The sense-making approach for audience assessment of adolescents

The purpose of the research was to test the methodology used to identify how adolescents approach their nutrition concerns and questions. The methodology was based on Dervin's sense-making theory. Using a time-line interview technique, 305 adolescents 14 to 16 years of age detailed a situation involving their most important nutrition concerns. Other pertinent information was obtained. Cluster analysis was chosen as the appropriate analysis to identify groups of adolescents who responded similarly to the technique. Discriminant analysis was then used to determine which variables maximally separated the groups. Four groups were identified, two of which described action-oriented approaches to dealing with nutrition situations and differed in terms of how much outside help they wanted. The remaining two groups perceived barriers to dealing with situations and also differed in how much help they wanted. A fifth group indicated no nutrition concerns or questions. The results will be used to develop and test the effectiveness of nutrition education when it is focused on the different approaches.     

TREATMENT OF SELF-INJURIOUS BEHAVIOR USING A WATER MIST: INITIAL RESPONSE SUPPRESSION AND GENERALIZATION

This study evaluated the effects of a fine mist of water applied to the face contingent upon self-injurious behavior (SIB) exhibited by profoundly retarded persons. In Experiment 1, results of individual reversal designs showed substantial reductions in a variety of SIB's (mouthing, hand biting, skin tearing, and head banging) for seven participants. In Experiment 2, two participants who frequently bit their hands were each observed in two different settings. Following initial baselines in each setting, a series of manipulations was undertaken to compare the effects of mild verbal punishment (“No”) with those of a combined treatment (“No” plus mist procedure). Results in one setting indicated that “No” suppressed SIB only after it was first paired with the water mist. Data also suggested that, once acquired, the punishing properties of “No” could be extended to a second setting in which the mist was never applied, and that these effects could be generalized across therapists. Results of these experiments indicate that the water mist procedure may be an effective alternative to traditional punishment techniques. Although conclusions regarding generalization are limited due to the brevity of the maintenance conditions, the data suggest that treatment gains may be transferred to more acceptable forms of social punishment and reinforcement.     

Intratask distractibility in hyperkinetic and nonhyperkinetic children

Previous laboratory studies that have either introduced extraneous environmental stimulation or tested children in cubicles have failed to provide support for the common clinical notion that hyperkinetic children are highly distractible. Based on the Rosenthal and Allen (1978) proposal, distractibility was investigated by introducing irrelevant information within the task context. Intratask distractibility was examined by comparing the performance of hyperkinetic and nonhyperkinetic children on a speeded classification task. Errors were measured for responses to slides containing either zero, constant, one varying, or two varying irrelevant stimulus dimensions. Dimensional salience of the three dimensions used in the study was measured for each child. The data indicate that hyperkinetics made more errors than nonhyperkinetics when constant irrelevant or two varying irrelevant dimensions were presented, but the two groups made equal errors when there was no irrelevant information presented within the stimulus array. No group differences in distractibility were found when the irrelevant dimension was low salience. It was concluded that salience of distractors presented within the task context may be useful in specifying the particular task conditions in which hyperkinetic children exhibit high distractibility. This study is based on the first author's Ph.D. thesis in the Department of Psychology, Vanderbilt University, Nashville, Tennessee. The authors wish to thank the many administrators, teachers, and students in the Metropolitan Nashville Public Schools for their cooperation, including Dr. Thomas Vandever, Mr. V. N. Nicholson, Dr. Jesse Cabler, Mrs. Elizabeth Wortham, and Mr. W. J. Officer.     

A regression analysis of test bias on the WISC-R for Anglos and Chicanos referred for psychological services

Predictive validity of the Wechsler Intelligence Scale for Children-Revised was investigated across race for 174 Chicano and 94 Anglo children referred for psychological services. Regression lines for the prediction of achievement were compared across race through the Potthoff analysis, which provides a simultaneous test of slope and intercept values. Results of these comparisons generally supported the predictive validity of the WISC-R across race with this referral sample of young children.     

The number of paths and cycles in a digraph

An algorithm is presented for constructing from the adjacency matrix of a digraph the matrix of its simplen-sequences. In this matrix, thei, j entry,i j, gives the number of paths of lengthn from a pointv _i to a pointv _j ; the diagonal entryi, i gives the number of cycles of lengthn containingv _i . The method is then generalized to networks—that is, digraphs in which some value is assigned to each line. With this generalized algorithm it is possible, for a variety of value systems, to calculate the values of the paths and cycles of lengthn in a network and to construct its value matrix of simplen-sequences. The procedures for obtaining the two algorithms make use of properties of a line digraph—that is, a derived digraph whose points and lines represent the lines and adjacency of lines of the given digraph.The research reported here was supported by Grant NSF-G-17771 from the National Science Foundation. We wish to thank Professor Frank Harary for suggesting certain ways of improving an earlier draft of this paper.     

A note on a matrix criterion for unique colorability of a signed graph

A signed graph,S, is colorable if its point set can be partitioned into subsets such that all positive lines join points of the same subset and all negative lines join points of different subsets.S is uniquely colorable if there is only one such partition. Developed in this note is a new matrix, called thetype matrix ofS, which provides a classification of the way pairs of points are joined inS. Such a classification yields a criterion for colorability and unique colorability.The work reported here was supported by Grant MH 10834 from the National Institute of Mental Health.     

可卡因对6-羟基多巴胺所致大脑单侧黑质纹状体系统损伤的大白鼠的旋转行为的影响

本实验观察了Holtzman种系雌性大白鼠34只。以6-OHDA制备单侧大脑黑质纹状体系统损伤的旋转行为模式。在特殊的和自动的球形旋转仪中共进行3次行为观察。以伤侧多巴胺的耗竭率在85％以上,以及具有优势地同侧性的旋转行为的实验动物的实验数据作为分析和讨论的依据。34只雌性大白鼠均符合上述条件。本实验所观察到的盐酸可卡因对动物的旋转行为的影响,其主要结果如下: 可卡因可使实验动物引起刻板的同侧性的旋转行为,其作用迅速。不同剂量的可卡因对动物的旋转行为有不同的影响。 单冷注射可卡因对动物的旋转行为能明显地引起长的至少持续一个星期的促进作用。这就提示,对脑和行为具有持久作用的心理运动的兴奋药,没有必要反复给药。     

Religious Affiliation Influences on the Health Status and Behaviours of Students Attending Seventh-Day Adventist Schools in Australia

Students attending Seventh-day Adventist (Adventist) schools in Australia have been shown to have better health status and behaviours compared to secular norms, yet these schools cater for a high percentage of non-Adventist students. The purpose of this study was to investigate the influence of religious affiliation (Adventist/non-Adventist) on the health status and behaviours of students attending Adventist secondary schools in Australia. The sample included 1734 students who responded to a health and lifestyle survey that captured demographic details, self-reported height and weight, self-reported health status, mental health and select health behaviours. Students who identified themselves as Adventist reported significantly better health behaviours than the non-Adventist students in several behavioural domains, especially among the male students. However, this did not translate to a difference in health status. Further research is needed to understand the causal mechanisms responsible for the potential health advantage of Adventist students, which may include family or church religious influences.     

Influence of Accelerometer Placement and/or Heart Rate on Energy Expenditure Prediction during Uphill Exercise

Studies using a triaxial accelerometer and heart rate (HR) simultaneously for estimating energy expenditure (EE) during uphill exercise are rare. Exploring the optimal location for placing the accelerometer for predicting EE during uphill exercise is essential. Sixteen healthy male participants (M ± SEM; age 25.00 ± 0.61 years; body weight 74.13 ± 2.51 kg; body height 1.74 ± 0.01 m; body mass index 24.30 ± 0.63 kg/m²) exercised on a treadmill under 12 conditions (4 speeds and 3 gradients) on 3 days. Triaxial accelerometers, an HR recorder, and a metabolic measurement system were simultaneously used. Accelerometer outputs from various anatomical locations (upper arm, chest, lower back, waist, thigh, and instep) showed significant positive correlations with EE (0.819, 0.846, 0.816, 0.820, 0.672, and 0.669, respectively; p < .05). The linear regression equation for changes in HR showed the highest coefficient of determination (r²) of .837 with 87.9% reliability. When the HR signal was included, the r² value (> .842) and reliability (87.9%) between the accelerometer outputs and EE improved. Accelerometer outputs from the waist position alone provide highly accurate EE values. Using both accelerometer outputs and HR for EE estimation during uphill exercise is feasible and improves the accuracy of EE prediction.