Staying healthy – how farmers and fishers stay healthy in difficult times

Summary

This research examines how farmers and fishers stay healthy in difficult times.

Supervisor(s)

Associate Professor Karen Willis

Research Location

Health Systems and Global Populations Research Group

Program Type

Masters/PHD

Synopsis

This research was funded by the Rural Industries Research and Development Corporation. This study used a multi-site case study approach. Rural sites representing five different rural industry areas: cane, cotton, fishing, grains and mixed farming. Sites had populations ranging from 1000 to 5000 people and were spread across four different States: Queensland, New South Wales, Victoria and Western Australia. Semi-structured in depth interviews were conducted with farmers and fishers. A total of 110 people participated (between 15−30 participants from each site, 72 males and 28 females). Interview questions were open-ended in keeping with the exploratory nature of the study. Data were sorted and coded using Nvivo8 and a thematic analysis was undertaken. A report has been submitted to the funding organization and a training manual for health/industry workers has been completed. Opportunities exist for secondary analysis of this extensive dataset or for building further research onto the areas of enquiry. Suggestions for supplementary questions include:

• The specific activities farmers and fishers see as important to staying healthy;
• How gender (and/or age) of farmers shapes approaches to staying healthy;
• Strategies for dealing with mental health issues and emotional wellbeing;
• The importance of community involvement as a resource for staying healthy

 This is an unfunded project This research project provides potential research areas for PhD, Masters or Honours topics.

Keywords

Health behaviour, rural health, health sociology, Qualitative research

Opportunity ID

The opportunity ID for this research opportunity is: 1562