Early intervention for stigma towards mental illness? Promoting positive attitudes towards severe mental illness in primary school children

Purpose Stigma towards severe mental illness (SMI) is widespread, exacerbating mental health problems, and impacting on help-seeking and social inclusion. Anti-stigma campaigns are meeting with success, but results are mixed. Earlier intervention to promote positive mental health literacy rather than challenge stigma, may show promise, but little is known about stigma development or interventions in younger children. This study will investigate (i) children’s knowledge, attitudes and behaviour towards SMI and (ii) whether we can positively influence children’s attitudes before stigma develops. Design/methodology/approach A cross sectional study investigated mental health schema in 7-11 year olds. An experimental intervention investigated whether an indirect contact story-based intervention in 7-8 year olds led to more positive mental health schema. Findings: Young children’s schema were initially positive, and influenced by knowledge and contact with mental illness & intergroup anxiety, but were more stigmatising in older girls as intergroup anxiety increased. The indirect contact intervention was effective in promoting positive mental health schema, partially mediated by knowledge. Social Implications: Intervening early to shape concepts of mental illness more positively, as they develop in young children, may represent a more effective strategy than attempting to challenge and change mental health stigma once it has formed in adolescents and adults. Originality/Value: This study is the first to investigate an intervention targeted at the prevention of stigma towards severe mental illness, in young children, at the point that stigma is emerging

Higher Education Futures:Part 5

In this section, five authors reflect on Sue Wright's academic trajectory, her work in creating disciplinary and interdisciplinary networks and her engagement – as both an activist and scholar – in institutional change-making. They also reflect on her research on university reform, neoliberalisation and higher education futures

A Point Mutation in a Herpesvirus Co-Determines Neuropathogenicity and Viral Shedding

A point mutation in the DNA polymerase gene in equine herpesvirus type 1 (EHV-1) is one determinant for the development of neurological disease in horses. Three recently conducted infection experiments using domestic horses and ponies failed to detect statistically significant differences in viral shedding between the neuropathogenic and non-neuropathogenic variants. These results were interpreted as suggesting the absence of a consistent selective advantage of the neuropathogenic variant and therefore appeared to be inconsistent with a systematic increase in the prevalence of neuropathogenic strains. To overcome potential problems of low statistical power related to small group sizes in these infection experiments, we integrated raw data from all three experiments into a single statistical analysis. The results of this combined analysis showed that infection with the neuropathogenic EHV-1 variant led to a statistically significant increase in viral shedding. This finding is consistent with the idea that neuropathogenic strains could have a selective advantage and are therefore systematically increasing in prevalence in domestic horse populations. However, further studies are required to determine whether a selective advantage indeed exists for neuropathogenic strains

Bridging the reciprocal gap between sleep and fruit and vegetable consumption: A review of the evidence, potential mechanisms, implications and directions for future work

A substantial burden of disease and mortality globally is attributable to both sleep disruption and low intakes of fruit and vegetable (FV) and there is increasing mechanistic and epidemiological evidence to support a reciprocal relationship between the two. This review provides an overview of experimental and observational studies assessing the relations between sleep and FV consumption from 52 human adult studies. Experimental studies are currently limited and show inconsistent results. Observational studies support a non-linear association with adults sleeping the recommended 7–9 hours/day having the highest intakes of FV. The potential mechanisms linking sleep and FV consumption are highlighted. Disrupted sleep influences FV consumption through homeostatic and non-homeostatic mechanisms. Conversely, FV consumption may influence sleep through polyphenol content via several potential pathways. Few human experimental studies have examined the effects of FV items and their polyphenols on sleep and there is a need for more studies to address this. An appreciation of the relationship between sleep and FV consumption may help optimize sleep and FV consumption and may reduce the burden of chronic diseases. This review provides implications for public health and directions for future work

The Power of the Forecaster: An Exploration into the Value of Trend Forecasting for the Survival of SME’s in the Creative Industries

Trend-forecasting is a growing resource utilised throughout a diverse range of businesses in the creative industry. Not only is it important to understand the significance of trend research, but also to recognise the latest mechanisms applied to support emerging innovations in Small to Medium Enterprises (SME). This research aims to question the value of trend-forecasting contributing to the enrichment of SMEs in the surface design sector for interiors. Qualitative research will be explored and critically analysed in the form of mini-case studies, workshops, exhibitions and a series of short interviews. The selected sample suggests SMEs are reluctant to engage with forecasters due to limited knowledge of trend influence, organisational culture or profit driven businesses. The research highlights although forecasters cannot guarantee profit, they do support creative design, market orientation, retailing and social media. This may have a positive impact on increased levels of customer, brand awareness and industry leadership. Eventually this could improve revenue; ultimately benefitting the UK economy in supporting future SMEs

Bioenergy and Breast Cancer: A Report on Tumor Growth and Metastasis

As many as 80% of the 296,000 women and 2,240 men diagnosed with breast cancer in the United States will seek out complementary and alternative medicine (CAM) treatments. One such therapy is Healing Touch (HT), recognized by the National Center for Complementary and Integrative Health (NCCIH) as a treatment modality. Using a multiple experimental groups design, fifty-six six- to eight-week-old Balb/c mice were injected with 4T1 breast cancer tumor cells and randomly divided into intervention and positive control groups. Five days after tumor cell injection, mice in the intervention groups received HT either daily or every other day for 10 minutes by one HT practitioner. At 15 days after tumor cell injection, tumor size was measured, and metastasis was evaluated by a medical pathologist after necropsy. Tumor size did not differ significantly among the groups (F(3,52)=0.75, p value = 0.53). The presence of metastasis did not differ across groups (chi-square(3) = 3.902, p=0.272) or when compared within an organ (liver: chi-square(3) = 2.507, p=0.474; lungs: chi-square(3) = 3.804, p=0.283; spleen: chi-square(3) = 0.595, p=0.898). However, these results did indicate a moderate, though insignificant, positive impact of HT and highlight the need for continued research into dose, length of treatment, and measurable outcomes (tumor size, metastasis) to provide evidence to suggest application for nursing care