Publications (30) View all
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Article: Quantitative assessment of quality of life in New Zealand prostate cancer survivors: the effect of androgen deprivation therapy
Journal of Cancer Research & Therapy. 01/2013; 1(2):105-110. -
Article: Do Quiet Areas Afford Greater Health-Related Quality of Life than Noisy Areas?
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ABSTRACT: People typically choose to live in quiet areas in order to safeguard their health and wellbeing. However, the benefits of living in quiet areas are relatively understudied compared to the burdens associated with living in noisy areas. Additionally, research is increasingly focusing on the relationship between the human response to noise and measures of health and wellbeing, complementing traditional dose-response approaches, and further elucidating the impact of noise and health by incorporating human factors as mediators and moderators. To further explore the benefits of living in quiet areas, we compared the results of health-related quality of life (HRQOL) questionnaire datasets collected from households in localities differentiated by their soundscapes and population density: noisy city, quiet city, quiet rural, and noisy rural. The dose-response relationships between noise annoyance and HRQOL measures indicated an inverse relationship between the two. Additionally, quiet areas were found to have higher mean HRQOL domain scores than noisy areas. This research further supports the protection of quiet locales and ongoing noise abatement in noisy areas.International Journal of Environmental Research and Public Health 01/2013; 10(4):1284-1303. · 1.61 Impact Factor -
Article: Occupational health of front line workers study: responding to a natural disaster.
Safeguard. 12/2012; -
Article: Validation of the WHOQOL-BREF quality of life questionnaire for general use in New Zealand: confirmatory factor analysis and Rasch analysis.
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ABSTRACT: PURPOSE: The present study validated the abbreviated version of the World Health Organization Quality of Life (WHOQOL-BREF) questionnaire for general use in New Zealand. METHODS: A random postal sample from the national electoral roll was used, and 808 questionnaires were returned. Psychometric properties of the instrument were assessed, including tests of the four-domain factor structure using confirmatory factor analysis and Rasch analysis. RESULTS: Goodness-of-fit from the confirmatory factor analysis were good, and the overall conclusion of the Rasch analysis supported the confirmatory factor analysis (CFA) findings after dealing with problems of threshold ordering, local dependency, and differential item functioning (DIF). CONCLUSIONS: The WHOQOL-BREF is valid for general use in New Zealand. In the future work, the WHOQOL-BREF domain scores should either be analyzed using non-parametric statistics or data should be fitted to the Rasch model to derive interval person estimates.Quality of Life Research 09/2012; · 2.30 Impact Factor -
Article: Stress and quality of life in international and domestic university students: cultural differences in the use of religious coping
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ABSTRACT: Studying overseas entails a number of transitions and challenges, and the present study investigated the strategies international university students use to cope with stressors. Previous research suggests that international students may be more likely than domestic students to draw on religion/spirituality as a source of dealing with stress, but the direct links between stress, religious coping and quality of life are yet to be documented explicitly. A sample of 679 university students in New Zealand completed the quality of life scale WHOQOL-BREF with an additional WHOQOL module used to assess spiritual, religious, and personal beliefs (SRPB). The students also completed the Perceived Stress Scale and the Brief COPE inventory. Irrespective of stress levels encountered or whether participants were international or domestic students, Asian students were more likely to use religious coping strategies than European students. Unlike European students, Asian students’ use of religious coping was effective in improving psychological and social quality of life. The findings also provide support for the main effects hypothesis of religion/spirituality. The present study demonstrates that cultural factors play an important role in the manner in which individuals maintain mental health and quality of life.Mental Health Religion & Culture 03/2012; Religion & Culture(Vol. 15):265-277.
