The improvised expert: Staging authority at an OECD Nuclear Energy Agency workshop in Fukushima.

In recent years, concerns about a crisis of expert authority have been expressed across the globe. Japan is no exception to this trend. Scandals surrounding the (mis)management of the 2011 Fukushima Daiichi nuclear power plant disaster severely damaged public confidence in state institutions, posing an additional challenge for those engaged in radiological protection. This article examines how claims to expert authority are made in these conditions of low public trust. To this end, I offer an ethnographic account of the OECD Nuclear Energy Agency's (NEA) Workshop on Post-Accident Food Safety Science-an event staged at the request of the Japanese Cabinet Office with the aim of inspiring confidence in Fukushima produce. I analyse the practices through which the organizers craft a credible public persona using the idiom of dramaturgical improvisation; drawing attention to the 'performed resourcefulness' with which they adapted extant institutional scripts in response to a discerned crisis of public reason. Concretely, improvisation invites us to consider how and why nuclear policy actors have sought to demarcate two variants of the deficit model: the (psychological) discourse of 'radiophobia' and the (economic) discourse of 'reputational damage'. Where prior scholarship has identified the continuities between the two discourses, an attention to this boundary work reveals the dramaturgical advantages of 'reputational damage' over 'radiophobia' in contesting critics' claims to the mantle of victimhood, securing international support, and producing the expert's body as a site of evidence.

The effect of subjective understanding on patients' trust in AI pharmacy intravenous admixture services.

Introduction: Medical services are getting automated and intelligent. An emerging medical service is the AI pharmacy intravenous admixture service (PIVAS) that prepares infusions through robots. However, patients may distrust these robots. Therefore, this study aims to investigate the psychological mechanism of patients' trust in AI PIVAS. Methods: We conducted one field study and four experimental studies to test our hypotheses. Study 1 and 2 investigated patients' trust of AI PIVAS. Study 3 and 4 examined the effect of subjective understanding on trust in AI PIVAS. Study 5 examined the moderating effect of informed consent. Results: The results indicated that patients' reluctance to trust AI PIVAS (Studies 1-2) stems from their lack of subjective understanding (Study 3). Particularly, patients have an illusion of understanding humans and difficulty in understanding AI (Study 4). In addition, informed consent emerges as a moderating factor, which improves patients' subjective understanding of AI PIVAS, thereby increasing their trust (Study 5). Discussion: The study contributes to the literature on algorithm aversion and cognitive psychology by providing insights into the mechanisms and boundary conditions of trust in the context of AI PIVAS. Findings suggest that medical service providers should explain the criteria or process to improve patients' subjective understanding of medical AI, thus increasing the trust in algorithm-based services.

Transparency and precision in the age of AI: evaluation of explainability-enhanced recommendation systems.

In today's information age, recommender systems have become an essential tool to filter and personalize the massive data flow to users. However, these systems' increasing complexity and opaque nature have raised concerns about transparency and user trust. Lack of explainability in recommendations can lead to ill-informed decisions and decreased confidence in these advanced systems. Our study addresses this problem by integrating explainability techniques into recommendation systems to improve both the precision of the recommendations and their transparency. We implemented and evaluated recommendation models on the MovieLens and Amazon datasets, applying explainability methods like LIME and SHAP to disentangle the model decisions. The results indicated significant improvements in the precision of the recommendations, with a notable increase in the user's ability to understand and trust the suggestions provided by the system. For example, we saw a 3% increase in recommendation precision when incorporating these explainability techniques, demonstrating their added value in performance and improving the user experience.

Inappropriate trusting behaviour in dementia.

Background: Inappropriate trusting behaviour may have significant social, financial and other consequences for people living with dementia. However, its clinical associations and predictors have not been clarified. Here we addressed this issue in canonical syndromes of frontotemporal dementia (FTD) and Alzheimer's disease (AD). Methods: In 34 patients with AD and 73 with FTD (27 behavioural variant (bv)FTD, 22 semantic variant primary progressive aphasia (svPPA), 24 nonfluent/agrammatic variant (nfv)PPA) we recorded inappropriate trusting and other abnormal socio-emotional behaviours using a semi-structured caregiver survey. Patients were comprehensively characterised using a general cognitive assessment and the Revised Self-Monitoring Scale (RSMS; an informant index of socioemotional awareness). Results: Inappropriate trusting was more frequent in svPPA (55%) and bvFTD (44%) than nfvPPA (17%) or AD (24%). After adjusting for age, sex, education and Mini-Mental State Examination (MMSE) score, inappropriate trusting was significantly more likely in svPPA (odds ratio 3.61; 95% confidence interval 1.41-8.75) and bvFTD (3.01, 1.23-6.65) than AD. Significant predictors of inappropriate trusting comprised apathy in svPPA, disinhibition and altered pain responsiveness in bvFTD, and lower MMSE and RSMS (self-presentation) scores in AD. Conclusion: Dementia syndromes vary in prevalence and predictors of abnormal trusting behaviour, with implications for clinical counselling and safeguarding.

Feasibility and Acceptability of a Trauma-informed Intervention to Leverage Caregivers in Preventing Opioid Use Among Youth Involved in the Legal System.

Youth in the legal system (YILS) report high rates of substance use (SU), complex family/social relationships, and chronic trauma. The current study tested the feasibility of a prevention intervention, Trust-based Relational Intervention® (TBRI®), that leverages family systems by strengthening connection and providing emotional and instrumental guidance and support. TBRI includes the primary TBRI Intervention, comprised of Caregiver Training, Youth Training, and joint youth-caregiver Nurture Groups, and TBRI Family Coaching. With a sample of eight youth-caregiver dyads, the study adopted a mixed-methods design with a multi-informant approach to fulfill two goals: (1) testing TBRI as a prevention intervention for opioid use (OU), other SU, and related issues, and (2) testing the feasibility and acceptability of the TBRI Intervention by virtual delivery. Session attendance and completion rates demonstrated feasibility of recruiting and retaining participants and intervention fidelity. Preliminary results were reported on intervention outcomes, including OU and other SU, illegal activities, and educational attainment. Pre- and post-intervention comparisons showed decreases in youth negative urgency, conduct problems, and hyperactivity. Caregiver and staff participants responded favorably to TBRI and its virtual delivery; youth were more capable of expressing their needs and acknowledged the importance of families in preventing problems after discharge from secure facilities. While acknowledging sufficiency of intervention content, caregivers expressed the desire for more sessions. Results demonstrate the feasibility and acceptability of a trauma-informed, attachment-based prevention intervention for youth and families in contact with the legal system. TBRI is a promising approach for preventing the initiation or escalation of OU among YILS.

Exploring the influence of Chinese online patient trust on telemedicine behavior: insights into perceived risk and behavior intention.

As a supplement to medical services, telemedicine is of great significance to alleviate the shortage of health resources in China. Based on the traditional consumer behavior measurement model the Technology Acceptance Mode/Theory of Planned Behavior (TAM/TPB), this paper divides online patient trust into six dimensions: perceived risk, personal trust tendency, doctors' credibility, hospitals' credibility, websites' credibility, and system guarantee. On this basis, a structural equation model (SEM) was used to explore the influence of each dimension of online patient trust on online patient intention, behavior choice, and pre-factors. A total of 582 valid questionnaires were distributed to selected patients with experience in using mobile healthcare services in the vicinity of hospitals and communities, as well as to users who shared their experiences in the discussion forums of mobile healthcare websites. The results show that online patient trust has a significant positive impact on telemedicine behavior intention selection, with a standardized path coefficient being as high as 0.866. Doctors' credibility, system guarantee, and website credibility have significant positive effects on online patient trust, with standardized path coefficients of 0.401, 0.260, and 0.226, respectively. Hospital trustworthiness and personal trust propensity have no significant effect on online patient trust. Perceived risk has a significant negative effect on online patient trust, with a standardized path coefficient of -0.118. The research findings suggest that health departments and mobile healthcare providers can enhance mobile healthcare services by considering the patients' perspectives, elevate their online trust levels, and foster a deeper understanding, safety consciousness, and confidence in telehealth services. On this basis, it can be concluded that only the participation of government, medical subjects, and online patients can effectively reduce perceived risks, improve perceived characteristics of online patients, enhance online patient trust, and promote the real willingness and behavior choice for online medical services, effectively improving the positive role of telemedicine in increasing health benefits to people.

Effect of older adults willingness on telemedicine usage: an integrated approach based on technology acceptance and decomposed theory of planned behavior model.

BACKGROUND: Telemedicine, as a novel method of health management system, has demonstrated to have a significant impact on health levels. However, a challenge persists in the form of low usage rates and acceptance among older adults in China. There are accumulating evidence that willingness will affect the telemedicine usage among older adults. This study investigates factors influencing older users' trust in adopting telemedicine technology, thereby promoting actual use. METHODS: A questionnaire survey was conducted with 400 urban seniors aged 60 and above. Drawing from the Technology Acceptance Model (TAM) and the Decomposed Theory of Planned Behavior (DTPB), the author combines elements such as Perceived Usefulness, Perceived Ease of Use, Subjective Norms, Service Environment, Self-Efficacy, Behavioral Intention to Use, and Usage Behavior. The aim is to explore the interrelationships between these factors. RESULTS: Perceived Usefulness (PU) and Service Environment (SE) significantly and positively impact Behavioral Intention (BI) to use telemedicine, with Trust (TR) identified as a crucial mediating variable. Enhancing trust can substantially increase older adults' intention to use telemedicine services. Furthermore, the study reveals a significant relationship between older adults' trust in telemedicine and factors such as Perceived Usefulness (PU), Service Environment (SE), Subjective Norms (SR), as well as Emotional Risk (ER) and Cost Risk (CR), the latter two tending to decrease Trust(TR). CONCLUSIONS: This paper constructs and validates a combined model based on TAM and DTPB, comprehensively exploring the potential factors influencing the older adults' intention to use telemedicine. The findings suggest that telemedicine services for older adults should prioritize improving user perception and enhancing trust throughout the service process to effectively increase their willingness to use these services.

The impact of brand image on customer satisfaction and brand loyalty: A systematic literature review.

This literature review examines the impact of brand image on customer satisfaction and brand loyalty in the context of foreign tourism. Following a review of relevant literature, 13,302 articles were found for this study, including the keywords "brand image (BI)", "customer satisfaction (CS)", and "brand loyalty (BL)". Considering the required inclusion and the quality of studies, we employed the rigorous PRISMA technique for comprehensive data synthesis and evaluated 79 articles for the final review. Our findings underscore the significant impact of brand image on shaping customer satisfaction and fostering brand loyalty within the foreign tourism sector. The study enriches the literature by incorporating self-congruity theory. In addition, factors like product quality, pricing, and advertising are identified as key determinants significantly influencing the proposed relationship.

Exploring the Mechanisms that Allow Incompatible Beliefs to Coexist in the Cognitive System.

Despite assumptions that people strive for consistency between their beliefs, endorsement of mutually incompatible ones is not rare - a tendency we have previously labelled doublethink, by borrowing from Orwell. In an attempt to understand the nature of doublethink and the underlying mechanism that enables incompatible beliefs to coexist, we conducted two preregistered studies (total N = 691). To do so, in Study 1, we first explored how doublethink relates to (1) thinking styles (rational/intuitive, actively open-minded thinking, and need for cognitive closure), (2) a set of irrational beliefs (magical health, conspiratorial, superstitious, and paranormal beliefs) and (3) its predictiveness for questionable health practices (non-adherence to medical recommendations and use of traditional, complementary and alternative medicine). We then additionally expanded the set of health behaviors in Study 2, and related doublethink to trust in two epistemic authorities - science and the wisdom of the common man. Finally, in both studies, we explored whether those prone to inconsistent beliefs are also more likely to simultaneously rely on conventional and alternative medicine, despite their apparent incompatibility. While doublethink was positively related to need for cognitive closure and different irrational beliefs that easily incorporate contradictions, as well as negatively to actively open-minded thinking, we did not find it to be predictive of the use of non-evidence-based medicine nor of its simultaneous use with official medicine. It seems that this novel construct can be best understood as a feature of the cognitive system that allows incompatible claims to enter it. However, once beliefs are within the system, they are compartmentalized, without any cross-referencing between them. This is further reflected in non-evidence-based beliefs persisting within the belief system, irrespective of their content.

The influence of partner trustworthiness and relationship closeness on interpersonal trust in individuals with attachment anxiety: An ERP study.

Interpersonal trust (IT) is a combination of individuals' cognitive evaluations of others' trustworthiness and affective considerations related to the relationships. Individuals' trust decisions overly relying on the intimacy of the relationship can be detrimental to their socialization. Attachment styles provide a theoretical framework for explaining individual differences in IT and the balance between cognition control and affective evaluation in social-information processing. However, it remains unclear whether high attachment anxiety (AX) individuals with high interpersonal needs exhibit non-socially adaptive trust decisions, characterized by an over-reliance on relationship closeness (RC), independent of partner trustworthiness (PT). A coin-toss task, combined with event-related potential (ERP), was utilized to explore the performance and temporal characteristics of trust decision-making among individuals with high and low AX under the influence of the two factors. The behavioral results showed that high-AX individuals tended to trust close others regardless of their trustworthiness, while low-AX individuals only trusted close others under low-PT conditions, with no differences in RC for high-PT. The ERP results revealed that high-AX individuals exhibited an enhanced positive P1 by low-trust partners, only discerning differences in RC for high-trust partners (more negative N2 by strangers than friends), reflecting poor conflict-detection abilities confronted with low-trust partners. Low-AX individuals' neural activity showed higher consistency with their behavioral performance, indicating that trust in close others under low-trust conditions was due to the fewer conflicts elicited and higher expectations of them, reflecting smaller N2 and larger P3. Overall, these findings indicated that high-AX individuals' IT decision-making was primarily influenced by their reliance on affective evaluation in information processing and weaker cognitive-control abilities, highlighting the contribution of attachment to social-information processing.

A social science trust taxonomy with emergent vectors and symmetry.

Introduction: Trust is foundational to all social science domains, but to date, there is no unifying theory or consistent measurement basis spanning the social sciences. This research hypothesized that trust forms the basis of an ontology that could unify the social science domains. The proposed ontology comprises a Cartesian plane with axes self-trust and other-trust. Self-trust manifests in dominant behaviors, and other-trust manifests in cooperative behaviors. Both axes are divided into five discrete categories, creating a matrix of 25 cells. All words in the lexicon are allocated into one of these 25 cells. Methods: This research started with an existing 14,000-word lexicon of dominance and affiliation. The lexicon was extended by manually identifying and including socially descriptive words with information regarding self-trust, other-trust, dominance, and cooperation. The taxonomy was optimized using the Gradient Descent machine learning algorithm and commercially curated synonyms and antonyms. The t-test was employed as the objective (or loss) function for Gradient Descent optimization. Word vectors were identified using groups of four words related as synonyms and antonyms. Results: Over 30,000 words were identified and included in the lexicon. The optimization process yielded a t-score of over 1,000. Over 226,000 vectors were identified, such as malevolent-mean-gentle-benevolent. A new form of symmetry was identified between adjectives and verbs with a common root; for example, the words reject and rejected are horizontally reflected. Discussion: The word vectors can create a metrologically compliant basis for psychometric testing. The symmetries provide insight into causes (verbs) and effects (adjectives) in social interactions. These vectors and symmetries offer the social sciences a basis of commonality with natural sciences, enabling unprecedented accuracy and precision in social science measurement.

Impact of inpatient self-efficacy and trust in physicians on inpatient satisfaction with medical services: the mediating role of patient participation in medical decision-making.

Objective: Patient satisfaction reflects the social benefits of hospitals and is an important indicator of hospital performance. This study explores the mechanism through which inpatients' trust in physicians, self-efficacy, and participation in medical decision-making impact their satisfaction with medical services. Methods: A questionnaire was administered to 814 inpatients in 10 randomly selected tertiary hospitals and 10 randomly selected secondary hospitals in Hangzhou, China. A correlation analysis and hierarchical linear regression were conducted to analyze the factors influencing inpatient satisfaction. Results: The outcome measures of trust in physicians and participation in medical decision-making behaviors had significant positive effects on inpatient satisfaction.Trust in physicians was shown to directly influence inpatient satisfaction, while inpatient participation in decision-making partially mediated this relationship. Inpatient participation in medical decision-making fully mediated the relationship between self-efficacy and inpatient satisfaction. Conclusion: While inpatients were relatively satisfied, there is room for improvement. Healthcare providers should improve patient trust by actively listening to their needs and providing feedback, establishing effective communication mechanisms. Patient self-efficacy can be enhanced through health education, special lectures, and case sharing. Patients should also be encouraged to actively participate in medical decision-making. Practical implications: Based on inpatient feedback during a preliminary survey, we refined this study's questionnaire to enhance its feasibility for future research. This article shares key findings for healthcare managers and providers, advising that patient satisfaction can be enhanced through trust, self-efficacy, and participation.

The Impact of Cybersecurity Attacks on Human Trust in Autonomous Vehicle Operations.

OBJECTIVE: This study examines the extent to which cybersecurity attacks on autonomous vehicles (AVs) affect human trust dynamics and driver behavior. BACKGROUND: Human trust is critical for the adoption and continued use of AVs. A pressing concern in this context is the persistent threat of cyberattacks, which pose a formidable threat to the secure operations of AVs and consequently, human trust. METHOD: A driving simulator experiment was conducted with 40 participants who were randomly assigned to one of two groups: (1) Experience and Feedback and (2) Experience-Only. All participants experienced three drives: Baseline, Attack, and Post-Attack Drive. The Attack Drive prevented participants from properly operating the vehicle in multiple incidences. Only the "Experience and Feedback" group received a security update in the Post-Attack drive, which was related to the mitigation of the vehicle's vulnerability. Trust and foot positions were recorded for each drive. RESULTS: Findings suggest that attacks on AVs significantly degrade human trust, and remains degraded even after an error-less drive. Providing an update about the mitigation of the vulnerability did not significantly affect trust repair. CONCLUSION: Trust toward AVs should be analyzed as an emergent and dynamic construct that requires autonomous systems capable of calibrating trust after malicious attacks through appropriate experience and interaction design. APPLICATION: The results of this study can be applied when building driver and situation-adaptive AI systems within AVs.

IOTASDN: IOTA 2.0 Smart Contracts for Securing Software-Defined Networking Ecosystem.

Software-Defined Networking (SDN) has revolutionized network management by providing unprecedented flexibility, control, and efficiency. However, its centralized architecture introduces critical security vulnerabilities. This paper introduces a novel approach to securing SDN environments using IOTA 2.0 smart contracts. The proposed system utilizes the IOTA Tangle, a directed acyclic graph (DAG) structure, to improve scalability and efficiency while eliminating transaction fees and reducing energy consumption. We introduce three smart contracts: Authority, Access Control, and DoS Detector, to ensure trusted and secure network operations, prevent unauthorized access, maintain the integrity of control data, and mitigate denial-of-service attacks. Through comprehensive simulations using Mininet and the ShimmerEVM IOTA Test Network, we demonstrate the efficacy of our approach in enhancing SDN security. Our findings highlight the potential of IOTA 2.0 smart contracts to provide a robust, decentralized solution for securing SDN environments, paving the way for the further integration of blockchain technologies in network management.

Sustainable Digital Transformation: Its Impact on Perceived Value and Adoption Intention of Industry 4.0 in Moderating Effects of Uncertainty Avoidance.

Background: Industry 4.0 is a significant technical revolution that combines big data analytics, the Internet of Things (IoT), and cyber-physical systems to improve manufacturing productivity. This study investigates the impact of digital trust and sustainable attitude on perceived value and the intention to adopt Industry 4.0 technologies. It also examines the moderating role of uncertainty avoidance in these relationships. Methods: Data were collected from 189 employees of leading manufacturing companies in Indonesia that are recognized for their Industry 4.0 practices. The data were analyzed using Partial Least Squares (PLS) methodology with SmartPLS software to test the proposed hypotheses and explore the moderating effects. Results: The findings reveal that both digital trust and sustainable attitude significantly influence perceived value. However, these factors do not directly affect the intention to adopt Industry 4.0 technologies. Uncertainty avoidance moderates the relationship between digital trust and adoption intention. Specifically, in environments with high uncertainty avoidance, digital trust becomes a critical factor influencing the decision to adopt Industry 4.0 technologies. Conclusions: The study provides valuable insights for organizations aiming to implement Industry 4.0 initiatives. It highlights the importance of fostering digital trust and considering cultural dimensions, such as uncertainty avoidance, in their technology adoption strategies.

Self-rated health of Latino day laborers during the COVID-19 pandemic: a cross-sectional study.

Background: This study assesses the relationship between trust in sources of information in regard to the Coronavirus Disease 2019 (COVID-19) pandemic and self-rated health (SRH) in a sample of Latino Day Laborers (LDLs) and explores whether these associations were mediated by mental health measures. Methods: A rapid needs assessment survey was conducted with 300 LDLs, recruited at randomly selected hiring locations in Houston, Texas, during November and December 2021. Two measures of trust were developed, and SRH was measured by a single item. Depression, anxiety, and stress were measured by previously validated scales. We applied the product of coefficients approach to assess our mediation model. Using Hayes' PROCESS version 4.2 in SPSS, linear regression models were generated simultaneously to assess the total effect of trust on SRH, effect of trust on the mental health mediator, and effect of the mediator on SRH, controlling for trust. Demographic characteristics were entered as covariates. Results: Greater trust in formal sources of information (such as Spanish-speaking television networks) as well as greater levels of anxiety and depression were associated with lower SRH. There were no significant associations between formal trust and mental health measures. As such, the association between formal trust and decreased SRH was not mediated by mental health. Trust in informal sources of information (conversations with friends, family, and coworkers) was not significantly associated with SRH or mental health. Higher levels of depression and anxiety, however, were associated with lower SRH. Conclusions: LDLs' perception of their health was inversely associated with their level of trust in formal sources of information and with greater levels of depression and anxiety. Nevertheless, these pathways were independent of each other. The results indicate the direct impact of COVID-19 public information on subjective well-being, a relationship that merits further exploration.

A Qualitative Study of Naturally Living Parents and Child Oral Health: Omissions and Commissions.

BACKGROUND: Oral health continues to be one of the most common and costly diseases in early childhood, and there is a need for further, innovative research. PURPOSE: We explored the ways naturally living parents (those who embody the "natural" within their parenting ideology and behavior) navigated and perceived their children's oral health. METHODS: Twelve participants who identified as being "naturally living parents" participated in semistructured interviews. Data were thematically analyzed, and findings were aligned to an omissions and commissions framework to exhibit the complexity of parent decision-making. RESULTS: Parents performed distinct omissions, including omitting fluoride, sugar, and "toxins" to maintain their children's oral health. Parents talked about having a commitment to knowledge building to protect their children's oral health (e.g., ingredient label reading and increasing knowledge of "safe" ingredients). Findings also provide insight into how parents consider and trust health information and health care providers and ways they gather information relating to oral health. CONCLUSIONS: Analysis indicated that although parents navigated both omissions and commissions, omissions were more overtly present. Compared to previous health research using this framework, omissions and commissions were not as clearly demarcated in relation to oral health. The results show that oral health is a complex interplay of omissions and commissions, and parents must navigate not only discrete elements that affect the oral health of their children but also how these are influenced by considerations including social well-being. KNOWLEDGE TRANSFER STATEMENT: The study highlights the need for dentists and early childhood health professionals to consider the complex way some parents perceive, inform, and rationalize decisions regarding their children's oral health. There is a need for nuance when considering children's oral health and naturally living parenting, especially in relation to effectively communicating health information that fosters trust and is considerate of broader lifestyle and health factors.

The influence of the perception, attitude, and level of trust on the uptake of COVID-19 vaccinations among pregnant women attending antenatal care clinic in mbeya urban, Tanzania.

BACKGROUND: Coronavirus Disease 2019 (COVID-19) has been associated with adverse effects and death among people with low immunity, including pregnant women. Despite introducing the vaccine as the proper means to curb the spread of the pandemic, vaccine uptake is still low. This study assessed the influence of perception, attitude, and trust toward COVID-19 vaccine uptake among pregnant women attending Antenatal Care Clinics. METHODS: A cross-sectional study design was used, utilizing a quantitative approach with a cross-sectional analytical design conducted in Mbeya urban, distribution of sample size during data collection based on client's volume at three government health facilities (one tertiary health facility, one secondary health facility, and one primary health facility) in Mbeya Urban, Tanzania. Data were collected from 333 pregnant women who attended ANC during the data collection period using a questionnaire with closed-ended questions administered to respondents face-to-face. Data cleaning and analysis were done using Excel and Stata/SE 14.1 software for bivariate and multivariate data; Pearson's chi-squire and Fisher's test were used to analyze the independent determinants of COVID-19 vaccine uptake. RESULTS: The proportion of pregnant women vaccinated with the COVID-19 vaccine was 27%. There was a statistically significant association between the respondents' vaccine uptake with primary education and < 5 work experience to vaccine uptake P = 0.015 (AOR = 6.58; 95% CI; 1.45-29.85), and P = 0.046 (AOR = 2.45; 95% CI; 1.02-5.89) respectively. The association of attitude influence to COVID-19 vaccine uptake was statistically significant (acceptance of vaccine due to its availability, vaccine acceptance for protection against COVID-19 pandemic to respondent and her baby, experience from other vaccines) was statistically significant at P = 0.011 (AOR = 4.43; 95% CI; 1.41-13.93), P = 0.001 (AOR = 45.83; 95% CI; 18.6-112.89) respectively. The level of trust in the COVID-19 vaccine influenced respondents' association with vaccine uptake in the 2nd and 3rd trimesters of pregnancy (P = 0.633 (AOR = 1.23; 95% CI; 0.53-2.48), respectively. CONCLUSION: Pregnant women's positive attitude and trust in the COVID-19 vaccine influenced them to uptake it; our conclusion supports the WHO guidelines that the COVID-19 vaccine should be administered to pregnant women since it is a safer means to curb COVID-19 pregnancy-related complications.

Dual-band millimetre wave MIMO antenna with reduced mutual coupling based on optimized parasitic structure and ground modification.

In this study, a high-isolation dual-band (28/38 GHz) multiple-input-multiple-output (MIMO) antenna for 5G millimeter-wave indoor applications is presented. The antenna consists of two interconnected patches. The primary patch is connected to the inset feed, while the secondary patch is arc-shaped and positioned over the main patch, opposite to the feed. Both patches function in the lower 28 GHz band, while the primary patch is accountable for inducing the upper 38 GHz band. An expedited trust-region (TR) algorithm is employed to optimize the dimensions of the antenna components, ensuring the antenna operates efficiently with high reflection at both bands. The antenna demonstrates a gain exceeding 7 dBi at both frequencies. An array of four antennas is configured orthogonally to create a MIMO system with isolation surpassing 19 dB. The isolation is further enhanced through the addition of a circular parasitic patch at the front and modifications made to the ground. The TR method is employed again to optimize their parameters and achieve the desired isolation, exceeding 32 dB at both bands. The MIMO system demonstrates outstanding diversity performance at both frequencies, characterized by low values of the envelope correlation coefficient (ECC) (< 10 - 4), channel capacity loss (CCL) (< 0.03 bit/s/Hz), and total active reflection coefficient (TARC) (< - 10 dB). Additionally, it secures a diversity gain (DG) exceeding 9.99 dB. The MIMO system is manufactured and tested, showing good alignment between simulation and measurement data for all performance metrics.