The Absent Body of Girls Made Visible: Embodiment as the Focus in Education

The purpose of this article is to show the waysin which education can be centered on the bodyas the subject of experience, rather thanas an object or an absent entity. Pedagogicalpractices that emphasize a conscious awarenessof embodiment provide opportunities forstudents to learn in a holistic manner. Sincethe body is the way in which we experience theworld, mediating all processes of learning, allexperience is therefore embodied (Levin, 1985). Recognizing the body as subject of being ratherthan as object acknowledges that beneath theattempts to separate aspects of our being,which often occurs in educational settings,there exists an underlying, unified being thatis not subject to separation (Welton, 1998).The bodies of girls have traditionally beenrelegated to absent entities within thelearning environment, including in physicaleducation. A meaningful education, one thatembraces embodiment, would balance differenttypes of learning experiences, so that thevarious aspects of being are all considered andblended. Such a holistic approach to schoolingwould occur by providing an environment inwhich the needs of all students are valuedthrough efforts that defy the culturalstereotypes and preconceptions of the largersociety.     

Measuring QoL with SF-36 in Older Americans with TBI

This study demonstrated reliability and factor structure of the Medical Outcomes Study Short-Form Health Survey (SF-36) among older Americans with Traumatic brain injury (TBI), and evaluated effects of injury severity and race on SF-36's items and latent domains. A representative sample of 654 older, racially diverse patients with TBI was selected from the South Carolina Traumatic Brain Injury Follow-up Registry. Reliability and factor structure of SF-36 were evaluated using Cronbach’s alpha and confirmatory factor analysis (CFA). Multiple-indicator multiple-causes (MIMIC) models were used to study effects of injury severity and race on items (differential item functioning, DIF) and latent domains (population heterogeneity) of SF-36. SF-36 was reliable and its current eightfactor structure was confirmed. While TBI severity did not impact latent domain scores of SF-36, race did. Blacks had higher vitality and lower role-emotional scores than whites. The measurement model was invariant to injury severity and race (free of DIF), and DIF did not contribute to the differences of vitality and role-emotional between black and white older TBI patients. SF-36 was valid to measure quality of life (OoL) after TBI in racially diverse elderly population. Blacks tend to assert to strong coping behaviors in the presence of physical stress while admitting low performance due to emotional stress. In QoL research where the primary outcomes are usually composite scores from instruments, MIMIC models have advantages over conventional multivariable regression models in testing the validity of the instruments and assessing covariate effects on latent traits of instruments while controlling for DIF effects.     

An Evaluation of the NAMI Basics Program

This brief report describes results from an evaluation of NAMI Basics, a peer-delivered family education program for family caregivers of children and adolescents with mental illness. Over six classes, family members are given information (e.g. education about mental illness and treatments), skills training (e.g. family communication skills) and advocacy support. We report data from 36 caregivers who completed pre and posttest instruments measuring self-care, empowerment, and family problem-solving and communication skills. Results showed significant improvements in self-care, empowerment, and “incendiary” family communication after participation in the program. Results suggest that NAMI Basics may improve both parental functioning and familial processes. Implications and future directions are discussed.     

When up-words meet down-sentences: evidence for word- or sentence-based compatibility effects?

Participants were presented with sentences mentioning an entity with a typical location in the upper or lower vertical space (e.g., roof vs. root). Sentences supported or reversed the typical location of the target entity. Sensibility judgments requiring upwards or downwards responses were faster when the response matched rather than mismatched the target entity's typical location. This compatibility effect was independent of whether the sentence context supported or reversed the target entity's typical location. The results, therefore, provide clear evidence for word-based but no evidence for sentence-based simulation processes.     

Response competition effects insame-different judgments

An account ofsame-different discriminations that is based upon a continuous-flow model of visual information processing (C. W. Eriksen & Schultz, 1979) and response competition and inhibition between the responses by which the subject signifies his judgment is presented. We show that a response signifyingsame will on the average be executed faster due to less priming or incipient activation of the competing response,different. In the experiment, the subjects matched letters on the basis of physical identity. The degree of priming ofdifferent responses on same trials and ofsame responses ondifferent trials was manipulated by an extraneous noise letter placed in the display. Latency for judgments onsame trials increased as the feature overlap of noise and target letters decreased. Latencies were shorter ondifferent trials when the noise letter was dissimilar to either target letter than when the noise letter was the same as one of the targets. These results were consistent with the response-competition interpretation.     

Development of a structured psychiatric interview for children: Agreement between child and parent on individual symptoms

To test the reliability of children's reporting as compared with that of their mothers, a highly structured psychiatric diagnostic interview was used with 307 subjects, ages 6 through 16. Another interviewer gave each mother a similar interview about the child. Responses of each mother-child pair to 168 questions were compared using the kappa statistic. Highest agreement was found on questions concerning symptoms that are concrete, observable, severe, and unambiguous. Mothers tended to report significantly more behavioral symptoms, and children more subjective symptoms. Reasons for low kappas and asymmetrical reporting of symptoms are discussed.     

The effects of a video vignette on increasing treatment acceptability

The effects of a video vignette on the treatment acceptability ratings of four behavioral interventions were evaluated. Two interventions involved positive reinforcement (DRO and DRI) and two negative consequences (contingent physical restraint and contingent electric shock). Eighty-five individuals involved in programs for individuals with developmental disabilities were randomly assigned into two groups. The experimental group (n=41) viewed a video vignette of an extremely aggressive individual whereas the control group (n=44) did not. Acceptability ratings prior to the video showed no differences between the experimental and control groups except for the physical restraint intervention. The experimental group’s post video ratings indicated significant acceptability increases for electric shock and significant decreases for DRO. There also was a significant group by testing effect with the means for the experimental group rising whereas the control group means were stable. These results showed that acceptability is alterable through video. © 1997 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.