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Weak Predictors (weak + predictor)
Selected AbstractsOpinion-based group membership as a predictor of commitment to political actionEUROPEAN JOURNAL OF SOCIAL PSYCHOLOGY, Issue 1 2007Ana-Maria Bliuc Research on group identification has shown it to be a surprisingly weak predictor of intentions to take large-scale social action. The weak links may exist because researchers have not always examined identification with the type of group that is most relevant for predicting action. Our focus in two studies (one in Romania and one in Australia, both Ns,=,101) was on opinion-based groups (i.e. groups formed around shared opinions). We found that social identification with opinion-based groups was an excellent predictor of political behavioural intentions, particularly when items measuring identity certainty were included. The results provide clear evidence of the role of social identity constructs for predicting commitment to social action and complement analyses of politicised collective identity and crowd behaviour. Copyright © 2006 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd. [source] Gender, Delinquent Status, and Social Acceptance as Predictors of the Global Self-Esteem of TeensFAMILY & CONSUMER SCIENCES RESEARCH JOURNAL, Issue 3 2005William Scott Forney The combinations of gender, delinquent status, and social acceptance were examined as predictors of the global self-esteem of teens. Participants (N = 225) were aged 13 to 17 and included juvenile delinquents (n = 60) and high school students (n = 165) in one county in a southwest state. Factor analyses identified two dimensions of social acceptance (social verification, social interaction) and global self-esteem (self-respect, self-acceptance). Multiple regression analyses revealed the combination of gender (males) as a weak predictor and social verification as a strong predictor for self-acceptance and social interaction as a strong predictor for self-respect. Delinquent status did not predict global self-esteem. For these teens, the findings support the role of self-confirming feedback in the development of self-acceptance and the importance of socialization in forming self-respect. Implications for building self-esteem among teens are drawn for parents, high school teachers, and secondary schools. [source] Digit ratio (2D:4D) and sprinting speed in boysAMERICAN JOURNAL OF HUMAN BIOLOGY, Issue 2 2009J.T. Manning Digit ratio (2D:4D), a putative correlate of prenatal testosterone, has been found to relate to performance in sport and athletics such that low 2D:4D (high prenatal testosterone) correlates with high performance. Speed in endurance races is strongly related to 2D:4D, and may be one factor that underlies the link between sport and 2D:4D, but nothing is known of the relationship between 2D:4D and sprinting speed. Here we show that running times over 50 m were positively correlated with 2D:4D in a sample of 241 boys (i.e. runners with low 2D:4D ran faster than runners with high 2D:4D). The relationship was also found for 50 m split times (at 20, 30, and 40 m) and was independent of age, BMI, and an index of maturity. However, associations between 2D:4D and sprinting speed were much weaker than those reported for endurance running. This suggests that 2D:4D is a relatively weak predictor of strength and a stronger predictor of efficiency in aerobic exercise. We discuss the effect sizes for relationships between 2D:4D and sport and target traits in general, and identify areas of strength and weakness in digit ratio research. Am. J. Hum. Biol. 2009. © 2008 Wiley-Liss, Inc. [source] Predictors of Adherence to the Use of Hip Protectors in Nursing Home ResidentsJOURNAL OF AMERICAN GERIATRICS SOCIETY, Issue 3 2004Andrea Warnke PhD Objectives: To assess predictors of hip-protector use in nursing home residents under usual-care conditions and after intervention consisting of structured education of nurses and nursing home residents and provision of free hip protectors. Design: Nested cohort analyses within a cluster randomized, controlled trial with 18 months follow-up. Setting: Forty-nine nursing home clusters in Hamburg, Germany. Participants: Residents with at least one fall during the study period (intervention group, n=237; usual-care group, n=274). Measurements: Use of hip protector while falling. Regression analyses were performed for each of the two cohorts of fallers using the time to the first fall without hip protector as the dependent variable. Predefined nursing home cluster-related parameters (center, staffing ratio, proportion of registered nurses in nursing staff, hip-protector use before study period) and resident-related parameters (sex, history of falls and fractures, fear of falling, urinary incontinence, use of walking aid, degree of disablement) were considered as explanatory variables. Results: Under usual care, 97% of fallers (n=266), compared with 62% (n=148) in the intervention group, experienced at least one fall without hip protection. Using Cox proportional hazards models with and without frailty parameter (random cluster effect), the following predictors were identified: intervention group: use of walking aid, hazard ratio (HR)=1.53 (95% confidence interval (CI):0.98,2.39) and no urinary incontinence, HR=1.47 (95% CI:1.03,2.09); usual care: nursing staff per 10 residents, HR=0.78 (95% CI=0.63,0.96); high degree of disablement, HR=1.38 (95% CI=1.06,1.80); strong fear of falling, HR=0.78 (95% CI=0.60,1.02). The nursing home cluster was a significant predictor in the control group (P=.029), but not in the intervention group (P=.100). Conclusion:, Only a few and weak predictors of hip-protector use of questionable relevance could be identified in both groups. Future research should concentrate on the implementation of interventions of proven efficacy, such as provision of hip protectors combined with structured education of staff and residents. [source] Population-level traits that affect, and do not affect, invasion successMOLECULAR ECOLOGY, Issue 6 2010N. J. SANDERS What allows some species to successfully colonize a novel environment while others fail? Numerous studies in invasion biology have sought to answer this question, but those studies have tended to focus on traits of species or individuals (e.g. body size, seed size, seed number), and these traits have largely been found to be weak predictors of invasion success. However, characteristics of colonizing populations (e.g. genetic diversity, density, age structure) might also be important for successful establishment, as the authors of a study published in this issue of Molecular Ecology show (Crawford & Whitney 2010). By experimentally manipulating the density and genetic diversity of colonizing populations of Arabidopsis thaliana, the authors found that genetic diversity, but not population density, increased colonization success. Importantly, the effects of genetic diversity on colonization success were both additive and non-additive, suggesting that traits associated with particular genotypes and complimentarity among genotypes contribute to colonization success. This research highlights the importance of considering within-species variation and characteristics of entire populations in predicting colonization success. [source] The determinants of Canadian children's personal exposures to magnetic fieldsBIOELECTROMAGNETICS, Issue 3 2001Ben G. Armstrong Abstract Study of the health effects of magnetic fields often depends on identifying determinants and hence indicators of personal exposure. This study identified determinants of children's exposure to magnetic fields and constructed a prediction model for them. For 632 children participating in a case,control study of childhood leukemia, we made direct measures of exposure over 48,h using a portable device, together with observations on candidate determinants. A child's age and sex, the proportion of time spent in the home, and their parents' education or income were very weak predictors of (logged) mean 48,h magnetic field (R2,<,1%). More important were province (R2,=,8.0%) and type of residence (R2,=,11.3%). Low temperatures at the time of measurement were associated with high fields (about 20% increase for each 10°C below 14, R2,=,4.9%). Several visible attributes of wiring around residences predicted exposure, mostly captured in the Wertheimer-Leeper wire code (R2,=,13.5%). Stationary 24,h measurement in the bedroom (R2,=,63.3%) and spot measurements outside the house (R2,=,40.7%) predicted personal exposures best. Adding other minor predictors increased only slightly variance explained by 24,h stationary (R2,=,66.2%) and spot (R2,=,46.8%) measurements. Without spot or stationary measurements, the best model was much less powerful (R2,=,29.0%). We conclude that spot measurements outside the residence provide a moderately effective basis for estimating exposure for children living there, but do not perform as well as 24,h stationary measurements in the child's bedroom. Although several other easily-observed variables were associated with personal exposure, they were weak determinants, either individually or in combination. Bioelectromagnetics 22:161,169, 2001. © 2001 Wiley-Liss, Inc. [source] The lack of significant changes in scalp hair follicle density with advancing ageBRITISH JOURNAL OF DERMATOLOGY, Issue 4 2005R. Sinclair Summary Background, Age-related reduction in hair is seen in the axillary and pubic regions as well as the scalp; however, it has not been investigated qualitatively on the scalp. Horizontally sectioned scalp biopsy is an ideal tool to investigate the impact of advancing age on scalp hair follicle density and morphology. Objectives, To examine the effect of age and follicle miniaturization on total hair count in 1666 horizontally sectioned mid-scalp biopsies from 928 women aged between 13 and 84 years with hair loss. Methods Setting:, Specialist hair loss referral clinic in a teaching hospital. Design: Analysis of data set. Methods:, All scalp biopsies were 4 mm in diameter and taken from the crown. Miniaturization was assessed by calculating the ratio of terminal to vellus-like hairs (T/V) at the mid-isthmus level and considered significant if the ratio was , 4 : 1. Fibrosis was documented when present. Linear regression was used to examine the association between total hair count, age and miniaturization. Results, The average number of hair follicles per biopsy was 39·6 (SD ± 10·8). A highly significant negative association (P < 0·0001) was found between age and total follicle number, although the predictive value of age in total hair count was found to be small [root error mean square (R2) < 2%]. Controlling for T/V , 4 : 1, the association was weakened, but remained significant. The relationship unconfounded by T/V , 4 : 1 shows that for every additional year of ageing, 0·077 total hair follicles (0·22%) are lost per biopsy. Conclusions, Age and follicular miniaturization were found to be extremely weak predictors of total hair count in women with hair loss. [source] | |||||||||||||