26199 research outputs found
Sort by
The value of values: Balancing journalism quality and business viability in dynamic, under resourced media ecosystems
Get PDFResponse Essay: Woody Guthrie: Racial Transformation through the Framework of the “Long Civil Rights Movement”
Get PDF
A retrospective examination of the experience and impacts of adult and peer online sexual victimisation in young people
Get PDFChild sexual abuse (CSA) is a pervasive global problem, and online child sexual abuse (OCSA), despite being a fast-growing form of CSA, has continued to receive relatively limited research attention in comparison to sexual abuse experienced without the facilitation of technology. The aim of this PhD programme is to advance knowledge of OCSA by examining the pre, peri, and post online sexual victimisation experienced by young people before the age of 16 using a retrospective mixed methods approach. This was achieved by exploring the initiation and development of online exploitative relationships, examining the scope of different forms of OCSA, quantifying components of the online grooming process and factors predicting sexual abuse following online grooming, and examining the aftermath of OCSA in terms of disclosure of the abuse and its psychosocial impacts in adulthood through a series of three studies. Study 1 used a focus group design to explore young people’s online experiences and interactions with adults and peers. The results revealed four themes consisting of: i) gendered perceptions and experiences of online sexual harm; ii) experience indicative of online grooming by online adult acquaintances; iii) peer perpetrated OCSA; and iv) the psychological impact of OCSA. Using an online questionnaire, Study 2 confirmed that different forms of OCSA (e.g., unwanted online sexual exposure, engagement in unwanted online sexual activities) and online grooming resulting in sexual abuse were common. This suggests young people experience multiple forms of OCSA and highlights the importance of concurrently examining different types of online sexual victimisation to better understand this form of abuse. The experience of grooming tactics and unwanted online exposure as predictors of sexual abuse by online adult acquaintances support existing qualitative evidence and provide quantitative evidence on the online grooming process. Study 2 also demonstrated, for the first time, that peer norms can increase vulnerability to OCSA and found that descriptive norms predicted different aspects of online grooming activities. Using an online questionnaire, Study 3 was the first study to examine the long-term impact of OCSA on psychosocial well-being and the related influence of disclosure in adulthood. The experience of OCSA was found to adversely relate to depression and anxiety symptoms, as well as lower self-esteem, compared to those who had not experienced this form of abuse. This confirms previous findings on the adverse effects of OCSA on young people and shows that the effects can persist into adulthood. This is consistent with the literature on the long-term effects of CSA and reiterates that OCSA is no less serious or less abusive than offline CSA. The link between specific types of adverse childhood experiences (ACEs) and OCSA is an important contribution as they demonstrate both direct and indirect trauma is associated with OCSA and add to a growing body of literature on poly-victimisation across the online and offline environments. Study also extends existing knowledge of sexual re-victimisation by demonstrating the cooccurrence of online and offline CSA and that OCSA perpetrated by both adults and peers was most commonly experienced. These results indicate that young people are being sexually re-victimised before they reach adulthood. These findings can inform clinical practice by emphasising the need to consider vulnerability factors across different domains in order to identify at-risk young people and protect them from further harm. A complex relationship emerged in relation to the influence of disclosure on long-term psychosocial well-being, and self-blame was found to predict post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) symptom severity regardless of whether OCSA had been disclosed. This programme of research developed new knowledge suggesting that vulnerability to OCSA, as well as its experience and impacts, are influenced by social factors and cultural contexts (e.g., gendered sexual norms, peer norms). The role of social stigma about OCSA, negative reactions to disclosure, and self-blame in determining PTSD symptom severity in adulthood and preventing disclosure are also noteworthy contributions to the undeveloped literature on OCSA disclosure. Collectively, the findings underscore the importance of addressing social inequality and social attitudes to prevent exposure to OCSA and to facilitate a safe climate to promote disclosure, which can in turn mitigate the impact of this form of childhood abuse
Whoa, No-Go: Evidence consistent with model-based strategy use in horses during an inhibitory task
Get PDFIt is thought horses lack the prospection and brain architecture required for goal-directed, reflective model-based learning which considers future states. We investigate whether horses can use model-based strategy in an inhibitory task. Twenty subjects were trained for three sessions of a Stop-Signal paradigm using positive reinforcement (+R) for correct responding. All twenty failed to reach learning criterion. Subjects continued to touch in “Stop” contingencies indicating horses either: cannot complete Stop-Signal tasks; need further consolidation; or are utilising model-based cost-benefit analysis. Subjects underwent a further three sessions with the addition of negative punishment (+R/-P) as a cost for errors of emission (EE). If horses lack the ability to complete Stop-Signal tasks, EE would remain high across both treatments. If horses found Stop-Signal difficult but the introduction of cost aided their learning, EE would gradually decrease throughout the +R/-P condition. If horses built a cognitive model of the task but developed a strategy of indiscriminate responding in the +R condition, EE would suddenly decrease with the introduction of cost. A significant, immediate reduction in EE was observed when cost was introduced (p=0.02) that remained stable throughout the +R/-P condition providing evidence consistent with model-based cost-benefit analysis in horses
Facilitating in the moment
No full textThis chapter responds to the ever-changing and challenging environment within higher education that sees high pressure on our time and workloads. As lecturers on the BA (Hons) Dance Performance & Teaching course at The University of Central Lancashire, we met to discuss how our dance training and practice might support us in our HE delivery. The discussion proved fruitful and led us to unpick what it is in our movement practice that could be useful for others working in the same environment. We propose that taking an embodied approach to facilitation helps us to attend to ourselves before, during, and after teaching experiences, and in being more attuned to self, we are therefore more able to be responsive and available for those we are teaching. We believe developing a personal physical practice regardless of subject expertise would support lecturers in this busy, distracting, and often stressful environment
Study of the Structure of Hyperbranched Polyglycerol Coatings and Their Antibiofouling and Antithrombotic Applications
Get PDFWhile blood‐contacting materials are widely deployed in medicine in vascular stents, catheters, and cannulas, devices fail in situ because of thrombosis and restenosis. Furthermore, microbial attachment and biofilm formation is not an uncommon problem for medical devices. Even incremental improvements in hemocompatible materials can provide significant benefits for patients in terms of safety and patency as well as substantial cost savings. Herein, a novel but simple strategy is described for coating a range of medical materials, that can be applied to objects of complex geometry, involving plasma‐grafting of an ultrathin hyperbranched polyglycerol coating (HPG). Plasma activation creates highly reactive surface oxygen moieties that readily react with glycidol. Irrespective of the substrate, coatings are uniform and pinhole free, comprising O─C─O repeats, with HPG chains packing in a fashion that holds reversibly binding proteins at the coating surface. In vitro assays with planar test samples show that HPG prevents platelet adhesion and activation, as well as reducing (>3 log) bacterial attachment and preventing biofilm formation. Ex vivo and preclinical studies show that HPG‐coated nitinol stents do not elicit thrombosis or restenosis, nor complement or neutrophil activation. Subcutaneous implantation of HPG coated disks under the skin of mice shows no evidence of toxicity nor inflammation
A systematic review of older adults’ travel behaviour and mobility during COVID-19 pandemic: Lessons learned for sustainable transport provision and healthy ageing
Get PDFThe COVID-19 pandemic caused significant disruptions to the travel and mobility of various population groups worldwide. These impacts were more pronounced for older adults, who, in various countries around the world, were instructed to quarantine for prolonged periods and avoid contact with others. The impact of these disruptions has been differently experienced between countries and geographical regions with levels of economic development and transport infrastructures playing a role. The aim of this article is firstly, to critically synthesise scientific literature about changes in travel behaviour and transport choices of older adults caused by the responses to the COVID-19 pandemic in various countries, secondly, highlight the main gaps in the literature and finally, provide avenues for future research and transport policies. Findings indicate inequalities in access to transport explained by built environment design and policies adopted by governments to control the pandemic, as well as socio-economic and developmental factors. The implications of these findings for transport provision and increased mobility for older adults in the post-pandemic world are outlined. Finally, we discuss the importance of active ageing policies, which could create more transportation options to support older adults’ mobility needs and access in the post COVID-19 era in both high- and low-income countries
To train or not to train (on match day)? Influence of a priming session on match performance in competitive elite-level soccer
No full textThis study examined the effect of a morning priming session consisted of stretching, mobility, core and lower-body resistance, and reactive agility exercises on match performance in elite-level soccer players. Information on physical and technical performance was collected during competitive matches (n = 32) and subsequently classified as those preceded or not preceded by a priming session. Results showed significantly increased (i) distance covered overall (Cohen’s d (d) = 0.34, p = 0.011), in moderate-intensity (d = 0.52, p = 0.001) and high-intensity running (d = 0.30, p = 0.024), and (ii) frequency of duels (d = 0.26, p = 0.050) in matches preceded by a priming session compared to those not preceded by a priming session. These findings show that players’ physical performance was notably enhanced due to the pre-match routines that the team implemented on match day, while technical performance was in general similar irrespective of whether a priming session was implemented or not before the match. Therefore, morning priming session implemented on match day can be recommended as an effective pre-match strategy to increase players’ physical performance in soccer without negative consequences on technical performance
The dynamical state of bars in cluster dwarf galaxies: The cases of NGC 4483 and NGC 4516
Get PDFDwarf barred galaxies are the perfect candidates for hosting slowly-rotating bars. They are common in dense environments and they have a relatively shallow potential well, making them prone to heating by interactions. When an interaction induces bar formation, the bar should rotate slowly. They reside in massive and centrally-concentrated dark matter halos, which slow down the bar rotation through dynamical friction. While predictions suggest that slow bars should be common, measurements of bar pattern speed, using the Tremaine-Weinberg method, show that bars are mostly fast in the local Universe. We present a photometric and kinematic characterisation of bars hosted by two dwarf galaxies in the Virgo Cluster, NGC 4483 and NGC 4516. We derive the bar length and strength using the Next Generation Virgo Survey imaging and the circular velocity, bar pattern speed, and rotation rate using spectroscopy from the Multi Unit Spectroscopic Explorer. Including the previously studied galaxy IC 3167, we compare the bar properties of the three dwarf galaxies with those of their massive counterparts from literature. Bars in the dwarf galaxies are shorter and weaker, and rotate slightly slower with respect to those in massive galaxies. This could be due to a different bar formation mechanism and/or to a large dark matter fraction in the centre of dwarf galaxies. We show that it is possible to push the application of the Tremaine-Weinberg method to the galaxy low mass regime