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Beyond digital natives.: Talking Ageism and Inclusion with Maria Sourbati - a podcast for Media Literacy for Senior European Citizens (MELISE)
No full textBeyond Digital Natives: Tackling Ageism and Inclusion with Maria SourbatiIn this episode of the MeLISe podcast, we talk with Professor Maria Sourbati about the evolving landscape of media literacy for older adults. Drawing on over 20 years of research and policy engagement, she discusses the challenges of digital and social exclusion, the myths surrounding ageing and technology, and the urgent need to rethink digital inclusion strategies. From critiquing AI-driven “solutionism” to spotlighting grassroots initiatives like Digital Brighton & Hove, Sourbati emphasizes that media literacy is not just about skills—it’s about equity, access, and social support. This episode unpacks why meaningful media literacy must be lifelong, inclusive, and grounded in the realities of ageing populations.Available on the following audio platforms: - IVOOX: https://lnkd.in/dQB8MRwg - SPOTIFY: https://lnkd.in/dTsUpBe
Stripped of Recognition:Strip Searching Practices Following the UK Supreme Court’s Definition of ‘Woman’ as Biological
No full textGain-framed health messaging, medical trust, and pre-exposure prophylaxis (PrEP) self-efficacy: An experimental study
Get PDFBackground: Despite the clinical efficacy of pre-exposure prophylaxis (PrEP) in preventing HIV, uptake remains suboptimal among men who have sex with men (MSM) in the United Kingdom (UK). Sustaining progress in the PrEP cascade requires more than biomedical availability; it demands effective, psychologically informed interventions that address persistent barriers. Psychological factors, such as medical mistrust, low PrEP self-efficacy, and identity-related processes, continue to undermine engagement. This study tested whether narrative persuasion and message framing could influence these barriers. Method: A sample of 253 MSM was recruited to participate in an online experiment and completed baseline measures of identity resilience before being randomly allocated to either the gain-framed (N = 122) or loss-framed (N = 124) narrative condition and then completing post-manipulation measures of medical mistrust and PrEP self-efficacy. After excluding 7 cases due to ineligibility, data from 246 participants were analysed using mediation analysis. Results: Participants in the gain-framed condition reported lower medical mistrust than those in the loss-framed condition. Medical mistrust was, in turn, associated with lower PrEP self-efficacy. Identity resilience was associated with lower medical mistrust and higher PrEP self-efficacy. Discussion: These findings provide novel causal evidence that gain-framed health narratives can reduce mistrust and indirectly enhance PrEP self-efficacy. Identity resilience also emerges as a key psychological factor influencing trust and behavioural confidence. Conclusions: Interventions to improve and sustain PrEP uptake should combine gain-framed, narrative-based messaging with strategies to bolster identity resilience. Such approaches may address psychosocial barriers more effectively and promote equitable PrEP uptake among MSM
Anthropomorphism and diversity in virtual humans:their influence on the trust and attitudes of Gen Z consumers
Get PDFPurposeThis research focuses on the nuanced effects of anthropomorphism, social presence and the intersectionality of ethnicity and technology in shaping Generation Z’s (Gen Z) trust, attitudes and purchasing intentions towards brands employing virtual humans (VHs). By integrating theoretical perspectives on human–computer interaction with empirical analysis, the paper aims to elucidate how virtual personas can effectively engage this diverse and technologically adept cohort.Design/methodology/approachData from an online survey of 258 respondents were analysed via partial least squares structural equation modeling (PLS-SEM) to arrive at findings and insights.FindingsOur results corroborate existing studies that highlight the importance of trust in improving consumers’ attitudes, which, in turn, lead to increased purchasing intentions. The findings also indicate that social presence and information quality positively influence trust and attitudes, aligning with prior research. However, our findings challenge the prevailing literature by demonstrating that anthropomorphism in autonomous VHs does not adversely affect consumer attitudes or trust. Furthermore, we reveal that the ethnicity of autonomous VHs does not impact the purchasing intentions of British Gen Z consumers.Originality/valueExisting literature on VHs does not consider autonomous artificial intelligence-powered entities and overlooks how the ethnicity of such entities influences consumer behaviour, which we address in this study
Decision-making involvement and quality of life in people with dementia:the mediating role of psychological needs
Get PDFDecision-making involvement is important for maintaining a sense of self and quality of life in people with dementia. To date, few studies have explored the factors behind this relationship. We explored whether decision-making benefits quality of life by enabling fulfilment of basic psychological needs: autonomy, competence, and relatedness. We analysed one-year longitudinal data from 787 people recently diagnosed with dementia from the DETERMIND cohort. Path analysis examined cross-sectional and longitudinal associations between decision-making involvement and quality of life. Parallel mediation analysis tested whether psychological needs explained this relationship. Cognitive impairment was tested as a moderator of longitudinal associations. At baseline, decision-making involvement was positively associated with quality of life, fully mediated by satisfaction of all three psychological needs. Despite declines in cognitive function, decision-making involvement remained high and quality of life stable over one year. No significant longitudinal associations were found between decision-making involvement and quality of life. Decision-making involvement may support quality of life through psychological needs fulfilment. Stability in decision-making and quality of life suggests resilience among people with dementia in early stages. Supporting psychological needs through tailored interventions and decision-aid tools may have the potential to enhance quality of life as dementia progresses
Glaze Research:Development of ceramic glazes ranging from 1080C - 1280C
No full textExtensive body of reserach undertaken to develop new and innovative collection of ceramic glazes to showcase in published works and to use in own practice. Glazes were formulated and developed using online glaze calculator Glazy.org to create new glaze finishes and surface types ranging in temperatures from 1080-1180C (earthenware) 1200-1220C (mid-temperature) and 1220-1300C (stoneware)
Telepresence Stage Case Study:Birds of Paradise Theatre Company
No full textResidency overviewBirds of Paradise Theatre Company (BOP) were initially drawn to the Telepresence Stage by the possibilities of working collaboratively with remote partners, as an embodied experience. They frequently work with disabled artists who, for a range of reasons, are unable to attend activities in person, and BOP saw the Telepresence Stage as a unique opportunity to overcome these barriers and bring people together to explore ideas and co-create in more embodied and playful ways. Remote working has always been a major access requirement for BOP and their members, even before the COVID-19 lockdown. BOP also saw the residency as an opportunity to build on their current international partnerships. In collaboration with ‘Arts with the Disabled Association Hong Kong’ (ADAHK), BOP commissioned and produced a new piece of accessible interactive digital storytelling for the British Council’s SPARK Festival 2024 in Hong Kong, hosted on BOP’s newly launched digital platform Locked World, a fully adaptable and accessible platform for digital artworks.Techniques and solutionsThe BOP Telepresence Stage residency commenced with a demonstration of pilot studies and experiments by the research team, using standard webcam headshots and background segmentation. Inspired by these demos, the team from BOP aimed to commission and co-create a telepresence performance and experience purely for audience participation. BOP adopted a unique approach to the Telepresence Stage residency, they produced an original outcome with The Importance of Sleep by Jack Li, which was both a live telepresence performance and an interactive digital art installation.Reflections and outcomesDeaf artist, Jack Li, was selected and commissioned to work with BOP, ADAHK, and the research team to develop an interactive Telepresence Stage public performance for the SPARK Showcase exhibition. The Importance of Sleep by Jack Li was a 7-minute telepresence video performance based on the Chinese folktale of Zhou Gong, the God of Dreams. In Jack Li’s performance, Zhou Gong cleans and restores the body’s organs whilst sleeping, assisted by two telepresent audience participants, who appear in playful reconstructions of the brain, liver, lungs, and intestines
The “smell of hyacinths”:Chopin and Dionysian Sensibility in T. S. Eliot’s 'Portrait of a Lady' and 'The Waste Land’
No full textI Saw It All Around Me
No full textOne foot in front of the other, mind elsewhere, gaze lowered. A wander through subdued air. Forms, colours, textures passing. Thoughts loop on what could have been, what should have been. Moving, aimlessly, toward something that only seems like an end. Something shifts, quietly, imperceptibly. Fragments that had been rooting themselves under the skin begin, one by one, to speak.Memories live here, arriving unannounced, folding themselves into the present. Surfaces remember touch, pavements carry the weight of other footsteps. Thoughts hum with the residue of past conversations, now grasped anew. Somewhere between stillness and change, the edges blur, self becomes steady, light becomes form. All things seem to breathe together.Julie Annis, Jesse Blaauw, Giulia Cacciuttolo, Charlotte Dawson, Louise Gaubert, Orise Jacques-Durocher, Emma Kling, Guy Marshall Brown, Caitlin McCormack, Anisa Nachett, Casilda Oppe, Yihan Pan, Sujin Park, Patrycja Płóciennik, Ellie Pearch, Daniel Pettitt, Claudia Sarnthein, Kirti Virman
Generation of Nonintegrative‐Induced Pluripotent Stem Cells in Hutchinson‐Gilford Progeria Syndrome :Enhancing Aging Research
No full textHeart failure and cardiovascular disease are the primary causes of mortality in patients with Hutchinson‐Gilford Progeria Syndrome (HGPS), resulting from mutations in the LMNA gene. In this study, we investigated a familial pedigree of HGPS to derive induced pluripotent stem (iPS) cells using a nonintegrating Sendai virus method from both affected and unaffected family members. The goal was to create a comprehensive robust and reliable cellar model to study the accelerated aging disease's progression. The resulting iPSCs fulfilled all pluripotency criteria, demonstrated differentiation into all three germ layers, and retained the HGPS mutation. In addition, these iPSCs exhibited key HGPS characteristics, such as shortened telomeres, abnormal Lamin A (Progerin) expression, and reduced cardiac marker levels. Thus, our approach offers a robust, reliable, and accurate representation of the disease pathology for the aging community