bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025 huggingface dataset:
Impact of environmental conditions on workers’ productivity and health
Authors: Meegahapola Pubuduni Anuradha , Prabodanie R.A. Ranga
Published: May 2018

Purpose

Some manufacturing processes generate extreme temperatures, noise and other irritating environmental conditions. These environmental factors can have a negative impact on workers’ performance and health. The purpose of this paper is to investigate the impact of temperature, noise and lighting on factory workers’ productivity and day-to-day health in a rubber compound manufacturing plant.

Design/methodology/approach

Secondary data on productivity, measurements of factory environmental conditions, and records of medical advice and treatments over a period of three months were used in this study. Causal analysis was performed using statistical techniques ANOVA and regression analysis in SPSS statistical package.

Findings

The results revealed that higher levels of temperature and noise inside the factory can cause lower productivity levels. High temperature may not only reduce the productivity but also contribute to illnesses or heat-stress symptoms such as headaches. The results further suggested that both noise and lighting level do not have a statistically significant impact on workers’ health. No statistical evidence was found on lighting level having an impact on workers’ productivity.

Research limitations/implications

The study was particularly focused on a rubber compound manufacturing plant. However, the results were consistent with the results obtained in similar studies which focused on leather and shoe industry and automobile assembly industry.

Originality/value

The impact of environmental conditions on workers’ performance and health has been studied with respect to few industries and regions. This is the first of that kind carried out in Sri Lanka. Clear evidence of productivity losses and health impacts caused by high temperatures, raises the need for improving the working conditions.
A taxonomy for sentiment analysis field
Authors: Rodrigues Ramon , Camilo-Junior Celso G. , Rosa Thierson
Published: May 2018

Purpose

Due to the large and fast growing sentiment analysis (SA) area recently, many new concepts and different nomenclatures have emerged without the desired organization. This confusion in the research field makes the understandability of the concepts hard and also hampers the comparison of different approaches. Thus, this paper aims to propose a hierarchical taxonomy to help the consolidation of SA area. The taxonomy aims at covering the addressed problems and methods in the SA field.

Design/methodology/approach

This taxonomy is a filtered union of various classifications found in the literature with a proposal of nomenclatures standardization. As instance, a case study is presented with 20 SA-related articles classified according to the proposed taxonomy.

Findings

This taxonomy is very expressive because it covers many concepts and is also effective once it allows the distinction and categorization of the previous SA works.

Originality/value

To the best of the authors’ knowledge, the literature does not present such an expressive and effective classification as proposed in this paper. This new taxonomy allows for the navigation between the existing concepts in the SA field as well as, facilitates the search, comparison and indexing of papers already published.
Addressing funding issues for Danish mental health NGOs
Authors: Aguilar Nawal Farhat , Hansen Zaza Nadja Lee
Published: May 2018

Purpose

Research has shown that non-governmental organizations (NGOs) often fail to appreciate that in their market, donors represent clients. Moreover, the unstable income characteristics of NGOs emphasize the importance of conducting market analysis specific to such organizations. The purpose of this paper is to identify key factors that influence fundraising success for mental health NGOs and determine the most advantageous fundraising approach based on a mixed-methods study that encompass a literature review, two surveys and a case study.

Design/methodology/approach

Based on a structured literature review, the most important factors affecting NGO fundraising are unified into a decision-making framework. This framework is tested using a triangulation approach by combining quantitative and qualitative methods. The former based on a general survey and the latter based on a case study.

Findings

The results highlight 15 key factors determining the optimal approach for mental health NGOs when fundraising in Denmark.

Practical implications

The decision-making framework can be used to assess the most advantageous fundraising approach based on a variety of internal and external circumstances.

Originality/value

While private firms develop exhaustive market analyses, NGOs often lack analyses to cope with fluctuating environments and changing customer needs. This paper addresses this gap by identifying key factors that determine an optimal fundraising approach and proposes a novel decision-making framework for practitioners.
The role of R&D investments and export on SMEs’ growth: a domain ambidexterity perspective
Authors: Battaglia Daniele , Neirotti Paolo , Paolucci Emilio
Published: May 2018

Purpose

International sales are critical for the prosperity of small and medium enterprises (SMEs), because of the limited size of their domestic market, but they can be difficult to attain for a number of reasons. The purpose of this paper is to investigate this topic and use a domain ambidexterity framework to analyze why the relationship between research and development (R&D) investments and export initiatives generates managerial tensions in high- and medium-technology industries. In this paper, it is claimed that R&D investments and internationalization can be conflicting objectives that entail a diversity of routines and managerial approaches. This aspect is critical, especially when SMEs are in the early stages of their life cycle and are resource constrained.

Design/methodology/approach

This issue is tested using multiple regressions on data collected through a survey that was conducted in 2014. The sample is composed of 221 SMEs operating in Italy in high-and medium-technology industries.

Findings

The estimates show that combining contemporary high R&D investments and high export activities negatively affects the growth of revenues of SMEs. In detail, when exports over revenue are below 10 percent, R&D investments have a positive effect on revenue growth, whereas when exports over revenue are above 50 percent, the effect of R&D investments on revenue growth is negative. However, age acts as a moderator on this relationship, thus implying that the effect of combining these initiatives varies according to the life cycle of a firm. In particular, combining R&D investments and export generates tensions that limit the growth of revenues in young SMEs (less than ten years old). For firms aged between 10 and 25 years, the effect is positive, while the effect is positive but not statistically significant for mature firms (older than 25 years). These results demonstrate that the diversity of the organizational maturity in SMEs has an impact on their ability to combine activities that require different capabilities (technological vs market).

Originality/value

This paper offers a theoretical contribution to the literature on domain ambidexterity, as it shows that combining contemporary innovation-related activities with international activities may constrain the performance of SMEs, according to the age of the firm. It extends the theoretical framework of domain ambidexterity to international studies and it reconciles previous mixed evidence about the combination of innovation and internationalization activities of SMEs.
Board financial expertise and dividend-paying behavior of firms
Authors: Sarwar Bushra , Xiao Ming , Husnain Muhammad , Naheed Rehana
Published: May 2018

Purpose

Numerous researchers have developed theories and studies to uncover the issues pertinent to dividend policy dynamics, but it is still one of the unresolved problems of finance. The purpose of this paper is to focus on a new dimension, i.e., financial expertise on the corporate board for explaining the dividend policy dynamics in the emerging equity markets of China and Pakistan.

Design/methodology/approach

The study employs static (fixed effect (FE) and random effect (RE)) and dynamic models – two-step generalized method of moments (GMM) estimation techniques by Arellano and Bond (1991) and Arellano and Bover (1995) – during the timespan from 2009 to 2014. Further, this study re-estimated FE, RE and GMM two-step estimation techniques by excluding the non-dividend-paying companies, and also employed instrumental variable regressing by using two instrumental variables – industry average financial expertise of the board and board size – as proxies for board financial expertise to control the possible endogeneity.

Findings

The study reveals that Chinese firms having more financial expertise on the board do not take dividends as a control mechanism (substitution hypothesis), while Pakistani firms support the compliment hypothesis and use dividends as a control mechanism to mitigate agency conflict to protect shareholders’ interests and keep additional funds from the manager’s opportunism. Further robustness models also confirm the presence of a significant association between dividend policy and board financial expertise in both equity markets.

Originality/value

This study introduces the financial expertise on a board as a determinant of dividend policy. To the best of the authors’ knowledge, no previous studies have focused on board-level financial expertise as a contributing factor toward dividend policy.
Efficiency of Islamic banks and role of governance: empirical evidence
Authors: Mezzi Najla
Published: May 2018

Purpose

The purpose of this paper is to study the efficiency level of Islamic banks, the differences between Islamic banks in the MENA region and Southeast Asia and the role of the governance in improving performance.

Design/methodology/approach

This paper examines, on the one hand, the performance of Islamic banks by measuring their efficiency through data envelopment analysis (DEA) method and, on the other hand, the determinants of this efficiency emphasizing on the impact of the governance structure through the panel estimation of Islamic banks based on the three proxies of cost efficiency, namely, technical efficiency (TES), pure technique (PTE) and scale efficiency (SES).

Findings

The findings indicate that Islamic banks are experiencing an improvement in their efficiency cost. The technical efficiency of Islamic banks is largely explained by the scale efficiency where Islamic banks realize large economies of scale in order to achieve optimal size, especially in Malaysia and the GCC countries. Pure technical efficiency is less important than the efficiency of scale and improvement is necessary regarding the managerial performance. In terms of governance, the results show that the board of directors through its size and independence and the presence of a central Sharia board constitute a robust determinant of the Islamic banks’ efficiency. The ownership structure and the size of the Sharia board do no effect banking efficiency.

Originality/value

The originality of this paper lies mainly on the examination of the effect of the governance structure on the Islamic banks’ efficiency where studies on this issue for Islamic banks are almost inexistent. In addition, the size and the diversity of the Islamic banks’ panel constitute the strong point of this study.
Quantifying ecological and social drivers of ecological surprise
Authors: Filbee‐Dexter Karen , Symons Celia C. , Jones Kristal , Haig Heather A. , Pittman Jeremy , Alexander Steven M. , Burke Matthew J.
Published: May 2018

A key challenge facing ecologists and ecosystem managers is understanding what drives unexpected shifts in ecosystems and limits the effectiveness of human interventions. Research that integrates and analyses data from natural and social systems can provide important insight for unravelling the complexity of these dynamics. It is, therefore, a critical step towards the development of evidence‐based, whole‐system management approaches.

To examine our ability to influence ecosystems that are behaving in unexpected ways, we explore three prominent cases of “ecological surprise.” We captured the social‐ecological systems (SES) using key variables and interactions from Ostrom’s SES framework, which integrates broader ecosystem processes (e.g. climate, connectivity), management variables (e.g. quotas, restrictions, monitoring), resource use behaviours (e.g. harvesting) and the resource unit (e.g. trees, fish, clean water) being managed.

Structural equation modelling revealed that management interventions often influenced resource use behaviours (e.g. rules and limits strongly affected harvest or pollution), but they did not have a significant effect on the abundance of the managed resource. Instead, most resource variability was related to ecological processes and feedbacks operating at broader spatial or temporal scales than management interventions, which locked the resource system into the degraded state.

Synthesis and applications. Mismatch between the influence of management systems and ecosystem processes can limit the effectiveness of human interventions during periods of ecological surprise. Management strategies should shift from a conventional focus on removal or addition of a single resource towards solutions that influence the broader ecosystem. Operationalizing Ostrom’s framework to quantitatively analyse social‐ecological systems using structural equation models shows promise for testing solutions to navigate these events.
Slowing Fossil Fuel Extraction: A Role for Taxation of Exports, Capital Gains and Interest Income
Authors: Day Creina , Day Garth
Published: May 2018

This paper develops a model of a growing open economy rich in non‐renewable resources, the extraction of which negatively impacts domestic productivity and whose sector competes with final production for capital. We analyse how tax rates on capital gains and interest income and the time trend of an export revenue tax rate could slow the extraction of resources for export. We find that taxing capital gains and interest income at the same rate and setting an export revenue tax rate to decline at the marginal social cost of extraction would defer extraction. An export revenue tax rate need not fall over time to curb depletion if capital gains are taxed at a lower rate than interest income, which is second best to taxing asset returns at the same rate when the resources sector competes for capital.
Negative News and Investor Trust: The Role of $Firm and #CEO Twitter Use
Authors: ELLIOTT W. BROOKE , GRANT STEPHANIE M. , HODGE FRANK D.
Published: May 2018

We examine how CEOs can facilitate the development of investor trust that helps mitigate the effects of negative information. Results from an experiment show that investors trust the CEO more and are more willing to invest in the firm when the CEO communicates firm news followed by a negative earnings surprise through a personal Twitter account than when the news and surprise comes from the CEO via a website or from the firm's Investor Relations Twitter account or website. A follow‐up experiment shows that repeating the negative news does not incrementally affect investors who received the news from the CEO's Twitter account, but does further negatively impact investors who received the news via other disclosure mediums, especially those who received the news via the Investor Relations Twitter account. Our results have implications for firms and executives considering the costs and benefits of communicating with investors via Twitter.
Community attitudes to emergency research without prospective informed consent: A survey of the general population
Authors: Furyk Jeremy , Franklin Richard , Watt Kerrianne , Emeto Theopilus , Dalziel Stuart , McBain‐Rigg Kris , Stepanov Nikola , Babl Franz E
Published: May 2018

Objective

To give voice to the general public's views of prospective and retrospective (deferred) consent in the emergency research setting.

Methods

A cross‐sectional, stratified population‐based, telephone survey was conducted in April to July 2016. A questionnaire consisting of standardised health and demographic details, and seven specifically designed, and pilot‐tested questions, five closed and two open text, based on literature review and previous surveys in the field was used. Quantitative and qualitative techniques were used in the data analysis. This was a centrally coordinated national telephone survey in Australia, the 2016 National Social Survey, coordinated by Central Queensland University. Data for 1217 adult (18+ years) participants were included in the analysis, with a response rate of 26%. The sample demographics were broadly representative of the Australian population.

Results

The majority of respondents were supportive of research in emergency circumstances without prospective informed consent. However, the type of research and level of risk influence its acceptability. Common themes in qualitative analysis included the critical or life‐threatening nature of the illness being researched, and the potential harms and benefits of participation.

Conclusions

This research provided the first opportunity for the community to contribute to discourse about prospective and retrospective (deferred) consent in the emergency research setting in Australia. Further work is needed to determine community expectations of how this process can be optimised and implemented, and to identify potential situations where this may not be acceptable.
BODY‐WORN CAMERAS AS A POTENTIAL SOURCE OF DEPOLICING: TESTING FOR CAMERA‐INDUCED PASSIVITY
Authors: WALLACE DANIELLE , WHITE MICHAEL D. , GAUB JANNE E. , TODAK NATALIE
Published: May 2018

Contentious debate is currently taking place regarding the extent to which public scrutiny of the police post‐Ferguson has led to depolicing or to a decrease in proactive police work. Advocates of the “Ferguson effect” claim the decline in proactive policing increased violent crime and assaults on the police. Although police body‐worn cameras (BWCs) are touted as a police reform that can generate numerous benefits, they also represent a form of internal and public surveillance on the police. The surveillance aspect of BWCs suggests that BWCs may generate depolicing through camera‐induced passivity. We test this question with data from a randomized controlled trial of BWCs in Spokane (WA) by assessing the impact of BWCs on four measures: officer‐initiated calls, arrests, response time, and time on scene. We employ hierarchical linear and cross‐classified models to test for between‐ and within‐group differences in outcomes before and after the randomized BWC rollout. Our results demonstrate no evidence of statistically significant camera‐induced passivity across any of the four outcomes. In fact, self‐initiated calls increased for officers assigned to treatment during the RCT. We discuss the theoretical and policy implications of the findings for the ongoing dialogue in policing.
Scale versus scope in the diffusion of new technology: evidence from the farm tractor
Authors: Gross Daniel P.
Published: May 2018

Although tractors are now used in nearly every agricultural field operation and in the production of nearly all crops, they first developed with much more limited application. Early diffusion was accordingly rapid in these narrower applications but limited in scope until tractor technology generalized. The sequence of diffusion is consistent with a model of Research and Development (R&D) in specific‐ versus general‐purpose attributes and with other historical examples, suggesting that the key to understanding technology diffusion lies not only in explaining the number of different users, but also in explaining the number of different uses.
On being local and being successful in Korea: Tesco and E‐mart
Authors: Kim Woohyoung , Hallsworth Alan , Kim Hyun
Published: May 2018

Tesco withdrew from the Korean market in September 2015. The withdrawal of Tesco has not generally been seen as being due to management failure, but instead as a strategic reallocation of resources by Tesco in the UK. Yet there may still be more to understand about this development. The tale of Tesco's arrival in and departure from Korea has not ended. We consider the relative performance of Tesco (Homeplus) stores and those of rival E‐Mart. We find that, in attempting to be authentically local, Tesco may have hampered its own long‐term success in an important overseas market. In an empirical study, we utilised the Logit model to contrast selection factors employed by local consumers in respect of both Tesco/Homeplus and E‐Mart. Our analysis reveals that product range (including private brands), store accessibility and convenience were the main factors on which consumers discriminated between these rivals.
A Focus on Macitentan in the Treatment of Pulmonary Arterial Hypertension
Authors: Bedan Martin , Grimm Daniela , Wehland Markus , Simonsen Ulf , Infanger Manfred , Krüger Marcus
Published: May 2018

The approval of macitentan has increased the number of pharmacological treatments of pulmonary arterial hypertension (PAH). Here, we review the effect on PAH of macitentan compared to other endothelin receptor antagonists. Drugs targeting the endothelin (ET) pathway include the selective ETA receptor antagonist ambrisentan, the ETA/ETB receptor antagonists, bosentan and macitentan, which were recently approved for PAH treatment. Macitentan exhibits higher antagonistic potency than bosentan and ambrisentan in pulmonary smooth muscle cells. Compared to ambrisentan and bosentan, macitentan has a longer duration of action, reflected by the longer half‐life, as well as pharmacodynamics attributed to its active metabolite, ACT‐132577. The efficacy of macitentan on PAH was investigated in the phase III SERAPHIN trial (NCT00660179). Macitentan significantly reduced morbidity and mortality. It improved the 6‐min. walk distance (6MWD) among PAH patients. In the AMB‐320/321‐E (NCT00578786) study, ambrisentan improved exercise capacity. In the EARLY study (NCT00091715), bosentan showed improvements in 6MWD which were not statistically significant. Bosentan had an effect on PAH in patients with Eisenmenger syndrome (ES) in the BREATHE‐5 study (NCT00367770), while macitentan did not improve 6MWD in these patients, but there are differences regarding study size and functional class, and that 30% of the patients treated with macitentan were already in treatment with a phosphodiesterase type 5 inhibitor. Macitentan revealed a lower risk of developing peripheral oedema and hepatotoxicity in the SERAPHIN study. In summary, macitentan has an efficiency comparable to bosentan and ambrisentan in the treatment of PAH. Patients treated with macitentan exhibited less adverse effects compared to bosentan and ambrisentan. In patients with PAH associated with ES, the trials with bosentan and macitentan do not seem comparable, and it needs to be clarified whether these drugs are effective when administered as part of a combination treatment in this condition.
Solidarity as a national health care strategy
Authors: West‐Oram Peter
Published: May 2018

The Trump Administration's recent attempts to repeal the Affordable Care Act have reignited long‐running debates surrounding the nature of justice in health care provision, the extent of our obligations to others, and the most effective ways of funding and delivering quality health care. In this article, I respond to arguments that individualist systems of health care provision deliver higher‐quality health care and promote liberty more effectively than the cooperative, solidaristic approaches that characterize health care provision in most wealthy countries apart from the United States. I argue that these claims are mistaken and suggest one way of rejecting the implied criticisms of solidaristic practices in health care provision they represent. This defence of solidarity is phrased in terms of the advantages solidaristic approaches to health care provision have over individualist alternatives in promoting certain important personal liberties, and delivering high‐quality, affordable health care.
Diagnostic accuracy of whole slide imaging for cutaneous, soft tissue, and melanoma sentinel lymph node biopsies with and without immunohistochemistry
Authors: Sargen Michael R. , Luk Kevin M. , Stoff Benjamin K. , MacKelfresh Jaime , Patrawala Samit , Zhang Chao , Gutman David , Chen Suephy C.
Published: May 2018

Background

Diagnostic accuracy with whole slide imaging (WSI) for complex inpatient and outpatient dermatopathology cases with immunohistochemistry (IHC) is unknown.

Methods

WSI (Leica Aperio AT2 Digital Pathology scanner, N = 151 cases) was performed for Emory inpatient and outpatient skin (N = 105), soft tissue (N = 30), and melanoma sentinel lymph node biopsies (N = 16) collected between 2000 and 2016. Resultant images were uploaded to an online cloud storage system for review by 2 board‐certified dermatopathologists (reviewers 1 and 2) with greater than 5 years of dermatopathology experience and 1 dermatopathology fellow (reviewer 3).

Results

Reviewers 1 (diagnostic accuracy = 97%) and 2 (diagnostic accuracy = 95%) demonstrated high diagnostic accuracy with WSI. Diagnostic accuracy was greater than 90% for inpatient biopsies, melanocytic lesions, melanoma sentinel lymph node biopsies, and cases with immunohistochemistry, but was slightly lower for soft tissue cases (reviewer 1 = 89%; reviewer 2 = 89%). The dermatopathology fellow (reviewer 3) demonstrated lower diagnostic accuracy (84%).

Conclusions

Diagnostic accuracy with WSI for skin, soft tissue, and melanoma sentinel lymph node biopsies with and without immunohistochemistry was greater than 95% for 2 reviewers with greater than 5 years of dermatopathology experience. Professional experience signing out dermatopathology cases may impact diagnostic accuracy with WSI.
Long‐term follow‐up of 2 patients treated with 90Y‐rituximab radioimmunotherapy for relapse of nodular lymphocyte‐predominant Hodgkin lymphoma
Authors: Golstein Sophie C. , Muylle Kristoff , Vercruyssen Marie , Spilleboudt Chloé , de Wind Alexandre , Bron Dominique
Published: May 2018

Nodular lymphocyte‐predominant Hodgkin lymphoma (NLPHL) is a rare lymphoma (<5% of Hodgkin’s lymphomas) predominantly affecting the middle‐aged man, with an indolent behavior. Given the rare occurrence of this lymphoma, there are currently no clear guidelines for initial treatment or relapse. In this report, we present the follow‐up of 2 patients treated by radioimmunotherapy for first relapse of their NLPHL. Both patients were initially treated with rituximab and relapsed 1 year after the end of their treatment.
Effects of grazing on grassland communities of the forest‐steppe of northern Mongolia: A comparison of grazed versus ungrazed places
Authors: Takatsuki Seiki , Sato Masatoshi , Morinaga Yuki
Published: May 2018

Overgrazing of grasslands in the Mongolian steppes resulting from a transition from pastoral to sedentary livestock production has led to significant changes in plant communities. This study aimed to show how livestock grazing affects steppe vegetation in northern Mongolia by a good example of a long‐termed exclusion of grazing. The Bulgan Airport in northern Mongolia has been fenced since the 1950s and thus is suitable to compare grazed and ungrazed plant communities. We studied plots both inside and outside the fence with reference to community structure, species composition and growth form. Plant biomass for the outside plots averaged (40 g m−2) less than one‐seventh of that inside the fence (305 g m−2) and average species number per plot was about half of that inside the fence. Height of plants inside the fence ranged from the ground surface to 30–40 cm, whereas most of the plants outside were less than 10 cm tall. Erect, branched and tall tussock form plants were reduced outside the fence and short tussock and prostrate form plants became dominant. Microtopography resulted in different dominant plants inside the fence whereas only Carex duriuscula, a sedge and Potentilla acaulis, a short growing prostrate forb, prevailed outside. That is, grazing as a factor affecting plant communities prevailed and “masked” microtopography outside the fence. It was shown that the use of growth form is effective to evaluate vegetation changes by grazing.
Utility of immunohistochemistry for mismatch repair proteins on colorectal polyps in the familial cancer clinic
Authors: Dow Eryn , Buchanan Daniel D. , Winship Ingrid M.
Published: May 2018

Background

Immunohistochemistry for loss of expression of one or more of the mismatch repair proteins is performed on colorectal cancer tissue as a screening test for Lynch syndrome; however, its role in pre‐malignant polyps remains controversial.

Aim

To determine the effectiveness of mismatch repair immunohistochemistry performed on pre‐malignant colorectal polyps in identifying Lynch syndrome, focusing on clinical utility and value.

Methods

A retrospective audit was conducted of mismatch repair immunohistochemistry performed on non‐malignant polyps in patients who attended the Family Cancer Clinic at the Royal Melbourne Hospital. Two hundred and six patient records over a 10‐year period (2006–2016) were reviewed. Personal and family history data were collected, including genetic testing results.

Results

Of the 57 patients who underwent polyp testing, the family histories comprised Amsterdam II Criteria (12.3%), Lynch syndrome‐associated malignancies (42.1%), Lynch syndrome‐associated malignancies and polyps (35.1%) and polyps only (8.8%); 10.5% of patients had no significant family history. Normal expression of the mismatch repair proteins was observed in 94.7% of patients; loss of expression was observed in three individuals with concordant germline variants in two patients (one PMS2 variant of unknown significance and one MSH6 mutation). Additional genetic testing in 21 patients with normal immunohistochemistry did not identify any additional Lynch syndrome cases.

Conclusion

The clinical utility of mismatch repair immunohistochemistry on polyp tissue was low. No additional cases of Lynch syndrome were identified, and a large proportion of patients proceeded to germline testing despite normal polyp immunohistochemistry. We suggest there is no value in this approach.
Are Australian smokers with mental illness receiving adequate smoking cessation and harm reduction information?
Authors: Sharma‐Kumar Ratika , Meurk Carla , Ford Pauline , Beere Diana , Gartner Coral
Published: May 2018

Provision of smoking cessation support in the form of advice and information is central to increasing quit rates, including among people with mental illness (MI), who have 3–5 times higher odds of smoking than those without MI. This study investigated the extent and perceived utility of quit smoking advice and information available to Australian smokers with MI through face‐to‐face, semi‐structured, in‐depth interviews with 29 current smokers with MI. Qualitative analysis identified four major sources of quit smoking advice and information: (i) mental health practitioners; (ii) Quitline; (iii) social networks; and (iv) Internet and media. All identified sources, including formal sources (mental health practitioners and Quitline), were perceived as providing inadequate information about quitting smoking, particularly regarding optimal usage of nicotine replacement therapy (NRT). Social networks emerged as a substantial source of quit smoking advice and information, especially for nontraditional methods such as vaping. Participants showed high interest in receiving support from peer‐led smoking cessation groups. A minority of participants reported that they had received quit smoking information from Internet and media; this was largely restricted to negative reports about e‐cigarettes and short advertisements for nicotine replacement therapy. Our findings suggest that more can be done to provide smokers with MI with practical smoking cessation advice and support. Comprehensive information resources tailored for smokers with MI should be developed and disseminated via multiple pathways. We also recommend a number of policy and practice reforms to promote smoking cessation among those with MI.
‘I‐as‐We’ – Powerful boundaries within the field of mental health coproduction
Authors: von Peter Sebastian , Schulz Gwen
Published: May 2018

To date, there is little research on personal crisis experiences of mental health professionals. The aim of this study was to explore some of the reasons for why self‐disclosure is so difficult and how these difficulties may prevent productive forms of coproduction. These questions are addressed both from a psychiatrist's autoethnographic account and from the perspective of a peer worker who works in various coproductive relationships. It is shown that mental health professionals often revert to an “I‐as‐we”, speaking of themselves as a collective and thereby reifying the boundaries between ‘vulnerable users’ and ‘invulnerable professionals’. Ethnographic examples are given, of how these boundaries are produced by a continuous, often invisible, and powerful category work. It is discussed how the dichotomous logic of these boundaries can cause people on both sides to feel reduced to a representation of a certain species, which can take on an existential dimension. Ways out are identified for mental health professionals to self‐reflexively engage with their own crisis experience in coproductive and other relationships.
Vigilant attention to threat, sleep patterns, and anxiety in peripubertal youth
Authors: Ricketts Emily J. , Price Rebecca B. , Siegle Greg J. , Silk Jennifer S. , Forbes Erika E. , Ladouceur Cecile D. , Harvey Allison G. , Ryan Neal D. , Dahl Ronald E. , McMakin Dana L.
Published: May 2018

Background

Vigilant attention to threat is commonly observed in anxiety, undergoes developmental changes in early adolescence, and has been proposed to interfere with sleep initiation and maintenance. We present one of the first studies to use objective measures to examine associations between vigilant attention to threat and difficulties initiating and maintaining sleep in an early adolescent anxious sample. We also explore the moderating role of development (age, puberty) and sex.

Methods

Participants were 66 peripubertal youth (ages 9–14) with a primary anxiety disorder and 24 healthy control subjects. A dot‐probe task was used to assess attentional bias to fearful relative to neutral face stimuli. Eye‐tracking indexed selective attentional bias to threat, and reaction time bias indexed action readiness to threat. Sleep was assessed via actigraphy (e.g. sleep onset delay, wake after sleep onset, etc.), parent report (Children's Sleep Habits Questionnaire), and child report (Sleep Self‐Report). The Pediatric Anxiety Rating Scale assessed anxiety severity.

Results

Eye‐tracking initial threat fixation bias (β = .33, p = .001) and threat dwell time bias (β = .22, p = .041) were positively associated with sleep onset latency. Reaction time bias was positively associated with wake after sleep onset (β = .24, p = .026) and parent‐reported sleep disturbance (β = .25, p = .019). Anxiety (severity, diagnosis) was not associated with these outcomes. Sex (β = −.32, p = .036) moderated the relation between initial threat fixation bias and sleep onset latency, with a positive association for males (p = .005), but not for females (p = .289). Age and pubertal status did not moderate effects.

Conclusions

Vigilant attention to threat is related to longer sleep onset and reduced sleep maintenance. These associations are not stronger in early adolescents with anxiety. Implications for early intervention or prevention that targets vigilant attention to threat to impact sleep disturbance, and vice versa, are discussed.
Prognostic Effect of Changes in Physical Function Over Prior Year on Subsequent Mortality and Long‐Term Nursing Home Admission
Authors: Gill Thomas M. , Han Ling , Gahbauer Evelyne A. , Leo‐Summers Linda , Allore Heather G.
Published: May 2018

Objectives

To evaluate the prognostic effect of changes in physical function at different intervals over the prior year on subsequent outcomes after accounting for present function.

Design

Prospective longitudinal study.

Setting

Greater New Haven, Connecticut, from March 1998 to January 2006.

Participants

Community‐living persons aged 71 and older who completed an 18‐month comprehensive assessment (N=658).

Measurements

Disability in 13 activities of daily living, instrumental activities of daily living, and mobility activities was assessed at the 18‐month comprehensive assessment and at 12, 6, and 3 months before 18 months. Time to death and long‐term nursing home admission, defined as 3 months and longer, were ascertained for up to 5 years after 18 months.

Results

In the bivariate models, disability at 18 months and change in disability between 18 months and each of the 3 prior time‐points (12, 6, 3 months) were significantly associated with time to death. The risk of death, for example, increased by 24% for each 1‐point increase in 18‐month disability score (on a scale from 0 to 13) and by 22% for each 1‐point change in disability score between 18 months and prior 12 months (on a scale from –13 to 13). In a set of multivariable models with and without covariates, the associations were maintained for 18‐month disability but not for change in disability between 18 months and each of the 3 prior time‐points. The results were comparable for time to long‐term nursing home admission except that 2 of the associations were not statistically significant.

Conclusion

When evaluating risk of adverse outcomes, such as death and long‐term nursing home admission, an assessment of change in physical function at different intervals over the prior year, although a strong bivariate predictor, did not provide useful prognostic information beyond that available from current level of function.
Evaluation of the Accuracy of Conventional and Digital Impression Techniques for Implant Restorations
Authors: Moura Renata Vasconcellos , Kojima Alberto Noriyuki , Saraceni Cintia Helena Coury , Bassolli Lucas , Balducci Ivan , Özcan Mutlu , Mesquita Alfredo Mikail Melo
Published: May 2018

Purpose

The increased use of CAD systems can generate doubt about the accuracy of digital impressions for angulated implants. The aim of this study was to evaluate the accuracy of different impression techniques, two conventional and one digital, for implants with and without angulation.

Materials and Methods

We used a polyurethane cast that simulates the human maxilla according to ASTM F1839, and 6 tapered implants were installed with external hexagonal connections to simulate tooth positions 17, 15, 12, 23, 25, and 27. Implants 17 and 23 were placed with 15° of mesial angulation and distal angulation, respectively. Mini cone abutments were installed on these implants with a metal strap 1 mm in height. Conventional and digital impression procedures were performed on the maxillary master cast, and the implants were separated into 6 groups based on the technique used and measurement type: G1 – control, G2 – digital impression, G3 – conventional impression with an open tray, G4 – conventional impression with a closed tray, G5 – conventional impression with an open tray and a digital impression, and G6 – conventional impression with a closed tray and a digital impression. A statistical analysis was performed using two‐way repeated measures ANOVA to compare the groups, and a Kruskal‐Wallis test was conducted to analyze the accuracy of the techniques.

Results

No significant difference in the accuracy of the techniques was observed between the groups. Therefore, no differences were found among the conventional impression and the combination of conventional and digital impressions, and the angulation of the implants did not affect the accuracy of the techniques.

Conclusions

All of the techniques exhibited trueness and had acceptable precision. The variation of the angle of the implants did not affect the accuracy of the techniques.
A proxy for estimating the cell volume of Ceratium furcoides (Dinophyceae): basis for monitoring Brazilian reservoirs
Authors: Cavalcante Kaoli P. , Becker Vanessa , Cardoso Luciana de S.
Published: May 2018

Ceratium furcoides, a large bloom‐forming dinoflagellate, is considered an invasive species in South American freshwater systems. As it can cause ecological and economic problems, particularly in reservoirs, this issue has been discussed among researchers and companies responsible for monitoring Brazilian aquatic systems. To this end, although biovolume estimates are an important tool for ecological studies, calculating biovolumes is a cumbersome procedure, requiring a large number of samples and measurements. This study was undertaken to provide a simple measured morphological trait as a proxy for the cell volume of C. furcoides in Brazilian water systems that have been invaded by these organisms, exhibiting dense, recurrent blooms. Morphometric data were obtained monthly from two subtropical reservoirs in southern Brazil with public supply purposes. Cell volumes exhibited seasonal variations, with significant differences by months and seasons, although not between reservoirs or morphotypes with two or three antapical horns, meaning biovolume estimates must consider seasonal variations in dinoflagellate size. Body width was significantly correlated with 11 other measured dimensions of the cell and was highly correlated with cell volume, thereby being the most representative measure of cell volume. Linear regressions for estimating cell volumes from cell body width revealed a strong positive trend when both full sampling and seasonally grouped samples were considered. Morphometric data of C. furcoides invasions in other Brazilian subtropical and tropical waterbodies also were used, exhibiting significant correlation with the formula proposed in this study.
Skepticism and the acquisition of “knowledge”
Authors: Nichols Shaun , Pinillos N. Ángel
Published: May 2018

Do you know you are not being massively deceived by an evil demon? That is a familiar skeptical challenge. Less familiar is this question: How do you have a conception of knowledge on which the evil demon constitutes a prima facie challenge? Recently several philosophers have suggested that our responses to skeptical scenarios can be explained in terms of heuristics and biases. We offer an alternative explanation, based in learning theory. We argue that, given the evidence available to the learner, it would be rational for the learner to infer an infallibilist conception of knowledge.
Emotion, deliberation, and the skill model of virtuous agency
Authors: Kurth Charlie
Published: May 2018

A recent skeptical challenge denies deliberation is essential to virtuous agency: what looks like genuine deliberation is just a post hoc rationalization of a decision already made by automatic mechanisms. Julia Annas's account of virtue seems well‐equipped to respond: by modeling virtue on skills, she can agree that virtuous actions are deliberation‐free while insisting that their development requires significant thought. But Annas's proposal is flawed: it over‐intellectualizes deliberation's developmental role and under‐intellectualizes its significance once virtue is acquired. Doing better requires paying attention to a distinctive form of anxiety—one that functions to engage deliberation in the face of decisions that automatic mechanisms alone cannot resolve.
Perturbing the acetylation status of the Type IV pilus retraction motor, PilT, reduces Neisseria gonorrhoeae viability
Authors: Hockenberry Alyson M. , Post Deborah M. B. , Rhodes Katherine A. , Apicella Michael , So Magdalene
Published: May 2018

Post‐translational acetylation is a common protein modification in bacteria. It was recently reported that Neisseria gonorrhoeae acetylates the Type IV pilus retraction motor, PilT. Here, we show recombinant PilT can be acetylated in vitro and acetylation does not affect PilT ultrastructure. To investigate the function of PilT acetylation, we mutated an acetylated lysine, K117, to mimic its acetylated or unacetylated forms. These mutations were not tolerated by wild‐type N. gonorrhoeae, but they were tolerated by N. gonorrhoeae carrying an inducible pilE when grown without inducer. We identified additional mutations in pilT and pilU that suppress the lethality of K117 mutations. To investigate the link between PilE and PilT acetylation, we found the lack of PilE decreases PilT acetylation levels and increases the amount of PilT associated with the inner membrane. Finally, we found no difference between wild‐type and mutant cells in transformation efficiency, suggesting neither mutation inhibits Type IV pilus retraction. Mutant cells, however, form microcolonies morphologically distinct from wt cells. We conclude that interfering with the acetylation status of PilTK117 greatly reduces N. gonorrhoeae viability, and mutations in pilT, pilU and pilE can overcome this lethality. We discuss the implications of these findings in the context of Type IV pilus retraction regulation.
Community/public health nursing faculty's knowledge, skills and attitudes of the Quad Council Competencies for Public Health Nurses
Authors: Joyce Barbara L. , Harmon Monica , Johnson Regina (Gina) H. , Hicks Vicki , Brown‐Schott Nancy , Pilling Lucille , Brownrigg Vicki
Published: May 2018

A multisite collaborative team of community/public health nursing (C/PHN) faculty surveyed baccalaureate nursing faculty to explore their knowledge, skills, attitudes, and application of the Quad Council Competencies for Public Health Nurses (QCC‐PHN).

Objectives

(1) Evaluate the knowledge, skills, and attitudes of the 2011 QCC‐PHN by academic C/PHN faculty; (2) Evaluate the application of 2011 QCC‐PHN by C/PHN faculty in the clinical practicum for undergraduate baccalaureate C/PHN students; and (3) Determine if a significant difference existed in the knowledge for each domain.

Design

A mixed methods descriptive research design was used to answer three specific hypotheses related to the study objectives. A convenience sample of 143 faculty teaching C/PHN in baccalaureate schools of nursing completed an online survey.

Measurements

ANOVA was used to determine the difference between knowledge, skills, attitudes, and application of nursing faculty regarding the QCC‐PHN based on years of nursing experience, C/PHN experience, and nursing specialty preparation. Participants’ qualitative comments for each domain were analyzed for themes.

Results

C/PHN nursing faculty are described and differences in knowledge, skills, and attitudes delineated. A statistically significant difference was found in skills based on years of experience in C/PHN and in the application of the competencies based on nursing specialty preparation. Variations in knowledge of the QCC‐PHN are identified.

Conclusions

Ten recommendations are proposed for key skill sets and necessary preparation for faculty to effectively teach C/PHN in baccalaureate schools of nursing.