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Shaping the future : A study using scenario analysis
No full textAn article included as part of the SAGE Research Methods collection, due for publication in 2019.Scenario analysis requires the integration of a diversity of concepts, views, data and practices for organisations. It is an analysis that draws upon current understanding of organizational and environmental contexts but also one that reflects creativity in the construction of future scenarios within which organisations could compete. This case study explores the application of scenario analysis using the ‘Field Anomaly Relaxation’ (FAR) technique by a group of regional stakeholders to understand and prioritize emergent futures in a UK seaside town. The discussion is focused on two phases of that research project; the series of stakeholder meetings to prioritize emergent futures and the factors shaping them; final analytical and interpretive phase that generated four distinctive scenarios which were used to frame ongoing strategic planning by local and regional organisations
Using historical source data to understand urban flood risk: a socio-hydrological modelling application at Gregorio Creek, Brazil
Get PDFThis is an Accepted Manuscript of an article published by Taylor & Francis in Hydrological Sciences Journal on [24/04/2020], available online: https://doi.org/10.1080/02626667.2020.1740705.The city of São Carlos, state of São Paulo, Brazil, has a historical coexistence between society and floods. Unplanned urbanization in this area is a representative feature of how Brazilian cities have developed, undermining the impact of natural hazards. The Gregório Creek catchment is an enigma of complex dynamics concerning the relationship between humans and water in Brazilian cities. Our hypothesis is that social memory of floods can improve future resilience. In this paper we analyse flood risk dynamics in a small urban catchment, identify the impacts of social memory on building resilience and propose measures to reduce the risk of floods. We applied a socio-hydrological model using data collected from newspapers from 1940 to 2018. The model was able to elucidate human–water processes in the catchment and the historical source data proved to be a useful tool to fill gaps in the data in small urban basins
'The Great Famine in Fiction, 1901-2015'
No full textThis chapter considers Irish writers’ continual reimagining of the Great Famine and the way it has shaped understandings of the past and present. In doing so, it addresses novels and short stories from nineteenth-century writers such as William Carleton, Mary Anne Hoare, and Margaret Brew, who sought to explain or reinterpret the catastrophe while it was still a living memory. The return of the Famine in later historical and neo-Victorian fiction by writers such as Liam O’Flaherty, John Banville, and Joseph O’Connor is considered in light of the association between Famine fiction and present-day crises in the post-independence era. The discussion also extends to the resurgence in literary interest in the Famine in the 1990s and early 2000s, which, the chapter suggests, was due not only to the greater exposure of the Famine in public discourse but also to a revival of insecurities that seemed to belong to the past
Brain perfusion alterations in bulimia/binge-eating
Get PDFThe version of record of this article, first published in [Translational Psychiatry], is available online at Publisher’s website: http://dx.doi.org/10.1038/s41398-020-00871-wAdvances in the treatment of bulimia nervosa and binge eating disorder (BN/BED) have been marred by our limited understanding of the underpinning neurobiology. Here we measured regional cerebral blood flow (rCBF) to map resting perfusion abnormalities in women with BN/BED compared to healthy controls and investigate if intranasal oxytocin (OT), proposed as a potential treatment, can restore perfusion in disorder-related brain circuits. Twenty-four women with BN/BED and 23 healthy women participated in a randomised, double-blind, crossover, placebo-controlled study. We used arterial spin labelling MRI to measure rCBF and the effects of an acute dose of intranasal OT (40IU) or placebo over 18-26 minutes post-dosing, as we have previously shown robust OT-induced changes in resting rCBF in men in a similar time-window (15-36 min post-dosing). We tested for effects of treatment, diagnosis and their interaction on extracted rCBF values in anatomical regions-of-interest previously implicated in BN/BED by other neuroimaging modalities, and conducted exploratory whole-brain analyses to investigate previously unidentified brain regions. We demonstrated that women with BN/BED presented increased resting rCBF in the medial prefrontal and orbitofrontal cortices, anterior cingulate gyrus, posterior insula and middle/inferior temporal gyri bilaterally. Hyperperfusion in these areas specifically correlated with eating symptoms severity in patients. Our data did not support a normalizing effect of intranasal OT on perfusion abnormalities in these patients, at least for the specific dose (40 IU) and post-dosing interval (18-26 minutes) examined. Our findings enhance our understanding of resting brain abnormalities in BN/BED and identify resting rCBF as a non-invasive potential biomarker for disease-related changes and treatment monitoring. They also highlight the need for a comprehensive investigation of intranasal OT pharmacodynamics in women before we can fully ascertain its therapeutic value in disorders affecting predominantly this gender, such as BN/BED
Perception of Spirituality among Substance Addicts with Incarceration Experience: A Phenomenological Study
No full textThis article is not available on ChesterRepThis paper examines the role of spirituality in a recovery context by drawing on qualitative research conducted at a residential recovery community in North Wales, United Kingdom. The study aimed to examine perceptions of spirituality among exprisoners and people identifying as in recovery from addiction. The researchers explored ideas of “spiritual coping” and “spiritual wellbeing” in terms of meaning, purpose, connectedness, forgiveness, and peace in addiction treatment programs influenced by 12-Step models, for instance, Alcoholics Anonymous (AA). Also, this paper focuses on both spiritual counseling services shaped by pre-determined meanings and values and secondly, on individuals’ perceptions about spirituality through the language of desires, needs, and expectations. The data for this research produced from five semi-structured interviews with male individuals who had recovered from their addiction and had practised some custodial life. To discover the common context of different perceptions of the language spirituality, the data was coded by the first and second loop encodings from the data analysis methods used. The central schemes that appear as “Spirituality in Experiences, Spirituality in Values, Spirituality as Meaning/Purpose of Life, Spirituality as Attachment, Spirituality as Coping Mechanism” have been evaluated within the framework of the concept of spirituality. In the conclusion of this study, it was observed that spirituality was used as a coping mechanism for buffering the sensation of hopelessness and powerlessness often experienced by people in active addiction
Open Carboniferous Limestone pavement grike microclimates in Great Britain and Ireland: understanding the present to inform the future
Get PDFLimestone pavements are a distinctive and irreplaceable geodiversity feature, in which are found
crevices known as grikes. These grikes provide a distinct microclimate conferring a more stable
temperature, higher relative humidity, lower light intensity and lower air speed than can be found
in the regional climate. This stability of microclimate has resulted in an equally distinctive
community of flora and fauna, adapted to a forest floor but found in an often otherwise barren
landscape. This thesis documents the long-term study of the properties of the limestone pavement
grike in order to identify the extent to which the microclimate may sustain its distinctive
biodiversity, to provide recommendations for future research which may lead to more effective
management. Over a five-year study, recordings of temperature, relative humidity, light intensity
and samples of invertebrate biodiversity were collected from five limestone pavements situated in
the Yorkshire Dales and Cumbria in Great Britain, and The Burren in the Republic of Ireland. An
extensive description of the grike microclimate was undertaken using the data collected to
understand the extent of the microclimate stability of the grike and the conditions for variation in
the grike microclimate. Further insights into the grike microclimate were gained through simulation
techniques more commonly used in engineering, to explore the effects of air flowing over a grike,
the light from the sun entering the grike and regression analysis to simulate the temperature
within the grike in the present and projected for the future.
This study has indicated that although the whole of the grike confers a degree of microclimatic
stability, it is made up of a less stable upper zone and a more stable lower zone. The instability of
the upper zone is hypothesised to result from the extent to which the majority of light and external
air can enter the grike, whereas the stability of the lower zone may be governed by the thermal
stability of the limestone surrounding it. Based on this zonation and the projections for the grike
temperature, it is hypothesised that climate change will have the most substantial effects in the
upper grike zone where species obligated to this area could be most heavily impacted. This study
recommends a range of areas in which research may be employed so that the limestone pavement
habitat may be successfully managed in Great Britain and the Republic of Ireland
Researching online counselling and psychotherapy: The past, the present and the future
Get PDFFrom Wiley via Jisc Publications RouterHistory: received 2020-12-15, accepted 2020-12-17, pub-electronic 2020-12-29, pub-print 2021-09Article version: VoRPublication status: PublishedAbstract: This paper reflects upon the history of online counselling and psychotherapy research. It provides a reflection upon the growing body of research in this field and discusses the impact of the recent global COVID‐19 pandemic upon it. It specifically argues that the pandemic has been an evolutionary catalyst for developments in online therapy. Therapeutic practices, and attitudes towards them, have changed in ways that will alter the shape and form of therapies in the future. As a consequence, research into online therapeutic work needs to be responsive and adapt to this changing world. Counselling and psychotherapy researchers therefore have to situate themselves in a way that allows them to keep one foot in the present and one foot in the future to stay abreast of technological developments. There may be a reluctance to do so from some areas in the therapeutic profession, but their presence might prove vital in ensuring that ethical sensitivity, which acknowledges and values the complexity of the human experience, remains at the foreground of psychological support
Suicidality in women with Premenstrual Dysphoric Disorder: a systematic literature review
Get PDFFrom Springer Nature via Jisc Publications RouterHistory: received 2020-04-02, registration 2020-07-16, accepted 2020-07-16, pub-electronic 2020-09-16, online 2020-09-16, pub-print 2021-04Publication status: PublishedFunder: University of ManchesterAbstract: Previous research has identified how menstruation is an important factor in both attempted and completed suicides for women. The purpose of this review was to outline (a) the risk profile for suicidality in women who were identified to experience Premenstrual Dysphoric Disorder (PMDD), a condition characterized by severe physical and psychological changes that occur during the luteal menstrual phase, and (b) the implications of these findings for clinical practice. A systematic literature review was conducted using five databases to identify any peer-reviewed articles published between 1989 and 2019. Ten papers eligible for inclusion were identified: three pertaining to suicide cognitions, five to suicide attempts and two to both cognitions and attempts. Findings showed that suicidal thoughts, ideation, plans and attempts were strongly associated with experiences of PMDD and that these findings were independent of psychiatric co-morbidities. However, women with PMDD did not present with more severe risk profiles for suicide attempts (in terms of frequency, impulsivity and lethality) or make more frequent attempts during the luteal menstrual phase compared with suicide attempters without PMDD. Women with PMDD should be considered a high risk group for suicidality; thus, identifying and treating symptoms are vital in reducing suicide attempts. Implications for clinical practice are outlined in the discussion
Attunement in Art Psychotherapy
Get PDFBackground: British art psychotherapy in 2020 is influenced by an integrative psychodynamic and ‘affective neuroscience’ approach, which measures emotions or feelings (‘affects’) embodied in brain processes – such as the firing of ‘mirror neurons’ – and relates them to intersubjective inner processes of the unconscious such as ‘attunement’. Attunement is frequently confused with related concepts such as empathy; these concepts have been correlated with successful therapeutic outcomes, so it is important to break them down into essential, operational components in order to apply them to theory, research and practice. In art psychotherapy these interpersonal processes take place within the multidimensional ‘triangular’ relationship between client, therapist and image.
Research Question: What are the essential components of the concept of ‘attunement’, and how has this been operationalised in the art psychotherapy literature?
Method: From a subjective/constructivist/‘metaphorist’ paradigm and using a qualitative approach, Walker and Avant’s eight-step concept analysis method is applied to 25 primary literature sources with ‘attunement’ in their titles. Additionally, 16 snowballing reference sources and 43+ articles published in BAAT’s Inscape/International Journal of Art Therapy (IJAT) are examined for their uses and operationalisation of attunement.
Findings: Attunement is a mutual, automatic/unconscious, ongoing process which ‘recasts’ the outward expression of the same shared affect into a different form or modality matching in ‘activation contour’ (intensity, shape, rhythm, etc.), e.g. a sound into a movement, or the creation of an image into words. This ‘recasting’ is what distinguishes attunement from emotional ‘contagion’ and mirroring; empathy is more conscious/intentional. There are differing levels of attunement, and ‘moderate’, with ruptures and repairs, appears to be the most developmentally and therapeutically effective.
Key conclusions/recommendations: Articles in IJAT refer to attunement with increasing frequency and scholarly citation/definition over time, although there appears to be ongoing misunderstanding of the concept. Several authors describe attunement with the image, and it has been suggested that this can generalise over time to attunement with the therapist, the self, and others. Future research could use video analysis and physiological measures to investigate ‘moderate’ attunement with the image and therapist, and how the rupture/repair cycle applies to art psychotherapy
Public preferences regarding data linkage for research: a discrete choice experiment comparing Scotland and Sweden
Get PDFFrom Springer Nature via Jisc Publications RouterHistory: received 2019-06-25, accepted 2020-05-28, registration 2020-05-29, pub-electronic 2020-06-16, online 2020-06-16, collection 2020-12Publication status: PublishedFunder: The Farr Institute; Grant(s): MR/K006665/1Abstract: Background: There are increasing examples of linking data on healthcare resource use and patient outcomes from different sectors of health and social care systems. Linked data are generally anonymised, meaning in most jurisdictions there are no legal restrictions to their use in research conducted by public or private organisations. Secondary use of anonymised linked data is contentious in some jurisdictions but other jurisdictions are known for their use of linked data. The publics’ perceptions of the acceptability of using linked data is likely to depend on a number of factors. This study aimed to quantify the preferences of the public to understand the factors that affected views about types of linked data and its use in two jurisdictions. Method: An online discrete choice experiment (DCE) previously conducted in Scotland was adapted and replicated in Sweden. The DCE was designed, comprising five attributes, to elicit the preferences from a representative sample of the public in both jurisdictions. The five attributes (number of levels) were: type of researcher using linked data (four); type of data being linked (four); purpose of the research (three); use of profit from using linked data (four); who oversees the research (four). Each DCE contained 6 choice-sets asking respondents to select their preferred option from two scenarios or state neither were acceptable. Background questions included socio-demographics. DCE data were analysed using conditional and heteroskedastic conditional logit models to create forecasts of acceptability. Results: The study sample comprised members of the public living in Scotland (n = 1004) and Sweden (n = 974). All five attributes were important in driving respondents’ choices. Swedish and Scottish preferences were mostly homogenous with the exception of ‘who oversees the research using linked data’, which had relatively less impact on the choices observed from Scotland. For a defined ‘typical’ linked data scenario, the probability (on average) of acceptance was 85.7% in Sweden and 82.4% in Scotland. Conclusion: This study suggests that the public living in Scotland and Sweden are open to using anonymised linked data in certain scenarios for research purposes but some caution is advisable if the anonymised linked data joins health to non-health data
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