Negative emotionality and positive/social behavior in rural appalachian infants: Prediction from caregiver and infant characteristics

This study explored stability and change in two aspects of infant temperamental behavior in a sample of 94 economically-disadvantaged rural Appalachian families. Regressions were used to predict Time 2 temperament for infants who increased and dereased in negative emotionality and positive/social behavior. Both infant and caregiving environment factors contributed to explaining change in first-year behavior. In this sample, maternal social support predicted more optimal change in infants' negative emotionality and positive/social behavior. Receiving public assistance and minor perinatal risk were associated with slower decline in negative emotionality and emergence of positive/social behavior.     

Democratic classroom communities

I explore democractic communities using the classroom community as a metaphor. I suggest that democracies do justice to individuals as well as groups, because of the democratic focus on the interconnected, interdependent, interactive relationship that exists between selves and communities. However, the concept of community has problems and contradictions as well. Through the examples of Summerhill and Montessori schools it is easier to see a necessary quality of democratic communities that needs highlighting. That quality is caring. Making the connection between democracy and caring is what this article uniquely offers to the lively discussion on communities and selves.     

Modeling human dialogue with computers

Conversation, talk, the communicative process, can be compared to the symphonic play of a piece of music. There is an orchestra, the musicians, whose tones and notes must flow, complement and harmonize with one another. There is a main theme. As the music builds variations on the theme are played, and new themes and subthemes are introduced. The basinett responds to the strings, the bass emphasizes the mood of the violin, while the french horn adds a new melody. The subtlety and evenness of flow, the seeming simplicity of the piece, the rich interleaving of subdevelopments, variations, tangents, and recapitulations, are what make a piece of music great.Coherent communication is much the same. It looks easy. It flows. It seems effortless. In reality, of course, it is rich and complex, in both form and content. As in music, conversants may begin a conversation slowly, tentatively, with some simple (or complex) topic in mind. Slowly the momentum builds, the connections surface, and the themes become defined. As in music, these themes are then elaborated upon in various ways. Topic elaborations often spawn their own variations. New themes and subthemes are introduced. All the while, as in music, original themes reappear and are interwoven with the new ones. The twists and turns of the conversation seem to occur effortlessly.In music, there is usually one composer in control of which instrument plays next; one composer who is in charge of what the instrument will say. There is a single coordinator of theme introductions, developments, variations, and interweavings. The composition is done off-line and usually involves editing and re-editing for flaws. In discourse, however, we have on-line development with multiple parties responsible for flow coordination. All parties have to organize their own turns, themes, and variations, in addition to their being able to integrate these items into co-conversants'.In their book, Understanding Computers and Cognition, Winograd and Flores (1987) cite the following from Gadamer (Winograd and Flores, 1987, p. 32):It is not so much our judgments as it is our prejudices that constitute our being ... the historicity of our existence entails that prejudices, in the literal sense of the word, constitute the initial directedness of our whole ability to experience. Prejudices are biases of our openness to the world. They are simply conditions whereby we experience something — whereby what we encounter says something to us. (Gadamer, Philosophical Hermeneutics, 1976, p. 9)     

精益生产向心理学提出的新课题

精益生产是一种先进的生产管理技术,该技术在企业中的实施向心理学提出了诸多的新课题,包括思维模式的转变、员工的激励和团队精神的培养、对于知识丰富领域问题解决的研究、专门知识的作用和获取、人性论的研究、以及工业心理学、社会心理学和心理测验的应用等。     

高绩效要求与亲组织不道德行为:基于社会认知理论的视角

通过确立较高的绩效目标以提升组织绩效被普遍认为是一项有效的管理措施。然而,学术界对它的负面影响却缺乏研究。本文提出了高绩效要求将启动员工道德推脱机制为其随后进行的亲组织不道德行为开脱,即道德推脱在高绩效要求与亲组织不道德行为之间起到了中介作用。为了检验这一观点,本研究提出两种不同效应的调节变量:感知的市场竞争正向调节变量之间的间接关系,而道德认同则负向调节这一间接关系。通过对某零售企业225名员工的两阶段调查,本研究提出的调节-中介模型获得了观察数据的支持。本研究的发现有利于进一步了解亲组织不道德行为发生的中介心理机制和边界条件,指导管理者采取恰当的管理措施,以期有效地管控亲组织不道德行为的出现。     

Predicting sugar-sweetened behaviours with theory of planned behaviour constructs: Outcome and process results from the SIPsmartER behavioural intervention

Objective: Guided by the theory of planned behaviour (TPB) and health literacy concepts, SIPsmartER is a six-month multicomponent intervention effective at improving SSB behaviours. Using SIPsmartER data, this study explores prediction of SSB behavioural intention (BI) and behaviour from TPB constructs using: (1) cross-sectional and prospective models and (2) 11 single-item assessments from interactive voice response (IVR) technology.

Design: Quasi-experimental design, including pre- and post-outcome data and repeated-measures process data of 155 intervention participants.

Main Outcome Measures: Validated multi-item TPB measures, single-item TPB measures, and self-reported SSB behaviours. Hypothesised relationships were investigated using correlation and multiple regression models.

Results: TPB constructs explained 32% of the variance cross sectionally and 20% prospectively in BI; and explained 13–20% of variance cross sectionally and 6% prospectively. Single-item scale models were significant, yet explained less variance. All IVR models predicting BI (average 21%, range 6–38%) and behaviour (average 30%, range 6–55%) were significant.

Conclusion: Findings are interpreted in the context of other cross-sectional, prospective and experimental TPB health and dietary studies. Findings advance experimental application of the TPB, including understanding constructs at outcome and process time points and applying theory in all intervention development, implementation and evaluation phases.     

The analytic decision‐making preference model to evaluate the disaster readiness in emergency departments: The A.D.T. model

In recent years, a series of important emergencies have been taken place worldwide in industrial plants. After the occurrence of a disaster, it is essential to activate the correct emergency procedures. Particularly, it is important to direct people injured in hospitals which are able to handle emergencies. Thus, nowadays, the emergency services require a management process starting from the disaster moment to the involvement of all actors participating in the process to provide integral, safe, and quality attention. The aim of this study is to help hospitals become better prepared for major disasters and public health emergencies and to evaluate the readiness of emergency departments for a disaster situation. A hybrid model called the “analytic decision‐making preference model” based on analytic hierarchy process, decision‐making trial and evaluation laboratory, and technique for order of preference by similarity to ideal solution methods is proposed. Analytic hierarchy process is used to determine the criteria and subcriteria weights. Then, decision‐making trial and evaluation laboratory is used to evaluate interdependence between criteria and subcriteria. After this, technique for order of preference by similarity to ideal solution is applied to rank the emergency departments from highest to lowest according to their closeness coefficient. A real‐life application in Colombia is presented.     

The prevalence and predictors of metabolically healthy obesity in obese rural population of China: a cross-sectional study

Till now, no evidence illustrates the prevalence and predictors of metabolically healthy obesity (MHO) in rural areas of China. The objective of this study was, firstly, to examine the prevalence of MHO in rural areas of China, and identify contributing determinants of MHO, Secondly, to comprehensively investigate to the different characteristics between MHO and metabolically unhealthy obesity (MUO). We conducted a population-based cross-sectional study of 2037 participants with obesity in rural Liaoning Province during 2012–2013. Obesity was defined as BMI ≥28 kg/m² and metabolically healthy was defined as not having the metabolic syndrome. The prevalence of MHO was 23.1%, and significantly decreased with advancing age in female group. However there was no significant tendency with advancing age in male group. Independent determinant factors for MHO were age <55 years (odds ratio [OR] 1.659; p = .001), non-current smoking (OR 1.397; p = .038), pre-menopause (OR 1.648; p = .030) and non-hyperuricemia (OR 2.317; p < .001), whereas race, gender, diet score, current drinking, marriage, sleep duration, hyperhomocysteinemia, levels of physical activity, annual income and educational status were not significant contributors. In conclusion, we found that age <55 years, non-current smoking, pre-menopause and non-hyperuricemia were identified as independent determinant factors for MHO in this population.     

Understanding and management of epilepsy in a rural community in South Africa: An exploratory study

The aim of the study was to explore how people living with epilepsy in an indigenous rural South African community understood and managed their epilepsy. Six people with epilepsy were informants (male = 3, female = 3; age range = 16 to 58 years, unemployed = 5, learner = 1). They completed individual interviews on their meanings of epilepsy and also on their experiences managing the illness. The results indicated that the participants’ understanding of epilepsy is closely linked to their own experiences of the condition, as well as to cultural beliefs about seizure disorder. Moreover, they reported that the unpredictability associated with a seizure generated a greater level of distress to the participants than the fact that they had seizure disorder. The participants reported to rely on family, and both traditional and Western medicine to manage their epilepsy.