Influence Of Social Context Research Articles

Record linkage as a vital key player for the COVID-19 syndemic

Abstract Chronicity, comorbidities, and social context influence COVID-19 risk and prognosis, drawing attention to a syndemic dimension. We discuss how linking routinely collected data and data collected through observational population-based cohorts can contribute to advance knowledge on the association between COVID-19 and chronic diseases and social indicators. Record linkage as a multidimensional tool may ultimately enable defining and optimizing of integrated strategies, which may create multilevel public health measures to foster solidarity on health in all policies when ethical and legal barriers under prerequisite data protection and privacy can be overcome. Legal discrepancies have been proving detrimental to research in member states, including those which already had established a margin for research for the common good without explicit consent. We hence call for further harmonization of data protection requirements for scientific research activities in the EU/EEA, focusing in particular on health-related research. A proposed framework demonstrates the role of record linkage as a trailblazing key player in research optimization due to its multidimensional possibilities calling for harmonization. Key messages • Further harmonization of data protection requirements for scientific research may create multilevel public health measures. • As a multidimensional tool, it optimizes integrated strategies and fosters solidarity on Health in All Policies (HiAP).

Health literacy and its association with antibiotic use and knowledge of antibiotic among Egyptian population: cross sectional study

BackgroundHigh prevalence of inappropriate antibiotic use in different sectors of the community indicates a possible strong influence of social and cultural context, which may be influenced by social determinants of health and thereby affecting individuals’ health-related behavior, including antibiotic use. And such health-related behavior is largely determined by individuals’ health literacy.ObjectiveThe purpose of this research was to examine the relationship between the Egyptian population's health literacy, antibiotic use, and antibiotic knowledge.MethodIn Egypt, researchers used a cross-sectional study design, between the period of January and March 2024 using validated questionnaires and recruited a convenient sample of adults from seven governorates representing different geographic areas, and socioeconomic and educational backgrounds with the help of the validated questionnaires the HLS-EU-Q16, a shortened version of the European Health Literacy Survey Questionnaire (derived from the World Health Organization's Antibiotic Resistance: Multi-Country Public Awareness Survey) and, familiarity with drugs and understanding of antibiotic resistance via online methods and face-to-face interviews.ResultsThe survey included a participation of 500 persons in total. The participants' age distribution indicated that 28.8% (n = 144) were aged 18–24, while 27.4% (n = 137) were within the 25–34 age group. Moreover, a total of 274 participants, accounting for 54.8% of the sample, described themselves as female. Significantly, 60.7% of the patients indicated acquiring antibiotics without a prescription. The evaluation of health literacy (HL) levels among the participants revealed that 36.2% had problematic HL, while 8.4% showed inadequate HL. A strong positive link was found between the scores of antibiotic knowledge and the scores of HL (R = 0.876; P-value = 0.001).ConclusionOverall, it is imperative to implement awareness-raising curricula and public health education initiatives without delay. Furthermore, it is highly advised to implement public health awareness initiatives about the appropriate use of antibiotics, alongside national policies aimed at regulating the availability and prescription of antibiotics.

Does social context influence intention, prediction and motor behavior during a simple in-person card game?

Does social context influence intention, prediction and motor behavior during a simple in-person card game?

The Influence of Social Context on Adolescents’ use of Prototypical Facial Expressions

Adolescents’ social behaviour varies by social context (e.g., who they are with); they might ‘play it cool’ with peers while displaying vulnerability with caregivers. Yet, the way in which social context affects teenagers’ nonverbal expression is unknown. The current study addresses this knowledge gap by examining how teenagers’ facial expressions differs when discussing emotionally charged topics with a friend vs. with a caregiver. Thirty-one 11 to 16-year-old participants engaged in two separate conversations, with their caregiver and friend, respectively (social context). Within each context, they spoke about emotionally charged topics (happy vs angry) of their choosing (emotional type). Facial analysis software (iMotions) was employed to quantify the prototypicality of angry and happy facial expressions. Two separate within-subject factorial (2x2) ANOVAs were conducted to assess the effect of social context and emotional type on the prototypicality of happy and angry facial expressions. There was a significant main effect of social context on prototypical facial cues of anger (F(1, 30) = 5.45, p = .026) with adolescents exhibiting more prototypical angry expressions with their friends than with their caregivers. Moreover, there was a significant main effect of emotional type on prototypical facial cues of happiness (F(1, 30) = 4.72, p = .038) with adolescents displaying more prototypical happy facial expressions when discussing happy topics compared to angry topics. No other effects were significant. The above main effects were rendered non-significant after accounting for sex assigned at birth and age. As the current study is ongoing, the next steps will be to increase our sample size to boost statistical power and to investigate whether the change in non-verbal encoding we observe across social context relates to teens' socio-emotional functioning. With these results, we can better support teenagers in their emotional expression to foster relationship formation and social success throughout adolescence.

Chimpanzees (Pan troglodytes) strategically manipulate their environment to deny conspecifics access to food

Humans modify their environment to grant or prevent others’ access to valuable resources, for example by using locks. We tested whether sanctuary-living chimpanzees (N = 10) would flexibly modify their environment to either allow or deny a dominant conspecific access to a shared food source by giving them the option to change a food reward’s pathway prior to releasing it. The food could end up in one of two locations: one was accessible to both the subject and a dominant conspecific, the other one was only accessible to the subject. We further manipulated the extent of inhibitory control needed for modifying the pathway by varying the subjects’ starting position. Our subjects reoriented the pathway competitively to monopolize food but changed the pathway less often in trials with high inhibitory demands. We further show how inhibitory task demands in a social context influence chimpanzees’ future planning. Our results show that chimpanzees will strategically manipulate their environment to maximize their own and deny a dominant conspecific access to food.

Эскапизм как предмет философской рефлексии

Introduction. Technological transformations and the expanding processes of digitalisation, which have encompassed the space of an individual and social life, have given a new meaning to escapism as a form of existence and behavioural strategy. Virtual practices have become the most important component of life and activity of an individual and have created conditions that have strengthened escapist tendencies and moods. Theoretical analysis. The social phenomenon of escapism, including digital escapism, is the subject of interdisciplinary research due to the complexity and ambivalence of this phenomenon. In the centre of research interest there is the essence of escapism, the processes of formation of escapist consciousness and worldview, the influence of historical and social contexts on the evolution and demand for escapist practices. Conclusion. Escapism is a specific means of escape from the everyday life into the world of other-reality. The existing differences in assessments of the ideology of escapism allow us to reveal its contradictory nature, which consists in the presence of negative aspects that form the space of dependence (including digital), and positive components that contribute to the development of the sphere of imagination, thanks to which there is a deeper understanding of the true reality, awareness of its dominant role for the existence of an individual.

Does social context influence neophobia in juvenile herring gulls (Larus argentatus)?

Does social context influence neophobia in juvenile herring gulls (Larus argentatus)?

Social setting interacts with hyper dopamine to boost the stimulant effect of ethanol.

Alcohol consumption occurring in a social or solitary setting often yields different behavioural responses in human subjects. For example, social drinking is associated with positive effects while solitary drinking is linked to negative effects. However, the neurobiological mechanism by which the social environment during alcohol intake impacts on behavioural responses remains poorly understood. We investigated whether distinct social environments affect behavioural responses to ethanol and the role of the dopamine system in this phenomenon in the fruit fly Drosophila melanogaster. The wild-type Canton-S (CS) flies showed higher locomotor response when exposed to ethanol in a group setting than a solitary setting, and there was no difference in females and males. Dopamine signalling is crucial for the locomotor stimulating effect of ethanol. When subjected to ethanol exposure alone, the dopamine transport mutant flies fumin (fmn) with hyper dopamine displayed the locomotor response similar to CS. When subjected to ethanol in a group setting, however, the fmn's response to the locomotor stimulating effect was substantially augmented compared with CS, indicating synergistic interaction of dopamine signalling and social setting. To identify the dopamine signalling pathway important for the social effect, we examined the flies defective in individual dopamine receptors and found that the D1 receptor dDA1/Dop1R1 is the major receptor mediating the social effect. Taken together, this study underscores the influence of social context on the neural and behavioural responses to ethanol.

The Influence of Social Context on EFL Learners’ Identity Construction: A Case Study of Three College Students in Jeju

Objectives This study aims to examine second language (L2) learners’ identity constructions considering the so-cial contexts of Jeju. In particular, this study explores how English learners are positioned in Jeju society, how their investments in learning English change depending on their positions, and how their investments influence the for-mation of L2 identity. Methods Data from the participants’ journal writings and interviews were analyzed to examine their identity con-structions in the process of English learning using the poststructuralist concept of positions, the unequal relations of power, and investments in learning English. Results Motivation is frequently socially constructed in various sociocultural contexts, and it needs to be under-stood in connection with the unequal relations of power. This study shows that the participants’ different positions had a significant impact on their investments in learning English. Also, the participants in this study established multiple identities in various contexts of Jeju depending on their positions influenced by the unequal relations of power, which may constrain their English learning opportunities. Conclusions Language learners’ marginalized positions can influence their investment and identity constructions, so it is important to develop pedagogical strategies that enhance language learners’ positions. This study is sig-nificant because it has implications for educators to understand how language learners resist or negotiate lan-guage practices in a given classroom, and re-examine their classroom strategies to find ways to improve language learners’ investments with more powerful positions.

Social-Contextual Influences on Eating Pathology in Transgender and Nonbinary Adults of Color

Social-Contextual Influences on Eating Pathology in Transgender and Nonbinary Adults of Color

Unveiling Entrepreneurial Learning Dynamics: Insights from the Women Entrepreneurs of Creative Industries

Purpose –This research aims to explore social learning aspects of entrepreneurial learning within the creative industries. The creative industries produce customised products, where creative entrepreneurs co-create goods according to the customer’s preferences. The entrepreneurial learning literature includes empirical and theoretical studies from different industry sectors. However, little attention is evident in the entrepreneurship research from the creative industries. The limited literature on entrepreneurial learning in the creative industries indicates that creative industries entrepreneurs rarely pursue formal education to enhance their skills and knowledge. Instead, their business learning is deeply rooted in the social, cultural, and economic contexts of the real world in which they are situated. These brief findings demand an in-depth exploration of entrepreneurial learning processes and sources within the creative industries context. Design/methodology/approach – This empirical study is based on qualitative research, employing in-depth case studies of creative industries entrepreneurs. The data was collected through semi-structured interviews with women entrepreneurs who work as designers in the creative industries. To analyze the data, a cross-case comparison was conducted, along with the use of grounded theory techniques. Findings – The findings highlight that entrepreneurial learning is a dynamic process where the interaction of personal and social experiences of entrepreneurs during their entrepreneurial journey is of utmost importance. This learning process involves activities such as observing, practices, doing, trial and error, and constant interaction with the entrepreneurial community. Furthermore, understanding the learning process relies largely on the contextual environment. Creative industries’ entrepreneurs employ the variety of sources for learning, out of which personal networks (family, friends, etc.) and technological resources (internet, software) are vital. Social media also plays a significant role in their learning process, as it serves as a valuable source of information and learning. Implications – The study improves our understanding of how women entrepreneurs engage in entrepreneurial learning within a specific industry and social context. Furthermore, the research identifies the challenges that are critical to address through entrepreneurship education and support organizations – that cater to community entrepreneurs. Originality/value – The literature has acknowledged the strong influence of cultural and social context on women entrepreneurs, particularly in developing countries. This research contributes to the limited body of knowledge on entrepreneurial learning among women creative entrepreneurs by exploring the interplay between personal and social learning experiences along with multiple contextual forces.

Influence of social and semantic context in processing speech in noise

Social interactions occupy a substantial part of our life, and listening to others’ interactions is critical in understanding our social world. Although the role of semantics in speech comprehension has been studied, the role of social context, and its interaction with semantics, remain unknown. We conducted a series of four perceptual experiments to better understand the processing of multiple-speaker conversations from a third-person viewpoint, manipulating the social and semantic context of a conversation. We used a stimulus set consisting of two-speaker dialogues or one-speaker monologues (factor: social context) arranged in intact or sentence-scrambled order (factor: semantic context). Each stimuli comprised five sentences, with the fifth sentence embedded in multi-talker babbling noise. This fifth sentence was subsequently repeated without noise, with a single word altered or unchanged. Stimuli were presented to healthy young adults, asked whether the repeated sentence was same as or different from previous in-noise sentence. We found significant effects for both social and semantic contexts when processing a conversation. Our findings highlight that both semantic and social aspects of a conversation can modulate the processing of conversations. These results raise new questions regarding predictive or other mechanisms that may be at play when perceiving speech in social contexts.

Replies to Hatzimoysis, Hufendiek and Sievers, Majeed, Gerrans, and Whiting

The concerns of each commentary are addressed in turn. I clarify and defend the claims of The Emotional Mind with regards to the plausibility of automatic responses to representational content, the distinction between emotions and bodily feelings, the influence of social contexts upon emotional responses, the complex issue of whether emotions are modular or form natural kinds, the nature of pain asymbolia, and the nature of emotional authenticity.

Enactive psychiatry and social integration: beyond dyadic interactions

AbstractEnactive approaches to psychiatry have recently argued for an understanding of psychiatric conditions based within relational interactions between individuals and their environments. A central motivation for these enactive approaches is the goal of social integration: the integration of a naturalistic approach to psychiatric conditions with their broader sociocultural dimensions. One possible issue, however, is whether appeals to the autonomy and authenticity of relationally constituted enactive individuals can provide a means of adjudicating between harmful and beneficial social constraints upon individual behaviour. This paper seeks to provide enactive approaches to psychiatry with a possible means of evaluating normative influences of social contexts beyond direct interactions with relationally constituted individuals. Some of the most significant influences of the sociocultural dimension of psychiatric conditions consist not in direct interaction with individuals, but in setting the terms for interactions and interactants alike. Insofar as some social influences precede and predefine dyadic relations between individuals and their social context, these cannot be accounted for as features of interactions, but must be assessed as independent structures of the sociocultural dimension. I will provide one potential means for enactive models to assess social norms using Canguilhem’s distinction between health and pathology. I will argue that Canguilhem’s conceptualization of health in terms of adaptive normative structure provides a potential tool for social integration which strongly complements enactive approaches to psychiatry.

Epigenetics as a target to mitigate excess stroke risk in people of African ancestry: A scoping review

BackgroundGlobally, individuals of African ancestry have a relatively greater stroke preponderance compared to other racial/ethnic groups. The higher prevalence of traditional stroke risk factors in this population, however, only partially explains this longstanding disparity. Epigenetic signatures are transgenerational and could be a plausible therapeutic target to further bend the stroke disparities curve for people of African ancestry. There is, however, limited data on epigenetics and stroke risk in this population. PurposeTo examine existing evidence and knowledge gaps on the potential contribution of epigenetics to excess stroke risk in people of African ancestry and avenues for mitigation. Materials and methodsWe conducted a scoping review of studies published between January 2003 and July 2023, on epigenetics and stroke risk. We then summarized our findings, highlighting the results for people of African ancestry. ResultsOf 104 studies, there were only 6 studies that specifically looked at epigenetic mechanisms and stroke risk in people of African ancestry. Results of these studies show how patterns of DNA methylation and non-coding RNA interact with lifestyle choices, xenobiotics, and FVIII levels to raise stroke risk in people of African ancestry. However, no studies evaluated epigenetic patterns as actionable targets for the influence of psychosocial stressors or social context and excess stroke risk in this population (versus others). Also, no studies interrogated the role of established or novel therapeutic agents with the potential to reprogram DNA by adding or removing epigenetic markers in people of African ancestry. ConclusionEpigenetics potentially offers a promising target for modifying the effects of lifestyle, environmental exposures, and other factors that differentially affect people of African ancestry and place them at relatively greater stroke risk compared to other populations. Studies that precisely assess the pathways by which epigenetic mechanisms modulate population-specific disparities in the risk of stroke are needed.

The influence of social context and activity on the emotional well-being of forest visitors: A field study

The influence of contact with nature on emotional well-being is well-documented. Yet less is known about how social context and engaging in activities in nature settings affect emotional well-being. This field study aimed to address these issues. A questionnaire was distributed among visitors to six forests in Israel (N = 559). The questionnaire included demographic variables, type of activity (relaxing, hiking, or sport), the social configuration of visitor groups, group size, presence of children, and emotional well-being variables (positive affect, negative affect, vitality, and happiness). The results showed that engaging exclusively in relaxing activities is associated with a lower level of positive affect than engaging in all three types of activities (relaxing, hiking and sport) or than engaging in a combination of hiking and sport. The results also showed that being alone in the forest is associated with lower levels of happiness and vitality than being in the company of others. Being with children in the forest was associated with lower levels of positive affect than being there without children. Nevertheless, as the number of adults in the group with children increased, positive affect increased accordingly. The research findings extend our understanding of the emotional benefits of engaging in physical activity and being with others while spending time in natural environments. Moreover, the findings indicate that research on natural restorative environments must take the social context and forms of activity into consideration.

The influence of social context on emotional contagion: An EMG-based hyperscanning study

The influence of social context on emotional contagion: An EMG-based hyperscanning study

Toward Culturally Responsive Qualitative Research Methods in the Design of Health Technologies: Learnings in Applying an Indigenous Māori-Centred Approach

There is a growing call for health researchers to address the inequities in healthcare experienced by indigenous populations by focusing on the development of culturally responsive research approaches. This article presents a contextual example from Aotearoa New Zealand (NZ) of how indigenous (Māori) knowledge and practices helped reimagine and enhance an existing qualitative descriptive research protocol exploring clinicians’ perspectives of robotic rehabilitation for people with stroke. The intent was to develop a research design that upheld and valued mātauranga Māori (indigenous knowledge systems) alongside Western clinical sciences knowledge. To achieve this, a collaboration of non-indigenous (tauiwi) and indigenous researchers with experience in Qualitative and Kaupapa Māori (indigenous) methodologies, and clinical practice was formed. The researchers undertook a cyclical process of relationship building, engagement with mātauranga Māori, discussion and exploration of how indigenous knowledge and practices could inform and shape the existing study design. Key influences in adapting the research design were drawn from Māori ethical principles, Māori frameworks of health and wellbeing, and Māori cultural practices for clinical engagement. Drawing on indigenous knowledge and practices to develop a Māori-centred research method resulted in significant changes to the study design, methods, and interview approach. Focused development of a culturally responsive approach enabled the researchers to engage indigenous participants in a research process that was safe, respectful, and culturally appropriate. Transformation occurred within the researcher-participant relationship from one often characterised as transactional, to one of deeper connection and reciprocity, which facilitated a richer and more in-depth inquiry. The explicit valuing and integration of indigenous knowledge and practices in adapting the research method strengthened the cultural responsivity of the research. Central to the process was prioritising working in relational partnership. Non-indigenous researchers’ self-reflection on their own culture, alongside being attuned to the influence of historical, political, and social contexts of the participants experiences proved essential.

The Role of Social Categories and the Social Climate for the Development of Well-Being in Elementary School Students

Abstract: School well-being is shaped by person- and context-specific factors and is a target criterion of educational processes. However, only little is known about the development of students’ school well-being during elementary school, including the role of (intersecting) social categories and the social context. The present study examines changes in elementary students’ school well-being (liking to go to school), the link to students’ gender and immigrant background, their intersection, and the perceived class climate. The sample included data from 2,395 third- and fourth-graders (48 % girls; MAgeT1 = 9.31 years, SDAgeT1 = 0.47) from a German longitudinal study. Linear growth curve models demonstrated a significant decline in school well-being over time. Boys without an immigrant background reported particularly low school well-being; class climate was positively related to students’ well-being. The study contributes to a better understanding of the intersectionality of various social categories and contextual influences related to developmental changes in elementary students’ school well-being.

Influence of distinct social contexts of long-term care facilities on the dynamics of spread of COVID-19 under predefine epidemiological scenarios

Abstract More than half of the coronavirus disease 19 (COVID-19) related mortality rates in the United States and Europe are associated with long-term-care facilities (LTCFs) such as old-age organizations, nursing homes, and disability centers. These facilities are considered most vulnerable to spread of an pandemic like COVID-19 because of multiple reasons including high density of elderly population with a diverse range of medical requirements, limited resources, nursing activities/medications, and the role of external visitors. In this study, we aim to understand the role of visitor’s family members and specific interventions (such as use of face masks and restriction of visiting hours) on the dynamics of infection in a community using a mathematical model. The model considers two types of social contexts (community and LTCFs) with three different groups of interacting populations (non-mobile community individuals, mobile community individuals, and long-term facility residents). The goal of this work is to compare the outbreak burden between different centre of disease control (CDC) planning scenarios, which capture distinct types of intensity of diseases spread in LTCF observed during COVID-19 outbreak. The movement of community mobile members is captured via their average relative times in and out of the long-term facilities to understand the strategies that would work well in these facilities the CDC planning scenarios. Our results suggest that heterogeneous mixing worsens epidemic scenario as compared to homogeneous mixing and the epidemic burden is hundreds times greater for community spread than within the facility population.