University of Winnipeg

About: University of Winnipeg is a education organization based out in Winnipeg, Manitoba, Canada. It is known for research contribution in the topics: Population & Context (language use). The organization has 3235 authors who have published 6413 publications receiving 150564 citations. The organization is also known as: U of W.

Silos and Social Identity: The Social Identity Approach as a Framework for Understanding and Overcoming Divisions in Health Care

Abstract: The achievement of integration and collaboration among different providers of care is one of the foremost challenges facing today's health care system. The theme of overcoming disciplinary, sectoral, and institutional “silos” is echoed in almost every area of health-services research, from primary-care reform to patient safety, chronic-disease management to cost containment (e.g., Clancy 2006; Mann 2005; McDonald et al. 2007). The urgency of the problem has increased in the current policy context, where it can be argued that the success of health reform stands or falls on the ability of delivery system reform to replace fragmentation and waste with coordination and cost-effectiveness. Strategies for achieving this—from the micro level of interprofessional teams and primary care medical homes, to the macro level of accountable care organizations—are fundamentally about collaboration across silos. Indeed, while serving as administrator of the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services, Donald Berwick placed the elimination of silos at the top of a list of values needed to improve American health care (Schaeffer 2011). Interest in teamwork and integration, and in the organizational changes that may foster them, is equally strong internationally (Finn, Currie, and Martin 2010; Mann 2005). Yet earlier reviews, albeit extensive (e.g., Oandasan et al. 2006), have not offered a theory of what makes cross-silo relationships flourish or decay. Part of the problem may be that although such relationships clearly constitute an intergroup issue, the theme of group dynamics is frequently ignored. Most of the literature does not focus on the group level, but on the individual and interpersonal (e.g., what traits, skills, and processes facilitate teamwork) or the operational and systemic (e.g., what structures and resources promote integration). To amend this gap, we seek out literature that addresses the neglected group level and examine this body of literature through the lens of a general theory of group processes: the social identity approach (SIA), which comprises social identity theory (SIT; see Tajfel and Turner 1979) and its extension, self-categorization theory (Turner et al. 1987). There is increasing recognition of the value of theory in guiding health-services and policy research (Grol et al. 2007). However, researchers have also cautioned that a proliferation of theoretical constructs promotes confusion, not understanding (Michie et al. 2005). Whereas one popular approach is to devise frameworks by combining theories, thus risking a fragmented analysis that lacks conceptual coherence, this article explores the integrative potential of a single theory that is sufficiently broad and multifaceted for the task. In doing so, it seeks not to diminish the value of other theoretical approaches, but to highlight the SIA's capacity to synthesize findings and insights from disparate traditions. The SIA arose from the recognition that group memberships form an important part of the individual's self-concept. Focusing on the nexus between the individual and the group, this approach explores how seeing ourselves and others in terms of social categories affects our perceptions, attitudes, and behavior. The SIA encompasses five key dimensions: Social identity. People categorize themselves and others as members of an in-group (“us”) or an out-group (“them”), because (a) being part of a positively valued group enhances self-esteem and (b) categorization offers a meaningful way to organize the social world (Tajfel and Turner 1979; Turner et al. 1987). People also compare their group with others, often striving to maximize the positive distinctiveness of their own. When social identity is salient, people focus more on the shared attributes uniting group members than on the personal characteristics differentiating them. These perceptions engender group behavior, which, depending on the context, can be either positive (e.g., cooperation) or negative (e.g., discrimination). Social structure. Structural relations among groups, notably intergroup differences in status and power (especially if seen as unstable and illegitimate), can make the difference between conflict and peaceful coexistence (Tajfel and Turner 1979). Groups can alter structural relations when they take collective action on the basis of their social identity. Identity content. The identities we value are defined by specific norms and attributes. Members internalize group norms and use them to guide behavior (including intergroup behavior) and to evaluate other members, including leaders (Haslam 2004; Jetten, Spears, and Manstead 1996). Members also mobilize in support of, or to combat threats to, these shared norms (Ellemers, Spears, and Branscombe 1999). Strength of identification. Individuals typically belong to many groups, but tend to identify strongly with some and weakly with others. Group identification amplifies both positive and negative social behavior (Ellemers, Spears, and Doosje 2002); high identifiers are more likely to take action in the service of group goals and to fight to protect the group from perceived threats to its status, distinctiveness, or norms. Context. The relative prominence of an individual's multiple identities is not fixed but changes with the social context (Turner et al. 1987). This fluidity of social identity—well demonstrated in empirical studies (e.g., Levine and Reicher 1996)—provides hope that by modifying the context, we can change group behavior. The SIA has three major strengths: (1) as a general theory of group processes and intergroup relations, it enables the transfer of insights across levels (e.g., interprofessional to interorganizational) and domains (e.g., non–health care to health care); (2) as a multidimensional theory, it allows researchers and decision makers to consider multiple influences on (inter)group dynamics; and (3) as a well-established theory that has continued to develop over three decades, it has a strong empirical foundation in both basic and applied research (Ellemers, Spears, and Doosje 2002). Haslam (2004) extensively reviewed the SIA's contribution to organizational psychology, presenting evidence that adumbrates social identity's important role in myriad phenomena, including leadership, employee motivation and commitment, communication, group performance, intergroup negotiation, group decision making, and response to stress. Among the relevant findings: leaders are more likely to win support when they belong to a valued in-group, advance its interests, and endorse its norms—indeed, members tend to prefer leaders whose characteristics differentiate them from an out-group, even when such characteristics are objectively undesirable (Haslam, Reicher, and Platow 2011); organizational identification reliably outperforms job satisfaction as a predictor of an employee's intent to stay (Randsley de Moura et al. 2009); and shared social identity underpins effective communication—not only does information flow less readily across salient intergroup boundaries (Agama 1997), but we are more receptive to influence from in-group members, as we assume that they see the world as we do (Abrams et al. 1990). We investigated both what the SIA has already contributed and what it can contribute to an understanding of intra- and intergroup relationships among health care providers. Our review questions were (1) To what extent, and how accurately, has the SIA been applied? and (2) How does the overall literature on health care groups (including non-SIA-citing sources) address the five SIA dimensions? The first question required a critical analysis of sources citing social identity; the second demanded a broader exploration of the perspectives from which health care groups have been examined. We describe our approach as a “critical scoping review”—a combination of scoping review (Arksey and O’Malley 2005) and theory-based synthesis.

Martian dust storm impact on atmospheric H2O and D/H observed by ExoMars Trace Gas Orbiter

Abstract: Global dust storms on Mars are rare1,2 but can affect the Martian atmosphere for several months. They can cause changes in atmospheric dynamics and inflation of the atmosphere3, primarily owing to solar heating of the dust3. In turn, changes in atmospheric dynamics can affect the distribution of atmospheric water vapour, with potential implications for the atmospheric photochemistry and climate on Mars4. Recent observations of the water vapour abundance in the Martian atmosphere during dust storm conditions revealed a high-altitude increase in atmospheric water vapour that was more pronounced at high northern latitudes5,6, as well as a decrease in the water column at low latitudes7,8. Here we present concurrent, high-resolution measurements of dust, water and semiheavy water (HDO) at the onset of a global dust storm, obtained by the NOMAD and ACS instruments onboard the ExoMars Trace Gas Orbiter. We report the vertical distribution of the HDO/H2O ratio (D/H) from the planetary boundary layer up to an altitude of 80 kilometres. Our findings suggest that before the onset of the dust storm, HDO abundances were reduced to levels below detectability at altitudes above 40 kilometres. This decrease in HDO coincided with the presence of water-ice clouds. During the storm, an increase in the abundance of H2O and HDO was observed at altitudes between 40 and 80 kilometres. We propose that these increased abundances may be the result of warmer temperatures during the dust storm causing stronger atmospheric circulation and preventing ice cloud formation, which may confine water vapour to lower altitudes through gravitational fall and subsequent sublimation of ice crystals3. The observed changes in H2O and HDO abundance occurred within a few days during the development of the dust storm, suggesting a fast impact of dust storms on the Martian atmosphere.

Development and Calibration of an Organic-Diffusive Gradients in Thin Films Aquatic Passive Sampler for a Diverse Suite of Polar Organic Contaminants

Abstract: A unique configuration of the diffusive gradients in thin films sampler for polar organics (o-DGT) without a poly(ether sulfone) membrane was developed, calibrated, and field-evaluated. Diffusion coefficients (D) through agarose diffusive gels ranged from (1.02 to 4.74) × 10–6 cm2/s for 34 pharmaceuticals and pesticides at 5, 13, and 23 °C. Analyte-specific diffusion–temperature plots produced linear (r2 > 0.85) empirical relationships whereby D could be estimated at any environmentally relevant temperature (i.e., matched to in situ water conditions). Linear uptake for all analytes was observed in a static renewal calibration experiment over 25 days except for three macrolide antibiotics, which reached saturation at 300 ng (≈15 d). Experimental sampling rates ranged from 8.8 to 16.1 mL/d and were successfully estimated with measured and modeled D within 19% and 30% average relative error, respectively. Under slow flowing (2.4 cm/s) and static conditions, the in situ diffusive boundary layer (DBL) thicknes...

NOMAD, an Integrated Suite of Three Spectrometers for the ExoMars Trace Gas Mission: Technical Description, Science Objectives and Expected Performance

Abstract: The NOMAD (“Nadir and Occultation for MArs Discovery”) spectrometer suite on board the ExoMars Trace Gas Orbiter (TGO) has been designed to investigate the composition of Mars’ atmosphere, with a particular focus on trace gases, clouds and dust. The detection sensitivity for trace gases is considerably improved compared to previous Mars missions, compliant with the science objectives of the TGO mission. This will allow for a major leap in our knowledge and understanding of the Martian atmospheric composition and the related physical and chemical processes. The instrument is a combination of three spectrometers, covering a spectral range from the UV to the mid-IR, and can perform solar occultation, nadir and limb observations. In this paper, we present the science objectives of the instrument and explain the technical principles of the three spectrometers. We also discuss the expected performance of the instrument in terms of spatial and temporal coverage and detection sensitivity.

Quantitative MRI and ultrastructural examination of the cuprizone mouse model of demyelination

Abstract: The cuprizone mouse model of demyelination was used to investigate the influence that white matter changes have on different magnetic resonance imaging results. In vivo T2-weighted and magnetization transfer images (MTIs) were acquired weekly in control (n = 5) and cuprizone-fed (n = 5) mice, with significant increases in signal intensity in T2-weighted images (p < 0.001) and lower magnetization transfer ratio (p < 0.001) in the corpus callosum of the cuprizone-fed mice starting at 3 weeks and peaking at 4 and 5 weeks, respectively. Diffusion tensor imaging (DTI), quantitative MTI (qMTI), and T1/T2 measurements were used to analyze freshly excised tissue after 6 weeks of cuprizone administration. In multicomponent T2 analysis with 10 ms echo spacing, there was no visible myelin water component associated with the short T2 value. Quantitative MTI metrics showed significant differences in the corpus callosum and external capsule of the cuprizone-fed mice, similar to previous studies of multiple sclerosis in humans and animal models of demyelination. Fractional anisotropy was significantly lower and mean, axial, and radial diffusivity were significantly higher in the cuprizone-fed mice. Cellular distributions measured in electron micrographs of the corpus callosum correlated strongly to several different quantitative MRI metrics. The largest Spearman correlation coefficient varied depending on cellular type: T1 versus the myelinated axon fraction (ρ = −0.90), the bound pool fraction (ƒ) versus the myelin sheath fraction (ρ = 0.93), and axial diffusivity versus the non-myelinated cell fraction (ρ = 0.92). Using Pearson's correlation coefficient, ƒ was strongly correlated to the myelin sheath fraction (r = 0.98) with a linear equation predicting myelin content (5.37ƒ − 0.25). Of the calculated MRI metrics, ƒ was the strongest indicator of myelin content, while longitudinal relaxation rates and diffusivity measurements were the strongest indicators of changes in tissue structure. Copyright © 2013 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.