Effects of incubation temperatures on learning abilities of hatchling velvet geckos

Animal Cognition - Stressful environments in utero can have a profound influence on cognitive functions and learning ability. In lizards, thermal environments experienced by embryos can shape a...     

Likening stairs in buildings to climbing a mountain: Self-reports of expected effects on stair climbing and objective measures of effectiveness

Objectives

Health promotion agencies advocate use of mountain climbing goals to encourage regular stair climbing, a current public health target. This paper tests effects of a mountain climbing campaign on objective measures of stair use for the first time.

Design

Field interview and quasi-experimental, interrupted time-series study.

Method

In field interviews, a convenience sample (n = 1350) responded to questions about different goals, i.e., heights of climb, to encourage stair use in buildings. Subsequently, a point-of-choice intervention with the main message ‘Take the stairs to the top of this building once a day and in a year, you would have climbed Mount Everest almost twice’ was tested in a 12-floor worksite. A no-message baseline was followed by installation of the intervention.

Results

Stair ascent (n = 62,716) and descent (n = 61,218) at the ground floor was measured with automated counters at baseline (11 days) and during the intervention (18 days). The majority of interviewees (60%) chose a message based on climbing Mt. Everest as the most motivating, with only 5% of interviewees not motivated by any climbing goal. Nonetheless, the subsequent intervention using the mountain climbing goal had no effect on stair climbing (OR = 0.96). As the campaign specifically targeted stair ascent, it failed to influence the behaviour with the greater public health dividend.

Conclusion

The discrepancy between pre-testing and the campaign may reflect the fact that performance goals can only be achieved at the end of the task and may not be continually rewarded during accumulation of behaviour towards the goal.     

Do you see what I see?: An exploration of inter-ethnic ideal body size comparisons among college women

The present study explored African American (n = 16) and European American (n = 19) college women's ideal body size perceptions for their own and the other ethnic group along with reasons behind their selections. Respondents completed an ethnically-neutral figure rating scale and then participated in ethnically-homogenous focus groups. European Americans mostly preferred a curvy-thin or athletic ideal body while most African American students resisted notions of a singular ideal body. European Americans suggested that African Americans’ larger ideal body sizes were based on greater body acceptance and the preferences of African American men. African Americans used extreme terms when discussing their perceptions of European Americans’ thin idealization, celebrity role models, and weight management behaviors. African Americans’ perceptions of European Americans’ body dissatisfaction were also attributed to the frequent fat talk they engaged in. Implications for promoting the psychosocial well-being of ethnically-diverse emerging adult females attending college are discussed.