Acceptability and impact on spasticity of a single session of upper extremity vibration in individuals with tetraplegia.

STUDY DESIGN: Pre-post design; before and after vibration intervention. OBJECTIVES: To explore effect of a focal, self-applied upper extremity (UE) vibration intervention on UE spasticity for individuals with tetraplegia. The secondary objectives were to explore the acceptability and ease of use of this intervention. SETTING: Specialty rehabilitation center in Georgia, USA. METHODS: Eleven participants each completed one session of focal, self-applied vibration to the UEs. UE spasticity was measured using the Modified Ashworth Scale (MAS). UE function was measured using the Box & Block (B&B) test which measures the effectiveness of grasp, transport, and release. These measurements were taken pre-intervention, immediately post-intervention, and 20 min post-intervention. Participants also self-reported the acceptability and usability of the intervention, their perception of change in their spasticity and completed the Qualities of Spasticity Questionnaire. RESULTS: In the full group analysis of the spasticity measures, no significant effects were found. Subgroup analysis, however, indicated participants with higher spasticity demonstrated significantly more change on the MAS than the lower spasticity group. Analysis did not reveal any impact of the intervention on UE function as measured by the B&B. Ten out of eleven participants indicated that they agreed or strongly agreed that the intervention would be valuable to have at home. CONCLUSIONS: Participants with higher spasticity demonstrated decreased spasticity after focal UE vibration, although there was no clear effect on grasp, transport and release function. Participants were satisfied with the intervention; most were able to use it independently and indicated it would be a valuable home intervention.

Census characteristics of Illinois sober living homes: A geographic information systems study.

Recovery homes currently provide a supportive, cohesive setting following addiction treatment to thousands of individuals who often have the least resources and consequently a high risk of relapse. Such homes are particularly important regarding reducing inequality, particularly for those with substance use disorders exiting inpatient treatment or jail/prison, and many of these individuals have experienced homelessness and high rates of psychiatric co-morbidity. Yet, the success of these houses and their residents is likely related to the ability of the residents to obtain employment. This study geocoded data from 52 Oxford House recovery homes throughout Illinois. Data indicated that Oxford Houses in Illinois were often located in areas with the highest unemployment activity in the state. Placing homes in communities with higher job opportunities and employment rates could increase employment for individual residents and, subsequently, reduce inequality by increasing their odds of long term abstinence.

Correction to: Oxford House Residents' Attitudes Toward Medication Assisted Treatment Use in Fellow Residents.

The original version of this article unfortunately contained a mistake in the author group, where co-authors Isabel Dovale, Noah Gelfman and Sarah Callahan were missed to include and Brandon Isler should be removed from the author group.

Oxford House Residents' Attitudes Toward Medication Assisted Treatment Use in Fellow Residents.

Methadone and buprenorphine/naloxone are medication assisted treatment (MAT) options for treating opioid use disorder, yet attitudes regarding their use within abstinence-based recovery homes have not been assessed. The present investigation examined attitudes regarding MAT utilization among residents living in Oxford Houses. This cross-sectional investigation compared residents (n = 87) receiving MAT whose recent drug use involved opioids, and two groups not receiving MATs; those who had used opioids and those who had used substances other than opioids. The vast majority of residents were not receiving MAT, yet 32% reported MAT histories. Negative attitudes regarding MAT were observed among residents who were not receiving MAT. Those presently receiving MAT reported mixed attitudes regarding the use of methadone and buprenorphine/naloxone, and two of these residents reported they had never been prescribed MAT. Findings suggest that abstinence-based recovery homes such as Oxford Houses may not be optimal resources for persons receiving MATs.

Relationship Themes Present between Parents and Children in Recovery Homes.

Approximately 12.5% of children have a parent with a substance use disorder. These children are likely to experience developmental delays, especially if they are placed into foster care. Oxford House recovery homes provide a useful setting that allows children to live with their parents after treatment for substance use. A sample of parents and their children who lived in Oxford Houses were interviewed, using mixed methods, and the outcomes suggest that Oxford Houses may provide a stable and supportive setting for parents and their children.

Reducing Economic Disparities for Female Offenders: The Oxford House Model.

BACKGROUND: In the past 30 years the rate of increase in incarceration for females who abuse substances has outpaced that of men. Women have increased health and economic disparities, and face barriers to economic mobility, increasing their risk of returning to the criminal justice system. Past research suggests that there is a positive relationship between living in Oxford House and employment wages, yet the impact of having a criminal history on this relationship was unknown. METHOD: This study used a nationwide sample of 136 women living in Oxford Houses in a regression analysis with length of stay in Oxford House predicting employment wages, and moderated by criminal history. RESULTS: There was a positive relationship between length of stay and wages. Criminal history modified the association between length of stay and wages, and length of stay had a significantly greater impact on wages for women with criminal convictions. IMPLICATIONS: The findings provide a contribution to alcohol and drug abuse and economic literature by identifying a setting that decreases economic disparities for formerly incarcerated women. Results can inform future policy, research, and the development of gender sensitive aftercare programs that address the needs of women, assisting transitioning women in reentering mainstream society, and increasing their chances of obtaining and retaining employment.

Social Influences on Abstinence Self-Efficacy among Justice-Involved Persons.

Social influences (social support for alcohol/drug use and social support for abstinence) were examined in relation to abstinence self-efficacy among a sample of 250 justice involved persons exiting inpatient treatment for substance use disorders. Hierarchical linear regression was used to examine social influences in relation to abstinence self-efficacy. Social influences were significantly related to abstinence self-efficacy when examined independently. However, only social support for alcohol/drug use was significant when both social influences were entered into the model. Findings suggest social support for alcohol/drug use compromises abstinence social support, particularly among justice involved persons who are early in their recovery from substance use disorders.

A Mathematical Framework for the Complex System Approach to Group Dynamics: The Case of Recovery House Social Integration.

The complex system conception of group social dynamics often involves not only changing individual characteristics, but also changing within-group relationships. Recent advances in stochastic dynamic network modeling allow these interdependencies to be modeled from data. This methodology is discussed within a context of other mathematical and statistical approaches that have been or could be applied to study the temporal evolution of relationships and behaviors within small- to medium-sized groups. An example model is presented, based on a pilot study of five Oxford House recovery homes, sober living environments for individuals following release from acute substance abuse treatment. This model demonstrates how dynamic network modeling can be applied to such systems, examines and discusses several options for pooling, and shows how results are interpreted in line with complex system concepts. Results suggest that this approach (a) is a credible modeling framework for studying group dynamics even with limited data, (b) improves upon the most common alternatives, and (c) is especially well-suited to complex system conceptions. Continuing improvements in stochastic models and associated software may finally lead to mainstream use of these techniques for the study of group dynamics, a shift already occurring in related fields of behavioral science.

Challenges and Rewards of Conducting Research on Recovery Residences for Alcohol and Drug Disorders.

Although research shows treatment for alcohol and drug problems can be effective, persons without stable housing that supports recovery are at risk for relapse. Recovery residences (RRs) for drug and alcohol problems are a growing response to the need for alcohol- and drug-free living environments that support sustained recovery. Research on RRs offers an opportunity to examine how integration of these individuals into a supportive, empowering environment has beneficial impacts on substance use, housing, and other outcomes, as well as benefits for the surrounding community. Research can also lead to the identification of operations and practices within houses that maximize favorable outcomes for residents. However, research on RRs also presents significant obstacles and challenges. Based on our experiences conducting recovery home research for decades, we present suggestions for addressing some of the unique challenges encountered in this type of research.

Income Generation in Recovering Heroin Users: A Comparative Analysis of Legal and Illegal Earnings.

Research has shown employment to be a central mediator to sustained recovery and community reentry for substance abusers; however, heroin users have lower employment rates and report lower mean incomes than other drug users. The authors of the present study assessed income generating behaviors of substance users recruited from substance abuse treatment facilities (N=247). Heroin users had higher mean incomes from illegal sources. Further, logistic regression analysis found heroin use to increase the likelihood of engagement in illegal income generating behaviors. As these results increase the likelihood of involvement in the criminal justice system, the implications for heroin specific treatment and rehabilitation are discussed.

The processing and interpretation of verb phrase ellipsis constructions by children at normal and slowed speech rates.

PURPOSE: To examine children's comprehension of verb phrase (VP) ellipsis constructions in light of their automatic, online structural processing abilities and conscious, metalinguistic reflective skill. METHOD: Forty-two children ages 5 through 12 years listened to VP ellipsis constructions involving the strict/sloppy ambiguity (e.g., "The janitor untangled himself from the rope and the fireman in the elementary school did too after the accident.") in which the ellipsis phrase ("did too") had 2 interpretations: (a) strict ("untangled the janitor") and (b) sloppy ("untangled the fireman"). We examined these sentences at a normal speech rate with an online cross-modal picture priming task (n = 14) and an offline sentence-picture matching task (n = 11). Both tasks were also given with slowed speech input (n = 17). RESULTS: Children showed priming for both the strict and sloppy interpretations at a normal speech rate but only for the strict interpretation with slowed input. Offline, children displayed an adultlike preference for the sloppy interpretation with normal-rate input but a divergent pattern with slowed speech. CONCLUSIONS: Our results suggest that children and adults rely on a hybrid syntax-discourse model for the online comprehension and offline interpretation of VP ellipsis constructions. This model incorporates a temporally sensitive syntactic process of VP reconstruction (disrupted with slow input) and a temporally protracted discourse effect attributed to parallelism (preserved with slow input).

Parallelism effects and verb activation: the sustained reactivation hypothesis.

This study investigated the processes underlying parallelism by evaluating the activation of a parallel element (i.e., a verb) throughout and-coordinated sentences. Four points were tested: (1) approximately 1,600 ms after the verb in the first conjunct (PP1), (2) immediately following the conjunction (PP2), (3) approximately 1,100 ms after the conjunction (PP3), (4) at the end of the second conjunct (PP4). The results revealed no activation at PP1, suggesting activation related to the initial presentation had decayed by this point; however, activation was observed at PP2, PP3, and PP4, suggesting the conjunction elicits reactivation that is sustained throughout the second conjunct. These findings support a specific hypothesis about parallelism, the sustained reactivation hypothesis. This hypothesis claims that, in conjoined structures, a cue that is associated with parallelism elicits the reactivation of material from the first conjunct and that this activation is sustained until integration with the second conjunct can be completed.

Processing Anaphoric Constructions: Insights from Electrophysiological Studies.

Anaphora is a common, universal, and critical aspect of communication. For quite some time, linguists and psycholinguists have applied introspective and behavioral techniques to the study of anaphora, yielding a large body of evidence and generating a number of theories and models of anaphoric usage and processing. The recent advent of the use of electrophysiological techniques to study language processing creates a unique opportunity to reevaluate these theories and models on the basis of neurophysiological data. This paper examines whether two key characteristics of anaphoric relationships (i.e. the underlying linguistic mechanism and the nature of the anaphor) have observable effects on neurophysiological processing. An exhaustive review of electrophysiological studies testing anaphoric constructions leads to the novel conclusion that the effects of these characteristics are reducible to differences in the time-course of the availability of information and the ability to form expectations about anaphoric relationships. This review also demonstrates that while theories of anaphoric usage are generally supported, finer-grained models of the time-course of anaphoric processing require revision to account for the new electrophysiological data.