British and Pakistani children's understanding of death: Cultural and developmental influences

This study explored British and Pakistani 4- to 7-year-olds’ (N = 188 understanding of death. The aim was to examine possible influences on the acquisition of the subcomponents of the death concept by investigating how they are understood by children of different ages and cultural and religious backgrounds. Three groups of children were compared: White British and British Muslim living in London, and Pakistani Muslim living in rural Pakistan. In line with previous research (Slaughter, 2005, Aust. Psychol., 40(3), 179), irreversibility of death was one of the first subcomponents to be acquired, while causality was the last. The two groups of British children shared many similarities in their understanding of inevitability, applicability, irreversibility, and cessation. Pakistani Muslim children understood irreversibility earlier than did children in both British groups. In all three cultural groups, children’s responses demonstrated very limited understanding of causality. Our findings support the view that aspects of a mature understanding of death develop between the ages of 4 and 7 years and that the process of understanding death as a biological event is, to a great extent, universal. They also suggest that aspects of children’s reasoning are influenced by culturally specific experiences, particularly those arising from living in rural versus urban settings

Comparison of the asymmetry of the hexose transfer system in the red cell of the newborn guinea-pig and human by permeability studies

A comparison has been made between the hexose transferring system of erythrocytes from fetal and newborn guinea-pig cells and that of the human erythrocyte. The kinetic parameters of 3-0-methyl glucose exchange in fetal and newborn guinea-pig cells have a higher constant for maximal exchange but show a lower affinity than in human erythrocytes. Both systems show asymmetry of affinities toward nontransportable inhibitors such as 4-6-0-ethylidene-alpha-D-glucopyranose (ethylidene glucose) and methyl-2,3-di-0 methyl-alpha-D-glucopyranoside (trimethyl glucoside) but that in newborn guinea-pig cells is less than that in human erythrocytes. Cytochalasin B competitively inhibits hexose exchange in newborn guinea-pig cells as it does in human cells but the Ki value was larger suggesting a lower affinity Exits were inhibited in an apparently non-competitive manner as occurs in human cells. Cytochalasin B binding was studied and indicated that there were fewer hexose transferring components in newborn guinea-pig cells but as the maximal value for exchange is greater it may be presumed that the turnover number must be larger. The inhibition of the two systems by the biphenolic inhibitors phlorizin, phloretin and polyphloretin phosphate was similar but there were differences in the Ki values. The sensitivity to the irreversible inhibitors fluoro-dinitrobenzene and bromo-dinitrobenzene were also similar but there were differences in the effects of incubation in the presence of the transportable sugar 2-deoxyglucose. It is concluded that the hexose transferring system in the two species is very closely related and that the differences are not more than might be expected in functional proteins taken from divergent species. <p

Evidence for Interindividual Heterogeneity in the Glucose Gradient Across the Human Red Blood Cell Membrane and Its Relationship to Hemoglobin Glycation

OBJECTIVE—To determine whether interindividual heterogeneity in the erythrocyte (red blood cell [RBC]) transmembrane glucose gradient might explain discordances between A1C and glycemic control based on measured fructosamine

What are the Views of White British Working Class Secondary School Boys on Achievement in School?

This explorative and descriptive study elicited the views of White British working class secondary school boys on achievement in school, in one Local Authority where the underachievement of these boys was a significant cause for concern. The research questions addressed focussed on identifying the participants' attitudes towards school, self and learning and the factors that appeared to cause the participants to underachieve within the local context. Their views on the barriers and facilitators to their learning were also elicited. This study utilised a mixed methods design involving both quantitative and qualitative methodologies. The views of fifteen boys were elicited using the Pupil Attitude to Self and School (PASS) computer based standardised questionnaire followed by semi-structured interviews. Percentile Factor Scores from the completed questionnaires and Thematic Analysis were used to analyse the quantitative and qualitative aspects of the data respectively. The findings suggested that the participants had a positive attitude towards self and learning. This included their capabilities and motivation as learners to potentially achieve their goals and aspirations, when provided with the appropriate support and optimal learning contexts conducive to their learning styles and needs. In addition, the participants presented themselves as having an ambivalent attitude towards school and were able to identify numerous facilitators and barriers to their learning. There was also a clear consensus amongst the participants about what worked for them in terms of the factors that supported their learning and academic achievement. The majority of them were also able to identify internal and external motivators to their learning. One method suggested for supporting the achievement of these participants so that they are able to reach their potential was to shift thinking from an education deficit model to a strengths based model underpinned by principles of positive psychology. Educational Psychologists (EPs) have a key role to play in supporting this shift