Perfectionism and training distress in junior athletes: A longitudinal investigation

Perfectionistic athletes may train harder and for longer than non-perfectionistic athletes, leaving them susceptible to elevated levels of training distress. So far, however, no study has investigated the relationships between perfectionism and training distress, a key indicator of overtraining syndrome. Furthermore, no study has determined psychological predictors of overtraining syndrome. Using a two-wave design, the present study examined perfectionistic strivings, perfectionistic concerns, and training distress in 141 junior athletes (mean age 17.3 years, range 16-19 years) over 3 months of active training. Multiple regression analyses were employed to test cross-sectional and longitudinal relationships between perfectionism and training distress. In all analyses, perfectionism emerged as a significant predictor, but strivings and concerns showed differential relationships. When the cross-sectional relationships were regarded, perfectionistic concerns positively predicted training distress (p .05). The findings suggest that sports scientists who wish to identify athletes at risk of overtraining syndrome may monitor athletes’ perfectionistic concerns as a possible risk factor

Substantiating a political public sphere in the Scottish press : a comparative analysis

This article uses content analysis to characterize the performance of the media in a national public sphere, by setting apart those qualities that typify internal press coverage of a political event. The article looks at the coverage of the 1999 devolved Scottish election from the day before the election until the day after. It uses a word count to measure the election material in Scottish newspapers the Herald, the Press and Journal and the Scotsman, and United Kingdom newspapers the Guardian, the Independent and The Times, and categorizes that material according to discourse type, day and page selection. The article finds a number of qualities that typify the Scottish sample in particular, and might be broadly indicative of a political public sphere in action. Firstly, and not unexpectedly, it finds that the Scottish newspapers carry significantly more election coverage. Just as tellingly, though, the article finds that the Scottish papers offer a greater proportion of advice and background information, in the form of opinion columns and feature articles. It also finds that the Scottish papers place a greater concentration of both informative and evaluative material in the period before the vote, consistent with their making a contribution to informed political action. Lastly, the article finds that the Scottish sample situates coverage nearer the front of the paper and places a greater proportion on recto pages. The article therefore argues that the Scottish papers display features that distinguish them from the UK papers, and are broadly consistent with their forming part of a deliberative public sphere, and suggests that these qualities might be explored as a means of judging future media performance

Contaminant biotransport by Pacific salmon to Lake Michigan tributaries

The Great Lakes are ideal systems for evaluating the synergistic components of environmental change, such as exotic species introductions and legacy pollutants. Introduced Pacific Salmon (Oncorhynchus spp.) represent an intersection of these drivers because they are non-native species of economic importance that bioaccumulate contaminants during the open water phase of their life cycle. Furthermore, Pacific salmon can deliver a significant pulse of contaminated tissue to tributaries during spawning and subsequent death. Thus, salmon represent a key pathway by which contaminants accumulated in Lake Michigan are transported inland to tributaries that otherwise lack point source pollution. Our research has revealed that salmon exhibit basin-specific persistent organic pollutant (POP) and mercury (Hg) concentrations reflecting pollutant inputs from both current and historic sources. Overall, Lake Michigan salmon were more contaminated with POPs and Hg than conspecifics from Lakes Huron or Superior. Consequently, Lake Michigan salmon pose a higher risk and magnitude of contaminant biotransport and transfer. Resident stream fish (e.g., brook trout) sampled from salmon spawning reaches had higher pollutant concentrations than fish sampled from upstream reaches lacking salmon, but the extent of fish contamination varied among lake basins and streams. In general, Lake Michigan tributaries were the most impacted, suggesting a direct relationship between the extent of salmon-derived contaminant inputs and resident fish contaminant levels. Within and among lake basins, contaminant biotransport by salmon is context dependent and likely reflects a suite of ecological characteristics such as species identity and trophic position, dynamics of the salmon run, watershed land-use, and instream geomorphology such as sediment size. We suggest that future management of salmon-mediated contaminant biotransport to stream communities in the Great Lakes basin should consider biological, chemical, and physical factors that constitute the environmental context

Measures Matter: Scales for Adaptation, Cultural Distance, and Acculturation Orientation Revisited

Building upon existing measures, four new brief acculturation scales are presented, measuring sociocultural adaptation, psychological adaptation, perceived cultural distance, and acculturation orientation. Following good scale reliability in initial samples, the English scales were translated into nine different languages (Chinese, French, German, Italian, Japanese, Portuguese, Spanish, Thai, and Turkish). The translated scales were administered to a large sample of sojourners (N = 1,929), demonstrating good reliability and adequate structural equivalence across languages. In line with existing theory, sociocultural adaptation and psychological adaptation were positively correlated, and showed a negative association with perceived cultural distance. General measures of well-being were correlated with adaptation and distance, with better adaptation relating to higher well-being, and more distance relating to lower well-being. Acculturation orientation toward the home and host culture were measured separately and a weak negative correlation was found between the two, supporting their independence. Arguing against dichotomization, these subscales were analyzed as continuous variables. Regression analysis showed sojourners to be better adapted, if they were oriented more toward the host culture and less toward the home culture. These new scales are proposed as alternatives to existing measures

Education and older adults at the University of the Third Age

This article reports a critical analysis of older adult education in Malta. In educational gerontology, a critical perspective demands the exposure of how relations of power and inequality, in their myriad forms, combinations, and complexities, are manifest in late-life learning initiatives. Fieldwork conducted at the University of the Third Age (UTA) in Malta uncovered the political nature of elder-learning, especially with respect to three intersecting lines of inequality - namely, positive aging, elitism, and gender. A cautionary note is, therefore, warranted at the dominant positive interpretations of UTAs since late-life learning, as any other education activity, is not politically neutral.peer-reviewe

What do people do with porn? qualitative research into the consumption, use and experience of pornography and other sexually explicit media

This article reviews qualitative research into the consumption of pornography and other sexually explicit media emerging from a range of subject areas. Taking a critique of quantitative methods and a focus on measuring sexual effects and attitudes as a starting point, it considers the proposition that qualitative work is more suited to an examination of the complex social, cultural and political constructions of sexuality. Examining studies into the way men, women and young people see, experience, and use explicit media texts, the article identifies the key findings that have emerged. Qualitative work shows that sexuality explicit media texts are experienced and understood in a variety of ways and evoke strong and often contradictory reactions, not all of which are represented in public debates about pornography. These texts function in a range of different ways, depending on context; as a source of knowledge, a resource for intimate practices, a site for identity construction, and an occasion for performing gender and sexuality. The article reviews these studies and their findings, identifying what they suggest about directions for future research, both in terms of developing methodology and refining approaches to sexuality and media consumption.</p

The shifting terrain of sex and power: From the 'sexualisation of culture' to Me Too

In this short article we will aim to do three things. First, we want to use this opportunity to reflect on some of the changes we have seen in the scholarly field of gender, sexuality, and intimacy over this period, and on new emerging directions. Second, we want to discuss the move away from discussions of ‘sexualization’ to a more critical and political register interested in a variety of ways in which sex and power intersect. Thirdly, we will discuss MeToo as an example of this shifted form of engagement, and raise some questions about its possibilities and limitations

Discussing surgical innovation with patients: A qualitative study of surgeons’ and governance representatives’ views

Objectives Little is known about how innovative surgical procedures are introduced and discussed with patients. This qualitative study aimed to explore perspectives on information provision and consent prior to innovative surgical procedures.Design Qualitative study involving semi-structured interviews. Interviews were audio recorded, transcribed and analysed thematically.Participants 42 interviews were conducted (26 surgeons and 16 governance representatives).Setting Surgeons and governance representatives recruited from various surgical specialties and National Health Service (NHS) Trusts across England, UK.Results Participants stated that if a procedure was innovative, patients should be provided with additional information extending beyond that given during routine surgical consultations. However, difficulty defining innovation had implications for whether patients were informed about novel components of surgery and how the procedure was introduced (ie, as part of a research study, trust approval or in routine clinical practice). Furthermore, data suggest surgeons found it difficult to establish what information is essential and how much detail is sufficient, and governance surrounding written and verbal information provision differed between NHS Trusts. Generally, surgeons believed patients held a view that ‘new’ was best and reported that managing these expectations could be difficult, particularly if patient views aligned with their own.Conclusions This study highlights the challenges of information provision and obtaining informed consent in the context of innovative surgery, including establishing if and how a procedure is truly innovative, determining the key information to discuss with patients, ensuring information provision is objective and balanced, and managing patient expectations and preferences. This suggests that surgeons may require support and training to discuss novel procedures with patients. Further work should capture consultations where new procedures are discussed with patients and patients’ views of these information exchanges

Political Communication

The term "strategic communication" traditionally has been understood as referring to external corporate communication, such as public relations, marketing communication, and advertising, with insufficient consideration beyond its role as a tool of persuasive influence. In recent years, however, the field of strategic communication has evolved to be more holistic in its approach and its role within sociocultural contexts. Articles, textbooks, and handbooks have attempted to define the scope, purpose, and nature of the concept, but as the first major comprehensive work of its kind, The International Encyclopedia of Strategic Communication captures the full scope of contemporary theory and practice in strategic communication.info:eu-repo/semantics/publishedVersio

Res Medica, Autumn 1964, Volume IV, Number 3

[NB Issue published incorrectly as Autumn 1964, Vol. 5, No. 1]TABLE OF CONTENTSASPECT OF OBESITY: J.A. Strong AETIOLOGICAL FACTORS IN CONGENITAL ABNORMALITIES: A.M. DavidsonRES MEDICASOME ASPECTS OF ABDOMINAL PAIN: T.J. McNairLOCALISATION OF RENAL FUNCTION: D.I. NewbleOBSERVATIONS ON LIPID METABOLISM: R.B.L. Ewart