Chris Krägeloh

Noise sensitivity and diminished health: Testing moderators and mediators of the relationship

The concept of noise sensitivity emerged in public health and psychoacoustic research to help explain individual differences in reactions to noise. Noise sensitivity has been associated with health problems, but the mechanisms underlying this relationship have yet to be fully examined. Participants (n = 1102) were residents of Auckland, New Zealand, who completed questionnaires and returned them through the post. Models of noise sensitivity and health were tested in the analyses using bootstrapping methods to examine indirect effects. Results indicated that gender and noise exposure were not significant moderators in the model. Perceived stress and sleep problems were significant mediators of the relationship between noise sensitivity and subjective health complaints, even after controlling for the influence of neuroticism. However, the relationship between noise sensitivity and mental health complaints (anxiety and depression) was accounted for by the variance explained by neuroticism. Overall, this study provides considerable understanding of the relationship between noise sensitivity and health problems and identifies areas for further research in the field.

A systematic review of the health benefits of Tai Chi for students in higher education

Background The poor health consequences of stress are well recognized, and students in higher education may be at particular risk. Tai Chi integrates physical exercise with mindfulness techniques and seems well suited to relieve stress and related conditions. Methods We conducted a systematic review of the health benefits of Tai Chi for students in higher education reported in the English and Chinese literature, using an evidence hierarchy approach, allowing the inclusion of studies additional to randomized controlled trials. Results Sixty eight reports in Chinese and 8 in English were included — a combined study sample of 9263 participants. Eighty one health outcomes were extracted from reports, and assigned evidence scores according to the evidence hierarchy. Four primary and eight secondary outcomes were found. Tai Chi is likely to benefit participants by increasing flexibility, reducing symptoms of depression, decreasing anxiety, and improving interpersonal sensitivity (primary outcomes). Secondary outcomes include improved lung capacity, balance, 800/1000m run time, quality of sleep, symptoms of compulsion, somatization and phobia, and decreased hostility. Conclusions Our results show Tai Chi yields psychological and physical benefits, and should be considered by higher education institutions as a possible means to promote the physical and psychological well-being of their students.

Effects of Adapted Model-Rival Method and parrot-inspired robot in improving learning and social interaction among children with autism

Educating children with autism is becoming a highly challenging task due to the nature of the disorder and limited interest of these children in interacting with people. Nevertheless, it is observed that most of the children with autism are good observers. This paper put forward and evaluates a novel teaching technique, Adapted Model-Rival Method (AMRM and a parrot-inspired robot for children with autism to help improve learning and social interaction abilities through qualitative and quantitative analysis. We begin by discussing various medications, therapy, and teaching methods used in treating autism and emphasizing the importance and benefits of implementing an indirect teaching method. We then present our novel indirect teaching method, AMRM and the benefits of using a parrot-inspired robot as an intervention tool. Finally, we discuss the results of our study conducted for five consecutive days with nine participants.

Sociopsychological and physiological effects of a robot-assisted therapy for children with autism:

This article reports our findings from a robot-assisted therapeutic study conducted over 49 days to investigate the sociopsychological and physiological effects in children with autism spectrum disorder using a parrot-inspired robot, KiliRo, that we developed to help in therapeutic settings. We investigated the frequency of participants’ interactions among each other and assessed any changes in interaction using social network analysis. Interactions were assessed through manual observation before and after exposure to the robot. Urinary and salivary tests were performed to obtain protein and α-amylase levels, respectively, to report the physiological changes in participating children with autism spectrum disorder before and after interacting with the robot. This is a pioneering human–robot interaction study to investigate changes in stress levels using salivary samples. Systolic and diastolic blood pressure, heart rate, and arterial oxygen saturation level in blood were also monitored to investigate the physiological changes in participating children before, during, and after interacting with our parrot-inspired robot, KiliRo. The results show that the robot can help increase social interaction among children with autism spectrum disorder and assist in learning tasks. Furthermore, the clinical biochemistry test report using urinary and salivary samples indicates that the stress levels of children with autism reduced notably after interacting with the robot. Nevertheless, blood pressure, heart rate, and oxygen levels in blood did not show positive change in all participants.

Associations between immunological function and memory recall in healthy adults

HighlightsThere were significant negative relationships between CD4 and the short and long delay memory measures.IL‐6 showed a significant positive correlation with long delay recall.No strong correlations were observed between memory and either CD8, CD69 or cortisol. Abstract Studies in clinical and aging populations support associations between immunological function, cognition and mood, although these are not always in line with animal models. Moreover, very little is known about the relationship between immunological measures and cognition in healthy young adults. The present study tested associations between the state of immune system and memory recall in a group of relatively healthy adults. Immediate and delayed memory recall was assessed in 30 participants using the computerised cognitive battery. CD4, CD8 and CD69 subpopulations of lymphocytes, Interleukin‐6 (IL‐6) and cortisol were assessed with blood assays. Correlation analysis showed significant negative relationships between CD4 and the short and long delay memory measures. IL‐6 showed a significant positive correlation with long‐delay recall. Generalized linear models found associations between differences in all recall challenges and CD4. A multivariate generalized linear model including CD4 and IL‐6 exhibited a stronger association. Results highlight the interactions between CD4 and IL‐6 in relation to memory function. Further study is necessary to determine the underlying mechanisms of the associations between the state of immune system and cognitive performance.

Investigating the Effects of Robot-Assisted Therapy among Children with Autism Spectrum Disorder using Bio-markers

Therapeutic pet robots designed to help humans with various medical conditions could play a vital role in physiological, psychological and social-interaction interventions for children with autism spectrum disorder (ASD). In this paper, we report our findings from a robot-assisted therapeutic study conducted over seven weeks to investigate the changes in stress levels of children with ASD. For this study, we used the parrot-inspired therapeutic robot, KiliRo, we developed and investigated urinary and salivary samples of participating children to report changes in stress levels before and after interacting with the robot. This is a pioneering human-robot interaction study to investigate the effects of robot-assisted therapy using salivary samples. The results show that the bio-inspired robot-assisted therapy can significantly help reduce the stress levels of children with ASD.