Beyond the dotted drawings : the Aboriginal Health Worker and health promotion practice

Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander health workers' roles have changed over the years as the profession has shifted far beyond the mere provision of a cultural brokerage service. Important achievements have been made in enhancing the biomedical role of the Aboriginal and Torres Strait health worker, even though this is not the only area of expertise they need to possess.

Emotional expressions preferentially elicit implicit evaluations of faces also varying in race or age

Both facial cues of group membership (race, age, and sex) and emotional expressions can elicit implicit evaluations to guide subsequent social behavior. There is, however, little research addressing whether group membership cues or emotional expressions are more influential in the formation of implicit evaluations of faces when both cues are simultaneously present. The current study aimed to determine this. Emotional expressions but not race or age cues elicited implicit evaluations in a series of affective priming tasks with emotional Caucasian and African faces (Experiments 1 and 2) and young and old faces (Experiment 3). Spontaneous evaluations of group membership cues of race and age only occurred when those cues were task relevant, suggesting the preferential influence of emotional expressions in the formation of implicit evaluations of others when cues of race or age are not salient. Implications for implicit prejudice, face perception, and person construal are discussed.

Conceptual beliefs about human values and their implications: Human nature beliefs predict value importance, value trade-offs, and responses to value-laden rhetoric

Beliefs that may underlie the importance of human values were investigated in 4 studies, drawing on research that distinguishes natural-kind (natural), nominal-kind (conventional), and artifact (functional) beliefs. Values were best characterized by artifact and nominal-kind beliefs, as well as a natural-kind belief specific to the social domain, “human nature” (Studies 1 and 2). The extent to which values were considered central to human nature was associated with value importance in both Australia and Japan (Study 2), and experimentally manipulating human nature beliefs influenced value importance (Study 3). Beyond their association with importance, human nature beliefs predicted participants’ reactions to value trade-offs (Study 1) and to value-laden rhetorical statements (Study 4). Human nature beliefs therefore play a central role in the psychology of values.

More human than you: Attributing humanness to self and others

People typically evaluate their in-groups more favorably than out-groups and themselves more favorably than others. Research on infrahumanization also suggests a preferential attribution of the “human essence” to in-groups, independent of in-group favoritism. The authors propose a corresponding phenomenon in interpersonal comparisons: People attribute greater humanness to themselves than to others, independent of self-enhancement. Study 1 and a pilot study demonstrated 2 distinct understandings of humanness—traits representing human nature and those that are uniquely human—and showed that only the former traits are understood as inhering essences. In Study 2, participants rated themselves higher than their peers on human nature traits but not on uniquely human traits, independent of selfenhancement. Study 3 replicated this “self-humanization” effect and indicated that it is partially mediated by attribution of greater depth to self versus others. Study 4 replicated the effect experimentally. Thus, people perceive themselves to be more essentially human than others.

Emotional anguish at work: The mediating role of perceived rejection on workgroup mistreatment and affective outcomes

In this study, the authors pay particular attention to mistreatment directed toward an organizational member from fellow workgroup members. The study contributes to the growing body of literature that examines the mistreatment of employees in the workplace. The authors propose that mistreatment by the workgroup would contribute to feelings of rejection, over and above mistreatment by the supervisor. In addition, the authors tested the mediating role of perceived rejection between workgroup mistreatment and affective outcomes such as depression and organization-based self-esteem. Part-time working participants (N = 142) took part in the study, which required them to complete a questionnaire on workplace behaviors. Results indicated that workgroup mistreatment contributed additional variance to perceived rejection over and above supervisory mistreatment when predicting depression and organization-based self-esteem. The results also indicated that perceived rejection mediates the relationship between mistreatment and affective outcomes. Results are discussed and implications for research and practice are considered.

A vibrational spectroscopic study of the borate mineral ezcurrite Na4B10O17·7H2O – Implications for the molecular structure

We have studied the boron containing mineral ezcurrite Na4B10O17·7H2O using electron microscopy and vibrational spectroscopy. Both tetrahedral and trigonal boron units are observed. The nominal resolution of the Raman spectrometer is of the order of 2 cm−1 and as such is sufficient enough to identify separate bands for the stretching bands of the two boron isotopes. The Raman band at 1037 cm−1 is assigned to BO stretching vibration. Raman bands at 1129, 1163, 1193 cm−1 are attributed to BO stretching vibration of the tetrahedral units. The Raman band at 947 cm−1 is attributed to the antisymmetric stretching modes of tetrahedral boron. The sharp Raman peak at 1037 cm−1 is from the 11-B component such a mode, then it should have a smaller 10-B satellite near (1.03) × (1037) = 1048 cm−1, and indeed a small peak at 1048 is observed. The broad Raman bands at 3186, 3329, 3431, 3509, 3547 and 3576 cm−1 are assigned to water stretching vibrations. Broad infrared bands at 3170, 3322, 3419, 3450, 3493, 3542, 3577 and 3597 cm−1 are also assigned to water stretching vibrations. Infrared bands at 1330, 1352, 1389, 1407, 1421 and 1457 cm−1 are assigned to the antisymmetric stretching vibrations of trigonal boron. The observation of so many bands suggests that there is considerable variation in the structure of ezcurrite. Infrared bands at 1634, 1646 and 1681 cm−1 are assigned to water bending modes. The number of water bending modes is in harmony with the number of water stretching vibrations.

SEM, EDX, infrared and Raman spectroscopic characterization of the silicate mineral yuksporite

The mineral yuksporite (K,Ba)NaCa2(Si,Ti)4O11(F,OH)⋅H2O has been studied using the combination of SEM with EDX and vibrational spectroscopic techniques of Raman and infrared spectroscopy. Scanning electron microscopy shows a single pure phase with cleavage fragment up to 1.0 mm. Chemical analysis gave Si, Al, K, Na and Ti as the as major elements with small amounts of Mn, Ca, Fe and REE. Raman bands are observed at 808, 871, 930, 954, 980 and 1087 cm−1 and are typical bands for a natural zeolite. Intense Raman bands are observed at 514, 643 and 668 cm−1. A very sharp band is observed at 3668 cm−1 and is attributed to the OH stretching vibration of OH units associated with Si and Ti. Raman bands resolved at 3298, 3460, 3562 and 3628 cm−1 are assigned to water stretching vibrations.

Recovery from first-episode psychosis and recovering self: A qualitative study

Objective The objective of this study was to explore the subjective factors associated with the experience of first-episode psychosis (FEP) and the very first stages of recovery to develop our understanding of this process and improve treatment outcomes. Method Interpretive Phenomenological Analysis was used to explore the experiences of 20 young people who had recently experienced FEP. Results Two broad superordinate themes captured essential thematic trends in the data: experiences of self-estrangement and self-consolidation. The concept of dialogical self was used to understand the effect of psychosis on self and the process of resuming familiar social positions to facilitate recovery. The concept of making meaning after traumatic events was also applied to the narratives of personal growth that participants formed. Those who reported subjective improvements in recovery were more likely to have developed a meaningful interpretation of their psychosis, strengthened relationships with others, and forged a stronger sense of self. Conclusions and Implications for Practice The experience of self-consolidation was strongly associated with the person’s resumption of familiar social roles and their ability to make meaning from their experience in a way that promoted personal growth. Although these processes are known to be part of personal recovery, this study highlights their importance in the very early stages of recovery immediately after the experience of FEP.

Correlation between architectural variables and torque in the erector spinae muscle during maximal isometric contraction

This study analysed whether a significant relationship exists between the torque and muscle thickness and pennation angle of the erector spinae muscle during a maximal isometric lumbar extension with the lumbar spine in neutral position. This was a cross-sectional study in which 46 healthy adults performed three repetitions for 5 s of maximal isometric lumbar extension with rests of 90 s. During the lumbar extensions, bilateral ultrasound images of the erector spinae muscle (to measure pennation angle and muscle thickness) and torque were acquired. Reliability test analysis calculating the internal consistency (Cronbach's alpha) of the measure, correlation between pennation angle, muscle thickness and torque extensions were examined. Through a linear regression the contribution of each independent variable (muscle thickness and pennation angle) to the variation of the dependent variable (torque) was calculated. The results of the reliability test were: 0.976–0.979 (pennation angle), 0.980–0.980 (muscle thickness) and 0.994 (torque). The results show that pennation angle and muscle thickness were significantly related to each other with a range between 0.295 and 0.762. In addition, multiple regression analysis showed that the two variables considered in this study explained 68% of the variance in the torque. Pennation angle and muscle thickness have a moderate impact on the variance exerted on the torque during a maximal isometric lumbar extension with the lumbar spine in neutral position.

Differential processing of thematic and categorical conceptual relations in spoken word production

Studies of semantic context effects in spoken word production have typically distinguished between categorical (or taxonomic) and associative relations. However, associates tend to confound semantic features or morphological representations, such as whole-part relations and compounds (e.g., BOAT-anchor, BEE-hive). Using a picture-word interference paradigm and functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI), we manipulated categorical (COW-rat) and thematic (COW-pasture) TARGET-distractor relations in a balanced design, finding interference and facilitation effects on naming latencies, respectively, as well as differential patterns of brain activation compared with an unrelated distractor condition. While both types of distractor relation activated the middle portion of the left middle temporal gyrus (MTG) consistent with retrieval of conceptual or lexical representations, categorical relations involved additional activation of posterior left MTG, consistent with retrieval of a lexical cohort. Thematic relations involved additional activation of the left angular gyrus. These results converge with recent lesion evidence implicating the left inferior parietal lobe in processing thematic relations and may indicate a potential role for this region during spoken word production.

Feature overlap slows lexical selection: Evidence from the picture–word interference paradigm

How does the presence of a categorically related word influence picture naming latencies? In order to test competitive and noncompetitive accounts of lexical selection in spoken word production, we employed the picture–word interference (PWI) paradigm to investigate how conceptual feature overlap influences naming latencies when distractors are category coordinates of the target picture. Mahon et al. (2007. Lexical selection is not by competition: A reinterpretation of semantic interference and facilitation effects in the picture-word interference paradigm. Journal of Experimental Psychology. Learning, Memory, and Cognition, 33(3), 503–535. doi:10.1037/0278-7393.33.3.503) reported that semantically close distractors (e.g., zebra) facilitated target picture naming latencies (e.g., HORSE) compared to far distractors (e.g., whale). We failed to replicate a facilitation effect for within-category close versus far target–distractor pairings using near-identical materials based on feature production norms, instead obtaining reliably larger interference effects (Experiments 1 and 2). The interference effect did not show a monotonic increase across multiple levels of within-category semantic distance, although there was evidence of a linear trend when unrelated distractors were included in analyses (Experiment 2). Our results show that semantic interference in PWI is greater for semantically close than for far category coordinate relations, reflecting the extent of conceptual feature overlap between target and distractor. These findings are consistent with the assumptions of prominent competitive lexical selection models of speech production.

A longitudinal study of employee adaptation to organizational change: The role of change-related information and change-related self-efficacy

This study examined the role of information, efficacy, and 3 stressors in predicting adjustment to organizational change. Participants were 589 government employees undergoing an 18-month process of regionalization. To examine if the predictor variables had long-term effects on adjustment, the authors assessed psychological well-being, client engagement, and job satisfaction again at a 2-year follow-up. At Time 1, there was evidence to suggest that information was indirectly related to psychological well-being, client engagement, and job satisfaction, via its positive relationship to efficacy. There also was evidence to suggest that efficacy was related to reduced stress appraisals, thereby heightening client engagement. Last, there was consistent support for the stress-buffering role of Time 1 self-efficacy in the prediction of Time 2 job satisfaction.

Responses to an in-basket activity: The role of work stress, behavioral control, and informational control

This study was undertaken to examine the main and interactive effects of work stress and work control on levels of adjustment. Work stress, behavioral control, and informational control were manipulated in an experimental setting in which participants (N = 192) completed an in-basket activity. Although minimal support was found for the main and interactive effects of objective work stress, behavioral control, and informational control on adjustment, analyses involving the subjective measures of these variables revealed strong support for the proposal that work stress, behavioral control, and informational control would exert main effects on adjustment. There was also evidence that subjective levels of behavioral control buffered the negative effects of subjective work stress on positive mood, subjective task performance, and task satisfaction.

Pyroxene thermometry of rhyolite lavas of the Bruneau–Jarbidge eruptive center, Central Snake River Plain

The Bruneau–Jarbidge eruptive center of the central Snake River Plain in southern Idaho, USA produced multiple rhyolite lava flows with volumes of <10 km³ to 200 km³ each from ~11.2 to 8.1 Ma, most of which follow its climactic phase of large-volume explosive volcanism, represented by the Cougar Point Tuff, from 12.7 to 10.5 Ma. These lavas represent the waning stages of silicic volcanism at a major eruptive center of the Yellowstone hotspot track. Here we provide pyroxene compositions and thermometry results from several lavas that demonstrate that the demise of the silicic volcanic system was characterized by sustained, high pre-eruptive magma temperatures (mostly ≥950 °C) prior to the onset of exclusively basaltic volcanism at the eruptive center. Pyroxenes display a variety of textures in single samples, including solitary euhedral crystals as well as glomerocrysts, crystal clots and annealed microgranular inclusions of pyroxene ±magnetite± plagioclase. Pigeonite and augite crystals are unzoned, and there are no detectable differences in major and minor element compositions according to textural variety — mineral compositions in the microgranular inclusions and crystal clots are identical to those of phenocrysts in the host lavas. In contrast to members of the preceding Cougar Point Tuff that host polymodal glass and mineral populations, pyroxene compositions in each of the lavas are characterized by single rather than multiple discrete compositional modes. Collectively, the lavas reproduce and extend the range of Fe–Mg pyroxene compositional modes observed in the Cougar Point Tuff to more Mg-rich varieties. The compositionally homogeneous populations of pyroxene in each of the lavas, as well as the lack of core-to-rim zonation in individual crystals suggest that individual eruptions each were fed by compositionally homogeneous magma reservoirs, and similarities with the Cougar Point Tuff suggest consanguinity of such reservoirs to those that supplied the polymodal Cougar Point Tuff. Pyroxene thermometry results obtained using QUILF equilibria yield pre-eruptive magma temperatures of 905 to 980 °C, and individual modes consistently record higher Ca content and higher temperatures than pyroxenes with equivalent Fe–Mg ratios in the preceding Cougar Point Tuff. As is the case with the Cougar Point Tuff, evidence for up-temperature zonation within single crystals that would be consistent with recycling of sub- or near-solidus material from antecedent magma reservoirs by rapid reheating is extremely rare. Also, the absence of intra-crystal zonation, particularly at crystal rims, is not easily reconciled with cannibalization of caldera fill that subsided into pre-eruptive reservoirs. The textural, compositional and thermometric results rather are consistent with minor re-equilibration to higher temperatures of the unerupted crystalline residue from the explosive phase of volcanism, or perhaps with newly generated magmas from source materials very similar to those for the Cougar Point Tuff. Collectively, the data suggest that most of the pyroxene compositional diversity that is represented by the tuffs and lavas was produced early in the history of the eruptive center and that compositions across this range were preserved or duplicated through much of its lifetime. Mineral compositions and thermometry of the multiple lavas suggest that unerupted magmas residual to the explosive phase of volcanism may have been stored at sustained, high temperatures subsequent to the explosive phase of volcanism. If so, such persistent high temperatures and large eruptive magma volumes likewise require an abundant and persistent supply of basalt magmas to the lower and/or mid-crust, consistent with the tectonic setting of a continental hotspot.

Assessing acculturation over time: A four-year prospective study of Asian American young adults

Acculturation is commonly defined as a dynamic and multidimensional process in which individuals and groups change over time when coming into contact with another culture. Despite the emphasis on acculturation as a process of change over time, few researchers have directly assessed this hypothesis. The current study first identifies and then examines "stable" and "dynamic" dimensions of acculturation within a 4-year prospective study of 433 first- and second-generation Chinese- and Korean-American college students. Separate growth model analyses revealed significant linear change for first-generation students toward greater U.S. acculturation. In comparison, tests of linear and quadratic change for second-generation students were not significant. When stratifying by gender, acculturation increased for women but there was no significant change in acculturation for men. While all students reported increases in alcohol consumption over the study period, changes in acculturation predicted changes in alcohol consumption only for women. Chinese men showed greater increases in alcohol consumption than Korean men but there was no effect for ethnicity among women. There was significant individual variability in the models, which underscores the importance of examining change prospectively through within and between person analyses. The findings highlight the importance of examining acculturation changes over time for different migrant groups with implications for further development of acculturation measures, research methodologies, and health interventions. More prospective research designs of acculturation are needed to examine changes in health behavior and overall adaptation across migrant groups at varying stages of development.