This cohort study uses integrated data from 4 studies of US youths exposed to major hurricanes to assess trajectories of posttraumatic stress symptoms and investigate factors associated with those trajectories.

A growth mindset emphasizes the malleability of intelligence. The purpose of this pilot study was to implement and evaluate a growth mindset intervention for graduate students. Participants were twenty graduate students recruited from an introductory public health biostatistics class. Students were assessed three times during one semester. At each time point, students completed assessments of growth mindset, grit, social and emotional health, and attitudes toward statistics. Student grades were collected from the course instructor. Descriptive results indicate that growth mindset, grit, and social and emotional health fluctuated little over time. Mean scores for four attitudes toward statistics components improved over time. We found limited relationships between growth mindset and final grades. Growth mindset-based strategies may be more impactful at a persona, rather than academic, level. First published November 2018 at Statistics Education Research Journal Archives

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Background: Handwashing with soap can disrupt the transmission of diarrhea-causing pathogens, a major cause of morbidity in emergency settings. However, evidence that traditional hygiene promotion activities drive sustained increases in handwashing is weak. We aimed to test: 1) an improved handwashing station and whether it increased handwashing and 2) if pairing improved stations with a behavioral intervention based on emotional drivers further increased handwashing. Methods: We conducted a three-arm clustered randomized controlled trial in Nduta refugee camp, Tanzania, enrolling all households in each intervention arm using systematic sampling. One arm was given access to the Promotion and Practice Handwashing Kit (PPHWK), a kit designed by Oxfam and partners. The second arm had access to the PPHWK and a behavioral intervention-Mum's Magic Hands (MMH), a handwashing promotion strategy based on emotive drivers, with mothers and female carers as primary target group. The third arm was the control group. Baseline and endline data were collected using surveys, focus group discussions (FGDs), structured and qualitative observations. Results: At endline, all intervention households were more likely to note the importance of handwashing. In structured observations, persons from PPHWK+MMH households practiced handwashing more consistently 94.3%, compared with 78.0% in PPHWK only and 69.6% in control. PPHWK+MMH households self-reported significantly lower rates of diarrhea at endline than baseline p = 0.025. FGD participants preferred the PPHWK over alternative handwashing stations (tippy taps), citing good design, durability, and ease of use. All participants exposed to MMH considered it effective, with a reported increase in handwashing with soap, particularly among children. Conclusion: We found substantial improvements in both reported and observed handwashing with soap associated with PPHWK access, especially when paired with MMH. Pairing an improved handwashing station with innovative promotion strategies may significantly improve handwashing and subsequently reduce morbidity among refugee populations. Feedback on the PPHWK and MMH were used to develop a new PPHWK prototype and improve on MMH approach of targeting mothers and other household members.

The Promotion and Practice Handwashing Kit (PPHWK), a robust, user-friendly handwashing station, and Mum’s Magic Hands (MMH), a creative hygiene promotion strategy, were evaluated in a clustered randomized controlled trial in Kyaka II refugee settlement in Uganda. The trial evaluated whether their provision increased handwashing with soap practice among residents, with a focus on three community intervention arms and two school-based intervention arms. The findings outlined in this report suggest that exposure to both the PPHWK and MMH increased hygiene knowledge and handwashing behaviour with soap, and improved health outcomes. Intervention households also preferred the PPHWK over existing handwashing stations, typically a basic bucket with a tap.