bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025 huggingface dataset:
Psychological Characteristics of Women Volleyball Players: Relationships with Injuries, Rehabilitation, and Team Success
Authors: Wittig Arno F. , Schurr K. Terry
Published: March 2007

Relatively few studies have used standardized psychological instruments to describe personality characteristics of women intercollegiate athletes. Using members of women's intercollegiate volleyball teams from two midwestern conferences as subjects, this study investigated relationships of the four psychological factors underlying the Millon Behavioral Health Inventory with success of team, conference affiliation, occurrence of athletic injury, and, for players who had injuries, adherence to rehabilitation plans. The factor describing an assertive, self-assured, independent attitude distinguished one conference from the other, had higher values for successful than for unsuccessful teams, and was associated with higher injury rates. For players suffering moderate or severe injuries, this factor was also associated with adherence to rehabilitation plans. The relationship of this factor with the several variables is explained as resulting from risk taking and positive deviance.
The Monty Hall Dilemma Donald Granberg
Authors: Brown Thad A.
Published: March 2007

The Monty Hall Dilemma (MHD) uses two-stage decisions with a host, guest, and a prize behind one of three doors. After the guest makes a choice, the host reveals another door as incorrect. The dilemma is whether to stick with the initial hunch or switch to the remaining alternative. The correct but counterintuitive solution is to switch. In the first encounter, only 12% switch. Across trials, switching increases to 55%. Altering the reward structure affects switching. The symmetrical counterpart to the Mil is the Roulette Dilemma in which it is correct to stick with the initial choice. In the latter, switching begins low but does not decrease across trials. People misapprehend probabilities in the MlHD, neglecting the knowledgeable host cue. People would feel more frustrated and angry if they switched and lost. TheMHD's relation to illusion of control, beliefterseverance, and the status quo bias is discussed.
Group Representations and Intergroup Bias: Positive Affect, Similarity, and Group Size
Authors: Dovidio John F. , Gaertner Samuel L. , Isen Alice M. , Lowrance Robert
Published: March 2007

This study examined how social (group size: two, three, or four persons), appearance (similar or dissimilar dress), and affective (positive or neutral mood) factors can influence social categorization and, consequently, intergroup bias. As expected, positive affect increased the extent to which subjects formed inclusive group representations, anticipating that the members of two groups would feel like one, superordinate group. Also as predicted, subjects in dissimilarly dressed groups expected the memberships to feel less like one group. Consistent with the common in-group identity model, stronger superordinate group representations, in turn, predicted more positive out-group evaluations and lower levels of intergroup bias. The conceptual and applied implications of affect and social representations for improving intergroup relations are considered.
Attitudes and Attraction: A Developmental Study of the Similarity-Attraction and Dissimilarity-Repulsion Hypotheses
Authors: Yeong Tan Diana Tze , Singh Ramadhar
Published: March 2007

Contrasting predictions ofByrne's similarity-attraction hypothesis and Rosenbaum's dissimilarity-repulsion hypothesis were tested with 7-, 11-, 15-, and 21-year-olds in Singapore. The study included a control condition of no-attitude information and two experimental conditions of similar and dissimilar attitudes. Measures of attraction, assumed similarity of attitudes, and accuracy in perceiving the manipulations were taken. The repulsion hypothesis was supported with the two younger groups; the attraction hypothesis was supported with the two older groups. The repulsion effect emerged because the two younger groups assumed a high level of attitudinal similarity in the control condition of no-attitude information and because they inaccurately perceived the manipulated similarity of attitudes in the experimental conditions. These results reaffirm the similarity-attraction hypothesis and further demonstrate the role of age-related cognitive processes in interpersonal attraction.
Mediating Effects of Blame Attributions on Feelings of Anger
Authors: Quigley Brian M. , Tedeschi James T.
Published: March 2007

Two structural equation models are presented to examine the relationship between anger and blame. In the first model, attributions of blame mediate the relationship between feelings of anger and attributions concerning the provoker's intentions to harm, his or her justification in harming, and the amount of harm done. In the second model, anger and blame exist in a reciprocal relationship. The self-reports of 158 individuals concerning an incident in which they had been harmed were analyzed using LISREL VIII. Both models showed satisfactory fit to the data; however, on the basis of theory and past research, the second model is proposed as more acceptable. Additional analyses demonstrated that interactional injustice was the most often reported type of injustice and that men were more likely to be reported as the offender than women. Implications of the research are discussed and suggestions for future research are presented.
A Comparison of Similarity and Interdependence as Triggers for In-Group Formation
Authors: Flippen Annette R. , Hornstein Harvey A. , Siegal William E. , Weitzman Eben A.
Published: March 2007

In four experiments, subjects were informed of a threat from various sources to members of a social category to which they belonged. They were also given the opportunity to help a target person. The results of the first two experiments showed that in-group bias occurred only when the threat was from a social source rather than a nonsocial source or when there was no threat. The third experiment showed that the bias favored only those similar on the threatened category rather than those similar on another non-threatened category. The fourth experiment showed that when subjects knew the source of the threat, the bias was against only members of the threatening group, even when the threat was attributed to similar others. These findings indicate that interdependence resulting from a shared threat, rather than similarity alone, seems to play a key role in the formation of in-group boundaries.
Terror Management and Self-Awareness: Evidence that Mortality Salience Provokes Avoidance of the Self-Focused State
Authors: Arndt Jamie , Greenberg Jeff , Simon Linda , Pyszczynski Tom , Solomon Sheldon
Published: March 2007

Two studies assessed the terror management hypothesis that when mortality is salient, people will avoid stimuli that increase self-awareness. In Study 1, we measured the length of time that participants wrote about either their death or an exam in cubicles that either did or did not contain a large mirror. In Study 2, participants completed either a death anxiety scale or a future concerns scale and then wrote a story fostering either an internal or external focus of attention. As predicted, in Study 1, the self-focusing stimulus reduced the amount of time that participants spent in the cubicles contemplating their mortality. In Study 2, mortality-salient participants wrote less when the task prompted an internal focus of attention than when it prompted an external focus. Across both studies, no differences emerged between participants in the control conditions. Implications of this research for understanding the relationship between terror management processes and self-awareness are briefly discussed.
Cognitive Load and Positive Mood Reduce Typicality Effects in Attitude-Behavior Consistency
Authors: Blessum Kenneth A. , Lord Charles G. , Sia Tiffiny L.
Published: March 2007

Social category attitudes predict behavior worse toward atypical than typical category members. The present study examined whether this typicality effect involves relatively individuated as opposed to category-based impressions of the behavior target. Cognitive load and positive moods are known to increase reliance on heuristic processing strategies such as using stereotypes. Control condition participants' attitudes toward gay males were less likely to predict willingness to help an atypical than a typical gay transfer student. For participants who rehearsed an eight-digit number or were in a positive mood while they read descriptions of the two gay men, however, no such typicality effect occurred. The results support and extend previous theories of heuristic processing, typicality effects, and the attitude-behavior relationship.
God as a Substitute Attachment Figure: A Longitudinal Study of Adult Attachment Style and Religious Change in College Students
Authors: Kirkpatrick Lee A.
Published: March 2007

In a two-wave survey study designed to extend and refine previous research on religion as an attachment process, college students completed a four-category attachment-style measure and several religiosity measures at Time 1; a subsample also completed identical religiosity measures about 4 months later (Time 2). Analysis of Time 1 data (N= 1,126) extended previous findings by demonstrating that positive mental models of both self and others were related cross-sectionally to positive images of God and perceived relationships with God. Longitudinal analyses (N = 297) revealed that positive religious change over time was predicted by negative models of self and positive models of others. Discussion focuses on the dynamics of religious belief and change as a function of psychological attachment processes.
A General Item Response Theory Model for Unfolding Unidimensional Polytomous Responses
Authors: Roberts James S. , Donoghue John R. , Laughlin James E.
Published: March 2007

The generalized graded unfolding model (GGUM) is developed. This model allows for either binary or graded responses and generalizes previous item response models for unfolding in two useful ways. First, it implements a discrimination parameter that varies across items, which allows items to discriminate among respondents in different ways. Second, the GGUM permits response category threshold parameters to vary across items. Amarginal maximum likelihood algorithm is implemented to estimate GGUM item parameters, whereas person parameters are derived from an expected a posteriori technique. The applicability of the GGUM to common attitude testing situations is illustrated with real data on student attitudes toward abortion.
Utility of Policy Capturing as an Approach to Graduate Admissions Decision Making
Authors: Schmidt Frank L. , Johnson Raymond H. , Gugel John F.
Published: March 2007

The present study examined and evaluated the application of linear policy-capturing models to the real-world decision task of graduate admissions. Major findings were that (1) effectiveness of policy capturing was moderated by psychology sub-areas, with the experimental and clinical subgroups show ing the highest and lowest predictability, respective ly ; (2) utility of the policy-capturing models was great enough to be of practical significance; and (3) least squares weights showed no predictive advan tage over equal weights.
Validity of a Cognitive Processing Model for Responses to Adjective and Sentence Type Inventories
Authors: De Boeck Paul
Published: March 2007

A comparative investigation was made of the validity of a mathematical model for inventory re sponse to adjective and sentence type items. Data were gathered about responses to mixed inventories (i. e., containing positively and negatively stated items) under conditions that promoted candidness. Meaning dimensions, subject samples, and testing conditions were equivalent over item types. Individ ual model validities for both item types were not significantly different. Their median level equaled that of candid responses to a mixed item set in the Cliff (1977) study.
Estimators of the Squared Cross-Validity Coefficient: A Monte Carlo Investigation
Authors: Drasgow Fritz , Dorans Neil J. , Tucker Ledyard R.
Published: March 2007

A monte carlo experiment was used to evaluate four procedures for estimating the population squared cross-validity of a sample least squares re gression equation. Four levels of population squared multiple correlation (Rp2) and three levels of number of predictors (n) were factorially crossed to produce 12 population covariance matrices. Ran dom samples at four levels of sample size (N) were drawn from each population. The levels of N, n, and RP2 were carefully selected to ensure relevance of simulation results for much applied research. The least squares regression equation from each isample was applied in its respective population to obtain the actual population squared cross-validity (Rcv2). Estimates of Rcv 2 were computed using three formula estimators and the double cross-validation procedure. The results of the experiment demon strate that two estimators which have previously been advocated in the literature were negatively biased and exhibited poor accuracy. The negative bias for these two estimators increased as Rp 2 de creased and as the ratio of N to n decreased. As a consequence, their biases were most evident in small samples where cross-validation is imperative. In contrast, the third estimator was quite accurate and virtually unbiased within the scope of this simulation. This third estimator is recommended for applied settings which are adequately approxi mated by the correlation model.
Item-Option Weighting of Achievement Tests: Comparative Study of Methods
Authors: Downey Ronald G.
Published: March 2007

Previous research has studied the effects of dif ferent methods of item-option weighting on the re liability and the concurrent and predictive validity of achievement tests. Generally, increases in relia bility are found, but with mixed results for validity. This research attempted to interrelate several methods of producing option weights (i.e., Gutt man internal and external weights and judges' weights) and examined their effects on reliability and on concurrent, predictive, and face validity. Option weights to maximize reliability produced cross-validated ( N = 974) increases in Hoyt reli ability over rights-only scoring (.82 versus .58, re spectively) ; decreases in correlations with other achievement tests; few changes in predictive valid ity ; and a loss in face validity (i.e., some correct op tions had lower weights than incorrect options). Weights to maximize validity did not cross-validate and led to a reduction in reliability and to mixed validity results. Judges' weights produced increases in reliability and mixed results with validity. The size of Guttman weights were shown to interact with item-option and test characteristics. It was concluded that option weighting offered limited, if any, improvement over unit weighting.
The Role of Noncognitive Measures in Medical School Admissions
Authors: Stricker Lawrence J.
Published: March 2007

The value of noncognitive measures in medical school admissions was assessed in light of the exist ing literature. These measures appear to have limit ed usefulness in predicting success in academic work but may be valuable in forecasting both per formance in clinical training and performance as a physician, as well as forecasting choice of the type of practice and its location. Noncognitive measures are useful as predictors of such criteria and may be valuable in forecasting the decisions of admissions committees; their use as moderator variables, how ever, is problematic. Newer personality and interest inventories, along with biographical questionnaires, are the most promising measures. Older interest in ventories may have some value; but traditional per sonality inventories and projective techniques, as well as interviews, seem to have limited usefulness. The merit of the other measures is uncertain: Let ters of recommendation are probably of little use; but cognitive style tests, objective performance de vices, and special adaptations of projective tech niques deserve more attention. The evaluation of noncognitive measures is hampered by inadequate criteria. Distortion by examinees threatens all self- report measures but can be controlled.
An Evaluation of Marginal Maximum Likelihood Estimation for the Two-Parameter Logistic Model
Authors: Drasgow Fritz
Published: March 2007

The accuracy of marginal maximum likelihood esti mates of the item parameters of the two-parameter lo gistic model was investigated. Estimates were obtained for four sample sizes and four test lengths; joint maxi mum likelihood estimates were also computed for the two longer test lengths. Each condition was replicated 10 times, which allowed evaluation of the accuracy of estimated item characteristic curves, item parameter estimates, and estimated standard errors of item pa rameter estimates for individual items. Items that are typical of a widely used job satisfaction scale and moderately easy tests had satisfactory marginal esti mates for all sample sizes and test lengths. Larger samples were required for items with extreme diffi culty or discrimination parameters. Marginal estima tion was substantially better than joint maximum like lihood estimation. Index terms: Fletcher-Powell algorithm, item parameter estimation, item response theory, joint maximum likelihood estimation, marginal maximum likelihood estimation, two-parameter logistic model.
A Hyperbolic Cosine Latent Trait Model For Unfolding Dichotomous Single-Stimulus Responses
Authors: Andrich David , Guanzhong Luo
Published: March 2007

Social-psychological variables are typically measured using either cumulative or unfolding response processes. In the former, the greater the location of a person relative to the location of a stimulus on the continuum, the greater the proba bility of a positive response; in the latter, the closer the location of the person to the location of the statement, irrespective of direction, the greater the probability of a positive response. Formal probability models for these processes are, respec tively, monotonically increasing and single-peaked as a function of the location of the person relative to the location of the statement. In general, these models have been considered to be independent of each other. However, if statements constructed on the basis of a cumulative model have three ordered response categories, the response function within the statement for the middle category is in fact single-peaked. Using this observation, a unidimen sional model for responses to statements that have an unfolding structure was constructed from the cumulative Rasch model for ordered response categories. A location and unit of measurement parameter exist for each statement. A joint maxi mum likelihood estimation procedure was inves tigated. Analysis of a small simulation study and a small real dataset showed that the model is readily applicable.
An Investigation of the Sampling Distributions of Equating Coefficients
Authors: Baker Frank B.
Published: March 2007

Using the characteristic curve method for dichoto mously scored test items, the sampling distributions of equating coefficients were examined. Simulated data for broad-range and screening tests were analyzed using three equating contexts and three anchor-item configurations in horizontal and vertical equating situ ations. The results indicated that the sampling distribu tions were bell-shaped and their standard deviations were uniformly small. There were few differences in the forms of the distributions of the obtained equating coefficients as a function of the anchor-item configura tions or type of test. For the equating contexts studied, the sampling distributions of the equating coefficients appear to have acceptable characteristics, suggesting confidence in the values obtained by the characteristic curve method.
An Investigation of the Item Parameter Recovery Characteristics of a Gibbs Sampling Procedure
Authors: Baker Frank B.
Published: March 2007

The item parameter recovery characteristics of a Gibb's sampling method (Albert, 1992) for IRT item parameter estimation were investigated using a simulation study. The item parameters were estimated, under a normal ogive item response function model, using Gibbs sampling and BILOG (Mislevy & Bock, 1989). The item parameter estimates were then equated to the metric of the underlying item parameters for tests with 10, 20, 30, and 50 items, and samples of 30, 60, 120, and 500 examinees. Summary statistics of the equating coefficients showed that Gibbs sampling and BILOG both produced trait scale metrics with units of measurement that were too small, but yielding a proper midpoint of the metric. When expressed in a common metric, the biases of the BILOG estimates of the item discriminations were uniformly smaller and less variable than those from Gibbs sampling. The biases of the item difficulty estimates yielded by the two estimation procedures were small and similar to each other. In addition, the item parameter recovery characteristics were comparable for the largest dataset of 50 items and 500 examinees. However, for short tests and sample sizes the item parameter recovery characteristics of BILOG were superior to those of the Gibbs sampling approach.
Optimal Design of Item Banks for Computerized Adaptive Tests
Authors: Stocking Martha L. , Swanson Len
Published: March 2007

Methods of optimal test assembly have served as the foundation for the development of methods for assembling adaptive tests. A model and a heuristic that facilitate the assembly of adaptive tests have been developed (Stocking & Swanson, 1993; Swanson & Stocking, 1993). Similar methods can be used to assemble item banks for adaptive testing in which optimal design seeks to simultaneously reduce item exposure to enhance item security and to increase exposure to enhance item efficiency. In this study, optimal design methods were applied to the item bank design of adaptive testing.
Probabilistic Income-Maximizing Behavior in Regional Migration
Authors: Silvers Arthur L.
Published: March 2007

IN EVIDENT CONTRADICTION OF ECONOMIC LOGIC, LABOR ALL TOO FREQUENTLY MIGRATES TO OTHER THAN THE "NET-RETURNS" MAXIMIZING REGION. IN THIS PAPER, A PROBABILISTIC FORMULATION OF THE INDIVIDUAL MIGRATION DECISION PROCESS WITH AN INCOME-MAXIMIZING CRITERION IS PROVIDED, ONE THAT IS CONSONANT WITH SUCH CONSISTENTLY OBSERVED "ANOMALOUS" BEHAVIOR. AFTER STRUCTURING THE RESPONSE CHARACTERISTICS OF SEVERAL TYPES OF INDIVIDUAL BEHAVIORS IN THE CONTEXT OF IMPERFECT INFORMATION, CERTAIN AMBIGUITIES FOUND IN EMPIRICAL RESEARCH ARE INTERPRETED IN TERMS OF ESTIMATION BIAS DUE TO PROBLEMS OF AGGREGATION AND IDENTIFICATION.
Crime Attraction and Deterrence in Small Communities: Theory and Results
Authors: Hakim Simon , Ovadia Arie , Weinblatt J.
Published: March 2007

This study analyzes the distribution of property crimes among small communities within a metropolitan area. We have tested whether a pool of criminals operating within a metropolitan area allocates its aggregate activity according to a rational pattern. The theoretical model based on utility maximization shows that, given a set of relatively reasonable assumptions, the number of offenses is positively related to the potential criminal gains and negatively related to police effectiveness. Community characteristics affect the level of criminal activity in each community, an hypothesis which is supported by the empirical results pre sented here. The concentration of wealth and commercial activities attracts crime, whereas the clearance rate deters crime.
Reconciling Reconciliation Procedures in Regional Input-Output Analysis
Authors: Gerking Shelby D.
Published: March 2007

The primary aim of this paper is to extend my previous work on the reconciliation of regional coefficients in input-output models. Specifically, an effort is made to show how certain types of a priori or judgmental information may be incorporated into the minimum variance reconciliation (MVR) process. In addition, this paper provides a response to Miernyk's objections that the MVR method: (1) produces coefficient estimates of doubtful statistical or theoretical validity and (2) systematically underestimates diagonal regional coefficients as well as the sum of interindustry sales for a given sector.
Farmland and Agricultural Policy in Sweden: An Integrated Approach
Authors: Lapping Mark B. , Forster V. Dale
Published: March 2007

Swedish efforts to retain farmlands are part of a more comprehensive policy to enhance the economic viability of the family farm. Aside from the containment of urbanization, which is accomplished by a number of planning tools, farm rationalization is the major element in Swedish policy. Rationalization, which has generally meant the creation of larger individual farms, has allowed the family farm to achieve certain scales of economy and take advantage of technological innovations. The key actor in the rationalization and containment process has been the country agricultural board, a creature of local government with unique and comprehensive powers to regulate land markets, extend credit, provide technical advice to farmers, and organize and manage farm amalgamation.
Nonsurvey Techniques: A Critical Review of the Theory and the Evidence
Authors: Round Jeffery I.
Published: March 2007

Nonsurvey methods, including methods of constructing regional input-output tables, reconciling estimates, and deriving sectoral multipliers where no input-output table exists, are critically evaluated from a theoretical point of view as well as in the light of available evidence. There are a number of weaknesses in the way many techniques are utilized, and there are decided advantages in pursuing an interregional or multiregional approach. The continuing claims about the accuracy of existing methods are also examined in the context of the efficacy of various test procedures.
The Importance of Regional Factors in the Determination of Earnings: The Case of Austria
Authors: Maier Gunther , Weiss Peter
Published: March 2007

This paper investigates interregional differences in earnings functions in Austria, in particular, the neoclassical hypothesis that regional earnings differentials can be eliminated by correcting for productivity-related characteristics. The results lead to a rejection of this hypothesis and show that earnings differentials are brought about by structural differences in the earnings functions rather than simple scale effects. The interregional earnings differences are mainly due to a different lifetime pattern of earnings and a different relationship between occupational status and earnings. As compared to other explanatory variables, the region contributes least to the explanation of earnings, although the effect is highly significant.
A Microeconomic Input-Output Analysis of Regional Economic Instability
Authors: Powell Roy , McGovern Mark , Morison Julian
Published: March 2007

Regional economic instability is considered in the context of Australian rural regions. Beginning with an overview of case studies under-taken, a generalized framework is developed to make effective use of available regional input-output tables and incorporate a variety of dynamic reactions by firms to changes exogenous to the firms. A macroeconomic approach to a behavioral-based classification of firms is integrated with input-output impact analysis. It is suggested that diversity of behavior among firms might be a significant stabilizing element in regional economic management and that there is merit in further microlevel analysis of firms.
Location Analysis and Regional Development: Summing Up and Moving on
Authors: Rondinelli Dennis A.
Published: March 2007

Critiques of the urban functions in rural development approach have explored the strengths and limitations of this regional planning process as well as those of the location-allocation algorithms proposed as an alternative. Whatever the limitations of the two approaches may be, however, location-allocation algorithms cannot replace the broader planning framework of the urban functions method. Continuing the debate over the merits of these regional planning methods has become less important than examining the lessons from nearly two decades of experience of applying the urban functions method in developing countries. Those lessons can help regional scientists formulate new methods of regional analysis that will be useful to planners and policymakers in the future.
Changes in Economic Development Theory and Practice
Authors: Teitz Michael B.
Published: March 2007

The theory and practice of local economic development has undergone a transformation in the United States over the past ten years. Instead of an emphasis on attracting outside investment in manufacturing, the new theory concentrates on enhancing a local community's ability to create and retain employment from within. Whether the new theory has indeed replaced the old, and whether it is effective in practice are questions that still remain.
Measurement of Concealed Unemployment in Shanghai
Authors: Mao Guoping , Higano Yoshiro
Published: March 2007

This paper attempts to analyze the effects of the government's employment policy on the labor input in the city of Shanghai in China. By including the employment policy factor into the labor input function, this paper estimates Shanghai's concealed unemployment quantitatively. At the same time, the paper considers a phenomenon that we call information development in Shanghai. The paper also estimates the effect of information development on Shanghai's labor input (quantitatively).
Arguing in Different Forums: The Bering Crossover Controversy
Authors: Fahnestock Jeanne
Published: March 2007

Archaeologists have long disagreed about when and how humans first migrated into the Americas; a point particularly in contention is whether there is any convincing evidence of human occupation earlier than about 12,000 years ago. This article ex amines some recent publications on the controversy, selected especially from review articles and from a recent series, written by professional archaeologists, that appeared in a popular magazine, Natural History. The sample texts are analyzed from a rhetorical perspective with emphasis on textual features such as word choice, hedging, arrange ment, self-reference, argumentative topic, and figure. Such features are taken to be signs of the writer's accommodation to audience and situation as determined in part by the place of publication. The analysis reveals some of the rich variety of persuasive techniques employed in popular and review publications by scientists who find themselves in a disciplinary stalemate, for example, the attempt of each side to depict itself as in the minority. The well-crafied popular pieces also use explicit appeals left only im plicit in the review articles; for example, the popular pieces describe the writer's status based on years of experience and support conclusions by narrating the long process of inquiry followed before a verdict was reached.
Captives of Controversy: The Myth of the Neutral Social Researcher in Contemporary Scientific Controversies
Authors: Scott Pam , Richards Evelleen , Martin Brian
Published: March 2007

According to both traditional positivist approaches and also to the sociology of scientific knowledge, social analysts should not themselves become involved in the controversies they are investigating. But the experiences of the authors in studying contemporary scientific controversies—specifically, over the Australian Animal Health Laboratory, fluoridation, and vitamin C and cancer—show that analysts, whatever their intentions, cannot avoid being drawn into the fray. The field of controversy studies needs to address the implications of this process for both theory and practice.
Gender Differences in Responses to News about Science and Technology
Authors: Hornig Susanna
Published: March 2007

Women and men respond differently to mock news stories about new developments in science and technology, with women associating more risk (p ≤ .05) and less benefit (p ≤ .05) than do men with reported developments overall. Interview data were used to construct a survey instrument designed to probe for differences in underlying attitudes that might explain this outcome. Results from administration of the questionnaire reveal that women are more likely than men to agree with "antiscience" statements. The assertion that women and men can be thought of as members of distinct cultures is invoked to provide a theoretical explanation for the data.
United We Stand: The Pharmaceutical Industry, Laboratory, and Clinic in the Development of Sex Hormones into Scientific Drugs, 1920-1940
Authors: Oudshoorn Nelly
Published: March 2007

Studies of drug development have described the role of clinical trials in the selection of drug profiles. This article presents a case study of the development of hormonal drugs in the 1920s and 1930s to illustrate that clinical trials have a more extensive role than is assumed. Clinical trials are instrumental in mediating the relationships between the pharmaceutical industry, the laboratory, and the clinic, resulting in a network of actors collectively creating medical knowledge, drugs, and markets for these drugs.
The Political Construction of Space Satellite Technology
Authors: Lambright W. Henry
Published: March 2007

Whatfactors determine the nature and pace of technological development? The literature on social construction of technology and actor-network theory suggests that assembling "coalitions" of support and conveying a certain "rhetoric" of technology are important to moving technology forward They are especially crucial strategies for advocates of large-scale, government-supported technologies. These strategies are illuminated by cases of U.S. space satellite development: meteorological satellites, land satellites, and the Earth Observation System.
Manufacturing Gender in Commercial and Military Cockpit Design
Authors: Weber Rachel N.
Published: March 2007

Based primarily on original interviews, this article compares the treatment of gender as an ergonomic consideration within military and commercial cockpit design. Both defense and civilian cockpits have traditionally been built to engineering specifications based on male anthropometry and tend to embody a physical bias against women and smaller- statured men. However, the design of defense aircraft has been more highly regulated, and more efforts have been taken to ensure that a larger pool of otherwise eligible female pilots are accommodated by future systems, such as the Joint Primary Aircraft Training System (JPATS). The article demonstrates how and why the interests of women pilots could prevail in the traditionally male preserve of the military.
The Sokal Affair in Context
Authors: Hilgartner Stephen
Published: March 2007

The failure to consider the Sokal affair in light of other, related episodes has contributed to a wholesale misreading of its significance. The episode has often been offered as evidence for the bankruptcy of a broad and diverse collection offields, variously referred to as cultural studies of science, sociology of science, history of science, and science and technology studies. However, when viewed in context, the Sokal affair illustrates pre cisely why social scientific and humanistic studies of science are necessary. To develop this argument, the author explicitly compares Alan Sokal's experiment with a similar experiment, performed by William M. Epstein and published in this very journal. Comparing the research questions, methods, ethics, and reception of these two experi ments not only reveals the limitations of Sokal's critique but also shows that Sokal has unwittingly endorsed one of the central lines of research in science and technology studies.
Eugenics and the New Genetics in Britain: Examining Contemporary Professionals' Accounts
Authors: Kerr Anne , Cunningham-Burley Sarah , Amos Amanda
Published: March 2007

This article explores the accounts of eugenics made by a small but important group of British scientists and clinicians working on the new genetics as applied to human health. These scientists and clinicians used special rhetorical strategies for distancing the new genetics from eugenics and to sustain their professional autonomy. They drew a number of boundaries or distinctions between eugenics and their own field, describing eugenics as politically distorted "bad science, " as being technically unfeasible, a feature of totalitarian regimes, the abuse of neutral knowledge, and as the manipulation of the population's gene pool as opposed to diagnosing and treating individuals with genetic conditions. Their more sophisticated defense strategies invoked the importance of individual choice and the relationship between nature and nurture. The article highlights the ambiguities and difficulties in professionals' use of this rhetoric, drawing on historical and sociological analyses of eugenics, genetics, and medical science and technology more broadly.
Untangling Context: Understanding a University Laboratory in the Commercial World
Authors: Kleinman Daniel Lee
Published: March 2007

The past twenty years have been an incredibly productive period in science studies. Still, because recent work in science studies puts a spotlight on agency and enabling situa tions, many practitioners in the field ignore, underplay, or dismiss the possibility that historically established, structurally stable attributes of the world may systemically shape practice at the laboratory level. This article questions this general position. Draw ing on data from a participant observation study of a university biology laboratory, it describes five features of the institutional landscape that shape this laboratory's practice.
New and Old MCAT
Authors: Givner Nathaniel , Hynes Kevin
Published: March 2007

This study examines the relationships between the New and Old versions of the Medical College Aptitute Test (MCAT) . The New MCA T scales were introduced in order to measure problem-solving skills in addition to the ability to recall infor mation. The primary sample consisted of 401 medical school applicants who had responded to the Old MCAT. Scores on both the Old and New MCA T were available for 66 of the 401 applicants. Correlations between the Old MCA T scales and the New MCA T scales were corrected for restriction of range in order to estimate the correlations pertaining to the total group of applicants. Despite instances of moderate commonality between the Old and New MCA T scales, substantial variability on all of the New MCAT scales could not be explained by performance on the Old MCA T scales. The results provide preliminary support for the claim that the New MCA T is assessing skills not measured by the Old MCAT.
Use of a Simulated MCAT to Predict Real MCAT Scores
Authors: Pohlman Mary , Richardson Mary W. , Pohlmann John T.
Published: March 2007

A Mock MCA Twas developed and administered to 39 premedical students two weeks prior to the April 1977 administration of the New MCAT. Mock MCAT results were provided to these studentsfor each of the six areas of the actual MCA T. Twenty-seven examinees also took the real MCAT. Correlation coefficients between real and Mock MCA T scores were obtained and stepwise regression analysis was used to determine the extent to which the Mock MCA T could predict real MCA T scores. Correlations of .85, .76, .74, .81, .82, and .81 were obtained for biology, chemistry, physics, science problems, reading, and quantitative areas, respectively.
Sequential Analysis
Authors: Howe Holly L. , Hoff Margaret B.
Published: March 2007

The sensitivity and simplicity of Wald's sequential analysis test in monitoring a preventive health care program are dis cussed in this paper. The technique has had widespread application in industry. The common element between monitoring industnal output and program evaluation is the needforprompt reliablefeedback of information. Sequential analysis was designed to test an hypothesis following each observation or each set of observations (herein differentiating it from classical hy pothesis testing of fixed-size samples). Predictors of "program success" can be ascertained within the short term and hard data can be available for progress reports or continuation proposals and funding re quests. We present the method along with illustrative data from the surveillance of a contract which provides breast cancer screening services to low-income minority women in Central Harlem. These data exemplify the usefulness and expedience of employing sequential methods to program monitoring.
Influence of Therapy On Client Outcomes:
Authors: Weyant James M. , Dembo Richard , Ciarlo James A.
Published: March 2007

The influence of group versus individual and family versus individual psychotherapy on client outcomes was examined. The outcomes used were personal and community functioning, dropping out of treatment, and recidivism. A data base of 6,934 clients treated by four community mental health center teams was used, but the num ber of subjects for each analysis was greatly reduced by restrictions imposed by operational definitions and by missing data. Overall there were little or no differences in outcome among the therapy modalities. One difference that emerged was that a sig nificantly lower percentage of group therapy clients dropped out of treatment than did individual therapy clients. Projections about future changes in the assignment of clients to therapy modalities indicated that increasing the use of group therapy would decrease dropping out while actually decreasing the total number of sessions needed to treat clients. Significant interaction effects suggest that group or family therapy may lead to better personal and community functioning for self-referred clients, whereas individual therapy may be more appropriate for clients referred by someone else.
The Case of Cardiovascular Disease
Authors: Stevenson Robert H.
Published: March 2007

This report analyzes the complexities of evaluatingprevention, remediation, and rehabilitation treatments for cardiovascular disease. A comparison oftreatments revealed that distinct differences exist in terms of motivation ofsubjects to participate and steps required for a maximum treatment effect. Large-scale prevention programs are generally the most complex of all interventions to complete. If complex health programs are initially subdivided into theirdetailed planning and implementation steps, proper assessments of each step will lead to a much less difficult comprehensive evaluation.
Factor-Implied Scales of Ward Atmosphere
Authors: Denny Nathan , Costello Raymond M. , Cochran Mary Linda
Published: March 2007

Evaluation of environments in hospital settings with regard to their therapeutic qualities has been a problem for clinicians and evaluation specialists for some time. Thepresentproject examined the Ward Atmosphere Scale (WAS) factor-analytically and derived secondorder factors inconsistent with those proposed by the authors of the scale. Items ofthe WAS were arrangedpsychometrically into three scales as implied by the factor analysis. Results suggest that interpretation ofthe WAS can be simplified considerably if these three superordinate dimensions are used to organize item-level data.
The Impact of CME
Authors: Davis Dave , Haynes R. Brian , Chambers Larry , Neufield Victor R. , McKibbon Ann , Tugwell Peter
Published: March 2007

A review of the literature evaluating the effectiveness of Continuing Medical Education (CME) was undertaken using articles from 1935 to 1982.238 studies were reviewed and annotated using previously established and tested assessment criteria. These criteria included the following areas: the study design; the educational or administrative intervention; the evaluation maneuver used to assess the intervention's outcome; the health professionals used as subjects; andfinally, the educational and statistical significance of the study. It would appear that CMEinterventions when broadly defied, have an impact on physician competence and (less consistently though still in a positive direction) on physician performance and patient outcomes. Further research in both the methods and evaluation of CME is necessary.
Test Standards and Credentialing Examinations
Authors: Linn Robert L.
Published: March 2007

Three professional associations, the American Educational Research Association, the American Psychological Association, and the National Council on Measurement in Education, jointly adopted the new Standards for Educational and Psychological Testing in 1985. The relationship of these new Standards to the earlier Standards published by the same three sponsoring associations is reviewed briefly. In addition, implications of the new Standards for credentialing examination programs in the health professions are discussed.
Functional Assessment of Nursing Home Patients
Authors: Hogan Andrew J. , Smith David W. , Jameson Judith
Published: March 2007

Functional assessment of patients for resource allocation or staffing requires a higher level of interrater reliability than functional assessment in normal clinical settings. Although manyfunctional assessment instruments are available, interrater reliability of these items hasfrequently not been reported. An assessment instrument based on the Long Term Care Minimum Data Set format was usedfor 290 patients in six wards in two Veterans Administration nursing homes. Each patient was assessed independently by two nurse caregivers to obtain reliability information. Different reliability measures yielded dif fering evaluations of the reliability of the instrument. Absolute agreement rates combined with Kendall's taub were most useful in deciding on the reliability of items in the instrument.
Assessing Quality of Life of the Mentally Ill
Authors: Franklin Jack L. , Simmons Jane , Solovitz Brenda , Clemons Jimmie R. , Miller Gary E.
Published: March 2007

The traditional quality of life (Q of L) model with objective indicators of life situations and satisfactions with these situations was expanded to include a third domain-adaptation-of self-esteem, affect states, and daily behavior. Interviews with 220 individuals who had two or more discharges from mental hospitals and who were living in the community provided data for this discussion of the threepart model. In the model, objective life situations were not associated with satisfaction and adaptation but satisfaction and adaptation were highly correlated. The threepart model will be useful in explaining the Q of L of community-based mentally ill and in evaluating community-based programs that purport to change their Q of L
Genetics and Cancer Prevention
Authors: Carter Christine , Reichman Marsha
Published: March 2007

Genetic techniques, developed and refined over the past few years, have been responsible for the rapid explosion of knowledge about the molecular alterations that contribute to neoplastic transformation. We provide an overview of how these recent developments have and might be applied to the area of cancer prevention and discuss some problems and challenges relevant to their application to clinical practice.
Cost-Effectiveness
Authors: Beaves Robert G. , Joseph Hyman , Rohrer James E. , Zeitler Rodney R.
Published: March 2007

The purpose of this article is to compare three commonly used indices of cost-effectiveness: the cost-effectiveness ratio, the cost-benefit ratio, and net benefit. We show that these indices can be interpreted to be consistent with one another and consistent with the traditional economic definition of cost-effectiveness. Further, we show that the relative cost-effectiveness of competing strategies cannot be determined by simply comparing their respective cost-benefit or cost-effectiveness ratios, but can be determined by comparing their respective net benefits. Finally, we show that cost-effectiveness ratios cannot be properly interpreted without consideration of the dollar value of health benefits.