Treatment for depression following mild traumatic brain injury in adults: A meta-analysis

Primary objective: Development of depression after TBI is linked to poorer outcomes. The aim of this manuscript is to review evidence for the effectiveness of current treatments. Research design: Two meta-analyses were undertaken to examine the effectiveness of both pharmacological and non-pharmacological interventions for depression after mild TBI Method and procedures: PubMed, Medline, PsychInfo, Web of Science and Digital Dissertations were searched and 13 studies located. Meta Analyst Beta 3.13 was used to conduct analyses of pre- vs post-effects then to examine treatment group vs control group effects. Main outcomes and results: Studies using a pre–post design produced an overall effect size of 1.89 (95% CI = 1.20–2.58, p < 0.001), suggesting that treatments were effective; however, the overall effect for controlled trials was 0.46 (95% CI = −0.44–1.36, p < 0.001), which favoured the control rather than treatment groups. Conclusions: This study highlights the need for additional large well-controlled trials of effective treatments for depression post-TBI

Further validation of the New Zealand test of adult reading (NZART) as a measure of premorbid IQ in a New Zealand sample

Premorbid IQ estimates are used to determine decline in cognitive functioning following trauma or illness. This study aimed to: 1) further validate the New Zealand Adult Reading Test (NZART) in a New Zealand population and compare its performance to the UK developed National Adult Reading Test, and 2) develop regression formulae for the NZART to estimate Wechsler Adult Intelligence Scale-IV (WAIS–IV) IQ scores. The 67 participants (53 females; 16 Māori), aged 16 to 90 years old (mean age = 46.07, SD 23.21) completed the WASI-IV, the NART and the NZART. The NZART predicted Verbal Comprehension Index (VCI) scores slightly better than the NART (r =.63 vs. r = .62) and explained 33% of the variance in FSIQ scores. Reasons for developing regression formulae for the NZART are discussed, regression formulas for the NZART based on the WAIS–IV are included and suggestions of alternate ways of determining premorbid IQ are made

Student Voice to Improve Instruction: Leading Transformation of a School System

For educators to improve instruction, they should listen to and learn from students, who are the central focus of education. While there is a growing body of research demonstrating the value of educators partnering with students to improve learning, there is little research on how to implement, diffuse, and sustain the use of student voice at the district level. There was a need for a model of district-wide implementation of student voice that educational leaders could model to implement a student voice initiative in their schools. The purpose of this qualitative study was to provide a historical narrative of the initial 3 years of the Student Voice Initiative in a major suburban Texas school district. The data collected included individual and focus group interviews with secondary educators, observations, and archival data collected over a 3-year period. The results of the study indicate that partnering with students to improve instruction has positive outcomes for both students, educators, and the culture of the learning organization. The analysis suggested that educators and students should have a knowledge base of the “why” and “how” of student voice, intentionally communicate the initiative, devote time to the initiative, and develop a culture supportive of student voice

Games on partial orders and other relational structures

This thesis makes a contribution to the classification of certain specific relational structures under the relation of n-equivalence, where this means that Player II has a winning strategy in the n-move Ehrenfeucht-Fraı̈ssé game played on the two structures. This provides a finer classification of structures than elementary equivalence, since two structures A and B are elementarily equivalent if and only if they are n-equivalent for all n. On each move of such a game, Player I picks a member of either A or B, and Player II responds with a member of the other structure. Player II wins the game if the map thereby produced from a substructure of A to a substructure of B is an isomorphism of induced substructures. Certain ordered structures have been studied from this point of view in papers by Mostowski and Tarski, for ordinals [22], and Mwesigye and Truss, for ordinals [25], some scattered orders, and finite coloured linear orders [24]. Here we extend the known results on linear orders by classifying them all up to 3-equivalence (which had previously been done for 2-equivalence), of which there are 281, using the method of characters. We also classify all partial orders up to 2-equivalence (there are 39), and discuss the difficulties of extending this to 3-equivalence, since the method of characters is not as effective as in the linear case. We classify (total) circular orders up to 3-equivalence, and relate the classification of partial circular orders to both these and to partial orders. A variety of related structures are discussed: trees, directed and undirected graphs, and unars (sets with a single unary function), which we categorise up to 2-equivalence. In a pebble game, the players of an otherwise standard Ehrenfeucht-Fraı̈ssé game are in addition provided with two identical sets of k distinguishable pebbles, and on each move they place a pebble on their chosen point. On each move, Player I may choose either to move a pebble to another point, or else use a new pebble, if any remain, and Player II must place the corresponding partner pebble. Such games correspond to logics in which there are only k variables, and moving a pebble corresponds to reusing the variable. Here we extend some work of Immerman and Kozen [14] on pebble games played on linear orders

Perceptions of Place - evaluating experiential qualities of streetscapes

Working with a small set of 60 images from a collection of over 1000 digital photographs, the following paper presents ongoing research into the experiential qualities of street scapes. This paper examines the initial results of a survey of 75 voluntary based perceptive studies and focusses on a sample cohort of 30 participants (20 cognate and 10 non-cognate respondents) who were asked to evaluate a streetscape experience based on favourable and unfavourable perceptive qualities. Using a spatial sequencing process, akin to the \u27Serial Vision\u27 methodology of Gordon Cullen, respondents were asked to rate a section of urban fabric based on favourable (hot or warm) and unfavourable (cold or cool) traits and to digitally capture these images. The study yields results which highlight the importance of the quality and effect of green attributes within the overall street scape experience. The implications for urban design practice (streetscape greening), are briefly explored

Computerised tomography indices of raised intracranial pressure and traumatic brain injury severity in a New Zealand sample

After traumatic brain injury (TBI) complex cellular and biochemical processes occur¹ including changes in blood flow and oxygenation of the brain; cerebral swelling; and raised intracranial pressure (ICP).² This can dramatically worsen the damage³ and contributes to mortality

Communication and behavioral assessment of persons with developmental disabilities

Communication affects many areas of daily life. Therefore, support programs to assist persons with developmental disabilities should identify individuals who would especially benefit from communication training. Forty individuals with developmental disabilities were assessed on Vineland Adaptive Behavioral Scales (VABS) (Sparrow, Balia, &Cicchetti, 1984), the Assessment of Basic Learning Abilities (ABLA) test (Kerr, Meyerson, & Flora, 1977), and a Communication Status Survey developed for this study. ABLA level was correlated with all VABS scales except gross motor skills and maladaptive behaviors. These correlations validate the use of the ABLA as a measure of cognitive ability. Ability to use formal communication modes (speech, sign language, symbols) was significantly (p= 0.001) related to ABLA level. Examination of individual cases suggested that the ABLA may be predictive of the ability to acquire formal communication. All persons able to pass ABLA level 2 or higher who had received previous communication training had some formal communication ability. In contrast, five individuals who were able to pass ABLA level 2 or 3 and lacked formal communication had not received communication training. The importance of formal communication is confirmed since persons without formal communication were unable to provide information about immediate and external environments or request clarification. Training in formal communication may be of benefit in allowing clients to perform these skills

Model of posttraumatic stress reactions to sexual abuse in females / by Suzanne L. Barker-Collo.

Sexual abuse is identified by the American Psychiatric Association’s Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders (4th edition) (DSM-IV, APA, 1994) as a possible precipitator of Posttraumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD). An estimated 50% of sexual abuse survivors will develop PTSD (Kiser, Heston, Millsap, & Pruitt, 1991; O’Neil & Gupta, 1991). Therefore, while exposure to a traumatic stressor such as sexual abuse is necessary in the development of PTSD, it is not sufficient A number of models have been proposed that attempt to describe the process of coping and symptom development associated with PTSD, and to account for individual differences in this process. One such model is Joseph, Williams, and Yule’s (1995) integrative cognitive-behavioural model of response to traumatic stress (see Figure I). The present stucfy evaluated Joseph, et al.’s (1995) model when applied to a sample of 122 female sexual abuse survivors from across Ontario, Canada. Participants completed survey packages which included measures for each of the variables presented in Joseph et al ’s (1995) model. The variable Event Stimuli was measured using the Sexual Experiences Survey (Koss & Orso, 1982; see Appendix A). Personality was measured using Neuroticism items of the NEO-PIR (Costa & McCrae, 1992; see Appendix C). Appraisal of the abuse was measured using a modified version of the Attributional Style Questionnaire (Peterson, Semmel, Baqrer, Abramson, Metalsky, & Seligman, 1982; see Appendix D). Coping and Crisis Support were measured using the Coping Responses Inventory (Moos, 1993; see Appendix E) and the Crisis Support Scale (Joseph, Andrews, Williams, & Yule, 1992; see Appendix F), respectively. Symptom outcomes, as indicated by the model variables Event Cognitions and Emotional States, were assessed by specified items of the Trauma Symptom Checklist- 40 (Elliott & Briere, 1991; see Appendix G). This study makes three main empirical contributions. First, MANOVA results indicate that response to abuse was significantly influenced by ethnicity, age at which abuse first occurred, and the type of mental health services currently being received. Caucasian individuals rated themselves lower on use of problem-focused coping strategies, vulnerability, impulsiveness, and self-blame than individuals of Native American ancestry. Those 15 years of age or less when first abused rated themselves higher on anxiety and lower on social supports while those in older age groups rated themselves in the opposite direction, individuals currently in counselling or on a waiting list rated themselves lower on anxiety, depression, and vulnerability. Conversely, those currently in support groups rated themselves as higher on depression, anxiety, and vulnerability. Those currently in both counselling and a support group and those receiving no clinical services scored moderately on the three variables. Second, path analysis indicated that Joseph et al.’s (1995) model did not fit the data X[superscript 2](9) = 24.81, p .4 (see Figure 7). As hypothesized, one modification that improved the fit of the model was the addition of a path from characteristics of the abuse to engagement of social support In the modified model, the sign of the path from crisis support to appraisals indicated that increased levels of crisis support were associated with maladaptive appraisals (i.e., self-blame). This relationship is opposite to that proposed by Joseph et al. (1995), where increased crisis support is proposed to lead to more adaptive appraisals, but is consistent with the second hypothesized modification to the model. When examined as a single construct, coping strategies was not found to significantly influence any other variables in the model. Finally, relationships between coping, appraisal, neuroticism and symptom subscales were evaluated. Individuals who coped through cognitive avoidance, emotional discharge, acceptance/resignation, and logical analysis following abuse reported more event cognitions, negative emotional states, sexual problems, and somatic complaints. Increased sexual and somatic complaints, negative emotional states, and event cognitions were accompanied by decreased depression, self-consciousness, anxiety, vulnerability, and impulsiveness, in contrast those who engaged in less cognitive avoidance, sought less support from others and engaged in less problem solving behaviours reported fewer sexual or somatic complaints. Reduced symptomatology (i.e., event cognitions, negative emotional states, somatic symptoms) was also associated with increased trait levels of anxiety, depression, and vulnerability and decreased impulsiveness. Implications of the findings for assessment and therapeutic interventions and for future research were explored

Radically rethinking marriage

Open access, licensed under CC-BY-NC-NDThis special issue of the Onati Socio-Legal Series offers inter-disciplinary, feminist perspectives that collectively ‘re-think’ the institution of marriage, not only in the field of legal discourse and institutions but also in the humanities and social sciences as well as through activisms. With a focus on jurisdictions in Europe, North America and Africa, the articles included in this issue challenge normative assumptions about marriage, reconsider forms of conjugality, re-write judicial interpretations and problematize legal and activist interventions and reasonings.Ye