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Background: A preliminary review of literature for this study shows that the use of Garcinia Kola (bitter kola) as plant medicine is common among Africans but no scientific evidence to support its uses to prevent or treat common medical conditions. The purpose this study, therefore, is to determine whether ingesting bitter kola could provide relief for common health conditions such as cough and flu symptoms, food poison, act as anti-bacteria, anti-virus, anticancer and libido enhancement. Methods: This descriptive cross-sectional quantitative study was based on a structured questionnaire for adults aged 18 and above (n = 274) in Oshimili North Local Government area of Delta State of Nigeria. Likert scale data was coded as follows. 1 = Strongly disagree 2 = Disagree 3 = Neutral 4 = Agree 5 = Strongly agree. As Likert-type data is usually ordinal data, which makes more sense when converted to interval data. The converted ordinal data was analysed using SPSS computer software. Ethical requirement including the administration of information sheet, written informed consent and the provision of confidentiality were ensured. Results: Total questionnaire returned and analysed n=274; male (n=155) female (n=119) respondents. The results show that the benefits derive from ingesting bitter kola was rated high for cough, bacterial or viral infection and anti-cancer. The results also show that most of the respondents consider bitter kola having low benefits for relieving food poison, diarrhea, or stomach upset. Chi-square results show no association between gender and perceived benefits of bitter kola for relieving these conditions. In addition, results show that females perceive benefits derive from ingesting bitter kola as low as an aphrodisiac whereas males consider it as average. Chi-square results show significant association between gender and perceived benefits of bitter kola as an aphrodisiac. Conclusion: The study found that bitter kola provides health benefits for cough and other cold symptoms; act as anti-bacterial, anti-viral infections and anti-cancer. However, this study could not find any conclusive evidence to supports the age long claim of bitter kola as treatment for food poison, diarrhea or stomach upset and aphrodisiac (libido).

Peace journalism (PJ), originally proposed by Johan Galtung as a set of ideational distinctions in representations of conflict, has served as the organizing principle for both scholarly research and practical application. Much of the latter has come through media development aid, generally taking the form of professional training courses for editors and reporters. The effectiveness of such schemes depends on activating and galvanizing journalistic agency to change the content of reporting. This highlights a paradox: PJ is the policy response to Galtung's landmark 1965 essay, published with Mari Holmboe Ruge, 'The structure of foreign news', which, instead, attributed the chief influences on news content to the political economy of media. This article presents and considers two sets of data. One comes from interviews with sixteen alumni of PJ training courses, in which they disclose which aspects proved most readily applicable in their work. The other is based on a survey of 55 articles from The Peace Journalist, a biannual magazine published by the Global Peace Journalism Center at Park University, Missouri, which, between them, report on training courses in 33 countries over ten years. It shows which aspects of PJ are most often emphasized in such initiatives, and in what kind of conflict contexts. The two data sets are then compared and cross-referenced to show how both trainers and trainees set out to supplement and circumvent structural constraints and thus overcome the PJ paradox.

This exploratory study represents an attempt to investigate the factors that may affect the reading comprehension abilities of English as an additional language (EAL) learners. For this study, we examined a participant group of 31 (25 EAL and 6 first language English) learners studying at an international school in Japan. We assessed the participants according to four factors shown to influence reading comprehension: vocabulary knowledge, word decoding skills, reading fluency, and general linguistic ability. Our results show that differences in vocabulary knowledge show more variance in reading comprehension scores than the other factors examined in this study, highlighting the importance of vocabulary knowledge for reading comprehension. However, other factors such as reading fluency and general linguistic knowledge are also shown to be moderate to strong predictors of reading comprehension. Based on these results, we suggest that EAL learners need targeted language support to enhance academic text comprehension.

In the nineteenth century a school known as "The Unity System of Couples Nationality" stated the idea that women should acquire the nationality of their husbands after marriage. In other words, the nationality of men should be imposed on women. However, in the 20th century, a movement known as feminism emerged which led to the formation of a school named "System of Nationality Independence". This school advocated the separation of marriage and nationality and believed that women's nationality should not change following marriage. The aforementioned legal schools have had different manifestations in the positive laws of different countries and sometimes it is hard to classify them into a single legal school. The legal systems of countries can be classified into two groups: legal systems advocating the imposition of husbands' nationality on wives; legal systems opposing the imposition of husbands' nationality on wives.

AbstractAdverse events during the perinatal period have traditionally been thought to contribute to the risk of febrile seizures although an association has not been found in large epidemiological studies. Disease-discordant twins provide a means to assess the role of non-shared environmental factors while matching for confounding factors and avoiding difficulties of epidemiological studies in singletons. This study aimed to examine the association of obstetric events and febrile seizures in a community-based twin study. Twenty-one twin pairs discordant for febrile seizures were ascertained from a community-based twin register. Obstetric events were scored using the McNeil-Sjöström Scale for Obstetric Complications and expressed as a summary score (OC score). The frequency of individual obstetric events in affected and unaffected twins, the within-pair differences in OC scores and other markers of perinatal risk including birthweight, birth order and Apgar scores were examined. No significant difference was found in the frequency of individual obstetric events, nor in OC scores between affected and unaffected twins. No differences in birth weight, birth order, 1- or 5-minute Apgar scores were observed. Our results confirm previous findings that obstetric events are not associated with the risk of febrile seizures.

Background It is estimated that 64,000 children under 15 years of age are living with HIV in the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC). Non-disclosure – in which the child is not informed about their HIV status - is likely to be associated with poor outcomes during adolescence including increased risk of poor adherence and retention, and treatment failure. Disclosing a child's HIV status to them can be a difficult process for care-givers and children, and in this qualitative study we explored child and care-giver experiences of the process of disclosing, including reasons for delay. Methods A total of 22 in-depth interviews with care-givers and 11 in-depth interviews with HIV positive children whom they were caring for were conducted in one health-care facility in the capital city of Kinshasa. Care-givers were purposively sampled to include those who had disclosed to their children and those who had not. Care-givers included biological parents, grandmothers, siblings and community members and 86% of them were female. Interviews were conducted in French and Lingala. All interviews were translated and/or transcribed into French before being manually coded. Thematic analysis was conducted. Verbal informed consent/assent was taken from all interviewees. Results At the time of interview, the mean age of children and care-givers was 17 (15–19) and 47 (21–70) years old, respectively. Many care-givers had lost family members due to HIV and several were HIV positive themselves. Reasons for non-disclosure included fear of stigmatisation; wanting to protect the child and not having enough knowledge about HIV or the status of the child to disclose. Several children had multiple care-givers, which also delayed disclosure, as responsibility for the child was shared. In addition, some care-givers were struggling to accept their own HIV status and did not want their child to blame them for their own positive status by disclosing to them. Conclusions Child disclosure is a complex process for care-givers, health-care workers and the children themselves. Care-givers may require additional psycho-social support to manage disclosure. Involving multiple care-givers in the care of HIV positive children could offer additional support for disclosure.

In this thesis I examine the relationship between social boundaries and processes of othering and belonging amongst refugees in a Northern Norwegian community. I find that organizing concepts such as 'integration', 'culture' and 'second generation immigrant' permeate everyday talk on, and definitions of refugees amongst my Norwegian majority informants. In this context, I argue that dynamics of micro-humiliation may arise as a consequence to widespread and largely self-evident cultural assumptions about belonging and non-belonging along the Norwegian/refugee divide which come together as a particular type of othering: 'A typology of foreignness'. To discuss how the typology of foreignness may transcend into experiences of micro-humiliation amongst societal newcomers, I develop the concept of 'total identification'. I argue that the use of labelling concepts such as 'immigrant' may translate into a problematic form of identity-based reductionism, overshadow individual constellations of personhood and routinely invite subject positions towards refugees with a taken-for-granted ontological quality of ethnic/cultural non-belonging. I then go on to examine social boundaries as they are experienced from the position of individuals with a refugee status. I discuss how certain markers of foreignness, such as religion, skin colour, language, gender and ideas of 'cultural difference' may be intersectionally linked and appear to be cumulative and mutually reinforcing. To describe this individual multidimensionality of micro-humiliation, and how the typology of foreignness may impact people in varying ways according to the broader situatedness of their identity, I develop the concept of 'negative symbolic capital'. I argue that what is often understood as dynamics of ethnic/residential segregation may be thought of as a feedback loop of foreignness. Thus, to emphasise one's minority status may be an emergency plan for establishing belonging; a way for some individuals to create a sense of social attachment, self-worth and dignity in a society where Norwegian ethnicity has become a highly salient marker for 'genuine' belonging within the nation.

Purpose The aim of this study was to investigate how the productivity spillover effects of foreign direct investment (FDI) in the Latin American economies are manifested. Specifically, the paper sought to identify the role of foreign presence and government intervention through an industrial policy on total factor productivity in Latin American countries. Design/methodology/approach The analyses in this study were performed in two stages. The first step consisted of decomposing the total factor productivity growth, in technical efficiency change (EC) and technological efficiency change (TC), using the Malmquist Productivity Index (MPI). In the second stage of this research, the specific EC and TC indexes of each country – obtained with the MPI – are used alternately as a dependent variable in a regression analysis with dynamic panel data. The variables were collected from the World Development Indicators database, available in the World Bank database, and cover the period from 1994 to 2014. Findings FDI has contributed to not only the catch-up effect – i.e. to continuous improvements in production processes and products using the same technology – but also in terms of productivity, due to technological innovations and the frontier-shift effect. Industrial policies, such as the FDI attraction, when established in isolation, are not able to contribute to the generation of productivity spillovers, measured in terms of technical and technological efficiency. Research limitations/implications The limitation of the present study lies precisely in the nature of data aggregation that actually limits a more in-depth analysis of the object of study. The available data set for the analysis in this study does not provide a detailed examination of the domestic corporations' characteristics, the sectors and motivations of multinational corporations of each one of the analyzed economies. Practical implications The outcomes of this research present several practical implications, as its development is based on the recognition that productivity is essential for the development of a country. It remains the Achilles' heel of the Latin American economies, and therefore, it is necessary and essential to move toward a change in its development model and, more specifically, in its industrial policies, with a focus on investment and innovation to achieve the new sustainable development objectives. Among the main challenges presented to governments in the region is the emergence of policies aimed at establishing a sustainable development path through industrial policies capable of accelerating productivity growth. Social implications The evidence presented in this study highlights the importance of better understanding the real effects of state intervention through the use of industrial policy instruments and how they affect foreigners' investment decisions, as the lack of clear industrial policy orientation that is systematically integrated with MNEs' operations may result in economic development opportunities below the ideal. Originality/value The research results corroborate the foundations of spillover effects theory and with the recognition that the intensity of the effect of the foreign participation on the performance of economies will depend on the absorption capacity of host economies.

Abstract Purpose The aim of this study was to investigate how the productivity spillover effects of foreign direct investment (FDI) in the Latin American economies are manifested. Specifically, the paper sought to identify the role of foreign presence and government intervention through an industrial policy on total factor productivity in Latin American countries. Design/methodology/approach The analyses in this study were performed in two stages. The first step consisted of decomposing the total factor productivity growth, in technical efficiency change (EC) and technological efficiency change (TC), using the Malmquist Productivity Index (MPI). In the second stage of this research, the specific EC and TC indexes of each country – obtained with the MPI – are used alternately as a dependent variable in a regression analysis with dynamic panel data. The variables were collected from the World Development Indicators database, available in the World Bank database, and cover the period from 1994 to 2014. Findings FDI has contributed to not only the catch-up effect – i.e. to continuous improvements in production processes and products using the same technology – but also in terms of productivity, due to technological innovations and the frontier-shift effect. Industrial policies, such as the FDI attraction, when established in isolation, are not able to contribute to the generation of productivity spillovers, measured in terms of technical and technological efficiency. Research limitations/implications The limitation of the present study lies precisely in the nature of data aggregation that actually limits a more in-depth analysis of the object of study. The available data set for the analysis in this study does not provide a detailed examination of the domestic corporations' characteristics, the sectors and motivations of multinational corporations of each one of the analyzed economies. Practical implications The outcomes of this research present several practical implications, as its development is based on the recognition that productivity is essential for the development of a country. It remains the Achilles' heel of the Latin American economies, and therefore, it is necessary and essential to move toward a change in its development model and, more specifically, in its industrial policies, with a focus on investment and innovation to achieve the new sustainable development objectives. Among the main challenges presented to governments in the region is the emergence of policies aimed at establishing a sustainable development path through industrial policies capable of accelerating productivity growth. Social implications The evidence presented in this study highlights the importance of better understanding the real effects of state intervention through the use of industrial policy instruments and how they affect foreigners' investment decisions, as the lack of clear industrial policy orientation that is systematically integrated with MNEs' operations may result in economic development opportunities below the ideal. Originality/value The research results corroborate the foundations of spillover effects theory and with the recognition that the intensity of the effect of the foreign participation on the performance of economies will depend on the absorption capacity of host economies.

Purpose
The aim of this study was to investigate how the productivity spillover effects of foreign direct investment (FDI) in the Latin American economies are manifested. Specifically, the paper sought to identify the role of foreign presence and government intervention through an industrial policy on total factor productivity in Latin American countries.


Design/methodology/approach
The analyses in this study were performed in two stages. The first step consisted of decomposing the total factor productivity growth, in technical efficiency change (EC) and technological efficiency change (TC), using the Malmquist Productivity Index (MPI). In the second stage of this research, the specific EC and TC indexes of each country – obtained with the MPI – are used alternately as a dependent variable in a regression analysis with dynamic panel data. The variables were collected from the World Development Indicators database, available in the World Bank database, and cover the period from 1994 to 2014.


Findings
FDI has contributed to not only the catch-up effect – i.e. to continuous improvements in production processes and products using the same technology – but also in terms of productivity, due to technological innovations and the frontier-shift effect. Industrial policies, such as the FDI attraction, when established in isolation, are not able to contribute to the generation of productivity spillovers, measured in terms of technical and technological efficiency.


Research limitations/implications
The limitation of the present study lies precisely in the nature of data aggregation that actually limits a more in-depth analysis of the object of study. The available data set for the analysis in this study does not provide a detailed examination of the domestic corporations' characteristics, the sectors and motivations of multinational corporations of each one of the analyzed economies.


Practical implications
The outcomes of this research present several practical implications, as its development is based on the recognition that productivity is essential for the development of a country. It remains the Achilles' heel of the Latin American economies, and therefore, it is necessary and essential to move toward a change in its development model and, more specifically, in its industrial policies, with a focus on investment and innovation to achieve the new sustainable development objectives. Among the main challenges presented to governments in the region is the emergence of policies aimed at establishing a sustainable development path through industrial policies capable of accelerating productivity growth.


Social implications
The evidence presented in this study highlights the importance of better understanding the real effects of state intervention through the use of industrial policy instruments and how they affect foreigners' investment decisions, as the lack of clear industrial policy orientation that is systematically integrated with MNEs' operations may result in economic development opportunities below the ideal.


Originality/value
The research results corroborate the foundations of spillover effects theory and with the recognition that the intensity of the effect of the foreign participation on the performance of economies will depend on the absorption capacity of host economies.

Recently, a growing contingent of "evolutionary sociologists" has begun to integrate theoretical ideas and empirical findings derived from evolutionary biology, especially sociobiology, into a variety of sociological inquiries. Without capitulating to a naive version of either biological reductionism or genetic determinism, these researchers and theorists have begun to synthesize sociological thought with research produced in various branches of the evolutionary life sciences. These recent developments provide sociology instructors with new opportunities to reconsider how they address the topic of biology's relevance to sociology. In this article, the authors review key issues pertaining to evolutionary explanations of social behavior, offer clarifications and explanations of several issues that are sometimes misrepresented and misunderstood, and provide specific suggestions for instructors who are interested in updating and improving the quality of instruction on this important topic.