Financial fragility or what went right and what could go wrong in central European banking?

Despite the fact that banks in Central Europe are burdened by extraordinarily high bad loan ratios, the recent financial crisis in South East Asia and Russia, has not led to a massive failure of banks in the region. In this paper, we study economic trends and policies that may have helped to insulate CEECs from international financial contagion. Answering what went right over the past few years may not only help to further positive developments, but it may also highlight possible weaknesses that could result in future financial instabilities in the banking sectors of CEECs. Using data available from the IMF, and the BIS for nine Central European economies (Croatia, Czech Republic, Estonia, Hungary, Latvia, Lithuania, Poland, Slovak Republic, and Slovenia), our results indicate that an economic constellation unique to the early transition period rather than deliberate policy decisions have stabilized the CEECs. Specifically, the lack of recent banking crisis can be attributed to a lack of overly optimistic credit expansion, despite several years of real economic growth, to underdeveloped asset markets, and to a decline of trade relations with the former Soviet Union. Future problems may arise as banks are beginning to extend credit more to an expanding real sector than in the past, as asset markets become more developed, or as export growth to the EU may decline with European growth slowing down. Thus, improvements in bank regulation and bank supervision should receive a high priority among policy makers in CEECs. --

Financial fragility or what went right and what could go wrong in central European banking?

Despite the fact that banks in Central Europe are burdened by extraordinarily high bad loan ratios, the recent financial crisis in South East Asia and Russia, has not led to a massive failure of banks in the region. In this paper, we study economic trends and policies that may have helped to insulate CEECs from international financial contagion. Answering what went right over the past few years may not only help to further positive developments, but it may also highlight possible weaknesses that could result in future financial instabilities in the banking sectors of CEECs. Using data available from the IMF, and the BIS for nine Central European economies (Croatia, Czech Republic, Estonia, Hungary, Latvia, Lithuania, Poland, Slovak Republic, and Slovenia), our results indicate that an economic constellation unique to the early transition period rather than deliberate policy decisions have stabilized the CEECs. Specifically, the lack of recent banking crisis can be attributed to a lack of overly optimistic credit expansion, despite several years of real economic growth, to underdeveloped asset markets, and to a decline of trade relations with the former Soviet Union. Future problems may arise as banks are beginning to extend credit more to an expanding real sector than in the past, as asset markets become more developed, or as export growth to the EU may decline with European growth slowing down. Thus, improvements in bank regulation and bank supervision should receive a high priority among policy makers in CEECs

Preface and acknowledgements

[No abstract available

Intact priors for gaze direction in adults with high-functioning autism spectrum conditions

This research was supported by the UK Medical Research Council under project code MC-A060-5PQ50 (Andrew J. Calder). IM was supported by a Leverhulme Trust Project Grant. CC was supported by an Australian Research Council Future Fellowship. SBC was supported by the MRC, the Wellcome Trust and the Autism Research Trust during the period of this work. The research was also supported by the National Institute for Health Research (NIHR) Collaboration for Leadership in Applied Health Research and Care East of England at Cambridgeshire and Peterborough NHS Foundation Trust

Eficacia de una intervención en alfabetización basada en la evidencia para niños hispanoparlantes con riesgo lector de niveles socioeconómicos vulnerables

Introducción. Las investigaciones apoyan la eficacia de las intervenciones en alfabetización basadas en la evidencia para estudiantes angloparlantes con riesgo lector, pero no queda claro si resultados similares se pueden conseguir con alumnos hispanoparlantes. Método. Investigamos el impacto de una intervención en alfabetización basada en la evidencia con una duración de 15 horas, en niños con riesgo lector de 1° y 2° año de escuela de niveles socioeconómicos (NSE) vulnerables en Uruguay, con español como lengua materna. Los estudiantes con riesgo lector fueron asignados aleatoriamente a una intervención (n = 68) suplementaria a la instrucción usual de aula o a un grupo de control (n = 57) y se compararon con otro grupo de desarrollo lector típico (n = 69) en medidas pre-post-test en conciencia fonológica, escritura, fluidez y comprensión Resultados. Aunque todos los participantes mostraron mejoras significativas en relación a su trayectoria pre-post-test, los niños con riesgo lector que participaron de la intervención experimental solamente mostraron mayores niveles de crecimiento que el grupo control en la habilidad para identificar rimas y parcialmente en comprensión lectora. Discusión y conclusiones. Los hallazgos de este estudio reflejan la necesidad de tomar en cuenta los contrastes entre los sistemas de escritura del español y el inglés, así como el perfil cognitivo de niños de NSE vulnerables en Latinoamérica a la hora de aplicar prácticas basadas en la evidencia al diseño de programas de intervención para niños con riesgo lector de niveles socioeconómicos vulnerables en países de habla hispana

Autism spectrum traits predict the neural response to eye gaze in typical individuals

Autism Spectrum Disorders (ASD) are neurodevelopmental disorders characterised by impaired social interaction and communication, restricted interests and repetitive behaviours. The severity of these characteristics are posited to lie on a continuum extending into the typical population, and typical adults' performance on behavioural tasks that are impaired in ASD is correlated with the extent to which they display autistic traits (as measured by Autism Spectrum Quotient, AQ). Individuals with ASD also show structural and functional differences in brain regions involved in social perception. Here we show that variation in AQ in typically developing individuals is associated with altered brain activity in the neural circuit for social attention perception while viewing others' eye gaze. In an fMRI experiment, participants viewed faces looking at variable or constant directions. In control conditions, only the eye region was presented or the heads were shown with eyes closed but oriented at variable or constant directions. The response to faces with variable vs. constant eye gaze direction was associated with AQ scores in a number of regions (posterior superior temporal sulcus, intraparietal sulcus, temporoparietal junction, amygdala, and MT/VS) of the brain network for social attention perception. No such effect was observed for heads with eyes closed or when only the eyes were presented. The results demonstrate a relationship between neurophysiology and autism spectrum traits in the typical (non-ASD) population and suggest that changes in the functioning of the neural circuit for social attention perception is associated with an extended autism spectrum in the typical population. (C) 2011 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved

Perspectives of practicing school psychologists during COVID-19: A multi-country, mixed methods investigation

COVID-19 presented a range of challenges to the delivery of school psychology services in countries around the world. The current study aimed to investigate the practices of school psychologists from the United States of America, Australia, Germany, Canada, and the United Kingdom, including changes to practice and exploration of the factors that supported the delivery of school psychology services during the pandemic. Quantitative and qualitative data were collected from 1,030 school psychologists and analyzed using a mixed methods, multiple case study design. Differing impacts of the pandemic on the working hours of school psychologists were reported across countries. Participants in all countries reported a shift to online working, with an increased focus on consultation and intervention and a reduction in psychoeducational assessments. School psychologists from all nations emphazised the importance of self-care strategies, social connections and physical activity and the role of support via supervision or professional networks. Access to appropriate technology and responsive workplace policies and procedures were also identified as important. Results have implications for the internationalization of the school psychology profession and can inform international school psychology planning in response to future crises

Mitochondrial Transfer by Human Mesenchymal Stromal Cells Ameliorates Hepatocyte Lipid Load in a Mouse Model of NASH

Mesenchymal stromal cell (MSC) transplantation ameliorated hepatic lipid load; tissue inflammation; and fibrosis in rodent animal models of non-alcoholic steatohepatitis (NASH) by as yet largely unknown mechanism(s). In a mouse model of NASH; we transplanted bone marrow-derived MSCs into the livers; which were analyzed one week thereafter. Combined metabolomic and proteomic data were applied to weighted gene correlation network analysis (WGCNA) and subsequent identification of key drivers. Livers were analyzed histologically and biochemically. The mechanisms of MSC action on hepatocyte lipid accumulation were studied in co-cultures of hepatocytes and MSCs by quantitative image analysis and immunocytochemistry. WGCNA and key driver analysis revealed that NASH caused the impairment of central carbon; amino acid; and lipid metabolism associated with mitochondrial and peroxisomal dysfunction; which was reversed by MSC treatment. MSC improved hepatic lipid metabolism and tissue homeostasis. In co-cultures of hepatocytes and MSCs; the decrease of lipid load was associated with the transfer of mitochondria from the MSCs to the hepatocytes via tunneling nanotubes (TNTs). Hence; MSCs may ameliorate lipid load and tissue perturbance by the donation of mitochondria to the hepatocytes. Thereby; they may provide oxidative capacity for lipid breakdown and thus promote recovery from NASH-induced metabolic impairment and tissue injury

Living with kin in lowland horticultural societies

Postmarital residence patterns in traditional human societies figure prominently in models of hominid social evolution with arguments for patrilocal human bands similar in structure to female-dispersal systems in other African apes. However, considerable flexibility in hunter-gatherer cultures has led to their characterization as primarily multilocal. Horticulturalists are associated with larger, more sedentary social groups with more political inequality and intergroup conflict and may therefore provide additional insights into evolved human social structures. We analyze coresidence patterns of primary kin for 34 New World horticultural societies (6,833 adults living in 243 residential groupings) to show more uxorilocality (women live with more kin) than found for hunter-gatherers. Our findings further point to the uniqueness of human social structures and to considerable variation that is not fully described by traditional postmarital residence typologies. Sex biases in coresident kin can vary according to the scale of analysis (household vs. house cluster vs. village) and change across the life span, with women often living with more kin later in life. Headmen in large villages live with more close kin, primarily siblings, than do nonheadmen. Importantly, human marriage exchange and residence patterns create meta-group social structures, with alliances extending across multiple villages often united in competition against other large alliances at scales unparalleled by other species. © 2012 by The Wenner-Gren Foundation for Anthropological Research. All rights reserved