Bridging Social Capital Formation In A Faith-Based Organization

Previous research on faith-based organizations suggest that these organizations are highly effective at forging relationships between individuals from different racial, ethnic, and religious backgrounds, known as bridging social capital. This study examines the process of bridging social capital formation within MOSES, a faith-based organization located in Detroit, Michigan. Through the use of in-depth interviews, participant observation, archival research, and a member survey, I documented the forms of social capital present within the organization. I also explored whether bridging relationships were forming within the organization and the strategies that facilitated their formation. Diversity within the organization, recognition of member differences, and barriers to social capital formation were also examined. Finally, I assessed mechanisms for unifying and mobilizing members within the organization. The study depicts how one faith-based organization has attempted to bridge the gaps between organization and community members from different cultural backgrounds through relationship building. An analysis of the data revealed that MOSES has made some progress toward bringing African American, White, and Latino individuals together to work on social issues. MOSES also has made some progress on bringing together members from different Christian denominations to work on issues. Findings also suggested that many of the barriers the organization faced to bridging social capital formation were internal barriers inside of the organization as opposed to societal issues that exist outside of the organization. These barriers included the absence of dimensions of social capital and limited diversity within the organization. Other barriers identified were the lack of relationship building, failure to address member differences, and issues with organizational governance and structure. Strategies such as increasing diversity within the organization, addressing member differences in terms of race, religion, and location of residence; and developing organizational processes, may all contribute to bridging social capital formation

Abschlussbericht zur Umfrage an der Universitätsbibliothek Mannheim 2016

Unter dem Motto „Sagen Sie uns Ihre Meinung“ führte die Universitätsbibliothek Mannheim im Oktober 2016 eine große Online-Befragung zu ihrem gesamten Serviceangebot durch. Ziel der Umfrage war es, die aktuelle Zufriedenheit der NutzerInnen mit der Bibliothek abzufragen und die Erwartungen hinsichtlich zukünftiger Dienstleistungen zu ermitteln. Dieser Bericht präsentiert die wesentlichen Ergebnisse und Schlussfolgerungen aus Sicht der UB Mannheim

Early Developmental Screening in High-Risk Communities: Implications for Research and Child Welfare Policy

Early detection of developmental delays in children living in high-risk communities enables effective intervention and promotes positive outcomes. Until now, the mechanisms by which these risks and benefits arise and persist have yet to be documented from a synergistic perspective. We take a dynamic, ecological theoretical approach to examine the interplay between developmental surveillance, professional support and parental understanding of children's developmental progress. The Regional ASQ Developmental Screening Project* used geo-mapping to target the highest risk communities in three metropolitan Detroit counties. Statistical analyses using paired t tests compared screening results for 1,640 children in high-risk communities to results for 24,220 children living in surrounding communities. Children in high-risk communities had a substantially higher risk of developmental delay than the rest of Metro Detroit (43% vs. 28%). There were significant differences in the overall scores from the initial screens (M =2.38, SD = .788) to subsequent screens (M = 2.46, SD =.706): t (1,640) = -5.104 p < .05, suggesting that risk of delay decreases over time. There were statistically significant differences in the overall risk for developmental delay and within in the domain of fine motor development. These results 19 provide an empirical basis to develop prevention and intervention programs and child welfare policy. We suggest ways to build capacity at the individual, institutional, and societal levels. Future research should focus on exploring the unique interplay of community-level risk with family and child level risk and protective factors

Benutzerumfrage der Universitätsbibliothek Mannheim 2016 - Fragebogen und Antwortdaten

Unter dem Motto ‚Sagen Sie uns Ihre Meinung‘ führte die Universitätsbibliothek vom 17. bis 30. Oktober 2016 eine Online-Benutzerumfrage durch. Der Fragebogen wurde mit der Software Limesurvey erstellt und war über das Internet frei zugänglich in deutscher und englischer Sprache. Um möglichst viele Angehörige der Universität und sonstige Nutzergruppen zu erreichen, wurde die Umfrage über alle von der UB Mannheim genutzten Kanäle breit beworben: z.B. über Plakate, die Rektoratsnachrichten, die eigene Homepage, Twitter, den Facebook-Auftritt der UB und Universität und über E-Mail an alle Studierenden und die zentralen Einrichtungen der Universität. Die Befragten konnten an einem Gewinnspiel teilnehmen und verschiedene Preise gewinnen. Der Fragebogen ist als PDF-Datei hinterlegt, aus der auch kontextabhängige Fragen ersichtlich werden. Der Antwortdatensatz ist als CSV-Datei hinterlegt, freie Kommentare wurden eingeschränkt zugänglich gemacht. Vollständig abgeschlossen wurde der Fragebogen von 1.420 Nutzern. Ausgewertet wurde die Gesamtzahl von 2.008 zumindest teilweise ausgefüllten Fragebögen

Transgenic Alfalfa That Accumulates Piceid (Trans-Resveratrol-3-O−β-D-glucopyranoside) Requires the Presence of β -Glucosidase to Inhibit the Formation of Aberrant Crypt Foci in the Colon of CF-1 Mice

Plants have been genetically enhanced to produce a number of products for agricultural, industrial and pharmaceutical purposes. This technology could potentially be applied to providing chemoprevention strategies to the general population. Resveratrol (3,5,4′-trihydroxystilbene) is a compound that has been shown to have protective activity against a number of cancers and could be an ideal candidate for such an application. Alfalfa that was genetically modified to express resveratrol-synthase was used as a model in applying biotechnological approaches to cancer prevention. The transgenic alfalfa, which accumulates resveratrol as a glucoside (piceid = trans-resveratrol-3-O−β-D-glucopyranoside) (152 ± 17.5 μ g piceid/g dry weight), was incorporated into a standard mouse diet at 20% of the diet by weight and fed for 5 wk to 6-wk-old, female CF-1 mice (N = 17–30) that were injected with a single dose of azoxymethane (5 mg/kg body weight). While the addition of resveratrol-aglycone (20 mg/kg diet) to the basal diet reduced the number of aberrant crypt foci/mouse, the transgenic alfalfa did not inhibit the number, size, or multiplicity of aberrant crypt foci in the colon of the CF-1 mice relative to control alfalfa which does not accumulate resveratrol-glucoside. However, diets containing transgenic alfalfa with an exogenous β -glucosidase (860 U/kg diet) did significantly inhibit the number of aberrant crypt foci in the distal 2 cm of the colon of the mice relative to mice fed diets containing the transgenic alfalfa without the enzyme (P \u3c 0.05; Fisher\u27s Combination of p-values). The β -glucosidase alone appeared to have no effect on the inhibition of aberrant crypt foci. These results suggest that piceid in transgenic piceid-accumulating alfalfa was not bioavailable

Efficacy of High-performance Vision Training on Improving the Reaction Time of Collegiate Softball Athletes: A Randomized Trial

Purpose. A well-developed visual system is integral to the dynamic nature of sport performance among collegiate athletes. Occupational therapists play an important role in addressing an athlete’s visual skills through incorporating meaningful occupation, in this case sport, into interventions while addressing specific client factors. The aim of the study was to examine the efficacy of occupational therapist led high-performance visual training in improving the reaction time of collegiate softball athletes. Method. A mixed method approach was used to collect both qualitative and quantitative data. Qualitative data were collected to assess athlete perceptions of sport, and quantitative data were collected using a mixed within group and between group design. Twenty-one participants were randomly allocated into two groups, each receiving a 6-week intervention which followed an evidence-based protocol. Group A consisted of Dynavision™ D2 training, and Group B of non-machine, therapist-led, visual training, twice weekly for 10-15 minutes each. Results. Results of the study highlight perceived meaningfulness of sport and display that both theory-based protocols were effective, as Group A and Group B experienced significant decreases in reaction time. However, decreases in reaction time were more significant for Group A in both proactive and reactive Dynavision™ D2 training modes. Conclusion. Results suggest that both the Dynavision™ D2 and alternative vision training as led by occupational therapists may be beneficial in improving the proactive and reactive reaction times of collegiate athletes, enhancing their abilities to participate in meaningful sports, but the Dynavision™ D2 may be a more effective training tool, especially related to proactive reaction time training

Policy synthesis and integrative report on vulnerable voices

Too often the voices of young people are neglected in the analysis of youth in the labour market. This synthesis report summarises key findings and policy issues identified inWork Package 9 of the STYLE project, which focused on examining the attitudes and aspirations of young people. Our analytical tasks employed a diverse range of methodological approaches, including quantitative statistical analysis, experiments, in-depth interviews and a qualitative participative approach, to examine beliefs and attitudes of young people towards work, families and society. Specifically, we assessed values towards work, the impact of youth unemployment/labour market outsiderness on social capital and political participation as well asaspirations of vulnerable young people in foster care.The reportraises the following issues for policy and practice: a) attitudes between generations relating to work do not differ significantly; b) youth unemployment is an insufficient measure for the labour market condition of young people and its impact; c) institutions matter; d) co-production of research is important in understanding the labour market condition of young people more holistically