bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025 huggingface dataset:
The Psychodynamic Impact of Coronary Bypass Surgery
Authors: Thurer Shari , Levine Frederick , Thurer Robert
Published: May 2005

Twenty-one individuals underwent extensive psychological evaluation before, and four months after, coronary bypass surgery, that examined: defensive mechanisms; fantasies and distortions; subjective meaning of the procedure; and transference and projections. Patients showed a significant improvement in their physical condition and indicated vigorous psychodynamic activity. Both before and after surgery many patients: a) used denial; b) misconceived the procedure; c) developed a subjective explanation of etiology; d) mourned; and e) revered their surgeon. Following surgery, many patients: a) rationalized their decision; b) reviewed their life and changed priorities (valuing human closeness, devaluing work); and c) recognized their mortality (engendering a renewed interest in life and/or rage).
Sex Differences in Health and Illness Orientation
Authors: Hibbard Judith H.
Published: May 2005

Recent studies indicate that gender role socialization and obligations may have considerable influence in shaping health attitudes, beliefs and behaviors. This article reviews these studies, focusing on sex differences in health and illness orientations, and explores in some depth differences in an interest and concern with health. The findings from several studies suggest that men and women differ in health perceptions, values, attitudes, interests and behaviors. The implications of these sex differences for health education research and practice are discussed.
The “New Economics” and Industrial Health: A Reply
Authors: Chasse John Dennis , LeSourd David A.
Published: May 2005

Our article called attention to two logical conclusions from the “rational worker” model: first, that firm safety investments can induce such carelessness that accidents will actually increase; second, that increased compensation payments can also induce such an increase. This leads directly to the conclusion that accidents can be reduced by reducing firm safety investments and by reducing compensation payments. Our contention was that this model, when used to draw policy conclusions, is conceptually flawed, empirically flimsy and dangerous in the sense in which the “accident prone” hypothesis has been called dangerous. If we understand James Chelius's reply (1), it serves to strengthen our contention.

Chelius offers no empirical evidence for the first conclusion that firm safety investments can induce an increase in accidents. He ducks conceptual issues, and, in particular, ethical questions. When he comes to the second conclusion, he shifts his ground, ignores considerable direct evidence that contradicts what he is trying to prove and relies again on regression coefficients from aggregate statistics. He then draws the same type of “blame the victim” policy conclusions that earned for the “accident prone” hypothesis its label of dangerous.

He has responded in three areas: 1. The theoretical model and methodology; 2. The empirical evidence; 3. Policy implications.
The Public Hospital and its Local Ecology in the United States Some Relationships between the “Plight of the Public Hospital” and the “Plight of the Cities”
Authors: Shonick William
Published: May 2005

The “plight” of the public hospital in the United States is examined from the point of view of its relationship to the “plight” of the cities. Fifty-five large cities are examined and for 38 of these cities that have such hospitals the relationships of levels of public hospital services to local demographic, government fiscal, and tax structure conditions are analyzed. The principal findings point to the existence of some strong relationships and the implications for public policy of these associations are discussed.
Knowledge of Aging and Life Satisfaction among Older Adults
Authors: Davis Neil C. , Friedrich Douglas
Published: May 2005

Four hundred young-, middle-, and old-old adults responded to a battery of quizzes dealing with life satisfaction and objective aging knowledge in the physical, psychological, and social domains. Analyses incorporated domains of aging knowledge, life satisfaction, age, gender, and demographic variables. Both means difference and regression analyses were computed. Significant age group, gender, and life satisfaction differences were found for the three aging knowledge domains. For successive age groups, knowledge of aging decreased, with females knowing less than males. The greater knowledge of aging, the higher the life satisfaction. The demographic variables education, financial status, health, living arrangement, and volunteerism were significant covariates for knowledge of aging. Results from this study indicate that knowledge of aging in specific domains varies among older adult age groups and is associated with life satisfaction.
What Educational Computer Systems Should Be
Authors: Lipson Joseph I.
Published: May 2005

The design of any instructional system needs to include consideration of academic quality, aesthetic quality and quality of instructional design. Some elements of an explicit model for the requirements of a learning environment are introduced and the application of those elements to computer based instructional systems are discussed. Emphasis is placed upon the emotional factors needed to promote learning and the way that the computer can assist the student as s/he gradually builds a mental model of the world.
Grieving, Mourning, and Healing Following Youth Suicide: A Focus on Health and Well Being in Families
Authors: Kalischuk Ruth Grant , Hayes Virginia E.
Published: May 2005

Within the context of their grieving families, this grounded theory study explored survivors' experiences of healing following youth suicide. The major theme developed in this study, Journeying Toward Wholeness, is conceptualized as a process involving the inter-relationships among three sub-themes: Grieving in Response to Youth Suicide, Mourning in Response to Youth Suicide, and Healing in Response to Youth Suicide. Initially, grieving, mourning, and healing occur within individual and family realms. Theoretically congruent with systems theory, this mid-range grounded theory suggests that grieving, mourning, and healing are embedded within a broader social context. This theory purports that grieving, mourning, and healing are related, dynamic, and seamless processes influencing each person's journey toward wholeness following youth suicide. This theory supplements the basis of holistic practice, directs us to accept a broad range of survivors' expressions of movement towards wholeness and health, stresses the importance of working with survivors' stories, and encourages us in relational practice.
Affect Cognizance and the Type a Behavior Pattern: Labeling, Cognitive Effort or Phenomenological Loss?
Authors: Ketterer Mark W. , Smith Barry D.
Published: May 2005

Forty-eight subjects were requested to remember three idiosyncratic emotion-laden memories (eliciting Anger, Anxiety and Contentment). Objective (change in tonic skin conductance) and subjective (rated success at achieving each emotion) measures of arousal were taken for each condition as well as subjectively rated use of cognitive content (verbal and visuospatial modes). An “Affect Cognizance Index” (group-calculated T-score for objective arousal minus group-calculated T-score for subjective arousal) correlated positively with a measure of Type A Behavior during Anxiety and Contentment but not Anger, with or without cognitive effort statistically controlled. However, cognitive content may influence affect cognizance independent of its relationship with the Type A syndrome. Those subjects reporting greater verbal content showed augmented experience of affect-induced arousal during Anger. Visuospatial content augmented subjective experience of affect-induced arousal during Contentment.
Clinical-Medical Issues for the Health Professional Who is Also a Leukemic
Authors: Wax Douglas E.
Published: May 2005

The health professional is in a unique but often awkward role when he falls victim to life-threatening illness and becomes a patient. Used to the role of caretaker, he experiences an abrupt reversal of role with consequent sequelae involving depression, loss of self-esteem, and the continual operation of defenses designed to protect himself in a period of acute distress. The author uses his own immediate experience as the starting point for a discussion of these and allied psychological issues concerning patient care in general.
Correlates of Drinking and Drug Use by Higher Education Faculty and Staff: Implications for Prevention
Authors: Watts W. David , Cox Linda , Wright Loyd S. , Garrison John , Herkimer Alan , Howze H. H.
Published: May 2005

The prevalence and frequency of drug and alcohol abuse among higher education faculty and staff is not known. Higher education is a cultural environment which, on the one hand, is stressful and, on the other, permits a high degree of autonomy. This relationship of stress and autonomy is predicted to produce drug and alcohol abuse. Information is gathered by anonymous, self-report questionnaires, on the frequency and prevalence of faculty and staff drug and alcohol use at a regional university. Responses show alcohol and drug use within the last year and month among four higher education occupational groups: faculty, administrators, clerical staff, and physical plant/custodial staff. While stress was found to be weakly correlated with some drug use in the last month, depression was consistently correlated with drug use and moderately correlated with suicidal thoughts and tendencies, as well as job dissatisfaction. Drug and alcohol abuse is a factor in behavioral problems that affect faculty/staff and can be addressed through Employee Assistance Programs.
The Place of Sociology in a Drug Education Curriculum
Authors: Stein Michael
Published: May 2005

This article gives consideration to the part a sociological perspective can play in a drug education curriculum. Sociology's study of human behavior from the context of various social groupings is considered appropriate to any understanding of drugs and drug use, as are a number of substantive areas common to the discipline. The sociological perspective is examined from the broad foci of structure and process, and with each focus examples of a sociological approach to drug use is offered. The common concerns of these approaches, as well as their points of divergence, are discussed. A sample outline of a course in “Drugs and Society” is also presented, suggesting the ways in which the sociological issues discussed could provide an orientation to the study of drug use in a social context.
Community Participation and Health Resource Allocation
Authors: Silver G. A.
Published: May 2005

The noticeable trend away from autonomous professional decision making in social issues, including health, is attributable to diverse factors. First, there has been dissatisfaction with professional decisions, related in part to growing managerial control and distance of managers from clients, and in part to frustration with skewed distribution of products. Second, there has been growing recognition of the political nature of decision making, regardless of professional input. Third, consumer participation has been introduced into various other social models. The writer argues that consumer participation, and even control, will not damage the professional's role and may have positive values for the planning and implementation of health systems. Consumer participation at every level can offset the immobility of large systems, racism, unwieldy bureaucracies, and class discrimination.
Cannabis Amotivational Syndrome and Personality Trait Absorption: A Review and Reconceptualization
Authors: Nelson Peter L.
Published: May 2005

This article argues that the so-called cannabis “amotivation syndrome,” widely reported in the literature, may not be a single nosological entity, but represent, instead, a change in cognitive style emerging as a result of cannabis's ability to facilitate a unique attentional state favoured by those who have a higher than average level of a personality factor referred to as “trait absorption.” Exaggeration of the absorptive style of cognition through cannabis use, when taken in the context of either a pre-existing or a reactive depression, may be what has been mistakenly categorized as “amotivational syndrome.”
Internet, Listserv, and Electronic Mail Usage by Student Affairs Professionals
Authors: Brown Stuart , Malaney Gary D.
Published: May 2005

While use of the Internet and electronic mail has increased tremendously in recent years, almost nothing is known about how administrators in higher education use the technology. Through a survey of student affairs professionals, this study explores administrators' attitudes toward the Internet, listservs, and electronic mail and how they are using these technological tools in their work.
A Mentoring Program for Remedial Students
Authors: Pagan Ralph , Edwards-Wilson Runae
Published: May 2005

The effectiveness of a mentoring program for 53 at-risk students was investigated. The investigation followed the similar research models as those previously implemented in higher education settings whereby undergraduate and graduate peers, in good academic standing, served as mentors to students in academic jeopardy. The grade point averages and attrition of a cohort of students on academic probation or warning was recorded during two consecutive semesters. A mentoring intervention was instituted during the second semester. The results indicated that the mentoring intervention had a positive impact on retention and grade point averages for this student cohort.
Problem Solving, Metacognition and Composition: The Effects of Interactive Software for First-Grade Children
Authors: Lehrer Richard , Randle Lynn
Published: May 2005

We report an experimental study of the instructional effectiveness of two types of interactive software environments for low SES first-grade students. The first environment consisted of teaching children the Logo programming language. The second contained commercially available software to aid composition and problem solving. Both software environments were contrasted to a no-treatment condition. Students in all conditions had the same teacher. Findings indicated that both software environments enhanced problem solving performance for a novel task, but the Logo environment was most facilitative for “learning to learn.” Both environments also appeared to enhance components of metacognition. Qualitative analysis of writing samples indicated no differences among groups. Results are interpreted as supporting the instructional utility of interactive software environments that are integrated within the curriculum.
The Psychiatric Profile of Patients with Chronic Diseases Who Do Not Receive Regular Medical Care
Authors: Cooper-Patrick Lisa , Crum Rosa M. , Pratt Laura A. , Eaton William W. , Ford Daniel E.
Published: May 2005

Objective:

To assess the relationship between psychiatric disorders and lack of regular medical care in individuals with chronic medical diseases.

Methods:

Nine hundred sixty-three respondents to the household-based Baltimore Epidemiologic Catchment Area (ECA) Follow-Up Study were interviewed in 1981, 1982, and 1993–1996. The main outcome measures were: 1) not receiving regular care from a health professional for an active chronic medical condition in 1981, 2) persistent lack of regular medical care, and 3) leaving regular medical care.

Results:

In cross-sectional analyses, having a psychiatric disorder (OR 1.70, 95% CI 1.17–2.48) was associated with not receiving regular medical care. This was mostly due to individuals with phobic disorder (OR 1.57, 95% CI 1.02–2.43). In prospective analyses, depression (RR 2.4, p < 0.04) and alcohol abuse (RR 2.9, p < 0.001) predicted leaving regular medical care one year later. Phobic disorder (RR 2.8, p < 0.001) predicted leaving care thirteen years later.

Conclusions:

Psychiatric disorders appear to place an individual at risk for irregular medical care. Studies of the quality and continuity of care for patients with chronic medical conditions should include measures of common psychiatric conditions.
Costa Rica: Moving toward “Health for All”
Authors: Pezza Paul E.
Published: May 2005

Health status indicators for Costa Rica compare favorably to those in more developed countries. This impressive achievement and the narrowing of health status differentials between population sub-groups have been attributed to a strategy for delivering primary care. This commentary examines the primary health care program and the role of the Health Assistant in its implementation. Also considered are contemporary challenges presented by the transition to a disease profile more typical of a developed country, a health care system still favoring care in an urban, hospital setting, and economic stagnation. It is concluded that these challenges threaten to erode the health gains made. Achieving “Health For All 2000” will require an enduring commitment, dedication, and will to live within current economic constraints without sacrificing the primary care program.
The Effect of Basic Instruction on Problem Solving Skills over an Extended Period of Time
Authors: Reed W. Michael , Palumbo David B.
Published: May 2005

In this study twelve undergraduate students were exposed to sixteen weeks of BASIC instruction. A repeated measures design was set up to measure changes in problem solving and computer anxiety at the 0-week, 4-week, 9-week, and 16-week intervals. Language competency measures were also collected and related to problem solving. Results include a significant increase in problem-solving skills from pretreatment to posttreatment, with the greatest increase occurring during the 4-week to 16-week interval. Related to this finding was a significant decrease in computer anxiety from pretreatment to posttreatment, with the greatest decrease occurring during the 0-week to 4-week interval. Based on these two findings, we have inferred that student programmers need first to accommodate system-related anxiety before they can adequately learn features of the BASIC programming language that affect problem solving. We also related problem-solving skills and language competency measures and found significant, positive correlations—that is, those who performed better when using the language, via a midterm test on BASIC, an instructional piece of software they developed, and final course grade, also scored higher on the problem-solving instruments. These findings strongly suggest a link between language competency and problem solving.
How Do the Mental Health Issues Differ in the Withholding/Withdrawing of Treatment versus Assisted Death?
Authors: Werth James L.
Published: May 2005

This article reviews ten of the most common mental health-related arguments against assisted death and applies them to the withholding/withdrawal of treatment to determine if the concerns expressed are truly unique to assisted death. After this analysis it is suggested that the mandatory involvement of a mental health professional can alleviate many of the concerns specifically associated with assisted death and that a mental health professional may also be helpful in situations involving the withholding/withdrawal of treatment.
Closure and the Cadaver Experience: A Memorial Service for Deeded Bodies
Authors: Schotzinger Kathleen A. , Best Elizabeth Kirkley
Published: May 2005

A variety of stresses and life crises confront the novice medical student. The one stress which is often overlooked or underestimated is the experience with the cadaver. Often the trauma of this experience is not recognized. The Northeastern Ohio Universities College of Medicine conducts a program designed to humanize the cadaver experience and provide an important form of closure to what many medical educators call the students' first encounter with death. Beginning with a carefully planned orientation and concluding with a memorial service for the deeded bodies, the program enables students to recognize and address their feelings, and provides a salient endpoint for the entire cadaver experience.
Cognitive Implications of Learning Prolog—Mistakes and Misconceptions
Authors: Scherz Z. , Goldberg D. , Fund Z.
Published: May 2005

Mistakes and misconceptions of high school students learning the logic-based programming language Prolog at an introductory level are described and analyzed. In this article, mistakes and misconceptions refer to errors that originate from a conceptual misunderstanding of basic ideas in logic programming and Prolog. A cognitive error classification scheme is presented in which four categories of underlying misunderstandings are identified: personification, conservation, concretization, and preconception. Examples of the various mistakes and misconceptions are presented and didactic suggestions are discussed for preventing or eliminating their occurrence.
Preventing Tractor-Related Injuries and Deaths in Rural Populations: Using a Persuasive Health Message Framework in Formative Evaluation Research
Authors: Witte Kim , Peterson Tarla Rai , Vallabhan Shalini , Stephenson Michael T. , Plugge Carol D. , Givens Vonda K. , Todd Jay D. , Becktold Melissa G. , Hyde Mary Kay , Jarrett Robin
Published: May 2005

Though agriculture is the most dangerous occupation in the United States, two key issues impede the effectiveness of farm safety interventions. First, little is known about what farmers think about farm equipment accidents and safety procedures. Second, current safety interventions are typically atheoretical and focus on information exchange, instead of persuasion. Formative evaluation is desperately needed, but rarely used in farm safety campaigns. The study reported here represents a formative evaluation based on a theoretically-grounded persuasive health message framework. The goal of this formative evaluation was to discover farmers' safety practices, as well as their beliefs about farm equipment accidents and safety. Methodological triangulation was achieved by assessing farmers' beliefs, attitudes, and behaviors via face-to-face interviews ( N = 46), telephone interviews ( N = 48), and mailed surveys ( N = 177). The formative evaluation revealed that farmers believe farm equipment accidents to be severe and dangerous, yet believe themselves to be invulnerable to these accidents.

East Texas Farmer, Fall 1992

[My neighbor's wife] was running the big old tractor to shredding. And she hit a stump and it throwed her off and it run over her. Them big old tires run right over her and that shredder still running just chopped her all to pieces. Killed her just real quick.
Cross-Cultural Investigation of a New Set of Scales for the Suicide Opinion Questionnaire
Authors: Domino George , Su Sulin , Shen Di
Published: May 2005

There are a number of alternate ways to score the Suicide Opinion Questionnaire (SOQ). Two methods were compared in this study, a set of eight scales developed by content analysis, and a set of five scales developed by factor analysis; two samples, one from the United States ( N=218), and one from Taiwan ( N=291) were assessed. On all SOQ scales, significant mean differences were obtained between U.S. and Taiwanese samples. The patterns of intercorrelations suggest that despite their factor analytic genesis, several of the SOQ-F scales correlate significantly with each other as well as with the SOQ-C scales. The results support the cross-cultural applicability and reliability of the SOQ, and suggest that although the SOQ-F scales may represent interesting variables, they are not superior psychometrically to the original content scales.
Early Paleo-Indian Foragers of Midcontinental North America
Authors: Lepper Bradley T.
Published: May 2005

A survey of private and public collections produced information on 410 fluted point yielding localities within a single county in east central Ohio. Analysis of techno-functional attributes of the fluted points resulted in the definition of four general settlement types including large and small workshop/occupations, chert processing loci, and food procurement/processing loci. The distribution of these loci in relation to various features of the local paleoenvironment suggests that Paleo-Indian bands were seasonally exploiting the diverse environments of the Appalachian Plateau. Subsistence activities appear to have focused primarily on dispersed, non-aggregated game species such as white-tailed deer. The dense concentration of fluted points here may simply reflect the high redundancy in the Paleo-Indian land use system in areas with limited loci of availability for critical chert resources.
Differential Expectations and Realities: Race, Socioeconomic Status and Health of the Oldest-Old
Authors: Johnson Colleen L.
Published: May 2005

Comparisons by race indicate that African Americans are significantly more disadvantaged than whites in their socioeconomic status. Despite complaints about their situation, however, African Americans report that their situation is better than they had expected. Although they perceive their health as poorer than whites, they are no more disabled functionally, and they have significantly better morale. Within-group correlations find the predictable associations between socioeconomic status and physical, psychological, and social outcomes for both groups. Nevertheless, both qualitative and quantitative data indicate that economic well-being is related to the congruence between expectations and the realities of life in advanced old age, making objective and subjective factors of similar importance.
The Economics of Pharmaceutical Policy in Ghana
Authors: Barnett Andrew , Creese Andrew Lacey , Ayivor Eddie C. K.
Published: May 2005

Pharmaceutical expenditure in Ghana accounts for about one-third of the total recurrent costs of the Ministry of Health, but in isolation this figure is a misleading indicator of economic importance. In the primary care sector up to 75–80 percent of the running cost of a health center may be accounted for by pharmaceuticals, and because the Ghanaian currency is heavily overvalued, even these proportions understate the true value of resources used on imported drugs.

An apparent lack of central control of drugs expenditure led to a study of the existing allocation procedures and prescribing practices. The results suggest large-scale wastage through overprescribing, often in response to patients' preferences for more costly medication.

Approaches to improved planning of drug use, including the setting of expenditure norms based on recommended prescribing routines, are detailed, and it is concluded that the resultant savings could allow a sizable extension of the coverage given to rural populations by the primary health care system.
Evaluation of the National Cancer Program and Proposed Reforms
Authors: Epstein Samuel S.
Published: May 2005

A statement by 68 prominent national experts in cancer prevention, carcinogenesis, epidemiology, and public health, released at a February 4, 1992, press conference in Washington, D.C., charged that the National Cancer Institute (NCI) has misled and confused the public by repeated claims of winning the war against cancer. In fact, age-standardized incidence rates have escalated to epidemic proportions over recent decades, while the ability to treat and cure most cancers has not materially improved. Furthermore, the NCI has minimized evidence for increasing cancer rates, which are largely attributed to smoking, trivializing the importance of occupational carcinogens as non-smoking attributable causes of lung and other cancers, and to diet per se, in spite of tenuous and inconsistent evidence and ignoring the important role of carcinogenic dietary contaminants. Reflecting this near exclusionary blame-the-victim theory of cancer causation, with lockstep support from the American Cancer Society and industry, the NCI discounts the role of avoidable involuntary exposures to industrial carcinogens in air, water, food, the home, and the workplace. The NCI has also failed to provide any scientific guidance to Congress and regulatory agencies on fundament principles of carcinogenesis and epidemiology, and on the critical needs to reduce avoidable exposures to environmental and occupational carcinogens. Analysis of the $2 billion NCI budget, in spite of fiscal and semantic manipulation, reveals minimal allocations for research on primary cancer prevention, and for occupational cancer, which receives only $19 million annually, 1 percent of NCI's total budget. Problems of professional mindsets in the NCI leadership, fixation on diagnosis, treatment, and basic research, much of questionable relevance, and the neglect of cancer prevention, are exemplified by the composition of the National Cancer Advisory Board. Contrary to the explicit mandate of the National Cancer Act, the Board is devoid of members authoritative in occupational and environmental carcinogenesis. These problems are further compounded by institutionalized conflicts of interest reflected in the composition of past executive President's Cancer Panels, and of the current Board of Overseers of the Sloan-Kettering Memorial Cancer Center, the NCI's prototype comprehensive cancer center, with their closely interlocking financial interests with the cancer drug and other industries. Drastic reforms of NCI policies and priorities are long overdue. Implementation of such reforms is, however, unlikely in the absence of further support from industrial medicine professionals, besides action by Congress and concerned citizen groups.
Postindustrial Europe and its Health Care: Views of an Outsider
Authors: Battistella R. M.
Published: May 2005

The future of health services in postindustrial countries is assessed in the light of an expected larger and more vigorous government role in planning and a continuation of the need to reconcile quality of life aspirations with economic and administrative constraints, notwithstanding the messianic promises of science and technology.
The Alcoholic Woman: A Literature Review
Authors: Schuckit Marc
Published: May 2005

Alcoholic women present unique characteristics of clinical course and family history. A review of studies comparing male and female abusers of alcohol reveals a later age of onset of symptoms in women but comparable age at hospitalization for both. The woman alcoholic also reports more depressive symptoms, with a higher incidence of depressive episodes and suicide attempts. Depression is more common in the female relatives of women alcoholics. The data suggest that alcoholism in women may frequently occur in the presence of an affective disorder. Attention is called to the importance of rigorous criteria of assessment for purposes of research into the etiology, course and treatment of alcoholism.
Fetal, Infant, and Maternal Mortality during Periods of Economic Instability
Authors: Brenner M. H.
Published: May 2005

One of the most sensitive indicators of the general socioeconomic level of a nation is the infant mortality rate. For industrialized societies, however, the problem of adapting to economic growth concerns less the level of economic growth than whether that growth is relatively smooth or chaotic. Thus, if there is in fact a continuing inverse relationship between economic growth rates and trends in infant mortality, such a relationship should be most accurately observed in comparisons between short and intermediate fluctuations in trends in infant mortality and in the economy. The results of this analysis indicate that significant changes in the trends in perinatal, neonatal, and postneonatal and maternal mortality occur regularly in the United States as a result of environmental change associated with economic fluctuations. The evidence indicates that economic recessions and upswings have played a significant role in fetal, infant, and maternal mortality in the last 45 years. In fact, economic instability has probably been responsible for the apparent lack of continuity in the decline in infant mortality rates since 1950.
Writing across the Business Curriculum: An Alternative Means of Developing and Assessing Written Communication Skills
Authors: Ault David E. , Michlitsch Joseph F.
Published: May 2005

For three years, the School of Business explored writing across the curriculum (WAC) approaches for developing written communication skills of undergraduate business majors. In selected classes, instructors stressed links between understanding concepts and being able to write clearly about them, improved design of assignments, and improved feedback to students. Instructors participating in this study concluded that a WAC approach improved the quality of student writing and the applications of course concepts. They also concluded that these improvements carried over to subsequent courses. Students reported using more care in revising drafts and more attention overall, to writing in certain settings. Their attention peaked when the instructor emphasized writing. A minority of students maintained, however, that writing should be evaluated only in writing classes taught by English faculty and that evaluation of writing should not be used to determine the grades they receive on assignments or for the course itself.
Children's Grief Narratives in Popular Films
Authors: Sedney Mary Anne
Published: May 2005

Children's grief narratives, conceptualized as portrayals of the grief process in children, in popular films are examined. Four films focus this study: Snow White, Bambi, The Land Before Time, and The Lion King. These films reflect a range of acknowledgment of death and descriptions of grief in their young characters. They also vary in the extent to which they are consistent with traditional models of grief that emphasize detachment and contemporary models that focus on the importance of ongoing connections with the deceased. These films are consistent in their portrayal of the availability and usefulness of support and comfort for grieving children. They are also uniform in their presentation of possibilities for hope and some forward development after loss. Use of popular films for children's death education and for grief education is discussed.
A Bittersweet Report from a New Orleans Sugar Refinery: Working Conditions and Labor-Management Relations Deteriorate Together
Authors: Rosenberg Beth J. , Barbeau Elizabeth M.
Published: May 2005

At the invitation of the president of United Food and Commercial Workers (UFCW) Local #1101, which represents workers at the Domino sugar refinery in Arabi, Louisiana, we met with several union members in the fall of 1998. Our purpose was to investigate workers' perceptions of health and safety conditions in the plant and offer assistance in the amelioration of problems. We conducted in-person interviews, each lasting approximately 30 minutes, with the local union president and twelve members selected by the president.
America's Neglected Veterans: 1.7 Million Who Served Have No Health Coverage
Authors: Woolhandler Steffie , Himmelstein David U. , Distajo Ronald , Lasser Karen E. , McCormick Danny , Bor David H. , Wolfe Sidney M.
Published: May 2005

Many U.S. military veterans lack health insurance and are ineligible for care in Veterans Administration health care facilities. Using two recently released national government surveys—the 2004 Current Population Survey and the 2002 National Health Interview Survey—the authors examined how many veterans are uninsured (lacking health insurance coverage and not receiving care from the VA) and whether uninsured veterans have problems in access to care. In 2003, 1.69 million military veterans neither had health insurance nor received ongoing care at Veterans Health Administration (VHA) hospitals or clinics; the number of uninsured veterans increased by 235,159 since 2000. The proportion of nonelderly veterans who were uninsured rose from 9.9 percent in 2000 to 11.9 percent in 2003. An additional 3.90 million members of veterans' households were also uninsured and ineligible for VHA care. Medicare covered virtually all Korean War and World War II veterans, but 681,808 Vietnam-era veterans were uninsured (8.7 percent of the 7.85 million Vietnam-era vets). Among the 8.27 million veterans who served during “other eras” (including the Persian Gulf War), 12.1 percent (999,548) lacked health coverage. A disturbingly high number of veterans reported problems in obtaining needed medical care. By almost any measure, uninsured veterans had as much trouble getting medical care as other uninsured persons. Thus millions of U.S. veterans and their family members are uninsured and face grave difficulties in gaining access to even the most basic medical care.
Anxiety, Type a Behavior, and Cardiovascular Disease
Authors: Lee Myung Ae , Cameron Oliver G.
Published: May 2005

Males with anxiety disorders appear to have increased mortality due to circulatory system disease, and Type A behavior is a risk factor for coronary heart disease (CHD). Thus, we determined Type A behavior in anxious patients. Fifty-seven DSM-III defined anxiety disorder patients completed the Jenkins Activity Survey (JAS) and Symptom Checklist-90-Revised (SCL-90-R). Significantly more male (92%) than female (52%) anxious patients had Type A behavior. Correlations between the JAS scales and SCL-90-R subscales were also different between male and female patients; in males, significant correlations were observed for SCL-90-R anxiety with both JAS Type A and JAS Hard-Driving and Competitive, and for SCL-90-R hostility with JAS Hard-Driving and Competitive. However, there were no consistent correlations between the JAS and the SCL-90-R subscales in females. A trend for fathers of anxious patients to have an increased prevalence of CHD was also observed. The increased incidence of Type A behavior in male, but not in female, anxious patients suggest a mechanism for increased mortality due to circulatory disease in male anxiety patients.
Self-Regulated Learning of Performance Analysis as a Complex Cognitive Skill: Contributions of an Electronic Performance Support System (EPSS)
Authors: Darabi Abbas , Mackal Melissa C. , Nelson David W.
Published: May 2005

Twelve students divided into three groups used an electronic performance support system (EPSS) to conduct performance analyses in three professional organizations. The EPSS, designed to support the complex cognitive skills required for analysis of performance problems in these organizations, was employed as an instructional intervention in a graduate level performance analysis course. Students' self-efficacy scores measured before and after the analyses were conducted indicated that their self-efficacy increased. Qualitative and quantitative analysis of students' evaluation of the EPSS demonstrated that it was a valuable tool for instructing performance analysis and supporting self-regulatory behaviors.
The Predictive Nature of Humor, Authoritative Parenting Style, and Academic Achievement on Indices of Initial Adjustment and Commitment to College among College Freshmen
Authors: Hickman Gregory P. , Crossland Garnet L.
Published: May 2005

Through the administration of self-report surveys, this study examined the relationships among a) parenting styles, b) family structure, c) academic achievement, d) birth order, e) gender, and f) humor on the initial personal-emotional, social, academic, and commitment to college adjustment among 257 first-quarter college freshmen. Multiple regression models demonstrated that humor, academic achievement, and authoritative parenting were positively related to students' college adjustment. Implications were drawn for post-secondary educational institutions as well as parents.
The Existential Plight in Cancer: Significance of the First 100 Days
Authors: Weisman Avery D. , Worden J. William
Published: May 2005

The Existential Plight in cancer is a poorly recognized but significant period. It starts with the definite diagnosis and continues for two to three months into the illness, approximately 100 days. The chief signs are the predominance of life/death concerns, even over worries about health or physical symptoms. One hundred and twenty newly diagnosed cancer patients were interviewed, tested, and followed from about ten days after diagnosis at four to six week intervals until three to four months had elapsed. Plight was analyzed from the viewpoint of coping strategies, resolution of problems, vulnerability, total mood disturbance, and predominant concerns. Patients who had higher emotional distress during this period had many regrets about the past, were pessimistic, came from a multiproblem family, and had marital problems. The widowed or divorced had higher vulnerability, as did patients who anticipated little or no support from significant others. Although vulnerability increased with advanced staging and many symptoms, at the time of diagnosis psychosocial distress crossed diagnostic and prognostic boundaries, enabling investigation to predict within limits those patients who will cope effectively or fail to cope with cancer and its ramifications.
Speech Made Visible: The Irregular as a System of Meaning
Authors: Brett-Smith Sarah Catharine
Published: May 2005

Bogolanfini are mud-dyed cloths painted by women of the Bamana tribe in Mali. Bogolanfini designs are regular geometric patterns, however they are invariably marked by “inaccuracies” and irregularities. It is argued in this article that these irregularities are not mistakes. Rather, they are intentional. The cloths are documents coding knowledge. The inaccuracies serve to conceal this knowledge from all but the initiated. They are analogous to the ambiguities in indigenous writing systems. In Bamana culture, direct speech is frowned on and metaphorical and ambiguous speech is favored. In some cases, direct communication of knowledge is believed to lead to madness. Hypothetically, the irregularities in Bogolanfini cloths reflect these cultural values concerning speech, writing, and communication in general.
Curriculum Theory Reconsidered: Strategic Planning and Organizational Training
Authors: Rothwell William J.
Published: May 2005

In organizational training, curriculum design—that is, instructional planning—has been based on the fundamentally faulty assumption that past performance deficiencies can be used to design instruction for improving future performance. As a result, training has too often been considered marginally relevant to top-level planning and policymaking. Training should be reoriented to anticipate, rather than just react to, organizational needs. This article introduces strategic planning, describes four current schools of curriculum theory, and shows how each theory can be transformed in a way consistent with strategic planning.
Screening for Psychiatric Morbidity in a Medical Outpatient Clinic for HIV Infection: The Need for a Psychiatric Presence
Authors: Lyketsos Constantine G. , Hanson Anne , Fishman Marc , McHugh Paul R. , Treisman Glenn J.
Published: May 2005

Objective:

To ascertain the prevalence and type of psychiatric morbidity present in HIV infected patients presenting for the first time to a specialty HIV medical clinic. Also, to develop a way of screening for psychiatric cases in this setting using established self-report questionnaires.

Method:

Fifty patients who presented consecutively for medical care at the Johns Hopkins Hospital General HIV Clinic participated in this study. These patients were first screened using the General Health Questionnaire and the Beck Depression Inventory and subsequently underwent a comprehensive neuropsychiatric evaluation.

Results:

Fifty-four percent were found to suffer from a psychiatric disorder with an additional 22 percent from an active substance use disorder. These rates are one-and-one-half to two times higher than those reported from other medical clinics. The GHQ and BDI used together as screens could identify psychiatric “cases” with a sensitivity of 81 percent and a specificity of 61 percent, an efficacy similar to that found in other clinics.

Conclusions:

Given the high prevalence of psychiatric disorders in HIV infected patients presenting for medical care, screening, evaluating, and treating for these disorders is crucial and should be pursued systematically. This is best done through the presence of a psychiatric team within HIV medical clinics rather than in affiliation with such clinics.
Pediatric Mood and Anxiety Syndromes in Primary Care: Who Gets Identified?
Authors: Wren Frances J. , Scholle Sarah H. , Heo Jungeun , Comer Diane M.
Published: May 2005

Objective:

To seek clues to the enhancement of primary care management by (i) Determining how often and in whom primary care clinicians in the United States, Puerto Rico, and Canada identify pediatric mood or anxiety syndromes; (ii) Determining which clinical and demographic features predict higher rates of identification; (iii) Describing assessment methods used.

Methods:

This report uses the database of the multi-site Child Behavior Study. This cross-sectional study involved 206 primary care practices in the United States, Puerto Rico, and Canada; 395 clinicians and 20,861 primary care attenders aged 4–15 years. Clinicians completed a visit questionnaire addressing presence and type of psychosocial problems and how assessed. Parents completed a questionnaire addressing family demographics, child symptoms (Pediatric Symptom Checklist) and functioning, and child service use.

Results:

Clinicians identified psychosocial problems on 17.9% of visits, but mood or anxiety syndromes on only 3.3%, most commonly in children judged to have co-morbid behavioral syndromes, of whom the majority (66.7%) already had contact with specialized mental health. Neither parental concerns about mood and anxiety symptoms nor clinician familiarity with the patient were major predictors of identification. When making a diagnosis of a pure internalizing syndrome (i.e., without a co-morbid behavioral syndrome) clinicians rarely used standardized tools or school reports.

Conclusions:

Neither screening for nor diagnosis of mood and anxiety syndromes is a routine part of primary care of children and adolescents. Efforts to improve care must include practical, validated screening procedures to enhance assessment for mood and anxiety syndromes, particularly among children in whom primary care clinicians identify psychosocial problems.
Religiosity Related to Grief Levels of Bereaved Mothers and Fathers
Authors: Bohannon Judy Rollins
Published: May 2005

In previous research, religiosity has been associated with decreased death anxiety. This study looked at religiosity, as measured by church affiliation and attendance, in relation to bereaved mothers' and fathers' scores on the GEI, including death anxiety. Using a MANCOVA to control for social desirability, high church attendance for both groups had a significant inverse relationship with death anxiety. An inverse relationship also existed for the same mothers' and fathers' adjusted mean scores on the scales of anger and guilt. Mothers who attended church more frequently also reported significantly less loss of control, rumination, depersonalization, and optimism/despair than mothers who attended less frequently. Church attendance appeared to have a less significant association with fathers' grief levels.