bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025 huggingface dataset:
Policies toward Medical Technology: An International Review
Authors: Banta H. David , Russell Louise B.
Published: May 2005

Rapidly rising medical care costs have become an important political issue in industrialized countries during the past decade. Attempts to control the growth in expenditures have focused on the contribution of medical technology to costs. All industrialized countries have begun to experiment with the kinds of mechanisms necessary to effect changes in development, diffusion, and use of medical technologies. This paper describes government policies toward: 1) research and development, 2) evaluation, 3) safety and efficacy regulation, and 4) investment in and use of medical technologies. To clarify how these policies work in practice, policies toward CT scanners, renal dialysis, and coronary bypass surgery are examined.

Rapid changes in policies and laws in different countries are attempts to find effective policy mechanisms, but also reflect the difficulties of choosing a realistic policy objective. Until recently, most countries have focused on promoting the development and adoption of new technologies, or increasing the efficiency of their production and use. A few governments have begun to question and test the benefits of medical technologies as an aid to decision making. Finally, with the growing realization that every kind of care that is beneficial cannot be provided, some countries have begun to consider limiting the diffusion of technologies to a level that strikes a balance between the benefits to be gained and the costs of achieving them.
Antidepressant Side Effects in the Medically Ill: The Value of Psychiatric Consultation
Authors: Schwartz Joe , Speed Nancy , Clavier Ellen
Published: May 2005

In this study we evaluated the side effects of antidepressant use in medically ill patients. The authors evaluated fifty-one general hospital inpatients who were later prescribed antidepressant medications by their primary care physicians. These patients' medical records were reviewed one year later for evidence of serious complications. The overall complication rate was 43 percent. When the psychiatrist recommended antidepressant therapy, there was a 30 percent incidence of major complications. When the psychiatrist did not recommend antidepressants, but the patient was treated anyway, the incidence of treatment-limiting side effects was 67 percent. These results suggest that psychiatrists can predict which medically ill patients are at risk for complications. Since most antidepressants are prescribed by non-psychiatrists, an important role for consultants is to identify those patients at high risk for significant complications.
Influence of Alcohol and Drug Use on AIDS Risk Behavior among Youth in Dropout Prevention
Authors: O'Hara Peggy , Parris Donald , Fichtner Ronald R. , Oster Robert
Published: May 2005

Youth enrolled in dropout prevention and alternative school programs engage in a number of high risk behaviors in greater numbers than those in traditional school settings [1, 2]. However, data on alcohol and drug use influences and risky sexual behavior are often not collected or reported among these youth due to small enrollments and rapid turnover. In this study alcohol and drug use and sexual behaviors were surveyed among 212 youth in dropout prevention. A risk profile score for HIV/AIDS was developed and the contribution of alcohol and drug use to HIV/AIDS risk was determined. Results showed that use of alcohol and drugs and age of sexual initiation were significantly associated with a high risk profile score. Of sexually active youth, 28 percent reported using alcohol or drugs prior to having sexual intercourse and more than half reported not using condoms during their last sexual experience. Males were more likely than females to use alcohol and drugs before having sex, and were more likely to have had sex with two or more partners. Findings from this study suggest that among youth in dropout prevention, the association of alcohol and drug use to HIV/AIDS risk is significant and that prevention programs need to target alcohol and drug use as important influences on risky sexual behavior.
Psychiatric Complications of Malaria: A Case Report
Authors: Alao Adekola O. , Dewan Mantosh J.
Published: May 2005

This article reviews the psychiatric complications of malaria. A case of malaria infection is described. The diagnoses, treatment, and neuropsychiatric complications of acute and chronic malaria infection are discussed. The treatment of malaria and its complications are summarized.
Home or Hospital? An Evaluation of the Costs, Preferences, and Outcomes of Domiciliary Chemotherapy
Authors: King Madeleine T. , Hall Jane , Caleo Sue , Gurney Howard P. , Harnett Paul R.
Published: May 2005

This study compares the costs and outcomes of domiciliary and hospital-based chemotherapy, using a prospective randomized cross-over design. Eighty-seven eligible patients were recruited from oncology services at two metropolitan hospitals in Sydney, Australia. Forty patients completed study evaluation requirements, having two months of chemotherapy in each location (home and hospital). The domiciliary service was staffed by hospital-based oncology nurses. Marginal costs of domiciliary treatment over hospital treatment were estimated from the health service perspective. Home-based care was more expensive, largely due to extra nurse time. About half of the eligible patients (n = 87) and 73 percent of the evaluated patients (n = 40) preferred domiciliary care. Most evaluated patients and their informal carers were satisfied with the medical care provided, regardless of location. Patient needs were well met in either location, and no differences were found in quality of life. At current throughput rates, providing chemotherapy in the home was more expensive than providing it in hospital. However, if the demand for chemotherapy were to exceed ward capacity by up to 50 percent, moving chemotherapy into the home could provide a less costly strategy for the expansion of a chemotherapy service without compromising patient outcomes.
Imagery and the Comprehension of College History Texts: Free Response Measure
Authors: Wharton William P.
Published: May 2005

Previous publications of this experiment have based their significance on objective tests of comprehension. Now, with more relevant criteria for rating the essay answers, it is clear that imagery produces significant gains in comprehension of college history text passages – as measured by free-response tests. This experiment used original and revised passages from a standard American History college text. It tested the interest and the comprehension of these passages by 192 subjects who were entering freshmen at a well-known liberal arts college. The experiment compared the two treatments of four different war passages, presented in every combination and sequence in a completely balanced design. Analysis of variance established that significantly higher scores resulted from the revised treatments. This conclusion points a way, through the use of imagery, to improve college history texts and possibly others. This finding reinforces the conclusion that appropriate imagery enhances the readability of college history textbooks.
Linking Different Cultures by Computers: A Study of Computer-Assisted Music Notation Instruction
Authors: Chen Steve Shihong , Dennis J. Richard
Published: May 2005

CAMNI, which stands for Computer-Assisted Music Notation Instruction, is self-educational software designed and developed with HyperCard. This program features interactive hypermedia (inter-linked musical notation knowledge, musical tempo controlled by the user, the use of digital sounds and animation), multiple representation mode (the staff notation, the number notation, the letter name of notes and the piano keyboard, four representations are linked and can be switched from one to another easily or presented at the same time in terms of a user's need), graphical user interface “GUI,” context-sensitive-sound icon (the use of a sound icon in lesson navigation and sub-index design), direct manipulation (pointing and clicking objects to interact with the program), and self-directed but computer-context-sensitive-guided environment (multi-path navigation characterized by an author-designed but user-defined and individualized learning approach). The CAMNI was specifically designed for Chinese students who would like to study the staff notation whether or not they have background with the number notation (the traditional Chinese musical notation system).
Industrial Relations Effects of English Health Care Reforms on Doctors
Authors: Loewenberg J. Joseph
Published: May 2005

Doctors are central to the provision of health care. In England, doctors have been part of and have dealt with the National Health Service for over 45 years. This study looks at recent changes within and outside the National Health Service and their effects on the industrial relations system and outcomes for doctors. The changes include structural reforms imposed by government, changes resulting from dissatisfaction of junior doctors, and reforms advocated by the European Community. A principal finding is that the changes may potentially affect almost every aspect of employment and working conditions of doctors and of the professional and bargaining organizations that represent them. In particular, the changes may alter the existing relationships in doctors' ranks and between hospitals and senior doctors. Hence, the stability and uniformity of the industrial relations system are threatened.
Early Home Background Features in Relation to Imaginative and Creative Expression in Third Grade
Authors: Shmukler Diana
Published: May 2005

A follow-up investigation was carried out on seventy-three third graders from an original sample of 114 mother-child pairs, who were observed and tested when the children were preschoolers. Four third grade criteria of imaginative and creative expression were shown to be related to earlier measures and assessments of imaginative predisposition. Each criterion related to differential features of the early home background. This study endorsed the finding, however, that an optimal balance between involvement, caring and warmth on the part of the preschooler's mother and a willingness to let the child explore at his/her own pace leads to future creative and imaginative expression.
Teaching Real-World Issues: Comparison of Written versus Annotated Still Image Case Study
Authors: Sankar Chetan S. , Kramer Scott W. , Hingorani Kamal
Published: May 2005

A well-accepted method of bringing real-world issues to students is the use of case studies. This method was modified by bringing a manager to the classroom electronically using two picture phone systems. The project manager presented current issues from the project site with the help of still images. Students and the manager interacted using speakerphones. This article compares the effectiveness of the two methods, written case studies and information technology based case studies, for teaching project management issues. The effectiveness of both methods were evaluated based on the four constructs of useful, challenging, clear, and attractive. A survey instrument was administered at the end of each case study and the responses were analyzed. The information technology based method was found to be more useful, attractive and challenging than the written case studies. The students preferred the new method irrespective of their GPA or their work experience. Their written comments in addition to the statistical results suggest that this method exposed the students to important issues in project management.
The Influences of the Relationship between Primary and Secondary Process Content on Aesthetic Success in Novels
Authors: Scherer Michael R.
Published: May 2005

Previous studies have indicated that primary and secondary process content, two processes theorized to play an important role in the creation of an artistic work and of which some residue is thought to reside within the creative product itself, are related to an audience's reception of the creative work. This study examined the relationship between primary and secondary process content and aesthetic success in bestselling and non-bestselling fiction literature. Bestselling and non-bestselling novels written by the same author were selected and analyzed. It was hypothesized that primary process content would be positively correlated with bestseller status, however this relationship was not found. A post hoc analysis did reveal that an interactive relationship between primary and secondary process was significantly related to a novel's popular reception. It is believed cognitive processing of information and memory retrieval during reading of the text may affect a reader's reception of the content of a novel. It has been theorized that primary and secondary process content may differ in their rate of processing, as well as being processed by different information processing/retrieval systems and that these differences account for the relationship between aesthetic success and primary/secondary process content levels.
Relative Effectiveness of Corrective and Noncorrective Feedback in Computer Assisted Instruction on Learning and Achievement
Authors: Hodes C. L.
Published: May 2005

The purpose of this study was to research the impact of certain types of computer feedback on the subjects. Forty-one subjects were divided into two treatment groups. The corrective and noncorrective feedback types, both characteristic of commercially produced software, were isolated and systematized.

Each subject was pre- and posttested on the content of the computer lesson. Test scores were analyzed by ANOVA. The results indicated no overall significance. When groups were redefined by gender, the girls who received the noncorrective feedback scored significantly lower ( p < .01) than the boys of either group. For these girls, noncorrective feedback may have reinforced the well documented sex bias that exists in all phases of education.
The Timeliness of New Drug Approvals in Canada: A Rejoinder
Authors: Lexchin Joel
Published: May 2005

While Canada has a delay in drug approval dates and regulatory approval times compared with countries such as the United States and the United Kingdom, evidence to show that such delays compromise therapy is lacking. Faster regulatory approval coupled with an effective postmarketing surveillance system can achieve acceptable safety results, but whether such a system is feasible in Canada is unknown. Setting priorities in reforming the Canadian drug regulatory process depends on an assessment of what the most important problems are. Such an assessment reflects the nature of policy making in Canada.
School Related Daydreams and Test Anxiety
Authors: Gold Steven R. , Minor Scott W.
Published: May 2005

Current models of test anxiety emphasize the mediating role of negative and disruptive internal cognitive activity. Highly test anxious students have been reported to engage in more negative thoughts and fewer positive thoughts during an actual exam. The present study examined the relationship between school related daydreams and level of test anxiety. It was hypothesized that daydream outcome and mood would be correlated with self reported test anxiety, grade point average and self reported arousal and self talk during an exam. Overall the grade point average was the measure most relevant to daydreams. Students with high grade point averages tended to have more happy and successful daydreams and fewer failure daydreams. Self talk during the exam was unrelated to daydream measures. Suggestions for further research were presented.
Initiative Taking as a Determinant of Role-Reciprocal Organization
Authors: John Bertram A. , Sussman Lori E.
Published: May 2005

The study explores the evolution of subjects' constructions of role-reciprocal interactions in a story about two ambiguous characters meeting in a singles bar. Patterns of role-reciprocal organization reveal a strong initial tendency to interpret initiative-taking as male behavior. This tendency persists at the expense of intra-role consistency. Microgenetic change in the temporal context provided by story transitions reveals a pattern of increasingly integrative organization, characterized by growth in balanced decentering between perspectives. The suggestion is offered that the development of social knowledge can be understood according to rules shared by the development of other forms of knowledge, whether at the level of ontogenesis or microgenesis.
Antecedents of Rural Adolescent Alcohol Use: A Risk Factor Approach
Authors: Bloch Linda P. , Crockett Lisa J. , Vicary Judith R.
Published: May 2005

The present study examines the association between risk factors and alcohol use for a sample of young adolescents in a rural eastern community. Family relations, family structure, marks in school, participation in academic activities, frequency of church attendance, and deviant behavior were found to be significantly associated with alcohol use two years later. No gender or age differences were found in these predictors of alcohol use. These six risk variables were combined to form a risk index. A 3 × 2 × 2 (User group by Gender by Grade) ANOVA was used to examine the association between the risk index score at Year 1 and level of alcohol use at Year 3. Only the main effect for User group was significant. Thus, the number of risk factors at Year 1 was predictive of alcohol use at Year 3. The risk index also predicted frequency of alcohol use in a replication sample. Implications for the risk factor approach, prevention, and intervention are discussed.
The Value and Treatment of Civil War Military Sites
Authors: Espenshade Christopher T. , Jolley Robert L. , Legg James B.
Published: May 2005

The American Civil War was a defining event in the history of the United States, and scholarly and public interest in the conflict remains high. Archaeological sites from the Civil War can provide valuable data that cannot be gleaned from the archival record or oral history. The archaeological study of battlefields, skirmish sites, earthworks, trenches, camps, and picket posts provides specific details that augment the other data sources. However, the archaeological treatment of Civil War sites—specifically the use of inappropriate methods—continues to be a problem. As many areas of the heartland of the Civil War face growing development pressures, it is imperative that archaeologists reconsider their approaches to Civil War sites.
Making Sense of Inequalities: A Response to Peter Townsend
Authors: Klein Rudolf
Published: May 2005

This article addresses the continuing controversy generated by the Black Report on Inequalities in Health, published in Britain in 1980, in response to the defense offered by Professor Peter Townsend. The author argues that Townsend's riposte to the critics of the Black Report is flawed in at least two respects. First, Townsend fails to acknowledge that the Black Report was as much an exercise in policy advocacy as in scholarly analysis, making rather large assumptions about the links in the reasoning leading to its recommendations for a massive program of income redistribution. Second, Townsend's defense of Black's use of social class as its main tool for analyzing health inequalities dismisses too easily much of the evidence; for example, the effects of social mobility and the historical dimension. Moreover, by concentrating on social class, a heterogeneous category, analysis may ignore what is most relevant for policy-making: i.e., specific factors associated with specific forms of deprivation, located within social classes or particular geographical communities. It would therefore be more constructive if scholars were to accept and research this complexity, rather than defending the Black Report as though it were a definitive (not to say sacred) text.
Self-Esteem among Intercollegiate Athletes: The Role of Achievement Goals and Competitive Orientation
Authors: Ryska Todd A.
Published: May 2005

The conceptualization of competitiveness has been limited in sport research to its motivational basis with few studies investigating its relation to athlete self-perceptions. A sample of 186 intercollegiate athletes was used to determine the multivariate relationship between task and ego goal orientations, hypercompetitive and personal development competitive attitudes, and the self-esteem components of self-regard, social confidence, and physical abilities. Canonical correlation analyses revealed that the self-regard and physical ability aspects of athletes' self-esteem were related to task orientation, personal development competitiveness, and not hypercompetitiveness. Conversely, low levels of these self-esteem indices were associated with ego orientation and hypercompetitiveness. Results are discussed both in terms of conceptual differences between motivational goals and competitiveness as well as methodological issues regarding the assessment of competitive attitudes among athletes.
The Functions of Omens of Death in Transylvanian Hungarian Peasant Death Culture (Examples from Csíkkarcfalva and Csíkjenöfalva)
Authors: Berta Peter
Published: May 2005

European peasants' culture of death has evolved a number of rites and systems of folk beliefs during the past hundreds of years that aim at coordinating and reducing the near-death crisis situations. Recently, many researchers dealt with the ethnographic and descriptive analysis of the systems of folk beliefs and directions of behavior related to transience; however, the investigation of societal and psychological significance of these rites and beliefs has rarely been attempted. The goal of the following study is to present in detail the structure of the omen beliefs as well as their social and psychological role in two peasant communities in Transylvania. The psychological-social functions of the negative predictions, drawn from images of dream, unusual behavior of animals, the state of certain parts of body, etc. can be divided in three groups as follows: 1) conditioning or “memento mori” functions related to unfulfilled predictions, 2) realization-rationalization-preparatory functions, in case of omens closely before the death, and 3) in the first stage of the grief work, the significance of the reorganization function will be examined.
Characterization of the New Jersey Lead Hazard Control Workforce
Authors: Ritota Richard M. , Petix Julie R. , Ahmed Tariq
Published: May 2005

Individuals performing lead evaluation and abatement activities in New Jersey must complete certified training, an examination, and have a state permit card. Key demographic information was collected and summarized to describe this newly emerging lead workforce, to enhance lead training, to identify education and outreach needs, and to promote environmental justice. Summarizing these data also will assist other states implementing similar lead training and certification programs.

As of June 30, 1998, the New Jersey Department of Health and Senior Services (NJDHSS) issued 2,370 permits to individuals in six disciplines. The lead workforce's average age was 38 years and 88 percent male. Most females were in the Inspector/Risk Assessor and Worker-Housing and Public Buildings (HPB) disciplines. Eighty percent of the workforce resided in New Jersey.

Whites and Asians/Pacific Islanders were more educated than Hispanics or Blacks and a greater proportion of them were employed in the more skilled disciplines. Inadequate work experience may have prevented Blacks from qualifying for the more skilled disciplines; for Hispanics, there was also a language barrier.

Twenty-nine percent of Workers and Supervisors had children less than six years of age residing in their household, which was higher than comparable state rates. The proportion of households with children under six years of age were similar for Black (32 percent), Hispanic (30 percent), and White (27 percent) households. The number of children less than six years of age per Black and Hispanic permittee was significantly higher than for Whites. Take-home lead issues and possible initiatives to promote minorities in the more skilled disciplines are discussed.
The Contribution of Eye-Movement Research to an Understanding of the Nature of Pictorial Balance Perception: A Review of the Literature
Authors: Locher Paul J.
Published: May 2005

The study of eye movements has been very successful in providing empirical support for theoretical writings concerning the influence of pictorial balance on perceptual processing of pictures and other types of visual displays. This article describes the nature of pictorial balance that emerges from eye-movement research and related empirical findings. A graphic representation of the interaction of stimulus-driven and cognitively-driven aspects of balance perception derived from this literature is presented and discussed.
Herbert Spencer's Philosophy of Style: Conserving Mental Energy
Authors: Hirst Russel
Published: May 2005

My article traces the development, chronicles the impact, and explains the essence of Herbert Spencer's “The Philosophy of Style” (1852). Spencer's essay has had a significant influence on stylistics, especially in scientific and technical communication. Although in our generation Spencer's contribution to stylistics is not widely remembered, it ought to be. His single essay on this subject was seminal to modern theories about effective communication, not because it introduced new knowledge but because it was such a rhetorically astute synthesis of stylistic lore, designed to connect traditional rhetorical theory with 19th-century ideas about science, technology, and evolution. It was also influential because it was part of Spencer's grand “synthetic philosophy,” a prodigious body of books and essays that made him one of the most prominent thinkers of his time. Spencer's “Philosophy of Style” carried the day, and many following decades, with its description of the human mind as a symbol-processing machine, with its description of cognitive and affective dimensions of communication, and with its scientifically considered distillation of the fundamental components of effective style. We should read Spencer's essay and understand its impact not so much because we expect it to teach us new things about good style, but precisely because: 1) it's at the root of some very important concepts now familiar to us; 2) it synthesizes these concepts so impressively; 3) we can use it heuristically as we continue thinking about style; and 4) it provides a compact, accessible touchstone for exploring—with students, clients, and colleagues—the techniques of effective style for scientific and technical communication.
A Residency Program for Technical/Biomedical Communicators: A Master's Degree Program with Concurrent On-the-Job Training
Authors: Applewhite Lottie B.
Published: May 2005

An editor in a medical center requires a combination of knowledge and skills which provides an understanding of biomedical concepts and the aptitude for being a technical communicator. A medical editor edits manuscripts authored by physicians and scientists in biomedical specialties. A training program which combines academic and on-the-job training requirements has been conducted at a military medical center over a two-year period. One Resident has completed the on-the-job phase of the program. She has been a contributing biomedical communicator in the editorial office during this period and received a master's degree from a local university in May 1978. The support of the medical center, the dedication of the Preceptor, the vision of the Mentor, and the educational background, interests, aptitudes, potential, and persistence of the student selected to participate in the residency program have been contributing factors in making the program successful. This plan is a practical and economical approach to rewarding an institution for its investment and to training technical/biomedical communicators.
Media and Affect: A Comparison of Video-Tape, Audio-Tape, and Print
Authors: MacHula Ruth Stroud
Published: May 2005

Students at the University of Illinois and the University of Michigan participated in an experiment to determine if different affective responses would result from exposure to three different forms of media, each presenting the same content. One group of students viewed a video tape, another listened to an audio tape, and a third read a printed transcript. A semantic differential was used to measure affective response, and an objective test was administered to measure cognitive learning. Results showed the video group to be perceiving the presentation less favorably than were the other two groups, however, they were perceiving two of the participants more favorably than were the others. An analysis of covariance between pre- and post-test scores of cognitive learning showed that subjects receiving the audio taped version had learned significantly less than those receiving the other treatments.
The Use of Quotation Marks and Italics to Introduce Unfamiliar Terms
Authors: Farkas David K.
Published: May 2005

Quotation marks and italics—two devices for giving special typographic treatment to words—are customarily used when a writer is introducing unfamiliar terms. The purpose of this as-yet-unexplained convention is to prevent the reader from experiencing a moment of apprehension in sentences in which an unfamiliar term appears several words or more before its explanation. The quotation marks or italics signal the reader that the writer knows the term is probably unfamiliar and that the term will therefore be explained. In those few instances in which unfamiliar terms are not explained, the reader infers that an explanation is not necessary for a productive reading of the text. This convention is less functional when the unfamiliar term is followed immediately by its explanation and is nonfunctional when the explanation precedes the term.
Interventions by Students in Friends' Alcohol, Tobacco, and Drug Use
Authors: Smart Reginald G. , Stoduto Gina
Published: May 2005

This article investigates self-reported interventions by students in the alcohol, tobacco, illicit drug use, and drinking-driving of their friends. The data came from a study of 1184 students in Ontario schools in grades 7, 9, 11, and 13. We found that about a third of students intervened in friends' illegal drug use and drinking-driving but about half intervened about smoking. Students who intervened were more likely to be older and spend fewer nights at home. They were less likely to use cannabis, but had more friends using cannabis and illegal drugs. Also, they had more exposure to drug education and were more disapproving of drug use. Drug education may give students the knowledge and confidence to intervene in friends' drug use.
Social Science and Health Policy in Preindustrial Society
Authors: Leeson Joyce
Published: May 2005

In spite of unfortunate legacies from colonial days, social scientists in the health field in the Third World could make an important contribution by examining why “rational solutions” are not applied to the multitude of problems that exist. This would require an historical analysis of the status and roles of health personnel, and a recognition of the contradictions between the interests of the metropolitan countries and the urban elites of the Third World, on the one hand, and the rural masses on the other. The principles guiding the health services of the People's Republic of China have led to very different and apparently more appropriate services, but it seems unlikely that these will be applied elsewhere under present circumstances.
Chronic Factitious Illness: A Behavioral Approach
Authors: Klonoff Elizabeth A. , Youngner Stuart J. , Moore Douglas J. , Hershey Linda A.
Published: May 2005

This paper describes a unique treatment for chronic factitious illness. While primarily behavioral in orientation, the treatment was designed to account for underlying dynamics of patients with this disorder. The advantage of combining behavioral methods with dynamic conceptualizations are underscored. The limitations of this treatment with factitious illness patients are discussed.
Profits in Medicine: A Context and an Accounting
Authors: Stevenson Gelvin
Published: May 2005

The U.S. health care industry is composed of a dynamic mixture of profit and non-profit entities. These sectors sometimes compete in the same activities and may have virtual monopolies over other activities. Estimates of the relative and absolute sizes and growth trends of the profit and non-profit sectors are developed in this article. These estimates show that approximately 39 percent of total health care expenditures in the U.S. in 1975 went to for-profit institutions, generating $3.3 billion in profit. This represented 7 percent of for-profit and 2.8 percent of total expenditures.

Some for-profit subsectors grew more rapidly and others less rapidly than total health care expenditures. As a whole, the for-profit sector grew faster than the non-profit sector before and after Medicare and Medicaid were introduced as well as during the period when price controls were in effect. The relative growth of the for-profit sector was greatest right after the introduction of Medicare and Medicaid.

The true significance of profit lies not in numbers, but in the effects that the drive for profit have on the nature and quality of health and health care. This is discussed in the final section.
Is Alexithymia a Disconnection Syndrome? A Neuropsychological Perspective
Authors: Miller Laurence
Published: May 2005

Efforts to relate the syndrome of alexithymia to cerebral dysfunction have generally taken the form of comparing the literal, concretistic, nonimaginative and affect-impoverished cognitive and communicative style of alexithymic patients to similar types of behavior seen in individuals with right-hemisphere damage or commissural disconnection. It is argued that the formulation of a neuropsychological typology of psychiatric syndromes like alexithymia has much heuristic merit as long as appropriate theoretical and methodological caution is exercised in drawing inferences about patterns of cerebral organization in nonneurological populations.
A Portrait of Michael Balint: The Development of His Ideas on the Use of the Drug “Doctor”
Authors: Balint Enid
Published: May 2005

A portrait of Michael Balint-the man and the scientist-is presented. The development of some of his ideas is traced-including the “dosage” in which a physician should prescribe himself to a patient, and the concepts of the overall diagnosis, the “basic fault,” and the “flash” technique in interviewing.
Drawing on Technical Writing Scholarship for the Teaching of Writing to Advanced Esl Students—A Writing Tutorial
Authors: Zielinska Dorota
Published: May 2005

The article outlines the technical writing tutorial (TWT) that preceded an advanced ESL writing course for students of English Philology at the Jagiellonian University. Having assessed the English skills of those students at the end of the semester, we found a statistically significant increase in the performance of the students who had taken the TWT in comparison to the control group who spent the time of TWT doing more traditional exercises. This result indicates that technical writing books and journals should be considered as an important source of information for teachers of writing to ESL students.
Nicaragua: A Health System Developing under Conditions of War
Authors: Braveman Paula , Siegel David
Published: May 2005

Since its inception in 1979, the Nicaraguan National Health System has dramatically improved health care in Nicaragua through the provision of universal coverage, emphasis on preventive community-based primary care, and community participation in health activities. Of major importance in the development of the health system has been the decentralization of the administration, planning, and implementation of health programs. The war in Nicaragua has had a major impact on the development of the health system. Nicaraguan health personnel and facilities have been the objects of attack by the contras and scarce resources have been diverted from the development of social programs to military activities. A large refugee population has been created which further strains existing resources. Community-based preventive health programs have been adversely affected, particularly in rural areas where military activity is the most intense. Because of the war, efforts to optimize regionalization of the health system have been retarded. Economic pressures both within Nicaragua resulting from the war and within the entire Latin American area have further hampered efforts for development. Continued major improvements in health care in Nicaragua will depend on a settlement of the present military conflict which is draining resources in all sectors of development, including health.
Shades of Difference: Theoretical Underpinnings of the Medical Controversy on Black/White Differences in the United States, 1830–1870
Authors: Krieger Nancy
Published: May 2005

The resonance between scientific theory and ideology is starkly revealed by the medical debate on slavery, alleged black inferiority, and racial differences in disease: opposing doctors invoked the same science, but relied on contrary assumptions, to reach antagonistic conclusions. Reductionist, biological determinist, and ahistorical premises underlay the dominant belief that innate racial differences led to black bondage and racial disparities in health; an anti-reductionist and historical approach supported the minority view that social factors rooted in the planters' need for cheap labor explained both. From 1830 to 1850, doctors debated the accuracy, validity, and interpretation of their findings. In the 1850s, “apolitical” doctors sought to purge medicine of politics to regain scientific objectivity, yet the first generation of black physicians argued that politics inevitably affected medical inquiry. The Civil War and Emancipation spurred studies relating the health of blacks and poor whites to social conditions, while the destruction of Reconstruction led to the resurgence of racist medicine. Comprehending how politics set the terms and tempo of this polemic can provide insight into current controversies on racial differences in disease.
Documentation for a Physical World
Authors: Krull Robert
Published: May 2005

Documentation can be designed specifically to help people perform physical tasks. Research in computing, motor learning and in music and sports instruction suggests that documentation is more effective when it takes into account how people think about physical tasks.
Salience of Compositional Cues and the Order of Presentation in the Picture Reversal Effect
Authors: McLaughlin John P. , Kermisch Julie
Published: May 2005

Paintings containing cues suggesting left-to-right (LTR) motion are preferred by dextrals over their mirror-reversed versions (RTL) in forced-choices between the simultaneously-presented alternatives. To eliminate a simultaneous-contrast interpretation of the effect and to determine whether motion cues influence choice when paintings are seen alone, a successive-presentation procedure was used. When an LTR version preceded the RTL version, the LTR version was preferred within the pair by dextrals and also was preferred more frequently than RTL versions shown first Thus, these compositional features of single versions were noticed and affected judgment. An order-of-presentation effect was also found, in that the first member of a pair was preferred. Possible explanations for this are considered.
Computerized Career Information Systems Improve the Quality of Counseling
Authors: Gerardi Robert J. , Benedict Gary , Burke Michael
Published: May 2005

The school counselor must provide educational information on opportunities and requirements, occupational information on the world of work, and personal-social information on relationships, personal habits, etc This information can be more effectively produced by a computer-based system. This article reviews the three types of computer-based systems, lists the advantages for students and counselors, and notes the disadvantages.
Why is Our Population of Uninsured and Underinsured Persons Growing? The Consequences of the “Deindustrialization” of the United States
Authors: Renner Craig , Navarro Vicente
Published: May 2005

In this article the authors discuss the consequences of the “deindustrialization” of America for the health benefits coverage of the U.S. population, the majority of which receive their health benefits through their workplace. The shift of employment from industry to services, from union to nonunion, from full-time to part-time employment, and from high-paying to low-paying jobs is having a most profound impact on the health benefits coverage of the U.S. population.
Improvements in Poverty and Income in 1995 Tempered by Troubling Long-Term Trends
Authors: Porter Kathryn
Published: May 2005

Census data on poverty and income show short-term improvements in 1995, but the trends were not as positive over the longer term. Poverty rates remained higher than they were at comparable points in previous economic cycles. The incomes of lower- and middle-income households grew in 1995, but only the wealthiest fifth of the population completely recovered from the recession of the early 1990s. Although poverty rates fell and incomes rose for most groups in 1995, Hispanic households did not share in the overall economic gains. In addition, economic improvements were not shared by all geographic areas—the reduction in poverty was concentrated in suburban areas. The current poverty measure does not show the full impact of government benefit programs on poverty, as it does not take into account the effect of non-cash benefits or taxes. An alternative poverty measure gives a much better picture of the effectiveness of government benefit programs in reducing poverty.
Woodland Social Change in the Central Midwest: A Review and Evaluation of Interpretive Trends
Authors: Tainter Joseph A.
Published: May 2005

The analysis of Middle Woodland to Late Woodland social change in west-central Illinois has produced contrasting interpretations of decreasing and increasing complexity. This paper evaluates both views, showing that available evidence is most consistent with the interpretation of social collapse at the Middle to Late Woodland transition.
From Prose Paladin to Peer Editor: Teaching Engineers (and Others) to Write and Communicate
Authors: Scheiber H. J.
Published: May 2005

Many engineers and other technical/managerial professionals continually generate writer-centered memos, letters, and brief reports. Because such documents often contain needless repetition, excessive detail, and chronology-based information, an approach for encouraging writers to produce clear, well organized, rhetorically sound prose was developed. Technical writing teachers and communication trainers must 1) make these prose “paladins” aware of the essential ingredients for generating reader-centered prose, 2) familiarize these writers with the major steps involved in the writing process, and 3) operationalize the process through face-to-face writer-editor collaboration — involving peer editorial review. Only through frequent drafting and rewriting and the regular sharing of peer editorial response (oral and written) will clear, rhetorically effective prose accrue value. And only then will technical/managerial writers routinely generate reader-centered documents that communicate.
Enhancing Academic and Social Learning Skills
Authors: Callanan Charles , Eller B. F. , Woods Bettie
Published: May 2005

The purpose of this pilot project was to assess the impact of reinforcing activities designed to enhance the social and academic behaviors of emotionally disturbed students. Students were given the opportunity to earn late time television or computer software privileges in return for following social and academic rules. Results indicate promising alternatives for classroom teachers to employ television and computers in combination with feedback to facilitate classroom management and learning. Findings indicated that both male and female students respond to TV and computer access time as a reinforcing activity.
The Effect of Locus of Control and Sequence Control on Computerized Information Retrieval and Retention
Authors: Gray Susan H.
Published: May 2005

This study contributes to the debate over how much control over instruction should be given to different types of learners and how much control should be left to the computer program in computer-based instruction. The effect of locus of control and student control over branching on ability to locate the answers contained in computer screens to a paper-and-pencil list of questions and the ability to retain learned information is explored. Student control conditions were branching for review only and total branching control to any topic in the sequence. Results using two-way analyses of variance indicated that students with high internality scores and computer sequence control over only review retrieved the most correct information. Students with control over only review retained the most correct information, regardless of locus of control scores. Students with higher internality scores also scored better on one of the software's two internal performance scores. Grade-point average was also positively correlated with accuracy of retrieval and retention.
Social Science and Medical Education in Britain: A Sociologic Analysis of Their Relationship
Authors: Jefferys Margot
Published: May 2005

The introduction of social science teaching into the medical school curriculum in Great Britain has been slow despite the strong recommendation of the Royal Commission on Medical Education in 1968. Factors which are responsible for the sluggishness reflect the influence of the practitioners in the health care system, the power structure in the medical schools, the medical student body, and the social scientists. Ambivalence among all these factions toward social science teaching has inhibited innovatory programs. The analysis suggests that the social sciences will not make an effective contribution to medical education while all these actors remain ambivalent. Moreover, the ambivalence reflects the lack of a clear picture of the future role of the physician. The issue is whether he is to be a super technologist or an applied behavioral scientist. Although the analysis of past trends and future prospects is based on British data, it is regarded as holding true for other highly industrialized societies.
Physician Interpretation of Illness Behavior
Authors: Jones L. Ralph , Mabe P. Alex , Riley William T.
Published: May 2005

Determining factors in physician recognition of emotional factors in the illness presentation of their patients was examined by stepwise multiple regression analysis, utilizing 18 predictor variables, in a sample of 101 randomly selected internal medicine inpatients. Self-report measures of patients' psychological symptoms failed to explain a significant percentage of the variance in physician assessment of emotional factors in illness. Physician assessment of severity of medical illness, patient satisfaction with present medical care, and age predicted 58 percent of the variance in physician ratings of emotional factors in illness. Physicians attributed greater emotional morbidity to patients judged to have less severe medical illness and to be less satisfied with their care. Using only patient variables as independent predictors, number/frequency of symptoms and race accounted for 16 percent of the variance in physicians' ratings. These results suggest that physician expectations about normative illness behavior, more than mental status characteristics documented by patient self-report measures, determine the recognition of significant emotional factors in illness presentation.