bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025 huggingface dataset:
Compressive Behavior of a Thermoplastic Composite (GR/PEEK)
Authors: Seidensticker David G. , Kim Kwang-Soo , Hahn H. Thomas , Jensen David W. , Goering Jonathan C.
Published: March 2007

The compressive properties of a graphite/thermoplastic composite (IM6/APC-2) were experimentally determined using unidirectional and multidirectional laminates. The notch sensitivity and damage tolerance of multidirectional laminates were also investigated by comparing the behavior of notched and impacted specimens with unflawed specimens. Whitney's average stress criterion was used to characterize the reduc tion in the compressive strength due to the presence of notches, while damage tolerance of impacted panels was compared directly using strength reduction. Resistance to low velocity impact was compared using a proposed empirical damage resistance parameter, γ, which was determined experimentally.

The observed failure mechanisms were typical for a tough-resin composite. In general, the damage was limited to a small region immediately surrounding the source of the stress concentration and only minor delamination was observed. The unidirectional specimens failed due to a band of fiber kinking at a large angle to the applied load, while delamina tion was the dominant failure mechanism in the multidirectional laminates. C-scans of im pacted specimens indicated minimal damage compared with other thermoplastic and un toughened graphite-epoxy composites.

The compressive properties of IM6/APC-2 compare favorably with similar commer cially available materials. The compressive longitudinal modulus (146 GPa) and strength (1062 MPa) are high and the notch sensitivity as measured by the characteristic length ( ao = 2.37 mm) is good. In particular, resistance to the initial impact was excellent when compared with untoughened graphite/epoxy systems [1].
The Effect of Low Melt Temperature on Morphology and Mode-I Fracture Toughness of PEEK/Carbon Composite
Authors: Xiao X.R. , Denault J. , Vu-Khanh T.
Published: March 2007

The effects of molding and remolding temperatures on the Mode-I fracture toughness of APC-2 composite have been investigated. The morphology of the PEEK matrix in remolded plaques has been examined by thermal analysis and by scanning elec tron microscopy on etched surfaces. It is suggested that two recrystallization mechanisms compete during remolding at low melt temperatures: the annealing mechanism and a self- seeding crystal growth. The former embrittles the PEEK matrix, reducing the toughness of APC-2 composite.
SMC Recycling Technology
Authors: Inoh Takashi , Yokoi Toshio , Sekiyama Ken-Ichi , Kawamura Norihisa , Mishima Yasuhiro
Published: March 2007

Sheet Molding Compound (SMC) has been widely applied to automotive exterior parts and sliding roof housings for its excellent mechanical properties. Generally speaking, it is difficult to be recycled. But since SMC offers excellent mechanical proper ties that may not be obtainable from other plastic materials, we have developed a new recy cling technology for SMC. By this technology, the scrapped SMC is ground to fine par ticles and introduced into virgin SMC as filler. The mechanical properties of recycled SMC are similar to those of the original material. It is applied to the overhead rack of the Sprinter Carib. We now plan to apply recycled SMC to other parts.
Dynamic Mechanical Analysis of Glass Mat-Reinforced Polypropylene (GMT-PP)
Authors: Schledjewski R. , Karger-Kocsis J.
Published: March 2007

DMA spectra were taken from tensile loaded neat and glass-fiber mat- reinforced polypropylene (GMT-PP) with different reinforcement fractions ( Vf). Reliable data were achieved by using rectangular specimens of proper dimension, i.e., having a clamped surface of 60 x 15 mm2. It was established that the β- or Tg-transition of PP re mains unaffected by adding GF mat. This was attributed to the fact that GF does not inter fere with the crystallization. The α-transition, linked to the crystalline morphology, disap peared by GF mat incorporation. It is reasonable that the GF mat, wetted by the matrix, overtakes the control in the rubbery region (between Tg and melting temperature, Tm) for the deformability from the matrix in the unreinforced state. The complex dynamic tensile modulus ( E*) of the GMT-PP's changed linearly with Vf for various temperatures, which allows a reliable estimation of the stiffness for different GMT-PP types.
A Review of Instrumentation on Stress
Authors: Downs Cal W. , Driskill Gerald , Wuthnow Di
Published: March 2007

This article reviews five instruments that measure some aspect of stress. The instruments are: Kindler's Personal Stress Assessment Inventory, Derogatis's Stress Profile, Folkman and Lazarus's Ways of Coping Checklist, Maslach's Burnout Inventory, and Pareek's Organizational Role Stress Scale. These instruments are very different and, therefore, will serve different purposes in communication research. Currently, several of the instruments report that considerable research needs to be done to test the validity and reliability of the instruments in different contexts.
Change in Organizational Culture
Authors: Bastien David T.
Published: March 2007

This exploratory study employs research methods and concepts from linguistics to gain deeper insight into the organizational integration phase of a corporate acquisition. Individual communicative behavior, organizational culture, and communication functions are explored in depth. Most important, this study explores the linkages between social identity, language use, and retention in organizational mergers and acquisitions (M/As). The study demonstrates the usefulness of organizations as a site for linguistic research and provides insight into the processes of organizational change. Among the findings are that change in culture does not happen gradually or incrementally across the whole organization, but either quickly or not at all, and that change happens by subgroups. It also found that conflict in M/As, which had been thought of as between organizations, was instead between individuals who chose to accommodate culturally to the acquirer and those who did not.
The Bureaucratization, Commodification, and Privatization of Sexual Harassment through Institutional Discourse
Authors: Clair Robin P.
Published: March 2007

The present study extends research of sexual harassment by examining the communicative techniques that are employed in institutional discourse. Sexual harassment is viewed as a discursive practice that can be enacted, tolerated, perpetuated, or rectified through communication. Past studies have examined how the victims of sexual harassment “frame” these events that in turn affect power relations. The current study addresses how universities frame their managerial discourse regarding sexual harassment, which often perpetuates the bureaucratization, commodification, and privatization of sexual harassment. Specifically, a post-structuralist critique and deconstruction of the policies and brochures developed by the Big Ten universities are undertaken to reveal oppressive and/or emancipatory forms of discourse. Three specific forms are addressed. They are taken-for-granted discourse, strategic ambiguity, and exclusionary discourse. A discussion follows that suggests that these forms of discourse contribute to the commodification, bureaucratization, and privatization of sexual harassment in an ironic way.
Communicating through Crisis
Authors: Sturges David L.
Published: March 2007

Crisis communication, communication by an organization during an organizational crisis, has been overlooked as a tool for contributing to the long-term benefits of an organization experiencing crisis. Generally, crisis communication has been relegated to a defensive role, where the premise of crisis communication is the need to offset potential negative consequences of not communicating. This article suggests that crisis communication should be a part of the larger issues of communication policy and strategy that may lead to more effective and efficient influence of opinion development among members of publics important to organizations. The article builds a case for the need to consider crisis communication in a larger context, then proposes a model of Crisis Communication Content that may serve as a framework for research into the efficacy of communication during crisis episodes.
Electronic Performance Monitoring
Authors: Alder G. Stoney , Tompkins Phillip K.
Published: March 2007

An estimated 26 million workers are electronically monitored by organizations. Contradictory evidence indicates that such monitoring may lead to either positive or negative outcomes for both organizations and their members. This article applies theories of organizational justice and concertive control to account for these contradictions. It is argued that, when organizations involve employees in the design and implementation of monitoring systems, restrict monitoring to performance-related activities, and use data obtained through electronic means in a concertive manner by emphasizing two-way communication and supportive feedback, they are likely to reap positive results. However, when employees are not involved in the introduction of monitoring, when data gathered through electronic performance monitoring are used to provide coercive, obtrusive feedback, or when monitoring includes nonwork activities, the organization may experience negative results.
Hidden Transcripts of Flight Attendant Resistance
Authors: Murphy Alexandra G.
Published: March 2007

This work builds on past research through a critical discussion of individuals' resistant actions, that is, their ability to enact change within their social systems. Although employees may appear to comply fully with constraining organizational policies and meanings in public discourse, alternative meanings may be constructed in private. Using examples of flight attendant resistance, the author analyzes hidden transcripts-the interactions, stories, myths, and rituals in which employees participate beyond the direct observation of power holders to provide an avenue to identify resistance and change in the organizing process. Such an understanding challenges the outdated ideal of transmissional meaning, questions organizational power by including the potential for resistance and change, and surfaces hidden constraints and resistances in employee discourse.
Nurses at the Edge of Chaos
Authors: Miller Katherine
Published: March 2007

In recent years, "new science" concepts stemming from self-organizing systems theory, chaos theory, and complexity theory have captured the attention of both social scientific researchers and practitioners in a variety of walks of life. This article explores both the promise and the danger of applying new science concepts to organizational behavior and communication. After reviewing key concepts from the new sciences and the adaptation of these concepts to organizational studies, this essay explores a case in which new science concepts are being used in a hospital to revamp nursing structures and practices. The case is first described, then discussed in terms of lessons it can provide.
The Experience of Laughing at Oneself in Older Couples
Authors: Malinski Violet M.
Published: March 2007

An exploratory study was undertaken to investigate the experience of laughing at oneself as described by older couples. The descriptions generated were viewed through the perspective of Rogers' science of unitary human beings. Laughing at oneself, described in the literature as a liberating, transcendent experience, was proposed as a form of knowing participation in the process of health patterning. Using guide questions developed from the study's objectives, the researcher interviewed twenty English-speaking couples, ages 52-82 who were living in their own homes. Transcribed interviews were searched for themes following the analysis-synthesis procedure outlined by Parse, Coyne, and Smith (1985). Themes were identified in the language of the participants then synthesized into the language of the researcher. The hypothesis that flowed from the data reflected evolving mutual field patterning, awareness of the harmonious mutual process, and descriptions of integrality and well-being. Implications for practice and research are presented.
The Experience of Laughter: A Phenomenological Study
Authors: Parse Rosemarie Rizzo
Published: March 2007

The purpose of this research was to uncover a structural definition of laughing in persons over 65. The structural definition that arises from this study is: laughing is a buoyant immersion in the presence of unanticipated glimpsings prompting harmonious integrity which surfaces anew through contemplative visioning. This definition is congruent with some of the current literature and practices related to laughter and health. It corresponds to the principles of Parse's human becoming theory and thus expands understanding of human experiences related to structuring meaning, living in relation to others, and viewing the familiar in a new light.
Chaos Theory and Some Nursing Considerations
Authors: Vicenzi Angela E.
Published: March 2007

The alleged synthesis of nursing and public health has not produced the expected community-as-client emphasis. Public health is characterized as disease-focused, with masculine domination, using a causal model. The explanatory model of chaos challenges nurses to reexamine nursing's theoretical base by questioning assumptions associated with linear thinking. The selected chaotic concepts of a periodicity, attractors, sensitive dependence on initial conditions, phase space, and fractals are discussed here. Each concept's connection to physics and mathematics is cited and considerations for nursing science are outlined. Conclusions include redefining health, nursing, and community in chaotic terms and renaming nursing practice, which has this a periodic and holistic paradigm, as ecologic health nursing.
Power and Feminism: A Nursing Science Perspective
Authors: Caroselli Cynthia
Published: March 2007

Nurse executives are in an influential position to engineer health care reform and service delivery if their resources are fully maximized. Derived from Rogers' science and Barrett's power theory, this exploratory study demonstrated a weak relationship between power and feminism in female nurse executives, yet showed a modest correlation between feminism and the power subscale, freedom to act intentionally. Suggestions are provided for further development of the theoretical foundations of a nursing science perspective for nursing administration.
The Florida Teacher Incentive Program: A Policy Analysis
Authors: Arthur George F. K. , Milton Sande
Published: March 2007

This article is a case study of the Florida Educational Reform Act of 1983, a teacher merit pay program, and focuses on comparison with similar programs in other states and countries for analyzing the policy process regarding educational reform. The inception, implementation, and decline of the reform are studied using the concepts of coalition building, fiscal support, and the various arenas in which salient actors worked: legislative and executive, administrative, professional organizations, and the workplace of teachers.
Politics of Educational Reform: The Experience of a Foreign Technical Assistance Project
Authors: Bock John C. , Arthur George F. K.
Published: March 2007

In this article, Bock and Arthur highlight the political quality of decisions made by competing interest groups and actors in the educational reform process - foreign assistance agency officials, project directors and supporting staff, ministers of education and other ministry officials, and political and educational leaders in their terrain of the state. Each of these stakeholders, existing within and outside the school, tries to maximize control over scarce resources such as finance and legitimacy in order to influence the determination of the types of innovative programs that will take place. Given that education is one of our most politicized institutions and that seldom are its benefits shared equitably among all the citizens or interest groups who are expected to support them, it should be evident that educational reforms fail (or succeed) more often for political reasons than because of any technical or programmatic differences. The authors illustrate this contention by looking at a large international educational technical assistance project -Improving the Efficiency of Education Systems -and drawing some comparisons from the 1980s'reform agenda in the United States.
Do We Need to Desegregate all of Our Black Schools?
Authors: Leake Donald O. , Faltz Christine J.
Published: March 2007

The basic purpose of this article is to examine several fundamental assumptions about the saliency of desegregation and to briefly discuss Milwaukee's African-American Immersion Schools as a viable strategy for providing a quality educational opportunity for Black students. The article focuses first on the court-ordered desegregation plan implemented in Milwaukee, Wisconsin. Available data is summarized that demonstrate that Black students continue to earn lower grades and test scores and higher suspension rates than their White counterparts, in spite of 15 years of desegregation. In contrast, in predominantly Black schools, African-American students' achievement levels seem to surpass their peers in desegregated settings. Therefore, the article asks the question, "Do we need to desegregate all of our Black schools?" A culture-based education model, the African-American Immersion School, is described and proposed as an alternative educational setting in which instructional strategies complement the culture and learning styles of Black children; one that has at its foundation a realistic historical and political analysis of African-Americans in our society. Given the limitations of desegregation as evidenced by the Milwaukee plan, this article promotes culture-based education as an alternative strategy to improve urban schools.
Should Prisoners Have Access to Collegiate Education? A Policy Issue
Authors: Taylor Jon Marc
Published: March 2007

One of the most controversial aspects of correctional education is that of postsecondary programming. The standard plebian outcry is one of consternation at prisoners being offered collegiate educations at state expense while the public struggles to meet the ever-increasing cost of higher education. Many objections to this perceived largesse have been made, and some are seemingly quite logical in their rationale. Yet postsecondary correctional education (PSCE) programs are now available in the majority of state and federal correctional systems. This article addresses the most common objections to PSCE programming, refutes those arguments, and demonstrates the wide-ranging positive results, reasons for success, and multidimensional benefits of such programs for the entire society.
School Districts Matter: Local Educational Authorities and State Instructional Policy
Authors: Spillane James P.
Published: March 2007

Local school districts do not figure prominently in contemporary school reform efforts that are primarly centered at the state and school levels of the system. This article explores ways in which school districts matter in current instructional reform efforts. The article examines haw two local school districts responded to an expanding state role in instructional policy making, documenting the way in which instructional policy making at the state and district levels expanded in tandem, frequently attempting to guide the same aspects of teachers' work Further, the case studies illustrate that state and local policies do not always support similar notions about instruction.
New Frontiers in Educational Policy and Program Development: The Challenge of the Underschooled Immigrant Secondary School Student
Authors: Crandall JoAnn , Bernache Carolyn , Prager Sandra
Published: March 2007

The increasing diversity of American students presents both resources and challenges, especially to secondary schools seeking to meet students' linguistic, cultural, and educational needs. An increasing number of these students are immigrants with limited prior schooling. They face the double challenge of acquiring English language and literacy while also compensating for years of lost schooling. Neither traditional English as a Second Language programs nor reading programs for English-speaking students are adequate to help these students develop the social, academic, and cognitive skills to function in English-medium classrooms. This article provides a brief profile of these "underschooled" students, describes current educational and policy contexts, discusses potential alternative educational programs and policies for these students, and identifies needed policy development.
State and Local Government Relations in the Era of Standards-Based Reform: Standards, State Policy Instruments, and Local Instructional Policy Making
Authors: Spillane James P.
Published: March 2007

This article examines state and local government relations in education by considering the influence of one state's standards-based reform initiatives on policy making in the Local Education Agency (LEA) using data from nine school districts. Although state standards initiatives prompted all nine LEAs to ensure that the topics covered in their policies matched the state's standards, the author shows that the influence of standards on LEA policy making was much weaker and inconsistent when it came to the more substantive and complex content and pedagogical changes advanced by state standards. Based on this analysis, the author argues that the local capacity and the local will for complex instructional reform need to be understood in interaction. Further more, the author considers how the tension between state policy instruments as played out in LEAs, coupled with instability in state politics, undermined the influence of state standards on LEA policy making.
A Review of Common Approaches to Heparin Dosing
Authors: Hodgman Tudy
Published: March 2007

The use of heparin has remained steady for the last 20 years. Significant advances have been made in the understanding of the pathogenesis of clotting disorders and their prevention. Despite these gains, our understanding of the most safe and effective approach to optimizing the dosing of heparin has lagged. With new insight into improvements in outcome related to rapid achievement of the therapeutic range, it has become apparent that the standard approach to heparin dosing is out of date. Individualized heparin dosing based on weight and computer-assisted dosing methods is superior for bringing patients into the desired therapeutic range more quickly, with less cost and better short- and long-term outcomes. Copyright © 1995 by W.B. Saunders Company
Self-Transcendence and Family Caregivers of Adults with Dementia
Authors: Acton Gayle J. , Wright Kathy B.
Published: March 2007

Research has documented that caring for a family member with dementia is stressful and burdensome. However, difficult life experiences such as fear, loss, and grief may help persons move beyond a concern for self toward a larger perspective and concern for others. Both positive and negative experiences can promote positive movement toward growth and development. This movement has been described as self-transcendence, or the ability to look beyond the self and present difficulties, to extend concern to others, and to find personal meaning and wholeness in the context of life-changing events. The family caregiving experience with its inherent difficulties might provide the impetus for such a movement toward self-transcendence. The purpose of this article is to examine the concept of self-transcendence, explore its linkages to the caregiving experience, and suggest potential strategies to assist family caregivers to achieve self-transcendence.
A Comparison of the Use of Alternative Therapies among Mexican Americans and Anglo-Americans in the Texas Rio Grande Valley
Authors: Keegan Lynn
Published: March 2007

In a descriptive study with a convenience sample of 60 Mexican Americans and 60 Anglo-Americans, four research questions were asked: (a) What kinds of and how frequently are alternative therapies used by the Mexican Americans and Anglos in the Texas Rio Grande Valley? (b) Is there a difference in the kinds and amounts of therapies used by the two groups? (c) Do the participants self-report this information to their established, conventional, care provider? and (d) What are the participants’ subjective reports about these therapies? Findings showed that both groups used alternative practitioners, but that Mexican Americans reported using them more than twice as often as did Anglo-Americans. The most prevalent therapies sought by Mexican Americans were prayer, herbal medicine, massage, relaxation, spiritual healing, and chiropractic. The most prevalent therapies sought by Anglo-Americans were prayer, massage, chiropractic, herbal medicine, megavitamin therapy, and spiritual healing. Almost twice as many Mexican Americans (45%) report discussing their therapies with their established primary health provider than did Anglos (26.7%).
Urinary Incontinence and Risk of Death among Community-Living Elderly People
Authors: Johnson Theodore M. , Bernard Shulamit L. , Kincade Jean E. , Defriese Gordon H.
Published: March 2007

Objectives:The authors explored whether urinary incontinence (UI) is associated with higher mortality and, if so, whether adjustment for demographics, health, and functional status diminishes the association. Methods:The Cox proportional hazards model was used with a nationally representative sample of community-living elderly people ( N= 3,485). Results:In an analysis adjusted for age, gender, education, and probability sampling design, participants with mild to moderate UI (hazard ratio [HR] = 1.51; 95% confidence interval [CI] = 1.09-2.08) and severe UI (HR = 1.54; 95% CI = 1.03-2.29) experienced a higher risk of death. Adjustment for health and functional status diminished the association of UI and risk of death (mild to moderate UI, HR = 1.20, 95% CI = 0.85-1.68; severe UI, HR = 0.91, 95% CI = 0.59-1.39). Discussion:The relationship between UI and mortality in older adults can largely be understood on the basis of increased frailty in incontinent individuals.
Quantitative Genetic Analysis of Biobehavioral Markers of Aging in Swedish Studies of Adult Twins
Authors: Finkel Deborah , Pedersen Nancy L. , Berg Stig , Johansson Boo
Published: March 2007

Objectives:This article will examine the generalizability of markers of aging across samples and cultures and the genetic and environmental influences on them. Methods:As part of two studies, 18 demographic, cognitive, physiological, personality, and behavioral variables were available from 459 twin pairs ranging in age from 40 to 90 years. Twelve markers of aging were identified using stepwise regression. Factor analysis of the markers produced four factors: general knowledge, fluid abilities, cardiovascular functioning, and well-being. Results:Analysis of twin similarity for the factors suggested that genetic and environmental influences varied greatly. Significant age differences in heritability were found for three of the four factors. Discussion:Results indicate one aging theory cannot account for changes in all markers of aging. Aging of various systems occurs as a result of different combinations of genetic and environmental influences.
The Relationship between Sleep Disturbances and Agitation in a Nursing Home
Authors: Cohen-Mansfield Jiska , Marx Marcia S.
Published: March 2007

Nursing staff rated the manifestations of agitation and the characteristics of sleep in 408 nursing home residents. In addition, level of cognitive impairment was independently rated by nurses and social workers. Multiple regressions revealed that both sleep disturbances and cognitive impairment were important variables for explaining agitated behaviors. Moreover, the practice of awakening residents during the night for toileting was found to be significantly related to a greater number of aggressive behaviors (e.g., hitting) and physically nonaggressive behaviors (e.g., pacing) during the day. Implications of these findings for the caregivers of agitated nursing home residents are discussed.
Who will Make Health Care Decisions for Me when I can't?
Authors: High Dallas M.
Published: March 2007

Medical professionals are increasingly faced with ethical dilemmas of caring for older patients who are decisionally incapacitated. Most often they rely on family to serve as surrogate decision makers. Does that practice agree with the preferences of the elderly themselves? Examined are the exploratory and qualitative findings of a sample of men and women, age 65 to 91 (N = 71). Comparisons are made between those elderly who have families and those who do not have families regarding the use of and interest in advance directives and proxy appointments. The findings suggest that elderly persons with families prefer to rely on relatives to conduct substitute decision making informally, unencumbered by legally executed living wills or proxy documents. Those without families view friends and doctors as their surrogate resource and endorse the use of legal proxy appointments. Implications for the use of advance directives and further public policy are discussed.
Mental Illness and Psychotropic Medication Use in the Nursing Home
Authors: Arling Greg , Ryther Brenda J. , Collins Theodore , Zimmerman David
Published: March 2007

The authors examined mental illness and psychotropic medications use among nursing home residents. Data were drawn from the Texas Long-Term Care Reimbursement Project, a 1986 study of nearly 2,000 residents in 49 nursing homes. The study measured the use of antipsychotics and other psychotropic medications, physical health conditions, mental illness diagnoses, behavior, and nursing and other direct-care time for sampled residents. The findings indicated that 45% of the sample was receiving an antipsychotic or other psychotropic medication. Although psychotropics were prescribed more extensively for those with a psychiatric diagnosis, nearly one half of persons without a psychiatric diagnosis were receiving psychotropic medications at the time of the survey. Moreover, psychotropics were quite prevalent among those with unstable medical conditions and/or severe activities of daily living impairment. Neither a mental illness diagnosis, evidence of a behavioral problem, nor use of psychotropics was significantly correlated with the amount of nursing or other direct-care time received by residents. The findings raise concerns about the wide-spread prescribing of these medications, especially among residents who have no supporting psychiatric diagnosis and/or who have physical health conditions making them vulnerable to adverse drug effects.
Variation in Long-Term Care Service Use by Aged Blacks
Authors: Kart Cary S.
Published: March 2007

Data from the Supplement on Aging to the 1984 National Health Interview Survey were used to identify patterns of long-term care (LTC) service use among older Blacks. A subset of the SOA, including all 1,217 Blacks aged 55 and over, was the focus of the research. About 37% of all older Blacks in the sample reported difficulty in carrying out at least one activity of daily living (ADL) or instrumental activity of daily living (IADL); 27% reported receiving help with at least one of the ADLs or IADLs. Older Blacks were not significant users of community-based LTC services, with 11.9% reporting using a senior center, the highest percentage of use among a list of 10 community and social services. Five LTC factors were identified: ADL Help, Community Services, Home Health Services, Home Management Services, and Personal Services. Multiple regression analyses identify need factors as most dominant in explaining variation in LTC service use by older Blacks.
Disability-Free Life among the Elderly in the United States
Authors: Rogers Richard G. , Rogers Andrei , Belanger Alain
Published: March 2007

This article examines the sociodemographic factors associated not only with the length but also the quality of life. Although much research has examined dependency or the reliance on other individuals or institutions, this analysis instead focuses on difficulty in performing activities of daily living. The authors employ logit analysis and the Longitudinal Study of Aging data set to examine the sociodemographic factors-age, sex, race, education, poverty status, and marital status-that affect the prevalence of disability and the transitions that arise between the able and disabled states. Findings show that age is linked with disability: Older respondents are more likely to be or to become disabled and less likely to recover from their disabilities. Education is also strongly linked with disability: More highly educated elderly consistently enjoy less disability; if disabled, they generally have greater chances to regain their abilities. Race and sex are key variables: Disability varies by race and sex groups; further, within race/sex subpopulations, disability is differentially affected by other covariates, especially marital status and poverty. Therefore, it is crucial to examine disability not only for the total elderly population but to appreciate different disability characteristics among race- and sex-specific subpopulations. These social, demographic, and economic factors identify characteristics that place the elderly at risk of disability, and they also identify those characteristics that enhance an individual's chances of successful aging.
The Relationship of Vision and Hearing Impairment to One-Year Mortality and Functional Decline
Authors: Laforge Robert G. , Spector William D. , Sternberg Josef
Published: March 2007

Impairments in hearing and vision are common for those aged 65 and older, and severe impairments may result in dependencies in daily activities. This article presents a longitudinal analysis of the risk of dying, or experiencing increased dependency in activities of daily living (ADLs) or instrumental activities of daily living (IADLs) for persons with self-rated hearing and/or visual impairment. The data are from baseline and 1-year follow-up of the GAO-Cleveland study of 1,408 community-dwelling elders. Bivariate and multiple logistic regression analyses were performed. Vision impairments and, to a lesser extent, hearing impairments were found to be significant risk factors for functional decline. After adjustment for age, sex, and cognitive status, persons who were otherwise free of functional dependency at baseline but who had only vision impairment or both vision and hearing impairments were 2.5 and 3.5 times more likely to experience functional decline than were unimpaired elderly persons, respectively. Those similarly impaired, but with IADL disability, were 1.8 and 2.5 times more likely to experience functional decline than were unimpaired elderly. Policy implications of these findings are discussed.
The Psychosocial Quality of Nursing Home Work
Authors: Brannon Diane , Streit Andrea , Smyer Michael
Published: March 2007

Trained observers used components of the functional job analysis technique to categorize 3,371 tasks performed by 214 nursing assistants in four nursing homes on five occasions over 12 months. The extent to which each task was oriented toward residents versus data or things was coded along with the "level of complexity" of each of these orientations. A psychosocial index was created by multiplying orientation by complexity. Three questions structured the analyses: (a) To what extent do nursing assistants' tasks involve interacting with residents, as opposed to focusing on data or manipulating things? (b) How complex are these tasks? (c) What are the implications of the task analysis data for assessing the quality of psychosocial care? Findings reveal that even among the direct care tasks (69% of total), the orientation was not predominantly toward the resident. Functional complexity of the tasks observed was consistently low. Those task types with the greatest psychosocial quality were those performed least frequently and vice versa. Implications of these results for restructuring nursing assistants' work are discussed.
Social Network and Social Background Characteristics of Elderly Who Live and Eat Alone
Authors: Torres Cruz C. , McIntosh Wm. Alex , Kubena Karen S.
Published: March 2007

Solitary eating is increasingly viewed as a factor in nutritional risk for the aged. Similarly, those elderly who live alone are thought to be at risk. Using data drawn from 424 elderly Texans, the elderly's four possible living-eating arrangements were examined. Findings included the greater the number of companions and percentage of kin in the social network, the less likely are the elderly to both live and eat alone. Males, those with greater income, and those who are older are also less likely to live and eat alone. Those who live alone but eat with others are female, of low income, but of higher education than those elderly who both live and eat with others.
Menopausal Transition and Psychological Distress in a Nationally Representative Sample
Authors: Busch Catherine M. , Zonderman Alan B. , Costa Paul T.
Published: March 2007

This study examines whether menopause is associated with three measures of psychological distress: depression, well-being, and sleep disturbance. Women aged 40-60 from the National Health Examination Follow-up Study were assigned to four groups based on their menopause status: Premenopause ( n = 989), perimenopause ( n = 312), natural menopause ( n = 781), and surgical menopause (n = 967). Over the 10-year follow-up interval, no increase was found in depression, poor psychological well-being, or sleep disturbance associated with the menopause transition. Contrary to stereotypes about menopause, the only longitudinal change was a slight decline in depression over time for all groups, and psychological distress was unrelated to the number of years since menopause and the timing of menopausal transition. The present results suggest that the psychological distress of middle-aged women is unlikely to be related to menopause.
The Impact of Symptom Interpretation on Physician Utilization
Authors: Stoller Eleanor Palo , Forster Lorna Earl
Published: March 2007

This article explores physician consultation decisions among a sample of elderly people living in community settings. The analysis integrates the insights of research on illness behavior, particularly symptom interpretation and lay consultation, with previous specifications of the Health Behavior Model. Data were gathered through personal interviews and health diaries completed on a daily basis for 21 consecutive days by a probability sample of older people living in community settings. Results indicate that uncertainty regarding potential seriousness, level of pain or interference, and causal attributions were the most consistently significant predictors of physician contact.
Cognitive Impairment, Caregiver Burden, and the Utilization of Home Health Services
Authors: Penning Margaret J.
Published: March 2007

This study addresses the relationship between caregiver burden and the use of home health services among older adults with cognitive impairment. Analyses draw on data from personal interviews conducted with 327 older adults with cognitive impairment and living in the community of their primary caregivers. Using the Andersen-Newman framework, the results of ordinary least squares and logistic regression analyses reveal that caregiver burden and formal home health service use are only weakly related. Possible explanations for the findings are discussed.
Lay Explanations of Chronic Illness in Later Life
Authors: Strain Laurel A.
Published: March 2007

This study explores lay explanations of chronic illness in later life. More specifically, perceived causes, treatment strategies, and perceived outcomes of arthritis and heart/circulatory problems from the perspective of older adults who have such problems are examined. Variations in these explanations according to selected sociodemographic and health status characteristics are explored. Among the arthritis sufferers, the most prevalent explanations were physical work/working conditions, age, and injury, whereas those with heart/circulatory problems most often explained the cause as due to tension/stress, physiology, or heredity. A variety of treatments were identified, including doing nothing, seeking or continuing medical treatment, altering lifestyle, and using folk remedies. Selected sociodemographic and health status characteristics appear important for understanding explanations about arthritis, although it is primarily health status indicators that emerge for heart/circulatory problems. Directions for future research are highlighted.
Factors Associated with Enrollment of Older Adults into a Physical Activity Promotion Program
Authors: Mills Kris M. , Stewart Anita L. , King Abby C. , Roihz Karen , Sepsis Peter G. , Ritter Philip L. , Bortz Walter M.
Published: March 2007

This article investigates the extent to which a proactive two-phased recruitment approach resulted in recruitment of a representative sample of older adults from two lower income congregate housing facilities into a physical activity promotion program. Enrollees were similar to nonenrollees with respect to education, gender, Marital status, race/ethnicity, self-rated health, physical functioning, psychological distress, exercise frequency, level of social contact, having a confidant, use of alcohol, and smoking stats. However, enrollees were young, more likely to speak English as a primary language, less likely to be completely sedentary, and more likely to be overweight Overall, 21% of the target population wee recruited into the program. Recruitment strategies such as those used in this study appeared to enable enrollment of a reasonably representative sample of a small well-defined population.
Seniors' Attributions for Task Performance Difficulties
Authors: Chipperfield Judith G. , Segall Alexander
Published: March 2007

Some seniors face difficulties carrying out simple everyday tasks such as opening containers and turning doorknobs. This study began with the premise that seniors' appraisals about such difficulties may have consequences for feelings of task efficacy (e.g., feelings of control and optimism). Attributions to poor product design (an external/environmental factor) and to limitations (an internal/personal factor) were considered in addition to joint attributions to both factors. After controlling for health and gender, type of attribution for task difficulties was found to relate to feelings of task efficacy. Overall, the results suggest that seniors may be advantaged by viewing their performance difficulties as a consequence of poor product design. Compared to their counterparts, these individuals reported the highest levels of control, ability to cope, optimism, and beliefs about overcoming problems. Individuals who made joint attributions reported feeling most helpless and unable to cope with the present problems.
Secular Trends in Hip Fracture Occurrence and Survival
Authors: Bacon W. Edward
Published: March 2007

The National Hospital Discharge Survey was used to analyze secular trends from 1965 to 1993 in hip fracture incidence and in-hospital survival in the White U.S. population 50 years of age and older. Age-specific fracture rates increased significantly for males in age groups 80-84 years and 85 years and older but not for younger males. For females, age-specific rates did not change significantly over the time period. Age-specific survival rates increased for both older males and females, but the increase was greatest for the older men. Why hip fracture incidence is increasing in older males but not in females and younger males is not clear. But the high lifetime prevalence of smoking in the older cohort of males may be a factor. With rising incidence rates in elderly males, prevention efforts, which have focused primarily on women because of their high fracture rates, should target both sexes.
Memory Complaint as a Predictor of Cognitive Decline
Authors: Blazer Dan G. , Hays Judith C. , Fillenbaum Gerda G. , Gold Deborah T.
Published: March 2007

Of a representative, racially mixed community sample of older adults in North Carolina, 59% of Whites and 49% of African Americans reported worsening memory. The complaint about memory was positively correlated with age, depressive symptomatology, and physical function but not with level of cognitive function as measured by the Short Portable Mental Status Questionnaire (SPMSQ) at baseline. In a controlled analysis of longitudinal data, initial SPMSQ score, age, African American race, lower education, depressive symptomatology, and physical deficits at baseline, but not memory complaint, predicted a decline in cognitive function as measured by the SPMSQ 3 years later. Whereas African Americans were less likely to complain of deterioration in memory, actual decline as measured by the SPMSQ was greater for African Americans than for Whites.
Cognitive and Emotional Predictors of Disablement in Older Adults
Authors: Smits Carolien H. M. , Deeg Dorly J. H. , Jonker Cees
Published: March 2007

This study focused on the association between aspects of emotional and cognitive functioning and two stages of the disablement process model, functional limitations, and instrumental activities of daily living (IADL) disability. The age- and sex-stratfied sample aged 55 to 89 years consisted of 100 inhabitants of a small Dutch town who scored 24 or higher on the Mini Mental State Examination (MMSE). Controlling for background factors (health problems, age, education, and gender), depressive symptoms and fluid intelligence were independently associated with functional limitations. Of the cognitive functions, only everyday memory was independently associated with IADL disability. Emotional functioning was not independently associated with IADL disability. These findings expand on the disablement process model and demonstrate the importance of emotional functioning, fluid intelligence, and everyday memory for the disablement process.
Early Parental Loss, Recent Life Events, and Changes in Health among Older Adults
Authors: Krause Neal
Published: March 2007

The purpose of this study is to see whether older adults who lost a parent early in life are more vulnerable to the effects of recent stressful events than elderly people who were raised in an intact home. Data from a nationwide longitudinal survey of older adults provide support for this view. The findings indicate that the combined effects of early parental loss and recent stressful events are associated with a decline over time in global self-rated health, as well as the number of chronic and acute conditions. In contrast, significant effects failed to emerge with functional disability. This study contributes to the literature by suggesting that only certain kinds of recent events (i.e., stressors arising in highly valued roles) act in concert with early parental loss to compromise health in late life.
Taking the Employees’ Perspective Seriously: An Initial United Kingdom Cross-Sectoral Comparison
Authors: Almond Stephen , Kendall Jeremy
Published: March 2007

This article describes how the largest labor market survey in the United Kingdom has been used to compare employment in the third sector with other sectors. This is based on employees’owninternal definition of their employers’sector, an approach that it is argued can usefully supplement the dominant external approach. The dimensions along which the (self-defined) third sector emerges as distinctive include its rather small absolute size, its relatively high concentration of part-time and temporary staff, the greater proportion of its workers who work unpaid overtime, the relatively high proportion of employees who are women, the tendency for its respondents to have high levels of educational qualifications, and its distinctive composition. At least some of these features seem to be shared with the third sector in other developed countries, although it is very difficult to be confident in these comparisons for the reasons discussed in the article.