Adolescent experience of intergroup contact in South Africa and its impact on identity development : a qualitative study

Bibliography: leaves 120-128.This research study presents an enquiry into adolescents' experience of the process of intergroup contact in South Africa, with a particular emphasis on the impact of such contact on adolescent identity development. A particular instance of intergroup contact is examined, namely a drama project which brought together ten high school pupils from two very different school and home environments. Literature from both developmental psychology and social psychology was accessed to shed light on the research area, and an attempt was made to integrate the various bodies of literature, using a social constructionist perspective. A conceptual framework was developed to depict the integration between the various areas of literature. A qualitative methodology was adopted in order to facilitate an in-depth understanding of the participants' experience. Multiple methods of data collection were used, namely participant observation, interviews, pieces of writing (essays and biographies), questionnaires and video material. A computer programme, Ethnograph, was used to analyse the data and generate codes, which shaped the categories used in reporting the findings. Further, the findings were integrated with the conceptual framework developed from the literature. This integrative framework is depicted diagrammatically. The findings focus primarily on the complexity of processes involved in the impact of the intergroup situation on adolescent identity, with a particular emphasis on the relationship between personal and social identity

Innovations in pay and grading in NHS trusts

This report examines innovations in pay and grading in 10 NHS trusts in England using data collected from March 2000 to January 2001, ie prior to the implementation of Agenda for Change. These 10 trusts, which varied in size, function, and location, were selected primarily to illustrate a variety of different approaches to pay and grading. The research utilised a qualitative methodology, with interviews of managers on a one to one basis, group interviews with lay union representatives, focus groups with staff and the inspection of documents. This study focused on four questions: • Did local pay resolve the problems associated with Whitley? • What were the consequences of local pay? • Were the trusts’ pay systems introduced in line with 'new pay' ideas and current trends in reward management? • What factors were critical to the success of developing and implementing local pay systems in NHS trusts

Physician Anxiety and Burnout: Symptom Correlates and a Prospective Pilot Study of App-Delivered Mindfulness Training

BACKGROUND: Physician burnout is on the rise, yet little is known about its relationship to anxiety. Mindfulness-based stress reduction has demonstrated decreases in anxiety, yet physicians have reported reluctance to engage in it due to significant time commitments. OBJECTIVE: The aims of this study are to assess whether app-based mindfulness training can reduce anxiety in physicians and to explore if anxiety and burnout are correlated, thus leading to a reduction in both anxiety and burnout. METHODS: This was a nonrandomized pilot study comprised of 34 physicians who worked in a large US health care network and reported having anxiety. The intervention was an app-based mindfulness program. The main outcome measure was anxiety, measured by the Generalized Anxiety Disorder-7 (GAD-7). The secondary outcome measures assessed burnout: cynicism and emotional exhaustion items from the Maslach Burnout Inventory. RESULTS: GAD-7 scores decreased significantly at posttreatment (1 month after treatment initiation, 48% reduction, P \u3c .001) and at the 3-month follow-up (57% reduction, P \u3c .001). There was a significant correlation between anxiety and burnout (cynicism: r=.43; P=.01; emotional exhaustion: r=.71; P \u3c .001). There was also a significant decrease in cynicism (50% reduction, P=.003 at posttreatment; 50% reduction, P=.009 at follow-up) and emotional exhaustion at both time points (20% reduction, P \u3c .001 at posttreatment; 20% reduction, P=.003 at follow-up). CONCLUSIONS: This pilot study is the first to test an app-based mindfulness training program targeted at reducing anxiety with physicians and to demonstrate that in physicians, anxiety is correlated with burnout. These findings suggest that this may be an effective tool to reduce anxiety and burnout in physicians. TRIAL REGISTRATION: ClinicalTrials.gov NCT04137081; https://www.clinicaltrials.gov/ct2/show/NCT04137081. published in JMIR mHealth and uHealth (http://mhealth.jmir.org), 01.04.2020

Weight gain prevention in the school worksite setting: Results of a multi-level cluster randomized trial

OBJECTIVE: To describe the effectiveness, reach and implementation of a weight gain prevention intervention among public school employees. METHOD: A multi-level intervention was tested in a cluster randomized trial among 782 employees in 12 central Massachusetts public high schools from 2009 to 2012. The intervention targeted the nutrition and physical activity environment and policies, the social environment and individual knowledge, attitudes and skills. The intervention was compared to a materials only condition. The primary outcome measures were change in weight and body mass index (BMI) at 24-month follow-up. Implementation of physical environment, policy and social environment strategies at the school and interpersonal levels, and intervention participation at the individual level were assessed. RESULTS: At 24-month follow-up, there was a net change (difference of the difference) of -3.03 pounds (p=.04) and of -.48 BMI units (p=.05) between intervention and comparison conditions. The majority of intervention strategies were successfully implemented by all intervention schools, although establishing formal policies was challenging. Employee participation in programs targeting the physical and social environment was maintained over time. CONCLUSION: This study supports that a multi-level intervention integrated within the organizational culture can be successfully implemented and prevent weight gain in public high school employees

A School Nurse-Delivered Intervention for Overweight and Obese Adolescents: Lessons Learned

Dr. Pbert will present work from an academic and community partnership between UMMS and the School Health Unit of the Massachusetts Department of Public Health to design and test a brief intervention for school nurses to provide weight management assistance to overweight and obese adolescents in the school health setting. She will discuss why the school nurse and school health setting are promising venues for addressing adolescent overweight, present results from their pilot study, and discuss facilitators, barriers and strategies to implementing this treatment model

Serum IGF-1 Concentrations Change With Soy and Seaweed Supplements in Healthy Postmenopausal American Women

Insulin-like growth factor 1 (IGF-1) is an anabolic hormone important for growth and development. However, high-circulating serum concentrations in adults are associated with increased risk of postmenopausal breast cancer. Nutritional status and specific foods influence serum IGF-1 concentrations. Breast cancer incidence is typically low in Asian countries where soy is commonly consumed. Paradoxically, soy supplement trials in American women have reported significant increases in IGF-1. Seaweed also is consumed regularly in Asian countries where breast cancer risk is low. We investigated the possibility that seaweed could modify soy-associated increases in IGF-1 in American women. Thirty healthy postmenopausal women (mean age 58 yr) participated in this 14-wk double-blinded, randomized, placebo-controlled crossover clinical trial. Participants consumed 5 g/day placebo or seaweed (Alaria esculenta) in capsules for 7 wk. During the 7th wk, a high-soy protein isolate powder was added (2 mg/kg body weight aglycone equivalent isoflavones). Overnight fasting blood samples were collected after each intervention period. Soy significantly increased serum IGF-1 concentrations compared to the placebo (21.2 nmol/L for soy vs. 16.9 nmol/L for placebo; P = 0.0001). The combination of seaweed and soy significantly reduced this increase by about 40% (21.2 nmol/L for soy alone vs. 19.4 nmol/L; P = 0.01). Concurrent seaweed and soy consumption may be important in modifying the effect of soy on IGF-1 serum concentrations

Molecular response in newly diagnosed chronic-phase chronic myeloid leukemia: prediction modeling and pathway analysis

Tyrosine kinase inhibitor therapy revolutionized chronic myeloid leukemia treatment and showed how targeted therapy and molecular monitoring could be used to substantially improve survival outcomes. We used chronic myeloid leukemia as a model to understand a critical question: why do some patients have an excellent response to therapy, while others have a poor response? We studied gene expression in whole blood samples from 112 patients from a large phase III randomized trial (clinicaltrials gov. Identifier: NCT00471497), dichotomizing cases into good responders (BCR::ABL1 ≤10% on the International Scale by 3 and 6 months and ≤0.1% by 12 months) and poor responders (failure to meet these criteria). Predictive models based on gene expression demonstrated the best performance (area under the curve =0.76, standard deviation =0.07). All of the top 20 pathways overexpressed in good responders involved immune regulation, a finding validated in an independent data set. This study emphasizes the importance of pretreatment adaptive immune response in treatment efficacy and suggests biological pathways that can be targeted to improve response