Me, myself and I: identity and meaning in the lives of vulnerable young people

Questions relating to identity and meaning are fundamental questions of life. As such, they have been the subject of study by scholars across a diverse range of disciplines, including psychology, theology, sociology and philosophy, throughout history. Despite this diversity, scholars agree that identity and meaning are inter-related issues which are central to the lives of human beings.It is widely accepted within the literature that adolescence is a critical period for the development of identity and meaning, and that these concepts may become even more pertinent to young people when they are confronted with persistent challenges or periods of uncertainty. However, our knowledge of how vulnerable young people perceive and experience ‘identity and meaning’ in their lives remains less clear.This research study, funded by the Institute for Catholic Identity and Mission, Australian Catholic University (ACU ), and conducted by the Institute of Child Protection Studies (ICPS) aimed to further our understanding of this area by exploring the following questions: What is the role and potency of identity and meaning in the lives of vulnerable young people? What are the implications of this for the way that we support vulnerable young people? The study adopted a participatory and qualitative approach and was conducted throughout 2012. Twenty four young people participated in in-depth one-on-one interviews about their lives

Effective interventions for working with young people who are homeless or at risk of homelessness

This literature review was commissioned by the Commonwealth Department of Families, Housing, Community Services and Indigenous Affairs (FaHCSIA). The aim of the review is to assess the current state of evidence about what interventions are most effective in working with young people who are homeless or at risk of homelessness. This literature review was produced in order to inform a broader project that identifies the range of interventions and strategies that are applied by Reconnect services and situates these practices within the existing evidence base (see separate report, Reconnect: working with young people who are homeless or at risk of homelessness). Reconnect is a community-based early intervention program for young people who are homeless or at risk of homelessness. It was established in 1998 as an early intervention response to youth homelessness. Reconnect uses early intervention strategies to help young people to stabilise and improve their housing, achieve family reconciliation, and improve their level of engagement with work, education, training and community. FaHCSIA funds Reconnect services to deliver services to young people aged 12–18 years (newly arrived young people 12–21 years) who are homeless or at risk of homelessness, and their families. Some Reconnect services focus on working with specific population groups, for example: Indigenous young people (Aboriginal or Torres Strait Islander people); young people experiencing mental health issues; and newly arrived young people. This review is guided by the key research question: ‘what are effective intervention strategies for working with young people who are homeless or at risk of homelessness?’ The literature review begins with a brief overview of youth homelessness as an issue of concern, its identified relevant risk and protective factors, and the relevance of early intervention. It then outlines the strategy for undertaking this literature review and presents the findings of the review

Evaluation of the supporting children after separation program post separation cooperative parenting programs

The Department of Families, Housing, Community Services and Indigenous Affairs (FaHCSIA) commissioned the Institute of Child Protection Studies (ICPS) to carry out an evaluation of the Supporting Children After Separation Program (SCASP) and Post Separation Cooperative Parenting service (PSCP). In addition to providing evaluation of the programs themselves, it is hoped that this study will also make a contribution to more broadly based evaluation of FaHCSIA’s Family Support Program (FSP), under whose umbrella these services fall. The evaluation aimed to ascertain the appropriateness and effectiveness of service models and the extent to which they achieve their intended objectives. It also assessed the extent to which the programs give priority to at risk, vulnerable and disadvantaged families and how they generally increase family access to services through more collaborative service arrangements. In general terms, it attempted to establish whether and how these service models are consistent with, and contribute to, the overarching goals and principles of the FSP

On the two-loop four-derivative quantum corrections in 4D N = 2 superconformal field theories

In \cN = 2, 4 superconformal field theories in four space-time dimensions, the quantum corrections with four derivatives are believed to be severely constrained by non-renormalization theorems. The strongest of these is the conjecture formulated by Dine and Seiberg in hep-th/9705057 that such terms are generated only at one loop. In this note, using the background field formulation in \cN = 1 superspace, we test the Dine-Seiberg proposal by comparing the two-loop F^4 quantum corrections in two different superconformal theories with the same gauge group SU(N): (i) \cN = 4 SYM (i.e. \cN = 2 SYM with a single adjoint hypermultiplet); (ii) \cN = 2 SYM with 2N hypermultiplets in the fundamental. According to the Dine-Seiberg conjecture, these theories should yield identical two-loop F^4 contributions from all the supergraphs involving quantum hypermultiplets, since the pure \cN = 2 SYM and ghost sectors are identical provided the same gauge conditions are chosen. We explicitly evaluate the relevant two-loop supergraphs and observe that the F^4 corrections generated have different large N behaviour in the two theories under consideration. Our results are in conflict with the Dine-Seiberg conjecture.Comment: 26 pages, 4 EPS figures. V2: comments, appendix added. V3: a misprint removed, discussion in the appendix of cancellation of divergences improved. V4: typos corrected, the version to appear in NPB. V5: error in eq. (4.12) corrected, conclusions unchange

Effects of traumatic brain injury on cognitive functioning and cerebral metabolites in HIV-infected individuals.

We explored the possible augmenting effect of traumatic brain injury (TBI) history on HIV (human immunodeficiency virus) associated neurocognitive complications. HIV-infected participants with self-reported history of definite TBI were compared to HIV patients without TBI history. Groups were equated for relevant demographic and HIV-associated characteristics. The TBI group evidenced significantly greater deficits in executive functioning and working memory. N-acetylaspartate, a putative marker of neuronal integrity, was significantly lower in the frontal gray matter and basal ganglia brain regions of the TBI group. Together, these results suggest an additional brain impact of TBI over that from HIV alone. One clinical implication is that HIV patients with TBI history may need to be monitored more closely for increased risk of HIV-associated neurocognitive disorder signs or symptoms

Planning Future Strategies for Domestic and International NeuroAIDS Research, July 24–25, 2008

The National Institute of Mental Health in cooperation with the National Institute on Drug Abuse and the National Institute of Neurological Disorders and Stroke organized a meeting on July 24–25, 2008 to develop novel research directions for neuroAIDS research. The deliberations of this meeting are outlined in this brief report. Several critical research areas in neuroAIDS were identified as areas of emphasis. Opportunities for collaborations between large NIH-funded projects were also discussed

Clinical Trials in Hiv-Associated Cognitive Impairment: Cognitive and Functional Outcomes

Cognitive and functional outcomes are of primary interest in the design of efficacy trials in HIV-associated cognitive impairment. In a longitudinal cohort study, weak associations were found between measures of cognitive performance and commonly used measures of daily functioning (mostly self-report measures) in HIV-infected individuals. Modifications of current functional scales or new functional instruments are needed to assess the clinical relevance of cognitive changes in clinical trials of HIV-associated cognitive impairment

Inter-Rater Reliability of a Clinical Staging of HIV-Associated Cognitive Impairment

Objective: To determine the inter-rater reliability of a modification of the Memorial Sloan-Kettering (MSK) Staging for HIV-associated cognitive impairment. Methods: Data were abstracted on neurologic, neuropsychological, and functional status on 100 individuals participating at four sites in the Northeast AIDS Dementia (NEAD) Consortium cohort study, a longitudinal study of predictors of cognitive impairment in HIV-infected individuals. Neuropsychological performance was defined 1) based on the neuropsychologist’s global impression and 2) solely based on neuropsychological test scores. Raters at each site used the abstracted data to assign an MSK stage to each subject blind to any identifying information. Inter-rater reliability was assessed using kappa statistics. Agreement between computer-generated ratings and site-generated ratings was also assessed. Results: Kappa statistics for pair-wise agreement among the sites regarding MSK stage ranged from 0.70–0.91, representing good to excellent agreement between sites. Agreement between computer-generated ratings and site-generated ratings was in the good to excellent range (0.62–0.79). Conclusions: The authors have modified the MSK rating scale and developed a reliable instrument that can be used in multicenter studies. This instrument will be useful in staging HIV-dementia in future longitudinal studies and will be valuable in increasing accuracy of clinicopathologic studies

Leveraging Motivations, Personality, and Sensory Cues for Vertebrate Pest Management

Acknowledgments: We wish to thank Manaaki Whenua – Landcare Research staff, particularly Peter Millard and Bruce Warburton, for facilitating and supporting this research. Thanks to Jenna Bytheway for infographic design. This research was supported by Strategic Science Investment funding from the New Zealand Ministry of Business, Innovation and Employment’s Science and Innovation Group, awarded to Manaaki Whenua – Landcare Research. T.W.B. was supported by Marie Skłodowska-Curie grant number 747120, and A.S. was supported by National Science Foundation grant IOS 1456724.Peer reviewedPublisher PD