Australian Participants Research Articles

The effects of constructive journalism techniques on mood, comprehension, and trust

The role of news media in the perpetuation of misinformation has faced increasing scrutiny. Concerns have been raised about news media’s negative influence on mental health, increasing news avoidance, and decreasing trust in news. Constructive journalism is proposed to increase engagement with and trust in news media, reduce the mental health impact of news consumption, and provide a more accurate view of the world. However, constructive journalism studies primarily investigate the inclusion of solutions and positive emotions in news stories, to the exclusion of other techniques. Additionally, few studies have investigated constructive journalism’s effects on trust and comprehension. We used a randomised-controlled repeated-measures experimental design to investigate the effects of a comprehensive set of constructive journalism techniques on mood, comprehension, and trust among 238 Australian participants. Participants who read constructive articles reported higher positive emotion, and lower negative emotion, compared to participants who read the same articles without constructive features. However, participants in the constructive condition demonstrated worse comprehension than participants in the control, an effect partially mediated by negative emotion but not effort. No significant differences in trust in journalism as an institution or in article content were present between groups. However, when accounting for interest, constructive journalism demonstrated a significant negative effect on trust in the information, though positive where it increased mood. Further research is needed to calibrate techniques which balance the positive effects of constructive journalism with its ability to convey information.

Youth agency in public diplomacy: Australian youth participation in outbound mobility and connection building between Australia and the Indo-Pacific region

ABSTRACT The Australian government has considered youth mobility to the Indo-Pacific to be crucial in building Australia’s connection with the region. Despite a growing trend of Australian student mobility to the Indo-Pacific, there has been a dearth of research on mobility youth’s agency in public diplomacy. This article makes an original contribution to the literature by elucidating the four main forms of youth agency in public diplomacy in which Australian students have engaged: fostering regional understandings, people-to-people connections, people-to-opportunity connections and country-to-country connections with the Indo-Pacific. It shows that these understandings and connections were created not only during the students’ in-country experiences but also upon their return, and the youth-led connections are not limited within the host and home countries. The article suggests a critical need to have a systemic approach to supporting mobility youth’s capacity for regional engagement, beyond the traditional student experience in learning abroad, which is concerned largely with academic outcomes, cultural enhancement and employability development.

Assessment of Pain-Related Fear in Indigenous Australian Populations Using the Fear of Pain Questionnaire-9 (FPQ-9).

In this study, we examined the psychometric properties of the Fear of Pain Questionnaire (FPQ-9) in Indigenous Australian people. FPQ-9, a shorter version of the original Fear of Pain Questionnaire-III, was developed to support the demand for more concise scales with faster administration time in the clinical and research setting. The psychometric properties of FPQ-9 in Indigenous Australian participants (n = 735) were evaluated with network psychometrics, such as dimensionality, model fit, internal consistency and reliability, measurement invariance, and criterion validity. Our findings indicated that the original FPQ-9 three-factor structure had a poor fit and did not adequately capture pain-related fear in Indigenous Australian people. On removal of two cross-loading items, an adapted version Indigenous Australian Fear of Pain Questionnaire-7 (IA-FPQ-7) displayed good fit and construct validity and reliability for assessing fear of pain in a sample of Indigenous Australian people. The IA-FPQ-7 scale could be used to better understand the role and impact of fear of pain in Indigenous Australian people living with chronic pain. This could allow for more tailored and timely interventions for managing pain in Indigenous Australian communities.

Communicating COVID-19 risk changes: Signalling with words, phrases, and messages

During COVID-19, governments issued messages to trigger action, encourage sustained behaviours (e.g., social distancing, hand hygiene), and manage system wide risk. This study examines messages issued across two stages established by the World Health Organization (WHO): (a) pre-pandemic early intervention stage and (b) within-pandemic escalation stage. In April 2020, approximately one month after COVID-19 was declared a pandemic, an experiment using a sample of 769 Australian participants was conducted. Using a between-subject design, participants assessed the way messages (curated and then expertly attributed to the two stages) were perceived and influenced behaviours. Next, it examined the power of words and phrases, selected from the same messages, for (a) their potential to signal risk, warning, and behavioural response and (b) the extent to which they reflected pandemic stages.Results showed that between the two stages, messages were differentiated by negative affect, assertiveness, and risk. Subsequently, increased negative affect, assertiveness, and risk indication increased adaptive behavioural intentions. However, increased assertiveness also increased non-adaptive behavioural intentions, though increased risk indication reduced non-adaptive behavioural intentions. Signal words and phrases, which hold potential as iconic features for biological hazard messages, showed varying performance across message stages, indicating an opportunity to improve them. Taken together, the findings contribute to academic and policy approaches for adapting communication to changing risk.

The impact of COVID-19 restrictions on perceived health and wellbeing of adult Australian sport and physical activity participants

Individuals’ access to sport and physical activity has been hampered due to COVID-19 lockdown restrictions. In Australia participation in community sport was cancelled during lockdowns. There is limited research on the impact of sport participation restrictions on the health and wellbeing of adults.AimThe aim of this study was to investigate the perceived health and wellbeing of a sample of predominantly active Australian adults, both during COVID-19 and in comparison with one year earlier (pre COVID-19).MethodsA survey was conducted during the first COVID-19 restrictions and lockdowns in Australia in May–June 2020. It was distributed by national and state sporting organisations and through researchers’ social media accounts. This particular paper focuses on adults aged 18–59 years. The survey collected information on participant demographics, the sport and physical activity patterns pre- COVID-19, and health and wellbeing outcomes during COVID-19 lockdown and compared to one year earlier. The health measures were cross-tabulated against the demographic and sport and physical activity variables, and group profiles compared with chi-square tests. Scales were derived from three wellbeing questions, and group differences were analysed by t-tests and F-tests.ResultsThe survey sample included 1279 men and 868 women aged 18–59 years. Most (67%) resided in metropolitan cities. The great majority (83%) were sport participants. During COVID-19 lockdown men were significantly more likely than women to report worse or much worse general (p = 0.014), physical (p = 0.015) and mental health (p = 0.038) and lower life satisfaction (p = 0.016). The inactive adults were significantly more likely to report poorer general health (p = 0.001) and physical health (p = 0.001) compared to active adults. The younger age cohort (18–29 years) were significantly more likely to report poorer general wellbeing (p < 0.001), and lower life satisfaction (p < 0.001) compared to the older age groups.ConclusionIt seems that the absence of playing competitive sport and training with friends, teams and within clubs has severely impacted males and younger adults in particular. Sports clubs provide an important setting for individuals’ health and wellbeing which is why clubs require the capacity to deliver sport and individuals may need to regain the motivation to return.

Prediction of disability-free survival in healthy older people

Prolonging survival in good health is a fundamental societal goal. However, the leading determinants of disability-free survival in healthy older people have not been well established. Data from ASPREE, a bi-national placebo-controlled trial of aspirin with 4.7 years median follow-up, was analysed. At enrolment, participants were healthy and without prior cardiovascular events, dementia or persistent physical disability. Disability-free survival outcome was defined as absence of dementia, persistent disability or death. Selection of potential predictors from amongst 25 biomedical, psychosocial and lifestyle variables including recognized geriatric risk factors, utilizing a machine-learning approach. Separate models were developed for men and women. The selected predictors were evaluated in a multivariable Cox proportional hazards model and validated internally by bootstrapping. We included 19,114 Australian and US participants aged ≥65 years (median 74 years, IQR 71.6–77.7). Common predictors of a worse prognosis in both sexes included higher age, lower Modified Mini-Mental State Examination score, lower gait speed, lower grip strength and abnormal (low or elevated) body mass index. Additional risk factors for men included current smoking, and abnormal eGFR. In women, diabetes and depression were additional predictors. The biased-corrected areas under the receiver operating characteristic curves for the final prognostic models at 5 years were 0.72 for men and 0.75 for women. Final models showed good calibration between the observed and predicted risks. We developed a prediction model in which age, cognitive function and gait speed were the strongest predictors of disability-free survival in healthy older people.Trial registrationClinicaltrials.gov (NCT01038583)

Lack of cognitive impairment in long-term survivors of colorectal cancer

BackgroundOur longitudinal study reported cognitive impairment in 43% of people following diagnosis of localised colorectal cancer (CRC) versus 15% in healthy controls (p < 0.001) and 50% versus 13% 1–2 years later (p < 0.001). Here we evaluate cognitive function and neuroimaging in a subgroup at long-term follow-up.Patients and methodsCancer-free Australian participants in the study, and controls, completed cognitive and functional assessments. Neuroimaging was optional. Blood tests included inflammatory markers, clotting factors, sex hormones and apolipoprotein E genotype. The primary endpoint was demographically and practice effect-corrected cognitive scores comparing CRC survivors with controls over time examined using a linear mixed model, adjusted for baseline performance. Secondary endpoints included cognitive impairment rate using the Global Deficit Score [GDS > 0.5], Functional Deficit Score, blood results and neuroimaging.ResultsThe study included 25 CRC survivors (60% men, median age 72) at mean 9 years after baseline (9 received adjuvant chemotherapy) and 25 controls (44% men, median age 68) at mean 6 years after baseline. There were no significant differences in cognitive scores or proportion with cognitive impairment (16 vs. 8%) between survivors and controls and no evidence of accelerated ageing in CRC survivors. Baseline cognitive performance predicted for subsequent cognitive function. There were no differences in functional tests or blood tests between groups. In 18 participants undergoing neuroimaging, 10 CRC survivors had higher myoinositol levels than 8 controls, and lower volume in the right amygdala and caudate and left hippocampal regions.ConclusionsThere was no difference in cognitive capacity and function between CRC survivors and controls 6–12 years after diagnosis. Differences in neuroimaging require confirmation in a larger sample.Highlights• No evidence of long term cognitive impairment in colorectal cancer survivors compared to controls 6–12 years after diagnosis• No evidence of accelerated cognitive ageing in colorectal cancer survivors• No evidence of long-term functional impairment in colorectal cancer survivors

Saying “no” in emails in Mandarin Chinese and Australian English

Abstract The present study examined the differences between Mandarin Chinese and Australian English in email refusals. An email production questionnaire (EPQ) and retrospective verbal reports (RVR) were used to collect data. Results showed that while both groups preferred directness to indirectness at the utterance level, Chinese participants used indirectness significantly more frequently than Australian participants in refusals of requests. In addition, Chinese refusals were more indirect than Australian refusals at the discourse level. Chinese participants chose significantly more supportive moves than Australian participants and tended to put multiple supportive moves before the direct head act in refusals of either invitations or requests. The two groups also differed considerably in the content of refusal strategies. Moreover, both the EPQ and RVR data showed that Chinese were more sensitive to social status than Australians. The findings of this study were broadly consistent with studies on refusals in oral communication despite some differences.

Mental health literacy in India and Australia and its relationship to attitudes towards LGBT people

ABSTRACT Research on the mental health of people who identify as lesbian, gay, bisexual or transgender (LGBT) often emphasises individual vulnerability to mental health issues. However, attitudes towards LGBT individuals may also contribute to their experiences of minority stress. In the present study, the relationship between mental health literacy (MHL) and attitudes towards LGBT individuals in Australia and India was investigated. Seven-hundred and eleven participants (355 male) from Australia (n = 303) and India (n = 408) completed an online survey which included questionnaires indexing the participants’ MHL and their attitudes towards LGBT individuals. MHL was associated with attitude scores, such that participants with higher levels of MHL tended to report more positive attitudes towards LGBT individuals. These relationships were stronger for Australian participants compared to Indian participants. These findings suggest that minority stress may be intensified for LGBT individuals when the MHL of the people they interact with is low. Alternatively, MHL may signal how willing an individual is to offer mental health support to a LGBT person. The present results also highlight the influence of cultural context on MHL and the need to consider this when examining attitudes towards LGBT individuals.

Measurement Invariance of the Questionnaire on the Internal Stigma of Internet Surfing Among Sino-Australian Undergraduates.

BackgroundThe stigma of internet surfing is a relatively new area of study arising from the popularity of the internet. The Questionnaire on the Internal Stigma of Internet Surfing-9 (QISIS-9) was developed for the Chinese culture, so its suitability for use in other cultural contexts is uncertain. This paper examines the measurement invariance of the QISIS-9 among Sino-Australian undergraduates to verify the cross-cultural measurement invariance of QISIS-9 and promote cross-cultural (nationality) research regarding the internal stigma of internet surfing.MethodsThe Internal Stigma of Internet Surfing-9 (QISIS-9) was used to assess 200 Chinese undergraduates (50% female, Mage = 19.78) and 204 Australian undergraduates (76% female, Mage = 21.10), respectively.ResultsA confirmatory factor analysis (CFA) indicated that the single-factor model of QISIS-9 is acceptable with both Chinese and Australian undergraduates. However, the factor loading of Item 9, to which a reverse score is assigned, is not ideal for both samples. Thus, the item should be deleted. According to a multigroup confirmatory factor analysis (MCFA), QISIS-8, the revised version of QISIS-9, meets the strict measurement invariance among the Chinese and Australian participants. The QISIS-8 demonstrated appropriate internal consistency in the scores for both the Chinese and Australian undergraduates.ConclusionThe new QISIS-8 can effectively assess the internal stigma of internet surfing among Chinese and Australian undergraduates, and it provides a frame of reference for further cross-cultural (border) comparisons.

Impact of early intervention on the population prevalence of common mental disorders: 20-year prospective study.

The potential for early interventions to reduce the later prevalence of common mental disorders (CMD) first experienced in adolescence is unclear. To examine the course of CMD and evaluate the extent to which the prevalence of CMD could be reduced by preventing adolescent CMD, or by intervening to change four young adult processes, between the ages of 20 and 29 years, that could be mediating the link between adolescent and adult disorder. This was a prospective cohort study of 1923 Australian participants assessed repeatedly from adolescence (wave 1, mean age 14 years) to adulthood (wave 10, mean age 35 years). Causal mediation analysis was undertaken to evaluate the extent to which the prevalence of CMD at age 35 years in those with adolescent CMD could be reduced by either preventing adolescent CMD, or by intervening on four young adult mediating processes: the occurrence of young adult CMD, frequent cannabis use, parenting a child by age 24 years, and engagement in higher education and employment. At age 35, 19.2% of participants reported CMD; a quarter of these participants experienced CMD during both adolescence and young adulthood. In total, 49% of those with CMD during both adolescence and young adulthood went on to report CMD at age 35 years. Preventing adolescent CMD reduced the population prevalence at age 35 years by 3.9%. Intervening on all four young adult processes among those with adolescent CMD, reduced this prevalence by 1.6%. In this Australian cohort, a large proportion of adolescent CMD resolved by adulthood, and by age 35 years, the largest proportion of CMD emerged among individuals without prior CMD. Time-limited, early intervention in those with earlier adolescent disorder is unlikely to substantially reduce the prevalence of CMD in midlife.

Rates and Determinants of Returning to Australian Rules Football in Male Nonprofessional Athletes After Anterior Cruciate Ligament Reconstruction.

Background:Return to sport is a goal for most patients who undergo anterior cruciate ligament (ACL) reconstruction. However, at a nonelite level, there are limited sport-specific data regarding rates or factors associated with return to play.Purpose:To report rates and determinants of returning to play Australian Rules football after ACL reconstruction in male nonprofessional athletes.Study Design:Case-series; Level of evidence, 4.Methods:A total of 354 male nonprofessional Australian Rules football players who had undergone primary ACL reconstruction were asked to complete detailed sports activity questions at 12 months and 2 to 5 years (mean, 3 years) after surgery. Rates of return to play were calculated for both timepoints, along with preoperative patient expectations and postoperative sport performance. The following predictors of return to play were examined: age at surgery; height; weight; frequency of weekly football participation; sport participation level; psychological readiness to return to sport; and knee-related quality of life. Further ACL injuries were also documented. Descriptive statistics were used to summarize return-to-play data and contingency analysis for predictors of return to sport.Results:The rate of return to any level of play was 35% (95% CI, 30%-41%; n = 284) at the 12-month follow-up and 78% (95% CI, 72%-83%; n = 233) at the 2- to 5-year follow-up. Overall, 64% (95% CI, 57%-70%) of the patients were able to return to their same or higher level of play. Before surgery, 92% of the patients expected to return to their same preinjury level of Australian Rules football participation. At the 2- to 5-year follow-up, 61% who returned to play felt that they could perform as well as they could before their ACL injury. A greater psychological readiness to return to sport preoperatively and higher level of sport participation were significant predictors of a return at 2 to 5 years. Further ACL injuries were sustained by 21% of the cohort (15% graft rupture; 6% contralateral ACL injury).Conclusion:Most male athletes who participate in Australian Rules football returned to some level of play after ACL reconstruction; however, only 64% returned to preinjury levels. Preoperative expectations were not met, and high reinjury rates are a cause for concern.

What can We Learn From High-Performing Screening Programs to Increase Bowel Cancer Screening Participation in Australia?

BackgroundColorectal cancer (CRC) is the second most diagnosed cancer in men and women and second most common cause of cancer death in Australia; Australia’s CRC incidence and mortality are among the world’s highest. The Australian National Bowel Cancer Screening Program began in 2006; however, only 33% of those approached for the first time by the Program between 2018 and 2019 returned the kit. Of the 5.7 million kits sent during this period, only 44% were returned. Our aim was to identify practices and features of national bowel cancer screening programs in countries with similar programs but higher screening participation, to identify potential interventions for optimising Australian CRC screening participation.MethodsWe searched published and grey literature for CRC screening programs reporting at least 50% screening participation using postal invitation and free return of iFOBT home kits. Interviews were conducted with cancer registry staff and academic researchers, focused on participant and practitioner engagement in screening.ResultsNational programs in Netherlands, Scotland, Denmark, and Finland reported over 50% screening participation rates for all invitation rounds. Shared characteristics include small populations within small geographic areas relative to Australia; relatively high literacy; a one-sample iFOBT kit; national registration systems for population cancer screening research; and screening program research including randomised trials of program features.ConclusionsApart from the one-sample kit, we identified no single solution to persistent Australian low uptake of screening. Research including randomised trials within the program promises to increase participation.ImpactThis screening program comparison suggests that within-program intervention trials will lead to increased Australian screening participation.

How best to improve upon return-to-player information in gambling? A comparison of two approaches in an Australian sample

Abstract “Return-to-player” information is used in several jurisdictions to display the long-run cost of gambling, but previous evidence suggests that these messages are frequently misunderstood by gamblers. Two ways of improving the communication of return-to-player information have been suggested: switching to an equivalent “house-edge” format, or via the use of a “volatility warning,” clarifying that the information applies only in the statistical long run. In this study, Australian participants (N = 603) were presented with either a standard return-to-player message, the same message supplemented with a volatility warning, or a house-edge message. The return-to-player plus volatility warning message was understood correctly more frequently than the return-to-player message, but the house-edge message was understood best of all. Participants perceived the lowest chance of winning in the return-to-player plus volatility warning condition. These findings contribute data on the relative merits of two proposed approaches in the design of improved gambling information.

Leveraging Local Knowledge Exploring How to Support Regional, Rural, and Remote Students' Career Development

Australian higher education participation continues to expand, yet in unequal ways. Regional, rural, and remote (RRR) student participation is stubbornly stalled, despite sustained research and policy initiatives to support these cohorts. To address this complex issue, we interviewed 10 RRR principals in Queensland and Victoria to explore specific challenges that face RRR communities, as well as collate strategies and solutions. Our findings highlighted the importance of leveraging and developing local knowledge and expertise to equip students with careers education, as well as the need to promote a positive narrative about RRR community life. A key theme that emerged from participants was the need to dispel the myth that students needed to leave their communities to achieve their goals or find career success. The findings from this paper point to a need for educational outreach programs to continue to develop context-specific, locally informed programs and support that align with RRR communities' values and ways of life.

Identity Development during Student Exchange: A Longitudinal Multilevel Analysis of Identity Processes in Emerging Adults

ABSTRACT This study investigated how the changes in cultural context experienced during a university exchange program influenced key identity processes of exploration and commitment in emerging adults. Australian (N = 203) and French (N = 233) participants completed the Dimensions of Identity Development Scale before, during, and directly after their exchange. For both Australian and French participants, longitudinal multilevel models demonstrated that exchange supported increases in identity commitment and exploration in breadth while simultaneously decreasing ruminative exploration, although there was significant individual variability in rates of change. Cultural distance and previous travel experience had little influence on how much identity change occurred. The findings show that exchange experiences promote positive identity development for emerging adults, presenting new possibilities for identity interventions.

Daily Perceptions of Aging and Implications for Stress Reactivity

Awareness of one’s own aging has received increasing attention in the field of gerontology over the last decade. This study examines the role awareness of age-related change (AARC) may play in the association between daily stressors and well-being. Recently, individuals’ awareness of both age-related gains and age-related losses has been shown to vary on a day-to-day basis (Neupert & Bellingtier, 2017). We expected that increases in daily AARC-losses may be associated with increased emotional reactivity to daily stressors, whereas increases in AARC-gains may be associated with decreased reactivity. Data were collected in a daily diary study from a community-based sample of 152 Australian participants aged 53 to 86 (M = 69.18, SD = 5.73). Participants completed daily assessments of AARC, stressors and emotional affect (positive and negative) on their smartphones for 10 consecutive days. Analysis of within-person coupling using multilevel models indicated that daily increases in AARC-losses were associated with increased reactivity to daily stressors (represented by high negative affect and low positive affect). On the other hand, daily increases in AARC-gains were associated with decreased reactivity to daily stressors (represented by low negative affect). Results indicate that even short-term fluctuations in perceptions of aging may be an important factor to consider when investigating associations between daily stressors and well-being in older adulthood. Specifically, greater daily AARC-losses may contribute to lower emotional well-being, whereas an appreciation of positive age-related changes (AARC-gains) may play a role in mitigating emotional reactivity to daily stress experiences in older adulthood.

Barriers to Clinician Implementation of Parent-Child Interaction Therapy (PCIT) in New Zealand and Australia: What Role for Time-Out?

Background: Parent-Child Interaction Therapy (PCIT) is an effective parent training approach for a commonly occurring and disabling condition, namely conduct problems in young children. Yet, despite ongoing efforts to train clinicians in PCIT, the intervention is not widely available in New Zealand and Australia. Methods: We undertook a cross-sectional online survey of clinicians in New Zealand and Australia who had completed at least the 40-h initial PCIT training, to understand the barriers they encountered in their implementation efforts, and the extent to which attitudes toward time-out influenced implementation. The overall response rate was 47.5% (NZ: 60%; Australia: 31.4%). Results: Responses suggested that participants generally viewed PCIT as both acceptable and effective. Australian participants reported seeing significantly more clients for PCIT per week than those in NZ (Medians 0 and 2, respectively; χ2(1) = 14.08, p < 0.001) and tended to view PCIT as more effective in treating disruptive and oppositional behaviour (95% CI: −0.70, −0.13, p = 0.005). Participants currently seeing PCIT clients described it as more enjoyable to implement than those not using PCIT (95% CI: −0.85, −0.10, p = 0.01). Thirty-eight percent of participants indicated that they adapt or tailor the standardised protocol, primarily by adding in content relating to emotion regulation, and removing content relating to time-out. Participants generally felt that they had fewer skills, less knowledge, and less confidence relating to the Parent-Directed Interaction phase of PCIT (which involves time-out), compared with the Child-Directed Interaction phase. Conclusion: While we had hypothesised that time-out represented an intra-intervention component that detracted from implementation success, results suggested that clinician concern over the use of time-out was present but not prominent. Rather, the lack of access to suitable equipment (i.e., one-way mirror and ear-piece) and difficulties associated with clients attending clinic-based sessions were barriers most commonly reported by clinicians. We suggest that future research might consider whether and how PCIT might be “re-implemented” by already-trained clinicians, moving beyond simply training more clinicians in the approach.

Relationships between Coerced Sexting and Differentiation of Self: An Exploration of Protective Factors

Pressure to send sexually explicit messages, or ‘sexting coercion’ is associated with adverse mental health outcomes and sexual risk behaviors. This study explores Differentiation of Self (DoS) as a potential protective factor to reduce susceptibility to sexting coercion. A convenience sample of 399 Australian participants, aged 18 to 21 years (Mage = 19.63; SD = 1.14, 68.2% women) completed an online survey measuring sexting behaviors and DoS. Women were four times more likely to send willing unwanted sexts, and seven times more likely to engage in coerced unwanted sexting than men. Participants with low DoS were four times more likely to engage in coerced unwanted sexting. DoS significantly mediated the relationship between gender and coerced unwanted sexting. Results support the proposal of a sexting coercion typology encompassing discrete sub-types of sexting coercion. Results also indicate DoS may operate as a protective factor for young people in Australia, reducing compliance with sexting when coerced.

Wheel of Wellbeing (WoW) health promotion program: Australian participants report on their experiences and impacts

BackgroundCommunity-based mental health promotion programs focus on improving individual and community wellbeing by strengthening resilience and building capacity to support positive health outcomes. The Wheel of Wellbeing (WoW) is an example of such a program, promoting activities that support social engagement and positive emotions within a holistic framework underpinned by positive psychology. WoW is intended to be flexibly implemented in each community, training community members who implement behaviour change activities in their local community, workplace and educational settings.MethodThis study aimed to understand the opinions and experiences of a sample of individuals who had participated in a range of WoW training programs; documenting the impact on participant behaviours and professional practices, and how the WoW framework was subsequently employed within their communities. Using Ripple Effects Mapping evaluation processes to guide a focus group, nine WoW training participants collectively reflected on the program impacts, generating consensus themes and a mind map. Mind map qualitative data were entered into XMIND mapping software and reviewed with the focus group transcription and field notes.ResultsThematic analysis identified three themes: increased community involvement and engagement (strengthening community connections); improved health, emotions and behaviour (motivating change to health behaviours); and flexible resources which could be utilised in a range of settings (easily incorporated in the existing organisational cultures).ConclusionsThe results of this study support the premise that the WoW framework can be an effective framework for guiding wellbeing promotion activities, with participants championing a ‘ripple effect’ across individual, family, friendship, professional and community networks.