Multidimensional Effects Research Articles

Combining executive function training and anomia therapy in chronic post-stroke aphasia: A preliminary study of multidimensional effects

Purpose The influential relationship between executive functioning and aphasia rehabilitation outcomes has been addressed in a number of studies, but few have studied the effect of adding executive function training to linguistic therapies. The present study aimed to measure the effects of combining, within therapy sessions, executive function training and anomia therapy on naming and discourse abilities in people with chronic aphasia. Method A single-case experimental design with multiple baselines across participants was used. Four persons with chronic post-stroke aphasia received 12 sessions of a tailored treatment combining executive function training and semantic feature analysis (SFA) therapy. Naming accuracy of treated items was examined over the course of the treatment while control naming scores of untreated items and discourse measures were collected pre-treatment, immediately post-treatment, and 4 weeks post-treatment, in order to investigate the multidimensional effects of the treatment and their maintenance. Result Naming skills improved in all participants for treated and untreated items, were maintained over time, and were accompanied by improved discourse abilities. Visual and statistical analyses showed a significant treatment effect for naming skills in three out of the four participants. Conclusion A combination of executive function training and SFA treatment in people with chronic aphasia may improve both naming skills and discourse efficiency. Further studies are needed to substantiate these promising preliminary results.

Digital economy and carbon emission: The coupling effects of the economy in Qinghai region of China

This study provides an in-depth analysis of the complex relationship between the digital economy and carbon emissions, fully drawing on essential principles of environmental economics, coupled economics, and sustainable development theory. Focusing on the Qinghai region in the western province of China, the study employs highly sophisticated methods such as multiple regression analysis and system dynamics modeling to reveal the multidimensional coupling effects between digital economy development and carbon emission dynamics. The study's results clearly show that in the Qinghai region of China, the booming growth of the digital economy is related to carbon emissions. Of particular interest, the study finds that this relationship exhibits a high degree of complexity and non-linearity and evolves gradually over time. Initially, the rapid expansion of the digital economy, accompanied by high energy consumption and increased carbon emissions, posed a significant challenge to environmental protection. However, a clear inverted “U"-shaped relationship has emerged as the digital economy evolves. This key inflection point signals a shift in the landscape as the digital economy begins to deliver some ecological benefits, potentially reducing the trend of carbon emissions in the future. The findings of this study go beyond simple causality and reveal a complex and evolving dynamic relationship between the digital economy and carbon emissions. Through such insights, this study provides a solid academic foundation and carefully constructs actionable policy recommendations to drive sustainable development. These insights apply to the Qinghai region of China and provide valuable references and lessons for other areas facing similar challenges.

Including Neutrino-driven Convection in the Force Explosion Condition to Predict Explodability of Multidimensional Core-collapse Supernovae (FEC+)

Most massive stars end their lives with core collapse. However, it is not clear which explode as a core-collapse supernova (CCSN), leaving behind a neutron star, and which collapse to a black hole, aborting the explosion. One path to predict explodability without expensive multidimensional simulations is to develop analytic explosion conditions. These analytic conditions also provide a deeper understanding of the explosion mechanism and they provide some insight into why some simulations explode and some do not. The analytic force explosion condition (FEC) reproduces the explosion conditions of spherically symmetric CCSN simulations. In this follow-up manuscript, we include the dominant multidimensional effect that aids explosion—neutrino-driven convection—in the FEC. This generalized critical condition (FEC+) is suitable for multidimensional simulations and has potential to accurately predict explosion conditions of two- and three-dimensional CCSN simulations. We show that adding neutrino-driven convection reduces the critical condition by ∼30%, which is consistent with previous multidimensional simulations.

Nucleosynthetic Analysis of Three-dimensional Core-collapse Supernova Simulations

We study in detail the ejecta conditions and theoretical nucleosynthetic results for 18 three-dimensional core-collapse supernova (CCSN) simulations done by Fornax. Most of the simulations are carried out to at least 3 s after bounce, which allows us to follow their longer-term behaviors. We find that multidimensional effects introduce many complexities into the ejecta conditions. We see a stochastic electron fraction evolution, complex peak temperature distributions and histories, and long-tail distributions of the time spent within nucleosynthetic temperature ranges. These all lead to substantial variation in CCSN nucleosynthetic yields and differences from 1D results. We discuss the production of lighter α-nuclei, radioactive isotopes, heavier elements, and a few isotopes of special interest. Comparing pre-CCSN and CCSN contributions, we find that a significant fraction of elements between roughly Si and Ge are generally produced in CCSNe. We find that 44Ti exhibits an extended production timescale as compared to 56Ni, which may explain its different distribution and higher than previously predicted abundances in supernova remnants such as Cas A and SN1987A. We also discuss the morphology of the ejected elements. This study highlights the high-level diversity of ejecta conditions and nucleosynthetic results in 3D CCSN simulations and emphasizes the need for additional long-term (∼10 s) 3D simulations to properly address such complexities.

Mapping combinatorial expression perturbations to growth in Escherichia coli

The connection between growth and gene expression has often been considered in a single gene. Repurposing a drug-drug interaction model, the multidimensional effects of several simultaneous gene expression perturbations on growth have been examined in the model bacteria Escherichia coli.

Assessment of Multi-Regional Comprehensive Benefits of the South-to-North Water Diversion Project in China

Inter-basin water transfer (IBWT) projects are an effective means of addressing regional water resource imbalances. However, owing to the long construction cycle, large investment amount, and wide impact range, water diversion projects exhibit delayed and complex benefits, often lacking clear comprehension. In this study, we established a multi-regional comprehensive benefit assessment framework for the IBWT, considering spatiotemporal and multi-dimensional value effects. Using the South-to-North Water Diversion Project (SNWDP) in China as an example, we assessed its comprehensive benefits from 2003 to 2020. The results showed that the comprehensive benefits of the project were USD 207 billion, encompassing economic and ecological benefits, accounting for 71.6% and 28.4%, respectively. In 2020, the benefits of the SNWDP amounted to USD 39.3 billion, with a per-unit area benefit range of USD −1.03 to 4.27. The operation of the SNWDP effectively alleviated groundwater overexploitation in water-receiving areas. However, without the SNWDP, the total loss caused by industrial development limitations due to water scarcity would have been USD 154.3 billion. These results indicate the importance of a practical framework for assessing IWBT project benefits, aiding managers in assessment tasks, and facilitating the prediction and adjustment of project benefits.

Potential mechanisms underlying the effect of walking exercise on cancer-related fatigue in cancer survivors.

Cancer-related fatigue (CRF) is a common and debilitating long-term side effect of cancer and its treatment. While exercise has been shown to effectively reduce CRF, the underlying mechanisms are not fully clear. Therefore, the aim of this study was to explore the effects of a 4-month walking exercise program on fatigue severity and to explore potential underlying physiological, behavioral, and psychological mechanisms of action. We included 27 cancer survivors (59 ± 15years, 37% female) with variable cancer diagnoses who were at least moderately fatigued and finished treatment between 6 and 36months ago. This study with a quasi-experimental interrupted time-series design compared a 4-month walking intervention period with a 4-month control period. Measurements of fatigue and physiological, behavioral, and psychological factors were performed, supplemented with participants' perceptions on how exercise influenced their fatigue. A significant and clinically relevant decrease in fatigue severity was found over time (β = - 8.1, 95% CI = - 12.1; - 4.2), but could not be attributed directly to the walking exercise intervention. Increases in muscle strength (β = - 0.07, 95% CI = - 0.12; - 0.02), physical activity (β = - 0.1, 95% CI = - 0.2; - 0.04), and sleep quality (β = 1.1, 95% CI = 0.3; 1.9), as well as decreases in muscle relaxation times (β = 0.09, 95% CI = 0.02; 0.16) and psychological distress (β = 1.1, 95% CI = 0.8; 1.3) were associated with reductions in fatigue severity. Resilience and physical well-being were perceived as most important constructs explaining the walking exercise effects on fatigue. Our findings reveal potential physiological, behavioral, and psychological mechanisms underlying the multidimensional effects of exercise on fatigue severity. Incorporating resistance exercise and addressing resilience and physical well-being might improve the efficacy of exercise interventions for cancer survivors.

The Impact of Illegitimate Tasks on Volunteer Participation: The Perspective of Psychological Capital.

How do illegitimate tasks in volunteering affect volunteer participation? Previous research has focused only on the unidimensional effects of illegitimate tasks on volunteer participation. This study used the Job Demands-Resources model to investigate the multidimensional effects of illegitimate tasks on volunteer participation and the potential mechanisms of the effects. Based on three waves of survey data from 1768 Chinese volunteers, we found that illegitimate tasks negatively affect volunteer attitudes and volunteer outcomes by reducing volunteers' psychological capital. This study develops a mediated model about the effects of illegitimate tasks on volunteer attitudes and outcomes. This study also makes related recommendations, such as asking volunteer organizations to offer stress-coping courses and encouraging volunteers to share their personal volunteering experiences.

Prediction of driving stress on high-altitude expressway using driving environment features: A naturalistic driving study in Tibet

Objective Owing to the harsh environment in high-altitude areas, drivers experience significant driving stress. Compared with urban roads or expressways in low-altitude areas, the driving environment in high-altitude areas has distinct features, including mountainous environments and a higher proportion of trucks and buses. This study aims to investigate the feasibility of predicting stress levels through elements in the driving environment. Methods Naturalistic driving tests were conducted on an expressway in Tibet. Driving stress was assessed using heart rate variability (HRV)-based indicators and classified using K-means clustering. A DeepLabv3 model was built to conduct semantic segmentation and extract environment elements from the driving scenarios recorded through a camera next to the driver’s eyes. A decision tree and 4 other ensemble learning models based on decision trees were built to predict driving stress levels using the environment elements. Results Fifty-six indicators were extracted from the driving environment. Results of the prediction models demonstrate that extreme gradient boosting has the best overall performance with the F1 score (harmonic mean of the precision and recall) and G-mean (geometric mean of sensitivity and specificity) reaching 0.855 and 0.890, respectively. Indicators based on the variation rate of trucks and buses have high feature importance and exhibit positive effects on driving stress. Indicators reflecting the proportion of mountain, road, and sky features negatively affect the expected levels of driving stress. Additionally, the mountain feature demonstrates multidimensional effects, because driving stress is positively affected by indicators of the variation rate for mountain elements. Conclusions This study validates the prediction of driving stress using environment elements in the driver’s field of view and extends its application to high-altitude expressways with distinct environmental characteristics. This method provides a real-time, less intrusive, and safer method of driving stress assessment and prediction and also enhances the understanding of the environmental determinants of driving stress. The results hold promising applications, including the development of a driving state assessment and warning module as well as the identification of high-risk road sections and implementation of control measures.

Social determinants of health during and after coronavirus: a qualitative study

BackgroundHealth has multiple dimensions influenced not only by individual factors but also by broader social, economic, cultural, and political structures. The widespread COVID-19 pandemic has multidimensional effects on people’s lives, which can have effects on individuals’ lifestyles after the COVID-19. This study aimed to speculate the social determinants of health during and after the COVID-19, which can lead to more effective planning for promoting community health.MethodsThe present study interviewed 21 experts in social and medical fields during four months. The sampling method was snowball. The interviews were semi-structured and administered in-person or electronic. All interviews were transcribed and analyzed according to the Brown and Clarke’s six-stage framework to extract themes.Resultsthe participants were 13 males, eight experts in social field, all had PhD, 17 were academic members, and 10 were members of the Social Determinants of Health Research Center. The qualitative content analysis induced seven different social themes that affect the health which included: justice (3 Subcategories), integration (4 Subcategories), acceptance (4 Subcategories), participation (2 Subcategories), adaptation (3 Subcategories), flourishing (4 Subcategories), and cohesion (3 Subcategories).ConclusionsAccording to the present study, a grand plan to cover all positive and negative social effects of COVID-19 should have at least seven different dimensions. However, the present models of effective social determinants in health do not have such comprehensiveness. Future studies may provide a proper model to be used in clinical and research fields.

Enhancing brand equity through multidimensional brand authenticity in the fashion retailing

Excessive marketing competition among brands has recently increased consumer demand for brand authenticity. Brand authenticity has become a precondition for successful business practice. Consequently, any brand uses brand authenticity to decrease consumer distrust regarding marketing strategies and strengthen brand power and image. Accordingly, in relation to fashion brands, the objective of this study is to explore the association between multidimensional brand authenticity (i.e., authenticity toward product and corporate) and customer based brand equity (CBBE) components. In this research, the impacts of CBBE were assessed by conducting an online survey with the participation of 1733 Korean fashion brand shoppers. Additionally, the study explores the moderating influence of service providers' authenticity on the relationships between multidimensional brand authenticity and CBBE. The outcomes reveal that multidimensional brand authenticity effects perceived quality, brand association, and awareness. Additionally, brand association and awareness affect loyalty. Multi-group analysis is conducted to identify the difference between customers with low and high service providers' authenticity. By revealing a role for multidimensional brand authenticity and CBBE, this research adds to the existing literature on fashion brand. Furthermore, practitioners and marketers can derive valuable insights for developing marketing strategies across various brands from the outcomes of this research.

Dynamical Network Stability Analysis of Multiple Biological Ages Provides a Framework for Understanding the Aging Process.

Widespread interest in nondestructive biomarkers of aging has led to a multitude of biological ages that each proffers a "true" health-adjusted individual age. Although each measure provides salient information on the aging process, they are each univariate, in contrast to the "hallmark" and "pillar" theories of aging, which are explicitly multidimensional, multicausal, and multiscale. Fortunately, multiple biological ages can be systematically combined into a multidimensional network representation. The interaction network between these biological ages permits analysis of the multidimensional effects of aging, as well as quantification of causal influences during both natural aging and, potentially, after anti-aging intervention. The behavior of the system as a whole can then be explored using dynamical network stability analysis, which identifies new, efficient biomarkers that quantify long-term resilience scores on the timescale between measurements (years). We demonstrate this approach using a set of 8 biological ages from the longitudinal Swedish Adoption/Twin Study of Aging (SATSA). After extracting an interaction network between these biological ages, we observed that physiological age, a proxy for cardiometabolic health, serves as a central node in the network, implicating it as a key vulnerability for slow, age-related decline. We furthermore show that while the system as a whole is stable, there is a weakly stable direction along which recovery is slow-on the timescale of a human lifespan. This slow direction provides an aging biomarker, which correlates strongly with chronological age and predicts longitudinal decline in health-suggesting that it estimates an important driver of age-related changes.

Emprego fora da fazenda e pobreza multidimensional: evidências empíricas da bacia do rio Amarelo na China

ABSTRACT: As an essential way to enhance farmers’ self-development ability, off-farm employment plays an indispensable role in farmers’ multidimensional poverty reduction in many countries. Employing a survey of 1926 farmers in five provinces of the Yellow River Basin in China, this paper examined the multi-dimensional poverty reduction effect of off-farm employment and the heterogeneous influence of different dimensions of off-farm employment (modes, levels, distances and frequency). The results showed that (1) although absolute poverty in the income dimension was largely eliminated in the Yellow River Basin, the poverty in social resources, transportation facilities, employment security were the key bottlenecks restricting farmers’ self-development. (2) The province with the best multidimensional poverty reduction effect for non-farm employment was Shaanxi, with the largest contribution to employment security. (3) Improving off-farm employment level, distance and time can significantly alleviate the multi-dimensional poverty of farmers. Therefore, to lessen the multi-dimensional poverty of farmers in the Yellow River Basin, it is necessary to focus on the governance of multi-dimensional key poverty-stricken areas, such as the middle and upper courses of the Yellow River, adopting multidimensional poverty alleviation strategy of off-farm employment according to local conditions, working on the farmers’ deficiencies in social resources, mobility, employment security, and deepening the effect of off-farm employment on benefiting farmers and helping the poor.

The Multi-dimensional Effect of Family Income on Opportunity Equality of Access to Higher Education in Japan

The Multi-dimensional Effect of Family Income on Opportunity Equality of Access to Higher Education in Japan

The Future Wheel Model of the Effects of the Emerging Infectious Diseases Pandemics on the Elderly in Iran

Objectives During the outbreak of the infectious diseases, the elderly are at a higher risk. The future wheel model can help understand the different dimensions and effects of these diseases. The present study aims to determine the different effects of the emerging infectious disease pandemics on elderly people based on the experiences from the COVID-19 pandemic in Iran using the future wheel model. Methods & Materials In this qualitative expert-oriented study conducted in 2022, the second version of the future wheel was used to identify the effects in three steps. First, the effects were extracted by brainstorming method with a panel of experts (the Aging Committee of the Research Institute for Future Studies in Health, Kerman, Iran). Then, the effects were analyzed with the STEEP method and in interaction with other two panel of experts. In the next step, the effects were examined, and after reaching a consensus, the future wheel of the effects and their time horizon was provided. Results In this study, 81 effects of the emerging infectious disease pandemics on the elderly were identified in 6 dimensions of socio-psychological (n=25), technological (n=3), economic (n=7), environmental (n=1), political (n=3), and health (n=38). Of these, 10 opportunities and 9 threats and their time horizons were extracted. Conclusion The outbreak of the emerging infectious diseases such as COVID-19 can leave multi-dimensional effects on the elderly in the world including Iran. We can take advantage of the experiences of facing the COVID-19 pandemic and consider the requirements and solutions for dealing with similar pandemics in the future.

Complementarity with Real Forests: A Conceptual Framework and Narrative Review of Multidimensional Effects in Virtual Forests

Numerous studies have confirmed the positive impacts of real forests in areas such as stress relief. However, not everyone can visit forests easily. Virtual technologies offer new ways of experiencing forests for people who are hindered by real-life conditions and provide researchers with a manageable mode of study. Recently, there has been an influx of relevant research; however, themes within the overall perspective of the field remain unclear. This study aimed to review the literature and provide an overview of the potential health benefits of virtual forests. Research themes were extracted, and a conceptual framework for the multidimensional effects of virtual forest exposure was proposed from a holistic perspective. We analyzed studies using descriptive analytical methods through the Scopus, Web of Science, and PubMed databases and snowball searches. In total, 58 studies were included. This review identified four themes and segments throughout the virtual forest exposure process: core elements, experiences, effects, and circulation. We propose a new conceptual framework for a holistic perspective that incorporates technological features that are specific to virtual environments and makes connections to real forests. Finally, perspectives for future research in virtual forest therapy and its practical implications are discussed.

The multidimensional effects of extensive listening on EFL learners

This study investigated the multidimensional effects of extensive listening (EL) on learners’ actual language gains, selection of study materials, and practice styles. Language gains were measured through a pre- and a post-test on students’ aural vocabulary test (Listening Vocabulary Levels Test, LVLT) and general listening comprehension (TOEIC), administered before and after the intervention. Fifty-five university student participants took part in the four-month experiment; they were entirely free to select their favorite study materials online or off-line. The results showed that each student spent an average of 1,387 minutes (approximately 87 minutes per week) doing EL practice. The three most popular study materials were the following: Songs (63.64%), movies (49.09%), and talks (43.46%); materials were mainly from YouTube (74.55%), Netflix (49.09%), and other miscellaneous sources (43.63%). Their practice style was unanimously a combination of viewing and listening. From the pre-tests to the post-tests, students made significant gains in both LVLT and TOEIC, but the effect sizes were small. Some suggestions are made for implementing EL.

Modeling terahertz emissions from energetic electrons and ions in foil targets irradiated by ultraintense femtosecond laser pulses.

Terahertz (THz) emissions from fast electron and ion currents driven in relativistic, femtosecond laser-foil interactions are examined theoretically. We first consider the radiation from the energetic electrons exiting the backside of the target. Our kinetic model takes account of the coherent transition radiation due to these electrons crossing the plasma-vacuum interface as well as of the synchrotron radiation due to their deflection and deceleration in the sheath field they set up in vacuum. After showing that both mechanisms tend to largely compensate each other when all the electrons are pulled back into the target, we investigate the scaling of the net radiation with the sheath field strength. We then demonstrate the sensitivity of this radiation to a percent-level fraction of escaping electrons. We also study the influence of the target thickness and laser focusing. The same sheath field that confines most of the fast electrons around the target rapidly sets into motion the surface ions. We describe the THz emission from these accelerated ions and their accompanying hot electrons by means of a plasma expansion model that allows for finite foil size and multidimensional effects. Again, we explore the dependencies of this radiation mechanism on the laser-target parameters. Under conditions typical of current ultrashort laser-solid experiments, we find that the THz radiation from the expanding plasma is much less energetic-by one to three orders of magnitude-than that due to the early-time motion of the fast electrons.

Focal points for digital technology integration in early childhood education: implications from practitioners’ perspectives

ABSTRACTThis study explored the integration of digital technology in early childhood education from the perspectives of 11 preschool teachers using qualitative methods. Through content analysis, four key themes were identified: objectives, multidimensional effects in education, obstacles, and needs/expectations. Teachers employ digital tools to adapt to changes and enhance learning, despite concerns about potential harm. Barriers include administrative support, teacher beliefs, and competencies, as well as educational policies and parent-teacher cooperation. The study recommends the need for in-service and pre-service training for teachers and comprehensive policy development for effective technology integration.

The Effect of Strategic Alignment between Organizational Culture and Organizational Structure towards Employee Empowerment: A Conceptual Framework

Employee empowerment is a workplace revolution concept that started to gain traction in the 1990s, and is reappearing again recently. This is a way for organizations to respond to the changing business landscape in a volatile-uncertain-complex-ambiguous (VUCA) world. Employee empowerment is understood as a way of providing autonomy and decision-making power to employees, and many studies have demonstrated the relationship between employee empowerment and performance of the organization. Many previous researchers have demonstrated the individual effect of organizational culture or organizational structure towards employee empowerment, as well as the symbiotic relationship between organizational culture and organizational structure. However, studies of a combined effect are very scarce. In other words, little to no research has been conducted to explore the multidimensional effect of strategic alignment between organizational culture and organizational structure towards employee empowerment. Thus, the relationship between the strategic alignment of both organizational culture and organizational structure are not clearly defined and is currently a gap in the research. This study would like to address this gap and examine the effect of organizational culture and organizational structure towards employee empowerment. The outcome of this study is expected to benefit the theoretical body of knowledge with regards to employee empowerment, as well as provide a better understanding to practitioners and organizations wishing to embark on employee empowerment, in turn impacting overall organizational effectiveness and performance.
 Keywords: empowerment, structure, culture