Web-based training improves on-field offside decision-making performance

ObjectiveThe present study examined to what extent off-field offside decision-making training transfers to real-life offside situations.Design/methodsEighteen Belgian assistant referees were included in the experiment. Ten assistant referees (i.e., training group) were exposed to a pre- and posttest and, in between, four off-field offside training sessions via a web-based training protocol. The remaining eight assistant referees participated in the control group and only completed the pre- and posttest. During both test sessions, which were conducted separately for each group, both an on- and off-field offside decision-making test was completed.ResultsFirst, an increase in response accuracy and a decrease in flag errors were observed for the training group from pre- to posttest in both the on- and off-field offside test. Second, only the training group improved in the recall and recognition accuracy of the position of the receiving attacker at the moment of the pass.ConclusionsThis study demonstrates that perceptual-cognitive skill training results in a positive and direct transfer to on-field offside decisions. Therefore, the structure and the content of the current training intervention mimics the perceptual difficulties of real-match situations and can help the assistant referees to mediate and enhance their offside decision-making skills, both on- and off-field.     

Health Literacy,Health Inequality and a Just Healthcare System

Limited health literacy is a pervasive and independent risk factor for poor health outcomes. Despite decades of reports exhibiting that the healthcare system is overly complex, unneeded complexity remains commonplace and endangers the lives of patients, especially those with limited health literacy. In this article, we define health literacy and describe the empirical evidence associating health literacy and poor health outcomes. We recast the issue of poor health literacy from within the ethical perspective of the least well-off and argue that poor health outcomes deriving from limited health literacy ought to be understood as a fundamental injustice of the healthcare system. We offer three proposals that attempt to rectify this injustice, including: universal precautions that presume limited health literacy for all healthcare users; expanded use of technology supported communication; and clinical incentives that account for limited health literacy.     

Curriculum-Based Measurement

Abstract

Curriculum-based measurement (CBM) has evolved as a reliable and valid method for measuring and monitoring student performance in basic academic skills. While the efficacy of CBM for assessing reading skills is not in question, issues remain regarding whether or not a difference exists between CBM probes derived directly from the instructional curriculum and generic probes. The current study extends previous research comparing the utility of two types of CBM reading probe materials. Both types of probes were administered to 13 second grade students twice weekly for 5 weeks. No significant differences were found between the two probe types' measurement of performance or progress over time, which suggests that school psychologists and educational professionals can use generic or curriculum-dependent probes in curriculum-based measurement.     

Children with Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder

ABSTRACT

It is estimated that there have been over 4,000 articles in the literature on the subject of attentional problems, addressing its etiology, epidemiology, assessment, diagnosis, and treatment. This article reviews recent and relevant literature with an eye toward functional conclusions and linkages between assessment and intervention. The article concludes by providing a problem-solving model that integrates parent or teachers' referral concerns, reasons for these concerns, assessment methods, and intervention strategies. In the end, four definitive conclusions are drawn, and the importance of multimodal strategies that collaboratively involve home, school, and community settings is emphasized.     

Frequent Versus Non-frequent Prompts and Task Performance in Persons with Severe Intellectual Disability

Abstract

This study extended the evaluation of frequent vs non-frequent prompts to support task performance with people with severe intellectual disability. Three participants were involved in the study. The data indicated that the frequent prompts strategy promoted higher levels of on-task behaviour and correct responding for 2 participants and on-task behaviour for 1 participant. The relation of these data with previous findings and their implications for daily occupation programmes for persons with severe developmental disabilities are discussed     

Beteendeterapi vid ångestneuros. En evaluerande översikt

Abstract

De olika kontrollerade gruppstudier och okontrollerade fallstudier som finns publicerade rörande beteendeterapeutiska metoder vid ångestneuros presenters och evalueras. Studierna har uppenbara brister vad gäller presentation av patientmaterialet, mätmetoderna och tillämpningen av vissa behandlingsmetoder. Resultaten visar i allmänhet på relativt små och sällan kliniskt signifikanta förbättringar. Artikeln avslutas med rekommendationer för fortsatt forskning framför allt rörande andra behandlingsmetoder än de hittills prövade.     

The effect of performance setting and individual differences on the anxiety-performance relationship for elite cyclists

Fifty-three national level cyclists completed competitive rides under both laboratory and field conditions to investigate the relationship between pre-competition anxiety and performance. A total of 39 males and 14 females participated in the study, ranging in age from 19 to 26. The objectives of the study were to, (a) measure the relationship between state anxiety and performance, (b) investigate differences in the anxiety-performance relationship under laboratory versus field conditions, and (c) examine the effect of trait anxiety on the state anxiety-performance relationship. State anxiety was measured using the Competitive State Anxiety Inventory-2 (CSAI-2; Martens, Vealey, & Burton, 1990), and trait anxiety with the State-Trait Anxiety Inventory (STAI; Spielberger, Gorsuch, & Lushene, 1970). Results indicated that anxiety was strongly correlated with performance on the field test, but that the anxiety-performance relationship was weaker under laboratory conditions. Results also showed that trait anxiety interacted with the relationship, as low and high trait-anxious subjects had differential response patterns to pre-competition anxiety. The findings are discussed in terms of their relevance for both practitioners and researchers.     

Test anxiety and metacognitive skillfulness: Availability versus production deficiencies

Abstract

This paper focuses on the role of metacognition in test anxiety. In two experiments, the metacognitive skillfulness of high vs. low test-anxious secondary school students was contrasted. Low test-anxious subjects exhibited a superior metacognitive skillfulness during math performance relative to high test-anxious subjects. Furthermore, differences in metacognitive skillfulness were performance related. In order to unravel causality in the relation between metacognition and test anxiety, two types of test-anxious students may be distinguished analogous to Naveh-Benjamin (1991). Type-1 students would lack metacognitive skills (availability deficiency), through which they experience failure and develop test anxiety. Type-2 students would experience task irrelevant thoughts, which causes cognitive interference with available metacognitive skills (production deficiency). Results of Study 1 reveal that metacognitive cueing may represent an adequate method for the identification of both types. Due to time-constraints, metacognitive cueing in Study 2 failed to do so.     

LEARNED HELPLESSNESS ATTRIBUTIONAL STYLE AND EXAMINATION PERFORMANCE: ENHANCEMENT EFFECTS ARE NOT NECESSARILY MODERATED BY PRIOR FAILURE

Studies have replicated both negative and positive associations between helpless attributional style and academic performance. Laboratory studies indicate that when enhancement effects occur, they may be moderated by the degree of failure individuals experience prior to task performance. In a longitudinal study of 96 college students who completed four examinations in two introductory psychology courses, we examined the relationship between helpless attributional style and examination performance across the semester, and whether prior examination failure moderated this association. Correlational analyses revealed that helpless attributional style was unrelated to exam performance in the first half of the semester and was positively related to improvements in performance in the second half. Regression analyses indicated that these enhancement effects were not moderated by previous performance on examinations in the course. The present findings underscore the need for longitudinal studies that investigate the pattern of associations between helpless attributional style and performance across time in real-life contexts.     

Arousal interventions for athletic performance: Influence of mental preparation and competitive experience

Abstract

Mental preparation, or “psych-up” strategies have been assumed to promote physical arousal which subsequently improves certain athletic performances. The present experiment examined the role of arousal changes in the use of psych-up strategies on a physical strength task and a reaction time-decision task for subjects varying in competitive experience. Eighty-four subjects were reliably divided into high, moderate, or low competitive experience groups and randomly assigned to one of three mental preparation strategies. These strageies, which the subjects employed during a mental preparation period for both tasks, were either: (a) a self-generated arousal strategy, (b) a prescribed arousal strategy, or (c) a placebo-control strategy. While heart rate was being monitored, each subject completed a baseline trial, then one trial following a 45 sec mental preparation period and one trial following a 45 sec distraction interval. Order of presentation of tasks and order of presentation of distraction and mental preparation trials were counterbalanced and statistically analyzed. The results support the utility of different mental preparation strategies for increasing strength performance, but not reaction time-decision performance, for subjects with moderate and high levels of previous competitive experience. Self-generated arousal strategies enhanced performance of moderate experienced subjects. Analyses of the heart rate data failed to support the assumption that physiological arousal mediates the influence of psych-up strategies. Mental preparation strategies improved athletes' performance on certain tasks, however these strategies do not necessarily achieve their effects through increased autonomic arousal.