Starting antidepressant use: a qualitative synthesis of UK and Australian data

Objective To explore people's experiences of starting antidepressant treatment. Design Qualitative interpretive approach combining thematic analysis with constant comparison. Relevant coding reports from the original studies (generated using NVivo) relating to initial experiences of antidepressants were explored in further detail, focusing on the ways in which participants discussed their experiences of taking or being prescribed an antidepressant for the first time. Participants 108 men and women aged 22–84 who had taken antidepressants for depression. Setting Respondents recruited throughout the UK during 2003–2004 and 2008 and 2012–2013 and in Australia during 2010–2011. Results People expressed a wide range of feelings about initiating antidepressant use. People's attitudes towards starting antidepressant use were shaped by stereotypes and stigmas related to perceived drug dependency and potentially extreme side effects. Anxieties were expressed about starting use, and about how long the antidepressant might begin to take effect, how much it might help or hinder them, and about what to expect in the initial weeks. People worried about the possibility of experiencing adverse effects and implications for their senses of self. Where people felt they had not been given sufficient time during their consultation information or support to take the medicines, the uncertainty could be particularly unsettling and impact on their ongoing views on and use of antidepressants as a viable treatment option. Conclusions Our paper is the first to explore in-depth patient existential concerns about start of antidepressant use using multicountry data. People need additional support when they make decisions about starting antidepressants. Health professionals can use our findings to better understand and explore with patients’ their concerns before their patients start antidepressants. These insights are key to supporting patients, many of whom feel intimidated by the prospect of taking antidepressants, especially during the uncertain first few weeks of treatment.

Rights, Rationality and Reproduction: Balancing Interests in the Abortion Debate

As medical technology has advanced, so too have our attitudes towards the level of control we can or should expect to have over our procreative capacities. This creates a multidimensional problem for the law and family planning services in terms of access to services – whether to avoid conception or terminate a pregnancy – and the negligent provision of these services. These developments go to the heart of our perception of autonomy. Unsurprisingly, these matters also raise a moral dilemma for the law. Distinctively, discourse in this area is dominated by assertions of subjective moral value; in relation to life, to personal choice and to notions of the archetypal family. Against this, I stress that a model of objective morality can answer these challenging questions and resolve the inherent problems of legal regulation. Therefore, I argue that notions of autonomy must be based on a rational, action-based understanding of what it means to be a ‘moral agent’. I claim that from this we might support a legal standard, based on objective rational morality, which can frame our constitutional norms and our conception of justice in these contentious areas. This paper claims that the current regulation of abortion is outdated and requires radical reform. It proposes a scheme that would shift the choice towards the mother (and the father), remove the unnecessarily broad disability ground and involve doctors having a role of counsel (rather than gatekeeper).

The artist biopic: a historical analysis of narrative cinema, 1934-2010

The thesis provides an historical overview of the artist biopic that has emerged as a distinct sub-genre of the biopic as a whole, totalling some ninety films from Europe and America alone since the first talking artist biopic in 1934. Their making usually reflects a determination on the part of the director or star to see the artist as an alter-ego. Many of them were adaptations of successful literary works, which tempted financial backers by having a ready-made audience based on a pre-established reputation. The sub-genre’s development is explored via the grouping of films with associated themes and the use of case studies. These examples can then be used as models for exploring similar sets of data from other countries and time periods. The specific topics chosen for discussion include the representation of a single painter, for example, Vincent Van Gogh, to see how the treatment of an artist varies across several countries and over seventy years. British artist biopics are analysed as a case study in relation to the idea of them posing as a national stereotype. Topics within sex and gender studies are highlighted in analysis of the representation of the female artist and the queer artist as well as artists who have lived together as couples. A number of well-known gallery artists have become directors of artist biopics and their films are considered to see what particular insights a professional working artist can bring to the portrayal of artistic genius and creation. In the concluding part of the thesis it is argued that the artist biopic overall has survived the bad press which some individual productions have received and can even be said to have matured under the influence of directors producing a quality product for the art house, festival and avant-garde distribution circuits. As a genre it has proved extremely adaptable and has reflected the changing attitudes towards art and artists within the wider community. It has both encouraged renewed interest in the work of established national artists and also raised the profile of those relatively obscure such as Séraphine de Senlis and Pirosmani.

Perceção da comunidade educativa sobre os alimentos promotores de saúde e da sua inclusão no plano curricular do 3.º ciclo do ensino básico

Mestrado, Tecnologia e Segurança Alimentar, 4 de Março de 2016, Universidade dos Açores.

Das perceções das crianças sobre alguns animais mal-afamados à sua (re) construção em contexto de sala de aula

Relatório de Estágio apresentado à Escola Superior de Educação de Lisboa para obtenção do grau de mestre em Ensino do 1.º e 2.º Ciclo do Ensino Básico

Centro de Recursos para a Inclusão na Multideficiência: as equipas

A inclusão como paradigma educativo é cada vez mais aceite nos dias de hoje. Diversas publicações neste âmbito, tais como O Forúm Mundial de Educação para Todos (1990), a Declaração de Salamanca (1994) e o Enquadramento da Ação de Dakar (2000), bem como a ênfase dada à igualdade de oportunidades vêm sustentar uma política de educação para todos. As restrições à participação dos alunos com multideficiência legitimam um continuum de serviços que responda às suas particularidades. O projeto Centro de Recursos para a Inclusão (CRI) surge no âmbito da reorientação das escolas especiais, na passagem destes alunos para as escolas de ensino regular. A presente investigação descreve as práticas e perceções dos técnicos do CRI quanto à atuação da equipa e demais intervenientes no processo educativo dos alunos com multideficiência. Para o efeito, foram entrevistados todos os técnicos (32) de equipas CRI do distrito do Porto que atuam com aquela população em contexto escolar. Os resultados evidenciaram que os técnicos percecionam a sua equipa como tendo todas as valências terapêuticas necessárias, concordam com a inclusão de alunos com multideficiência na escola de ensino regular e salientam a necessidade de serem modificadas atitudes relativas à pragmatização desta abordagem. As práticas de avaliação dos alunos resultam de contributos individualizados dos intervenientes, conquanto a intervenção seja realizada nos contextos reais dos indivíduos. Por fim, os profissionais consideram fundamental participarem na elaboração da documentação relativa ao aluno e, consequentemente, sugerem um efetivo reconhecimento e envolvimento da equipa no trabalho desenvolvido nas escolas.

A Multiple Criteria Utility-based Approa h for the Unit Commitment with Wind Power and Pumped Storage Hydro

The integration of wind power in eletricity generation brings new challenges to unit commitment due to the random nature of wind speed. For this particular optimisation problem, wind uncertainty has been handled in practice by means of conservative stochastic scenario-based optimisation models, or through additional operating reserve settings. However, generation companies may have different attitudes towards operating costs, load curtailment, or waste of wind energy, when considering the risk caused by wind power variability. Therefore, alternative and possibly more adequate approaches should be explored. This work is divided in two main parts. Firstly we survey the main formulations presented in the literature for the integration of wind power in the unit commitment problem (UCP) and present an alternative model for the wind-thermal unit commitment. We make use of the utility theory concepts to develop a multi-criteria stochastic model. The objectives considered are the minimisation of costs, load curtailment and waste of wind energy. Those are represented by individual utility functions and aggregated in a single additive utility function. This last function is adequately linearised leading to a mixed-integer linear program (MILP) model that can be tackled by general-purpose solvers in order to find the most preferred solution. In the second part we discuss the integration of pumped-storage hydro (PSH) units in the UCP with large wind penetration. Those units can provide extra flexibility by using wind energy to pump and store water in the form of potential energy that can be generated after during peak load periods. PSH units are added to the first model, yielding a MILP model with wind-hydro-thermal coordination. Results showed that the proposed methodology is able to reflect the risk profiles of decision makers for both models. By including PSH units, the results are significantly improved.

In what extent can toy premiums promote healthy eating habits?: A study with school-age children

A Work Project, presented as part of the requirements for the Award of a Masters Degree in Management from the NOVA – School of Business and Economics

How can sponsoring of sports teams influence healthy eating on children?

Field lab in marketing: Children consumer behaviour

The influence of sports events endorsement on children’s perceptions of healthy food products and brands

Field lab in marketing: Children consumer behaviour

A promoção do capital psicológico,work engagement e saúde mental de trabalhadores

Dissertação de Mestrado em Políticas de Desenvolvimento de Recursos Humanos

The impact of personality characteristics on the clinical expression in neurodegenerative disorders--a review.

Clinical experience suggests that longstanding personality characteristics as a person's most distinctive features of all are likely to play a role in how someone with dementia copes with his increasing deficiencies. Personality characteristics may have a pathoplastic effect on both behavioral and psychological symptoms (BPS) or on cognition as well as cognitive decline. Cognitive disorders accompanied by BPS are a tremendous burden for both the patient and their proxies. This review suggests that premorbid personality characteristics are co-determinants of BPS in cognitive disorders, but much effort is needed to clarify whether or not specific premorbid personality traits are associated with specific BPS as no strong links have so far emerged. This review further shows that a growing field of research is interested in the links not only between quite short-lived emotional states and cognitive processes, but also between longstanding personality traits and cognition in both healthy individuals and patients with neurodegenerative disorders. Furthermore, a few studies found that specific premorbid personality traits may be risk factors for neurodegenerative diseases. However, research findings in this area remain scarce despite a huge literature on personality and cognitive disorders in general. An important shortcoming that hampers so far the progress of our understanding in these domains is the confusion in the literature between longstanding premorbid personality traits and transient personality changes observed in neurodegenerative diseases. Few studies have based their assessments on accepted personality theories and carefully investigated premorbid personality traits in patients with cognitive disorders, although assessing personality may be complicated in these patients. Studying the impact of personality characteristics in cognitive disorders is an especially promising field of research in particular when concomitantly using neurobiological approaches, in particular structural brain imaging and genetic studies as suggested by as yet rare studies. Improved understanding of premorbid personality characteristics as determinants of both BPS or cognitive capacities or decline is likely to influence our attitudes towards the treatment of demented patients and ultimately to help in alleviating a patient's and their proxies' burden.

Social trust : a public good?

Combining theories on social trust and social capital with sociopsychological approaches and applying contextual analyses to Swiss and European survey data, this thesis examines under what circumstances generalised trust, often understood as public good, may not benefit everyone, but instead amplify inequality. The empirical investigation focuses on the Swiss context, but considers different scales of analysis. Two broader questions are addressed. First, might generalised trust imply more or less narrow visions of community and solidarity in different contexts? Applying nonlinear principal component analysis to aggregate indicators, Study 1 explores inclusive and exclusive types of social capital in Europe, measured as regional configurations of generalised trust, civic participation and attitudes towards diversity. Study 2 employs multilevel models to examine how generalised trust, as an individual predisposition and an aggregate climate at the level of Swiss cantons, is linked to equality- directed collective action intention versus radical right support. Second, might high-trust climates impact negatively on disadvantaged members of society, precisely because they reflect a normative discourse of social harmony that impedes recognition of inequality? Study 3 compares how climates of generalised trust at the level of Swiss micro-regions and subjective perceptions of neighbourhood cohesion moderate the negative relationship between socio-economic disadvantage and mental health. Overall, demonstrating beneficial, as well as counterintuitive effects of social trust, this thesis proposes a critical and contextualised approach to the sources and dynamics of social cohesion in democratic societies. -- Cette thèse combine des théories sur le capital social et la confiance sociale avec des approches psychosociales et s'appuie sur des analyses contextuelles de données d'enquêtes suisses et européennes, afin d'étudier dans quelles circonstances la confiance généralisée, souvent présentée comme un bien public, pourrait ne pas bénéficier à tout le monde, mais amplifier les inégalités. Les études empiriques, centrées sur le contexte suisse, intègrent différentes échelles d'analyse et investiguent deux questions principales. Premièrement, la confiance généralisée implique-t-elle des visions plus ou moins restrictives de la communauté et de la solidarité selon le contexte? Dans l'étude 1, une analyse à composantes principales non-linéaire sur des indicateurs agrégés permet d'explorer des types de capital social inclusif et exclusif en Europe, mesurés par des configurations régionales de confiance généralisée, de participation civique, et d'attitudes envers la diversité. L'étude 2 utilise des modèles multiniveaux afin d'analyser comment la confiance généralisée, en tant que prédisposition individuelle et climat agrégé au niveau des cantons suisses, est associée à l'intention de participer à des actions collectives en faveur de l'égalité ou, au contraire, à l'intention de voter pour la droite radicale. Deuxièmement, des climats de haute confiance peuvent-ils avoir un impact négatif sur des membres désavantagés de la société, précisément parce qu'ils reflètent un discours normatif d'harmonie sociale qui empêche la reconnaissance des inégalités? L'étude 3 analyse comment des climats de confiance au niveau des micro-régions suisses et la perception subjective de faire partie d'un environnement cohésif modèrent la relation négative entre le désavantage socio-économique et la santé mentale. En démontrant des effets bénéfiques mais aussi contre-intuitifs de la confiance sociale, cette thèse propose une approche critique et contextualisée des sources et dynamiques de la cohésion sociale dans les sociétés démocratiques.

Collaborative learning in a Japanese as a foreign language classroom /

This study examined the influence of training on Asian learners' beliefs, interaction, and attitudes during collaborative learning (CL) and explored the processes of their CL in pairs. The literature contains few studies on the effect of collaborative training in language learning. In addition, it shows gaps between SLA theory and practice resulting from learners' cultural differences. Although second/subsequent language acquisition (SLA) theory assumes that CL contributes to language learning, implementing CL in a multicultural classroom is often considered to be unsuccessful by teachers. The research questions designed to address this gap explore: (a) the extent to which tra~ng affects Asian learners' attitudes towards and interaction during CL; (b) how Asian learners accomplish collaborative tasks in pairs. In the quasi-experimental research design, the learners in the treatment group received special training in CL for 5 weeks while the learners in the comparison group did not receive similar training. Data were collected from 45 McMaster University students through pre- and posttests, pre- and postintervention questionnaires, student information, and informal classroom observations. To detennine the influence of training, the frequency of communication units (c-units), Language Related Episodes (LREs), Collaborative Dialogue (CD) from audio-taped data, and the fmal draft scores were compared between pre- and posttests. The learners' pre- and postintervention questionnaires were also compared. Transcripts from audio-taped data, students' information, their responses and comments from questionnaires, and informal observations served to investigate the processes of Asian learners' CL. Overall, this study found that training had significant influence on the frequency of c-units and CD, and considerable impact on the draft scores, although little influence on the frequency of LREs was observed. The results from the questionnaires in the treatment group showed positive changes in the learners' beliefs on pair work after training. On the other hand, analyses of the transcription data showed that the learners did not conduct enough discussion for a resolution of problems with peers. In conclusion, results suggested the need for teacher intervention, a longer period of collaborative training, and an implementation of self-evaluation into the course grade to encourage the learners to succeed in collaborative learning.

Marketing Brock University in the 1980's: assessing freshman student feedback in strategic planning approach

Universities have entered a period of rapid change and upheaval due to an external environment beyond their control which includes shifting demographic patterns, accelerating technology, funding shortages, and keener competition for students. Strategic planning, a comprehensive vision which challenges universities to take bold and creative measures to meet the threats and opportunities of the future, is an institutional imperative in the 1980's. This paper examines freshman student feedback in an effort to incorporate this important element into a strategic plan for Brock University, a small, predominantly liberal arts university in St. Catharines, Ontario. The study was designed to provide information on the characteristics of the 1985-86 pool of freshman registrants: their attitudes towards Brock's recruitment measures, their general university priorities, and their influences in regard to university selection (along with other demographical and attitudinal data). A survey involving fixed-alternative questions of a subjective and objective nature was administered in two large freshman classes at Brock in which a broad cross-section of academic programs was anticipated. Computer analysis of the data for the 357 respondents included total raw frequencies and rounded percentages, as well as subgroup cross-tabulation by geographic home area of respondent, academic major, and high school graduating average. The four directional hypotheses put forward were all substantiatied by the survey data, indicating that 1) the university's current recruitment program had been a positive influence during their university search 2) parents were the most influential group in the students' decisions related to university 3) respondents viewed institutional reputation as less of a priority than an enjoyable university lifestyle in a personal learning atmosphere 4) students had a decided preference for co-operative study and internship programs. Strategic planning recommendations included a reduction in the faculty/student ratio through faculty hirings to restore the close rapport between professors and students, increased recruitment presentations in Ontario high schools to enlarge the applicant pool, creation of an Office of Co-operative Study and Internship Programs, institutional emphasis on a "customer orientation", and an extension of research into student demographics and attitudinal data.