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Item Enhancing inclusive education in the UAE: Integrating AI for diverse learning needs(Elsevier Inc., 2024-04) El Naggar, Alia; Gaad, Eman; Inocencio, Shannaiah Aubrey MaeItem The Effect of Frontopolar Cortical Cooling on the Capacity of Working Memory in Healthy Adults, a Randomized Controlled Trial Study(Shiraz University of Medical Sciences, 2023) Zahediannasb, Roohollah; Nami, Mohammad; Hosseini, Maryam; Foroughi, Amin Abolhasani; Ghodsinejad, Amirsaeed; Aligholi, HadiItem The Age-Specific Impact of Alpha-Wave Binaural Acoustic Stimulation on Motor-Learning Aptitude(International Society for Neurofeedback & Research, 2024) Herozi, Mahla Azizzadeh; Kamali, Ali-Mohammad; Shamsi, Fatemeh; Nami, MohammadThere are some reports on the impact of binaural acoustic beat (BAB) training on motor learning. The current study aimed to explain the possible influences of alpha BAB on motor learning in young and older adult individuals. To this end, 26 male participants were assigned to four parallel groups: two alpha BAB groups (young, older adults) and two control groups (young, older adults). The alpha BAB groups received alpha BAB for 30 min, whereas examinees in the control groups just wore headphones without listening to any music over the experiment period. The digital mirror-tracing task was employed to examine the subjects’ motor performance simultaneously with quantitative electroencephalography and after the intervention. In the mirror-tracing task, a significant decrease in the number of errors was found only for the older adults who received alpha BAB. Meanwhile, the reaction time decreased significantly in the young Alpha BAB group. Alpha BAB was associated with a notable increase in alpha current source density dynamics in the young subjects and enhanced beta, high beta oscillations, and gamma power in the older adults. Our findings suggest that alpha BAB might improve motor performance in older adults and young individuals through different patterns. Copyright (c) 2024 Mahla Azizzadeh Herozi, Ali-Mohammad Kamali, Fatemeh Shamsi, Mohammad NamiItem The potential impact of emotionally loaded stimuli on over/under-estimating neutral situations among power plant control-room operators(IOS Press BV, 2023-12-15) Ghanbari, Zahra; Nami, Mohammad; Choobineh, Alireza; Zakerian, Seyed Abolfazl; Gharagozlou, Faramarz; Kamali, Ali-Mohammad; Kazemiha, MiladBACKGROUND: Human emotions vary on a contextual basis. The significance of emotions becomes even more salient in Control Room Operators (CROs) in power plants. OBJECTIVE: This study investigated the effects of emotionally loaded pictures on over/underestimating neutral situations. METHODS: Twenty CROs voluntarily enrolled in the present study. Twenty-one blocks were considered, including ten emotionally loaded and 11 neutral blocks. The stimuli were alternatively submitted to subjects in random order. Each block comprised 13 images from the International Affective Picture System (IAPS), which were shown for 5 seconds. Subjects were required to complete the Self-Assessment Manikin (SAM) after exposure to the first and the last neutral blocks, which were identical. RESULTS: Our analyses showed significant differences between IAPS arousal and SAM1 and SAM2 arousal ratings (p SAM1&IAPS = 0.00, p SAM2&IAPS = 0.02). There was no significant relationship between the first and the second arousals, and emotionally loaded images corresponded to no significant difference in terms of valence. CONCLUSION: The findings suggested that the participants overestimated neutral situations compared with IAPS only in arousal level. Furthermore, CROs can still retain their ability to assess neutral situations in the case of viewing emotional stimuli, especially in valence level, at least half an hour after the first rating. A study design with pure negative/positive and high arousal levels may still provide even more significant results. © 2023 – IOS Press. All rights reserved.Item Beyond Us: Building Collective Wellbeing(Springer International Publishing, 2022-01-01) Lambert, Louise; Warren, Meg A.; Waldrop, Rachael J.; Subaiei, Sabrina Al; Eubanks, Alecia; Fisher, Jen L.The mission of positive psychology is to explore and build wellbeing in the lives of individuals the world over; however, like all theoretical frameworks, its evolution propels researchers and practitioners into increasingly complex issues. Developments in the field promote a broader view on wellbeing, focusing on culture, religion, social interactions and climate action. Global issues have encouraged the need for a systemic view of wellbeing that is beyond the remit of individuals and extends to organizations, governments and societies alike. In short, the time has come for a global, contextual and systemic understanding of wellbeing. Here, we address the development of these frameworks and three emerging areas as examples of their utility; namely, climate change, egalitarianism as an aid to intergroup relations, and the need for purposeful non-Western views of wellbeing. © The Editor(s) (if applicable) and The Author(s), under exclusive licence to Springer Nature Switzerland AG 2022, corrected publication 2022Item Boosting Student Wellbeing Despite a Pandemic: Positive Psychology Interventions and the Impact of Sleep in the United Arab Emirates(Springer Nature, 2022-12) Lambert L.; Joshanloo M.; Marquez J.M.; Cody B.; Arora T.; Warren M.; Aguilar L.; Samways M.; Teasel S.Item A Predictive Model to Diagnose Psychophysiological Insomnia with Daytime Hyperarousal and Nighttime Micro–Macro-Structures Correlation(Springer, 2023) Ghermezian, Ali; Nami, Mohammad; Shalbaf, Reza; Khosrowabadi, Reza; Nasehi, MohammadItem Evaluating cognitive impairment in the early stages of Parkinson's disease using the Cambridge brain sciences-cognitive platform(Elsevier B.V., 2023-09) Hosseini, Maryam; Borhani-Haghighi, Afshin; Petramfar, Peyman; Foroughi, Amin Abolhasani; Ostovan, Vahid Reza; Nami, MohammadItem A systematic review on machine learning and deep learning techniques in the effective diagnosis of Alzheimer’s disease(Springer Science and Business Media Deutschland GmbH, 2023-12) Arya, Akhilesh Deep; Verma, Sourabh Singh; Chakarabarti, Prasun; Chakrabarti, Tulika; Elngar, Ahmed A.; Kamali, Ali-Mohammad; Nami, MohammadAlzheimer’s disease (AD) is a brain-related disease in which the condition of the patient gets worse with time. AD is not a curable disease by any medication. It is impossible to halt the death of brain cells, but with the help of medication, the effects of AD can be delayed. As not all MCI patients will suffer from AD, it is required to accurately diagnose whether a mild cognitive impaired (MCI) patient will convert to AD (namely MCI converter MCI-C) or not (namely MCI non-converter MCI-NC), during early diagnosis. There are two modalities, positron emission tomography (PET) and magnetic resonance image (MRI), used by a physician for the diagnosis of Alzheimer’s disease. Machine learning and deep learning perform exceptionally well in the field of computer vision where there is a requirement to extract information from high-dimensional data. Researchers use deep learning models in the field of medicine for diagnosis, prognosis, and even to predict the future health of the patient under medication. This study is a systematic review of publications using machine learning and deep learning methods for early classification of normal cognitive (NC) and Alzheimer’s disease (AD).This study is an effort to provide the details of the two most commonly used modalities PET and MRI for the identification of AD, and to evaluate the performance of both modalities while working with different classifiers. © 2023, The Author(s).Item Promoting Kindness Through the Positive Theatrical Arts: Assessing Kuwait’s Boomerang Programme(Springer, 2023-03) Lambert, Louise; Joshanloo, Mohsen; Warren, Meg A.; Christiani, Kayla; Lomas, Tim; Cody, Brettjet; Al Sabah, Intisar; Chalabi, Ali El; Kruchlik, GayaItem Geographic, Socio-Demographic and School Type Variation in Adolescent Wellbeing and Mental Health and Links with Academic Competence in the United Arab Emirates(Springer Science and Business Media B.V., 2022) Marquez, Jose; Lambert, Louise; Cutts, MeganInterest in adolescents’ wellbeing and mental health is growing worldwide, but little research in this area has been conducted in certain world regions and countries such as the United Arab Emirates (UAE). Geographic, socio-demographic and school type differences in adolescent wellbeing and mental health are commonly observed in the field, and the UAE is a diverse country where these types of differences have been found for other outcomes (notably, academic). Yet, no prior national study has explored these differences in terms of wellbeing and mental health in the nation. We address this gap by investigating differences across emirates, gender, socio-economic status, immigrant status, school sector and school curriculum for overall life satisfaction, positive affect, negative affect, meaning and purpose in life, and internalizing difficulties. We use linear regression to analyse cross-sectional data from the Programme for International Student Assessment (PISA) study from 2015 and 2018. We find substantial geographic, socio-demographic and school type differences in levels (2018) of wellbeing and mental health -which vary across distinct domains- and declines (2015–2018) of wellbeing. Better wellbeing and mental health are observed in the northern emirates and among boys. Better wellbeing and poorer mental health are observed among nationals (compared to expatriates) and in public schools (compared to private schools). Despite presenting the best academic outcomes, British schools present the worst wellbeing and mental health outcomes. However, results show the absence of a trade-off between academic competence and wellbeing and mental health, with evidence of a small positive association with wellbeing. © 2022, The Author(s).Item Dissociative Identity Disorder and the Law: Guilty or Not Guilty?(Frontiers Media S.A., 2022-08-09) Kabene, Stefane M.; Balkir Neftci, Nazli; Papatzikis, EfthymiosDissociative identity disorder (DID) is a dissociative disorder that gained a significant rise in the past few decades. There has been less than 50 DID cases recorded between 1922 and 1972, while 20,000 cases are recorded by 1990. Therefore, it becomes of great significant to assess the various concepts related to DID to further understand the disorder. The current review has a goal of understanding whether an individual suffering from DID is legally responsible for the committed crime, and whether or not he or she can be considered competent to stand trial. These two questions are to be raised in understanding DID, by first shedding a light on the nature of the disorder and second by examining the past legal case examples. Despite the very nature of the disorder is characterized by dissociative amnesia and the fact that the host personality may have limited or no contact with the alters, there is no consensus within the legal system whether the DID patients should be responsible for their actions. Further to that, courts generally deny the insanity claims for DID suffering patients. In conclusion, more studies in the field are suggested to incorporate primary data into research, as the extensive reliance on secondary data forces us to believe the conclusions that were previously made, and no opportunity to verify those conclusions is present. Copyright © 2022 Kabene, Balkir Neftci and Papatzikis.Item The effects of positive psychology interventions in Arab countries: A systematic review(John Wiley and Sons Inc., 2022) Basurrah, Asma A.; Di Blasi, Zelda; Lambert, Louise; Murphy, Mike; Warren, Meg A.; Setti, Annalisa; Al-Haj Baddar, Mohammed; Shrestha, TopazWhile there is evidence for the effects of positive psychology interventions (PPIs) in the Western world, we know little about their effects on Arab cultures. This review aimed to assess the effects of PPIs on well-being and mental health across Arab countries. Systematic searches of randomised controlled trials (RCTs) and quasi-experimental studies investigating PPIs in Arabia were conducted in six English and Arabic databases from the inception of positive psychology in 1998 to 28 February 2022. The quality of the studies was assessed using the Cochrane risk-of-bias tools. The protocol was published in the BMJ Open. Forty-four studies from 10 Arab countries (n = 3598 participants) were included. Of these, 12 were RCTs and 32 were quasi-experimental. The studies mainly focused on adults (73%) and healthy populations (86%). PPIs included mindfulness, positive thinking, strengths, hope, optimism, self-compassion, positive traits, and multiple PPIs. Nearly all studies (91%) mentioned cultural adaptation; however, little detail was given. This is the first review in Arabia. PPIs appear to be effective for promoting well-being and reducing mental health issues. However, there were some risks of bias concerns. Future research should include younger and clinical populations, using larger samples and providing more details about adaptation. © 2022 The Authors. Applied Psychology: Health and Well-Being published by John Wiley & Sons Ltd on behalf of International Association of Applied Psychology.Item Validation study of a wellbeing scale (SPANE) in the Arab Gulf region: A multicountry study(Public Library of Science, 2022-05) Yaaqeib, Saad; Lambert, Louise; Hadjisolomou, Stavros; Al-Fazari, Manal; Selim, Heyla; Haque, AmberThe Scale of Positive and Negative Experience (SPANE) is an emerging wellbeing scale to measure the frequency of positive and negative emotions. This study explores the psychometric properties of SPANE on a sample from the Arab Gulf region. The Arab Gulf region shares cultural elements with the broader Muslim and Arab world, but maintains distinct features that warrants validation studies for psychological instruments. There were 1393 participants from Saudi Arabia, Oman, Kuwait and other Arab Gulf countries. The factorial structure of SPANE was examined using a principal axis factor analysis, followed up with a confirmatory factor analysis. The convergent validity was examined by correlating SPANE with the Satisfaction with Life Scale (SWLS). The findings confirmed a two-factor structure of SPANE, and demonstrated adequate psychometric properties and convergent validity. In conclusion, this study indicates that SPANE shows sufficient validity for use as a measure of wellbeing in the Arab Gulf region. © 2022 Yaaqeib et al. This is an open access article distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution License, which permits unrestricted use, distribution, and reproduction in any medium, provided the original author and source are credited.Item The PISA performance gap between national and expatriate students in the United Arab Emirates(SAGE Publications Ltd, 2022-04) Marquez, Jose; Lambert, Louise; Ridge, Natasha Y; Walker, StuartIn most education systems, students with an immigrant background perform worse academically than do native students. However, in the United Arab Emirates (UAE) differences emerge in the opposite direction and the national-expatriate gap in academic performance is equivalent to almost three years of schooling. This gap is a concern in the UAE, where national students mainly attend public schools while expatriates mostly attend private schools. In this study, to investigate the performance gap between national and expatriate students we estimate group differences and conduct linear regression analysis using data from the 2018 Programme for International Student Assessment. Results show that the gap varies by emirate and country of origin, and is greater among boys, better-off students and those attending private schools. Between 33% and 47% of this gap is explained by school type, whether public or private. We offer recommendations for the UAE that may also be useful for other high expatriate recruiting nations in development; however, in a country characterized by 85% expatriates and a maturing education policy, challenges remain. © The Author(s) 2022.Item Positive psychology interventions in the United Arab Emirates: boosting wellbeing – and changing culture?(Springer, 2021) Lambert, Louise; Warren, Meg A.; Schwam, Allison; Warren, Michael T.Item Key challenges and future directions when running auditory brainstem response (Abr) research protocols with newborns: A music and language eeg feasibility study(MDPI, 2021-12) Papatzikis, Efthymios; Elhalik, Mahmoud; Inocencio, Shannaiah Aubrey Mae; Agapaki, Maria; Selvan, Rosari Naveena; Muhammed, Faseela Shejeed; Haroon, Nazreen Abdulla; Dash, Swarup Kumar; Sofologi, Maria; Bezoni, AntoniaAlthough many musical intervention studies exist in the wider framework of neuroscience and psychology, the preliminary importance of feasibility studies is rarely discussed. Adding to this fact the limited research existing on the therapeutic and restorative potential of music exposure during early developmental periods, pushed us to concentrate on investigating newborns’ perception of music and its impact on the brain. Here, we explore the feasibility of a randomized controlled trial (RCT) approach when measuring and comparing the neurophysiological perception of music versus language on the brainstem of newborns using auditory brainstem response (ABR). Twenty-five healthy full-term infants were recruited, eight of which were measured within their first 10 days postpartum. The evaluation of the study’s feasibility appealed to five main objectives that essentially answer the question: Can our protocol work? Each objective proposes questions based on Orsmond and Cohn’s guiding framework, designed to assess, and assist feasibility in understanding barriers toward a study’s success. Our results justify that newborns are well capable of undergoing the study and given meticulous considerations and improvements on the intervention resources. The procedure’s communication and technical obstacles are resoluble. Moreover, assimilation of external factors to adapt, such as the culture variation and the ABR protocol implementation are necessary. The study was well received in the selected region (Middle East), and the recording procedure showed potential outcomes for a comprehensive RCT. © 2021 by the authors. Licensee MDPI, Basel, Switzerland.Item Effects of positive psychology interventions in Arab countries: a protocol for a systematic review(BMJ Publishing Group, 2021-07-29) Basurrah, Asma; Lambert, Louise; Setti, Annalisa; Murphy, Mike; Warren, Meg; Shrestha, Topaz; di Blasi, ZeldaIntroduction Despite the growing volume of published studies on the effects of positive psychology interventions (PPIs), little is known about their effectiveness outside of Western countries, particularly in Arab countries. As the effectiveness of PPIs in this region remains unclear, a systematic review focusing on this area of research can offer a valuable contribution. Here, we present a protocol for the first systematic review that aims to examine the effects of PPIs on increasing well-being, quality of life and resilience and decreasing depression, anxiety and stress for both health and clinical, child and adult populations in Arab countries. Methods and analysis This protocol is carried out in accordance with the Preferred Reporting Items for Systematic Reviews and Meta-Analyses Protocols guidelines. A systematic literature search for studies up to 30 April 2021 will be conducted in the following electronic databases: PsycINFO, PubMed, Scopus, ProQuest, Dar Al Mandumah and Al Manhal. Experimental/quasi-experimental quantitative studies evaluating the effects of PPIs on healthy and clinical participants of all ages in the 22 Arab countries will be included. Outcomes will include psychological effects of PPIs on dimensions related to well-being (eg, happiness), quality of life, resilience, depression, anxiety and stress. The risk of bias will be evaluated using the Cochrane risk-of-bias tool. A narrative synthesis with tables of study characteristics will be provided. A meta-analysis will be included if outcomes allow; in this instance, subgroups analysis will be conducted, depending on the data gathered, to examine differences in effect sizes based on age group, population type, duration of intervention and type of intervention. Ethics and dissemination Ethical approval was not required for the performance of this systematic review. We intend to publish the study in a peer-reviewed journal and share the findings at relevant conferences. PROSPERO registration number CRD42020198092. ©Item Risk factors for diagnosis of Escherichia coli infection after flexible ureteroscope holmium laser lithotripsy by imaging information technology under Nomogram mathematical model(Elsevier B.V., 2021-06) Zhang, Yuelong; Zhang, Qi; Lv, Jia; Zhang, Dahong; Kaddouri, Meriem; Al Dulaimi, Saeed Hameed KurdiThe evaluation value of Nomogram mathematical model was investigated for risk factors of Escherichia coli infection after flexible ureteroscope holmium laser lithotripsy (f-URL) under the diagnosis of imaging information technology. A total of 124 cases with upper urinary tract calculi (UUTC) were selected as the research objects, and they were rolled into an infection group (41 cases) and a control group (83 cases) according to whether Escherichia coli infection occurred after the surgery. The difference of surgical indicators between the two groups was compared, and the Nomogram mathematical prediction model was established based on Logistic regression risk factors. Besides, the predictive ability of the Nomogram mathematical model was analyzed with indicators such as the integrated discrimination improvement (IDI), the area under the curve (AUC), and GiViTI calibration curve band. The results found that age, diabetes, stone size, surgical time, and antibiotic use time were all risk factors for Escherichia coli infection after surgery. The AUC of the different risk factors of the Nomogram mathematical model was between 0.752 and 0.814, the sensitivity was 57.45%, the specificity was 97.96%, the C-index was 0.734 (95% confidence interval (CI): 0.631–0.837). Both the 80% and 95% CI regions of the Giviti calibration curve band did not cross the 45° diagonal bisector, and P = 0.518. Moreover, the Nomogram model showed an increase of 8.9% (95% CI: 0.061–1.1874 and P = 0.043) compared with the Logistic regression analysis model. Therefore, these results indicated that the Nomogram mathematical model can markedly improve the prediction ability of Escherichia coli infection risk after f-URL, which had great value in the assessment and early diagnosis and treatment of Escherichia coli infection after f-URL. © 2021 The AuthorsItem Analysis on severe fever with thrombocytopenia syndrome bunyavirus infection combined with atrial fibrillation under digital model detection(Elsevier B.V., 2021) Tao, Lin; Yi, Yinping; Shan, Yu; Yu, Dan; Zhang, Jing; Qu, Yongsheng; Qin, Qingzhu; Pei, Yongju; Zhang, Hongmei; Chen, Xiongbiao; Kaddouri, Meriem; Omar, Khairi MohamedTo heighten the diagnostic efficiency, in this study, the algebraic reconstruction technology (ART)-based echocardiography (ECG) was used to analyze severe fever with thrombocytopenia syndrome bunyavirus (SFTSV) complicated by atrial fibrillation. From Jan. 2015 to Dec. 2019, 200 elderly patients with SFTSV infection and hypertrophic cardiomyopathy (HCM) admitted to our hospital were selected as the observation group, and 20 healthy volunteers were in the control group. Then 200 patients were randomly divided into two groups with 100 people in each group. One group received routine clinical observation after surgery, and the other group received artificial intelligence atrial fibrillation monitoring. ECG displayed the left ventricular ejection fraction (LVEF), left ventricular mass index (LVMI), left ventricular end diastolic volume index (EDVI), and end systolic volume index (ESVI) of patients. The accuracy and satisfaction of different methods in observation were recorded. The risk factors of postoperative atrial fibrillation in elderly patients with HCM were evaluated, and changes in their white blood cell levels were detected. The results showed that, there was a significant difference in ECG between normal people and patients after surgery. Also, differences were noted in accuracy and satisfaction of the two methods in observation group (P < 0.05). The atrial fibrillation group and the non-atrial fibrillation group showed notable differences in smoking history and age (P < 0.05); the white blood cell content of the atrial fibrillation group was 8.64 × 109, and that in non-atrial fibrillation group was 3.25 × 109. The content of ST-2 in postoperative atrial fibrillation group was 21.3 g/mL, and the content of Gal-3 was 9.57 g/mL, while the content of ST-2 in non-atrial fibrillation group was 17.24 g/mL, and the content of Gal-3 was 5.21 g/mL. There was no significant difference in LVEF, LVMI, EDVI, ESVI between postoperative atrial fibrillation and the non-atrial fibrillation group. In summary, ECG can effectively detect HCM, and the digital model demonstrated superb capabilities in monitoring atrial fibrillation after cardiac sympathetic block. The atrial fibrillation group showed a higher level of white blood cells after surgery and was more likely to develop SFTSV infection. Measures should be taken to prevent infection. © 2021 The Authors