Children's Decisions About Substance Use: An Application and Extension of the Theory of Reasoned Action1

This research examines the applicability of Fishbein and Ajzen's (1975) theory of reasoned action (TRA) to intentions to use cigarettes and alcohol among 5th- and 6th-grade students. It also addresses the question of unidimensionality of outcome beliefs and referent norms. Results suggest that the TRA model describes children's decision making well, although the ability of income and race to add to prediction, net of the effects of attitude and perceived norm, are contrary to the theory's prediction. In addition, we find support for multidimensional components of both attitude and norm for both behaviors.     

Idiopathic orthostatic hypotension]

The disease picture of idiopathic orthostatic hypotonia is described from a clinical and histological point of view with reference to a case treated by the present authors. The independent character of this particular ailment may be considered as resulting from the virtually uncontrollable orthostatic decreases in blood pressure in connection with the progressive disorders especially of the motor system. Also, the etiology is not yet fully understood.     

State work engagement and state affect: Similar yet distinct concepts

State work engagement (SWE), a multidimensional construct of work-related well-being, was originally conceptualized as a trait, but diary studies have revealed substantial within-person fluctuations. Given that SWE is conceptualized as a work-related affective-motivational construct, the question arises as to whether SWE can be differentiated from other affective constructs. Thus, the goal of the present study was to compare SWE and state affect with respect to their degree of within-person variability and to examine their distinct relationships with health and performance variables (i.e., sleep quality and job performance). Fifty-two employees (44% female) participated in the study, which included 3 assessments per day over the course of 2 weeks. Our results revealed that energetic arousal and tense arousal fluctuated more strongly within days than vigor and absorption. Multilevel analyses demonstrated that high sleep quality predicted higher state affect but not higher SWE. In addition, vigor exhibited an inverted U-shaped relation with performance. In sum, SWE as a time-varying construct showed some overlap with state affect but also demonstrated discriminant validity.     

Regional Disparities in Employment of High-Skilled Foreigners – Determinants and Options for Labour Migration Policy in Germany

We investigate the regional disparities in high-skilled foreign employment in Germany. The importance of different factors that influence highly qualified migrants’ decision to migrate to specific regions and especially the role of labour migration policy is analysed. Our results show that labour market variables and the supply of tertiary education are important for the location choice. Based on these empirical results, we discuss options of decentralised labour migration policy in Germany.     

The effects of processing time and processing rate on forgetting in working memory: Testing four models of the complex span paradigm

Four models of working memory processes in the complex span paradigm were tested: The task-switching model of Towse, Hitch, and Hutton (1998), the interference account of Saito and Miyake (2004), and two versions of the time-based resource-sharing model of Barrouillet, Bernardin, and Camos (2004). On the basis of a reading span paradigm that used segmented sentences, the effect of processing time on the recall of words was investigated while the amount of processing was held constant. Two conditions of reading (continuous vs. normal) were compared in order to study the influence of brief pauses during reading that could be used for articulatory rehearsal. The results favor a version of the time-based resource-sharing model: A faster reading rate had a negative effect on recall. The effect of reading rate was obtained with continuous as well as normal reading, revealing that even continuous articulation does not prevent simultaneous refreshing of memory traces. A second experiment showed that continuous reading made concurrent articulatory rehearsal virtually impossible. These findings imply that a second rehearsal mechanism for verbal working memory, other than articulatory rehearsal, exists.     

Coping with intractable controversies: The case for problem structuring in policy design and analysis

Intractable controversies and other types of policy disagreements correspond to policy problems with a different structure. The more structured a problem is, the more consensus there is about which values and information are at stake in the process of problem solving. Policymakers like to treat problems in as structured a way as possible. Three policy strategies are described to move away from the unstructured to the more structured problem type. However, policymakers run the risk of oversimplifying an ill-structured problem, which means that elements of the problem situation relevant to other actors are overlooked or denied. Hence, policy controversies may become intractable. The remedy is a fourth strategy, characterised by problem structuring. This strategy requires political participation of actors with different views on the problem, and an argued political problem choice. His main research areas are problem structuring in public policy, knowledge use, environmental risk, technology and democracy. He is currently working on knowledge-based policy strategies for addressing the issue of climate change. His research interest is to develop and apply discursive and/or argumentative approaches to the policy process.