This article aims to highlight the importance of making the researcher’s role explicit when undertaking practitioner research. At a time when there is growing expectation, both in the UK and internationally, for professionals to carry out research in their own setting, the author highlights the importance of practitioner researchers identifying their role and sharing this with others. The complexity in the variety of terminology used to describe research undertaken by practitioners such as work-integrated learning, action research, practitioner research, practitioner enquiry and insider research is also discussed. The focus of this article is research carried out by educational practitioners, possibly on EdD or similar courses, in settings that directly involve children or young people. It is based on the author’s own doctoral research on the friendship of five-and-six-year-olds in a school playground. The article outlines the author’s use of the concept of a ‘research hat’ – a physical article to help researchers move into role and identify this. In this case the author wore a gold-sequined baseball cap when carrying out research activities including playground observations. The article includes a list of practical recommendations which are designed to promote researcher reflection and concludes with a call for researchers to find, and use, their own unique visual indicator.
In the past two decades, a new generation of Japanese filmmakers including Kore-eda Hirokazu, Suwa Nobuhiro, Kawase Naomi, and Kurosawa Kiyoshi have looked to France for opportunities to make work abroad. La Vérité (2019), Kore-eda’s sixteenth feature-length film and first made outside of Japan, is by all appearances an ‘eminently French’ film set in Paris and featuring French stars Catherine Deneuve and Juliette Binoche, despite the fact that Kore-eda does not speak French. Through a close analysis of La Vérité , this article opens a different angle of approach to Kore-eda as a global auteur whose work crosses national, cultural, and linguistic boundaries. The distribution and reception of his work across these boundaries is evident with his success at international festivals; with La Vérité , Kore-eda extends this cultural boundary crossing to film production and in doing so confronts new challenges that influence the production process and the film itself. Notably, he faces a language barrier and unfamiliar production norms amplified by cultural differences. In this article, I propose the concept of poetic vérité as a kind of bicultural hybridity in the production process to explain how Kore-eda resolved many of the challenges of working in a language he did not know.
Despite recommendations for routine mental health screening in human immunodeficiency virus (HIV) care settings, screening uptake remains low. The brief Patient Health Questionnaire (PHQ-2) and Generalized Anxiety Disorder-2 (GAD-2) are validated screeners for depression and anxiety symptoms with potential for integration into HIV primary care. This study aimed to identify the optimal cut-off points for the PHQ-2 and GAD-2 among people with HIV at risk for mental health disorders (MHD) in comparison to the PHQ-8 and GAD-7. Participants ( N = 300) enrolled in a study evaluating a collaborative care intervention for substance use disorder and MHD care completed the PHQ-8 and GAD-7 at baseline. Sensitivity, specificity, and Youden’s index were obtained for the PHQ-2 and GAD-2 at different scoring cut-off points against the PHQ-8 and GAD-7, which served as reference standards using recommended cut-off points of ≥10. A cut-off point of ≥3 on the PHQ-2 demonstrated a sensitivity of 0.79 and a specificity of 0.88, while a cut-off point of ≥2 had a sensitivity of 0.95 and a specificity of 0.68. A cut-off point of ≥3 on the GAD-2 had a sensitivity of 0.87 and a specificity of 0.92. In the context of HIV care provision in busy clinical settings, our findings indicate that implementation of the PHQ-2 (cut point ≥ 2 or ≥3) and GAD-2 (cut point ≥ 3) detect depression and anxiety symptoms. The implementation of these brief screeners in routine health care settings has the potential for simplified detection of people with HIV who would benefit most from further evaluation for MHD.
Nature-based climate solutions, such as agroforestry, offer potential for carbon sequestration while providing co-benefits. However, the lack of scalable and low-cost measurement, reporting, and verification (MRV) systems limits smallholder participation in carbon markets. This study presents the DiameterAlgorithm, a non-contact method for tree diameter estimation using semantic segmentation and two-dimensional photogrammetry. The fine-tuned model achieved a mean intersection over union (mIoU) of 0.937. The algorithm was tested on image datasets from managed trees settings in Kenya ( n = 142) and Pennsylvania, USA ( n = 40), with regression analysis showing high accuracy (R² = 0.97, RMSE = 2.20–2.23 cm). Bias analysis showed slight overestimation for small to medium trees (5–35 cm DBH) and underestimation for larger trees (>36 cm DBH), with an overall mean bias of +0.68 cm. Coupled with allometric equations, the DiameterAlgorithm enables scalable, site-level biomass estimation for carbon markets.
Hispanic individuals represent the fastest-growing U.S. population, yet their body composition profiles remain poorly understood, particularly regarding fat-free mass (FFM) characteristics such as density (D FFM ), hydration (TBW:FFM), bone mineral content (Mo:FFM), and residual mass (R:FFM). The aim of this research was to measure FFM characteristics in Hispanic adults and compare them against cadaver reference values using a 4-compartment (4C) model. One-hundred thirty Hispanic adults (60 male, 70 female; aged 28 ± 12, 30 ± 11 years; body mass index 28.28 ± 5.20, 27.90 ± 6.32 kg/m 2 ) participated in data collection. Deuterium oxide, dual energy x-ray absorptiometry, and air displacement plethysmography were used to calculate D FFM , TBW:FFM, Mo:FFM, and R:FFM. Differences between the Hispanic cohort and cadaver reference values were compared using 1-sample t tests, and between-group differences were analyzed using independent-samples t tests. Hispanic males (1.103 g/cm 3 ) and females (1.103 g/cm 3 ) showed small effect sizes (ES) in D FFM compared to cadaver reference values (1.100 g/cm³; both ES = 0.41). Female FFM characteristics (TBW:FFM, Mo:FFM, and R:FFM) demonstrated small to moderate differences from reference values (ES = 0.30–0.59). Compared to cadaver values, males showed moderate differences in TBW:FFM (ES = 0.70) and large differences in Mo:FFM (ES = 1.08) and R:FFM (ES = 0.98). Sex-based comparisons revealed moderate differences in Mo:FFM (ES = 0.78), while all other FFM characteristics exhibited only trivial to small differences (ES = 0.001–0.43). The small ES for D FFM and TBW:FFM indicate that densitometry- and bioimpedance-based methods, which rely upon outlined assumptions, may accurately assess body composition in Hispanic adults. Nonetheless, future research should continue evaluating the accuracy of existing body density and total body water–based methods in Hispanic populations to confirm their validity and determine whether refinement or development of population- or sex-specific equations is necessary.
Digital technologies (smart phones, tablets and smart speakers) are becoming prevalent in social care provision to facilitate older people to maintain independent living. However, there is a paucity of understanding of what type of technologies are being trialled by social care services, or if people are being offered the chance to use them. To understand what type of technologies may/not be suitable for social care delivery, a series of workshops were conducted across three sites in England (Northeast, Southwest and Central England), with adults aged 65+ years. Eighteen older adults were recruited: 13 were women; white British ( n = 16); and seven self-reported a physical impairment, disability or social care package in place. Findings identified four themes: 1. everyday technology use, 2. perceived benefits of technology for care and independence, 3. concerns and barriers to technology adoption, 4. priorities for future technology-enabled care. This work identifies the need for researchers to be cognisant of challenges, including digital literacy, and it lays the foundation for future research priorities in the field of applied research in social care.
Suicide is one of the most prevalent causes of death among college students in the United States, and the leading cause of death among Asian American college-aged adults. Given these concerning rates, further investigation is essential to understanding the current levels of suicide risk among this population, including culture-specific risk factors, to influence mental health interventions that support this population. This study aims to explore the impacts of Asian culture-specific factors on thwarted belongingness, a proximal risk factor of suicide desire, among college students of Asian descent guided by the Interpersonal Theory of Suicide. Participants ( n = 218) completed a battery of validated measures to assess predictors of thwarted belongingness, which included shame, discrimination, ethnic identity, and perfectionism. Nearly half of participants met clinical cutoff criteria for suicide desire. Further, ethnic identity commitment, perfectionism discrepancy, and external shame were statistically significant predictors of thwarted belongingness among this population. These findings underscore the need for tailored interventions that address these culture-specific factors on college campuses to reduce the risk of suicide among students of Asian descent. Additional implications for college-student serving mental health professionals and future research directions are discussed.
Intrinsically disordered proteins (IDPs) and intrinsically disordered regions (IDRs) within membrane proteins act as dynamic molecular hubs that orchestrate signaling, transport, folding, and stress responses through transient and adaptable interactions with lipid membranes. Their structural plasticity and sensitivity to membrane composition or posttranslational modifications enable rapid functional switching at the cost of conferring high vulnerability to perturbations. This review describes how the disruption of these finely tuned interactions, via mutations, defective modifying enzymes, or altered lipid environments, can trigger diverse pathologies, from Parkinson’s disease where α-synuclein-membrane binding promotes neurotoxicity, to metal ion imbalance, and amyloid aggregation. We also integrated structural, mechanistic, and pathological insights to provide a comprehensive overview of IDP- and IDR-membrane interfaces. Finally, we highlighted recent advances in experimental approaches, including high-resolution spectroscopy and imaging, alongside computational studies, notably emphasizing the urgent need for larger and standardized datasets to enhance model accuracy. By linking molecular intrinsic disorder to membrane function and dysfunction, we hereafter underscore the central role of these interactions in health and disease, and outline how their in-depth characterization may guide future strategies targeting protein-membrane interfaces.
Despite long-standing immunization programs, inequities in vaccination coverage persist for First Nations children in high-income countries. Previous reviews identified coverage gaps but rarely assessed intervention quality through a First Nations–specific lens. This review examined strategies to improve vaccination coverage and timeliness for First Nations children aged 0–5 years in Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD) member countries and evaluated study quality from methodological and cultural perspectives. Peer-reviewed literature was systematically searched, yielding 1,142 records; 14 studies met inclusion criteria. Interventions were categorized by component purpose. Quality was assessed using the Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Quality Appraisal Tool (QAT) and the Effective Public Health Practice Project (EPHPP) tool. Studies were from Australia (n = 6), Canada (n = 4), New Zealand (n = 3), and the United States (n = 1). None achieved high quality on both cultural and methodological criteria. Some reported improved coverage, but overall evidence was weak, and sustained population-level gains were rare. “Remind-recall” systems and strengthened service infrastructure showed the greatest potential. This first review to integrate cultural and methodological appraisal highlights the need for culturally grounded, co-designed research to advance equitable vaccination outcomes for First Nations children in OECD nations.