Low Levels Of Formal Education Research Articles

Comparative analysis of state requirements for the training of substance abuse and mental health counselors

Data on minimum state requirements for drug and alcohol counselors and mental health counselors in all 50 states and Washington, DC, suggest that training as a mental health counselor is primarily structured through formal education, whereas training as a substance abuse counselor resembles an apprentice model. Fewer states offer or require certification or licensure of substance abuse counselors, compared to mental health counselors. States that do offer such credentials for substance abuse counselors generally require more hours of supervised work experience and continuing education, but fewer hours of formal coursework and practicum courses, and a lower level of formal education. Although these different models for training are valid, they each have different implications for clinical practice, dissemination of research findings to practice, and management within the service delivery model.

Prevalencia de diferentes tipos de violencia en usuarias del sector salud en México

To identify the prevalence of violence against females among those who are health service beneficiaries in Mexico. The National Survey on Violence against Women (ENVIM, per its Spanish abbreviation) was applied in 2003 to female users of public primary and secondary health care services. The sampling framework was based on a stratified, probabilistic sample in two stages. First the health care units were selected with probability proportional to the number of physicians' offices in the unit, from a list of possible care units. Second, women 15 years and older who sought care at the health care unit were selected for participation in the study through systematic sampling. Univariate analysis and then bivariate analysis were carried out on the data collected with a questionnaire. The sample included 26 042 women between 15 and 92 years of age, with a mean age of 35.8 years. Physical violence during childhood was reported by 42% of the women. Only 7.8% answered yes to a general question about whether they experienced domestic partner violence, but 21.5% reported experiencing violence of any type during the last 12 months as measured by a scale including specific acts of psychological, economic, physical and sexual violence. The most frequently reported type of violence was psychological (19.6%). Of the women who had been pregnant, 14.1% reported having experienced violence during pregnancy, and 4.4% reported being hit in the abdomen. The prevalence of sexual violence was 17.3% and close to half reported being victims of this type of violence before age 15. Higher prevalence of violence was found among women with lower levels of formal education, living in a rented home, in areas with higher overcrowding indices, and users of Ministry of Health care services. Identifying and measuring violence is complex, given the diverse types of violence and how they are perceived and therefore reported by women themselves. This is an important public health problem, in view of the high frequency observed in this study and the immediate implications. These findings indicate the urgent need for interventions to prevent and treat violence.

Acceptability of solar disinfection of drinking water treatment in Kathmandu Valley, Nepal

This research examines the acceptability of solar disinfection of drinking water (SODIS) in a village in Kathmandu Valley, Nepal, using constructs from the Health Belief Model as a framework to identify local understandings of water, sanitation and health issues. There has been no published research on the acceptability of SODIS in household testing in Nepal. Understanding the context of water and water purity in Nepalese villages is essential to identify culturally appropriate interventions to improve the quality of drinking water and health. Forty households from the village census list were randomly selected and the senior woman in each household was asked to participate. Baseline data on water sources and behaviors were collected in March 2002, followed by training in SODIS. Follow-up data were collected in June and July 2002. Only 9% of households routinely adopted SODIS. Participants mentioned the benefit of treating water to reduce stomach ailments, but this did not outweigh the perceived barriers of heavy domestic and agricultural workloads, other cultural barriers, uncertainty about the necessity of treating the water, and lack of knowledge that untreated drinking water causes diarrhea. Strategies for developing safe water systems must include public health education about water-borne diseases, source water protection, and a motivational component to achieve implementation and sustained use. In addition, other options for disinfecting water should be provided, given the women's work constraints and low level of formal education.

Improving adherence to highly active anti-retroviral therapy in Africa: the DREAM programme in Mozambique

Ensuring high levels of adherence to highly active anti-retroviral therapy (HAART) is a priority in treating people living with AIDS. This study reports the rates of adherence of patients served by DREAM (Drug Resource Enhancement against AIDS and Malnutrition) in the city of Matola, Mozambique. DREAM, an innovative programme tailored for Africa, was implemented by the Community of Sant'Egidio in August 2001. DREAM provides patients with anti-retroviral drugs and laboratory tests at no charge, and is based on a particular strategy of health education and organization of services designed for a population that is predominantly poor and has a low level of formal education. This study analyzes the adherence of 154 patients over a period of 6 months. In evaluating adherence, two indicators were used: (1) the percentage of appointments kept for check-ups, tests and the collection of medicine, and (2) the overall change in the patients' blood chemistry over the 6-month period. Of the 154 patients, 127 (82.5%) kept more than 90% of their appointments. Adherence to the programme was further confirmed by a relevant increase of hemoglobin levels and CD4 counts, and a significant decrease in the viral loads among the 154 patients.

Prevalência e fatores associados à doença do refluxo gastroesofágico

O gastroesophageal reflux is a high prevalent disease with prevalence rates ranging from 21 to 56% in different countries. To study the epidemiology and the prevalence of gastroesophageal reflux disease among adult population (20 years and old) at the city of Pelotas, southern Brazil. A population-based cross-sectional study was conducted. Household interviews were done between October 1999 and January 2000. Association between gastroesophageal reflux disease and age, sex, skin color, years of formal education, income per capita, marital status, psychological variables (insomnia, stressful psychosocial events in the last year, psychological distress), body mass index, smoking and weekly consumption of alcoholic beverages was assessed through logistic regression. Three thousands and nine-hundred thirty four (3,934) individuals were interviewed. A prevalence of 31,3% (CI 95% 29.9%-32.8%). After allowing for confounding gastroesophageal reflux disease was significantly associated with female sex, living without partner, low level of formal education, insomnia, psychological distress, reported stressful psychosocial events in the last year, obesity and overweight. Gastroesophageal reflux disease is a high prevalent disease and its main associated factors are sex, anthropometric variables and psychological characteristics.

The nature and determinants of opinion leadership in Lesotho

This research investigates the nature, the occurrence and the factors influencing opinion leadership in Lesotho. The focus is on a typical rural district where 200 maize farmers were randomly selected and their opinion leaders identified by means of sociometric methods with the number of nominations as the major indicator of degree of influence or strength of opinion leadership. The findings confirm the importance of opinion leadership, which is primarily influenced by age, marital status and gender, but also questions the value or quality of influence from a production efficiency point of view because opinion leaders have a lower level of formal education, make less use of the printed media, are not more efficient than their followers and tend to be very polymorphous in nature. The proper use of opinion leaders poses many challenges, but very favourable is that psychological accessibility is no constraint. Unfortunately the opposite is the case as far as distance or physical accessibility is concerned. Keywords : opinion leadership, importance, formal education, strength, influence, production efficiency South African Journal of Agricultural Extension Vol. 34(2) 2005: 260-274

Evidence for suboptimal use of periconceptional folic acid supplements globally.

To systematically summarise the available evidence concerning the rate of folic acid supplement use pre- and periconceptionally, to identify those characteristics associated with low rates of use and to assess whether folic acid public awareness campaigns are associated with higher folic acid use. Systematic overview. Survey studies. Women of reproductive age, most of whom were currently or recently pregnant. Two investigators searched MEDLINE, Embase and Nutriotiongate databases between 1990 and 2003. Bibliographies of retrieved references were scanned for other relevant publications, and authors were contacted if necessary. Studies were included that evaluated the rate of folic acid supplement use either before conception or in early pregnancy. Rate of preconceptional and/or periconceptional folic acid use, rate of planned pregnancy in each study, as well as significant characteristics differentiating non-users from users of folic acid, including the effect of folic acid awareness campaigns. A total of 52 studies were included. In 34 studies, reported preconceptional folic acid use varied from 0.9% to 50%. In 49 studies, the reported rate of periconceptional supplement use ranged from 0.5% to 52%. Significant predictors of reduced periconceptional folic acid use were a low level of formal education, immigrant status, young maternal age, lack of a partner and an unplanned pregnancy. Four studies examined the effect of mass media campaigns on periconceptional folic acid use; the reported rates increased significantly, by a factor of 1.7 to 7.2, but in no study was the post-campaign rate above 50%. In many countries, fewer than 50% of women take periconceptional folic acid supplements. Consideration should be given to the practical advantages of folic acid fortification of centrally processed foods, such as wheat, corn and rice flour, while further promoting vitamin tablet supplement use and planned pregnancy.

Prevalence of Myopia in an Adult Population of Two Different Ethnic Groups in the Ecuadorian Amazon

To determine the prevalence of myopia in the adult populations of two different ethnic communities in the Ecuadorian Amazon. Refraction with retinoscopy after cycloplegia was performed for 507 Naporuna (an ethnic group indigenous to the jungles of the Ecuadorian Amazon) and for 776 settlers (white-mestizos from the Andes, now living in the Amazon and working for the petroleum industry). Ages ranged from 18 to 45 years. All subjects had little or no formal education. The prevalence of myopia was 4.7% among the Naporuna and 5.5% among the settlers; the prevalence of hyperopia was higher, at 17.8% and 36.0%, respectively. The prevalence of myopia in the two communities studied agrees with the results of other studies showing a low prevalence of myopia among groups with low levels of formal education or groups living a nonurban lifestyle.

Community development as citizen education

Everyday professional discussion often refers to the idea that community development is essentially a learning process. This article sketches a comprehensive theory of community development as citizen education by following the different traditions in community development and by defining the educational aspect of each tradition. Among the traditions described here are traditional community organizations as a social work method, the radical community organization of Alinsky, the neo‐Marxist approach of community action, and the settlement movement. The resulting theoretical framework defines community development as an alternative route for the education of citizens with low levels of formal education in the same way as labour unions and churches often are alternative routes towards active citizenship for low‐income groups. Next, three forms of education are singled out within community development: first, education as training of local leadership; as an action‐oriented and on the job learning process supported informally by the community worker. This form of education resembles the informal vocational education in which an experienced craftsman trains his pupils on the shop floor. Second, education as consciousness raising, which reverses the sequence of learning processes: in this case it is not action which leads to education but education that hopefully leads to action by citizens. There is a whole range of providers of such consciousness raising activities, such as community development organizations, local centres for adult education, churches through their celebrations and adult education classes. A recent development is the ‘new localism’ in social movements, such as the environmental movement, emphasizing consciousness‐raising activities in the local community. Third, education as service delivery: here education is a service for the community in the same way as community development can deliver other services to a community such as affordable housing and health centres. Partly these educational services are ‘survival education’, such as job readiness training programmes and literacy programmes; partly they are ‘leisure education’, typically blurring the borders between ‘pure’ education and recreational and social opportunities for residents.

Unirhinal Norms for the University of Pennsylvania Smell Identification Test

Adult normative data are presented for unirhinal administration of the University of Pennsylvania Smell Identification Test (UPSIT). Two-hundred and seventy healthy adults, aged 15-64, were administered half of the UPSIT (20 items) to each nostril. The main findings were: (1) unirhinal and birhinal performance are not equivalent necessitating the use of unirhinal norms, rather than prorated birhinal norms, (2) unirhinal performance does not differ according to nostril of presentation, (3) unirhinal performance does not differ according to sex, (4) within the age ranges studied, age accounted for only a minor proportion of the variability, and (5) being a current smoker and having lower levels of formal education contributed to reduced unirhinal UPSIT scores. Correction factors are suggested for the education and smoking variables. Unirhinal evaluation may assist in further delineating the structural integrity of specific ipsilateral brain regions and potentially aid in differential diagnosis for a number of disorders.

Workforce education for Latinos: politics, programs, and practices

The author provides a comprehensive discussion of the political, economic, curricular, and instructional issues relevant to workforce education for Latinos with low levels of literacy and formal education. Of particular significance is an examination of recent federal legislation that has impacted Latino adults who are unemployed, displaced, and/or seeking to advance personally and economically. Instructors, as well as administrators and policymakers, will benefit from the succinct yet comprehensive discussion of federal policies, best practices in classroom instruction for bilingual adults, and program assessment and accountability. This study is most timely given the current social and demographic realities of this country as well as the changing economy of the 21st century, and is a powerful voice for Latino adults seeking to better their lives through education.

Beyond Formal Education: learning–by–doing, ICT adoption and the competitiveness of a traditional Portuguese sector

ROBERTO CARNEIRO & PEDRO CONCEIC¸A˜OIntroductionWhich development patterns can be identified in Portuguese industry? What kindof qualifications do Portuguese firms require in order to face the challengesimposed by the need to absorb new technology in those development processes?How are the Portuguese firms re-adjusting to face increasing competitiveness inthe global marketplace? Which broader social issues emerge from thesephenomena, particularly that of the exclusion of low-skilled workers, and whatpolicies can contribute to favour their social and economic inclusion? These broadquestions motivated the research discussed in this article.The article builds upon the analysis of data from a survey of two industrialsectors, chosen as representative of two Portuguese industrial categories: atraditional sector (the shoe and leather industry) and a sector associated with theeconomies of the ‘second’ industrial revolution (electrical and electroniccomponents and equipment). The survey was carried out in conjunction with aseries of structured interviews with leaders of firms from the two sectors. Thefollowing is a summary of the main results.Earlier TSER research, developed under the New Skills project, has shownthat Portugal seems to be partially at odds with the existing trends of theknowledge based economies (Kirsch, 1998). Indeed, the country has shown aremarkable ability to incorporate and sustain in the workforce a large proportionof workers who lack ‘appropriate’ formal education. This original feature explainsin part the comparatively low Portuguese unemployment rates, which contrastwith those of the broader European landscape.We illustrate this by analysing the performance of a traditional sector, leatherand shoe (footwear), which has been prospering while absorbing sizeablecontingents of workers with low levels of formal education. We will see howthis traditional sector has been competitive despite its lack of highly qualifiedpersonnel. We offer an interpretation for its performance stemming from alearning-by-doing dynamics and compare it with the performance of a more hightechnology-intensive sector, the electronics and electric industry, where formallearning processes have been institutionalised.Since growth in the leather and shoe industry has been accompanied by steadysector productivity gains, our conjecture is that growth in this industry was drivenEuropean Journal of Education, Vol. 37, No. 3, 2002

Missed opportunities and caretaker constraints to childhood vaccination in rural areas of Uganda

Despite concerted support to vaccination programmes, coverage remains low. While health service reasons for this are known, there is little information on caretaker constraints to vaccination in Africa. To establish the prevalence of missed vaccination opportunities and caretaker constraints to childhood vaccinations. Cross-sectional descriptive study. Caretakers of 408 children aged 12-23 months were interviewed. Kiyeyi, a rural area in Eastern Uganda. Complete vaccination coverage by card was 26.7% while by history and card it was 44.6%. Of the 215 eligible children who sought treatment in a health facility where vaccination could be offered, 59.6% missed an opportunity to be vaccinated while 24.4% of the children missed an opportunity during routine vaccination sessions. Reasons for non-completion of vaccination included caretaker 'not bothered', being busy, or ill and fear of rude health workers. While most caretakers were aware of vaccination and its benefits, none knew the immunisation schedule. The major caretaker constraints were low level of formal education, fear of vaccine side effects, and perceived contraindications to vaccinations. Promotion of formal education for girls and educating mothers and health workers on the timing of vaccinations, their side effects and management might contribute to higher vaccination coverage.

Adaptação de questionário de avaliação da qualidade de vida para aplicação em portadores de catarata

Objetivo: Devido a perda visual que acarreta, a catarata pode impedir a realizacao de atividades cotidianas, influindo assim na qualidade de vida dos individuos afetados. Este trabalho tem como objetivo avaliar a aplicabilidade de questionario para avaliacao da qualidade de vida de individuos portadores de catarata e testar a sua responsividade e confiabilidade. Metodos: Foram entrevistados 30 pacientes portadores de catarata com indicacao cirurgica. Utilizou-se questionario especifico adaptado, sendo a mesma entrevista realizada duas vezes, com intervalo de uma hora. Resultados: Todas as questoes tiveram mais de 80% de resposta sem que o entrevistador precisasse repetir a pergunta. A analise da consistencia mostrou que apenas um paciente respondeu de forma discrepante quatro questoes. Conclusao: O questionario adaptado pode ser aplicado em grupo populacional de baixa escolaridade, representando instrumento valido para avaliacao da qualidade de vida de pacientes com catarata.

The Role of Educational Background, Activity, and Past Experiences in Mexican-Descent Families’ Science Conversations

Debate exists regarding the extent to which Mexican-descent parent-child conversations are explanatory. Moreover, suggestions have been made that differences in the amount of explanatory conversation may be based on parents’educational background. This article reports on two studies investigating conversations between parents and children in two different contexts. Results of an observational study conducted at a children’s museum reveal that although parents with high levels of formal education used more explanations about science than did parents with lower levels of formal education, both groups engaged in causal conversations with their children. In a second study examining parents’ reports of science talk after attending family science workshops, results indicated no difference in the explanation frequency between two groups of families with different levels of formal education. Overall, the findings suggest that Mexican-descent parents across differing educational backgrounds encourage their children’s developing understanding of the scientific world.

Cognitive decline is related to education and occupation in a Spanish elderly cohort.

The type of education and occupation can sensibly influence cognitive decline. The aim of this study was to examine their impact on cognitive function in a longitudinal study of community-dwelling Spanish people over 65 with low levels of formal education and predominantly unskilled occupations. Cognitive function was assessed in 1993 and 1997 using a simple scale including items of memory and orientation that has been previously validated for populations with low levels of formal education. Cognitive score in 1997 and cognitive decline over 4 years (1993-1997) were used as outcomes. Education and occupation were analyzed as determinants of cognitive function using multiple linear regression, and of cognitive decline using logistic and multinomial regressions. Of the 557 subjects who completed the follow-up in 1997, 11% had experienced severe decline and 20.6% mild decline. Overall and mild cognitive decline were predicted by low education and being a farm worker (OR: 2.36, CI 95%: 1.164.81 and OR: 2.37, CI 95%: 1.05-5.37) after controlling for age. Cognitive decline in the elderly is partially explained by early life events, such as education, and living in a deprived environment over a long period of time. We cannot ascertain whether these effects are direct or mediated by other associated conditions but sample attrition does not account for our results.

CERVICAL CANCER SCREENING AMONG SOUTH ASIAN WOMEN IN CANADA: THE ROLE OF EDUCATION AND ACCULTURATION

Cervical cancer screening by Papanicolaou (Pap) smear lowers the incidence and provides early detection of cervical cancer and is a preventative health care measure that should be available on a regular basis to all women at risk. As the population of ethnic women increases, it is important to assess whether these women are aware of and are utilizing this health service. A self-administered questionnaire was completed by 124 South Asian women, aged 18 to 60 years. Sixty-two South Asian students were selected from a university setting and 62 Tamil women were selected from a community center for South Asian women. This study examined the knowledge and use of Pap smears in South Asian women in Canada, and whether their level of acculturation or formal education influenced whether they know about and receive Pap smears. Low level of knowledge about the Pap test and a low prevalence of Pap testing behaviour was significantly correlated ( p < 0.001) with a low level of formal education, education taking place outside of Canada, and a low index of acculturation. South Asian students were significantly more acculturated than Tamil women ( p < 0.001). In conclusion, there was a low level of knowledge and prevalence of cervical cancer screening among South Asian women. This study highlights the need for educational interventions in Canada directed to ethnic women especially from South Asia.

Cognitive function in the oldest old: women perform better than men

OBJECTIVELimited formal education is associated with poor cognitive function. This could explain sex differences in cognitive function in the oldest old. Whether limited formal education explains differences in cognitive function...

Where do public house managers come from? Some survey evidence

There is little evidence about UK public house managers, despite an increase in their relative importance. Outlines some key issues and reports on the results of a survey of managers in one region of a large leisure retail company. The evidence points to a divergence between married couples and single managers. The former are more likely to have come from a manual working class background with relatively low levels of formal education. A trend towards younger, higher qualified managers from a wider range of social backgrounds is discernible. The extent to which companies in the industry use such evidence in their decision making is questioned.

Examining the Desirability for Recreating in Logged Settings

This study examines the impacts of logged settings on the opportunities for nature-based tourism and outdoor recreation. By employing the experience-based setting management model and developing a desirability scale for recreating in logged settings, comparisons were made between desirability for recreating in logged settings and activity interest, psychological outcome importance, and sociodemographic characteristics. Results from the desirability and activity interest analyses suggest that consumptive and motorized activities are well suited to areas with multiple use/integrated resource management. Conversely, promotion of many physically demanding nonconsumptive activities is better suited to areas spatially segregated from logging. Only a tenuous link between desirability for a logged setting and importance of psychological outcomes was found. Finally, individuals with greater desirability for logged settings were more likely to be older, married, retired or blue collar employed, rural individuals, with lower levels of formal education than other individuals.