Knowledge transfer activities in social sciences and humanities: Explaining the interactions of research groups with non-academic agents

The aim of this research is to achieve a better understanding of the processes underlying knowledge transfer (KT) in social sciences and humanities (SSH). The paper addresses: first, the extent of SSH research groups’ engagement in KT and the formal KT activities used to interact with non-academic communities; and second, how the characteristics of research groups may influence engagement in various types of KT. The empirical analysis is at research group level using data derived from a questionnaire of SSH research groups belonging to the Spanish Council for Scientific Research (CSIC). We find that KT activities are based on relational rather than commercial activities. The most frequent relational activities in which SSH research groups engage are consultancy and contract research. We find also that the characteristics of research groups (e.g. size and multidisciplinarity) and individuals (e.g. academic status and star scientist) are associated with involvement in KT activities and that a deliberate focus on the societal impacts and relevance of the research conducted is strongly related to active engagement of research groups in all the modes of KT considered in this study. From a managerial perspective, our findings suggest that measures promoting a focus on the societal impact of research could enhance research groups’ engagement in KT activities.     

Developing social and emotional fluency: an evaluation of a therapeutic group for girls who attend a school for students with complex needs

Beverley Flitton is a PhD student a the University of Hertfordshire, where Julia Buckroyd is Professor of Counselling, and Maria Vassiliou is employed at Durants School, Enfield, as a nursery nurse. In this article, they describe the process of setting up and running a therapeutic group for girls in a school for students with learning difficulties and complex needs in London, England. Six girls, from years 9 and 10, aged 14 to 15, participated in the group. They were offered 23 weeks of group work. The six girls, their teachers and their teaching assistants were interviewed before and after the series of sessions using a semi-structured schedule. These interviews formed a core part of an evaluation of the impact of the therapeutic group and data were also gathered from notes taken in the group sessions. This article describes the issues presented by the girls and their development in the group. Staff reported significant changes in two of the students and noticeable changes in the remaining four. The girls reported an awareness of changes in themselves and Beverley Flitton, Julia Buckroyd and Maria Vassiliou, reflecting on the girls' emotional problems and social development, suggest that they were able to transfer skills gained in the group into other situations.     

Humor in Crisis: Guadalupe Loaeza's Caricature of the Mexican Bourgeoisie

Desde 1982 las sátiras de Guadalupe Loaeza han servido como radiografía de la sociedad mexicana durante los años de crisis económica de 1982-al presente. Mientras otras escritoras como Christina Pacheco y Elena Poniatowska se afanan por pintar la cruda realidad de las masas, Loaeza se concentra en los excesos de la burguesía—en su pretensión, materialismo y corrupción—como materia prima para poner de relieve el gran abismo que existe entre las clases sociales en México. Debido a la inmensa popularidad de sus artículos, Loaeza se ha convertido en cronista de la burguesía capitalina moderna, cuyo poder social y político se ve cada vez más amenazado por la crisis económica y la inestablilidad del gobierno.     

The Antecedents of Menarcheal Age: Heredity, Family Environment, and Stressful Life Events

Variations in pubertal timing, specifically age at menarche, have been associated with several antecedents, both genetic and environmental. Recent research has considered a broader range of environmental stressors and their influence on the development of the reproductive system. In this investigation, the following possible antecedents were considered: ( a ) hereditary transmission, ( b ) weight and weight for height, ( c ) stressful life events, ( d ) family relations, ( e ) absence or presence of an adult male in the household, and ( f ) psychological adjustment. Subjects were 75 premenarcheal girls between the ages of 10 and 14 drawn from a larger longitudinal investigation of adolescent development. Girls were from white, well-educated, middle- to upper-middle-class families and attended private schools in a northeastern urban area. While breast development, weight, family relations, and depressive affect were predictive of age at menarche, family relations predicted age at menarche above the influence of breast development or weight. A trend for maternal age at menarche to predict adolescent's age at menarche was found. Weight for height, presence of an adult male in the household, and stressful events were not predictive of age at menarche. These complex interactions of biological and psychosocial development demonstrated here may account to some extent for the inter- and intraindividual variation observed in pubertal development.     

Genetic Change and Continuity from Fourteen to Twenty Months: The MacArthur Longitudinal Twin Study

Genetic change as well as continuity was investigated within the domains of temperament, emotion, and cognition/language for 200 pairs of twins assessed at 14 and 20 months of age in the laboratory and home. The second year of life is marked by change rather than continuity: correlations from 14 to 20 months averaged about .30 for observational measures of temperament and emotion, about .40 for language measures, and about .50 for mental development. 2 types of genetic change were examined: changes in the magnitude of genetic influence (heritability) and genetic contributions to change from 14 to 20 months. In general, heritability estimates were similar at 14 and 20 months. Evidence for genetic influence on change from 14 to 20 months emerged for several measures, implying that heritability cannot be equated with stability. Analyses of continuity indicated that genetic factors are largely responsible for continuity from 14 to 20 months.