Gender Differences Research Articles

Clinical characteristics and risk factors for lupus flares in sub-Saharan Africa-retrospective cross-sectional study.

Systemic lupus erythematosus (SLE) is an autoimmune disease with a variable course with unpredictable flares. Identifying predictors of these flares is essential for monitoring and timely hospital care. To characterize the prevalence of flares within the first five years of SLE diagnosis and determine the clinical and immunological characteristics associated with flare development among patients attending the Rheumatology Clinic at Tikur Anbesa Specialized Hospital (TASH) and Lancet General Hospital. A multicenter, cross-sectional study was conducted from May 2023 to November 2023 at TASH and Lancet General Hospital. The data was collected from electronic medical records and analyzed using SPSS version 26. Logistic regressions were used to determine factors associated with lupus flare. Most patients with SLE were female (95.4%). The most common clinical presentations were musculoskeletal (71.8%), cutaneous (55%), and constitutional (22%). Almost half (44.3%) of the patients had comorbidity illness. Positive ANA test was found in 96.5% of the patients, whereas only 55% had positive anti-dsDNA test. The prevalence of SLE flare in the first five years of SLE diagnosis was 38.9%, and most flares occurred within the first year of diagnosis. Patients with the following characteristics were more likely to have flare-ups: younger age at diagnosis (less than 25years old), initial presentation with vasculitis, renal flare, and being on low-dose prednisolone. The most common clinical presentations were musculoskeletal, dermatologic, and constitutional manifestations. Age < 25years at diagnosis, initial clinical presentation with renal manifestation, and being on low-dose prednisolone were predictors of SLE flare. Key Points • This study found a significant gender disparity, with 95% female. • Nearly 39% of patients experienced an SLE flare within the first five years of diagnosis. • Over three-quarters (77%) of flares occurred within the first year of diagnosis. • Age less than 25years, initial presentation with vasculitis, renal involvement, and being on low-dose prednisolone were identified as predictors of flares.

GENDER PREFERENCES FOR MULTIPLE ATTRIBUTES OF SOIL AND WATER CONSERVATION IN NORTHERN RWANDA

Despite the dominance of female labor in agricultural production, female-controlled farm plots have lower efficiency compared to plot managed by male-headed households, which indicates a huge gender disparity in agricultural productivity. Overlooking gender preferences when designing interventions that promote the conservation of soil and water resources might face challenges in adoption and could result in ineffective policies to close the gender gap. This study seeks to analyze gender-specific preferences regarding attributes of soil and water conservation (SWC) in northern Rwanda. A best-worst survey was conducted among 653 respondents, comprising 253 males and 400 females, representing 422 households surveyed between September and December 2019. The analysis of BWS data involved assessing attribute-level relative importance, Pearson correlation, and maximum difference scaling using multinomial logit (MNL). Findings from attribute-level importance analysis revealed significant gender-based disparities in preferences across three important SWC attribute scenarios: the high scenario (between 65% and 100%), the moderate scenario (between 50% and 65%), and the basic scenario (with <50% relative importance). The study identified heterogeneity in preferences regarding the relative importance of SWC attribute levels. Pearson correlation analysis revealed substantial synergies among attribute levels linked to land consolidation, improved land tenure, and joint SWC decision-making between genders. Additionally, the study identified trade-offs among multiple levels of SWC attributes, including households’ SWC decision-making and physical and structural measures. The results from MNL regression show that both males and females exhibit positive preferences for multiple levels of SWC attributes, but show negative preferences when it comes to household decisions involving multiple SWC strategies. The study highlights the importance of equal opportunities for males and females’ participation in agricultural transformation through the adoption of SWC technologies as a fundamental step towards sustainable agricultural intensification. It advocates for gender transformational approaches to incentivize the scaling up of SWC practices and promote packages with lower uptake rates. Additionally, the study suggests enhancing knowledge and extension education in SWC to better understand diverse needs and preferences of female farmers.

The cry of Landless Smallholder Women Farmers and Agro-Processors in Northern Ghana- Evidence from West Mamprusi Municipality

Women’s access to critical resources such as land is one of the most topical issues amongst development practitioners, gender advocates, and policymakers alike. Land is one of the bases of wealth, power, and authority in most developing countries. As such, no meaningful development takes place without land resources, yet gender inequalities concerning land allocation and distribution exist in most Sub-Saharan African countries, especially northern Ghana where the majority of the affected are women. This paper examined the effect of the customary land tenure system on landless women smallholder farmers and Agro-processors in West Mamprusi Municipality. Primary data from individuals and household heads, chiefs, and Tingban-dima (landowners), were gathered using semi-structured interviews, focus group discussions, and in-depth interviews. The secondary was also extensively reviewed as a complement to the primary data in the area of study. The study revealed significant gender disparities between men and women relative to land allocation and land access. Women's access to land was abysmal compared to that of men. The situation was also found to be aggravated by the dominant patriarchal relations which favor men relative to property ownership. only a handful of women had owned and had access to some lands but in most cases, such lands were reported to be poorer in quality, and lack proximity relative to complementary resources such as water. additionally, some lands in the hands of women came in with hefty royalties, thereby exacerbating their plight. The productive capacity of women in food production, agro-processing, vegetable production, and animal husbandry was found to be impeded by the land tenure system which limits their livelihood opportunities thereby widening the poverty gap between women and men. Nonetheless, women's access to land has seen a bit of improvement over the years, considering the recognition of women’s contribution to household income and the nutritive diet of children, but Indigenous traditional inheritance structures still limit the potential of women in this direction. The need to therefore advocate for a change in traditional land ownership and distribution by emphasizing on women’s rights and contribution to development. The constitution of Ghana allows for equal access to land irrespective of gender; this must therefore be advocated. This will address the gender gap in land and water resources to pave the way for women in agriculture, which will improve rural livelihoods, especially women of reproductive age.

Value Creation on a Level Playing Field? A Configurational Analysis of Gender Differences

Value Creation on a Level Playing Field? A Configurational Analysis of Gender Differences

Effect of Infra Low Frequency (ILF) neurofeedback training on EEG in children with autism spectrum disorders.

To investigate whether Infra-low frequency Neurofeedback (ILF-NFB) training can improve brain electrical activity in children with autism spectrum disorders ASD. This single arm pre and post intervention study was carried out at IBMS (Institute of Basic Medical Sciences), Khyber Medical University, Peshawar and Shaheed Zulfiqar Ali Bhutto Medical University (SZABMU), Islamabad from January 2021 to December 2022. A purposive sampling technique was used. Thirty-five ASD children (male=24; female=11; 7-17 years) were provided with 30 sessions of infra low frequency (ILF) neurofeedback training for 15-20 minutes, during 10 weeks. Childhood Autism Rating Scale (CARS) scoring was done and electroencephalogram (EEG) activity was compared before and after ILF-NF training sessions. Around 62.9% participants had mild-moderate autism and 37.1% had severe autism. Wilcoxon Signed rank test revealed a significant decline in delta (Pre-test=47.31±19.22, Post-test=22.07±6.83; p=<0.001), theta (Pre-test=24.75±16.62, Post-test=12.37±3.59; p=<0.001) and alpha (Pre-test=12.01±9.81, Post-test=4.03±1.61; p=< 0.001) waves. Mann Whitney U test exhibited no significant gender differences in EEG pattern before and after neurofeedback except in theta waves (p=0.03) before the intervention. Decline in delta, theta, beta and alpha waves propose that ILF-NF training can be effective in improving the EEG activity. ILF-NFB can be perceived as a valuable non-invasive, non-pharmacological intervention for improving EEG pattern via reintegration of brain activity resulting in increased the attention and focus, enhanced mental stability and cognitive engagement.

Gender Dynamics in Hackathons: Uncovering Gender Differences in Motivation, Anxiety and Confidence

Gender Dynamics in Hackathons: Uncovering Gender Differences in Motivation, Anxiety and Confidence

Quantifying Upper Lip Height Difference Between Two Young Male and Female Populations by Direct Surface Measurement: Implications for Gender-Affirming Upper Lip Shortening Surgery

The female upper lip is shorter than its male counterpart. We have recently described a precise direct surface measurement technique of the philtral height. In this study we aim to quantify the difference in philtral height using this same measuring technique between two groups of young male and female Lebanese subjects. The mean philtral height obtained in the young male group was 15.7±1.7mm. By comparing this result to the previously described mean philtral height of 14.3±1.9mm in the young female group, we obtained a mean difference of 1.3±1.8mm between the two groups. This result confirms and quantifies by direct surface measurement the gender difference in upper lip height and should be considered when planning a gender-affirming upper lip shortening surgery.

The Role of Gender Differences and Nudges in Supplier Retainment with Sustainability Risks

The Role of Gender Differences and Nudges in Supplier Retainment with Sustainability Risks

Gender-Specific Pathways in Violent Crime: Investigating the Role of Demographic and Mental Health Factors Using Mixed Graphical Models and Bayesian Networks.

This research aims to uncover gender-specific relationships and pathways that contribute to the perpetration of violent crimes, using sophisticated analytical tools to analyze the complex interactions between various factors. Employing Mixed Graphical Models and Bayesian networks, the study analyzes a sample of 1,254 prisoners (61.64% males and 38.36% females) to investigate the relationships among demographic factors, mental health issues, and violent crime. The study utilizes comprehensive measures, including the Beck Depression Inventory, Beck Anxiety Inventory, and Childhood Trauma Questionnaire, to assess participants' mental health status.Key findings reveal significant gender differences in the pathways to violent crime. For males, incomplete parental marriages strongly correlate with criminal behavior severity, while marriage status emerges as a significant factor, with married males less likely to commit violent crimes. In contrast, these relationships are not significant for females. Bayesian network analysis indicates that living in urban areas differently influences education and emotional expression across genders, emphasizing the importance of contextual factors. The study highlights the need for gender-specific considerations in criminal justice policies and interventions. It underscores the complex interplay of demographic and mental health factors in influencing violent crime pathways, providing insights for developing more effective prevention strategies. Despite its cross-sectional design and reliance on self-reported data, the research significantly contributes to understanding the gendered dimensions of criminal behavior.

Adopting Active or Passive Leadership in Project-Based Organizations? The Role of Inclusive Leadership in Remote Work Environment

Currently, there is an academic debate on whether managers adopt active or passive leadership can enhance employees’ work performance in project-based organizations. This study introduces an inclusive leadership perspective to address this issue. Questionnaire survey was used to validate the theoretical model with data from Chinese project-based organizations. The findings reveal that managers’ adoption of active or passive leadership depends on employees’ work environment and their psychological traits. Inclusive leadership which combines the active and passive characteristics can enhance remote work performance, through improving employees’ self-leadership and reducing their family-work conflict. Results also indicate that employees’ psychological resilience stimulated by the adversities is a critical factor for mitigating the impact of family-work conflict on remote work performance. Additionally, this study highlights the issue of gender differences among employee in remote work context. Finally, this study provides valuable managerial suggestions for managers in project-based organizations to improve employees’ remote work performance.

Students’ support facilities and academic adjustment among first-year undergraduates: evidence from a Nigerian public university

Purpose This study investigates the extent to which support facilities are available, accessible and satisfactory and the relationship between support facilities and academic adjustment among first-year university undergraduates. Design/methodology/approach This research adopted a survey research design. A simple random sampling technique was used to select six faculties at the Federal University Oye-Ekiti, Nigeria. Six hundred first-year students took part in the study. The Support Facilities and Academic Adjustment Questionnaire (SSAAQ) was adapted and used for data collection. Descriptive statistics, Pearson product-moment correlation and the t-test were used to analyse the data. Findings The study revealed that the extent of the availability of support facilities is low, accessibility is moderate while the extent of satisfaction is high in the study context. Significant positive relationship exist between support facilities and academic adjustment, in favour of female first-year undergraduates. The challenges faced by first-year undergraduates were highlighted. Originality/value Nigerian students are confronted with accessing important components of support facilities at tertiary institutions. These student face additional hurdles in accessing support facilities at universities because of their socioeconomic status but were not explicit in identifying the exact nature of the challenges they experience. There is dearth of literature regarding the extent of availability, accessibility, as well as the challenges encountered by first-year students and their satisfaction in accessing the university’s support facilities, vis-à-vis its relationship to their academic adjustment in the university amidst gender differences. This current study fills this gap in the literature.

Navigating Gender Differences in Transcatheter Aortic Valve Replacement Outcomes

Navigating Gender Differences in Transcatheter Aortic Valve Replacement Outcomes

Advanced differential evolution for gender-aware English speech emotion recognition

Speech emotion recognition (SER) technology involves feature extraction and prediction models. However, recognition efficiency tends to decrease because of gender differences and the large number of extracted features. Consequently, this paper introduces a SER system based on gender. First, gender and emotion features are extracted from speech signals to develop gender recognition and emotion classification models. Second, according to gender differences, distinct emotion recognition models are established for male and female speakers. The gender of speakers is determined before executing the corresponding emotion model. Third, the accuracy of these emotion models is enhanced by utilizing an advanced differential evolution algorithm (ADE) to select optimal features. ADE incorporates new difference vectors, mutation operators, and position learning, which effectively balance global and local searches. A new position repairing method is proposed to address gender differences. Finally, experiments on four English datasets demonstrate that ADE is superior to comparison algorithms in recognition accuracy, recall, precision, F1-score, the number of used features and execution time. The findings highlight the significance of gender in refining emotion models, while mel-frequency cepstral coefficients are important factors in gender differences.

Sex versus gender differences in childhood trauma and its associations with symptom profiles in first-episode schizophrenia spectrum disorders

Sex and gender differences in childhood trauma (CT) and its relationships with symptom profiles were examined in 77 patients with first-episode schizophrenia spectrum disorders compared to 64 controls. In patients, but not in controls, we found independent associations of sex vs. gender with abuse vs. neglect. In patients, there were also sex and gender differences in age of onset and psychopathology. Sex-specific associations between CT and symptom profiles were also found. Our results indicated that the assessment of both sex and gender provides a more nuanced insight into CT associations with symptoms compared to sex in isolation.

Sexual Orientation Differences in age of First Treatment for a Mental Health Diagnosis: A Population-based Study of Childhood and Adolescence.

The aim of the current study was to identify the age at which sexual orientation disparity in mental health diagnoses can be first identified, and gender and sexual identity subgroup differences in such treatment, in a population-based sample. Individuals aged 16 to 25 (n=10,365) participating in the probability-based Swedish National Public Health Survey in 2018 were included. This sample was linked to physician-assessed mental health care treatment history data starting when all individuals in the sample were 8 years old, using national health care registries. Individuals reporting a sexual minority identity in adolescence and young adulthood were more than three times as likely to have been treated for an internalizing disorder diagnosis (e.g., depression, anxiety) and more than twice as likely to have been treated for a neurodevelopmental disorder diagnosis during childhood than those reporting a heterosexual identity. Sexual minority individuals overall, and women in particular, were more likely to have been treated for an internalizing disorder diagnosis at an early age compared to heterosexuals, with this disparity starting at age 13. The sexual orientation disparity in likelihood of treatment for a neurodevelopmental disorder diagnosis was particularly elevated among bi-/pansexual women with this disparity starting in early/mid adolescence. This first population-based study linked to physician-assessed mental health diagnoses during childhood and adolescence identifies the age at which sexual orientation differences in treatment for common mental disorders emerge. The early emergence of this disparity suggests a potential benefit of interventions that facilitate social belonging for all youth.

Микроэлементный состав крови русского осетра

Establishing quantitative levels of chemical elements in the blood plays a leading role in studying the mi-croelement status of the body. The purpose of the work was to study the microelement composition of the blood and spleen of the Russian sturgeon Acipenser gueldenstaedtii (Brandt, 1833). The objects of the study were females and males of Russian sturgeon of different ages. The determination of metals was carried out using atomic absorption spectrometry. In each sample, iron, copper, manganese, zinc, nickel, cobalt, chromium, lead, and cadmium were determined. Specific features of the accumulation of chemical elements in the blood and spleen of Russian sturgeon have been revealed. The content of iron and zinc in the blood and spleen of fish is in the greatest quantities. At the same time, the concentration of zinc in the blood of fish, as well as the concentration of iron, depends on the systematic position of the fish, and falls within the limits of the concentrations of chemical elements according to A. P. Vinogradov: the content of iron and zinc in the blood of Teleostei is generally higher than in the blood of Elasmobranchii. Russian sturgeon belongs to the subclass Chondrostei and has characteristics of cartilaginous and bony fish, perhaps this can explain the amount of iron and zinc found in the blood. A positive correlation was revealed between iron and copper in the blood of female and male Russian sturgeon. At the same time, no gender differences were found in the content of chemical elements in the blood of female and male Russian sturgeon, with the exception of nickel, the concentration of which is higher in the blood of males. It has been shown that as fish age, the concentration of nickel, manganese, lead and copper in the blood increases.

Comparison of the Creative Thinking Abilities of Class XI High School Students on Environmental Pollution Material Given Gender Differences

Creative thinking skills are skills that develop an idea or ideas based on existing problems or solve problems from various points of view. The results of the 2015 GCI survey show that the creative thinking ability of Indonesian people is still low, ranking 86th in the creative class 93 countries. This research aims to determine the creative thinking abilities of high school students regarding environmental pollution material in terms of gender differences. This type of research is descriptive research with a quantitative approach. The research subjects were class XI students of SMA Negeri 4 Sidrap for the 2023–2024 academic year, with a sample of 30 students. The sample was determined by random sampling. Data collection techniques use tests. The data analysis technique uses descriptive statistical processing. The results of the research show that the percentage score of students' creative thinking ability on the indicators of fluency is 65.52%, originality is 71.97%, flexibility is 69.97%, and elaboration is 73.64%.

Gender difference in coronary artery disease

Background: Coronary artery disease (CAD) continues to exert a substantial impact on global health, being the main factor causing morbidity and mortality in North America and Europe. Men and women have different incidences of CAD and risk factors, which has been widely reported across populations. In light of a notable scarcity of studies examining the variation in CAD risk among different subgroups. We investigated how cholesterol, glucose, blood pressure, and age affect CAD risk in different sex and smoking groups. Method: Framingham Heart Study, a longest-running cardiovascular epidemiological investigation used furnishing valuable insights into CAD risk. Investigating the relationship between these characteristics and the occurrence of CHD involved using logistic regression. Result: For blood pressure variable among smoking group, there were significant increase in male group (=0.0255, P&lt;0.001) compared with non-smoking group (=0.0164 in male, =0.0162 among female group, P&lt;0.001) and reduction among female group (=0.0089, P&lt;0.001). Within the female group, the age variable exhibited a notable reduction in smoking group (=0.0460, P=0.0020) compared with the non-smoking group (=0.0829, P&lt;0.001). After adding the interactions between smoking and blood pressure, smoking and age. In the male group, both smoking and the interaction become insignificant, whereas in the female group the interaction is significant. Conclusion: Our study suggested that high level of glucose, total cholesterol and blood pressure increased the risk of CAD. By dividing into subgroup, we discovered that the combined presence of smoking and increased blood pressure, and of smoking and age could potentially exert a more adverse effect on pressure wave reflection in women compared to men.

Exploring the group heterogeneity in the impact of social cohesion on the walking frequency of older adults in China

BackgroundWalkable neighborhoods are closely related to an increase in walking frequency and the strengthening of social cohesion. These factors, in turn, contribute to lower BMI and other positive health-related outcomes. However, with a rapid increase in aging populations in China and the fact that women are facing more challenges than men as they age, especially mobility challenges because they tend to live longer leading to probabilities to become widowed. Nevertheless, less attention has been paid to understanding the gender difference between these relationships.MethodsBased on a survey of 533 older adults in Dalian, China, this study tried to investigate the intertwined relationship between perceived walkability, social cohesion, walking frequency, and BMI. A Structural Equation Model (SEM) and multiple-group analysis were applied to test the proposed framework.ResultsFirst, results show that gender differences existed among the above interrelationships, and the most substantial gender gap was found in effects of social cohesion on BMI. Second, perceived walkability only has a direct effect (0.149) on walking frequencies for female seniors. Third, although the relationships between perceived walkability and BMI are not directly related in both male and female models, the indirect connection (−0.053) is substituted for female seniors. Besides, the inhibiting effect of walking on BMI, which is −0.511, is also valid for female seniors. Finally, in terms of the role of social cohesion, both the positive impacts of perceived walkability on it (0.225 for males and 0.325 for females) and its promoting effects on walking have been confirmed in male (0.142) and female models (0.103). The negative direct effect of social cohesion on BMI (−0.083) is only confirmed in male seniors.ConclusionInsights derived from this analysis can help bring forward gender-specific interventions to build a more inclusive walkable and social environment to improve the mobility and physical health of older adults.

Depressive symptoms across the retirement transition in men and women: associations with emotion regulation, adjustment difficulties and work centrality

BackgroundRetirement is a major life event and factors driving depression in the retirement transition might differ in men and women. The aim was to prospectively study depressive symptoms across the retirement transition in men and women and to test associations with emotion regulation strategies (suppression and reappraisal), adjustment difficulties, and work centrality.MethodsThe sample included 527 individuals from the population-based Health, Aging and Retirement Transitions in Sweden (HEARTS) study who were working at baseline and retired during one of the following four annual measurement waves. Participants contributed with a total of 2635 observations across five measurement waves. Depressive symptoms were measured with the Center for Epidemiologic Studies Depression Scale (CES-D); total score was modelled as a function of time to and from retirement. Changes over the retirement transition were analyzed with multilevel growth curve models. Gender differences in associations with emotion regulation, adjustment difficulties and work centrality were examined by including interaction effects with sex.ResultsWe observed a general reduction of depressive symptoms in the early years of retirement in both men and women. Higher suppression was related to higher depression scores while higher cognitive reappraisal was related to lower levels of depressive symptoms. Women more often used cognitive reappraisal, and men more often suppression, but no significant gender interaction in associations with depressive symptoms could be shown. Retirement adjustment difficulties and greater importance of work for self-esteem were related to higher depression scores. Greater meaning of work, on the other hand, was related to lower levels of depressive symptoms, and this association was stronger in men.ConclusionsThere was a general reduction of depression scores in the early years of retirement in both women and men. Findings suggest that basing one’s self-esteem on workplace performance was related to higher levels of depressive symptoms after retirement, while perceiving one’s job as important and meaningful may facilitate better adjustment in terms of lower depression symptom levels, especially in men.