The challenge of comorbidity in clinical trials for multiple sclerosis

PubMed Central

Miller, Aaron; Sormani, Maria Pia; Thompson, Alan; Waubant, Emmanuelle; Trojano, Maria; O'Connor, Paul; Reingold, Stephen; Cohen, Jeffrey A.

2016-01-01

Objective: We aimed to provide recommendations for addressing comorbidity in clinical trial design and conduct in multiple sclerosis (MS). Methods: We held an international workshop, informed by a systematic review of the incidence and prevalence of comorbidity in MS and an international survey about research priorities for studying comorbidity including their relation to clinical trials in MS. Results: We recommend establishing age- and sex-specific incidence estimates for comorbidities in the MS population, including those that commonly raise concern in clinical trials of immunomodulatory agents; shifting phase III clinical trials of new therapies from explanatory to more pragmatic trials; describing comorbidity status of the enrolled population in publications reporting clinical trials; evaluating treatment response, tolerability, and safety in clinical trials according to comorbidity status; and considering comorbidity status in the design of pharmacovigilance strategies. Conclusion: Our recommendations will help address knowledge gaps regarding comorbidity that interfere with the ability to interpret safety in monitored trials and will enhance the generalizability of findings from clinical trials to “real world” settings where the MS population commonly has comorbid conditions. PMID:26888986

Induction-related cost of patients with acute myeloid leukaemia in France.

PubMed

Nerich, Virginie; Lioure, Bruno; Rave, Maryline; Recher, Christian; Pigneux, Arnaud; Witz, Brigitte; Escoffre-Barbe, Martine; Moles, Marie-Pierre; Jourdan, Eric; Cahn, Jean Yves; Woronoff-Lemsi, Marie-Christine

2011-04-01

The economic profile of acute myeloid leukaemia (AML) is badly known. The few studies published on this disease are now relatively old and include small numbers of patients. The purpose of this retrospective study was to evaluate the induction-related cost of 500 patients included in the AML 2001 trial, and to determine the explanatory factors of cost. "Induction" patient's hospital stay from admission for "induction" to discharge after induction. The study was performed from the French Public Health insurance perspective, restrictive to hospital institution costs. The average management of a hospital stay for "induction" was evaluated according to the analytical accounting of Besançon University Teaching Hospital and the French public Diagnosis-Related Group database. Multiple linear regression was used to search for explanatory factors. Only direct medical costs were included: treatment and hospitalisation. Mean induction-related direct medical cost was estimated at €41,852 ± 6,037, with a mean length of hospital stay estimated at 36.2 ± 10.7 days. After adjustment for age, sex and performance status, only two explanatory factors were found: an additional induction course and salvage course increased induction-related cost by 38% (± 4) and 15% (± 1) respectively, in comparison to one induction. These explanatory factors were associated with a significant increase in the mean length of hospital stay: 45.8 ± 11.6 days for 2 inductions and 38.5 ± 15.5 if the patient had a salvage course, in comparison to 32.9 ± 7.7 for one induction (P < 10⁻⁴). This result is robust and was confirmed by sensitivity analysis. Consideration of economic constraints in health care is now a reality. Only the control of length of hospital stay may lead to a decrease in induction-related cost for patients with AML.

An Argument for Fewer Clinical Trials.

PubMed

Borgerson, Kirstin

2016-11-01

The volume of clinical research is increasing exponentially-far beyond our ability to process and absorb the results. Given this situation, it may be beneficial to consider reducing the flow at its source. In what follows, I will motivate and critically evaluate the following proposal: researchers should conduct fewer clinical trials. More specifically, I c onsider whether researchers should be permitted to conduct only clinical research of very high quality and, in turn, whether research ethics committees (RECs) should prohibit all other, lower-quality research, even when it might appear to meet some minimal ethical standard. Following a close analysis of the social-value requirement of ethical clinical research, I argue that this proposal is defensible. The problem identified in this paper has two parts, quantity and quality, and some clarification is needed about the latter because "quality" is a highly contested term in the medical literature. When some scholars advocate for high-quality trials, they mean large-scale, simple, explanatory randomized controlled trials. Others, including myself, have defended a different characterization of high-quality research that tends more toward pragmatic trial design and the use of methods other than RCTs. Pragmatic trials aim to provide evidence that directly supports clinical decision-making in "usual" care settings. Unlike explanatory trials, which aim to abstract away from particular settings and patients, in the hopes of creating ideal conditions for the success of an intervention, pragmatic trials deliberately pursue knowledge of high applicability, through the use of representative subjects, clinically important questions, flexible treatment protocols, patient-oriented outcome measures, and so on. I see applicability as a marker of high-quality research. The context in which research is meant to be applied should be the context in which new interventions are evaluated. © 2016 The Hastings Center.

Effects of Dementia-Care Mapping on Residents and Staff of Care Homes: A Pragmatic Cluster-Randomised Controlled Trial

PubMed Central

van de Ven, Geertje; Draskovic, Irena; Adang, Eddy M. M.; Donders, Rogier; Zuidema, Sytse U.; Koopmans, Raymond T. C. M.; Vernooij-Dassen, Myrra J. F. J.

2013-01-01

Background The effectiveness of dementia-care mapping (DCM) for institutionalised people with dementia has been demonstrated in an explanatory cluster-randomised controlled trial (cRCT) with two DCM researchers carrying out the DCM intervention. In order to be able to inform daily practice, we studied DCM effectiveness in a pragmatic cRCT involving a wide range of care homes with trained nursing staff carrying out the intervention. Methods Dementia special care units were randomly assigned to DCM or usual care. Nurses from the intervention care homes received DCM training and conducted the 4-months DCM-intervention twice during the study. The primary outcome was agitation, measured with the Cohen-Mansfield agitation inventory (CMAI). The secondary outcomes included residents’ neuropsychiatric symptoms (NPSs) and quality of life, and staff stress and job satisfaction. The nursing staff made all measurements at baseline and two follow-ups at 4-month intervals. We used linear mixed-effect models to test treatment and time effects. Results 34 units from 11 care homes, including 434 residents and 382 nursing staff members, were randomly assigned. Ten nurses from the intervention units completed the basic and advanced DCM training. Intention-to-treat analysis showed no statistically significant effect on the CMAI (mean difference between groups 2·4, 95% CI −2·7 to 7·6; p = 0·34). More NPSs were reported in the intervention group than in usual care (p = 0·02). Intervention staff reported fewer negative and more positive emotional reactions during work (p = 0·02). There were no other significant effects. Conclusions Our pragmatic findings did not confirm the effect on the primary outcome of agitation in the explanatory study. Perhaps the variability of the extent of implementation of DCM may explain the lack of effect. Trial Registration Dutch Trials Registry NTR2314. PMID:23844003

Azúcar y nervios: explanatory models and treatment experiences of Hispanics with diabetes and depression.

PubMed

Cabassa, Leopoldo J; Hansen, Marissa C; Palinkas, Lawrence A; Ell, Kathleen

2008-06-01

This study examined the explanatory models of depression, perceived relationships between diabetes and depression, and depression treatment experiences of low-income, Spanish-speaking, Hispanics with diabetes and depression. A purposive sample (n=19) was selected from participants enrolled in a randomized controlled trial conducted in Los Angeles, California (United States) testing the effectiveness of a health services quality improvement intervention. Four focus groups followed by 10 in-depth semi-structured qualitative interviews were conducted. Data were analyzed using the methodology of coding, consensus, co-occurrence, and comparison, an analytical strategy rooted in grounded theory. Depression was perceived as a serious condition linked to the accumulation of social stressors. Somatic and anxiety-like symptoms and the cultural idiom of nervios were central themes in low-income Hispanics' explanatory models of depression. The perceived reciprocal relationships between diabetes and depression highlighted the multiple pathways by which these two illnesses impact each other and support the integration of diabetes and depression treatments. Concerns about depression treatments included fears about the addictive and harmful properties of antidepressants, worries about taking too many pills, and the stigma attached to taking psychotropic medications. This study provides important insights about the cultural and social dynamics that shape low-income Hispanics' illness and treatment experiences and support the use of patient-centered approaches to reduce the morbidity and mortality associated with diabetes and depression.

“Azúcar y Nervios: Explanatory Models and Treatment Experiences of Hispanics with Diabetes and Depression”

PubMed Central

Hansen, Marissa C; Palinkas, Lawrence A; Ell, Kathleen

2008-01-01

This study examined the explanatory models of depression, perceived relationships between diabetes and depression, and depression treatment experiences of low-income, Spanish-speaking, Hispanics with diabetes and depression. A purposive sample (n =19) was selected from participants enrolled in a randomized controlled trial conducted in Los Angeles, California (US) testing the effectiveness of a health services quality improvement intervention. Four focus groups followed by 10 in-depth semi-structured qualitative interviews were conducted. Data were analyzed using the methodology of coding, consensus, co-occurrence, and comparison, an analytical strategy rooted in grounded theory. Depression was perceived as a serious condition linked to the accumulation of social stressors. Somatic and anxiety-like symptoms and the cultural idiom of nervios were central themes in low-income Hispanics’ explanatory models of depression. The perceived reciprocal relationships between diabetes and depression highlighted the multiple pathways by which these two illnesses impact each other and support the integration of diabetes and depression treatments. Concerns about depression treatments included fears about the addictive and harmful properties of antidepressants, worries about taking too many pills, and the stigma attached to taking psychotropic medications. This study provides important insights about the cultural and social dynamics that shape low-income Hispanics’ illness and treatment experiences and support the use of patient-centered approaches to reduce the morbidity and mortality associated with diabetes and depression. PMID:18339466

Early predictors of helpless thoughts and behaviors in children: developmental precursors to depressive cognitions.

PubMed

Cole, David A; Warren, Dana E; Dallaire, Danielle H; Lagrange, Beth; Travis, Rebekah; Ciesla, Jeffrey A

2007-04-01

Learned helplessness behavior and cognitions were assessed in 95 kindergarten-age children during a series of impossible puzzle trials followed by a solvable puzzle trial. Latent growth curve analysis revealed reliable individual differences in the trajectories of children's affect, motivation, and self-cognitions over time. Parents' reports of negative life events, harsh/negative parenting, and warm/positive parenting were associated with their children's learned helplessness behavioral trajectories and outcomes over the course of the puzzle trials. Results support speculations about the developmental origins of depressive explanatory or attributional style in children.

Toward a model-based cognitive neuroscience of mind wandering.

PubMed

Hawkins, G E; Mittner, M; Boekel, W; Heathcote, A; Forstmann, B U

2015-12-03

People often "mind wander" during everyday tasks, temporarily losing track of time, place, or current task goals. In laboratory-based tasks, mind wandering is often associated with performance decrements in behavioral variables and changes in neural recordings. Such empirical associations provide descriptive accounts of mind wandering - how it affects ongoing task performance - but fail to provide true explanatory accounts - why it affects task performance. In this perspectives paper, we consider mind wandering as a neural state or process that affects the parameters of quantitative cognitive process models, which in turn affect observed behavioral performance. Our approach thus uses cognitive process models to bridge the explanatory divide between neural and behavioral data. We provide an overview of two general frameworks for developing a model-based cognitive neuroscience of mind wandering. The first approach uses neural data to segment observed performance into a discrete mixture of latent task-related and task-unrelated states, and the second regresses single-trial measures of neural activity onto structured trial-by-trial variation in the parameters of cognitive process models. We discuss the relative merits of the two approaches, and the research questions they can answer, and highlight that both approaches allow neural data to provide additional constraint on the parameters of cognitive models, which will lead to a more precise account of the effect of mind wandering on brain and behavior. We conclude by summarizing prospects for mind wandering as conceived within a model-based cognitive neuroscience framework, highlighting the opportunities for its continued study and the benefits that arise from using well-developed quantitative techniques to study abstract theoretical constructs. Copyright © 2015 The Authors. Published by Elsevier Ltd.. All rights reserved.

Gone fishing in a fluid trial.

PubMed

Hjortrup, Peter B; Haase, Nicolai; Wetterslev, Jørn; Perner, Anders

2016-03-01

To maximise the yield of existing data by assessing the effect on mortality of being born under the zodiac sign Pisces in a trial of intravenous (IV) fluids. A retrospective observational study, with no predefined hypothesis or statistical analysis plan, of 26 Scandinavian intensive care units between 2009 and 2011. Patients aged 18 years or older with severe sepsis and in need of fluid resuscitation, randomised in the Scandinavian Starch for Severe Sepsis/ Septic Shock (6S) trial. Ninety-day mortality. We included all 798 randomised patients in our study; 70 (9%) were born under the sign of Pisces. The primary outcome (death within 90 days after randomisation) occurred in 25 patients (35.7%) in the Pisces group, compared with 348 patients (48%) in the non-Pisces group (relative risk, 0.75; 95% CI, 0.54-1.03; one-sided P = 0.03). In a multicentre randomised clinical trial of IV fluids, being born under the sign of Pisces was associated with a decreased risk of death. Our study shows that with convenient use of statistics and an enticing explanatory hypothesis, it is possible to achieve significant findings in post-hoc analyses of data from large trials.

[Evidence on chronic myeloproliferative neoplasms from landmark clinical trials].

PubMed

Yamaguchi, Hiroki

2015-08-01

Mutations in the JAK2 gene are thought to underlie the development of chronic myeloproliferative neoplasms (cMPN). Indeed, ≥95% of polycythemia vera patients, and half or more of essential thrombocythemia and primary myelofibrosis (PMF) patients, harbor the JAK2V617F mutation. Besides the JAK2V617F mutation, the JAK2 exon 12 deletion, the MPLW515L/K, and CALR mutation have been discovered and shown to be involved in the pathogenesis of these diseases. Based on these advancements in the study of cMPN, the JAK2 inhibitor was developed as a new therapy for PMF. Moreover, recent advancements in our ability to diagnose cMPN have paralleled the development of large clinical trials for patients with cMPN. This article provides explanatory information from these large clinical trials that is useful for the actual clinical practice of caring for patients with cMPN in Japan.

Mediation and moderation of treatment effects in randomised controlled trials of complex interventions.

PubMed

Emsley, Richard; Dunn, Graham; White, Ian R

2010-06-01

Complex intervention trials should be able to answer both pragmatic and explanatory questions in order to test the theories motivating the intervention and help understand the underlying nature of the clinical problem being tested. Key to this is the estimation of direct effects of treatment and indirect effects acting through intermediate variables which are measured post-randomisation. Using psychological treatment trials as an example of complex interventions, we review statistical methods which crucially evaluate both direct and indirect effects in the presence of hidden confounding between mediator and outcome. We review the historical literature on mediation and moderation of treatment effects. We introduce two methods from within the existing causal inference literature, principal stratification and structural mean models, and demonstrate how these can be applied in a mediation context before discussing approaches and assumptions necessary for attaining identifiability of key parameters of the basic causal model. Assuming that there is modification by baseline covariates of the effect of treatment (i.e. randomisation) on the mediator (i.e. covariate by treatment interactions), but no direct effect on the outcome of these treatment by covariate interactions leads to the use of instrumental variable methods. We describe how moderation can occur through post-randomisation variables, and extend the principal stratification approach to multiple group methods with explanatory models nested within the principal strata. We illustrate the new methodology with motivating examples of randomised trials from the mental health literature.

A randomized controlled trial of the effectiveness of a pre-recruitment primer letter to increase participation in a study of colorectal screening and surveillance.

PubMed

Paul, Christine; Courtney, Ryan; Sanson-Fisher, Rob; Carey, Mariko; Hill, David; Simmons, Jody; Rose, Shiho

2014-04-01

Recruiting cancer patients is a barrier often encountered in research trials. However, very few randomized trials explore strategies to improve participation rates. The purpose of this study was to evaluate the effectiveness of a pre-recruitment primer letter to recruit persons diagnosed with colorectal cancer for a research trial. Potentially eligible participants were identified by the Victorian Cancer Registry. A total of 1,062 participants were randomized to receive either a mailed explanatory primer letter designed to encourage research participation, or no primer letter. Two weeks after the intervention, the Victorian Cancer Registry sought permission from patients to release their contact details to researchers. Those who agreed were contacted and invited to the study. Pre-recruitment encouragement was not effective at increasing recruitment, with no significant differences demonstrated between experimental groups. Overall, 40% (n = 425) consented to participate, 25% (n = 243) refused and 35% (n = 394) did not respond. While this study demonstrated disappointing outcomes, pre-recruitment letters should not be ruled out as an approach altogether. Rather, future research should explore whether other factors to increase motivation, such as intensity and timing, are feasible and acceptable for contacting cancer patients. Australian and New Zealand Clinical Trials Registry, ACTRN12609000628246.

Evaluating the design and reporting of pragmatic trials in osteoarthritis research.

PubMed

Ali, Shabana Amanda; Kloseck, Marita; Lee, Karen; Walsh, Kathleen Ellen; MacDermid, Joy C; Fitzsimmons, Deborah

2018-01-01

Among the challenges in health research is translating interventions from controlled experimental settings to clinical and community settings where chronic disease is managed daily. Pragmatic trials offer a method for testing interventions in real-world settings but are seldom used in OA research. The aim of this study was to evaluate the literature on pragmatic trials in OA research up to August 2016 in order to identify strengths and weaknesses in the design and reporting of these trials. We used established guidelines to assess the degree to which 61 OA studies complied with pragmatic trial design and reporting. We assessed design according to the pragmatic-explanatory continuum indicator summary and reporting according to the pragmatic trials extension of the CONsolidated Standards of Reporting Trials guidelines. None of the pragmatic trials met all 11 criteria evaluated and most of the trials met between 5 and 8 of the criteria. Criteria most often unmet pertained to practitioner expertise (by requiring specialists) and criteria most often met pertained to primary outcome analysis (by using intention-to-treat analysis). Our results suggest a lack of highly pragmatic trials in OA research. We identify this as a point of opportunity to improve research translation, since optimizing the design and reporting of pragmatic trials can facilitate implementation of evidence-based interventions for OA care. © The Author 2017. Published by Oxford University Press on behalf of the British Society for Rheumatology. All rights reserved. For Permissions, please email: journals.permissions@oup.com

Parent Predictors of Adolescents' Explanatory Style

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Vélez, Clorinda E.; Krause, Elizabeth D.; Brunwasser, Steven M.; Freres, Derek R.; Abenavoli, Rachel M.; Gillham, Jane E.

2015-01-01

The current study tested the prospective relations (6-month lag) between three aspects of the parent-child relationship at Time 1 (T1) and adolescents' explanatory styles at Time 2 (T2): caregiving behaviors, parents' explanatory style for their own negative events, and parents' explanatory style for their children's negative events. The sample…

Effects of dementia-care mapping on residents and staff of care homes: a pragmatic cluster-randomised controlled trial.

PubMed

van de Ven, Geertje; Draskovic, Irena; Adang, Eddy M M; Donders, Rogier; Zuidema, Sytse U; Koopmans, Raymond T C M; Vernooij-Dassen, Myrra J F J

2013-01-01

The effectiveness of dementia-care mapping (DCM) for institutionalised people with dementia has been demonstrated in an explanatory cluster-randomised controlled trial (cRCT) with two DCM researchers carrying out the DCM intervention. In order to be able to inform daily practice, we studied DCM effectiveness in a pragmatic cRCT involving a wide range of care homes with trained nursing staff carrying out the intervention. Dementia special care units were randomly assigned to DCM or usual care. Nurses from the intervention care homes received DCM training and conducted the 4-months DCM-intervention twice during the study. The primary outcome was agitation, measured with the Cohen-Mansfield agitation inventory (CMAI). The secondary outcomes included residents' neuropsychiatric symptoms (NPSs) and quality of life, and staff stress and job satisfaction. The nursing staff made all measurements at baseline and two follow-ups at 4-month intervals. We used linear mixed-effect models to test treatment and time effects. 34 units from 11 care homes, including 434 residents and 382 nursing staff members, were randomly assigned. Ten nurses from the intervention units completed the basic and advanced DCM training. Intention-to-treat analysis showed no statistically significant effect on the CMAI (mean difference between groups 2·4, 95% CI -2·7 to 7·6; p = 0·34). More NPSs were reported in the intervention group than in usual care (p = 0·02). Intervention staff reported fewer negative and more positive emotional reactions during work (p = 0·02). There were no other significant effects. Our pragmatic findings did not confirm the effect on the primary outcome of agitation in the explanatory study. Perhaps the variability of the extent of implementation of DCM may explain the lack of effect. Dutch Trials Registry NTR2314.

Joint perceptual decision-making: a case study in explanatory pluralism

PubMed Central

Abney, Drew H.; Dale, Rick; Yoshimi, Jeff; Kello, Chris T.; Tylén, Kristian; Fusaroli, Riccardo

2014-01-01

Traditionally different approaches to the study of cognition have been viewed as competing explanatory frameworks. An alternative view, explanatory pluralism, regards different approaches to the study of cognition as complementary ways of studying the same phenomenon, at specific temporal and spatial scales, using appropriate methodological tools. Explanatory pluralism has been often described abstractly, but has rarely been applied to concrete cases. We present a case study of explanatory pluralism. We discuss three separate ways of studying the same phenomenon: a perceptual decision-making task (Bahrami et al., 2010), where pairs of subjects share information to jointly individuate an oddball stimulus among a set of distractors. Each approach analyzed the same corpus but targeted different units of analysis at different levels of description: decision-making at the behavioral level, confidence sharing at the linguistic level, and acoustic energy at the physical level. We discuss the utility of explanatory pluralism for describing this complex, multiscale phenomenon, show ways in which this case study sheds new light on the concept of pluralism, and highlight good practices to critically assess and complement approaches. PMID:24795679

Single-implant overdentures retained by the Novaloc attachment system: study protocol for a mixed-methods randomized cross-over trial.

PubMed

de Souza, Raphael F; Bedos, Christophe; Esfandiari, Shahrokh; Makhoul, Nicholas M; Dagdeviren, Didem; Abi Nader, Samer; Jabbar, Areej A; Feine, Jocelyne S

2018-04-23

Overdentures retained by a single implant in the midline have arisen as a minimal implant treatment for edentulous mandibles. The success of this treatment depends on the performance of a single stud attachment that is susceptible to wear-related retention loss. Recently developed biomaterials used in attachments may result in better performance of the overdentures, offering minimal retention loss and greater patient satisfaction. These biomaterials include resistant polymeric matrixes and amorphous diamond-like carbon applied on metallic components. The objective of this explanatory mixed-methods study is to compare Novaloc, a novel attachment system with such characteristics, to a traditional alternative for single implants in the mandible of edentate elderly patients. We will carry out a randomized cross-over clinical trial comparing Novaloc attachments to Locators for single-implant mandibular overdentures in edentate elderly individuals. Participants will be followed for three months with each attachment type; patient-based, clinical, and economic outcomes will be gathered. A sample of 26 participants is estimated to be required to detect clinically relevant differences in terms of the primary outcome (patient ratings of general satisfaction). Participants will choose which attachment they wish to keep, then be interviewed about their experiences and preferences with a single implant prosthesis and with the two attachments. Data from the quantitative and qualitative assessments will be integrated through a mixed-methods explanatory strategy. A last quantitative assessment will take place after 12 months with the preferred attachment; this latter assessment will enable measurement of the attachments' long-term wear and maintenance requirements. Our results will lead to evidence-based recommendations regarding these systems, guiding providers and patients when making decisions on which attachment systems and implant numbers will be most appropriate for individual cases. The recommendation of a specific attachment for elderly edentulous patients may combine positive outcomes from patient perspectives with low cost, good maintenance, and minimal invasiveness. ClinicalTrials.gov, NCT03126942 . Registered on 13 April 2017.

Adapting the concept of explanatory models of illness to the study of youth violence.

PubMed

Biering, Páll

2007-07-01

This study explores the feasibility of adapting Kleinman's concept of explanatory models of illness to the study of youth violence and is conducted within the hermeneutic tradition. Data were collected by interviewing 11 violent adolescents, their parents, and their caregivers. Four types of explanatory models representing the adolescent girls', the adolescent boys', the caregivers', and the parents' understanding of youth violence are found; they correspond sufficiently to Kleinman's concept and establish the feasibility of adapting it to the study of youth violence. The developmental nature of the parents' and adolescents' models makes it feasible to study them by means of hermeneutic methodology. There are some clinically significant discrepancies between the caregivers' and the clients' explanatory models; identifying such discrepancies is an essential step in the process of breaking down barriers to therapeutic communications. Violent adolescents should be encouraged to define their own explanatory models of violence through dialogue with their caregivers.

Explanatory models and distress in primary caregivers of patients with acute psychotic presentations: A study from South India.

PubMed

Joy, Deepa S; Manoranjitham, S D; Samuel, P; Jacob, K S

2017-11-01

Emotional distress among caregivers of people with mental illness is common, changes overtime and requires appropriate coping strategies to prevent long-term disability. Explanatory models, which underpin understanding of disease and illness, are crucial to coping. To study the association of explanatory models and distress among caregivers of people with acute psychotic illness. A total of 60 consecutive patients and their primary caregivers who presented to the Department of Psychiatry, Christian Medical College, Vellore, were recruited for the study. Positive and Negative Syndrome Scale (PANSS), Short Explanatory Model Interview (SEMI) and the General Health Questionnaire-12 (GHQ-12) were used to assess severity of psychosis, explanatory models of illness and emotional distress. Standard bivariate and multivariable statistics were employed. Majority of the caregivers simultaneously held multiple models of illness, which included medical and non-medical perspectives. The GHQ-12 score were significantly lower in people who held multiple explanatory models of illness when compared to the caregivers who believed single explanations. Explanatory models affect coping in caregivers of patients with acute psychotic presentations. There is a need to have a broad-based approach to recovery and care.

Identification of Drug Characteristics for Implementing Multiregional Clinical Trials Including Japan.

PubMed

Rokuda, Mitsuhiro; Matsumaru, Naoki; Tsukamoto, Katsura

2018-02-01

Multiregional clinical trials (MRCT) are a standard strategy used to improve global drug approval efficiency and the feasibility of clinical trials. Japan is the world's third largest drug market with a unique health care system, making it a key inclusion as an operational region for MRCT (MRCT-JP) for global drug development. We aimed to identify the factors required for efficient drug development by comprehensively reviewing the clinical trials of drugs approved in Japan to identify the factors associated with whether or not MRCT-JP is implemented. We surveyed the review reports and summaries of application data published by the Pharmaceuticals and Medical Devices Agency. We identified drugs for which the clinical trial data package included MRCT-JP and selected the same number of drugs for which the clinical trial data package did not include MRCT-JP from the most recent survey period for comparison. We also examined other publication information, in addition to the review reports, as necessary. The influence of each explanatory variable was analyzed by logistic regression analysis, with whether or not MRCT-JP was implemented as the explanatory variable. Statistical significance was set at 5%. In the survey period up to September 2017, 165 drugs developed with MRCT-JP were approved for manufacture and sale in Japan. "Respiratory system," "inhalation," "biological drug," and "under review" evaluation status for the United States, European Union, and other areas, "approved" evaluation status for the United States, "new ingredients," "priority review," "non-Japanese firm," and "Top 1-10" and "Top 11-20" drug sales rankings for pharmaceutical companies were identified as potential factors leading to the implementation of MRCT-JP. In contrast, "general anti-infectives for systemic use," "various," "external," "chemical compound," "unsubmitted" evaluation status for both the United States and European Union, and "Top 51+" drug sales rankings were potential factors for not implementing MRCT-JP. Therapeutic classification and agent type, in addition to capital type and United States and European Union evaluation status suggested by a previous study, were associated with implementing MRCT-JP. It is important to determine the best way to utilize MRCT-JP to maximize the value of products. Our findings were based on successful cases and may therefore be helpful for designing clinical development plans. Appropriate use of MRCT-JP will improve productivity in the pharmaceutical industry. Copyright © 2018 Elsevier HS Journals, Inc. All rights reserved.

Study design features affecting outcome in antidepressant trials.

PubMed

Henkel, Verena; Casaulta, Flurina; Seemüller, Florian; Krähenbühl, Stephan; Obermeier, Michael; Hüsler, Jürg; Möller, Hans-Jürgen

2012-12-10

A key issue in the approval process of antidepressants is the inconsistency of results between antidepressant clinical phase III trials. Identifying factors influencing efficacy data is needed to facilitate interpretation of the results. We reviewed data packages submitted as new drug applications to Swissmedic focusing on pivotal, short-term antidepressant trials. Included studies used HAMD-17 or HAMD-21 as primary measures and enrolled patients aged 18-65 years with a diagnosis of major depression. Due to the hierarchical structure of the data a mixed-effect regression model has been applied with responder rates as primary outcome criterion. Random intercepts were estimated for the different trials, while study design factors were assigned as explanatory fixed effects. The final dataset was based upon 35 study reports with a total of N=10,835 patients. Significant results were found for study arm (placebo vs. active compound, p<0.001), sample size (p=0.002), duration of treatment (p=0.024), two or more active treatment arms (p=0.022) and the individual drug (p=0.029). Furthermore, a tendency to an association with the outcome was observed for baseline disease severity (p=0.077) and possibility of dosing adaptation (p=0.076). Due to strict confidentiality agreements, individual drugs are not reported here. Further research should consider additional variables that might have an impact on the results of antidepressant trials. Efficacy data in antidepressant trials is significantly affected by various factors. These factors and their potentially confounding role have to be considered in the interpretation of the results. Copyright © 2012 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

Interventions in randomised controlled trials in surgery: issues to consider during trial design.

PubMed

Blencowe, Natalie S; Brown, Julia M; Cook, Jonathan A; Metcalfe, Chris; Morton, Dion G; Nicholl, Jon; Sharples, Linda D; Treweek, Shaun; Blazeby, Jane M

2015-09-04

Until recently, insufficient attention has been paid to the fact that surgical interventions are complex. This complexity has several implications, including the way in which surgical interventions are described and delivered in trials. In order for surgeons to adopt trial findings, interventions need to be described in sufficient detail to enable accurate replication; however, it may be permissible to allow some aspects to be delivered according to local practice. Accumulating work in this area has identified the need for general guidance on the design of surgical interventions in trial protocols and reports. Key issues to consider when designing surgical interventions include the identification of each surgical intervention and their components, who will deliver the interventions, and where and how the interventions will be standardised and monitored during the trial. The trial design (pragmatic and explanatory), comparator and stage of innovation may also influence the extent of detail required. Thoughtful consideration of surgical interventions in this way may help with the interpretation of trial results and the adoption of successful interventions into clinical practice.

Polycystic Ovary Syndrome: Effect and Mechanisms of Acupuncture for Ovulation Induction

PubMed Central

Johansson, Julia; Stener-Victorin, Elisabet

2013-01-01

Polycystic ovary syndrome (PCOS), the most common endocrine disorder among women of reproductive age, is characterized by the coexistence of hyperandrogenism, ovulatory dysfunction, and polycystic ovaries (PCO). PCOS also represents the largest part of female oligoovulatory infertility, and the management of ovulatory and menstrual dysfunction, comprises a third of the high costs of PCOS treatment. Current pharmacological and surgical treatments for reproductive symptoms are effective, however, associated with negative side effects, such as cardiovascular complications and multiple pregnancies. For menstrual irregularities and ovulation induction in women with PCOS, acupuncture has indicated beneficial effects. This review will focus on the results from randomized controlled acupuncture trials for regulation of menstrual dysfunction and for inducing ovulation in women with PCOS although there are uncontrolled trials with nonetheless interesting results. Animal experimental studies will be further discussed when they can provide a more mechanistic explanatory view. PMID:24073009

SPIRIT 2013 explanation and elaboration: guidance for protocols of clinical trials

PubMed Central

Tetzlaff, Jennifer M; Gøtzsche, Peter C; Altman, Douglas G; Mann, Howard; Berlin, Jesse A; Dickersin, Kay; Hróbjartsson, Asbjørn; Schulz, Kenneth F; Parulekar, Wendy R; Krleža-Jerić, Karmela; Laupacis, Andreas; Moher, David

2013-01-01

High quality protocols facilitate proper conduct, reporting, and external review of clinical trials. However, the completeness of trial protocols is often inadequate. To help improve the content and quality of protocols, an international group of stakeholders developed the SPIRIT 2013 Statement (Standard Protocol Items: Recommendations for Interventional Trials). The SPIRIT Statement provides guidance in the form of a checklist of recommended items to include in a clinical trial protocol. This SPIRIT 2013 Explanation and Elaboration paper provides important information to promote full understanding of the checklist recommendations. For each checklist item, we provide a rationale and detailed description; a model example from an actual protocol; and relevant references supporting its importance. We strongly recommend that this explanatory paper be used in conjunction with the SPIRIT Statement. A website of resources is also available (www.spirit-statement.org). The SPIRIT 2013 Explanation and Elaboration paper, together with the Statement, should help with the drafting of trial protocols. Complete documentation of key trial elements can facilitate transparency and protocol review for the benefit of all stakeholders. PMID:23303884

SPIRIT 2013 explanation and elaboration: guidance for protocols of clinical trials.

PubMed

Chan, An-Wen; Tetzlaff, Jennifer M; Gøtzsche, Peter C; Altman, Douglas G; Mann, Howard; Berlin, Jesse A; Dickersin, Kay; Hróbjartsson, Asbjørn; Schulz, Kenneth F; Parulekar, Wendy R; Krleza-Jeric, Karmela; Laupacis, Andreas; Moher, David

2013-01-08

High quality protocols facilitate proper conduct, reporting, and external review of clinical trials. However, the completeness of trial protocols is often inadequate. To help improve the content and quality of protocols, an international group of stakeholders developed the SPIRIT 2013 Statement (Standard Protocol Items: Recommendations for Interventional Trials). The SPIRIT Statement provides guidance in the form of a checklist of recommended items to include in a clinical trial protocol. This SPIRIT 2013 Explanation and Elaboration paper provides important information to promote full understanding of the checklist recommendations. For each checklist item, we provide a rationale and detailed description; a model example from an actual protocol; and relevant references supporting its importance. We strongly recommend that this explanatory paper be used in conjunction with the SPIRIT Statement. A website of resources is also available (www.spirit-statement.org). The SPIRIT 2013 Explanation and Elaboration paper, together with the Statement, should help with the drafting of trial protocols. Complete documentation of key trial elements can facilitate transparency and protocol review for the benefit of all stakeholders.

External Control of Knowledge of Results: Learner Involvement Enhances Motor Skill Transfer.

PubMed

Figueiredo, L S; Ugrinowitsch, H; Freire, A B; Shea, J B; Benda, R N

2018-04-01

Providing the learner control over aspects of practice has improved the process of motor skill acquisition, and self-controlled knowledge of results (KR) schedules have shown specific advantages over externally controlled ones. A possible explanation is that self-controlled KR schedules lead learners to more active task involvement, permitting deeper information processing. This study tested this explanatory hypothesis. Thirty undergraduate volunteers of both sexes, aged 18 to 35, all novices in the task, practiced transporting a tennis ball in a specified sequence within a time goal. We compared a high-involvement group (involvement yoked, IY), notified in advance about upcoming KR trials, to self-controlled KR (SC) and yoked KR (YK) groups. The experiment consisted of three phases: acquisition, retention, and transfer. We found both IY and SC groups to be superior to YK for transfer of learning. Postexperiment participant questionnaires confirmed a preference for receiving KR after learner-perceived good trials, even though performance on those trials did not differ from performance on trials without KR. Equivalent IY and SC performances provide support for the benefits of task involvement and deeper information processing when KR is self-controlled in motor skill acquisition.

Modelling Analysis of Students' Processes of Generating Scientific Explanatory Hypotheses

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Park, Jongwon

2006-01-01

It has recently been determined that generating an explanatory hypothesis to explain a discrepant event is important for students' conceptual change. The purpose of this study is to investigate how students' generate new explanatory hypotheses. To achieve this goal, questions are used to identify students prior ideas related to electromagnetic…

Explaining and Selecting Treatments for Autism: Parental Explanatory Models in Taiwan

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Shyu, Yea-Ing Lotus; Tsai, Jia-Ling; Tsai, Wen-Che

2010-01-01

Parental explanatory models about autism influence the type of therapy a child receives, the child's well-being, and the parents' own psychological adaptation. This qualitative study explored explanatory models used by parents of children with autism. In-depth interviews were conducted with 13 parents of children with autism from a medical center…

Academic Judgment and Institutional Evaluation Made by Teachers According to Pupils' Explanatory Activity

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Jouffre, Stephane; Py, Jacques; Somat, Alain

2008-01-01

The influence of sixth-graders' explanatory activity was studied on their teachers' academic judgment. Concerning the pupils' explanatory activity, trait-related internal explanations were chosen more to explain positive events than negative ones, whereas the reverse was observed for effort/intention-related internal explanations. In response to…

Behavioral headache research: methodologic considerations and research design alternatives.

PubMed

Hursey, Karl G; Rains, Jeanetta C; Penzien, Donald B; Nash, Justin M; Nicholson, Robert A

2005-05-01

Behavioral headache treatments have garnered solid empirical support in recent years, but there is substantial opportunity to strengthen the next generation of studies with improved methods and consistency across studies. Recently, Guidelines for Trials of Behavioral Treatments for Recurrent Headache were published to facilitate the production of high-quality research. The present article compliments the guidelines with a discussion of methodologic and research design considerations. Since there is no research design that is applicable in every situation, selecting an appropriate research design is fundamental to producing meaningful results. Investigators in behavioral headache and other areas of research consider the developmental phase of the research, the principle objectives of the project, and the sources of error or alternative interpretations in selecting a design. Phases of clinical trials typically include pilot studies, efficacy studies, and effectiveness studies. These trials may be categorized as primarily pragmatic or explanatory. The most appropriate research designs for these different phases and different objectives vary on such characteristics as sample size and assignment to condition, types of control conditions, periods or frequency of measurement, and the dimensions along which comparisons are made. A research design also must fit within constraints on available resources. There are a large number of potential research designs that can be used and considering these characteristics allows selection of appropriate research designs.

Attachment Security Balances Perspectives: Effects of Security Priming on Highly Optimistic and Pessimistic Explanatory Styles.

PubMed

Deng, Yanhe; Yan, Mengge; Chen, Henry; Sun, Xin; Zhang, Peng; Zeng, Xianglong; Liu, Xiangping; Lye, Yue

2016-01-01

Highly optimistic explanatory style (HOES) and highly pessimistic explanatory style (HPES) are two maladaptive ways to explain the world and may have roots in attachment insecurity. The current study aims to explore the effects of security priming - activating supportive representations of attachment security - on ameliorating these maladaptive explanatory styles. 57 participants with HOES and 57 participants with HPES were randomized into security priming and control conditions. Their scores of overall optimistic attribution were measured before and after priming. Security priming had a moderating effect: the security primed HOES group exhibited lower optimistic attribution, while the security primed HPES group evinced higher scores of optimistic attribution. Furthermore, the security primed HOES group attributed positive outcomes more externally, while the security primed HPES group attributed successful results more internally. The results support the application of security priming interventions on maladaptive explanatory styles. Its potential mechanism and directions for future study are also discussed.

The Social Explanatory Styles Questionnaire: Assessing Moderators of Basic Social-Cognitive Phenomena Including Spontaneous Trait Inference, the Fundamental Attribution Error, and Moral Blame

PubMed Central

Gill, Michael J.; Andreychik, Michael R.

2014-01-01

Why is he poor? Why is she failing academically? Why is he so generous? Why is she so conscientious? Answers to such everyday questions—social explanations—have powerful effects on relationships at the interpersonal and societal levels. How do people select an explanation in particular cases? We suggest that, often, explanations are selected based on the individual's pre-existing general theories of social causality. More specifically, we suggest that over time individuals develop general beliefs regarding the causes of social events. We refer to these beliefs as social explanatory styles. Our goal in the present article is to offer and validate a measure of individual differences in social explanatory styles. Accordingly, we offer the Social Explanatory Styles Questionnaire (SESQ), which measures three independent dimensions of social explanatory style: Dispositionism, historicism, and controllability. Studies 1–3 examine basic psychometric properties of the SESQ and provide positive evidence regarding internal consistency, factor structure, and both convergent and divergent validity. Studies 4–6 examine predictive validity for each subscale: Does each explanatory dimension moderate an important phenomenon of social cognition? Results suggest that they do. In Study 4, we show that SESQ dispositionism moderates the tendency to make spontaneous trait inferences. In Study 5, we show that SESQ historicism moderates the tendency to commit the Fundamental Attribution Error. Finally, in Study 6 we show that SESQ controllability predicts polarization of moral blame judgments: Heightened blaming toward controllable stigmas (assimilation), and attenuated blaming toward uncontrollable stigmas (contrast). Decades of research suggest that explanatory style regarding the self is a powerful predictor of self-functioning. We think it is likely that social explanatory styles—perhaps comprising interactive combinations of the basic dimensions tapped by the SESQ—will be similarly potent predictors of social functioning. We hope the SESQ will be a useful tool for exploring that possibility. PMID:25007152

Performance of comorbidity, risk adjustment, and functional status measures in expenditure prediction for patients with diabetes.

PubMed

Maciejewski, Matthew L; Liu, Chuan-Fen; Fihn, Stephan D

2009-01-01

To compare the ability of generic comorbidity and risk adjustment measures, a diabetes-specific measure, and a self-reported functional status measure to explain variation in health care expenditures for individuals with diabetes. This study included a retrospective cohort of 3,092 diabetic veterans participating in a multisite trial. Two comorbidity measures, four risk adjusters, a functional status measure, a diabetes complication count, and baseline expenditures were constructed from administrative and survey data. Outpatient, inpatient, and total expenditure models were estimated using ordinary least squares regression. Adjusted R(2) statistics and predictive ratios were compared across measures to assess overall explanatory power and explanatory power of low- and high-cost subgroups. Administrative data-based risk adjusters performed better than the comorbidity, functional status, and diabetes-specific measures in all expenditure models. The diagnostic cost groups (DCGs) measure had the greatest predictive power overall and for the low- and high-cost subgroups, while the diabetes-specific measure had the lowest predictive power. A model with DCGs and the diabetes-specific measure modestly improved predictive power. Existing generic measures can be useful for diabetes-specific research and policy applications, but more predictive diabetes-specific measures are needed.

Conceptual Resources in Self-Developed Explanatory Models: The Importance of Integrating Conscious and Intuitive Knowledge

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Cheng, Meng-Fei; Brown, David E.

2010-01-01

This study explores the spontaneous explanatory models children construct, critique, and revise in the context of tasks in which children need to predict, observe, and explain phenomena involving magnetism. It further investigates what conceptual resources students use, and in what ways they use them, to construct explanatory models, and the…

Psychosocial Factors Influencing Smokeless Tobacco Use by Teenage Military Dependents

DTIC Science & Technology

1994-01-01

age and grade Demographics both show strong bivariate relationships with the outcome MALE-male gender measures, we selected to use only one of these...a positive sign indicating a direct relation- no impact for either gender . Attitude and other tobacco influ- ship and a negative sign an inverse...by both genders . nlficant. However, if the interval includes one but is highly For both genders , the strongest explanatory variable for trial skewed

Treatment Effect in Earlier Trials of Patients With Chronic Medical Conditions: A Meta-Epidemiologic Study.

PubMed

Alahdab, Fares; Farah, Wigdan; Almasri, Jehad; Barrionuevo, Patricia; Zaiem, Feras; Benkhadra, Raed; Asi, Noor; Alsawas, Mouaz; Pang, Yifan; Ahmed, Ahmed T; Rajjo, Tamim; Kanwar, Amrit; Benkhadra, Khalid; Razouki, Zayd; Murad, M Hassan; Wang, Zhen

2018-03-01

To determine whether the early trials in chronic medical conditions demonstrate an effect size that is larger than that in subsequent trials. We identified randomized controlled trials (RCTs) evaluating a drug or device in patients with chronic medical conditions through meta-analyses (MAs) published between January 1, 2007, and June 23, 2015, in the 10 general medical journals with highest impact factor. We estimated the prevalence of having the largest effect size or heterogeneity in the first 2 published trials. We evaluated the association of the exaggerated early effect with several a priori hypothesized explanatory variables. We included 70 MAs that had included a total of 930 trials (average of 13 [range, 5-48] RCTs per MA) with average follow-up of 24 (range, 1-168) months. The prevalence of the exaggerated early effect (ie, proportion of MAs with largest effect or heterogeneity in the first 2 trials) was 37%. These early trials had an effect size that was on average 2.67 times larger than the overall pooled effect size (ratio of relative effects, 2.67; 95% CI, 2.12-3.37). The presence of exaggerated effect was not significantly associated with trial size; number of events; length of follow-up; intervention duration; number of study sites; inpatient versus outpatient setting; funding source; stopping a trial early; adequacy of random sequence generation, allocation concealment, or blinding; loss to follow-up or the test for publication bias. Trials evaluating treatments of chronic medical conditions published early in the chain of evidence commonly demonstrate an exaggerated treatment effect compared with subsequent trials. At the present time, this phenomenon remains unpredictable. Considering the increasing morbidity and mortality of chronic medical conditions, decision makers should act on early evidence with caution. Copyright © 2017 Mayo Foundation for Medical Education and Research. Published by Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

The effect of a negative mood priming challenge on dysfunctional attitudes, explanatory style, and explanatory flexibility.

PubMed

Fresco, David M; Heimberg, Richard G; Abramowitz, Adrienne; Bertram, Tara L

2006-06-01

Ninety-seven undergraduates, 48 of whom had a history of self-reported major depression, completed measures of mood and cognitive style (e.g. explanatory style, explanatory flexibility, dysfunctional attitudes) prior to and directly after a negative mood priming challenge that consisted of listening to sad music and thinking about an upsetting past event. Eighteen of the previously depressed participants endorsed baseline levels of depression, explanatory style for negative events, and dysfunctional attitudes higher than levels reported by never depressed participants or euthymic participants with a history of depression. All three groups (never depressed participants, dysphoric participants with a history of depression, euthymic participants with a history of depression) demonstrated increases in dysphoria and dysfunctional attitudes in response to the negative mood priming challenge. Dysphoric participants with a history of depression, but not the other two groups, evidenced modest increases in explanatory style following the negative mood priming challenge. Finally, euthymic participants with a history of depression, but not the other two groups, evidenced drops in explanatory flexibility. Findings from the present study suggest that the cognitive theories of depression may benefit from examining both cognitive content and cognitive flexibility when assessing risk for depression.

SPIRIT trial: A phase III pragmatic trial of an advance care planning intervention in ESRD.

PubMed

Song, Mi-Kyung; Unruh, Mark L; Manatunga, Amita; Plantinga, Laura C; Lea, Janice; Jhamb, Manisha; Kshirsagar, Abhijit V; Ward, Sandra E

2018-01-01

Advance care planning (ACP) is a central tenet of dialysis care, but the vast majority of dialysis patients report never engaging in ACP discussions with their care providers. Over the last decade, we have developed and iteratively tested SPIRIT (Sharing Patient's Illness Representation to Increase Trust), a theory-based, patient- and family-centered advance care planning intervention. SPIRIT is a six-step, two-session, face-to-face intervention to promote cognitive and emotional preparation for end-of-life decision making for patients with ESRD and their surrogates. In these explanatory trials, SPIRIT was delivered by trained research nurses. Findings consistently revealed that patients and surrogates in SPIRIT showed significant improvement in preparedness for end-of-life decision making, and surrogates in SPIRIT reported significantly improved post-bereavement psychological outcomes after the patient's death compared to a no treatment comparison condition. As a critical next step, we are conducting an effectiveness-implementation study. This study is a multicenter, clinic-level cluster randomized pragmatic trial to evaluate the effectiveness of SPIRIT delivered by dialysis care providers as part of routine care in free-standing outpatient dialysis clinics, compared to usual care plus delayed SPIRIT implementation. Simultaneously, we will evaluate the implementation of SPIRIT, including sustainability. We will recruit 400 dyads of patients at high risk of death in the next year and their surrogates from 30 dialysis clinics in four states. This trial of SPIRIT will generate novel, meaningful insights about improving ACP in dialysis care. ClinicalTrials.govNCT03138564, registered 05/01/2017. Copyright © 2017 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

Design and statistical problems in prevention.

PubMed

Gullberg, B

1996-01-01

Clinical and epidemiological research in osteoporosis can benefit from using the methods and techniques established in the area of chronic disease epidemiology. However, attention has to be given to the special characteristics such as the multifactorial nature and the fact that the subjects usually are of high ages. In order to evaluate prevention it is of course first necessary to detect and confirm reversible risk factors. The advantage and disadvantage of different design (cross-sectional, cohort and case-control) are well known. The effects of avoidable biases, e.g. selection, observation and confounding have to be balanced against practical conveniences like time, expenses, recruitment etc. The translation of relative risks into population attributable risks (etiologic fractions, prevented fractions) are complex and are usually performed under unrealistic, simplified assumptions. The consequences of interactions (synergy) between risk factors are often neglected. The multifactorial structure requires application of more advanced multi-level statistical techniques. The common strategy in prevention to target a cluster of risk factors in order to avoid the multifactorial nature implies that in the end it is impossible to separate each unique factor. Experimental designs for evaluating prevention like clinical trials and intervention have to take into account the distinction between explanatory and pragmatic studies. An explanatory approach is similar to an idealized laboratory trial while the pragmatic design is more realistic, practical and has a general public health perspective. The statistical techniques to be used in osteoporosis research are implemented in easy available computer-packages like SAS, SPSS, BMDP and GLIM. In addition to the traditional logistic regression methods like Cox analysis and Poisson regression also analysis of repeated measurement and cluster analysis are relevant.

'Food Sticking in My Throat': Videofluoroscopic Evaluation of a Common Symptom.

PubMed

Madhavan, Aarthi; Carnaby, Giselle D; Crary, Michael A

2015-06-01

Prevalence of the symptom of food 'sticking' during swallowing has been reported to range from 5 to 50%, depending on the assessment setting. However, limited objective evidence has emerged to clarify factors that contribute to this symptom. Three hundred and fifteen patient records from an outpatient dysphagia clinic were reviewed to identify patients with symptoms of 'food sticking in the throat.' Corresponding videofluoroscopic swallowing studies for patients with this complaint were reviewed for the following variables: accuracy of symptom localization, identification and characteristics (anatomic, physiologic) of an explanatory cause for the symptom, and the specific swallowed material that identified the explanatory cause. One hundred and forty one patients (45%) were identified with a complaint of food 'sticking' in their throat during swallowing. Prevalence of explanatory findings on fluoroscopy was 76% (107/141). Eighty five percent (91/107) of explanatory causes were physiologic in nature, while 15% (16/107) were anatomic. The majority of explanatory causes were identified in the esophagus (71%). Symptom localization was more accurate when the explanatory cause was anatomic versus physiologic (75 vs. 18%). A non-masticated marshmallow presented with the highest diagnostic yield in identification of explanatory causes (71%). Patients complaining of 'food sticking in the throat' are likely to present with esophageal irregularities. Thus, imaging studies of swallowing function should include the esophagus. A range of materials, including a non-masticated marshmallow, is helpful in determining the location and characteristics of swallowing deficits contributing to this symptom.

Explanatory models in patients with first episode depression: a study from north India.

PubMed

Grover, Sandeep; Kumar, Vineet; Chakrabarti, Subho; Hollikatti, Prabhakar; Singh, Pritpal; Tyagi, Shikha; Kulhara, Parmanand; Avasthi, Ajit

2012-09-01

The purpose of this work was to study the explanatory models of patients with first episode depression presenting to a tertiary care hospital located in North-western India. One hundred sixty four consecutive patients with diagnosis of first episode depression (except severe depression with psychotic symptoms) according to the International Classification of Diseases-10th Revision (ICD-10) and ≥18 years of age were evaluated for their explanatory models using the causal models section of Explanatory Model Interview Catalogue (EMIC). The most common explanations given were categorized into Karma-deed-heredity category (77.4%), followed by psychological explanations (62.2%), weakness (50%) and social causes (40.2%). Among the various specific causes the commonly reported explanations by at least one-fourth of the sample in decreasing order were: will of god (51.2%), fate/chance (40.9%), weakness of nerves (37.8%), general weakness (34.7%), bad deeds (26.2%), evil eye (24.4%) and family problems (21.9%). There was some influence of sociodemographic features on the explanations given by the patients. From the study, it can be concluded that patients with first episode depression have multiple explanatory models for their symptoms of depression which are slightly different than those reported in previous studies done from other parts of India. Understanding the multiple explanatory models for their symptoms of depression can have important treatment implications. Copyright © 2012 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

Examining the Value of a Scaffolded Critique Framework to Promote Argumentative and Explanatory Writings Within an Argument-Based Inquiry Approach

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Jang, Jeong-yoon; Hand, Brian

2017-12-01

This study investigated the value of using a scaffolded critique framework to promote two different types of writing—argumentative writing and explanatory writing—with different purposes within an argument-based inquiry approach known as the Science Writing Heuristic (SWH) approach. A quasi-experimental design with sixth and seventh grade students taught by two teachers was used. A total of 170 students participated in the study, with 87 in the control group (four classes) and 83 in the treatment group (four classes). All students used the SWH templates as an argumentative writing to guide their written work and completed these templates during the SWH investigations of each unit. After completing the SWH investigations, both groups of students were asked to complete the summary writing task as an explanatory writing at the end of each unit. All students' writing samples were scored using analytical frameworks developed for the study. The results indicated that the treatment group performed significantly better on the explanatory writing task than the control group. In addition, the results of the partial correlation suggested that there is a very strong significantly positive relationship between the argumentative writing and the explanatory writing.

Outcome selection and role of patient reported outcomes in contemporary cardiovascular trials: systematic review

PubMed Central

Malhotra, Aneil; Banning, Adrian P; Jenkinson, Crispin

2010-01-01

Objectives To systematically assess the type of outcomes selected and the prevalence of patient reported outcomes in contemporary cardiovascular trials and to quantify any misuse or underuse of patient reported outcomes using a specially developed tool that would allow estimation of the relevance of such outcomes to clinical decision making. Design Systematic review. Data sources Medline and Embase. Study selection Randomised controlled trials of the treatment for or prevention of cardiovascular disease published in 10 leading general medical and cardiology journals from January 2005 to December 2008. Results Primary outcomes were patient important (death, morbidity, or patient reported outcomes) in only 93 of 413 trials (23%, SE 2%), whereas another 92 (22%, SE 2%) combined these outcomes with other less important ones into a composite. Sixty five trials (16%; SE 2%) used at least one instrument to measure patient reported outcomes, mostly in trials where such information would have been important or crucial for clinical decision making (52 trials). Patient reported outcomes were judged to be of little incremental value to a large number of, mostly explanatory, cardiovascular trials (152 trials). However, many trials in which patient reported outcomes would have been important or crucial for clinical decision making did not report such outcomes (122 of 174 trials, 70%). These included several trials that primarily aimed to improve symptoms or functional status, trials that tested interventions with a considerable potential for causing harm (mainly bleeding) that were not meaningfully measured, and trials with composite outcomes that were dominated by outcomes of questionable importance to patients. Conclusions Despite a continued rise in the reporting of patient reported outcomes with no evidence for their misuse in more recent cardiovascular trials, they seem to be still underused once their relevance to clinical decision making has been taken into account. This was largely explained by inappropriate use of composite outcomes and inadequate measurement of harms. PMID:21041324

Performance of Comorbidity, Risk Adjustment, and Functional Status Measures in Expenditure Prediction for Patients With Diabetes

PubMed Central

Maciejewski, Matthew L.; Liu, Chuan-Fen; Fihn, Stephan D.

2009-01-01

OBJECTIVE—To compare the ability of generic comorbidity and risk adjustment measures, a diabetes-specific measure, and a self-reported functional status measure to explain variation in health care expenditures for individuals with diabetes. RESEARCH DESIGN AND METHODS—This study included a retrospective cohort of 3,092 diabetic veterans participating in a multisite trial. Two comorbidity measures, four risk adjusters, a functional status measure, a diabetes complication count, and baseline expenditures were constructed from administrative and survey data. Outpatient, inpatient, and total expenditure models were estimated using ordinary least squares regression. Adjusted R2 statistics and predictive ratios were compared across measures to assess overall explanatory power and explanatory power of low- and high-cost subgroups. RESULTS—Administrative data–based risk adjusters performed better than the comorbidity, functional status, and diabetes-specific measures in all expenditure models. The diagnostic cost groups (DCGs) measure had the greatest predictive power overall and for the low- and high-cost subgroups, while the diabetes-specific measure had the lowest predictive power. A model with DCGs and the diabetes-specific measure modestly improved predictive power. CONCLUSIONS—Existing generic measures can be useful for diabetes-specific research and policy applications, but more predictive diabetes-specific measures are needed. PMID:18945927

Does the use of efficacy or effectiveness evidence in cost-effectiveness analysis matter?

PubMed

Dilokthornsakul, Piyameth; Chaiyakunapruk, Nathorn; Campbell, Jonathan D

2017-01-02

To test the association of clinical evidence type, efficacy-based or effectiveness-based ("E"), versus whether or not asthma interventions' cost-effectiveness findings are favorable. We conducted a systematic review of PubMed, EMBASE, Tufts CEA registry, Cochrane CENTRAL, and the UK National Health Services Economic Evaluation Database from 2009 to 2014. All cost-effectiveness studies evaluating asthma medication(s) were included. Clinical evidence type, "E," was classified as efficacy-based if the evidence was from an explanatory randomized controlled trial(s) or meta-analysis, while evidence from pragmatic trial(s) or observational study(s) was classified as effectiveness-based. We defined three times the World Health Organization cost-effectiveness willingness-to-pay (WTP) threshold or less as a favorable cost-effectiveness finding. Logistic regression tested the likelihood of favorable versus unfavorable cost-effectiveness findings against the type of "E." 25 cost-effectiveness studies were included. Ten (40.0%) studies were effectiveness-based, yet 15 (60.0%) studies were efficacy-based. Of 17 studies using endpoints that could be compared to WTP threshold, 7 out of 8 (87.5%) effectiveness-based studies yielded favorable cost-effectiveness results, whereas 4 out of 9 (44.4%) efficacy-based studies yielded favorable cost-effectiveness results. The adjusted odds ratio was 15.12 (95% confidence interval; 0.59 to 388.75) for effectiveness-based versus efficacy-based achieving favorable cost-effectiveness findings. More asthma cost-effectiveness studies used efficacy-based evidence. Studies using effectiveness-based evidence trended toward being more likely to disseminate favorable cost-effective findings than those using efficacy. Health policy decision makers should pay attention to the type of clinical evidence used in cost-effectiveness studies for accurate interpretation and application.

A statistical model for interpreting computerized dynamic posturography data

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Feiveson, Alan H.; Metter, E. Jeffrey; Paloski, William H.

2002-01-01

Computerized dynamic posturography (CDP) is widely used for assessment of altered balance control. CDP trials are quantified using the equilibrium score (ES), which ranges from zero to 100, as a decreasing function of peak sway angle. The problem of how best to model and analyze ESs from a controlled study is considered. The ES often exhibits a skewed distribution in repeated trials, which can lead to incorrect inference when applying standard regression or analysis of variance models. Furthermore, CDP trials are terminated when a patient loses balance. In these situations, the ES is not observable, but is assigned the lowest possible score--zero. As a result, the response variable has a mixed discrete-continuous distribution, further compromising inference obtained by standard statistical methods. Here, we develop alternative methodology for analyzing ESs under a stochastic model extending the ES to a continuous latent random variable that always exists, but is unobserved in the event of a fall. Loss of balance occurs conditionally, with probability depending on the realized latent ES. After fitting the model by a form of quasi-maximum-likelihood, one may perform statistical inference to assess the effects of explanatory variables. An example is provided, using data from the NIH/NIA Baltimore Longitudinal Study on Aging.

Predictive and Explanatory Relationship Model between Procrastination, Motivation, Anxiety and Academic Achievement

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Akpur, Ugur

2017-01-01

Purpose: The purpose of this study is to determine the predictive and explanatory relationship model between procrastination, motivation, anxiety and academic achievement of university students. Research Methods: In this study, a causal research design was used. The study group consisted of 211 participants. In order to determine their motivation…

Firefighter willingness to participate in a stem cell clinical trial for burns: A mixed methods study.

PubMed

Horch, Jenny D; Carr, Eloise C J; Harasym, Patricia; Burnett, Lindsay; Biernaskie, Jeff; Gabriel, Vincent

2016-12-01

Adult stem cells represent a potentially renewable and autologous source of cells to regenerate skin and improve wound healing. Firefighters are at risk of sustaining a burn and potentially benefiting from a split thickness skin graft (STSG). This mixed methods study examined firefighter willingness to participate in a future stem cell clinical trial, outcome priorities and factors associated with this decision. A sequential explanatory mixed methods design was used. The quantitative phase (online questionnaire) was followed by the qualitative phase (semi-structured interviews). A sample of 149 firefighters completed the online survey, and a purposeful sample of 15 firefighters was interviewed. A majority (74%) reported they would participate in a future stem cell clinical trial if they experienced burn benefiting from STSG. Hypothetical concerns related to receiving a STSG were pain, itch, scarring/redness and skin durability. Participants indicated willingness to undergo stem cell therapy if the risk of no improvement was 43% or less. Risk tolerance was predicted by perceived social support and having children. Interviews revealed four main themes: a desire to help others, improving clinical outcomes, trusting relationships, and a belief in scientific investigation. Many participants admitted lacking sufficient knowledge to make an informed decision regarding stem cell therapies. Firefighters indicated they were largely willing to participate in a stem cell clinical trial but also indicated a lack of knowledge upon which to make a decision. Public education of the role of stem cells in STSG will be increasingly important as clinical trials are developed. Copyright © 2016 Elsevier Ltd and ISBI. All rights reserved.

Validation of an explanatory tool for data-fused displays for high-technology future aircraft

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Fletcher, Georgina C. L.; Shanks, Craig R.; Selcon, Stephen J.

1996-05-01

As the number of sensor and data sources in the military cockpit increases, pilots will suffer high levels of workload which could result in reduced performance and the loss of situational awareness. A DRA research program has been investigating the use of data-fused displays in decision support and has developed and laboratory-tested an explanatory tool for displaying information in air combat scenarios. The tool has been designed to provide pictorial explanations of data that maintain situational awareness by involving the pilot in the hostile aircraft threat assessment task. This paper reports a study carried out to validate the success of the explanatory tool in a realistic flight simulation facility. Aircrew were asked to perform a threat assessment task, either with or without the explanatory tool providing information in the form of missile launch success zone envelopes, while concurrently flying a waypoint course within set flight parameters. The results showed that there was a significant improvement (p less than 0.01) in threat assessment accuracy of 30% when using the explanatory tool. This threat assessment performance advantage was achieved without a trade-off with flying task performance. Situational awareness measures showed no general differences between the explanatory and control conditions, but significant learning effects suggested that the explanatory tool makes the task initially more intuitive and hence less demanding on the pilots' attentional resources. The paper concludes that DRA's data-fused explanatory tool is successful at improving threat assessment accuracy in a realistic simulated flying environment, and briefly discusses the requirements for further research in the area.

Determinants of Judgments of Explanatory Power: Credibility, Generality, and Statistical Relevance.

PubMed

Colombo, Matteo; Bucher, Leandra; Sprenger, Jan

2017-01-01

Explanation is a central concept in human psychology. Drawing upon philosophical theories of explanation, psychologists have recently begun to examine the relationship between explanation, probability and causality. Our study advances this growing literature at the intersection of psychology and philosophy of science by systematically investigating how judgments of explanatory power are affected by (i) the prior credibility of an explanatory hypothesis, (ii) the causal framing of the hypothesis, (iii) the perceived generalizability of the explanation, and (iv) the relation of statistical relevance between hypothesis and evidence. Collectively, the results of our five experiments support the hypothesis that the prior credibility of a causal explanation plays a central role in explanatory reasoning: first, because of the presence of strong main effects on judgments of explanatory power, and second, because of the gate-keeping role it has for other factors. Highly credible explanations are not susceptible to causal framing effects, but they are sensitive to the effects of normatively relevant factors: the generalizability of an explanation, and its statistical relevance for the evidence. These results advance current literature in the philosophy and psychology of explanation in three ways. First, they yield a more nuanced understanding of the determinants of judgments of explanatory power, and the interaction between these factors. Second, they show the close relationship between prior beliefs and explanatory power. Third, they elucidate the nature of abductive reasoning.

Determinants of Judgments of Explanatory Power: Credibility, Generality, and Statistical Relevance

PubMed Central

Colombo, Matteo; Bucher, Leandra; Sprenger, Jan

2017-01-01

Explanation is a central concept in human psychology. Drawing upon philosophical theories of explanation, psychologists have recently begun to examine the relationship between explanation, probability and causality. Our study advances this growing literature at the intersection of psychology and philosophy of science by systematically investigating how judgments of explanatory power are affected by (i) the prior credibility of an explanatory hypothesis, (ii) the causal framing of the hypothesis, (iii) the perceived generalizability of the explanation, and (iv) the relation of statistical relevance between hypothesis and evidence. Collectively, the results of our five experiments support the hypothesis that the prior credibility of a causal explanation plays a central role in explanatory reasoning: first, because of the presence of strong main effects on judgments of explanatory power, and second, because of the gate-keeping role it has for other factors. Highly credible explanations are not susceptible to causal framing effects, but they are sensitive to the effects of normatively relevant factors: the generalizability of an explanation, and its statistical relevance for the evidence. These results advance current literature in the philosophy and psychology of explanation in three ways. First, they yield a more nuanced understanding of the determinants of judgments of explanatory power, and the interaction between these factors. Second, they show the close relationship between prior beliefs and explanatory power. Third, they elucidate the nature of abductive reasoning. PMID:28928679

School District Information Technology Disaster Recovery Planning: An Explanatory Case Study

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Gray, Shaun L.

2017-01-01

Despite research and practitioner articles outlining the importance information technology disaster plans (ITDRPs) to organizational success, barriers have impeded the process of disaster preparation for Burlington County New Jersey school districts. The purpose of this explanatory qualitative case study was to understand how technology leader…

Explanatory Models of Illness: A Study of Within-Culture Variation

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Lynch, Elizabeth; Medin, Douglas

2006-01-01

The current studies explore causal models of heart attack and depression generated from American healers whom use distinct explanatory frameworks. Causal chains leading to two illnesses, heart attack and depression, were elicited from participant groups: registered nurses (RNs), energy healers, RN energy healers, and undergraduates. The…

Explanatory Models and Medication Adherence in Patients with Depression in South India

PubMed Central

Siddappa, Adarsh Lakkur; Raman, Rajesh; Hattur, Basavana Gowdappa

2017-01-01

Introduction Conceptualization of depression may have bearing on treatment seeking. It may affect adherence behaviour of the patients. Aim To find out the explanatory models and their relationship with socio-demographic variables and medication adherence in patients with depression. Materials and Methods Fifty-eight consecutive patients with depression in remission were recruited as per selection criteria. Socio-demographic details were collected. Patients were assessed using Mental Distress Explanatory Model Questionnaire (MDEMQ) and Morisky Medication Adherence Scale (MMAS). Results Significant scores were observed in all dimensions of explanatory models. In the Mann-Whitney U test the patient’s marital status (MU=113.500, p=0.05, sig≤0.05, 2-tailed), and family history of mental illness (MU=165.5, p=0.03, sig≤0.05, 2-tailed) had a statistically significant group difference in the score of MDEMQ. In linear regression analysis, four predictors (MDEMQ subscales Stress, Western physiology, Non-Western physiology and Supernatural) had significantly predicted the value of MMAS (R2=0.937, f=153.558, p<0.001). Conclusion Findings of this study suggested that patients with depression harbor multidimensional explanatory model. The levels of explanatory models are inversely associated with levels of medication adherence. PMID:28274025

Diagnostic conversion to bipolar disorder in unipolar depressed patients participating in trials on antidepressants.

PubMed

Holmskov, J; Licht, R W; Andersen, K; Bjerregaard Stage, T; Mørkeberg Nilsson, F; Bjerregaard Stage, K; Valentin, J B; Bech, P; Ernst Nielsen, R

2017-02-01

In unipolar depressed patients participating in trials on antidepressants, we investigated if illness characteristics at baseline could predict conversion to bipolar disorder. A long-term register-based follow-up study of 290 unipolar depressed patients with a mean age of 50.8 years (SD=11.9) participating in three randomized trials on antidepressants conducted in the period 1985-1994. The independent effects of explanatory variables were examined by applying Cox regression analyses. The overall risk of conversion was 20.7%, with a mean follow-up time of 15.2 years per patient. The risk of conversion was associated with an increasing number of previous depressive episodes at baseline, [HR 1.18, 95% CI (1.10-1.26)]. No association with gender, age, age at first depressive episode, duration of baseline episode, subtype of depression or any of the investigated HAM-D subscales included was found. The patients were followed-up through the Danish Psychiatric Central Research Register, which resulted in inherent limitations such as possible misclassification of outcome. In a sample of middle-aged hospitalized unipolar depressed patients participating in trials on antidepressants, the risk of conversion was associated with the number of previous depressive episodes. Therefore, this study emphasizes that unipolar depressed patients experiencing a relatively high number of recurrences should be followed more closely, or at least be informed about the possible increased risk of conversion. Copyright © 2016. Published by Elsevier Masson SAS.

Focus on Success: An Explanatory Embedded Multiple-Case Study on How Youth Successfully Navigate Workforce Development Programs in Southern Nevada

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Villalobos, Ricardo

2017-01-01

This explanatory qualitative study investigated the perspectives of participant's and practitioner's perceived barriers to success and the necessary navigational expertise for overcoming the identified barriers. This multiple-case study research design examined three WIA out-of-school youth workforce development programs in Southern Nevada, with…

Insight, psychopathology, explanatory models and outcome of schizophrenia in India: a prospective 5-year cohort study.

PubMed

Johnson, Shanthi; Sathyaseelan, Manoranjitham; Charles, Helen; Jeyaseelan, Visalakshi; Jacob, Kuruthukulangara Sebastian

2012-09-27

The sole focus of models of insight on bio-medical perspectives to the complete exclusion of local, non-medical and cultural constructs mandates review. This study attempted to investigate the impact of insight, psychopathology, explanatory models of illness on outcome of first episode schizophrenia. Patients diagnosed to have DSM IV schizophrenia (n = 131) were assessed prospectively for insight, psychopathology, explanatory models of illness at baseline, 6, 12 and 60 months using standard instruments. Multiple linear and logistic regression and generalized estimating equations (GEE) were employed to assess predictors of outcome. We could follow up 95 (72.5%) patients. Sixty-five of these patients (68.4%) achieved remission. There was a negative relationship between psychosis rating and insight scores. Urban residence, fluctuating course of the initial illness, and improvement in global functioning at 6 months and lower psychosis rating at 12 months were significantly related to remission at 5 years. Insight scores, number of non-medical explanatory models and individual explanatory models held during the later course of the illness were significantly associated with outcome. Analysis of longitudinal data using GEE showed that women, rural residence, insight scores and number of non-medical explanatory models of illness held were significantly associated with BPRS scores during the study period. Insight, the disease model and the number of non-medical model positively correlated with improvement in psychosis arguing for a complex interaction between the culture, context and illness variables. These finding argue that insight and explanatory models are secondary to psychopathology, course and outcome of the illness. The awareness of mental illness is a narrative act in which people make personal sense of the many challenges they face. The course and outcome of the illness, cultural context, acceptable cultural explanations and the prevalent social stigma interact to produce a complex and multifaceted understanding of the issues. This complexity calls for a nuanced framing of insight.

How frequently do the results from completed US clinical trials enter the public domain?--A statistical analysis of the ClinicalTrials.gov database.

PubMed

Saito, Hiroki; Gill, Christopher J

2014-01-01

Achieving transparency in clinical trials, through either publishing results in a journal or posting results to the ClinicalTrials.gov (CTG) web site, is an essential public health good. However, it remains unknown what proportion of completed studies achieve public disclosure of results (PDOR), or what factors explain these differences. We analyzed data from 400 randomly selected studies within the CTG database that had been listed as 'completed' and had at least four years in which to disclose results. Using Kaplan-Meier curves, we calculated times from completion to PDOR (defined as publishing the primary outcomes in a journal and/or posting results to CTG), and identified explanatory variables predicting these outcomes using Cox proportional hazards models. Among the 400 clinical trials, 118 (29.5%) failed to achieve PDOR within four years of completion. The median day from study completion to PDOR among 282 studies (70.5%) that achieved PDOR was 602 days (mean 647 days, SD 454 days). Studies were less likely to achieve PDOR if at earlier stages (phase 2 vs. phase 3/4, adjusted HR 0.60, 95% CI 0.47-0.78), if they only included adult subjects (adjusted HR 0.61, 95% CI 0.45-0.83), involved randomization (adjusted HR 0.62, 95% CI 0.46-0.83), or had smaller sample sizes (≤50 subjects vs. >50, adjusted HR 0.60, 95% CI 0.44-0.83). Industry-funded studies were significantly less likely to be published than non-industry or blended studies (adjusted HR 0.49, 95% CI 0.36-0.66). A significant proportion of completed studies did not achieve PDOR within the four years of follow-up, particularly smaller studies at earlier stages of development with industry funding. This constitutes reporting bias and threatens the validity of the clinical research literature in the US.

An Exploration of the Relationship between Optimistic Explanatory Style and Doctoral Study Completion

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Richards, Constance V. S.

2012-01-01

Few studies have explored the positive characteristics that motivate doctoral students to pursue and complete their degree; research has historically focused on doctoral student attrition. To fully understand doctoral student success, research must focus on factors that contribute to completion. Based on Seligman's theory of explanatory style,…

Parental Explanatory Models of Child's Intellectual Disability: A Q Methodology Study

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

John, Aesha; Montgomery, Diane

2016-01-01

This study with families caring for an individual with an intellectual disability in a mid-sized Indian city explored the diverse explanatory models that parents constructed of causes, preferred treatment approaches and perceived social effects of their child's intellectual disability. Seventeen mothers and three fathers rank ordered 48 disability…

Appreciative Accreditation: A Mixed Methods Explanatory Study of Appreciative Inquiry-Based Institutional Effectiveness Results in Higher Education

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Thibodeau, John

2011-01-01

This study examined the effects of using Appreciative Inquiry in accreditation and related institutional effectiveness activities within higher education. Using an explanatory participant-selection mixed methods approach, qualitative data from a series of interviews were used to explain the experiences of individuals identified from quantitative…

Technology Adoption in Secondary Mathematics Teaching in Kenya: An Explanatory Mixed Methods Study

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Kamau, Leonard Mwathi

2014-01-01

This study examined the factors related to technology adoption by secondary mathematics teachers in Nyandarua and Nairobi counties in the Republic of Kenya. Using a sequential explanatory mixed methods approach, I collected qualitative data from interviews and classroom observations of six teachers to better understand statistical results from the…

Intervention description is not enough: evidence from an in-depth multiple case study on the untold role and impact of context in randomised controlled trials of seven complex interventions

PubMed Central

2012-01-01

Background A number of single case reports have suggested that the context within which intervention studies take place may challenge the assumptions that underpin randomised controlled trials (RCTs). However, the diverse ways in which context may challenge the central tenets of the RCT, and the degree to which this information is known to researchers or subsequently reported, has received much less attention. In this paper, we explore these issues by focusing on seven RCTs of interventions varying in type and degree of complexity, and across diverse contexts. Methods This in-depth multiple case study using interviews, focus groups and documentary analysis was conducted in two phases. In phase one, a RCT of a nurse-led intervention provided a single exploratory case and informed the design, sampling and data collection within the main study. Phase two consisted of a multiple explanatory case study covering a spectrum of trials of different types of complex intervention. A total of eighty-four data sources across the seven trials were accessed. Results We present consistent empirical evidence across all trials to indicate that four key elements of context (personal, organisational, trial and problem context) are crucial to understanding how a complex intervention works and to enable both assessments of internal validity and likely generalisability to other settings. The ways in which context challenged trial operation was often complex, idiosyncratic, and subtle; often falling outside of current trial reporting formats. However, information on such issues appeared to be available via first hand ‘insider accounts’ of each trial suggesting that improved reporting on the role of context is possible. Conclusions Sufficient detail about context needs to be understood and reported in RCTs of complex interventions, in order for the transferability of complex interventions to be assessed. Improved reporting formats that require and encourage the clarification of both general and project-specific threats to the likely internal and external validity need to be developed. In addition, a cultural change is required in which the open and honest reporting of such issues is seen as an indicator of study strength and researcher integrity, rather than a symbol of a poor quality study or investigator ability. PMID:22742939

Mixing a Grounded Theory Approach with a Randomized Controlled Trial Related to Intimate Partner Violence: What Challenges Arise for Mixed Methods Research?

PubMed Central

Catallo, Cristina; Jack, Susan M.; Ciliska, Donna; MacMillan, Harriet L.

2013-01-01

Little is known about how to systematically integrate complex qualitative studies within the context of randomized controlled trials. A two-phase sequential explanatory mixed methods study was conducted in Canada to understand how women decide to disclose intimate partner violence in emergency department settings. Mixing a RCT (with a subanalysis of data) with a grounded theory approach required methodological modifications to maintain the overall rigour of this mixed methods study. Modifications were made to the following areas of the grounded theory approach to support the overall integrity of the mixed methods study design: recruitment of participants, maximum variation and negative case sampling, data collection, and analysis methods. Recommendations for future studies include: (1) planning at the outset to incorporate a qualitative approach with a RCT and to determine logical points during the RCT to integrate the qualitative component and (2) consideration for the time needed to carry out a RCT and a grounded theory approach, especially to support recruitment, data collection, and analysis. Data mixing strategies should be considered during early stages of the study, so that appropriate measures can be developed and used in the RCT to support initial coding structures and data analysis needs of the grounded theory phase. PMID:23577245

Self-Consciousness and Assertiveness as Explanatory Variables of L2 Oral Ability: A Latent Variable Approach

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Ockey, Gary

2011-01-01

Drawing on current theories in personality, second-language (L2) oral ability, and psychometrics, this study investigates the extent to which self-consciousness and assertiveness are explanatory variables of L2 oral ability. Three hundred sixty first-year Japanese university students who were studying English as a foreign language participated in…

Older Men's Explanatory Model for Osteoporosis

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Solimeo, Samantha L.; Weber, Thomas J.; Gold, Deborah T.

2011-01-01

Purpose: To explore the nature of men's experiences of osteoporosis by developing an understanding of men's explanatory models. Design and Methods: This descriptive study invited community-residing male osteoporosis patients aged 50+ to participate in interviews about osteoporosis. Participants were recruited from a hospital-affiliated bone…

The CONSORT Statement: Application within and adaptations for orthodontic trials.

PubMed

Pandis, Nikolaos; Fleming, Padhraig S; Hopewell, Sally; Altman, Douglas G

2015-06-01

High-quality randomized controlled trials (RCTs) are an integral part of evidence-based medicine. RCTs are the bricks and mortar of high-quality systematic reviews, which are important determinants of health care policy and clinical practice. For published research to be used most effectively, investigators and authors should follow the guidelines for accurate and transparent reporting of RCTs. The consolidated standards of reporting trials (CONSORT) statement and its extensions are among the most widely used reporting guidelines in biomedical research. CONSORT was adopted by the American Journal of Orthodontics and Dentofacial Orthopedics in 2004. Since 2011, this Journal has been actively implementing compliance with the CONSORT reporting guidelines. The objective of this explanatory article is to highlight the relevance and implications of the various CONSORT items to help authors to achieve CONSORT compliance in their research submissions of RCTs to this and other orthodontic journals. Copyright © 2015 American Association of Orthodontists. Published by Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

An equine pain face

PubMed Central

Gleerup, Karina B; Forkman, Björn; Lindegaard, Casper; Andersen, Pia H

2015-01-01

Objective The objective of this study was to investigate the existence of an equine pain face and to describe this in detail. Study design Semi-randomized, controlled, crossover trial. Animals Six adult horses. Methods Pain was induced with two noxious stimuli, a tourniquet on the antebrachium and topical application of capsaicin. All horses participated in two control trials and received both noxious stimuli twice, once with and once without an observer present. During all sessions their pain state was scored. The horses were filmed and the close-up video recordings of the faces were analysed for alterations in behaviour and facial expressions. Still images from the trials were evaluated for the presence of each of the specific pain face features identified from the video analysis. Results Both noxious challenges were effective in producing a pain response resulting in significantly increased pain scores. Alterations in facial expressions were observed in all horses during all noxious stimulations. The number of pain face features present on the still images from the noxious challenges were significantly higher than for the control trial (p = 0.0001). Facial expressions representative for control and pain trials were condensed into explanatory illustrations. During pain sessions with an observer present, the horses increased their contact-seeking behavior. Conclusions and clinical relevance An equine pain face comprising ‘low’ and/or ‘asymmetrical’ ears, an angled appearance of the eyes, a withdrawn and/or tense stare, mediolaterally dilated nostrils and tension of the lips, chin and certain facial muscles can be recognized in horses during induced acute pain. This description of an equine pain face may be useful for improving tools for pain recognition in horses with mild to moderate pain. PMID:25082060

Attributional (Explanatory) Thinking about Failure in New Achievement Settings

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Perry, Raymond P.; Stupnisky, Robert H.; Daniels, Lia M.; Haynes, Tara L.

2008-01-01

Attributional (explanatory) thinking involves the appraisal of factors that contribute to performance and is instrumental to motivation and goal striving. Little is understood, however, concerning attributional thinking when multiple causes are involved in the transition to new achievement settings. Our study examined such complex attributional…

A Randomized Clinical Trial of Methadone Maintenance for Prisoners: Prediction of Treatment Entry and Completion in Prison

PubMed Central

GORDON, MICHAEL S.; KINLOCK, TIMOTHY W.; COUVILLION, KATHRYN A.; SCHWARTZ, ROBERT P.; O’GRADY, KEVIN

2014-01-01

The present report is an intent-to-treat analysis involving secondary data drawn from the first randomized clinical trial of prison-initiated methadone in the United States. This study examined predictors of treatment entry and completion in prison. A sample of 211 adult male prerelease inmates with preincarceration heroin dependence were randomly assigned to one of three treatment conditions: counseling only (counseling in prison; n= 70); counseling plus transfer (counseling in prison with transfer to methadone maintenance treatment upon release; n= 70); and counseling plus methadone (methadone maintenance in prison, continued in a community-based methadone maintenance program upon release; n= 71). Entered prison treatment (p <. 01), and completed prison treatment (p< .001) were significantly predicted by the set of 10 explanatory variables and favored the treatment conditions receiving methadone. The present results indicate that individuals who are older in age and have longer prison sentences may have better outcomes than younger individuals with shorter sentences, meaning they are more likely to enter and complete prison-based treatment. Furthermore, implications for the treatment of prisoners with prior heroin dependence and for conducting clinical trials may indicate the importance of examining individual characteristics and the possibility of the examination of patient preference. PMID:25392605

Cross-species infection trials reveal cryptic parasite varieties and a putative polymorphism shared among host species.

PubMed

Luijckx, Pepijn; Duneau, David; Andras, Jason P; Ebert, Dieter

2014-02-01

A parasite's host range can have important consequences for ecological and evolutionary processes but can be difficult to infer. Successful infection depends on the outcome of multiple steps and only some steps of the infection process may be critical in determining a parasites host range. To test this hypothesis, we investigated the host range of the bacterium Pasteuria ramosa, a Daphnia parasite, and determined the parasites success in different stages of the infection process. Multiple genotypes of Daphnia pulex, Daphnia longispina and Daphnia magna were tested with four Pasteuria genotypes using infection trials and an assay that determines the ability of the parasite to attach to the hosts esophagus. We find that attachment is not specific to host species but is specific to host genotype. This may suggest that alleles on the locus controlling attachment are shared among different host species that diverged 100 million year. However, in our trials, Pasteuria was never able to reproduce in nonnative host species, suggesting that Pasteuria infecting different host species are different varieties, each with a narrow host range. Our approach highlights the explanatory power of dissecting the steps of the infection process and resolves potentially conflicting reports on parasite host ranges. © 2013 The Author(s). Evolution © 2013 The Society for the Study of Evolution.

A Randomized Clinical Trial of Methadone Maintenance for Prisoners: Prediction of Treatment Entry and Completion in Prison.

PubMed

Gordon, Michael S; Kinlock, Timothy W; Couvillion, Kathryn A; Schwartz, Robert P; O'Grady, Kevin

2012-05-01

The present report is an intent-to-treat analysis involving secondary data drawn from the first randomized clinical trial of prison-initiated methadone in the United States. This study examined predictors of treatment entry and completion in prison. A sample of 211 adult male prerelease inmates with preincarceration heroin dependence were randomly assigned to one of three treatment conditions: counseling only (counseling in prison; n= 70); counseling plus transfer (counseling in prison with transfer to methadone maintenance treatment upon release; n= 70); and counseling plus methadone (methadone maintenance in prison, continued in a community-based methadone maintenance program upon release; n= 71). Entered prison treatment (p <. 01), and completed prison treatment (p< .001) were significantly predicted by the set of 10 explanatory variables and favored the treatment conditions receiving methadone. The present results indicate that individuals who are older in age and have longer prison sentences may have better outcomes than younger individuals with shorter sentences, meaning they are more likely to enter and complete prison-based treatment. Furthermore, implications for the treatment of prisoners with prior heroin dependence and for conducting clinical trials may indicate the importance of examining individual characteristics and the possibility of the examination of patient preference.

Causes of Job Turnover in the Public School Superintendency: An Explanatory Analysis in the Western United States

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Melver, Toby A.

2011-01-01

The purpose of this mixed-methods study was to determine the factors that affect public school superintendent turnover in five western states. An explanatory theory was developed to cover all of the possible variables and show the relationship between those variables. The questions that guided this research study were: (1) What environmental…

Interparental Discord and Child Adjustment: Prospective Investigations of Emotional Security as an Explanatory Mechanism

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Cummings, E. Mark; Schermerhorn, Alice C.; Davies, Patrick T.; Goeke-Morey, Marcie C.; Cummings, Jennifer S.

2006-01-01

Advancing the process-oriented study of links between interparental discord and child adjustment, 2 multimethod prospective tests of emotional security as an explanatory mechanism are reported. On the basis of community samples, with waves spaced 2 years apart, Study 1 (113 boys and 113 girls, ages 9-18) identified emotional security as a mediator…

Why do children decide not to participate in clinical research: a quantitative and qualitative study.

PubMed

Hein, Irma M; Troost, Pieter W; de Vries, Martine C; Knibbe, Catherijne A J; van Goudoever, Johannes B; Lindauer, Ramón J L

2015-07-01

More pediatric drug trials are needed, but although specific pediatric regulations warrant safety, recruitment of children for these trials remains one of the main difficulties. Therefore, we investigated potential determining factors of nonparticipation in clinical research, in order to optimize research participation of children by recommending improved recruitment strategies. Between 1 January 2012 and 1 January 2014, we performed a prospective study among161 pediatric patients, aged 6 to 18 y, who were eligible for clinical research. We quantitatively analyzed the association of potential explanatory variables (e.g., age, cognitive development, experience, ethnicity) with nonparticipation and qualitatively analyzed interviews on reasons for nonparticipation. Sixty percent of the children did not participate in the research project on offer (39% decided not to participate, 21% were indecisive). Lower age, less disease experience, and less complex research with lower risk were predictive for not participating. Time constraint and extra burden were expressed as decisive reasons for not participating. Strategies to optimize research participation should be aimed at younger children and their families, who are logistically challenged and unfamiliar with health care and research. Recommendations include informing pediatric patients and their families of the value of research; minimizing logistic burdens; and improving accessibility.

Categorization and Analysis of Explanatory Writing in Mathematics

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Craig, Tracy S.

2011-01-01

The aim of this article is to present a scheme for coding and categorizing students' written explanations of mathematical problem-solving activities. The scheme was used successfully within a study project carried out to determine whether student problem-solving behaviour could be positively affected by writing explanatory strategies to…

The Rhetoric of Explanation.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Connors, Robert J.

As background to an argument for purposive reintegration of discourse study, this paper examines the concept of explanatory discourse as it developed within the Western rhetorical tradition. Following a discussion of the rise of a rhetoric of explanation, the first section cites the roots of the explanatory pedagogy developing during the first…

Self-Explanation and Explanatory Feedback in Games: Individual Differences, Gameplay, and Learning

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Killingsworth, Stephen S.; Clark, Douglas B.; Adams, Deanne M.

2015-01-01

Previous research has demonstrated the efficacy of two explanation-based approaches for increasing learning in educational games. The first involves asking students to explain their answers (self-explanation) and the second involves providing correct explanations (explanatory feedback). This study (1) compared self-explanation and explanatory…

Distinguishing the cognitive processes of mindfulness: Developing a standardised mindfulness technique for use in longitudinal randomised control trials.

PubMed

Isbel, Ben; Summers, Mathew J

2017-07-01

A capacity model of mindfulness is adopted to differentiate the cognitive faculty of mindfulness from the metacognitive processes required to cultivate this faculty in mindfulness training. The model provides an explanatory framework incorporating both the developmental progression from focussed attention to open monitoring styles of mindfulness practice, along with the development of equanimity and insight. A standardised technique for activating these processes without the addition of secondary components is then introduced. Mindfulness-based interventions currently available for use in randomised control trials introduce components ancillary to the cognitive processes of mindfulness, limiting their ability to draw clear causative inferences. The standardised technique presented here does not introduce such ancillary factors, rendering it a valuable tool with which to investigate the processes activated in mindfulness practice. Copyright © 2017 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

Explanatory style across the life span: evidence for stability over 52 years.

PubMed

Burns, M O; Seligman, M E

1989-03-01

Analyzed explanatory style across the life span. 30 Ss whose average age was 72 responded to questions about their current life and provided diaries or letters written in their youth, an average of 52 years earlier. A blind content analysis of explanatory style derived from these 2 sources revealed that explanatory style for negative events was stable throughout adult life (r = .54, p less than .002). In contrast, there appeared to be no stability of explanatory style for positive events between the same 2 time periods. These results suggest that explanatory style for negative events may persist across the life span and may constitute an enduring risk factor for depression, low achievement, and physical illness.

Assessment of Patterns of Patient-Reported Outcomes in Adults with Congenital Heart disease - International Study (APPROACH-IS): rationale, design, and methods.

PubMed

Apers, Silke; Kovacs, Adrienne H; Luyckx, Koen; Alday, Luis; Berghammer, Malin; Budts, Werner; Callus, Edward; Caruana, Maryanne; Chidambarathanu, Shanthi; Cook, Stephen C; Dellborg, Mikael; Enomoto, Junko; Eriksen, Katrine; Fernandes, Susan M; Jackson, Jamie L; Johansson, Bengt; Khairy, Paul; Kutty, Shelby; Menahem, Samuel; Rempel, Gwen; Sluman, Maayke A; Soufi, Alexandra; Thomet, Corina; Veldtman, Gruschen; Wang, Jou-Kou; White, Kamila; Moons, Philip

2015-01-20

Data on patient-reported outcomes (PROs) in adults with congenital heart disease (CHD) are inconsistent and vary across the world. Better understanding of PROs and their differences across cultural and geographic barriers can best be accomplished via international studies using uniform research methods. The APPROACH-IS consortium (Assessment of Patterns of Patient-Reported Outcomes in Adults with Congenital Heart disease - International Study) was created for this purpose and investigates PROs in adults with CHD worldwide. This paper outlines the project rationale, design, and methods. APPROACH-IS is a cross-sectional study. The goal is to recruit 3500-4000 adults with CHD from 15 countries in five major regions of the world (Asia, Australia, Europe, North and South America). Self-report questionnaires are administered to capture information on PRO domains: (i) perceived health status (12-item Short-form Health Survey & EuroQOL-5D); (ii) psychological functioning (Hospital Anxiety and Depression Scale); (iii) health behaviors (Health-Behavior Scale-Congenital Heart Disease); and (iv) quality of life (Linear Analog Scale & Satisfaction With Life Scale). Additionally, potential explanatory variables are assessed: (i) socio-demographic variables; (ii) medical history (chart review); (iii) sense of coherence (Orientation to Life Questionnaire); and (iv) illness perceptions (Brief Illness Perception Questionnaire). Descriptive analyses and multilevel models will examine differences in PROs and investigate potential explanatory variables. APPROACH-IS represents a global effort to increase research understanding and capacity in the field of CHD, and will have major implications for patient care. Results will generate valuable information for developing interventions to optimize patients' health and well-being. ClinicalTrials.gov: NCT02150603. Copyright © 2014 Elsevier Ireland Ltd. All rights reserved.

The Mole as an Explanatory Device: How Do You Know a Mole if You See One? A Manual for Chemistry Students. Sample Teaching Materials: The Explanatory Modes Project.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Roberts, Douglas A.

This booklet is designed to supplement the study of introductory chemistry. It deals particularly with the mole concept but also includes ideas for analyzing the kinds of statements that appear in all science textbooks and scientific writing. The material in the booklet should be studied after the completion of an introductory textbook study of…

Examining Explanatory Biases in Young Children's Biological Reasoning

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Legare, Cristine H.; Gelman, Susan A.

2014-01-01

Despite the well-established literature on explanation in early childhood, little is known about what constrains children's explanations. State change and negative outcomes were examined as potential explanatory biases in the domain of naïve biology, extending upon previous work in the domain of naïve physics. In two studies, preschool children…

Accentuate the Positive: The Relationship between Positive Explanatory Style and Academic Achievement of Prospective Elementary Teachers

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Boyer, Wanda

2006-01-01

This research examines 480 current event-explanation units using the CAVE technique (Schulman, Castellon, & Seligman, 1989) to note the relationship between positive and negative explanatory style and achievement of prospective early childhood and upper elementary female teachers. This study found a significant positive relationship between…

Applying Cognitive Linguistics to Teaching the Spanish Prepositions "Por" and "Para"

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Lam, Yvonne

2009-01-01

L2 prepositions are traditionally taught in a non-explanatory manner by having students learn each use individually. This study examines the effectiveness of an alternative explanatory approach based on cognitive linguistics, which considers the multiple uses of a preposition as related. Consequently, learners can be shown a general schema that…

Interparental Conflict and Children's School Adjustment: The Explanatory Role of Children's Internal Representations of Interparental and Parent-Child Relationships

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Sturge-Apple, Melissa L.; Davies, Patrick T.; Winter, Marcia A.; Cummings, E. Mark; Schermerhorn, Alice

2008-01-01

This study examined how children's insecure internal representations of interparental and parent-child relationships served as explanatory mechanisms in multiple pathways linking interparental conflict and parent emotional unavailability with the emotional and classroom engagement difficulties the children had in their adjustment to school. With…

Why the Difference Between Explanation and Argument Matters to Science Education

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Brigandt, Ingo

2016-05-01

Contributing to the recent debate on whether or not explanations ought to be differentiated from arguments, this article argues that the distinction matters to science education. I articulate the distinction in terms of explanations and arguments having to meet different standards of adequacy. Standards of explanatory adequacy are important because they correspond to what counts as a good explanation in a science classroom, whereas a focus on evidence-based argumentation can obscure such standards of what makes an explanation explanatory. I provide further reasons for the relevance of not conflating explanations with arguments (and having standards of explanatory adequacy in view). First, what guides the adoption of the particular standards of explanatory adequacy that are relevant in a scientific case is the explanatory aim pursued in this context. Apart from explanatory aims being an important aspect of the nature of science, including explanatory aims in classroom instruction also promotes students seeing explanations as more than facts, and engages them in developing explanations as responses to interesting explanatory problems. Second, it is of relevance to science curricula that science aims at intervening in natural processes, not only for technological applications, but also as part of experimental discovery. Not any argument enables intervention in nature, as successful intervention specifically presupposes causal explanations. Students can fruitfully explore in the classroom how an explanatory account suggests different options for intervention.

Constructing and De-Constructing Cultural Values: An Explanatory Model of Teaching Behaviours.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Boufoy-Bastick, Beatrice

This paper presents an explanatory model of cultural behaviors, which resulted from a 4-year ethnographic study of the different academic attainments in English of indigenous Fijians and the Indo-Fijians in the Fiji Islands. Fiji is a natural laboratory for investigating differential cultural behaviors because of these two culturally distinct main…

Human vs. Computer Diagnosis of Students' Natural Selection Knowledge: Testing the Efficacy of Text Analytic Software

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Nehm, Ross H.; Haertig, Hendrik

2012-01-01

Our study examines the efficacy of Computer Assisted Scoring (CAS) of open-response text relative to expert human scoring within the complex domain of evolutionary biology. Specifically, we explored whether CAS can diagnose the explanatory elements (or Key Concepts) that comprise undergraduate students' explanatory models of natural selection with…

Parents' and Speech and Language Therapists' Explanatory Models of Language Development, Language Delay and Intervention

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Marshall, Julie; Goldbart, Juliet; Phillips, Julie

2007-01-01

Background: Parental and speech and language therapist (SLT) explanatory models may affect engagement with speech and language therapy, but there has been dearth of research in this area. This study investigated parents' and SLTs' views about language development, delay and intervention in pre-school children with language delay. Aims: The aims…

The Role of Scientific Modeling Criteria in Advancing Students' Explanatory Ideas of Magnetism

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Cheng, Meng-Fei; Brown, David E.

2015-01-01

Student construction of models is a strong focus of current research and practice in science education. In order to study in detail the interactions between students' model generation and evaluation and their development of explanatory ideas to account for magnetic phenomena, a multi-session teaching experiment was conducted with a small number of…

Divergent Explanatory Production (DEP): The Relationship between Resilience and Creativity

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Hernández, Óscar Sánchez; Méndez, Francisco Xavier; Garber, Judy

2015-01-01

Introduction: The aim of the study is to describe and analyze a new test and construct, Divergent Explanatory Production (DEP), defined as the ability to observe adverse situations from various points of view. At the theoretical level, it is a bridge between the reformulated model of learned helplessness (as a resilience model), and creative…

Randomized controlled trials and neuro-oncology: should alternative designs be considered?

PubMed

Mansouri, Alireza; Shin, Samuel; Cooper, Benjamin; Srivastava, Archita; Bhandari, Mohit; Kondziolka, Douglas

2015-09-01

Deficiencies in design and reporting of randomized controlled trials (RCTs) hinders interpretability and critical appraisal. The reporting quality of recent RCTs in neuro-oncology was analyzed to assess adequacy of design and reporting. The MEDLINE and EMBASE databases were searched to identify non-surgical RCTs (years 2005-2014, inclusive). The CONSORT and Jadad scales were used to assess the quality of design/reporting. Studies published in 2005-2010 were compared as a cohort against studies published in 2011-2014, in terms of general characteristics and reporting quality. A PRECIS-based scale was used to designate studies on the pragmatic-explanatory continuum. Spearman's test was used to assess correlations. Regression analysis was used to assess associations. Overall 68 RCTs were identified. Studies were often chemotherapy-based (n = 41 studies) focusing upon high grade gliomas (46 %) and metastases (41 %) as the top pathologies. Multi-center trials (71 %) were frequent. The overall median CONSORT and Jadad scores were 34.5 (maximum 44) and 2 (maximum 5), respectively; these scores were similar in radiation and chemotherapy-based trials. Major areas of deficiency pertained to allocation concealment, implementation of methods, and blinding whereby less than 20 % of articles fulfilled all criteria. Description of intervention, random sequence generation, and the details regarding recruitment were also deficient; less than 50 % of studies fulfilled all criteria. Description of sample size calculations and blinding improved in later published cohorts. Journal impact factor was significantly associated with higher quality (p = 0.04). Large academic consortia, multi-center designs, ITT analysis, collaboration with biostatisticians, larger sample sizes, and studies with pragmatic objectives were more likely to achieve positive primary outcomes on univariate analysis; none of these variables were significant on multivariate analysis. Deficiencies in the quality of design/reporting of RCTs in neuro-oncology persist. Quality improvement is necessary. Consideration of alternative strategies should be considered.

Comparative effectiveness research and its utility in In-clinic practice

PubMed Central

Dang, Amit; Kaur, Kirandeep

2016-01-01

One of the important components of patient-centered healthcare is comparative effectiveness research (CER), which aims at generating evidence from the real-life setting. The primary purpose of CER is to provide comparative information to the healthcare providers, patients, and policy makers about the standard of care available. This involves research on clinical questions unanswered by the explanatory trials during the regulatory approval process. Main methods of CER involve randomized controlled trials and observational methods. The limitations of these two methods have been overcome with the help of new statistical methods. After the evidence generation, it is equally important to communicate the results to all the interested organizations. CER is beginning to have its impact in the clinical practice as its results become part of the clinical practice guidelines. CER will have far-reaching scientific and financial impact. CER will make both the treating physician and the patient equally responsible for the treatment offered. PMID:26955571

Bias, Confounding, and Interaction: Lions and Tigers, and Bears, Oh My!

PubMed

Vetter, Thomas R; Mascha, Edward J

2017-09-01

Epidemiologists seek to make a valid inference about the causal effect between an exposure and a disease in a specific population, using representative sample data from a specific population. Clinical researchers likewise seek to make a valid inference about the association between an intervention and outcome(s) in a specific population, based upon their randomly collected, representative sample data. Both do so by using the available data about the sample variable to make a valid estimate about its corresponding or underlying, but unknown population parameter. Random error in an experiment can be due to the natural, periodic fluctuation or variation in the accuracy or precision of virtually any data sampling technique or health measurement tool or scale. In a clinical research study, random error can be due to not only innate human variability but also purely chance. Systematic error in an experiment arises from an innate flaw in the data sampling technique or measurement instrument. In the clinical research setting, systematic error is more commonly referred to as systematic bias. The most commonly encountered types of bias in anesthesia, perioperative, critical care, and pain medicine research include recall bias, observational bias (Hawthorne effect), attrition bias, misclassification or informational bias, and selection bias. A confounding variable is a factor associated with both the exposure of interest and the outcome of interest. A confounding variable (confounding factor or confounder) is a variable that correlates (positively or negatively) with both the exposure and outcome. Confounding is typically not an issue in a randomized trial because the randomized groups are sufficiently balanced on all potential confounding variables, both observed and nonobserved. However, confounding can be a major problem with any observational (nonrandomized) study. Ignoring confounding in an observational study will often result in a "distorted" or incorrect estimate of the association or treatment effect. Interaction among variables, also known as effect modification, exists when the effect of 1 explanatory variable on the outcome depends on the particular level or value of another explanatory variable. Bias and confounding are common potential explanations for statistically significant associations between exposure and outcome when the true relationship is noncausal. Understanding interactions is vital to proper interpretation of treatment effects. These complex concepts should be consistently and appropriately considered whenever one is not only designing but also analyzing and interpreting data from a randomized trial or observational study.

Impact of explained v. unexplained front-of-package nutrition labels on parent and child food choices: a randomized trial.

PubMed

Graham, Dan J; Lucas-Thompson, Rachel G; Mueller, Megan P; Jaeb, Melanie; Harnack, Lisa

2017-04-01

The present study investigated whether parent/child pairs would select more healthful foods when: (i) products were labelled with front-of-package (FOP) nutrition labels relative to packages without labels; (ii) products were labelled with colour-coded Multiple Traffic Light (MTL) FOP labels relative to monochromatic Facts up Front (FuF) FOP labels; and (iii) FOP labels were explained via in-aisle signage v. unexplained. Participants were randomly assigned to one of five conditions: (i) FuF labels with in-aisle signs explaining the labels; (ii) FuF labels, no signage; (iii) MTL labels with in-aisle signage; (iv) MTL labels, no signage; (v) control group, no labels/signage. Saturated fat, sodium, sugar and energy (calorie) content were compared across conditions. The study took place in a laboratory grocery aisle. Parent/child pairs (n 153) completed the study. Results did not support the hypothesis that MTL labels would lead to more healthful choices than FuF labels. The presence of FOP labels did little to improve the healthfulness of selected foods, with few exceptions (participants with v. without access to FOP labels selected lower-calorie cereals, participants with access to both FOP labels and in-aisle explanatory signage selected products with less saturated fat v. participants without explanatory signage). Neither MTL nor FuF FOP labels led to food choices with significantly lower saturated fat, sodium or sugar. In-aisle signs explaining the FOP labels were somewhat helpful to consumers in making more healthful dietary decisions. New FOP labelling programmes could benefit from campaigns to increase consumer awareness and understanding of the labels.

Designing a valid randomized pragmatic primary care implementation trial: the my own health report (MOHR) project.

PubMed

Krist, Alex H; Glenn, Beth A; Glasgow, Russell E; Balasubramanian, Bijal A; Chambers, David A; Fernandez, Maria E; Heurtin-Roberts, Suzanne; Kessler, Rodger; Ory, Marcia G; Phillips, Siobhan M; Ritzwoller, Debra P; Roby, Dylan H; Rodriguez, Hector P; Sabo, Roy T; Sheinfeld Gorin, Sherri N; Stange, Kurt C

2013-06-25

There is a pressing need for greater attention to patient-centered health behavior and psychosocial issues in primary care, and for practical tools, study designs and results of clinical and policy relevance. Our goal is to design a scientifically rigorous and valid pragmatic trial to test whether primary care practices can systematically implement the collection of patient-reported information and provide patients needed advice, goal setting, and counseling in response. This manuscript reports on the iterative design of the My Own Health Report (MOHR) study, a cluster randomized delayed intervention trial. Nine pairs of diverse primary care practices will be randomized to early or delayed intervention four months later. The intervention consists of fielding the MOHR assessment--addresses 10 domains of health behaviors and psychosocial issues--and subsequent provision of needed counseling and support for patients presenting for wellness or chronic care. As a pragmatic participatory trial, stakeholder groups including practice partners and patients have been engaged throughout the study design to account for local resources and characteristics. Participatory tasks include identifying MOHR assessment content, refining the study design, providing input on outcomes measures, and designing the implementation workflow. Study outcomes include the intervention reach (percent of patients offered and completing the MOHR assessment), effectiveness (patients reporting being asked about topics, setting change goals, and receiving assistance in early versus delayed intervention practices), contextual factors influencing outcomes, and intervention costs. The MOHR study shows how a participatory design can be used to promote the consistent collection and use of patient-reported health behavior and psychosocial assessments in a broad range of primary care settings. While pragmatic in nature, the study design will allow valid comparisons to answer the posed research question, and findings will be broadly generalizable to a range of primary care settings. Per the pragmatic explanatory continuum indicator summary (PRECIS) framework, the study design is substantially more pragmatic than other published trials. The methods and findings should be of interest to researchers, practitioners, and policy makers attempting to make healthcare more patient-centered and relevant. Clinicaltrials.gov: NCT01825746.

The variability puzzle in human memory.

PubMed

Kahana, Michael J; Aggarwal, Eash V; Phan, Tung D

2018-04-26

Memory performance exhibits a high level of variability from moment to moment. Much of this variability may reflect inadequately controlled experimental variables, such as word memorability, past practice and subject fatigue. Alternatively, stochastic variability in performance may largely reflect the efficiency of endogenous neural processes that govern memory function. To help adjudicate between these competing views, the authors conducted a multisession study in which subjects completed 552 trials of a delayed free-recall task. Applying a statistical model to predict variability in each subject's recall performance uncovered modest effects of word memorability, proactive interference, and other variables. In contrast to the limited explanatory power of these experimental variables, performance on the prior list strongly predicted current list recall. These findings suggest that endogenous factors underlying successful encoding and retrieval drive variability in performance. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2018 APA, all rights reserved).

A case study of alternative site response explanatory variables in Parkfield, California

USGS Publications Warehouse

Thompson, E.M.; Baise, L.G.; Kayen, R.E.; Morgan, E.C.; Kaklamanos, J.

2011-01-01

The combination of densely-spaced strong-motion stations in Parkfield, California, and spectral analysis of surface waves (SASW) profiles provides an ideal dataset for assessing the accuracy of different site response explanatory variables. We judge accuracy in terms of spatial coverage and correlation with observations. The performance of the alternative models is period-dependent, but generally we observe that: (1) where a profile is available, the square-root-of-impedance method outperforms VS30 (average S-wave velocity to 30 m depth), and (2) where a profile is unavailable, the topographic-slope method outperforms surficial geology. The fundamental site frequency is a valuable site response explanatory variable, though less valuable than VS30. However, given the expense and difficulty of obtaining reliable estimates of VS30 and the relative ease with which the fundamental site frequency can be computed, the fundamental site frequency may prove to be a valuable site response explanatory variable for many applications. ?? 2011 ASCE.

Explanatory Style in Patients with Rheumatoid Arthritis: An Unrecognized Predictor of Mortality

PubMed Central

Crowson, Aaron D.; Colligan, Robert C.; Matteson, Eric L.; Davis, John M.; Crowson, Cynthia S.

2016-01-01

Objective To determine whether pessimistic explanatory style altered the risk for and mortality of rheumatoid arthritis (RA) patients. Methods The study included subjects from a population-based cohort with incident RA and non-RA comparison cohort who completed the Minnesota Multiphasic Personality Inventory (MMPI). Results Among 148 RA and 135 non-RA subjects, pessimism was associated with development of rheumatoid factor positive (RF+) RA. Pessimism was associated with an increased risk of mortality (hazard ratio [HR]:2.88 with similar magnitude to RF+ (HR:2.28). Conclusion Pessimistic explanatory style was associated with an increased risk of developing RA and increased mortality rate in patients with RA. PMID:28148754

Explanatory models concerning the effects of small-area characteristics on individual health.

PubMed

Voigtländer, Sven; Vogt, Verena; Mielck, Andreas; Razum, Oliver

2014-06-01

Material and social living conditions at the small-area level are assumed to have an effect on individual health. We review existing explanatory models concerning the effects of small-area characteristics on health and describe the gaps future research should try to fill. Systematic literature search for, and analysis of, studies that propose an explanatory model of the relationship between small-area characteristics and health. Fourteen studies met our inclusion criteria. Using various theoretical approaches, almost all of the models are based on a three-tier structure linking social inequalities (posited at the macro-level), small-area characteristics (posited at the meso-level) and individual health (micro-level). No study explicitly defines the geographical borders of the small-area context. The health impact of the small-area characteristics is explained by specific pathways involving mediating factors (psychological, behavioural, biological). These pathways tend to be seen as uni-directional; often, causality is implied. They may be modified by individual factors. A number of issues need more attention in research on explanatory models concerning small-area effects on health. Among them are the (geographical) definition of the small-area context; the systematic description of pathways comprising small-area contextual as well as compositional factors; questions of direction of association and causality; and the integration of a time dimension.

Examining the Value of a Scaffolded Critique Framework to Promote Argumentative and Explanatory Writings within an Argument-Based Inquiry Approach

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Jang, Jeong-yoon; Hand, Brian

2017-01-01

This study investigated the value of using a scaffolded critique framework to promote two different types of writing--argumentative writing and explanatory writing--with different purposes within an argument-based inquiry approach known as the Science Writing Heuristic (SWH) approach. A quasi-experimental design with sixth and seventh grade…

The coexistence of natural and supernatural explanations within and across domains and development.

PubMed

Busch, Justin T A; Watson-Jones, Rachel E; Legare, Cristine H

2017-03-01

People across highly diverse cultural contexts use both natural and supernatural explanations to explain questions of fundamental concern such as death, illness, and human origins. The present study examines the development of explanatory coexistence within and across domains of existential concern in individuals in Tanna, Vanuatu. We examined three age groups: 7- to 12-year-old children, 13- to 18-year-old adolescents, and 19- to 70-year-old adults (N = 72). Within the domain of death, biological and spontaneous explanations were most common across all ages. For illness, children showed the highest rates of explanatory coexistence, while adolescents and adults favoured biological explanations. Within the human origins domain, theistic explanations were most common across the age groups. Overall, these data show that coexistence reasoning in these domains is pervasive across cultures, yet at the same time it is deeply contextually specific, reflecting the nuanced differences in local ecologies and cultural beliefs. Statement of contribution What is already known on this subject? Individuals across highly diverse cultural contexts use both natural and supernatural explanations to understand the events that occur in their lives. Context and cultural input play a large role in determining when and how individuals incorporate natural and supernatural explanations. The development of explanatory coexistence has primarily studied explanations for isolated domains. What does this study add? We examined explanatory coexistence in a culture with recent conversion to Christianity and formal education. The current research examines how individuals reason within and across the domains of human origins, illness, and death. Developmental differences associated with explanatory coexistence are examined. © 2016 The British Psychological Society.

Exploratory case study of students' main explanatory approaches to science concepts and their states of mental engagement

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Nicdao-Quita, Maria Isabel T.

This study explored students' dominant ways of operating in science; the types of structuring that is evident, not in terms of ideas, but in terms of how the students think about, imagine, and relate to the physical processes. As the study progressed, the investigation of the students' ideas went beyond their prior knowledge; other significant dimensions emerged as these students interacted with the heating process. The students demonstrated rich and dynamic pictures of the heating process, and from these images, a larger picture of the mental entities and processes dominant in their understanding of the physical phenomenon. Four Filipino students studying in the United States were individually observed in their science classes, were visited at home, and were interviewed about water being heated. The analysis of each student's data led to the two constructs, the main explanatory approach and the students' states of mental engagement (SOME), while the student was cognitively and affectively connected with the phenomenon. The features of the main explanatory approach include an explanatory element and an affective element that pervade the students' thinking about the phenomenon. It is common to and dominant in students' thinking across time. It is the approach of the student taken as a holistic organization within the student when he or she starts dealing with the phenomenon. One of the assumptions behind dealing with the main explanatory approach is that it is much more connected with what kind of person the student is and with the state of mental engagement (SOME) the student is in. SOME refers to the personal energy of a student as he or she relates to and becomes involved with the physical process--there is absorption into the object of study. SOME is related to energizing the main explanatory approach. The interconnectedness of these two constructs can be viewed as a different level of abstraction or interpretation of the students' ways of thinking about the physical process. This way of looking at students' understanding and its connection with students' states of mental engagement has opened up an area with many possibilities, one of which is how the affective structures play a significant role in the exploration of science concepts.

Predicting High Quality AFQT with Youth Attitude Tracking Study Data

DTIC Science & Technology

1991-12-01

for propensities. The history of the art of mental aptitude and psychological testing is long and convoluted. Names like Sir Francis Galton of England...Qualification Test . The explanatory variables reflect individual demographic, educational and labor market characteristics at the time of YATS interview. The...the fiftieth percentile on the Armed Forces Qualification Test . The explanatory variables reflect individual demographic, educational and labor market

Writing Development in Secondary/Post Secondary Language Learning: Integrating Multiple Motivating Factors, Explanatory Feedback, and Explanatory Writing Tools to Increase Competence and Confidence in Writing

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Jefferson, Trevina

2013-01-01

Background: This study discusses data-driven results of newly-developed writing tools that are objective, easy, and less time-consuming than standard classroom writing strategies; additionally, multiple motivation triggers and peer evaluation are evaluated together with these new, modernized writing tools. The results are explained separately and…

Non-invasive interventions for improving well-being and quality of life in patients with lung cancer.

PubMed

Solà, I; Thompson, E; Subirana, M; López, C; Pascual, A

2004-10-18

Lung cancer is one of the leading causes of death globally. Despite advances in treatment, outlook for the majority of patients remains grim and most face a pessimistic outlook accompanied by sometimes devastating effects on emotional and psychological health. Although chemotherapy is accepted as an effective treatment for advanced lung cancer, the high prevalence of treatment-related side effects as well the symptoms of disease progression highlight the need for high quality palliative and supportive care to minimise symptom distress and to promote quality of life. To assess the effectiveness of non-invasive interventions delivered by healthcare professionals in improving symptoms, psychological functioning and quality of life in patients with lung cancer. The Cochrane Central Register of Controlled Trials (The Cochrane Library Issue 4, 2003), MEDLINE (1966-March 2003), EMBASE (1974-March 2003), CINAHL (1982-September 2002), CancerLit (1975-October 2002), PsycINFO (1873-March 2003), reference lists of relevant articles and contact with authors. Randomised or quasi-randomised clinical trials assessing the effects of non-invasive interventions in improving well-being and quality of life in patients diagnosed with lung cancer. Two reviewers independently assessed relevant studies for inclusion. Data extraction and quality assessment of relevant studies was performed by one reviewer and checked by a second reviewer. Nine trials were included and categorised into six groups. Two trials of a nursing intervention to manage breathlessness showed benefit on symptom experience, performance status and emotional functioning. Three trials assessed structured nursing programmes and found positive effects on delay in clinical deterioration, dependency and symptom distress, and improvements in emotional functioning and satisfaction with care. One trial assessing counselling showed benefit on some emotional components of the illness but findings were not conclusive. One trial assessing an exercise programme, found a beneficial effect on self-empowerment. One trial of nutritional interventions found positive effects for increasing energy intake, but no improvement in quality of life. One trial of reflexology showed some positive, but short-lasting effects on anxiety. Nurse follow-up programmes and a nurse intervention to manage breathlessness may produce beneficial effects. Psychotherapeutic study indicates that counselling may help patients cope more effectively with emotional symptoms, but the evidence is not conclusive. Findings from the included studies reinforce the necessity for increased training and education of healthcare professionals giving in these interventions. More research, of higher methodological quality is needed in this area to explore possible underlying explanatory mechanisms.

`Quantum Mechanics' and `Scientific Explanation' An Explanatory Strategy Aiming at Providing `Understanding'

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Hadzidaki, Pandora

2008-01-01

Empirical studies persistently indicate that the usual explanatory strategies used in quantum mechanics (QM) instruction fail, in general, to yield understanding. In this study, we propose an instructional intervention, which: (a) incorporates into its subject matter a critical comparison of QM scientific content with the fundamental epistemological and ontological commitments of the prominent philosophical theories of explanation, a weak form of which we meet in QM teaching; (b) illuminates the reasons of their failure in the quantum domain; and (c) implements an explanatory strategy highly inspired by the epistemological pathways through which, during the birth-process of QM, science has gradually reached understanding. This strategy, an inherent element of which is the meta-cognitive and meta-scientific thinking, aims at leading learners not only to an essential understanding of QM worldview, but to a deep insight into the ‘Nature of Science’ as well.

Using Indirect Turbulence Measurements for Real-Time Parameter Estimation in Turbulent Air

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Martos, Borja; Morelli, Eugene A.

2012-01-01

The use of indirect turbulence measurements for real-time estimation of parameters in a linear longitudinal dynamics model in atmospheric turbulence was studied. It is shown that measuring the atmospheric turbulence makes it possible to treat the turbulence as a measured explanatory variable in the parameter estimation problem. Commercial off-the-shelf sensors were researched and evaluated, then compared to air data booms. Sources of colored noise in the explanatory variables resulting from typical turbulence measurement techniques were identified and studied. A major source of colored noise in the explanatory variables was identified as frequency dependent upwash and time delay. The resulting upwash and time delay corrections were analyzed and compared to previous time shift dynamic modeling research. Simulation data as well as flight test data in atmospheric turbulence were used to verify the time delay behavior. Recommendations are given for follow on flight research and instrumentation.

The role of pragmatism in explaining heterogeneity in meta-analyses of randomised trials: a protocol for a cross-sectional methodological review.

PubMed

Aves, Theresa; Allan, Katherine S; Lawson, Daeria; Nieuwlaat, Robby; Beyene, Joseph; Mbuagbaw, Lawrence

2017-09-03

There has been increasing interest in pragmatic trials methodology. As a result, tools such as the Pragmatic-Explanatory Continuum Indicator Summary-2 (PRECIS-2) are being used prospectively to help researchers design randomised controlled trials (RCTs) within the pragmatic-explanatory continuum. There may be value in applying the PRECIS-2 tool retrospectively in a systematic review setting as it could provide important information about how to pool data based on the degree of pragmatism. To investigate the role of pragmatism as a source of heterogeneity in systematic reviews by (1) identifying systematic reviews with meta-analyses of RCTs that have moderate to high heterogeneity, (2) applying PRECIS-2 to RCTs of systematic reviews, (3) evaluating the inter-rater reliability of PRECIS-2, (4) determining how much of this heterogeneity may be explained by pragmatism. A cross-sectional methodological review will be conducted on systematic reviews of RCTs published in the Cochrane Library from 1 January 2014 to 1 January 2017. Included systematic reviews will have a minimum of 10 RCTs in the meta-analysis of the primary outcome and moderate to substantial heterogeneity (I 2 ≥50%). Of the eligible systematic reviews, a random selection of 10 will be included for quantitative evaluation. In each systematic review, RCTs will be scored using the PRECIS-2 tool, in duplicate. Agreement between raters will be measured using the intraclass correlation coefficient. Subgroup analyses and meta-regression will be used to evaluate how much variability in the primary outcome may be due to pragmatism. This review will be among the first to evaluate the PRECIS-2 tool in a systematic review setting. Results from this research will provide inter-rater reliability information about PRECIS-2 and may be used to provide methodological guidance when dealing with pragmatism in systematic reviews and subgroup considerations. On completion, this review will be submitted to a peer-reviewed journal for publication. © Article author(s) (or their employer(s) unless otherwise stated in the text of the article) 2017. All rights reserved. No commercial use is permitted unless otherwise expressly granted.

Recruitment experience for a pragmatic randomized controlled trial: Using EMR initiatives and minimizing research infrastructure.

PubMed

Joseph, Christine Lm; Ownby, Dennis R; Zoratti, Edward; Johnson, Dayna; Considine, Shannon; Bourgeois, Renee; Melkonian, Christina; Miree, Cheryl; Johnson, Christine Cole; Lu, Mei

2016-01-01

Modernized approaches to multisite randomized controlled trials (RCT) include the use of electronic medical records (EMR) for recruitment, remote data capture (RDC) for multisite data collection, and strategies to reduce the need for research infrastructure. These features facilitate the conduct of pragmatic trials, or trials conducted in "real life" settings. We describe the recruitment experience of an RCT to evaluate a clinic-based intervention targeting urban youth with asthma. Using encounter and prescription databases, a list of potentially-eligible patients was linked to the Epic appointment scheduling system. Patients were enrolled during a scheduled visit and then electronically randomized to a tailored versus generic online intervention. 1146 appointments for 580 eligible patients visiting 5 clinics were identified, of which 45.9% (266/580) were randomized to reach targeted enrollment (n=250). RDC facilitated multisite enrollment. Intervention content was further personalized through real- time entry of asthma medications prescribed at the clinic visit. EMR monitoring helped with recruitment trouble-shooting. Systemic challenges included a system-wide EMR transition and a system-wide reorganization of clinic staffing. Modernized RCTs can accelerate translation of research findings. Electronic initiatives facilitated implementation of this RCT; however, adaptations to recruitment strategies resulted in a more "explanatory" framework. .

Explanatory Models for Psychiatric Illness

PubMed Central

Kendler, Kenneth S.

2009-01-01

How can we best develop explanatory models for psychiatric disorders? Because causal factors have an impact on psychiatric illness both at micro levels and macro levels, both within and outside of the individual, and involving processes best understood from biological, psychological, and sociocultural perspectives, traditional models of science that strive for single broadly applicable explanatory laws are ill suited for our field. Such models are based on the incorrect assumption that psychiatric illnesses can be understood from a single perspective. A more appropriate scientific model for psychiatry emphasizes the understanding of mechanisms, an approach that fits naturally with a multicausal framework and provides a realistic paradigm for scientific progress, that is, understanding mechanisms through decomposition and reassembly. Simple subunits of complicated mechanisms can be usefully studied in isolation. Reassembling these constituent parts into a functioning whole, which is straightforward for simple additive mechanisms, will be far more challenging in psychiatry where causal networks contain multiple nonlinear interactions and causal loops. Our field has long struggled with the interrelationship between biological and psychological explanatory perspectives. Building from the seminal work of the neuronal modeler and philosopher David Marr, the author suggests that biology will implement but not replace psychology within our explanatory systems. The iterative process of interactions between biology and psychology needed to achieve this implementation will deepen our understanding of both classes of processes. PMID:18483135

The Relationship of Explanatory Flexibility to Explanatory Style

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Moore, Michael T.; Fresco, David M.

2007-01-01

Traditional cognitive vulnerability-stress models regarding the etiology of depression emphasize the content of the depressed individual's thoughts. One important cognitive content index, explanatory style, represents the habitual way that individuals assign causes to events that occur in their lives. A more contemporary model, however, emphasizes…

Does cognitive behavioral therapy alter mental defeat and cognitive flexibility in patients with panic disorder?

PubMed

Nagata, Shinobu; Seki, Yoichi; Shibuya, Takayuki; Yokoo, Mizue; Murata, Tomokazu; Hiramatsu, Yoichi; Yamada, Fuminori; Ibuki, Hanae; Minamitani, Noriko; Yoshinaga, Naoki; Kusunoki, Muga; Inada, Yasushi; Kawasoe, Nobuko; Adachi, Soichiro; Oshiro, Keiko; Matsuzawa, Daisuke; Hirano, Yoshiyuki; Yoshimura, Kensuke; Nakazato, Michiko; Iyo, Masaomi; Nakagawa, Akiko; Shimizu, Eiji

2018-01-12

Mental defeat and cognitive flexibility have been studied as explanatory factors for depression and posttraumatic stress disorder. This study examined mental defeat and cognitive flexibility scores in patients with panic disorder (PD) before and after cognitive behavioral therapy (CBT), and compared them to those of a gender- and age-matched healthy control group. Patients with PD (n = 15) received 16 weekly individual CBT sessions, and the control group (n = 35) received no treatment. Patients completed the Mental Defeat Scale and the Cognitive Flexibility Scale before the intervention, following eight CBT sessions, and following 16 CBT sessions, while the control group did so only prior to receiving CBT (baseline). The patients' pre-CBT Mental Defeat and Cognitive Flexibility Scale scores were significantly higher on the Mental Defeat Scale and lower on the Cognitive Flexibility Scale than those of the control group participants were. In addition, the average Mental Defeat Scale scores of the patients decreased significantly, from 22.2 to 12.4, while their average Cognitive Flexibility Scale scores increased significantly, from 42.8 to 49.5. These results suggest that CBT can reduce mental defeat and increase cognitive flexibility in patients with PD Trial registration The study was registered retrospectively in the national UMIN Clinical Trials Registry on June 10, 2016 (registration ID: UMIN000022693).

Perceived Risks and Normative Beliefs as Explanatory Models for College Student Alcohol Involvement: An Assessment of a Campus with Conventional Alcohol Control Policies and Enforcement Practices

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Lewis, Todd F.; Thombs, Dennis L.

2005-01-01

The aim of this study was to conduct a multivariate assessment of college student drinking motivations at a campus with conventional alcohol control policies and enforcement practices, including the establishment and dissemination of alcohol policies and the use of warnings to arouse fear of sanctions. Two explanatory models were compared:…

Examining Explanatory Style's Relationship to Efficacy and Burnout in Teachers

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Fineburg, Amy Cheek

2010-01-01

Explanatory style, the ways in which people explain both good and bad events (Seligman, 1998), shares theoretical components with teachers' sense of efficacy (Tshannon-Moran & Woolfolk-Hoy, 2001), which is how capable teachers feel about teaching. According to Bandura (1994), efficacy informs explanatory style, but this assertion does not…

A Middle-Range Explanatory Theory of Self-Management Behavior for Collaborative Research and Practice.

PubMed

Blok, Amanda C

2017-04-01

To report an analysis of the concept of self-management behaviors. Self-management behaviors are typically associated with disease management, with frequent use by nurse researchers related to chronic illness management and by international health organizations for development of disease management interventions. A concept analysis was conducted within the context of Orem's self-care framework. Walker and Avant's eight-step concept analysis approach guided the analysis. Academic databases were searched for relevant literature including CIHAHL, Cochrane Databases of Systematic Reviews and Register of Controlled Trials, MEDLINE, PsycARTICLES and PsycINFO, and SocINDEX. Literature using the term "self-management behavior" and published between April 2001 and March 2015 was analyzed for attributes, antecedents, and consequences. A total of 189 journal articles were reviewed. Self-management behaviors are defined as proactive actions related to lifestyle, a problem, planning, collaborating, and mental support, as well as reactive actions related to a circumstantial change, to achieve a goal influenced by the antecedents of physical, psychological, socioeconomic, and cultural characteristics, as well as collaborative and received support. The theoretical definition and middle-range explanatory theory of self-management behaviors will guide future collaborative research and clinical practice for disease management. © 2016 Wiley Periodicals, Inc.

Efficacy of a dual-ring wound protector for prevention of incisional surgical site infection after Whipple's procedure (pancreaticoduodenectomy) with preoperatively-placed intrabiliary stents: protocol for a randomised controlled trial.

PubMed

Bressan, Alexsander K; Roberts, Derek J; Edwards, Janet P; Bhatti, Sana U; Dixon, Elijah; Sutherland, Francis R; Bathe, Oliver; Ball, Chad G

2014-08-21

Among surgical oncology patients, incisional surgical site infection is associated with substantially increased morbidity, mortality and healthcare costs. Moreover, while adults undergoing pancreaticoduodenectomy with preoperative placement of an intrabiliary stent have a high risk of this type of infection, and wound protectors may significantly reduce its risk, no relevant studies of wound protectors yet exist involving this patient population. This study will evaluate the efficacy of a dual-ring wound protector for prevention of incisional surgical site infection among adults undergoing pancreaticoduodenectomy with preoperatively-placed intrabiliary stents. This study will be a parallel, dual-arm, randomised controlled trial that will utilise a more explanatory than pragmatic attitude. All adults (≥18 years) undergoing a pancreaticoduodenectomy at the Foothills Medical Centre in Calgary, Alberta, Canada with preoperative placement of an intrabiliary stent will be considered eligible. Exclusion criteria will include patient age <18 years and those receiving long-term glucocorticoids. The trial will employ block randomisation to allocate patients to a commercial dual-ring wound protector (the Alexis Wound Protector) or no wound protector and the current standard of care. The main outcome measure will be the rate of surgical site infection as defined by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention criteria within 30 days of the index operation date as determined by a research assistant blinded to treatment allocation. Outcomes will be analysed by a statistician blinded to allocation status by calculating risk ratios and 95% CIs and compared using Fisher's exact test. This will be the first randomised trial to evaluate the efficacy of a dual-ring wound protector for prevention of incisional surgical site infection among patients undergoing pancreaticoduodenectomy. Results of this study are expected to be available in 2016/2017 and will be disseminated using an integrated and end-of-grant knowledge translation strategy. ClinicalTrials.gov identifier NCT01836237. Published by the BMJ Publishing Group Limited. For permission to use (where not already granted under a licence) please go to http://group.bmj.com/group/rights-licensing/permissions.

Low degree of satisfactory individual pain relief in post-operative pain trials.

PubMed

Geisler, A; Dahl, J B; Karlsen, A P H; Persson, E; Mathiesen, O

2017-01-01

The majority of clinical trials regarding post-operative pain treatment focuses on the average analgesic efficacy, rather than on efficacy in individual patients. It has been argued, that in acute pain trials, the underlying distributions are often skewed, which makes the average unfit as the only way to measure efficacy. Consequently, dichotomised, individual responder analyses using a predefined 'favourable' response, e.g. Visual Analogue Scale (VAS) pain scores ≤ 30, have recently been suggested as a more clinical relevant outcome. We re-analysed data from 16 randomised controlled trials of post-operative pain treatment and from meta-analyses of a systematic review regarding hip arthroplasty. The predefined success criterion was that at least 80% of patients in active treatment groups should obtain VAS < 30 at 6 and 24 h post-operatively. In the analysis of data from the randomised controlled trials, we found that at 6 h post-operatively, 50% (95% CI: 31-69) of patients allocated to active treatment reached the success criterion for pain at rest and 14% (95% CI: 5-34) for pain during mobilisation. At 24 h post-operatively, 60% (95% CI: 38-78) of patients allocated to active treatment reached the success criterion for pain at rest, and 15% (95% CI: 5-36) for pain during mobilisation. Similar results were found for trials from the meta-analyses. Our results indicate that for conventional, explanatory trials of post-operative pain, individual patient's achievement of a favourable response to analgesic treatment is rather low. Future pragmatic clinical trials should focus on both average pain levels and individual responder analyses in order to promote effective pain treatment at the individually patient level. © 2016 The Acta Anaesthesiologica Scandinavica Foundation. Published by John Wiley & Sons Ltd.

Mechanisms of eyewitness suggestibility: tests of the explanatory role hypothesis.

PubMed

Rindal, Eric J; Chrobak, Quin M; Zaragoza, Maria S; Weihing, Caitlin A

2017-10-01

In a recent paper, Chrobak and Zaragoza (Journal of Experimental Psychology: General, 142(3), 827-844, 2013) proposed the explanatory role hypothesis, which posits that the likelihood of developing false memories for post-event suggestions is a function of the explanatory function the suggestion serves. In support of this hypothesis, they provided evidence that participant-witnesses were especially likely to develop false memories for their forced fabrications when their fabrications helped to explain outcomes they had witnessed. In three experiments, we test the generality of the explanatory role hypothesis as a mechanism of eyewitness suggestibility by assessing whether this hypothesis can predict suggestibility errors in (a) situations where the post-event suggestions are provided by the experimenter (as opposed to fabricated by the participant), and (b) across a variety of memory measures and measures of recollective experience. In support of the explanatory role hypothesis, participants were more likely to subsequently freely report (E1) and recollect the suggestions as part of the witnessed event (E2, source test) when the post-event suggestion helped to provide a causal explanation for a witnessed outcome than when it did not serve this explanatory role. Participants were also less likely to recollect the suggestions as part of the witnessed event (on measures of subjective experience) when their explanatory strength had been reduced by the presence of an alternative explanation that could explain the same outcome (E3, source test + warning). Collectively, the results provide strong evidence that the search for explanatory coherence influences people's tendency to misremember witnessing events that were only suggested to them.

Differences in quality of life outcomes among depressed spinal cord injury trial participants.

PubMed

Tate, Denise G; Forchheimer, Martin; Bombardier, Charles H; Heinemann, Allen W; Neumann, Holly D; Fann, Jesse R

2015-02-01

To assess the role that treatment response plays in a randomized controlled trial of an antidepressant among people with spinal cord injury (SCI) diagnosed with major depressive disorder (MDD) in explaining quality of life (QOL), assessed both globally as life satisfaction and in terms of physical and mental health-related QOL. Multivariable analyses were conducted, controlling for demographic, neurologic, and participatory factors and perceived functional limitations. Rehabilitation centers. Of the 133 persons who were randomized into the Project to Improve Symptoms and Mood after Spinal Cord Injury randomized controlled trial, 124 participated in this study. All participants were between the ages of 18 and 64 years, at least 1 month post-SCI, met the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders, 4th edition, criteria for MDD, and completed the core measures used in this study. Not applicable. The Satisfaction with Life Scale and the physical and mental component summary scores of the Medical Outcomes Study 12-Item Short-Form Health Survey. Reduction in depressive symptoms over the course of a 12-week trial was predictive of increased QOL, which was measured as life satisfaction and mental well-being, within the context of other explanatory factors. However, reduction in symptoms did not explain differences in physical well-being among those with MDD. Perceived functional disability explained all 3 indices of QOL. Greater recognition has been given to QOL outcomes as endpoints of clinical trials because these often reflect participants' reported outcomes. Our findings support the association of QOL to the reduction of depression symptoms among trial participants. This association differs depending on how QOL is defined and measured, with stronger relations observed with life satisfaction and mental well-being among those diagnosed with MDD. The lack of association between depression and physical well-being may be explained by participants' subjective interpretation of physical well-being after SCI and their expectations and perceptions of improved physical health-related QOL based on the use of assistive technology. Consistent with our findings, pain is likely to play a role in decreasing physical QOL among those with incomplete injuries. Practicing caution is suggested in using physical well-being as an endpoint in trials among people with SCI. Copyright © 2015 American Congress of Rehabilitation Medicine. Published by Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

Children with Autism Spectrum Disorder Have an Exceptional Explanatory Drive

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Rutherford, M. D.; Subiaul, Francys

2016-01-01

An "explanatory drive" motivates children to explain ambiguity. Individuals with autism spectrum disorders are interested in how systems work, but it is unknown whether they have an explanatory drive. We presented children with and without autism spectrum disorder unsolvable problems in a physical and in a social context and evaluated…

Explanatory Typologies as a Nested Strategy of Inquiry: Combining Cross-Case and Within-Case Analyses

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Møller, Jørgen; Skaaning, Svend-Erik

2017-01-01

Explanatory typologies have recently experienced a renaissance as a research strategy for constructing and assessing causal explanations. However, both the new methodological works on explanatory typologies and the way such typologies have been used in practice have been affected by two shortcomings. First, no elaborate procedures for assessing…

Reporting and Methodology of Multivariable Analyses in Prognostic Observational Studies Published in 4 Anesthesiology Journals: A Methodological Descriptive Review.

PubMed

Guglielminotti, Jean; Dechartres, Agnès; Mentré, France; Montravers, Philippe; Longrois, Dan; Laouénan, Cedric

2015-10-01

Prognostic research studies in anesthesiology aim to identify risk factors for an outcome (explanatory studies) or calculate the risk of this outcome on the basis of patients' risk factors (predictive studies). Multivariable models express the relationship between predictors and an outcome and are used in both explanatory and predictive studies. Model development demands a strict methodology and a clear reporting to assess its reliability. In this methodological descriptive review, we critically assessed the reporting and methodology of multivariable analysis used in observational prognostic studies published in anesthesiology journals. A systematic search was conducted on Medline through Web of Knowledge, PubMed, and journal websites to identify observational prognostic studies with multivariable analysis published in Anesthesiology, Anesthesia & Analgesia, British Journal of Anaesthesia, and Anaesthesia in 2010 and 2011. Data were extracted by 2 independent readers. First, studies were analyzed with respect to reporting of outcomes, design, size, methods of analysis, model performance (discrimination and calibration), model validation, clinical usefulness, and STROBE (i.e., Strengthening the Reporting of Observational Studies in Epidemiology) checklist. A reporting rate was calculated on the basis of 21 items of the aforementioned points. Second, they were analyzed with respect to some predefined methodological points. Eighty-six studies were included: 87.2% were explanatory and 80.2% investigated a postoperative event. The reporting was fairly good, with a median reporting rate of 79% (75% in explanatory studies and 100% in predictive studies). Six items had a reporting rate <36% (i.e., the 25th percentile), with some of them not identified in the STROBE checklist: blinded evaluation of the outcome (11.9%), reason for sample size (15.1%), handling of missing data (36.0%), assessment of colinearity (17.4%), assessment of interactions (13.9%), and calibration (34.9%). When reported, a few methodological shortcomings were observed, both in explanatory and predictive studies, such as an insufficient number of events of the outcome (44.6%), exclusion of cases with missing data (93.6%), or categorization of continuous variables (65.1%.). The reporting of multivariable analysis was fairly good and could be further improved by checking reporting guidelines and EQUATOR Network website. Limiting the number of candidate variables, including cases with missing data, and not arbitrarily categorizing continuous variables should be encouraged.

The effects of reducing worry in patients with persecutory delusions: study protocol for a randomized controlled trial

PubMed Central

2012-01-01

Background Our approach to advancing the treatment of psychosis is to focus on key single symptoms and develop interventions that target the mechanisms that maintain them. In our theoretical research we have found worry to be an important factor in the development and maintenance of persecutory delusions. Worry brings implausible ideas to mind, keeps them there, and makes the experience distressing. Therefore the aim of the trial is to test the clinical efficacy of a cognitive-behavioral intervention for worry for patients with persecutory delusions and determine how the worry treatment might reduce delusions. Methods/Design An explanatory randomized controlled trial - called the Worry Intervention Trial (WIT) - with 150 patients with persecutory delusions will be carried out. Patients will be randomized to the worry intervention in addition to standard care or to standard care. Randomization will be carried out independently, assessments carried out single-blind, and therapy competence and adherence monitored. The study population will be individuals with persecutory delusions and worry in the context of a schizophrenia spectrum diagnosis. They will not have responded adequately to previous treatment. The intervention is a six-session cognitive-behavioral treatment provided over eight weeks. The control condition will be treatment as usual, which is typically antipsychotic medication and regular appointments. The principal hypotheses are that a worry intervention will reduce levels of worry and that it will also reduce the persecutory delusions. Assessments will be carried out at 0 weeks (baseline), 8 weeks (post treatment) and 24 weeks (follow-up). The statistical analysis strategy will follow the intention-to-treat principle and involve the use of linear mixed models to evaluate and estimate the relevant between- and within-subjects effects (allowing for the possibility of missing data). Both traditional regression and newer instrumental variables analyses will examine mediation. The trial is funded by the UK Medical Research Council (MRC)/NHS National Institute of Health Research (NIHR) Efficacy and Mechanism Evaluation (EME) Programme. Discussion This will be the first large randomized controlled trial specifically focused upon persecutory delusions. The project will produce a brief, easily administered intervention that can be readily used in mental health services. Trial registration Current Controlled Trials ISRCTN23197625 PMID:23171601

Evaluation of alternative model selection criteria in the analysis of unimodal response curves using CART

USGS Publications Warehouse

Ribic, C.A.; Miller, T.W.

1998-01-01

We investigated CART performance with a unimodal response curve for one continuous response and four continuous explanatory variables, where two variables were important (ie directly related to the response) and the other two were not. We explored performance under three relationship strengths and two explanatory variable conditions: equal importance and one variable four times as important as the other. We compared CART variable selection performance using three tree-selection rules ('minimum risk', 'minimum risk complexity', 'one standard error') to stepwise polynomial ordinary least squares (OLS) under four sample size conditions. The one-standard-error and minimum-risk-complexity methods performed about as well as stepwise OLS with large sample sizes when the relationship was strong. With weaker relationships, equally important explanatory variables and larger sample sizes, the one-standard-error and minimum-risk-complexity rules performed better than stepwise OLS. With weaker relationships and explanatory variables of unequal importance, tree-structured methods did not perform as well as stepwise OLS. Comparing performance within tree-structured methods, with a strong relationship and equally important explanatory variables, the one-standard-error-rule was more likely to choose the correct model than were the other tree-selection rules 1) with weaker relationships and equally important explanatory variables; and 2) under all relationship strengths when explanatory variables were of unequal importance and sample sizes were lower.

Explanatory models of psychosis amongst British South Asians.

PubMed

Bhikha, Aqeela; Farooq, Saeed; Chaudhry, Nasim; Naeem, Farooq; Husain, Nusrat

2015-08-01

A strong interest in the understanding, exploring, and extracting explanatory models of psychosis has recently arisen. Explanatory models (EMs) offer justifications and propose explanations when coping with and treating illnesses. Therefore, they may be important predictors of clinical outcome. Explanatory models of psychosis have been explored in many non-Western countries. However, very little research has examined EMs of psychosis in the UK. We therefore, aimed to elicit and describe explanatory models of psychosis amongst British South Asians, using both quantitative and qualitative methods. EMs of psychosis were examined using the Short Explanatory Model Interview (SEMI) in a cross-sectional sample of 45 patients. Most patients (55.5%) attributed their illness to supernatural causes. Few patients cited a biological (4.4%) cause. Majority of patients held dual EMs of psychosis (77.7%), combining prescribed medication and seeing a traditional healer as a treatment method. Duration of Untreated Psychosis (DUP) was not significantly associated with EMs of psychosis. The results suggest that patients hold multi-explanatory models in order to make sense of their illness and these stem from deep rooted traditional beliefs. This highlights the importance of educational intervention, culturally adapted psychological interventions and possibly working together with traditional healers in the UK to provide a positive support system. Further work is required in order to fully understand the relationship between EMs of psychosis and DUP. Copyright © 2015 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

CONSORT for Reporting Randomized Controlled Trials in Journal and Conference Abstracts: Explanation and Elaboration

PubMed Central

Hopewell, Sally; Clarke, Mike; Moher, David; Wager, Elizabeth; Middleton, Philippa; Altman, Douglas G; Schulz, Kenneth F

2008-01-01

Background Clear, transparent, and sufficiently detailed abstracts of conferences and journal articles related to randomized controlled trials (RCTs) are important, because readers often base their assessment of a trial solely on information in the abstract. Here, we extend the CONSORT (Consolidated Standards of Reporting Trials) Statement to develop a minimum list of essential items, which authors should consider when reporting the results of a RCT in any journal or conference abstract. Methods and Findings We generated a list of items from existing quality assessment tools and empirical evidence. A three-round, modified-Delphi process was used to select items. In all, 109 participants were invited to participate in an electronic survey; the response rate was 61%. Survey results were presented at a meeting of the CONSORT Group in Montebello, Canada, January 2007, involving 26 participants, including clinical trialists, statisticians, epidemiologists, and biomedical editors. Checklist items were discussed for eligibility into the final checklist. The checklist was then revised to ensure that it reflected discussions held during and subsequent to the meeting. CONSORT for Abstracts recommends that abstracts relating to RCTs have a structured format. Items should include details of trial objectives; trial design (e.g., method of allocation, blinding/masking); trial participants (i.e., description, numbers randomized, and number analyzed); interventions intended for each randomized group and their impact on primary efficacy outcomes and harms; trial conclusions; trial registration name and number; and source of funding. We recommend the checklist be used in conjunction with this explanatory document, which includes examples of good reporting, rationale, and evidence, when available, for the inclusion of each item. Conclusions CONSORT for Abstracts aims to improve reporting of abstracts of RCTs published in journal articles and conference proceedings. It will help authors of abstracts of these trials provide the detail and clarity needed by readers wishing to assess a trial's validity and the applicability of its results. PMID:18215107

[CONSORT for reporting randomized controlled trials in journal and conference abstracts: explanation and elaboration].

PubMed

Hopewel, Sally; Clarke, Mike; Moher, David; Wager, Elizabeth; Middleton, Philippa; Altman, Douglas G; Schulz, Kenneth F; The, Consort Group

2008-03-01

Clear, transparent, and sufficiently detailed abstracts of conferences and journal articles related to randomized controlled trials (RCTs) are important, because readers often base their assessment of a trial solely on information in the abstract. Here, we extend the CONSORT (Consolidated Standards of Reporting Trials) Statement to develop a minimum list of essential items, which authors should consider when reporting the results of a RCT in any journal or conference abstract. We generated a list of items from existing quality assessment tools and empirical evidence. A three-round, modified-Delphi process was used to select items. In all, 109 participants were invited to participate in an electronic survey; the response rate was 61%. Survey results were presented at a meeting of the CONSORT Group in Montebello, Canada, January 2007, involving 26 participants, including clinical trialists, statisticians, epidemiologists, and biomedical editors. Checklist items were discussed for eligibility into the final checklist. The checklist was then revised to ensure that it reflected discussions held during and subsequent to the meeting. CONSORT for Abstracts recommends that abstracts relating to RCTs have a structured format. Items should include details of trial objectives; trial design (e.g., method of allocation, blinding/masking); trial participants (i.e., description, numbers randomized, and number analyzed); interventions intended for each randomized group and their impact on primary efficacy outcomes and harms; trial conclusions; trial registration name and number; and source of funding. We recommend the checklist be used in conjunction with this explanatory document, which includes examples of good reporting, rationale, and evidence, when available, for the inclusion of each item. CONSORT for Abstracts aims to improve reporting of abstracts of RCTs published in journal articles and conference proceedings. It will help authors of abstracts of these trials provide the detail and clarity needed by readers wishing to assess a trial's validity and the applicability of its results.

Using Students' Explanatory Models as Sources of Feedback: Conceptualizing Ocean Acidification and Its Impacts

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Sezen-Barrie, A.; Stapleton, M.; Wolfson, J.

2017-12-01

This qualitative study focuses on students evidence-based explanatory models on how ocean acidification impacts oysters. Explanatory models are the crucial components of scientific endeavors as it helps scientists explain how the natural world functions and the reasons for the ways it functions. Moreover, these models assemble individual practices to understand how they work together to reach clear conclusions through scientific investigations. Due to their critical roles in making sense of authentic science, recent studies in science education suggest that these models should be part of the curriculum aligned with new science standards, i.e. Next Generation Science Standards, which stress the importance of engaging students in scientific practices. By collecting data from 400 secondary school students in Maryland, we aim to respond to the question: How can we use secondary school students' explanatory models to provide students with constructive feedback for more comprehensive learning of ocean acidification (the related evidence, causes and impact)? The data were analyzed through discourse analysis method. We highlighted and coded students' inscriptions (e.g., drawings, writings, and representations) that are signs of students' understanding (or lack thereof) of ocean acidification. These signs included explanations of pH levels, drawings of oyster growth, and inclusions of relevant data. The findings showed that the explanatory models can be critical forms of feedback as they reveal a) students' alternative conceptions on how ocean acidification impacts oysters or how acidification works in general; b) students' interpretations of oceans' (non)connectedness to Earth system; c) the choice of scientific representations and their sources; and d) the way students' integrate evidence or data from the investigations. Our work tackles an understanding of one of the most vital signs of modern climatic changes. Recent scientific evidence shows that if the change in ocean pH becomes too extreme, many organisms may not be able to adjust to this change. Based on our findings, we suggest that teachers can use explanatory models as sources of feedback to recognize how well their students conceptualize ocean acidification, integrate scientific practices, and use cultural artifacts of doing science.

Soil Cd, Cr, Cu, Ni, Pb and Zn sorption and retention models using SVM: Variable selection and competitive model.

PubMed

González Costa, J J; Reigosa, M J; Matías, J M; Covelo, E F

2017-09-01

The aim of this study was to model the sorption and retention of Cd, Cu, Ni, Pb and Zn in soils. To that extent, the sorption and retention of these metals were studied and the soil characterization was performed separately. Multiple stepwise regression was used to produce multivariate models with linear techniques and with support vector machines, all of which included 15 explanatory variables characterizing soils. When the R-squared values are represented, two different groups are noticed. Cr, Cu and Pb sorption and retention show a higher R-squared; the most explanatory variables being humified organic matter, Al oxides and, in some cases, cation-exchange capacity (CEC). The other group of metals (Cd, Ni and Zn) shows a lower R-squared, and clays are the most explanatory variables, including a percentage of vermiculite and slime. In some cases, quartz, plagioclase or hematite percentages also show some explanatory capacity. Support Vector Machine (SVM) regression shows that the different models are not as regular as in multiple regression in terms of number of variables, the regression for nickel adsorption being the one with the highest number of variables in its optimal model. On the other hand, there are cases where the most explanatory variables are the same for two metals, as it happens with Cd and Cr adsorption. A similar adsorption mechanism is thus postulated. These patterns of the introduction of variables in the model allow us to create explainability sequences. Those which are the most similar to the selectivity sequences obtained by Covelo (2005) are Mn oxides in multiple regression and change capacity in SVM. Among all the variables, the only one that is explanatory for all the metals after applying the maximum parsimony principle is the percentage of sand in the retention process. In the competitive model arising from the aforementioned sequences, the most intense competitiveness for the adsorption and retention of different metals appears between Cr and Cd, Cu and Zn in multiple regression; and between Cr and Cd in SVM regression. Copyright © 2017 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

32 CFR Attachment 3 to Part 855 - Landing Permit Application Instructions

Code of Federal Regulations, 2010 CFR

2010-07-01

....13. Block 9c, Title. Self-explanatory. A3.1.14. Block 9d, Telephone Number. Self-explanatory. A3.1.15.... Block 3. Self-explanatory. (Users will not necessarily be denied landing rights if pilots are not... requested, it may be approved if warranted by unique circumstances. (The verification specified for each...

Illness perceptions and explanatory models of viral hepatitis B & C among immigrants and refugees: a narrative systematic review.

PubMed

Owiti, John A; Greenhalgh, Trisha; Sweeney, Lorna; Foster, Graham R; Bhui, Kamaldeep S

2015-02-15

Hepatitis B and C (HBV, HCV) infections are associated with high morbidity and mortality. Many countries with traditionally low prevalence (such as UK) are now planning interventions (screening, vaccination, and treatment) of high-risk immigrants from countries with high prevalence. This review aimed to synthesise the evidence on immigrants' knowledge of HBV and HCV that might influence the uptake of clinical interventions. The review was also used to inform the design and successful delivery of a randomised controlled trial of targeted screening and treatment. Five databases (PubMed, CINHAL, SOCIOFILE, PsycINFO & Web of Science) were systematically searched, supplemented by reference tracking, searches of selected journals, and of relevant websites. We aimed to identify qualitative and quantitative studies that investigated knowledge of HBV and HCV among immigrants from high endemic areas to low endemic areas. Evidence, extracted according to a conceptual framework of Kleinman's explanatory model, was subjected to narrative synthesis. We adapted the PEN-3 model to categorise and analyse themes, and recommend strategies for interventions to influence help-seeking behaviour. We identified 51 publications including quantitative (n = 39), qualitative (n = 11), and mixed methods (n = 1) designs. Most of the quantitative studies included small samples and had heterogeneous methods and outcomes. The studies mainly concentrated on hepatitis B and ethnic groups of South East Asian immigrants residing in USA, Canada, and Australia. Many immigrants lacked adequate knowledge of aetiology, symptoms, transmission risk factors, prevention strategies, and treatment, of hepatitis HBV and HCV. Ethnicity, gender, better education, higher income, and English proficiency influenced variations in levels and forms of knowledge. Immigrants are vulnerable to HBV and HCV, and risk life-threatening complications from these infections because of poor knowledge and help-seeking behaviour. Primary studies in this area are extremely diverse and of variable quality precluding meta-analysis. Further research is needed outside North America and Australia.

Preliminary Evolutionary Explanations: A Basic Framework for Conceptual Change and Explanatory Coherence in Evolution

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Kampourakis, Kostas; Zogza, Vasso

2009-10-01

This study aimed to explore secondary students’ explanations of evolutionary processes, and to determine how consistent these were, after a specific evolution instruction. In a previous study it was found that before instruction students provided different explanations for similar processes to tasks with different content. Hence, it seemed that the structure and the content of the task may have had an effect on students’ explanations. The tasks given to students demanded evolutionary explanations, in particular explanations for the origin of homologies and adaptations. Based on the conclusions from the previous study, we developed a teaching sequence in order to overcome students’ preconceptions, as well as to achieve conceptual change and explanatory coherence. Students were taught about fundamental biological concepts and the several levels of biological organization, as well as about the mechanisms of heredity and of the origin of genetic variation. Then, all these concepts were used to teach about evolution, by relating micro-concepts (e.g. genotypes) to macro-concepts (e.g. phenotypes). Moreover, during instruction students were brought to a conceptual conflict situation, where their intuitive explanations were challenged as emphasis was put on two concepts entirely opposed to their preconceptions: chance and unpredictability. From the explanations that students provided in the post-test it is concluded that conceptual change and explanatory coherence in evolution can be achieved to a certain degree by lower secondary school students through the suggested teaching sequence and the explanatory framework, which may form a basis for teaching further about evolution.

Using explanatory crop models to develop simple tools for Advanced Life Support system studies

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Cavazzoni, J.

2004-01-01

System-level analyses for Advanced Life Support require mathematical models for various processes, such as for biomass production and waste management, which would ideally be integrated into overall system models. Explanatory models (also referred to as mechanistic or process models) would provide the basis for a more robust system model, as these would be based on an understanding of specific processes. However, implementing such models at the system level may not always be practicable because of their complexity. For the area of biomass production, explanatory models were used to generate parameters and multivariable polynomial equations for basic models that are suitable for estimating the direction and magnitude of daily changes in canopy gas-exchange, harvest index, and production scheduling for both nominal and off-nominal growing conditions. c2004 COSPAR. Published by Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

Independent Assessment Plan: LAV-25

DTIC Science & Technology

1989-06-27

Pages. Enter the total Block 7. Performing Organization Name(s) and number of pages. Address(es. Self -explanatory. Block 16. Price Code, Enter...organization Blocks 17. - 19. Security Classifications. performing the report. Self -explanatory. Enter U.S. Security Classification in accordance with U.S...Security Block 9. S oonsorina/Monitoring Acenc Regulations (i.e., UNCLASSIFIED). If form .Names(s) and Address(es). Self -explanatory. contains classified

Examination of the Relation between TEOG Score of Turkish Revolution History and Kemalism Course and Reading Comprehension Skill (An Example of Explanatory Sequential Mixed Design)

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Yuvaci, Ibrahim; Demir, Selçuk Besir

2016-01-01

This paper is aimed to determine the relation between reading comprehension skill and TEOG success. In this research, a mixed research method, sequential explanatory mixed design, is utilized to examine the relation between reading comprehension skills and TEOG success of 8th grade students throughly. In explanatory sequential mixed design…

A Pessimistic Explanatory Style is Prognostic for Poor Lung Cancer Survival

PubMed Central

Novotny, Paul; Colligan, Robert C.; Szydlo, Daniel W.; Clark, Matthew M.; Rausch, Sarah; Wampfler, Jason; Sloan, Jeff A.; Yang, Ping

2010-01-01

Background Several studies have demonstrated the importance of personality constructs on health behaviors and health status. Having a pessimistic outlook has been related to negative health behaviors and higher mortality. However, the construct has not been well explored in cancer populations. Methods Survival time of 534 adults, who were diagnosed with lung cancer and had a pessimistic explanatory style, was examined. The patients had completed the Minnesota Multiphasic Personality Inventory (MMPI) approximately 18.2 years prior to receiving their lung cancer diagnosis. MMPI Optimism-Pessimism (PSM) scores were divided into high (60 or more) and low scores (less than 60), and log-rank tests and Kaplan-Meier curves were used to determine survival differences. Multivariate Cox models were used for assessing prognostic values of pessimism along with other known predictors for lung cancer survival outcome. Booting strapping of the survival models was used as a sensitivity analysis. Results At the time of lung cancer diagnosis, patients were on average 67 years old; 48% were female; 85% had non-small cell lung cancer (NSCLC); 15% had small cell lung cancer (SCLC); 30% were stage I; 4% were stage II; 31% were stage III/limited; and 35% were stage IV/extensive. Patients who exhibited a non-pessimistic explanatory style survived approximately six months longer than patients classified as having a pessimistic explanatory style. Conclusion Among lung cancer patients, those having a pessimistic explanatory style experienced less favorable survival outcome, which may be related to cancer treatment decisions. Further research in this area is warranted. PMID:20139778

Development of a neural-based forecasting tool to classify recreational water quality using fecal indicator organisms.

PubMed

Motamarri, Srinivas; Boccelli, Dominic L

2012-09-15

Users of recreational waters may be exposed to elevated pathogen levels through various point/non-point sources. Typical daily notifications rely on microbial analysis of indicator organisms (e.g., Escherichia coli) that require 18, or more, hours to provide an adequate response. Modeling approaches, such as multivariate linear regression (MLR) and artificial neural networks (ANN), have been utilized to provide quick predictions of microbial concentrations for classification purposes, but generally suffer from high false negative rates. This study introduces the use of learning vector quantization (LVQ)--a direct classification approach--for comparison with MLR and ANN approaches and integrates input selection for model development with respect to primary and secondary water quality standards within the Charles River Basin (Massachusetts, USA) using meteorologic, hydrologic, and microbial explanatory variables. Integrating input selection into model development showed that discharge variables were the most important explanatory variables while antecedent rainfall and time since previous events were also important. With respect to classification, all three models adequately represented the non-violated samples (>90%). The MLR approach had the highest false negative rates associated with classifying violated samples (41-62% vs 13-43% (ANN) and <16% (LVQ)) when using five or more explanatory variables. The ANN performance was more similar to LVQ when a larger number of explanatory variables were utilized, but the ANN performance degraded toward MLR performance as explanatory variables were removed. Overall, the use of LVQ as a direct classifier provided the best overall classification ability with respect to violated/non-violated samples for both standards. Copyright © 2012 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

Analysis of the Explanatory Variables of the Differences in Perceptions of Cyberbullying: A Role-Based-Model Approach.

PubMed

Fernández-Antelo, Inmaculada; Cuadrado-Gordillo, Isabel

2018-04-01

The controversies that exist regarding the delimitation of the cyberbullying construct demonstrate the need for further research focused on determining the criteria that shape the structure of the perceptions that adolescents have of this phenomenon and on seeking explanations of this behavior. The objectives of this study were to (a) construct possible explanatory models of the perception of cyberbullying from identifying and relating the criteria that form this construct and (b) analyze the influence of previous cyber victimization and cyber aggression experiences in the construction of explanatory models of the perception of cyberbullying. The sample consisted of 2,148 adolescents (49.1% girls; SD = 0.5) aged from 12 to 16 years ( M = 13.9 years; SD = 1.2). The results have shown that previous cyber victimization and cyber aggression experiences lead to major differences in the explanatory models to interpret cyber-abusive behavior as cyberbullying episodes, or as social relationship mechanisms, or as a revenge reaction. We note that the aggressors' explanatory model is based primarily on a strong reciprocal relationship between the imbalance of power and intentionality, that it functions as a link promoting indirect causal relationships of the anonymity and repetition factors with the cyberbullying construct. The victims' perceptual structure is based on three criteria-imbalance of power, intentionality, and publicity-where the key factor in this structure is the intention to harm. These results allow to design more effective measures of prevention and intervention closely tailored to addressing directly the factors that are considered to be predictors of risk.

Improving quality of care and long-term health outcomes through continuity of care with the use of an electronic or paper patient-held portable health file (COMMUNICATE): study protocol for a randomized controlled trial.

PubMed

Lassere, Marissa Nichole; Baker, Sue; Parle, Andrew; Sara, Anthony; Johnson, Kent Robert

2015-06-04

The advantages of patient-held portable health files (PHF) and personal health records (PHR), paper or electronic, are said to include improved health-care provider continuity-of-care and patient empowerment in maintaining health. Top-down approaches are favored by public sector government and health managers. Bottom-up approaches include systems developed directly by health-care providers, consumers and industry, implemented locally on devices carried by patient-consumers or shared via web-based portals. These allow individuals to access, manage and share their health information, and that of others for whom they are authorized, in a private, secure and confidential environment. Few medical record technologies have been evaluated in randomized trials to determine whether there are important clinical benefits of these interventions. The COMMUNICATE trial will assess the acceptability and long-term clinical outcomes of an electronic and paper patient-held PHF. This is a 48-month, open-label pragmatic, superiority, parallel-group design randomized controlled trial. Subjects (n = 792) will be randomized in a 1:1:1 ratio to each of the trial arms: the electronic PHF added to usual care, the paper PHF added to usual care and usual care alone (no PHF). Inclusion criteria include those 60 years or older living independently in the community, but who have two or more chronic medical conditions that require prescription medication and regular care by at least three medical practitioners (general and specialist care). The primary objective is whether use of a PHF compared to usual care reduces a combined endpoint of deaths, overnight hospitalizations and blindly adjudicated serious out-of-hospital events. All primary analyses will be undertaken masked to randomized arm allocation using intention-to-treat principles. Secondary outcomes include quality of life and health literacy improvements. Lack of blinding creates potential for bias in trial conduct and ascertainment of clinical outcomes. Mechanisms are provided to reduce bias, including balanced study contact with all participants, a blinded adjudication committee determining which out-of-hospital events are serious and endpoints that are objective (overnight hospitalizations and mortality). The PRECIS tool provides a summary of the trial's design on the Pragmatic-Explanatory Continuum. Registered with Clinicaltrials.gov (identifier: NCT01082978) on 8 March 2010.

Whole Trait Theory

PubMed Central

Fleeson, William; Jayawickreme, Eranda

2014-01-01

Personality researchers should modify models of traits to include mechanisms of differential reaction to situations. Whole Trait Theory does so via five main points. First, the descriptive side of traits should be conceptualized as density distributions of states. Second, it is important to provide an explanatory account of the Big 5 traits. Third, adding an explanatory account to the Big 5 creates two parts to traits, an explanatory part and a descriptive part, and these two parts should be recognized as separate entities that are joined into whole traits. Fourth, Whole Trait Theory proposes that the explanatory side of traits consists of social-cognitive mechanisms. Fifth, social-cognitive mechanisms that produce Big-5 states should be identified. PMID:26097268

Explanatory style, dispositional optimism, and reported parental behavior.

PubMed

Hjelle, L A; Busch, E A; Warren, J E

1996-12-01

The relationship between two cognitive personality constructs (explanatory style and dispositional optimism) and retrospective self-reports of maternal and paternal behavior were investigated. College students (62 men and 145 women) completed the Life Orientation Test, Attributional Style Questionnaire, and Parental Acceptance-Rejection Questionnaire in a single session. As predicted, dispositional optimism was positively correlated with reported maternal and paternal warmth/acceptance and negatively correlated with aggression/hostility, neglect/indifference, and undifferentiated rejection during middle childhood. Unexpectedly, explanatory style was found to be more strongly associated with retrospective reports of paternal as opposed to maternal behavior. The implications of these results for future research concerning the developmental antecedents of differences in explanatory style and dispositional optimism are discussed.

Use of the Oxford Handicap Scale at hospital discharge to predict Glasgow Outcome Scale at 6 months in patients with traumatic brain injury.

PubMed

Perel, Pablo; Edwards, Phil; Shakur, Haleema; Roberts, Ian

2008-11-06

Traumatic brain injury (TBI) is an important cause of acquired disability. In evaluating the effectiveness of clinical interventions for TBI it is important to measure disability accurately. The Glasgow Outcome Scale (GOS) is the most widely used outcome measure in randomised controlled trials (RCTs) in TBI patients. However GOS measurement is generally collected at 6 months after discharge when loss to follow up could have occurred. The objectives of this study were to evaluate the association and predictive validity between a simple disability scale at hospital discharge, the Oxford Handicap Scale (OHS), and the GOS at 6 months among TBI patients. The study was a secondary analysis of a randomised clinical trial among TBI patients (MRC CRASH Trial). A Spearman correlation was estimated to evaluate the association between the OHS and GOS. The validity of different dichotomies of the OHS for predicting GOS at 6 months was assessed by calculating sensitivity, specificity and the C statistic. Uni and multivariate logistic regression models were fitted including OHS as explanatory variable. For each model we analysed its discrimination and calibration. We found that the OHS is highly correlated with GOS at 6 months (spearman correlation 0.75) with evidence of a linear relationship between the two scales. The OHS dichotomy that separates patients with severe dependency or death showed the greatest discrimination (C statistic: 84.3). Among survivors at hospital discharge the OHS showed a very good discrimination (C statistic 0.78) and excellent calibration when used to predict GOS outcome at 6 months. We have shown that the OHS, a simple disability scale available at hospital discharge can predict disability accurately, according to the GOS, at 6 months. OHS could be used to improve the design and analysis of clinical trials in TBI patients and may also provide a valuable clinical tool for physicians to improve communication with patients and relatives when assessing a patient's prognosis at hospital discharge.

Metal Ion Concentrations in Body Fluids after Implantation of Hip Replacements with Metal-on-Metal Bearing – Systematic Review of Clinical and Epidemiological Studies

PubMed Central

Hartmann, Albrecht; Hannemann, Franziska; Lützner, Jörg; Seidler, Andreas; Drexler, Hans; Günther, Klaus-Peter; Schmitt, Jochen

2013-01-01

Introduction The use of metal-on-metal (MoM) total hip arthroplasty (THA) increased in the last decades. A release of metal products (i.e. particles, ions, metallo-organic compounds) in these implants may cause local and/or systemic adverse reactions. Metal ion concentrations in body fluids are surrogate measures of metal exposure. Objective To systematically summarize and critically appraise published studies concerning metal ion concentrations after MoM THA. Methods Systematic review of clinical trials (RCTs) and epidemiological studies with assessment of metal ion levels (cobalt, chromium, titanium, nickel, molybdenum) in body fluids after implantation of metalliferous hip replacements. Systematic search in PubMed and Embase in January 2012 supplemented by hand search. Standardized abstraction of pre- and postoperative metal ion concentrations stratified by type of bearing (primary explanatory factor), patient characteristics as well as study quality characteristics (secondary explanatory factors). Results Overall, 104 studies (11 RCTs, 93 epidemiological studies) totaling 9.957 patients with measurement of metal ions in body fluids were identified and analyzed. Consistently, median metal ion concentrations were persistently elevated after implantation of MoM-bearings in all investigated mediums (whole blood, serum, plasma, erythrocytes, urine) irrespective of patient characteristics and study characteristics. In several studies very high serum cobalt concentrations above 50 µg/L were measured (detection limit typically 0.3 µg/L). Highest metal ion concentrations were observed after treatment with stemmed large-head MoM-implants and hip resurfacing arthroplasty. Discussion Due to the risk of local and systemic accumulation of metallic products after treatment with MoM-bearing, risk and benefits should be carefully balanced preoperatively. The authors support a proposed „time out“ for stemmed large-head MoM-THA and recommend a restricted indication for hip resurfacing arthroplasty. Patients with implanted MoM-bearing should receive regular and standardized monitoring of metal ion concentrations. Further research is indicated especially with regard to potential systemic reactions due to accumulation of metal products. PMID:23950923

Continuous water-quality monitoring and regression analysis to estimate constituent concentrations and loads in the Sheyenne River, North Dakota, 1980-2006

USGS Publications Warehouse

Ryberg, Karen R.

2007-01-01

This report presents the results of a study by the U.S. Geological Survey, done in cooperation with the North Dakota State Water Commission, to estimate water-quality constituent concentrations at seven sites on the Sheyenne River, N. Dak. Regression analysis of water-quality data collected in 1980-2006 was used to estimate concentrations for hardness, dissolved solids, calcium, magnesium, sodium, and sulfate. The explanatory variables examined for the regression relations were continuously monitored streamflow, specific conductance, and water temperature. For the conditions observed in 1980-2006, streamflow was a significant explanatory variable for some constituents. Specific conductance was a significant explanatory variable for all of the constituents, and water temperature was not a statistically significant explanatory variable for any of the constituents in this study. The regression relations were evaluated using common measures of variability, including R2, the proportion of variability in the estimated constituent concentration explained by the explanatory variables and regression equation. R2 values ranged from 0.784 for calcium to 0.997 for dissolved solids. The regression relations also were evaluated by calculating the median relative percentage difference (RPD) between measured constituent concentration and the constituent concentration estimated by the regression equations. Median RPDs ranged from 1.7 for dissolved solids to 11.5 for sulfate. The regression relations also may be used to estimate daily constituent loads. The relations should be monitored for change over time, especially at sites 2 and 3 which have a short period of record. In addition, caution should be used when the Sheyenne River is affected by ice or when upstream sites are affected by isolated storm runoff. Almost all of the outliers and highly influential samples removed from the analysis were made during periods when the Sheyenne River might be affected by ice.

Public reporting in health care: how do consumers use quality-of-care information? A systematic review.

PubMed

Faber, Marjan; Bosch, Marije; Wollersheim, Hub; Leatherman, Sheila; Grol, Richard

2009-01-01

One of the underlying goals of public reporting is to encourage the consumer to select health care providers or health plans that offer comparatively better quality-of-care. To review the weight consumers give to quality-of-care information in the process of choice, to summarize the effect of presentation formats, and to examine the impact of quality information on consumers' choice behavior. The evidence is organized in a theoretical consumer choice model. English language literature was searched in PubMed, the Cochrane Clinical Trial, and the EPOC Databases (January 1990-January 2008). Study selection was limited to randomized controlled trails, controlled before-after trials or interrupted time series. Included interventions focused on choice behavior of consumers in health care settings. Outcome measures referred to one of the steps in a consumer choice model. The quality of the study design was rated, and studies with low quality ratings were excluded. All 14 included studies examine quality information, usually CAHPS, with respect to its impact on the consumer's choice of health plans. Easy-to-read presentation formats and explanatory messages improve knowledge about and attitude towards the use of quality information; however, the weight given to quality information depends on other features, including free provider choice and costs. In real-world settings, having seen quality information is a strong determinant for choosing higher quality-rated health plans. This review contributes to an understanding of consumer choice behavior in health care settings. The small number of included studies limits the strength of our conclusions.

The explanatory structure of unexplainable events: Causal constraints on magical reasoning.

PubMed

Shtulman, Andrew; Morgan, Caitlin

2017-10-01

A common intuition, often captured in fiction, is that some impossible events (e.g., levitating a stone) are "more impossible" than others (e.g., levitating a feather). We investigated the source of this intuition, hypothesizing that graded notions of impossibility arise from explanatory considerations logically precluded by the violation at hand but still taken into account. Studies 1-4 involved college undergraduates (n = 357), and Study 5 involved preschool-aged children (n = 32). In Studies 1 and 2, participants saw pairs of magical spells that violated one of 18 causal principles-six physical, six biological, and six psychological-and were asked to indicate which spell would be more difficult to learn. Both spells violated the same causal principle but differed in their relation to a subsidiary principle. Participants' judgments of spell difficulty honored the subsidiary principle, even when participants were given the option of judging the two spells equally difficult. Study 3 replicated those effects with Likert-type ratings; Study 4 replicated them in an open-ended version of the task in which participants generated their own causal violations; and Study 5 replicated them with children. Taken together, these findings suggest that events that defy causal explanation are interpreted in terms of explanatory considerations that hold in the absence of such violations.

Interdisciplinary and Cross-Cultural Perspectives on Explanatory Coexistence.

PubMed

Watson-Jones, Rachel E; Busch, Justin T A; Legare, Cristine H

2015-10-01

Natural and supernatural explanations are used to interpret the same events in a number of predictable and universal ways. Yet little is known about how variation in diverse cultural ecologies influences how people integrate natural and supernatural explanations. Here, we examine explanatory coexistence in three existentially arousing domains of human thought: illness, death, and human origins using qualitative data from interviews conducted in Tanna, Vanuatu. Vanuatu, a Melanesian archipelago, provides a cultural context ideal for examining variation in explanatory coexistence due to the lack of industrialization and the relatively recent introduction of Christianity and Western education. We argue for the integration of interdisciplinary methodologies from cognitive science and anthropology to inform research on explanatory coexistence. Copyright © 2015 Cognitive Science Society, Inc.

Effects of an exercise programme for chronically ill and mobility-restricted elderly with structured support by the general practitioner's practice (HOMEfit) - study protocol of a randomised controlled trial

PubMed Central

2011-01-01

Background Exercise programmes can be administered successfully as therapeutic agents to patients with a number of chronic diseases and help to improve physical functioning in older adults. Usually, such programmes target either healthy and mobile community-dwelling seniors or elderly individuals living in nursing institutions or special residences. Chronically ill or mobility-restricted individuals, however, are difficult to reach when they live in their own homes. A pilot study has shown good feasibility of a home-based exercise programme that is delivered to this target group through cooperation between general practitioners and exercise therapists. A logical next step involves evaluation of the effects of the programme. Methods/design The study is designed as a randomised controlled trial. We plan to recruit 210 patients (≥ 70 years) in about 15 general practices. The experimental intervention (duration 12 weeks)-a multidimensional home-based exercise programme-is delivered to the participant by an exercise therapist in counselling sessions at the general practitioner's practice and on the telephone. It is based on methods and strategies for facilitating behaviour change according to the Health Action Process Approach (HAPA). The control intervention-baseline physical activities-differs from the experimental intervention with regard to content of the counselling sessions as well as to content and frequency of the promoted activities. Primary outcome is functional lower body strength measured by the "chair-rise" test. Secondary outcomes are: physical function (battery of motor tests), physical activity (step count), health-related quality of life (SF-8), fall-related self-efficacy (FES-I), and exercise self-efficacy (SSA-Scale). The hypothesis that there will be differences between the two groups (experimental/control) with respect to post-interventional chair-rise time will be tested using an ANCOVA with chair-rise time at baseline, treatment group, and study centre effects as explanatory variables. Analysis of the data will be undertaken using the principle of intention-to-treat. Trial registration Current Controlled Trials ISRCTN17727272. PMID:22188781

The Stimulus Movement Effect: Allocation of Attention or Artifact?

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Washburn, David A.

1993-01-01

In previous reports, including one by the author, learning has been shown to benefit by having discriminanda move rather than remain stationary. This stimulus movement effect might be attributed to several theoretical mechanisms, including attention, topological memory, and exposure duration. The series of experiments reported in this article was designed to Contrast these potential explanatory factors. Ten rhesus monkeys (Macaca mulatta) were tested on a variety of computerized tasks in which the stimuli remained stationary, flashed, or moved at systematically varied speeds. Performance was significantly best when the sample stimulus moved quickly and was poorest when the stimulus remained stationary. Further analysis of these data and other previously published data revealed that the distribution of the stimulus movement effect across trials supported an attention allocation interpretation.

Spatially Resolved Measurements Of Plasma Density Irregularities In The Ionosphere F Region For Scintillation Studies.

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Spencer, E. A.; Russ, S.; Clark, D. C.; Latif, S.; Montalvo, C.

2016-12-01

This qualitative study focuses on students evidence-based explanatory models on how ocean acidification impacts oysters. Explanatory models are the crucial components of scientific endeavors as it helps scientists explain how the natural world functions and the reasons for the ways it functions. Moreover, these models assemble individual practices to understand how they work together to reach clear conclusions through scientific investigations. Due to their critical roles in making sense of authentic science, recent studies in science education suggest that these models should be part of the curriculum aligned with new science standards, i.e. Next Generation Science Standards, which stress the importance of engaging students in scientific practices. By collecting data from 400 secondary school students in Maryland, we aim to respond to the question: How can we use secondary school students' explanatory models to provide students with constructive feedback for more comprehensive learning of ocean acidification (the related evidence, causes and impact)? The data were analyzed through discourse analysis method. We highlighted and coded students' inscriptions (e.g., drawings, writings, and representations) that are signs of students' understanding (or lack thereof) of ocean acidification. These signs included explanations of pH levels, drawings of oyster growth, and inclusions of relevant data. The findings showed that the explanatory models can be critical forms of feedback as they reveal a) students' alternative conceptions on how ocean acidification impacts oysters or how acidification works in general; b) students' interpretations of oceans' (non)connectedness to Earth system; c) the choice of scientific representations and their sources; and d) the way students' integrate evidence or data from the investigations. Our work tackles an understanding of one of the most vital signs of modern climatic changes. Recent scientific evidence shows that if the change in ocean pH becomes too extreme, many organisms may not be able to adjust to this change. Based on our findings, we suggest that teachers can use explanatory models as sources of feedback to recognize how well their students conceptualize ocean acidification, integrate scientific practices, and use cultural artifacts of doing science.

Understanding factors that inhibit or promote the utilization of telecare in chronic lung disease.

PubMed

Mair, Frances S; Hiscock, Julia; Beaton, Susan C

2008-06-01

To perform a process evaluation of a randomized controlled trial (RCT) of home telecare for the management of acute exacerbations of chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD), using the normalization process model (NPM) as an explanatory framework. Semi-structured interviews were carried out with patients (n = 9) and nurses (n = 11) participating in a RCT. A framework approach to data analysis was used. The telecare service did not provide an interactional advantage for the nurses providing this service and did not fit with the nurses' views of the most appropriate or preferred use of their skills. The telecare service seemed unlikely to become normalized as part of routine healthcare delivery, because the nursing team lacked confidence that it was a safe way to provide healthcare in this context and it was not perceived as improving efficiency. The NPM effectively mapped onto the study findings and explained those factors that inhibited the routine delivery of COPD services by telecare.

Suppressive and enhancing effects in early visual cortex during illusory shape perception: A comment on.

PubMed

Moors, Pieter

2015-01-01

In a recent functional magnetic resonance imaging study, Kok and de Lange (2014) observed that BOLD activity for a Kanizsa illusory shape stimulus, in which pacmen-like inducers elicit an illusory shape percept, was either enhanced or suppressed relative to a nonillusory control configuration depending on whether the spatial profile of BOLD activity in early visual cortex was related to the illusory shape or the inducers, respectively. The authors argued that these findings fit well with the predictive coding framework, because top-down predictions related to the illusory shape are not met with bottom-up sensory input and hence the feedforward error signal is enhanced. Conversely, for the inducing elements, there is a match between top-down predictions and input, leading to a decrease in error. Rather than invoking predictive coding as the explanatory framework, the suppressive effect related to the inducers might be caused by neural adaptation to perceptually stable input due to the trial sequence used in the experiment.

Interpreting the concordance statistic of a logistic regression model: relation to the variance and odds ratio of a continuous explanatory variable.

PubMed

Austin, Peter C; Steyerberg, Ewout W

2012-06-20

When outcomes are binary, the c-statistic (equivalent to the area under the Receiver Operating Characteristic curve) is a standard measure of the predictive accuracy of a logistic regression model. An analytical expression was derived under the assumption that a continuous explanatory variable follows a normal distribution in those with and without the condition. We then conducted an extensive set of Monte Carlo simulations to examine whether the expressions derived under the assumption of binormality allowed for accurate prediction of the empirical c-statistic when the explanatory variable followed a normal distribution in the combined sample of those with and without the condition. We also examine the accuracy of the predicted c-statistic when the explanatory variable followed a gamma, log-normal or uniform distribution in combined sample of those with and without the condition. Under the assumption of binormality with equality of variances, the c-statistic follows a standard normal cumulative distribution function with dependence on the product of the standard deviation of the normal components (reflecting more heterogeneity) and the log-odds ratio (reflecting larger effects). Under the assumption of binormality with unequal variances, the c-statistic follows a standard normal cumulative distribution function with dependence on the standardized difference of the explanatory variable in those with and without the condition. In our Monte Carlo simulations, we found that these expressions allowed for reasonably accurate prediction of the empirical c-statistic when the distribution of the explanatory variable was normal, gamma, log-normal, and uniform in the entire sample of those with and without the condition. The discriminative ability of a continuous explanatory variable cannot be judged by its odds ratio alone, but always needs to be considered in relation to the heterogeneity of the population.

Insight in psychosis: Standards, science, ethics and value judgment.

PubMed

Jacob, K S

2017-06-01

The clinical assessment of insight solely employs biomedical perspectives and criteria to the complete exclusion of context and culture and to the disregard of values and value judgments. The aim of this discussion article is to examine recent research from India on insight and explanatory models in psychosis and re-examine the framework of assessment, diagnosis and management of insight and explanatory models. Recent research from India on insight in psychosis and explanatory models is reviewed. Recent research, which has used longitudinal data and adjusted for pretreatment variables, suggests that insight and explanatory models of illness at baseline do not predict course, outcome and treatment response in schizophrenia, which seem to be dependent on the severity and quality of the psychosis. It supports the view that people with psychosis simultaneously hold multiple and contradictory explanatory models of illness, which change over time and with the trajectory of the illness. It suggests that insight, like all explanatory models, is a narrative of the person's reality and a coping strategy to handle with the varied impact of the illness. This article argues that the assessment of insight necessarily involves value entailments, commitments and consequences. It supports a need for a broad-based approach to assess awareness, attribution and action related to mental illness and to acknowledge the role of values and value judgment in the evaluation of insight in psychosis.

Accessibility and implementation in UK services of an effective depression relapse prevention programme – mindfulness-based cognitive therapy (MBCT): ASPIRE study protocol

PubMed Central

2014-01-01

Background Mindfulness-based cognitive therapy (MBCT) is a cost-effective psychosocial prevention programme that helps people with recurrent depression stay well in the long term. It was singled out in the 2009 National Institute for Health and Clinical Excellence (NICE) Depression Guideline as a key priority for implementation. Despite good evidence and guideline recommendations, its roll-out and accessibility across the UK appears to be limited and inequitably distributed. The study aims to describe the current state of MBCT accessibility and implementation across the UK, develop an explanatory framework of what is hindering and facilitating its progress in different areas, and develop an Implementation Plan and related resources to promote better and more equitable availability and use of MBCT within the UK National Health Service. Methods/Design This project is a two-phase qualitative, exploratory and explanatory research study, using an interview survey and in-depth case studies theoretically underpinned by the Promoting Action on Implementation in Health Services (PARIHS) framework. Interviews will be conducted with stakeholders involved in commissioning, managing and implementing MBCT services in each of the four UK countries, and will include areas where MBCT services are being implemented successfully and where implementation is not working well. In-depth case studies will be undertaken on a range of MBCT services to develop a detailed understanding of the barriers and facilitators to implementation. Guided by the study’s conceptual framework, data will be synthesized across Phase 1 and Phase 2 to develop a fit for purpose implementation plan. Discussion Promoting the uptake of evidence-based treatments into routine practice and understanding what influences these processes has the potential to support the adoption and spread of nationally recommended interventions like MBCT. This study could inform a larger scale implementation trial and feed into future implementation of MBCT with other long-term conditions and associated co-morbidities. It could also inform the implementation of interventions that are acceptable and effective, but are not widely accessible or implemented. PMID:24884603

The Mind Body-Wellness in Supportive Housing (Mi-WiSH) study: Design and rationale of a cluster randomized controlled trial of Tai Chi in senior housing.

PubMed

Wayne, Peter M; Gagnon, Margaret M; Macklin, Eric A; Travison, Thomas G; Manor, Bradley; Lachman, Margie; Thomas, Cindy P; Lipsitz, Lewis A

2017-09-01

Supporting the health of growing numbers of frail older adults living in subsidized housing requires interventions that can combat frailty, improve residents' functional abilities, and reduce their health care costs. Tai Chi is an increasingly popular multimodal mind-body exercise that incorporates physical, cognitive, social, and meditative components in the same activity and offers a promising intervention for ameliorating many of the conditions that lead to poor health and excessive health care utilization. The Mind Body-Wellness in Supportive Housing (Mi-WiSH) study is an ongoing two-arm cluster randomized, attention-controlled trial designed to examine the impact of Tai Chi on functional indicators of health and health care utilization. We are enrolling participants from 16 urban subsidized housing facilities (n=320 participants), conducting the Tai Chi intervention or education classes and social calls (attention control) in consenting subjects within the facilities for one year, and assessing these subjects at baseline, 6months, and 1year. Physical function (quantified by the Short Physical Performance Battery), and health care utilization (emergency visits, hospitalizations, skilled nursing and nursing home admissions), assessed at 12months are co-primary outcomes. Our discussion highlights our strategy to balance pragmatic and explanatory features into the study design, describes efforts to enhance site recruitment and participant adherence, and summarizes our broader goal of post study dissemination if effectiveness and cost-effectiveness are demonstrated, by preparing training and protocol manuals for use in housing facilities across the U.S. Copyright © 2017 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

Learned social hopelessness: the role of explanatory style in predicting social support during adolescence.

PubMed

Ciarrochi, Joseph; Heaven, Patrick C L

2008-12-01

Almost no research has examined the impact of explanatory style on social adjustment. We hypothesised that adolescents with a pessimistic style would be less likely to develop and maintain social support networks. Seven hundred and nineteen students (351 males and 366 females; 2 unknown; M(AGE) = 12.28, SD = .49) completed an anonymous survey in Grades 7 through 10. Explanatory style was assessed in Grades 7 and 9, sadness was assessed in Grades 7 through 10, and quantity and quality of social support was assessed in Grades 8, 9, and 10. Structural equation modelling was used to conduct cross-lagged panel analyses of the four waves of data. Pessimistic explanatory style predicted lower levels of social support, and lower social support from the family predicted higher levels of pessimistic explanatory style. Additional analyses suggested that the effects could not be explained by sadness or by assuming that pessimistic adolescents where less liked by their peers. Pessimistic adolescents feel unable to influence their social worlds in positive ways and consequently may not take actions to develop and maintain social support networks.

Methodological issues in the quantitative assessment of quality of life.

PubMed

Panagiotakos, Demosthenes B; Yfantopoulos, John N

2011-10-01

The term quality of life can be identified in Aristotle's classical writings of 330 BC. In his Nichomachian ethics he recognises the multiple relationships between happiness, well-being, "eudemonia" and quality of life. Historically the concept of quality of life has undergone various interpretations. It involves personal experience, perceptions and beliefs, attitudes concerning philosophical, cultural, spiritual, psychological, political, and financial aspects of everyday living. Quality of life has been extensively used both as an outcome and an explanatory factor in relation to human health, in various clinical trials, epidemiologic studies and health interview surveys. Because of the variations in the definition of quality of life, both in theory and in practice, there are also a wide range of procedures that are used to assess quality of life. In this paper several methodological issues regarding the tools used to evaluate quality of life is discussed. In summary, the use of components consisted of large number of classes, as well as the use of specific weights for each scale component, and the low-to-moderate inter-correlation level between the components, is evident from simulated and empirical studies.

Seasonally adjusted birth frequencies follow the Poisson distribution.

PubMed

Barra, Mathias; Lindstrøm, Jonas C; Adams, Samantha S; Augestad, Liv A

2015-12-15

Variations in birth frequencies have an impact on activity planning in maternity wards. Previous studies of this phenomenon have commonly included elective births. A Danish study of spontaneous births found that birth frequencies were well modelled by a Poisson process. Somewhat unexpectedly, there were also weekly variations in the frequency of spontaneous births. Another study claimed that birth frequencies follow the Benford distribution. Our objective was to test these results. We analysed 50,017 spontaneous births at Akershus University Hospital in the period 1999-2014. To investigate the Poisson distribution of these births, we plotted their variance over a sliding average. We specified various Poisson regression models, with the number of births on a given day as the outcome variable. The explanatory variables included various combinations of years, months, days of the week and the digit sum of the date. The relationship between the variance and the average fits well with an underlying Poisson process. A Benford distribution was disproved by a goodness-of-fit test (p < 0.01). The fundamental model with year and month as explanatory variables is significantly improved (p < 0.001) by adding day of the week as an explanatory variable. Altogether 7.5% more children are born on Tuesdays than on Sundays. The digit sum of the date is non-significant as an explanatory variable (p = 0.23), nor does it increase the explained variance. INERPRETATION: Spontaneous births are well modelled by a time-dependent Poisson process when monthly and day-of-the-week variation is included. The frequency is highest in summer towards June and July, Friday and Tuesday stand out as particularly busy days, and the activity level is at its lowest during weekends.

Relationship between sleep duration and childhood obesity: Systematic review including the potential underlying mechanisms.

PubMed

Felső, R; Lohner, S; Hollódy, K; Erhardt, É; Molnár, D

2017-09-01

The prevalence of obesity is continually increasing worldwide. Determining risk factors for obesity may facilitate effective preventive programs. The present review focuses on sleep duration as a potential risk factor for childhood obesity. The aim is to summarize the evidence on the association of sleep duration and obesity and to discuss the underlying potential physiological and/or pathophysiological mechanisms. The Ovid MEDLINE, Scopus and Cochrane Central Register of Controlled Trials (CENTRAL) databases were searched for papers using text words with appropriate truncation and relevant indexing terms. All studies objectively measuring sleep duration and investigating the association between sleep duration and obesity or factors (lifestyle and hormonal) possibly associated with obesity were included, without making restrictions based on study design or language. Data from eligible studies were extracted in tabular form and summarized narratively. After removing duplicates, 3540 articles were obtained. Finally, 33 studies (including 3 randomized controlled trials and 30 observational studies) were included in the review. Sleep duration seems to influence weight gain in children, however, the underlying explanatory mechanisms are still uncertain. In our review only the link between short sleep duration and the development of insulin resistance, sedentarism and unhealthy dietary patterns could be verified, while the role of other mediators, such as physical activity, screen time, change in ghrelin and leptin levels, remained uncertain. There are numerous evidence gaps. To answer the remaining questions, there is a need for studies meeting high methodological standards and including a large number of children. Copyright © 2017 The Italian Society of Diabetology, the Italian Society for the Study of Atherosclerosis, the Italian Society of Human Nutrition, and the Department of Clinical Medicine and Surgery, Federico II University. Published by Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

Ethnic heterogeneity, social capital and psychological distress in Sweden.

PubMed

Johnson-Singh, Charisse M; Rostila, Mikael; Ponce de Leon, Antonio; Forsell, Yvonne; Engström, Karin

2018-05-25

Ethnic heterogeneity has been linked to both protective and detrimental effects on mental health. Few studies have investigated the role of social capital in this relationship and none have found that it has an explanatory role. The aim of this study is to investigate the relationship between two measures of ethnic heterogeneity and psychological distress in Stockholm County, as well as the explanatory role of social capital for individuals with Swedish-background, foreign-background and those who are foreign-born. This study used data collected from respondents aged 18-64 to the 2002, 2006, 2010 baseline questionnaires of the Stockholm Public Health Cohort and was linked with individual and area-level register information. Ethnic heterogeneity was the main exposure, measured by: 1) ethnic density, defined as the proportion of first and second generation immigrants with 2 foreign-born parents; and 2) ethnic diversity, using the fragmentation index. Social capital measures of individual and contextual-level social support and horizontal trust were the main explanatory factors of interest. The outcome, psychological distress, was assessed using the General Health Questionnaire-12 with a 2/3 cut-off. Prevalence ratios with 95% confidence intervals were estimated using multi-level poisson regression with robust variances. Age and sex adjusted analyses for the whole study population demonstrated that a 10% increase in ethnic density or diversity was associated with a 1.06 (1.05-1.07) times higher prevalence of psychological distress. In the stratified analyses, both foreign-born respondents and those with Swedish-background showed increasing prevalence of psychological distress with increasing ethnic heterogeneity. However, this trend was entirely explained by socioeconomic factors in the Swedish-background respondents and by additional adjustments for individual and contextual social support and horizontal trust for the foreign-born. Further adjustment for contextual horizontal trust showed ethnic heterogeneity to be protective for respondents Swedish-background. There was no clear trend between ethnic heterogeneity and psychological distress for respondents with foreign-background. The association between ethnic heterogeneity and psychological distress differs by ethnic background. There was no difference in this association based on the measure of ethnic heterogeneity used, nor in the explanatory role of social capital between ethnic heterogeneity measures. Socioeconomic indicators and some elements of individual and contextual social capital are important explanatory factors of the excess risk of psychological distress with regards to ethnic heterogeneity. Copyright © 2018 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

The Development of Valid Subtypes for Depression in Primary Care Settings

PubMed Central

Karasz, Alison

2009-01-01

A persistent theme in the debate on the classification of depressive disorders is the distinction between biological and environmental depressions. Despite decades of research, there remains little consensus on how to distinguish between depressive subtypes. This preliminary study describes a method that could be useful, if implemented on a larger scale, in the development of valid subtypes of depression in primary care settings, using explanatory models of depressive illness. Seventeen depressed Hispanic patients at an inner city general practice participated in explanatory model interviews. Participants generated illness narratives, which included details about symptoms, cause, course, impact, health seeking, and anticipated outcome. Two distinct subtypes emerged from the analysis. The internal model subtype was characterized by internal attributions, specifically the notion of an “injured self.” The external model subtype conceptualized depression as a reaction to life situations. Each subtype was associated with a distinct constellation of clinical features and health seeking experiences. Future directions for research using explanatory models to establish depressive subtypes are explored. PMID:18414123

Locating the Social Origins of Mental Illness: The Explanatory Models of Mental Illness Among Clergy from Different Ethnic and Faith Backgrounds.

PubMed

Leavey, Gerard; Loewenthal, Kate; King, Michael

2016-10-01

Clergy have historically provided 'healing' through various spiritual and medical modalities and even in modern, developed welfare economies they may still be an important help-seeking resource. Partnerships between religion and psychiatry are regularly advocated, but there is scant research on clergy explanatory models of illness. This paper aimed to explore their relationship with psychiatry and to examine how clergy in various faith groups conceptualised mental health problems. In this qualitative study using in-depth interviews, these issues were explored with 32 practising clergy in the UK from a range of different Christian, Muslim and Jewish faith organisations and ethnic backgrounds. This paper presents findings related to clergy explanatory models of mental illness and, in particular, how the social factors involved in causation are tinged with spiritual influences and implications, and how the meanings of mental distress assume a social and moral significance in distinctive localised matters.

Symbolic interactionism in grounded theory studies: women surviving with HIV/AIDS in rural northern Thailand.

PubMed

Klunklin, Areewan; Greenwood, Jennifer

2006-01-01

Although it is generally acknowledged that symbolic interactionism and grounded theory are connected, the precise nature of their connection remains implicit and unexplained. As a result, many grounded theory studies are undertaken without an explanatory framework. This in turn results in the description rather than the explanation of data determined. In this report, the authors make explicit and explain the nature of the connections between symbolic interactionism and grounded theory research. Specifically, they make explicit the connection between Blumer's methodological principles and processes and grounded theory methodology. In addition, the authors illustrate the explanatory power of symbolic interactionism in grounded theory using data from a study of the HIV/AIDS experiences of married and widowed Thai women.

Explanatory Supplement to the Astronomical Almanac, Third Edition

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Seidelmann, P. Kenneth; Urban, S. E.

2010-01-01

"The Explanatory Supplement to the Astronomical Almanac" (hereafter "The Explanatory Supplement") is a comprehensive reference book on the topic of positional astronomy, covering the theories and algorithms used to produce "The Astronomical Almanac" (AsA), an annual publication produced jointly by the Nautical Almanac Office of the US Naval Observatory (USNO) and Her Majesty's Nautical Almanac Office (HMNAO) of the UK Hydrographic Office. The first edition of The Explanatory Supplement appeared in 1961 and was reprinted with amendments during the 1970s. The second edition was printed in 1992 and reprinted until 2006. Since the second edition, several changes have taken place in positional astronomy regarding reference systems and internationally accepted models, data sets, and computational methods; these have been incorporated into the AsA. Additionally, the data presented in the AsA have been modified over the years, with new tables being added and some being discontinued. Given these changes, a new edition of The Explanatory Supplement is appropriate. The third edition has been in development for the last few years and will be available in 2010. The book is organized similarly to the second (1991) edition, with each chapter written by subject matter experts. Authors from USNO and HMNAO contributed to the majority of the book, but there are authors from Jet Propulsion Laboratory, Technical University of Dresden, National Geospatial-Intelligence Agency, University of Texas Austin, and University of Virginia. This paper will discuss this latest edition of the Explanatory Supplement.

Mesenchymal stem cells improve locomotor recovery in traumatic spinal cord injury: systematic review with meta-analyses of rat models.

PubMed

Oliveri, Roberto S; Bello, Segun; Biering-Sørensen, Fin

2014-02-01

Traumatic spinal cord injury (SCI) is a devastating event with huge personal and societal costs. A limited number of treatments exist to ameliorate the progressive secondary damage that rapidly follows the primary mechanical impact. Mesenchymal stem or stromal cells (MSCs) have anti-inflammatory and neuroprotective effects and may thus reduce secondary damage after administration. We performed a systematic review with quantitative syntheses to assess the evidence of MSCs versus controls for locomotor recovery in rat models of traumatic SCI, and identified 83 eligible controlled studies comprising a total of 1,568 rats. Between-study heterogeneity was large. Fifty-three studies (64%) were reported as randomised, but only four reported adequate methodologies for randomisation. Forty-eight studies (58%) reported the use of a blinded outcome assessment. A random-effects meta-analysis yielded a difference in behavioural Basso-Beattie-Bresnahan (BBB) locomotor score means of 3.9 (95% confidence interval [CI] 3.2 to 4.7; P<0.001) in favour of MSCs. Trial sequential analysis confirmed the findings of the meta-analyses with the upper monitoring boundary for benefit being crossed by the cumulative Z-curve before reaching the diversity-adjusted required information size. Only time from intervention to last follow-up remained statistically significant after adjustment using multivariate random-effects meta-regression modelling. Lack of other demonstrable explanatory variables could be due to insufficient meta-analytic study power. MSCs would seem to demonstrate a substantial beneficial effect on locomotor recovery in a widely-used animal model of traumatic SCI. However, the animal results should be interpreted with caution concerning the internal and external validity of the studies in relation to the design of future clinical trials. © 2013.

Sharpening method of satellite thermal image based on the geographical statistical model

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Qi, Pengcheng; Hu, Shixiong; Zhang, Haijun; Guo, Guangmeng

2016-04-01

To improve the effectiveness of thermal sharpening in mountainous regions, paying more attention to the laws of land surface energy balance, a thermal sharpening method based on the geographical statistical model (GSM) is proposed. Explanatory variables were selected from the processes of land surface energy budget and thermal infrared electromagnetic radiation transmission, then high spatial resolution (57 m) raster layers were generated for these variables through spatially simulating or using other raster data as proxies. Based on this, the local adaptation statistical relationship between brightness temperature (BT) and the explanatory variables, i.e., the GSM, was built at 1026-m resolution using the method of multivariate adaptive regression splines. Finally, the GSM was applied to the high-resolution (57-m) explanatory variables; thus, the high-resolution (57-m) BT image was obtained. This method produced a sharpening result with low error and good visual effect. The method can avoid the blind choice of explanatory variables and remove the dependence on synchronous imagery at visible and near-infrared bands. The influences of the explanatory variable combination, sampling method, and the residual error correction on sharpening results were analyzed deliberately, and their influence mechanisms are reported herein.

The Association between Regional Environmental Factors and Road Trauma Rates: A Geospatial Analysis of 10 Years of Road Traffic Crashes in British Columbia, Canada

PubMed Central

Brubacher, Jeffrey R.; Chan, Herbert; Erdelyi, Shannon; Schuurman, Nadine; Amram, Ofer

2016-01-01

Background British Columbia, Canada is a geographically large jurisdiction with varied environmental and socio-cultural contexts. This cross-sectional study examined variation in motor vehicle crash rates across 100 police patrols to investigate the association of crashes with key explanatory factors. Methods Eleven crash outcomes (total crashes, injury crashes, fatal crashes, speed related fatal crashes, total fatalities, single-vehicle night-time crashes, rear-end collisions, and collisions involving heavy vehicles, pedestrians, cyclists, or motorcyclists) were identified from police collision reports and insurance claims and mapped to police patrols. Six potential explanatory factors (intensity of traffic law enforcement, speed limits, climate, remoteness, socio-economic factors, and alcohol consumption) were also mapped to police patrols. We then studied the association between crashes and explanatory factors using negative binomial models with crash count per patrol as the response variable and explanatory factors as covariates. Results Between 2003 and 2012 there were 1,434,239 insurance claim collisions, 386,326 police reported crashes, and 3,404 fatal crashes. Across police patrols, there was marked variation in per capita crash rate and in potential explanatory factors. Several factors were associated with crash rates. Percent roads with speed limits ≤ 60 km/hr was positively associated with total crashes, injury crashes, rear end collisions, and collisions involving pedestrians, cyclists, and heavy vehicles; and negatively associated with single vehicle night-time crashes, fatal crashes, fatal speeding crashes, and total fatalities. Higher winter temperature was associated with lower rates of overall collisions, single vehicle night-time collisions, collisions involving heavy vehicles, and total fatalities. Lower socio-economic status was associated with higher rates of injury collisions, pedestrian collisions, fatal speeding collisions, and fatal collisions. Regions with dedicated traffic officers had fewer fatal crashes and fewer fatal speed related crashes but more rear end crashes and more crashes involving cyclists or pedestrians. The number of traffic citations per 1000 drivers was positively associated with total crashes, fatal crashes, total fatalities, fatal speeding crashes, injury crashes, single vehicle night-time crashes, and heavy vehicle crashes. Possible explanations for these associations are discussed. Conclusions There is wide variation in per capita rates of motor vehicle crashes across BC police patrols. Some variation is explained by factors such as climate, road type, remoteness, socioeconomic variables, and enforcement intensity. The ability of explanatory factors to predict crash rates would be improved if considered with local traffic volume by all travel modes. PMID:27099930

Agricultural disturbance response models for invertebrate and algal metrics from streams at two spatial scales within the U.S.

USGS Publications Warehouse

Waite, Ian R.

2014-01-01

As part of the USGS study of nutrient enrichment of streams in agricultural regions throughout the United States, about 30 sites within each of eight study areas were selected to capture a gradient of nutrient conditions. The objective was to develop watershed disturbance predictive models for macroinvertebrate and algal metrics at national and three regional landscape scales to obtain a better understanding of important explanatory variables. Explanatory variables in models were generated from landscape data, habitat, and chemistry. Instream nutrient concentration and variables assessing the amount of disturbance to the riparian zone (e.g., percent row crops or percent agriculture) were selected as most important explanatory variable in almost all boosted regression tree models regardless of landscape scale or assemblage. Frequently, TN and TP concentration and riparian agricultural land use variables showed a threshold type response at relatively low values to biotic metrics modeled. Some measure of habitat condition was also commonly selected in the final invertebrate models, though the variable(s) varied across regions. Results suggest national models tended to account for more general landscape/climate differences, while regional models incorporated both broad landscape scale and more specific local-scale variables.

Interpreting the concordance statistic of a logistic regression model: relation to the variance and odds ratio of a continuous explanatory variable

PubMed Central

2012-01-01

Background When outcomes are binary, the c-statistic (equivalent to the area under the Receiver Operating Characteristic curve) is a standard measure of the predictive accuracy of a logistic regression model. Methods An analytical expression was derived under the assumption that a continuous explanatory variable follows a normal distribution in those with and without the condition. We then conducted an extensive set of Monte Carlo simulations to examine whether the expressions derived under the assumption of binormality allowed for accurate prediction of the empirical c-statistic when the explanatory variable followed a normal distribution in the combined sample of those with and without the condition. We also examine the accuracy of the predicted c-statistic when the explanatory variable followed a gamma, log-normal or uniform distribution in combined sample of those with and without the condition. Results Under the assumption of binormality with equality of variances, the c-statistic follows a standard normal cumulative distribution function with dependence on the product of the standard deviation of the normal components (reflecting more heterogeneity) and the log-odds ratio (reflecting larger effects). Under the assumption of binormality with unequal variances, the c-statistic follows a standard normal cumulative distribution function with dependence on the standardized difference of the explanatory variable in those with and without the condition. In our Monte Carlo simulations, we found that these expressions allowed for reasonably accurate prediction of the empirical c-statistic when the distribution of the explanatory variable was normal, gamma, log-normal, and uniform in the entire sample of those with and without the condition. Conclusions The discriminative ability of a continuous explanatory variable cannot be judged by its odds ratio alone, but always needs to be considered in relation to the heterogeneity of the population. PMID:22716998

Hill's Heuristics and Explanatory Coherentism in Epidemiology.

PubMed

Dammann, Olaf

2018-01-01

In this essay, I argue that Ted Poston's theory of explanatory coherentism is well-suited as a tool for causal explanation in the health sciences, particularly in epidemiology. Coherence has not only played a role in epidemiology for more than half a century as one of Hill's viewpoints, it can also provide background theory for the development of explanatory systems by integrating epidemiologic evidence with a diversity of other error-independent data. I propose that computational formalization of Hill's viewpoints in an explanatory coherentist framework would provide an excellent starting point for a formal epistemological (knowledge-theoretical) project designed to improve causal explanation in the health sciences. As an example, I briefly introduce Paul Thagard's ECHO system and offer my responses to possible objections to my proposal. © The Author(s) 2017. Published by Oxford University Press on behalf of the Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health. All rights reserved. For permissions, please e-mail: journals.permissions@oup.com.

HIV-1 disease progression in immune-competent HIV-1-infected and breastfeeding mothers participating in the ANRS 12174 clinical trial in Burkina Faso, South Africa, Uganda and Zambia: a cohort study

PubMed Central

Engebretsen, Ingunn M S; Nagot, Nicolas; Meda, Nicolas Yelbomkan; Vallo, Roselyne; Kankasa, Chipepo; Tumwine, James K; Singata-Madliki, Mandisa; Harper, Kim; Hofmeyr, G Justus; Van de Perre, Philippe; Tylleskär, Thorkild

2018-01-01

Objective We have assessed HIV-1 disease progression among HIV-1-positive mothers in relation to duration of any or exclusive breast feeding in the context of ANRS 12174 trial. Methods The analysis was completed on 203, 212, 272 and 529 HIV-1-positive and lactating mothers with CD4 count >350 cells/µL from Burkina Faso, South Africa, Uganda and Zambia, respectively. The trial compared lamivudine and lopinavir/ritonavir as a peri-exposure prophylaxis during a 50-week follow-up time. A multiple logistic regression model was run with the mothers’ weight, CD4 count and HIV-1 viral load as separate dependent variables, then combined into a dependent composite endpoint called HIV-1 disease progression where HIV-1 viral load was replaced by the HIV-1 clinical stage. Exclusive or predominant breast feeding (EPBF) and any breastfeeding duration were the key explanatory variables. Results In the adjusted model, the associations between EPBF duration and weight change, CD4 cell count and the HIV-1 viral load were consistently insignificant. The CD4 cell count was associated with a significantly higher mothers’ body mass index (BMI; a mean increase of 4.9 (95% CI 2.1 to 7.7) CD4 cells/µL per each additional kilogram per square metre of BMI) and haemoglobin concentration (19.4 (95% CI 11.4 to 27.4) CD4 cells/µL per each additional gram per decilitre of haemoglobin concentration). There was no significant association between EPBF duration and HIV-1 disease progression. A higher education level was a factor associated with a slower HIV-1 disease progression. Conclusion Breast feeding was not a risk factor for a faster progression of HIV-1 disease in mothers of this cohort with a baseline CD4 cell count >350 cells/µL. Trial registration number NCT0064026; Post-results. PMID:29626043

Repetition priming in selective attention: A TVA analysis.

PubMed

Ásgeirsson, Árni Gunnar; Kristjánsson, Árni; Bundesen, Claus

2015-09-01

Current behavior is influenced by events in the recent past. In visual attention, this is expressed in many variations of priming effects. Here, we investigate color priming in a brief exposure digit-recognition task. Observers performed a masked odd-one-out singleton recognition task where the target-color either repeated or changed between subsequent trials. Performance was measured by recognition accuracy over exposure durations. The purpose of the study was to replicate earlier findings of perceptual priming in brief displays and to model those results based on a Theory of Visual Attention (TVA; Bundesen, 1990). We tested 4 different definitions of a generic TVA-model and assessed their explanatory power. Our hypothesis was that priming effects could be explained by selective mechanisms, and that target-color repetitions would only affect the selectivity parameter (α) of our models. Repeating target colors enhanced performance for all 12 observers. As predicted, this was only true under conditions that required selection of a target among distractors, but not when a target was presented alone. Model fits by TVA were obtained with a trial-by-trial maximum likelihood estimation procedure that estimated 4-15 free parameters, depending on the particular model. We draw two main conclusions. Color priming can be modeled simply as a change in selectivity between conditions of repetition or swap of target color. Depending on the desired resolution of analysis; priming can accurately be modeled by a simple four parameter model, where VSTM capacity and spatial biases of attention are ignored, or more fine-grained by a 10 parameter model that takes these aspects into account. Copyright © 2015 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

Does IQ explain socio-economic differentials in total and cardiovascular disease mortality? Comparison with the explanatory power of traditional cardiovascular disease risk factors in the Vietnam Experience Study.

PubMed

Batty, G David; Shipley, Martin J; Dundas, Ruth; Macintyre, Sally; Der, Geoff; Mortensen, Laust H; Deary, Ian J

2009-08-01

The aim of this study was to examine the explanatory power of intelligence (IQ) compared with traditional cardiovascular disease (CVD) risk factors in the relationship of socio-economic disadvantage with total and CVD mortality, that is the extent to which IQ may account for the variance in this well-documented association. Cohort study of 4289 US male former military personnel with data on four widely used markers of socio-economic position (early adulthood and current income, occupational prestige, and education), IQ test scores (early adulthood and middle-age), a range of nine established CVD risk factors (systolic and diastolic blood pressure, total blood cholesterol, HDL cholesterol, body mass index, smoking, blood glucose, resting heart rate, and forced expiratory volume in 1 s), and later mortality. We used the relative index of inequality (RII) to quantify the relation between each index of socio-economic position and mortality. Fifteen years of mortality surveillance gave rise to 237 deaths (62 from CVD and 175 from 'other' causes). In age-adjusted analyses, as expected, each of the four indices of socio-economic position was inversely associated with total, CVD, and 'other' causes of mortality, such that elevated rates were evident in the most socio-economically disadvantaged men. When IQ in middle-age was introduced to the age-adjusted model, there was marked attenuation in the RII across the socio-economic predictors for total mortality (average 50% attenuation in RII), CVD (55%), and 'other' causes of death (49%). When the nine traditional risk factors were added to the age-adjusted model, the comparable reduction in RII was less marked than that seen after IQ adjustment: all-causes (40%), CVD (40%), and 'other' mortality (43%). Adding IQ to the latter model resulted in marked, additional explanatory power for all outcomes in comparison to the age-adjusted analyses: all-causes (63%), CVD (63%), and 'other' mortality (65%). When we utilized IQ in early adulthood rather than middle-age as an explanatory variable, the attenuating effect on the socio-economic gradient was less pronounced although the same pattern was still present. In the present analyses of socio-economic gradients in total and CVD mortality, IQ appeared to offer greater explanatory power than that apparent for traditional CVD risk factors.

Cross-cultural perspectives on physician and lay models of the common cold.

PubMed

Baer, Roberta D; Weller, Susan C; de Alba García, Javier García; Rocha, Ana L Salcedo

2008-06-01

We compare physicians and laypeople within and across cultures, focusing on similarities and differences across samples, to determine whether cultural differences or lay-professional differences have a greater effect on explanatory models of the common cold. Data on explanatory models for the common cold were collected from physicians and laypeople in South Texas and Guadalajara, Mexico. Structured interview materials were developed on the basis of open-ended interviews with samples of lay informants at each locale. A structured questionnaire was used to collect information from each sample on causes, symptoms, and treatments for the common cold. Consensus analysis was used to estimate the cultural beliefs for each sample. Instead of systematic differences between samples based on nationality or level of professional training, all four samples largely shared a single-explanatory model of the common cold, with some differences on subthemes, such as the role of hot and cold forces in the etiology of the common cold. An evaluation of our findings indicates that, although there has been conjecture about whether cultural or lay-professional differences are of greater importance in understanding variation in explanatory models of disease and illness, systematic data collected on community and professional beliefs indicate that such differences may be a function of the specific illness. Further generalizations about lay-professional differences need to be based on detailed data for a variety of illnesses, to discern patterns that may be present. Finally, a systematic approach indicates that agreement across individual explanatory models is sufficient to allow for a community-level explanatory model of the common cold.

Exposing the impact of Citizens Advice Bureau services on health: a realist evaluation protocol.

PubMed

Forster, N; Dalkin, S M; Lhussier, M; Hodgson, P; Carr, S M

2016-01-20

Welfare advice services can be used to address health inequalities, for example, through Citizens Advice Bureau (CAB). Recent reviews highlight evidence for the impact of advice services in improving people's financial position and improving mental health and well-being, daily living and social relationships. There is also some evidence for the impact of advice services in increasing accessibility of health services, and reducing general practitioner appointments and prescriptions. However, direct evidence for the impact of advice services on lifestyle behaviour and physical health is currently much less well established. There is a need for greater empirical testing of theories around the specific mechanisms through which advice services and associated financial or non-financial benefits may generate health improvements. A realist evaluation will be conducted, operationalised in 5 phases: building the explanatory framework; refining the explanatory framework; testing the explanatory framework through empirical data (mixed methods); development of a bespoke data recording template to capture longer term impact; and verification of findings with a range of CAB services. This research will therefore aim to build, refine and test an explanatory framework about how CAB services can be optimally implemented to achieve health improvement. The study was approved by the ethics committee at Northumbria University, UK. Project-related ethical issues are described and quality control aspects of the study are considered. A stakeholder mapping exercise will inform the dissemination of results in order to ensure all relevant institutions and organisations are targeted. Published by the BMJ Publishing Group Limited. For permission to use (where not already granted under a licence) please go to http://www.bmj.com/company/products-services/rights-and-licensing/

Explanatory Variables Associated with Campylobacter and Escherichia coli Concentrations on Broiler Chicken Carcasses during Processing in Two Slaughterhouses.

PubMed

Pacholewicz, Ewa; Swart, Arno; Wagenaar, Jaap A; Lipman, Len J A; Havelaar, Arie H

2016-12-01

This study aimed at identifying explanatory variables that were associated with Campylobacter and Escherichia coli concentrations throughout processing in two commercial broiler slaughterhouses. Quantative data on Campylobacter and E. coli along the processing line were collected. Moreover, information on batch characteristics, slaughterhouse practices, process performance, and environmental variables was collected through questionnaires, observations, and measurements, resulting in data on 19 potential explanatory variables. Analysis was conducted separately in each slaughterhouse to identify which variables were related to changes in concentrations of Campylobacter and E. coli during the processing steps: scalding, defeathering, evisceration, and chilling. Associations with explanatory variables were different in the slaughterhouses studied. In the first slaughterhouse, there was only one significant association: poorer uniformity of the weight of carcasses within a batch with less decrease in E. coli concentrations after defeathering. In the second slaughterhouse, significant statistical associations were found with variables, including age, uniformity, average weight of carcasses, Campylobacter concentrations in excreta and ceca, and E. coli concentrations in excreta. Bacterial concentrations in excreta and ceca were found to be the most prominent variables, because they were associated with concentration on carcasses at various processing points. Although the slaughterhouses produced specific products and had different batch characteristics and processing parameters, the effect of the significant variables was not always the same for each slaughterhouse. Therefore, each slaughterhouse needs to determine its particular relevant measures for hygiene control and process management. This identification could be supported by monitoring changes in bacterial concentrations during processing in individual slaughterhouses. In addition, the possibility that management and food handling practices in slaughterhouses contribute to the differences in bacterial contamination between slaughterhouses needs further investigation.

Mind what mother says: narrative input and theory of mind in typical children and those on the autism spectrum.

PubMed

Slaughter, Virginia; Peterson, Candida C; Mackintosh, Emily

2007-01-01

In 2 studies mothers read wordless storybooks to their preschool-aged children; narratives were analyzed for mental state language. Children's theory-of-mind understanding (ToM) was concurrently assessed. In Study 1, children's (N=30; M age 3 years 9 months) ToM task performance was significantly correlated with mothers' explanatory, causal, and contrastive talk about cognition, but not with mothers' simple mentions of cognition. In Study 2, the same pattern was found in an older sample of typically developing children (N=24; M age 4 years 7 months), whereas for children on the autism spectrum (N=24; M age 6 years 7.5 months), ToM task performance was uniquely correlated with mothers' explanatory, causal, and contrastive talk about emotions.

A site specific model and analysis of the neutral somatic mutation rate in whole-genome cancer data.

PubMed

Bertl, Johanna; Guo, Qianyun; Juul, Malene; Besenbacher, Søren; Nielsen, Morten Muhlig; Hornshøj, Henrik; Pedersen, Jakob Skou; Hobolth, Asger

2018-04-19

Detailed modelling of the neutral mutational process in cancer cells is crucial for identifying driver mutations and understanding the mutational mechanisms that act during cancer development. The neutral mutational process is very complex: whole-genome analyses have revealed that the mutation rate differs between cancer types, between patients and along the genome depending on the genetic and epigenetic context. Therefore, methods that predict the number of different types of mutations in regions or specific genomic elements must consider local genomic explanatory variables. A major drawback of most methods is the need to average the explanatory variables across the entire region or genomic element. This procedure is particularly problematic if the explanatory variable varies dramatically in the element under consideration. To take into account the fine scale of the explanatory variables, we model the probabilities of different types of mutations for each position in the genome by multinomial logistic regression. We analyse 505 cancer genomes from 14 different cancer types and compare the performance in predicting mutation rate for both regional based models and site-specific models. We show that for 1000 randomly selected genomic positions, the site-specific model predicts the mutation rate much better than regional based models. We use a forward selection procedure to identify the most important explanatory variables. The procedure identifies site-specific conservation (phyloP), replication timing, and expression level as the best predictors for the mutation rate. Finally, our model confirms and quantifies certain well-known mutational signatures. We find that our site-specific multinomial regression model outperforms the regional based models. The possibility of including genomic variables on different scales and patient specific variables makes it a versatile framework for studying different mutational mechanisms. Our model can serve as the neutral null model for the mutational process; regions that deviate from the null model are candidates for elements that drive cancer development.

How relevant is environmental quality to per capita health expenditures? Empirical evidence from panel of developing countries.

PubMed

Yahaya, Adamu; Nor, Norashidah Mohamed; Habibullah, Muzafar Shah; Ghani, Judhiana Abd; Noor, Zaleha Mohd

2016-01-01

Developing countries have witnessed economic growth as their GDP keeps increasing steadily over the years. The growth led to higher energy consumption which eventually leads to increase in air pollutions that pose a danger to human health. People's healthcare demand, in turn, increase due to the changes in the socioeconomic life and improvement in the health technology. This study is an attempt to investigate the impact of environmental quality on per capital health expenditure in 125 developing countries within a panel cointegration framework from 1995 to 2012. We found out that a long-run relationship exists between per capita health expenditure and all explanatory variables as they were panel cointegrated. The explanatory variables were found to be statistically significant in explaining the per capita health expenditure. The result further revealed that CO2 has the highest explanatory power on the per capita health expenditure. The impact of the explanatory power of the variables is greater in the long-run compared to the short-run. Based on this result, we conclude that environmental quality is a powerful determinant of health expenditure in developing countries. Therefore, developing countries should as a matter of health care policy give provision of healthy air a priority via effective policy implementation on environmental management and control measures to lessen the pressure on health care expenditure. Moreover more environmental proxies with alternative methods should be considered in the future research.

Explanatory Power of Multi-scale Physical Descriptors in Modeling Benthic Indices Across Nested Ecoregions of the Pacific Northwest

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Holburn, E. R.; Bledsoe, B. P.; Poff, N. L.; Cuhaciyan, C. O.

2005-05-01

Using over 300 R/EMAP sites in OR and WA, we examine the relative explanatory power of watershed, valley, and reach scale descriptors in modeling variation in benthic macroinvertebrate indices. Innovative metrics describing flow regime, geomorphic processes, and hydrologic-distance weighted watershed and valley characteristics are used in multiple regression and regression tree modeling to predict EPT richness, % EPT, EPT/C, and % Plecoptera. A nested design using seven ecoregions is employed to evaluate the influence of geographic scale and environmental heterogeneity on the explanatory power of individual and combined scales. Regression tree models are constructed to explain variability while identifying threshold responses and interactions. Cross-validated models demonstrate differences in the explanatory power associated with single-scale and multi-scale models as environmental heterogeneity is varied. Models explaining the greatest variability in biological indices result from multi-scale combinations of physical descriptors. Results also indicate that substantial variation in benthic macroinvertebrate response can be explained with process-based watershed and valley scale metrics derived exclusively from common geospatial data. This study outlines a general framework for identifying key processes driving macroinvertebrate assemblages across a range of scales and establishing the geographic extent at which various levels of physical description best explain biological variability. Such information can guide process-based stratification to avoid spurious comparison of dissimilar stream types in bioassessments and ensure that key environmental gradients are adequately represented in sampling designs.

The role of patients' explanatory models and daily-lived experience in hypertension self-management.

PubMed

Bokhour, Barbara G; Cohn, Ellen S; Cortés, Dharma E; Solomon, Jeffrey L; Fix, Gemmae M; Elwy, A Rani; Mueller, Nora; Katz, Lois A; Haidet, Paul; Green, Alexander R; Borzecki, Ann M; Kressin, Nancy R

2012-12-01

Uncontrolled hypertension remains a significant problem for many patients. Few interventions to improve patients' hypertension self-management have had lasting effects. Previous work has focused largely on patients' beliefs as predictors of behavior, but little is understood about beliefs as they are embedded in patients' social contexts. This study aims to explore how patients' "explanatory models" of hypertension (understandings of the causes, mechanisms or pathophysiology, course of illness, symptoms and effects of treatment) and social context relate to their reported daily hypertension self-management behaviors. Semi-structured qualitative interviews with a diverse group of patients at two large urban Veterans Administration Medical centers. PARTICIPANTS (OR PATIENTS OR SUBJECTS): African-American, white and Latino Veterans Affairs (VA) primary care patients with uncontrolled blood pressure. We conducted thematic analysis using tools of grounded theory to identify key themes surrounding patients' explanatory models, social context and hypertension management behaviors. Patients' perceptions of the cause and course of hypertension, experiences of hypertension symptoms, and beliefs about the effectiveness of treatment were related to different hypertension self-management behaviors. Moreover, patients' daily-lived experiences, such as an isolated lifestyle, serious competing health problems, a lack of habits and routines, barriers to exercise and prioritizing lifestyle choices, also interfered with optimal hypertension self-management. Designing interventions to improve patients' hypertension self-management requires consideration of patients' explanatory models and their daily-lived experience. We propose a new conceptual model - the dynamic model of hypertension self-management behavior - which incorporates these key elements of patients' experiences.

Analysis of the individual factors affecting mobile phone use while driving in France: socio-demographic characteristics, car and phone use in professional and private contexts.

PubMed

Brusque, Corinne; Alauzet, Aline

2008-01-01

In France, as in many other countries, phoning while driving is legally restricted because of its negative impact on driving performance which increases accident risk. Nevertheless, it is still a frequently observed practice and one which has not been analyzed in detail. This study attempts to identify the profiles of those who use mobile phones while at the wheel and determine the forms taken by this use. A representative sample of 1973 French people was interviewed by phone on their driving practices and mobile phone use in everyday life and their mobile phone use while driving. Logistics regressions have been conducted to highlight the explanatory factors of phoning while driving. Strong differences between males and females have been shown. For the male population, age is the main explanatory factor of phoning while driving, followed by phone use for work-related reasons and extensive mobile phone use in everyday life. For females, high mileage and intensive use of mobile phone are the only two explanatory factors. We defined the intensive phone use at the wheel group as drivers who receive or send at least five or more calls per day while driving. There is no socio-demographic variable related to this practice. Car and phone uses in everyday life are the only explanatory factors for this intensive mobile use of the phone at the wheel.

Long-term change in a behavioural trait: truncated spawning distribution and demography in Northeast Arctic cod

PubMed Central

Opdal, Anders Frugård; Jørgensen, Christian

2015-01-01

Harvesting may be a potent driver of demographic change and contemporary evolution, which both may have great impacts on animal populations. Research has focused on changes in phenotypic traits that are easily quantifiable and for which time series exist, such as size, age, sex, or gonad size, whereas potential changes in behavioural traits have been under-studied. Here, we analyse potential drivers of long-term changes in a behavioural trait for the Northeast Arctic stock of Atlantic cod Gadus morhua, namely choice of spawning location. For 104 years (1866–1969), commercial catches were recorded annually and reported by county along the Norwegian coast. During this time period, spawning ground distribution has fluctuated with a trend towards more northerly spawning. Spawning location is analysed against a suite of explanatory factors including climate, fishing pressure, density dependence, and demography. We find that demography (age or age at maturation) had the highest explanatory power for variation in spawning location, while climate had a limited effect below statistical significance. As to potential mechanisms, some effects of climate may act through demography, and explanatory variables for demography may also have absorbed direct evolutionary change in migration distance for which proxies were unavailable. Despite these caveats, we argue that fishing mortality, either through demographic or evolutionary change, has served as an effective driver for changing spawning locations in cod, and that additional explanatory factors related to climate add no significant information. PMID:25336028

Continuous water-quality monitoring and regression analysis to estimate constituent concentrations and loads in the Red River of the North at Fargo and Grand Forks, North Dakota, 2003-12

USGS Publications Warehouse

Galloway, Joel M.

2014-01-01

The Red River of the North (hereafter referred to as “Red River”) Basin is an important hydrologic region where water is a valuable resource for the region’s economy. Continuous water-quality monitors have been operated by the U.S. Geological Survey, in cooperation with the North Dakota Department of Health, Minnesota Pollution Control Agency, City of Fargo, City of Moorhead, City of Grand Forks, and City of East Grand Forks at the Red River at Fargo, North Dakota, from 2003 through 2012 and at Grand Forks, N.Dak., from 2007 through 2012. The purpose of the monitoring was to provide a better understanding of the water-quality dynamics of the Red River and provide a way to track changes in water quality. Regression equations were developed that can be used to estimate concentrations and loads for dissolved solids, sulfate, chloride, nitrate plus nitrite, total phosphorus, and suspended sediment using explanatory variables such as streamflow, specific conductance, and turbidity. Specific conductance was determined to be a significant explanatory variable for estimating dissolved solids concentrations at the Red River at Fargo and Grand Forks. The regression equations provided good relations between dissolved solid concentrations and specific conductance for the Red River at Fargo and at Grand Forks, with adjusted coefficients of determination of 0.99 and 0.98, respectively. Specific conductance, log-transformed streamflow, and a seasonal component were statistically significant explanatory variables for estimating sulfate in the Red River at Fargo and Grand Forks. Regression equations provided good relations between sulfate concentrations and the explanatory variables, with adjusted coefficients of determination of 0.94 and 0.89, respectively. For the Red River at Fargo and Grand Forks, specific conductance, streamflow, and a seasonal component were statistically significant explanatory variables for estimating chloride. For the Red River at Grand Forks, a time component also was a statistically significant explanatory variable for estimating chloride. The regression equations for chloride at the Red River at Fargo provided a fair relation between chloride concentrations and the explanatory variables, with an adjusted coefficient of determination of 0.66 and the equation for the Red River at Grand Forks provided a relatively good relation between chloride concentrations and the explanatory variables, with an adjusted coefficient of determination of 0.77. Turbidity and streamflow were statistically significant explanatory variables for estimating nitrate plus nitrite concentrations at the Red River at Fargo and turbidity was the only statistically significant explanatory variable for estimating nitrate plus nitrite concentrations at Grand Forks. The regression equation for the Red River at Fargo provided a relatively poor relation between nitrate plus nitrite concentrations, turbidity, and streamflow, with an adjusted coefficient of determination of 0.46. The regression equation for the Red River at Grand Forks provided a fair relation between nitrate plus nitrite concentrations and turbidity, with an adjusted coefficient of determination of 0.73. Some of the variability that was not explained by the equations might be attributed to different sources contributing nitrates to the stream at different times. Turbidity, streamflow, and a seasonal component were statistically significant explanatory variables for estimating total phosphorus at the Red River at Fargo and Grand Forks. The regression equation for the Red River at Fargo provided a relatively fair relation between total phosphorus concentrations, turbidity, streamflow, and season, with an adjusted coefficient of determination of 0.74. The regression equation for the Red River at Grand Forks provided a good relation between total phosphorus concentrations, turbidity, streamflow, and season, with an adjusted coefficient of determination of 0.87. For the Red River at Fargo, turbidity and streamflow were statistically significant explanatory variables for estimating suspended-sediment concentrations. For the Red River at Grand Forks, turbidity was the only statistically significant explanatory variable for estimating suspended-sediment concentration. The regression equation at the Red River at Fargo provided a good relation between suspended-sediment concentration, turbidity, and streamflow, with an adjusted coefficient of determination of 0.95. The regression equation for the Red River at Grand Forks provided a good relation between suspended-sediment concentration and turbidity, with an adjusted coefficient of determination of 0.96.

Predictive risk stratification model: a progressive cluster-randomised trial in chronic conditions management (PRISMATIC) research protocol

PubMed Central

2013-01-01

Background An ageing population increases demand on health and social care. New approaches are needed to shift care from hospital to community and general practice. A predictive risk stratification tool (Prism) has been developed for general practice that estimates risk of an emergency hospital admission in the following year. We present a protocol for the evaluation of Prism. Methods/Design We will undertake a mixed methods progressive cluster-randomised trial. Practices begin as controls, delivering usual care without Prism. Practices will receive Prism and training randomly, and thereafter be able to use Prism with clinical and technical support. We will compare costs, processes of care, satisfaction and patient outcomes at baseline, 6 and 18 months, using routine data and postal questionnaires. We will assess technical performance by comparing predicted against actual emergency admissions. Focus groups and interviews will be undertaken to understand how Prism is perceived and adopted by practitioners and policy makers. We will model data using generalised linear models and survival analysis techniques to determine whether any differences exist between intervention and control groups. We will take account of covariates and explanatory factors. In the economic evaluation we will carry out a cost-effectiveness analysis to examine incremental cost per emergency admission to hospital avoided and will examine costs versus changes in primary and secondary outcomes in a cost-consequence analysis. We will also examine changes in quality of life of patients across the risk spectrum. We will record and transcribe focus groups and interviews and analyse them thematically. We have received full ethical and R&D approvals for the study and Information Governance Review Panel (IGRP) permission for the use of routine data. We will comply with the CONSORT guidelines and will disseminate the findings at national and international conferences and in peer-reviewed journals. Discussion The proposed study will provide information on costs and effects of Prism; how it is used in practice, barriers and facilitators to its implementation; and its perceived value in supporting the management of patients with and at risk of developing chronic conditions. Trial registration Controlled Clinical Trials ISRCTN no. ISRCTN55538212. PMID:24330749

The explanatory role of relationship power and control in domestic violence against women in Nicaragua: a feminist psychology analysis.

PubMed

Grose, Rose Grace; Grabe, Shelly

2014-08-01

This study offers a feminist psychology analysis of various aspects of relationship power and control and their relative explanatory contribution to understanding physical, psychological, and sexual violence against women. Findings from structured interviews with 345 women from rural Nicaragua (M age = 44) overwhelmingly demonstrate that measures of power and control reflecting interpersonal relationship dynamics have the strongest predictive power for explaining violence when compared in multivariate analyses to several of the more commonly used measures. These findings have implications for future research and the evaluation of interventions designed to decrease levels of violence against women. © The Author(s) 2014.

Modelling sociocognitive aspects of students' learning

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Koponen, I. T.; Kokkonen, T.; Nousiainen, M.

2017-03-01

We present a computational model of sociocognitive aspects of learning. The model takes into account a student's individual cognition and sociodynamics of learning. We describe cognitive aspects of learning as foraging for explanations in the epistemic landscape, the structure (set by instructional design) of which guides the cognitive development through success or failure in foraging. We describe sociodynamic aspects as an agent-based model, where agents (learners) compare and adjust their conceptions of their own proficiency (self-proficiency) and that of their peers (peer-proficiency) in using explanatory schemes of different levels. We apply the model here in a case involving a three-tiered system of explanatory schemes, which can serve as a generic description of some well-known cases studied in empirical research on learning. The cognitive dynamics lead to the formation of dynamically robust outcomes of learning, seen as a strong preference for a certain explanatory schemes. The effects of social learning, however, can account for half of one's success in adopting higher-level schemes and greater proficiency. The model also predicts a correlation of dynamically emergent interaction patterns between agents and the learning outcomes.

Explanatory chapter: introducing exogenous DNA into cells.

PubMed

Koontz, Laura

2013-01-01

The ability to efficiently introduce DNA into cells is essential for many experiments in biology. This is an explanatory chapter providing an overview of the various methods for introducing DNA into bacteria, yeast, and mammalian cells. Copyright © 2013 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

Dietary restrictions in healing among speakers of Iquito, an endangered language of the Peruvian Amazon

PubMed Central

2011-01-01

Background Ethnobotanical research was carried out with speakers of Iquito, a critically endangered Amazonian language of the Zaparoan family. The study focused on the concept of "dieting" (siyan++ni in Iquito), a practice involving prohibitions considered necessary to the healing process. These restrictions include: 1) foods and activities that can exacerbate illness, 2) environmental influences that conflict with some methods of healing (e.g. steam baths or enemas) and 3) foods and activities forbidden by the spirits of certain powerful medicinal plants. The study tested the following hypotheses: H1 - Each restriction will correlate with specific elements in illness explanatory models and H2 - Illnesses whose explanatory models have personalistic elements will show a greater number and variety of restrictions than those based on naturalistic reasoning. Methods The work was carried out in 2009 and 2010 in the Alto Nanay region of Peru. In structured interviews, informants gave explanatory models for illness categories, including etiologies, pathophysiologies, treatments and dietary restrictions necessary for 49 illnesses. Seventeen botanical vouchers for species said to have powerful spirits that require diets were also collected. Results All restrictions found correspond to some aspect of illness explanatory models. Thirty-five percent match up with specific illness etiologies, 53% correspond to particular pathophysiologies, 18% correspond with overall seriousness of the illness and 18% are only found with particular forms of treatment. Diets based on personalistic reasoning have a significantly higher average number of restrictions than those based on naturalistic reasoning. Conclusions Dieting plays a central role in healing among Iquito speakers. Specific prohibitions can be explained in terms of specific aspects of illness etiologies, pathophysiologies and treatments. Although the Amazonian literature contains few studies focusing on dietary proscriptions over a wide range of illnesses, some specific restrictions reported here do correspond with trends seen in other Amazonian societies, particularly those related to sympathetic reasoning and for magical and spiritual uses of plants. PMID:21745400

Dietary restrictions in healing among speakers of Iquito, an endangered language of the Peruvian Amazon.

PubMed

Jernigan, Kevin A

2011-07-11

Ethno botanical research was carried out with speakers of Iquitos, a critically endangered Amazonian language of the Zaparoan family. The study focused on the concept of "dieting" (siyan++ni in Iquitos), a practice involving prohibitions considered necessary to the healing process. These restrictions include: 1) foods and activities that can exacerbate illness, 2) environmental influences that conflict with some methods of healing (e.g. steam baths or enemas) and 3) foods and activities forbidden by the spirits of certain powerful medicinal plants. The study tested the following hypotheses: H1--Each restriction will correlate with specific elements in illness explanatory models and H2--Illnesses whose explanatory models have personality elements will show a greater number and variety of restrictions than those based on naturalistic reasoning. The work was carried out in 2009 and 2010 in the Alto Nanay region of Peru. In structured interviews, informants gave explanatory models for illness categories, including etiologies, pathophysiologies, treatments and dietary restrictions necessary for 49 illnesses. Seventeen botanical vouchers for species said to have powerful spirits that require diets were also collected. All restrictions found correspond to some aspect of illness explanatory models. Thirty-five percent match up with specific illness etiologies, 53% correspond to particular pathophysiologies, 18% correspond with overall seriousness of the illness and 18% are only found with particular forms of treatment. Diets based on personalistic reasoning have a significantly higher average number of restrictions than those based on naturalistic reasoning. Dieting plays a central role in healing among Iquitos speakers. Specific prohibitions can be explained in terms of specific aspects of illness etiologies, pathophysiologies and treatments. Although the Amazonian literature contains few studies focusing on dietary proscriptions over a wide range of illnesses, some specific restrictions reported here do correspond with trends seen in other Amazonian societies, particularly those related to sympathetic reasoning and for magical and spiritual uses of plants.

The PULSAR Specialist Care protocol: a stepped-wedge cluster randomized control trial of a training intervention for community mental health teams in recovery-oriented practice.

PubMed

Shawyer, Frances; Enticott, Joanne C; Brophy, Lisa; Bruxner, Annie; Fossey, Ellie; Inder, Brett; Julian, John; Kakuma, Ritsuko; Weller, Penelope; Wilson-Evered, Elisabeth; Edan, Vrinda; Slade, Mike; Meadows, Graham N

2017-05-08

Recovery features strongly in Australian mental health policy; however, evidence is limited for the efficacy of recovery-oriented practice at the service level. This paper describes the Principles Unite Local Services Assisting Recovery (PULSAR) Specialist Care trial protocol for a recovery-oriented practice training intervention delivered to specialist mental health services staff. The primary aim is to evaluate whether adult consumers accessing services where staff have received the intervention report superior recovery outcomes compared to adult consumers accessing services where staff have not yet received the intervention. A qualitative sub-study aims to examine staff and consumer views on implementing recovery-oriented practice. A process evaluation sub-study aims to articulate important explanatory variables affecting the interventions rollout and outcomes. The mixed methods design incorporates a two-step stepped-wedge cluster randomized controlled trial (cRCT) examining cross-sectional data from three phases, and nested qualitative and process evaluation sub-studies. Participating specialist mental health care services in Melbourne, Victoria are divided into 14 clusters with half randomly allocated to receive the staff training in year one and half in year two. Research participants are consumers aged 18-75 years who attended the cluster within a previous three-month period either at baseline, 12 (step 1) or 24 months (step 2). In the two nested sub-studies, participation extends to cluster staff. The primary outcome is the Questionnaire about the Process of Recovery collected from 756 consumers (252 each at baseline, step 1, step 2). Secondary and other outcomes measuring well-being, service satisfaction and health economic impact are collected from a subset of 252 consumers (63 at baseline; 126 at step 1; 63 at step 2) via interviews. Interview-based longitudinal data are also collected 12 months apart from 88 consumers with a psychotic disorder diagnosis (44 at baseline, step 1; 44 at step 1, step 2). cRCT data will be analyzed using multilevel mixed-effects modelling to account for clustering and some repeated measures, supplemented by thematic analysis of qualitative interview data. The process evaluation will draw on qualitative, quantitative and documentary data. Findings will provide an evidence-base for the continued transformation of Australian mental health service frameworks toward recovery. Australian and New Zealand Clinical Trial Registry: ACTRN12614000957695 . Date registered: 8 September 2014.

Canonical Commonality Analysis.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Leister, K. Dawn

Commonality analysis is a method of partitioning variance that has advantages over more traditional "OVA" methods. Commonality analysis indicates the amount of explanatory power that is "unique" to a given predictor variable and the amount of explanatory power that is "common" to or shared with at least one predictor…

An international phase 3 trial in head and neck cancer: quality of life and symptom results: EORTC 24954 on behalf of the EORTC Head and Neck and the EORTC Radiation Oncology Group.

PubMed

Bottomley, Andrew; Tridello, Gloria; Coens, Corneel; Rolland, Frederic; Tesselaar, Margot E T; Leemans, C Rene; Hupperets, Pierre; Licitra, Lisa; Vermorken, Jan B; Van Den Weyngaert, Danielle; Truc, Gilles; Barillot, Isabelle; Lefebvre, Jean-Louis

2014-02-01

The European Organization for Research and Treatment of Cancer (EORTC) 24954 phase 3 randomized clinical trial compared 2 schemes of combined chemotherapy for patients with resectable cancers of the hypopharynx and larynx: sequential induction chemotherapy and radiotherapy versus alternating chemoradiotherapy. The current study reports detailed effects of both treatment arms on health-related quality of life (HRQOL) and symptoms. A total of 450 patients aged 35 years to 76 years (World Health Organization performance status (WHO PS) ≤ 2) with untreated, resectable advanced squamous cell carcinoma of the larynx (tumor classification of T3-T4) or hypopharynx (tumor classification of T2-T3-T4) with regional lymph nodes in the neck classified as N0 to N2 with no metastases were randomized in this prospective phase 3 trial into either the sequential arm (control) or the alternating arm (experimental). QOL assessment was performed at randomization; at baseline; at 42 days; and at 6, 12, 24, 36, and 48 months. There were no observed differences with regard to the primary endpoint of Fatigue and secondary endpoint of Dyspnea. Significant differences were found in the secondary endpoints of Swallowing and Speech problems at 42 days after randomization in favor of patients in the sequential arm. Explanatory and sensitivity analysis revealed that the primary analysis favored the sequential arm, but the majority of differences in HRQOL did not exist at the end of treatment, and returned to baseline levels. In the current study, a trend toward worse scores was noted in the patients treated on the alternating chemoradiotherapy arm but very few differences reached the level of statistical significance. The HRQOL scores of the majority of patients returned to baseline after therapy. © 2013 American Cancer Society.

Consumer-operated service program members' explanatory models of mental illness and recovery.

PubMed

Hoy, Janet M

2014-10-01

Incorporating individuals' understandings and explanations of mental illness into service delivery offers benefits relating to increased service relevance and meaning. Existing research delineates explanatory models of mental illness held by individuals in home, outpatient, and hospital-based contexts; research on models held by those in peer-support contexts is notably absent. In this article, I describe themes identified within and across explanatory models of mental illness and recovery held by mental health consumers (N = 24) at one peer center, referred to as a consumer-operated service center (COSP). Participants held explanatory models inclusive of both developmental stressors and biomedical causes, consistent with a stress-diathesis model (although no participant explicitly referenced such). Explicit incorporation of stress-diathesis constructs into programming at this COSP offers the potential of increasing service meaning and relevance. Identifying and incorporating shared meanings across individuals' understandings of mental illness likewise can increase relevance and meaning for particular subgroups of service users. © The Author(s) 2014.

Endosymbiosis and its implications for evolutionary theory.

PubMed

O'Malley, Maureen A

2015-08-18

Historically, conceptualizations of symbiosis and endosymbiosis have been pitted against Darwinian or neo-Darwinian evolutionary theory. In more recent times, Lynn Margulis has argued vigorously along these lines. However, there are only shallow grounds for finding Darwinian concepts or population genetic theory incompatible with endosymbiosis. But is population genetics sufficiently explanatory of endosymbiosis and its role in evolution? Population genetics "follows" genes, is replication-centric, and is concerned with vertically consistent genetic lineages. It may also have explanatory limitations with regard to macroevolution. Even so, asking whether population genetics explains endosymbiosis may have the question the wrong way around. We should instead be asking how explanatory of evolution endosymbiosis is, and exactly which features of evolution it might be explaining. This paper will discuss how metabolic innovations associated with endosymbioses can drive evolution and thus provide an explanatory account of important episodes in the history of life. Metabolic explanations are both proximate and ultimate, in the same way genetic explanations are. Endosymbioses, therefore, point evolutionary biology toward an important dimension of evolutionary explanation.

Self-rated health and health-strengthening factors in community-living frail older people.

PubMed

Ebrahimi, Zahra; Dahlin-Ivanoff, Synneve; Eklund, Kajsa; Jakobsson, Annika; Wilhelmson, Katarina

2015-04-01

The aim of this study was to analyse the explanatory power of variables measuring health-strengthening factors for self-rated health among community-living frail older people. Frailty is commonly constructed as a multi-dimensional geriatric syndrome ascribed to the multi-system deterioration of the reserve capacity in older age. Frailty in older people is associated with decreased physical and psychological well-being. However, knowledge about the experiences of health in frail older people is still limited. The design of the study was cross-sectional. The data were collected between October 2008 and November 2010 through face-to-face structured interviews with older people aged 65-96 years (N = 161). Binary logistic regression was used to analyse whether a set of explanatory relevant variables is associated with self-rated health. The results from the final model showed that satisfaction with one's ability to take care of oneself, having 10 or fewer symptoms and not feeling lonely had the best explanatory power for community-living frail older peoples' experiences of good health. The results indicate that a multi-disciplinary approach is desirable, where the focus should not only be on medical problems but also on providing supportive services to older people to maintain their independence and experiences of health despite frailty. © 2014 John Wiley & Sons Ltd.

Explanatory factors and predictors of fatigue in persons with rheumatoid arthritis: A longitudinal study.

PubMed

Feldthusen, Caroline; Grimby-Ekman, Anna; Forsblad-d'Elia, Helena; Jacobsson, Lennart; Mannerkorpi, Kaisa

2016-04-28

To investigate the impact of disease-related aspects on long-term variations in fatigue in persons with rheumatoid arthritis. Observational longitudinal study. Sixty-five persons with rheumatoid arthritis, age range 20-65 years, were invited to a clinical examination at 4 time-points during the 4 seasons. Outcome measures were: general fatigue rated on visual analogue scale (0-100) and aspects of fatigue assessed by the Bristol Rheumatoid Arthritis Fatigue Multidimensional Questionnaire. Disease-related variables were: disease activity (erythrocyte sedimentation rate), pain threshold (pressure algometer), physical capacity (six-minute walk test), pain (visual analogue scale (0-100)), depressive mood (Hospital Anxiety and Depression scale, depression subscale), personal factors (age, sex, body mass index) and season. Multivariable regression analysis, linear mixed effects models were applied. The strongest explanatory factors for all fatigue outcomes, when recorded at the same time-point as fatigue, were pain threshold and depressive mood. Self-reported pain was an explanatory factor for physical aspects of fatigue and body mass index contributed to explaining the consequences of fatigue on everyday living. For predicting later fatigue pain threshold and depressive mood were the strongest predictors. Pain threshold and depressive mood were the most important factors for fatigue in persons with rheumatoid arthritis.

Physiotherapists supporting self-management through health coaching: a mixed methods program evaluation.

PubMed

Dufour, Sinéad Patricia; Graham, Shane; Friesen, Josh; Rosenblat, Michael; Rous, Colin; Richardson, Julie

2015-01-01

To evaluate a program in support of chronic disease self-management (CDSM) that is founded on a health coaching (HC) approach, includes supervised exercise and mindfulness-based stress reduction components and is delivered within a private practice physiotherapy setting. An explanatory mixed method design, framed by theory-based program evaluation, was employed to evaluate an eight-week group-based program. Standardized self-rated and performance measures were evaluated pre- and post intervention. Additionally, participant focus groups were conducted following the intervention period. An inductive thematic approach was undertaken to analyze the qualitative data. Seventeen participants (N = 17) completed the study. Improvements were seen in both self-report and performance outcomes. Participants explained how and why they felt the program was beneficial. Six themes were generated: (1) group dynamic; (2) learning versus doing; (3) holism and comprehensive care; (4) self-efficacy and empowerment; (5) previous solutions versus new management strategies; and (6) healthcare provider support. This study established that a group program in support of CDSM founded on a HC approach demonstrated potential value from participants as well as favorable outcomes. A pragmatic randomized control trial is required to determine efficacy of this intervention.

Explanatory Unification by Proofs in School Mathematics

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Komatsu, Kotaro; Fujita, Taro; Jones, Keith; Naoki, Sue

2018-01-01

Kitcher's idea of 'explanatory unification', while originally proposed in the philosophy of science, may also be relevant to mathematics education, as a way of enhancing student thinking and achieving classroom activity that is closer to authentic mathematical practice. There is, however, no mathematics education research treating explanatory…

The Physical Basis of the Leap Second

DTIC Science & Technology

2008-10-07

ralentissement du mouvement de rotation de la terre, (Paris: G. Baillière) Explanatory Supplement 1961, Explanatory Supplement to the Astronomical Ephemeris...Beard, R. L., & Bartholomew, T. R. 2001, Metrologia , 38, 509 Newcomb, S. 1895a, Astronomical Papers Prepared for the Use of the American Ephemeris and

29 CFR 780.1001 - General explanatory statement.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2010 CFR

2010-07-01

... Employment of Home- workers in Making Wreaths; Exemption From Minimum Wage, Overtime Compensation, and Child... 29 Labor 3 2010-07-01 2010-07-01 false General explanatory statement. 780.1001 Section 780.1001 Labor Regulations Relating to Labor (Continued) WAGE AND HOUR DIVISION, DEPARTMENT OF LABOR STATEMENTS...

Spatial regression analysis on 32 years of total column ozone data

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Knibbe, J. S.; van der A, R. J.; de Laat, A. T. J.

2014-08-01

Multiple-regression analyses have been performed on 32 years of total ozone column data that was spatially gridded with a 1 × 1.5° resolution. The total ozone data consist of the MSR (Multi Sensor Reanalysis; 1979-2008) and 2 years of assimilated SCIAMACHY (SCanning Imaging Absorption spectroMeter for Atmospheric CHartographY) ozone data (2009-2010). The two-dimensionality in this data set allows us to perform the regressions locally and investigate spatial patterns of regression coefficients and their explanatory power. Seasonal dependencies of ozone on regressors are included in the analysis. A new physically oriented model is developed to parameterize stratospheric ozone. Ozone variations on nonseasonal timescales are parameterized by explanatory variables describing the solar cycle, stratospheric aerosols, the quasi-biennial oscillation (QBO), El Niño-Southern Oscillation (ENSO) and stratospheric alternative halogens which are parameterized by the effective equivalent stratospheric chlorine (EESC). For several explanatory variables, seasonally adjusted versions of these explanatory variables are constructed to account for the difference in their effect on ozone throughout the year. To account for seasonal variation in ozone, explanatory variables describing the polar vortex, geopotential height, potential vorticity and average day length are included. Results of this regression model are compared to that of a similar analysis based on a more commonly applied statistically oriented model. The physically oriented model provides spatial patterns in the regression results for each explanatory variable. The EESC has a significant depleting effect on ozone at mid- and high latitudes, the solar cycle affects ozone positively mostly in the Southern Hemisphere, stratospheric aerosols affect ozone negatively at high northern latitudes, the effect of QBO is positive and negative in the tropics and mid- to high latitudes, respectively, and ENSO affects ozone negatively between 30° N and 30° S, particularly over the Pacific. The contribution of explanatory variables describing seasonal ozone variation is generally large at mid- to high latitudes. We observe ozone increases with potential vorticity and day length and ozone decreases with geopotential height and variable ozone effects due to the polar vortex in regions to the north and south of the polar vortices. Recovery of ozone is identified globally. However, recovery rates and uncertainties strongly depend on choices that can be made in defining the explanatory variables. The application of several trend models, each with their own pros and cons, yields a large range of recovery rate estimates. Overall these results suggest that care has to be taken in determining ozone recovery rates, in particular for the Antarctic ozone hole.

The Ontario printed educational message (OPEM) trial to narrow the evidence-practice gap with respect to prescribing practices of general and family physicians: a cluster randomized controlled trial, targeting the care of individuals with diabetes and hypertension in Ontario, Canada

PubMed Central

Zwarenstein, Merrick; Hux, Janet E; Kelsall, Diane; Paterson, Michael; Grimshaw, Jeremy; Davis, Dave; Laupacis, Andreas; Evans, Michael; Austin, Peter C; Slaughter, Pamela M; Shiller, Susan K; Croxford, Ruth; Tu, Karen

2007-01-01

Background There are gaps between what family practitioners do in clinical practice and the evidence-based ideal. The most commonly used strategy to narrow these gaps is the printed educational message (PEM); however, the attributes of successful printed educational messages and their overall effectiveness in changing physician practice are not clear. The current endeavor aims to determine whether such messages change prescribing quality in primary care practice, and whether these effects differ with the format of the message. Methods/design The design is a large, simple, factorial, unblinded cluster-randomized controlled trial. PEMs will be distributed with informed, a quarterly evidence-based synopsis of current clinical information produced by the Institute for Clinical Evaluative Sciences, Toronto, Canada, and will be sent to all eligible general and family practitioners in Ontario. There will be three replicates of the trial, with three different educational messages, each aimed at narrowing a specific evidence-practice gap as follows: 1) angiotensin-converting enzyme inhibitors, hypertension treatment, and cholesterol lowering agents for diabetes; 2) retinal screening for diabetes; and 3) diuretics for hypertension. For each of the three replicates there will be three intervention groups. The first group will receive informed with an attached postcard-sized, short, directive "outsert." The second intervention group will receive informed with a two-page explanatory "insert" on the same topic. The third intervention group will receive informed, with both the above-mentioned outsert and insert. The control group will receive informed only, without either an outsert or insert. Routinely collected physician billing, prescription, and hospital data found in Ontario's administrative databases will be used to monitor pre-defined prescribing changes relevant and specific to each replicate, following delivery of the educational messages. Multi-level modeling will be used to study patterns in physician-prescribing quality over four quarters, before and after each of the three interventions. Subgroup analyses will be performed to assess the association between the characteristics of the physician's place of practice and target behaviours. A further analysis of the immediate and delayed impacts of the PEMs will be performed using time-series analysis and interventional, auto-regressive, integrated moving average modeling. Trial registration number Current controlled trial ISRCTN72772651. PMID:18039361

Evaluation of Smartphone Applications for Cardiopulmonary Resuscitation Training in South Korea

PubMed Central

Cho, Yongtak; Song, Yeongtak; Lim, Tae Ho; Kang, Hyunggoo

2016-01-01

Objective. There are many smartphone-based applications (apps) for cardiopulmonary resuscitation (CPR) training. We investigated the conformity and the learnability/usability of these apps for CPR training and real-life supports. Methods. We conducted a mixed-method, sequential explanatory study to assess CPR training apps downloaded on two apps stores in South Korea. Apps were collected with inclusion criteria as follows, Korean-language instruction, training features, and emergency supports for real-life incidents, and analyzed with two tests; 15 medical experts evaluated the apps' contents according to current Basic Life Support guidelines in conformity test, and 15 nonmedical individuals examined the apps using System Usability Scale (SUS) in the learnability/usability test. Results. Out of 79 selected apps, five apps were included and analyzed. For conformity (ICC, 0.95, p < 0.001), means of all apps were greater than 12 of 20 points, indicating that they were well designed according to current guidelines. Three of the five apps yielded acceptable level (greater than 68 of 100 points) for learnability/usability. Conclusion. All the included apps followed current BLS guidelines and a majority offered acceptable learnability/usability for layperson. Current and developmental smartphone-based CPR training apps should include accurate CPR information and be easy to use for laypersons that are potential rescuers in real-life incidents. For Clinical Trials. This is a clinical trial, registered at the Clinical Research Information Service (CRIS, cris.nih.go.kr), number KCT0001840. PMID:27668257

Effects of Counselling and Sole Reflexology on Fatigue in Pregnant Women: A Randomized Clinical Trial.

PubMed

Shobeiri, Fatemeh; Manoucheri, Behnaz; Parsa, Parisa; Roshanaei, Ghodratolah

2017-06-01

Increase of fatigue may lead to problems during pregnancy, delivery and post delivery. Sole reflexology is the application of pressure to areas on the feet. Reflexology is generally relaxing and may be an effective way to alleviate fatigue and stress. To investigate the effect of counselling and sole reflexology on fatigue in pregnant women, referred to the medical centers of Hamadan city, Iran. This study was a randomized clinical trial with three groups - Group A (counselling and reflexology), Group B (reflexology) and Group C (control) with pre and post intervention. A total of forty two pregnant women were selected for each group. Measurement tool was a 30 question standard checklist for fatigue assessment. For all three groups, an explanatory session was held to get their written consents and conduct a pretest. The intervention included five education sessions, twice a week about reflexology in the form of counselling and sole reflexology. The groups were assessed immediately after intervention. Data were analysed using IBM SPSS Statistics 20.0. To analyse the data, descriptive statistics, t test and ANOVA with repeated measures were used. In group A and group B, the mean score of fatigue severity after the intervention demonstrated a significant decrease (p<0.05); furthermore, after intervention, a significant difference was observed between the control and experimental groups in terms of fatigue severity (p<0.01). Based on the results of this study, counselling and sole reflexology significantly decreased fatigue in pregnant women. It is hoped that the results of this study can be used by all treatment groups and midwives for controlling and providing midwifery cares for pregnant women.

Effects of Counselling and Sole Reflexology on Fatigue in Pregnant Women: A Randomized Clinical Trial

PubMed Central

Shobeiri, Fatemeh; Parsa, Parisa; Roshanaei, Ghodratolah

2017-01-01

Introduction Increase of fatigue may lead to problems during pregnancy, delivery and post delivery. Sole reflexology is the application of pressure to areas on the feet. Reflexology is generally relaxing and may be an effective way to alleviate fatigue and stress. Aim To investigate the effect of counselling and sole reflexology on fatigue in pregnant women, referred to the medical centers of Hamadan city, Iran. Materials and Methods This study was a randomized clinical trial with three groups - Group A (counselling and reflexology), Group B (reflexology) and Group C (control) with pre and post intervention. A total of forty two pregnant women were selected for each group. Measurement tool was a 30 question standard checklist for fatigue assessment. For all three groups, an explanatory session was held to get their written consents and conduct a pretest. The intervention included five education sessions, twice a week about reflexology in the form of counselling and sole reflexology. The groups were assessed immediately after intervention. Data were analysed using IBM SPSS Statistics 20.0. To analyse the data, descriptive statistics, t test and ANOVA with repeated measures were used. Results In group A and group B, the mean score of fatigue severity after the intervention demonstrated a significant decrease (p<0.05); furthermore, after intervention, a significant difference was observed between the control and experimental groups in terms of fatigue severity (p<0.01). Conclusion Based on the results of this study, counselling and sole reflexology significantly decreased fatigue in pregnant women. It is hoped that the results of this study can be used by all treatment groups and midwives for controlling and providing midwifery cares for pregnant women. PMID:28764252

Risk factors for a 6-year decline in physical disability and functional limitations among elderly people with type 2 diabetes in the Japanese Elderly Diabetes Intervention Trial.

PubMed

Sakurai, Takashi; Iimuro, Satoshi; Sakamaki, Kentaro; Umegaki, Hiroyuki; Araki, Atsushi; Ohashi, Yasuo; Ito, Hideki

2012-04-01

Type 2 diabetes increases the risk of disability. The purpose of this study was to clarify the explanatory factors for disability in Japanese diabetic elderly. The 6-year decline in physical disability and functional limitations was investigated among 317 elderly people with type 2 diabetes recruited in a large-scale prospective study of the Japanese Elderly Diabetes Intervention Trial. Information about diabetes, blood examinations and complications was obtained, and basic activities of daily living (ADL) and instrumental ADL (IADL) were assessed by total score of the Barthel index and the Tokyo Metropolitan Institute of Gerontology Index of Competence, respectively. After 6 years of follow up, 13.6% of patients had developed a new ADL disability and 38.3% had developed a new functional impairment. In the 65-74 years age group, basic ADL decreased only in males, whereas females became functionally impaired. In the 75-84 years age group, basic and IADL decreased in both males and females. Older age and metabolic syndrome were prognostic for impairment of basic ADL, whereas baseline IADL problems, lower cognitive function, physical inactivity and insulin therapy were significant predictors of a future decline in the IADL. This study identified several factors predicting the future decline of basic ADL and IADL in diabetic elderly patients, and provided a conceptual framework that might help to clarify the pathways leading to disability. Because the specific causes of each functional problem are modifiable, comprehensive treatment and care are needed to allow Japanese diabetic elderly patients to have more favorable living conditions. © 2012 Japan Geriatrics Society.

Continuous water-quality monitoring and regression analysis to estimate constituent concentrations and loads in the Red River of the North, Fargo, North Dakota, 2003-05

USGS Publications Warehouse

Ryberg, Karen R.

2006-01-01

This report presents the results of a study by the U.S. Geological Survey, done in cooperation with the Bureau of Reclamation, U.S. Department of the Interior, to estimate water-quality constituent concentrations in the Red River of the North at Fargo, North Dakota. Regression analysis of water-quality data collected in 2003-05 was used to estimate concentrations and loads for alkalinity, dissolved solids, sulfate, chloride, total nitrite plus nitrate, total nitrogen, total phosphorus, and suspended sediment. The explanatory variables examined for regression relation were continuously monitored physical properties of water-streamflow, specific conductance, pH, water temperature, turbidity, and dissolved oxygen. For the conditions observed in 2003-05, streamflow was a significant explanatory variable for all estimated constituents except dissolved solids. pH, water temperature, and dissolved oxygen were not statistically significant explanatory variables for any of the constituents in this study. Specific conductance was a significant explanatory variable for alkalinity, dissolved solids, sulfate, and chloride. Turbidity was a significant explanatory variable for total phosphorus and suspended sediment. For the nutrients, total nitrite plus nitrate, total nitrogen, and total phosphorus, cosine and sine functions of time also were used to explain the seasonality in constituent concentrations. The regression equations were evaluated using common measures of variability, including R2, or the proportion of variability in the estimated constituent explained by the regression equation. R2 values ranged from 0.703 for total nitrogen concentration to 0.990 for dissolved-solids concentration. The regression equations also were evaluated by calculating the median relative percentage difference (RPD) between measured constituent concentration and the constituent concentration estimated by the regression equations. Median RPDs ranged from 1.1 for dissolved solids to 35.2 for total nitrite plus nitrate. Regression equations also were used to estimate daily constituent loads. Load estimates can be used by water-quality managers for comparison of current water-quality conditions to water-quality standards expressed as total maximum daily loads (TMDLs). TMDLs are a measure of the maximum amount of chemical constituents that a water body can receive and still meet established water-quality standards. The peak loads generally occurred in June and July when streamflow also peaked.

Design of an impact evaluation using a mixed methods model--an explanatory assessment of the effects of results-based financing mechanisms on maternal healthcare services in Malawi.

PubMed

Brenner, Stephan; Muula, Adamson S; Robyn, Paul Jacob; Bärnighausen, Till; Sarker, Malabika; Mathanga, Don P; Bossert, Thomas; De Allegri, Manuela

2014-04-22

In this article we present a study design to evaluate the causal impact of providing supply-side performance-based financing incentives in combination with a demand-side cash transfer component on equitable access to and quality of maternal and neonatal healthcare services. This intervention is introduced to selected emergency obstetric care facilities and catchment area populations in four districts in Malawi. We here describe and discuss our study protocol with regard to the research aims, the local implementation context, and our rationale for selecting a mixed methods explanatory design with a quasi-experimental quantitative component. The quantitative research component consists of a controlled pre- and post-test design with multiple post-test measurements. This allows us to quantitatively measure 'equitable access to healthcare services' at the community level and 'healthcare quality' at the health facility level. Guided by a theoretical framework of causal relationships, we determined a number of input, process, and output indicators to evaluate both intended and unintended effects of the intervention. Overall causal impact estimates will result from a difference-in-difference analysis comparing selected indicators across intervention and control facilities/catchment populations over time.To further explain heterogeneity of quantitatively observed effects and to understand the experiential dimensions of financial incentives on clients and providers, we designed a qualitative component in line with the overall explanatory mixed methods approach. This component consists of in-depth interviews and focus group discussions with providers, service user, non-users, and policy stakeholders. In this explanatory design comprehensive understanding of expected and unexpected effects of the intervention on both access and quality will emerge through careful triangulation at two levels: across multiple quantitative elements and across quantitative and qualitative elements. Combining a traditional quasi-experimental controlled pre- and post-test design with an explanatory mixed methods model permits an additional assessment of organizational and behavioral changes affecting complex processes. Through this impact evaluation approach, our design will not only create robust evidence measures for the outcome of interest, but also generate insights on how and why the investigated interventions produce certain intended and unintended effects and allows for a more in-depth evaluation approach.

Dose-Response Calculator for ArcGIS

USGS Publications Warehouse

Hanser, Steven E.; Aldridge, Cameron L.; Leu, Matthias; Nielsen, Scott E.

2011-01-01

The Dose-Response Calculator for ArcGIS is a tool that extends the Environmental Systems Research Institute (ESRI) ArcGIS 10 Desktop application to aid with the visualization of relationships between two raster GIS datasets. A dose-response curve is a line graph commonly used in medical research to examine the effects of different dosage rates of a drug or chemical (for example, carcinogen) on an outcome of interest (for example, cell mutations) (Russell and others, 1982). Dose-response curves have recently been used in ecological studies to examine the influence of an explanatory dose variable (for example, percentage of habitat cover, distance to disturbance) on a predicted response (for example, survival, probability of occurrence, abundance) (Aldridge and others, 2008). These dose curves have been created by calculating the predicted response value from a statistical model at different levels of the explanatory dose variable while holding values of other explanatory variables constant. Curves (plots) developed using the Dose-Response Calculator overcome the need to hold variables constant by using values extracted from the predicted response surface of a spatially explicit statistical model fit in a GIS, which include the variation of all explanatory variables, to visualize the univariate response to the dose variable. Application of the Dose-Response Calculator can be extended beyond the assessment of statistical model predictions and may be used to visualize the relationship between any two raster GIS datasets (see example in tool instructions). This tool generates tabular data for use in further exploration of dose-response relationships and a graph of the dose-response curve.

Long-term change in a behavioural trait: truncated spawning distribution and demography in Northeast Arctic cod.

PubMed

Opdal, Anders Frugård; Jørgensen, Christian

2015-04-01

Harvesting may be a potent driver of demographic change and contemporary evolution, which both may have great impacts on animal populations. Research has focused on changes in phenotypic traits that are easily quantifiable and for which time series exist, such as size, age, sex, or gonad size, whereas potential changes in behavioural traits have been under-studied. Here, we analyse potential drivers of long-term changes in a behavioural trait for the Northeast Arctic stock of Atlantic cod Gadus morhua, namely choice of spawning location. For 104 years (1866-1969), commercial catches were recorded annually and reported by county along the Norwegian coast. During this time period, spawning ground distribution has fluctuated with a trend towards more northerly spawning. Spawning location is analysed against a suite of explanatory factors including climate, fishing pressure, density dependence, and demography. We find that demography (age or age at maturation) had the highest explanatory power for variation in spawning location, while climate had a limited effect below statistical significance. As to potential mechanisms, some effects of climate may act through demography, and explanatory variables for demography may also have absorbed direct evolutionary change in migration distance for which proxies were unavailable. Despite these caveats, we argue that fishing mortality, either through demographic or evolutionary change, has served as an effective driver for changing spawning locations in cod, and that additional explanatory factors related to climate add no significant information. © 2014 The Authors. Global Change Biology Published by John Wiley & Sons Ltd.

Pathological Left-Handedness: An Explanatory Model.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Satz, Paul

Reported was an explanatory conceptual model for pathological left-handedness (PLH) and related hypotheses, some of which could not be tested empirically due to lack of information. The model was reported to provide an explanation for the relationship between handedness and specific learning disability, and handedness and cerebral dominance for…

Self-Regulatory Climate: A Social Resource for Student Regulation and Achievement

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Adams, Curt M.; Forsyth, Patrick B.; Dollarhide, Ellen; Miskell, Ryan; Ware, Jordan

2015-01-01

Background/Context: Schools have differential effects on student learning and development, but research has not generated much explanatory evidence of the social-psychological pathway to better achievement outcomes. Explanatory evidence of how normative conditions enable students to thrive is particularly relevant in the urban context where…

Students' Conceptions of the "Reality Status" of Electrons.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Mashhadi, Azam; Woolnough, Brian

Science has many explanatory concepts that have been proposed to account for the observable features of things. Such explanatory concepts often have associated with them hidden or unseen "theoretical entities." The electron is a key concept in understanding phenomena described by science. The question arises, however, as to how students…

Learning Molecular Behaviour May Improve Student Explanatory Models of the Greenhouse Effect

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Harris, Sara E.; Gold, Anne U.

2018-01-01

We assessed undergraduates' representations of the greenhouse effect, based on student-generated concept sketches, before and after a 30-min constructivist lesson. Principal component analysis of features in student sketches revealed seven distinct and coherent explanatory models including a new "Molecular Details" model. After the…

Reduced dietary salt for the prevention of cardiovascular disease

PubMed Central

Taylor, Rod S; Ashton, Kate E; Moxham, Tiffany; Hooper, Lee; Ebrahim, Shah

2014-01-01

Background An earlier Cochrane review of dietary advice identified insufficient evidence to assess effects of reduced salt intake on mortality or cardiovascular events. Objectives To assess the long term effects of interventions aimed at reducing dietary salt on mortality and cardiovascular morbidity. To investigate whether blood pressure reduction is an explanatory factor in any effect of such dietary interventions on mortality and cardiovascular outcomes. Search methods The Cochrane Library (CENTRAL, Health Technology Assessment (HTA) and Database of Abstracts of Reviews of Effect (DARE)), MEDLINE, EMBASE, CINAHL and PsycInfo were searched through to October 2008. References of included studies and reviews were also checked. No language restrictions were applied. Selection criteria Trials fulfilled the following criteria: (1) randomised with follow up of at least six-months, (2) intervention was reduced dietary salt (restricted salt dietary intervention or advice to reduce salt intake), (3) adults, (4) mortality or cardiovascular morbidity data was available. Two reviewers independently assessed whether studies met these criteria. Data collection and analysis Data extraction and study validity were compiled by a single reviewer, and checked by a second. Authors were contacted where possible to obtain missing information. Events were extracted and relative risks (RRs) and 95% CIs calculated. Main results Six studies (including 6,489 participants) met the inclusion criteria - three in normotensives (n=3518), two in hypertensives (n=758), and one in a mixed population of normo- and hypertensives (n=1981) with end of trial follow-up of seven to 36 months and longest observational follow up (after trial end) to 12.7 yrs. Relative risks for all cause mortality in normotensives (end of trial RR 0.67, 95% CI: 0.40 to 1.12, 60 deaths; longest follow up RR 0.90, 95% CI: 0.58 to 1.40, 79 deaths) and hypertensives (end of trial RR 0.97, 95% CI: 0.83 to 1.13, 513 deaths; longest follow up RR 0.96, 95% CI; 0.83 to 1.11, 565 deaths) showed no strong evidence of any effect of salt reduction. Cardiovascular morbidity in people with normal blood pressure (longest follow-up RR 0.71, 95% CI: 0.42 to 1.20, 200 events) or raised blood pressure at baseline (end of trial RR 0.84, 95% CI: 0.57 to 1.23, 93 events) also showed no strong evidence of benefit. We found no information on participants health-related quality of life. Authors’ conclusions Despite collating more event data than previous systematic reviews of randomised controlled trials (665 deaths in some 6,250 participants), there is still insufficient power to exclude clinically important effects of reduced dietary salt on mortality or cardiovascular morbidity in normotensive or hypertensive populations. Our estimates of benefits from dietary salt restriction are consistent with the predicted small effects on clinical events attributable to the small blood pressure reduction achieved. PMID:21735439

IGF-1 and growth response to adult height in a randomized GH treatment trial in short non-GH-deficient children.

PubMed

Kriström, Berit; Lundberg, Elena; Jonsson, Björn; Albertsson-Wikland, Kerstin

2014-08-01

GH treatment significantly increased adult height (AH) in a dose-dependent manner in short non-GH-deficient children in a randomized, controlled, clinical trial; the mean gain in height SD score (heightSDS) was 1.3 (range 0-3), compared with 0.2 in the untreated group. The objective of the study was to analyze the relationship between IGF-1SDS, IGF binding protein-3 SDS (IGFBP3SDS), and their ratioSDS with a gain in the heightSDS until AH in non-GH-deficient short children. This was a randomized, controlled, multicenter clinical trial. The intervention included GH treatment: 33 or 67 μg/kg · d plus untreated controls. One hundred fifty-one non-GH-deficient short children were included in the intent-to-treat (ITT) population and 108 in the per-protocol (PP) population; 112 children in the ITT and 68 children in the PP populations had idiopathic short stature (ISS). Increments from baseline to on-treatment study mean IGF-1SDS (ΔIGF-1SDS), IGFBP3SDS, and IGF-1 to IGFBP3 ratioSDS were assessed in relationship to the gain in heightSDS. Sixty-two percent of the variance in the gain in heightSDS in children on GH treatment could be explained by four variables: ΔIGF-1SDS (explaining 28%), bone age delay, birth length (the taller the better), and GH dose (the higher the better). The lower IGF-1SDS was at baseline, the higher was its increment during treatment. For both the AllPP- and the ISSPP-treated groups, the attained IGF-1SDS study level did not correlate with height gain. In short non-GH-deficient children, the GH dose-related increment in IGF-1SDS from baseline to mean study level was the most important explanatory variable for long-term growth response from the peripubertal period until AH, when IGF-1SDS, IGFBP3SDS, and their ratioSDS were compared concurrently.

Explanatory models of addictive behaviour among native German, Russian-German, and Turkish youth.

PubMed

Penka, S; Heimann, H; Heinz, A; Schouler-Ocak, M

2008-01-01

In Germany, the public system of addiction treatment is used less by migrants with addictive disorders than by their non-migrant counterparts. To date, the literature has focused primarily on language, sociocultural factors, and residence status when discussing access barriers to this part of the health care system. However, little attention has been paid to cultural differences in explanatory models of addictive behaviour. This is surprising when we consider the important role played by popular knowledge in a population's perceptions of and responses to illnesses, including their causes, symptoms, and treatment. In the present study, we examined explanatory models of addictive behaviour and of mental disorders in 124 native German und Russian-German youth and compared these models to those observed in an earlier study of 144 German and Turkish youth. We employed the free listing technique German and to compile the terms that participating subjects used to describe addictive behaviour. Subsequently, we examined how a subset of our study population assigned these terms to the respective disorders by means of the pile sort method. Although the explanatory models used by the German and Russian-German youth in our study were surprisingly similar, those employed by Turkish youth did not make any fundamental distinction between illegal and legal drugs (e.g. alcohol and nicotine). German and Russian-German youth regarded eating disorders as "embarrassing" or "disgraceful", but Turkish youth did not. Unlike our German and Russian-German subjects, the Turkish youth did not classify eating disorders as being addictive in nature. Moreover, medical concepts crucial to a proper understanding of dependence disorders (e.g. the term "physical dependence") were characterised by almost half of our Turkish subjects as useless in describing addictions. These findings show that it is impossible to translate medical or everyday concepts of disease and treatment properly into a different language without considering the connotations and implications of each term as it relates to the respective culture. Terms that are central to Western medical models of disease may otherwise be misunderstood, misinterpreted, or simply rejected.

Examining school effectiveness at the fourth grade: A hierarchical analysis of the Third International Mathematics and Science Study (TIMSS)

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Stemler, Steven Edward

This study explored school effectiveness in mathematics and science at the fourth grade using data from IEA's Third International Mathematics and Science Study (TIMSS). Fourteen of the 26 countries participating in TIMSS at the fourth grade possessed sufficient between-school variability in mathematics achievement to justify the creation of explanatory models of school effectiveness while 13 countries possessed sufficient between-school variability in science achievement. Exploratory models were developed using variables drawn from student, teacher, and school questionnaires. The variables were chosen to represent the domains of student involvement, instructional methods, classroom organization, school climate, and school structure. Six explanatory models for each subject were analyzed using two-level hierarchical linear modeling (HLM) and were compared to models using only school mean SES as an explanatory variable. The amount of variability in student achievement in mathematics attributable to differences between schools ranged from 16% in Cyprus to 56% in Latvia, while the amount of between-school variance in science achievement ranged from 12% in Korea to 59% in Latvia. In general, about one-quarter of the variability in mathematics and science achievement was found to lie between schools. The research findings revealed that after adjusting for differences in student backgrounds across schools, the most effective schools in mathematics and science had students who reported seeing a positive relationship between hard work, belief in their own abilities, and achievement. In addition, more effective schools had students who reported less frequent use of computers and calculators in the classroom. These relationships were found to be stable across explanatory models, cultural contexts, and subject areas. This study has contributed a unique element to the literature by examining school effectiveness at the fourth grade across two subject areas and across 14 different countries. The results indicate that further exploration of the relationship between school effectiveness and student locus of control warrants serious consideration. Future research on school effectiveness is recommended, perhaps using trend data and looking at different grade levels.

Refinement of regression models to estimate real-time concentrations of contaminants in the Menomonee River drainage basin, southeast Wisconsin, 2008-11

USGS Publications Warehouse

Baldwin, Austin K.; Robertson, Dale M.; Saad, David A.; Magruder, Christopher

2013-01-01

In 2008, the U.S. Geological Survey and the Milwaukee Metropolitan Sewerage District initiated a study to develop regression models to estimate real-time concentrations and loads of chloride, suspended solids, phosphorus, and bacteria in streams near Milwaukee, Wisconsin. To collect monitoring data for calibration of models, water-quality sensors and automated samplers were installed at six sites in the Menomonee River drainage basin. The sensors continuously measured four potential explanatory variables: water temperature, specific conductance, dissolved oxygen, and turbidity. Discrete water-quality samples were collected and analyzed for five response variables: chloride, total suspended solids, total phosphorus, Escherichia coli bacteria, and fecal coliform bacteria. Using the first year of data, regression models were developed to continuously estimate the response variables on the basis of the continuously measured explanatory variables. Those models were published in a previous report. In this report, those models are refined using 2 years of additional data, and the relative improvement in model predictability is discussed. In addition, a set of regression models is presented for a new site in the Menomonee River Basin, Underwood Creek at Wauwatosa. The refined models use the same explanatory variables as the original models. The chloride models all used specific conductance as the explanatory variable, except for the model for the Little Menomonee River near Freistadt, which used both specific conductance and turbidity. Total suspended solids and total phosphorus models used turbidity as the only explanatory variable, and bacteria models used water temperature and turbidity as explanatory variables. An analysis of covariance (ANCOVA), used to compare the coefficients in the original models to those in the refined models calibrated using all of the data, showed that only 3 of the 25 original models changed significantly. Root-mean-squared errors (RMSEs) calculated for both the original and refined models using the entire dataset showed a median improvement in RMSE of 2.1 percent, with a range of 0.0–13.9 percent. Therefore most of the original models did almost as well at estimating concentrations during the validation period (October 2009–September 2011) as the refined models, which were calibrated using those data. Application of these refined models can produce continuously estimated concentrations of chloride, total suspended solids, total phosphorus, E. coli bacteria, and fecal coliform bacteria that may assist managers in quantifying the effects of land-use changes and improvement projects, establish total maximum daily loads, and enable better informed decision making in the future.

Mental health assessment: Inference, explanation, and coherence.

PubMed

Thagard, Paul; Larocque, Laurette

2018-06-01

Mental health professionals such as psychiatrists and psychotherapists assess their patients by identifying disorders that explain their symptoms. This assessment requires an inference to the best explanation that compares different disorders with respect to how well they explain the available evidence. Such comparisons are captured by the theory of explanatory coherence that states 7 principles for evaluating competing hypotheses in the light of evidence. The computational model ECHO shows how explanatory coherence can be efficiently computed. We show the applicability of explanatory coherence to mental health assessment by modelling a case of psychiatric interviewing and a case of psychotherapeutic evaluation. We argue that this approach is more plausible than Bayesian inference and hermeneutic interpretation. © 2018 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.

Categorization and analysis of explanatory writing in mathematics

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Craig, Tracy S.

2011-10-01

The aim of this article is to present a scheme for coding and categorizing students' written explanations of mathematical problem-solving activities. The scheme was used successfully within a study project carried out to determine whether student problem-solving behaviour could be positively affected by writing explanatory strategies to mathematical problem-solving processes. The rationale for the study was the recognized importance of mathematical problem-solving, the widely acknowledged challenge of teaching problem-solving skills directly and the evidence in the literature that writing in mathematics provides a tool for learning. The study was carried out in a first-year mathematics course at the University of Cape Town, South Africa. Students' written submissions were categorized and analysed through use of an adaptation of a journal entry classification scheme. The scheme successfully observed positive changes over the experimental period in students' level of engagement with the mathematical material and with their stance towards knowledge.

Strategies to Reduce the Negative Effects of Spoken Explanatory Text on Integrated Tasks

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Singh, Anne-Marie; Marcus, Nadine; Ayres, Paul

2017-01-01

Two experiments involving 125 grade-10 students learning about commerce investigated strategies to overcome the transient information effect caused by explanatory spoken text. The transient information effect occurs when learning is reduced as a result of information disappearing before the learner has time to adequately process it, or link it…

The Development and Application of the Explanatory Model of School Dysfunctions

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Bergman, Manfred Max; Bergman, Zinette; Gravett, Sarah

2011-01-01

This article develops the Explanatory Model of School Dysfunctions based on 80 essays of school principals and their representatives in Gauteng. It reveals the degree and kinds of school dysfunctions, as well as their interconnectedness with actors, networks, and domains. The model provides a basis for theory-based analyses of specific…

Combined Descriptive and Explanatory Information Improves Peers' Perceptions of Autism

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Campbell, Jonathan M.; Ferguson, Jane E.; Herzinger, Caitlin V.; Jackson, Jennie N.; Marino, Christine A.

2004-01-01

Authors examined the combined effects of descriptive and explanatory information on peers' perceptions and behavioral intentions toward an unfamiliar child with autism. Children (N=576; M age=10.06 years) were randomly assigned to view two videotapes of a boy engaging in typical and autistic behaviors receiving either descriptive (AUT-D) or…

CAVEing the MMPI for an Optimism-Pessimism Scale: Seligman's Attributional Model and the Assessment of Explanatory Style.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Colligan, Robert C.; And Others

1994-01-01

Developed bipolar Minnesota Multiphasic Personality Inventory (MMPI) Optimism-Pessimism (PSM) scale based on results on Content Analysis of Verbatim Explanation applied to MMPI. Reliability and validity indices show that PSM scale is highly accurate and consistent with Seligman's theory that pessimistic explanatory style predicts increased…

Schoolyard Science. Grades 2-4.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Perdue, Peggy K.

This book includes 25 science activities in the fields of environmental science, soil science, life science, and physical science. The activities are designed to be used in outdoor settings. Each activity is composed of two parts--an explanatory section for the teacher and a student lab sheet. The teacher explanatory section begins with a brief…

Explanatory Model for Sound Amplification in a Stethoscope

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Eshach, H.; Volfson, A.

2015-01-01

In the present paper we suggest an original physical explanatory model that explains the mechanism of the sound amplification process in a stethoscope. We discuss the amplification of a single pulse, a continuous wave of certain frequency, and finally we address the resonant frequencies. It is our belief that this model may provide students with…

Mind and Meaning: Piaget and Vygotsky on Causal Explanation.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Beilin, Harry

1996-01-01

Piaget's theory has been characterized as descriptive and not explanatory, not qualifying as causal explanation. Piaget was consistent in showing how his theory was both explanatory and causal. Vygotsky also endorsed causal-genetic explanation but, on the basis of knowledge of only Piaget's earliest works, he claimed that Piaget's theory was not…

'Hypotheses, everywhere only hypotheses!': on some contexts of Dilthey's critique of explanatory psychology.

PubMed

Feest, Uljana

2007-03-01

In 1894, Wilhelm Dilthey published an article in which he formulated a critique of what he called 'explanatory psychology', contrasting it with his own conception of 'descriptive psychology'. Dilthey's descriptive psychology, in turn, was to provide the basis for Dilthey's specific philosophy of the human sciences (Geisteswissenschaften). In this paper, I contextualize Dilthey's critique of explanatory psychology. I show that while this critique comes across as very broad and sweeping, he in fact had specific opponents in mind, namely, scholars who, like him, attempted to theorize about the relationship between the individual and society, between psychology and the other human sciences. Dilthey's critique of explanatory psychology is the flipside of his critique of sociology, which he had already formulated. He challenged both because he felt that they gave the wrong kind of answer to the task of overcoming metaphysics within the human sciences. In particular, I identify the founders of Völkerpsychologie, Moritz Lazarus and Heymann Steinthal, and (more importantly) their student, Georg Simmel, as Dilthey's targets. I provide textual and historical evidence for this thesis.

Body Fat Percentage Prediction Using Intelligent Hybrid Approaches

PubMed Central

Shao, Yuehjen E.

2014-01-01

Excess of body fat often leads to obesity. Obesity is typically associated with serious medical diseases, such as cancer, heart disease, and diabetes. Accordingly, knowing the body fat is an extremely important issue since it affects everyone's health. Although there are several ways to measure the body fat percentage (BFP), the accurate methods are often associated with hassle and/or high costs. Traditional single-stage approaches may use certain body measurements or explanatory variables to predict the BFP. Diverging from existing approaches, this study proposes new intelligent hybrid approaches to obtain fewer explanatory variables, and the proposed forecasting models are able to effectively predict the BFP. The proposed hybrid models consist of multiple regression (MR), artificial neural network (ANN), multivariate adaptive regression splines (MARS), and support vector regression (SVR) techniques. The first stage of the modeling includes the use of MR and MARS to obtain fewer but more important sets of explanatory variables. In the second stage, the remaining important variables are served as inputs for the other forecasting methods. A real dataset was used to demonstrate the development of the proposed hybrid models. The prediction results revealed that the proposed hybrid schemes outperformed the typical, single-stage forecasting models. PMID:24723804

A comparison of walk-in counselling and the wait list model for delivering counselling services.

PubMed

Stalker, Carol A; Riemer, Manuel; Cait, Cheryl-Anne; Horton, Susan; Booton, Jocelyn; Josling, Leslie; Bedggood, Joanna; Zaczek, Margaret

2016-10-01

Walk-in counselling has been used to reduce wait times but there are few controlled studies to compare outcomes between walk-in and the traditional model of service delivery. To compare change in psychological distress by clients receiving services from two models of service delivery, a walk-in counselling model and a traditional counselling model involving a wait list. Mixed-methods sequential explanatory design including quantitative comparison of groups with one pre-test and two follow-ups, and qualitative analysis of interviews with a sub-sample. Five-hundred and twenty-four participants ≥16 years were recruited from two Family Counselling Agencies; the General Health Questionnaire-12 assessed change in psychological distress. Hierarchical linear modelling revealed clients of the walk-in model improved faster and were less distressed at the four-week follow-up compared to the traditional service delivery model. Ten weeks later, both groups had improved and were similar. Participants receiving instrumental services prior to baseline improved more slowly. The qualitative data confirmed participants highly valued the accessibility of the walk-in model, and were frustrated by the lengthy waits associated with the traditional model. This study improves methodologically on previous studies of walk-in counselling, an approach to service delivery not conducive to randomized controlled trials.

Reporting of research quality characteristics of studies published in 6 major clinical dental specialty journals.

PubMed

Pandis, Nikolaos; Polychronopoulou, Argy; Madianos, Phoebus; Makou, Margarita; Eliades, Theodore

2011-06-01

The objective of this article was to record reporting characteristics related to study quality of research published in major specialty dental journals with the highest impact factor (Journal of Endodontics, Journal of Oral and Maxillofacial Surgery, American Journal of Orthodontics and Dentofacial Orthopedics; Pediatric Dentistry, Journal of Clinical Periodontology, and International Journal of Prosthetic Dentistry). The included articles were classified into the following 3 broad subject categories: (1) cross-sectional (snap-shot), (2) observational, and (3) interventional. Multinomial logistic regression was conducted for effect estimation using the journal as the response and randomization, sample calculation, confounding discussed, multivariate analysis, effect measurement, and confidence intervals as the explanatory variables. The results showed that cross-sectional studies were the dominant design (55%), whereas observational investigations accounted for 13%, and interventions/clinical trials for 32%. Reporting on quality characteristics was low for all variables: random allocation (15%), sample size calculation (7%), confounding issues/possible confounders (38%), effect measurements (16%), and multivariate analysis (21%). Eighty-four percent of the published articles reported a statistically significant main finding and only 13% presented confidence intervals. The Journal of Clinical Periodontology showed the highest probability of including quality characteristics in reporting results among all dental journals. Copyright © 2011 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

The impact of aging and hearing status on verbal short-term memory.

PubMed

Verhaegen, Clémence; Collette, Fabienne; Majerus, Steve

2014-01-01

The aim of this study is to assess the impact of hearing status on age-related decrease in verbal short-term memory (STM) performance. This was done by administering a battery of verbal STM tasks to elderly and young adult participants matched for hearing thresholds, as well as to young normal-hearing control participants. The matching procedure allowed us to assess the importance of hearing loss as an explanatory factor of age-related STM decline. We observed that elderly participants and hearing-matched young participants showed equal levels of performance in all verbal STM tasks, and performed overall lower than the normal-hearing young control participants. This study provides evidence for recent theoretical accounts considering reduced hearing level as an important explanatory factor of poor auditory-verbal STM performance in older adults.

Comparison between splines and fractional polynomials for multivariable model building with continuous covariates: a simulation study with continuous response.

PubMed

Binder, Harald; Sauerbrei, Willi; Royston, Patrick

2013-06-15

In observational studies, many continuous or categorical covariates may be related to an outcome. Various spline-based procedures or the multivariable fractional polynomial (MFP) procedure can be used to identify important variables and functional forms for continuous covariates. This is the main aim of an explanatory model, as opposed to a model only for prediction. The type of analysis often guides the complexity of the final model. Spline-based procedures and MFP have tuning parameters for choosing the required complexity. To compare model selection approaches, we perform a simulation study in the linear regression context based on a data structure intended to reflect realistic biomedical data. We vary the sample size, variance explained and complexity parameters for model selection. We consider 15 variables. A sample size of 200 (1000) and R(2)  = 0.2 (0.8) is the scenario with the smallest (largest) amount of information. For assessing performance, we consider prediction error, correct and incorrect inclusion of covariates, qualitative measures for judging selected functional forms and further novel criteria. From limited information, a suitable explanatory model cannot be obtained. Prediction performance from all types of models is similar. With a medium amount of information, MFP performs better than splines on several criteria. MFP better recovers simpler functions, whereas splines better recover more complex functions. For a large amount of information and no local structure, MFP and the spline procedures often select similar explanatory models. Copyright © 2012 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.

Oral health of 65-year olds in Sweden and Norway: a global question and ICF, the latest conceptual model from WHO.

PubMed

Ekbäck, Gunnar; Åstrøm, Anne Nordrehaug; Klock, Kristin; Ordell, Sven; Unell, Lennart

2012-07-01

The aims of this study were to identify explanatory factors of satisfaction with oral health among Norwegian and Swedish 65 year olds in terms of items from four different domains of ICF and to compare the strengths of the various ICF domains in explaining satisfaction with oral health. Further it was to assess whether the explanatory factors of ICF domains vary between Norway and Sweden. In 2007, standardized questionnaires were mailed to all the residents in certain counties of Sweden and Norway who were born in 1942. Response rates were 73.1% (n = 6078) in Sweden and 56.0% (n = 4062) in Norway. In total, 33 questions based on four different ICF domains were chosen to explain satisfaction with oral health. Logistic regression showed that four different ICF domains in terms of body function, body structure, activity/participation and environmental factors explained, respectively, 53%, 31%, 12% and 34% of the explanatory variance in the satisfaction with oral health. In the final analysis, only nine items were statistically significant (p < 0.05). This study indicates that ICF as a conceptual model could cover a broad spectrum of factors embedded in OHRQoL measured by a global question in Sweden and Norway. Nine items, representing four ICF domains, were important in the final model for explaining satisfaction with oral health.

Motivated explanation

PubMed Central

Patterson, Richard; Operskalski, Joachim T.; Barbey, Aron K.

2015-01-01

Although motivation is a well-established field of study in its own right, and has been fruitfully studied in connection with attribution theory and belief formation under the heading of “motivated thinking,” its powerful and pervasive influence on specifically explanatory processes is less well explored. Where one has a strong motivation to understand some event correctly, one is thereby motivated to adhere as best one can to normative or “epistemic” criteria for correct or accurate explanation, even if one does not consciously formulate or apply such criteria. By contrast, many of our motivations to explain introduce bias into the processes involved in generating, evaluating, or giving explanations. Non-epistemic explanatory motivations, or following Kunda's usage, “directional” motivations, include self-justification, resolution of cognitive dissonance, deliberate deception, teaching, and many more. Some of these motivations lead to the relaxation or violation of epistemic norms; others enhance epistemic motivation, so that one engages in more careful and thorough generational and evaluative processes. We propose that “real life” explanatory processes are often constrained by multiple goals, epistemic and directional, where these goals may mutually reinforce one another or may conflict, and where our explanations emerge as a matter of weighing and satisfying those goals. We review emerging evidence from psychology and neuroscience to support this framework and to elucidate the central role of motivation in human thought and explanation. PMID:26528166

Effectiveness of a Mobile Phone App for Adults That Uses Physical Activity as a Tool to Manage Cigarette Craving After Smoking Cessation: A Study Protocol for a Randomized Controlled Trial.

PubMed

Hassandra, Mary; Lintunen, Taru; Kettunen, Tarja; Vanhala, Mauno; Toivonen, Hanna-Mari; Kinnunen, Kimmo; Heikkinen, Risto

2015-10-22

Results from studies on the effects of exercise on smoking-related variables have provided strong evidence that physical activity acutely reduces cigarette cravings. Mobile technology may provide some valuable tools to move from explanatory randomized controlled trials to pragmatic randomized controlled trials by testing the acute effectiveness of exercise on quitters under real-life conditions. An mHealth app was developed to be used as a support tool for quitters to manage their cigarette cravings. The primary aim of this paper is to present the protocol of a study examining the effectiveness of the Physical over smoking app (Ph.o.S) by comparing the point prevalence abstinence rate of a group of users to a comparator group during a 6-month follow-up period. After initial Web-based screening, eligible participants are recruited to attend a smoking cessation program for 3 weeks to set a quit smoking date. Fifty participants who succeed in quitting will be randomly allocated to the comparator and experimental groups. Both groups will separately have 1 more counseling session on how to manage cravings. In this fourth session, the only difference in treatment between the groups is that the experimental group will have an extra 10-15 minutes of guidance on how to use the fully automated Ph.o.S app to manage cravings during the follow-up period. Data will be collected at baseline, as well as before and after the quit day, and follow-up Web-based measures will be collected for a period of 6 months. The primary efficacy outcome is the 7-day point prevalence abstinence rate, and secondary efficacy outcomes are number of relapses and cravings, self-efficacy of being aware of craving experience, self-efficacy in managing cravings, and power of control in managing cravings. Recruitment for this project commenced in December 2014, and proceeded until May 2015. Follow-up data collection has commenced and will be completed by the end of December 2015. If the Ph.o.S app is shown to be effective, the study will provide evidence for the use of the app as a support tool for people who are trying to manage cravings during smoking cessation programs. It is anticipated that the results of the study will provide knowledge of how physical activity affects cigarette craving in real-life situations and inform the development and delivery of relapse prevention in smoking cessation treatment. International Standard Randomized Controlled Trial Number (ISRCTN): ISRCTN55259451; http://www.controlled-trials.com/ISRCTN55259451 (Archived by WebCite at http://www.webcitation.org/6cKF2mzEI).

Real-time predictive seasonal influenza model in Catalonia, Spain

PubMed Central

Basile, Luca; Oviedo de la Fuente, Manuel; Torner, Nuria; Martínez, Ana; Jané, Mireia

2018-01-01

Influenza surveillance is critical to monitoring the situation during epidemic seasons and predictive mathematic models may aid the early detection of epidemic patterns. The objective of this study was to design a real-time spatial predictive model of ILI (Influenza Like Illness) incidence rate in Catalonia using one- and two-week forecasts. The available data sources used to select explanatory variables to include in the model were the statutory reporting disease system and the sentinel surveillance system in Catalonia for influenza incidence rates, the official climate service in Catalonia for meteorological data, laboratory data and Google Flu Trend. Time series for every explanatory variable with data from the last 4 seasons (from 2010–2011 to 2013–2014) was created. A pilot test was conducted during the 2014–2015 season to select the explanatory variables to be included in the model and the type of model to be applied. During the 2015–2016 season a real-time model was applied weekly, obtaining the intensity level and predicted incidence rates with 95% confidence levels one and two weeks away for each health region. At the end of the season, the confidence interval success rate (CISR) and intensity level success rate (ILSR) were analysed. For the 2015–2016 season a CISR of 85.3% at one week and 87.1% at two weeks and an ILSR of 82.9% and 82% were observed, respectively. The model described is a useful tool although it is hard to evaluate due to uncertainty. The accuracy of prediction at one and two weeks was above 80% globally, but was lower during the peak epidemic period. In order to improve the predictive power, new explanatory variables should be included. PMID:29513710

Somatization revisited: diagnosis and perceived causes of common mental disorders.

PubMed

Henningsen, Peter; Jakobsen, Thorsten; Schiltenwolf, Marcus; Weiss, Mitchell G

2005-02-01

The assessment of somatoform disorders is complicated by persistent theoretical and practical questions of classification and assessment. Critical rethinking of professional concepts of somatization suggests the value of complementary assessment of patients' illness explanatory models of somatoform and other common mental disorders. We undertook this prospective study to assess medically unexplained somatic symptoms and their patient-perceived causes of illness and to show how patients' explanatory models relate to professional diagnoses of common mental disorders and how they may predict the short-term course of illness. Tertiary care patients (N=186) with prominent somatoform symptoms were evaluated with the Structured Clinical Interview for DSM-IV, a locally adapted Explanatory Model Interview to elicit patients' illness experience (priority symptoms) and perceived causes, and clinical self-report questionnaires. The self-report questionnaires were administered at baseline and after 6 months. Diagnostic overlap between somatoform, depressive, and anxiety disorders occurred frequently (79.6%). Patients explained pure somatoform disorders mainly with organic causal attributions; they explained pure depressive and/or anxiety disorders mainly with psychosocial perceived causes, and patients in the diagnostic overlap group typically reported mixed causal attributions. In this last group, among patients with similar levels of symptom severity, organic perceived causes were related to a lower physical health sum score on the MOS Short Form, and psychosocial perceived causes were related to less severe depressive symptoms, assessed with the Hospital Anxiety and Depression Scale at 6 months. Among patients meeting criteria for comorbid somatoform with anxiety and/or depressive disorders, complementary assessment of patient-perceived causes, a key element of illness explanatory models, was related to levels of functional impairment and short-term prognosis. For such patients, causal attributions may be particularly useful to clarify clinically significant features of common mental disorders and thereby contribute to clinical assessment.

Little Bayesians or Little Einsteins? Probability and Explanatory Virtue in Children's Inferences

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Johnston, Angie M.; Johnson, Samuel G. B.; Koven, Marissa L.; Keil, Frank C.

2017-01-01

Like scientists, children seek ways to explain causal systems in the world. But are children scientists in the strict Bayesian tradition of maximizing posterior probability? Or do they attend to other explanatory considerations, as laypeople and scientists--such as Einstein--do? Four experiments support the latter possibility. In particular, we…

An Explanatory Mixed-Methods Approach to Tracing "Career Pathways" Policy in Virginia: How School Counselors and Student Demographics Influence Implementation Fidelity

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Ormsmith, Michael Isaac

2014-01-01

This explanatory mixed-methods policy analysis describes how school counselors' thoughts and attitudes contribute to the implementation fidelity of the Academic and Career Plan (ACP) policy in a suburban Virginia school division. A quantitative survey investigated counselor thoughts about the policy, implementation behaviors, and counselor ideas…

Science Is an Action Word! Grades 1-3.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Perdue, Peggy K.

This book includes 20 science activities in the fields of scientific method, earth science, life science, and physical science. Each activity is composed of two parts--an explanatory section for the teacher and a student lab sheet. The explanatory section begins with a brief introduction designed to give an overview of the activity's main concept.…

Why Do Adolescents Use Drugs? A Common Sense Explanatory Model from the Social Actor's Perspective

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Nuno-Gutierrez, Bertha Lidia; Rodriguez-Cerda, Oscar; Alvarez-Nemegyei, Jose

2006-01-01

Analysis was made of the common sense explanations of 60 Mexican teenage illicit drug users in rehabilitation to determine their drug use debut. The explanatory model was separated into three blocks, two of which contained common sense aspects: interaction between subject's plane and the collectivity; and relationship between subject's interior…

Alternative Certification Programs & Pre-Service Teacher Preparedness

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Koehler, Adrie; Feldhaus, Charles Robert; Fernandez, Eugenia; Hundley, Stephen

2013-01-01

This explanatory sequential mixed methods research study investigated motives and purpose exhibited by professionals transitioning from careers in science, technology, engineering and math (STEM) to secondary education. The study also analyzed personal perceptions of teaching preparedness, and explored barriers to successful teaching. STEM career…

Psychosocial factors influencing smokeless tobacco use by teen-age military dependents.

PubMed

Lee, S; Raker, T; Chisick, M C

1994-02-01

Using bivariate and logistic regression analysis, we explored psychosocial correlates of smokeless tobacco (SLT) use in a sample of 2,257 teenage military dependents. We built separate regression models for males and females to explain triers and users of SLT. Results show female and male triers share five factors regarding SLT use--parental and peer approval, trying smoking, relatives using SLT, and athletic team membership. Male trial of SLT was additionally associated with race, difficulty in purchasing SLT, relatives who smoke, current smoking, and belief that SLT can cause mouth cancer. Male use of SLT was associated with race, seeing a dentist regularly, SLT counseling by a dentist, parental approval, trying and current smoking, and grade level. In all models, trying smoking was the strongest explanatory variable. Relatives and peers exert considerable influence on SLT use. Few triers or users had received SLT counseling from their dentist despite high dental utilization rates.

Maternal amino acid supplementation for intrauterine growth restriction

PubMed Central

Brown, Laura D; Green, Alice S; Limesand, Sean W; Rozance, Paul J

2011-01-01

Maternal dietary protein supplementation to improve fetal growth has been considered as an option to prevent or treat intrauterine growth restriction. However, in contrast to balanced dietary supplementation, adverse perinatal outcomes in pregnant women who received high amounts of dietary protein supplementation have been observed. The responsible mechanisms for these adverse outcomes are unknown. This review will discuss relevant human and animal data to provide the background necessary for the development of explanatory hypotheses and ultimately for the development therapeutic interventions during pregnancy to improve fetal growth. Relevant aspects of fetal amino acid metabolism during normal pregnancy and those pregnancies affected by IUGR will be discussed. In addition, data from animal experiments which have attempted to determine mechanisms to explain the adverse responses identified in the human trials will be presented. Finally, we will suggest new avenues for investigation into how amino acid supplementation might be used safely to treat and/or prevent IUGR. PMID:21196387

Culture, cultural factors and psychiatric diagnosis: review and projections.

PubMed

Alarcón, Renato D

2009-10-01

This paper aims to provide conceptual justifications for the inclusion of culture and cultural factors in psychiatric diagnosis, and logistic suggestions as to the content and use of this approach. A discussion of the scope and limitations of current diagnostic practice, criticisms from different quarters, and the role and relevance of culture in the diagnostic encounter, precede the examination of advantages and disadvantages of the approach. The cultural content of psychiatric diagnosis should include the main, well-recognized cultural variables, adequate family data, explanatory models, and strengths and weaknesses of every individual patient. The practical aspects include the acceptance of "cultural discordances" as a component of an updated definition of mental disorder, and the use of a refurbished cultural formulation. Clinical "telescoping" strategies to obtain relevant cultural data during the diagnostic interview, and areas of future research (including field trials on the cultural formulation and on "culture bound syndromes"), are outlined.

Customization in Prescribing for Bipolar Disorder

PubMed Central

Hodgkin, Dominic; Volpe-Vartanian, Joanna; Merrick, Elizabeth L.; Horgan, Constance M.; Nierenberg, Andrew A.; Frank, Richard G.; Lee, Sue

2011-01-01

For many disorders, patient heterogeneity requires physicians to customize their treatment to each patient’s needs. We test for the existence of customization in physicians’ prescribing for bipolar disorder, using data from a naturalistic clinical effectiveness trial of bipolar disorder treatment (STEP-BD), which did not constrain physician prescribing. Multinomial logit is used to model the physician’s choice among five combinations of drug classes. We find that our observed measure of the patient’s clinical status played only a limited role in the choice among drug class combinations, even for conditions such as mania that are expected to affect class choice. However, treatment of a patient with given characteristics differed widely depending on which physician was seen. The explanatory power of the model was low. There was variation within each physician’s prescribing, but the results do not suggest a high degree of customization in physicians’ prescribing, based on our measure of clinical status. PMID:21506194

Customization in prescribing for bipolar disorder.

PubMed

Hodgkin, Dominic; Volpe-Vartanian, Joanna; Merrick, Elizabeth L; Horgan, Constance M; Nierenberg, Andrew A; Frank, Richard G; Lee, Sue

2012-06-01

For many disorders, patient heterogeneity requires physicians to customize their treatment to each patient's needs. We test for the existence of customization in physicians' prescribing for bipolar disorder, using data from a naturalistic clinical effectiveness trial of bipolar disorder treatment (STEP-BD), which did not constrain physician prescribing. Multinomial logit is used to model the physician's choice among five combinations of drug classes. We find that our observed measure of the patient's clinical status played only a limited role in the choice among drug class combinations, even for conditions such as mania that are expected to affect class choice. However, treatment of a patient with given characteristics differed widely depending on which physician was seen. The explanatory power of the model was low. There was variation within each physician's prescribing, but the results do not suggest a high degree of customization in physicians' prescribing, based on our measure of clinical status. Copyright © 2011 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.

Do nurses wish to continue working for the UK National Health Service? A comparative study of three generations of nurses.

PubMed

Robson, Andrew; Robson, Fiona

2015-01-01

To identify the combination of variables that explain nurses' continuation intention in the UK National Health Service. This alternative arena has permitted the replication of a private sector Australian study. This study provides understanding about the issues that affect nurse retention in a sector where employee attrition is a key challenge, further exacerbated by an ageing workforce. A quantitative study based on a self-completion survey questionnaire completed in 2010. Nurses employed in two UK National Health Service Foundation Trusts were surveyed and assessed using seven work-related constructs and various demographics including age generation. Through correlation, multiple regression and stepwise regression analysis, the potential combined effect of various explanatory variables on continuation intention was assessed, across the entire nursing cohort and in three age-generation groups. Three variables act in combination to explain continuation intention: work-family conflict, work attachment and importance of work to the individual. This combination of significant explanatory variables was consistent across the three generations of nursing employee. Work attachment was identified as the strongest marginal predictor of continuation intention. Work orientation has a greater impact on continuation intention compared with employer-directed interventions such as leader-member exchange, teamwork and autonomy. UK nurses are homogeneous across the three age-generations regarding explanation of continuation intention, with the significant explanatory measures being recognizably narrower in their focus and more greatly concentrated on the individual. This suggests that differentiated approaches to retention should perhaps not be pursued in this sectoral context. © 2014 John Wiley & Sons Ltd.

The association between depression and emotional and social loneliness in older persons and the influence of social support, cognitive functioning and personality: A cross-sectional study.

PubMed

Peerenboom, L; Collard, R M; Naarding, P; Comijs, H C

2015-08-15

We investigated the association between old age depression and emotional and social loneliness. A cross-sectional study was performed using data from the Netherlands Study of Depression in Older Persons (NESDO). A total of 341 participants diagnosed with a depressive disorder, and 125 non-depressed participants were included. Depression diagnosis was confirmed with the Composite International Diagnostic Interview. Emotional and social loneliness were assessed using the De Jong Gierveld Loneliness Scale. Socio-demographic variables, social support variables, depression characteristics (Inventory of Depressive Symptoms), cognitive functioning (Mini Mental State Examination) and personality factors (the NEO- Five Factor Inventory and the Pearlin Mastery Scale) were considered as possible explanatory factors or confounders. (Multiple) logistic regression analyses were performed. Depression was strongly associated with emotional loneliness, but not with social loneliness. A higher sense of neuroticism and lower sense of mastery were the most important explanatory factors. Also, we found several other explanatory and confounding factors in the association of depression and emotional loneliness; a lower sense of extraversion and higher severity of depression. We performed a cross-sectional observational study. Therefore we cannot add evidence in regard to causation; whether depression leads to loneliness or vice versa. Depression in older persons is strongly associated with emotional loneliness but not with social loneliness. Several personality traits and the severity of depression are important in regard to the association of depression and emotional loneliness. It is important to develop interventions in which both can be treated. Copyright © 2015 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

Adverse cardiovascular events in acute coronary syndrome with indications for anticoagulation.

PubMed

Knight, Stacey; McCubrey, Raymond O; Yuan, Zhong; Woller, Scott C; Horne, Benjamin D; Bunch, T Jared; Le, Viet T; Mills, Roger M; Muhlestein, Joseph B

2016-08-01

Randomized acute coronary syndrome (ACS) trials testing various antithrombotic (AT) regimens have largely excluded patients with coexisting conditions and indications for anticoagulation (AC). The purpose of this study is to examine the 2-year clinical outcomes of patients with ACS with indication for AC due to venous thromboembolism (VTE) during hospitalization for the ACS event or a prior or new diagnosis of atrial fibrillation (AF) with a CHADS2 (Congestive heart failure; Hypertension; Age; Diabetes; previous ischemic Stroke) score ⩾2. ACS patients with AC indication from 2004 to 2009 were identified (n = 619). A Cox proportional hazards model was used to examine the primary efficacy outcome of major adverse cardiovascular events (MACE) including all-cause death, myocardial infarction (MI) or stroke. The primary explanatory variable was at-discharge antithrombotic strategy [single antiplatelet ± AC, dual antiplatelet (DAP) ± AC or AC only; referent DAP + AC]. A total of 261 (42.2%) patients had a MACE event. AT strategy was not a significant factor for MACE (all p > 0.09). The factors associated with MACE were high mortality risk score [hazard ratio (HR)=1.87, 95% confidence interval (CI): 1.39- 2.52; p < 0.001), prior MI (HR = 1.44, 95% CI: 1.03-2.01; p= 0.033) and presentation of ST elevation MI (HR = 2.70, 95% CI: 1.61-4.51; p < 0.001) or non-ST elevation MI (HR = 1.70, 95% CI: 1.15-2.49; p < 0.001) compared with angina. In this real world observational study, the at-discharge AT strategy was not significantly associated with the 2-year risk of MACE. These findings do not negate the need for randomized trials to generate evidence-based approaches to management of this important population. © The Author(s), 2016.

A Study on the Spatial Abilities of Prospective Social Studies Teachers: A Mixed Method Research

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Yurt, Eyüp; Tünkler, Vural

2016-01-01

This study investigated prospective social studies teachers' spatial abilities. It was conducted with 234 prospective teachers attending Social Studies Teaching departments at Education Faculties of two universities in Central and Southern Anatolia. This study, designed according to the explanatory-sequential design, is a mixed research method,…

Fraying connections of caring women: an exemplar of including difference in the development of explanatory frameworks.

PubMed

Wuest, J

1997-01-01

While research exploring diverse groups enhances understanding of their unique perspectives and experiences, it also contributes to the exclusion of such groups from mainstream frameworks and solutions. The feminist grounded theory method allows for inclusion of marginalized groups through theoretical sensitivity to feminist theory and theoretical sampling. This paper demonstrates how this approach results in an explanatory framework that accounts for diverse realities in a study of women's caring. Fraying connections were identified as women's initial response to competing and changing caring demands. The range of dimensions and properties of fraying connections was identified through theoretical sampling guided by the emerging themes and theoretical sensitivity to issues of gender, culture, age, ability, class, and sexual orientation.

The self, attributional processes and abnormal beliefs: towards a model of persecutory delusions.

PubMed

Bentall, R P; Kinderman, P; Kaney, S

1994-03-01

In this paper we review a series of recent investigations into cognitive abnormalities associated with persecutory delusions. Studies indicate that persecutory delusions are associated with abnormal attention to threat-related stimuli, an explanatory bias towards attributing negative outcomes to external causes and biases in information processing relating to the self-concept. We propose an integrative model to account for these findings in which it is hypothesized that, in deluded patients, activation of self/ideal discrepancies by threat-related information triggers defensive explanatory biases, which have the function of reducing the self/ideal discrepancies but result in persecutory ideation. We conclude by discussing the implications of this model for the cognitive-behavioural treatment of paranoid delusions.

An Explanatory Model of Self-Service on the Internet

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Oliver, Dave; Livermore, Celia Romm; Farag, Neveen Awad

This chapter describes research that identifies and classifies the dimensions of self-service activity enabled through the Internet. Self-service is effected by organizations providing ways and means whereby customers perform tasks related to the procurement of goods and services. We describe how an instrument used to measure Internet-based self-service was developed, validated and applied. The results from applying the instrument to a large number of Web sites, covering a range of industries, countries and cultures, are analyzed and discussed. The study presents a model in which type of industry, level of technological development, income and cultural factors are proposed as explanatory variables for Web-based self-service. We conclude with an assessment of this program of research’s achievements so far.

Parental explanatory models of ADHD: gender and cultural variations.

PubMed

Bussing, Regina; Gary, Faye A; Mills, Terry L; Garvan, Cynthia Wilson

2003-10-01

This study describes parents' explanatory models of Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder (ADHD) and examines model variation by child characteristics. Children with ADHD (N = 182) were identified from a school district population of elementary school students. A reliable coding system was developed for parental responses obtained in ethnographic interviews in order to convert qualitative into numerical data for quantitative analysis. African-American parents were less likely to connect the school system to ADHD problem identification, expressed fewer worries about ADHD-related school problems, and voiced fewer preferences for school interventions than Caucasian parents, pointing to a potential disconnect with the school system. More African-American than Caucasian parents were unsure about potential causes of and treatments for ADHD, indicating a need for culturally appropriate parent education approaches.

A study of low-cost reliable actuators for light aircraft. Part B: Appendices

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Eijsink, H.; Rice, M.

1978-01-01

Computer programs written in FORTRAN are given for time response calculations on pneumatic and linear hydraulic actuators. The programs are self-explanatory with comment statements. Program output is also included.

Cognitive behavioural therapy for the management of inflammatory bowel disease-fatigue with a nested qualitative element: study protocol for a randomised controlled trial.

PubMed

Artom, Micol; Czuber-Dochan, Wladyslawa; Sturt, Jackie; Norton, Christine

2017-05-11

Fatigue is one of the most prevalent and burdensome symptoms for patients with inflammatory bowel disease (IBD). Although fatigue increases during periods of inflammation, for some patients it persists when disease is in remission. Compared to other long-term conditions where fatigue has been extensively researched, optimal management of fatigue in patients with IBD is unknown and fatigue has rarely been the primary outcome in intervention studies. To date, interventions for the management of IBD-fatigue are sparse, have short-term effects and have not been implemented within the existing health system. There is a need to integrate current best evidence across different conditions, patient experience and clinical expertise in order to develop interventions for IBD-fatigue management that are feasible and effective. Modifying an existing intervention for patients with multiple sclerosis, this study aims to assess the feasibility and initial estimates of efficacy of a cognitive behavioural therapy (CBT) intervention for the management of fatigue in patients with IBD. The study will be a two-arm pilot randomised controlled trial. Patients will be recruited from one outpatient IBD clinic and randomised individually to either: Group 1 (CBT manual for the management of fatigue, one 60-min session and seven 30-min telephone/Skype sessions with a therapist over an eight-week period); or Group 2 (fatigue information sheet to use without therapist help). Self-reported IBD-fatigue (Inflammatory Bowel Disease-Fatigue Scale) and IBD-quality of life (United Kingdom Inflammatory Bowel Disease Questionnaire) and self-reported disease activity will be collected at baseline, three, six and 12 months post randomisation. Illness perceptions, daytime sleepiness, anxiety and depression explanatory variables will be collected only at three months post randomisation. Clinical and sociodemographic data will be retrieved from the patients' medical notes. A nested qualitative study will evaluate patient and therapist experience, and healthcare professionals' perceptions of the intervention. The study will provide evidence of the feasibility and initial estimates of efficacy of a CBT intervention for the management of fatigue in patients with IBD. Quantitative and qualitative findings from the study will contribute to the development and implementation of a large-scale randomised controlled trial assessing the efficacy of CBT interventions for IBD-fatigue. ISRCTN Registry, ISRCTN17917944 . Registered on 2 September 2016.

Spatial analysis of participation in the Waterloo Residential Energy Efficiency Project

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Song, Ge Bella

Researchers are in broad agreement that energy-conserving actions produce economic as well as energy savings. Household energy rating systems (HERS) have been established in many countries to inform households of their house's current energy performance and to help reduce their energy consumption and greenhouse gas emissions. In Canada, the national EnerGuide for Houses (EGH) program is delivered by many local delivery agents, including non-profit green community organizations. Waterloo Region Green Solutions is the local non-profit that offers the EGH residential energy evaluation service to local households. The purpose of this thesis is to explore the determinants of household's participation in the residential energy efficiency program (REEP) in Waterloo Region, to explain the relationship between the explanatory variables and REEP participation, and to propose ways to improve this kind of program. A spatial (trend) analysis was conducted within a geographic information system (GIS) to determine the spatial patterns of the REEP participation in Waterloo Region from 1999 to 2006. The impact of sources of information on participation and relationships between participation rates and explanatory variables were identified. GIS proved successful in presenting a visual interpretation of spatial patterns of the REEP participation. In general, the participating households tend to be clustered in urban areas and scattered in rural areas. Different sources of information played significant roles in reaching participants in different years. Moreover, there was a relationship between each explanatory variable and the REEP participation rates. Statistical analysis was applied to obtain a quantitative assessment of relationships between hypothesized explanatory variables and participation in the REEP. The Poisson regression model was used to determine the relationship between hypothesized explanatory variables and REEP participation at the CDA level. The results show that all of the independent variables have a statistically significant positive relationship with REEP participation. These variables include level of education, average household income, employment rate, home ownership, population aged 65 and over, age of home, and number of eligible dwellings. The logistic regression model was used to assess the ability of the hypothesized explanatory variables to predict whether or not households would participate in a second follow-up evaluation after completing upgrades to their home. The results show all the explanatory variables have significant relationships with the dependent variable. The increased rating score, average household income, aged population, and age of home are positively related to the dependent variable. While the dwelling size and education has negative relationships with the dependent variable. In general, the contribution of this work provides a practical understanding of how the energy efficiency program operates, and insight into the type of variables that may be successful in bringing about changes in performance in the energy efficiency project in Waterloo Region. Secondly, with the completion of this research, future residential energy efficiency programs can use the information from this research and emulate or expand upon the efforts and lessons learned from the Residential Energy Efficiency Project in Waterloo Region case study. Thirdly, this research also contributes to practical experience on how to integrate different datasets using GIS.

Learned Social Hopelessness: The Role of Explanatory Style in Predicting Social Support during Adolescence

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Ciarrochi, Joseph; Heaven, Patrick C. L.

2008-01-01

Background: Almost no research has examined the impact of explanatory style on social adjustment. We hypothesised that adolescents with a pessimistic style would be less likely to develop and maintain social support networks. Methods: Seven hundred and nineteen students (351 males and 366 females; 2 unknown; M[subscript AGE] = 12.28, SD = 0.49)…

Use of real-time monitoring to predict concentrations of select constituents in the Menomonee River drainage basin, Southeast Wisconsin, 2008-9

USGS Publications Warehouse

Baldwin, Austin K.; Graczyk, David J.; Robertson, Dale M.; Saad, David A.; Magruder, Christopher

2012-01-01

The models to estimate chloride concentrations all used specific conductance as the explanatory variable, except for the model for the Little Menomonee River near Freistadt, which used both specific conductance and turbidity as explanatory variables. Adjusted R2 values for the chloride models ranged from 0.74 to 0.97. Models to estimate total suspended solids and total phosphorus used turbidity as the only explanatory variable. Adjusted R2 values ranged from 0.77 to 0.94 for the total suspended solids models and from 0.55 to 0.75 for the total phosphorus models. Models to estimate indicator bacteria used water temperature and turbidity as the explanatory variables, with adjusted R2 values from 0.54 to 0.69 for Escherichia coli bacteria models and from 0.54 to 0.74 for fecal coliform bacteria models. Dissolved oxygen was not used in any of the final models. These models may help managers measure the effects of land-use changes and improvement projects, establish total maximum daily loads, estimate important water-quality indicators such as bacteria concentrations, and enable informed decision making in the future.

Multiple Use One-Sided Hypotheses Testing in Univariate Linear Calibration

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Krishnamoorthy, K.; Kulkarni, Pandurang M.; Mathew, Thomas

1996-01-01

Consider a normally distributed response variable, related to an explanatory variable through the simple linear regression model. Data obtained on the response variable, corresponding to known values of the explanatory variable (i.e., calibration data), are to be used for testing hypotheses concerning unknown values of the explanatory variable. We consider the problem of testing an unlimited sequence of one sided hypotheses concerning the explanatory variable, using the corresponding sequence of values of the response variable and the same set of calibration data. This is the situation of multiple use of the calibration data. The tests derived in this context are characterized by two types of uncertainties: one uncertainty associated with the sequence of values of the response variable, and a second uncertainty associated with the calibration data. We derive tests based on a condition that incorporates both of these uncertainties. The solution has practical applications in the decision limit problem. We illustrate our results using an example dealing with the estimation of blood alcohol concentration based on breath estimates of the alcohol concentration. In the example, the problem is to test if the unknown blood alcohol concentration of an individual exceeds a threshold that is safe for driving.

Belief models in first episode schizophrenia in South India.

PubMed

Saravanan, Balasubramanian; Jacob, K S; Johnson, Shanthi; Prince, Martin; Bhugra, Dinesh; David, Anthony S

2007-06-01

Existing evidence indicates that dissonance between patients' and professionals' explanatory models affects engagement of patients with psychiatric services in Western and non-Western countries. To assess qualitatively the explanatory models (EMs) of psychosis and their association with clinical variables in a representative sample of first episode patients with schizophrenia in South India. One hundred and thirty one patients with schizophrenia presenting consecutively were assessed. Measures included the patient's explanatory models, and clinician ratings of insight, symptoms of psychosis, and functioning on standard scales. The majority of patients (70%) considered spiritual and mystical factors as the cause of their predicament; 22% held multiple models of illness. Patients who held a biomedical concept of disease had significantly higher scores on the insight scale compared to those who held non-medical beliefs. Multivariate analyses identified three factors associated with holding of spiritual/mystical models (female sex, low education and visits to traditional healers); and a single factor (high level of insight) for the endorsement of biological model. Patients with schizophrenia in this region of India hold a variety of non-medical belief models, which influence patterns of health seeking. Those holding non-medical explanatory models are likey to be rated as having less insight.

Explaining socioeconomic inequalities in exclusive breast feeding in Norway.

PubMed

Bærug, Anne; Laake, Petter; Løland, Beate Fossum; Tylleskär, Thorkild; Tufte, Elisabeth; Fretheim, Atle

2017-08-01

In high-income countries, lower socioeconomic position is associated with lower rates of breast feeding, but it is unclear what factors explain this inequality. Our objective was to examine the association between socioeconomic position and exclusive breast feeding, and to explore whether socioeconomic inequality in exclusive breast feeding could be explained by other sociodemographic characteristics, for example, maternal age and parity, smoking habits, birth characteristics, quality of counselling and breastfeeding difficulties. We used data from a questionnaire sent to mothers when their infants were five completed months as part of a trial of a breastfeeding intervention in Norway. We used maternal education as an indicator of socioeconomic position. Analyses of 1598 mother-infant pairs were conducted using logistic regression to assess explanatory factors of educational inequalities in breast feeding. Socioeconomic inequalities in exclusive breast feeding were present from the beginning and persisted for five completed months, when 22% of the most educated mothers exclusively breast fed compared with 7% of the least educated mothers: OR 3.39 (95% CI 1.74 to 6.61). After adjustment for all potentially explanatory factors, the OR was reduced to 1.49 (95% CI 0.70 to 3.14). This decrease in educational inequality seemed to be mainly driven by sociodemographic factors, smoking habits and breastfeeding difficulties, in particular perceived milk insufficiency. Socioeconomic inequalities in exclusive breast feeding at 5 months were largely explained by sociodemographic factors, but also by modifiable factors, such as smoking habits and breastfeeding difficulties, which can be amenable to public health interventions. NCT01025362. Published by the BMJ Publishing Group Limited. For permission to use (where not already granted under a licence) please go to http://www.bmj.com/company/products-services/rights-and-licensing/.

Some methodological issues in the longitudinal analysis of demographic data.

PubMed

Krishinan, P

1982-12-01

Most demographic data are macro (or aggregate) in nature. Some relevant methodological issues are presented here in a time series study using aggregate data. The micro-macro distinction is relative. Time enters into the micro and macro variables in different ways. A simple micro model of rural-urban migration is given. Method 1 is to assume homogeneity in behavior. Method 2 is a Bayesian estimation. A discusssion of the results follows. Time series models of aggregate data are given. The nature of the model--predictive or explanatory--must be decided on. Explanatory models in longitudinal studies have been developed. Ways to go to the micro level from the macro are discussed. The aggregation-disaggregation problem in demography is not similar to that in econometrics. To understand small populations, separate micro level data have to be collected and analyzed and appropriate models developed. Both types of models have their uses.

An explanatory model for state Medicaid per capita prescription drug expenditures.

PubMed

Roy, Sanjoy; Madhavan, S Suresh

2012-01-01

Rising prescription drug expenditure is a growing concern for publicly funded drug benefit programs like Medicaid. To be able to contain drug expenditures in Medicaid, it is important that cause(s) for such increases are identified. This study attempts to establish an explanatory model for Medicaid prescription drugs expenditure based on the impacts of key influencers/predictors identified using a comprehensive framework of drug utilization. A modified Andersen's behavior model of health services utilization is employed to identify potential determinants of pharmaceutical expenditures in state Medicaid programs. Level of federal matching funds, access to primary care, severity of diseases, unemployment, and education levels were found to be key influencers of Medicaid prescription drug expenditure. Increases in all, except education levels, were found to result in increases in drug expenditures. Findings from this study could better inform intervention policies and cost-containment strategies for state Medicaid drug benefit programs.

Access to health programs at the workplace and the reduction of work presenteeism: a population-based cross-sectional study.

PubMed

Bustillos, Arnaldo Sanchez; Trigoso, Oswaldo Ortiz

2013-11-01

To examine access to health programs at workplace as a determinant of presenteeism among adults. Data source was a subsample of the 2009-2010 Canadian Community Health Survey. The outcome was self-reported reduced activities at work (presenteeism). The explanatory variable was self-reported access to a health program at workplace. Logistic regression was used to measure the association between outcome and explanatory variables adjusting for potential confounders. Adjusting for sex, age, education, income, work stress, and chronic conditions, presenteeism was not associated with having access to a health program at workplace (adjusted odds ratio, 1.23; 95% confidence interval, 0.91 to 1.65). The odds of presenteeism were higher in workers who reported high work stress and those with chronic medical conditions. This study found that access to health programs at workplace is not significantly associated with a decline in presenteeism.

A Study of Effects of MultiCollinearity in the Multivariable Analysis

PubMed Central

Yoo, Wonsuk; Mayberry, Robert; Bae, Sejong; Singh, Karan; (Peter) He, Qinghua; Lillard, James W.

2015-01-01

A multivariable analysis is the most popular approach when investigating associations between risk factors and disease. However, efficiency of multivariable analysis highly depends on correlation structure among predictive variables. When the covariates in the model are not independent one another, collinearity/multicollinearity problems arise in the analysis, which leads to biased estimation. This work aims to perform a simulation study with various scenarios of different collinearity structures to investigate the effects of collinearity under various correlation structures amongst predictive and explanatory variables and to compare these results with existing guidelines to decide harmful collinearity. Three correlation scenarios among predictor variables are considered: (1) bivariate collinear structure as the most simple collinearity case, (2) multivariate collinear structure where an explanatory variable is correlated with two other covariates, (3) a more realistic scenario when an independent variable can be expressed by various functions including the other variables. PMID:25664257

A Study of Effects of MultiCollinearity in the Multivariable Analysis.

PubMed

Yoo, Wonsuk; Mayberry, Robert; Bae, Sejong; Singh, Karan; Peter He, Qinghua; Lillard, James W

2014-10-01

A multivariable analysis is the most popular approach when investigating associations between risk factors and disease. However, efficiency of multivariable analysis highly depends on correlation structure among predictive variables. When the covariates in the model are not independent one another, collinearity/multicollinearity problems arise in the analysis, which leads to biased estimation. This work aims to perform a simulation study with various scenarios of different collinearity structures to investigate the effects of collinearity under various correlation structures amongst predictive and explanatory variables and to compare these results with existing guidelines to decide harmful collinearity. Three correlation scenarios among predictor variables are considered: (1) bivariate collinear structure as the most simple collinearity case, (2) multivariate collinear structure where an explanatory variable is correlated with two other covariates, (3) a more realistic scenario when an independent variable can be expressed by various functions including the other variables.

Remotely sensed vegetation moisture as explanatory variable of Lyme borreliosis incidence

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Barrios, J. M.; Verstraeten, W. W.; Maes, P.; Clement, J.; Aerts, J. M.; Farifteh, J.; Lagrou, K.; Van Ranst, M.; Coppin, P.

2012-08-01

The strong correlation between environmental conditions and abundance and spatial spread of the tick Ixodes ricinus is widely documented. I. ricinus is in Europe the main vector of the bacterium Borrelia burgdorferi, the pathogen causing Lyme borreliosis (LB). Humidity in vegetated systems is a major factor in tick ecology and its effects might translate into disease incidence in humans. Time series of two remotely sensed indices with sensitivity to vegetation greenness and moisture were tested as explanatory variables of LB incidence. Wavelet-based multiresolution analysis allowed the examination of these signals at different temporal scales in study sites in Belgium, where increases in LB incidence were reported in recent years. The analysis showed the potential of the tested indices for disease monitoring, the usefulness of analyzing the signal in different time frames and the importance of local characteristics of the study area for the selection of the vegetation index.

FAST INdiCATE Trial protocol. Clinical efficacy of functional strength training for upper limb motor recovery early after stroke: neural correlates and prognostic indicators.

PubMed

Pomeroy, Valerie M; Ward, Nick S; Johansen-Berg, Heidi; van Vliet, Paulette; Burridge, Jane; Hunter, Susan M; Lemon, Roger N; Rothwell, John; Weir, Christopher J; Wing, Alan; Walker, Andrew A; Kennedy, Niamh; Barton, Garry; Greenwood, Richard J; McConnachie, Alex

2014-02-01

Functional strength training in addition to conventional physical therapy could enhance upper limb recovery early after stroke more than movement performance therapy plus conventional physical therapy. To determine (a) the relative clinical efficacy of conventional physical therapy combined with functional strength training and conventional physical therapy combined with movement performance therapy for upper limb recovery; (b) the neural correlates of response to conventional physical therapy combined with functional strength training and conventional physical therapy combined with movement performance therapy; (c) whether any one or combination of baseline measures predict motor improvement in response to conventional physical therapy combined with functional strength training or conventional physical therapy combined with movement performance therapy. Randomized, controlled, observer-blind trial. The sample will consist of 288 participants with upper limb paresis resulting from a stroke that occurred within the previous 60 days. All will be allocated to conventional physical therapy combined with functional strength training or conventional physical therapy combined with movement performance therapy. Functional strength training and movement performance therapy will be undertaken for up to 1·5 h/day, five-days/week for six-weeks. Measurements will be undertaken before randomization, six-weeks thereafter, and six-months after stroke. Primary efficacy outcome will be the Action Research Arm Test. Explanatory measurements will include voxel-wise estimates of brain activity during hand movement, brain white matter integrity (fractional anisotropy), and brain-muscle connectivity (e.g. latency of motor evoked potentials). The primary clinical efficacy analysis will compare treatment groups using a multilevel normal linear model adjusting for stratification variables and for which therapist administered the treatment. Effect of conventional physical therapy combined with functional strength training versus conventional physical therapy combined with movement performance therapy will be summarized using the adjusted mean difference and 95% confidence interval. To identify the neural correlates of improvement in both groups, we will investigate associations between change from baseline in clinical outcomes and each explanatory measure. To identify baseline measurements that independently predict motor improvement, we will develop a multiple regression model. © 2013 The Authors. International Journal of Stroke published by John Wiley & Sons Ltd on behalf of World Stroke Organization.

Protocol for the ADDITION-Plus study: a randomised controlled trial of an individually-tailored behaviour change intervention among people with recently diagnosed type 2 diabetes under intensive UK general practice care.

PubMed

Griffin, Simon J; Simmons, Rebecca K; Williams, Kate M; Prevost, A Toby; Hardeman, Wendy; Grant, Julie; Whittle, Fiona; Boase, Sue; Hobbis, Imogen; Brage, Soren; Westgate, Kate; Fanshawe, Tom; Sutton, Stephen; Wareham, Nicholas J; Kinmonth, Ann Louise

2011-04-04

The increasing prevalence of type 2 diabetes poses both clinical and public health challenges. Cost-effective approaches to prevent progression of the disease in primary care are needed. Evidence suggests that intensive multifactorial interventions including medication and behaviour change can significantly reduce cardiovascular morbidity and mortality among patients with established type 2 diabetes, and that patient education in self-management can improve short-term outcomes. However, existing studies cannot isolate the effects of behavioural interventions promoting self-care from other aspects of intensive primary care management. The ADDITION-Plus trial was designed to address these issues among recently diagnosed patients in primary care over one year. ADDITION-Plus is an explanatory randomised controlled trial of a facilitator-led, theory-based behaviour change intervention tailored to individuals with recently diagnosed type 2 diabetes. 34 practices in the East Anglia region participated. 478 patients with diabetes were individually randomised to receive (i) intensive treatment alone (n = 239), or (ii) intensive treatment plus the facilitator-led individual behaviour change intervention (n = 239). Facilitators taught patients key skills to facilitate change and maintenance of key behaviours (physical activity, dietary change, medication adherence and smoking), including goal setting, action planning, self-monitoring and building habits. The intervention was delivered over one year at the participant's surgery and included a one-hour introductory meeting followed by six 30-minute meetings and four brief telephone calls. Primary endpoints are physical activity energy expenditure (assessed by individually calibrated heart rate monitoring and movement sensing), change in objectively measured dietary intake (plasma vitamin C), medication adherence (plasma drug levels), and smoking status (plasma cotinine levels) at one year. We will undertake an intention-to-treat analysis of the effect of the intervention on these measures, an assessment of cost-effectiveness, and analyse predictors of behaviour change in the cohort. The ADDITION-Plus trial will establish the medium-term effectiveness and cost-effectiveness of adding an externally facilitated intervention tailored to support change in multiple behaviours among intensively-treated individuals with recently diagnosed type 2 diabetes in primary care. Results will inform policy recommendations concerning the management of patients early in the course of diabetes. Findings will also improve understanding of the factors influencing change in multiple behaviours, and their association with health outcomes.

Orchestrating Mathematical Discourse: Affordances and Hindrances for Novice Elementary Teachers

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Lee, Carrie Wilkerson

2016-01-01

The purpose of this study was to examine the mathematical discourse within novice elementary teachers' classrooms. More specifically, this study employed a sequential, explanatory mixed methods design to first quantitatively analyze the relationship between teachers' discourse practices and teacher attributes and school context. Next, a…

The Impact of Generational Differences on Organizational Relationships: A Communication Perspective

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Salahuddin, Mecca M.

2013-01-01

The purpose of this mixed methods sequential explanatory study was to investigate the relationship between an individual's generation and the communication styles used with other generations, and explore the influence of intergenerational communication styles on organizational relationships. The study utilized the Global Perceptions of…

Direction dependence analysis: A framework to test the direction of effects in linear models with an implementation in SPSS.

PubMed

Wiedermann, Wolfgang; Li, Xintong

2018-04-16

In nonexperimental data, at least three possible explanations exist for the association of two variables x and y: (1) x is the cause of y, (2) y is the cause of x, or (3) an unmeasured confounder is present. Statistical tests that identify which of the three explanatory models fits best would be a useful adjunct to the use of theory alone. The present article introduces one such statistical method, direction dependence analysis (DDA), which assesses the relative plausibility of the three explanatory models on the basis of higher-moment information about the variables (i.e., skewness and kurtosis). DDA involves the evaluation of three properties of the data: (1) the observed distributions of the variables, (2) the residual distributions of the competing models, and (3) the independence properties of the predictors and residuals of the competing models. When the observed variables are nonnormally distributed, we show that DDA components can be used to uniquely identify each explanatory model. Statistical inference methods for model selection are presented, and macros to implement DDA in SPSS are provided. An empirical example is given to illustrate the approach. Conceptual and empirical considerations are discussed for best-practice applications in psychological data, and sample size recommendations based on previous simulation studies are provided.

Exploring the explaining quality of physics online explanatory videos

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Kulgemeyer, Christoph; Peters, Cord H.

2016-11-01

Explaining skills are among the most important skills educators possess. Those skills have also been researched in recent years. During the same period, another medium has additionally emerged and become a popular source of information for learners: online explanatory videos, chiefly from the online video sharing website YouTube. Their content and explaining quality remain to this day mostly unmonitored, as well is their educational impact in formal contexts such as schools or universities. In this study, a framework for explaining quality, which has emerged from surveying explaining skills in expert-novice face-to-face dialogues, was used to explore the explaining quality of such videos (36 YouTube explanatory videos on Kepler’s laws and 15 videos on Newton’s third law). The framework consists of 45 categories derived from physics education research that deal with explanation techniques. YouTube provides its own ‘quality measures’ based on surface features including ‘likes’, views, and comments for each video. The question is whether or not these measures provide valid information for educators and students if they have to decide which video to use. We compared the explaining quality with those measures. Our results suggest that there is a correlation between explaining quality and only one of these measures: the number of content-related comments.

Social support and clinical and functional outcome in people with schizophrenia.

PubMed

Vázquez Morejón, Antonio J; León Rubio, Jose Mª; Vázquez-Morejón, Raquel

2018-05-01

The impact of Social Support (SS) on the clinical and functional evolution of patients diagnosed with schizophrenia was studied from a multidimensional concept of SS in the framework of the vulnerability-stress model. In total, 152 patients diagnosed with schizophrenia according to the International Classification of Diseases, Tenth Edition (ICD-10) treated in a Community Mental Health Unit were assessed using the Mannheim Interview on Social Support (MISS) and the Brief Psychiatric Rating Scale (BPRS). Then they were followed up for 3 years with a final assessment for the period using the Social Functioning Scale. The impact of SS was explored in clinical and functional measurements with a multiple regression analysis in a 3-year longitudinal prospective design. The quality of Global Social Support (GSS) and satisfaction with GSS appeared to be protective factors from frequency and duration of hospital admissions, with explanatory intensity varying from 9% in survival time to relapse to 13% in number of relapses. Concerning functional measurements, GSS quantity, quality and satisfaction showed an explanatory power for several different dimensions of social functioning, varying from 12% in isolation to 20% in communication. The results confirm SS as a protective factor in the evolution of schizophrenia patients and enable the SS variables with the most explanatory power in their clinical and functional evolution to be identified.

Explanatory models of diabetes in urban poor communities in Accra, Ghana.

PubMed

de-Graft Aikins, Ama; Awuah, Raphael Baffour; Pera, Tuula Anneli; Mendez, Montserrat; Ogedegbe, Gbenga

2015-01-01

The objective of the study was to examine explanatory models of diabetes and diabetes complications among urban poor Ghanaians living with diabetes and implications for developing secondary prevention strategies. Twenty adults with type 2 diabetes were recruited from three poor communities in Accra. Qualitative data were obtained using interviews that run between 40 and 90 minutes. The interviews were audio-taped, transcribed and analysed thematically, informed by the 'explanatory model of disease' concept. Respondents associated diabetes and its complications with diet, family history, lifestyle factors (smoking, excessive alcohol consumption and physical inactivity), psychological stress and supernatural factors (witchcraft and sorcery). These associations were informed by biomedical and cultural models of diabetes and disease. Subjective experience, through a process of 'body-listening,' constituted a third model on which respondents drew to theorise diabetes complications. Poverty was an important mediator of poor self-care practices, including treatment non-adherence. The biomedical model of diabetes was a major source of legitimate information for self-care practices. However, this was understood and applied through a complex framework of cultural theories of chronic disease, the biopsychological impact of everyday illness experience and the disempowering effects of poverty. An integrated biopsychosocial approach is proposed for diabetes intervention in this research community.

Independent contrasts and PGLS regression estimators are equivalent.

PubMed

Blomberg, Simon P; Lefevre, James G; Wells, Jessie A; Waterhouse, Mary

2012-05-01

We prove that the slope parameter of the ordinary least squares regression of phylogenetically independent contrasts (PICs) conducted through the origin is identical to the slope parameter of the method of generalized least squares (GLSs) regression under a Brownian motion model of evolution. This equivalence has several implications: 1. Understanding the structure of the linear model for GLS regression provides insight into when and why phylogeny is important in comparative studies. 2. The limitations of the PIC regression analysis are the same as the limitations of the GLS model. In particular, phylogenetic covariance applies only to the response variable in the regression and the explanatory variable should be regarded as fixed. Calculation of PICs for explanatory variables should be treated as a mathematical idiosyncrasy of the PIC regression algorithm. 3. Since the GLS estimator is the best linear unbiased estimator (BLUE), the slope parameter estimated using PICs is also BLUE. 4. If the slope is estimated using different branch lengths for the explanatory and response variables in the PIC algorithm, the estimator is no longer the BLUE, so this is not recommended. Finally, we discuss whether or not and how to accommodate phylogenetic covariance in regression analyses, particularly in relation to the problem of phylogenetic uncertainty. This discussion is from both frequentist and Bayesian perspectives.

Using Qualitative Methods to Explore Lay Explanatory Models, Health-Seeking Behaviours and Self-Care Practices of Podoconiosis Patients in North-West Ethiopia.

PubMed

Banks, Harrison S; Tsegay, Girmay; Wubie, Moges; Tamiru, Abreham; Davey, Gail; Cooper, Max

2016-08-01

Podoconiosis (endemic non-filarial elephantiasis) is a chronic, non-infectious disease resulting from exposure of bare feet to red-clay soil in tropical highlands. This study examined lay beliefs about three under-researched aspects of podoconiosis patients' care: explanatory models, health-seeking behaviours and self-care. In-depth interviews and focus group discussions were undertaken with 34 participants (19 male, 15 female) between April-May 2015 at podoconiosis treatment centres across East and West Gojjam regions in north-west Ethiopia. Explanatory models for podoconiosis included contamination from blood, magic, soil or affected individuals. Belief in heredity or divine punishment often delayed clinic attendance. All participants had tried holy water treatment and some, holy soil. Herbal treatments were considered ineffectual, costly and appeared to promote fluid escape. Motivators for clinic attendance were failure of traditional treatments and severe or disabling symptoms. Patients did not report self-treatment with antibiotics. Self-care was hindered by water being unavailable or expensive and patient fatigue. A pluralistic approach to podoconiosis self-treatment was discovered. Holy water is widely valued, though some patients prefer holy soil. Priests and traditional healers could help promote self-care and "signpost" patients to clinics. Change in behaviour and improving water access is key to self-care.

Failure to replicate the deleterious effects of safety behaviors in exposure therapy.

PubMed

Sy, Jennifer T; Dixon, Laura J; Lickel, James J; Nelson, Elizabeth A; Deacon, Brett J

2011-05-01

The current study attempted to replicate the finding obtained by Powers, Smits, and Telch (2004; Journal of Consulting and Clinical Psychology, 72, 448-545) that both the availability and utilization of safety behaviors interfere with the efficacy of exposure therapy. An additional goal of the study was to evaluate which explanatory theories about the detrimental effects of safety behaviors best account for this phenomenon. Undergraduate students (N=58) with high claustrophobic fear were assigned to one of three treatment conditions: (a) exposure only, (b) exposure with safety behavior availability, and (c) exposure with safety behavior utilization. Participants in each condition improved substantially, and there were no significant between-group differences in fear reduction. Unexpectedly, exposure with safety behavior utilization led to significantly greater improvement in self-efficacy and claustrophobic cognitions than exposure only. The extent to which participants inferred danger from the presence of safety aids during treatment was associated with significantly less improvement on all outcome measures. The findings call into question the hypothesized deleterious effects of safety behaviors on the outcome of exposure therapy and highlight a possible mechanism through which the mere presence of safety cues during exposure trials might affect treatment outcomes depending on participants' perceptions of the dangerousness of exposure stimuli. Published by Elsevier Ltd.

Manual versus sonic-powered toothbrushing for plaque reduction in patients with dental implants: an explanatory randomised controlled trial.

PubMed

Swierkot, Katrin; Brusius, Manuel; Leismann, Diana; Nonnenmacher, Claudia; Nüsing, Rolf; Lubbe, Dirk; Schade-Brittinger, Carmen; Mengel, Reiner

2013-01-01

The aim of the present study was to investigate plaque levels following sonic-powered and manual toothbrushing in subjects with dental implants. This study included 36 male and 47 female partially edentulous patients (age range 45-78 years, mean age 59.8 years) that were randomly assigned to one of two treatment groups: the sonic toothbrush group (n = 42; Philips Sonicare FlexCare® toothbrush) or the manual toothbrush group (n = 41; Oral-B P40®). Clinical, microbiological and immunological examinations were performed blinded at baseline and after 3, 6, 9 and 12 months. Microbiological analyses were performed by real-time polymerase chain reaction. Immunological analyses (prostaglandin E2) were performed by chromatography-electrospray spectrometry. The plaque index difference between baseline and 12 months at implants showed no significant difference between sonic or manual toothbrushing in a two-sided Mann-Whitney test (W = 773.5, P = 0.426, 95% CI -0.64 to 0.20). At the end of the study, there were no significant changes in plaque index, bleeding on probing, gingival index, pocket probing depth, gingival recession, clinical attachment level or the microbiological and immunological outcomes at implants or teeth in either group. This study uncovered no significant difference between sonic and manual toothbrushing for plaque reduction at implants and teeth. Both toothbrushes maintain healthy peri-implant soft tissue.

Consolidated and Further Continuing Appropriations Act, 2013

THOMAS, 113th Congress

Rep. Rogers, Harold [R-KY-5

2013-03-04

03/26/2013 Became Public Law No: 113-6. (TXT | PDF) (All Actions) Notes: A House explanatory statement was printed in the March 6, 2013, Congressional Record, beginning on page H1029. A Senate explanatory statement was printed in the March 11, 2013, Congressional Record, beginning on page S1287. Tracker: This bill has the status Became LawHere are the steps for Status of Legislation:

A comparison of data-driven groundwater vulnerability assessment methods

USGS Publications Warehouse

Sorichetta, Alessandro; Ballabio, Cristiano; Masetti, Marco; Robinson, Gilpin R.; Sterlacchini, Simone

2013-01-01

Increasing availability of geo-environmental data has promoted the use of statistical methods to assess groundwater vulnerability. Nitrate is a widespread anthropogenic contaminant in groundwater and its occurrence can be used to identify aquifer settings vulnerable to contamination. In this study, multivariate Weights of Evidence (WofE) and Logistic Regression (LR) methods, where the response variable is binary, were used to evaluate the role and importance of a number of explanatory variables associated with nitrate sources and occurrence in groundwater in the Milan District (central part of the Po Plain, Italy). The results of these models have been used to map the spatial variation of groundwater vulnerability to nitrate in the region, and we compare the similarities and differences of their spatial patterns and associated explanatory variables. We modify the standard WofE method used in previous groundwater vulnerability studies to a form analogous to that used in LR; this provides a framework to compare the results of both models and reduces the effect of sampling bias on the results of the standard WofE model. In addition, a nonlinear Generalized Additive Model has been used to extend the LR analysis. Both approaches improved discrimination of the standard WofE and LR models, as measured by the c-statistic. Groundwater vulnerability probability outputs, based on rank-order classification of the respective model results, were similar in spatial patterns and identified similar strong explanatory variables associated with nitrate source (population density as a proxy for sewage systems and septic sources) and nitrate occurrence (groundwater depth).

Moral panic, moral regulation, and the civilizing process.

PubMed

Hier, Sean

2016-09-01

This article compares two analytical frameworks ostensibly formulated to widen the focus of moral panic studies. The comparative analysis suggests that attempts to conceptualize moral panics in terms of decivilizing processes have neither substantively supplemented the explanatory gains made by conceptualizing moral panic as a form of moral regulation nor provided a viable alternative framework that better explains the dynamics of contemporary moral panics. The article concludes that Elias's meta-theory of the civilizing process potentially provides explanatory resources to investigate a possible historical-structural shift towards the so-called age of (a)moral panic; the analytical demands of such a project, however, require a sufficiently different line of inquiry than the one encouraged by both the regulatory and decivilizing perspectives on moral panic. © London School of Economics and Political Science 2016.

Examination of the Relationships between Fifth Graders' Self-Regulated Learning Strategies, Motivational Beliefs, Attitudes, and Achievement

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Ocak, Gurbuz; Yamac, Ahmet

2013-01-01

The aim of current study was to examine predictor and explanatory relationships between fifth graders' self-regulated learning strategies, motivational beliefs, attitudes towards mathematics, and academic achievement. The study was conducted on a sample of 204 students studying in the primary schools of Afyonkarahisar province. Motivated…

Communication Channels as Implementation Determinants of Performance Management Framework in Kenya

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Sang, Jane

2016-01-01

The purpose of this study to assess communication channels as implementation determinants of performance management framework In Kenya at Moi Teaching and Referral Hospital (MTRH). The communication theory was used to inform the study. This study adopted an explanatory design. The target sampled 510 respondents through simple random and stratified…

Physical Activity Promotion in General Practices of Barcelona: A Case Study

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Puig Ribera, Anna; McKenna, Jim; Riddoch, Chris

2006-01-01

This case study aimed to generate explanations for the lack of integration of physical activity (PA) promotion in general practices of Barcelona, the capital of Catalonia. This explanatory study adopted a qualitative approach, based on three techniques; focus groups (n = 3), semi-structured (n = 25) and short individual interviews (n = 5). These…

Understanding the Factors that Characterise School-Community Partnerships: The Case of the Logan Healthy Schools Project

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Thomas, Melinda; Rowe, Fiona; Harris, Neil

2010-01-01

Purpose: The purpose of this study is to examine the factors that characterise effective school-community partnerships that support the sustainability of school health initiatives applied within a health-promoting schools approach. Design/methodology/approach: The study used an explanatory case study approach of five secondary schools…

The Preparedness of Preservice Secondary Mathematics Teachers to Teach Statistics: A Cross-Institutional Mixed Methods Study

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Lovett, Jennifer Nickell

2016-01-01

The purpose of this study is to provide researchers, mathematics educators, and statistics educators information about the current state of preservice secondary mathematics teachers' preparedness to teach statistics. To do so, this study employed an explanatory mixed methods design to quantitatively examine the statistical knowledge and statistics…

An explanatory heuristic gives rise to the belief that words are well suited for their referents.

PubMed

Sutherland, Shelbie L; Cimpian, Andrei

2015-10-01

The mappings between the words of a language and their meanings are arbitrary. There is, for example, nothing inherently dog-like about the word dog. And yet, building on prior evidence (e.g., Brook, 1970; Piaget, 1967), the six studies reported here (N=1062) suggest that both children and (at least to some extent) adults see a special "fit" between objects and their names, as if names were particularly suitable or appropriate for the objects they denote. These studies also provide evidence for a novel proposal concerning the source of these nominal fit beliefs. Specifically, beliefs about nominal fit may be a byproduct of the heuristic processes that people use to make sense of the world more generally (Cimpian & Salomon, 2014a). In sum, the present studies provide new insights into how people conceive of language and demonstrate that these conceptions are rooted in the processes that underlie broader explanatory reasoning. Copyright © 2015 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

Personal navigation increases colorectal cancer screening uptake.

PubMed

Ritvo, Paul G; Myers, Ronald E; Paszat, Lawrence F; Tinmouth, Jill M; McColeman, Joshua; Mitchell, Brian; Serenity, Mardie; Rabeneck, Linda

2015-03-01

Prior randomized, controlled trials (RCTs) indicate that patient navigation can boost colorectal cancer screening rates in primary care. The sparse literature on pragmatic trials of interventions designed to increase colorectal cancer screening adherence motivated this trial on the impact of a patient navigation intervention that included support for performance of the participants' preferred screening test (colonoscopy or stool blood testing). Primary care patients (n = 5,240), 50 to 74 years of age, with no prior diagnosis of bowel cancer and no record of a recent colorectal cancer screening test, were identified at the Group Health Centre in northern Ontario. These patients were randomly assigned to an intervention group (n = 2,629) or a usual care control group (n = 2,611). Intervention group participants were contacted by a trained nurse navigator by telephone to discuss colorectal cancer screening. Interested patients met with the navigator, who helped them identify and arrange for performance of the preferred screening test. Control group participants received usual care. Multivariate analyses were conducted using medical records data to assess intervention impact on screening adherence within 12 months after randomization. Mean patient age was 59 years, and 50% of participants were women. Colorectal cancer screening adherence was higher in the intervention group (35%) than in the control group (20%), a difference that was statistically significant (OR, 2.11; confidence interval, 1.87-2.39). Preference-based patient navigation increased screening uptake in a pragmatic RCT. Patient navigation increased colorectal cancer screening rates in a pragmatic RCT in proportions similar to those observed in explanatory RCTs. ©2014 American Association for Cancer Research.

Noise as an explanatory factor in work-related fatality reports

PubMed Central

Deshaies, Pierre; Martin, Richard; Belzile, Danny; Fortier, Pauline; Laroche, Chantal; Leroux, Tony; Nélisse, Hugues; Girard, Serge-André; Arcand, Robert; Poulin, Maurice; Picard, Michel

2015-01-01

Noise exposure in the workplace is a common reality in Québec, Canada as it is elsewhere. However, the extent to which noise acts as a causal or contributive factor in industrial work-related accidents has not been studied thoroughly despite its plausibility. This article aims to describe the importance or potential importance, during investigations looking into the specific causes of each work-related fatal accident, of noise as an explanatory factor. The written information contained in the accident reports pertaining to contextual and technical elements were used. The study used multiple case qualitative content analysis. This descriptive study was based on the content analysis of the 788 reports from the Commission de la santé et de la sécurité du travail du Québec [Workers’ Compensation Board (WCB)] investigating the fatal work-related accidents between 1990 and 2005. The study was descriptive (number and percentages). Noise was explicitly stated as one of the explanatory factors for the fatal outcome in 2.2% (17/788) of the fatal accidents, particularly when the work involved vehicular movement or the need to communicate between workers. Noise was not typically considered a unique cause in the accident, notably because the investigators considered that the accident would have probably occurred due to other risk factors (for example, disregard of safety rules, shortcomings in work methods, and inadequate training). Noise is an important risk factor when communication is involved in work. Since noise is ubiquitous and may also interfere with vigilance and other risk factors for accidents, it may be a much more important contributing factor to accidents than is currently recognized. PMID:26356371

Noise as an explanatory factor in work-related fatality reports.

PubMed

Deshaies, Pierre; Martin, Richard; Belzile, Danny; Fortier, Pauline; Laroche, Chantal; Leroux, Tony; Nélisse, Hugues; Girard, Serge-André; Arcand, Robert; Poulin, Maurice; Picard, Michel

2015-01-01

Noise exposure in the workplace is a common reality in Québec, Canada as it is elsewhere. However, the extent to which noise acts as a causal or contributive factor in industrial work-related accidents has not been studied thoroughly despite its plausibility. This article aims to describe the importance or potential importance, during investigations looking into the specific causes of each work-related fatal accident, of noise as an explanatory factor. The written information contained in the accident reports pertaining to contextual and technical elements were used. The study used multiple case qualitative content analysis. This descriptive study was based on the content analysis of the 788 reports from the Commission de la santé et de la sécurité du travail du Québec [Workers' Compensation Board (WCB)] investigating the fatal work-related accidents between 1990 and 2005. The study was descriptive (number and percentages). Noise was explicitly stated as one of the explanatory factors for the fatal outcome in 2.2% (17/788) of the fatal accidents, particularly when the work involved vehicular movement or the need to communicate between workers. Noise was not typically considered a unique cause in the accident, notably because the investigators considered that the accident would have probably occurred due to other risk factors (for example, disregard of safety rules, shortcomings in work methods, and inadequate training). Noise is an important risk factor when communication is involved in work. Since noise is ubiquitous and may also interfere with vigilance and other risk factors for accidents, it may be a much more important contributing factor to accidents than is currently recognized.

Examining Development of Curriculum Knowledge of Prospective Mathematics Teachers

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Sahin, Ömer; Soylu, Yasin

2017-01-01

Explanatory-confirmatory research design, one of the mixed methods research designs, was used in this study to investigate Curriculum Knowledge developments of prospective teachers regarding algebra. Cross-sectional study method, as a type of descriptive research and one of the non-experimental research designs, was used to collect quantitative…

Educational Research in Educational Practice: Predictors of Use

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Lysenko, Larysa V.; Abrami, Philip C.; Dagenais, Christian; Janosz, Michel

2014-01-01

This study investigates the predictors of school practitioners' (N = 2,425) use of educational research. The suggested model explained significantly but modestly the infrequent use of educational research by practitioners. Of the four factors in the study, "opinions about research" had the most explanatory power. The results are…

Productive Academic Talk during Inquiry-Based Science

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Gillies, Robyn M.

2013-01-01

This study reports on the types of academic talk that contribute to enhanced explanatory responses, reasoning, problem-solving and learning. The study involved 10 groups of 3-4 students who were provided with one of three linguistic tools (i.e. Cognitive Questioning, Philosophy for Children and Collaborative Strategic Reading (CSR)) to scaffold…

Revista de Investigacion Educativa, 1999 (Journal of Educational Research, 1999).

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Revista de Investigacion Educativa, 1999

1999-01-01

Articles in this volume, written in Spanish, focus on the following: intellectual style and academic performance; an explanatory integrated model of academic goals, learning strategies, and academic performance; a comparative situational study of drug addiction; early childhood depression and academic performance: a comparative study of patients…

The Relationship between the Emotional Intelligence of Secondary Public School Principals and School Performance

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Ashworth, Stephanie R.

2013-01-01

The study examined the relationship between secondary public school principals' emotional intelligence and school performance. The correlational study employed an explanatory sequential mixed methods model. The non-probability sample consisted of 105 secondary public school principals in Texas. The emotional intelligence characteristics of the…

Effects of Childhood Aggression on Parenting during Adolescence: The Role of Parental Psychological Need Satisfaction

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

de Haan, Amaranta D.; Soenens, Bart; Dekovic, Maja; Prinzie, Peter

2013-01-01

The current study examined the explanatory role of satisfaction of parental psychological needs in effects of childhood aggression on various adolescent-perceived parenting behaviors in middle adolescence. Research questions were examined in a large multi-informant, prospective community study of ethnic majority Belgian families…

Support, Belonging, Motivation, and Engagement in the College Classroom: A Mixed Method Study

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Zumbrunn, Sharon; McKim, Courtney; Buhs, Eric; Hawley, Leslie R.

2014-01-01

This explanatory sequential mixed methods study examined how belonging perceptions, academic motivation, and engagement might mediate the relationship between academic contextual characteristics and achievement using structural equation modeling and qualitative follow-up interviews with college students from a large, Midwestern university. In the…

Family Mediators of Acculturation and Adolescent Sexual Behavior among Latino Youth

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Guilamo-Ramos, Vincent; Bouris, Alida; Jaccard, James; Lesesne, Catherine A.; Gonzalez, Bernardo; Kalogerogiannis, Kosta

2009-01-01

The present study develops and evaluates a theoretical framework of mediators of the relationship between acculturation and adolescent sexual behavior. Four hundred Latino mother-adolescent dyads from the Bronx, New York were interviewed. The study explored the relationship between intentions to have sexual intercourse and explanatory variables…

A Study of "Career Pathways" Policy with Implications for School Leaders

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Ormsmith, Michael I.; Mansfield, Katherine Cumings

2014-01-01

This explanatory mixed-methods study began with a quantitative survey to investigate counselor beliefs and implementation behaviors related to providing college and career planning services to high school students. Survey results informed the development and implementation of interview protocol designed to provide deeper insight into counselors'…

Teacher Perceptions of Principals' Leadership Qualities: A Mixed Methods Study

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Hauserman, Cal P.; Ivankova, Nataliya V.; Stick, Sheldon L.

2013-01-01

This mixed methods sequential explanatory study utilized the Multi-factor Leadership Questionnaire, responses to open-ended questions, and in-depth interviews to identify transformational leadership qualities that were present among principals in Alberta, Canada. The first quantitative phase consisted of a random sample of 135 schools (with…

Outcome Studies of Social, Behavioral, and Educational Interventions: Emerging Issues and Challenges

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Fraser, Mark W.; Guo, Shenyang; Ellis, Alan R.; Thompson, Aaron M.; Wike, Traci L.; Li, Jilan

2011-01-01

This article describes the core features of outcome research and then explores issues confronting researchers who engage in outcome studies. Using an intervention research perspective, descriptive and explanatory methods are distinguished. Emphasis is placed on the counterfactual causal perspective, designing programs that fit culture and context,…

Diagnostic and Remedial Learning Strategy Based on Conceptual Graphs

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Jong, BinShyan; Lin, TsongWuu; Wu, YuLung; Chan, Teyi

2004-01-01

Numerous scholars have applied conceptual graphs for explanatory purposes. This study devised the Remedial-Instruction Decisive path (RID path) algorithm for diagnosing individual student learning situation. This study focuses on conceptual graphs. According to the concepts learned by students and the weight values of relations among these…

An Outsider View: The Perceptions of Visiting International Students on Teaching, Language and Culture

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Bavli, Bünyamin

2017-01-01

This study investigates how international visitor students studying temporarily at a public university in Turkey perceive teaching, language and culture. Qualitative explanatory single case study method was employed in the study. The data were obtained through face to face interview with 10 participants, and a focus group interview with 3…

Structures and Relationships between the Business Executive and Information Technology Executive at the University: A Mixed Methods Study

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Hollman, Angela K.

2014-01-01

This study uses an explanatory mixed methods methodology to attempt to determine the reporting relationships between business and IT executives within the university. The study also explores IT and business executives thoughts on these relationships. Supporting research from organizational studies and business-IT alignment is combined in order to…

'It promoted a positive culture around falls prevention': staff response to a patient education programme-a qualitative evaluation.

PubMed

Hill, Anne-Marie; Waldron, Nicholas; Francis-Coad, Jacqueline; Haines, Terry; Etherton-Beer, Christopher; Flicker, Leon; Ingram, Katharine; McPhail, Steven M

2016-12-21

The purpose of this study was to understand how staff responded to individualised patient falls prevention education delivered as part of a cluster randomised trial, including how they perceived the education contributed to falls prevention on their wards. A qualitative explanatory study. 5 focus groups were conducted at participatory hospital sites. The purposive sample of clinical staff (including nurses, physiotherapists and quality improvement staff) worked on aged care rehabilitation wards when a cluster randomised trial evaluating a patient education programme was conducted. During the intervention period, an educator, who was a trained health professional and not a member of staff, provided individualised falls prevention education to patients with good levels of cognition (Mini-Mental State Examination >23/30). Clinical staff were provided with training to support the programme and their feedback was sought after the trial concluded, to understand how they perceived the programme impacted on falls prevention. Data were thematically analysed using NVivo qualitative data analysis software. 5 focus groups were conducted at different hospitals (n=30 participants). Staff perceived that the education created a positive culture around falls prevention and further, facilitated teamwork, whereby patients and staff worked together to address falls prevention. The educator was perceived to be a valuable member of the team. Staff reported that they developed increased knowledge and awareness about creating a safe ward environment. Patients being proactive and empowered to engage in falls prevention strategies, such as ringing the bell for assistance, was viewed as supporting staff falls prevention efforts and motivating staff to change practice. Staff responded positively to patient falls prevention education being delivered on their wards. Providing individualised patient education to older patients with good levels of cognition can empower staff and patients to work as a team to address falls prevention on hospital rehabilitation wards. Published by the BMJ Publishing Group Limited. For permission to use (where not already granted under a licence) please go to http://www.bmj.com/company/products-services/rights-and-licensing/.

The Source of Tok Pisin Structures.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Goulden, Rick J.

1989-01-01

The source of the similarities and differences produced by pidginization is a central question studied in Pidgin-Creole linguistics. Several explanatory approaches are discussed that have guided research in this area, including simplification, substratum, independent innovation, and universals. (27 references) (Author/OD)

Explaining the Development of False Memories.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Reyna, Valerie F.; Holliday, Robyn; Marche, Tammy

2002-01-01

Reviews explanatory dimensions of children's false memory relevant to forensic practice: measurement, development, social factors, individual differences, varieties of memories and memory judgments, and varieties of procedures inducing false memories. Asserts that recent studies fail to use techniques that separate acquiescence from memory…

10 CFR Appendix I to Part 1050 - DOE Form 3735.2-Foreign Gifts Statement

Code of Federal Regulations, 2010 CFR

2010-01-01

... should always be indicated in item 1; if the employee is the recipient of the gift then items 5 and 6... information should be included in items 5 and 6. Item 2.Self explanatory. Items 3 and 4.The Office or Division... employee or a spouse or dependent. Items 5 and 6.See above, Item 1. Item 7.Self explanatory. Item 8.Self...

Omnibus Appropriations Act, 2009

THOMAS, 111th Congress

Rep. Obey, David R. [D-WI-7

2009-02-23

03/11/2009 Became Public Law No: 111-8. (TXT | PDF) (All Actions) Notes: An explanatory statement was submitted by Mr. Obey, Chairman of the House Committee on Appropriations "as if it were a joint explanatory statement of a committee of conference." See the statement in the 2/23/2009 Congressional Record or in the House Appropriations committee print. Tracker: This bill has the status Became LawHere are the steps for Status of Legislation:

Industrial noise control: Some case histories, volume 1

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Hart, F. D.; Neal, C. L.; Smetana, F. O.

1974-01-01

A collection of solutions to industrial noise problems is presented. Each problem is described in simple terms, with noise measurements where available, and the solution is given, often with explanatory figures. Where the solution rationale is not obvious, an explanatory paragraph is usually appended. As a preface to these solutions, a short exposition is provided of some of the guiding concepts used by noise control engineers in devising their solutions.

A model for field toxicity tests

USGS Publications Warehouse

Kaiser, Mark S.; Finger, Susan E.

1996-01-01

Toxicity tests conducted under field conditions present an interesting challenge for statistical modelling. In contrast to laboratory tests, the concentrations of potential toxicants are not held constant over the test. In addition, the number and identity of toxicants that belong in a model as explanatory factors are not known and must be determined through a model selection process. We present one model to deal with these needs. This model takes the record of mortalities to form a multinomial distribution in which parameters are modelled as products of conditional daily survival probabilities. These conditional probabilities are in turn modelled as logistic functions of the explanatory factors. The model incorporates lagged values of the explanatory factors to deal with changes in the pattern of mortalities over time. The issue of model selection and assessment is approached through the use of generalized information criteria and power divergence goodness-of-fit tests. These model selection criteria are applied in a cross-validation scheme designed to assess the ability of a model to both fit data used in estimation and predict data deleted from the estimation data set. The example presented demonstrates the need for inclusion of lagged values of the explanatory factors and suggests that penalized likelihood criteria may not provide adequate protection against overparameterized models in model selection.

Socioeconomic Inequalities in Mortality and Repeated Measurement of Explanatory Risk Factors in a 25 Years Follow-Up

PubMed Central

Skalická, Věra; Ringdal, Kristen; Witvliet, Margot I.

2015-01-01

Background Socioeconomic inequalities in mortality can be explained by different groups of risk factors. However, little is known whether repeated measurement of risk factors can provide better explanation of socioeconomic inequalities in health. Our study examines the extent to which relative educational and income inequalities in mortality might be explained by explanatory risk factors (behavioral, psychosocial, biomedical risk factors and employment) measured at two points in time, as compared to one measurement at baseline. Methods and Findings From the Norwegian total county population-based HUNT Study (years 1984–86 and 1995–1997, respectively) 61 513 men and women aged 25–80 (82.5% of all enrolled) were followed-up for mortality in 25 years until 2009, employing a discrete time survival analysis. Socioeconomic inequalities in mortality were observed. As compared to their highest socioeconomic counterparts, the lowest educated men had an OR (odds ratio) of 1.41 (95% CI 1.29–1.55) and for the lowest income quartile OR = 1.59 (1.48–1.571), for women OR = 1.35 (1.17–1.55), and OR = 1.40 (1.28–1.52), respectively. Baseline explanatory variables attenuated the association between education and income with mortality by 54% and 54% in men, respectively, and by 69% and 18% in women. After entering time-varying variables, this attainment increased to 63% and 59% in men, respectively, and to 25% (income) in women, with no improvement in regard to education in women. Change in biomedical factors and employment did not amend the explanation. Conclusions Addition of a second measurement for risk factors provided only a modest improvement in explaining educational and income inequalities in mortality in Norwegian men and women. Accounting for change in behavior provided the largest improvement in explained inequalities in mortality for both men and women, as compared to measurement at baseline. Psychosocial factors explained the largest share of income inequalities in mortality for men, but repeated measurement of these factors contributed only to modest improvement in explanation. Further comparative research on the relative importance of explanatory pathways assessed over time is needed. PMID:25853571

Socioeconomic inequalities in mortality and repeated measurement of explanatory risk factors in a 25 years follow-up.

PubMed

Skalická, Věra; Ringdal, Kristen; Witvliet, Margot I

2015-01-01

Socioeconomic inequalities in mortality can be explained by different groups of risk factors. However, little is known whether repeated measurement of risk factors can provide better explanation of socioeconomic inequalities in health. Our study examines the extent to which relative educational and income inequalities in mortality might be explained by explanatory risk factors (behavioral, psychosocial, biomedical risk factors and employment) measured at two points in time, as compared to one measurement at baseline. From the Norwegian total county population-based HUNT Study (years 1984-86 and 1995-1997, respectively) 61 513 men and women aged 25-80 (82.5% of all enrolled) were followed-up for mortality in 25 years until 2009, employing a discrete time survival analysis. Socioeconomic inequalities in mortality were observed. As compared to their highest socioeconomic counterparts, the lowest educated men had an OR (odds ratio) of 1.41 (95% CI 1.29-1.55) and for the lowest income quartile OR = 1.59 (1.48-1.571), for women OR = 1.35 (1.17-1.55), and OR = 1.40 (1.28-1.52), respectively. Baseline explanatory variables attenuated the association between education and income with mortality by 54% and 54% in men, respectively, and by 69% and 18% in women. After entering time-varying variables, this attainment increased to 63% and 59% in men, respectively, and to 25% (income) in women, with no improvement in regard to education in women. Change in biomedical factors and employment did not amend the explanation. Addition of a second measurement for risk factors provided only a modest improvement in explaining educational and income inequalities in mortality in Norwegian men and women. Accounting for change in behavior provided the largest improvement in explained inequalities in mortality for both men and women, as compared to measurement at baseline. Psychosocial factors explained the largest share of income inequalities in mortality for men, but repeated measurement of these factors contributed only to modest improvement in explanation. Further comparative research on the relative importance of explanatory pathways assessed over time is needed.

Determinants of Objectively Measured Physical Functional Performance in Early to Mid-stage Parkinson Disease

PubMed Central

Kluger, Benzi M.; Brown, R. Preston; Aerts, Shanae; Schenkman, Margaret

2014-01-01

Background Parkinson disease (PD) may lead to functional limitations through both motor and non-motor symptoms. While patients with advanced disease have well-documented and profound functional limitations, less is known about the determinants of function in early to mid-stage disease where interventions may be more likely to benefit and preserve function. Objective The objective of the current study was to identify motor, cognitive and gait determinants of physical functional performance in patients with early to mid-stage PD. Design Secondary analysis of cross-sectional baseline data from a randomized clinical trial of exercise. Setting Tertiary academic medical center. Participants 121 patients with early to mid-stage PD. Methods Our functional performance outcomes included: 1) the Continuous Scale Functional Performance Test (CS-PFP; primary outcome); 2) the timed up and go (TUG) tests; and Section 2 (Activities of Daily Living) of the Unified Parkinson's Disease Rating Scale (UPDRS). Explanatory variables included measures of disease severity, motor function, cognitive function, balance and gait. Step-wise linear regression models were used to determine correlations between explanatory variables and outcome measures. Results In our regression models the CS-PFP significantly correlated with walking endurance (six minute walk; r2 = 0.12, p < .0001), turning ability (360 degree turn; r2 = .03, p = .002), attention (brief test of attention; r2 = .01, p = .03), overall cognitive status (Mini-mental State Examination; r2 = .01, p = .04) and bradykinesia (timed tapping; r2 = .02, p = .02). The TUG significantly correlated with walking speed (5 meter walk; r2 = 0.33, p <.0001), stride length (r2 = 0.25, p <.0001), turning ability (360 turn r2 = .05, p = .0003) and attention (r2 = .016, p = .03). Section 2 of the UPDRS was significantly correlated with endurance (r2 = .09, p < .0001), turning ability (r2 = .03, p = .001) and attention (r2 = .01, p = .03). Conclusions Gait, motor and cognitive function all contribute to objectively measured global functional ability in mild to moderate PD. Subjectively measured functional activity outcomes may underestimate the impact of both motor and non-motor symptoms. PMID:24880056

Functional analysis-based interventions for challenging behaviour in dementia.

PubMed

Moniz Cook, Esme D; Swift, Katie; James, Ian; Malouf, Reem; De Vugt, Marjolein; Verhey, Frans

2012-02-15

Functional analysis (FA) for the management of challenging behaviour is a promising behavioural intervention that involves exploring the meaning or purpose of an individual's behaviour. It extends the 'ABC' approach of behavioural analysis, to overcome the restriction of having to derive a single explanatory hypothesis for the person's behaviour. It is seen as a first line alternative to traditional pharmacological management for agitation and aggression. FA typically requires the therapist to develop and evaluate hypotheses-driven strategies that aid family and staff caregivers to reduce or resolve a person's distress and its associated behavioural manifestations. To assess the effects of functional analysis-based interventions for people with dementia (and their caregivers) living in their own home or in other settings. We searched ALOIS: the Cochrane Dementia and Cognitive Improvement Group's Specialized Register on 3 March 2011 using the terms: FA, behaviour (intervention, management, modification), BPSD, psychosocial and Dementia. Randomised controlled trials (RCTs) with reported behavioural outcomes that could be associated with functional analysis for the management of challenging behaviour in dementia. Four reviewers selected trials for inclusion. Two reviewers worked independently to extract data and assess trial quality, including bias. Meta-analyses for reported incidence, frequency, severity of care recipient challenging behaviour and mood (primary outcomes) and caregiver reaction, burden and mood were performed. Details of adverse effects were noted. Eighteen trials are included in the review. The majority were in family care settings. For fourteen studies, FA was just one aspect of a broad multi-component programme of care. Assessing the effect of FA was compromised by ill-defined protocols for the duration of component parts of these programmes (i.e. frequency of the intervention or actual time spent). Therefore, establishing the real effect of the FA component was not possible.Overall, positive effects were noted at post-intervention for the frequency of reported challenging behaviour (but not for incidence or severity) and for caregiver reaction (but not burden or depression). These effects were not seen at follow-up. The delivery of FA has been incorporated within wide ranging multi-component programmes and study designs have varied according to setting - i.e. family care, care homes and hospital, with surprisingly few studies located in care homes. Our findings suggest potential beneficial effects of multi-component interventions, which utilise FA. Whilst functional analysis for challenging behaviour in dementia care shows promise, it is too early to draw conclusions about its efficacy.

A Qualitative Study on the Contribution of Educational Administrators' Use of Social Media to Educational Administration

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Bayram, Arslan

2017-01-01

The phenomenology design which is one of the qualitative research methods was employed in this research that aimed to reveal the contribution of educational administrators' usage of social media to educational administration. The research is an explanatory study survey model. The study groups were selected using convenience sampling method.…

Underachievement in Gifted Students: A Case Study of Three College Physics Students in Taiwan

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Tsai, Kuei-Fang; Fu, Guopeng

2016-01-01

This case study provides an explanatory account on the underachievement of three gifted students studying physics in a Taiwanese university. The students' physics underachievement was diagnosed by Sato's student-problem analysis chart. These students were invited to complete a questionnaire and a follow-up interview in order to (1) understand the…

Some Lexical Redundancy Rules for English Nouns.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Starosta, Stanley

In line with current thinking in transformational grammar, syntax as a system can and should be studied before a study is made of the use of that system. Chomsky's lexical redundancy rule is an area for further study, possibly to come closer to defining and achieving explanatory adequacy. If it is observed that English nouns come in two types,…

A Question of Effectiveness: Recruitment of Special Educators within High School Peer Support Groups

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Zascavage, Victoria; Winterman, Kathy; Armstrong, Philip; Schroeder-Steward, Jennifer

2008-01-01

The present study combines information about support groups for students with disabilities from 187 East Texas high schools with explanatory variables taken from data of the Texas Education Agency Academic Excellence Indicator System. This study is a tangential section of a larger study on the influence of peer support groups in East Texas…

The Effect of English Language Learning on Creative Thinking Skills: A Mixed Methods Case Study

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Sehic, Sandro

2017-01-01

The purpose of this sequential explanatory mixed-methods case study was to investigate the effects of English language learning on creative thinking skills in the domains of fluency, flexibility, originality, and elaboration as measured with the Alternate Uses Test. Unlike the previous research studies that investigated the links between English…

The Schooling Experience of Adolescent Boys with AD/HD: An Australian Case Study

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Gibbs, Kathryn; Mercer, K. Louise; Carrington, Suzanne

2016-01-01

This study explored the experience of schooling of six adolescent boys diagnosed with AD/HD from the perspectives of the boys, their mothers and their teachers. The study utilised social constructionism as the theoretical orientation and the Dynamic Developmental Theory (DDT) of AD/HD as the explanatory framework. Utilising a multiple,…

Ecological and cosmological coexistence thinking in a hypervariable environment: causal models of economic success and failure among farmers, foragers, and fishermen of southwestern Madagascar

PubMed Central

Tucker, Bram; Tsiazonera; Tombo, Jaovola; Hajasoa, Patricia; Nagnisaha, Charlotte

2015-01-01

A fact of life for farmers, hunter-gatherers, and fishermen in the rural parts of the world are that crops fail, wild resources become scarce, and winds discourage fishing. In this article we approach subsistence risk from the perspective of “coexistence thinking,” the simultaneous application of natural and supernatural causal models to explain subsistence success and failure. In southwestern Madagascar, the ecological world is characterized by extreme variability and unpredictability, and the cosmological world is characterized by anxiety about supernatural dangers. Ecological and cosmological causes seem to point to different risk minimizing strategies: to avoid losses from drought, flood, or heavy winds, one should diversify activities and be flexible; but to avoid losses caused by disrespected spirits one should narrow one’s range of behaviors to follow the code of taboos and offerings. We address this paradox by investigating whether southwestern Malagasy understand natural and supernatural causes as occupying separate, contradictory explanatory systems (target dependence), whether they make no categorical distinction between natural and supernatural forces and combine them within a single explanatory system (synthetic thinking), or whether they have separate natural and supernatural categories of causes that are integrated into one explanatory system so that supernatural forces drive natural forces (integrative thinking). Results from three field studies suggest that (a) informants explain why crops, prey, and market activities succeed or fail with reference to natural causal forces like rainfall and pests, (b) they explain why individual persons experience success or failure primarily with supernatural factors like God and ancestors, and (c) they understand supernatural forces as driving natural forces, so that ecology and cosmology represent distinct sets of causes within a single explanatory framework. We expect that future cross-cultural analyses may find that this form of “integrative thinking” is common in unpredictable environments and is a cognitive strategy that accompanies economic diversification. PMID:26528205

Ecological and cosmological coexistence thinking in a hypervariable environment: causal models of economic success and failure among farmers, foragers, and fishermen of southwestern Madagascar.

PubMed

Tucker, Bram; Tsiazonera; Tombo, Jaovola; Hajasoa, Patricia; Nagnisaha, Charlotte

2015-01-01

A fact of life for farmers, hunter-gatherers, and fishermen in the rural parts of the world are that crops fail, wild resources become scarce, and winds discourage fishing. In this article we approach subsistence risk from the perspective of "coexistence thinking," the simultaneous application of natural and supernatural causal models to explain subsistence success and failure. In southwestern Madagascar, the ecological world is characterized by extreme variability and unpredictability, and the cosmological world is characterized by anxiety about supernatural dangers. Ecological and cosmological causes seem to point to different risk minimizing strategies: to avoid losses from drought, flood, or heavy winds, one should diversify activities and be flexible; but to avoid losses caused by disrespected spirits one should narrow one's range of behaviors to follow the code of taboos and offerings. We address this paradox by investigating whether southwestern Malagasy understand natural and supernatural causes as occupying separate, contradictory explanatory systems (target dependence), whether they make no categorical distinction between natural and supernatural forces and combine them within a single explanatory system (synthetic thinking), or whether they have separate natural and supernatural categories of causes that are integrated into one explanatory system so that supernatural forces drive natural forces (integrative thinking). Results from three field studies suggest that (a) informants explain why crops, prey, and market activities succeed or fail with reference to natural causal forces like rainfall and pests, (b) they explain why individual persons experience success or failure primarily with supernatural factors like God and ancestors, and (c) they understand supernatural forces as driving natural forces, so that ecology and cosmology represent distinct sets of causes within a single explanatory framework. We expect that future cross-cultural analyses may find that this form of "integrative thinking" is common in unpredictable environments and is a cognitive strategy that accompanies economic diversification.

Modeling Effects of Temperature, Soil, Moisture, Nutrition and Variety As Determinants of Severity of Pythium Damping-Off and Root Disease in Subterranean Clover

PubMed Central

You, Ming P.; Rensing, Kelly; Renton, Michael; Barbetti, Martin J.

2017-01-01

Subterranean clover (Trifolium subterraneum) is a critical pasture legume in Mediterranean regions of southern Australia and elsewhere, including Mediterranean-type climatic regions in Africa, Asia, Australia, Europe, North America, and South America. Pythium damping-off and root disease caused by Pythium irregulare is a significant threat to subterranean clover in Australia and a study was conducted to define how environmental factors (viz. temperature, soil type, moisture and nutrition) as well as variety, influence the extent of damping-off and root disease as well as subterranean clover productivity under challenge by this pathogen. Relationships were statistically modeled using linear and generalized linear models and boosted regression trees. Modeling found complex relationships between explanatory variables and the extent of Pythium damping-off and root rot. Linear modeling identified high-level (4 or 5-way) significant interactions for each dependent variable (dry shoot and root weight, emergence, tap and lateral root disease index). Furthermore, all explanatory variables (temperature, soil, moisture, nutrition, variety) were found significant as part of some interaction within these models. A significant five-way interaction between all explanatory variables was found for both dry shoot and root dry weights, and a four way interaction between temperature, soil, moisture, and nutrition was found for both tap and lateral root disease index. A second approach to modeling using boosted regression trees provided support for and helped clarify the complex nature of the relationships found in linear models. All explanatory variables showed at least 5% relative influence on each of the five dependent variables. All models indicated differences due to soil type, with the sand-based soil having either higher weights, greater emergence, or lower disease indices; while lowest weights and less emergence, as well as higher disease indices, were found for loam soil and low temperature. There was more severe tap and lateral root rot disease in higher moisture situations. PMID:29184544

Multiple causes of nonstationarity in the Weihe annual low-flow series

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Xiong, Bin; Xiong, Lihua; Chen, Jie; Xu, Chong-Yu; Li, Lingqi

2018-02-01

Under the background of global climate change and local anthropogenic activities, multiple driving forces have introduced various nonstationary components into low-flow series. This has led to a high demand on low-flow frequency analysis that considers nonstationary conditions for modeling. In this study, through a nonstationary frequency analysis framework with the generalized linear model (GLM) to consider time-varying distribution parameters, the multiple explanatory variables were incorporated to explain the variation in low-flow distribution parameters. These variables are comprised of the three indices of human activities (HAs; i.e., population, POP; irrigation area, IAR; and gross domestic product, GDP) and the eight measuring indices of the climate and catchment conditions (i.e., total precipitation P, mean frequency of precipitation events λ, temperature T, potential evapotranspiration (EP), climate aridity index AIEP, base-flow index (BFI), recession constant K and the recession-related aridity index AIK). This framework was applied to model the annual minimum flow series of both Huaxian and Xianyang gauging stations in the Weihe River, China (also known as the Wei He River). The results from stepwise regression for the optimal explanatory variables show that the variables related to irrigation, recession, temperature and precipitation play an important role in modeling. Specifically, analysis of annual minimum 30-day flow in Huaxian shows that the nonstationary distribution model with any one of all explanatory variables is better than the one without explanatory variables, the nonstationary gamma distribution model with four optimal variables is the best model and AIK is of the highest relative importance among these four variables, followed by IAR, BFI and AIEP. We conclude that the incorporation of multiple indices related to low-flow generation permits tracing various driving forces. The established link in nonstationary analysis will be beneficial to analyze future occurrences of low-flow extremes in similar areas.

Understanding burnout according to individual differences: ongoing explanatory power evaluation of two models for measuring burnout types

PubMed Central

2012-01-01

Background The classic determination of burnout is by means of the dimensions exhaustion, cynicism and inefficacy. A new definition of the syndrome is based on clinical subtypes, consisting of “frenetic” (involved, ambitious, overloaded), “underchallenged” (indifferent, bored, with lack of personal development) and “worn-out” (neglectful, unacknowledged, with little control). The dimensions of overload, lack of development and neglect form a shortened version of this perspective. The aims of this study were to estimate and to compare the explanatory power of both typological models, short and long, with the standard measurement. Methods This was a cross-sectional survey with a randomly sample of university employees (n=409). Multivariate linear regression models were constructed between the “Maslach Burnout Inventory General Survey” (MBI-GS) dimensions, as dependent variables, and the “Burnout Clinical Subtype Questionnaire” (BCSQ-36 and BCSQ-12) dimensions, as independent variables. Results The BCSQ-36 subscales together explained 53% of ‘exhaustion’ (p<0.001), 59% of ‘cynicism’ (p<0.001) and 37% of ‘efficacy’ (p<0.001), while BCSQ-12 subscales explained 44% of ‘exhaustion’ (p<0.001), 44% of ‘cynicism’ (p<0.001), and 30% of ‘efficacy’ (p<0.001). The difference in the explanatory power of both models was significant for ‘exhaustion’ (p<0.001), and for ‘cynicism’ (p<0.001) and ‘efficacy (p<0.001). Conclusions Both BCSQ-36 and BCSQ-12 demonstrate great explanatory power over the standard MBI-GS, while offering a useful characterization of the syndrome for the evaluation and design of interventions tailored to the characteristics of each individual. The BCSQ-36 may be very useful in mental health services, given that it provides a good deal of information, while the BCSQ-12 could be used as a screening measure in primary care consultations owing to its simplicity and functional nature. PMID:23110723

A Structural Equation Model Explaining 8th Grade Students' Mathematics Achievements

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Yurt, Eyüp; Sünbül, Ali Murat

2014-01-01

The purpose of this study is to investigate, via a model, the explanatory and predictive relationships among the following variables: Mathematical Problem Solving and Reasoning Skills, Sources of Mathematics Self-Efficacy, Spatial Ability, and Mathematics Achievements of Secondary School 8th Grade Students. The sample group of the study, itself…

The Value of Mixed Methods Research: A Mixed Methods Study

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

McKim, Courtney A.

2017-01-01

The purpose of this explanatory mixed methods study was to examine the perceived value of mixed methods research for graduate students. The quantitative phase was an experiment examining the effect of a passage's methodology on students' perceived value. Results indicated students scored the mixed methods passage as more valuable than those who…

Uncovering Productive Morphosyntax in French-Learning Toddlers: A Multidimensional Methodology Perspective

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Barriére, Isabelle; Goyet, Louise; Kresh, Sarah; Legendre, Géraldine; Nazzi, Thierry

2016-01-01

The present study applies a multidimensional methodological approach to the study of the acquisition of morphosyntax. It focuses on evaluating the degree of productivity of an infrequent subject-verb agreement pattern in the early acquisition of French and considers the explanatory role played by factors such as input frequency, semantic…

Urban High School Students in STEM Programs: An Explanatory Case Study

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Oparaocha, Didacus O.

2017-01-01

Inequality of resources in urban schools is a structural barrier to college preparation, access to social capital, college success. Per the literature, a number of issues prevent urban STEM high school students from participating in this innovative learning experience. Studies have shown that STEM experiential learning can influence attitudes,…

Vantages on Scales: A Study of Russian Dimensional Adjectives

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Tribushinina, Elena

2010-01-01

The central claim of this paper is that Vantage Theory is able to provide a much-needed explanatory account of the seemingly unrelated differences between lexical and morphological antonyms of dimensional adjectives in Slavic languages. In a case study, I compare two antonyms of the Russian adjective "vysokij" "high", a morphologically unrelated…

Conflicts Management Model in School: A Mixed Design Study

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Dogan, Soner

2016-01-01

The object of this study is to evaluate the reasons for conflicts occurring in school according to perceptions and views of teachers and resolution strategies used for conflicts and to build a model based on the results obtained. In the research, explanatory design including quantitative and qualitative methods has been used. The quantitative part…

African American Teacher Candidates' Experiences in Teaching Secondary Physical Education

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Sato, Takahiro; Hodge, Samuel Russell

2017-01-01

The purpose of this study was to describe and explain the teaching experiences of African American physical education teacher candidates in secondary physical education programs at urban schools. The research design was explanatory multiple-case study situated in positioning theory (Harré & van Langenhove, 1999). The participants were seven…

Education Policy Influence Efficacy: Teacher Beliefs in Their Ability to Change Education Policy

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Hinnant-Crawford, Brandi

2016-01-01

Guided by Social Cognitive Theory (SCT) this study sought to understand how teachers view themselves as educational policy actors and to construct an instrument that measures teacher beliefs about their aptitude to advocate for changes in educational policy. This study employed a sequential explanatory design, characterized by quantitative data…

Toward a Better Understanding of Student Perceptions of Writing Feedback: A Mixed Methods Study

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Zumbrunn, Sharon; Marrs, Sarah; Mewborn, Caitlin

2016-01-01

This explanatory sequential mixed methods study investigated the writing feedback perceptions of middle and high school students (N = 598). The predictive and mediational roles of writing self-efficacy and perceptions of writing feedback on student writing self-regulation aptitude were examined using mediation regression analysis. To augment the…

The Role of Attitudes in the Development of Russian as a Foreign Language: A Retrospective Study

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Bátyi, Szilvia

2017-01-01

The article reports the findings of a retrospective study which looked at Hungarian learners' attitudes towards Russian people, the Russian language and teachers of Russian. Mixed-methods sequential explanatory design (Ivankova, Creswell, & Stick, 2006) was applied which combines the collection and analysis of quantitative and qualitative data…

Auditory Processing of Amplitude Envelope Rise Time in Adults Diagnosed with Developmental Dyslexia

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Pasquini, Elisabeth S.; Corriveau, Kathleen H.; Goswami, Usha

2007-01-01

Studies of basic (nonspeech) auditory processing in adults thought to have developmental dyslexia have yielded a variety of data. Yet there has been little consensus regarding the explanatory value of auditory processing in accounting for reading difficulties. Recently, however, a number of studies of basic auditory processing in children with…

Superintendent Leadership and Student Achievement in Suburban High Schools: A Sequential Explanatory Mixed Methods Analysis

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Kellner, Steven Reese

2012-01-01

This research study explored the critical nature of the connection between student achievement and superintendent leadership. A great deal of scholarship has addressed either student achievement or leadership and previous evidence has suggested the impact of both parental education and racioethnicity on student achievement, but few studies have…

Preliminary Evolutionary Explanations: A Basic Framework for Conceptual Change and Explanatory Coherence in Evolution

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Kampourakis, Kostas; Zogza, Vasso

2009-01-01

This study aimed to explore secondary students' explanations of evolutionary processes, and to determine how consistent these were, after a specific evolution instruction. In a previous study it was found that before instruction students provided different explanations for similar processes to tasks with different content. Hence, it seemed that…

Mentoring Postsecondary Tenure-Track Faculty: A Theory-Building Case Study and Implications for Institutional Policy

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Davis, Dannielle Joy; Boyer, Patricia; Russell, Isela

2011-01-01

The featured research uses theory-building case study to understand the experiences of junior faculty in a mentoring program. Findings suggest the importance of professional interaction for faculty members' integration into their campus communities. An explanatory model illustrates the findings and supplements discussion of the implications for…

Adult Learners' Knowledge of Fraction Addition and Subtraction

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Muckridge, Nicole A.

2017-01-01

The purpose of this study was to examine adult developmental mathematics (ADM) students' knowledge of fraction addition and subtraction as it relates to their demonstrated fraction schemes and ability to disembed in multiplicative contexts with whole numbers. The study was conducted using a mixed methods sequential explanatory design. In the first…

Toward Greater Specificity in Identifying Associations among Interparental Aggression, Child Emotional Reactivity to Conflict, and Child Problems

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Davies, Patrick T.; Cicchetti, Dante; Martin, Meredith J.

2012-01-01

This study examined specific forms of emotional reactivity to conflict and temperamental emotionality as explanatory mechanisms in pathways among interparental aggression and child psychological problems. Participants of the multimethod, longitudinal study included 201 two-year-old children and their mothers who had experienced elevated violence…

Towards a computational(ist) neurobiology of language: Correlational, integrated, and explanatory neurolinguistics*

PubMed Central

Poeppel, David

2014-01-01

We outline what an integrated approach to language research that connects experimental, theoretical, and neurobiological domains of inquiry would look like, and ask to what extent unification is possible across domains. At the center of the program is the idea that computational/representational (CR) theories of language must be used to investigate its neurobiological (NB) foundations. We consider different ways in which CR and NB might be connected. These are (1) A Correlational way, in which NB computation is correlated with the CR theory; (2) An Integrated way, in which NB data provide crucial evidence for choosing among CR theories; and (3) an Explanatory way, in which properties of NB explain why a CR theory is the way it is. We examine various questions concerning the prospects for Explanatory connections in particular, including to what extent it makes sense to say that NB could be specialized for particular computations. PMID:25914888

Towards a computational(ist) neurobiology of language: Correlational, integrated, and explanatory neurolinguistics.

PubMed

Embick, David; Poeppel, David

2015-05-01

We outline what an integrated approach to language research that connects experimental, theoretical, and neurobiological domains of inquiry would look like, and ask to what extent unification is possible across domains. At the center of the program is the idea that computational/representational (CR) theories of language must be used to investigate its neurobiological (NB) foundations. We consider different ways in which CR and NB might be connected. These are (1) A Correlational way, in which NB computation is correlated with the CR theory; (2) An Integrated way, in which NB data provide crucial evidence for choosing among CR theories; and (3) an Explanatory way, in which properties of NB explain why a CR theory is the way it is. We examine various questions concerning the prospects for Explanatory connections in particular, including to what extent it makes sense to say that NB could be specialized for particular computations.

How is the Ideal Gas Law Explanatory?

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Woody, Andrea I.

2013-07-01

Using the ideal gas law as a comparative example, this essay reviews contemporary research in philosophy of science concerning scientific explanation. It outlines the inferential, causal, unification, and erotetic conceptions of explanation and discusses an alternative project, the functional perspective. In each case, the aim is to highlight insights from these investigations that are salient for pedagogical concerns. Perhaps most importantly, this essay argues that science teachers should be mindful of the normative and prescriptive components of explanatory discourse both in the classroom and in science more generally. Giving attention to this dimension of explanation not only will do justice to the nature of explanatory activity in science but also will support the development of robust reasoning skills in science students while helping them understand an important respect in which science is more than a straightforward collection of empirical facts, and consequently, science education involves more than simply learning them.

Exploring the post-genomic world: differing explanatory and manipulatory functions of post-genomic sciences

PubMed Central

Holmes, Christina; Carlson, Siobhan M.; McDonald, Fiona; Jones, Mavis; Graham, Janice

2016-01-01

Richard Lewontin proposed that the ability of a scientific field to create a narrative for public understanding garners it social relevance. This article applies Lewontin's conceptual framework of the functions of science (manipulatory and explanatory) to compare and explain the current differences in perceived societal relevance of genetics/genomics and proteomics. We provide three examples to illustrate the social relevance and strong cultural narrative of genetics/genomics for which no counterpart exists for proteomics. We argue that the major difference between genetics/genomics and proteomics is that genomics has a strong explanatory function, due to the strong cultural narrative of heredity. Based on qualitative interviews and observations of proteomics conferences, we suggest that the nature of proteins, lack of public understanding, and theoretical complexity exacerbates this difference for proteomics. Lewontin's framework suggests that social scientists may find that omics sciences affect social relations in different ways than past analyses of genetics. PMID:27134568

The realizers and vehicles of mental representation.

PubMed

Drayson, Zoe

2018-04-01

The neural vehicles of mental representation play an explanatory role in cognitive psychology that their realizers do not. Cognitive psychology individuates neural structures as representational vehicles in terms of the specific causal properties to which cognitive mechanisms are sensitive. Explanations that appeal to properties of vehicles can capture generalisations which are not available at the level of their neural realizers. In this paper, I argue that the individuation of realizers as vehicles restricts the sorts of explanations in which they can participate. I illustrate this with reference to Rupert's (2011) claim that representational vehicles can play an explanatory role in psychology in virtue of their quantity or proportion. I propose that such quantity-based explanatory claims can apply only to realizers and not to vehicles, in virtue of the particular causal role that vehicles play in psychological explanations. Copyright © 2018 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

Exploring the post-genomic world: differing explanatory and manipulatory functions of post-genomic sciences.

PubMed

Holmes, Christina; Carlson, Siobhan M; McDonald, Fiona; Jones, Mavis; Graham, Janice

2016-01-02

Richard Lewontin proposed that the ability of a scientific field to create a narrative for public understanding garners it social relevance. This article applies Lewontin's conceptual framework of the functions of science (manipulatory and explanatory) to compare and explain the current differences in perceived societal relevance of genetics/genomics and proteomics. We provide three examples to illustrate the social relevance and strong cultural narrative of genetics/genomics for which no counterpart exists for proteomics. We argue that the major difference between genetics/genomics and proteomics is that genomics has a strong explanatory function, due to the strong cultural narrative of heredity. Based on qualitative interviews and observations of proteomics conferences, we suggest that the nature of proteins, lack of public understanding, and theoretical complexity exacerbates this difference for proteomics. Lewontin's framework suggests that social scientists may find that omics sciences affect social relations in different ways than past analyses of genetics.

Spatial modelling of landscape aesthetic potential in urban-rural fringes.

PubMed

Sahraoui, Yohan; Clauzel, Céline; Foltête, Jean-Christophe

2016-10-01

The aesthetic potential of landscape has to be modelled to provide tools for land-use planning. This involves identifying landscape attributes and revealing individuals' landscape preferences. Landscape aesthetic judgments of individuals (n = 1420) were studied by means of a photo-based survey. A set of landscape visibility metrics was created to measure landscape composition and configuration in each photograph using spatial data. These metrics were used as explanatory variables in multiple linear regressions to explain aesthetic judgments. We demonstrate that landscape aesthetic judgments may be synthesized in three consensus groups. The statistical results obtained show that landscape visibility metrics have good explanatory power. Ultimately, we propose a spatial modelling of landscape aesthetic potential based on these results combined with systematic computation of visibility metrics. Copyright © 2016 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

An Explanatory Model of Dating Violence Risk Factors in Spanish Adolescents.

PubMed

Aizpitarte, Alazne; Alonso-Arbiol, Itziar; Van de Vijver, Fons J R

2017-12-01

Dating violence is a serious public health issue that needs further understanding in terms of risk factors that may be involved in it. The main goal of this study was to test a mediational model of dating violence risk factors. The sample was composed of 477 secondary and college students from Spain (59% females). A dynamic developmental explanatory model considering aggressiveness, insecure attachment, interparental conflict, and peer dating violence was tested using a multigroup structural equation model. Aggressiveness partially mediated the relation between anxious attachment and dating violence and fully mediated the association between interparental conflict resolution and dating violence. Furthermore, perceived peer dating violence was a direct predictor of dating violence. Implications for prevention and intervention plans are discussed. © 2017 The Authors. Journal of Research on Adolescence © 2017 Society for Research on Adolescence.

Insight in Psychosis: An Indicator of Severity of Psychosis, an Explanatory Model of Illness, and a Coping Strategy

PubMed Central

Jacob, K. S.

2016-01-01

Recent studies related to insight, explanatory models (EMs) of illness and their relationship to outcome of psychosis are reviewed. The traditional argument that insight predicts outcome in psychosis is not supported by recent longitudinal data, which has been analyzed using multivariable statistics that adjust for severity and quality of illness. While all cognition will have a neurobiological representation, if “insight” is related to the primary psychotic process, then insight cannot be seen as an independent predictor of outcome but a part of the progression of illness. The evidence suggests insight, like all EMs, is belief which interacts with the trajectory of the person's illness and the local culture to produce a unique understanding of the illness for the particular individual and his/her family. PMID:27335513

Explaining the sense of family coherence among husbands and wives: the Israeli case.

PubMed

Kulik, Liat

2009-12-01

This study examined variables belonging to the family environment that explain the sense of family coherence among husbands (n = 133) and wives (n = 133) in Israel. Specifically, the explanatory variables tested were spousal power relations (as expressed in equality in the division of household labor and decision making), and perceived family conflict. In general, the sense of family coherence among spouses was found to be high. Perceived family conflict contributed to explaining the sense of family coherence for both husbands and wives. Equality in the division of household labor and in decision making had a greater impact on husbands than wives. Family coherence correlated negatively with age for husbands and positively with income for wives. The explanatory variables had a greater impact on the sense of family coherence among husbands than among wives.

The effect of improvisational music therapy on the treatment of depression: protocol for a randomised controlled trial

PubMed Central

Erkkilä, Jaakko; Gold, Christian; Fachner, Jörg; Ala-Ruona, Esa; Punkanen, Marko; Vanhala, Mauno

2008-01-01

Background Music therapy is frequently offered to individuals suffering from depression. Despite the lack of research into the effects of music therapy on this population, anecdotal evidence suggests that the results are rather promising. The aim of this study is to examine whether improvisational, psychodynamically orientated music therapy in an individual setting helps reduce symptoms of depression and improve other health-related outcomes. In particular, attention will be given to mediator agents, such as musical expression and interaction in the sessions, as well as to the explanatory potential of EEG recordings in investigating emotion related music perception of individuals with depression. Methods 85 adults (18–50 years of age) with depression (ICD-10: F 32 or F33) will be randomly assigned to an experimental or a control condition. All participants will receive standard care, but the experimental group will be offered biweekly sessions of improvisational music therapy over a period of 3 months. A blind assessor will measure outcomes before testing, after 3 months, and after 6 months. Discussion This study aims to fill a gap in knowledge as to whether active (improvisational) music therapy applied to people with depression improves their condition. For the first time in this context, the mediating processes, such as changes in musical expression and interaction during the course of therapy, will be objectively investigated, and it is expected that the results will provide new insights into these processes. Furthermore, the findings are expected to reveal whether music related emotional experiences, as measured by EEG, can be utilized in assessing a depressive client's improvement in the therapy. The size and the comprehensiveness of the study are sufficient for generalizing its findings to clinical practice as well as to further music therapy research. Trial registration ISRCTN84185937 PMID:18588701

Using Qualitative Methods to Explore Lay Explanatory Models, Health-Seeking Behaviours and Self-Care Practices of Podoconiosis Patients in North-West Ethiopia

PubMed Central

Banks, Harrison S.; Tsegay, Girmay; Wubie, Moges; Tamiru, Abreham; Davey, Gail; Cooper, Max

2016-01-01

Background Podoconiosis (endemic non-filarial elephantiasis) is a chronic, non-infectious disease resulting from exposure of bare feet to red-clay soil in tropical highlands. This study examined lay beliefs about three under-researched aspects of podoconiosis patients’ care: explanatory models, health-seeking behaviours and self-care. Methods In-depth interviews and focus group discussions were undertaken with 34 participants (19 male, 15 female) between April-May 2015 at podoconiosis treatment centres across East and West Gojjam regions in north-west Ethiopia. Results Explanatory models for podoconiosis included contamination from blood, magic, soil or affected individuals. Belief in heredity or divine punishment often delayed clinic attendance. All participants had tried holy water treatment and some, holy soil. Herbal treatments were considered ineffectual, costly and appeared to promote fluid escape. Motivators for clinic attendance were failure of traditional treatments and severe or disabling symptoms. Patients did not report self-treatment with antibiotics. Self-care was hindered by water being unavailable or expensive and patient fatigue. Conclusion A pluralistic approach to podoconiosis self-treatment was discovered. Holy water is widely valued, though some patients prefer holy soil. Priests and traditional healers could help promote self-care and “signpost” patients to clinics. Change in behaviour and improving water access is key to self-care. PMID:27536772

Random parameter models for accident prediction on two-lane undivided highways in India.

PubMed

Dinu, R R; Veeraragavan, A

2011-02-01

Generalized linear modeling (GLM), with the assumption of Poisson or negative binomial error structure, has been widely employed in road accident modeling. A number of explanatory variables related to traffic, road geometry, and environment that contribute to accident occurrence have been identified and accident prediction models have been proposed. The accident prediction models reported in literature largely employ the fixed parameter modeling approach, where the magnitude of influence of an explanatory variable is considered to be fixed for any observation in the population. Similar models have been proposed for Indian highways too, which include additional variables representing traffic composition. The mixed traffic on Indian highways comes with a lot of variability within, ranging from difference in vehicle types to variability in driver behavior. This could result in variability in the effect of explanatory variables on accidents across locations. Random parameter models, which can capture some of such variability, are expected to be more appropriate for the Indian situation. The present study is an attempt to employ random parameter modeling for accident prediction on two-lane undivided rural highways in India. Three years of accident history, from nearly 200 km of highway segments, is used to calibrate and validate the models. The results of the analysis suggest that the model coefficients for traffic volume, proportion of cars, motorized two-wheelers and trucks in traffic, and driveway density and horizontal and vertical curvatures are randomly distributed across locations. The paper is concluded with a discussion on modeling results and the limitations of the present study. Copyright © 2010 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

Identifying the physical and anthropometric qualities explanatory of paddling adolescents.

PubMed

Sinclair, Wade H; Leicht, Anthony S; Eady, Troy W; Marshall, Nick J; Woods, Carl T

2017-12-01

This study aimed to identify the physical and/or anthropometric qualities explanatory of adolescent surf lifesavers participating in paddling activities. Cross-sectional observational study. A total of 53 (14-18years) male participants were recruited and classified into two groups; paddlers (n=30; actively participating in paddling), non-paddlers (n=23; not actively participating in paddling). All participants completed a testing battery that consisted of 16 physical (isometric strength and muscular endurance) and anthropometric (height, mass, segment lengths and breadths) assessments. Binary logistic regression models and receiver operating characteristic curves were built to identify the physical and/or anthropometric qualities most explanatory of paddling status (two levels: 1=paddlers, 0=non-paddlers). Significant between group differences were noted for 14 of the 16 assessments (P<0.05; d=0.59-1.29). However, it was the combination of horizontal shoulder abduction isometric strength, body mass, and sitting height that provided the greatest association with paddling status (Akaike Information Criterion=47.13). This full model successfully detected 87% and 70% of the paddlers and non-paddlers, respectively, with an area under the curve of 84.2%. These results indicate that there are distinctive physical and anthropometric qualities that may be advantageous for prospective paddling athletes to possess. Practitioners should integrate assessments of horizontal shoulder abduction isometric strength, body mass, and sitting height, as well as their subsequent cut-off thresholds, into talent detection programs focused toward the recognition of performance potential in paddling-oriented sports. Copyright © 2017 Sports Medicine Australia. Published by Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

Reproductive practices by patterns of marriage among Iranian women: study protocol for an explanatory sequential mixed methods design.

PubMed

Taghizadeh, Ziba; Vedadhir, Abouali; Behmanesh, Fereshteh; Ebadi, Abbas; Pourreza, Abulghasem; Abbasi-Shavazi, Mohammad Jalal

2015-09-18

Nowadays, nearly half of the world population lives in societies with low fertility or the below-replacement fertility. This potentially grounds the critical situation of reduction in the workforce and causes the aging of population due to an overall increase in life expectancy and standard of living. Hence, population and its transitions including the issue of fertility decline has become a topic of intense debate in the agenda-setting and policy-making processes in both the developed and developing countries. In this view, what can practically be done to respond to the fertility decline that entails effectively addressing the determinants of fertility change? In line with the literature, how people form their marriages or patterns of marriage is amongst influencing factors which potentially affect their reproductive practices as diverse societies recognize different conventions for marriage. This study is to examine women's reproductive practices by the various patterns of marriage using the explanatory sequential mixed methods design. This study has an explanatory sequential mixed methods design, the follow-up explanations variant model, with two strands. This design will be implemented in two distinct phases. In the first phase, a cross-sectional quantitative study will be done using a cluster sampling strategy on 850 married women 15-49 years old living in Babol city, Iran. In order to obtain a deeper understanding of the results of the quantitative phase, researchers will implement a qualitative research in the second phase of this study. This design will provide an explanation of the quantitative research results using the qualitative evidence. As patterns of marriage have implications for the status of women, their health and fertility, the result of this study can provide a rich source of information for the required health-related interventions and policies are required to put the demographic changes on the right track at micro and macro level and improve the reproductive practices of women at micro level.

The Category of Alienation in Educational Psychology

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Osin, E. N.

2017-01-01

This paper discusses the explanatory possibilities and limitations of the concept of alienation within the framework of educational psychology studies. Research into various phenomena associated with alienation (frustration and burnout, extrinsic motivation, cynicism, etc.) is often limited by the ontological realm of the individual, whereas the…

The Determinants of College Student Retention

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Guerrero, Adam A.

2010-01-01

This study attempts to add to the college student dropout literature by examining persistence decisions at private, non-selective university using previously unstudied explanatory variables and advanced econometric methods. Three main contributions are provided. First, proprietary data obtained from a type of university that is underrepresented in…

Characterizing Resilience and Growth Among Soldiers: A Trajectory Study

DTIC Science & Technology

2012-04-01

casualties of cruel environments or bad genetics . Positive psychology challenges the assumptions of the disease model. It calls for as much focus on...by psychologists, under several different rubrics : dispositional optimism by Carver and Scheier (1981), hope by Snyder (2000), and explanatory style

Philosophical, Psychological, and Ethological Approaches to the Search for Intelligence

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Waller, S.

2010-04-01

How we define intelligence determines how we will look for it, as well as what explanatory approaches we will accept. This paper discusses the gaps between disciplines that study intelligence, and seeks to develop a more complete and expansive understanding of intelligence.

Predictive Modeling of a Fecal Indicator at a Subtropical Marine Beach

EPA Science Inventory

The Virtual Beach Model Builder (VBMB) is a software tool that can be used to develop predictive models at beaches based on microbial data and observations (explanatory variables) that describe hydrometeorological and biogeochemical conditions. During the summer of 2008, a study...

Expectancy Effects on Self-Reported Attention-Deficit/Hyperactivity Disorder Symptoms in Simulated Neurofeedback: A Pilot Study.

PubMed

Lee, Grace J; Suhr, Julie A

2018-03-31

Expectancy is a psychological factor that can impact treatment effectiveness. Research on neurofeedback for attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) suggests expectancy may contribute to treatment outcomes, though evidence for expectancy as an explanatory factor is sparse. This pilot study investigated the effects of expectancies on self-reported ADHD symptoms in simulated neurofeedback. Forty-six adults who were concerned that they had ADHD expected to receive active neurofeedback, but were randomly assigned to receive a placebo with false feedback indicating attentive (positive false feedback) or inattentive (negative false feedback) states. Effects of the expectancy manipulation were measured on an ADHD self-report scale. Large expectancy effects were found, such that individuals who received positive false feedback reported significant decreases in ADHD symptoms, whereas individuals who received negative false feedback reported significant increases in ADHD symptoms. Findings suggest that expectancy should be considered as an explanatory mechanism for ADHD symptom change in response to neurofeedback.

The Importance of Field in Understanding Persistence among Science and Engineering Majors

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Wyer, Mary

Many contemporary studies of persistence in science and engineering majors find that students' gender is an important explanatory variable in understanding why students leave and stay in their majors. This study revisits an earlier report by this author to explore the relative impact of gender on persistence when field of major is held constant, using the same data as the earlier work, drawing on survey responses from 285 students in required biology and engineering courses. The author argues two points: that effects of field on students' persistence are often misinterpreted as gender effects and that gender is too often understood in the narrow sense of students' sex. The author finds that when field is taken into account, students' sex has little explanatory power for understanding persistence rates. In contrast, students' positive experiences with and positive attitudes about gender equity significantly enhance commitments to science and engineering majors, advanced degrees, and careers. The results suggest the need for field-specific interventions to promote the advancement of undergraduate women in science and engineering.

Understanding First Generation College Student Experiences and Interaction with Belongingness, Identity, and Social Capital: An Explanatory Mixed Method Study

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Boone, Hank Joseph Reyes

This master's thesis is a mixed method explanatory study focusing on First Generation College student's (FGS) engineering degree experiences. Constructs used to understand their experiences were future time perspective, belongingness, engineering identity, social capital, and social identity complexity. An upper level engineering students' communications class was surveyed at a western land grant institution. Analysis showed FGS had more engineering belongingness than peers having at least one parent graduate college. The qualitative population was then upper level engineering FGS who reported high belongingness. Data showed the five interview participants communicated belongingness in terms of engineering identity. They became an engineer when they had experiences using engineering knowledge. Participants often accessed parents and family to make academic and career decisions, but some accessed more individuals (i.e. professors, engineers, peers). Lastly, participants appeared to compartmentalize their FGS identity to outside the engineering classroom while they formed their engineering identity through the degree program.

Factors Associated With Ambulatory Activity in De Novo Parkinson Disease.

PubMed

Christiansen, Cory; Moore, Charity; Schenkman, Margaret; Kluger, Benzi; Kohrt, Wendy; Delitto, Anthony; Berman, Brian; Hall, Deborah; Josbeno, Deborah; Poon, Cynthia; Robichaud, Julie; Wellington, Toby; Jain, Samay; Comella, Cynthia; Corcos, Daniel; Melanson, Ed

2017-04-01

Objective ambulatory activity during daily living has not been characterized for people with Parkinson disease prior to initiation of dopaminergic medication. Our goal was to characterize ambulatory activity based on average daily step count and examine determinants of step count in nonexercising people with de novo Parkinson disease. We analyzed baseline data from a randomized controlled trial, which excluded people performing regular endurance exercise. Of 128 eligible participants (mean ± SD = 64.3 ± 8.6 years), 113 had complete accelerometer data, which were used to determine daily step count. Multiple linear regression was used to identify factors associated with average daily step count over 10 days. Candidate explanatory variable categories were (1) demographics/anthropometrics, (2) Parkinson disease characteristics, (3) motor symptom severity, (4) nonmotor and behavioral characteristics, (5) comorbidities, and (6) cardiorespiratory fitness. Average daily step count was 5362 ± 2890 steps per day. Five factors explained 24% of daily step count variability, with higher step count associated with higher cardiorespiratory fitness (10%), no fear/worry of falling (5%), lower motor severity examination score (4%), more recent time since Parkinson disease diagnosis (3%), and the presence of a cardiovascular condition (2%). Daily step count in nonexercising people recruited for this intervention trial with de novo Parkinson disease approached sedentary lifestyle levels. Further study is warranted for elucidating factors explaining ambulatory activity, particularly cardiorespiratory fitness, and fear/worry of falling. Clinicians should consider the costs and benefits of exercise and activity behavior interventions immediately after diagnosis of Parkinson disease to attenuate the health consequences of low daily step count.Video Abstract available for more insights from the authors (see Video, Supplemental Digital Content 1, http://links.lww.com/JNPT/A170).

REML/BLUP and sequential path analysis in estimating genotypic values and interrelationships among simple maize grain yield-related traits.

PubMed

Olivoto, T; Nardino, M; Carvalho, I R; Follmann, D N; Ferrari, M; Szareski, V J; de Pelegrin, A J; de Souza, V Q

2017-03-22

Methodologies using restricted maximum likelihood/best linear unbiased prediction (REML/BLUP) in combination with sequential path analysis in maize are still limited in the literature. Therefore, the aims of this study were: i) to use REML/BLUP-based procedures in order to estimate variance components, genetic parameters, and genotypic values of simple maize hybrids, and ii) to fit stepwise regressions considering genotypic values to form a path diagram with multi-order predictors and minimum multicollinearity that explains the relationships of cause and effect among grain yield-related traits. Fifteen commercial simple maize hybrids were evaluated in multi-environment trials in a randomized complete block design with four replications. The environmental variance (78.80%) and genotype-vs-environment variance (20.83%) accounted for more than 99% of the phenotypic variance of grain yield, which difficult the direct selection of breeders for this trait. The sequential path analysis model allowed the selection of traits with high explanatory power and minimum multicollinearity, resulting in models with elevated fit (R 2 > 0.9 and ε < 0.3). The number of kernels per ear (NKE) and thousand-kernel weight (TKW) are the traits with the largest direct effects on grain yield (r = 0.66 and 0.73, respectively). The high accuracy of selection (0.86 and 0.89) associated with the high heritability of the average (0.732 and 0.794) for NKE and TKW, respectively, indicated good reliability and prospects of success in the indirect selection of hybrids with high-yield potential through these traits. The negative direct effect of NKE on TKW (r = -0.856), however, must be considered. The joint use of mixed models and sequential path analysis is effective in the evaluation of maize-breeding trials.

Evidence-based medicine: is it a bridge too far?

PubMed

Fernandez, Ana; Sturmberg, Joachim; Lukersmith, Sue; Madden, Rosamond; Torkfar, Ghazal; Colagiuri, Ruth; Salvador-Carulla, Luis

2015-11-06

This paper aims to describe the contextual factors that gave rise to evidence-based medicine (EBM), as well as its controversies and limitations in the current health context. Our analysis utilizes two frameworks: (1) a complex adaptive view of health that sees both health and healthcare as non-linear phenomena emerging from their different components; and (2) the unified approach to the philosophy of science that provides a new background for understanding the differences between the phases of discovery, corroboration, and implementation in science. The need for standardization, the development of clinical epidemiology, concerns about the economic sustainability of health systems and increasing numbers of clinical trials, together with the increase in the computer's ability to handle large amounts of data, have paved the way for the development of the EBM movement. It was quickly adopted on the basis of authoritative knowledge rather than evidence of its own capacity to improve the efficiency and equity of health systems. The main problem with the EBM approach is the restricted and simplistic approach to scientific knowledge, which prioritizes internal validity as the major quality of the studies to be included in clinical guidelines. As a corollary, the preferred method for generating evidence is the explanatory randomized controlled trial. This method can be useful in the phase of discovery but is inadequate in the field of implementation, which needs to incorporate additional information including expert knowledge, patients' values and the context. EBM needs to move forward and perceive health and healthcare as a complex interaction, i.e. an interconnected, non-linear phenomenon that may be better analysed using a variety of complexity science techniques.

Development of metaphors to explain cognitive behavioural principles for patients with medically unexplained symptoms in Sri Lanka.

PubMed

Sumathipala, Athula

2014-03-01

Medically unexplained symptoms (MUS) are common in primary care across cultures, accounting for high consultations with multiple providers and unnecessary investigations. Cognitive behavioural therapy (CBT) is efficacious for MUS and reduces physical symptoms, psychological distress and disability. Two intervention trials by the author and his group remain the only reported trials from the developing world. A treatment package was designed by modifying a CBT model. The modifications were innovative use of locally relevant appropriate language and strategies that were simple enough while conforming to the CBT principles. The aim was to convey the principles of CBT to people using simple techniques--using metaphor. These are described in the paper as generic metaphors that could be used to explain the CBT principles and specific ones for patients with MUS. Metaphor is an effective clinical tool. The author's clinical experience and patients' feedback suggest that these metaphors are helpful in conveying the CBT principles to patients. To develop metaphors appealing to the client and effective clinically, carrying out qualitative research among patients' explanatory model is an important prerequisite. The generic and MUS-specific metaphors reported here should be tried in other cultural and clinical settings and evaluated. Further systematic work including qualitative work for consensus evaluation among CBT experts as well as opinion on user-friendliness of these techniques tested among CBT practitioners will be needed.

Models, theory structure and mechanisms in biochemistry: The case of allosterism.

PubMed

Alleva, Karina; Díez, José; Federico, Lucia

2017-06-01

From the perspective of the new mechanistic philosophy, it has been argued that explanatory causal mechanisms in some special sciences such as biochemistry and neurobiology cannot be captured by any useful notion of theory, or at least by any standard notion. The goal of this paper is to show that a model-theoretic notion of theory, and in particular the structuralist notion of a theory-net already applied to other unified explanatory theories, adequately suits the MWC allosteric mechanism explanatory set-up. We also argue, contra some mechanistic claims questioning the use of laws in biological explanations, that the theory reconstructed in this way essentially contains non-accidental regularities that qualify as laws, and that taking into account these lawful components, it is possible to explicate the unified character of the theory. Finally, we argue that, contrary to what some mechanists also claim, functional explanations that do not fully specify the mechanistic structure are not defective or incomplete in any relevant sense, and that functional components are perfectly explanatory. The conclusion is that, as some authors have emphasized in other fields (Walmsley 2008), particular elements of traditional approaches do not contradict but rather complement the new mechanist philosophy, and taken together they may offer a more complete understanding of special sciences and the variety of explanations they provide. Copyright © 2017 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

Dimensions of integration in interdisciplinary explanations of the origin of evolutionary novelty.

PubMed

Love, Alan C; Lugar, Gary L

2013-12-01

Many philosophers of biology have embraced a version of pluralism in response to the failure of theory reduction but overlook how concepts, methods, and explanatory resources are in fact coordinated, such as in interdisciplinary research where the aim is to integrate different strands into an articulated whole. This is observable for the origin of evolutionary novelty-a complex problem that requires a synthesis of intellectual resources from different fields to arrive at robust answers to multiple allied questions. It is an apt locus for exploring new dimensions of explanatory integration because it necessitates coordination among historical and experimental disciplines (e.g., geology and molecular biology). These coordination issues are widespread for the origin of novel morphologies observed in the Cambrian Explosion. Despite an explicit commitment to an integrated, interdisciplinary explanation, some potential disciplinary contributors are excluded. Notable among these exclusions is the physics of ontogeny. We argue that two different dimensions of integration-data and standards-have been insufficiently distinguished. This distinction accounts for why physics-based explanatory contributions to the origin of novelty have been resisted: they do not integrate certain types of data and differ in how they conceptualize the standard of uniformitarianism in historical, causal explanations. Our analysis of these different dimensions of integration contributes to the development of more adequate and integrated explanatory frameworks. Copyright © 2013 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

Process, mechanism, and explanation related to externalizing behavior in developmental psychopathology.

PubMed

Hinshaw, Stephen P

2002-10-01

Advances in conceptualization and statistical modeling, on the one hand, and enhanced appreciation of transactional pathways, gene-environment correlations and interactions, and moderator and mediator variables, on the other, have heightened awareness of the need to consider factors and processes that explain the development and maintenance of psychopathology. With a focus on attentional problems, impulsivity, and disruptive behavior patterns, I address the kinds of conceptual approaches most likely to lead to advances regarding explanatory models in the field. Findings from my own research program on processes and mechanisms reveal both promise and limitations. Progress will emanate from use of genetically informative designs, blends of variable and person-centered research, explicit testing of developmental processes, systematic approaches to moderation and mediation, exploitation of "natural experiments," and the conduct of prevention and intervention trials designed to accentuate explanation as well as outcome. In all, breakthroughs will occur only with advances in translational research-linking basic and applied science-and with the further development of transactional, systemic approaches to explanation.

The Hedwig van Ameringen Executive Leadership in Academic MedicineRTM Program for Women: An Explanatory Study Regarding Its Development and Persistence

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Mensel, Ruth

2010-01-01

This study was designed to determine which factors contributed to the development and persistence of a women's leadership development program in higher education. The "Hedwig van Ameringen" Executive Leadership in Academic Medicine[R] "Program for Women" was the basis for this single-case study. To speculate about ELAM's development and…

Evaluating a Newly Developed Differentiation Approach in Terms of Student Achievement and Teachers' Opinions

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Altintas, Esra; Ozdemir, Ahmet S.

2015-01-01

This study aims to evaluate a differentiation approach that was recently developed to teach mathematics to gifted middle school students in terms of its practice by teachers by studying the effect of the approach on achievement among both gifted and non-gifted students. From mixed research methods, the study used an explanatory design. It was…

Sleep Problems in Children with Autism Spectrum Problems: A Longitudinal Population-Based Study

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Sivertsen, Borge; Posserud, Maj-Britt; Gillberg, Christopher; Lundervold, Astri J.; Hysing, Mari

2012-01-01

This study examined the prevalence and chronicity of sleep problems in children who manifest problems believed to be typical of Autism Spectrum Disorders (ASD). Using data from a longitudinal total population study, symptoms of ASD, insomnia and potential explanatory factors were assessed at ages 7-9 and 11-13. Children were included in a group…

How Students Choose a College: Understanding the Role of Internet Based Resources in the College Choice Process

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Burdett, Kimberli R.

2013-01-01

The purpose of this study was to gain a better understanding of how current internet-based resources are affecting the college choice process. An explanatory mixed methods design was used, and the study involved collecting qualitative data after a quantitative phase to explain the quantitative data in greater depth. An additional study was…

Analysis of Due Process Decisions in Idaho: 2004 to 2012

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Wattam, Marni Jo

2014-01-01

This study used an explanatory mixed methods design to examine special education due process outcomes in Idaho for the time period of January 1, 2004 to June 30, 2012. The study was done in two phases. Phase one of the study explored what types of special education related issues are being brought before the state hearing officer(s) as due process…

The Social Integration of Employees with Disabilities in the Workplace: An Explanatory Case Study of Supervisors' Current Practices

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Angotta, Jill E.

2013-01-01

This study is an exploratory case study on supervisors' and front line managers' current practices towards the promotion of the socialization of employees with disabilities with their non-disabled peers. The researcher interviewed eight participants, four men and four women, purposefully selected from Connecticut and Indiana in person or over the…

How Former Students Attain Goals through a Process of Self-Coaching When Training Has Ended: A Case Study

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Jones, Helen Battle

2017-01-01

The purpose of this qualitative explanatory case study was to address the lack of understanding regarding how, why, and when former students trained in self-coaching apply a self-coaching process toward the attainment of personal goals post training. The two research questions of the study were, "how do former students trained in…

Understanding University Students' Thoughts and Practices about Digital Citizenship: A Mixed Methods Study

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Kara, Nuri

2018-01-01

The purpose of this study was to investigate university students' thoughts and practices concerning digital citizenship. An explanatory mixed methods design was used, and it involved collecting qualitative data after a quantitative phase in order to follow up on the quantitative data in more depth. In the first quantitative phase of the study, a…

The Impact of Normative Environments on Learner Motivation and L2 Reading Ability Growth

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Sasaki, Miyuki; Kozaki, Yoko; Ross, Steven J.

2017-01-01

This study explores the effects of various motivational variables operating within 44 English classes on 1-year-long gains in the English reading proficiency of 1,149 Japanese university students. The study adds new knowledge to the recent outcomes of second language (L2) motivational studies in 3 major ways. First, the explanatory variables…

Examining the Literacy Histories of Doctoral Students in an Educational Studies Program through Surveys and Interviews: A Mixed Methods Study

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Adams-Budde, Melissa; Howard, Christy; Jolliff, Grant; Myers, Joy

2014-01-01

The purpose of this mixed methods sequential explanatory study was to explain the relationship between literacy experiences over time and the literacy identities of the doctoral students in a teacher education and higher education program. The quantitative phase, surveying 36 participants, revealed a positive correlation between participant's…

Building a Concrete Foundation: A Mixed-Method Study of Teaching Styles and the Use of Concrete, Representational, and Abstract Mathematics Instruction

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Thigpen, L. Christine

2012-01-01

The purpose of this study was to explore teaching styles and how frequently teachers with a variety of teaching styles incorporate multiple representations, such as manipulatives, drawings, counters, etc., in the middle school mathematics classroom. Through this explanatory mixed methods study it was possible to collect the quantitative data in…

Using a Market Ratio Factor in Faculty Salary Equity Studies. Professional File Number 103, Spring 2007

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Luna, Andrew L.

2007-01-01

This study used two multiple regression analyses to develop an explanatory model to determine which model might best explain faculty salaries. The central purpose of the study was to determine if using a single market ratio variable was a stronger predictor for faculty salaries than the use of dummy variables representing various disciplines.…

Improving children's health and development in British Columbia through nurse home visiting: a randomized controlled trial protocol.

PubMed

Catherine, Nicole L A; Gonzalez, Andrea; Boyle, Michael; Sheehan, Debbie; Jack, Susan M; Hougham, Kaitlyn A; McCandless, Lawrence; MacMillan, Harriet L; Waddell, Charlotte

2016-08-04

Nurse-Family Partnership is a nurse home visitation program that aims to improve the lives of young mothers and their children. The program focuses on women who are parenting for the first time and experiencing socioeconomic disadvantage. Nurse visits start as early in pregnancy as possible and continue until the child reaches age two years. The program has proven effective in the United States - improving children's mental health and development and maternal wellbeing, and showing long-term cost-effectiveness. But it is not known whether the same benefits will be obtained in Canada, where public services differ. The British Columbia Healthy Connections Project therefore involves a randomized controlled trial evaluating Nurse-Family Partnership's effectiveness compared with existing (usual) services in improving children's mental health and early development and mother's life circumstances. The trial's main aims are to: reduce childhood injuries by age two years (primary outcome indicator); reduce prenatal nicotine and alcohol use; improve child cognitive and language development and behaviour at age two years; and reduce subsequent pregnancies by 24 months postpartum. Potential explanatory factors such as maternal mental health (including self-efficacy) are also being assessed, as is the program's impact on exposure to intimate-partner violence. To inform future economic evaluation, data are also being collected on health and social service access and use. Eligible and consenting participants (N = 1040) are being recruited prior to 28 weeks gestation then individually randomized to receive existing services (comparison group) or Nurse-Family Partnership plus existing services (intervention group). Nurse-Family Partnership is being delivered following fidelity guidelines. Data are being collected during in person and telephone interviews at: baseline; 34-36 weeks gestation; and two, 10, 18 and 24 months postpartum. Additional data will be obtained via linkages from provincial datasets. Recruitment commenced in October 2013 and will continue for approximately three years. This trial will provide important information about the generalizability of Nurse-Family Partnership to the Canadian context. Findings will be published in peer-reviewed journals and shared with policymakers and practitioners through extensive public health collaborations already underway. Registered July 18, 2013 with ClinicalTrials.gov Identifier: NCT01672060 .

Hypertension in the very old; prevalence, awareness, treatment and control: a cross-sectional population-based study in a Spanish municipality.

PubMed

Aguado, Alba; López, Flora; Miravet, Sonia; Oriol, Pilar; Fuentes, M Isabel; Henares, Belén; Badia, Teresa; Esteve, Lluis; Peligro, Javier

2009-05-08

Information on hypertension in the very elderly is sparse. Until recently evidence of benefits from pharmacological treatment was inconclusive. We estimated the prevalence of hypertension in subjects aged 80 or more, the proportion of awareness, treatment and control. Explanatory variables associated with good control were also studied. Cross sectional, population-based study, conducted in Martorell, an urban Spanish municipality, in 2005. By simple random sampling from the census, 323 subjects aged 80 or more were included. Patients were visited at home or in the geriatric institution and after giving informed consent, the study variables were collected. These included: supine and standing blood pressure and information about diagnosis and treatment of hypertension. The estimation and 95% confidence interval were obtained and a logistic regression model was used to study explanatory variables associated with blood pressure below 140/90 mm Hg. The prevalence of hypertension was 72.8% (95%CI: 69.5-76.6%) and 93% of the patients were aware of this condition, of whom 96.3% (95%CI: 93.65-97.9%) had been prescribed pharmacological treatment and 30.7% (95%CI: 25.8 - 36.1%) had blood pressure below 140/90 mm Hg. Some of the patients (43%) had one antihypertensive drug and 39.5% had two in combination. Explanatory variables associated with blood pressure below 140/90 mm Hg included prescription of a diuretic, OR: 0.31 (95%CI: 0.14-0.66), and history of ischemic heart disease, OR: 0.21 (95%CI: 0.1-0.47). The prevalence of hypertension in population aged 80 or more was over 70%. Most patients were aware of this condition and they had antihypertensive medication prescribed. Approximately one third of treated patients had blood pressure below 140/90 mm Hg. Patients with heart disease and with diuretics had more frequently blood pressure below this value.

Hypertension in the very old; prevalence, awareness, treatment and control: a cross-sectional population-based study in a Spanish municipality

PubMed Central

Aguado, Alba; López, Flora; Miravet, Sonia; Oriol, Pilar; Fuentes, M Isabel; Henares, Belén; Badia, Teresa; Esteve, Lluis; Peligro, Javier

2009-01-01

Background Information on hypertension in the very elderly is sparse. Until recently evidence of benefits from pharmacological treatment was inconclusive. We estimated the prevalence of hypertension in subjects aged 80 or more, the proportion of awareness, treatment and control. Explanatory variables associated with good control were also studied. Methods Cross sectional, population-based study, conducted in Martorell, an urban Spanish municipality, in 2005. By simple random sampling from the census, 323 subjects aged 80 or more were included. Patients were visited at home or in the geriatric institution and after giving informed consent, the study variables were collected. These included: supine and standing blood pressure and information about diagnosis and treatment of hypertension. The estimation and 95% confidence interval were obtained and a logistic regression model was used to study explanatory variables associated with blood pressure below 140/90 mm Hg. Results The prevalence of hypertension was 72.8% (95%CI: 69.5 – 76.6%) and 93% of the patients were aware of this condition, of whom 96.3% (95%CI: 93.65 – 97.9%) had been prescribed pharmacological treatment and 30.7% (95%CI: 25.8 – 36.1%) had blood pressure below 140/90 mm Hg. Some of the patients (43%) had one antihypertensive drug and 39.5% had two in combination. Explanatory variables associated with blood pressure below 140/90 mm Hg included prescription of a diuretic, OR: 0.31 (95%CI: 0.14 – 0.66), and history of ischemic heart disease, OR: 0.21 (95%CI: 0.1 – 0.47). Conclusion The prevalence of hypertension in population aged 80 or more was over 70%. Most patients were aware of this condition and they had antihypertensive medication prescribed. Approximately one third of treated patients had blood pressure below 140/90 mm Hg. Patients with heart disease and with diuretics had more frequently blood pressure below this value. PMID:19426484

Inferential consequences of modeling rather than measuring snow accumulation in studies of animal ecology

USGS Publications Warehouse

Cross, Paul C.; Klaver, Robert W.; Brennan, Angela; Creel, Scott; Beckmann, Jon P.; Higgs, Megan D.; Scurlock, Brandon M.

2013-01-01

Abstract. It is increasingly common for studies of animal ecology to use model-based predictions of environmental variables as explanatory or predictor variables, even though model prediction uncertainty is typically unknown. To demonstrate the potential for misleading inferences when model predictions with error are used in place of direct measurements, we compared snow water equivalent (SWE) and snow depth as predicted by the Snow Data Assimilation System (SNODAS) to field measurements of SWE and snow depth. We examined locations on elk (Cervus canadensis) winter ranges in western Wyoming, because modeled data such as SNODAS output are often used for inferences on elk ecology. Overall, SNODAS predictions tended to overestimate field measurements, prediction uncertainty was high, and the difference between SNODAS predictions and field measurements was greater in snow shadows for both snow variables compared to non-snow shadow areas. We used a simple simulation of snow effects on the probability of an elk being killed by a predator to show that, if SNODAS prediction uncertainty was ignored, we might have mistakenly concluded that SWE was not an important factor in where elk were killed in predatory attacks during the winter. In this simulation, we were interested in the effects of snow at finer scales (2) than the resolution of SNODAS. If bias were to decrease when SNODAS predictions are averaged over coarser scales, SNODAS would be applicable to population-level ecology studies. In our study, however, averaging predictions over moderate to broad spatial scales (9–2200 km2) did not reduce the differences between SNODAS predictions and field measurements. This study highlights the need to carefully evaluate two issues when using model output as an explanatory variable in subsequent analysis: (1) the model’s resolution relative to the scale of the ecological question of interest and (2) the implications of prediction uncertainty on inferences when using model predictions as explanatory or predictor variables.

Relationships between Teacher Characteristics and Educational Technology

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Schulze, Kurt Ronald

2014-01-01

Too often, teachers are using educational technology resources for administrative purposes instead of using these resources in a constructivist manner to enhance student learning. The study site was well behind the national average in overall educational technology use categories. The purpose of this explanatory correlational research was to…

Qualitative Audience Research: Toward an Integrative Approach to Reception.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Jensen, Klaus Bruhn

1987-01-01

Analyzes research about the mass communication audience and describes a theoretical and methodological framework for further empirical studies. Discusses the (1) explanatory value of qualitative research; (2) social and cultural implications of the reception process, with special reference to television; and (3) applications and social relevance…

Diagrammatic Literacy in Secondary Science Education

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Kragten, Marco; Admiraal, Wilfried; Rijlaarsdam, Gert

2013-01-01

Students in secondary science education seem to have difficulties with understanding diagrams. The present study focused on explanatory factors that predict students' difficulties with process diagrams, i.e., diagrams that describe a process consisting of components that are related by arrows. From 18 compulsory national Biology exams of…

Public Views on the Gendering of Mathematics and Related Careers: International Comparisons

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Forgasz, Helen; Leder, Gilah; Tan, Hazel

2014-01-01

Mathematics continues to be an enabling discipline for Science, Technology, Engineering, and Mathematics (STEM)-based university studies and related careers. Explanatory models for females' underrepresentation in higher level mathematics and STEM-based courses comprise learner-related and environmental variables--including societal beliefs. Using…

Pathways between Acculturation and Health: Does the Measure Matter?

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Miranda, Patricia Y.; Gonzalez, Hector M.; Tarraf, Wassim

2011-01-01

The purpose of this study was to assess the association between acculturation and functional health using multiple proxies of acculturation to examine explanatory pathways to clarify disparate health findings. A population-based cross-sectional, multistage probability sample from the Hispanic Established Populations for the Epidemiologic Studies…

Comparing HE Policies in Europe

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Bleiklie, Ivar; Michelsen, Svein

2013-01-01

The purpose of this paper is to develop a conceptual framework for a comparative analysis of Higher Education policies that enables us to investigate the explanatory power of structural characteristics of politico-administrative systems. The policies that are studied aim at improving the efficiency and quality of institutional performance. The…

Adolescent Self-Reported and Peer-Reported Self-Esteem.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

O'Donnell, William James

1979-01-01

The study is an examination of the relationship between adolescents' self-reported and peer-reported self-esteem and how this relationship is affected by sex, race, and age variables. Significant sex and race variations interacted with age. Explanatory hypotheses for these findings are given. (Author/KC)

STEM Faculty and Indirect Costs: What Administrators Need to Know

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Gossman, Susan

2016-01-01

The focus of this single site, qualitative case study was on public research university STEM (science, technology, engineering and mathematics) faculty and their perspectives on, and behavior towards, indirect cost recovery. The explanatory scheme was derived from anthropological theory and incorporated organizational culture, resource dependency…

Drought tolerance in cacao is mediated by root phenotypic plasticity

USDA-ARS?s Scientific Manuscript database

This study aimed to evaluate phenotypic relationships and their direct and indirect effects through path analysis, and evaluate the use of the phenotypic plasticity index as criteria for the estimation of the basic and explanatory variables used to analysis several cacao progenies subjected to soil ...

The utility of Cox's Interaction Model to direct the assessment and prevention of adolescent aggression.

PubMed

DiNapoli, Pamela Pershing

2003-02-01

The current study of violence prevention is hampered by a lack of consensus on the definition of violence. There is, however, some agreement about the behavioral cues that may predict violent behavior such as aggression. Although it has been shown that individual-level variables (e.g., race, gender, and ethnicity) are correlated with aggressive behavior, it is clear that they alone are not explanatory of aggressive behavior. This article demonstrates how the Interaction Model of Client Health Behavior is an important health behavior framework for the assessment of aggression in adolescents, offering insight into the contextual nature of adolescent aggression. Victimization and witnessing of violence, frequently identified to be precursors of adolescent aggression in current epidemiologic studies, are examined within this framework. On the basis of the interactional nature of the phenomenon, necessary components for successful prevention programs are suggested. Finally, future research implications calling for a well-designed study that integrates individual and contextual variables with the use of this theory-driven explanatory framework are proposed. Copyright 2003, Elsevier Science (USA). All rights reserved.

Marital Conflict in Early Childhood and Adolescent Disordered Eating: Emotional Insecurity about the Marital Relationship as an Explanatory Mechanism

PubMed Central

George, Melissa W.; Fairchild, Amanda J.; Cummings, E. Mark; Davies, Patrick T.

2017-01-01

Disordered eating behaviors, including frequent dieting, unhealthy weight control behaviors (e.g., vomiting and skipping meals for weight loss) and binge eating are prevalent among adolescents. While negative, conflict-ridden family environments have long been implicated as problematic and a contributing factor to the development of disordered eating, few studies have examined the influence of marital conflict exposure in childhood to understand the development of these behaviors in adolescence. The current study investigates the impact of marital conflict, children’s emotional insecurity about the marital relationship, and disordered eating behaviors in early adolescence in a prospective, longitudinal study of a community sample of 236 families in Midwest and Northeast regions of the U.S. Full structural mediation analyses utilizing robust latent constructs of marital conflict and emotional insecurity about the marital relationship, support children’s emotional insecurity as an explanatory mechanism for the influence of marital conflict on adolescent disordered eating behaviors. Findings are discussed with important implications for the long-term impact of marital conflict and the development of disordered eating in adolescence. PMID:25113902

Analysis of injury severity of drivers involved in single- and two-vehicle crashes on highways in Ontario.

PubMed

Lee, Chris; Li, Xuancheng

2014-10-01

This study analyzes driver's injury severity in single- and two-vehicle crashes and compares the effects of explanatory variables among various types of crashes. The study identified factors affecting injury severity and their effects on severity levels using 5-year crash records for provincial highways in Ontario, Canada. Considering heteroscedasticity in the effects of explanatory variables on injury severity, the heteroscedastic ordered logit (HOL) models were developed for single- and two-vehicle crashes separately. The results of the models show that there exists heteroscedasticity for young drivers (≤30), safety equipment and ejection in the single-vehicle crash model, and female drivers, safety equipment and head-on collision in the two-vehicle crash models. The results also show that young car drivers have opposite effects between single-car and car-car crashes, and sideswipe crashes have opposite effects between car-car and truck-truck crashes. The study demonstrates that separate HOL models for single-vehicle and different types of two-vehicle crashes can identify differential effects of factors on driver's injury severity. Copyright © 2014 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

Marital conflict in early childhood and adolescent disordered eating: emotional insecurity about the marital relationship as an explanatory mechanism.

PubMed

George, Melissa W; Fairchild, Amanda J; Mark Cummings, E; Davies, Patrick T

2014-12-01

Disordered eating behaviors, including frequent dieting, unhealthy weight control behaviors (e.g., vomiting and skipping meals for weight loss) and binge eating are prevalent among adolescents. While negative, conflict-ridden family environments have long been implicated as problematic and a contributing factor to the development of disordered eating, few studies have examined the influence of marital conflict exposure in childhood to understand the development of these behaviors in adolescence. The current study investigates the impact of marital conflict, children's emotional insecurity about the marital relationship, and disordered eating behaviors in early adolescence in a prospective, longitudinal study of a community sample of 236 families in Midwest and Northeast regions of the U.S. Full structural mediation analyses utilizing robust latent constructs of marital conflict and emotional insecurity about the marital relationship, support children's emotional insecurity as an explanatory mechanism for the influence of marital conflict on adolescent disordered eating behaviors. Findings are discussed with important implications for the long-term impact of marital conflict and the development of disordered eating in adolescence. Copyright © 2014 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

Missed Nursing Care and Unit-Level Nurse Workload in the Acute and Post-Acute Settings.

PubMed

Orique, Sabrina B; Patty, Christopher M; Woods, Ellen

2016-01-01

This study replicates previous research on the nature and causes of missed nursing care and adds an explanatory variable: unit-level nurse workload (patient turnover percentage). The study was conducted in California, which legally mandates nurse staffing ratios. Findings demonstrated no significant relationship between patient turnover and missed nursing care.

Parents' School Satisfaction and Academic Socialization Predict Adolescents' Autonomous Motivation: A Mixed-Method Study of Low-Income Ethnic Minority Families

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Suizzo, Marie-Anne; Jackson, Karen Moran; Pahlke, Erin; McClain, Shannon; Marroquin, Yesenia; Blondeau, Lauren A.; Hong, KyongJoo

2016-01-01

In this mixed-methods study, we used an explanatory sequential design to investigate the processes through which parental involvement influences adolescents' achievement motivation. One hundred twenty low-income urban parents and their sixth-grade adolescents completed questionnaires, and a subsample of 11 mothers and 11 adolescents were…

A Diversity of Voices: Physical Education Teachers' Beliefs about Inclusion and Teaching Students with Disabilities

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Hodge, Samuel; Ammah, Jonathan O. A.; Casebolt, Kevin M.; LaMaster, Kathryn; Hersman, Bethany; Samalot-Rivera, Amaury; Sato, Takahiro

2009-01-01

The purpose of this study was to analyse the beliefs about inclusion and teaching students with disabilities of physical education teachers from various countries and cultures. The participants were 29 physical education teachers from Ghana (Africa), Japan, the US and Puerto Rico. The research method was explanatory multiple-case study situated in…

Effects of Three Pedagogies on Learning Outcomes in a Psychology of Gender Lecture: A Quasi-Experimental Study

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Reber, Jeffrey S.; Downs, Samuel D.; Peterson Nelson, Julie A.

2017-01-01

This study employed a quasi-experimental design to test the effects of three pedagogies on learning outcomes in a simulated psychology of gender lecture. Results showed that meaning and relational pedagogies, as well as a combination of meaning, relational, and explanatory pedagogies, significantly improved participant learning beyond self-study…

The Remodeling Process: A Grounded Theory Study of Perceptions of Treatment among Adult Male Incest Offenders.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Scheela, Rochelle A.

1992-01-01

Conducted grounded theory study to explore incest offender perceptions of treatment to generate explanatory theory of sexual abuse treatment process. Findings from theoretical sampling of 20 adult male incest offenders revealed that offenders felt remodeling process occurred as they faced discovery of their abuse and went through treatment.…

Child and Adolescent Predictors of Male Intimate Partner Violence

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Theobald, Delphine; Farrington, David P.

2012-01-01

Background: This study addresses to what extent child and adolescent explanatory factors predict male perpetrated intimate partner violence (IPV) in adulthood. Methods: We use prospective longitudinal data from the Cambridge Study in Delinquent Development (CSDD). The CSDD is a survey of 411 male born in the 1950s in an inner London area. The men…

Individual Differences and Intervention Flaws: A Sequential Explanatory Study of College Students' Copy-and-Paste Note Taking

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Igo, L. Brent; Kiewra, Kenneth A.; Bruning, Roger

2008-01-01

In this study, qualitative themes and quantitative findings from previous research were used to justify the exploration of four experimental, note-taking conditions and the impact of those conditions on student learning from Web-based text. However, puzzling results obtained from dependent measures of student learning were quite inconsistent with…

Attitudes toward Using Social Networking Sites in Educational Settings with Underperforming Latino Youth: A Mixed Methods Study

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Howard, Keith E.; Curwen, Margie Sauceda; Howard, Nicol R.; Colón-Muñiz, Anaida

2015-01-01

The researchers examined the online social networking attitudes of underperforming Latino high school students in an alternative education program that uses technology as the prime venue for learning. A sequential explanatory mixed methods study was used to cross-check multiple sources of data explaining students' levels of comfort with utilizing…

How and Why Digital Generation Teachers Use Technology in the Classroom: An Explanatory Sequential Mixed Methods Study

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Li, Lan; Worch, Eric; Zhou, YuChun; Aguiton, Rhonda

2015-01-01

While teachers' conservative attitude toward technology has been identified as a barrier to effective technology integration in classrooms, it is often optimistically assumed that this issue will resolve when the digital generation enters the teaching profession (Morris, 2012). Using a mixed methodology approach, this study aimed to examine the…

Students' Preferences and Opinions on Design of a Mobile Marketing Education Application

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Ozata, Zeynep; Ozdama Keskin, Nilgun

2014-01-01

The purpose of this study was to define and better understand business school students' opinions and preferences on the design of a mobile marketing education application. To accomplish this purpose an explanatory mixed methods study design was used and the data was collected sequentially. First, a questionnaire was conducted with 168 business…

Faculty and Administrator Perspectives of Merit Pay Compensation Systems in Private Higher Education: A Mixed Methods Analysis

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Power, Anne L.

2013-01-01

The purpose of this explanatory sequential mixed methods study is to explore faculty and administrator perspectives of faculty merit pay compensation systems in private, higher education institutions. The study focuses on 10 small, private, four-year institutions which are religiously affiliated. All institutions are located in Nebraska, Iowa, and…

Model of Values-Based Management Process in Schools: A Mixed Design Study

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Dogan, Soner

2016-01-01

The aim of this paper is to evaluate the school administrators' values-based management behaviours according to the teachers' perceptions and opinions and, accordingly, to build a model of values-based management process in schools. The study was conducted using explanatory design which is inclusive of both quantitative and qualitative methods.…

A Case Study of Student Assessment Programs in a College of Business Administration at a Southern HBCU

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Bell Haynes, Janel Elizabeth

2013-01-01

The purpose of this mixed method sequential explanatory case study was to describe the relationship of a student outcomes assessment program, as measured by the Peregrine Academic Leveling Course, (ALC), to the academic performance, determined by scores on the Peregrine Common Professional Component (CPC) examination, of students enrolled during…

Motivating Factors for Teaching and Studying Music at Two-Year Colleges: A Survey of Faculty and Students

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Stewart, John R.; Williams, Yolanda Y.; Vu, Kinh T.; Collins, Tracey R.; Clementson, Casey J.; Berberick, David M.

2015-01-01

The purpose of this study was to explore what motivates faculty and student involvement in this educational environment and how student participation in music coursework contributes to current musical endeavors. The research team utilized a modified explanatory sequential mixed methods design to collect survey data and focus group data from…

The Influence of International Service-Learning on Transcultural Self-Efficacy in Baccalaureate Nursing Graduates and Their Subsequent Practice

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Amerson, Roxanne

2012-01-01

The purpose of this study was to explain how participation in an international service-learning project during a community health course influenced transcultural self-efficacy of baccalaureate nursing graduates following graduation and their subsequent clinical practice. A qualitative, explanatory case study was used to conduct telephone…

Gender Differences in Coping among Elite Table Tennis Players

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Kirimoglu, Huseyin

2011-01-01

The current study aims to investigate the explanatory power of social support and coping in relation to a competitive sport event between male and female table tennis players. 246 university students table tennis players (120 men and 126 women) from different region and part of Turkey were invited to participate in a survey study included the…

Educating Linguistically Diverse Students: A Mixed Methods Study of Elementary Teachers' Coursework, Attitudes, and Practice

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Greenfield, Renée A.

2016-01-01

This study followed a mixed-methods sequential explanatory design. Phase I involved the collection of quantitative data to examine inservice teachers' (N = 69) attitudes about language and linguistic diversity as well as their teacher education coursework. All participants were graduates from the same teacher education program. Phase II included…

Writing Experiences of Community College Students with Self-Reported Writing Anxieties and Linguistic Insecurity: A Perspective for College Counselors

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Holland, Rochelle

2013-01-01

This explanatory case study researched the writing experiences of 11 community college students who differed subculturally and who were all part of the African diasporic community. The theoretical perspectives used for this study were Arthur Chickering's (1969) classical concept of academic competence and community dialect theory (Baxter &…

Attitudes towards Knowledge Management of School Administrators and Teachers Working in Turkish Schools

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Dogan, Soner; Yigit, Yakup

2014-01-01

The aim of this study is to investigate attitudes of school administrators and teachers working in Turkish schools towards knowledge management. In this research, an explanatory design incorporating quantitative and qualitative methods was used. The quantitative strand of the study was designed as a survey model, and the data was collected from…

Importance and Effectiveness of Student Health Services at a South Texas University

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

McCaig, Marilyn M.

2013-01-01

The study examined the health needs of students at a south Texas university and documented the utility of the student health center. The descriptive study employed a mixed methods explanatory sequential design (ESD). The non-probability sample consisted of 140 students who utilized the university's health center during the period of March 23-30,…

Teachers' Adoptation Level of Student Centered Education Approach

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Arseven, Zeynep; Sahin, Seyma; Kiliç, Abdurrahman

2016-01-01

The aim of this study is to identify how far the student centered education approach is applied in the primary, middle and high schools in Düzce. Explanatory design which is one type of mixed research methods and "sequential mixed methods sampling" were used in the study. 685 teachers constitute the research sample of the quantitative…

Patterns of Teacher's Instructional Moves: What Makes Mathematical Instructional Practices Unique?

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Pinter, Holly Henderson

2013-01-01

The purpose of this study was to examine patterns in fourth-grade teachers' use of instructional moves in the implementation of standards-based mathematical teaching practices. Using a mixed methods sequential explanatory design, the study consisted of two phases: quantitative selection and qualitative analysis. The first phase of the study…

A Mixed Methods Study of the Relationship between Student Perceptions of Teacher-Student Interactions and Motivation in Middle Level Science

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Smart, Julie B.

2014-01-01

This mixed-methods study examined the relationship between middle level science students' perceptions of teacher-student interactions and students' science motivation, particulary their efficacy, value, and goal orientation for learning science. In this sequential explanatory design, quantitative and qualitative data were collected in two phases,…

Learning by Teaching: Can It Be Utilized to Develop Inquiry Skills?

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Aslan, Safiye

2017-01-01

This study aims to investigate the effect of learning by teaching on inquiry skills. With its explanatory sequential design, this particular study focuses on interrogating whether learning by teaching has an effect on prospective science teachers' inquiry skills and to unveil how it does so, only if it had an effect. The current research is…

Investigating Practices in Teacher Education That Promote and Inhibit Technology Integration Transfer in Early Career Teachers

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Brenner, Aimee M.; Brill, Jennifer M.

2016-01-01

The purpose of this study was to identify instructional technology integration strategies and practices in preservice teacher education that contribute to the transfer of technology integration knowledge and skills to the instructional practices of early career teachers. This study used a two-phase, sequential explanatory strategy. Data were…

The School Principal as Change Agent: An Explanatory Case Study.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

McLaughlin, Lisa; Hyle, Adrienne E.

This single-site case study was designed to investigate ways in which a principal considers the individual needs of faculty members when promoting a particular change, as perceived by faculty and staff. Four research questions were addressed: (1) How does a principal create a context for change? (2) Is school culture acknowledged as an integral…

Social Cohesion as a Real-Life Phenomenon: Assessing the Explanatory Power of the Universalist and Particularist Perspectives

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Janmaat, Jan Germen

2011-01-01

Unlike most studies on social cohesion, this study explores the concept as a real-life macro-level phenomenon. It assesses to what extent the conceptions of social cohesion suggested by several macro-level approaches represent coherent empirically observable forms of social cohesion. Additionally it discusses two perspectives on social…

Time to brain imaging in acute stroke is improving: secondary analysis of the INSTINCT trial.

PubMed

Sauser, Kori; Burke, James F; Levine, Deborah A; Scott, Phillip A; Meurer, William J

2014-01-01

Patients with acute ischemic stroke benefit from rapid evaluation and treatment, and timely brain imaging is a necessary component. We determined the effect of a targeted behavioral intervention on door-to-imaging time (DIT) among patients with ischemic stroke treated with tissue-type plasminogen activator. Second, we examined the variation in DIT accounted for by patient-level and hospital-level factors. The Increasing Stroke Treatment through Interventional behavioral Change Tactics (INSTINCT) trial was a cluster-randomized, controlled trial involving 24 Michigan hospitals. The intervention aimed to increase tissue-type plasminogen activator utilization. Detailed chart abstractions collected data for 557 patients with ischemic stroke. We used a series of hierarchical linear mixed-effects models to evaluate the effect of the intervention on DIT (difference-in-differences analysis) and used patient-level and hospital-level explanatory variables to decompose variation in DIT. DIT improved over time, without a difference between intervention and control hospitals (intervention: 23.7-19.3 minutes, control: 28.9-19.2 minutes; P=0.56). Adjusted DIT was faster in patients who arrived by ambulance (7.2 minutes; 95% confidence interval, 4.1-10.2), had severe strokes (1.0 minute per +5-point National Institutes of Health Stroke Scale; 95% confidence interval, 0.1-2.0), and presented in the postintervention period (4.9 minutes; 95% confidence interval, 2.3-7.4). After accounting for these factors, 13.8% of variation in DIT was attributable to hospital. Neither hospital stroke volume nor stroke center status was associated with DIT. Performance on DIT improved similarly in intervention and control hospitals, suggesting that nonintervention factors explain the improvement. Hospital-level factors explain a modest proportion of variation in DIT, but further research is needed to identify the hospital-level factors responsible.

Time to Brain Imaging in Acute Stroke is Improving: Secondary analysis of the INSTINCT Trial

PubMed Central

Sauser, Kori; Burke, James F.; Levine, Deborah A.; Scott, Phillip A.; Meurer, William J.

2014-01-01

Background and Purpose Acute ischemic stroke (IS) patients benefit from rapid evaluation and treatment, and timely brain imaging is a necessary component. We determined the effect of a targeted behavioral intervention on door-to-imaging-time (DIT) among IS patients treated with tissue plasminogen activator (tPA). Secondarily, we examined the variation in DIT accounted for by patient- and hospital-level factors. Methods The INSTINCT trial was a cluster-randomized, controlled trial involving 24 Michigan hospitals. The intervention aimed to increase tPA utilization. Detailed chart abstractions collected data for 557 IS patients. We used a series of hierarchical linear mixed-effects models to evaluate the effect of the intervention on DIT (difference-in-differences analysis) and used patient and hospital-level explanatory variables to decompose variation in DIT. Results DIT improved over time, without a difference between intervention and control hospitals (intervention: 23.7 to 19.3 minutes, control: 28.9 to 19.2 minutes, p=0.56). Adjusted DIT was faster in patients who arrived by ambulance (7.2 minutes; 95%CI 4.1–10.2), had severe strokes (1.0 minute per +5 point NIHSS; 95%CI 0.1–2.0), and presented in the post-intervention period (4.9 minutes; 95%CI 2.3–7.4). After accounting for these factors, 13.8% of variation in DIT was attributable to hospital. Neither hospital stroke volume nor stroke center status was associated with DIT. Conclusions Performance on DIT improved similarly in intervention and control hospitals suggesting that non-intervention factors explain the improvement. Hospital-level factors explain a modest proportion of variation in DIT but further research is needed to identify the hospital-level factors responsible. PMID:24232449

Public School Teacher Use of Instructional Technology from an Organizational Culture Perspective: An Explanatory Case Study of Two Middle Schools

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Spitzer, Bruce Alan; Stansbury, Susan

2004-01-01

The purpose of this qualitative case study is to study the organizational culture and context of two school sites in which instructional technology (IT) use by teachers is evident; to study what and who influences individual teacher preferences toward IT use; and to describe the relationship of Mary Douglas' (1982, 1989, 1992) grid and group…

Representing Human Rights Violations in Darfur: Global Justice, National Distinctions.

PubMed

Savelsberg, Joachim J; Brehm, Hollie Nyseth

2015-09-01

This article examines how international judicial interventions in mass atrocity influence representations of violence. It relies on content analysis of 3,387 articles and opinion pieces in leading newspapers from eight Western countries, compiled into the Darfur Media Dataset, as well as in-depth interviews to assess how media frame violence in the Darfur region of Sudan. Overall, it finds that UN Security Council and International Criminal Court interventions increase representations of mass violence as crime in all countries under investigation, although each country applies the crime frame at a different level. Reporting suffering and categorizing the violence as genocide also varies across countries. Comparative case studies identify country specific structural and cultural forces that appear to account for these differences. Multilevel multivariate analyses confirm the explanatory power of cultural sensitivities and policy practices, while individual-and organization-level factors, such as reporters' gender and the newspapers' ideological orientation, also have explanatory power.

'Individualism-collectivism' as an explanatory device for mental illness stigma.

PubMed

Papadopoulos, Chris; Foster, John; Caldwell, Kay

2013-06-01

The aim of this study is investigate whether the cross-cultural value paradigm 'individualism-collectivism' is a useful explanatory model for mental illness stigma on a cultural level. Using snowball sampling, a quantitative questionnaire survey of 305 individuals from four UK-based cultural groups (white-English, American, Greek/Greek Cypriot, and Chinese) was carried out. The questionnaire included the 'Community Attitudes to Mental Illness scale' and the 'vertical-horizontal individualism-collectivism scale'. The results revealed that the more stigmatizing a culture's mental illness attitudes are, the more likely collectivism effectively explains these attitudes. In contrast, the more positive a culture's mental illness attitudes, the more likely individualism effectively explains attitudes. We conclude that a consideration of the individualism-collectivism paradigm should be included in any future research aiming to provide a holistic understanding of the causes of mental illness stigma, particularly when the cultures stigmatization levels are particularly high or low.

Obligatory Effort [Hishtadlut] as an Explanatory Model: A Critique of Reproductive Choice and Control.

PubMed

Teman, Elly; Ivry, Tsipy; Goren, Heela

2016-06-01

Studies on reproductive technologies often examine women's reproductive lives in terms of choice and control. Drawing on 48 accounts of procreative experiences of religiously devout Jewish women in Israel and the US, we examine their attitudes, understandings and experiences of pregnancy, reproductive technologies and prenatal testing. We suggest that the concept of hishtadlut-"obligatory effort"-works as an explanatory model that organizes Haredi women's reproductive careers and their negotiations of reproductive technologies. As an elastic category with negotiable and dynamic boundaries, hishtadlut gives ultra-orthodox Jewish women room for effort without the assumption of control; it allows them to exercise discretion in relation to medical issues without framing their efforts in terms of individual choice. Haredi women hold themselves responsible for making their obligatory effort and not for pregnancy outcomes. We suggest that an alternative paradigm to autonomous choice and control emerges from cosmological orders where reproductive duties constitute "obligatory choices."

Explanatory model for sound amplification in a stethoscope

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Eshach, H.; Volfson, A.

2015-01-01

In the present paper we suggest an original physical explanatory model that explains the mechanism of the sound amplification process in a stethoscope. We discuss the amplification of a single pulse, a continuous wave of certain frequency, and finally we address the resonant frequencies. It is our belief that this model may provide students with opportunities to not only better understand the amplification mechanism of a stethoscope, but also to strengthen their understanding of sound, pressure, waves, resonance modes, etc.

Using case study within a sequential explanatory design to evaluate the impact of specialist and advanced practice roles on clinical outcomes: the SCAPE study.

PubMed

Lalor, Joan G; Casey, Dympna; Elliott, Naomi; Coyne, Imelda; Comiskey, Catherine; Higgins, Agnes; Murphy, Kathy; Devane, Declan; Begley, Cecily

2013-04-08

The role of the clinical nurse/midwife specialist and advanced nurse/midwife practitioner is complex not least because of the diversity in how the roles are operationalised across health settings and within multidisciplinary teams. This aim of this paper is to use The SCAPE Study: Specialist Clinical and Advanced Practitioner Evaluation in Ireland to illustrate how case study was used to strengthen a Sequential Explanatory Design. In Phase 1, clinicians identified indicators of specialist and advanced practice which were then used to guide the instrumental case study design which formed the second phase of the larger study. Phase 2 used matched case studies to evaluate the effectiveness of specialist and advanced practitioners on clinical outcomes for service users. Data were collected through observation, documentary analysis, and interviews. Observations were made of 23 Clinical Specialists or Advanced Practitioners, and 23 matched clinicians in similar matched non-postholding sites, while they delivered care. Forty-one service users, 41 clinicians, and 23 Directors of Nursing or Midwifery were interviewed, and 279 service users completed a survey based on the components of CS and AP practice identified in Phase 1. A coding framework, and the generation of cross tabulation matrices in NVivo, was used to make explicit how the outcome measures were confirmed and validated from multiple sources. This strengthened the potential to examine single cases that seemed 'different', and allowed for cases to be redefined. Phase 3 involved interviews with policy-makers to set the findings in context. Case study is a powerful research strategy to use within sequential explanatory mixed method designs, and adds completeness to the exploration of complex issues in clinical practice. The design is flexible, allowing the use of multiple data collection methods from both qualitative and quantitative paradigms. Multiple approaches to data collection are needed to evaluate the impact of complex roles and interventions in health care outcomes and service delivery. Case study design is an appropriate methodology to use when study outcomes relate to clinical practice.

Children's Representations of Family Relationships, Peer Information Processing, and School Adjustment

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Bascoe, Sonnette M.; Davies, Patrick T.; Sturge-Apple, Melissa L.; Cummings, E. Mark

2009-01-01

This study examined children's peer information processing as an explanatory mechanism underlying the association between their insecure representations of interparental and parent-child relationships and school adjustment in a sample of 210 first graders. Consistent with emotional security theory (P. T. Davies & E. M. Cummings, 1994), results…

A Gender Study Investigating Physics Self-Efficacy

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Sawtelle, Vashti

2011-01-01

The underrepresentation of women in physics has been well documented and a source of concern for both policy makers and educators. My dissertation focuses on understanding the role self-efficacy plays in retaining students, particularly women, in introductory physics. I use an explanatory mixed methods approach to first investigate quantitatively…

Improving Audience Learning from Television News through Between-Channel Redundancy.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Reese, Stephen D.

A study tested the effects of between-channel redundancy on television news learning. Redundancy, defined as shared information, was proposed as an explanatory variable that considers the relationship between information in three channels: the audio, the nonverbal pictorial, and visual-verbal print channel. It was hypothesized that pictures would…

Trainees' Perceptions on Supervisor Factors That Influence Transfer of Training

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Fagan, Sharon Lee

2017-01-01

A midsize nonprofit blood bank organization is experiencing a high percentage of supervisors and managers not transferring skills taught in leadership development training programs back to the workplace. The purpose of this mixed methods, sequential, explanatory study was to understand the relationship between supervisor support or opposition and…

Chinese Placement Procedures at U.S. Postsecondary Institutions

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Wei, Miaochun

2017-01-01

This quant-QUAL sequential explanatory mixed methods study describes a framework for evaluating the communicative competence (Canale & Swain, 1980; Canale, 1983) of non-beginner students of Chinese for placement purposes at U.S. four-year postsecondary institutions. A pragmatic lens was used to collect and analyze data that generated a…

Sociobiology for Social Scientists: A Critical Introduction to E.O. Wilson's Evolutionary Paradigm.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Dugger, William M.

1981-01-01

Reviews recent works of E.O. Wilson on sociobiology (the evolutionary and comparative study of social animals, including humans). Topics discussed include the nature of sociobiology, explanatory hypotheses in sociobiology, subdisciplines, biological individualism and altruism, costs of social engineering, and evolutionary perspectives. (DB)

The Science ELF: Assessing the Enquiry Levels Framework as a Heuristic for Professional Development

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Wheeler, Lindsay B.; Bell, Randy L.; Whitworth, Brooke A.; Maeng, Jennifer L.

2015-01-01

This study utilized an explanatory sequential mixed methods approach to explore randomly assigned treatment and control participants' frequency of inquiry instruction in secondary science classrooms. Eleven treatment participants received professional development (PD) that emphasized a structured approach to inquiry instruction, while 10 control…

Elementary School Teachers' Perceptions Regarding the Inclusion of LGBTQ Themed Literature

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Grasso, Dominic

2016-01-01

This critical explanatory mixed methods study examined elementary teachers' perceptions regarding the inclusion of LGBTQ-themed literature in the curriculum. An electronic survey questionnaire and focus group sessions were used to collect both quantitative and qualitative data that described the perceived benefits and barriers of LGBTQ-themed…

Teacher and Peer Support for Young Adolescents' Motivation, Engagement, and School Belonging

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Kiefer, Sarah M.; Alley, Kathleen M.; Ellerbrock, Cheryl R.

2015-01-01

The purpose of this sequential explanatory mixed methods study was to investigate teacher and peer support for young adolescents' academic motivation, classroom engagement, and school belonging within one large, urban, ethnically diverse middle school. In the initial quantitative phase, associations among aspects of teacher support (autonomy,…

Cognitive Style Predictors of Affect Change in Older Adults

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Isaacowitz, Derek M.; Seligman, Martin E. P.

2002-01-01

Cognitive styles are the lenses through which individuals habitually process information from their environment. In this study, we evaluated whether different cognitive style individual difference variables, such as explanatory style and dispositional optimism, could predict changes in affective state over time in community-dwelling older adults.…

Conceptualist Semantics: Explanatory Power, Scope and Uniqueness

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Riemer, Nick

2013-01-01

A familiar assumption in much linguistic semantics is that meanings are to be identified conceptually as, or as subparts of, the conceptual representations deployed in general cognitive processes. However, this assumption has increasingly come into question as a result of developments in the study of cognition both within and outside linguistics.…

Disentangling Mathematics Target and Access Skills: Implications for Accommodation Assignment Practices

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Ketterlin-Geller, Leanne R.; Jamgochian, Elisa M.; Nelson-Walker, Nancy J.; Geller, Joshua P.

2012-01-01

Appropriate assignment of accommodations is predicated on a clear distinction between target skills and access skills. In this study, we examine the agreement between test developer/researchers' and educators' classification of target and access skills as a possible explanatory mechanism for assigning accommodations. Findings indicate that…

Online Searching in PBL Tutorials

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Jin, Jun; Bridges, Susan M.; Botelho, Michael G.; Chan, Lap Ki

2015-01-01

This study aims to explore how online searching plays a role during PBL tutorials in two undergraduate health sciences curricula, Medicine and Dentistry. Utilizing Interactional Ethnography (IE) as an organizing framework for data collection and analysis, and drawing on a critical theory of technology as an explanatory lens, enabled a textured…

Supporting Young Children's Explanations through Inquiry Science in Preschool

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Peterson, Shira May; French, Lucia

2008-01-01

This study examines the ways in which preschool teachers support the development of children's explanatory language through science inquiry. Two classrooms in a preschool center using a science inquiry curriculum were videotaped during a 5-week unit on color mixing. Videotapes were analyzed for how teachers facilitated children's explanatory…

Getting Oil out of Kazakhstan

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Gersmehl, Phil

2018-01-01

This activity is part of a larger set of activities and presentations developed by the Michigan Geographic Alliance to help teachers meet the proposed Social Studies standards in 6th and 7th grade. The Michigan Geographic Alliance website also has explanatory presentations, supplementary maps, and readings. In this 20-40 minute intermediate…

Emotional Availability: Foster Caregiving Experience

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Nelson, Dean R.

2012-01-01

The purpose of the study was to investigate if the emotional availability of caregivers is explanatory for successful adolescent foster care placement--from initial placement of an adolescent to age eighteen or emancipation from foster care, as mandated by the state of Colorado. Emotional availability of foster caregivers and the phenomenon's…

Assistant Principals and Reform: A Socialization Paradox?

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Best, Marguerita L.

2013-01-01

Framed in the critical race theory of structuration (CRTS), this sequential explanatory mixed methods study seeks to identify the socialization practices by examining the realities of practices of assistant principals and the ways in which they impact the disciplinary actions of assistant principals at middle and high schools. The mixed methods…

Lexicography and Mathematics Learning: A Case Study of "Variable."

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Frawley, William

1992-01-01

Lexicography is shown to offer some useful new tools to researchers in mathematics education. The paper examines the relationship between the sublanguage of mathematics and the acquisition of mathematical knowledge, and also the use of definitions in research and curriculum design. An Explanatory Combinatorial Dictionary is advocated for improving…

Treating Cancer with Amplitude-Modulated Electromagnetic Fields: A Potential Paradigm Shift, Again?

EPA Science Inventory

The Zimmerman et al. (2011) study published here, coupled with the group's two preceding papers (Barbault et al. (2009), Costa et al. (2011)), identify a potential modality for treating tumors at a dramatic reduction in trauma and cost. This set of clinical and explanatory labora...

The Relationship between Career Motivation and Self-Efficacy with Protege Career Success

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Day, Rachel; Allen, Tammy D.

2004-01-01

Research exploring the underlying processes involved in successful mentorships has been lacking. In the present study, the roles of career motivation and career self-efficacy as explanatory factors were examined. Career motivation mediated the relationship between career mentoring and performance effectiveness. Contrary to prediction, only…

Principals' and Special Education Teachers' Perceptions of Special Education Teachers' Roles and Responsibilities

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Mott, Japhia

2013-01-01

This explanatory mixed methods study focuses on the perceptions of principals and special education teachers about special education teachers' roles and responsibilities. An online survey was conducted with 11 principals and 41 special education teachers (Resource Specialists and Special Day Class teachers). Independent semi-structured interviews…

Toxic Familial Effects of Parental Hostility.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Buri, John R.; And Others

In research efforts to account for the variance in parent-child interactions, two variables have been cited repeatedly for their explanatory cogency--nurturance and authority. This study was conducted to examine the relation of parents' Hostility (Ho) scores from the Minnesota Multiphasic Personality Inventory-based Cook and Medley Hostility Scale…

Performance Measurement: Does Education Impact Productivity?

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Larbi-Apau, Josephine A.; Sarpong, Daniel Bruce

2010-01-01

This study investigated the impact of managers' educational levels on productivity in the commercial poultry industry in Ghana. The level of education of 33 production managers of the poultry farms were factored into a Cobb-Douglas production function with other explanatory variables. The computed percentage change in productivity due to higher…

Establishing an Explanatory Model for Mathematics Identity

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Cribbs, Jennifer D.; Hazari, Zahra; Sonnert, Gerhard; Sadler, Philip M.

2015-01-01

This article empirically tests a previously developed theoretical framework for mathematics identity based on students' beliefs. The study employs data from more than 9,000 college calculus students across the United States to build a robust structural equation model. While it is generally thought that students' beliefs about their own competence…

The Relationship between Building Teacher Leadership Capacity and Campus Culture

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Harris, Dawn R.; Kemp-Graham, Kriss Y.

2017-01-01

The purpose of this explanatory sequential mixed methods research study was to explore the relationship between building teacher leadership capacity and campus culture in a suburban East Texas school district. Developing teacher leaders by building leadership capacity depends on administrators' abilities to develop leaders from within the existing…

Designing, Teaching, and Evaluating Two Complementary Mixed Methods Research Courses

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Christ, Thomas W.

2009-01-01

Teaching mixed methods research is difficult. This longitudinal explanatory study examined how two classes were designed, taught, and evaluated. Curriculum, Research, and Teaching (EDCS-606) and Mixed Methods Research (EDCS-780) used a research proposal generation process to highlight the importance of the purpose, research question and…

Explicit Instructional Interactions: Exploring the Black Box of a Tier 2 Mathematics Intervention

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Doabler, Christian T.; Clarke, Ben; Stoolmiller, Mike; Kosty, Derek B.; Fien, Hank; Smolkowski, Keith; Baker, Scott K.

2017-01-01

A critical aspect of intervention research is investigating the active ingredients that underlie intensive interventions and their theories of change. This study explored the rate of instructional interactions within treatment groups to determine whether they offered explanatory power of an empirically validated Tier 2 kindergarten mathematics…

Academic Practice as Explanatory Framework: Reconceptualising International Student Academic Engagement and University Teaching

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Kettle, Margaret

2011-01-01

This paper joins growing interest in the concept of practice, and uses it to reconceptualise international student engagement with the demands of study at an Australian university. Practice foregrounds institutional structures and student agency and brings together psychologically- and socially-oriented perspectives on international student…

Service Learning: Providing the Building Blocks for a Socially Responsible Nursing Role

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Johnson, Judith M.

2013-01-01

An explanatory correlational study was conducted to explore whether and to what extent a relationship between hours of participation in service learning and commitment to social responsibility exists for students enrolled in pre-licensure baccalaureate-nursing programs currently participating in the Nursing Licensure Compact. The convenience…

Racialized customer service in restaurants: a quantitative assessment of the statistical discrimination explanatory framework.

PubMed

Brewster, Zachary W

2012-01-01

Despite popular claims that racism and discrimination are no longer salient issues in contemporary society, racial minorities continue to experience disparate treatment in everyday public interactions. The context of full-service restaurants is one such public setting wherein racial minority patrons, African Americans in particular, encounter racial prejudices and discriminate treatment. To further understand the causes of such discriminate treatment within the restaurant context, this article analyzes primary survey data derived from a community sample of servers (N = 200) to assess the explanatory power of one posited explanation—statistical discrimination. Taken as a whole, findings suggest that while a statistical discrimination framework toward understanding variability in servers’ discriminatory behaviors should not be disregarded, the framework’s explanatory utility is limited. Servers’ inferences about the potential profitability of waiting on customers across racial groups explain little of the overall variation in subjects’ self-reported discriminatory behaviors, thus suggesting that other factors not explored in this research are clearly operating and should be the focus of future inquires.

Gambling in Ethnic Adolescent Populations: An Exploratory Study of the Utility of Problem Behaviour Theory as an Explanatory Framework

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Zangeneh, Masood; Mann, Robert E.; McCready, John; Oseni, Lola

2010-01-01

Problem gambling is a growing concern among adolescents today. According to recent studies, rates of problem gambling among youth are higher than those reported by adults. Though few in number, studies have also shown certain ethnic communities to be prone to gambling-related problems and related problematic behaviours. As yet, there is no…

Modeling Student Performance in Mathematics Using Binary Logistic Regression at Selected Secondary Schools a Case Study of Mtwara Municipality and Ilemela District

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Mabula, Salyungu

2015-01-01

This study investigated the performance of secondary school students in Mathematics at the Selected Secondary Schools in Mtwara Municipality and Ilemela District by Absenteeism, Conduct, Type of School and Gender as explanatory Factors. The data used in the study was collected from documented records of 250 form three students with 1:1 gender…

A Mixed Methods Study of the Effects of a Modified High School Calendar on Student Achievement and Teacher Perceptions

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Watrous, Lorena Harper

2011-01-01

The purpose of this mixed-methods explanatory case study was to determine the impact of a reduced school calendar on student achievement for students in grades 9 through 12 in two rural school districts in Virginia and to explore meanings associated with this change. The study focused on two research questions: how does student performance during…

Profiles of Urban, Low SES, African American Girls' Attitudes toward Science: A Sequential Explanatory Mixed Methods Study

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Buck, Gayle; Cook, Kristin; Quigley, Cassie; Eastwood, Jennifer; Lucas, Yvonne

2009-01-01

The purpose of this study was to increase the science education community's understanding of the experiences and needs of girls who cross the traditional categorical boundaries of gender, race and socioeconomic status in a manner that has left their needs and experience largely invisible. A first of several in a series, this study sought to…

Exploring Student Use of Social Networking Services (SNS) Surrounding Moral Development, Gender, Campus Crime, Safety, and the Clery Act: A Mixed Methods Study

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Baum, Haley

2017-01-01

The purpose of this explanatory sequential mixed methods study was to explore college students' use of social networking services (SNS); examining how and why they communicate about campus safety information. This study took place at Stockton University, a regional state institution in NJ. Undergraduate students took part in an online quantitative…