Biomechanical analysis of loading/unloading a ladder on a truck

Loading/unloading a ladder on vehicles are frequent tasks and involve overhead handling that may expose workers to risk factors of shoulder musculoskeletal disorders. The objective of the present study was to evaluate posture, forces required and perceived exertion when loading and unloading the ladder on a utility truck. Thirteen male overhead line workers from an electric utility in Brazil participated in this study. Shoulder elevation angle was measured using inclinometers. The required force to load/unload the ladder was measured by dynamometer. Subjective assessment of the perceived exertion was recorded to compare the exertion reported during the test conditions to the field conditions. The task of loading/unloading the ladder presented risks of shoulder musculoskeletal disorders (MSDs) to workers because it requires high levels of force (approximately 60% of the maximal force) combined with overhead posture of the shoulders (more than 100° from the neutral posture). Age and height presented to interfere in biomechanical risks presented in load/unload task. There was no significant difference between the subjective exertion during the test conditions and handling the ladder in the field. Ergonomic intervention is recommended to reduce these risks for shoulder MSDs.     

An Exploration of Psychosocial Factors Associated with Female Genital Self-Image

Negative genital self-perceptions or female genital self-image (FGSI) is a prevalent concern for women. This is a significant problem in and of itself but also because it is associated with a variety of negative outcomes including less frequent sexual behavior, more negative cognitive-affective sexual responses, and poorer decision-making about genital health. This study examined the extent to which various psychosocial factors are associated with more negative FGSI. Two hundred cisgender women with diverse ages and relationship statuses completed an online survey that included measures of sexual health education (quality of school-based sexual health education (SHE), female genital knowledge), pornography use, sexual experiences (positive and negative partner genital feedback, frequency of sexual activity), and cognitive-affect appraisals (body image, sexual comfort). Social desirability, cognitive-affective appraisals, sexual experiences, and SHE were associated with FGSI at the bivariate level. The results of a multiple regression analysis indicated that only sexual comfort, body image, and positive genital feedback contributed uniquely to the prediction of FGSI. The results are interpreted in terms of the importance of the psychosocial context for understanding women’s genital self-perceptions as well as their implications for prevention and intervention strategies aimed at addressing the problem.     

Interrelatedness of children’s psychological and physiological responses to interparental conflict: A moderating role of harsh parenting

Children’s psychological and physiological responses to interparental conflict have received considerable attention due to their implications for later adjustment, yet limited research has investigated the interplay between these two response systems. This study investigates patterns of association between children’s psychological responses (e.g., emotional distress) and cortisol reactivity to interparental conflict, including possible moderations by negative caregiving environment. Participants included 193 families (mother, father, and child). Parents completed questionnaires relating to their caregiving behaviors toward the child (107 girls and 86 boys, M age = 7.99 years, SD = 0.53 years) and children’s psychological responses to interparental conflict. Children provided three saliva samples over the course of watching videos depicting conflicts between two adults, whom children were asked to pretend were their parents. Based on a series of Latent Growth Curve Models, only children’s emotional responses to interparental conflict (indicated by increased distress) were associated with greater cortisol reactivity. Additionally, fathers’ harsh parenting behavior moderated the relation between children’s emotional reactivity and cortisol reactivity, yet the moderation effect was not found for mothers’ parenting. Findings are discussed in terms of the importance of exploring both psychological and physiological reactivity to conflict and the possible moderating role of harsh parenting.     

Gay men's experiences coming out online: A qualitative study

The current study employed qualitative methodology to investigate the experiences of 12 gay men who came out online, using Facebook. Analysis of coding data yielded several key themes. First, gay men discussed a range of experiences that influenced their online disclosure, including homophobia, internalized homophobia, and previous salient sexual identity disclosures. Participants also commonly expressed a variety of goals and concerns about coming out online, including improving relationships and loss of friends, respectively. Finally, gay men identified several benefits to coming out on Facebook, including increased efficiency in coming out as compared to face-to-face disclosures, increased authenticity, and decreased ambiguity about their sexuality. Results are discussed within the context of literature on men's coming-out experiences and online identity management.     

A practical method to calculate probabilities: illustrative example from the electronic industry business

The real-life environment is made of probabilistic data by nature and the ability to make decisions based on probabilities is crucial in the business world. It is common to have a set of data and the need of calculating the probability of taking a value greater or less than a specific value. It is also common in many companies the unavailability of a statistical software or a specialized professional in statistics. The purpose of this paper is to present a practical and simple method to calculate probabilities from normal or non-normal distributed data set and illustrate it with an application from the electronic industry. The method does not demand statistical knowledge from the user; there is no need of normality assumptions, goodness test or transformations. The proposed method is easy to implement, robust and the experiments have evidenced its quality. The technique is validated with a large variety of instances and compared with the well-known Johnson system of distributions.