Rigid Policies Research Articles

Syphilis and pregnancy.

•Although congenital syphilis has a known etiological agent, accessible diagnosis and low-cost, effective treatment with low fetal toxicity, it continues to challenge obstetric and antenatal care services. •The increasing rates of syphilis in the general population have direct repercussions on the increase in cases of congenital syphilis, a situation of objective interest for public health. •Although transforming the recording of syphilis and congenital syphilis into notifiable diseases improved the records and has made it possible to measure the occurrence of these diseases and create solutions, no effects on reducing their frequency have been reached yet. •The failure to control syphilis/congenital syphilis is multifactorial, and associates variables that range from the deficiency in teaching about these diseases in schools and in the training system of the various health professional segments, as well as the lack of rigid policies for quality control from antenatal care until the clinical follow-up of children exposed to Treponema pallidum during pregnancy. •To date, benzathine penicillin is the only antimicrobial accepted as effective by the main health authorities on the planet for the treatment of syphilis in pregnant women. •The fear of anaphylaxis in response to the treatment of syphilis with benzathine penicillin is an important factor hindering the prompt and correct treatment of pregnant women with syphilis, even though health authorities have made efforts to face the problem with solid arguments, still insufficient to resolve the question. •Although specific protocols are published, the failure to control the treatment of syphilis in pregnant women is still observed with high frequency, indicating and reinforcing a failure in the quality control of these care principles. The National Specialized Commission on Infectious Diseases of the Brazilian Federation of Gynecology and Obstetrics Associations (Febrasgo) endorses this document. Content production is based on scientific evidence on the proposed topic and the results presented contribute to clinical practice.

Revisiting the Pasinetti Index: Understanding Its Cyclical and Long-Term Features and Its Important Implications for Macroeconomic Policy

ABSTRACT This article explores the long-term and cyclical effects of the Pasinetti Index (PI) and their implications for income distribution and macroeconomic policy in a post-pandemic environment marked by inflationary pressures and increasingly restrictive central bank policies. It discusses the relevance of adopting a zero PI as monetary policy framework as either a short-term target or a long-term norm. The research underscores the importance of coordinating monetary and fiscal policies to achieve a balanced mix of short-term and long-term macroeconomic goals, as per the Pasinetti rule, aimed at stabilizing income distribution between rentier and non-rentier groups without compromising on a Keynesian full employment commitment. By analyzing historical data and employing a SVAR model for Canada and the United States, the study highlights the significant cyclical impact of PI fluctuations on unemployment and income distribution. The findings challenge the efficacy of rigid monetary policy rules and support a macroeconomic policy that reconciles short-term employment objectives and long-term distributional goals.

Off the Guardrails: Opportunities and Caveats for Name Image Likeness and the [Student] Athlete Influencer

The landscape of college athletics is undergoing a seismic shift with the advent of Name, Image, and Likeness (“NIL”) opportunities for student-athletes. In Off the Guardrails: Opportunities and Caveats for Name Image Likeness and the [Student] Athlete Influencer, Professor Maureen A. Weston examines the evolving terrain, tracing the journey from the National Collegiate Athletic Association’s (“NCAA’s”) rigid amateurism policies to the current era of NIL legislation and its implications. This Article navigates the complex intersection of athlete empowerment, entrepreneurial ventures, and regulatory challenges, shedding light on the multifaceted opportunities and risks for athletes in the burgeoning NIL market. Delving into the heart of the matter, Weston dissects the dynamics of NIL dealmaking, unveiling the potential windfalls and pitfalls awaiting collegiate student-athletes. From the allure of financial independence to the specter of predatory practices and regulatory ambiguities, the author uncovers the intricate tapestry of concerns surrounding the NIL framework. Drawing on insights from legal, regulatory, and ethical perspectives, Off the Guardrails offers a roadmap for those navigating this uncharted territory, exploring avenues for policy reform, regulatory harmonization, and athlete welfare safeguards in the quest for a balanced and equitable future for student-athlete influencers.

Keeping an Eye Out for Change: Anxiety Disrupts Adaptive Resolution of Policy Uncertainty

BackgroundHuman learning unfolds under uncertainty. Uncertainty is heterogeneous with different forms exerting distinct influences on learning. While one can be uncertain about what to do to maximize rewarding outcomes, known as policy uncertainty, one can also be uncertain about general world knowledge, known as epistemic uncertainty (EU). In complex and naturalistic environments such as the social world, adaptive learning may hinge on striking a balance between attending to and resolving each type of uncertainty. Prior work illustrates that people with anxiety—those with increased threat and uncertainty sensitivity—learn less from aversive outcomes, particularly as outcomes become more uncertain. How does a learner adaptively trade-off between attending to these distinct sources of uncertainty to successfully learn about their social environment? MethodsWe developed a novel eye-tracking method to capture highly granular estimates of policy uncertainty and EU based on gaze patterns and pupil diameter (a physiological estimate of arousal). ResultsThese empirically derived uncertainty measures revealed that humans (N = 94) flexibly switched between resolving policy uncertainty and EU to adaptively learn about which individuals can be trusted and which should be avoided. However, those with increased anxiety (n = 49) did not flexibly switch between resolving policy uncertainty and EU and instead expressed less uncertainty overall. ConclusionsCombining modeling and eye-tracking techniques, we show that altered learning in people with anxiety emerged from an insensitivity to policy uncertainty and rigid choice policies, leading to maladaptive behaviors with untrustworthy people.

Mangrove management practices, policies, and impacts in New Guinea

Mangrove forests of the island of New Guinea are some of the largest and most diverse in the Asia-Pacific region. Located across Indonesia and Papua New Guinea, these forests are relatively undisturbed compared to the surrounding regions. However, mangroves here face rising pressures by coastal development (aquaculture, agriculture, and settlements) and natural resource extraction (forestry, oil and gas exploration, and unsustainable fishery practices). This study synthesises the current state of mangroves and compares differences in management practices and policies between Indonesian New Guinea and Papua New Guinea. Through a Driver-Pressure-State-Impact-Response framework analysis, we found that peripheral or watershed drivers such as logging upstream, agriculture (including oil palm), oil and gas, and mining, could cause substantial pressure on the mangroves. In Indonesia, there are rigid policies and practices regulating each driver. However, overlapping, and contradicting regulations often do not acknowledge other land uses within the same area, which limits policy implementation. Papua New Guinea's coastal regulations encounters similar difficulties, with additional issues of delegating decision making to local administrations. Management practices such as national scale emissions accounting and Integrated Coastal Zone Management plans need to prioritize regulating the peripheral and internal drivers to maintain mangrove ecosystem services. Challenges for implementation include fragmented management, scarce capacity building and lack of data for decision making. Sustained funding for local coordination among managing agencies and data collection is key for a successful mangrove management.

Water Tower Home transformation: bottom-up urban regeneration through a reality TV show

The article examines Wutopia Lab’s transformation of the Water Tower Home (shuita zhijia, also know as ‘House on the House’), a top-floor unit of a residential building converted from a water tower located in a Bulinli lilong neighbourhood in Shanghai. In 2015, the top-floor unit was transformed into a three-bedroom apartment, which was featured in a popular reality TV show Dream Home. Using the concept of ‘raumplan’ as the primary design strategy, the design deploys various heights and platforms to re-organise the internal space while largely maintaining the exterior appearance of the building. It deliberately avoided homogeneous visual control and accommodated the residents’ complex functional requirements within a highly restricted space. The research scrutinises various actors’ involvement during the production of the reality TV show and the transformation process. It highlights how the design team navigated the stakeholders’ complex needs and the rigid yet ambiguous policy related to the regeneration of Shanghai’s unofficial urban heritage. By reflecting upon the various formal and informal design practices in this structure and its eventual demolition, the article illustrates the dilemmas in bottom-up regeneration of the historic urban environment in contemporary China.

Structural and social changes due to the COVID-19 pandemic and their impact on engagement in substance use disorder treatment services: a qualitative study among people with a recent history of injection drug use in Baltimore, Maryland

BackgroundSubstance use disorder treatment and recovery support services are critical for achieving and maintaining recovery. There are limited data on how structural and social changes due to the COVID-19 pandemic impacted individual-level experiences with substance use disorder treatment-related services among community-based samples of people who inject drugs.MethodsPeople with a recent history of injection drug use who were enrolled in the community-based AIDS Linked to the IntraVenous Experience study in Baltimore, Maryland participated in a one-time, semi-structured interview between July 2021 and February 2022 about their experiences living through the COVID-19 pandemic (n = 28). An iterative inductive coding process was used to identify themes describing how structural and social changes due to the COVID-19 pandemic affected participants’ experiences with substance use disorder treatment-related services.ResultsThe median age of participants was 54 years (range = 24–73); 10 (36%) participants were female, 16 (57%) were non-Hispanic Black, and 8 (29%) were living with HIV. We identified several structural and social changes due the pandemic that acted as barriers and facilitators to individual-level engagement in treatment with medications for opioid use disorder (MOUD) and recovery support services (e.g., support group meetings). New take-home methadone flexibility policies temporarily facilitated engagement in MOUD treatment, but other pre-existing rigid policies and practices (e.g., zero-tolerance) were counteracting barriers. Changes in the illicit drug market were both a facilitator and barrier to MOUD treatment. Decreased availability and pandemic-related adaptations to in-person services were a barrier to recovery support services. While telehealth expansion facilitated engagement in recovery support group meetings for some participants, other participants faced digital and technological barriers. These changes in service provision also led to diminished perceived quality of both virtual and in-person recovery support group meetings. However, a facilitator of recovery support was increased accessibility of individual service providers (e.g., counselors and Sponsors).ConclusionsStructural and social changes across several socioecological levels created new barriers and facilitators of individual-level engagement in substance use disorder treatment-related services. Multilevel interventions are needed to improve access to and engagement in high-quality substance use disorder treatment and recovery support services among people who inject drugs.

DEFICITS IN THE IMPLEMENTATION OF SUSTAINABLE DEVELOPMENT POLICY IN THE PERM KRAI MUNICIPALITIES: CASES OF KRASNOKAMSK AND NYTVA URBAN DISTRICTS

The article is devoted to the analysis of limitations and deficits within the framework of the administrative implementation of sustainable development policy at the municipal level (using the examples of municipalities of the Perm Krai - Nytva urban district and Krasnokamsk urban district). The key research methods are sociological survey techniques: expert interviews, interviews with representatives of municipal authorities and the municipal public. The results of the study partially confirmed the main theoretical hypotheses. Deficits of human and material resources are among the key factors limiting the implementation of sustainable development policy in the municipalities under study. A number of additional factors of administrative, financial, and legal nature are also significant limitations. Rigid vertical administrative policy has an indirect effect, and the hypothesis in this regard was only partially confirmed.

The Impact of a Common Currency on the European Union

This study examines the ramifications of adopting a common currency within the European Union (EU), focusing on introducing the euro. Initially prompted by optimistic expectations of economic stimulation and balanced budgets, the research critically assesses the economic, trade, and policy dimensions associated with a unified currency. Utilizing Mundell's optimal currency regions concept, the methodology establishes prerequisites for a successful monetary union, emphasizing vulnerability to macroeconomic shocks, labor market flexibility, and intra-regional commerce. Findings reveal that while a common currency eliminates foreign exchange expenses, reduces uncertainty in bilateral exchange rates, and facilitates investments, member states must sacrifice autonomy in monetary and exchange rate policies. The advantages include streamlined cross-border payments, enhanced trade, and improved movement of labor and products, while the drawbacks involve rigid monetary policies and limitations on policy tailoring to specific economic conditions.
 To maximize benefits, the research proposes measures such as deepening economic integration, ensuring macroeconomic stability, and promoting political unity. The study emphasizes the importance of sound economic policies to complement the adoption of a common currency and mitigate potential challenges. In conclusion, the research offers a comprehensive understanding of the advantages and disadvantages associated with a common currency in the EU, providing a roadmap for effective navigation and suggesting interventions to ensure successful implementation.

Cultivating critical race theory awareness with secondary pre‐service teachers through examination of Black Lives Matter‐themed literature

AbstractThis study documents secondary pre‐service teachers (PSTs) who examined Black Lives Matter (BLM)‐themed young adult literature (YAL) embedded in contemporary realistic fiction and graphic novels, as part of coursework for an online YAL course required for secondary teacher certification. An analysis of instructor mentoring, online discussions, literature evaluations, and interviews demonstrates enhanced awareness of the need to implement BLM‐themed literature, against the grain of rigid curricular requirements and policies that ban critical race theory (CRT) dialogue in numerous school districts. Moreover, PSTs identified these texts as a source to guide CRT to raise awareness of the history and permanence of systemic racism and its influence on contemporary society and the implementation of culturally relevant literature.

Interdisciplinary collaboration in the diagnostic practice of the Integrated Youth Care in Flanders: A focus group study

Background: In 2020, the Flemish Centre of Excellence in Diagnostics (Kwaliteitscentrum voor Diagnostiek vzw) published the General Intersectoral Guidelines for Diagnostics (GIGD). The goal of the GIGD is to aid professionals working in different (mental) health care sectors in Flanders to implement high-quality diagnostic processes. The GIGD defines high-quality diagnostic processes by naming and explaining seven important practices. It is unclear, however, how the GIGD impacted the diagnostic field since its publication and to what extent the practices are implemented. Therefore, this study examined how one of those practices, namely interdisciplinary collaboration, is used in the Integrated Youth Care in Flanders and what the needs are to strengthen this practice further. 
 Methods: Focus groups were organized with professionals in diagnostics working in nine organisations of the Integrated Youth Care in Flanders, among which centers of mental health care, rehabilitation, developmental disability, student guidance, pediatric psychiatry, etc. The number of participants of each organisation ranged from 1 to 15, with no participants from the centers of pediatric psychiatry. In total, 65 professionals participated. In each focus group, an introduction in the GIGD was followed by a structured discussion about the way in which diagnostic processes are carried out in each organisation and how interdisciplinary collaboration is present and which difficulties are met during the process. 
 Results: Participants from all organisations agree that interdisciplinary collaboration is at the heart of good diagnostic trajectories within their own organisation. Important features concern the inclusion of multiple and diverse viewpoints in an interdisciplinary team with members from different backgrounds and levels of experience; a trusting atmosphere to discuss and promote different opinions; time and resources to allow an in-depth discussion; an (external) supervisor to moderate and guide group processes. Participants further highlight the importance of continuous and joint care across organisations in Child- and Youth care. However, several pitfalls were addressed, which seem hard to overcome, such as a lack of trust due to incomplete and erroneous knowledge about each other's professional operations, endless waiting lists thwarting appropriate continuation of care, and rigid policy requirements and restrictions. 
 Conclusion: All participating organisations understand the importance of interdisciplinary collaboration as a prerequisite for high-quality diagnostic processes and integrated care and long for more collaboration. However, several pitfalls and obstacles complicate matters. There is need for practical guidelines, information dissemination, workshops and intervisions, financial aid and more leeway in intersectoral endeavors to help professionals overcome these obstacles.

On the effectiveness of the interest rate channel within inflation targeting in Ukraine: a VAR approach

Assessing the effectiveness of the inflation targeting framework via the interest rate channel remains crucial in the current monetary policy debate. For Ukraine, the relevance of this discussion is enhanced by the adoption by the National Bank of a rigid inflation targeting policy since 2016, as well as by the challenges of price stability during war. The aim of the study is to identify how the discount rate affects the money market rates and how this affects inflation in Ukraine. Employing a VAR model on monthly data spanning 2016 – Q1 2022, the analysis demonstrates weak empirical evidence for the interest rate channel effectiveness. The impulse response indicates that the discount rate’s initial effect does not provide long-term inflation dynamics control. Variance decomposition analysis highlights the minimal influence of the NBU’s discount rate, primarily evident in the refinancing rate, followed by its impact on the rate of term deposits made by individuals, followed by the inflation, followed by the rate of new loans granted to residents, and finally the rate of government bond yields. Addressing the limitations of a rigid inflation targeting approach, the study recommends adopting a balanced approach, considering both price stability supported by exchange rate control measures and fostering economic growth. Additionally, a viable strategy for deepening the financial sector should be developed.

Detection and quantification of corn starch and wheat flour as adulterants in milk powder by near- and mid-infrared spectroscopy coupled with chemometric routines

Adulterating foods, such as milk powder (MP), is a common practice in countries with no rigid policy on food quality control. This study employs Fourier transform near-infrared and mid-infrared (FT-NIR, FT-MIR) spectroscopy and chemometric analysis to detect milk powder adulteration with corn starch (CS) and wheat flour (WF) from 0.00 to 30.00% w/w concentrations. Partial least square regression (PLSR) models were developed, optimized, and compared to quantify corn starch and wheat flour adulterations. According to the results, the root mean square error prediction (RMSEP) for FT-NIR and FT-MIR in corn starch was 0.74 and 1.69% w/w and 0.82 and 2.63% w/w for wheat flour, respectively. FT-NIR spectroscopy, rather than FT-MIR coupled with the appropriate chemometrics models represents a more valuable tool for simple, rapid, and nondestructive detection of adulterants in milk powder. The recent availability of portable instruments, combined with suitable chemometric tools, makes it possible to discriminate adulterated food samples in situ.

Litigating Policy Drift: Frozen Categories and Thresholds in Court

The combination of rigid policy rules with shifting political, economic, and social environments can produce drift: policy change without formal modification. We know much about the political origins and consequences of drift but little about the legal battles that accelerate or impede it. I identify two distinct forms of policy rigidity that generate drift: interval freezing and categorical freezing. Drawing from recent and historical cases encompassing voting rights, racial discrimination, religious conscience protections, and other hot-button issues, I argue that drifting policies possess several sources of legal resilience: injuries are difficult to identify; judges can be persuaded of the merits of restraint, textual formalism, and bright-line rules; and policy makers plausibly deny any intentional action in pursuit of controversial outcomes. Drift is not an automatic and unremarkable process of continual policy change but rather the outcome of high-stakes political and legal contestation over how rigid policy thresholds and categories should be adapted to meet shifting conditions.

RETRACTED: An enhanced consortium blockchain diversity mining technique for IoT metadata aggregation

Over the last two decades, Internet of Things (IoT) networks have grown exponentially. Although the devices have relatively low memory, resource, and processing capability, the trend is that nodes generate a large volume of data. That is where cloud technology comes into play to provide storage space. Because of its centralized nature and robustness, a large network operating with cloud assistance may be vulnerable. Due to rigid access control policies, the devices may be vulnerable to malicious activity. On the other hand, cloud technology provides a platform for such a security system to operate. A centralized secure architecture fails to consider mobile and edge devices within the context of these criteria. This raises numerous concerns about trusting third-party cloud intermediaries, which cause security and privacy leaks. The goal of this research is to look into the problem of blockchain consensus algorithms and their applicability in IoT with cloud-native infrastructure in the Ethereum and MultiChain variants. The significant challenge is scaling the core layer without sacrificing decentralization, security, or public verifiability. This type of testbed is used to investigate the impact of architectural design and consensus models in a lightweight IoT environment. Consensus in each IoT transaction remains the most important aspect of blockchain-enabled IoT networks. When the ledger is updated without privacy protection, transaction-oriented breaches can occur. Current practices for integrating finite IoT network resources into infrastructure-oriented blockchain implementations are flawed due to they are willing to sacrifice data security and integrity in order to save time and energy. This encourages researchers to investigate an improved lightweight block verification approach to the blockchain functional framework, that decreases processing needs, network latency, and network overhead substantially. As a result, the layer-3 consensus promotes blockchain to include the block with a 35% improvement in base layer block time efficiency and a 56% increase in throughput.

Identifying the strengths, weaknesses, opportunities and threats (SWOT) of return-of-service bursary schemes for health workforce capacity: a qualitative study of Botswana, Lesotho and Eswatini

BackgroundInvesting in training citizens in return for service is a strategy used by Botswana, Eswatini and Lesotho to strengthen their health workforce. These strategies, known as return-of service (RoS) schemes,...

Knowledge Base for Classroom Preparedness: Analyzing Initial English Language Teacher Education in Kyrgyzstan

This study examines the extent to which the Initial English Language Teacher Education (IELTE) program curriculum facilitates the development of the necessary knowledge base to ensure prospective English language teachers’ classroom preparedness. Data were collected through curricular analysis of four IELTE programs and semi-structured interviews with four program directors and 10 early career English teachers to evaluate IELTE program effectiveness to prepare teachers, at least, entry-level teaching. Findings indicate that contextual factors such as rigid national policy documents, teacher educators’ limited competencies and their role in curriculum development and implementation, the status of the IELTE programs within the universities, lack of collaboration between IELTE programs and schools contributed to the inefficiency of IELTE programs to ensure prospective English teachers’ classrooms preparedness. Thus, English teachers were not prepared to carry out their jobs effectively because the knowledge base that prospective teachers acquire and develop through the IELTE program did not correspond to what they need in their classrooms for effective teaching.

Cross-Cultural Mobility and Agency in Assessing the Appropriateness of Child Supervision in the Context of Cultural Diversity and Migration in Quebec

Confusion over what constitutes appropriate childrearing practices in culturally diverse settings may result in the stigmatization of ethnic minority families and over-reporting to child welfare services. This study explored stakeholders’ views on (in)adequate supervision across cultural and socioeconomic groups and how they assess the risk of harm in cases of lack of supervision. Focus group discussions were held with (a) adult caregivers (n = 39) and adolescents (n = 63) in family-based care from French-speaking Quebecers and migrants from Latin America, the Caribbean, and South Asia; and (b) professionals (n = 67) in the education, health, child welfare, and security sectors in Quebec. The main criteria used to assess the appropriateness of supervision were the maturity, level of ability, age, and sex of the child, as well as contextual factors, such as proximity of other people, location, and type and duration of the activity. Mobility and immobility notions are used to explore the developmental considerations of competence and readiness within the home and in other social environments where adults’ and children’s perceptions of safety and maturity may differ, as well as the need to move away from rigid policy implementation. This paper advocates for careful consideration of the capacity and agency of children affected by migration in the provision of childcare support and their meaningful participation in research and decision making in matters that affect them.

Measuring the Construction Efficiency of Zero-Waste City Clusters Based on an Undesirable Super-Efficiency Model and Kernel Density Estimation Method

The global total amount of generated solid waste is currently on a rapid growth trend. China, as the largest developing country, promulgated its Pilot Work Plan for the Construction of Zero-Waste Cities led by the new development concept in 2018 after recognizing the inadequacy and urgency of solid waste management, and the lack of valuable experience and benchmark cities for the construction of zero-waste cities. This study uses the undesirable super-efficiency model and kernel density estimation method to measure the efficiency of zero-waste city construction in 16 prefecture-level cities in Shandong Province and analyze their spatial and temporal differences. Three major problems were found, namely, low regional coordination, the rigid policies of some local governments, and the unbalanced development of scale efficiency and pure technical efficiency. Results show that the zero-waste city construction efficiency as a whole shows a declining and then fluctuating growth trend, and that low-scale efficiency is the main reason behind the decrease in construction efficiency. Suggestions are then provided considering three aspects: improving regional synergy; improving government quality and capacity, and strengthening government supervision and revitalizing the market; and introducing social capital for environmental pollution treatment. These suggestions ultimately help improve the level of zero-waste city construction.

Energy transition awareness: Can it guide local transition planning on islands?

The consequences of climate change and reduced energy security are becoming increasingly apparent, especially on islands. At the same time, the energy transition is quickly spreading and its value to society becoming clearer. Two main obstacles to this transition, rigid policy and lack of local understanding, are particularly troubling on islands, where national policies often aren't flexible enough to consider local particularities and residents are exposed to different energy realities from those on the mainland. Using exploratory interviews and a survey on four islands, this article considers island residents' awareness of energy transition concepts and presents how it interacts with, and is potentially influenced by, relevant energy policies at the national level. The paper presents the comparative results for the geographically, demographically and climatologically diverse islands of Gotland (Sweden), Lesvos (Greece), La Réunion (France) and Mallorca (Spain) to focus on European island energy transitions. Differences were noted between the islands' residents with regards to awareness of and willingness to use specific energy transition tools or to join activities like energy communities. Additionally, differences were noted between the islands for what was the most important reason to consider when using demand response, though ‘Ease of use’ was important across all. The potential reasons for differences among the islands are discussed and suggestions to increase consumer engagement with energy transition activities on islands are given. Overall, the results show that while awareness of energy concepts isn't greater on these European islands, interest in prospective transition actions was high and provide an opportunity for planners to capitalize on. However, if there are potential policy obstacles, these higher levels of interest cannot ensure higher levels of willingness to engage. Taken together, these two findings indicate the potential for an acceleration of transition activity on these islands, and potentially beyond, should engagement with island residents be increased along with review, and amendment of policies impeding it.