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The main objective of this paper is to briefly present roles of different teacher supervisors according to distinct models, highlighting the importance of collaborative dialogues supported by video recordings. This paper will present results from a qualitative study of an English as a foreign language teacher education course in Brazil. The results indicated that collaborative supervision was an efficient tool to address adversities within educational contexts and that student teachers who observed their pedagogical actions through videos became more reflective and self-evaluative, as they provided a deeper analysis regarding their practice. With collaborative supervision, teacher candidates can be encouraged to recognize and understand the complexities of language learning and teaching both locally and globally.

The teaching-learning methodology adopted in the Introduction to Computer Science classes may be a process that makes it difficult to understand the principles of programming language for undergraduate students in Computer Science and related areas, generating high failure and course drop out rates. This paper presents an analysis of the results obtained in the Introduction to Computer Science classes taught in Computer Science and Engineering courses at University of Brasília (UnB). The evaluation questionnaire answered by the undergraduate students in 2017 was analyzed, a validation was performed, and we checked the level of students satisfaction in relation to the evaluated subject and the association among the level of satisfaction, the percentage of practical activities of the discipline, student performance and the level of absenteeism.

Purpose: The paper aims to identify the relationship between the use of storytelling and innovative work behavior (IWB) in organizations. Design/methodology/approach: The research took place in a human resource development (HRD) training session for leaders of Alpha Group. In this session, storytelling was adopted to discuss innovation and IWB. Following the training, the leaders completed a questionnaire about the effectiveness of the stories for the construction of knowledge and IWB. Data were collected from 97 leading sectors. Subsequently, data analysis was performed to identify correlations between the aspects. Findings: The paper provides empirical insights about the use of storytelling, the effectiveness of the stories, as well as their relationship with the innovative behavior of sectors leaders in a Brazilian organization. It has identified the relation between effectiveness of stories and level of innovative behavior. Research limitations/implications: Owing to the chosen research approach, the research results cannot be generalized. Because it is a study of a single organization, the results concern to the reality experienced in the organization studied. Therefore, researchers are encouraged to test this relationship in other organizations to contribute to the discussion and practice of innovation in HRD. Practical implications: Stories can contribute to innovative behavior, and innovative behavior contributes to helping understand the stories. HRD practitioners can provide the use of storytelling, combined with other forms of interventions, to enhance IWB to promote collaborative learning culture and work engagement. Originality/value: Previous papers have identified the role of HRD in the development of IWB in organizations. Theoretically, previous papers have also highlighted that storytelling can be a tool for the development of innovative behavior. The paper empirically has tested these contributions, identifying emerging aspects of this relationship.

This paper reports a study on politeness strategies of Brazilian Portuguese speakers and American English speakers regarding their responses to compliments. The aim of this research is to gain an insight into the politeness characteristics of Brazilian Portuguese speakers by analyzing how Brazilian students react when receiving compliments. It also aims to investigate how politeness from Brazilian Portuguese speakers differs from politeness of American English speakers when receiving compliments. The population for this research consists of 12 students with intermediate and upper-intermediate levels of EFL from the "Cooperative de Trabalho Magna," a private school in Brazil. The study followed a descriptive and interpretive qualitative research method, where 133 answers were analyzed and then contrasted with Chen's (1993) study of politeness strategies between American English and Chinese speakers. This study shows that, unlike American English speakers, Brazilian Portuguese speakers need to justify and give reasons for the compliment received.

The importance of interdisciplinarity in the teaching-learning process has been much debated. This topic has challenged schoolteachers, who do not always manage to integrate interdisciplinarity into the school routine. This paper emerged from the discipline Research Methodology taught at the postgraduate course in education of Universidade Federal do Triângulo Mineiro. During this course, we sought to gain knowledge about the academic production related to interdisciplinarity in the teaching-learning process, mainly in terms of teacher training and teaching practice, published in dissertations and theses. We explored contents published from 2011 to 2016 in Brazil. The covered period was based on a search for recent productions on the proposed theme, conducted by using the database of the Brazilian Digital Library of Theses and Dissertations. Analyses of the documents pointed to the need to work interdisciplinarity during teacher training courses and to adopt an interdisciplinary posture in daily teaching practice in schools. These practices should help to overcome compartmentalization of the teaching-learning process and to provide students with a global view of the world.

The objective of this paper is to verify public school teachers' conceptions about indiscipline and to investigate behaviors and/or events that occur in the classroom and are considered indiscipline, their possible causes and ways of dealing with the problem. The literature points out that several factors help in the configuration of frame of indiscipline in schools, but it cannot be ignored as a problem to be resolved fundamentally in the teacher-student relationship, and the educational-school psychologist is therefore an important mediator in this relationship. Forty-eight public school teachers participated in this study, applying semi-structured questionnaires and accomplishing content analysis using the program ATLAS.ti 7. The teachers understand indiscipline as aggressiveness, restlessness, inattentiveness, talking, disrespect to peers and teachers, lack of zeal with material, degradation of the heritage school, emotional problems, etc. About the causes, the analysis shows the categories: "stand out familiar problems" and "personal problems", "social problems", "difficulties in the school-family partnership" and, in a smaller proportion, "didactic and pedagogical questions" and "absence of religiousness". The majority confront the problem by talking with the students and communiques to the family, trying to improve the methodology of the lessons, and just a few teachers share the situation with a director.

A training at Higher Education level needs, in addition to improve the skills specific in the area chosen, to develop a set of skills and/or personal attributes that make him or her more likely to succeed in the profession. In this context, this paper was developed and has the objective to identify the relationships between engagement, satisfaction, and employability of students who completed the university as University for All Program (ProUni) scholarship. This target group of students was chosen because of the importance of ProUni for the Advancement of Education policies of affirmative actions in Brazil. The ProUni gives scholarships to students from minority (underrepresented) groups to study at private universities, through the National Secondary Education Exam--ENEM (Brasil, 2005). Among these groups are students who attend public high schools (a proxy for lower social class), low-income students, African Brazilian students, Indigenous Brazilian students, students with disabilities, and not graduated teachers that work in public elementary and secondary schools. The research involved 198 ProUni graduates invited to answer an online questionnaire. There were 134 respondents, 123 (91.8%) were working since we were interested in employment, only these participants were included in the analysis. The results suggest that employability consolidates and reflects in the conquest of labor activity, as well as in graduate satisfaction with their training and job. These results are indicative of the engagement of the student with their learning, therefore with their graduate degree.

Business schools have the responsibility of preparing students for work in multicultural organisations and global markets. This paper examines a situated learning experience for undergraduates through a virtual collaboration between a UK university and a Brazilian university. This facilitated remote communication using social media and smart devices, allowing students from both institutions to enhance their cross-cultural management competencies. A qualitative approach was used for the research, drawing on the reflections of the tutors from both institutions and feedback received from students in the UK and Brazil. This paper provides empirical observations regarding the use of this innovative pedagogic approach, generating discussion of the implications for teaching, thus contributing to the literature on international collaborations in cross-cultural management education.

Open Educational Resources have emerged as important elements of education in the contemporary society, promoting life-long and personalized learning that transcends social, economic and geographical barriers. To achieve the potential of OERs and bring impact on education, it is necessary to increase their development and supply. However, one of the current challenges is how to produce quality and relevant OERs to be reused and adapted to different contexts and learning situations. In this paper we proposed an agile method for the development of OERs -- AM-OER, grounded on agile practices from Software Engineering. Learning Design practices from the OULDI project (UK Open University) are also embedded into the AM-OER aiming at improving quality and facilitating reuse and adaptation of OERs. In order to validate AM-OER, an experiment was conducted by applying it in the development of an OER on software testing. The results showed preliminary evidences on the applicability, effectiveness and efficiency of the method in the development of OERs.

The systemic aspects of educational projects that involved universities, organizations and communities are issues that concern a number of researchers. In this paper, the authors present the processes and findings related to a one-year educational project. The educational project is accomplished through two sequential courses, which are taught by representatives of one university and fifteen organizations--schools, art galleries, foundations, NGOs, hospitals, humanitarian organizations, and corporations--that provide educational opportunities to people from poor communities of São Paulo, Brazil. The seventy-six course members are individuals involved in the social projects accomplished by these organizations. The courses follows a project-based learning educational approach. The research objective is revealing the systemic impacts of this educational project. In this study, the authors follow a systemic action research approach. They develop a qualitative study based on document review, questionnaires, interviews, videos and observations. The main findings are as follows: (1)Coordinated actions between the university and the diverse organizations may create synergies that promote intense knowledge sharing, contributing to the development of the skills in the course participants; (2) The use of project-based learning techniques improves the learning and strengthens the ties between the course participants; and (3) The educational project leads to the empowerment of the course participants, allowing them to promote meaningful actions in their communities.

The challenging of assessing formal and informal online learning at scale includes various issues. Many universities who are now promoting "Massive Online Open Courses" (MOOC), for instance, focus on relatively informal assessment of participant competence, which is not highly "quality assured". This paper reports best practices on the use of a web videoconferencing application to quality control student assignments through online oral examination at scale. In this case study, we examine the use of a simple online conferencing technology FlashMeeting (FM) by a Brazilian University to provide "quality assurance" in the assessment of twelve online postgraduate courses in Law for 20,000 students. Our research questions investigate the benefits and recommendations of using FM in online oral exams at scale. Our qualitative and quantitative data analysis centres on 3,462 short format interviews through FM conducted for this purpose by a group of around fifty assessors from September 2008 to September 2012. The effective use of FM provided evidence with respect to high quality assurance recognised by the Institution with respect to: students' identity, their knowledge and ownership of written work. The key benefits identified from the perspective of assessors and students were: reliable examination, credible technology, authentic assessment, interactive e-Viva, low cost, scalable process and practical testing in terms of time, effort and money.

This paper describes and analyses the dynamics of the use and/or mastery of Virtual Learning Environments (VLEs) by educators and students Open University, important part of the Brazilian Educational System. A questionnaire with 32 items was answered by 174 students/instructors/coordinators of the Media in Education and Physics courses, of two federal universities, between 2011 and early 2012. The interview with a coordinator was transcribed and related to the data systematised in tables and graphs. Interpretative analysis, in an open dialogue with the references and with the data from the Universidade Aberta do Brasil (UAB-Open University of Brazil) site resulted in the final considerations. These suggest that the use and/or mastery of VLEs by students are important, and the specificities of these uses subsidise studies and publications, still in a small number in the literature in this area of knowledge. The work reflects the development of the Open Distance Education System, conducted with strong popular participation, as a response to the challenge posed to the educational policies for expanding the public provision of higher education, also using VLEs for this purpose.

This paper has as its aim to analyze how CityVille, a videogame hosted on Facebook and oriented to the construction of a virtual city, can favor collaboration between gamers along with the exchange of strategies, equally contributing to learning transfer and skill acquisition. The first step consists in identifying the opportunities which the said game can offer in order to develop skills and promote learning formats linked with planning and resource management, after which a presentation is made of the opinions expressed by a sample of gamers (N = 105)--belonging to the Fans-CityVille community--about the priorities established by them to communicate with their neighbors and the skills that they believe to have acquired playing this game. 85.7% of them state that they communicate with others to share strategies and expand their city. Unlike women, who value collaboration, men prioritize competition. Designing their city has enhanced a number of gamer skills in different proportions: creative skills (71.4%); organizational ones (68.0%); skills associated with decision-making and problem-solving (67.0%); and interpersonal skills through interaction with others (61.9%). The CityVille game mode favors skill development and helps to create a ludic atmosphere of collaboration and optimal strategy exchange through communication between neighbors by strengthening their mutual relationships. Its formula moves away from the often-criticized competitive practices of other games.

The main purpose of this paper is provide information relevant for the formulation of new policies for the integration of technology in education from the discussion of research results that analyse computer skills and digital media uses among students (between 12 to 18 years old) from schools in the city of Rio de Janeiro, Brazil. The schools surveyed were selected by a stratified random sample. The questionnaire allowed for statistical measurement of theoretical constructs employing non parametrical item response theory. The schools showed a homogeneous pattern with regard to the frequency of use and the ability of students to perform tasks on the computer. Most students use the computer and the Internet at home. The use of computers in schools is minimal and does not influence the students' ability. Even so, the use of a computer at school positively affects the frequency of use and suggests that schools can play a role in promoting digital inclusion. The availability of media resources at home, how long students have been using a computer and cultural practices during the students' free time had notable positive correlations with the student's abilities. The results suggest that the relation between age and abilities in the use of computer and internet was not significant, except in reference to school delays which were related to age and to students' grades, i.e., the more delayed a student is, the less able he/she will be.

This paper aims to diagnose, through a qualitative comparative study, the main differences concerning the teaching of English in Brazilian regular schools when compared to language schools. There has been a growing tendency of students to attend language schools while still having English classes at their regular schools, and this has led to a lot of change in teachers' beliefs and approaches in general over the years. To establish this diagnosis, a questionnaire consisting of 14 key points related to this topic (ranging from teaching resources and methodologies to workloads and knowledge of grammar) was answered by six teachers of English, three working at regular schools, and three at language schools. The main findings can be summarized by the fact that heavier workloads, bigger groups, lack of resources and focus on reading and writing have made regular school teaching less effective than the experience students have when attending classes at language schools.

Remote robotics laboratories have been successfully used for engineering education. However, few of them use mobile robots to to teach computer science. This article describes a mobile robot Control and Programming Environment (CPE) and its pedagogical applications. The system comprises a remote laboratory for robotics, an online programming tool, and a virtual learning environment. It allows experiments with a mobile robot to be carried out, tested and validated remotely, using a simple graphic interface via web browser, without additional software installation on the user's computer. Students can control and manipulate the robot with simple commands without worrying about hardware details or use C/C++ programming language to develop complex programs. The robot has been built with inexpensive components and has sensors that enable its use in several experiments. CPE can be used in contextualized teaching in various subjects of computer science, both in class and at distance. A practical application of the whole system using CPE, introducing programming concepts, is also described in this paper. The initial assessment of the environment as an educational tool shows high levels of interest among our students, an improvement in their academic scores, and potential for application in the context of computing education, when properly introduced as a learning tool.

There is still no pedagogy to teach programming that stands out significantly from others and no consensus on what is the best way for learning programming. There is still a need to develop new teaching methods for learning in introductory programming courses. This paper presents a pedagogic approach in support of creativity in programming and the results of a successful case study, where the teacher facilitates the learning of programming patterns by means of students' involvement in game creation. The results show an improvement in motivation and learning introductory programming, when we combine programming patterns with games using concrete materials.

Within the field of electric power systems, the study of electrical equipment can be frustrating and demotivating because of the lack of a clear vision of how this equipment functions and operates in a real environment. The use of virtual reality can provide a more concrete representation for students, who rarely have the opportunity to visit a power substation or generating plant to acquire an understanding of how the equipment operates when integrated into an actual system. This paper describes work undertaken to improve the classroom study of such equipment, and to motivate students, by providing a clear overview of the equipment, approximating theory and practical functions, and simulating real situations that would be encountered on the equipment in an actual system. A virtual reality authoring tool was developed to provide students with a visualization of an autotransformer installed in an electric power substation, and to allow them to perform virtual maintenance and operating procedures on it. The influence of the software on students' levels of motivation and their performance was evaluated using questionnaires and reports. Finally, a framework is proposed that can help others create virtual reality trainings.

The recent introduction of statistics into the Brazilian curriculum has presented a multi-problematic situation for teacher professional development. Drawing on research in the areas of teacher development and statistical inquiry, we propose a Teacher Professional Development Cycle (TPDC) model. This paper focuses on two teachers who planned a lesson in collaboration with other teachers, implemented the lesson, and then reported on the implementation. Results indicate that the TPDC model has the potential to begin to upskill teachers with multi-dimensional development needs. TPDC provides an environment for helping teachers overcome their current beliefs and attitudes towards statistics and statistics teaching. The implications of our TPDC model for improving teachers' practice in statistics are discussed.

Digital artifacts have the potential for augmenting the interest of students and the quality of learning environments. However, it is still common to find technology being inserted in learning settings without a closer connection to the learners' contemporary world. In this paper we report on results of a qualitative research conducted to address questions such as: How could a new technology be introduced in schools in a way that it makes sense to the users? Could it contribute to more integrated learning scenarios? The study took place at an elementary public school in the city of Campinas, in Sao Paulo, Brazil, and involved more than 500 people. Data were collected from participatory Workshops, informal interviews and pictographic questionnaire. The results suggest that it is possible to combine school's formal and informal practices into meaningful learning by using the XO educational laptop. The activities helped teachers and students realize that the use of technology can be recreated, influenced by their own feelings, values and culture. A discussion is conducted towards new perspectives on understanding learning practices mediated by technology and the role of the concept of "Affectibility" in the design of educational systems.

This paper's main objective is to show relations between interest in media, perceived social support and adolescents' personal well-being. For this purpose, 1,589 Brazilian adolescents answered a questionnaire containing Cummins' Personal Well-Being, Vaux's Social Support Appraisals and Casas' interest in media scales. The media in study are: The Internet, computer games, video games, computer, cell phone and television. For the data analysis this research used Structural Equation Modeling, a statistical methodology based on the confirmation of hypotheses previously established by theoretical frameworks on data. A final model of relations between media, support and well-being was obtained with a fit considered satisfactory by the literature. Implications of media on adolescents' well-being based on this model are considered.

Purpose: This paper aims to determine the level of awareness and implementation of family-responsible parameters: policies, enablers, practices, and culture, in Spanish and Latin-American companies, and how they impact work-life balance. Design/methodology/approach: The study uses data from different national IESE's Family-Responsible Employer Index surveys in Spain (1,000 companies) and five Latin-American countries (1,155 companies), Brazil, Chile, Colombia, El Salvador and Peru, done between 2006 and 2008. This is a structured questionnaire that assesses the stage of development the organization is in regarding four main family-responsible parameters: policies, enablers, practices, and culture. Findings: Latin-American countries get a slightly higher number of companies that are fully supportive of work-family balance environment than Spain, but with lesser formal policies implemented and a stronger presence of enablers and practices. Policies are important but might not be as effective if not accompanied by the example of managers and staff as well as by a deep understanding of the cultural value placed by them on work, family and personal life. Research limitations/implications: The survey-based data used limits insight into causal relationships. Qualitative and longitudinal studies are needed in order to clarify motives for individual and organizational decisions regarding work-life initiatives. Data collected are from one source only: employer's management. Multi-source studies must follow and include the public sector. Originality/value: This is the first comparison between Spanish companies and companies from five Latin-American countries regarding work-family policies, enablers, practices and culture with such an ample number of companies. Findings will aid HRD practitioners in developing work-family initiatives and help researchers to address new questions in cross-cultural comparisons. (Contains 1 figure and 6 tables.)

Background: Violence is a worldwide public health challenge and has been linked to depression in many settings. Depression is higher in women and differential exposure to violence is a potential risk factor – especially in countries with high-levels of violence. This paper provides a comprehensive characterization of the association between violence victimization and depression in Brazil, focusing on sex/gender inequalities. Methods: We used data from the 2019 wave of the National Health Survey (PNS) in Brazil to assess whether respondents had depression (using PHQ-9) and if they were victims of violence, differentiating by the type of violence, the frequency of victimization, and the primary aggressor. We used logit models to assess the association between victimization and the likelihood of having depression. We predicted probabilities of being depressed, considering the interaction between violence victimization and sex/gender, to analyze the differences between men and women. Results: Rates of violence victimization and depression were higher among women than among men. The odds of being depressed were 3.8 (95%CI: 3.5–4.2) times higher among victims of violence than among non-victims, and 2.3 (95%CI: 2.1–2.6) times higher among women than among men, adjusting for socioeconomic factors. For any given income level, racial/ethnic or age group, victims of violence who were women had the highest predicted probabilities of being depressed – e.g., 29.4% (95%CI: 26.1–32.8) for lower-income women, 28.9% (95%CI: 24.4–33.2) for black women, and 30.4% (95%CI: 25.4–35.4) for younger women that suffered violence. Over one in three women that suffered multiple types of violence, experienced violence more frequently, or where the aggressor was an intimate partner or another family member were predicted to have depression. Conclusions: Being a victim of violence was strongly associated with higher risk of depression in Brazil, with women more likely to be both victims of violence and develop depression. Frequent, sexual, physical or psychological violence, and intimate partners or family member perpetrators were major risk factors for depression and should be a public health priority. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background: Emotional blunting—inability to feel positive or negative emotions, detachment, or reduced emotional responsiveness—is common in people with depression. However, there is a paucity of studies comprehensively investigating this symptom and its functional impact. This study investigated the experience of emotional blunting, and its impact on overall functioning and quality of life, in the acute and remission phases of depression from the perspective of patients and healthcare providers. This paper presents data on the clinical presentation of emotional blunting in depression from the patient perspective. Methods: Cross-sectional, observational study conducted in Brazil, Canada, and Spain between April 15 and May 18, 2021. Data were collected via a self-completed online survey. Respondents were adults with depression (acute or remission phase), who were currently using a prescribed antidepressant, and who reported emotional blunting during the past 6 weeks. Emotional blunting was assessed using the Oxford Depression Questionnaire (ODQ; total score range 26–130, higher scores indicate greater emotional blunting). Results: In all, 752 patients completed the survey (62% female; mean age, 45 years). Overall, 44% of patients rated their emotional blunting as extremely severe (acute phase [n = 300], 72%; remission phase [n = 452], 25%; difference, p < 0.01). In all, 56% of patients considered their emotional blunting to be caused by their depression (acute phase, 62%; remission phase, 52%). Mean ODQ total score was 94.8 for patients in the acute phase of depression and 85.7 for those in remission (difference, p < 0.01). Mean score for the ODQ 'antidepressant as cause' domain (maximum possible score, 30) was 18.0 in patients in the acute phase and 17.6 in those in remission. Overall, 45% of patients believed that their antidepressant medication was blunting their emotions and 39% were considering stopping or had already stopped their antidepressant because of perceived emotion-related side effects. Conclusions: Almost three-quarters of patients in the acute phase of depression and one-quarter of those in remission reported severe emotional blunting. Approximately 56% of patients considered their emotional blunting to be caused by their depression, while 45% believed that their antidepressant medication was negatively affecting their emotions. Just over one-third of patients were considering stopping or had stopped their antidepressant as a result. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

BACKGROUND: To mitigate the COVID-19 pandemic, social isolation was needed. Since individuals with Parkinson's disease (PD) have a high risk if catching the COVID-19, and physical exercise is one of the most effective treatments for this disease. In this scenario home-based exercise is a great solution to minimize losses by inactivity. AIM: To report the process of development of a remote physical exercise program based on a face-to-face physical exercise program. METHOD: We transform a one-hour-session-twice-a-week face-to-face program to a remote format keeping the objectives and structure. The sessions of the face-to-face program were structured by: warm-up, balance, aerobic capacity, resistance training, transference, and cool down. RESULTS: An asynchronous remote program was chosen to ensure that the participants would be able to perform the physical exercises with a caregiver or family member at home as safely as possible. The sessions were delivered by a single video with all 5 parts with prescriptions (time, sets, and repetitions), instructions about safety, and alternatives exercises. We create two questionnaires to investigate attendance, barriers, safety, and overall experience. CONCLUSION: This paper purposed an asynchronous program with a single video per session to initiate the remote program for individuals with PD, who already carried out a face-to-face program of physical exercise. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Copyright of Ensaio: Avaliação e Políticas Públicas em Educação is the property of Ensaio: Avaliacao e Politicas Publicas em Educacao and its content may not be copied or emailed to multiple sites or posted to a listserv without the copyright holder's express written permission. However, users may print, download, or email articles for individual use. This abstract may be abridged. No warranty is given about the accuracy of the copy. Users should refer to the original published version of the material for the full abstract. (Copyright applies to all Abstracts.)

Copyright of Revista Eletrônica de Estratégia & Negócios is the property of Revista Eletronica de Estrategia & Negocios and its content may not be copied or emailed to multiple sites or posted to a listserv without the copyright holder's express written permission. However, users may print, download, or email articles for individual use. This abstract may be abridged. No warranty is given about the accuracy of the copy. Users should refer to the original published version of the material for the full abstract. (Copyright applies to all Abstracts.)

Background Lower limb injuries generate a significant health burden in basketball. Landing technique and ankle-dorsiflexion range of motion have been suggested as risk factors for lower limb injuries among youth athletes, but studies conducted specifically with basketball athletes are lacking. Hypothesis/Purpose To describe the period prevalence of basketball-related injuries and to examine the association of the history of lower limb injuries with landing technique and ankle-dorsiflexion range of motion asymmetry among youth basketball athletes. Study Design Cross-Sectional Survey. Methods Youth basketball athletes were asked to complete a paper-based survey to investigate personal characteristics, training characteristics and their three-month history of basketball-related injuries. The Landing Error Scoring System and the Weight-Bearing Lunge Test were used to evaluate landing technique and ankle-dorsiflexion range of motion. Binary logistic regression was utilized to examine the association of the investigated variables with the presence of history of lower limb injuries among the athletes. Results A total of 534 athletes participated. The three-month prevalence of basketball-related injuries was 23.2% (95% CI 19.7 -- 27), and the majority of the reported injuries affected the lower limbs (69.7%; n=110). Sprains were the most frequent type of injury (29.1%; n=46), and the ankle (30.4%; n=48) and knee (21.5%; n=34) were the most affected anatomic locations. Landing technique (p = 0.105) and ankle-dorsiflexion range of motion asymmetry (p = 0.529) were not associated with the history of lower limb injuries. Conclusion The three-month prevalence of basketball-related injuries was 23.2%. Although ankle sprains were the most frequent injury, landing technique and ankle-dorsiflexion range of motion asymmetry were not associated with the history of lower limb injuries among youth basketball athletes. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background: This paper explores patterns of women's medicinal plant knowledge and use in an urban area of the Brazilian Amazon. Specifically, this paper examines the relationship between a woman's age and her use and knowledge of medicinal plants. It also examines whether length of residence in three different areas of the Amazon is correlated with a woman's use and knowledge of medicinal plants. Two of the areas where respondents may have resided, the jungle/seringal and farms/colonias, are classified as rural. The third area (which all of the respondents resided in) was urban. Methods: This paper utilizes survey data collected in Rio Branco, Brazil. Researchers administered the survey to 153 households in the community of Bairro da Luz (a pseudonym). The survey collected data on phytotherapeutic knowledge, general phytotherapeutic practice, recent phytotherapeutic practice and demographic information on age and length of residence in the seringal, on a colonia, and in a city. Bivariate correlation coefficients were calculated to assess the inter-relationships among the key variables. Three dependent variables, two measuring general phytotherapeutic practice and one measuring phytotherapeutic knowledge were regressed on the demographic factors. Results: The results demonstrate a relationship between a woman's age and medicinal plant use, but not between age and plant knowledge. Additionally, length of residence in an urban area and on a colonia/farm are not related to medicinal plant knowledge or use. However, length of residence in the seringal/jungle is positively correlated with both medicinal plant knowledge and use. Conclusions: The results reveal a vibrant tradition of medicinal plant use in Bairro da Luz. They also indicate that when it comes to place of residence and phytotherapy the meaningful distinction is not rural versus urban, it is seringal versus other locations. Finally, the results suggest that phytotherapeutic knowledge and use should be measured separately since one may not be an accurate proxy for the other. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The purpose of this paper is to provide measurement properties evaluation and factor analysis of the Brazilian version of the diabetic foot ulcer scale‐short form (DFS‐SF). This methodological study evaluated the measurement properties of the DFS‐SF by ceiling and floor effect reliability, responsiveness, and structural construct validity. The study included 290 people with diabetic foot under regular follow‐up in a specialised outpatient clinic in inland São Paulo. Reliability was assessed by internal consistency using Cronbach's alpha and composite reliability. Ceiling and floor effects were assessed by the percentage of participants who scored the 15% worst (floor) and 15% best (ceiling) possible scale results. Validity was tested by correlating the instrument values with the domains of the Brazilian version of the Short Form Health Survey (SF‐36). Responsiveness (n = 34) was accessed through the wound area obtained by photography and evaluated by the Image J Features program and the DFS‐SF score at two moments, with a 4‐week interval between them. The instrument had good evidence of reliability, shown by adequate internal consistency (Cronbach's alpha in domains >0.70) and compound reliability (0.84 > CC > 0.92); and of convergent validity, by significant positive correlations of moderate to strong magnitude with SF‐36. Structural construct validity was examined by applying the DFS‐SF confirmatory factor analysis, which indicated that the Brazilian version of the instrument is properly fitted to the original dimensional structure. The ceiling and floor effect analysis showed no ceiling or floor effects. Responsiveness was observed in the wound area, but not in the DFS‐SF scores in the times. The Brazilian version of the DFS‐SF presented evidence of validity and reliability, suggesting that this instrument is a valid tool for assessing the quality of life of people with diabetic foot in the Brazilian population. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The persistence of symptoms for more than three months following infection with severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 is referred to as "Long COVID". To gain a deeper understanding of the etiology and long-term progression of symptoms, this study aims to analyze the prevalence of Long COVID and its associated factors in a cohort of Brazilian adults and elders, twelve months after hospital discharge. An observational, prospective, and follow-up study was performed with a cohort of adults and older adults diagnosed with COVID-19 in 2020 in the State of Paraná, Brazil. Twelve months after hospital discharge, patients answered a phone questionnaire about the persistence of symptoms after three levels of exposure to COVID-19's acute phase (ambulatory, medical ward, and intensive care unit). According to the characteristics of participants, the prevalence of Long COVID-19 was calculated, and logistic regression analyses were conducted. We analyzed data from 1822 participants (980 adults [≥18–<60 years] and 842 older people [≥60 years]) across three exposure levels. The overall Long COVID prevalence was 64.2%. Long COVID was observed in 646 adults (55%; of which 326 were women) and 523 older people (45%; of which 284 were women). Females had a higher prevalence of long-term symptoms (52%) compared with men. The most common post-COVID-19 conditions in the 12-month follow-up were neurological (49.8%), followed by musculoskeletal (35.1%) and persistent respiratory symptoms (26.5%). Male individuals were less likely to develop Long COVID (aOR = 0.50). Other determinants were also considered risky, such as the presence of comorbidities (aOR = 1.41). Being an adult and having been hospitalized was associated with the development of Long COVID. The risk of developing Long COVID was twice as high for ward patients (aOR = 2.53) and three times as high for ICU patients (aOR = 3.56) when compared to non-hospitalized patients. Presenting clinical manifestations of digestive (aOR = 1.56), endocrine (aOR = 2.14), cutaneous (aOR = 2.51), musculoskeletal (aOR = 2.76) and psychological systems (aOR = 1.66) made adults more likely to develop Long COVID. Long COVID was present in a large proportion of people affected by the SARS-CoV-2 infection. Presence of Long COVID symptoms displayed a dose–response relationship with the level of disease exposure, with a greater prevalence of symptoms associated with the severe form in the acute period. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background: Diabetes mellitus is a chronic disease that can cause psychological stress. This study was conducted to perform the translation and cross-cultural adaptation of the QSD-R for diabetic patients into Portuguese (Brazil). Methods: This study was a cross-cultural adaptation process carried out in a public university in São Paulo, Brazil, in three stages: translation and backtranslation by two native-speaking independent professionals, analysis by a committee of specialists, and a pre-test phase. Results: The final version was created by seven experts after making semantic, idiomatic, and cultural changes to eighteen items. The results indicated a satisfactory content validation index (CVI ≥ 0.80). This version was applied to 30 patients. No item was excluded from the instrument. Conclusion: The translated version of the QSD-R was considered adequate and culturally adapted for use in Brazil to enable the psychometric validation of the instrument. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

(1) Background: Body dysmorphic disorder (BDD) presents significant challenges in aesthetic and reconstructive plastic surgery, impacting patient outcomes and well-being. Understanding its prevalence and associated factors is crucial for effective patient care. (2) Methods: A systematic review of national and international databases on body dysmorphic disorder, plastic surgery, cosmetic surgery, reconstructive surgery, and prevalence yielded 999 studies between 1878 and April 2024. Inclusion criteria focused on studies reporting prevalence while excluding those with small sample sizes (<20 participants), unclear diagnostic criteria for BDD, and non-English accessibility. (3) Results: A meta-analysis using a random effects model was conducted on 65 studies involving 17,107 patients to estimate the prevalence of BDD. The overall estimated prevalence of BDD was 18.6%; 10,776 (62.9%) were females, with a mean age of 35.5 ± 11.7 years. Subgroup meta-analysis found significant variability in effect sizes across countries and types of specialty, of which Brazil showed the highest proportion and dermatology exhibited the smallest. Meta-regression analysis found no significant relationship between the year of publication and prevalence rates. (4) Conclusions: Our findings update the current literature on BDD prevalence in aesthetic and reconstructive plastic surgery. We emphasize the importance of proactive screening and multidisciplinary care approaches to address the complex challenges posed by patients with BDD. Further research is needed to explore evolving trends in BDD prevalence and factors influencing its expression across different cultural contexts. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In this paper we measure inequality of opportunity in daycare and preschool services in Brazil. For this purpose, we construct an opportunity index that modifies the Human Opportunity Index proposed in the literature and used in Barros et al. () to measure inequality in basic opportunities in Latin America and the Caribbean. Specifically, we construct an opportunity measure that includes not only attendance but also parental choice not to enroll children in daycare or preschool, using data from a supplementary questionnaire included in the 2006 version of Pesquisa Nacional por Amostra de Domicílios (PNAD). The results show that there are large differences between our opportunity index and the Human Opportunity Index for children aged 0-3 years old and considerably smaller differences for children aged 4-6 years old, which suggests that preschool may be closer to a basic opportunity than daycare. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Copyright of Fisioterapia e Pesquisa is the property of Universidade de Sao Paulo, Faculdade de Medicina and its content may not be copied or emailed to multiple sites or posted to a listserv without the copyright holder's express written permission. However, users may print, download, or email articles for individual use. This abstract may be abridged. No warranty is given about the accuracy of the copy. Users should refer to the original published version of the material for the full abstract. (Copyright applies to all Abstracts.)

Background: The stratified model of care has been an effective approach for the treatment of low back pain. However, the treatment of patients with low risk of psychosocial-factor involvement is unclear. The addition of the therapeutic alliance to a minimal intervention may be an option for the treatment of low back pain. This paper reports on the rationale, design and protocol for a randomized controlled trial with blind assessor to assess the effectiveness of the addition of therapeutic alliance with minimal intervention on pain and disability in patients with chronic, nonspecific low back pain.Methods: Two hundred and twenty-two patients with chronic, nonspecific low back pain and low risk of involvement of psychosocial factors will be assessed and randomly allocated into three groups (n = 74 patients per group). The Positive Therapeutic Alliance group will receive counseling and guidance with an emphasis on therapeutic alliance and empathy. The Usual Treatment group will receive the same information and counseling with limited interaction with the therapist. The Control group will not receive any intervention. The treatment will be composed by two intervention sessions with a 1-week interval. A blinded assessor will collect the following outcomes at baseline, 1 month, 6 months and 12 months after randomization: pain intensity (Pain Numerical Rating Scale), specific disability (Patient-specific Functional Scale), general disability (Oswestry Disability Index), global perceived effect (Global Perceived Effect Scale), empathy (Consultation and Relational Empathy Measure), credibility and expectations related to treatment. The analysis will be performed using linear mixed models.Discussion: This will be the first study to understand the effect of combining enhanced therapeutic alliance to a treatment based on counseling, information and advice (minimal intervention). The addition of the therapeutic alliance to minimal intervention may improve the treatment of chronic, nonspecific low back pain.Trial Registration: ClinicalTrials.gov, NCT 02497625. Registered on 10 July 2015. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Copyright of Revista Gaucha de Enfermagem is the property of Revista Gaucha de Enfermagem and its content may not be copied or emailed to multiple sites or posted to a listserv without the copyright holder's express written permission. However, users may print, download, or email articles for individual use. This abstract may be abridged. No warranty is given about the accuracy of the copy. Users should refer to the original published version of the material for the full abstract. (Copyright applies to all Abstracts.)

Background: This paper discusses the results of ethno-ornithological research conducted on the local ecological knowledge (LEK) of artisanal fishers in northeast Brazil between August 2013 and October 2014. Methods: The present study analyzed the LEK of 240 artisanal fishermen in relation to Nearctic shorebirds and the factors that may be affecting their populations. We examined whether differences occurred according to the gender and age of the local population. The research instruments included semi-structured and check-list interviews. Results: We found that greater knowledge of migratory birds and the areas where they occur was retained by the local men compared with the local women. Half of the male respondents stated that the birds are always in the same locations, and most of the respondents believed that changes in certain populations were caused by factors related to habitat disturbance, particularly to increases in housing construction and visitors to the island. The main practices affecting the presence of migratory birds mentioned by the locals were boat traffic and noise from bars and vessels. According to the artisanal fishermen, the population of migratory birds that use the area for foraging and resting has been reduced over time. Conclusions: Changes in the local landscape related to urbanization and tourism are most likely the primary causes underlying the reduced migratory shorebird populations as reported by local inhabitants. Thus, managing and monitoring urbanization and tourism are fundamental to increasing the success of the migration process and improving the conservation of migratory shorebird species. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

• A single cryolipolysis session has no effect on abdominal adipose tissue in healthy women. • Randomized controlled trial with blind assessor. • Ultrassonography was used as a method of evaluating the outcome. To analyze the effects of cryolipolysis on the fat thickness of the lower abdomen of healthy women and patient's satisfaction. Design and setting : a randomized controlled trial, with concealed allocation and blinded assessor. Participants: 34 healthy women between 18 and 48 years, skinfold in the lower abdomen ≥3 cm, BMI between 18.5 and 27 kg/m2, low level of physical activity, and no contraindication to cryolipolysis were allocated to intervention group (IG, n = 17) or control group (CG, n = 17). Interventions: The IG received one session of cryolipolysis with −10 °C of temperature for 50 min. The CG was not submitted to any kind of intervention. Both groups did the evaluation protocols at baseline, 30, 60 and 90 days after the intervention. Main outcome measures: fat thickness was measured by ultrasonography (US), skinfold (SF) and abdominal circumference (AC1 and AC2). No significant differences between the IG and CG were demonstrated at any evaluation at any time of follow up for the variables US (30 days: 0.05 cm (95%CI: −0.12; 0.22), 60 days: 0.05 cm (95%CI: −0.11; 0.20) and 90 days: 0.04 cm (95%CI: −0.7; 0.25)), SF (30 days: −0.09 cm (95%CI: −0.25; 0.08), 60 days: −0.14 cm (95%CI: −0.36; 0.09) and 90 days: −0.001 cm (95%CI: −0.237; 0.234)), AC1 (30 days: 0.42 cm (95%CI: −1.1; 1.9), 60 days: −0.1 cm (95%CI: −1.74; 1.54) and 90 days: −0.007 cm (−1.9; 1.9)) and AC2 (30 days: 0.183 cm (95%CI: −0.84; 1.20), 60 days: −0.13 cm (95%CI: −1.61; 1.35) and 90 days: −0.31 cm (95%CI: −1.61; 1.00)). The current study showed that a single application of the utilized protocol of cryolipolysis does not produce any significant effect on fat thickness of the lower abdomen of healthy women. Clinical Trial Registration number: NCT03160976 (https://clinicaltrials.gov/ct2/show/NCT03160976). Contribution of the Paper : the study is one of the first studies in the literature with methodological rigor to report an unfavorable result for localized abdominal fat treatment with a single session of cryolipolysis. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]