Intra-Individual and Cross-Partner Associations between the Five Facets of Mindfulness and Relationship Satisfaction

Research has established that mindfulness may be useful to individual and dyadic wellbeing among both early-stage and long-term relationships. Nonetheless, it remains unclear which mechanisms of mindfulness are most relevant to relationship satisfaction among long-term married couples. Furthermore, although previous research suggests that an individual’s total mindfulness is not related to his or her partner’s relationship satisfaction, we have yet to determine whether any specific facets of mindfulness may evidence a significant cross-partner association with relationship satisfaction. The present study seeks to address these gaps in the literature using the Five Facet Mindfulness Questionnaire (FFMQ). Data were collected from 164 long-term married couples (M relationship length = 28.30 years, SD = 8.43 years). Hierarchical linear modeling indicated that one’s Nonjudgment of Inner Experience uniquely predicts one’s own relationship satisfaction above and beyond the other facets, and that an individual’s Nonreactivity to Inner Experience uniquely predicts his or her spouse’s relationship satisfaction above and beyond the other facets. Implications for utilizing mindfulness aimed at both intra-individual and cross-partner relationship enhancement will be discussed

Workshops inform, connect, and educate

A summary of the BCLA Continuing Education Committee's recent Redefining Reluctant Readers and Teaching and Training in a Library Setting workshops

Congenital Cytomegalovirus Reference Material: A Content Analysis of Coverage and Accuracy

Congenital cytomegalovirus (CMV) is the leading cause of birth defects and developmental delays in the United States. However, only 13–22 % of women in the United States have heard of CMV. This research assessed (1) the quantity and accuracy of CMV information included on pregnancy-related websites and reference books, and (2) whether CMV information was included less often than information about other birth defects or infections. A content analysis of 37 pregnancy reference books and seven websites was conducted. The data collection instrument represented categories describing CMV, transmission, and prevention. CMV subject matter experts at the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention reviewed the instrument. Each book and website was coded independently by two different coders. Twenty-one reference books and seven websites included CMV content. CMV was less likely to be included as a topic than other infections or birth defects. There were fewer sentences about CMV than toxoplasmosis, Down syndrome, or HIV. Book length was associated with increased likelihood of including CMV. How to prevent CMV transmission was discussed only half the time. Though limited, nearly all the CMV information was accurate. Pregnancy-related reference books and websites contain limited CMV information. Books are less likely to include CMV as compared to other infections and birth defects. Most of the CMV information is accurate. There is inadequate coverage given to prevention of CMV transmission, which may contribute to CMV remaining a continued leading cause of birth defects in the United States

The Effect of Ethnicity on Extremity Fracture Analgesia in Native American Patients at a Regional Children\u27s Hospital

Objectives: To determine whether pediatric Native American patients with long bone fractures are as likely to receive adequate analgesia as non-Native Americans with similar fractures at a regional academic hospital in the Southwest. Patients and Methods: Charts of 61 Native Americans and 121 non-Native American patients ages 2 months to 15 years discharged from the pediatric emergency department (PED) or the pediatric urgent care (PUC) with long-bone fractures between June 2005 and May 2007 were reviewed. Insurance status, either Indian Health Service or exempt Medicaid, indicated Native American ethnicity. Potential confounders: age, language, gender, need for fracture reduction, previous analgesia, fracture location, and site of treatment were abstracted. Age, language, gender, pain score, and duration of analgesia at discharge were analyzed. Dose adequacy (mg/kg) and the likelihoods of receiving any analgesia or narcotic analgesia were calculated. Univariate analysis was performed to assess potential confounding variables on the likelihood of receiving analgesia; multivariate analysis was performed to control for variables shown to have an effect. Results: Neither demographic data nor pain scores differed significantly between the two groups. 61% of Native Americans and 65% of non-Native Americans received analgesia (p=0.53). Native Americans were as likely to receive narcotic analgesia (p=0.24) and to receive an adequate dose as non-Native Americans (p=0.24). Age, language, and gender correlated with the likelihood of receiving analgesia. Pain score did not correlate (p=0.09). Conclusions: Native American ethnicity did not affect quality of analgesia care in this multi-ethnic hospital

Weaving Our Web: The State of Digital Inclusion in Urban America

This report examines how and why American Indians and Alaska Natives from 12 major cities across the country access the internet

Effects of Visual and Proprioceptive Motion Feedback on Human Control of Targeted Movement

This research seeks to ascertain the relative value of visual and proprioceptive motion feedback during force-based control of a non-self entity like a powered prosthesis. Accurately controlling such a device is very difficult when the operator cannot see or feel the movement that results from applied forces. As an analogy to prosthesis use, we tested the relative importance of visual and proprioceptive motion feedback during targeted force-based movement. Thirteen human subjects performed a virtual finger-pointing task in which the virtual finger’s velocity was always programmed to be directly proportional to the MCP joint torque applied by the subject’s right index finger. During successive repetitions of the pointing task, the system conveyed the virtual finger’s motion to the user through four combinations of graphical display (vision) and finger movement (proprioception). Success rate, speed, and qualitative ease of use were recorded, and visual motion feedback was found to increase all three performance measures. Proprioceptive motion feedback significantly improved success rate and ease of use, but it yielded slower motions. The results indicate that proprioceptive motion feedback improves human control of targeted movement in both sighted and unsighted conditions, supporting the pursuit of artificial proprioception for prosthetics and underscoring the importance of motion feedback for other force-controlled human-machine systems, such as interactive virtual environments and teleoperators

Effects of Proprioceptive Motion Feedback on Sighted and Non-Sighted Control of a Virtual Hand Prosthesis

Current prosthetic devices lack the ability to provide proprioceptive feedback, requiring the user to visually track the device in order to accomplish the tasks of daily living. This work seeks to quantify the effect of proprioceptive feedback on the accuracy, speed, and ease of use of a one-degree-of-freedom virtual prosthetic finger in both sighted and unsighted conditions. An experimental apparatus was designed to allow a user to perform a virtual grasping task with and without visual and proprioceptive feedback. Preliminary results suggest that proprioception improves movement accuracy and ease of system use in the absence of vision