Use and non-use of public libraries in the information age: A logistic regression analysis of household characteristics and library services variables

For public libraries to achieve effective strategic planning, they must know who uses the public library and who does not use it. This study examines the characteristics of users and non-users of the public libraries using socio-demographic data from the Current Population Survey, a nationally representative survey of over 50,000 households conducted during October 13–19, 2002, and library services data from the Public Libraries Survey 2002. The study finds 34 variables to be significant. These variables including factors that have not often been studied, such as distance from the library, age/school attendance status, use of other types of library, and public library expenditure per state capita. It is also worth noting that disadvantaged groups, including ethnic minorities, recent immigrants, and people with disabilities, were less likely to use public libraries. This was true even after other factors such as education and income were held constant. The study provides a national-level assessment of the under-served populations. It also offers triangulation to other existing research, particularly qualitative information behavior studies of specific groups.     

Telling their stories: A study of librarians' use of narrative in instruction

Narratives are the heuristics the brain uses to make sense of the world. When they are embraced in teaching, they make the process more efficient, engaging and enjoyable for both students and instructors. While the insights of psychologists, neuroscientists and education researchers into the cognitive and affective mechanisms of meaning-making are not new, capitalizing on these insights in order to engage and instruct is part of a recent trend of evidence-based educational practices. This study is unique in that it uses a phenomenological methodology and semi-structured interviews with 19 academic librarians who teach in Canadian higher education institutions to determine what narrative tools or approaches they use, and to what extent these practices may enrich both their outcomes and their teaching praxis. The authors document the variety of ways in which librarians use narrative techniques instinctively, categorizing these teaching narratives into concepts with more granular themes. A purposeful use and reuse of these narrative techniques, the authors hope, will help inform librarian teaching and reflective practice.     

Tensions and transitions: effecting change towards sustainability at a mainstream university through staff living and learning at an alternative,civil society college

This paper explores the impact of short immersive residentials at a radical institution for staff currently working in a mainstream one; in this instance, at Schumacher College for those at the nearby University of Plymouth (UK). Schumacher is an independent, alternative college offering residential courses in ‘transformative learning for sustainable living’. Using a qualitative research design, we explore the potential of a University staff Scholarship Scheme partnering with Schumacher to catalyse change towards sustainability in the university's curriculum and pedagogy. Our findings suggest that whilst many of the scholarships realised their anticipated potential to effect change, there was no simple correlation between the scholars' learning and experience at Schumacher and their subsequent personal and professional change. However, since the Plymouth–Schumacher route offers a promising pathway to bring innovation and fresh ideas into thinking and practice, the paper also explores how the mainstream and the radical could interact to better effect, drawing on wider thinking on the principles, challenges and tensions of pursuing sustainability, partnership, institutional learning and change.     

Counterfactual thinking and educational psychology

Counterfactual thinking refers to imaginative thoughts about what might have been (“if only” or “what if”) which are intrinsically linked to self-conscious emotions (regret and guilt) and social judgements (blame). Research in adults suggests that the focus of these thoughts is influenced by order (temporal and causal). Little research has involved children regarding the impact of such thinking on their well-being and learning. This study tests the hypothesis that children will demonstrate order effects. One hundred and twenty-one children answered questions about school-based scenarios and a series of interviews was carried out with pupils and teachers. Order effects were observed but there was some variety in the responses to the questions involving self-conscious emotions and social judgements. Thematic analysis of the interview data indicated that children thought of order but also created their own individual stories, whereas teachers had negative perceptions of how pupils thought about events. Implications for educational psychology practice are considered.     

Low cost private schooling in India: Is it pro poor and equitable?

India has seen an explosion in low-fee private (LFP) schooling aimed at the poorer strata of society, and this once-urban phenomenon has spread in the last decade to rural areas, with implications for equity due to the level of direct costs involved. This study explores whether or not LFP schooling in rural India is pro-poor and equitable, and finds that these schools are unaffordable to the bottom two wealth quintiles of families. This conclusion has implications for policy formation and shows that increased reliance on a market in education will not help to achieve equitable access to primary schooling for all.     

The process of (non) ageing in the perception of Polish centenarians

Currently, there are over 120,000 people aged 100 years or more in Europe. In Poland, there are 4,000 centenarians. And although demographic forecasts say that the number of people above 100 years of age will be on the rise in the decades to come, each centenarian is a unique case that should be the focus of interest for medical and social researchers. In this article, we are going to present the results of qualitative research carried out among people aged 100 or older and show their perception of their own old age in the context of their individual life stories. The results prove that despite individual differences, experience, and functional limitations, the respondents are very open to other people and take the passage of time and their developing age with a pinch of salt. The most important aspects of life for the respondents are positive social relations in their closest environment, deep and authentic faith, and an optimistic attitude. All of the centenarians tried to be physically active, and those who were bedridden remained intellectually active (reading, prayers, conversations). They were at peace with the ailments and difficulties associated with old age and treated them as something natural.     

Effect of cold water immersion on repeat cycling performance and thermoregulation in the heat

To assess the effect of cold water immersion and active recovery on thermoregulation and repeat cycling performance in the heat, ten well-trained male cyclists completed five trials, each separated by one week. Each trial consisted of a 30-min exercise task, one of five 15-min recoveries (intermittent cold water immersion in 10 degrees C, 15 degrees C and 20 degrees C water, continuous cold water immersion in 20 degrees C water or active recovery), followed by 40 min passive recovery, before repeating the 30-min exercise task. Recovery strategy effectiveness was assessed via changes in total work in the second exercise task compared with that in the first. Following active recovery, a mean 4.1% (s = 1.8) less total work (P = 0.00) was completed in the second than in the first exercise task. However, no significant differences in total work were observed between any of the cold water immersion protocols. Core and skin temperature, blood lactate concentration, heart rate, rating of thermal sensation, and rating of perceived exertion were recorded. During both exercise tasks there were no significant differences in blood lactate concentration between interventions; however, following active recovery blood lactate concentration was significantly lower (P < 0.05; 2.0 +/- 0.8 mmol . l(-1)) compared with all cold water immersion protocols. All cold water immersion protocols were effective in reducing thermal strain and were more effective in maintaining subsequent high-intensity cycling performance than active recovery.     

Alternative Facts and States of Fear: Reality and STS in an Age of Climate Fictions

Minerva - In the decades since the Science Wars of the 1990s, climate science has become a crucible for the negotiation of claims about reality and expertise. This negotiation, which has drawn...     

Constructing football through magic: an ethnographic study of football supporters

This article presents an analysis of football supporters as magicians based on the theory of magic developed by Marcel Mauss. The research was conducted in co-operation with a local football club from Sweden called Malmö FF. Taking into consideration how the supporters see their position in the club and their contribution, it is possible to explain their behaviour and involvement in terms of a collective phenomenon that requires a clearly stated objective and is achieved through technical elements. The extensive usage of props, language and symbols is supposed to influence the reality according to the wishes of the user. This article follows previous research of modern phenomena in terms of magic as presented by Thomas O’Dell (O’Dell, Spas and the Cultural Economy) and Peter Pels (Pels, Magic and Modernity, 183–99). Such approach can explain how the engagement and the unique relationship are still possible in a highly commercialized and commoditized world of modern football.