Religious and spiritual experiences often form significant elements of people's narratives about their faith and lives, but the impact of these experiences is often neglected in academic studies. This study investigated the connections between perceived experiences of God and beliefs in the lives of five members of a Baptist church in Britain, using data from semi-structured interviews. Interpretative phenomenological analysis (IPA) was used to explore the data and develop 11 recurrent sub-themes, organized into two super-ordinate themes: "Knowing God" and "Living in the World." There were idiosyncratic differences between the experiences of the participants, but they all perceived God communicating with them and attributed certain events to God's influence. These experiences developed real and meaningful relationships with God, and the participants' faith affected every aspect of their lives, shaping their actions, beliefs and daily lived experiences. The participants' diverse experiences and beliefs created mutually supporting meaning systems (or worldviews) that were much stronger than the individual elements that contributed to them. God was an intrinsic part of the participants' social reality, and their lived experiences cannot be adequately understood without appreciating the influence of this central aspect of their lives. These findings show the importance of taking a holistic and idiographic perspective when studying religiosity and spirituality. The study also demonstrates IPA is a useful and effective tool for studying lived experiences of religiosity and spirituality and supports its broader use to investigate such phenomena.

BACKGROUND:Loneliness is a public health challenge, associated with premature mortality and poorer health outcomes. Social connections can mitigate against loneliness, and there is evidence that the arts can support social connectedness. However, existing research on the arts and social connectedness is limited by focus on particular age groups and arts activities, as well as a reliance on typically small-scale studies.METHODS:This study reports survey data from 5892 adults in the United Kingdom, closely matched to the national profile in terms of sociodemographic and economic characteristics. It investigates the extent to which arts engagement is perceived to be linked with feelings of social connectedness, which forms of arts engagement are reported as most connecting, and how. Data were collected via the HEartS Survey, a newly designed tool to capture arts engagement in the United Kingdom and its associations with social and mental health outcomes. Demographic and quantitative data, pertaining to the extent to which arts engagement is perceived to be linked with social connectedness, were analysed descriptively. Qualitative data pertaining to respondents' perceptions of how arts engagement is linked with feelings of social connectedness were analysed using inductive thematic analysis.RESULTS:Results demonstrated that the majority of respondents (82%) perceive their arts engagement to be linked with feelings of social connectedness at least some of the time. The forms of arts engagement most linked with feelings of social connectedness were attending a live music performance, watching a live theatre performance, and watching a film or drama at the cinema or other venue. Four overarching themes characterise how arts engagement is perceived to facilitate feelings of social connectedness: social opportunities, sharing, commonality and belonging, and collective understanding.CONCLUSIONS:The findings suggest that arts engagement can support social connectedness among adults in the UK through multiple pathways, providing large-scale evidence of the important role that the arts can play in supporting social public health.

Traditional career theories are largely situated in organisations, where career trajectory is mostly an upward movement, usually associated with greater managerial responsibility and corresponding salary and benefits increase. With increasing growth in the creative economy and creative class, this article examines the complexity of creative work patterns and the associated skills required for sustainable musical careers. A longitudinal qualitative case-study approach documents the careers of eight professional musicians. Interviewees narrated their last decade through semi-structured interviews, which were analysed using thematic analysis. Findings suggest that musical careers are multifaceted and tend to have a lifespan effect. To remain sustainable, a baseline of well- maintained technical skills and musical expertise was a given, but a myriad of soft organisational skills was key.

Evidence on the role of the arts in promoting health and wellbeing has grown over the last two decades. In the United Kingdom, studies using secondary data sources have documented temporal variations in levels of arts engagement in the population, its determinants and its mental wellbeing implications. However, arts engagement is often characterized by prioritizing “high-brow” art forms. In this article, we introduce the HEartS Survey , a tool that aims to increase the balance between inclusivity and brevity of existing arts engagement measures and to focus specifically on the connection between arts engagement and social wellbeing. We explore trends in participatory and receptive engagement with literary, visual, performing, crafts and decorative arts among 5,338 adults in the UK in 2018–2019 using summative engagement scores and cluster analysis. Regression models, adjusted for demographic, socioeconomic, health, and social covariates, examine correlations between arts engagement and psychological and social wellbeing measures. Over 97% of respondents reported engagement in one or more arts activities at least once during 2018–2019, with reading and listening to music being the most popular activities. Arts engagement grouped into three distinct clusters: 19.8% constituted “ low engagers ” whose main source of engagement was occasional reading; 44.4% constituted “ receptive consumers ” who read and listened to music frequently and engaged with popular receptive arts activities such as cinema, live music, theater, exhibitions, and museums; and 35.8% constituted “ omnivores ” who frequently engaged in almost all arts activities. In agreement with existing studies, more arts engagement was associated with higher levels of wellbeing, social connectedness, and lower odds of intense social loneliness. In contrast, we found a positive association between more arts engagement, depression, and intense emotional loneliness for the most highly engaged omnivores . We conclude that arts engagement in the population forms specific profiles with distinct characteristics and consider implications for mental and social wellbeing.

Higher Education is a period of transition. Students try out identities, develop skills, and explore their shifting sense-of-self. Recent evidence suggests an increase in mental distress in this population, pressurising in-house support schemes. Therapeutic songwriting is a music therapy technique, which can reduce mental distress and improve social engagement in a range of clinical populations; yet it is also an accessible art form, possibly an ideal vehicle for supporting students in distress. This paper examines whether participation in a weekly songwriting program could make a suitable RCT to support wellbeing within the HE environment. We used a methodologically rigorous pre-registered parallel wait-list pilot RCT design. Trial registration: ISRCTN11180007. Participants self-identifying as stressed, anxious, or depressed, or with a pre-existing mental health condition, were randomly allocated to the experimental group (5 weeks, songwriting) (n = 6) or to the wait-list control group (5 weeks, no intervention) (n = 6). Measures were taken at baseline and at the start (Time 1) and end (Time 2) of the intervention. Measures included: depression and anxiety scales, social identification, loneliness, and friendship. Change scores were calculated and a Mann-Whitney U revealed that depression levels in songwriters (Mdn = -1.0) differed significantly from wait-list controls (Mdn = 8.5) at T2, U = 5.00, z = -2.085, p < 0.041, r = 2.66. Songwriters' levels of social connection (Mdn = 2.50) also differed significantly from wait-list controls (Mdn = 3.00) at T2 U = 3.00, z = -2.441, p < 0.015, r = 0.524. There were no other significant differences between control and intervention groups. A therapeutic songwriting intervention may have individual and group level benefits for a student population, alongside possible institutional benefits in student retention. Effects may be seen within depression and social connection metrics, and future RCTs should consider expanding measures for self-efficacy, social isolation, and wellbeing. This type of program illustrates a space for cost-effective, group, face to face additions institutional mental health support provision as part of a package of support for students.

In 2015, the UK National Health Service (NHS) established a taskforce to review single portion food and beverage packaging, which has been identified as a potential challenge to users in hospitals. Hence, a study was undertaken to determine the suitability and accessibility of the current single portion packs. The packaging was assessed using ISO 17480 (Guidelines for Accessible Packaging), Annex D. The standard determines a pass or fail of packaging opening asking a panel 20 older adults to open a pack. A pack is recorded as a failure if within the 20 people cohort, there is an example of pack being unable to be opened within the time limit (defined as 1 minute) or the overall satisfaction score ranks below 3 on a 5-point Likert scale. Ten standard single portion packaging items were randomly selected for testing. The packs were chosen to reflect a broad range of food and beverage and packaging types. The results showed that the standard provided useful assessment data, identifying that 70% of the packs were so poorly designed that they failed to pass the standard, with 50% of the packs having examples that were unopenable by the participants, whilst a further 20% rated poorly for satisfaction.

Objective: To evaluate the effectiveness and moderators of E-Interventions versus assessment only (AO) controls in the reduction of alcoholic drinks per week (DPW) in university students. Study design and methods: Cochrane library, CINAEL, ERIC, MEDLINE, PsycINFO, PubMed, and Web of Science were searched up to June 2017. Studies were included if they were: an RCT, assessed the effectiveness of E-Interventions at reducing DPW, and employed university/college students. 23 studies (N = 7,614) were included and quality was assessed using the JADAD scale. Results: Weighted mean effect sizes were calculated using random-effects models. These showed a small, significant effect of E-Interventions at reducing the number of alcoholic DPW. Moderator analysis found a significant advantage for web-based personalised feedback interventions compared to other E-Interventions. Conclusions: E-Interventions show a small, significant effect at reducing mean alcoholic DPW. Personalised feedback E-Interventions showed the strongest effect.

This paper draws on empirical research with a regional symphony orchestra and its audience, using qualitative surveys and interviews to gain an understanding of how the orchestral concert is experienced from the stage and the auditorium. Player and listener perspectives were sought on the nature of live classical music listening, the marketing of the orchestra, and the interactions between audience and performers. The multi-faceted portrayal of orchestral performance that results raises questions about the appeal of live classical music listening, and its role in the lives of current and potential audience members.

Abstract Examining cell proliferation in GFP expressing cells is of general interest in many aspects of biology including regenerative medicine, stem cells, developmental biology and some fields of cancer research. However, visualization of GFP expression is not readily compatible with commonly used proliferation assays which incorporate a thymidine analog to directly measure S-phase proliferation of DNA. With the BrdU (bromo-deoxyuridine) assay, an antibody based detection method, alcohol for fixation and hydrochloric acid for DNA denaturation is commonly used. Neither chemical is compatible with GFP fluorescence. For imaging applications there are some methods to avoid the use of HCl as a denaturant with the BrdU assay, however; they are typically “home-brew” methods used to partially digest the DNA, adding extra steps, and not easily performed. The much faster and reliable EdU (ethynyl-deoxyuridine) cell proliferation assay which uses click chemistry for detection of S-phase proliferation of DNA, uses formaldehyde based fixation and avoids the use of HCl for DNA denaturation. However, the use of copper to catalyse the click reaction also negatively affects GFP fluorescence. Anti-GFP antibodies can be used in the click reaction work flow, to “retrieve” the lost GFP fluorescence but are not convenient and add extra steps. We present recent improvements to the click chemistry based EdU cell proliferation assay which minimizes the loss of GFP and other fluorescent proteins signals and avoids the need for “work around” methods. The resulting click reaction is both more rapid and brighter than the “classic” click EdU assay. The modifications preserve most of the GFP fluorescence and permit multiplex detection with EdU with no change in the work flow of the classic click EdU assay. We optimized components in the improved click reaction conditions and tested compatibility with various fluorescent proteins. Examples of click chemistry and GFP/RFP/mCherry compatibility are presented using the EdU cell proliferation assay in both cell culture and in GFP expressing tissue. Additionally, improvements are demonstrated in with other applications of click chemistry assays used for imaging as well as with on flow cytometry platforms where GFP, R-phycoerythrin (R-PE), or other fluorescent proteins are commonly combined with cell proliferation assays. The use of the modified click reaction is an enabling improvement over originally described copper based click reactions and will further enhance the utility of EdU based cell proliferation. Citation Format: Scott T. Clarke, Zhichao Song, Kelvin Y. Kwan, Carolyn DeMarco, Aleksey Rukavishnikov, Upinder Singh, Kyle Gee. GFP compatibility with EdU cell proliferation assay. [abstract]. In: Proceedings of the 105th Annual Meeting of the American Association for Cancer Research; 2014 Apr 5-9; San Diego, CA. Philadelphia (PA): AACR; Cancer Res 2014;74(19 Suppl):Abstract nr 5098. doi:10.1158/1538-7445.AM2014-5098

We asked 24 schizophrenia patients and 24 healthy comparison subjects to complete a parametric working memory version of the continuous performance test. Patients exhibited a relatively rapid performance decline with increasing working memory demands. We suggest an interaction between sustained attention and working memory abnormalities in schizophrenia.

Environmental cognition concerns the way we acquire, organize, store, and recall information about locations, distances, and arrangements in the physical environment. Environmental perception and cognition usually involves the perceiver being within the percept, in contrast to object perception. Evidence exists for two kinds of coding: propositional and analog cognitive maps in animals and humans act as drivers of action, as do affective associations of places. Environmental cognition, it could be argued, has its main role in supporting wayfinding: in the planning and carrying out of routes through the environment, in locating resources and avoiding dangers, and having an awareness of possible novel routes were the need to arise. Study of human spatial cognition should contribute to the design of buildings and local layouts which are more easily understood.

Patients with schizophrenia have difficulty recognising the emotion that corresponds to a given facial expression. According to signal detection theory, two separate processes are involved in facial emotion perception: a sensory process (measured by sensitivity which is the ability to distinguish one facial emotion from another facial emotion) and a cognitive decision process (measured by response criterion which is the tendency to judge a facial emotion as a particular emotion). It is uncertain whether facial emotion recognition deficits in schizophrenia are primarily due to impaired sensitivity or response bias. In this study, we hypothesised that individuals with schizophrenia would have both diminished sensitivity and different response criteria in facial emotion recognition across different emotions compared with healthy controls. Twenty-five individuals with a DSM-IV diagnosis of schizophrenia were compared with age and IQ matched healthy controls. Participants performed a “yes-no” task by indicating whether the 88 Ekman faces shown briefly expressed one of the target emotions in three randomly ordered runs (happy, sad and fear). Sensitivity and response criteria for facial emotion recognition was calculated as d-prime and In(β) respectively using signal detection theory. Patients with schizophrenia showed diminished sensitivity (d-prime) in recognising happy faces, but not faces that expressed fear or sadness. By contrast, patients exhibited a significantly less strict response criteria (In(β)) in recognising fearful and sad faces. Our results suggest that patients with schizophrenia have a specific deficit in recognising happy faces, whereas they were more inclined to attribute any facial emotion as fearful or sad.

Background The ability to appreciate humour is essential to successful human interactions. In this study, we hypothesized that individuals with schizophrenia would have diminished ability to recognize and appreciate humour. The relationship between humour experience and clinical symptoms, cognitive and social functioning was examined. Method Thirty patients with a DSM-IV diagnosis of schizophrenia were compared with 30 age-, gender-, IQ- and ethnicity-matched healthy controls. Humour recognition was measured by identification of humorous moments in four silent slapstick comedy film clips and calculated as d -prime ( d′ ) according to signal detection theory. Humour appreciation was measured by self-report mood state and funniness ratings. Patients were assessed for clinical symptoms, theory of mind ability, executive function [using the Wisconsin Card Sorting Test (WCST)] and social functioning [using the Life Skills Profile (LSP)]. Results Patient and control groups did not differ in the funniness ratings they attributed to the video clips. Patients with schizophrenia had a lower d′ ( humour ) compared to the controls, after controlling for (1) the performance of a baseline recognition task with a non-humorous video clip and (2) severity of depressive symptoms. In patients, d′ ( humour ) had significant negative correlation with delusion and depression scores, the perseverative error score of the WCST and the total scores of the LSP. Conclusions Compared with controls, patients with schizophrenia were less sensitive at detecting humour but similarly able to appreciate humour. The degree of humour recognition difficulty may be associated with the extent of executive dysfunction and thus contribute to the psychosocial impairment in patients with schizophrenia.

The time at which the N -ethylmaleimide-sensitive factor (NSF) acts during synaptic vesicle (SV) trafficking was identified by time-controlled perturbation of NSF function with a photoactivatable inhibitory peptide. Photolysis of this caged peptide in the squid giant presynaptic terminal caused an abrupt (0.2 s) slowing of the kinetics of the postsynaptic current (PSC) and a more gradual (2–3 s) reduction in PSC amplitude. Based on the rapid rate of these inhibitory effects relative to the speed of SV recycling, we conclude that NSF functions in reactions that immediately precede neurotransmitter release. Our results indicate the locus of SNARE protein recycling in presynaptic terminals and reveal NSF as a potential target for rapid regulation of transmitter release.