North-South research partnership: Is collaboration possible between unequal partners?

Scientific cooperation between the Industrialized Countries (ICs) and the Less Developed Countries (LDCs) has evolved greatly over the last three decades and has involved a number of varied mechanisms ranging from technical assistance to collaborative research partnerships. After a brief historical review of these mechanisms and of the conceptual debates around them, this paper considers the main programs that have been established during the last 10–15 years to promote North-South scientific collaborative partnership. One of the main problems encountered in the implementation of collaborative research programs relate to the asymmetry of the collaboration and the dominance of the partners in the North. While recognizing that conditions for success may differ depending on the main objectives of the collaboration, a list of ingredients for successful collaboration is proposed in the conclusion. This is based on the experience of the programs under review. This paper was prepared while the author was a Visiting Fellow at the Center for International Science and Technology Policy, Elliott School of International Affairs, George Washington University, Washington D.C.     

Le developpement du probleme de l'Unite de la Science dans l'Empirisme Logique

Sans résumé     

A validity and reliability study of assessment and screening for sustained withdrawal reaction in infancy: The Alarm Distress Baby scale

Sustained withdrawal behavior in infancy is an important alarm signal to draw attention to both organic and relationship disorders. A withdrawal scale, the Alarm Distress Baby scale (ADBB), for infants between 2 and 24 months of age was built. This article describes the construction of the scale and the assessment of its psychometric properties. The ADBB has good content validity, based on the advice of seven experts. The scale has good criterion validity: first, as a measure of the infant's withdrawal reaction, with a very good correlation between nurse and pediatrician on the ADBB (r_s = 0.84), and second, as a screening procedure for detecting the developmental risk of the infant. The cutoff score of 5 with a sensitivity of 0.82 and a specificity of 0.78 was determined to be optimal for screening purposes. The scale has good construct validity, with good convergent validity with both the Spitz (1951) and the Herzog & Rathbun (1982) lists of symptoms of infant depression (r_s = 0.61 and 0.60, respectively). Exploratory factor analysis showed two different factors, consistent with the scale's construct. Reliability was satisfactory with good internal consistency for both subscales (the Cronbach α = 0.80 for the first subscale and 0.79 for the second) and for the global scale (α = 0.83). The test‐retest procedure showed good stability over time (r_s = 0.90 and 0.84 for the two different raters). The scale could be used in different clinical settings, provided a sufficient level of social stimulation is given to the infant in a relatively brief period of time. The scale can be used by nurses and psychologists or by medical doctors after a short period of training. © 2001 Michigan Association for Infant Mental Health.     

Stephen Hawking and the virtue of discretion

Jacques Arnould thanks Stephen Hawking for his warning, but then quickly moves on to contend: the present moment provides an opportunity for Homo sapiens on Earth to rediscover the virtue of discretion.     

Exercise training can improve spatial characteristics of time-critical obstacle avoidance in elderly people

Fall prevention programs have rarely been evaluated by quantitative movement analysis methods. Quantitative movement analyses could provide insight into the mechanisms underlying the effects of training. A treadmill obstacle avoidance task under time pressure has recently been used to evaluate a fall prevention exercise program for community-dwelling elderly people and it showed that participants improved their obstacle avoidance success rates. The mechanism, by which the increased success rates were achieved, however, remained to be determined. Participants were elderly who had fallen at least once in the year prior to participation. They were assigned to either the exercise or the control group. The control group did not receive any specific treatment. The exercise group was administered a five week exercise program, which consisted of exercises on a functionally oriented obstacle course, walking exercises, and practice of fall techniques. Pre- and post-intervention laboratory obstacle avoidance tests were conducted. Three possible determinants of success were investigated, namely avoidance reaction times, the distribution of avoidance strategies, and three spatial parameters (toe distance, foot clearance and heel distance). Analysis yielded significant TimexGroup interactions in heel distances. The exercise group increased heel distance, while the control group did not. Increased heel distance may result in reduced risk of heel contact with the obstacle and, consequently, larger success rates. The remaining parameters showed no effect of training. In conclusion, the training program was effective in improving time-critical obstacle avoidance skills. In every day life, these effects of training may contribute to less obstacle-related fall incidents in elderly. In addition, these findings could indicate that the execution of other time-critical events, like an actual fall, could also be improved by training.     

Alliance to the group-as-a-whole as a predictor of outcome in psychodynamic group therapy

Abstract Eighteen patients diagnosed with burnout-related depression and receiving short-term psychodynamic group psychotherapy were included in this study. The participants completed the group version of the California Psychotherapy Alliance Scales (CALPAS) five times during treatment and evaluated the relationship positively. Alliance increased significantly as treatment progressed; however, the amount of change was small. Level of alliance to the group-as-a-whole, averaged over time, was predictive of two out of three outcome measures, whereas growth in alliance during the early phase of therapy was not predictive of outcome. Exploratory examination of the alliance at different time points showed that alliance to the group-as-a-whole at mid-phase of treatment was substantially correlated with outcome. Personality features such as dismissing attachment style and being overly nurturant or exploitable were predictive of early growth in alliance.