Wanting HIV Is ‘Such a Hot Choice’: Exploring Bugchasers’ Fluid Identities and Online Engagements

ABSTRACT

Bugchasers are gay men who fetishize HIV infection and use the internet to discuss their fetish. Previous research considered bugchasers’ online engagements as proof of their sexual identities. This paper contests that view the through the exploration of three cases: Scott, a committed bugchaser; Marvin, who uses the internet as ‘bugchasing entertainment’ but is not a bugchaser; and Milo, whose bugchasing feelings are blurry and evolving. All three men use the internet in diverse significant ways from pure entertainment to it being a key part of their daily life. In presenting and analysing these three cases, this paper complicates identity-based assumptions of bugchasing, and presents ways in which gay men engage with social media in the pursuit of sexual pleasure.     

Post-traumatic stress symptoms and post-traumatic growth in children and adolescents 12 months and 24 months after the earthquake and tsunamis in Chile in 2010: A longitudinal study

On 27 February 2010, Chile experienced one of the strongest earthquakes in recorded history. The study aimed to evaluate post-traumatic stress symptoms (PTSS) and post-traumatic growth (PTG) in children and adolescents 12 months (T1) and 24 months (T2) after the earthquake and tsunamis in Chile in 2010. Three hundred twenty-five children and adolescents (47.4% girls; 52.6% boys) between the ages of 10 and 16 years participated in the study. The instruments included the Revised Post-traumatic Growth Inventory for Children by Kilmer et al., the Childhood PTSD Scale by Foa et al. and the Rumination Scale for Children by Cryder et al., as well as a scale to assess the severity of the event and a sociodemographic questionnaire. The PTSS and PTG scores decreased at T2. In addition, the main predictors of PTSS and PTG were disruptive experiences, losses after the event and intrusive and deliberate rumination during the previous year. These results enhance understanding of factors related to PTG, improve the ability to predict PTSS and PTG in children and adolescents following natural disasters, and inform the design of intervention strategies to promote better mental health in those affected.     

Gender Differences in Perceived Family Involvement and Perceived Family Control during Emerging Adulthood: A Cross-Country Comparison in Southern Europe

Journal of Child and Family Studies - The aim of the present study was to explore gender differences in perceived parental involvement and perceived psychological and behavioral control during...     

Social cognitive predictors of peer acceptance at age 5 and the moderating effects of gender

In this study we examined the effects of social intelligence, empathy, verbal ability and appearance‐reality distinction on the level of peer acceptance, as well as the moderating role of gender. Participants were 98 five‐year‐old children (43 boys and 55 girls; mean age 5 years 3 months for boys and girls). Our results showed a main effect of social intelligence on peer acceptance, as well as several other effects that were moderated by gender: a significant and positive effect of verbal ability on social acceptance was found for boys; appearance‐reality distinction was found to have a positive effect on social acceptance in the case of girls; and although empathy had a significant positive effect on social acceptance for both boys and girls, this effect was more pronounced among boys. Our results suggest that abilities promoting peer acceptance are different for boys and girls.     

Striving for Personal Perfection: Rudolf Allers’s Psycho-Ethic-Metaphysical Approach to Character and Self-Improvement

Journal of Religion and Health - The Viennese psychiatrist Rudolf Allers was one of the principal authors that studied character and contributed to understanding its development and education,...     

The effectiveness of a school mindfulness-based intervention on the neural correlates of inhibitory control in children at risk: A randomized control trial

Interest in the applications of mindfulness practice in education is growing in the scientific community. Recent research has shown that mindfulness practice in schools may be beneficial for executive functions (EFs) which are abilities crucial for healthy development. The study of the effects of mindfulness practices on children's neural correlates of EFs, particularly inhibitory control, may provide relevant information about the impact and mechanisms of mindfulness-based interventions (MBIs) in children. The aim of the present study was to investigate the effects of a MBI in elementary school children on the neural correlates of inhibitory control via a randomized controlled trial. Children from two 4th grade classrooms and two 5th grade classrooms located in a school identified as having low socioeconomic status in Santiago de Chile were randomly assigned to either receive a MBI or serve as active controls and receive a social skills program. Both before and after the interventions, electroencephalographic activity was recorded during a modified version of the Go/Nogo task in a subsample of children in each group. Additionally, teachers completed questionnaires of students’ EFs and students completed self-report measures. Results revealed increases in EFs assessed by questionnaires together with improved P3 amplitude associated with successful response inhibition in children who received the MBI compared to active controls. These results contribute to the understanding of the ways in which mindfulness practices can promote the development of inhibitory control together with EF improvement, factors identified as critical for children's social and emotional development and positive mental health.

Research Highlights

• This study investigated the effects of a mindfulness-based intervention in children from a low socioeconomic status school on neural correlates of EFs.
• Children performed a Go/Nogo task while electroencephalographic activity was recorded and completed questionnaires before and after a MBI or an active control program.
• Improvements in EFs assessed by questionnaires together with an increased Nogo-P3 activity associated with successful inhibition in children who received the MBI were found.
• The results could contribute to understand how mindfulness practice can promote the development of inhibitory control in children from vulnerable populations.

     

Meta-analytical review of teacher burnout across 36 societies: the role of national learning assessments and gender egalitarianism

Objective: Teacher burnout has hardly been compared across countries, although it has become a global health issue. This review aimed to examine teacher burnout (effect size) and its variation across countries by testing the effects of gender, gender egalitarianism, and national learning assessments (NLAs).

Design: A systematic literature search was carried out using keywords. In all, 156 studies from 36 countries were included that used quantitative methodology. Meta-analytical procedures were used to estimate effect sizes of three dimensions of burnout. Two-level multilevel mixed-effect model tested moderator variables at the country level.

Results: The overall effect size found for emotional exhaustion was 38.29 (95% CI = 35.26, 41.32), 29.45 (95% CI = 25.91, 32.99) for cynicism, and 68.75 (95% CI = 65.63, 71.87) for personal accomplishment, with significant differences across countries. Gender was negatively significant for personal accomplishment. Significant linear, curvilinear and interaction effects of NLAs and gender egalitarianism explained variations in burnout. Whereas more NLAs tends to increase burnout, more gender egalitarianism tends to decrease it, although this effect is not linear.

Conclusion: Teacher burnout, as a health issue, varies significantly across countries suggesting that programmes to prevent this problem should consider environmental (educational system) and cultural conditions for a greater impact.