Proper manual handling techniques to prevent low back pain, a Cochrane systematic review

Training and provision of assistive devices are considered major interventions to prevent and treat low back pain (LBP) among workers exposed to manual material handling (MMH). To establish the effectiveness of training and provision of assistive devices in preventing and treating LBP an update of a Cochrane literature review was performed to November 2010. Randomised controlled trials (RCTs) and cohort studies with a concurrent control group (CCTs) were included. Nine RCTs (20.101 employees) and nine CCTs (1280 employees) were included for prevention: six more than in the previous version. No study on treatment was found. None of the included RCTs and CCTs provided evidence that training and provision of assistive devices prevented LBP when compared to no intervention or another intervention.     

A comprehensive literature review of the pelvis and the lower extremity FE human models under quasi-static conditions

Finite Element Modeling (FEM) has become a vital tool in the automotive design and development processes. FEM of the human body is a technique capable of estimating parameters that are difficult to measure in experimental studies with the human body segments being modeled as complex and dynamic entities. Several studies have been dedicated to attain close-to-real FEMs of the human body (Pankoke and Siefert 2007; Amann, Huschenbeth et al. 2009; ESI 2010). The aim of this paper is to identify and appraise the state-of-the art models of the human body which incorporate detailed pelvis and/or lower extremity models. Six databases and search engines were used to obtain literature, and the search was limited to studies published in English since 2000. The initial search results identified 636 pelvis-related papers, 834 buttocks-related papers, 505 thigh-related papers, 927 femur-related papers, 2039 knee-related papers, 655 shank-related papers, 292 tibia-related papers, 110 fibula-related papers, 644 ankle-related papers, and 5660 foot-related papers. A refined search returned 100 pelvis-related papers, 45 buttocks-related papers, 65 thigh-related papers, 162 femur-related papers, 195 knee-related papers, 37 shank-related papers, 80 tibia-related papers, 30 fibula-related papers and 102 ankle-related papers and 246 foot-related papers. The refined literature list was further restricted by appraisal against a modified LOW appraisal criteria. Studies with unclear methodologies, with a focus on populations with pathology or with sport related dynamic motion modeling were excluded. The final literature list included fifteen models and each was assessed against the percentile the model represents, the gender the model was based on, the human body segment/segments included in the model, the sample size used to develop the model, the source of geometric/anthropometric values used to develop the model, the posture the model represents and the finite element solver used for the model. The results of this literature review provide indication of bias in the available models towards 50th percentile male modeling with a notable concentration on the pelvis, femur and buttocks segments.     

Changing effects of family background on transitions to secondary education in the Netherlands: Consequences of educational expansion and reform

Recent developments in educational transitions research suggest a decomposition of qualitative dimensions within educational levels that are (nearly) universal. However, research on long-term trends of social stratification in the structurally tracked educational system of the Netherlands has not been published previously. In the Netherlands, the secondary educational level is divided into four hierarchical tracks which each lead to different options for subsequent educational decisions. A rapid increase of participation in the higher tracks over time however, may have changed the background-specific distribution of early track placement. This paper improves upon previous research on educational inequality by incorporating a long-term perspective into tracking research. The secondary level of the Dutch educational system is decomposed into its four tracks, using a time frame that covers cohorts that entered secondary education between 1946 and 1998. The application of multinomial logit regressions reveals that the choice of a secondary track is strongly depending on social background features, measured as education of the parents and occupational status of the father. We found linear downward trends of effects for fathers’ occupation in the intermediate tracks for the cohorts that entered secondary education between WWII and the 90s. The effects of parental education also decrease after WWII, but the trend is curvilinear and not enduring. Unexpectedly, the effects almost reach their previous level in the youngest cohort. Our results furthermore suggest that a controversial reform of the educational system in 1968 neither triggered nor accelerated equalization of secondary education, although it resulted in a growth of participation in senior general education (HAVO).     

‘Recuperando la dignidad humana [Recovering human dignity]’: Shuar mothers speak out on intercultural bilingual education

This paper presents findings from interviews conducted in December 2011, with seven Shuar mothers of children in an intercultural bilingual school in the southern Amazon region of Ecuador. This study had two objectives: (1) to foreground the perspectives of Shuar parents towards intercultural bilingual education (IBE) as implemented in the Shuar pedagogical institute, and (2) to collaborate as an intercultural research team (North American-Shuar) to ensure linguistic and cultural authenticity of data collection, and analysis. As a Shuar mother herself, the co-author shares the same language and culture as the participants, which led to a deeper level of trust and openness in the interviews. Current studies claim that IBE is losing ground, partly because parents want their children schooled in Spanish – the language of power – and see the IBE system as inferior. However, these Shuar mothers expressed a different concern: IBE has been too intertwined with Salesian missions and must become decolonized in order to reflect authentic Shuar cultural values and educational practices.     

The resources of ageing? Middle‐aged gay men's accounts of Manchester's gay voluntary organizations

Middle‐aged men's experiences of gay voluntary organizations (GVOs) are neglected in research. To address this knowledge gap, this article extends Bourdieusian theorizing beyond that deployed by Hakim (2010) and Green (2008) concerning ‘erotic capital’ to demonstrate how norms in GVOs can facilitate or frustrate mobilization of ‘ageing capital’ by middle‐aged gay men living in Manchester (UK), which has implications for comparable cities within and beyond a UK context. Based on interviews with 22 men aged 39–55, this article demonstrates how ‘ageing capital’ can facilitate challenge to gay ageism but also how such ageism can frustrate and even overwhelm men's capacities to deploy ageing capital in generic GVOs, thus reinforcing intergenerational conflict and expression of ageism towards younger gay men. In doing so, this article contributes to knowledge about the reproduction of the relations of ageism in a particular field of gay existence.     

A Problematic Test of the Kin Selection Hypothesis Among the Urak-Lawoi of Ko Lipe,Thailand: Commentary on Camperio Ciani,Battaglia, and Liotta (2015)

Camperio Ciani et al. argued that the Urak-Lawoi people of Ko Lipe island live in a “traditional,” “subsistence primitive society” reminiscent of the “ancestral” human past and that their socio-cultural situation is “remarkably similar” to Samoa. On this basis, they asserted that the Ko Lipe Urak-Lawoi are an appropriate population for determining the role that kin selection played in the evolution of male androphilia. The purpose of this commentary is to outline some of our concerns with this characterization and with the statistical analyses conducted by Camperio Ciani et al. in their study of the Urak-Lawoi.     

A Cost–Benefit Analysis of a Family Systems Intervention for Managing Pediatric Chronic Illness

Despite recent increases of psychosocial programs for pediatric chronic illness, few studies have explored their economic benefits. This study investigated the costs–benefits of a family systems‐based, psychosocial intervention for pediatric chronic illness (MEND: Mastering Each New Direction). A quasi‐prospective study compared the 12‐month pre–post direct and indirect costs of 20 families. The total cost for program was estimated to $5,320. Families incurred $15,249 less in direct and $15,627 less in indirect costs after MEND. On average, medical expenses reduced by 86% in direct and indirect costs, for a cost–benefit ratio of 0.17. Therefore, for every dollar spent on the program, families and their third payers saved approximately $5.74. Implications for healthcare policy and reimbursements are discussed.     

Impression Management,Super PACs and the 2012 Republican Primary

Super Political Action Committees (PACs) are new organizations within American politics allowing for unlimited donations to candidate campaigns. Super PACs helped make the 2012 Republican primary the most well‐funded primary in American history. Both candidates and Super PACs spend much of their money on televised campaign ads. My study of the 2012 Republican primary expands existing literature concerning political impression management by examining advertising imagery in the era of Super PACs. I developed a typology of performance types from a qualitative content analysis of television advertisements for both candidates and Super PACs. The significance of Super PACs as they interact and overlap with the images of candidate ads calls for analysis of the changing front stage in the political realm.