change, and that it may be difficult to change pro-environmental behavior by manipulating these variables.

A Novel Multinary Intermetallic as an Active Electrocatalyst for Hydrogen Evolution.

Abstract: Electrochemical water splitting offers an attractive approach for hydrogen production. However, the lack of high-performance cost-effective electrocatalyst severely hinders its applications. Here, a multinary high-entropy intermetallic (HEI) that possesses an unusual periodically ordered structure containing multiple non-noble elements is reported, which can serve as a highly efficient electrocatalyst for hydrogen evolution. This HEI exhibits excellent activities in alkalinity with an overpotential of 88.2 mV at a current density of 10 mA cm-2 and a Tafel slope of 40.1 mV dec-1 , which are comparable to those of noble catalysts. Theoretical calculations reveal that the chemical complexity and surprising atomic configurations provide a strong synergistic function to alter the electronic structure. Furthermore, the unique L12 -type ordered structure enables a specific site-isolation effect to further stabilize the H2 O/H* adsorption/desorption, which dramatically optimizes the energy barrier of hydrogen evolution. Such an HEI strategy uncovers a new paradigm to develop novel electrocatalyst with superior reaction activities.

"You can feel them looking at you": the experiences of adolescent girls at swimming pools.

Abstract: Introduction Although it is well known that girls at around 15 years of age are not as physically active or as fit as boys, the reasons for this remain largely a mystery. A quantitative study in 1995 looked at girls' perceived alienation from certain active recreational spaces as a possible factor affecting their participation (James, 1995). It found that there were certain recreational spaces that girls said they would use more in the absence of boys. The public swimming pool was one of these places. The follow-up qualitative study, reported in this paper, explored the reasons for the attitudes of 15-16 year old girls towards certain recreational spaces, and identified strategies that active girls have used to overcome or "negotiate" constraints to their participation. This paper focuses on these girls' feelings at swimming pools. Swimming is a healthy, relaxing form of physical activity that girls should feel free to participate in without constraint. It is argued that most girls are very conscious of their presentation in public and that this can affect the quality and quantity of their participation. Measures that can be taken to alleviate some of these constraints are suggested. Background General inactivity of girls at around 15 years of age, and associated concerns about unhealthy diets have been the topics of various studies (Department of the Arts, Sport, Environment and the Territories, 1992; Overdorf & Gill, 1994; Paxton, Wertheim, Gibbons, Szmukler, Hillier, & Petrovich, 1991). At this age, young people decide "either to drop out of sport, or stay with it. If they continue, then it is more than likely that they will do so for a significant part of their lives" (Australian Sports Commission 1991, p. 13). Research shows that girls are less fit than boys of the same age (Australian Sports Commission, 1991) and only half as likely to be involved in sporting organizations (Ministry of Sport and Recreation, 1997). Despite commendable efforts around the world to decrease this gender gap, an American study found that women's fitness participation across all age groups had actually decreased slightly in recent years, with the decline in fitness participation greater among younger than older women (Robinson & Godbey, 1993) . Body image is a big issue during adolescence and many girls are unhappy with their physical appearance. A large study of Western Australian adolescents found that although 62% of boys felt that they were the right weight, 66% of adolescent girls thought they were overweight. Over half of the girls, aged between 12 and 16 years, reported that they were trying to lose weight, yet only 21% had a body mass in excess of their recommended level (Institute for Child Health Research, 1995) . Studies by Shaw (1991) and Paxton et al. (1991) , found that many young women, motivated by media images to be thin, were turning to radical and unhealthy diet strategies to look slim, rather than turning to physical activity with its associated benefits. Girls' bodies, especially during puberty, rarely match up to the unrealistic ideals portrayed in the media. Heterosexual romances featured in novels, magazines, movies and on television, perpetuate the notion that men judge women by their appearance. Girls who are self-conscious about their appearance may limit their recreation participation in public places to avoid embarrassment, and it was this concept that motivated the original study in 1995. Relationship to the 1995 Quantitative Study The 1995 study sought to measure girls' attitudes to a series of public and private sites for recreation in the community, to ascertain if these contexts or settings affected girls' leisure participation (James, 1995). Leisure means different things to different people: here it is used interchangeably with recreation and refers to experiences that are freely chosen and intrinsically motivated, that may be active or passive in nature. …

The Temporal Profile of Postactivation Potentiation Is Related to Strength Level

Abstract: The purpose of this investigation was to determine whether stronger individuals are able to express postactivation potentiation (PAP) earlier than weaker individuals during a vertical squat jump test. Eighteen junior elite rugby league players were divided into strong (relative 1 repetition maximum [1RM] back squat ≥ 2 × body mass) and weak (relative 1RM back squat <2.0 × body mass) groups. Each subject performed squat jumps before, 15 seconds, 3, 6, 9, and 12 minutes after a conditioning activity (CA) that contained 1 set of 3 back squats performed at 90% of 1RM. A force plate, which sampled at 1000 Hz, was used to determine the power output and height for each squat jump. Stronger individuals expressed PAP between 3 and 12 minutes post-CA, whereas their weaker counterparts displayed potentiation between 6 and 12 minutes post-CA. Moreover, the stronger group exhibited a significantly (p ≤ 0.05) higher PAP response than the weaker group at all post-CA squat jump tests. The stronger group displayed the greatest potentiation at 6 minutes post-CA, whereas the weaker group displayed the greatest potentiation response at 9 minutes following the CA. Based on these results, stronger individuals appear to be able to express PAP earlier after a CA than weaker individuals. Additionally, stronger individuals express significantly greater postactivation responses than weaker individuals. From a practical standpoint, strength and conditioning coaches should consider the athletes' strength levels when constructing postactivation complexes (CA + performance activity) as strength will dictate the time frame required between the conditioning and the performance activity.