1. Juvenile delinquency in rural and urban communities : application of an integrated risk factor modelIza Kokoravec Povh, 2025, doctoral dissertation Abstract: The doctoral dissertation examines juvenile delinquency patterns in rural and urban environments and seeks to develop and test an Integrated Risk Factor Model of delinquency. The theoretical section discusses the challenging period of adolescence and the emergence of delinquent behavior as normative behavior. It then describes the concepts of juvenile criminality and delinquency, concentrating on specific problematic forms of delinquency and highlighting the importance of studying juvenile delinquency through both official crime statistics and self-report and victimization studies. The dissertation emphasizes the significance of environments and delinquency in urban and rural communities. This is followed by an overview of official statistics on juvenile crime and crime in both urban and rural environments, along with a presentation of key findings from studies on delinquency, victimization, and youth violence in Slovenia since its independence. Special attention is given to findings from the second international study on self-reported juvenile delinquency and victimization (ISRD2). The dissertation then discusses risk and protective factors crucial for studying and understanding delinquency. Finally, the theoretical section examines various criminological theories, focusing particularly on well-known integrated theories, and develops a new Integrated Risk Factor Model of delinquency, which is subsequently tested.
The empirical section of the dissertation tests the hypotheses and answers the following research questions: 1) What are the prevalence rates of self-reported juvenile delinquency in rural and urban areas in Slovenia? 2) Is there a correlation between socio-demographic characteristics (age, gender, immigration status, socioeconomic status, and religion) and involvement in juvenile delinquency? and (3) Can an Integrated Risk Factor Model explain delinquency in rural and urban environments equally well? A series of bivariate and multivariate analyses are performed using data from the 4th international study on self-reported juvenile delinquency and victimization (ISRD4), conducted between October 2022 and March 2023, which involved 2,653 juveniles aged 13–17 from urban and rural environments.
The results reveal variations in the prevalence and most common types of juvenile delinquency between urban and rural areas. It shows that delinquency is not solely a product of urban environments. Context-specific differences in demographic factors and risk factors are observed. The findings show that in rural environments, fewer risk factors influence delinquency. Still, these factors have a stronger impact, while delinquency among urban juveniles arises from a broader range of risk factors. This section also tests the Integrated Risk Factor Model. The model is structured around the relationship of delinquency to three broad concepts: 1) Crime Propensity (moral values and self-control); 2) Strain (Family (family bond, parental supervision, and adverse childhood experiences); school (school bond and school crime); and peers (delinquent friends and victimization)); and 3) Involvement (time spent in public places, at parties, and with family). The final Integrated Risk Factor Model successfully explains a significant portion of delinquency. However, the tailored model for urban and rural environments explains a slightly larger proportion of delinquency than the general model.
In the final section, three Integrated Risk Factor Models are presented: the general Integrated Risk Factor Model, the Urban Risk Factor Model, and the Rural Risk Factor Model. The conclusion addresses the implications of the findings for the hypotheses and research questions and provides suggestions for further work as well as recommendations for policy and practice.
Keywords: juvenile delinquency, rural areas, urban areas, risk factors, integrated risk factor model
Published in DKUM: 06.10.2025; Views: 0; Downloads: 13
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3. The international energy security risk index in sustainable energy and economy transition decision making - a reliability analysisIztok Podbregar, Goran Šimić, Mirjana Radovanović, Sanja Filipović, Damjan Maletič, Polona Šprajc, 2020, original scientific article Abstract: The world economy and society are in a complex process of transition characterized by a high degree of uncertainty. Therefore, further development and management of the transition will largely depend on the quality of the decisions made and, accordingly, on the decision-making process itself. The main goal of this study is to analyze the reliability of International Energy Security Risk Index as a tool to support the process of energy and economy transition decision making, as closely related and highly interdependent phenomena. The index is composed of 29 aggregated variables (grouped into eight categories), and the research is conducted on a research sample of 25 countries over a period of 36 years. The reliability assessment is performed by using Multiple Regression Analysis. Multicollinearity test, plus Multicollinearity test with Variance Inflation Factors, is used for methodological verification. The test results indicate a high degree of unreliability of the Index, as is concluded based on the observed errors in its methodological settings. These errors primarily relate to a high degree of multicollinearity in all 29 variables, whereby independent variables lose their independence and thus jeopardize reliability of the total Index. Out of the eight groups of variables, the fuel imports group is the only one that does not show big methodological errors. The paper presents a recommendation for the improvement of the observed Index (review of the role of individual variables found to be particularly methodologically indicative), as well as a recommendation for different distribution of weighting coefficients.
Keywords: energy and economy transition, decision making, international energy security risk index, multiple regression analysis, multicollinearity test, multicollinearity test with variance inflation factors
Published in DKUM: 04.02.2025; Views: 0; Downloads: 11
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4. The role of visualization in estimating cardiovascular disease risk : scoping reviewAdrijana Svenšek, Mateja Lorber, Lucija Gosak, Katrien Verbert, Zalika Klemenc-Ketiš, Gregor Štiglic, 2024, review article Abstract: Background: Supporting and understanding the health of patients with chronic diseases and cardiovascular disease (CVD) risk is often a major challenge. Health data are often used in providing feedback to patients, and visualization plays an important role in facilitating the interpretation and understanding of data and, thus, influencing patients’ behavior. Visual analytics enable efficient analysis and understanding of large datasets in real time. Digital health technologies can promote healthy lifestyle choices and assist in estimating CVD risk. Objective: This review aims to present the most-used visualization techniques to estimate CVD risk. Methods: In this scoping review, we followed the Joanna Briggs Institute PRISMA-ScR (Preferred Reporting Items for Systematic Reviews and Meta-Analyses extension for Scoping Reviews) guidelines. The search strategy involved searching databases, including PubMed, CINAHL Ultimate, MEDLINE, and Web of Science, and gray literature from Google Scholar. This review included English-language articles on digital health, mobile health, mobile apps, images, charts, and decision support systems for estimating CVD risk, as well as empirical studies, excluding irrelevant studies and commentaries, editorials, and systematic reviews. Results: We found 774 articles and screened them against the inclusion and exclusion criteria. The final scoping review included 17 studies that used different methodologies, including descriptive, quantitative, and population-based studies. Some prognostic models, such as the Framingham Risk Profile, World Health Organization and International Society of Hypertension risk prediction charts, Cardiovascular Risk Score, and a simplified Persian atherosclerotic CVD risk stratification, were simpler and did not require laboratory tests, whereas others, including the Joint British Societies recommendations on the prevention of CVD, Systematic Coronary Risk Evaluation, and Framingham-Registre Gironí del COR, were more complex and required laboratory testing–related results. The most frequently used prognostic risk factors were age, sex, and blood pressure (16/17, 94% of the studies); smoking status (14/17, 82%); diabetes status (11/17, 65%); family history (10/17, 59%); high-density lipoprotein and total cholesterol (9/17, 53%); and triglycerides and low-density lipoprotein cholesterol (6/17, 35%). The most frequently used visualization techniques in the studies were visual cues (10/17, 59%), followed by bar charts (5/17, 29%) and graphs (4/17, 24%). Conclusions: On the basis of the scoping review, we found that visualization is very rarely included in the prognostic models themselves even though technology-based interventions improve health care worker performance, knowledge, motivation, and compliance by integrating machine learning and visual analytics into applications to identify and respond to estimation of CVD risk. Visualization aids in understanding risk factors and disease outcomes, improving bioinformatics and biomedicine. However, evidence on mobile health’s effectiveness in improving CVD outcomes is limited.
Keywords: cardiovascular disease prevention, risk factors, visual analytics, visualization, mobile phone, PRISMA
Published in DKUM: 26.11.2024; Views: 0; Downloads: 12
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5. Targeting cardiovascular risk factors through dietary adaptations and caloric restriction mimeticsJulia Voglhuber, Senka Ljubojevic-Holzer, Mahmoud Abdellatif, Simon Sedej, 2021, review article Abstract: The average human life expectancy continues to rise globally and so does the prevalence and absolute burden of cardiovascular disease. Dietary restriction promotes longevity and improves various cardiovascular risk factors, including hypertension, obesity, diabetes mellitus, and metabolic syndrome. However, low adherence to caloric restriction renders this stringent dietary intervention challenging to adopt as a standard practice for cardiovascular disease prevention. Hence, alternative eating patterns and strategies that recapitulate the salutary benefits of caloric restriction are under intense investigation. Here, we first provide an overview of alternative interventions, including intermittent fasting, alternate-day fasting and the Mediterranean diet, along with their cardiometabolic effects in animal models and humans. We then present emerging pharmacological alternatives, including spermidine, NAD+ precursors, resveratrol, and metformin, as promising caloric restriction mimetics, and briefly touch on the mechanisms underpinning their cardiometabolic and health-promoting effects. We conclude that implementation of feasible dietary approaches holds the promise to attenuate the burden of cardiovascular disease and facilitate healthy aging in humans.
Keywords: autophagy, caloric restriction, caloric restriction mimetics, cardiovascular risk factors, dietary regimens, hypertension, intermittent fasting, obesity
Published in DKUM: 21.10.2024; Views: 0; Downloads: 14
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6. Risk factors for systemic reactions in typical cold urticaria : results from the COLD-CE studyMitja Košnik, Dejan Dinevski, Simon Francis Thomsen, Daria Fomina, Elena Borzova, Kanokvalai Kulthanan, Raisa Meshkova, Dalia Melina Ahsan, Mona Al-Ahmad, Jovan Miljković, Dorothea Terhorst, 2022, original scientific article Abstract: Background: Cold urticaria (ColdU), i.e. the occurrence of wheals or angioedema in response to cold exposure, is classified into typical and atypical forms. The diagnosis of typical ColdU relies on whealing in response to local cold stimulation testing (CST). It can also manifest with cold-induced anaphylaxis (ColdA). We aimed to determine risk factors for ColdA in typical ColdU.
Methods: An international, cross-sectional study COLD-CE was carried out at 32 urticaria centers of reference and excellence (UCAREs). Detailed history was taken and CST with an ice cube and/or TempTest® performed. ColdA was defined as an acute cold-induced involvement of the skin and/or visible mucosal tissue and at least one of: cardiovascular manifestations, difficulty breathing, or gastrointestinal symptoms.
Results: Of 551 ColdU patients, 75% (n=412) had a positive CST and ColdA occurred in 37% (n=151) of the latter. Cold-induced generalized wheals, angioedema, acral swelling, oropharyngeal/laryngeal symptoms, and itch of earlobes were identified as signs/symptoms of severe disease. ColdA was most commonly provoked by complete cold water immersion and ColdA caused by cold air was more common in countries with a warmer climate. Ten percent (n=40) of typical ColdU patients had a concomitant chronic spontaneous urticaria (CSU). They had a lower frequency of ColdA than those without CSU (4% vs 39%, p=0.003). We identified the following risk factors for cardiovascular manifestations: previous systemic reaction to a Hymenoptera sting, angioedema, oropharyngeal/laryngeal symptoms, and itchy earlobes.
Conclusion: ColdA is common in typical ColdU. High-risk patients require education about their condition and how to use an adrenaline autoinjector.
Keywords: adrenaline autoinjector, cold urticaria, COLD-CE, risk factors, systemic reactions, epinephrine, therapeutic use, self administration, injections, intramuscular, methods
Published in DKUM: 06.08.2024; Views: 139; Downloads: 10
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7. The influence of anxiety and fear of COVID‑19 on vaccination hesitancy among postsecondary studentsAndrej Šorgo, Nuša Crnkovič, Katarina Cesar, Špela Selak, Mitja Vrdelja, Branko Gabrovec, 2022, original scientific article Abstract: The aim of the present study was to explore the infuence of anxiety and fear of COVID-19 on vaccination hesitancy among Slovenian postsecondary students. A cross-sectional study using a set of previously tested instruments and ad hoc questions created by the authors was chosen as the method to gain insight into various health and sociodemographic aspects of Slovenian postsecondary students afected by the COVID-19-induced closures and suspensions of educational activities at tertiary educational institutions (N= 5999). Overall, 39.7% of participating students expressed an intention to get vaccinated at the frst possible opportunity, whereas 29.2% expressed no intent to do so. The highest vaccine hesitancy was observed among prospective teachers (50.3%) and the lowest among prospective physicians (5,7%). When examining the role of anxiety and fear of COVID-19 on the Slovenian postsecondary students' intentions to get vaccinated the results of logistic regression showed that only fear of COVID-19 played a mild and signifcant role.
Keywords: vaccination, health care, health occupations, medical research, risk factors, signs and symptoms, students
Published in DKUM: 05.07.2024; Views: 111; Downloads: 9
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8. Factors associated with gastrointestinal dysmotility in critically ill patientsNemanja Petrović, Miodrag Žunić, Ana Pejčić, Miloš Milosavljević, Slobodan Janković, 2023, original scientific article Abstract: Critical illness may disrupt nutritional, protective, immune, and endocrine functions of the gastrointestinal tract, leading to a state of gastrointestinal dysmotility. We aimed to identify factors associated with the occurrence of gastrointestinal dysmotility in critically ill patients. A cross-sectional retrospective study was conducted, using patient files as a source of data. The study included 185 critically ill patients treated in the intensive care unit of the University Clinical Center, Kragujevac, Serbia, from January 1, 2016, to January 1, 2022. Significant risk factors associated with some form of gastrointestinal dysmotility were acute kidney injury (with paralytic ileus, nausea, vomiting, and constipation), recent abdominal surgery (with ileus, nausea, vomiting, and constipation), mechanical ventilation (with ileus, and nausea), age (with ileus and constipation), and use of certain medication such as opioids (with ileus, gastro-esophageal reflux, nausea, vomiting, and constipation), antidepressants (with ileus, nausea, and vomiting), and antidiabetics (with ileus). On the other hand, Charlson comorbidity index had divergent effects, depending on the form of gastrointestinal dysmotility: it increased the risk of gastro-esophageal reflux but protected against ileus, nausea, and vomiting. In clonclusion, recognition of factors associated with gastrointestinal dysmotility should initiate preventative measures and, thus, accelerate the recovery of critically ill.
Keywords: gastrointestinal dysmotility, critically ill patients, risk factors, intensive care unit
Published in DKUM: 04.04.2024; Views: 188; Downloads: 13
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10. Insights into population health management through disease diagnoses networksKeith Feldman, Gregor Štiglic, Dipanwita Dasgupta, Mark Kricheff, Zoran Obradović, Nitesh Chawla, 2016, original scientific article Abstract: The increasing availability of electronic health care records has provided remarkable progress in the field of population health. In particular the identification of disease risk factors has flourished under the surge of available data. Researchers can now access patient data across a broad range of demographics and geographic locations. Utilizing this Big healthcare data researchers have been able to empirically identify specific high-risk conditions found within differing populations. However to date the majority of studies approached the issue from the top down, focusing on the prevalence of specific diseases within a population. Through our work we demonstrate the power of addressing this issue bottom-up by identifying specifically which diseases are higher-risk for a specific population. In this work we demonstrate that network-based analysis can present a foundation to identify pairs of diagnoses that differentiate across population segments. We provide a case study highlighting differences between high and low income individuals in the United States. This work is particularly valuable when addressing population health management within resource-constrained environments such as community health programs where it can be used to provide insight and resource planning into targeted care for the population served.
Keywords: population screening, risk factors, network analysis
Published in DKUM: 23.06.2017; Views: 1537; Downloads: 407
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