The influence of a virtual companion on amusement when watching funny films

We investigated the role of a virtual companion and trait cheerfulness on the elicitation of amusement. Ninety participants watched funny films in four conditions: either alone, with a virtual companion laughing or verbally expressing amusement at fixed time points (pre-scripted), or additionally joining the participant’s laughter (responsive companion). Amusement was assessed facially and vocally by coding Duchenne Displays and laughter vocalizations. Participants’ cheerful mood pre and post the film watching and positive experience were assessed. Results showed that high trait cheerful individuals generally experienced and expressed more amusement than low trait cheerful individuals. The presence of a virtual companion (compared to being alone) led to more laughter for individuals low in trait cheerfulness. Unexpectedly, the responsive companion did not elicit more amusement than the pre-scripted companion. The general disliking of virtual companions and gelotophobia related negatively to amusement. Amusement expressing virtual companions may be used in interventions aiming at eliciting positive responses, especially for individuals with higher thresholds for amusement.European Union Seventh Framework Programme (FP7/2007-2013) under Grant Agreement No. 27078

‘Stumbling through’? Relationship-based social work practice in austere times

In recent times relationship-based practice has become a familiar term in social work practice and education. Despite its widespread adoption, how relationship-based practice is understood varies widely. Drawing on contemporary conceptualisations of the child and family and individuals as psychosocial subjects experiencing social suffering, this paper explores how current social work practice can be understood in the context of neoliberalism and austerity. Setting these ideas in an historical context helps to inform our understanding as to why social work seems to be the focus of sustained political discontent and scrutiny, making it difficult to retain a balanced relationship-based professional stance. Contemporary responses to the current challenges of everyday practice are outlined and the contribution of psychodynamic and systemic ideas to promoting relationship-based practice is explored. The paper concludes by considering how the concept of social systems as defences against anxiety can inform our understanding of the resistance amongst practitioners to relationship-based practice and emphasises the importance of reflective spaces and places for developing and maintaining integrated, mature relational approaches to practice which impact on practice at both the individual casework and social structural level

Study of molecular spin-crossover complex Fe(phen)2(NCS)2 thin films

We report on the growth by evaporation under high vacuum of high-quality thin films of Fe(phen)2(NCS)2 (phen=1,10-phenanthroline) that maintain the expected electronic structure down to a thickness of 10 nm and that exhibit a temperature-driven spin transition. We have investigated the current-voltage characteristics of a device based on such films. From the space charge-limited current regime, we deduce a mobility of 6.5x10-6 cm2/V?s that is similar to the low-range mobility measured on the widely studied tris(8-hydroxyquinoline)aluminium organic semiconductor. This work paves the way for multifunctional molecular devices based on spin-crossover complexes

Containment - exploring the concept of agency in children’s statutory encounters with social workers

This article examines children’s agency in their interactions with social workers during statutory encounters in a child protection context. It draws from a UK wide ethnographic study. It finds that much of social workers’ responses to children’s agency in this context are best understood as a form of ‘containment’. In doing so, it offers an original and significant contribution to the theoretical understanding of children’s agency, as well as its application in social work practice

An Overview of Measured Energy Retrofit Savings Methodologies Developed in the Texas LoanSTAR Program

The objective of this report is to present the various analysis techniques in a logical fashion, briefly discussing and illustrating the strengths and weaknesses of each technique with monitored data from several of the LoanSTAR buildings, and providing the reader with complete references of work previously published. As of December 1993, we are reporting retrofit savings on a monthly basis in 34 sites consisting of 50 buildings. Some of the issues addressed relate to determining conditions when statistical regression techniques are preferable to engineering models, to the different forms of single variable and multiple variable regression models and their advantages or disadvantages, to when a specific regression model is to be used and to why inspection of model residuals is important. Other issues such as the uncertainty associated with the savings estimates and the effect of building operating schedules have also been addressed in this report. The framework laid out in this report should be useful for both the practicing professional and the researcher involved or interested in energy conservation as a whole.Development of methodologies to determine energy retrofit savings in commercial buildings (institutional buildings, schools, hospitals, offices, county and state buildings,...) has been the object of active research during the last 5 years in the framework of the Texas LoanSTAR program. We have been able to formulate a global perspective to this problem and identify/develop analysis techniques specific to different sets of conditions. These conditions involve different combinations of: (a) level of monitoring data available (utility bill, whole-building hourly, disaggregated hourly,...); (b) type of energy use (weather or schedule dependent or independent); and (c) amount of data available (length of preand post-retrofit periods)

The nature and culture of social work with children and families in long-term casework:Findings from a qualitative longitudinal study

Social work in the United Kingdom is preoccupied with what social workers cannot do due to having limited time to spend with service users. Yet remarkably little research has examined what social workers actually do, especially in long-term relationships. This paper draws from an ethnographic study of two social work departments in England that spent 15 months observing practice and organizational life. Our findings show that social work some of the time has a significant amount of involvement with some service users and the dominant view that relationship-based practice is rarely achieved is in need of some revision. However, families at one research site received a much more substantial, reliable overall service due to the additional input of family support workers and having a stable workforce who had their own desks and were co-located with managers in small team offices. This generated a much more supportive, reflective culture for social workers and service users than at the second site, a large open plan "hot-desking" office. Drawing on relational, systemic, and complexity theories, the paper shows how the nature of what social workers do and culture of practice are shaped by the interaction between available services, office designs, and practitioners', managers', and service users' experiences of relating together