Obese, older adults with knee osteoarthritis: weight loss, exercise, and quality of life.

This study examined the effects of dietary weight loss and exercise on the health-related quality of life (HRQL) of overweight and obese, older adults with knee osteoarthritis. A total of 316 older men and women with documented evidence of knee osteoarthritis were randomly assigned to 1 of 4 18-month interventions: dietary weight loss, exercise, dietary weight loss and exercise, or healthy lifestyle control. Measures included the SF-36 Health Survey and satisfaction with body function and appearance. Results revealed that the combined diet and exercise intervention had the most consistent, positive effect on HRQL compared with the control group; however, findings were restricted to measures of physical health or psychological outcomes that are related to the physical self.     

Methodological issues in the assessment of sustained performance

In both military and industrial work settings, it has become desirable, and in many instances necessary, to require sustained performance beyond the apparently optimal 8-h workday. Research in this area may be viewed historically as having been focused in three major areas: (1) determining appropriate methodologies for measuring sustained performance, (2) investigating factors that influence sustained performance, and (3) searching for ways to enhance performance during sustained operations. On the basis of discussions held in Toronto in August 1984, observations are drawn and recommendations are made concerning the directions and content of future research.     

Pathways from Birth Weight to ADHD Symptoms through Fluid Reasoning in Youth with or without Intellectual Disability

Although individual differences in fluid reasoning reliably mediate predictions of attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) symptoms from birth weight in youth with typical cognitive development (TD), it is unknown if this indirect effect operates similarly in the development of ADHD symptoms secondary to intellectual disability (ID). Thus, we evaluated mediation by fluid reasoning in a longitudinal sample of 163 youth (45% female) with (n = 52) or without (n = 111) ID who were followed prospectively from age 5 to age 13. At age 9, youth completed the Arithmetic subtest of the Wechsler Intelligence Scale for Children, a measure of fluid reasoning. At ages 9 and 13, mothers and teachers separately rated youth ADHD symptoms and mothers completed a diagnostic interview. Mediation was tested via path analysis with bootstrapped confidence intervals, and moderated mediation estimated whether indirect effects differed between ID and TD youth or based on youth IQ. Controlling for demographic factors and age 9 ADHD symptoms, age 9 Arithmetic mediated birth weight and multi-method/informant age 13 ADHD symptoms, such that birth weight positively predicted Arithmetic, which negatively predicted ADHD symptoms. Neither ID status nor IQ moderated the observed indirect effect through Arithmetic, suggesting that it was similar for ID and TD youth as well as across the range of youth IQs. These findings support previous evidence that fluid reasoning, as measured by Arithmetic, may causally mediate birth weight and ADHD symptoms, and suggest that this pathway operates similarly with respect to the development of ADHD symptoms in youth with ID.     

Military Family Advocacy in the U.S. Army: Program Service Outcomes and Family Participation

Violence in military families remains a vexing problem. Since the advent of the Global War on Terror, there is inconsistent evidence that the prevalence of family violence is increasing, particularly during and after military deployments. However, child neglect appears to increase significantly during military deployments. The military has developed family advocacy programs designed to keep families safe and intervene to reduce the deleterious effects of exposure to family violence. This is one of the first studies to examine the quality with which a family advocacy program is implemented and the degree to which families engage with the program. To conduct this study, the case files of 226 families who came in contact with the Army Family Advocacy Program (FAP) and whose cases were closed in 2013 were reviewed and coded across several implementation and service outcomes. These included involvement of qualified staff, whether or not appropriate victim and offender assessments were completed, degree of inter-agency communication, and appropriateness of referrals, among others. Soldier and family member participation in FAP and other Army-sponsored programs designed to reduce violence was also assessed. Generally speaking, the Army Family Advocacy Program was implemented with high quality, established processes and procedures for handling cases were largely followed, and FAP staff responded rapidly and thoroughly to reported abuse. However, family engagement with Army services and supports was low. Developing robust approaches to engaging families in family programming must be a high priority going forward.     

Prototypes reflect normative perceptions: implications for the development of reasoned action theory

The reasoned action approach is one of the most successful behavioral theories in the history of social psychology. This study outlines the theoretical principles of reasoned action and considers when it is appropriate to augment it with a new variable. To demonstrate, we use survey data collected from a 4 to 17 year old U.S. adolescents to test how the ‘prototype’ variables fit into reasoned action approach. Through confirmatory factor analysis, we find that the prototype measures are normative pressure measures and when treated as a separate theoretical construct, prototype identity is not completely mediated by the proximal predictors of behavioral intention. We discuss the assumptions of the two theories and finally consider the distinction between augmenting a specific theory versus combining measures derived from different theoretical perspectives.     

Sequential planning in rhesus monkeys (<Emphasis Type="Italic">Macaca mulatta</Emphasis>)

In the current study, we examined the planning abilities of rhesus monkeys (Macaca mulatta) by training them on a five-item list composed of coloured photographs and then testing them on switch and mask trials. In contrast to previous studies where monkeys made responses using a joystick, in the current study, monkeys made responses directly to a touch screen. On switch trials, after a response to the first list item, the on-screen positions of two list items were exchanged. Performance on trials in which the second and third list items were exchanged was poorer compared to normal (non-switch) trials for all subjects. When the third and fourth items were exchanged, however, only one subject continued to show performance deficits. On mask trials, following a response to the first item, the remaining items were covered by opaque white squares. When two items were masked, all four subjects responded to each masked item at a level significantly above chance. When three items were masked, however, only one subjected was able to respond to all three masked items at a level significantly above chance. The results of the present study indicate that three of our four monkeys planned one response ahead while a single monkey planned two responses ahead. The significance of these findings is discussed in relation to previous studies on planning in chimpanzees and monkeys.     

Active heading control in simulated flight based on vertically extended contours

In two experiments, we manipulated the properties of 3-D objects and terrain texture in order to investigate their effects on active heading control during simulated flight. Simulated crosswinds were used to introduce a rotational component into the retinal flow field that presumably provided the visual cues used for heading control An active control task was used so that the results could be generalized to real-world applications such as flight simulation. In Experiment 1, we examined the effects of three types of terrain, each of which was presented with and without 3-D objects (trees), and found that the presence of 3-D objects was more important than terrain texture for precise heading control In Experiment 2, we investigated the effects of varying the height and density of 3-D objects and found that increasing 3-D object density improved heading control, but that 3-D object height had only a small effect. On the basis of these results, we conclude that the vertical contours improved active heading control by enhancing the motion parallax information contained in the retinal flow.     

A Time for Silence? Its Possibilities for Dialogue and for Reflective Learning

From the beginning of history sounds have played a fundamentally important role in humanity’s development as ways of expression and of communication. However in contemporary western society, and indeed globally, we are experiencing an excess of speech and a relentless encouragement to expression. Such excess indicates a misunderstanding about what expression and dialogue should be. This condition encourages us to think about silence, solitude and contemplation and the role they might play in restoring the realm of personal understanding of the Self and of one’s authentic experience of the Other. The purpose of this article is to explore the potency of a silence that arises from our participation in the world. We present first some ideas about silence as a human phenomenon. This is followed by an examination of silence and language, an investigation of silence in dialogue, and of its educational implications. The article concludes by emphasising the value of silence as potency in itself, assisting in recovering the expressive powers of language. We argue that it is important to understand the positive status of silence in order to recognise and avoid repressive speech and to introduce its potential for reflective learning.