Rivier University

Abstract Even though many poets have shone a light on the lives of other-than-human animals, poems remain a rich yet largely unexplored source of ethical sensitivity toward them. I will argue that an appreciation of the aesthetic qualities of animals as depicted in works by Christopher Smart (1722–1771) and William Stafford (1914–1993) can lead directly to an apprehension of the ethical significance of those animals. As captured in their poems, the beauty of animals—their embodied subjectivity and individuality—compels disinterested attention as a proper mode of response in both the poet and the reader. This response generates attitudes of respect, wonder, humility, and gratitude that have powerful ethical import. Smart and Stafford present us with not only the aesthetic meaning of animals but also with the ethical significance that flows from that meaning. That significance refines and enlarges the moral imagination of their readers.

In this study, we present a method for emotion recognition in Virtual Reality (VR) using pupillometry. We analyze pupil diameter responses to both visual and auditory stimuli via a VR headset and focus on extracting key features in the time-domain, frequency-domain, and time-frequency domain from VR-generated data. Our approach utilizes feature selection to identify the most impactful features using Maximum Relevance Minimum Redundancy (mRMR). By applying a Gradient Boosting model, an ensemble learning technique using stacked decision trees, we achieve an accuracy of 98.8% with feature engineering, compared to 84.9% without it. This research contributes significantly to the Thelxinoë framework, aiming to enhance VR experiences by integrating multiple sensor data for realistic and emotionally resonant touch interactions. Our findings open new avenues for developing more immersive and interactive VR environments, paving the way for future advancements in virtual touch technology.

Trust is critical to the establishment and maintenance of working relationships between the parents of children with disabilities and their child’s professional. Knowledge of the specific communication skills needed to secure trust is unclear. The current study investigated the relationship between parent evaluation of professionals’ communication skills and parent trust of professionals. A total of 165 parents responded to an online survey during the COVID-19 pandemic. The results indicated that professionals’ communication skills had a significant and moderately positive relationship with the parent trust of professionals. Hierarchical multiple regression analyses indicated that parents’ ratings of professionals’ communication competence, and professionals’ use of in-person communication were the only predictors of parent trust of special education professionals, even when other factors were considered. This study’s findings draw attention to the importance communication skills may have in establishing and maintaining trusting relationships with parents.

Abstract Political corruption takes many forms across different countries and regions. The types of corruption that occur in American politics are drastically different from the clientelism, nepotism, and corrupt electoral practices that are seen in the developing world. This chapter will analyze three distinct cases of political corruption in Southeast Asian politics: clientelism in Cambodia, nepotism in Thailand, and the 2021 coup d'état in Myanmar. All three cases highlight the unique challenges facing developing democracies and reveal that, while political corruption affects all countries to a degree, distinct regional and cultural differences produce different forms of corruption in Southeast Asia than in the United States.

Black boys often experience oppression and marginalization in schools. Black boys with disabilities in secondary school are frequently targeted with inequitable and biased discipline practices, exacerbating the school-to-prison pipeline. As such, it is important to examine the school climate experiences of Black boys to inform the creation of safe, predictable and affirming school environments. Using Critical Race Theory and Dis/ability Critical Race Studies as a framework, the current study examined the school climate experiences of Black boys with and without emotional and behavioral disorders (N = 16,031). Overall perceptions of school climate were similar across groups, but moderation analyses demonstrated that Black boys with EBD reported significantly more peer victimization and lower levels of peer support, order and discipline, and safety than Black boys without EBD. Disability classification also moderated the relationship between peer victimization and cultural acceptance, physical environment, order & discipline, and safety with the relationship being significant and negative for Black boys with EBD. Implications for research and practice are discussed. Impact Statement It is critical that we examine the intersectional experiences of Black boys with and without disabilities in schools. This study found that Black boys experience low levels of cultural acceptance in their schools and Black boys with disabilities reported lower levels of peer support and more peer victimization than Black boys without disabilities. As such, we must center these students’ experiences in the creation of safe and affirming school environments for them.

Children with intellectual disabilities (ID) frequently have feeding problems, but there has been limited research on nutrient intake, dietary patterns and diet quality in this population. Nutrient intakes, dietary patterns and the Healthy Eating Index were compared between 48 children with ID and 55 typically developing (TD) children aged 3-8years who participated in the Children's Mealtime Study. Three-day food records that included two weekdays and one weekend day were used to assess dietary intake. Food intake was entered into the Nutrition Data System for Research for analysis of nutrient intake, dietary patterns and diet quality. Height and weight were measured to determine body mass index (BMI). The relation of dietary patterns to weight status was also assessed. Typically developing children and children with ID met the Estimated Average Requirement/Adequate Intake (EAR/AI) for most nutrients. However, a substantial number of children in both groups did not meet the EAR for vitamins E and D and calcium and the AI for vitamin K. Only one TD child met the AI for potassium. A small percentage of children in both groups did not meet the EAR for vitamin A and vitamin C, and in the ID group, a small percentage did not meet the EAR for vitamin B12 . Children in the ID group consumed, on average, fewer servings of vegetables than TD children (0.5 vs. 1.2, P<0.001), but there was no significant difference in servings of fruit (0.8 vs. 1.1, respectively), fruit juice (less than a half serving in both groups), sugar-sweetened beverages (less than a half serving in both groups) or snacks (1.1 vs. 1.4, respectively) after adjusting for BMI z-score, parental education and race. We found a significant correlation between snack intake and BMI z-score among children with ID but not among TD children (r=0.48, P<0.0001 vs. r=0.19, P=0.16, respectively). The Healthy Eating Index indicated, on average, poor overall diet quality in both groups (58.2 in the ID group and 59.1 in the TD group). This study suggests that the diets of children with ID, as in TD children, need improvement. Targeting healthy eating in children with ID would improve diet quality and overall health.

Cognitive-behavioral assessment seeks to quantify mental states including thoughts, beliefs, and images within the mind, which influence behavior, emotion, and subsequent thoughts. Due to the abstract nature of cognition, assessment is widely studied, yet impossible to perfect with any psychometric instrument. Methods of cognitive assessment range from informal (self-monitoring, self-report surveys) to formal (clinical interviewing, cognitive functional analysis, and psychophysiological measures). Limitations exist in the areas of accuracy, internality, and accessibility, as well as in the reliability and validity of available cognitive-behavioral assessments. Most assessments are not equipped to adequately take cultural considerations into account. Future trends are discussed, including the use of neuroimaging and technology for improving accuracy and understanding of cognitive-behavioral testing.