A longitudinal study of children's voices in regard to stress and coping during the transition to school

This study explores (1) how parental and teacher scaffolding and children's coping strategies contribute to children's adjustment during the transition from preschool to school; and (2) how children's perception of stress and coping are constructed over time. The sample included 216 six-year-old children, their parents and teachers. The parents, teachers and children reported that many children encountered social stress and being incompetent at school, and most of the children used either direct problem-solving or seeking social support to cope with stress, but had not used emotion-focused coping strategies learnt at preschool. Compared with the parents’ and teachers’ responses, the children reported more incidences of social stress. Compared with the children's responses, more parents and teachers reported children being incompetent in learning or self-help skills at school. Implications of the study were discussed at the end of the article.     

Parental perceptions of children's agency: Parental warmth,school achievement and adjustment

The present study examined Swedish mothers’ and fathers’ warmth towards their children in relation to their children's agency. It also examined the longitudinal relation between agency and children's externalising, internalising, and school achievement. Swedish children's mothers and fathers (N?=?93) were interviewed at three time points (when children were 8, 9, and 10 years old) about their warmth towards their children, children's agency, and children's externalising and internalising behaviours and school achievement. Parental warmth at Time 1 was significantly correlated with child agency at Time 2, which was significantly correlated with child externalising and internalising behaviours and academic achievement at Time 3. There were no differences between girls and boys. Results from this study indicate that Swedish parents’ warmth is directly related to subsequent perceptions of children's agency, which in turn are related to subsequently lower child externalising and internalising problems and higher academic achievement. These findings held in the context of a three-year longitudinal study and for both boys and girls, suggesting the importance of child agency in the link between parental warmth and children's adjustment.     

Voices of children,parents and teachers: how children cope with stress during school transition

This study explores how children's perceptions of stress factors and coping strategies are constructed over time. Children were interviewed before and after they made the transition from preschool to primary school. This study also explores teachers' and parental strategies in helping children to cope with stress at school. The sample included 53 six-year-old children, their parents and teachers. The findings show that children generally could make accurate predictions of unhappy things that might happen during the transition to primary school. Children reported being incompetent in fulfilling teachers' expectations regarding learning, self-help skills and conforming to rules. Children also reported peer conflicts and being nervous about authority. Children learned direct problem-solving skills, seeking social support and emotional regulation at preschool, but had only used the first two coping strategies at school. A majority of parents thought that transition problems affected children's emotions, whereas most teachers thought that transition problems affected children's learning.     

Shaping pedagogical approaches to learning through play: a pathway to enriching culture and heritage in Abu Dhabi kindergartens

The United Arab Emirates (UAE) Ministry of Social Affairs has launched an initiative to revive traditional play so as to increase children’s knowledge of the UAE’s rich culture, traditions and heritage. Inspired by the initiative, this qualitative study is a synthesis of locally written historical accounts interlaced with 52 Emirati kindergarten (KG) teacher voices, to describe defining aspects, features and meanings of Emirati play from a cultural-ecological perspective within a nation of rapid social change. Play is discussed so as to encourage teacher awareness of cultural persuasions of play, and to enrich Abu Dhabi Education Council (ADEC) KG pedagogy with Emirati culture and heritage. The purpose is for teachers of all nationalities at ADEC KGs to develop an awareness of cultural persuasions of play, and to give consideration to how such concepts can shape pedagogical approaches and enrich learning in ADEC KGs.     

Cycling on abandoned Second World War airfields and Jugando a Las Escondidas en el Parque: examining play memories from adults growing up around the world

This study examined play memories from adults who grew up in a wide range of international contexts. Surveys and semi-structured interviews asking adults to recollect play memories were completed with 135 adults (100 Females, 35 Males) who grew up in 21 countries. Play memories were analysed to identify adults’ favourite types of childhood play, barriers preventing their play, beliefs about the impact of their childhood play across their lifespan, the emotions associated with recollecting their play, and the similarities and variations represented across the adults’ play memories. Pretend play, play in nature, and risk-taking were prevalent themes, however, the data reflect how variation in sociocultural and historical contexts strongly influenced children's play experiences. The majority of participants associated play memories with positive feelings and reported lifelong benefits of early play experiences. The literature on sociocultural variations in children's play and neuroscience research on memories as reconstructions informs discussion of the findings.     

Trust in health care encounters and systems: a case study of British pensioners living in Spain

Research on trust in health care faces two enduring challenges. Firstly, there are conceptual ambiguities in distinguishing trust from related concepts, such as confidence or dependence. Second, the tacit understandings which underpin the ‘faith’ element of trust are difficult to explicate. A case study of British pensioners who have moved to Spain provides an opportunity to explore trust in a setting where they often have a choice of where to access health care (UK or Spain), and are therefore not in a state of dependence, and in which the ‘differences’ of a new field generates reflection on their tacit expectations of providers and systems. In accounting for decisions to use (or not to use) Spanish health care, British pensioners cited experiential knowledge of symbolic indicators of trustworthy institutions (they were hygienic, modern, efficient), which contributed to background confidence in the system, and interpersonal qualities of practitioners (respect for older people, embodied empathy and reciprocity) which evoked familiar relations, within which faith is implicit. In contrast, with limited recent access to the British system, their background confidence had been compromised by reports of poor performance, with few opportunities to rebuild the interrelational bases of trust.     

The experience of disabled children as inpatients: a structured review and synthesis of qualitative studies reporting the views of children, parents and professionals

Disabled children are a broad group that includes those with complex, special or additional health needs as a result of chronic physical, cognitive, communication or behavioural problems. These children are more frequently admitted to hospital than other children; however, there appears to be relatively little research on their experience as inpatients. The aim of this structured review and synthesis was to integrate findings from qualitative studies reporting the experience of disabled children when they are hospital inpatients. Inclusion criteria were: qualitative studies that focused on the experience of children less than 18 years old, with a chronic health condition or neurodisability, during an inpatient stay. Studies of outpatient episodes or intensive care units were excluded. A systematic search identified relevant abstracts, selected papers were reviewed and data were extracted. The synthesis involved elucidating and integrating common themes. Eight relevant papers were identified; data were gathered from children, parents and staff. Communication between children and staff was a dominant theme and comprised giving the child information about their condition and appropriate involvement of the child/young person in discussions and decision making that affected them. Also important was communication between parents and staff, particularly around the division of care for their child. Other themes included emotions, particularly fears, the ward environment and confidence in staff. The review suggests that disabled children's experience as inpatients is not always optimal. Improving the communication skills of ward staff and providing information to disabled children and their families would improve disabled children's experience when they are inpatients.     

A diagnostic profile of gerstmann's syndrome: a case study

The authors present a diagnostic profile of Gerstmann's syndrome, the subject being a girl, aged 10 years 3 months, right‐handed, and at the time of this study in her fourth school year (Grade 4). The subject's verbal and non‐verbal IQ scores and additional assessment data were analyzed and summative responses given. The Senior South African Individual Scale – Revised was administered to determine the intellectual functioning of the subject. A qualitative analysis of the results revealed average intellectual functioning on both the verbal and full scales. The non‐verbal scale revealed low average intellectual functioning. The difference between the verbal scale IQ and the non‐verbal scale IQ was statistically significant at the 5% level of reliability. Based on the scatter analysis it is evident that the subject experienced difficulties with regards to numerical reasoning, handwriting, spatial disorientation and difficulty in mental manipulation of images, as associated with Gerstmann's syndrome.     

Pet bylaws and posthumanist health promotion: a case study of urban policy

Dog walking enables physical activity and positive social interactions, but uncontrolled dogs as well as dog feces can foster conflict and deter physical activity, for both dog owners and nonowners. This case study shows that previously reported associations with dogs (both positive and negative) can be linked to the wording and the day-to-day implementation of, or incompliance with, local governments’ bylaws on pets. In this example of posthumanist health promotion, the policy goal is to optimize the overall impact on well-being of pet animals. Analytically, the case study draws together insights from actor–network theory, Foucault’s theory of governmentality, Bourdieu’s theory of habitus, and anthrozoology (i.e. the study of human–animal interactions as well as related ideas and norms). Posthumanist health promotion is a theoretically informed approach that can assist in developing policy and implementation strategies, not only on pets but on a range of topics.     

Parental loss and hope among orphaned children in South Africa: A pilot study

In this pilot study, the Children's Hope Scale was used for the first time in Africa to compare hope levels among a sample of 41 orphans and 40 non-orphans, aged 8–16 years, in the Eastern Cape of South Africa. Contrary to results suggested by other regional data and their own hypothesis, authors found that orphaned children reported slightly higher levels of agency thinking overall, with more pronounced differences between orphan girls and their non-orphan counterparts. A possible explanation may be found in the diverse set of individuals that orphans access for support. Policy and practice implications are discussed in the context of sub-Saharan Africa.     

'Health's a difficult beast': the interrelationships between domestic violence, women's health and the health sector. An Australian case study

This paper reports on the Australian component of a five nation study undertaken in Australia, Canada, Thailand, Bangladesh and Afghanistan examining policy networks that address women's health and domestic violence. It examines the relationship between health and domestic violence in Western Australia and analyses the secondary role assumed by health. The study adopted a qualitative research paradigm and semi-structured interviews. Snowball sampling was used to identify relevant and significant stakeholders and resulted in a final sample of 30 individuals representing three key areas: the 'health policy community', the 'domestic violence prevention community' and 'other interested stakeholders', that is, those who have an interest in, but who are not involved in, domestic violence prevention work. Results suggest that the secondary positioning of health is associated with the historical 'championing' of the issue in the women's movement; limited linkages between the health policy community and the domestic violence prevention community and within the health policy community itself; the 'fit' between domestic violence and the Western Australian Health Department mandate; and the mis-match between domestic violence and the medical model. The conclusion indicates a need for collaboration based on effective links across the domestic violence community and the health policy community.     

Anorexia nervosa and Raynaud's phenomenon: a case report

OBJECTIVE: To describe and discuss potential relationships between anorexia nervosa (AN) and Raynaud's phenomenon, the course and concurrent treatment of these two disorders as they appeared simultaneously, and a potential treatment modification entailed in such concurrent therapies. BACKGROUND: Although Raynaud's phenomenon has been described during the course of AN, the associations and interactions between these two conditions are not clear. METHOD: We report the medical workup, treatment, and outcomes in a 19-year old female patient who developed Raynaud's phenomenon following the onset of AN. RESULTS: After treatment with nutritional rehabilitation, counseling, and individual and group therapy, the patient's weight, eating disorder-related behaviors, and attitudes improved significantly. Raynaud's related symptoms improved, following treatment with a calcium channel blocker and antiaggregant therapy. In conjunction with nutritional efforts to treat the patient's long-standing amenorrhea and osteopenia, the treatment team elected to also administer estrogen hormone in addition to oral calcium and vitamin D supplementation. Since oral contraceptives are to be avoided in patients with Raynaud's phenomenon who show clinical findings suggesting connective tissue disorder, the treatment team elected to treat this patient with transdermal hormone replacement therapy. CONCLUSION: The co-occurrence of AN and Raynaud's phenomenon merits close and persistent follow-up by a multidisciplinary team and may lead to alterations of usual therapeutic approaches.     

A mechanistic latent variable model for estimating drug concentrations in the male genital tract: a case study in drug kinetics

The purpose of this study is to develop statistical methodology to facilitate indirect estimation of the concentration of antiretroviral drugs and viral loads in the prostate gland and the seminal vesicle. The differences in antiretroviral drug concentrations in these organs may lead to suboptimal concentrations in one gland. Suboptimal levels of the antiretroviral drugs may not be able to fully suppress the virus in that gland, leading to a source of sexually transmissible virus and increasing the chance of selecting for a drug-resistant virus. This information may be useful for selecting an antiretroviral drug regimen that will achieve optimal concentrations in the genital tract glands. Using fractionally collected semen ejaculates, Lundquist (Acta Physiol. Scand. 1949; 19:1-95) measured levels of surrogate markers in each fraction that are uniquely produced by specific male accessory glands. To determine the original glandular concentrations of the surrogate markers, Lundquist solved a simultaneous series of linear equations. This method has several limitations. In particular, it does not yield a unique solution, it does not address measurement error, and it does not provide population-averaged estimates after taking into account inter-subject variability in the parameters. To cope with these limitations, we developed a mechanistic latent variable model based on the physiology of the male genital tract and surrogate markers. We employ a Bayesian approach and perform a sensitivity analysis on the distributional assumptions on the random effects and priors. The model and Bayesian approach are validated on experimental data where the concentration of a drug should be (biologically) differentially distributed between the two glands. In this example, the Bayesian model-based conclusions are found to be robust to model specification and this hierarchical approach leads to more scientifically valid conclusions than the original methodology. In particular, unlike existing methods, the proposed model-based approach was not affected by a common form of outliers.     

“We never thought of a vasectomy”: a qualitative study of men and women's counseling around sterilization

Background

Sterilization is the most commonly used method of contraception in the United States; however, little is known about how providers counsel about these procedures or the information patients desire. In this study, we explore male and female experiences of sterilization counseling and their perspectives on ideal sterilization counseling.

Study design

In-depth individual and group interviews were conducted with 37 heterosexual couples between the ages of 25 and 55 years. Each couple had reached their desired family size. Interviews were recorded and transcribed using NVivo software and analyzed using modified grounded theory.

Results

Men and women differed in their experiences of sterilization counseling. Women commonly received counseling on female sterilization but not vasectomy, while men rarely discussed either form of sterilization with their providers. Both men and women desired more information about sterilization.

Conclusions

Contraceptive counseling of couples who have completed childbearing does not routinely include men or the option of vasectomy, despite the advantages of this method with respect to safety, efficacy and cost. Family planning and primary care providers have an important role in ensuring that couples are aware of all their options and can make an informed decision about their contraception.