Research design of job satisfaction in an East African medical research center

For years, I-O research has used surveys and scales to measure job satisfaction; however, a traditional survey may not always be the best option. Therefore, our research team utilized interviews as well as surveys to understand job satisfaction at the National Institute of Medical Research, Amani Centre (NIMR-AC). The Centre is in Muheza, Tanzania, a rural town one hour from the East African coast. We used a mixed methods approach with an aim to distinguish the key characteristics and variations of job satisfaction among the employees of NIMR-AC. The nature of the surveys, one-on-one interviews, and a focus group discussion were inductive. Due to the cultural context and the limited amount of I-O related research done in the region, we wanted to take a holistic approach in the search for significant themes. The current project discusses the influence that language and culture had on our research design. The end goal of the instrumentation design was for it to be culturally literate for the participants. We started the design process with a literature review of both job satisfaction and the few papers similar to the I-O psychology field that were in the East African context. This enabled us to better understand job satisfaction and how we could best investigate it for this site. Then, we gathered information regarding the interpersonal dynamics of the employees at NIMR-AC and the culture of the region’s workplaces to further direct our research. This gave us a better idea of what words and phrases would be best to use when translating to Swahili. Since we conducted the interviews and administered the surveys in Swahili, we had to pay careful attention to the translation of all the instrumentation. Lastly, and repeatedly throughout the design process, we sought the advice from experts in seemingly unrelated fields. The data will be analyzed using MAXQDA and SPSS in order to find themes. Analyses will provide the lab with real data pinpointing problems with job satisfaction and illuminating solutions. The current study aims to distinguish some of the differences of the design process when researching in a foreign context with the ultimate goal of encouraging other I-O researchers to investigate the workplace outside the Western world

Communicating Care in Coastal Fisheries: Restoration, Adaptation, and Collaborative Policy Change

The soft-shell clam fishery in Maine and Wabanaki homelands is in a state of crisis, or so say most news reports about this fishery. While there is ample evidence that small-scale fisheries and the communities these fisheries support are rapidly changing, the crisis narrative conceals more than it reveals about how communities are actively responding and the longer-term histories to which these changes are connected. In this paper, we describe the dominance of the crisis narrative in news reports about clamming and we connect with critiques in Native American and Indigenous Studies and environmental communication that describe some of the problems with this narrative. These critiques also point to a need to shift from crisis to more relational forms of care. When we make this shift, different stories of conservation and intertidal restoration, the emergence of partnership networks, and the formation of collaborative policy solutions come into view. We listen to and share these stories and we conclude by asking how listening, as a call to action, can shape broader, crisis-focused efforts and encourage practices of care within climate adaptation planning across contexts

Deletion of Trim28 in committed adipocytes promotes obesity but preserves glucose tolerance.

The effective storage of lipids in white adipose tissue (WAT) critically impacts whole body energy homeostasis. Many genes have been implicated in WAT lipid metabolism, including tripartite motif containing 28 (Trim28), a gene proposed to primarily influence adiposity via epigenetic mechanisms in embryonic development. However, in the current study we demonstrate that mice with deletion of Trim28 specifically in committed adipocytes, also develop obesity similar to global Trim28 deletion models, highlighting a post-developmental role for Trim28. These effects were exacerbated in female mice, contributing to the growing notion that Trim28 is a sex-specific regulator of obesity. Mechanistically, this phenotype involves alterations in lipolysis and triglyceride metabolism, explained in part by loss of Klf14 expression, a gene previously demonstrated to modulate adipocyte size and body composition in a sex-specific manner. Thus, these findings provide evidence that Trim28 is a bona fide, sex specific regulator of post-developmental adiposity and WAT function

Prevalence of plasmodium falciparum in active conflict areas of eastern Burma: a summary of cross-sectional data

BACKGROUND: Burma records the highest number of malaria deaths in southeast Asia and may represent a reservoir of infection for its neighbors, but the burden of disease and magnitude of transmission among border populations of Burma remains unknown. METHODS: Plasmodium falciparum (Pf) parasitemia was detected using a HRP-II antigen based rapid test (Paracheck-Pf(R)). Pf prevalence was estimated from screenings conducted in 49 villages participating in a malaria control program, and four retrospective mortality cluster surveys encompassing a sampling frame of more than 220,000. Crude odds ratios were calculated to evaluate Pf prevalence by age, sex, and dry vs. rainy season. RESULTS: 9,796 rapid tests were performed among 28,410 villagers in malaria program areas through four years (2003: 8.4%, 95% CI: 8.3 - 8.6; 2004: 7.1%, 95% CI: 6.9 - 7.3; 2005:10.5%, 95% CI: 9.3 - 11.8 and 2006: 9.3%, 95% CI: 8.2 - 10.6). Children under 5 (OR = 1.99; 95% CI: 1.93 - 2.06) and those 5 to 14 years (OR = 2.24, 95% CI: 2.18 - 2.29) were more likely to be positive than adults. Prevalence was slightly higher among females (OR = 1.04, 95% CI: 1.02 - 1.06) and in the rainy season (OR = 1.48, 95% CI: 1.16 - 1.88). Among 5,538 rapid tests conducted in four cluster surveys, 10.2% were positive (range 6.3%, 95% CI: 3.9 - 8.8; to 12.4%, 95% CI: 9.4 - 15.4). CONCLUSION: Prevalence of plasmodium falciparum in conflict areas of eastern Burma is higher than rates reported among populations in neighboring Thailand, particularly among children. This population serves as a large reservoir of infection that contributes to a high disease burden within Burma and likely constitutes a source of infection for neighboring regions

Mortality Among Adults With Cancer Undergoing Chemotherapy or Immunotherapy and Infected With COVID-19

Importance: Large cohorts of patients with active cancers and COVID-19 infection are needed to provide evidence of the association of recent cancer treatment and cancer type with COVID-19 mortality. // Objective: To evaluate whether systemic anticancer treatments (SACTs), tumor subtypes, patient demographic characteristics (age and sex), and comorbidities are associated with COVID-19 mortality. // Design, Setting, and Participants: The UK Coronavirus Cancer Monitoring Project (UKCCMP) is a prospective cohort study conducted at 69 UK cancer hospitals among adult patients (≥18 years) with an active cancer and a clinical diagnosis of COVID-19. Patients registered from March 18 to August 1, 2020, were included in this analysis. // Exposures: SACT, tumor subtype, patient demographic characteristics (eg, age, sex, body mass index, race and ethnicity, smoking history), and comorbidities were investigated. // Main Outcomes and Measures: The primary end point was all-cause mortality within the primary hospitalization. // Results: Overall, 2515 of 2786 patients registered during the study period were included; 1464 (58%) were men; and the median (IQR) age was 72 (62-80) years. The mortality rate was 38% (966 patients). The data suggest an association between higher mortality in patients with hematological malignant neoplasms irrespective of recent SACT, particularly in those with acute leukemias or myelodysplastic syndrome (OR, 2.16; 95% CI, 1.30-3.60) and myeloma or plasmacytoma (OR, 1.53; 95% CI, 1.04-2.26). Lung cancer was also significantly associated with higher COVID-19–related mortality (OR, 1.58; 95% CI, 1.11-2.25). No association between higher mortality and receiving chemotherapy in the 4 weeks before COVID-19 diagnosis was observed after correcting for the crucial confounders of age, sex, and comorbidities. An association between lower mortality and receiving immunotherapy in the 4 weeks before COVID-19 diagnosis was observed (immunotherapy vs no cancer therapy: OR, 0.52; 95% CI, 0.31-0.86). // Conclusions and Relevance: The findings of this study of patients with active cancer suggest that recent SACT is not associated with inferior outcomes from COVID-19 infection. This has relevance for the care of patients with cancer requiring treatment, particularly in countries experiencing an increase in COVID-19 case numbers. Important differences in outcomes among patients with hematological and lung cancers were observed

Correction to: Cluster identification, selection, and description in Cluster randomized crossover trials: the PREP-IT trials

An amendment to this paper has been published and can be accessed via the original article

Our Choice\u3cem\u3e/Nuestra Opción:\u3c/em\u3e The Imperial County, California, Childhood Obesity Research Demonstration Study

Background: Despite recent declines among young children, obesity remains a public health burden in the United States, including among Latino/Hispanic children. The determining factors are many and are too complex to fully address with interventions that focus on single factors, such as parenting behaviors or school policies. In this article, we describe a multisector, multilevel intervention to prevent and control childhood obesity in predominantly Mexican-origin communities in Southern California, one of three sites of the CDC-funded Childhood Obesity Research Demonstration (CA-CORD) study. Methods: CA-CORD is a partnership between a university-affiliated research institute, a federally qualified health center, and a county public health department. We used formative research, advisory committee members\u27 recommendations, and previous research to inform the development of the CA-CORD project. Our theory-informed multisector, multilevel intervention targets improvements in four health behaviors: fruit, vegetable, and water consumption; physical activity; and quality sleep. Intervention partners include 1200 families, a federally qualified health center (including three clinics), 26 early care and education centers, two elementary school districts (and 20 elementary schools), three community recreation centers, and three restaurants. Intervention components in these sectors target changes in behaviors, policies, systems, and the social and physical environment. Evaluation activities include assessment of the primary outcome, BMI z-score, at baseline, 12-, and 18-months post-baseline, and sector evaluations at baseline, 12, and 24 months. Conclusions: Identifying feasible and effective strategies to prevent and control childhood obesity has the potential to effect real changes in children\u27s current and future health status

The network architecture of human capital : a relational identity perspective

Managing constellations of employee relationships is a core competency in knowledge-based organizations. It is timely, then, that human resource management (HRM) scholars and practitioners are adopting an increasingly relational view of HR. Whereas this burgeoning stream of research predominantly positions relationships as pathways for the transmission of resources, we shift attention by spotlighting that the interplay between HR practices and informal relationships perforate deeper than resource flows; they also influence how individuals view and define themselves in the context of their dyadic and collective relationships. Moreover, because HR practices routinely involve human capital movement into, within, and out of the organization, these practices have implications for the network architecture of organizations. We integrate the social network perspective (Borgatti & Halgin, 2011) with the theory of relational identity (Sluss & Ashforth, 2007) to present a relational theory of HRM that informs how modifications to internal social structures stimulated by HR practices can influence individual outcomes by transforming individuals’ self-concepts as relationships are gained, altered, and lost