The Relation Between Parental Status and Alcohol Use Patterns and Attitudes About Underage Drinking

In a sample of 143 adults from a population of households in Idaho, significant differences in patterns of alcohol use and attitudes about underage drinking were found as a function of parental status. Non-parents reported drinking alcohol more frequently than parents. Parents were significantly more likely than non-parents to report that it is never acceptable for minors to drink alcohol, that minors should not be allowed to drink alcohol at parties with no parents present, and that “sting” operations by police are warranted. Surprisingly, non-parents were significantly more likely than parents to that report stores and bars are not careful enough about selling alcohol to minor

Mental Health and Substance Abuse Issues Among Native Americans Living on a Remote Reservation: Results from a Community Survey

The purpose of the study was to document the perceived and actual mental health and substance abuse issues of residents living on a remote reservation in the Northwestern United States. Surveys were completed by 138 Native Americans, who reported on mental health status and problems, perceptions of personal and community health issues on the reservation, and patterns of substance use and abuse (e.g., how often respondents use alcohol, what drugs present the most serious problems on the reservation). The respondents perceived their own mental health to be quite good. However, they reported that several mental health problems were prevalent in their community including alcohol/drug abuse, mood disorders, and spousal abuse/domestic violence. In addition, although respondents themselves reported little substance abuse, the most serious perceived problems in both their families and the community were related to substance abuse. Respondents not only recognized the problems caused by substance abuse on the reservation; they also had valuable suggestions for how to reduce this problem, including recreational/after school programs, education about substance abuse, cultural activities, and appropriate treatment services, including traditional or faith-based healing methods

Risk and Protective Factors for Secondary Traumatic Stress and Burnout Among Home Visitors

The overarching goal of this study was to understand the context of home visitor secondary traumatic stress and burnout, and how this might affect intention to quit among home visitors, particularly focusing on potential risk factors and supportive strategies identified by the home visitors. All home visitors providing services in the state in which the research was conducted (N = 27) completed a structured interview and a quantitative survey at two time points, 6 months apart. Results indicated that more than two-thirds of the home visitors experienced either medium or high levels of secondary traumatic stress and burnout over the course of the study. Approximately one quarter of home visitors indicated thinking of leaving their present positio. Qualitative data indicated that risk factors associated with burnout included those related to both direct and non-direct services. Risk factors associated with secondary traumatic stress included traumatic stress of families, inability to recognize one’s own experiences of secondary traumatic stress, and unhealthy work culture. In terms of protective factors, home visitors strongly emphasized the importance of having a supportive supervisor who they could trust and communicate with openly

Adults\u27 Alcohol Consumption Behaviour and Support for Restrictions on Youth-Oriented Alcohol Advertisements

Research suggests that underage drinking is a serious problem in the United States, and that many of the factors that influence minors to consume alcohol are environmental in their nature. One such factor is youth-oriented alcohol advertisements. Although many adults support restrictions on such advertisements, others do not or do so to a lesser degree. In this study, we explored one factor that may influence how strongly adults support restrictions on youth-oriented alcohol advertisements: The frequency with which adults themselves report consuming alcoholic beverages. A total of 767 adult Idahoans completed a survey asking about a variety of perceptions related to underage drinking, including whether they supported five types of restrictions on youth-oriented alcohol advertisement. They also answered a question about their own drinking behavior. The results revealed a significant effect of adults’ self-reported alcohol consumption behavior on their support for all five types of advertising restrictions. Adults who reported not consuming alcohol were significantly more supportive of all five types of advertising restrictions than those who reported consuming at least one alcoholic beverage in an average week. Significant differences in adults’ levels of support for all five types of advertising restriction were also revealed as a function of frequency with which adults consumed alcoholic beverages. Adults who reported consuming alcohol on one day in an average week reported significantly more support for all five types of advertising restrictions than those who reported consuming alcohol four or more days in an average week. These findings identify a population—heavier drinking adults—for education about problems associated with underage drinking and advertising alcohol to minors

The Influence of Social Status on Token Women Leaders’ Expectations about Leading Male-Dominated Groups

Prior research has shown that women report mostly negative expectations about being a gender-token in male-dominated work groups. We speculate that this is partially caused by the socially-ascribed status devaluation of women. In the present study we investigated the degree to which elevated social status may lessen negative expectations of gender-token women assigned to leadership positions. Sixty-three undergraduate women participated in one of three tokenism conditions: 1) nontoken, 2) gender-token, and 3) high-status gender-token. In all conditions participants were led to believe that they would be leading a group of men in a decision-making exercise. Leader expectations were then assessed. The results suggest that increased social status may help prevent gender-token women from developing negative expectations about interactions with male-dominated work groups

Civility and Academic Freedom: Who Defines the Former (and How) May Imperil Rights to the Latter

An alarming occurrence in academia involves the discipline of faculty, under the guise of violating civility or collegiality codes, for engaging in what should be protected academic free speech. This often occurs when unprincipled and/or corporate-minded administrators seek to punish or dissuade faculty from challenging or questioning their decisions or policy initiatives, or for speaking up about policy violations or lack of due process. The ambiguity of terms such as civility and collegiality, when selectively defined by administrators, can be used to stifle, dissuade or punish academic free speech. Ways to identify and address these problems are presented

The Impact of Volunteering on Seniors’ Health and Quality of Life: An Assessment of the Retired and Senior Volunteer Program

Past research suggests that senior citizens often face challenges related to deteriorating physical and men- tal health, and the quality of their lives may suffer as a result. Past research also suggests that volunteering can improve the health and quality of life for seniors. In the present study, 451 volunteers enrolled in the Retired and Senior Volunteer Program (RSVP) completed surveys including questions regarding their volunteer experiences and how these experiences have affected their health and quality of life. The results suggest that volunteering through RSVP is associated with improvements in health and quality of life across a variety of dimensions. Furthermore, these improvements may be particularly greater for women, current volunteers, and older seniors. These findings may help guide interventions designed to enhance the health and well-being of senior citizens in a variety of settings

The study of atmospheric ice-nucleating particles via microfluidically generated droplets

Ice-nucleating particles (INPs) play a significant role in the climate and hydrological cycle by triggering ice formation in supercooled clouds, thereby causing precipitation and affecting cloud lifetimes and their radiative properties. However, despite their importance, INP often comprise only 1 in 10³–10⁶ ambient particles, making it difficult to ascertain and predict their type, source, and concentration. The typical techniques for quantifying INP concentrations tend to be highly labour-intensive, suffer from poor time resolution, or are limited in sensitivity to low concentrations. Here, we present the application of microfluidic devices to the study of atmospheric INPs via the simple and rapid production of monodisperse droplets and their subsequent freezing on a cold stage. This device offers the potential for the testing of INP concentrations in aqueous samples with high sensitivity and high counting statistics. Various INPs were tested for validation of the platform, including mineral dust and biological species, with results compared to literature values. We also describe a methodology for sampling atmospheric aerosol in a manner that minimises sampling biases and which is compatible with the microfluidic device. We present results for INP concentrations in air sampled during two field campaigns: (1) from a rural location in the UK and (2) during the UK’s annual Bonfire Night festival. These initial results will provide a route for deployment of the microfluidic platform for the study and quantification of INPs in upcoming field campaigns around the globe, while providing a benchmark for future lab-on-a-chip-based INP studies

Cortical brain abnormalities in 4474 individuals with schizophrenia and 5098 control subjects via the enhancing neuro Imaging genetics through meta analysis (ENIGMA) Consortium

BACKGROUND: The profile of cortical neuroanatomical abnormalities in schizophrenia is not fully understood, despite hundreds of published structural brain imaging studies. This study presents the first meta-analysis of cortical thickness and surface area abnormalities in schizophrenia conducted by the ENIGMA (Enhancing Neuro Imaging Genetics through Meta Analysis) Schizophrenia Working Group. METHODS: The study included data from 4474 individuals with schizophrenia (mean age, 32.3 years; range, 11-78 years; 66% male) and 5098 healthy volunteers (mean age, 32.8 years; range, 10-87 years; 53% male) assessed with standardized methods at 39 centers worldwide. RESULTS: Compared with healthy volunteers, individuals with schizophrenia have widespread thinner cortex (left/right hemisphere: Cohen's d = -0.530/-0.516) and smaller surface area (left/right hemisphere: Cohen's d = -0.251/-0.254), with the largest effect sizes for both in frontal and temporal lobe regions. Regional group differences in cortical thickness remained significant when statistically controlling for global cortical thickness, suggesting regional specificity. In contrast, effects for cortical surface area appear global. Case-control, negative, cortical thickness effect sizes were two to three times larger in individuals receiving antipsychotic medication relative to unmedicated individuals. Negative correlations between age and bilateral temporal pole thickness were stronger in individuals with schizophrenia than in healthy volunteers. Regional cortical thickness showed significant negative correlations with normalized medication dose, symptom severity, and duration of illness and positive correlations with age at onset. CONCLUSIONS: The findings indicate that the ENIGMA meta-analysis approach can achieve robust findings in clinical neuroscience studies; also, medication effects should be taken into account in future genetic association studies of cortical thickness in schizophrenia