Western Countries Research Articles

ОСОБЛИВОСТІ СПРИЙМАННЯ ОКУПОВАНИХ МІСТ В УМОВАХ ВІЙНИ

Purpose of the article is to empirically determine the peculiarities of perception of occupied cities under the stress of war. Methods. To achieve this goal, the author's questionnaire “Characteristics of Perception of Occupied, Frequently Shelled and Relatively Safe Cities of Ukraine” was used, as well as psychodiagnostic methods aimed at determining: coping strategies by R. Lazarus; stress level by V. Shcherbatykh; anxiety by C. Spielberger. The methods of statistical data processing were correlation and comparative analysis. The group of respondents consisted of 148 citizens of Ukraine (23 men, 125 women) aged 14 to 57 years, who at the time of the study (in 2023) were in 19 different regions of Ukraine and in European countries. Results. The respondents showed a high degree of stress and confrontation coping strategy, as well as its connection with the subjective experience of the value of cities, their emotional significance and “ourness”. The subjective value of the occupied cities is interconnected with the attribution of suffering to their inhabitants, the tragic nature of events in them, and their perceptual value. Gender differences have been identified: women attribute a relatively higher level of “ourness”, emotional significance and value to all Ukrainian cities than men. Women are characterized by a higher level of tragedy in the perception of all the cities assessed; they are more likely to use such coping strategies as distancing, escape, seeking social support, and positive reassessment than men. Differences in stress levels were also found: this level is paradoxically lower among residents of regions closer to the front line than among residents of western regions and people abroad. Residents of the western regions of Ukraine have a lower level of attributed “belongingness” to occupied and de-occupied cities. Conclusions. Experiencing the stress of war and the confrontation coping strategy actualized by it are related to the peculiarities of perception of the occupied cities. They are perceived as tragic, subjectively valuable, and spatially larger. Women ascribe a higher level of “ourness” and emotional significance to all Ukrainian cities and at the same time show a greater variety of coping strategies than men. Residents of the regions close to the front line have lower overall levels of stress and its physical signs than Ukrainian citizens from the western regions and European countries. Residents of the western regions of Ukraine have a lower level of attributed “belongingness” to both occupied and de-occupied cities.

Temporality in the United Nations 2030 Agenda: development or rupture?

Time is a constitutive element of the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development of the United Nations (UN). This article analyses how the 2030 Agenda articulates time – i.e. how its discourse connects past, present and future. This analysis shows how the agenda partially breaks with the 19th-century evolutionist assumptions that pervaded previous UN development policies and strategies. On the one hand, the 2030 Agenda implicitly assumes that a historical rupture is needed to shift the world towards a sustainable path in order to avert a civilisational crisis, and that the history of modern, industrialised Western countries is no longer exemplary in this respect. On the other hand, the 2030 Agenda fails to integrate the need for a historical rupture consequentially: it falls into contradictions and continues to replicate the linear logics that caused the very problems that the agenda aims to solve. ‘Development or rupture?’ seems to be the troublesome and difficult dilemma that haunts the UN’s endeavour to transform the world.

AURKB and circAURKB_288aa enhance Esophageal cancer drug resistance through inducing abnormal centrosome separation

Esophageal cancer (EC) is one of the most fatal malignancies worldwide, with a dramatic increase in incidence in the western world occurring over the past few decades. Chromosome instability (CIN) is a major contributor to EC progression, drug resistance, relapse, and the development of intratumoral heterogeneity. This study revealed a striking elevation of AURKB expression in EC patients, with a strong correlation to poor clinical outcomes. AURKB overexpression promoted cellular proliferation and induced drug resistance in both cell culture and animal models. Conversely, genetic targeting of AURKB abrogated these effects. Mechanistically, enforced AURKB expression triggered CIN, a key driver of poor EC outcomes, primarily through CEP250 phosphorylation. Interestingly, we identified a novel circular form of AURKB (circAURKB_288aa) harboring the AURKB kinase domain and encoding a 288-amino acid protein. Elevated levels of circAURKB_288aa in EC peripheral blood samples mirrored poor patient outcomes and synergistically enhanced CIN alongside AURKB. Furthermore, EC cells were capable of secreting circAURKB_288aa, influencing tumor microenvironmental cells similarly to full-length AURKB protein. Notably, AURKB siRNA targeting the shared kinase domain of both AURKB and circAURKB_288aa significantly inhibited EC malignancy. Collectively, these findings establish AURKB and circAURKB_288aa as promising targets for EC prognosis and therapy

Current View on How Human Gut Microbiota Mediate Metabolic and Pharmacological Activity of Panax ginseng. A Scoping Review.

Panax ginseng is one of the most important remedies in ancient Eastern medicine. In the modern Western world, its reputation started to grow towards the end of the XIX century, but the rather approximate understanding of action mechanisms did not provide sufficient information for an appropriate use. Nowadays, Panax ginseng is frequently used in some pathological conditions, but the comprehension of its potential beneficial effects is still incomplete. The purpose of this study is to highlight the most recent knowledge on mechanisms and effects of ginseng active ingredients on the intestinal microbiota. The human microbiota takes part in the immune and metabolic balance and serves as the most important regulator for the control of local pathogens. This delicate role requires a complex interaction and reflects the interconnection with the brainand the liver-axes. Thus, by exerting their beneficial effects through the intestinal microbiota, the active ingredients of Panax ginseng (glycosides and their metabolites) might help to ameliorate both specific intestinal conditions as well as the whole organism's homeostasis.

USA: Political Elites Fragmentation and Russian-American Dialogue Prospects

Over the past 30–35 years, the United States has seen an increase in research into the role and transformation of American elites, including the political elite. In the second half of the 20th century, in the context of a bipolar world, the main focus was on the importance of social movements as a key factor determining the mechanism and specifics of the functioning of the political system. But as globalization processes increased, power groups began to play a major role, which de facto began to call themselves elites, i.e. a select part of society that significantly differs from other social strata and groups in terms of wealth, level of education, access to a wide range of privileges and other features. From a political and sociological perspective, studying elites, unlike studying mass movements, is more difficult due to the closed nature of most elite groups, as well as the vagueness and uncertainty of their social boundaries. In addition, the United States, as the richest country in the Western world, has begun to transform elite groups and turn them into oligarchs. In parallel, the liberal part of the American political elite came to the conclusion about the necessity of transforming the traditional white elite of American society, known as “white Anglo-Saxon Protestants”, into a “colored” elite of American society, consisting of a wide range of racial and ethnic groups and strata. As a consequence of the processes of “colorization” of the American political elite, its fragmentation began, which at present has taken the form of a fierce struggle between the old white elite and the multiracial and multiethnic elite that is replacing it. In the conditions of the competitive struggle for survival, the opportunities for Russian-American dialogue, which for most of the existence of our countries was in the mainstream of interstate relations, and not within the framework of inter-elite communications, have sharply narrowed.

Towards sovereign international rela- tions studies? Book review of ‘Liberal values in theory and practice. On the issues of intellectual decolonization of Russia’ by L.S. Voronkov

The book under review is a new monograph by L.S. Voronkov ‘Liberal values in theory and practice. On the issues of intellectual decolonization of Russia’, published in 2024. The reviewer discusses in detail several key topics and central ideas of the book under consideration. The first section covers the author’s views on a set of problems related to the specifics of power relations and the role of political elites in Western liberal democratic states. It also highlights the political and economic contradictions inherent to the liberal democratic model of social development, propagated by the countries of the ‘collective West’ in order to maintain their own dominance in the system of international relations. It is shown that, along with economic and political instruments, Western elites do not disdain practices of cultural hegemony, arising from the colonialism and neocolonialism. The second section considers L.S. Voronkov’s views on the issues of intellectual colonialism. Special attention is paid to the role of Western approaches within the theory of international relations in legitimizing and promoting the interests of the United States and its allies. It is shown that these approaches, positioned as strictly scientific, actually represented a sophisticated system aimed at concealing the real economic interests of Western countries. In this context, the book by L.S. Voronkov is of particular interest since it makes a strong case for the development of Russia’s own perspective on international relations, with due regard to its specific historical features. Although some author’s conclusions and observations can be contested, L.S. Voronkov’s monograph will hopefully contribute to the emergence of Russian sovereign international relations studies.

Time from Admission to the Onset of Methicillin-Resistant Staphylococcus aureus Bacteremia in a Single Acute Care Hospital in Japan.

The spread of antimicrobial resistant organisms (AROs) poses a major threat to animal and human health. In Japan, the estimated disability-adjusted life years (DALYs) due to ARO infections is 137.9 per 100,000 persons, with methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus (MRSA) being the main contributor. Factors that can contribute to DALYs in Japan include younger age and a higher number of deaths in patients with MRSA bacteremia. Moreover, longer hospital stays may contribute to the higher rates of MRSA bacteremia in Japan than in western countries. We reviewed the diagnostic procedure combination data collected from January 1, 2016 to December 31, 2020, in an acute care hospital in Tokyo, Japan. We found that the median time from admission to MRSA bacteremia onset was 26 days, which is longer than that observed in western countries however similar to that in South Korea. Furthermore, our cohort was older than those in the United States and South Korea, potentially contributing to the higher number of years of life lost in Japan. These results underscore the need to develop strategies to reduce hospitalization rates in Japan. Larger multicenter studies are needed to comprehensively evaluate the economic and health burdens of MRSA bacteremia in Japan.

Anatomical Schemata Revealed by the Critical View of Safety Approach: A Proposal of the Hellenic Task Force on the Typology of Safe Laparoscopic Cholecystectomy (HETALCHO)

Background and objectives: Laparoscopic cholecystectomy (LC) is the most commonly performed operation in general surgery in the Western World. Gallbladder surgery, although most of the time simple, always offers the possibility of unpleasant surprises. Despite progress, the incidence of common bile duct injury is 0.2–0.4%, causing devastating implications for the patient and the surgeon. This is mainly due to the failure to identify the normal anatomy properly. The literature review reveals a lack of structured knowledge in the surgical anatomy of cholecystectomy. The aim of this study was to develop a framework with a common anatomical language for safe laparoscopic and open cholecystectomy. Materials and Methods: The Hellenic Task Force group on the typology for Safe Laparoscopic Cholecystectomy performed a critical review of the literature on the laparoscopic anatomy of cholecystectomy. The results were compared with those of a clinical study of 279 patients undergoing LC for uncomplicated symptomatic gallstone disease. Results: Fourteen elements encountered during LC under the critical view of safety (CVS) approach were determined. The typical vascular–biliary pedicle with one cystic duct distributed laterally (or caudally) and one cystic artery medially (or cranially) lying at any point of the hepatocystic space was found in 66% of the cases studied. Anatomical schemata were formulated corresponding to the norm and four variations. Conclusions: The proposed cognitive anatomical schemata summarize simply what one can expect in terms of deviation from the norm. We believe that the synergy between the correct application of the CVS and the structured knowledge of the surgical anatomy in cholecystectomy helps the surgeon to handle non-typical structures safely and to complete the laparoscopic or open cholecystectomy without vascular–biliary injuries.

Tomato Urban Gardening Supported by an IoT-Based System: A Latin American Experience Report on Technology Adoption

When urban agriculture is addressed at a family scale, known as urban gardening, it is assumed as a non-commercial activity where some family members voluntarily take care of the plantation during their free time. If technology is going to be used to support such a process, then the solutions should consider the particularities of these gardeners (e.g., life dynamics and culture) to make them adoptable. The literature reports several urban agriculture experiences in Western countries and Southeast Asia; however, this activity has been poorly explored in South American countries, particularly at a family scale and considering the culture and the affordability of the solutions. This article presents an experience report of urban gardening in Peru, where a prototype of an IoT system and a mobile application were conceived, implemented, and used to support the gardening of vegetables at a family scale, considering the cultural aspects of the gardeners. This experience obtained positive results in terms of tomato production, mainly showing the system’s capability to self-adapt its behavior to consider the cultivation conditions of these urban gardeners. To the best of our knowledge, this is the first IoT system that can be iteratively adjust its behavior to improve the chances of being adopted by a particular end-user population (i.e., gardeners).

‘Pure Prima Der Coronavirus’. Representations of the COVID-19 Era in Italian Collective Comics

ABSTRACT The response of Italian comics artists to the COVID-19 pandemic was immediate and variegated. Since the first outbreak in the Western world, these artists have been reflecting on themes related to the pandemic, such as social and individual crises, awareness of climate change, the spread of misinformation and fake news, the dissemination of conspiracy theories through social media, institutional inadequacy, and the impact of these on underrepresented communities. This meditation through comics on COVID-19 related issues confirms the socio-cultural relevance of this medium in contemporary Italian culture, and its capacity to negotiate traumatic events during times of collective crisis. This article discusses a set of case studies of a particularly successful type of comics publication, collective comics, published in Italy since February 2020. These works show how pandemic graphic narratives can serve as a privileged observatory of the historical trends and current tendencies that characterise the present Italian comics world.

There and Back Again? Russia’s Quest for Regulating War in Cyberspace

The divergence between Russia and Western States on the question whether international humanitarian law (IHL) applies to cyber space is still omnipresent in the debates at the UN Open-ended Working Group. Russia has several times submitted a draft or a concept for a binding legal instrument; however, they have not included considerable suggestions on IHL. Furthermore, Russia is actively using cyber means in an aggressive war against Ukraine, which makes its calls sound hollow. How then can one explain Russia’s quest for a treaty for cyberspace, especially regarding IHL? This article aims to shed some light on this question in the broader context of Russian approaches to international law-making and its historic role in developing IHL rules.

Patient pathways in primary health care – an interview study across various health care personnel in a Canadian and a Norwegian county

BackgroundDue to demographic changes in the Western world governments emphasize the need for viable solutions, e.g. through decentralization of specialist health care services and better coordination within and between health care services. Both Norway and Canada have been through health care reforms and initiatives aiming to improve continuity and coordination of services. Organizational change to primary care in both countries encompasses both team-based service delivery involving allied health professionals, and new blended payment models. The objective of this study was to explore patient pathways in primary healthcare from various health personnel’s perspectives, and across various primary care organizations in Norway and Canada.MethodsThe study had a qualitative design, including interviews with physicians, nurses and managers (n = 19) in primary care, from a county in Norway and a region in Canada. Data were analyzed with a thematic approach, in line with recommendations from Braun & Clarke.ResultsThree themes were identified: 1) Structural challenges, 2) Towards a more specialized primary health care and 3) Dedication could improve continuity. Findings indicate that coordinating health care services was assumed difficult due to different health care levels, funding systems, managements, electronic record systems and organizations. Hospitals were assumed more task oriented, while primary health care services were considered more care oriented, and this challenged the coordination across organizations. Primary care services were perceived to be more and more specialized, also representing a threat for coordination and continuity. Health care personnel in both countries perceived that dedicated personnel for each patient could improve information flow and continuity across services.ConclusionsAchieving continuity and coordination of health care services seems challenging. Integration strategies seem essential for reducing silo thinking and fragmentation of health care services.

Democracy and Autonomy in Neighbourhoods: Implications from the Election of a New Owners' Committee in Urban China

Homeowner associations play a pivotal role in neighbourhood autonomy across the globe. However, compared to homeowner associations in Western countries, the number of neighbourhood autonomous organizations in mainland China, known as owners' committees, has not experienced exponential growth in the past twenty years. The study examines the election process of owners' committees by analysing a case study of a new owners' committee election in X neighbourhood, G city, and aims to derive implications for the election of owners' committees, considering the distinct challenges they face which include not only the typical collective action dilemma experienced by homeowners in Western countries and regions but also the need to coordinate and strike a balance between state powers and market forces. The findings reveal that the election process of the owners' committee achieved full-coverage institutional norms by adhering to the guidance of party-building, auditing the qualifications of owners, and strengthening public opinion supervision. It also realised all round owners' mobilisation through stimulating democratic awareness and community consciousness.

Acquisition of Knowledge and Meta-Skills Through the Case Method in Politics and Law Classrooms: New Empirical Insight from Japan

The case method has increasingly become one of the most popular active learning techniques. However, empirical research on its effectiveness is predominantly focused on business fields in Western countries and is typically assessed using a few learning outcomes, with little consideration for students’ individual characteristics. This paper provides new empirical insights by examining the effect of various factors on Japanese students’ acquisition of knowledge and vital meta-skills in Politics and Law courses. Based on a survey conducted at a Japanese university, our analysis finds that students’ stress levels and interest in the course subject have a statistically significant impact on the acquisition of knowledge and all meta-skills. Other factors, such as experience, course preparation, and personality affect the acquisition of knowledge and some meta-skills.

Human Security as a Factor of Sustainable Security in Post-War Armenia

This article examines the problem of human security as a factor in sustainable security in post-war Armenia. In post-war Armenia, the scope of global responsibility of small states is expanding, and sustainable security and sustainable development are becoming the basis of the discourse on the problems of the future of the South Caucasus and the object of political aspirations to strengthen peace on the part of the UN, the EU, the NATO, the Council of Europe, the OSCE and Western countries. The article comparatively analyzes approaches to the study of human security and sustainable security in post-war Armenia, the position on the relationship between development and security in its modern broad interpretation, characteristic of contemporary political science discussions. Authors pay main attention to the analysis of the role of sustainable security in the evolution of the idea of ​​sustainable development of small states of the South Caucasus to the modern approach of the link between security, resilience and development. Authors identified and substantiated the characteristic features of human security and sustainable security in post-war Armenia, which hinder the improvement of the quality of life and the formation of human capital.

KGB propaganda actions against political activity of lithuanians émigré in 1970s–1990s.

One of the main tasks of Lithuanian KGB was to weaken, discredit and suppress political activity of Lithuanian émigrés to liberate Lithuania, to change their attitude toward Soviet Lithuania. Propaganda, the formation of positive public opinion about the Soviet system, politics, achievements and a negative opinion about émigrés were one of the main weapons against the political activity of émigrés. To form such public opinion, the KGB used mass media, tourism, and the Lithuanian language and literature courses at Vilnius University, science exchange, cultural activity, tours of Lithuanian artists to Western countries. Speeches of famous Lithuanians (some of them were forced to speak positively about Soviet achievements) and émigrés were also used by the Soviets as a means of propaganda. The return of the valuables of art was also used as propaganda, to set at variance the émigrés and to break their isolation policy toward Soviet Lithuania. Propaganda actions were politicized and used against the émigrés, since the time of their implementation coincided with the important émigrés events. KGB developed wide propaganda actions against the world Lithuanian youth congress and the Baltic cruise of freedom and peace. It is difficult to evaluate the effectiveness of KGB actions due to the lack of objective sources. Although KGB paid great attention to propaganda activity, the results, however, were inadequate to their efforts.

Historical Memories of Russians Today (history of the XX century Russia in the optics of families’ stories)

Referring to the data of long-term sociological research by the Federal Scientific Research Center of the Russian Academy of Sciences, the author studies how the historical memory in contemporary Russian society is forming under the influence of the discursive politicization of the national past. The purpose of the article is to study either the images of the recent national past that are rooted in the mass consciousness of Russians being the basis of collective identity, or the changes in attitudes towards the past under the influence of the state rhetoric “historization”. The realization of the scientific purpose involves to solve some research tasks: to study the dynamics of respondents’ interest in the state’s past when political leaders used to apply to historical memory, to analyze what people in Russia think about historical truth, about the ways and the actors of its protection. Under the contemporary political context, when the past and history become tools of political competition, many persons in Russia, for whom the Soviet heritage is the foundation of national identity and family memory, support the idea of the need to protect the socially accepted interpretation of Russian history. In 2020’th the majority of the respondents (37%) claimed the need to react harshly to the distorted interpretation of some events in Russian history when whey answered the question “How should Russia react to the false interpretation of certain historical events in some Western countries?”. The historical truth is considered by the Russia’s citizens as a universal interpretation of historical events, so the majority (48%) claims it is necessary to protect historical memory by the preservation of those interpretations of the historical events, that are admitted by the society. Supporting the idea that historical truth should be protected, Russian citizens rather support harsh political statements and defensive foreign policy discourse than demonstrate real involvement into historical context, their own daily interest in protecting accepted interpretations of the past and personal concern about their correctness. In 2022 less than a third of the respondents (29%) considered the ordinary citizens should protect the historical truth, while the majority claimed the state’s leadership (67%), professional historians (49%) and social scientists (38%) should defend national historical memory.

Diagnosis and epidemiologic overview of the spectrum of skin diseases in Central, Northeast Ethiopia and Southern Ethiopia

This study analyzed data from hospitals located in three regions of Ethiopia: Addis Ababa, Northeastern Ethiopia, and Southern Ethiopia. The research aims to investigate the prevalence and contributing factors associated with skin diseases in these regions. Skin disorders represent a significant health concern in these areas, though their epidemiology differs markedly from that observed in Western countries. We collected data from 6,449 patients, considering factors like education, income, cultural habits, and access to healthcare. Patients in Southern Ethiopia generally had higher Body mass indexes and incomes and were closer to dermatology centers. The findings indicate that infectious diseases and pruritic dermatoses are the most prevalent skin conditions in all regions. The study highlights the significant impact of socio-economic status on skin health, with higher education correlating with a lower incidence of infectious diseases and sebaceous gland disorders. Overcrowding was associated with a higher occurrence of infectious diseases, emphasizing the importance of hygiene and sanitary conditions. Additionally, the distance from a patient’s residence to the hospital influenced the duration of the disease, stressing the need for better accessibility to healthcare services. In conclusion, this research offers important insights into the spectrum of skin diseases in Ethiopia, emphasizing the role of socio-economic factors and the critical need for improved healthcare access and education.

“Vous parlez anglais?” “Pas du tout”: cross-cultural challenges faced by Chinese inpatriates in France

PurposeChina is playing an increasingly prominent role in global business. However, there has been relatively little research on Chinese inpatriates working in Western countries, particularly in non-Anglo cultural contexts. This study attempts to explore the process of cross-cultural adjustment (CCA) and integration into corporate headquarters of Chinese inpatriates working in France, including the favorable factors that accelerate this process.Design/methodology/approachBased on a qualitative, single-case study of Group X, a pseudonym for a French multinational enterprise, the authors drew on semi-structured interviews with 18 Chinese inpatriates and investigated their CCA and integration process at the French headquarters of their employer.FindingsThe CCA and integration process of Chinese inpatriates at the French headquarters includes three stages: honeymoon and/or crisis period, adjustment and/or integration period and mutual growth period. Chinese inpatriates mainly face language barriers and Sino-French cross-cultural challenges. They overcome these challenges by learning the language and culture of the host country and using co-cultural and cross-cultural Guanxi. Experiences vary, with some Chinese inpatriates bypassing the honeymoon and/or crisis stage and entering directly into the adjustment and/or integration stage and some even leapfrogging both initial phases to attain a stage of mutual growth. Favorable factors for this CCA and integration acceleration include experience of living abroad, the host country language proficiency, organizational service support and the English working environment.Originality/valueThe study enhances the theoretical framework of Chinese expatriates’ psychological adjustment process through two key contributions. First, it enriches the three stages by incorporating new aspects, namely the honeymoon facet at the crisis stage, the integration into the headquarters facet at the self-adjust stage and the promoting organizational growth facet at self-growth stage. Second, it adds precision to the horizontal timeline by incorporating two additional initial points for the adjustment and integration process. Until now, Chinese inpatriates and the French context have received little attention, and this research takes a step forward by illuminating the CCA and integration process of Chinese inpatriates in this non-Anglophone country.

Knowledge, attitudes, and practices of gynaecologists and paediatricians regarding newborn hearing screening in Odisha

Background: Gynaecologists and paediatricians are crucial in detecting hearing loss at the first level of intervention. These healthcare workers are the ones who initially interact with infants and their parents. Therefore, they must understand the risk factors for newborn hearing loss and have a positive attitude toward early intervention. There were few studies conducted to evaluate the Knowledge Attitude and Practices (KAP) of New Born Hearing Screening (NBHS) among paediatricians and other physicians in Western countries and few in the Indian context. Thus, the current study aims to compare and examine the knowledge, attitudes, and practices of gynaecologists and paediatricians regarding newborn hearing screening in Odisha. Methods: A survey questionnaire containing 45 close-ended and 5 open-ended questions was developed. This questionnaire was validated by paediatricians, gynaecologists, and audiologists and then applied among 300 professionals in Odisha. Results: In all the sections it was found that paediatricians have greater knowledge than gynaecologists, however, both professionals have a positive attitude towards NBHS in Odisha. Mann-Whitney U test revealed significant differences in knowledge, attitudes, and practices among paediatricians and gynaecologists in Odisha. Conclusions: From this survey, it can be concluded that most of the paediatricians know more about paediatric hearing loss in comparison to gynaecologists, while both of them have positive attitude in implementing NBHS in Odisha. An awareness should be created among both the professionals about NBHS, effect of hearing loss and to whom they can refer for NBHS, which will benefit the newborns and their parents.