The aim of this research is to analyze the associationbetween race/color, patterns of psychoactive substance use, and hospitalization indicators among users of a community mental health service specializing in alcohol and other drugs, from an intersectional perspective within the context of psychosocial care. This is a quantitative, descriptive, and cross-sectional study based on the analysis of medical records of users treated at a Psychosocial Care Center for Alcohol and Drugs (CAPS-ad) in the southeastern region of Brazil. Users with at least one recorded consultation between January and December 2024 were included, totaling 92 individuals, of whom 87 had valid information on race/color. Sociodemographic variables, patterns of substance use, and hospitalization indicators were analyzed, including the number of hospitalizations, readmissions, and length of hospital stay. Data were analyzed using descriptive statistics and interpreted from an intersectional perspective. The results indicate that among the 87 users with race/color information, 66.7% were Black or mixed race. Polysubstance use was more frequent among Black individuals (60.0%). Among the hospitalizations recorded, crack cocaine was more frequently associated with polysubstance use, especially among Black individuals (87.8%). The findings suggest that race/color is a relevant marker for the observed differences in substance use patterns and hospitalization indicators, highlighting the need for culturally sensitive, anti-racist, and equitable psychosocial care strategies.
This article examines the relationship between territory and care practices within the context of peripheral urban expansion, seeking to understand how the spatial configuration of urban environments and the limited provision of care services shape the everyday organization of care practices. The study focuses on the municipality of Zumpango, in the State of Mexico, and takes the El Nido housing complex, located at the municipal urban fringe, as a case study to explore care dynamics in a setting characterized by rapid peripheral urban growth. Adopting a territorial perspective, care practice is conceptualized as a situated social practice emerging from the interaction between urban structures, institutional arrangements, and the routines of everyday life. Methodologically, the research employs a case-study design that integrates territorial analysis, the review of secondary sources, and qualitative fieldwork in order to reconstruct patterns of access to services and the support networks associated with caregiving. The findings reveal that the peripheral location of the housing complex, the limited provision of urban infrastructure, and the fragmentation of care-related services reinforce the centrality of the family as the primary provider of care practices. These conditions simultaneously exacerbate gender inequalities by disproportionately concentrating caregiving responsibilities on women. In this context, neighborhood-based networks emerge as significant, albeit uneven and limited, mechanisms of support in response to institutional shortcomings. The article argues that incorporating the care dimension into urban and metropolitan planning is essential for addressing and mitigating socio-spatial inequalities in rapidly expanding peripheral territories.
The existence of cultural diversity in Latin America is an incontrovertible fact; however, its levels of recognition, acceptance, and its effects on education, despite persistent warnings from international organizations about social and epistemological discrimination, have been little measured in terms of concrete public policies. The objective of this research is to measure students' attitudes toward diversity and inclusion in Higher Education (HE) institutions in five Latin American countries with significant cultural differences (Ecuador, Colombia, Mexico, Argentina, and Cuba) in relation to their specific university educational policies. A Likert attitude scale was applied to semantically ambiguous statements (not controlled by a predictably acceptable discursive framework). The sample consisted of 2,275 students, randomly selected and distributed fairly equitably by gender and country. Statistically, simple frequency comparisons between groups and Spearman's rank correlation coefficient were used to assess the internal consistency of the concepts. The results indicate that, contrary to what international organizations have established, the study reveals a consistently positive attitude toward both diversity and inclusion. Students are shown to be a key factor in building inclusive environments, and the predictive power of this relationship is considerable. The results also indicate that socio-demographic variables showed remarkably weak correlations with the perception of inclusion. In light of the results, the discourse of international organizations regarding discriminatory cultural inertia in this area is reflected upon, and the following is presumed: a) a lack of sufficient sources to rethink and update the true levels of discrimination and its symbolic inertia, b) the existence of a strong gap between attitudinal discourse and the reality of policies, which would require studies of "policy translation", c) aspects unrelated to the inclusive attitude of the receiving and normative society, which would determine a lower incorporation of sectors living in vulnerable conditions and/or, d) a strong gap between the discourse of students, representatives of a changing age level, and that of policy implementers, which should also be measured through age/generational studies throughout the region
This article explores the relationship between students' perception of the teaching style and their evaluation of the academic year among Lebanese students, assessing the effectiveness of distance learning during two major crises: the COVID-19 pandemic in 2020 and the September 2024 war. Data collected from 400 students reveal that in-person teaching remains largely preferred, but the impact of teaching methods on student satisfaction varies: it is significant during the pandemic (with interactivity acting as a compensatory factor) and not significant during the war (where the emotional context outweighs the method). These findings highlight the need to integrate targeted psychosocial support into educational policies during crisis periods, and to differentiate support strategies according to the nature of the crisis.
