Irish College Research Articles

“An Italian of the Vatican type”: The Roman formation of Cardinal Paul Cullen, Archbishop of Dublin

Paul Cullen was the most influential figure in Ireland between the death of Daniel O’Connell in 1847 and the rise of Charles Stewart Parnell in the late 1870s. As Archbishop of Armagh (1849-52) and then Dublin (1852-78) and Ireland’s first Roman Catholic cardinal (1866), he exercised an unprecedented influence in both Ireland’s dominant Roman Catholic Church and in Irish society. What is less known is the nearly 30 years he spent in Rome, first as a student at the Urban College of the Propaganda Fide and then as rector of the Irish College in the city. His immersion in the multilingual environment of papal Rome was crucial in the shaping of his later career in Ireland. This essay traces the first ten or so years of Cullen’s time in Rome, focusing on the important lessons, experiences, and networks that he developed there. Most importantly, attention is given to Cullen’s relationship with Mauro Cappellari, from 1831 Pope Gregory XVI. Cullen’s academic success drew him into the small network of Cappellari’s proteges and informed the whole of his life, including in Ireland.

Guest Editorial

<p> It is with great anticipation and excitement that we launch the first edition of the Irish Journal of Paramedicine. The Irish College of Paramedics (ICoP) are sincerely grateful to the Editor, Mr. Alan Batt, for this initiative and for his invitation to participate in this, the first Irish journal for national and international pre-hospital practitioners.</p><p> The Irish College of Paramedics, like our regulatory body the Pre-Hospital Emergency Care Council (PHECC), has identified research in pre-hospital care as a central and important objective. In furthering our role as a professional body ICoP believe research by pre-hospital practitioners is essential to developing the profession. Like many other healthcare professions, paramedicine needs to develop a culture of research to contribute to the improvements in guidelines, culture, ethics and practice so as to impact positively on our patients whilst promoting this evolving profession.</p><p>Research in the pre-hospital arena is sparse and there is an immediate need to contribute to this important field. This past decade has seen some improvement in the amount of reputable journals focused on pre-hospital care exclusively and these are very much welcomed. Indeed these journals, to their credit, encourage submissions from paramedics and other pre-hospital practitioners, students and related faculty.</p><p>The Australasian Journal of Paramedicine has really set the standard and paramedic profession has benefitted from their innovative approach to publishing. This model allows contributions from those practitioners interested in publishing, some for the first time. The net benefit is a varied and interesting cross section of literature from many core and peripheral fields of paramedicine.</p><p>The Irish Journal of Paramedicine will have a similar ethos and I know the entire approach has the ability to contribute positively to our profession. The fact too that this journal is ‘open access’ will also allow for minimal restriction of articles and maximum exposure to authors. I am honoured to be part of the editorial team whilst amazed at the international mix of experience in this team.</p><p>I hope the launch of the Irish Journal of Paramedicine will encourage all those members of our community interested in publishing to contribute through direct submission and that we all support this outstanding initiative.</p><p>A journal dedicated to promoting and advancing the science of pre-hospital care and all things related, has the full support of the Irish College of Paramedics. We are delighted to make the Irish Journal of Paramedicine the official journal of the Irish College of Paramedics and we wish Alan and the entire team all the very best.</p><p>Thank you Alan.</p><p>Shane Knox PhD MSc HDip AssocCIPD Cert.Mgt MCPara</p><p>President of the Irish College of Paramedics</p><p> </p>

Welcome to the Irish Journal of Paramedicine

<p>Welcome to the first issue of the Irish Journal of Paramedicine (IJP). It gives me great pleasure to launch this journal, a first for Irish paramedics, and pre-hospital care in Ireland. I am also honoured to announce that the IJP has been adopted as the official journal of the Irish College of Paramedics, the professional body for prehospital emergency care practitioners in Ireland.</p><p> A newly emerging profession, paramedicine is now poised at a crossroads. Previously alluded to with colleagues from around the globe, the role of the paramedic is one that is rapidly evolving, and yet paramedicine as a discipline has yet to figure out where it belongs.(1) Are we public safety professionals, first responders or healthcare professionals? Williams has previously stated that the road less travelled requires the paramedic profession to pursue identity as a healthcare profession and not as emergency responders, EMS workers, or ambulance drivers, which we are so commonly identified as.(2)</p><p>Initiatives within Ireland such as the Centre for Prehospital Research national research agenda, the move to higher education for paramedics in University College Dublin and the University of Limerick, and the publication of high-quality peer-reviewed research, undertaken for paramedics, led by paramedics, and published in paramedicine journals are key components in this pursuit of professionalism. It is our hope that the Irish Journal of Paramedicine will play its part as a vehicle in this endeavour.</p><p>It is important however to point out that the Irish Journal of Paramedicine is not exclusively for paramedics. Within Ireland, and around the world, there are many other prehospital care providers, including community responders, volunteer first responders, EMT practitioners, nurses, physicians and others who deliver high quality patient care and are as committed to their personal and professional development as any paramedic. This journal is for the entire prehospital care community, within Ireland and abroad.</p><p>On behalf of the editorial board and the executive of the Irish College of Paramedics, I would like to outline our vision for this journal. We aim to deliver a high quality, freely accessible, peer-reviewed journal that will help to further the professionalisation of paramedicine and prehospital care provision both in Ireland and internationally.</p><p>Our aim is to provide you with access to research, reviews, appraisals, clinical updates, case reports and opinions that will help you to provide the best quality service – whether you are a student, clinician, educator, manager or researcher. We aim to present a wide range of topics relating to clinical practice, professional issues, role development, education and training, policy and service delivery, thereby representing all aspects of paramedicine and prehospital care.</p><p>Our editorial board consists of respected academics, researchers, clinicians and educators from Ireland and abroad who are committed to furthering the cause of paramedicine, and encouraging its future development of professional standing. I am indebted to them for the time they gave so freely in helping to establish this journal.</p><p>We strongly encourage you to submit articles, reports, letters and other contributions to the journal. It is also our vision to publish abstracts of research activity undertaken by Irish prehospital care providers and practitioners, which has been presented at various conferences and scientific meetings, such as the EMS Gathering, and Irish College of Paramedics Scientific Days to name but two.</p><p>Remember this is your journal and it will be as successful as you want it to be. This journal has been a long time in the making, and we look forward to helping it to develop into a true academic and clinical resource along with your assistance. Thank you.</p><p>Alan M. Batt</p><p>Editor</p><p> </p><p>Source of support/funding: None.</p><p>Conflict of interest: AB is Editor of the IJP.</p><p>Provenance and review: Commissioned, not peer-reviewed.</p><p>References</p><p>1. Morton J, Kloepping K, Buick J, Todd J, Batt A. The evolution of the paramedic. Can Paramed. 2015;38(5).</p><p>2. Williams B, Onsman A, Brown T. Is the Australian Paramedic Discipline a Full Profession ? J Emerg Prim Heal Care. 2010;8(1):3.</p><p>How to cite this article: Batt AM. Welcome to the Irish Journal of Paramedicine (Editorial). Irish Journal of Paramedicine, 2016; 1(1).</p><p>This is an Open Access article distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution-Non-Commercial-ShareAlike 4.0 International (<a href="http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-sa/4.0/">http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-sa/4.0/</a>),which permits use, distribution, and reproduction in any medium, provided the original work and any attributes thereof are properly cited, are distributed under the same licence, and that the work is not used for commercial purposes. Content copyright remains with the authors, who grant the IJP a licence to reuse and distribute.</p><p> </p>

A national survey of offending behaviour amongst intellectually disabled users of mental health services in Ireland.

Offenders with an intellectual disability pose a major challenge to Intellectual Disability Service providers in the Republic of Ireland. This is especially so as no national Forensic Intellectual Disability Service currently exists. The Forensic Intellectual Disability Working Group of the Irish College of Psychiatrists was established in order to take steps to address this issue by establishing the level of need for a Forensic Intellectual Disability Service in Ireland and developing a college position paper. No previous study has been carried out to measure offending behaviour amongst persons with an intellectual disability attending mental health services in Ireland. A postal survey was undertaken targeting the lead clinicians of all Intellectual Disability Psychiatry, General Adult Psychiatry and Forensic Psychiatry Services in the Republic of Ireland. This survey requested anonymous data regarding service users with an intellectual disability and offending behaviour in this population. Data relating to 431 service users was returned. Those reported to engage in offending behaviour were predominantly young males. Assault was the most common offence type. A significant number of serious offences such as unlawful killing, sexual assault and arson were reported. There is an urgent need for the development of a Forensic Intellectual Disability Service in the Republic of Ireland. The current efforts of the National Forensic Mental Health Service to establish such a service by the creation of a post of Consultant Forensic Psychiatrist (special interest in intellectual disability) are to be welcomed.

An Assessment of the Public Policy Implementation of Integrated Care in Ireland

This presentation argues that Integrated Care Policy has become well defined in Ireland in the past 5 years. The Health Services Executive (health administration body) working on the Department of Health's Primary Care Policy (Quality and Fairness 2001) have produced an array of policy documentation and an impressive Integrated Services Model from 2010 to date. Concomitantly, there has been an state commitment to: de-institutionalize most disabled people; provide Community Mental Health Teams across various population sub-groups in identified catchment areas; provide 570 Primary Care Teams nationwide to be delivered in approx 300 Primary Care Centres and the provision of falls prevention clinics, urgent day care centres and other clinics dealing with such acute problems as COPD, Diabetes and other conditions. The emphasis is on delivery of health and social care at the closest point to the client, at primary and community care levels. Also, information systems, discharge planning, disease prevention and health promotion at the primary care level, with strong communication and integrated working systems across all levels, are part of the vision. However, these exciting developments have been stalled by various factors: dramatic falls in government health spending since 2011; political interference in the designation of priority areas for Primary Care Centres; the laissez faire approach to wait for private consortia to build Primary Care Centres under more favourable economic circumstances; a lukewarm response by many doctors in the context of cutbacks to the Primary Care Reimbursement Scheme; the information gap in professional and educational mindsets and their failure to conceptualize how integrated care works, let alone, believe in the pressing need for its introduction and the failure of the term Integrated Care to be 'marketed' to the public or even to those in the established health and caring professions. At the level of practical delivery to high risk groups such as those with disabilities, mental illness, patients with acute diseases and older people, there are many enlightened medics and professionals who chart a practical course for the implementation of integrated care, most notably Prof Des O'Neill (Tallaght Hospital) and Eithne Fitzgerald (National Disability Authority), the Irish Medical Organisaiton, The Irish College of General Pracitioners, Alzheimers Ireland and John Saunders of the Mental Health Commission. International Journal of Integrated Care – Volume 15, 27 May – URN:NBN:NL:UI:10-1-116966 – http://www.ijic.org/ 15th International Conference on Integrated Care, Edinburgh, UK, March 25-27, 2015 2 The presentation finishes with suggestions as to what might be done to convert the worked out plans for integrated care provision, and strong commitment to its introduction by the HSE and many enlightened professionals, in to a health and social care reality for patients and clients, working from the insights for action at a the policy and practice levels, arising from the above.

Irish General Practitioner referrals to psychological therapies.

General Medical Practitioners play a crucial role in the detection and referral of mental health problems in primary care. This study describes the referral patterns of Irish General Practitioners (GPs) to psychological therapies and profiles the range of psychological therapies available. A 21-item study-specific questionnaire exploring referral processes to psychological therapies was sent to all GPs listed by the Irish College of General Practitioners in one county in Ireland. A 19-item questionnaire exploring details of psychological therapies offered and referral pathways was sent to members of psychological therapy accrediting bodies in the same county. Of 97 GP respondents (33% response rate), their estimation of the percentage of their patients who have presenting or underlying mental health issues averaged 22%. When asked to indicate which psychological therapies they consider for referrals, psychiatric referrals was the most frequent referral option (94%), followed by Counsellors (69%), Clinical psychologist (60%) and Psychotherapists (30%). GPs indicated they had some or very little knowledge of specific psychological therapies. Of 129 psychological therapists (45% response rate), self-referral and GP referral were their main referral pathways; 80% worked in private practice; highest qualification level was Undergraduate/Higher Diploma (66%), Master Level (39%) and Doctoral Level (5%). GPs refer patients presenting with mental health problems to psychiatrists with significantly lower percentages referring to other types of psychological therapists. Findings demonstrate that there is a need for greater education and information-sharing between GPs and providers of accredited psychological therapies to increase knowledge on specific therapies and their evidence base.

How students with intellectual disabilities experience learning in one Irish university

Over the last number of years, opportunities to learn in higher education for people with intellectual disabilities have increased. Consequently, this subgroup of students is gradually becoming part of an increasingly diverse college community. Because learning varies across different individual cultures and systems of higher education, our current understandings of how students with intellectual disabilities learn are inadequate. This study set out to explore how people with intellectual disabilities learn in one Irish college. Eighteen students with intellectual disabilities were asked to make a drawing of how they understood learning and were interviewed by six of their peers who trained as co-researchers. The findings indicate that the learning experiences of these students are as complex and as multifaceted as any other college student. A model that captures this learning is presented using four categories: the Cognitive Stages of Learning, Self-regulation of Learning, Learning as Collective Meaning Making and the Supportive Environment and Learning. The learning potential for people with intellectual disabilities presented in this paper goes some way to addressing preconceived notions associated with the label of intellectual disability.

General practitioner attitudes and practices in medical fitness to drive in Ireland

BackgroundIn Ireland, assessing medical fitness to drive (MFTD) is performed by general practitioners (GPs) despite not receiving training in traffic medicine. AimTo investigate current attitudes, resources and practices of GPs towards evaluating MFTD prior to the publication of comprehensive national guidelines. Design and settingQualitative study of GPs registered with the Irish College of General Practitioners. MethodWe mailed a questionnaire-survey to GPs (n=1000) in November 2012. ResultsThe response rate was 52%. A majority of GPs were confident (58%) or very confident (11%) in assessing MFTD. However, they were evenly divided as to whether GPs or practitioners specially trained for assessing MFTD should be primarily responsible (48%, 51%, respectively). Many (71%) expressed concern regarding the liability of such assessments. A significant minority reported pressure from patients and/or their families to reconsider decisions on MFTD. When seeking guidance for assessing MFTD, the majority were found to either use existing rudimentary Irish guidelines or refer to a consultant opinion (69%, 66%, respectively). ConclusionAlthough Irish GPs report high levels of confidence in assessing MFTD, as a group they express ambivalence about who should be primarily responsible for such assessments. This would indicate that some would consider deferring to a consultant opinion or at least recognize limitations of their skill set in this area. Further exploration is needed to determine which aspects of MFTD should be included in information and training for GPs, and to help address concerns regarding liability and patient/family communication issues.

Adolescent attachment and substance use: Concurrent and prospective links

In Ireland, assessing medical fitness to drive (MFTD) is performed by general practitioners (GPs) despite not receiving training in traffic medicine.To investigate current attitudes, resources and practices of GPs towards evaluating MFTD prior to the publication of comprehensive national guidelines.Qualitative study of GPs registered with the Irish College of General Practitioners.We mailed a questionnaire-survey to GPs (n=1000) in November 2012.The response rate was 52%. A majority of GPs were confident (58%) or very confident (11%) in assessing MFTD. However, they were evenly divided as to whether GPs or practitioners specially trained for assessing MFTD should be primarily responsible (48%, 51%, respectively). Many (71%) expressed concern regarding the liability of such assessments. A significant minority reported pressure from patients and/or their families to reconsider decisions on MFTD. When seeking guidance for assessing MFTD, the majority were found to either use existing rudimentary Irish guidelines or refer to a consultant opinion (69%, 66%, respectively).Although Irish GPs report high levels of confidence in assessing MFTD, as a group they express ambivalence about who should be primarily responsible for such assessments. This would indicate that some would consider deferring to a consultant opinion or at least recognize limitations of their skill set in this area. Further exploration is needed to determine which aspects of MFTD should be included in information and training for GPs, and to help address concerns regarding liability and patient/family communication issues.

Addressing prospective elementary teachers’ mathematics subject matter knowledge through action research

There is international dissatisfaction regarding the standard of mathematics subject matter knowledge (MSMK) evident among both qualified and prospective elementary teachers. Ireland is no exception. Following increasing anecdotal evidence of prospective elementary teachers in one Irish College of Education (provider of initial teacher education programme) demonstrating weaknesses in this regard, this study sought to examine and address the issue through two cycles of action research. The examination of the nature of prospective teachers’ MSMK (as well as related beliefs in the main study) informed the design and implementation of an intervention to address the issue. A mixed method approach was taken throughout. In both cycles, Shapiro's criteria were used as a conceptual framework for the evaluation of the initiative. This paper focuses on the perceived and actual effects of the intervention on participants’ MSMK. As well as its contribution at a local and national level, the study provides an Irish perspective on approaches taken to address the phenomenon internationally.

The Failed Attempts to Implement a Native Rector at the Irish College in Rome, 1773–98

The Failed Attempts to Implement a Native Rector at the Irish College in Rome, 1773–98

The Relationship Between Prosocial Music and Helping Behaviour and its Mediators: An Irish College Sample

Previous research based on the General Learning Model (GLM) found that exposure to prosocial music increased helping behaviour. The present research aimed to test the effects of prosocial music from current music charts and popular television series. An initial experiment determined the themes of four prosocial and four neutral songs; the second experiment then found that prosocial music significantly increased helping behavior, relative to neutral music. The findings indicated no statistical difference on affect or arousal between the samples exposed to either prosocial or neutral music. These results are consistent with previous research and indicate the importance of prosocial music in creating cooperative social scenarios. Suggestions for future research including the necessity for field and longitudinal studies were discussed.

General practitioners' opinions and attitudes towards medical assessment of fitness to drive of older adults in Ireland

The study sought to assess opinions and attitudes of general practitioners (GPs) in Ireland towards fitness to drive (FTD) assessment in people older than 65 years old as well as to gather information on current assessment practices. A postal-based cross-sectional survey was carried out with 603 GP practices randomly selected using the Irish College of General Practitioners database. Response rate was 42.6%. The prevalence of GPs not confident in assessing FTD was less than 15% with 81% reporting the need for more education on assessing FTD, and 82% identifying that mandatory reporting of unsafe drivers posed a conflict of interest. Only 37% of GPs always/often used the Irish Road Safety Authority handbook when assessing FTD with 14% not aware of its existence. Of responders, 89% were of the opinion that a clinical assessment tool would be of benefit in assessing FTD. Our study highlights the need for education and training for Irish GPs on FTD assessment in the older people patient population.

Temporal Stability of the Brief Symptom Inventory 18 Among Irish College Students Over Four Weeks

Of the currently limited available data on the mental health of students in Ireland the most notable are provided in the College Lifestyle and Attitudinal National (CLAN) Survey (Hope, Dring, & Dring, 2005). Recently, Houghton et al. (2012) found among students at an Irish university that women reported significantly higher levels of symptomatology than men on each of the three 6-item subscales of the Brief Symptom Inventory 18 (BSI 18; Derogatis, 2001) (anxiety, depression, and somatization) and the Global Severity Index (GSI; summed total of the 18 items). Similarly, final-year students had significantly worse mental health than non-final-year students. Internal reliability, construct validity, and factor structure of the BSI 18, were reported but no data on the test-retest reliability of the measure. Our aim was to supplement these findings by reporting on the test-retest reliability of the BSI 18 in a small sample of Irish college students.

The challenges facing initial teacher education: Irish prospective elementary teachers’ mathematics subject matter knowledge

Given the acknowledged relationship between teachers’ knowledge, their teaching and pupil learning, teachers’ mathematics subject matter knowledge (MSMK) has received increased attention internationally. As children's early mathematics experiences have been recognized as a critical stage, elementary teachers’ MSMK has become a focal point among researchers and policy makers alike. International research findings have uncovered that in many cases, there is a mismatch between what is perceived to be an appropriate MSMK for teaching elementary mathematics and that demonstrated by many qualified and prospective elementary teachers. Following repeated incidences of weak MSMK during interactions with prospective elementary teachers in one Irish College of Education (provider of initial teacher education programme for elementary teachers), this study sought to examine and address the issue purposefully through two cycles of action research. This article focuses on the data collected prospective teachers’ MSMK in the initial stage (reconnaissance) of these cycles, i.e. pre-test findings. While considerable differences were evident among the pre-test population, the findings suggest that prior to the intervention stage many participating prospective teachers; regardless of previous mathematics achievements or the level of mathematics study; demonstrate weaknesses and gaps in their ‘common’ MSMK. Particular difficulties were evident in relation to pre-test items requiring knowledge of rational numbers, conceptual understanding or problem solving. These findings highlight the inadequacy of previous mathematics achievements and indeed minimum entry requirements as predictors of MSMK for teaching. As well as its contribution at a local and national level, the findings provide an Irish perspective on this international issue.

Patrick Boyle, The Irish Colleges and the Historiography of Irish Catholicism

More than forty Irish colleges were established in France, Spain, Portugal, the Italian States and the Austrian Empire between the 1580s and 1690s to cater for a diverse range of Irish Catholic students and priests who had travelled to the continent to pursue higher education. The colleges were a significant feature of Irish Catholicism, most obviously in the early modern period, and they have therefore attracted substantial attention from historians. The first modern attempts to write their histories appeared in the later nineteenth century and were heavily influenced by a Rankean emphasis on primary sources, as well as contemporary Irish Catholic nationalism. If the dominant historiography of the period emphasized the persecution of the ‘penal era’, then the existence of a network of Irish colleges producing redoubtable clergy for the Irish mission helped to explain how the Catholic Church survived in Ireland. In this paradigm, the production of priests was the main role bestowed on the colleges. This essay examines the foremost early historian of the colleges, and of the viewpoint just oudined, the Vincentian priest and superior of the Irish College in Paris, Patrick Boyle. In 1901 he produced the first book-length history of an Irish college: The Irish College in Paris from 1578 to 1901.

Creating a General (Family) Practice Epidemiological Database in Ireland - Data Quality Issue Management

In Ireland, while detailed information is available regarding hospital attendance, little is known regarding general (family) practice attendance. However, it is conservatively estimated that there are almost nine times as many general practice encounters than there are hospital encounters each year in Ireland. This represents a very significant gap in health information. Indeed, general practice has been shown in other countries to be an important and rich source of information about the health of the population, their behaviors and their utilization of health services. Funded by the Health Information and Quality Authority (HIQA), the Irish College of General Practitioners (ICGP) undertook a feasibility study of diagnostic coding of routinely entered patient data and the creation of a national general practice morbidity and epidemiological database (GPMED project). This article outlines the process of data quality issue management undertaken. The study’s findings suggest that the quality of data collection and reporting structures available in general practice throughout Ireland at the outset of this project were not adequate to permit the creation of a database of sufficient quality for service planning and policy or epidemiological research. Challenges include the dearth of a minimum standard of data recorded in consultations by GPs and the absence of the digital data recording and exporting infrastructure within Irish patient management software systems. In addition, there is at present a lack of recognition regarding the value of such data for patient management and service planning---including importantly, data collectors who do not fully accept the merit of maintaining data, which has a direct consequence for data quality. The work of this project has substantial implications for the data available to the health sector in Ireland and contributes to the knowledge base internationally regarding general practice morbidity data.

Patients dying in the community – what role for primary care?

BackgroundIn Ireland there are no formal frameworks to support primary care teams to identify and respond to the palliative care needs of their patients.AimsAs part of the Primary Palliative Care...

Witness to War: Charles Ouin-la-Croix and the Irish College, Paris, 1870-1871

The Irish College, Paris, was thrust into a new age following the Franco-Prussian war and subsequent downfall of the Second Empire. The autonomy and seclusion enjoyed by the ancient seminary was challenged following the foundation of the Third Republic. Efforts of successive French administrations to dictate College appointments, finances, attendance and undermine the influence of Irish bishops caused friction, but ultimately helped to modernise the College. This early transformation was intimately observed by Charles Ouin-la-Croix, the College Administrator. The memoirs he kept during the Franco-Prussian war, the siege of Paris and the Paris Commune help to illustrate the locality of destruction in the Latin Quarter, as well as the collective charity which followed this civil unrest.

Correlates of Physical Activity among College Students

There is limited Irish research which focuses on rates of physical activity and the correlates of physical activity among college students, typically aged 18–22 (Clán Survey, 2003). A questionnaire examining participation rates in and correlates of physical activity was administered to a representative sample of 532 students in colleges within the Republic of Ireland. Key correlates of physical activity were further explored using interviews ( n = 16) of Irish coaches/college sport personnel and college students. A significantly higher percentage of males reported participation in organized physical activity/sport (male = 57.8%, female = 27.5%; p ≤ .001), whereas females were more likely to participate in unorganized physical activity (female = 74%, male = 56.8%; p ≤ .001). Intrinsic motivational factors (e.g., fun/ enjoyment, fitness, fondness of competition, interest) were found to be primary positive correlates of physical activity/sport for both males and females. Barriers to physical activity were elements associated with college life (e.g., lack of time, coursework) as well as lack of interest. Significant multivariate effects were obtained for gender and the correlates leading to participation in organized and unorganized physical activity/sport. Univariate analysis revealed that psychological and social correlates were significantly related to engagement in organized physical activity/sport among gender and more pronounced among males. However, only psychological correlates were significantly associated to participation in unorganized physical activity among gender and more prevalent among females. Cognizance of intrinsic influences should be taken when developing physical activity promotional strategies with Irish college students. Among Irish females, emphasis should be placed on the development of unorganized noncompetitive physical activity.