Motorcyclists' reactions to safety helmet law: a qualitative study

<p>Abstract</p> <p>Background</p> <p>Extensive body of the literature reveals that proper use of helmets is an effective way to reduce the severity of injuries and fatalities among motorcyclists. However, many motorcyclists do not use safety helmet properly. This study aimed to empirically explore reactions of motorcyclists to the safety helmet laws, in Iran.</p> <p>Methods</p> <p>Qualitative data were collected via four focus groups and 11 in-depth interviews. Participants were 28 male motorcyclists who never used a safety helmet during rides, and 4 male police officers. All transcripts, codes and categories were read for several times to exhaust identifiable major themes. During this process data were reduced from text to codes and themes.</p> <p>Results</p> <p>Five major themes emerged from the data analyses, including themes related to the following: (1) circumventing or dodging police officers; (2) simulating a helmet wearing behavior; (3) accepting the probability of receiving a ticket; (4) taking advantage of the police neglect and carelessness; and (5) using a cheap or convenient helmet.</p> <p>Conclusion</p> <p>Our findings suggest certain levels of reckless driving among the participating motorcyclists in this study. They also point to a system of law enforcement that operates haphazardly and fails to consistently penalize those who deviate from it. Further studies are needed to investigate how "risks" are perceived and relate to "reactions", and how a 'culture of masculinity' may encourage risk tolerance and a disposition toward lawlessness and carelessness among male motorcyclists. Also, there is a need for the development and implementation of multidimensional interventions that would offer socio-culturally sensitive educational and motivational messages to the motorcyclists and the in-service traffic-enforcement officers in Iran.</p

Infectiousness of Sylvatic and Synanthropic Small Rodents Implicates a Multi-host Reservoir of Leishmania (Viannia) braziliensis

Submitted by Adagilson Silva ([email protected]) on 2017-09-15T18:49:59Z No. of bitstreams: 1 26448187 2015 and-inf.oa.pdf: 409773 bytes, checksum: 86f9fa8878143d50fff9aaa5d5cfab39 (MD5)Approved for entry into archive by Adagilson Silva ([email protected]) on 2017-09-15T19:47:18Z (GMT) No. of bitstreams: 1 26448187 2015 and-inf.oa.pdf: 409773 bytes, checksum: 86f9fa8878143d50fff9aaa5d5cfab39 (MD5)Made available in DSpace on 2017-09-15T19:47:18Z (GMT). No. of bitstreams: 1 26448187 2015 and-inf.oa.pdf: 409773 bytes, checksum: 86f9fa8878143d50fff9aaa5d5cfab39 (MD5) Previous issue date: 2015Fundação Oswaldo Cruz. Instituto Aggeu Magalhães. Recife, PE, BrasilThe possibility that a multi-host wildlife reservoir is responsible for maintaining transmission of Leishmania (Viannia) braziliensis causing human cutaneous and mucocutaneous leishmaniasis is tested by comparative analysis of infection progression and infectiousness to sandflies in rodent host species previously shown to have high natural infection prevalences in both sylvatic or/and peridomestic habitats in close proximity to humans in northeast Brazil

Religious involvement and depression in older Dutch citizens

It has been suggested that religiosity helps prevent depression in older people. This study examines the association between religious involvement and depression in older Dutch citizens and focuses on models of the mechanism in which religious involvement has an impact on other factors related to depression. The subjects were 2,817 older adults aged 55-85 years living in the community who participated in the Longitudinal Aging Study Amsterdam. Depressive symptoms were assessed using the Center for Epidemiologic Studies Depression Scale (CES-D). Religious involvement was assessed using items on frequency of church attendance and strength of church affiliation. Further data were collected on physical health, size of social network, social support, sense of mastery and self-esteem. As in North American studies, religious involvement appeared to be inversely associated with depression, both on symptom and syndrome levels. Controlling for sociodemographics, physical impairment and network support did not substantially affect this association, particularly among subjects aged 75-85 years. The inverse association between religious involvement and depression was not selectively more pronounced among older people with physical impairments. However, the association appeared to be most specific for subjects with a small social network and those with a low sense of mastery

'I told him not to use condoms': masculinities, femininities and sexual health of Aboriginal Canadian young people.

Gendered power imbalances in heterosexual relationships are a key target of gender-sensitive STI risk reduction interventions. Gendered aspects of sexual behaviour have not been explored among Canadian indigenous young people, who are at elevated risk for STI relative to other young Canadians. We used data from in-depth qualitative interviews with 15 male and 15 female indigenous young people to explore gendered sexual behaviour and its implications for STI reduction. There was a pervasive 'double standard' where young men were expected to be sexually aggressive and young women were expected to resist sexual advances; but we also observed 'alternative' or non-hegemonic behaviours. Specifically, young women were often very active participants in sexual negotiations, could refuse condom use and sometimes pressured their male partners to not use condoms. Young men also described being the object of coerced sex, and did not always perceive female sexual desire in negative terms, and were not always receptive to sex. The gendered sexual attitudes and behaviours in our sample were much more complex than usually described in the literature. Intervention work needs to take more realistic account of the sexual interactions that occur between young people