Engagement in web-based interventions for individuals who sexually abused children

Although treatment for individuals who committed sexual offenses against children (ICSOC) can reduce their likelihood of reoffending, many individuals remain without treatment due to a lack of its availability. One way to increase the number of treatments on offer may be through web-based interventions (WBIs). Manuscript I of this dissertation is a viewpoint paper that includes a comprehensive literature review of existing WBIs for ICSOC and individuals who have an increased risk of committing sexual offenses against children as well as a summary of the criteria that can be derived from previous research for the successful development, evaluation, and implementation hereof. For WBIs to be effective, engagement of the users with the WBI is an important prerequisite. However, findings from research on face-to-face treatment for ICSOC and on WBIs for health and mental health problems show that treatment engagement is often low. Investigating engagement and factors influencing it can help to find ways for the optimization thereof. To that end, manuscript II and III of this dissertation focus on the acceptance of and the engagement with a WBI, respectively. It is assumed that acceptance follows the same mechanisms as for individuals who use WBIs for health and mental health problems. Further, it is assumed that engagement follows the same mechanisms as for individuals who use WBIs for health and mental health problems and engagement in face-to-face treatment for ICSOC. The predictive power of variables derived from the Unified Theory of Acceptance and Use of Technology model, the risk–need–responsivity model, the Multifactor Offender Readiness Model, and variables from previous research in the respective research fields were thus investigated using regression models. Data from 113 participants of the intermediate analysis of the @myTabu randomized placebo-controlled clinical trial were analyzed. @myTabu is a WBI designed for individuals who are convicted for sexual abuse of children or child sexual exploitation material use and are therefore under community supervision in Germany. The results show that acceptance of WBIs was high for 61% of the participants. Further, higher scores of attitudes toward WBIs and higher scores of social influence, especially the perceived opinion of people close to the participant was predictive of higher scores of acceptance. During the first 8 weeks after the login credentials were sent to the community supervisor, 81% of the participants logged into the WBI at least once. In the first 5 weeks after logging in for the first time, the participants had a median number of six logins on 5 days and a median of two completed sessions out of five sessions which they were asked to complete in that time. There was a trend that individuals who logged into the WBI within the first 8 weeks had higher scores of treatment readiness, higher scores of belief in their own technical preconditions, and higher scores of belief that people close to the participant would recommend participation. Higher scores of treatment readiness were a predictor for a higher number of login days and a higher number of completed sessions. The results can help to better understand engagement of ICSOC with WBIs and can be used to develop targeted interventions to increase acceptance and engagement. The limitations of these analyses are related to the fact that data from an intermediate analysis were used, questionnaires were altered to fit the context of the clinical trial, the results are based on a selected group of individuals who decided to take part in the clinical trial to evaluate @myTabu, and there is the potential of confounding variables. Further research should focus on the intention–behavior gap found in this dissertation by investigating further predictors of engagement and should take a closer look at different types of engagement by including affective and cognitive aspects of it.2024-05-2

Phase-dependent light propagation in atomic vapors

Light propagation in an atomic medium whose coupled electronic levels form a diamond-configuration exhibits a critical dependence on the input conditions. In particular, the relative phase of the input fields gives rise to interference phenomena in the electronic excitation whose interplay with relaxation processes determines the stationary state. We integrate numerically the Maxwell-Bloch equations and observe two metastable behaviors for the relative phase of the propagating fields corresponding to two possible interference phenomena. These phenomena are associated to separate types of response along propagation, minimize dissipation, and are due to atomic coherence. These behaviors could be studied in gases of isotopes of alkali-earth atoms with zero nuclear spin, and offer new perspectives in control techniques in quantum electronics.Comment: 16 pages, 11 figures, v2: typos corrected, v3: final version, to appear in Phys. Rev.

Einfluss der Hypothermie und der ischämischen Remote-Präkonditionierung auf neurokognitive Funktionen in der frühen und späten postoperativen Phase bei herzchirurgischen Patienten: Eine prospektiv randomisierte kontrollierte Studie

Einfluss der Temperatur der Hypothermie auf das Auftreten einer postoperativen kognitiven Dysfunktion sowie Einfluss der ischämischen Fern-Präkonditionierung bei milder Hypothermie im Vergleich zur tiefen Hypothermi

Gammaretrovirus-mediated correction of SCID-X1 is associated with skewed vector integration site distribution in vivo

We treated 10 children with X-linked SCID (SCID-X1) using gammaretrovirus-mediated gene transfer. Those with sufficient follow-up were found to have recovered substantial immunity in the absence of any serious adverse events up to 5 years after treatment. To determine the influence of vector integration on lymphoid reconstitution, we compared retroviral integration sites (RISs) from peripheral blood CD3(+) T lymphocytes of 5 patients taken between 9 and 30 months after transplantation with transduced CD34(+) progenitor cells derived from 1 further patient and I healthy donor. Integration occurred preferentially in gene regions on either side of transcription start sites, was clustered, and correlated with the expression level in CD34(+) progenitors during transduction. In contrast to those in CD34(+) cells, RISs recovered from engrafted CD3(+)T cells were significantly overrepresented within or near genes encoding proteins with kinase or transferase activity or involved in phosphorus metabolism. Although gross patterns of gene expression were unchanged in transduced cells, the divergence of RIS target frequency between transduced progenitor cells and post-thymic T lymphocytes indicates that vector integration influences cell survival, engraftment, or proliferation

Bildung in politischen Programmen: Eine pädagogische Revision der KMK-Strategie zur Bildung in der digitalen Welt

Der vorliegende Artikel setzt sich aus aktueller bildungstheoretischer Perspektive kritisch mit der KMK-Strategie zur Bildung in der digitalen Welt auseinander

Оценка и анализ организационной культуры фирмы ПАО АКБ «Связь-Банк»

Выпускная квалификационная работа: страниц – 95, таблиц - 5, рисунки – 12, источники – 54. Ключевые слова: организационная культура, мотивация, коллектив, корпоративная культура, стратегия. Объектом исследования является организационная культура компании. Цель исследования дипломной работы – проанализировать действующую организационную культуру банка и выявить отрицательные стороны в механизме ее функционирования, а также предложить внести изменения, для более эффективной работы персонала и банка в целом. Степень внедрения - результаты работы предлагается использовать при разработке и совершенствовании организационной культуры компании ТФ ПАО АКБ «Связь-Банк» Область применения - основные положения и выводы, содержащиеся в дипломной работе, могут быть использованы при разработке системы оFinal qualifying work: pages - 95 tables - 5, figures - 12 sources - 54. Keywords: organizational culture, motivation, team, corporate culture, strategy. The object of research is the organizational culture of the company. The purpose of the research thesis - analyze the current organizational culture of the bank and to identify the negative aspects in the mechanism of its functioning, and suggest modifications for more efficient work of the personnel of the bank as a whole. The degree of implementation - the results of the proposed use at the company developing and improving organizational culture TP PJSC JSCB "Svyaz-Bank" Scope - the main provisions and conclusions contained in the research paper can be used in the development of organizational culture of the system in any company focu

Sustainability of the Built Environment [Written Evidence - SBE0060]

The following evidence gathered is of particular relevance to strategic pathway planning towards a decarbonised society where focus is placed on the design of environments rather than the design of buildings only. Building buildings is only one tool within a toolkit capable of improving and enhancing environments. The call for evidence suggests a narrow focus driven by potentially one-dimensional sustainable outcomes such as need for adaptation measures to building with little or no consideration for alternatives to building. Greater focus is needed on evidence that supports alternatives to building; new methods and new measures that account for social and cultural dimensions in evaluating sustainability in the built environment, and the embracing of multiplicity and diversity that allows for reskilling and knowledge-sharing in a meaningful way

Altered sensorimotor processing in irritable bowel syndrome: Evidence for a transdiagnostic pathomechanism in functional somatic disorders

OBJECTIVE A recent hypothesis suggests that functional somatic symptoms are due to altered information processing in the brain, with rigid expectations biasing sensorimotor signal processing. First experimental results confirmed such altered processing within the affected symptom modality, e.g., deficient eye-head coordination in patients with functional dizziness. Studies in patients with functional somatic symptoms looking at general, trans-symptomatic processing deficits are sparse. Here, we investigate sensorimotor processing during eye-head gaze shifts in irritable bowel syndrome (IBS) to test whether processing deficits exist across symptom modalities. METHODS Study participants were seven patients suffering from IBS and seven age- and gender-matched healthy controls who performed large gaze shifts toward visual targets. Participants performed combined eye-head gaze shifts in the natural condition and with experimentally increased head moment of inertia. Head oscillations as a marker for sensorimotor processing deficits were assessed. Bayes statistics was used to assess evidence for the presence or absence of processing differences between IBS patients and healthy controls. RESULTS With the head moment of inertia increased, IBS patients displayed more pronounced head oscillations than healthy controls (Bayes Factor $_{10}$ = 56.4, corresponding to strong evidence). CONCLUSION Patients with IBS show sensorimotor processing deficits, reflected by increased head oscillations during large gaze shifts to visual targets. In particular, patients with IBS have difficulties to adapt to the context of altered head moment of inertia. Our results suggest general transdiagnostic processing deficits in functional somatic disorders

Experimental and numerical investigations of the development of residual stresses in thermo-mechanically processed Cr-alloyed steel 1.3505

Residual stresses in components are a central issue in almost every manufacturing process, as they influence the performance of the final part. Regarding hot forming processes, there is a great potential for defining a targeted residual stress state, as many adjustment parameters, such as deformation state or temperature profile, are available that influence residual stresses. To ensure appropriate numerical modeling of residual stresses in hot forming processes, comprehensive material characterization and suitable multiscale Finite Element (FE) simulations are required. In this paper, experimental and numerical investigations of thermo-mechanically processed steel alloy 1.3505 (DIN 100Cr6) are presented that serve as a basis for further optimization of numerically modeled residual stresses. For this purpose, cylindrical upsetting tests at high temperature with subsequently cooling of the parts in the media air or water are carried out. Additionally, the process is simulated on the macroscale and compared to the results based on the experimental investigations. Therefore, the experimentally processed specimens are examined regarding the resulting microstructure, distortions, and residual stresses. For the investigation on a smaller scale, a numerical model is set up based on the state-data of the macroscopic simulation and experiments, simulating the transformation of the microstructure using phase-field theory and FE analysis on micro- and meso-scopic level