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Machiavellianism is an antisocial interpersonal style involving the use of manipulative, deceptive, and coercive behaviors in the pursuit of self-interest. Although widely studied as a "dark" personality trait in adults, relatively little is known about the developmental correlates of Machiavellian tendencies earlier in life. The present study addressed this knowledge gap by examining associations between Machiavellian behavior and three theoretically relevant social-emotional domains-prosocial emotions, emotion recognition skills, and self-control--in a community sample of 7- and 11-year-old Canadian children (N = 300, 50% female). Of particular interest was the extent to which individual differences in social-emotional capacities were uniquely associated with Machiavellian behavior after controlling for aggression, a relatively well-studied antisocial behavior in childhood. Parents reported on children's Machiavellian behavior and aggression. Social-emotional correlates were assessed via parent and child reports, behavioral tasks, and physiological assessments. Machiavellian behavior and aggression were similarly associated with lower parent-reported prosocial emotions and self-control. Machiavellian (but not aggressive) behavior was associated with lower child-reported guilt (a prosocial emotion), higher resting skin conductance levels (reflecting a general tendency for higher arousal), and better anger recognition. Semipartial correlational analyses indicated that these patterns of association with Machiavellian behaviors held independent of aggression. These findings indicate that, by middle childhood, Machiavellian behavior constitutes a distinct form of antisocial conduct that is associated with a unique social-emotional risk profile.

Universities across Canada and elsewhere have a longstanding focus on improving students' writing skills, including for the purpose of fostering better learning. In this paper, we present findings from two sources of data--a discursive analysis and student survey--exploring the impact of writing instruction and support in the context of a required social science research methods course. The course is situated in an institutional context whereby specific courses are targeted for writing support through the provision of additional funds. The results indicate that the structure of the course-- featuring components like tutorials and scaffolded assignment design--facilitates gains in student writing. The discursive analysis shows improvements across the three assignments submitted throughout the term and a positive impact of tutorial attendance. The survey indicates that students have an overall positive impression of the supports designed specifically with the learning of writing and research skills in mind.

Teachers may be encouraged to follow a prescribed curriculum when teaching social and emotional learning (SEL), and varied research findings attest to the efficacy of this approach in fostering students' social and emotional competencies. An alternative approach might see teachers create SEL initiatives and infuse, embed, or integrate SEL into core teaching content. This case study explored how, when asked to foster social and emotional learning within their schools, 16 SEL teachers created learning opportunities for students to bolster their social and emotional skills. Teachers were asked to first define SEL and then to create portfolios showcasing three of their SEL lessons or initiatives. Content analysis of definitions revealed that teachers largely defined SEL as fostering students' self-awareness and self-management. Content analysis of each of the teachers' lessons indicated that the learning opportunities or initiatives that teachers introduced were predominantly social in nature and oftentimes focused on having students practice emotion regulation strategies. Findings inform our understanding of the perceptions and actualizations of SEL in applied contexts.

There is a strong and growing focus on self-determination in French-speaking countries, and this pilot study reports the technical adequacy of the Self-Determination Inventory: Student Report (SDI:SR) French Translation. Data were collected with 471 French-speaking youth with and without disabilities in Canada (Quebec), Switzerland, France, and Belgium. Key findings showed it was feasible to use 20 (of 21) items to represent the self-determination construct in the French-speaking sample. The same set of items function in the same way across students with and without disabilities, and students with disabilities descriptively scored lower. Overall, this study provides promising evidence for reliability and validity of the SDI:SR French Translation and suggests ongoing development and larger-scale testing of the SDI:SR French Translation is warranted.

News media literacy education is gaining increased attention in the age of fake news and post-truth America. However, as with any pedagogical goal, it is important to be able to evaluate the success of the delivery. In a survey built on existing news literacy frameworks, 1476 students at a large Canadian polytechnic answered questions about their own news literacy, fake news acumen, and news consumption habits. Analysis of the data suggests that conscientious fake-news attitudes and behaviors are correlated with an existing news media literacy scale, providing a method of evaluating the success of fake news education efforts.

In recognition, context effects often manifest as higher hit and false-alarm rates to probes tested in an old context compared with probes tested in a new context; sometimes, this concordant effect is accompanied by a discrimination advantage. According to the cue-overload account of context effects (Rutherford, 2004), context acts like any other cue, and thus context effects should be larger with lighter context loads. Conversely, the Item, Associated Context, and Ensemble (ICE) account (Murnane et al., 1999) attributes context effects to two factors: subjects erroneously attributing context familiarity to the probe, and the formation of ensembles (mnemonic combinations of item and context). Context familiarity increases as exposure at study increases, and thus ICE predicts larger effects of context as context load increases. Relatedly, ICE predicts larger effects of context as context meaningfulness increases, as meaningful contexts are more likely to be bound to the target in an ensemble. In Experiments 1 and 2, rather than manipulate context load during the study phase, we relied on subjects' preexperimental context exposure to manipulate context load. Subjects studied words superimposed on photographs of their university campus or another university campus. At test, targets and distractors were evenly divided between study and novel contexts and between familiar and unfamiliar contexts. In Experiment 3, we manipulated context familiarity within the experimental session. Results supported ICE, suggesting that context does not act as a retrieval cue in recognition.

STEM-related educational outreach offers students enriching opportunities to become more familiar with science, in terms of how it relates to their daily lives and with respect to possible career paths that they might want to follow. At the same time, graduate student trainees providing that outreach act as important resources for elementary and high school teachers while they hone their teaching skills and build confidence in the classroom. In this paper, six graduate students and recent graduates share their experiences with a variety of outreach programs that link young people with science in both Canada and the United States.

First-year seminars that teach foundational academic skills are common in universities around the world, but few studies have been conducted to determine whether the specific skills students develop in these courses transfer to other academic contexts. Our research presents a case study that addresses this gap by measuring students' perceptions of the impact of a first-year seminar on the development of their test-preparation and test-taking skills. Interviews were conducted with 12 students who participated in a 90-minute module focusing on test-wiseness, retrieval practice, and strategies for studying for high-stakes multiple-choice question tests. We describe the module and summarize students' perceptions of this intervention. Students perceived the test-preparation and test-taking module to be effective and reported improved academic performance as well as enhanced self-efficacy. Students also reported transferring their test-preparation and test-taking skills to other contexts.

Engaging and motivating students in undergraduate statistics courses can be enhanced by using topical peer-reviewed publications for analyses as part of course assignments. Given the popularity of on-campus therapy dog stress-reduction programs, this topic fosters buy-in from students whilst providing information regarding the importance of mental health and well-being as it impacts learning. This article describes how instructors can use a study on the benefits of human-dog interactions to teach students about study design, data collection and ethics, and hypothesis testing. The data and research questions are accessible to students without requiring detailed subject-area knowledge. Students can think carefully about how to collect and analyze data from a randomized controlled trial with two-sample hypothesis tests. Instructors can use these data for short in-class examples or longer assignments and assessments, and throughout this article, we suggest activities and discussion questions. Supplementary materials for this article are available online.

Service learning opportunities allow students to apply their knowledge and skills through engagement with their community. Previous studies have suggested that student-led exercise testing and health screening can benefit both students and their community participants. In a third-year kinesiology course, "Physiological Assessment and Training," students at the University of Prince Edward Island are provided with an introduction to health-focused personal training and develop and manage personalized training programs for community volunteers. The purpose of this study was to investigate the impact of student-led training programs on student learning. A secondary purpose was to investigate the perceptions of community members participating in the program. Community participants included 13 men and 43 women with stable health (mean age: 52.3 ± 10.0 yr). Students led participants through aerobic and musculoskeletal fitness tests before and after completion of a 4-wk student-designed training program based on participants' fitness and interests. Students reported that the program was enjoyable and improved understanding of fitness concepts and confidence in personal training. Community participants rated the programs as enjoyable and appropriate and viewed students as professional and knowledgeable. These results suggest that student-led personal training programs provide meaningful benefits to students and their community volunteers.

Many post-secondary institutions are developing policies and programs aimed at improving responses to sexual assault experienced by students. In some areas, such as Ontario, Canada, the government has mandated post-secondary institutions to do so. However significant these initiatives, they are predicated on the assumption that students trust, and want to engage with, the university following sexual violence. This study explores students' perceptions of sexual assault policies and services on one mid-size university campus focusing specifically on how trust factors into reporting sexual victimization and using services. Findings show that students believe that sexual assault policies and programs exist, but this does not mean students are willing to use such resources or that they even trust that their university has students' needs and interests at the fore. This paper discusses policy and programmatic considerations for building student trust in their post-secondary institutions to encourage student use of campus support.

A current trend in kindness research is to assess the effect of being kind on participants' well-being. To do this, participants are asked to complete a series of kind acts and the corresponding impact on their well-being is measured. As participation in school-based interventions can vary, the aim of the current study was to assess the extent of adolescents' engagement in a kindness intervention and the resultant effect on their well-being. An intervention study was conducted in which 383 sixth through eighth graders planned and completed three kind acts per week for four weeks, with pre- and post-test assessments of well-being administered. Adolescents' acts of kindness reflected the themes of helping with chores, being respectful, complimenting/ encouraging others, and giving objects or money. No significant differences between control and intervention groups at post-test on any well-being measures were found, after controlling for pre-test scores. However, upon analysis of participants' engagement in the intervention (intervention uptake), it was determined that half of the participants (n=87) implemented less than 60% of their kindness intervention. Participants were thus clustered into three groups: zero, low, and high implementers. ANCOVAs revealed that high implementers had the lowest self-reported negative affect and highest self-reported kindness to others. Implications for adolescent prosocial development are discussed.

Attending university can present a host of challenges for undergraduate students and the mental health of students has increasingly become a concern as students struggle to meet the demands of new academic and social expectations. Despite several studies assessing the effects of being kind on well-being, there remains a dearth of research identifying how students understand and enact kindness. The aims of this study were to integrate a kindness assignment into undergraduate coursework, to explore how students define and enact kindness, and to examine how being kind impacted students' perceptions of themselves, their peers, and their campus. Students were asked to complete a series of five kind acts and administered a series of pre- and post-assignment measures and open-ended prompts. Consistent with our hypotheses, participants who completed at least 3 of the 5 planned acts of kindness reported significantly higher scores on measures of in-person kindness (d = 0.46, p = 0.04) and peer connectedness (d = 0.46, p = 0.04). Participants did not, however, report significantly higher scores on measures of self-perceived online kindness (d = 0.12, p = 0.59) or on their perception of the kindness of their campus community (d = 0.09, p = 0.68). Participants in this study planned a total of 492 acts, which were coded using content analysis. The salient themes in kind acts were "Helping Others," "Giving," "Demonstrating Appreciation," and "Communicating." This study demonstrated that a curriculum-based kindness intervention was well received by students and resulted in students performing varied acts of kindness that positively impacted their self-ratings of kindness and peer connectedness.

This study explored children's perceptions of a canine-assisted social-emotional learning program developed within the framework of a canine therapy program at a mid-sized Canadian university. Data collection made use of interviews, field notes, and observations. Children (N = 8, 5-11 years) from an after-school program participated in a six-week intervention after which participants were interviewed about their experiences in the program, their learning of social and emotional competencies, and the role of the therapy dogs in facilitating their socioemotional development. Using conventional content analysis, salient themes reflecting participants' experiences were identified. A within-case analysis was conducted followed by a cross-case analysis to identify what participants collectively saw as important. Salient themes to emerge through cross-case analysis were: 1) the dogs were meaningful and essential to the program, 2) it was an enjoyable and positive experience, and 3) participants reported evidence of social-emotional learnings. Evidence from this study suggests that the therapy dogs might have provided behavioral and emotional support. Findings suggest that integrating therapy dogs into social and emotional learning initiatives can provide unique advantages and improve children's engagement and learning of social and emotional skills. Findings are discussed within the context of human-animal interactions and social and emotional education.

The aim of this research was to examine kindergarten to 12th grade teachers' (N = 257) perceptions of school kindness. Teachers were asked to define kindness, provide examples of kindness they had done and received, identify key agents of kindness, and rate the quality of kind acts within their schools. Findings indicate that teachers define and enact kindness in comparable ways, that most teachers believe they have a strong to moderate influence on shaping students' kindness, and that teachers' perceptions of school kindness varies as a function of the grade they taught.

This study investigates the relationship of students' participation in peer-led Supplemental Instruction groups, called facilitated study groups (FSGs), with their academic performance and years to graduation. In 2017, the full academic records of about 2,400 students who started university between 2005 and 2007 and took Psychology 100 (PSY100) during their first year were analyzed. Students who attended two or more FSG sessions received about 5% higher marks in PSY100 than those who did not, after controlling for gender and tuition status (domestic or international). Students with higher PSY100 marks took less time to graduate and were more likely to have graduated by 2016. After controlling for gender, tuition status, and marks in PSY100, however, no relationship was found between FSG participation and degree completion time.

This study examined the course and correlates of the happy victimizer tendency--the expectation that harming others to achieve a goal will result in positive emotional outcomes for the transgressor--from 4 to 6 years of age in a community sample of Canadian children (N = 150; 50% female; Time 1 M[subscript age] = 4.53 years, SD = 0.30; 33% European background). At each time point, we conducted semistructured interviews with children to assess their emotion expectancies and reasoning in response to hypothetical acts of aggression. Caregivers (84% mothers; 91% college diploma or higher; 41% yearly household income [greater than or equal to]$125,000 CAD [approximately $90,500 USD]) provided ratings of children's inhibitory control and sympathy at study onset. Most 4-year-old children expected to feel good after victimizing others, but this tendency declined through age 6. Children higher in sympathy were less likely to happy victimize at age 4, whereas greater inhibitory control predicted faster decreases in happy victimizing over time.

Graduation from high school is a tremendous achievement and requires perseverance, determination and the ability to retain information from the various courses and subject areas throughout this journey. Teachers, parents, and peers play an important role in helping a student to attain their maximum potential. Every student has different strengths and weaknesses and every path to success is unique. Teachers need to engage the different learners in the classroom, and use their peers and parents to help support them through the educational process.

Radiology departments are increasingly tasked with managing growing demands on services including long waitlists for scanning and interventional procedures, human health resource shortages, equipment needs, and challenges incorporating advanced imaging solutions. The burden of system inefficiencies and the overuse of "low-value" imaging causes downstream impact on patients at the individual level, the economy and healthcare system at the societal level, and planetary health at an overarching level. Low value imaging includes those performed for an inappropriate clinical indication, with little to no value to the management of the patient, and resulting in healthcare resource waste; it is estimated that up to a quarter of advanced imaging studies in Canada meet this criterion. Strategies to reduce low-value imaging include the development and use of referral guidelines, use of appropriateness criteria, optimization of existing protocols, and integration of clinical decision support tools into the ordering provider's workflow. Additional means of optimizing system efficiency such as centralized intake models, improved access to electronic medical records and outside imaging, enhanced communication with patients and referrers, and the utilization of artificial intelligence will further increase the value of radiology provided to patients and care providers. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Educators and parents alike have high expectations that adolescents behave prosocially and, within the context of schools, this is evident in curriculum grounded in social and emotional learning and in kindness-themed school-wide initiatives. Despite this emphasis on kindness, relatively little is empirically known about how adolescents enact kindness. To understand just how adolescents demonstrate kindness, a study of 191 ninth graders was conducted in which students were asked to plan and complete five kind acts. In addition to planning and doing acts of kindness, participants were asked to rate their face-to-face and online kindness, report the number of kind acts they completed, identify the recipients of their acts, and assess the quality of their kind acts. At post-test, participants' self-ratings of both face-to-face and online kindness were significantly higher than their pre-test ratings. Only one third of participants completed all of their kind acts, most participants chose familiar others as the recipients of their kindness, and the bulk of participants rated their acts of kindness as medium quality on a low-medium-high scale. The kind acts done by participants reflected the themes of "helping with chores," "being respectful," "complimenting/encouraging others," and "giving objects or money." Implications for educators and parents are discussed.

Economically disadvantaged children often lack the resources to purchase popular goods and participate in their preferred social groups' activities, making it difficult to fit in. Meanwhile, children from middle socioeconomic status (SES) families may have additional influence over whether low SES children are included in such groups. We examined how a middle SES sample of 333 4- and 8-year-olds felt and reasoned about excluding a child who is economically disadvantaged (i.e., a needy child) versus a child who attends another school (i.e., a less needy child). We also examined whether children's dispositional sympathy was associated with their negatively valenced moral emotions (NVMEs) after hypothetically excluding. Older children reported feeling more NVMEs for both targets of exclusion. Furthermore, unlike 4-year-olds, 8-year-olds differentiated between the targets of exclusion by reporting more NVMEs after excluding a child who is economically disadvantaged. Lastly, children's sympathy was positively associated with their NVMEs after excluding a child who is economically disadvantaged but not a child who attends another school. We conclude that with increasing sympathy and age, children likely become more sensitive to the needs of their disadvantaged peers--an effect with meaningful implications for improving peer relationships across socioeconomic spheres.

The aim of this exploratory study was to examine fourth to eighth graders' conceptualizations of kindness at school (i.e., their definition of kindness, an example of an act of kindness they have done, who they see as the most salient adult agent of kindness, and which location they deem that kindness happens most). To date, kindness research has focused predominantly on assessing the effects of being kind on student well-being and little is known about how students understand kindness and are kind in school. Across definitions and examples of kindness, the themes of helping others, showing respect, and encouraging others were prevalent. Teachers and principals were identified as the main adult agents of kindness; the classroom and outside/playground were identified as the two main kindness locations. Understanding how students conceptualize kindness within the school context holds implications for educators seeking to foster prosocial behavior among students.

Despite the well-established protective functions of guilt across childhood, its underlying physiological mechanisms have received little attention. We used latent difference scores (LDS) to model changes in children's (N = 267; 4- and 8-year-olds, 51% girls) skin conductance (SC) and respiratory sinus arrhythmia (RSA) while they imagined themselves committing antisocial acts. We then tested if their later reports of guilt, caregiver-reported aggressive behavior, and age were associated with these physiological changes. For 8-year-olds, changes in RSA leading up to and during transgressions were uniquely associated with the intensity of guilt feelings after transgressions. Eight-year-olds with higher guilt were rated lower in aggression, although children's physiology and aggression were not directly related. We discuss how fluctuations in physiology while transgressing may prepare children to mount adaptive guilt responses afterward and--more broadly--implications for understanding the mechanisms behind guilt and related behavior in early and middle childhood.

Expeditions inspire people to reach beyond themselves. Today, post-secondary education requires as much planning as any expedition. However, there has been a trend that has seen just over half of all high school students in Ontario going on to post-secondary education. While some people have barely noticed this statistic, the OECD has released a projection that has many in business, education and government paying attention: more than 70% of all jobs in 2012 will require post-secondary education. Certainly, jobs that have decent pay, security and flexibility will demand post-secondary education. Post-secondary education used to translate directly into a profession or a specific career field. It was accepted that by taking a program at a college or university, a person would enter a specific sector of the economy: manufacturing, hospitality, health, education, engineering, technology, law. Today, this is not the case for most students: The river landscape has altered and what was once a stream with two banks is now a deep canyon with impressive and imposing mountainous walls. However, this erosion--caused by the combined effect of international competition, increased levels of education, and highly-skilled workers immigrating--did not occur in the past five years. This shift in the landscape has taken the last fifty years and economists, businesses and educators have all watched the erosion take place. In this article, the authors present an analysis of current Canadian post-secondary education. (Contains 9 notes.)

Introduction: Disparities in clinical trials (CTs) enrollment perpetuate inequities in treatment access and outcomes, but there is a paucity of Canadian data. The objective of this study was to examine disparities in cancer CT enrollment at a large Canadian comprehensive cancer center. Methods: Retrospective study of CT enrollment among new patient consultations from 2006 to 2019, with follow‐up to 2021 (N = 154,880), with the primary outcome of enrollment as a binary variable. Factors associated with CT enrollment were evaluated using multivariable Bayesian hierarchical logistic regression with random effects for most responsible physician (MRP) and geography, adjusted for patient characteristics (sex, age, language, geography, and primary care provider [PCP]), area‐level marginalization (residential instability, material deprivation, dependency, and ethnic concentration), disease (cancer site and stage), and MRP (department, sex, language, and training). A sensitivity analysis of the cumulative incidence of enrollment was conducted to account for differences in disease type and follow‐up length. Results: CT enrollment was 11.2% overall, with a 15‐year cumulative incidence of 18%. Lower odds of enrollment were observed in patients who were female (adjusted odds ratio [AOR], 0.82; 95% confidence interval [CI], 0.78–0.86), ≥65 years (AOR vs. <40, 0.61; 95% CI, 0.56–0.66), non‐English speakers (0.72; 95% CI, 0.67–0.77), living ≥250 km away (AOR vs. <15 km, 0.71; 95% CI, 0.62–0.80), and without a PCP. Disease characteristics accounted for the largest proportion of observed variation (20.8%), with significantly greater odds of enrollment in patients with genitourinary cancers and late‐stage disease. Conclusion: Significant sociodemographic disparities were observed, suggesting the need for targeted strategies to increase diversity in access to cancer CTs in Canada. This study analyzed disparities in clinical trial enrollment among 154,880 patients treated over a 15‐year period at the largest comprehensive cancer center in Canada. Significant disparities were identified over several sociodemographic domains, including age, sex, language, and marginalization, which have not significantly improved over time. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background: Laboratory test overuse in hospitals is a form of healthcare waste that also harms patients. Developing and evaluating interventions to reduce this form of healthcare waste is critical. We detail the protocol for our study which aims to implement and evaluate the impact of an evidence-based, multicomponent intervention bundle on repetitive use of routine laboratory testing in hospitalized medical patients across adult hospitals in the province of British Columbia, Canada. Methods: We have designed a stepped-wedge cluster randomized trial to assess the impact of a multicomponent intervention bundle across 16 hospitals in the province of British Columbia in Canada. We will use the Knowledge to Action cycle to guide implementation and the RE-AIM framework to guide evaluation of the intervention bundle. The primary outcome will be the number of routine laboratory tests ordered per patient-day in the intervention versus control periods. Secondary outcome measures will assess implementation fidelity, number of all common laboratory tests used, impact on healthcare costs, and safety outcomes. The study will include patients admitted to adult medical wards (internal medicine or family medicine) and healthcare providers working in these wards within the participating hospitals. After a baseline period of 24 weeks, we will conduct a 16-week pilot at one hospital site. A new cluster (containing approximately 2–3 hospitals) will receive the intervention every 12 weeks. We will evaluate the sustainability of implementation at 24 weeks post implementation of the final cluster. Using intention to treat, we will use generalized linear mixed models for analysis to evaluate the impact of the intervention on outcomes. Discussion: The study builds upon a multicomponent intervention bundle that has previously demonstrated effectiveness. The elements of the intervention bundle are easily adaptable to other settings, facilitating future adoption in wider contexts. The study outputs are expected to have a positive impact as they will reduce usage of repetitive laboratory tests and provide empirically supported measures and tools for accomplishing this work. Trial Registration: This study was prospectively registered on April 8, 2024, via ClinicalTrials.gov Protocols Registration and Results System (NCT06359587). https://classic.clinicaltrials.gov/ct2/show/NCT06359587?term=NCT06359587&recrs=ab&draw=2&rank=1 [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper is aimed at understanding the language policy of Japanese ethnic churches and the legitimization of church member identities in the midst of dominant languages in Canada. While church members often construct Japanese ethnic Christian churches with 'grassroots' language policies that seem to legitimize their Japanese language and cultural identities and practices, their membership to their churches and their Christian faith often leads them to experiencing legitimization as Christians in solidarity with other Christians in the world (Takamizawa in "Torch Trinity J" 4(4):34-45, 2001). Using theoretical descriptions of language planning and policy, I discuss the scholarship of ethnic church studies, kokusaika and nihonjinron discourses, and groupism as described in frame theory (Nakane in "Japanese society." University of California Press, Berkeley, CA, 1970), as a framework to contextualize church member experiences and perceptions in the macro-, meso-, and micro-levels of language policy of Japanese ethnic churches in Canada. I use Critical Discourse Analysis (Fairclough in "Analysing discourse: textual analysis for social research." Routledge, London, 2003) to analyze relevant language policies and interview texts that reveal the perceptions of Japanese ethnic Christian church members from three churches in Western Canada.

In the absence of sport psychology resources for Masters Athletes, mental performance consultants could benefit from information to assist consultancy with older adult athletes. We conducted semistructured interviews to explore 10 Canadian professional mental performance consultants' (two men and eight women) perspectives of targeted content and the nature of service delivery to Masters Athletes. Following inductive thematic analysis, results for Content of Sport Psychology related to performance readiness (e.g., preparatory routines, mental focus plans); prioritizing sport (e.g., balance/time management, recruiting social support); preserving sport enjoyment (e.g., self-reflection, gratitude/sport as opportunity); and age-related considerations (e.g., managing changing physical realities). Results pertaining to Addressing and Delivering Sport Psychology Services included considerations toward age-related attributes (e.g., values/identity, engaged/invested clients) and accommodating barriers/constraints (e.g., time, stigma). Our results show there are novel considerations when consulting with Masters Athletes, and we discuss what these findings mean for adult-oriented approaches in applied practice. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The orange wheat blossom midge, Sitodiplosis mosellana (Géhin) (Diptera: Cecidomyiidae), is a significant wheat pest in the Prairie Provinces of Canada and northern regions of the USA. Wheat phenology plays a critical role in wheat midge oviposition. We hypothesized that S. mosellana oviposition behaviour is influenced by volatile organic compounds (VOCs) emitted by wheat at two adjacent wheat growth stages: preanthesis and postanthesis. A higher number of S. mosellana eggs laid on preanthesis than postanthesis spikes in an oviposition choice experiment using the susceptible spring wheat cultivar 'Roblin'. In preanthesis, wheat emitted higher amounts of Z-3-hexenyl acetate (Z3-06:OAc) than at the postanthesis stage. Higher amounts of methyl ketones such as 2-tridecanone, 2-pentadecanone, and 2-undecanone were emitted by wheat in the postanthesis stage and these VOCs were sensitive to S. mosellana antennae used in the Gas Chromatography-Electroantennographic Detection. Females were attracted to synthetic Z3-06:OAc but were deterred by 2-tridecanone relative to the solvent control in the vertical Y-tube olfactometer. 2-Undecanone and 2-pentadecanone did not show any attractiveness or deterrence. In a no-choice oviposition experiment, fewer eggs were laid in preanthesis wheat exposed to a synthetic VOC blend of Z3-06:OAc, 2-undecanone, 2-tridecanone, and 2-pentadecanone at the concentrations released by postanthesis spikes. This study shows that the reduction of Z3-06:OAc, in the VOC mix, and possibly the increase in 2-tridecanone, are likely responsible for the reduction in oviposition on postanthesis wheat. These results elucidate for the first time the role of specific VOCs mediating S. mosellana oviposition in preanthesis and postanthesis wheat. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background The cascade of care, commonly used to assess HIV and hepatitis C (HCV) health service delivery, has limitations in capturing the complexity of individuals' engagement patterns. This study examines the dynamic nature of engagement and mortality trajectories among people with HIV and HCV. Methods We used data from the Canadian HIV-HCV Co-Infection Cohort, which prospectively follows 2098 participants from 18 centers biannually. Markov multistate models were used to evaluate sociodemographic and clinical factors associated with transitioning between the following states: (1) lost-to-follow-up (LTFU), defined as no visit for 18 months; (2) reengaged (reentry into cohort after being LTFU); (3) withdrawn from the study (ie, moved); (4) death; otherwise remained (5) engaged-in-care. Results A total of 1809 participants met the eligibility criteria and contributed 12 591 person-years from 2003 to 2022. LTFU was common, with 46% experiencing at least 1 episode, of whom only 57% reengaged. One in 5 (n = 383) participants died during the study. Participants who transitioned to LTFU were twice as likely to die as those who were consistently engaged. Factors associated with transitioning to LTFU included detectable HCV RNA (adjusted hazards ratio [aHR], 1.37; 95% confidence interval [CI], 1.13–1.67), evidence of HCV treatment but no sustained virologic response result (aHR, 1.99; 95% CI, 1.56–2.53), and recent incarceration (aHR, 1.94; 95% CI, 1.58–2.40). Being Indigenous was a significant predictor of death across all engagement trajectories. Interpretation Disengagement from clinical care was common and resulted in higher death rates. People LTFU were more likely to require HCV treatment highlighting a priority population for elimination strategies. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background: Preoperative very low energy diet (VLED) interventions are used routinely in patients undergoing bariatric surgery, a surgical subspecialty that deals almost exclusively with patients with obesity. Yet, their use and study has been limited in non-bariatric abdominal surgery. To investigate the use of VLEDs in non-bariatric surgery, we plan on conducting a randomized controlled trial (RCT). Prior to proceeding, however, we have designed two surveys as important pre-emptive studies aimed at elucidating patient and provider perspectives regarding these interventions. Methods: The patient survey is a cross-sectional, single-center survey aimed at assessing the safety, adherence, barriers to adherence, and willingness to participate in preoperative optimization protocols with VLEDs prior to undergoing elective non-bariatric intra-abdominal surgery (S1 File). The population of interest is all adult patients with obesity undergoing elective non-bariatric intra-abdominal surgery at St. Joseph's Healthcare Hamilton who were prescribed a course of preoperative VLED. The primary outcomes will be safety and adherence. The target sample size is 35 survey responses. The provider survey is a cross-sectional national survey of practicing surgeons in Canada who perform major non-bariatric abdominal surgery aimed assessing the willingness and ability to prescribe preoperative weight loss interventions amongst practicing Canadian surgeons who perform major non-bariatric abdominal surgery (S2 File). The population of interest is independent practicing surgeons in Canada who perform major non-bariatric abdominal surgery. The primary outcome will be willingness to prescribe preoperative VLED to patients with obesity undergoing major non-bariatric abdominal surgery for both benign and malignant indications. The target sample size is 61 survey responses. Descriptive statistics will be used to characterize the sample populations. To determine variables associated with primary outcomes in the surveys, regression analyses will be performed. Discussion: These survey data will ultimately inform the design of an RCT evaluating the efficacy of preoperative VLEDs for patients with obesity undergoing major abdominal surgery. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background: This study's objective is to evaluate the emotional experiences, coping mechanisms, and support resources for Canadian vascular surgeons and trainees following an adverse patient event or near miss. Methods: This is a cross-sectional survey study of all Canadian Society for Vascular Surgery (CSVS) members from October to November 2021. We collected data on participant experiences with adverse events, their emotional responses, the coping mechanisms used, and their perceptions on available support resources. Results: The survey was sent to 233 CSVS members yielding 66 responses. The majority (77%) of respondents had experiences with adverse event causing serious patient harm. The most common negative experience following an adverse event included feelings of negativity towards oneself, general distress, and anxiety about potential for future errors. The most common coping mechanism was seeking advice from a mentor or close colleague. Peers (82%) and senior colleagues (59%) were the most preferred sources of support. Most of the respondents would reach out to a mentor if they had 1, but 30% reported no mentor or close colleague for support. Conclusion: Adverse patient events and near misses have serious negative impact on the lives of Canadian vascular surgeons and trainees. Peers and senior colleagues are the most desired source for support, but this is not universally available. Organized efforts are needed to bring awareness in our vascular surgery community on the ubiquitous nature and detrimental effects of adverse events. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Interlocal agreements are becoming a popular policy tool for facilitating intergovernmental coordination and cooperation in Canada and the United States. Indigenous and local governments are also turning to these agreements despite long histories of colonialism, exploitation and dispossession by the settler State toward Indigenous communities. To what extent do interlocal agreements between Indigenous and municipal governments require stringent accountability measures to facilitate intergovernmental coordination? Using a hierarchical Bayesian item response theory model, we explore this question by analyzing 317 interlocal agreements between Indigenous and municipal communities in Canada. We find that accountability strength varies significantly across agreements, contrary to our expectation that accountability requirements would be strong across agreements due to the long history of colonialism. We also find that some of the variation may be a function of the policy area addressed by each agreement, although this finding is likely the result of measurement uncertainty in our estimates. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The article discusses research which aimed to determine the attitudes, knowledge, practices, and needs of geriatricians and geriatric medicine trainees regarding the care of older adults undergoing surgery in Canada. Cited are the characteristics of study participants, the lack of training opportunities in perioperative geriatrics highlighted by study participants, and the strengths and limitations of the study.

In this study, we sought to create and validate a brief measure to assess students' perceptions of kindness in school. Participants included 1,753 students in Grades 4 to 8 attending public schools in a large school district in southern British Columbia. The School Kindness Scale (SKS) demonstrated a unidimensional factor structure and adequate internal consistency. The pattern of associations of the SKS to a corpus of theoretically relevant constructs obtained via student self-reports (classroom supportiveness, optimism, happiness, prosocial and social goals, satisfaction with life, and academic self-efficacy) provided evidence for convergent and discriminant validity. Furthermore, the SKS was significantly and positively associated with teacher reports on students' empathy, social skills, and peer acceptance. Analyses by gender and grade indicated that girls perceived significantly higher levels of kindness in school than did boys, and that students' perceptions of kindness in school decreased from fourth to eighth grade, with fourth-grade students reporting the highest levels of kindness in school and eighth-grade students reporting the lowest levels. The theoretical importance of investigating students' perceptions of kindness in the school context and the practical implications of this research for informing educational efforts to promote social and emotional competencies in school communities are discussed.

This exploratory mixed-methods study examined the influence of an on-campus canine therapy program on linguistically diverse international students' perceptions of their English language development and stress. Participants were recruited from English language support classes at a mid-size western Canadian university and were randomly selected from a larger pool of participants indicating interest in the study. Seven participants attended five canine therapy sessions in which they interacted with certified therapy dogs working as part of a campus initiative to reduce stress and homesickness on campus. Both formative and summative data collection was done with students completing weekly stress assessments, responding to summative questions asked in an interview, and elaborating on their views in a focus group discussion. The following key themes emerged with students describing: 1) decreased overall stress; 2) improvements in their sense of belonging in the campus community with dogs as social catalysts; and 3) increased opportunities to practice oral language skills through interactions with dog handlers and fellow students in the lab. Implications are discussed within the context of reducing the affective filter for language learners and increasing accessibility to programs for international students.

Schools often need to implement evidence-based interventions (EBIs) in contexts and with client populations that differ from those present during intervention development and validation. Due to the differences in intervention conditions, schools inevitably make adaptations to interventions to be responsive or to operate within present constraints. This need to adapt creates a significant dilemma for schools, as a large body of evidence indicates that treatment integrity, or the extent to which an intervention is implemented as prescribed (Gresham, 1989, 2009), is essential to intervention effectiveness. Thus, a conflict is created between strict adherence to interventions in the way they were designed and tested and the necessity for being responsive and making appropriate adaptations. In this article, the authors will help the reader resolve this apparent conflict. First, they make a case for intervention adaptation. Next, they use a mindfulness-based intervention (MBI; the MindUP curriculum) to illustrate the adaptation process, while simultaneously maximizing treatment integrity. Finally, the authors conclude with a discussion of the lessons learned from their project.

Canada is recognized as a global leader in sustainable forest management. Canadian forests and the forest sector remain vital pillars of the Canadian economy and home to many rural and remote communities. However, climate change is an existential threat to the sustainability of forests and forest-dependent communities. While both direct and indirect threats posed by climate change to Canada's forest sector are now well understood, our understanding of specific forest practices that have emerged from the body of science to mitigate and adapt to climate change impacts is not well documented. Through a review of the scientific and grey literature, this study expands our knowledge and operational gaps associated with implementing climate change adaptation and mitigation practices in Canadian forests. The study found a dearth of literature specifically dedicated to reporting on the type of forest practices currently in use across Canada to address mitigation and adaptation. Most reports or studies were published in 2019 or later, with federal and provincial governments being the dominant actors in reporting and monitoring, research, and funding. Across the 15 terrestrial ecozones in Canada, forest practices linked to climate change were reported in 12 ecozones, with most practices reported in the Montane Cordillera located in western Canada. Common forest practices reported include fuel management, assisted migration, enhanced silvicultural activities, and carbon offset projects. We conclude that climate change adaptation/mitigation practices in Canada are in their early stages of implementation. Many practices remain in experimental stages (e.g., genetic trials) or are implemented at a relatively small scale in Canada (e.g., climate-based seed transfer and carbon reserves). The literature suggests that the most mainstream practices associated with climate change mitigation in Canada include tree planting for carbon sequestration and the designation of protected areas to enhance ecosystem resilience. We conclude that despite increasing reports linking climate change benefits with reported forest practices, the reporting in the scientific literature is scarce, poorly reported, and often not grounded in credible evidence. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

With its northern location, the exposure and vulnerability of Canada's forest ecosystems to climate change impacts are all too glaring. While there is now an extensive body of literature describing expected climate change impacts and potential responses, studies characterizing the implementation of adaptation and mitigation practices in forest management remain rare in the Canadian forest sector. Using a systematic literature review, we examined reports on forest management practices implemented in response to climate change, specifically focusing on governance and institutional arrangements that either support or limit climate change adaptation and mitigation responses. Our literature sample size of 24 documents suggests that the body of literature reporting on adaptation and mitigation practices in forest management is scarce. Governments remain the dominant actors providing funding and leading the implementation and reporting of climate change adaptation practices, primarily in response to national or international climate change commitments. Forest practices such as enhanced silviculture, assisted migration, and nature-based solutions were the most frequently reported. However, given the scarcity of literature, it is difficult to conclude the scope of climate change adaptation practice uptake in Canada. Barriers such as lack of information/data, inter-jurisdictional knowledge transfer, policy conflicts, forest tenure models, technical capacity gaps, and economic barriers to adaptation need to be overcome to strengthen climate change response in forest management. Better coordination of reporting at the provincial and national levels and improved information flows between private sector organizations and governments are needed. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Urban forests are being threatened by rapid urbanization, biodiversity crises, and climate variability. In response, governments are increasingly collaborating with the public for solutions to these mounting challenges. Non-governmental organizations (NGOs) are dominant players in these collaborations because of their ability to supplement governments' expertize and resources and bring social and ecological issues to the forefront of civic agendas. Despite their growing visibility in urban forest management, there is a lack of attention directed to the forms and range of NGO relationships. This study focuses on addressing this gap and examining collaborations between local governments and NGOs in urban forest programming by characterizing their components including mandates, relationship ties, accountability, resource exchange, and power dynamics. We collected data using semi-structured interviews with three groups: leaders of NGOs, municipal government officials in an urban forest or public works departments, and urban-forest experts who have observed their interactions. The participants represent 32 individuals in nine Canadian cities. Our results indicate that NGO-government collaborations have relational ties and accountability processes that are both formal and informal in nature. Formality in collaborations is often associated with the amount of funding, proximity to government, or size of the NGO. In addition, our findings suggest that NGOs present an opportunity for local governments to supplement their resources and capacity. While the strength and formality of collaborations may be a product of NGO size and budgets, public servants should not hesitate to engage smaller, grassroots NGOs to realize their public service mandates. Characterizing the components of these governance processes provides a benchmark for practitioners participating in similar public-civic interactions and arms them with the knowledge to navigate collaborative decision-making. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Recent studies suggest that the quality of reflective practice being achieved in educational settings is inadequate. Our study aims to determine the level of reflection present in written student reflections in a nonprofessional undergraduate course. We also seek to explore student and instructor perspectives on the value of reflective practices. A measurement instrument was developed to assess the depth of reflection in student submissions. Questionnaires and focus groups were utilized to further examine the role of reflective practice. Our findings suggest that most students are not aware of the objective of reflection and that only 19% of students actually achieve reflection as described by major theorists. However, 95% of participants believe that the exercise is beneficial to their learning. We conclude that the lack of guidance and unclear objectives may contribute to the students' inability to reflect. Nevertheless, reflections were deemed effective in providing an avenue for self-assessment and learning consolidation.

The effects of the duration of remember and forget cues were examined to test the differential rehearsal account of item-based directed forgetting. In Experiments 1 and 2, cues were shown for 300, 600, or 900 ms, and a directed forgetting effect (better recognition of remember than forget items) was found at each duration. In addition, recognition of both remember and forget items increased with cue duration. These 2 effects did not interact. The results of Experiment 2 further showed that memory for the cue associated with the study items increased with cue duration as well. The results of Experiment 1 were replicated in Experiment 3 for cue durations of 1, 2, and 3 s. Finally, a similar pattern of results was found for cue durations of 2, 4, and 6 s for associative recognition of random word pairs. If subjects cannot immediately terminate the processing of forget items, the lingering processing of these items is as beneficial as the continued processing of remember items. Alternatively, subjects may use inefficient or counterproductive strategies that ironically improve memory for the information they wish to forget.

Background: The optimal approach to the management of intracranial atherosclerotic disease (ICAD) at the time of mechanical thrombectomy (MT) for large vessel occlusion (LVO) remains controversial. The goal of this study is to characterize current practices concerning this challenging clinical situation in a survey of practicing neurointerventionalists. Methods: An electronic questionnaire was sent to a cross-section of North American academic neurointerventionalists using publicly available contact information and departmental websites. Prior to analysis, responses were anonymized and categorized by region. Results: A total of 136/360 responses were recorded from the U.S. and Canada. The mean number of years of practicing as a neurointerventionalist among the respondents was 10.5 (± 6.2 years). ICAD was perceived as a causative factor during MT for LVO in 5–10% of thrombectomy cases. The most common first-line treatment approach for significant ICAD, assuming a TICI 2b or better reperfusion, was medical therapy (77.9% of respondents), followed by angioplasty + stent placement (8.8% of respondents). There were no significant differences in the first line treatment of ICAD in LVO between geographical regions (p = 0.815). Conclusion: The approach to underlying ICAD in LVO varies widely; however, the majority of neurointerventionalists prefer medical therapy with DAPT as a first-line treatment approach. The current survey highlights the need for studies that better define the optimal timing and modality of treatment, along with an evidence-based framework for balancing the risks associated with these treatment approaches. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Objective: Understand health resource, medication use, and cost of adults with chronic migraine who received guideline‐recommended onabotulinumtoxinA (botulinum toxin) treatment frequency and then continued or reduced/stopped. Background: Botulinum toxin may be a beneficial treatment for chronic migraine; the trajectory of health resources utilization among those with continued or reduced/stopped use is unclear. Methods: A retrospective population‐based cohort study utilizing administrative data from Alberta, Canada (2012–2020), was performed. A cohort of adults who received ≥5 botulinum toxin treatment cycles for chronic migraine over 18 months (6‐month run‐in; 1‐year pre‐index period) were grouped into those who (1) continued use (≥3 treatments/year), or (2) stopped or reduced use (stopped for 6 months then received 0 or 1–2 treatments/year, respectively) over a 1‐year post‐index period. Health resources and medication use were described, and pre–post costs were assessed. A second cohort that received ≥3 treatments/year immediately followed by 1 year of stopped or reduced use was considered in sensitivity analysis. Results: Pre–post health resource, medication use, and costs were similar among those with continued use (n = 3336). Among those who stopped or reduced use (n = 1099; 756 stopped, 343 reduced), health resource, medication use, and costs were lower in the post‐ (total median per‐person cost [IQR]: all‐cause $4851 [$8090]; migraine‐related $835 [$1915]) versus pre‐ (all‐cause $6096 [$7207]; migraine‐related $2995 [$1950]) index period (estimated cost ratios [95% CI]: total all‐cause 0.86 [0.79, 0.95]; total migraine‐related 0.44 [0.40, 0.48]). In the second cohort (n = 3763), return to continued use (≥3 treatments/year) occurred in up to 70.4% in those with reduced use. Conclusions: Of adults treated with botulinum toxin for chronic migraine, 75.2% had continued use, stable health resource and medication use, and costs over a 2 year period. In those that stopped/reduced use, the observed lower health resource and migraine medication use may indicate improved symptom control, but the resumption of guideline‐recommended treatment intervals after reduced use was common. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Take TIME (Tobacco-free, Injury-free, Moving daily, Eating healthy) was an early intervention strategy targeting community readiness to support healthy lifestyles for young children in Uxbridge, Canada. This study aimed to assess the effectiveness of Take TIME using the Community Readiness Model adapted for childhood obesity prevention. Six interviews were completed in Uxbridge, before and after the intervention, with purposively selected community leaders in education, political, business, religious, not-for-profit, and healthcare fields. Each interview was rated independently by two scorers. Interview content was scored (scale from 1 to 9, with 1 being no awareness and 9 being a high level of community ownership) according to the Community Readiness Model criteria on six dimensions, with overall readiness calculated as the mean score of all dimensions. T-tests compared readiness by time-point and between communities. Overall community readiness significantly improved (p = 0.03) in Uxbridge from pre-intervention (3.63 ± 1.14 vague awareness) to post-intervention (5.21 ± 0.97 preparation). Seven interviews were also completed with leaders in the matched town of Rockwood, Canada which served as the control community. Rockwood readiness was close to the Uxbridge post-intervention score (5.35 ± 1.11). Results indicated increased awareness and leadership support post-intervention in Uxbridge, but further improvements in community knowledge, formalized efforts, and additional leadership support are desired. Take TIME increased community readiness to support healthy lifestyles for young children and may be useful to other communities at similar stages, given its theoretical alignment with the community readiness model. Future research should investigate the impact of Take TIME in demographically diverse communities and appropriate interventions to move communities from the preparation to the action stage. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background: As Cannabis was legalised in Canada for recreational use in 2018 with the implementation of the Cannabis Act, Regulations were put in place to ensure safety and consistency across the cannabis industry. This includes the requirement for licence holders to demonstrate that no unauthorized pesticides are used to treat cannabis or have contaminated it. In this study, we describe an expanded 327 multi-residue pesticide analysis in cannabis inflorescence to confirm if the implementation of the Cannabis Act is providing safer licensed products to Canadians in comparison to those of the illicit market. Methods: An extensive multi-residue method was developed using a modified quick, easy, cheap, effective, rugged, and safe (QuEChERS) sample preparation method using a combination of gas chromatography—triple quadrupole mass spectrometry (GC–MS/MS) and liquid chromatography—triple quadrupole mass spectrometry (LC–MS/MS) for the simultaneous quantification of 327 pesticide active ingredients in cannabis inflorescence. Results: Application of this method to Canadian licensed inflorescence samples revealed a 6% sample positivity rate with only two pesticide residues detected, myclobutanil, and dichlobenil, at the method's lowest calibrated level (LCL) of 0.01 μg/g. Canadian illicit cannabis inflorescence samples analysed showed a striking contrast with a 92% sample positivity rate covering 23 unique pesticide active ingredients with 3.7 different pesticides identified on average per sample. Chlorpyrifos, imidacloprid, and myclobutanil were measured in illicit samples at concentrations up to three orders of magnitude above the method LCL of 0.01 μg/g. Conclusion: These results demonstrate the need of an extensive multiresidue method capable of analysing hundreds of pesticides simultaneously, to generate data for future policy and regulatory decision-making, and to enable Canadians to make safe cannabis choices. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

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