Home About us Contact
|
Home About us Contact | ||
|
|
||
Standardized Measure (standardized + measure)
Selected AbstractsGenetic influences on reading difficulties in boys and girls: the Colorado twin studyDYSLEXIA, Issue 1 2006Jesse L. Hawke Abstract To test the hypothesis that the genetic etiology for reading disability may differ in males and females, data from identical and fraternal twin pairs were analysed using both concordance and multiple regression methods. The sample included 264 identical (129 male, 135 female) and 214 same-sex fraternal (121 male, 93 female) twin pairs in which at least one member of each pair had reading difficulties. The difference between the identical and fraternal twin pair concordance rates was slightly larger for females than for males, suggesting a possible sex difference in etiology; however, a loglinear analysis of the three-way interaction of sex, zygosity, and concordance was not significant (p,0.17). The estimate of group heritability (hg2), a standardized measure of the extent to which reading difficulties are due to genetic influences, was somewhat greater for females than males (0.65 vs 0.54), but this difference was also not significant (p,0.35). Gender differences in hg2 were larger for younger children (less than 11.5 years of age) than for older children. However, the three-way interaction of sex, zygosity, and age was not significant when age was treated either categorically (p,0.86) or continuously (p,0.71). Thus, results of this study provide little or no evidence for a differential genetic etiology of reading difficulties in males and females. Copyright © 2005 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd. [source] Cognition following bilateral deep brain stimulation surgery of the subthalamic nucleus for Parkinson's diseaseINTERNATIONAL JOURNAL OF GERIATRIC PSYCHIATRY, Issue 5 2009Casey H. Halpern Abstract Objective Parkinson's disease (PD) is a neurodegenerative disorder characterized by significant motor dysfunction and various non-motor disturbances, including cognitive alterations. Deep brain stimulation (DBS) is an increasingly utilized therapeutic option for patients with PD that yields remarkable success in alleviating disabling motor symptoms. DBS has additionally been associated with changes in cognition, yet the evidence is not consistent across studies. The following review sought to provide a clearer understanding of the various cognitive sequelae of bilateral subthalamic nucleus (STN) DBS while taking into account corresponding neuroanatomy and potential confounding variables. Design A literature search was performed using the following inclusion criteria: (1) at least five subjects followed for a mean of at least 3 months after surgery; (2) pre- and postoperative cognitive data using at least one standardized measure; (3) adequate report of study results using means and standard deviations. Results Two recent meta-analyses found mild post-operative impairments in verbal learning and executive function in patients who underwent DBS surgery. However, studies have revealed improved working memory and psychomotor speed in the ,on' vs ,off' stimulation state. A deficit in language may be a consequence of the surgical procedure. Conclusions While cognitive decline has been observed in some domains, our review of the data suggests that STN DBS is a worthwhile and safe method to treat PD. Copyright © 2008 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd. [source] The On-Road Difficulties of Older Drivers and Their Relationship with Self-Reported Motor Vehicle CrashesJOURNAL OF AMERICAN GERIATRICS SOCIETY, Issue 11 2009Joanne M. Wood PhD OBJECTIVES: To quantify the driving difficulties of older adults using a detailed assessment of driving performance and to link this with self-reported retrospective and prospective crashes. DESIGN: Prospective cohort study. SETTING: On-road driving assessment. PARTICIPANTS: Two hundred sixty-seven community-living adults aged 70 to 88 randomly recruited through the electoral roll. MEASUREMENTS: Performance on a standardized measure of driving performance. RESULTS: Lane positioning, approach, and blind spot monitoring were the most common error types, and errors occurred most frequently in situations involving merging and maneuvering. Drivers reporting more retrospective or prospective crashes made significantly more driving errors. Driver instructor interventions during self-navigation (where the instructor had to brake or take control of the steering to avoid an accident) were significantly associated with higher retrospective and prospective crashes; every instructor intervention almost doubled prospective crash risk. CONCLUSION: These findings suggest that on-road driving assessment provides useful information on older driver difficulties, with the self-directed component providing the most valuable information. [source] The ontogeny of cross-sex genetic correlations: an analysis of patternsJOURNAL OF EVOLUTIONARY BIOLOGY, Issue 12 2009J. POISSANT Abstract The independent evolution of males and females is typically constrained by shared genetic variance. Despite substantial research, we still know little about the evolution of cross-sex genetic covariance and its standardized measure, the cross-sex genetic correlation (rMF). In particular, it is unclear if rMF tend to vary with age. We compiled 28 traits for which ontogenetic trends in rMF were documented. Decreases in rMF with age were observed significantly more often than increases and the mean effect size for the relationship between rMF and age was large and negative. This suggests that sexual dimorphism (SD) may typically evolve more readily for phenotypes expressed later in ontogeny and that evolutionary inferences related to the evolution of SD should be limited to the ontogenetic stage at which rMF was estimated. Knowledge about ontogenetic variation in rMF should help improving our understanding of evolutionary patterns related to SD and the resolution of intralocus sexual conflicts. [source] Burned by Bullying in the American Workplace: Prevalence, Perception, Degree and Impact*JOURNAL OF MANAGEMENT STUDIES, Issue 6 2007Pamela Lutgen-Sandvik abstract This study assesses the prevalence of workplace bullying in a sample of US workers, using a standardized measure of workplace bullying (Negative Acts Questionnaire, NAQ), and compares the current study's prevalence rates with those from other bullying and aggression studies. The article opens by defining bullying as a persistent, enduring form of abuse at work and contrasting it with other negative workplace actions and interactions. Through a review of the current literature, we propose and test hypotheses regarding bullying prevalence and dynamics relative to a sample of US workers. After discussing research methods, we report on the rates of bullying in a US sample, compare these to similar studies, and analyse the negative acts that might lead to perceptions of being bullied. Based upon past conceptualizations, as well as research that suggests bullying is a phenomenon that occurs in gradations, we introduce and provide statistical evidence for the construct and impact of bullying degree. Finally, the study explores the impact of bullying on persons who witnessed but did not directly experience bullying in their jobs. [source] Psychosocial functioning of pediatric renal and liver transplant recipientsPEDIATRIC TRANSPLANTATION, Issue 5 2008Yelena P. Wu Abstract:, The current study examined child- and parent-reported child psychosocial functioning in a large sample of children who received solid organ transplantation. Participants included 64 children who received kidney or liver transplantation and 64 parents who completed a standardized measure of children's psychosocial functioning (BASC; Reynolds & Kamphaus, 1992). Although post-transplant children reported significantly fewer psychosocial difficulties than the normative average, parents reported that children had some psychosocial difficulties, particularly internalizing problems. There were no differences in psychosocial functioning between deceased donor organ and living donor organ recipients. Given the discrepancy between parent and child report, the results suggest that children may underreport psychosocial difficulties following transplantation or parents may over-report children's difficulties. Clinicians and researchers are encouraged to obtain assessment information from multiple reporters when assessing psychosocial functioning in this population. [source] Socioeconomic Status in the Treatment of DepressionAMERICAN JOURNAL OF ORTHOPSYCHIATRY, Issue 2 2009Lydia Falconnier PhD This study examined outcomes and attrition across three treatments for depression in relation to socioeconomic status (SES). The study was based on data available from the Treatment of Depression Collaborative Research Program (TDCRP) of the National Institute of Mental Health (NIMH; Elkin, 1994), a multisite collaborative study that examined the effectiveness of two forms of psychotherapy, cognitive behavior therapy and interpersonal psychotherapy, and pharmacotherapy. Results indicated that lower SES, measured by the Hollingshead Index of Social Position, was associated with less improvement across all three treatments for depression. The effect of SES on outcome did not differ by treatment modality. Contrary to expectations, SES was not associated with attrition. These findings suggest that there may be limitations in the use of these empirically validated treatments with lower SES depressed patients, as their improvement rates may be less than those of middle SES depressed patients treated by the same modalities. The results of this study also suggest that a standardized measure of SES may be more sensitive to SES differences in outcome than the more easily obtained measures of education or income. Suggestions are provided for additional research in this area to address the potential mediators and moderators of the association between SES and outcome. [source] Measuring the psychosocial impact of population-based prostate-specific antigen testing for prostate cancer in the UKBJU INTERNATIONAL, Issue 4 2006Lucy A. Brindle OBJECTIVE To evaluate the psychosocial impact of participation in a population-based prostate-specific antigen (PSA) testing programme, akin to screening, and to explore the relationship between urinary symptoms reported before PSA testing and the response to the subsequent PSA result. PATIENTS AND METHODS This prospective questionnaire study was nested within the case-finding component of the ProtecT (prostate testing for cancer and treatment) feasibility study (ISRCTN20141297). Men aged 50,69 years from 18 general practices in three cities in the UK completed the Hospital Anxiety and Depression Scale (HADS), the Short Form-12 (SF-12) Health Survey, and the International Continence Society ,male' (ICSmale) questionnaires before giving consent for a PSA test in a community clinic (baseline). Men with an ,abnormal' PSA result returned for further investigation (including biopsy) and repeated these questionnaires before biopsy. RESULTS At baseline, study participants had similar levels of anxiety and depression to the general male population. There was no increase in the HADS scores, or reduction in the SF-12 mental health component summary score, on attendance at the biopsy clinic after receiving an ,abnormal' PSA result. Urinary symptoms were associated with levels of anxiety and depression before receiving a PSA result (baseline), but were not associated with anxiety and depression at biopsy independently of baseline scores. Therefore changes in anxiety or depression at biopsy did not appear to differ between those with and without urinary symptoms. CONCLUSIONS This study confirms the findings of other studies that the deleterious effects of receiving an abnormal PSA result during population screening are not identified by generic health-status questionnaires. Comparisons with outcomes of studies measuring cancer-specific distress and using qualitative research methods raise the question of whether a prostate cancer screening-specific instrument is required. However, a standardized measure of anxiety identified differences at baseline between those who did and did not report urinary symptoms. These findings suggest that it might be advisable to better inform men undergoing PSA testing about the uncertain relationship between urinary symptoms and prostate cancer, to minimize baseline levels of psychological distress. [source] Hospital Disaster Preparedness in Los Angeles CountyACADEMIC EMERGENCY MEDICINE, Issue 11 2006Amy H. Kaji MD Background There are no standardized measures of hospital disaster preparedness or hospital "surge capacity." Objectives To characterize disaster preparedness among a cohort of hospitals in Los Angeles County, focusing on practice variation, plan characteristics, and surge capacity. Methods This was a descriptive, cross-sectional survey study, followed by on-site verification. Forty-five 9-1-1 receiving hospitals in Los Angeles County, CA, participated. Evaluations of hospital disaster plan structure, vendor agreements, modes of communication, medical and surgical supplies, involvement of law enforcement, mutual aid agreements with other facilities, drills and training, surge capacity (assessed by monthly emergency department diversion status, available beds, ventilators, and isolation rooms), decontamination capability, and pharmaceutical stockpiles were assessed by survey. Results Forty-three of 45 hospital plans (96%) were based on the Hospital Emergency Incident Command System, and the majority had protocols for hospital lockdown (100%), canceling elective surgeries (93%), early discharge (98%), day care for children of staff (88%), designating victim overflow areas (96%), and predisaster "preferred" vendor agreements (96%). All had emergency medical services,compatible radios and more than three days' worth of supplies. Fewer hospitals involved law enforcement (56%) or had mutual aid agreements with other hospitals (20%) or long-term care facilities (7%). Although the vast majority (96%) conducted multiagency drills, only 16% actually involved other agencies in their disaster training. Only 13 of 45 hospitals (29%) had a surge capacity of greater than 20 beds. Less than half (42%) had ten or more isolation rooms, and 27 hospitals (60%) were on diversion greater than 20% of the time. Thirteen hospitals (29%) had immediate access to six or more ventilators. Less than half had warm-water decontamination (42%), while approximately one half (51%) had a chemical antidote stockpile and 42% had an antibiotic stockpile. Conclusions Among hospitals in Los Angeles County, disaster preparedness and surge capacity appear to be limited by a failure to fully integrate interagency training and planning and a severely limited surge capacity, although there is a generally high level of availability of equipment and supplies. [source] Prenatal Maternal Anxiety and Depression Predict Negative Behavioral Reactivity in InfancyINFANCY, Issue 3 2004Elysia Poggi Davis The effects of maternal antenatal and postnatal anxiety and depression on infant negative behavioral reactivity were examined in a sample of 22 mother-infant pairs. Maternal anxiety and depression were assessed by standardized measures during the third trimester of pregnancy and postpartum. Infant negative behavioral responses to novelty were assessed using a previously validated measure at 4 months of age. Maternal anxiety and depression during the prenatal, but not the postnatal period, were related to infant negative behavioral reactivity to novelty. These data illustrate that prenatal maternal psychological state can exert persisting influences on human infant behavior. [source] Infant visual habituation and parental psychological distressINFANT MENTAL HEALTH JOURNAL, Issue 4 2001David P. Laplante Research is equivocal concerning the relationship between parental psychological distress and infant cognitive functioning. Four potential limitations of the literature are addressed: reliance on mothers' but not fathers' psychological distress, use of categorical measures of psychological distress, use of standardized measures of infant cognitive functioning, and failure to take into account potential gender differences. Ninety-nine twin pairs and both their mothers and fathers were assessed. Infants cognitive functioning was assessed using an infant-controlled habituation,recovery,dishabituation task. Maternal and paternal psychological distress was assessed using the Symptom Check List-90-Revised. No gender differences were obtained for infant visual information-processing abilities or parental psychological distress. Maternal and paternal psychological distress was related to female visual encoding abilities only. It was concluded that parental psychological distress might degrade parent,infant interactions. Characteristics of girls when faced with parents exhibiting psychiatric difficulties may exacerbate difficulties of parent,infant interactions, thereby hindering the full development of cognitive abilities involved in the process of habituation. A need exists to examine the relationship between parental psychological distress and infant visual attention separately for girls and boys. ©2001 Michigan Association for Infant Mental Health. [source] Intellectual and adaptive behaviour functioning in pantothenate kinase-associated neurodegenerationJOURNAL OF INTELLECTUAL DISABILITY RESEARCH, Issue 6 2007K. Freeman Abstract Background Pantothenate kinase-associated neurodegeneration (PKAN), an extremely rare autosomal recessive disorder resulting in iron accumulation in the brain, has a diverse phenotypic expression. Based on limited case studies of one or two patients, intellectual impairment is considered part of PKAN. Investigations of cognitive functioning have utilized specific neuropsychological tests, without attention to general intellectual skills or adaptive behaviour. Methods Sixteen individuals with PKAN completed measures of global intellectual functioning, and participants or care providers completed measures of adaptive behaviour skills and day-to-day functional limitations. Clinicians provided global ratings of condition severity. Results Testing with standardized measures documented varied phenotypic expression, with general cognitive skills and adaptive behaviour ranging from high average to well below average. Age of disease onset correlated with measures of intellectual functioning, adaptive functioning and disease severity. Conclusions Findings support previously described clinical impressions of varied cognitive impairment and the association between age of onset and impairment. Further, they add important information regarding the natural history of the disease and suggest assessment strategies for use in treatment trials. [source] The Self-Injury Questionnaire: evaluation of the psychometric properties in a clinical populationJOURNAL OF PSYCHIATRIC & MENTAL HEALTH NURSING, Issue 2 2006E. E. SANTA MINA rn ba baan msc phd This paper presents the findings, from a clinical study, on the reliability and validity of a new measure for intentions in self-harm behaviour, the Self-Injury Questionnaire (SIQ). Eighty-three patients, who had presented to an emergency department with an episode of self-harm/suicidal behaviour, were given the SIQ as part of a battery of measures to evaluate differentiation in self-harm intentions based upon a history of childhood physical and/or sexual abuse. The internal consistency for the total scale was strong (, = 0.83). Construct validity demonstrated significant correlations with standardized measures. A principle component analysis of responses yielded a five-factor solution with ,affect regulation' items loading on the first factor. Cronbach's alphas were adequate for each subscale (, = 0.72,0.77). These preliminary findings indicate that the SIQ is a valid and reliable measure for research in an acute self-harming population. [source] Psychological distress and its correlates in ovarian cancer: a systematic reviewPSYCHO-ONCOLOGY, Issue 11 2008Emily Arden-Close Abstract Objective: Ovarian cancer is often diagnosed at an advanced stage, and consequently high levels of distress are often experienced. It is necessary to understand the factors associated with psychological distress in order to guide interventions to target those factors. The purpose of this systematic review was therefore to identify correlates of psychological distress in ovarian cancer. Methods: Included studies had to be quantitative and empirical, with standardized measures of psychological distress (anxiety or depression), and to present results for ovarian cancer patients specifically. Standard systematic search methods were used. Information about design, ovarian cancer sample size, disease stage, time since diagnosis, measures of distress used and findings was extracted from each study. The studies were quality assessed using experimenter-defined criteria as good, average and poor quality. Strength of the evidence (strong, some, inconclusive) was based on the quality and consistency of findings. Results: Eighteen studies meeting the inclusion criteria were identified. There was strong evidence for a relationship between younger age, being diagnosed with more advanced disease, more physical symptoms and shorter time since diagnosis with increased levels of anxiety and/or depression. Additional factors (e.g. immune) tested in a few studies also emerged as correlates of distress. Conclusions: Demographic, disease and quality of life factors correlated with distress. However, too few studies assessed possible psychological and immunological correlates, which could be potentially modified and should be assessed in future studies. Copyright © 2008 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd. [source] Standardized versus open-ended assessment of psychosocial and medical concerns among African American breast cancer patientsPSYCHO-ONCOLOGY, Issue 5 2006Rebecca A. Shelby Abstract Standardized quality of life measures have been developed and used primarily with Caucasian and middle-class cancer patients. This study assessed the ability of several widely used standardized measures to capture the concerns and problems of 89 African American breast cancer patients. Concerns and problems were assessed using both an open-ended format and standardized measures. The degree of overlap in responses from these two formats was examined. The most frequently reported problems in the open-ended format included physical (43%), financial (40%), and worry about others (30%). Overall, standardized measures had significant overlap with open-ended concerns and problems. The Cancer Rehabilitation Evaluation System-Short Form subscales/items were associated with corresponding open-ended physical, financial, and social problems (R2 change=0.07,0.16, p's,0.02), the Interpersonal Support Evaluation List-Short Form was associated with open-ended social problems (R2 change=0.11, p=0.004), and the Mental Health Inventory was associated with open-ended psychological distress problems (R2 change=0.08, p=0.01). One category of open-ended problems, worry about others, was not captured by standardized measures. With the exception of associations between open-ended physical problems and psychological distress measures, there were few significant correlations between standardized measures and dissimilar problem categories. These findings suggest that the standardized measures in this study reflected the concerns and problems of African American breast cancer patients. Additional studies are needed to evaluate the utility of other widely used standardized measures that have not been developed or standardized among non-white samples. Copyright © 2005 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd. [source] Bipolar disorder in older adults: a critical reviewBIPOLAR DISORDERS, Issue 5 2004Colin A Depp Objectives:, The goal of this article is to provide a comprehensive critical review of studies reporting the prevalence, features, age of onset, course, comorbidity, and neuropsychology of, as well as service utilization, in bipolar disorder in older age. Methods:, We searched the Medline, Pubmed, and PsycINFO databases using combinations of the keywords ,Bipolar', ,Manic/a', ,Manic Depression', ,Elderly', and ,Older'. We included English-language reports presenting quantitative data on the prevalence and/or any descriptive information about adults with bipolar disorder over age 50. Findings from similar studies were pooled when possible. A total of 61 studies met our broad criteria. Results:, Common methodological problems in the published studies included small sample sizes, retrospective chart review, lack of standardized measures, overemphasis on inpatients, and dearth of longitudinal data. Strong evidence indicates that bipolar disorder becomes less common with age, accounts for 8,10% of late life psychiatric admissions, is associated with neurologic factors in late-onset groups, and is a heterogeneous life-long illness. Weak or inconsistent evidence was found for a higher prevalence of mixed episodes in older adults, a lower treatment response, and the association with lower family history in late-onset groups. Minimal information is available on bipolar depression in late life. Conclusions:, Bipolar disorder in old age is a growing public health problem. Greater research on bipolar disorder in older people will assist in enhancing services to this group as well as inform research on bipolar disorder across the life span. [source] | ||||||||||