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Background: Empirical evidence indicates that both HIV infection and stunting impede cognitive functions of school-going children. However, there is less evidence on how these two risk factors amplify each other’s negative effects. This study aimed to examine the direct effects of stunting on cognitive outcomes and the extent to which stunting (partially) mediates the effects of HIV, age, and gender on cognitive outcomes. Methodology: We applied structural equation modelling to cross-sectional data from 328 children living with HIV and 260 children living without HIV aged 6–14 years from Nairobi, Kenya to test the mediating effect of stunting and predictive effects of HIV, age, and gender on cognitive latent variables flexibility, fluency, reasoning, and verbal memory. Results: The model predicting the cognitive outcomes fitted well (RMSEA = 0.041, CFI = 0.966, χ2 = 154.29, DF = 77, p < 0.001). Height-for-age (a continuous indicator of stunting) predicted fluency (β = 0.14) and reasoning (β = 0.16). HIV predicted height-for-age (β = −0.24) and showed direct effects on reasoning (β = −0.66), fluency (β = −0.34), flexibility (β = 0.26), and verbal memory (β = −0.22), highlighting that the effect of HIV on cognitive variables was partly mediated by height-forage. Conclusion: In this study, we found evidence that stunting partly explains the effects of HIV on cognitive outcomes. The model suggests there is urgency to develop targeted preventative and rehabilitative nutritional interventions for school children with HIV as part of a comprehensive set of interventions to improve cognitive functioning in this high-risk group of children. Being infected or having been born to a mother who is HIV positive poses a risk to normal child development, Mental Health Development in Sub-Saharan Africa (PaM-D) (NIMH award number U19MH98718), 2017 institutional award by the Kenyatta National Hospital’s Research & Programs Department (KNH/R&P/23F/55/13), Office Of The Director, National Institutes Of Health, The National Institute Of Biomedical Imaging And Bioengineering, The National Institute Of Mental Health, Fogarty International Center, the National Institutes of Health under award number U54TW012089

Open-ended registration of a protocol for a meta-analysis (PRISMA-P) before data collection.

Over the last decade, the study of the characteristics of male perpetrators from a neuroscientific perspective has become increasingly relevant in the field of intimate partner violence against women (IPVAW) research. Literature has shown that male perpetrators present disturbances in different emotional processes that are at the basis of the violence they exert against their female partner/ex-partner. One of these processes is known as reappraisal, that is, an emotional regulation strategy that consists in re-evaluating or re-interpreting a situation in order to increase or decrease its emotional effect (Gross & John, 2003). Disturbances in this process have been also supported by a recent neuroimaging study (Marín-Morales et al., 2021) where they demonstrated that male perpetrators present a different brain activation during a reappraisal fMRI task in comparison to men convicted for crimes other than IPVAW and to men with no criminal records. Finally, it has also been shown that male perpetrators present a different resting connectivity compared to these two groups (other offenders and non-offenders men), and that this connectivity seems to be closely related to social cognitive processes, and in particular, to emotional regulation (Amaoui et al. In review). Therefore, the aim of this study is to examine for the first time how effective connectivity at rest may be related to reappraisal emotional regulation ability in male perpetrators and comparing it to men convicted for crimes other than IPVAW and men with no criminal records. For this purpose, we will conduct a spectral dynamic causal modelling (spDCM), between brain areas that have been strongly related to reappraisal (Morawetz et al. In review).

La capacidad empática es fundamental para garantizar el éxito profesional en las carreras de Ciencias de la Educación y Ciencias de la Salud. En tanto que se trata de una capacidad que puede entrenarse, este proyecto pretende desarrollar la empatía en el estudiantado de estas ramas del conocimiento. Para ello se diseñó una acción de innovación docente consistente en una serie de materiales didácticos en formato multimedia en los que se abordan diferentes aspectos de la empatía y que han sido empleados por los docentes de diferentes materias durante sus clases. Los materiales se han agrupado en 8 sesiones, cada una de ellas conteniendo dos actividades breves. Las actividades han sido presentaciones en videos en torno a 5 minutos y casos prácticos de elaboración propia de los componentes del equipo del PID. En cada sesión se ha incluido un ejercicio de aprendizaje por autoevaluación. La duración ha sido de 8 semanas, a razón de una sesión compuesta por las 2 actividades cada semana. Para determinar la eficacia de la acción innovadora se ha evaluado la capacidad de empatía en el estudiantado antes de iniciar el proyecto y tras la finalización del mismo, a través del Índice de Reactividad Interpersonal (IRI), una escala que mide la empatía de forma multidimensional. El IRI ofrece una medida compuesta de la empatía, incluyendo su dimensión cognitiva y afectiva. La empatía cognitiva se mide mediante el grado en el que la persona comprende el punto de vista de otra persona. El IRI tiene 2 escalas para medir empatía cognitiva: a) la Escala de Toma de Perspectiva, que evalúa cómo la persona intenta adoptar las perspectivas de otras personas y ver las cosas desde su punto de vista; y b) la Escala de fantasía, que mide la tendencia a identificarse con los personajes de las películas, novelas, obras teatrales y otras situaciones ficticias. La de mayor interés para este proyecto es la primera. En cuanto a la empatía afectiva o emocional, el IRI intenta captar la respuesta emocional de la persona cuando observa el estado afectivo de otras personas, y lo hace con otras 2 escalas: c) Escala de Preocupación Empática consta de ítems sobre los sentimientos de simpatía, compasión y preocupación por los demás; y d) la Escala de Angustia Personal, que valora si la persona experimenta ansiedad y malestar cuando observa que otros están atravesando por experiencias negativas. En nuestro estudio, el interés estaba en que aumentase la puntuación en la escala de preocupación empática, pero no en la de angustia personal. Los objetivos específicos fueron la mejora en las dimensiones de la capacidad empática más relevantes, considerando que la toma de perspectiva y la preocupación empática son las más relacionadas con el desempeño profesional del estudiantado al que iba dirigido el proyecto. En general, los resultados indican que el conjunto del alumnado que ha participado en el PID ha mejorado su capacidad empática. Por tanto, podemos considerar que los materiales creados son válidos para tal fin y pueden ser de aplicación práctica a la docencia., Empathic skills are fundamental to ensure professional success in the fields of Education and Health Sciences. As it is an ability that can be trained, this project aims to develop empathy in students of these branches of knowledge. To this end, a teaching innovation action was designed consisting of a series of teaching materials in multimedia format in which different aspects of empathy are addressed and which have been used by teachers of different subjects during their classes. The materials have been grouped into 8 sessions, each containing two short activities. The activities consisted of 5-minute video presentations and case studies developed by the IDP team. Each session included a self-assessment learning exercise. The duration was 8 weeks, with one session consisting of the 2 activities each week. To determine the effectiveness of the innovative action, the students' capacity for empathy was assessed before the start of the project and after its completion, using the Interpersonal Reactivity Index (IRI), a scale that measures empathy in a multidimensional way. The IRI provides a composite measure of empathy, including both cognitive and affective dimensions. Cognitive empathy is measured by the degree to which a person understands another person's point of view. The IRI has 2 scales to measure cognitive empathy: a) the Perspective Taking Scale, which assesses how the person tries to adopt other people's perspectives and see things from their point of view; and b) the Fantasy Scale, which measures the tendency to identify with characters in films, novels, plays and other fictional situations. Of most interest for this project is the first one. As for affective or emotional empathy, the IRI attempts to capture the person's emotional response when observing the affective state of other people, and does so with 2 other scales: c) the Empathic Concern Scale consists of items on feelings of sympathy, compassion and concern for others; and d) the Personal Distress Scale, which assesses whether the person experiences anxiety and discomfort when observing that others are going through negative experiences. In our study, the focus was on increasing scores on the empathic concern scale, but not on the personal distress scale. The specific objectives were to improve the most relevant dimensions of empathic ability, considering that perspective-taking and empathic concern are the most related to the professional performance of the target students. In general, the results indicate that the students who participated in the IDP as a whole have improved their empathic ability. Therefore, we can consider that the materials created are valid for this purpose and can be of practical application in teaching.

El agua es un recurso valioso, tanto es así que las aves dedican parte de sus labores a criar a sus crías en las lagunas de nuestro medio ambiente, humedales u otras áreas. La laguna de Fuente de Piedra de Antequera, que alberga la mayor colonia de flamencos comunes, es la mayor de la Península Ibérica y la segunda en importancia de Europa. Uno de los principales desafíos es poder predecir el nivel de agua que puede tener, a partir de un cierto nivel podremos observar si habrá anidamiento de estos flamencos. Además disponemos de datasets con información de los pozos de la cuenca, que podremos analizar. Para ello se han posicionado distintos dispositivos de medida, una estación meteorológica y otras tomas manuales. La metodología que se utiliza es ágil, donde se creará un prototipo que se irá mejorando. A partir de modelos de aprendizaje automático se predice el nivel del agua como variable continua, aplicando técnicas de regresión. Obteniendo como resultado un 60% de precisión con el algoritmo Random Forest Regressor. Water is a valuable resource, so much so that birds dedicate part of their work to raising their young in the surrounding lagoons, wetlands or other areas. The Fuente de Piedra lagoon in Antequera, which "houses the largest colony of common flamingos, is the largest in the Iberian Peninsula and the second in Europe". One of the main challenges is to be able to predict the level of water that it may have, from a certain level we will be able to observe if there will be nesting of these flamingos. We also have data sets with information from the wells in the basin, which we can analyze. For this, different measuring devices, a weather station and other manual plugs have been placed. The methodology used is agile, where a prototype will be created that will be improved. From machine learning models, the water level is predicted as a continuous variable, applying regression techniques. Obtaining as a result a 60% accuracy with the Random Forest Regressor algorithm. L'aigua és un recurs valuós, tant és així que els ocells dediquen part de la feina de casa a criar a les seves cries en les llacunes del nostre medi ambient, aiguamolls o altres àrees. La llacuna de Font de Pedra d'Antequera, que alberga la major colònia de flamencs comuns, és la major de la Península Ibèrica i la segona en importància d'Europa. Un dels principals desafiaments és poder predir el nivell d'aigua que pot tenir, a partir d'un cert nivell podrem observar si hi haurà anidamiento d'aquests flamencs. A més disposem de datasets amb informació dels pous de la conca, que podrem analitzar. Per a això s'han posicionat diferents dispositius de mesura, una estació meteorològica i altres preses manuals. La metodologia que s'utilitza és àgil, on es crearà un prototip que s'anirà millorant. A partir de models d'aprenentatge automàtic es prediu el nivell de l'aigua com a variable contínua, aplicant tècniques de regressió. Obtenint com a resultat un 60% de precisió amb l'algorisme Random Forest Regressor.