Herb-drug interactions among commonly used psychoactive substances by healthcare students

The concurrent use of herbs and/or nutritional supplements with psychoactive effect and prescription medications is common among college students. College students are a particularly vulnerable population, for they are under less social/familiar surveillance and seek greater independence, as well as under greater intellectual effort, stress, anxiety and depression, which predispose them to a higher consumption of psychoactive substances. Herbs, vitamins, and other dietary supplements may influence the effects of prescription and nonprescription drugs leading to adverse consequences, by increasing the potential for interactions. However, documented interactions between herbal medicinal products and prescribed drugs are rare. Objective: determine the prevalence of concomitant use of psychoactive substances among healthcare students in the Lisbon School of Health Technology, Portugal, in order to assess the risk of potential herb-drug interactions.

Students’ reading behavior: digital vs. print preferences in portuguese context

The aim of this paper is to present the main Portuguese results from a multi-national study on reading format preferences and behaviors from undergraduate students from Polytechnic Institute of Porto (Portugal). For this purpose we apply an adaptation of the Academic Reading Questionnaire previously created by Mizrachi (2014). This survey instrument has 14 Likert-style statements regarding the format influence in the students reading behavior, including aspects such as ability to remember, feelings about access convenience, active engagement with the text by highlighting and annotating, and ability to review and concentrate on the text. The importance of the language and dimension of the text to determine the preference format is also inquired. Students are also asked about the electronic device they use to read digital documents. Finally, some demographic and academic data were gathered. The analysis of the results will be contextualized on a review of the literature concerning youngsters reading format preferences. The format (digital or print) in which a text is displayed and read can impact comprehension, which is an important information literacy skill. This is a quite relevant issue for class readings in academic context because it impacts learning. On the other hand, students preferences on reading formats will influence the use of library services. However, literature is not unanimous on this subject. Woody, Daniel and Baker (2010) concluded that the experience of reading is not the same in electronic or print context and that students prefer print books than e-books. This thesis is reinforced by Ji, Michaels and Waterman (2014) which report that among 101 undergraduates the large majority self-reported to read and learn more when they use printed format despite the fact that they prefer electronically supplied readings instead of those supplied in printed form. On the other side, Rockinson-Szapkiw, et al (2013) conducted a study were they demonstrate that e-textbook is as effective for learning as the traditional textbook and that students who choose e-textbook had significantly higher perceived learning than students who chose to use print textbooks.

Gender norms in Portuguese college sudents' judgments in familial homicides: bad men and mad women

The gender of the offender has been proved to be an important factor in judicial sentencing. In this study, we analyze the judgments of College students regarding perpetrators of familial homicides to evaluate the presence of these gender norms and biases in the larger society. The sample included 303 college students (54.8% female) enrolled in several social sciences and engineering courses. Participants were asked to read 12 vignettes based on real crimes taken from Portuguese newspapers. Half were related to infanticide, and half were related to intimate partner homicide. The sex of the offender was orthogonally manipulated to the type of crime. The results show that gender had an important impact on sentences, with males being more harshly penalized by reasons of perversity and women less penalized by reason of mental disorders. In addition, filicide was more heavily penalized than was intimate partner homicide. The results also revealed a tendency toward a retributive conception of punishment. We discuss how gender norms in justice seem to be embedded in society as well as the need for intervention against the punitive tendency of this population.

Drinking at European universities? A review of students' alcohol use.

BACKGROUND: High volumes of alcohol consumption and risky single occasion drinking (RSOD) among university students have been shown to be associated with considerable harm to both those who consume alcohol and their fellow students. The vast majority of these studies are based on US and Canadian samples. AIM: The present article provides an overview of the characteristics of alcohol-consuming university students in Europe. METHOD: 65 relevant articles published within the last 20years using European student populations could be identified. RESULTS: Sociodemographic, individual, social, and university-related characteristics associated with alcohol consumption patterns could be identified. Male students, in particular, tended to consume alcohol more often and in higher quantities, including RSOD. Students consumed alcohol chiefly during social gatherings and for social and enhancement motives. Those without family obligations and those living alone, with roommates or in areas with a high density of students were more likely to consume alcohol in higher quantities, and to engage in RSOD. Students tend to overestimate the extent of their fellow students' alcohol consumption. CONCLUSIONS: Health promotion and prevention efforts which focus on these characteristics (i.e., gender, drinking motives, living conditions and social norms), and which have been successful and evaluated among university students in the US and Canada, may also be very promising for their European counterparts.

Wolves in sheep's clothing: SDO asymmetrically predicts perceived ethnic victimization among White and Latino students across three years

Dominant groups have claimed to be the targets of discrimination on several historical occasions during violent intergroup conflict and genocide.The authors argue that perceptions of ethnic victimization among members of dominant groups express social dominance motives and thus may be recruited for the enforcement of group hierarchy. They examine the antecedents of perceived ethnic victimization among dominants, following 561 college students over 3 years from freshman year to graduation year. Using longitudinal, cross-lagged structural equation modeling, the authors show that social dominance orientation (SDO) positively predicts perceived ethnic victimization among Whites but not among Latinos, whereas victimization does not predict SDO over time. In contrast, ethnic identity and victimization reciprocally predicted each other longitudinally with equal strength among White and Latino students. SDO is not merely a reflection of contextualized social identity concerns but a psychological, relational motivation that undergirds intergroup attitudes across extended periods of time and interacts with the context of group dominance.

Networks of PhD Students and Academic Performance: A Comparison across Countries

In this article we compare regression models obtained to predict PhD students’ academic performance in the universities of Girona (Spain) and Slovenia. Explanatory variables are characteristics of PhD student’s research group understood as an egocentered social network, background and attitudinal characteristics of the PhD students and some characteristics of the supervisors. Academic performance was measured by the weighted number of publications. Two web questionnaires were designed, one for PhD students and one for their supervisors and other research group members. Most of the variables were easily comparable across universities due to the careful translation procedure and pre-tests. When direct comparison was notpossible we created comparable indicators. We used a regression model in which the country was introduced as a dummy coded variable including all possible interaction effects. The optimal transformations of the main and interaction variables are discussed. Some differences between Slovenian and Girona universities emerge. Some variables like supervisor’s performance and motivation for autonomy prior to starting the PhD have the same positive effect on the PhD student’s performance in both countries. On the other hand, variables like too close supervision by the supervisor and having children have a negative influence in both countries. However, we find differences between countries when we observe the motivation for research prior to starting the PhD which increases performance in Slovenia but not in Girona. As regards network variables, frequency of supervisor advice increases performance in Slovenia and decreases it in Girona. The negative effect in Girona could be explained by the fact that additional contacts of the PhD student with his/her supervisor might indicate a higher workload in addition to or instead of a better advice about the dissertation. The number of external student’s advice relationships and social support mean contact intensity are not significant in Girona, but they have a negative effect in Slovenia. We might explain the negative effect of external advice relationships in Slovenia by saying that a lot of external advice may actually result from a lack of the more relevant internal advice

Competències i factors clau per a l’èxit educatiu des de la perspectiva dels estudiants universitaris fills/es dels immigrants

L’estudi realitzat ha abordat quines són les competències i els factors clau que estudiants universitaris d’origen immigrant consideren que han estat claus per arribar a la universitat, assolint així l’èxit educatiu. S’han escollit estudiants que haguessin fet l’escolaritat obligatòria total o parcialment a Catalunya.Per dur a terme la recerca s’ha treballat amb relats de vida (un total de 13 escrits) i narracions audiovisuals (amb un total de 4 produccions), essent finalment 17 les evidències vàlides. Finalment, s’ha elaborat, administrat i processat un qüestionari d’opinió que s’ha remès a 2472 estudiants de la Universitat de Barcelona, dels quals hem aconseguit 128 respostes considerades vàlides. Els relats s’han analitzat amb un procediment inductiu, procedint a una lectura exhaustiva de les paraules dels participants i anant identificant quines són les competències i els factors clau que ells consideraven que els havien ajudat a arribar a la universitat o que, tot i no ser ells conscients, nosaltres identificàvem com a tals. Pel que fa a les narracions audiovisuals, es va dur a terme una anàlisi tant del contingut, tenint com a referència els resultats obtinguts als relats escrits, com d’aspectes més tècnics, centrats en la imatge i el so. Per acabar, els qüestionaris s’han analitzat a partir de processos bàsics d’estadística descriptiva. Pel que fa als resultats obtinguts, respecte a l’eix de competències, la més destacada és la d’autonomia i iniciativa personals, lligada a la responsabilitat i autoexigència. Respecte a l’eix d’èxit educatiu, destaca el paper del professorat, tant pel suport que els ofereixen com per les expectatives que dipositen en ells. I, per acabar, respecte a l’eix d’inclusió social, els aspectes que l’afavoreixen es centren sobretot en el recolzament de la família, en l’entorn més immediat i en el fet d’entendre la possibilitat de viure amb altres cultures com un enriquiment.

Measuring alcohol-related consequences in school surveys: alcohol-attributable consequences or consequences with students' alcohol attribution.

In alcohol epidemiology surveys, there is a tradition of measuring alcohol-related consequences using respondents' attribution of alcohol as the cause. The authors aimed to compare the prevalence and frequency of self-attributed consequences to consequences without self-attribution using alcohol-attributable fractions (AAF). In 2007, a total of 7,174 Swiss school students aged 13-16 years reported the numbers of 6 alcohol-related adverse consequences (e.g., fights, injuries) they had incurred in the past 12 months. Consequences were measured with and without attribution of alcohol as the cause. The alcohol-use measures were frequency and volume of drinking in the past 12 months and number of risky single-occasion (> or =5 drinks) drinking episodes in the past 30 days. Attributable fractions were derived from logistic (> or =1 incident) and Poisson (number of incidents) regression analyses. Although relative risk estimates were higher when alcohol-attributed consequences were compared with nonattributed consequences, the use of AAFs resulted in more alcohol-related consequences (10,422 self-attributed consequences vs. 24,520 nonattributed consequences determined by means of AAFs). The likelihood of underreporting was higher among drinkers with intermediate frequencies than among either rare drinkers or frequent drinkers. Therefore, the extent of alcohol-related adverse consequences among adolescents may be underestimated when using self-attributed consequences, because of differential attribution processes, especially among infrequent drinkers.

A Report to the Legislature Additional Data, 2014

This report contains data collected by the Iowa Department of Education about postsecondary enrollment option (PSEO), concurrent enrollment supplemental weighting, and compensation of selected community college employees to meet the requirements of Iowa Code, Section 260C.14

Los enfoques de aprendizaje en estudiantes universitarios Catalanes mediante el approaches and study skills inventory for students (ASSIST) = Learning Approaches of Catalan University Students Measured with the Approaches and Study Skills Inventory for Students (ASSIST)

The aim of this study is to measure the psychometric properties of a Catalan translation of the Approaches and Study Skills Inventory for Students (ASSIST), and to analyse the different learning styles used by university students, considering the influence of gender and type of studies. The instrument was administered to 834 students at the University of Girona. The results showed that most students interviewed had a deep approach to learning, although the analysis by gender showed that females tended to use a more strategic approach, while males used a deep approach predominantly. As to whether the type of studies influenced learning styles, a prevalence of deep approach was found among Science and Technology students, while a more strategic approach was found among Humanities and Education students

The motivation to learn as a self-presentation tool among Swiss high school students : The moderating role of mastery goals' perceived social value on learning

Although it has been assumed that the motivation to learn - or mastery goal endorsement - positively predicts learning achievement, most empirical findings fail to demonstrate this relationship. In the present research, conducted in a Swiss high school, we adopted a social value approach to test the hypothesis that adolescent students' mastery goals do in fact predict learning, but only if these goals are perceived as highly useful for scholarly success (high social utility), and are not endorsed as a means to be appreciated by the teachers (low social desirability), a finding that has previously been observed among college students and on teacher-graded achievement measures only. Results demonstrate that in spite of potential peculiarities of an adolescent population, individual differences in mastery goals' perceived social utility and desirability moderate the mastery goal endorsement-learning achievement relation. Findings are discussed with regard to both theory development and educational practice.

¿Por qué los estudiantes participan poco en la gestión de la universidad? La opinión del profesorado = Why do students participate so little in the management of the university? The opinion of the teaching staff

El artículo invita a reflexionar sobre la participación de los estudiantes en la gestión y el gobierno de la universidad a partir de una investigación. Se centra en la opinión y percepción que el profesorado implicado directamente en la gestión de la docencia tiene sobre esta participación. Se aportan datos relevantes que ayudan a disponer de una visión más completa de un fenóneno complejo y multidimensional como es la participación estudiantil. Sus interpretaciones nos ofrecen información significativa que contribuye a comprender algunas de las causas de la baja participación y nos orienta hacia las posibles estrategias a emprender para intentar invertir esta tendencia

Una recerca acció per desenvolupar la capacitat crítica i autocrítica dels estudiants en diversos ensenyaments de la Universitat de Barcelona

L"article presenta el plantejament i desenvolupament d"una recerca acció per al desenvolupament de la competència transversal «capacitat crítica i autocrítica» de la Universitat de Barcelona (UB). El projecte s"ha desenvolupat dins de diverses assignatures d"alguns ensenyaments de la UB (Ciència i Tecnologia dels Aliments, Infermeria, Odontologia, Pedagogia i Química) i l"hem iniciat sis professors i professores novells amb l"objectiu de dissenyar i desenvolupar activitats i estratègies de treball per promoure el pensament crític i autocrític dels estudiants universitaris. Aquest projecte s"ha portat a terme mitjançant un procés de recerca acció que es va iniciar en les primeres etapes amb una reflexió sobre la nostra pròpia pràctica docent. A partir d"aquesta reflexió es van dissenyar una sèrie d"activitats per promoure aquesta competència transversal. En aquest treball es descriuen el desenvolupament d"aquest projecte i els resultats obtinguts en aplicar algunes de les activitats a diverses assignatures dels ensenyaments mencionats. Les activitats han permès que l"alumnat pugui desenvolupar el pensament crític i autocrític en treballar sobre diversos aspectes de les assignatures (competències específiques, activitats, proves d"avaluació, etc.), i que alhora pugui ser crític amb el seu procés d"aprenentatge. Això també ha permès desenvolupar un dels reptes de l"espai europeu d"educació superior (EEES), en què es pretén donar a l"estudiant un rol més important en el procés d"aprenentatge.

Utilización de los apuntes de clase en las carreras de Enfermería y Medicina de la Universidad de Barcelona

Objetivo: Analizar aspectos relacionados con los apuntes que toman los alumnos de Enfermería y Medicina en el transcurso de las respectivas clases. Se comparan cuestiones relacionadas con la revisión, conservación, consulta, préstamo, etc. de los apuntes. Además, se identifican los recursos bibliográficos empleados (artículos, libros, Internet, etc.) como complemento de los apuntes y el uso que se les prevé dar en el futuro. Diseño: Descriptivo y transversal. Emplazamiento: Facultad de Medicina y Escuela de Enfermería de la Universidad de Barcelona. Período de estudio: desde noviembre de 2000 a febrero de 2001. Participantes: Estudiantes del último curso de Medicina y de Enfermería que asistían a una asignatura troncal. Se trata de una muestra no probabilística de conveniencia. Mediciones: Para la obtención de los datos se empleó una encuesta autoadministrada compuesta de 27 preguntas de respuesta múltiple que fue sometida una prueba piloto. Las variables estudiadas fueron: frecuencia en la toma de apuntes, material utilizado, revisión, préstamo, recursos documentales complementarios y su posible uso en el futuro profesional. Resultados principales: Se estudió a 299 sujetos: 168 (56, 19%) pertenecen a la carrera de Enfermería y 131 (43,81%) a la de Medicina. En la muestra, 254 (84,95%) son mujeres y 45 (15,05%) varones. Las medias de edad son de 22,69 (desviación estándar [DE]: 2,84) y 23,47 (DE: 2,56), respectivamente. Se aprecian diferencias estadísticamente significativas en la frecuencia en que se toman apuntes (x2 15,21; df 3; p = 0,002) y en el pasarlos a limpio (x2 66,71; df 3; p < 0,001) a favor de Enfermería; en cambio, se revisan con mayor frecuencia en Medicina (x2 23,04; df 3; p < 0,001). No se observan diferencias en la frecuencia, razones y actitud relacionada con el préstamo de apuntes. En Medicina se complementan los apuntes con mayor frecuencia que en Enfermería (x2 23,16; df 4; p < 0,001). Se tiene intención de guardar y consultar los apuntes sobre todo en Enfermería (x2 144,83; df 1; p < 0,001 ). Conclusiones: los apuntes son considerados como el principal recurso para la preparación de los exámenes en ambas carreras. En Enfermería se les asigna un mayor valor para la realización de la carrera y como material de consulta en el futuro; en tanto que en Medicina es más habitual complementarlos con otros materiales bibliográficos.

Utilización de los apuntes de clase en las carreras de Enfermería y Medicina de la Universidad de Barcelona

Objetivo: Analizar aspectos relacionados con los apuntes que toman los alumnos de Enfermería y Medicina en el transcurso de las respectivas clases. Se comparan cuestiones relacionadas con la revisión, conservación, consulta, préstamo, etc. de los apuntes. Además, se identifican los recursos bibliográficos empleados (artículos, libros, Internet, etc.) como complemento de los apuntes y el uso que se les prevé dar en el futuro. Diseño: Descriptivo y transversal. Emplazamiento: Facultad de Medicina y Escuela de Enfermería de la Universidad de Barcelona. Período de estudio: desde noviembre de 2000 a febrero de 2001. Participantes: Estudiantes del último curso de Medicina y de Enfermería que asistían a una asignatura troncal. Se trata de una muestra no probabilística de conveniencia. Mediciones: Para la obtención de los datos se empleó una encuesta autoadministrada compuesta de 27 preguntas de respuesta múltiple que fue sometida una prueba piloto. Las variables estudiadas fueron: frecuencia en la toma de apuntes, material utilizado, revisión, préstamo, recursos documentales complementarios y su posible uso en el futuro profesional. Resultados principales: Se estudió a 299 sujetos: 168 (56, 19%) pertenecen a la carrera de Enfermería y 131 (43,81%) a la de Medicina. En la muestra, 254 (84,95%) son mujeres y 45 (15,05%) varones. Las medias de edad son de 22,69 (desviación estándar [DE]: 2,84) y 23,47 (DE: 2,56), respectivamente. Se aprecian diferencias estadísticamente significativas en la frecuencia en que se toman apuntes (x2 15,21; df 3; p = 0,002) y en el pasarlos a limpio (x2 66,71; df 3; p < 0,001) a favor de Enfermería; en cambio, se revisan con mayor frecuencia en Medicina (x2 23,04; df 3; p < 0,001). No se observan diferencias en la frecuencia, razones y actitud relacionada con el préstamo de apuntes. En Medicina se complementan los apuntes con mayor frecuencia que en Enfermería (x2 23,16; df 4; p < 0,001). Se tiene intención de guardar y consultar los apuntes sobre todo en Enfermería (x2 144,83; df 1; p < 0,001 ). Conclusiones: los apuntes son considerados como el principal recurso para la preparación de los exámenes en ambas carreras. En Enfermería se les asigna un mayor valor para la realización de la carrera y como material de consulta en el futuro; en tanto que en Medicina es más habitual complementarlos con otros materiales bibliográficos.