Social prescribing is a way of connecting people to local community services, to help them better manage their health and wellbeing. A social prescribing practitioner – someone who performs social prescribing – can help people to access community groups and services, such as welfare support, exercise clubs, gardening events, creative activities, and befriending groups. However, a lot of confusing language is used in social prescribing, with many different terms used to describe the same thing. This can create barriers to communication and engagement.

Facial recognition technology has become increasingly common in our daily lives. However, its use raises questions about privacy, security, and human rights. Dr Kerem Öge at the University of Warwick and Manuel Quintin at Université Laval examine how public discussions about facial recognition technology have changed over time in Europe and the United States. They explore how the shifts in narrative have shaped policy.

The American child welfare system has a long history of injustice. Until recently, this was mainly experienced by low-income Black families, who are routinely surveilled by caseworkers. This brings the threat of investigation, arrest, and having their children taken away, placed in foster care, and frequently adopted. This is often referred to as Jane Crow. Some researchers have likened the child welfare system to professional kidnapping and have highlighted the prevalence of children aging-out of foster care only to become homeless.

The relationship between political parties and democracy is complex. Liberal thought at first didn’t even include political parties in the theory of democracy. In practice, however, factions and then parties gradually emerged. Since World War II, parties have often been seen as essential to representative democracy. Nevertheless, their role has evolved over time. During the last decade, undemocratic trends have been flourishing worldwide, raising questions about how political parties may have contributed. Some factors have been studied, but the research hasn’t been substantial or systematic.

Filicide, where a parent or guardian kills a child, is a heinous crime. Thea Brown, Danielle Tyson and Paula Fernandez Arias from the Monash Deakin Filicide Research Hub have been studying filicide for years, to uncover common factors for future prevention initiatives.

Everyone deserves to have satisfying relationships, romantic or otherwise. Communication skills are hugely important in fostering affection and connection within such relationships. However, some couples and families may have more trouble communicating than others. For ‘neurodiverse’ relationships consisting of neurotypical and autistic people, communication can be particularly difficult. Autism involves differences in social interaction and communication. However, the extent to which these differences affect adults in neurodiverse relationships is largely unknown, as the majority of autism research focuses on children. To address this, Dr Bronwyn Maree Wilson of Edith Cowan University and colleagues have conducted a study into the communication issues experienced by neurodiverse couples and families.