Pia Sirola, Virpi Ruohomäki & Marjaana Lahtinen

University employees job content and experiences of new working environments

Multi-space offices have been developed to achieve space efficiency as well as to encourage collaboration. Research on the functioning of multi-space offices in universities is scarce. The aim of this survey study was to compare experiences of the university staff (N = 118) on the functionality of multi-space offices for four different types of university work. Additionally perceived effects of workplace change were studied. The data was analyzed using correlations, Kruskall Wallis-, Mann Whitney-U and χ² -tests as well as logistic regression models. Results showed that the university staff was mostly satisfied with their work environment. The respondents found multi-space offices appropriate for carrying out work tasks. Workplace change improved the sense of community and interaction, increased the comfort of facilities and space efficiency. However, peace and quiet was estimated as having deteriorated. Experiences of the university staff regarding the functionality of multi-space office varied according to work tasks: New solutions were assessed most positively in administrative, expert and customer service tasks which included coordination and continuous interaction, whereas teachers and researchers whose work required more total concentration and creation of new ideas, assessed the premises most negatively. Designers of multi-space offices should consider different groups of employees and their job requirements as well as guarantee opportunities for work requiring concentration in the university facilities.

Keywords: work environment, multi-space offices, functionality, job content, job satisfaction, user-experience

Katri Kostamo, Kari Mikko Vesala & Nelli Hankonen

From game to hobby, benefit and play: Meanings of physical activity and its change in competitive writings of adolescents

Only a small proportion of adolescents are sufficiently physically active for their health. In order to develop interventions, it would be useful to enhance our understanding of why people increase their activity. However, most of the qualitative studies of change have adopted a focus on maintenance or dropping out of regular physical activity. This study investigated interpretations of becoming physically active in writings of 15–24-year-old adolescents. In these narratives, we analyzed interpretative frames defining meanings of physical activity and its changes. The adolescents interpreted the increase in their activity by using four different framesthat described physical activity as play, hobby, personal benefit and hanging around with friends. The relevant distinction-makings related to becoming physically active were combined in the narratives to the changes in or diversification of frames. Over the life span, narratives of physical activity as play and as games during breaks first changed into descriptions of physically active hobbies. Later, the hobby frame was joined by novel interpretations. In terms of becoming active, immediate benefits gained via physical activity were central, for example, feeling good and more energetic. Positive experiences from physical activity and a personal insight of the association between physical activity and one’s own well-being were related to intentions to continue physical activity also in the future. Based on the results, physical activity interventions should also emphasize benefits for daily life, in addition to long-term health consequences.

Keywords: adolescents, physical activity, frame analysis, meanings, change, life span, physical activity relationship

Salla Rikander

Parents’ experience of the death of their baby

Subject: Perinatal death includes the death of a fetus weighing 500 g or more at 22 or more weeks of gestation as well as the death of an infant between birth and the end of the neonatal period, meaning the first week after birth. This qualitative case study of several incidents aims to understand parents’ experience of the death of their baby and its effect on the parents’ lives. As well, the appearance of trauma-related symptoms, symptoms of depression and symptoms of anxiety are evaluated in parents three and six months post-loss. Participants: The informants were recruited over a period of 12 months in 2012–2013 from Pirkanmaa Hospital District’s Tampere University Hospital Postnatal Ward 4A. All parents interested in participating in the study were included. The parents were interviewed and were asked to fill out symptom questionnaires (BDI-II, GAD-7 and IES-R) three and six months post-loss. Qualitative analysis was performed on the basis of theory-led content analysis. Results: The death of one’s baby is a traumatic event that affects parents in all domains of life. Trauma-related symptoms and symptoms of depression and anxiety were more common in mothers than in fathers. Conclusions and recommendations: A recommendation for psychological work with respect to acute crisis and Current Care Guidelines on Post-traumatic Stress Disorder already exists, and should be actively followed in the care of families who have lost a baby. Parents at risk of PTSD could be recognized by screening for trauma-related symptoms post-loss. Extensive psychological assistance should be offered to parents during the next pregnancy.

Keywords: perinatal death, stillbirth, death of a baby, traumatic crisis, PTSD