Lost in Translation

Author(s):  
Geoff F. Kaufman ◽  
Mary Flanagan

In light of a growing body of work demonstrating the ability of games to transform cognitive skill sets and change attitudes toward social issues, including in public health, it is crucial to understand the potentially divergent experiences and outcomes afforded by analog and digital platforms. In a recent empirical study, the authors addressed the basic question of whether transferring a public health game from an analog to a digital format would impact players’ perceptions of the game and the efficacy of the game for stimulating changes to beliefs and cognitions. Results revealed that the digital version of the game, despite being a nearly identical translation, was perceived by players to be more complicated than the analog version and, consequently, was less effective at facilitating learning and attitude change. The authors propose several explanations for this finding, based on psychological theories, to help elucidate critical distinctions between non-digital and digital game play phenomenology.

Author(s):  
Geoff Kaufman ◽  
Mary Flanagan

With a growing body of work demonstrating the power of games to transform players' attitudes, behaviors, and cognitions, it is crucial to understand the potentially divergent experiences and outcomes afforded by digital and non-digital platforms. In a recent study, we found that transferring a public health game from a non-digital to a digital format profoundly impacted players' behaviors and the game's impact. Specifically, players of the digital version of the game, despite it being a nearly identical translation, exhibited a more rapid play pace and discussed strategies and consequences less frequently and with less depth. As a result of this discrepancy, players of the non-digital version of the game exhibited significantly higher post-game systems thinking performance and more positive valuations of vaccination, whereas players of the digital game did not. We propose several explanations for this finding, including follow-up work demonstrating the impact of platform on basic cognitive processes, that elucidate critical distinctions between digital and non-digital experiences.


Author(s):  
Scott Burris ◽  
Micah L. Berman ◽  
Matthew Penn, and ◽  
Tara Ramanathan Holiday

This chapter describes “due process,” a Constitutional restriction on governmental actions that impact individuals, in the context of public health. It outlines the doctrines of procedural and substantive due process, including the legal tests that courts apply to decide whether individuals’ due process rights have been violated. It uses examples from Supreme Court cases that have defined due process in the context of public health, including those that struggle to define the scope of reproductive rights. It also examines two cases where public health principles were raised as a justification for governmental action: one about involuntary sterilization and one about Ebola. The chapter concludes with a brief discussion of the “state action doctrine” that defines which public health actors may be challenged on due process grounds.


2021 ◽  
Vol 19 (1) ◽  
Author(s):  
Manjulaa Narasimhan ◽  
Carmen H. Logie ◽  
Kevin Moody ◽  
Jonathan Hopkins ◽  
Oswaldo Montoya ◽  
...  

Abstract Background Self-care interventions are influencing people’s access to, expectation and understanding of healthcare beyond formal health delivery systems. In doing so, self-care interventions could potentially improve health-seeking behaviours. While many men proactively engage in maintaining and promoting their health, the focus on men’s health comes from the recognition, at least partially, that male socialization and social norms can induce men and boys to have a lower engagement in institutionalized public health entities and systems around their sexual and reproductive health and rights, that could impact negatively on themselves, their partners and children. Main text A research agenda could consider the ways that public health messaging and information on self care practices for sexual and reproductive health and rights could be tailored to reflect men’s lived realities and experiences. Three examples of evidence-based self-care interventions related to sexual and reproductive health and rights that men can, and many do, engage in are briefly discussed: condom use, HIV self-testing and use of telemedicine and digital platforms for sexual health. We apply four core elements that contribute to health, including men’s health (people-centred approaches, quality health systems, a safe and supportive enabling environment, and behaviour-change communication) to each intervention where further research can inform normative guidance. Conclusion Engaging men and boys and facilitating their participation in self care can be an important policy intervention to advance global sexual and reproductive health and rights goals. The longstanding model of men neglecting or even sabotaging their wellbeing needs to be replaced by healthier lifestyles, which requires understanding how factors related to social support, social norms, power, academic performance or employability conditions, among others, influence men’s engagement with health services and with their own self care practices.


Author(s):  
Dalmacito A Cordero

Abstract Culture is a way of life. A recent correspondence emphasizes that it is a contributory factor in combatting the COVID-19 pandemic, and this must be considered by each government around the world. However, I argue that various elements in culture do not need to stop or else it will create public outrage. I therefore propose a win–win solution for both parties with the inclusion of the church that can serve as a framework for the sake of public health. It is primarily based on a kind of behavior that is needed to be embodied by the involved groups—‘supportive’ government, ‘creative’ church and an ‘adaptive’ public. These essential behaviors of all groups are possible to embody for a successful implementation of public health.


Viruses ◽  
2021 ◽  
Vol 13 (7) ◽  
pp. 1320
Author(s):  
Yogesh B Narkhede ◽  
Karen J Gonzalez ◽  
Eva-Maria Strauch

The emergence of novel viral infections of zoonotic origin and mutations of existing human pathogenic viruses represent a serious concern for public health. It warrants the establishment of better interventions and protective therapies to combat the virus and prevent its spread. Surface glycoproteins catalyzing the fusion of viral particles and host cells have proven to be an excellent target for antivirals as well as vaccines. This review focuses on recent advances for computational structure-based design of antivirals and vaccines targeting viral fusion machinery to control seasonal and emerging respiratory viruses.


2021 ◽  
Vol 11 (5) ◽  
pp. 2388
Author(s):  
Yongku Kim ◽  
Jeongjin Lee

In environmental studies, it is important to assess how regulatory standards for air pollutants affect public health. High ozone levels contribute to harmful air pollutants. The EPA regulates ozone levels by setting ozone standards to protect public health. It is thus crucial to assess how various regulatory ozone standards affect non-accidental mortality related to respiratory deaths during the ozone season. The original rollback approach provides an adjusted ozone process under a new regulation scenario in a deterministic fashion. Herein, we consider a statistical rollback approach to allow for uncertainty in the rollback procedure by adopting the quantile matching method so that it provides flexible rollback sets. Hierarchical Bayesian models are used to predict the potential effects of different ozone standards on human health. We apply the method to epidemiologic data.


2021 ◽  
pp. 1-21
Author(s):  
Elsa Arrua-Duarte ◽  
Marta Migoya-Borja ◽  
Igor Barahona ◽  
Lena C. Quilty ◽  
Sakina J. Rizvi ◽  
...  

Abstract Objective: The Dimensional Anhedonia Rating Scale (DARS) is a novel questionnaire to assess anhedonia of recent validation. In this work we aim to study the equivalence between the traditional paper-and-pencil and the digital format of DARS. Methods: 69 patients filled the DARS in a paper-based and digital versions. We assessed differences between formats (Wilcoxon test), validity of the scales (Kappa and Intraclass Correlation Coefficients), and reliability (Cronbach’s alpha and Guttman’s coefficient). We calculated the Comparative Fit Index and the Root Mean Squared Error associated with the proposed one-factor structure. Results: Total scores were higher for paper-based format. Significant differences between both formats were found for three items. The weighted Kappa coefficient was approximately 0.40 for most of the items. Internal consistency was greater than 0.94, and the Intraclass Correlation Coefficient for the digital version was 0.95 and 0.94 for the paper-and-pencil version (F= 16.7, p < 0.001). Comparative Adjustment Index was 0.97 for the digital DARS and 0.97 for the paper-and-pencil DARS, and Root Mean Squared Error was 0.11 for the digital DARS and 0.10 for the paper-and-pencil DARS. Conclusion: The digital DARS is consistent in many respects to the paper-and-pencil questionnaire, but equivalence with this format cannot be assumed without caution.


PEDIATRICS ◽  
1973 ◽  
Vol 51 (2) ◽  
pp. 323-324
Author(s):  
William M. Schmidt

This book was written in commemoration of the 100th anniversary of the founding of the Massachusetts State Board of Health. It is a record of events in mid-l9th century Massachusetts which led to the establishment of the Board of Health and of the changes in structure and functions of the State health authority from 1869 to 1936. It is, however, much more than this. As the subtitle indicates, this is a history of views and opinions about public health, particularly conflicting views as to the nature and extent of the Commonwealth's public health responsibilities.


2021 ◽  
Author(s):  
Sarah Kreps

BACKGROUND Misinformation about COVID-19 has presented challenges to public health authorities during pandemics. Understanding the prevalence and type of misinformation across contexts offers a way to understand the discourse around COVID-19 while informing potential countermeasures. OBJECTIVE The aim of the study was to study COVID-19 content on two prominent microblogging platform, Twitter, based in the United States, and Sina Weibo, based in China, and compare the content and relative prevalence of misinformation to better understand public discourse of public health issues across social media and cultural contexts. METHODS A total of 3,579,575 posts were scraped from both Weibo and Twitter, focusing on content from January 30th, 2020, when the World Health Organization (WHO) declared COVID-19 a “Public Health Emergency of International Concern” and February 6th, 2020. A 1% random sample of tweets that contained both the English keywords “coronavirus” and “covid-19” and the equivalent Chinese characters was extracted and analyzed based on changes in the frequencies of keywords and hashtags. Misinformation on each platform was compared by manually coding and comparing posts using the World Health Organization fact-check page to adjudicate accuracy of content. RESULTS Both platforms posted about the outbreak and transmission but posts on Sina Weibo were less likely to reference controversial topics such as the World Health Organization and death and more likely to cite themes of resisting, fighting, and cheering against the coronavirus. Misinformation constituted 1.1% of Twitter content and 0.3% of Weibo content. CONCLUSIONS Quantitative and qualitative analysis of content on both platforms points to cross-platform differences in public discourse surrounding the pandemic and informs potential countermeasures for online misinformation.


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