Search

Introduction: Data collection using paper-based questionnaires can be time consuming and return errors affect data accuracy, completeness, and information quality in health surveys. We compared smartphone and paper-based data collection systems in the Burden of Obstructive Lung Disease (BOLD) study in rural Sudan. Methods: This exploratory pilot study was designed to run in parallel with the cross-sectional household survey. The Open Data Kit was used to programme questionnaires in Arabic into smartphones. We included 100 study participants (83% women; median age = 41.5 ± 16.4 years) from the BOLD study from 3 rural villages in East-Gezira and Kamleen localities of Gezira state, Sudan. Questionnaire data were collected using smartphone and paper-based technologies simultaneously. We used Kappa statistics and inter-rater class coefficient to test agreement between the two methods. Results: Symptoms reported included cough (24%), phlegm (15%), wheezing (17%), and shortness of breath (18%). One in five were or had been cigarette smokers. The two data collection methods varied between perfect to slight agreement across the 204 variables evaluated (Kappa varied between 1.00 and 0.02 and inter-rater coefficient between 1.00 and -0.12). Errors were most commonly seen with paper questionnaires (83% of errors seen) vs smartphones (17% of errors seen) administered questionnaires with questions with complex skip-patterns being a major source of errors in paper questionnaires. Automated checks and validations in smartphone-administered questionnaires avoided skip-pattern related errors. Incomplete and inconsistent records were more likely seen on paper questionnaires. Conclusion: Compared to paper-based data collection, smartphone technology worked well for data collection in the study, which was conducted in a challenging rural environment in Sudan. This approach provided timely, quality data with fewer errors and inconsistencies compared to paper-based data collection. We recommend this method for future BOLD studies and other population-based studies in similar settings. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Physical inactivity has been identified as a leading risk factor for premature mortality globally, and adolescents, in particular, have low physical activity levels. Schools have been identified as a setting to tackle physical inactivity. Economic evidence of school-based physical activity programmes is limited, and the costs of these programmes are not always collected in full. This paper describes a micro-costing and cost-consequence analysis of the ‘Girls Active’ secondary school-based programme as part of a cluster randomised controlled trial (RCT). Micro-costing and cost-consequence analyses were conducted using bespoke cost diaries and questionnaires to collect programme delivery information. Outcomes for the cost-consequence analysis included health-related quality of life measured by the Child Health Utility-9D (CHU-9D), primary care General Practitioner (GP) and school-based (school nurse and school counsellor) service use as part of a cluster RCT of the ‘Girls Active’ programme. Overall, 1,752 secondary pupils were recruited and a complete case sample of 997 participants (Intervention n = 570, Control n = 427) was used for the cost-consequence analysis. The micro-costing analysis demonstrated that, depending upon how the programme was delivered, ‘Girls Active’ costs ranged from £1,054 (£2 per pupil, per school year) to £3,489 (£7 per pupil, per school year). The least costly option was to absorb ‘Girls Active’ strictly within curriculum hours. The analysis demonstrated no effect for the programme for the three main outcomes of interest (health-related quality of life, physical activity and service use).Micro-costing analyses demonstrated the costs of delivering the ‘Girls Active’ programme, addressing a gap in the United Kingdom (UK) literature regarding economic evidence from school-based physical activity programmes. This paper provides recommendations for those gathering cost and service use data in school settings to supplement validated and objective measures, furthering economic research in this field. Trial registration: -ISRCTN, . [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper aims to investigate the relationship between women’s social class and their levels of self- and other-objectification. Two online studies comprising of multiple questionnaires were conducted: Study 1 examined the association between the social class (both objective and subjective) of 198 non-student British women and their self-objectification levels, while Study 2 turned towards the relationship between social class and other-objectification among 82 non-student British women. Our results indicated no apparent relationship between social class and each of the relevant objectification measures. As the first paper on the topic of class and objectification, it appears that there is no relationship observed between the two. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The Ministry of Industry and Information Technology (MIIT) universities are important bases for science and technology research and play a critical role in China’s National Innovation System. Based on the Web of Science (WoS), this article analyzes the statistics of paper published by MIIT universities and universities from across China including MIIT universities. The results are as follows: (1) Both the MIIT universities and universities nationwide in China have increased their international academic publications, and MIIT have shown a greater increase for the past decade. (2) In terms of U-I-G interaction, for UG relations, the Tug value of MIIT universities has remained stable, while that of universities in China has become declined. For UI relations, the Tui value of both MIIT universities and universities in China has shown steady growth. For UIG relations, MIIT universities have a greater synergistic effect of Triple Helix relationship than universities in China. (3) For more details in seven MIIT universities, universities elected into “Project 985”, including HIT, BUAA, BIT and NPU, have published more papers, and been more synergistic with government and industry (UIG relations) than other three universities, including NUAA, NUST and HEU. Based on the empirical results, we discuss our findings, and make certain suggestions regarding policy incentives, reasonable administrative system and U-I-G interaction mode, which is significant not only for Chinese universities but also for universities in other developing countries. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Introduction: In this paper we perform a replication analysis of “Effect of a cash transfer programme for schooling on prevalence of HIV and herpes simplex type 2 in Malawi: a cluster randomised trial” by Sarah Baird and others published in “The Lancet” in 2012. The original study was a two-year cluster randomized intervention trial of never married girls aged 13–22 in Malawi. Enumeration areas were randomized to either an intervention involving cash transfer (conditional or unconditional of school enrollment) or control. The study included 1708 Malawian girls, who were enrolled at baseline and had biological testing for HIV and herpes simplex virus type 2 (HSV-2) at 18 months. The original findings showed that in the cohort of girls enrolled in school at baseline, the intervention had an effect on school enrollment, sexual outcomes, and HIV and HSV-2 prevalence. However, in the baseline school dropout cohort, the original study showed no intervention effect on HIV and HSV-2 prevalence. Methods: We performed a replication of the study to investigate the consistency and robustness of key results reported. A pre-specified replication plan was approved and published online. Cleaned data was obtained from the original authors. A pure replication was conducted by reading the methods section and reproducing the results and tables found in the original paper. Robustness of the results were examined with alternative analysis methods in a measurement and estimation analysis (MEA) approach. A theory of change analysis was performed testing a causal pathway, the effect of intervention on HIV awareness, and whether the intervention effect depended on the wealth of the individual. Results: The pure replication found that other than a few minor discrepancies, the original study was well replicated. However, the randomization and sampling weights could not be verified due to the lack of access to raw data and a detailed sample selection plan. Therefore, we are unable to determine how sampling influenced the results, which could be highly dependent on the sample. In MEA it was found that the intervention effect on HIV prevalence in the baseline schoolgirls cohort was somewhat sensitive to model choice, with a non-significant intervention effect for HIV depending on the statistical model used. The intervention effect on HSV-2 prevalence was more robust in terms of statistical significance, however, the odds ratios and confidence intervals differed from the original result by more than 10%. A theory of change analysis showed no effect of intervention on HIV awareness. In a causal pathway analysis, several variables were partial mediators, or potential mediators, indicating that the intervention could be working through its effect on school enrollment or selected sexual behaviors. Conclusions: The effect of intervention on HIV prevalence in the baseline schoolgirls was sensitive to the model choice; however, HSV-2 prevalence results were confirmed. We recommend that the results from the original published analysis indicating the impact of cash transfers on HIV prevalence be treated with caution. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background: Up to 1.45 billion people currently suffer from soil transmitted helminth infection, with the largest burden occurring in Africa and Asia. Safe and cost effective deworming treatment exists, but there is a debate about mass distribution of this treatment in high prevalence settings. While the World Health Organization recommends mass administration of anthelmintic drugs for preschool and school-aged children in high (>20%) prevalence settings, and several long run follow up studies of an influential trial have suggested large benefits that persist over time, recent systematic reviews have called this recommendation into question. Methods and findings: This paper analyzes the long-term impact of a cluster-randomized trial in eastern Uganda that provided mass deworming treatment to preschool aged children from 2000 to 2003 on the numeracy and literacy skills of children and young adults living in those villages in 2010-2015. This study uses numeracy and literacy data collected seven to twelve years after the end of the deworming trial in a randomly selected subset of communities from the original trial, by an education-focused survey that had no relationship to the deworming study. Building on an earlier working paper which used data from 2010 and 2011 survey rounds, this paper uses an additional four years of numeracy and literacy data (2012, 2013, 2014, and 2015). Aggregating data from all survey rounds, the difference between numeracy scores in treatment versus control communities is 0.07 standard deviations (SD) (95% CI -0.10, 0.24, p = 0.40), the difference in literacy scores is 0.05 SD (95% CI -0.16, 0.27, p = 0.62), and the difference in total scores is 0.07 SD (95% CI -0.11, 0.25, p = 0.44). There are significant differences in program impact by gender, with numeracy and literacy differentially positively affected for girls, and by age, with treatment effects larger for the primary school aged subsample. There are also significant treatment interactions for those living in households with more treatment-eligible children. There is no evidence of differential treatment effects on age at program eligibility or number of years of program eligibility. Conclusions: Mass deworming of preschool aged children in high prevalence communities in Uganda resulted in no statistically significant gains in numeracy or literacy 7-12 years after program completion. Point estimates were positive but imprecise; the study lacked sufficient power to rule out substantial positive effects or more modest negative effects. However, there is suggestive evidence that deworming was relatively more beneficial for girls, primary school aged children, and children living in households with other treated children. Research approval: As this analysis was conducted on secondary data which is publicly available, no research approval was sought or received. All individual records were anonymized by the data provider prior to public release. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Quality circles or peer review groups, and similar structured small groups of 6–12 health care professionals meet regularly across Europe to reflect on and improve their standard practice. There is debate over their effectiveness in primary health care, especially over their potential to change practitioners’ behaviour. Despite their popularity, we could not identify broad surveys of the literature on quality circles in a primary care context. Our scoping review was intended to identify possible definitions of quality circles, their origins, and reported effectiveness in primary health care, and to identify gaps in our knowledge. We searched appropriate databases and included any relevant paper on quality circles published until December 2017. We then compared information we found in the articles to that we found in books and on websites. Our search returned 7824 citations, from which we identified 82 background papers and 58 papers about quality circles. We found that they originated in manufacturing industry and that many countries adopted them for primary health care to continuously improve medical education, professional development, and quality of care. Quality circles are not standardized and their techniques are complex. We identified 19 papers that described individual studies, one paper that summarized 3 studies, and 1 systematic review that suggested that quality circles can effectively change behaviour, though effect sizes varied, depending on topic and context. Studies also suggested participation may affirm self-esteem and increase professional confidence. Because reports of the effect of quality circles on behaviour are variable, we recommend theory-driven research approaches to analyse and improve the effectiveness of this complex intervention. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Ratings are present in many areas of assessment including peer review of research proposals and journal articles, teacher observations, university admissions and selection of new hires. One feature present in any rating process with multiple raters is that different raters often assign different scores to the same assessee, with the potential for bias and inconsistencies related to rater or assessee covariates. This paper analyzes disparities in ratings of internal and external applicants to teaching positions using applicant data from Spokane Public Schools. We first test for biases in rating while accounting for measures of teacher applicant qualifications and quality. Then, we develop model-based inter-rater reliability (IRR) estimates that allow us to account for various sources of measurement error, the hierarchical structure of the data, and to test whether covariates, such as applicant status, moderate IRR. We find that applicants external to the district receive lower ratings for job applications compared to internal applicants. This gap in ratings remains significant even after including measures of qualifications and quality such as experience, state licensure scores, or estimated teacher value added. With model-based IRR, we further show that consistency between raters is significantly lower when rating external applicants. We conclude the paper by discussing policy implications and possible applications of our model-based IRR estimate for hiring and selection practices in and out of the teacher labor market. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background: Substance misuse persists as a major public health issue worldwide with significant costs for society. The development of interventions requires methodologically sound studies to explore substance misuse causes and consequences. This Cohort description paper outlines the design of the Belfast Youth Development (BYDS), one of the largest cohort studies of its kind in the UK. The study was established to address the need for a long-term prospective cohort study to investigate the initiation, persistence and desistance of substance use, alongside life course processes in adolescence and adulthood. The paper provides an overview of BYDS as a longitudinal data source for investigating substance misuse and outlines the study measures, sample retention and characteristics. We also outline how the BYDS data have been used to date and highlight areas ripe for future work by interested researchers. Methods: The study began in 2000/1 when participants (n = 3,834) were pupils in their first year of post-primary education (age 10/11 years, school year 8) from over 40 schools in Northern Ireland. Children were followed during the school years: Year 9 (in 2002; aged 12; n = 4,343), Year 10 (in 2003; aged 13; n = 4,522), Year 11 (in 2004; aged 14; n = 3,965) and Year 12 (in 2005; aged 15; n = 3,830) and on two more occasions: 2006/07 (aged 16/17; n = 2,335) and 2010/11 (aged 20/21; n = 2,087). Data were collected on substance use, family, schools, neighbourhoods, offending behaviour and mental health. The most novel aspect of the study was the collection of detailed social network data via friendship nominations allowing the investigation of the spread of substance use via friendship networks. In 2004 (school year 11; respondents aged 14), a sub-sample of participants’ parents (n = 1,097) and siblings (n = 211) also completed measures on substance use and family dynamics. Results: The most recent wave (in 2010/2011; respondents aged 20/21 years) indicated lifetime use of alcohol, tobacco and cannabis among the cohort was 94, 70 and 45 per cent, respectively. The paper charts the development of drug use behaviour and some of the key results to date are presented. We have also identified a number of key areas ripe for analysis by interested researchers including sexual health and education. Conclusions: We have established a cohort with detailed data from adolescence to young adulthood, supplemented with parent and sibling reports and peer network data. The dataset, allowing for investigation of trajectories of adolescent substance use, associated factors and subsequent long-term outcomes, constitutes an important resource for longitudinal substance misuse research. A planned further wave as the cohort enter their late twenties and potential to link to administrative data sources, will further enrich the datasets. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background: Hypochondriac symptoms are commonly reported in health science students. With their incomplete medical knowledge, they may compare their own bodily symptoms with disease symptoms during the process of learning, which can lead to mental distress and the need for repeated medical reassurance. Objective: To estimate the prevalence of hypochondriac symptoms in Chinese health science students. Methods: A systematic literature search was conducted on PubMed, Web of Science, Embase, China National Knowledge Infrastructure, China Biology Medicine disc, and Wanfang Data on July 1, 2018. Additionally, the references of the retrieved papers were searched. Cross-sectional studies published in either English or Chinese that reported the prevalence of hypochondriac symptoms in health science students were included. The selection process was executed based on the Preferred Reporting Items for Systematic Reviews and Meta-Analysis, and study quality was assessed with the checklist recommended by the Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality for cross-sectional studies. A random-effects model according to the DerSimonian-Laird method was used to calculate the pooled prevalence. Results: Seven cross-sectional studies involving 6,217 Chinese health science students were included. The pooled prevalence of hypochondriac symptoms among health science students was 28.0% (95% CI = 19.0%–38.0%). The symptoms were a little more common in females (30.0%, 95% CI = 19.0%–42.0%) than in males (29.0%, 95% CI = 16.0%–42.0%), but the difference was not significant. No significant differences were found between participants grouped by study year. Only three studies explored the coping styles of students with hypochondriasis, and these revealed a high tendency toward help-seeking behaviors. Conclusion: Our systematic review and meta-analysis showed a high prevalence of hypochondriac symptoms among health science students, indicating that it is a noteworthy phenomenon. We suggest that counseling and other support services are necessary for health science students. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

When many events contributed to an outcome, people consistently judge some more causal than others, based in part on the prior probabilities of those events. For instance, when a tree bursts into flames, people judge the lightning strike more of a cause than the presence of oxygen in the air—in part because oxygen is so common, and lightning strikes are so rare. These effects, which play a major role in several prominent theories of token causation, have largely been studied through qualitative manipulations of the prior probabilities. Yet, there is good reason to think that people’s causal judgments are on a continuum—and relatively little is known about how these judgments vary quantitatively as the prior probabilities change. In this paper, we measure people’s causal judgment across parametric manipulations of the prior probabilities of antecedent events. Our experiments replicate previous qualitative findings, and also reveal several novel patterns that are not well-described by existing theories. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Introduction: In connection to food insecurity, adaptation of new techniques or alteration of regular behavior is executed that translates to coping strategies. This paper has used data from food security and nutrition surveillance project (FSNSP), which collects information from a nationally representative sample in Bangladesh on coping behaviors associated with household food insecurity. To complement the current understanding of different coping strategies implemented by the Bangladeshi households, the objective of this paper has been set to examine the demographic and socio-economic characteristics of the food insecure households which define their propensity towards adaptation of different types of coping strategies. Methodology: FSNSP follows a repeated cross-sectional survey design. Information of 23,374 food insecure households available from February 2011 to November 2013 was selected for the analyses. Coping strategies were categorized as financial, food compromised and both. Multinomial logistic regression was employed to draw inference. Results: Majority of the households were significantly more inclined to adopt both multiple financial and food compromisation coping strategies. Post-aman season, educational status of the household head and household women, occupation of the household’s main earner, household income, food insecurity status, asset, size and possession of agricultural land were found to be independently and significantly associated with adaptation of both financial and food compromisation coping strategies relative to only financial coping strategies. The relative risk ratio of adopting food compromisation coping relative to financial coping strategies when compared to mildly food insecure households, was 4.54 times higher for households with moderate food insecurity but 0.3 times lower when the households were severely food insecure. Whereas, households were 8.04 times and 4.98 times more likely to adopt both food compromisation and financial relative to only financial coping strategies if moderately and severely food insecure respectively when compared to being mildly food insecure. Conclusion: Households suffering from moderate and severe food insecurity, are more likely to adopt both financial and food compromisation coping strategies. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

TB is rated as one of the world’s deadliest diseases and South Africa ranks 9th out of the 22 countries with hardest hit of TB. Although many pieces of research have been carried out on this subject, this paper steps further by inculcating past knowledge into the model, using Bayesian approach with informative prior. Bayesian statistics approach is getting popular in data analyses. But, most applications of Bayesian inference technique are limited to situations of non-informative prior, where there is no solid external information about the distribution of the parameter of interest. The main aim of this study is to profile people living with TB in South Africa. In this paper, identical regression models are fitted for classical and Bayesian approach both with non-informative and informative prior, using South Africa General Household Survey (GHS) data for the year 2014. For the Bayesian model with informative prior, South Africa General Household Survey dataset for the year 2011 to 2013 are used to set up priors for the model 2014. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Many US biomedical PhD programs receive more applications for admissions than they can accept each year, necessitating a selective admissions process. Typical selection criteria include standardized test scores, undergraduate grade point average, letters of recommendation, a resume and/or personal statement highlighting relevant research or professional experience, and feedback from interviews with training faculty. Admissions decisions are often founded on assumptions that these application components correlate with research success in graduate school, but these assumptions have not been rigorously tested. We sought to determine if any application components were predictive of student productivity measured by first-author student publications and time to degree completion. We collected productivity metrics for graduate students who entered the umbrella first-year biomedical PhD program at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill from 2008–2010 and analyzed components of their admissions applications. We found no correlations of test scores, grades, amount of previous research experience, or faculty interview ratings with high or low productivity among those applicants who were admitted and chose to matriculate at UNC. In contrast, ratings from recommendation letter writers were significantly stronger for students who published multiple first-author papers in graduate school than for those who published no first-author papers during the same timeframe. We conclude that the most commonly used standardized test (the general GRE) is a particularly ineffective predictive tool, but that qualitative assessments by previous mentors are more likely to identify students who will succeed in biomedical graduate research. Based on these results, we conclude that admissions committees should avoid over-reliance on any single component of the application and de-emphasize metrics that are minimally predictive of student productivity. We recommend continual tracking of desired training outcomes combined with retrospective analysis of admissions practices to guide both application requirements and holistic application review. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Blockchain is a decentralized transaction and data management technology developed first for Bitcoin cryptocurrency. The interest in Blockchain technology has been increasing since the idea was coined in 2008. The reason for the interest in Blockchain is its central attributes that provide security, anonymity and data integrity without any third party organization in control of the transactions, and therefore it creates interesting research areas, especially from the perspective of technical challenges and limitations. In this research, we have conducted a systematic mapping study with the goal of collecting all relevant research on Blockchain technology. Our objective is to understand the current research topics, challenges and future directions regarding Blockchain technology from the technical perspective. We have extracted 41 primary papers from scientific databases. The results show that focus in over 80% of the papers is on Bitcoin system and less than 20% deals with other Blockchain applications including e.g. smart contracts and licensing. The majority of research is focusing on revealing and improving limitations of Blockchain from privacy and security perspectives, but many of the proposed solutions lack concrete evaluation on their effectiveness. Many other Blockchain scalability related challenges including throughput and latency have been left unstudied. On the basis of this study, recommendations on future research directions are provided for researchers. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Previous school-based interventions have produced positive effects upon measures of children’s health and wellbeing but such interventions are often delivered by external experts which result in short-term effects. Thus, upskilling and expanding the resources available to classroom teachers could provide longer-term solutions. This paper presents a feasibility study of an online health resource (Healthy Schools Resource: HSR) developed to assist primary school teachers in the delivery of health-related education. Four schools (n = 2 intervention) participated in this study. Study feasibility was assessed by recruitment, retention and completion rates of several outcomes including height, weight, waist circumference, blood pressure and several metabolic markers including HDL-cholesterol, triglycerides, glucose and dietary knowledge following a 10-12-week intervention period. The process evaluation involved fidelity checks of teachers’ use of the HSR and post-intervention teacher interviews. A total of 614 consent forms were issued and 267 were returned (43%), of which, 201 confirmed consent for blood sampling (75%). Retention of children participating in the study was also high (96%). Of the 13 teachers who delivered the intervention to the children, four teachers were excluded from further analyses as they did not participate in the fidelity checks. Overall, teachers found the online resource facilitative of teaching health and wellbeing and several recommendations regarding the resource were provided to inform further evaluations. Recruitment and retention rates suggest that the teacher led intervention is feasible and acceptable to both teachers, parents and children. Initial findings provide promising evidence that given a greater sample size, a longer intervention exposure period and changes made to the resource, teachers’ use of HSR could enhance measures of health and wellbeing in children. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The 5Rights Youth Juries are an educational intervention to promote digital literacy by engaging participants (i.e. jurors) in a deliberative discussion around their digital rights. The main objective of these jury-styled focus groups is to encourage children and young people to identify online concerns and solutions with a view to developing recommendations for government policy-makers and industry chiefs. The methodology included a series of dramatized scenarios that encourage jurors to deliberate about their digital rights. This paper compares two formats for these scenarios: live actors and professionally recorded and edited videos of the same actors. Results failed to show any major differences between formats indicating the cost-effectiveness of the video-recorded format and the possibility for others to run the 5Rights Youth Juries with the support of an online open educational resource. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

University dropout is a growing problem with considerable academic, social and economic consequences. Conclusions and limitations of previous studies highlight the difficulty of analyzing the phenomenon from a broad perspective and with bigger data sets. This paper proposes a new, machine-learning based method, able to examine the problem using a holistic approach. Advantages of this method include the lack of strong distribution hypothesis, the capacity for handling bigger data sets and the interpretability of the results. Results are consistent with previous research, showing the influence of personal and contextual variables and the importance of academic performance in the first year, but other factors are also highlighted with this model, such as the importance of dedication (part or full time), and the vulnerability of the students with respect to their age. Additionally, a comprehensive graphic output is included to make it easier to interpret the discovered rules. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background: For countries to contribute to Sustainable Development Goal 3.1 of reducing the global maternal mortality ratio (MMR) to less than 70 per 100,000 live births by 2030, identifying the drivers of maternal mortality is critically important. The ability of countries to identify the key drivers is however hampered by the lack of data sources with sufficient observations of maternal death to allow a rigorous analysis of its determinants. This paper overcomes this problem by utilising census data. In the context of Indonesia, we merge individual-level data on pregnancy-related deaths and households’ socio-economic status from the 2010 Indonesian population census with detailed data on the availability and quality of local health services from the Village Census. We use these data to test the hypothesis that health service access and quality are important determinants of maternal death and explain the differences between high maternal mortality and low maternal mortality provinces. Methods: The 2010 Indonesian Population Census identifies 8075 pregnancy-related deaths and 5,866,791 live births. Multilevel logistic regression is used to analyse the impacts of demographic characteristics and the existence of, distance to and quality of health services on the likelihood of maternal death. Decomposition analysis quantifies the extent to which the difference in maternal mortality ratios between high and low performing provinces can be explained by demographic and health service characteristics. Findings: Health service access and characteristics account for 23% (CI: 17.2% to 28.5%) of the difference in maternal mortality ratios between high and low-performing provinces. The most important contributors are the number of doctors working at the community health centre (8.6%), the number of doctors in the village (6.9%) and distance to the nearest hospital (5.9%). Distance to health clinics and the number of midwives at community health centres and village health posts are not significant contributors, nor is socio-economic status. If the same level of access to doctors and hospitals in lower maternal mortality Java-Bali was provided to the higher maternal mortality Outer Islands of Indonesia, our model predicts 44 deaths would be averted per 100,000 pregnancies. Conclusion: Indonesia has employed a strategy over the past several decades of increasing the supply of midwives as a way of decreasing maternal mortality. While there is evidence of reductions in maternal mortality continuing to accrue from the provision of midwife services at village health posts, our findings suggest that further reductions in maternal mortality in Indonesia may require a change of focus to increasing the supply of doctors and access to hospitals. If data on maternal death is collected in a subsequent census, future research using two waves of census data would prove a useful validation of the results found here. Similar research using census data from other countries is also likely to be fruitful. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The centrifuge is an essential tool for many aspects of research and medical diagnostics. However, conventional centrifuges are often inaccessible outside of standard laboratory settings, such as remote field sites, because they require a constant external power source and can be prohibitively costly in resource-limited settings and Science, technology, engineering, and mathematics (STEM)-focused programs. Here we present the 3D-Fuge, a 3D-printed hand-powered centrifuge, as a novel alternative to standard benchtop centrifuges. Based on the design principles of a paper-based centrifuge, this 3D-printed instrument increases the volume capacity to 2 mL and can reach hand-powered centrifugation speeds up to 6,000 rpm. The 3D-Fuge devices presented here are capable of centrifugation of a wide variety of different solutions such as spinning down samples for biomarker applications and performing nucleotide extractions as part of a portable molecular lab setup. We introduce the design and proof-of-principle trials that demonstrate the utility of low-cost 3D-printed centrifuges for use in remote field biology and educational settings. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper explores extreme response style to the Life Impact Burn Recovery Evaluation (LIBRE) Profile, a measure of social participation in burn survivors. We fit a Multidimensional Generalized Partial Credit Model (MGPCM) with a positive extreme response style (PERS) factor and compared this model with the original MGPCM, estimated the impact that PERS has on scores, and examined the personal characteristics that may result in an individual more likely to respond in a fashion that would inflate their true low scores. The average impact of the PERS, based upon the root mean squared bias, ranged from 0.27 to 0.50 of a standard deviation of the scale. Individuals who were older, had participated in a burn survivor support group, and had selected to self-administer the measure were less likely to have a high PERS bias that masks low scores. Future work can consider PERS when measuring the psychosocial impacts of burn injuries and other health conditions. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

A straightforward technique to explore the "total effects" of neighborhoods on health outcomes is to compare the degree of similarity of outcomes of neighbors with those of non-neighbors. Several issues arise in interpreting these estimates around spatial and temporal definitions of "neighbors" and life course mobility patterns. Indeed, much work uses "cross- sectional neighbors," which makes the interpretation of the estimates unclear because they combine short-term effects (for movers) and long-term effects (for stayers). This paper contributes to the literature by assessing the importance of measuring neighbor mobility as well as neighborhood selection. Using the Panel Study of Income Dynamics, we examine the extent to which having longitudinal measures of "neighbors" shapes estimates of neighborhood effects, and also use a negative test of neighborhood effects to assess the importance of neighborhood selection. Specifically, we estimate similarity in self-rated health of adults over 30 years old who live in the same county over various periods of time and find that "cross-sectional" neighbor definitions may understate neighborhood effect estimates by as much as 35%. However, when we contrast these health estimates with contemporaneous neighborhood "effects" on completed education, we find that much of the "understated" effects on health are likely related to selection effects rather than causal effects of neighborhoods. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The use of virtual laboratories is growing as companies and educational institutions try to expand their reach, cut costs, increase student understanding, and provide more accessible hands on training for future scientists. Many new higher education initiatives outsource lab activities so students now perform them online in a virtual environment rather than in a classroom setting, thereby saving time and money while increasing accessibility. In this paper we explored whether the learning and motivational outcomes of interacting with a desktop virtual reality (VR) science lab simulation on the internet at home are equivalent to interacting with the same simulation in class with teacher supervision. A sample of 112 (76 female) university biology students participated in a between-subjects experimental design, in which participants learned at home or in class from the same virtual laboratory simulation on the topic of microbiology. The home and classroom groups did not differ significantly on post-test learning outcome scores, or on self-report measures of intrinsic motivation or self-efficacy. Furthermore, these conclusions remained after accounting for prior knowledge or goal orientation. In conclusion, the results indicate that virtual simulations are learning activities that students can engage in just as effectively outside of the classroom environment. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Studio is critically important for design education, but few attempts have been made to demonstrate the parallels between studio factors and design performance. This paper adopts a coherent set of analyses to investigate the major studio factors and attempts to quantify the networking interactions among them. First, it describes how architectural studio is usually organised based on some major factors. Next, a theoretical model is established according to the described hypotheses and their mutual interactions. Third, the research method and statistical analysis with structural equation modelling (SEM) are presented. Finally, the results of this empirical examination are presented for discussion and suggestions. Our findings reveal that studio tutorials have no significant effect on undergraduate's design performance. In contrast, students’ subjective intention plays a more important role in shaping their behaviour, indicating the importance of transferring those exterior forces into internal benefits when the studio instructor attempts to optimise the pedagogy. These findings are also inspiring for all creative disciplines. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper demonstrates how Geographic Information Systems (GIS) can be utilized to study the effects of spatial phenomena. Since experimental designs such as Randomized Controlled Trials are generally not feasible for spatial problems, researchers need to rely on quasi-experimental approaches using observational data. We provide a regression-based framework of the key procedures for GIS-based empirical research design using georeferenced point data for both spatial events of interest and subjects exposed to the events. We illustrate its utility and implementation through a case study on the impacts of the Cambodian genocide under the Pol Pot regime on post-conflict education. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Introduction: As a result of global migration, health professionals in destination countries are increasingly being called upon to provide care for women and girls who have experienced female genital mutilation/cutting (FGM/C). There is considerable evidence to suggest that their care experiences are sub-optimal. This systematic review sought to illuminate possible reasons for this by exploring the views, experiences, barriers and facilitators to providing FGM-related healthcare in high income countries, from health professionals’ perspectives. Methods: Sixteen electronic databases/resources were searched from inception to December 2017, supplemented by reference list searching and suggestions from experts. Inclusion criteria were: qualitative studies (including grey literature) of any design, any cadre of health worker, from OECD countries, of any date and any language. Two reviewers undertook screening, selection, quality appraisal and data extraction using tools from the Joanna Briggs Institute (JBI). Synthesis involved an inductive thematic approach to identify descriptive themes and interpret these into higher order analytical constructs. Confidence in the review findings was assessed using GRADE-CERQual. The review protocol was registered with PROSPERO (CRD420150300042015). Results: Thirty papers (representing 28 distinct studies) from nine different countries were included. The majority of studies focused on maternity contexts. No studies specifically examined health professionals’ role in FGM/C prevention/safeguarding. There were 20 descriptive themes summarised into six analytical themes that highlighted factors perceived to influence care: knowledge and training, communication, cultural (mis)understandings, identification of FGM/C, clinical management practices and service configuration. Together, these inter-linked themes illuminate the ways in which confidence, communication and competence at provider level and the existence and enactment of pathways, protocols and specialist support at service/system level facilitate or hinder care. Conclusions: FGM/C is a complex and culturally shaped phenomenon. In order to work effectively across cultural divides, there is a need for provider training, clear guidelines, care pathways and specialist FGM/C centres to support mainstream services. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper proposes a weighted generalization of the recently developed Euclidean Index. The weighting mechanism is designed to reflect the reputation of the journal within which an article appears. The weights are constructed using the Eigenfactor Article Influence percentiles scores. The rationale for assigning weights is that citations in more prestigious journals should be adjusted to logically reflect higher costs of production and higher vetting standards, and to partially counter several pragmatic issues surrounding truncated citation counts. Simulated and empirical demonstrations of the proposed approaches are included, which emphasize the flexibility and efficacy of the proposed generalization. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

As a sustainable mode of transportation, public bicycles significantly improve daily mobility. The location of stations is a key element for the success of a public bicycle system, as a long walking distance will reduce people’s willingness to use this mode of transportation. Building forms in China are different from the open type seen abroad. Many residential, office and school areas are enclosed by walls, and pedestrian flow is concentrated at the entrances/exits of these areas. Therefore, the station must be located close to the building entrance/exit. Previous studies on station location located the stations only per zone, without providing the exact locations of the stations in the zones. This paper considers the optimal distance between the building entrance/exit and the station to determine the exact station locations. The results can serve as a reference for the planning and optimization of public bicycle stations. A questionnaire survey was conducted in Beijing to determine users’ walking distances to the stations. The results indicated that the walking distance decay laws of stations were different for different land uses. Moreover, a binary logistic model was developed to verify that users with different travel purposes have different walking distances. Based on the above results, we explored the optimal distances and tolerable distances between the building entrance/exit and the station for different land uses. These distances can be used to determine exact station locations to meet users’ physiological and psychological needs. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Aim: We aimed to identify and evaluate the quality and evidence of the motor learning literature about intervention studies regarding the contextual interference (CI) effect (blocked vs. random practice order) in children with brain lesions and typically developing (TD) children. Method: Eight databases (Cinahl, Cochrane, Embase, PubMed, Pedro, PsycINFO, Scopus and Web of Knowledge) were searched systematically with predefined search terms. Controlled studies examining the CI effect in children (with brain lesions or TD) were included. Evidence level, conduct quality, and risk of bias were evaluated by two authors independently. A best evidence synthesis was performed. Results: Twenty-five papers evaluating TD children were included. One of these studies also assessed children with cerebral palsy. Evidence levels were I, II, or III. Conduct quality was low and the risk of bias high, due to methodological issues in the study designs or poor description thereof. Best evidence synthesis showed mainly no or conflicting evidence. Single tasks showed limited to moderate evidence supporting the CI effect in TD children. Conclusion: There is a severe limitation of good-quality evidence about the CI effect in children who practice different tasks in one session, especially in children with brain lesions. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Our aim was to develop a widely available educational program in which students conducted authentic research that met the expectations of both the scientific and educational communities. This paper describes the development and implementation of a citizen science project based on DNA barcoding of reptile specimens obtained from the Museums Victoria frozen tissue collection. The student program was run by the Gene Technology Access Centre (GTAC) and was delivered as a “one day plus one lesson” format incorporating a one-day wet laboratory workshop followed by a single lesson at school utilising online bioinformatics tools. The project leveraged the complementary resources and expertise of the research and educational partners to generate robust scientific data that could be analysed with confidence, meet the requirements of the Victorian state education curriculum, and provide participating students with an enhanced learning experience. During two 1-week stints in 2013 and 2014, 406 students mentored by 44 postgraduate university students participated in the project. Students worked mainly in pairs to process ~200 tissue samples cut from 53 curated reptile specimens representing 17 species. A total of 27 novel Cytochrome Oxidase subunit 1 (CO1) sequences were ultimately generated for 8 south-east Australian reptile species of the families Scincidae and Agamidae. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Agent-based models are a tool that can be used to better understand the dynamics of an infectious disease outbreak. An infectious disease outbreak is influenced by many factors including vaccination or immunity levels, population density, and the age structure of the population. We hypothesize that these factors along with interactions of factors and the actions of individuals would lead to outbreaks of different size and severity even in two towns that appear similar on paper. Thus, it is necessary to implement a model that is able to capture these interactions and the actions of individuals. Using openly available data we create a data-driven agent-based model to simulate the spread of an airborne infectious disease in an Irish town. Agent-based models have been known to produce results that include the emergence of patterns and behaviours that are not directly programmed into the model. Our model is tested by simulating an outbreak of measles that occurred in Schull, Ireland in 2012. We simulate the same outbreak in 33 different towns and look at the correlations between the model results and the town characteristics (population, area, vaccination rates, age structure) to determine if the results of the model are affected by interactions of those town characteristics and the decisions on the agents in the model. As expected our results show that the outbreaks are not strongly correlated with any of the main characteristics of the towns and thus the model is most likely capturing such interactions and the agent-based model is successful in capturing the differences in the outbreaks. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In this paper, we describe why and how to build a local community of practice in scientific programming for life scientists who use computers and programming in their research. A community of practice is a small group of scientists who meet regularly to help each other and promote good practices in scientific programming. While most life scientists are well trained in the laboratory to conduct experiments, good practices with (big) data sets and their analysis are often missing. We propose a model on how to build such a community of practice at a local academic institution, present two real-life examples, and introduce challenges and implemented solutions. We believe that the current data deluge that life scientists face can benefit from the implementation of these small communities. Good practices spread among experimental scientists will foster open, transparent, and sound scientific results beneficial to society. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background: Bhutan, a small land-locked country in the eastern Himalayas has been undergoing an epidemiological and nutritional transition in the last two decades. The objective of this paper was to determine the prevalence and explore the risk factors of self-reported diabetes among Bhutanese adults. Methods: We conducted a secondary data analysis among adults 18 years and older Bhutanese using the data from the National Health Survey 2012 (NHS, 2012) of Bhutan. The self-reported information on risk factors was obtained using standard protocols of the WHO STEPwise approach to Surveillance. The outcome of interest was self-reported diabetes on medication. Adjusted and unadjusted logistic regression analyses were performed to identify the risk factor of diabetes. Results: A total of 31,066 participants aged 18 years and older were included for the analysis. The prevalence of self-reported hypertension was 1.8% (491). Risk factors for diabetes were: age groups: 35–44 years adjusted odds ratio (AOR) = 2.82 (95% CI, 1.07, 7.41), 45–54 years AOR = 6.02 (95% CI, 2.29, 15.83), 55–64 year AOR = 15.7 (95% CI 5.93, 41.55) and >65 years AOR = 19.60 (95% CI, 6.93, 55.71); high school and diploma/certificate education AOR = 2.57, (95% CI 1.62, 4.07) and AOR = 3.92 (95% CI 1.70, 9.07); and urban dwellers AOR = 2.37, (95% 1.58, 3.57); hypertension AOR = 3.3, (95% CI 2.47, 4.41); and fruit servings of 1–3 per week AOR = 1.63 (95% CI 1.15, 2.31). Conclusion: The number of Bhutanese adults with diabetes and co-morbidities associated with it is likely to increase with the ageing of the population, nutrition transition, and high rural-urban migration in the near future. This calls for an urgent need to implement strategies to prevent diabetes in the Bhutanese population targeting risk factors including healthy lifestyle with increased physical activities and reduced smoking. At the same time treating other chronic morbidities including hypertension. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This study evaluated the effects of childhood experiences of parental corporal punishment (CP) and neglectful parenting (NP) on Japanese university students’ endorsement of parental CP (EPP) to discipline children, in relation to subjective happiness (SH). A total of 536 undergraduate students who showed no physical symptoms completed anonymous paper-based questionnaires addressing demographic characteristics, undergraduate classes, and recent health conditions on SF-8 (PCS, MCS). It was found that the proportions of participants who experienced pervasive CP and NP were larger in men than in women (36.5% vs. 19.4% for CP; 22.1% vs. 9.7% for NP). Multiple regression analyses (n = 346) revealed that the CP score was associated with positive EPP (β = 0.310, p < 0.001). Further, students whose major was nursery education reported significantly lower level of EPP; however, neither SH nor good recent health conditions significantly reduced EPP. The NP score was inversely associated with the SH score (β = -0.253, p < 0.001) (n = 346). In conclusion, childhood experiences of parental CP may affect adolescents’ views related to their own parenting. Further investigation using internationally comparable methodologies, especially in prospective cohort studies, is warranted, not only in Japan but also in other Asian countries. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In this paper I develop a model to reproduce the phenomenon of high intergenerational correlations in education observed in Latin American Countries. The model is based on empirical evidence and implemented through agent based modeling techniques. The effect of conditional cash transfer programs on educational mobility is then analyzed. The results suggest that conditional cash transfer program can substantially increase intergenerational mobility in education. I find that using parental education as eligibility criterion and adapting the subsidies to the income level can improve the efficiency of a program in increasing educational mobility as compared to a purely income based program. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Introduction: During the 2014 Ebola Virus Disease (EVD) epidemic, the Ebola-Tx trial evaluated the use of convalescent plasma (CP) in Guinea. The effectiveness of plasmapheresis trials depends on the recruitment of plasma donors. This paper describes what motivated or deterred EVD survivors to donate CP, providing insights for future plasmapheresis trials and epidemic preparedness. Methods: This qualitative study, part of Ebola-Tx, researched and addressed emergent trial difficulties through interviewing, participant observation and focus group discussions. Sampling was theoretical and retroductive analysis was done in NVivo 10. Results: Willingness or hesitance to participate in plasma donation depended on factors at the interface of pre-existing social dynamics; the impact of the disease and the consequent emergency response including the trial set-up. For volunteers, motivation to donate was mainly related to the feeling of social responsibility inspired by having survived EVD and to positive perceptions of plasmapheresis technology despite still unknown trial outcomes. Conversely, confidentiality concerns when volunteering due to stigmatization of survivors and perceived decrease in vital strength and in antibodies when donating, leading to fears of loss in protection against EVD, were main deterrents. The dynamic (dis)trust in Ebola Response Actors and in other survivors further determined willingness to participate and lead to the emergence/decline of rumours related to blood stealing and treatment effectiveness. Historic inter-ethnic relations in the health care setting further defined volunteering along socio-economic and ethnic lines. Finally, lack of follow-up and of dedicated care further impacted on motivation to volunteer. Conclusions: Ebola-Tx was the first trial to solicit and evaluate blood-product donation as an experimental treatment on a large scale in Sub-Saharan Africa. An effective donation system requires directly engaging with emergent social barriers and providing an effective ethical response, including improved and transparent communication, effective follow-up after donation, assuring confidentiality and determining ethical incentives. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Problem Solving (PS) skills allow students to handle problems within an educational context. PS is a core competence of Computer Science education and affects programming success. In this vein, this paper aims to investigate PS ability performance in primary school pupils of a computer course, implemented according to the Neo-Piagetian theory of cognitive development. The study included 945 Slovenian pupils, ranging from fourth to sixth grade. The effects of gender, age and consecutive years of attending the course were examined on pupils’ PS ability at the pre-operational and concrete operational stages. Pupils completed a survey questionnaire with four types of tasks (a series of statements, if-statements, loops and variables) at both stages. The analysis revealed three findings: the performance of PS ability in all tasks was, at the pre-operational stage, associated positively with performance at the concrete operational stage; there were no gender differences in PS performance at both stages, and both the grade and consecutive year of taking the computer course had an effect on PS ability performance at both stages. Those in the lowest grade and those taking the course for the first year reported lower performances than their older counterparts. These findings may help curriculum designers across the world develop efficient approaches to teaching computer courses. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The number of biomedical PhD scientists undergoing training and graduating far exceeds the number of academic faculty positions and academic research jobs. This trend compels biomedical PhD scientists to increasingly seek career paths outside of academia. Prior studies have used quantitative methodology to determine trends and outcomes of single factors contributing to this shift, but there is a literature gap in studies considering multiple factors and in qualitative work focusing on biomedical PhD scientists’ experiences and their processes of career navigation. This paper draws on a social cognitive career theory (SCCT) framework and incorporates case study data from a southeastern Tier 1 research university to explore a nexus of factors influencing PhD scientists’ employment sector preferences and job search processes. It simultaneously concludes that relationships with faculty, particularly the mentor advisor, are essential to the opportunities available to these professionals and to the career paths they choose. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Workshops are used to explore a specific topic, to transfer knowledge, to solve identified problems, or to create something new. In funded research projects and other research endeavours, workshops are the mechanism used to gather the wider project, community, or interested people together around a particular topic. However, natural questions arise: how do we measure the impact of these workshops? Do we know whether they are meeting the goals and objectives we set for them? What indicators should we use? In response to these questions, this paper will outline rules that will improve the measurement of the impact of workshops. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The loss of talented women from senior academic positions has partly resulted from a lower number of published papers and the accompanying reduced visibility of female compared to male scientists. The reasons for these gender-differences in authorship is unclear. One potential reason is a bias in the editorial and review process of scientific journals. We investigated whether patterns of authorship and editorial outcome were biased according to gender and geographic location in the Journal of Evolutionary Biology. Such potential bias may contribute to inequality in the field. We found patterns of gender differences in authorship, but this was unrelated to the editorial decision of whether to publish the manuscript. Female first-authors (the lead role) were six times less likely to be named as the corresponding author than male first-authors, and female first-authors were more likely to be displaced as corresponding authors by female co-authors than were male first-authors. We found an under-representation of female first- and last-authors compared to baseline populations of members of the European Society for Evolutionary Biology (which publishes the Journal of Evolutionary Biology) and of Evolutionary Biology faculty at the world top-10 universities for the Life Sciences. Also, manuscripts from Asia were five times more likely to be rejected on the final decision, independent of gender. Overall our results suggest that the peer review processes we investigated at the Journal of Evolutionary Biology are predominately gender-neutral, but not neutral to geographic location. Editorial gender-bias is thus unlikely to be a contributing factor to differences in authorship in this journal. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Collaboration among scientists has a major influence on scientific progress. Such collaboration often results from scientific meetings, where scientists gather to present and discuss their research and to meet potential collaborators. However, most scientific meetings have inherent biases, such as the availability of research funding or the selection bias of professional societies that make it difficult to study the effect of the meeting per se on scientific productivity. To evaluate the effects of scientific meetings on collaboration and progress independent of these biases, we conducted a study of the annual symposia held by the International Milk Genomics Consortium (IMGC) over a 12-year period. In our study, we conducted permutation testing to analyze the effectiveness of the IMGC in facilitating collaboration and productivity in a community of milk scientists who were meeting attendees relative to non-attendees. Using the number of co-authorships on published papers as a measure of collaboration, our analysis revealed that scientists who attended the symposium were associated with more collaboration than were scientists who did not attend. Furthermore, we evaluated the scientific progress of consortium attendees by analyzing publication rate and article impact. We found that IMGC attendees, in addition to being more collaborative, were also more productive and influential than were non-attendees who published in the same field. The results of our study suggest that the annual symposium encouraged interactions among disparate scientists and increased research productivity, exemplifying the positive effect of scientific meetings on both collaboration and progress. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background: Making inferences about measles distribution patterns at small area level is vital for more focal targeted intervention. However, in statistical literature, the analysis of originally collected data on one resolution with the purpose to make inferences on a different level of spatial resolution is referred to as the misalignment problem. In Namibia the measles data were available in aggregated format at regional level for the period 2005 to 2014. This leads to a spatial misalignment problem if the purpose is to make decisions at constituency level. Moreover, although data on risk covariates of measles could be obtained at constituency level, they were not available each year between 2005 and 2014. Thus, assuming that covariates were constant through the study period would induce measurement errors which might have effects on the analysis results. This paper presents a spatio-temporal model through a multi-step approach in order to deal with misalignment and measurement error. Methods: For the period 2005–2014, measles data from the Ministry of Health and Social Services (MoHSS) were analysed in two steps. First, a multi-step approach was applied to correct spatial misalignment in the data. Second, a classical measurement error model was fitted to account for measurement errors. The time effects were specified using a nonparametric formulation for the linear trend through first order random walk. An interaction between area and time was modelled through type I and type II interaction structures. Results: The study showed that there was high variation in measles risk across constituencies and as well as over the study period (2005–2014). Furthermore, the risk of measles was found to be associated with (i) the number of people aged between 0 and 24 years, (ii) the percentages of women aged 15–49 with an educational level more than secondary, (iii) the percentages of children age 12–23 months who received measles vaccine, (iv) the percentages of malnourished children under 5 years, and (vi) the measles cases for each previous year. Conclusion: The study showed some of the determinants of measles risk and revealed areas at high risk through disease mapping. Additionally, the study showed a non-linear temporal distribution of measles risk over the study period. Finally, it was shown that ignoring the measurement errors may yield misleading results. It was recommended that group and geographically targeted intervention, prevention and control strategies can be tailored on the basis these findings. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background: This investigation compared the perceived effectiveness of supportive counselling (SC) and prolonged exposure for adolescents (PE-A) by treatment users (adolescents with PTSD) and non-specialist treatment providers (supervised nurses). Method: Adolescent participants and nurse providers were purposively recruited to share their experiences of trial participation through face to face semi-structured in-depth interviews and treatment-specific focus groups (all recorded). Twelve adolescent participant transcripts (ten interviews and two focus groups) and three nurse provider transcripts were doubly transcribed. Thematic content analysis was applied using Atlas.ti software. Two emerging themes are presented in this paper: 1) Perceptions of the intervention and 2) Usefulness of the intervention. Results: Regardless of treatment arm, adolescents experienced warm counselling relationships and described the process of extending trust to the counselor. Adolescents in the PE-A arm provided clear descriptions of session structure and treatment rationale compared with adolescents receiving SC. The most helpful tools were breathing retraining and imaginal exposure for PE-A and creation of distraction strategies during non-directive SC. Adolescents in both arms continued to use the techniques acquired during treatment and reported symptom improvement. Participants who received SC acknowledged ongoing reexperiencing. Nurses perceived SC to be an immediately transferable skill, but feedback on their preference for one intervention over the other was inconclusive. Conclusion: Both PTSD treatment strategies, implemented by non-specialists, were perceived as helpful. Overall, adolescents reported warm therapeutic relationships and a reduction in PTSD symptoms. Nurses stated that they would require institutional support to ensure delivery of these interventions in a scalable and sustainable manner. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In the public transport industry, travellers’ perceived satisfaction is a key element in understanding their evaluation of, and loyalty to ridership. Despite its notable importance, studies of customer satisfaction are under-represented in the literature, and most previous studies are based on survey data collected from a single city only. This does not allow a comparison across different transport systems. To address this underrepresentation, this paper reports on a study of train passengers’ satisfaction with the fare paid for their most recent home-based train trip in five Australian capital cities: Sydney, Melbourne, Brisbane, Adelaide, and Perth. Two data sources are used: a nation-wide survey, and objective information on the train fare structure in each of the targeted cities. In particular, satisfaction with train fares is modelled as a function of socio-economic factors and train trip characteristics, using a random parameters ordered Logit model that accounts for unobserved heterogeneity in the population. Results indicate that gender, city of origin, transport mode from home to the train station, eligibility for either student or senior concession fare, one-way cost, and waiting time as well as five diverse interaction variables between city of origin and socio-economic factors are the key determinants of passenger satisfaction with train fares. In particular, this study reveals that female respondents tend to be less satisfied with their train fare than their male counterparts. Interestingly, respondents who take the bus to the train station tend to feel more satisfied with their fare compared with the rest of the respondents. In addition, notable heterogeneity is detected across respondents’ perceived satisfaction with train fare, specifically with regard to the one-way cost and the waiting time incurred. An intercity comparison reveals that a city’s train fare structure also affects a traveller’s perceived satisfaction with their train fare. The findings of this research are significant for both policy makers and transport operators, allowing them to understand traveller behaviours, and to subsequently formulate effective transit policies. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

With the booming development of evacuation simulation software, developing an extensive database in indoor scenarios for evacuation models is imperative. In this paper, we conduct a qualitative and quantitative analysis of the collected videotapes and aim to provide a complete and unitary database of pedestrians’ earthquake emergency response behaviors in indoor scenarios, including human-environment interactions. Using the qualitative analysis method, we extract keyword groups and keywords that code the response modes of pedestrians and construct a general decision flowchart using chronological organization. Using the quantitative analysis method, we analyze data on the delay time, evacuation speed, evacuation route and emergency exit choices. Furthermore, we study the effect of classroom layout on emergency evacuation. The database for indoor scenarios provides reliable input parameters and allows the construction of real and effective constraints for use in software and mathematical models. The database can also be used to validate the accuracy of evacuation models. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background: Childhood obesity rates have been rising rapidly in developing countries. A better understanding of the risk factors and social context is necessary to inform public health interventions and policies. This paper describes the validation of several measurement scales for use in Turkey, which relate to child and parent perceptions of physical activity (PA) and enablers and barriers of physical activity in the home environment. Method: The aim of this study was to assess the validity and reliability of several measurement scales in Turkey using a population sample across three socio-economic strata in the Turkish capital, Ankara. Surveys were conducted in Grade 4 children (mean age = 9.7 years for boys; 9.9 years for girls), and their parents, across 6 randomly selected schools, stratified by SES (n = 641 students, 483 parents). Construct validity of the scales was evaluated through exploratory and confirmatory factor analysis. Internal consistency of scales and test-retest reliability were assessed by Cronbach’s alpha and intra-class correlation. Results: The scales as a whole were found to have acceptable-to-good model fit statistics (PA Barriers: RMSEA = 0.076, SRMR = 0.0577, AGFI = 0.901; PA Outcome Expectancies: RMSEA = 0.054, SRMR = 0.0545, AGFI = 0.916, and PA Home Environment: RMSEA = 0.038, SRMR = 0.0233, AGFI = 0.976). The PA Barriers subscales showed good internal consistency and poor to fair test-retest reliability (personal α = 0.79, ICC = 0.29, environmental α = 0.73, ICC = 0.59). The PA Outcome Expectancies subscales showed good internal consistency and test-retest reliability (negative α = 0.77, ICC = 0.56; positive α = 0.74, ICC = 0.49). Only the PA Home Environment subscale on support for PA was validated in the final confirmatory model; it showed moderate internal consistency and test-retest reliability (α = 0.61, ICC = 0.48). Discussion: This study is the first to validate measures of perceptions of physical activity and the physical activity home environment in Turkey. Our results support the originally hypothesized two-factor structures for Physical Activity Barriers and Physical Activity Outcome Expectancies. However, we found the one-factor rather than two-factor structure for Physical Activity Home Environment had the best model fit. This study provides general support for the use of these scales in Turkey in terms of validity, but test-retest reliability warrants further research. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Low numeracy may skew patient perceptions of information about cancer. This paper examines the relationship between self-reported measures of perceived numeracy and cancer knowledge, beliefs, and affect, using results from 3,052 respondents to the 2007 Health Information National Trends Survey (HINTS-3). Chi-squared tests were used to identify differences in responses between high- and low-numeracy groups using three measures of perceived numeracy. Multivariable logistic regression models were used to evaluate the association between the three perceived numeracy measures and cancer information overload, cancer fatalism, cancer prevention knowledge, and cancer worry. Respondents with low perceived numeracy as expressed by discomfort with medical statistics were more likely to report information overload, to display fatalistic attitudes towards cancer, to lack knowledge about cancer prevention, and to indicate that they worried about cancer more frequently. After controlling for sociodemographic characteristics, this measure of perceived numeracy remained significantly associated with information overload, fatalism, lower prevention knowledge, and worry. The other measures of perceived numeracy, which measured understanding and use of health statistics, were not associated with cancer perceptions. Our findings suggest that individuals with low perceived numeracy broadly differ from individuals with high perceived numeracy in their perceptions of cancer and cancer prevention. By improving our understanding of how perceived numeracy affects patient perceptions of cancer, health providers can improve educational strategies and targeted health messaging. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In this paper we report an initial validation of the Shape Trail Test–Child Version (STT-CV) with a non-clinical sample of children aged 6 to 9 years. The STT-CV has been developed as an age-appropriate and culturally fair direct downward extension of the Trail Making Test (TMT) for the assessment of cognitive flexibility. Children completed the STT-CV and four established measures of executive functions that assessed working memory, inhibitory control and task switching. Results showed the expected age-based differences in completion times for both parts of the STT-CV (Trail A and Trail B). Children’s performance on the STT-CV correlated significantly with all four measures of executive functions. After controlling for the effects of chronological age, completion times for Trail B remained correlated with most other measures of executive functions. These findings provide emerging evidence for the utility of the STT-CV, and highlight the need for designing and using appropriate variants of the TMT in the behavioural assessment of cognitive flexibility in developmentally and culturally diverse populations. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

While numerous papers have illuminated the worthiness of research collaboration, relatively few have addressed its prerequisites. In our study, seven prerequisites for research collaboration were extracted from the existing literature, and 460 student researchers were surveyed for their perceptions of the prerequisites’ importance. Focusing on voluntary research collaborations rather than brokered ones, it was found that socially oriented prerequisites such as reciprocal interactions, accountability, trust, and equality are perceived of more importance than prerequisites of psychical proximity, networking channels, and funds and material supplies (substance- and entity-related prerequisites). With latent regression analyses, we also found that Chinese and older, more experienced researchers are inclined to stress the importance of equality. Researchers of different cohorts prioritise substance- and entity-related prerequisites disparately. Specifically, Chinese researchers emphasise the necessity of funds, while researchers from first-tier universities place more value on networking channels. Disciplinary differences for the prerequisite of proximity were also discovered. Based on these results, discussion and implications were referred. Further suggestions on research collaboration studies are rendered. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Active learning is a pedagogical approach that involves students engaging in collaborative learning, which enables them to take more responsibility for their learning and improve their critical thinking skills. While prior research examined student performance at majority universities, this study focuses on specifically Historically Black Colleges and Universities (HBCUs) for the first time. Here we present work that focuses on the impact of active learning interventions at Florida A&M University, where we measured the impact of active learning strategies coupled with a SCALE-UP (Student Centered Active Learning Environment with Upside-down Pedagogies) learning environment on student success in General Biology. In biology sections where active learning techniques were employed, students watched online videos and completed specific activities before class covering information previously presented in a traditional lecture format. In-class activities were then carefully planned to reinforce critical concepts and enhance critical thinking skills through active learning techniques such as the one-minute paper, think-pair-share, and the utilization of clickers. Students in the active learning and control groups covered the same topics, took the same summative examinations and completed identical homework sets. In addition, the same instructor taught all of the sections included in this study. Testing demonstrated that these interventions increased learning gains by as much as 16%, and students reported an increase in their positive perceptions of active learning and biology. Overall, our results suggest that active learning approaches coupled with the SCALE-UP environment may provide an added opportunity for student success when compared with the standard modes of instruction in General Biology. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]