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| Eleven-year-old Jessie McLaughlin puts her hand in water for the cold water task. 鈥淚 didn鈥檛 mind it,鈥� she remarked later, holding on to her Junior Scientist certificate. 鈥淏esides, it鈥檚 kind of neat to take part in real research.鈥� (Bruce Bottomley Photo) |
A few 麻豆传媒 graduate students are putting out a call for 鈥渏unior scientists.鈥� They鈥檙e looking for kids, ages eight to 14, to provide assistance with their research projects.
But there is a hitch: they can鈥檛 promise it won鈥檛 hurt, even if just a little bit.
Melanie Noel and Mark Petter are part of Dr. Christine Chamber鈥檚 research team at the Centre for Pediatric Pain Research laboratory at the IWK Health Centre. They鈥檙e seeking聽young volunteers for two studies which examine how children鈥檚 feelings affect how they experience pain over time.
鈥淲e need the help of healthy kids in a fun, lab setting,鈥� says Ms. Noel, a PhD student in clinical psychology. 鈥淭here are some questions to answer, a few activities to do and then there鈥檚 a cold water task 鈥� it鈥檚 a safe way for us to look at pain.鈥�
The cold water task entails the child submersing their hand in 10-degree Celsius water for a maximum of four minutes. But the kids are in complete control of the task; if they find it uncomfortable, they can remove their hand at any time.
鈥淭he cold is聽comparable to聽reaching your hand into a cooler and taking out a drink or making a snowball with your bare hands,鈥� says Ms. Noel, who is interested in what coping skills children employ when dealing with pain. Children get a nice crisp $20 bill and a junior scientist certificate for participating.
鈥淚t鈥檚 great for kids who are interested in science. They find it really interesting and it does help us out immensely,鈥� says Mr. Petter, also a PhD student in clinical psychology. One of his studies focuses on distraction techniques. While the child has a hand in the cold water, they鈥檙e listening to audio tapes evoking the imagery of a specific place 鈥� a beach where waves are lapping on the shore, for example. His second study, however, is almost the exact opposite: a 鈥渕indful attention鈥� audio tape directs the child to focus on the sensations he or she is experiencing.
鈥淭here are some kids who prefer to watch the needle going in,鈥� says Mr. Petter. 鈥淏ut there are others who find distraction works for them 鈥� they鈥檒l look away or listen to music.鈥�
Participating in the research can take anywhere from a half hour to an hour, depending on the study. The students add their time is flexible, and can accommodate junior scientists on weekdays, evenings or weekends 鈥� 鈥渨hatever works for families, works for us,鈥� says Ms. Noel.
Interested in learning more? You can give the lab a call at 470-6906.
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