Food insecurity in veteran households: findings from nationally representative data

OBJECTIVE: The present study is the first to use nationally representative data to compare rates of food insecurity among households with veterans of the US Armed Forces and non-veteran households. DESIGN: We used data from the 2005-2013 waves of the Current Population Survey - Food Security Supplement to identify rates of food insecurity and very low food security in veteran and non-veteran households. We estimated the odds and probability of food insecurity in veteran and non-veteran households in uncontrolled and controlled models. We replicated these results after separating veteran households by their most recent period of service. We weighted models to create nationally representative estimates. SETTING: Nationally representative data from the 2005-2013 waves of the Current Population Survey - Food Security Supplement. SUBJECTS: US households (n 388 680). RESULTS: Uncontrolled models found much lower rates of food insecurity (8·4 %) and very low food security (3·3 %) among veteran households than in non-veteran households (14·4 % and 5·4 %, respectively), with particularly low rates among households with older veterans. After adjustment, average rates of food insecurity and very low food security were not significantly different for veteran households. However, the probability of food insecurity was significantly higher among some recent veterans and significantly lower for those who served during the Vietnam War. CONCLUSIONS: Although adjusting eliminated many differences between veteran and non-veteran households, veterans who served from 1975 and onwards may be at higher risk for food insecurity and should be the recipients of targeted outreach to improve nutritional outcomes

Peptide Centric Vβ Specific Germline Contacts Shape a Specialist T Cell Response

Certain CD8 T cell responses are particularly effective at controlling infection, as exemplified by elite control of HIV in individuals harboring HLA-B57. To understand the structural features that contribute to CD8 T cell elite control, we focused on a strongly protective CD8 T cell response directed against a parasite-derived peptide (HF10) presented by an atypical MHC-I molecule, H-2Ld. This response exhibits a focused TCR repertoire dominated by Vβ2, and a representative TCR (TG6) in complex with Ld-HF10 reveals an unusual structure in which both MHC and TCR contribute extensively to peptide specificity, along with a parallel footprint of TCR on its pMHC ligand. The parallel footprint is a common feature of Vβ2-containing TCRs and correlates with an unusual Vα-Vβ interface, CDR loop conformations, and Vβ2-specific germline contacts with peptides. Vβ2 and Ld may represent “specialist” components for antigen recognition that allows for particularly strong and focused T cell responses

Limitations on aspheric surface testing with simple null correctors

An analysis of the performance of simple refractive null compensators was done. Two types of correctors were studied--the Dall compensator and the Offner compensator. A framework was built for determining whether these simple null tests are adequate for a wide range of aspheric surfaces. Variables involved in determining a surface to be null tested are f-number, conic constant, and focal length. Examples are given on how to determine the best null test for several aspheric surfaces. Also of concern in the design of a null compensator was simplicity. Two elements were the maximum used for both compensators and all compensator surfaces were spherical

Interviewing children who may have been sexually abused.

In recent years, allegations of child sexual abuse have been intensely scrutinized and procedures for interviewing children who may have been sexually abused have been vigorously attacked. Findings from developmental research with children who are not victims of sexual abuse or of other trauma has been applied without appropriate caution to the circumstances of interviewing children who are suspected of having been sexually abused. Yet there is little research on the process of interviewing suspected victims of sexual abuse to support or refute current criticisms of interviewing strategies in sexual abuse. As a result, while professional guidelines for the evaluation of sexual abuse allegations exist, they are not data-based. The current study is an effort to broaden our understanding of the process of interviewing children who may have been sexually abused, with a specific focus on two elements of the child interview: questioning strategies and children's disclosure patterns. To examine these issues, 76 children ages five to ten years old, referred to a multidisciplinary specialty clinic for evaluation of possible sexual abuse participated in the study. Each child received at least two interviews. Data from the first interview were analyzed according to the presence of disclosure and the kinds of questions posed by interviewers. Nine types of questions were considered, along a continuum from open-ended to leading/coercive. Results indicate that children needed to be asked many questions in order to discuss possible sexual abuse. Analyses of the types of questions employed in the initial interview demonstrate that children responded to focused questions more frequently than to open-ended queries. Furthermore, findings suggest that focused questions were particularly effective in facilitating children's disclosures about possible abuse. The relationship between available corroborative information about abuse allegations and children's disclosures suggests that questioning strategies in this study did not produce a high rate of false positives. Taken together, findings regarding questioning strategies indicate that current protocols which encourage the exclusive use of open-ended questions may not be effective in interviewing many children who have been sexually abused. Implications for clinical practice and future research are discussed.Ph.D.CommunicationCommunication and the ArtsCriminologySocial SciencesSocial workUniversity of Michigan, Horace H. Rackham School of Graduate Studieshttp://deepblue.lib.umich.edu/bitstream/2027.42/129972/2/9711950.pd

Build it Together and They will Come: The Case for Community-based Participatory Research with Military Populations

In this article, we describe the methodology broadly known as community-based participatory research (CBPR) and identify its relevance to social work intervention research with families serving in Operation Enduring Freedom/Operation Iraqi Freedom (OEF/OIF). Since the inception of OEF/OIF, much has been written about low rates of service utilization among military service members and families to address deployment and combat-related concerns. Barriers to participation include difficulty accessing programs, mistrust of clinicians/researchers, concerns about confidentiality, stigma, and career implications, and perceptions of program effectiveness. Because CBPR values the community’s inherent resilience and expertise about its own needs, this method can be important for the development of feasible, culturally-relevant and evidence-based prevention and intervention models for military populations. To illustrate, we provide an overview of our implementation of CBPR to develop and test a home-based reintegration program for military families with very young children. Implications for social work practice and research are discussed

Mediators and moderators of change in adjustment following intervention for children exposed to intimate partner violence

Children aged 6 to 12 who were exposed to intimate partner violence (IPV) within the last year participated in an intervention program found to be successful in reducing their internalizing and externalizing behavior problems. However, little is known about factors that may contribute to this efficacy. Both fixed and modifiable risk factors that predicted change in children\u27s adjustment after the intervention were identified and tested. There was a significant relationship between the extent of exposure to IPV, gender, change in mothers\u27 mental health, and change in child adjustment. Among fixed factors, length of exposure to violence was found to moderate the relationship between the amount of the child\u27s and mother\u27s participation in the intervention and change in child adjustment, specifically internalizing behavioral problems. Among the modifiable risk factors, change in mother\u27s mental health, specifically symptoms of posttraumatic stress, was found to mediate the relationship between the amount of intervention participation and change in child adjustment. These findings can be used to inform and enhance evidence-based clinical services for children exposed to IPV. © The Author(s) 2011