Search Results (11)

Background/Objectives: Early childhood education and care is an ideal setting to promote healthy eating behaviours in young children. However, successful implementation and sustainment of healthy eating policies and practices remains a key challenge in the Australian early childhood education and care (ECEC) context. This study aimed to understand the contextual factors influencing early childhood education directors’ decisions to implement healthy eating policies and practices. Methods: Twelve directors from centre-based long day care centres in New South Wales, Australia, participated in semi-structured interviews. Interview data were analysed using reflexive thematic analysis and the Consolidated Framework of Implementation Research. Results: Directors (n = 12) described alignment with centre values and goals, compatibility with work infrastructure, local champions to lead implementation, and external partnerships with government support services as key facilitators. Directors identified a need for further support to address factors within the broader ECEC sector. Directors described a lack of external partnerships with the community, competing demands for available resources, unrealistic expectations from guidelines and parents, and inconsistent practices across settings as factors inhibiting implementation success. Conclusions: Implementation and sustainment of healthy eating policies and practices can be improved by strengthening parent and community partnerships, investment in the workforce, and a coordinated approach to the provision of support. Full article

Education for Sustainable Development (ESD) is imperative to achieving the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs), particularly SDG 4 and Target 4.7, which promote inclusive, equitable, and quality education. Nonetheless, while environmental and economic sustainability have been the focus of considerable attention, the social dimension—comprising equity, cultural diversity, human rights, and community resilience—remains under-explored. The present study employed a reflexive thematic review and quantitative analysis of relevant sources, of which there were 67, that were published between 2010 and 2024. The objective of this investigation was to examine the extent to which social sustainability is integrated into ESD. A thorough examination of the existing literature resulted in the identification of four overarching themes: the conceptualization of social sustainability, pedagogical approaches, barriers to implementation, and policy and institutional support. The quantitative findings indicated that conceptualization was the most emphasized theme, receiving 169 weighted points. The implementation of policy support and pedagogical strategies received 82 and 71 weighted points, respectively. A comprehensive review of contemporary trends reveals a persistent escalation in societal awareness concerning social sustainability, accompanied by a pronounced shift towards participatory pedagogical practices following the year 2020. Notwithstanding the progress that has been achieved, challenges such as inflexible curricula and inadequate institutional support persist. This study presents a series of fundamental recommendations designed to optimize educational practice. The most significant of these is the necessity to enhance the pedagogical training of educators. Furthermore, this study calls for the development of curricula that exhibit a high degree of flexibility and interdisciplinary orientation. Furthermore, it is advised that educational policies be aligned with Target 4.7 of the Sustainable Development Goals. This study’s findings suggest the need for the enhancement of assessment frameworks with the overarching objective of fostering inclusive and socially sustainable educational practices. Full article

In this paper, the second part of a two-part series, we explore the cultural stability of the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN). The analytical framework adopted, formulated on a background of social cybernetics, uses Mindset Agency Theory (MAT) within a metacybernetic framework. Our exploration involves a thorough investigation of signs pointing to cultural instability, identification of potential pathologies, and the provision of insights into the underlying dynamics within ASEAN. Expanding on the theoretical foundation established in the first part, we explore the notion that regional organisations (ROs) like ASEAN can be viewed as complex adaptive systems with agency. Heterogeneity of RO membership can be both beneficial and detrimental, especially when this delivers cultural diversity. If detrimental, pathologies can arise that affect both ROs’ institutional dynamics and their affiliated regional organisations, a significant interest of this paper. In response to certain cybernetic aspects introduced in part 1 of the research, MAT is shown to be a specialised framework imbued with systemic and reflexive elements. Through this, the analysis sheds light on how an agency’s mindset connects with its behaviour and performance. ROs exhibit coherence in their operations when they successfully achieve adaptive goals. ROs, as agencies defined through a population of state agents, have mutual relationships and are encouraged to pursue shared regional objectives, such as economic growth, social welfare, security, and democracy. However, in highly diverse cultural environments, this poses unique challenges to achieving and maintaining cultural stability. The analysis scrutinises ASEAN’s behaviour, relating it to manifestations of cultural instability, and deduces conditions that encompass an inability to undertake collective action, covert narcissism, and a lack of authority. Employing MAT as a diagnostic tool to comprehend ASEAN’s intricate nature, the paper concludes with practical recommendations aimed at enhancing ASEAN’s cultural health and sustainability. The ultimate vision is to foster a more integrated and proactive regional entity. Full article

Objective: To conduct a scoping review to determine how past studies have applied the theory of intersectionality, a critical feminist research paradigm, to understand the physical health and mental health outcomes of perinatal people as a step toward addressing maternal health disparities and injustice. The study includes a review of existing research on maternal physical and mental health outcomes, presents the strengths and limitations of existing studies, and provides recommendations on best practices in applying intersectionality in research to address systemic issues and improve outcomes for the perinatal population. Methods: We conducted an extensive literature search across four search engines, yielding 28 publications using the intersectionality framework that focused on the outcomes of perinatal people, with a total sample of 9,856,042 participants. We examined how these studies applied intersectionality and evaluated them based on three areas: conceptualization, research method, and interpretation/findings. Results: Our findings indicate that maternal health researchers have provided good descriptions of the interaction of systemic inequalities and have used analysis that allows for the examination of interlocking and mutually reinforcing social positions or systems. We find that improvement is needed in the areas of conceptualization, reflexivity, and understanding of power structure. Recommendations are provided in the form of a checklist to guide future research toward an impactful approach to addressing perinatal health disparities. Relevance: Our scoping review has implications for improving applied health research to address perinatal health disparities, mortality, and morbidity. Recommendations are given along with references to other tools, and a guidance checklist is provided to support scholars in creating an impactful approach to applying intersectionality in the goal of addressing maternal health disparities. Full article

Spasticity is a disabling characteristic of neurological disorders, described by a velocity-dependent increase in muscle tone during passive stretch. During the last few years, many studies have been carried out to assess spasticity using wearable IMU (inertial measurements unit) sensors. This review aims to provide an updated framework of the current research on IMUs wearable sensors in people living with spasticity in recent studies published between 2017 and 2021. A total of 322 articles were screened, then finally 10 articles were selected. Results show the lack of homogenization of study procedures and missing apparatus information in some studies. Still, most studies performed adequately on measures of reporting and found that IMUs wearable data was successful in their respective purposes and goals. As IMUs estimate translational and rotational body motions, we believe there is a strong potential for these applications to estimate velocity-dependent exaggeration of stretch reflexes and spasticity-related characteristics in spasticity. This review also proposes new directions of research that should be challenged by larger study groups and could be of interest to both researchers as well as clinicians. The use of IMUs to evaluate spasticity is a promising avenue to provide an objective measurement as compared to non-instrumented traditional assessments. Full article

Nowadays, news coverage implies the existence of video footage and sound, from which arises the need for fast reflexes by media organizations. Social media and mobile journalists assist in fulfilling this requirement, but quick on-site presence is not always feasible. In the past few years, Unmanned Aerial Vehicles (UAVs), and specifically drones, have evolved to accessible recreational and business tools. Drones could help journalists and news organizations capture and share breaking news stories. Media corporations and individual professionals are waiting for the appropriate flight regulation and data handling framework to enable their usage to become widespread. Drone journalism services upgrade the usage of drones in day-to-day news reporting operations, offering multiple benefits. This paper proposes a system for operating an individual drone or a set of drones, aiming to mediate real-time breaking news coverage. Apart from the definition of the system requirements and the architecture design of the whole system, the current work focuses on data retrieval and the semantics preprocessing framework that will be the basis of the final implementation. The ultimate goal of this project is to implement a whole system that will utilize data retrieved from news media organizations, social media, and mobile journalists to provide alerts, geolocation inference, and flight planning. Full article

Objective: Although college students are at heightened risk for sleep disturbances, healthy sleep is associated with positive physical, cognitive, psychological, and academic benefits for this group. The goals of the current study were to (1) describe sleep health in an undergraduate college sample and (2) examine the role of a class activity using self-determination theory to promote better sleep health in this group. Methods: A cohort study was conducted using data drawn from class activities conducted in two undergraduate Introduction to Psychology courses. Students were undergraduates at a mid-Atlantic public university in the United States. Total sample size was N = 224 (intervention class [n = 98], and the control class [n = 127]). Both the intervention and control classes completed the RU SATED sleep health questionnaire at the beginning and the end of the semester. The intervention class also completed a self-determination activity focused on sleep health mid-semester. Both the RU SATED questionnaires and the self-determination activities were completed via in-class responder technology. Data were de-identified and downloaded from the responder technology at the end of the semester. Mixed methods were used for data analysis including quantitative analyses and a qualitative approach using a phenomenological, inductive, and reflexive qualitative method whereby themes were allowed to emerge from the data. Results: Overall, almost 25% of the students reported never or rarely obtaining healthy sleep on average. The majority (76%) said they sometimes have healthy sleep and no students reported usually or always obtaining healthy sleep. The components of sleep health the entire sample scored highest on were timing (sleeping between 2 and 4 AM), sleep duration (between 7 and 9 h), and staying awake during the day. The areas they scored the lowest on were maintaining regular bed and wake times, spending less than 30 min awake at night, and feeling satisfied with their sleep. Qualitatively, the most frequently obtained sleep health behaviors of the intervention class were rhythmicity, prioritizing sleep, timing of sleep, and tech hygiene. The intervention class had significantly better sleep health across the entire semester and significantly better daytime alertness post-intervention. The most commonly chosen sleep health behaviors to change were sleep hygiene, tech hygiene, and stimulus control. Conclusion: We examined the classroom environment as a venue for promoting sleep health among college students. Given the popularity of Introduction to Psychology courses, this class is a promising avenue to deliver sleep health promotions to a large number of students. The implementation of a self-determination framework, as part of sleep health promotion, shows potential for creating a person-centered, strengths-based approach to health behavior change within this population. Full article

Student-centered learning (SCL) has been acknowledged and supported by research as very important for helping students develop life-long independent learning and transferable skills. Yet the implementation of SCL in European higher education has been patchy where experts in the field call for the need for a framework that could guide higher education institutions (HEIs) in designing and implementing SCL. This paper aims to fill in this identified gap by reflecting on the basic literature and social theory to propose the reflexive GOAL (Goals (vision and objectives), Organization (structures), Actions (immersion into structures and actions), and Learning a culture (instilled through reflexivity)) framework for the implementation of SCL in higher education in its broader sense to encompass elements from in-class learning to extra-curricular and community engagement. Full article

Embodied Interaction faces designers with the challenge of thinking about users and interaction from different viewpoints with respect to traditional technologies. This task is even more complex when designing non-task oriented systems. We propose a framework to guide researchers in thinking and designing non-task-oriented Embodied Interaction Environments or, in other words, embodied experiences that users can enjoy for its own sake and not as means for accomplishing a task or achieving an extrinsic goal. The framework is grounded on experience-centered design approaches and will present four qualities ((1) Spatial, Corporeal and Material Consistency, (2) Contingent Enhancement, (3) Mindful Embodied Engagement and (4) Situated Reflexivity) aimed at providing critical lenses, strategies and techniques to guide the design and research processes. Finally, we will discuss how designers can implement the proposed framework in different stages of the design process and paths for future research. Full article

This paper investigates non-governmental organisation (NGO) involvement in policy processes related to Norway’s International Climate and Forest Initiative (NICFI) comparing four countries: Norway, Brazil, Indonesia, and Tanzania. Based on documents and interviews, NGO involvement is mapped using a conceptual framework to categorise and compare different roles and modes of engagement. NGOs have co-operated with government in policy design and implementation, albeit to varying degrees, in all four countries, but expressed relatively little public criticism. Funding seems to have an influence on NGOs’ choices regarding whether, what, when, and how to criticise. However, limited public criticism does not necessarily mean that the NGOs are co-opted. They are reflexive regarding their possible operating space, and act strategically and pragmatically to pursue their goals in an entrepreneurial manner. The interests of NGOs and NICFI are to a large extent congruent. Instead of publicly criticising a global initiative that they largely support, and thus put the initiative as a whole at risk, NGOs may use other, more informal, channels to voice points of disagreement. While NGOs do indeed run the risk of being co-opted, their opportunity to resist this fate is probably greater in this instance than is usually the case because NICFI are so reliant on their services. Full article

The concept of sustainable development does not articulate what needs to be sustained, developed, or how, and is consequently intersubjective and intercultural. I therefore argue that it is essential to consider different worldviews when discussing sustainable development, and I offer broad, provisional suggestions as to how we can begin doing this. I first discuss how the notion of sustainable development at its heart is an attempt to unite conservation with growth. I then consider how different worldviews relate to this unitary ideal, by articulating how they envision “development” and “quality of life”. I do this by drawing on the Integrative Worldview Framework, which distinguishes between multiple, ideal-typical worldviews. However, I argue that more important than any typology of worldviews is the reflexive attitude a worldview-perspective supports. I conclude with implications for more reflexive and inclusive forms of policy-making, also in light of the to-be-formulated Sustainable Development Goals. Full article