Psychological well-being and work in the dramatic arts: qualitative research of actors’ experiences

Objective: Examining the experiences of students of a theater company pertaining to the impact of work in the dramatic arts on their psychological well-being. Methods: Semi-structured interviews were conducted with 15 students of a theater company of different ages and levels of experience. The collected qualitative data were analyzed in the context of the six-factor Theory of psychological well-being, which includes: self-acceptance, positive relations with others, autonomy, environmental mastery, purpose in life, and personal growth. In addition to the above topics derived from a deductive approach to data, two additional topics are also discussed: reasons for enrolling in the theater and participants’ progress. Results: The results of this research showed that acting contributes to the personal well-being of individuals. The participants most often mentioned an increase in self-confidence, a decrease in anxiety levels, a connection with other students, courage, and awareness of one’s own capabilities. In addition to the positive impact of acting on their lives, the participants also mentioned some negative aspects they had noticed when it comes to the behavior of others, such as a lack of accountability of some students, “pretending” in everyday life, and some prejudices regarding acting. Conclusion: The results of the research support the idea that working in the arts, in this case the dramatic arts, can contribute to the psychological well-being of individuals. Sharing their experiences of working in the dramatic arts, the students of a theater company touched on all six domains of psychological well-being pertaining to the Theory of psychological well-being (Ryff & Keyes, 1995)

Moralni razvoj studenata medicine - pregled stanja i preporuke za djelovanje

Iz osobnog iskustva, ali i iz literature znamo da studenti medicine započinju studij kao mladi idealisti (1). Pritom su altruistički i humanistički motivi za bavljenje medicinom stabilni i predominantni kako među hrvatskim (2) tako i među stranim studentima (3). Ipak, mnogi svakodnevni, ali i stručni komentari opisuju liječnike hladnima i ravnodušnima (4-7) što je u oštroj suprotnosti s motivima koji studente dovode na studij. Takva promjena iz mladog idealista u ravnodušnog profesionalca složen je proces koji je zasigurno rezultat većeg broja društvenih i psiholoških čimbenika. Jedan od njih je svakako moralni razvoj studenata. Ovaj rad potaknut je nalazima istraživanja koja upućuju da moralni razvoj, suprotno očekivanjima, zastaje tijekom studija medicine ili da čak nazaduje (8-17). Ovdje se ne tvrdi da je to ključan, a još manje jedini čimbenik. Međutim, nesumnjivo je važan, a ne posvećuje mu se dovoljno pažnje tijekom obrazovanja mladih ljudi u struku koja će ih, bez iznimke, prije ili kasnije suočiti s nekim oblikom moralne dvojbe. Zato ću ponuditi sažeti uvid u područje moralnog razvoja i stanje studenata medicine u tom pogledu, a na kraju ću ocrtati mogući smjer djelovanja kojim bi se taj razvoj podržao i potakao

Moralni razvoj studenata medicine - pregled stanja i preporuke za djelovanje

Iz osobnog iskustva, ali i iz literature znamo da studenti medicine započinju studij kao mladi idealisti (1). Pritom su altruistički i humanistički motivi za bavljenje medicinom stabilni i predominantni kako među hrvatskim (2) tako i među stranim studentima (3). Ipak, mnogi svakodnevni, ali i stručni komentari opisuju liječnike hladnima i ravnodušnima (4-7) što je u oštroj suprotnosti s motivima koji studente dovode na studij. Takva promjena iz mladog idealista u ravnodušnog profesionalca složen je proces koji je zasigurno rezultat većeg broja društvenih i psiholoških čimbenika. Jedan od njih je svakako moralni razvoj studenata. Ovaj rad potaknut je nalazima istraživanja koja upućuju da moralni razvoj, suprotno očekivanjima, zastaje tijekom studija medicine ili da čak nazaduje (8-17). Ovdje se ne tvrdi da je to ključan, a još manje jedini čimbenik. Međutim, nesumnjivo je važan, a ne posvećuje mu se dovoljno pažnje tijekom obrazovanja mladih ljudi u struku koja će ih, bez iznimke, prije ili kasnije suočiti s nekim oblikom moralne dvojbe. Zato ću ponuditi sažeti uvid u područje moralnog razvoja i stanje studenata medicine u tom pogledu, a na kraju ću ocrtati mogući smjer djelovanja kojim bi se taj razvoj podržao i potakao

Moral Foundations theory in the context of a political scandal: Two cross sectional studies in Croatia

Aim: The aim of this study was to examine the moral foundations structure in the Croatian population, and to examine possible changes in moral foundation structure after a major political scandal in Croatia. Methods: We conducted an online survey using Moral Foundations Questionnaire and Key Social Issues Scale, which was distributed in two waves, in 2009 and 2014. Participants were invided from the Faculties of Humanities and Social Sciences at the universities in Zagreb and Split and asked to distribute the survey to colleagues and friends. Results: 3000 participants completed the survey in 2009, 1323 participants completed the survey in 2014. In both samples, most participants reported that they relied more on individual foundations of “Care/Harm” and “Fairness/Cheating”, than on relational foundations of “Loyalty/Betrayal”, “Authority/Subversion” or “Sanctity/Degradation”, which are typically more valued by traditionally oriented or conservative individuals. Comparison of the two measurement time points indicated that scores on traditional foundations significantly decreased, while liberal values increased. These changes were triangulated and confirmed by the results on the Key Social Issues Scale. Conclusion: This is, to the best of our knowledge, the first study which analysed the changes in the moral foundations structure after a major political scandal, implicating that negative political events may decrease the expression of moral foundations related to the values which are nurtured by a political party involved in the scandal

National vs. international journals: views of medical professionals in Croatia

Scholarly journals, especially in non-English-speaking countries, may perform very different functions depending on whether they are published for national or international audiences. Four hundred and sixty-six academic physicians and non-academic general practitioners in Croatia were surveyed on their knowledge about two Croatian medical journals: Liječnički vjesnik (published in Croatian) and Croatian Medical Journal (published in English). The physicians were also surveyed about the importance of all national and international journals published in Croatia, and the types of articles they thought should be published in these journals. More respondents rated national (n = 329, 72.6%) than international journals (n = 275, 63.5%, P < 0.001, Wilcoxon test) as very important for the medical profession. On the other hand, publishing in international journals was more often rated as important than publishing in national journals (n = 184, 42.5% vs. n = 125, 27.8%; P < 0.001, Wilcoxon test). Guidelines for clinical practice were rated as the most important publication item in national journals, and original scientific articles in international journals

Teacher s\u27 Voice about the Voice of Students: Acceptance and Usage of Students’ Assessments of Teacher Effectiveness at the University of Split

Centar za unaprjeđenje kvalitete Sveučilišta u Splitu organizirao je istraživanje u kojemu su nastavnici pojedinih sastavnica Sveučilišta popunjavali online-upitnik i pružili osobni osvrt na dosadašnje iskustvo sa studentskom evaluacijom nastave. Nastavnici su u upitniku odgovarali na tri skupine pitanja: pitanja o studentima, kvaliteti nastavnika te kvaliteti same nastave. Od ukupno 1833 nastavnika Sveučilišta, upitnik je ispunilo njih 402, odn. 22%. Dobiveni rezultati pokazuju kako nastavnici većinu pitanja unutar studentskih anketa smatraju korisnima, a polovica njih navodi da dobivene povratne informacije zaista utječu na ponašanje nastavnika. Od nastavnika koji prepoznaju utjecaj ankete, njih 76% navodi da je on pozitivan, najčešće u smislu da se studentski odgovori koriste u svrhu poboljšanja kvalitete nastave, dok ih 14% smatra da je taj utjecaj negativan, najčešće u smislu smanjivanja kriterija. Međutim, treba spomenuti i kako ukupno 18% nastavnika smatra ankete neinformativnima. Općenito, dobiveni rezultati su u skladu s dosadašnjim svjetskim iskustvima vezanim uz korištenje ove metode procjene učinkovitosti nastavnika te ukazuju na potrebu za povećanjem znanja i svijesti o ovoj metodi kao i eventualnoj reviziji i poboljšanju same ankete u budućnosti.The center for quality assurance of the University of Split organized an online survey in which teachers from all university constituents shared their experiences with student evaluations of teacher effectiveness. Within this survey, the teachers responded to three types of questions: about students, teacher and teaching quality. Out of the 1,833 teachers employed at the university, 402 (22%) responded to the questionnaire. The results that were obtained indicated that half of the teachers considered student evaluations to be informative, among which 76% mention a positive influence of using student commentaries for improving teaching, while 14% consider this influence as negative, as it results in deterioration of teaching standards. In addition, around 18% of teachers considered this practice to be completely uninformative. Overall, the results are in line with international experiences related to the use of student evaluations and they indicate a need for increasing both teachers’ and students’ knowledge regarding this method of measuring teacher effectiveness and for considering potential changes to the questionnaire currently used for this purpose

The STROBE extensions: protocol for a qualitative assessment of content and a survey of endorsement

Introduction The STrengthening the Reporting of OBservational studies in Epidemiology (STROBE) Statement was developed in response to inadequate reporting of observational studies. In recent years, several extensions to STROBE have been created to provide more nuanced field-specific guidance for authors. The content and the prevalence of extension endorsement have not yet been assessed. Accordingly, there are two aims: (1) to classify changes made in the extensions to identify strengths and weaknesses of the original STROBE checklist and (2) to determine the prevalence and typology of endorsement by journals in fields related to extensions. Methods and analysis Two independent researchers will assess additions in each extension. Additions will be coded as â field specific' (FS) or â not field specific' (NFS). FS is defined as particularly relevant information for a single field and guidance provided generally cannot be extrapolated beyond that field. NFS is defined as information that reflects epidemiological or methodological tenets and can be generalised to most, if not all, types of observational research studies. Intraclass correlation will be calculated to measure reviewers' concordance. On disagreement, consensus will be sought. Individual additions will be grouped by STROBE checklist items to identify the frequency and distribution of changes. Journals in fields related to extensions will be identified through National Library of Medicine PubMed Broad Subject Terms, screened for eligibility and further distilled via Ovid MEDLINE® search strategies for observational studies. Text describing endorsement will be extracted from each journal's website. A classification scheme will be created for endorsement types and the prevalence of endorsement will be estimated. Analyses will use NVivo V.11 and SAS University Edition. Ethics and dissemination This study does not require ethical approval as it does not involve human participants. This study has been preregistered on Open Science Framework.Peer ReviewedPostprint (author's final draft

Transition from Longitudinal to Block Structure of Preclinical Courses: Outcomes and Experiences

Aim To evaluate the transition from a longitudinal to block/modular structure of preclinical courses in a medical school adapting to the process of higher education harmonization in Europe. Methods Average grades and the exam pass rates were compared for 11 preclinical courses before and after the transition from the longitudinal (academic years 1999/2000 to 2001/2002) to block/modular curriculum (academic years 2002/2003 to 2004/2005) at Zagreb University School of Medicine, Croatia. Attitudes of teachers toward the 2 curriculum structures were assessed by a semantic differential scale, and the experiences during the transition were explored in focus groups of students and teachers. Results With the introduction of the block/modular curriculum, average grades mostly increased, except in 3 major courses: Anatomy, Physiology, and Pathology. The proportion of students who passed the exams at first attempt decreased in most courses, but the proportion of students who successfully passed the exam by the end of the summer exam period increased. Teachers generally had more positive attitudes toward the longitudinal (median [C]±intequartile range [Q], 24 ± 16) than block/modular curriculum (C±Q, 38 ± 26) (P = 0.001, Wilcoxon signed rank test). The qualitative inquiry indicated that the dissatisfaction of students and teachers with the block/modular preclinical curriculum was caused by perceived hasty introduction of the reform under pressure and without much adaptation of the teaching program and materials, which reflected negatively on the learning processes and outcomes. Conclusion Any significant alteration in the temporal structure of preclinical courses should be paralleled by a change in the content and teaching methodology, and carefully planned and executed in order to achieve better academic outcomes

Languages for Different Health Information Readers: Multitrait-Multimethod Content Analysis of Cochrane Systematic Reviews Textual Summary Formats

Background: Although subjective expressions and linguistic fluency have been shown as important factors in processing and interpreting textual facts, analyses of these traits in textual health information for different audiences are lacking. We analyzed the readability and linguistic psychological and emotional characteristics of different textual summary formats of Cochrane systematic reviews. Methods: We performed a multitrait-multimethod cross-sectional study of Press releases available at Cochrane web site (n= 162) and corresponding Scientific abstracts (n= 158), Cochrane Clinical Answers (n= 35) and Plain language summaries in English (n= 156), French (n= 101), German (n= 41) and Croatian (n=156). We used SMOG index to assess text readability of all text formats, and natural language processing tools (IBM Watson Tone Analyzer, Stanford NLP Sentiment Analysis and Linguistic Inquiry and Word Count) to examine the affective states and subjective information in texts of Scientific abstracts, Plain language summaries and Press releases. Results: All text formats had low readability, with SMOG index ranging from a median of 15.6 (95% confidence interval (CI) 15.3–15.9) for Scientific abstracts to 14.7 (95% CI 14.4–15.0) for Plain language summaries. In all text formats, “Sadness” was the most dominantly perceived emotional tone and the style of writing was perceived as “Analytical”and “Tentative”. At the psychological level, all text formats exhibited the predominant “Openness”tone, and Press releases scored higher on the scales of “Conscientiousness”,“Agreeableness”and “Emotional range”. Press releases had significantly higher scores than Scientific abstracts and Plain languagesummariesonthedimensionsof“Clout”,and“Emotional ton

The STROBE extensions: protocol for a qualitative assessment of content and a survey of endorsement

Abstract Introduction The STrengthening the Reporting of OBservational studies in Epidemiology (STROBE) Statement was developed in response to inadequate reporting of observational studies. In recent years, several extensions to STROBE have been created to provide more nuanced field-specific guidance for authors. The content and the prevalence of extension endorsement have not yet been assessed. Accordingly, there are two aims: (1) to classify changes made in the extensions to identify strengths and weaknesses of the original STROBE checklist and (2) to determine the prevalence and typology of endorsement by journals in fields related to extensions. Methods and analysis Two independent researchers will assess additions in each extension. Additions will be coded as ‘field specific’ (FS) or ‘not field specific’ (NFS). FS is defined as particularly relevant information for a single field and guidance provided generally cannot be extrapolated beyond that field. NFS is defined as information that reflects epidemiological or methodological tenets and can be generalised to most, if not all, types of observational research studies. Intraclass correlation will be calculated to measure reviewers’ concordance. On disagreement, consensus will be sought. Individual additions will be grouped by STROBE checklist items to identify the frequency and distribution of changes. Journals in fields related to extensions will be identified through National Library of Medicine PubMed Broad Subject Terms, screened for eligibility and further distilled via Ovid MEDLINE® search strategies for observational studies. Text describing endorsement will be extracted from each journal’s website. A classification scheme will be created for endorsement types and the prevalence of endorsement will be estimated. Analyses will use NVivo V.11 and SAS University Edition. Ethics and dissemination This study does not require ethical approval as it does not involve human participants. This study has been preregistered on Open Science Framework