bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025 huggingface dataset:
Voluntary social performance disclosure and firm profitability of South African listed firms: Examining the complementary role of board independence and managerial ownership
Authors: Sampong Frank , Song Na , Amoako Gilbert K. , Boahene Kingsley O.
Published: January 2021

Background: There is growing literature promoting corporate governance mechanisms as important elements that could mitigate the inconclusive findings within the corporate social performance and firm profitability research. A key theoretical assumption within the extant literature that provides support for this proposition is that corporate social performance and firm profitability are organisational outcomes in the presence of good corporate governance.Aim: Firstly, the aim is to re-investigate voluntary social performance disclosure (SPD) and long-term profitability association from the perspective of international standards, using the Global Reporting Initiative G3.1 guidelines. Secondly, to examine the joint moderating effect of board independence and managerial ownership (MO) on the voluntary SPD and profitability nexus.Setting: The South Africa institutional setting, where recent corporate governance regimes require firms to voluntarily make corporate governance related disclosures on both shareholder-and stakeholder-related information is used as the study context.Method: Utilising manually extracted data of listed firms, over the period 2010 to 2015, the generalised least square regression and seemingly unrelated regression (with a 1-year lag as the main independent variable) are used to examine the stated hypotheses.Results: We found a positive association between voluntary SPD and long-term profitability. We also found that the presence of non-executive directors positively moderates the association between voluntary SPD and long-term profitability. Thirdly, the proportion of MO significantly positively moderates the association between voluntary SPD and long-term profitability. Lastly, the complementary role of the presence of non-executive directors and the proportion of MO significantly positively moderates the association between voluntary SPD and long-term profitability.Conclusion: This study finds support for scholarly theoretical arguments that organisational outcomes are largely possible in the presence of good corporate governance, which has a long-term implication for firms’ shareholder wealth maximisation. This study contributes to the ongoing research examining the notion of substitutive versus complementary effects of governance mechanisms, and a growing research literature on corporate social responsibility (CSR) disclosure from the perspective of international standardisation. This study therefore makes far-reaching contributions to the corporate governance and social responsibility literature in an African context.
Revisiting the emotional intelligence and transformational leadership debate: (How) does emotional intelligence matter to effective leadership?
Authors: Görgens-Ekermans Gina , Roux Chene
Published: January 2021

Orientation: Empirical evidence supports the notion that emotional intelligence (EI) and transformational leadership (TFL) are related and confirms the positive effect of this leadership style on follower attitudes and performance. However, more insight is needed into the nomological net of variables that affect outcomes of effective leadership, as experienced by the follower of a leader who exhibits TFL behaviours, being influenced by various EI competencies.Research purpose: This study developed and tested a structural model that depicts the nature of the relationships between EI competencies, TFL behaviours and three outcomes of effective leadership.Motivation for the study: We argued that more insight into how (1) different components of EI affect TFL behaviours, and how (2) different components of TFL behaviours, in turn, affect outcomes of effective leadership, could be valuable in designing targeted interventions to increase employee commitment, job satisfaction (JS) and perceived supervisor support (PSS).Research design/design and method: The cross-sectional data included a sample of 267 respondents, with 85 leader–follower dyads that were analysed with partial least squares modelling. Self and other ratings were employed.Main findings: Nine of the 19 postulated relationships in the structural model were supported. Three of the four TFL components were shown to be influenced by various components of EI. Only PSS was significantly affected by idealised influence as a TFL behaviour.Practical/managerial implications: Increased understanding of which EI competencies influence TFL behaviours may be useful in the development of leaders by guiding targeted EI intervention strategies to increase leadership effectiveness.Contribution / value-add: This study confirmed the notion that EI competencies seem to be hierarchically ordered, whilst also providing insight into the differential impact of these competencies on TFL behaviours.
Academic talent: Perceived challenges to talent management in the South African higher education sector
Authors: Musakuro Rhodrick N. , De Klerk Frances
Published: January 2021

Orientation: Talent management is one of the most important and key strategic issues facing managers in the South African (SA) higher education sector.Research purpose: The study aimed to establish talent management challenges at one selected SA public higher education institution (HEI) which offers contact tuition in the Western Cape.Motivation for the study: Emerging trends show talent management has since presented unique sets of challenges in the SA higher education sector. SA needs to attract and retain academic talent to reach target levels of education and skills development and also ensure tertiary institutions accomplish their visions and missions.Research approach/design and method: We conducted the study using the interpretivist research paradigm. Semi-structured interviews were applied to a purposive sample of 7 human resource (HR) professionals from one selected HEI in the Western Cape. Content analysis was used for data analysis.Main findings: We established that workforce planning, compensation and rewards, training and development, succession planning, recruitment, selection, and performance management were negatively affecting the talent management practices of the selected HEI.Practical/managerial implications: HR professionals can use the study findings as a basis for understanding talent management challenges in a selected HEI and what causes these challenges.Contribution/value-add: The study establishes an insight into the talent management challenges of a selected HEI and provides reasons for what causes them. It also made several recommendations to the institution in order to solve the talent management challenges.
Industry 4.0 skills: A perspective of the South African manufacturing industry
Authors: Maisiri Whisper , Van Dyk Liezl
Published: January 2021

Orientation: Industry 4.0 (I4.0) is causing significant changes in the manufacturing industry, and its adoption is unavoidable for competitiveness and productivity.Research purpose: This study investigated I4.0 skills using the views of professionals in the manufacturing industry and experts in digital transformation practising in South Africa.Motivation for the study: I4.0 was coined originally for the manufacturing industry, and skills availability significantly influences its successful adoption. Furthermore, I4.0 is relatively new in the South African manufacturing industry, and there is still limited empirical research on the subject.Research approach/design and method: A qualitative descriptive research design was used, and participants were enrolled using purposeful sampling via email, telephone and LinkedIn. Twenty semi-structured interviews were conducted face-to-face or telephonically, and thematic analysis was used to analyse the data.Main findings: This study found that I4.0 demands higher skills than in conventional manufacturing, and companies should take the lead in facilitating upskilling and reskilling of their employees to preserve jobs. Experiential training could enhance I4.0 skills development in the manufacturing industry.Practical/managerial implications: Agile changes in I4.0 require constant re-alignment of employees’ skills in the manufacturing industry. This requires companies to make the human resource (HR) management function an integral part of business strategy.Contribution/value-add: The study can help HR practitioners and manufacturing professionals in strategising and innovate technology to manage the evolving I4.0 skills requirements and preserve jobs. The study also asserts a foundation for further investigation of I4.0 skills competencies’ development in the South African manufacturing industry.
Female sexual dysfunction in patients with psoriasis and vitiligo
Authors: Khaled Hesham N. , El-Sabagh Eman A. , Bazid Heba A.S.K.
Published: January 2021

Introduction

Female sexual dysfunction (FSD) refers to a problem that occurs during the sexual response cycle that prevents the female from experiencing satisfaction from sexual activity. It is a multifactorial condition established in biological, psychosexual, and interpersonal factors. It is divided into four groups: sexual desire, arousal, orgasmic, and pain disorders. Psoriasis and vitiligo although being of different pathogenesis and clinical presentation, both of them are common chronic skin diseases associated with significant disfigurement and systemic comorbidities like cardiovascular disease in psoriasis and endocrinal diseases like diabetes mellitus and thyroid disorders in vitiligo. They can affect sexuality through both psychological and biological factors.

Objective

To evaluate the effect of psoriasis and vitiligo on female sexual function in a sample of Egyptian patients in a hospital-based study.

Patients and methods

This study included 150 participants: 50 psoriatic women, 50 women with vitiligo, and 50 age-, sociocultural level (degree of education, occupation, religion, and residence)-, BMI-, and marital history-matched normal women as a control group. Sexual activity was estimated by using an Arabic translation of the female sexual function index questionnaire.

Results

This study revealed that FSD in psoriasis and vitiligo female groups was higher than that in the control group (with P=0.027 and 0.005, respectively). There was no significant difference regarding sexual dysfunction in cases with associated comorbidities and cases with only psoriasis or vitiligo. Among psoriasis group, FSD was significantly associated with older age (P=0.017), progressive course (P=0.008), long disease duration (P=0.013), and psoriasis severity as assessed by psoriasis area and severity index (P<0.001). Among vitiligo group, FSD was significantly associated with the duration of marriage (P=0.023), progressive course (P=0.001), genital affection (P=0.015), acrofacial type (P=0.011), vitiligo severity as assessed by vitiligo area and severity index (P=0.01), and vitiligo activity as assessed by vitiligo disease activity score (P=0.015).

Conclusion

The authors concluded that the psychological burden of psoriasis and vitiligo can adversely affect sexuality.
Sensitivity and specificity of D2-40 in differentiating Kaposi sarcoma from its mimickers
Authors: Genedy Rasha M. , Hamza Ashraf M. , Abdel Latef Amany A. , El-Beity Ali Alwi
Published: January 2021

Background

Kaposi sarcoma (KS) is a low-grade malignant vascular neoplasm, whose etiology is associated with human herpes virus 8 (HHV8). Owing to its broad clinicopathological spectrum, KS mimics a variety of non-KS vascular lesions both clinically and histologically, thus posing a diagnostic challenge. Immunohistochemical markers are needed to confirm diagnosis.

Objective

To study the sensitivity and specificity of D2-40 in comparison with HHV8-latent nuclear antigen 1 to identify KS among other cutaneous vascular proliferative lesions.

Patients and methods

The present study was carried out on 50 cases with cutaneous vascular proliferation. Examination of hematoxylin and eosin-stained sections was done for all cases to verify the diagnosis. Additional sections of all cases were subjected to immunohistochemical stains for the following primary antibodies: HHV8 and D2-40 monoclonal antibody.

Results

The study included 19 KS cases and 31 non-KS. Among KS lesions 15.8% were patch stage, 26.3% plaque stage, 36.84% nodular stage, 10.5% pyogenic granuloma-like KS, and 10.5% intravascular KS. All KS cases stained positive for HHV8-latent nuclear antigen 1, whereas none of other vascular lesions showed positive staining. Immunohistochemistry using D2-40 showed positive staining in 70% (n=35) and negative staining in 30% (n=15) of the total cases. All KS lesions expressed D2-40 in both endothelial lining and spindle cells. A total of 16 cases of non-KS vascular lesions expressed D2-40 in endothelial lining only. D2-40 positivity of both endothelial lining and spindle cells was found to be equally sensitive and specific to HHV8 for diagnosis of KS.

Conclusion

D2-40 positivity of both vascular lining and spindle cells can be considered both sensitive and specific stain to differentiate KS from other vascular lesions.
Unusual Presentations of Abdominal Melioidosis
Authors: Mohan Vignesh Kumar , Rajesh Komalavalli , Srinivas Sripriya , Ravi R. , Prabhakaran Jimmy , Srinivasan K. , Sundaramoorthy Subha
Published: January 2021

Melioidosis is an endemic bacterial infection caused by soil saprophyte, Burkholderia pseudomallei. It infects adults with risk factors or immunosuppressed and exposed to moist soil. Its significance lies in its varied clinical presentation and high mortality (40%). We present two cases of abdominal melioidosis with unusual clinical presentations. The first case presented with intractable hiccups and had isolated splenic melioidosis with contained rupture. The second case presented with fever and acute abdominal pain found to have pancreatic melioidosis and splenic vein thrombosis. Both the patients were treated with IV antibiotics and subsequently discharged after improvement in symptoms. The imaging findings of isolated type of melioidosis can mimic various other infections and granulomatous disease. Hence high index of clinical suspicion for patients presenting from endemic areas will narrow down the differential diagnosis.
A Rare Bug and Recurrent Bleed
Authors: Sarda Yashendu , Acharya Vishak K. , Sharma Deepthi , Chaithra G. V. , Kamath Madhav M. , Rai Santosh P. V.
Published: January 2021

Isolated pulmonary actinomycosis is a rare entity. Its clinical features and radiological findings are nonspecific, making early diagnosis difficult for clinicians. We report a case of 40-year-old nonsmoker, immunocompetent male without an underlying structural lung disease who presented to us with recurrent hemoptysis and was diagnosed to have Actinomycosis after multiple readmissions.
Maternal and Perinatal Outcomes of Influenza in Pregnancy after Treatment with Oseltamivir
Authors: Abraham Kavitha , Abraham Anuja , Regi Annie , Lionel Jessie , Thomas Elsy , Vijayaselvi Reeta , Jeyaseelan L. , Abraham Asha Mary , Santhanam Sridhar , Kuruvilla Kurian Anil , Steinhoff Mark C.
Published: January 2021

Context:

Influenza infection in pregnancy causes 4%–8% case fatality and five times more perinatal mortality. Influenza is a major contributor to mortality in developing countries; however, the morbidity has largely been underestimated. Public health interventions for prevention are also lacking.

Aims:

This study aimed to determine the seasonality of influenza in pregnant Indian women and to estimate the maternal and perinatal morbidity after treatment with oseltamivir.

Settings and Design:

This was a prospective observational cohort study, conducted in a tertiary hospital.

Subjects and Methods:

Pregnant women with ILI (influenza-like illness) were recruited into Cohort 1 (polymerase chain reaction [PCR] positive) and Cohort 2 (PCR negative). Gestational age-matched asymptomatic controls formed Cohort 3. Women in Cohort 1 received oseltamivir for 5 days. The incidence of small-for-gestational age (SGA) and preterm birth were the primary outcomes. Maternal and neonatal morbidity formed the secondary outcomes.

Statistical Analysis:

Unmatched (Cohort 1 and 2) and matched analysis (Cohort 1 and 3) were done. Student's t-test and Chi-square test were used to compare between variables.

Results:

Year-round incidence of influenza was recorded. Severe illness was more in Cohort 1 compared to Cohort 2 (36.2% vs. 6.3%; P < 0.001). SGA was comparable in all the cohorts (13%). Preterm birth (7.8% vs. 3.3%; P < 0.08; relative risk-2.75) was considerably high in Cohort 1. Secondary maternal and neonatal outcomes were similar between the groups.

Conclusion:

Influenza in pregnancy showed year-round incidence and increased maternal and neonatal morbidity despite treatment with oseltamivir. We suggest the need for newer interventions to curtail the illness in pregnancy.
Persistent Hypercoagulable State in COVID-19
Authors: Chan Kok Hoe , Lim Su Lin , Shaaban Hamid , Guron Gunwant , Slim Jihad
Published: January 2021

Coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) has swept through the world with millions of cases and hundreds of thousands of deaths. COVID-19-associated coagulopathy has been recognized as the major cause of morbidity and mortality. To the best of our knowledge, a majority of the cases of coagulopathy have been reported in patients with moderate-to-severe COVID-19 and limited to observations during the recovery/postcytokine storm state. Herein, we report a case series of two patients with COVID-19 who developed pulmonary embolism in the late phase of the disease. This raised the hypothesis that the risk of hypercoagulability in patients with COVID-19 can persist until the recovery phase, which would warrant a follow-up with D-dimer and fibrinogen trending, as well as postdischarge thromboprophylaxis for at least 2 weeks during the recovery phase.
Nonsevere Acute Respiratory Syndrome Human Coronaviruses in Children Hospitalized with Acute Lower Respiratory Infection
Authors: Das Rashmi Ranjan , Fajrudheen Mohamed , Mohanty Monalisa , John Joseph , Rath Sutapa , Satapathy Amit Kumar , Dwibedi Bhagirathi , Mishra Baijayantimala
Published: January 2021

Background:

The nonzoonotic (nonsevere acute respiratory syndrome (SARS)/Middle East respiratory syndrome) human coronaviruses (HCoVs) are usually considered as the causative agent for acute respiratory infection. We studied the characteristics and outcome of children with non-SARS HCoV acute lower respiratory infection (ALRI).

Methods:

This was a cross-sectional study from a tertiary care teaching hospital in eastern India.

Results:

Of 137 samples tested positive for respiratory viruses, 13 were due to HCoV (7 boys, median age: 2 years). Cough was the most common symptom, followed by breathing difficulty and fever. An underlying comorbid condition present in 38.4%. Co-infection with other viruses was seen in 69% of cases. Chest radiograph was abnormal in 69.3% of children. Antibiotics were administered in 53.8%. The median length of hospitalization was 5 d, irrespective of underlying disease. There was no mortality.

Conclusions:

HCoV is an uncommon but increasingly recognized cause of ALRI in hospitalized children. No severe illness was found in children with underlying comorbidities. This study underscores the importance of HCoV in causation of childhood ALRI, necessitating a surveillance system in India.
Stop Voicing and F0 Perturbation in Pahari
Authors: Rashid Nazia , Khan Abdul Qadir , Sohail Ayesha , Abbasi Bilal Ahmed
Published: January 2021

The present study has been carried out to investigate the perturbation effect of the voicing of initial stops on the fundamental frequency (F0) of the following vowels in Pahari. Results show that F0 values are significantly higher following voiceless unaspirated stops than voiced stops. F0 contours indicate an initially falling pattern for vowel [a:] after voiced and voiceless unaspirated stops. A rising pattern after voiced stops and a falling pattern after voiceless unaspirated stops is observed after [i:] and [u:]. These results match Umeda (1981) who found that F0 of a vowel following voiceless stops starts high and drops sharply, but when the vowel follows a voiced stop, F0 starts at a relatively low frequency followed by a gradual rise. The present data show no statistically significant difference between the F0 values of vowels with different places of articulation. Place of articulation is thus the least influencing factor.
Word Stress system of the Saraiki language
Authors: Atta Firdos
Published: January 2021

This study presents an Optimality-Theoretic analysis of Saraiki word stress.  This study presents a first exploration of word stress in the framework of OT. Words in Saraiki are mostly short; secondary stress plays no role here. Saraiki stress is quantity-sensitive, so a distinction must be made between short and long vowels, and light and heavy syllables. A metrical foot can consist of one heavy syllable, two light syllables, or one light and one heavy syllable. The Foot structure starts from right to left in prosodic words. The foot is trochaic and the last consonant in Saraiki words is extra metrical. These generalizations are best captured by using metrical phonology first and Optimality constraints later on.
Contact-induced variation in Tetun Dili phonology
Authors: Avram Andrei A.
Published: January 2021

The paper analyzes the Portuguese influence on Tetun Dili phonology, which can be can be identified at different levels. The phonemic inventory of Tetun Dili has been enriched via borrowing of several consonantal phonemes, triggering an increase in the number of phonological contrasts. Portuguese influence also accounts for the phonetic realizations of a number of consonantal and vocalic phonemes, with some allophonic rules extended even to words belonging to the native stock. Furthermore, the massive influx of Portuguese loanwords has greatly increased the number of permissible onset clusters, and lexical borrowings from Portuguese have led to the occurrence of antepenultimate stress. Finally, Portuguese influence also accounts for the considerable inter-speaker variation. These contact-induced phenomena are shown to correlate with the following factors: knowledge of Portuguese; the exo-normative vs endo-normative orientation of speakers in the case of Portuguese, i.e. towards European or Brazilian Portuguese vs. the East Timorese variety of Portuguese.
Polysemy of ‘Common Language’ and the Modern Japanese Nation: The Universalization of a ‘Standard Language’ to correct ‘Dialects’?
Authors: Amano Saki
Published: January 2021

In this paper, the term futsūgo (common language) was viewed over two periods. The first period (1880s-1894) was concerned with education but aimed to establish everyday, commonplace language and script that was familiar to the populace. However, by the 1890s, the policy of Europeanization was being reconsidered, and national consciousness was on the rise. The second period (1894-early 1900s), with the start of the Sino-Japanese War, saw an increase in the national consciousness in strengthening both literary and military arts, with a desire for the establishment of an artificially unified language with artificial rules that would unify the populace and the nation. The natural shift from the populace’s everyday commonplace language to a unified national language became possible through the linguistic logic, or mediation of terminology, seen in the single (but ambiguous) word futsūgo.
Laparoscopic liver resection: a single-centre experience
Authors: Ghielmetti Michele , Ramser Michaela , Oertli Daniel
Published: January 2021

BACKGROUND
The past 25 years have seen the increased use of minimally invasive surgery. The development of these techniques has impacted the domain of liver surgery. This study aimed to describe the safety, feasibility, benefits and results of laparoscopic liver resection in a single tertiary care centre.

METHODS
We reviewed the medical records of all patients who underwent liver surgery between January 2005 and December 2016 at the University Hospital of Basel. We selected all liver resections performed by laparoscopic surgery. To evaluate the results of the laparoscopic liver surgery, we chose the following data: the conversion rate from laparoscopy to open surgery, the median operating time, postoperative complications, the median length of stay following surgery and the median surgical margin in patients with malignant lesions.

RESULTS
Of the 274 liver operations, 201 (73%) were performed by open surgery and 73 (27%) by laparoscopy. Sixty-nine laparoscopic liver resections were included in this study. The selected laparoscopic liver resections were performed in 65 patients: 38 men and 27 women. The median age was 59 (range 29–85) years. Forty resections were performed for malignant lesions and 29 (42%) for benign diseases. The median operating time was 112 (range 50–247) minutes. The conversion rate was 19%. The most common cause for conversion was bleeding (69% of all conversions, 13% of all patients). Postoperative complications occurred in 15 patients (22%). The median hospitalisation time was 7.1 (range 2–23) days. Thirty-two patients (46.5% of all patients) had hepatocellular carcinoma. The mean tumour size was 25.6 (range 5–55) mm. The median surgical margin was 9 mm.

CONCLUSION
This study showed that in our centre laparoscopic liver surgery is a safe and effective treatment option for both benign and malignant liver lesions.
The problem of formation of modern polyling-cultural personality in the conditions of globalization and migration
Authors: Kipchatova Alla Vasilyevna
Published: January 2021

In the period of post-Soviet states the problem of multi-linguistics and the formation of multilingualism become more urgent. Realization of synergetic poly-aspect approach to the study of the mega-conceptual phenomenon of poly-linguistic-cultural linguistic identity in the context of globalization and migration reveals the characteristics and patterns of evolution in this complex humanitarian and social constructs of modern scientific knowledge from the point of interaction and mutual influence of different-structural languages folklore, national literatures and arts. In addition, it allows you to define the ways, forms and methods of implementation of their communicative potential.

Modern electronic-information society raises the question of the choice of language of communication and thinking language. Entropy processes inevitably entail the phenomenon of interference, intervention (capture the scope of the language), attrictsion (deterioration of language) that accompany polylinguism process, influencing the process of learning new languages and the preservation of the native language. Modern society is involved in the world of digital technology and communications; it remains split in the social, ideological, cultural and national relations.
Multidimensional Socioeconomic Deprivations of Maternal Health Care Services Utilisation: Evidence from Bangladesh
Authors: Kamal S. M. Mostafa , Ullah Md. Amanat , Tadayoni Masoumeh , Noor Shahreen , Rahman Md. Anisur
Published: January 2021

This paper examines the combined effect of three socioeconomic deprivations: education, wealth, and health on the utilisation of maternal health care services (MHCSs) among Bangladeshi women using the data of Bangladesh Demographic and Health Survey 2014. Both bivariate and multivariate statistical analyses were employed in this study. Multivariable logistic regression analysis is used to examine the effect of the multidimensional socioeconomic deprivations on the use of MHCSs. Of the women who had given at least one live birth in the three years preceding the survey, 43% were non-deprived by any dimension; 31% were deprived in one, 20% in two and 6% in all three dimensions. The prevalence of receiving four or more antenatal care (ANC) services was 31%; 38% used facility-based delivery (FBD) and 42% sought skilled birth assistance (SBA). When education and wealth deprivations were combined, women were significantly (P<0.01) least likely to seek assistance from SBA (OR=0.18, 95% CI: 0.14-0.24) and FBD (OR=0.17, 95% CI: 0.12-0.22); and when all three deprivations were combined women were less likely to receive ANC at least once (OR=0.16, 95% CI: 0.12-0.22) than those who were not deprived. Programmes should be undertaken to expand maternal health voucher schemes in more sub-districts and quality of care should be ensured for equal accessibility and availability of MHCSs targeting deprived and disadvantaged areas and women to ensure safe motherhood practices in Bangladesh. Our findings show that the situation of maternal health care in Bangladesh is not satisfactory.Antenatal care
Women Representation in Textbooks in Pakistan: Impact on Career and Study Choices of Female Students Enrolled in the Postgraduate Programmes
Authors: Khokhar Ashar Johnson
Published: January 2021

The present study explores factors that contribute to the making of career and study choices of female students enrolled in postgraduate programmes in Pakistan. This study collected data from students enrolled in Masters and MPhil programmes using a focus group discussion data collection strategy. The focus of data analysis was to unearth reasons given by the participants of their career choices and discover factors that influenced their career choice. The focus group discussions revealed that family and female representation in textbooks were the main reasons for their choices. Female role models that could inspire them to select a particular profession were missing in the textbooks. To address this gap and omission and to help female students in making better study and career choices, this study suggests that the textbook regime in Pakistan should make more space for female-centered content and present to pupils the life stories of successful women in different fields.
Women’s Health Status in Nepal: Appraising Continuity and Change
Authors: Subedi Govind , Dhakal Rojana , Yadav Manju
Published: January 2021

Utilising data from Nepal Demographic and Health Survey from 1996-2016 and some landmark verdicts of the Supreme Court on reproductive rights since the early 1990s, this article evaluates the pace of continuity and change in women’s health status, particularly of reproductive rights of women. Thus, this study aims to identify sociocultural factors that influence women’s health, particularly their reproductive health. Although in the last few decades, Nepal has made substantial achievements in reproductive health service delivery and reduction of childhood mortality, however, performance is rather slow in achieving nutritional and health seeking behaviour. for family planning services, elimination of harmful and discriminatory practices that influences on girls and women’s health adversely. The Supreme Court of Nepal through its series of verdicts has greatly contributed to safeguarding women’s reproductive health progressively, although the full implementation of these landmark verdicts has yet to be materialised. Key findings of this analysis show that health remains gendered in Nepal, from childhood. A major breakthrough could be possible only by removing the social determinants of women’s health.
Does Patient Self-Awareness Predict Ankle Fractures?
Authors: Aouthmany Shaza , Horn Tymon , Howe Michelle , Kakish Edward , Kakish Alana , Pillai Mahesh , Jones Corion
Published: January 2021

Introduction: Ankle injuries represent one of the most common sports and extremity related complaints presented in emergency departments (ED) with over five million ankle injuries annually arising in the United States. The 2007 US National Health Statistics Report stated that lower limb and ankle complaints accounted for 4.1% of all reported body sites undergoing injury in the ED. The purpose of this study was to examine how frequently a sample of ED patients’ perception of having a possible ankle fracture was predictively associated with results of their X-ray evaluation results. Methods: After 2017 IRB approval, a sample of consented adult patients receiving care at the authors’ two Ohio and Michigan ED were asked, “Do you think you broke your ankle?” Regardless of each patient’s answer, they received an X-ray to evaluate for an ankle fracture that was interpreted by a radiologist. Results: A total of 69 eligible patients received an ankle X-ray. The total number of ankle fractures confirmed by X-ray was 20 (29.4% of sample) while 48 (70.5%) of ankles that were X-rayed were not fractured. Six (28.5%) out of 21 males and 14 (30.4%) out of 46 females were found to have a confirmed ankle fracture. The sensitivity of the perceived ankle fracture question was at or below 50% in all sample subgroups except for smokers at 67%. Conclusion: These findings support the importance of an ED clinician’s intuition when considering a patient’s own self-assessment during their clinical decision-making processes
In Memoriam
Authors: Purdy Jesse E.
Published: January 2021

Jesse E. Purdy, a consummate comparative psychologist whose research started with laboratory rats but quickly expanded to include garter snakes, Weddell seals, cuttlefish, killer whales, coho salmon, and numerous more common species of fish, passed away on April 16, 2018, after a long and heroic battle with cancer. Purdy is survived by Karen, his wife of 45 years, and their two children, Kristopher and Matthew. He is also survived by his students and colleagues at Southwestern University who came to share his vision and enthusiasm for a life of inquiry and adventure and will continue to share that with their own students for decades to come.
Effects of the Type of Reinforcer on Renewal of Operant Responding
Authors: Hernández Cinthia , Madrigal Kenneth , Flores Carlos
Published: January 2021

Some studies have identified that ABA renewal seems to depend on how response-reinforcer contingency is established. Using rats as subjects, the present study assessed ABA and ABB renewal using a two-component multiple schedule (VI30 s - VI30 s) each with a different reinforcer (pellets or sucrose). 16 subjects were trained to lever-press during 20 sessions in Context A; lever-pressing was extinguished during 10 sessions in Context B. And for the renewal test, 8 subjects were tested in Context A (Group ABA); whereas, the rest were tested in Context B (Group ABB). During acquisition, response rates were higher on the pellets component than the sucrose component; during extinction, response rates decreased to near-zero responses. A renewal effect was observed only for Group ABA during test, showing no differences between components. Our results suggest that different type of reinforcers do not seem to affect ABA renewal, using different contexts allows for renewal to be observed regardless of the differences in response rates during acquisition.
Appendix A and B
Authors: Woodruff Mary , Noonan Michael , Martinez Anjelica , Walker Rachel T. , Miranda Jesus , De La Fuente Ezequiel , Hill Heather M. , Abramson Charles I.
Published: January 2021

These appendixes summarize the graduate programs and points of contact for students interested in pursuing comparative psychology or a related fields in the field today. Both a google doc and a current list are provided. Individuals interested in having their programs or names included in the list, please contact Dr. Heather Hill at hhill1@stmarytx.edu or ijcpmail@gmail.com.
A Place for Comparative Psychology in Undergraduate Curricula
Authors: Krause Mark A.
Published: January 2021

Establishing a place for comparative psychology within the curricula of undergraduate psychology programs in the U.S. can be challenging. Psychology majors typically take a core set of required classes and select the remainder from a menu of options or from purely elective courses offered by faculty that are primarily focused on human behavior. It is within this context that many of us who teach comparative psychology find ourselves competing for space in our undergraduate programs. In this paper I describe a way to make comparative psychology more visible in undergraduate psychology programs. Specifically, I outline a strategy for mapping undergraduate courses in comparative psychology onto the American Psychological Association’s (2013) guidelines for the undergraduate major. The aim is to bring our unique contributions into focus, offer clarity on common course objectives, and hopefully offer something useful for assessing undergraduate student learning.
Engaging Undergraduates in Comparative Psychology: A Case Study
Authors: Highfill Lauren , Yeater Deirdre
Published: January 2021

With many comparative psychologists teaching at small colleges and universities where resources are limited, maintaining a traditional animal laboratory housing rats or pigeons is not realistic for many of these researchers. One way to overcome this lack of overhead costs and extensive lab space, is to forge collaborations with local zoos and aquariums. Zoo and aquarium research projects provide a way to examine a wide range of species, which is an important tenet within the field of comparative psychology. Furthermore, many undergraduates are innately attracted to the prospect of working with exotic animals. Here, we propose utilizing visitor behavior research as a means to provide undergraduates with research experience within the field comparative psychology, as well as expose the general public to animal behavior research
The Importance of Comparative Psychology in Equine-Assisted Activities and Therapies
Authors: Kieson Emily
Published: January 2021

Practitioners of Equine Assisted Activities and Therapies (EAAT) use it to help individuals suffering from a wide range of physical and psychological disorders as an alternative practice in physical and psychotherapy. Although there is plenty of research to support the benefits of these therapies, there is little research in equine behavior in this context, specifically how equine behaviors can best be utilized to improve the health of the human component. Although much of EAAT uses horses in physical therapy, newer practices in EAAT focus on assisting individuals in building and improving interpersonal skills through practicing those skills with horses. To fully understand and develop this area of EAAT, researchers need to look at the behavioral patterns of horses, how they learn and adapt to changes in human emotions and behaviors, and how these behaviors correspond to bonding with regards to friendships and relationships within the context of equine-human interactions. To do this, scientists need to rely upon the principles of learning theory and behavioral sciences associated with comparative psychology. The scientific methods used in comparative psychology are critical for researching these areas of EAAT.
Replication and Pre-Registration in Comparative Psychology
Authors: Beran Michael J.
Published: January 2021

There is growing interest and pressure in the social sciences to find ways to address the so-called “replication crisis” in psychology. This includes increasing transparency and good practices in all areas of experimental research, and in particular to promote attempts at replication. Comparative psychology has a long history of efforts to replicate and extend previous research, but it is often difficult to do this when highly specialized methods or uncommon species are being studied. I propose that comparative researchers make greater use of pre-registration as a way to ensure good practices, and I outline some of the ways in which this can be accomplished.
Ordinal Pattern Analysis in Comparative Psychology: A Flexible Alternative to Null Hypothesis Significance Testing Using an Observation Oriented Modeling Paradigm
Authors: Craig David Philip Arthur , Abramson Charles I.
Published: January 2021

The data of comparative psychology generally differ from the majority of data collected within mainstream psychology in several key respects – most notably in the diversity of forms of measurement and fewer number of subjects. We believe null hypothesis significance testing may not be the most appropriate method of analysis for comparative psychology for these reasons. Comparative psychology has a rich history of performing several analyses on a few subjects due to a philosophical interest in individual subject behavior, along with group assessments. Since first being published in 2011, Observation Oriented Modeling has successfully been used to analyze individual subjects’ responses from honey bees, horses, humans, and rattlesnakes. Observation Oriented Modeling is highly flexible and has allowed comparative researchers to perform a variety of assessments comparable to null hypothesis significance testing’s T-Tests, One-way ANOVA, and Repeated-Measures ANOVA while producing easily-interpretable and, most importantly, relevant results. This paper describes the diverse manners in which comparative psychologists can assess individual and group performances without concerns of statistical assumptions and limitations that complicate assessments when employing Null Hypothesis Significance Testing.
More than a Fluke: Lessons Learned from a Failure to Replicate the False Belief Task in Dolphins
Authors: Hill Heather , Dietrich Sarah , Cadena Alicia , Raymond Jenny , Cheves Kyle
Published: January 2021

Critical to advanced social intelligence is the ability to take into consideration the thoughts and feelings of others, a skill referred to as Theory of Mind (ToM) or mindreading. In this article, we present a critical review of the comparative methodology and utility of the nonverbal FBT along with a description of an attempted FBT replication conducted with a bottlenose dolphin prior to the implementation of the more successful approaches used currently. Attempting to replicate Tschudin’s (2001, 2006) methodology with dolphins highlighted several flaws that may explain the failures of socially complex mammals to display competency: (1) reliance on a containment invisible displacement procedure that is difficult for non-human animals and especially dolphins to follow, (2) a complex procedure which demands extensive training time, (3) a long trial duration with several moving parts which taxes the animal’s memory and attention, and (4) a restricted number of two-choice FBT test trials, which limits statistical power given the small pool of trained animals. Although recent research paradigms for primates have corrected for some of these flaws, it is critical that comparative psychologists address these limitations for other species or taxa to be tested validly. Future research in ToM understanding through a false belief approach should move toward more ecologically valid designs and appropriate implicit measures that facilitate comparative approaches that can be replicated.
Hearing Parents’ Use of Auditory, Visual, and Tactile Cues as a Function of Child Hearing Status
Authors: Gabouer Allison , Oghalai John , Bortfeld Heather
Published: January 2021

Parent-child dyads in which the child is deaf but the parent is hearing present a unique opportunity to examine parents’ use of non-auditory cues, particularly vision and touch, to establish communicative intent. This study examines the multimodal communication patterns of hearing parents during a free play task with their hearing (N=9) or deaf (N=9) children. Specifically, we coded parents’ use of multimodal cues in the service of establishing joint attention with their children. Dyad types were compared for overall use of multimodal – auditory, visual, and tactile – attention-establishing cues, and for the overall number of successful and failed bids by a parent for a child’s attention. The relationship between multimodal behaviors on the part of the parent were tracked for whether they resulted in successful or failed initiation of joint attention. We focus our interpretation of the results on how hearing parents differentially accommodate their hearing and deaf children to engage them in joint attention. Findings can inform the development of recommendations for hearing parents of deaf children who are candidates for cochlear implantation regarding communication strategies to use prior to a child’s implantation. Moreover, these findings expand our understanding of how joint attention is established between parents and their preverbal children, regardless of children’s hearing status.
The Functions of Mutual Touch in Full-Term and Very Low-Birthweight/Preterm Infant-Mother Dyads: Associations with Infant Affect and Emotional Availability During Face-to-Face Interactions
Authors: Mantis Irene , Stack Dale M.
Published: January 2021

The purpose of the present study was to investigate the communicative functions of mutual touch during mother-infant interactions and their relation with infants’ affect and the quality of the mother-infant relationship. The two normal periods of the Still-Face procedure were examined for mothers and their 5½-month-old full-term (n=40) and very low-birthweight/preterm (VLBW/preterm; n=40) infants. The Functions of Mother-Infant Mutual Touch Scale was used to code the function of each mutual touch. Results indicated that full-term infant-mother dyads spent significantly more time engaged in playful and regulatory mutual touch compared to VLBW/preterm infant-mother dyads who spent significantly more time engaged in attention-centered, unbalanced, and guided mutual touch. Infant smiling was found to significantly co-occur with playful mutual touch for both the full-term and VLBW/preterm infants, while fretting co-occurred with unbalanced mutual touch for VLBW/preterm infants. Higher levels of maternal sensitivity and regulatory mutual touch were associated for full-term dyads, while lower levels of maternal sensitivity were associated with unbalanced mutual touch for VLBW/preterm dyads. Results from this study enable a more comprehensive understanding of the functions of mutual touching, and suggest key differences in which mutual touching behaviours are organized with infants’ affect and relationship dimensions between mothers and their infants.
Duane Rumbaugh’s Influence on the Science and Practice of Animal Welfare
Authors: Maple Terry L. , Perdue Bonnie M.
Published: January 2021

Duane Rumbaugh’s influence on the field of comparative psychology will be long lasting and far reaching. He is best known for his continuing influence on the field of primate cognition, but his work and that of his mentees has branched out into other domains as well. Here we will focus specifically on his influence on the field of animal welfare and how place or location has shaped those influences. In our narrative, we will describe how different people with different perspectives interfaced over the decades by virtue of sharing space. We will reflect on a range of physical spaces: field versus wild, different cities or geographical locations, laboratory versus zoo, and actual versus virtual. Geographic location, indirectly and/or directly, will shape the interactions among scientists and their perspectives and values. In particular we will focus on how developments in the 20th Century in San Diego and Atlanta shaped the primate research community in both laboratories and zoos. We will provide the historical context and development of perspectives that have forever altered how we think of and co-exist with great apes. These interactions have yielded positive and strong connections between people that ultimately influence our understanding of and treatment of animal welfare.