Showing papers by "University of Memphis published in 1985"

A «rationalized» arcsine transform

Abstract: Arcsine or angular transformations have been used for many years to transform proportions to make them more suitable for statistical analysis. A problem with such transformations is that the arcsin...

Multifactorial determination of skeletal age at death: A method and blind tests of its accuracy

Abstract: Traditional methods of estimating skeletal age at death have relied solely on the pubic symphyseal face or on this indicator combined with others in nonsystematic ways. A multifactorial method is presented that uses a principal components weighting of five indicators (pubic symphyseal face, auricular surface, radiographs of proximal femur, dental wear, and suture closure). This method has been tested by completely blind assessment of age in two samples from the Todd collection carefully screened for accuracy of stated age at death. Results show a marked superiority of the multifactorial method over any single indicator with respect to both bias and accuracy. This represents the first truly blind test of an age-at-death indicator or system, as the test populations were independent of the system(s) being tested, and the age, sex, and ethnogeographic origin of the individuals being assessed (as well as the compositions of the test samples with respect to these variables) were completely unknown until the tests were completed. Implications for paleodemography are discussed.

Does professional training make a therapist more effective

Abstract: Jeffrey S. Berman and Nicholas C. NortonUniversity of Texas at AustinIn a recent review, Hattie, Sharpley, and Rogers (1984) concluded that patientstreated by paraprofessional therapists improve more than those treated by profes-sionals. However, this provocative conclusion is based on inappropriate studies andstatistical analyses. The present review omitted problematic studies and organizedthe data to permit valid statistical inference. Unlike Hattie et al., we found thatprofessional and paraprofessional therapists were generally equal in effectiveness.Our analyses also suggested that professionals may be better for brief treatmentsand older patients, although these differences were slight. Current research evidencedoes not indicate that paraprofessionals are more effective, but neither does it revealany substantial superiority for the professionally trained therapist.In his 1952 critique Eysenck noted the lackof evidenc e for the efficacy of psychotherapy,and he concluded that it would be prematureto formulate guidelines for training psycho-therapists. During the intervening years, re-searchers have responded to Eysenck's chal-lenge by demonstrating convincingly that pa-tients who undergo psychotherapy improvemore than those who do not receive treatment(e.g., see Shapiro & Shapiro, 1982; Smith,Glass, & Miller, 1980). However, such evidenceconcerning the efficacy of psychotherapy doesnot necessarily indicate the usefulness ofprofessional training programs. For instance,psychotherapy with highly trained therapistsmight not result in outcomes that are any bet-ter than those obtained by untrained thera-pists. To gauge the benefits of professionaltraining, we also need to know whether trainedtherapists are more effective than those withoutsuch training.One prominent assessment of this issue wasprovided by Durlak (1979), who reviewedstudies comparing professional therapists withparaprofessionals having no formal training.

A Systems Theory Conceptualization of Incest

Abstract: In this paper, father-daughter incest is examined from the perspective of general systems theory. Three characteristics of an open system--information exchange with the environment, negentropy, and dynamic homeostasis--are described and examined with respect to the functioning of incestuous families. Two case studies of families with father-daughter incest illustrate the tendency of these families to be more characteristic of the "closed" end of the continuum. The role of the environment in the origin and maintenance of the incestuous symptom is also examined. Implications for treatment are presented within the context of this theoretical perspective.

Psychological Factors and Outcome of Electrode Implantation for Chronic Pain

Abstract: The utility of using psychological assessments as a basis for predicting pain relief after electrode implantation is examined. Two raters independently reviewed the functional pain protocols of chronic pain patients who were candidates for deep brain (n = 13) or spinal cord (n = 17) electrode implants and predicted whether each would have a good or poor treatment response. At follow-up, five deep brain (39%) and four spinal cord (24%) patients were classified as having good responses to treatment. Predictions of outcome based on psychological data were accurate for 80% of the patients. These results suggest that functional pain assessment is useful as a part of preimplantation screening and emphasize the importance of psychological factors in the outcome of treatment for chronic pain.

Local geometry maps and conformational transitions between low-energy conformers of N-acetyl-N′-methyl glycine amide: An ab initio study at the 4–21g level with gradient relaxed geometries

Abstract: Energy pathways between the α R , β′, C 7 eq and β-regions of the conformational energy surface of N -acetyl N ′-methyl glycine amide were obtained by SCF ab initio calculations on the 4–21G level with gradient geometry optimization at each point. The calculations point to the possibility that no barrier exists at this computational level between α R and β′. The variation of geometry (bond distances and bond angles) with conformation is analyzed in detail and the geometrical parameters which should be treated as variables in both empirical energy calculations and, possibly, in the fitting of polypeptide chains in proteins by X-ray methods, are identified. The study shows that, in general, Local Geometry Maps (of conformationally dependent structural trends) are as important as Local Energy Maps for the characterization of peptide systems.

Seismotectonics of the southern Appalachians

Abstract: The southern Appalachians of eastern Tennessee and western North Carolina is a region for which high quality instrumental seismic data have been very limited. In this paper, we report more than 100 new or relocated hypocenters obtained from the initial 2 1 2 yr of operation of the Southern Appalachian Regional Seismic Network (SARSN), a 16-station, four-state telemetered network of short-period vertical instruments. These data provide a first-order snapshot of southern Appalachian seismicity that confirms some previous observations and adds new results for the region. The most important new observations are well-constrained focal depths and focal mechanisms for southern Appalachian earthquakes. The level of activity exceeds expectations and concentrates more heavily in the Valley and Ridge Province of eastern Tennessee—as opposed to the Blue Ridge or Inner Piedmont—than is evident in historical listings. The large majority of these events lie between the New York-Alabama lineament and the Clingman/Ocoee lineaments, magnetic anomalies produced by deep-seated basement structures. An analysis of the uniqueness and stability of hypocentral depth yields reliable depths for 58 earthquakes and demonstrates that most southern Appalachian seismic activity occurs beneath the decollement, thus lending quantitative support to the argument that Appalachian seismicity is unrelated to surficial geological or tectonic features. Several new focal mechanisms of a higher quality than previously available indicate that the basement of the Valley and Ridge is under NE-SW compression and the principal mode of faulting is right-lateral strike-slip on nearly north-south faults. In both depth and type of faulting, the seismogenic model we propose for the southern Appalachians closely emulates the Giles County zone to the north of our study area.

Periodic solutions to functional differential equations

Abstract: We consider a system of functional differential equationswhere G: R × B → Rn is T periodic in t and B is a certain phase space of continuous functions that map (−∞, 0[ into Rn. The concepts of B-uniform boundedness and B-uniform ultimate boundedness are introduced, and sufficient conditions are given for the existence of a T-periodic solution to (1.1). Several examples are given to illustrate the main theorem.

Parental ratings of treatments of self-injurious behavior

Abstract: This study examined (a) how parents of autistic children, parents of other handicapped children, and parents of nonhandicapped children rate, as a whole, acceptability of time-out, differential reinforcement, overcorrection, and shock as treatments for self-injurious behavior, and (b) whether these parents show differences, as groups, in ratings of these treatments. On the Treatment Evaluation Inventory, all groups consistently rated differential reinforcement, time-out, and overcorrection as acceptable and shock as unacceptable. Differential reinforcement was consistently rated as the most acceptable, but the groups differed in ratings of acceptability of other treatments. On the Semantic Differential, ratings of differential reinforcement, overcorrection, and time-out did not differ. However, shock was consistently rated as the most potent and active of treatments as well as the most unacceptable. The implications of these findings for treatment of autistic and other handicapped children are discussed.

Compatibilism and the Consequence Argument

Abstract: Analyse detaillee des arguments echanges par P. van Inwagen et D. Lewis au sujet de l'incompatibilite entre le determinisme et le libre-artitre. La these incompatibiliste de van Inwagen repose sur un approfondissement de l'argument de la consequence (si le determinisme est correct, nos actes doivent etre consideres comme des consequences des lois naturelles et d'evenements passes| mais ceux-ci ne dependent pas de nous: donc leurs consequences non plus (y compris nos propres actes). Lewis a repondu a van Inwagen en precisant la notion de "falsification d'une proposition par un evenement". L'A. conclut en faveur de Lewis et du compatibilisme. En appendice, il etend cette conclusion a deux autres versions de l'argument de van Inwagen.

Relational Trajectories: A Personal Construct Contribution:

Abstract: The interdisciplinary study of relationships has begun to frame several issues important for advancing an understanding of interpersonal processes. This article addresses the contribution to this effort that can be made by personal construct theory (Kelly, 1955) and its related methodology. In particular we argue that construct theory can help illuminate (1) the complex interconnectedness between the self and its social context, (2) the multiple trajectories that relationships can follow, and (3) the processes associated with relationship disorder and deterioration. Situated at the interface of social and clinical psychology, construct theory is strategically located to advance our understanding of a broad range of psychosocial processes entailed in personal relationships. Applications of the theory to several concerns in the larger literature are discussed, and directions for research are illustrated.

Multipartite graph-sparse gra^j Ramsey numbers

Abstract: The Ramsey numberr(F, G) is determined in the case whereF is an arbitrary fixed graph andG is a sufficiently large sparse connected graph with a restriction on the maximum degree of its vertices. An asymptotically correct upper bound is obtained forr(F, T) whereT is a sufficiently large, but otherwise arbitrary, tree.

Evaluation of the manganese esr method of marble characterization

Abstract: Results suggest that ESR studies of Mn+2 in marble can provide an excellent discriminator for the determination of marble provenance. In comparison with other methods of quantitative analysis for manganese such as AA or NAA, the ESR method determines only Mn+2 rather than total Mn, is inexpensive and rapid with no chemical preparation required, and does not consume the sample.

Rural School Psychology: Perspectives on Lessons Learned and Future Decisions.

Abstract: Studies of rural school psychology have focused too heavily upon the problems and characteristics of these settings at the expense of their strengths. Interest should also be focused upon strategie...

Personalizing Context in Teaching Mathematical Concepts: Teacher-Managed and Computer-Assisted Models.

Abstract: The present paper examines a strategy intended to facilitate mathematics learning by adapting the context of instructional material to students’ backgrounds and interests. In four validation studies, the strategy was implemented through teacher management, using college students learning statistical probability rules as subjects. Achievement and attitude outcomes consistently favored treatment groups who received the adaptive contexts over control groups. The culmination of this research is the development of a computer-assisted model to increase the strategy’s practicality and sensitivity to learner differences. The computer model uses stored information about each student to personalize explanations and story examples on a fractions unit.

Secular variations in dolomite abundance in deep marine sediments

Abstract: Change with time in the amount of dolomite in post-Jurassic deep marine sediments was tabulated using 844 Deep Sea Drilling Project samples that contain 5% or more dolomite and could be suitably dated. Superimposed on an overall decrease since Early Cretaceous time are two maxima in the Cretaceous, a maximum at the Paleocene/Eocene transition, and a maximum in the Neogene. Frequency trends in the Atlantic and Indo-Pacific are similar overall but differ in detail. Mediterranean and Red Sea data are Neogene and peak in the mid-Miocene and late Miocene to early Pliocene, respectively. Data from the Gulf-Caribbean are largely Neogene and suggest deepening since early Cenozoic time. The general similarity of the patterns in the Atlantic and Indo-Pacific, supported by data from the smaller basins, suggests that the frequency of occurrence of dolomite in deep marine sediments may be related to a common global cause, possibly the flooding and draining of shallow shelves and small ocean basins consequent upon eustatic sea-level changes.