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In 1992 the Australian Bureau of Statistics conducted its first ever national survey of time use, a new information resource which provides information about the unpaid work that takes place at home. The author analysed this data in conjunction with earlier, non-national time-use surveys conducted in 1987 and 1974 in order to study how the time that men and women allocate to unpaid work has changed. The three surveys were mathematically standardised so that all the results were given in terms of Sydney, May-June. The surveys cover time devoted to cooking, laundry, home maintenance and car care, shopping, child care as well as other related activities.
Clark, R. Child protection services in
Victoria.
Reports to Victoria's Child Protection Service have increased dramatically, particularly since 1993 when mandatory reporting of serious physical and sexual abuse was introduced for doctors, police and nurses. Teachers were mandated in July 1994. This article examines the child protection system in Victoria in relation to reporting rates, outcomes, service design, types of abuse being notified and who is notifying. The author argues that child abuse statistics reveal more about 'the ambiguous definition of child abuse and neglect, and the anxiety of the community and professional groups, than they do about real incidence'.
Harrison, M. News from the Family
Court.
This article reports on recent developments in family law. The author begins by discussing the Report of the Parliamentary Joint Select Committee which examined the operation and effectiveness of the Child Support Scheme, released in 1994. The Inquiry focused mainly on issues relating to the administration of the Scheme by the Child Support Agency and formula issues. Research into the costs of children is discussed. Proposed reforms to the Family Law Act include the presumption of equal contribution to the marriage, the emphasis on pre-nuptial contracts, and the failure to itemise violence as a relevant factor when considering how property may be allocated between parties. Next the author looks at the Australian Law Reform Commission's inquiry into parent-child contract and the Family Court. The significance of the United Nations Convention on the Rights of the Child to Australian law is discussed in relation to a recent decision of the High Court in the matter of Minister of State for Immigration and Ethnic Affairs and Ah Hin Teoh. Finally, the author comments on the recent decision of Mitchell which provides 'an interesting commentary on the potentially significant role of relevant research findings in financial disputes'.
Harvey, C D H; Bond, J B; Laitinen, A; Sommer, R.
Intergenerational interaction in Finland.
Like Australia, Finland has an ageing population. The author reports on a 1989 study of intergenerational expectations between elderly parents and their adult sons and daughters in Finland. The study looked at three general questions: What do the generations perceive as the most important intergenerational exchange? What motivates the exchanges? Does perception of exchange vary by gender or by generation? The study found that intergenerational relationships in Finland are similar to those found through research in other industrialised countries. Family members exchanged much support and many services across the generations, and were perceived to be the appropriate caregivers for the frail elderly. The qualitative results showed a clear difference between the roles of men and women in intergenerational interaction.
Kilmartin, C. Regional family support
councils.
In late 1994 the National Council for the International Year of the Family produced a report for the Federal Government called Creating the Links: Families and Social Responsibility. The report contains some 20 priority recommendations for further action. This article discusses the recommendation relating to the establishment of Regional Family Support Councils. The Council proposes that two Regional Family Support Councils be established in each state/territory in an urban and rural area and the focus of the Councils be on support and prevention, rather than on crisis intervention. The author raises five possible points of concern about the IYF proposal as it stands. These are: (1) the overlap of functions between the proposed Councils and the already established Family Resource Centres; (2) the limited number per state and hence the minimal coverage which would be achieved; (3) the pilot status of the proposals; (4) the lack of links with economic planning and with the established regional development bodies, and the duplication of regional planning and monitoring bodies; and (5) the need to address cross-departmental funding gaps and overlaps in existing regional services to families.
Kilmartin, C. National Aboriginal and
Torres Strait Islander Survey 1994.
Acting on the recommendation of the Royal Commission into Aboriginal Deaths in Custody, the Federal government allocated funds to the Australian Bureau of Statistics (ABS) to conduct a national survey of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people. The survey commenced design in 1992 and went into the field during early 1994. The first publication from that survey, released in February 1995, reveals some interesting information about families and service usage. The author discusses some of the findings of the survey which covered households and families, health issues, family violence, culture and language, and employment and other sources of income.
Kolar, V. The role of police in physical
domestic violence.
The police role is central to the issue of domestic violence in terms of providing immediate protection to the victim, and as a public statement of intolerance of such behaviour. Often, however, police are criticised for their lack of intervention. In order to explore the level of community support for the enforcement of the criminal process when physical violence against women occurs in the family home, 185 people over the age of 18 were surveyed in 1993 to ascertain their views on police intervention in domestic violence situations. The study was premised on the notion that police would be more likely to act if they felt they had the support of the community.
Little, M. Child protection or family
support? Finding a balance.
The author provides an overview of research into child protection in the United Kingdom. Issues addressed include: definitions of child abuse, setting thresholds for abuse and intervention, numbers of children at risk of abuse and numbers of children referred into the child protection process. The author concludes by discussing how the research evidence highlights ways in which professionals can best protect children.
Moloney, L. Children's rights in family law
disputes.
The adversarial nature of the Family Court has limited its capacity to articulate and respond to the changing roles and expectations of individual family members, in particular children, following parental separation, argues the author. Parental obligations to nurture and protect children have culminated in family law in the acceptance of the best interest of the child as the guiding principle in decision making about children. Children have gained much since this principle was formulated. But the principle is also capable of downgrading any sense of obligation to engage formally the child as an individual human being, or to go through a detailed process of ensuring his or her interests are fully represented. The approach of the United Nations Convention on The Rights of the Child to children's rights is discussed. A number of case studies are presented which raise questions about the legal and social assumptions we sometimes make about the participation rights of children, and about their status when there are apparently conflicting interests with respect to outcome. The rights of children to separate representation in family law proceedings is discussed. Finally, post-separation parenting arrangements are discussed in terms of gender equality.
Snider, G. Measuring the cost of
children.
In response to recent calls for the re-examination of the costs of children, the Australian Institute of Family Studies is arranging to look again at this issue. This article briefly discusses contemporary approaches to studying the costs of children and observes that, in 1989 at least, families were spending more than they made and that to a certain extent the amount of overspending was a result of the number and ages of their children.
Winter, I. An Australian newtown
revisited.
In 1966 Lois Bryson and Faith Thompson were invited to carry out a community study in 'Newtown', a newly planned suburb on the fringe of Melbourne. As part of the Australian Living Standards Study (ALSS), the Australian Institute of Family Studies collected data of a similar nature in Newtown during 1991. This article briefly describes a new draw on these data in order to explore how family and community life have changed in Newtown between 1966 and 1991.
Wolcott, I. Families and social
responsibility.
'Creating the Links: Families and Social Responsibilities' is the National Council for the International Year of the Family's final report to government. It is based on information gathered during public consultations, written submissions to the Council, as well as the Councils own policy research. The report examines each of the ten issues identified by the Council for community consultation and makes twenty recommendations related to them. Three themes dominate each of the ten key issues under discussion: the relationship between social and economic policies as they affect family wellbeing; the connections between private family responsibilities and public obligations to support family contributions to society; and the necessity to intensify resources and services for families to assist them in their caring and nurturing roles.
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