Connectedness and Wellbeing: Investigating Community and Nature-Based Connection in the Context of Utah\u27s Rapid Growth

Research suggests that feeling connected to the natural world and feeling socially connected to your community positively influence wellbeing. However, significant demographic shifts within communities may reduce the amount of social and nature-based connectedness enjoyed by residents. As one of the fastest growing states, data from within Utah likely provides important insights related to how population growth impacts connectedness and wellbeing. Considering this, the present research investigated the relationships between personal wellbeing, community connection, and connection with nature in the context of Utah\u27s rapid population growth by utilizing quantitative survey data from the Utah Wellbeing Project and demographic information from the American Community Survey (ACS). As a secondary goal, this research also investigated how participation in certain nature-based activities was related to community connection and if these relationships varied depending on the level of population growth. Results indicate there was a positive association between community connection and connection with nature, and between both forms of connectedness and personal wellbeing. However, population growth only negligibly impacted community connection, connection with nature, and their respective relationships with personal wellbeing. Instead, certain demographic variables were most influential. Older respondents and those who identify as a member of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints rated their community connection higher than other groups, while older respondents and those with household incomes of $150,000 or above rated their connection with nature and personal wellbeing higher than other groups. Religious preference was also associated with personal wellbeing, but considerably less explanatory when considering community connections\u27 contribution to wellbeing; indicating that the wellbeing of members of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints was more comparable to other groups in the study when controlling for community-based social connections. Additionally, those who participated in certain nature-based activities were more likely to rate their community connection high than those who did not, but these differences were most pronounced in communities experiencing more growth. Local leaders and community planners could likely improve resident wellbeing by stimulating opportunities to connect with other people and the natural environment, and by considering demographic differences and inequities

Playing with others: The community, motivations, and social structures of the Harrisonburg-Rockingham concert band

The purpose of this phenomenological study was to explore motivations for participation, how social structures influence the adult non-professional members of the Harrisonburg-Rockingham Concert Band (HRCB), and identify the characteristics of community present in the band. The following questions framed the investigation within an interpretative phenomenological approach: What motivates the band members to participate in the HRCB? How do the institutional social structures influence the sense of belonging, development of social capital, and socialization of band members? What characteristics of community are present within the HRCB? Data was collected from long-term researcher observation and one-on-one semi-structured interviews with each participant. Results indicate that the participants are motivated by personal and musical motivations, and the HRCB exists with institutional social structures that influence social capital, social belonging, and socialization. Each of these themes form a unique sense of community within the HRCB. Research into this topic is significant as we learn how music-making can span throughout the life and contribute to individuals, society, and music education

A pharmacological cocktail for arresting actin dynamics in living cells.

The actin cytoskeleton is regulated by factors that influence polymer assembly, disassembly, and network rearrangement. Drugs that inhibit these events have been used to test the role of actin dynamics in a wide range of cellular processes. Previous methods of arresting actin rearrangements take minutes to act and work well in some contexts, but can lead to significant actin reorganization in cells with rapid actin dynamics, such as neutrophils. In this paper, we report a pharmacological cocktail that not only arrests actin dynamics but also preserves the structure of the existing actin network in neutrophil-like HL-60 cells, human fibrosarcoma HT1080 cells, and mouse NIH 3T3 fibroblast cells. Our cocktail induces an arrest of actin dynamics that initiates within seconds and persists for longer than 10 min, during which time cells maintain their responsivity to external stimuli. With this cocktail, we demonstrate that actin dynamics, and not simply morphological polarity or actin accumulation at the leading edge, are required for the spatial persistence of Rac activation in HL-60 cells. Our drug combination preserves the structure of the existing cytoskeleton while blocking actin assembly, disassembly, and rearrangement, and should prove useful for investigating the role of actin dynamics in a wide range of cellular signaling contexts

Pharmacy Student's perceptions of Natural Science and Mathematics Subjects

Objective. To determine the level of importance pharmacy students placed on science and mathematics subjects for pursuing a career in pharmacy. Method. Two hundred fifty-four students completed a survey instrument developed to investigate students’ perceptions of the relevance of science and mathematics subjects to a career in pharmacy. Pharmacy students in all 4 years of a master of pharmacy (MPharm) degree program were invited to complete the survey instrument. Results. Students viewed chemistry-based and biology-based subjects as relevant to a pharmacy career, whereas mathematics subjects such as physics, logarithms, statistics, and algebra were not viewed important to a career in pharmacy. Conclusion. Students’ experience in pharmacy and year of study influenced their perceptions of subjects relevant to a pharmacy career. Pharmacy educators need to consider how they can help students recognize the importance of scientific knowledge earlier in the pharmacy curriculum

Indigenous health organizations, Indigenous community resurgence, and the reclamation of place in urban areas

Research around the world has been nearly unanimous about the positive impacts of Indigenous-led health organizations on Indigenous peoples\u27 qualitative experiences in health care, in the face of often negative experiences in non-Indigenous-led health care settings. Urban environments, including health care environments, are areas of increasing attention with regard to Indigenous peoples\u27 health in Canada. In this study, which took place in the northern city of Prince George, British Columbia, 65 Indigenous community members and health services workers participated in interviews and focus groups, describing their experiences with urban Indigenous-led health organizations—defined in this study as non-governmental organizations that prioritize the values and practices of local Indigenous communities. Employing perspectives on place and relationships drawn from Indigenous critical theory and Indigenous community resurgence to analyze the findings of this qualitative study leads to a focus on how relationships impact and can even constitute places, enabling new understandings of the roles of Indigenous-led health organizations in urban Indigenous community resurgence

Understanding barriers to health care access through cultural safety and ethical space: Indigenous people\u27s experiences in Prince George, Canada

Almost 1.7 million people in the settler colonial nation of Canada identify as Indigenous. Approximately 52 per cent of Indigenous peoples in Canada live in urban areas. In spite of high rates of urbanization, urban Indigenous peoples are overlooked in health care policy and services. Because of this, although health care services are more plentiful in cities as compared to rural areas, Indigenous people still report significant barriers to health care access in urban settings. This qualitative study, undertaken in Prince George, Canada, examines perceived barriers to health care access for urban Indigenous people in light of how colonialism impacts Indigenous peoples in their everyday lives. The three most frequently reported barriers to health care access on the part of the 65 participating health care providers and Indigenous clients of health care services are: substandard quality of care; long wait times; and experiences of racism and discrimination. These barriers, some of which are common complaints among the general population in Canada, are interpreted by Indigenous clients in unique ways rooted in experiences of discrimination and exclusion that stem from the settler colonial context of the nation. Through the lenses of cultural safety and ethical space – frameworks developed by international Indigenous scholars in efforts to better understand and operationalize relationships between Indigenous and non-Indigenous individuals and societies in the context of settler colonialism – this study offers an understanding of these barriers in light of the specific ways that colonialism intrudes into Indigenous clients’ access to care on an everyday basis

Rights and health versus rights to health: Bringing Indigenous Peoples’ legal rights into the spaces of health care services

The political-legal discourse of Indigenous rights continues to be separated from discussions of health care services in geographic scholarship, due to the ways in which political-legal, settler-colonial definitions of rights fail to take Indigenous understandings into account, as well as a distrust on the part of scholars of the limited and contingent notion of “rights.” While Indigenous rights, inherently tied in Canada to recognition by the settler-colonial state, have limited application in achieving social justice or decolonization for Indigenous peoples, we argue that Indigenous rights can be used as a complementary discourse to Indigenous resurgence, within broader discourses of Indigenous justice, to lend legal and political weight to arguments for cultural safety and human rights in health care. We draw on a study conducted with 50 Indigenous community members and 15 health services professionals in the northern city of Prince George, Canada, to elucidate how Indigenous peoples’ experiences in health care settings may be improved by giving attention to rights discourse and removing the geographic and identity-based limitations of Indigenous rights to health care in Canada

The mental health of Indigenous peoples in Canada: A critical review of research

Many scholars assert that Indigenous peoples across the globe suffer a disproportionate burden of mental illness. Research indicates that colonialism and its associated processes are important determinants of Indigenous peoples’ health internationally. In Canada, despite an abundance of health research documenting inequalities in morbidity and mortality rates for Indigenous peoples, relatively little research has focused on mental health. This paper provides a critical scoping review of the literature related to Indigenous mental health in Canada. We searched eleven databases and two Indigenous health-focused journals for research related to mental health, Indigenous peoples, and Canada, for the years 2006–2016. Over two hundred papers are included in the review and coded according to research theme, population group, and geography. Results demonstrate that the literature is overwhelmingly concerned with issues related to colonialism in mental health services and the prevalence and causes of mental illness among Indigenous peoples in Canada, but with several significant gaps. Mental health research related to Indigenous peoples in Canada overemphasizes suicide and problematic substance use; a more critical use of the concepts of colonialism and historical trauma is advised; and several population groups are underrepresented in research, including Métis peoples and urban or off-reserve Indigenous peoples. The findings are useful in an international context by providing a starting point for discussions, dialogue, and further study regarding mental health research for Indigenous peoples around the world

The Experience of using Facebook as an Educational Tool

Social Networking Sites (SNS) such as Facebook are widely used by student populations and are increasingly used by the population generally. Researchers have considered the benefits of using SNS for educational purposes. This qualitative study involved interviews with seven academic members of staff at one UK university who currently use Facebook in their teaching. The study provides a unique insight into the views of teaching staff who use Facebook in their classroom, gaining an understanding of their experience and views of using SNS as part of their teaching