bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025 huggingface dataset:
RISK DETECTION IN INDIVIDUAL HEALTH CARE: ANY LIMITS?
Authors: PALMBOOM GER , WILLEMS DICK
Published: February 2009

Background: Biomedical science is producing an avalanche of data about risk factors, often with a small predictive value, associated with a broad diversity of diseases. Prevention and screening are increasingly moving from public health into the clinic. Therefore, the question of which risk factors to investigate and disclose in the individual patient, becomes ethically increasingly urgent. In line with Wilson and Jungner's public health‐related 10 principles for screening, it seems crucial to distinguish important from unimportant health risks.

Aim: to explore the ways in which clinicians distinguish important from unimportant health risks.

Methods: We interviewed 36 respondents (gastroenterologists and gynaecologists/obstetrics) in 5 focus group interviews and 15 open in‐depth interviews on their interpretation of what makes a health risk important.

Results: Physicians primarily interpreted importance as the severity of the possible harm, less often its probability. Possibilities of prevention or reassurance strongly influenced their judgment on importance.

Discussion: It is not likely that interpreting ‘important’ as ‘severe’ will help in differentiating meaningful from meaningless risk knowledge. A more fundamental change in our ways of dealing with risk may be called for. We discuss existing literature on resilience as an alternative way to deal with risk. Balancing prevention and risk reduction with resilience could be a fruitful direction.
Hiding Customer Complaints: Studying the Motivations and Forms of Service Employees' Complaint Concealment Behaviours
Authors: Harris Lloyd C. , Ogbonna Emmanuel
Published: February 2009

This study aims to explore both how and why customer service employees conceal the complaints made by customers. Using an exploratory qualitative approach, data were gathered through the in‐depth interviewing of 25 managers, 25 supervisors and 57 front‐line employees of UK general retailers/supermarkets. Data analysis reveals that the concealment of customer complaints by store employees of all hierarchical levels is common. Front‐line, customer‐contact employees were found to conceal complaints in four ways: through (1) misleading customers, (2) complaint resolution without logging, (3) concealing recorded complaints and (4) falsification of recorded complaints. Store‐level supervisory and managerial employees were also found to conceal complaints in four ways: through (1) complaint resolution without logging, (2) concealing recorded complaints, (3) the non‐recording of complaints and (4) the disregarding of ‘minor’ complaints. The motives for complaint concealment differed between managerial/supervisory and front‐line employees but included reasons of (1) personal protection, (2) perceived customer unpleasantness, (3) serial complaint avoidance, (4) alienation, (5) friends or family protection, (6) instrumental gain, (7) avoidance of additional work, (8) perceived unfairness and (9) limited time. These findings suggest that theorists and practitioners need to acknowledge the existence and prevalence of these motives and behaviours and incorporate them into their conceptualizations and practices.
Management as Design, but What Kind of Design? An Appraisal of the Design Science Analogy for Management
Authors: Pandza Krsto , Thorpe Richard
Published: February 2009

The identity of management as a field of study is frequently challenged on the basis of its relevance to practice. This paper engages with the concept of a design science as it is considered to offer some answers to this enduring debate. The paper goes on to conclude, rather sceptically, that design science may not offer such a distinct perspective on management as a field of study. Our scepticism is based on the design science scholars' rather arbitrary use of Simon's intellectual legacy, particularly the superficial differentiation between explanatory‐based and prescriptive‐based social sciences, and the promises such a comparison holds for prescriptive outcomes in management. The paper contributes to the design science debate in management by identifying three different types of design, each based on different ways artefacts emerge. These identified differences have profound consequences for understanding design science as an explicitly organized and systematic approach to design. We conclude that later conceptualizations of design science do have a place, but offer only a particular perspective – one that is relevant for a narrow set of organizational phenomena. Finally, we argue that the design analogy is an important one in the current debate about the nature of management studies if it highlights the creation of novelty and disruption of stability. It also offers a way of thinking about the exposition of uncertainty, in contrast to highlighting rules and principles that offer a prescriptive promise to guide the design of social artefacts.
Prostate cancer stories in the Canadian print media: representations of illness, disease and masculinities
Authors: Halpin Michael , Phillips Melanie , Oliffe John L.
Published: February 2009

Despite the popularity of print media as an information source for men with prostate cancer, the representation of prostate cancer within this medium remains relatively understudied. This article details the findings from an analysis of prostate cancer articles published in two Canadian national newspapers, The Globe and Mail and the National Post, from January 2001 through to December 2006. The 817 prostate cancer articles published during this period were retrieved and reviewed using manifest and latent analyses. Three article categories, illness perspectives, medical perspectives and supplementary were identified in the manifest analysis. The latent analysis was guided by the connections between masculinities and prostate cancer in the newspapers’ stories. Findings indicated a low frequency of articles that substantively discussed prostate cancer and that the descriptive content reproduced hegemonic masculine ideals, such as competition and stoicism. The presentation of a truncated illness trajectory and privileging of the curative aspects of biomedicine also depicted medicalised male bodies. Any discussion on the negative effects of treatment or explicit references to marginalised forms of masculinity was conspicuously absent. These findings support how representations of prostate cancer in Canadian newspapers predominately replicate detrimental ideologies and perspectives of men's health.
Doing being ‘on the edge’: managing the dilemma of being authentically suicidal in an online forum
Authors: Horne Judith , Wiggins Sally
Published: February 2009

Those who attempt suicide have often been described as ‘crying for help’, and there are implications if such cries are not taken seriously. This paper examines how users of an Internet forum for ‘suicidal thoughts’ work up their authenticity in their opening posts, and how these are responded to by fellow forum users. Data were taken from two Internet forums on suicide over a period of one month and were analysed using discursive psychology. The analysis demonstrates that participants display their authenticity through four practices: narrative formatting, going ‘beyond’ depression, displaying rationality and not explicitly asking for help. Furthermore, both initial and subsequent posts worked up identities as being psychologically ‘on the edge’ of life and death. The analysis suggests that the forum in part works as a site for suicidal identities to be tested out, authenticated and validated by individuals. We conclude with some suggestions for the supportive work of suicide ‘postvention’.
Doing accountability: a discourse analysis of research ethics committee letters
Authors: O’Reilly Michelle , Dixon‐Woods Mary , Angell Emma , Ashcroft Richard , Bryman Alan
Published: February 2009

Research ethics committees (RECs) are charged with adjudicating the ethical status of research projects, and determining the conditions necessary for such projects to proceed. Both because of their position in the research process and because of the controversial nature of ethical judgements, RECs’ views and decisions need to be accountable. In this paper we use techniques of discourse analysis to show how REC decision letters ‘do’ accountability. Using a sample of 260 letters from three datasets, we identify a range of discursive devices used in letters written by RECs. These include drawing attention to: the process behind the decision, including its collaborative nature; holding the applicants accountable, by implying that any decision made by the REC can be attributed to the performance of the applicants; referring to specialist expertise; and calling upon external authorities. These tactics ‘do’ accountability by showing that routines of ethical assessment have been enacted, by establishing the factuality of claims, and by managing questions of fault and blame attribution. They may, however, also risk undermining legitimacy by failing to acknowledge the inherent contestability of ethical decision making or the limited nature of the cultural authority accorded to RECs, and thus may appear as an illegitimate exercise of power.
The Economic Impact of Medical Migration: An Overview of the Literature
Authors: Rutten Martine
Published: February 2009

This paper provides an overview of the evidence and applied literature on medical migration. The economic impacts of medical migration have been little researched, causing a polarisation in the debate between its critics and its proponents. The paucity of quantitative studies may be explained by the lack of comprehensive and consistent data. Investments in statistical resources on medical migration are therefore a major priority. The available evidence suggests that particularly English‐speaking countries in Sub‐Saharan African countries and the Caribbean with relatively few health workers and a high disease burden suffer most from the medical brain drain. However, the exodus of health workers is not the main cause of the health status crisis, but rather a symptom of deeper underlying problems, which often extend beyond the health sector towards the broader economic and political environment. In such situations, medical brain drain does pose challenges for human resource management and health service delivery. The only effective and long‐term sustainable policy is one that addresses the underlying push and pull factors. Reforms have to be country‐led, but may be supported via temporary migration schemes, remittances, enhancement of diaspora networks, and financial aid for which a strong moral case exists.
Service Offshoring and Productivity: Evidence from the US
Authors: Amiti Mary , Wei Shang‐Jin
Published: February 2009

The practice of sourcing service inputs from overseas suppliers has been growing in response to new technologies that have made it possible to trade in some business and computing services that were previously considered non‐tradable. This paper estimates the effects of offshoring on productivity in US manufacturing industries between 1992 and 2000. It finds that service offshoring has a significant positive effect on productivity in the United States, accounting for around 10 per cent of labour productivity growth during this period. Offshoring material inputs also have a positive effect on productivity, but the magnitude is smaller accounting for approximately 5 per cent of productivity growth.
The Rise of China and East Asian Export Performance: Is the Crowding‐Out Fear Warranted?
Authors: Athukorala Prema‐chandra
Published: February 2009

This paper examines how China's emergence as a major trading nation is affecting export performance of its East Asian neighbours. Following a stage‐setting overview of trends and patterns of China's export performance, it probes China competition in third country markets and emerging patterns of imports. The East Asian export experience is examined in a wider global context against the backdrop of the ongoing process of global production sharing. The findings indicate that the ‘China threat’ has been vastly exaggerated in the contemporary policy debate. China's rapid market penetration in traditional labour‐intensive manufactured goods has occurred mostly at the expense of the high‐wage East Asian countries, without crowding‐out the export opportunities of low‐wage countries in the region. More importantly, China's rapid integration into global production networks as a major assembly centre has created new opportunities for the other East Asian countries to engage in various segments of the value chain in line with their comparative advantage.
Foreign Direct Investment, Competition and Industry Performance
Authors: Bitzer Jürgen , Görg Holger
Published: February 2009

This paper investigates the productivity effects of inward and outward foreign direct investment using industry‐ and country‐level data for 17 OECD countries over the period 1973 to 2001. Controlling for national and international knowledge spillovers we argue that the effects of FDI work through direct compositional effects as well as changing competition in the host country. Our results show that there are, on average, productivity benefits from inward FDI, although we can identify a number of countries which, on aggregate, do not appear to benefit in terms of productivity. On the other hand, a country's stock of outward FDI is, on average, negatively related to productivity. However, again there is substantial heterogeneity in the effect across OECD countries.
PISA and the Transition into the Labour Market
Authors: Bertschy Kathrin , Cattaneo M. Alejandra , Wolter Stefan C.
Published: February 2009

This paper uses unique Swiss longitudinal data that include information on Programme for International Student Assessment (PISA) 2000 scores and the pathways chosen after completing compulsory school. Descriptive results show that students in vocational training, who obtained lower PISA results, are significantly more likely to be in an inadequate employment situation 2 years after finishing vocational training. Further analysis shows, however, that it is the type of vocational training pursued at upper secondary level that is decisive for a successful transition. Nevertheless, individual PISA scores have an indirect impact on the transition results, as they are an important factor explaining which pupils are more likely to get into an intellectually demanding vocational training and which ones are not.
Immigration Policy, Equilibrium Unemployment, and Underinvestment in Human Capital
Authors: Lumpe Christian , Weigert Benjamin
Published: February 2009

We analyse the impact of different immigration policies on human capital investment in a search‐theoretic model. This class of models features unemployment and underinvestment in human capital. The underinvestment in human capital can be solved by combining immigration policy with appropriate education subsidies. Extending the model with respect to different skill groups allows to analyse the observed bimodal skilled immigration of the USA.
Changing Returns to Education During a Boom? The Case of Ireland
Authors: McGuinness Seamus , McGinnity Frances , O'Connell Philip J.
Published: February 2009

Ireland experienced dramatic growth in the economy and employment in the second half of the 1990s. This paper examines the consequences of that boom for returns to education and wage inequality using data from the Living in Ireland Survey for the years 1994, 1997, and 2001. Rapid economic growth is often expected to lead to increased returns to education and thus to rising wage inequality. We find fairly stable returns to education and falling wage inequality for men throughout the period, partly due to strong demand for unskilled labour, which helped maintain low‐skilled wages. For women the wage premium for a university degree fell between 1997 and 2001, as did wage inequality. We argue that for women, low‐skilled wages may have been kept up by the introduction of the minimum wage in 2000, and high‐skilled wages fell due to a rapid rise in the supply of highly qualified women.
Training and Low‐pay Mobility: The Case of the UK and the Netherlands
Authors: Pavlopoulos Dimitris , Muffels Ruud , Vermunt Jeroen K.
Published: February 2009

This paper investigates the effect of training on low‐pay mobility in the UK and the Netherlands. We contribute to the literature by estimating the ‘true’ effect of training correcting for measurement error and transitory fluctuations — random shocks — of earnings. This is accomplished by using a random‐effects multinomial logit model with a latent structure to take account of the measurement error. Our results indicate that although the countries have rather different training practices, training increases the likelihood for moving from low to higher pay and reduces the likelihood for a transition from higher pay to low pay. However, in the UK, contrary to what we expected, work‐related or firm‐specific training programmes but not general training programmes pay off better for the intermediate‐ and the higher‐educated workers. No effect of training is found for the low‐educated workers. The lower‐skilled seem to gain less than the high‐skilled from firms' investments in human capital in the UK.
The Effect of Early Retirement Incentives on the Training Participation of Older Workers
Authors: Fouarge Didier , Schils Trudie
Published: February 2009

Human capital theory predicts that older workers are less likely to participate in on‐the‐job training than younger workers, due to lower net returns on such investments. Early retirement institutions are likely to affect these returns. Using the European Community Household Panel we show that older workers participate less in training, and that early retirement institutions do indeed matter. Generous early retirement schemes discourage older workers from taking part in training, whereas flexible early retirement schemes encourage this. Finally, the results suggest that in most European countries training can keep older workers longer in the labour market.
The Transition to Work for Italian University Graduates
Authors: Pozzoli Dario
Published: February 2009

This study is focused on the transition from university to first job, taking into account the graduates’ characteristics and the effects relating to degree subject. A large data set from a survey on job opportunities for the 1998 Italian graduates is used. The paper uses a non‐parametric discrete‐time single‐risk model to study employment hazard. Alternative mixing distributions have also been used to account for unobserved heterogeneity. The results obtained indicate that there is evidence of positive duration dependence after a short initial period of negative duration dependence. In addition, a competing‐risk model has been estimated to characterize transitions out of unemployment.
Sibling Sex Composition and Educational Outcomes: A Review of Theory and Evidence for the UK
Authors: Amin Vikesh
Published: February 2009

Studies from US data have found mixed results regarding sibling sex composition effects and educational outcomes. Some researchers have found that sisters hurt women's education, others have found the opposite, and some have found no effects. This paper reviews the theoretical foundations for sibling sex composition effects and tests the theories using British data, on a sample of children born between 3 and 9 March 1958, from the National Child Development Survey. Methods from previous studies are replicated and extensions considered for ability, credit constraints, and family size. No sibling sex composition effects are found, but estimation results support the quantity–quality model.
Tax Structure and Female Labour Supply: Evidence from Ireland
Authors: Callan Tim , Van Soest Arthur , Walsh John R.
Published: February 2009

How great an effect does the structure of income taxes have on female labour supply? This issue is investigated using a discrete‐choice static labour supply model for married couples in Ireland. The model incorporates fixed costs of working and simultaneously explains participation decisions and preferred hours of work. The model is estimated using data from the 1994 wave of the Living in Ireland Survey. Simulations examine the labour supply effects of introducing greater independence in the tax treatment of married couples, compared with an income‐splitting system, and alternative forms of tax cuts.
Work Absence — A Signalling Factor for Temporary Workers?
Authors: Amilon Anna , Wallette Mårten
Published: February 2009

This paper investigates whether low levels of absence increase the probability of permanent employment and reduce that of unemployment for Swedish temporary workers. We investigate two reasons for absence: worker sickness and sickness of a dependent child. Using a competing risk estimation model, we find that sick leave reduces the probability of permanent employment for women and increases the probability of unemployment for men. Absence due to child sickness increases the risk of unemployment for women. Although the influence of sick leave varies substantially among different temporary jobs, replacement and probation workers are generally the most affected.
The Effect of a Longer Eligibility to a Labour Market Programme for Dismissed Workers
Authors: Paggiaro Adriano , Rettore Enrico , Trivellato Ugo
Published: February 2009

Liste di Mobilità is an Italian programme targeted to dismissed workers. It combines a ‘passive’ and an ‘active’ component. Eligibility duration varies with the worker's age at dismissal. Using a new panel data set, we identify the impact of extending the duration of eligibility on re‐employment probabilities and wages, via Regression Discontinuity Design. We validate the design by a set of overidentification tests. For most subgroups we find no significant impact, with a peculiar pattern for women entitled to monetary benefits. A major negative impact emerges for workers aged 50 or more granted monetary benefits, likely due to the fact that they can use the programme as a bridge to retirement.
Spectrum of chronic kidney disease in HIV‐infected patients
Authors: Campbell LJ , Ibrahim F , Fisher M , Holt SG , Hendry BM , Post FA
Published: February 2009

Objectives

The aim of the study was to investigate the prevalence and aetiology of chronic kidney disease (CKD) and trends in estimated glomerular filtration rate (eGFR) in HIV‐infected patients.

Methods

Ascertainment and review of CKD cases among patients attending King's College and Brighton Hospitals, UK were carried out. CKD was defined as eGFR <60 mL/min for ≥3 months. Longitudinal eGFR slopes were produced to examine trends in renal function before, during and after exposure to indinavir (IDV) or tenofovir (TFV).

Results

CKD prevalence was 2.4%. While HIV‐associated nephropathy accounted for 62% of CKD in black patients, 95% of CKD in white/other patients was associated with diabetes mellitus, hypertension, atherosclerosis and/or drug toxicity. Exposure to IDV or TFV was associated with an accelerated decline in renal function (4.6‐fold and 3.7‐fold, respectively) in patients with CKD. In patients initiating IDV, age ≥50 years increased the odds of CKD [odds ratio (OR) 4.9], while in patients initiating TFV, age ≥50 years (OR 5.4) and eGFR 60–75 mL/min (OR 17.2) were associated with developing CKD.

Conclusion

This study highlights the importance of metabolic and vascular disease to the burden of CKD in an ageing HIV‐infected cohort. In patients who developed CKD, treatment with IDV or TFV was associated with an accelerated decline in renal function.
WHAT IS PURE, WHAT IS GOOD? DISINTERESTEDNESS IN FÉNELON AND KANT
Authors: CURRAN SR. MARY BERNARD
Published: February 2009

Two philosophers, Robert Spaemann and Henri Gouhier, have identified a similarity between Fénelon and Kant in the prominence of motive in their thought: disinterestedness in Fénelon's pure love and in Kant's good will. Spaemann emphasizes their common detaching of the ethical in terms of motivation from the context of happiness. In this article I explore further similarities and differences under the topics of perfectionism, pure love, good will, happiness, and disinterestedness, as these are pertinent to their thought. On perfectionism there appears a stark contrast; on pure love over against good will, on happiness, and on disinterestedness, however, there seems a balance between likenesses and differences. Finally I point out a qualification set on pure love by Fénelon and on the good will by Kant.
MAX STIRNER's EGOISM
Authors: JENKINS JOHN
Published: February 2009

My aim in what follows is to provide and criticise a consistent account of Stirnerian egoism. Despite the many obscurities and complexities surrounding Stirner's conception of self‐interested action, a detailed examination of The Ego and Its Own does, I believe, offer us an interpretation that remains true to the overall aims of the book. My main concern throughout will be to focus on the interpretation of Stirner as a psychological egoist. I believe that the textual evidence in favour of viewing Stirner's brand of egoism in these terms is overwhelming. The result of this exegesis is at the same time a reply to David Leopold's claim that, in The Ego and Its Own, the evidence for Stirner's commitment to this version of egoism is scarce and unconvincing. If my understanding of Stirner's book is correct, his advocacy of psychological egoism is an unwelcome consequence for the Stirnerian viewpoint, given the weaknesses of psychological egoism as a theory of human motivation. It is also damaging for Stirner's conception of selfhood.
SOLGER'S NOTION OF SACRIFICE AS DOUBLE NEGATION
Authors: BUBBIO PAOLO DIEGO
Published: February 2009

The aim of the paper is to clarify the theoretical core of Solger's thought, the foundation for his aesthetics. I first analyze Solger's dialectic of double negation. Secondly I focus on Solger's gnoseology, which is orientated toward grasping the equilibrium between the Infinite (God) and the finite (world) consisting in this double negation. Lastly I investigate the notion of sacrifice, connecting it with Solger's ironic dialectic and showing its relevance to a complete understanding of his thought.
A NEW LOOK AT BERKELEY'S IDEALISM
Authors: CURTIS BENJAMIN L.
Published: February 2009

In this note I firstly give a formulation of Berkeleyean Idealism in modern anti‐realist terms. Secondly, I supply a reading of Berkeley that serves to do three things: 1. It makes clear that the formulation of the position in modern terms is acceptable. 2. It offers a revealing insight into the reasons why Berkeley accepted the position. 3. It allows us to see that these reasons are, in fact, bad ones.
Initial Attraction to Organizations: The influence of trait inferences
Authors: Slaughter Jerel E. , Greguras Gary J.
Published: February 2009

Organization personality perceptions have been defined as the set of personality characteristics associated with organizations. Previous research supports five distinct factors of organization personality perceptions: Boy Scout, Innovativeness, Dominance, Thrift, and Style. The purpose of this research was to understand how individuals' initial attraction to firms is influenced by their perceptions of the degree to which firms display these traits. Results of the present investigation indicated that organization personality perceptions accounted for significant variance in initial organizational attraction, after controlling for perceptions of the degree to which the jobs at the organizations offer traditional attributes. In addition, several self‐rated Big Five personality characteristics interacted with dimensions of organization personality perceptions to influence attraction. Implications for the use of organization personality in future recruitment research are discussed.
Internet Recruiting: Effects of website content features on viewers' perceptions of organizational culture
Authors: Braddy Phillip W. , Meade Adam W. , Michael Joan J. , Fleenor John W.
Published: February 2009

This study examined the effects of four ‘careers’ website content features (pictures, testimonials, organizational policies, and awards won) on viewers' perceptions of nine organizational culture attributes. Eight of these culture attributes were more strongly conveyed by culture‐specific website content features than by culture‐neutral website content features. This study also found support for a partial mediated‐moderation model. This model illustrated that participants with weak culture preferences formed less favorable person–organization (P–O) fit perceptions as they perceived an organization to more strongly convey the culture attribute under investigation. Conversely, participants with strong culture preferences formed more favorable P–O fit perceptions as they perceived an organization to more strongly portray the culture attribute in question. Respondents with stronger P–O fit perceptions in turn reported stronger organizational attraction.
Faking on Personality Measures: Implications for selection involving multiple predictors
Authors: Converse Patrick D. , Peterson Mitchell H. , Griffith Richard L.
Published: February 2009

The potential for faking on noncognitive measures in high stakes testing situations remains a concern for many selection researchers and practitioners. However, the majority of previous research examining the practical effects of faking on noncognitive assessments has focused on these measures in isolation, rather than the more common situation in which they are used in combination with other predictors. The present simulation examined the effects of faking on a conscientiousness measure on criterion‐related validity, mean performance of those selected, and selection decision consistency when hiring decisions were based on this measure alone vs in combination with two other predictors across a range of likely selection scenarios. Overall, results indicated that including additional predictors substantially reduced – but did not eliminate – the negative effects of faking. Faking effects varied across outcomes and selection scenarios, with effects ranging from trivial to noteworthy even for multiple‐predictor selection. Implications for future research and practice are discussed.
Measurement Reliability, the Spearman–Jensen Effect and the Revised Thorndike Model of Test Bias
Authors: Reeve Charlie L. , Bonaccio Silvia
Published: February 2009

The Thorndike model of test fairness has recently been revised and used to argue that cognitive ability tests are biased against certain groups of test‐takers because ability tests show larger mean differences across racial groups than do job performance measures. We discuss two critical factors that confound this new version of Thorndike's model, making it susceptible to false indications of test bias. Those factors are (a) measurement error (i.e., reliability) in both the predictor and criterion and (b) the Spearman–Jensen effect (i.e., the well‐documented effect that group differences in observed g‐saturated measures are directly proportional to the degree the manifest indicator reflects g). Finally, because the Spearman–Jensen effect is not well known within the applied literature, we present a brief simulation to better elucidate the implications of the Spearman–Jensen effect for personnel selection in general, and claims of bias in cognitive ability testing in particular.
An Emerging New Component of Cognitive Abilities in Human Resources Selection: Preliminary evidence to the existence of a ‘process‐analytic’ factor in selection batteries
Authors: Zysberg Leehu
Published: February 2009

New evidence in Human resource selection, may suggest the existence of a factor of cognitive ability termed here ‘process analytic.’ This new factor pertains to the ability to construct symbolic processes, identify major decision‐making junctures, locating and correcting errors and faults within the process. Two studies, conducted in large‐scale samples of candidates undergoing individual psychological assessment for selection purposes, provide evidence supporting the existence of the above‐mentioned factor, in addition to the ‘traditional’ ones (verbal‐logical and quantitative‐performance). The implications for theoretical and psychometric developments in the field of aptitude assessment for vocational purposes is discussed as well as the need for further research to establish the preliminary direction pointed out in these studies.
Letters of Recommendation: Controversy and consensus from expert perspectives
Authors: Nicklin Jessica M. , Roch Sylvia G.
Published: February 2009

Letters of recommendation (LORs) are a widely used selection tool with many issues associated with their use. To address some of these issues, 575 professionals in personnel‐related professions reported their experiences with LORs. We separated items into consensus, polarized, or neither categories. Experts reached consensus that letter inflation is a problem that may never be alleviated and that more weight is placed on letters written by someone the reader knows or from a prestigious institution or organization. Most items were polarized, suggesting substantial controversy in the field regarding LORs. Some items originally polarized reached consensus within profession (academic vs applied). Academic professionals reported using LORs more and placing more weight on their contents than applied professionals. Implications discussed include recommendations for future research and practice, such as the appropriate use of LORs, LOR formats, and training.
Using Narrow Facets of an Integrity Test to Predict Safety: A test validation study
Authors: Casillas Alex , Robbins Steve , McKinniss Tamera , Postlethwaite Ben , Oh In‐Sue
Published: February 2009

This paper describes the development and validation of an integrity test, the WorkKeys Performance Assessment, designed specifically to measure two domains: employee risk reduction (i.e., safety behavior) and general work attitudes. These domains were hypothesized to differentially predict multiple work outcomes, including task performance, organizational citizenship, counterproductive behavior, and safety. The study used a large sample of workers whose performance was rated by their supervisors. Results suggest that both integrity domains predict employee behavior, with risk reduction providing incremental validity over general work attitudes when predicting counterproductive and safety behavior. The findings support the value of measuring both domains of integrity.
Autism, Empathy and Questions of Moral Agency
Authors: KRAHN TIMOTHY , FENTON ANDREW
Published: February 2009

In moral psychology, it has long been argued that empathy is a necessary capacity of both properly developing moral agents and developed moral agency (Blair, 2008; Hume et al., 1978). This view stands in tension with the belief that some individuals diagnosed with autism—which is typically characterized as a deficiency in social reciprocity (including empathy)—are moral agents. In this paper we propose to explore this tension and perhaps trouble how we commonly see those with autism. To make this task manageable, we will consider whether high functioning individuals diagnosed with an autism spectrum disorder are capable of empathetic responses. If they are, then they possess a capacity that, on the view above, is required for moral agency. If they are not so capable, and yet sometimes engage in moral behaviour, this casts some doubt on the claim that empathy is required for moral agency. This second possibility will necessitate an exploration of the capacity of some individuals with autism to engage in moral behaviour, giving us further grounds to re‐see these individuals as moral agents.
Saving Critical Realism
Authors: HARRÉ ROM
Published: February 2009

Critical Realism aims to be both philosophically sophisticated and morally forward looking. Unfortunately the accepted form that this point of view has taken is flawed in both these aims. However, close attention to realist formats in science and the constraints that are required to give a social psychological application of them makes possible a revision of the Critical Realist scheme strengthening its scientific claim and removing certain moral ambiguities in its applications. What follows is a schematic outline for an alternative neo‐Critical Realism. Attention to the plausibility of working models leads from a substantivalist conception of social reality to a Heraclitean social metaphysics.
Age and factors influencing consumer behaviour
Authors: Hervé Catherine , Mullet Etienne
Published: February 2009

When evaluating a product or service, consumers seek out information to judge whether that specific product will meet certain criteria. The main concern of sales providers is how to increase their purchasers' willingness to buy a product. The authors studied the impact of age on the perceived importance and interaction of three factors known to influence people when buying clothes: price, durability and suitability. A sample of 160 French adults aged 18–90 rated their likelihood of buying an item of clothing in 27 scenarios, in which three levels (low, moderate and high) of each of the above three factors were combined in an orthogonal factorial design. For younger participants, a low price was considered a sufficient reason to buy the item of clothing. For older participants, suitability was a more important factor, while for the eldest people, durability was the most important.
Historical presence of home economics in IJCS
Authors: McGregor Sue L.T.
Published: February 2009

This paper explored the Journal for evidence of articles focused on home economics. A content analysis of 17 articles revealed three dominant themes: (a) changing definitions of home economics; (b) preferred core and focus of the profession; and (c) evolving conceptualizations and dimensions of home economics. Most of these articles appeared during the first 3 years of the Journal's existence (late 70s). The focus on home economics declined markedly during the 80s and 90s. When the Journal removed the words home economics from its title in 2001, these articles virtually disappeared. The study did validate the rigour of earlier thinking about home economics as profiled in the Journal, and made this repository of intellectual contributions more visible and accessible to the field.
Conflict resolution strategies in joint purchase decisions for major household consumer durables: a cross‐cultural investigation
Authors: Makgosa Rina , Kang Jikyeong
Published: February 2009

Previous studies on joint purchase decisions have investigated the types of conflict resolution strategies used by spouses, the usage frequency of different conflict resolution strategies, and the effects of demographics and various other variables, on the uses of conflict resolution strategies. Despite efforts to address this largely unexplored area, the role that culture plays in the use of conflict resolution strategies has been significantly ignored. Using a cross‐cultural perspective, this study addresses the gap in our understanding of the joint purchase decisions in the family by examining how husbands and wives of three ethnic groups in Britain – British Whites, Indians and African Blacks – use different conflict resolution strategies while jointly purchasing major household consumer products. The total sample comprised 583 husbands and wives of British White, Indian and African Black origin residing in London and Manchester in Britain. Our results showed that three conflict resolution strategies are used by both husbands and wives: bargaining, assertiveness and playing on an emotion. In addition, disengagement emerged as a strategy for husbands, whereas supplication emerged for wives. The study presented in this paper also provides substantial evidence of differences in the use of conflict resolution strategies by husbands and wives from the three ethnic groups, which greatly improves our knowledge on a cross‐cultural perspective of joint purchase decisions.
Differential sensitivity of oligodendrocytes and motor neurons to reactive nitrogen species: implications for multiple sclerosis
Authors: Bishop Amy , Hobbs Kimberly Green , Eguchi Asuka , Jeffrey Stephanie , Smallwood Lorraine , Pennie Cedona , Anderson James , Estévez Alvaro G.
Published: February 2009

Depending on its concentration, nitric oxide (NO) has beneficial or toxic effects. In pathological conditions, NO reacts with superoxide to form peroxynitrite, which nitrates proteins forming nitrotyrosine residues (3NY), leading to loss of protein function, perturbation of signal transduction, and cell death. 3NY immunoreactivity is present in many CNS diseases, particularly multiple sclerosis. Here, using the high flux NO donor, spermine‐NONOate, we report that oligodendrocytes are resistant to NO, while motor neurons are NO sensitive. Motor neuron sensitivity correlates with the NO‐dependent formation of 3NY, which is significantly more pronounced in motor neurons when compared with oligodendrocytes, suggesting peroxynitrite as the toxic molecule. The heme‐metabolizing enzyme, heme‐oxygenase‐1 (HO1), is necessary for oligodendrocyte NO resistance, as demonstrated by loss of resistance after HO1 inhibition. Resistance is reinstated by peroxynitrite scavenging with uric acid further implicating peroxynitrite as responsible for NO sensitivity. Most importantly, differential sensitivity to NO is also present in cultures of primary oligodendrocytes and motor neurons. Finally, motor neurons cocultured with oligodendrocytes, or oligodendrocyte‐conditioned media, become resistant to NO toxicity. Preliminary studies suggest oligodendrocytes release a soluble factor that protects motor neurons. Our findings challenge the current paradigm that oligodendrocytes are the exclusive target of multiple sclerosis pathology.
Economic outcomes from patients’ perspective and health‐related quality of life after total hip arthroplasty
Authors: Montin Liisa , Suominen Tarja , Katajisto Jouko , Lepistö Jyri , Leino‐Kilpi Helena
Published: February 2009

The aim of this study was to determine the economic outcomes (service use, health care and nonhealth care out‐of‐pocket costs) related to total hip arthroplasty from the perspective of patients. Also, examined was the relationship between economic outcomes and health‐related quality of life (HRQOL). One hundred patients, 54 female and 46 male, mean age 63.9 (SD 11.6) years, with osteoarthritis in the hip and undergoing primary or revision arthroplasty, participated in this follow‐up study. The drop‐out race was 13%. Patients’ service use, and out‐of‐pocket costs were recorded, and HRQOL was measured up to 6 months. The Friedman and Wilcoxon nonparametric tests showed that use of home nursing and transportation was most frequent at 1 month, whereas physiotherapy was used most often after 1 month. The Spearman coefficient of correlation, Fisher’s, Mann–Whitney U and Kruskal–Wallis tests were used to compare background factors with economic outcomes and HRQOL. Age, pain, gender, civil status, type of surgery and discharge destination showed associations with service use. Healthcare costs composed over 90% of total out‐of‐pocket costs, and nonhealthcare costs <10%. Age and discharge destination were related to total out‐of‐pocket costs. Patients’ HRQOL improved after surgery. The worse it was before, or after surgery, the more services were used, but no significant correlations between costs and HRQOL were observed. When deciding the timing of surgery, patients’ characteristics, especially level of pain and HRQOL should carefully evaluated, as they may predict patients’ service use and ability to manage at home after surgery.
The silent demand in the diagnostic phase
Authors: Giske Tove , Gjengedal Eva , Artinian Barbara
Published: February 2009

Patients’ experience of going through the diagnostic phase in hospital is apt to be overlooked by nurses and physicians; most of their inner preparative work for receiving the diagnosis is hidden because of the vulnerability of the situation. This paper discusses findings from a grounded theory study, of 18 in‐depth interviews of 15 patients going through medical investigation at a gastric ward in a Norwegian university hospital. The interviews were conducted in 2002–2003. The generated ‘Preparative Waiting Theory’, which accounts for how patients in the diagnostic phase work to prepare themselves for receiving a diagnosis, is discussed in relation to the Danish theologian and philosopher Løgstrup’s writings about the ethical demand and life utterances of trust, openness and the untouchable zone. The ethical demand from patients going through medical investigations is silent and radical, and thus challenging for nurses and physicians to judge how to best fulfil. Examples from the interviews are used to illustrate patients’ vulnerability as they prepare to face the conclusion about their case. To the extent trust develops between patients and nurses/physicians, patients can reveal what is at stake in their lives without feeling exposed or embarrassed. Because of the power nurses and physicians have in the healthcare system, and because of laws, morals and conventions guiding practice, we have a professional responsibility to develop a culture that fosters the ability and willingness to take care of our patients.
Psychometric testing of the brief screening version of Multidimensional Pain Inventory (Swedish version)
Authors: Jakobsson Ulf
Published: February 2009

Background:  The brief screening version of the Multidimensional Pain inventory (MPI) is a shorter version of the West Haven‐Yale Multidimensional Pain Inventory that measures pain in a multidimensional way and is theoretically linked to a cognitive‐behavioural perspective on chronic pain.

Objectives:  The aim of this study was to psychometrically evaluate the ‘brief screening version’ of the Multidimensional Pain inventory Swedish version (MPI‐S).

Methods:  An age‐stratified cross‐sectional study, comprising 384 people aged 18–102 years, was carried out in southern Sweden in 2005. Factor analyses were performed to investigate the factor structure of the instrument and inter‐correlation between the sub‐scales as well as external measures were used to assess convergent and discriminant validity. Reliability was assessed by internal consistency (Cronbach’s alpha).

Results:  Mean scores and standard deviations are presented for the total sample as well as for each stratum. The inter‐correlations revealed that discriminant validity was not satisfactory in the total sample, although the correlation analysis in each stratum showed acceptable discriminant validity in most age groups. The factor structure was the same as in the MPI‐S in all age groups, except for those aged ≥90 years. Reliability tests (Cronbach’s alpha) showed alpha values ranging between 0.68 and 0.93.

Conclusion:  The result showed that the instrument had acceptable validity and reliability in all age groups except for those aged ≥90 years. Thus, the instrument can be seen as a useful (multidimensional) form of screening for chronic pain.