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461 papers

Sharing for the common good: Children's levels of social inclusion within the group and their sharing decisions in a public goods game.

Malin Y et al. · Jul 1, 2026

Across two studies, this research explored the relationship between levels of social inclusion within a group and cooperative sharing decisions among children, using the public goods game (PGG). In Study 1 (10-12 years old, N = 165), participants' social inclusion was experimentally manipulated using a modified version of the Cyberball paradigm that varied the number of ball tosses, after which they were asked about their willingness to contribute resources to the common pool in the PGG. In Study 2 (10-11 years old, N = 249), social inclusion was measured in a naturalistic context by assessing children's interactions with peers in their class and their actual contributions in the PGG at two time points, 1 week apart. In both studies, children who experienced higher levels of social inclusion within the group were more willing to contribute to the group, even at a personal cost, compared with children experiencing lower levels of social inclusion. Together, these findings deepen our understanding of how social inclusion within the group shapes prosocial behaviour during middle childhood-a pivotal period in social development.

Social Sciences

Understanding chemical reactions through multimedia resolution data artistic educational tool (MRDAET).

Pokojná H et al. · Jul 1, 2026

Through the integration of science, art, and technology, we present Multimedia Resolution Data Artistic Educational Tool (MRDAET), an interactive installation designed to support the visualization and understanding of molecular reactions. The installation focuses on ATP synthesis and the electron transport chain-core biochemical processes that are often difficult to grasp due to their complexity and abstract nature. Inspired by David Goodsell's fusion of scientific accuracy and artistic expression, MRDAET employs physical 3D models derived from structural data in the Protein Data Bank, augmented with projection mapping and enhanced with illustrations. The installation encourages users to explore molecular processes through layered interactivity that combines tangible models with animated visual overlays. MRDAET was evaluated at an art and technology event, where user feedback indicated that the installation was both enjoyable and perceived as helpful in education. Participants reported improved understanding of the presented biochemical concepts and expressed interest in increased interactivity, particularly through Mixed Reality integration connecting physical models and dynamic animations. While individual and combined visual modalities have been shown to be effective in science education, immersive interactive installations of this type remain underexplored in this context. This paper presents MRDAET as the third iteration following prior designs, offering a science-driven educational approach that warrants further study and application to additional scientific areas.

Computer Science

Nutrition as the Foundation of Human Capital: Pathways to Holistic Development.

Hassen DM. · Jul 1, 2026

Human capital is widely recognized as central to economic growth and social progress. However, commonly used development measurements often assess outcomes achieved in adolescence or adulthood. These approaches overlook the formative biological processes that shape lifelong capability. In line with this, this Perspective argues that maternal and early childhood nutrition, particularly during the first 1000 days, constitutes the critical foundation of human capital formation. During this critical window, rapid brain development, immune programming, and metabolic adaptation occur, making nutritional adequacy, quality, and diversity essential for cognitive development, executive function, and long-term productivity. Human capital development during the first 1000 days-rooted in maternal and early-life nutrition and identified as the Creation phase in this Perspective-is considered a necessary condition for investments in education and skill formation in later life stages. Despite this, widely used development measures, including the human development index (HDI), remain largely retrospective in approach and output-oriented in focus. The Perspective proposes an adjustment to the HDI by incorporating maternal, birth, child nutrition, and early developmental indicators to better capture the biological foundations of capability. This approach would create an opportunity to ensure multisectoral accountability, address intergenerational and geographic inequities, and align policy priorities with the origins of human capital and development.

Nursing

Navigating Knowledge: Effects of State Curiosity on Children's Word Learning and Information Seeking.

Caunt A et al. · Jul 1, 2026

Early learning takes place within complex, multimodal environments where curiosity plays a critical role in guiding exploratory behaviors and supporting cognitive development. While trait curiosity shapes children's early learning experiences, state curiosity is context-dependent fostering early learning, in-part, through information seeking behaviors. Here, we explore whether state-induced curiosity can influence exploratory behaviors and facilitate word-learning within a multimodal search task that mirrors real-world learning environments. Children (2.5- to 4-year-olds) will be introduced to novel objects and labels via a storybook. After exposure to each novel object, participants will locate the target object (i.e., a sticker depicting the novel object), hidden within one of ten boxes uniformly distributed across a real-world space. Unbeknownst to participants, the target will only be hidden within a single hemispace. In the "High-Curiosity" condition, the storybook should elicit greater curiosity, whereas the "Low-Curiosity" condition will present novel words in a context that should invoke lower levels of curiosity. Following the search task, participants will complete a forced-choice word learning task. Findings will provide insights into whether and how curiosity facilitates word learning in rich, multimodal contexts and how this relationship can be impacted by children's explorative strategies, including their sensitivity to environmental statistics. SUMMARY: Curiosity drives early development, but the extent to which it facilitates learning within a multimodal environment remains underexplored. The study examines how high versus low induced curiosity states influence toddlers' exploratory behavior, including search efficiency and adaptation to spatial probability cues. The study assesses whether higher state-induced curiosity leads to stronger retention and recognition of novel word-object mappings compared to the lower curiosity condition. The study examines how curiosity-driven search strategies relate to novel word learning and whether learning is moderated by how children choose to search for information.

Psychology

Organ allocation and transplant equity in Brazil: the hidden burden of HLA homozygosity and hypersensitization.

Santos Júnior ACSD et al. · Jul 1, 2026

Introduction Kidney transplantation remains the most cost-effective treatment for end-stage renal disease (ESRD); however, persistent organ scarcity and immunological barriers contribute to prolonged waiting times and inequitable access. Human leukocyte antigen (HLA) sensitization and homozygosity represent major challenges inadequately addressed by previous allocation models. Objectives This study aimed to assess the impact of HLA sensitization and HLA homozygosity on access to kidney transplantation in the regional sector of Minas Gerais. Methods We conducted a cross-sectional analysis of deceased-donor kidney transplant recipients and active candidates listed in the Brazilian National Transplant System (SNT) from January 2010 to August 2024 in a regional allocation sector of Minas Gerais. We assessed the impact of HLA sensitization and HLA-DRB1 homozygosity on access to transplantation, contextualizing the findings within recent national regulatory updates. Results Of 2,907 patients analyzed, 1,794 (61.7%) underwent transplantation and 1,113 (38.3%) remained active on the waiting list. Diabetes mellitus (HR 1.177; p = 0.030) and blood groups A (HR 1.206; p Conclusion Our results support recent Brazilian allocation reforms aimed at prioritizing hypersensitized and immunogenetically disadvantaged patients. Incorporating both the degree of sensitization and HLA-DR homozygosity into allocation algorithms represents a critical step toward improving equity in deceased-donor kidney transplantation.

Medicine

Police officers' prejudice and distrust towards racialized groups is related to internal motivation to suppress prejudice and negative intergroup contact.

Stelter M et al. · Jul 1, 2026

Racialized individuals experience different interactions with the police compared to non-racialized individuals. This study investigates biases among German police officers (N = 208) towards individuals perceived as Arab. Police officers demonstrated shooter biases in a first-person shooter task, rated Arab individuals as less trustworthy, and expressed a preference for White individuals over Arab individuals. These biases closely mirrored those found in a civilian convenience sample (N = 237), with one notable difference: police officers showed significantly greater distrust towards Arab individuals than civilians. This heightened distrust was mediated by social dominance orientation and negative perceptions of intergroup contact. Additionally, internal motivation to suppress prejudice was as a strong predictor of both group preference and distrust in both samples. Collectively, these findings highlight that police officers, as a reflection of society, exhibit pervasive biases towards racialized groups, which might impact their interactions with minoritized communities.

Social Sciences

Maternal Health and Sociodemographic Characteristics Influence Infant Growth to 24 Months in the Tunza Mwana Cohort: A Prospective Cohort Study.

Hendrixson DT et al. · Jul 1, 2026

Upstream pathways influencing child growth are complex. Weight-for-age z-score (WAZ) reflects both ponderal and linear growth and can identify children at high mortality risk. Using data from a prospective cohort of 326 mother-child pairs in Kenya, we evaluated whether associations between maternal exposures and child growth outcomes in early and later childhood. Growth trajectories were examined using locally weighted scatterplot smoothing and piecewise linear mixed-effect models with a knot at age 3 months. Poisson regression models examined associations between maternal characteristics and child underweight (WAZ < -2) and stunting (LAZ < -2) before and after 3 months. Mean WAZ increased to a peak at 3 months before declining steadily through 24 months. Lower maternal education (adjusted β [aβ] -0.18; 95% CI: -0.24, -0.13), household crowding (aβ -0.2; 95% CI: -0.28, -0.11), lower wealth quintile (aβ -0.04; 95% CI: -0.06, -0.02) and multiparity (aβ -0.16; 95% CI: -0.23, -0.1) were associated with lower monthly rate of change in WAZ prior to age 3 months. Younger maternal age was associated with an increased monthly rate of change in WAZ (aβ = 0.13; 95% CI: 0.08, 0.18) before 3 months and decreased monthly WAZ (aβ -0.02; 95% CI: -0.03, -0.01) after 3 months. Preterm birth was associated with increased risk of underweight in both periods (aRR 2.77; 95% CI: 1.39-5.50). Maternal mental health, intimate partner violence and adverse childhood experiences were not significantly associated with child growth. Maternal nutritional, socio-economic and household-level factors shape early growth, emphasising the need for cross-sectoral programs to support growth.

Nursing

Association between inflammatory markers and mortality in hemodialysis patients.

Cindoglu C et al. · Jul 1, 2026

Introduction This study aimed to evaluate the association between mortality and biomarkers reflecting inflammatory and nutritional status in hemodialysis (HD) patients, including the systemic immune-inflammation index (SII), neutrophil-to-lymphocyte ratio (NLR), platelet-to-lymphocyte ratio (PLR), C-reactive protein-to-albumin ratio (CAR), hemoglobin, albumin, lymphocyte and platelet (HALP) score, and prognostic nutritional index (PNI). Methods This retrospective cohort study included 135 patients on routine HD. Baseline sociodemographic data, complete blood count, and biochemical parameters were recorded. Patients were followed for one year and classified as survivors or non-survivors. Predictors of mortality were analyzed using logistic regression (Enter method), with multicollinearity assessed by the variance inflation factor (VIF) and tolerance statistics. Results The mean age of the patients included in the study was 55.2 ± 16.6 years, and 47.4% were male. In univariate analyses, age, albumin, calcium, CRP, white blood cell count, neutrophil count, hematocrit, hemoglobin, SII, NLR, CAR, and PNI were found to be significantly associated with survival (all p Conclusion Our study demonstrated that easily accessible and low-cost parameters, particularly CAR and PNI, are clinically valuable in predicting survival. The identification of hemoglobin levels as an independent predictor further supports the prognostic significance of hematological parameters. This study may serve as a basis for future research on the prognostic use of these biomarkers, emphasizing the need for large-scale and prospective studies.

Medicine

Translation, cross-cultural adaptation and psychometric validation of the Brazilian version of the dialysis patient-perceived exercise benefits and barriers scale.

Silva GAD et al. · Jul 1, 2026

Background Chronic kidney disease (CKD) in dialysis patients compromises musculoskeletal health and reduces physical activity levels. The Dialysis Patient-Perceived Exercise Benefits and Barriers Scale (DPEBBS) was specifically developed to assess dialysis patients' perceptions of exercise. This study aimed to translate, cross-culturally adapt, and evaluate the psychometric properties of the Brazilian version of the DPEBBS (EPAD). Methods A cross-sectional study was conducted following the COSMIN guidelines. Psychometric properties assessed included reliability, internal consistency, and construct validity. Participants were recruited from the hemodialysis department of Unifesp. A total of 112 adults on dialysis completed the DPEBBS, the Short Form Health Survey-36 (SF-36), and underwent anthropometric evaluation. The interval between test-retest was one week. Descriptive and inferential analyses were performed to test validity and reliability. Results The scale demonstrated high test-retest stability, with consistent mean scores across assessments. Internal consistency was strong, and reliability was supported by a low minimal detectable change and a high intraclass correlation coefficient. Convergent validity with the SF-36 Physical Functioning domain was weak but statistically significant (r = -0.326; p = 0.001), and the correlation with the General Health domain was weak and not statistically significant (r = -0.185; p = 0.052). Consistency analysis showed α = 0.885, ICC = 0.794, SEM = 4.96%, and demonstrated the absence of floor and ceiling effects. Conclusion The EPAD showed robust validity and reliability for dialysis patients. Despite adequate reliability and validity, this study has limitations, including a single-center sample. The EPAD may support individualized exercise counseling and rehabilitation planning in hemodialysis units.

Medicine

Understanding the Associations Between Attachment Insecurity, Emotional Flooding, and Conflict Behaviors in Prenatal Couples.

Morgan SD et al. · Jul 1, 2026

The transition to parenthood is a period of heightened vulnerability for many couples, often marked by increased conflict. Attachment insecurity is a known risk factor, linked to dysfunctional conflict dynamics in couples more broadly. Yet, the emotional processes driving these patterns remain underexplored, especially from a dyadic perspective. This study examined emotional flooding-a form of dyadic emotion dysregulation-as a potential intermediary variable linking attachment to conflict behaviors. Ninety-six mixed-sex couples completed questionnaires on attachment and emotional flooding before engaging in observationally coded conflict discussions during the third trimester of pregnancy. Actor partner interdependence models extended to mediation (APIMeM) revealed that men's attachment anxiety was positively associated with observed conflict withdrawal indirectly through their own emotional flooding. Women's attachment anxiety was positively associated with observed conflict hostility through their own emotional flooding. Findings highlight emotional flooding as a pathway through which attachment shapes mixed-sex couples' vulnerability to gendered conflict patterns.

Psychology