bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025 huggingface dataset:
Laparoscopic posterior mesh rectopexy for rectal prolapse is a safe procedure in older patients: A prospective follow-up study
Authors: Dyrberg D.L. , Nordentoft T. , Rosenstock S.
Published: January 2015

Background and aims:

The aim of this study is to examine the clinical and functional outcome of laparoscopic posterior rectopexy in a consecutive series of adult patients with full-thickness rectal prolapse.

Material and methods:

Preoperative data on demography, life-style practices, medication, comorbidity, and previous surgery for rectal prolapse were ascertained from patient charts. Information on operative procedure, and pre- and postoperative complications were recorded. Short- and long-term follow-up were done after a median of 60 days and 2 years after surgery.

Results:

Between 1 February 2009 to 1 June 2012, 81 laparoscopic posterior rectopexies were done. Male-to-female ratio was 4:77, median age 73 [57–80.5] years and median ASA Grade 2. Conversion to open surgery was done in 6.2%, the median operating time was 82 min [66 - 102] and median length of hospital stay was 2 days [2–5.7]. Minor and major complications were seen in 5.3% and 14.8%, respectively. The 30-day mortality rate was 1.2%. Constipation or incontinence improved or disappeared in 65.2% and 74.4%, respectively. The cumulated recurrence rate was 11.1% after a median observation time of 2 years.

Conclusion:

Laparoscopic posterior rectopexy is a safe and well-tolerated procedure in older patients and can be done with acceptable complications and recurrence rates and short hospital stays. Laparoscopic posterior rectopexy seems to improve bowel function in many patients.
‘One cannot legislate kindness’: Ambiguities in European legal instruments on non-custodial sanctions
Authors: van Zyl Smit Dirk , Snacken Sonja , Hayes David
Published: January 2015

Non-custodial sanctions, particularly those that are implemented in the community, have different historical roots in common- and civil-law jurisdictions. Nevertheless, various European instruments seek to shape the imposition and implementation of such sanctions uniformly across the continent. These instruments reflect an apparent consensus about penal values, culminating in 1992 with the adoption of the European Rules on Community Sanctions and Measures and of the Recommendation on Consistency in Sentencing. In spite of the apparent pan-European consensus, some tensions remained as a result of underlying doctrinal differences and of the compromises that were required to accommodate them. In the 21st century further European initiatives have sought to go beyond the 1992 instruments and focus on ‘what works’ and on the development of probation services. In the process, the central objective of penal reductionism, so important in 1992, has become somewhat marginalised. This shortcoming can be addressed by reconsidering the approaches that had been rejected in the earlier search for consensus and by developing a more comprehensive understanding of the human rights safeguards to which all penal sanctions should be subject.
Beyond income transfers: The decline of regional inequality in Brazil during the 2000s
Authors: Limoeiro Danilo
Published: January 2015

This article seeks to explain declining regional inequality in Brazil by exploring the economic ‘catch-up’ of Brazil’s poorest region. To that end, the article analyzes income policies as well as supply-side policies aimed at improving the productive capacity of poor regions, and presents data showing that both have proven more important than the current literature suggests. The article also introduces the concept of regional Keynesian effects, and provides preliminary evidence for its relevance, to demonstrate that income policies, such as cash transfers to poor regions, have the potential to foster local output growth.
Book review: Walker, Gordon. 2012: Environmental Justice: Concepts, Evidence and Politics
Authors: Alfranca Oscar
Published: January 2015

Walker, Gordon. 2012: Environmental Justice: Concepts, Evidence and Politics. London and New York: Routledge. xv + 256 pp. £28.99 paperback. ISBN: 9780415589741.
Effect of flat deck on catamaran water entry through smoothed particle hydrodynamics
Authors: Farsi Mohammad , Ghadimi Parviz
Published: January 2015

This article presents an investigation of water entry of two types of catamarans by smoothed particle hydrodynamics method. Constant velocity is considered for each model. For the first model, J3, water entry simulation of demi hull, wave-piercing hull and whole hull is performed. Pressure distribution and free surfaces of each test are presented. Comparison between pressure distribution of the whole hull and other parts shows a principal difference in flow regime around the bodies. Pressure coefficient of the whole body is larger than other body and has an increasing–decreasing behavior versus time. The second case study includes an INCAT model which is also simulated at a constant velocity. Pressure distribution of the INCAT model is compared against that of J3 model. Because of different geometries of the models, there are differences in their surrounding flow and pressure distributions. Mean pressure distribution and peak pressure of the J3 model are found to be greater than those of the INCAT model. Therefore, one may claim that a rounded corner body lick as INCAT model is perhaps better than a sharp body lick as J3 model.
Interhemispheric Asymmetries and Theta Activity in the Rostral Anterior Cingulate Cortex as EEG Signature of HIV-Related Depression
Authors: Kremer Heidemarie , Lutz Franz P. C. , McIntosh Roger C. , Dévieux Jessy G. , Ironson Gail
Published: January 2015

Resting EEGs of 40 people living with HIV (PLWH) on long-term antiretroviral treatment were examined for z-scored deviations from a healthy control (normative database) to examine the main and interaction effects of depression and gender. Regions of interest were frontal (alpha) and central (all bands) for interhemispheric asymmetries in quantitative EEGs and theta in the rostral anterior cingulate cortex (rACC) in low-resolution electromagnetic tomography (LORETA). Z-scored normed deviations of depressed PLWH, compared with nondepressed, showed right-dominant interhemispheric asymmetries in all regions. However, after adjusting for multiple testing, significance remained only central for theta, alpha, and beta. Reversed (left-dominant) frontal alpha asymmetry is a potential EEG marker of depression in the HIV negative population that was not reversed in depressive PLWH; however, corresponding with extant literature, gender had an effect on the size of frontal alpha asymmetry. The LORETA analysis revealed a trending interactional effect of depression and gender on theta activity in the rACC in Brodmann area 32. We found that compared to men, women had greater right-dominant frontal alpha-asymmetry and elevated theta activity in voxels of the rACC, which may indicate less likelihood of depression and a higher likelihood of response to antidepressants. In conclusion, subtle EEG deviations, such as right-dominant central theta, alpha, and beta asymmetries and theta activity in the rACC may mark HIV-related depressive symptoms and may predict the likelihood of response to antidepressants but gender effects need to be taken into account. Although this study introduced the use of LORETA to examine the neurophysiological correlates of negative affect in PLWH, further research is needed to assess the utility of this tool in diagnostics and treatment monitoring of depression in PLWH.
Leadership at a local level – Enhancing educational development
Authors: Mårtensson Katarina , Roxå Torgny
Published: January 2015

This paper explores, mainly through a socio-cultural perspective, the role of mid-level leadership in higher education in relation to educational development. It is argued that supporting and engaging local-level leaders, such as academic programme directors, increases the potential for development of local teaching and learning cultures. The paper describes a programme in a research-intensive university, where leaders conduct scholarly projects focused on contextualised educational development and leadership. Projects are reported in writing and peer-reviewed within the programme. In this article 25 project reports are analysed through a framework focusing on the relational and contextual aspects of leadership. Four projects are specifically elaborated to illustrate important aspects of leadership that become visible through the analysis. These aspects relate to external and internal mandates to lead, i.e. the potential actions available to leaders when navigating the need to build and maintain legitimacy in the formal organisation as well as in the group/s that they as leaders try to influence.
The impact of four family support programmes for people with a disability in Ireland
Authors: Daly Louise , Sharek Danika , DeVries Jan , Griffiths Colin , Sheerin Fintan , McBennett Padraig , Higgins Agnes
Published: January 2015

Background:

This article reports on an evaluation of four family support programmes in Ireland for families of people with a physical or an intellectual disability or autism. The focus of the evaluation, which took place within a year of the programmes’ completion, was on establishing whether the programmes had an impact on families’ capacity to effectively support their family member.

Method:

A mixed-method design was used, which included a survey ( n = 38) and interviews ( n = 19) with participating family members. Ethical approval for the study was given by the relevant university ethics committee.

Results:

Findings suggest that participation in the programmes enhanced knowledge, attitudes, and competencies of families and also impacted their ability to advocate for their family member and to connect with the community.

Discussion and conclusions:

Whilst outcomes were overwhelmingly positive, further follow-up would be required to ascertain if sustained capacity building took place.
Altering the Cognitive-Affective Dysfunctions of Psychopathic and Externalizing Offender Subtypes With Cognitive Remediation
Authors: Baskin-Sommers Arielle R. , Curtin John J. , Newman Joseph P.
Published: January 2015

Cognitive remediation is a treatment approach with the potential to translate basic science into more specific, mechanism-based interventions by targeting particular cognitive skills. The present study translated understanding of two well-defined cognitive-affective dysfunctions into novel deficit-matched interventions and evaluated whether cognitive remediation would demonstrate specific and generalizable change. Two antisocial subtypes, individuals with psychopathy and externalizing traits, are characterized by cognitive-affective problems that predispose them to engage in significant substance abuse and criminal behavior, culminating in incarceration. Whereas individuals with psychopathy fail to consider important contextual information, individuals with externalizing traits lack the capacity to regulate affective reactions. Training designed to remedy these subtype-specific deficits led to improvement on both trained and nontrained tasks. Such findings offer promise for changing neural and behavioral patterns, even for what many consider to be the most recalcitrant treatment population, and presage a new era of translating cognitive-affective science into increasingly specific and effective interventions.
Positive Imagery-Based Cognitive Bias Modification as a Web-Based Treatment Tool for Depressed Adults
Authors: Blackwell Simon E. , Browning Michael , Mathews Andrew , Pictet Arnaud , Welch James , Davies Jim , Watson Peter , Geddes John R. , Holmes Emily A.
Published: January 2015

Depression is a global health problem requiring treatment innovation. Targeting neglected cognitive aspects may provide a useful route. We tested a cognitive-training paradigm using positive mental imagery (imagery cognitive bias modification, imagery CBM), developed via experimental psychopathology studies, in a randomized controlled trial. Training was delivered via the Internet to 150 individuals with current major depression. Unexpectedly, there was no significant advantage for imagery CBM compared with a closely matched control for depression symptoms as a whole in the full sample. In exploratory analyses, compared with the control, imagery CBM significantly improved anhedonia over the intervention and improved depression symptoms as a whole for those participants with fewer than five episodes of depression and those who engaged to a threshold level of imagery. Results suggest avenues for improving imagery CBM to inform low-intensity treatment tools for depression. Anhedonia may be a useful treatment target for future work.
Cognitive Training
Authors: Onken Lisa S.
Published: January 2015

The articles in this series relate to research on the modification of cognitive processes thought to be causally related to behavioral or emotional problems. The examination of the effects of targeted cognitive interventions on specific cognitive processes and of the relationship of the modification of these processes to clinical outcome provides insight into mechanisms of behavior change. In contrast to intervention development research involving clinical trials that focus on efficacy testing without examining an intervention’s mechanism of action, the intervention development research presented here is grounded in the examination of mechanism and can inform behavior change science regardless of whether or not an intervention exerts the hypothesized effect on clinical outcome. The potential for the utility of cognitive training interventions as clinical tools is discussed. Also highlighted is the potential for a mechanism-focused approach to serve as one model for progressive integrated basic science and clinical intervention development research.
Antigen-armed antibodies targeting B lymphoma cells effectively activate antigen-specific CD4+ T cells
Authors: Yu Xiaojun , Ilecka Marta , Bartlett Emmalene J. , Schneidt Viktor , Bhat Rauf , Mautner Josef , Feederle Regina , Delecluse Henri-Jacques
Published: January 2015

Key Points

Epitopes in antigen-armed antibodies that target B-cell receptors are efficiently presented by B lymphoma cells to cytotoxic CD4+ T cells. Memory T cells activated by AgAbs ex vivo are able to kill targeted B lymphoma cells.
Circulating tumor cells in newly diagnosed inflammatory breast cancer
Authors: Mego Michal , Giordano Antonio , De Giorgi Ugo , Masuda Hiroko , Hsu Limin , Giuliano Mario , Fouad Tamer M , Dawood Shaheenah , Ueno Naoto T , Valero Vicente , Andreopoulou Eleni , Alvarez Ricardo H , Woodward Wendy A , Hortobagyi Gabriel N , Cristofanilli Massimo , Reuben James M
Published: January 2015

Introduction

Circulating tumor cells (CTCs) are an independent prognostic factor for progression-free survival (PFS) and overall survival (OS) in patients with metastatic breast cancer. Inflammatory breast cancer (IBC) is one of the most aggressive forms of breast cancer. The prognostic value of a CTC count in newly diagnosed IBC has not been established. The aim of this study was to assess the prognostic value of a baseline CTC count in patients with newly diagnosed IBC.

Methods

This retrospective study included 147 patients with newly diagnosed IBC (77 with locally advanced and 70 with metastatic IBC) treated with neoadjuvant therapy or first-line chemotherapy during the period from January 2004 through December 2012 at The University of Texas MD Anderson Cancer Center. CTCs were detected and enumerated by using the CellSearch system before patients were started with chemotherapy.

Results

The proportion of patients with ≥1 CTC was lower among patients with stage III than among patients with metastatic IBC (54.5% versus 84.3%; P = 0.0002); the proportion of patients with ≥5 CTCs was also lower for stage III than for metastatic IBC (19.5% versus 47.1%; P = 0.0004). Patients with fewer than five CTCs had significantly better progression-free survival (PFS) (hazard ratio (HR) = 0.60; P = 0.02) and overall survival (HR = 0.59; P = 0.03) than patients with five or more CTCs. Among patients with stage III IBC, there was a nonsignificant difference in PFS (HR = 0.66; 95% confidence interval (CI), 0.31 to 1.39; P = 0.29) and OS (HR = 0.54; 95% CI, 0.24 to 1.26; P = 0.48) in patients with no CTCs compared with patients with one or more CTCs. In multivariate analysis, CTC was prognostic for PFS and OS independent of clinical stage.

Conclusions

CTCs can be detected in a large proportion of patients with newly diagnosed IBC and are a strong predictor of worse prognosis in patients with newly diagnosed IBC.
A co-culture genome-wide RNAi screen with mammary epithelial cells reveals transmembrane signals required for growth and differentiation
Authors: Burleigh Angela , McKinney Steven , Brimhall Jazmine , Yap Damian , Eirew Peter , Poon Steven , Ng Viola , Wan Adrian , Prentice Leah , Annab Lois , Barrett J Carl , Caldas Carlos , Eaves Connie , Aparicio Samuel
Published: January 2015

Introduction

The extracellular signals regulating mammary epithelial cell growth are of relevance to understanding the pathophysiology of mammary epithelia, yet they remain poorly characterized. In this study, we applied an unbiased approach to understanding the functional role of signalling molecules in several models of normal physiological growth and translated these results to the biological understanding of breast cancer subtypes.

Methods

We developed and utilized a cytogenetically normal clonal line of hTERT immortalized human mammary epithelial cells in a fibroblast-enhanced co-culture assay to conduct a genome-wide small interfering RNA (siRNA) screen for evaluation of the functional effect of silencing each gene. Our selected endpoint was inhibition of growth. In rigorous postscreen validation processes, including quantitative RT-PCR, to ensure on-target silencing, deconvolution of pooled siRNAs and independent confirmation of effects with lentiviral short-hairpin RNA constructs, we identified a subset of genes required for mammary epithelial cell growth. Using three-dimensional Matrigel growth and differentiation assays and primary human mammary epithelial cell colony assays, we confirmed that these growth effects were not limited to the 184-hTERT cell line. We utilized the METABRIC dataset of 1,998 breast cancer patients to evaluate both the differential expression of these genes across breast cancer subtypes and their prognostic significance.

Results

We identified 47 genes that are critically important for fibroblast-enhanced mammary epithelial cell growth. This group was enriched for several axonal guidance molecules and G protein–coupled receptors, as well as for the endothelin receptor PROCR. The majority of genes (43 of 47) identified in two dimensions were also required for three-dimensional growth, with HSD17B2, SNN and PROCR showing greater than tenfold reductions in acinar formation. Several genes, including PROCR and the neuronal pathfinding molecules EFNA4 and NTN1, were also required for proper differentiation and polarization in three-dimensional cultures. The 47 genes identified showed a significant nonrandom enrichment for differential expression among 10 molecular subtypes of breast cancer sampled from 1,998 patients. CD79A, SERPINH1, KCNJ5 and TMEM14C exhibited breast cancer subtype–independent overall survival differences.

Conclusion

Diverse transmembrane signals are required for mammary epithelial cell growth in two-dimensional and three-dimensional conditions. Strikingly, we define novel roles for axonal pathfinding receptors and ligands and the endothelin receptor in both growth and differentiation.
Separate and overlapping specificities in rheumatoid arthritis antibodies binding to citrulline- and homocitrulline-containing peptides related to type I and II collagen telopeptides
Authors: Turunen Sanna , Hannonen Pekka , Koivula Marja-Kaisa , Risteli Leila , Risteli Juha
Published: January 2015

Introduction

Our objective was to find out if there are antibodies binding to homocitrulline-containing type I and II collagen carboxyterminal telopeptides in sera of patients with rheumatoid arthritis (RA), and if these antibodies cross-react with citrulline and homocitrulline in the same peptide sequence.

Methods

A total of 72 RA and 72 control sera were analyzed for binding using enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay to citrulline- or homocitrulline-containing type I and II collagen carboxyterminal telopeptides, as well as to cyclic citrullinated peptide (CCP) and to mutated citrullinated vimentin (MCV). Specificities of the antibodies were tested using inhibition-ELISA.

Results

Of the RA sera, 39 (54%) and 41 (57%) were positive for binding to CCP and MCV, respectively. Further, 34 (47%) and 30 (42%) of the patients had specific antibodies binding to and being inhibited by citrulline-containing type I collagen telopeptides and by citrulline-containing type II collagen carboxyterminal telopeptides, respectively. The corresponding figures regarding homocitrulline-containing type I and homocitrulline-containing type II collagen telopeptides were 16 (22%) and 14 (19%). Most of the patients, who were seropositive for citrullinated peptides, showed binding in multiple assays. A total of 10 (14%) RA patients were positive for all the tested peptide pairs, while 28 (39%) of them had antibodies that contained overlapping specifities between citrulline and homocitrulline in the same peptide sequence.

Conclusions

Antibodies to both citrulline and homocitrulline containing type I and II collagen telopeptides can be found in sera of RA patients. These antibodies are not constant from one RA patient to another, but contain separate or overlapping specificities within the same peptide sequence varying between individuals. Our results suggest some relationship between citrulline and homocitrulline-recognizing antibodies, since homocitrulline antibodies exist mainly in individuals seropositive to anti-CCP and anti-MCV.
The granulocyte orphan receptor CEACAM4 is able to trigger phagocytosis of bacteria
Authors: Delgado Tasco´n Julia , Adrian Jonas , Kopp Kathrin , Scholz Philipp , Tschan Mario P , Kuespert Katharina , Hauck Christof R
Published: January 2015

Human granulocytes express several glycoproteins of the CEACAM family. One family member, CEACAM3, operates as a single-chain phagocytic receptor, initiating the detection, internalization, and destruction of a limited set of gram-negative bacteria. In contrast, the function of CEACAM4, a closely related protein, is completely unknown. This is mainly a result of a lack of a specific ligand for CEACAM4. By generating chimeric proteins containing the extracellular bacteria-binding domain of CEACAM3 and the transmembrane and cytoplasmic part of CEACAM4 (CEACAM3/4) we demonstrate that this chimeric receptor can trigger efficient phagocytosis of attached particles. Uptake of CEACAM3/4-bound bacteria requires the intact ITAM of CEACAM4, and this motif is phosphorylated by Src family PTKs upon receptor clustering. Furthermore, SH2 domains derived from Src PTKs, PI3K, and the adapter molecule Nck are recruited and associate directly with the phosphorylated CEACAM4 ITAM. Deletion of this sequence motif or inhibition of Src PTKs blocks CEACAM4-mediated uptake. Together, our results suggest that this orphan receptor of the CEACAM family has phagocytic function and prompt efforts to identify CEACAM4 ligands.
Gas-phase Ozone Reactions with Z-3-Hexenal and Z-3-Hexen-1-ol: Formation Yields of OH Radical, Propanal, and Ethane
Authors: Uchida Risa , Sato Kei , Imamura Takashi
Published: January 2015

The formation yields of OH radical, propanal, and ethane from the reactions of ozone with Z-3-hexenal (3HA) and Z-3-hexen-1-ol (3HO) were measured under atmospheric conditions. These OH yields were determined to be 0.32 ± 0.07 for 3HA and 0.28 ± 0.06 for 3HO. The relative formation yield of the C2H5CHOO intermediate was estimated based upon the formation yields of propanal and ethane, which consistently suggested that C2H5CHOO is formed more efficiently from the O3 + 3HA reaction than from the 3HO reaction.
End Group Effect on Aggregation in Oriented Bisazomethine Dye Films on Aligned Poly(tetrafluoroethylene) Layers
Authors: Tanaka Toshihiko , Ishitobi Masamitsu , Aoyama Tetsuya , Matsumoto Shinya
Published: January 2015

Anisotropic molecular thin films have been prepared by depositing several bisazomethine dyes under vacuum through evaporation on aligned poly(tetrafluoroethylene) (PTFE) layers. Their anisotropy and spectra significantly depend on the double-end groups of dye molecules. Oriented J-aggregates, previously reported for diethylamino ends, also have been obtained for pyrrolidinyl and butoxy ends, whereas they have not been obtained for dimethylamino, dibutylamino, butyl, and methoxy ends. The aggregates from butoxy ends are remarkable for a substrate effect: they grow well on the layers by PTFE evaporation and rubbing whereas they do neither on friction transferred PTFE layers nor on glass.
Diagnostic characteristics of common fish ectoparasites
Authors: Loh Richmond
Published: January 2015

Parasitic diseases are a common fact of fish keeping, particularly if there are continual new introductions to the tank or pond. Sick fish display a limited range of clinical signs and these are usually insufficient to distinguish between the variety of aetiological agents. This article describes the salient gross and microscopic diagnostic features of common fish ectoparasites.
Small AnimalReview
Authors: Tennant Bryn
Published: January 2015

Introduction:

With intervertebral disc prolapse, CSF analysis correlates with spinal cord MRI but is not useful in suggesting the long-term outcome.
The only way is prevention
Authors: Chana Bal
Published: January 2015

Oral health is important to general health and wellbeing. Poor oral health has a major impact on a person's quality of life and advice to prevent poor oral health must be given to all patients
Management of dentine hypersensitivity: an update
Authors: Gillam David
Published: January 2015

Dentine hypersensitivity (DH) is a recognised clinical condition that impacts on the patient's wellbeing and quality of life. This article provides an update in the management of the condition based on the recent guidelines of a UK Expert Forum on DH ( Gillam et al, 2013 )
The recovery position
Authors: Jevon Phil
Published: January 2015

The recovery position is an important component of the ABCDE approach to the assessment and treatment of the acutely ill patient. It is recommended in a patient who is unconscious, but breathing normally. This article explains the procedure for placing a patient into the recovery position
Dental nurses in research
Authors: McGrath Sophie
Published: January 2015

The involvement of nurses in research has little mention within dentistry. Dental research trials tend to be undertaken in the hospital environment, as studies require time and resources that are sometimes not suited for general practice
The final fit part 2 – results of research into educational needs of dental nurses
Authors: Stuart Russell
Published: January 2015

The second part of this two-part article focuses on the results of the online survey that was run on the NEBDN website. It examines dental nurses' opinions on future training and educational needs and what courses should be developed to aid dental nurses to further their careers
The supernatural and post-war Thai cinema
Authors: Ainslie Mary
Published: January 2015

This article explores several productions from the lower-class and provincial ‘16mm era’ film form of post-war Thailand, a series of mass-produced live-dubbed films that drew heavily upon the supernatural animist belief systems that organized Thai rural village life. It will illustrate that such ghostly discourses interject liberally into the films’ diegesis and are associated particularly strongly with female characters at a time when gender roles are being renegotiated. Through textual analysis combined with historical data, the article explores the ways in which films such as Mae Nak Phra Khanong (1959) by Gomarchun, Nguu Phii (1966) by Saetthaaphakdee, Phii Saht Sen Haa (1969) by Pan Kam and Nang Prai Taa Nii (1967) by Nakarin therefore function as a means to negotiate the dramatic changes and wider context of social upheaval experienced by Thai viewers during this era, much of which was specifically connected to the post-war influx of American culture into Thailand.
Between subjugation and subversion: Ideological ambiguity in the cinematic Mae Nak of Thailand
Authors: Ng Andrew Hock Soon
Published: January 2015

Deploying Jan Assman’s notion of cultural memory, this article considers three adaptations of the Mae Nak myth in Thai cinema – Mae Nak Phra Khanong (1959) by Gomarchun, Winyan Rak Mae Nak Phra Khanong (1978) by Seney, and to a lesser extent Nang Nak (1999) by Nimibutr – as unofficial historical repositories that reflect the sociocultural and political shifts in Thailand during the last 50 years of the twentieth century. More specifically, I argue that the character of Nak, whose representation in Nimibutr’s version has been restored to the singularly superlative position she occupied in myth, is more ambiguous as a signifier in the 1959 version that reinforces the twin institutions of Buddhism and patriarchy, while subtly undermining them at the same time. This narrative equivocation, however, is altogether absent in 1978 version, in which Nak’s representation has undergone substantial devaluation possibly as a textual attempt to distance a contemporary, capitalist-driven Thailand from a past that it deems no longer usable or compatible with its ideological agenda.
From filth-ghost to Khmer-witch: Phi Krasue’s changing cinematic construction and its symbolism
Authors: Baumann Benjamin
Published: January 2015

Depicted as a floating woman’s head with drawn out and bloody entrails dangling beneath it, phi krasue is one of the most iconic uncanny creatures of Thai horror cinema. However, despite its position as one of Thailand’s most striking and well-known phi, there is very little research investigating this specific phenomenon. This is remarkable given the commonality of encounters with this uncanny being in ‘real life’ and the continuous presence of its ghostly images in popular cultural media. Relating empirical data gathered during anthropological fieldwork in a rural community of Thailand’s lower north-east to the analysis of two Thai ghost films that take this ghostly image as their main subject and narrative force this article argues that the knowledge of vernacular ghostlore is essential to decipher the cinematic representations’ full symbolism. Thai ghost films are produced for the ‘knowing spectator’ who has implicit knowledge of the cultural logics structuring ghostly classification in contemporary Thailand. This embodied knowledge allows Thai audiences to make sense of phi krasue’s ghostly image despite its cinematic transformation from ‘Filth Ghost’ to ‘Khmer Witch’. Based on Kristeva’s theory of abjection I will show that Thai audiences continue to see phi krasue first and foremost as uncanny ‘matter out of place’.
Staging the spectral: The border, haunting and politics in Mekong Hotel
Authors: Boehler Natalie
Published: January 2015

Mekong Hotel (2012) is an hour-long experimental film by Thai director Apichatpong Weerasethakul. Set in an old hotel overlooking the Mekong, and melding documentary and fictional modes, it interweaves a ghost story, a romance, memories of the region’s troubled history and discussions on its present-day state. The film is characterized by elements of fluidity and transgression that appear in its use of the supernatural, its setting near a border river, and its oscillating modes of film style and narration, while its ghost characters transgress the border between the living and the (un-)dead. This article explores the role of haunting in Mekong Hotel, in particular its connection with the setting of the Mekong region and the memory of its history. It argues that the ghosts in the film function as carriers of the memory of the region; they also reference older forms of cinema, namely, the vernacular horror genre of the Thai classical era and thus transport media history. Through analysis of several scenes of the film, I demonstrate that these spectral figures express repressed traumas and non-official, silenced witnessing of sensitive political issues, such as conflict along the Thai-Lao border, the 2011 floods and the construction of dams along the Mekong. By reflecting on their medial origin, they lay emphasis on a vernacular discourse and a regional point of view. The analysis is supported by allusion to other short films by the director that also centre on similar topics.
Crypto-cannibalism: Meat, murder and monstrosity in Tiwa Moeithasong’s The Meat Grinder
Authors: Balmain Colette
Published: January 2015

Tiwa Moeithaisong’s 2009 production Cheuuat Gaawn Chim/The Meat Grinder is representative of a new trend in Thai horror cinema, one that has benefited from ‘the influence of short film, documentary film, and low-budget art-house movies’ together with new international marketing strategies and initiatives. This new brand of horror cinema (2000s) indicates that ‘the consumption of fear has started to gain ground commercially and aesthetically’ in Thailand. However, even though it trades on the popularity of torture-porn or spectacle horror, The Meat Grinder is aesthetically much more art-house than grind-house in what is perhaps a deliberate attempt to attract both local and global audiences. This article contends that The Meat Grinder transcends the generic conventions associated with extreme cinema in order to offer a sustained critique of the dominant narratives of Thai identity. These are based upon an internal transition from pre-modern to modern society and have been constructed through a fictional, linear history in which modernity was a natural progression and was not imposed by the colonial Other as in most other South East Asian nations. Specifically, this critique is performed through the figuration of the woman-as-monster, whose deadly recipe for noodles with the tasty addition of human flesh, has been passed down from generation to generation of women through a series of temporal displacements and spatial convergences. I therefore suggest that The Meat Grinder evokes what Lim defines as ‘immiscible temporalities’ connected to the ‘persistence of supernaturalism’, utilizing in particular the ghostly figure of the dead daughter who haunts the present-day frame. Such ‘ghostly returns’ I argue subvert conventional understandings of time as linear, both outside and inside the cinematic frame, which are contained within the discourse of crypto-colonialism on which Thai nationalism is built, and offers a politicized interrogation of class, nationality and gender politics in contemporary Thailand.
Reviews
Authors: Buckley Chloe , Stevenson Carly
Published: January 2015

The Twilight of the Gothic, Joseph Crawford (2014) Cardiff: University of Wales Press, 368 pp., ISBN-10: 1783160640; ISBN-13: 9781783160648, h/bk, £85.00

Listen in Terror: British Horror Radio from the Advent of Broadcasting to the Digital Age, Richard J. Hand (2014) Manchester: Manchester University Press, 256 pp., ISBN: 9780719081484, h/bk, £70.00
Maori–Pasifika relations: A problematic paradox?
Authors: Meijl Toon Van
Published: January 2015

Maori people maintain ambiguous relations with the rest of the Pacific. Genealogical relationships continue to be celebrated in ongoing connections across a wide range of domains and discourses, but the colonial history of New Zealand has also turned Maori into a community of indigenous people that has been eclipsed by European settlers over the past two centuries. As a corollary, Maori are embroiled in an intense struggle for recognition of their proprietary rights as the indigenous people of the islands of New Zealand. Over the past few decades, campaigns for a comprehensive settlement of their colonial grievances have gathered some momentum since the Treaty of Waitangi was gradually recognized again in the 1970s and 1980s. The negotiations between Maori and the government about historical and social justice for the indigenous population, however, may to some extent be counterbalanced by the increasing number of migrants arriving in New Zealand, from Asia and the Pacific Islands.

In the current competition for scarce resources, Maori have consistently argued that within the New Zealand nation state the establishment of biculturalism should precede the development of multiculturalism, implying also that indigenous rights should prevail over those of settlers and migrants. The political dichotomy between Maori and Pacific Islanders raises the question to what extent it distorts historical and contemporary connections. This article explores the multiple histories and manifold relations between Maori and Pacific Islanders in the past and present in order to examine whether the paradox of historical connections and contemporary competition can be resolved.
Relações entre a Linguagem Oral e a Linguagem Escrita
Authors: Borges Selma Cardoso , Albuquerque Cristina Petrucci
Published: January 2015

Esta investigação pretende analisar relações entre a linguagem oral e a linguagem escrita em 80 crianças do primeiro e do segundo ano de escolaridade. Nesse sentido, foram usados instrumentos de avaliação da linguagem oral, que incorporam a Bateria de Avaliação Neuropsicológica de Coimbra (Consciência Fonológica, Nomeação Rápida e Compreensão de Instruções), e provas de escrita e de leitura do Labling e da PAL-Port. Os resultados obtidos indicaram a existência de relações estreitas entre a linguagem oral e a linguagem escrita. A Consciência Fonológica revelou estar muito associada a múltiplas medidas de avaliação do desempenho em leitura e escrita, particularmente no primeiro ano de escolaridade. Por seu turno, a Nomeação Rápida evidenciou maior relevância no segundo ano. Comparativamente às medidas anteriores, a Compreensão de Instruções mostrou estar menos relacionada com a escrita e a leitura.
Promoção da saúde na doença oncológica: Intervenção de redução do stress baseada no mindfulness
Authors: Teixeira Ricardo , Pereira M. Graça
Published: January 2015

O objectivo deste artigo de revisão é (1) fornecer uma visão geral e uma discussão acerca da meditação mindfulness e sua aplicabilidade clínica em oncologia e (2) relatar detalhadamente avaliando criticamente a pesquisa existente e emergente sobre a meditação mindfulness como uma intervenção para doentes com cancro. Para além disso, pretende lançar uma hipótese manualizada de um programa de promoção da saúde e de redução do stress, baseado no mindfulness, explorando os seus efeitos em termos de variáveis biológicas e psicossociais. Estudos estrangeiros referem níveis significativos de mudança em itens psicossociais de avaliação, nos diferentes momentos de avaliação, pelo que a intervenção tem relativa sustentação teórica, embora a necessitar de refinamento empírico. Espera-se que a eventual aplicação da intervenção descrita neste artigo permita trabalhar os factores tidos como benéficos para um melhor ajustamento à doença oncológica, aumentando proactivamente a acção do indivíduo doente como interveniente informado do seu processo de adaptação progressiva à doença.
Programa de modificação de atitudes face a uma estação de tratamento de resíduos sólidos (ETRS): um estudo quasi-experimental
Authors: Pocinho Margarida
Published: January 2015

Integrado na monitorização ambiental – aspectos psicossociais –, este estudo tem
como objectivo modificar as atitudes de stress e de mal-estar, de percepção de risco e percepção de poluição da população circundante a uma ETRS. Para o efeito, e mediante um programa de estratégias de educação ambiental, desenhou-se uma investigação quasi-experimental, com pré e pós-teste, grupo experimental (GE) e grupo de controlo (GC), com início em 2003 e fim em 2007. Para avaliar a eficácia deste programa, aplicou-se uma medida antes e após a experiência. Esta medida consistiu numa escala de atitudes com 5 factores: (1) percepções de risco; (2) aceitabilidade/conformismo; (3) credibilidade; (4) reacção à mudança; e (5) negativismo. Os resultados permitem-nos concluir que a participação num programa de modificação de atitudes face a uma ETRS diminuiu significativamente as percepções de risco, a reacção à mudança e o negativismo face à mesma, mas manteve a credibilidade e diminuiu a aceitabilidade/conformismo.
Stress parental no período pós-parto: Adaptação do Parental Stress Inventory para a população portuguesa
Authors: Gomez Rita , Leal Isabel
Published: January 2015

Neste estudo apresentam-se os resultados da adaptação para a população portuguesa do Stress Parental Inventory (PSI; D.J. Terry, 1991). No geral, os resultados indicam que a versão portuguesa do PSI (ou Inventário de Stress Parental no Pós-Parto) é uma medida fidedigna e válida para avaliar o nível de stress parental dos progenitores no período pós-parto. A escala apresenta um nível de consistência interna elevado (α=0,862). Verificou-se também que as notas maternas e paternas se correlacionam positivamente entre si e com medidas de ansiedade e de depressão, e negativamente com medidas de ajustamento conjugal e de envolvimento paterno.
Reabilitação Psicossocial de Pessoas com Esquizofrenia: Estudo de Caso
Authors: Teixeira Carina , Santos Eduardo , Abreu Manuel Viegas , Gonçalves Patrícia
Published: January 2015

A mudança de paradigma na área da psiquiatria que tem vindo a ocorrer nos últimos anos com o processo de desinstitucionalização pressupõe o desenvolvimento de respostas de integração comunitária. Estudos realizados noutros países demonstram melhores resultados para programas de reabilitação psicossocial do que internamento em hospital psiquiátrico, embora, em Portugal, os serviços não se coadunem com o estado da arte nesta matéria. Neste sentido, este trabalho tem como principal objectivo conhecer e analisar uma experiência, que pelas suas características é única, de reabilitação psicossocial, na área da doença mental, da região centro do país. Esta investigação constitui um estudo de caso, em que a unidade de análise é uma Instituição Particular de Solidariedade Social, a Associação de Reabilitação Social e Desinstitucionalização de Doentes Psiquiátricos (ARSDOP), na qual se pretendeu conhecer o seu modelo de funcionamento global e, mais especificamente, os modelos de reabilitação profissional e residencial nela desenvolvidos.
Trauma e desmentido
Authors: Favero Ana Beatriz , Rudge Ana Maria
Published: January 2015

Este estudo analisa as contribuições de Sándor Ferenczi sobre o trauma psíquico. Numa construção teórica original, Ferenczi estende a ideia do trauma para além da cena sexual e toma o desmentido, a mentira e a hipocrisia do adulto em relação à criança como poderosas forças traumáticas. Ao longo da sua obra, encontramos duas diferentes concepções de trauma: uma primeira, em que os traumas sã estruturantes, necessários, inevitáveis ou filogenéticos – constitutivos da sexualidade infantil; e uma posterior, em que as situações traumáticas colocam em risco o projeto identificatório do sujeito, nos casos em que ocorre o desmentido por parte do adulto.
Questionário de Estilos e Dimensões Parentais – Versão Reduzida: Adaptação portuguesa do Parenting Styles and Dimensions Questionnaire – Short Form
Authors: Miguel Isabel , Valentim Joaquim Pires , Carugati Felice
Published: January 2015

O Parenting Styles and Dimensions Questionnaire – Short Form (Robinson, Mandleco, Olsen & Hart, 2001) é um questionário utilizado para avaliar os estilos parentais de pais e mães de crianças em idade escolar, cujas qualidades psicométricas estão bem estabelecidas internacionalmente. Com o objectivo de apresentar a versão portuguesa deste instrumento, o questionário foi aplicado a uma amostra de 344 pais e mães com filhos a frequentar o 1º Ciclo do Ensino Básico. A sua estrutura, evidenciada graças ao recurso à técnica de modelação de equações estruturais (análise factorial confirmatória), revelou-se semelhante à original: multidimensional e hierárquica, formada por factores de primeira e segunda ordem, que diferenciam os estilos parentais democrático, autoritário e permissivo, bem como as respectivas dimensões. Em termos gerais, os resultados finais revelam um bom ajustamento do modelo teórico aos dados. A consistência interna apresenta, igualmente, valores próximos da versão original, podendo ser considerada satisfatória.
Minnesota Satisfaction Questionnaire – Short Form: estudo de adaptação e validação para a população portuguesa
Authors: Ferreira Joaquim Armando Gomes , Fernandes Rosina , Haase Richard F. , Santos Eduardo R.
Published: January 2015

A satisfação com o trabalho é a dimensão mais estudada na Psicologia Organizacional (Spector, 1997), contudo, investigações recentes sobre os seus instrumentos de avaliação são pouco frequentes (Saane, Sluiter, Verbeek, & Frings-Dresen, 2003). Neste sentido, pretende-se contribuir para o estudo das características psicométricas de um instrumento amplamente utilizado neste âmbito, o Minnesota Satisfaction Questionnaire (MSQ) – Short Form (Weiss, Dawis, England, & Lofquist, 1967), adaptando-o à população portuguesa. Os resultados obtidos evidenciam qualidades psicométricas adequadas, com um valor elevado de consistência interna, coeficientes de estabilidade adequados (teste-reteste) e uma ajustada validade convergente (resultante da correlação com o Cuestionario de Satisfaccion S20/23 de Meliá e Peiró, 1989). A análise factorial exploratória revela uma estrutura que aponta para a existência de dois factores de satisfação com o trabalho. A discussão dos resultados salienta a necessidade de mais estudos sobre esta temática, sendo levantadas algumas pistas para futuras investigações.
Busca e cura de sentido para a vida
Authors: Barros-Oliveira José H.
Published: January 2015

A busca de sentido para a vida, ou de uma vida com sentido, é hoje tão ou mais premente do que no tempo de V. Frankl que estudou particularmente este tópico ou esta dimensão psico-espiritual. O autor constata não apenas a falta de sentido existencial, mas procura uma terapia adequada – logoterapia. Depois de breve introdução, estuda-se a vontade de significado que é própria do homem racional e depois a tentativa de cura da falta de sentido, que de algum modo torna a psicologia, e em particular a psicoterapia, mais ‘humana’.
Autistic traits in gender dysphoria
Authors: van der Miesen Anna , de Vries Annelou , Steensma Thomas , Hartman Catharina
Published: January 2015

Introduction
The purpose of this research is to investigate autistic traits in youth with gender dysphoria (GD). Earlier research demostrated higher prevalence rates of autism spectrum disorder (ASD) in GD.

Method
A group of 539 children has registered at the Knowledge and Care center for Gender dysphoria of the VU Medical Centre in Amsterdam. The children went through diagnostic process conform the protocol. During the diagnostic process, the childs parents completed a standardized questionnaire: the Childrens Social Behavior Questionnaire (CSBQ) for measurement of autistic traits. The experimental group was compared with a healthy control group (N = 232) and a group (N = 554) clinically diagnosed with ASD.

Results
Significantly more autistic traits were found in youth with GD compared to healthy controls (p = <.05). Youth with GD however, scored significantly lower than youth from the ASD group (p = <.05). Boys with GD and girls with GD did not score significantly different and neither did children and adolescents. Of the participants with GD, 15.4% scored higher than the average of the CSBQ score of the ASD group.

Discussion and conclusion
Youth with GD showed more autistic traits than youth from the healthy control group. Children with autistic traits could be more susceptible to develop GD because they have more rigid thinking, obsessions and stereotyped behavior. Identity development might be different in children with autistic traits. More research is needed to determine the existence of a possible relation between ASD and GD. Clinicians should be aware of the occurrence of autistic traits in youth with GD because of the problems that this could potentially provide during the diagnostic and treatment process.