Influence of Yb:YAG laser beam parameters on Haynes 188 weld fusion zone microstructure and mechanical properties

The weldability of 1.2 mm thick Haynes 188 alloy sheets by a disk Yb:YAG laser welding was examined. Butt joints were made, and the influence of parameters such as power, size, and shape of the spot, welding speed, and gas flow has been investigated. Based on an iconographic correlation approach, optimum process parameters were determined. Depending on the distribution of the power density (circular or annular), acceptable welds were obtained. Powers greater than 1700 W, welding speeds higher than 3.8 m mm1, and spot sizes between 160 and 320 lm were needed in the circular (small fiber) configuration. By comparison, the annular (large fiber) configuration required a power as high as 2500 W, and a welding speed less than 3.8 m min�1. The mechanical properties of the welds depended on their shape and microstructure, which in turn depended on the welding conditions. The content of carbides, the proportion of areas consisting of cellular and dendritic substructures, and the size of these substructures were used to explain the welded joint mechanical properties

A Grief Intervention Embedded Within a Chinese Cultural Practice for Bereaved Parents

This chapter presents a case example of how a cultural practice, Chinese painting, can be minimally adapted to become a grief intervention. This new framework of cultural adaptation suggests that instead of transporting research from the clinic to community, it is feasible to move from the community to the clinic—to offer patients a positive, holistic therapeutic experience that aligns with their culture and values. Finally, the chapter outlines how the experience taps key psychological mechanisms of grief organically, as a by-product of participating in a creative cultural practice. To develop a culturally adapted grief intervention, it is worthwhile to explore how culture may affect normal and disordered grief and to identify what cultural characteristics may facilitate or hinder the return to mental well-being. The chapter reviews child loss within the Chinese sociocultural context in terms of two dimensions: the conditions of everyday life (e.g., social-economic-political systems) and the cultural meaning system (e.g., values and norms, particularly the philosophical and religious elements). The chapter explores how the uniqueness and richness of the culture encourages a more holistic, open, and flexible approach for an intervention

Features of Prolonged Grief Symptoms in Chinese and Swiss Bereaved Parents

This study investigates clinical expressions of prolonged grief in samples of 32 Chinese and 33 Swiss bereaved parents, according to the proposed International Classification of Diseases, 11th Revision model of prolonged grief disorder (PGD). Sex differences and predictors (cultural attitudes, sense of coherence, and posttraumatic growth) of PGD were analyzed. In result, after controlling for sociodemographic and loss-related sample differences, both samples showed similar PGD symptom profiles, with Swiss parents exhibiting more severe grief-related preoccupation and Chinese parents exhibiting some accessory symptoms and functional impairment to a greater extent. Multivariate analyses revealed for the Chinese sample primary predictions of PGD by life satisfaction, general health and one's world view (social cynicism) and for the Swiss sample by female sex, sense of coherence, and life satisfaction. The findings substantiate the basic appropriateness of the International Classification of Diseases, 11th Revision PGD in distinct cultural groups and may contribute to a better understanding of grief expression and its potential predictors across different cultures

Emotional face expression modulates occipital-frontal effective connectivity during memory formation in a bottom-up fashion

This study investigated the role of bottom-up and top-down neural mechanisms in the processing of emotional face expression during memory formation. Functional brain imaging data was acquired during incidental learning of positive ("happy"), neutral and negative ("angry" or "fearful") faces. Dynamic Causal Modeling (DCM) was applied on the functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI) data to characterize effective connectivity within a brain network involving face perception (inferior occipital gyrus and fusiform gyrus) and successful memory formation related areas (hippocampus, superior parietal lobule, amygdala, and orbitofrontal cortex). The bottom-up models assumed processing of emotional face expression along feed forward pathways to the orbitofrontal cortex. The top-down models assumed that the orbitofrontal cortex processed emotional valence and mediated connections to the hippocampus. A subsequent recognition memory test showed an effect of negative emotion on the response bias, but not on memory performance. Our DCM findings showed that the bottom-up model family of effective connectivity best explained the data across all subjects and specified that emotion affected most bottom-up connections to the orbitofrontal cortex, especially from the occipital visual cortex and superior parietal lobule. Of those pathways to the orbitofrontal cortex the connection from the inferior occipital gyrus correlated with memory performance independently of valence. We suggest that bottom-up neural mechanisms support effects of emotional face expression and memory formation in a parallel and partially overlapping fashion

Sense of Coherence and Posttraumatic Growth: The Moderating Role of Value Orientation in Chinese and Swiss Bereaved Parents

Sense of Coherence–Revised (SOC-R) and posttraumatic growth (PTG) can be understood as two metaheuristics that are closely linked to resilience and adaption to adversity. This study investigated the association between SOC-R and PTG, as well as the moderating role of value orientations, in a sample of 67 Chinese and Swiss parents who lost their child. Results showed that, cross-culturally, the value of conservation was negatively associated with PTG, and self-transcendence showed a significant moderation effect to enhance the positive relationship between SOC-R and PTG. Implications for clinical practice to facilitate growth by focusing on SOC-R and value orientations were discussed

Prolonged Grief Disorder and Positive Affect Improved by Chinese Brush Painting Group in Bereaved Parents: A Pilot Study

Traditional Chinese art practices such as brush painting and calligraphy are thought to promote self-development through holistically engaging both physical and mental health. This pilot study investigated the beneficial effects of a community-based self-help group incorporating Chinese art practices as a culturally adapted bereavement intervention. Twenty-six Chinese parents aged over 49 years and who had lost their only child participated in a 20-session Chinese brush painting group over a 6-month period. Ten bereaved parents from the same community who did not participate in the art course but received living support were recruited as a control group. Compared with the control group, the art practice group exhibited a pre-post intervention effect in terms of promoting positive affect and preventing deterioration of prolonged grief symptoms, particularly through the improvement of accessory grief symptoms (e.g., "emotional numbness due to the loss", and "feeling that life is unfulfilling, empty or meaningless after the loss"). No effect was found on negative affect. These findings indicate that a culturally adapted community-based art group may be an effective means of improving grief-related health

The Autobiographical Memory Content of Shiduers: The Influence of Chinese Culture

Objective: To explore the autobiographical memory content of shiduers(parents who lost their single child) and the influence of Chinese culture. Methods: This study used the Autobiographical Memory Test(AMT) to conduct interviews with 17 shiduers, that is, the participants were presented with 10 pre-prepared clues, which triggered the participants'autobiographical memory, and analysed the major items in their memory content. Results: The grief events associated with the loss of a child directly expressed the characteristics of grief and constitute explicit grief. Other types of autobiographical memory, including life-threatening events, other relationship events, self-knowledge and assessment, achievement events, recreation events, and non-classifiable events, all indirectly expressed grief characteristics and constitute implicit grief. Regardless of whether the content of the autobiographical memories expressesed explicit grief, such autobiographical memories were influenced by the traditional culture of China, including aspects of familism culture, such as the need to continue the family line by producing an heir and the belief that having no sons was contrary to the requirements of filial piety. Conclusion: To provide more effective service to shiduers, clinical psychologists and social workers must have a perspective on both explicit grief and implicit grief, they must also understand the expression of grief in light of the cultural backgrounds of individuals