Do autistic adults spontaneously reason about belief? A detailed exploration of alternative explanations.

Southgate et al.'s (Southgate 2007 Psychol. Sci. 18, 587-92 (doi:10.1111/j.1467-9280.2007.01944.x)) anticipatory-looking paradigm has presented exciting yet inconclusive evidence surrounding spontaneous mentalizing in autism. The present study aimed to develop this paradigm to address alternative explanations for the lack of predictive eye movements on false-belief tasks by autistic adults. This was achieved through implementing a multi-trial design with matched true-belief conditions, and both high and low inhibitory demand false-belief conditions. We also sought to inspect if any group differences were related to group-specific patterns of attention on key events. Autistic adults were compared with non-autistic adults on this adapted implicit mentalizing task and an established explicit task. The two groups performed equally well in the explicit task; however, autistic adults did not show anticipatory-looking behaviour in the false-belief trials of the implicit task. Critically, both groups showed the same attentional distribution in the implicit task prior to action prediction, indicating that autistic adults process information from social cues in the same way as non-autistic adults, but this information is not then used to update mental representations. Our findings further document that many autistic people struggle to spontaneously mentalize others' beliefs, and this non-verbal paradigm holds promise for use with a wide range of ages and abilities.

The relationship between HPV testing attitudes and beliefs, knowledge, and vaccination attitudes: A cross-sectional study.

OBJECTIVE: This study aims to examine the relationship between human papillomavirus (HPV) testing attitudes and beliefs, knowledge, and vaccination attitudes. DESIGN: This study was a cross-sectional design. SAMPLE: This study was conducted between March 15, 2024, and June 2, 2024, through social media platforms such as Facebook, Instagram, Twitter, and Telegram, by sharing on forum pages, and involved 674 women who volunteered to participate. MEASUREMENTS: The research data were collected using the "health belief model scale regarding HPV infection and vaccination (HBMS-HPVV)" and the "HPV Testing Attitudes and Beliefs Scale (HTABS)," which were developed by the researchers through a literature review. RESULTS: The average age of the women participating in the study was 46.59 ± 11.15 years; 81.5% were married, 57.6% had no knowledge about cervical cancer, and 62.2% had no knowledge about the HPV vaccine, a protective vaccine against cervical cancer. The average scores for the subdimensions of severity, barriers, benefits, and susceptibility of the HBMS-HPVV were 3.19 ± 0.60, 2.96 ± 1.22, 2.29 ± 1.40, and 3.92 ± 0.49, respectively. The average scores for the subdimensions of personal barriers, social norms, confidence, and worries of the HTABS were 31.14 ± 19.27, 7.57 ± 4.47, 30.03 ± 7.18, and 11.91 ± 2.52, respectively. A statistically significant positive relationship was found between all HBMS-HPVV subdimensions and the HTABS subdimensions (p < 0.001). CONCLUSION: The study found that as the perceived severity increases, the perceived benefits, susceptibility, and confidence increase, while the perceived barriers, personal barriers, social norms, and worries decrease. Based on these results, it is recommended that women's health nurses provide education and seminars to raise awareness about cervical cancer, early screening and diagnosis programs, and the HPV vaccine.

Preoccupation with sleep and dysfunctional beliefs about sleep mediate the influence of psychological inflexibility on insomnia in the older adult population.

INTRODUCTION: This study aimed to explore whether the Discrepancy between the desired time in Bed and the desired total Sleep Time (DBST) index influences insomnia severity in the older adult population and examined the potential role of psychological inflexibility in this association. METHODS: An online survey study was conducted for older individuals aged ≥ 65 via a survey company between January and February 2023. A total of 300 responses and data without personally identifiable information were delivered to the researchers. The survey questionnaires include the DBST, Glasgow Sleep Effort Scale (GSES), Insomnia Severity Index (ISI), Dysfunctional Beliefs about Sleep-2 items (DBS-2), and Acceptance and Action Questionnaire-II (AAQ-II). RESULTS: The analysis included 295 older adult participants. The DBST index was significantly correlated with all questionnaires. Linear regression revealed the DBST index was predicted only by the ISI (ß = 0.26, p = 0.003). Mediation analysis showed that the GSES (Z = 2.92, p = 0.003) and DBS-2 (Z = 2.17, p = 0.030) mediated the effect of the DBST index on the ISI, while the AAQ-II did not. Path analysis showed that the DBST could be directly predicted by the ISI (Z = 2.94, p = 0.003), GSES (Z = 2.75, p = 0.006), and DBS2 (Z = 2.71, p = 0.007) but not by the AAQ-II itself. However, the AAQ-II exerted a significant indirect effect on the ISI through the DBS-2 (Z = 2.21, p = 0.027) and GSES (z = 2.24, p = 0.025). CONCLUSIONS: Our study showed that preoccupation and dysfunctional beliefs about sleep may mediate the relationship between the DBST index and insomnia severity in the older adult population. We opine that psychological inflexibility might play a significant role in insomnia severity via preoccupation with and dysfunctional beliefs about sleep.

Structural equation modeling analysis of health belief model-based determinants of COVID-19 preventive behavior of academic staff: a cross-sectional study.

INTRODUCTION: Despite COVID-19 being highly contagious and spreading to several countries, the university community has overlooked prevention measures. For more than five decades, the Health Belief Model (HBM) has been a widely used conceptual framework in health behavior. structural equation modeling(SEM) analysis is an advanced statistical method capable of rectifying failures of the basic models and showing complex relations Thus this study aimed to determine the magnitude of COVID-19 prevention behavior and identify its associated factors using HBM and SEM analysis. METHOD: An institutional-based cross-sectional study was conducted among academic staff of the University of Gondar in Ethiopia from April 10 to May 10/2021. Daniel Soper's sample size calculator was used to determine the sample size. Proportional allocation to each campus followed by a simple random sampling technique was employed to select study subjects. A pre-tested, structured questionnaire was used to collect the data. Structural equation modeling analysis was employed to show the relationship between health belief model constructs and their effect on preventive behavior. RESULT: A total of 602 academic staff participated. The magnitude of good COVID-19 preventive behavior was 24.8%. The HBM explained 55% of the variance in preventive behavior. Perceived barriers (ß = -0.37, p < 0.05), self-efficacy (ß = 0.32, p < 0.05), perceived susceptibility (ß = 0.23, p < 0.05), and perceived benefit (ß = 0.16, p < 0.05) were the direct significant predictors of COVID 19 prevention behavior. CONCLUSION: only a quarter of the academic staff have good COVID-19 preventive behavior. The HBM explained a great amount of variance in preventive behavior and Perceived barriers, benefits, susceptibility, and self-efficacy significantly associated with prevention behavior. Carefully planned intervention that considers those significant perceptions should be designed and implemented to raise COVID-19 prevention behavior.

Assessing Patient Trust in Automation in Health Care Systems: Within-Subjects Experimental Study.

BACKGROUND: Health care technology has the ability to change patient outcomes for the betterment when designed appropriately. Automation is becoming smarter and is increasingly being integrated into health care work systems. OBJECTIVE: This study focuses on investigating trust between patients and an automated cardiac risk assessment tool (CRAT) in a simulated emergency department setting. METHODS: A within-subjects experimental study was performed to investigate differences in automation modes for the CRAT: (1) no automation, (2) automation only, and (3) semiautomation. Participants were asked to enter their simulated symptoms for each scenario into the CRAT as instructed by the experimenter, and they would automatically be classified as high, medium, or low risk depending on the symptoms entered. Participants were asked to provide their trust ratings for each combination of risk classification and automation mode on a scale of 1 to 10 (1=absolutely no trust and 10=complete trust). RESULTS: Results from this study indicate that the participants significantly trusted the semiautomation condition more compared to the automation-only condition (P=.002), and they trusted the no automation condition significantly more than the automation-only condition (P=.03). Additionally, participants significantly trusted the CRAT more in the high-severity scenario compared to the medium-severity scenario (P=.004). CONCLUSIONS: The findings from this study emphasize the importance of the human component of automation when designing automated technology in health care systems. Automation and artificially intelligent systems are becoming more prevalent in health care systems, and this work emphasizes the need to consider the human element when designing automation into care delivery.

Unveiling the nexus! Understanding knowledge issues, animal contact patterns and interaction of health care providers in the context of monkeypox and COVID-19 during monkeypox outbreak 2022.

BACKGROUND: A monkeypox (MPOX) outbreak occurred in May 2022. On June 3, 2022, the WHO Blueprint organized a consultation on MPOX research knowledge gaps and priority research questions because the engagement of health care providers (HCPs) in providing accurate information and the public's motivation to adapt protective behaviour were crucial. Thus, we conducted this study to explore the knowledge issues, animal patterns, and interactions of HCPs in the context of MPOX and COVID-19 during the MPOX outbreak. METHODS: We conducted a cross-sectional web-based survey among 816 HCPs working in governmental health facilities from many countries, mainly Syria, Egypt, Saudi Arabia, and Cameroon, in September 2022. RESULTS: Four hundred and sixty (56.37%) were aged between 18 and less than 35 years old. About 34.44% were physicians, while only 37.25% worked on the frontlines with patients. 37.99% and 5.88% received vaccinations against chickenpox and MPOX, respectively. In the meantime, 55.39% had taken courses or training programmes regarding COVID-19. Regarding knowledge-seeking behaviours (KSBs) about COVID-19, 38.73% were through passive attention, while only 28.8% got their information through active search. Most of the participants (56.86%) had a moderate level of knowledge regarding COVID-19. Only 8.82% had courses or training programmes regarding MPOX. Regarding KSB about MPOX, 50.86% were obtained through passive attention, while only 18.01% and 23.04% got their information through active and passive search, respectively. Most of the participants (57.60%) had a poor level of knowledge regarding MPOX. The regression analysis of the MPOX knowledge score revealed that individuals working on the frontlines with patients and those who had training programmes or courses were shown to have a higher score by 1.25 and 3.18 points, respectively. CONCLUSIONS: The studied HCPs had poorer knowledge about the MPOX virus than they did about the SARS-CoV-2 virus. Training programmes and education courses had an impact on their knowledge.

Changing the Conversation: Empowering Community Pharmacists to Address Pneumococcal Vaccine Hesitancy.

BACKGROUND: Although pneumococcal vaccine is recommended for everyone 65 years of age and older, only 58% of Canadians in this age group have been vaccinated, well below the Public Health Agency of Canada's target of 80%. To improve uptake, a stepped-wedge cluster randomized trial testing the effectiveness of a community pharmacist intervention was developed. OBJECTIVE: This pre-specified sub-study aimed to uncover and quantify factors contributing to vaccine hesitancy by exploring the nature of patient-pharmacist conversations about pneumococcal vaccine. METHODS: Beginning each month (April to August 2023), participating pharmacies were randomly selected to receive an education package designed to enhance pharmacists' knowledge, skills, and abilities in promoting pneumococcal vaccination. Pharmacists provided usual care (control stage) until they received the educational package and transitioned to the intervention stage. Weekly scorecards tracked patient-pharmacist conversations about pneumococcal vaccination. Chi-squared tests compared time taken for each conversation and patient-reported reason(s) for refusal between control and intervention stages. RESULTS: Thirteen pharmacies from across Alberta were included in the analysis, reporting 656 patient-pharmacist conversations (control stage n=271, intervention stage n=385). Time taken for pneumococcal vaccine conversations decreased after pharmacies received the education package (65% of conversations resulting in vaccination took <20 minutes in the control stage, compared to 88% in the intervention stage (p=0.004)). The most common patient-reported reason for refusal, needing more time to think about the vaccine, remained similar between stages (p=0.23). However, during the intervention stage, fewer patients refused vaccination due to lack of time to receive it today (p=0.016) and perceived lack of benefit (p=0.035), but more patients refused vaccination due to cost barriers (p=0.026). CONCLUSION: The education provided in this study changed the reasons for refusing vaccines, suggesting the nature of patient-pharmacist conversations became more efficient and informed. Similar interventions could be adopted across Canada and the US to help combat vaccine hesitancy.

The Relationship Between Religious Beliefs and Related Factors and Psychiatric Symptoms in Adolescents: A Cross-Sectional Secondary Analysis of Data From NIPHEAC, 2020.

OBJECTIVE: This study aimed to explore the psychiatric symptoms and associated risk and protective factors among religious adolescents after 2-month home confinement against coronavirus disease-2019 (COVID-19) in China. METHODS: 11,603 Chinese adolescents in grades 7-9 were recruited in this survey. An online survey was designed to collect the data. Participants were measured using the Patient Health Questionnaire-9 and Generalized Anxiety Disorder-7 Scale. RESULTS: Religious adolescents showed significantly more severe depressive and anxiety symptoms compared to non-religious. 249 (2.2%) reported COVID-19 exposure. Logistic regression analysis revealed that religiosity was a risk factor for the symptoms of depression (p=0.001) and anxiety (p<0.001). Moreover, among those adolescents with religious beliefs, psychological resilience was protective in preventing depressive and anxiety symptoms. At the same time, emotional abuse, emotional neglect, and a poor parent-child relationship were risk factors. CONCLUSION: Our finding indicates that religious adolescents easily develop depressive and anxiety symptoms, compared to non-religious adolescents. Moreover, those with emotional abuse, emotional abuse, and poor parent-child relationships are more likely to suffer from mental distress and should pay more attention to cope with their mental health.

"Are you OK doctor?" An expanded health belief model exploration of doctors' experiences and perspectives of on-shift health behaviour.

PURPOSE: Understanding doctors' health beliefs is essential for developing effective and competent healthcare practices that benefit doctors and their patients. This study aimed to qualitatively explore doctors' perceptions of on-shift health-protective behaviours and their perceived effects on competence. METHODS: The research applied theoretically driven Expanded Health Belief Model (EHBM) enquiry methods to explore beliefs and experiences through an occupational context survey, 14 individual depth interviews, and two focus groups. Semantic and deductive themes associated with EHBM domains were examined, and an inductive thematic analysis of the interviews was conducted. RESULTS: Doctors' beliefs were strongly imbued by their perceived identity within the systemic context; they expressed impaired self-efficacy in reacting to their health needs on shift, and several disclosed harm to themselves and patients. Dominant themes included the psychosocial effects of the systemic culture and the influence of the situational occupational context in impacting health-protective behavioural action. The context and implications of experiences during the COVID-19 pandemic are discussed. CONCLUSIONS: This study presents key belief-oriented factors influencing doctors' health-protective behaviour at work and its implications for competent practice. Further doctor-led guidance on focus points for evidence-based theoretically driven health improvement solutions is provided regarding operational practice, formulating policies, developing interventions and further research.

Understanding Cognitive Behavioral Therapy for Psychosis Through the Predictive Coding Framework.

Psychological treatments for persecutory delusions, particularly cognitive behavioral therapy for psychosis, are efficacious; however, mechanistic theories explaining why they work rarely bridge to the level of cognitive neuroscience. Predictive coding, a general brain processing theory rooted in cognitive and computational neuroscience, has increasing experimental support for explaining symptoms of psychosis, including the formation and maintenance of delusions. Here, we describe recent advances in cognitive behavioral therapy for psychosis-based psychotherapy for persecutory delusions, which targets specific psychological processes at the computational level of information processing. We outline how Bayesian learning models employed in predictive coding are superior to simple associative learning models for understanding the impact of cognitive behavioral interventions at the algorithmic level. We review hierarchical predictive coding as an account of belief updating rooted in prediction error signaling. We examine how this process is abnormal in psychotic disorders, garnering noisy sensory data that is made sense of through the development of overly strong delusional priors. We argue that effective cognitive behavioral therapy for psychosis systematically targets the way sensory data are selected, experienced, and interpreted, thus allowing for the strengthening of alternative beliefs. Finally, future directions based on these arguments are discussed.

Delusions are distressing and disabling psychiatric symptoms. Cognitive behavioral therapy for psychosis (CBTp) is the leading psychotherapeutic approach for treating delusions. Predictive coding is a contemporary cognitive neuroscience framework that is increasingly being used to explain mechanisms of delusions. In this article, we attempt to integrate CBTp within the predictive coding framework, outlining how effective CBTp techniques impact aspects of the predictive coding model to contribute to cutting-edge treatment and cognitive neuroscience research on delusions and inform recommendations for treatment advancement.

Development and Psychometric Properties of the Health Belief Model Scale for Premature Birth Prevention (HBM-PBP) for Women of Childbearing Age.

Purpose: This study aimed to develop the Health Belief Model scale for premature birth prevention (HBM-PBP) and evaluated its psychometric properties in women of childbearing age. Methods: This study employed a cross-sectional design and included 724 women of childbearing age with intentions of future childbirth or in their first trimester of pregnancy. An item pool was formulated from the literature and in-depth interviews based on the health belief model. Content validation was conducted by experts and through cognitive interviews with women of childbearing age. Construct and concurrent validity and reliability were evaluated using factor analysis, Pearson's correlation analysis, and Cronbach's alpha. Results: The HBM-PBP consisted of 96 items, including perceived susceptibility (21 items, 5 subscales), severity (26 items, 5 subscales), benefits (27 items, 5 subscales), and barriers (22 items, 5 subscales). Convergent and discriminant validity were supported. The Cronbach's alpha coefficient of the domains ranged from 0.87 to 0.94. Conclusion: The HBM-PBP is a valid and reliable measurement scale with good psychometric properties. It can be used to measure health beliefs in women, either as a whole or in individual domains. Health professionals can leverage the HBM-PBP to discern women's health beliefs on premature birth, facilitating tailored interventions and educational efforts.

The Role of Irrational Beliefs on Psychological Distress among Female Office Workers in Bali.

Objectives: This study examined the association between irrational beliefs and psychological distress among female office workers in Bali, and formulate general equation to predict psychological distress from the irrational belief scores. Methods: A cross-sectional study was conducted among 111 female office workers in Bali. The irrational beliefs were measured by the Smith Irrational Belief Inventory (SIBI) questionnaire and the psychological distress was assessed by a questionnaire quoted from the Brief Job Stress Questionnaire (BJSQ). Multivariable linear regression was performed to evaluate the role of irrational beliefs on psychological distress scores. Results: There was a moderate, positive correlation between irrational beliefs and psychological distress, which was statistically significant (r = 0.451, n = 111, p = 0.000). The R squared was 0.205, indicating that 20.5% of psychological distress variance can be explained by irrational beliefs. The F-ratio in the ANOVA test shows that the independent variables statistically significantly predict the dependent variable, F(3,107) = 9.187, p < 0.0005. The general form of the equation to predict psychological distress from irrational belief scores is: Predicted psychological distress (Y) = 17.909 + (0.392 x Irrational belief scores). Conclusion: Irrational beliefs are significantly associated with psychological distress among female office workers in Gianyar, Bali. This finding suggests the need for strategies anticipating better health and productivity among female workers.

A new communication approach to encourage lung cancer screening action in rural eligible populations.

Objective: The purpose of this study was to develop an effective communication approach to encourage lung cancer screening action within rural screening-eligible populations. Methods: An iterative research approach using targeted engagement with the priority population was used. Findings were triangulated through multiple methods, including two surveys and concept testing interviews. The Health Belief Model and the Extended Parallel Process Model served as study frameworks. Results: Initial findings suggest that threat levels are high in the priority population and an emphasis on barrier mitigation messaging may drive action. Health campaign posters integrating these findings were developed and tested with the priority population. The new health campaign posters were tested against examples of previously used health campaign posters. Findings suggest that the new health campaign posters were more effective in spurring lung cancer screening motivation and intention to act in the priority population compared to current health campaign poster examples. Conclusion: Messaging focused on gain-framing, inoculation messaging, and barrier mitigation may be more effective in encouraging lung cancer screening action in rural eligible populations. Innovation: This project outlines a systematic process to developing effective, targeted communication approaches using behavior change and persuasive communication frameworks along with engagement from priority populations.

Determinants of intended prevention behaviour against mosquitoes and mosquito-borne viruses in the Netherlands and Spain using the MosquitoWise survey: cross-sectional study.

BACKGROUND: Recently, Europe has seen an emergence of mosquito-borne viruses (MBVs). Understanding citizens' perceptions of and behaviours towards mosquitoes and MBVs is crucial to reduce disease risk. We investigated and compared perceptions, knowledge, and determinants of citizens' behavioural intentions related to mosquitoes and MBVs in the Netherlands and Spain, to help improve public health interventions. METHODS: Using the validated MosquitoWise survey, data was collected through participant panels in Spain (N = 475) and the Netherlands (N = 438). Health Belief Model scores measuring behavioural intent, knowledge, and information scores were calculated. Confidence Interval-Based Estimation of Relevance was used, together with potential for change indexes, to identify promising determinants for improving prevention measure use. RESULTS: Spanish participants' responses showed slightly higher intent to use prevention measures compared to those of Dutch participants (29.1 and 28.2, respectively, p 0.03). Most participants in Spain (92.2%) and the Netherlands (91.8%) indicated they used at least one prevention measure, but differences were observed in which types they used. More Spanish participants indicated to have received information on mosquitoes and MBVs compared to Dutch participants. Spanish participants preferred health professional information sources, while Dutch participants favoured government websites. Determinants for intent to use prevention measures included "Knowledge", "Reminders to Use Prevention Measures", and "Information" in the Netherlands and Spain. Determinants for repellent use included "Perceived Benefits" and "Cues to Action", with "Perceived Benefits" having a high potential for behavioural change in both countries. "Self-Efficacy" and "Knowledge" were determinants in both countries for breeding site removal. CONCLUSION: This study found differences in knowledge between the Netherlands and Spain but similarities in determinants for intent to use prevention measures, intent to use repellents and intent to remove mosquito breeding sites. Identified determinants can be the focus for future public health interventions to reduce MBV risks.

Health Belief Model Predicts Likelihood of Eating Nutrient-Rich Foods among U.S. Adults.

Despite decades of messaging, most Americans still consume excess fats and sugars, but inadequate fiber, potassium, and calcium. Nutrient-rich foods (NRFs) have a high density of favorable nutrients related to calories. Choosing NRFs could lower risk of nutrition-related chronic diseases and aid in their control. We hypothesized that having greater knowledge of NRFs, the presence of a nutrition-related chronic disease or risk factor, and positive Health Belief Model (HBM) views would be predictive of the likelihood of eating NRFs. Through a national online survey panel, 976 adults aged 18-80 completed demographic, health, NRF knowledge, attitudes, and HBM construct questions. Participants were 77% White, 52% women, and 55% had a nutrition-related disease or risk factor. Multivariable HBM scales were generated by theory, principal components, and reliability analysis. NRF knowledge was significantly higher for women, Whites, households without children, and persons without a nutrition-related disease (all p ≤ 0.015). 'Likelihood of eating NRFs' was significantly higher for persons with a nutrition-related disease, Whites, married participants, main food shoppers, and households with children (all p ≤ 0.022). Regressing demographic and HBM constructs on the 'likelihood of eating NRFs' resulted in R2 of 0.435. Nutrition-related disease and HBM constructs of self-efficacy, perceived benefits, and cues to action were predictive of the likelihood of eating NRFs, but higher NRF knowledge was negatively associated.

Network Security Prediction of Industrial Control Based on Projection Equalization Optimization Algorithm.

This paper predicts the network security posture of an ICS, focusing on the reliability of Industrial Control Systems (ICSs). Evidence reasoning (ER) and belief rule base (BRB) techniques are employed to establish an ICS network security posture prediction model, ensuring the secure operation and prediction of the ICS. This model first integrates various information from the ICS to determine its network security posture value. Subsequently, through ER iteration, information fusion occurs and serves as an input for the BRB prediction model, which necessitates initial parameter setting by relevant experts. External factors may influence the experts' predictions; therefore, this paper proposes the Projection Equalization Optimization (P-EO) algorithm. This optimization algorithm updates the initial parameters to enhance the prediction of the ICS network security posture through the model. Finally, industrial datasets are used as experimental data to improve the credibility of the prediction experiments and validate the model's predictive performance in the ICS. Compared with other methods, this paper's prediction model demonstrates a superior prediction accuracy. By further comparing with other algorithms, this paper has a certain advantage when using less historical data to make predictions.

Orthoflavivirus surveillance in the Netherlands: Insights from a serosurvey in horses & dogs and a questionnaire among horse owners.

AIMS: Zoonotic arboviruses (arthropod-borne) of the Orthoflavivirus genus, such as West Nile virus (WNV), Usutu virus (USUV) and Tick-borne encephalitis virus (TBEV), are emerging in Northwestern Europe and pose a threat to both human and animal health. In the Netherlands, passive symptomatic surveillance (notification of clinical cases) in horses is one of the main pillars for the early detection of WNV. For such passive surveillance to work properly, horse owners and veterinarians need to recognize symptoms and report suspected cases to the authorities. Currently, little is known about the seroprevalence of orthoflaviviruses in domestic animals in the Netherlands. Therefore, this study aims at identifying the seroprevalence of WNV and USUV in horses and dogs in the Netherlands. Additionally, this study seeks to evaluate the knowledge and perceptions of Dutch horse owners towards mosquito-borne viruses. METHODS AND RESULTS: A cross-sectional serosurvey in horses and dogs was conducted between May 2021 and May 2022. Serum samples were screened using an ELISA and doubtful and positive samples were confirmed by Virus Neutralization Tests for WNV, USUV and TBEV. A validated questionnaire, the MosquitoWise survey, was used to assess the knowledge and perceptions of Dutch horse owners towards mosquito-borne viruses between July and October 2022. The serosurvey revealed a low seroprevalence for WNV in horses and no WNV-positive dogs were found. Similarly, a low USUV seroprevalence was found in dogs. The MosquitoWise survey revealed a high knowledge level for horse owners and high awareness of WNV vaccination but a more limited intent to vaccinate. CONCLUSIONS: The low seroprevalences of WNV and USUV indicate many dogs and horses remain susceptible, offering opportunities for trend analysis and surveillance. However, despite multiple recent detections of WNV, USUV, and TBEV in humans, the role of dogs and horses in early detection of human cases is debatable. High awareness among horse owners and the absence of detected equine WNV cases highlight this uncertainty. Continued surveillance is crucial for detecting increased virus circulation and protecting both animal and human health.

Mothers' Mental State Talk and 3- to 5-Year-Old Children's Theory of Mind: Their Reciprocal Dynamic Impact.

The development of children's social function is influenced by the social environment, and children also play an active role in shaping and nurturing this environment. The present study investigated the potential reciprocal dynamic impact of mothers' mental state talk (MST) and the development of theory of mind (ToM) in children. Using a cross-sectional design, we explored the development of ToM in 3- to 5-year-old children using an unexpected location task, an unexpected content task, an appearance-reality task, and mothers' MST during mother-child reading. The results showed the following: (1) the mothers' MST exhibited a shift from a predilection for subjective terms (such as desires) to a preference for objective terms (such as cognitions) as their children matured; (2) the development of the children's ToM was closely related to their mothers' MST. The overall MST scores, as well as the different categories and referents used in MST, were closely associated with the children's ToM development. Notably, at the age of four, a critical period emerged where the correlation between maternal MST and ToM became significantly pronounced. These findings highlight the reciprocal nature of mother-child interactions as a two-way adaptive process.

Climate Change and Health Risk Perceptions of Arkansas Small Farmers through the Application of the Health Belief Model.

Climate change poses health risks to Arkansas small farmers. Farmers face an increased risk of heat-related illnesses (e.g., heat exhaustion, cerebral vascular accidents, and cardiovascular issues) and work-related injuries, death, and mental health conditions due to climate change. This cross-sectional survey employed the health belief model (HBM) as its theoretical framework. This study aimed to assess the health status of small farmers, climate change beliefs, adaptive agricultural practices, and the perceived effects of climate change on health. Study data were collected using non-probability sampling methods from small farmers (n = 72) with a gross farm income of < USD 250,000. The study findings show that 93% of participants reported good-excellent health, 69% believe the climate is changing and getting warmer, 58.3% believe people are responsible for the changes in our climate, and 75% believe the changing climate impacts farmers. Among the HBM predictive variables, participants reported self-efficacy (50%), perceived susceptibility (48.6%), and perceived severity (43%). Only 16.7% of farmers reported believing they have all the information needed to prepare for climate-related health impacts. This study suggests small farmers have protective factors and adaptive capacity, including health status, income, and education levels, but believe they lack the information necessary to protect their health from climate change.

Predictive ability of the health belief model in HIV testing and counselling uptake among youth aged 15-24 in La-Nkwantanang-Madina Municipality, Ghana.

BACKGROUND: Majority of new Human Immunodeficiency Virus (HIV)-positive persons in Ghana are aged 15-24. HIV prevalence among persons aged 15-24 years, a proxy for new infections, remained stable at 1.5% for 2017 and 2018, making it a significant public health concern. Yet only 26.4% of females and 8.6% of males aged 15-24 years know their HIV status. This study determined the predictive ability of the Health Belief Model (HBM) in HIV testing and counselling (HTC) uptake among youth (15-24 years) in the La-Nkwantanang Madina Municipality, Ghana. METHODS: A cross-sectional design was adopted for the study, using a multistage sampling method to select 415 youth aged 15-24. Data were collected using a structured interviewer-administered questionnaire, and analysed using binomial logistic regression with STATA software version 16.0 at p < 0.05 significance level and at 95% confidence interval. RESULTS: HTC uptake was 29.2%. Perceived susceptibility, perceived barriers, and perceived self-efficacy predicted HTC uptake. Youths with a high-risk perception for contracting HIV [OR = 3.03; 95% CI = 1.46, 6.30, p = 0.003], who perceived that they can contract HIV if not protected [OR = 3.69; 95% CI = 1.47, 9.22, p = 0.005], and worry about getting HIV [OR = 3.03, 95% CI = 1.61, 5.69, p < 0.001] (perceived susceptibility) were more likely to uptake HTC. Youths who had no trust issues with health workers [OR = 3.53; 95% CI = 1.46, 8.53, p = 0.005] and those who were not afraid of positive HIV test results [OR = 5.29; 95% CI = 2.66, 10.51, p,0.001] (perceived barriers) were more likely to uptake HTC. Youths who had no difficulties in turning up for appointments (perceived self-efficacy) had higher odds of HTC uptake [OR = 11.89, 95% CI = 6.73, 20.98, P < 0.001]. For the modifying factors, being married [OR = 2.96; 95% CI = 1.65-5.33], and having knowledge of HTC [OR = 9.10; 95% CI = 2.16-38.3], significantly influenced HTC uptake. CONCLUSION: Health promotion interventions to increase HTC uptake should focus on heightening the perception of susceptibility to HIV, reducing the barriers to HTC uptake, and increasing the self-efficacy for HTC uptake. The interventions should also target the significant modifying factors.