The flexibility of the intermediate vs. wholistic/analytic styles-an eye tracking study

In the aftermath of the COVID-19 pandemic, the educational system is increasingly incorporating twenty-first-century skills, such as online learning, that require learners to demonstrate cognitive flexibility. Cognitive flexibility is the ability to quickly reconfigure our minds to meet the task demands. This study investigates the degree of cognitive flexibility of the wholistic-intermediate-analytic dimensions, by classifying patterns of Eye Movements (EM) and behavioural data. Using the E-CSA-W/A test, 113 participants were classified based on their tendency towards a particular style (wholistic/intermediate/analytic). Results indicate that wholistics and intermediates demonstrated greater cognitive flexibility in adapting to the task requirements than the analytics. Analytics were slower at completing the test and made more transitions between Areas of Interest than the other groups. Finally, while the behavioural data demonstrate quantitative differences between the groups, EM provides qualitative information regarding the cognitive process that leads to the response. Theoretical, methodological, and practical contributions are discussed.Copyright © 2022 Informa UK Limited, trading as Taylor & Francis Group.

Enhancing children's awareness of sexual abuse in Pakistan with video literacy interventional cartoons.

In presence of violent extremism, children in Pakistan are at high risk for child sexual abuse (CSA), especially after the COVID-19 pandemic. Effective approaches for preventing CSA include enhancing resilience resources in violence-affected societies. Previous research suggests that video-based curricula effectively enhances learning in primary schoolchildren. We pilot tested a video literacy program to build awareness in children, creating a 'personal safety and space bubble' as an educational approach for prevention of sexual abuse with an experimental 6 weeks long pre- and post-test design. We conducted qualitative interviews with students, teachers, and parents and identified themes using frequency analyses. Results showed a 96.7% increase in awareness about 'personal safety and space bubble'. The pilot study is valuable for public health researchers and policy makers seeking to curtail sexual abuse in extreme violence affected Pakistan. Primary schools can use such interventional cartoons to enhance awareness about child sexual abuse.

The flexibility of the intermediate vs. wholistic/analytic styles - an eye tracking study

In the aftermath of the COVID-19 pandemic, the educational system is increasingly incorporating twenty-first-century skills, such as online learning, that require learners to demonstrate cognitive flexibility. Cognitive flexibility is the ability to quickly reconfigure our minds to meet the task demands. This study investigates the degree of cognitive flexibility of the wholistic-intermediate-analytic dimensions, by classifying patterns of Eye Movements (EM) and behavioural data. Using the E-CSA-W/A test, 113 participants were classified based on their tendency towards a particular style (wholistic/intermediate/analytic). Results indicate that wholistics and intermediates demonstrated greater cognitive flexibility in adapting to the task requirements than the analytics. Analytics were slower at completing the test and made more transitions between Areas of Interest than the other groups. Finally, while the behavioural data demonstrate quantitative differences between the groups, EM provides qualitative information regarding the cognitive process that leads to the response. Theoretical, methodological, and practical contributions are discussed.

Impacts of video communication on psychological well-being and cosmetic surgery acceptance.

Video communication via platforms such as Zoom has been routinely used as a communication tool during the COVID-19 pandemic. Scientific evidence has suggested that constant video communication can have detrimental consequences such as "Zoom fatigue", inhibiting collaboration, and new information exchange. The current study focuses on the effects of using video communication technology on self-esteem, affect, and image perception under the framework of objective self-awareness (OSA). We implemented a survey among a large sample of video communication users. The results revealed a nuanced picture of OSA with video communication: merely seeing self-video and the time of using video communication won't activate OSA. However, being a listener and a part of the audience in video communication activated OSA. In turn, OSA significantly increased the attention paid to oneself, leading to critical self-evaluation, negative affect, and a greater level of cosmetic surgery acceptance. Moreover, OSA reduced the level of self-esteem. Theoretical and practical implications are discussed.

‘What we'd like is a CSA in every town.’ Scaling community supported agriculture across the UK

As the Covid-19 pandemic exposes the vulnerabilities of our globalised agri-food system, local sustainable food alternatives, such as community-supported agriculture (CSA), are on the rise. In CSA local farmers and households co-produce food sustainably and independently of the market. CSA's benefits and shortcomings are well-understood but we know little about how larger CSA networks can expand and consolidate the practice at scale. This paper investigates the UK CSA network, showing its ability to upscale, outscale and downscale CSA through institutionalisation, replication and politicization, before discussing the network's strategic limitations and dependencies. © 2022 The Author

Virtual Delivery of A School-Based Child Sexual Abuse Prevention Program: A Pilot Study.

Universal child sexual abuse (CSA) prevention is a public health priority. The prevailing prevention strategy is school-based CSA prevention programming. School closures during the COVID-19 pandemic highlighted the need for flexible modes of delivery, including virtual programs. This pilot examined the virtual delivery of an evidence-based, school-based CSA prevention program, Safe Touches, designed to teach CSA-related knowledge and concepts. Using mixed methods, the pilot sought to determine the feasibility of the virtually delivered CSA prevention program. One school district that had previously received Safe Touches in-person participated. A total of 176 second grade students participated in the virtual workshop. Post-workshop survey responses from virtual (N = 37) and in-person workshops (N = 60) were compared descriptively. Mean item scores and response patterns from students who received the virtual workshop were nominally comparable to the student scores from the in-person workshop. Following the virtual workshop, one teacher notified the research team of a disclosure of CSA. Qualitative input from the facilitator and school staff was positive, indicating high student engagement. Results suggest the viability and feasibility of virtual school-based CSA preventive programs. Investment in virtual modes of delivery would ensure all students have access to CSA prevention programming in the future.

When Corporate Social Advocacy Meets Controversial Celebrity: The Role of Consumer–Brand Congruence and Consumer-Celebrity Congruence

This study investigates the role of consumer–brand congruence and consumer–celebrity congruence in the formation of consumer attitudes toward brands and their impact on behavioral intentions within the context of corporate social advocacy (CSA) involving controversial celebrities. Using a U.S. sample drawn from a Qualtrics panel (N = 372), the results of mediation analyses indicate that attitude toward a brand positively mediates the effects of consumer–brand congruence on consumers’ behavioral intentions, including purchase intention, brand preference, and boycott recommendation. The consumer–celebrity congruence moderated the indirect effect of consumer–brand congruence on brand preference and boycott recommendations, but not purchase intention. The findings of this study contribute to the CSA literature and practices by highlighting the role of consumers’ congruence with a controversial celebrity in determining consumers’ behavioral responses to CSA. When brands practice CSA, consumer–brand congruence rather than consumer–celebrity congruence could play a more important role in shaping consumer behaviors.

Cyclosporine A Inhibits Viral Infection and Release as Well as Cytokine Production in Lung Cells by Three SARS-CoV-2 Variants.

In December 2019, a new severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) started spreading worldwide causing the coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) pandemic. The hyperactivation of the immune system has been proposed to account for disease severity and death in COVID-19 patients. Despite several approaches having been tested, no therapeutic protocol has been approved. Given that Cyclosporine A (CsA) is well-known to exert a strong antiviral activity on several viral strains and an anti-inflammatory role in different organs with relevant benefits in diverse pathological contexts, we tested its effects on SARS-CoV-2 infection of lung cells. We found that treatment with CsA either before or after infection of CaLu3 cells by three SARS-CoV-2 variants: (i) reduces the expression of both viral RNA and proteins in infected cells; (ii) decreases the number of progeny virions released by infected cells; (iii) dampens the virus-triggered synthesis of cytokines (including IL-6, IL-8, IL1α and TNF-α) that are involved in cytokine storm in patients. Altogether, these data provide a rationale for CsA repositioning for the treatment of severe COVID-19 patients. IMPORTANCE SARS-CoV-2 is the most recently identified member of the betacoronavirus genus responsible for the COVID-19 pandemic. Repurposing of available drugs has been a "quick and dirty" approach to try to reduce mortality and severe symptoms in affected patients initially, and can still represent an undeniable and valuable approach to face COVID-19 as the continuous appearance and rapid diffusion of more "aggressive"/transmissible variants, capable of eluding antibody neutralization, challenges the effectiveness of some anti-SARS-CoV-2 vaccines. Here, we tested a known antiviral and anti-inflammatory drug, Cyclosporine A (CsA), and found that it dampens viral infection and cytokine release from lung cells upon exposure to three different SARS-CoV-2 variants. Knock down of the main intracellular target of CsA, Cyclophilin A, does not phenocopy the drug inhibition of viral infection. Altogether, these findings shed new light on the cellular mechanisms of SARS-CoV-2 infection and provide the rationale for CsA repositioning to treat severe COVID-19 patients.