Actividad física, imagen corporal y condiciones de vida. Un abordaje teórico desde los determinantes y la determinación social de la salud

El objetivo de este trabajo fue analizar la construcción social del conocimiento en Actividad física desde dos planteamientos teóricos de la salud centrando el análisis en la relación con la imagen corporal y las condiciones de vida. Se trata de un estudio teórico desde el análisis de contenido de corte narrativo de 98 artículos desarrollado en cinco etapas a través de: rastreo de documentos en bases de datos en el periodo 2000-2014, revisión de artículos, y análisis y hallazgos de significados, sentidos o contenidos. Como hallazgo importante se puede mencionar que en la literatura científica relacionada con la triada Actividad física-imagen corporal-condiciones de vida predomina la construcción del conocimiento a partir de modelos hegemónicos y dominantes que priorizan la intensidad, la frecuencia y el tiempo dedicado a la AF, la estandarización en la comparación de la apariencia física y la medición de elementos materiales en el modo de vivir de las personas, principalmente desde el abordaje de los determinantes sociales de la salud. Se concluye que es necesario revisar las poblaciones que incluyendo en los estudios al estar concentrados el conocimiento en solo unos grupos; así como se hace explícita la necesidad de revisar cuales son los aportes de la Educación Física y otras disciplinas (ciencias sociales) para una mayor comprensión teórica y práctica de la AF.

Learning in the third space : a sociocultural perspective on learning with analogies

Research on analogies in science education has focussed on student interpretation of teacher and textbook analogies, psychological aspects of learning with analogies and structured approaches for teaching with analogies. Few studies have investigated how analogies might be pivotal in students’ growing participation in chemical discourse. To study analogies in this way requires a sociocultural perspective on learning that focuses on ways in which language, signs, symbols and practices mediate participation in chemical discourse. This study reports research findings from a teacher-research study of two analogy-writing activities in a chemistry class. The study began with a theoretical model, Third Space, which informed analyses and interpretation of data. Third Space was operationalized into two sub-constructs called Dialogical Interactions and Hybrid Discourses. The aims of this study were to investigate sociocultural aspects of learning chemistry with analogies in order to identify classroom activities where students generate Dialogical Interactions and Hybrid Discourses, and to refine the operationalization of Third Space. These aims were addressed through three research questions. The research questions were studied through an instrumental case study design. The study was conducted in my Year 11 chemistry class at City State High School for the duration of one Semester. Data were generated through a range of data collection methods and analysed through discourse analysis using the Dialogical Interactions and Hybrid Discourse sub-constructs as coding categories. Results indicated that student interactions differed between analogical activities and mathematical problem-solving activities. Specifically, students drew on discourses other than school chemical discourse to construct analogies and their growing participation in chemical discourse was tracked using the Third Space model as an interpretive lens. Results of this study led to modification of the theoretical model adopted at the beginning of the study to a new model called Merged Discourse. Merged Discourse represents the mutual relationship that formed during analogical activities between the Analog Discourse and the Target Discourse. This model can be used for interpreting and analysing classroom discourse centred on analogical activities from sociocultural perspectives. That is, it can be used to code classroom discourse to reveal students’ growing participation with chemical (or scientific) discourse consistent with sociocultural perspectives on learning.

Access to cardiac rehabilitation does not equate to attendance

Background/Aims Timely access to appropriate cardiac care is critical for optimizing positive outcomes after a cardiac event. Attendance at cardiac rehabilitation (CR) remains less than optimal (10%–30%). Our aim was to derive an objective, comparable, geographic measure reflecting access to cardiac services after a cardiac event in Australia. Methods An expert panel defined a single patient care pathway and a hierarchy of the minimum health services for CR and secondary prevention. Using geographic information systems a numeric/alpha index was modelled to describe access before and after a cardiac event. The aftercare phase was modelled into five alphabetical categories: from category A (access to medical service, pharmacy, CR, pathology within 1 h) to category E (no services available within 1 h). Results Approximately 96% or 19 million people lived within 1 h of the four basic services to support CR and secondary prevention, including 96% of older Australians and 75% of the indigenous population. Conversely, 14% (64,000) indigenous people resided in population locations that had poor access to health services that support CR after a cardiac event. Conclusion Results demonstrated that the majority of Australians had excellent ‘geographic’ access to services to support CR and secondary prevention. Therefore, it appears that it is not the distance to services that affects attendance. Our ‘geographic’ lens has identified that more research on socioeconomic, sociological or psychological aspects to attendance is needed.

Access to Cardiac Rehabilitation does not Equate to Attendance. (On Behalf of the Cardiac ARIA Project. Winner Nursing/Allied Health Professional Investigator Award)

Background/Aims Timely access to appropriate cardiac care is critical for optimizing positive outcomes after a cardiac event. Attendance at cardiac rehabilitation (CR) remains less than optimal (10%–30%). Our aim was to derive an objective, comparable, geographic measure reflecting access to cardiac services after a cardiac event in Australia. Methods An expert panel defined a single patient care pathway and a hierarchy of the minimum health services for CR and secondary prevention. Using geographic information systems a numeric/alpha index was modelled to describe access before and after a cardiac event. The aftercare phase was modelled into five alphabetical categories: from category A (access to medical service, pharmacy, CR, pathology within 1 h) to category E (no services available within 1 h). Results Approximately 96% or 19 million people lived within 1 h of the four basic services to support CR and secondary prevention, including 96% of older Australians and 75% of the indigenous population. Conversely, 14% (64,000) indigenous people resided in population locations that had poor access to health services that support CR after a cardiac event. Conclusion Results demonstrated that the majority of Australians had excellent ‘geographic’ access to services to support CR and secondary prevention. Therefore, it appears that it is not the distance to services that affects attendance. Our ‘geographic’ lens has identified that more research on socioeconomic, sociological or psychological aspects to attendance is needed.

The predictors of active ageing of older Australians : the triple a study

The concept of older adults contributing to society in a meaningful way has been termed ‘active ageing’. Active ageing reflects changes in prevailing theories of social and psychological aspects of ageing, with a focus on individuals' strengths as opposed to their deficits or pathology. In order to explore predictors of active ageing, the Australian Active Ageing (Triple A) project group undertook a national postal survey of participants over the age of 50 years recruited randomly through their 2004 membership of a large Australia-wide senior's organisation. The survey comprised 178 items covering paid and voluntary work, learning, social, spiritual, emotional, health and home, life events and demographic items. A 45% response rate (2655 returned surveys) reflected an expected balance of gender, age and geographic representation of participants. The data were analysed using data mining techniques to represent generalizations on individual situations. Data mining identifies the valid, novel, potentially useful and understandable patterns and trends in data. The results based on the clustering mining technique indicate that physical and emotional health combined with the desire to learn were the most significant factors when considering active ageing. The findings suggest that remaining active in later life is not only directly related to the maintenance of emotional and physical health, but may be significantly intertwined with the opportunity to engage in on-going learning activities that are relevant to the individual. The findings of this study suggest that practitioners and policy makers need to incorporate older peoples' learning needs within service and policy framework developments.

Co-occurring anger in young people with Asperger's syndrome

Objectives: The co-occurrence of anger in young people with Asperger's syndrome (AS) has received little attention despite aggression, agitation, and tantrums frequently being identified as issues of concern in this population. The present study investigated the occurrence of anger in young people with AS and explores its relationship with anxiety and depression. Method: Sixty-two young people (12-23 years old) diagnosed with AS were assessed using the Beck Anger Inventory for Youth, Spence Children's Anxiety Scale, and Reynolds Adolescent Depression Scale. Results: Among young people with AS who participated in this study, 41% of participants reported clinically significant levels of anger (17%), anxiety (25.8%) and/or depression (11.5%). Anger, anxiety, and depression were positively correlated with each other. Depression, however, was the only significant predictor of anger. Conclusion: Anger is commonly experienced by young people with AS and is correlated with anxiety and depression. These findings suggest that the emotional and behavioral presentation of anger could serve as a cue for further assessment, and facilitate earlier identification and intervention for anger, as well as other mental health problems.

Pyhä Teresa ja keskiajan mystiikan teoriat

In my dissertation I have studied St Teresa (1515-1582) in the light of medieval mystical theories. I have two main levels in my research: historical and theological. On the historical level I study St Teresa s personal history in the context of her family and the Spanish society. On the theological level I study both St Teresa s mysticism and her religious experience in the light of medieval mysticism. St Teresa wrote a book called Life , which is her narrative autobiography and story about her mystical spiritual formation. She reflected herself through biblical texts interpreting them in the course of the biblical hermeneutics like allegory, typology, tropology and anagogy. In addition to that she read others life stories from her period of time, but reflected herself only slightly through the sociological point of view. She used irony as a means to gain acceptance to her authority and motive to write. Her position has been described as a double bind because of writing at the request of educated men and to the non-educated women as she herself was uneducated. She used irony as a means to achieve valuation to women, to gain negative attributes connected to them and to gain authority to teach them mystical spirituality, the Bible and prayer. In this ironic tendency she was a feminist writer. In order to understand medieval mysticism I have written in the first chapter a review of the main trends in medieval mysticism in connection with the classical emotional theories. Two medieval mystical theories show an important role in St Teresa s mysticism. One is love mysticism and the other is the three partite way of mysticism (purification, illumination and union). The classic-philosophical emotional theories play a role in both patterns. The theory of love mysticism St Teresa interpreted in the traditional way stressing the spiritual meaning of love in connexion with God and neighbors. Love is an emotion, which is bound with other emotions, but all objects of love don t strengthen spiritual love. In the three partite way of mysticism purification means to find biblical values in life and to practice meditative self-knowledge theologically interpreted. In illumination human understanding has to be illuminated by God and united to mystical knowledge from God. St Teresa considered illumination a way to learn things. Illumination has also psychological aspects like recognition of many trials and pains, which come from life on earth. Theologically interpreted in illumination one should die to oneself, let oneself be transformed and renewed by God. I have also written a review of the modern philosophical discussion on personal identity where memory and mental experiences are important creators of personal identity. St Teresa bound medieval mystical teaching together with her personal religious experience. Her personal identity is by its character based on her narrative life story where mental experiences play important role. Previous researchers have labelled St Teresa as an ecstatic person whose experiences produced ecstatic phenomena to the mysticism. These phenomena combined with visions have in one respect made of her a person who has brought physical and visionary tendencies to theology. In spite of that she also represents a modern tendency trying to give words to experiences, which at first seem to be exceptional and extreme and which are easily interpreted as one-sided either physical or sexual or unsaid. In other respect I have stressed the personality of St Teresa that was represented as both strong and weak. The strong personality for her is demonstrated by religious faith and in its practice. The weak personality was for her a natural personal identity. St Teresa saw a unifying aspect in almost all. Firstly, her mysticism was aimed towards union with God and secondly, the unifying aspects and common rules in human relations in community life were central. Union with God is based on the fact that in a soul God is living in its centre, where God is present in the Trinitarian way. The picture of God in ourselves is a mirror but to get to know God better is to recognize his/her presence in us. When the soul recognizes itself as a dwelling place of God, it knows itself as God knows him/herself. There is equality between God and the soul. To be a Christian means to participate in God in his Trinitarian being. The participation to God is a process of divinization that puts a person into transformation, change and renewal. The unitive aspect concludes also knowledge of opposites between experience of community and solitude as well as community and separateness. As a founder of monasteries St Teresa practiced theology of poverty. She renewed the monastic life founding a rule called discalced that stressed ascetic tendencies. Supporters of her work were after the difficulties in the beginning both society and churchly leaders. She wrote about the monasteries including in her description at times seriousness at times humor and irony. Her stories are said to be picaresque histories that contain stories of ordinary laymen and many unexpected occasions. She exercised a kind of Bakhtinian dialogue in her letters. St Teresa stressed the virtues like sacrifice, determination and courage in the monastic life. Most of what she taught of virtues is based on biblical spirituality but there are also psychological tendencies in her writings. The theological pedagogical advice is mixed with psychology, but she herself made no distinction between different aspects in her teaching. To understand St Teresa and her mysticism is to recognize that she mixes her personal religious experience and mysticism, which widens mysticism to religious experience in a new way, although this corresponds also the very definition of mysticism. St Teresa concentrated on mental-spiritual experiences and the aim of her mystical teaching was to produce a human mind well cured like a garden that has God as its gardener.