SOCIAL RESEARCH GROUP

Dr Nina Van Dyke, Director, SRG 03 8330 6014 nvandyke@marketsolutions.com.au

“we love to make a difference”

Introducing the Social Research Group

Company overview

Market Solutions is a full service market and social research company that has provided research services since 1994.

As a company we adhere to the highest industry standards and practices: ISO 20232:2012 accredited

AMSRO member

AMSRS/QPMR members

Our two new divisions have been established to highlight our extensive knowledge and experience in social and government research.

Market Solutions Pty. Ltd. Christine Maddern QPMR

Social Research Group Nina Van Dyke PhD

Local Government Research Group Anna Lethborg QPMR

Directors

Our Directors are supported by teams of experienced research professionals including project managers,

data analysts, our fieldwork management team and over 100 casual interviewing staff.

Social Research Group

The Social Research Group has been formed as a division of Market Solutions to bring into focus the research we conduct for local, state and federal government departments and agencies, and other not-for-profit organisations. Its aim is to provide high-quality research on issues of public importance to expand knowledge and improve public policy. We are committed to conducting research that contributes to improved social outcomes for the general community and more specifically for those experiencing challenging life situations.

PROJECT EXPERTISE

• Population health and wellbeing

• Youth and adult mental health

• Health attitudes and behaviours

• Gambling

• Tobacco, drugs and alcohol

• Welfare

• Social marketing campaign evaluation

• Education and training

• General community attitudes, knowledge, behaviours

Dr Nina Van Dyke DIRECTOR

Clients

CLIENTS

Federal • Attorney General’s Department • Australian Electoral Commission • Department of Education and

Training • Department of Employment • Department of the Environment • Department of Health • Department of Human Services • Department of Immigration and

Border Protection • Department of Industry and Science • Department of Social Services

State • Commissioner for Children & Young

People (WA) • Department of Health (Vic) • Department of Employment,

Education and Training (NT) • Department for Communities and

Social Inclusion (SA) • Department of Justice (Vic) • Office of Housing (Vic) • Department of Territory and

Municipal Services (ACT) • Department of Transport (Vic) • Department of Planning and

Community Development (Vic) • Department of Urban Services

(ACT) • Emergency Services

Telecommunications Authority (Vic) • Environment Protection Authority

(Vic) • Parks Victoria • Service Tasmania • VicHealth • Vic Roads • Vic Safe • Workcover NSW

Other Not-for-Profit • Anula Primary School (NT) • Australia Wildlife Conservation • Batchelor School (NT) • Bicycle Network Victoria • Deakin University • Driver Primary School (NT) • Katherine Group School (NT) • Melbourne Parks and Waterways • Padua College (Vic) • Queensland University of

Technology • Top End School (NT) • Victoria University

Core Research Services

Qualitative Focus groups (face to face or online)

Online discussion boards

Depth interviews (face to face or phone)

Forums & integrated groups

Recruitment for qualitative research

Quantitative Telephone surveys (on-site call centre)

Online surveys (in-house secure hosting)

Telephone recruit to self completion

Intercept, observation & mystery shopping

Accompanied journeys /experiences

We offer end to end project management or can be contracted for any discrete component: Research advice/design - Recruitment - Questionnaire design - Data collection - Data entry - Data analysis - Reporting

We work closely with our clients providing guidance and advice along the way as required.

Main study types

Mixed methods projects

Combination of qualitative and

quantitative methodologies to provide a

comprehensive answer to research questions

Focus groups which then inform

a survey, with findings from both informing the final

report

Longitudinal studies

Research with the same

respondents in order to measure individual

change over time

A three-wave survey over two years with data

collected by recontacting the same individuals

Representative population telephone surveys

Produce accurate

prevalence rates of

attitudes and behaviours across a

population

A telephone survey using random digit

dialling (landlines & mobiles) that

results in national or state estimates

Literature reviews

Critical examination of

relevant academic and grey literature to understand

current state of knowledge

A comprehensive review organised by themes and

based on evidence sourced

from a wide range of sources

Program evaluation

Evaluation of organisational programs to assess their

effectiveness and efficiency

Systematically

collecting, analysing, and

using information to answer

questions about programs

Social marketing campaign evaluation

Research to inform and

evaluate social marketing campaigns

Pre and/or post

research to determine recall,

attitude and behaviour

change, response to campaign

Example Example Example Example Example Example

RECENT PROJECT SHOWCASE

VicHealth: Alcohol Culture

VicHealth’s alcohol cultural change program is focused on framing and encouraging the development of a healthy drinking culture among young people aged 16-29 years, targeting normative values and culture by taking a positively framed approach. By concentrating on the group that is most likely to demonstrate current harmful drinking behaviours, VicHealth aims to create a framework to shift alcohol culture in the broader community in the long term.

The Social Research Group has recently completed research to provide VicHealth with an understanding of the perceptions and attitudes of Victorians aged 16 years or older in terms of:

• Alcohol attitudes and beliefs • Alcohol consumption at a range of events • Non-drinking • Own consumption • Definition of intoxication • Attitudes towards intoxication • Perception of others’ alcohol consumption and behaviours This research has provided the VicHealth with a single scale and single indicator of acceptability of intoxication which will provide a quick and easily administered measure of current alcohol culture. The research has initially been used to develop the “No Excuse Needed” campaign.

For more information contact: Sean O’Rourke, Senior Project Officer at VicHealth, 03 9667 1382

https://www.vichealth.vic.gov.au/media-and-resources/publications/a-snapshot-of-victorias-alcohol-culture

CCYP: Young People (Health Services) For more information contact: Caron Irwin, Executive Director, Commissioner for Children and Young People WA 08 6213 2221

http://www.ccyp.wa.gov.au/content.aspx?cID=740

The Commissioner for Children and Young People (the Commissioner) contracted the Telethon Institute for Child Health Research and the Social Research Group to review the available evidence on best practice in youth health policy and service delivery and to directly consult with young people about their experiences with health services. The research participants were aged 13 to 18 years and from diverse backgrounds, with strong representation of vulnerable and disadvantaged young people and those living in regional areas of WA. The consultations focused on young people’s experiences accessing health services in Western Australia, their views on what works well and where service delivery can be improved.

A literature review was conducted to document the findings of previous consultations with young people and research on best practice in the development and provision of health services to young people. The consultations with young people consisted of eight focus groups (53 participants) and an online survey with 1,057 young people. The results from this project have been incorporated into a position statement on youth health and are represented in the report shown above “Speaking Out About Youth Health: The Views of Western Australian young people”.

VicHealth: Water Consumption

Dietary risk and high BMI are the two biggest risk factors contributing to burden of disease in Australasia. Recent National Health and Medical Research Council (NHMRC) guidelines to advise Australians about the types and amounts of foods needed to maintain a healthy diet and reduce the risk of lifestyle-related disease include recommendations that people should drink plenty of water and limit intake of drinks containing added sugar. Sugary drinks are the largest source of sugars in the Australian diet and contribute directly to risk of weight gain and increased risk of tooth decay. VicHealth, as part of its Action Agenda for Health Promotion, has instituted a three-year Water Initiative to encourage more people to choose water.

As part of this initiative to encourage greater consumption of water by all Victorians, VicHealth was interested in assessing the supply of and access to drinking water in key Melbourne locations. The Social Research Group recently completed a project of observations and interviews with people in two high traffic public spaces: Sports and recreation facilities and spaces; and public transport nodes. This research study aimed to: • Establish a scientifically robust methodology for baseline assessment and

subsequent audit of water provision in key settings • Conduct baseline assessments in sports and recreation settings and public

transport nodes within Melbourne • Inform the development of best practice guidelines and audit tools for the

supply of and access to drinking water in these settings

For more information contact: Anthea Gregoriou, Senior Project Officer – Healthy Eating at VicHealth, 03 9667 9004

https://www.vichealth.vic.gov.au/programs-and-projects/h30-challenge

GRA: Role of Gambling Loyalty Programs

There is concern that loyalty programs provide an inducement to individuals to play EGMs more often and for longer periods of time than would otherwise be the case and potentially reduce a gambler’s capacity to maintain control over their gambling behaviour. The Social Research Group was commissioned by Gambling Research Australia to conduct the following research program: • A comprehensive audit of EGM venue loyalty programs across Australia,

including those in casinos, hotels, and clubs, which will inform GRA as to the content of these programs, including responsible gambling measures and marketing strategies.

• A high-quality, comprehensive literature review that covers the theory of

loyalty programs and evidence regarding their impact in the area of gambling and more generally, within Australia and internationally.

• Online discussion boards of EGM loyalty program members that focus on key research questions including satisfaction with loyalty programs, perceptions of impact of loyalty programs on gambling behaviour, and marketing of loyalty programs.

• A 3-wave, national, large-scale longitudinal panel survey which will allow accurate estimates of the impact of loyalty programs on gambling behaviour and individual change over time.

The study is due for completion by the end of 2015.

For more information contact: Craig Nicholas, GRA Secretariat at Queensland Dept of Justice and Attorney General, 07 3872 0938

Reviews

The Social Research Group strives for excellence and continuous improvement. We seek feedback from our clients on a project by project basis as well as through our own annual customer satisfaction survey. The following are some client comments regarding our strengths received in our 2014 survey:

“Customer service and responsiveness was fabulous. Nina was very flexible about changes and followed up regularly. The final report was well written and met the objectives.” “Delivers a quality product, value for money, strives to work with us to deliver the most useful data for whatever the project aims are.” “Competitiveness of pricing, expertise of staff, unbelievable flexibility, meet timelines, comprehensive reports, you like having a laugh!!” “Flexibility, knowledge and responsive.” “Willingness to work with client.”

The SRG has a strong commitment to building relationships with our clients. We conduct ourselves professionally at all times but we enjoy using humour in our interactions. We

strive to gain a thorough understanding of your requirements so we can match our services to your needs.

Dr Nina Van Dyke, Director, Social Research Group Direct Phone: 03 8330 6014 Email: nvandyke@marketsolutions.com.au Website: http://www.marketsolutions.com.au/social-research-group/

CONTACT US FIND ME ON

LINKEDIN http://au.linkedin.com/in/ninavandyke1/en