Research projects | UniSC | University of the Sunshine Coast, Queensland, Australia

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Research projects

Health and wellbeing

We are working on a number of projects promoting positive health and wellbeing. These include:

Project name Project description
Conversations for Life

Research and development of online mental health programs using videos of people with lived experience and interactive narratives. Development of a Pharmacy version of the program which has been delivered with the Australian Pharmacy Guild (NSW) and Australian Pharmacy Guild (QLD)

Stronger Smarter Yarns

Research and development of online mental health programs which recognise the impact of colonization on First Nations Peoples wellbeing and mental health, and develop skills and confidence to have meaningful conversations with others who are vulnerable. Delivered with Australian Pharmacy Guild (NSW) and Australian Pharmacy Guild (QLD)

Online Mental Health Training 

Research and development of online mental health programs using videos of people with lived experience and interactive narratives

Champion Life Research and development of Champion Life, an Australian online platform that seeks to instil healthy lifelong habits in young Australians

Champion Life Seniors

Health aging research and evaluation project to improve the mobility of older adults using short follow-along videos and a gamified online platform. Partnership between UniSC, Champion Life, Comlink Australia, and Aged Care Research & Industry Innovation Australia.

Chats for Life Research and development of a youth suicide prevention app. Uses video examples to help youth have conversations about mental health and how to provide peer support

WhenWe

Research and development of an online memory collection and collation program to understand important events and connections between people, organisations and places.

Mindfulness in CEB Training

Research to understand the effects and interactions of mindfulness and emotional literacy training (Cultivating Emotional Balance) in mindfulness based interventions.

Mental Health of Young Musicians

Research to understand, design and evaluate an intervention for young musicians to improve their psychological health and well-being through education around strategies to build resilience and mindfulness.

Academic Creativity and Resilience

Research exploring Creativity, PsyCap, and Resilience among Australian academic staff.

Social Media in Perinatal

Understanding how a social media group can support women through pregnancy, childbearing and early parenting – the virtual village.

Behaviour Change Narratives

Research to design a framework of the development of digital interactive narrative to affect behaviour change

Game and Young Women

Understanding the effect of social exergames on the wellbeing and social anxiety of young women.

Gaming Well  Research to understand the positive impact of videogames on youth mental health

Mindful Games

Research on how digital games can be designed to increase mindfulness

Mosquito Virus Detection This cost effective diagnostic test is able to detect multiple pathogens and does not require specialized equipment
Multi-Virus Test This field test detects mosquitoes infected by pathogens such as malaria, dengue and chikungunya by using an innovative lateral flow dipstick
Makeway Lab A health and design initiative using 3D printing technologies training to motivate and re-skill dialysis patients.
Apps for autism Expert reviewing system for apps providing learning and support for children with Autism
Indigenous Alternative Reality Game How ARGs and mobile gaming can promote health and wellbeing in Indigenous communities
Gaming experience Measuring emotional responses of players of computer games
Hello Sunday morning How online goal setting and peer support can achieve positive health behaviour change
Gamechange(h)er Exploring the videogame design elements that may impact the agency and identity of adolescent girls
Young and Well A digitally connected world where technologies are used to support young people to feel safe, healthy and resilient. ‘Researching into computer games’ and ‘flourishing mental health’, in partnership with the $27M federal funded Young and Well Cooperative Research Centre
I play at work Gamifying the workplace
Skill development iPad simulations for physical motor and decision making skill development
Youth Youth coping strategies and technology use
Resilience Videogames and resilience
Movement and wellbeing Videogames, movement and wellbeing
Social wellbeing Videogames and social wellbeing

Environment and place

We are working on projects in the area of environment and place. Some of the projects include:

Project name Project description
Snap-a-log

Citizen science time-lapse project of a decomposing tree at the Mary Cairncross Scenic Reserve

AR Environmental Exhibits

A rolling exhibit of multiple augmented reality experiences to engage visitors with environmental education

Save the Bats

Design and build of an autonomous and remote detection system which can reduce heat stress of bat colonies

Smart Forest Alliance

The research aims to boost to Queensland's hardwood plantation industry, encouraging industry investment by promoting the potential for our hardwood plantation forests to be carbon sinks for companies and individuals.

Interactive Exhibits for Environmental Education

Research and development of a multi user interactive ultra-wide display wall to allow multiple visitors to interact with a developing narrative around environmental management.

Eco Tourguide 

Research and development of a route planning app to automatically and dynamically manage the number of visitors to environmentally sensitive areas and improving visitor experience

Best practice outdoor education

Research best practice in the use of technology to enhance learning in outdoor education.

Marine Mammals Alive

This research will explore how virtual reality underwater experiences can promote public appreciation and participation in marine conversation

Fraser Young Explorer

School education using smartphones to deliver information and allow students to collect media-rich information in the field

Darkwood Game to explore the carbon cycle and carbon sequestration
Interactive map Large digital interactive map for public interaction to engage community with their region for risk communication, disaster management, climate change and planning
Jumping the Fence

Alternative Reality Game/Augmented Reality Game linking children with natural environment

SESYNC Building resilient communities in Thailand and Australia
Planning game

Game for planning using interactive multi-touch technology

Visitor expectations

Mary Cairncross Scenic Reserve Visitor Expectations study

People’s garden

Interactive public artwork to engage and record community around environmental issues

Safety and protection

Our projects are freely available to the community.

Project area Project description

E-scooter Safety

Research to better understand the risk factors that contribute to accidents and injuries related to e-scooter use.

Post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) resulting from Road Traffic Accidents (RTA)

Research to better understand the prevalence of post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) in people who’ve experienced a Road Traffic Accident (RTA), whether they are referred for treatment by GPs or hospitals and what treatment are available to them, and the experiences of those people who have treatment on their PTSD and Quality of Life

AR Road Safety

An augmented reality app which displays animated road scenarios overlaid over the real world view on tablets and smartphones.

Child Exploitation Material Reduction

Collating and assimilating the very latest evidence and thinking on reducing and preventing Child Exploitation Material.

Bystander Behaviour to Sexual Assault 

Innovative use of immersive technology to measure actual bystander intervention behaviour in response to a sexual assault.

Road Marvel

App (game) based on an endless runner to teach young children about road safety and rules of the road.

Driver Courtesy

Research to understanding the effect of driver courtesy and discourtesy on other road users.

Drink and Drug Driving Simulator

Virtual reality driving simulator providing the driver with an experience of drink and drug driving, and an understanding of how their driving performance would be impacted

Exposure 

Understanding driver experiences and pressures on young drivers during their learner (L) and P1 licence phases.

Autonomous Shared Vehicles

Understanding the psychosocial influences involved in choice to use shared autonomous vehicles.

Being safety smart Award winning child protective behaviours game
Knowing you, knowing me Relationship and risk education game for alcohol use reduction
Orbit A free touch-based mobile game app to educate children age 8-10 about sexual abuse prevention.
Affective computing Systems to automatically recognise and respond to human emotion
FeelingSafe Child Sexual Abuse Prevention Learning Environment

Community and Education

We are working on projects to support blended learning. Some of our projects include:

Project Description
VR simulation training for people living with intellectual disability

Research and development of Virtual Reality training simulations for use by people living with intellectual disability

AR Medical Training

Research and development of an augmented reality medical training simulator which integrates physical manikins with photorealistic computer graphics.

Spatial learning using AR

Researching the influence of external representations on cognitive processes in visual-spatial learning environments using an AR flat-pack assembly task and Hololens.

Intuitive Interface Design for AR

Designing a set of ergonomically-focused design heuristics regarding the use of visual controller metaphors in AR.

AI in future work

Understanding the connected role of AI and humans in a future workforce. Scenarios of the future may exist where the human will play a secondary role in the context of work, and AI may become the leader or functional expert.

Player Experiences of Video Game Narrative Brands.

Exploring a video game narrative brand through brand management and game studies

Performance and cybersickness on treadmills in VR

Comparing slip-style omnidirectional treadmills and conventional unidirectional treadmills for task performance, cybersickness, postural stability and user experience in VR

Cybersickness Playing VR Games

Investigating the physiological and psychological effect of prolonged and repeated VR on videogamers and non-videogamers who play action or narrative games

Chronic Health Conditions in Games

The Mighty Spoon: Representing characters with chronic health conditions in videogames

Games to Build Confidence and Competence in Healthcare

Using computer game to create simulations with validity for enhancing confidence and competence in technical and non-technical healthcare skills development. Looking at Dentistry and Nursing.

Dronie game

Research and development of an game/app used in primary schools showcasing the work of six female Australian scientists as roles models for girls in STEM.

Serious Urban Play

Serious Urban Play is an online platform-friendly multiplayer game for urban planning education.

Gamified Tertiary Learning

Gamification of an undergraduate university course to assist student transition to higher education through improved connection to the subject, discipline and teachers.

VR360 Teacher Training

Teacher training using 360 degree videos of escalating problematic student behaviours presented as immersive HMD VR, and measuring with feedback, the teachers' physiological response.

Groupmap

Researched, developed and tested a multi-user interactive digital map for community discussion and engagement.

AR Real Estate

Overlaying information about homes (such as prices, features, promotions) when visitors point their smartphones at properties.

Pre-Service Teacher Tracker

A real-time system that guides a targeted mentoring and assessment of pre-service teachers.

Photoboard

A novel technology solution using mobile phones to allow participants to converse using photographs displayed on large scale public displays.

N2E Video/blogging online environment for nurse educators training
Games in the classroom Understanding the barriers and benefits of using computer games as integrated elements of classroom education
Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander literacy learners Language and literacy professional development program for teachers
My Tertiary Education Day (MyTED) Encouraging primary students to consider higher education options
Liberated Learning Automated speech recognition for learning
Interactive discovery museum exhibits Developing interactive exhibits for experience and education
Shared success Community partnerships for shared success
Photographs Attitudinal change using photographs
SET 4 Uni Enhance university experience for international students
Serious Games Bachelor in Serious Games
Employment status Behaviour/attitude change for employment status
Expressions Teaching Autistic children to read expressions
Decision making Technologies and decision making
Visualisation

Graduate Attribute Visualiser

Sports Performance and Analytics

We are working with league winners:

Project

Description

Melbourne Storm Data Analytics

Research and development of a data analytics dashboard for the Melbourne Storm compiling, visualising and ranking player performance across all NRL games

Lightning (netball) Player Tracker

Research and development of a player tracking system and data dashboard showing player positions, workload and biometrics in real-time.