Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Cognitive testing of an instrument to evaluate acceptability and use of pre‐exposure prophylaxis products among women

Summary Given the range of pre‐exposure prophylaxis (PrEP) products currently being tested to prevent HIV in women, a standardized Acceptability and Use of PrEP Products Among Women Tool may facilitate comparisons of product acceptability and use across different geographies, trials, and users. We conducted three rounds of cognitive interviewing over 2 months in 2016, with 28 South African women who had experience participating in a range of PrEP product trials. The final instrument contained 41 items, including five new items that improved construct validity and 22 items modified for clarity. Changes were made due to unclear wording, difficulty answering, participant embarrassment, low response variability, and administrative formatting. Cognitive interviewing provided a means to address issues that would have inhibited this tool's ability to accurately collect data otherwise. This rapid, low‐cost study provided valuable insight into participants' understanding of questions and demonstrated the utility of cognitive interviewing in international clinical trials.
Internet Addiction Disorder and Mental Health in Adolescents

Internet use, especially social media has dramatically changed the way adolescents communicate, socialize, make and maintain friendships. Internet Addiction Disorder (IAD) is generally defined as an uncontrollable desire to use the Internet, leading to acute nervousness and aggression in the event of deprivation and progressive deterioration of social life. IAD is becoming a common mental health problem in adolescents. Worldwide, the prevalence of IAD in adolescents may vary from 1.98% to 35.8%. Sadness, feeling down, having a loss of interest in daily activities are some of the symptoms of IAD. Some possible treatments of IAD includes doing sport or spending more time with friends and developing healthy social networks.
Emotional Arousal Substrate in Relation to Eysenck Theory of Extraversion

Background: Eysenck theory posits that extraverts possess a trait of personality that is associated with personal enjoyment. Objectives: This study aims to examine the combination effect of extraversion and arousal intensity on the neural process of emotional arousal. Methods: This study was implemented in two parts – (1) Validation of Extraversion-Five Factor Non Verbal Personality Questionnaire (E-FF-NPQ) for personality screening, and (2) Event Related Potential (ERP)/electroencephalograph (EEG) recording session. In part one, the E-FF-NPQ was validated by 153 respondents, recruited from Universiti Sains Malaysia. In part two, after having their personality trait screened, electroencephalogram was recorded in 90 participants (N=30 for each personality) during the Event Related Potential session. Emotional arousal pictures that were taken randomly from the International Affective Picture System (IAPS) were used as visual stimuli and divided into three categories (high, moderate, low) based on the normative mean values of IAPS. Results: Interaction effect of the extraversion trait and emotional arousal intensity was detected in the frontal region as indicated by the latency of N200. Conclusion: The Theory of Eysenck on the connection between extraversion and well-being is almost supported.
The Dynamics of Self‐Governance Capacity: The Dutch Rural Civic Initiative ‘Project Ulrum 2034’

In this article, we use Kooiman's theory of governance in combination with key‐conditions of community self‐steering identified in recent studies to examine how the self‐steering capacity developed of a community initiative aiming at improving the liveability of a small Dutch village. Using non‐participatory observations and qualitative analysis, we obtained in‐depth insights into how this initiative, ‘Project Ulrum 2034' managed to build local autonomy from 2010 to 2018. We found that government support was crucial for many of its successes. Also, tensions came to light between 1. local autonomy, and its dependence on professional support, and; 2. broader community engagement, and accountability related to the public funding obtained leading to the formalisation of its organisation and the centralisation of tasks. We discovered that self‐steering capacities fluctuate in time, are dynamic and develop in a non‐linear way. The voluntary engagement was above all temporary, except for some activities when of direct interest to those involved. The continuity of community self‐governance was fragile, due to its dependency on external funding and voluntary engagement.
Reliability and Validity of the Social Phobia and Anxiety Inventory for Adolescents.

Although social anxiety is known to be common among adolescents, there are no self-report measures with demonstrated reliability and validity for this population. The Social Phobia and Anxiety Inventory (SPAI) is a measure of social anxiety developed for adults. The purpose of this study was to determine the reliability and validity of the SPAI for adolescents. The sample consisted of 223 adolescents ages 12 to 18 from both clinical and community sources. Confirmatory factor analysis established the validity of the 2 separate factors of Social Phobia and Agoraphobia. Reliability estimates by Cronbach alpha were acceptable for the SPAI subscales and total. The SPAI demonstrated good construct validity, showing statistically significant relationships with independent measures of social phobia and other anxiety variables. The results demonstrate that the SPAI is a reliable and valid measure of social phobia for adolescents. Social phobia is a common and important psychiatric disorder with substantial comorbidity, including other psychiatric disorders, increased suicidal ideation, and financial dependency (Schneier, Johnson, Hornig, Liebowitz, & Weissman, 1992). Studies have found that social phobia most often begins in adolescence (Thyer, Parrish, Nesse, & Cameron, 1985). Data from the National Institute of Mental Health Epidemiologic Catchment Area Program, for example, show that the mean age of onset of social phobia is 15.5 years (Schneier et al., 1992). A growing body of research suggests that adolescent social phobia is an important psychiatric disorder (Clark, Smith, Neighbors, Skerlec, & Randall, 1994), and that it may have deleterious consequences in adolescents, including increased alcohol abuse (Clark & Jacob, 1992; Clark S Silverman & Nelles, 1988). However, social anxiety is also common in normal adolescents (Bell-Dolan, Last, & Strauss, 1990), and diagnostic systems do not capture the range and severity of social anxiety symptoms. Interview measures are labor intensive and may not be feasible for some research. Self-report measures are therefore needed to determine the presence and severity of social phobia. At present, there are no generally accepted measures of social
The Role of Language Skills in Mid-Adolescents’ Science Summaries

Mid-adolescence is a period of considerable potential growth in the language for academic writing. Yet, to date, few writing studies explore language development during this period and even fewer focus on longitudinal or diverse samples. In this study, we examined the development of language skills for academic writing in a socio-economically diverse sample followed from sixth to seventh grade (n = 124). In each grade, participants wrote summaries of a science text. Subsequently, summaries were scored for writing quality (WQ) and analyzed for productive language skills (lexico-syntactic and discourse features). Participants completed a receptive academic language assessment and a test that measured reading comprehension of the source text. First, we examined if WQ or productive language skills changed over time. Next, we tested if Grade 6 productive and receptive language skills predicted Grade 7 WQ. Results revealed syntactic growth over time. Grade 6 use of connectives and receptive language skills emerged as predictors of Grade 7 WQ.
Iraqi EFL Teachers’ Assessment Literacy: Perceptions and Practices

In current educational approaches, the purpose and functions of assessment have extended, and teachers are expected to have good knowledge of the principles of modern assessment. In line with this fact, the present study investigated the assessment literacy levels of Iraqi English language teachers through Classroom Assessment Literacy Inventory (CALI) based on the seven standards of teachers’ assessment competence for educational assessment of students developed by the American Federation of Teachers, National Council on Measurement in Education and National Education Association (1990). The data were collected from 101 teachers working at secondary and preparatory schools of Suleymaniyah and Arbil governorates in the North of Iraq. The findings revealed that Iraqi English language teachers responded less than 15 correct responses out of 35 questions. According to the findings, teachers got the lowest score from standard seven (recognizing unethical, illegal, and otherwise inappropriate assessment methods and uses of assessment information). The highest score was from standard four (using assessment results when making educational decisions). Although 77% of teachers reported to have been adequately trained for assessment, the results revealed that they had low level of assessment literacy. Revisions in teacher preparation programs and preparation of professional training courses for in-service teachers are recommended.
Scalable dimensionality reduction methods for recommender systems

Recommendation algorithms are aimed at assisting people in dealing with the excess of information available in a system of one kind and another; nowadays, the information overload takes place in many systems, especially in the Internet. Although such algorithms have been widely adopted by both research and e-commerce bodies, the problem that their authors aim to address is still regarded as not fully solved. The research reported in the thesis is oriented on developing a technique that effectively copes with the high data sparsity problem, but at the same time is not more computationally complex than the state-of-the-art collaborative and content-based filtering methods. The vector-based model has been used to represent data since it guarantees a flexible way for storing and processing information and knowledge. In order to address the scalability issue, the algorithms proposed by the author are based on two-stage processing of the input data. First, the points representing the modelled data in the vector space are projected onto a randomly selected subspace of reduced-dimensionality. According to the Johnson-Lindenstrauss lemma, the size of the input matrix may be significantly reduced while still approximately preserving the distance between points in the vector space. Subsequently, the result vector space is factorized to preserve only the most salient features. Moreover, due to the fact that real-world data sets are often very sparse, the thesis focuses also on the most challenging case of extremely high collaborative data sparsity, for which the use of many widely-referenced methods is disqualified. For this reason the dimensionality reduction methods and reflective data processing are investigated, by carrying out a series of experiments, from the perspective of the ability to produce high precision recommendations and to cope with high unpredictability of the data sparsity. The results of the theoretical research have been evaluated according to a research methodology that is well established in the relevant literature using publicly available data sets and following scenarios corresponding to the real-world demands. Therefore, as in practice it is sufficient to identify only a small and non-trivial set of items for each user from a vast set of choices, the evaluation is novelty oriented and based on the so-called find-good-items task, rather than on the low-error-of-ratings prediction. In order to make the
Big Five Personality Characteristics: An Exploratory Study on Bumiputra SMEs in Malaysia

Big five personality characteristics have proved to be a germinal personality theory providing insight scientifically into the causal factors that mold a person’s capabilities and bearing towards a purpose. However, in spite that the significance of this personality theory to personality research and the potentiality of these factors, few studies used this model on a Bumiputras sample in Malaysia. Hence, this paper highlights the significance of using Big five personality characteristics by exploring the personality characteristics of the Bumiputra entrepreneurs using the Big Five. The study was based on a pilot study conducted of a 100 Bumiputra entrepreneurs that are being supported by government agencies. Therefore, Exploratory Factor Analysis was adopted in extracting the relevant factors in the analysis. The eventual analysis resulted in two of the dimensions being significant which are conscientiousness and openness to experience, and the other three dimensions were found to be not significant. This finding was corroborated by previous studies done on big five which also revealed the prevalence of some of the dimensions in some societies, while the dearth of some dimensions concurrently. This indicates that the Bumiputra Malays in Terengganu are generally more reserved just as expected by their communitarian society ethics, values and traditions teach them politeness, courteousness and respectfulness. However, this raises the question whether the values conflict with the general notion of aggressiveness “survival of the fittest” thing of the current business world.
The impact of engineers’ skills and problem-solving abilities on process innovation

Abstract This study examines the relationship among engineers’ basic skills, problem-finding and -solving capabilities, and innovation outcomes, using questionnaire survey data for Lao P.D. R. , Thailand and Vietnam for the period 2016 to 2017. We perform two-stage least squares (2S.L.S.) estimations, which use the variables for engineers’ basic skills and capabilities for finding and solving problems within the firm as instruments, and the indicators for capabilities for finding and solving problems of suppliers and customers as endogenous variables. The estimation results reveal the relationship between problem-finding and -solving capabilities and process innovation. The findings from the empirical analyses suggest a possible upgrading strategy for firms to transform quality control management into innovative abilities. The estimation results also support the necessity of policy support for nurturing both engineers’ basic technological and managerial skills and capabilities for problem-finding and -solving.
Identity Development in an International Transracial Adoptive Family: A 5-Year Case Study

ABSTRACT Our case study focused on the adoptive identity development of two female Chinese adoptees over the course of five years (from when they were 7 and 9 until they were 12 and 14 years old, respectively). The study investigated the adoptive parent’s and family identities through six interviews with the adoptive mother, adoptees’ behavioral adjustment reported by the mother, two unstructured observations, and exploration of adoptees’ narratives. The study was guided by a narrative-based framework situated with the cultural socialization approach. Results highlight four central themes: 1) becoming Chinese-Americans; 2) meaning related to adoption is both spoken and unspoken; 3) a we-ness identity, and 4) social-cultural contexts of identity work. Findings demonstrate the incorporation of adoption and the adoptees’ race and culture into the adoptive parent’s and family identities. Findings further illuminate that one’s identity is developed within personal, familial, and social-cultural contexts.
Practitioner Perceptions of Evidence-Based Practice in Elite Sport in the United States of America.

Fullagar, HHK, Harper, LD, Govus, A, McCunn, R, Eisenmann, J, and McCall, A. Practitioner perceptions of evidence-based practice in elite sport in the United States of America. J Strength Cond Res XX(X): 000-000, 2019-Practitioners' perceptions regarding the use and effectiveness of research evidence in sport is not well understood. The purpose of the present study was to examine practitioners' perceptions around the use, implementation, and barriers to evidence-based practice (EBP) in sport science in the United States of America (USA). A survey (28 items) was completed by 67 full-time staff who were a physical performance team member employed by universities or professional sporting organizations in the USA. Questions included the use of research, contribution of research areas, barriers to accessing and implementing EBP, and methods of feedback to the coach and players. All respondents (100%) stated they used research evidence in their performance/training program, ranking research as contributing most (largest contribution = 1 to smallest contribution = 4) to individualized preparation or recovery recommendations (1.98 ± 1.02). The top 3 preferred sources of information were "peer-reviewed research" (100% of respondents), "conferences/seminars" (76%), and "practitioners within your sport" (63%). Commonly reported perceived barriers between accessing and implementing research were "lack of staff" (accessing = 33%, implementing = 46%) "time" (accessing = 38%, implementing = 48%) and nonapplicable research (accessing = 33%, implementing = 37%), whereas "poor player compliance" was a clear barrier to implementing EBP (56%). Practitioners most preferred, and actual, method of feedback for coaching staff (87% for both) and players (94 and 95%, respectively) was "informal conversations/speaking. " Improved access to educational and financial resources, increased integration of staff in coach settings and understanding of player/coach contexts may help to alleviate barriers to EBP.
The Courageous Follower: Standing Up to And for Our Leaders

For every leader there are dozens of followers working closely with them. This book speaks to those followers and gives them the insights and tools for being effective partners with their leaders. It is a guide that can be kept on a bookshelf and referred to repeatedly when confronted with the challenges of supporting and, at times, correcting a dynamic leader. Since its original release in 1995, The Courageous Follower has been quoted and put on reading lists everywhere from military leadership courses to church sermons to union meeting notices to corporate leadership programs. It has been recognized as the missing link in leadership development and in the sustainability of core values by senior management teams. This new edition has been updated and expanded to speak to the widespread failures of leadership we have witnessed - from the Catholic Church to the FBI to the largest corporations in the world. Boards of Directors, Senior Managers and staff who are loyal to the mission of their organizations, will all find the expanded edition more essential than ever to preventing and righting leadership wrongs and supporting and fostering values-based leadership efforts.
Strategies to Improve Name Learning

Abstract. The following points emerge from the present review of strategies to improve the learning of proper names: (a) Face-name mnemonic techniques based on mental imagery have been shown to be efficient in laboratory settings in both young and older adults. Unfortunately, they are particularly effortful and require capacity for imagination, making them difficult to apply in a real conversational context. (b) Strategies based on spaced retrieval practice have been found to be efficient both in laboratory and more ecological settings, and both in young and older adults. (c) Techniques based on spaced retrieval practice appear to be more efficient than those based on mental imagery. (d) More recent research has proposed new perspectives, such as basing learning strategies on implicit, rather than explicit, memory processes such as hyper-binding. Finally, neuroscience research has started to investigate the possibility of using non-invasive electrical brain stimulation to improve name learning.
Managers’ Perceptions of Older Workers and an Extended Working Life in Sweden

Raising older workers’ participation level is a key objective in many countries. It is important therefore, to deepen the knowledge regarding older workers’ work situations.The objective of the present study was to describe how managers perceived older workers, and an extended working life, in Sweden.Seven focus groups, with a total of 26 managers, were conducted; with participants coming from municipal care, or from private companies. Data was analyzed using content analysis.Five categories emerged in the analysis: Work capacity, Education, Technical devices and ergonomics, Organizational and technological changes, and Sustainable and extended working life.Managers’ attitudes range from positive to negative, confirming previous research, and strengthening the evidence. However, managers in the present study emphasized differences between blue and white collar workers’ ability to extend working life. Furthermore, these managers thought that there were greater differences between different individuals than between different age groups. (Less)
Striving and happiness: Between- and within-person-level associations among grit, needs satisfaction and subjective well-being

ABSTRACT Accumulating evidence suggests that grit – perseverance and passion for long-term goals – facilitates subjective well-being (SWB), yet the underlying mechanism and the time frame in which this effect operates are less known. Building upon self-determination theory, we propose that needs satisfaction (NS) acts as a key mediator of the effect of grit on SWB. Study 1 comprised a cross-sectional survey of 2,963 adolescents and found that, at the dispositional level, grit was positively associated with SWB, and NS played a mediating role. Study 2 further uncovered the intrapersonal dynamics of the relations among grit, NS and SWB with a 21-day diary study (N = 78). Multilevel within-subject mediation analysis showed that daily grit promoted happiness by satisfying basic psychological needs. Moreover, this effect was observed regardless of the participants’ trait-level grit. Collectively, our findings highlighted the importance of NS in explaining the association between grit and SWB regarding the inter- and intrapersonal relations.
The use of neural networks in the analysis of sleep stages and the diagnosis of narcolepsy

We used neural networks in ~3,000 sleep recordings from over 10 locations to automate sleep stage scoring, producing a probability distribution called an hypnodensity graph. Accuracy was validated in 70 subjects scored by six technicians (gold standard). Our best model performed better than any individual scorer, reaching an accuracy of 0.87 (and 0.95 when predictions are weighed by scorer agreement). It also scores sleep stages down to 5-second instead of the conventional 30-second scoring-epochs. Accuracy did not vary by sleep disorder except for narcolepsy, suggesting scoring difficulties by machine and/or humans. A narcolepsy biomarker was extracted and validated in 105 type-1 narcoleptics versus 331 controls producing a specificity of 0.96 and a sensitivity of 0.91. Similar performances were obtained against a high pretest probability sample of type-2 narcolepsy and idiopathic hypersomnia patients. Addition of HLA-DQB1*06:02 increased specificity to 0.99. Our method streamlines scoring and diagnoses narcolepsy accurately.