Occupational Background Research Articles

Universal mental health training for frontline professionals: evaluation of pilot trial in Ukraine

Background Increasing accessibility of mental health services and expanding universal health coverage is possible worldwide by using a task-shifting approach and delegating elements of mental health support to trained non-mental health service providers. The Universal Mental Health Training (UMHT), dedicated to this aim, was developed and piloted in Ukraine. The UMHT is a specialised program for training frontline professionals on high-quality and evidence-based responses to the mental health needs of the population they serve. Methods The controlled pilot trial of UMHTs’ efficacy was conducted with 307 frontline professionals divided into 24 training groups. The control group included 211 persons with the same occupation background who participated in training later (waiting list). All the groups took part in eight-hour training which includes one introductory module that introduces the mental health topic alongside a five-step model, two disorders-focused modules with the steps adjusted to work with specific disorders and the final module that considers possible difficulties and ways of their solving. Three efficacy measurements were used in the outcome assessment: Readiness to interact with people with mental health issues at work, mental health awareness and mental health proficiency. Results Analysis of the outcome data revealed middle-level effect size related to the knowledge of mental health conditions, mental health awareness, and increasing the readiness to interact with people with mental health issues at work in first-line professionals that underwent the UMHT. Conclusions High-level utilisation of the UMHT at work by trained professionals confirms our hypothesis on the efficacy and feasibility of the developed intervention. Results obtained favour the continuation of the development of the UMHT and future implementation research in this field in Ukraine and potentially in other low- and middle-income countries.

Effect of Parents’ Socio-Economic Background on Secondary School Students Career Choice in Kebbi State, Nigeria

Careers are the reality of life that needs to be considered important in today’s modern societies. Choosing a career is a complex decision-making process that coincides with so many environmental, cultural, social and economic variables, which creates psycho-social stress for students especially those in secondary school. The study adopted a mixed-method approach. A sample of 250 senior secondary two (SS2) students was purposively drawn from 130 senior secondary schools in Kebbi State. A standardised Family Influence Scale (FIS) was adopted for this study. The scale was modified to have two sub scales: parents’ occupation and family income. The face and content validity of FIS was carried out using experts in the field of guidance and counselling from Adamu Augie College of Education, Argungu. FIS was further subjected to pilot testing, and a reliability coefficient of 0.82 was obtained using the Cronbach Alpha formula. Descriptive statistics of mean and standard deviation were used to answer the research questions, while inferential statistics of t-test were used to test the null hypotheses at 0.05 level of significance. The outcome of this study revealed the grand mean scores of 2.8 and 2.7 which are greater than the decision mean score of 2.5 to imply that parents’ occupational backgrounds and income levels from secondary school students’ career choice significantly. Equally, significant differences were found (t= .19, df= 248, p-value =0.03) regarding the influence of parents’ gender on the career choices of male and female students in secondary schools in Kebbi State. Considering the influence of parents on the career choice of their children, it was recommended that parents should seek the help of professional career counsellors to guide their children in making intelligent career decisions.

Supplemental Material for Feeling Joy × Feeling Competent: Predicting Math-Related Occupational Aspirations From Math Grades, Gender, and Parents’ Occupational Background via Motivational Beliefs

Supplemental Material for Feeling Joy × Feeling Competent: Predicting Math-Related Occupational Aspirations From Math Grades, Gender, and Parents’ Occupational Background via Motivational Beliefs

Identifying contextual barriers and facilitators in implementing non-specialist interventions for mental health in Sri Lanka: A qualitative study with mental health workers and community members.

Non-specialist mental health interventions serve as a potential solution to reduce the mental healthcare gap in low- and middle-income countries, such as Sri Lanka. However, contextual factors often influence their effective implementation, reflecting a research-to-practice gap. This study, using a qualitative, participatory approach with local mental health workers (n=9) and potential service users (n=11), identifies anticipated barriers and facilitators to implementing these interventions while also exploring alternative strategies for reducing the mental healthcare gap in this context. Perceived barriers include concerns about effectiveness, acceptance and feasibility in the implementation of non-specialist mental health interventions (theme 1). The participants' overall perception that these interventions are a beneficial strategy for reducing the mental healthcare gap was identified as a facilitating factor for implementation (theme 2). Further facilitators relate to important non-specialist characteristics (theme 3), including desirable traits and occupational backgrounds that may aid in increasing the acceptance of this cadre. Other suggestions relate to facilitating the reach, intervention acceptance and feasibility (theme 4). This study offers valuable insights to enhance the implementation process of non-specialist mental health interventions in low-and middle-income countries such as Sri Lanka.

Impact of parents educational and occupational background on life skills among school going adolescents from Nainital district of Uttarakhand

Impact of parents educational and occupational background on life skills among school going adolescents from Nainital district of Uttarakhand

Impression management strategies in accordance with social role theory

Impression management (IM) is a process where individuals consciously or unconsciously control the information, behaviors, and expressions they present to others. Studies on IM that are based on social role theory have mostly focused on gender roles. However, there is a growing recognition of the need to expand social role research beyond traditional gender roles (Anglin et al., 2022). This study aims to investigate the influence of various societal roles, including gender, age, occupation, and education, on IM strategies among Jordanian public sector employees within organizational contexts. Drawing upon social role theory and existing literature, this research seeks to explore how different social roles intersect and shape IM behaviors. Data were collected from 927 participants via an online questionnaire distributed through convenience sampling. Nonparametric analysis was employed, utilizing the Mann–Whitney U test and Kruskal–Wallis H test to analyze gender-based and other variables with three or more groups, respectively. The findings suggest that while gender, occupation, and educational background can impact IM, their influence is often overshadowed by the broader organizational context. This study contributes to the literature by expanding our understanding of IM beyond traditional gender roles and elucidating the complex interplay between societal roles and IM strategies.

Socio-economic dimensions of handwashing knowledge in student populations at Ukhiya subdistrict of Cox’s Bazar, Bangladesh

The critical role of handwashing in preventing infectious disease transmission, particularly highlighted during the COVID-19 pandemic, underscores the importance of understanding and enhancing hand hygiene practices in developing countries like Bangladesh. This research aims to identify the socio-economic factors affecting handwashing knowledge among students, thereby informing targeted public health interventions to improve hygiene practices and reduce disease spread. A cross-sectional study was conducted across ten government primary schools in Ukhiya between March and April 2022. The sample comprised 400 students, selected using systematic sampling techniques, excluding those with learning disabilities or unwilling to participate. Data were collected via interviewer-administered questionnaires. Data analysis was performed using SPSS and Stata, with handwashing knowledge scores categorized as 'poor' or 'good' based on responses to 16 questions. The results revealed a high level of handwashing knowledge among students, with 90.5% categorized as having 'good' knowledge. No significant gender differences were observed in handwashing knowledge. However, a strong correlation was found between the educational levels of the students' mothers and handwashing knowledge, highlighting the influence of maternal education on health behaviors. Additionally, the occupational background of students' fathers and hygiene and sanitation clubs in the community were significantly associated with handwashing knowledge. The findings underscore the pivotal role of family and community resources in shaping hand hygiene practices among students. This study concludes that handwashing knowledge among students in Ukhiya is generally high, reflecting effective public health education. However, the influence of socio-economic factors, such as parental education and community resources, suggests that targeted interventions could further enhance hand hygiene practices. Future efforts should aim to translate this high level of handwashing knowledge into consistent practice across diverse socio-economic contexts, contributing to the community's overall well-being.

Career coach preferences of medical students: coaching specialist or specialistic coach?

BackgroundMedical students’ demand for career coaching is growing. However, little is known about what type of career coach they prefer. Using the Warmth-Competence Framework, we investigated if and why medical students prefer physician coaches compared to career psychologist coaches. We also examined whether students’ coach choice related to coaches’ amount of experience with medical students.MethodsIn a two-by-two between participants vignette study (n = 147), we manipulated coach occupational background (physician vs. psychologist) and experience with coaching medical students (limited vs. considerable). Participants read one coach description, rated the likelihood that they would choose the coach, and rated the coach on dimensions of warmth and competence.ResultsStudents who evaluated a physician career coach were more likely to choose the coach than students who evaluated a psychologist career coach. Students expected that a physician career coach would better understand their situation and be better able to provide career information, while they expected a psychologist career coach to have better conversation skills, all of which were relevant to choosing a coach. Coaches’ experience with coaching medical students was unrelated to students’ coach choice and their assessment of the coach’s warmth and competence.ConclusionsOur findings highlight the relevance of coaches’ occupational background and have implications for the implementation of career coach interventions. Medical schools could help students choose a career coach by providing information about the coach qualities that students value. Future studies could investigate whether career coaches with different occupational backgrounds differ in coach behaviors and coaching effectiveness.

Vocational education and training in South Africa: leaders' perceptions of a mentoring framework in a professional development programme

PurposeThe South African vocational education and training (VET) sector is required by legislation to redefine postsecondary education, advance industrialisation and expand the job market to address unemployment in the country. Yet, VET leaders' heterogenous educational and occupational backgrounds do not enable them to address the needs of the VET sector. Continuous professional development of leaders in the education sector needs to include support structures such as mentoring.Design/methodology/approachThe present study sought to investigate how VET managers in South Africa perceive three different types of mentoring – individual, peer group and expert-based key performance area (KPA) mentoring – during a part-time professional leadership development programme. Using interactive qualitative analysis (IQA), the authors collected and analysed data from focus group discussions (n = 24) and individual interviews (n = 21) from two cohorts of the programme.FindingsThe results revealed that individual mentoring represented the most important driving mechanism, followed by peer group mentoring and expert-based KPA mentoring. Participants identified leadership as a prerequisite for their development. Emotions formed the final outcome of the mentoring framework.Research limitations/implicationsBased on the findings, the authors suggest investigating the role played by leaders' interpersonal competences such as emotional competence in the workplace. Additionally, research needs to clarify if and how mentoring can support leaders to develop interpersonal competences in formal and informal settings.Originality/valueThe study offers empirical evidence on a three-pillar mentoring framework adopted in a professional development programme for leaders in VET in South Africa. It highlights the importance of individual, social and emotional factors.

Influence of Sociodemographic Factors and Obstetric History on Choice of Place of Delivery: A Retrospective Study Among Post-Natal Women in Ghana.

Even though Ghana has recorded an appreciable level of facility delivery compared to other countries in sub-Saharan Africa, the country still has a lot of regional and community variations in facility delivery where professional maternal health care is guaranteed. This study assessed the main factors associated with facility delivery in the Sagnarigu Municipal Assembly of the Northern Region of Ghana. Using a simple random sampling method, a retrospective community-based cross-sectional study was conducted from July 12, 2021 to October 17, 2021, among 306 postnatal women within 15 to 49 years who had delivered within the last six months. We conducted descriptive analyses, and the Pearson chi-square test of association between the sociodemographic factors and obstetrics history with the outcome variable, choice of place of birth. Lastly, significant variables in the chi-square test were entered into adjusted multivariate logistics regression to determine their association with the place of delivery. Data analysis was performed using the Statistical Package for Social Sciences version-25, with statistical significance set at a p-value of 0.05. The study reported a facility delivery rate of 82%, which is slightly higher than the national target (80%). We observed that age group [AOR 2.34 (1.07-5.14)], marital status [AOR 0.31 (0.12-0.81)], ethnicity [AOR 3.78 (1.18-12.13)], and couple's occupation [AOR 24.74 (2.51-243.91)] were the significant sociodemographic factors influencing facility delivery. The number of antenatal care (ANC) attendance [AOR 8.73 (3.41 - 22.2)] and previous pregnancy complications [AOR 2.4 (1.11 - 5.7)] were the significant obstetrics factors influencing facility delivery. We found that specific sociodemographic and obstetric factors significantly influence the choice of place of delivery in the study area. To address this, the study recommends targeted interventions that focus on providing support and resources for women from different age groups, marital statuses, ethnicities, and occupational backgrounds to access facility delivery services. Additionally, improving ANC attendance and effectively managing pregnancy complications were highlighted as important measures to encourage facility-based deliveries.

The impact of occupational background on issue representation

Descriptive representation matters for substantive representation. Yet, one key legislator characteristic has received comparatively little attention in research on substantive representation: the occupational background of members of parliament. In this article, it is argued that occupational background shapes patterns of representation since the choice of occupation both indicates certain interests while also generating expertise in issues related to the job. In order to assess this proposition, there is an analysis of whether local councillors’ occupations affect their issue emphasis in the local council and to what extent this effect is moderated by parties’ issue saliences. Empirically, the study focuses on local councillors’ issue emphasis using data on 1,269 local councillors in Germany between 2011 and 2020. The results have important implications for understanding local councillors’ descriptive and substantive representation as they show that occupation matters: councillors emphasise issues related to their occupation more often than other representatives.

Areca nut cultivators from Tamil Nadu: Is the nut their friend or foe – A questionnaire study

Objective: The present study was done to evaluate the awareness of people involved in cultivation of areca nut from Tamil Nadu on various oral and systemic health effects of chewing areca nut. Material and Methods: A cross-sectional study was conducted among areca nut cultivators from various districts of Tamil Nadu. People involved in the cultivation of areca nut were included in the study. 500 individuals participated in the study. They were instructed to complete a pre-tested questionnaire with 25 questions. Results: 58% of the participants were males and 42% were females. Dryness of the mouth from decreased production of saliva due to areca chewing was known to 57% of the study participants. 39% of the participants were aware of addiction. Oral cancer from areca nut chewing in various forms with/without tobacco was also known to 51% of them. 86% of them were prepared to quit the habit and 92% of them admitted that government has banned the sale of commercial pan masala products. Conclusion: The study evaluated the awareness of oral and systemic effects of chewing areca nut among people involved in cultivation of areca nut from rural parts of Tamil Nadu. Appropriate regulatory measures are critical for educating people from a variety of occupational and socioeconomic backgrounds in both rural and urban areas.

A STUDY ON ENVIRONMENTAL INFORMATION DISCLOSURE BY INDIAN GOVERNMENT AND INDUSTRIES

Government and industry environmental information disclosure is an important means to promote environmental supervision and law enforcement, and improve the level of environmental management. Public knowledge management is crucially dependent on public access to information – in particular, information on environmental risks. Yet most existing systems of governance favour administrative or corporate secrecy, thereby monopolizing environmental information in the hands of governmental authorities or private stakeholders. This paper describes innovative initiatives to establish civil society's 'right to know', by mandatory disclosure of government-held information and of industry-held environmental risk data (through the worldwide spread of Pollutant Release and Transfer Registers, and through court- enforced access to 'privileged' documentation However, the paper also highlights continuing transparency deficits (sometimes resulting in 'manufactured uncertainty') with regard to risk-sensitive information of common concern. Therefore, this paper believes that the government should strengthen the disclosure of environmental information based on urban economic development to ensure the sustainability of urban economic development. The researcher has done a study on the same based on certain questions framed by the researcher. The respondents belonged to various age groups, International Scientific Journal of Engineering and Management ISSN: 2583-6129 Volume: 02 Issue: 12 | December – 2023 DOI: 10.55041/ISJEM01318 www.isjem.com An International Scholarly || Multidisciplinary || Open Access || Indexing in all major Database & Metadata © 2023, ISJEM (All Rights Reserved) | www.isjem.com | Page 2 educational and occupational backgrounds to whom the survey questions based on awareness level on the topic of agreeability on certain aspects and opinions on the concept were asked. The results are formulated and the hypothesis has been either proven or altered as any research should be. The tools used for the research include Statistical Tools for Social Sciences (SPSS). In conclusion the people should be given enough awareness so as to the rights they have towards obtaining information regarding the environment. KEYWORDS : Environmental supervision, Environmental information disclosure, Green economy, Industry and government, Threshold effect.

The mental health toll of service: an examination of self-reported impacts of public safety personnel careers in a treatment-seeking population

ABSTRACT Introduction: Public safety personnel (PSP), including firefighters, paramedics, and police officers, are exposed to traumatic events as part of their day-to-day jobs. These traumatic events often result in significant stress and increase the likelihood of negative mental health outcomes, including post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD). The present study sought to develop an in-depth understanding of the lived experiences of PSPs as related to the mental health toll of their service. Through a series of targeted focus groups, Canadian PSP were asked to provide their perspectives on the PTSD-related symptoms that resulted as a by-product of their occupational service. The DSM-5-TR PSTD criteria (A-E) provided a thematic lens to map the self-described symptomatic expression of PSP’s lived experiences. Methods: The present study employed a phenomenological focus-group approach with a treatment-seeking inpatient population of PSP. Participants included PSP from a variety of occupational backgrounds. Using semi-structured focus groups, fifty-one participants were interviewed. These focus groups were audio recorded, with consent, and transcribed verbatim. Using an interpretive phenomenological approach, emergent themes within the data were inductively developed, examined, and connected across individual cases. Results: Utilizing the primary criteria of PTSD (Criteria A-E) outlined by the DSM-5-TR, we identified qualitative themes that included exposure to a traumatic event, intrusion symptoms, avoidance symptoms, negative alterations in mood and cognition, and marked alterations in arousal and reactivity. Conclusion: PSP are exposed to extreme stressors as a daily part of their occupation and are at elevated risk of developing mental health difficulties, including PTSD. In the present study, focus groups were conducted with PSP about the mental health toll of their occupations. Their experiences mapped onto the five primary criteria of PTSD, as outlined by the DSM-5-TR. This study provides crucial descriptive information to guide mental health research aims and treatment goals for PSTD in PSP populations.

What is the price of a skill? The value of complementarity

The global workforce is urged to constantly reskill, as technological change favours particular new skills while making others redundant. But which skills are a good investment for workers and firms? As skills are seldomly applied in isolation, we propose that complementarity strongly determines a skill's economic value. For 962 skills, we demonstrate that their value is determined by complementarity – that is, how many different skills, ideally of high value, a competency can be combined with. We show that the value of a skill is relative, as it depends on the skill background of the worker. For most skills, their value is highest when used in combination with skills of a different type. We put our model to the test with a set of skills related to Artificial Intelligence (AI). We find that AI skills are particularly valuable – increasing worker wages by 21 % on average – because of their strong complementarities and their rising demand in recent years. The model and metrics of our work can inform the policy and practice of digital re-skilling to reduce labour market mismatches. In cooperation with data and education providers, researchers and policy makers should consider using this blueprint to provide learners with personalised skill recommendations that complement their existing capacities and fit their occupational background.

The Influence of Political Background and Knowledge of Legislative Members about the Budget on Dprd Performance in Regional Financial Oversight with Organizational Commitment as a Moderation of Batam City Dprd Members

The performance of Batam City DPRD members in supervising local finances is one of the crucial aspects in the context of implementing regional autonomy, and its role is vast to control local financial policies that are economical, efficient, effective and accountable. DPRD members have different educational and occupational backgrounds before becoming DPRD members, so when elected as DPRD members, this limited knowledge and experience will be an obstacle in the supervisory function. This requires relatively more time, weak supervisory functions and knowledge of legislative members are factors that affect the performance of DPRD members in monitoring regional finances influenced by the system personally. The performance of the DPRD in carrying out the duties of the supervisory function must be optimized. This is done to know and identify the allocation of funds in the local government budget in the hope that there will be no misappropriation during budget implementation and produce good performance in supervising local finances. The study population was members of the Batam City DPRD. The sampling technique in this study is non-probability sampling with saturated sample type, obtained a sample of 50 samples from DPRD members of Batam City. The results of this study indicate that political background has a significant effect on the performance of DPRD, legislative knowledge has a significant effect on performance, and organizational commitment can moderate and strengthen the relationship between political background on DPRD performance. Organizational commitment can moderate and enhance the relationship between legislative knowledge on DPRD performance.

Characteristics of the boards of directors at firms listed on Nasdaq Baltic

The board of directors plays a pivotal role in firm governance, endorsing strategic choices, coordinating operations, ensuring regulatory compliance, and furnishing organizational support. This paper aims to examine the characteristics of the boards of directors and the guidelines for board composition in publicly listed firms in the Baltic countries. The analysis consists of two stages. The first is a quantitative investigation of the attributes of boards (board size, CEO duality, gender diversity, foreign directors, board committees, board independence, and directors’ occupational background) targeting 35 firms and 187 directors. The second is a qualitative analysis of guidelines for board composition of Nasdaq Baltic-listed firms in Estonia, Latvia, and Lithuania. The results reveal that the attributes of boards of directors do not raise concerns. Despite their relatively smaller scale in contrast to the United States or Europe, the boards of Nasdaq Baltic companies align effectively with their respective firm sizes. Notably, CEO duality is absent in Estonian and Latvian listed firms, while it is only partially evident in Lithuania. Moreover, directors’ heterogeneous professional backgrounds distinctly contribute to these boards’ overall enhancement. While the existence of board committees is strongly recommended, they are primarily implemented as a tool for controlling.

Incidence of Obesity in Kalabari Kingdom

Background: Information on the incidence of Obesity in western countries has been documented, whereas there is paucity of information in the incidence of obesity in Africa and in Nigeria in particular. This study was done to examine the rate of obesity among men and women in Kalabari between the ages of 12 to 65 with different communities taken as case study. Materials and Methods: The Body Mass Index (BMI) which is a ratio of weight per height square of a total of three hundred and four (304) subjects was studied. One hundred and eighty-seven (187) subjects were females while one hundred and seventeen (117) subjects were males. Obesity was measured by body mass index (BMI) with relative weight and height. BMI less than 18.5 was considered as underweight. BMI between 18.5 and 24.9 was considered as normal weight. BMI greater than or equal to 30 was considered as obese. Results and Discussion: Obesity increased in all sex and age groups from 12 to 65 years. Of the 104 subjects studied, 149 were considered to be obese. Relating with age group, increase in obesity was generally seen to be more in females than in males. The rate of obesity is highest in women between the ages of 31-40 with a percentage of 18.79, while the rate of obesity is highest in men between the ages of 51-65 with a percentage of 12.75. Conclusion: Body mass index, occupational background, eating habit and cultural practice (fattening room practice) have significant impact on increase of obesity.

Help! I Need Somebody: Help-Seeking Among Workers with Self-Reported Work-Related Mental Disorders.

Worker mental health has emerged as one of the most significant challenges in contemporary workplaces. Knowing what intervention is effective is important to help workers adapt to mental health disorders but connecting workers to helpful resources is just as important and perhaps more of a challenge. With the multiple stakeholders involved, mental health disorders arising in the workplace pose specific challenges to help-seeking. The present study sought to explore the lived experience of workers and the personal and contextual influences on help-seeking among workers with work-related mental health disorders. A qualitative methodology was employed utilizing purposive sampling to conduct semi-structured interviews with individuals (n = 12) from various occupational backgrounds who had experienced a work-related (self-declared) mental health disorder. A Critical Theory approach was used to inform study design and analysis. Interpretative phenomenological analysis and thematic content analysis were combined to analyze the data. Three main themes emerged including: (1) self-preservation through injury concealment and distancing themselves from workplace stressors to minimize/avoid internal and external stigma; (2) fatigue relating to complex help-seeking pathways, accumulation of stressors, eroding the worker's ability to make independent decisions regarding supports; and (3) (mis)trust contributed to resources accessed by participants. Along with internalized stigma, findings point to the important role of social identity and trust and how these are influenced by relationships and organizational contexts. Findings indicate the need to educate workplace parties such as supervisors on mental health and pathways to help, simplifying pathways to service and removing barriers to help seeking including stigmatizing behaviours. Future quantitative research and intervention development directed at workplace mental health should integrate models and frameworks emphasizing relational and organizational dimensions in help-seeking.

Examining the Associations between Service Quality, Educational Level, Occupational Background, and Patient Satisfaction in Healthcare Facilities

This study tried to examine the connection between healthcare facility quality, patient happiness, and demographic factors such as education and occupation. There is widespread agreement that patient satisfaction is a crucial metric for evaluating the effectiveness of healthcare providers. By bringing together data from a wide range of sources, this study hopes to offer a thorough evaluation. After conducting a thorough search, 26 publications were selected for inclusion in the meta-analysis. According to the results, there is a robust correlation between service quality and patient happiness. Higher patient satisfaction is linked to healthcare providers who provide high-quality services. Patients with greater education levels had a slightly higher chance of being satisfied, but the difference was not statistically significant. A similar investigation found a correlation between profession and client happiness. Patients with more prestigious backgrounds in the workforce were more satisfied overall. The research highlights the significance of providing high-quality services and adapting healthcare to the varying demands of patients from various socioeconomic backgrounds. The results of this meta-analysis have important implications for healthcare providers, administrators, and planners as they work to increase patient happiness and enhance the quality of treatment provided.