Practice-based Qualitative Research: Participant Experiences of Walk-in Counselling and Traditional Counselling

Walk-in single session counselling is becoming a more widely used model for delivering mental health services across Ontario. This paper reports findings from the qualitative phase of a mixed method study, exploring the experiences of those attending walk-in counselling (WIC) model compared to the traditional service delivery model employing a wait list. We used a comparative case study design for the qualitative phase. Findings reveal that participant outcomes of the walk-in counselling model is influenced by accessibility, how a participant makes sense of the service, and the degree to which a participant is motivated and able to engage in counselling. WIC supports the mental health system by reducing wait lists associated with traditional service delivery models, and meeting the needs many people identify for immediate consultation. Other participants still perceive themselves as requiring ongoing counselling over time and involving in-depth exploration. This research supports health systems providing access to both models

Designing an Adaptive Web Navigation Interface for Users with Variable Pointing Performance

Many online services and products require users to point and interact with user interface elements. For individuals who experience variable pointing ability due to physical impairments, environmental issues or age, using an input device (e.g., a computer mouse) to select elements on a website can be difficult. Adaptive user interfaces dynamically change their functionality in response to user behavior. They can support individuals with variable pointing abilities by 1) adapting dynamically to make element selection easier when a user is experiencing pointing difficulties, and 2) informing users about these pointing errors. While adaptive interfaces are increasingly prevalent on the Web, little is known about the preferences and expectations of users with variable pointing abilities and how to design systems that dynamically support them given these preferences. We conducted an investigation with 27 individuals who intermittently experience pointing problems to inform the design of an adaptive interface for web navigation. We used a functional high-fidelity prototype as a probe to gather information about user preferences and expectations. Our participants expected the system to recognize and integrate their preferences for how pointing tasks were carried out, preferred to receive information about system functionality and wanted to be in control of the interaction. We used findings from the study to inform the design of an adaptive Web navigation interface, PINATA that tracks user pointing performance over time and provides dynamic notifications and assistance tailored to their specifications. Our work contributes to a better understanding of users' preferences and expectations of the design of an adaptive pointing system

Modelling public transport accessibility with Monte Carlo stochastic simulations: A case study of Ostrava

Activity-based micro-scale simulation models for transport modelling provide better evaluations of public transport accessibility, enabling researchers to overcome the shortage of reliable real-world data. Current simulation systems face simplifications of personal behaviour, zonal patterns, non-optimisation of public transport trips (choice of the fastest option only), and do not work with real targets and their characteristics. The new TRAMsim system uses a Monte Carlo approach, which evaluates all possible public transport and walking origin-destination (O-D) trips for k-nearest stops within a given time interval, and selects appropriate variants according to the expected scenarios and parameters derived from local surveys. For the city of Ostrava, Czechia, two commuting models were compared based on simulated movements to reach (a) randomly selected large employers and (b) proportionally selected employers using an appropriate distance-decay impedance function derived from various combinations of conditions. The validation of these models confirms the relevance of the proportional gravity-based model. Multidimensional evaluation of the potential accessibility of employers elucidates issues in several localities, including a high number of transfers, high total commuting time, low variety of accessible employers and high pedestrian mode usage. The transport accessibility evaluation based on synthetic trips offers an improved understanding of local situations and helps to assess the impact of planned changes.Web of Science1124art. no. 709

About SES & educational expectations: interrelations in the determination of higher education baccalaureate attainment.

Community colleges and four-year colleges provide two differing alternatives to post secondary education. High school seniors face several options upon high school completion: entering the labor market, entering a community college (for a two-year degree or as a step towards a baccalaureate) or attending a four-year institution. Selection into each of these is clearly not a random process, but one related to previous educational experiences, family characteristics and social class, and educational expectations, among others. Attempting to address this issue of self selection, Rouse (1994 & 1995) explicitly posed the question of the democratization versus diversion effects of community colleges. Her work provides evidence of a rational behavior on the part of two-year college students who respond to price and proximity of such institutions (1994), and of the existence of primarily a democratization effect (1994 & 1995). This paper proposes a variation on the work by Rouse (1995) and Leigh and Gill (2003) by inquiring into the effect of SES in relation to students’ educational expectations. It builds on these two models. The underlying hypothesis is that expectations are not independent from SES and therefore examining social class differences and their interaction with educational expectations would support the theory of endogeneity between educational expectations and socioeconomic background. We directly control for expectations and interactions between SES and expectations, as well as considering variations to modeling SES and use alternative estimation methods for bounded probabilities (Logit and Biprobit) and compare these to their approaches. W find the effect of expectations on the probability for middle and middle-high class students’ proved steeper than for the everyone but low SES students. Effect on expected probabilities increasing with SES. These results disappear when estimation methods are improved, using logits and bivariate probit methods, instead of OLS and IVs (explicitly modeling expectations). However, the democratization effect remains significant through all estimations, and strengthens when estimation methods are improved. Out estimates therefore reinforced the findings by Rouse (1995) and Leigh and Gill (2003) of a positive democratization effect that outweighs any diversion effects.higher education; instrumental variables; bivariate probit; expectations; democratization effect; post secondary educational attainment