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This paper constructs a risk reduction model based on signalling theory to investigate how the platform- and user-oriented signals affect perceived risks, which in turn affect users' actual engagement and purchase behaviours in social commerce. The moderating effects of perceived effectiveness of social commerce institutional mechanisms (PESIM) on the relationships between signals and perceived risks are also considered. Longitudinal data from 226 users of Xiaohongshu were collected to test the proposed hypotheses. We identify signals oriented from platforms and users significantly influence users' perceptions of commerce and participation risks. We also demonstrate that commerce and participation risks influence users' actual engagement and purchase behaviours, respectively. Furthermore, we also verify that PESIM negatively moderates the relationship between signals and perceived risk. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Persuasive gamified systems are effective tools for motivating behaviour change using various persuasive strategies. In line with the reinforcement theory, some persuasive gamified systems employ reward and punishment in their design to achieve the intended behavioural outcome. Research has argued both in favour and against using these strategies in behaviour change applications due to mixed results with respect to their effectiveness. However, there is a lack knowledge about how interventions using these strategies could motivate or demotivate behaviours. Therefore, this paper explores the mechanism through which Reward and Punishment motivate or demotivate behaviours with respect to their strengths and weaknesses. The results of large-scale exploratory studies (N = 1768) uncover important strengths and weaknesses that could facilitate or hinder the effectiveness of Reward and Punishment at motivating behaviour change. These include their ability to engage users and make behaviour fun, reinforce commitments to goals, and reveal some consequences of bad behaviour. We also compared the perceived effectiveness of reward and punishment quantitatively. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background: The precise effect and the quality of different cases used in dermatology problem-based learning (PBL) curricula are yet unclear. Aim: To prospectively compare the impact of real patients, digital, paper PBL (PPBL) and traditional lecture-based learning (LBL) on academic results and student perceptions. Methods: A total of 120 students were randomly allocated into either real-patients PBL (RPBL) group studied via real-patient cases, digital PBL (DPBL) group studied via digital-form cases, PPBL group studied via paper-form cases, or conventional group who received didactic lectures. Academic results were assessed through review of written examination, objective structured clinical examination and student performance scores. A five-point Likert scale questionnaire was used to evaluate student perceptions. Results: Compared to those receiving lectures only, all PBL participants had better results for written examination, clinical examination and overall performance. Students in RPBL group exhibited better overall performance than those in the other two PBL groups. Real-patient cases were more effective in helping develop students' self-directed learning skills, improving their confidence in future patient encounters and encouraging them to learn more about the discussed condition, compared to digital and paper cases. Conclusion: Both real patient and digital triggers are helpful in improving students' clinical problem-handling skills. However, real patients provide greater benefits to students. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The manual user-operated Arise Standing Wheelchair (SWC) is the end-result of multiple design iterations based on comments from user trials. The Arise SWC provides standing functionality, outdoor mobility, affordability, and customizability. This paper describes a user experience study of the Arise SWC's pre-commercial version. Thirty participants (N = 30, 25 Male, 5 Female) were recruited for the study. All the participants were people with spinal cord injury. The study was conducted over a period of six weeks (five participants per week) within the hospital premises under the supervision of clinical personnel. A 30 min interactive training session involved thirteen activities. During the trial period, the participants were trained to perform twenty-two activities to familiarize themselves with the SWC. The participants were also trained to perform four functional usage activities with the SWC. At the end of the study, participant responses to ten outcome measures were captured using a smiley-based Likert-scale questionnaire. A majority of the participants (93.3%) felt happy when they stood in the SWC. The majority participants (83.3%) preferred the Arise SWC over their current wheelchair. Also, 80% participants anticipated that they could get more work done at home using the standing function of the wheelchair. A one-time fitting and training ensured optimal effort for the SWC operation, correct posture, and comfortable user experience. With proper dissemination and awareness, it is believed that the Arise SWC will benefit eligible users and improve their quality of life. The Arise wheelchair provides standing functionality, outdoor mobility, affordability, and customizability. Study confirms that incorporating standing functionality can improve the quality of life for wheelchair users. The majority of users were happy, felt safe and expected to do more with the standing functionality. Study results support further testing in real world conditions beyond the hospital setting. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The current paper examined the impact of perceived service quality (PSQ) and patient complaint (PC) on patient satisfaction (PS). The study was carried out at the highest-level hospital, Vietnam. The self-administered questionnaire was distributed to inpatients who were used in health service in April 2018. The SPSS (version 25.0) statistical software was used for the data analysis. The confirmatory factor analysis was performed for the structural equation modeling, using the Amos 25.0 program. Findings suggest PSQ direct influence on PC and PS; PC influences PS. Complaints handling should consider when improving service quality to increase satisfaction. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Interprofessional competence is needed to improve health care outcomes. The aim of this paper is to describe the development of theoretically grounded interprofessional education (IPE) experiences to advance interprofessional competencies for occupational and physical therapy doctoral students. In addition, a pretest/postest survey was designed to determine the participants' perceptions of knowledge attainment, roles, and attitudes. Two cohorts of students (N = 115) completed surveys pre and post IPE experiences. Statistically significant changes were found on perception of roles and knowledge attainment. Additional studies are needed to determine if IPE leads to behavioral changes in practice and improves patient outcomes. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper explores the effect of chatbot empathy and identity disclosure on willingness to donate (WTD) to a fundraising project and the psychological mechanism in the relationship. In a 3 (information-only vs. cognitive empathy vs. affective empathy) × 2 (chatbot vs. human identity) experiment, 496 US adults had a conversation about a fundraising event with one of six artificial intelligence-powered chatbots. The results revealed that neither chatbot empathy nor identity disclosure has a significant effect on WTD, rejecting the hypotheses. However, the data supported a significant interaction effect between chatbot empathy and identity disclosure on WTD. Moreover, the results suggested that the interaction effect between chatbot empathy and identity disclosure on WTD would be mediated through human likeness and social presence. This study suggests how empathy and human identity of chatbots should be applied with care to avoid the uncanny valley effect. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper describes the digitalization process of an originally school-based educational programme to an online version and confirms its efficacy on teaching young children as well as their parents about stroke symptoms and the necessary actions needed to be taken in the event of a stroke. Forty children (20 children with neurodevelopmental disorders (NDDs) and 20 without NDDs), aged 4–9 years, as well as 35 of these children's parents (30–50 years old) participated in the study in Greece. All individuals watched 5 educational videos, designed and produced by the Super Grand League Team. Each video had a mean duration of 15 minutes. Most children had no prior knowledge neither in stroke symptoms nor to the appropriate actions after a stroke. Children's knowledge of stroke symptoms (except the symptom of speech disturbance) and the appropriate actions following stroke improved significantly immediately post training (p < 0.05). Children with NDDs demonstrated no significant differences when compared to their peers without NDDs in regards to the knowledge gains. In the same line, parents showed a significant increase in their knowledge as regards the stroke symptoms (p < 0.001). Only 2 parents (5.7%) knew the correct emergency number before participating in the online programme, while all of them (100%) responded correctly after the programme. The current work using multimodal remote education demonstrates significant improvement in learning about stroke symptomatology and the necessary steps that need to follow. Future work should evaluate the impact of digital interventions in respect of onset-to-door times and stroke outcomes. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Drawing on the conservation of resources theory, this study examines the curvilinear relationship between social workers' meaningful work and work engagement. Data gathered from 223 social workers reveal that the relationship between meaningful work and work engagement showed a U-shaped curve when psychological capital is low. In contrast, this relationship showed an inverted U-shaped curve when psychological capital is high. Our study makes significant contributions to the literature in the following ways. First and foremost, this is the first paper that provides an established base to validate the momentary and changing nature of meaningful work empirically. Second, we further addressed how the fluctuating nature of meaningful work can be addressed through individuals' demographic variables of psychological capital. Finally, our results provide managerial interventions that support businesses in advancing the understanding of psychological processes in contexts related to the broad area of work and in organizations. Meaningful work enhances work engagement. Nonprofit organizations (NPOs) should provide a safe space where social workers can share their victories, perspectives, and frustrations. NPOs should provide ample support to employees and ensure they fit well into the new social work environment. Given the malleable characteristics of PsyCap, NPOs can offer interventions in the form of training to increase social workers' sense of hope, efficacy, resilience and optimism. The curvilinear effect of PsyCap on the relationship between meaningful work and work engagement shows that NPOs should also design pathways to engage social workers with high PsyCap constantly. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In this paper, the first virtual reality (VR) photography application that incorporates elements on panoramic images to assess short-term spatial memory is presented. It also allows the interaction with these elements. A study was conducted (N = 50) to compare participants' performance outcomes and subjective experience when using a VR application with and without panoramic photography. The results show that both applications are effective in assessing short-term spatial memory. The results with panoramic photography include: 1) It was effective for short-term recall since, after using the application, the participants were able to verbally recall the objects and place them without significant differences with respect to the objects correctly placed; 2) The performance outcomes were independent of age and gender; 3) The perceived level of presence was directly related to experiencing less cybersickness when using the application; 4) The level of satisfaction was directly related to perceived enjoyment, concentration, usability, competence, calmness, and expertise; 5) The more the familiarity with VR applications, the less the perceived cybersickness. Finally, the application offers two main advantages: 1) The evaluators can customize the environment by adding as many elements as desired to the panoramic photograph; 2) It could be especially suitable for groups with reduced mobility. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

QR codes provide potential opportunities to improve interaction in different areas of application. Even so, this technology has been utilised in punctual and specific standalone applications, being barely applied to broader contexts, such as the educational one, where different scenarios can be considered to take advantage of the same QR-code approach. In this paper, key issues for the development of applications that utilise QR codes to improve sharing and availability of resources are presented, specifically focusing on improving interaction and acceptance. In this way, a holistic approach has been developed where the system is aimed at improving the interaction between educators and students. On the one hand, educators use a web interface to manage educational resources and announcements and automatically generate QR codes. On the other hand, students scan those QR codes using a mobile device, obtaining updated information related to their lectures. This scenario has been evaluated by educators and students, obtaining good results in terms of acceptance, cognitive burden, and overall usability. The approach provides development clues and the evaluation method that can be applied to different contexts, thus representing a generalisable solution. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

An increasing focus in aged care policy is supporting older people to age at home. However, there is little recognition of the health and independence of older private renters living in a space they do not own or control. This paper draws on in-depth interviews and assessments undertaken in the homes of 27 older tenants in the Brisbane environs aiming to understand how renting privately influenced their ability to meet their basic needs. An analysis of the findings highlights the disadvantage experienced by many older private renters. Most older private renters were unable to meet their basic needs given unaffordable rent whilst reliant on the aged pension. Further, with limited access to community aged care including home modifications, the health and independence of older private renters was found to be at risk. IMPLICATIONS Community aged care is difficult for older private renters to utilise in Australia, with unaffordable services and tenancy law limiting access to community aged care services including home modifications. It is vital social workers advocate for the community aged care needs of older private renters in practice and policy settings. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Purpose: The "Joint Resources – Sedentary Behavior Study" (JR-SB) revealed significant behavioral and cardio-metabolic effects of reducing daily sedentary behavior replaced by light-intensity physical activity in patients with rheumatoid arthritis. This study explores the participant perception and experiences of the intervention and impact on the participants' health, family and physical activity behavior. Materials and Methods: A mixed-methods study design, including quantitative and qualitative data, was applied. Quantitative data were collected post-intervention using a questionnaire (n = 69) evaluating experiences of participation in the intervention. By maximum variation sampling, 18 participants were recruited to three focus group interviews with discussions of intervention elements. Data from the two sub-studies were collected and analyzed separately, although integrated at the interpretation and reporting level. Results: Based on four overarching themes, results indicated participant satisfaction with the individually tailored, behavioral approach and the focus on light-intensity physical activity rather than higher intensities. Study participation had an additional positive impact on the behaviors of family and social relations. Conversely, the family motivated the participants to achieve their physical activity goals. Conclusions: The study results support the use of individually tailored and behavioral approaches to reduce sedentary behavior, increase light-intensity physical activity and improve physical abilities in patients with rheumatoid arthritis. This paper presents positive participant perception and motivation for an individually tailored, behavioural intervention that aimed to reduce sedentary behaviour replaced by light-intensity physical activity in patients with rheumatoid arthritis. The results indicate that especially the focus on light-intensity physical activity, a consistent focus on the individual's everyday life and continuous support from health professionals motivated the participants to reduce their daily sedentary behaviour – also in the long term. Involvement of participants' family members seems to have influence on their own physical activity behavior as well as on the participants' motivation for changing physical activity behavior. Together with earlier evidence, the results underpin the use of behavioural strategies to support patients with rheumatoid arthritis in achieving their physical activity goals and in improving the abilities needed to manage their everyday lives. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The alteration of an individual's lifestyle and the adoption of healthy behaviours have been shown to be effective in combating a majority of the major symptoms of depression. While there are several mHealth applications that use behaviour change to reduce depressive symptoms, they are often not grounded in behaviour change theory and display a lack of understanding regarding the specific factors that lead to behaviour change. Therefore, there is a need to test innovative strategies to tackle the issue. One such strategy is the use of behaviour change theories to design mHealth applications that use persuasive prompts to assist in 'prompting' the user to adopt healthier behaviours. In this paper, we present the design of persuasive prompts and an mHealth application to induce behavioural change, followed by the results of two studies: (i) an acceptability study that tested the acceptability of the persuasive prompts and (ii) a usability study of the mHealth application. The results show that there is a significant difference in which behaviour change theories users prefer based on their level of depression and that overall, users have a positive perception of the application. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background: The prevalence of dementia is increasing with more healthcare workers being required to care for people living with this progressive neurological disorder. The knowledge level and attitude of healthcare workers caring for those living with dementia need to be assessed and resources targeted effectively to ensure best quality care is provided. Healthcare workers for the purpose of this paper include anyone employed to care for those living with dementia. Aim: To investigate the attitudes of healthcare workers towards people living with dementia. Methods: A survey of 110 healthcare workers was undertaken between October 2016 and December 2017, using the Dementia Attitude Scale to measure attitudes towards people living with dementia. Demographic data were collected by a survey to explore whether a person's age; cultural background; qualification level; or experience level had an impact on their attitude towards people living with dementia. Results: The full survey was completed by n = 85 healthcare workers with the majority having strongly positive views about people living with dementia, with an average score of 88.31/100. However, a large number reported being afraid of people living with dementia (n = 76, 89.4%) and would avoid people with dementia who were agitated (n = 51, 61.4%). While 100% (n = 85) agreed or strongly agreed that it was possible to enjoy interacting with people living with dementia, they were more ambivalent with n = 26 (31.6%) strongly agreeing with the statement that working with people living with dementia is rewarding. A significant difference in attitude was found using one-way analysis of variance within groups due to age (p <.000) and cultural background (p <.035). Conclusions: Healthcare workers within this study had mainly positive attitudes towards people with dementia as demonstrated by the high attitude scores. However, this paper has shown that healthcare workers may require further education to improve attitude and care towards those living with dementia. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Together with the growth in the presence of e-learning in higher education institutions, the advance of technology allows for the possibility of creating tailored institutional strategies to improve the experience of their students. Moreover, placing the students at the centre of their learning in self-regulated environments also implies offering a more tailored experience that focuses in their learning styles. In order to do so, it is essential to distinguish the different student profiles that arise in these contexts from a meta-cognitive and motivational perspective. The current paper uses hierarchical clustering on a sample of students enrolled in distance education programmes at a medium-sized Spanish university to obtain a set of distinct profiles and show how this technique can be useful both to assess the needs and limitations of the students from the perspective of exogenous and intrinsic factors in TEL environments and to provide specific services for each of them. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Child abuse may potentially create the behavioral problems particularly in the children of parents with substance use disorder. Thus, the current study was conducted to investigate the effects of child abuse on the behavioral problems in the children of parents with substance use disorder using the emotional regulation and social skills as mediators. In this paper, the method of Structural Equation Modeling (SEM) was applied. The study population included 358 children of parents with substance use disorder whose parents had referred to the addiction treatment center in Kermanshah province, Iran (2017-2018). Conners Comprehensive Behavior Rating Scales (CBRS), Emotion Regulation Checklist (ERC), Social Skills Rating Scale (SSRS) Questionnaire, and Child Abuse Questionnaire were also used for data collection. IBM SPSS Amos 22 software was utilized for statistical analysis of the obtained data. The SEM was also analyzed to confirm fit of the model. The results showed a direct relationship between the child abuse and behavioral problems so that, the boys outperformed the girls in this regard. The findings also suggested a significant relationship between the family characteristics and behavioral problems. On the other hand, family characteristics and emotional regulation had direct and significant effects on improvement of the social skills (P < 0.001). The results revealed a direct effect of child abuse on the behavioral problems in the children of parents with substance use disorder. Thus, it is suggested to take a preventive approach toward child abuse in the children of parents with substance use disorder by employing a comprehensive program and intervention methods. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

On the basis of neutralisation theory, this paper associates technology-induced work stress with the engagement in non-business activities while at work. When neutralisation theory is linked to organisational behaviour, the theory states that employees are prone to engage in deviant behaviours in the workplace to balance the difficulties they have suffered. In this context, employees may strive to neutralise the negative consequences of technology-induced stress and feel justified considering that it is their right to engage in deviant behaviours, such as performing non-business activities. Therefore, the aim of this study is to explore the impact of technology-induced stress (techno-stress) on engaging in non-business online activities while at work (minor cyberslacking). To do so, survey method was used and data were gathered from 252 white-collar employees working in the manufacturing sector. Results of the regression analysis suggested that out of three dimensions of techno-stress, techno-invasion is the only predictor for cyberslacking. The practical contribution of this paper is that employers could decrease cyberslacking activities by alleviating techno-invasion level of employees. Recommendations are also offered to draw up policies to cope with techno-stress and cyberslacking. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background and aim: A Society's view of disability may influence the perception and use of Assistive Technology (AT) products. Semantic cues or cultural coding provide the viewer with a series of visual stimuli to be given or ascribed meaning. Previous research has shown cognitive approaches to visual perception and assignment of meaning vary between diverse cultures. This study reviews the influence of contextual settings on perception, to provide the basis for a debate on the societal perception of communicative content (semantic/meaning) of an AT product; and, the relevance of different cultural cognitive styles. The paper explores, from a cultural viewpoint, the overall understanding of disability internationally. Method: A Semantic Differential (SD) scale was used to obtain views on the image of an attendant wheelchair from nine hundred and ninety-one (991) young adults from the United Kingdom (UK) and Pakistan (PAK), reflecting the individualist and collectivist societies, respectively. This survey follows a previous paper-based study using the same image and protocol. Comparing the two surveys, a consensus of views from the two groups was achieved. Results and conclusion: The responses from the UK group were skewed towards a negative view of disability compared to the Pakistan group. This inferred greater social stigma associated with this AT product in the UK. The combined findings from both surveys provide insights into societal perception of AT products and disability. Areas for future research are suggested, including what visual components of an AT product (graphemes) appear to be associated with positive or negative responses for collectivist and individual societal groups. Assistive Technology (AT) product designers, academics, professionals and stakeholders need to be aware of challenges which are originated from one's socio-cultural environment. AT products convey certain meanings, semantics, which are interpreted by the society and are subjective to a specific cultural setting. •For the effective communication of meanings and values an AT product relies on the visual clues and design features embedded within the design. However, there have been a limited number of studies reviewing this aspect of product semantics. •The survey and associated testing has highlighted the differences in cultural perception towards AT products and demonstrated the importance of effectively designing the semantic attributes of an AT product as well as its function. •The demonstration of the efficacy of methods within the study for exploring the interpretation of semantic attributes of AT products will help designers and developers better understand the perceptions of individual cultures and societal groups. •A better understanding of different cultures and societies will enable designers and clinicians who specify AT products to reduce AT product abandonment; and, the associated stigma around disability. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Based on the lack of validated assessment tools to detect past physical or sexual abuse, the current study examines to what extent the experience of either sexual or physical abuse is reflected in self-figure drawings of adolescents at-risk. A convenience sample consists of 93 adolescents at risk between the ages of 12–17 recruited from Welfare institutes divided into three groups: Group 1 included adolescents who experienced sexual abuse, Group 2 included adolescents who experienced physical abuse but not sexual abuse, Group 3 included adolescents who experienced neither sexual abuse nor physical abuse. A self-report anonymous questionnaire that consisted of demographics, traumatic events questionnaire, and the Medical Somatic Dissociation Questionnaire (MSDQ) was administered following Ethical approval and signing of consent forms. Participants were asked to draw themselves on an A4 sheet of paper using a pencil. Five social workers who were unaware of participants' experiences assessed the drawings independently for the level of obviousness of the following indicators: face line, eyes, nose, ears, hair stand, forehead, lower body, arms, and hands. Results yielded differences in pictorial indicators (nose, hair stand, lower body) among the groups. MSDQ score was found significantly higher among sexually abused victims. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Installing security applications is a common way to protect against malicious apps, phishing emails, and other threats in mobile operating systems. While these applications can provide essential security protections, they also tend to access large amounts of people's sensitive information. Therefore, individuals need to evaluate the trade-off between the security features and the privacy invasion when deciding on which protection mechanisms to use. In this paper, we examine factors affecting the willingness to install mobile security applications by taking into account the invasion levels and security features of cyber-security applications. To this end, we propose a visual language that depicts the coverage of different security features as well as privacy intrusiveness levels. Our user study (n=300) shows that users assessing security applications find their trade-off balance in highly secure apps with a medium level of privacy invasion. The results indicate that a low privacy invasion might signal that the security application provides less security. We discuss these findings in the context of understanding the trade-off between privacy and security. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

While video games can be helpful in personal development, participating in certain gaming activities may lead to negative effects such as video game addiction. The overuse of computer games, which can lead to reduced quality of life and affect a person's practical skills. Around 3% of adolescents suffer from Internet Gaming Disorder (IGD), there is currently no universally accepted psychometric method. The AICA-S scale was applied to results from 3,901 respondents aged between 11 and 19. During the 2017/2018 school year, a battery of questionnaires in "pen and paper" form was administered to students at primary schools and secondary schools. The respondents were selected from all the regions of the Czech Republic through a random stratified selection to ensure that the respondents were an accurate representation of students across the Czech Republic. The results were obtained using statistical methods such as ANOVA, chi-square tests and t-tests. These results affirm the psychometric quality of AICA-S and note the prevalence of IGD among Czech adolescents. Based on our results, 0.8% of our respondents fulfilled the criteria for an IGD. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

With the increased popularity of mobile learning, there is a growing demand on the understanding of how the scalable technology, such as mobile devices, influences individual learning behaviours as well as their learning outcome. A theoretical model was built based on the adaptive structuration theory (AST) and the knowledge spiral theory. Using this model, we examined the relationship between structural sources, individuals' adaptive structural behaviours, and their perceived learning. A Structural Equation Modeling method was employed in our empirical study. Findings indicate that users' task adaptation had a positive influence on their perceived learning, In addition, their exploitive technology adaptation influenced the ultimate perceived learning, but the impact of users' exploratory technology adaptation on learning was mediated by their task adaptation. Contrary to expectations, the effect of computer self-efficacy on exploitive and exploratory technology adaptation was negative, and exploratory technology adaptation negatively affected exploitive task adaptation. A detailed discussion of the findings and implications are provided in this paper. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background: The stigma of epilepsy still holds fast today, and consequently results in people with epilepsy not seeking the support they require. To date, little research has been conducted into seizure label preferences. This paper contributes new findings to this growing body of research. Methods: Participants with epilepsy completed an online survey stating their preferences for seizure labels: seizure; fit; attack; episode; s/he is having a seizure/fit; and s/he is fitting/seizing. Through a thematic linguistic analysis of the participants' comments, this paper investigates the influence of semantics and grammatical variation to assess how these linguistic features portray epilepsy. The semantic implications of individuals' personal seizure labels are also explored. Results: The consensus falls with seizure and s/he is having a seizure, as the alternative choices were comparatively less popular and illustrated many negative connotations. The participants' explanations their 'least preferable' rankings were categorized and thematically aligned. This proposed taxonomy offers insight into how different labels shape identity and contribute to the stigma. The grammatical variations of the phrases appear to contribute to (mis)representing seizure trajectory and imagery. The personalized seizure labels offered by a selection of participants may also be suggestive of the seizure experience itself. Conclusions: The consensus of these results can guide healthcare professionals and the media to opt, in the first instance, for the terms/ phrases that have been thought as the most preferable, and to avoid using those ranked by the majority as least preferable. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Preserving older pedestrians' navigation skills in urban environments is a challenge for maintaining their quality of life. However, existing aids do not take into account older people's perceptual and cognitive declines nor their user experience, and they call upon sensory modalities that are already used during walking. The present study was aimed at comparing different guidance instructions using visual, auditory, and haptic feedback in order to identify the most efficient and best accepted one(s). Sixteen middle-age (non-retired) adults, 21 younger-old (young-retired) adults, and 21 older-old (old-retired) adults performed a navigation task in a virtual environment. The task was performed with visual feedback (directional arrows superimposed on the visual scenes), auditory feedback (sounds in the left/right ear), haptic feedback (vibrotactile information delivered by a wristband), combinations of different types of sensory feedback, or a paper map. The results showed that older people benefited from the sensory guidance instructions, as compared to the paper map. Visual and auditory feedbacks were associated with better performance and user experience than haptic feedback or the paper map, and the benefits were the greatest among the older-old participants, even though the paper-map familiarity was appreciated. Several recommendations for designing pedestrian navigation aids are proposed. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The paper discusses the associations between adult attachment and OCD symptoms in light of current cognitive-behavioural theories of OCD. The role of attachment system in OCD has been increasingly recognised. The aim of this paper was to investigate and evidence for direct and indirect relations between attachment insecurities, obsessional beliefs and OCD symptoms. Data were collected from a sample of university students (N = 334) in a cross-sectional research design. Adjusting for age, sex, income, paternal education and maternal education, attachment anxiety and avoidance in combination with obsessional beliefs (responsibility/threat estimation, perfectionism/certainty and importance/control of thoughts) were regressed onto obssessionality using logistic regression analysis. One-way MANOVA comparisons of obsessionality and obsessive beliefs were run across four attachment styles. Finally, the affect regulation model of attachment theory was refined and tested in relation to OCD symptomatology. Attachment anxiety and attachment avoidance significantly contributed to severity of obsessive-compulsive symptoms. More specifically, respondents with fearful and preoccupied attachment styles reported greater scores on obsessive-compulsive symptomatology and obsessional beliefs. Using a structural modelling approach, we found responsibility/threat estimation significantly contributed to obsessional symptomatology via attachment anxiety and avoidance. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Reflection journals (RJs) have been recognised as a vital tool in promoting student learning. However, little is known about how doctoral students use RJs to improve academic engagement. Through a mixed-method study, this paper explored how six international students from a Chinese normal university utilized RJs in their engagement in an advanced learning sciences course. This study used reflective journals, surveys, and interviews to examine doctoral students' perceptions of the effectiveness of reflective journals in their learning process in a 12-week 'Frontiers of the Learning Sciences' course. The quantitative results revealed that all items received a positive rating and were appropriate for exploring how reflective journals enhanced the participants' critical thinking, writing skills and engagement. Overall, the findings confirmed that reflective journals facilitate critical thinking, metacognition, and self-engagement. The findings of the study likewise provide information for course instructors to adjust their lesson plans in response to students' comments and suggestions. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Designers are often faced with the challenge of following web accessibility guidelines that are complex and ambiguous, and therefore hard to use. This is evidenced by the low percentage of public websites that comply fully with web accessibility standards worldwide. Lack of engagement among designers to follow established web accessibility guidelines is often accounted for this issue. In this paper, we address designers' lack of engagement through a serious game called GATE which is based on the Web Content Accessibility Guidelines (WCAG). We followed a User-Centred approach by identifying user types of designers through an online survey. We then mapped these user types and the WCAG to relevant game mechanics. The resulting game was evaluated with designers for its perceived effectiveness, user engagement, and user satisfaction using a mixed methods approach. Our results demonstrate the potential of GATE which offers designers an innovative and engaging solution towards the wider adoption of web accessibility guidelines. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

National ID cards have been debated for some time, especially with the recent Covid-19 global pandemic and increases in technological capabilities, coupled with the need for higher national security. This paper is an empirical extension of Smith's work but in light of the current economic and political turmoil. These differences were inspected from a gender perspective, but the distrust was generally universal. As the beneficial reasons why National ID cards should be implemented (e.g., enhanced security, convenience, and enhancing CRM concepts), still many professionals exhibit numerous fears and are concerned with the risks involved. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemics has spread rapidly around the world, sending millions of people into quarantine and lockdown. Based on that, the management of higher educational institutions had to use Internet technology in teaching as the only option to continue all the academic activities across all higher education institution worldwide. This paper aims to investigate how engineering students are coping with the e-learning methods adopted by Al-Zaytoonah University of Jordan during the pandemic. A total of 470 have participated in this study from the faculty of engineering and technology at Al-Zaytoonah University of Jordan. From the findings of the survey, it was clear that students are satisfied with the online teaching and learning instituted by Al-Zaytoonah University of Jordan, despite few identified challenges. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper presents a novel application of an assistive robotic system with virtual assistance to enhance manual performance of individuals with cerebral palsy. Cerebral palsy affects one’s voluntary motor movements resulting in limited opportunities to actively engage in physical manipulative activities that require fine motor movements and coordination. Lack of object manipulation and environmental exploration can result in further impairments such as cognitive and social delays. The proposed assistive robotic system has been developed to enhance hand movements of people with disabilities when performing a functional task colouring. This paper presents the usability testing of the effectiveness of the developed system with an individual with cerebral palsy in a set of colouring tasks. Assisted and unassisted approaches were compared and analysed through quantitative and qualitative measures. The robotic-based approach was further compared with the participant’s typical alternate access method to perform the same proposed tasks. The robotic system with virtual assistance was clinically validated to be significantly more effective, compared to both unassisted and typical approaches, by increasing the hand controllability, reducing the physical load and increasing the easiness of maintaining movements within the lines. Future studies will inform the use of the system for children with disabilities to provide them with assisted play for functional and playful activities. Implications for rehabilitation: Robotic system can enhance manual performance in individuals with disabilities. Participating in a robot-mediated play activity could increase children’s motivation and engagement. The developed robotic system can contribute to a basis for clinical and home-based implementation of the technology to promote manual play activities for children with disabilities. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Concise and effective business English communication underpins successful organisations. During the 4th Industrial Revolution (4IR) much of the working day is spent in some form of communication, usually e-mails. This paper examines the effectiveness of English communication between integral parts of a business operation during the 4IR. A mixed methods approach utilising a non-experimental design was used to investigate effective business communication using e-mails in English in a medium sized organisation in South Africa. A questionnaire consisting of 10 Likert type scale questions and 5 open ended questions was used. Purposive sampling was utilised as the population was small (150 employees, final sample 55) thus results cannot be generalised. Certain barriers to communication were identified which were considered important. For instance, many staff members were second language English speakers and often misunderstand e-mails. As a result, they reported that they felt frustrated in their working life and were demotivated. It was concluded that many e-mails were challenging to staff and needed to be written in everyday English not business language. The authors recommended that workshops and initial training in business language skills when people enter the organisation should be undertaken. Human Resources could also audit the use of appropriate English. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Motivational interviewing (MI) is a long-established evidenced-based intervention aimed at guiding people to implement change. Originally developed by William Miller from the United States and Stephen Rollnick from the United Kingdom, a strong emphasis for MI is the underlying 'spirit', rather than merely the specific techniques within the model. The 'spirit' of MI consists of four key components: acceptance, partnership, evocation and compassion. These have direct overlap with concepts within the personal recovery model recognised as a critical framework in delivery of contemporary mental health services for consumers. Despite this recognition, recovery concepts have struggled to gain consistent traction, particularly within inpatient mental health units. This paper proposes that MI presents one strategy for integrating recovery-focused principles within routine mental health nursing (MHN) practice. An overview of MI and its relationship with recovery principles is discussed in the context of contemporary MHN practice. Evaluation results of a locally developed MI workshop for MHNs within a regional area of New South Wales (NSW) in Australia are presented to highlight the emerging evidence for this potential. Following the workshop, MHN participants showed key improvements in knowledge and confidence scores, as well as in understanding of key MI processes and strategies. The consolidation of these skills through training and a supervision framework is outlined. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Multiple victimization and their impact on the mental health of immigrant women have been understudied. This paper assesses the relationship between multiple victimization and the emotional maladjustment of immigrant women in Portugal. Data were collected from a sample of 107 immigrant women via a set of questionnaires that assessed the victimization experience, psychological maladjustment, and resilience. The main objective was to analyze the role of resilience in the mental health of multiple victimized immigrant women in Portugal. The results showed that 78.5% of immigrant women in Portugal reported experiencing at least one type of victimization during life (66.4% experienced multiple victimization and 12.1% single victimization), 45% displayed psychological maladjustment and 14% suffered from Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder. Unemployment, low socioeconomic status and a higher number of types of victimization experienced constituted risk factors for mental health problems. A mediation model found that there is an indirect effect of the total index of victimization in psychological maladjustment, mediated by resilience. The results suggest a complex relationship between victimization and emotional maladjustment, combining individual, interpersonal, structural and social factors. The implications for practice are discussed, not only regarding the risk intervention, but also the empowerment of immigrant women. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Purpose: Drawing on survey data (N = 7,826) collected in the United Kingdom, Australia, and the United States, this paper examines whether sexual orientation is a differentiating factor in explaining relationship quality and maintenance. Previous research suggests that sexual orientation is not significant in determining relationship satisfaction; however, these analyses have used traditional variable driven approaches, which do not provide an holistic view of the relationship by considering the unique combination of characteristics. Method: In this study, latent profile analyses were used, which is a person-centered approach that allows for identification of different types of long-term relationships. Results: Data suggested that LGB individuals had marginally higher levels of relationship quality compared to their heterosexual counterparts, and sexual orientation was also associated with differing types of long-term relationships. Discussion: These findings are interrogated in more detail, in particular, how sexual orientation is associated with types of long-term relationships and how everyday practices are associated with relationship quality. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Internet technology has flourished in India keeping pace with other developing countries. In keeping pace with this advancement, the Internet of Things (IoT) technology is also spreading in India. Government of India (GOI) has realised IoT's business prospect and published draft policy on IoT in 2015. To achieve a better result, the prospective users are required to be kept aware regarding the prospect of IoT and for this, social media is expected to play a pivotal role. Social media can highlight advantages of IoT and in turn, these advantages would be made known to other potential users through Word of Month (WOM). This would bring in projection of a new business paradigm as contemplated by GOI. The purpose of this paper is to identify the factors affecting actual use of IoT by the potential users of India and to develop a conceptual model. The model has been verified through survey with inputs from 208 participants identified from three metropolitan cities of India. The responses have been quantified through 5-Point Likert scale. The result shows the implication that social media and WOM almost equally influence Indians to use IoT. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The demographic shift marks the beginning of a social transformation with far reaching implications, and differences in aging processes across individuals render one-size fits-all policies ineffective. An area of increasing importance is assistive technology, including physical and Social Assistance Robots (SARs) for elderly support. In order to increase the effectiveness of such technologies, their design, functionality, and acceptance by target users must be evaluated. This paper presents a study that examines SAR technology acceptance among the future elderly (aged 20–60) in a German-speaking population (N=188). In doing this, we investigated the relationships between personality, resilience, technology experience, expectations for technology, fulfilment of expectations for technology, and technology acceptance. The study found significant correlations between age, gender, education, personality, resilience, experience, expectations, and technology acceptance and its subdimensions. Of the personality dimensions, agreeableness and neuroticism were found most relevant. Small effects were found between resilience and acceptance, and highly significant ones between technology acceptance, technology experience, expectations for SARs, and fulfilment of expectations for SARs. In keeping with previous research, the findings suggest that personality plays a significant role in the acceptance of SAR technologies. This study may be one of the first that considers and evaluates resilience as a factor in technology acceptance. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Current international targets aim for 90% of people diagnosed with HIV to be on antiretroviral treatment (ART). This paper aims to identify sociodemographic and attitudinal factors associated with ART non-use over time in three samples of Australian people living with HIV (PLHIV). Data for this paper were derived from an Australian cross-sectional survey of PLHIV that was repeated at three different time points: 1997, 2003, and 2012. There were approximately 1000 respondents to each survey (n = 3042 in total). The survey included approximately 250 items related broadly to health and well-being, ART use, and attitudes towards ART use. Univariate and multivariate logistic regression analyses were used. While the proportion of participants using ART increased between 1997 and 2012 (78.8–87.6%,p < .001), there was a decrease between 1997 and 2003 to 70.6% (p < .001). Factors linked to ART non-use remained steady over those 15 years. In all cohorts, people less likely to be using ART were younger and had a more recent diagnosis of HIV. In 2003 and 2012, people in full-time employment were less likely to be using ART, while those whose main source of income was a pension or social security were more likely to be using ART. Multivariate models showed that, at each time point, a belief in the health benefits of delayed ART uptake was associated with non-use. These findings suggest that there may be barriers to ART uptake that have persisted over time despite changes to clinical guidelines that now encourage early uptake. [ABSTRACT FROM PUBLISHER]

School-based comprehensive sexuality education (CSE) programmes play an important role in reducing young people's sexual risk behaviour and promoting health and well-being. There is limited evidence regarding the attitudes and beliefs of parents towards the implementation of school-based CSE programmes in Islamic cultural settings, including Oman, which this mixed-method study set out to explore. A convenience sample of 250 parents, with equal numbers of mothers and fathers of children aged 12–14 years (grades 7–9) at two urban public pre-secondary schools in Saham, completed a paper-based self-administered questionnaire in Arabic. We found most parents (72.8%) supported school-based CSE programmes that conformed to Islamic requirements of pre-marital sexual abstinence, but there was some opposition. Almost all parents supported comprehensive age-appropriate CSE being taught to students aged 10–15 years, including topics perceived as controversial in Omani culture, except for birth control and safer sex. Most parents considered themselves, school teachers and school nurses to be important sources of CSE. The study findings which suggest strong parental support for CSE programmes can facilitate education policy, CSE curriculum decision-makers and school healthcare-providers in Oman, other Middle Eastern countries, and countries with Muslim immigrant populations. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In recent years, website aesthetics has received a fair amount of attention from the HCI community. This has led to the creation of a variety of multi-item questionnaires aimed at capturing users' aesthetic judgments. Researchers have used these questionnaires in several HCI studies to investigate the relationship between aesthetics and other evaluative constructs such as usability. However, their usefulness as evaluation tools in visual design practice remains underexplored. Lengthy multi-item questionnaires can be particularly problematic especially in studies where participants must evaluate multiple designs or when they are required to give responses repeatedly in predefined time intervals. Despite the criticism, single-item scales have been used in many past studies in which questionnaire length could be problematic. Another alternative available to practitioners/researchers are short versions of standardised multi-item questionnaires that have been created for the aesthetic evaluations of websites. In this paper, we present a study in which we compare the performance of three such condensed aesthetic questionnaires (i.e. aesthetics scale, AttrakDiff, VisAWI) during a website redesign project. The short versions of those questionnaires were used by 187 users during an evaluation of 7 alternative website designs. The questionnaires were compared on performance criteria such as reliability, validity, and predictive ability. Data analysis showed that although AttrakDiff's overall performance was better, a considerable amount of variance in aesthetic judgment could not be accounted for by any of the questionnaires. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Purpose: Technology holds great potential to support Deaf individuals as they age into older adulthood. However, it is unclear to what extent Deaf seniors are using technology in everyday life or whether they experience challenges in using technology. The current study explored technology use among older Deaf adults with regard to attitudes, adoption style, and frequency of use for a wide range of technologies, including assistive technologies (ATs) for persons with hearing loss and general, everyday technologies. Materials and methods: We developed a questionnaire that assessed older Deaf adults' use of and experiences with technology. The questionnaire was made available in online and paper versions. Participants (N = 109) were recruited from national conferences and organizations for the Deaf. Results: Overall, we found that the older Deaf adults were technology adopters and regularly use and feel comfortable with a variety of devices. However, we also identified a number of technologies that are not being used by this population, including an AT that appears to have become obsolete and technologies that use sound-based alerts. Conclusions: Insights on how older Deaf adults are embracing technology and which devices they are actually using can help policy makers, technology developers, and a range of aging services professionals, better meet the needs of this understudied population. Older Deaf adults use a variety of assistive and everyday technologies and must be considered as consumers and included in the design process. Older Deaf adults are generally positive in their attitudes towards technologies but they are infrequent users of potentially beneficial health technologies, highlighting opportunities for future research and development. Assistive technology for the Deaf (TTY/TTD) appears to have become obsolete with advances in modern communication technologies, which has implications for policy decisions. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Communication in Online Distance Learning courses revolves around two distinct forms: synchronous and asynchronous. A lot of work has been already developed focused on better understanding the roles that each of these forms of communication plays in Distance Learning and to which extent they are sufficient to provide rich and in-depth interaction experience for students and professors. The present paper focuses on better understanding the perceptions of Online Distance Learning students and supervisors about communication tools available for them during the Final Year Project supervision (FYP). A total of 262 students and 62 professors were surveyed about their impressions related to three different aspects of communication during FYP distance supervision: preferences for one form of communication over the other (synchronous versus asynchronous), appropriateness of both forms of communication to different types of discussions, and the sufficiency of these forms of communication as the sole forms of communication in the FYP discipline. Among other things, results point out an explicit preference from students and supervisors for using the asynchronous form throughout the discipline (even though the synchronous form also received good ratings). Moreover, both forms of communication were more used by students and supervisors for the discussion of academic and important topics. At last, both students and supervisors consider distance supervision as efficient as face-to-face supervision, and less experienced students consider more important to have face-to-face meetings with their supervisors than more experienced students. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Although mental health workers in India across all major professional groups have identified an unmet need for training in cognitive behaviour therapy (CBT), the uncritical export of models of mental health, therapy provision and training to low- and middle-income countries is a problematic process. This paper describes the context for the first stand-alone CBT training programme in India, based in Chennai. This paper includes an evaluation of the first phase of the training and information from trainees regarding the quality and applicability of the training to their working context. The paper provides an overview of some of the critiques that are pertinent to this process and considers the way that the Kolb learning cycle can be used as a framework within training to go some way to addressing these difficulties. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Objective: The aims of this paper were to report on the global psychosocial functioning of 5-year-old DHH children and examine the risk and protective factors that predict outcomes. Design: A cross-sectional analysis of data collected from a prospective, population-based longitudinal study. Study sample: Parents/caregivers of 356 children completed questionnaires on psychosocial development (CDI, SDQ), functional communication (PEACH) and demographic information. Children completed standardized assessments of non-verbal cognitive ability (WNV) and language (PLS-4). Results: On average, global psychosocial functioning was within the range of typically developing children; however, variability was high and 12% of children had scores that were more than 2 SDs below the norm. Non-verbal cognitive ability, presence of additional disabilities, language and functional communication significantly predicted outcomes. In contrast, type of hearing device, severity of hearing loss and age at intervention did not. Conclusion: The global psychosocial functioning of this cohort of 5-year-old DHH children fell within the range of typically developing children. The findings suggest that spoken language ability and functional communication skills are vital for healthy psychosocial development. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Many adolescents have hopes of college graduation, independent living, and satisfying careers. Career preparation is an important component that can facilitate these desires. However, many adolescents do not achieve these hopes in their desired timeframes due to interruptions, such as unplanned pregnancies. As illustrated by the Theory of Adolescent Sexual Decision-Making Influencing Teen Pregnancy (Weiss, 2012. Who will listen? Rural teen pregnancy reflections. The Journal for Nurse Practitioners, 8, 804-809. doi:10.1016/j.nurpra.2012.02.028), desiring future success can promote low-risk decision-making. Based on this theory, a Getting Plans Started (GPS) Timeline Tool (GPS Timeline©) was developed to help adolescents plan for future success by using a time perspective and, thereby, avoid interruptions. The purpose of this paper is to describe the GPS Tool©, how it might be used, and a study to determine the feasibility of using the GPS Tool©. Thirty adolescents found the tool easy to use and effective in helping them plan for the future. Their responses indicated almost unanimous desires for college graduation and independence with strong confidence in achieving their plans, but their responses also indicated a need for more effective planning to achieve their desired goals. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background: This paper draws on a 2015 study in New Zealand that examined perceptions of registered nurses (RNs) and general practitioners (GPs) regarding the role of Nurse Practitioners (NPs) in long-term aged care facilities (LTACF). Aim: To explore the attitudes of RNs and GPs regarding the role of NPs in LTACFs. Design: A descriptive, mixed methods design with a survey and invitation to interview was used. RNs and GPs who provided hospital-level care were invited to participate. Findings: The findings showed RNs and GPs are open to considering the NP role in aged care. However, there remains a lack of understanding of what NPs do. Conclusions: This study suggests a shift in attitude towards accepting the NP role by RNs and GP working in LTACFs. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Dance has universally been used as a form of human expression for thousands of years. This common human behaviour and communication method has not been explored much in the context of computer-based technology, even within the field of virtual human research. This paper presents an experimental study investigating the impact of watching dancing virtual characters on human emotions. The study analysed the responses of 55 participants, composed of a mix of dancers and non-dancers, who watched a dancing virtual character perform 3 different dances that represented anger, sadness and happiness in different display orders. The participants’ reported changes in their emotions and their feelings of anger, sadness and happiness were significantly dependent on which dancing character’s emotion they watched and the emotional change did not rely on correct recognition of the depicted emotion. For experimental control, our characters were faceless and danced without music. Our results suggest that just by watching a dancing virtual character some of the benefits associated with dancing could be accessed in circumstances where it is not desirable or feasible to dance, justifying further research to develop a personalised character with a face and music that adapts according to the humans’ emotions and preferences. [ABSTRACT FROM PUBLISHER]

Caregiver research often focuses on negative health outcomes, yet little is known about the self-care practices of caregivers. The present study investigates self-care practices among family caregivers and the relationships between personal self-care, perceived stress, and other health variables. Data were collected from informal caregivers through self-administered Internet and paper surveys that included the Medical Outcomes Study Short Form 36-item Health Survey, Perceived Stress Scale, and Self-Care Practices Scale. Personal self-care was most strongly associated with emotional well-being, pain, perceived stress, and general health. The relevance of study findings to strengthening family caregiver programs and future research is discussed. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Objective: To investigate the impact of three different training formats in occupational medicine (OM) on perceptions and performance of undergraduate students. Methods: A comparative study which included all fourth-year medical students was conducted over a three-year period. The year group in 2010 (211 students) received paper case studies followed by one small group session. The format used in 2011 actively engaged 188 students in the learning process by adding collaborative work and group discussions to the written information. In 2012, the approach comprised no longer constructed text cases but 212 students encountered real patients. Students' perceptions were obtained by questionnaire. Their learning performance was assessed through review of written reports and score on oral presentations. Statistical differences in ratings were analyzed using Fisher's exact and Kruskal-Wallis tests. Results: All three formats were found to equally achieve the stated learning objectives. The year groups with incorporation of active learning strategies and patient contacts had significant better test performance compared to those receiving only written case studies. Real patient students gave statistically significant higher rates for relevance, authenticity and appropriate difficulty level of the training than did students who discussed written case studies. Conclusion: Both approaches with augmented interaction in 2011 and 2012, improved performance and satisfaction among students. However, students valued the use of real patients higher than paper-form cases. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper presents an overview of a study conducted to examine the influence of teacher attitudes, teacher efficacy and perceived school support on teachers’ intentions to include students with disabilities in government primary schools in a region of Bangladesh. All of the variables were conceptualized within the Theory of Planned Behaviour. The participants in the study were 1387 in-service teachers drawn from government primary schools located in urban, semi-urban and rural sectors of Dhaka. Hierarchical regression analysis revealed that all three Theory of Planned Behaviour variables (teacher attitudes, teacher efficacy and perceived school support) explained 40% of the variance in teachers’ intentions to include students with a disability in regular classrooms. This paper describes the process for conceptualizing the variables, discusses the methodology and presents the outcomes concluding with implications for educational policy reform and practices in Bangladesh. Areas for further research are also identified. [ABSTRACT FROM PUBLISHER]