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Accelerometer Output and Its Association with Energy Expenditure During Manual Wheelchair Propulsion

Abstract:

Objectives:

This study examined the association between rates of energy expenditure (that is, oxygen consumption (VO₂)) and accelerometer counts (that is, vector magnitude (VM)) across a range of speeds during manual wheelchair propulsion on a motor-driven treadmill. Such an association allows for the generation of cutoff points for quantifying the time spent in moderate-to-vigorous physical activity (MVPA) during manual wheelchair propulsion.

Setting:

The study was conducted in the University Laboratory.

Methods:

Twenty-four manual wheelchair users completed a 6-min period of seated rest and three 6-min periods of manual wheelchair propulsion on a motor-driven wheelchair treadmill. The 6-min periods of wheelchair propulsion corresponded with three treadmill speeds (1.5, 3.0 and 4.5 mph) that elicited a range of physical activity intensities. Participants wore a portable metabolic unit and accelerometers on both wrists. Primary outcome measures included steady-state VO₂ and VM, and the strength of association between VO₂ and VM was based on the multiple correlation and squared multiple correlation coefficients from linear regression analyses.

Results:

Strong linear associations were established between VO₂ and VM for the left (R=0.93±0.44; R²=0.87±0.19), right (R=0.95±0.37; R²=0.90±0.14) and combined (R=0.94±0.38; R²=0.88±0.15) accelerometers. The linear relationship between VO₂ and VM for the left, right and combined wrists yielded cutoff points for MVPA of 3659 ±1302, 3630±1403 and 3644±1339 counts min⁻¹, respectively.

Conclusion:

We provide cutoff points based on the linear association between energy expenditure and accelerometer counts for estimating time spent in MVPA during manual wheelchair propulsion using wrist-worn accelerometry. The similarity across wrist location permits flexibility in selecting a location for wrist accelerometry placement.

Accuracy and Precision of Smartphone Applications and Commercially Available Motion Sensors in Multiple Sclerosis

Abstract:

Results of a Feasibility Randomised Controlled Study of the Guidelines for Exercise in Multiple Sclerosis Project

Abstract:

There is increasing recognition that exercise is an efficacious strategy for managing many consequences of multiple sclerosis (MS), yet persons with MS are not engaging in sufficient exercise for accruing health benefits. Poor exercise uptake might be associated with the design of previous research. We conducted a randomised controlled trial (RCT) for examining the feasibility of a 4-month home-based, exercise-training program designed based on recent physical activity guidelines for MS and supplemented by behavioural strategies for compliance. Feasibility was assessed in the domains of process (e.g., recruitment), resource (e.g., monetary costs), management (e.g., personnel time requirements) and scientific outcomes (e.g., treatment effect). We recruited persons with mild-to-moderate MS who were randomised into an intervention or wait-list control condition. Intervention participants received a pedometer, elastic resistance bands, DVD, training manual, calendars, log-book, video coaching calls and newsletters. Participants in both conditions completed home-based assessments before and after the 4-month period. Ninety-nine persons with MS were assessed for eligibility, and 57 were randomised. Fifty-one persons completed the study (90%). Total costs of the study were US $5331.03. Personnel time to conduct the study totaled 263 h. Participants in the intervention group complied fully with 71% of all exercise sessions. There was a moderate increase in self-reported exercise behaviour of the intervention participants as measured by the Godin Leisure-Time Exercise Questionnaire (d ≥ 0.5). The results support the feasibility and acceptability of a home-based exercise intervention based on physical activity guidelines and supplemented with behavioural strategies for adults with mild-to-moderate MS.

Tennessee Women: Their Lives and Times Vol. 2

Abstract:

Standing in the Shadows: African American Informants and Allies of the Mississippi State Sovereignty Commission

Abstract:

This dissertation addressed the use of African American informants and allies by the Mississippi State Sovereignty Commission during the Civil Rights Movement. Following the Brown v. Board of Education decision in 1954, Mississippi initiated various measures to maintain segregated schools and uphold its southern traditions. Among them was the Mississippi State Sovereignty Commission, a state-funded created in 1956 whose primary purpose was to uphold state’s rights and maintain segregation. Dubbed the “segregation watchdog,” the agency had an investigative division that used political and civic leaders, law enforcement entities, private detective agencies, and informants which constitute an informal network of spies located in every county in Mississippi. Using the Sovereignty Commission records and varied primary and secondary sources, this research revealed that the typical African American informant was a middle-class male in a professional or highly regarded occupation such as educator, minister, or newspaper publisher. Further, it was found that informants used the same educational, civic, fraternal, and religious institutions to gain and disseminate information as those utilized by activists to advance the Movement. As informants, they spied on individuals, infiltrated civil rights organizations, and promoted segregation. While their motives may never be fully understood, it is arguable that some entered into alliances with the Sovereignty Commission due to existing systems of patronage and paternalism. Though they held positions in which they could lead and inspire, they chose to stand in the shadows of the most pivotal periods in American history. The Commission ceased operations in 1973 and expended more than $1.5 million. While the agency symbolized Mississippi’s primary state-funded mechanism to maintain the “closed society,” it was not an isolated entity but an archetype for southern resistance. Other southern states including Arkansas, Alabama, and Louisiana used Mississippi as a model to establish similar commissions. As a whole, these commissions were a southern phenomenon that circumvented the principles of a democratic society to serve the needs of the elite while subjugating and co-opting the majority-black population.

1.295 Impact Factor 5-Year Impact Factor 1.390 Journal Indexing & Metrics » Article Metrics Related Articles Cite Share Request Permissions Explore More Download PDF TAVERN CULTURE AND TELEVISION VIEWING: The Influence of Local Viewing Culture on Patrons’ Reception of Television Programs

Abstract:

This article is concerned with the relationship between tavern culture and television viewing. The author explores this relationship using ethnographic data collected during fieldwork in an African American neighborhood tavern in Chicago. The author argues that patrons (1) personalize thematic content from television, (2) develop parasocial relationships that facilitate shared group interaction, and (3) challenge and evaluate media information as a way of reflecting on their own moral positions. Patrons use television content to formulate and maintain personal identities, to develop relationships, to maintain traditional notions of masculinity, and to uphold normative standards of face-to-face interaction in the tavern.

When the Methodological Shoe is on the Other Foot: African American Interviewer and White Interviewees

Abstract:

Some scholars engaging in the insider/outsider debate have argued that the pairing of researcher and subjects based on racial similarity—i.e., “race matching”—is the most effective means for conducting qualitative research. Although insider/outsider status has been discussed with respect to white researchers’ studies of African Americans, I explore the heretofore rarely discussed situation in which an African American is the researcher and whites are the subjects. I argue that insider status with respect to race continues to be based on a presumed connectedness linked to phenotypical characteristics—like skin color or hair texture. Yet, rather than experiencing a solely insider or outsider status, researchers and subjects experience what I call “insider moments” wherein their interests converge and they are able to share in the kinds of interactions that yield important insights. I conclude by evaluating the utility of insider/outsider status in qualitative research.

Cracking the Code: Race, Class, and Access to Nightclubs in Urban America

Abstract:

Using ethnographic data collected in the downtown nightlife of Athens, Georgia, we explore black males’ responses to being rejected from nightclubs via dress code enforcement in predominately white settings. We contrast these responses to the general experiences of other black males who gained access. Although race is a factor in the enforcement of dress codes, we find a fluid relationship between race, class, and taste that influences black males’ responses and experiences. We illustrate how the nuanced reality of lived racial and class experiences for many young black males problematize the narrow interpretation of a black cultural essence.

Race Talk and Local Collective Memory among African American Men in a Neighborhood Tavern

Abstract:

This article examines how African American men, through face-to-face conversation, create individual and collective memories around issues of race. I use ethnographic data collected in an African American neighborhood tavern in Chicago to argue that tavern patrons’ race talk: 1) generates a collective memory of negative interracial interaction that gives reported racial encounters a compounding effect; and 2) empowers patrons through catharsis and gives them an opportunity to re-create themselves with a positive racial self-identity. Consequences of this microlevel collective memory for interracial interaction are discussed.

The Career Trajectory of a Black Male High School Basketball Player: A Social Reproduction Perspective

Abstract:

Interscholastic sport in the United States is a social institution within which the social relationships and attitudes needed to sustain the existing dominant economic and class relations of the larger society could be perpetuated or reproduced. This single case study allowed us to explore the question of social reproduction by examining the nuances of how a young Black male high school basketball player helped to reproduce his social class position in society by aspiring to a career as a professional athlete. Our findings reveal that not only does this young man exclude himself from alternative opportunities for social mobility, but also in the context of pursuing hoop dreams, he lacked the cultural and social capital for navigating his way to his desired goal. Practical and research implications are discussed.