Arizona State University at the West campus

About: Arizona State University at the West campus is a based out in . It is known for research contribution in the topics: Ecosystem & Forensic entomology. The organization has 172 authors who have published 274 publications receiving 8595 citations.

Acculturation in Mergers and Acquisitions

Abstract: A model focusing on the process of adaptation and acculturation in mergers and acquisitions is presented. It is proposed that the degree of congruence between the acquirer and the acquired organizations' preferred modes of acculturation will affect the level of acculturative stress. The latter will in turn either facilitate or hinder the implementa

An own-age bias in face recognition for children and older adults

Abstract: In the present study, we examined whether children and older adults exhibit an own-age face recognition bias. Participants studied photographs of children, younger adults, middle-aged adults, and older adults and were administered a recognition test. Results showed that both children and older adults more accurately recognized own-age faces than other-age faces. These data suggest that individuals may acquire expertise for identifying faces from their own age group and are discussed in terms of Sporer’s (2001) in-group/out-group model of face recognition.

Impacts of altered precipitation regimes on soil communities and biogeochemistry in arid and semi-arid ecosystems.

Abstract: Altered precipitation patterns resulting from climate change will have particularly significant consequences in water-limited ecosystems, such as arid to semi-arid ecosystems, where discontinuous inputs of water control biological processes. Given that these ecosystems cover more than a third of Earth's terrestrial surface, it is important to understand how they respond to such alterations. Altered water availability may impact both aboveground and belowground communities and the interactions between these, with potential impacts on ecosystem functioning; however, most studies to date have focused exclusively on vegetation responses to altered precipitation regimes. To synthesize our understanding of potential climate change impacts on dryland ecosystems, we present here a review of current literature that reports the effects of precipitation events and altered precipitation regimes on belowground biota and biogeochemical cycling. Increased precipitation generally increases microbial biomass and fungal:bacterial ratio. Few studies report responses to reduced precipitation but the effects likely counter those of increased precipitation. Altered precipitation regimes have also been found to alter microbial community composition but broader generalizations are difficult to make. Changes in event size and frequency influences invertebrate activity and density with cascading impacts on the soil food web, which will likely impact carbon and nutrient pools. The long-term implications for biogeochemical cycling are inconclusive but several studies suggest that increased aridity may cause decoupling of carbon and nutrient cycling. We propose a new conceptual framework that incorporates hierarchical biotic responses to individual precipitation events more explicitly, including moderation of microbial activity and biomass by invertebrate grazing, and use this framework to make some predictions on impacts of altered precipitation regimes in terms of event size and frequency as well as mean annual precipitation. While our understanding of dryland ecosystems is improving, there is still a great need for longer term in situ manipulations of precipitation regime to test our model.

Raising Standardized Achievement Test Scores and the Origins of Test Score Pollution

Abstract: In the current climate of dissatisfaction with public education, the standardized achievement test score has been the operational definition for educational-achievement, and raising test scores has been equated with educational improvement. The pressure to raise test scores has resulted in practices which pollute the inferences we make from these scores. We examine two major sources of test score pollution: (a) how public school personnel prepare students to take the standardized test and (b) nonstandard practices and conditions under which tests are administered. We also examine the apparent causes of this pollution and its effects on testing practices in American education.