Showing papers by "Texas Christian University published in 1994"

Accountability amplifies the status quo effect when change creates victims

Abstract: This study assesses the impact of accountability, the status quo, and anticipated costs and benefits on judgement of the acceptability of a drug in the US pharmaceuticals market. Several effects are documented: (1) subjects were more accepting of a drug, the lower the anticipated risks of side effects and the greater the anticipated benefits; (2) subjects were especially unwilling to accept risk when the drug was not yet on the market and when they felt accountable for their decisions; (3) accountable subjects confronted by an off-the-market drug that posed moderate or high risk were also especially likely to procrastinate, to buckpass, and to think in integratively complex ways about the problem, notwithstanding the fact that many more lives would be saved than lost. We explain these results by positing that perceptual-cognitive processes (loss aversion) and political processes (blame avoidance) mutually reinforce each other when decision makers are accountable for choices that raise the possibility of changing the status quo in ways that impose losses on identifiable constituencies. We conclude by commenting on the complex normative issues that arise in labelling response tendencies as biases. Choices that look irrational within one ethical or political framework sometimes appear quite reasonable with another.

Another Look at The Relationship Between Performance and Voluntary Turnover

Abstract: This study reexamined the critical relationship between performance and voluntary turnover. A meta-analysis based on 55 studies and a total sample size of 15,138 supported these conclusions: the ne...

Silicon-micromachined gas chromatography system used to separate and detect ammonia and nitrogen dioxide. I. Design, fabrication, and integration of the gas chromatography system

Abstract: A miniature gas chromatography (GC) system was designed and developed using silicon micromachining and integrated circuit (IC) processing techniques. The micromachined gas chromatography (MMGC) system is composed of a miniature sample injector incorporating a 10-/spl mu/m-long sample loop; a 0.9-m-long, rectangular-shaped (300 /spl mu/m width and 10 /spl mu/m height) capillary column coated with a 0.2-/spl mu/m-thick copper phthalocyanine (CuPc) stationary phase, and a dual-detector scheme based upon a CuPc-coated chemiresistor and a 125-/spl mu/m-diameter thermal conductivity detector (TCD) bead. Silicon micromachining was employed to fabricate the interface between the sample injector and the GC column, the GC column itself, and the dual-detector cavity. A novel processing technique was developed to sublime a homogeneous CuPc stationary-phase coating on the GC column walls. The complete MMGC system package is approximately 4 in, square and 100 mils (2.5 mm) thick, [96]. >

Relationship Marketing and Collaborative Networks in Service Organizations

Abstract: The development of collaborative network structures is an increasingly significant issue in the services industry. These interorganizational relationships are formed to gain flexibility, obtain needed skills and resources, and achieve operating efficiencies. Evaluates processes of network formation and compares them with the emerging relationship marketing paradigm, in the search for greater insight into an important but little understood phenomenon. Proposes a novel network classification scheme that identifies hollow, flexible, value‐added and virtual networks, leading to discussion of the need to extend the knowledge base concerning networks and the significance of the relationship marketing model to achieving research and managerial goals in this area.

Applying Delphi methodology in family therapy research

Abstract: The Delphi technique, which is increasingly seen in family therapy publications, encourages the articulation of refinement in family therapy practice and theory. Combining both quantitative and qualitative methodology, this technique involves consideration of information that might otherwise have been overlooked. Due to lack of clarity on this approach, a dilemma exists in applying this research procedure in family therapy. To remedy this deterrent, this paper reviewed 11 studies and outlined use of the technique in regard to design, procedure, and sampling.

Treatment Process and Relapse to Opioid Use During Methadone Maintenance

Abstract: A general framework for studying drug abuse treatment process factors is presented, and components are then used to predict relapse to opioid use during treatment in methadone maintenance. Major domains of the treatment process research framework include client variables at entry, program characteristics, treatment events, and client outcomes. The analyses rely on the use of proportional hazards models to identify significant outcome predictors in a sample of 590 methadone maintenance clients from 21 clinics in the Research Triangle Institute/Treatment Outcome Prospective Study (RTI/TOPS) data system who remained in treatment at least 3 months. The analyses were performed on the total sample and separately on clients from three groups of clinics classified on the basis of the distribution of client relapse rates and tenure in treatment. Relapse rates were related to dosage level, client monitoring with urinalyses, and methadone take-home privileges in some clinics, and hence, these time-varying treatment events were important factors in treatment outcomes. Even at entry to treatment, some measures were found to be related to how the client later performed during treatment. Finally, it was also found that the particular area of professional speciality of the staff making client diagnosis at intake and preparing treatment plans was associated with client outcomes.

A comparison of quantile estimators

Abstract: Ten nonparametric estimators of quantiles are compared in small samples by Monte Carlo simulation methods. The estimators are compared by using properties such as mean square error and mean absolute deviation. Nine distributions are used for the comparisons and include long-tailed distributions (e.g., Laplace), short-tailed distributions (e.g., uniform), and skewed distributions (e.g., exponential)

The effect of volume ingested on rehydration and gastric emptying following exercise-induced dehydration.

Abstract: The purpose of this study was to examine the effects of different drink volumes on rehydration, gastric emptying, and markers of fluid balance following exercise-induced dehydration. Nine male subjects (27.3 +/- 5.47 yr of age, 77.8 +/- 7.9 kg) exercised for 90 min (or until 2.5% of initial body weight was lost) on a cycle ergometer in a hot environment (30 degrees C with 60% RH). Following exercise, subjects were moved to a neutral environment (23 degrees C 50% RH) and rested for 30 min prior to beginning a 3-h rehydration period. During rehydration, subjects were serially fed with an electrolyte solution (14.98 mmol.l-1 Na+, 13.51 mmol.l-1 Cl-, and 7.95 mmol.l-1 K+) every 30 min with either 100% or 150% of the fluid lost during exercise. Gastric contents were determined every 15 min using double sampling. Blood samples, urine samples, and body weights were taken before and after exercise and at 1-h intervals throughout rehydration. Blood samples were analyzed for percent change in plasma volume, electrolyte concentration, aldosterone levels, and renin activity. Urine electrolyte concentrations were also measured. The final percent rehydration was 48.11 and 67.90 for the 100% and 150% conditions, respectively. During rehydration, the subjects emptied 98.9 and 86.0% of the fluid ingested, and the % emptied and used for weight gain at the end of rehydration was 55.1 and 54.6 for the 100% and 150% trials, respectively. Urine production was significantly higher in the 150 compared with the 100% condition while renin and aldosterone levels did not differ significantly.(ABSTRACT TRUNCATED AT 250 WORDS)

The Accuracy of Financial Analysts' Forecasts after Mergers:

Abstract: This paper examines forecasts developed by financial analysts before and after mergers. The study finds that forecast accuracy decreases sharply after mergers. These accuracy reductions tend to be more pronounced when financial leverage changes, when the merger does not provide earnings or industry diversification, when the purchase method of accounting is used to record the transaction, when capital intensity changes, and when the size of the target corporation is large compared to the size of the acquiring corporation. The data also show that reductions in forecast accuracy after mergers tend to be temporary. Accuracy returns to approximately the premerger level within four years after the merger.The study also finds that overprediction bias increases sharply in the year immediately following the merger. This increase in over-prediction bias, however, is also temporary. Overprediction bias returns to approximately the premerger level within the four-year postmerger study period.

Homotopic, but Not Heterotopic, Fetal Cortical Transplants Can Result in Functional Sparing following Neonatal Damage to the Frontal Cortex in Rats

Abstract: Experiments involving the heterotopic transplantation of neocortex during development have indicated that the efferent connections maintained by the transplant as well as other organizational features are appropriate to the transplant's regional locale within the host cortex, rather than to its site of origin within the donor cortex These findings would seem to be consistent with the idea that developing cortical neurons lack any rigid regional specification To examine this further, we made lesions in the rostral cortex of newborn rats and placed pieces of either rostral or occipital fetal cortex into the lesion site Additional cases with similar lesions, but with no transplants, were also prepared When the animals matured, behavioral testing was done to identify any residual deficits Compared with lesioned animals that had received no transplants, animals with homotopic transplants show a substantial sparing in certain forelimb placing and somatosensory tasks In marked contrast, animals with heterotopic transplants did not show any sparing Indeed, when placing reactions were elicited by vibrissal stimulation (vibrissae-->forelimb placing; extinction-placing) the animals with heterotopic transplants showed a greater impairment than the lesioned animals that received no transplants These results indicate that while homotopic fetal cortical transplants may help ameliorate behavioral deficits that normally follow neonatal lesions of the rostral cortex, heterotopic transplants do not, and may in fact exacerbate the deficits, despite the fact that such heterotopic transplants have been shown to maintain projections that seemingly are appropriate to their locale(ABSTRACT TRUNCATED AT 250 WORDS)

The size effect in the Mexican stock market

Abstract: This paper tests for a firm size effect in the Mexican stock market using data from January 1987 to December 1992. Our initial tests indicate that average stock returns are positively related to market betas. We also find, however, that average returns are negatively related to firm size. To measure the effects on average return of betas that are unrelated to firm size, we examine portfolios formed on the basis of size and beta We find that beta is priced in addition to firm size for the Mexican stock market, even after carefully separating the effects of beta and size.

Academic Performance, Social Competence, and Mainstream Accommodations: A Look at Mainstreamed and Nonmainstreamed Students with Serious Behavioral Disorders.

Abstract: This study examined (a) the academic performance and social competence of mainstreamed and nonmainstreamed students with serious behavioral disorders, and (b) the accommodations made in general edu...

Silicon-micromachined gas chromatography system used to separate and detect ammonia and nitrogen dioxide. II. Evaluation, analysis, and theoretical modeling of the gas chromatography system

Abstract: A miniature gas chromatography (GC) system was designed and developed using silicon micromachining and integrated circuit (IC) processing techniques. The MMGC system can separate parts-per-million (ppm) ammonia and nitrogen dioxide concentrations in less than 30 minutes when isothermally operated (80/spl deg/C) at 40 psi. The heat of adsorption of nitrogen dioxide (0.38 eV) on a CuPc thin film (0.2 /spl mu/m thick) was also independently established. As a result of the MMGC system's performance evaluation, several of the assumptions invoked in the initial design were re-investigated, and a refined technique for optimizing the MMGC system's operation and performance was developed. >

The role of node-link mapping in individual and group counseling.

Abstract: The value of using a visual representation strategy, called node-linking mapping, was evaluated in individual and group drug abuse counseling settings. Methadone maintenance clients were randomly a...

An Investigation of the Predictive Validity of Computer Anxiety and Computer Aptitude.

Abstract: The predictive validity of computer aptitude, as measured by four aptitude subtests on the Computer Aptitude, Literacy, and Interest Profile and two computer anxiety instruments (the Computer Anxiety Scale and the Computer Anxiety Factor), was investigated using non programming computer performance as the criterion variable. The effects of computer anxiety on performance were inconsistent, and the suggestion is made that computer anxiety may be related to computer experience. The effects of computer aptitude on performance also yielded inconsistent results. The relationship between computer anxiety and computer aptitude varied. The reliability of the instruments is also reported.

Interviewing Early Adolescents: Some Methodological Considerations

Abstract: Adolescence poses some distinct challenges to the interviewing process. Applied social scientists frequently use the interview as a tool for the gathering of information from adolescents, but the paucity of information in the literature renders a discussion of adolescent issues particularly appropriate. Developmental issues, methodological issues surrounding the construction of and conducting of the early adolescent research interview, and legal and ethical issues are all reviewed in this paper. Particular emphasis is placed on the highly structured group interview. The authors' multi-year experience working with young adolescents and anecdotal information from a nation-wide longitudinal study of "at-risk" youth form the basis for this overview.

Alcohol Norms, Expectancies, and Reasons for Drinking and Alcohol Use in a U.S. Versus a Japanese College Sample

Abstract: Two hundred eighty-two students at Arizona State University in the U.S. and 339 students at Okayama University in Japan completed a questionnaire on their alcohol use, expectancies of the effects of alcohol on their own and others' moods and behaviors, the desirability of these effects, norms of significant others for levels of alcohol use and the subject's desire to comply with these norms, and reasons for drinking and not drinking alcohol. Although frequencies of current drinkers versus abstainers did not differ between the two samples, the U.S. students began regular alcohol use at a significantly earlier age, currently drank more alcohol, had higher alcohol expectancies for emotional responses, and endorsed more celebratory reasons for drinking than their Japanese counterparts. U.S. students, however, had lower expectancies for flushing and lower perceived norms for drinking. Hierarchical multiple regressions performed using data from the current drinkers indicated that expectancies of disinhibition and especially aggressiveness after alcohol use, alcohol norms, celebratory (but not pathological) reasons for drinking, and reasons for not drinking were more predictive of reported levels of alcohol use among the U.S. students as compared with the Japanese students.

Contagion theory and the communication of public speaking state anxiety

Abstract: Previous empirical research has shown that speech state anxiety is communicated from a speaker to audience members, at a nominal level, in public speaking settings. This article reports on research into the communication of speech state anxiety between adjacent speakers in the speaking order. Based on classical response contagion theory, the researchers predicted a positive relationship. The findings support that expectation, suggesting that public speaking state anxiety is contagious. The article discusses possible consequences of these findings and advances suggestions for future research.

The impact of home visits on enrollment patterns in pregnancy-related services among low-income women.

Abstract: Medicaid now reimburses for care-coordination services for pregnant women in about half of the states. This care-coordination project targeted low-income pregnant women in two Indianapolis neighborhoods that historically have had high black-infant mortality rates. The service provided home visits by teams of workers including registered nurses, social workers, and indigenous community health workers. This retrospective descriptive study evaluated the impact of the home visits on enrollment in pregnancy-related services. Data were collected from the care-coordination records of 381 participants who delivered infants between July 1, 1990, and January 1, 1992. The proportion of participants enrolled in prenatal care, the Special Supplemental Food Program for Women, Infants and Children (WIC), Medicaid, and Food Stamps increased significantly following admission to care coordination. The majority of participants who enrolled in prenatal care and WIC, after admission to care coordination, did so within one month of admission. Home visits were effective in stimulating enrollment in pregnancy-related services. Further studies need to be done to evaluate the impact of home visits on pregnancy outcomes as well as their cost-effectiveness.