Consumers' need for uniqueness : scale development and validation

Consumers acquire and display material possessions for the purpose of feeling differentiated from other people and, thus, are targeted with a variety of marketing stimuli that attempt to enhance self‐perceptions of uniqueness. Because the pursuit of differentness (or counterconformity motivation) varies across individuals to influence consumer responses, we develop and validate a trait measure of consumers’ need for uniqueness. Consumers' need for uniqueness is defined as an individual’s pursuit of differentness relative to others that is achieved through the acquisition, utilization, and disposition of consumer goods for the purpose of developing and enhancing one’s personal and social identity. Following assessments of the scale’s latent structure, a series of validation studies examines the scale’s validity. The presentation of empirical work is followed by a discussion of how consumers' need for uniqueness could be used in better understanding consumer behavior and the role consumption plays in people’s expression of identity.

Evolution of adolescent mental health in a rapidly changing socioeconomic environment: a review of mental health studies in adolescents in India over last 10 years

Background: Significant changes in the economic, familial and social support aspects in India have occurred in recent times, making it an interesting naturalistic setting to observe the effects of a dynamic socioeconomic environment on behavioral and emotional disorders in adolescents. Objective: This systematic review attempts to synthesize and evaluate the available evidence on mental health disorders and interventions in adolescents in India in last 10 years as well as identify conceptual trends and methodological lacunae in these studies. Method: A systematic search of electronic databases was performed in March 2014 and 27 school and community based studies evaluating behavioral problems, psychiatric morbidity, stress, suicide-related behaviors, depression, anxiety, aggression, self concept in adolescents in India were reviewed. Conclusion: There is a wide variation in the reported prevalence of psychiatric morbidity and behavioral problems in Indian adolescents. Some of the risk and protective factors are similar to those identified by other International studies in this age group. These include female gender, academic difficulties, parental fights, strained familial relationships, school absenteeism, school dropout and other school related factors. However, there are certain variables that appear to be context specific and need further investigation. These are mother's working status, studying in Government institutions or belonging to a nuclear family as risk factors and praying as a coping skill, parental involvement as a protective factor for psychiatric disorders. The suspected upward trend in the psychiatric morbidity in this age group needs more studies to be established. © 2014 Elsevier B.V.

Linking fashion consciousness with Gen Y attitude towards prestige brands

Purpose – The purpose of this paper is to examine the relationship between fashion self-congruity (FSC), fashion consciousness (FC), and attitude towards prestige brands (ATT) among Generation Y (Gen Y) consumers. The study aims to expand the scope of fashion marketing research by validating the self-congruence theory within the context of Indonesian prestige brand market. Design/methodology/approach – The paper opted for a descriptive study involving 210 undergraduate students from a top-ranked university in Indonesia. Data were collected using anonymous self-administered questionnaire. Structural equation modelling were employed to test the research hypotheses. Findings – The study found that FC performs a full mediating role on the relationship between fashion self-congruence and ATT. Research limitations/implications – The homogenous nature of the respondents have limited the generalisability of the findings. Future research could replicate this study using a sample of wider population. Practical implications – The paper includes implications for fashion marketers to effectively target fashion-conscious consumers by developing a brand positioning strategy that is consistent with consumers’ self-concept. Originality/value – This paper extends the empirical model of FC by incorporating fashion self-congruence as an antecedent of ATT. With limited academic research on Indonesian consumers in mind, this is the first empirical study to examine the antecedents of Indonesian consumers’ attitude towards prestige fashion brands.

High-intensity interval training on cognitive and mental health in adolescents

PURPOSE: Emerging literature suggests that physical activity and fitness may have a positive impact on cognitive and mental health for adolescents. The purpose of the current study was to evaluate the efficacy of two high intensity interval training (HIIT) protocols for improving cognitive and mental health outcomes (executive function, psychological wellbeing, psychological distress and physical self-concept) in adolescents.

METHODS: Participants (n=65; mean age=15.8±0.6) were randomized to three conditions: aerobic exercise program (AEP; n=21), resistance and aerobic exercise program (RAP; n=22) and control (n=22). HIIT sessions (8-10min/session) were delivered during physical education lessons or at lunchtime three times/week for 8-weeks. Assessments were conducted at baseline and immediate post-intervention to detect changes in executive function (Trail Making Test, TMT), psychological wellbeing, psychological distress and physical self-description, by researchers blinded to treatment allocation. Intervention effects were examined using linear mixed models. Cohen's d effect sizes and clinical inference were also calculated.

RESULTS: Small improvements in executive function (d=-0.32, 95%CI -9.12 to 9.77; p=0.386) and psychological wellbeing (d=0.34, 95%CI -1.73 to 2.37; p=0.252) were evident in the AEP group. Moderate improvements in executive function (d=-0.51, 95% CI -8.92 to 9.73; p=0.171), and small improvements in wellbeing (d=0.35, 95%CI -1.46 to 2.53; p=0.219) and perceived appearance (d=0.35, 95%CI -0.74 to 0.41; p=0.249), were observed for the RAP group. Mean feelings state scores improved from pre-workout to post-post workout in both HIIT conditions, with significant results for the AEP (p=0.001).

CONCLUSIONS: This study highlights the potential of embedding HIIT within the school day for improving cognitive and mental health among adolescents.

Communication changes experienced by adults with cerebral palsy as they age

PURPOSE: Adults with cerebral palsy (CP) experience multiple, functional changes as they age, including changes to communication modes and methods that enable development and maintenance of relationships, communicative participation and quality-of-life. Little is known about the nature of communication changes experienced by this group. The aim of this study was to better understand how adults with CP experience changes in their communication abilities as they age and the subsequent psychosocial impact.

METHOD: Twenty adults with cerebral palsy aged 40-72 years with complex communication needs (CCN) participated in a series of in-depth interviews, framing their experiences of loss and grief throughout their lives. The impact of changing communication abilities emerged as an important area of focus. Data were analysed using constructivist grounded theory methodology.

RESULT: Themes arising from the participants' perceptions of their communication included experiencing communication change as a loss with subsequent impact on self-concept; and how communication is integral to the process of managing losses associated with older age.

CONCLUSION: Implications for speech-language pathologists working with older people with cerebral palsy and CCN include the need to understand the psychosocial impact of communication changes on social interaction, relationships and communicative participation. It is important to promote positive and meaningful communication options that maintain a coherent sense of self in addition to promoting functional communication skills and communicative participation.

Body image

Body image is a multifaceted construct which is central to an individual’s self-concept, and critical to mental health andgeneral well-being. Given our increasingly appearance-focused culture, body image concerns are now reported by bothwomen and men across the life span. This article examines the different components of body image and prevalence of bodydissatisfaction, and provides examples of measures that have been developed to assess these constructs. It also examines themain factors that shape body image related to age and gender. The nature of programs to prevent body image problems,particularly at school and policy levels, is also discussed.

The decline of the notion of soul and the rise of the concept of self

This thesis examines the ethics of genetic engineering from the frame of reference of the human individual.

Mobile subjectivities positioning the nonunirary self in critical feminist and postmodern research

Most scholarly work is written from the perspective of the author being a unitary subject occupying a sole, rational, and unified position. This article argues that scholarship may be enhanced by the author adopting multiple subject positions as a methodological framework. Such an adoption is advantageous in working against the romance of the notion of a single truth while also maintaining teleological values congruent with critical and feminist agendas. This article outlines the conceptual development of this methodological framework, the rationale for its development, an explication of the concept of multiple subjectivity, and an exemplar of its application within nursing research.

Civilisation, culture and the hybrid self in the work of Robert Ezra Park

Contemporary discussions on hybridity in cultural and ethnic studies have overlooked the work of the Chicago sociologist Robert E. Park. Park's idea of the “marginal man” and his work on cultural and racial hybridity can shed further light on the construction and representation of the hybrid self. The contribution that Park has made to a social theory of hybridity has been overshadowed by research conducted within post-colonial and cultural studies. I do not suggest that recent conceptualisations of hybridity are inadequate; rather that Park has something to contribute to contemporary accounts and in some cases anticipates some of the themes and issues surrounding the concept of hybridity. The following examination connects Park's work on hybridity with ideas such as civilisation, culture and modernity and argues that a mild form of primitivism underlines his notion of the “marginal man”.

Leadership and learning: facilitating self-directed learning in enterprises

Purpose - To show that a key aspect of learning and development of individual employees is that of self-directedness. This paper will consider the role of the leader in facilitating workforce development in terms of employees' self-directedness for learning. The research was designed to investigate the views that 'learning leaders' in organizations have towards the development of self-directedness in employees; and to identify strategies that are feasible in developing self-directedness in operating organizations.

Design/methodology/approach - Draws on a national research project undertaken in 12 organizations in Australia, representing a range of sizes and a number of industry sectors. Data collection involved interviewing learning and development managers in each organization to gauge the relative feasibility of the implementation of a number of pre-identified strategies designed to develop self-directedness among employees within operating work environments.

Findings - Showed that: learning managers and leaders were generally well disposed towards the development of self-directedness, and some had already moved to do so; and identified a number of possible strategies for implementation of varying degrees of feasibility. The paper will consider these findings in relation to the concept of a 'learning leader'.

Research limitations/implications - Although the research was conducted in a diverse set of 12 enterprises, applicability of the results across an even wider set of enterprises would need to be tested.

Originality/value - The findings of this research provide guidance to learning and development personnel on feasible strategies to use within their own organization to assist with the development of self-directed learning among employees.

Does the concept of ″altered states of consciousness″ rest on a mistake?

Block (2002) has argued that the multiplicity of meanings ascribed to consciousness is due to the erroneous treatment of very different concepts as a single concept. Block distinguished four notions of consciousness intended to encapsulate the various meanings attributed to the term: phenomenal, access, self, and monitoring consciousness. We argue that what is common to all of these definitions is the implicit distinction between consciousness and the content of consciousness. We critically examine the term “altered state of consciousness” and argue that affixing the qualifier “altered state” to consciousness results in a theoretical confusion of consciousness and its content, that is, consciousness is mistaken for the content of consciousness. We refer to this as the consciousness/content fallacy and argue that it may be avoided if one supplants “altered states of consciousness” with “altered pattern of phenomenal properties,” an extrapolation of the term “phenomenal field.” Implications of the consciousness/content fallacy for theory and research are also considered.

The link between self-managed work teams and learning organisations using performance indicators

Both the learning organization literature and the self-managed work team literature have alluded to the potential links between teamwork and learning. However, as yet the link between these two concepts remains undeveloped. This study uses a survey of a random sample of 200 Australian organizations to empirically examine the relationships between self-managed work teams and the learning organization using performance indicators as a medium. It was found that the learning organization concept displays a moderate to strong link with three measures of performance used in this study: knowledge performance, financial performance and customer satisfaction. Although the self-managed work team concept did not display any significant relationship with performance, the qualitative component of the survey did emphasize that there is a common belief that self-managed teams can increase performance in the right setting. While an insignificant relationship between self-managed teams and the learning organization was also found, this study suggests some methodological concerns for future research into the relationship between self-managed teams and the learning organization.

Self-representations of international women postgraduate students in the global university 'Contact Zone'

This article explores some aspects of the role of race and gender in shaping women postgraduate students' experience of intercultural study. It focuses on various social and cultural aspects of their sojourn. These were suggested by data from two small pilot research projects investigating the experiences of two cohorts of international women postgraduate students, the one studying in an Australian university and the other, a Canadian. The authors focus particularly on the intersections between the students' representation of themselves as women and the way they see themselves represented by their host cultures. In other words, they are interested in the students' understandings of themselves as 'other', and how this impacts on their representations of 'self'. The authors suggest that these representations reflect a process of negotiation of identity that occurs in what they call the globalising university 'contact zone'. The concept of contact zones derives from post-colonial theory. A further goal of this article, then, is to examine how such data appear when viewed from a post-colonial perspective.

Can a disease-specific education program augment self-management skills and improve Health-Related Quality of Life in people with hip or knee osteoarthritis?

Background: Patient education and self-management programs are offered in many countries to people with chronic conditions such as osteoarthritis (OA). The most well-known is the disease-specific Stanford Arthritis Self-Management Program (ASMP). While Australian and international clinical guidelines promote the concept of self-management for OA, there is currently little evidence to support the use of the ASMP. Several meta-analyses have reported that arthritis self-management programs had minimal or no effect on reducing pain and disability. However, previous studies have had methodological shortcomings including the use of outcome measures which do not accurately reflect program goals. Additionally, limited cost-effectiveness analyses have been undertaken and the cost-utility of the program has not been explored.

Methods/design: This study is a randomised controlled trial to determine the efficacy (in terms of Health-Related Quality of Life and self-management skills) and cost-utility of a 6-week group-based Stanford ASMP for people with hip or knee OA.

Six hundred participants referred to an orthopaedic surgeon or rheumatologist for hip or knee OA will be recruited from outpatient clinics at 2 public hospitals and community-based private practices within 2 private hospital settings in Victoria, Australia. Participants must be 18 years or over, fluent in English and able to attend ASMP sessions. Exclusion criteria include cognitive dysfunction, previous participation in self-management programs and placement on a waiting list for joint replacement surgery or scheduled joint replacement.

Eligible, consenting participants will be randomised to an intervention group (who receive the ASMP and an arthritis self-management book) or a control group (who receive the book only). Follow-up will be at 6 weeks, 3 months and 12 months using standardised self-report measures. The primary outcome is Health-Related Quality of Life at 12 months, measured using the Assessment of Quality of Life instrument. Secondary outcome measures include the Health Education Impact Questionnaire, Western Ontario and McMaster Universities Osteoarthritis Index (pain subscale and total scores), Kessler Psychological Distress Scale and the Hip and Knee Multi-Attribute Priority Tool. Cost-utility analyses will be undertaken using administrative records and self-report data. A subgroup of 100 participants will undergo qualitative interviews to explore the broader potential impacts of the ASMP.

Discussion: Using an innovative design combining both quantitative and qualitative components, this project will provide high quality data to facilitate evidence-based recommendations regarding the ASMP.