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The Interplay of Animacy and Thematic Role in Structural Persistence
Full text linkModels of human sentence production often propose a clear distinction between syntactic and semantic processes. We examined this assumption by investigating the interaction between animacy and thematic roles in active-passive structural priming. Study 1 found that the active or passive structure of a preceding sentence (prime) influenced structural choice in a subsequent sen-tence (target). This priming effect increased when the prime and target sentences shared the same animacy features in their thematic roles, which affected the persistence of the prime subject’s ani-macy. While verb repetition enhanced active-passive priming, the persistence of the prime subject's animacy was not affected by lexical repetition. Studies 2 and 3 demonstrated that repeated animacy features in the thematic roles increase the likelihood of preserving both the thematic role order of the prime (e.g., maintaining the agent-first order in It was the thief that chased the lorry) and its argument structure (e.g., assigning the agent as the subject) in English cleft constructions. In Japanese declarative sentences, where particles indicate the sentential topic, the repeated animacy features strengthened argument structure persistence but not the persistence of thematic role order. These findings suggest that thematic role animacy repetition boosts structural priming by reinforcing the-matic emphasis
‘They feel like another child in care has their back’: An exploration of peer support between looked after children in Scotland
Full text linkThe Independent Care Review in Scotland has encouraged a policy shift towards recognising young people’s potential to contribute to their own and others experiences of care (Scottish Government 2020a). This paper makes an important contribution to debates around the role of children in the social support systems of others who have experienced loss and trauma. It reports on a research project which explored young people’s views on peer support in care and their experiences of it. It highlights the crucial role that ‘peers’ play in looked after children’s social support systems at both an individual and systemic level. Friendships, in this context of a social support system based on a shared set of experiences, were regarded as transformative. Barriers to the formation of such social support systems also emerged, for example limited understanding within the ‘adult’ support system of the significance and benefits of relationships amongst children. Young people experienced their peer social support systems as overlooked, downplayed or misunderstood by adults. As a result, decisions and actions were often taken which disrupted or, in some cases, destroyed, effective social support systems. The paper argues for changes in practice to support the friendships looked after children have while in care
Managing Masculinity When Growing up With a Violent Father: A Qualitative Study of Boys’ Experiences
Full text linkA limited qualitative literature explores children’s lived experiences of violence, boys’ relationships with perpetrator fathers remain largely unexplored. Drawing on interviews with 31 boys, this paper explores their accounts of their relationships with their perpetrator fathers, focusing particularly on the implications of boys’ understanding of these relationships for their sense of burgeoning masculinity. Three themes are considered: in 1) Relational Ambiguity 2) Performing Masculinities, Managing Violence, and 3) Envisioning Alternative Futures, Re-visioning the Past. Our findings highlight the importance of interventions for boys that facilitate the expression of their often complex and ambivalent feelings and fears about their father’s violence, and what it means for them and their future
Climate dissociations: Trade associations, energy policy and climate communications in Europe
Full text linkThis paper focuses on how climate delay narratives populate the information environment of decision makers and regulators in EU policy making. We examine the communications of selected trade associations representing oil and gas extraction interests in Europe. Our analysis offers a novel synthesis, drawing on official data, industry and social media content, using mixed methods and informed by recent theorising on the advocacy activities of trade associations. The paper contextualises the lobbying and communication activities of oil and gas trade associations in Europe using publicly available data on lobbying (drawn from the EU transparency register) and the outputs of oil and gas trade associations (in trade, specialist and social media) to examine their preferred framings and promoted policy prescriptions for addressing climate and energy policy. We find that trade associations representing oil and gas interests in Europe spend millions of euros per annum producing and promoting policy ideas that seek to secure the long-term future of these industries. Wider climate science is rarely directly referenced or acknowledged in their public advocacy. We argue that the normalization of a new form of climate denial has emerged, based on unproven technologies and market mechanisms being pushed by powerful economic interests
Impact of exposure to opioids in pregnancy on offspring developmental outcomes in the pre-school years: an Umbrella Review.
Full text linkAbstract Background Early child development sets the course for optimal outcomes across life. Increasing numbers of children worldwide are exposed to opioids in pregnancy, and frequently live in environments associated with adverse developmental outcomes. Although multiple systematic reviews have been published in this area, they use different exposures and different types of outcomes. This umbrella review aims to bring together these systematic reviews to provide a comprehensive overview of the evidence around the association between prenatal opioid exposure and preschool developmental outcomes. Methods PubMed, MedLine, PsycInfo and Google Scholar were searched up to July 2024. Eligible studies were systematic reviews, meta-analyses or scoping reviews exploring prenatal opioid exposure (illicit opioids, and prescribed treatments for opioid dependence) and developmental outcomes up to age five. Reviews were screened by two authors. Quality assessment was undertaken using the Joanna Briggs Institute (JBI) checklist for umbrella reviews. Degree of overlap was examined. Due to heterogeneity within the sample, no meta-analyses were undertaken and results were synthesised narratively. Results Eleven reviews were included containing 478 individual papers. The overlap was slight (Corrected Cover Area = 5%). Developmental outcomes associated with prenatal opioid exposure included visual function, motor skills, externalising problems, and language difficulties. No conclusive evidence was available for cognitive development or internalising symptoms. In cognitive, and motor, skills, findings differed by age, with later pre-school findings being weaker. Authors frequently highlighted issues with poor quality research in the original studies, including small sample sizes and lack of controlling for confounding. Conclusions Multiple areas of child development were associated with prenatal opioid exposure, however evidence was weak. Robust research, with larger sample sizes and adequate accounting for confounding, is needed to provide accurate information for women of child-bearing age and practitioners, to guide policy, and ensure appropriate funding, support and follow-up is in place.This work was funded by the Economic and Social Research Council: Grant number ES/T015721/1Good Health and Well-Bein
Applying Normalisation Process Theory to a peer-delivered complex health intervention for people experiencing homelessness and problem substance use
Full text linkBackground: The Supporting Harm Reduction through Peer Support (SHARPS) study involved designing and implementing a peer-delivered, harm reduction intervention for people experiencing homelessness and problem substance use. Normalisation Process Theory (NPT) provided a framework for the study. Methods: Four Peer Navigators (individuals with personal experience of problem substance use and/or homelessness) were recruited and hosted in six third sector (not-for-profit)homelessness services in Scotland and England (United Kingdom). Each worked with participants to provide practical and emotional support, with the aim of reducing harms, and improving well-being, social functioning and quality of life. NPT guided the development of the intervention and, the process evaluation, which assessed the acceptability and feasibility of the intervention for this cohort who experience distinct, and often unmet, health challenges. While mixed-methods data collection was undertaken, this paper draws only onthe qualitative data. Results: The study found that, overall, the intervention is feasible, and acceptable to, the intervention participants, the Peer Navigators and staff in host settings. Some challenges were encountered but these were outweighed by benefits. NPT is particularly useful in encouraging our team to focus on the relationship between different aspects of the intervention and context(s) and identify ways of maximising ‘fit’. Conclusions: To our knowledge, this is the first application of NPT to this cohort, and specifically by non-clinicians (peers) in non-healthcare settings (homelessness services).Our application of NPT helped us to identify ways in which the intervention could be enhanced, with the key aim of improving the health/well-being of this underserved group
Are more data always better? – Machine learning forecasting of algae based on long-term observations
Full text linkBloom-forming algae present a unique challenge to water managers as they can significantly impair provision of important ecosystem services and cause health risks to humans and animals. Consequently, effective short-term algae forecasts are important as they provide early warnings and enable implementation of mitigation strategies. In this context, machine learning (ML) emerges as a promising forecasting tool. However, the performance of ML models is heavily dependent on the availability of appropriate training data. Consequently, it is essential to determine the volume of data necessary to develop reliable ML forecasts. Understanding this will guide future monitoring strategies, optimize resource allocation, and set realistic expectations for management outcomes. In this study, we used 30 years of fortnightly measurements of 13 different parameters from a lake in the English Lake District (UK) to examine the impact of training data duration on the performance of ML models for forecasting chlorophyll-a two weeks in advance. Once training data availability exceeded four years, a Random Forest model was found to consistently outperform naive benchmarks (mean absolute percentage error 16.4 % lower than the best-performing benchmark). With more than 5 years of training data, model performance generally continued to improve, but with diminishing returns. Furthermore, it was found that equivalent and, in some cases, better performance could be achieved by only using a subset of the most important input features. Additionally, it was found that reducing the sampling frequency had negative impacts on performance, both due to the reduced number of training observations available, and increased forecast horizon. Our findings demonstrate that for lakes ecologically similar to the study site, a consistent and regular sampling programme focused on monitoring a limited number of key parameters can provide sufficient observations for generating short-term algae forecasts after approximately five years of data collection. Importantly, this result provides justification for the initiation of new monitoring programmes for sites where algal blooms are a concern, and suggests that there are likely many pre-existing monitoring datasets which would be suitable for training algae forecast models
'Remembering Empire': supporting take-up of French through history and culture
Full text linkOne of the most pressing challenges facing languages practitioners in Scotland’s schools is the difficulty of supporting learner motivation to study languages and maintain uptake in the Senior Phase. This article reviews a research-led project, ‘Remembering Empire’, and suggests that Interdisciplinary Learning (IDL) may offer a means to generate increased learner interest in language-learning. As one of the four Contexts of Curriculum for Excellence (CfE), Interdisciplinary Learning (IDL) is central to the curriculum but has proven difficult to deliver. The ‘Remembering Empire’ project produced and delivered free French-language digital materials aimed at supporting language acquisition and historical and cultural knowledge and skills amongst S2-S3 learners about to make Senior Phase subject choices. Evidence from four schools demonstrated an average increase in take-up of languages of 22% among participants when compared with control groups in the same schools. The two strands of the project are now available to schools across Scotland in the form of the Languages Explorers Scotland initiative, co-ordinated by SCILT, and the ‘Remembering Empire’ online resources for teachers: https://pieds-noirs.stir.ac.uk/remembering-empire/
Sample size matters when estimating test–retest reliability of behaviour
Full text linkIntraclass correlation coefficients (ICCs) are a commonly used metric in test–retest reliability research to assess a measure’s ability to quantify systematic between-subject differences. However, estimates of between-subject differences are also influenced by factors including within-subject variability, random errors, and measurement bias. Here, we use data collected from a large online sample (N = 150) to (1) quantify test–retest reliability of behavioural and computational measures of reversal learning using ICCs, and (2) use our dataset as the basis for a simulation study investigating the effects of sample size on variance component estimation and the association between estimates of variance components and ICC measures. In line with previously published work, we find reliable behavioural and computational measures of reversal learning, a commonly used assay of behavioural flexibility. Reliable estimates of between-subject, within-subject (across-session), and error variance components for behavioural and computational measures (with ± .05 precision and 80% confidence) required sample sizes ranging from 10 to over 300 (behavioural median N: between-subject = 167, within-subject = 34, error = 103; computational median N: between-subject = 68, within-subject = 20, error = 45). These sample sizes exceed those often used in reliability studies, suggesting that sample sizes larger than are commonly used for reliability studies (circa 30) are required to robustly estimate reliability of task performance measures. Additionally, we found that ICC estimates showed highly positive and highly negative correlations with between-subject and error variance components, respectively, as might be expected, which remained relatively stable across sample sizes. However, ICC estimates were weakly or not correlated with within-subject variance, providing evidence for the importance of variance decomposition for reliability studies
How Families Manage the Home Environment for Young People With Asthma and Allergic Sensitisation: A Qualitative Study
Full text linkBackground and Aim Children and young people (CYP) with severe, sub-optimally controlled asthma and co-existing allergic senitization to indoor aeroallergens, such as pet dander and house dust mite (HDM), would likely benefit from reduced allergen exposure. Multiple allergen remediation interventions exist and are often suggested to families in secondary care asthma clinics in the United Kingdom. Evidence suggests remediation uptake is low or partial but there is sparse evidence to explain why. This study aims to explain how families in this situation make decisions about home-based allergen remediations. Methods In-depth qualitative interviews with CYP and mothers were analyzed, and a grounded theory approach was used to develop a theory to explain decision-making processes and behaviors. Results Ten CYP aged 11−15 years and 11 mothers were interviewed. The core finding was that families iteratively respond to changes in how certain they are in their asthma management decisions and actions. For allergen remediation uptake, this certainty varied depending on seeing an outcome-exposure relationship, understanding asthma severity, variability, and asthma control at the time of remediation decision-making. Understanding the mechanistic role of allergen exposures in asthma was challenging for families, and ongoing bi-directional communication with clinicians was essential in supporting long-term decision-making. Conclusion The theory explains the often elongated, reactive process of allergen remediation decision making and implementation. It also explains other elements of family management of asthma, and their interconnections. Families' iterative responsiveness suggests opportunities to intervene and promote earlier, preventative behavior change
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