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Goal
Kinds of Goal Terms modified by Goal Selected AbstractsGoing for the Goal: Improving youths' problem-solving skills through a school-based interventionJOURNAL OF COMMUNITY PSYCHOLOGY, Issue 3 2002Todd C. O'Hearn This study evaluated Going for the Goal (GOAL), a school-based intervention designed by Danish and colleagues to teach life skills to at-risk urban adolescents. We extended previous evaluation of GOAL by including an assessment of means-ends problem-solving skills. The 10-week program was administered to 479 middle school students by 46 trained high school student leaders in a predominantly Hispanic community. The program focused on setting positive, reachable goals; anticipating and responding to barriers to goal attainment; using social support; and building on one's strengths. Results demonstrated gains in knowledge of the skills being taught and improvement in problem-solving skills. Leaders also showed an increase in their knowledge of life skills. The approach maximizes both community resources and ecological validity while giving high school leaders the chance to benefit in their role as helpers. © 2002 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. [source] THE LOTTERY PARADOX AND OUR EPISTEMIC GOALPACIFIC PHILOSOPHICAL QUARTERLY, Issue 2 2008IGOR DOUVEN The paper shows that from any theory of justification that solves the paradox in accordance with this intuition, a theory not of that kind can be derived that also solves the paradox but is more conducive to our epistemic goal than the former. It is argued that currently there is no valid reason not to give preference to the derived accounts over the accounts from which they come. [source] MARKETS, INSTITUTIONS AND MILLENNIUM DEVELOPMENT GOALSECONOMIC AFFAIRS, Issue 2 2007Mwangi S. Kimenyi The Millennium Development Goals (MDGs) may have noble objectives but there are concerns that the associated transfer of resources from wealthy to poor countries could be counter-productive in terms of long-term economic performance. Reforming the institutions of governance and removing barriers that hinder the efficient functioning of markets are the most effective ways for poor countries to achieve MDGs. Poor countries can also improve living standards by relying on market forces rather than monopolistic public agencies for the delivery of services. [source] EDITORIAL: REFLECTIONS, GOALS, AND WORDS OF THANKSJOURNAL OF MARITAL AND FAMILY THERAPY, Issue 1 2005Ronald J. Chenail No abstract is available for this article. [source] II,Naomi Eilan ON THE ROLE OF PERCEPTUAL CONSCIOUSNESS IN EXPLAINING THE GOALS AND MECHANISMS OF VISION: A CONVERGENCE ON ATTENTION?ARISTOTELIAN SOCIETY SUPPLEMENTARY VOLUME, Issue 1 2006Naomi Eilan ABSTRACT The strong sensorimotor account of perception gives self-induced movements two constitutive roles in explaining visual consciousness. The first says that self-induced movements are vehicles of visual awareness, and for this reason consciousness ,does not happen in the brain only'. The second says that the phenomenal nature of visual experiences is consists in the action-directing content of vision. In response I suggest, first, that the sense in which visual awareness is active should be explained by appeal to the role of attention in visual consciousness, rather than self-induced movements; and second, that the sense in which perceptual consciousness does not happen in the brain only should be explained by appeal to the relational nature of perceptual consciousness, appeal to which also shows why links with action cannot exhaust phenomenal content. [source] Fixing the Hole in the Bucket: Household Poverty Dynamics in the Peruvian AndesDEVELOPMENT AND CHANGE, Issue 5 2006Anirudh Krishna ABSTRACT Achieving the Millennium Development Goal of halving poverty will require simultaneous action on two separate fronts: helping poor people escape from poverty, and stemming the flow of people into poverty. This article examines forty Peruvian communities, and finds that descents into poverty have occurred alongside escapes in every one of them. Escape and descent are asymmetric in terms of reasons: while one set of reasons is responsible for escapes from poverty, another and different set of reasons is associated with descent. Making progress in poverty reduction will require measures to accelerate escapes whilst at the same time slowing down descents. The article looks at the different policies which will be required to serve these two separate purposes. [source] Achieving the Lisbon Goal: the contribution of Vocational Education and TrainingEUROPEAN JOURNAL OF EDUCATION, Issue 3 2005TOM LENEY This article summarises the main conclusions of the ,Maastricht study': Achieving the Lisbon Goal: The Contribution of VET (Leney et al., 2004), which the UK Qualifications and Curriculum Authority (QCA), in collaboration with the Institute of Education and other international partners, prepared for the European Commission's DG Education and Culture in 2004. Based on the self-assessment reports prepared by the Directors-General for VET (DGVTs) of 31 European countries, and on independent expert reviews of the national and international literature on VET, the report analysed the contribution of VET to achieving the Lisbon goal and influenced the framing of the Maastricht Communiqué which the European education ministers agreed in December 2004. This summary of the findings of the report is organised under the following sections: 1) The potential of VET as an aspect of European cooperation; 2) The current state of play and progress of VET towards achieving the Lisbon goal; 3) Innovation in VET teaching and learning; and 4) Conclusions. [source] The Debate on Globalization, Poverty and Inequality: Why Measurement MattersINTERNATIONAL AFFAIRS, Issue 4 2003Martin Ravallion In the last year or so, markedly different claims have been heard within the development community about just how much progress is being made against poverty and inequality in the current period of ,globalization'. This article provides a non-technical overview of the conceptual and methodological issues underlying these conflicting claims. It argues that the dramatically different positions taken in this debate often stem from differences in the concepts and definitions used and differences in data sources and measurement assumptions. These differences are often hidden from view in the debate, but they need to be considered carefully if one is properly to interpret the evidence. The article argues that the best available evidence suggests that, if the rate of progress against absolute poverty in the developing world in the 1990s is maintained, then the Millennium Development Goal of halving the 1990 aggregate poverty rate by 2015 will be achieved on time in the aggregate, though not in all regions. The article concludes with some observations on the implications for policy-oriented debates on globalization and pro-poor growth. [source] What Should Our Blood Pressure Goal Be in Patients With Diabetes?JOURNAL OF CLINICAL HYPERTENSION, Issue 11 2007William C. Cushman MD First page of article [source] Going for the Goal: Improving youths' problem-solving skills through a school-based interventionJOURNAL OF COMMUNITY PSYCHOLOGY, Issue 3 2002Todd C. O'Hearn This study evaluated Going for the Goal (GOAL), a school-based intervention designed by Danish and colleagues to teach life skills to at-risk urban adolescents. We extended previous evaluation of GOAL by including an assessment of means-ends problem-solving skills. The 10-week program was administered to 479 middle school students by 46 trained high school student leaders in a predominantly Hispanic community. The program focused on setting positive, reachable goals; anticipating and responding to barriers to goal attainment; using social support; and building on one's strengths. Results demonstrated gains in knowledge of the skills being taught and improvement in problem-solving skills. Leaders also showed an increase in their knowledge of life skills. The approach maximizes both community resources and ecological validity while giving high school leaders the chance to benefit in their role as helpers. © 2002 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. [source] Is Evidence-Based Nursing Practice an Attainable Goal?JOURNAL OF OBSTETRIC, GYNECOLOGIC & NEONATAL NURSING, Issue 2 2006Nancy K. Lowe Editor No abstract is available for this article. [source] Acceleration of ALA-induced PpIX fluorescence development in the oral mucosaLASERS IN SURGERY AND MEDICINE, Issue 3 2003Sirintra Charoenbanpachon Abstract Background and Objectives The development of 5-aminolevulinic acid (ALA)-induced tissue fluorescence is optimal 2,4 hours after ALA application. Goal of this work was to develop a means of accelerating oral topical ALA-induced tissue fluorescence. Study Design/Materials and Methods In 300 hamsters, DMBA (9,10 dimethyl-1,2-benzanthracene) cheek pouch carcinogenesis produced dysplasia in 3,5 weeks. Topical application of 20% ALA in Eucerin was followed by localized ultrasound treatment (1, 3.3 MHz) in 150 animals. In 75 animals, ALA was applied in an Oral Pluronic Lecithin Organogel (OPLO,an absorption enhancer) vehicle. Seventy-five animals received only topical ALA in Eucerin. Hamsters were sacrificed and cryosections underwent fluorescence measurements, histological evaluation, 20,180 minutes after ALA application. One-way ANOVA detected independent effects of pathology on laser-induced fluorescence (LIF). Two-way ANOVA tested for independent effect of pathology and of OPLO, ultrasound, and interaction effects. Results Ultrasound significantly (P,<,0.05) accelerated tissue fluorescence development. Conclusions Low-frequency ultrasound can accelerate ALA-induced fluorescence development. Lasers Surg. Med. 32:185,188, 2003. © 2003 Wiley-Liss, Inc. [source] Influence of Helicobacter pylori infection on iron accumulation in hepatitis CLIVER INTERNATIONAL, Issue 7 2006Yoshio Sumida Abstract: Goal: Iron may play a role in the pathogenesis of chronic hepatitis C. Helicobacter pylori (Hp) infection was recently associated with iron-deficiency anemia. We examined the influence of Hp infection on hepatic iron accumulation in hepatitis C. Methods: Ninety-five hepatitis C virus (HCV)-RNA-positive patients, including 60 chronic hepatitis, 17 cirrhosis and 18 hepatocellular carcinoma as well as 95 age- and sex-matched normal subjects without HCV infection as control, were studied. Liver biopsies were also obtained from 44 HCV-infected patients. Serum Hp antibodies were measured by an enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay and clinical data, including iron parameters and histological findings, were compared between Hp-positive and -negative HCV-infected patients. Results: The percentage of serum Hp antibodies was lower in HCV-infected patients than in controls (52/95 (54.7%) vs. 68/95 (71.6%); P<0.05). HCV-infected patients had higher serum ferritin levels than controls (120 [2.8,1700] vs. 58 [2.2,420] ng/ml; P<0.0001). In HCV-infected patients, the serum ferritin levels (medians and [ranges]) in Hp-positive patients were significantly lower than those of Hp-negative patients (99 [8.5,770] vs. 150 [2.8,1700] ng/ml; P<0.05). The grades of hepatic iron deposit in Hp-positive patients were significantly lower than those in Hp-negative patients (P<0.01). Conclusions: Hp infection may at least partly affect hepatic iron accumulation in HCV-related liver diseases. [source] Methodology for biomechanical testing of fresh anterior wall vaginal samples from postmenopausal women undergoing cystocele repair,NEUROUROLOGY AND URODYNAMICS, Issue 4 2009Philippe E. Zimmern Abstract Goal To explore the methodological challenges of biomechanical testing of freshly harvested human anterior vaginal wall (HAVW) samples. Method Longitudinal full-thickness samples of HAVW were excised during cystocele repair in postmenopausal women and age-matched controls. Two methods of tissue storage during transport were compared. All samples were prepared for uniaxial testing within 2 hr of harvest and loaded at a rate of 0.5 mm/sec, until irreversible deformation was observed. Young's modulus and other parameters were extracted from the tensile stress,strain curves. Results Samples were obtained over 2 years from 42 patients. Significant differences in biomechanical parameters were noted based on the degree of hydration of the tissue, suggesting that the wetter samples were mechanically weaker. Conclusions This study reports on a new method for testing the biomechanical properties of freshly harvested HAVW tissues and the impact of tissue hydration during transport between the operating room and the testing lab. Neurourol. Urodynam. 28:325,329, 2009. © 2009 Wiley-Liss, Inc. [source] Transformative Learning as a Professional Development GoalNEW DIRECTIONS FOR ADULT & CONTINUING EDUCATION, Issue 98 2003Patricia Cranton From the framework of transformative learning, this chapter explores how professional development can lead educators to be authentic, individuated, critically reflective practitioners. Practical strategies are provided. [source] Goal, intervention and outcome of occupational therapy in individuals with psychoses.OCCUPATIONAL THERAPY INTERNATIONAL, Issue 1 2000Content analysis through a chart review Abstract The purpose of the study was to analyse the content of occupational therapy records documenting treatment for individuals with psychoses. A retrospective content analysis of occupational therapy records regarding treatment goals, interventions and outcome was undertaken using a coding scheme, the Template of Occupational Therapy (TOT). Twenty-five occupational therapists chosen at random contributed 64 occupational therapy records, generating 2992 statements. The patients' disorders and functional and activity limitations (n=1723) were comprehensively described. Ability to manage self-care and the home environment, and to engage in a daily occupation, emerged as the prominent treatment goals. The content of the occupational therapy interventions was characterized by descriptions of a wide range of activities, which were used as therapeutic resources. The occupational therapist had a client-centred approach, combining the use of the current activity with the use of herself/himself as a resource. A few statements in the records were interpreted as relating to outcomes of treatment for this patient group. Statements related to outcome were the patients' self-reports and how they were able to manage activities of daily living. This retrospective study was found to be a useful conceptual model for designing studies of evidence-based occupational therapy in mental health. Copyright © 2000 Whurr Publishers Ltd. [source] Sexual function, depressive symptoms and marital status in nonseminoma testicular cancer patients: a longitudinal studyPSYCHO-ONCOLOGY, Issue 3 2010Marrit A. Tuinman Abstract Goal: To longitudinally investigate sexual functioning in testicular cancer patients during the first year, and examine the effect of relationship status (with a partner or single) and depressive symptoms on sexual functioning. Patients and methods: 93 testicular cancer patients (39% single) treated in two large referral centers for testicular cancer filled in the International Index of Erectile Function (IIEF) and CES-D after orchiectomy (T1) and 3 (T2) and 12 (T3) months later. Results: Orgasmic functioning, overall satisfaction and total sexual functioning decreased between T1 and T2 and increased to an above T1 level at T3. Levels of erectile functioning and intercourse satisfaction were higher at T3 than at T1 and T2. Desire remained stable. Type of treatment did not affect sexual functioning. Singles reported worse sexual functioning at all measurement times than committed patients, and comparable desire. One year after surgery, singles also reported worse sexual functioning on three domains when compared with norms. Depressive symptoms were highest and significantly but weakly related to one domain of sexual functioning at T1, to three domains at T2, and to none at T3. Early depressive symptoms had small to moderate predictive power on sexual functioning at T2, but not at T3. Conclusion: Sexual functioning, but not desire, fluctuates during the first year after testicular cancer. Type of treatment and depressive symptoms were no risk factors for sexual dysfunction in the longer term. Singles reported more sexual problems than patients in a relationship and norms, they may need more information and guidance concerning their sexuality. Copyright © 2009 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd. [source] Successful Long-Term Outcomes Using Pediatric En Bloc Kidneys for TransplantationAMERICAN JOURNAL OF TRANSPLANTATION, Issue 4 2002Jade S. Hiramoto Goal: The objective of our study was to determine whether acceptable long-term graft survival and function can be achieved using pediatric en bloc renal transplants by employing specific immunologic and selection strategies. Materials and Methods: A retrospective analysis of pediatric en bloc kidney transplants at a single institution was performed. A Kaplan-Meier analysis was used to evaluate graft survival. Findings: Fifty-seven adult recipients with at least a 1-year follow-up period were successfully transplanted using pediatric en bloc kidneys between 1993 and 1998. Complete data regarding immunosuppression were available for 53 patients. All patients had a cyclosporine (CsA)- or tacrolimus (TAC)-based regimen with either azathioprine (Aza) or mycophenolate mofetil (MMF) and corticosteroids. All but two received induction with OKT3. One-, 3-, 4-, 5- and 7-year graft survival was calculated to be 88%, 86%, 83%, 68% and 68%, respectively. The mean serum creatinine value at 3 years was 1.0 ± 0.4 mg/dL. Thirteen patients (23%) had biopsy-proven rejection. Ten of 19 (53%) patients treated with CsA/Aza had rejection, whereas 2/15 (13%) on CsA/MMF and 1/19 (5%) of patients on TAC/MMF had rejection. Nine patients (16%) had surgical complications. Conclusion: Excellent long-term results can be achieved in pediatric en bloc kidney transplantation using OKT3, TAC and MMF in carefully selected adult recipients. [source] Addressing Minority Issues in Renal Transplantation: Is More Equitable Access an Achievable Goal?AMERICAN JOURNAL OF TRANSPLANTATION, Issue 1 2002Robert S. Gaston No abstract is available for this article. [source] Three-year follow-up of the first prospective randomized comparison between paclitaxel and sirolimus stents: The TAXi-LATE trialCATHETERIZATION AND CARDIOVASCULAR INTERVENTIONS, Issue 2 2007Alexandre Berger MD Abstract Goal: Analysis of the 3-year outcome of the original population of the TAXi trial which compared the efficacy of the paclitaxel (PES) and the sirolimus (SES) stents in a randomized "real world" investigation. History: The widespread use of drug-eluting stents strongly modified the world of interventional cardiology. The TAXi trial was a randomized comparison between PES and SES and showed similar efficacy between the two prostheses. Recently, emerging discussions raised questions about potential long-term risk with the use of DES. The present work attempts to describe the long-term outcome of the patients compared during the TAXi trial. Method: During April 2003 and January 2004, 202 patients were prospectively randomly assigned to the PES group (102 patients) and to the SES group (100 patients). The primary aim of the present investigation was the comparison of combined incidence of cardiac death, myocardial infarction, and target lesion revascularization within 36-months. Results: No difference in mortality of all causes was noted in the PES and the SES groups (3% vs. 7%, P = 0.98) or in major adverse cardiac event free survival (89% vs. 83%, P = 0.28). Four stent thromboses were observed, two in the PES group (205 and 788 days) and two in the SES group (210 and 772 days). Conclusion: The long-term outcome analysis of the TAXi trial confirms available published data showing the equivalence of PES and SES on clinical basis. © 2007 Wiley-Liss, Inc. [source] Linking Social Development with the Capacity to Carry Debt: Towards an MDG-Consistent Debt-Sustainability ConceptDEVELOPMENT POLICY REVIEW, Issue 3 2009Bernhard G. Gunter Owing to concerns among low-income countries that the new debt sustainability framework of the Bretton Woods institutions may lock them into a so-called ,low debt-low growth' scenario, the United Nations has called for a more MDG-consistent debt-sustainability concept. This article shows that there is a robust relationship between achieving the Millennium Development Goals and having a higher capacity to carry debt. It then discusses options for modifying the current debt-sustainability framework, and suggests that including progress made in achieving the MDGs in determining borrowing limits would be a first step towards adopting such a concept. [source] Developments in National Policies for Food and Nutrition Security in BrazilDEVELOPMENT POLICY REVIEW, Issue 1 2009Cecilia Rocha Brazil is on track to achieve many of the Millennium Development Goals, and this is widely credited to bold and innovative government policies backed by new forms of popular participation in social policy. This article examines evaluation evidence on two of the most important recent initiatives in Brazil's policies for food and nutrition security (conditional cash transfers through Bolsa Família and support for family agriculture through the Programa de Aquisição de Alimentos). It also considers advances in older policies (such as the School Meals programme) and the work of the National Council for Food and Nutrition Security, which has culminated in national legislation establishing food and nutrition security as a right. [source] Disaster risk, climate change and international development: scope for, and challenges to, integrationDISASTERS, Issue 1 2006Lisa Schipper Abstract Reducing losses to weather-related disasters, meeting the Millennium Development Goals and wider human development objectives, and implementing a successful response to climate change are aims that can only be accomplished if they are undertaken in an integrated manner. Currently, policy responses to address each of these independently may be redundant or, at worst, conflicting. We believe that this conflict can be attributed primarily to a lack of interaction and institutional overlap among the three communities of practice. Differences in language, method and political relevance may also contribute to the intellectual divide. Thus, this paper seeks to review the theoretical and policy linkages among disaster risk reduction, climate change and development. It finds that not only does action within one realm affect capacity for action in the others, but also that there is much that can be learnt and shared between realms in order to ensure a move towards a path of integrated and more sustainable development. [source] Aid to Agriculture, Growth and Poverty ReductionEUROCHOICES, Issue 1 2006Peter Hazell Agriculture and rural growth promotion show a recent ,comeback' in development cooperation, but action on the ground so far is not sufficient. After years of neglect, policy makers have recognized that poverty reduction in many low income countries can only be achieved if development efforts are clearly focused on the sector which employs most of the poor, and the space where most of the poor live. The importance of agricultural growth was amply demonstrated during the economic transformation of Asia. Forty years ago, Asia was a continent of widespread poverty. Today, most Asian countries are experiencing significant growth and poverty reduction. Rapid growth in productivity in the small-farm sector helped drive this process. Sub-Saharan Africa, however, failed to achieve rapid agricultural growth and remains mired in poverty and hunger. If Africa is to halve poverty by 2015 in accordance with the Millennium Development Goals (MDG), agriculture will need to maintain an annual growth rate of 6 per cent between 2000 and 2015. China's experience from 1978 to 1984 shows such growth is possible. Achieving the desired rapid rates of growth in Africa will require coherent policies by governments and donors, a substantial investment of public resources in rural infrastructure and access to agricultural technology, and significant improvement in national governance. Dans les milieux de la coopération et de l'aide au développement, même si les actions sur le terrain sont encore insuffisantes, on assiste depuis peu au retour en scène de l'agriculture et du monde rural. Après s'en être désintéressés pendant des années, les décideurs politiques finissent par admettre que, dans beaucoup de pays a faible revenu, il ne sera pas possible de réduire la pauvreté sans focaliser les efforts de développement sur les secteurs qui emploient le plus de pauvres et les zones dans lesquelles ils vivent pour la plupart. Les transformations économiques de l'Asie montrent bien l'importance de la croissance agricole. Il y a quarante ans, l'Asie étaient le continent de la pauvreté généralisée. Aujourd'hui, la plupart des pays d'Asie connaissent une croissance très significative et la pauvreté s'y réduit. L'augmentation de la productivité dans le secteur des petites exploitations a contribuéà la mise en ,uvre de ce processus. L'Afrique sub-saharienne, au contraire, n'a pas réussi à développer une croissance agricole rapide, ce qui la fait s'embourber dans la faim et la pauvreté. Si l'Afrique doit réduire de moitié la pauvreté d'ici 2015 comme l'y invitent les objectifs millénaires du développement (MDG), il faudra y maintenir un taux de croissance annuel de 6% pour l'agriculture entre 2000 et 2015. L'expérience de la Chine entre 1978 et 1984 montre que c'est possible. Mais pour obtenir en Afrique le taux de croissance élevé qui est souhaité, il faudra de la cohérence dans les politiques entre les gouvernements et des donneurs, un investissement public substantiel dans les infrastructures rurales et les moyens d'accès aux techniques modernes, enfin, des modes de gestion publique significativement améliorés Die Förderung der Landwirtschaft und des Wachstums im ländlichen Raum erfreut sich seit kurzem erneuter Beliebtheit in der Entwicklungszusammenar beit; die bisher ergriffenen Maßnahmen sind jedoch noch nicht ausreichend. Nachdem dieses Thema jahrelang vernachlässigt wurde, haben die Politikakteure festgestellt, dass die Armutsbekämpfung in zahlreichen Ländern mit geringem Einkommen nur dann erfolgreich durchgeführt werden kann, wenn die Bemühungen zur Entwicklung deutlich auf den Sektor ausgerichtet werden, in welchem die meisten Armen beschäftigt sind, und auf die Räume, in welchen die meisten Armen leben. Bei der wirtschaftlichen Transformation in Asien wurde sehr deutlich, wie wichtig das landwirtschaftliche Wachstum ist. Vor 40 Jahren war Armut in Asien weit verbreitet. Heute zeichnen die meisten asiatischen Länder durch signifikantes Wachstum und durch Armutsverringerung aus. Ein schneller Anstieg der Produktivität bei den kleineren landwirtschaftlichen Betrieben half dabei, diese Entwicklung voran zu treiben. In den afrikanischen Ländern unterhalb der Sahara (Sub-Sahara-Afrika) konnte schnelles landwirtschaftliches Wachstum jedoch nicht erreicht werden, dort dominieren weiterhin Armut und Hunger. Wenn Afrika gemäß der Millenniumsentwicklungsziele (Millennium Development Goals, MDG) die Armut bis zum Jahr 2015 halbieren soll, muss die Landwirtschaft eine jährliche Wachstumsrate von sechs Prozent zwischen den Jahren 2000 und 2015 aufrecht erhalten. Die Erfahrungen aus China aus den Jahren 1978 bis 1984 belegen, dass ein solches Wachstum möglich ist. Damit die gewünschten hohen Wachstumsraten in Afrika erzielt werden können, sind kohärente Politikmaßnahmen seitens der Regierungen und der Geldgeber, erhebliche Investitionen von öffentlichen Ressourcen in die ländliche Infrastruktur und in den Zugang zur Agrartechnologie sowie eine signifikante Verbesserung der nationalen Governance erforderlich. [source] Women's traditional fishery and alternative aquatic resource livelihood strategies in the Southern Cameroonian RainforestFISHERIES MANAGEMENT & ECOLOGY, Issue 3 2010R. E. BRUMMETT Abstract, To inform the development of alternative livelihoods, the women's traditional alok fishery in the Campo-Ma'an National Park and buffer zone of southern Cameroon were studied over 15 months. Participatory rural appraisal was used to characterise livelihood strategies among 45 households. Thirty-three cultured crops, nine farmed animal species and 65 non-timber forest products, including 31 bushmeat species are cultivated in, or harvested from, the forest. Transport is a major impediment to commercial trade of all local products. In 16 alok fishing events, average weight of fish harvested was 5.14 kg per 280 m of stream distributed among an average of 23 fishers for a return of 220 g person,1 or 40 g fish h,1 over 5 h of work. Fish and crustacean standing stock was 25 g per linear metre or 167 t when extrapolated to the zone. Implications for rainforest livelihoods in light of the Millennium Development Goals are discussed. [source] Authentic Education Helps Educators Clarify Goals, Create AssessmentsFOREIGN LANGUAGE ANNALS, Issue 2 2004Article first published online: 31 DEC 200 No abstract is available for this article. [source] What should be given a priority , costly medications for relatively few people or inexpensive ones for many?HEALTH EXPECTATIONS, Issue 2 2008The Health Parliament public consultation initiative in Israel Abstract Background, In the past two decades, government and civic organizations have been implementing a wide range of deliberative public consultations on health care-related policy. Drawing on these experiences, a public consultation initiative in Israel called the Health Parliament was established. Goals, To implement a public consultation initiative that will engage members of the public in the discussion of four healthcare policy questions associated with equity in health services and on priorities for determining which medications and treatments should be included in the basket of national health services. Method, One hundred thirty-two participants from the general population recruited through a random sample were provided with background materials and met over several months in six regional sites. Dilemma activities were used and consultants were available for questions and clarifications. Participants presented their recommendations in a national assembly to the Minister of Health. Outcomes, Across the regional groups the recommendations were mostly compatible, in particular regarding considering the healthcare system's monetary state, even at the expense of equity, but for each policy question minority views were also expressed. A strong emphasis in the recommendations was pragmatism. Conclusion, Participants felt the experience was worthwhile; though the actual impact of their recommendations on policy making was indirect, they were willing to participate in future consultations. However, despite enthusiasm the initiative was not continued. Issues raised are whether consultation initiatives must have a direct impact on healthcare policy decisions or can be mainly a venue to involve citizens in the deliberation of healthcare policy issues. [source] Transparency and Credibility: Monetary Policy With Unobservable GoalsINTERNATIONAL ECONOMIC REVIEW, Issue 2 2001Jon Faust We define and study transparency, credibility, and reputation in a model where the central bank's characteristics are unobservable to the private sector and inferred from the policy outcome. Increased transparency makes the bank's reputation and credibility more sensitive to its actions. This moderates the bank's policy and induces the bank to follow a policy closer to the socially optimal one. Full transparency of the central bank's intentions is generally socially beneficial but frequently worse for the bank. Somewhat paradoxically, direct observability of idiosyncratic central bank goals removes the moderating influence on the bank and leads to the worst equilibrium. [source] The Impact of Competing Goals, Experience, and Litigation Consciousness on Auditors' JudgmentsINTERNATIONAL JOURNAL OF AUDITING, Issue 3 2009Stephen K. Asare This study uses an experiment to examine the interactive effect of goals and experience on auditors' inventory write-off assessments and the role of litigation consciousness in mediating this effect. We find that when presented with a competing compliance and client relations goal, more experienced auditors were more likely to recommend an inventory write-off than less experienced auditors. However, when presented with only a compliance goal, auditors were equally likely to recommend an inventory write-off. The finding that less experienced auditors are more influenced by client relations goals suggests that the early socialization into the profession may be dominated by client relations concerns rather than litigation concerns. Mediation results suggest that auditors' litigation consciousness is a significant mechanism which helps drive the interactive effect of goals and experience on auditors' inventory write-off assessments. Implications for research, practice, and regulation are discussed. [source] A review of climate risk information for adaptation and development planningINTERNATIONAL JOURNAL OF CLIMATOLOGY, Issue 9 2009R. L. Wilby Abstract Although the use of climate scenarios for impact assessment has grown steadily since the 1990s, uptake of such information for adaptation is lagging by nearly a decade in terms of scientific output. Nonetheless, integration of climate risk information in development planning is now a priority for donor agencies because of the need to prepare for climate change impacts across different sectors and countries. This urgency stems from concerns that progress made against Millennium Development Goals (MDGs) could be threatened by anthropogenic climate change beyond 2015. Up to this time the human signal, though detectable and growing, will be a relatively small component of climate variability and change. This implies the need for a twin-track approach: on the one hand, vulnerability assessments of social and economic strategies for coping with present climate extremes and variability, and, on the other hand, development of climate forecast tools and scenarios to evaluate sector-specific, incremental changes in risk over the next few decades. This review starts by describing the climate outlook for the next couple of decades and the implications for adaptation assessments. We then review ways in which climate risk information is already being used in adaptation assessments and evaluate the strengths and weaknesses of three groups of techniques. Next we identify knowledge gaps and opportunities for improving the production and uptake of climate risk information for the 2020s. We assert that climate change scenarios can meet some, but not all, of the needs of adaptation planning. Even then, the choice of scenario technique must be matched to the intended application, taking into account local constraints of time, resources, human capacity and supporting infrastructure. We also show that much greater attention should be given to improving and critiquing models used for climate impact assessment, as standard practice. Finally, we highlight the over-arching need for the scientific community to provide more information and guidance on adapting to the risks of climate variability and change over nearer time horizons (i.e. the 2020s). Although the focus of the review is on information provision and uptake in developing regions, it is clear that many developed countries are facing the same challenges. Copyright © 2009 Royal Meteorological Society [source] | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||