This article considers what contribution traditional library practices — identification, selection, organisation and retrieval — can make to managing networked information, and…
Abstract
This article considers what contribution traditional library practices — identification, selection, organisation and retrieval — can make to managing networked information, and how those practices need to be updated to take account of the special difficulties of the Internet. The answer is found in cooperation. Cooperation between librarians and authors in the creation of metadata. International cooperation between librarians to select resources. The article defines a workflow for cooperation in both fields, and proposes a library search engine to hold jointly created records and a catalogue of Websites online to support selection.
Communications regarding this column should be addressed to Mrs. Cheney, Peabody Library School, Nashville, Tenn. 37203. Mrs. Cheney does not sell the books listed here. They are…
Abstract
Communications regarding this column should be addressed to Mrs. Cheney, Peabody Library School, Nashville, Tenn. 37203. Mrs. Cheney does not sell the books listed here. They are available through normal trade sources. Mrs. Cheney, being a member of the editorial board of Pierian Press, will not review Pierian Press reference books in this column. Descriptions of Pierian Press reference books will be included elsewhere in this publication.
Joyce Hei Tong Lau, Huda Khan, Richard Lee, Larry S. Lockshin, Anne Sharp, Jonathan Buckley and Ryan Midgley
Obesity among elderly consumers precipitates undesirable health outcomes. This study aims to investigate the effects of environmental cues on food intake of elderly consumers in…
Abstract
Purpose
Obesity among elderly consumers precipitates undesirable health outcomes. This study aims to investigate the effects of environmental cues on food intake of elderly consumers in an aged-care facility.
Design/methodology/approach
A longitudinal study conducted over 17 weeks in situ within an aged-care facility with 31 residents investigated how auditory (soothing music), olfactory (floral-scented candle) and visual (infographic on health benefits of the main meal component) cues influenced food intake quantity during a meal, while accounting for portion size effect (PSE).
Findings
Analysing the cross-sectional results of individual treatments and rounds did not reveal any consistent patterns in the influence of the three environmental cues. Longitudinal analyses, however, showed that the presence of auditory and olfactory cues significantly increased food intake, but the visual cue did not. Moreover, PSE was strong.
Research limitations/implications
Extending research into environmental factors from a commercial to a health-care setting, this study demonstrates how the presence of auditory and olfactory, but not cognitive cues, increased food intake behaviour among elderly consumers. It also shows that a cross-sectional approach to such studies would have yielded inconclusive or even misleading findings. Merely serving more would also lead to higher food intake amount.
Practical implications
Environmental factors should be a part of health-care providers’ arsenal to manage obesity. They are practical and relatively inexpensive to implement across different health-care settings. However, the same environmental factors would have opposite desired-effects with normal or underweight residents, and hence, aged-care facilities need to separate the dining experience (or mealtime) of obese and other residents. Quantity served should also be moderated to discourage overeating.
Originality/value
While studies into managing obesity, particularly among older adults, have mainly focused on techniques such as pharmacotherapy treatments with drugs, dietary management or even lifestyle change, less attention has been given to the influence of environmental cues. This study, executed in situ within an aged-care facility, provided evidence of the importance of considering the impact of environmental factors on food intake to help reduce obesity.