Confirmatory factor analysis of the Valencia scale on attitudes and beliefs toward hypnosis, therapist version

Health professionals' beliefs and attitudes toward hypnosis may make them reluctant to use it or even to foster misapplications and iatrogenic uses of hypnosis. The Valencia Scale on Attitudes and Beliefs toward Hypnosis-Therapist version (VSABH-T) is a specific instrument to evaluate therapists' attitudes and beliefs. The aims of this study are to evaluate the 8-factor structure of the VSABH-T proposed from a confirmatory perspective. The sample comprised 1,661 licensed psychologists who are members of the Spanish Psychological Association for the initial test and 787 for the retest. Results confirmed the 8-factor structure obtained in a previous exploratory study, namely: Fear, Memory, Help, Control, Collaboration, Interest, Magic, and Marginal. The scale also showed adequate psychometric properties, including good internal consistency and test-retest reliability

Estimated Drug Overdose Deaths Averted by North America's First Medically-Supervised Safer Injection Facility

Illicit drug overdose remains a leading cause of premature mortality in urban settings worldwide. We sought to estimate the number of deaths potentially averted by the implementation of a medically supervised safer injection facility (SIF) in Vancouver, Canada.The number of potentially averted deaths was calculated using an estimate of the local ratio of non-fatal to fatal overdoses. Inputs were derived from counts of overdose deaths by the British Columbia Vital Statistics Agency and non-fatal overdose rates from published estimates. Potentially-fatal overdoses were defined as events within the SIF that required the provision of naloxone, a 911 call or an ambulance. Point estimates and 95% Confidence Intervals (95% CI) were calculated using a Monte Carlo simulation. Between March 1, 2004 and July 1, 2008 there were 1004 overdose events in the SIF of which 453 events matched our definition of potentially fatal. In 2004, 2005 and 2006 there were 32, 37 and 38 drug-induced deaths in the SIF's neighbourhood. Owing to the wide range of non-fatal overdose rates reported in the literature (between 5% and 30% per year) we performed sensitivity analyses using non-fatal overdose rates of 50, 200 and 300 per 1,000 person years. Using these model inputs, the number of averted deaths were, respectively: 50.9 (95% CI: 23.6–78.1); 12.6 (95% CI: 9.6–15.7); 8.4 (95% CI: 6.5–10.4) during the study period, equal to 1.9 to 11.7 averted deaths per annum.Based on a conservative estimate of the local ratio of non-fatal to fatal overdoses, the potentially fatal overdoses in the SIF during the study period could have resulted in between 8 and 51 deaths had they occurred outside the facility, or from 6% to 37% of the total overdose mortality burden in the neighborhood during the study period. These data should inform the ongoing debates over the future of the pilot project

The making of Shakespeare's genius

The Introduction stipulates my area of research, which was to explore how Shakespeare developed into such an outstanding and long-appreciated writer. The method adopted was to study the criteria essential to the making of genius which had been researched by psychologists and then use historical research to ascertain how many of these factors were present in his life.The documentation used and its sources are detailed here. Chapter 1 sets out the agreed findings of those psychologists who have made a special study of genius, followed by the factors over which they do not necessarily concur. Their insistence on the importance of the childhood and upbringing of the genius-to-be lead to Chapters 2-4. Chapter 2 investigates the situation pertaining to the town into which he was born and its history during Shakespeare's years of development. Chapter 3 considers the particular family to which he belonged and its history during his childhood and youth, while Chapter 4 attempts to ascertain what particular aspects of his life would have impinged upon him enough to effect a reaction and affect his development. Chapter 5 considers five of Shakespeare's earliest known plays, looking for instances of the effects that having been brought up in Stratford-upon-Avon may have had upon him in order to assess the importance of his early environment upon the development of his literary output. Chapter 6 looks briefly at how his work is linked with that of his predecessors and how he built upon existing dramatic traditions. It also considers how he used his source materials in his earliest writing and how we can begin to appreciate the skill he showed by the adaptations which he introduced. The Conclusion aims to bring together the information gathered under the separate headings and assess how far they show the psychologists's findings to have been accurate and how many of the criteria they stipulate appertain to Shakespeare's early life. It notes that the three aspects of study I chose to bring together, namely psychology, history and literature, can only illustrate certain areas of Shakespeare's accomplishment; a different combination would be required to demonstrate adequately the development of others, notably his poetic ability. The factors chosen, however, do enable us to ascertain some of Shakespeare's characteristics and also to scotch some of the erroneous myths which still surround and confuse knowledge of him. The findings of the psychologists are confirmed by his life and achievement