“Dancing in Pain is a Symbol of Determination”- Understanding Dance Related Pain in Relation to Dancer Identity Using the Biopsychosocial Model of Health

Dancers experience high levels of persistent pain but continue to dance despite risk of injury. A dancer’s identity is often rigid, restricted, and powerful suggesting that the integration of pain and identity will manifest differently for dancers compared to non-dancer chronic pain populations. Using the biopsychosocial model of health may help to elucidate the interplay between dancer identity and the pain dancers experience. Semi-structured interviews were conducted with twelve professional or vocational student dancers who were either currently performing or retired. Dancers engaged in a wide range of genres including ballet, contemporary, musical theatre, HipHop, and Latin. Using reflexive thematic analysis three themes were identified: “Maintaining Dancer Identity through the Pain” which highlighted the foreclosed dancer identity and how dancers normalise and reinterpret responses to pain to maintain their identity, “Just push through: Gatekeeping the pain narrative” that discusses how the dance world valorises dancing in pain and polices the pain narrative, and “An embodied pain identity” which considers how physical pain is psychologically reconstructed to protect dancer identity. Overall dancers had an ambiguous relationship with pain where pain both strengthened their foreclosed dancer identity, thus protecting them from identity crisis, and also threatened survival of their dancer identity. The analysis highlights the importance of integrating the biological, social and psychological aspects of pain to understand pain in dancers. Furthermore it highlights the importance of bespoke interventions for different pain populations. Future research should explore the relevance of the findings in other populations with restricted identities such as elite athletes

Systematic evaluation of commercially available pain-management mHealth apps for chronic pain in the United Kingdom

Self-management is central in chronic pain care, and mobile health (mHealth) applications (apps) offer scalable tools to support symptom monitoring and management. Although promising, these apps vary in quality, adaptability, and integration of evidence-based behaviour change techniques (BCTs). Many remain unregulated and under-evaluated, leaving their benefits for pain management unclear. We systematically evaluated the quality of commercially available pain management apps in the United Kingdom and examined the prevalence of pain-related BCTs and adaptive features

Efficacy and safety of CTLA-4, PD-1 and LAG-3 immune checkpoint inhibitors as monotherapy and combination therapy in advanced melanoma: A systematic review and meta-analysis

Advanced unresectable melanoma carries a poor prognosis, with minimal benefit from chemotherapy and limited responsiveness to radiotherapy. The emergence of immune checkpoint inhibitors (ICIs) targeting PD-1, CTLA-4, and LAG-3 has transformed treatment outcomes; however, their comparative efficacy and safety remain unclear. This systematic review and meta-analysis evaluated and compared the efficacy and safety of PD-1 and CTLA-4 monotherapies against traditional systemic therapies, as well as the dual regimens PD-1 + CTLA-4 and PD-1 + LAG-3 against their respective monotherapies, in patients with advanced unresectable melanoma. A comprehensive search of PubMed and the Cochrane CENTRAL database was conducted on March 18, 2025, for randomized controlled trials comparing ICIs against conventional therapies or other ICI regimens. Primary endpoints included overall survival (OS), progression-free survival (PFS), objective response rate (ORR), and grade ≥ 3 adverse events (AEs). A random-effects meta-analysis was performed, and risk of bias was assessed using the Cochrane RoB 2.0 tool. Eleven randomized controlled trials (n = 4,111) met the inclusion criteria. The PD-1 + CTLA-4 combination demonstrated the greatest clinical benefit, significantly improving OS (HR = 0.59), PFS (HR = 0.45), and ORR (RR = 3.11) compared with monotherapy, but was associated with a higher incidence of grade ≥ 3 AEs (RR = 2.14). The PD-1 + LAG-3 regimen showed a moderate yet statistically significant advantage in efficacy over PD-1 monotherapy (OS HR = 0.80) while maintaining better tolerability. PD-1 monotherapy demonstrated greater efficacy and a more favorable safety profile than CTLA-4 monotherapy when each was compared with traditional therapy. In conclusion, PD-1 + CTLA-4 offers the most substantial therapeutic improvement but with considerable toxicity, whereas PD-1 + LAG-3 provides a more balanced efficacy-safety profile. PD-1 monotherapy remains the safest option, though less effective than combination strategies. These findings highlight the evolving role of combination immunotherapies and the potential clinical value of LAG-3 as a novel checkpoint target in melanoma management

“You don’t really chat about your pelvic pain over brunch” – an exploration of silencing, normalisation and identity challenges in chronic pelvic pain

Shame and normalisation of pelvic pain hinder help seeking and promote persistence with role functioning. However, pain can disrupt role functioning and this can challenge identity. Eighteen semi-structured online interviews with people with chronic pelvic pain (CPP) were conducted and analysed with reflexive thematic analysis from a critical realist perspective. Two themes were developed that explore how minimisation and maintaining an acceptable presented self can contribute to identity challenges and create barriers to help-seeking and support. Supporting identity challenge management through improving menstrual health education and awareness, and challenging perceived norms may reduce these barriers and, in turn, facilitate help-seeking

Mental imagery as a hidden engine of creative expertise

This article is based on my keynote presentation at the BPS Cognitive Section Research Seminars in August 2025 and on several chapters in my recent book ‘The Psychology of Creative Performance and Expertise’, Taylor & Francis, 2024. It expands on key ideas from that talk, exploring how imagination and mental imagery shape creative expertise across the arts and sciences. It also reflects on how cognitive psychology could engage more deeply with these processes in future work; and concludes with a brief reflection on the implications of emerging AI systems for human imaginative thought

‘Pinching’ German Military and Economic Knowledge: British Targeted Intelligence Capture 1942 – 1947

To Pinch: To take or steal something without permission. A euphemistic term applied by British code breakers for the plan and successful capture of cryptographic code books or keys and later synonymous with the stealing of any targeted knowledge or equipment. This dissertation will analyse how and why British intelligence target collation, capture and ultimately dissemination adapted in response to changing military, operational and political needs between 1942 and 1947. In 1942, the pressing need to ‘pinch’ German cryptographic knowledge influenced the formation of the first permanent Intelligence Assault Unit in September of that year. Factors influencing their creation and how their role evolved from deployment in the Mediterranean, through Western Europe and finally to Germany in 1945, will be analysed. The evolution of Intelligence target research and collation will be analysed from early plans drawn up ahead of the capture of Tunis, to those prepared by Anglo-US teams preparing for the fall of cities in Sicily and Italy. In the latter, intelligence target list compilation was undertaken on a city by city basis, while targets identified in Western Europe were collated from the entire continent. Here target collation was undertaken in anticipation of the sudden collapse of German forces, whose departure would necessitate a swift Anglo-US occupation of vacated research sites. This eventuality influenced target analysis before, during, and long after the landings in Normandy in June 1944. Collating such target lists was initially a British endeavour, though US experts soon joined the research groups to pool expertise and reduce duplication. Sites of military interest were published as a ‘Black List’ that defined target capture from Normandy to the end of the War. By early 1945, the attention of Anglo-US governments was slowly redirected to the exploitation of Germany’s commercial intelligence, with Anglo-US teams collaborating on targets to be investigated after hostilities ended. Post-war investigations were undertaken along national lines, though findings were disseminated through published reports for sale in the UK and US. Investigation of German industry ceased after 1947 which is where the analysis of this dissertation ends. Research has been supported by extensive use of contemporary primary source documentation, accessed from multiple archives and provides an accurate evolution of the nomenclature and chronology, often misrepresented in secondary sources

From Rupture to Refuge The Coordinates of Contemporary Refugee Narratives

From Rupture to Refuge is a wide-ranging study of both contemporary refugee fiction and memoir. From international best-selling novels such as Khaled Hosseini’s The Kite Runner and Christi Lefteri’s The Beekeeper of Aleppo, to memoirs by Zoya Phan and Clemantine Wamariya, it follows refugees as they narrate their experiences and memories of homeland, war, escape, camp, and finally finding refuge. Tracing literary connections between this wide body of 21st Century writing, the book provides an overview of a genre of writing and a detailed textual analyses of thematic and poetic intersections. It also introduces the concept of ‘narrative displacement’, uncovering the ways in which refugees are discursively displaced from their own tales as well as being displaced spatially. Sloane argues that in writing and recording, refugees replace themselves at the centre of their own life stories

Prevalence and Risk Factors of Non-proliferative Diabetic Retinopathy in Individuals with Type 2 Diabetes Mellitus Taking Oral Antidiabetic Medications

Background: Non-proliferative diabetic retinopathy (NPDR) is a significant complication of long-term diabetes in Sudan. This study aimed to determine the prevalence and risk factors of diabetic retinopathy among Sudanese individuals with type 2 diabetes mellitus who are taking oral antidiabetic medication. Methods: This cross-sectional, facility-based study recruited 196 individuals with type 2 diabetes at the Jabir Abu Eliz Diabetes Health Center in Khartoum State. Data were collected through a structured questionnaire, which patients filled out after providing informed consent. The data were analyzed using the Statistical Package for the Social Sciences (SPSS). Logistic regression was performed to predict factors associated with diabetic retinopathy. Results: The mean age of the patients was 50.1 ± 10.7 years. The prevalence of NPDR was 78 (39.8%). Bivariate analysis revealed that age, education level, and residence (Pvalue < 0.05) were significantly associated with diabetic retinopathy. Additional factors that were significantly associated with diabetic retinopathy included the duration of diabetes, the presence of other comorbidities, HbA1c, and fasting blood glucose in 68 (87.2%) individuals (P-value < 0.05). Conclusion: The study revealed a prevalence of 39.8% for NPDR in this cohort. A longer duration of diabetes and poor control are the primary risk factors for diabetic retinopathy in Sudan. Further research is necessary to determine whether intensifying therapy or administering insulin may reduce the prevalence of retinopathy

Response to commentaries on The Psychology of Creative Performance and Expertise (Friedlander, 2024)

This article responds to eleven commentaries on The Psychology of Creative Performance and Expertise (Friedlander, 2024) and the accompanying target article published in this special issue (Friedlander, 2025). The special issue reflects both diversity of theoretical starting points and striking convergence around several shared propositions: that creativity and expertise can be treated within a unified explanatory framework; that multifactorial accounts are needed to move beyond single-cause explanations; and that expertise research benefits from engaging a wider range of domains, methods, and developmental trajectories. In addressing the commentaries, I clarify points of agreement and divergence, including the balance between creativity and expertise across chapters, the role of individual differences and structural moderators of opportunity, and questions concerning mechanisms of control and constraint in skilled performance. I also engage with critiques concerning embodied and enacted expertise, metacognition and metareasoning, and memory mechanisms, including the scope of long-term working memory. The response closes by outlining the pressing need for research on creative expertise under rapidly evolving social and technological conditions

An opportunity lost? The declining role of authorised covert human intelligence sources in combating organised crime

Combatting organised crime, requires Agencies to deploy a range of collection capabilities to identify community threats, to accurately select and prioritise organised crime targets and to inform operational decision-making. Central to this effort is the ability to identify, recruit and deploy Covert Human Intelligence Sources (CHIS). It is therefore paradoxical that the United Kingdom’s CHIS authorisations have been in steep decline since the enactment of the bespoke Regulation of Investigatory Powers Act 2000 (Regulation of Investigatory Powers Scotland Act, 2000). This research seeks to critically discuss as to what are the key factors contributing to this decline. Consequently, this review suggests that the decline in CHIS authorisations are to be found in a complex configuration of factors. Two stand out as significant; i) the impact of resource reduction on CHIS operational capacity and capability, and ii) an emergence of a culture of fear and risk aversion as a constraining factor on CHIS recruitment and use