Life events and social support among patients with major depressive disorder

The study is part of a research project of 269 psychiatric patients with major depression, Vantaa Depression Study, in the Department of Mental Health and Alcohol Research of the National Public Health Institute and the Department of Psychiatry of the Peijas Medical Care District. The aim was to study at the onset of MDE psychosocial differences in subgroups of patients and clustering of events into time before depression and its prodromal phase, to study whether more severe life events and less social support predict poorer outcome in all patients, but most among those currently in partial remission, whether social support declines as a consequence of time spent in MDE, is sensitive to improvement, and whether social support is influenced by neuroticism and extraversion. After screening, a semistructured interview (SCAN, version 2.0) was used for the presence of DSM-IV MDE, and other psychiatric diagnoses. Life events and social support were studied with semistructured methods (IRLE, Paykel 1983; IMSR, Brugha et al. 1987), perceived social support and neuroticism/extraversion with questionnaires (PSSS-R, Blumenthal et al. 1987; EPI, Eysenck and Eysenck 1964) at baseline, 6 and 18 months. At the onset of depression life events were common. No major differences between subgroups of patients were found; the younger had more events, whereas those with comorbid alcoholism and personality disorders perceived less support. Although events were distributed evenly between the time before depression, the prodromal phase and the index MDE, two thirds of the patients attributed their depression to some life event. Adversities and poor perceived support influenced the outcome of all psychiatric patients, most in the subgroup of full remission. In the partial remission group, the impact of severe events and in the MDE, perceived support was important. Low objective and subjective support were predicted by longer time spent in MDE. Along with improvement subjective support improved. Neuroticism and extraversion were associated with the size of social network and perceived support and predicted change of perceived support. In conclusion, adversities were common in all phases of depression. They may thus have many roles; before depression they may precipitate it, in the prodromal phase worsen symptoms, and during the MDE, the outcome of depression. Patients often attributed their depression to a life event. Psychosocial subgroup differences were quite small. Perceived support predicted the outcome of depression, and time spent in MDE objective and subjective support. Neuroticism and extraversion may modify the level and change particularly in perceived support, thereby indirectly effecting vulnerability to depression.

Cancer survivors at work : Work-related problems and factors associated with their employment, work ability and social support from the work community

Due to the improved prognosis of many forms of cancer, an increasing number of cancer survivors are willing to return to work after their treatment. It is generally believed, however, that people with cancer are either unemployed, stay at home, or retire more often than people without cancer. This study investigated the problems that cancer survivors experience on the labour market, as well as the disease-related, sociodemographic and psychosocial factors at work that are associated with the employment and work ability of cancer survivors. The impact of cancer on employment was studied combining the data of Finnish Cancer Registry and census data of the years 1985, 1990, 1995 or 1997 of Statistics Finland. There were two data sets containing 46 312 and 12 542 people with cancer. The results showed that cancer survivors were slightly less often employed than their referents. Two to three years after the diagnosis the employment rate of the cancer survivors was 9% lower than that of their referents (64% vs. 73%), whereas the employment rate was the same before the diagnosis (78%). The employment rate varied greatly according to the cancer type and education. The probability of being employed was greater in the lower than in the higher educational groups. People with cancer were less often employed than people without cancer mainly because of their higher retirement rate (34% vs. 27%). As well as employment, retirement varied by cancer type. The risk of retirement was twofold for people having cancer of the nervous system or people with leukaemia compared to their referents, whereas people with skin cancer, for example, did not have an increased risk of retirement. The aim of the questionnaire study was to investigate whether the work ability of cancer survivors differs from that of people without cancer and whether cancer had impaired their work ability. There were 591 cancer survivors and 757 referents in the data. Even though current work ability of cancer survivors did not differ between the survivors and their referents, 26% of cancer survivors reported that their physical work ability, and 19% that their mental work ability had deteriorated due to cancer. The survivors who had other diseases or had had chemotherapy, most often reported impaired work ability, whereas survivors with a strong commitment to their work organization, or a good social climate at work, reported impairment less frequently. The aim of the other questionnaire study containing 640 people with the history of cancer was to examine extent of social support that cancer survivors needed, and had received from their work community. The cancer survivors had received most support from their co-workers, and they hoped for more support especially from the occupational health care personnel (39% of women and 29% of men). More support was especially needed by men who had lymphoma, had received chemotherapy or had a low education level. The results of this study show that the majority of the survivors are able to return to work. There is, however, a group of cancer survivors who leave work life early, have impaired work ability due to their illness, and suffer from lack of support from their work place and the occupational health services. Treatment-related, as well as sociodemographic factors play an important role in survivors' work-related problems, and presumably their possibilities to continue working.

Harbouring dissent: Greek independent and social media and the antifascist movement

This article examines Greek activists’ use of a range of communication technologies, including social media, blogs, citizen journalism sites, Web radio, and anonymous networks. Drawing on Anna Tsing’s theoretical model, the article examines key frictions around digital technologies that emerged within a case study of the antifascist movement in Athens, focusing on the period around the 2013 shutdown of Athens Indymedia. Drawing on interviews with activists and analysis of online communications, including issue networks and social media activity, we find that the antifascist movement itself is created and recreated through a process of productive friction, as different groups and individuals with varying ideologies and experiences work together.

Crime Justice and Social Democracy: Proceedings of the 3rd International Conference, 9-10 July 2015

We are pleased to present these selected papers from the proceedings of the 3rd Crime, Justice and Social Democracy International Conference, held in July 2015 in Brisbane, Australia. Over 350 delegates attended the conference from 19 countries. The papers collected here reflect the diversity of topics and themes that were explored over three days. The Crime, Justice and Social Democracy International Conference aims to strengthen the intellectual and policy debates concerning links between justice, social democracy, and the reduction of harm and crime, through building more just and inclusive societies and proposing innovative justice responses. In 2015, attendees discussed these issues as they related to ideas of green criminology; indigenous justice; gender, sex and justice; punishment and society; and the emerging notion of ‘Southern criminology’. The need to build global connections to address these challenges is more evident than ever and the conference and these proceedings reflect a growing attention to interdisciplinary, novel, and interconnected responses to contemporary global challenges. Authors in these conference proceedings engaged with issues of online fraud, queer criminology and law, Indigenous incarceration, youth justice, incarceration in Brazil, and policing in Victoria, Australia, among others. The topics explored speak to the themes of the conference and demonstrate the range of challenges facing researchers of crime, harm, social democracy and social justice and the spaces of possibility that such research opens. Our thanks to the conference convenor, Dr Kelly Richards, for organising such a successful conference, and to all those presenters who subsequently submitted such excellent papers for review here. We would also particularly like to thank Jess Rodgers for their tireless editorial assistance, as well as the panel of international scholars who participated in the review process, often within tight timelines.

Food intake, growth and social interactions of signal crayfish, Pacifastacus leniusculus (Dana)

The knowledge about the optimal rearing conditions, such as water temperature and quality, photoperiod and density, with the understanding of animal nutritional requirements forms the basis of economically stable aquaculture for freshwater crayfish. However, the shift from a natural environment to effective culture conditions induces several changes, not only at the population level, but also at the individual level. The social contacts between conspecifics increase with increasing animal density. The competition for limited resources (e.g. food, shelter, mates) is more severe with the presence of agonistic behaviour and may lead to unequal distribution of these. The objectives of this study were to: 1) study the distribution of a common food resource between communally reared signal crayfish (Pacifastacus leniusculus) and to assign potential feeding hierarchy on the basis of individual food intake measurements, 2) explore the possibilities of size distribution manipulations to affect population dynamics and food intake to improve growth and survival in culture and 3) study the effect of food ration and spatial distribution on food intake and to explore the effect of temperature and food ration on growth and body composition of freshwater crayfish. The feeding ranks between animals were assigned with a new method for individual food intake measurement of communally reared crayfish. This technique has a high feasibility and a great potential to be applied in crayfish aquaculture studies. In this study, signal crayfish showed high size-related variability in food consumption both among individuals within a group (inter-individual) and within individual day-to-day variation (intra-individual). Increased competition for food led to an unequal distribution of this resource and this may be a reason for large growth differences between animals. The consumption was significantly higher when reared individually in comparison with communal housing. These results suggest that communally housed crayfish form a feeding hierarchy and that the animal size is the major factor controlling the position in this hierarchy. The optimisation of the social environment ( social conditions ) was evaluated in this study as a new approach to crayfish aquaculture. The results showed that the absence of conspecifics (individual rearing vs. communal housing) affects growth rate, food intake and the proportion of injured animals, whereas size variation between animals influences the number and duration of agonistic encounters. In addition, animal size had a strong influence on the fighting success of signal crayfish reared in a social milieu with a wide size variation of conspecifics. Larger individuals initiated and won most of the competitions, which suggests size-based social hierarchy of P. leniusculus. This is further supported by the fact that the length and weight gain of smaller animals increased after size grading, maybe because of a better access to the food resource due to diminished social pressure. However, the high dominance index was not based on size under conditions of limited size variation, e.g. those characteristic of restocked natural populations and aquaculture, indicating the important role of behaviour on social hierarchy.

Expecting too much? Can Indigenous sport programs in Australia deliver development and social outcomes?

Sport holds a special place in the national psyche of many nations with claims for sport being far reaching. More recently sport has been identified as a development and an educational tool in the areas of health and behaviour modification. Against the backdrop of the Close the Gap blueprint for Indigenous Australians and within the context of competing claims for sport, this paper discusses whether sport can genuinely contribute to community development in Indigenous Australian communities. Drawing on cases from sports-based programmes that spanned a 5-year research programme and informed by a theoretical framework inspired by Sen’s notion of ‘Development as Freedom’, this paper makes the case that sport can be a robust developmental tool capable of delivering social outcomes to marginalized communities.

Transfunctional living walls-designing living walls for environmental and social benefits

Greater attention is being directed towards incorporating greenery into the built environment as increasing global urbanisation drives the search for sustainable urbanism. This research takes a parametric approach to studying living wall dynamics using three methods to cover a diversity of design parameters and performance criteria. The findings led to a functional typology for living walls based on a range of design, context and performance parameters wider than previously identified. Such parametric studies offer valuable insights into 'transfunctional' living walls for homes, schools and public spaces.

Vocalizations of wild Asian elephants (Elephas maximus): Structural classification and social context

Elephants use vocalizations for both long and short distance communication. Whereas the acoustic repertoire of the African elephant (Loxodonta africana) has been extensively studied in its savannah habitat, very little is known about the structure and social context of the vocalizations of the Asian elephant (Elephas maximus), which is mostly found in forests. In this study, the vocal repertoire of wild Asian elephants in southern India was examined. The calls could be classified into four mutually exclusive categories, namely, trumpets, chirps, roars, and rumbles, based on quantitative analyses of their spectral and temporal features. One of the call types, the rumble, exhibited high structural diversity, particularly in the direction and extent of frequency modulation of calls. Juveniles produced three of the four call types, including trumpets, roars, and rumbles, in the context of play and distress. Adults produced trumpets and roars in the context of disturbance, aggression, and play. Chirps were typically produced in situations of confusion and alarm. Rumbles were used for contact calling within and among herds, by matriarchs to assemble the herd, in close-range social interactions, and during disturbance and aggression. Spectral and temporal features of the four call types were similar between Asian and African elephants.

Juggling priorities: Balancing economic and social drivers to address the LLN needs of students in the VET sector

Economic success, and a commitment to the social benefits of inclusive training opportunities are important goals for public vocational education and training (VET). Currently, in Australia, VET policy is a shared responsibility between the Commonwealth and the States and Territories. Priorities for investment are juggled between: a) improving efficiency and responsiveness; and b) providing societal prosperity. Amid recent VET educational reforms and policy directives the authors of this paper undertook a pilot study examining language, literacy and numeracy support and inclusive teaching and learning practices in a Diploma of Nursing course. The data highlighted implications arising from new market driven education reforms. This article reports on identified factors that influenced inclusive learning opportunities, noticeably associated with two recent policy developments: the release of the FSK Foundation Skills Training Package (IBSA 2014); and the Queensland's Higher Skills Program Policy 2014-15.

What should I think; How should I feel? : The balancing of personal experiences and social norms in the outgroup attitude formation of youth

The present study focused on the associations between the personal experiences of intergroup contact, perceived social norms and the outgroup attitudes of Finnish majority and Russian-speaking minority youth living in Finland. The theoretical background of the study was derived from Allport s (1954) theory of intergroup contact (i.e., the contact hypothesis), social psychological research on normative influences on outgroup attitudes (e.g., Rutland, 2004; Stangor and Leary, 2006) and developmental psychological research on the formation of explicit (deliberate) and implicit (automatically activated) outgroup attitudes in adolescence (e.g., Barrett, 2007; Killen, McGlothlin and Henning, 2008). The main objective of the study was to shed light on the role of perceived social norms in the formation of outgroup attitudes among adolescents. First, the study showed that perceived normative pressure to hold positive attitudes towards immigrants regulated the relationship between the explicit and implicit expression of outgroup attitudes among majority youth. Second, perceived social norms concerning outgroup attitudes (i.e., the perceived outgroup attitudes of parents and peers) affected the relationship between intergroup contact and explicit outgroup attitudes depending on gender and group status. Positive social norms seem to be especially important for majority boys, who need both pleasant contact experiences and normative support to develop outgroup attitudes that are as positive as girls attitudes. The role of social norms is accentuated also among minority youth, who, contrary to majority youth with their more powerful and independent status position, need to reflect upon their attitudes and experiences of negative intergroup encounters in relation to the experiences and attitudes of their ingroup members. Third, the results are indicative of the independent effects of social norms and intergroup anxiety on outgroup attitudes: the effect of perceived social norms on the outgroup attitudes of youth seems to be at least as strong as the effect of intergroup anxiety. Finally, it was shown that youth evaluate intergroup contact from the viewpoint of their ingroup and society as a whole, not just based on their own experiences. In conclusion, the outgroup attitudes of youth are formed in a close relationship with their social environment. On the basis of this study, the importance of perceived social norms for research on intergroup contact effects among youth cannot be overlooked. Positive normative influences have the potential to break the strong link between rare and/or negative personal contact experiences and negative outgroup attitudes, and norms also influence the relationship between implicit and explicit attitude expression.

Cultural differences and capability transfer in cross-border acquisitions: the mediating roles of capability complementarity, absorptive capacity, and social integration

This paper presents an integrative model of the impact of cultural differences on capability transfer in cross-border acquisitions. We propose that cultural differences affect the post-acquisition capability transfer through their impact on social integration, potential absorptive capacity, and capability complementarity. Two dynamic variables – the use of social integration mechanisms, and the degree of operational integration of the acquired unit – are proposed to moderate the effects of cultural differences on social integration and potential absorptive capacity. The implications for acquisition research and practice are discussed.

Knowledge Transfer within Western Multinationals' Subsidiary Units in China and Finland - The Impact of Headquarter Control Mechanisms, Subsidiary Location and Social Capital (summary section only)

It is suggested that the ability and practices of how the multinational corporation (MNC) manages knowledge transfer among its geographically dispersed subsidiary units are crucial for the building and development of firm competitive advantage. However, cross-border transfer of valuable organizational knowledge is likely to be problematic and laborious, especially within diversified and differentiated MNCs. Using data collected from 164 western multinational companies’ subsidiary units located in China and Finland, this study aims to investigate cross-border knowledge transfer within the MNC. It explores a number of factors that influence the transfer of knowledge among units in the differentiated MNC. The study consists of five individual papers. Paper 1 investigates a range of organizational mechanisms that may positively influence a subsidiary’s propensity to undertake knowledge transfers to other parts of the corporation. Paper 2 explores the impact of subsidiary location on the motivational dispositions of knowledge receiving units to value and accept knowledge from subsidiaries located in economically less advanced countries. Paper 3 examines the influence of social capital variables on knowledge transfer in dyadic relationships between foreign-owned subsidiaries and their sister and patent units. Paper 4 provides some initial insights into potentially different effects of trust and shared vision in intra-organizational vs. inter-organizational relationships. Using a case study setting, Paper 5 explores means and mechanisms used in transferring human resource management practices to Western MNCs’ business units in China from a cultural perspective. The results of the study show that MNC management through choices regarding organizational controls can encourage and enhance corporate-internal knowledge transfer. It also finds evidence that more knowledge is transferred from subsidiaries located in an industrialized country (e.g., Finland) than subsidiaries located in a developing country (e.g., China). While the study has highlighted the importance of social capital in promoting knowledge transfer, it has also uncovered some new findings that the effect of trust and shared vision may be contingent upon different contexts. Finally, in Paper 5, a number of mechanisms used in transferring selected HRM practices and competences to the Chinese business units have been identified. The findings suggest that cultural differences should be taken into consideration in the choice and use of different transfer mechanisms.

An Analysis of the Concept of Citizenship: Legal, Political and Social Dimensions

The thesis aims at analyzing concept of citizenship in political philosophy. The concept of citizenship is a complex one: it does not have a definitive explication, but it nevertheless is a very important category in contemporary world. Citizenship is a powerful ideal, and often the way a person is treated depends on whether he or she has the status of a citizen. Citizenship includes protection of a person’s rights both at home and abroad. It entails legal, political and social dimension: the legal status as a full member of society, the recognition of that status by fellow citizens and acting as a member of society. The thesis discusses these three dimensions. Its objective is to show how all of them, despite being insufficient in some aspects, reach something important about the concept. The main sources of the thesis are Civic Republicanism by Iseult Honohan (Routledge 2002), Republicanism by Philip Pettit (Clarendon Press 1997), and Taking Rights Seriously by Ronald Dworkin (1997). In addition, the historical part of the thesis relies mainly on the works of Aristotle, Immanuel Kant, Adam Smith, Quentin Skinner, James Pocock and James Tully. The writings of Will Kymlicka, John Rawls, Chantal Mouffe, and Shane Phelan are referred to in the presentation and critique of the liberal tradition of thought. Hannah Arendt and Seyla Benhabib’s analysis of Arendt’s philosophy both address the problematic relations between human rights and nation-states as the main guarantors of rights. The chapter on group rights relies on Peter Jones’ account of corporate and collective rights, after which I continue to Seumas Miller’s essay on the (liberal) account of group rights and their relation to the concept of citizenship. Republicanism and Political Theory (2002) edited by Cécile Laborde and John Maynor is also references. David Miller and Maurizio Viroli represent the more “rooted” version of republicanism. The thesis argues that the full concept of citizenship should be seen as containing legal, political and social dimensions. The concept can be viewed from all of these three angles. The first means that citizenship is connected with certain rights, like the right to vote or stand for election, the right to property and so on. In most societies, the law guarantees these rights to every citizen. Then there is also the social dimension, which can be said to be as important as the legal one: the recognition of equality and identities of others. Finally, there is the political dimension, meaning the importance of citizens’ participation in the society, which is discussed in connection with the contemporary account of republicanism. All these issues are discussed from the point of view of groups demanding for group-specific rights and equal recognition. The challenge with these three aspects of citizenship is, however, that they are difficult to discuss under one heading. Different theories or discourses of citizenship each approach the subject from different starting points, which make reconciling them sometimes hard. The fundamental questions theories try to answer may differ radically depending on the theory. Nevertheless, in order to get the whole image of what the citizenship discourses are about all the aspects deserve to be taken into account.

The decline of malaria in Finland – the impact of the vector and social variables

Background: Malaria was prevalent in Finland in the 18th century. It declined slowly without deliberate counter-measures and the last indigenous case was reported in 1954. In the present analysis of indigenous malaria in Finland, an effort was made to construct a data set on annual malaria cases of maximum temporal length to be able to evaluate the significance of different factors assumed to affect malaria trends. Methods: To analyse the long-term trend malaria statistics were collected from 1750–2008. During that time, malaria frequency decreased from about 20,000 – 50,000 per 1,000,000 people to less than 1 per 1,000,000 people. To assess the cause of the decline, a correlation analysis was performed between malaria frequency per million people and temperature data, animal husbandry, consolidation of land by redistribution and household size. Results: Anopheles messeae and Anopheles beklemishevi exist only as larvae in June and most of July. The females seek an overwintering place in August. Those that overwinter together with humans may act as vectors. They have to stay in their overwintering place from September to May because of the cold climate. The temperatures between June and July determine the number of malaria cases during the following transmission season. This did not, however, have an impact on the longterm trend of malaria. The change in animal husbandry and reclamation of wetlands may also be excluded as a possible cause for the decline of malaria. The long-term social changes, such as land consolidation and decreasing household size, showed a strong correlation with the decline of Plasmodium. Conclusion: The indigenous malaria in Finland faded out evenly in the whole country during 200 years with limited or no counter-measures or medication. It appears that malaria in Finland was basically a social disease and that malaria trends were strongly linked to changes in human behaviour. Decreasing household size caused fewer interactions between families and accordingly decreasing recolonization possibilities for Plasmodium. The permanent drop of the household size was the precondition for a permanent eradication of malaria.