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      Irish Equine Industry Stakeholder Perspectives of Objective Technology for Biomechanical Analyses in the Field

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          Abstract

          Simple Summary

          Technology is becoming increasingly popular across scientific and general population groups. Pedometers, activity and health trackers, are widely used and commercially available. However, these technologies do not appear to be used in field-based equestrian health and performance. Irish industry stakeholders were interviewed regarding their perceived value of technology in equestrian sport. The interviews resulted in four primary themes around horse health, training and management. The movement assessment of the horse is undertaken subjectively through the eye and is incorporated into a holistic management structure that is based on years of experience. There is no such thing as the perfect horse and each one must be treated as an individual. The stakeholders are aware of technologies for movement analysis but demonstrate a healthy scepticism towards new, unproven technologies. Finally, the economic impact of applying technology across the herd is a major barrier to technology use. The results of this study suggest technology design needs to take place in consultation with industry stakeholders to improve field-based use.

          Abstract

          Wearable sensing technologies are increasingly used in human and equine gait research to improve ecological validity of research findings. It is unclear how these tools have penetrated the equine industry or what perspectives industry stakeholders’ hold in relation to these relatively new devices. Semi-structured interviews were conducted with Irish equine industry stakeholders to understand their perception of objective tools for biomechanical analysis in the field. The study participants came from professional/elite backgrounds in both the sport horse ( n = 6) and thoroughbred ( n = 6) sectors. The interview data were analysed using thematic analysis, resulting in four analytical themes. The first theme conveys the importance of tacit knowledge and experience in the holistic analysis of a horse. Theme two highlights that the perfect horse does not exist therefore, equine athlete management is complex and requires a multi-layered problem-solving approach. Theme three describes an awareness among stakeholders of technologies, however they are sceptical of their value. The final theme identified that one of the key barriers to technology adoption is the economic value of the horse and the cost of implementing technology herd-wide. Our findings highlight the need for a user-centred design in this domain, which requires greater consultation and learning between technology developers and equine stakeholders to develop fit-for-purpose analysis and monitoring tools.

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          Determinants of Perceived Ease of Use: Integrating Control, Intrinsic Motivation, and Emotion into the Technology Acceptance Model

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            Developing a framework for transferring knowledge into action: a thematic analysis of the literature.

            Although there is widespread agreement about the importance of transferring knowledge into action, we still lack high quality information about what works, in which settings and with whom. While there are a large number of models and theories for knowledge transfer interventions, the majority are untested, meaning that their applicability and relevance is largely unknown. This paper describes the development of a conceptual framework of translating knowledge into action and discusses how it can be used for developing a useful model of the knowledge transfer process. A narrative review of the knowledge transfer literature identified 28 different models which explained all or part of the knowledge transfer process. The models were subjected to a thematic analysis to identify individual components and the types of processes used when transferring knowledge into action. The results were used to build a conceptual framework of the process. Five common components of the knowledge transfer process were identified: problem identification and communication; knowledge/research development and selection; analysis of context; knowledge transfer activities or interventions; and knowledge/research utilization. We also identified three types of knowledge transfer processes: a linear process; a cyclical process; and a dynamic multidirectional process. From these results a conceptual framework of knowledge transfer was developed. The framework illustrates the five common components of the knowledge transfer process and shows that they are connected via a complex, multidirectional set of interactions. As such the framework allows for the individual components to occur simultaneously or in any given order and to occur more than once during the knowledge transfer process. Our framework provides a foundation for gathering evidence from case studies of knowledge transfer interventions. We propose that future empirical work is designed to test and refine the relevance, importance and applicability of each of the components in order to build a more useful model of knowledge transfer which can serve as a practical checklist for planning or evaluating knowledge transfer activities.
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              Reducing the Digital Divide

              America's older adult population is increasing at a dramatic rate due to better health care, technology, and improved living conditions. However, as individuals 65 years and older begin to live longer and experience multiple life changes, there is a larger incidence of social isolation leading to loneliness, depression, and a general decline in health. This mixed-method study aimed to explore whether information and communication technologies, specifically iPads, improved the lives of older adults. Our findings suggest that the use of technology increased knowledge, elicited closer family ties, and led to a greater overall connection to society.
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                Author and article information

                Journal
                Animals (Basel)
                Animals (Basel)
                animals
                Animals : an Open Access Journal from MDPI
                MDPI
                2076-2615
                08 August 2019
                August 2019
                : 9
                : 8
                : 539
                Affiliations
                [1 ]Institute for Sport and Health, School of Public Health, Physiotherapy and Sports Science, University College Dublin, Dublin, Ireland
                [2 ]Section Veterinary Clinical Sciences, School of Veterinary Medicine, University College Dublin, Dublin, Ireland
                Author notes
                Author information
                https://orcid.org/0000-0003-2503-2298
                Article
                animals-09-00539
                10.3390/ani9080539
                6720583
                31398822
                628d8e30-9fa7-4e17-b71a-a979babd892d
                © 2019 by the authors.

                Licensee MDPI, Basel, Switzerland. This article is an open access article distributed under the terms and conditions of the Creative Commons Attribution (CC BY) license ( http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/).

                History
                : 11 July 2019
                : 05 August 2019
                Categories
                Article

                equine gait,technology,user-design,subjective analysis,sport horse,thoroughbred

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