Sabzali Musa Kahn

Sociodemographic Characteristics of Acne among University Students in Damascus, Syria

To estimate the prevalence and identify risk factors that may be associated with acne among university students in Syria, a cross-sectional study was conducted in the Syrian International University for Science and Technology in December 2009. A sample of 500 students was chosen. Each participant was subjected to an interview and clinical examination of acne in addition to height and weight measurements. Acne prevalence was 34.7% (172/496). Male students had higher rate of acne compared to females (42.9% versus 23.6%, ) and their acne started significantly at a younger age (18.13 versus 19.04 years old, ). Face was the commonest site for acne in both males and females. Washing face frequently per day in both sexes has a significant relation with a decreased prevalence of acne. Moreover, psychological stress particularly when the students were away from family was associated with a significant higher rate of acne. We found that the prevalence of acne steadily increased with increasing body mass index. Acne is a health and psychological problem among university students particularly when affecting the face. Several factors such as gender, body mass index, and stress were found to be associated with acne formation.

Visual Thinking Process and Emotions Through Expressive Art

Background: Drawing has a therapeutic function in the lives of people with special needs.These people need additional support for communication and learning.Researchers believed that drawing is an effective way for these people to show their self-esteem, emotions, social competence, and other hidden personalities. Art therapy teaches knowledge of visual art (drawing and painting). It is also known as expressive art because it assists in dealing with some emotions that are difficult for verbal communication. Furthermore, art therapy is beneficial for fine motor skill development. The aim of this study was to explore the use of expressive art in a group of autistic people. Subjects and Method: This was a qualitative study. A series of art therapy workshop were conducted in University of Malaya in collaboration with Malaysian Rehabilitation Council, and Maybank Foundation. A number of 18 people aged 8-17 years old with autism from Malaysian Rehabilitation Council were invited to University of Malaya for the art therapy workshop. They consisted of Malays, Chinese, and Indians. These peoplehad some level of communication problems. Art therapy workshop was conducted twice a month for 6 month with each session lasted for 4 hours. Art template, art materials, and a list of activities were given to each participant. Before the session, the participants informed the researchers verbally the scope of art that they would be drawing. The researchers observed the thinking process and emotions of the participants through the art activities. Results: Some of the art work was not related to what they have mentioned earlier. We found that art demonstrated their thought process. Drawing was more accurate in visualizing their thinking process rather than verbal communication. Besides, we detected a range of emotions illustrated from their final art work. Some of the emotions were psychological distress, happiness, and sadness. Conclusion: Expressive artis useful for visualizing thinking process of autistic people. Keywords: art therapy, autistic, visual thinking, emotions, expressive art

ART THERAPY FOR PEOPLE WITH AUTISM

Background: Art therapy is a technique used in mental health profession in which patients with special needs use creative process facilitated by the art therapist to explore patients‘ interpersonal and art skills. Art therapy teaches knowledge of visual art (drawing and painting) and the creative process involved is not only beneficial for fine motor skills development but also assists in dealing with emotions. The objectives were to identify interpersonal skills, to develop art skills and to increase self-esteem through art therapy activities. Subjects and Method: This was a qualitative study. A series of art therapy workshop were conducted in University of Malaya in collaboration with Malaysian Rehabilitation Council, Maybank Foundation, and University of Malaya. A number of 38 participants from Malaysian Rehabilitation Council who were autistic were invited to University of Malaya for the art therapy workshop. Their age range was from 8 – 17 years old and consisted of Malays, Chinese and Indians. It was a participant observer study in which the researcher studied the life of a group by sharing in its activities. Art therapy workshop was conducted for 6 months duration twice a month and each session was for 4 hours. Art template, art materials and a list of activities were given to each participant. Throughout the sessions, the way participants communicate and interact with researcher were documented to identify interpersonal skills. The development of art skills was through the teaching of art using the different art template for each session. Results: From the outcome of the artwork, participants showed increased self-esteem as their art skills improved throughout the art sessions. Conclusion: Art therapy is able to develop interpersonal skills, art skills and increase self-esteem of people with autism. Keywords: Art therapy, autism, interpersonal skills, art skills, self-esteem

Mina Hedayat, Sabzali Musa Kahn and Jaffri Hanafi. Factors affecting the unemployment (rate) of female art graduates in Iran. Academic Journals , Educational Research and Reviews. Vol. 8(9), pp. 546-552, 10 May, 2013. DOI: 10.5897/ERR2013.1132. ISSN 1990-3839, 2013 Academic Journals.

The aim of this study is to explore the relationship between the opportunities of female artist graduates in Tehran Province and the current employment market. Mixed method was employed in this study. The population of the current study consisted of 240 female artist graduates selected using a systematic random sampling method from both public and private universities. Descriptive findings indicate that 186(77.5%) of the respondents were unemployed. Analytical results show that in unemployment, there was an association among age, supply and demand, gender, education and skills mismatch as well as field of study.The chi-square test showed significant differences among the factors (χ 2 =43.29, p=0.000); age was the most important factor (64.2%).