Evaluation of a Brief Marriage Intervention for Internal Behavioral Health Consultants in Military Primary Care

Military couples face significant challenges to their relationships including demanding schedules, multiple deployments, and frequent moves. Despite the high costs of chronic marital distress, very few military (or civilian) couples seek marriage therapy. The military services and the VA system have implemented collaborative care models in primary care where internal behavioral health consultants are integrated into primary care. Integrated primary care can reduce the stigma of behavioral health services and may increase the odds that couples would seek help earlier. There are no established couple interventions designed for use in primary care. The purpose of this presentation is to describe a program of research focused on adapting and validating The Marriage Checkup (MC) for use in an integrated primary care clinic.https://corescholar.libraries.wright.edu/urop_celebration/1019/thumbnail.jp

Termite sensitivity to temperature affects global wood decay rates.

Deadwood is a large global carbon store with its store size partially determined by biotic decay. Microbial wood decay rates are known to respond to changing temperature and precipitation. Termites are also important decomposers in the tropics but are less well studied. An understanding of their climate sensitivities is needed to estimate climate change effects on wood carbon pools. Using data from 133 sites spanning six continents, we found that termite wood discovery and consumption were highly sensitive to temperature (with decay increasing >6.8 times per 10°C increase in temperature)-even more so than microbes. Termite decay effects were greatest in tropical seasonal forests, tropical savannas, and subtropical deserts. With tropicalization (i.e., warming shifts to tropical climates), termite wood decay will likely increase as termites access more of Earth's surface

Proposal for an organizational design to optimize accounts receivable management in a customs company, Lima 2022.

La investigación tuvo como objetivo proponer un diseño organizacional para optimizar la gestión de cuentas por cobrar en una empresa de aduanas, Lima 2022. La metodología utilizada se enmarca en el enfoque mixto, de tipo proyectiva, con un diseño secuencial explicativo, a través de un sintagma holístico y la aplicación de los métodos analítico, deductivo e inductivo. Los informantes fueron 3 unidades, la técnica e instrumentos utilizados corresponden a las entrevistas y análisis documental sobre los estados financieros. De acuerdo a los resultados se evidencian que las propuestas como, diseñar políticas de cobranzas y crédito en el área contable utilizando la metodología de diseño organizacional permitirá un buen funcionamiento en las gestiones contables, Implementar estrategias para el control y seguimiento de las cuentas por cobrar permitirá evaluar la eficiencia mediante la metodología de diseño organizacional, Implementar filtros de control para evaluar la capacidad crediticia de los clientes utilizando la metodología de diseño organizacional. Se concluyó que, mediante la herramienta diseño organizacional se logrará obtener una adecuada planeación de actividades y funciones del personal para una adecuada gestión y control sobre las cuentas por cobrar

Evidence for Neuropsychological Health Disparities in Black Americans with HIV Disease

Objective: Black Americans are at high risk for HIV disease and associated morbidity. However, we know little about the neuropsychological impact and correlates of HIV disease among Black Americans. Methods: Participants included 40 Black persons with HIV (PWH), 83 White PWH, 28 Black HIV- and 64 White HIV- individuals. Neurocognition was measured with raw, sample-based z-scores from a clinical battery. Everyday functioning was assessed using self- and clinician-rated measures of cognitive symptoms and activities of daily living. HIV-associated neurocognitive disorders were classified using the Frascati criteria. Results: We observed a significant three-way interaction between HIV, race, and domain on neurocognitive z-scores. This omnibus effect was driven by large effect size decrements in semantic memory and processing speed in Black PWH compared to the other groups. Black PWH participants also demonstrated higher frequencies of HIV-associated neurocognitive disorders as compared to White PWH. Unexpectedly, global neurocognition was negatively related to everyday functioning for White PWH, but not for Black PWH. Conclusions: Systemic disadvantages for Black Americans may combine with HIV disease to compound some neurocognitive impairments in this vulnerable population. Prospective studies are needed to identify better ways to prevent and manage HIV-associated neurocognitive disorders among Black Americans

Historical Trends in Reporting Effect Sizes in Clinical Neuropsychology Journals: A Call to Venture Beyond the Results Section

Objective: For decades, quantitative psychologists have recommended that authors include effect sizes to convey the magnitude and potential clinical relevance of statistical associations. However, fewer than one-third of neuropsychology articles published in the early 2000s included effect sizes. This study re-examines the frequency and extent of effect size reporting in neuropsychology journal articles by manuscript section and over time. Methods: A sample of 326 empirical articles were drawn from 36 randomly selected issues of six neuropsychology journals at 5-year intervals between 1995 and 2020. Four raters used a novel, reliable coding system to quantify the extent to which effect sizes were included in the major sections of all 326 articles. Results: Findings showed medium-to-large increases in effect size reporting in the Methods and Results sections of neuropsychology journal articles that plateaued in recent years; however, there were only very small and non-significant changes in effect size reporting in the Abstract, Introduction, and Discussion sections. Conclusions: Authors in neuropsychology journals have markedly improved their effect size reporting in the core Methods and Results sections, but are still unlikely to consider these valuable metrics when motivating their study hypotheses and interpreting the conceptual and clinical implications of their findings. Recommendations are provided to encourage more wide-spread integration of effect sizes in neuropsychological research

Neurocognitive Performance Differences Between Black and White Individuals with HIV Disease are Mediated by Health Literacy

Objective: Brain health disparities have been reported for Black Americans with HIV disease, who are disproportionally affected by the epidemic in the United States. The current study investigated whether the neurocognitive disparities experienced by Black Americans with HIV disease may be at least partly attributable to health literacy. Method: Participants were 61 White and 25 Black participants (ages 27-70) with HIV disease enrolled in studies at an urban academic center in Southern California. Neurocognitive function was assessed by an age-adjusted global score from the Cogstate battery. Health literacy was measured by a composite score derived from the Rapid Estimate of Adult Literacy in Medicine, Newest Vital Sign, and 3-Brief. Results: Bootstrap confidence interval mediation analyses showed that health literacy was a significant mediator of the hypothesized relationship between race and neurocognition; that is, there were no direct ethnoracial differences in neurocognition after accounting for health literacy. A follow-up inverted model to confirm the directionality of this association demonstrated that neurocognition was not a significant mediator of the relationship between race and health literacy. Conclusions: Low health literacy may help explain the observed neurocognitive health disparities for Black Americans with HIV disease. Future studies might examine the possible mechanism of this mediating relationship (e.g., access to health information, health behaviors, socioeconomics) and determine whether culturally tailored interventions that improve health literacy also confer brain health benefits for Black Americans with HIV disease

Health literacy mediates the association between cognition and healthcare provider interactions among gay and bisexual men with HIV disease

Introduction: Gay and bisexual men (GBM) account for the highest rates of incident infection with HIV in the U.S., and experience social, systemic barriers to accessing and engaging in healthcare services. Interacting with healthcare providers can be a complex process for some GBM with HIV disease. The current study examined the contributions of cognition and health literacy to perceived interactions with healthcare providers among GBM with HIV disease. Methods: The sample included 100 adults with HIV disease (ages 24–75) who identified as GBM. All participants completed the Dealing with Health Professionals subscale of the Beliefs Related to Medication Adherence survey, as well as the Cogstate neuropsychological battery, self-report measures of cognitive symptoms, and well-validated measures of health literacy. Results: Worse performance-based cognition and subjective cognitive symptoms were both associated with perceived difficulties dealing with healthcare providers, but these associations were fully mediated by lower health literacy. Conclusion: Health literacy may play a role in the association between poorer cognitive functioning and difficulties navigating healthcare interactions among GBM with HIV disease. Further studies are needed to determine whether cognitive approaches to enhancing the access, understanding, and use of health information in GBM with HIV disease improves healthcare interactions and outcomes.</p

Latent Structure of a Brief Clinical Battery of Neuropsychological Tests Administered In-Home Via Telephone

Objective: To examine the factor structure and sociodemographic correlates of a battery of clinical neuropsychological tests administered in-home and via telephone. Method: Participants included 280 healthy adults who completed a 35-40 min battery consisting of seven auditory-verbal neuropsychological tests (i.e., 10 variables) that included digit span, list learning and memory, prospective memory, verbal fluency, and oral trail making. Results: After removing oral trail making part A, a three-factor model comprised of executive functions, memory and attention demonstrated the best fit to the data. Nevertheless, the shared variance between the nine remaining neuropsychological variables was also adequately explained by a single-factor model and a two-factor model comprised of executive functions and memory. Factor scores were variably associated with education, race/ethnicity, and IQ, but not with sex or age. Conclusions: Findings provide preliminary support for the feasibility and factor structure and sociodemographic correlates of a brief telephone-based screening neuropsychological battery comprised mostly of commonly administered clinical measures. Future studies are needed to determine the reliability, sensitivity, and ecological relevance of this battery, as well as equivalency to in-person assessment