Mirroring, Social Learning and Dance Movement Therapy with Childhood Autism Spectrum Disorder: A Literature Review

The literature review investigated the use of mirroring to help develop emotional understanding through social learning with children diagnosed with Autism Spectrum Disorder (ASD). The research reviewed was used to further cognize how mirroring could give a child with ASD a better understanding of their own and others’ emotions through social learning. The findings revealed that mirroring could be an affective tool to build social awareness of emotions in children diagnosed with ASD. The mirror neuron system (MNS) is the area of the brain that assesses perception and production of movement creating an overlap. Using the idea of the mirror neuron system, mirroring was a tool created to enhance emotional understanding, which findings revealed to be beneficial for the emotional inconsistencies seen in Autism Spectrum Disorder. Expressive therapies (ET) have implemented affective treatment techniques for children diagnosed with ASD who are in need of social learning skills. They build these social learning skills by mirroring a child’s intention and modeling emotions. Mirroring is a strong focus of dance movement therapists. DMT’s noticed that a child’s movements could connect to their emotions, which are learned throughout development. Future application of this research will benefit the field of Dance Movement Therapy as well as benefit individuals diagnosed with Autism Spectrum Disorder

Media Coverage of EPA\u27s Draft Dioxin Reassessment Report

Using content analysis, the authors examine the utility of news media in democratic decision making

Clinical Supervision in Allied Health in Australia: A Model of Allied Health Clinical Supervision Based On Practitioner Experience

Purpose: The purpose of this manuscript is to identify key elements of allied health clinical supervision based on allied health practitioner’s experiences. Method: This study was conducted with qualitative methodology, including content analysis, and draws on hermeneutic interpretation of texts. Data were collected through an online survey in an Australian health service and subsequent focus groups. Results: Findings revealed four key dimensions including accessibility of regular clinical supervision, relationships between the supervisor and supervisee, clarity about the purpose, and roles and a focus on meeting the supervisee’s needs; these dimensions were central to the allied health practitioner’s experience of successful clinical supervision. A model of clinical supervision is proposed that is based on these four identified key dimensions. This model could be used as a broad schema to achieve a successful clinical supervision experience in allied health. Conclusion: This study contributes to the growing body of clinical supervision research by specifically addressing allied health needs in clinical supervision and proposing a model for its implementation. The authors contribute to the discussion about clinical supervision and its implementation by addressing needs that relate specifically to allied health and by developing a deeper understanding of the clinical supervision experiences of allied health clinicians. This new understanding provides a foundation for clinician-focused supervision, policy development and implementation

Endocrine disrupting chemicals and personal care products: risk awareness and exposure assessment for women's reproductive health

BACKGROUND Endocrine disrupting chemicals (EDCs) pose significant risks to public health because of their ubiquitous nature throughout the environment. Concern regarding these toxic substances is well-justified, with past research highlighting links to male, female, and even transgenerational health defects with increased exposure to these chemicals. Recent studies have revealed that the average American women uses 12 personal care products (PCPs) every day, suggesting females are particularly susceptible to the adverse health outcomes associated with PCP-related EDC exposures (Taylor et al., 2017). OBJECTIVES The purpose of this study is to characterize the role and significance of EDCs found in PCPs by assessing implications of exposure on female reproductive health outcomes. This study also seeks to explore public perceptions of PCP dangers in order to contextualize findings regarding body burden of chemical toxicants from different bioassays. METHODS One component of this project involves a review of publications highlighting the relationship between EDCs and PCPs and how successfully these findings have been communicated to the general public to influence their awareness of the dangers of endocrine disruption (Aims 1A-1C). The second involves the creation of a novel PCP exposure assessment through survey analysis of pre-existing PCP surveys (Aim 2). The last objective centers around an analysis of bioassay-based EDC exposure assessments at the level of the kidney (Aim 3A) and uterus (Aim 3B) from urine and menstrual effluent samples, respectively. RESULTS A scoping review regarding the nature of the relationship between PCPs and EDCs was completed - yielding a total of 255 journal articles included in analysis (Aim 1A). Urinary biomonitoring studies of EDCs populated the majority of this review, and measurable levels of EDCs were highest in this type of bioassay over other types of biological media. Published literature detailing the public’s awareness of EDCs suggests that people are less concerned with the health implications of repeated exposure from PCP usage than they are with environmental health concerns like air and water pollution (Aim 1B). Identification of resources available to consumers for assessment of PCP safety was completed successfully (Aim 1C). Tools at the public’s disposal include webpages, documentaries, and mobile applications. Exploration of 29 PCP questionnaires from outside resources facilitated the expansion of an 18-question cosmetic questionnaire into a 134-question PCP questionnaire to be used in future studies (Aim 2). Analysis of urinary biomonitoring data was unable to be completed because of legal and logistical setbacks in the sharing of the dataset among multiple different institutions (Aim 3A). Analysis of preliminary menstrual effluent biomonitoring data yielded 9,321 metabolites, but results from further confirmatory testing of 68 toxicants are still pending (Aim 3B). CONCLUSION Taken together, the findings suggest that urinary assessments are a preferable method for scientists to use in bioassays to characterize relative amounts of EDCs within PCPs. While biomonitoring studies are valuable in conveying information regarding sociodemographic contributors towards heightened exposure and associated adverse health outcomes, a lack of awareness among the public suggests that additional efforts must be undertaken to stress the potential implications of these toxicants on environmental health – particularly in females. Continued looks at PCP usage patterns and EDC exposure assessments in different biological media like menstrual blood are important next steps for further analysis, and implementation of the expanded PCP Questionnaire and use of the PCP Chemical Library may be of use for this process

EXAMINING WHOOPING CRANE BREEDING SEASON FORAGING BEHAVIOR IN THE EASTERN MIGRATORY POPULATION

Agricultural fields may provide an important supplementary foraging habitat for whooping cranes (Grus americana) in the reintroduced Eastern Migratory Population (EMP). We developed methods and gathered preliminary data regarding whooping crane foraging efficiency and habitat use to better understand the use of agricultural fields by breeding cranes. We generated a simple null hypothesis that cranes would spend more time in the habitat type (wetlands vs. agricultural fields) in which they were able to obtain a higher foraging efficiency to maximize food intake, along with several alternative hypotheses pertaining to reasons cranes may prefer wetlands or agricultural fields during periods of the breeding season regardless of foraging efficiency. We collected habitat use and measures of foraging efficiency (stepping rate, striking efficiency, and capture rate) from videos of 2 pairs of cranes recorded for a concurrent study. Cranes spent more time in the habitat with higher foraging efficiency during the pre-nesting period (wetlands) but more time in the habitat with lower foraging efficiency during the incubation period (also wetlands). There was no significant difference in foraging efficiency post nest-abandonment. Our data imply that cranes are willing to undergo lower foraging efficiencies in order to remain on territory during incubation. However, our data should be considered preliminary due to the small sample size of individuals studied

Poster Abstract: Crane Charades: Behavior Identification via Backpack Mounted Sensor Platforms

The Whooping Crane is an endangered species native to North America and there are approximately 575 in existence. There have been recent efforts to provide ecologists with a tool to study the multifaceted behavior of the endangered species. Like many species, cranes display distinctly identifiable movements while being threatened, acting territorial, migrating, or preening. The preliminary experiments described in this poster provide evidence that sensor data presented by a novel sensing platform, the CraneTracker, can be used to identify crane behaviors on-board. With the ability to identify these behaviors, ecologists will have a more granular insight on what occurs during a crane’s life on a daily basis

Poster Abstract: Crane Charades: Behavior Identification via Backpack Mounted Sensor Platforms

The Whooping Crane is an endangered species native to North America and there are approximately 575 in existence. There have been recent efforts to provide ecologists with a tool to study the multifaceted behavior of the endangered species. Like many species, cranes display distinctly identifiable movements while being threatened, acting territorial, migrating, or preening. The preliminary experiments described in this poster provide evidence that sensor data presented by a novel sensing platform, the CraneTracker, can be used to identify crane behaviors on-board. With the ability to identify these behaviors, ecologists will have a more granular insight on what occurs during a crane’s life on a daily basis

Vestibular Evoked Myogenic Potential (VEMP) Test-Retest Reliability in Children

Objective—Vestibular evoked myogenic potentials (VEMPs) are short-latency muscle potentials measured from the neck (cervical VEMP; cVEMP) or under the eyes (ocular VEMP; oVEMP), which provide information regarding function of the saccule and utricle, respectively. VEMPs are reliable when performed in adults; however, reliability of VEMPs in children is unknown. Therefore, the purpose of the study was to determine the test-retest reliability of c- and oVEMP testing in normal control children. Study Design—Prospective. Setting—Hospital. Patients—Ten adults, 14 adolescent children and 13 young children with normal hearing. Interventions—c- and oVEMP testing were completed across two test sessions in response to air-conduction 500 Hz tone-burst and impulse hammer stimuli. Additionally, oVEMP was completed using eyes-open and eyes-closed conditions. Main Outcome Measures—Intraclass correlation coefficients were calculated to determine the reliability of c- and oVEMP outcomes. Results—When using air-conduction stimuli, c- and oVEMP amplitudes are reliable across test sessions in normal control children and adults. With impulse hammer stimuli, cVEMP amplitudes showed high reliability; however, oVEMP amplitudes showed low reliability in both eyes-open and eyes-closed conditions. Comparison between eyes-open and eyes-closed oVEMP conditions revealed shorter latencies and higher peak-to-peak amplitudes in the eyes-open condition. Conclusions—In this small cohort of normal control children, cVEMPs are reliable using air-conduction and impulse hammer stimuli and oVEMPs are reliable using air-conduction stimuli in the eyes-open condition. oVEMP in eyes-closed conditions were less reliable compared to eyes-open conditions and resulted in a large number of absent responses

Predictors of Weight Loss Maintenance following an Insurance-Sponsored Weight Management Program

Intentional weight loss among overweight and obese adults (body mass index ≥ 25 kg/m2) is associated with numerous health benefits, but weight loss maintenance (WLM) following participation in weight management programming has proven to be elusive. Many individuals attempting to lose weight join formal programs, especially women, but these programs vary widely in focus, as do postprogram weight regain results. We surveyed 2,106 former participants in a community-based, insurance-sponsored weight management program in the United States to identify the pre, during, and post-intervention behavioral and psychosocial factors that lead to successful WLM. Of 835 survey respondents (39.6% response rate), 450 met criteria for inclusion in this study. Logistic regression analyses suggest that interventionists should assess and discuss weight loss and behavior change perceptions early in a program. However, in developing maintenance plans later in a program, attention should shift to behaviors, such as weekly weighing, limiting snacking in the evening, limiting portion sizes, and being physically active every day