Modified Taylor Complex Figure: Normative data from 290 adults

Data for copying and delayed recall (after a 15‐min delay) of the Modified Taylor Complex Figure (MTCF), an alternative form of the Rey‐Osterrieth Complex Figure (ROCF), were collected from 290 healthy participants. Normative data are provided. Age and education were significantly correlated with MTCF scores and must be corrected for to interpret results accurately. More specifically, increasing age adversely affected performance, whereas a higher education resulted in a better performance. Twenty‐five participants were tested with both complex figures (MTCF and ROCF) in two separate sessions to assess correlation, which proved to be high. The collected data allow using the MTCF as a valid alternative material for testing visual long‐term memory avoiding implicit learning that can occur when the same version of the ROCF is used for repeated testing sessions.     

Illness Perception and Well-Being Among Persons with Multiple Sclerosis and Their Caregivers

This study jointly examined illness beliefs held by persons with multiple sclerosis (PwMS) and caregivers in relation to well-being. A group of 68 PwMS and their caregivers completed the Revised Illness Perception Questionnaire, Psychological Well-being Scales, Satisfaction with Life Scale and Positive Affect and Negative Affect Schedule. Findings revealed that PwMS’ well-being was primarily predicted by their own illness beliefs, and that also caregivers’ well-being was primarily predicted by their own beliefs. Across the two groups, well-being was positively associated with their belief that they understood the disease, and inversely associated with their representations of negative emotions. In addition, among PwMS, well-being was inversely associated with the number of symptoms they specifically attributed to their illness, while among caregivers, well-being was positively associated with beliefs that treatment could control the disease. Based on the study findings, psychoeducational and cognitive-behavioral strategies are suggested to promote well-being among PwMS and caregivers.     

Refining Value Sensitive Design: A (Capability-Based) Procedural Ethics Approach to Technological Design for Well-Being

Science and Engineering Ethics - Fundamental questions in value sensitive design include whether and how high-tech products/artefacts could embody values and ethical ideals, and how plural and...     

“The Notion of Neutrality in Clinical Ethics Consultation”

Clinical ethics consultation (CEC), as an activity that may be provided by clinical ethics committees and consultants, is nowadays a well-established practice in North America. Although it has been increasingly implemented in Europe and elsewhere, no agreement can be found among scholars and practitioners on the appropriate role or approach the consultant should play when ethically problematic cases involving conflicts and uncertainties come up. In particular, there is no consensus on the acceptability of consultants making recommendations, offering moral advice upon request, and expressing personal opinions. We translate these issues into the question of whether the consultant should be neutral when performing an ethics consultation. We argue that the notion of neutrality 1) functions as a hermeneutical key to review the history of CEC as a whole; 2) may be enlightened by a precise assessment of the nature and goals of CEC; 3) refers to the normative dimension of CEC. Here, we distinguish four different meanings of neutrality: a neutral stance toward the parties involved in clinical decision making, toward the arguments offered to frame the discussion, toward the values and norms involved in the case, and toward the outcome of decision making, that is to say the final decision and action that will be implemented. Lastly, we suggest a non-authoritarian way to intend the term “recommendation” in the context of clinical ethics consultation.