Challenges and opportunities for the affective sciences.

2018 ◽  
Author(s):  
Andrew S. Fox ◽  
Regina Lapate ◽  
Alexander J. Shackman ◽  
Richard J Davidson
Keyword(s):  
Well Being ◽  
Human Condition ◽  
Emotional States ◽  
Quarter Century ◽  
Core Feature ◽  
Challenges And Opportunities ◽  
The Mind ◽  
The Impact ◽  
Improved Methods ◽  
Health And Well Being

Emotion is a core feature of the human condition, with profound consequences for health, wealth, and wellbeing. Over the past quarter-century, improved methods for manipulating and measuring different features of emotion have yielded steady advances in our scientific understanding emotional states, traits, and disorders. Yet, it is clear that most of the work remains undone. Here, we highlight key challenges facing the field of affective sciences. Addressing these challenges will provide critical opportunities not just for understanding the mind, but also for increasing the impact of the affective sciences on public health and well-being.

scholarly journals The Value of Urban Nature in Terms of Providing Ecosystem Services Related to Health and Well-Being: An Empirical Comparative Pilot Study of Cities in Germany and the Czech Republic

Land ◽  
2021 ◽  
Vol 10 (4) ◽  
pp. 341
Author(s):  
Ralf-Uwe Syrbe ◽  
Ina Neumann ◽  
Karsten Grunewald ◽  
Patrycia Brzoska ◽  
Jiři Louda ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Public Health ◽  
Ecosystem Services ◽  
Green Space ◽  
Well Being ◽  
Urban Green Space ◽  
Urban Nature ◽  
Urban Green ◽  
Green Areas ◽  
The Impact ◽  
Health And Well Being

The quality of life in our cities critically depends on the intelligent planning and shaping of urban living space, in particular urban nature. By providing a wide range of ecosystem services (ES), urban nature essentially contributes to the well-being of city dwellers and plays a major role in avoiding common diseases through its positive impact on physical and mental health. Health is one of the most important factors underlying human welfare and is, thus, vital to sustainable development. The ES of urban green space provide other social-cultural functions alongside public health, for example by fostering environmental justice and citizenship participation. Thus, they should always be considered when searching for solutions to urban problems. The aim of this research was to determine the impact of green areas in three selected cities on the health and well-being of people by self-reporting of green areas’ visitors. To this end, we posed the research question: which types and characteristics of urban green space are most appreciated by city dwellers? Based on our findings, we have drawn up recommendations for practices to promote better living conditions. We have also pinpointed obstacles to and opportunities for leisure time activities as well as ways of supporting the public health of citizens.

Measuring the Impact of a Full Service Grocery Store in a Food Desert

2021 ◽  
Vol 3 (2) ◽  
pp. 161-176
Author(s):  
Kellie Schneider ◽  
Diana Cuy Castellanos ◽  
Felix Fernando ◽  
Jeanne A. Holcomb
Keyword(s):  
Systems Engineering ◽  
Low Income ◽  
Social Impact ◽  
Food Deserts ◽  
Well Being ◽  
Environmental Indicators ◽  
Grocery Store ◽  
The Impact ◽  
Health And Well Being

Food deserts, areas in which it is difficult to obtain affordable, nutritious food, are especially problematic in low-income neighbourhoods. One model for addressing food hardship and unemployment issues within low-income food deserts is a cooperative grocery store. Through the cooperative model, the grocery store can serve as a cornerstone to address socio-economic marginalisation of low-income neighbourhoods and improve the health and well-being of its residents. It is important for communities and policymakers to be able to assess the effectiveness of these types of endeavours beyond traditional economic factors such as profitability. This article uses a systems engineering approach to develop a framework for measuring the holistic impact of a cooperative grocery store on community health and well-being. This framework encompasses values that characterise the relationship between food retail, economic viability and social equality. We develop a dashboard to display the key metrics for measuring the economic, social and environmental indicators that reflect a grocery store’s social impact. We demonstrate the usefulness of the framework through a case study of a full-service cooperative grocery store that is planned within the city of Dayton, OH.

scholarly journals Impact of COVID-19 on the Health and Well-being of Informal Caregivers of People with Dementia: A Rapid Systematic Review

2021 ◽  
Vol 7 ◽  
pp. 233372142110201
Author(s):  
M. Courtney Hughes ◽  
Yujun Liu ◽  
Abby Baumbach
Keyword(s):  
Negative Impact ◽  
Living Arrangement ◽  
Informal Caregivers ◽  
Well Being ◽  
Rapid Review ◽  
People With Dementia ◽  
Psychosocial Resilience ◽  
Quantitative Descriptive ◽  
The Impact ◽  
Health And Well Being

Background: In December 2019, the severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2), or COVID-19, raised worldwide concern. Since then, the COVID-19 pandemic has negatively influenced health and wellness across the globe and caused nearly three million deaths. This study focuses on informal caregivers of people with dementia, a disease that affects about 50 million older adults worldwide and requires much caregiving support. Objective: Examine the current literature on the impact of COVID-19 on the health and well-being of informal caregivers for people with dementia. Method: This rapid review was conducted across five electronic databases for quantitative and qualitative articles published through March 15, 2021. Results: The 10 studies included in this review reported quantitative descriptive data from across the globe; however, no studies existed from the U.S. or East Asia countries. All of the studies examined the psychological rather than physical impact of COVID-19 and highlighted risk and protective factors in the areas of psychosocial (resilience, neuropsychiatric, and social isolation), sociodemographic (gender and education), and environmental (home confinement, living arrangement, and dementia stage). Conclusion: COVID-19 has had a considerable negative impact on the psychological well-being of informal caregivers of people with dementia, namely causing more depression and anxiety than pre-pandemic.

scholarly journals The Neoliberal University in Ireland: Institutional Bullying by Another Name?

Societies ◽  
2021 ◽  
Vol 11 (2) ◽  
pp. 52
Author(s):  
Margaret Hodgins ◽  
Patricia Mannix McNamara
Keyword(s):  
Higher Education ◽  
Public Management ◽  
New Public Management ◽  
Academic Staff ◽  
Well Being ◽  
The United States ◽  
Decent Work ◽  
New Public ◽  
The Impact ◽  
Health And Well Being

New managerialism and the pervasive neoliberalisation of universities is by now a well-established phenomenon. Commentaries explore the political and economic drivers and effects of neoliberal ideology, and critique the impact on higher education and academic work. The impact on the health and well-being of academic staff has had less attention, and it is to that we turn in this paper. Much academic interest in neoliberalism stems from the UK, Australia and the United States. We draw particularly on studies of public Irish universities, where neoliberalism, now well entrenched, but something of a late-comer to the new public management party, is making its presence felt. This conceptual paper explores the concept of neoliberalism in higher education, arguing that the policies and practices of new public management as exercised in universities are a form of bullying; what we term institutional bullying. The authors are researchers of workplace culture, workplace bullying and incivility. Irish universities are increasingly challenged in delivering the International Labour Organisation (ILO) principles of decent work, i.e., dignity, equity, fair income and safe working conditions. They have become exposed in terms of gender imbalance in senior positions, precariat workforce, excessive workload and diminishing levels of control. Irish universities are suffering in terms of both the health and well-being of staff and organisational vibrancy. The authors conclude by cautioning against potential neoliberal intensification as universities grapple with the economic fallout from the COVID-19 pandemic. This paper reviews neoliberalism in higher education and concludes with insight as to how the current pandemic could act as a necessary catalyst to stem the tide and ‘call out’ bullying at the institutional level.

scholarly journals Veteran Status Matters! Life Course Perspectives on the Health and Well-Being of Aging Veterans

2020 ◽  
Vol 4 (Supplement_1) ◽  
pp. 636-636
Author(s):  
Avron Spiro
Keyword(s):  
Life Course ◽  
Vietnam Veterans ◽  
Military Service ◽  
Combat Veterans ◽  
Well Being ◽  
Veterans Health ◽  
Negative Effects ◽  
Veteran Status ◽  
The Impact ◽  
Health And Well Being

Abstract Military service during early life can result in exposure to traumatic events that can reverberate throughout life. Although much attention is focused on the negative effects of military service, many veterans report positive effects. These papers explore life course effects of military service on veterans’ health and well-being. Three used national US longitudinal cohorts (HRS, MIDUS); two sampled veterans from Oregon or from Korea. Three compared veterans to non-veterans; two examined veterans only. Cheng and colleagues found that veterans in HRS are more likely to be risk-averse than non-veterans. Risk aversion matters because it determines how people make decisions and predicts a wide array of health and economic outcomes. Kurth and colleagues examined Oregon veterans from several wars, finding PTSD symptoms were highest among Vietnam combat veterans, the oldest cohort; there were no differences among non-combat veterans. Piazza and colleagues examined in MIDUS the impact of veteran status on cortisol, a stress biomarker, finding older veterans more likely had non-normative patterns than did younger or non-veterans. Lee and colleagues studied patterns of mental health among Korean Vietnam veterans, identifying two patterns as ‘normal’ and ‘resilient’ encompassing half the sample; these veterans demonstrated positive outcomes of military service. Frochen and colleagues compared depression trajectories between veterans and non-veterans in HRS, finding veterans had less depression than non-veterans, but among veterans, trajectories varied based on extent of service. in sum, these papers demonstrate that military service can have positive as well as negative effects on veterans’ health and well-being in later life. Aging Veterans: Effects of Military Service across the Life Course Interest Group Sponsored Symposium.

scholarly journals SOCIAL NETWORKS, HEALTH, AND WELL-BEING AMONG PEOPLE LIVING WITH DEMENTIA

2019 ◽  
Vol 3 (Supplement_1) ◽  
pp. S71-S71
Author(s):  
Eleanor S McConnell ◽  
Kirsten Corazzini ◽  
T Robert Konrad
Keyword(s):  
Older Adults ◽  
Social Networks ◽  
Well Being ◽  
Sensor Technology ◽  
Web Based ◽  
Use Of Technology ◽  
Care Partners ◽  
The Impact ◽  
The Relationship ◽  
Health And Well Being

Abstract Although the impact of dementia on the health and well-being of those living with Alzheimer’s Disease and related Disorders (ADRD) and their care partners has been widely studied, less attention has been paid to how the disease impacts individuals within the context of their larger social networks. This symposium presents findings from a series of integrated studies aimed at strengthening measurement of health and well-being among older adults with living with dementia and well-being among members of their social networks. Findings will be presented from five studies: (1) a scoping review of social network measurement in older adults in chronic illness, including dementia, that emphasizes the use of technology in measuring older adults’ social networks; (2) a simulation study to evaluate the feasibility and reliability of sensor technology to measure social interaction among a person living with dementia and others in their immediate surroundings; (3) development of a web-based application that allows older adults to map and activate their social networks; (4) a qualitative analysis of interviews from persons living with dementia, their unpaid caregivers, and paid caregivers from an adult day health program concerning well-being focused outcomes; and (5) a mixed methods analysis of the feasibility of using both traditional and novel measures of health and well-being deployed among networks of people living with dementia. Emerging technologies for measuring social networks health and well-being hold promise for advancing the study of the relationship-based nature of care for people living with dementia.

Health and Rural Context Among Victims of Partner Abuse: Does Justice Matter?

2016 ◽  
Vol 33 (1) ◽  
pp. 64-82 ◽  
Author(s):  
Robert Walker ◽  
T. K. Logan
Keyword(s):  
Procedural Justice ◽  
Rural Women ◽  
Partner Violence ◽  
Urban Areas ◽  
Urban Women ◽  
Well Being ◽  
Protective Order ◽  
Protective Orders ◽  
The Impact ◽  
Health And Well Being

Research typically compartmentalizes health and justice as separate areas of study. However, the current health literature on inequality suggests the two concepts are overlapping. For victims of partner violence, procedural justice (defined in this article as access to protective orders and enforcement of protective orders) potentially provides a step toward improved health and well-being by improving safety. There has been limited research examining these factors in rural compared with urban areas. This study examines the impact of procedural justice on health and well-being through interviews with rural and urban women 6 months prior to, and 6 months after, obtaining a protective order. Consistent with other literature, rural women who were victims of partner violence reported worse health, higher stress, and higher Stress-Related Consequences Scale scores compared with urban women. Women’s reported health consequences were related to the interaction of perceived ineffectiveness of the protective orders and their rural/urban environment. Thus, the perceived effectiveness of procedural justice may play an important role in alleviating victims’ safety, health, and well-being, all of which are components of contemporary views of justice.

When I am old I shall wear purple: a qualitative study of the effect of group poetry sessions on the well-being of older adults

2016 ◽  
Vol 20 (4) ◽  
pp. 195-198 ◽  
Author(s):  
Richard Seymour ◽  
Michael Murray
Keyword(s):  
Older People ◽  
Assisted Living ◽  
Well Being ◽  
Content Type ◽  
Short Period ◽  
Different Types ◽  
Poetry Reading ◽  
The Impact ◽  
Health And Well Being ◽  
Practical Implications

Purpose There is increasing evidence that participation in various art forms can be beneficial for health and well-being. The purpose of this paper is to examine the impact of participating in a poetry reading group on a group of older residents of an assisted living facility. Design/methodology/approach Six poetry sessions, each on a different theme, were conducted with a group of volunteer participants. These sessions, those of pre- and post-study focus groups and interviews with the group facilitator and staff contact were audio-recorded. The transcripts of the recordings were then subjected to a thematic analysis. Findings Overall the participants were enthused by the opportunity to participate in the project and the benefits were confirmed by the support staff. In addition, reading poetry on particular themes promoted different types of discussion. Research limitations/implications The number of participants in this study was small and the study was conducted over a short period of time. Practical implications This paper confirms the impact of poetry reading for older people. The challenge is to explore this impact in more detail and over community as well as residential settings. Originality/value This paper is the first empirical report on the value of poetry reading for older people.

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