Personnel Behavior Research Articles

Does It Pay Off? Brand Knowledge Dissemination and Its Effects on Corporate Brand Pride, Brand- and Service Behaviour of Frontline Personnel

This study aims to explore the effects of brand knowledge dissemination and its influence on corporate brand pride as well as subsequent brand- and service behaviour of service personnel. To achieve this aim, a survey was carried out on a sample of 325 frontline employees with direct customer contact in Germany. The results show that brand knowledge dissemination, as a central aspect of internal brand management (IBM), positively affects corporate brand pride of employees, which in turn influence brand- and service supporting behaviour (e. g. dissemination of service complaints). In addition, moderation analysis revealed that perceived management support for corporate social responsibility (CSR) positively influence the relationship of corporate brand pride and specific brand- and service behaviour. The findings of this study highlight how corporate brand pride of employees can be fostered and how employees can become service champion.

Compact global association based adaptive routing framework for personnel behavior understanding

Personnel behavior understanding under complex scenarios is a challenging task for computer vision. This paper proposes a novel Compact model, which we refer to as CGARPN that incorporates with Global Association relevance and Adaptive Routing Pose estimation Network. Our framework firstly introduces CGAN backbone to facilitate the feature representation by compressing the kernel parameter space compared with typical algorithms, effectively lowering the calculation capacity and consumption. The framework integrates the Global Association information between keypoints, and learns the correlation between high-dimensional feature parameters. ARPN introduced by our structure is established to sufficiently excavate the resembling properties of outcome concealed in the network, adaptively achieving remarkable performance by selecting compatible paths for optimization. Meanwhile, Parametric Content Similarity NMS (PCSNMS) is developed where detailed information on proposal boxes is associated. Comparative experiments (datasets on FLIC, MPII, etc.) with CNN-based counterparts have empirically demonstrated the effectiveness and competitiveness of the model in perspective of accuracy, memory consumption, and computation perplexity. Our model contributes to an efficient and feasible framework of human behavior apprehension.

Analysis of the emergence of conflicts in the doctor-patient system

Medical practice confirms that in the conditions of health care reform, conflict occupies a special place in any team. This is because conflict is an integral part of life. Therefore, it is necessary to study in depth the way of formation of modern organizational conflict, the way of eliminating the conflict and the way of fighting its consequences. At the same time, the most important result of effective enterprise conflict management will be the formation of a mechanism for early warning of conflict situations and mechanisms for resolving medical conflicts.The purpose of the study was conflicts in the field of health care in the «doctor-patient» system.
 Materials and methods. The study of conflict in the team was conducted using medical and sociological methods using an anonymous questionnaire developed by us. The study involved 582 health workers, including 231 men and 351 women. The age composition of medical workers: from 18 and older.Results and discussion. A study was conducted aimed at identifying the socio-psychological causes of conflicts and methods of their resolution in the health care organization using the example of medical personnel. The main causes, frequency of occurrence and types of conflict situations in medical teams are analyzed. Based on the conducted sociological research, it was established that the largest number of conflicts (32.1%) occurs in the «doctor-patient relatives» system, and about 25% - in the «doctor-patient» system. The behavior of medical personnel during the conflict was analyzed using practical examples. It was found that the majority (34%) of respondents do not intervene in the conflict and take a neutral position.Conclusions. The study confirmed the hypothesis that the process of conflict management will be more effective when the situation in the organization of processes as a whole in a medical institution changes. Diagnosis and management of a medical conflict should be the key to the successful operation of a medical institution, thanks to the creation of a working atmosphere for the medical team and the patient, where everyone will feel comfortable and work for maximum results.

Research on Cause of Coal Face Accident Based on Topic Model Mining

As the first production site of coal, mining working face is the place where coal mine accidents occur frequently. In order to avoid or reduce the occurrence of accidents, it is necessary to eliminate and discover the hidden danger of accidents in mining face in time. However, in the past, the cause of accidents mainly adopts the method of qualitative analysis, and lacks the effective analysis model of the cause of accidents, so that the potential value of a large number of hidden danger data of accidents has not been applied. Therefore, the LDA topic mining algorithm is used to build the accident cause topic mining model, and the Perplexity index is used to determine the best number of topics, and the semantic network graph is used to analyze the internal relationship between the hidden dangers of accidents, which directly reflects the main accident cause and the correlation between the cause factors of coal mining face. Taking 18925 accident hidden danger data of a mine in Shandong Province from August 2013 to September 2019 as an example, the topic of accident causes was extracted by mining the topic model, and the semantic network diagram was drawn. The social network analysis method was applied to analyze the association relationship between the factors of accident hidden danger. The results show that management defects, unsafe behavior of personnel, unsafe state of equipment and unsafe state of environment are the main factors leading to coal face accidents, and their interaction leads to the occurrence of accidents.

Challenges in antenatal care utilization in Kandahar, Afghanistan: A cross-sectional analytical study.

Quality antenatal care (ANC) is one of the four pillars of safe motherhood initiatives and improves the survival and health of mother and neonate. The main objective of this study was to assess the barriers in the utilization of ANC services in Kandahar, Afghanistan. This was a cross-sectional analytical study conducted over one year from December 2018-November 2019. Data were analyzed by descriptive statistics, Chi squared, and binary logistic regression. A total of 1524 women were recruited in this study with mean age of 30.3 years. Of these women, 848 (55.6%) were rural dwellers, 1450/1510 (96.0%) were illiterate, 438/608 (72.0%) belonged to low-income families, 1112/1508 (73.7%) lived in joint families, 1420/1484 (95.7%) lived in a house of >10 inhabitants, while 388/1494 (26.0%) had attended had at least one ANC visit during their last pregnancy. On univariate analysis, the main barriers in the utilization of ANC services were living in rural areas, being illiterate, having lower socio-economic status, remoteness of the health facility from home, bad behavior of clinic personnel, and unplanned pregnancy. Only lower socio-economic status and bad behavior of clinic personnel were independent explanatory variables in the regression model. Utilization of ANC services is inadequate in Kandahar province. Improving clinic staff professional behavior and status of women by expanding educational opportunities, and enhancing community awareness of the value of ANC are recommended.

Spending Behavior of Non-Teaching Personnel in Private Higher Educational Institutions in Albay Province

Spending behavior is disbursing money in response to an action, an environment, or a person to satisfy needs and wants. Employees provide their services in exchange for payment, which may take the form of wages or salary. The aim of this study was to determine the spending behavior of non-teaching personnel in private higher educational institutions in Albay and how they are going to improve their spending behavior. This study used mixed methods, qualitative and quantitative research designs, and utilizing a survey questionnaire which has three parts, to gather the necessary data and information needed for this study. Using the statistical tool frequency count and percentage distribution, Likert scale, and ranking. The analyzed data revealed that the respondents "often" spend on their necessities and "seldom" when it comes to their leisure. However, there are problems encountered by the respondents along with their spending practices that resulted in not having a budget plan. Employees should always keep track of their expenses to ensure proper spending. As a result, they will become more aware of their finances, which will make it easier for them to alter their spending habits by being able to track where their money is going. Employees should be aware of the significance of their financial decisions. They will have a better chance of being financially secure if they have the right knowledge in handling finances.

Digital health activism of patients with chronic diseases: discursive strategies and themes

Abstract Background On the Internet, there are many online communities where people living with chronic life-threatening diseases can discuss their problems. On the one hand, digital health activism promotes patient empowerment and could lead to better disease self-management. But, on the other hand, digital health activism raises concerns as it undermines the monopoly of expert medical knowledge. The objective of the research was to reveal the main discursive strategies and themes represented in Russian-language online communities for people with chronic life-threatening diseases. It could help to gain a better understanding of the purposes and effects of digital health activism on patients. Methods Data were collected through the popular Russian-language social networking site “Vkontakte”. We selected open groups with memberships of more than 1000 users devoted to HIV/AIDS, cancer, tuberculosis, and diabetes. Discourse analysis and thematic analysis were implemented. Results Revealed discursive strategies include the patients’ rights advocacy and resistance to the established order of health care. Three main types of discursive themes were identified: a. Overcoming shortcomings of the health care system such as lack of qualified doctors, medicine shortage, and unethical behavior of health care personnel. b. Overcoming the monopolization of expert medical knowledge and criticizing some treatment approaches. c. Overcoming stigma and discrimination associated with disease both in healthcare settings and in everyday life. Conclusions Research on digital activism of patients with chronic life-threatening diseases makes it possible to identify hidden discrimination practices and patient rights violations in healthcare settings. Members of online patient communities turn from objects of care into informed active subjects who critically evaluate medical prescriptions, are active in finding the better treatment, and in defending their rights. Key messages • The research contributes to the revision of the paternalistic model of patient-doctor interaction. • Attention to digital activism is important for the identification of hidden issues in healthcare.The research was supported by RSF (project No 22-18-00261).

Explaining Police Misconduct in United Nations Peacekeeping Operations, 2010-2019

ABSTRACT Several recent studies consider the determinants of misconduct by military personnel deployed to United Nations peacekeeping operations (PKOs). While the majority of peacekeepers carry out their duties honorably and often at great personal risk, these studies operate from the premise that misconduct by even a few peacekeepers can undermine a mission, and reduce support for future missions. Even so, misconduct by civilian police deployed to PKOs remains massively understudied in comparison to their military counterparts, though UN police are more likely to face credible allegations of misconduct compared to UN troops. Based on the inclusive or extractive incentives of contributor states, we find support for the argument that the behavior of security personnel at home readily predicts misconduct when deployed to PKOs. This same logic has implications for the UN's increasingly preferred ‘Formed Police Units,’ whose use may actually increase the likelihood of sexual exploitation and abuse.

Impacts of environmental literacy on ecological networks in the Three Gorges Reservoir, China

Environmental illiteracy threatens the functioning mechanisms of ecological networks worldwide, yet many people remain dubious about their existence. The knowledge deficit model suggests that giving the public (local people and government personnel) additional information would alleviate distrust. There is limited evidence indicating that environmental literacy metrics (ELMs) influence ecological network indicators (ENIs) such as plant cover, habitat, exotics, regeneration, erosion, and stressors throughout the drawdown zone (upstream, midstream, and downstream) within dams and reservoirs, despite widespread implementation to enhance riparian zone conservation. This study tackles this knowledge gap by using multivariate statistical methods to assess ENIs on the covered area of 58,000 km2 in 327 transects through a field-based approach inside China's Three Gorges Reservoir area (TGRA) in 2019. The bar graph results showed the largest lack of information about ELMs (e.g., knowledge, attitude, and behavior) from the general populace, and it had the biggest effect on the plant cover in the midstream and the least impact on regeneration in the upstream. The ELMs of local people influenced the ENIs most within the downstream, with coefficients of Pearson correlation in the range of −0.67 < r < 0.98. However, the ELMs (knowledge and behavior) of government personnel showed the greatest correlations with ENIs (−0.41 < r < 0.74) in the midstream, while attitude towards downstream. In comparison among ENIs, vegetation cover, grass exotics, gullying, longitudinal continuity, and farming systems were all-important ENIs within the TGRA. ENIs and ELMs varied substantially for each section of the drawdown zone, according to hierarchical approaches. These results educate decision-makers about the spatial variations in ENIs of riparian regions in dams and reservoirs, which need location-based initiatives to raise inclusive impact awareness among the Chinese public.

COVID-19 Impact on Public Dental Healthcare in Bosnia and Herzegovina: Current Situation and Ongoing Perspectives.

Background: As the pandemic time went by in Bosnia and Herzegovina (B&H), various patterns toward COVID-19 itself and its impacts, implementation of prescribed preventive measures among the team members, and those of their patients, including immunization process, have been revealed. These patterns were of both empirical and evidence-based kind and consequently formed dental personnel behavior. The aim was to evaluate and compare the COVID-19 status of dentists in B&H, implementation of prescribed preventive measures, and usage of various kinds of PPE, at the beginning of the pandemics and now, 2.5 years later, including dentists’ current vaccination status, and their opinions and attitudes toward the national COVID-19 economic impact on dental practice. Methodology: Study research was in a form of a cross-sectional longitudinally designed online survey and was conducted in two parts. Results and conclusions: Dental professionals in B&H had a high frequency of COVID-19 symptoms in the second pandemic year. The vaccination status of dentists in B&H was in line with the global average values of vaccinated professionals. Dentists used patient management preventive measures and PPE recommended by WHO, but some preventive measures have been changed and prioritized recently. The economic impact of pandemics on dentistry was predominantly negative.

Methods of administrative and legal enforcement of fair behavior of military officials in the Armed Forces of Ukraine

The purpose of the article was to define the concept and types of methods of administrative and legal support for the respectable behavior of military officials in the Armed Forces of Ukraine.&#x0D; The article determines that the problem of methodology is basic for any field of scientific activity. Attention is focused on the fact that methods, doctrines and paradigms find their embodiment and practical confirmation of the hypotheses of researchers put forward to solve topical theoretical and practical issues. The methods of administrative and legal support are an important part of the updated theory of administrative law, the provisions of which can be applied to the analysis of new social relations, in particular, in the field of virtue of military officials.&#x0D; Arguments are given that the methods of administrative and legal support for the respectable behavior of military officials in the Armed Forces of Ukraine are the most established legal methods and methods for achieving the performance by a military person of those actions that he is obliged to implement during his service, and refraining from prohibited and undesirable actions (inaction ).&#x0D; The classification is proposed for the methods of administrative and legal support of the respectable behavior of military officials in the Armed Forces of Ukraine, which includes the following groups of methods: a) “hard” law methods, which include methods of subordination and coordination; b) methods of “soft” law, in particular, methods of legal harmonization, unification, modeling of the desired behavior of military personnel.&#x0D; It is concluded that the methods of administrative and legal support for the good behavior of military officials in the Armed Forces of Ukraine are characterized by the following features: a) they are not always legal; b) they combine legal and moral and ethical elements; c) the use of the studied methods is of a longitudinal nature and is intended for long-term use, which is due to the duration of the processes of formation of personality attitudes in her professional activities.

A 4.000 € way to improve perceived quality and meet expectations of thyroid cancer patients receiving therapeutic dose of Iodine-131.

Thyroid cancer is the most common malignant disease of the endocrine system and radioiodine therapy (RAIT) is still very often used, resulting in patients staying hospitalized for a few days alone and without visitors, augmenting their stress and discomfort. Our objective was to find simple ways of improving RAIT patients' feelings and perceived quality of the nuclear medicine (NM) department services. We designed a two-year study in order to enhance RAIT patients' perceived quality of the nuclear medicine (NM) department services and expectations' fulfillment. A questionnaire was used in order to capture patients' perceived quality and expectations from their RAIT. 549 replies were collected. Many intrinsic and extrinsic determinants were found to be positively or negatively related to the perceived quality and fulfillment of patients' expectations of receiving RAIT. A 1% increase could be achieved by spending 110 € per RAIT room. In this article, we present some easily implemented changes in both personnel behavior and room amenities that could, at least in theory and based on our results, offer a 37.9% improvement in RAIT patients' perceived quality and expectations' fulfillment at a cost of 4169 €.

Health Problems among School Children: A Community Based Cross-Sectional Study at District Swat Khyber Pakhtunkhwa Pakistan

Background: Health status of school children and their school environment plays an important role in the development of physical and mental health, and good personnel behaviors had a significant role in future life of children. Objective: This study was conducted to estimate the frequency of health problems among school children of district Swat, Khyber Pakhtunkhwa Pakistan. Methodology: This study was conducted in district Swat, Khyber Pakhtunkhwa; Pakistan. A total of n=225 school children of age 4-12 years were selected and examined for health problems. A structured questionnaire was used to assess the health status of children regarding health problems. Results: Results showed that 45.56% of children had age &lt; 8 years; 54.44% had age &gt; 8 years; 81.33% of children parents had monthly income &lt; PKR: 45000; 56% children living in mud-made homes; and 46.675 were underweight. Moreover, 15.56% of children had eye discharge; 28.89% backache; 8.44% ear discharge; 16.445 earaches; 47.11% poor oral hygiene status; 60.44% were not using toothbrush; and 22.67% had dental caries. Furthermore, 41.33% had not clean their hair and not took bath within last 48 hours; and 32.89% had poor nail hygiene status for the past one week. Conclusions: It was concluded that school children had several medical health problems and showed relationship with hygiene status of children, tooth-brushing use and its frequency, parents monthly income, and body mass index of children and thus adequate preventive, promotive and behavioral strategies were needed to reduce health problems among school going children. Keywords: School Children, Health Status, Underweight, Eye, Ear, Hygiene, Income, Swat, Kohat.

Determination of psychophysiological and neuropsychological correlates of deviant behaviors in military personnel

Deviant behaviors among military personnel are being considered. Healthy servicemen and servicemen with various forms of deviant behaviors (addictive, suicidal, and antisocial) were examined using clinical psychopathological, experimental psychological, psychophysiological, and neuropsychological methods. The survey results by various methods were analyzed statistically, and their significance in diagnosing the propensity for deviant behaviors of servicemen is studied. The isolated use of individual methods does not increase the efficiency of the diagnostic process. Moreover, the combined use of neuropsychological (affective priming and Wisconsin card sorting test) and psychophysiological (oculography) methods with a high level of reliability makes it possible to differentiate healthy military personnel from military personnel prone to deviant behaviors. The most informative psychophysiological signs when performing neuropsychological techniques were the frequency and duration of blinking and duration of gaze fixations. An algorithm for diagnosing deviant behaviors of military personnel has been developed based on the analysis of neuropsychological and psychophysiological indicators using an ethological approach (oculography and pupillometry).

FEATURES OF ADAPTATION TO EXTREME AND EMERGENCY SITUATIONS OF EMPLOYEES IN THE MINISTRY OF EMERGENCIES

This article presents a theoretical analysis of the influence of extreme conditions on the behavior of military personnel, as well as the dependence of behavior on the personality of employees and the results of experimental studies of the readiness of military personnel for extreme situations and coping mechanisms of behavior in these situations.

Corporate social responsibility in modern transnational corporations

Since the beginning of 2015, corporate social responsibility (CSR) models have been changing in connection with the trend towards the transition of joint value creation of corporate activities and consideration of stakeholders’ interests. The purpose of the academic paper lies in empirically studying the current practice of social responsibility of transnational corporations (TNCs). The research methodology has combined the method of qualitative analysis, the method of cases of agricultural holdings in emerging markets within the framework of resource theory, institutional theory and stakeholders’ theory. The results show that the practice of CSR is integrated into the strategy of sustainable development of TNCs, which determine the methods, techniques and forms of communication, as well as areas of stakeholders’ responsibility. The internal practice of CSR is aimed at developing norms and standards of moral behaviour with stakeholders in order to maximize economic and social goals. Economic goals are focused not only on making a profit, but also on minimizing costs due to the potential risks of corruption, fraud, conflict of interest. The system of corporate social responsibility of modern TNCs is clearly regulated by internal documents that define the list of interested parties and stakeholders, their areas of responsibility, greatly simplifying the processes of cooperation and responsibility. As a result, corporations form their own internal institutional environment. Ethical norms help to avoid the risks of opportunistic behaviour of personnel, conflicts of interest, cases of bribery, corruption, and fraud. The theoretical value of the research lies in supplementing the theory of CSR in the context of the importance of a complex, systematic approach to integrating the theory of resources, institutional theory, theory of stakeholders in the development of strategies for sustainable development of TNCs, the practice of corporate governance and social responsibility.

The Dichotomy of a Changing Workplace: Analysing South Africa’s Newspapers during the Covid-19 Situation

This paper analyses the potential influence of the selected, South African online newspapers on the discourse of alternative workplace arrangements during the Covid-19 era. A content analysis of online newspapers’ coverage of the pertinent workplace requisites of performance during the Covid-19 pandemic enlightens the complex dichotomy of a traditional office workplace against work from home and a hybrid work model. The essence of anticipatory corporate leadership is that personnel behavior has to adapt to the changing work situation. This paper hypothesis that the framing of ideas by South African newspapers promotes perceptions and particular interpretations of the prevailing workplace environment during the two years of the Covid-19 period in South Africa. The research uses qualitative content analysis, which is the written texts, and quantitative methods of content analysis of newspapers by conducting a hypothesis test and independent group ANOVA test. That provides perspectives of choices and reasons for or against the distinct workplace situation. The results show that the newspaper reports focused more on the “Work from Home” practice. The newspapers’ perspective on the “Work from Home” culture may heighten the anticipatory strategies of corporate leaders in their pursuit to sustain high work performance. The circulation level of selected online newspapers in South Africa influences the research findings.

Evaluating the Healthy Lifestyle Behaviors and Healthy Behavior Development Intentions of Medical Personnel Working in Primary Healthcare

Amaç: Bu çalışma Antalya’da birinci basamak bünyesinde çalışan sağlık personelinin sağlıklı yaşam biçimi davranışlarını ve sağlıklı davranış geliştirme niyetlerini değerlendirmek amacıyla yapılmıştır. Yöntem: Tanımlayıcı türde olan araştırmamız Aralık 2017 ve Haziran 2018 tarihleri arasında Halk Sağlığı Hizmetleri Başkanlığı bünyesinde çalışan 257 sağlık personeli ile yapılmıştır. Veri toplama yöntemi olarak online anket hazırlanmıştır. Verilerin toplanmasında; sağlık personelinin sosyo-demografik özellikleri soru formu, 'Sağlıklı Yaşam Biçimi Davranışları-II Ölçeği (SYBDÖ II)' ve 'Sağlık Davranışı Değişim Aşamaları Değerlendirme Soru Formu' kullanılmıştır. Etik kurul ve kurum izni alınmıştır. Bulgular: Çalışmaya katılan sağlık personelinin yaş ortalaması 40.79±7.72’dir. Sağlık personelinin SYBDÖ II toplam puan ortalaması 140.41±23,53’tür. Sağlık personelinin sigara içmeyi bırakanların sigara içmeyen ve içenlere göre fiziksel aktivite puan ortalamaları daha yüksek bulunmuştur (F=4.433; p=013). Sağlık algısı yaşıtlarına göre iyi olan sağlık personelinin, sağlık algısı yaşıtları ile aynı ve kötü olanlara göre SYBDÖ II alt boyut puan ortalamaları arasında istatistiksel olarak anlamlı bir fark bulunmuştur (p&amp;lt;0.05). Alkol kullanmayan sağlık personelinin, alkol kullananlara göre sağlık sorumluluğu puan ortalaması daha yüksektir (t=1.996; p=0.047). Sonuç: Araştırmaya katılan sağlık personelinin sağlıklı yaşam biçimi davranışları iyi düzeyde bulunmuştur. Elde edilen sonuçlar doğrultusunda birinci basamakta çalışan sağlık personelinin sağlıklı yaşam davranışları göstermesi konusunda teşvik edilmesi, sağlığın geliştirilmesine olumlu katkı sağlayabilir.

Differences in Motivating Factors for SARS-CoV-2 Vaccination and Perceptions of Infection Risk among Healthcare and EMS Personnel in South Carolina.

Although medical workers were prioritized to receive the coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) vaccination, many have declined. Even though studies have investigated differences in COVID-19-related attitudes and vaccination for workers in hospitals and long-term care facilities, none have included emergency medical services (EMS) personnel. We investigated the association between type of medical worker (EMS vs healthcare worker [HCW]) and COVID-19 vaccination, vaccine beliefs, vaccine motivators, personal protection behaviors, and risk perceptions. The data for self-identified HCWs came from surveys distributed to randomly selected residents of South Carolina and EMS personnel recruited at a targeted surveillance testing event during the South Carolina EMS Symposium. Pearson χ2 and Fisher exact tests analyzed differences in the distribution of demographic characteristics and self-reported COVID-19 vaccination attitudes by medical workers. Multivariable logistic regression assessed the association between COVID-19 vaccination and type of medical worker, adjusting for age, sex, race, and frontline status, and assessed the associations among vaccine beliefs, vaccine motivators, personal protection behaviors, and risk perceptions by type of medical worker, adjusting for age, sex, race, frontline status, and vaccination status. Of the 126 respondents 57.9% were EMS, 42.1% were HCWs, and 73.6% of the cohort were self-reported frontline medical workers. Approximately two-thirds of respondents received a vaccine for COVID-19, with no significant differences between EMS and HCWs; however, EMS workers were significantly less likely to receive the vaccination out of concern about exposures at work/school (adjusted odds ratio [aOR] 0.22, 95% confidence interval [CI] 0.08-0.57), concern about exposures within the community (aOR 0.18, 95% CI 0.07-0.48), or to do their part to control the pandemic (aOR 0.20, 95% CI 0.06-0.69). EMS workers also were significantly less likely to wear a mask all/most of the time when outside the home (aOR 0.04, 95% CI 0.0-0.21) and less concerned about the spread of COVID-19 in their community as compared with HCWs (aOR 0.19, 95% CI 0.06-0.56). EMS personnel were significantly less concerned about the spread of COVID-19 in their community and significantly less likely to wear a mask all/most of the time while outside the home as compared with HCWs. Differences in the COVID-19-related attitudes and personal protection behaviors of EMS personnel should be used to develop targeted interventions to increase vaccine motivation and adherence to personal protection protocols.

Building a Culture of Biosafety, Biosecurity, and Responsible Conduct in the Life Sciences: A View from Mali

Adherence to biosafety and biosecurity standards and practices by those involved in the life sciences is essential to protecting the health of humans, animals, and the environment. Fostering a culture of responsibility is one of the underlying tenets of the Biological Weapons Convention, the Global Health Security Agenda, Joint External Evaluation of International Health Regulations, and the Global Partnership Against the Spread of Weapons and Materials of Mass Destruction. It also underpins national and international efforts to protect science from misuse and to protect workers and the public from laboratory incidents. Unlike the nuclear domain, there is no available guidance or unified perspective on the nature of this culture or how it may be assessed. The International Working Group on Strengthening the Culture of Biosafety, Biosecurity, and Responsible Conduct in the Life Sciences developed a framework to assess organizational culture in biological laboratories based on the model developed by the International Atomic Energy Agency for nuclear facilities. This framework encompasses 1) management systems; 2) behavior of leadership and personnel; 3) principles for guiding decisions and behaviors; and 4) beliefs, opinions and attitudes. Here we present an example of how the beliefs, opinions, and attitudes element was employed to assess the organizational culture of laboratorians from five regions in Mali. This is the first assessment using the framework and, as such, provides a model for others seeking to improve biosafety and biosecurity, and may ultimately lead to international harmonization of this concept and provide a pathway to strengthen Mali’s laboratory system.