Study Hypotheses (study + hypothesis)

Distribution by Scientific Domains


Selected Abstracts


Oral piercing and oral trauma in a New Zealand sample

DENTAL TRAUMATOLOGY, Issue 5 2005
J. A. Kieser
Abstract,,, This study investigated the periodontal and dental trauma resultant from tongue and lip piercings in a convenience sample of 43 adult dental patients. Patients underwent an intra-oral examination followed by the administration of a questionnaire. Each patient was examined for lingual or buccal recession of the upper and lower incisors as well as the extent of abnormal toothwear or trauma on these teeth. Following bivariate analyses, regression analyses were conducted to test the study hypotheses and derive adjusted estimates for the dependent variables. Of the 43 individuals who participated (93.0% females; mean age 21 years; age range 14,34 years) 76.7% had a tongue piercing, 34.9% had a lip piercing, and 11.6% had both. Only four had had their piercing procedure provided by a doctor or dentist. Postpiercing complications were reported by 34.9%. Most of those with a labial piercing (80.0%) had 1+ labial site with gingival recession (GR), and almost one-third of those with a tongue piercing had at least one lingual site with GR. Age was a significant predictor of the prevalence of lingual recession, with the odds of having lingual recession increasing by 1.17 (95% CI 1.01, 1.35) for every year older than 14. Age was the only significant predictor of the number of lingual sites with recession, but was not a predictor of the prevalence of labial recession or the number of affected sites. There were no significant associations between piercings and abnormal toothwear or trauma. These findings suggest that oral piercings are associated with localized gingival recession, and that the providers of such procedures should ensure that, as part of the informed consent process, prospective patients are informed of the likelihood that their periodontal health may be compromised. [source]


Attributions and Emotional Reactions to the Identity Disclosure ("Coming Out") of a Homosexual Child,

FAMILY PROCESS, Issue 2 2001
Jorge C. Armesto Ed.M.
This study examined factors that contribute to parental rejection of gay and lesbian youth. College students (N = 356) were asked to imagine being the parent of an adolescent son who recently disclosed that he was gay. Consistent with study hypotheses and based on attribution and moral affect theory, results of regression analyses indicated that greater perceptions of control over homosexuality, higher proneness to experience shame, and lower proneness to experience guilt were associated with increasing negative reactions toward an imagined homosexual child. Also in line with study hypotheses, greater willingness to offer help to the hypothetical child was predicted by lower perceptions of control over homosexuality, less intensely unfavorable emotional reactions, less proneness to experience guilt, and greater reported likelihood of experiencing affection toward him. Theoretical and clinical implications of this research are discussed. [source]


A Mediation Model of Interparental Collaboration, Parenting Practices, and Child Externalizing Behavior in a Clinical Sample

FAMILY RELATIONS, Issue 3 2009
John Kjøbli
The present study examined maternal and paternal parenting practices as mediators of the link between interparental collaboration and children's externalizing behavior. Parent gender was tested as a moderator of the associations. A clinical sample consisting of 136 children with externalizing problems and their families participated in the study. Structural equation modeling was used to test the study hypotheses. Maternal and paternal parenting practices fully mediated the relation between interparental collaboration and externalizing behavior. When the mediated pathways were tested separately, paternal parenting practices functioned as a mediator, whereas maternal parenting practices did not, indicating that the relationship between interparental collaboration, parenting practices and externalizing behavior was moderated by parent gender. The findings suggest that treatments aimed at reducing child externalizing behavior may be strengthened by focusing on interparental collaboration in addition to parenting practices, while also underscoring the need to involve fathers in interventions. [source]


Population-based study of cancer among carriers of a constitutional structural chromosomal rearrangement

GENES, CHROMOSOMES AND CANCER, Issue 3 2006
Iben Bache
We measured the occurrence of cancer in an unselected cohort of carriers of constitutional structural rearrangements in virtually complete nationwide registries for cancer and constitutional cytogenetic abnormalities. We identified 4,816 carriers of a constitutional structural rearrangement in the Danish Cytogenetic Registry and searched for cancer diagnoses by linkage to the Danish Cancer Registry. There was no overall increased risk for cancer among carriers (standardized incidence ratio [SIR], 0.96; 95% confidence interval [CI], 0.84,1.10), and no significant difference from that expected was found in balanced and unbalanced rearrangements or in any subtypes of rearrangements. We found significantly lower risks for carriers with rearrangements involving chromosome 21 (SIR, 0.50; 95% CI, 0.22,0.99) and for paternally inherited rearrangements (SIR, 0.30; 95% CI, 0.06,0.88). Risk estimates for the observed type-specific cancers showed an increased risk for non-Hodgkin lymphoma (SIR, 2.11; 95% CI, 1.09,3.69). However, subgroup analyses were not guided by study hypotheses, and our statistical evaluation of the data should be looked upon as exploratory. In addition, we found 12 constitutional structural rearrangements with a breakpoint potentially associated with a cancer-related gene. Potential new loci associated with type-specific cancers were suggested by the findings of families with more than one affected carrier and by the involvement of the same cytogenetic bands in unrelated carriers. Molecular mapping of these breakpoints might provide new insight into cancer predisposition. © 2005 Wiley-Liss, Inc. [source]


Understanding frame-of-reference training success: a social learning theory perspective

INTERNATIONAL JOURNAL OF TRAINING AND DEVELOPMENT, Issue 2 2007
Lorne M. Sulsky
Employing the social learning theory (SLT) perspective on training, we analysed the effects of alternative frame-of-reference (FOR) training protocols on various criteria of training effectiveness. Undergraduate participants (N = 65) were randomly assigned to one of four FOR training conditions and a control condition. Training effectiveness was determined via trainee reactions, learning and rating accuracy. The results partially supported the study hypotheses: compared to the control group, the more comprehensive FOR training conditions evidenced: (1) significantly higher rating accuracy; (2) significantly higher levels of learning; and (3) more favorable reactions to the training. The discussion focuses on the implications of the results for protocol development when designing FOR training programs. [source]


Enhancing spiritual well-being among suicidal African American female survivors of intimate partner violence

JOURNAL OF CLINICAL PSYCHOLOGY, Issue 10 2007
Natalie C. Arnette
Spirituality has been identified as one component of a culturally competent therapeutic intervention for African American women. The present study was designed to investigate the ability of factors, such as level of hopelessness and the use of positive religious coping strategies, to predict spiritual well-being over time. Seventy-four low-income African American women were administered self-report questionnaires measuring hopelessness, use of religious coping strategies, and two domains of spiritual well-being. Path analysis indicated that hopelessness, existential well-being, religious well-being, and positive religious coping are correlated with one another. Further, lower levels of hopelessness predict increases in existential well-being over time; higher levels of positive religious coping predict increases in religious well-being over time. Results were consistent with the study hypotheses and highlight the need to attend to predictors of spiritual well-being when implementing culturally relevant interventions with abused, suicidal African American women. Therapeutic strategies for reducing hopelessness and enhancing positive religious coping to improve spiritual and existential well-being are presented; such strategies will ensure the interventions are more culturally competent. © 2007 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. J Clin Psychol 63: 909,924, 2007. [source]


Getting even with one's supervisor and one's organization: relationships among types of injustice, desires for revenge, and counterproductive work behaviors

JOURNAL OF ORGANIZATIONAL BEHAVIOR, Issue 4 2009
David A. Jones
I tested hypotheses derived from the agent,system model of justice specifying that, among the different types of justice, interpersonal and informational justice explain the most unique variance in counterproductive work behavior (CWB) directed toward one's supervisor, and procedural justice explains the most unique variance in CWB directed toward one's organization. I also tested whether individuals' desires for revenge against one's supervisor and one's organization mediate certain justice,CWB relationships. Results (N,=,424) provided considerable support for the study hypotheses, showing that employees tend to direct their CWB toward the source of perceived mistreatment, and that desires for revenge explain part, but not all, of the relationships between some types of injustice and CWB. Implications for theory, research, and practice are discussed. Copyright © 2008 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd. [source]


Exposure, Threat Appraisal, and Lost Confidence as Predictors of PTSD Symptoms Following September 11, 2001

AMERICAN JOURNAL OF ORTHOPSYCHIATRY, Issue 4 2002
Chaya S. Piotrkowski PhD
Six months after September 11, 2001 (9/11), 124 New York City workers participated in a self-report study of symptoms of posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD). Although direct exposure to the terrorist attacks of 9/11 was limited, estimates of the prevalence of current PTSD in this mostly ethnic minority population ranged from 7.8% to 21.2%. as measured by the PTSD Checklist (F. W. Weathers, B. T. Litz, D. S. Herman, J. A. Huska, & T. M. Keane, 1993). Consistent with the study hypotheses, direct exposure to the attacks of 9/11, worries about future terrorist attacks (threat appraisal), and reduced confidence in self after 9/11 each predicted symptoms of PTSD, even after controlling for symptoms of anxiety and depression. These results support the idea that a traumatic event's meaning is associated with PTSD symptoms. Gender was not a significant predictor of symptoms, once other demographic variables were controlled. Most respondents who met the criteria for current PTSD had not sought therapy or counseling. [source]


Age-related change in canopy traits shifts conspecific facilitation to interference in a semi-arid shrubland

ECOGRAPHY, Issue 4 2007
Orna Reisman-Berman
Shifts between facilitation and interference and their importance in shaping plant population and community dynamics have received wide recognition. Nevertheless, the causes and spatio-temporal scales of these shifts are poorly understood, yet strongly debated. This study tested the hypothesis that age-related changes in canopy structure shift the effect of a nurse shrub on their protégé from facilitation to interference, using as a model system the interaction between the dwarf shrub Sarcopoterium spinosum and conspecific new recruits, in the shrubland of the transition area between the Mediterranean and the semi-arid climatic zones of Israel. Foliation level (i.e. the percentage of canopy surface area covered with leaves), a measure of shrub canopy structure, increased with age. Shading level was significantly and positively related to foliation level. Densities of new recruits in the shrubland showed a unimodal response to canopy structure and cover: the highest densities were associated with canopies presenting low and medium foliation levels (providing 71 and 82% shade, respectively), while high foliation levels (93% shade) and open spaces among canopies were characterized by very low densities. A related field experiment using shading nets revealed that seedling survival rates followed a similar unimodal pattern, with the highest survival (ca 60%) detected in moderate shade (70%), twice as much as in full sun, and the lowest survival (ca 10%) observed in extreme shade (90%). These results support the study hypothesis on age-dependent interactions. Thus, in a semi-arid shrubland ecosystem, the transition of the "nurse shrub" from "young" to "old" stage can shift facilitation to interference. Hence, the age structure of established shrub populations determines a) the availability of suitable sites for seedling recruitment and b) the balance between facilitation versus interference effects on seedling establishment. [source]


Autosomal Dominant Inheritance of Centrotemporal Sharp Waves in Rolandic Epilepsy Families

EPILEPSIA, Issue 12 2007
Bhavna Bali
Summary Purpose: Centrotemporal sharp (CTS) waves, the electroencephalogram (EEG) hallmark of rolandic epilepsy, are found in approximately 4% of the childhood population. The inheritance of CTS is presumed autosomal dominant but this is controversial. Previous studies have varied considerably in methodology, especially in the control of bias and confounding. We aimed to test the hypothesis of autosomal dominant inheritance of CTS in a well-designed family segregation analysis study. Methods: Probands with rolandic epilepsy were collected through unambiguous single ascertainment. Siblings in the age range 4,16 years underwent sleep-deprived EEG; observations from those who remained awake were omitted. CTS were rated as present or absent by two independent observers blinded to the study hypothesis and subject identities. We computed the segregation ratio of CTS, corrected for ascertainment. We tested the segregation ratio estimate for consistency with dominant and recessive modes of inheritance, and compared the observed sex ratio of those affected with CTS for consistency with sex linkage. Results: Thirty siblings from 23 families underwent EEG examination. Twenty-three showed evidence of sleep in their EEG recordings. Eleven of 23 recordings demonstrated CTS, yielding a corrected segregation ratio of 0.48 (95% CI: 0.27,0.69). The male to female ratio of CTS affectedness was approximately equal. Conclusions: The segregation ratio of CTS in rolandic epilepsy families is consistent with a highly penetrant autosomal dominant inheritance, with equal sex ratio. Autosomal recessive and X-linked inheritance are rejected. The CTS locus might act in combination with one or more loci to produce the phenotype of rolandic epilepsy. [source]


Do maternal stress and home environment mediate the relation between early income-to-need and 54-months attentional abilities?

INFANT AND CHILD DEVELOPMENT, Issue 5 2007
Janean E. Dilworth-Bart
Abstract Using Ecological Systems Theory and stage sequential modelling procedures for detecting mediation, this study examined how early developmental contexts impact preschoolers' performances on a measure of sustained attention and impulse control. Data from 1273 European-American and African-American participants in the NICHD Study of Early Child Care were used to identify the potential mediators of the relation between early household income-to-need (INR) and 54-month impulsivity and inattention. Exploratory analyses were also conducted to determine whether the relationships between early income, home environment, parenting stress, and the outcome variables differ for African-American versus European-American-American children. We found modest support for the study hypothesis that 36-month home environment quality mediated the INR/attention relationship. INR accounted for more home environment score variance and home environment accounted for more Impulsivity score variance for African-American children. Home environments were related to inattention in the European-American, but not African-American, group. Copyright © 2007 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd. [source]


How to study postoperative nausea and vomiting

ACTA ANAESTHESIOLOGICA SCANDINAVICA, Issue 8 2002
C. C. Apfel
Anesthesiological journals are flooded by innumerable studies of postoperative nausea and vomiting (PONV). Nevertheless, PONV remains a continuing problem with an average incidence of 20,30%. This paper should provide essential information for the design, conduct, and presentation of these studies. It should also increase comparability among future studies and help clinicians in assessing and reading the literature on PONV. First, future studies should address new and relevant questions instead of repeatedly investigating prophylactically given antiemetics whose main results are predictable (e.g. already proven by meta-analysis). Second, group comparability should be based on well-proven risk factors and a simplified risk score for predicting PONV. Endless listings of doubtful risk factors should be avoided. Third, a realistic sample size estimation should be performed, i.e. in most cases at least 100 patients per group are necessary. Fourth, nausea, vomiting and rescue medication should be recorded and reported separately with the corresponding incidences (and number of patients with these separate symptoms), and the main end-point should be PONV. The entire observation period should cover 24 h. Additional reporting of the early (0,2 h) and delayed (2,24 h) postoperative period is desirable and should consider single and cumulative incidences. Lastly, interpretation of results should take into account the study hypothesis, sources of potential bias or imprecision, and the difficulties associated with multiplicity of analysis and outcomes. [source]


Pediatric primary care to help prevent child maltreatment: the Safe Environment for Every Kid (SEEK) model

CHILD: CARE, HEALTH AND DEVELOPMENT, Issue 4 2009
Richard Reading
Pediatric primary care to help prevent child maltreatment: the Safe Environment for Every Kid (SEEK) model . DubowitzH., FeigelmanS., LaneW. & KimJ. ( 2009 ) Pediatrics , 123 , 858 , 864 . DOI: 10.1542/peds.2008-1376 . Context Effective strategies for preventing child maltreatment are needed. Few primary care-based programmes have been developed, and most have not been well evaluated. Objective Our goal was to evaluate the efficacy of the Safe Environment for Every Kid (SEEK) model of pediatric primary care in reducing the occurrence of child maltreatment. Methods A randomized trial was conducted from June 2002 to November 2005 in a university-based resident continuity clinic in Baltimore, Maryland. The study population consisted of English-speaking parents of children (0,5 years) brought in for child health supervision. Of the 1118 participants approached, 729 agreed to participate, and 558 of them completed the study protocol. Resident continuity clinics were cluster randomized by day of the week to the model (intervention) or standard care (control) groups. Model care consisted of (1) residents who received special training; (2) the Parent Screening Questionnaire; and (3) a social worker. Risk factors for child maltreatment were identified and addressed by the resident physician and/or social worker. Standard care involved routine pediatric primary care. A subset of the clinic population was sampled for the evaluation. Child maltreatment was measured in three ways: (1) child protective services reports using state agency data; (2) medical chart documentation of possible abuse or neglect; and (3) parental report of harsh punishment via the Parent-Child Conflict Tactics scale. Results Model care resulted in significantly lower rates of child maltreatment in all the outcome measures: fewer child protective services reports, fewer instances of possible medical neglect documented as treatment non-adherence, fewer children with delayed immunizations and less harsh punishment reported by parents. One-tailed testing was conducted in accordance with the study hypothesis. Conclusions The SEEK model of pediatric primary care seems promising as a practical strategy for helping prevent child maltreatment. Replication and additional evaluation of the model are recommended. [source]


Child Weight Status and Young Adult Quality of Life: Is There a Reason for Concern?

FAMILY & CONSUMER SCIENCES RESEARCH JOURNAL, Issue 1 2008
Holly S. Kihm
The purpose of the study was to examine the relationship between child weight status and young adult quality of life. One hundred sixty-four college students participated in the study. Students completed four questionnaires that were used to assess physical and psychosocial variables. Several statistical analyses, including correlations and hierarchal regression models, were employed to test the study's hypotheses. Results from the study showed that child weight status was negatively associated with adult quality of life, and child self-concept was a mediating variable within the relationship. Recognizing the relationship between child weight status and young adult quality of life stresses the importance of addressing psychosocial concerns related to weight status during childhood in efforts to achieve a greater quality of life in adulthood. [source]


The Impact of Interorganizational Internet Communication on Purchasing Performance: A Study of Chinese Manufacturing Firms

JOURNAL OF SUPPLY CHAIN MANAGEMENT, Issue 3 2006
Shaohan Cai
SUMMARY This study investigated the effect of interorganizational Internet communication on purchasing performance. On the basis of a review of the relevant literature, three key dimensions of Internet communication behaviors were identified: frequency, diversity and formality. A model was developed to depict the antecedents of interorganizational Internet communication and the impact of such communication on purchasing performance. Responses from 284 Chinese manufacturing firms were used to test the study's hypotheses. Results revealed that the frequency, diversity and formality of Internet communication played an important role in determining the level of purchasing performance. Additionally, formality was critical to managing information flows over the Internet and preventing potential Internet information security risks. Further, results indicated that two factors, perceived Internet security risks and norms of Internet information sharing, significantly influenced Internet communication behaviors. [source]


Cancer Mortality in Kidney Transplantation

AMERICAN JOURNAL OF TRANSPLANTATION, Issue 8 2009
B. A. Kiberd
Immunosuppression is associated with an increased risk of cancer in kidney transplant recipients compared to the general population. It is less clear whether standardized cancer mortality ratios (SMRs) are also increased. This study's hypothesis is that SMRs are not increased because of competing risks of death. During the median follow-up of 5.05 years (Q1,Q3: 2.36,8.62), there were 1937 cancer deaths and 36 619 noncancer deaths among 164 078 first kidney-only transplant recipients captured in the United States Renal Data System between January 1990 and December 2004. The observed cancer death rate was 206 per 100 000 patient-years compared to an expected rate of 215 per 100 000 patient-years in the general population. The overall age- and sex-adjusted SMR was only 0.96 (95% CI 0.92,1.00). However, patients <50 years had SMRs significantly greater than unity while patients >60 had SMRs lower than unity. Up to 25% of cancer-related deaths occurred after allograft failure. These findings challenge the notion that cancer is a major cause of premature death in all kidney transplant recipients and has implications for design of cancer prevention strategies in kidney transplant recipients. [source]