Why are people afraid of the dentist?:Observations and explanations

Objective: The aim of this review was to explore the peer reviewed literature to answer the question: ‘Why are people afraid of the dentist?’ Method: Relevant literature was identified by searching the following on-line databases: PubMed, PsycInfo, the Cochrane Library and Google Scholar. Publications were extracted if they explored the causes and consequences of dental fear, dental anxiety or dental phobia. Results: The research evidence suggests that the causes of dental fear, dental anxiety or dental phobia are related to exogenous factors such as direct learning from traumatic experiences, vicarious learning through significant others and the media, and endogenous factors such as inheritance and personality traits. Each individual aetiological factor is supported by the evidence provided. Conclusions: The evidence suggests that the aetiology of dental fear, anxiety or phobia is complex and multifactorial. The findings show that there are clear practical implications indicated by the existing research in this area: a better understanding of dental fear, anxiety and phobia may prevent treatment avoidance.Publisher PDFPeer reviewe

Tri-Force Technology Policy Model

I am presenting a new theoretical model that builds upon established policy theory in order to improve understanding of policy development as it relates to new technologies. The Tri-Force Technology Policy Model has been designed to help guide innovators in their quest for policy that reflects an understanding of current technological progress and encourages technological development. The model improves upon previous models by recognizing the inherent conflict present when the dominance of old technologies is challenged by innovation, and recognizes the tendency of people and organizations to act out of self-interest

Effective language arts teachers of urban african american middle school students in the greater detroit area

Teaching in a large urban district has been historically described as a complex task and with the growing number of diverse students, the challenge continues to grow. The challenge is now coupled with major budget shortfalls. Across the nation public schools are struggling to keep the doors open, and provide basic supplies for students and teachers. Despite looming layoffs, closing schools, consolidations, and increased academic demands, there is a group of teachers in every urban district that consistently get results. The purpose of this qualitative study was to identify the beliefs, backgrounds, and classroom practices effective language arts teachers used consistently with African American middle school students

Commonwealth Singers

Disc Two of Two A Journey Towards Hope presented by VCUCommonwealth Singers, The VCU Polyphonics and the VCU Women\u27s Choir co-sponsored by the VCU Humanities Research Center\u27s HIV-AIDS Initiativ

Family Matters: Links Between Family Structure and Early Child Health

This paper reviews the research of the past two decades that addresses the relationship between family structure and early child health outcomes. Specifically, we focus on family structure’s influence on child health during pregnancy, birth, and infancy. We briefly summarize the most pervasive changes to family structure in the US during recent decades and discuss how early child health is linked to future outcomes for children and adults. We review research that highlights the mechanisms linking family structure to early child health and identify key risk and protective factors for children from the prenatal period through infancy. We conclude with a critical assessment of current policy efforts to strengthen families and make recommendations for how best to address this issue for America’s families going forward

Choral Arts Society

Disc Two of Two- Second half of performance VCU Women\u27s Choir Rebecca Tyree, conductor and Margaret Taylor, pianist and Choral Arts Society Erin Freeman, conductor and Laura Candler-White, pianis

A virtual roundtable on Iser’s legacy Part II: conversation with Mark Freeman

In this article you find the second part of a roundtable on Wolfgang’s Iser legacy with Gerald Prince, Mark Freeman, Marco Caracciolo and Federico Bertoni. In Part II we discuss with Prof. Mark Freem the role of narrative hermeneutics in understanding the human realm and the tenets of self-interpretation, as well as the necessity of literary antrhopology and literary theory

Strengthening Social Interactions and Constructing New Oral Health and Health Knowledge:The Co-design, Implementation and Evaluation of A Pedagogical Workshop Program with and for Homeless Young People

Young homeless people make up nearly one-third of those experiencing homelessness. The need to provide an educative approach, to strengthen social interacting, and construct new knowledge to increase social inclusivity, is required. The aim of this qualitative exploration was to use critical consciousness as an educative tool, to co-design, implement, and evaluate a series of oral health and health pedagogical workshops to strengthen social engagement and to construct new health knowledge, with, and for, homeless young people and their service providers. An action research design permitted the simultaneous development, implementation, and evaluation of the pedagogical workshop program. A Non-Governmental Organization (NGO), providing supported accommodation for young homeless people, acted as the partner organization. Thirteen young people and five staff members from this NGO participated and co-designed eight workshops. Qualitative data collection included unstructured post-intervention interviews together with verbatim quotes from the group discussions during the workshops and from the post-workshop questionnaires. The qualitative analysis was informed by content analysis to permit the emergence of key themes from the data. The two themes were: 1. ‘trust building and collective engaging’ and 2. ‘constructing knowledge and developing skills’. Theme 1 highlighted engagement with the service provider, illustrating the transformation of the young people’s relationships, strengthening of their social interacting, and enabling their critical reflexive thinking on sensitive issues present in the homelessness trajectory. Theme 2 illustrated the young people’s ability to share, lend, and encode their new health information and convert it into an understandable and useable form. This new comprehension permitted their behavior change and social interaction. These findings provide an approach to increase young people’s knowledge, health literacy, and strengthen their social interacting to support community action