The present research expanded on the literature investigating mother-child feeding and playing interactions during the transition to self-feeding (18-30 months) in the preterm population. Maternal and infant factors were also considered. A total of 69 mother-child dyads (44 preterm and 25 full-term) participated in the research. Assessments took place at 18, 24, and 30 months of the child. At each assessment, mother-child interactions during feeding (Study 1) and during a doll-play (DP) situation representing feeding (Study 2) were video recorded and later coded, respectively through the SVIA (Ammaniti et al., 2006) and the EAS (Biringen, 2008). Moreover, the child’s development was assessed through the Griffiths Scale (Griffiths, 1996, 2006) and mothers filled the BDI-II (Beck & Steer, 1996), the STAI (Spielberg, 1983), and an anamnestic questionnaire built Ad-Hoc. Results of Study 1 showed a greater occurrence of dysfunctional feeding interactions in the preterm compared to the full-term group from 18 to 30 months. Specifically, preterm dyads reported greater maternal negative affective state, greater interactional conflict and lower dyadic reciprocity. Moreover, a significantly lower percentage of children in the preterm group reached eating autonomy compared to the full-term group during the 18-30 months period. Furthermore, adverse past feeding history (difficult breastfeeding and reflux) and lower total scores on the Griffiths were associated to a higher risk of child’s food refusal. Results of Study 2 showed that the preterm group displayed lower emotional availability than the full-term group during mother-child DP interactions from 18 to 30 months, with lower maternal sensitivity, greater maternal intrusiveness, and lower child’s involvement. These findings indicate that special attention should be paid to support mother-child interactions during the transition to self-feeding in the preterm population in order to foster the mother-child relationship and promote the child’s healthy eating behavior and affective development.

Nel presente lavoro di tesi si sostiene che la disabilità infantile si produce nelle pratiche lavorative di operatrici e operatori dei servizi il cui agire diviene dis-abilitante poiché fortemente vincolato alle forme istituzionali, materiali e simboliche, della relazione terapeutica ed educativa. Attraverso la relazione individuale con l'educatrice/ore, l'abitudine a tenere il ragazzo certificato fuori dalla classe, l'orientamento scolastico alle scuole professionali, l'impossibilità di costruire percorsi educativi continuativi e in contesti eterogenei, ma anche attraverso i numerosi documenti necessari per attivare i percorsi di integrazione scolastica e le normative emesse dal Ministero dell'Istruzione, la disabilità viene quotidianamente prodotta e riprodotta. Questa, infatti, non pre-esiste alle pratiche che vengono messe in atto ma è parte di esse. Allo stesso tempo tale riproduzione coesiste sempre con tentativi di trasformazione che il “lavoro vivo”, di relazione (di cura o educativa), necessariamente implica. Parallelamente, nel corso dell'elaborato, viene sviluppata una riflessione sul ruolo sociale della ricerca come dispositivo di trasformazione. La ricerca(trice) che riconosce questo spazio di tensione tra riproduzione e trasformazione nel lavoro di operatrici e operatori può infatti scegliere di sostenere , attraverso il metodo stesso di ricerca, l'una o l'altra tendenza. Nel caso in cui si opti per la seconda è prima di tutto la pratica di ricerca a divenire campo di partecipazione e terreno di negoziazione per le alternative possibili e percorribili. Un necessario passo verso il cambiamento parte dunque dal riconoscere che tra ricercatrici/ricercatori e soggetti della ricerca, così come tra operatrici/operatori e “utenti”, vi è un campo comune di bisogni e intenti a partire dal quale solamente si possono ri-costruire pratiche educative, di cura e di liberazione. / The present thesis states that childhood disability is produced in the everyday practices of health and social workers. Their practices become dis-abling because are strongly tied to the institutionalized forms, material and symbolic, of the therapeutic and educational relation. Through the individualization of the relation with the educator, the habit of taking the “certified” child out of the class, the tendency to orient disable students to professional schools, the impossibility of creating continuous and heterogeneous educational paths, but also through the many documents needed to start school integration programs, disability is daily produced and reproduced, it is enacted. Disability does not pre-exist workers practices, but is part of them. At the same time reproduction always coexists with the possibility of difference and attempts to transformation. This tension is in fact constitutive of “live work in action” implicated in therapeutic and educational relation. Simultaneously in the thesis, the author develops a reflection on the social role of research as a tool for transformation. The research(er) who recognizes this “field of tension” between reproduction and transformation in the practices of health and social workers may choose to sustain, through the method of the research itself, the first or the second tendency. If we decide to choose the second, the practice of research first of all becomes a field of participation and negotiation for alternative possibilities. A necessary step towards change, thus, starts from recognizing that there are common needs and intents between researchers and subjects of research, and between social/health workers and “users”. Only from this common ground it is possible to re-build practices of care, education and liberation.

Introduzione. Nonostante il dolore sia un’esperienza comune a tutti gli esseri umani, è molto difficile darne una definizione esauriente sia esso fisico che psicologico. A tutt’oggi il dolore mentale è stato poco indagato. L’obiettivo principale del seguente progetto di ricerca è di delineare una più accurata definizione del costrutto di dolore mentale, verificare l’applicabilità dell’Orbach and Mikulincer Mental Pain Scale (OMMP) nella valutazione psicologica e la validazione della versione italiana di tale strumento. Metodologia. Sono stati condotti tre studi: il primo, su un campione di 15 soggetti, per verificare e confermare la validità di facciata dell’OMMP; il secondo, realizzato su un campione di 442 soggetti, oltre ad indagare le caratteristiche sociodemografiche associate con la dimensione del dolore mentale, si concentra sulla valutazione delle proprietà psicometriche dello strumento; il terzo è stato eseguito allo scopo di verificarne la struttura fattoriale ed indagare la relazione che intercorre tra dolore mentale e gli altri costrutti psicologici (n = 728). Risultati. Dai dati ottenuti è possibile delineare il profilo sociodemografico dei soggetti della popolazione generale con un maggior livello di dolore mentale: l’essere giovani, nubili/celibi e avere un livello di istruzione inferiore. L’analisi fattoriale esplorativa, non ha confermato la struttura a otto dimensioni descritta dagli autori, rivelandone una a quattro (19 item), e gli indici dell’analisi fattoriale confermativa lo supportano. Infine, le dimensioni del dolore si mostrano correlate con il distress psicologico. Discussioni e conclusioni. Il presente lavoro ha confermato la multidimensionalità del costrutto di dolore mentale nella popolazione italiana ed ha confermato la validità e l’attendibilità del OMMP_19_ITA. All’interno di diversi quadri psicopatologici è stata rilevata la presenza di un maggior livello di dolore mentale. / Introduction. Despite the pain is a common experience to all human beings, it is still very difficult to give a comprehensive definition both physical and psychological. Up till now, mental pain has been understudied The main objective of the following research project is to outline a more accurate definition of the mental pain construct, to verify the applicability of the Orbach and Mikulincer Mental Pain Scale (OMMP) in the psychological evaluation and validation of the Italian version of such tool. Methodology. Three studies were conducted: the first one, on a sample of 15 subjects, to verify and confirm the validity of the OMMP face; the second, conducted on a sample of 442 subjects, as well as investigate the socio-demographic characteristics associated with the mental pain dimension, focuses on the evaluation of the psychometric properties of the instrument; the third instead, was performed in order to verify the factorial structure and investigate the relation between mental pain and other psychological constructs (n = 728). Results. From the data obtained it is possible to outline the socio-demographic profile of the subjects of the general population with a higher level of mental pain: being young, maiden / celibate and have a lower level of education. The factorial explorative analysis, has not confirmed the eight-dimensional structure described by the authors, revealing a four one (19 item), and indexes of the confirmatory factorial analysis support it. Finally, the dimensions of the pain are shown correlated with the psychological distress. Discussions and conclusions. This work confirmed the multidimensionality of mental pain construct in the Italian population and also confirmed the validity and reliability of the OMMP_19_ITA. Within different psychopathological was detected the presence of a higher level of mental pain.

Il quadro tematico della tesi è la storia politica e culturale delle relazioni tra il cattolicesimo democratico di origine «popolare» e la tradizione del liberalismo italiano, in un arco cronologico compreso tra l’antifascismo dell’Aventino e la fondazione della Democrazia Cristiana. L’ipotesi della ricerca è che proprio in questo «lungo viaggio» la classe dirigente del cattolicesimo politico (a cominciare dalla leadership di Alcide De Gasperi) abbia completato quel processo di acculturazione in senso «liberale» che le avrebbe consentito di guidare consensualmente l’uscita dal fascismo nel secondo dopoguerra. / The framework of the thesis deals with the political and cultural history of the relationship between the democratic Chatolicism stemming from the Italian Popular Party and the tradition of the Italian Liberalism, from the antifascist coalition of the «Aventino» to the establishment of Christian Democracy. The assumption of the research is that in its «long way» the political membership of the political Catholicism (starting with De Gasperi leadership) had go through with a process of «liberal» acculturation, that would allow it to lead the exit-strategy from Fascism in the Second post-World War.

Questa tesi consiste nell'analisi socio-antropologica delle risposte al sisma che il 20 e il 29 maggio ha colpito l'area nord della pianura padano-emiliana, in Italia. La zona precisa di ricerca è stata quella compresa tra i comuni di Mirandola, Cavezzo, Concordia sul Secchia e San Possidonio, della provincia di Modena. Il soggetto specifico è stato Sisma.12, un comitato di terremotati, apartitico e trasversale, che porta avanti specifiche rivendicazioni, elaborando e ponendo in essere politiche “dal basso”, che nascono dalle esperienze dei suoi membri, differenti ma partecipate, come alternative alle scelte messe in atto dalle istituzioni. / This is a contribution to the analysis of the socio-cultural responses to the earthquake that hit the area north of the Po Valley, in Emilia (Italy) on the 20 and 29 of May, 2012. The exact area of research is located in the cities of Mirandola, Cavezzo, Concordia sul Secchia and San Possidonio, all of them situated in the Modena district. The subject of the survey is Sisma.12, a committee founded by some earthquake victims, "not-partisan and ideologically cross" claiming for specific rights. Also offering solutions to such a disaster, starting from the individual experience of its members, though different but participated, as alternative to the choices made by the institutions.

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No description available.

Music has been employed in numerous different therapeutic settings throughout history. However, there are few empirical studies and inadequate research guidelines in relation to investigating the process and outcomes of this intervention in a modern context. Anecdotal and descriptive accounts of improvements in psychological adjustment as a result of a music intervention exist but the need for empirical evaluation is paramount. The aim of this thesis is to evaluate the effect of structured music workshops on the musical ability, communication skills, self-esteem, self-perception, disruptive behaviour and short term memory of adults with learning difficulties. This series of studies employs previously validated assessments materials in addition to materials specifically designed and validated for use in this project. The first study utilises a two group design with 20 individuals in an experimental group and 20 individuals in a non-intervention control group. After all participants were assessed for communication skills, musical ability, disruptive behaviour and self-esteem the experimental group received 10 weekly, one hour music workshops focused on the playing of a Javanese Gamelan. After completion of the workshops individuals in both the experimental and control group were post-tested on the dependent variables. Results indicate significant improvements for the experimental group in musical ability and one measure of communication. No significant improvements in disruptive behaviour or self-esteem were obtained. The second study employs a similar design to study 1 in addition to controlling for experimenter effects and investigating cognitive developments and self-perception changes.

La sintomatologia ansiosa materna nel periodo prenatale risulta influire negativamente non sullo stato materno ma anche sul successivo sviluppo infantile, Tuttavia, sono limitati gli studi che hanno considerato lo specifico contributo dei disturbi d’ansia nel periodo prenatale. L’obiettivo generale dello studio è quello di indagare nel primo periodo post partum la relazione tra psicopatologia ansiosa materna e: temperamento e sviluppo neonatale, qualità del caregiving materno e dei pattern interattivi madre-bambino. 138 donne sono state intervistate utilizzando SCID-I (First et al., 1997) durante il terzo trimestre di gravidanza. 31 donne (22,5%) presentano disturbo d’ansia nel periodo prenatale. A 1 mese post partum il comportamento del neonato è stato valutato mediante NBAS (Brazelton, Nugent, 1995), mentre le madri hanno compilato MBAS (Brazelton, Nugent, 1995). A 3 mesi postpartum, una sequenza interattiva madre-bambino è stata videoregistrata e codificata utilizzando GRS (Murray et al., 1996). La procedura dello Stranger Episode (Murray et al., 2007) è stata utilizzata per osservare i pattern interattivi materni e infantili nell’interazione con una persona estranea. I neonati di madri con disturbo d’ansia manifestano alle NBAS minori capacità a livello di organizzazione di stati comportamentali, minori capacità attentive e di autoregolazione. Le madri ansiose si percepiscono significativamente meno sicure nell’occuparsi di loro, valutando i propri figli maggiormente instabili e irregolari. Nell’interazione face to face, esse mostrano comportamenti significativamente meno sensibilI, risultando meno coinvolte attivamente con il proprio bambino. Durante lo Stranger Episode, le madri con fobia sociale presentano maggiori livelli di ansia e incoraggiando in modo significativamente inferiore l’interazione del bambino con l’estraneo. I risultati sottolineano l’importanza di valutare in epoca prenatale la psicopatologia ansiosa materna. Le evidenze confermano la rilevanza che può assumere un modello multifattoriale di rischio in cui i disturbi d’ansia prenatali e la qualità del caregiving materno possono agire in modo sinergico nell’influire sugli esiti infantili. / Maternal antenatal anxiety has been shown to be associated with adverse consequences for the mother and the child. However, studies considering the effect of DSM-IV anxiety disorders during pregnancy are lacking. The general aim was to investigate, in the early postpartum, the relationship between maternal prenatal anxiety psychopathology and: neonatal behavioral development, quality of caregiving, maternal and infant’s interactive behaviors. 138 women completed the clinical interview SCID-I for DSM-IV (First et al., 1997) during the third trimester of pregnancy to assess anxiety disorders. 31 women (21,5%) showed an anxiety disorders during antenatal period. At one month postpartum, the neonatal development was assessed using NBAS (Brazelton, Nugent, 1995) and the mothers completed the MBAS (Brazelton, Nugent, 1995). At 3 months postpartum, mother-infant interactions were video-recorded and coded using GRS (Murray et al., 1996). Stranger Episode procedure (Murray et al., 2007) was used to assess maternal and infant’s interactive pattern with an unfamiliar person. Anxious mothers’ babies had poorer performances on NBAS regarding attention, self-quieting, examiner facilitation, state regulation (p<0.05). Anxious mothers perceived themselves as having a greater lack of confidence in caretaking and they consider their babies as more unsettled-irregular (p<0.05). Mothers with anxiety disorder showed less sensitive interactive behavior, resulting more withdrawal and less engaged with their infants than controls. During Stranger Episode, mothers with social phobia appeared more anxious, engaged less with the stranger themselves, and were less encouraging of the infant’s interaction with an unfamiliar person. Results underline the importance of assessing and monitoring maternal antenatal anxiety. These findings are consistent with a cumulative risk model suggesting that maternal prenatal anxiety and quality of maternal caregiving could act in concert to shape infant outcomes.

Introduction: In this decade, the CTX-M family of enzymes are considered to be the most common type of extended-spectrum β-lactamases (ESBLs). The production of these Class A β-lactamases are noted to be most prevalent in the Enterobacteriaceaeae family. Many global reports indicated that CTX-M-15, of the CTX-M-1 group, is a growing concern, causing resistance to different classes of antibiotics. Worrisome trends of the spread of this enzyme have been indicated in nosocomial and community settings worldwide. Moreover, the same predicament is faced along the Middle East area, especially in the absence of restricted antibiotic usage policies. Many reports from Kuwait indicated the spread of a multi-drug resistant (MDR) blaCTX-M-15 gene in different hospitals. blaCTX-M-15 genes are often known to be carried on large transferable plasmids. Usually, the mobilization of these plasmid-encoded enzymes is carried out by insertion sequence like ISEcp1. Aims: This work aims to investigate the distribution of blaCTX-M genes in five major hospitals in Kuwait and to study and analyse the genetic environment of the described blaCTX-M genes. Materials and methods: One hundred and seven isolates of E. coli (84) (78.50%) and K. pneumoniae (23) (21.49%) were collected between 2006 and 2010 from five distantly located hospitals in Kuwait. All of the collected isolates were identified as ESBL-producers using Vitek 2 system. The production of cefotaximases was detected using disc diffusion with cefotaxime and clavulanic acid according to Clinical and Laboratory Standards Institute (CLSI) criteria. Conformation of CTX-M production was maintained by PCR amplification and further sequencing. The minimum inhibitory concentrations (MICs) of the collected isolates were determined by the double dilutions agar method described by the CLSI. Four different classes of antibiotics were used (aminoglycosides, different generations of cephalosporins, fluoroquinolones, and 3 different carbapenems). The genotypic relatedness of the collected strains was assessed by the use of an enhanced Pulsedfield gel electrophoresis (PFGE) method. Further amplifications with primer walking and simplex PCR were done to seek the genetic context of the MDR strains. S1 nuclease was used to size plasmids carrying the described blaCTX-M genes and conjugation studies were implemented to detect the transferability of the plasmids carrying the reported blaCTX-M genes. Results: All of the collected strains showed to be ESBL-producers and in particular cefotaximases-producers. Upon amplification, CTX-M-1 group was the only CTX-Mgroup present in the collected strains. When sequenced, blaCTX-M-15 was found to be the most prevalent. In addition, strains carrying the blaCTX-M-3 gene were identified, these have previously been found in the Middle East; however, this thesis has the first descriptions of blaCTX-M-28, blaCTX-M-55, and blaCTX-M-117 in this region. After the determination of the MICs of the collected strains, 94 (87.85%) were resistant to cefepime, 107 (100%) to cefotaxime, 48 (44.85%) to cefoxitin, 78 (72.89%) ciprofloxacin, and 71 (66.35%) to gentamicin. All of the strains were susceptible to carbapenems. Twenty-eight strains (26.2%) showed MDR pattern. With the enhanced PFGE method, only 22 isolates exhibited banding patterns that allowed grouping them into 10 distinct PFGE clusters. Notably, strains sharing ≥85% were from the same hospitals (isolates 1 with 2, 21 with 22, and 91 with 92 from the maternity hospital (M), 52 with 53 from Kuwait Oil Company hospital (KOC), 78 with 79 and 83 with 84 from Infectious Diseases Hospital (IDH), 97 with 98 and 95 with 96 from Al-Amiri hospital(A) ). Primer walking and simplex PCR experiments used for the genetic environment studies yielded 7 different genetic constructions for the described blaCTX-M genes. All of the described blaCTX-M genes were carried on plasmids ranging in size from 60 – 271 kb. Only 3 of the selected strains were of IncFII and the rest wereindeterminate. Possibly, two blaCTX-M-15 genes are likely to be carried on the chromosome. All of the described blaCTX-M genes are considered to be transferable except for blaCTX-M-28. The sizes of the conjugative plasmids and incompatibility groups are the same as their parental plasmids. Conclusion: In conclusion, blaCTX-M-15 is the most common ESBL gene found in Kuwaiti hospitals. It is also causing a MDR pattern with resistance to 3 different generations of cephalosporins and to two other classes (aminoglycosides and gentamicin), but sensitive to carbapenems. This led to restricting the treatment option into carbapenems. Antibiotic selective pressure could have played a major role in the development of blaCTX-M-15 derivatives such as blaCTX-M-28, blaCTX-M-55, and blaCTX-M-117. The probable explanation of the spread of blaCTX-M-15 is horizontal gene transfer carried by ISEcp1 and the conjugative properties of the plasmids carrying blaCTX-M-15. Variability of the genetic environments obtained explains the nonconditional existence of ISEcp1 to the ‘’W’’ region. Absence of the ISEcp1 in one of the reported structures of blaCTX-M-15 genetic contexts is noted. Therefore, the existence of blaCTX-M-15 could be due to the presence of another insertion sequences downstream or as a part of a larger gene cassette.