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Examining parental participation in a successful psychological intervention for young people with epilepsy and mental health difficulties: results from a longitudinal qualitative study within a randomised controlled trial
Get PDFObjective: Children with epilepsy may have significant mental health needs with detrimental impact on quality of life, and families often request support and intervention. This paper explores the change experienced by parents of young people with epilepsy and mental health difficulties receiving an integrated mental health intervention.
Methods: A qualitative study was conducted within a randomised controlled trial evaluating the Mental Health Intervention for Children with Epilepsy (MICE) psychological therapy in
addition to usual care. Twenty-four families receiving the intervention were interviewed twice, at baseline and at six months, about their experience with their child’s mental and
physical health, and therapy. Transcripts were analysed inductively, idiographically and longitudinally using a combination of Interpretative Phenomenological Analysis (IPA) and
Framework Analysis (FA). This combination allows us to begin our analysis with the detailed analysis of cases and then move to an appropriately higher level of generalization across the
corpus.
Results: Analysis shows changes in how the parents report their experience of their child’s difficulties between baseline and 6-month interviews. While parents tended to show some
understanding of epilepsy and its effects on their child in the first interview, comparisons with the second interview show enhanced understanding along with improvements in
their relationship with their child, and feelings about themselves as parents. These findings were particularly relevant for parents of children with autism spectrum disorders and/or
intellectual disability.
Study limitations: Not all families were able to benefit equally from the therapy, with some declining to participate or being lost to follow up and mothers being more forthcoming than fathers to take part in the research. It would have been interesting to also interview families 12 months post-baseline to gain insight on the longer-term impacts of the intervention.
Conclusions: The qualitative findings presented here offer new insights into parental experiences of living with and attempting to assist a child with a complex condition. We would also hope the study will be helpful to researchers and clinicians working with a range of illnesses which impact families
Speech-to-song transformation in perception and production
Get PDFThe speech-to-song transformation is an illusion in which certain spoken phrases are perceived as more song-like after being repeated several times. The present study addresses whether this perceptual transformation leads to a corresponding change in how accurately participants imitate pitch/time patterns in speech. We used illusion-inducing (illusion stimuli) and non-inducing (control stimuli) spoken phrases as stimuli. In each trial, one stimulus was presented eight times in succession. Participants were asked to reproduce the phrase and rate how music-like the phrase sounded after the first and final (eighth) repetitions. The ratings of illusion stimuli reflected more song-like perception after the final repetition than the first repetition, but the ratings of control stimuli did not change over repetitions. The results from imitative production mirrored the perceptual effects: pitch matching of illusion stimuli improved from the first to the final repetition, but pitch matching of control stimuli did not improve. These findings suggest a consistent pattern of speech-to-song transformation in both perception and production, suggesting that distinctions between music and language may be more malleable than originally thought both in perception and production
Simple executive function as an endophenotype of autism-ADHD, and differing associations between simple versus complex executive functions and Autism/ADHD traits
Get PDFAutism and ADHD are associated with difficulties with Executive Functions (EFs), but the prevalence and nature of these difficulties in early development is not well understood. In this longitudinal study, 107 children with a family history of autism and/or ADHD (FH-autism/ADHD), and 24 children with No-FH-autism/ADHD completed multiple EF tasks (5 at age 2 years, 7 at age 3 years). Parents reported on their child’s autism- (Q-CHAT at age 2, SRS-2 at age 3), and ADHD-related traits (CBCL DSM-ADHD scale, both ages). Compared to the No-FH-autism/ADHD group, the FH-autism/ADHD group showed lower scores on simple EFs (involving response inhibition, and holding in mind) at ages 2 and 3. Exploratory analysis linked FH-autism specifically with lower Executive Attention (top-down attentional control) at age 2, and the combination of FH-autism and FH-ADHD with lower Complex EF (involving selectively deploying responses, or updating information) at age 3. Three-year-olds’ Simple EF scores were negatively associated with ADHD- related traits. Complex EF scores were negatively associated with autism traits (before correcting for multiple comparisons). Toddlers with a family history of autism and/or ADHD may benefit from interventions to support simple EF development, whilst those already showing autistic traits may benefit from support with more-complex EF skills
Beyond uniform cyclotomy
Get PDFCyclotomy, the study of cyclotomic classes and cyclotomic numbers, is an area
of number theory first studied by Gauss. It has natural applications in discrete
mathematics and information theory. Despite this long history, there are signifi-
cant limitations to what is known explicitly about cyclotomic numbers, which limits
the use of cyclotomy in applications. The main explicit tool available is that of uni-
form cyclotomy, introduced by Baumert, Mills and Ward in 1982. In this paper, we
present an extension of uniform cyclotomy which gives a direct method for evaluat-
ing all cyclotomic numbers over GF(qn) of order dividing (qn − 1)/(q − 1), for any
prime power q and n ≥ 2, which does not use character theory nor direct calculation
in the field. This allows the straightforward evaluation of many cyclotomic num-
bers for which other methods are unknown or impractical, extending the currently
limited portfolio of tools to work with cyclotomic numbers. Our methods exploit
connections between cyclotomy, Singer difference sets and finite geometry
Chemical weathering and erosional response of Northern New Guinea to orbital‐scale climate variability
Get PDFThe island of New Guinea comprises arc‐ophiolite units tectonically imbricated with continental rocks offscraped from the colliding Australian plate and contributes large amounts of sediment to the ocean. A sequence deposited close to the north shore and sampled at International Ocean Discovery Program (IODP) Site U1485 is largely formed from sediment delivered by the Sepik River. We reconstruct changing intensities of chemical weathering and source bedrock contributions for 330 ka to assess how they are influenced by orbitally driven climate change. Higher smectite/kaolinite ratios indicate a more seasonal chemical weathering during glacial times, with interglacial periods marked by more tropical weathering. Nd and Sr isotopes show that erosion of continental bedrock is at its maximum during interglacial periods when rainfall was more intense and penetrated deeper into the Highlands, where silicic units are preferentially exposed. During colder/drier time,
erosion is more focused in arc‐ophiolite lowland regions. The Chemical Index of Alteration (CIA) and several other major element proxies imply a gradual increase in the alteration intensity of sediments due to chemical weathering. Comparing the bulk sediment and source rock compositions shows long‐term variability in the consumption rates of CO2. Weathering is most effective at removing atmospheric CO2 during glacial times when ΔCO2 values (mol/kg) reach around three times those seen in major mainland Asian river systems. Conversely, CO2 consumption is reduced during interglacial maxima, implying that weathering in New Guinea, controlled by orbital cycles, may amplify global climate variations
“The Service of Clouds”: art, science and the sky
No full textA 1,200-word foreword to the book Clouds: How to Identify Nature’s Most Fleeting Forms (Princeton University Press, 2025), establishing the book's themes of the art and science of the sky
Tectonic implications of raised Quaternary relative sea‐level indicators along the NE border of the Campania Plain (southern Italy)
Get PDFTectonically raised paleoshorelines have been recently identified along the southern fault scarps of the Mt. Fellino and Roccarainola horst blocks, which are part of the northeastern border of the Campania Plain coastal basin (southern Apennines, Italy).
Such horst blocks are bounded to the south by the Polvica Fault, a roughly E-W trending normal fault. The sequence of uplifted paleoshorelines has been studied in detail by integrating geomorphological, structural and stratigraphical analyses to assess the Quaternary uplift of the Mt. Fellino and Roccarainola horst blocks. Yet, the staircase of paleoshorelines is still not chronologically well constrained. Aimed at constraining the uplift history of Mt. Fellino and Roccarainola horst blocks and the rate of activity of the Polvica fault, in this study, we integrate former knowledge on paleoshorelines with a geomorphological analysis to map erosional terraces, that we interpret as remnants of shore platforms. We apply the synchronous correlation method, driven by new and a former 230Th/234U dating of calcite veins cutting
marine sands, to infer the age of the paleoshorelines and terraces. Based on the synchronous correlation, the mapped paleoshorelines and terraces are correlated with sea-level peaks of the late Early to Late Pleistocene. In particular, the paleoshorelines along the Mt. Fellino ridge are correlated with the Marine Isotope Stage (MIS) 7e and 9c or 11, while the oldest terrace is correlated with the sea-level peak of 980 ka. Using inferred paleoshorelines ages, we estimate the uplift rate of the Polvica Fault footwall. The uplift rate varies from c. 0.2 mm/yr close to the western fault tip up to c. 0.5–0.6 mm/yr in the East, in the Roccarainola block. We combine surface evidence with subsurface data from a shallow well to constrain the vertical throw of the Polvica Fault. A mean fault throw rate of c. 0.4 mm/yr in the last c. 1 Ma is estimated for the central part of the PF. Assuming that the Polvica Fault is still active, we estimate the maximum expected earthquake by means of empirical relationship and obtain a Mw 6.2 value and recurrence interval value of c. 1,200 yr. Historical seismicity activity of the PF has not been acknowledged to date. However, our results raise the crucial question of an in-depth assessment of the seismic hazard for the densely populated Campania Plain
“Pourquoi pas Solanes?” Retracing genealogies of critical psychiatry through the emergence of mass exile and displacement as mental pathologies
Get PDFThis article brings together contemporary works by Frantz Fanon and Catalan exile psychiatrist Josep Solanes to consider the simultaneous emergence at the end of WW2 of discourses articulating the plight of refugees and racialized people through the medium of psychiatric discourses focusing on socially-inflicted mental pathologies of exile and displacement. Emphasing in particular their respective phenomenological approaches, it is argued that their trajectories can be attached to the same genealogy of radical psychiatry emerging in the Global North and then continuing into the Global South (Africa in the case of Fanon, Latin America in that of Solanes) where they were developed and made their impact
Beyond calling? Addressing the demands of modern ministry
Get PDFBeyond Calling? Addressing the Demands of Ministry workshop took place on 24th October 2024 in St Barnabas Church, Oxford, bringing together social science researchers and clergy to discuss relevant research and experiences around the demands of ministry.
The event was organised and reported by Prof Gillian Symon (Royal Holloway University of London), Dr Rebecca Whiting (Birkbeck University of London) and Dr Rebecca Taylor (University of Southampton) and sponsored by the ESRC Festival of Social Science.
The morning session focused on experienced demands. Talks from Dr Liz Graveling (Living Ministry Project) and Prof Gillian Symon (Pandemic Ministry Project) introduced various challenges and tensions experienced by clergy as they pursue their vocation, including the demands of formal and felt accountability (Graveling) and emphasising the importance of achieving a meaningful yet sustainable pattern of ministry (Symon).
The afternoon session focused on support strategies. Gill Lovell (CMDA, Oxford Diocese) outlined the intentional conversations that enable a ‘thinking space’ for clergy and the Oxford Diocese system of ministry accompaniers. Prof Neil Conway (Royal Holloway University of London) summarised research that has quantified the amount of time clergy spend on administration and led to the introduction of admin assistants to help manage this commitment.
Looking across the concerns expressed, ideas for future actions are summarised in five areas: Training; Everyday Ministry Practice; Supporting Clergy with Overwhelming Demands; Bottom-Up Group Level Interventions; and Changes at National Church Level. These ideas are necessarily broad at this stage and need further discussion and detail.
Participants were very positive about the event and as a consequence intended to take a variety of actions, including engaging with some of the suggested interventions and contacting local clergy to offer support.
The organisers have provided a template for this workshop intervention for use elsewhere and this is outlined in the Appendix
Pavlenko, Aneta
No full textThis is an overview of the life and work of Professor Aneta Pavlenko up to 202
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