Avoiding ‘starburst’: The need to identify common metrics of evaluating strengths-based programmes in prison

The notions of strengths-based working in health and justice are not new and areas as diverse as positive psychology and criminology, mental health and addictions recovery, and therapeutic jurisprudence and restorative approaches in the justice field all share a common set of principles and values that may offer some insights into questions of evaluation, effectiveness and measurement. The first part of this paper will examine the shared foundations of strengths- based approaches and this will inform a second section examining common principles in these models. Part Three will then provide three illustrative examples of strengths-based programmes in prisons in the United Kingdom (UK), before the final section, Part Four, outlines a two-tier model of strengths-measurement that will help to avoid 'starburst', that is, where the benefit is so short-lived that it has no lasting impact on the wellbeing of the prison or its constituents

The bridge between social identity and community capital on the path to recovery and desistance

It has long been recognised that changes in social networks (and the underpinning changes in personal and social identity) are strong predictors of both desistance from crime and recovery from substance use. Building on existing work attempting to measure and shift social networks and transitions to prosocial groups, the current study provides pilot data from prisoners and family members about a visualisation technique widely used in specialist addiction treatment (node-link mapping) to map opportunities for linkage to prosocial groups and networks. The data presented in the paper are from a small-scale feasibility pilot. This suggests both bonding and bridging capital in prisoner populations due for release and the diversity of community capital opportunities that exists in this population. The implications of this work are significant for substance users and offenders pending return to the community, and has implications around resettlement and reintegration support for probation staff in prisons and in the community. The paper emphasises the importance of mapping connectedness as a key component of planning for reintegration back into the community for those working with offenders who are aspiring to achieve desistance and recovery

Targeting DNA Damage Response and Replication Stress in Pancreatic Cancer

Background and aims: Continuing recalcitrance to therapy cements pancreatic cancer (PC) as the most lethal malignancy, which is set to become the second leading cause of cancer death in our society. The study aim was to investigate the association between DNA damage response (DDR), replication stress and novel therapeutic response in PC to develop a biomarker driven therapeutic strategy targeting DDR and replication stress in PC. Methods: We interrogated the transcriptome, genome, proteome and functional characteristics of 61 novel PC patient-derived cell lines to define novel therapeutic strategies targeting DDR and replication stress. Validation was done in patient derived xenografts and human PC organoids. Results: Patient-derived cell lines faithfully recapitulate the epithelial component of pancreatic tumors including previously described molecular subtypes. Biomarkers of DDR deficiency, including a novel signature of homologous recombination deficiency, co-segregates with response to platinum (P < 0.001) and PARP inhibitor therapy (P < 0.001) in vitro and in vivo. We generated a novel signature of replication stress with which predicts response to ATR (P < 0.018) and WEE1 inhibitor (P < 0.029) treatment in both cell lines and human PC organoids. Replication stress was enriched in the squamous subtype of PC (P < 0.001) but not associated with DDR deficiency. Conclusions: Replication stress and DDR deficiency are independent of each other, creating opportunities for therapy in DDR proficient PC, and post-platinum therapy

Academic feedback and performance of students in institutions of higher education: Who is in control and how does our feedback impact students?

Attending higher education institutions and achieving academic success are associated with positive outcomes, valued at individual and societal levels, such as reducing unemployment and poverty and increasing civic participation. Thus, many studies have focused on enhancing learning by examining the factors that affect students' performance, including the teaching behaviour most strongly related to academic success. Within this research framework, in a population of social sciences students on different degree routes, the relationship between academic performance and different components of academic feedback is explored. The feedback students received in the dissertation module, which had two assessment points, was examined. The first assessment point feedback was statistically analysed to find changes in the grade point average of students between their first submission (T1) and the final dissertation (T2). Analysis to assess the impact of students' performance on the structure and content of feedback, as well as the extent to which the content of the feedback, can affect T2 grade increases

Responsive and Inclusive Health Governance through the Lens of Recovery Capital: A Case Study Based on Gambling Treatment

This collection has a distinctive focus on the relational complexity of restorative practices. How do they enable more responsive ways of grappling with complexity than hierarchical and prescriptive human services

Recovery and communities: The role of structure in stable addiction recovery and desistance

While identity is well established in both the recovery and the desistance literature as a critical component in reintegration and rehabilitation, there is an increasing focus on group membership and the underlying changes in norms, values and beliefs that stem from and help to structure positive social identities. This chapter links transitions in social identity to social capital based on the assumption that recovery and desistance require not only transitions in group memberships but also on moving from excluded groups to those who have access to community capital and community resources that can afford opportunities for reintegration. This chapter uses two examples, one prison based and one community based, to demonstrate how operationalising social capital, community engagement and social identity can lead to tangible benefits that not only reduce the likelihood of reoffending and/or substance abuse but also improve health, wellbeing and access to community assets. Connectedness to pro-social groups supports the development of social and community capital, which inspires hope in individuals that change is possible, provides role models to guide this process and facilitates a transformation towards a positive identity and reintegration

Historical and projected climate (1901–2050) and hydrologic response of karst aquifers, and species vulnerability in south-central Texas and western South Dakota

Two karst aquifers, the Edwards aquifer in the Balcones Escarpment region of south-central Texas and the Madison aquifer in the Black Hills of western South Dakota, were evaluated for hydrologic response to projected climate change through 2050. Edwards aquifer sites include Barton Springs, the Bexar County Index Well, and Comal Springs. Madison aquifer sites include Spearfish Creek and Rhoads Fork Spring. Climate projections at sites were based on output from the Community Climate System Model of global climate, linked to the Weather Research and Forecasting (WRF) model of regional climate. The WRF model output was bias adjusted to match means for 1981–2010 from records at weather stations near Madison and Edwards aquifer sites, including Boerne, Texas, and Custer and Lead, South Dakota. Hydrologic response at spring and well sites was based on the Rainfall-Response Aquifer and Watershed Flow (RRAWFLOW) model. The WRF model climate projections for 2011–50 indicate a significant upward trend in annual air temperature for all three weather stations and a significant downward trend in annual precipitation for the Boerne weather station. Annual springflow simulated by the RRAWFLOW model had a significant downward trend for Edwards aquifer sites and no trend for Madison aquifer sites. Flora and fauna that rely on springflow from Edwards and Madison aquifer sites were assessed for vulnerability to projected climate change on the basis of the Climate Change Vulnerability Index (CCVI). The CCVI is determined by the exposure of a species to climate, the sensitivity of the species, and the ability of the species to cope with climate change. Sixteen species associated with springs and groundwater were assessed in the Balcones Escarpment region. The Barton Springs salamander (Eurycea sosorum) was scored as highly vulnerable with moderate confidence. Nine species—three salamanders, a fountain darter (Etheostoma fonticola), three insects, and two amphipods—were scored as moderately vulnerable. The remaining six species—four

Historical and projected climate (1901–2050) and hydrologic response of karst aquifers, and species vulnerability in south-central Texas and western South Dakota

Two karst aquifers, the Edwards aquifer in the Balcones Escarpment region of south-central Texas and the Madison aquifer in the Black Hills of western South Dakota, were evaluated for hydrologic response to projected climate change through 2050. Edwards aquifer sites include Barton Springs, the Bexar County Index Well, and Comal Springs. Madison aquifer sites include Spearfish Creek and Rhoads Fork Spring. Climate projections at sites were based on output from the Community Climate System Model of global climate, linked to the Weather Research and Forecasting (WRF) model of regional climate. The WRF model output was bias adjusted to match means for 1981–2010 from records at weather stations near Madison and Edwards aquifer sites, including Boerne, Texas, and Custer and Lead, South Dakota. Hydrologic response at spring and well sites was based on the Rainfall-Response Aquifer and Watershed Flow (RRAWFLOW) model. The WRF model climate projections for 2011–50 indicate a significant upward trend in annual air temperature for all three weather stations and a significant downward trend in annual precipitation for the Boerne weather station. Annual springflow simulated by the RRAWFLOW model had a significant downward trend for Edwards aquifer sites and no trend for Madison aquifer sites. Flora and fauna that rely on springflow from Edwards and Madison aquifer sites were assessed for vulnerability to projected climate change on the basis of the Climate Change Vulnerability Index (CCVI). The CCVI is determined by the exposure of a species to climate, the sensitivity of the species, and the ability of the species to cope with climate change. Sixteen species associated with springs and groundwater were assessed in the Balcones Escarpment region. The Barton Springs salamander (Eurycea sosorum) was scored as highly vulnerable with moderate confidence. Nine species—three salamanders, a fountain darter (Etheostoma fonticola), three insects, and two amphipods—were scored as moderately vulnerable. The remaining six species—four