Environmental Contextual Factors Research Articles

THE PREVALENCE AND PREDICTORS OF APATHY AMONG CANADIAN LONG-TERM CARE RESIDENTS: A SECONDARY DATA ANALYSIS

Abstract Apathy, defined as a reduction in interest or motivation to engage in goal directed activities, is a frequent and persistent health concern among persons residing in long term care facilities. Research showed that apathy is associated with rapid cognitive decline, impaired functional ability, and increased mortality risk. To prevent or mitigate the negative impacts of apathy on persons living in long term care facilities, there is need for better understanding of the risk factors associated with it. Therefore, the aim of this study was to determine the prevalence of apathy and its risk factors in a large sample of Canadian long-term care residents (N=332,454). We performed cross-sectional analysis of data from MDS 2.0 assessments completed between 2015 and 2019 fiscal year. Results from descriptive and inferential analyses showed that apathy was more prevalent among persons aged 65 or younger and speak English. The strongest predictors of apathy were province of residence (OR 4.09 (CI 2.99-5.59) followed by resistance to care (OR 2.43 CI 2.38-2.49), conflict with family (OR 2.30 CI 2.2-2.4), and insomnia (OR 2.16 CI 2.11-2.2). These findings highlight the important role of environmental contextual factors including the physical and social environment as well as personal factors in the development of or recovery from apathy. Strategies for combating apathy in long term care facilities should take into account the individual, institutional and provincial variances.

Impact of rural settings on the interpersonal and personal processes associated with young people supporting a peer who experienced a traumatic event.

There is limited research into informal support processes amongst young people supporting a peer through a traumatic event and how this process occurs specifically within a rural setting. The aim of this research was to understand how the contextual environment impacts on the personal and interpersonal processes of rural-based young people supporting a peer who experienced a traumatic event. Qualitative interviews were conducted with 22 young people (aged 14-19), who resided in Gippsland, Victoria, Australia. A substantive theory was developed using Charmaz's (1) Constructivist grounded theory methodology. Young people who shared responsibility for supporting their peer went back to life as normal and felt connected to their community, whereas young people who maintained sole responsibility, experienced mental health problems, disconnected from their community and felt like an outsider. The contextual environmental factors (i.e., service accessibility, limited transport, and internet blackspots) impacted both negatively and positively on young people's ability to provide support as well as influenced whether they felt safe share responsibility. This theory implies that providing pathways to reconnecting with place and community, are essential in guiding young people back to their foundations of support. Integrating these insights can create new service models in rural areas, whilst also creating opportunities to form healthy foundations of support.

Unsettling academia: Academic career choices and pathways of PhD graduates in the Greater Bay Area in China

AbstractMuch of the scholarship on employment and career pathways of PhD graduates has examined the issues, including pre‐doctoral experiences, quality of doctoral education, networking and career choices across different sectors; however, contextual environmental factors have been generally overlooked. This study aims to explore the academic career choices and pathways of PhD graduates currently employed in universities in the Greater Bay Area (GBA) in China. The primary data sources include semi‐structured interviews with a group of 28 PhD graduates from 14 universities in Guangdong province and Hong Kong, government talent policy documents, and university documents regarding recruitment and tenure. The findings of this study revealed five strategic logics that the PhD graduates deployed in the dynamic decision‐making process for academic career choices and pathways in the GBA: (1) logic of academic alignment (matching degrees between academic competitiveness and academic job market, alignment in research/teaching agenda, alignment with future professional aspiration); (2) logic of financial concerns; (3) logic of academic network; (4) logic of risk mitigation; (5) logic of institutional culture. Implications for universities and policymakers on academic career support and talent management in the GBA are also provided.

Changes in the prevalence of dementia in Australia and its association with geographic remoteness.

The exact prevalence of dementia in Australia is ambiguous. Australia is a vast continent with a small population, and 80% of the population live in five cities. This study explores recent changes in the prevalence of dementia. It also investigates geographic remoteness as a potential risk factor for developing dementia. Survey of Disability, Ageing and Carers (SDAC), a nationally representative database, was used to conduct this study. A total of 74,862 and 65,487 individuals from 2015 and 2018, respectively, were considered for this study. A multivariable logistic regression model was used to evaluate the association between dementia and geographic remoteness for older adults aged 65 years and over. The results reveal that from 2015 to 2018, the prevalence of dementia among adults aged 65 years and older was higher in 2018 (5,229 per 100,000) than in 2015 (5,099 per 100,000). Significant geographical differences in the prevalence of dementia are observed among Australian adults, and this trend appears to be increasing. Furthermore, the unadjusted model revealed that, in 2015, older adults living in major cities had 1.29 (AOR: 1.29, 95% CI: 1.17-1.41) times higher odds of having dementia compared with their counterparts from outer regional and remote areas. In 2018, the adjusted model found that older adults living in major cities had 1.12 (AOR: 1.12, 95% CI: 1.01-1.25) times elevated odds of having dementia than their peers living in outer regional and remote areas. There is a rising prevalence of dementia in Australia. Further investigation is required to identify the causes of this increase. Increased public health initiatives should concentrate on behavioural characteristics and contextual environmental factors to ameliorate this trend.

Assessment of clinical and social aspects of the course of coronary heart disease after coronary bypass graphing according to the International Classification of Functioning, Disabilities and Health

BACKGROUND: It has been established that the prognosis of ischemic heart disease patients after myocardial revascularization depends on the presence of comorbid pathology, which includes, in addition to cardiovascular and non-cardiac, low physical activity as well as the patients social status and environmental barriers. The use of the international classification of functioning in this category of patients makes it possible to assess the severity of the impairment of the structures and functions of the organs and systems involved in the process as well as the role of social, personal and contextual environmental factors necessary for the implementation of a comprehensive rehabilitation program.
 AIM: To study structural and functional changes in the cardiovascular system and other organs and systems of the body based on clinical and expert parameters and the International Classification of Functioning, Disabilities and Health, the need for social protection measures, the main directions of complex rehabilitation of patients with coronary heart disease after coronary artery bypass grafting.
 MATERIALS AND METHODS: The study included 221 patients with severe coronary artery disease requiring myocardial revascularization. All the patients have been examined after coronary bypass surgery in the Bureau of Medical and Social Expertise in Saint Petersburg and recognized as disabled by the third group. The amount of surgical intervention in the patients was different; in most cases (55%) 3 coronary bypass grafts have been inserted. Comorbidity has been assessed according to the Charltson and Kaplan Feinstein indices.
 RESULTS: High frequency of comorbid pathology has been revealed; the most common are cardiovascular diseases, less common lung diseases, the diseases of the musculoskeletal system, diabetes mellitus. The value of the Kaplan Feinstein index was 10.08 0.25; Charlson index 6.50 0.16. In addition to structural disorders of the cardiovascular system, moderate dysfunctions of the respiratory and digestive systems, and metabolism have been determined. Violations of the functions and structures of the body led to restrictions on the categories of life activity: the ability to self-service in 85.07%, independent movement in 81.90%, labor activity in 100%. Among the domains of the international classification of functioning that characterize activity and participation, problems with paid labor activity (100%), movement, housework, and recreation have been identified.
 CONCLUSIONS: The study expands the understanding of the frequency of comorbid pathology of disabled people due to coronary artery disease, its impact on prognosis and the development and implementation of an individual rehabilitation program. The international classification of functioning allows to assess the severity of functional and structural changes, disability as well as to determine the need for social protection measures in patients with coronary artery disease.

Stakeholder perspectives on promoting health enhancing sport through the Rwanda Sports Policy

ABSTRACT Sport is an adaptable channel for change. It has been widely used to enhance health and wellbeing, foster social cohesion, and engender peace and development in different societies. The government of Rwanda developed a Sports Development Policy (SDP) to advance sports within the spectrum of its development agendas. However, the extent to which health constructs are integrated and implemented within the tenets of this policy remain unexplored, despite their pivotal role in population wellbeing and in contributing to the country’s overarching development goals. This study sought to understand if and how the Rwanda SDP promotes sports for health from the stakeholders’ perspectives. In-depth semi structured interviews were used for thirteen purposively sampled stakeholders of the SDP. Thematic and narrative analysis were used to examine and report the findings. Themes highlighted a progressive awareness of the Sports Policy pertaining to health outcomes, less involvement of stakeholders in sport policy formulation which affected its implementation, disproportionate efforts between sports policies for health, competitive, and mass sports activities. Stakeholders further underscored cultural beliefs, attitudes, and contextual environmental factors as the key constraints to bridge the policy theory and practice of sports. Finally, findings emphasise the integral role stakeholders play in the life course of a policy. Further, the SDP does not primarily promote sports for health, but rather elite sports, on the premise that health benefits are automatically achieved through participation in sports activities. Thus, reinforcements are still needed to clearly define the national physical activity plan either through the SDP or other national physical activity guidelines.

Toward Sustainable Development: The Causes and Consequences of Organizational Innovation

As society continues to evolve, environmental contextual factors continue to change. The primary purpose of this study is to investigate the relationship between organizational innovation and individual, organizational, and environmental context variables, as well as the impact of organizational innovation on the performance of an organization. This study will investigate the incorporation of relevant aspects of environment, society, and governance into organizational innovation, and investigate its influencing factors on innovation. The information electronics industry based at Hsinchu Science Park was selected to gather data for this study. Overall, the number of valid questionnaires recovered was 138, with an effective recovery rate of 45.25% (138/305). The findings of this study are in support of environmental and organizational variables having the largest explanatory power for organizational innovation, while individual creativity was found to have less of a correlation with organizational innovation. This study has expanded and continued to make breakthroughs and contributions in studies on ESG and sustainability-oriented organizational innovation.

A call to leverage a health equity lens to accelerate human neuroscience research.

Investigation of health inequities tend to be examined, in human neurosciences, as biological factors at the level of the individual. In actuality, health inequities arise, due largely in part, to deep-seated structural factors. Structural inequality refers to the systemic disadvantage of one social group compared to others with whom they coexist. The term encompasses policy, law, governance, and culture and relates to race, ethnicity, gender or gender identity, class, sexual orientation, and other domains. These structural inequalities include but are not limited to social segregation, the intergenerational effects of colonialism and the consequent distribution of power and privilege. Principles to address inequities influenced by structural factors are increasingly prevalent in a subfield of the neurosciences, i.e., cultural neurosciences. Cultural neuroscience articulates the bidirectional relationship between biology and environmental contextual factors surrounding research participants. However, the operationalization of these principles may not have the intended spillover effect on the majority of human neurosciences: this limitation is the overarching focus of the present piece. Here, we provide our perspective that these principles are missing and very much needed in all human neuroscience subdisciplines to accelerate our understanding of the human brain. Furthermore, we provide an outline of two key tenets of a health equity lens necessary for achieving research equity in human neurosciences: the social determinants of health (SDoH) framework and how to deal with confounders using counterfactual thinking. We argue that these tenets should be prioritized across future human neuroscience research more generally, and doing so is a pathway to further gain an understanding of contextual background intertwined with the human brain, thus improving the rigor and inclusivity of human neuroscience research.

Psychosocial assessment in brain injury: An international social work survey

ABSTRACT Objective To survey social workers in the field of traumatic brain injury (TBI)/acquired brain injury (ABI) about their practice in conducting psychosocial assessments. Design: A cross-sectional quality assurance study. Design A cross-sectional quality assurance study. Participants Social workers from professional social work rehabilitation networks spanning Sweden, the United Kingdom, North America, and Asia Pacific regions. Measure Purpose-designed survey comprising closed and open items, organized into six sections and administered electronically. Results The 76 respondents were mainly female (65/76, 85.5%) from nine countries (majority from Australia, United States, Canada). Two-thirds of respondents were employed in outpatient/ community settings (51/76, 67.1%), with the balance working in inpatient/rehabilitation hospital settings. Over 80% of respondents conducted psychosocial assessments, with the assessments informed by a systemic focus, situating the individual within their broader family and societal networks. The top five issues identified in inpatient/rehabilitation settings were housing related needs, informed consent for treatment, caregiver support, financial issues and navigating the treatment system. In contrast, the leading issues identified in community settings related to emotional regulation, treatment resistance and compliance issues, depression, and self-esteem. Discussion Social workers assessed a broad range of psychosocial issues spanning individual, family, and environmental contextual factors. Findings will contribute to future development of a psychosocial assessment framework.

The Dynamic Interplay of Affective, Cognitive and Contextual Resources on Children’s Creative Potential: The Modulatory Role of Trait Emotional Intelligence

In the present work we explored in two separate studies the modulatory role of trait emotional intelligence (EI) over the effect exerted on children's creative potential by two other key elements defining creativity, namely cognitive resources (here explored through basic executive functions, Study 1) and contextual-environmental factors (that is, teachers' implicit conceptions of the factors influencing children's creativity, Study 2). Confirming previous research, executive functions (particularly interference control and working memory) emerged as main predictors of children's creative performance; however, their positive effect arose especially when associated with a high trait EI level. In the same vein, teachers' implicit conception about children's creative potential and about their efficacy in teaching creativity emerged to exert a facilitatory effect on children' creative potential. This effect occurred particularly when associated with low trait EI levels, affecting differently girls and boys. Trait EI emerged from these studies as an important individual resource to consider in order to understand the potential benefit of other (cognitive and contextual-environmental) resources on children's creative potential. The implications on the role of trait EI as a constitutional element of children's creativity, capable of promoting the expression of their creative potential, are discussed.

Participation Among Community-Dwelling Older Adults During the COVID-19 Pandemic: A Cross-Sectional Analysis.

Participation in life situations is a critical aspect of health recognized by the World Health Organization. Guidelines to prevent spreading of COVID-19 place older adults at risk of worsening participation. The purpose of this study was to identify the factors associated with participation during the COVID-19 pandemic among community-dwelling older adults living in Hamilton, Ontario, Canada. Participants were recruited from identified census dissemination areas in Hamilton. Participants completed surveys either by phone or online during the months of May to August 2020. Measures were organized into factors related to body functions and structures, activities, participation, as well as personal and environmental contextual factors using the International Classification of Functioning, Disability, and Health (ICF) framework. Multivariable regression analysis was conducted to identify factors associated with participation as measured by the Late-Life Disability Instrument's (LLDI) frequency and limitations scales. A total of 272 older adults completed the survey (78 [7.3] years; 70% female). Use of a walking aid, driving status, perceived mental health status, nutrition risk, and physical function explained 48.2% of the variance observed in the LLDI-frequency scale scores. Use of a walking aid, driving status, perceived mental health status, receiving health assistance, and physical function explained 38.5% of the variance observed in the LLDI-limitation scale scores. Results highlighted factors across multiple ICF domains that are associated with participation restriction among a sample of community-dwelling older adults during the pandemic. Participation during the pandemic was greatest in those that were able to walk without needing to use a walking aid, being a licensed and current driver, perceiving good to excellent mental health, and having greater physical function. Our findings contribute to the literature on older adult participation during lockdowns, restrictions, pandemics, and/or other similar circumstances.

Speaking of Opportunities: The Effect of Language on Entrepreneurial Alertness

Although entrepreneurial alertness is foundational in applied entrepreneurship studies, entrepreneurship scholars have rarely considered institutional factors that shape entrepreneurial alertness. We investigate the underlying mechanisms of entrepreneurial alertness with respect to one of the most salient, yet underexplored, aspects of informal institutions: the future-time-reference (FTR) in linguistic structures. Drawing upon imprinting theory, we theorize that entrepreneurs’ early language imprint persistently affects their alertness, and that both individual and environmental contextual factors may alter this effect. We test our model with two studies. Study 1 employs a multi-source database with 107,830 observations across 56 countries and Study 2 surveys 618 entrepreneurs in four countries. Our findings indicate that entrepreneurs in institutions with strong-FTR languages exhibit higher level of alertness. Further, this effect is intensified for older entrepreneurs, yet weakened for entrepreneurs with higher level of education or entrepreneurs who experience higher level of globalization in their home country. Our study contributes to a better understanding of language imprinting on entrepreneurial alertness.

Optimal Turnover Rates and Performance in Public Organizations: Theoretical Expectations

This paper advances the theory of turnover and performance in public organizations, incorporating labor market conditions and quality of labor. In doing so, we first present theories on optimal turnover rates, based on a cost-benefit theoretical framework. We then discuss how optimal turnover rates in public organizations change according to labor supply and demand. After that, we illustrate how public labor market conditions and quality of labor affect turnover-performance relationship. Throughout the paper, we propose a set of testable propositions for future scholars, which posit the turnover-performance relationships being conditioned on various organizational and environmental contextual factors.

Pro-environmental behaviour in China: analysing the impact of attitudinal and contextual factors (Comportamiento proambiental en China: analizando el impacto de los factores actitudinales y contextuales)

ABSTRACT This research analyses pro-environmental behaviour (considering four categories: transport and mobility, waste management, ecological consumption and activism) according to environmental attitudes and certain contextual factors regarding the neighbourhood of residence. In addition, based on the assumptions of ABC theory, we evaluate the moderating effects of context on the relationship between attitudes and pro-environmental behaviours. The study sample consists of 218 people living in China who completed a questionnaire distributed to an online panel. The data obtained are analysed by means of iterative regressions, t tests for independent samples and regressions using the PROCESS macro for moderating effects. The results show that the four categories of pro-environmental behaviours are explained by different attitudinal dimensions. It is also noted that contextual factors directly impact the four behavioural categories considered and further moderate the relationship between the attitudinal dimensions and two types of behaviours (waste management and ecological consumption). Implications for the design of strategies to promote pro-environmental behaviour among the Chinese population are discussed.

Why do students choose to study on engineering foundation year programmes within the UK?

ABSTRACT In recent years there have been calls to increase both the number and diversity of engineering graduates within the UK. In addition to this, technological advancement and the need to solve complex socio-economic problems, have contributed toward a shift in the skills and abilities that practicing engineers require. Such changes have led to an increased focus on attracting students from a variety of backgrounds, who may want to study engineering for an increasing number of reasons. There is thus an interest in the factors which influence students to apply to study engineering. This paper describes the use of digital storytelling to understand the reasons that 82 engineering foundation year students from one UK-based institution, chose to study engineering. The research makes use of social cognitive career theory. The findings demonstrate the complex way in which environmental contextual factors influence self-efficacy, learning experiences, and career expectations. Based on these findings, some suggestions are made for attracting and retaining engineering students.

Psychometric Validation of the Wisconsin Community Participation Scale in a Sample of People with Chronic Health Conditions and Disabilities Living in the Community

Increasing community participation can reduce the risk for functional disabilities; participation is influenced by person and environment contextual factors. Development and validation of a brief community participation assessment can advance and support evidence-based assessment in clinical rehabilitation counseling practice. It will be an invaluable rehabilitation and public health surveillance tool that can be used to gauge the health conditions and participation of people with disabilities. The current study evaluated and validated the Wisconsin Community Participation Scale (WCPS) in 982 individuals with chronic health conditions and disabilities. Participants indicated five most meaningful life roles: (a) being able to get around with or without help, (b) live independently with or without help, (c) live a healthy lifestyle, (d) work, and (e) engage in leisure and recreation activities. The WCPS scores were positively associated with physical health, mental health, and life satisfaction and negatively related to functional disability in the theoretically expected directions. The WCPS can help rehabilitation counselors assess their clients’ current level of participation in meaningful life roles that are important to them. Rehabilitation counselors can use the WCPS assessment data to guide treatment planning and empower clients to build confidence and self-efficacy to participate in personally meaningful activities in the community.

School violence negative effect on student academic performance: a multilevel analysis

The relative roles of school context and individual student factors are of special interest to educators in measuring academic performance. Little is known about the effect of school violence on a student’s academic performance and well-being. The aims of this study were to examine the effects of three types of school violence (direct violence, discrimination, and cyberbullying) on students’ academic performance in standardized tests of mathematics, reading and history, and to identify individual student factors that contribute to reducing the negative effect of exposure to violence at school. We used 10th grade Chilean student data from the representative cross-sectional test of the Education Quality Measurement System (SIMCE in Spanish) from 2015. Multilevel linear models, adjusted for gender, incorporated other school and environmental contextual factors, as well as individual student factors. The results show that school violence in its three forms had a negative effect on academic performance. Student self-efficacy, educational expectations and satisfaction with interpersonal relations with their teachers, were important in reducing the negative effect of exposure to violence. The implications for the school are discussed.

Development of an environmental contextual factor item set relevant to global functioning and health in patients with axial spondyloarthritis.

To describe the development of an Environmental contextual factors (EF) Item Set (EFIS) accompanying the disease specific Assessment of SpondyloArthritis international Society Health Index (ASAS HI). First, a candidate item pool was developed by linking items from existing questionnaires to 13 EF previously selected for the International Classification of Functioning, Disability and Health (ICF) /ASAS Core Set. Second, using data from two international surveys, which contained the EF item pool as well as the items from the ASAS HI, the number of EF items was reduced based on the correlation between the item and the ASAS HI sum score combined with expert opinion. Third, the final English EFIS was translated into 15 languages and cross-culturally validated. The initial item pool contained 53 EF addressing four ICF EF chapters: products and technology (e1), support and relationship (e3), attitudes (e4) and health services (e5). Based on 1754 responses of axial spondyloarthritis patients in an international survey, 44 of 53 initial items were removed based on low correlations to the ASAS HI or redundancy combined with expert opinion. Nine items of the initial item pool (range correlation 0.21-0.49) form the final EFIS. The EFIS was translated into 15 languages and field tested in 24 countries. An EFIS is available complementing the ASAS HI and helps to interpret the ASAS HI results by gaining an understanding of the interaction between a health condition and contextual factors. The EFIS emphasizes the importance of support and relationships, as well as attitudes of the patient and health services in relation to self-reported health.

Clients in context: Environment, class, race, and therapists' perceptions of generalized anxiety disorder.

To examine how therapists' perceptions of Generalized Anxiety Disorder is influenced by client environmental contextual and identity factors, like class and race. Therapists (n = 138; 76% women; Mage = 38.3) were randomly assigned three of six client vignettes and asked to provide diagnostic recommendations, confidence in diagnosis, and perception of client's concerns. Vignettes differed in their description of client class, race, and contextual factors. A linear mixed-model was used to test confidence in diagnosis and generalized linear mixed-models were conducted to predict diagnosis and client concerns. Therapists altered diagnosis, confidence, and client concerns based on client contextual factors-but not identity factors. Therapists consider contextual factors in making clinical decisions, with overall tendency towards diagnosis regardless of if symptoms met the diagnostic criteria of being "excessive" given the environmental context.

Looking into individual choices and local realities to define adaptation options to drought and climate change

Climate change adaptation choices defined by local communities reflect individual risk perception and contextual factors. This study examines how local contextual environmental factors contribute to individual choices for adapting to water scarcity in three locations in central Spain. The study evaluates citizens' choices by audience segmentation and explore the role of geographical location in segments’ engagement with adaptation and adaptation measure preference. The results of the analysis of the effect of local experience support the findings of other studies that suggest that local experience is linked to risk perception but does not necessarily drive adaptive behaviour. The results suggest that respondents from most degraded areas show a higher local risk perception, but do not show homogeneous commitment to adaptation. The results also indicate differences over adaptation measure preferences across locations. Respondents of less degraded areas have a lower risk perception and show individualistic responses as compared to respondents in water stressed communities. These results highlight the relevance of local experience-driven risk perception in support to adaptation actions. Spain exemplifies many countries in southern Europe and North Africa, where drought is already a challenge to society and it is affecting an increasing number of people.