Newsgroup: it.cultura.linguistica.inglese
Titolo: Issue of psychology - the meaning of "referral"

Hi
Please, correct every my mistakes or answer only to the main question.
I am working around some scientific articles about psychology; in someone
of these articles I have more difficulty.
The title of the 1st is:
"Infant crying patterns in the first year: normal community and clinical
findings".
"Abstract : .... crying durations and patterns were measured at four age
points (...) in normal community (N=400) and clinical (N=68) samples.
.....  Although mothers of first-borns were more likely to seek clinical
*referral*, there were no birt-order differences in crying amount or
pattern".  [N=number of infants]
What mean "referral" in this sentence ?
In my dictionary ("Il nuovo Ragazzini") I find:
" - (to) Refer = A attribuire, assegnare, indirizzare, dire (a q.) di
rivolgersi (a), dire di consultare .......   B, riferirsi (a), ...
  - Referable = riferibile "
I see refer, referred, referable, but I can't find *referral* .
How can I translate the sentence ?
"Sebbene le madri dei primi nati più probabilmente hanno cercato un
*consulto* clinico, non ci sono differenze di ordine di nascita
nell'ammontare del pianto e nel suo schema"   ?
Referral can mean "consulto" ?  Reading the dictionary I think no.  " -
Consulto = consultation "
This word, "referral",  is often recurrently.
2) "Since the aim of Tables 1 and 2 is to report estimates for perceived
infant crying in the normal community as a whole, it should be borne in mind
that the community figures include those referred cases who had entered in
the study in the normal community samples.   The prevalence rates for recent
*referral* in the community samples are 10% (1-3 mont group), 4% (4-6), 4%
(7-9), 2% (10-12).   Removal of these cases from the community data has,
however ......"
What does mean "referral" in this sentence ?
3) "Secondly, the findings here and elsewere show that this early peak [an
evening crying peak] accounts for the major part of maternal concern and
*referral*.    In the first 3 months, 11 % of mothers sought referral
recently, and 21% at some point, for persistent infant crying"
What does mean "referral" in this sentence ?
Thank you very, very much !
Massimo D'Angeli

 What mean "referral" in this sentence ?
Il concetto secondo me è che le madri (soprattutto quelle alla prima
esperienza) cercano consiglio di un medico o simile di fronte al pianto
insistente del figlio...
"referral" indica il loro rivolgersi ad un medico o simile... forse il modo
migliore è renderlo con una perifrasi.

Massimo D'Angeli
Not at all.
(Perhaps I should refer you to a better dictionary!)
Raymot
======
Brisbane, Australia
[[[[[[[[[[[[[[[[[[[[[

 (Perhaps I should refer you to a better dictionary!)
I will think to it !
My *incomplete* bilingual dictionary is "Il nuovo Ragazzini", is a 2,140
pages book, with very little
types ...   It is 10 years old, it is the second edition;
Ester (following this post) have the third edition, she wrote " C'č anche
sul Ragazzini 3° ed., contrassegnato come formale e con i significati:
riferimento, riferirsi, deferimento, rimettere, rinvio."
I have a psychological bilingual dictionary too (without "referral"); but it
is very cheap and useless.
I am going to buy an English dictionary monolingual, and a teacher suggested
to me to
buy a book with "phrasal verbs" too.
So, I think I need a loan of money  !

modo migliore è renderlo con una perifrasi.
Io come parola singola avevo pensato a "consulto".
Quale potrebbe essere una perifrasi ?
Thanks
Massimo