bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025 huggingface dataset:
Enhanced Interpretation of Nonverbal Cues in Male Cocaine Abusers
Authors: Giannini A. James , Sangdahl Christopher
Published: May 2005

Chronic alcoholics have been known to possess increased ability to interpret nonverbal facial cues. This has been hypothesized to account for the high rate of alcohol recidivism. Since cocainism is also associated with a high rate of recidivism, the authors examined nonverbal reception in twenty-five cocaine abusers and in an equal number of matched controls. All subjects were asked to view videotapes of individuals gambling and to determine, solely on the basis of facial cues, the size of the jackpot at risk during a specific trial. The cocaine abusers were found to be more accurate at interpreting nonverbal cues. Possible reasons for this finding are discussed.
Maternal and Child Health Care of Haitian Families Living on a Sugarcane Plantation in the Dominican Republic
Authors: Westhoff Wayne
Published: May 2005

Data regarding the maternal and child health care of Haitians living in the Dominican Republic were collected by questionnaire. Respondents were contacted in their homes with the assistance of missionary personnel working in the area around LaRomana. One-hundred and seven questionnaires were administered in four bateys (clusters of homes located on the plantation). The questionnaire included items regarding family demographics, prenatal and postnatal care, medical supervision during delivery, perceived health, family planning, and the availability, accessibility, and affordability of medical service. The most important findings were: that mothers perceived the health of the family to be high while the availability of health care was low; and that desirability of family planning was high while prevalence of contraception was low.
Post-Homicide Reactions: Grief, Mourning and Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder following a Drunk Driving Fatality
Authors: Sprang Ginny , McNeil John
Published: May 2005

This article examines the impact of gender, religious beliefs, subjective health status, individuals' past experience with death, social support, and time since the death on the extent of mourning, the extent of grieving, and Post-traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD) symptomatology. It is proposed that the mode of death complicates the nature and course of bereavement after the death of a primary family member in a drunk driving collision. The unnecessary and violent nature of the death of drunk driving victims adds to the depth and extent of the psychological response to trauma. It is proposed that the models of grief utilized to conceptualize the grieving process are inadequate as a sole measure of the response of this type of death. Therefore, the inclusion of Post-traumatic Stress Disorder was provided for a more comprehensive understanding of this type of grief response. Survey data were collected on 171 primary family members of drunk driving victims (spouses, parents, siblings, or children) randomly selected from support groups and social service agencies throughout Texas. Results provide a greater understanding of the factor influencing the responses of the surviving family members after a drunk driving fatality and demonstrate that the grief and PTSD response share common predictors.
Karl Marx's Paranoid Ideation in the Communist Manifesto
Authors: Windholz George
Published: May 2005

In the Communist Manifesto, written on behalf of the Communist League and published in 1848, Karl Marx maintained that communism was a Power recognized as such by other European Powers and that these Powers, as represented by the Pope, the Tsar, Austria's statesman Metternich, and France's Guizot, haunted as they were by the spectre of communism, had allied themselves in order to exorcise that spectre. I propose that the view of communism as propounded by Marx during his Brussels exile discloses his paranoid ideation of grandiosity and suspiciousness as conceptualized by W. W. Meissner [1]. In reality, the Communist League was a small group of mostly German émigré artisans and a few intellectuals residing in France, Belgium, and England. Although watched by the Prussian police, the Communist League, along with other revolutionary political groups, was too insignificant a group to concern leading European statesmen who, although fearing a repetition of the horrors of the French Revolution and the rising tide of nationalism, were either torn by rivalries in the pursuit of grand political schemes or preoccupied with maintaining the balance of power. The possible influence of Marx's paranoid ideation on I. V. Stalin's paranoid behavior is also considered.
Prostitution or Sex Work in the Common Market?
Authors: Pedersen Knud
Published: May 2005

Prostitution has recently come under public and political scrutiny in the countries of the European Economic Community. A “pro-prostitution” lobby is promoting a program that portrays prostitution as sex work, which has provoked much debate. The author describes the debate, putting forward two paradigms of prostitution: the functionalist versus the socially critical views.
The Inner Representation of the Dead Child and the World Views of Bereaved Parents
Authors: Klass Dennis
Published: May 2005

The trauma of a child's death challenges the parents' worldview, that is, their basic assumptions about how the universe functions and the place or power they have in the universe. The experience of the death is either assimilated into the worldview, or the worldview must accommodate it. This article demonstrates how the task of affirming or remolding the worldview is consistently intertwined with the parents' continued interaction with the inner representation of their dead child. Phenomena which indicate interaction with the inner representation of the deceased are a sense of presence, hallucinations in any of the senses, memory, use of linking objects, or a conscious incorporation of the characteristics or virtues of the dead into the self. Data is from a ten-year ethnographic study of a self-help group of bereaved parents.
Television and the Deaf
Authors: Braverman Barbara B. , Cronin Barry Jay
Published: May 2005

“Television and the Deaf” considers two important assumptions: (1) television has had a significant impact on our culture, and (2) the deaf have been severely limited in the amount of information obtained from unadapted television programs.

This paper presents a perspective on the limited access deaf people have had to television viewing. It addresses new legal and technological breakthroughs which will facilitate access. Finally, the paper focuses on instructional television. The need for researchers and television producers to address together the still unanswered questions about effective programming is explored. Capitalizing on the aspects of television formats for use with deaf audiences is emphasized.
Characteristics of Boundary Spanning Communicators
Authors: David Fred R. , Cochran Daniel S.
Published: May 2005

This article presents the results and implications of an empirical study designed to explore the descriptive characteristics of boundary spanning individuals. Boundary spanners are individuals in an organization who facilitate and filter the flow of information internally and externally. Demographic profiles of boundary spanners (stars, isolates, and liaisons) are developed. Conclusions of this study provide information that could enable organizations to more effectively manage the boundary spanning process.
Evaluation of the All Stars Program: Student and Teacher Factors That Influence Mediators of Substance Use
Authors: Giles Steven M. , Harrington Nancy Grant , Fearnow-Kenney Melodie
Published: May 2005

The authors examined the relationship between students' perceptions of a problem behavior prevention program, All Stars, and changes in the program variables. Three factors—Program Enjoyment, Student Engagement, and Teacher Relationship—were used to predict changes in the four variables targeted by the All Stars program. Student Engagement was related to greater changes in student idealism, commitment, and bonding. Program Enjoyment was related to positive changes in student idealism and normative beliefs. Teacher Relationship had little impact on the program variables. Students who were taught All Stars by regular classroom teachers reported greater Program Enjoyment and Student Engagement than students taught by health education specialists.
Suicide and Homicide: A Test of a Role Theory of Destructive Behavior
Authors: Palmer Stuart , Humphrey John A.
Published: May 2005

This paper reviewed major sociological and social psychological bodies of theory on murder and suicide: social integration theory, social loss theory, frustration-aggression theory, and role theory. A synthesis of these theoretical approaches focusing on the processes of reciprocity and unreciprocity in role playing was advanced and an empirical test was conducted. It was found that suicide victims tend to experience significantly more reciprocity and homicide offenders significantly more unreciprocity in their role relationships. In addition, when social role loss increased already high levels of social integration, suicide was probable. When social role loss decreased low levels of social integration, homicide was a more likely consequence.
Thinking and Rethinking Aids: Implications for Health Policy
Authors: Fee Elizabeth , Krieger Nancy
Published: May 2005

In the United States, we see three main phases in the construction of the history of AIDS, with each having very different implications for health and social policy. In the first, AIDS was conceived of as an epidemic disease, a “gay plague,” by analogy to the sudden, devastating epidemics of the past. In the second, it was normalized as a chronic disease, similar in many ways to diseases such as cancer. In the third, the authors propose a new historical model of a slow-moving, long-lasting pandemic, a chronic infectious ailment manifested through myriad specific HIV-related diseases. The new paradigm of AIDS incorporates the positive aspects of both earlier conceptions. It emphasizes, like the plague model, the etiology, transmission, and prevention of disease but rejects its assumption of a time-limited crisis. It takes from the chronic disease model an appropriate time frame and concern with the clinical management of protracted illness but insists on the primacy of prevention. The authors criticize both infectious and chronic disease models for their individualistic conceptions of disease and their narrow strategies for disease prevention. They further argue that the traditional distinction between, and approaches to, infectious and chronic diseases need to be rethought for other diseases as well as for AIDS.
Congenital Heart Disease and Childhood Adjustment
Authors: Auer Edward T. , Senturia Audrey G. , Shopper Moisy , Biddy Ralph L.
Published: May 2005

This report deals with the findings from a study of twenty-eight children, all of whom had ventricular septal defects and were studied by the same cardiovascular team. One-half of the group had a surgical procedure for correction of the defect.

The study investigated three problems in children with ventricular septal defect ( VSD). (1) Do children with surgical intervention for VSD show greater impairment of intellectual functioning than non-operated children? (2) Do children with surgical intervention show greater emotional disturbance than non-operated children? (3) Do children with surgical intervention show greater alteration of body image than do non-operated children?

Data were collected using questionnaires, family interviews, subject interviews, medical records, school reports, physicians' reports and Human Figure Drawings, both inside and outside the body.

The findings conclude that ( a) operated children do demonstrate significantly more impairment of intellectual functioning; ( b) there was no significant difference in the incidence of emotional disturbances between the two groups but that these twenty-eight children with VSD were more similar emotionally to children in a psychiatric clinic group than in a control group; and ( c) the only indication of altered body image was found in the greater frequency with which bones were drawn by the operated group.
An Empirical Exploration of a Conceptual Model for Community-Based Health-Promotion
Authors: Cheadle Allen , Psaty Bruce M. , Diehr Paula , Koepsell Thomas , Wagner Edward , Wickizer Thomas , Curry Susan
Published: May 2005

Community-based approaches to health promotion and disease prevention are often based on underlying theoretical models of behavior change, but evaluations of these programs have not attempted to assess empirically the validity of these models. This article uses data from the Henry J. Kaiser Family Foundation Community Health Promotion Grants Program (CHPGP) evaluation to examine a conceptual model which guided the program evaluation. The model posits relationships among six theoretical constructs: community activation, program activity, norms, environment, role models, and health behaviors. Correlational analyses using two waves of survey data were used to examine whether the hypothesized relationships were actually present. Positive cross-sectional associations between the constructs at each point in time were found but the associations between changes in the constructs over time were weak. The stability of these cross-sectional patterns suggests that there may be forces leading communities to have an underlying “consistency”
Toward Competent Writing in the Workplace
Authors: Haswell Richard H.
Published: May 2005

Findings from a comparison of undergraduate and on-the-job writers recommend some changes in traditional methods of teaching technical writing in college. Freshmen, sophomores, juniors, and “competent” writers in business and industry were given the same composing task. The writing of the employees showed telling and sometimes unexpected differences in a wide variety of areas, in length, vocabulary, organization, specificity, coherence, sentence formation, and surface error. Implied is increased attention to several general writing skills: compression of meaning, fluency of expression, efficiency in techniques of coherence, expandability of organization and syntax, and rhetorical maneuverability and adaptability.
Long-Term Effect of Social Relationships on Mortality in Patients with Congestive Heart Failure
Authors: Murberg Terje A.
Published: May 2005

Congestive heart failure is a major cause of morbidity and mortality within the Western world, and yet psychosocial impact of this disease is under-researched. The aim of this study was to evaluate the possible effects of social relationships (perceived social support and perceived social isolation) on mortality risk in 119 patients with stable, symptomatic congestive heart failure. Fifty-one deaths were registered during the six-year follow-up period, all from cardiac causes. Analysis using proportional hazard models indicated that social isolation was a significant predictor of mortality (relative risk, 1.36; confidence interval, 1.04 to 1.78; p < 0.03), controlling for neuroticism, heart failure severity, functional status, gender, and age. The small sample size was a limitation of the study; therefore, further research is required in order to confirm these findings and to illuminate the mechanisms behind the relationships between social isolation and mortality.
Delirium: The Often Overlooked Diagnosis
Authors: Pérez Edgardo L. , Silverman Marvin
Published: May 2005

Delirium is the organic mental disorder most often encountered by psychiatrists and other physicians. Early recognition and management of patients with this condition is critical. Its presence in medically ill patients is highly correlated with an increased mortality rate. In our study of patients who were referred for psychiatric consultation in a general hospital, a comparison was made of the demographic and clinical characteristics of those patients with delirium and those with other psychiatric disorders. We found that for almost all of the referrals (93%), either a physician or more frequently a nurse recorded well-known signs of delirium in their notes. The physicians indicated the possibility of an organic psychiatric condition in only one-third of the referrals, suggesting that doctors either may overlook the nurses' notes or they may not recognize the signs recorded as signs of delirium. A review of the literature suggests that physicians tend to overlook and misdiagnose this disorder. Possible reasons for this lack of recognition are discussed.
Evaluation of a Learner-Produced Photocomic in South Africa
Authors: Toroyan Tamitza , Reddy Priscilla
Published: May 2005

The use of participatory research in developing culturally appropriate health promotion media is now universally recognized. However, although much has been written with respect to the effects of this process on the participants themselves, little evaluation has been conducted on their effectiveness with the larger target group. The photocomic “Between Us” was produced with South African youth to address the issue of communications as it relates to safe sex and non-violent conflict resolution. This article considers its qualitative evaluation. The article first addresses the theory behind the comic's development, and its objectives. It then examines the qualitative results with respect to these objectives: the evaluation showed the comic to be successful in that it elicited identification among youth with the comic's characters and issues presented. This type of medium offers much potential as a Health Promotion tool to be used in educational settings.
A Re-Examination of Age and Attitudes toward Computers a Decade Later
Authors: DeOllos Ione Y. , Morris David C.
Published: May 2005

This study replicates an analysis by the co-author, Morris, that appeared in a 1988–89 Journal of Educational Technology Systems article. The more recent data were collected in 1999 as part of the annual Middletown Area Survey, conducted by the Department of Sociology at Ball State University. The survey utilized a computer-assisted telephone-interview procedure which randomly selects telephone numbers based on the proportion of blocks and exchanges in service in the sampling area. This article re-examines the earlier findings by comparing older adults' attitudes toward personal computers. The attitudes are measured by the Computer Orientation Scale (COS) which was developed for the 1989 study. Regression analysis was rperformed on four independent variables: age, gender, income, and education. The 1999 data reflected a virtually identical pattern in that the relationship and impact of age and education upon the COS scores remain essentially unchanged. Gender and income show no significant or direct effects.
The Treatment of Enuresis: An Overview
Authors: Freeman Ellen D.
Published: May 2005

The treatment of enuresis has had a long and colorful history in world medical literature. Although some reasonable approaches to the problem exist, there are many conflicting theories about its etiology and consequently there are many recommended therapies. A perspective of literature encompassing the diverse fields of psychoanalysis, behavioral psychology, urology, pharmacology and sleep physiology is provided for the psychiatrist consultant dealing with the problem of enuresis.
The Arts: A Source of Comfort and Insight for Children who are Learning about Death
Authors: Bertman Sandra L.
Published: May 2005

The expressive arts - literature, film, song - are mediums for dramatic exposure of human experience with loss which reflect concerns present in the student of any age. Expression of the human spirit is not the exclusive province of the professional artist. Students can respond to the artists' perceptions through art expressions of their own (dialogue, drawing).

This paper (1) identifies concerns, consolations and fears of artist and student; (2) illustrates materials and techniques for eliciting feelings and for their expression in aesthetic frameworks; (3) underscores the “mutuality,” - the universality and yet individuality of each mortal experience; (4) sees the arts as a mode of learning to be trusted in its own right; and (5) views the classroom as an appropriate setting for such sharing and study.
Some Shibboleths in the Teaching of Technical Writing
Authors: Walter John A.
Published: May 2005

A good many teachers of technical writing are guilty of blindly following tradition and convention in teaching students to rely on the outline as an organizing device, in categorically condemning the passive voice, in magnifying the importance of form and format, and in insisting on a set of inflexible rules for grammar and style that ignore widespread usage. Implicit in the attack on shibboleths is a plea for honest pragmatism in determining effectiveness in technical writing.
Motivating Students with a Winning Assignment
Authors: Driskill L. P.
Published: May 2005

This paper describes how members of the technical writing class at Rice University handled a major writing assignment that stimulated student interest and integrated many of the skills taught in the course. Phases of the assignment dealt with preparing of a memo describing the problem or question, the writing of an investigative report, organizing feasibility studies, and choosing the right audiences.

Some of the feasibility studies attacked problems concerning the university. Others concerned community problems and summer job experiences. Included in the assignment were videotaped oral presentations.
Schizophrenia, Poetic Imagery and Metaphor
Authors: Reinsdorf Walter
Published: May 2005

Poetic imagism and metaphor illustrate important similarities and differences to schizoid uses of figurative language. Both seem to come from similar causes to assuage similar needs, but the poetic succeeds where the schizoid fails. Imagistic poetry, itself a record of sense perception, attempts to fuse word and thing to present them to our senses for understanding. Metaphor also presents objects so that they might suggest further meanings to help us understand reality. A close look at poetic uses of image and metaphor shows how metaphor proceeds from image and illustrates how schizoid attempts to use these psycholinguistic processes fail. First, poetic imagism is compared to schizoid concretization to delineate specifically how one succeeds, and the other fails in imaging offering reasons for the failure. After examining imaging and relating it to identification, poiesis, or metaphor-making is also explained and related to imagery and identification. Closing remarks consider illusion and reality in poetry and schizophrenia.
Is the Teaching of Technical Writing Really Relevant?
Authors: Curley Stephen J.
Published: May 2005

A student's honest complaint challenges the relevance of teaching technical writing. He assumes that academic and business criteria have little to do with each other. However, an examination of academic statistics and the expectations of business undercuts his assumption.
Psychiatrists' Compliance with Nonpsychiatric Consultations: Does Compliance Affect Concordance?
Authors: Malhotra Neil , Ross Robin L. , Epstein Steven , Mann Lee S. , Wise Thomas N.
Published: May 2005

Utilizing a systematic methodology (The Consultation-Liaison Outcome Evaluation System), the compliance of nonpsychiatric consultations within a general hospital psychiatric unit staffed by private practitioners was assessed. Thirty-one percent of the patients received such consultations and these patients had a longer length of stay than those without a consultation. Psychiatrists were generally compliant with both medication and diagnostic recommendations; but in only half the discharge summaries was the consultant's primary medical diagnosis fully reflected. The implications of these data are discussed.
Catatonia on the Consultation-Liaison Service: A Replication Study
Authors: Carroll Brendan T. , Spetie Lacramioara
Published: May 2005

Objective:

The aim of this study is to identify the frequency, presentation, identification, treatment recommendations and outcome of patients with catatonia in the general hospital setting.

Method:

All patients seen on a consultation-liaison (C-L) service over a six-month period were screened prospectively for catatonic disorders. Research and DSM-IV criteria for catatonic disorder were applied. Treatment and outcome were naturalistic.

Results:

Five (1.6%) of 297 patients met restrictive criteria for catatonic disorder. Data were extracted from medical charts. Case reports are presented to reflect the diagnosis and treatment. Extensive medical treatment was required in most cases and most had an unfavorable outcome.

Conclusion:

Catatonia is infrequent but underrecognized in medical-surgical settings. The C-L clinician should screen for catatonic signs in order to diagnose and treat patients with the catatonic disorders.
From Researching Colloquialism as a Style in the First-Person-Narrator Fiction of Eudora Welty to Explaining Why a Mule Can't Reproduce: Or the Reeducation of an English Teacher
Authors: Pickett Nell Ann
Published: May 2005

The transition from teacher of literature to teacher of technical writing was both a matter of choice and a matter of necessity. By choice I teach in a community college. But the subjects I teach and the manner in which I teach them are largely influenced by the nature of the institution and the students. The institution, committed to the concept of extending educational opportunity to all, attracts a uniquely heterogeneous student body who prefer occupationally oriented programs.
A Response to Alan Williams
Authors: Carr-Hill Roy A.
Published: May 2005

In his reply to the author's criticism of QALYs, Williams claims that the QALY methodology attempts to clarify the issues involved in priority-setting in health care by introducing a formal model of the process. The author argues that Williams' approach is obfuscatory rather than clarificatory and that his model is promotional rather than analytical, and suggests that part of the problem is in Williams' failure to understand the nature of a democratic political process.
Conditions of Learning in Novice Programmers
Authors: Perkins D. N. , Hancock Chris , Hobbs Renee , Martin Fay , Simmons Rebecca
Published: May 2005

Under normal instructional circumstances, some youngsters learn programming in BASIC or LOGO much better than others. Clinical investigations of novice programmers suggest that this happens in part because different students bring different patterns of learning to the programming context. Many students disengage from the task whenever trouble occurs, neglect to track closely what their programs do by reading back the code as they write it, try to repair buggy programs by haphazardly tinkering with the code, or have difficulty breaking problems down into parts suitable for separate chunks of code. Such problems interfere with students making the best of their own learning capabilities: students often invent programming plans that go beyond what they have been taught directly. Instruction designed to foster better learning practices could help students to acquire a repertoire of programming skills, perhaps with spinoffs having to do with “learning to learn.”
The Use of the Reader in Technical Writing
Authors: Coney Mary B.
Published: May 2005

To communicate technical material effectively to a particular audience, a writer must not only analyze his readers' background and professional needs, but also incorporate that analysis into his text. This article introduces the concept of the mock reader as a means of giving body to an amorphic audience and relates that concept to the decisions a writer must make.

Three situations are presented—writing to the operator, the expert, and the manager—to show how the mock reader can enhance the immediacy and coherence of a text.
Reduced Text Structure at Two Text Levels: Impacts on the Performance of Technical Readers
Authors: Wenger Michael J. , Spyridakis Jan H.
Published: May 2005

Cues to text structure have been proposed to operate a number of different levels and it has been suggested that lower-level factors (e.g., word decoding) are more critical to reader performance than are higher-level factors (e.g., paragraph and text structure). The current study involved presenting texts in their base form and with cues to coherence at two levels—at the word and paragraph level—removed. These manipulations were performed on technical texts at two levels of familiarity and were presented to technical readers. Tests of recall, recognition, and problem-solving revealed that while removal of cues to local coherence did produce reliable decrements in reader performance, more dramatic effects occurred when both types of cues were removed. Results are discussed in terms of their relevance to questions of information design.
An Empirical Study of the Proposed Complicated Grief Disorder Criteria
Authors: Hogan Nancy S. , Worden J. William , Schmidt Lee A.
Published: May 2005

Diagnostic criteria for complicated grief have been proposed as a pathological disorder for inclusion into the next edition of the DSM. However, to date, little empirical testing of the criteria to support or refute the diagnostic claims has been completed. Since the original criteria were developed based on work with widows and widowers, further testing with other bereft groups is needed before advancing complicated grief to a diagnosis worthy of inclusion in diagnostic systems. The present study was undertaken to empirically test the complicated grief disorder criteria. The basic criteria of the complicated grief disorder, formerly called traumatic grief, separation distress, and traumatic distress, were not isolated as distinct constructs in confirmatory factor analyses, and conceptualization as a unitary construct did not provide an adequate fit of the model to the data. Further analyses did not support the distinctness between complicated grief and depression, or complicated grief and normal grief. Based on these findings, both further investigation into the validity of complicated grief disorder as a diagnosis and verification of the validity of the diagnostic criteria is warranted before declaring this phenomenon appropriate for inclusion in diagnostic systems.
Reporting of Work-Related Musculoskeletal Disorder (MSD) to Workers' Compensation
Authors: Morse Tim , Dillon Charles , Warren Nicholas
Published: May 2005

In contrast to theories of “moral hazard,” it appears that workers under-report cases to Workers' Compensation. In a population-based phone survey of work-related MSDs, it was found that cases were more likely to be reported if they were called work-related by a doctor, had surgery, or took time off from work. Higher rates of filing were found for lower education, having a union at the workplace, working in manufacturing, and for blue-collar occupations. Fear of the consequences of filing was significantly related to filing, but was not a strong association. A lack of perceived management support and lower decision latitude was associated with a higher rate of filing. Perceived knowledge of the Workers' Compensation system was not associated with filing. In general, a broader perspective of looking not just at reported claims but also unreported work-related illnesses is important for understanding both the magnitude of the problem as well as the impact of changes in Workers' Compensation laws.
Age Related Differences in the Strategies Used by Middle Aged Adults to Solve a Block Design Task
Authors: Rozencwajg P. , Cherfi M. , Ferrandez A. M. , Lautrey J. , Lemoine C. , Loarer E.
Published: May 2005

In the present study, it was proposed to investigate the effects of aging on the strategies used to solve a block design task and to establish whether these strategies may be associated with differential patterns of ability. Two groups of subjects, 30 young adults (aged 20–35 years) and 30 middle-aged adults (aged 45–60 years) were set a computer version of the Kohs task and a battery of tests. An age-related decrease in fluid intelligence (Gf) and visual-spatial ability (Gv) was observed, along with the fact that most of the older subjects used a global strategy rather than a synthetic one. On the other hand, while continuing to use strategies of the analytic type, the older subjects looked more frequently at the model and scored high on crystallized intelligence (Gc). These findings are discussed from two different points of view: the theory of hierarchical stimuli and the hypothesis that metacognitive ability, which is thought to rely on Gc, may increase with age, and thus compensate for the loss of Gf and Gv.
The Financing and the Economic Efficiency of Rural Health Services in the People's Republic of China
Authors: Hu Teh-Wei
Published: May 2005

This paper studies the resource allocation in the provision of health care services at the local level in the People's Republic of China. The subject of health financing and the effectiveness and cost of this medical cooperative service in the country's rural areas are evaluated. The conclusion drawn is that, with China's agricultural economic framework, the adoption of barefoot doctor services and the promotion of herbal medicine are cost-minimizing approaches that enable local political units to be financially self-supporting with regard to medical services. Based on a few samples at brigade or commune level, the results indicate that the barefoot doctor services are economically valuable. Furthermore, the sense of security and a point of entry into the health care system that the barefoot doctors can provide for lower-income peasants are by no means a minor noneconomic benefit. Some of their experiences may be useful to other developing countries.
Development of Culturally Appropriate Educational Material to Improve Home Case Management of Diarrhea in Rural Lombok, Indonesia
Authors: Muninjaya A. A. Gde , Widarsa Tangking
Published: May 2005

Indonesia is a country of many different ethnic groups and cultural norms. Despite this fact, most health education materials in Indonesia have been designed for an overall national audience. These materials rarely take into account local cultural perceptions and ideas about disease causation and appropriate treatment. Once materials are developed, they are rarely pretested to ensure that they are understood and accepted by the communities for which they are intended. We believe that educational messages and illustrations should be based on thorough research and analysis, not only of the health problem, but also of the perceptions, beliefs, and cultural practices of the target audience.

In order to develop a culturally sensitive health education campaign on appropriate home case management of diarrhea, we first conducted formative research with mothers of young children and health care providers in West Lombok, Indonesia. This research showed that the people recognize four different types of diarrhea according to signs and symptoms and perceived etiology. Based on the results of the formative research, a flipchart was designed incorporating five messages. The flipchart was then revised on the basis of two pretests. The pretest results showed that visual messages about child health, the course and treatment of diarrheal diseases, and the preparation of oral rehydration solutions were often misinterpreted or not considered in accordance with local cultural norms. Most of the respondents understood the messages but felt that several of the illustrations did not accurately reflect their ways of living. After changes were made, the materials were easily understood and accepted by respondents. To maximize the benefit of educational materials, the national health education sector should be more flexible in the adaptation of materials to local customs and perceptions.
Perceptions of Time Remaining and Distance from Death
Authors: Keith Pat M.
Published: May 2005

Life changes, demographic characteristics, attitudes toward death, and plans for the future are examined in relation to quantification of time remaining and perceived distance from death among 568 nonhospitalized, older men and women. A substantial proportion (49%) did not quantify the remaining portion of life and age did not prompt specification of time remaining. Life changes were poor predictors of both quantification time remaining and perceived distance from death. Demographic characteristics provided the best model to explain perceived distance from death although there were some differences by sex.
Coping with Chronic Low Back Pain: An Idiographic Exploration through Focus Groups
Authors: Strong J. , Large R. G.
Published: May 2005

Objective:

This article explores the coping construct held by individuals with chronic low back pain. The research addresses two criteria identified as important for coping research: it looks at people's appraisals and responses to the specific stressor of living with chronic low back pain, and it seeks to identify what these individuals actually think and do in response to the ongoing stressor of living with chronic pain.

Method:

Fifteen people with chronic low back pain who responded to a media release participated in focus group discussions on coping with chronic pain.

Results:

Analysis indicated the desirability, if not need, for a somatic focus, the reliance on higher order cognitive strategies for planful action, and the use of a varied repertoire of coping strategies.

Conclusions:

These findings are discussed both in terms of adjustment to chronic illness and in relation to current pain management practices.
A Scientific Releaser
Authors: Ottilio C. J.
Published: May 2005

“The aim of technology is not the triumph of matter, it is the triumph of man” (Louis Armand, Essays on Machines, Technology, and the Life of the Mind).

Because the typical layman does not understand the scientific and technological accomplishments of our nation, a modern educational program must be created to bridge the gulf of misunderstanding between the scientist and the nonscientist. The underlying success of this creative program is founded on the effectiveness of technical communication.
The Impact of Writing Style on Compliance with Instructions
Authors: Rogers Hiluard G. , Brown F. William
Published: May 2005

Advice for writers of business communication implies that certain stylistic conventions will contribute to the effectiveness of that communication. The case for improved readability and comprehension which arose from high-impact style is well made; however, a comprehensive review of the literature reveals little consideration as to the impact of the effect of writing style on behavior. To test the effect of writing style on compliance with instructions, the authors operationalized effectiveness as compliance with written instructions and conducted a field test involving 129 military officers. Instructions inviting subjects to obtain certain study materials were prepared in accordance with high-impact, low-impact, and high-impact with bottom line last prescriptions, and were provided to each of three randomly formed groups. Subjects in the group who received high-impact instructions complied with those instructions at a significantly higher rate than the group which received instructions in the low-impact style. Compliance data collected in the study also indicates that high-impact style elicits more timely compliance with instructions and that bottom-line first instructions may be more effective than other styles. The study generally validates the presumption that high-impact writing style is positively correlated with effectiveness in eliciting a desired behavioral response.
Through a Glass Darkly: Images of the Dead in Dreams
Authors: Barrett Deirdre
Published: May 2005

This study examined dreams about the dead. There were four categories of activities reported in these: the deceased described the state of death, delivered messages to the living, sought to change the circumstances of their death, or gave loved ones a chance to say ‘goodbye.’ Some of these categories occurred at a particular point in the grief process; others occurred at any time after the death. A remarkably large number of the dead telephoned. These dreams are discussed in terms of what they illuminate about attitudes toward mortality and loss.
The Statistical Sampling Concepts Needed in the Auditing of Computerized Accounting Systems
Authors: Skudrna Vincent J.
Published: May 2005

This study was conducted to determine the Statistical Sampling (SS) knowledge requited by the accountant to audit computerized accounting systems. Survey research was performed by the use of structured questionnaires sent to colleges and industrial corporations regarding specific SS topics. The responses were compared and analyzed with the Statistical Analysis System (SAS) computer programs to determine any significant differences. Instructional modules were developed for selected SS topics when significant differences were found between college training and industry demands. The modules represent a training tool that includes terminal objectives, curricula content and instructional strategies for the SS topics involved.
Economy, Politics, and Health Status in Cuba
Authors: Ochoa Francisco Rojas , Pardo Cándido M. López
Published: May 2005

An economic contraction occurred in Cuba at the beginning of the 1990s, of a magnitude greater than in any developed country in the last half century. This resulted primarily from the disappearance of the European socialist bloc and simultaneous tightening of the U.S. government's blockade at a time when Cuba was engaged in correcting its main economic problems. The economic crisis affected a number of areas of Cuban society. The state adopted a series of measures to cope with the socioeconomic situation, which have yielded positive results in the social and economic fields, as well as some undesirable results. In the health sector, the economic crisis has mainly reduced the availability of resources and has adversely affected some health determinants and some aspects of the population's health status. Despite the prevailing economic difficulties, the government is determined to preserve the country's achievements in health, and to develop them still further. The solution is not privatization or the introduction of health insurance systems or similar measures. Rather, Cuba will seek greater rationality and economic efficiency in the health sector. It has ratified the principles that the state should continue to finance the health system and maintain universal coverage and accessibility through free services.
The Literature of Enlightenment: Technical Periodicals and Proceedings in the 17th and 18th Centuries
Authors: Harmon Joseph E.
Published: May 2005

Technical periodicals and proceedings have been important instruments for transmitting news about scientific and technological discoveries for more than 300 years. The first such publications appeared amidst the birth of modem science when, for the first time, emphasis was placed on experiment as the basis for advancement of knowledge. Discussed in this article are the origin of the technical periodical and proceedings and their characteristics up to the end of the 18th century and the analysis of the writing style in an important technical paper written by Isaac Newton and published in 1672.
Capitalizing on Illness: The Health Insurance Industry
Authors: Bodenheimer Thomas , Cummings Steven , Harding Elizabeth
Published: May 2005

The private health insurance industry in the United States began as a money-collection mechanism for hospitals and doctors, and has evolved into an important profit-making sector of the economy. Blue Cross is dominated by hospital representatives and serves to channel money into the nation's hospitals. Physicians control Blue Shield and are its principal beneficiaries. And commercial insurance companies are closely linked to banks and industrial corporations through the country's large financial empires. Some effects of this elite control over the health insurance industry have been inadequate and distorted insurance coverage, discrimination against the elderly, the sick, and the poor, and rapidly rising medical costs. In addition, the control of Medicare and Medicaid by private insurance institutions has contributed to the enormous inflation produced by these programs. Though governments, consumers, and even the insurance industry itself are beginning to apply controls to the unprecedented medical inflation of the late 1960s, these controls tend to limit access to health care, especially for low-income people. Unless insurance companies are barred from the health care field and a public financing mechanism based on progressive taxation is introduced, health care will never be an equal right for everyone in the United States.
Local Advocacy for the Medically Indigent: Strategies and Accomplishments in One County
Authors: Mayster Vicki , Waitzkin Howard , Hubbell F. Allan , Rucker Lloyd
Published: May 2005

Access to health care for the medically indigent has emerged as a major policy issue throughout the United States. Because no national health program assures entitlement to basic services, practitioners and patients must cope with barriers to access on the local level. The authors report several separate but integrated strategies that a community-based coalition has used to achieve improvements in indigent care within a single county. Research strategies have involved short-term investigations of barriers to needed services, so that local awareness of the problem would increase rapidly. Political strategies have attempted to improve the county government's administrative procedures and financial support of services for the poor, to modify the practices of local health care institutions, and to influence statewide and national policies affecting local conditions. Legal strategies have involved the participation of attorneys who represent clients unable to receive care and who could initiate litigation as appropriate. Each of these strategies contains weaknesses as well as strengths. Although such advocacy efforts do not achieve a coherent system guaranteeing access, they can substantially improve the availability of local services.
Why and How to Advance Technical Copywriting
Authors: Henson Leigh
Published: May 2005

Promotional writing for industrial and high-tech products, or technical copywriting, is gaining more and more attention in the profession of technical communication. In contrast, higher education has largely neglected to prepare students for this major form of written communication. One reason for this neglect may be that some academics do not well understand the role and importance of technical copywriting. Another reason may be the stigma of unethical writing associated with copywriting for consumer products. This article testifies to the significance of technical copywriting and suggests that dialogical audience analysis and an emphasis on the rational appeal will contribute to ethical writing performance. Also, resources are cited of common interest to instructors, beginning practitioners, and researchers. Last, these groups receive recommendations appropriate for their individual activities.