Understanding Lifeguard Recruitment and Selection Practices in Victorian Aquatic and Recreation Centers (ARCs)

Extensive research has focused on human resource management (HRM) and recruitment and selection practices across different settings. However, there is a gap in the scholarly literature in ARC settings, including lifeguards. Additionally, the aquatics industry is experiencing unprecedented levels of lifeguard turnover within aquatic facilities. The recruitment and selection process can impact employee turnover. Therefore, an important first step to address lifeguard turnover is to better understand the current recruitment and selection practices of lifeguards. This study focuses on the recruitment and selection practices of ARC management to better understand the recruitment and selection of lifeguards. The analysis is based on 16 semi-structured interviews with ARC managers involved in lifeguard recruitment and selection. Participants included center managers, assistant center managers, and operations managers/coordinators. A deductive analysis was able to effectively explain the current recruitment and selection practices for recruiting lifeguards in Victorian ARCs

The effect of lateral cerebellar lesions on consecutive finger movement sequences

"This study investigated the effect of unilateral cerebellar lesions on the performance of finger movement sequences in reaction time tasks."Master of Applied Scienc

Human resource retention strategies to reduce swim instructor turnover intention

Research question: Leisure organisations’ most valued staff are often the most likely to leave. Leisure employees (e.g. swim instructors) are resources essential to organisational performance requiring proactive strategies by managers and human resource departments to retain talented individuals. The association between job satisfaction and turnover intention is well supported in the literature. The study aimed to identify and explain the current turnover intention of Victorian, Australia swim instructors. Methods: Using a modified version of Roodt’s Turnover Intention Theory, this study utilised semi-structured interviews with current swim instructors (n = 42; 62% female, 38% male). A deductive content analysis assisted to explain the turnover intention of current swim instructors. Results: Younger swim instructors (i.e. 18–28 years old) presented a high turnover intention. Older swim instructors (i.e. 45+ years old) presented a low turnover intention. Implications: Managers of swim schools should contemplate implementing retention strategies to reduce the turnover intention of younger swim instructors and consider the benefits of having a workforce containing older swim instructors. Supporting the industry to manage turnover intention might support in improving ineffective pedagogy and teaching, enable more individuals to participate in swimming lessons, and improve drowning outcomes

The influence of full leg-length compression tights during treadmill running at race speed

The aim of the present study was to examine whether full leg-length compression tights modify physiological and kinematic measures during treadmill running at a competitive race pace in moderately trained runners. Thirteen males and five females completed two 15-minute running tests at a speed corresponding to a recent race time wearing compression tights or loose-fitting running shorts. Running economy (RE) was determined by oxygen consumption and carbon dioxide expiration during the final 3 minutes of treadmill running. Muscle oxygenation, skin temperature, heart rate (HR), vertical oscillation, step frequency and ground contact time (GCT) were measured continuously. GCT was shorter with compression compared with control trials (p  =  0.03), however, no differences in RE, muscle oxygenation, vertical oscillation, step frequency, HR or skin temperature were revealed. Despite a shorter GCT with compression tights, the findings suggest that moderately trained runners do not benefit nor limit physiological responses at a competitive race pace

On quaternary complex Hadamard matrices of small orders

One of the main goals of design theory is to classify, characterize and count various combinatorial objects with some prescribed properties. In most cases, however, one quickly encounters a combinatorial explosion and even if the complete enumeration of the objects is possible, there is no apparent way how to study them in details, store them efficiently, or generate a particular one rapidly. In this paper we propose a novel method to deal with these difficulties, and illustrate it by presenting the classification of quaternary complex Hadamard matrices up to order 8. The obtained matrices are members of only a handful of parametric families, and each inequivalent matrix, up to transposition, can be identified through its fingerprint.Comment: 7 page

Examining the role of parental self-regulation in family physical activity: a mixed-methods approach.

Physical activity (PA) is essential for good health. However, parents risk becoming less active because of the demands of parenting. This has consequences for children as parents are role models. The present study used a mixed-methods approach to explore parental self-regulation associated with PA. Data were collected from 36 parents with preschool-aged children. They were interviewed about their PA and their family's PA. Parents also completed PA and self-regulation questionnaires and wore an accelerometer for five days. Qualitative data were examined using an inductive approach to thematic analysis. It showed that parents felt that they had limited time for personal PA. Mothers' self-regulation was driven by an ethic of care and subjective norms, whereas fathers' self-regulation was driven by beliefs about the importance of autonomy. Nevertheless, both parents saw caring for their children as the main priority. Quantitative data were examined using multiple regression analyses. Results showed that different self-regulatory behaviours predicted the PA of mothers and fathers. Which predictors were significant depended on the type of activity and how it was measured. The findings warrant longitudinal research that would enable the effect of family dynamics on self-regulation associated with PA to be assessed

Proceedings of the Third Annual Deep Brain Stimulation Think Tank: A Review of Emerging Issues and Technologies

The proceedings of the 3rd Annual Deep Brain Stimulation Think Tank summarize the most contemporary clinical, electrophysiological, imaging, and computational work on DBS for the treatment of neurological and neuropsychiatric disease. Significant innovations of the past year are emphasized. The Think Tank\u27s contributors represent a unique multidisciplinary ensemble of expert neurologists, neurosurgeons, neuropsychologists, psychiatrists, scientists, engineers, and members of industry. Presentations and discussions covered a broad range of topics, including policy and advocacy considerations for the future of DBS, connectomic approaches to DBS targeting, developments in electrophysiology and related strides toward responsive DBS systems, and recent developments in sensor and device technologies

Fundamental movement skills are more than run, throw and catch: The role of stability skills.

Introduction In motor development literature fundamental movement skills are divided into three constructs: locomotive, object control and stability skills. Most fundamental movement skills research has focused on children's competency in locomotor and object control skills. The first aim of this study was to validate a test battery to assess the construct of stability skills, in children aged 6 to 10 (M age = 8.2, SD = 1.2). Secondly we assessed how the stability skills construct fitted into a model of fundamental movement skill. Method The Delphi method was used to select the stability skill battery. Confirmatory factor analysis (CFA) was used to assess if the skills loaded onto the same construct and a new model of FMS was developed using structural equation modelling. Results Three postural control tasks were selected (the log roll, rock and back support) because they had good face and content validity. These skills also demonstrated good predictive validity with gymnasts scoring significantly better than children without gymnastic training and children from a high SES school performing better than those from a mid and low SES schools and the mid SES children scored better than the low SES children (all p < .05). Inter rater reliability tests were excellent for all three skills (ICC = 0.81, 0.87, 0.87) as was test retest reliability (ICC 0.87-0.95). CFA provided good construct validity, and structural equation modelling revealed stability skills to be an independent factor in an overall FMS model which included locomotor (r = .88), object control (r = .76) and stability skills (r = .81). Discussion This study provides a rationale for the inclusion of stability skills in FMS assessment. The stability skills could be used alongside other FMS assessment tools to provide a holistic assessment of children's fundamental movement skills. Copyright

A Network Model of Local Field Potential Activity in Essential Tremor and the Impact of Deep Brain Stimulation

Essential tremor (ET), a movement disorder characterised by an uncontrollable shaking of the affected body part, is often professed to be the most common movement disorder, affecting up to one percent of adults over 40 years of age. The precise cause of ET is unknown, however pathological oscillations of a network of a number of brain regions are implicated in leading to the disorder. Deep brain stimulation (DBS) is a clinical therapy used to alleviate the symptoms of a number of movement disorders. DBS involves the surgical implantation of electrodes into specific nuclei in the brain. For ET the targeted region is the ventralis intermedius (Vim) nucleus of the thalamus. Though DBS is effective for treating ET, the mechanism through which the therapeutic effect is obtained is not understood. To elucidate the mechanism underlying the pathological network activity and the effect of DBS on such activity, we take a computational modelling approach combined with electrophysiological data. The pathological brain activity was recorded intra-operatively via implanted DBS electrodes, whilst simultaneously recording muscle activity of the affected limbs. We modelled the network hypothesised to underlie ET using the Wilson-Cowan approach. The modelled network exhibited oscillatory behaviour within the tremor frequency range, as did our electrophysiological data. By applying a DBS-like input we suppressed these oscillations. This study shows that the dynamics of the ET network support oscillations at the tremor frequency and the application of a DBS-like input disrupts this activity, which could be one mechanism underlying the therapeutic benefit