Effects of Short–Term Medical Mission Trips to Chiapas, Mexico, on the Religiosity of the Missionaries

This study evaluates the effects that short-term, foreign, Catholic medical mission trips had on the religiosity of the United States-based participants. The subjects of this study participated in Catholic medical missions to Chiapas State, Mexico, in 2014 and 2015. Twenty-two of forty-two participants responded to a survey to assess for any changes in their religiosity and associated attitudes and behaviors. The results revealed that participation in the medical mission was associated with a significant increase in non-organizational religious activity, intrinsic religiosity, concern for health disparities and the burden of illness in the developing world, the promotion of further missions, the provision of service and/or monetary aid to the poor in the missionary's local community, and an increased likelihood to discuss the Christian faith in conversations with others. There was no statistically significant association with organizational religious activity or local participation in evangelization activities. Summary This article reports on the changes seen in the religious attitudes and charitable works performed following participation in a short-term medical mission. After serving on a mission trip to Mexico, we found that United States-based missionaries had an increase in their private religious activities, felt closer to God, were more likely to help the poor in their own neighborhoods, and were more likely to discuss their Christian faith than prior to the mission trip. We discuss possible reasons for these changes.

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Comparison of prescribing patterns between United States and Dominican Republic prescribers on short-term medical mission trips

International Health ◽

10.1093/inthealth/ihx045 ◽

2017 ◽

Vol 10 (1) ◽

pp. 27-32

Author(s):

Gina M Prescott ◽

Ciera L Patzke ◽

Peter M Brody ◽

William A Prescott

Keyword(s):

United States ◽

Dominican Republic ◽

Prescribing Patterns ◽

Short Term ◽

Medical Mission ◽

Mission Trips

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Cultural Awareness of Students in Communication Sciences and Disorders: A Mixed-Methods Study

Perspectives of the ASHA Special Interest Groups ◽

10.1044/2020_persp-19-00167 ◽

2020 ◽

Vol 5 (5) ◽

pp. 1231-1242

Author(s):

Celeste Domsch ◽

Lori Stiritz ◽

Jay Huff

Keyword(s):

United States ◽

Study Abroad ◽

Cultural Awareness ◽

Qualitative Data ◽

The United States ◽

Self Report ◽

Global Awareness ◽

Short Term ◽

Term Study ◽

Short Term Study

Purpose This study used a mixed-methods design to assess changes in students' cultural awareness during and following a short-term study abroad. Method Thirty-six undergraduate and graduate students participated in a 2-week study abroad to England during the summers of 2016 and 2017. Quantitative data were collected using standardized self-report measures administered prior to departure and after returning to the United States and were analyzed using paired-samples t tests. Qualitative data were collected in the form of daily journal reflections during the trip and interviews after returning to the United States and analyzed using phenomenological methods. Results No statistically significant changes were evident on any standardized self-report measures once corrections for multiple t tests were applied. In addition, a ceiling effect was found on one measure. On the qualitative measures, themes from student transcripts included increased global awareness and a sense of personal growth. Conclusions Measuring cultural awareness poses many challenges. One is that social desirability bias may influence responses. A second is that current measures of cultural competence may exhibit ceiling or floor effects. Analysis of qualitative data may be more useful in examining effects of participation in a short-term study abroad, which appears to result in decreased ethnocentrism and increased global awareness in communication sciences and disorders students. Future work may wish to consider the long-term effects of participation in a study abroad for emerging professionals in the field.

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Verán ustedes las chozas más humildes. El discurso de pobreza en la diplomacia pública cardenista dirigida a Estados Unidos

Mexican Studies/Estudios Mexicanos ◽

10.1525/msem.2019.35.2.255 ◽

2019 ◽

Vol 35 (2) ◽

pp. 255-281

Author(s):

Sylvia Dümmer Scheel

Keyword(s):

United States ◽

New Deal ◽

Public Diplomacy ◽

The United States ◽

The Public ◽

The Poor ◽

The Face ◽

The Government ◽

Lazaro Cardenas ◽

The New Deal

El artículo analiza la diplomacia pública del gobierno de Lázaro Cárdenas centrándose en su opción por publicitar la pobreza nacional en el extranjero, especialmente en Estados Unidos. Se plantea que se trató de una estrategia inédita, que accedió a poner en riesgo el “prestigio nacional” con el fin de justificar ante la opinión pública estadounidense la necesidad de implementar las reformas contenidas en el Plan Sexenal. Aprovechando la inusual empatía hacia los pobres en tiempos del New Deal, se construyó una imagen específica de pobreza que fuera higiénica y redimible. Ésta, sin embargo, no generó consenso entre los mexicanos. This article analyzes the public diplomacy of the government of Lázaro Cárdenas, focusing on the administration’s decision to publicize the nation’s poverty internationally, especially in the United States. This study suggests that this was an unprecedented strategy, putting “national prestige” at risk in order to explain the importance of implementing the reforms contained in the Six Year Plan, in the face of public opinion in the United States. Taking advantage of the increased empathy felt towards the poor during the New Deal, a specific image of hygienic and redeemable poverty was constructed. However, this strategy did not generate agreement among Mexicans.

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The link between coronavirus, anxiety, and religious beliefs in the United States and United Kingdom

10.31234/osf.io/wykeq ◽

2020 ◽

Cited By ~ 1

Author(s):

Francesco Rigoli

Keyword(s):

United States ◽

United Kingdom ◽

Religious Beliefs ◽

Well Being ◽

The United States ◽

Christian Faith ◽

Stressful Event ◽

Cultural Implications ◽

The Impact

Research has shown that stress impacts on people’s religious beliefs. However, several aspects of this effect remain poorly understood, for example regarding the role of prior religiosity and stress-induced anxiety. This paper explores these aspects in the context of the recent coronavirus emergency. The latter has impacted dramatically on many people’s well-being; hence it can be considered a highly stressful event. Through online questionnaires administered to UK and USA citizens professing either Christian faith or no religion, this paper examines the impact of the coronavirus crisis upon common people’s religious beliefs. We found that, following the coronavirus emergency, strong believers reported higher confidence in their religious beliefs while non-believers reported increased scepticism towards religion. Moreover, for strong believers, higher anxiety elicited by the coronavirus threat was associated with increased strengthening of religious beliefs. Conversely, for non-believers, higher anxiety elicited by the coronavirus thereat was associated with increased scepticism towards religious beliefs. These observations are consistent with the notion that stress-induced anxiety enhances support for the ideology already embraced before a stressful event occurs. This study sheds light on the psychological and cultural implications of the coronavirus crisis, which represents one of the most serious health emergencies in recent times.

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The Future of Muslim Education in the United States: An Agenda for Research

American Journal of Islam and Society ◽

10.35632/ajis.v20i3-4.524 ◽

2003 ◽

Vol 20 (3-4) ◽

pp. 46-82

Author(s):

Fathi Malkawi

Keyword(s):

United States ◽

The United States ◽

American Education ◽

Future Trends ◽

Muslim Community ◽

Short Term ◽

The Future ◽

Muslim Education ◽

Future Plans

This paper addresses some of the Muslim community’s concerns regarding its children’s education and reflects upon how education has shaped the position of other communities in American history. It argues that the future of Muslim education will be influenced directly by the present realities and future trends within American education in general, and, more importantly, by the well-calculated and informed short-term and long-term decisions and future plans taken by the Muslim community. The paper identifies some areas in which a wellestablished knowledge base is critical to making decisions, and calls for serious research to be undertaken to furnish this base.

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“Of Sound Mind and Body”

The Oxford Handbook of Children and the Law ◽

10.1093/oxfordhb/9780190694395.013.4 ◽

2019 ◽

pp. 64-86

Author(s):

Frank E. Vandervort ◽

Vincent J. Palusci

Keyword(s):

United States ◽

Substance Abuse ◽

Social Problem ◽

Drug Testing ◽

The United States ◽

Developmental Trajectory ◽

Prenatally Exposed ◽

Short Term ◽

Mind And Body ◽

Sound Mind

Substance abuse is a major medical and social problem. Estimates suggest that each year some 15 percent of the 4 million babies born in the United States are exposed to drugs or alcohol. Research demonstrates that exposure to these substances is harmful to the children in both the short term and across their developmental trajectory. This chapter summarizes the harms that might result from such prenatal exposure and considers the ways that both federal and state law respond to this. The chapter argues for universal drug testing of newborns in an effort to ascertain whether they have been prenatally exposed to such substances so that treatment and other services can be provided.

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Decline in Marriage Associated with the COVID-19 Pandemic in the United States

Socius Sociological Research for a Dynamic World ◽

10.1177/2378023120980328 ◽

2020 ◽

Vol 6 ◽

pp. 237802312098032

Author(s):

Brandon G. Wagner ◽

Kate H. Choi ◽

Philip N. Cohen

Keyword(s):

United States ◽

The United States ◽

Cumulative Number ◽

Short Term ◽

Know How ◽

The Social ◽

Reporting Delays ◽

Social Upheaval ◽

Near Future ◽

Do So

In the social upheaval arising from the coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) pandemic, we do not yet know how union formation, particularly marriage, has been affected. Using administration records—marriage certificates and applications—gathered from settings representing a variety of COVID-19 experiences in the United States, the authors compare counts of recorded marriages in 2020 against those from the same period in 2019. There is a dramatic decrease in year-to-date cumulative marriages in 2020 compared with 2019 in each case. Similar patterns are observed for the Seattle metropolitan area when analyzing the cumulative number of marriage applications, a leading indicator of marriages in the near future. Year-to-date declines in marriage are unlikely to be due solely to closure of government agencies that administer marriage certification or reporting delays. Together, these findings suggest that marriage has declined during the COVID-19 outbreak and may continue to do so, at least in the short term.

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