The interaction of social and perceivable causal factors in shaping ‘over-imitation’

Over-imitation has become a well-documented phenomenon. However there is evidence that both social and visible, physically causal factors can influence the occurrence of over-imitation in children. Here we explore the interplay between these two factors, manipulating both task opacity and social information. Four- to 7-year-old children were given either a causally opaque or transparent box, before which they experienced either (1) a condition where they witnessed a taught, knowledgeable person demonstrate an inefficient method and an untaught model demonstrate a more efficient method; or (2) a baseline condition where they witnessed efficient and inefficient methods performed by two untaught models. Results showed that the level of imitation increased with greater task opacity and when children received social information about knowledgeability consequent on teaching, but only for 6- to 7-year-olds. The findings show that children are selectively attuned to both causal and social factors when learning new cultural knowledge

“Model age-based” and “copy when uncertain” biases in children’s social learning of a novel task

This work was supported by a John Templeton Foundation grant (40128).Theoretical models of social learning predict that individuals can benefit from using strategies that specify when and whom to copy. Here the interaction of two social learning strategies, model age-based biased copying and copy when uncertain, was investigated. Uncertainty was created via a systematic manipulation of demonstration efficacy (completeness) and efficiency (causal relevance of some actions). The participants, 4- to 6-year-old children (N = 140), viewed both an adult model and a child model, each of whom used a different tool on a novel task. They did so in a complete condition, a near-complete condition, a partial demonstration condition, or a no-demonstration condition. Half of the demonstrations in each condition incorporated causally irrelevant actions by the models. Social transmission was assessed by first responses but also through children’s continued fidelity, the hallmark of social traditions. Results revealed a bias to copy the child model both on first response and in continued interactions. Demonstration efficacy and efficiency did not affect choice of model at first response but did influence solution exploration across trials, with demonstrations containing causally irrelevant actions decreasing exploration of alternative methods. These results imply that uncertain environments can result in canalized social learning from specific classes of model.Publisher PDFPeer reviewe

Real-world word learning: exploring children's developing semantic representations of a science term

Assessments of lexical acquisition are often limited to pre-school children on forced choice comprehension measures. This study assessed the understandings 30 school-age children (mean age = 6;7) acquired about the science term, eclipse following a naturalistic exposure to a solar eclipse. The knowledge children acquired about eclipses and a control term, comet was assessed at three points in time (baseline-test, two-week post-test and five-month post-test) using a range of assessment tasks (multiple-choice comprehension, picture-naming, drawing and a model of a solar system task). Children's knowledge was compared to 15 adult controls during the baseline-test and two-week post-test. Children acquired extensive knowledge about eclipses, but not comets; at the two-week post-test and five-month post-test, the majority of children named and drew eclipses and „made? an eclipse using models of the sun, moon and earth. Also, children's eclipse knowledge more closely approximated adult-level understandings at the two-week post-test than at the baseline-test. Implications for the study of lexical acquisition in later development are discussed

Investigation of risk factors for introduction of highly pathogenic avian influenza H5N1 infection among commercial turkey operations in the United States, 2022: a case-control study

Introduction: The 2022–2023 highly pathogenic avian influenza (HPAI) H5N1 outbreak in the United States (U.S.) is the largest and most costly animal health event in U.S. history. Approximately 70% of commercial farms affected during this outbreak have been turkey farms. Methods: We conducted a case-control study to identify potential risk factors for introduction of HPAI virus onto commercial meat turkey operations. Data were collected from 66 case farms and 59 control farms in 12 states. Univariate and multivariable analyses were conducted to compare management and biosecurity factors on case and control farms. Results: Factors associated with increased risk of infection included being in an existing control zone, having both brooders and growers, having toms, seeing wild waterfowl or shorebirds in the closest field, and using rendering for dead bird disposal. Protective factors included having a restroom facility, including portable, available to crews that visit the farm and workers having access and using a shower at least some of the time when entering a specified barn. Discussion: Study results provide a better understanding of risk factors for HPAI infection and can be used to inform prevention and control measures for HPAI on U.S. turkey farms

Investigation of risk factors for introduction of highly pathogenic avian influenza H5N1 virus onto table egg farms in the United States, 2022: a case–control study

Introduction: The 2022–2023 highly pathogenic avian influenza (HPAI) H5N1 outbreak in the United States (U.S.) is the most geographically extensive and costly animal health event in U.S. history. In 2022 alone, over 57 million commercial and backyard poultry in 47 U.S. states were affected. Over 75% of affected poultry were part of the commercial table egg production sector. Methods: We conducted a case–control study to identify potential risk factors for introduction of HPAI virus onto commercial table egg operations. Univariate and multivariable analyses were conducted to compare farm characteristics, management, and biosecurity factors on case and control farms. Results: Factors associated with increased risk of infection included being in an existing control zone, sightings of wild waterfowl, mowing or bush hogging vegetation less than 4 times a month, having an off-site method of daily mortality disposal (off-site composting or burial, rendering, or landfill), and wild bird access to feed/feed ingredients at least some of the time. Protective factors included a high level of vehicle washing for trucks and trailers entering the farm (a composite variable that included having a permanent wash station), having designated personnel assigned to specific barns, having a farm entrance gate, and requiring a change of clothing for workers entering poultry barns. Discussion: Study results improve our understanding of risk factors for HPAI infection and control measures for preventing HPAI on commercial U.S. table egg farms

y-QUIT: Smoking Prevalence, Engagement, and Effectiveness of an Individualized Smoking Cessation Intervention in Youth With Severe Mental Illness

Introduction: Young people with psychosis are six times more likely to be tobacco smokers than their gender- and age-matched peers. Smoking is a major contributor to the 15-year reduced life expectancy among people experiencing severe mental illness (SMI). There is a lack of evidence-supported interventions for smoking cessation among young people with SMI.Material and Methods: The study comprised two phases and aimed to assess (i) the prevalence of smoking among a community sample of young people with psychotic illness or at high risk of developing psychosis; (ii) the proportion who engaged in the intervention; (iii) the proportion who achieved smoking cessation; and (iv) secondary smoking-related outcomes. In phase one, prevalence of smoking was assessed among young people with psychotic illness or at high risk of developing psychosis attending a community-based youth mental health service between 16/5/2017 and 16/11/2017. In phase two, over a 1-year period, individuals identified as smokers were invited to participate in a 12-week tailored smoking cessation intervention program that included pharmacological treatment, motivational interviewing, and behavioral change techniques. Those unwilling to participate in a full intervention were offered a brief intervention. Participants of the full intervention were assessed at baseline and at week 12 endpoint on: daily cigarettes smoked (self-report), exhaled CO, nicotine dependence, readiness to quit, and confidence to quit.Results: In phase one, smoking prevalence was 48.2% (53 of 110) among clients of the youth mental health service. Smokers were significantly more likely to be male (X2 = 6.41 p = 0.009). During phase two, 41 of 61 eligible clients engaged in a smoking cessation intervention (67.2%). Effectiveness: twenty-one clients participated in a full intervention (34.4%), of whom three (14.3%) received a brief intervention initially and during engagement converted to full intervention. Twenty participants (32.8%) received a brief intervention only. Ten participants in the full intervention (47.6%) and five in the brief intervention (25%) dropped out. Six (28.6% of full intervention) reported smoking cessation verified by CO monitoring. Participants who completed the full intervention (n = 9) reduced number of cigarettes smoked, nicotine dependence, and exhaled CO, while readiness to quit and confidence to quit increased. Pharmacotherapy was predominantly combination NRT (n = 18; 85.7%), varenicline (4.8%), oral NRT only (4.8%), or none (4.8%). No adverse events were reported.Conclusion: This pilot real-world study demonstrates that both screening for smoking and offering an effective smoking cessation intervention are achievable in youth experiencing or at risk of psychosis

Investigation of risk factors for introduction of highly pathogenic avian influenza H5N1 infection among commercial turkey operations in the United States, 2022: a case-control study

IntroductionThe 2022–2023 highly pathogenic avian influenza (HPAI) H5N1 outbreak in the United States (U.S.) is the largest and most costly animal health event in U.S. history. Approximately 70% of commercial farms affected during this outbreak have been turkey farms.MethodsWe conducted a case-control study to identify potential risk factors for introduction of HPAI virus onto commercial meat turkey operations. Data were collected from 66 case farms and 59 control farms in 12 states. Univariate and multivariable analyses were conducted to compare management and biosecurity factors on case and control farms.ResultsFactors associated with increased risk of infection included being in an existing control zone, having both brooders and growers, having toms, seeing wild waterfowl or shorebirds in the closest field, and using rendering for dead bird disposal. Protective factors included having a restroom facility, including portable, available to crews that visit the farm and workers having access and using a shower at least some of the time when entering a specified barn.DiscussionStudy results provide a better understanding of risk factors for HPAI infection and can be used to inform prevention and control measures for HPAI on U.S. turkey farms

Multiplex analysis of intratumoural immune infiltrate and prognosis in patients with stage II–III colorectal cancer from the SCOT and QUASAR 2 trials: A retrospective analysis

Background Tumour-infiltrating CD8+ cytotoxic T cells confer favourable prognosis in colorectal cancer. The added prognostic value of other infiltrating immune cells is unclear and so we sought to investigate their prognostic value in two large clinical trial cohorts. Methods We used multiplex immunofluorescent staining of tissue microarrays to assess the densities of CD8+, CD20+, FoxP3+, and CD68+ cells in the intraepithelial and intrastromal compartments from tumour samples of patients with stage II–III colorectal cancer from the SCOT trial (ISRCTN59757862), which examined 3 months versus 6 months of adjuvant oxaliplatin-based chemotherapy, and from the QUASAR 2 trial (ISRCTN45133151), which compared adjuvant capecitabine with or without bevacizumab. Both trials included patients aged 18 years or older with an Eastern Cooperative Oncology Group performance status of 0–1. Immune marker predictors were analysed by multiple regression, and the prognostic and predictive values of markers for colorectal cancer recurrence-free interval by Cox regression were assessed using the SCOT cohort for discovery and QUASAR 2 cohort for validation. Findings After exclusion of cases without tissue microarrays and with technical failures, and following quality control, we included 2340 cases from the SCOT trial and 1069 from the QUASAR 2 trial in our analysis. Univariable analysis of associations with recurrence-free interval in cases from the SCOT trial showed a strong prognostic value of intraepithelial CD8 (CD8IE) as a continuous variable (hazard ratio [HR] for 75th vs 25th percentile [75vs25] 0·73 [95% CI 0·68–0·79], p=2·5 × 10−16), and of intrastromal FoxP3 (FoxP3IS; 0·71 [0·64–0·78], p=1·5 × 10−13) but not as strongly in the epithelium (FoxP3IE; 0·89 [0·84–0·96], p=1·5 × 10−4). Associations of other markers with recurrence-free interval were moderate. CD8IE and FoxP3IS retained independent prognostic value in bivariable and multivariable analysis, and, compared with either marker alone, a composite marker including both markers (CD8IE-FoxP3IS) was superior when assessed as a continuous variable (adjusted [a]HR75 vs 25 0·70 [95% CI 0·63–0·78], p=5·1 × 10−11) and when categorised into low, intermediate, and high density groups using previously published cutpoints (aHR for intermediate vs high 1·68 [95% CI 1·29–2·20], p=1·3 × 10−4; low vs high 2·58 [1·91–3·49], p=7·9 × 10−10), with performance similar to the gold-standard Immunoscore. The prognostic value of CD8IE-FoxP3IS was confirmed in cases from the QUASAR 2 trial, both as a continuous variable (aHR75 vs 25 0·84 [95% CI 0·73–0·96], p=0·012) and as a categorical variable for low versus high density (aHR 1·80 [95% CI 1·17–2·75], p=0·0071) but not for intermediate versus high (1·30 [0·89–1·88], p=0·17). Interpretation Combined evaluation of CD8IE and FoxP3IS could help to refine risk stratification in colorectal cancer. Investigation of FoxP3IS cells as an immunotherapy target in colorectal cancer might be merited