bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025 huggingface dataset:
Nonpegylated Liposomal Doxorubicin (TLC-D99), Paclitaxel, and Trastuzumab in HER-2-Overexpressing Breast Cancer: A Multicenter Phase I/II Study
Authors: Cortes Javier , Di Cosimo Serena , Climent Miguel A. , Cortés-Funes Hernán , Lluch Ana , Gascón Pere , Mayordomo José I. , Gil Miguel , Benavides Manuel , Cirera Lluís , Ojeda Belén , Rodríguez César A. , Trigo José M. , Vazquez Josep , Regueiro Pilar , Dorado Juan F. , Baselga José ,   on behalf of the Spanish Breast Cancer Cooperative Group SOLTI
Published: December 2008

Purpose: To determine the recommended dose, cardiac safety, and antitumor activity of nonpegylated liposomal doxorubicin (TLC-D99), paclitaxel, and the anti-HER-2 monoclonal antibody trastuzumab in patients with HER-2-overexpressing locally advanced nonoperable breast cancer (LABC) and metastatic breast cancer (MBC).

Experimental Design: Women with measurable, previously untreated, HER-2-overexpressing LABC and MBC with a baseline left ventricular ejection fraction (LVEF) >50% received weekly trastuzumab in combination with escalating doses of weekly paclitaxel and TLC-D99 every 3 weeks for 6 cycles. LVEF monitoring was done every 3 weeks for the first 18 weeks and every 8 weeks thereafter.

Results: Sixty-nine patients participated, 15 in the dose escalating part and 54 at the recommended phase II dose (28 patients with LABC and 26 patients with MBC). The recommended doses of TLC-D99 and paclitaxel were 50 mg/m2 every 3 weeks and 80 mg/m2/wk, respectively. Twelve (17%) patients developed asymptomatic declines in LVEF. In 8 of these patients, LVEF recovered to ≥50% after a median time of 9 weeks (range, 3-38 weeks). In the rest of patients, LVEF ranged from 44% to 49%. No patients developed symptomatic cardiac heart failure. The overall response rate was 98.1% (95% confidence interval, 90.1-99.9) with a median time to progression not reached in LABC and of 22.1 months (95% confidence interval, 16.4-46.3) in MBC patients.

Conclusions: Nonpegylated doxorubicin, paclitaxel, and trastuzumab combination is safe, does not result in clinically manifest cardiac toxicity, and has a high rate of durable responses in HER-2-overexpressing breast cancer patients. Further exploration of this combination is warranted.
Niche-Dependent Tumorigenic Capacity of Malignant Ovarian Ascites-Derived Cancer Cell Subpopulations
Authors: Katz Ehood , Skorecki Karl , Tzukerman Maty
Published: December 2008

Purpose: In previous studies, we have used human embryonic stem cells (hESC) to generate a tissue microenvironment in immunocompromised mice as an experimental approach for studying human tumorigenesis. We now examine the attributes of such a cellular microenvironment in supporting the growth of human cancer cells freshly harvested from malignant ovarian ascites and to determine whether there are differences among subsets of ascites-derived cancer cells in terms of tumorigenic capacity in the conventional murine xenograft model and in the hESC-derived microenvironment.

Experimental Design: Freshly harvested malignant ovarian ascites-derived cancer cells and six derivative ovarian cancer cell subpopulations (CCSP) were characterized for ovarian cancer–associated biomarker expression both in vitro and in vivo and for their capacity to generate tumors in the two models.

Results: Ovarian cancer–associated biomarkers were detected in the ascites-derived cancer cells and in the six newly established CCSPs. Nevertheless, certain CCSPs that did not develop into tumors in a conventional murine xenograft model did generate tumors in the hESC-derived cellular microenvironment, indicating variable niche dependency for the tumorigenic capacity of the different CCSPs. The hESC-derived microenvironment provided an improved niche for supporting growth of certain tumor cell subpopulations.

Conclusions: The results highlight the experimental utility of the hESC-derived cellular microenvironment to enable functional distinction of CCSPs, including the identification of cells that do not grow into a tumor in the conventional direct tumor xenograft platform, thereby rendering such cells accessible to characterization and testing of anticancer therapies.
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6-Methylguanine DNA Methyltransferase Deficiency and Response to Temozolomide-Based Therapy in Patients with Neuroendocrine Tumors
Authors: Kulke Matthew H. , Hornick Jason L. , Frauenhoffer Christine , Hooshmand Susanne , Ryan David P. , Enzinger Peter C. , Meyerhardt Jeffrey A. , Clark Jeffrey W. , Stuart Keith , Fuchs Charles S. , Redston Mark S.
Published: December 2008

Purpose: Recent studies suggest that temozolomide has activity in neuroendocrine tumors. Low levels of the DNA repair enzyme, O6-methylguanine DNA methyltransferase (MGMT), are associated with sensitivity to temozolomide in other tumor types. We evaluated the prevalence of MGMT deficiency in neuroendocrine tumors and correlated MGMT deficiency with treatment response to temozolomide-based regimens.

Experimental Design: The prevalence of MGMT deficiency, measured by immunohistochemistry, was assessed in 97 archival neuroendocrine tumor specimens. Rates of treatment response and survival were next evaluated in a cohort of 101 consecutive neuroendocrine tumor patients who had received treatment with a temozolomide-based regimen at one of three institutions. MGMT expression was directly correlated with treatment response in 21 patients who had available tumor tissue and response data.

Results: In archival specimens, MGMT deficiency was observed in 19 of 37 (51%) pancreatic neuroendocrine tumors and 0 of 60 (0%) carcinoid tumors (P < 0.0001). In the clinical cohort, 18 of 53 (34%) patients with pancreatic neuroendocrine tumors but only 1 of 44 (2%) patients with carcinoid tumors (P < 0.001) experienced a partial or complete response to temozolomide-based therapy. Among 21 patients with evaluable tumor tissue who had also received treatment with temozolomide, 4 of 5 patients with MGMT-deficient tumors (all pancreatic neuroendocrine tumors) and 0 of 16 patients with tumors showing intact MGMT expression responded to treatment (P = 0.001).

Conclusions: MGMT deficiency, measured by immunohistochemistry, is more common in pancreatic neuroendocrine tumors than in carcinoid tumors as is treatment response to temozolomide-based therapy. Absence of MGMT may explain the sensitivity of some pancreatic neuroendocrine tumors to treatment.
HLA Class I–Associated Immunodominance Affects CTL Responsiveness to an ESO Recombinant Protein Tumor Antigen Vaccine
Authors: Bioley Gilles , Guillaume Philippe , Luescher Immanuel , Yeh Alice , Dupont Bo , Bhardwaj Nina , Mears Gregory , Old Lloyd J. , Valmori Danila , Ayyoub Maha
Published: December 2008

Purpose: Vaccination with full-length human tumor antigens aims at inducing or increasing antitumor immune responses, including CD8 CTL in cancer patients across the HLA barrier. We have recently reported that vaccination with a recombinant tumor-specific NY-ESO-1 (ESO) protein, administered with Montanide and CpG resulted in the induction of specific integrated antibody and CD4 T cell responses in all vaccinated patients examined, and significant CTL responses in half of them. Vaccine-induced CTL mostly recognized a single immunodominant region (ESO 81-110). The purpose of the present study was to identify genetic factor(s) distinguishing CTL responders from nonresponders.

Experimental Design: We determined the HLA class I alleles expressed by CTL responders and nonresponders using high-resolution molecular typing. Using short overlapping peptides spanning the ESO immunodominant CTL region and HLA class I/ESO peptide tetramers, we determined the epitopes recognized by the majority of vaccine-induced CTL.

Results: CTL induced by vaccination with ESO protein mostly recognized distinct but closely overlapping epitopes restricted by a few frequently expressed HLA-B35 and HLA-Cw3 alleles. All CTL responders expressed at least one of the identified alleles, whereas none of the nonresponders expressed them.

Conclusions: Expression of HLA-B35 and HLA-Cw3 is associated with the induction of immunodominant CTL responses following vaccination with recombinant ESO protein. Because recombinant tumor-specific proteins are presently among the most promising candidate anticancer vaccines, our findings indicate that the monitoring of cancer vaccine trials should systematically include the assessment of HLA association with responsiveness.
Polymeric Tubulysin-Peptide Nanoparticles with Potent Antitumor Activity
Authors: Schluep Thomas , Gunawan Paula , Ma Ling , Jensen Gregory S. , Duringer Julienne , Hinton Steven , Richter Wolfgang , Hwang Jungyeong
Published: December 2008

Purpose: Tubulysins are naturally occurring tetrapeptides with potent antiproliferative activity against multiple cancer cell lines. However, they are also highly toxic in animal models. In order to improve the therapeutic index of this class of compounds, a nanoparticle prodrug of tubulysin A (TubA) was synthesized and evaluated in vitro and in vivo.

Experimental Design: A thiol derivative of TubA was covalently attached to a linear, β-cyclodextrin based polymer through a disulfide linker (CDP-TubA). The polymer conjugate assembled into stable nanoparticles. Inhibition of tubulin polymerization and antiproliferative activity of the polymer conjugate were evaluated in vitro. The preclinical efficacy of CDP-TubA administered i.v. was evaluated in nude mice bearing s.c. implanted human HT29 colorectal and H460 non–small cell lung carcinoma tumors.

Results: The IC50 of CDP-TubA (in Tub A equivalents) was 24, 5, and 10 nmol/L versus 3, 1, and 2 nmol/L for Tub A in NCI-H1299 (lung), HT-29 (colon), and A2780 (ovarian) cell lines, respectively. Tub A and the active thiol derivative were potent inhibitors of tubulin polymerization, whereas CDP-TubA showed minimal inhibition, indicating that target inhibition requires release of the peptide drug from the nanoparticles. The maximum tolerated dose of CDP-TubA was 6 mg/kg (in TubA equivalents) versus 0.05 mg/kg for TubA in nude mice. In vivo, a single treatment cycle of three weekly doses of CDP-TubA showed a potent antitumor effect and significantly prolonged survival compared with TubA alone.

Conclusions: Cyclodextrin polymerized nanoparticles are an enabling technology for the safe and effective delivery of tubulysins for the treatment of cancer.
Clinical Implications of CYP2D6 Genotyping in Tamoxifen Treatment for Breast Cancer
Authors: Dezentjé Vincent O. , Guchelaar Henk-Jan , Nortier Johan W.R. , van de Velde Cornelis J.H. , Gelderblom Hans
Published: December 2008

In October 2006 the Food and Drug Administration recommended an update in the tamoxifen label to reflect the increased risk of recurrence in breast cancer patients who are cytochrome P450 2D6 (CYP2D6) poor metabolizers. This recommendation was based on only a few studies at that time. More clinical studies addressing the relation between the CYP2D6 genotype and tamoxifen efficacy have been published since, mostly describing Caucasian populations in the adjuvant treatment setting. An updated analysis of the literature is presented. Furthermore, the possibility to implement CYP2D6 genotyping in clinical practice is evaluated by analyzing the results of six studies on mainly Caucasian patients using adjuvant tamoxifen. Three studies were consistent with the FDA advice, but the three other studies showed contradictory results. Although some of the published criticism on the negative studies is justified, this does not imply that these results should be discarded. The reviewed literature is put in perspective acknowledging the limiting effect of Mendelian randomization on confounding and the limitations of the various study designs. The current accumulation of data showing worse clinical outcome in patients with decreased CYP2D6 metabolism in other types of populations still indicates that the CYP2D6 genotype may well become a clinically relevant predictive marker. The CYP2D6 genotype might be one of the first predictors of therapeutic response in cancer care based on germline DNA creating the possibility to analyze blood instead of tumor.
Overexpression of the KIT/SCF in Uveal Melanoma Does Not Translate into Clinical Efficacy of Imatinib Mesylate
Authors: Hofmann Uta B. , Kauczok-Vetter Claudia S. , Houben Roland , Becker Jürgen C.
Published: December 2008

Purpose: Recently, gene amplification and overexpression of KIT as well as activating mutations in the KIT gene have been described to occur in certain subsets of melanoma. These findings suggest KIT as a potential target for therapy with imatinib mesylate in these melanomas. To date, data on the KIT status in uveal melanoma (UM) is limited.

Experimental Design: We analyzed the expression of the KIT protein (CD117, c-kit) and its ligand, stem cell factor (SCF), in primary and metastatic UM.

Results: By immunohistochemistry, SCF-positive tumor cells (>90%) were detectable in 43% of primary UM and in 58% of UM metastases. Strong expression of KIT (>90%) in tumor cells was present in 55% of primary UM and in 76% of UM metastases. This overexpression of both KIT and SCF suggests the clinical application of imatinib mesylate in metastatic UM. This notion was tested in a clinical study using Simon's two-stage design. Patients received imatinib (600 mg p.o. daily) until progress or unacceptable toxicities. The trial did not enter stage II as no objective response was observed in the first group. This observation prompted further molecular analysis, which revealed no mutations in the genomic sequence of KIT in exons 11, 13, 17, and 18. Moreover, the mitogen-activated protein kinase pathway was not activated in any of the tumors as measured by ERK phosphorylation.

Conclusions: These results show the lack of clinical effectiveness of imatinib in UM, which was originally anticipated based on the high levels of KIT and SCF expression.
Persistent Neural States: Stationary Localized Activity Patterns in Nonlinear Continuous n-Population, q-Dimensional Neural Networks
Authors: Faugeras Olivier , Veltz Romain , Grimbert François
Published: December 2008

Neural continuum networks are an important aspect of the modeling of macroscopic parts of the cortex. Two classes of such networks are considered: voltage and activity based. In both cases, our networks contain an arbitrary number, n, of interacting neuron populations. Spatial nonsymmetric connectivity functions represent cortico-cortical, local connections, and external inputs represent nonlocal connections. Sigmoidal nonlinearities model the relationship between (average) membrane potential and activity. Departing from most of the previous work in this area, we do not assume the nonlinearity to be singular, that is, represented by the discontinuous Heaviside function. Another important difference from previous work is that we relax the assumption that the domain of definition where we study these networks is infinite, that is, equal to [Formula: see text] or [Formula: see text]. We explicitly consider the biologically more relevant case of a bounded subset Ω of [Formula: see text], a better model of a piece of cortex. The time behavior of these networks is described by systems of integro-differential equations. Using methods of functional analysis, we study the existence and uniqueness of a stationary (i.e., time-independent) solution of these equations in the case of a stationary input. These solutions can be seen as ‘persistent’; they are also sometimes called bumps. We show that under very mild assumptions on the connectivity functions and because we do not use the Heaviside function for the nonlinearities, such solutions always exist. We also give sufficient conditions on the connectivity functions for the solution to be absolutely stable, that is, independent of the initial state of the network. We then study the sensitivity of the solutions to variations of such parameters as the connectivity functions, the sigmoids, the external inputs, and, last but not least, the shape of the domain of existence Ω of the neural continuum networks. These theoretical results are illustrated and corroborated by a large number of numerical experiments in most of the cases 2 ⩽ n ⩽ 3, 2 ⩽ q ⩽ 3.
Numerical Simulations of Wind Wave Growth under a Coastal Wind Jet through the Kanmon Strait
Authors: Shimada Teruhisa , Isoguchi Osamu , Kawamura Hiroshi
Published: December 2008

The development of a coastal wind jet flowing through the Kanmon Strait and the associated wind wave growth are investigated from a case study on 24–26 July 1999. This study presents a realistic example of fetch-limited wave growth under a developing wind jet outflowing from a terrestrial gap of a coast. A series of numerical simulations are used by one-way coupling between a mesoscale meteorological model and a shallow-water wave model with high spatiotemporal resolutions of 2 km and 1 h. The simulated fields of wind and wave are compared with satellite and in situ observations and it is confirmed that they coincide with observations. A complete picture of the wind jet is obtained from the wind simulations, and wave simulations demonstrate the areal extent of higher waves growing with the development of the wind jet. The wind maximum region is localized and extends downwind. The maximum wave height region is highly localized but located more downwind of the wind speed maximum. The high wave region completely reaches the southern coast of the Korean Peninsula before the strong wind. In the lee of the islands, waves are blocked. The conventional fetch growth of waves holds in waves at the more upwind locations than the highest wave region. The forecasting of localized waves under a coastal wind jet is a case in which adequately high spatiotemporal resolution is required for both the wave simulation and wind input.
Measuring and monitoring outputs in social care: the problem of measuring quality
Authors: Malley Juliette , Netten Ann
Published: December 2008

The focus of this article is the measurement of quality within the context of a new approach to measuring government-funded social care services. The approach builds on principles set out in a UK review led by Professor Sir Tony Atkinson. At its heart are the concepts of capacity for benefit, describing the potential benefit to users from services, and quality, reflecting the extent to which the benefit is realized. We report on a study designed to explore the suitability of a weighted user satisfaction measure to measure quality, examining in particular its sensitivity to changes in the quality of social care over time. The study finds some problems with using weighted user satisfaction. We discuss potential reasons for these problems, including the possibility of gaming and the specification of the measure, and discuss a way forward in the context of the requirement to draw upon routine sources of data.

Points for practitioners The article describes a practical approach to measuring and monitoring outcomes and productivity in social care. Routine measures are used as far as possible, weighted to reflect outcomes for services users. The concepts of Capacity for Benefit and quality in this context potentially allow commissioners and managers to distinguish the impact on productivity of: the potential of services as they are currently configured, the dependency of service users, and the quality of delivery. The article identifies key issues and problems in using measures of satisfaction both as performance indicators and monitoring quality of services in the proposed approach.
Convergence without diffusion? A comparative analysis of the choice of performance indicators in tax administration and social security
Authors: van Stolk Christian , Wegrich Kai
Published: December 2008

This article cross-nationally compares the choice of performance indicators in two core fields of state activity, tax administration and social security. Exploring the selection of performance indicators in six countries (Australia, Canada, Netherlands, Sweden, the UK and the US), the article analyses the driving forces for the choice of particular indicators in the context of national administrative traditions and more recent reform agendas on the one hand and the trend towards international exchange and `benchmarking' on the other hand. The article explores the relative significance and interaction of different driving forces of choice and how this shapes the development and application of performance indicators. To that end, it combines instutionalist approaches with the literature on the mechanisms and effects of international exchange and policy diffusion. Our analysis suggests that existing broad similarities are linked to similarities in core activities and values underlying contemporary public service reforms. Variation in the choice of performance indicators (PIs) reflects domestic factors such as governance arrangements through which broad reform trends are filtered. These arrangements also mediate any direct international learning.

Points for practitioners This article aims to contribute to the debate around how organizations could learn from the experience of others in designing performance indicators and management systems. Potential for cross-national and cross-sectional learning is particularly high in categories where a particular organization has not yet developed performance indicators but others have done so already. But any cross-reading from other countries' choices should take into account that the definition and use of performance indicators is to a substantial extent driven by domestic institutional traditions, governance arrangements and wider national approaches to performance management. The design of performance indicators should in particular take into account the accountability relations in which agencies are embedded.
The intricate implementation of performance measurement systems: exploring developments in professional-service organizations in the Dutch non-profit sector
Authors: Teelken Christine
Published: December 2008

Institutional and organizational theory supports the argument that current features of performance measurement systems (PMS) in public organizations are generally unsuitable for the actual nature of these professional organizations. Longitudinal and cross-sectional studies in the health care and higher education sectors in the Netherlands have shown that, despite external pressures, the implementation of such systems is slower than intended and seems to occur outside the primary process of the organization. Two rounds of interviews with quality coordinators in 2003 and 2006 showed that the gap between performance measurement systems and the operational process continued to exist, although its nature had changed. In general, quality coordinators responded pragmatically to the changes imposed upon them, as peer review and collegial trust played a vital part. The empirical findings illustrate that institutional and professional theories supplement each other in a fruitful way.

Points for practitioners Policy-makers in the public sector involved with quality care and assurance should be aware that a well-structured performance measurement system (PMS) is no guarantee of smooth implementation. On the contrary, the implementation deserves attention in its own right. The more sophisticated and demanding the design of PMS, the more likely it is that employees find ways to work round such a system and only use it in a superficial or compliant manner. If implementation is not taken seriously into account, this will only lead to a greater gap between reality and rhetoric.
Elaboration of the Hostile Media Phenomenon
Authors: Choi Jounghwa , Yang Myengja , Chang Jeongheon JC
Published: December 2008

Hostile media perception (HMP) is a phenomenon showing the significance of individual factors in evaluation of media content. Extending theoretical understanding of HMP, this study has two purposes: (a) to examine the roles of different types of involvement in hostile media effect (HME), that is, value-relevant and outcome-relevant involvement, and (b) to explore relationships between HMP and other media-related perceptions, such as congruency of perceived media influence, media skepticism, and perceived opinion climate. Data were collected from college students in South Korea. Results suggest that value-relevant involvement, rather than outcome-relevant involvement, is a critical predictor of HMP in the context of news coverage of the National Security Law in Korea. HMP also was a significant predictor of congruency of presumed media influence, which in turn predicted perceived opinion climate.
Early Interventionists' Reports of Authentic Assessment Methods Through Focus Group Research
Authors: Keilty Bonnie , LaRocco Diana J. , Casell Faye Bankler
Published: December 2008

Authentic assessments are naturalistic methods to obtain functional, contextual information relevant to learning in routine activities. Seven focus groups were conducted with 73 practicing Part C early interventionists to gather their reports on authentic assessments. Participants reported various ways of applying authentic assessment methods, with eligibility determination identified as the most difficult assessment decision point and progress monitoring as the easiest assessment decision point to use such strategies. Barriers and facilitators to using authentic assessments were described in the themes of administrative requirements, knowledge and experience, and family-professional partnerships. Implications for professional development systems and early intervention leadership are discussed.
Reaching Consensus on a Definition of Professional Development for the Early Childhood Field
Authors: Buysse Virginia , Winton Pamela J. , Rous Beth
Published: December 2008

Reaching consensus on the meaning of professional development is needed to integrate professional development across various sectors of the early childhood field, distinguish various professional development approaches, match learning opportunities to learner characteristics, and evaluate its effects on professional practices and child and family outcomes. This article proposes a definition and conceptual framework for professional development across all sectors of early childhood and describes methods used to validate them. A case example illustrates how the definition and framework can be used to organize and plan professional development. Future directions for how a shared definition could move the field closer to a shared vision for planning, implementing, and evaluating professional development are discussed.
Changing Early Intervention Providers' Home Visiting Skills Through Participation in Professional Development
Authors: Campbell Philippa H. , Sawyer L. Brook
Published: December 2008

A professional development activity combining group sessions with self-study assignments was used to facilitate early intervention providers' use of participation-based practices. The activity was submitted by 96 providers who completed two videotapes of sessions with families and children. Tapes were coded to identify the type of service provided. Almost 60% of the providers demonstrated participation-based practice at the completion of the training, but 40% continued to provide services in the traditional way. Participation-based providers' beliefs were more closely related to recommended practices than beliefs of the traditional providers. Provider beliefs and perceptions aligned with their use of either participation-based or traditional practices suggesting that professional development designed to promote practice adoption should clearly articulate the beliefs underlying the practice and address participants' current beliefs and perceptions by providing opportunities for reflection and the alignment of personal beliefs and perceptions with those underlying the practice.
Exploring the Gender Differences in Protective Factors
Authors: Hartman Jennifer L. , Turner Michael G. , Daigle Leah E. , Exum M. Lyn , Cullen Francis T.
Published: December 2008

Understanding the causes of why individuals desist from or are resilient to delinquency and drug use has become a salient social concern. Much research has centered on the effects that protective factors possess in fostering resiliency but that research has not fully explored how the effects of protective factors might vary across gender. Using a sample of 711 individuals from the National Longitudinal Survey of Youth, Child—Mother data set, the authors investigate how individual protective factors vary across gender on two measures of resiliency that document the lack of involvement in serious delinquency and drug use. They also examine whether the accumulation of protective factors varies across gender in fostering resiliency. The findings suggest that although males and females rely on different individual protective factors to foster resiliency, the accumulation of protective factors appears to be equally important for males and females in promoting resiliency. The authors discuss theoretical and policy implications.
Participatory Action Research With Colombian Immigrants
Authors: Balcazar Fabricio E. , Garcia-Iriarte Edurne , Suarez-Balcazar Yolanda
Published: December 2008

This article describes a participatory needs assessment process in which Colombian immigrants in Chicago collaborated with university researchers to identify their common concerns and implement self-help efforts to address some of their most pressing needs. A total of 261 Colombians completed a needs assessment survey, and 46 attended a public forum in which the issues were discussed and groups of volunteers were organized to coordinate and plan actions to address identified needs. Groups of volunteers conducted the research and developed a guide to health care and a guide to social services in the state of Illinois, which were widely distributed in the community. The participatory methodology appears to have effectively mobilized individuals who volunteered their time to help others—particularly newcomers who often find themselves at a loss to maneuver and understand a complex array of systems and services that are completely unfamiliar. Implications for future research are discussed.
Cost of Being a Mexican Immigrant and Being a Mexican Non-Citizen in California and Texas
Authors: Takei Isao , Saenz Rogelio , Jing Li
Published: December 2008

This study examines the labor market costs associated with being foreign-born and not having U.S. citizenship among Mexicans in California and Texas, the two largest states. Data from the 2000 5% Public Use Microdata Sample are used to conduct the multivariate regression analysis. The results show that being an immigrant, particularly a non-citizen immigrant, is associated with lower hourly wages in California as compared with Texas. The results also indicate that these costs are greater for those who arrived after 1990, especially in California. Findings suggest that Mexican immigrants faced harsher social context in California in the post-IRCA (Immigration Reform and Control Act) period, as represented in anti-immigrant policies and sentiments. Partly, larger population concentration of immigrants, especially non-citizens, could be a source of intensive within-group labor market competition among the foreign-born workers.
Assessing Caregivers for Team Interventions (ACT): A New Paradigm for Comprehensive Hospice Quality Care
Authors: Demiris George , Oliver Debra Parker , Wittenberg-Lyles Elaine
Published: December 2008

This article provides a framework labeled ACT that aims to successfully integrate family caregivers and patients into one unit of care, as dictated by the hospice philosophy. ACT (assessing caregivers for team interventions) is based on the ongoing assessment of the caregiver background context, primary, secondary, and intrapsychic stressors as well as outcomes of the caregiving experience and subsequently, the design and delivery of appropriate interventions to be delivered by the hospice interdisciplinary team. Interventions have to be tailored to a caregiver's individual needs; such a comprehensive needs assessment allows teams to customize interventions recognizing that most needs and challenges cannot be met by only one health care professional or only one discipline. The proposed model ensures a holistic approach to address the multifaceted challenges of the caregiving experience.
The Happenstance Learning Theory
Authors: Krumboltz John D.
Published: December 2008

What-you-should-be-when-you-grow-up need not and should not be planned in advance. Instead career counselors should teach their clients the importance of engaging in a variety of interesting and beneficial activities, ascertaining their reactions, remaining alert to alternative opportunities, and learning skills for succeeding in each new activity. Four propositions: (1) The goal of career counseling is to help clients learn to take actions to achieve more satisfying career and personal lives—not to make a single career decision. (2) Assessments are used to stimulate learning, not to match personal characteristics with occupational characteristics. (3) Clients learn to engage in exploratory actions as a way of generating beneficial unplanned events. (4) The success of counseling is assessed by what the client accomplishes in the real world outside the counseling session.
Relation of Neuroticism and Negative Career Thoughts and Feelings to Lack of Information
Authors: Kelly Kevin R. , Shin Yun-Jeong
Published: December 2008

The purpose of this study was to explore correlates of chronic career indecision with multivariate modeling. We examined the effects of neuroticism and negative career thoughts and feelings on lack of information, which is one of the core elements of chronic career indecision. The sample included 310 first-semester students who had entered university study without a declared academic major. The results yielded support for the hypothesized multivariate model. Negative career thoughts and feelings explained a large amount of the variance in lack of information. The influence of neuroticism on lack of information was indirect and fully mediated by negative career thoughts and feelings. These results have significant implications for counseling for chronic career indecision.
Where Have the Investigative Occupations Gone?
Authors: Amit Adi , Sagiv Lilach
Published: December 2008

How do people perceive occupations? Three empirical studies examined whether occupations are perceived in accordance with Holland's RIASEC model. The studies varied in measures (reported preferences, similarity judgments) and participants (university students, working adults, and university professors). Taken together, the findings indicate that perceptions of occupations partially comply with Holland's model: All four samples perceived the realistic, artistic, social, enterprising, and conventional as distinct environments (with the latter two intermixed). Moreover, the order of these environments is congruent with Holland's RIASEC order. The most notable deviation from the RIASEC model was the consistent misperception of the investigative work environment. Participants in all three studies overlooked the commonalities among investigative occupations, instead perceiving these occupations in terms of their content (as expressed by their second or third Holland letter code). Implications for vocational research, career counseling, and selection processes are discussed.
Psychometric Properties of Teacher SKAMP Ratings From a Community Sample
Authors: Murray Desiree W. , Bussing Regina , Fernandez Melanie , Wei Hou  , Garvan Cynthia Wilson , Swanson James M. , Eyberg Sheila M.
Published: December 2008

This study examines the basic psychometric properties of the Swanson, Kotkin, Agler, M-Flynn, and Pelham Scale (SKAMP), a measure intended to assess functional impairment related to attention deficit hyperactivity disorder, in a sample of 1,205 elementary students. Reliability, factor structure, and convergent, discriminant and predictive validity are evaluated. Results provide support for two separate but related subscales, Attention and Deportment, and provide evidence that the SKAMP predicts school functioning above and beyond symptoms alone. Boys, African American children, and children living in poverty are rated as having higher impairment scores than girls, Caucasian children, and more advantaged peers. Norm-referenced data are provided by gender, race, and parental concern level. This study supports the reliability and validity of the SKAMP in a large, diverse community sample and broadens its clinical utility.
Learning About Sensory Integration Dysfunction: Strategies to Meet Young Children's Sensory Needs at Home
Authors: Thompson Stacy D. , Rains Kari W.
Published: December 2008

Drew is a 2-and-a-half-year-old boy. He is the youngest of four children, yet according to his mother, he is big for his age. Drew loves to play outside with his siblings. He has exceptional motor skills and can run and jump with his older brother. Drew loves to throw and catch, and he can play football with his brother. Drew is very affectionate; he loves to give hugs to his mother and sisters. Drew is learning to use words to get his needs met, and he recently began to combine words. He is always eager to help with chores and meal preparation. Drew has amazing strength, as he is able to carry two gallons of milk at a time, one in each hand. Drew's mother, Pam, has a hard time managing his disruptive behaviors. Pam is distraught because Drew is “ruling the household.” He often throws fits when he cannot communicate his wants and needs. Drew can be a bully to his older siblings. He bites and hits his siblings, and they give in to Drew just to keep him from throwing a fit. Drew has a very hard time attending to any activity. He wanders the house at dinnertime; he wakes in the middle of the night and empties all of the toys out of his toy box or pulls things off tables and walls. His mother says that Drew feels no pain. He can run into the wall and not cry. He likes to run into furniture, wrestle with his older brother, and carry buckets of grain to feed the family's goats. Pam's concerns lead her to speak to her pediatrician, who referred her to an early intervention team for an evaluation. The assessment results showed evidence of a significant speech and language delay. The intervention team also expressed concern about Drew's interactions with his family. Pam was asked to complete the Sensory Profile (Dunn, 1997), a standardized instrument used to assess children who might have a sensory integration disorder. The questionnaire is completed by the caregiver and then scored by professionals, an early intervention team, in Drew's case. The results were shared with Pam and her developmental pediatrician. Drew was diagnosed with a sensory integration dysfunction (SID).
Gilding the Outcome by Tarnishing the Past
Authors: Taylor Paul J. , Russ-Eft Darlene F. , Taylor Hazel
Published: December 2008

We tested for inflationary bias introduced through retrospective pretests by analyzing traditional pretest, retrospective pretest, and posttest evaluation data collected on a first-line supervisory leadership training program, involving 196 supervisors and their subordinates, across 17 organizational settings. Retrospective pretest ratings by both trained (supervisors) and untrained (subordinates) respondents were significantly lower than traditional pretest ratings, resulting in substantially inflated training effect sizes when posttests were compared with retrospective pretests rather than with traditional pretests. Further analysis revealed evidence of both respondents' application of an implicit theory of change (i.e., assumption that posttraining scores should generally be higher than pretraining scores) and a tendency to rate their own improvement as greater than that of others. Implications for program evaluation are discussed.
Standing at Sinai With Autism
Authors: Hyman Mia
Published: December 2008

This article describes the journey that a family and community took to prepare Leon, a young man with autism, for his Bar Mitzvah. A positive behavior support (PBS) intervention was used to prepare Leon for this symbolic rite of passage into the Jewish culture. He had specific problem behaviors that needed to be addressed for him to participate in the ceremony. Specifically, his problem behaviors included noncompliance, inappropriate self-touching in public places, and difficulty sitting for long periods of time. Setting event, predictor, teaching, and consequence strategies were put into place to address these issues. The outcome of these supports was twofold: Not only did Leon successfully participate in all aspects of his Bar Mitzvah ceremony and celebration, but in so doing, he also provided a lesson about inclusion and hope to his community.
Teaching Generalized Imitation Skills to a Preschooler With Autism Using Video Modeling
Authors: Kleeberger Vickie , Mirenda Pat
Published: December 2008

This study examined the effectiveness of video modeling to teach a preschooler with autism to imitate previously mastered and not mastered actions during song and toy play activities. A general case approach was used to examine the instructional universe of preschool songs and select exemplars that were most likely to facilitate generalization. Experimental control was evident in a multiple baseline design across three imitation activities. In addition to video modeling, additive components that included highlighting critical features of the video examples, prompting/fading, and social reinforcement were required to demonstrate a functional relationship. The results also showed generalized imitative performance to actions that were not previously mastered. The findings suggest that general case analysis, video modeling, and additive procedures can be combined to both teach new imitative behaviors and promote generalization of previously-mastered behaviors. The results are discussed with reference to future research directions and implications for practice in educational settings.
Contestation and Conformity
Authors: Chiu Chihsin
Published: December 2008

By comparing street skating and park skating, this article examines why skateboarders persist in their use of public space even in the face of extensive regulation and the provision of skate parks. The researcher conducted participant observation and interviews in four sites in New York City: Brooklyn Bridge Plaza, Union Square Park, Riverside Skate Park, and Hudson River Skate Park. A total of 16 semistructured interviews were conducted. Differences between street and park skating are presented by utilizing three dimensions: the social production of public space, the social control imposed on skaters, and the discursive construction of skateboarding. Street skateboarding represents a contesting spatial practice creating a mental, social, and body space, embodying a skater's self-identity and cultural expression. Findings suggest that the governance of public space needs to adapt to the changing needs of multiple users rather than excluding a few without any attempt at accommodating them.
The Cultural Archive of the IKEA Store
Authors: Lindqvist Ursula
Published: December 2008

The IKEA store has become one of the world's most recognized and reproduced archives of national culture in the global marketplace, necessitating a critical reading of its spatial narrative. This article engages in a historicized reading of the culturally encoded space of the IKEA store, of which they were 285 in nearly 40 countries by the end of 2008. It argues that the IKEA store helps construct, reproduce, and disseminate a narrative of Swedish exceptionalism worldwide. This narrative showcases Sweden's image as a peaceful, homogenous, and industrious little nation, exemplifying Enlightenment ideals of social and economic progress while avoiding implication in the Enlightenment's more violent aspects. This article engages Derrida's formulation of archival violence to demonstrate how these hidden histories disrupt this archive's dominant narrative. Recovering these histories is particularly important given recent renewed faith in an essential “Swedishness” that has emerged in response to non-Western immigration in Sweden.
Sarajevska Zima
Authors: Bell Claudia
Published: December 2008

The Sarajevo Winter Festival (Sarajevska Zima) has been running continuously since 1984. Remarkably, even during the 1990s war and siege the festival continued, with patrons and artists ducking sniper fire to attend events. For the tourist or foreign artist visiting Sarajevo for Sarajevska Zima, the experience is a case study of Dark Tourism. Visitors certainly know about the genocide; they saw it on television. They learnt a new term, `ethnic cleansing'. In this city the citizens endured unimaginable nightmares; addressing issues of survival is an ongoing process. At the festival the artists work in galleries and on the streets. The city environs with the numerous sprawling cemeteries of gleaming gravestones is an ever-present reminder of events in recent memory. The foreign artists' re-appropriation of public spaces demonstrates their own compassionate responses to the war experiences of Bosnia-Herzegovina.
We Have Always Been Virtual
Authors: Yakhlef Ali
Published: December 2008

Accounts of virtual organization have been couched in terms of concepts and metaphors that do not inherit from the features of a coherent theory of virtuality. Arguing that virtuality is inherent in modernity, this article focuses on three major drivers behind the current wave of virtualization of organizational work practices to explore the interplay of the virtual and the concrete. Using three vignettes as an illustration, the article discusses how organizations, through writing, make the presence of humans contingent; through technology, displace human action into artifacts, machines, or electronic devices; and through institutions, virtualize (conflicting and sometimes collaborative) human relations and proximal encounters. However, the process of virtualization does not only deterritorialize existing skills and relations, but it also generates new skills, which in their turn impose a reterritorialization process.
Participatory Prevention Research Model Promotes Environmental Change for Healthier Schools
Authors: Prelip Mike , Slusser Wendelin M. , Lange Linda , Vecchiarielli Stephanie , Neumann Charlotte
Published: December 2008

Barriers exist to healthy eating and physical activity for children in the school environment. Modifiable school environmental factors have led to the development of the Nutrition Friendly Schools and Communities (NFSC) model to prevent the development of overweight in school children and adolescents. The design of the NFSC environmental intervention is to actively engage the school community to prevent overweight in school-aged children. This article presents data measuring the environmental changes achieved by the Los Angeles Unified School District (LAUSD) elementary schools participating in a 3-year participatory research pilot study funded by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC). An objective of the pilot study is to determine whether any or all of the 15 steps developed for the NFSC model could be implemented. Further, researchers want to know if any of the study schools could implement the NFSC model as a whole during the allotted time of the pilot study.