bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025 huggingface dataset:
Red wine is less stress reducing than vodka; no differences in neuroendocrine challenge test
Authors: Jarrett Nick , Peatfield Richard , Glover Vivette
Published: March 2007

Red wine, like the drugs reserpine and fenfluramine, causes the release of 5-hydroxytryptamine (5-HT) from storage sites in vitro. This study used a neuroendocrine challenge test design to determine whether the parallel between red wine and these drugs can be extended to central actions in healthy volunteers. Vodka diluted to an equal alcohol content was used as a control. No significant differences were observed between the groups in plasma cortisol, plasma prolactin or in temperature levels. Thus no evidence was obtained for a central 5-HT releasing action by red wine.

Self-rating stress and arousal questionnaires were also given. No differences were found in arousal. However whereas vodka had a clear effect in reducing stress, red wine did not. This suggests that red wine does have psychoactive properties independent of its alcohol effects.
5-Hydroxytryptamine and impulse control: prospects for a behavioural analysis
Authors: Ho M.-Y. , Al-Zahrani S.S.A. , Al-Ruwaitea A.S.A. , Bradshaw C.M. , Szabadi E.
Published: March 2007

Impulsiveness is a significant clinical problem associated with a variety of psychiatric and neuropsychiatric disorders. Clinical and experimental studies have provided evidence that individuals displaying impulsive behaviour tend to show signs of deficient functioning of the ascending 5-hydroxytryptaminergic (5-HTergic) pathways of the brain. A persistent problem in investigations of the biological basis of impulsive behaviour has been the lack of a satisfactory definition of 'impulsiveness', as distinct from other behavioural features, such as aggression, which are often apparent in 'impulsive' individuals. Research in the experimental analysis of behaviour suggests that two important characteristics of 'impulsiveness' are (i) deficient tolerance of delay of gratification and (ii) inability to inhibit or delay voluntary behaviour; both of these characteristics are amenable to study in laboratory animals. We describe some delayed reinforcement and delayed response paradigms which purport to capture these behavioural characteristics, and review recent evidence that manipulation of 5-HTergic function alters behaviour in these paradigms. It is argued that the two characteristics of 'impulsiveness' are themselves the product of disturbance of more fundamental behavioural processes; the nature of these processes is considered.
Zolpidem tolerance and dependence —two case reports
Authors: Ravishankar Aruna , Carnwath Tom
Published: March 2007

Two cases of zolpidem tolerance and dependence are reported. The literature is reviewed for other reported cases, and the potential for abuse of zolpidem is discussed.
Haematological safety of antipsychotic drugs
Authors: King David J. , Wager Elizabeth
Published: March 2007

Many clinicians have become concerned about the safety of new antipsychotics particularly in view of the association of agranulocytosis with clozapine and of aplastic anaemia with remoxipride. The Committee on Safety of Medicines and Medicines Control Agency 'yellow card' post-marketing surveillance data were analysed for reports of haemopoietic disorders with the 16 antipsychotics in common use. Corrections for relative risk were made in three separate ways: (i) control for degree of use, using Northern Ireland prescribing data for 1995; (ii) percentage of total reports from 1963 to 1996; and (iii) examination of the first 5 years' post-marketing data only. After clozapine and remoxipride the highest risks of haemopoietic reactions appeared to be associated with the aliphatic phenothiazine derivatives thioridazine and chlorpromazine. There is therefore no evidence of any increased risk with high-potency drugs such as haloperidol or pimozide or with the newer drugs such as sulpiride or risperidone. Continued vigilance, however, is necessary as more new atypicals become available and begin to be widely prescribed.
Management of Suspected Temporal Arteritis
Authors: Elliot Diane L. , Watts William J. , Reuler James B.
Published: March 2007

Management strategies for suspected temporal arteritis range from bilateral temporal artery biopsy to empiric corticosteroid therapy. A decision analysis of the clinical situation was constructed, and a sensitivity analysis for varying prevalences of temporal arteritis was used to calculate costs for different management strategies. Conclusions suggested by the analysis include the following: (1) due to the high cost of blindness, suspicion of disease must be low (< 1.4070) not to biopsy; (2) at high suspicion of disease (> 30Vo), empiric steroids are the cheapest management; (3) when diagnostic procedures are indicated, bilateral biopsy is the cheapest initial diagnostic procedure; and (4) if unilateral biopsy is negative, a second biopsy is always cost effective. (Med Decis Making 3:63-68, 1983).
Problem Solving in Undergraduate Medical Students
Authors: Neame Roderick L. B. , Mitchell Kenneth R. , Feletti Grahame I. , McIntosh Jackie
Published: March 2007

In recent years the systematic development of the skill of clinical reasoning has come to assume a high priority as an explicit aim of medical education. Clinical reasoning, it is con tended, is the application of general reasoning and problem-solving skills to the specific knowledge base of medicine. The results presented in this paper constitute a preliminary study designed to investigate the ability of first-year medical undergraduates to solve ab stract problems using a simple nonmedical knowledge base. Further studies are being car ried out and will continue to extend this into the specific medical knowledge base area. The potential implications for medical education and the development of clinical reasoning are discussed. (Med Decis Making 5:311-324, 1986)
A Methodology for Generating Computer-based Explanations of Decision-theoretic Advice
Authors: Langlotz Curtis P. , Shortliffe Edward H. , Fagan Lawrence M.
Published: March 2007

Decision analysis is an appealing methodology with which to provide decision support to the practicing physician. However, its use in the clinical setting is impeded because computer- based explanations of decision-theoretic advice are difficult to generate without resorting to mathematical arguments. Nevertheless, human decision analysts generate useful and in tuitive explanations based on decision trees. To facilitate the use of decision theory in a computer-based decision support system, the authors developed a computer program that uses symbolic reasoning techniques to generate nonquantitative explanations of the results of decision analyses. A combined approach has been implemented to explain the differences in expected utility among branches of a decision tree. First, the mathematical relationships inherent in the structure of the tree are used to find any asymmetries in tree structure or inequalities among analogous decision variables that are responsible for a difference in expected utility. Next, an explanation technique is selected and applied to the most significant variables, creating a symbolic expression that justifies the decision. Finally, the symbolic expression is converted to English-language text, thereby generating an explanation that justifies the desirability of the choice with the greater expected utility. The explanation does not refer to mathematical formulas, nor does it include probability or utility values. The results suggest that explanations produced by a combination of decision analysis and symbolic processing techniques may be more persuasive and acceptable to clinicians than those produced by either technique alone. Key words: automated explanation; artificial intelligence; decision theory; decision support systems; medical informatics; stochastic simulation. (Med Decis Making 8:290-303, 1988)
Choosing Sample Sizes to Maximize Expected Health Benefits Subject to a Constraint on Total Trial Costs
Authors: Baker Stuart G. , Heidenberger Kurt
Published: March 2007

The authors present a method for choosing sample sizes for randomized controlled trials that maximizes expected health benefits (measured in expected discounted life years gained) subject to the decision maker's budget constraint. In comparison with similar approaches, the method introduces richer and more realistic models for the following quantities: costs and benefits during and after the trial, rates of adopting interventions after a positive rec ommendation, the distribution of data collected in the trial, and the decision to make a positive recommendation based on the results of the trial. Although the methodology is applicable to any type of trial, the emphasis in the paper is on prevention trials. Calculations involve Monte Carlo methods. An example is provided.
Prenatal Diagnosis of Down's Syndrome
Authors: Thornton James G. , Lilford Richard J.
Published: March 2007

A method was developed for judging the quality of womens' decision making in the field of prenatal diagnosis by measuring the internal consistency of their replies to a series of hypothetical decisions. Seventy-three nonpregnant women were interviewed using a lottery technique to elicit the risks of the birth of a Down's child at which they would request the two main procedures for prenatal diagnosis, amniocentesis and chorionic villus biopsy (CVB). The consistency of their replies was tested by performing a third lottery to elicit at what CVB related abortion risk the subject would choose CVB in preference to aminocentesis. Almost half the subjects were inconsistent, in that their indifference level on this third lottery differed by a factor of two or more from that expected from the first two lotteries.
Abdominal versus Vaginal Hysterectomy
Authors: Kovac S. Robert , Christie Sandra J. , Bindbeutel Gary A.
Published: March 2007

To identify the effects of preoperative assessment and physician practice style on the out comes of hysterectomy, the authors conducted a small-area analysis of 640 women under going abdominal or vaginal hysterectomy in a St. Louis, Missouri, hospital. Of these patients, excluding outliers, 115 met the conditions for inclusion in the study. Hysterectomies were performed by the abdominal route in 55 (47.8%) and by the vaginal route in 60 (52.2%) of the 115 patients. A total of 29 physicians performed the hysterectomies. Of these 29, 15 (51.7%) were predisposed toward the abdominal approach, 13 (44.8%) had no appreciable predisposition, and one (3.5%) was predisposed toward the vaginal procedure. Path analysis revealed that physician decision making about the type of hysterectomy procedure performed was primarily influenced by practice style (predisposition) and variables related to physician preoperative assessments (uterine size and uterine mobility), some of which are prone to inaccuracy. Factors that traditionally determine operative approach (such as obesity) did not always act in the expected direction. Furthermore, the decision to perform hysterectomy vaginally had positive outcomes for both cost and length of hospital stay. Shorter hospital stays were associated with physician factors that included selection of the vaginal route, training site, predisposition toward the vaginal procedure, and preoperative assessment of uterine size. Length of hospital stay and duration of surgery were the strongest predictors of cost. Other factors being equal, the mean cost of a vaginal procedure is $224 less than that of an abdominal hysterectomy. Establishing the vaginal approach as the recommended procedure for this specific population should result in cost reductions and shorter hospital stays without negatively impacting quality of care. Key words: hysterectomy; hysterectomy, vaginal; decision making; economics, medical; evaluation studies. (Med Decis Making 1991;11:19-28)
Incorporating Patient Travel Times in Decisions about Size and Location of Dialysis Facilities
Authors: Eben-Chaime Moshe , Pliskin Joseph S.
Published: March 2007

This report demonstrates the power and usefulness of mathematical optimization as a de cision support tool in the medical services industry by presenting an application to dialysis service planning Models to predict the number of dialysis beds in a given region are usually population-based. Dialysis planners and providers have found a need to accommodate sparsely populated regions by making some allowance for patient travel times. A formal approach to incorporating travel times into dialysis planning, based on the formulation and solution of a mixed-integer programming model, is presented The development of a method for dialysis planning serves as a platform to demonstrate the use of integer programming to support decision making Major modeling principles are presented, output interpretation and sensitivity analysis are illustrated by examples; and computational requirements are dis cussed Key words. dialysis need forecasting, population-based model, travel time; math ematical optimization, mixed-integer programming; location, allocation (Med Decis Making 1992;12:44-51)
Measuring Decision Sensitivity
Authors: Merz Jon F. , Small Mitchell J. , Fischbeck Paul S.
Published: March 2007

Modeling of the uncertainty of multiple input variables for a complex decision problem com plicates sensitivity analysis. A method of analysis comprising stochastic simulation of the model and logistic regression of the simulated dichotomous decision variable against all of the input variables yields a direct measure of the importance of input variables to the decision. This method is demonstrated on a previously analyzed clinical decision either to continue observation or to immediately treat with anticoagulants a woman presenting with deep vein thrombosis in the first trimester of pregnancy. A relative measure of the importance of each input variable in causing a change of decision is estimated by calculating the change in the log odds attributable to variation of each input variable over its range of uncertain values compared with the total change of log odds from variation of all input variables. This method is compared with alternative measures of input variable importance, and is found to be a simple yet powerful tool for gaining quantitative insight into the nuances of a decision model. Key words: decision sensitivity; logistic regression; decision model; Monte Carlo technique. (Med Decis Making 1992;12:189-196)
The Impact of Age on the Cost - Effectiveness of Hypertension Treatment
Authors: Johannesson Magnus
Published: March 2007

The aim of this study was to investigate whether any consistent pattern exists with respect to the cost-effectiveness of hypertension treatment and age, based on the results of ran domized drug trials. Data about age, entry diastolic blood pressure, and relative risks of coronary heart disease (CHD) and stroke from 19 randomized trials were used to derive point estimates of the cost-effectiveness of each trial. The relationship between age and cost per life-year gained was then estimated by regression analysis, controlling for entry diastolic blood pressure. The regression analysis shows a statistically significant average decrease in the cost per life-year gained of about SEK 15,000 per year of older age for both men and women ($1 = SEK 6). Sensitivity analysis showed that the improvement in cost- effectiveness with age was stable towards various assumptions, but that the magnitude of the improvement varied greatly with the discount rate. Based on the results of randomized drug trials, it is concluded that the cost-effectiveness of hypertension treatment improves with patient age for both men and women. Key words: hypertension; drug treatment; cost- effectiveness; age; economic evaluation. (Med Decis Making 1994;14:236-244)
Designing a Simpler High Blood Cholesterol Case Detection Strategy
Authors: Hofer Timothy , Weissfeld Joel
Published: March 2007

Objective: To determine whether the complex strategy of lipid measurements for the detection of patients with high blood cholesterol levels proposed by the first Expert Panel of the National Cholesterol Education Panel (NCEP) could be simplified without significant loss of accuracy. Design: Decision-analysis-based model of competing case detection strategies as com pared with the NCEP strategy. A Markov model was used to estimate numbers of people treated over ten years as a result of the different classification strategies. Data sources: Conditional probabilities for the decision trees were derived from cholesterol distributions in national population-based surveys. Parameters for the Markov model were from published major epidemiologic studies and clinical trials. Main outcome measures: Misclassification to treatment vs non-treatment as a continuous function of the distribution of true low-density lipoprotein (LDL). Results : A simplified strategy was designed that screens high-risk persons with two LDL measurements and low-risk people with one cholesterol measurement followed by two LDL measurements if the initial value is high. This algorithm requires 37% fewer measurements to classify a population. The overall accuracy of classification to treatment based on the NCEP I cutoff points is high, with a positive predictive value of 95% and a negative predictive value of 87% (relative to 97% and 80%, respectively, for the NCEP I protocol). This strategy is very similar to published NCEP II guidelines. A strategy that recommends an LDL determination for everyone, as a recent NIH consensus panel sug gested, also significantly reduces the number of measurements required by 48%. The positive predictive value is 93%, vs 97% for the NCEP I protocol. The negative predictive value is 92%, vs 80% for the NCEP I. Conclusions: The complex measurement strategy initially proposed in the NCEP I guidelines did not improve accuracy of classification over the simpler and more convenient strategies that the authors evaluated and that have been substantially adopted in the NCEP II guidelines. Key words: mathematical models; laboratory measure ment; hyperlipidemia; cost-effectiveness analysis; lipids. (Med Decis Making 1994;14:357- 368)
Toward Greater Responsiveness in Marketing Education: A Social Marketing Framework
Authors: Laric Michael V. , Tucker Lewis R.
Published: March 2007

This article explores how marketing educators can apply the social marketing concept to more effectively serve an important constituent public—employers of marketing graduates. First, a literature review focusing on efforts to survey practi tioners' attitudes towards marketing education is presented. Next, a model is devel oped, based on a social marketing conceptual framework, to guide marketing educators in the collection and use of feedback from practitioners. Finally, the paper concludes with a discussion of the major implications and the related benefits of adopting a social marketing posture by the marketing academics.
Closed Loop Shaped-Input Strategies for Flexible Robots
Authors: Kai Zuo  , Drapeau Vincent , Wang David
Published: March 2007

In this article, a composite control strategy is examined for a large class of multi-link manipulators with one flexible link. The controller design is based on the use of a conven tional rigid body robot controller and the use of a closed loop shaped-input filter to reduce the nonlinear vibrations of the flexible link. This method has the ability to reject external dis turbances. Simulation results confirm the effectiveness of this design strategy. Experimental results for a single flexible link and a five-bar-linkage manipulator with a single flexible link are presented.
'Les Petits Parisiens En Province': the Silent Revolution in the Allier, 1860-1900
Authors: Fitch Nancy
Published: March 2007

Nancy Fitch is Associate Professor of History at Hampshire College, Amherst, Mass. 01002. She is completing a study on the transition from feudal ism to capitalism in central France.ABSTRACT: By the end of the nineteenth century, thousands of households in the Allier supplemented family income by raising Parisian foundlings for the Bureau of Public Assistance. The article surveys the developments that led to this situation and the institutions that facilitated it; and argues that the "migration" of these children to the countryside helped to produce a social transformation comparable in scope to that which resulted from rural exodus elsewhere. Economic change in the Allier had brought about acute shortages of male labor and this, combined with the underemployment of women, made mercenary motherhood an attractive source of additional labor and income. Mercenary motherhood meant something entirely different for peasant and artisanal women than it did for agricultural day laborers or sharecroppers. Economically, there can be little doubt that the presence of foundlings enabled landlords to accumulate capital in the early stages of agricultural development by allowing them to make labor-intensive agricultural improvements whileforcing the cost of labor onto the French government.
An Ethnohistorical Perspective on Cheyenne Demography
Authors: Moore John H. , Campbell Gregory R.
Published: March 2007

Administrative censuses of the Southern Cheyenne Indians from 1880,1891, and 1900 permit family reconstitution, identification of residence groups, and comparisons of fertility between monogamous and polygynous women, when the records are approached by ethnohistori cal methods. This approach includes an awareness of the aboriginal adoption practices, kinship system, and naming practices. It is argued that the biases and distortions of administrative records can be effectively corrected to add to our store of information on band and tribal societies.
Life-Histories for Nineteenth-Century Swedish Hospital Patients: Chances of Survival
Authors: Brändström Anders , Broström Göran
Published: March 2007

The life histories of nineteenth-century Swedish hospital patients challenge the notion that hospitals were mainly occupied with the "industrious poor," and gives some support to the idea that hospitals were "death-traps." The latter idea is reviewed through an examination of the treatment of various diseases and of the life expectancies after dismissal in comparison with the life expectancies of people who never had to enter a hospital. The study underlines the imporiance of looking closely at the diseases patients suffered when we undertake to evaluate the role of nineteenth-century hospitals.
Recent Change and the Periodization of American Family History
Authors: Smith Daniel Scott
Published: March 2007

Periodization is a major element in historical interpretation. The remarkable changes in the American family since World War II are reviewed in conjunction with three principal frameworks—dichotomous, secular trend, and episodic schemes—for organizing the dimension of time in the historiography of the family. How these recent episodes relate to longer-run frameworks is explored. Metaphors or models of change in family history need to be used more consciously and explicitly.
Making Time for Family: the Invention of Family Time(S) and the Reinvention of Family History
Authors: Gillis John
Published: March 2007

Families are not only subject to time constraints but also produce their own sense of time. The time families live by is not the same as they live with. Historians, who have been primarily concerned with the quantitative dimension, have neglected the phenomenon that is commonly referred to as "quality time. " This article explores the origins of modem family times, paying particular attention to the rituals involved in daily, weekly, and annual family occasions. It suggests that a behavioral approach to family history is incapable of capturing the symbolic processes that have become central to modern family life, and it calls for a cultural history of family that would take into account myth, ritual, and symbol.
Pauper Apprenticeship in Early Nineteenth Century Ontario
Authors: Neff Charlotte
Published: March 2007

The primary formal mechanism for dealing with orphaned and abandoned chil dren in Ontario before Confederation was apprenticeship. This legally recognized form of home placement originated in the English PoorLaw and was provided for in provincial legislation in 1799 and, in detail, in 1851, as well as in a Toronto municipal statute in 1846, despite the rejection by Ontario of the English Poor Law. Surviving apprenticeship indentures and court records suggest that individu als were aware of and made use of this legislation. Aside from its use privately pauper apprenticeship was used as early as the 1830s by organizations arranging for the immigration of poor British children and by organizations assisting the orphans of immigrants. Home placements, including apprenticeship, were also used extensively by children's homes after mid-century, even for quite young children. Pauper apprenticeship thus emerges as highly significant in the history of provision for dependent children.
Discovering the Invisible Puerto Rican Slave Family: Demographic Evidence From the Eighteenth Century
Authors: Stark David M.
Published: March 2007

Traditional notions that family life among slaves during the pre-plantation period in the non-Hispanic Caribbean was necessarily unstable are fading in light of new research. Although marriage among this segment of the population in Caguas, Cayey, San Germán, and Yauco—rural parishes in Puerto Rico—involved only a fraction of the overall number of marriages in these communities, the marriage of slaves was much more frequent than previously assumed. Family life among the eighteenth-century Puerto Rican slave population appears to have been quite stable, as shown by the reconstruction of birth intervals for both married and unmarried mothers. Married and unmarried mothers exhibited similar reproduc tive behavior. These results strongly suggest that a majority of the unmarried slave mothers lived in unions that were not institutionally recognized, but that were nevertheless stable, as indicated by the high percentage of their children born at intervals comparable to those of married mothers. If unmarried mothers were living in stable consensual unions, then our understanding of these slave family units during the colonial period must be reassessed not only for Puerto Rico but possibly for the rest of the Caribbean and Latin America.
Feathering the Nest or Flying the Coop? Ethnic and Gender Differences in Young Adults' Coresidence in 1910
Authors: Sassler Sharon
Published: March 2007

Children's contributions were an important component of the family economy at the turn of the century. This article uses data from the 1910 Census Public Use Sample to disentangle gender and ethnic variations in coresidence with parents. Bivariate results indicate greater coresidence of women; this reverses after controlling for gainful employment and ethnicity. Work outside the home bought freedomfrom parents to a significantly greater degree for women. Young men who were best able to contribute financially to the family were more likely to be coresiding, suggesting that they received stronger incentives to remain in the home. Irish and German families benefitted from the presence of sons, whereas Jewish households stood to gain from the contributions of both sons and daughters. Relative to the "new" immigrant groups, Black families relying on the contributions of coresident unmarried children were at a disadvantage.
Gold in the Dungheap: Incest Stories and Family Values in the Middle Ages
Authors: Archibald Elizabeth
Published: March 2007

This article discusses the remarkable fashion for incest stories in the later Middle Ages, and the differences between such stories in the classical world, the Middle Ages, and the Renaissance. It speculates about the surprising enthusiasm of medieval ecclesiastical writers for tales of incest, and argues that these stories of characters who commit incest (or try to), and then either repent and renounce the world or die violently, allowed Christian writers to insist on the virtues of celibacy and the dangers of the secular, domestic world of the family.
The Laws of Motion of the Soviet Economy
Authors: Mandel Ernest , Mandel Ernest
Published: March 2007

The concept of a transitional society is utilized to analyze the laws of development of the Soviet economy. A transitional society, it is argued, is not defined by the simple combination or articulation of old and new relations, but instead is understood to be a formation with relations of production specific to this transitional period. The decisive feature of these new relations is the con scious distribution of the means of production and labor-power through the plan. The distribution of consumer goods, however, still maintains the commodity form. Consequently, the economic order is governed by the conflict of two antagonistic logics — the logic of the plan and the logic of the market.
Perspectives on Centenarian Research
Authors: Montgomery James E. , SanderS Gregory F.
Published: March 2007

Increased emphasis on centenarian research is needed in order to probe the nature of life near the end of the potential span of the species, gain insights into major historical events, assess beliefs and attitudes that may have persisted, and ponder the implications of such longevity on social institutions. The recent acquisition by the University of Georgia of the extensive centenarian data files of Belle Boone Beard is stimulating research on the very old. Efforts to date include identifying and collecting demographic data from living centenarians or their caregivers, examining the at titudes of youth toward different age groups of the elderly and centenarians' attitudes toward youth, and conducting intensive life history interviews with a limited number of persons 100 years old or older. The rapid increase of the very old population sug gests that colleges and universities have an opportunity as well as an obligation to probe the nature and implications of "second century" people.
Attitudes of Youth Toward Known and General Target Elderly
Authors: Sanders Gregory F. , Pittman Joe F.
Published: March 2007

Half of a sample of 275 high school and college students rated "generalized"elderly targets, described only by gender and age, and half rated known elderly. Known elderly were rated more positively than generalized elderly. Within the generalized group, younger targets were rated more favorably than older targets and females more positively than males. This pattern was not replicated in the known target group. The results suggest that given the opportunity, youths use information other than gender and age to evaluate the elderly, but in the absence of additional information, stereotypes of elderly emerge in attitudes of youths toward the elderly.
The Relationship between Cognitive Mode and Right Hemisphere Test Performance
Authors: Stellern John , Marlowe Mike , Jacobs James
Published: March 2007

This study investigated the relationship between cognitive mode and right hemisphere test performance. Seventy-six randomly selected elementary students were administered the Adapted Children's Form of Your Style of Learning and Thinking (SOLAT) to obtain their left, right, and integrated hemisphere cognitive mode scores. The same students were also administered the Judgment of Line Orientation test, Bender-Gestalt test, Torque Task, and the Word Production test. Subjects determined to have a predominant right hemisphere cognitive mode (N = 38) scored significantly higher on the Judgment of Line Orientation test, Torque Task, and Word Production test, and significantly lower on the Bender-Gestalt test than subjects with a predominantly left hemisphere cognitive mode (N = 25) and/or integrated hemisphere cognitive mode (N = 13). Right hemisphere cognitive mode scores correlated positively and significantly with Judgment of Line Orientation scores, and negatively and significantly with Bender-Gestalt scores.
Planning Skills and Mathematics Achievement: Implications Regarding Learning Disability
Authors: Kirby John R. , Ashman Adrian F.
Published: March 2007

Current research and theory emphasize the importance of the construct of planning. Evidence is reviewed regarding the role of planning skills in cognition and in particular in learning disabilities. The results of a study are presented in which a battery of planning tests was administered to 121 normal fifth-grade children. These results indicate that the domain of planning skills is more complex than previously thought. Four planning factors are identified: Selective Attention, Rehearsal, Clustering, and Metacognition. The Selective Attention factor is shown to be particularly important in relation to mathematics achievement. A model of the planning domain is presented and the role of selective attention elaborated. Implications are discussed regarding future research and the diagnosis and remediation of learning disabilities.
Differences between Mildly and more Severely Learning-Disabled Children on the Luria-Nebraska Neuropsychological Battery Children's Revision
Authors: Snow Jeffrey H. , Hynd George W. , Hartlage Lawrence C.
Published: March 2007

The Luria-Nebraska Neuropsychological Battery (LNNB)-Children's Revision was administered to 40 learning-disabled (LD) students. Twenty of the children were enrolled in self-contained classrooms (SC-LD) and 20 were in resource programs (R-LD). Significant differences (p < .01) were found between the groups on 4 of the 11 scales of LNNB-Children Revision, with the SC-LD group having more impaired performance. However, no significant differences were found between the groups on any scale when intelligence quotient and achievement scores were used as covariates. The results are discussed in terms of the utility of the battery with LD children.
A Validity Study of the Woodcock-Johnson Psycho-Educational Battery and the Stanford-Binet with Black Preschool Children
Authors: Arffa Sharon , Rider Larry H. , Cummings Jack A.
Published: March 2007

The Woodcock-Johnson Psycho-Educational Battery (WJPEB) and the Stanford-Binet were administered in counterbalanced order to a sample of 60 black preschoolers. The estimates for the WJPEB Preschool Cognitive, Skills, and Knowledge clusters and the Stanford-Binet were compared by a repeated one-way analysis of variance. The F test was significant beyond the p < .01 level, so the means were compared via Tukey's HSD method. The WJPEB Cognitive scale and the Binet yielded comparable means. This finding differs from previous investigations, which reported significant meanscore discrepancies with the Wechsler Intelligence Scale for Children-Revised for various handicapped samples. The multiple comparison technique also revealed that the WJPEB Knowledge scale was significantly lower than the Binet and WJPEB Cognitive and Skills scales. Based on this finding and an examination of the content of the subtests, it was hypothesized that the cultural loading of the items may account for the depressed scores on the WJPEB Knowledge scale. The intercorrelations between the WJPEB scales and the Binet are also discussed.
Developmental Dyslexia Subtypes and the Boder Test of Reading-Spelling Patterns
Authors: Nockleby Donald M. , Galbraith Gary G.
Published: March 2007

The Boder Test of Reading-Spelling Patterns (BTRSP) purports to classify underachieving readers into categories of nonspecific reading retardation or one of three dyslexia subtypes that indicate problems in processing phonics and analytic-sequential stimuli (dysphonetic), problems learning sight-words and in processing simultaneous-gestalt stimuli (dyseidetic), or a third subtype with mixed processing difficulties. This study compared the performance of dysphonetics, nonspecifics, and normal readers on “gestalt” tasks of facial memory, tactile-visual recognition, Raven's Coloured Progressive Matrices, and Benton Visual Retention test, and on “analytic-sequential” tasks of auditory sequential memory, visual sequential memory, sound blending, and Lindamood Auditory Conceptualization Test. The construct validity of the dysphonetic and nonspecific categories received support; however, a large proportion of cases consisting of classification error, “false negatives,” was suspected. The BTRSP classification criteria of reading level, spelling level, and application of phonics were judged useful dimensions in distinguishing two subtypes of disabled readers and reflective of other cognitive abilities.
Administration Time Estimates For WAIS-R Subtests and Short Forms in a Clinical Sample
Authors: Ryan Joseph J. , Rosenberg Samuel J.
Published: March 2007

Administration times were recorded for the Wechsler Adult Intelligence Scale—Revised (WAIS-R) subtests and Verbal, Performance, and Full Scales in a sample of 50 Veterans Administration Medical Center psychiatric and neurological patients. Also calculated were the administration times required by a select group of short forms. Results indicated that a complete WAIS-R required an average of 91 minutes, 24 seconds (SD = 14 min 15 sec). The estimate of 60 to 90 minutes' administration time for the standardization sample does not generalize to a clinical population. Five of six short forms reduced testing time by at least 50%. The shortest and least time-consuming abbreviated form consisted of Vocabulary and Block Design ( X̅ = 26 min 1 sec, SD = 6 min 23 sec). The most time-demanding short form was the entire Verbal Scale ( X̅ = 49 min 9 sec, SD = 9 min 45 sec). Because the complete WAIS-R is a time-consuming measure, its use in some clinical situations may be impractical.
Concurrent Validity of the Bracken Basic Concept Scale
Authors: Breen Michael J.
Published: March 2007

Planned comparisons were made between the Bracken Basic Concept Scale and the Peabody Picture Vocabulary Test-Revised, the Boehm Test of Basic Concepts, and the Metropolitan Readiness Tests. Most comparisons generated significant correlations that ranged from .48 to .67. Dependent t tests were also conducted between mean standard scores and indicated that while the Bracken Scale did not differ from the Peabody, it yielded a lower mean score than the Boehm but a higher score than the total Metropolitan. Discussion focused on the similarities and differences of the measures studied.
The Relationship between the K-ABC and the VADS with Reading-Disabled Children: Validity of the K-ABC
Authors: Hooper Stephen R. , Hynd George W.
Published: March 2007

The relationship between the Kaufman Assessment Battery for Children (K-ABC) and the Visual-Aural Digit Span Test (VADS) was investigated in a population of elementary school reading-disabled children (N = 87). Results indicated that the Sequential factor of the K-ABC correlated significantly with the Aural-Oral, Visual-Oral, Aural-Written, and Visual-Written subtests of the VADS, as well as with the Total Score of the VADS. The K-ABC sequential subtests of Number Recall and Word Order accounted for most of the variance. The K-ABC Achievement and Simultaneous factors did not correlate significantly with any of the VADS subtests, although the K-ABC achievement subtests of Arithmetic and Reading Understanding did correlate significantly with specific subtests of the VADS and the VADS Total Score. In addition to providing support for the concurrent validity of the Sequential factor of the K-ABC, the study lends credence to the notion that disabled readers will perform a task such as the VADS using sequential processing strategies and to a lesser degree, if at all, simultaneous processing strategies. Results also question the possible predictive relationship between the VADS and academic achievement in a reading-disabled sample.
The Portland Problem Behavior Checklist: Sex and Age Differences in Teacher-Rated Behavior Problems
Authors: Dentel-Walty Sheila M. , Waksman Steven A.
Published: March 2007

Sex and age differences in teacher-rated behavior problems were examined. Teacher ratings on 306 randomly selected children from grades kindergarten through high school, using the Portland Problem Behavior Checklist, were factor-analyzed. Factors were developed and compared for each sex at grade levels kindergarten through sixth grade and seventh through twelfth grade. The younger boys exhibited four factors: (a) Conduct Problems, (b) Academic Problems, (c) Anxiety Problems, and (d) Peer Problems. Younger girls exhibited three factors: (a) Conduct Problems, (b) Peer Problems, and (c) Personal Problems. Older boys exhibited five factors: (a) Academic Problems, (b) Anxiety Problems, (c) Conduct Problems, (d) Peer Problems, and (e) Personal Problems. Finally, older girls exhibited four factors: (a) Academic Problems, (b) Personal Problems, (c) Conduct Problems, and (d) Anxiety Problems. These factors were used to compare sex and age differences of teacher-rated behavior problems. The findings were compared to the results of other studies using different rating scales.
A Naturalistic Study of School Psychologists' Use of Diagnostic Test Data in Making Decisions
Authors: Huebner E. Scott , Cummings Jack A.
Published: March 2007

The purpose of this study was to examine the influence of psychological test data on school psychologists' decisions using naturalistic methodology. Archival test data were examined comparing students who had been tested and subsequently recommended for a learning disability program with students who had been tested and recommended for regular class placement. The results of a discriminant function analysis indicated that psychological test data did differentiate between those who were placed in special education and those who were not. Specifically, the IQ-achievement discrepancy score contributed most significantly to the obtained differences; this is a practice consistent with federal guidelines for the determination of a learning disability. Further analyses showed that school psychologists were able to determine eligibility on an individual basis with a high degree of accuracy. It was concluded that for the most part, school psychologists utilize psychological test data appropriately in their decision-making practices.
Investigation of Wechsler Adult Intelligence Scale-Revised Short Forms in a Sample of Vocational Rehabilitation Applicants
Authors: Banken Joseph A. , Banken Cheryl Hall
Published: March 2007

This study investigated the validity of two- and four-subtest combinations as estimates of the Wechsler Adult Intelligence Scale-Revised (WAIS-R) Full Scale Intelligence Quotient (FSIQ) among vocational rehabilitation clients (N= 93). Pearson product-moment correlations between FSIQ and two- and four-subtest short forms were .90 and .91, respectively. Both short forms classified approximately 72% of the subjects correctly by intelligence category. When short-form IQs were banded by the standard error of measurement (2.53) at the .95 level of confidence, the four-subtest forms' intelligence classification accuracy improved from 72%o to 80%. It was concluded that neither short form is clearly superior in providing a precise measure of intelligence. However, short forms of the variety used in this study might be used as screening devices in vocational rehabilitation applicants, but only when the clinician desires a gross measure of intellectual functioning. Additional vocational rehabilitation clients should be evaluated to determine whether these findings are generally applicable.
Observations of Test Behavior, Quantitative Scores, and Teacher Ratings
Authors: Gordon Michael , DiNiro Deborah , Mettelman Barbara Bilinski , Tallmadge James
Published: March 2007

Observations of a child's behavior while he or she is performing on a psychological test often provide information not available from actual test scores. This aspect of test performance, however, has received little empirical attention even though clinicians often rely heavily upon such information. This study presents data on the relationships among objective scores from a behavior-based measure of attention, examiner ratings of test behavior, and a teacher's assessment of classroom behavior. The results indicate that examiner observations correlate with quantitative test scores and teacher assessments of behavior. Consensus among the three realms increases when the extent of agreement on a child's status as normal or abnormal is considered. Furthermore, meaningful clinical information may emerge when sources disagree about a child's status.
Development of a Cognitive Ability Test for 2-Year-Olds with Motor or Speech Delays
Authors: Dilworth Amy , French Joseph
Published: March 2007

Items proposed for estimating intelligence of children 2 years of age were studied and found ready for experimental use as a downward extension of the Pictorial Test of Intelligence (French, 1964). The items require neither speech nor manipulation of objects by the child. Each child responded to the experimental items and the Mental portion of the Bayley Scales of Infant Development (BSID). Biserial correlations for each new item with the BSID were determined, as were difficulty indices, and estimates of internal consistency. Items then were rearranged in order of difficulty or eliminated based on the difficulty and/or biserial correlations. A high correlation of the experimental items and BSID-Mental Scale scores suggests that cognitive development between 21 and 29 months can be determined for children without speech and/or fine motor skill, but who have near-normal hearing and visual acuity and who understand English.
Correcting for Motivational Distortion on Selected Adolescent Self-Report Personality Tests
Authors: Merydith Scott P. , Wallbrown Fred H.
Published: March 2007

The purpose of this study was to correct for motivational distortion (MD) on the High School Personality Questionnaire (HSPQ) and to evaluate the effectiveness of the HSPQ MD scale in identifying test-takers who had “faked good.” Subjects included 193 adolescent males who were given either the standard test instructions or else instructed to fake good. The participants completed the HSPQ and three additional scales that measure response distortions. Data analysis showed that the HSPQ MD scale correctly classified 63% of the respondents, yet showed the least effect size in comparison to the other scales. A multivariate analysis of variance and subsequent univariate analyses indicated that eight personality factors were susceptible to motivational distortion. Correction procedures were effective in reducing the effects of faking good. The relevance of the findings are discussed in terms of theoretical formulations by Cattell (1968, 1973, 1986) and implications for school psychologists.
Fire Resistant Films for Aircraft Applications
Authors: Kourtides Demetrius A.
Published: March 2007

Alternative sandwich-panel decorative films were investigated as replace ments for the polyvinyl fluoride currently used in aircraft interiors. Candidate films were studied for flammability, smoke emission, selected toxic gas emis sion, flame spread, and suitability as a printing surface for the decorative acrylic ink system. Several of the candidate films tested were flame-modified polyvinyl fluoride, polyvinylidene fluoride, polyimide, polyamide, polysulfone, polyphenyl- sulfone, polyethersulfone, polybenzimidazole, polycarbonate, polyparabanic acid, polyphosphazene, polyetheretherketone, and polyester.
Failure Time of Loaded Wooden Beams During Fire
Authors: Do M.H. , Springer G.S.
Published: March 2007

A model is presented for predicting the failure time of loaded wooden beams of rectangular cross-section exposed to elevated temperatures or to fire. Failure times calculated by the model were compared to failure times measured in this study using 19.05 mm x 19.05 mm simply supported southern pine beams, and to failure times measured by the National Bureau of Standards during the fire of a full scale room. Reasonable agreements were found between the calculated failure times and the data.
An Evaluation of Smoke Toxicity and Toxic Hazard of Electrical Nonmetallic Tubing Combustion Products
Authors: Packham S.C. , Crawford M.B.
Published: March 2007

Small-scale smoke toxicity tests were performed on polyvinylchloride-based electrical nonmetallic tubing (PVC/ENT) using the National Bureau of Stan dards (NBS) protocol for nonflaming combustion. An LC50 of 28.5 mg/L (± 9.25) was determined, placing PVC/ENT smoke in a toxicity category comparable to smoke from wood.