Anticoncepción en Andalucía [Recurso electrónico]. 1. representaciones, discursos y prácticas profesionales

En la port.: Informe de investigación para la Consejería de Salud. Servicio de Promoción de la Salud y Planes Integrales

Confabulation in schizophrenia: a neuropsychological study.

Confabulation has been documented in schizophrenia, but its neuropsychological correlates appear to be different from those of confabulation in neurological disease states. Forty-five schizophrenic patients and 37 controls were administered a task requiring them to recall fables. They also underwent testing with a range of memory and executive tasks. The patients with schizophrenia produced significantly more confabulations than the controls. After correcting for multiple comparisons, confabulation was not significantly associated with memory impairment, and was associated with impairment on only one of eight executive measures, the Brixton Test. Confabulation scores were also associated with impairment on two semantic memory tests. Confabulation was correlated with intrusion errors in recall, but not false positive errors in a recognition task. The findings suggest that confabulation in schizophrenia is unrelated to the episodic memory impairment seen in the disorder. However, the association with a circumscribed deficit in executive function could be consistent with a defective strategic retrieval account of confabulation similar to that of Moscovitch and co-workers, interacting with defective semantic memory.

Differential prefrontal-like deficit in children after cerebellar astrocytoma and medulloblastoma tumor

BACKGROUND This study was realized thanks to the collaboration of children and adolescents who had been resected from cerebellar tumors. The medulloblastoma group (CE+, n = 7) in addition to surgery received radiation and chemotherapy. The astrocytoma group (CE, n = 13) did not receive additional treatments. Each clinical group was compared in their executive functioning with a paired control group (n = 12). The performances of the clinical groups with respect to controls were compared considering the tumor's localization (vermis or hemisphere) and the affectation (or not) of the dentate nucleus. Executive variables were correlated with the age at surgery, the time between surgery-evaluation and the resected volume. METHODS The executive functioning was assessed by means of WCST, Complex Rey Figure, Controlled Oral Word Association Test (letter and animal categories), Digits span (WISC-R verbal scale) and Stroop test. These tests are very sensitive to dorsolateral PFC and/or to medial frontal cortex functions. The scores for the non-verbal Raven IQ were also obtained. Direct scores were corrected by age and transformed in standard scores using normative data. The neuropsychological evaluation was made at 3.25 (SD = 2.74) years from surgery in CE group and at 6.47 (SD = 2.77) in CE+ group. RESULTS The Medulloblastoma group showed severe executive deficit (

Perspectives for the treatment of brucellosis in the 21st century: the Ioannina recommendations

Summary Points Brucellosis remains the commonest anthropozoonosis worldwide, and its treatment remains complex, requiring protracted administration of more than one antibiotic. In November 2006, a consensus meeting aimed at reaching a common specialist statement on the treatment of brucellosis was held in Ioannina, Greece under the auspices of the International Society of Chemotherapy and the Institute of Continuing Medical Education of Ioannina. The author panel suggests that the optimal treatment of uncomplicated brucellosis should be based on a six-week regimen of doxycycline combined either with streptomycin for 2–3 weeks, or rifampicin for six weeks. Gentamicin may be considered an acceptable alternative to streptomycin, while all other regimens/combinations should be considered second-line. The development of a common global therapeutic language for human brucellosis, and future, properly conducted clinical trials would definitely solve controversies regarding the disease.

Adaptación y validación al español del cuestionario 4CornerSAT para la medida de la satisfacción profesional del personal médico de atención especializada.

BACKGROUND Satisfaction of physicians is a concern in the healthcare sector, and it requires a multi-dimensional questionnaire in Spanish which studies their high-order needs. The objectives of this study are to adapt the 4CornerSAT Questionnaire to measure career satisfaction of physicians and to evaluate its validity in our context. METHOD The 4CornerSAT Questionnaire was adapted into Spanish, validating it among physicians of hospitals in Andalusia, Spain. A confirmatory factor analysis (CFA) was performed to corroborate the a priori model, and it was evaluated the internal consistency and the construct validity through the Cronbach's alpha and the correlation between the scale and the global item, respectively. RESULTS The adapted questionnaire was administrated to 121 specialist physicians. The CFA corroborated the four dimensions of the questionnaire (χ2=114.64, df=94, p<0.07; χ2/df=1.22; RMSEA=0.04). The internal consistency obtained an α=0.92 and the correlation between the summed scale and the global item verified the construct validity (r=0.77; p<0.001). CONCLUSIONS The 4CornerSAT questionnaire was adapted to Spanish, identifying an adequate construct validity and internal consistency.

El dictado como tarea comunicativa

El artículo explora las utilidades didácticas del dictado (la práctica comunicativa de oralizar o leer en voz alta un escrito) para el aprendizaje funcional de una lengua materna o extranjera, en los diversos niveles de enseñanza. Después de criticar el uso tradicional de este ejercicio lingüístico, presentamos once formas diferentes de desarrollar un dictado en clase, con sus particulares contenidos, objetivos y metodologías. También analizamos con detalle la técnica más tradicional del dictado magistral, en la que el docente dicta palabra por palabra un texto al alumnado, poniendo énfasis en la ortografía; ofrecemos algunas orientaciones para incrementar el componente comunicativo de esta propuesta. Las conclusiones finales proponen entender esta técnica como un recurso metodológico variado, rico y sugerente, adaptado a cada situación de aprendizaje —y no como una práctica obligatoria y fosilizada.

Métamorphoses identitaires en situation de mobilité

Identity metamorphoses in a context of mobility This study has its roots in the current upsurge in student mobility and in the scientific debates about the concepts of identity and intercultural communication. Based on a corpus of interviews with French Erasmus students in Finland, the study blends in theories of postmodern identity, intercultural hermeneutics and discourse analysis to examine how the students construct themselves and diverse ‘othernesses’ (included theirs) when they talk about their experiences. The use of the French pronoun on, pronoun switches, and virtual voices (ex: I said to myself...) allowed to pinpoint the students’ unstable identity metamorphoses in their discourses: integration of liquid and solid selves, infidelity in identification with the French but also with Erasmus ‘tribes’, and games of identity. Though the exchange experience appears as interesting for the students, the results show that many and varied misconceptions about identity, culture, intercultural communication, language use, and strangeness lead the students to evaluate their experiences negatively. The implication of the study is that students should be prepared for their time abroad, not so much in terms of ‘grammars of culture’ (e.g. ‘Finns behave in such and such ways’, ‘the French are...’), but through the development of competences to analyse the identity metamorphoses that take place in intercultural encounters and prevent people from meeting each other as diverse individuals. This could make study abroad one of the best training periods for postmodernity and globalization.

Naturaliser la procréation médicalement assistée : sens commun et représentations en dialogue

La constante évolution des biotechnologies de la procréation médicalement assistée (PMA) introduit des nouveautés qui perturbent les représentations de la famille et du « naturel » de la procréation notamment. Ces nouveautés engendrent des préoccupations aussi bien sociales qu'individuelles sur la légitimité et les conditions du recours à la PMA. Partant d'une approche dialogique de la communication, du langage et de la cognition ainsi que de la théorie des représentations sociales, nous faisons l'hypothèse que ces perturbations sont traitées différemment selon l'activité communicative dans laquelle les individus sont engagés. Nous avons alors travaillé à partir de deux corpus de données relevant d'un type d'activité communicative différent : un corpus de presse, de l'ordre d'un discours générique, portant sur la grossesse dite « tardive » (post-ménopause) et un corpus d'entretiens de recherche, de l'ordre d'un discours singulier, avec des couples qui ont recouru à la PMA, et portant sur la cryoconservation des zygotes. Nous appuyant sur les méthodes de l'analyse thématique et de l'analyse de discours, nous centrons notre examen sur les représentations sociales de la maternité (corpus de presse) et du « naturel » (corpus d'entretiens). Nous analysons ce que ces discours permettent d'accomplir socialement, étudions le rapport qu'ils établissent à l'ordre social et symbolique et interrogeons leurs fonctions en termes de processus de « naturalisation » de la PMA. Nos résultats montrent que les nouveautés de la PMA forcent les individus à se (re)positionner dans le champ des valeurs et des normes, lis montrent aussi que, dans ce contexte, les représentations sociales existantes sont mobilisées de différentes manières en fonction des visées argumentatives poursuivies. Ceci impliquant, par ailleurs, si ce n'est une transformation, du moins un renouvellement des représentations. Ils indiquent en outre que, bien que le discours de presse et celui des entretiens ne servent pas exactement les mêmes objectifs, leurs effets de « naturalisation » de la PMA sont comparables en termes de (re)construction de la norme. D'un point de vue dialogique, ils permettent aussi d'avancer que les polémiques sociales et individuelles sont non seulement articulées mais se co-constituent. Ils témoignent aussi du fait que la référence au « naturel » renvoie, plus qu'à un problème de perturbation de la « nature », à l'idée d'une menace de l'ordre social et symbolique. De ce point de vue, les réflexions sur les pratiques de PMA méritent d'être menées par la psychologie sociale et les sciences humaines et sociales plus largement. -- The constant evolution of biotechnologies of medically assisted procreation (MAP) introduces novelties that disturb representations of the family and, notably, of what is considered « natural » in procreation. These novelties give rise to social and individual questions about the legitimacy and the conditions of the use of MAP. Drawing upon a dialogical approach to communication, language and cognition, as well as social representations theory, a hypothesis is advanced that these disturbances are handled differently, depending on the communicative activity individuals are engaged in. Two corpuses of data, representing different communicative activity types, were used: a press corpus, reflecting a generic discourse on "late" pregnancy (post-menopause), and a research interviews corpus, reflecting particular discourses developed by couples who used MAP and have cryopreserved zygotes. Using methods of thematic and discourse analysis, the study focuses on social representations of pregnancy (press corpus) and of the "natural" (interviews corpus). The analysis questions what these discourses enable to achieve socially, how they relate to the social and symbolic order, as well as their function in "naturalising" MAP. The results show that MAP novelties force individuals to (re)position themselves in the field of values and norms. They also show that, in this context, existing social representations are mobilised in different ways depending on the argumentative aims that are being pursued. This implies, if not a transformation, at minimum a renewal of representations. Additionally the results indicate that, although press and interviews discourses might not serve the same aims, their effects on "naturalising" MAP are comparable in terms of (re)constructing the norm. From a dialogical perspective, the findings also allow us to argue that social and individual polemics are not only articulated with one another but are effectively co-constituted. They also evidence the fact that the reference to the "natural" brings forth, more than a problem of disturbing "nature", a threat to the social and symbolic order. From this perspective, reflections on MAP practices deserve further attention within social psychology and social and human sciences at large.

O ensino da língua portuguesa e a linguagem na comunicação virtual: alternativas e dilemas

A presente investigação tem como objetivo compreender como os professores de Língua Portuguesa integram a linguagem da comunicação pela Internet em sua prática pedagógica, uma vez que a linguagem utilizada na comunicação virtual demonstra variações linguísticas na expectativa oposta a Língua Portuguesa em sua forma padrão e, neste contexto, a escola e o professor de português representam intermédios possíveis entre o escrito padrão e o virtual. Após processo investigativo que contou com recolha de dados documentais e entrevistas semiestruturadas, constata-se que os professores de Língua Portuguesa ressaltam as diferenças da linguagem na comunicação pela Internet em relação à forma padrão na mesma precisão em que defendem o uso da tecnologia no ambiente escolar. Afirmam que, neste contexto, o papel do professor de português concentra-se no preparo do estudante para o uso da forma padrão, permitindo uma abertura em sua prática à linguagem na comunicação virtual. Neste sentido, defendem que o posicionamento adequado do professor de Língua Portuguesa diante do ensino da língua padrão e sua relação com a linguagem virtual, centraliza-se numa abertura para um estudo linguístico na perspectiva dos possíveis usos sociais da língua, possuindo como referencial a forma padrão da Língua Portuguesa.

Online orthographies

The representation in online environments of non-Roman-based script languages has proved problematic. During the initial years of Computer-mediated Communication, the American Standard Code for Information Interchange character set only supported Roman-alphabeted languages. The solution for speakers of languages written in non-Roman scripts was to employ unconventional writing systems, in an effort to represent their native language in online discourse. The first aim of this chapter is to present the different ways that internet users choose to transliterate or even transcribe their native languages online, using Roman characters. With technological development, and consequently the availability of various writing scripts online, internet users now have the option to either use Roman characters or their native script. If the latter is chosen, internet users still seem to deviate from conventional ways of writing, in this case, however, with regards to spelling. The second aim, therefore, is to bring into light recent developments, by looking at the ways that internet users manipulate orthography, to achieve their communicative purposes.

Perfil de habilidades de comunicação de dois irmãos com a Síndrome Alcoólica Fetal

Conselho Nacional de Desenvolvimento Científico e Tecnológico (CNPq)

Perfil comunicativo de indivíduos com a síndrome de Williams-Beuren

OBJETIVO: Descrever o perfil comunicativo de indivíduos com a síndrome de Williams-Beuren. MÉTODOS: A casuística foi composta por 12 indivíduos com a síndrome com idade cronológica entre 6;6 a 23;6 (Grupo 1) que foram comparados a outros 12 sem a síndrome e com idade mental semelhante e sem dificuldades de linguagem/aprendizagem (Grupo 2). Os indivíduos foram avaliados em situação de conversação para classificação dos comportamentos verbais e não-verbais, segundo critérios pragmáticos, levantamento do número de turnos por minuto, enunciados por turno, Extensão Média de Enunciados, levantamento quanto à freqüência e tipologia de disfluências da fala e classificação quanto ao tipo de pausas plenas do discurso. RESULTADOS: O perfil comunicativo do Grupo 1 mostrou facilidade para interagirem em situação de comunicação com a presença de limitações lingüísticas estruturais e funcionais variáveis, quando comparados aos indivíduos do Grupo 2. Os indivíduos do Grupo 1 freqüentemente utilizaram estratégias comunicativas, na tentativa de preencherem o espaço comunicativo, como o uso de clichês, efeitos sonoros, recursos entonacionais e as pausas plenas que mostraram ser favoráveis do ponto de vista sócio-comunicativo, enquanto que os comportamentos verbais ecolálicos e perseverativos prejudicam o desempenho comunicativo desses indivíduos. CONCLUSÃO: O desempenho comunicativo mais prejudicado do Grupo 1 permitiu especular que comprometimentos lingüísticos nesta condição podem estar presentes, independente da diferença entre idade cronológica e mental. Estudos mais abrangentes poderão responder ao questionamento da dissociação de habilidades cognitivas e lingüísticas nesta síndrome e também no que diz respeito à complexa esta correlação em meio aos distúrbios da comunicação humana.