bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025 huggingface dataset:
Examining Communication Patterns in a Construction Setting: An Interview-Based Study
Authors: Sta. Maria Carlo L. , Santos Lee Andrei L. , Cabrera Andreu S. , Noble C-Jay R. , Pineda, Jr. Florentino G.
Published: June 2024

The fundamental concept of this study is to explore the communication dynamics of a general contractor institution. The study examines the organizational culture and communication flow to determine the communication model employed by the institution and document its communication practices.
This study employed a qualitative research approach to analyze the institution's communication dynamics in-depth. The researchers conducted an interview and documented and transcribed the responses. Thematic analysis was used to analyze the data collected from participants.
The findings of this study revealed that the general contractor institution operates under a hierarchical structure but strongly emphasizes respect during interactions. Their well-organized decision-making system allows workers to raise concerns effectively. The institution adeptly uses various communication channels such as Messenger, Viber, Text Message, and Email, adapting tones to specific contexts. Challenges include industry-specific jargon, language barriers, and the influence of hierarchy on feedback dynamics. The result showed that the communication models utilized by the institution are Schramm's model and the Shannon-Weaver model, which emphasize the importance of shared meanings, standard codes, and active participation in communication. Schramm's model highlights feedback and the need for a common understanding, while the Shannon-Weaver model addresses noise reduction and the cyclical nature of communication through feedback.
Overall, this study provides important insights into the communication dynamics of the general contractor institution and offers an overview of specific instances or events that have transpired within the organization.
Strengthening Community Mobilization Program: Its Implication on Building Police-Community Relations
Authors: Boller-Piol Annabel A. , Gonzales Cristina D. , Malapit Karmela M. , Olivar Lourdelyn S. , Vega Alex J. , Villa Elizabeth B. , Dalugdog Wilfredo D.
Published: June 2024

This study determined the implications of strengthening community mobilization programs for building police community relations in Batangas Province and utilized a descriptive-quantitative approach with the use of a self-constructed questionnaire based on the parameters of PRO 4A MC No. 2017-02. A total of 392 respondents (15 PCADU personnel and 377 residents from the 13 certified mobilized barangays of Bauan, Batangas) were chosen as the respondents of the study through stratified proportional sampling. The data was gathered two weeks before it was completed and treated with statistical tools such as percentage, weighted mean, and independent t-test. The study revealed that most of the police personnel are Police Corporal, under 5 years in PCADU, and have acquired PCAD Course, Online PCAD Executive Course, and Preparedness Search and Rescue and Relief Operation Seminar. Meanwhile, majority of the community members belong to the middle class, businessman, and live in a rural community. Moreover, the majority of PCADU personnel described CMPs in terms of community organization, community information and education, community empowerment and mobilization, and certification of mobilized barangays as always implemented, with weighted mean of 3.24, 3.23, 3.25, and 3.27, respectively, while the community members described them as often implemented, with weighted mean of 3.18, 3.17, 3.19, and 3.21, respectively. Majority of the respondents strongly agreed on the effects of strengthening CMPs, with weighted mean of 3.29 and 3.23, respectively. The output of the study is a proposed input to help improve the sustainability of CMPs in Batangas Province based on the least-rated items.
Identification of Intestinal Helminths in Cockroaches found in Selected Public Market of Davao City
Authors: Martinez Paolo D. , Adlaon Katherine T. , Silguera Junelle P.
Published: June 2024

Cockroaches are resilient insects that thrive in various environments, including public markets. These creatures can act as mechanical vectors for intestinal helminths, posing a risk to human health. This study aimed to identify and measure the infestation rate of intestinal helminths in cockroaches from Bankerohan Public Market and Agdao Public Market in Davao City. Cockroaches were collected using specialized traps via the “catch-and-release” method, and the presence of intestinal parasites on their external surfaces was determined. The study found that cockroaches from both markets harbored Hookworm and Ascaris lumbricoides, with Ascaris lumbricoides having the highest frequency and infestation rate among the entire population of cockroaches gathered from both markets. The infestation rate of Ascaris lumbricoides was higher in the Bankerohan public market compared to the Agdao public market; however, the findings reveal that there is no correlation between the frequency of the parasites and the public market studied, indicating that the occurrence of the parasites cannot be attributed to the location of the public markets. The study highlights the need for improved sanitation practices and awareness to control parasite transmission through cockroaches, which can serve as vectors for these pathogens.
Beta and Sigma Convergence Analysis of Inclusive Economic Growth on National and Regional Economic Growth in Indonesia
Authors: Anjani Ika Resti , Prasetyo P Eko
Published: June 2024

This study aims to determine the occurrence of convergence in inclusive economic growth at both the national and regional levels, as well as the factors that drive the increase in inclusive economic growth to reduce regional disparities. The analysis used is sigma convergence, absolute beta convergence, and conditional beta convergence. The data used is a panel consisting of 21 provinces in the Western Region of Indonesia (KBI), including Sumatra, Java and Kalimantan, 13 provinces in the Eastern Region of Indonesia (KTI), namely Sulawesi, Nusa Tenggara and Bali, Maluku and Papua, as well as national level consisting of 34 provinces in Indonesia from 2017 to 2021. This study shows that at the national level, KBI and KTI, there has been both sigma convergence and absolute beta convergence. Conditional beta convergence only occurs at the national level and KBI. Meanwhile, in KTI, there is no process of conditional beta convergence or what can be called divergence occurring. Variables that significantly affect the convergence process at the national level include government expenditure in the economic, health, and social protection sectors, domestic investment, and the open unemployment rate. At the KBI, significant factors include government expenditure in social protection sectors domestic investment and the unemployment rate. At the KTI, significant factors include government expenditures on the economic, health, and social protection sectors, foreign investment, and the unemployment rate.
Arquitetura, humanização e saúde pública no Brasil: um debate sobre projetos-padrão para unidades básicas de saúde
Authors: Dias Maíra Vieira , Grossi Grasiele Márcia Magri , Puiati Natally
Published: June 2024

As políticas de humanização implementadas pelo Ministério da Saúde (MS) representam avanços no enfrentamento dos desafios para melhorias nos equipamentos de saúde pública. Entretanto, muitos estabelecimentos ainda possuem estrutura física inadequada. Para suprir as demandas, aprimorar e ampliar a rede de atenção pública, o Governo Federal e do Estado de Minas Gerais disponibilizaram projetos-padrão, visando a construção de edificações capazes de atender com qualidade os usuários do sistema. Todavia, questiona-se se esses projetos respondem, além dos critérios normativos e de funcionalidade, às premissas de humanização, tencionando uma arquitetura que contribua positivamente para a saúde e o bem-estar da população. Diante disso, o objetivo deste artigo é analisar como a arquitetura tem sido tratada na implementação de uma política de saúde pública humanizada, tomando como objeto de estudo uma tipologia de UBS modelo do MS e outra de Minas Gerais, de modo a avaliar a qualidade da proposta projetual. Para tanto, verificou-se a aplicação prática do conceito de humanização e dos princípios de ambiência nos projetos-padrão dessas UBSs, por meio da análise qualitativa das peças gráficas dos projetos e perspectivas, considerando aspectos técnico-construtivos, programáticos, funcionais e ambientais, segundo a percepção das autoras. A análise dos estudos de caso mostrou como vantagens da padronização a agilidade da construção, o atendimento aos critérios normativos e a redução dos custos. Como desvantagem, ressalta-se a distância entre projeto e lugar. Conclui-se que houve uma melhoria qualitativa nos ambientes, porém, o foco permanece na construção e não na promoção do bem-estar e saúde integral dos sujeitos.
Integração do DFMA no desenvolvimento de dispositivo de auxílio ao diagnóstico da osteoporose
Authors: Marques Amanda da Costa , Medeiros Denise da Silva , Albuquerque Gabriela de Araújo , Campos Antonio Luiz Pereira de Siqueira , Carvalho Dionísio Dias Aires de , Santos João Paulo Queiroz dos , Pinheiro Bruno de Melo , Valentim Ricardo Alexsandro de Medeiros , Cruz Agnaldo
Published: June 2024

Desarrollar soluciones tecnológicas para la población en forma de productos es un proceso que debe articular varios factores, como: los usuarios, sus necesidades, el contexto de uso del producto y los materiales y tecnologías disponibles para su construcción. El diseñador de productos articula estos factores mediante metodologías que conducen y vinculan las actividades del Proceso de Desarrollo de Productos (PDP). El prototipado es una de estas actividades, que permite probar aspectos prácticos de los artefactos y, por tanto, favorece mejoras y adaptaciones. Así, en la medida en que el producto se diseña teniendo en cuenta su proceso de fabricación y ensamblaje, enfoque conocido como Diseño para Fabricación y Ensamblaje (DFMA), se favorece el PDP. Este estudio demuestra cómo la aplicación del DFMA en el proceso de prototipado de un dispositivo tecnológico creado para la Atención Primaria de Salud, favoreció su desarrollo y mejora durante la pandemia, en un escenario limitado, especialmente en cuanto al acceso a materias primas y mano de obra. Los resultados presentados sugieren que la aplicación de DFMA en proyectos de innovación, que buscan crear productos físicos, contribuye no solo a la reducción de costos y tiempos del proyecto, sino también a su factibilidad en situaciones donde existen restricciones materiales y tecnológicas.
Improving Health Literacy of Migrants in Language Courses – Lessons Learned from a Qualitative Textbook Analysis
Authors: Harsch Stefanie
Published: June 2024

Health literacy (HL) programs for vulnerable groups with low HL, e.g., migrants and refugees, have been proposed to reduce health inequalities. Adult basic education and second language courses (SLC) are considered particularly important and effective. However, empirical evidence on the process of HL promotion in SLC is scarce. This study aimed to advance the understanding of HL promotion by analyzing SLC materials, deriving best practices, and informing innovative HL promotion programs. We conducted a scoping study, including a systematic literature search in seven academic databases and a grey literature search. We identified 21 manuals as eligible and qualitatively analyzed their content, theories, didactic-methodological principles, and the relationship between language and health. There are numerous, multifaceted ways to promote HL in SLC. Curricula cover various health topics, prioritizing situations in the doctor’s office, nutrition, and physical activity, others even mental and social health. Theories from three disciplines are drawn upon, and numerous methods target language skills: receptive, productive, interactive, and even advocacy skills. Three main approaches emerged: language for, information about, and skills for health, which are uniquely linked in each manual. No other educational setting is as far-reaching, innovative, and promising as SLC when implemented thoroughly by interdisciplinary teams.
A voz da mulher não especialista na (co)autoria de planos de parto: estratégias de acesso à escrita do gênero
Authors: Queiroz Monique Galdino , Pereira Regina Celi Mendes
Published: June 2024

The birth plan serves as an instrument of protection against obstetric violence, enabling pregnant women to make informed decisions about the childbirth process. However, not all women can create such plans on their own; therefore, certain agents provide pre-constructed birth plans for the parturient women to fill out. This work aims to analyze the strategies used by the empirical authors of two birth plans to facilitate the involvement of non-specialist women in the construction of these plans. In this qualitative-interpretative research, we employed Sociodiscursive Interactionism (SDI) as our theoretical-methodological framework, using the textual layer categories (Bronckart, 2012). We observed that the linguistic-discursive structuring of the plans aims to empower non-specialist women to act in relation to their reproductive rights and health, providing them with the necessary information to understand the processes and procedures related to childbirth, thus contributing to their health literacy. Furthermore, we observed the orchestration of different voices, which either merge with the woman’s voice or are muted in the texts, ultimately positioning her as the final (co)author of these plans, thus enabling the literacy necessary for exercising her citizenship and her repositioning as an agent in the birth care scenario.
Adequacy of Dialysis and Incidence of Atrial Fibrillation in Patients Undergoing Hemodialysis
Authors: Heo Ga Young , Park Jung Tak , Kim Hyo Jeong , Kim Kyung Won , Kwon Yong Uk , Kim Soo Hyun , Kim Gui Ok , Han Seung Hyeok , Yoo Tae-Hyun , Kang Shin-Wook , Kim Hyung Woo
Published: June 2024

BACKGROUND:

Atrial fibrillation (AF) can lead to stroke, heart failure, and mortality and has a greater prevalence in dialysis patients than in the general population. Several studies have suggested that uremic toxins may contribute to the development of AF. However, the association between dialysis adequacy and incident AF has not been well established.

METHODS:

In this retrospective nationwide cohort study, we analyzed data from the Korean National Periodic Hemodialysis Quality Assessment from 2013 to 2015 of patients who received outpatient maintenance hemodialysis 3× a week. The main exposure was single pooled Kt/V (spKt/V), which is the dialysis adequacy index, and the primary outcome was the development of AF. For the primary analysis, patients were categorized into quartiles according to baseline spKt/V. The lowest quartile, representing the lowest adequacy, was used as the reference group. Fine-Gray subdistribution hazard models were used, treating all-cause mortality as a competing risk.

RESULTS:

Of 25 173 patients, the mean age was 60 (51–69) years, and 14 772 (58.7%) were men. During a median follow-up of 5.7 years, incident AF occurred in a total of 3883 (15.4%) patients. Participants with a higher spKt/V tended to have lower AF incidence. In survival analysis, a graded association was observed between the risk of incident AF and spKt/V quartiles: subdistribution hazard ratios and 95% CIs for the second, third, and the highest quartile compared with the lowest quartile were 0.90 (95% CI, 0.82–0.98), 0.84 (95% CI, 0.77–0.93), and 0.79 (95% CI, 0.72–0.88), respectively.

CONCLUSIONS:

This nationwide cohort study showed that a higher spKt/V is associated with a reduced risk of incident AF. These findings suggests that reducing uremic toxin burden through enhanced dialysis clearance may be associated with a lower risk of AF development in patients undergoing maintenance hemodialysis.
Weather-Based Disasters and Farming Communities in the Western Alps, 1650–1850
Authors: Dodgshon Robert
Published: June 2024

Because of the scale at which the key socio-cultural variables involved in climate-society interactions operate, analysis of such interactions benefits from a regional approach. Like all mountain regions, the western Alps possess a complex mosaic of topographically varied climates, or “topoclimates,” that can generate an array of damaging weather-based disasters, which impact residents at different scales. Cultural practices employed by Alpine farming communities in the latter period of the Little Ice Age (1650–1850) increased their vulnerability to such events, and their long-term stability relied on successful mitigation and coping strategies.
Unconscious Perception of Vernier Offsets
Authors: Amerio Pietro , Michel Matthias , Goerttler Stephan , Peters Megan A. K. , Cleeremans Axel
Published: June 2024

The comparison between conscious and unconscious perception is a cornerstone of consciousness science. However, most studies reporting above-chance discrimination of unseen stimuli do not control for criterion biases when assessing awareness. We tested whether observers can discriminate subjectively invisible offsets of Vernier stimuli when visibility is probed using a bias-free task. To reduce visibility, stimuli were either backward masked or presented for very brief durations (1–3 milliseconds) using a modern-day Tachistoscope. We found some behavioral indicators of perception without awareness, and yet, no conclusive evidence thereof. To seek more decisive proof, we simulated a series of Bayesian observer models, including some that produce visibility judgements alongside type-1 judgements. Our data are best accounted for by observers with slightly suboptimal conscious access to sensory evidence. Overall, the stimuli and visibility manipulations employed here induced mild instances of blindsight-like behavior, making them attractive candidates for future investigation of this phenomenon.
Organic Personality
Authors: Flowers Skyler R.
Published: June 2024

Bavinck’s critical appropriation of modern grammar in discussing Christian doctrine has led to his being described as a thinker who is “modern yet orthodox.” His appropriation of modern philosophy and psychology is clearly seen in his use of ‘personality’ in his doctrine of God and anthropology. This article argues that his use in these two areas demonstrates the organic ontology of creatures created in the image of their Creator. Thus, in understanding divine personality, human personality comes into focus, both theologically and psychologically. The article concludes with reflections on how the study of personality in Bavinck’s writings helps one to understand his entire project.
On the Harmony of Christ’s Wills
Authors: Johnson Randall K.
Published: June 2024

According to classical Christology, Christ’s human will was always in conformity with and never contrary to the divine will. Call this notion ‘volitional non-contrariety’ (VNC). But theologians disagree over how to explain VNC. In this article, I consider four models of VNC: the Parameter Model, the Beatific Vision Model, the Molinist Model, and the Causal Model. I argue that the Causal Model, coupled with a compatibilist account of freedom, is the best way to understand VNC because libertarian accounts of Christ’s human freedom inevitably fail to preserve some other element of classical Christology.
Prospects of using insects as alternative protein sources in broiler diets
Authors: Lee H.N. , Yeom G.L. , Kim Y.B. , Yum K.H. , Park J.Y. , Lee W.T. , Seo H.S. , Lee S.Y. , Kim J.H.
Published: June 2024

Insects are garnering attention as promising protein sources for broiler diets, presenting nutritional and environmental benefits comparable to plant-based protein sources. Various insects have been explored as broiler feed ingredients, including mealworm (Tenebrio molitor and Zophobas morio), cricket (Gryllidae), grasshopper (Acrididae), black soldier fly larvae (Hermetia illucens), silkworm pupae (Lepidoptera), bloodworm (Chironomidae), and housefly maggot (Musca domestica Linnaeus). We reviewed the literature involving these insects to assess their impact on broiler diets. Previous research has indicated that supplementing broiler diets with mealworm larvae meal (0.3 to 1.0% inclusion level) improved growth performance. Black soldier fly larvae meal (2.0 to 5.0% inclusion level) can replace protein sources. Similarly, dietary supplementation with silkworm pupae meal (1.5 to 5.0% inclusion level) can also replace protein sources, while including dietary supplementation with housefly maggot meal (1.6 to 4.0% inclusion level) enhanced growth performance in broiler chickens. However, few studies have focused on the effects of dried crickets, dried grasshoppers, and bloodworm supplementation on broiler performance and health. Despite the limitation that insects are more expensive compared to soybean meal or fishmeal, the short breeding period and the high nutritional content of insects make their use in broiler diets generally promising. Our meta-analysis of 28 studies on black soldier fly larvae supplementation found that it significantly decreased average daily feed intake and increased average daily gain with an optimal level of 15.3% determined through quadratic regression analysis. In conclusion, supplementing broiler diets with different insects has potential as a strategy to enhance the growth performance of broiler chickens without compromising overall health.
2. Evolution in the History of Population Thought
Authors: Kreager Philip
Published: June 2024

This chapter places evolutionary demography in the history of population thought, and more particularly in relations between demography and evolutionary population biology. Darwin conceived evolution as a dynamics of variation arising from the behaviour of populations at intra- and inter-species levels. While Malthus’s principle of population was an important early stimulus, Darwin resolved the core problem in evolution -- how mechanisms of variation combine to produce divergence of character -- by analogy to Smith’s account of the division of labour. With the benefit of hindsight, we can describe Darwinian population thinking as the first general methodology in which it became possible to combine bottom-up observation including enumeration of local population dynamics with top-down statistical methods. The two components entail different concepts of population, which may be characterised broadly as ‘open’ and ‘closed’. Their combination shows that evolutionary theory is rooted in the same sources of population thinking that gave rise to demography: the former lie in Classical population thinking and early modern population arithmetics, and the latter in 19th-century statistics and probability.

Hereditary influences remained a ‘black box’ in Darwin’s theory, which only began to be unpacked with the rediscovery of Mendel’s research. The second half of the chapter traces the central role which demographic methods played in topical and analytical developments of the first half of the 20th century, including both the formulation and critique of eugenics, the emergence of population ecology, and the rise of the mathematical theory of population genetics. There is an irony here: even as demographic methods came to play an integral role, mainstream demographers became less and less involved. The ‘separatism’ of demography and evolutionary biology often remarked in the post-war era thus has deeper roots. These lie partly in topical issues, like reactions against eugenics, but more importantly in a conceptual shift in how we understand relationships between ultimate and proximate mechanisms of population change, and its implications for analysis and modelling. Evolutionary theory entails a balance of methods and insights drawing on both population concepts, which demography has not yet achieved. The concluding section provides examples of how current evolutionary demography is now integrating these developments into demographic explanation.
7. Contextual Effects on Fertility and Mortality
Authors: Uggla Caroline
Published: June 2024

In this chapter I explore the influence of the local ecology, also known as contextual or area effects, on two focal demographic outcomes, fertility and mortality. I start by outlining why ecological effects have been of interest to evolutionary scholars, provide a brief overview of life history theory as a theoretical framework and the type of data from traditional, small-scale populations that have been used to test predictions. Key evolutionary concepts such as extrinsic mortality risk and phenotypic plasticity are explained. I then compare and contrast this perspective to how contextual effects have been tackled by non-evolutionary scholars within demography and related disciplines, drawing on studies mainly from high-income contexts based on broad population register data. In the final part of the chapter I lay out some challenges for this research area, which include addressing selection biases and attaining a greater understanding of underlying causal mechanisms. Future research is likely to be more fruitful if evolutionary and non-evolutionary lines of enquiry become increasingly integrated.
9. My Family and Other Animals:
Authors: Jones Owen R , Ezard Thomas H G , Dooley Claire , Healy Kevin , Hodgson Dave J , Mueller Markus , Townley Stuart , Salguero-Gomez Roberto
Published: June 2024

Like all species, the demography of humans has been shaped under the framework of natural selection. Our understanding of human demography can thus be enhanced by viewing it through a comparative, cross-species, lens and exploring the position of humans among other animal species. Here we use demographic data in the form of matrix population models (MPMs) from humans and 90 other animal species to contextualize patterns of human evolutionary demography. We conduct an additional analysis using human MPM data derived from raw census data from 96 countries over a period spanning 1780 to 2014. For each MPM we calculate a suite of demographic variables that describe multi-component life history strategy and use principal component analysis (PCA) to contextualize human populations among the other vertebrates. We show that, across species, life history strategy can be described by position across two dominant axes of variation and that human life history strategy is indeed set apart from that of other animals. We argue that life history architecture -- the set of relationships among life history traits including their correlations and trade-offs -- is fundamentally different within humans than across all animal species - perhaps because of fundamental distinction in the processes driving within-species and among-species differences. We illustrate strong general temporal trends in life history strategy in humans and highlight both striking commonalities and some differences among countries. For example, there is a general for traversal across life history space that reflects increased life expectancy and life span equality but there is also among-country variation in the trajectories that remains to be explained. Our approach of distilling complex demographic strategies into principal component axes offers a useful tool for the exploration of human demography.
11. How It Works
Authors: Vitzthum Virginia J.
Published: June 2024

Tinbergen (1963) proposed that a complete understanding of any behavior requires knowledge of its function, evolutionary history, developmental history, and mechanism of operation. This chapter is largely concerned with gaining some insight into the nature of the biological mechanisms generating variation in human fertility and, consequently, demographic diversity within and across populations. My inquiry is informed by life history theory, an analytical framework within evolutionary theory for studying maturation, reproduction, and aging and the associated behavioral and physiological mechanisms underlying the allocation of resources to these processes. Different allocation patterns are referred to as life history strategies (LHSs) and are subject to natural selection. Biological mechanisms can be usefully conceptualized as a set of suitably timed strategic responses to signals. I discuss this and other ideas about the mechanisms that underlie the implementation of LHSs, and introduce the concepts of “ecomarkers” and “the physiological fallacy.”

Drawing on empirical studies and theoretical models, I examine some intriguing features of human reproductive physiology that are directly relevant to demographic research in both low- and high-fertility populations. Several points, some contrary to common assumptions, emerge from this inquiry. For example: (1) The marked within- and between-population variation in many features of female reproductive functioning challenges the widespread assumption that there is a universal “normal” human biology. (2) The most likely outcome of a human conception is early loss. This unseen natural selection in the production of offspring may hamper investigations of hypothesized associations of post-natal reproductive success with resources or with offspring quality, even in low fertility populations. (3) Competition between incompatible but essential functions shape the timing and operation of various mechanisms. Some biological, psychological and behavioral functions cannot readily co-occur. Of necessity, successful LHSs must juggle such incompatibilities regardless of the abundance of energy and other resources, therefore some reproductive mechanisms may not depend upon (or be responsive to) energy availability. (4) Biomedically, the absence of ovulation is typically considered a pathology (and in some cases it may be). But from a life history perspective, each option of ovulating/not ovulating is a fork in the reproductive road at which there is a strategic decision to continue engaging in the possibility of reproduction or to forego the current opportunity. Not ovulating in a given cycle can be the best strategy for optimizing lifetime reproductive success.
14. Measuring Selection for Quantitative Traits in Human Populations
Authors: Moorad Jacob A
Published: June 2024

Quantitative genetics offers a powerful suite of statistical approaches designed to describe and predict rates of phenotypic evolution. Its origin lies at the reconciliation of Mendelian and Biometric Genetics and Darwin’s Theory of Evolution by Natural Selection that occurred in the early 20th century. Quantitative genetics has since played a major role in the science of animal and plant improvement since the mid-20th century and in the study of evolution since the 1970s and 80s. The goal of this chapter is to introduce this perspective to demographers, provide guidance on methods intended to characterize natural selection on traits of interest, and to illustrate the flexibility of this approach to deal with complications that are inherent to the study of human populations, such as overlapping generations and social interactions.
15. Demographic Sources of Variation in Fitness
Authors: van Daalen Silke , Caswell Hal
Published: June 2024

Heritable variation in fitness is required for natural selection, which makes identification of the sources of variation in fitness a crucial question in evolutionary biology. A neglected source of variance is the demography of the population. Demographic processes can generate a large amount of variance in fitness, but these processes are stochastic and the variance results from the random outcomes of survival, development, and reproduction, and will therefore be non-heritable. To quantify the variance in fitness due to individual stochasticity, the mean and variance of lifetime reproductive output (LRO) are calculated from age-specific fertility and mortality rates. These rates are incorporated into a stochastic model (a Markov chain with rewards) and the statistical properties of lifetime reproduction, including Crow’s Index of the opportunity for selection, are calculated. We present the basic theory for these calculations, and compare results with empirical measurements of the opportunity for selection. In the case of a historical population in Finland, 57% of the empirically observed opportunity for selection can be explained by individual stochasticity resulting from demographic processes. Analyzing the contribution of demography to variance in fitness will improve our understanding of the selective pressures operating on human populations.
19. Evolutionary Demography of the Great Apes
Authors: Emery Thompson Melissa , Sabbi Kristin
Published: June 2024

The living hominids share a suite of life history features that distinguishes them from other primates, including larger body size, extended juvenile growth and development, and a long lifespan. While modern humans exhibit many distinctions from their great ape relatives, these species provide an important reference by which to infer the life history characteristics of our last common ancestor. Demographic analysis of the great apes reveals specifically how life histories changed during recent human evolution and can provide perspective on inter- and intra-specific variation in life history features. In this chapter, we provide the most detailed information available on demographic characteristics of great apes, comparisons with humans, and discussion of the proximate factors that influence life history variation across the clade.
20. Did Grandmothers Enhance Reproductive Success in Historic Populations?
Authors: Dillon Lisa , Chernenko Alla , Dribe Martin , Engelhardt Sacha , Gagnon Alain , Hanson Heidi A. , Meeks Huong , Quaranta Luciana , Smith Ken R. , Vézina Hélène
Published: June 2024

Human reproductive success requires both producing children and making investments in the development of offspring. To a large extent these investments are made by the parents of the child, but researchers are now looking beyond the nuclear family to understand how extended kin, notably grandmothers, enhance reproductive success by making transfers to progeny of different kinds. The extent to which kin influence fertility and mortality outcomes may vary across different socio-economic and geographic contexts; as a result, an international comparative framework is used here to sharpen our understanding of the role of kin in reproduction. This chapter assesses the role of grandmothers in fertility outcomes in a comparative historical demographic study based on data from Scandinavia and North America. The individual-level data used are all longitudinal and multigenerational, allowing us to address the impact of maternal and paternal grandmothers on the fertility of their daughters and daughters-in-law. Attending to heterogeneous effects across space and time as well as within-family differences via the use of fixed effects models, we discover broader associations of the paternal grandmother with higher fertility across the four regions. We also find a general fertility advantage associated with the post-reproductive availability or recent death of the maternal grandmother in the four populations. Important variations across regions nevertheless exist in terms of the strength of the association and the importance of the grandmother’s proximity. Our interpretation is that grandmothers were generally associated with high-fertility outcomes, but that the mechanism for this association was co-determined by family configurations, resource allocation and the advent of fertility control.
27. The Impact of Social Dynamics on Life History Trajectory and Demographic Traits
Authors: Wells Jonathan
Published: June 2024

Evolutionary demography applies models and theories from evolutionary biology to understand variability in fertility and mortality patterns. Many important ecological influences derive from the natural environment, such as the burden of infectious disease, or the availability of energy and other nutrients. However, human society is itself a source of diverse stimuli and stresses that may generate profound impacts on demographic traits. On this issue, much attention to date has focused on the benefits of social interaction, in particular ‘cooperative breeding’ through which the costs of reproduction are shared among kin or others. In contrast, this chapter will use a simple model of social inequality, based on the ecological ‘producer-scrounger’ game, to shed light on how social hierarchy, through the key medium of nutrition, can shape diversity in life history trajectories. Life history trade-offs shape both physiological and behavioural characteristics of individuals, which in turn affect both fertility and mortality profiles. In every society, it is ultimately through relationships embedded in the context of nutrition that different groups within social hierarchies interact. The key insight from the producer-scrounger game is that in social hierarchies, the life history strategies of producers and scroungers are structurally inter-related. This results in contrasting phenotypes and demographic outcomes between the two groups. Those lower in social hierarchies have higher risks, and fewer opportunities to acquire resources, and may adapt through trade-offs that favour immediate survival and reproduction over growth and long-term health maintenance. In contrast, those with priority access to resources may demonstrate trade-offs that favour growth and long-term health maintenance, leading to greater longevity, a lengthier reproductive career and higher quality offspring. These contrasting life history strategies may emerge through the direct control of subordinates by high-ranked individuals, or through indirect control over the resources that subordinates struggle to access. This simple conceptual approach can help understand both contemporary variability within and between populations in demographic traits, and also their historical divergence or convergence over time.
28. Pathways of Density Dependence and Natural Selection in Modern Humans
Authors: DeLong John P.
Published: June 2024

Living things depend on a flow of energy and materials to grow, reproduce, and maintain their bodies. Populations are aggregations of individuals, so they too depend on resources. Humans use many fuels derived from the Earth’s photosynthetic energy, which in turn support a population that often occurs at unusually high densities for a mammal. Like most populations, growing human populations may experience negative feedbacks from population size unless the socio-economic system in which the population lives grows fast enough to maintain resource flows to individuals and to limit the downsides of high density. I map out a simple view of the pathways of density dependence through five main causes of negative feedback: poor nutrition, increased disease, increased toxins, altered life history strategies, and violent conflict. The pathways trace the different ways in which increasing population size can cause lower birth rates or higher death rates and set the stage for selection on contemporary human populations. Some of the pathways are not traditionally viewed as density-dependent, but since they all depend on a tension between population size and the ability of the socio-economic system to generate positive feedbacks, they are all a form of density-dependence. These pathways are also dependent on changes to the global environment, including warmer and more variable climates, and the way people respond to the feedbacks by altering socio-economic expectations or technology.
31. Trade-Offs between Mortality Components in Life History Evolution
Authors: Pavard Samuel , Metcalf C. Jessica E.
Published: June 2024

Little is known about the relative importance of different causes of death in driving the evolution of senescence and longevity across species. Here we argue that cause-specific mortality may be shaped by physiological trade-offs between mortality components, challenging the theoretical view that physiologically independent processes should senesce at the same rate, or that interactions between causes of death will make selection blind to the effects of specific causes of death. We review the evidence that risk of cancers trades off with risks of mortality from other diseases, and investigate whether this might explain two of the most puzzling paradoxes in cancer evolution. First, among species, cancer prevalence is not a function of species’ size and longevity, despite the fact that cancer incidence is known to be a function of the number of cell divisions (and therefore of size) by unit of time (and therefore of longevity). Second, within species, despite the fact that genomic instability is thought to be the proximal cause of both cancer incidence and senescence, mortality rates rise with age while cancer incidence decelerates and declines at old ages. Building on a relatively novel theory from cellular biology, we construct a preliminary model to reveal the degree to which accumulation of senescent cells with age could explain this latter paradox. Diverting damaged stem cells towards a senescent-state reduces their risk of becoming tumorous; however, conversely, the accumulation of senescent cells in tissues compromises their rejuvenation capacity and functioning, leading to organismal senescence. Accumulation of senescent cells with age may then be optimal because it reduces cancer mortality at the cost of faster senescence from other causes. Evolution will drive species towards a balance between these two sources of mortality.
32. Human Evolutionary Demography
Authors: Burger Oskar , Lee Ronald , Sear Rebecca
Published: June 2024

A complete understanding of demographic patterns and behaviours is not possible without including the role of evolutionary processes. Many challenges in the social sciences, and in demography in particular, can be more readily met if they include the rich collection of perspectives, models, tools, and theories that evolutionary sciences can provide. Perhaps unexpectedly, the benefits of this inclusion can be indirect, as many benefits of an evolutionary perspective may take the form of a new way of approaching an old problem that leads to insights independent of any goal related to isolating the role of natural selection or adaptation. In other cases, the role of adaptation may have been under-appreciated and can lead to a different understanding of the mechanisms involved. To help human evolutionary demography improve going forward, we offer two general recommendations. One is improving the integration of contemporary developments in evolutionary thought about the role of culture and environment, such as dual-inheritance theory, epigenetics, and the role of social learning and cultural transmission. Many of these developments reflect an increasingly sophisticated understanding of cultural processes in and understanding of core concepts like fitness and heritability. The role of culture may be a productive point of contact between the social sciences and evolutionary social sciences given shared interests in this area. Second is a call to re-invigorate evolutionary demography with some of the classical ideas that come from life history theory and population ecology, such as the use of energy and resource budgets to structure tradeoffs, a focus on the role of ecological factors like density and resources, and the use of formal mathematical models.
Civic Lessons That Last? Religiosity and Volunteering on the Way to Adulthood
Authors: Lim Chaeyoon , Wiertz Dingeman
Published: June 2024

Recent religious declines in the United States are for a large part driven by the growing number of Americans who were raised religiously but left religion in the transition to adulthood. Nonetheless, their views and behaviors may still be influenced by their religious upbringing. We explore such legacy effects by examining how changing religiosity during the transition to adulthood influences volunteering among young adults. Analyzing panel data from the National Study of Youth and Religion, we estimate two types of effects: effects of cumulative religious trajectories in youth, and effects of religiosity in youth that are not mediated by religiosity in adulthood. We find that histories of religious involvement shape volunteering in adulthood, but the precise nature of such effects varies across dimensions of religiosity and types of volunteering. Religious service attendance in youth promotes volunteering in adulthood mostly indirectly, through influencing religiosity in adulthood, and exclusively for activities organized by religious groups. By contrast, religious identification in youth promotes volunteering in adulthood also through other channels, and its effects on secular volunteering may persist even when people are not religious in adulthood. We discuss the implications of these findings in light of ongoing declines in religiosity in the United States.
Results From Complex Abdominal Reconstruction at Non-Academic Institution can Favorably Compare to Major Academic Centers: An Abdominal Core Health Quality Collaborative Database Review
Authors: Katchen Sarah , Scribner Katherine , Carbonell Alfredo , Ondulick Brian , Schneider Christopher
Published: June 2024

Background

Many complex abdominal hernias are referred to tertiary academic institutions for evaluation and treatment. The purpose of this study was to compare clinical outcomes from complex abdominal hernia repairs and abdominal wall reconstructions at a community hospital vs high volume academic centers participating in Abdominal Core Health Quality Collaborative (ACHQC).

Methods

Patients undergoing elective complex abdominal hernia repair were identified in our community setting and treated between 2016 and 2019. These results were then compared to Academic centers in the ACHQC database. Complex hernia definition was limited to those who have undergone any myofascial advancement procedure for homogeneity. Informed consent was obtained, and study was IRB approved. All data was de-identified.

Results

A total of 180 patients underwent complex abdominal hernia repair at our community hospital. The ACHQC database identified 6299 patients meeting criteria at participating academic centers. Demographics were similar between the two groups including hernia grade, size and wound class. Academic centers tended to have patients with previous component separations (25.7% vs 10.6%) and immunosuppressed (7.2% vs 2.8%), while the community hospital patients included more patients with tobacco use (18.9% vs 12.1%) and hypertension (65% vs 54.9%). Operative times were significantly less at the community hospital, patients requiring >240 minutes of time for repair at academic centers (39.6% vs 5%). Postoperatively length of stay was significantly shorter at the community hospital group averaging 3.7 days vs academic centers of 6 days ( P < .05). Although overall complications were less in the community hospital group (26.5% vs 19.4%). Readmission within 30 days was nearly twice as frequent in the community hospital group (14.4% vs 7.7%).

Conclusion

Community hospitals can provide comparable care and surgical expertise as major academic centers in regard to complex hernias in a large majority of cases. There is a need for dedicated care coordination and continuous review of supporting staff and outcomes is necessary to assure quality care. There is still a need to identify which patients would benefit from treatment at an academic center as opposed to a community hospital in order to maximize patient access and outcomes at both types of hospital setting. Further investigation needs to be performed regarding criteria for which patients should be transferred to academic centers for their complex hernia care. Identifying patients who would benefit from treatment at Academic Centers as opposed to Community hospitals should continue to be investigated.