Beyond the challenges of diagnosis, complexity measurement in clients with mental illness is an important but under-recognized area. Accurate and appropriate psychiatric diagnoses are essential, and further complexity measurements could contribute to improving patient understanding, referral, and service matching and coordination, outcome evaluation, and system-level care planning. Myriad conceptualizations, frameworks, and definitions of patient complexity exist, which are operationalized by a variety of complexity measuring tools. A limited number of these tools are developed for people with mental illness, and they differ in the extent to which they capture clinical, psychosocial, economic, and environmental domains. Guided by the PRISMA Extension for Scoping Reviews, this review evaluates the tools best suited for different mental health settings. The search found 5345 articles published until November 2023 and screened 14 qualified papers and corresponding tools. For each of these, detailed data on their use of psychiatric diagnostic categories, definition of complexity, primary aim and purpose, context of use and settings for their validation, best target populations, historical references, extent of biopsychosocial information inclusion, database and input technology required, and performance assessments were extracted, analyzed, and presented for comparisons. Two tools-the INTERMED, a clinician-scored and multiple healthcare data-sourced tool, and the VCAT, a computer-based instrument that utilizes healthcare databases to generate a comprehensive picture of complexity-are exemplary among the tools reviewed. Information on these limited but suitable tools related to their unique characteristics and utilities, and specialized recommendations for their use in mental health settings could contribute to improved patient care.

Since launching health health-promoting settings approach to health by WHO, valuable progress has happened in implementing its holistic concepts in settings such as cities, schools, workplaces, hospitals and healthcare services. However, significant knowledge-intention-success gaps still exist in creating sustainable health-promoting changes in settings. The complexity of the task of bridging this gap has contributed to the call for a complexity-informed paradigm shift to health as well as settings, followed by increasing consultation of relevant complexity theories, frameworks and tools in health research. This paper provides a critical scoping review of the application of complex adaptive system (CAS) theory in settings-based health promotion research. We included 14 papers, mostly qualitative studies, reporting on planning or implementation of change initiatives, less on its evaluation. CAS theory application was often incomplete thereby reducing the potential benefit of using this lens to understand change management. We suggest some recommendations how to comprehensively apply the CAS theory in setting-based health research and to report on all CAS characteristics to enhance the understanding of settings as adaptive health-promoting settings.

Of the four interrelated concepts in the title, only symmetry has an exact mathematical definition. In mathematical development, symmetry is a graded variable-in marked contrast with the popular binary conception of symmetry in and out of the laboratory (i.e. an object is either symmetrical or nonsymmetrical). Because the notion does not have a direct graded perceptual counterpart (experimental participants are not asked about the amount of symmetry of an object), students of symmetry have taken various detours to characterize the perceptual effects of symmetry. Current approaches have been informed by information theory, mathematical group theory, randomness research, and complexity. Apart from reviewing the development of the main approaches, for the first time we calculated associations between figural goodness as measured in the Garner tradition and measures of algorithmic complexity and randomness developed in recent research. We offer novel ideas and analyses by way of integrating the various approaches.

Aim: To explore the goals and outcomes of public procurement of drug treatment services in OECD countries. The study explores how these complex services are procured and delivered. Methods and data: A systematic review of the literature (1990-2020) identified four partly overlapping models of drug treatment service procurement that are here labelled traditional, value-based, outcome-based, and innovative. Results: Even though different forms of drug treatment services procurement are common, only 12 empirical studies that focused on procurement were found. The four models differ in their approaches to design and performance specifications and the role of competition and collaboration in the co-creation of value. Conclusions: Competition and incentives improve neither the efficiency nor the quality or the outcomes of complex drug treatment services. Whereas many studies focus on payment mechanisms, there are important research gaps that relate to the co-creation of value with and for the service-users and other stakeholders.

The main objectives of this study were to 1) review the literature on the applications of soft computing concepts to the field of human factors and ergonomics (HFE) between 2013 and 2022 and 2) highlight future developments and trends. Multiple soft computing methods and techniques have been investigated for their ability to address various applications in HFE effectively. These techniques include fuzzy logic, artificial neural networks, genetic algorithms, and their combinations. Applications of these methods in HFE have been highlighted in one hundred and four articles selected from 406 papers. The results of this study help address the challenges of complexity, vagueness, and imprecision in human factors and ergonomics research through the application of soft computing methodologies.

Background: \'Health in All Policies\' (HiAP) describes the pursuit of health equity. It has five main elements: treat health as a human right; identify evidence of the \'social determinants\' of health inequalities, recognise that most powers to affect health are not held by health departments, promote intersectoral policymaking and collaboration inside and outside of government, and generate political will. Studies describe its potential but bemoan a major implementation gap. Some HiAP scholars learn from policymaking research how to understand this gap, but the use of policy theories is patchy. In that context, our guiding research question is: How does HiAP research use policy theory to understand policymaking? It allows us to zoom-out to survey the field and zoom-in to identify: the assumed and actual causes of policy change, and transferable lessons to HiAP scholars and advocates. Methods: Our qualitative systematic review (two phases, 2018 and 2020) identified 4972 HiAP articles. Of these, 113 journal articles (research and commentary) provide a non-trivial reference to policymaking (at least one reference to a policymaking concept). We use the 113 articles to produce a general HiAP narrative and explore how the relatively theory-informed articles enhance it. Results: Most articles focus on policy analysis (identifying policy problems and solutions) rather than policy theory (explaining policymaking dynamics). They report a disappointing gap between HiAP expectations and policy outcomes. Theory-informed articles contribute to a HiAP playbook to close that gap or a programme theory to design and evaluate HiAP in new ways.   Conclusions: Few HiAP articles use policy theories for their intended purpose. Policy theories provide lessons to aid critical reflection on power, political dilemmas, and policymaking context. HiAP scholars seek more instrumental lessons, potentially at the cost of effective advocacy and research.

Background: COVID-19 had a major global impact on education, prompting concerns about its unequal effects and some impetus to reboot equity strategies. Yet, policy processes exhibit major gaps between such expectations and outcomes, and similar inequalities endured for decades before the pandemic. Our objective is to establish how education researchers, drawing on policy concepts and theories, explain and seek to address this problem. Methods: A qualitative systematic review (2020-21), to identify peer reviewed research and commentary articles on education, equity, and policymaking, in specialist and general databases (ERIC, Web of Science, Scopus, Cochrane/ Social Systems Evidence). We did not apply additional quality measures. We used an immersive and inductive approach to identify key themes. We use these texts to produce a general narrative and explore how policy theory articles inform it. Results: 140 texts (109 articles included; 31 texts snowballed) provide a non-trivial reference to policymaking. Limiting inclusion to English-language produced a bias towards Global North articles. Our comparison with a review of health equity research highlights distinctive elements in education. First, education equity is ambiguous and contested, with no settled global definition or agenda (although some countries and international organisations have disproportionate influence). Second, researchers critique \'neoliberal\' approaches that dominate policymaking at the expense of \'social justice\'. Third, more studies provide \'bottom-up\' analysis of \'implementation gaps\'. Fourth, more studies relate inequity to ineffective policymaking to address marginalised groups. Conclusions: Few studies use policy theories to explain policymaking, but there is an education-specific literature performing a similar role. Compared to health research, there is more use of critical policy analysis to reflect on power and less focus on technical design issues. There is high certainty that current neoliberal policies are failing, but low certainty about how to challenge them successfully.

BACKGROUND: Systems science offers methods for designing population health interventions while implementation science provides specific guidance for successful implementation. Integrating systems and implementation science may strengthen implementation and enhance and sustain systemic change to achieve system-level outcomes. Little is known about the extent to which these two approaches have been integrated to date. This review aimed to identify and synthesise the peer-reviewed literature that has reported the combined use of systems thinking approaches and implementation science constructs (within the same study), to deliver population health interventions.
METHODS: A systematic literature search of peer-reviewed original research was conducted across six databases from 2009 to 2021. Journal manuscripts were included if they: (1) reported on a population health study conducted in a community, (2) reported the use of a systems method in the design of the intervention, and (3) used an implementation science theory, framework or model in the delivery of the intervention. Data extracted related to the specific systems methods and definitions and implementation science constructs used. The Mixed Methods Appraisal Tool (MMAT) was used to assess study quality.
RESULTS: Of the 9086 manuscripts returned, 320 manuscripts were included for full-text review. Of these, 17 manuscripts that reported on 14 studies were included in the final extraction. The most frequently reported systems methods were a \'whole of community systems approach\' (n = 4/14) and \'community-based system dynamics\' (n = 2/14). Nineteen different implementation science theories, frameworks and models were used for intervention delivery, with RE-AIM being the only framework used in more than one study.
CONCLUSIONS: There are few published peer-reviewed studies using systems thinking and implementation science for designing and delivering population health interventions. An exploration of synergies is worthwhile to operationalise alignment and improve implementation of systems thinking approaches. Review protocol registration PROSPERO CRD42021250419.

Policy Points The concept of value complexity (complexity arising from differences in people\'s worldviews, interests, and values, leading to mistrust, misunderstanding, and conflict among stakeholders) is introduced and explained. Relevant literature from multiple disciplines is reviewed. Key theoretical themes, including power, conflict, language and framing, meaning-making, and collective deliberation, are identified. Simple rules derived from these theoretical themes are proposed.

Walking and running are common forms of locomotion, both of which exhibit variability over many gait cycles. Many studies have investigated the patterns generated from that ebb and flow, and a large proportion suggests human gait exhibits Long Range Correlations (LRCs). LRCs refer to the observation that healthy gait characteristic, like stride times, are positively correlated to themselves over time. Literature on LRCs in walking gait is well known but less attention has been given to LRCs in running gait.
What is the state of the art concerning LRCs in running gait?
We conducted a systematic review to identify the typical LRC patterns present in human running gait, in addition to disease, injury, and running surface effects on LRCs. Inclusion criteria were human subjects, running related experiments, computed LRCs, and experimental design. Exclusion criteria were studies on animals, non-humans, walking only, non-running, non-LRC analysis, and non-experiments.
The initial search returned 536 articles. After review and deliberation, our review included 26 articles. Almost every article produced strong evidence for LRCs apparent in running gait and in all running surfaces. Additionally, LRCs tended to decrease due to fatigue, past injury, increased load carriage and seem to be lowest at preferred running speed on a treadmill. No studies investigated disease effects on LRCs in running gait.
LRCs seem to increase with deviations away from preferred running speed. Previously injured runners produced decreased LRCs compared to non-injured runners. LRCs also tended to decrease due to an increase in fatigue rate, which has been associated with increased injury rate. Lastly, there is a need for research on the typical LRCs in an overground environment, for which the typical LRCs found in a treadmill environment may or may not transfer.