| 1. |
- Schmidt, Manuela, et al.
(författare)
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Doctoral students' well-being : a literature review
- 2018
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Ingår i: International Journal of Qualitative Studies on Health and Well-being. - : Taylor & Francis. - 1748-2623 .- 1748-2631. ; 13:1, s. 1-14
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Forskningsöversikt (refereegranskat)abstract
- Purpose: Doctoral student well-being is an important matter that shapes the well-being of academics throughout their careers. Given that well-being has been found to be closely related to employee productivity and efficiency, strategies associated with maintaining well-being during PhD studies might be crucial for higher education, its outcomes and—just as importantly—for a balanced life of PhD students.Method: Based on 17 studies, this literature review critically assesses the literature on doctoral student well-being.Results: Theoretical models, concepts of well-being, and methods applied are discussed, as are the results of the articles. The reviewed studies are then discussed based on a SWOT analysis addressing the strengths and weaknesses of the reviewed research as well as the identified opportunities and threats, which can be used as a basis for future research. Based on the review findings and the SWOT analysis, a multidimensional view of the well-being of doctoral students is proposed.Conclusions: The study proposes a more student-centred approach to meeting doctoral students’ needs, and the enhancement of doctoral student well-being in order, as a long-term goal, to improve academics’ well-being and productivity.
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| 2. |
- Björk Skuladottir, Edda, et al.
(författare)
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Translation and validation of Assessment of Work Performance (AWP) into the Icelandic language and culture
- 2021
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Ingår i: Work. - : IOS Press. - 1875-9270 .- 1051-9815. ; 69:4, s. 1305-1316
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Tidskriftsartikel (refereegranskat)abstract
- BACKGROUND:Evidence-based services in vocational rehabilitation call for valid and reliable assessments of work performance for intervention planning and safe return to work for individuals with illness or injuries. Assessments that are easy to use, culturally adapted, and in a language professionals and clients understand is important for their utility. Translation and adaption of assessments to new languages and cultures are of importance to maintain high standards of assessments and the quality of services in the vocational rehabilitation setting. OBJECTIVE:The aim of this study was to translate and adapt the Assessment of Work Performance (AWP), into the Icelandic language and culture. Furthermore, to investigate the content validity and utility of the evaluation instrument. METHODS:The study was conducted in two phases. The first phase, based on the Dual-Panel translation method, included two expert panels performing translation and cultural adaption of the original Swedish AWP. In the second phase field testing of the translated instrument was followed by an online survey among vocational rehabilitation professionals for content validation and utility. RESULTS:The results of the study showed satisfactory opinions from experienced professionals toward the content validity, translation, cultural adaption, and utility of the Icelandic version of the AWP. CONCLUSIONS:The study indicates that the Dual-Panel translation method is a valid method when translating instruments from one language and culture to another. Furthermore, the results of the study imply that the AWP can be regarded as content valid up to an acceptable degree for implementation in vocational rehabilitation services in Iceland.
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| 3. |
- Klinthäll, Martin, 1967-, et al.
(författare)
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Migration and health : A study of effects of early life experiences and current socio-economic situation on mortality of immigrants in Sweden
- 2011
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Ingår i: Ethnicity and Health. - London : Taylor & Francis. - 1355-7858 .- 1465-3419. ; 16:6, s. 601-623
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Tidskriftsartikel (refereegranskat)abstract
- Objectives. Previous research has demonstrated mortality differences between immigrants and natives living in Sweden. The aim of this study is to investigate the effects of early life conditions in the country of birth and current socio-economic conditions in adult life in Sweden on cardiovascular, cancer, all other cause and total mortality among immigrants and natives in Sweden.Design. The cohort data concerning individual demographic characteristics and socio-economic conditions stems from the Swedish Longitudinal Immigrant Database (SLI), a register-based representative database, and consists of individuals from 11 countries of birth, born between 1921 and 1939, who were residents in Sweden between 1980 and 2001. The associations between current socio-economic conditions as well as infant mortality rates (IMR) and Gross Domestic Product (GDP) per capita in the year and country of birth, and total, cardiovascular, cancer and ‘all other’ mortality in 1980–2001 were calculated by survival analysis using Cox proportional hazards regression to calculate hazard rate ratios.Results. The effects of current adult life socio-economic conditions in Sweden on mortality are both stronger and more straightforward than the effects of early life conditions in the sense that higher socio-economic status is significantly associated with lower mortality in all groups of diagnoses; however, we find associations between infant mortality rates (IMR) in the year and country of birth, and cancer mortality among men and women in the final model.Conclusions. Socioeconomic conditions in Sweden are more strongly associated with mortality than early life indicators IMR and GDP per capita in the year of birth in the country of origin. This finding has health policy and other policy implications.
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| 4. |
- Brännström, Jonas, et al.
(författare)
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Psychosocial work environment among Swedish audiologists
- 2013
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Ingår i: International Journal of Audiology. - : Informa Healthcare. - 1499-2027 .- 1708-8186. ; 52:3, s. 151-161
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Tidskriftsartikel (refereegranskat)abstract
- Objective: The study examined the self-reported psychosocial work environment for audiologists working in three practice types (public, completely private, and private but publicly funded).Design: A cross-sectional e-mail survey using the demand-control-support questionnaire, a short version of the effort-reward imbalance (ERI) questionnaire, and descriptive data.Study sample: Five-hundred Swedish licensed audiologists.Results: Overall, the results indicate differences in psychosocial work environment pertaining to the practice types. These differences are small and the type explains few percent of the variability accounted in the measures of psychosocial work environment. Social support seems important for the psychosocial work environment and is considered a reward in itself. Using the demand-control model, 29% of the audiologists reported working in a high-stress psychosocial work environment. Using the ERI-ratio to estimate the imbalance between effort and reward it was shown that that 86% of the participants experienced an unfavorable work situation where the rewards do not correspond to the efforts made.Conclusions: The organizational framework has minor effect on self-reported psychosocial work environment for Swedish licensed audiologists. The percentage of unfavorable ERI-ratios seen in Swedish audiologists seems conspicuously high compared to other working populations in general, but also compared to other health service workers.
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| 5. |
- Domkin, Dmitry, et al.
(författare)
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Ciliary muscle contraction force and trapezius muscle activity during manual tracking of a moving visual target
- 2016
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Ingår i: Journal of Electromyography and Kinesiology. - : Elsevier BV. - 1050-6411 .- 1873-5711. ; 55:13, s. 3777-3777, s. 263-
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Tidskriftsartikel (refereegranskat)abstract
- Previous studies have shown an association of visual demands during near work and increased activity of the trapezius muscle. Those studies were conducted under stationary postural conditions with fixed gaze and artificial visual load. The present study investigated the relationship between ciliary muscle contraction force and trapezius muscle activity across individuals during performance of a natural dynamic motor task under free gaze conditions. Participants (N = 11) tracked a moving visual target with a digital pen on a computer screen. Tracking performance, eye refraction and trapezius muscle activity were continuously measured. Ciliary muscle contraction force was computed from eye accommodative response. There was a significant Pearson correlation between ciliary muscle contraction force and trapezius muscle activity on the tracking side (0.78, p < 0.01) and passive side (0.64, p < 0.05). The study supports the hypothesis that high visual demands, leading to an increased ciliary muscle contraction during continuous eye–hand coordination, may increase trapezius muscle tension and thus contribute to the development of musculoskeletal complaints in the neck–shoulder area. Further experimental studies are required to clarify whether the relationship is valid within each individual or may represent a general personal trait, when individuals with higher eye accommodative response tend to have higher trapezius muscle activity.
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| 6. |
- Eriksson, Kåre, et al.
(författare)
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Tape-stripping as a method for measuring dermal exposure to resin acids during wood pellet production
- 2008
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Ingår i: Journal of Environmental Monitoring. - : Royal Society of Chemistry (RSC). - 1464-0325 .- 1464-0333. ; 10, s. 345-352
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Tidskriftsartikel (refereegranskat)abstract
- The purpose of this study was to develop a sensitive and specific method for quantifying dermal exposure to the resin acids 7-oxodehydroabietic acid (7-OXO), dehydroabietic acid (DHAA), abietic acid (AA), and pimaric acid (PA). In addition the method was evaluated in occupational settings during production of wood pellets. Tape-strips were spiked with the substances to evaluate the recovery of the acids from the tape. The removal efficiency of the tape was assessed by tape-stripping a specified area on a glass plate spiked with resin acids. The recovery of the acids from human skin in vivo was evaluated by applying acids in methanol onto the skin of volunteers. Occupational dermal exposure to the resin acids was assessed by tape-stripping the skin of workers involved in the production of wood pellets. The resin acids were analyzed by liquid chromatography mass spectrometry (LC-MS). The limit of detection was 15 pg (7-OXO), 150 pg (DHAA), 285 pg (AA) and 471 pg (PA) per injection. The recovery from spiked tapes was in general 100%. The removal efficiency of the tape was 48–101%. Recovery tests from human skin in vivo showed a mean recovery of 27%. Quantifiable amounts of resin acids were observed on four different skin areas with an increase in exposure during a work shift. This study shows that occupational dermal exposure to resin acids can be assessed by tape-stripping and quantified by LC-MS.
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| 7. |
- Hagström, Katja, 1975-, et al.
(författare)
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Exposure to Wood Dust, Resin Acids, and Volatile Organic Compounds During Production of Wood Pellets
- 2008
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Ingår i: Journal of Occupational and Environmental Hygiene. - Philadelphia, PA : Informa UK Limited. - 1545-9624 .- 1545-9632. ; 5, s. 296-304
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Tidskriftsartikel (refereegranskat)abstract
- The main aim of this study was to investigate exposure to airborne substances that are potentially harmful to health during the production of wood pellets, including wood dust, monoterpenes, and resin acids, and as an indicator of diesel exhaust nitrogen dioxide. In addition, area measurements were taken to assess background exposure levels of these substances, volatile organic compounds (VOCs), and carbon monoxide. Measurements were taken at four wood pellet production plants from May 2004 to April 2005. Forty-four workers participated in the study, and a total of 68 personal measurements were taken to determine personal exposure to wood dust (inhalable and total dust), resin acids, monoterpenes, and nitrogen dioxide. In addition, 42 measurements of nitrogen dioxide and 71 measurements of total dust, resin acids, monoterpenes, VOCs, and carbon monoxide were taken to quantify their indoor area concentrations. Personal exposure levels to wood dust were high, and a third of the measured levels of inhalable dust exceeded the Swedish occupational exposure limit (OEL) of 2 mg/m 3 . Parallel measurements of inhalable and total dust indicated that the former were, on average, 3.2 times higher than the latter. The data indicate that workers at the plants are exposed to significant amounts of the resin acid 7-oxodehydroabietic acid in the air, an observation that has not been recorded previously at wood processing and handling plants. The study also found evidence of exposure to dehydroabietic acid, and exposure levels for resin acids approached 74% of the British OEL for colophony, set at 50 μg/m 3 . Personal exposure levels to monoterpenes and nitrogen dioxide were low. Area sampling measurements indicated that aldehydes and terpenes were the most abundant VOCs, suggesting that measuring personal exposure to aldehydes might be of interest. Carbon monoxide levels were under the detection limit in all area measurements. High wood dust exposure levels are likely to have implications for worker health; therefore, it is important to reduce exposure to wood dust in this industry.
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| 8. |
- Heikkilä, Katriina, et al.
(författare)
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Job strain and COPD exacerbations: an individual-participant meta-analysis
- 2014
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Ingår i: European Respiratory Journal. - : European Respiratory Society (ERS). - 0903-1936 .- 1399-3003. ; 44:1, s. 247-251
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Tidskriftsartikel (refereegranskat)abstract
- To the Editor:Chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) is a major cause of mortality and disability worldwide (1). The clinical course of COPD is characterised by exacerbations, which can be minor and manageable at home or in primary care, or severe, leading to hospitalisation or even death. Known causes of exacerbations include tobacco smoke, air pollution, dusts and fumes, and respiratory infections (1, 2). One less well understood risk factor is stress, which could plausibly lead to COPD exacerbations as it can trigger inflammation (3, 4) and is associated with increased smoking (5), which are both implicated in COPD pathology (2). Work is an important source of stress in the age groups in which COPD is typically diagnosed (1, 6). However, we are not aware of previous investigations of work-related stress and the risk of COPD exacerbations.In this study, we examined the associations between job strain (the most widely studied conceptualisation of work-related stress) and severe COPD exacerbations using individual-level data from 10 prospective cohort studies from the Individual Participant Data Meta-analysis in Working Populations (IPD-Work) Consortium (7). Job strain is defined as a combination of high demands (excessive amounts of work) and low control (having little influence on what tasks to.
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| 9. |
- Helmfrid, Ingela, 1964-, et al.
(författare)
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Exposure of metals and PAH through local foods and risk of cancer in a historically contaminated glassworks area
- 2019
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Ingår i: Environment International. - : Elsevier. - 0160-4120 .- 1873-6750. ; 131, s. 1-10
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Tidskriftsartikel (refereegranskat)abstract
- BackgroundProduction of crystal glass and colored art glassware have been going on in the south-eastern part of Sweden since the 1700s, at over 100 glassworks and smaller glass blowing facilities, resulting in environmental contamination with mainly arsenic (As), cadmium (Cd), lead (Pb) and polycyclic hydrocarbons (PAH). High levels of metals have been found in soil, and moderately elevated levels in vegetables, mushrooms and berries collected around the glassworks sites compared with reference areas. Food in general, is the major exposure source to metals, such as Cd and Pb, and PAHs. Exposure to these toxic metals and PAH has been associated with a variety of adverse health effects in humans including cancer.ObjectiveThe aim of the present study was to evaluate the occurrence of cancer in a cohort from the contaminated glasswork area in relation to long-term dietary intake of locally produced foods, while taking into account residential, occupational and life styles factors.MethodsThe study population was extracted from a population cohort of 34,266 individuals who, at some time between the years 1979–2004, lived within a 2 km radius of a glassworks or glass landfill. Register information on cancer incidence and questionnaire information on consumption of local foods (reflecting 30 years general eating habits), life-time residence in the area, life style factors and occupational exposure was collected. Furthermore, blood (n = 660) and urine (n = 400) samples were collected in a subsample of the population to explore associations between local food consumption frequencies, biomarker concentrations in blood (Cd, Pb, As) and urine (PAH metabolite 1-OHPy) as well as environmental and lifestyle factors. The concurrent exposure to persistent organic pollutants (POPs) from food was also considered. A case-control study was performed for evaluation of associations between intakes of local food and risk of cancer.ResultsDespite high environmental levels of Cd, Pb and As at glasswork sites and landfills, current metal exposure in the population living in the surrounding areas was similar or only moderately higher in our study population compared to the general population. Reported high consumption of certain local foods was associated with higher Cd and Pb, but not As, concentrations in blood, and 1-OHPy in urine. An increased risk of cancer was associated with smoking, family history of cancer, obesity, and residence in glasswork area before age 5 years. Also, a long-term high consumption of local foods (reflecting 30 years general eating habits), i.e. fish and meat (game, chicken, lamb), was associated with increased risk of various cancer forms.ConclusionsThe associations between consumption of local food and different types of cancer may reflect a higher contaminant exposure in the past, and thus, if consumption of local food contributes to the risk of acquiring cancer, that contribution is probably lower today than before. Furthermore, it cannot be ruled out that other contaminants in the food contribute to the increased cancer risks observed.
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| 10. |
- Johansson Capusan, Andrea, et al.
(författare)
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Childhood maltreatment and attention deficit hyperactivity disorder symptoms in adults : a large twin study
- 2016
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Ingår i: Psychological Medicine. - Cambridge : Cambridge University Press. - 0033-2917 .- 1469-8978. ; 46:12, s. 2637-2646
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Tidskriftsartikel (refereegranskat)abstract
- BackgroundChildhood maltreatment (CM) has been associated with increased risk of attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) in children and adults. It is, however, unclear whether this association is causal or due to familial confounding.MethodData from 18 168 adult twins, aged 20–46 years, were drawn from the population-based Swedish twin registry. Retrospective self-ratings of CM (emotional and physical neglect, physical and sexual abuse and witnessing family violence), and self-ratings for DSM-IV ADHD symptoms in adulthood were analysed. Possible familial confounding was investigated using a within twin-pair design based on monozygotic (MZ) and dizygotic (DZ) twins.esultsCM was significantly associated with increased levels of ADHD symptom scores in adults [regression coefficient: 0.40 standard deviations, 95% confidence interval (CI) 0.37–0.43]. Within twin-pair analyses showed attenuated but significant estimates within DZ (0.29, 95% CI 0.21–0.36) and MZ (0.18, 95% CI 0.10–0.25) twin pairs. Similar results emerged for hyperactive/impulsive and inattentive ADHD symptom scores separately in association with CM. We conducted sensitivity analyses for early maltreatment, before age 7, and for abuse and neglect separately, and found similarly reduced estimates in DZ and MZ pairs. Re-traumatization after age 7 did not significantly influence results.ConclusionsCM was significantly associated with increased ADHD symptoms in adults. Associations were partly due to familial confounding, but also consistent with a causal interpretation. Our findings support cognitive neuroscience studies investigating neural pathways through which exposure to CM may influence ADHD. Clinicians treating adults with ADHD should be aware of the association with maltreatment.
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