bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025 huggingface dataset:
Compassion in healthcare – lessons from a qualitative study of the end of life care of people with dementia
Authors: Crowther Jacqueline , Wilson Kenneth CM , Horton Siobhan , Lloyd-Williams Mari
Published: October 2013

Objectives

A lack of compassion in UK healthcare settings has received much recent attention. This study explores the experiences of people with dementia in the last year of life and time surrounding death and how the presence and lack of compassion, kindness and humanity influenced the experience of care.

Design

Qualitative in-depth interviews with bereaved informal carers of people with dementia.

Setting

United Kingdom.

Participants

Forty bereaved carers – 31 women and nine men – with an age range of 18–86 years and from wide socioeconomic backgrounds participated.

Main outcome measures

Experiences of carers of care for person with dementia during last year of life.

Results

The interviews highlighted differences and challenges in care settings in providing compassionate, humanistic care and the impact of the care experienced by the person with dementia during the last year of life on informal carers during the bereavement period and beyond. Excellent examples of compassionate care were experienced alongside very poor and inhumane practices.

Conclusion

The concepts of compassion, kindness and humanity in dementia care are discussed within the paper. The ability to deliver care that is compassionate, kind and humanistic exists along a continuum across care settings – examples of excellent care sit alongside examples of very poor care and the reasons for this are explored together with discussion as to how health and social care staff can be trained and supported to deliver compassionate care.
Effects of Family Functioning and Parenting Style on Early Entrants’ Academic Performance and Program Completion
Authors: Huey Erron L. , Sayler Michael F. , Rinn Anne N.
Published: October 2013

The purpose of the current study was to examine the predictive nature of parenting style and overall family environment on the academic performance and program completion of early college entrants. Furthermore, gender and family form were examined as possible moderators to these relationships. A total of 88 early college entrants participated in this study. Results indicate that gender and family form had no measurable effect on grade point average or on program completion among early college entrants. Parenting style combined with overall family environment was not predictive of program completion or changes in academic performance. However, further analyses revealed that an authoritative parenting style was related to increases in grade point average among those students who showed an increase in grade point average during the program.
Self-Concept, School Satisfaction, and Other Selected Correlates of Subjective Well-Being for Advanced High School Learners Enrolled in Two Challenging Academic Settings
Authors: Robertson Janice C.
Published: October 2013

Global self-concept, freedom from anxiety, happiness, popularity, and school satisfaction were examined for 224 partial-day Governor’s School students attending public Governor’s Schools as well as classes in their home high schools, and 56 students taking advanced classes in regular high schools. On average, self-concept appeared adequate to strong, and the two groups were similar in self-esteem. However, in the regular school setting, academic self-perception was stronger for the Governor’s School group. On average, females in the total sample had lower freedom from anxiety scores than the males, and more expressed frequent worry than a comparison standardization group. The Governor’s School students expressed more positive attitudes toward the Governor’s Schools than toward their home high schools, although their academic self-perception was lower in the Governor’s Schools than in their home schools. They also, on average, were more satisfied with the Governor’s Schools than the regular high school advanced students were with their schools.
The management of visibility: media coverage of kidnapping and captivity cases around the world
Authors: Tenenboim-Weinblatt Keren
Published: October 2013

This article examines the journalistic practices associated with the management of visibility of kidnapping and captivity stories, based on a comparative study of the media coverage of seven cases of Colombian, French, Israeli, and US citizens who were taken captive in the first decade of the 21st century. Differences in the general level of visibility given to these stories are identified and explained, followed by an analysis of three patterns of high visibility management across time, termed ‘sustained visibility’, ‘delayed visibility’ and ‘cyclical visibility’. Emerging from the analysis is the complex interplay between hyper-visibility and invisibility in journalistic practices, as well as the notion of “elastic newsworthiness”, according to which news criteria are not only shaping patterns of visibility but are also being shaped by them.
What’s the harm in moonlighting? A qualitative survey on the role conflicts of freelance journalists with secondary employment in the field of PR
Authors: Fröhlich Romy , Koch Thomas , Obermaier Magdalena
Published: October 2013

There seems to be an internationally shared consensus on the ethical norm that journalists may not ‘moonlight’ for PR since this might conflict with their commitment to autonomy, truth, neutrality and objectivity. However, there is a gap between the normative demands on freelance journalists and the reality of their occupation: The changing world of professional working conditions is challenging journalists and has led to growing numbers of freelance journalists who also work for PR. Whether or not, and if so how freelance journalists with secondary employment in the field of PR perceive and come to terms with conflicts has not yet been thoroughly examined. This contribution is dedicated to this gap in research and asks how freelance journalists who simultaneously work in the field of PR deal with their fundamentally conflicting roles (journalists’ perception of inter-role conflicts; how they cope with inter-role conflicts). We conducted semi-structured guided interviews with 18 freelance journalists simultaneously working for PR clients. Our results show that they are aware of the potential for conflict involved in fulfilling the two roles. All participants are inclined to preserve their professional self-concept as journalists, with regard to which the coping strategies of marginalization and merging roles are particularly indicative.
Remembering Tiananmen and the Berlin Wall: the elite U.S. press’s anniversary journalism, 1990–2009
Authors: Li Hongtao , Lee Chin-Chuan
Published: October 2013

This article examines how the New York Times and the Washington Post have in the past two decades presented discourses of anniversary journalism to commemorate the Tiananmen Square crackdown and the fall of the Berlin Wall, both of which occurred in 1989 and had global implications. These two events ideologically signified the failure of Communism and the victory of the West. However, they posed different challenges to the U.S.-orchestrated “new world order.” Insofar as the Tiananmen crackdown was remembered as an “unfinished revolution” and fell within the “sphere of legitimated controversy,” the elite U.S. press had greater leeway in presenting the views of elite factions, albeit all within the orbit of “established pluralism.” In contrast, since European integration after the fall of the Berlin Wall was an issue of broad elite consensus, the press constructed its perspectives more closely aligned with those of official foreign policy. Anniversary journalism connects personal reminiscences of distinguished journalists to the dominant narratives. The ideological structure of the elite U.S. press has been highly stable, even though the narratives may appear to shift periodically. The legacy of the anti-Communist frame remains an important constituent of the elite U.S. press’s prisms for viewing and interpreting the post-Communist world.
The growth of TV news, the demise of the journalism profession
Authors: Higgins-Dobney Carey L. , Sussman Gerald
Published: October 2013

In response to the dearth of critical literature on the transformation of local news ownership structure and the impacts of technological reorganization of news production on the television profession and local communities, we analyze the consolidation of local news and the paradox of expanded news hours in times of shrinking staffs and less-trusting audiences. Focused on Portland, Oregon, characterized as one of America’s most civically active cities and a top-25 market, we interviewed many key workers from among the city’s four television newsrooms. Despite having union representation, once discrete news production professionals and functions have been radically integrated, resulting in a multitasked news staff forced to provide fast-turnaround for multiple platforms, while seriously weakening investigative reporting, the quality of news production, and the utility of local news for the community.
The search for a civic commons online: an assessment of existing BBC Online policy
Authors: Ramsey Phil
Published: October 2013

Debates surrounding democracy and the internet are of central importance to the future of public service broadcasting. Some of these debates have led a group of scholars to argue for the establishment of a civic commons online, in response to the commercial nature of the internet and its limited support of deliberative democracy. General features of a civic commons online include the formation of a deliberative space free from corporate and state influence, yet that receives some form of public funding. Given their long and relatively successful history, some scholars have argued that existing public service broadcasters might provide the best chance for the establishment of such a commons. This article evaluates existing BBC Online policy in the UK in light of these arguments, and assesses the extent to which existing policy might allow space for the establishment of such a civic commons. The article concludes by arguing that while existing BBC Online policy would allow the basic grounds for the establishment of a civic commons online, there are significant obstacles to its full realization.
Internet revolution revisited: a comparative study of online news
Authors: Curran James , Coen Sharon , Aalberg Toril , Hayashi Kaori , Jones Paul K , Splendore Sergio , Papathanassopoulos Stylianos , Rowe David , Tiffen Rod
Published: October 2013

While numerous studies view the internet as a patron of internationalism and public empowerment, this comparative study of leading news websites in nine nations shows that online news is strongly nation-centred, and much more inclined to cite the voices of authority than those of civil society and the individual citizen. Online news is very similar, in these respects, to newspaper and television news. This convergence is due to the way in which leading media conglomerates have extended their hegemony across technologies. It also reflects the constraints exerted by the wider societal context across all media.
Incidence of Distress and Associated Factors in Women Undergoing Breast Diagnostic Evaluation
Authors: Harding Mariann M.
Published: October 2013

The purpose of this study was to identify the incidence of distress and factors associated with distress in women undergoing breast diagnostic evaluations. A total of 128 women undergoing a breast biopsy at three hospitals completed a set of nine standardized instruments. The presence of distress was identified with 14% having symptoms above the cutoff point for clinical anxiety. In multiple regression analyses, trait anxiety alone explained 71% of the State–Trait Anxiety Inventory State score. A model with trait anxiety, satisfaction with health care, meaning in life, and friend support accounted for 66% of the Hospital Anxiety and Depression Scale score for depression. It appears that when faced with a potential cancer diagnosis, distress levels are based on personality and self-evaluation of whether one has the resources to adapt to life with cancer. Distress screening protocols need to be routinely included in diagnostic radiology appointments. Nurses should implement interventions focusing on providing information, facilitating communication, and offering psychosocial support.
Complete muscle-sparing technique in axillary closure of atrial septal defects
Authors: Gil-Jaurena Juan-Miguel , Castillo Rafael , González Mayte
Published: October 2013

Minimally invasive cardiac surgery is gaining wide acceptance. The midaxillary approach hides the incision under the right arm. Concerns may arise regarding functional recovery should the latissimus dorsi and serratus anterior muscles be affected by this maneuver. A modified technique that spares both muscles, without splitting their fibers, is described. Six patients have been operated on, with excellent functional and cosmetic results, and no side-effects.
Pericardiectomy for treatment of neoplastic constrictive pericarditis
Authors: Buyukbayrak Fuat , Aksoy Eray , Dedemoglu Mehmet , Kirali Kaan , Alp Hizir Mete
Published: October 2013

Objective

To share our results of a case series of 8 patients who underwent pericardiectomy for constrictive pericarditis that developed secondary to a known neoplastic disease.

Patients and methods

The underlying neoplasia was lung cancer in 5 (62.5%) patients, malignant pleural mesothelioma in 2 (25%), and Hodgkin lymphoma in 1 (12.5%). A diagnosis of constrictive pericarditis was made primarily by echocardiography, and right heart catheterization was performed in 6 (75%) patients. Total pericardiectomy was defined as wide excision of the anterior pericardium. Follow-up information was obtained by telephone interview and the civil registry database.

Results

Time from initial diagnosis of the neoplastic disease ranged from 1 to 15 years. Total pericardiectomy was performed in 6 (75%) patients. Histopathological examination revealed atypical cells in evacuated fluid and pericardial material in 6 patients. Nonspecific inflammation and fibrosis were observed in the other 2 cases. Hospital death occurred in 1 (12.5%) patient. Postoperative low cardiac output syndrome occurred in 7 (87.5%) patients. Follow-up ranged from 2.92 to 26.78 months. Mean survival was 14.82 ± 4.4 months.

Conclusion

Pericardial constriction may develop a long time after the initial presentation of certain neoplastic diseases, and the prognosis after pericardiectomy is poor.
Double-valve surgery in Shprintzen-Goldberg syndrome
Authors: Elmistekawy Elsayed , Hudson Christopher C , Williams Anne , Mesana Thierry
Published: October 2013

We describe the challenging case of a 28-year-old Jehovah’s Witness patient who presented with symptomatic mitral and tricuspid valve disease and Shprintzen-Goldberg syndrome. This is the first reported double-valve surgery in such a patient who, apart from chest deformity, had a small body size, severe lung disease, difficult airway and vascular access, and to add to the complexity, refused blood and blood product use. The patient underwent a successful mitral valve replacement and tricuspid valve repair through a right thoracotomy. Apart from atrial fibrillation, he had a smooth hospital course and was discharged home on postoperative day 9.
A case of ventricular septal defect and mitral insufficiency after blunt trauma
Authors: Masuoka Ayumu , Kimura Naritaka , Katogi Toshiyuki , Suzuki Takaaki
Published: October 2013

Few reports have described traumatic heart injury in children. We describe a case of acute mitral regurgitation associated with papillary muscle rupture, traumatic ventricular septal defect, and impending left ventricular free wall rupture due to blunt trauma in a 2-year-old girl. The papillary muscle was sutured to the left ventricular free wall. The septal defect and surrounding ruptured muscle were covered with a pericardial patch, and a Hemashield patch was used to close the ventriculotomy. A residual defect caused by dehiscence of the pericardial patch necessitated reoperation 10 months later. The patient is currently being observed on an outpatient basis.
Giant leiomyosarcoma of inferior vena cava. A surgical challenge
Authors: Kumar Santosh , Devana Sudheer Kumar , Kuthe Sachin , Yadav Thakur Deen , Prasad Seema
Published: October 2013

We describe the case of a 37-year-old woman who presented with an unusually large (26 × 20 × 16 cm) extraluminal leiomyosarcoma arising from segment I (below the renal vessels) of the inferior vena cava. She was successfully managed with radical surgical excision and reconstruction of the inferior vena cava with synthetic graft.
Complex transposition repair with aortic arch hypoplasia: a simple technique
Authors: Nguyen Ly Thinh Truong , Nguyen Minh Vuong , Nguyen Tuan Mai , Dang Hanh Tiep , Pham Huu Hoa , Nguyen Thanh Liem
Published: October 2013

A modified technique of interdigitating aortic arch reconstruction was used successfully to treat 8 patients with complex congenital heart disease including transposition of the great arteries, ventricular septal defect, or Taussig-Bing anomalies combined with aortic arch hypoplasia and coarctation of the aorta, without the need for homograft tissue.
Lymphoscintigraphic evaluation of manual lymphatic therapy: the Godoy & Godoy technique
Authors: de Godoy José Maria Pereira , Santana Kleber Roberto , Godoy Maria de Fátima Guerreiro
Published: October 2013

The objective of this study was to evaluate the transport of radiotracers in lymphatic collectors during manual lymphatic therapy. The legs of four male and two female patients with leg lymphedema were assessed using lymphoscintigraphy before, during and after manual lymphatic therapy. The ages of the patients, treated in Hospital de Base in Sao Jose do Rio Preto, ranged from 42 to 64 years with a mean age of 51.2 years. Consecutive patients with grade II leg lymphedema were enrolled in this study. Patients with lymphedema secondary to lymphadenectomy, active infections and weight greater than 130 kg were excluded. Patients were submitted to manual lymphatic therapy, which consists of the collapsing of capillaries using manual compression which is then slid along the skin in a stroking action in the direction of the lymph flow within lymphatic vessels towards the lymph nodes. Two dynamic studies were performed; the first was over 40 minutes (3 images every 10 minutes) which was immediately followed by an entire body scan. A second dynamic evaluation was performed taking images at 10-second intervals over 2 minutes during manual lymphatic therapy. To evaluate the displacement of radiotracers, the path of lymphatic collectors from the knee to a lymph node in the upper thigh was divided into five similarly sized regions of interest. The concentration of radiotracer was quantified in each of the regions of interest. The paired t-test was used for statistical analysis with an alpha error of 5% ( p value < 0.05) being considered statistically relevant. The results show statistically significant differences in the number of particles in all the regions of interest comparing before and after treatment (two-tail paired t-test: p value < 0.0001). Manual lymphatic therapy improves the transport of radiotracers in lymphatic collectors.
Growing nowhere: Privileging economic growth in planning policy
Authors: Longlands Sarah LJ
Published: October 2013

This article explores the relationship between planning and economic growth, examining the impact of planning strategies which increasingly privilege economic growth as the key objective. Drawing from research in two contrasting English urban local authorities – one experiencing growth, the other decline, the article examines how economic growth is understood and defined locally. It also examines how a low growth context, coupled with a changing policy context is impacting on local decision making. The research finds that economic growth has become a dominant objective of local planning policy but questions the efficacy of this approach arguing that it does not necessarily address place-based challenges and may actually undermine the ability of local government to use the planning system to improve quality of life for residents.
How to raise the bar on impact evaluation: Challenges for the evaluation of local enterprise partnerships and the regional growth fund in times of austerity
Authors: Chadwick Mike , Tyler Peter , Warnock Colin
Published: October 2013

This article discusses the challenges that local enterprise partnerships are likely to experience in evaluation given the severe constraints on the funds available to evaluators and local enterprise partnerships. It highlights the rationale and benefits of conducting evaluation and examines how local enterprise partnerships might benefit from previous evaluation efforts. It also considers some of the technical and practical challenges of conducting evaluation in the current constrained financial climate, including the challenge of ensuring a common format in programme evaluation; attributing the impact on outcomes arising from government intervention; the difficulty of assessing the durability of benefits and putting a monetary value on the benefits arising from government intervention. The article concludes with some key messages on evaluation for local enterprise partnerships and those evaluating local economic development activities in times of austerity.
Dying at home: A qualitative study of the perspectives of older South Asians living in the United Kingdom
Authors: Venkatasalu Munikumar R , Seymour Jane E , Arthur Antony
Published: October 2013

Background:

South Asians constitute the single largest ethnic minority group in the United Kingdom, yet little is known about their perspectives on, and experiences of, end-of-life care.

Aim:

To explore beliefs, attitudes and expectations expressed by older South Asians living in East London about dying at home.

Design:

A qualitative study using focus groups and semi-structured interviews. Data were analysed using a constructivist grounded theory approach.

Setting/participants:

Five focus groups and 29 in-depth semi-structured interviews were conducted with a total of 55 older adults (24 men and 31 women) aged between 52 and 78 years. Participants from six South Asian ethnic groups were recruited via 11 local community organisations.

Results:

Two key themes were identified. The theme of ‘reconsidering the homeland’ draws on the notion of ‘diaspora’ to help understand why for many participants, the physical place of death was perceived as less important than the opportunity to carry out cultural and religious practices surrounding death. The second theme ‘home as a haven’ describes participants’ accounts of how their home is a place in which it is possible to perform various cultural and religious rituals. Cultural and religious practices were often seen as essential to achieving a peaceful death and honouring religious and filial duties.

Conclusions:

Older people of South Asian ethnicity living in East London perceive home as more than a physical location for dying relatives. They make efforts to adhere, and also adapt, to important social and cultural values relating to death and dying as part of the wider challenge of living in an emigrant society.
A systematic review and meta-analysis of the evidence base for add-on treatment for patients with major depressive disorder who have not responded to antidepressant treatment: A European perspective
Authors: Turner Pauline , Kantaria Rakesh , Young Allan H
Published: October 2013

Previous comparative reviews of add-on therapies for patients with major depressive disorder (MDD) with an inadequate response to antidepressants have not used meta-analytic techniques to compare different drug classes and have included non-licensed therapies. This meta-analysis reviewed all published peer-reviewed evidence for the efficacy of EU-licensed therapies in patients with MDD and an inadequate response to antidepressant monotherapy. Papers concerning randomized clinical trials (RCTs) were identified using criteria from the Cochrane Handbook for Systematic Reviews of Interventions. Add-on therapies reviewed were antidepressants, quetiapine XR, lithium, and S-adenosyl-l-methionine (SAMe). Seven RCTs that reported response and remission in a way that allowed quantitative analysis were included in this meta-analysis. Comparison of the different drug classes indicated that most interventions had similar efficacy. The likelihood of response was significantly greater with SAMe versus placebo and lithium and with quetiapine XR versus placebo. Most add-on interventions demonstrated comparable efficacy in patients with MDD and an inadequate response to initial antidepressants. However, there is currently a paucity of high-quality data regarding the use of add-on treatments in patients with MDD who are inadequate responders to antidepressants, with quetiapine XR presenting the most comprehensive evidence base to date.
Anxiolytic effects of vestipitant in a sub-group of healthy volunteers known to be sensitive to CO2 challenge
Authors: Poma Stefano Zanone , Merlo-Pich Emilio , Bettica Paolo , Bani Massimo , Fina Paolo , Ziviani Luigi , Milleri Stefano
Published: October 2013

The pharmacological properties of two NK1 antagonists were studied in comparison with a benzodiazepine during a 7% CO2 challenge in a population of healthy volunteers selected for a high sensitivity to the challenge. In total, 19 healthy subjects, pre-screened for their responsiveness to the 7% CO2 test, took part in the randomised, double-blind, cross-over, incomplete block design study. After receiving treatment or placebo, the volunteers were subjected to three 7% CO2 challenges each for a time of 20 min. The treatment consisted of the administration of the following three active drugs: a single dose of benzodiazepine alprazolam (0.75 mg) and a single dose of the NK1 antagonists vestipitant (GW597599) (15 mg) and vofopitant (GR205171) (25 mg). Anxiety during the challenge was evaluated with Visual Analogue Scale-Anxiety (VAS-A) and with Panic Symptom List (PSL III-R). Respiratory parameters, heart rate and skin conductance were also recorded. Compared with placebo, vestipitant showed a significant reduction ( p<0.05) in anxiety assessed on the VAS-A scale (ΔVAS-A%) while alprazolam significantly ( p<0.01) attenuated the PSL III-R total score. Vofopitant did not show any anxiolytic effect. In the comparison analysis between placebo and drugs, none of the respiratory and other physiological parameters showed a statistically significant difference.
Tyrosine-free amino acid mixtures reduce physiologically-evoked release of dopamine in a selective and activity-dependent manner
Authors: Le Masurier Marisa , Zetterström Tyra , Cowen Philip , Sharp Trevor
Published: October 2013

Depletion of the catecholamine precursor tyrosine using tyrosine-free amino acid mixtures is an important tool in neuropsychological studies, and often considered dopamine selective on the basis of neuropharmacological studies. However, little is known of the effects of tyrosine depletion when catecholamine neurons are activated physiologically. Here we investigated the effect of tyrosine-free amino acid mixtures on catecholamine release evoked in vivo using a stimulation paradigm aimed to approximate the phasic firing pattern of these neurons that accompanies cognitive and behavioural change. Dopamine and noradrenaline release was monitored by microdialysis in rat medial prefrontal cortex (mPFC) and striatum (chloral hydrate anaesthesia, perfusion medium containing 1 µM cocaine). Electrical stimulation of the medial forebrain bundle (MFB) caused a short-lasting, frequency-dependent increase in dopamine and noradrenaline. A full tyrosine-free amino acid mixture reduced the release of dopamine in mPFC and striatum, across a range of stimulation frequencies, and the effect was greater as stimulation frequency increased. Similar results were obtained using a smaller tyrosine-free amino acid mixture. In the same experiments showing decreased dopamine, neither tyrosine-free mixture of amino acids significantly altered stimulation-evoked release of noradrenaline. These results show that tyrosine depletion using tyrosine-free amino acid mixtures causes a selective, activity-dependent decrease in dopamine release when dopamine neurons are driven physiologically.
Limited central side effects of a β-subunit subtype-selective GABAA receptor allosteric modulator
Authors: Yoshimura Ryan F , Tran Minhtam B , Hogenkamp Derk J , Johnstone Timothy B , Xie Jennifer Y , Porreca Frank , Gee Kelvin W
Published: October 2013

GABAergic anxiolytics have well-documented centrally mediated side effects including sedation, potentiation of ethanol, tolerance, abuse liability and memory impairment. Most research directed towards identifying an anxioselective GABAergic therapeutic has been based upon the theory that these side effects could be mitigated by avoiding α1/5-subunit GABAA receptors while specifically targeting those with the α2/3-subunit. Unfortunately, there are prominent exceptions to this theory and it has yet to be translated into clinical success. We previously demonstrated that β2/3-subunit-selective GABAA receptor-positive allosteric modulators act as anxiolytics with reduced sedation and ethanol potentiation regardless of their activity at α1-subunit GABAA receptors. The prototypical β2/3-subunit-selective positive allosteric modulator, 2-261, is further characterized here for additional side effects commonly associated with central GABAA receptor activation. In mice, 10 times the anxiolytic dose (10 mg/kg) of 2-261 does not induce behavioral tolerance in the elevated plus maze following a 2 week subchronic treatment. In rats, an anxiolytic dose (10 mg/kg) of 2-261 is inactive in conditioned place preference, suggesting a reduced abuse liability. In rats, 10 times the anxiolytic dose (100 mg/kg) of 2-261 does not have a significant amnestic effect in the radial arm maze, suggesting a greater therapeutic index for memory impairment. These results suggest that β2/3-subunit subtype-selective GABAA receptor-positive allosteric modulators not only have reduced sedative liability, but also a reduction in other central side effects commonly associated with broader GABAA receptor activation. β2/3-subunit-selective compounds may represent a novel design template for anxiolytics with benzodiazepine-like efficacy and mitigated side effects.
Adolescents During and After Times of Social Change
Authors: Macek Petr , Ježek Stanislav , Vazsonyi Alexander T.
Published: October 2013

The paper introduces a set of four studies focused on adolescents in the Czech Republic. In the first part, authors reflect on the cultural background, the political, social, and psychological factors that have had influence on several generations of adolescents in the period of the communist totalitarian regime. They also describe the social changes brought by the democratization of Czech society since the early 1990s. Second part of the paper reviews the life and changes in the behavior of Czech adolescents over the past 20 years. Based the findings of three studies representing three cohorts of adolescents (1992, 2001, 2010), it is argued that current Czech adolescents are becoming more like their Western peers. Compared with the 1990s adolescents, the current cohort is more realistic in their expectations, oriented more on achievement, social pleasure, and material values. Their relationship to formal authorities is weaker; especially, the relationships with parents and teachers are more liberal.
Social Capital and Emergency Management Planning
Authors: Johnson Bonnie J. , Goerdel Holly T. , Lovrich Nicholas P. , Pierce John C.
Published: October 2013

Using a sample of U.S. counties, this article explores the relationships between community level resilience, represented by capacity (social capital), information (uses of technology), and motivation (perception of threats to county,) on the one hand, and county levels of emergency management (EM) collaboration on the other. We hypothesize that the greater relative presence of bridging social capital networks will be associated with greater levels of collaboration in county EM planning, while the greater relative presence of bonding social capital networks will be associated with lower levels of collaboration. Results indicate that first there are two collaborative environments to assess—the formal and informal—and, second, the presence of political networks (seen as predominantly bridging) relative to the presence of religious networks (viewed as predominantly bonding) has a significant and positive effect on informal collaboration levels, but not on formal collaboration levels. These findings provide insight into how community context in the form of network social capital matters for collaborative EM planning efforts. These results add to prior research that focuses primarily on organizational and institutional sources of collaboration and much less on the community level contextual factors at play.
Why Reforms So Often Disappoint
Authors: Aberbach Joel D. , Christensen Tom
Published: October 2013

This article examines why major reforms so often disappoint. It starts with an explication and analysis of perspectives for understanding why reforms often do not work out as hoped—rational comprehensive decision making and garbage can decision making, the latter in a “pure” version and in a modified version of the garbage can widely identified with the work of John Kingdon. We present these perspectives in a general way and then discuss how we can understand features of two central aspects of reforms based on these perspectives—the processes leading up to decisions on reforms and reform implementation processes. Some brief case studies are presented to illustrate some of the problems laid out in the theoretical part of the article. We conclude that nonincremental reform is vulnerable at every stage from conception to implementation and that although reforms are certainly not always doomed to failure, they are not often great candidates for success either.
Measurement of muscle architecture concurrently with muscle hardness using ultrasound strain elastography
Authors: Chino Kentaro , Akagi Ryota , Dohi Michiko , Takahashi Hideyuki
Published: October 2013

Background

The B-mode ultrasound image that can measure muscle architecture is displayed side by side with the ultrasound strain elastogram that can assess muscle hardness. Consequently, muscle architecture can be measured concurrently with muscle hardness using ultrasound strain elastography.

Purpose

To demonstrate the measurement of muscle architecture concurrently with muscle hardness using ultrasound strain elastography.

Material and Methods

Concurrent measurements of muscle architectural parameters (muscle thickness, pennation angle, and fascicle length) and muscle hardness of the medial gastrocnemius were performed with ultrasound strain elastography. Separate measurements of the muscle architectural parameters were also performed for use as reference values for the concurrent measurements. Both types of measurements were performed twice at 20° dorsiflexion, neutral position, and 30° plantar flexion.

Results

Coefficients of variance of the muscle architectural parameters obtained from the concurrent measurements (≤7.6%) were significantly higher than those obtained from the separate measurements (≤2.4%) (all P < 0.05). Intraclass correlation coefficients of the architectural parameters were lower in the concurrent measurements (≥0.74) than in the separate measurements (≥0.97). However, there were no significant differences in any muscle architectural parameters between the concurrent and separate measurements (all P > 0.05).

Conclusion

The use of ultrasound strain elastography for the concurrent measurement of muscle architecture and muscle hardness is feasible.
Diagnostic accuracy of 64-slice multidetector CT angiography for detection of in-stent restenosis of vertebral artery ostium stents: comparison with conventional angiography
Authors: Lee Youn Joo , Lim Yeon Soo , Lim Hyun Wook , Yoo Won Jong , Choi Byung Gil , Kim Bum Soo
Published: October 2013

Background

There are very few reports assessing in-stent restenosis (ISR) after vertebral artery ostium (VAO) stents using multidetector computed tomography (MDCT).

Purpose

To compare the diagnostic accuracy of computed tomography angiography (CTA) using 64-slice MDCT with digital subtraction angiography (DSA) for detection of significant ISR after VAO stenting.

Material and Methods

The study evaluated 57 VAO stents in 57 patients (39 men, 18 women; mean age 64 years [range, 48–90 years]). All stents were scanned with a 64-slice MDCT scanner. Three sets of images were reconstructed with three different convolution kernels. Two observers who were blinded to the results of DSA assessed the diagnostic accuracy of CTA for detecting significant ISR (≥50% diameter narrowing) of VAO stents in comparison with DSA as the reference standard. The sensitivity, specificity, positive and negative predictive values, and accuracy were calculated.

Results

Of the 57 stents, 46 (81%) were assessable using CTA, while 11 (19%) were not. No stents with diameters ≤2.75 mm were assessable. DSA revealed 13 cases of significant ISR in all stents. The respective sensitivity, specificity, positive and negative predictive values, and accuracy were 92%, 82%, 60%, 97%, and 84% for all stents. On excluding the 11 non-assessable stents, the respective values were 88%, 95%, 78%, 97%, and 93%. Of the 46 CTA assessable stents, eight significant ISRs were diagnosed on DSA. Seven of eight patients with significant ISR by DSA were diagnosed correctly with CTA. The area under the receiver-operating characteristic curve (AUC) was 0.87 for all stents and 0.91 for assessable stents, indicating good to excellent agreement between CTA and DSA for detecting significant ISR after VAO stenting.

Conclusion

Sixty-four-slice MDCT is a promising non-invasive method of assessing stent patency and can exclude significant ISR with high diagnostic values after VAO stenting.
Dividing time, or love’s labour’s lost . . .
Authors: Bauman Zygmunt
Published: October 2013

The four studies in this issue embark upon a journey of exploration and discovery of the relationship between time and technology in liquid modernity. This introduction seeks to help that journey and is concerned with the divide between the online and offline segments of the world we currently inhabit, and what this might mean for life, love and happiness.
The temporal horizon of ‘the choice’
Authors: Campbell Tom
Published: October 2013

‘Time’ has been central to Zygmunt Bauman’s theory of modernity and his subsequent account of its solid and liquid variants. The experience of time in these accounts announces the coming of new opportunities, but it also signals a corrosion of our moral sensitivity. In this article, I assess Bauman’s contribution to the sociology of time and the centrality of our temporal character for his philosophical anthropology. There is a unique chance to be moral in liquid modernity, by unshackling the outdated and habitual ethics of the past. The danger, however, lays in an increasingly ‘hurried life’, where a ‘nowist’ culture demands endless answers to the most banal of choices, often before these choices have even arrived. I argue that for Bauman the historical power of culture is to raise the ‘ought’ above the ‘is’. This results from our character as temporally-aware creatures. In our liquid modern times, the haste of life and its individualizing forces shift the character of that temporal awareness, endowing us with a false set of needs crafted by the market. The project of humanity itself has become, in Bauman’s diagnosis, subservient to maintaining the goals of the market.
Architects of time
Authors: Till Chris
Published: October 2013

Drawing on critical analyses of the internet inspired by Gilles Deleuze and the Marxist autonomia movement, this paper suggests a way of understanding the impact of the internet and digital culture on identity and social forms through a consideration of the relationship between controls exercised through the internet, new subjectivities constituted through its use and new labour practices enabled by it. Following Castells, we can see that the distinction between user, consumer and producer is becoming blurred and free labour is being provided by users to corporations. The relationship between digital technologies and sense of community, through their relationship to the future, is considered for its dangers and potentials. It is proposed that the internet may be a useful tool for highlighting and enabling social connections if certain dangers can be traversed. Notably, current remedies for the lack of trust on the internet are questioned with an alternative, drawing on Zygmunt Bauman and Georg Simmel, proposed which is built on community through a vision of a ‘shared network’.
Citizenship, space and time
Authors: Ellison Nick
Published: October 2013

This article examines changing modalities of citizenship in a fast-moving, informationalized and connected world. The argument here is that, in an increasingly globalized economic, social and cultural environment, forms and practices of citizenship inevitably – and increasingly – fragment across space and time. While this tendency for citizenship to ‘shape-shift’ politically and socially is not new – and indeed while the spatial fragmentation of belonging has been frequently commented upon, particularly in relation to the claimed decline of the bordered nation-state – the dimension of time in relationship to citizenship has been rather less well explored. By examining the interplay of space and time in contemporary citizenship, understood here in terms of civic and political engagement, identity and belonging, it becomes possible to understand how citizenship practices operate differentially according to degrees of spatial embeddedness, on the one hand, and degrees of temporal ‘thickness’, on the other.
Daniel Bell – American Menshevik
Authors: Beilharz Peter
Published: October 2013

Long before he became one of the leading voices in American sociology and letters, Daniel Bell had a tough early life. He experienced poverty and socialism early, in a life taking on the big themes of the 20th century: communism, capitalism, Marxism, Americanism, modernism. In this he was the beneficiary as well as the critic of modern Americanism, or American modernism. In this essay I focus on a relatively overlooked Bell classic, Marxian Socialism in the United States (1996 [1952]). Here Bell works in an essentially Weberian optic, but one which takes Marx and Marxism very seriously. This is a major contribution to history of ideas and to labour studies, but also to cultural sociology. Some closing remarks connect Bell’s legacy and these frames to the much more influential, if also unread, collection The End of Ideology (1960).
Daniel Bell, conservative
Authors: Murphy Peter
Published: October 2013

Daniel Bell was one of the leading American sociologists in the 20th century, widely read both inside and outside the universities. He produced influential theses about the rise of post-industrial society and about the cultural contradictions of modern capitalism that saw it torn between restraint and hedonism. Bell was also notable for another reason. He was, most certainly on cultural matters, a conservative, and on a number of policy matters he was closely associated with the first generation of American neo-conservative thinkers. Bell’s conservative inclinations were rare in the American academy of his time, and this essay explores the nature and significance of those conservative views.
Becoming dislocated
Authors: Till Chris
Published: October 2013

Three of Zygmunt Bauman’s recent books are assessed to present insights into the recent development of his thought and the challenges it poses to the social sciences, humanities and the wider public. By reading Bauman’s recent work through the influence he takes from Georg Simmel, the former’s disparate recent work is understood as an attempt at the cultivation of critical and ethical engagement through the externalization and objectification of his own subjective culture. The more radical elements of Bauman’s work are emphasized in his attempts to stimulate a counter-culture through encouraging critical analysis of society. It is proposed that he achieves this through ‘polylogic’ discourse and engagement with the public. Sociology is presented as a tool of freedom through ‘defamiliarizing the familiar’ and Bauman’s most powerful tool in this is the demonstration of his particular critical view of the world. The broad-ranging engagement with diverse topics in his recent books enables him to place this critical perspective, rather than a particular topic or issue, at the centre of his work. The metaphorical and other literary devices used by Bauman to stimulate critique and in particular to spur on the radical potential of youth are highlighted as some of his most powerful contributions.
Daniel Bell’s ‘disjunction of the realms’
Authors: McKenzie Jordan
Published: October 2013

Daniel Bell’s multidimensional view of modern social life as a disjunction of differing realms provides an effective example of a sociological analysis that defies typical notions of Left/Right and radical/conservative. Within this framework, Bell moves between traditional alliances, and his unwillingness to take sides makes it difficult to place him within traditional categories. Using Bell as an example, this paper will question the relevance of Right and Left in sociological discourse, and suggest that the distinction between conservative and radical is more substantive.
‘Profane’ rather than ‘secular’
Authors: de la Fuente Eduardo
Published: October 2013

Daniel Bell’s writings are often cast as offering a contemporary jeremiad regarding the corrosive effects of culture upon the modern economic and social order. In this paper, I take the opposite approach and argue that Bell is a sensitive cultural analyst who is claiming that human experience ought not to be deprived of culture – understood as symbol and myth that tap into the felt need for human transcendence. Bell could therefore be seen as a strong advocate for the concept of culture, and for a cultural sociology. It is only that the modern (and postmodern) versions of culture do not realize the full potential of culture to move and inspire human actors. The conclusion is reached that what ails modern culture is neither rationalization nor secularization, but rather what Bell termed the ‘Great Profanization’. Rendering culture profane is much more serious, and deleterious, than any of the other specific dynamics sociologists have diagnosed regarding modern culture.