Coping patterns of in vitro fertilization nurse coordinators: Strategies for combating low outcome effectance

Abstract

Data were gathered concerning coping strategies that nurse coordinators working in the field of in vitro fertilization would use to meet typical work-related stressors. Causality orientation—or tendency to perceive oneself as autonomous, controlled or helpless—was also measured. It was hypothesized that nurses using problem-focused/disengaged strategies, such as thinking about therapeutic successes or trying not to dwell on stressors, and who were high in autonomy, would be most effective in coping with situations where control over outcomes is limited. Statistical analyses revealed a group of nurses following the coping pattern described in the hypothesis. These individuals reported less work-related stress than other nurse coordinators.     

A preliminary study of a traumatic injury prevention program

Abstract

This study examined the long-term impact of a five component spinal cord injury prevention program presented to adolescents. A sample of 445 teenagers who attended a junior high school in which an educational intervention was presented three years earlier and a control group of 379 students who had not been exposed to the intervention completed a questionnaire assessing their safety knowledge, attitudes, and self-reported behaviors. Total scores on the questionnaire between treatment and control groups differed significantly. Students in the treatment group reported significantly more frequent seat belt use, stronger belief that seat belts were important to their safety, lower likelihood of riding with friends who had been drinking, higher rates of friends' use of seat belts, greater awareness of the age group most likely to be injured, and increased knowledge that they could prevent spinal cord injury.     

Application of a modified health belief model to hiv preventive behavioral intentions among gay and bisexual men

Abstract

The utility of a modified health belief model (Janz and Becker, 1984) for predicting the intention to use condoms was tested in a study among gay and bisexual men. The model explained a reasonable amount of variance. It was found that younger men's decision to have safe sex was guided by factors other than those that influenced older men. Among younger men, the intention to use a condom was positively related to the relative number of persons with AIDS in their social environment (cues to action) and to the perceived benefits of HIV preventive behavior. Among older men, this behavioral intention was much more determined by their perception of the prevalence of HIV and by their perception of their vulnerability to HIV infection. These findings are important because they may partly explain the recent increase in AIDS-risk behavior among young gay and bisexual men. The discussion focuses on these findings and on the implications for interventions aimed at promoting safe sex.     

Trust of an Automatic Ground Collision Avoidance Technology: A Fighter Pilot Perspective

The present study examined the antecedents of trust among operational Air Force fighter pilots for an automatic ground collision avoidance technology. This technology offered a platform with high face validity for studying trust in automation because it is an automatic system currently being used in operations by the Air Force. Pilots (N = 142) responded to an online survey which asked about their attitudes toward the technology and assessed a number of psychological factors. Consistent with prior research on trust in automation, a number of trust antecedents were identified which corresponded to human factors, learned trust factors, and situational factors. Implications for the introduction of novel automatic systems into the military are discussed.     

Retention and thermal desorption of helium in amorphous and crystalline FeBSi alloys

Helium retention in metals is related to their atomic structure and the type of defects they contain. In order to investigate the dependence of helium retention on structure, amorphous Fe₇₉B₁₆Si₅ and crystalline FeBSi alloys were irradiated by helium ions at room temperature. In the crystalline alloy irradiated with 5 keV He⁺ ions, three types of helium trapping sites were found: surface defects produced by the irradiation, interstitial-type dislocation loops, and voids. Although these defects did not exist in the amorphous FeBSi alloy, we did observe thermal desorption peaks related to all three types. In addition, helium was released during the crystallization of amorphous FeBSi that had been irradiated by He⁺ ions.     

Visual Power in Action: Digital Images and the Shaping of Medical Practices

The increasing presence of images in medicine is mostly understood as a visualization of medicine. In this view, physicians and researchers are strongly guided by the visual power of images. Ethnographic fieldwork and interviews with physicians and scientists working in radiology departments and magnetic resonance imaging units however, show that visual power is not always effective. Depending on a situation, physicians and scientists are guided more strongly either by the persuasiveness of an image's visual qualities or its scientific and sociomaterial qualities. Actors trust in images and perceive them as attractive and objective in certain situations, whereas in others they classify images as manipulated representations that are untrustworthy. It is either the visual power or the status of images as scientific and sociomaterial facts that shapes physicians' and researchers' actions. Depending on whether an image is used, for example, to make a diagnosis, to validate a research finding, to communicate with a patient, to prevent litigation, or to improve one's position in the professional field, it is either the visual power or the scientific and sociomaterial characteristics of an image that are more effective in shaping medical practices. Fieldwork and interviews with physicians and scientists show in which situations visual power is relevant (or not) for medical practices.     

The end of Jesus' mission and the honor of God in the Qur'an: the search for common ground between Muslims and Christians

Jesus is important for both Muslims and Christians, and this has led some in both groups to search for common ground concerning him. Nevertheless, two important points of disagreement concern the Christian claims that Jesus is the Son of God, and that Jesus was put to death on the cross. The present article focuses on the last point, noting four key qur'anic passages (Q 3.55; 4.157–8; 5.117; and 19.33). Muslim commentators have mostly denied the historical aspect of Jesus' crucifixion, advocating some version of a substitutionist theory whereby the Jews crucified someone other than Jesus, while Jesus himself was taken alive by God into heaven. Muslim–Christian dialogue on this issue remains problematic. The present article encourages mutual exploration of a theological dimension of the end of Jesus' mission, that of the honor of God. Both Muslims and Christians affirm that God maintained his honor by thwarting the Jews' attempt to get rid of Jesus. The usual Muslim belief is that God rescued him alive to heaven before the crucifixion, while the Christian understanding is that God vindicated Jesus through the resurrection and ascension. Similar views of God's honor through his intervention regarding Jesus can contribute to positive Muslim–Christian dialogue.1 An abbreviated form of this paper was delivered at the International Symposium on Qur'an and Contemporary Issues at the University of Nairobi, 5 June 2011.      

Longitudinal Test of Forgiveness and Perceived Forgiveness as Mediators between Religiosity and Marital Satisfaction in Long-Term Marital Relationships

Abstract

Substantial research has found relations between religiosity and martial satisfaction. More longitudinal studies are needed to understand the inner-workings of this relationship. Over a four-year period, dyadic data from 331 married couples was used to test the longitudinal mediating effects of spousal forgiveness and partners’ perceptions of spousal forgiveness between religiosity and marital satisfaction. Husbands’ religiosity was associated with increases in wives’ marital satisfaction but the measures of forgiveness were not significant mediators in this relationship. Wives’ religiosity was predictive of lower levels of wives’ perceptions of spousal forgiveness, which led to decreases in both wives’ and husbands’ marital satisfaction.     

Promoting professional identity: a within group comparison of wiki-based and traditional assignments on school counselling students' learning,sense of community and computer anxiety

The purpose of this study is to compare traditional and non-traditional instructional practices used in a counsellor education programme to determine their effect on pre-service school counsellors' learning and sense of community, thus leading to enhanced professional identity. Traditional and non-traditional assignments were examined: (a) a collaborative, multimedia wiki writing assignment; (b) textbook reading and corresponding quizzes; and (c) article critiques. Findings indicate that students experience a greater sense of community and learning when participating in the non-traditional, collaborative, multimedia wiki writing assignment using web-based technology. Findings also indicate that students had low computer anxiety after completing the wiki assignment.     

Comments on Article by G. Leonard Burns et al.

No abstract available for this article.