Components of cultural complexity relating to emotions: A conceptual framework

Many cultural variations in emotions have been documented in previous research, but a general theoretical framework involving cultural sources of these variations is still missing. The main goal of the present study was to determine what components of cultural complexity interact with the emotional experience and behavior of individuals. The proposed framework conceptually distinguishes five main components of cultural complexity relating to emotions: 1) emotion language, 2) conceptual knowledge about emotions, 3) emotion-related values, 4) feelings rules, i.e. norms for subjective experience, and 5) display rules, i.e. norms for emotional expression

A comparative study of secondary school social studies in Peru and Chile

Thesis (Ed.D.)--Boston University

Stress-Related Growth in Two Challenging Conditions

In the last few years, attention has been given not only to negative impacts of stressful conditions but also to possible positive outcomes. The present study was devoted to personal growth in two challenging conditions in two samples of participants coming from different nations and different cultural backgrounds. The study extends existing knowledge by more intimate insight into the different facets of social and cognitive/affective personal growth. The experience of personal growth was individualized as far as the number of changes, their intensity, and facets/items in which the changes occurred. Least affected was the spirituality area. The reason is probably that the conditions of our studies, no matter how stressful, were not strong enough to affect such a deeply intimate and strongly held individual process as is belief in God. The substantial point is that in both our studies the participants underwent no unexpected aversive event, but an undertaking of their own choosing

Long-term effects of intermittent IL-2 in HIV infection: extended follow-up of the INSIGHT STALWART Study

BACKGROUND The Study of Aldesleukin with and without Antiretroviral Therapy (STALWART) was designed to evaluate whether intermittent IL-2 alone or with peri-cycle ART increased CD4+ cell counts (and so delayed initiation of ART) in HIV infected individuals having ≥ 300 CD4+ cells/mm(3) compared to untreated controls. When the results of two large clinical trials, ESPRIT and SILCAAT, showed no clinical benefit from IL-2 therapy, IL-2 administration was halted in STALWART. Because IL-2 recipients in STALWART experienced a greater number of opportunistic disease (OD) or death and adverse events (AEs), participants were asked to consent to an extended follow-up phase in order to assess persistence of IL-2 effects. METHODOLOGY Participants in this study were followed for clinical events and AEs every 4 months for 24 months. Unadjusted Cox proportional hazards models were used to summarize death, death or first OD event, and first grade 3 or 4 AE. PRINCIPAL FINDINGS A total of 267 persons were enrolled in STALWART (176 randomized to the IL-2 arms and 91 to the no therapy arm); 142 individuals in the IL-2 group and 80 controls agreed to enter the extended follow-up study. Initiation of continuous ART was delayed in the IL-2 groups, but once started, resulted in similar CD4+ cell and viral load responses compared to controls. The hazard ratios (95% CI) for IL-2 versus control during the extension phase for death or OD, grade 3 or 4 AE, and grade 4 AE were 1.45 (0.38, 5.45), 0.43 (0.24, 1.63) and 0.20 (0.04, 1.03), respectively. The hazard ratios for the AE outcomes were significantly lower during the extension than during the main study. CONCLUSIONS Adverse events associated with IL-2 cycling did not persist upon discontinuation of IL-2. The use of IL-2 did not impact the subsequent response to initiation of cART

Strategie der Humanitären Aktion des IKRK gegenüber Konflikten des 21. Jahrhunderts

Das Internationale Komitee vom Roten Kreuz, das die Aufgabe hat, Leben und Würde der Opfer von Kriegen und innerstaatlicher Gewalt zu schützen und durch diese Situationen verursachte Leiden zu verhüten, geht auf eine Initiative von fünf Genfer Bürgern zurück. Die Gründung des IKRK in der Schweiz bildete den Anfang einer privilegierten Beziehung mit diesem Land – alle Mitglieder des Komitees sind Schweizer und werden im Kooptationsverfahren gewählt. Die Beziehung wird durch die Grosszügigkeit ..