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Cognitive behavioural therapists’ experiences of working remotely with language interpreters
Get PDFIn the United Kingdom (UK), approximately one million people cannot speak English well enough to access therapy in English. If there is no shared language used by both the client and therapist, then individuals require access to an interpreter so that they receive an equitable service. Research highlights the anxiety and pressures that working with an interpreter can bring for professionals. In light of the Coronavirus pandemic and increased remote working, this research aimed to explore the experience and perspectives of cognitive behavioural therapists working with language interpreters remotely. Semi-structured interviews were conducted with 18 participants who were asked about their experience of working with interpreters remotely. Data were analysed using Braun and Clarke’s six phases of thematic analysis. The analysis resulted in four main themes being constructed: the system doesn’t make it easier; working in a culturally sensitive way; the powerful role of the interpreter; and remote therapy – different landscape, different journey. Findings offer an understanding of how working with an interpreter impacts ways of working in cognitive behavioural therapy. The findings draw attention to the impact of the organisational context where therapists work
Effectiveness of social and therapeutic horticulture for reducing symptoms of depression and anxiety: a systematic review and meta-analysis.
Get PDFBackground Depression and anxiety are the two most common mental health conditions, that often co-exist and relapse over time. There is a need for sustainable treatment options to address increasing rates of depression and anxiety and reduce the strain on health systems. Social and Therapeutic Horticulture (STH) is a nature-based health intervention that can reduce symptoms of depression and anxiety, however synthesised evidence of its effectiveness is required to inform commissioning and availability of interventions.AimThe aim of this systematic review and meta-analysis was to examine the effectiveness of STH for reducing symptoms of depression and anxiety.
Method Following PRISMA guidelines and the protocol registered on Prospero (CRD42024542671) a systematic search of scientific databases and grey literature was conducted to identify quantitative studies examining the impact of STH interventions on depression and anxiety outcomes. Studies were eligible for inclusion if they reported on an STH intervention that was led by a trained practitioner, administered to adult populations who were identified as either at risk, with symptoms or diagnosis of depression and/or anxiety and reported on depression or anxiety outcomes measured using validated scales. Data from eligible studies were extracted and analysed using a random effects meta-analysis.
Results Seventeen studies were identified for inclusion including four RCTs, ten quasi-experimental studies with comparators and three single group studies. Nine studies reported outcomes for depression only, two for anxiety only and six for both depression and anxiety. Across studies with comparators, meta-analyses revealed large and significant effects in favour of the STH group for depression (SMD= -1.01; p=<.001) and moderate and significant effects in favour of the STH group for anxiety (SMD=-.62; p<.001). There was significant heterogeneity across studies, with high risk of bias, particularly for statistical validity and outcome measure reliability.
Conclusions STH interventions have the potential to support existing treatment approaches for depression and anxiety. However, to inform commissioning and upscaling of services, rigorous randomised studies comparing STH to treatment as usual for depression and anxiety are required
Enhancing Wireless Communication Security with Variable Bloom Filter-Based Physical-Layer Secure Transmission
Get PDFThis paper studies one-time pad (OTP) secure communication by leveraging the unpredictable physical layer channel characteristics. Existing OTP schemes based on physical-layer key generation (PKG) require additional transmission overhead of information reconciliation and may face security threats of information leakage under slow-varying channels. To tackle these challenges, we investigate a fault-tolerant privacy amplification method through variable bloom filters to address the underlying security problems. Specifically, the quantized bit sequence of the channel state information goes through a bloom filter to improve the randomness within the sequence while the parameters of bloom filter vary to avoid the correlations between adjacent sequences. We then optimize the parameters of the errorcorrecting code used during communication based on the position of the eavesdropper and the length of the quantized bits, thereby further enhancing the system security. Through comprehensive simulations, it is shown that our proposed approach can achieve a near-perfect pass rate in NIST randomness tests, and with a bit replacement rate around 0.45, whilst capable of resisting attacks under slow-varying channels. These results indicate that the proposed scheme significantly outperforms previous OTP secure transmission schemes
The Heartbeat-Evoked Potential in Young and Older Adults During Attention Orienting.
No full textCardiac cycle duration, or interbeat interval (IBI), is the period from one heartbeat to the next. IBI changes from cycle to cycle. Periods with longer IBI are associated with higher sensitivity to external sensory stimuli (exteroception). Warning cues induce a state of attentive anticipation characterized by an increase in IBI (anticipatory cardiac deceleration) and faster reaction times. Aging reduces the increase in IBI induced by warning cues and response speed. However, it is unclear which mechanism, if any, connects IBI with reaction time. The heartbeat-evoked potential (HEP) is a cortical response evoked by the heartbeat, modulated by attention and associated with sensitivity to external sensory stimuli. HEP might be affected by IBI and mediate the association between cardiac output and cortical processing. We investigated if the HEP was affected by warning cues as well as spontaneous fluctuations in IBI. To explore the impact of age-related changes in cardiac responses, we included young and older people (N = 33/29; 26/23 women; mean age 23/61 years). We analyzed the electroencephalograms and electrocardiograms simultaneously acquired during auditory cued simple reaction time and go/no-go tasks. The warning cue did not induce significant changes in the HEP. Yet, fluctuations in IBI (not locked with the warning cue) affected the HEP, and HEP amplitude was associated with average reaction time in the older group. However, on a trial-by-trial basis, reaction time was independent from IBI fluctuations. In conclusion, we found no evidence that the HEP mediates the effect of attention orienting on reaction time
Understanding occupational histories and how they influence a psychoanalytic child psychotherapist’s experience of their work: An Interpretative Phenomenological Analysis
Get PDFThis study explores how Child and Adolescent Psychoanalytic Psychotherapists (CAPPTs) experience the influence of their previous occupations on their current work. Using Interpretative Phenomenological Analysis (IPA), it investigates how diverse professional backgrounds shape their identity, skills and therapeutic approach. Addressing a gap in the literature, it highlights the significance of prior occupations—an overlooked topic in CAPPT training and practice. Participants were selected based on their former roles and current status as CAPPTs, with semi-structured interviews used to elicit personal narratives. The study focuses on the lived experiences of four CAPPTs, analysing how their earlier careers inform their practice and professional development. Analysis of interview transcripts and occupational histories generated five themes: The Seedlings, The Transformation Process, Integration and Conceptualisation of One’s Approach, Relationships and Interactions Then and Now, and Learning from Occupational Experiences to Empathise with One’s Patient. Participants reported a sense of identity disintegration and reintegration, facilitating a deeper understanding of self and patient. The findings underscore the value of prior experience in shaping therapeutic work with children, young people and families, as well as associated tasks such as teaching, managing, research, and supervision. The study illustrates a cultivated sense of ownership and belonging in these CAPPTs and offers insights for recruitment, training, and reflective practice—suggesting that engaging with one’s occupational history can enrich the development of child psychotherapists
Profit or Power: Determinants of Chinese Financing to the Developing World
Get PDFSince the launch of its ‘going out’ strategy in 1999, China has become the largest bilateral sovereign lender to the developing world. This article argues that, since Xi Jinping came to power in 2012, China has used overseas financing to developing countries to consolidate a strategical wedge between certain borrowing countries and the United States, China’s main geopolitical rival. Using a Heckman two-stage estimation, this article shows how China, albeit providing financing to a wide array of developing nations, lends more and on more favourable terms to countries that are farther away from the United States in terms of foreign policy preferences. Statistical analyses on a sample of 148 developing countries from 2000 to 2017 provide support for the hypotheses
How to Analyse Data and Evidence: The Third Stage Of The Social Research Toolbox, QGAP [How-to Guide]
Get PDFThis guide offers an overview of some of the key tasks required for analysing qualitative and quantitative research data and evidence. As part of the social research toolbox, or QGAP, series, it considers what should happen once you have gathered data and evidence in pursuit of your research question. The guide begins with the important task of preparing your data for analysis which involves formatting it so that it is free from errors and that all identifiable features (which could compromise anonymity) are removed. It then considers the key features of social science data analysis – which are argued to be categorisation and comparison. Theory also plays an important role in this process as comparisons within our data are used to test, refine or develop theories. We finally discuss the use of software packages in the analysis stage and some of the possibilities they offer for managing, categorising and visualising relationships within your data
How to Gather Data and Evidence: The Second Stage of The Social Research Toolbox, QGAP [How-to Guide]
Get PDFThis guide offers a concise overview of how to gather data and evidence to answer your research question. It forms part of the social research toolbox, or QGAP, series and so focuses on the second stage of the research process. You will learn how to critically evaluate existing evidence and literature, and the role that reviewing literature plays in both refining your research question and preparing you to gather research data. Different research design choices (including the distinction between qualitative and quantitative designs) are then outlined before the most popular social research methods are summarised. The guide concludes with a discussion of the key principles for gathering data ethically. The reader should be aware that this is a short introductory guide which should get you started on the gathering part of the social research toolbox. There are a range of sources suggested for further reading throughout the guide
Ida Shakespeer, an Essex novel : A creative-critical investigation of place and gender in contemporary fiction.
Get PDFIda Shakespeer is a novel situated in a marginalised region of coastal Essex (between Southend-on-Sea and Clacton). A mother-daughter relationship, its eponymous heroine is a grandmother who shows resilience in maintaining her financial and emotional independence, and in seeking to ‘rescue’ her daughter from an unhappy marriage. To write it I drew upon autobiographical experiences working in Tendring and growing up in Southend-on-Sea, but it is a work of pure fiction. The feminist ‘Essex novel’ about contemporary working-class women has not yet been written; this constitutes part of the originality of this thesis. Influenced by artists as diverse as Angela Carter, Grayson Perry, Tracey Emin, Elizabeth Strout, Deborah Levy and Anne Enright, this novel revisions and reimagines the bildungsroman, substituting the ‘reifungsroman’ as coined by the critic Barbara Frey Waxman – it is the story of a character in older age coming to new understanding in their maturity. The novel is contextualised by a consideration of its feminist influences, and themes of gender and regional marginalisation. Responding to the words of Audre Lorde, ‘by ignoring the past, we are encouraged to repeat its mistakes’, there is a discussion of women’s conventional responsibility for domestic tasks, and the impact this has on the woman writer. I examine contemporary mother-daughter relationships in the work of Anne Enright, Deborah Levy, Bernadine Evaristo and Elizabeth Strout, mentioning Edward W. Said’s theory On Late Style. I explore the artistic depiction of marginalised places which influenced the novel and my thinking about telling the stories of ‘ordinary women’: Grayson Perry’s evocation of his ‘Essex Everywoman’ Julie Cope, whose story is told via literary ballads, tapestries and ultimately in the architectural splendour of his ‘House for Essex’ in Wrabness, and Tracey Emin’s depictions of mothers and daughters, herself as a sexually curious and exploited young woman in Margate, and recent homage to her mother in sculpture