The developmental effects of media-ideal internalization and self-objectification processes on adolescents’ negative body-feelings, dietary restraint, and binge eating

Despite accumulated experimental evidence of the negative effects of exposure to media-idealized images, the degree to which body image, and eating related disturbances are caused by media portrayals of gendered beauty ideals remains controversial. On the basis of the most up-to-date meta-analysis of experimental studies indicating that media-idealized images have the most harmful and substantial impact on vulnerable individuals regardless of gender (i.e., “internalizers” and “self-objectifiers”), the current longitudinal study examined the direct and mediated links posited in objectification theory among media-ideal internalization, self-objectification, shame and anxiety surrounding the body and appearance, dietary restraint, and binge eating. Data collected from 685 adolescents aged between 14 and 15 at baseline (47 % males), who were interviewed and completed standardized measures annually over a 3-year period, were analyzed using a structural equation modeling approach. Results indicated that media-ideal internalization predicted later thinking and scrutinizing of one’s body from an external observer’s standpoint (or self-objectification), which then predicted later negative emotional experiences related to one’s body and appearance. In turn, these negative emotional experiences predicted subsequent dietary restraint and binge eating, and each of these core features of eating disorders influenced each other. Differences in the strength of these associations across gender were not observed, and all indirect effects were significant. The study provides valuable information about how the cultural values embodied by gendered beauty ideals negatively influence adolescents’ feelings, thoughts and behaviors regarding their own body, and on the complex processes involved in disordered eating. Practical implications are discussed

The importance of perceptual experience in the esthetic appreciation of the body.

Several studies suggest that sociocultural models conveying extreme thinness as the widespread ideal of beauty exert an important influence on the perceptual and emotional representation of body image. The psychological mechanisms underlying such environmental influences, however, are unclear. Here, we utilized a perceptual adaptation paradigm to investigate how perceptual experience modulates body esthetic appreciation. We found that the liking judgments of round bodies increased or decreased after brief exposure to round or thin bodies, respectively. No change occurred in the liking judgments of thin bodies. The results suggest that perceptual experience may shape our esthetic appreciation to favor more familiar round body figures. Importantly, individuals with more deficits in interoceptive awareness were less prone to increase their liking ratings of round bodies after exposure, suggesting a specific risk factor for the susceptibility to the influence of the extreme thin vs. round body ideals of beauty portrayed by the media

Integrated knowledge translation in population health intervention research: a case study of implementation and outcomes from a school-based project.

BACKGROUND: Integrated knowledge translation (IKT) is encouraged in population health intervention research (PHIR) to ensure the co-production of policy-relevant research, yet there is little published literature that reports its implementation and outcomes. The purpose of this study was to describe and evaluate the IKT approach used in a school-based PHIR project to understand how the research informed policy and practice and identify what influenced the IKT process. METHODS: A case study approach was used to provide an in-depth description of the IKT process and understand the co-production and application of research evidence. Data were collected through document review, a survey with all elementary school principals in the school board (n = 18) following dissemination of School Reports and interviews with the IKT research team (including two researchers and three knowledge users). RESULTS: Approximately half of the principals reported reading their School Report (52%) and almost all of these principals attributed the partial or full adoption, or implementation, of a new practice as a result of using the information (89%). Key themes related to the IKT process emerged across the interviews, including supportive relationships, role clarity, competing priorities and the complexities of population health interventions. CONCLUSIONS: The findings suggest that, while IKT can support policy and practice, it can be challenging to maintain engagement due to differing priorities and role ambiguity. Additional recognition, investment and research would enable better implementation of the approach, thereby bridging the gap between research, policy and practice

Resonant ion-dip infrared spectroscopy of the S<inf>4</inf> and D<inf>2d</inf> water octamers in benzene-(water)<inf>8</inf> and benzene<inf>2</inf>-(water)<inf>8</inf>

The techniques of resonant two-photon ionization (R2PI), UV-UV (ultraviolet) hole-burning, and resonant ion-dip infrared (RIDIR) spectroscopies have been employed along with density functional theory (DFT) calculations to assign and characterize the hydrogen-bonding topologies of two isomers each of the benzene-(water)8 and (benzene)2(water)8 gas-phase clusters. The BW8 isomers (B=benzene, W=water) have R2PI spectra which are nearly identical to one another, but shifted by about 5 cm-1 from one another. This difference is sufficient to enable interference-free RIDIR spectra to be recorded. As with smaller BWn clusters, the BW8 clusters fragment following photoionization by loss of either one or two water molecules. The OH stretch IR spectra of the two BW8 isomers bear a close resemblance to one another, but differ most noticeably in the double-donor OH stretch transitions near 3550 cm-1. Comparison to DFT calculated minimum energy structures, vibrational frequencies, and infrared intensities leads to an assignment of the H-bonding topology of the BW8 isomers as nominally cubic water octamers of S4 and D2d symmetry surface attached to benzene through a π H-bond. A series of arguments based on the R2PI and hole-burning spectra leads to an assignment of additional features in the R2PI spectra to two isomers of B2W8. The OH stretch RIDIR spectra of these isomers show them to be the corresponding S4 and D2d analogs of B2W8 in which the benzene molecules each form a π H-bond with a different dangling OH group on the W8 sub-cluster. © 1998 American Institute of Physics

MDM2 interaction with nuclear corepressor KAP1 contributes to p53 inactivation

MDM2 is a RING domain ubiquitin E3 ligase and a major regulator of the p53 tumor suppressor. MDM2 binds to p53, inactivates p53 transcription function, inhibits p53 acetylation, and promotes p53 degradation. Here, we present evidence that MDM2 interacts with the nuclear corepressor KAP1. The binding is mediated by the N-terminal coiled-coil domain of KAP1 and the central acidic domain of MDM2. KAP1 stimulates formation of p53–HDAC1 complex and inhibits p53 acetylation by interacting with MDM2. Expression of KAP1 cooperates with MDM2 to promote p53 ubiquitination and degradation. The tumor suppressor ARF competes with KAP1 in MDM2 binding; oncogene induction of ARF expression reduces MDM2–KAP1 interaction. Depletion of endogenous KAP1 expression by RNAi stimulates p53 transcriptional activity, sensitizes p53 response to DNA damage, and increases apoptosis. Therefore, MDM2 interaction with KAP1 contributes to p53 functional regulation. ARF may regulate p53 acetylation and stability in part by inhibiting KAP1–MDM2 binding

Lab4CE: a Remote Laboratory for Computer Education

International audienceRemote practical activities have been demonstrated to be efficient when learners come to acquire inquiry skills. In computer science education, virtualization technologies are gaining popularity as this technological advance enables instructors to implement realistic practical learning activities, and learners to engage in authentic and problem-based learning. However, virtualization solutions have not been designed especially for education and do not address any pedagogical concern. Since several large-scale studies showed that instructional supports during practical activities are almost as important as technical features, this article investigates the following research question: how the scaffolding around the lab increases students’ engagement in remote practical learning of computer science? To answer this question, we introduce the Lab4CE environment, a remote laboratory for computer education which adopts a distributed, modular and flexible architecture to integrate a set of scaffolding tools and services intended for instructors and learners. An exploratory study conducted with 139 undergraduate students enrolled in the first year of a computer science degree suggests a positive effect of the framework on learners’ engagement when they come to practice system administration, and reveals a significant positive correlation between students’ activity within the system and students’ learning achievement