School of Social and Political Sciences - Research Publications
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ItemBeyond appearances: Perspectives on identity in later life and some implications for method(OXFORD UNIV PRESS INC, 2005-05)Two areas of controversy are examined in this article, arising from contemporary debate on identity in later life. The first centers on whether adults are essentially similar regardless of age or whether different stages of life confer different life priorities. The second addresses the management of self in later life, with special attention being given to alternative interpretations of the relationship between interior and exterior experience. An increasing awareness of diversity in life-course patterns suggests that issues concerning uniformity, distinctiveness, and the uses of masquerade in intergenerational contexts should be revisited. Here, the influence of simple and complex states of mind is examined as a factor in intergenerational power, and the expression of agency in later life is discussed. These issues not only propel us forward in our understanding of gerontological phenomena, they also point to potential sources of research bias associated with specifically intergenerational contexts. Finally, suggestions are made with respect to research training.
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ItemThe Biographical Approach - A Better Way to Understand Behaviour in Health and Illness?(Cambridge University Press, 2005)
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ItemIssues in the school-to-work transition - Evidence from the Longitudinal Surveys of Australian Youth(SAGE Journals, 2005)The purpose of this article is to examine how accurate pessimistic accounts of the school-to-work transition are, given the substantial decline in unemployment since the 1991/93 recession. This examination is limited to young people who did not go to university, a group which is more likely to be experiencing problematic school-to-work transitions. The analyses use data from the first eight waves of data from the 1995 Year 9 cohort in the Longitudinal Surveys of Australian Youth (LSAY) project. In the years after leaving school, an increasing majority are in full-time work and there is considerable movement into full-time work from part-time work and unemployment. Furthermore, each year full-time workers show increases in job status and earnings. Only a small minority of non-university bound youth have problematic school-to-work transitions. These analyses also suggest that the policy emphasis on increasing participation in vocational education is misplaced. Except for apprenticeships and then only among males, vocational education does not appear to promote full-time employment.
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ItemCross-national differences and accounting for social class inequalities in education(Sage Publications, 2005)This article focuses on two questions relating to social class inequalities in education: cross-national differences and the contribution of material, cultural and school factors in accounting for the relationship. These questions are addressed using the EGP measure of occupational class and student performance in reading literacy in 30 countries. The pattern of cross-national differences is more closely associated with indicators of modernization and the organization of the school system, rather than indicators of overall societal inequality and economic development. Both material and cultural factors contribute to the relationship between class background and student achievement with cultural factors marginally more important overall. In countries with highly tracked school systems, schools mediate the relationship in that children from lower class backgrounds are more likely to attend lower performing schools. However, the inverse is not true: school differences in student performance are only partially accounted for by class background and other socioeconomic factors.