Home Environment,But Not Socioeconomic Status,is Linked to Differences in Early Phonetic Perception Ability

Infants perceptually tune to the phonemes of their native languages in the first year of life, thereby losing the ability to discriminate non‐native phonemes. Infants who perceptually tune earlier have been shown to develop stronger language skills later in childhood. We hypothesized that socioeconomic disparities, which have been associated with differences in the quality and quantity of language in the home, would contribute to individual differences in phonetic discrimination. Seventy‐five infants were assessed on measures of phonetic discrimination at 9 months, on the quality of the home environment at 15 months, and on language abilities at both ages. Phonetic discrimination did not vary according to socioeconomic status (SES), but was significantly associated with the quality of the home environment. This association persisted when controlling for 9‐month expressive language abilities, rendering it less likely that infants with better expressive language skills were simply engendering higher quality home interactions. This suggests that infants from linguistically richer home environments may be more tuned to their native language and therefore less able to discriminate non‐native contrasts at 9 months relative to infants whose home environments are less responsive. These findings indicate that home language environments may be more critical than SES in contributing to early language perception, with possible implications for language development more broadly.     

An Interpretive Phenomenological Inquiry of Family and Friend Reactions to Suicide Disclosure

Suicide attempt survivors’ interpretations of reactions to attempts are understudied, yet could inform prevention efforts concerning subsequent attempts. Interviews with 40 attempt survivors about family and friend reactions were analyzed using interpretive phenomenological techniques. Three distinct patterns emerged as follows: (a) Stigmatizing statements and emphasis on reactor's feelings were interpreted as signs that attempt survivors were a burden to others, (b) avoidant reactions and excessive monitoring were interpreted as cues that suicidal behavior must remain hidden to not be a burden, and (c) asking questions and projecting strength were interpreted as signs that attempt survivors belonged and were not a burden. These findings highlight the importance of working with family and friends to encourage reactions that reduce the risk of future attempts.     

Giving birth: Expectations of first time mothers in Switzerland at the mid point of pregnancy

Problem and background

Despite a generally affluent society, the caesarean section rate in Switzerland has steadily climbed in recent years from 22.9% in 1998 to 33.7% in 2014. Speculation by the media has prompted political questions as to the reasons. However, there is no clear evidence as to why the Swiss rate should be so high especially in comparison with neighbouring countries.

Ergonomic evaluation of laparoendoscopic single-site surgery ports in a validated laparoscopic training model

Although laparoendoscopic single-site surgery (LESS) is feasible among expert laparoscopic surgeons, it poses many technical challenges not seen in conventional laparoscopy (CL). Recent technological advancements in single-incision instrumentation have created more interest and widespread usage of LESS. However, neither LESS nor its novel instrumentation have been thoroughly studied or evaluated using human factors and ergonomics techniques. Consequently, the aim of this study was to compare the physical performance of LESS to CL using a standardized task. Wrist and elbow angular movements, range of motion and physical discomfort were assessed for 24 novice participants. There were no significant differences for physical comfort/discomfort ratings or elbow and wrist flexion/extension range of motion between CL and LESS. However, wrist radial/ulnar range of motion was significantly greater in LESS compared to CL (p < 0.05). Additionally, wrist radial/ ulnar range of motion was significantly greater using the SILS Port compared to the GelPOINT (p < 0.05). Although further investigation is needed, LESS resulted in greater wrist deviation and range of motion due to the close proximity of the instruments, restrictive nature of the single-port devices, and the need to achieve adequate instrument triangulation and visualization.     

Occupational stress and biomechanical risk in a high fashion clothing company

Psychosocial discomfort may amplify job-related risk factors. The aim of this study is to evaluate job stress in a high fashion clothing company with upper limb biomechanical overload due to repetitive and forceful manual activities. Biomechanical risk was analyzed and in part reduced using the OCRA Check list. A total of 518 workers (433 females and 85 males) were investigated to determine anxiety (by STAI 1 and 2), occupational stress (using the Italian version of the Karasek Job Content Questionnaire) and perception of symptoms. Final biomechanical assessment did not reveal high risk jobs, except for cutting. Although the perception of anxiety and job insecurity was within the normal range, all the workers showed a high level of job strain (correlated with the perception of symptoms) due, probably, to very low decision latitude. It was suggested that job strain may increase the perception of symptoms. Moreover, the result of this study indicates that musculoskeletal overload has to be further analyzed since its low level is not in agreement with the level of discomfort due to the repetitive tasks.     

Service learning from the supply side: Community capacity to engage students

The rapid increase in the use of service learning raises important public policy questions about who is being served and whether partner agencies have the capacity to meet student demand for community‐based experiences. This article uses a large sample of nonprofit organizations and a comparative framework to examine the characteristics of partner agencies and the scope and nature of college student community involvement. Multivariate analysis tests these factors on a community agency's ability to engage more students, particularly service learners. The findings are generally optimistic about agency willingness to involve students, suggesting widespread community benefits from their involvement. While organizational size and capacity predict current student engagement, an agency's past experience with students and its perceptions of student benefits have the greatest impact on its willingness to take on future students.     

《百苗图》：近代中国早期民族志

通过对清帝国所绘制的多个版本的<百苗图>的绘制缘由、分类体系、构图方式、人物呈现、风俗描绘、宗教信仰的描述等多方面进行细致的分析解读,说明这一图绘所折射的乃是清帝国关于"他者"的认识与想像.在近代早期进程中,即大约于1500年至1800年之间,不同类型的扩张性国家与帝国,在或经由征讨、或直接殖民、或借助外交而扩张时,收集并记录了即将与之往来互动的人群的信息;并且,对他者的民族志兴趣并非是一个"西方独有的"现象,而是更广泛的近代早期时期的国家建构过程的一部分.     

Fair Trade: Social regulation in global food markets

This article analyzes the theoretical and empirical parameters of social regulation in contemporary global food markets, focusing on the rapidly expanding Fair Trade initiative. Fair Trade seeks to transform North/South relations by fostering ethical consumption, producer empowerment, and certified commodity sales. This initiative joins an array of labor and environmental standard and certification systems which are often conceptualized as “private regulations” since they depend on the voluntary participation of firms. I argue that these new institutional arrangements are better understood as “social regulations” since they operate beyond the traditional bounds of private and public (corporate and state) domains and are animated by individual and collective actors. In the case of Fair Trade, I illuminate how relational and civic values are embedded in economic practices and institutions and how new quality assessments are promoted as much by social movement groups and loosely aligned consumers and producers as they are by market forces. This initiative's recent commercial success has deepened price competition and buyer control and eroded its traditional peasant base, yet it has simultaneously created new openings for progressive politics. The study reveals the complex and contested nature of social regulation in the global food market as movement efforts move beyond critique to institution building.