Health worker attitudes toward peer workers in hepatitis C prevention

Attitudes toward people who inject drugs (PWID) and attitudes toward peer workers among a cross-section of 101 Australian hepatitis C health workers were assessed. A survey consisting of Likert-type questions and one open-ended question regarding training was used. Bivariate and regression analyses demonstrated that health workers' attitudes toward peer workers were associated with their attitudes toward PWID, independent of type of organization or time in the hepatitis C sector. Qualitative analysis revealed four training areas suggested by health workers for peer workers. Implications of these findings for staff and peer training are discussed and future research directions suggested.     

Predictors of physical activity among rural and small town breast cancer survivors: An application of the theory of planned behaviour

The primary objective of this study was to investigate the utility of the two-component theory of planned behaviour (TPB) in understanding physical activity intentions and behaviour in rural and small town breast cancer survivors. The secondary objective was to elicit the most common behavioural, normative and control beliefs of rural and small town survivors regarding physical activity. Using a cross-sectional survey design, 524 rural and small town breast cancer survivors completed a mailed survey that assessed physical activity and TPB variables. Physical activity intention explained 12% of the variance in physical activity behaviour (p?相似文献   

Dating Violence Prevention Programming: Directions for Future Interventions

Dating violence among college students is a widespread and destructive problem. The field of dating violence has seen a substantial rise in research over the past several years, which has improved our understanding of factors that increase risk for perpetration. Unfortunately, there has been less attention paid to dating violence prevention programming, and existing programs have been marred with methodological weaknesses and a lack of demonstrated effectiveness in reducing aggression. In hopes of sparking new research on dating violence prevention programs, the current review examines possible new avenues for dating violence prevention programming among college students. We discuss clinical interventions that have shown to be effective in reducing a number of problematic behaviors, including motivational interventions, dialectical behavior therapy, mindfulness, and bystander interventions, and how they could be applied to dating violence prevention. We also discuss methodological issues to consider when implementing dating violence prevention programs.     

Translating intentions into sunscreen use: an interaction of self-efficacy and appearance norms

The study examines whether self-efficacy mediates between intention and behavior, and whether appearance norms and self-efficacy are additive or synergistic predictors of sunscreen use. At two measurement points in time, 14 weeks apart, 154 individuals responded to an online questionnaire. Moderated mediation was tested by hierarchical regression analyses. Self-efficacy mediated the intention-behavior relationship, whereas appearance norms emerged as a moderator of the self-efficacy-sunscreen use relationship. The model accounted for 22% of the behavior variance at time 2. For individuals who believe that they would look more attractive with a tan, self-efficacy did not have a strong effect on behavior. Thus, for skin-protection motivation to become effective, self-efficacy is needed in conjunction with less positive appearance norms. Implications for public health promotion and mass media sunscreen use campaigns are discussed.     

Maturation of rapid auditory temporal processing and subsequent nonword repetition performance in children

According to the rapid auditory processing theory, the ability to parse incoming auditory information underpins learning of oral and written language. There is wide variation in this low-level perceptual ability, which appears to follow a protracted developmental course. We studied the development of rapid auditory processing using event-related potentials (ERPs) elicited by tone pairs presented at varying inter-stimulus intervals (25, 50, 100, 200, and 400 ms) in a sample of children (N = 103) aged 7-9 years initially and again at 9-11 years. We also assessed their ability to repeat nonsense words at both time-points. The amount of difference between the ERP to single tones and paired tones (as assessed by the intra-class correlation coefficient, ICC) provided a measure of the brain's capacity to discriminate auditory information delivered at different presentation rates. Results showed that older children showed greater neural discrimination to tone pairs than younger children at rapid presentation rates, although these differences were reduced at slower presentation rates. The ICC at time 1 significantly predicted nonword repetition scores two years later, providing support for the view that rapid auditory temporal processing ability affects oral language development in typically developing children.     

Social anxiety mediates the effect of autism spectrum disorder characteristics on hostility in young adults

Problems with social anxiety are frequently reported in people with autism spectrum disorders (ASD). It is possible that social anxiety, when present, exacerbates the experience of hostility and other forms of aggression in relation to ASD symptoms. This study sought to determine if social anxiety symptoms mediate the relationship between features of ASD and feelings of hostility in young adults. Self-report measures of social anxiety, ASD, and facets of aggression were collected in a non-clinical sample (n = 618) of college students. Social anxiety was found to partially mediate the relationship between ASD features and self-reported hostility. There was also evidence for inconsistent mediation, such that social anxiety dampened the strength of the relationship between ASD symptoms and verbal and physical aggression. Findings highlight the potential influence of associated psychiatric symptoms in people with ASD. In addition, dimensional conceptualization of ASD symptoms, as opposed to a categorical approach solely, may be a useful approach to studying complex personality processes.     

Social factors in the development of early executive functioning: a closer look at the caregiving environment

This study investigated prospective links between quality of the early caregiving environment and children's subsequent executive functioning (EF). Sixty-two families were met on five occasions, allowing for assessment of maternal interactive behavior, paternal interactive behavior, and child attachment security between 1 and 2 years of age, and child EF at 2 and 3 years. The results suggested that composite scores of parental behavior and child attachment were related to child performance on EF tasks entailing strong working memory and cognitive flexibility components (conflict-EF). In particular, child attachment security was related to conflict-EF performance at 3 years above and beyond what was explained by a combination of all other social antecedents of child EF identified thus far: child verbal ability and prior EF, family SES, and parenting behavior. Attachment security may thus play a meaningful role in young children's development of executive control.     

Attention and consciousness: related yet different

A recent perceptual imaging experiment uses a rare 2×2 design to dissociate selective visual attention from visual consciousness. Its conclusions support the hypothesis that visual consciousness does not arise from neurons in primary visual cortex and forces a reinterpretation of numerous prior studies.