«Det er mer til omsorgen enn retningslinjer og prosedyrer»: En kvalitativ intervjustudie om jordmors erfaringer med omsorgen til den overvektige kvinnen i fødsel

Hensikt: Å utforske jordmødres erfaring med omsorgen til den overvektige kvinnen i fødsel. Metode: Kvalitativ metode. Individuelle semistrukturerte intervju ble gjennomført med åtte jordmødre. Systematisk tekstkondensering inspirert av Malterud ble brukt i analysen av materialet. Resultater: Vi kom frem til tre kategorier etter analyse. Den første kategorien beskrev at retningslinjene for den overvektige kvinnen både var en trygghet og kunne gi frustrasjon hos jordmødrene. Å være underlagt retningslinjer gjorde det utfordrende for jordmødre å gi individuelt tilpasset omsorg. Den andre kategorien viser hvordan jordmødrene fremmer det normale i fødselen ved å ikke fremheve risikoen, men ha en beredskap. Hun styrker kvinnen til å ha tro på seg selv, være til stede og med mål om å gi kvinnen en god fødselsopplevelse og fremme en normal fødsel. Den siste kategorien beskriver jordmødres fremgangsmåte og utfordringer ved bruk av informasjon som et hjelpemiddel for medbestemmelse. Konklusjon: Jordmødre arbeider for å fremme det normale hos en kjent risikogruppe, hvor de utfordres i balansegangen mellom medikaliserte retningslinjer og ønsket om en naturlig tilnærming. Jordmødrene arbeider kvinnesentrert, helhetlig og styrker kvinnen ved å gi medbestemmelse, mestringsstrategier og flytte fokuset bort fra negative tilnærminger og følelser. En demedikalisert tilnærming og jordmødres perspektiv bør integreres i retningslinjer i fødselsomsorgen for overvektige kvinner. Nøkkelord: obesity, midwife, guidelines, childbirth, normal birth, empowermen

Brief Assessment of Schizotypal Traits: A Multinational Study

The Schizotypal Personality Questionnaire-Brief (SPQ-B) was developed with the aim of examining variations in healthy trait schizotypy, as well as latent vulnerability to psychotic-spectrum disorders. No previous study has studied the cross-cultural validity of the SPQ-B in a large cross-national sample. The main goal of the present study was to analyze the reliability and the internal structure of SPQ-B scores in a multinational sample of 28,426 participants recruited from 14 countries. The mean age was 22.63 years (SD = 7.08; range 16-68 years), 37.7% (n = 10,711) were men. The omega coefficients were high, ranging from 0.86 to 0.92 for the total sample. Confirmatory factor analysis revealed that SPQ-B items were grouped either in a theoretical structure of three first-order factors (Cognitive-Perceptual, Interpersonal, and Disorganized) or in a bifactor model (three first-order factors plus a general factor of schizotypal personality). In addition, the results supported configural but not strong measurement invariance of SPQ-B scores across samples. These findings provide new information about the factor structure of schizotypal personality, and support the validity and utility of the SPQ-B, a brief and easy tool for assessing self-reported schizotypal traits, in cross-national research. Theoretical and clinical implications for diagnostic systems, psychosis models, and cross-national mental health strategies are derived from these results

A Measure of Snow: Case Studies of the Snow Survey and Water Supply Forecasting Program

Report Summary: Snow depth and snow water content data have been collected and disseminated throughout the Western United States for over 100 years. Early Snow Survey and Water Supply Forecasting data were gathered through the efforts of university scientists. In 1935, the Soil Conservation Service (SCS) was given $36,000 to establish a formal cooperative Snow Survey and Water Supply Forecasting (SSWSF) Program. The agency was charged with the responsibility for “conducting Snow Survey and Water Supply Forecasts and forecasting of irrigation water supplies.” The new program would also develop consistent methods for measuring snow and reliable models for water supply forecasting. Using a case study approach, this report assesses the various uses of data gathered and published by the SSWSF Program and estimates the value of those data in terms of both the market and non-market values of the information. Additionally, it evaluates the relative merits of maintaining the program as a publicly funded program as opposed to privatizing the program. This study finds that the SSWSF Program is generating both market and non-market benefits to the U.S. economy and to U.S. society as a whole that are worth significantly more than the cost of the program. Should climate variability increase—as is expected by many of those interviewed in the course of completing this study, and as current climate research strongly suggests—the value of the information provided by the SSWSF Program will increase accordingly. With adequate time and budget, it would be possible to define the benefits to other users and beneficiaries of the information not included as case studies in this analysis. Also, additional, more thorough modeling could be undertaken in an effort to understand the more complex impacts of changes in agricultural operations and other industry activities that occur in response to SSWSF Program data. Absent those additional analyses, it will suffice to say that, at a minimum, the program more than pays for itself in terms of dollar-valued economic benefits, and the program also generates significant non-market benefits in public safety, recreation, and other non-monetized benefits. Further study would shed more light on these topics as well

Neuropsychological Correlates of Hazard Perception in Older Adults

Objectives: Hazard perception, the ability to identify and react to hazards while driving, is of growing importance in driving research, given its strong relationship to real word driving variables. Furthermore, although poor hazard perception is associated with novice drivers, recent research suggests that it declines with advanced age. In the present study, we examined the neuropsychological correlates of hazard perception in a healthy older adult sample. Methods: A total of 68 adults age 60 and older who showed no signs of dementia and were active drivers completed a battery of neuropsychological tests as well as a hazard perception task. Tests included the Repeatable Battery for the Assessment of Neuropsychological Status, Wechsler Test of Adult Reading, Trail Making Test, Block Design, Useful Field of View, and the Delis-Kaplan Executive Function System Color Word Interference Test. Results: Hazard perception errors were related to visuospatial/constructional skills, processing speed, memory, and executive functioning skills, with a battery of tests across these domains accounting for 36.7% of the variance in hazard perception errors. Executive functioning, particularly Trail Making Test part B, emerged as a strong predictor of hazard perception ability. Conclusions: Consistent with prior work showing the relationship of neuropsychological performance to other measures of driving ability, neuropsychological performance was associated with hazard perception skill. Future studies should examine the relationship of neuropsychological changes in adults who are showing driving impairment and/or cognitive changes associated with Mild Cognitive Impairment or dementia

Expectancy Effects on Self-Reported Attention-Deficit/Hyperactivity Disorder Symptoms in Simulated Neurofeedback: A Pilot Study

© 2018 The Author(s). All rights reserved. Objective: Expectancy is a psychological factor that can impact treatment effectiveness. Research on neurofeedback for attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) suggests expectancy may contribute to treatment outcomes, though evidence for expectancy as an explanatory factor is sparse. This pilot study investigated the effects of expectancies on self-reported ADHD symptoms in simulated neurofeedback. Method: Forty-six adults who were concerned that they had ADHD expected to receive active neurofeedback, but were randomly assigned to receive a placebo with false feedback indicating attentive (positive false feedback) or inattentive (negative false feedback) states. Effects of the expectancy manipulation were measured on an ADHD self-report scale. Results: Large expectancy effects were found, such that individuals who received positive false feedback reported significant decreases in ADHD symptoms, whereas individuals who received negative false feedback reported significant increases in ADHD symptoms. Conclusions: Findings suggest that expectancy should be considered as an explanatory mechanism for ADHD symptom change in response to neurofeedback