Does social connection turn good deeds into good feelings? On the value of putting the 'social' in prosocial spending

When are the emotional benefits of generous behavior most likely to emerge? In three studies, we demonstrate that the hedonic benefits of generous spending are most likely when spending promotes positive social connection. Study 1 shows that people feel happier after giving more to charity, but only when they give to someone connected with the cause. Studies 2 and 3 show that the emotional rewards associated with giving to friends or acquaintances are greatest in situations that facilitate social connection. Thus, social connection may be important for turning good deeds into good feelings, and maximizing connectedness between givers and recipients may enhance the emotional payoff of charitable initiatives

Investing in others: Prosocial spending for (pro)social change

In this chapter we explore whether prosocial spending - spending money on others - can have postive outcomes for spenders, recipients, and the broader community. We begin by briefly summarizing the literature on the relationship between money and happiness. Next, we review our research on the benefits of prosocial spending for happiness, along with other components of well-being. we present our findings at four levels, starting first with the consequences of prosocial spending for individuls, and then extending this discussion outward to dyads, and organizations. Finally, we offer several practical strategies for utilizing the lessons our research. © 2011 Springer Science+Business Media B.V

Expression of therapeutic misconception amongst Egyptians: a qualitative pilot study

<p>Abstract</p> <p>Background</p> <p>Studies have shown that research participants fail to appreciate the difference between research and medical care, labeling such phenomenon as a "therapeutic misconception" (TM). Since research activity involving human participants is increasing in the Middle East, qualitative research investigating aspects of TM is warranted. Our objective was to assess for the existence of therapeutic misconception amongst Egyptians.</p> <p>Methods</p> <p><it>Study Tool: </it>We developed a semi-structured interview guide to elicit the knowledge, attitudes, and perspectives of Egyptians regarding medical research.</p> <p><it>Setting: </it>We recruited individuals from the outpatient settings (public and private) at Ain Shams University in Cairo, Egypt.</p> <p><it>Analysis: </it>Interviews were taped, transcribed, and translated. We analyzed the content of the transcribed text to identify the presence of a TM, defined in one of two ways: TM₁= inaccurate beliefs about how individualized care can be compromised by the procedures in the research and TM₂= inaccurate appraisal of benefit obtained from the research study.</p> <p>Results</p> <p>Our findings showed that a majority of participants (11/15) expressed inaccurate beliefs regarding the degree with which individualized care will be maintained in the research setting (TM₁) and a smaller number of participants (5/15) manifested an unreasonable belief in the likelihood of benefits to be obtained from a research study (TM₂). A total of 12 of the 15 participants were judged to have expressed a TM on either one of these bases.</p> <p>Conclusion</p> <p>The presence of TM is not uncommon amongst Egyptian individuals. We recommend further qualitative studies investigating aspects of TM involving a larger sample size distinguished by different types of illnesses and socio-economic variables, as well as those who have and have not participated in clinical research.</p

Patient information leaflets (PILs) for UK randomised controlled trials : a feasibility study exploring whether they contain information to support decision making about trial participation

Peer reviewedPublisher PD

The neurological consequences of contracting covid-19

Since the first confirmed case in Wuhan, China on December 31, 2019, the novel coronavirus (SARS-CoV-2) has spread quickly, infecting 165 million people as of May 2021. Since this first detection, research has indicated that people contracting the virus may suffer neurological and mental disorders and deficits, in addition to the respiratory and other organ challenges caused by COVID-19. Specifically, early evidence suggests that COVID-19 has both mild (e.g., loss of smell (anosmia), loss of taste (ageusia), latent blinks (hete-rophila), headaches, dizziness, confusion) and more severe outcomes (e.g., cognitive impairments, seizures, delirium, psychosis, strokes). Longer-term neurological challenges or damage may also occur. This knowledge should inform clinical guidelines, assessment, and public health planning while more systematic research using biological, clinical, and longitudinal methods provides further insights

Post-consent assessment of dental subjects' understanding of informed consent in oral health research in Nigeria

Abstract Background Research participants may not adequately understand the research in which they agree to enroll. This could be due to a myriad of factors. Such a missing link in the informed consent process contravenes the requirement for an "informed" consent prior to the commencement of research. This study assessed the post consent understanding of Nigerian study participants of the oral health research they were invited to join. Methods A descriptive cross sectional study with research participants who had just consented to one of three ongoing research studies on oral health. Study sites included two centers, one in the northern and one in the southern part of Nigeria. Data were collected using a combination of quantitative and qualitative methods. Results A total of 113 research participants were interviewed. The southern part of the country had 58 respondents with the north having 55. The age range was 21 – 80 years. Mean age was 46.1 (SD16.3). The sample was predominantly male (69.9%) and married (64.6%). There was poor understanding of some key elements of the informed consent process such as involvement in research, benefits, contacts, confidentiality and voluntariness. Some identified factors potentially compromising understanding were poverty, illiteracy, therapeutic misconception and confusion about the dual roles of the Dentist and the researcher. Conclusion The participants recruited into the oral health research in Nigeria did not adequately understand the studies they were invited to join nor do they understand their rights as research participants. Measures should be taken to include research bioethics into the curricula of Dental schools and to train oral health researchers in the country on research ethics.</p

Discriminating disorder from difference using dynamic assessment with bilingual children

The DAPPLE (Dynamic Assessment of Preschoolers’ Proficiency in Learning English) is currently being developed in response to a clinical need. Children exposed to English as an additional language may be referred to speech and language therapy because their proficiency in English is not the same as their monolingual peers. Some, but not all, of these children are likely to have a core language learning difficulty. Clinicians need to be able to distinguish disorder from difference due to a child’s language learning context. The assessment used a test–teach–test format to examine children’s ability to learn vocabulary, sentence structure and phonology. The assessment, which takes less than 60 minutes to administer, was given to 26 children who were bilingual: 12 currently on a speech and language therapy caseload and 14 children matched for age and socio-economic status who had never been referred to speech and language therapy. The DAPPLE data clearly discriminated the two groups. The caseload group required a greater amount of prompting to identify targeted words in the receptive vocabulary assessment and performed less well in the post-teaching expressive component. For sentence structure, the caseload group required more cues to acquire the targeted clause elements in the teaching phase. The caseload group made more phoneme errors at the initial and final assessments than the controls, and the type of errors made differed. Teaching resulted in greater positive change in percent phonemes correct for the caseload participants. Qualitative analyses of individual children’s performance on the DAPPLE suggested that it has the potential to discriminate core language deficits from difference due to a bilingual language learning context. Future directions for development of the test are considered

Radiofrequency ablation for Barrett's oesophagus related neoplasia with the 360 Express catheter: initial experience from the United Kingdom and Ireland—preliminary results

BACKGROUND: Radio-frequency ablation (RFA) for Barrett's oesophagus (BE)-related neoplasia is currently used after endoscopic resection of visible neoplasia. The HALO 360 balloon has been used to ablate long segment BE. The Barrx™ 360 Express RFA self-sizing catheter ('RFA Express') may potentially allow quicker ablation times and improved treatment outcomes. The aim of this paper is to present real world data on the use of the 360 Express Device. METHODS: Centres in the UK and Ireland submitted cases where the RFA Express was used. The primary outcome was regression of BE at 3 months. Secondary outcomes were the rate of symptomatic stricture formation and resolution of intestinal metaplasia (CR-IM) and dysplasia (CR-D) at End of Treatment (EoT). RESULTS: 11 centres submitted 123 consecutive patients. 112 had a follow up endoscopy. The median age was 67 years (IQR 62-75). 3 dosimetries were used. The mean reduction in Circumferential (C) length was 78% ± 36 and mean reduction in Maximal length (M) was 55% ± 36. 17 patients (15%) developed strictures requiring dilation. There was a higher rate of stricture formation when the 12 J energy was used (p < 0.05). 47 patients had EoT biopsies, 40 (85%) had CR-D and 34(76%) had CR-IM. CONCLUSIONS: The RFA 360 Express catheter shows reduction in length of baseline BE at 3 months after index treatment, and eradication of intestinal metaplasia and dysplasia at 12 months similar to other studies with earlier devices. It appears that the symptomatic stricture rate is slightly higher than previous series with the HALO 360 catheter. This study was performed as part of the HALO registry and has been approved by the Research Ethics Committee - MREC Number 08/H0714/27 Local project reference 08/0104 Project ID 15,033 IRAS Number 54678 EudraCT 2009-015980-1. Registered on ISRCTN as below: ISRCTN93069556. https://doi.org/10.1186/ISRCTN93069556

Improvement over time in outcomes for patients undergoing endoscopic therapy for Barrett's oesophagus-related neoplasia: 6-year experience from the first 500 patients treated in the UK patient registry.

BACKGROUND: Barrett's oesophagus (BE) is a pre-malignant condition leading to oesophageal adenocarcinoma (OAC). Treatment of neoplasia at an early stage is desirable. Combined endoscopic mucosal resection (EMR) followed by radiofrequency ablation (RFA) is an alternative to surgery for patients with BE-related neoplasia. METHODS: We examined prospective data from the UK registry of patients undergoing RFA/EMR for BE-related neoplasia from 2008 to 2013. Before RFA, visible lesions were removed by EMR. Thereafter, patients had RFA 3-monthly until all BE was ablated or cancer developed (endpoints). End of treatment biopsies were recommended at around 12 months from first RFA treatment or when endpoints were reached. Outcomes for clearance of dysplasia (CR-D) and BE (CR-IM) at end of treatment were assessed over two time periods (2008-2010 and 2011-2013). Durability of successful treatment and progression to OAC were also evaluated. RESULTS: 508 patients have completed treatment. CR-D and CR-IM improved significantly between the former and later time periods, from 77% and 56% to 92% and 83%, respectively (p<0.0001). EMR for visible lesions prior to RFA increased from 48% to 60% (p=0.013). Rescue EMR after RFA decreased from 13% to 2% (p<0.0001). Progression to OAC at 12 months is not significantly different (3.6% vs 2.1%, p=0.51). CONCLUSIONS: Clinical outcomes for BE neoplasia have improved significantly over the past 6 years with improved lesion recognition and aggressive resection of visible lesions before RFA. Despite advances in technique, the rate of cancer progression remains 2-4% at 1 year in these high-risk patients. TRIAL REGISTRATION NUMBER: ISRCTN93069556

The ventro-medial prefrontal cortex: a major link between the autonomic nervous system, regulation of emotion, and stress reactivity?

Recent progress in neuroscience revealed diverse regions of the CNS which moderate autonomic and affective responses. The ventro-medial prefrontal cortex (vmPFC) plays a key role in these regulations. There is evidence that vmPFC activity is associated with cardiovascular changes during a motor task that are mediated by parasympathetic activity. Moreover, vmPFC activity makes important contributions to regulations of affective and stressful situations