La construcción narrativa de la identidad en un contexto educativo intercultural = The narrative construction of identity in a intercultural educative setting

En este trabajo se expone e ilustra un modelo teórico para entender las funciones de la identidad, así como los mecanismospsicosociales asociados a su construcción: “Modelo Evolutivo y Funcional de la Identidad Mediada” (MEBIM). La identidad, mediada narrativamente, cumple una función personal orientada a la dirección de la propia vida, así como una función sociocultural vinculada a la búsqueda de reconocimiento de los derechos de los grupos sociales a los que uno se siente apegado. Se ilustran los factores asociados a la construcción de la identidad personal (sí mismos posibles, transiciones vitales, vínculo afectivo) y sociocultural (acción-transformación e identificación simbólica) a partir de 12 historias de vida realizadas con mestizos e indígenasde la Universidad Intercultural de Chiapas (México). Se sugiere que en contextos educativos formales, como la escuela o la Universidad, se deben propiciar narrativas personales y socioculturales con el objetivo de optimizar la identidad en un mundo a la vez globalizado y plural

Comparison of Setting Time Measured Using Ultrasonic Wave Propagation with Saw-Cutting Times on Pavements, TR-675, 2015

At present, there is little fundamental guidance available to assist contractors in choosing when to schedule saw cuts on joints. To conduct pavement finishing and sawing activities effectively, however, contractors need to know when a concrete mixture is going to reach initial set, or when the sawing window will open. Previous research investigated the use of the ultrasonic pulse velocity (UPV) method to predict the saw-cutting window for early entry sawing. The results indicated that the method has the potential to provide effective guidance to contractors as to when to conduct early entry sawing. The aim of this project was to conduct similar work to observe the correlation between initial setting and conventional sawing time. Sixteen construction sites were visited in Minnesota and Missouri over a two-year period. At each site, initial set was determined using a p-wave propagation technique with a commercial device. Calorimetric data were collected using a commercial semi-adiabatic device at a majority of the sites. Concrete samples were collected in front of the paver and tested using both methods with equipment that was set up next to the pavement during paving. The data collected revealed that the UPV method looks promising for early entry and conventional sawing in the field, both early entry and conventional sawing times can be predicted for the range of mixtures tested.

Measurement of β-tryptase in postmortem serum, pericardial fluid, urine and vitreous humor in the forensic setting.

In the realm of forensic pathology, β-tryptase measurement for diagnostic purposes is performed in postmortem serum obtained from femoral blood. This may be partially or completely unavailable in some specific cases, such as infant autopsies and severely damaged bodies. The aim of this study was to investigate the usefulness of determining β-tryptase levels for diagnostic purposes in alternative biological samples. Urine, vitreous humor and pericardial fluid were selected and measured in 94 subjects including: fatal anaphylaxis following contrast material administration (6 cases), hypothermia (10 cases), diabetic ketoacidosis (10 cases), gunshot suicide (10 cases), heroin injection-related deaths (18 cases), trauma (10 cases), sudden death with minimal coronary atherosclerosis (10 cases), severe coronary atherosclerosis without myocardial infarction (10 cases) and severe coronary atherosclerosis with myocardial infarction (10 cases). Postmortem serum and pericardial fluid β-tryptase levels higher than the clinical reference value (11.4ng/ml) were systematically identified in fatal anaphylaxis following contrast material administration and 6 cases unrelated to anaphylaxis. β-tryptase concentrations in urine and vitreous humor were lower than the clinical reference value in all cases included in this study. Determination of β-tryptase in pericardial fluid appears to be a possible alternative to postmortem serum in the early postmortem period when femoral blood cannot be collected during autopsy and biochemical investigations are required to objectify increased β-tryptase levels.

Goal setting and monetary incentives: when large stakes are not enough

The aim of this paper is to test the effectiveness of wage-irrelevant goal setting policies in a laboratory environment. In our design, managers can assign a goal to their workers by setting a certain level of performance on the work task. We establish our theoretical conjectures by developing a model where assigned goals act as reference points to workers’ intrinsic motivation. Consistent with our model, we find that managers set goals which are challenging but attainable for an average-ability worker. Workers respond to these goals by increasing effort, performance and by decreasing on-the-job leisure activities with respect to the no-goal setting baseline. Finally, we study the interaction between goal setting and monetary rewards and find that goal setting is most effective when monetary incentives are strong. These results suggest that goal setting may produce intrinsic motivation and increase workers’ performance beyond what is achieved using solely monetary incentives.

Speaking from the Inside: Challenges Faced by Communication Researchers Investigating Disease-Related Issues in a Hospital Setting.

This commentary came from within the framework of integrating the humanities in medicine and from accompanying research on disease-related issues by teams involving clinicians and researchers in medical humanities. The purpose is to reflect on the challenges faced by researchers when conducting emotionally laden research and on how they impact observations and subsequent research findings. This commentary is furthermore a call to action since it promotes the institutionalization of a supportive context for medical humanities researchers who have not been trained to cope with sensitive medical topics in research. To that end, concrete recommendations regarding training and supervision were formulated.

Success rate of airway management by residents in a pre-hospital emergency setting: a retrospective study

Abstract Objective: The objective of this retrospective study over a 5-year period was to assess the success rate of airway management by residents. Criteria of successful airway management were both the adherence to a standardized protocol of pre-hospital airway.

Médecine interne et gériatrie en soins aigus: mariage de raison [General internal medicine and geriatrics in the acute care setting: opportunities for collaboration]

The health care system faces a difficult challenge as a result of the demographic evolution. The acute hospital is especially challenged by the steady increase of the elderly population. The collaboration between internal medicine and geriatrics in this setting could prove useful to facilitate the adaptation of the acute care setting and greatly enhance education of the health care professionals. Internists and geriatricians can benefit from each other skills and competencies to develop together new models of acute care that would better match the elderly population needs.

Difficult-to-engage patients: a specific target for time-limited assertive outreach in a Swiss setting.

OBJECTIVE: Assertive community treatment (ACT) failed to develop in Europe, and its efficacy is debated. In Lausanne, Switzerland, ACT focuses on difficult-to-engage patients and aims to facilitate linkage with outpatient care through time-limited interventions. This study aimed to evaluate the applicability and efficiency of time-limited ACT. METHODS: We retrospectively assessed social, clinical, and functional outcomes and motivation for treatment in 75 consecutively seen subjects treated between 2000 and 2002. RESULTS: With 70% of the interventions lasting less than 6 months, we observed significant improvement in most clinical and social problems, in collaboration, in motivation for treatment, and in social network support, despite high baseline levels of clinical and social problems. The number of hospitalizations decreased significantly. CONCLUSIONS: Time-limited ACT is a useful treatment for difficult-to-engage patients with severe clinical and social problems, and it facilitates linkage to care. This narrower target for ACT may facilitate its implementation in Europe.

The spiritual needs model: spirituality assessment in the geriatric hospital setting

Clinicians increasingly agree that it is important to assess patients' spirituality and to incorporate this dimension into the care of elderly persons, in order to enhance patient-centered care. However, models of integrative care that take into account the spiritual dimension of the patient are needed in order to promote a holistic approach to care. This research defines a concept of spirituality in the hospitalized elderly person and develops a model on which to base spirituality assessment in the hospital setting. The article presents in detail the different stages in the conceptualization of The Spiritual Needs Model.

Ranking RegionalInnovation Policies: DEA-based Benchmarking in an European Setting

Seudullinen innovaatio on monimutkainen ilmiö, joka usein sijaitsee paikallisten toimijoiden keskinäisen vuorovaikutuksen kentässä. Täten sitä on perinteisesti pidetty vaikeasti mitattavana ilmiönä. Työssä sovellettiin Data Envelopment Analysis menetelmää, joka on osoittautunut aiemmin menestyksekkääksi tapauksissa, joissa mitattavien syötteiden ja tuotteiden väliset suhteet eivät ole olleet ilmeisiä. Työssä luotiin konseptuaalinen malli seudullisen innovaation syötteistä ja tuotteista, jonka perusteella valittiin 12 tilastollisen muuttujan mittaristo. Käyttäen Eurostat:ia datalähteenä, lähdedata kahdeksaan muuttujsta saatiin seudullisella tasolla, sekä mittaristoa täydennettiin yhdellä kansallisella muuttujalla. Arviointi suoritettiin lopulta 45 eurooppalaiselle seudulle. Tutkimuksen painopiste oli arvioida DEA-menetelmän soveltuvuutta innovaatio-järjestelmän mittaamiseen, sillä menetelmää ei ole aiemmin sovellettu vastaavassa tapauksessa. Ensimmäiset tulokset osoittivat ylipäätään liiallisen korkeita tehok-kuuslukuja. Korjaustoimenpiteitä erottelutarkkuuden parantamiseksi esiteltiin ja sovellettiin, jonka jälkeen saatiin realistisempia tuloksia ja ranking-lista arvioitavista seuduista. DEA-menetelmän todettiin olevan tehokas ja kiinnostava työkalu arviointikäytäntöjen ja innovaatiopolitiikan kehittämiseen, sikäli kun datan saatavuusongelmat saadaan ratkaistua sekä itse mallia tarkennettua.

The psychometric properties of the WAI in a career counseling setting: Comparison with a personal counseling sample

This study investigated the psychometric properties of the Working Alliance Inventory-Client version (WAI-C) and Working Alliance Inventory-Short and revised (WAI-SR) in a career counseling setting. Moreover, it compared the impact of career versus personal counseling settings based on results obtained using the WAI-SR. Subjects were 188 French-speaking career counseling clients and 95 French-speaking personal counseling clients, mainly students. For the career counseling sample, total reliability was .87 for the WAI-C and .76 for the WAI-SR. The shape of the distribution was normal but the variance was significantly lower for the career counseling sample. Exploratory factor analyses (EFAs) and confirmatory factor analyses (CFAs) confirmed the presence of an overall working alliance factor but indicated a clearer hierarchical structure for the WAI- SR than for the WAI-C. The psychometric properties seemed only slightly affected by the counseling setting, suggesting that this inventory is also relevant for career counseling, especially the WAI-SR, which has a more robust factorial structure.