Coventry University

About: Coventry University is a education organization based out in Coventry, United Kingdom. It is known for research contribution in the topics: Context (language use) & Population. The organization has 4964 authors who have published 12700 publications receiving 255898 citations. The organization is also known as: Lanchester Polytechnic & Coventry Polytechnic.

'Playtime in the borderlands': Children's representations of school, gender and bullying through photographs and interviews

Abstract: Photography has been commonly used as a research tool in studies of childhood/children. However images of school children in official documentation are rarely taken or chosen by children and may not reflect their real experiences. This research considered the photographs taken by year six primary school children of their school and the images they chose to represent themselves. Subsequent interviews with children revealed attitudes to school, the importance of playground relationships in the construction of gender, leading to the concept of ‘borderlands’ inhabited by some boys who adopt non-hegemonic masculinities.

Patient centered assessment of ankylosing spondylitis-specific health related quality of life: evaluation of the Patient Generated Index.

Abstract: OBJECTIVE: To evaluate the Patient Generated Index (PGI) for the measurement of individualized health related quality of life in ankylosing spondylitis (AS). METHODS: The PGI asks patients to nominate areas of their lives affected by their disease that they consider the most important. Semistructured interviews with AS patients produced a trigger list of areas of life affected by AS. The PGI was self-completed by UK patients taking part in a multicenter postal survey. The instrument was assessed for data quality, reliability, validity, and responsiveness. RESULTS: The PGI had acceptable completion rates. Scores covered the available range and approximated normality. Test-retest reliability estimates support the use of the PGI in group evaluation (intraclass correlation coefficient > 0.80). Comparisons with scores for other health status instruments provided evidence for the validity of the PGI. The largest levels of correlation were found for the AS Quality of Life Questionnaire (ASQoL) and the EuroQol. The informed and open format of the PGI had the strongest linear relationship with responses to both specific and general health transition questions (p

Volunteerism among older people with arthritis

Abstract: Research attention has turned towards investigating the motivations and experiences of those who volunteer under conditions that benefit both giver and recipient. The purpose of this paper is to examine the motivation of 22 older volunteers as they embarked on training to become lay leaders of an arthritis self-management programme. Data were collected through semi-structured telephone interviews at two points in time, before training and six weeks after training. Volunteerism was motivated by three key needs: to fill the vocational void left by retirement, to feel a useful member of society by helping others and to find a peer group. These key motivations remained important throughout the six weeks of the study. The costs of volunteering were perceived as time, responsibility, invasion of social life, failure, anxiety, and the duration and intensity of training. Nonetheless, older volunteers valued finding a purpose, reported less pain and an increased desire to ‘get on with life'. Results suggest that volunteering in later life can help to offset losses associated with retirement and decline in health. Further research, incorporating standard measures of health status, is needed if the impact of volunteering on the health of this study population is to be more fully understood.

Framing volcanic risk communication within disaster risk reduction: finding ways for the social and physical sciences to work together

Abstract: Sixteen years have passed since the last global volcanic event and more than 25 since a volcanic catastrophe that killed tens of thousands. In this time, volcanology has seen major advances in understanding, modelling and predicting volcanic hazards and, recently, an interest in techniques for reducing and mitigating volcanic risk. This paper provides a synthesis of literature relating to this last aspect, specifically the communication of volcanic risk, with a view to highlighting areas of future research into encouraging risk-reducing behaviour. Evidence suggests that the current ‘multidisciplinary’ approach within physical science needs a broader scope to include sociological knowledge and techniques. Key areas where this approach might be applied are: (1) the understanding of the incentives that make governments and communities act to reduce volcanic risk; (2) improving the communication of volcanic uncertainties in volcanic emergency management and long-term planning and development. To be successful, volcanic risk reduction programmes will need to be placed within the context of other other risk-related phenomena (e.g. other natural hazards, climate change) and aim to develop an all-risks reduction culture. We suggest that the greatest potential for achieving these two aims comes from deliberative inclusive processes and geographic information systems.