The right to spatial development for human flourishing

This paper explores the literature on spatial development for people’s multifaceted well-being and the rights to the city, and argues for people’s right to live with dignity in cities. Nature and people-friendly spatial developments are fundamental to nourishing capabilities of human beings and realising their well-being. However, in reality, spatial developments are determined by legal planning and development regimes and socio-cultural discourses. These allocate different ‘claims, privileges and power rights’ to different stakeholders, and the results may not contribute to human flourishing. This paper attempts to synthesise an evaluation framework to achieve flourishing life with dignity in cities

Effectiveness of a knowledge-contact program in improving nursing students’ attitude and emotional competence in serving people with HIV/AIDS

a b s t r a c t This study compared the effectiveness of an AIDS knowledge-only program (knowledge) with a combined program of AIDS knowledge and contact with people having HIV/AIDS (PHA) (knowledgecontact) in reducing nursing students' stigma and discrimination towards PHA and in enhancing their emotional competence to serve PHA. Eighty-nine nursing students from two universities in Hong Kong were randomly assigned to either the knowledge or the knowledge-contact condition. All participants completed measures of AIDS knowledge, stigmatizing attitudes, fear of contagion, willingness to treat, positive affect, and negative affect at pre-test, post-test, and six-week follow-up. Findings showed that in both groups, significant improvement in AIDS knowledge, stigmatizing attitudes, fear of contagion, willingness to treat, and negative affect were found at post-test. The effects on AIDS knowledge, fear of contagion, willingness to treat, and negative affect were sustained at follow-up for both groups. Intergroup comparisons at post-test showed that the effectiveness of knowledge-contact program was significantly greater than knowledge program in improving stigmatizing attitudes. No significant difference between the two groups was found at follow-up. Findings showed the short-term effect of contact in improving nursing students' attitudes and emotional competence in serving PHA. Implications for research and training of nursing staff were discussed

Web-Based Behavioral Intervention Utilizing Narrative Persuasion for HIV Prevention Among Chinese Men Who Have Sex With Men (HeHe Talks Project): Intervention Development

Background: In the era of potent antiretroviral therapy, a high level of condomless anal intercourse continues to drive increases in HIV incidence in recent years among men who have sex with men. Effective behavior change strategies for promoting HIV-preventive behaviors are warranted. Narrative persuasion is a novel health communication approach that has demonstrated its persuasive advantages in overcoming resistance to counterattitudinal messages. The efficacy of narrative persuasion in promoting health behavior changes has been well documented, but critical research gaps exist for its application to HIV prevention. Objective: In this study, we aimed to (1) capitalize on narrative persuasion to design a web-based multisession intervention for reducing condomless anal intercourse among men who have sex with men in Hong Kong (the HeHe Talks Project) by following a systematic development process; and (2) describe the main components of the narrative intervention that potentially determine its persuasiveness. Methods: Persuasive themes and subtopics related to reducing condomless anal intercourse were initially proposed based on epidemiological evidence. The biographic narrative interview method was used to elicit firsthand experiential stories from a maximum variation sample of local men who have sex with men with diverse backgrounds and experiences related to HIV prevention; different types of role models were established accordingly. Framework analysis was used to aggregate the original quotations from narrators into collective narratives under 6 intervention themes. A dedicated website was finally developed for intervention delivery. Results: A series of video-based intervention messages in biographic narrative format (firsthand experiential stories shared by men who have sex with men) combined with topic-equivalent argumentative messages were produced and programmed into 6 intervention sessions. The 6-week intervention program can be automatically delivered and monitored online. Conclusions: We systematically created a web-based HIV prevention intervention derived from peer-generated stories. Strategies used to enhance the efficacy of the narrative intervention have been discussed within basic communication components. This paper describes the methods and experiences of the rigorous development of a narrative communication intervention for HIV prevention, which enables replication of the intervention in the future

Perceived stigma among discharged patients of COVID-19 in Wuhan, China: A latent profile analysis

BackgroundPerceived stigma has greatly influenced the life quality of the COVID-19 patients who recovered and were discharged (RD hereafter). It is essential to understand COVID-19 stigma of RD and its related risk factors. The current study aims to identify the characteristics of perceived COVID-19 stigma in RD using latent profile analysis (LPA), to explore its psycho-social influencing factors, and to determine the cut-off point of the stigma scale using receiver operating characteristic (ROC) analysis.MethodsA cross-sectional study was conducted among COVID-19 RD in 13 communities in Jianghan District, Wuhan City, Hubei Province, China from June 10 to July 25, 2021, enrolling total 1,297 participants. Data were collected on demographic characteristics, COVID-19 perceived stigma, post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD), anxiety, depression, sleep disorder, fatigue, resilience, social support, and peace of mind. LPA was performed to identify different profiles of perceived COVID-19 stigma level. Univariate analysis and multinominal logistic regression analysis were conducted to explore the influencing factors in different profiles. ROC analyses was carried out to identify the cut-off value of perceived stigma.ResultsAmong the participants, three profiles of perceived stigma were identified: “low perceived COVID-19 stigma” (12.8%), “moderate perceived COVID-19 stigma” (51.1%), and “severe perceived COVID-19 stigma” (36.1%). Multinominal logistic regression analysis revealed that older age, living with other people, anxiety, and sleep disorder were positively associated with moderate perceived COVID-19 stigma, while higher educational level was negatively associated with moderate perceived COVID-19 stigma. Female, older age, living with other people, anxiety, and sleep disorder were positively associated with severe perceived COVID-19 stigma, while higher educational level, social support, and peace of mind were negatively associated with severe perceived COVID-19 stigma. ROC curve of the Short Version of COVID-19 Stigma Scale (CSS-S) for screening perceived COVID-19 stigma showed that the optimal cut-off value was ≥ 20.ConclusionThe study focuses on the issue of perceived COVID-19 stigma and its psycho-socio influencing factors. It provides evidence for implementing relevant psychological interventions to COVID-19 RD

Lack of Evidence for Human-to-Human Transmission of Avian Influenza A (H9N2) Viruses in Hong Kong, China 19991

In April 1999, isolation of avian influenza A (H9N2) viruses from humans was confirmed for the first time. H9N2 viruses were isolated from nasopharyngeal aspirate specimens collected from two children who were hospitalized with uncomplicated, febrile, upper respiratory tract illnesses in Hong Kong during March 1999. Novel influenza viruses have the potential to initiate global pandemics if they are sufficiently transmissible among humans. We conducted four retrospective cohort studies of persons exposed to these two H9N2 patients to assess whether human-to-human transmission of avian H9N2 viruses had occurred. No serologic evidence of H9N2 infection was found in family members or health-care workers who had close contact with the H9N2-infected children, suggesting that these H9N2 viruses were not easily transmitted from person to person

A Brief Mindfulness-Based Family Psychoeducation Intervention for Chinese Young Adults With First Episode Psychosis: A Study Protocol

Family psychoeducation (FPE) has been recommended as a major component in the treatment of psychosis. Many previous studies have implemented an intensive program design that often only emphasized improvements in patients’ illness outcomes but the benefits for caregivers were limited. There have been calls for a time-limited but cost-effective FPE program to mitigate the looming reality of the suffering of people with psychosis and their families. A Brief Mindfulness-Based Family Psychoeducation for psychosis program is developed to reduce caregivers’ burden and promote young adult’s recovery. A randomized controlled trial will be conducted to compare this intervention with an ordinary FPE intervention. Both arms will involve six sessions, with a total contact time of 12 h. 300 caregivers of young adults who have experienced first episode psychosis within last 3 years will be recruited. Program effectiveness will be assessed by comparing outcomes measuring the caregivers’ burden, mental health symptoms, positive well-being, and the young adult’s mental health symptoms during the study and at 9-month post-randomization. The role of expressed emotions, interpersonal mindfulness, and non-attachment in mediating these outcomes will be explored. An additional qualitative approach Photovoice is selected to explore the complex family experiences and the benefits of mindfulness from the caregivers’ personal perspectives.Trial Registration: The trial is registered with the United States Clinical Trials Registry (ClinicalTrials.gov): NCT03688009

Cross-Cultural Validation of the Perceptions of Stigmatization by Others for Seeking Help (PSOSH) Scale.

Social network stigma refers to the perceived negative views about seeking help for mental health problems that are held by those closest to an individual, such as family and friends. This form of stigma predicts help-seeking attitudes and intentions beyond other forms of stigma, and is predominantly measured using the Perceptions of Stigmatization by Others for Seeking Help scale (PSOSH; Vogel, Wade, & Ascheman, 2009). However, the PSOSH was normed using samples from the United States and, until the cross-cultural validity of this measure is established, it cannot reliably be used within other countries (Miller & Sheu, 2008). As such, the current study (N = 3,440) examined the cross-cultural measurement invariance of the PSOSH using the sequential constraint imposition approach across 11 countries/regions: Australia, Brazil, Canada, Hong Kong, Portugal, Romania, Taiwan, Turkey, the United Arab Emirates (UAE), the United Kingdom (U.K.), and the United States (U.S.). Overall, findings indicate that the PSOSH measures a meaningful construct (i.e., configural and metric invariance) across the 11 countries/regions and that future cross-cultural research could use the PSOSH to examine relationships between social network stigma and other variables. Scalar invariance results also supported the examination of mean differences in Australia, Brazil, Canada, Portugal, Turkey, the U.K., and the U.S., but not in Hong Kong, Romania, Taiwan, and UAE. Implications for future cross-cultural research are discussed

Psychological distress and subjective burden of caregivers of people with mental illness: The role of affiliate stigma and face concern

The present study tested the mediating role of affiliate stigma on the relationships between face concern with psychological distress and subjective burden among caregivers of people with severe mental illnesses. One hundred and eight Chinese caregivers in Hong Kong were surveyed. Based on Baron and Kenny’s (J Pers Soc Psychol 51:1173–1182, 1986) approach, affiliate stigma was found to serve as a partial mediator between face concern and caregiver distress and a full mediator between face concern and subjective burden. Cultural linkage of stigma and caregiver outcomes was identified, suggesting that researchers and practitioners should use a culturally sensitive approach to understand caregivers’ experience and alleviate their stigma

Affiliate stigma among caregivers of people with intellectual disability or mental illness

Background Affiliate stigma refers to the extent of self-stigmatization among associates of the targeted minorities. Given previous studies on caregiver stigma were mostly qualitative in nature, a conceptually based, unified, quantitative instrument to measure affiliate stigma is still lacking. Materials and Methods Two hundred and ten caregivers of people with intellectual disability (CPID) and 108 caregivers of people with mental illness (CPMI) were recruited to validate the 22-item Affiliate Stigma Scale with caregiving stress, subjective burden and positive perceptions. Results Exploratory factor analysis suggested that the scale was unidimensional, with excellent internal consistencies for both CPID and CPMI. It showed good predictive validity on subjective burden, after the extent of caregiving involvement and caregiving stress were controlled for. Conclusion Implications on psychoeducation and stigma reduction were discussed. The newly developed scale provided a quantitative instrument with which affiliate stigma can be compared across different conditions