Research News
Research shows riskier strategies
can make tennis champions
Tennis grand slam players may find it useful
to spend a bit more time with Tennis Australia president Geoff Pollard
at next year’s Australian Open. Geoff has combined his passion
for tennis with his statistical expertise and is now undertaking
a PhD in sports statistics at Swinburne, with some interesting results.
In collaboration with other statisticians
at Swinburne and the University of Canberra his research to date
shows some surprising findings.
If you expect to win tennis matches by
getting all your first serves in and never serving double faults,
you may be surprised to learn that serving aggressively to put only
around 50 to 60 per cent of first serves into play, and occasionally
serving double faults, can also be winning strategies.
Wearing his statistician’s cap at
Swinburne, Geoff applied the latest mathematical modelling techniques
to grand slam tennis data.
Recognising that the game is designed with
two serves, he found that if players are getting 80 per cent of
their first serves in, they are not very often taking advantage
of their second serve — and not troubling their opponents
enough. Geoff said more aggressive first serves win more matches.
“You should take more risks. Serve
harder, or closer to the lines, or put more kick on it,” he
said.
“We showed mathematically that you
should be getting somewhere between 50 and 60 per cent of first
serves in. Above or below that range you are not serving optimally.
“A conservative first serve does
not win enough points. However, if you push too hard on your first
serve you are relying too much on your weaker second serve.”
Geoff said getting 100 per cent of second serves in is not necessarily
good either — because it probably means that you’re
not being aggressive enough on your second serve.
It might be better to get 90 per cent of
second serves in, at the cost of a few double faults. That way you
win more points on your second serve than you would if you got 100
per cent in.
Contact: Denny Meyer on (03) 9214 4824 or dmeyer@swin.edu.au
.
Swinburne holds International Entrepreneurship Research Exchange
Earlier this year Swinburne’s Australian
Graduate School of Entrepreneurship (AGSE) held the 5th International
Entrepreneurship Research Exchange as part of the university’s
centenary celebrations.
With more than 130 research papers presented
by entrepreneurship academics from around the world, a range of
questions were posed and some interesting findings were brought
to light.
AGSE Professor Murray Gillin discussed
whether it was intuition or luck that makes repeat entrepreneurs
successful. His study looked at non-local intuition, that is, physiological
responses that we are unaware of, but which influence our decisions.
“The study looks at the relationship
between non-local intuition and success for repeat entrepreneurs.
Our research has shown that repeat entrepreneurs have an advanced
capacity for intuitive decision-making, which tends to make them
more focused, passionate and dedicated to their ventures,”
he said.
Another paper presented at the exchange
looked at whether people are born as entrepreneurs, or whether they
can be taught the skills needed to become more entrepreneurial.
Research by Sarah Cooper from the Hunter
Centre for Entrepreneurship in Glasgow, shows young people can be
taught the skills and abilities which underpin innovation and entrepreneurial
behaviour.
Sarah said the key to entrepreneurial education
lies in changing young people’s attitudes and increasing their
confidence, so they believe they are capable of becoming successful
entrepreneurs. She also said attitudes acquired when people are
younger tend to influence later intentions and behaviours.
“Arguably, it may be easier to teach
entrepreneurial skills to young people than to those who have already
embarked upon a particular career path,” she said.
Another popular topic at this year’s
exchange was the different challenges that women face as entrepreneurs
compared to their male counterparts.
“The research undertaken into female
entrepreneurialism in Australia, Germany, Denmark and Canada found
that women in entrepreneurship face more challenges than men because
of their family and home commitments. They are also perceived differently
to men in the entrepreneurial sector,” said Patricia Buckley,
Associate Professor at the AGSE.
However it was also found that the digital
economy is making the sector more attractive to females, many of
whom juggle home and family responsibilities.
Contact: Crystal Ladiges on (03) 9214 5064 or cladiges@swin.edu.au
Stomach may be churning for a reason
Some people find exams and other stressful
life experiences coincide with gastrointestinal problems. New research
has shown that their stomachs may be churning for a reason.
Swinburne psychology lecturer Dr Simon
Knowles along with his colleague biotechnology researcher Dr Enzo
Palombo and PhD student Elizabeth Nelson have studied the effect
of stress on gastrointestinal flora.
“This is the first study to show
that perceived stress affects the levels of good bacteria in the
intestine,” Simon said. “A reduction in these good bacteria
is associated with gastrointestinal infections.”
The group studied the effect of perceived
stress on salivary cortisol concentrations and lactic acid bacteria
activity on 23 healthy undergraduate students.
Saliva and faecal samples were collected
from the students at the beginning of the academic semester to obtain
a low stress baseline and again during the first week of exams.
The students also completed a series of questionnaires about their
perceived levels of stress, what they ate and gastrointestinal symptoms.
Predictably, the students rated their perceived
levels of stress as being greater during the exam period compared
to the beginning of the semester. The study also found a corresponding
lowering of faecal lactic acid bacteria levels during the high stress
condition.
“This is evidence that stress can
have a pervasive impact on an individual’s physiological as
well as their psychological well-being,” Simon said.
“Despite extensive research on the
influence of stress on immune functioning and well-being, little
is known about the impact of stress on gastrointestinal microflora.
This is the first human study to show a link between stress and
gut flora.
“This is significant because a reduction
in good gut flora may contribute to the onset of gastrointestinal
problems.”
Simon suggests that the findings of this
study could lead to intervention using cognitive behaviour therapy
to help people to deal with the effects of stress.
Contact: Simon Knowles on (03) 9214 8206 or sknowles@swin.edu.au
Internet growth empowers consumers' involvement in product innovation and design
The continuing rise of websites like YouTube,
Facebook and Wikipedia represents the beginnings of a huge shift
in the production and consumption of media and culture, with a range
of industries now drawing on the expertise and knowledge of ordinary
day people to develop novel products and services.
The findings are part of a new report from
the Smart Internet Technology Cooperative Research Centre, 'User-led
Innovation: A New Framework for Co-creating Business and Social
Value,' co-authored by Swinburne University of Technology researchers
Darren Sharp and Mandy Salomon.
Darren said digital technologies are making
it possible for audiences to move beyond being consumers of media,
culture and knowledge to becoming active producers.
"The sources of innovation are shifting
rapidly from the traditional 20th century model of commercial R&D
labs, elite universities, private companies and government agencies
to user-led innovation.” he said.
"The report looks at Do-It-Yourself
media and participatory culture as representative of a much deeper
and enduring shift in how companies innovate."
Darren said the new study reveals that
user-led innovation is transforming the way organisations develop
new products and services.
"It’s a most significant development
that everyday people can now utilise the web at a grass-roots level
to have a voice and play an important role in the co-creation of
software, media platforms, and even physical goods through what’s
known as ‘citizen product design’,” he said.
This concept has been embraced by German
Internet consultant Markus Merz who founded the ‘Oscar project’,
an ambitious experiment to design and manufacture the world’s
first Open Source car.
The report warns that many roadblocks to
user-led innovation could remain in place for some time, including
the current regulatory environment which supports punitive copyright
and intellectual property mechanisms. This prevents organisations
from leveraging the full potential of their customers, audiences
and citizens.
Regardless of these limitations empowered
users are demanding to participate and will drive the kind of disruptive
changes that have already taken place in media and entertainment
to all other sectors of the economy.
A copy of the full report 'User-led Innovation:
A New Framework for Co-creating Business and Social Value' can be
found on the Swinburne
Chancellery website.
Contact: Darren Sharp (03) 9214 4406 or dasharp@swin.edu.au
Young love: how young adults
cope with romance and break-ups
Breaking up with a loved one is never easy.
Even when the break up is their choice, most young people are left
feeling hurt according to Swinburne Psychology Professor Sue Moore.
Along with researchers from Victoria University
and the Hong Kong Institute of Education, Moore is studying romance,
break-ups and how young people handle them. So far more than 450
people aged between 18 and 25 have taken part in the online survey.
“We’ve found that romantic
relationships are very common in this age group, with only 20 per
cent never having experienced one. Even among that 20 per cent,
most are ‘interested’ but haven’t quite got around
to it yet,” Sue said.
Breaking up is also a very common experience.
Three-quarters of all those who had experienced a romantic relationship
had also experienced a break up.
“No matter who initiated the break
up, feelings of hurt were common with 82 per cent of study participants
feeling hurt or very hurt by them.”
The study also asks about infidelity. “One-third
of young people said they had been unfaithful to a partner at least
once,” Sue said. ”What we don’t know yet is whether
the infidelity was the stimulus to breaking up.”
“Another possibility is that it could
be due to one-sided relationships, with just under half the sample
so far believing that either their partner loved them more or they
loved their partner more as opposed to believing it was an ‘equal’
love relationship.”
The online survey is part of a larger study
investigating the role of romantic relationships in the lives of
young people with a particular focus on break-ups, how common they
are and what differentiates young people who handle them well from
those who don’t.
“Handling romantic relationships
or the lack of them – including feelings of loneliness, unrequited
love, having your heart broken – is part of the transition
to adulthood,” Sue said. “It is important for parents
and those who work with young people to accept these feelings and
teach young people strategies for coping with the associated mood
swings and emotions.”
Contact: Sue Moore on (03) 9214 5694 or smoore@swin.edu.au
Academics and police join
forces in Vietnamese community study
A landmark community policing project to
develop practical solutions to building trust, communication and
cooperation between police and the Vietnamese community was recently
launched in Melbourne.
Swinburne has secured an Australian Research
Council grant of $447,000 for the project, which will be boosted
by a direct cash contribution of $200,000 from Victoria Police along
with ‘in-kind’ resources valued at $400,000.
Swinburne Professor Denise Meredyth said
researchers will work with Vietnamese community members and police
to investigate how the Vietnamese community understands security,
trust, crime and cultural difference.
“Before we can build trust and confidence
in Australian Vietnamese groups, we need to understand how people
cope with insecurity, how they see crime, how they protect themselves
and one another, who they see as trustworthy, powerful and responsible,
and how this fits with attitudes to police, law and formal authority,”
she said.
“We also need to know more about
police attitudes and experience of Australian Vietnamese groups
at a day-to-day level, how this fits with their formal professional
preparation, and how organisational culture shapes their attitudes
and expectations.”
The multi-disciplinary project management
team includes staff from Swinburne, Victoria Police, RMIT and the
University of New South Wales. Using case studies, the team will
investigate how Vietnamese community members perceive the risk of
crime, what sorts of protection they seek, what they regard as culturally
intrusive, what helps to build trust, and where police practices
are regarded as breaching trust.
This is the first comprehensive study of
such issues that has actively involved police and the Australian
Vietnamese community from the outset. Discussions over the past
year have revealed that, despite the efforts of police to build
closer relations with the Australian Vietnamese community, communication
has been poor, with low levels of trust on each side.
The new project promises to improve understanding
of how police can negotiate with minority ethnic groups and associations
to develop community policing and improve community safety.
Contact: (Helen McKernan on (03) 9214 8660 or hmckernan@swin.edu.au
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