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Particular Approach (particular + approach)
Selected AbstractsDrug prevention programmes for young people: where have we been and where should we be going?ADDICTION, Issue 10 2010Richard Midford ABSTRACT Aim Substance use by young people has long been a concern of western society, but opinion is mixed as to which prevention approach offers the greatest benefit, and whether indeed there is any benefit at all. This paper reviews the nature of prevention programmes, the research evidence that underpins these programmes and the prevention objectives against which effectiveness is measured. The aim of this is to create better understanding of the elements that maximize programme effectiveness, what can be achieved by prevention programmes and how programmes can be improved. Findings There is a range of prevention approaches for which there is evidence of effectiveness. Some are classroom-based; some focus upon parenting; some have substantial whole-of-school and community elements; and some target risk and protective factors in early childhood. All, however, are based substantially on the social influence model. In an attempt to improve practice lists of effective programmes have been developed, but there are concerns about the science behind selection. On balance, there is consistent evidence that social influence prevention programmes do have a small, positive effect on drug use, but this then raises the question as to whether harm, rather than use, would be the more worthwhile target for prevention. Prevention that seeks to reduce harm has been demonstrably effective, but has found little support in some jurisdictions. Conclusion Research has created a progressively better understanding of how to optimize programme effectiveness and what can be achieved realistically by even the most effective programmes. However, further research is required to identify which, if any, particular approach offers greater promise. The effectiveness of harm reduction should be compared with more traditional abstinence and the additional effects of whole of school, parent and community elements need to be measured more accurately. Contemporary social influence prevention programmes are flawed, but the approach is still the best way of influencing drug use behaviour in young people as a whole. Evidence-based refinement is the best option for greater benefit. [source] Protection of DNA during early development: adaptations and evolutionary consequencesEVOLUTION AND DEVELOPMENT, Issue 1 2003David Epel SUMMARY The rapidly dividing cleavage stages of embryos do not have the typical responses to cell damage, such as induction of the heat shock response, use of mitotic checkpoints, or use of apoptosis to eliminate severely damaged cells. This could create problems with integrity of DNA, but the solution in these embryos appears to be a "be prepared" approach, in which specific adaptations are used to minimize DNA damage during cleavage and the use of apoptosis at the mid-blastula transition to remove any cells that were nevertheless damaged. It has been assumed that this approach has evolved because of the advantage of rapid production of a motile larvae. Alternatively, this particular approach may have the selective advantage of increasing mutation rate when there are greater environmental stresses. This could provide more variants on which selective pressures could act and thus accelerate evolution during environmentally stressful periods. [source] The Elasticity of Marginal Utility of Consumption: Estimates for 20 OECD Countries,FISCAL STUDIES, Issue 2 2005David J. Evans Abstract In social project appraisal, the policy profile of both distributional welfare weights and the social discount rate has risen considerably in recent years. This fact has important implications for the allocation of funds to social projects and policies in countries, and in unions of countries such as the EU. A key component in the formulae for both welfare weights and the social discount rate is the elasticity of marginal utility of consumption, e. A critical review of existing evidence on e suggests that the UK Treasury's preferred value of unity is too low. New evidence presented in this paper, based on the structure of personal income tax rates, suggests that, on average, for developed countries e is close to 1.4. This particular approach to the estimation of e has previously been under-utilised by researchers. [source] Communities of practice: an opportunity for interagency workingJOURNAL OF CLINICAL NURSING, Issue 3 2002DPhil, JUDITH LATHLEAN BSc(Econ) ,,A particular approach to collaborative interagency working is that of mutliprofessional `communities of practice'. ,,Four such groups are described in the context of two action research projects, one relating to primary care and the other to outpatient services for dermatology and ENT. ,,The facilitating features, and the challenges and the potential of working in this way, are discussed, both from the point of view of understanding how knowledge is used and valued in such groups and as a useful mechanism for the development of services that span different professional perspectives and involve consumer interests. [source] How do you stretch a bladder?NEUROUROLOGY AND URODYNAMICS, Issue 1 2005A survey of UK practice, a literature review, a recommendation of a standard approach Abstract Aims To assess how and why hydrodistension of the bladder is performed by UK urologists and to compare this practise with the published literature on distension. To suggest a standardised technique for hydrodistension to allow comparison of diagnostic and therapeutic studies. Methods A questionnaire was sent to all UK consultant urologists. Questions addressed the indications for short bladder distension (SBD), details of technique, evaluation of outcome, and awareness of evidence base. The literature on bladder distension was reviewed. Results The majority of respondents perform SBD, principally in the diagnosis and therapy of interstitial cystitis (IC). There was considerable variation in the duration of distension, repetition of distension, the pressure used for distension, and the measurement of bladder capacity. The literature on the technique of hydrodistension is imprecise and no respondent was able to cite literature to support his or her practice. We suggest a simple, more objective technique for performing hydrodistension. Conclusions SBD is widely used. There is marked variability in technique and little more than anecdotal evidence to support any particular approach. Research into the evaluation and treatment of painful bladder syndrome in general and IC in particular would be facilitated by the adoption of a standardised technique. © 2004 Wiley-Liss, Inc. [source] Bronchiectasis in children: Orphan disease or persistent problem?,PEDIATRIC PULMONOLOGY, Issue 6 2002Charles W. Callahan DO Abstract More than a decade ago, bronchiectasis unrelated to cystic fibrosis was termed an "orphan disease", because it had become an uncommon clinical entity among children in the developed world. Bronchiectasis is more common among children in lower socioeconomic classes and in developing countries, presumably due to more frequent and recurrent respiratory infections, environmental airway irritants, poor immunization rates, and malnutrition. Reports from the Southern Pacific and from Alaska Native children reveal persistently high rates of childhood bronchiectasis. Better epidemiologic data throughout the world are needed to reassess the importance of this condition. The pathophysiology includes airway inflammation, mucus production, and regional airway obstruction, yet the reasons why some children develop bronchiectasis while other do not is unclear. The coexistence of asthma with bronchiectasis is associated with more severe disease, yet the impact of asthma therapy in children with both disorders has not been studied. Similarly, the pattern of antibiotic use for children with bronchiectasis varies by region with little data to justify one particular approach. It may be that public health measures aimed at improving living conditions for children and prevention of respiratory infections with antiviral vaccines will have more impact on childhood bronchiectasis than medical treatments in the future. Pediatr Pulmonol. 2002; 33:492,496. © 2002 Wiley-Liss, Inc. [source] The promise of geometric morphometricsAMERICAN JOURNAL OF PHYSICAL ANTHROPOLOGY, Issue S35 2002Joan T. Richtsmeier Abstract Nontraditional or geometric morphometric methods have found wide application in the biological sciences, especially in anthropology, a field with a strong history of measurement of biological form. Controversy has arisen over which method is the "best" for quantifying the morphological difference between forms and for making proper statistical statements about the detected differences. This paper explains that many of these arguments are superfluous to the real issues that need to be understood by those wishing to apply morphometric methods to biological data. Validity, the ability of a method to find the correct answer, is rarely discussed and often ignored. We explain why demonstration of validity is a necessary step in the evaluation of methods used in morphometrics. Focusing specifically on landmark data, we discuss the concepts of size and shape, and reiterate that since no unique definition of size exists, shape can only be recognized with reference to a chosen surrogate for size. We explain why only a limited class of information related to the morphology of an object can be known when landmark data are used. This observation has genuine consequences, as certain morphometric methods are based on models that require specific assumptions, some of which exceed what can be known from landmark data. We show that orientation of an object with reference to other objects in a sample can never be known, because this information is not included in landmark data. Consequently, a descriptor of form difference that contains information on orientation is flawed because that information does not arise from evidence within the data, but instead is a product of a chosen orientation scheme. To illustrate these points, we apply superimposition, deformation, and linear distance-based morphometric methods to the analysis of a simulated data set for which the true differences are known. This analysis demonstrates the relative efficacy of various methods to reveal the true difference between forms. Our discussion is intended to be fair, but it will be obvious to the reader that we favor a particular approach. Our bias comes from the realization that morphometric methods should operate with a definition of form and form difference consistent with the limited class of information that can be known from landmark data. Answers based on information that can be known from the data are of more use to biological inquiry than those based on unjustifiable assumptions. Yrbk Phys Anthropol 45:63,91, 2002. © 2002 Wiley-Liss, Inc. [source] Use of gene transfer technology for functional studies in grapevineAUSTRALIAN JOURNAL OF GRAPE AND WINE RESEARCH, Issue 2010J.R. VIDAL Abstract The understanding of the genetic determinism of plant phenotypes requires the functional annotation of genes governing specific traits including the characterisation of their regulatory networks. A striking feature of the grapevine genome and proteome lies in the existence of large families related to wine attributes that have a higher gene copy number than in other sequenced plants. During speciation, the appearance of new adaptive functions is often based on the evolution of orthologous genes eventually associated with duplication (paralogous sequences) leading to new proteins and expression profiles. The presence of original features in grapevine, including perennial status, vegetative architecture, inflorescence/tendril, flower organisation (corolla), and fleshy fruit of considerable acidity with various flavonoid compounds, makes functional genomics an essential approach to link a gene to a trait. For grapevine, the current lack of high throughput genetic techniques (e.g. induced mutant collections) and the difficulties associated with genetic mapping (allele diversity, chimerism, generation time) highlights the critical role of transgenic technology for characterising gene function. Different techniques are available to obtain information about gene functioning, but the choice of a particular approach depends on the process investigated (e.g. metabolism, developmental, pathogen response) and the experimental purpose (e.g. induction of ectopic functions, promoter studies, subcellular localisation). After a brief overview of the development of grapevine biotechnology, this paper reviews the state-of-the-art gene transfer technology for grapevine and detailed examples of where transgenic technology has proven useful for studying gene function. [source] Hydrodynamic and Kinetic Modelling of Dust Free and Dusty Radio-Frequency DischargesCONTRIBUTIONS TO PLASMA PHYSICS, Issue 5-6 2004W. J. Goedheer Abstract In this paper hydrodynamic and kinetic approaches to model low pressure capacitively coupled radio-frequency discharges are discussed. In particular approaches and results for power modulated discharges in a mixture of silane and hydrogen and for discharges containing a considerable amount of dust particles will be presented. (© 2004 WILEY-VCH Verlag GmbH & Co. KGaA, Weinheim) [source] What English Counts as Writing Assessment?ENGLISH IN EDUCATION, Issue 1 2001An Australian Move to Mainstream Critical Literacy Abstract This article focuses on the demands of assessment tasks to address the question: What is entailed in becoming recognised as an accomplished student-writer? In taking up this focus, the writers use authentic samples to show how tasks for assessing writing can be read as instantiations of particular approaches to English education. They investigate how the tasks inevitably draw on cultural knowledges as a primary resource and raise the issue of what is involved when writing assessment moves away, as it is doing in some Australian schools, from concerns with personal voice and individual growth to a socially critical, discourse-oriented approach. [source] Domestic Politics and International RelationsINTERNATIONAL STUDIES QUARTERLY, Issue 1 2002Bruce Bueno De Mesquita In reviewing the history of portions of international studies I reflect on how we might best advance knowledge. I dwell on two issues: questions of method and the urgency of refocusing our efforts on leaders and domestic affairs as the centerpiece for understanding the world of international relations. I argue that scientific progress is best made by combining three methodological approaches in our research: formal, mathematical logic to ensure internal consistency in arguments about complex and contingent relations among variables; case studies and archival research to evaluate verisimilitude between theory and action; and statistical analysis to establish the generality of the hypothesized relations among variables. Often such methodologically diverse and progressive research will best be accomplished by encouraging collaboration rather than by perpetuating the current norm of penalizing co-authorship especially among junior scholars. I offer concrete examples of advances in knowledge achieved through the employment of mathematical reasoning and statistical analysis as many have cast doubts about the substantive contributions of these particular approaches. My perspective is, of course, personal and may not be shared by many others. I set out my thoughts, therefore, with the hope that they will stimulate constructive debate and dialogue and that they will serve to integrate diverse approaches to international affairs. [source] | |||||||||||||