Queer breeding: historicising popular culture, homosexuality and informal sex education

Through an analysis of gay protest music (1975) and an educational kit for students (1978), both sponsored by the Campaign for Homosexual Equality in the UK, this paper brings into focus a history of gay rights activists' efforts to marshal popular culture in the development of informal sex education for young people in the second half of the 1970s. Through a reparative critique of prevailing therapeutic research methodologies, and through a theoretical deployment of notions of methodological reconciliation and queer breeding, it makes the case for the importance of historical methods in contemporary sex education research.

Behavior change techniques used to promote walking and cycling : a systematic review

Objective: Evidence on the effectiveness of walking and cycling interventions is mixed. This may be partly attributable to differences in intervention content, such as the cognitive and behavioral techniques (BCTs) used. Adopting a taxonomy of BCTs, this systematic review addressed two questions: (a) What are the behavior change techniques used in walking and cycling interventions targeted at adults? (b) What characterizes interventions that appear to be associated with changes in walking and cycling in adults?

Method: Previous systematic reviews and updated database searches were used to identify controlled studies of individual-level walking and cycling interventions involving adults. Characteristics of intervention design, context, and methods were extracted in addition to outcomes. Intervention content was independently coded according to a 26-item taxonomy of BCTs.

Results: Studies of 46 interventions met the inclusion criteria. Twenty-one reported a statistically significant effect on walking and cycling outcomes. Analysis revealed substantial heterogeneity in the vocabulary used to describe intervention content and the number of BCTs coded. “Prompt self-monitoring of behavior” and “prompt intention formation” were the most frequently coded BCTs.

Conclusion: Future walking and cycling intervention studies should ensure that all aspects of the intervention are reported in detail. The findings lend support to the inclusion of self-monitoring and intention formation techniques in future walking and cycling intervention design, although further exploration of these and other BCTs is required. Further investigation of the interaction between BCTs and study design characteristics would also be desirable.

A systematic review of the extent and measurement of healthcare provider racism

Background
Although considered a key driver of racial disparities in healthcare, relatively little is known about the extent of interpersonal racism perpetrated by healthcare providers, nor is there a good understanding of how best to measure such racism.

Objectives
This paper reviews worldwide evidence (from 1995 onwards) for racism among healthcare providers; as well as comparing existing measurement approaches to emerging best practice, it focuses on the assessment of interpersonal racism, rather than internalized or systemic/institutional racism.

Methods
The following databases and electronic journal collections were searched for articles published between 1995 and 2012: Medline, CINAHL, PsycInfo, Sociological Abstracts. Included studies were published empirical studies of any design measuring and/or reporting on healthcare provider racism in the English language. Data on study design and objectives; method of measurement, constructs measured, type of tool; study population and healthcare setting; country and language of study; and study outcomes were extracted from each study.

Results
The 37 studies included in this review were almost solely conducted in the U.S. and with physicians. Statistically significant evidence of racist beliefs, emotions or practices among healthcare providers in relation to minority groups was evident in 26 of these studies. Although a number of measurement approaches were utilized, a limited range of constructs was assessed.

Conclusion
Despite burgeoning interest in racism as a contributor to racial disparities in healthcare, we still know little about the extent of healthcare provider racism or how best to measure it. Studies using more sophisticated approaches to assess healthcare provider racism are required to inform interventions aimed at reducing racial disparities in health.

Nicotine improves memory for delayed intentions

Rationale
The present paper asked first whether the cholinergic agonist nicotine improves memory for delayed intentions (prospective memory, ProM) and second whether pharmacological dissociation would support the psychological distinction that is made between strategic (effortful) and automatic (non-effortful) intention activation in prospective memory.

A systematic review and meta-analysis of diabetes and risk of physical disability and functional impairment - protocol

Background
Diabetes and increased age are known risk factors for physical disability. With the increasing prevalence of diabetes within our aging population, the future burden of disability is expected to increase. To date, there has not been a pooled estimate of the risk for disability associated with diabetes or its precursor states, impaired glucose tolerance and impaired fasting glucose. We aim to conduct a systematic review and meta-analysis of the association between prediabetes and diabetes with disability, and quantify the risk of association.

Methods/design
We will search for relevant studies in Medline via Pubmed, Embase, Cochrane library and Cumulative Index to Nursing and Allied Health Literature (CINAHL), as well as scan reference lists from relevant reviews and publications included in our review. We will review all publications that include studies on human adults (18 years and older) where information is included on diabetes status and at least one measure of disability (Activities of Daily Living (ADL), Instrumental ADL (IADL) or functional/mobility limitation), and where a risk association is available for the relationship between diabetes and/or prediabetes with disability, with reference to those without diabetes.

We will further conduct a meta-analysis to pool estimates of the risk of disability associated with prediabetes and diabetes. Sensitivity analysis will be conducted to assess for publication bias and study quality.Findings from this systematic review and meta-analysis will be widely disseminated through discussions with stake-holders, publication in a peer-reviewed journal and conference presentation.

Conceptual overlap between moral norms and anticipated regret in the prediction of intention: implications for theory of planned behaviour research

Moral norms and anticipated regret are widely used extensions to the theory of planned behaviour, yet there is some evidence to suggest that these constructs may conceptually overlap as predictors of intention. Two health-related behaviours with distinct moral implications (Study 1: organ donation registration, N = 352 and Study 2: condom usage, N = 1815) were therefore examined to ascertain whether moral norms and anticipated regret are indeed conceptually distinct. While evidence consistent with conceptual overlap was identified in Study 1, the evidence for such overlap in Study 2 was more ambiguous. In Study 3, a meta-analysis of existing literature revealed that the relationship between moral norms and anticipated regret was moderated by the extent of the moral implications arising from the behaviour under examination. Taken together, these findings suggest that conceptual overlap between moral norms and anticipated regret is more likely to occur among behaviours with obvious moral implications. Researchers wishing to examine the predictive utility of moral norms and anticipated regret among such behaviours would therefore be advised to aggregate these measures to form a composite variable (personal norms).

Global forms and local forces : PhD enrollments and graduations in Australia, Canada, the Czech Republic, the United Kingdom, and the United States

 This chapter presents and discusses data from five different nations—Australia, Canada, the Czech Republic, the United Kingdom, and the United States—on doctoral candidates and graduates. These data are from governmental and institutional sources for the years 1998–2004, a sample that enables changes across a five-year span to be identified. They span important basic characteristics, such as gender, age, discipline, and study load (that is, full-time or part-time study). Therefore, readers can see national as well as international trends and differences in such characteristics and can match these to equivalent and/or contemporary data in their own nations. The five countries considered here are among those whose data were discussed at the 2007 CIRGE research synthesis meeting in Australia. Although these countries are not universally representative of doctoral education, their practices do offer a vivid sense of how vastly the enterprise of doctoral education differs in its scope and dimensions around the world

Singing in La Voce Della Luna Italian women's choir in Melbourne, Australia

Australia is a country of ongoing migration that embraces diversity, creative expression and cultural activity. Membership of community music groups by older people can enhance life quality, and may provide a space through which cultural and linguistic identity may be shared and celebrated. This qualitative phenomenological case study explores engagement by older members of La Voce Della Luna, an Italian women’s community choir based in Melbourne, Victoria. This article presents one case study from a larger ongoing research project, Well-being and ageing: community, diversity and the arts in Victoria. In this study, data were gathered from documentary sources and by individual and focus group semi-structured interviews in 2013. Employing interpretative phenomenological analysis two significant themes emerged: Social connection and combatting isolation; and New horizons: music-making and social justice. This article describes how active music for older women provides opportunities to learn new skills, new ideas, and create for themselves a resilient community.

Effect of mood, social connectivity and age in online depression community via topic and linguistic analysis

Depression afflicts one in four people during their lives. Several studies have shown that for the isolated and mentally ill, the Web and social media provide effective platforms for supports and treatments as well as to acquire scientific, clinical understanding of this mental condition. More and more individuals affected by depression join online communities to seek for information, express themselves, share their concerns and look for supports [12]. For the first time, we collect and study a large online depression community of more than 12,000 active members from Live Journal. We examine the effect of mood, social connectivity and age on the online messages authored by members in an online depression community. The posts are considered in two aspects: what is written (topic) and how it is written (language style). We use statistical and machine learning methods to discriminate the posts made by bloggers in low versus high valence mood, in different age categories and in different degrees of social connectivity. Using statistical tests, language styles are found to be significantly different between low and high valence cohorts, whilst topics are significantly different between people whose different degrees of social connectivity. High performance is achieved for low versus high valence post classification using writing style as features. The finding suggests the potential of using social media in depression screening, especially in online setting.

Jurors' consideration of inadmissible evidence: A motivational explanation

Procedural justice research suggests that, as decision makers in a trial, jurors may be unwilling to disregard inadmissible evidence if they believe it will lead to a just outcome. In an experimental study, three hypotheses were tested: participants reading trial evidence while assuming the role of a juror (rather than observer) would report stronger motivations to protect the community; motivations to protect the community would be associated with higher conviction rates; and participants would be more likely to follow judicial instructions to disregard inadmissible evidence when they assumed an observer (rather than juror) role. Findings indicated that participants were more likely to convict the defendant when they experienced higher motivations to protect the community, reinforcing the importance of studying juror motivations. However, results revealed a complex pattern of factors affecting juror motivations as well as verdict decisions. Results are discussed in terms of the effectiveness of the curative instruction, and key directions for future research.

Accommodating taboo language in English language teaching: issues of appropriacy and authenticity

Culturally specific language practices related to vernacular uses of taboo language such as swearing represent a socially communicative minefield for learners of English. The role of classroom learning experiences to prepare learners for negotiation of taboo language use in social interactions is correspondingly complicated and ignored in much of the language teaching research literature. English language teachers confront not only obstacles to effective development of sociolinguistic and cultural knowledge in classroom instruction, and failure of course-books to address taboo language, but also uncertainties they themselves have about addressing such obstacles and omissions. In this paper, we draw on interview data from three experienced teachers of English as an additional language, to explore their perceptions and classroom practices in relation to taboo language. In particular, we explore the situational appropriateness of mild taboo swearing using the lexical item, bloody, which has a strong positioning in Australian language culture. Dilemmas surrounding this potentially troublesome item of Australian English are foregrounded in relation to the extent to which often neglected, but widely used taboo language is actually ‘taboo’ in the classroom.

Challenge demands, hindrance demands, and psychological need satisfaction: their influence on employee engagement and emotional exhaustion

The job demands-resources (JD-R) model provides a well-validated account of how job resources and job demands influence work engagement, burnout, and their constituent dimensions. The present study aimed to extend previous research by including challenge demands not widely examined in the context of the JD-R. Furthermore, and extending self-determination theory, the research also aimed to investigate the potential mediating effects that employees' need satisfaction as regards their need for autonomy, need for belongingness, need for competence, and need for achievement, as components of a higher order needs construct, may have on the relationships between job demands and engagement. Structural equations modeling across two independent samples generally supported the proposed relationships. Further research opportunities, practical implications, and study limitations are discussed.

Back then, and now - just who is David Bowie?

Our lives are often shaped and made meaningful by the stars and celebrities who enter them. Our bedrooms can become shrines of longing, identification and desire, and the friends we make and the lovers we take can gravitate around the famous figure we together so admire. For the writers of this piece, David Bowie is one such star-man: his music, lyrics, writings and performances are felt to wrap themselves around their youth, their rebellion, their hurt, and their love.

Prevalence of psychiatric co-morbidity in treatment-seeking problem gamblers: A systematic review and meta-analysis

OBJECTIVE: The aim of this paper was to systematically review and meta-analyse the prevalence of co-morbid psychiatric disorders (DSM-IV Axis I disorders) among treatment-seeking problem gamblers. METHODS: A systematic search was conducted for peer-reviewed studies that provided prevalence estimates of Axis I psychiatric disorders in individuals seeking psychological or pharmacological treatment for problem gambling (including pathological gambling). Meta-analytic techniques were performed to estimate the weighted mean effect size and heterogeneity across studies. RESULTS: Results from 36 studies identified high rates of co-morbid current (74.8%, 95% CI 36.5-93.9) and lifetime (75.5%, 95% CI 46.5-91.8) Axis I disorders. There were high rates of current mood disorders (23.1%, 95% CI 14.9-34.0), alcohol use disorders (21.2%, 95% CI 15.6-28.1), anxiety disorders (17.6%, 95% CI 10.8-27.3) and substance (non-alcohol) use disorders (7.0%, 95% CI 1.7-24.9). Specifically, the highest mean prevalence of current psychiatric disorders was for nicotine dependence (56.4%, 95% CI 35.7-75.2) and major depressive disorder (29.9%, 95% CI 20.5-41.3), with smaller estimates for alcohol abuse (18.2%, 95% CI 13.4-24.2), alcohol dependence (15.2%, 95% CI 10.2-22.0), social phobia (14.9%, 95% CI 2.0-59.8), generalised anxiety disorder (14.4%, 95% CI 3.9-40.8), panic disorder (13.7%, 95% CI 6.7-26.0), post-traumatic stress disorder (12.3%, 95% CI 3.4-35.7), cannabis use disorder (11.5%, 95% CI 4.8-25.0), attention-deficit hyperactivity disorder (9.3%, 95% CI 4.1-19.6), adjustment disorder (9.2%, 95% CI 4.8-17.2), bipolar disorder (8.8%, 95% CI 4.4-17.1) and obsessive-compulsive disorder (8.2%, 95% CI 3.4-18.6). There were no consistent patterns according to gambling problem severity, type of treatment facility and study jurisdiction. Although these estimates were robust to the inclusion of studies with non-representative sampling biases, they should be interpreted with caution as they were highly variable across studies. CONCLUSIONS: The findings highlight the need for gambling treatment services to undertake routine screening and assessment of psychiatric co-morbidity and provide treatment approaches that adequately manage these co-morbid disorders. Further research is required to explore the reasons for the variability observed in the prevalence estimates.

Association between apolipoprotein E polymorphisms and age-related macular degeneration: a HuGE review and meta-analysis

A possible association between apolipoprotein E polymorphisms and age-related macular degeneration has been investigated numerous times, with conflicting results. A previous analysis pooling results from four studies (Schmidt et al., Ophthalmic Genet 2002;23:209-23) suggested an association, but those investigators did not document allele frequencies, the magnitude of the association, or the possible genetic mode of action. Thus, the authors searched MEDLINE from 1966 to December 2005 for any English-language studies reporting genetic associations. Data and study quality were assessed in duplicate. Pooling was performed while checking for heterogeneity and publication bias. Frequencies of the E2 and E4 alleles in Caucasians were approximately 8% and 15%, respectively. Allele- and genotype-based tests of association indicated a risk effect of up to 20% for E2 and a protective effect of up to 40% for E4. E2 appeared to act in a recessive mode and E4 in a dominant mode. There appears to be a differential effect of the E2 and E4 alleles on the risk of age-related macular degeneration, although the possibility of survivor bias needs to be ruled out more definitively.