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Determinants of maternity services utilisation among women of reproductive age across sub-Saharan Africa
Full text link© 2026 Hajjar et al.BACKGROUND: In 2020, approximately 800 women died daily as a result of largely preventable complications of pregnancy and delivery globally. Almost 95% of these deaths occurred in low- and middle-income countries. Even though antenatal care, institutional delivery, and postnatal care constitute lifesaving maternal and newborn healthcare services, uptake is variable between countries in sub-Saharan Africa. Thus, this study examined the coverage and factors influencing the utilisation of maternal and newborn health services in sub-Saharan Africa.
METHODS: This current study pooled datasets from the Demographic Health Surveys conducted in 27 countries in sub-Saharan Africa between the years 2010-2020. The outcome variables were maternal and newborn health services measured by antenatal care visits, institutional delivery, and postnatal care visits among 58,648 women of reproductive age between the ages of 15-49. Multilevel analysis was employed to examine the associated factors at a p < 0.05 level of significance.
RESULTS: The overall analysis of the prevalence of maternal and newborn health services among women of reproductive age in sub-Saharan Africa was 67.3%, 74.5%, and 32.5% for 4 + antenatal care visits, institutional delivery and visits to postnatal care within 48 hours of delivery, respectively. Antenatal care visits were highest in Sierra Leone at 91.4%, and Institutional delivery was highest in Gabon at 97.6%, whilst Niger had the lowest prevalence for antenatal care visits and institutional delivery at 38.0% and 42.3%, respectively. Cote d'Ivoire reported the highest prevalence of postnatal care with 78.8%, whilst Malawi reported the lowest with 7.3%. Moreover, women with secondary/higher education were more likely to utilise antenatal care (aOR=2.09; 95% CI:1.96-2.23) and have institutional delivery (aOR=2.54; 95% CI:2.34-2.74) compared to those with no education. Furthermore, being employed was associated with a higher likelihood of utilising postnatal care (aOR=1.28; 95% CI:1.22-1.34) within 48 hours of delivery compared to women without formal employment.
CONCLUSION: The study concluded that women of reproductive age in sub-Saharan Africa who were educated were more likely to seek antenatal care and have institutional delivery, whilst women who were employed were more likely to utilise postnatal care within 48 hours of delivery. Therefore, future initiatives should focus on empowering and strengthening the education of girls and women in sub-Saharan Africa
The Traitors – a cultural, and psychological, phenomenon
No full textThe Traitors is one of the most watched and talked-about programmes on TV, gaining an audience of over five million for the first episode of season 3. As psychologists, we know that people are inherently interested in other people – in The Traitors, viewers get to watch a wide spectrum of human behaviour. The game itself involves trust, deception and betrayal, but we also get to see how first impressions form, how relationships emerge between individuals, how groups form, how people judge and make decisions about each other, along with many other psychological areas of interest.Publisher contacted re: rules on self-archiving the AO in an IR. Publisher replied that ok to make the AO openly available (see email dated 06/03/2026
From Field to Model: Monitoring Methods and Integrated Population Modelling of Alpine ibex (Capra ibex)
No full textClimate change poses numerous threats to wildlife inhabiting mountain environments, where changes are occurring rapidly. Mountain ungulates, which play a key role in alpine ecosystems, are especially vulnerable. Many are already in an unfavourable conservation status, and their conservation is further challenged by limitations in biodemography studies and monitoring efforts. Monitoring is indeed complicated by imperfect detection (the inability to count all individuals) and by the costs and difficulties of working in rugged mountain habitats. This thesis aims to address some of these limitations and strengthen conservation strategies for mountain ungulates. Since monitoring forms the foundation of effective management, but traditional count methods (block counts) are often imprecise, I explore alternative approaches to improve reliability while reducing costs. I then focus on another key objective: understanding the drivers of population dynamics in ungulates and the effects of a changing environment on their biodemography. To achieve these objectives, I focus on the Alpine ibex (Capra ibex L., 1758) population in Gran Paradiso National Park (GPNP, Northwestern Italian Alps), which offers an exceptionally long time series of counts and individual survival data. Using simulations based on real-case parameters, I test the reliability of sample counts (counting only a portion of the total area) as a low-effort monitoring approach. Results show that surveying half of the target area is sufficient to detect relevant population trends, demonstrating how sample counts could be valuable for population monitoring. I also propose a new census framework, the Double Observer Adjusted Survey (DOAS), which improves count reliability with minimal additional effort. This method uses Double Observer repeats to estimate detectability and adjust data from full-area block counts. Both simulations and a field test confirm its reliability, indicating its suitability for cost-effective and accurate abundance estimation. Furthermore, I analyse detectability and its determinants in the study population, showing that individuals are more easily observed under certain weather conditions or terrain topography. Accounting for these factors could improve traditional block counts without replacing them. Finally, I use Integrated Population Models to reconstruct the population dynamics of the study population over the last 70 years. These analyses suggest that climate change can strongly influence ungulate dynamics and age structure through alterations in snow cover, temperature, and vegetation, and that juveniles could be the most sensitive age class and shape population trajectories. The effects of climate change could be contrasting: in GPNP, adults are showing higher survival due to milder winters, whereas kid survival fall as a consequence of population aging, leading to an overall abundance reduction. Together, these findings could improve conservation efforts for Alpine ibex and other mountain ungulates, providing practical tools for monitoring populations and understanding the ecological and environmental drivers that shape them.Thesis deposited following repository upgrade (2nd to 23rd February 2026). Exam board date: 18th March 2026
Validation of the Short General Attitudes Towards Artificial Intelligence Scale: The Short GAAIS-10
Full text link© 2026 The Author(s). Published with license by Taylor & Francis Group, LLC.With Artificial Intelligence becoming ever more widespread, it is important to have instruments that measure people’s attitudes toward Artificial Intelligence efficiently. Providing such a tool was the aim of the current report. Its authors report the validation of a shortened and further purified version of General Attitudes toward Artificial Intelligence Scale (GAAIS) consisting of ten items (Short GAAIS-10) based on empirical survey data from UK-based participants, collected online (total N = 1406). The multi-phase study design was based on Factor Analysis, Item Response Theory, correlation, and multivariate multiple regression. Phase 1 was a rigorous selection phase based on three independent prior samples of approximately 300 participants each (collected in 2021 and 2022). Confirmatory Factor Analysis (CFA) and Polytomous Rasch Analysis (PTA) alongside semantic judgements were used to select 10 items. In phase 2, a new representative UK sample (N = 500) was drawn in 2024 to further validate the Short GAAIS-10. CFA and PTA of the new data revealed good psychometric properties of the Short GAAIS-10, which is bidimensional with two subscales (Positive, Negative). The Short GAAIS-10 showed predictive validity against the Technology Readiness Index based on correlation analysis. Rated comfortableness with seven types of AI applications was positively predicted by the Short GAAIS-10 subscales based on multivariate multiple regression. The Short GAAIS-10 is a valid and streamlined instrument with which to measure General Attitudes toward Artificial Intelligence. The ambivalent nature of public AI attitudes is discussed as an important observation for a general AI attitude scale to capture. The contribution of this research is the creation of a short version of a valid and efficient psychometric instrument with which to measure general attitudes toward Artificial Intelligence.This work was supported by the University of Chester under [Grant QR738]
Enhancing undergraduate nurses’ online learning engagement: A mixed methods study
No full text© 2025 The Authors. Published by Elsevier Inc. on behalf of Organization for Associate Degree Nursing.Aim: To evaluate a structured, student-focused online learning environment (OLE) for delivering applied sciences for nursing.
Background: Online learning can impair the learning experience for students, but it promotes flexible access to study.
Design: A mixed-methods study was used to explore and analyze students’ experiences and preferences for two different delivery models. The original online module space consisted of an information repository. The new OLE was a structured bioscience for nursing module, designed to scaffold student learning to achieve learning outcomes using a variety of different methods to support diverse learning styles. Outcome measures used were student satisfaction, student assessments and qualitative data from module feedback questionnaires and focus groups.
Methods: Questionnaires on the OLE experience were administered to students (n = 52) and results compared with previous module feedback. Two student focus groups (n = 7) explored these responses in more depth.
Results: A redesigned OLE, with student learning as its focus, improved student engagement with the module space. Interactive learning experiences made students feel better prepared for assessment. Students gained greater digital capabilities by using the OLE. The flexibility and potential to re-watch teaching sessions was welcomed.
Conclusions: OLEs should be designed collaboratively with learning technologists and regularly reviewed to avoid overwhelming students with irrelevant or outdated materials. Flexible, online learning is ubiquitous, requiring a user-friendly and effective OLE for nursing students.Scoping research: understanding the contribution of nurses to improve the health and well-being of children, adults and older people with learning disabilities, now and for the future | Funder: University of West London (UWL)AAM removed and VoR uploaded to CR 31/03/202
Effects of hand-rearing and group size on chimpanzee (Pan troglodytes) social competence in captivity
Full text link© 2026 by the author. Licensee MDPI, Basel, Switzerland.The behaviour of individual animals reflects both internal states and external context. For captive animals, their early life experiences can influence later adjustment, partic-ularly their social competence. In addition, the way in which they are housed and their current social grouping context are important factors affecting the expression of social skills. Here, the social behavior of 39 chimpanzees (Pan troglodytes) was observed to assess whether differences existed due to how the apes were reared and grouped. Be-haviors recorded related specifically to five main components: Sociability, Grooming, Play, Responsibility and Aggression. Chimpanzees in larger groups groomed and played more, while those housed in pairs or trios displayed more and spent more time alone. Mother-reared chimpanzees took more responsibility for soliciting grooming, and interactions between grouping and rearing on chimpanzee agonistic display rates highlighted how both hand- and mother-reared chimpanzees display more if housed in small groups rather than large. Implications for the optimal management and welfare of this highly intelligent and social species are discussed in light of the importance of early life experiences in modulating the impact of current social environment on chimpanzee social profiles.This research was funded by the Science and Engineering Research Council (now BBSRC)
Evaluating the feasibility of a co-produced, bespoke dementia education programme for formal caregivers of individuals with intellectual disability
Full text linkThis document is the Accepted Manuscript version of a published work that appeared in final form in Journal of Intellectual Disabilities. To access the final edited and published work see http://doi.org/10.1177/17446295261440431.Dementia education programmes for formal caregivers of people with intellectual disability are limited. This study was not designed or powered to evaluate effectiveness, but to assess the feasibility, acceptability, and appropriateness of outcome measures for a co-produced dementia education programme within intellectual disability services. A mixed methods, quasi experimental feasibility study was conducted with 40 formal caregivers recruited from supported living and residential providers across four NHS Trusts in the Northwest of England. The programme comprised interactive modules, case studies, group discussion, and practical tools to support the management of dementia related behaviours and promote person-centred care. Feasibility outcomes included recruitment, retention, acceptability, and completion of outcome measures. The dementia education programme was found to be feasible and acceptable with minor modifications. Recruitment and retention were good, with 100% completion of follow-up outcome measures, supporting the suitability of the programme and study procedures for future research.Funder: National Institute for Health Research (NIHR)Wrong document deposited 14th Jan 2026. This was discovered in March and the right document was added on the 10th March 2026. Deposit dates re-set to the date on which the correct document was added
The Routledge Handbook of Spirituality, Religion and the Medical Humanities
No full textIt is deposited under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-NoDerivatives License (http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-nd/4.0/), which permits non-commercial re-use, distribution, and reproduction in any medium, provided the original work is properly cited, and is not altered, transformed, or built upon in any way.This chapter surveys the intersection of religion, spirituality and addiction recovery in the anglophone world. It explores a range of recovery modalities, from engagements within religious traditions like Christianity, Islam and Sikhi, through the Twelve Step Programme, to the use of mindfulness in third-wave therapeutic approaches to addiction. It argues that hard binaries between religion/spirituality and the secular are obstacles for an understanding of this vital cultural phenomenon. It also argues that addiction recovery cultures are agents that, in a small but significant way, help to shape the contemporary religious and spiritual landscape
The canary in the coal mine: What neurodivergent learners reveal about cognitive sustainability in education 5.0
No full textThis author accepted manuscript is deposited under a Creative Commons Attribution Non-commercial 4.0 International (CC BY-NC) licence. This means that anyone may distribute, adapt, and build upon the work for non-commercial purposes, subject to full attribution. If you wish to use this manuscript for commercial purposes, please contact [email protected]
Sodium and potassium intakes assessed by 24-h urine among Moroccan university students in Casablanca, Morocco: Cross-sectional study
No full text© The Authors, published by EDP Sciences, 2021.In Morocco, the high consumption of dietary sodium increases the risk of non-communicable diseases (NCDs) and predisposes to cardiovascular diseases (CVDs) and hypertension. This study aims to assess the dietary sodium and potassium intake in a random sample of Moroccan adult students as a benchmark informing a national strategy for reducing salt intake. This cross-sectional study was conducted with 103 adults aged 18 to 25 years recruited in Casablanca. The 24-hour urinary excretion was used to measure the sodium and potassium. Creatinine excretion was used to validate the completeness of the urine collections. The average urinary sodium excretion was 3125.77 ± 121.99 mg/day, 13.5% consumed less than 5g/day, while 69% consumed more than 5 g/day of which 17.5% consumed more than twice the recommendations. For the average urinary potassium excretion was 1826.1 ± 61.2 mg/day, and more than 98% of the students consumed less than the adequate intake. The results of this pilot study show that the population studied has a high sodium intake and low potassium intake which does not meet World Health Organization (WHO) recommendations, which requires implementing an action plan to reduce salt
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