12,407 research outputs found
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Ensuring Access to Safe and Nutritious Food for All Through the Transformation of Food Systems
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Co-design As Healing: Exploring The Experiences Of Participants Facing Mental Health Problems
This thesis is an exploration of the healing role of co-design in mental health. Although co-design projects conducted within mental health settings are rising, existing literature tends to focus on the object of design and its outcomes while the experiences of participants per se remain largely unexplored. The guiding research question of this study is not how we design things that improve mental health, but how co-designing, as an act, might do so.
The thesis presents two projects that were organized in collaboration with the mental health charity Islington Mind and the Psychosis Therapy Project (PTP) in London.
The project at Islington Mind used a structured design process inviting participants to design for wellbeing. A case study analysis provides insights on how participants were impacted, summarizing key challenges and opportunities.
The design at PTP worked towards creating a collective brief in an emergent fashion, finally culminating in a board game. The experiences of participants were explored through Interpretative Phenomenological Analysis (IPA), using semi-structured interview data. The analysis served to identify key themes characterising the experience of co-design such as contributing, connecting, thinking and intentioning. In addition, a mixed-methods analysis of questionnaires and interview data exploring participants' wellbeing, showed that all participants who engaged fairly consistently in the project improved after the project ended, although some participants' scores returned to baseline six months later.
Reflecting on both projects, an approach to facilitation within mental health is outlined, detailing how the dimensions of weaving and layered participation, nurturing mattering and facilitating attitudes interlace. This contribution raises awareness of tacit dimensions in the practice of facilitation, articulating the nuances of how to encourage and sustain meaningful and ethical engagement and offering insights into a range of tools. It highlights the importance of remaining reflexive in relation to attitudes and emotions and discusses practical methodological and ethical challenges and ways to resolve them which can be of benefit to researchers embarking on a similar journey.
The thesis also offers detailed insights on how methodologies from different fields were integrated into a whole, arguing for transparency and reflexivity about epistemological assumptions, and how underlying paradigms shift in an interdisciplinary context.
Based on the overall findings, the thesis makes a case for considering design as healing (or a designerly way of healing), highlighting implications at a systems, social and individual level. It makes an original contribution to our understanding of design, highlighting its healing character, and proposes a new way to support mental health. The participants in this study not only had increased their own wellbeing through co-designing, but were also empowered and contributed towards healing the world. Hence, the thesis argues for a unique, holistic perspective of design and mental health, recognizing the interconnectedness of the individual, social and systemic dimensions of the healing processes that are ignited
The developing maternal-infant relationship: a qualitative longitudinal study
Aim
The study aimed to explore maternal perceptions and the use of knowledge relating to their infant’s mental health over time using qualitative longitudinal research.
Background
There has been a growing interest in infant mental health over recent years. Much of this interest is directed through the lens of infant determinism, through knowledge regarding neurological development resulting in biological determinism. Research and policy in this field are directed toward individual parenting behaviours, usually focused on the mother. Despite this, there is little attention given to maternal perspectives of infant mental health, indicating that a more innovative approach to methodology is required.
Methods
This study took a qualitative longitudinal approach, and interviews were undertaken with seven mothers from the third trimester of pregnancy and then throughout the first year of the infant’s life. Interviews were conducted at 34 weeks of pregnancy, and then when the infant was 6 and 12 weeks, 6, 9, and 12 months, alongside the collection of researcher field notes—a total of 41 interviews. Data were analysed by creating case profiles, memos, and summaries, and then cross-comparison of the emerging narratives. A psycho-socially informed approach was taken to the analysis of data.
Findings
Three interrelated themes emerged from the data: evolving maternal identity, growing a person, and creating a safe space. The theme of evolving maternal identity dominated the other themes of growing a person and creating a safe space in a way that met perceived socio-cultural requirements for mothering and childcare practices. Participants’ personal stories give voice to their perceptions of the developing maternal-infant relationship in the context of their socio-cultural setting, relationships with others, and experiences over time.
Conclusions
This study adds new knowledge by giving mothers a voice to express how the maternal-infant relationship develops over time. The findings demonstrate how the developing maternal-infant relationship grows in response to their mutual needs as the mother works to create and sustain identities for herself and the infant that will fit within their socio-cultural context and individual situations. Additionally, the findings illustrate the importance of temporal considerations, social networks, and intergenerational relationships to this evolving process. Recommendations for practice, policy, and education are made that reflect the unique relationship between mother and infant and the need to conceptualise this using an ecological approach
Investigating the mechanism of human beta defensin-2-mediated protection of skin barrier in vitro
The human skin barrier is a biological imperative. Chronic inflammatory skin diseases, such as Atopic Dermatitis (AD), are characterised by a reduction in skin barrier function and an increased number of secondary infections. Staphyloccocus aureus (S. aureus) has an increased presence on AD lesional skin and contributes significantly to AD pathology. It was previously demonstrated that the damage induced by a virulence factor of S. aureus, V8 protease, which causes further breakdown in skin barrier function, can be reduced by induction of human β- defensin (HBD)2 (by IL-1β) or exogenous HBD2 application. Induction of this defensin is impaired in AD skin. This thesis examines the mechanism of HBD2-mediated barrier protection in vitro; demonstrating that in this system, HBD2 was not providing protection through direct protease inhibition, nor was it altering keratinocyte proliferation or migration, or exhibiting specific localisation within the monolayer. Proteomics data demonstrated that HBD2 did not induce expression of known antiproteases but suggested that HBD2 stimulation may function by modulating expression of extracellular matrix proteins, specifically collagen- IVα2 and Laminin-β-1. Alternative pathways of protection initiated by IL-1β and TNFα stimulation were also investigated, as well as their influence over generalised wound healing. Finally, novel 3D human skin epidermal models were used to better recapitulate the structure of human epidermis and examine alterations to skin barrier function in a more physiological system. These data validate the barrier-protective properties of HBD2 and extended our knowledge of the consequences of exposure to this peptide in this context
Exploring Employees\u27 Perceptions of the Learning Organization and Their Learning Experiences in a Georgia State Government Agency – A Concurrent Mixed Methods Study
This concurrent Mixed Methods (MM) research study explored employee learning perceptions and experiences in a state of Georgia government agency. The study used the Dimension of the Learning Organization Questionnaire (DLOQ) to examine employee perceptions of a learning organization across management levels and tenure. It also used semi-structured phenomenological interviews to examine learning experiences. The two questions that framed the study were: (1) How do employees navigate learning individually, in teams, and organizationally? (2) How do employee perceptions of the learning organization compare based on tenure and management level? The concurrent mixed methods design allowed for comparison of findings from the questionnaire and the interviews. Participants were simultaneously recruited from the same state of Georgia government agency to complete the questionnaire and interview voluntarily. Three hundred and thirty-eight (338) employees responded to the questionnaire, the quantitative (QUAN) strand. Five (5) employees participated in the interviews, the qualitative (QUAL) strand. The interview data was analyzed using a hybrid/eclectic methodology of coding, theming, and analytic memos. The questionnaire data was analyzed using descriptive and non-parametric statistical tests. The findings of the study suggest that leadership influences learning critically. For this organization to continue learning and growing, it must focus on the leaderships’ impact on its employees\u27 learning in the work environment. Additionally, significant differences in employee perceptions of the learning organization were observed. These differences were between employees with 6 to 10 years and those with 16 to 20 years of tenure on Inquiry/Dialogue (Dimension 2), Organization Environment Connection (Dimension 6), and Individual Level learning (Level 1). While the findings present possible explanations for the differing perceptions, future research should examine this further
A Non-intrusive Approach for Physics-constrained Learning with Application to Fuel Cell Modeling
A data-driven model augmentation framework, referred to as Weakly-coupled
Integrated Inference and Machine Learning (IIML), is presented to improve the
predictive accuracy of physical models. In contrast to parameter calibration,
this work seeks corrections to the structure of the model by a) inferring
augmentation fields that are consistent with the underlying model, and b)
transforming these fields into corrective model forms. The proposed approach
couples the inference and learning steps in a weak sense via an alternating
optimization approach. This coupling ensures that the augmentation fields
remain learnable and maintain consistent functional relationships with local
modeled quantities across the training dataset. An iterative solution procedure
is presented in this paper, removing the need to embed the augmentation
function during the inference process. This framework is used to infer an
augmentation introduced within a Polymer electrolyte membrane fuel cell (PEMFC)
model using a small amount of training data (from only 14 training cases.)
These training cases belong to a dataset consisting of high-fidelity simulation
data obtained from a high-fidelity model of a first generation Toyota Mirai.
All cases in this dataset are characterized by different inflow and outflow
conditions on the same geometry. When tested on 1224 different configurations,
the inferred augmentation significantly improves the predictive accuracy for a
wide range of physical conditions. Predictions and available data for the
current density distribution are also compared to demonstrate the predictive
capability of the model for quantities of interest which were not involved in
the inference process. The results demonstrate that the weakly-coupled IIML
framework offers sophisticated and robust model augmentation capabilities
without requiring extensive changes to the numerical solver
Industrial Robotics for Advanced Machining
This work presents a literature review of the current state of robotic machining with industrial machining robots, primarily those with 6-axis end effectors and serial link (anthropomorphic) construction. Various disadvantages of robotic machining in industry are presented, as well as the methods applied to mitigate them and discussions of their effects. From this review, the methods of dynamic modelling, stability prediction and configuration control are selected for application to the task of optimisation of a robotic machining cell for drilling operations. Matrix Structural Analysis (MSA) and methods developed by Klimchik et al. are used for compliance modelling, stability prediction methods developed by Altintas et al. and machining stability lobe prediction are then applied to a robotic drilling process, as explored by Mousavi et al. This optimisation method is applied using the measured and estimated properties of an ABB IRB 6640 robot and results are presented in comparison with previous experimentation with the physical robot, and analytical stability predictions from the same cutting parameters with Cutpro software. Results are discussed in the concluding chapters, as well as discontinued parts of the project and suggestions for future work
Investigating the role of R2TP-like co-chaperone complexes during axonemal dynein assembly
Motile cilia are specialised cell-types which in humans have important roles in
the linings of the airways, the reproductive system and the brain. The
movement, required for this type of cilia to function, is facilitated by structures
called axonemal dynein motor complexes. These are large, multi-subunit
structures, and so it is crucial that they are assembled correctly. In humans, if
the motility of these is defective, it can lead to a disorder called Primary Ciliary
Dyskinesia, or PCD. This is a heterogeneous, autosomal recessive disorder –
symptoms of which include abnormally positioned organs, chronic respiratory
infections and infertility. Therefore, the development and structure of the motile
cilia is tightly regulated by multiple proteins including chaperones, dynein
axonemal assembly factors (DNAAFs), microtubule inner proteins (MIPs), the
outer arm docking complex (ODA-DC) and the nexin-dynein regulatory
complex (N-DRC). Chaperones work with co-chaperones to regulate their
many functions within the cell. One of these co-chaperones is the R2TP
complex, which was originally discovered in yeast but is conserved in higher
organisms. This multi-protein co-chaperone is involved in the assembly of
multi-subunit complexes such as the axonemal dynein motors. Two of the
R2TP subunits, Pontin and Reptin, are involved in many cellular functions both
in this co-chaperone complex and independently. It is thought that as some
DNAAFs share similar protein domains to the components of the R2TP
complex, they may form R2TP-like complexes. However, the specific details
surrounding the roles of these complexes during the assembly process
remains unclear. The structure of motile cilia is highly conserved throughout
evolution and Drosophila melanogaster has been shown previously to be an
excellent model for furthering understanding into the development and function
of these structures as only two cell types in the fly contain axonemal dynein
motor complexes. These are the chordotonal neuron, which has a motile
ciliated dendrite essential for its mechanosensory function, and the sperm
flagellum. In this thesis, I use the Drosophila model to further characterise
putative ciliary genes (Wdr16 and Dpcd) identified by a transcriptome analysis
previously carried out in the lab. RNAi knockdown experiments as well as
expression analysis supported motile cilia functions. The diversity which has
been identified regarding the roles of these two putative ciliary genes highlights
how proteins can be involved in motile cilia in different ways. I also use this
genetically tractable model to further understand the roles of the individual
proteins of a previously identified R2TP-like complex (R2DP3). Electron
microscopy, proteomics and investigation into how the localisation of dynein
subsets was affected in null mutants (generated using CRISPR/Cas9) allowed
for the role of this R2TP-like complex in the dynein assembly process to be
further specified. Using co-immunoprecipitation and affinity purification, we
identified an additional protein complex featuring Pontin and Reptin of the
R2TP complex, alongside the DNAAF Heatr2 and the putative DNAAF Dpcd.
As well as a role in dynein assembly, both DNAAFs are additionally expressed
in the neuroblasts of the CNS, and disruption to their function results in a late
larval lethality. Therefore, we have found these genes to not be specific to the
dynein assembly process and hypothesise that Dpcd may have an additional
function (working with Pontin, Reptin and potentially Heatr2) in the regulation
of AKT signalling and therefore impact cell proliferation
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