Abstract
Participation in Organised Extracurricular Social Activities (OESA) can provide positive outcomes for children. This study investigated whether children aged 4 to 12 years diagnosed with ...autism differ in their OESA participation and experience compared to neurotypical peers. Parents of autistic children (
n
= 35) and those of neurotypical peers (
n
= 171) responded to questions that asked them to reflect on their child’s participation and experiences in OESAs. Parents of autistic children reported significantly less OESA participation compared to parents of neurotypical children. Additionally, when evaluating factors that facilitated OESA participation, parents of autistic children rated their child’s individual abilities and behaviour, the OESA’s features, and the social environment less positively, compared to parents of neurotypical children. OESA participation and experiences differ for autistic and neurotypical children. This study identifies factors that can be adjusted to mitigate this difference.
The purpose of this research is to study the facilitators of family participation in educational policies. The type of research is applied and the research method is qualitative. The research ...community of expert were experts in the field of family, policy-making familiar to the field of education and family. Based on criteria such as interest in participating in studies, having work experience in the field of educational policy-making were select purposeful sampling. The instrument data collection was semi-structured interview. The framework of which was compiled based on the content analysis of the research literature and edited based on the opinions of three relevant experts. After conducting the interview, the resulting data were analyzed using the Delphi method. The findings indicate that the experts divided 27 facilitators into 5 groups (governmental (with 5 facilitators), social (with 9 facilitators), legal (with 3 facilitators), structural with (7 facilitators) and educational with (4 facilitators) introduced. The result of this study shows the fact that the future family can have an active presence in educational policy-making if the ground for four main aspects is prepared for this presence. One aspect is the belief of educational policy makers that they believe in the presence of the family in determining educational policies, the other aspect is that the families have received the necessary education and training for this necessity, the third aspect is that there is transparency of information and circulation of information. Families can get accurate information about the state of education, the functioning of the education system and the policy-making system. The fourth point is that both institutions of family and education trust each other and consider being together as mutually beneficial. These four aspects together will facilitate the presence of the family in the educational policy making process.
Background
Due to the worldwide reach of the COVID-19 pandemic, authorities across the globe deemed it essential to enforce exceptional containment measures. Maintaining physical activity (PA) during ...this time was only feasible through engaging in activities at home. Therefore, this study focused on elucidating the levels of PA and well-being among Somali students in the aftermath of the lockdown measures implemented by governments at the onset of the COVID-19 pandemic.
Methods
This study was conducted in Somalia among undergraduate students studying at Somali International University. A total of 1266 students were included in the present study. An online survey was utilized to measure participant PA behavior. The assessment of PA was conducted in the aftermath of the COVID-19 pandemic, utilizing the Godin Leisure questionnaire. The study showed that 85.8% of the study participants (n = 1086) were between the ages of 17 and 22. More than half of the participants (58.7%, n = 743) were female and had no other employment (57.3%, n = 743).
Results
Jogging was the most frequently reported PA (57.3%, n = 726), and PA level was on average 59.7 minutes per day (SD = 25.9). Also, most of the study participants were in their last year (82.1%). In the regression analysis, age, gender, academic year, and work status were significant predictors of being physically active after the COVID-19 pandemic.
Conclusion
Factors affecting PA after the COVID-19 pandemic include age, gender, academic year, and work status. Males, younger individuals, and those who engage in outdoor exercise are more likely to be physically active. Once the COVID-19 restrictions were relaxed, undergraduate students in Somalia were physically active. A high level of PA appears to be advantageous for public health. Universities in Somalia should uphold school policies that promote an active lifestyle among students, aiming to maintain or enhance the existing level of PA.
Facilitating student engagement at all levels of higher education is critical, but since transition-year experiences pave the way for further engagement, it requires more attention. Considering its ...significance and impact on students’ life–changing decisions and attitudes, this study was designed with a major focus on the personal and social facilitators of engagement. It was conducted with 165 university students, who were both language learners and the transition- year students. In line with a theoretical model, how well personal facilitators would predict the performance of transition-year students and what expectations these students held concerning social facilitators were questioned. The former investigation required the correlational method, whereas the descriptive survey method was preferred for the latter one. The results of analyses indicated that the theory partly validated the significance of personal facilitators, whereas it provided evidence for the facilitative role of social facilitators for transitional year student engagement. Therefore, it was concluded that the more responsive the schools and teachers are to student needs, the more likely students feel engaged.
This paper identifies practices that can facilitate knowledge transfer in university–industry (U–I) research partnerships by systematically reviewing extant literature. We aim to contribute to the ...theoretical development in the field of academic engagement and propose that knowledge transfer provides a valuable perspective. We started our review with identifying barriers and facilitators of knowledge transfer. Extant literature identified knowledge differences and differences in goals resulting from different institutional cultures as important barriers to knowledge transfer. They result in ambiguity, problems with knowledge absorption and difficulties with the application of knowledge. Trust, communication, the use of intermediaries and experience are found as facilitators for knowledge transfer that help to resolve the identified barriers. Our analysis offers practical advice for the management of academic engagement. Finally, we identified questions for future research based on inconsistencies in extant research and open questions we encountered during our analysis.
Although the health benefits of exercise for older adults are widely recognized, physical inactivity is still common among older adults. Further clarification of the factors affecting exercise ...adherence is needed to develop more effective exercise interventions in community-dwelling older adults.
The purposes of this study were to identify (1) barriers and facilitators of exercise adherence in community-dwelling older adults and (2) behavior change techniques (BCTs) and implementation strategies that are potentially effective in improving adherence.
A total of eight databases were searched: PubMed, Web of Science, EMBASE, CENTRAL, PsycINFO, SPORTDiscus, MEDLINE, and Scopus. Studies published from database inception to April 2023 were searched. The quality of the included studies was assessed using the Mixed Methods Appraisal Tool (MMAT). The Capabilities, Opportunities, Motivations, Behavior (COM-B) model and the Theoretical Domain Framework (TDF) were used to identify potential barriers and facilitators. The BCTs were used to identify potential intervention implementation strategies.
A total of 64 studies were included, including 30 qualitative studies, 12 randomized controlled trials, 12 mixed methods studies, 6 quantitative descriptive studies, and 5 non-randomized trials. 54 factors influencing adherence and 38 potentially effective BCTs were identified from the included studies. The 38 BCTs were further categorized into 8 areas of implementation strategies (tailored exercise program, appropriate exercise environment, multidimensional social support, monitoring and feedback, managing emotional experiences and issues, participants education, enhancing self-efficacy, and exerting participants' autonomy).
This study identified 54 influential factors affecting exercise adherence and identified 8 areas of intervention strategies (containing 38 BCTs). Further refinement, evaluation, and validation of these factors and strategies are needed in future studies.
Objectives: Our previously published study showed that a workplace nutrition intervention program with personalized goal setting and smartphone-based nutrition counseling improved dietary habits and ...physical activity in city bus drivers who were overweight/obese. This study explored the facilitators and barriers that participants faced in achieving their dietary and physical activity goals six months after the intervention. Methods: The study included bus drivers and dietitians who participated in the intervention program. Three focus group interviews were conducted with 10 bus drivers (divided by two groups based on their achievement of set goals) and five dietitians who had provided nutrition counseling. Results: Willpower was the most important intrapersonal facilitator for drivers to achieve their goals. Other factors that promoted behavioral changes were nutrition counseling by dietitians, trackable physical activity using smartwatches, and setting of practical and achievable goals. Meanwhile, the most important barriers identified were occupational factors such as long driving hours, short breaks, and shift work. Other barriers were environmental factors such as availability of snackable food, accessibility to convenience stores, and cold weather. Family and colleagues were perceived as both facilitators and barriers. In addition, dietitians identified a lack of knowledge about healthy diet as one of the barriers. Conclusions: Our results suggested that the workplace environment should be improved and that nutrition intervention programs at the workplace could encourage bus drivers to practice healthy eating habits. The facilitators and barriers identified in this study should be considered when planning a nutrition intervention program for bus drivers.
We aimed to assess patient-related determinants potentially influencing antibiotic use.
Studies published in MEDLINE until 30 September 2015 were searched. We included: qualitative studies describing ...patients' self-reported determinants of antibiotic use; and quantitative studies on either self-reported or objectively assessed determinants associated with antibiotic use. Whenever possible, reported determinants were categorized as ‘barriers’ or ‘facilitators’ of responsible antibiotic use.
A total of 87 studies from 33 countries were included. Seventy-five (86.2%) were quantitative and described self-reported (45/75, 60.0%), objectively assessed (20/75, 26.7%) or self-reported and objectively assessed (10/75, 13.3%) patient-related determinants. Twelve (12/87, 13.8%) were qualitative studies or had a qualitative and quantitative component. Eighty-six of the studies (98.8%) concerned the outpatient setting. We identified seven broad categories of determinants having an impact on different aspects of antibiotic use (in descending order of frequency): demographic and socio-economic characteristics, patient–doctor interactions (e.g. counselling), treatment characteristics (e.g. administration frequency), attitudes (e.g. expecting antibiotics), access to treatment (e.g. patients' direct costs), characteristics of the condition for which the antibiotic was prescribed (e.g. duration of symptoms), knowledge (e.g. regarding indications for treatment). Most determinants were classified as ‘barriers’ to responsible antibiotic use.
A large variety of patient-related determinants impact antibiotic use. The most easily ‘modifiable’ determinants concern patient–doctor interactions, treatment characteristics and knowledge. Data from the inpatient setting and low- and middle-income countries were underrepresented. Further studies should develop and test interventions that take these determinants into account with the ultimate aim of improving responsible use of antibiotics.
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