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Developing Second Language Mandarin Fluency Through Pedagogic Intervention and Study Abroad: Planning Time, Speech Rate, and Response Duration
Get PDFThis longitudinal study examines the effects of a pre-study abroad (SA) pedagogic intervention and subsequent SA experience on second language (L2) Mandarin fluency. It explores two temporal aspects of oral fluency—planning time and speech rate—along with one performance measure, duration of response. Additionally, L2 contact data were included as a supplementary variable in the analysis. The experimental group was assessed at three points: before instruction (T1), after 2 weeks of instruction (T2), and post-SA (T3). A non-instructed control group that participated in the SA period provided baseline data. Both groups demonstrated improved fluency after the SA period, with the experimental group showing superior performance in planning time, speech rate, and duration of response. The greatest reduction in between-group differences occurred at T2 and persisted over
time. These findings highlight that combining targeted instruction with exposure is highly effective, with L2 contact strongly correlating with overall fluency gains
Lived Experiences of Support Workers. Navigating Work and Family Life During the COVID-19 Pandemic in the UK.
Get PDFSupport workers are an ‘invisible’ part of the health sector whose work requires them to continue to work through different events such as pandemics. This thesis focuses on exploring the lived experiences of support workers during the COVID-19 pandemic in England and the strategies they used in order to cope and manage both work and family life while all social restrictions were still in place. The thesis is comprised of a meta-ethnography, a qualitative exploration of the lived experiences of support workers and a proposed supervisory protocol (PSP) for guiding supervisors to assist support workers during the COVID-19 pandemic. The meta-ethnography screened 167 articles out of 211 results, identifying four qualitative studies that explored the support workers’ experiences during the COVID-19 pandemic. Eight key themes were identified from studies in the UK and US, which informed a qualitative study, conducted based on the principles of reflexive thematic analysis (RTA). For the qualitative study, fifteen (15) support workers were interviewed sharing their lived experiences of working during COVID-19 and while all COVID-19 restrictions from the government were still in place. Five themes were identified.
The thesis contributes to our understanding of the lived experiences of support workers under extreme health (e.g., pandemic) and societal (e.g., lockdown, social distancing) conditions. This is the first time that research conducted in the UK focuses on support workers undergoing these emotionally challenging experiences during the COVID-19 pandemic and while all governmental restrictions were in place
EXPLORING MOLECULAR LINKS IN BRAIN TUMOUR BIOPSY TISSUES AND ALZHEIMER’S DISEASE
No full textAIMS Generate and identify putative targets in the SORL1-network by mining online databases. Analyse 21 FFPE human brain tumour biopsy tissues through transcriptome sequencing performed by CeGaT (Tübingen, Germany) to explore differentially expressed genes. These biopsy samples are from consenting patients in association with Brain Tumour North West (BTNW) and the Royal Preston Hospital. METHOD Group comparisons are performed with the control and cancerous sample groups (low-grade glioma staying low, low-grade glioma becoming high and high-grade staying high). Further analysis involves comparing section and resection from the same patient for each cancer tissue group. Samples are explored on four different bioinformatic levels and sequenced on the Illumina platform. In Level 1 the data is demultiplexed and trimmed and in Level 2 trimmed reads are additionally mapped. Level 3 provides insights into the cell’s metabolic state and Level 4 performs several group comparisons. RESULTS Gain insights into differentially expressed genes’ presence in biopsy tissues from different stages of brain cancer, expression levels and links to clinical characteristics. Bioinformatic analysis provides data on quality control of the starting material, library preparation, sequencing parameters, and the Q30 value of the sequencing. CONCLUSION The analysis demonstrates molecular links in the SORL1-network in tissue from section and resection from a patient cohort to better understand disease recurrent and progression. Prospective bioinformatic work would explore interactions between significant targets identified to create a curated network that could predict druggable targets in gliomas
Approved Mental Health Professionals: Teamwork, ‘Safety Nets’ and ‘Buckling Under’
Get PDFIn England and Wales, Approved Mental Health Professionals (AMHPs) have the ultimate responsibility, based on doctors’ medical recommendations, for deciding to detain a person, without consent, under the Mental Health Act (1983). The work can be traumatic, yet its emotional impacts are often unacknowledged. Consistent themes include erratic levels of supervision and an overdependence on peer support, despite the longstanding recruitment and retention difficulties arising from high levels of stress and burnout. This article draws on findings from two research projects with AMHP services: one a national study using questionnaires and focus groups, and the other a doctoral research study using ethnography. Findings suggest that a lack of peer support, teamwork and debrief opportunities, exacerbated during the COVID-19 pandemic, intensified stress and burnout (‘buckling under’) as well as undermining socialising opportunities for trainees. AMHPs used metaphoric language to articulate their difficult experiences. Workplace environments including hot-desking and lone working may undermine casework discussions, social relations, informal peer support and supervision. Overall, AMHPs perceive their teammates as an essential source of support (a ‘safety net’) without which there are negative implications for practice. Ultimately, stress is exacerbated when there is no space to reflect and no team to do this with
An evidence-based approach to utilizing cold therapies for post-exercise recovery
Get PDFWhilst cold therapies such as cold-water immersion are regularly used in practice, the practical application does not always align with best practice. In this commentary we highlight the key components of the British Association of Sport and Exercise Sciences (BASES) Expert Statement on the use of cooling therapies for post-exercise recovery, and provide additional discussion on the empirical evidence and rationale that informed our perspective. We developed a series of specific questions, to ensure that cold therapy recovery protocols are context specific and tailored to the needs to the individual athletes. These questions, which cover the WHEN, WHAT and HOW of cold therapy, were central to the development of the Expert Statement. This was presented as a decision tree to ensure that key messages could be concisely disseminated across a range of sporting environments and populations (e.g. gyms, locker rooms and treatment rooms), supporting and informing decision making for those wanting to use cold therapy to assist their recovery, in-line with previously published peer-reiewed work. Discussion points included the suitability of cooling therapies for in some contexts, how athletes’ choice of cooling mode should be largely driven by practicalities (e.g. budget, availability) and lastly future research directions
Does environmental policy stringency alter the natural resources-emissions nexus? Evidence from G-7 countries
Get PDFNatural resource management is indispensable keeping in view their positive economic impacts as well as their detrimental environmental consequences. To achieve certain SDGs, it is inevitable to manage natural resources through effective policies that help to inhibit adverse environmental impacts. Based on this approach, the current empirical analysis aims to probe whether environmental policy stringency intensifies, meagres, and/or halts the abysmal environmental impact of natural resources in G-7 countries (United Kingdom, United States, Canada, Italy, France, Japan, and Germany) for the period from 1990 to 2020. To that end, we rely on the second-generation panel data approaches and panel quantile regression. The outcomes reveal that natural resources increase carbon dioxide emission whereas the synergy of natural resources and environmental policy stringency plunges emissions across the quantiles. These findings suggest adoption of a strict environmental policy for attaining the targets of SGD-08 (economic growth), SDG-09 (innovations), SDG-11 (sustainable cities), SDG-12 (responsible consumption of natural resources), and SDG-13 (climate action)
Gender Equality in Leadership: HR's Role in Shaping Women's Career Roadmaps in the Pharmaceutical Industry
Get PDFDespite significant progress in women's professional advancement and the promotion of diversity in the workplace, senior leadership positions across various industries, including the pharmaceutical sector, remain predominantly occupied by men. Throughout their reproductive years and into menopause, female professionals encounter numerous obstacles that hinder their progression to higher hierarchical levels. Organisational interventions aimed at transforming workplace culture and fostering diversity and inclusion are essential for their professional growth; however, evidence from the pharmaceutical field regarding these interventions is limited. This research employed a qualitative phenomenological approach, drawing on data from questionnaires and semi-structured interviews with twelve pharmaceutical leaders from the UK and Greece. It explored perceptions of barriers and enablers impacting women’s career development, attributes and leadership styles for effective leadership, awareness of allyship for women and the extent of organisational support for their upward mobility. Thematic analysis revealed limited awareness and engagement in allyship initiatives, despite recognition of the crucial role that allies ─ regardless of gender ─ play in facilitating women’s career advancement. This highlights the need for self-education, training on bias and discrimination as well as, the development of organisational initiatives to promote allyship. Five core themes emerged for effective organisational support including empowerment strategies (e.g., women’s affinity groups, leadership and mentoring programs and educational events for skill enhancement), family-focused policies, educational initiatives (such as training on bias, diversity, equity, and inclusion training), inclusive hiring strategies and measures ensuring equal compensation. These findings underscore HR’s critical role in designing and implementing innovative and targeted approaches to eliminate gender inequalities in the pharmaceutical industry
Beyond the Ego and Towards Complexity through Social Dreaming
No full textThis chapter addresses the use of social dreaming to facilitate a sense of shared understanding of complex problems, such as coping with a pandemic or understanding climate anxiety. By creating a safe and containing space where creativity and unconscious thoughts, feelings and ideas are encouraged, a collective refusal to over-simplify complexity emerges. Instead, the truth within complexity is embraced and celebrated. Although not therapy, social dreaming has therapeutic effects by providing each participant with the means to express - through the condensation of dreams and dream sharing - a form of knowledge which is otherwise inexpressible. Anxiety, fear and even trauma associated with an issue such as the effect of climate change are contained within the safety of dreams and supported by a shared collage of images and associations. Difficulties are not hidden but expressed in the image-rich and shared tapestry of the language of social dreaming