Evaluating the Face Validity of the ICECAP-O Capabilities Measure: A “Think Aloud” Study with Hip and Knee Arthroplasty Patients

The ICECAP-O index of capabilities measure for older people is intended to be used in the evaluation of health and social care interventions. Focusing on quality of life, rather than health or other influences on quality of life. This study evaluated the face validity of the self-administered ICECAP-O capabilities measure for older people by investigating how participants interpret and respond to questions using the cognitive interviewing technique. Twenty patients with osteoarthritis of the knee or hip participated in a cognitive interview whilst completing the ICECAP-O capabilities measure. Cognitive interviews were conducted using the concurrent ‘think aloud’ design. All interviews were audio recorded and transcribed verbatim and analysed (i) using a standardised classification scheme to identify response problems and (ii) qualitatively thematically analysed to explore the nature of the problems that the participants experienced when completing the measure. Problems were identified in 7 % of participants’ responses. The majority of problems identified were comprehension problems. Thematic analysis highlighted the extent to which participants’ distinguished between functioning and capability. Cognitive interviewing was a valuable technique for pre-testing the face validity, acceptability and content validity of the ICECAP-O capabilities measure. Participants had minimal difficulties completing the ICECAP-O capabilities measure. Those difficulties identified have prompted suggestions for improving the measure.     

Improving Treatment Plan Implementation in Schools: A Meta-analysis of Single Subject Design Studies

Twenty-nine peer-reviewed journal articles that analyzed intervention implementation in schools using single-case experimental designs were meta-analyzed. These studies reported 171 separate data paths and provided 3,991 data points. The meta-analysis was accomplished by fitting data extracted from graphs in mixed linear growth models. This analytic approach was adopted to provide a model whose assumptions were met and could model both level and trend. The extent to which interventions were implemented as planned in baseline was low with a downward trend. Performance feedback, performance feedback augmented with additional procedures, and self-monitoring with environmental supports were found to be highly effective for improving intervention implementation. Follow-up meetings without review of implementation data were ineffective. Maintenance data were positive across studies. Implications of the results for future research and practice are discussed.     

The Role of Hope, Spirituality and Religious Practice in Adolescents’ Life Satisfaction: Longitudinal Findings

This longitudinal study presents the first examination of the relation between hope, spirituality, religious practice and life satisfaction of students in Portugal. A sample of 227 adolescents aged 15–19 completed the Portuguese versions of the Children Hope Scale, Students’ Life Satisfaction Scale and a single item for each spirituality and religious practice variable. The results from the cross-sectional and longitudinal analyses suggest that hope and spirituality, but not religious practice, were strongly linked to adolescents’ life satisfaction. Hope significantly predicted life satisfaction at a single time point, 6-months and 1-year later, and spirituality scores added significant variance beyond hope scores. All the variables demonstrate moderate to high stability across 6-months and 1-year time frame; no significant changes were found between the variables across the administrations. These results parallel recent studies of adult and child life satisfaction and suggest strategies to promote life satisfaction in adolescents.     

Social dominance orientation predicts drive for muscularity among British men

The present study tested the hypothesis that men's drive for muscularity would be associated with their valuation of domination, power, status, and aggression over others. A community sample of 359 men from London, UK, completed measures of drive for muscularity, social dominance orientation, right-wing authoritarianism, trait aggression, and need for power, as well as their demographic details. Bivariate correlations showed that greater drive for muscularity was significantly correlated with most of the measures and their subscales. However, in a multiple regression analysis, the only significant predictor of drive for muscularity was support for group-based dominance hierarchies (Adj. R² = .17). These results suggest that men's drive for muscularity is associated with a socio-political ideology that favours social dominance.     

Evaluating a Complex and Uncertain Future

Social systems are emergent complex systems that are prone to uncertainty and change. Complexity and uncertainty increase the difficulty of evaluating for sustainability. However, backcasting from visions of sustainability using indicators that are positively correlated to principles of sustainability allows for congruence and complexity in achieving the vision. This article presents a model of how this can be done using Causal Layered Analysis and the Ecological Framework. Reiterating the evaluation and visioning process allows for indicators to accommodate change while remaining relevant to sustainability principles.     

Threats to Feminist Identity and Reactions to Gender Discrimination

The aim of this research was to examine conditions that modify feminists’ support for women as targets of gender discrimination. In an experimental study we tested a hypothesis that threatened feminist identity will lead to greater differentiation between feminists and conservative women as victims of discrimination and, in turn, a decrease in support for non-feminist victims. The study was conducted among 96 young Polish female professionals and graduate students from Gender Studies programs in Warsaw who self-identified as feminists (M _age ?=?22.23). Participants were presented with a case of workplace gender discrimination. Threat to feminist identity and worldview of the discrimination victim (feminist vs. conservative) were varied between research conditions. Results indicate that identity threat caused feminists to show conditional reactions to discrimination. Under identity threat, feminists perceived the situation as less discriminatory when the target held conservative views on gender relations than when the target was presented as feminist. This effect was not observed under conditions of no threat. Moreover, feminists showed an increase in compassion for the victim when she was portrayed as a feminist compared to when she was portrayed as conservative. Implications for the feminist movement are discussed.     

So that's why I don't remember: Normalising forgetting of childhood events influences false autobiographical beliefs but not memories

We investigated changes in autobiographical belief and memory ratings for childhood events, after informing individuals that forgetting childhood events is common. Participants received false prevalence information (indicating that a particular childhood event occurred frequently in the population) plus a rationale normalising the forgetting of childhood events; false prevalence information alone; or no manipulation, for one (Study 1) or two (Study 2) unlikely childhood events. Results demonstrated that combining prevalence information and the “forgetting rationale” substantially influenced autobiographical belief ratings, whereas prevalence information alone had no impact (Study 1) or a significantly lesser impact (Study 2) on belief ratings. Prevalence information consistently impacted plausibility ratings. No changes in memory ratings were observed. These results provide further support for a nested relationship between judgements of plausibility, belief, and memory in evaluating the occurrence of autobiographical events. Furthermore, the results suggest that some purported false memory phenomena may instead reflect the development of autobiographical false beliefs in the absence of memory.     

Canonical Correlation and Chi-Square: Relationships and Interpretation

A 2 × 2 chi-square can be computed from a phi coefficient, which is the Pearson correlation between two binomial variables. Similarly, chi-square for larger contingency tables can be computed from canonical correlation coefficients. The authors address the following series of issues involving this relationship: (a) how to represent a contingency table in terms of a correlation matrix involving r - 1 row and c - 1 column dummy predictors; (b) how to compute chi-square from canonical correlations solved from this matrix; (c) how to compute loadings for the omitted row and column variables; and (d) the possible interpretive advantage of describing canonical relationships that comprise chi-square, together with some examples. The proposed procedures integrate chi-square analysis of contingency tables with general correlational theory and serve as an introduction to some recent methods of analysis more widely known by sociologists.     

Randomized clinical trial of adapted mindfulness-based stress reduction versus group cognitive behavioral therapy for heterogeneous anxiety disorders

ObjectiveTo compare a mindfulness-based intervention with cognitive behavioral therapy (CBT) for the group treatment of anxiety disorders.MethodOne hundred five veterans (83% male, mean age = 46 years, 30% minority) with one or more DSM-IV anxiety disorders began group treatment following randomization to adapted mindfulness-based stress reduction (MBSR) or CBT.ResultsBoth groups showed large and equivalent improvements on principal disorder severity thru 3-month follow up (ps < .001, d = ?4.08 for adapted MBSR; d = ?3.52 for CBT). CBT outperformed adapted MBSR on anxious arousal outcomes at follow up (p < .01, d = .49) whereas adapted MBSR reduced worry at a greater rate than CBT (p < .05, d = .64) and resulted in greater reduction of comorbid emotional disorders (p < .05, d = .49). The adapted MBSR group evidenced greater mood disorders and worry at Pre, however. Groups showed equivalent treatment credibility, therapist adherence and competency, and reliable improvement.ConclusionsCBT and adapted MBSR were both effective at reducing principal diagnosis severity and somewhat effective at reducing self-reported anxiety symptoms within a complex sample. CBT was more effective at reducing anxious arousal, whereas adapted MBSR may be more effective at reducing worry and comorbid disorders.