Gulf Coast communities face many environmental threats that disproportionately impact the health of pregnant women. While the perception of risk strategies often differ across cultural groups, little is known about the detail of these differences. The purpose of this study was to explore the cultural knowledge of environmental threats within an at-risk group (low-income, first-time mothers in Southeast Louisiana). This proposal was a part of a SAMHSA-supplemental-funded study, which was an extension of a National Institutes of Health (NIH) funded U19 consortium called the Transdisciplinary Research Consortium for Gulf Resilience on Women’s Health (GROWH). In the first of a two-phase ethnographic approach, interviews with mothers helped identify risk in the environment, important steps to manage these threats, and trustworthy sources to turn to for help. Next, a larger sample (n=112) of mothers indicated their level of agreement to these items. These ratings were analyzed through cultural consensus analysis which gave a quantitative estimate of cultural sharing and beliefs. Results revealed that mothers shared a common pattern of risk perception and behavior regarding the assessment of different environmental threats. Further analyses detailed these cultural models, and identified if cultural knowledge was associated with key socio-demographic factors. Additionally, subtle areas of intra-cultural variation within the general consensus showed that some mothers emphasized health behaviors that may increase household risk. The results of this study contribute to an understanding of how low-income households manage environmental health threats, how cultural knowledge is distributed, and what factors influence knowledge. Study results can help to identify greater awareness of cultural differences within an at-risk population, which can be used to create culturally-tailored risk messaging. Implications for environmental health research, and public health policy are also discussed. / 1 / Christopher Mundorf

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Flood events have become more frequent in Europe, and the adaptation to the increasing flood risks is needed. The Flood Directive set up a series of measures to increase European resilience, establishing Flood Risk Management Plans (FRMPs) at the level of the river basin district as one relevant action. In order to efficiently fulfil this objective, the involvement of stakeholders as well as the analysis of their roles, responsibilities, and demands has been considered to be crucial to develop FRMPs. As a result, the hypothesis tested in this paper is that a consensus solution for the 2021 update Austrian Flood Risk Management Plan is feasible. To demonstrate this, both in-depth interviews and questionnaires to key Austrian stakeholders are implemented. The information collected in both participatory techniques are then used to run a conflict prevention analysis. The results show that (a) improving the coordination among regions and including better land-use planning approaches are preferable to a hypothetical business as usual scenario; and (b) a consensus solution for the 2021 update Austrian FRMP might be achievable on the basis of both a deep discussion on the state-of-the art and green infrastructure development.

In the U.S., individuals of Afro-Caribbean and Latino descent are two to three times more likely to develop type 2 diabetes than non-Hispanic whites. Caribbean and Latin America migrants, particularly minority women bear a disproportionate burden of type 2 diabetes and its risk factors. The purpose of this research is to investigate if Afro-Caribbean women share a cultural belief model about type 2 diabetes and how this belief model, along with structural barriers to health care, influence disease risk and management. A sample of 40 women, primarily Jamaican and Trinidadian, 35 to 90 years of age previously diagnosed with type 2 diabetes were recruited in southwest Florida. Socio-demographic, medical history, and self-reported height and weight data were collected from women. A 53 item yes/no cultural beliefs questionnaire about type 2 diabetes' etiology, treatment, and symptoms was administered to 30 women. Semi-structured interviews about diet and lifestyle type 2 diabetes management were conducted with 38 women, 24 interviews were conducted over the telephone. The cultural consensus analysis used to analyze the cultural beliefs questionnaire found that the women shared a single cultural belief model (.72 ±.081 SD) about type 2 diabetes. Body mass index was calculated from self-reported height and weight data, and correlated with socio-demographic and cultural belief variables. The age-adjusted prevalence of obesity was 40.39 percent. The spearman correlation found that women with higher BMI (rs = -0.42993, p = .0125) and individual cultural knowledge scores (rs = -0.41730, p = .0218) were significantly younger at age of type 2 diabetes diagnosis than women with lower BMI and individual cultural knowledge scores. The women's cultural belief model about type 2 diabetes was similar to the biomedical model. Women struggled to modify their traditional Caribbean diet and failed to engage in regular leisure physical activity which may have contributed to their high BMI. Inadequate health insurance and transnational migration prevented women from accessing regular medical care and effectively managing the disease. Afro-Caribbean women face an ongoing struggle to control their glucose levels and BMI to prevent the onset of type 2 diabetes complications.

Mental illness is a complex phenomenon that is social and psychological as well as biological. But since the creation of the DSM-III in the 1980s, the landscape of mental health research and treatment in the United States has been heavily influenced by the biomedical model. The thoughts and beliefs of the lay public about mental illness are often ignored despite the push for greater cultural understanding among biomedical professionals. This disconnect, coupled with the poor mental health infrastructure, has left Mississippi with an inadequate ability to help Mississippians address mental illness. This research uses cognitive anthropological methods and biocultural theory to begin to address this disconnect. A shared cultural model of mental illness by causes, symptoms, and treatments was found. There were systematic differences between the two groups’ knowledge of causes of mental illness. Understanding these will assist in providing more culturally appropriate care for the mentally ill.

Cultural practices influence infant feeding choices and have a significant impact on children’s physiological growth and cognitive development. This study examined cultural knowledge of infant feeding among woman in rural and urban Bangladesh. The findings of this research indicated that there was sufficient agreement among the respondents to constitute a single shared cultural model of infant feeding among participants in Bangladesh. Results also indicated intracultural variation within this model in terms of duration of exclusive breastfeeding, age at introduction of water, and weaning practices. Better understanding infant feeding can inform future programs aimed at improving early nutrition, growth, and development by providing information about actual practices and their cultural importance.

Literature has found that some minority groups with diabetes have a negative perception of medical professionals when a health problem occurs. This trend is particularly problematic with the diabetes epidemic in the United States. African Americans are more than 2 times as likely to die from diabetes than are Whites, and diabetes prevalence has increased exponentially in New York City where a majority of Afro-Caribbeans live. To address this problem, a cross-sectional design was used to recruit Afro-Caribbeans diagnosed with type 2 diabetes across 7 churches to examine whether shared knowledge, attitudes, beliefs, and behaviors about diabetes screening and its complications exist, and whether they would attend a type 2 diabetes class or workshop at their church. A 114-item questionnaire, adapted from reliable and validated national health surveys, was administered to a convenience sample of 67 participants aged 35 to 90 to collect demographic, health, and cultural belief information. The conceptual frameworks of the social ecological and cultural consensus models were used for discovery of social influences and shared knowledge of type 2 diabetes. A cultural consensus analysis of 28 eligible participants was used to infer trustworthy answers to cultural questions. Participants demonstrated an above-average knowledge of type 2 diabetes, with a level of agreement of .52 ('.192 SD); further, 85.2% reported that they would attend a diabetes class or workshop at their church. These findings promote social change by educating Afro-Caribbeans about diabetes, and by facilitating partnerships between churches and doctors. Future community-based research with churches could help to improve glycemic control and delay the onset of type 2 diabetes.

This research examines the influence of tourism on migrants’ decisions to move to La Fortuna, Costa Rica, located in the buffer zone of Arenal National Park. Tourism is integral to Costa Rica’s economy and is closely connected to its national parks. Ecotourism is proposed as a non-extractive way for local people to benefit from natural resources, thus contributing to economic development and supporting conservation initiatives. However, if employment opportunities related to tourism encourage high rates of migration to edges of parks, then the resulting population growth could be detrimental to biodiversity conservation goals. Forty participants were interviewed for this project, which used cultural consensus analysis and semi-structured interviews to examine participants’ own behavior as well as shared cultural knowledge of factors that influence migration decisions. Results show that while employment opportunity was influential, other factors such as social stability and tranquility were equally important in participants’ motivations for relocating.

Aloe L. (Asphodelaceae) is a monocotyledonous group of considerable popularity among succulent plant collectors and with a long history of medicinal use. It comprises ca. 500 species occurring throughout Africa, the Arabian Peninsula and western Indian Ocean islands. The first comprehensive ethnobotanical study of Aloe (excluding the cultivated A. vera) was undertaken using the literature as a surrogate for data gathered by interview methods. Over 1400 use records representing 173 species were collated, the majority (74%) of which described medicinal uses, including species used for natural products. In southern Africa, 53% of approximately 120 Aloe species in the region are used for health and wellbeing. Consensus ratios indicated that the uses of Aloe spp. for medicine and pest control are of the greatest biocultural importance. Utility has contributed to the recognition of diversity, taxonomic complexity, and conservation concerns, in Aloe. A systematic evaluation of the problematic maculate (spotted) species complex, section Pictae, was undertaken. New sequences were acquired of the nuclear ribosomal internal transcribed spacer (ITS), chloroplast trnL intron, trnL–F spacer and matK gene in 29 maculate species of Aloe. A well supported monophyletic (holophyletic) maculate group was recovered in phylogenetic trees of comparable topology generated by parsimony analysis and Bayesian inference. A representative of the related section Paniculatae, A. striata, was recovered in the maculate group, whereas doubtful maculate species with unusual floral morphology (A. leptosiphon and A. suffulta) comprised a sister group. Analogous patterns were identified in chemosystematic and comparative morphological studies of 34 and 36 maculate species, respectively, and insights were gained into interspecific relationships. The flavonoids isoorientin and isovitexin, and a new C-glycosylanthrone, 6′-malonylnataloin, were characterised using hyphenated chromatographic techniques and nuclear magnetic resonance (NMR) spectroscopy. Leaf surface sculpturing, stomata and lobes surrounding the epistomatal pore observed under a scanning electron microscope (SEM) are of potential taxonomic significance. Available evidence indicates that floral characters, namely a basally swollen perianth with constriction above the ovary, are of greater significance than maculate leaves as synapomorphies for section Pictae. An evolutionary hypothesis for section Pictae excludes marginal maculate species with unusual flowers. / Thesis (PhD)--University of Pretoria, 2009. / Plant Science / unrestricted

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