Methods for Classifying Nonprofit Organizations According to their Field of Activity: A Report on Semi-automated Methods Based on Text

There are various methods for classifying nonprofit organizations (NPOs) according to their field of activity. We report our experiences using two semi-automated methods based on textual data: rule-based classification and machine learning with curated keywords. We use those methods to classify Austrian nonprofit organizations based on the International Classification of Nonprofit Organizations. Those methods can provide a solution to the widespread research problem that quantitative data on the activities of NPOs are needed but not readily available from administrative data, long high-quality texts describing NPOs' activities are mostly unavailable, and human labor resources are limited. We find that in such a setting, rule-based classification performs about as well as manual human coding in terms of precision and sensitivity, while being much more labor-saving. Hence, we share our insights on how to efficiently implement such a rule-based approach. To address scholars with a background in data analytics as well as those without, we provide non-technical explanations and open-source sample code that is free to use and adapt

Coping with fiction: Aesthetic experiences with stories as a form of terror management

The personal feelings experienced while engaging with a fictional narrative were examined for their potential terror management function. In particular, the aesthetic experience of self-modifying feelings, which allow for the recognition of shared experiences between characters, humankind, and oneself, were hypothesized to serve as a way of bolstering one\u27s cultural worldview and alleviating death anxiety. Study 1 did not support the hypothesis that self-modifying feelings were more likely to occur after mortality salience. Study 2 and subsequent exploratory analyses did identify self-modifying feelings as related to death thought accessibility after watching a television episode; however, this was in the opposite direction as expected. Additional types of feelings and personality traits are also considered for their function of narratives

Attention and level of processing: movie viewing styles and the priming of aggressive cognitions

The study investigated if attention to and processing of a movie could serve as input variables in the General Aggression Model. Specially, the type of scenes viewers attended to and their level of processing were examined. Participants completed personality measures and were instructed to either pay attention or just relax during a movie. They then completed a lexical decision task and reported the scene they found to be most striking. Results showed that aggressive cognitions did vary based on scene reported; participants who selected an aggressive scene were more primed for movie-related, non-aggressive concepts than aggression-related concepts. Exploratory analysis suggested that viewers may have an inclination with how to watch a movie, and that this could interact with both attention instructions and scene selected

Methods for Classifying Nonprofit Organizations According to their Field of Activity: A Report on Semiautomated Methods Based on Text

In this research note we discuss the two basic computational methods available for categorizing nonprofit organizations (NPOs) according to their field of activity based on textual information about these organizations: (1) rule-based categorization and (2) pattern recognition by using machine learning techniques. These methods provide a solution to the widespread research problem that quantitative data on the activities of NPOs are needed but not readily available from administrative data, and that manual categorization is not feasible for large samples. We explain both methods and report our experience in using them to categorize Austrian nonprofit associations on the basis of the International Classification of Non-Profit Organizations (ICNPO). Since we have found that rule-based categorization works much better for this task than machine learning, we provide detailed recommendations for implementing a rule-based approach. We address scholars with a background in data analytics as well as those without, by providing non-technical explanations as well as open-source sample code that is free to use and adapt

Novel Nanobodies and Chromobodies to Study Biomarkers of Epithelial-Mesenchymal Transition (EMT)

The epithelial-mesenchymal transition (EMT) is a reversible cellular reprogramming process that originally occurs during embryonic development and is strongly involved in the initiation of metastases and cancer progression. During EMT, single cells of an epithelial layer lose their characteristic epithelial features, detach from their neighbor cells and acquire a mesenchymal phenotype with increased migratory and invasive potential. Targeting EMT is of particular interest for the development of novel compounds in the anti-metastatic cancer therapy. Thereby, certain epithelial and mesenchymal proteins, including the tight junction component occludin, the actin cytoskeleton, the transcriptional repressor SNAI1 and the intermediate filament vimentin, serve as specific biomarkers or even as target structures for compounds. To date, there is no approach available to study these endogenous markers in living cells in a physiological context. In this thesis, novel single-domain antibodies (nanobodies) were selected to trace EMT biomarkers in a cancer-relevant living cell system. Nanobodies (~15 kDa), derived from heavy-chain-only antibodies of camelids, represent the smallest naturally occurring antigen binding reagent. For intracellular target visualization, they can be fused to fluorescent proteins (referred to as chromobodies) and introduced into cells on DNA level. Specific nanobodies against occludin, SNAI1 and vimentin were selected via the phage display technology and respective binding properties of nanobodies and chromobodies were analyzed in biochemical and cell biological assays. The vimentin specific and intracellular functional chromobody VB6-CB and a previously described chromobody specific for actin (Actin-CB) were stably introduced in cellular models. Based on the chromobody fluorescence, dynamic changes of endogenous actin and vimentin upon induction of EMT with the transforming growth factor β (TGF-β) were monitored and quantified for the first time by high-content-imaging. Moreover, by treatment with the vimentin modifying compound Withaferin A (WFA) time- and dose- dependent alterations of vimentin were observed and analyzed. Taken together, this versatile approach allows detailed studies of the spatiotemporal organization of relevant EMT-biomarkers in living cells. This may provide the basis for novel screening technologies for anti-metastatic therapeutics affecting EMT

Akkulturation von Jugendlichen mit Migrationshintergrund

Die vorliegende Arbeit widmet sich einerseits der Frage, wie in der deutschsprachigen Literatur auf die Akkulturation von Jugendlichen mit Migrationshintergrund mit besonderem Fokus auf die kulturelle Identität eingegangen wird. Andererseits beschäftigt sie sich mit der Thematik, welchen besonderen Stellenwert die Migrationspädagogik dabei einnimmt. Um Antworten auf diese Fragen zu finden, wird zunächst die deutschsprachige Literatur zur Akkulturation dahingehend untersucht, inwiefern der Akkulturationsprozess sich auf Jugendliche mit Migrationshintergrund und im Speziellen auf die kulturelle Identität der Jugendlichen auswirkt. Dazu werden sowohl theoretische als auch empirische Arbeiten interdisziplinär vorgestellt und miteinander in Verbindung gesetzt. Der pädagogische Bezug zur Akkulturation ergibt sich aus der Darstellung der Migrations-pädagogik nach Paul Mecheril. Die Ansätze der Migrationspädagogik werden in Hinblick auf den Zusammenhang mit den Erhebungen der Akkulturationsforschung erörtert. Aus meinen Untersuchungen ging hervor, dass in der Literatur zur Akkulturationsforschung von Jugendlichen mit Migrationshintergrund im deutschsprachigen Raum in Bezug auf den Fokus „kulturelle Identität“ noch Lücken zu verzeichnen sind. Außerdem konnte die enge Verbindung zwischen dem Akkulturationsprozess und der Entwicklung der kulturellen Identität durch die Darstellung der theoretischen als auch der empirischen Studien bestätigt werden. In Hinblick auf die Verknüpfung der Akkulturationsforschung mit der Migrationspädagogik konnte durch die unterschiedliche Ausrichtung der Zielsetzungen eine gegenseitige Bereicherung der Forschungsansätze festgestellt werden

Needs Elicitation for Novel Pervasive Healthcare Technology

It is widely accepted that engaging with end-users to elicit their needs is beneficial when designing a new artefact. This can be particularly challenging, however, when end-users are limited in their ability to provide input. When there is broad variation in users' needs, a further challenge is to include the large number of users required to represent the entire population. Failure to do so may lead to a solution that is over specialised to fit the needs of only a small subset of users. Both challenges are common in healthcare applications in which the end-user is also care recipient (or patient). What if instead of trying to engage vastly many users in design activities, we could hear the voice of the patient by tapping into existing channels within the health care service system? Many interactions between healthcare providers and patients involve knowledge transfer. Observing these could inform designers about patients’ support needs and healthcare providers’ information needs. Healthcare professionals offer a wealth of knowledge based on a clinical understanding of the condition as well as experience listening to patients' problems. Especially where patients are in denial about their condition, their healthcare providers might offer more detailed information than the patient themselves regarding their needs. Since each patient knows only their own experience, whereas healthcare professionals encounter numerous patients, their perspective is more robust against inter-patient variation, and they are able to comment on trends, scale or proportions .We therefore explore how users' needs can be elicited by observing activities in which information is already being shared and discussed in the care process, and from the extensive knowledge of healthcare professionals. This is particularly relevant for pervasive healthcare technology, in which established methods for engaging users to elicit their needs can be difficult or even impossible to apply. In this paper we document our needs elicitation process in a relevant example as a method story, and present our findings and reflections on this as the key contribution of this work

Sensing behaviour in healthcare design

We are entering an era of distributed healthcare that should fit and respond to individual needs, behaviour and lifestyles. Designing such systems is a challenging task that requires continuous information about human behaviour on a large scale, for which pervasive sensing (e.g. using smartphones and wearables) presents exciting opportunities. While mobile sensing approaches are fuelling research in many areas, their use in engineering design remains limited. In this work, we present a collection of common behavioural measures from literature that can be used for a broad range of applications. We focus specifically on activity and location data that can easily be obtained from smartphones or wearables. We further demonstrate how these are applied in healthcare design using an example from dementia care. Comparing a current and proposed scenario exemplifies how integrating sensor-derived information about user behaviour can support the healthcare design goals of personalisation, adaptability and scalability, while emphasising patient quality of life

Mental health of failed asylum seekers as compared with pending and temporarily accepted asylum seekers

Background: Asylum seekers (AS) and refugees often suffer from severe psychopathology in the form of post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD). As PTSD impacts memory functions, and as asylum applications rely on personal accounts, AS with PTSD are at more risk of being rejected than refugees. Methods: We studied the mental health of failed asylum seekers (FAS, N = 40) and a matched sample of AS (N = 40). Participants were administered structured interviews on sociodemographics, flight, exile and standardized questionnaires on PTSD, anxiety, depression and pain. Results: Both samples were severely affected; >80% exhibited at least one clinically significant condition. Conclusion: Given the great vulnerability of these individuals, long and unsettling asylum processes as practised in Western host countries seem problematic, as does the withdrawal of health and social welfare benefits. Finally, high rates of psychopathology amongst FAS indicate that refugee and humanitarian decision-making procedures may be failing to identify those most in need of protectio