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[Display omitted] • A panel of seven lipids increased c-statistic by an increment of 0.077, the greatest added value for prediction of incident CVD ever achieved by prospective lipidomics studies to the best of our knowledge. • Considerable mediations were observed through SM 41:1b, presumably SM(d18:1/23:0), in the associations between established cardiovascular risk factors and CHD risk, diabetes in particular. • CHD risk associated with increased levels of PC 36:0a, SM 41:1b, LPC 18:0 and LPC 20:3, and decreased levels of CE 18:2 were aggravated by long-term exposure to ambient air pollution. Previous lipidomics studies have identified various lipid predictors for cardiovascular risk, however, with limited predictive increment, sometimes using too many predictor variables at the expense of practical efficiency. To search for lipid predictors of future coronary heart disease (CHD) with stronger predictive power and efficiency to guide primary intervention. We conducted a prospective nested case-control study involving 1,621 incident CHD cases and 1:1 matched controls. Lipid profiling of 161 lipid species for baseline fasting plasma was performed by liquid chromatography-mass spectrometry. In search of CHD predictors, seven lipids were selected by elastic-net regression during over 90% of 1000 cross-validation repetitions, and the derived composite lipid score showed an adjusted odds ratio of 3.75 (95% confidence interval: 3.15, 4.46) per standard deviation increase. Addition of the lipid score into traditional risk model increased c-statistic to 0.736 by an increment of 0.077 (0.063, 0.092). From the seven lipids, we found mediation of CHD risk from baseline diabetes through sphingomyelin (SM) 41:1b with a considerable mediation proportion of 36.97% (P < 0.05). We further found that the positive associations of phosphatidylcholine (PC) 36:0a, SM 41:1b, lysophosphatidylcholine (LPC) 18:0 and LPC 20:3 were more pronounced among participants with higher exposure to fine particulate matter or its certain components, also to ozone for LPC 18:0 and LPC 20:3, while the negative association of cholesteryl ester (CE) 18:2 was attenuated with higher black carbon exposure (P < 0.05). We identified seven lipid species with greatest predictive increment so-far achieved for incident CHD, and also found novel biomarkers for CHD risk stratification among individuals with diabetes or heavy air pollution exposure. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background: The increased prevalence of physical diseases among individuals with mental illness contributes to their increased risk of mortality. However, the mediating role of specific diseases in the effect of mental illness on mortality is not well understood. Method: We conducted a longitudinal causal mediation analysis using data from beneficiaries of a South African medical insurance scheme from 2011 to 2020. We estimated the overall effect of major depressive disorder (MDD) on mortality and evaluated reductions in this overall effect through hypothetical interventions on the risks of mediating physical diseases using an interventional effects approach. Monte Carlo simulation-based g-computation was used for estimation. Results: Among 981,540 individuals, 143,314 (14.6%) were diagnosed with MDD. Mortality risk after 8 years was 6.5% under MDD, and 5.3% under no MDD (risk ratio 1.23, 95% CI = 1.19, 1.26). Overall, 43.4% of this disparity could be attributed to higher rates of physical comorbidities due to MDD. Cardiovascular diseases accounted for 17.8%, followed by chronic respiratory diseases (8.6%), cancers (7.5%), diabetes and chronic kidney disease (5.8%), tuberculosis (4.3%), and HIV (2.7%). Conclusion: Within the privately insured population of South Africa, MDD is associated with increased mortality. We found that noncommunicable diseases, rather than infectious diseases, are important mediators of the effect of MDD on mortality. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Architectural projection could be the most decisive kulturtechnik in modern architectural processes, from the Renaissance and the Enlightenment to the present. Indeed, it is the technique that makes architectural practice modern by grounding it on the medial field of intellectualcorporeal distinction and constituting an operational field that is parallel to the modern notion of projection (Heideggerian Entwurf) that causes the dissolution of the ontology defined by a transcendental context. Architecture becomes a practice based on mediation (subject-agentobject), in which all its techniques (agents) are employed to project all mundane actions into the future. This text draws attention to the in-between area as an operational field where the kulturtechnik - a term employed by German media theory, particularly after the 1990s, as the fundamental element of the mediation - mediates and thus creates the differences, tries to represent the field itself as an operational ground for comprehensive interpretation of architectural representation, by following a Kraussian approach that allows us the hybrid conceptualization that the mediations require, reproducing the semiotic square. By reproducing the Kraussian diagram in the context of two categories, which are fundamental for the dissolution of classical ontology and therefore all the heterogeneous modern practices, such as architecture, it is aimed at mapping the expanded field of architectural representation to evaluate its mediations. In other words, this text aims to contribute to the literature by proposing a highly hybrid performative guide to evaluate architectural history and theory by mapping the mediations of architectural representation (its pragmatic, semantic, and syntactic hybridizations) in modern processes. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

INTRODUCTION: Higher neuroticism might be associated with dementia risk. Here we investigated modification by genetic predisposition to dementia, mediation by mental health and vascular conditions, neuroimaging outcomes, and cognitive function. METHODS: Cox proportional‐hazards models were used to assess the association between neuroticism score and incident dementia over up to 15 years in 1,74,164 participants. Cross‐sectional analyses on dementia‐related neuroimaging outcomes and cognitive function were conducted in 39,459 dementia‐free participants. RESULTS: Higher neuroticism was associated with an 11% higher risk of incident dementia, especially vascular dementia (15% higher risk), regardless of genetic predisposition to dementia. Mental and vascular conditions mediated the association of neuroticism with all‐cause dementia and vascular dementia. Neuroticism was associated with higher cerebrovascular pathology, lower gray matter volume, and worse function across multiple cognitive domains. DISCUSSION: Neuroticism could represent a risk factor for dementia, and vascular and mental health might drive these associations. Highlights: Neuroticism was associated with an increased risk of incident all‐cause dementia, particularly vascular dementia.Associations were not modified by genetic predisposition to dementia.Associations were largely mediated by mental and vascular conditions.Neuroticism was associated with increased cerebrovascular pathology and lower gray matter volume.Neuroticism was associated with worse function across multiple cognitive domains. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Copyright of Revue Francaise d'Etudes Americaines is the property of Editions Belin 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.)

Purpose: Laughter is expected to have health-protective effects, but the potential link between tooth loss and laughter remains unclear. Therefore, this study aimed to examine the association between tooth loss and a low frequency of laughter among older adults in Japan, to elucidate whether this association could be mitigated by dental prostheses, and to evaluate the magnitude of the association mediated by poor oral function. Methods: We used cross-sectional data from 157,708 functionally independent participants aged ≥65 years (46.3% male) from the Japan Gerontological Evaluation Study. A modified Poisson regression model was applied to examine the association between the number of remaining teeth (≥20/10-19/0-9), dental prostheses use, and infrequent laughter (i.e., laughing never or almost never). Causal mediation analysis was performed to assess whether the association was mediated by difficulties in eating hard foods, choking, or dry mouth. Results: Among the participants, 9,129 reported infrequent laughter. Participants with ≤9 and 10-19 teeth who did not use dental prostheses had a 1.29 and 1.14 times higher likelihood of infrequent laughter than those with ≥20 teeth, respectively. Furthermore, difficulty eating hard foods, choking, and dry mouth mediated 22.8%, 0.4%, and 4.3% of the association between fewer remaining teeth and infrequent laughter, respectively. Meanwhile, we did not find evidence for the differences in infrequent laughter between participants with ≤19 teeth using dental prostheses and those with ≥20 teeth. Conclusions: Tooth loss among individuals without dental prostheses was associated with infrequent laughter, and this association was mediated by poor oral function. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Copyright of Selcuk University Social Sciences Institute Journal is the property of Selcuk University Social Sciences Institute Journal 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.)

• A higher perceived predictability was associated with a more positive impact on health-related quality of life. • Predictability in family caregiving should be taken into considerations when assessing conditions of family caregivers of persons living with dementia. • The healthcare interventions that enhance predictability for family caregivers of persons living with dementia could help reduce the impact of high caregiving demands. The purpose of this study was to examine the role of predictability in the relationship between caregiving demands and caregiving consequences. Design. This 2-year longitudinal survey study collected from self-report questionnaires. A convenience sample of family caregivers of older persons living with dementia were recruited from a neurology clinic. A total of 200 family caregivers were recruited to participate. Analysis indicated predictability was a partial mediator between caregiving demand and caregiver consequences of role strain, depressive symptoms and both physical and mental components of health-related quality of life at the 2-year follow. Predictability accounted for 25 %, 28.8 %, 15.3 % and 46.5 % of the relationship between caregiving demand and caregiving consequences of role strain, depressive symptoms, physical- and mental-health related quality of life, respectively. The contributions of caregiving demand to outcomes of caregiver consequences were in part due family caregivers perceived predictability for caregiving. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In this response to Valente et al. (2022), I am discussing the plausibility and applicability of the proposed mediation model and its causal effects estimation for single case experimental designs (SCEDs). I will focus on the underlying assumptions that the authors use to identify the causal effects. These assumptions include the particularly problematic assumption of sequential ignorability or no-unmeasured confounders. First, I will discuss the plausibility of the assumption in general and then particularly for SCEDs by providing an analytic argument and a reanalysis of the empirical example in Valente et al. (2022). Second, I will provide a simulation that reproduces the design by Valente et al. (2022) with the exception that, for a more realistic depiction of empirical data, an unmeasured confounder affects the mediator and outcome variables. The results of this simulation study indicate that even minor violations will lead to Type I error rates up to 100% and coverage rates as low as 0% for the defined causal direct and indirect effects. Third, using historical data on the effect of birth control on stork population and birth rates, I will show that mediation models like the proposed method can lead to surprising artifacts. These artifacts can hardly be identified with statistically means including methods such as sensitivity analyses. In this response to Valente et al. (2022), I am discussing the plausibility and applicability of the proposed mediation model and its causal effects estimation for single case experimental designs (SCEDs). SCEDs produce time series data for single persons using repeated measures of the same variable(s). Mediation models try to identify intermediate variables which are thought of being part of a causal chain leading from the intervention to the relevant outcome variable. One of the main problems of the approach—which is similar to the majority of mediation models—is the use of a no-unmeasured-confounder assumption. This assumption is problematic because unmeasured confounders may exist in virtually all applications. I will illustrate with two empirical examples and a small simulation study why a violation of the assumption will lead to severe problems when using this mediation model, that is, the detection of statistical artifacts instead of actual intermediate variables. I will further show that it is very complicated to detect how strongly violated the assumption is and that applied users may have difficulties in judging the validity of their results when using the proposed mediation model. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Purpose: The purpose of this study is to analyze the factors affecting college students' subjective well-being and the relationship between research achievement motivation, self-efficacy and emotional well-being among college students. Design/Methodology/Approach: 1,082 students were selected from 10 universities in Guangxi Province using a convenience sampling method. Questionnaires were administered based on achievement motivation, self-efficacy and subjective well-being scales. The data were analyzed using SPSS 24.0 and AMOS 22.0. Findings: College students' achievement motivation has a significant positive effect on emotional well-being. Self-efficacy acts as a mediator in the relationship between achievement motivation and subjective well-being. Conclusion: Achievement motivation can stimulate positive actions and efforts in college students enabling them to face challenges and difficulties more confidently. Approving activities and increased confidence enhance students' self-efficacy improving their subjective well-being. Research Limitations The interpretation of study results and inferences is constrained in sampling because of the time and expertise of the researchers. Practical Implications: It is possible to effectively improve college students' subjective well-being by focusing on the development of achievement motivation, self-efficacy and social support. Contribution to the Literature: This study further clarifies the influence of achievement motivation on subjective well-being and the mechanism of self-efficacy which is a supplement to the current research in this field at the same time. It also helps to enrich and perfect the research on achievement motivation, self-efficacy and subjective well-being of college students. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Objective: The importance of good sleep for energy recovery and overall physical and mental health cannot be overstated. However, the increasing competitiveness of society, diversifying lifestyles, and the rapid spread of the internet and electronic devices have significantly impacted people’s sleep patterns, particularly through bedtime procrastination. Therefore, this study aims to investigate the relationship and underlying mechanisms between sleep determination, anxiety, and bedtime procrastination among the Chinese population. Method: The study utilized data from a national survey—the China Residents’ Sleep Condition Survey (November 2021, with 6,037 participants). By constructing mediation and moderation models, it analyzed the relationship and mechanisms between sleep determination and bedtime procrastination, highlighting the dual role of anxiety: as a mediator between sleep determination and bedtime procrastination, and as a moderator of their relationship. Results: There was a negative correlation between sleep determination and bedtime procrastination; anxiety was related to an increase in bedtime procrastination behaviors; In the interplay between sleep determination and pre-bedtime procrastination, the regulatory effect of anxiety is found to be more pronounced than its intermediary role, with anxiety significantly diminishing the inverse relationship between sleep determination and procrastination before bedtime. Conclusion: Bedtime procrastination can lead to sleep issues, thus reducing sleep quality. Enhancing sleep determination or alleviating pre-sleep anxiety can help inhibit bedtime procrastination behaviors. Intervening and reducing bedtime procrastination is one of the effective measures to improve sleep quality. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Copyright of Ankara Barosu Dergileri is the property of Ankara Bar Association 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.)

The association between obesity and cardiovascular disease (CVD) remains unclear, particularly for those with established CVD risk factors. We analyzed follow-up data from the Aichi Workers' Cohort Study. We studied the association between the degree of obesity and risk of CVD and its subtypes specifically among individuals with hypertension, hyper-low-density lipoprotein (LDL)-cholesterolemia, or diabetes. Pooled data of 8972 adults (7076 men and 1896 women) who were recruited between 2002 and 2008 were used in the current analysis. We used multivariable Cox proportional hazard model to estimate hazard ratios (HRs) and 95% confidence intervals (CIs) for the associations between the degree of obesity assessed with body mass index (BMI) and the risk of CVD and its subtypes, i.e., coronary heart disease (CHD) and stroke. During a median of 12 years, there were 197 CVDs (80 CHDs and 117 strokes). BMI ≥ 27.5 compared to 21.0–22.9 kg/m2 was positively and significantly associated with the risks of CVD, CHD, and total stroke. Hypertension, hyper-LDL-cholesterolemia, and diabetes mediated 15.9%, 5.8%, and 8.7% of obesity-CVD associations, respectively, and 28.3% by their combination. In the stratified analyses by the presence of risk factors, BMI ≥ 25.0 (overweight/obesity) compared to BMI < 25 kg/m2 was associated with a higher risk of CVD in those with and without hypertension, but only with hyper-LDL-cholesterolemia, and without diabetes. Overweight/obesity was associated with the risk of CVD and its subtypes. About 30% of the risk was explained by hypertension, hyper-LDL-cholesterolemia, and diabetes, of which hypertension accounted for approximately the half of the explained risk. However, overweight/obesity increased the risk of CVD even in those without hypertension. These findings highlight the importance of controlling and preventing overweight/obesity regardless of chronic disease status. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This review essay discusses six books that explore the topics of media, materiality, and medieval culture. The books cover a range of disciplines and highlight the interdisciplinarity of the subject matter. The essay focuses on two pairs of books that examine the materiality and visual properties of medieval manuscripts, as well as the relationships between new media and medieval media. The review concludes by discussing the questions and urgencies raised by these books and the importance of understanding book production in the Middle Ages. The text also explores the concept of abstract art in the Middle Ages and its relationship to contemporary abstract art, as well as the role of abstraction in calligraphy and the use of visual materials to convey cognitive content. The text concludes with a discussion of the role of infrastructure in shaping literary history and the dissemination of knowledge. The books contribute to a broader discussion of media and its role in shaping our understanding of the past, emphasizing the need for a nuanced understanding of specific contexts and materials. [Extracted from the article]

Purpose: The paper aims to examine the casual role of higher-order thinking skills as a mediator in the relationship between students' strength in mathematics and achievement in electrical and electronic engineering education. Design/Methodology/Approach: The study adopted a quantitative research design where random cluster sampling was used to select a total of 488 final-year students from four technical universities in Ghana. Mathematics achievement tests were used to gather data on students' higher-order thinking skills and competence in five areas of mathematics. Also, their examination results were collected from their respective universities. Mediation analysis was done using AMOS 26. Finding: The study revealed that the positive effect of students' strengths in the five selected mathematics topics on their performance in electrical and electronic engineering education is mediated by their higher-order thinking skills. Conclusion: The research concludes that there is a partial mediation in the relationship between students' strength in mathematics and achievement in electrical and electronic engineering education by higher-order thinking skills. Research Limitations: It is recommended that further researchers carry out similar research with more mathematics indicators to explain more variations in achievement in electrical and electronic engineering education. Practical Implication: Engineering mathematics curriculum developers should stress the need for mathematics, especially algebra, for the development of higher-order thinking skills to facilitate problem-solving in electrical and electronic engineering education and practice. Contribution to Literature: This study highlights the relationship between the understanding of the concepts of specific mathematics topics, higher-order thinking skills, and achievement in electrical and electronic engineering education. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Copyright of Health Psychology is the property of American Psychological Association 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.)

Objective: This study compared two mechanisms by which mindfulness may reduce hazardous drinking: effortful control and craving, "top-down" and "bottom-up" processes, respectively. These relationships were compared in a secondary analysis of a randomized controlled trial of mindfulness-based relapse prevention (MBRP) versus relapse prevention (RP) treatments to explore if they differed based on more explicit versus subtle mindfulness training. Method: A total of 182 individuals (48.4% female; 21-60 years old) who reported drinking >14/21 drinks/week (for females/males, respectively) in the past 3 months but who wished to quit/reduce their drinking were recruited from Denver and Boulder, CO, United States. Participants were randomly assigned to either 8 weeks of MBRP or RP treatment and completed assessments at baseline, halfway through treatment, and at the end of treatment. The Five-Factor Mindfulness Questionnaire-Short Form, Alcohol Urge Questionnaire, and Effortful Control Scale completed halfway through treatment assessed the predictor, dispositional mindfulness, and mediators, craving and effortful control, respectively. The Alcohol Use Disorder Identification Task was completed after treatment and measured hazardous drinking. Cross-group path analyses were conducted including both mediators/treatments in the same model. Results: Comparing models with and without equality constraints across treatments, no paths significantly differed based on a chi-square test of difference, χ²(5) = 5.11, p = .40, and only the indirect effect of craving was significant (B = -1.01, p = .01). Conclusions: Findings suggest mindfulness may be associated with hazardous drinking reductions through craving but not effortful control and this indirect relationship works similarly across treatments engendering mindfulness explicitly and implicitly. Public Health Significance Statement This study indicated that effortful attentional control is not a significant mediator of the association between dispositional mindfulness and harmful alcohol use. In contrast, craving did mediate this relationship. The indirect relationship between mindfulness and harmful alcohol use via craving did not differ between mindfulness-based relapse prevention versus relapse prevention treatment, suggesting that reductions in craving may be affected by even slight increases in mindfulness and indicate the benefit of implementing mindfulness in alcohol treatment. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

OBJECTIVE: Air pollution is affecting the health of millions of people all over the world. The causal correlations of PM2.5, PM10, and nitrogen dioxide (NOx), as the main fine particulate matter, and coronary heart disease (CHD) are yet to be explored. Low-density lipoprotein (LDL) has been a principal factor in the pathogenesis of CHD. It is an interesting issue to consider whether LDL mediates the effect of air pollutants in CHD pathogenesis. MATERIALS AND METHODS: A genome-wide association study (GWAS) on the European population, followed up from 2010 to 2018, involving over 400,000 participants, was based on a land-use regression model. The annual mean concentrations of major air pollutant particles, PM2.5 (n=423,796), PM10 (n=423,796), and NOx (n=456,380), were recorded. The large GWAS database of CHD covered over ten million SNPs with independent single nucleotide polymorphisms (SNPs). LDL database collected major biochemical blood parameters from over 400,000 patients (n=440,546). Taken together, we conducted independent two-sample Mendelian randomization (MR) analyses for the causality between air pollutants (PM2.5, PM10, and NOx) and CHD. Multivariate MR analysis was conducted using causal relationships to determine the direct effects of exposure on outcome. The fixed-effect inverse variance weighted (IVW2) method was mainly employed to assess this relationship, with a confi- dence interval of 95% for the odds ratio (OR). Also, MR-Egger, weighted median, maximum likelihood ratio method, and random-effects inverse variance-weighted (IVW1) method were adopted as supplementary methods. RESULTS: T wo-sample M R r esults b ased o n the IVW2 method suggested positive correlations between PM2.5 and CHD [OR 1.875 (1.279-2.748), p=0.001], PM10 and CHD [OR 2.586 (1.479-4.523), p=0.001], and NOx and CHD [OR 2.991 (2.021- 4.427), p=4.37E-08]. The direct effect and mediating proportion were calculated using multivariable Mendelian randomization (MVMR). Lastly, the mediating proportions of LDL in the regulatory roles of PM2.5, PM10, and NOx in CHD were 2.82%, 4.73%, and 9.54%, respectively. CONCLUSIONS: PM2.5, PM10, and NOx share direct causal associations with CHD, and LDL performs a mediating role in this pathogenic process. Early prevention against air pollution (such as increasing green areas and reducing large-scale industrial dust emissions) and early lipid-lowering treatment can effectively prevent the occurrence of CHD. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The purpose of this study is to establish a communication model between the parties to the conflict in mediation based on the research of communication, information, mediation and conflict approaches and definitions. The main methods of communication for finding a solution to a conflict are dialogue between the parties to the conflict and non-violent communication. The model has been designed and practically used to achieve the results of mediation –resolution of a conflict, as well as education of the parties about conflict-free communication for their future relationships. The study/article offers a method for measuring the effectiveness of mediation using the proposed communication model. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Objective: Effective psychosocial interventions exist for numerous mental health conditions. However, despite decades of research, limited progress has been made in clarifying the mechanisms that account for their beneficial effects. We know that many treatments work, but we know relatively little about why they work. Mechanisms of change may be obscured due to prior research collapsing across heterogeneous subgroups of patients with differing underlying mechanisms of response. Studies identifying baseline individual characteristics that predict differential response (i.e., moderation) may inform research on why (i.e., mediation) a particular subgroup has better outcomes to an intervention via tests of moderated mediation. Method: In a recent randomized controlled trial comparing a 4-week meditation app with a control condition in school system employees (N = 662), we previously developed a "Personalized Advantage Index" (PAI) using baseline characteristics, which identified a subgroup of individuals who derived relatively greater benefit from meditation training. Here, we tested whether the effect of mindfulness acquisition in mediating group differences in outcome was moderated by PAI scores. Results: A significant index of moderated mediation (IMM = 1.22, 95% CI [0.30, 2.33]) revealed that the effect of mindfulness acquisition in mediating group differences in outcome was only significant among those individuals with PAI scores predicting relatively greater benefit from the meditation app. Conclusions: Subgroups of individuals may differ meaningfully in the mechanisms that mediate their response to an intervention. Considering subgroup-specific mediators may accelerate progress on clarifying mechanisms of change underlying psychosocial interventions and may help inform which specific interventions are most beneficial for whom. What is the public health significance of this article?: Individuals receiving psychosocial interventions likely differ substantially in which intervention elements they respond to and in their causal pathways of change. This study demonstrates the utility of considering subgroup-specific mediators, which may accelerate progress on clarifying mechanisms of change underlying psychosocial interventions and may help inform which specific interventions are most beneficial for whom. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The article focuses on French historian René Girard's philosophy of innovation, arguing that innovation and imitation are not fundamentally opposed but exist on a continuum. Topics include the historical and philosophical shifts from external to internal mediation; the critique of the dominant view of innovation as separate from imitation; and Girard's suggestion that real innovation involves a nuanced relationship with tradition, balancing imitation with mastery.

Background: To our knowledge, no studies have explicitly studied the role of hypertensive disorders of pregnancy (HDP) in racial disparities in severe maternal morbidity (SMM). Methods: Using causal mediation models, we estimated the proportion of the non-Hispanic (NH) Black–White racial disparity in risk of SMM that is explained through the pathway of HDP. We linked 2006–2019 Georgia hospital discharge records with vital statistics birth and fetal death records for NH Black and NH White birthing persons. We used G-estimation of a structural nested mean model to decompose the absolute racial disparity in the incidence of SMM into pathways operating through HDP. Results: NH Black birthing people experienced an excess 56 SMM events (95% confidence interval [CI] = 52, 59) per 10,000 delivery hospitalizations compared with NH White birthing people. If counterfactual disparity measure estimation assumptions hold, the estimated absolute disparity remaining after blocking the causal pathways through HDP was 41 SMM events per 10,000 deliveries (95% CI = 38, 44), suggesting that 26% (95% CI = 12, 40) of the absolute racial disparity would be eliminated if there was no contribution of HDP to SMM risk. Conclusion: Our results are consistent with the hypothesis that intervening to prevent HDP is an important (yet incomplete) pathway for reducing the excess risk among NH Black pregnancies compared with NH White pregnancies. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Obesity and hyperuricemia (HUA) often coexist and have been widely accepted as risk factors for hypertension, but the role of uric acid (UA) in the relationship between obesity and hypertension remains unknown in children and adolescents. A total of 7525 subjects aged 6–16 years were from the School-based Cardiovascular and Bone Health Promotion Program (SCVBH) at baseline (2017) and followed up in 2019. Multivariable logistic regression with interaction terms, cross-lagged panel analysis, and causal mediation model were applied to delineate the joint impact of obesity and HUA on hypertension, including the interaction effect, the temporal association, and the mediating effect of UA in the relationship between obesity and hypertension. There were 10.8 % of the participants with normotension at baseline developed hypertension after two years of follow-up. Cross-lagged panel analysis showed that the two-time point association was significant only from baseline BMI to follow-up UA (β1 = 0.302, P < 0.001), but not from baseline UA to follow-up BMI (β2 = 0.002, P = 0.745). Multivariable logistic regression showed that both obesity and HUA increased the risk of hypertension, but no interaction effect between HUA and obesity. The causal mediation analysis found that UA partially mediated the association between BMI and SBP (mediate proportion: 20.3 %, 95 % CI: 17.4–22.9 %) or DBP (mediate proportion: 11.9 %, 95 % CI: 3.9–18.2 %). The results were consistent in the analysis of systolic hypertension rather than diastolic hypertension. It is mediating effect that UA played in the progress from obesity to hypertension, particularly systolic hypertension in children and adolescents. • Obesity and hyperuricemia often coexist and increased the risk of hypertension. • The association between hyperuricemia and hypertension is highlighted in the young. • Hyperuricemia mediated the progress from obesity to hypertension. • Effect of uric acid on blood pressure occurs mainly during systolic period. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Copyright of Romanian Journal of Intellectual Property Law / Revista Română de Dreptul Proprietăţii Intelectuale is the property of Universul Juridic Publishing House 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.)

This article, a research product, analyzes and reflects on the impact of the methodological strategies and techniques implemented by elementary school teachers in an official educational institution in Barranquilla (Colombia), regarding the teaching-learning process of the English language in Spanish-speaking students. The theoretical review of the literature is based on the contemporary methods of active pedagogy, the study is descriptive, from a rationalist epistemological approach and a complementary paradigm. Data collection was based on non-participant observation directed to teachers and a survey applied to students. The results show that in the development of the pedagogical processes, teachers apply conventional methods, so it is concluded that teacher qualification is necessary to improve the educational processes of English language teaching in elementary school students with innovative didactic mediations that favour the learning environment and the active participation of students, the use of authentic didactic materials, and the articulation of technological resources that become a tool that enhances the teaching and learning process at all levels for the development of communicative competencies in the English language. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Within the annals of Romanian legal practice, the mediation process has long been entrenched, holding its ground as a voluntary recourse for resolving conflicts entangled within criminal matters, alongside other mechanisms designed to absolve criminal culpability. This paper endeavours to scrutinize the milieu wherein this legal framework may encroach upon the sacrosanct principle of the benefit of the doubt, surveying the jurisprudence of the European Court of Human Rights and the prevailing domestic judicial ethos. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Purpose: Current research focuses on the interrelatedness of maladaptive attachment styles, character strengths and emotional regulation in emerging adults. Design/Methodology/Approach: Using the cross-sectional correlational method, a non-probability convenient sample of 220 emerging adults (n = 92 men, n = 128 women) of 18-25 years (M = 20.18, SD = 1.60) were engaged from different universities of district Lahore. Findings: Results suggested a significantly positive correlation between maladaptive attachment styles, character strengths and emotional regulation. Moreover, both maladaptive attachment styles and character strengths positively predicted emotional regulation. Also, character strengths are partially mediated between maladaptive attachment styles and emotional regulation. Implications/Originality/Value: This study has noteworthy implications for the clinical and counselling settings, especially for experts working with young adults as it will enable them to render professional services with the latest indigenous empirical findings. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Dispositional awe has previously been positively linked to subjective well-being, directly and indirectly, through meaning in life and materialism. There hasn't been much research that considered these relationships in the context of tourist eudaimonic well-being. Hence, the main goal of the present study is to check whether dispositional awe relates to tourist eudaimonic well-being and whether meaning in life and materialism can serve as underlying mechanisms behind this relationship. Data was collected from a sample of 322 adults through self-report online questionnaires. Model 4 in PROCESS (Hayes, 2018) was used to investigate the parallel mediation effects and the direct effect hypothesized in this study. The two parallel mediators were meaning in life and materialism. The dispositional awe was modelled as a predictor, and tourist eudaimonic well-being as an outcome variable. Mediation analysis confirmed a significant, positive direct path from dispositional awe to tourist eudaimonic well-being. Bootstrap analysis indicated that meaning in life, not materialism, mediated this relationship. Based on this research, it can be concluded that those tourists who are more prone to experience awe might give their lives more meaning, promoting eudaimonic well-being during the touristic trips. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This study seeks to investigate why speaking out is not viewed positively in certain instances, but, at times, doing so results in both management support for the pitched proposals and improved interpersonal correlations for individuals doing so. Data was collected from two sources, employees and their supervisors, of a telecommunication services organization in Indonesia. The data collected from 367 subordinates and 98 supervisors were then analyzed for simple regression and mediation with Mplus. We found that managerial response to employees' creativity depends on the type of voice exhibited by the employees (challenging vs supportive). We found that for employees who show their concerns with a challenging form of voice, managers are less likely to establish quality relationships (LMX) and endorse their ideas. However, when managers find employees engaged in supportive forms of voice, they will likely establish quality relationships (LMX) with them and endorse their ideas. Further, LMX mediated these relationships but in different ways that is, a challenging voice may be detrimental to the development of quality relationships, but managers may endorse those creative ideas; however, a supportive voice may be helpful in developing quality relationships, but it may not help in endorsement of their creative ideas. This study contributes to the research on voice behavior by highlighting the significance of managers' assessments of reasons attributed to employees' voices. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This study investigated the mediating effect of depression on the relationship between sleep quality and internet addiction in Taiwanese junior college students. We recruited 590 (53 males, 537 females) students, aged from 15 to 22 years from a day school of a junior college in northern Taiwan. We used a cross-sectional study design. The Chen Internet Addiction Scale, Chinese Version of the Pittsburgh Sleep Quality Index, and Adolescent Depression Scale were used as measurement instruments. Using the IBM SPSS Statistics 26 software package, descriptive statistics, reliability analysis, correlation analysis, and inferential statistics were used to evaluate the participants' demographics and relationships between the study variables. The mediation model was tested using the Z test. The prevalence of internet addiction in junior college students was 21.2 %. The indirect effects were determined using Sobel's test and bootstrapping confirming that depression completely mediated the relationship between sleep quality and internet addiction. The findings would help to build holistic and comprehensive prevention and intervention programs that should be developed to reduce the addictive behaviors of adolescents. • A high prevalence of internet addiction was observed among the junior college students in Taiwan. • Depression mediated the effects of sleep quality on internet addiction among the junior college students. • Poor sleep quality was associated with higher internet addiction and higher depression. • Internet addiction intervention programs and follow-up studies specifically for adolescents should be developed. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This study aimed to examine the mediating effect of swallowing ability on hemoglobin levels and activities of daily living (ADL). Prospective longitudinal study. Two rehabilitation wards in a national referral center for Northern Taiwan, followed by discharge. 101 participants were admitted for first or recurrent infarction or hemorrhagic stroke and transferred to the rehabilitation ward of a medical center (N=101). Not applicable. Hemoglobin data were collected from medical records. Swallowing ability and ADL were measured using the Functional Oral Intake Scale and Barthel Index, respectively, with higher scores indicating better functioning. Mediation analysis performed using path analysis illustrated that hemoglobin at the time of transfer to the rehabilitation ward had a direct and positive effect on swallowing ability at 1-3 days before discharge (path coefficient=0.21, 95% confidence interval [CI]: 0.04-0.35, P =.018), and swallowing ability at 1-3 days before discharge had a direct and positive effect on ADL at 1 month after discharge (path coefficient=0.36, 95% CI: 0.13-0.57, P =.002). Hemoglobin level at the time of transfer to the rehabilitation ward did not directly influence ADL 1 month after discharge (path coefficient=0.12, 95% CI: -0.05-0.28, P =.166). These results indicate that swallowing ability substantially mediates the relation between previous hemoglobin levels and subsequent ADL. Low hemoglobin levels and poor swallowing ability should be concurrently addressed to improve ADL performance. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The role of information systems (IS) as representations of real-world systems is changing in an increasingly digitalized world, suggesting that conceptual modeling is losing its relevance to the IS field. We argue the opposite: Conceptual modeling research is more relevant to the IS field than ever, but it requires an update with new theory. We develop a new theoretical framework of conceptual modeling that delivers a fundamental shift in the assumptions that govern research in this area. This move can make traditional knowledge about conceptual modeling consistent with the emerging requirements of a digital world. Our framework draws attention to the role of conceptual modeling scripts as mediators between physical and digital realities. We identify new research questions about grammars, methods, scripts, agents, and contexts that are situated in intertwined physical and digital realities. We discuss several implications for conceptual modeling scholarship that relate to the necessity of developing new methods and grammars for conceptual modeling, broadening the methodological array of conceptual modeling scholarship, and considering new dependent variables. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

With the advent of information and communication technologies, the implementation of online learning has been accelerated. In addition, the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic has led to the incorporation of an online model in all institutions. The objective of this study is to conduct a review on mediation models in online environments and examine the publications from 2015 to 2021, encompassing 61 articles resulting from the integration of the terms "model," "mediation," and "online learning." The methodology employed corresponds to a systematic literature review, using content analysis as the technique and applying filtering criteria of inclusion, exclusion, and quality to extract the most important data. Four research questions were formulated, aiming to uncover insights within the mediation models. The findings reveal information regarding (1) the prevalence of studies related to satisfaction, collaboration, and self-regulation; (2) theoretical and conceptual trends; (3) the purposes of the studies associated with pedagogical, technological, affective, and cognitive factors; and (4) the identified findings and types of innovation. This article contributes value to existing studies by determining the factors that a mediation model should consider when an online program emerges, thus serving as a reference for professionals, researchers, and those interested in the subject. Limitations arise from the selected databases and applied criteria, while implications pertain to the pedagogical, technological, and affective fields. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The relationship between brand image and loyalty in online shopping has gained significant attention in the marketing literature. Despite this attention, the specific path linking brand image to customer loyalty remains unclear. This study delves into the sequential and parallel mediations between brand image and customer loyalty, aiming to identify the effects of brand image, price, trust and website quality on customer loyalty through the mediation of customer satisfaction. Employing a parallel and sequential mediation model, this research addresses the practical implications for emerging e-commerce businesses. For data collection, an online questionnaire survey distributed to 120 respondents yielded a 65 percent response rate. The findings of the study affirm that brand image, price and trust positively influence customer satisfaction and loyalty, establishing direct and indirect relationships among these constructs. This study contributes to the validation of the proposed research model in the specific context of a developing country, i.e., Pakistan. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The aims of this study were to (a) classify the types of individuals who might be most appropriately served by a mental health court (MHC) and (2) describe the association between class membership on recidivism and MHC completion. Criminal and treatment history data for 350 MHC participants were used. Class memberships were derived using hidden Markov models. Mediation analysis was then used determine the relationship between class, successful MHC completion, and recidivism. Modeling identified a three-class solution and a subsequent path analysis found that those classes associated with lower criminal justice system involvement were more likely to finish MHC successfully and were less likely to recidivate. This study supports research showing patterns of criminal behavior and health/mental health service use is associated with MHC completion and recidivism. The classification of individuals presented here may help court professionals determine to whom MHC should be offered. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Copyright of Canadian Foreign Policy Journal (CFPJ) is the property of Routledge 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 Canadian Foreign Policy Journal (CFPJ) is the property of Routledge 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 Politica y Sociedad is the property of Universidad Complutense de Madrid 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.)

"The world mediated by meaning" refers to the fact that we all live in the immediate world created by our senses, and the much wider world that symbolic communication opens up. Eric Gans' notion of "the sense of the sacred" arises in this world, and it is there that it is vigorously challenged today. In the contemporary mindset that the philosopher Charles Taylor calls "the immanent frame," the sacred cannot exist, for it cannot be proven empirically. However, the same mindset also plays with extra-terrestrials (today's angels), mediums, paganism redivivus, and these show that even modern humans simply cannot live without symbolic rituals. The simulation hypothesis, imagining that we and the whole universe are just a computer simulation programmed by "superior beings/Being," holds sway for some. Are these signs that there is a future for the sacred, after all? [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background: Typically developing (TD) siblings play a crucial role in promoting the health and well-being of adults with intellectual disabilities. Their involvement in the sibling relationship during adulthood may predict their likelihood of providing care to the sibling with intellectual disabilities (ID). However, different types of motivations (discretionary and obligatory) related to the contact frequency of TD siblings have not been fully explored. Little is known about how their negative experiences, such as affiliated stigma, influences relational motivations, which consequently affect contact frequency. This study examined these links in a Chinese context. Method: In total, 1,298 Chinese siblings were surveyed using questionnaires, and structural equation modelling was used to test the mediation effect. Results: Contact frequencies of TD siblings were significantly affected by discretionary motivation, obligatory motivation, and stigma experiences. The findings supported the mediating effect of obligatory motivation in the relationship between affiliated stigma and contact frequency. Conclusion: This study is among the first to examine whether the relational motivation of TD siblings predicts their contact frequency within their relationships with adult siblings with ID. We found that both types of relational motivations of TD siblings positively predicted contact behavior. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

We examined whether thinspo and fitspo exposure predicted women's body dissatisfaction (BD), happiness, and disordered eating (DE) urges (binge-eating/purging, restrictive eating, and exercise) in daily life. A further aim was to assess whether these effects were stronger for thinspo versus fitspo exposure and whether upward appearance comparisons mediated the effect of thinspo-fitspo exposure on BD, happiness, and DE urges. Participants (N = 380 women) completed baseline measures and a 7-day ecological momentary assessment (EMA) investigating state-based experiences of thinspo-fitspo exposure, appearance comparisons, BD, happiness, and DE urges. Multilevel analyses revealed that thinspo-fitspo exposure was associated with greater BD and DE urges (but unrelated to happiness) at the same EMA time point. However, there was no association between thinspo-fitspo exposure and BD, happiness, and DE urges at the next EMA time-point. Thinspo relative to fitspo exposure was associated with greater BD (but unrelated to happiness and DE urges) at the same EMA time-point. The proposed mediation models were not supported in time-lagged analyses; such that upward appearance comparisons did not mediate the effects of thinspo-fitspo exposure on BD, happiness, and DE urges. Current findings provide novel micro-longitudinal data on the potentially direct detrimental effects of thinspo-fitspo exposure on women's daily lives. • First EMA study examining whether upward appearance comparisons mediate effects of thinspo-fitspo on BD, happiness, and DE. • State thinspo-fitspo exposure predicted increased state upward appearance comparisons. • State thinspo-fitspo exposure was associated with greater BD and DE urges at the same EMA timepoint. • Thinspo relative to fitspo exposure was associated with greater BD at the same timepoint. • Encouraged future research into explanatory mediation models among a clinical sample. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This study aimed to explore the role of inference making in the relation between vocabulary knowledge (breadth and depth) and reading comprehension for 487 ninthgrade Chinese EFL students who were categorized as either struggling or adequate. Path analysis was used to examine both direct and mediated effects. The results indicated a statistically significant indirect effect of vocabulary knowledge on reading comprehension, mediated by inference making, for the entire participant group. However, there were notable differences between the struggling and adequate readers, as evidenced by distinct path diagrams. For struggling readers, the indirect effect of vocabulary breadth on reading comprehension through inference making was significant, while that of vocabulary depth was not significant. For adequate readers, both vocabulary breadth and depth directly explained reading comprehension. These results are discussed in the EFL context, encompassing assessment and instructional implications for EFL readers with varying levels of reading abilities. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

To evaluate whether prosthetic prescription differed by gender and the extent to which differences were mediated by measured factors. Retrospective longitudinal cohort study using data from Veterans Health Administration (VHA) administrative databases. VHA patients throughout the United States. The sample included 20,889 men and 324 women who had an incident transtibial or transfemoral amputation between 2005 and 2018. Not applicable. Time to prosthetic prescription (up to 1 year). We used parametric survival analysis (an accelerated failure time model) to assess gender differences. We estimated mediation effects of amputation level, pain comorbidity burden, medical comorbidities, depression, and marital status on time to prescription. In the 1 year after amputation, the proportion of women (54.3%) and men (55.7%) prescribed a prosthesis was similar. However, after we controlled for age, race, ethnicity, enrollment priority, VHA region, and service-connected disability, the time to prosthetic prescription was significantly faster among men compared with women (acceleration factor=0.73; 95% confidence interval, 0.61-0.87). The difference in time to prosthetic prescription between men and women was significantly mediated by amputation level (23%), pain comorbidity burden (–14%), and marital status (5%) but not medical comorbidities or depression. Although the proportion of patients with prosthetic prescription at 1-year postamputation was similar between men and women, women received prosthetic prescriptions more slowly than men, suggesting that more work is needed to understand barriers to timely prosthetic prescriptions among women, and how to intervene to reduce those barriers. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The case study examined in this contribution is that of Italian communities in Belgium, where associations played a fundamental role for Italian citizens who emigrated after World War II but also for their descendants. Associationism represents a very interesting research field, if we choose to look at migrants as active subjects, who do not simply adapt to the social context of the territories they live in but rather tend to transform it. By analysing the content of biographical interviews carried out with children and descendants of Italians who emigrated to the country between 1946 and 1976, this paper investigates the role of Italian associationism precisely in relation to the processes of socialisation and cultural mediation in an intergenerational perspective. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Previous studies have increasingly shown the adverse effects of being bullied on suicidal behavior among young people, but the mechanisms underlying this association remain unclear. We examined the association between bullying and suicidal behavior among in-school adolescents. We further tested whether loneliness mediated the link between bullying and suicidal behavior and explored the moderated role of parental involvement in this association. We used cross-sectional school-based data from the Global School-based Student Health Survey among 28 countries and territories. Adjusted, modified Poisson regressions with robust variance relative risks and moderation analyses were used to examine associations among bullying, suicidal behavior, and parental involvement. The mediating effect of loneliness on the bullying-suicidal behavior link was assessed using the generalized decomposition method. A total of 78,558 school-going adolescents participated in this study. Bullying was associated with a 44% increased risk of suicidal behavior after adjusting for potential confounders (relative risk = 1.44; 95% confidence interval = 1.39–1.48). Loneliness partially mediated the association between bullying and suicidal behavior, and parental involvement moderated the association. The findings suggest the need to recognize the dual burden of bullying and loneliness when addressing suicidal behavior and the importance of parental support in adolescents' mental health and well-being. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Copyright of Revista Nebrija de Lingüística Aplicada a la Enseñanza de Lenguas is the property of Revista Nebrija de Linguistica Aplicada a la Ensenanza de Lenguas 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.)