Polygyny and the breeding success of the great reed warblerAcrocephalus arundinaceus

Summary Settlement date, mating status, and breeding success of individually marked great reed warblers,Acrocephalus arundinaceus, were studied during the 1980–84 breeding seasons in Kahokugata, Ishikawa Prefecture, Japan. Twenty-five per cent of the territorial males were polygynous, of which the majority were bigamous. The settling periods of both sexes were long, extending for 65 days in males and 49 days in females. About 80% of males and females settled in the first half of the settling period, and the settlement date of 28–54% males overlapped with that of females. Many of the late settlers were bachelors and the males which mated earlier tended to be polygynous. The timing of a male's settlement is important in acquiring mates. Fifty-five per cent of eggs laid were lost before fledging, mainly due to predation. The mean number of fledglings was 3.19 per primary female, 2.41 per secondary female, and 2.80 per monogamous female. Comparison of the number of fledglings of females which mated during the same period showed that the presence of another female in the same territory did not adversely affect the breeding success of either of the polygynous females. Polygynous males have the advantage of decreasing the risk of breeding failure under high predation pressure.     

An introduction to the theory of constraint and how it can be applied to medical management

This overview of a new way of thinking about medical management problems could help physicians executives think about those problems differently.     

A comparison of midwife-led care versus obstetrician-led care for low-risk women in Japan

BackgroundContinuity of midwife-led care is recommended in maternity care because of its various positive outcomes. In Japan, midwife-led care is receiving broad attention as well. In order to popularise midwifery care within the entire system of perinatal care in Japan, there is a need to show evidence that continuity of midwife care for women will bring about positive outcomes.AimThe objectives of this study were to compare the health outcomes of women and infants who received midwife-led care with obstetrician-led care in Japan.MethodsThis was an observational study using non-random purposive sampling with a survey questionnaire. Settings where midwife-led care and obstetrician-led care were chosen by purposive samples. Participants were low-risk women who received antenatal care and delivered a term-singleton-infant at the participating settings during the research period. Measurements were: Women-centred care pregnancy questionnaire, Stein's maternity blues questionnaire, and Edinburgh Postnatal Depression Scale.FindingsMidwife-led care was perceived by women to be beneficial and had no adverse outcomes compared to obstetrician-led care. Main findings are: (1) Perception of Women-centred care was higher; (2) Less premature rupture of membranes, and the Apgar scores of the infants were similar; (3) Exclusively breast-feeding during hospitalisation and at one-month postpartum; (4) Stein's maternity blues scale scores was lower in women who received midwife-led care than those who received obstetrician-led care.ConclusionsContinuity of midwife-led care was perceived by women to be beneficial and had no adverse outcomes. Therefore, midwife-led care in low-risk pregnancy could be applicable and recommended.     

Why the principle of informed self-determination does not help local farmers facing land loss: a case study from oil palm development in East Kalimantan,Indonesia

ABSTRACT

The principle of informed self-determination has been celebrated as a means to prevent involuntary land transfer and the resulting dispossession of affected communities in agricultural investments of developing countries. Based on qualitative field research conducted in East Kalimantan, Indonesia, this paper argues that such optimistic recognition needs reexamination. Drawing on a case study of indigenous Dayak communities that have faced advancement of large-scale oil palm estates since 2007, the paper examines what informs communities’ decisions to release land to estates. The underdevelopment created by government neglect and the lack of future prospects for autonomous development are shown to have contributed to communities’ decisions to release land. After a decade, encroaching palm oil has produced land shortages and depleted forest resources. This study highlights the need for meaningful state interventions to alleviate poverty and create conditions that allows local communities to make meaningful choices during the consultations over land release.     

Mindfulness-Based Cognitive Therapy With Older Adults: An Exploratory Study

An 8-week mindfulness-based cognitive therapy (MBCT) group for older adults with depression and/or anxiety is described. This article is based on an exploratory study of this therapeutic approach and changes in participants’ symptoms associated with participation. Pre-post data from 5 MBCT groups showed significant improvements in reported anxiety, ruminative thoughts, and sleep problems and a reduction in depressive symptoms. Case examples are presented to illustrate these symptom changes. Findings showed that this nonpharmacological intervention is acceptable to older adults and is associated with positive changes. Suggestions are provided for both practitioners and researchers interested in using MBCT with older adults.     

Mindfulness-based forgiveness groups for older adults

ABSTRACT

Interventions that enable individuals to be more forgiving toward themselves and others are important for older adults. This article describes a group intervention for adults aged 60 or older that integrates forgiveness-related skills with a mindfulness approach. The Mindfulness-based Forgiveness Group was designed to meet for eight sessions. The skills taught included: recognizing one’s own expectations and unenforceable rules, broadening one’s perspectives about the context of the transgression, and discovering positive intentions through exercises as well as a variety of meditations to cultivate mindfulness, self-compassion and forgiveness. Data from five Mindfulness-Based Forgiveness Groups were collected. Based on pre- and post-test measures, analyses indicate that participants improved significantly in relation to forgiveness, mindfulness/self-compassion, and mental health. Using qualitative post-test data from participants, we identify elements of the intervention that appear to be helpful. Suggestions are provided for social workers seeking to replicate and build upon this promising intervention.     

Limits on Infants' Ability to Dynamically Update Object Representations

Like adults, infants use working memory to represent occluded objects and can update these memory representations to reflect changes to a scene that unfold over time. Here we tested the limits of infants' ability to update object representations in working memory. Eleven‐month‐old infants participated in a modified foraging task in which they saw 2 quantities of crackers sequentially hidden in buckets and then were allowed to choose between them. We manipulated the working memory demands of the task by either hiding crackers in direct succession (i.e., infants saw all of the crackers hidden in the first location, then saw all of the crackers hidden in the second location), or hiding them in alternation (i.e., infants saw some crackers hidden in the first location, then saw some crackers hidden in the second location, then saw more crackers hidden in the first location). Across 6 experiments we found that infants successfully updated their representations of the hidden arrays when crackers were presented in succession. However, when crackers were hidden in alternation and infants had to reupdate an array that was no longer in the current focus of attention, infants showed a striking pattern of failure. These results suggest that, for infants as well as for adults, the flexibility of working memory is subject to processing constraints.     

Reproductive behavior of the Japanese treefrog,Rhacophorus arboreus (Anura: Rhacophoridae)

Reproductive behavior of the foam-nesting treefrog,Rhacophorus arboreus, is described. Oviposition was made either by an amplectant pair (a female, and an amplectant male) alone or by an amplectant pair and other males (joiners). The snout-vent length of males and females was negatively correlated with the date of the first appearance in the pond. The period of staying in the pond in males was longer than that in females. Physical body contacts of other males, and encounter calls by ampletant males were frequently observed before oviposition with joiners. Snout-vent length of the female and an amplectant male were positively correlated. Encounter calls by amplectant males were likely to precede movement of females. There was no difference of snout-vent length between amplectant males and joiners. Females moved the hindlimbs more frequently than males during oviposition. Amplectant males made encounter cells more frequently in oviposition with joiners, than oviposition without joiners. The patterns of transitions between acts of females and amplectant males were similar between oviposition with and without joiners. Females more frequently responded to amplectant males than joiners. Both the duration of a bout of the movements of hindlimbs of females and the interval between the bouts were longer in oviposition without joiners than that with joiners. The number of the movements per bout in oviposition without joiners was smaller than that with joiners. Encounter calls by amplectant males during oviposition tended to precede the hindlimb movements of females.