bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025 huggingface dataset:
Operant Conditioning-Based Behavior Modification: One Approach to Treating Somatic Disorders
Authors: LeBow Michael D.
Published: May 2005

The applicability of behavior modification as a process for treating somatic difficulties is examined within the framework of measurement, modification, and evaluation. Illustrations of this process are presented throughout. In particular, the last section of the paper gives an example of a currently operative and multifaceted approach to the problem of obesity. Among the topics considered herein are the use of behavioral contracts that specify ameliorative weight reduction practices and the assessment as well as manipulation of eating speed.
Foreign Intervention in Medical Education: A Case Study of the Rockefeller Foundation's Involvement in a Thai Medical School
Authors: Donaldson Peter J.
Published: May 2005

A case study of the process of foreign intervention in medical education in the developing world is presented. Material collected from the Rockefeller Foundation Archives on a Foundation program in Thailand is used to analyze the conditions under which foreign agencies and their personnel intervene in the development of medical professionals in the Third World and to study the problems that may occur as a result of such intervention. The importance of value consensus and the competitive advantage foreigners have in the marketing of professional models are highlighted as reasons for the diffusion of Western models of medical education throughout the developing world.
Attitudinal Study of Graphic Computer-Based Instruction for Punctuation
Authors: Smith Carolena L.
Published: May 2005

The purpose of this study was to evaluate the relationship of student attitude using graphic enhanced versus nongraphic enhanced computer-based instruction. Four intact groups were randomly assigned treatment. Two groups received graphic instruction and two groups received nongraphic computer-based instruction. An attitude questionnaire was administered to evaluate student attitude toward the graphic and nongraphic computer-based instruction. Results of t-tests indicated there was no significant difference in attitude scores between graphic and nongraphic treatment groups at the .05 level.
Death and Society in Twentieth Century America
Authors: Fulton Robert , Owen Greg
Published: May 2005

American attitudes and responses toward death have changed markedly during the twentieth century. This transformation is illustrated through an examination of two age groups: those born prior to the advent of the atomic bomb, and those born into the nuclear age. Each cohort contended with very different patterns of environment and socio-historical experiences, and had differential life expectancies as well. Images of death have changed significantly over this time-span, partially because of the pervasive influence of television and the overall growth in the importance of media. Death's presence in the media is simultaneously everywhere and nowhere; it is at once illusively fantastical and frighteningly real. Today's youth face the threat of a sudden anonymous death that is counterpoised against a more immediate experience with death that often is either distorted or denied. It is within this context that America's youth express their fears and frustrations in music, drugs, violence, and vicarious death experiences. The research agenda should include investigation of such phenomena as the rising interest in spirituality and the increase in suicide among adolescents as possible symptoms of despair in an impersonal and threatened world.
Self-Reported Compliance with Diabetes Self-Management during Pregnancy
Authors: Ruggiero Laurie , Spirito Anthony , Coustan Donald , McGarvey Stephen T. , Low Kathy Graff
Published: May 2005

Objective:

The current study examined regimen compliance in pregnant women with pre-existing (overt) diabetes across multiple self-care tasks at three times during the pregnancy: mid-second, early third, and late third trimesters.

Method:

Forty-nine pregnant women with Type I (68%) or Type II (32%) diabetes completed measures to assess compliance with the diabetic regimen, major and minor life stressors, and social support for the diabetic regimen.

Results:

Pregnant women with overt diabetes generally reported being compliant with their self-care regimen. There were, however, notable differences in reported compliance levels across different regimen tasks. Specifically, 74 to 79 percent of women reported being always compliant with dietary recommendations compared to 86 to 88 percent for insulin administration, 85 to 89 percent in managing insulin reactions, and 94 to 96 percent for glucose testing. Furthermore, stress in the form of major and minor life events and regimen-related social support were significantly related to self-reported compliance with dietary recommendations. There was no relationship between compliance and blood glucose levels.

Conclusions:

These findings suggest that psychiatric consultants focus on ways to increase social support as one means of improving compliance in pregnant women with diabetes.
How to Recognize An “Interpretive Community” When You See One
Authors: Hansson Gunnar
Published: May 2005

The article describes some examples of empirical investigations that can be used to “recognize” what Stanley Fish called interpretive communities and to discuss what constitutes identifiable differences between them. The examples fall into three groups, depending upon what kinds of data have been collected and analyzed in the investigations: written protocols describing responses and interpretations; the use of statistical analysis and verbal scales to reach beyond or below the verbalized response; and studies of norms and conventions which are held by or known by a group of readers before a particular response has been formed.
Information, Education and Communication Needs in Family Planning: The Case of Pakistan
Authors: Cernada George P. , Rob A. K. Ubaidur
Published: May 2005

In spite of three decades of national family planning programmes, Pakistan's contraceptive prevalence rate was only 12 percent in 1991. Furthermore, the government family planning service delivery systems, primarily the family welfare center (FWC), cover less than 10 percent of the people in rural areas. Although there are cultural and religious constraints to social change, it can be argued effectively from recent surveys that there is a considerable need for family planning that has yet to be met. Certain barriers to, and options for, meeting this need are reviewed, particularly in terms of strengthening information, communication and education (TEC) at the community level.
Epidemic in the War Zone: Aids and Community Survival in New York City
Authors: Drucker Ernest
Published: May 2005

The characteristics and consequences of the AIDS/HIV epidemic in New York City are examined, with special attention to its impact on inner-city communities. The high numbers of AIDS cases are the source of increasing stress on public and community treatment and family and neighborhood networks of support. As the epidemic deepens (8 to 10 thousand new cases per year are expected by 1992) these resources, already weakened by years of underfunding, are becoming overwhelmed and are in danger of collapse. The high rates of HIV infection in these communities (5 to 20 percent of adults aged 25 to 45) and their linkage to widespread drug use prefigure the development of endemic levels in several population subgroups, with substantial risk of heterosexual spread. Simultaneously, there is a steady diffusion of infection to adjacent urban areas and, via migration patterns, to localities quite distant from New York City (e.g., Puerto Rico). Some hope can be found in the advent of more effective methods of early intervention for presymptomatic HIV infection. These offer an opportunity for combining clinical care with public health strategies that may restrict the spread of HIV while providing humane care for large numbers of people with AIDS and support for their families.
Land Tenure Patterns and Child Health in Southern Brazil: The Relationship between Agricultural Production, Malnutrition and Child Mortality
Authors: Victora Cesar G. , Vaughan J. Patrick
Published: May 2005

The relationships between infant mortality, malnutrition, and land tenure patterns in the State of Rio Grande do Sul, Brazil, were investigated with data from demographic and agricultural censuses, vital statistics, and dietary surveys, complemented by a large nutritional survey in urban and rural areas. These studies employed a variety of analytical methods and revealed that young children in areas with large ranches, livestock-raising, and a high proportion of agricultural wage-earners presented a higher mortality and had a poorer nutritional status than children in areas with small properties, crop agriculture, and self-employed family workers. Children of landowners showed least malnutrition and the smaller risk of death compared to children of laborers, although the differential seems to have narrowed in recent years. The main conclusion is that land tenure patterns play a very important role in determining early mortality and malnutrition in this Brazilian state.
A Study of One School System's Implementation of a Commercial Computer Managed Instruction Program
Authors: Whitney Douglas M. , Lehman James D.
Published: May 2005

The implementation of a commercial computer managed instruction (CMI) system in support of the elementary reading curriculum in an Indiana school system was examined through surveys of school principals, teachers, and parents in addition to the collection of standardized test scores. The surveys revealed satisfaction with aspects of the CMI system such as the type and amount of student information generated and the improvement of home-school communication. However, school principals and teachers often differed in their views of the CMI system's ease of use and effectiveness. The results suggest the need for improvement in some areas of CMI implementation in schools.
Stop-Out or Drop-Out? An Examination of College Withdrawals and Re-Enrollments
Authors: Woosley Sherry
Published: May 2005

The withdrawal policies of many universities are based on the supposition that being able to withdraw without grade point repercussions will encourage students to return to the institution at a later date. This study focused on withdrawing students and examined the differences between those who re-enroll after a withdrawal and those who do not. About one-third of withdrawing students did re-enroll. Although intentions to return were related to re-enrollment behaviors, respondents were not always accurate in their predictions. Numerous differences were also found between those who did re-enroll and those who did not, including educational goals, work commitments, adjustment issues, health-related problems, and participation levels. The results suggest that the distinction between drop-outs and stop-outs may further our understanding of student retention issues.
Reference and Preference in Narrative: Sherwood Anderson's Winesburg, Ohio
Authors: Grimaud Michel
Published: May 2005

In story and discourse proper names may be seen as one of five basic choices confronting the text producer: proper name (given name, surname); specific description (the tall one); classifier (the woman); pronoun (they); and zero anaphora. In Grimaud [1, 2], I studied cross-cultural (Hungarian and American) strategies in the use of those categories; in the present article, I look at some of the psychological implications of the various possible category choices by having twenty-five students comment on their preferences for one of the three versions of Sherwood Anderson's short story “The Strength of God” (in Winesburg, Ohio, 1919); a proper name only, a description only, and the mixed original version. Two influences dominated: a “friendliness” factor of proper names or descriptions (depending upon subject) and expectations concerning text coherence. Seven narrative maxims are postulated to account for the socio-cultural influences on preference for names in narrative.
Who Gets Referred? Child Psychiatric Consultation in a Pediatric Hospital
Authors: Sack William H. , Blocker Douglas L.
Published: May 2005

The authors approach the question, “Who receives a child psychiatry consultation?” in several ways. First, by reviewing the consultation patterns in a pediatric hospital over a five year period as a new array of liaison services were being provided, they found the overall consultation rate decreased. Yet in absolute numbers the referral rate for consultation around diagnostic issues remained relatively constant. This underlines the core importance of the child psychiatry consultant as diagnostician. Second, in matching a group of children receiving a psychiatric consultation against a group of children who did not, the authors found somewhat more psychosocial information recorded in the charts of the former group. However, it is doubtful that this played any direct role in the generation of the referral per se. The authors stress the finding that the pediatric hospital is a medical setting and unless the child's psychological problems impinge directly on that system, such problems are likely to remain hidden and beyond the scope of the consultation process.
Defining Problems That Call for Innovation
Authors: McGuire Peter , Putzell Sara
Published: May 2005

In order to define a problem convincingly, technical writers must first decide what kind of problem they are defining. When both writer and reader begin with the same assumptions about what is important in a definition, problems can be defined easily. However, difficulties occur when writers and readers generally have differing assumptions. This is particularly true about problems involving innovation. Once writers recognize both their own and readers' assumptions about such problems, they can adopt techniques to gain reader concurrence.
Group Psychological Therapy for Cancer Patients: A Point of View, and Discussion of the Hierarchy of Options
Authors: Cunningham Alastair J. , Edmonds Claire V. I.
Published: May 2005

Objective:

We present here a point of view about the logical role of group psychological therapies in the care of cancer patients, and propose a comprehensive, four-stage program that could be implemented at any large cancer treatment center.

Method:

Our proposals rest on a review of the literature, and on our own experience with various kinds of psychological help for cancer patients, some of which is described.

Results:

It is clear that group psychological therapies improve the quality of life of many participating cancer patients, and there is preliminary evidence that it may prolong life in some cases. We describe five main kinds of adjuvant psychological therapy, arranging them on a hierarchy of increasingly active participation by the recipient, and noting the status of evidence for their efficacy. They are: providing information, emotional support, behavioral training in coping skills, psychotherapy (of various kinds), and, more speculatively, spiritual/existential therapy.

Conclusions:

We propose that it is time to consider psychological therapy as an adjuvant in cancer management, analogous to adjuvant chemotherapy. The main indication for advocating group psychological therapy to patients should, we argue, be an expert assessment that the patient is likely to benefit, and should not (as is usual at present) be restricted to either 1) those patients with overt psychopathology, or 2) those few who specifically request it.
Behavioral Disturbance, Embolism, and Mitral Stenosis
Authors: Frisbie James H.
Published: May 2005

The hypothesized equivalence of behavioral disturbances (BD) and embolic (E) events in predicting subsequent events in mitral stenosis patients was tested by a retrospective comparison of clinical courses. Behavioral disturbances, presenting in twenty patients, were followed by 9.6 BD, 13.8 E, and 5.3 fatal events per 100 patient years. Embolic events, presenting in thirty-three patients, were followed by 1.9 BD, 8.4 E, and 3.4 fatal events per 100 patient years. Forty-six patients presenting with neither event subsequently had 2.7 BD, 7.3 E, and 3.6 fatal events per 100 patient years. It is concluded that a behavioral disturbance in the setting of mitral stenosis is as predictive of an embolic event as is an embolic event itself.
The Integration of Psychosocial Care in a General Hospital: Development of an Interdisciplinary Consultation Program
Authors: Kaltreider Nancy B. , Martens Wilma , Monterrosa Susan , Sachs Lewis
Published: May 2005

The problems of multiple competing psychosocial services led to the development of an interdisciplinary consultation program in a university-affiliated Veterans Administration Hospital. The need for integration of services is frequently recognized but difficult to achieve. Representatives from Psychiatry, Psychology, Social Work, and Nursing worked out and carried through a coordinated plan to provide psychosocial consultation to the general hospital. Description of the initial experience focuses on the process of change within a traditional system. A case example which reflects the role and interaction of the disciplines is included. We found that the psychosocial system improved communication, established a pattern of interdisciplinary teaching and stressed preventive work.
In Search of Pain Syndromes: Some Unresolved Issues
Authors: Nehemkis Alexis M. , Charter Richard A. , Keenan Mary Ann
Published: May 2005

Issues relevant to more precise definition of pain syndromes are identified. Previous research approaches to the definition of clinical pain groupings or syndromes are examined. Emphasis is placed on the importance of matching definition of the clinical pain sample under study with the specific research question(s) being addressed. Problems inherent in the study of cancer and low back pain groups are discussed in detail. Conceptual and methodological issues related to definition of pain populations and methods for their comparison, utilizing McGill Pain Questionnaire data, are examined and suggestions for future research are offered.
Taking the Traditional Route: Some Covert Costs of Traditional Decisions for the Married Career Woman
Authors: Sanders Audrey , Steil Janice M. , Weinglass Janet
Published: May 2005

Married women working for pay often experience a differential valuing of their own as compared to their husbands' careers. Yet minimal dissatisfaction is reported. This study aimed to assess whether minimal dissatisfaction is the woman's full response. One hundred twenty-three orthodox Jewish college women responded to hypothetical career dilemmas on behalf of a single as compared to a married woman. Both open and closed-ended items were used. Consistent with the findings of others, the closed-ended items asserted minimal dissatisfaction on behalf of the negative career decision of the married woman. Responses to open-ended items suggest that this is not the whole story. More unsolicited negative passive affect was expressed on behalf of the married than the single woman's dilemma.
Smoking or Health? International Trends and Marketing of Tobacco and Possible Interventions
Authors: Moody Philip M. , Al Bustan Mahmoud A. , Manav Vijaya
Published: May 2005

This article focuses on the trends in cigarette smoking in both developed and developing countries. There is a change in the smoking patterns from developed to the developing countries due to the shift of emphasis upon marketing of tobacco in the developing countries by the transnational tobacco industry. This is achieved due to the tobacco company's advertising strategies and its impact on the population. The harmful effects of tobacco production and its impact on the environment and health levels in these countries is discussed. Intervention strategies for smoking cessation and the benefits of such interventions is also discussed. This article focuses on these changes from a political economic of illness approach rather than just focusing on individual smokers and holding only them responsible for their healthy or non-healthy conditions.
Perceptions of Ward Atmosphere on an Oncology Unit
Authors: Alexy William D.
Published: May 2005

This study examined perceptions of ward atmosphere and ideal ward atmosphere by twenty patients, twenty-four staff, and fifteen family members on an oncology unit at a major cancer research institute. Specified preferences for an ideal ward atmosphere were assumed to reflect psychosocial needs of the three groups. Data were analyzed with multivariate statistics where it was found that perceptions of ward atmosphere differed for the three groups as did their perceptions of the amount of change needed to form an ideal ward atmosphere. This study was viewed as an initial and promising approach to assessing the compatibility of patient, family member, and staff needs along relationship, treatment program, and systems maintenance dimensions. It was believed that further studies of this type will increase the professional's understanding of the relationship between psychosocial needs and reponse to treatment.
Parapsychology—Its Contributions to the Study of Death
Authors: Rogo D. Scott
Published: May 2005

One topic with which parapsychology has historically associated itself has been whether or not psychical phenomena indicate that man survives death and might even communicate to the living. Parapsychology has investigated the following phenomena which relate to this problem: apparitions, alleged messages from the dead given through gifted subjects (mediums) via some sort of ESP channel; out-of-body experiences (where the mind seems to leave the physical body and functions independently of it); and deathbed visions. Although these phenomena have been verified, parapsychologists are in no general agreement over whether these phenomena do provide evidence that man survives death. Several alternate explanations have been proposed. Nevertheless, psychical phenomena occur so often related to death that any psychological inquiry into the nature of death and dying should take into consideration the data parapsychology has amassed on the subject.
Women Workers in the Health Service Industry
Authors: Brown Carol A.
Published: May 2005

The health service industry is unusual in that most of the skilled as well as unskilled workers are women, although the industry is largely controlled by men. Women are hired because they constitute an inexpensive, available, and seemingly powerless work force. Women enter health service because they have few alternatives to the low-paying, dead-end jobs found there. Health service occupations are organized like craft unions, with rigid hierarchical separations and control by the top occupation. Conflicts between men and women-between management and workers–are often played out as conflicts between occupations. Challenges to physicians come from various nursing specialties as well as from technical professions. Physicians in turn create lower-level occupations which challenge the nurses' status. Increasing industrialization alters the pattern of conflict, creating opportunities for individual bureaucratic mobility as well as favorable conditions for unionization drives. Unionism is often held back by sex, race, and professional conflicts, which must be overcome if the status of women is to be changed in the industry.
The Influence of Student Computer-Ownership and in-Home Use on Achievement in an Elementary School Computer Programming Curriculum
Authors: Nichols Lois Mayer
Published: May 2005

The purpose of this study was to investigate the influence of home computer ownership and use on achievement. Ninety-six second graders and seventy-nine fifth graders were taught BASIC programming with homework for three marking periods, and Logo programming without homework for one marking period. Pretests were given in both BASIC and Logo. Posttests were administered at the end of BASIC and Logo instruction. Questionnaires were issued to assess computer use in homework completion. Students were grouped by ability, sex, and computer ownership. Posttest scores for BASIC and Logo and BASIC homework score averages were analyzed using ANOVA and ANCOVA (with pretest scores as the covariate). Fifth grade computer owners had significantly ( p = .02) higher mean homework scores than nonowners. Among high ability fifth graders, owners outperformed the nonowners on both BASIC and Logo posttest scores. Computer use in homework assignments was not as important to achievement as ownership.
Biorhythms: An Empirical Examination
Authors: Kunz Phillip R.
Published: May 2005

This article examines the theory of biorhythms and indicates that it is possible that the success of the theory depends upon selective use of confirming data. The theory is examined by using three separate data sets: 727 deaths, 319 marriages, and data from students who kept track of their feelings and abilities for a period of time, one group having a biorhythm to follow and the other not knowing about the theory. None of the data sets provided confirmation of the theory. The theory appears to support the self-fulfilling prophecy, and not the notion of biorhythm.
Cognitive Biases and Suicidal Ideation in Elderly Psychiatric Inpatients
Authors: Uncapher Heather
Published: May 2005

Cognitive factors such as perceptions of poor health and negative expectancies toward the future may mediate relationships between health variables, depressive symptoms, and suicidal ideation. In this study of risk factors associated with late life suicidal ideation, thirty older psychiatric inpatients were interviewed using standardized instruments. Self-reported symptoms of hopelessness, perceived health, and depression, as well as number of impaired medical illness systems were examined in relation to presence of suicidal thoughts. Several aspects of a cognitive model of suicide were supported using partial correlation and regression analyses. First, patients who were more depressed and suicidal had more negative cognitions than those who were less depressed and not suicidal. Second, depressive symptoms were strongly related to suicidal thoughts even after controlling for the patients' number of impaired illness systems. Third, cognitive factors versus health factors were shown to influence the relationship between depression and suicidal ideation. These findings emphasize the importance of cognitive biases in geriatric suicidal ideation.
Obituary and In-Memoriam Advertisements in Nigerian Newspapers
Authors: Alali A. Odasuo
Published: May 2005

This article examines the obituary and in-memoriam advertisements in Nigerian newspapers to determine the dimensions of content used to manage grief. Ten dimensions of content were abstracted: pictorial representation as a widespread practice; immediacy of announcement following death as an appropriate etiquette in the management of death; funeral arrangements are included as open invitation to a community of mourners; ads indicate direct contact and communication with the deceased; content suggests the belief in personal immortality of the soul; religion is a pervasive, dominating force in ads; there are similarity in choice of words used in ads; recognition of the temporal nature of life; mourning seems to be an ongoing process; and often, the deceased is perceived as resting in peace. Never do obituaries and in-memoriams include the flaws of the deceased. Clearly, the dimensions of content in the obituary and in-memoriam advertisements of Nigerian newspapers are a specific cultural behavior of people who exhibit a significant degree of similarity in the management of grief. These ads serve as an unbroken link between the deceased and the bereaved. The study also suggests that openness to death is the appropriate etiquette in the management of death in Nigeria.
The Online University: Who are its Students and How are They Unique?
Authors: Mattes Christian , Nanney Robert J. , Coussons-Read Mary
Published: May 2005

This study examined relationships between student personality and choice of traditional on-campus or online college classes. The personality profiles of online and on-campus students were determined using the Fifth Edition of the 16 Personality Factor (16PF) questionnaire. Students taking online classes scored higher than on-campus students on scales of abstract reasoning and apprehension, and lower on the scale for social boldness. Online students were also more comfortable with computers than on-campus students, and were more likely to be nontraditional students (26 and older). These data show that there are differences in personality, age, and computer experience between online and on-campus students and help to elucidate the characteristics of students selecting the online venue for college classes and/or curricula which are useful to instructors teaching on the Internet as well as companies working to architect these learning environments.
Transnational Capital and Confessional Politics: The Paradox of the Health Care System in Lebanon
Authors: Sen Kasturi , Mehio-Sibai Abla
Published: May 2005

For the past two decades there has been a debate over the implementation of structural adjustment policies in the health sector of developing countries, much of it focusing on the political and economic relevance of the reform process for public health provision. However, very few studies have been able to assess the relevance of the private sector, which has had a central role in the restructuring of health services worldwide. Lebanon provides just such a case, with a predominantly private provider and the role of the state relegated to financing, with few controls over supply. This situation has ensured the systematic destruction of what remained of public provision in the 1970s. The country is now faced with one of the most expensive health services in the world, and one in which much of the population continues to live under conditions of considerable economic deprivation. The unique situation of Lebanon is maintained by its politics of confessionalism, with sociopolitical relations dominated by primordial ties of family, tribe, and kin, which does not seem to be an obstacle to the process of globalization. The authors suggest that this context reinforces the gross inequalities in access to health care; they explore the complex relationship between state, finance capital, and confessional politics in the context of health sector reform, in particular the financing of health care.
Mortality and Economic Instability: Detailed Analyses for Britain and Comparative Analyses for Selected Industrialized Countries
Authors: Brenner M. Harvey
Published: May 2005

This paper discusses a first-stage analysis of the link of unemployment rates, as well as other economic, social and environmental health risk factors, to mortality rates in postwar Britain. The results presented represent part of an international study of the impact of economic change on mortality patterns in industrialized countries. The mortality patterns examined include total and infant mortality and (by cause) cardiovascular (total), cerebrovascular and heart disease, cirrhosis of the liver, and suicide, homicide and motor vehicle accidents. Among the most prominent factors that beneficially influence postwar mortality patterns in England/Wales and Scotland are economic growth and stability and health service availability. A principal detrimental factor to health is a high rate of unemployment. Additional factors that have an adverse influence on mortality rates are cigarette consumption and heavy alcohol use and unusually cold winter temperatures (especially in Scotland). The model of mortality that includes both economic changes and behavioral and environmental risk factors was successfully applied to infant mortality rates in the interwar period. In addition, the “simple” economic change model of mortality (using only economic indicators) was applied to other industrialized countries. In Canada, the United States, the United Kingdom, and Sweden, the simple version of the economic change model could be successfully applied only if the analysis was begun before World War II; for analysis beginning in the postwar era, the more sophisticated economic change model, including behavioral and environmental risk factors, was required. In France, West Germany, Italy, and Spain, by contrast, some success was achieved using the simple economic change model.
Let's Give Better Scientific and Technical Talks
Authors: Schoen Robert
Published: May 2005

The movement toward improved written technical communications has generated little parallel pressure for improved oral communication. Yet the cost of noncommunicative technical talks is large. Attention by speakers to several simple details will result in significant improvements in technical talks. The most important of these details is to present conclusions as close to the beginning of the talk as possible. This simple action will help change a talk from a mystery story to an understandable scientific presentation.
Urban Cyberspace Initiatives: Design Technology in Urban Centers
Authors: Bowman Joseph , Shaw Alan , Hammond Allen , Lincoln Bruce
Published: May 2005

This article presents the evolution of the Urban CyberSpace Initiative (UCSI) as the result of the convergence of work carried out in parallel by the four authors over the years 1992–1997. This article will look at the work as it developed and evolved from the early formation of public access technology centers in urban inner-city communities to the design and deployment of advanced high speed multimedia Internet projects. The Urban CyberSpace Initiative will analyze the reasons for its formation as it has been applied to the problems and needs expressed in the geographic locations of New York City, New York; Albany, New York; Boston, Massachusetts; and Newark, New Jersey. UCSI will present a set of findings in the form of a procedural methodology designed to lead us to an attainable end-in-view: the economically sustainable urban, inner city technological oasis.
The Videodisc: An Educational Challenge
Authors: Withrow Frank B.
Published: May 2005

This article details videodisc projects in elementary schools supported in part by the United States Department of Education. The development of private videodisc programs for elementary and secondary schools is also discussed. While the author feels that this is a promising technology, he considers it as still in an experimental stage. The Videodisc Interactive Microcomputer (VIM) project supported by the Center for Libraries and Educational Improvement included forty-five elementary schools in seventeen states. The best liked of the forty-five discs supplied to the schools was the “WHALES” disc developed by the National Geographic Society and the University of Nebraska. Developments in both hardware and software make it possible for the average school to purchase off-shelf operating educational programs. Pioneers in the commercial field have been Video Discovery and their bio-science discs, and Video Vision with their space discs. System Impact Incorporated of Washington, D.C. has just introduced a new comprehensive basic mathematics series, and the Society for Visual Education of Chicago, Illinois has introduced a social studies series. Videodisc technology holds great promise for educators at all levels.
Examining Athletes' Attitudes toward Using Anabolic Steroids and Their Knowledge of the Possible Effects
Authors: Anshel Mark H. , Russell Kenneth G.
Published: May 2005

One goal of contemporary sports leaders is to eradicate the use of banned drugs in competitive sport. A common approach to achieving this outcome is to provide athletes with adequate education about the effects of drug use. Ostensibly, educational programs about the deleterious effects of using anabolic steroids are thought to discourage their intake. Thus, the purpose of this study was to examine the relationships between the athletes' knowledge about the long-term effects of anabolic steroids and their attitudes toward this type of drug. Multiple regression analyses indicated relatively low R2′s and correlations between the various components of subjects' knowledge and their attitude toward steroid ingestion. This suggests that educational programs for athletes about taking anabolic steroids may have limited value in terms of creating appropriate, responsible attitudes toward this illegal, unethical, and medically questionable practice.
Mortality and Working Conditions in Agriculture in Underdeveloped Countries
Authors: Laurell Asa Cristina
Published: May 2005

The search for information and analysis of the mortality of agricultural workers in underdeveloped countries shows that there exists hardly any research on this subject. What little information that can be found is incomplete and scattered, making it difficult to gain systematic empirical knowledge of the problem. In addition, data are not collected for the purpose of explaining the patterns of mortality observed. It therefore seems necessary to generate a theoretical framework permitting the analysis of mortality among agricultural workers. This paper intends to point out the close relationship that exists between the mortality and the dynamic of the social and economic process of agriculture in the underdeveloped countries. By doing so, we hope to show that the problems of health, disease, and death of socially defined groups are not simply a matter of biology, but of the interrelation between biology and the historical process of which these groups are a part.
Counseling Dying Clients
Authors: Kitrick Daniel Mc
Published: May 2005

This paper reviews approaches to individual counseling with adult dying clients. Potential strengths and weaknesses highlight brief descriptions of the approaches. The different counseling treatments are integrated within the framework of matching treatments with clients. Clients are categorized in terms of Kastenbaum and Aisenberg's four major ways of responding to one's death: overcoming, participating, fearing, and sorrowing. The assumption is made that upon entry to counseling the dying client's reaction to death is likely to reflect largely one of these fours ways of responding to dying. Additionally, controversial issues in the literature are discussed and related to counseling approaches. Finally, directions are suggested for research on counseling dying clients.
Word Processing and the Technology of Prose
Authors: Cummins Walter
Published: May 2005

This article suggests that computerized word processing provides a closer analogue to the mental processes involved in prose writing than use of a pen or pencil or a typewriter. This statement may appear paradoxical because word processing depends upon a complex technology that for some observers may appear to be “unnatural.” However, the flexibility provided by this technology, especially the infinite opportunities to alter an impermanent set of notations, accommodates the multiple and overlapping cognitive activities essential to writing. This thesis is supported by the various interdisciplinary studies contained in Cognitive Processes in Writing.
Specter Orange
Authors: Scott-Clark Cathy , Levy Adrian , McMahon Jean
Published: May 2005

Nearly 30 years after the Vietnam War, a chemical weapon used by U.S. troops is still exacting a hideous toll on each new generation in Vietnam. The dioxin (TCCD) that contaminated the herbicide Agent Orange is one of the most toxic molecules known to science. The contaminant persists in the soil. The United States has done nothing to combat the medical and environmental catastrophe that is overwhelming the country.
Widening the Debate? Consultation and Participation in Local Health Care Planning in the English and Swedish Health Services
Authors: North Nancy , Werkö Sophie
Published: May 2005

In both English and Swedish health care, there is currently much interest in encouraging public consultation and participation in public service planning in order to improve quality, enhance local accountability, and help to inform and legitimize difficult decisions about health care priorities. This article explores the progress of local budget holders for health services in the two countries—primary care groups/trusts in England and county councils and municipalities in Sweden—in developing consultative and participative processes. Using secondary and primary research methods, the study identified much activity among English primary care groups/trusts, although with less certainty of outcome. In Sweden, initiatives were limited to a few county councils, were more distinctive, and in the case of one county council, resulted in the sustained channeling of citizens' views. In comparing and contrasting the approaches in the two countries, the authors note the importance of political cultures and institutional arrangements as well as, more generally, the complexities and challenges of consultation and participation in health care planning.
The Serial Murderer's Motivations: An Interdisciplinary Review
Authors: DeHart Dana D. , Mahoney John M.
Published: May 2005

A serial killer is defined as an individual who murders two or more victims over an extended period of time, ranging from days to years, with the crimes often being sexually motivated. Although there is a growing popular emphasis on the phenomenon, there is a paucity of rigorous research in the area. The present article reviews existing motivational theories of serial murder and proposes additional explications from a range of disciplines. Suggestions for future research are presented and integrational approaches are encouraged.
China's One Child Family Program: Policies, Barriers and Communication Network
Authors: Li Virginia C.
Published: May 2005

China's experience in the one child family campaign is impeded by forces which are political, economic, cultural and administrative. The infrastructure for family planning can be enhanced by a vigorous communication strategy directed to the citizenry and cadres. The disincentive system created by some provincial and municipal authorities may signify a trend which is crucial to China's ability to bring its population growth under control.
Facing Multiple Audiences in Engineering and R&D Writing: The Social Contexts of a Technical Report
Authors: Brown Vincent J.
Published: May 2005

The customary approach to classifying multiple audiences for written discourse is to recognize primary, secondary, and immediate audiences, and, in some cases, gatekeeping audiences. Based on findings from an ethnographic case study of engineering authors in an R&D setting, this article suggests that authors should also attend to watchdog audiences as they write. A watchdog audience pays close attention to the written transaction between the author and the primary audience. Authors must direct their discourse toward the primary audience, but they must also keep the motives and purposes of the watchdog audience in mind as they write and revise. The watchdog audience in my case study, while it had no direct leverage or other organizational power over the authors, still influenced the authors extensively as they revised their text. Evidence indicates that, beyond the apparent and traditional sources of power, there are more contextual, hidden, socially mediated power relationships equally capable of shaping written discourse.
The Effects of Computer Programming on Problem-Solving Skills and Attitudes
Authors: Dalton David W. , Goodrum David A.
Published: May 2005

This study examined the effects of systematic computer programming and problem-solving instruction on problem-solving skills and attitudes. Two hundred seventy-two elementary and junior high students were exposed to one of four computer programming and problem-solving treatments for a period of twenty weeks. Elementary students received programming instruction in Logo, while junior high students studied BASIC. Results indicated that computer programming alone was ineffective in teaching problem solving. However, when paired with systematic problem-solving instruction, learners demonstrated significant learning gains.
Psichiatria Democratica: A Case Study of an Italian Community Mental Health Service
Authors: Ramon Shulamit
Published: May 2005

The Italian Mental Health Act of 1978 signified a major reform of the psychiatric system in that country and included directives for the closing down of all mental hospitals. This paper reports the structure and mode of work of the newly created community mental health services in a Tuscan town. It further investigates the background that made such a major change possible, and details its successes and problems to date. In addition, the relevance of the Italian experience to policy changes in other national psychiatric systems which so far have been unable to produce a comprehensive community-centered service is discussed.
Sociobiology: Another Biological Determinism
Authors: Lewontin R. C.
Published: May 2005

Sociobiology is a form of biological determinism which argues that human social organization is constrained by genes that have been selected in evolution. In particular, it regards male dominance, hierarchical society, entrepreneurial economic activity, territoriality, and aggression as consequences of human genes. It is shown that sociobiological theory is carefully constructed to make it impossible to test, that it makes a number of fundamental errors in attempting to describe “human nature,” that there is no evidence for inheritance of human social traits, and that the evolutionary arguments used are merely fanciful, adaptive stories.
Using History to Shape Policy for Educational Technology
Authors: Marcus Jane E.
Published: May 2005

This paper suggests ways in which policy-makers can use history to develop plans for bringing computers into schools. It briefly discusses both the advocacy and concern of educators who support the introduction of computers in schools as well as those who question such efforts. Two ways of applying historical analysis to the issue of educational technology are proposed. The first looks at changes in the educational institution over time. The growth of the common school is discussed as well as the bureaucratization of schools. Both changes resulted from societal pressure on the institution. The second application of historical analysis looks specifically at past attempts to introduce educational technology in the schools. Differences between past and present factors and situations are mentioned, and ways of preventing repetition of past failures are suggested.
Free Care: A Quantitative Analysis of Health and Cost Effects of a National Health Program for the United States
Authors: Woolhandler Steffie , Himmelstein David U.
Published: May 2005

We estimate the health and cost effects of instituting a National Health Program (NHP) in the United States that would provide universal, comprehensive free care. Based on empiric studies of the relationship of health service use to cost and health outcomes, we estimate that an NHP would increase use of health services by 14.6 percent and save between 47,000 and 106,000 lives annually. Because the United States faces a growing surplus of hospital beds and physicians, additional services could be provided at low cost. Simplifying the health bureaucracy that currently enforces unequal access to care would also result in substantial savings. Consequently, an NHP would actually decrease costs 2.4 percent, $10.2 billion annually, since the $35.7 billion spent for additional services would be offset by $45.9 billion saved on bureaucracy.