Third Of Articles Research Articles

Loneliness in Emerging Adulthood: A Scoping Review

AbstractLoneliness is prevalent during emerging adulthood (approximately 18–25 years) and is an important issue given it has been linked to poorer physical and mental health outcomes. This preregistered scoping review aimed to provide an overview of the literature on loneliness in emerging adulthood, including the (a) conceptualization and measurement of loneliness, (b) loneliness theories used, (c) risk factors and outcomes examined, (d) sex-gender differences observed, and (e) characteristics of emerging adult samples previously researched. Following the Joanna Briggs Institute (JBI) guidelines, seven electronic databases were searched for articles focused on loneliness published from 2016 to 2021, where the mean age of participants was ≥ 18 and ≤ 25 years. Of the 4068 papers screened, 201 articles were included in the final review. Findings suggest the need for a clearer consensus in the literature regarding the conceptualization of loneliness for emerging adults and more qualitative work exploring emerging adults’ subjective experiences of loneliness. Results highlight an over-reliance on cross-sectional studies. Over two thirds of articles described their sample as university students and the median percentage of females was 63.30%. Therefore, fewer cross-sectional studies using convenience samples and more population-based, longitudinal research is needed to understand the factors predicting loneliness over time, and the downstream impact of loneliness for emerging adults.

Inevitably diminished: rights of frontier workers in Northern Ireland after Brexit

Brexit has exposed a fundamental weakness in the free movement legal architecture of the European Union (EU): a failure to map out the complexities arising from different configurations of frontier work, despite its prevalence – almost one third of article 45 (of the Treaty on the Functioning of the EU) workers commute across borders. However, EU legislation on free movement is generally written with those in mind who work and reside in a member state not of their own nationality, with frontier work an afterthought. Brexit has exposed the problems of this approach, especially at the EU land border on the island of Ireland. This article argues that there are frontier-work-sized ‘gaps’ in the Citizens’ Rights chapter of the United Kingdom/EU Withdrawal Agreement and weighs up the capacity of three potential sources to plug them: the Common Travel Area; the Trade and Cooperation Agreement; and the Protocol on Ireland/Northern Ireland. What emerges is a picture of a legislature at best ignoring or, at worst, not fully cognisant of the differences between and significance of various configurations of frontier work. The Withdrawal Agreement addresses some of these, but not others. Even those who successfully apply for and hold ‘frontier worker’ status post-Brexit risk losing or not being able to regain it – amounting to a ‘diminution’ of rights potentially contrary to the Protocol on Ireland/Northern Ireland’s article 2. These problems not only indicate shortcomings in drafting but also flag up a lesson for the EU: it is time to address the taxonomy of frontier workers and protect their rights so they do not slip through the cracks of EU free movement law.

Is the Effect Larger in Group A or B? It Depends: Understanding Results From Nonlinear Probability Models.

Demographers and other social scientists often study effect heterogeneity (defined here as differences in outcome-predictor associations across groups defined by the values of a third variable) to understand how inequalities evolve between groups or how groups differentially benefit from treatments. Yet answering the question "Is the effect larger in group A or group B?" is surprisingly difficult. In fact, the answer sometimes reverses across scales. For example, researchers might conclude that the effect of education on mortality is larger among women than among men if they quantify education's effect on an odds-ratio scale, but their conclusion might flip (to indicate a larger effect among men) if they instead quantify education's effect on a percentage-point scale. We illuminate this flipped-signs phenomenon in the context of nonlinear probability models, which were used in about one third of articles published in Demography in 2018-2019. Although methodologists are aware that flipped signs can occur, applied researchers have not integrated this insight into their work. We provide formal inequalities that researchers can use to easily determine if flipped signs are a problem in their own applications. We also share practical tips to help researchers handle flipped signs and, thus, generate clear and substantively correct descriptions of effect heterogeneity. Our findings advance researchers' ability to accurately characterize population variation.

Smartphone English Language Learning Challenges: A Systematic Literature Review

Innovations and advancements in modern technologies have induced changes in every sphere of human activity, including education. Smartphones represent modern, state-of-the-art gadgets which aim at fostering the teaching and learning process of EFL (English as a foreign language) learners. Students may experience and enjoy considerable benefits of these smart devices such as ubiquity, portability, around the clock availability, or numerous technological features. Despite offering overwhelming advantages to language learners, both students and teachers need to take into account challenges they often meet and face. Being in its infancy, this phenomenon appears to be underexplored since majority of studies focus on benefits of mobile learning rather than on challenges. Concentrating on pitfalls, this review article attempts to examine original, peer-reviewed research articles written on smartphone English language learning challenges by reviewing pertinent articles in the two acknowledged databases, Scopus and Web of Science. The research results reveal that the reviewed studies contain identified drawbacks to varying degrees, while approximately one third of articles did not present any challenges. The detected pitfalls, such as smaller dimensions of smartphones, Internet connectivity issues, readiness level of both practitioners and learners, or unbalanced development of the four language skills (listening, reading, writing, speaking), are further addressed and discussed, followed by suggesting the possible solutions to these issues. Finally, it is emphasized that further research needs to be conducted in this regard to shed more light on challenges that both students and practitioners need to tackle.

A content analysis of newspaper coverage of maternal mortality from 2010-2019

ABSTRACT Pregnancy-related death, the death of a woman during or within one year after pregnancy, is between three and four times more likely to occur in Black women than White women. To better understand communication about this public health crisis, we examined features of news coverage on maternal mortality in 155 newspaper articles. Very few articles included a clear definition of the problem, and only about a third mentioned that these deaths are largely preventable. Additionally, 61% referenced the racial disparity, but within those, most did not discuss substantive causes of inequities. In terms of message features, about one third of articles used a patient narrative, with less than 10% referencing a celebrity’s patient experience. Very few (5%) articles included information about the history of mistreatment of Black patients in American health care. Together, the findings suggest current newspaper coverage does not effectively address social determinants of maternal health outcomes.

Nudging fisheries and aquaculture research towards food systems

AbstractFood system is a powerful concept for understanding and responding to nutrition and sustainability challenges. Food systems integrate social, economic, environmental and health aspects of food production through to consumption. Aquatic foods are an essential part of food systems providing an accessible source of nutrition for millions of people. Yet, it is unclear to what degree research across diverse disciplines concerning aquatic foods has engaged food systems, and the value this concept has added. We conducted a systematic review of fisheries, aquaculture and aquatic food literature (2017–2019) to determine the following: the characteristics of this research; the food systems components and interrelations with which research engaged; and the insights generated on nutrition, justice, sustainability and climate change. Sixty five of the 88 reviewed articles focussed on production and supply chains, with 23 considering human nutrition. Only 13% of studies examined low‐ and middle‐income countries that are most vulnerable to undernutrition. One third of articles looked beyond finfish to other aquatic foods, which illuminated values of local knowledge systems and diverse foods for nutrition. When aggregated, reviewed articles examined the full range of food system drivers—biophysical and environmental (34%), demographic (24%) and socio‐cultural (27%)—but rarely examined interactions between drivers. Future research that examines a diversity of species in diets, system‐wide flows of nutrients, trade‐offs amongst objectives, and the nutritional needs of vulnerable social groups would be nudging closer to the ambitions of the food systems concept, which is necessary to address the global challenges of equity, nutrition and sustainability.

Fuel to the fire? Newspaper reporting of sexual offending across the US, UK, Norway, and New Zealand

Research suggests that the news media plays an important role in shaping public opinion about sex crimes and the people who commit them, thereby influencing the development of laws and policies. The media has potential to fuel non-evidence-based policies that are ineffective and counterproductive. Alternatively, the media offers a powerful vehicle for educating the public and promoting evidence-based practices and policies. The current study aimed to examine newspaper reports of sexual crimes across four countries with different criminal justice responses to sexual offending. Constructed week sampling was used to generate samples of newspaper articles over a six-month period in 2015. Episodic articles were coded to examine how people accused/charged with sexual offenses were portrayed, the extent to which articles aligned with stereotypes, and the extent to which rehabilitation was mentioned as a solution (n = 240). Episodic and thematic articles were combined to code for systemic/environmental solutions to sexual crimes (n = 290). Overall, Norwegian articles demonstrated more neutral and less informative portrayals of individuals who have sexually offended, compared to US, UK, and New Zealand. At the same time, Norwegian articles were less likely to discuss solutions to sexual offending. Rehabilitation was rarely discussed as a solution. However, environmental/systemic solutions were discussed in approximately one third of articles. Implications for framing sexual abuse as a public health problem rather than a criminal justice problem are discussed.

Violations of Suicide-Prevention Guidelines in US Media Coverage of Physician's Suicide Death During the COVID-19 Pandemic.

Background: Healthcare workers are at elevated risk for suicide; though it has yet to be studied, this risk may be exacerbated by the COVID-19 pandemic. News media coverage of high-profile suicide is associated with an increased risk of subsequent suicides. No analysis has yet been published of US media practices for reporting on healthcare worker suicides during the pandemic. Aims: The researchers aimed to evaluate pandemic-era media practices by investigating adherence to best-practice suicide reporting guidelines in coverage of Dr. Lorna Breen's death. Methods: The researchers conducted a content analysis of all unique articles by top outlets reporting Dr. Breen's death between April 26 and 29, 2020, and scored them based on their adherence to the 15 best-practice suicide reporting guidelines. Results: Every media outlet violated an average of at least 5 of 15 suicide guidelines in reporting on Dr. Breen's death; some abided by as few as 2 of 15 recommended guidelines. Seven of 15 guidelines were adhered to by fewer than one third of articles. The National Suicide Prevention Lifeline number, notably easy to include, appeared in only 75% of articles. Limitations: The researchers were limited to reviewing media coverage of one specific instance of COVID-era healthcare worker suicide, making these findings applicable as a prominent case study rather than forming a generalizable claim about suicide reporting during the pandemic or about reporting on healthcare suicides. Conclusion: These violations highlight a range of opportunities to improve suicide prevention in the media, which has a responsibility to ensure reporting does not exacerbate the risk of suicide. Improved adherence to these guidelines could reduce harm for healthcare workers during the pandemic.

Patient-relevant outcomes: what are we talking about? A scoping review to improve conceptual clarity

BackgroundWith respect to patient-centered care, measuring care effects based on patient-relevant outcomes is becoming increasingly important. There is some uncertainty about what outcomes are particularly relevant to patients and who determines their relevance. To determine this, we conducted a scoping review of the international literature with the aim to improve the conceptual clarity regarding (1) the terminology used for supposedly patient-relevant outcomes, (2) the variety of outcomes considered patient-relevant, and (3) justifications for the choice of these specific outcomes.MethodsWe conducted a systematic search in Embase, PubMed (including Medline), Cochrane Central, Scopus, and Google Scholar with a special focus on article titles. Search terms included patient-relevant, patient-important, patient-preferred, and outcome(s), endpoint(s), parameter(s), indicator(s). We limited the search period from January 2000 to July 2019. Full-text articles reporting outcomes that were described as patient-relevant met the inclusion criteria. Two researchers independently analyzed all eligible articles applying quantitative and structuring content analysis.ResultsWe identified 155 articles, 44 of which met the inclusion criteria. A content analysis revealed 35 different terms used with regard to patient-relevant outcomes. However, authors predominantly referred to patient-important outcomes (23 articles, 52.3%) and patient-relevant outcomes (17 articles, 38.6%). A structuring content analysis of all extracted outcomes revealed a total of 281 codes, pooled in 32 inductive categories. Among these, the following categories dominated: symptoms, adverse events/complications, survival/mortality, pain. In just 16 of the articles (36.4%), authors provided justifications for the choice of the outcome being based either on patient and/or expert opinions. In another 13 articles (29.5%), no justification was provided.ConclusionThis scoping review on patient-relevant outcomes was driven by the questions (1) what outcomes are particularly relevant to patients, and (2) who determines their relevance. We found a wide range of supposedly patient-relevant outcomes, with only one third of articles involving patients in the justification of the outcome selection. In view of this conceptual uncertainty it appears difficult to determine or even to compare a particular patient benefit of interventions. A set of generic outcomes relevant to patients would be helpful to contribute to a consistent understanding of patient relevance.

Statistical methods and reporting practices in the study of dyslexia.

This report presents findings from a review of the journals Dyslexia and Annals of Dyslexia over a 10-year period from 2005 to 2014. Three hundred articles were reviewed to examine statistical methodology and reporting practices. Articles were coded according to their reported covariates, effect sizes, and statistical methods. In addition, trends were examined in relation to the 2008 release of the What Works Clearinghouse Procedures and Standards Handbook from the Institute of Education Sciences in order to evaluate any potential impact of recommended practices. We found an increase in prevalence of specific statistical methods as well as increases in reporting of effect sizes following publication of the handbook. The reporting of effect sizes statistically significantly increased following publication of the manual (55% prepublication vs. 72% post-publication). The use of analysis of variance increased post-publication, whereas articles using no statistical methods or descriptives only decreased. Approximately one third of articles included covariates in their analysis; inclusion of covariates was consistent from prepublication to post-publication. Findings indicate that over the past 10years, articles are becoming increasingly rigorous in methodology and reporting practices.

A Review of Qualitative Data Analysis Practices in Health Education and Health Behavior Research.

Data analysis is one of the most important, yet least understood, stages of the qualitative research process. Through rigorous analysis, data can illuminate the complexity of human behavior, inform interventions, and give voice to people's lived experiences. While significant progress has been made in advancing the rigor of qualitative analysis, the process often remains nebulous. To better understand how our field conducts and reports qualitative analysis, we reviewed qualitative articles published in Health Education & Behavior between 2000 and 2015. Two independent reviewers abstracted information in the following categories: data management software, coding approach, analytic approach, indicators of trustworthiness, and reflexivity. Of the 48 ( n = 48) articles identified, the majority ( n = 31) reported using qualitative software to manage data. Double-coding transcripts was the most common coding method ( n = 23); however, nearly one third of articles did not clearly describe the coding approach. Although the terminology used to describe the analytic process varied widely, we identified four overarching trajectories common to most articles ( n = 37). Trajectories differed in their use of inductive and deductive coding approaches, formal coding templates, and rounds or levels of coding. Trajectories culminated in the iterative review of coded data to identify emergent themes. Few articles explicitly discussed trustworthiness or reflexivity. Member checks ( n = 9), triangulation of methods ( n = 8), and peer debriefing ( n = 7) were the most common procedures. Variation in the type and depth of information provided poses challenges to assessing quality and enabling replication. Greater transparency and more intentional application of diverse analytic methods can advance the rigor and impact of qualitative research in our field.

The Open Access Availability of Articles from Highly Ranked Religious Studies Journals

Across the past decade, open access (OA) journal scholarship has seen a massive global increase. Scant research, however, has been done to examine the effect of this trend on religious studies journal scholarship. This article seeks to explore the current state of OA scholarship among journals covering religion. To examine the state of OA scholarship among journals of religious studies, the OA availability of articles from ten, peer-reviewed, religious studies journals were examined. Using the SCImago Journal & Country Rank, a portal that includes the journals and country scientific indicators developed from the information contained in the Scopus® database, the ten most highly rated journals in mid-2015, according to the SJR indicator, were selected for evaluation. Articles that appeared in the journal volumes published in 2014 were selected for analysis, and were identified through online research databases and journal websites which provided bibliographic information. Only articles and essays dealing with research were included. A total of 377 articles were included in the study. Of the 377 articles examined, OA versions were found for 132 (35%) of them. Approximately one third of articles (33.3%) were located in multiple locations, with more than half of all OA articles found (53.0%) on either Institutional or Subject repositories, or, on the social networking sites ResearchGate.net or Academia.edu. Of the total number of OA articles found, 87 (65.9%) were found by both Google and Google Scholar, and 43 (32.6%) were found by only Google or Google Scholar, but not both. The results indicate that religious studies journal scholarship is not widely archived and made available as OA, as a regular practice. Results also indicate that those scholars who publish in journals covering religious studies and who embrace open access, make strong use of either institutional or subject repositories and/or social networking sites to make their scholarship openly available. The relatively low rate of OA religious studies journal scholarship, has limited support in previous literature. While the results of this study indicate an increase in the OA availability of religious studies journal scholarship, as compared to previous findings, scholars and journals of religion still lag behind other disciplines in the output of OA research.

An Integrative Review of Nurse-Authored Research to Improve Health Equity and Human Rights for Criminal-Justice-Involved People.

An estimated 10 million people are incarcerated internationally, including 2.1 million people in the United States. Criminal justice involvement is a social determinant of individual and family health disparities. Health care in correctional and forensic psychiatric facilities is nurse driven. The unique contributions of nurse authors to the research literature on health equity and humane conditions for this population have not been aggregated, nor have the nursing research gaps in this area been systematically identified. This article determines the volume and country location of nurse-authored research in this area and analyzes the research by population (prisons, jails, community supervision, forensic psychiatry), clinical foci, and research methods. We conducted an integrative review of research literature published in English between 1990 and 2017. Our search revealed 283 data-based articles written by 349 nurse authors, representing Asia, Australia, Europe, and North and South Americas. Most research occurred in prisons (53.3%) and focused on mental health/substance use (32.5%), infectious disease (21.6%), or correctional health services (15.6%). Almost one third of articles across clinical foci sampled nurses, not patients. Although there is clearly a cadre of nurse researchers working in this area, it remains a relatively small group focused most closely on mental health, infectious disease, and the correctional nursing experience. Gaps and opportunities for important nursing contributions remain, especially in reproductive health, meeting the needs of community-supervised people, and explicitly connecting this work with its human rights implications.

A review of measures of women\u2019s empowerment and related gender constructs in family planning and maternal health program evaluations in low- and middle-income countries

BackgroundEvidence suggests that gender-integrated interventions, which actively seek to identify and integrate activities that address the role of gender norms and dynamics, improve family planning (FP) and maternal health (MH). To understand the link between the gender components of interventions and FP and MH outcomes, it is critical to examine the gender measures used in evaluations.MethodsWe conducted a systematic review of evaluations of gender-integrated FP and MH interventions in low- and middle-income countries. We examine characteristics of the interventions and their evaluations, and summarize women’s empowerment and related gender measures.ResultsOut of 16 evaluation articles, five reported the theoretical or conceptual model that guided the intervention. Twelve described how gender was quantitatively measured and identified 13 women’s empowerment and related gender constructs. Gender scales or indexes were used in five evaluations, three of which noted that their scales had been validated. Less than one third of articles reported examining the effect of gender on FP or MH.ConclusionsEvaluations of gender-integrated FP and MH interventions do not consistently describe how gender influences FP and MH outcomes or include validated gender measures within their studies. As a result, examining the pathways through which interventions empower women and the manner in which women’s empowerment leads to changes in FP and MH outcomes remains a challenge. Valid measures of commonly reported women’s empowerment and gender constructs, such as gender-equitable attitudes and women’s decision-making power, must be adapted and used within evaluations to examine how empowerment and improvements in gender-related factors can produce positive FP and MH outcomes.

Targeting Medication Non-Adherence Behavior in Selected Autoimmune Diseases: A Systematic Approach to Digital Health Program Development.

Background29 autoimmune diseases, including Rheumatoid Arthritis, gout, Crohn’s Disease, and Systematic Lupus Erythematosus affect 7.6-9.4% of the population. While effective therapy is available, many patients do not follow treatment or use medications as directed. Digital health and Web 2.0 interventions have demonstrated much promise in increasing medication and treatment adherence, but to date many Internet tools have proven disappointing. In fact, most digital interventions continue to suffer from high attrition in patient populations, are burdensome for healthcare professionals, and have relatively short life spans.ObjectiveDigital health tools have traditionally centered on the transformation of existing interventions (such as diaries, trackers, stage-based or cognitive behavioral therapy programs, coupons, or symptom checklists) to electronic format. Advanced digital interventions have also incorporated attributes of Web 2.0 such as social networking, text messaging, and the use of video. Despite these efforts, there has not been little measurable impact in non-adherence for illnesses that require medical interventions, and research must look to other strategies or development methodologies. As a first step in investigating the feasibility of developing such a tool, the objective of the current study is to systematically rate factors of non-adherence that have been reported in past research studies.MethodsGrounded Theory, recognized as a rigorous method that facilitates the emergence of new themes through systematic analysis, data collection and coding, was used to analyze quantitative, qualitative and mixed method studies addressing the following autoimmune diseases: Rheumatoid Arthritis, gout, Crohn’s Disease, Systematic Lupus Erythematosus, and inflammatory bowel disease. Studies were only included if they contained primary data addressing the relationship with non-adherence.ResultsOut of the 27 studies, four non-modifiable and 11 modifiable risk factors were discovered. Over one third of articles identified the following risk factors as common contributors to medication non-adherence (percent of studies reporting): patients not understanding treatment (44%), side effects (41%), age (37%), dose regimen (33%), and perceived medication ineffectiveness (33%). An unanticipated finding that emerged was the need for risk stratification tools (81%) with patient-centric approaches (67%).ConclusionsThis study systematically identifies and categorizes medication non-adherence risk factors in select autoimmune diseases. Findings indicate that patients understanding of their disease and the role of medication are paramount. An unexpected finding was that the majority of research articles called for the creation of tailored, patient-centric interventions that dispel personal misconceptions about disease, pharmacotherapy, and how the body responds to treatment. To our knowledge, these interventions do not yet exist in digital format. Rather than adopting a systems level approach, digital health programs should focus on cohorts with heterogeneous needs, and develop tailored interventions based on individual non-adherence patterns.

Is cannabis an illicit drug or a medicine? A quantitative framing analysis of Israeli newspaper coverage

BackgroundVarious countries and states, including Israel, have recently legalized cannabis for therapeutic purposes (CTP). These changes have received mass media coverage and prompted national and international dialogue about the status of cannabis and whether or not it can be defined as a (legitimate) medicine, illicit and harmful drug, or both. News media framing may influence, and be influenced by, public opinion regarding CTP and support for CTP license provisions for patients. This study examines the framing of CTP in Israeli media coverage and the association between media coverage and trends in the provision of CTP licenses in Israel over time. MethodsAll published news articles relevant to CTP and the framing of cannabis (N=214) from the three highest circulation newspapers in Israel were content analyzed. Articles were published between January 2007 and June 2013, a period in which CTP licenses granted by the Ministry of Health increased substantially. ResultsIn the majority of CTP news articles (69%), cannabis was framed as a medicine, although in almost one third of articles (31%) cannabis was framed as an illicit drug. The relative proportion of news items in which cannabis was framed as an illicit drug fluctuated during the study period, but was unrelated to linear or curvilinear trends in CTP licensing. ConclusionThe relatively large proportion of news items framing cannabis as a medicine is consistent with growing support for the expansion of the Israel's CTP program.

Reassuring or risky: the presentation of seafood safety in the aftermath of the British Petroleum Deepwater Horizon Oil Spill.

The BP Deepwater Horizon Oil Spill was enormously newsworthy; coverage interlaced discussions of health, economic, and environmental impacts and risks. We analyzed 315 news articles that considered Gulf seafood safety from the year following the spill. We explored reporting trends, risk presentation, message source, stakeholder perspectives on safety, and framing of safety messages. Approximately one third of articles presented risk associated with seafood consumption as a standalone issue, rather than in conjunction with environmental or economic risks. Government sources were most frequent and their messages were largely framed as reassuring as to seafood safety. Discussions of prevention were limited to short-term, secondary prevention approaches. These data demonstrate a need for risk communication in news coverage of food safety that addresses the larger risk context, primary prevention, and structural causes of risk.

Collaboration in radiography: A bibliometric analysis

IntroductionIncreasing research activity is an aim of the radiography profession, but there is a lack of knowledge of how this can be achieved. Collaboration between clinical and academic centres as well as between individuals has increased productivity in other professions and has been suggested as a strategy for radiography. This bibliometric study maps the current contribution to the radiography evidence base through a single journal. MethodAll articles published in Radiography from 1997 to 2011 were reviewed to identify collaboration trends together with article type and subject. Analysis also enabled comparison of research and publication patterns. Results706 articles were published by 1205 individual authors. 63.0% were written by UK based authors, although this varied over time. Over 80% of authors published only single article. Two thirds of articles were collaborative with an increase in clinical-academic co-authorship over the 15 years of the study. Although the majority of articles were diagnostic imaging based, the pattern mirrors the UK workforce profile. Clinicians, including clinical-academic co-authors, tend to write about clinical practice and roles, whereas academics write about a broader range of topics. ConclusionsThere has been a growth in research and scholarship within the UK radiography journal and both clinical and academic radiographers are contributing to the evidence base through increased collaboration.

Taking Stock: A Bibliometric Analysis of the Focus of Tobacco Research from the 1980s to the 2000s

Little is known about the body of tobacco research as a whole. This paper examines the changes in literature focus (1980s to 2000s) and identifies areas in need of increased attention. Tobacco articles randomly selected from searches of the MEDLINE and Web of Science databases were coded according to (1) epidemiologic framework component; (2) study focus; and (3) form of tobacco. Frequencies, cross-tabulations, and tests of proportions were conducted. The analysis was conducted in 2009. From the 1980s to the 2000s, there was a significant decrease in tobacco-related articles focusing on the "agent" and an increase in articles focusing on the "host." Few articles in either decade focused on the "environment" or on the "vector" (<10%). The percentage of study foci addressing health effects decreased, whereas prevalence/use and cessation foci increased. Approximately two thirds of articles focused on the cigarette. The nature of tobacco research has shifted from examining the links between cigarettes and disease to understanding why people smoke and how to help them quit. Proportionately more research could focus on the environment and vector components of the epidemiologic framework, to expand strategies for reducing tobacco-related disease.

Health and Medical Research in Nepal: A Bibliometric Review

This study aimed to quantify the following: (1) health research in academic journals covering Nepal, (2) location of authors, and (3) most prevalent specialties. Published health research conducted in Nepal during 1996 to May 2007 was assessed by searching from 4 electronic databases, and 631 research articles met the inclusion criteria. Only 11% was published in Nepalese journals. Most research covered urban districts. About two thirds of articles had Nepalese authors, but only 41% had a Nepalese first author. Child health and nutrition (11%), maternal health and women's health (11%), and sexual reproductive health and HIV/AIDS, and family planning (11%) were the most common topics. Most articles (78%) reported quantitative methods. The number of research articles from Nepal is fairly small and concentrated on a limited number of topics and districts. Strategic planning is required to improve the research capacity of Nepal to achieve public health improvements using locally produced evidence.