The relationship between challenging behaviour, burnout and cognitive variables in staff working with people who have intellectual disabilities

Introduction There is evidence to suggest a relationship between the way in which staff perceive challenging behaviour and burnout in staff working with people with intellectual disabilities and challenging behaviour. However the evidence of a direct link is equivocal and it is possible that a number of different variables mediate this relationship. The aim of the study is to confirm whether there is a relationship between challenging behaviour and staff burnout, and in addition, to test whether staff perceptions about challenging behaviour mediate this relationship. Method Seventy-eight staff completed measures of burnout, challenging behaviour and perceptions about challenging behaviour. The perceptions explored included beliefs about the timeline of behaviour, staff’s perception of whether they themselves have control over the behaviour, beliefs about clients’ ability to control the behaviour and staff’s negative emotional responses. Results Significant positive correlations were found between challenging behaviour and burnout, challenging behaviour and cognitive variables, and cognitive variables and burnout. Regression analyses demonstrated that negative emotions mediate the relationship between challenging behaviour and burnout. Conclusion The results show evidence that there is a relationship between challenging behaviour and burnout which is mediated by negative emotion, namely the fear of potential assault

Expecting something for nothing? The trials, tribulations, successes and pitfalls of cross-cultural data collection for an IFTDO/UFHRD funded comparative analysis of HRD practices.

Is it possible to engage in research requiring the participation of HRD practitioners from a multitude of nations, without offering individual tangible incentives? This viewpoint shares the experiences of our HRD research team in attempting to gather research data from HRD practitioners across the Globe. Issues that potentially indicate tensions between the worlds of HRD practice and academia are reflected upon in the following account. We suggest HRD practitioner awareness of, and connection with, the associated research has a fundamental influence on the relative successes of data collection methods. A review of our experiences of conducting this data collection follows.N/

Pet dogs improve family functioning and reduce anxiety in children with autism spectrum disorder

Jessica Hardiman*†, Richard Mills‡ , PAWS Project Team† and Daniel Mills* * University of Lincoln, School of Life Sciences, Joseph Banks Laboratories, UK † Dogs for the Disables, Frances Hay Centre, Banbury, Oxfordshire, UK ‡ Research Autism, Adam House, London, UK ABSTRACT There is increasing evidence to suggest that dogs are beneficial for children with Autism Spectrum Disorder (ASD) in therapy sessions, and anecdotal reports suggest that dogs may have wider benefits, in a family setting. This study investigated the effect of dog ownership on family functioning and child anxiety. Using a validated scale of family strengths and weaknesses (Brief Version of the Family Assessment Measure-III [General Scale]), we compared parents of children with ASD who had recently acquired a pet dog (n = 42, Intervention group) with a similar group of parents not acquiring a dog (n = 28, Control group) at matched time points. A sub-population (n =14 acquiring a dog, n = 26 controls) completed a parental-report measure of child anxiety (Spence Children’s Anxiety Scale). The primary carer completed the scales via telephone at Baseline (up to 17 weeks before acquiring a dog), Postintervention (3–10 weeks after acquisition), and Follow-up (25–40 weeks after acquisition). Over time, scores for family functioning showed significant improvements (reduced family weaknesses, increased strengths) in the dog-owning compared with the non-dog owning group. In comparison with the non-dog owning group, anxiety scores in the dog-owning group reduced by a greater percentage, most notably in the domains of Obsessive Compulsive Disorder (26% greater decrease), Panic Attack and Agoraphobia (24%), Social Phobia (22%), and Separation Anxiety (22%). The results illustrate the potential of pet dogs to improve whole family functioning and child anxiety

Sophie Mills (Strasbourg 2018), 'Making Athens Great Again', Audio Recording Only, The Athenian Funeral Oration: 40 Years after Nicole Loraux: 9-11 July 2018: An International Conference at the University of Strasbourg (France): Convened by David M. Pritchard

The audience of the epitaphios logos assembled to hear a leading politician recount the earlier military exploits of the Athenians and how they had shaped the contemporary exploits of the war dead. The funeral oration upheld an idealised image of Athenian action in which Athens excelled in war and undertook warmaking only for noble ends. This focus attempted to reconcile the mourners to loss and grief by appealing to common and unquestionably good outcomes. By contrast, it is now orthodox to state that Athenian tragedy encouraged questioning and self-critique among the Athenians. Although the funeral speeches intimately connected past and present, at another level they clearly distinguished between them, as one speaker on one day showed how the war dead of a particular year had exemplified eternal Athenian superiority. Tragedy, however, avoided explicit coverage of the present, operating in a vague space between ancient and contemporary. This vagueness might have offered theatre-goers opportunities for critique of Athens and self-critique. However, what they brought to tragedy from the funeral speeches might equally have pushed them to a strongly affirmative idea of Athenian action. Recent readings often argue that tragedians criticised Athenian warmaking. Yet, every surviving tragedy where Athens features is fully intelligible as an endorsement of Athenian action, often combined with the spectacle of the suffering of others. Clearly to identify as a citizen of a state that helped those who were suffering while remaining untouched by this suffering was pleasurable. The funeral oration and tragedy probably worked together from different perspectives to solidify a strongly positive view of Athens for Athenians

What factors are associated with positive effects of dog ownership in families with children with autism spectrum disorder? The development of the Lincoln Autism Pet Dog Impact Scale

Scientific literature exploring the value of assistance dogs to children with autism spectrum disorder (ASD) is rapidly emerging. However, there is comparably less literature reporting the effects of pet (as opposed to assistance) dogs to these children. In particular, there are no known validated scales which assess how children may alter their behaviours in the presence of the dog, to evaluate the efficacy of pet dogs to these families. Additionally, given the highly individualised nature of ASD it is likely that some children and families gain more benefits from dog ownership than others, yet no research has reported the effect of individual differences. This pilot study reports the development of a 28-item scale based on the perceived impact of a pet dog on a child with autism by parents (Lincoln Autism Pet Dog Impact Scale, LAPDIS). The scale is comprised of three mathematically derived factors: Adaptability, Social Skills and Conflict Management. We assessed how individual differences (aspects) may be associated with scores on these three factors. Family Aspects and Dog Aspects were not significantly associated with ratings on the three factors, but Child Aspects (including: contact with horses, child age, disability level and language abilities) were related to impact of the dog on all factors. Training Aspects were related to scores on Social Skills (formal training with children with ASD and dogs and attendance at PAWS workshops run by Dogs for Good). These results suggest that individual differences associated with the child and the training approach may be important considerations for a positive impact from dog ownership on families with children with ASD. Differences in family features and the dog may not be so important, but may be worthy of further investigations given the early stage of development in this field

A survey of the impact of owning a service dog on quality of life for individuals with physical and hearing disability: a pilot study

Background Quality of life refers to a person’s experienced standard of health, comfort and happiness and is typically measured using subjective self-report scales. Despite increasing scientific interest in the value of dogs to human health and the growing demand for trained service dogs, to date no research has reported how service dogs may affect client perceptions of quality of life. Method We compared quality of life scores on the 16 item Flanagan quality of life scale from individuals who owned a trained service dog with those who were eligible to receive a dog, but did not yet have one (waiting list control). Data were analysed separately from two groups; those with a service dog trained for individuals with physical disabilities (with physical service dog: n = 72; waiting for a service dog: n = 24; recruited from Dogs for Good database) and those with a hearing service dog (with hearing service dog = 111; waiting for a service dog = 30; recruited from Hearing Dogs for Deaf People database). Results When controlling for age and gender individuals scored higher on total quality of life scores if they owned a service dog or a hearing service dog, but this was only statistically significant for those with a service dog. Both groups (physical service dog and hearing service dog) scored significantly higher on items relating to health, working, learning and independence if they owned a service dog, in comparison to those on the waiting list. Those with a physical service dog also scored significantly higher on items relating to recreational activities (including items relating to reading/listening to music, socialising, creative expression), and those involving social interactions (including items relating to participating in organisations, socialising, relationship with relatives). Additionally, those with a physical service dog scored higher on understanding yourself and material comforts than those on the waiting list control. In contrast, those with a hearing service dog appeared to receive fewer benefits on items relating to social activities. Conclusions Owning a service dog can bring significant specific and potentially general benefits to the quality of life of individuals with physical disabilities and hearing impairments. These benefits may have considerable implications for individuals with disabilities, society and the economy by promoting independence, learning and working abilities

What is the influence, if any, of emotion on modes of reflexivity? - a longitudinal study involving the participation of Business and Management doctoral students

The purpose of this research is to identify the influence of emotion on Margaret Archer's 'Modes of Reflexivity' (2003, 2007, 2012). As such, the study scrutinises, critiques and utilises as a framework for analysis, the behaviours and perspectives identified by Margaret Archer in her modes of reflexivity research. The philosophical approach adopted includes a predominantly sociological social constructionist ontology and epistemology. The context within which this study is set is the UK higher education environment, and specifically within Business and Management doctoral study. The twelve research participants involved in this study were all working towards the completion of either part-time or full-time doctorates over the fifteen month data collection period. At the heart of this research is the consideration of 'emotional reflexivity' (Burkitt, 2012; Holmes, 2015) and its potential relevance within Archer's modes of reflexivity research. In a bid to address these theorists' positions and their claims that considerations of emotion are largely missing from Archer's work, this research aims to make explicit the relationship between emotion and reflexivity specifically within Archer's modes. Attention is paid to when and how emotion is involved in the reflexive deliberations of the participants involved in this study

Housing the household: Gender and empowerment in South Africa.

Based on in-depth interviews carried out with men and women in both male and female-headed households in the townships of Khayelitsha and Philippi in Cape Town, South Africa, the thesis examines the impact of housing finance and participation in housing projects on intra-household gender relations. The importance of the projects to the low-income, mainly female Xhosa participants is explored, not only as a means of delivering physical shelter with resulting improvement in quality of life, but also as an empowering process. In particular the impact of an external factor on power relations between men and women in male-headed households is explored, through changes in decision-making abilities and control over household resources. Following on from these shifts, and echoing wider societal changes in South Africa and beyond, the notion of a 'crisis in masculinity' is explored. The role of emotions in decision-making is highlighted, particularly in response to models and theories which exclude the emotional context of household power relations. Key findings include the degree to which empowering women outside the household does not necessarily result in a similar shift in status within the household; and the extent to which men consider their traditional authority and position as household heads undermined by their perception of growing 'women's rights'. Women living within female-headed households also present a strong case for the increasing breakdown of the traditional nuclear household, through their representation of marriage and partnership with men as not only emotionally but also economically unstable. The destabilisation of marriage is generally regarded as more problematic by men, who experience a loss of power when these fail, than by women who reported a preference for female headship. Issues raised during the fieldwork illustrate the need for an exploration of the meaning of terms such as household, headship, decision-making and empowerment, particularly where these are used in models of the household

New Perspectives on the Falklands War

Marking the fortieth anniversary of the Falklands War, this special issue brings together new research, and opens avenues for further investigation, on the armed conflict between the United Kingdom and Argentina over sovereignty of the Falkland Islands that stretched between April and June 1982. Across four articles, it explores the broad themes of combatant experience, conflict memory, international relations and policy, from an interdisciplinary investigation of the conflict landscape to an examination of cinematic portrayals of Falklands veterans, and from the application of the lens of the global Cold War to an appraisal of the impact of the conflict on UK defence policy. The special issue also includes a previously unpublished naval memoir of the war, highlighting the continued emergence of new sources that makes the Falklands War a potentially highly productive area of study

Anthropogenic noise playback impairs embryonic development and increases mortality in a marine invertebrate

Human activities can create noise pollution and there is increasing international concern about how this may impact wildlife. There is evidence that anthropogenic noise may have detrimental effects on behaviour and physiology in many species but there are few examples of experiments showing how fitness may be directly affected. Here we use a split-brood, counterbalanced, field experiment to investigate the effect of repeated boat-noise playback during early life on the development and survival of a marine invertebrate, the sea hare Stylocheilus striatus at Moorea Island (French Polynesia). We found that exposure to boat-noise playback, compared to ambient-noise playback, reduced successful development of embryos by 21% and additionally increased mortality of recently hatched larvae by 22%. Our work, on an understudied but ecologically and socio-economically important taxon, demonstrates that anthropogenic noise can affect individual fitness. Fitness costs early in life have a fundamental influence on population dynamics and resilience, with potential implications for community structure and function