Community Mobility Research Articles

Technology and provenience of the oldest pottery in the northern Pannonian Basin indicates its affiliation to hunter-gatherers

Consensus holds that pottery technology came to Central Europe from the Northern Balkans with independent pottery traditions existing concurrently in Eastern Europe. An unusual grass-tempered pottery dating back to around 5800 cal BC found in lake sediments at Santovka, Slovakia, predated the earliest known Neolithic pottery in the region (~ 5500 cal BC), suggesting unexplored narratives of pottery introduction. Analyses of the pottery’s technology, origin, and grass temper shedding light on ceramic traditions' spread can unveil mobility patterns and community lifestyles. Our findings indicate a non-local provenance, low temperature firing, Festugc sp. grass temper and unique rectangular or cylindrical vessel shapes which align with Eastern European hunter-gatherer practices. Moreover, the pottery style and technology have no analogies in the contemporary Danubian pottery traditions and have more similarities to those of the Eastern traditions. The pottery's raw materials likely originated from distant areas, indicating extensive territorial access for its creators. Our findings imply late Mesolithic hunter-gatherers as the probable artisans and with implications for the site's significance in the late Mesolithic landscape.

Establishing the Predictive Validity of the Assessment of Motor and Process Skills for Driving Performance Outcomes.

Although the Assessment of Motor and Process Skills (AMPS) is an excellent tool for evaluating the functional performance of instrumental activities of daily living (IADLs), a limited number of studies have used the AMPS for decisions regarding the IADL of fitness to drive and community mobility. To determine the specificity and sensitivity of the AMPS as a tool for determining a person's fitness to drive. Cross-sectional observational design. Three driving rehabilitation programs in three states. Participants were 388 community-living adults (M age = 68.74 yr, SD = 11.53); 196 adults were recruited before completing a comprehensive driving evaluation, and 192 were recruited in two other studies of older drivers. AMPS and results of comprehensive driving evaluation or on-road assessment. Using a logistical regression, AMPS Motor and Process Skills scores yielded a sensitivity of 84.6% and a specificity of 88.8%. The odds ratio of the AMPS Motor Skills score was .347; for the AMPS Process Skills score, it was .014. Using cross-validations, the model with AMPS Motor and Process scores produced a cross-validation area under the curve of .918, with sensitivity and specificity of 84.6% and 88.4%, respectively, and a probability greater than .334 was used for predicting a fail or drive-with-restriction evaluation. The AMPS Motor and Process Skills scores revealed significant differences between those who failed or had driving restrictions and with those who passed the driving evaluation, which supported the AMPS as an effective tool for predicting fitness to drive. Plain-Language Summary: This study demonstrates how the Assessment of Motor and Process Skills (AMPS), as a top-down occupational therapy assessment tool, can be used to differentiate between medically at-risk drivers who are likely to pass a comprehensive driving evaluation and those who are likely to fail or need restrictions. AMPS will assist occupational therapy practitioners in determining who is most appropriate to receive driving rehabilitation services and/or when to refer a person for a comprehensive driving evaluation.

Understanding the role of mobility in the recorded levels of violent crimes during COVID-19 pandemic: a case study of Tamil Nadu, India

Purpose/GoalThis research investigates the potential link between mobility and violent crimes in Tamil Nadu, India, using an empirical study centred on the COVID-19 pandemic waves (2020–2022). The goal is to understand how these events influenced crime, employing a counterfactual approach.MethodsThe study employs the XGBoost algorithm to forecast counterfactual events across different timeframes with varying levels of mobility. The mobility data sources include historical bus and passenger records spanning a decade, along with Google Community Mobility Reports added during the pandemic phases. The foundation for crime analysis is built upon the univariate time series of violent crimes reported as First Information Reports from 2010 to 2022.FindingsResults indicate a significant correlation between mobility and violent crimes when mobility drops below a specific threshold. However, no such correlation is observed when mobility is above this threshold during the non-pandemic periods. The COVID-19 pandemic had a major impact on people’s and vehicular mobility, especially during the complete lockdown periods of the first two waves, and also affected crime rates.ConclusionsThe decrease in recorded incidents could also be attributed to fewer criminal opportunities. Additionally, this could be due to unfavourable situational factors, such as victims’ limited access to appropriate health and law enforcement agencies to report crimes. Furthermore, frontline services were busy with pandemic-related commitments, which could have contributed to a lack of crime registration even when crimes were committed.

Protocol for a feasibility randomised controlled trial of the 'Outdoor' mobility intervention for older adults after hip fracture.

A high proportion of patients do not regain outdoor mobility after hip fracture. Rehabilitation explicitly targeting outdoor mobility is needed to enable these older adults to recover activities which they value most. The overarching aim of this study is to determine the feasibility of a randomised controlled trial which aims to assess the clinical- and cost-effectiveness of an intervention designed to enable recovery of outdoor mobility among older adults after hip fracture (the OUTDOOR intervention). This is a protocol for a multi-centre pragmatic parallel group (allocation ratio 1:1) randomised controlled assessor-blinded feasibility trial. Adults aged 60 years or more, admitted to hospital from- and planned discharge to- home, with self-reported outdoor mobility in the three-months pre-fracture, surgically treated for hip fracture, and who are able to consent and participate, are eligible. Individuals who require two or more people to support mobility on discharge will be excluded. Screening and consent (or consent to contact) will take place in hospital. Baseline assessment and randomisation will follow discharge from hospital. Participants will then receive usual care (delivered by physiotherapy, occupational therapy, or therapy assistants), or usual care plus the OUTDOOR intervention. The OUTDOOR intervention includes a goal-orientated outdoor mobility programme (supported by up to six in-person visits), therapist-led motivational dialogue (supported by up to four telephone calls), supported by a past-patient led video where recovery experiences are shared, and support to transition to independent ongoing recovery. Therapists delivering the OUTDOOR intervention (distinct from those supporting usual care) will receive training in motivational interviewing and behaviour change techniques. Baseline demographics will be collected. Patient reported outcome measures including health related quality of life, activities of daily living, pain, community mobility, falls related self-efficacy, resource use, readmissions, and mortality will be collected at baseline, 6-weeks, 12-weeks, and 6-months (for those enrolled early in the trial) post-randomisation. Exercise adherence (6- and 12- weeks) and intervention acceptability (12-weeks) will be collected. A subset of 20 participants will also support accelerometery data collection for 10 days at each time point. The trial findings will be disseminated to patients and the public, health professionals and researchers through publications, presentations and social media channels. The trial has been registered at ISRCTN16147125. 3.0.

A Falls Prevention Program for People After Stroke in Guyana: An International Collaboration.

The objective was to describe the social, environmental, and cultural adaptations to an existing falls program and assess acceptability and preliminary effectiveness of the program in reducing fear, reducing falls, and improving function among individuals poststroke in Guyana. A quasi-experimental pilot study with a pretest/ posttest in-group design was developed through a collaboration of researchers in Guyana and the US. Participants took part in the falls prevention program for 8weeks. Outcome measures included a 10-meter walk test, Five Times Sit to Stand, and subjective questionnaires for falls incidence and balance confidence at the beginning and end. Twenty participants completed the study. One participant experienced medical complications and their data were excluded from analysis. Fifteen participants (78.9%) demonstrated improvements in comfortable and fast walking speed. Twelve participants completed the Five Times Sit to Stand Test. Eleven (91.67%) improved their time at posttest, with 9 (81.8%) demonstrating a clinically important improvement. Nineteen participants had sustained at least 1 fall prior to the study. Only 1 participant reported a fall during the program. Initially, the majority of participants (11/19) were very concerned about falling. At the end, only 1 was very concerned about falling, and the majority (15/19) were not concerned at all. Post-test surveys of participants indicated acceptability of the program. This pilot program helped reduce fall risk and improve confidence, gait speed and community mobility of the study participants. Future research at other rehabilitation departments in Guyana would help increase generalizability of the program. The program can be used clinically by physical therapists in Guyana both in departments and as a home program. Shared knowledge and experience of researchers considering research evidence and the environmental, social, and economic conditions of people living in Guyana were important in developing an effective program.

The work Lifestyle-integrated Functional Exercise program for preventing functional decline in employees aged 55 years and older: development and initial evaluation

BackgroundDespite the global increase in older employees, workplace physical activity interventions (WPAIs) for this target group have not yet been sufficiently developed. The major drawback of existing WPAIs is low adherence due to lack of time or limited motivation. A novel approach could be to integrate tailored neuromotor and strength exercises into everyday working tasks to prevent the functional decline of older employees at the workplace without needing much additional time for training. This approach was tested in the present study by evaluating the proof-of-concept of a novel WPAI based on the Lifestyle-integrated Functional Exercise (LiFE) program integrated into a working environment (wLiFE55 +).MethodsThe proof-of-concept of wLiFE55 + was quantified within a 4-week pre-post exercise intervention study by measuring (1) feasibility including adherence, activity frequency, adverse events and acceptance (integrability of wLiFE55 + activities, perceived improvement and safety, satisfaction, physical demand, personal trainer session, intervention content) and (2) pre-to-post changes in neuromotor function (12-Level Balance Scale, 12-LBS; Community Balance and Mobility Scale, CBM), strength (60sec Chair Stand Test), and PA (1-week activity monitoring). For statistical analysis, the median and interquartile range (IQR) were computed. For pre-to-post changes, Wilcoxon signed-rank tests with effect size (r) were also performed.ResultsSeventeen older employees (mean age 59 years, 8 female) were included of which fifteen completed the study. The intervention adherence was 100%, and the activity adherence was 58% (9 out of 12 maximum possible wLiFE55 + activities implemented). Depending on the specific activity, the frequency of practice ranged between 25–75% of the days of the intervention period, and single wLiFE55 + activities were practiced between one and three times per day. No adverse events occurred, and acceptance was high. Pre-to-post increases with medium effect sizes were found for neuromotor function (CBM, 12-LBS) and specific PA variables (total sedentary time, sedentary bouts > 30 min).ConclusionThe results of the study highlight the feasibility of wLiFE55 + in a work setting with older employees. The pre-to-post increases observed in neuromotor measures and reductions in sedentary time suggest that wLiFE55 + may counteract the age-related functional decline in older employees and justifies future studies in this field. The next steps are program adjustments to boost exercise frequency and evaluating wLiFE55 + in a randomized controlled trial.

Geographic Information System for Shortest Route Search for Clinics in Pamekasan Regency Using the Djikstra Method

Earthquake natural disasters can cause significant infrastructure damage, hindering community access and mobility. In such a situation, determining the shortest path for evacuation becomes very important. This research uses linear programming by utilising Excel Solver to determine the shortest evacuation route for earthquake natural disasters. Excel Solver is a feature in Microsoft Excel that serves as an analytical tool to solve linear optimisation problems. Excel solver can be used to find solutions that maximise or minimise the objective function, with respect to predetermined constraints. This research utilises relevant earthquake natural disaster simulation data as constraints in the optimisation model. The results show that the model can generate shortest paths that fulfil various constraints and criteria. The model can also be used to predict the time required to reach the destination. This research makes an important contribution to the development of tools and methods for shortest path optimisation in natural disaster scenarios. The optimisation model developed in this research can be used to assist decision makers in improving the efficiency and effectiveness of evacuation and disaster relief operations.

Relationship Between Community Mobility & Community Participation Among Young Adults With Autism

Abstract Date Presented 03/23/24 Community mobility is often associated with participation in important life activities. This study used global positioning system (GPS) technology to track various dimensions of community mobility and community participation in a sample of autistic adults. Primary Author and Speaker: Elizabeth Pfeiffer Contributing Authors: Eugene Bruisilovskiy, Mark Salzer, Amber Davidson Pomponio

Perception of Community Mobility Among Older Adults

Abstract Date Presented 03/22/24 Community mobility has been deemed to be essential for the overall well-being and quality of life of the older adult population. This qualitative study was conducted to explore the community mobility experiences and perceptions among older adults. Primary Author and Speaker: Megan Edwards Collins Additional Authors and Speakers: Davina Jones Contributing Authors: Connor Boyd, Keshira Cobb, Lazaria Goodman, Jasmine Pankey, Lundan Winchester

Community Mobility in Persons Living With Dementia Significantly Predicts Caregiver Burden: Findings From a National Survey & Implications for OT

Abstract Date Presented 03/21/24 Caregivers of persons with dementia regularly report burden. Although research has identified protective factors for role management, this work highlights protective factors in persons with dementia as a focus for OT interventions. Primary Author and Speaker: Paul Arthur Additional Authors and Speakers: Chih-Ying Li

The Stroll Safe Outdoor Falls Prevention Program: Participant Experiences in Naturally Occurring Retirement Community Program Sites

Abstract Date Presented 03/21/24 The qualitative findings from an efficacy trial for the Stroll Safe outdoor falls prevention program will be presented. Results reveal a number of program benefits, including increased safe community mobility strategy use. Primary Author and Speaker: Tracy Chippendale Contributing Authors: Szu-Wei Chen

Potential reduction of CO2 emissions which is the cause of greenhouse gases during COVID-19

Background: The implementation of education in tertiary institutions contributes significantly to greenhouse gas emissions, particularly carbon dioxide (CO2), which causes the greenhouse effect and global warming. The Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) identifies transportation, energy supply, and industry as the primary sectors driving CO2 emissions over the past 30 years. However, the COVID-19 pandemic unexpectedly reduced CO2 emissions globally by up to 70% due to restricted activities. In 2020, the pandemic led countries, including Indonesia, to enforce Large-Scale Social Restrictions (PSBB) to curb virus spread, which significantly limited community mobility and vehicle use. Climate change, driven by greenhouse gas emissions, is a critical development challenge for Indonesia. Method: The study uses various calculation methods from journals and websites, incorporating expert opinions and the IPCC's method, to analyze emission reductions. Findings: The findings indicate that the COVID-19 pandemic and associated lockdowns reduced CO2 emissions due to decreased fuel consumption and mobility. Conclusion: This period highlights opportunities for strategies like low-carbon development to continue reducing emissions from vehicles. Novelty/Originality of this Study: This study provides a novel contribution by quantitatively assessing CO2 emission reductions during the COVID-19 lockdown, emphasizing the unique context of an unprecedented global event. It conducts a comprehensive literature review to integrate various CO2 calculation methods, particularly highlighting the sophisticated IPCC method, and offers a comparative analysis of emission reduction techniques.

Investigating the interactive effects of habitat type and light intensity on rocky shores

Light availability and habitat complexity are two key drivers of community assembly. Urbanisation has been shown to affect both, with important consequences to ecological communities. On the intertidal, for instance, studies have shown that light intensity is greater on natural rocky shores than on less complex artificial habitats (seawalls), though different habitats can also experience similar light intensities, for example when shaded by urban structures. Understanding therefore how these factors individually, and combined, affect communities is important to understand the mechanisms driving changes in community structure, and consequently provide solutions to tackle the increasing homogenisation of habitats and lightscapes in urbanised spaces through smart infrastructure designs. Here, we assessed how different light levels affect the recruitment of communities in rock pools and on emergent rock on an intertidal rocky shore. We cleared 30 patches of emergent rock and 30 rock pools and manipulated light using shades with different light transmissions (full light, procedural control, 75%, 35%, and 15% light transmission, full shade) and assessed mobile and sessile communities monthly for 6 months. Effects of reducing light levels were generally stronger on rock than in pools. Fully shaded plots supported double the amount of mobile organisms than plots in full sunlight, in both habitats. Algal cover was higher in pools compared to rock, and at intermediate light levels, but effects varied with site. This study highlights the importance of variable light conditions and different habitats for rocky shore communities, which should be considered in future coastal developments to retain natural biodiversity.

Optimisation of Evacuation Route Determination in an Earthquake Natural Disaster Scenario Using an Excel Solver

Earthquake natural disasters can cause significant infrastructure damage, hindering community access and mobility. In such a situation, determining the shortest path for evacuation becomes very important. This research uses linear programming by utilising Excel Solver to determine the shortest evacuation route for earthquake natural disasters. Excel Solver is a feature in Microsoft Excel that serves as an analytical tool to solve linear optimisation problems. Excel solver can be used to find solutions that maximise or minimise the objective function, with respect to predetermined constraints. This research utilises relevant earthquake natural disaster simulation data as constraints in the optimisation model. The results show that the model can generate shortest paths that fulfil various constraints and criteria. The model can also be used to predict the time required to reach the destination. This research makes an important contribution to the development of tools and methods for shortest path optimisation in natural disaster scenarios. The optimisation model developed in this research can be used to assist decision makers in improving the efficiency and effectiveness of evacuation and disaster relief operations.

Connecticut Implements a Team-Based Approach to Cardiovascular Disease Prevention Using Community Health Workers and Mobile Medical Devices.

The Connecticut Department of Public Health's Early Detection and Prevention Program uses an integrated approach to deliver breast and cervical cancer screening services, cardiovascular disease risk assessment, health coaching, and the identification of social determinants of health to women from economically disadvantaged and minority communities. Statewide contracted providers who represent twenty hospitals and their fee-for-service providers employ community health workers (CHWs) to conduct outreach, screening assessments using mobile medical devices, and risk reduction counseling in community settings to reduce service access barriers, while also engaging eligible women who may not typically frequent clinical services. Mobile medical screening devices enhance healthcare accessibility by enabling screenings to be conducted in a participants preferred setting, whether it is a clinic or within the community, with the added benefit of delivering rapid screening results. Utilizing these results, CHWs provide risk reduction counseling to develop individualized health action plans at the outreach session.

The coupled dynamics of information-behavior-epidemic propagation considering the heterogeneity of adoption thresholds and network structures in multiplex networks

During epidemics, individual responses to prevention and control information vary significantly, affecting the execution of preventive measures. This paper introduces a novel model to analyze the co-evolution of the information-behavior-epidemic dynamic, accounting for the heterogeneity in individual behavioral adoption thresholds and network structures. The model consists of three layers: the upper layer, utilizing scale-free social networks to represent the diffusion of information; the middle and lower layers, employing community networks, to illustrate individuals’ decision-making and epidemic transmission processes, respectively. We applied the Heaviside step function to depict the effects of information and local environmental factors on individuals’ decisions. Through the microscopic Markov chain approach (MMCA), we determined the epidemic threshold. Our methodology also included extensive Monte Carlo (MC) simulations to validate our theoretical predictions. Our results reveal several key insights: (i) reducing community mobility and the threshold for adopting preventive behaviors can significantly restrain the scale of the epidemic and delay outbreaks; (ii) the level of individual activity in the physical contact network has a significant influence on epidemic transmission; (iii) integrating individuals’ behavior adoption thresholds induces a two-stage phase change, deviating from the continuous phase transition typically observed in epidemic transmission.

Understanding the Competition and Cooperation between Dockless Bike-Sharing and Metro Systems in View of Mobility

The advent of dockless bike-sharing (DBS) represents an effective solution to enhance public transportation usage. However, despite growing interest in integrating DBS with metro systems, comprehensive studies on their competitive and cooperative relationships remain limited. This study aims to analyze the spatial, temporal, and mobility characteristics of metro-related DBS to explore integration opportunities. Initially, three modes of interaction between DBS and metros are identified: strong competition, weak competition, and feeder relationships. Subsequently, based on these relationships, the analysis focuses on distance, spatio-temporal patterns, and the scope of DBS activities. Results from Beijing indicate that metro-associated DBS primarily serves as “last-mile” solutions without significant short-range competition with metro systems. Strongly competitive relationships, on the other hand, are interaction patterns due to the dense overlay of metro stations and inconvenient transfer facilities and are mainly used for non-commuting purposes. Furthermore, weakly competing and feeder DBS systems exhibit similar commuting patterns, highlighting bicycling as a viable alternative to walking within metro catchment areas and that metro catchment areas should be adapted to bicycling. Mobility communities, identified as tightly integrated cycling hubs, are proposed as strategic dispatch zones to manage peak demands and reduce operational strain on DBS fleets. These findings deepen our understanding of DBS and metro system interactions, offering insights to optimize public transport operations and enhance urban mobility solutions.

What motivates customers’ participation in mobile instant messaging-based online restaurant community: an extended technology acceptance model

PurposeAn increasing number of restaurants are building mobile instant messaging-based online restaurant communities to enhance connections with customers, but the mechanisms of customers’ behavioral intentions toward these communities remain unclear. To address this gap, this study aims to investigate the factors affecting customers’ acceptance of mobile instant messaging-based online restaurant communities from the perspectives of social support theory and technology acceptance model.Design/methodology/approachPartial least squares structural equation modeling was used to analyze data collected from 360 customers.FindingsThe results indicate that informational support and social presence influence perceived ease of use and usefulness. By contrast, emotional support significantly affects only perceived usefulness. Additionally, perceived ease of use and usefulness can positively predict customer attitudes and foster behavioral intentions.Originality/valueThis research broadens existing research on online restaurant communities by constructing an integrated model that considers social support-related and technology use-related factors to understand consumers’ participation in a new type of restaurant community, namely, the mobile instant messaging-based online restaurant community. The findings also offer guidance on how restaurants can encourage customers to embrace mobile instant messaging-based online restaurant communities.

Mapswipe for SDGs 3 & 13: take urgent cartographic action to combat heat vulnerability of manufactured and mobile home communities

ABSTRACT Our research has established the extent to which extreme heat disproportionately impacts manufactured and mobile home communities (MMHC), posing challenges in achieving both targets of Sustainable Development Goal (SDG) 3 of ‘good health and wellbeing’ and SDG 13 of ‘urgent action to combat climate change impacts’. In Maricopa County, Arizona, USA, an alarming statistic of annually 30–40% indoor heat-related mortality occurs within a mere 5% of local housing stock dedicated to MMHC. Effectively addressing the multifaceted nexus of heat vulnerability and housing precarity necessitates the availability of geospatial microdata. Yet, given the idiosyncratic nature of ownership tenure within MMHC communities, sufficient microdata at the household unit level remain notably elusive through conventional tax records or other publicly available sources. In this paper, we assess how employing MapSwipe, a crowdsourcing application affiliated with the Missing Maps initiative, improves the completeness and precision of existing MMHC cartographic data inventory. Our approach harnesses MapSwipe’s micro-tasking methodology to identify absent MMHC locations within the state of Arizona. The contribution of this research is to present a viable methodology that organizes geospatial microdata around SDG initiatives and web-based volunteer mapping to effectively target the resources required to address the heat vulnerability of MMHC.

Optimalisasi Pemanfaatan Dana Desa dalam Pembangunan Infrastruktur di Desa La’bo’ Kecamatan Sanggalangi Kabupaten Toraja Utara

The research used an exploratory descriptive-qualitative approach, collecting data through interviews and documentation from La'bo' Village government agencies. Geographical characteristics influence the village's development, with agricultural land covering 39.6% of its area. Infrastructure development, including roads and highways, is crucial for community mobility. Village Funds (APBN) contributed 91.5% of total costs during 2019–2023. Road maintenance is the most expensive type, followed by concrete rebate and irrigation construction. Despite a decrease in funding due to the COVID-19 pandemic, economic recovery in 2021, 2022, and 2023 is expected to resume infrastructure development. The choice of materials and weather conditions also impact the construction and maintenance processes.