1,720,959 research outputs found
The thin space between individuals and contexts as affordance for healthy longevity: a psychological perspective for aging in place studies
Full text linkIt seems likely that the growing number of older adults and increasing urbanization will be among the most significant demographic and societal trends in the near future. These two global phenomena will undoubtedly have a profound effect on the demographic and geographical makeup of our world. In view of these changes, it is crucial that the health and social sciences consider how the concept of Aging in Place could play a valuable role in longevity studies. Considering this topic as correlated to different important themes such as functional, symbolic, and emotional attachment and importance of homes, neighborhoods, and communities - resumed in the categories of people, place and time - we introduce a new perspective in Aging in (urban) Place studies from a psychological perspective based on situated and embodied cognition, with the purpose of deeply analyzing the thin space between people and their context, viewing place not as a neutral backdrop but as a continuous opportunity for individuals to act. Only through an analysis of urban spaces as limits or possibilities in everyday life can we grasp how the city can be an adequate place to empower individuals' healthy longevity
Aging And Urbanization: Investigating Different “Aging In Place”. Models In The City As An Opportunity To Empower Individuals’ Healthy Longevity
No full textWhile elderly population in the 21 century is increasing, to sustain the wave of urbanization the city’s planning and urban policies are changing. It is necessary think future scenarios according to the empowerment trend of the aging, who are moving from an ageist stereotypical view (Butler, 1975), and to innovative inclusive urban contexts that move far from an idea of elderly as a ‘problem’ or ‘economic burden’ for the society (Phillipson, 2013).
According to this vision Aging in Place (AIP) models were recently introduced to sustain urban age friendly policies (Vasunilashorn, et al., 2012). AIP, in fact, considers neighbourhoods and communities as crucial determinants of healthy longevity (Oswald et al., 2010) and intend to rethink and re-designing urban spaces around aged individual’s needs. This innovation is congruent with the psychological research on aging considered in a lifespan perspective (Morganti, 2022) and with the idea of considering the aging period in a sort of “New map of life” (longevity.stanford.edu) that requires new projects for longevity.
The research main objective is to understand how different possibilities of AIP can determine healthy longevity. Over 80 years groups of individuals living in two different neighbourhoods of Bergamo city are analysed as case study. Taking in mind two main focuses - individuals and places - quantitative and qualitative measurements are introduced. Adopting a bio-psycho-social and ecological model of lifespan development (Bronfenbrenner, 1979), the individual focus assesses the healthy status (quantitative) and the motivation to empower in aging (qualitative). At the same time, adopting a multidimensional and multi-level lens, the place focus requires a spatial urbanistic analysis (e.g. functional and morphological setting; presence of physical barriers or limitations) combined with an ethnographic participant observation (qualitative). This multiple approach is necessary for give importance not only to the individuals AIP choices and to the creation of her/his proximal relationships, but also to the role of the entire system that surround the individual able to determine it. Through the introduction of this research model, we would like to understand the aging individuals life history, the motivation of a living choice inside the city, and perceived satisfaction in the interaction with the urban environment she/he decide to live within. By analysing how some different AIP solutions influences their everyday living condition within the city of Bergamo we’ll be able to determine different grades of healthy longevity, and we‘ll contribute to provide a fundamental perspective shift in the studies of aging and urbanization.
A possible implication of this study could be the involving of policymakers, urban planner and architects, to propose new empowerment possibilities of urban spaces (in particular public or collective spaces) and contribute to introduce cities innovation that can turn aging into affordable places for new AIP models, according to the World Health Organization proposal (WHO, 2017) and the NexGeneration EU (next-generation-eu.europa.eu)
Quantitative Evaluation of Physiotherapists' Perceptions on Cognitive and Mental Health in Rehabilitation: A Cross-Sectional Survey in Northern Italy
No full textPurpose: To explore Italian physiotherapists' perceptions about their roles in managing cognitive and mental conditions in rehabilitation.
Methods: A quantitative study, in the form of an online cross-sectional survey. A standardized questionnaire was developed together with the Bergamo physiotherapy association and a team of psychologists and piloted with 10 physiotherapists. The questionnaire was structured in four sections with 21 items: 1) informed consent, 2) demographic information, 3) cognitive, and 4) mental health. Participants were physiotherapists who were members of the Italian National Physiotherapy Association (FNOFI). The link to the online survey was emailed through regional physiotherapy associations and social media. The frequencies and percentages of the responses were calculated. Ethical approval was obtained from the Ethics Committee of the University of Bergamo, and consent was obtained from the participants prior to the conduct of the survey.
Results: Two hundred and forty-seven physiotherapists responded to the survey, with 242 providing written consent to participate. Participants had 17±10 years of professional experience, and the preferred sources of information were courses (80%), practical experience (76%), and guidelines (45%). Regarding the cognitive section, although 95% declared that motor rehabilitation has cognitive effects, only 50% affirmed that they have the knowledge to handle these patients, and 41% of primary doctors recommend considering it as part of the treatment. With regard to the mental health section, only 22% of physiotherapists declared that they had been informed about the role of physiotherapy in mental health during their formative education, and 25% affirmed that they have the knowledge to handle these patients. Lastly, 84% of participants had never received a patient referred solely for a psychological condition.
Conclusion(s): Based on these results, it is possible to observe that Italian physiotherapists reproduce the trend of limited ability to deal with this population, even though it is recommended in Italy’s guidelines
Implications: In order to improve physiotherapy services and reduce burden on this population, it is important to understand the perceptions of physiotherapists, as well as those of healthcare professionals responsible for referring these patients. Raising awareness and providing targeted training to physiotherapists, besides encouraging interdisciplinary collaboration, are crucial steps
Fifteen Weeks of Light-Intensity, Community-Based Group Exercise Improves Executive Function, Upper-Limb Strength, and Endurance in Older Adults: A Pre–Post Study
Full text linkAlthough the benefits of physical activity for older adults are well established, the prevalence of insufficient physical activity remains the highest among individuals over 60. This quasi-experimental study was intended to analyze the physical and psychological effects of older adults’ participation for 15 weeks in a light-intensity, group-based, multicomponent program designed to be long-term, inclusive, and low-cost. A total of 143 community-dwelling older adults were included in the final analysis. On average, participants attended 76.5% of the sessions (SD = 15.8%), and the median time of previous participation in the program was 15 (IQR: 4–37) months. Significant improvements were observed in executive functioning and selected physical outcomes with lower baseline performance; furthermore, overall well-being was maintained. This program promotes prevention by maintaining or enhancing physical and psychological health, in addition to addressing barriers to long-term participation in community-based physical exercise, especially for those with poorer health status
Emotional Status, Motor Dysfunction, and Cognitive Functioning as Predictors of Quality of Life in Physically Engaged Community-Dwelling Older Adults: A Structural Equation Modeling Approach
Full text linkThe demographic transition has become a reality, and it demands public policies to promote physical and mental health in aging. Group exercise emerges as a cost-effective and accessible alternative to promote active aging on a large scale, but to optimize the effectiveness of these programs, it is crucial to understand the underlying mechanisms that improve quality of life. This study aimed to explore the associations between emotional status, cognitive functioning, motor dysfunction, and their relationship with quality of life in community-dwelling older adults participating in a group physical exercise program. Structural equation modeling was used to explore these relationships in a sample of 190 older adults. Emotional state directly predicted all domains of quality of life. Motor dysfunction predicts the physical health domain of quality of life. Motor dysfunction and cognitive functioning are strongly correlated with emotional status. The fit indices of the final model are acceptable, and it demonstrates that within group-exercise dynamics, emotional status is the main component of quality-of-life promotion. Therefore, professionals designing group physical exercise programs to promote active aging should consider not only physical fitness, but also the integration of psychosocial elements, offering a holistic approach to enhancing overall well-being
Going Beyond Counting First Authors in Author Co-citation Analysis
Full text linkThe present study examines one of the fundamental aspects of author co-citation analysis (ACA) - the way co-citation
counts are defined. Co-citation counting provides the data on which all subsequent statistical analyses and mappings
are based, and we compare ACA results based on two different types of co-citation counting - the traditional type that
only counts the first one among a cited work's authors on the one hand and a non-traditional type that takes into
account the first 5 authors of a cited work on the other hand. Results indicate that the picture produced through this non-traditional author co-citation counting contains more coherent author groups and is therefore considerably clearer. However, this picture represents fewer specialties in the research field being studied than that produced through the traditional first-author co-citation counting when the same number of top-ranked authors is selected and analyzed. Reasons for these effects are discussed
Variations on the Author
Full text link“Variations on the Author” discusses two of Eduardo Coutinho’s recent films (Um Dia na Vida, from 2010, and Últimas Conversas, posthumously released in 2015) and their contribution to the general question of documentary authorship. The director’s filmography is characterized by a consistent yet self-effacing form of authorial self-inscription: Coutinho often features as an interviewer that rather than express opinions propels discourses; an interviewer that is good at listening. This mode of self-inscription characterizes him as an author who is not expressive but who is nonetheless markedly present on the screen. In Um Dia na Vida, however, Coutinho is completely absent form the image, while Últimas Conversas, on the contrary, includes a confessional prologue that moves the director from the margins to the center of his films. This article examines the ways in which these works stand out in the filmography of a director who offers new insights into the notion of cinematic authorship
Appropriate Similarity Measures for Author Cocitation Analysis
Full text linkWe provide a number of new insights into the methodological discussion about author cocitation analysis. We first argue that the use of the Pearson correlation for measuring the similarity between authors’ cocitation profiles is not very satisfactory. We then discuss what kind of similarity measures may be used as an alternative to the Pearson correlation. We consider three similarity measures in particular. One is the well-known cosine. The other two similarity measures have not been used before in the bibliometric literature. Finally, we show by means of an example that our findings have a high practical relevance.information science;Pearson correlation;cosine;similarity measure;author cocitation analysis
Dispelling the Myths Behind First-author Citation Counts
Full text linkWe conducted a full-scale evaluative citation analysis study of scholars in the XML research field to explore just how different from each other author rankings resulting from different citation counting methods actually are, and to demonstrate the capability of emerging data and tools on the Web in supporting more realistic citation counting methods. Our results contest some common arguments for the continued
use of first-author citation counts in the evaluation of scholars, such as high correlations between author rankings by first-author citation counts and other citation
counting methods, and high costs of using more realistic citation counting methods that are not well-supported by the ISI databases. It is argued that increasingly available digital full text research papers make it possible for citation analysis studies to go beyond what the ISI databases have directly supported and to employ more
sophisticated methods
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