News by Subject Social & Behavior

A new study in the journal CHEST® examined transfers of ICU patients to acute care centers before and after the VA implemented its Tele-ICU program. Investigators found that hospitals using Tele-ICU support experienced a greater reduction in transfers of ICU patients to other facilities than hospitals that did not use the services. Additionally, mortality did not change when more patients were treated locally through Tele-ICU.

News stories about terrorism, disease outbreaks, natural disasters, and other potential threats become increasingly negative, inaccurate and hysterical when passed from person to person, according to new research by the University of Warwick.

In ethnically alike communities where poverty levels run high, anti-Muslim internet searches are strongly associated with pro-ISIS searches, according to a new analysis. This pattern, say the authors, suggests that counterterrorism policies targeting Muslims may do the opposite of what they intend, making these communities even more vulnerable to radicalization.

Compared with other countries, the United States often falls short on many maternal and child health outcomes. A federal program known as Maternal, Infant, and Early Childhood Home Visiting (MIECHV) is designed to give pregnant women and families resources to help them raise healthy children. However, a team led by researchers at the University of Missouri School of Medicine examined an aspect of the initiative and found areas that could be strengthened.

Top-ranked reviewers on online retail sites such as Amazon.com may influence purchases, but a research study from Indiana University's Kelley School of Business finds that those who post reviews less often and more informally can be seen as more trustworthy and have more of an impact on sales.

Psychology researchers have used the game League of Legends to advance our understanding of how people build 'mental models' -- the mental tools that allow people to make use of complex systems. The researchers found that mental models are developed in three distinct stages -- findings that have the potential to inform everything from workplace training to video-game development.

Using the layout of a typical urban hospital, the authors investigated a hospital's capacity and capability to handle mass casualty incidents of various sizes with various characteristics, and assessed the effectiveness of designed demand management and capacity-expansion strategies. Average performance improvements gained through capacity-expansion strategies were quantified and best response actions were identified.