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Showing papers by "University of Nebraska Omaha published in 2001"


Journal ArticleDOI
TL;DR: The IWQOL-Lite appears to be a psychometrically sound and clinically sensitive brief measure of quality of life in obese persons.
Abstract: KOLOTKIN, RONETTE L., ROSS D. CROSBY, KARL D. KOSLOSKI, AND G. RHYS WILLIAMS. Development of a brief measure to assess quality of life in obesity. Obes Res. 2001;9:102‐111. Objective: Obesity researchers have a growing interest in measuring the impact of weight and weight reduction on quality of life. The Impact of Weight on Quality of Life questionnaire (IWQOL) was the first self-report instrument specifically developed to assess the effect of obesity on quality of life. Although the IWQOL has demonstrated excellent psychometric properties, its length (74 items) makes it somewhat cumbersome as an outcome measure in clinical research. This report describes the development of a 31-item version of the IWQOL (IWQOL-Lite). Research Methods and Procedures: IWQOLs from 996 obese patients and controls were used to develop the IWQOL-Lite. Psychometric properties of the IWQOL-Lite were examined in a separate cross-validation sample of 991 patients and controls. Results: Confirmatory factor analysis provided strong support for the adequacy of the scale structure. The five identified scales of the IWQOL-Lite (Physical Function, SelfEsteem, Sexual Life, Public Distress, and Work) and the total IWQOL-Lite score demonstrated excellent psychometric properties. The reliability of the IWQOL-Lite scales ranged from 0.90 to 0.94 and was 0.96 for the total score. Correlations between the IWQOL-Lite and collateral measures supported the construct validity of the IWQOL-Lite. Changes in IWQOL-Lite scales over time correlated significantly with changes in weight, supporting its sensitivity to change. Significant differences in IWQOL-Lite scale and total scores were found among groups differing in body mass index, supporting the utility of the IWQOL-Lite across the body mass index spectrum. Discussion: The IWQOL-Lite appears to be a psychometrically sound and clinically sensitive brief measure of quality of life in obese persons.

596 citations


Journal ArticleDOI
TL;DR: The authors argue that contemporary American democracy is confined to a shrunken procedural remnant of its earlier substantive form, and discuss the usefulness of a collaborative model of administrative practice in preserving the value of democracy in public administration.
Abstract: The authors are concerned that a remaining refuge of substantive democracy in America, the public sector, is in danger of abandoning it in favor of the market model of management. They argue that contemporary American democracy is confined to a shrunken procedural remnant of its earlier substantive form. The classical republican model of citizen involvement faded with the rise of liberal capitalist society in the late nineteenth and early twentieth centuries. Capitalism and democracy coexist in a society emphasizing procedural protection of individual liberties rather than substantive questions of individual development. Today’s market model of government in the form of New Public Management goes beyond earlier “reforms,” threatening to eliminate democracy as a guiding principle in public-sector management. The authors discuss the usefulness of a collaborative model of administrative practice in preserving the value of democracy in public administration.

296 citations


Journal ArticleDOI
TL;DR: In this paper, the authors explore the development of an e-business marketing model that capitalizes on customer participation and the likely consequences of such efforts, principally site brand loyalty, and show that creating site brand loyalties leads to predictable affective, cognitive, and behavioral outcomes from customers, such as repeat visits to and patronage of the site, fewer intentions to defect to competitors, and more favorable attitudes toward the site.

258 citations


Journal ArticleDOI
TL;DR: Steffensmeier et al. as mentioned in this paper found that the decision to file charges was based on a combination of case and victim characteristics, but that cases involving a victim and suspect who were acquainted, related, or intimate partners were more likely than those involving a suspect and a victim who were strangers to be prosecuted.
Abstract: The decision to charge is a critical stage in the processing of sexual assault cases, as many cases do not proceed beyond this stage. Frohmann (1991) examined prosecutorial justifications for case rejection and concluded that prosecutors construct typifications of credible victims and rape relevant behavior in deciding whether to file charges in sexual assault cases. We use data on 1997 sexual battery cases cleared by arrest in Miami, Florida, as well as information gleaned from interviews with a sample of the attorneys who handled these cases, to replicate and extend Frohmann's work. Although our findings are consistent with Frohmann's assertion that charging decisions primarily reflect the prosecutor's assessment of the likelihood of conviction, they also suggest that this assessment is based on factors other than typifications of rape and rape victims. In a substantial number of the cases examined for this study, the decision to reject charges could be traced to the victim's failure to appear for a prefile interview, refusal to cooperate in the prosecution of the case, or admission that the charges were fabricated. We also found that the decision to file charges was based on a combination of case and victim characteristics, but that cases involving a victim and suspect who were acquainted, related, or intimate partners were more likely than those involving a victim and suspect who were strangers to be prosecuted. We conclude that prosecutors' charging decisions are guided by a set of “focal concerns” (Steffensmeier, et al. 1998) that revolve around reducing uncertainty and securing convictions and that incorporate beliefs about real rapes and legitimate victims.

257 citations


Journal ArticleDOI
TL;DR: This paper presents a comprehensive framework for describing the diffusion of the Internet in a country using six dimensions, and addresses how to apply the framework in practice, highlighting Internet diffusion determinants.
Abstract: This paper presents a comprehensive framework for describing the diffusion of the Internet in a country. It incorporates insights gained from in-depth studies of about 25 countries undertaken since 1997. The framework characterizes diffusion using six dimensions, defining them in detail, and examines how the six dimensions relate to underlying bodies of theory from the national systems of innovation and diffusion of innovations approaches. It addresses how to apply the framework in practice, highlighting Internet diffusion determinants. This framework is useful for business stakeholders wanting to make use of and invest in the Internet, for policy makers debating how to positively (or negatively) influence its use and development, and for researchers studying the large-scale diffusion of complex, interrelated technologies.

232 citations



Journal ArticleDOI
TL;DR: In this paper, the authors examined the effect of victim, suspect, and case characteristics on charging decisions in each type of case and found that the impact of victim characteristics was confined to cases involving acquaintances and intimate partners.
Abstract: In this study of prosecutors' charging decisions in sexual assault cases, we test the hypothesis that the effect of victim characteristics is conditioned by the relationship between the victim and the suspect. We categorize the victim/suspect relationship as one involving strangers, acquaintances/relatives, or intimate partners, and we examine the effect of victim, suspect, and case characteristics on charging decisions in each type of case. The results of our analysis reveal that the effect of victim characteristics, with one exception, is confined to cases involving acquaintances and intimate partners. In these types of cases, prosecutors were less likely to file charges if there were questions about the victim's character or behavior at the time of the incident. In contrast, the victim's reputation and behavior did not affect charging in cases involving strangers; in those types of cases, prosecutors were more likely to file charges if the suspect used a gun or knife or if the victim was white. We conc...

211 citations


Journal ArticleDOI
TL;DR: In this paper, the authors show how deteriorated family systems may provide contexts that are associated with adolescents' feelings of loneliness as well as their ability to engage in social interactions outside of the family system.
Abstract: Family environment is related to characteristics of adolescents’ personal development and social interactions. Although potentially different for males and females, decreased family cohesion and increased interparental conflict can inadvertently provide family environments that are associated with increased feelings of loneliness, which may be associated with problems in adolescents’ social interactions (i.e., social anxiety and social avoidance). Analyses of responses from 124 late adolescents revealed that feelings of loneliness were related to perceived levels of interparental conflict for males and females and decreased family cohesion for females. Furthermore, late adolescents’ feelings of social anxiety and social avoidance were related to their feelings of loneliness. The findings in this study show how deteriorated family systems may provide contexts that are associated with adolescents’ feelings of loneliness as well as their ability to engage in social interactions outside of the family system.

166 citations


Journal ArticleDOI
TL;DR: In this article, the authors present results from the National Evaluation of the Gang Resistance Education and Training (G.R.E.A.T) program, a school-based prevention program targeting middle school students.
Abstract: Research Summary: This manuscript presents results from the National Evaluation of the Gang Resistance Education and Training (G.R.E.A.T.) program, a school-based prevention program targeting middle-school students. A longitudinal quasi-experimental research design was conducted from 1995 through 1999. Beneficial program effects emerged gradually over time so that there was, on average, more pro-social change in the attitudes of G.R.E.A.T. students than the non-G.R.E.A.T. students four years following program exposure. Policy Implications: Two specific policy recommendations stem from this research. First, law enforcement officers can be effective providers of school-based prevention programs. Second, to better assess program effectiveness, evaluations should include design features that allow for assessment of long-term or delayed program effects.

154 citations


Journal ArticleDOI
TL;DR: A relationship in C. kuhlii between paternal behavior, hormones, and paternal experience is suggested and rates of infant-carrying appear to be linked to hormone levels, and hormone levels in turn are affected by experience caring for young.

151 citations


Journal ArticleDOI
TL;DR: Minocycline is an effective DMARD in patients with early seropositive rheumatoid arthritis and did so while receiving less prednisone, compared with a conventional disease-modifying antirheumatic drug, hydroxychloroquine.
Abstract: Objective To compare the efficacy of minocycline with that of a conventional disease-modifying antirheumatic drug (DMARD), hydroxychloroquine, in patients with early seropositive rheumatoid arthritis (RA). Methods Sixty patients with seropositive RA of <1 year's duration who had not been previously treated with DMARDs were randomized to receive minocycline, 100 mg twice per day, or hydroxychloroquine, 200 mg twice per day, in a 2-year, double-blind protocol. All patients also received low-dose prednisone. The primary end points of the study were 1) the percentage of patients with an American College of Rheumatology (ACR) 50% improvement (ACR50) response at 2 years, and 2) the dosage of prednisone at 2 years. Results Minocycline-treated patients were more likely to achieve an ACR50 response at 2 years compared with hydroxychloroquine-treated patients (60% compared with 33%, respectively; P = 0.04). Minocycline-treated patients were also receiving less prednisone at 2 years compared with the hydroxychloroquine group (mean 0.81 mg/day compared with 3.21 mg/day, respectively; P < 0.01). In addition, patients treated with minocycline were more likely to have been completely tapered off prednisone (P = 0.03). Trends favoring the minocycline treatment group were seen when outcomes were assessed according to components of the ACR core criteria set, with the differences reaching statistical significance for patient's global assessment of disease activity (P = 0.004). Conclusion Minocycline is an effective DMARD in patients with early seropositive RA. Patients treated with minocycline were more likely to achieve an ACR50 response and did so while receiving less prednisone. In addition, minocycline-treated patients were more likely to have discontinued treatment with prednisone at 2 years.

Journal ArticleDOI
TL;DR: The results confirm the importance of directness in the interaction style and of a prior assimilative context for learning, but indicate that engagement has a strong effect on performance via its effect on perceived ease of use (PEU).

Journal ArticleDOI
TL;DR: In this paper, the impact of mentoring on the academic achievement of at-risk youth involved in Big Brothers/Big Sisters was examined, and it was found that the treatment group made significantly higher academic gains than the control group, even after controlling for ability.

Journal ArticleDOI
TL;DR: In this article, an approach based on police early warning systems was proposed to assess the racial and ethnic distribution of people stopped by the San Jose Police Department (SJPD) using the first traffic stop data reports from the SJPD.
Abstract: In response to widespread allegations of racial and ethnic discrimination in traffic stops, a practice that has been labeled “racial profiling,” law enforcement agencies are now collecting data on traffic stops that include the race or ethnicity of drivers. Interpreting these data to determine whether a pattern of race discrimination exists poses enormous difficulties. Specifically, it is not clear what baseline (often referred to as “the denominator”) should be used to assess the racial and ethnic distribution of people stopped. Using the first traffic stop data reports from the San Jose Police Department as a case study, this paper examines baselines that are commonly used or discussed as appropriate. The paper argues that resident population data and/or official crime data are not adequate as baselines. As an alternative, the paper proposes an approach based on police early warning systems.

Journal ArticleDOI
TL;DR: In this paper, the utility of object-oriented data modeling and analysis of the topography for alpine glacier mapping at Nanga Parbat, in northern Pakistan, was investigated, and the results indicated that first and second-order morphometric parameters can be used to study glacier features and delineate debris-covered glaciers.
Abstract: We investigate the utility of object‐oriented data modeling and analysis of the topography for alpine glacier mapping at Nanga Parbat, in northern Pakistan. Results indicate that first‐ and second‐order morphometric parameters can be used to study glacier features and delineate debris‐covered glaciers. Object‐oriented data modeling using a two‐level hierarchy was found to be successful for delineating the Raikot Glacier, although a three‐level hierarchy is required for more detailed glacier mapping. These findings are of special importance to the Global Land Ice Measurements from Space (GLIMS) project, which will use satellite imagery to assess and map the Earth's glaciers. Furthermore, hierarchical modeling of the topography may serve to provide a foundation upon which scientists may learn more about the polygenetic nature of topographic evolution.


Journal ArticleDOI
TL;DR: In this paper, the authors pointed out that increases in the number of drug offenders appearing in state and federal courts, coupled with mounting evidence of both the linkages between drug use and crime and the efficacy of drug treatment pr...
Abstract: Increases in the number of drug offenders appearing in state and federal courts, coupled with mounting evidence of both the linkages between drug use and crime and the efficacy of drug treatment pr...

Journal ArticleDOI
TL;DR: In this article, the authors used a sample of employed high school seniors to assess the interaction between low self-control and coworker delinquency on occupational delinquency and found that the interaction term was a strong predictor of occupational delinquence, even after controlling for established predictors of delinquency.

Journal ArticleDOI
TL;DR: In this paper, the authors examined whether gang members' sex composition influenced their characterizations of their gangs and their individual participation in delinquency, and found that sex composition, independent of sex itself, is important in shaping the norms and activities of gang members and their members.
Abstract: Sociology of organizations scholars have long recognized sex and gender as key features shaping interactional dynamics within groups, and several recent qualitative studies suggest that sex composition of gangs helps shape the gang experience for both boys and girls. Quantitatively, we add to this scant literature by testing competing hypotheses from the theories of Kanter, Blau, and Blalock, and examining whether youth gangs' sex composition influences members' characterizations of their gangs and their individual participation in delinquency. Our findings suggest that sex composition, independent of sex itself, is important in shaping the norms and activities of gangs and their members.

Journal ArticleDOI
TL;DR: The authors examined the power of both emotional and social intelligence to account for variance in self-reported leadership experiences and found that both social intelligence and emotional intelligence accounted for the variance in leadership experiences.
Abstract: Leadership has both social and emotional components. Social intelligence appears to tap the social component found in leadership. Recently, emotional intelligence has surfaced as a stable individual difference variable and appears to tap the emotional component of leadership. Mayer and Salovey (1993) suggested that the emotional intelligence and social intelligence constructs overlap. This study examined the power of both emotional and social intelligence to account for variance in self-reported leadership experiences. One hundred ninety-two university students completed measures of social and emotional intelligence and a measure of leadership experiences. Regression analyses showed that both social intelligence and emotional intelligence accounted for variance in leadership experiences. Although emotional intelligence was found to account for variance in leadership, it did not add unique variance beyond social intelligence. Social intelligence appears to play a principal role in leadership.

Journal ArticleDOI
TL;DR: The authors examined 2-, 3-, and 4-year-olds' peer conflicts in the naturalistic classroom setting during free-play time and found that conflicts about play and ideas significantly increased with age while those stemming from physical harm were low overall.
Abstract: This study examined 2-, 3-, and 4-year-olds' peer conflicts in the naturalistic classroom setting during free-play time. 400 preschoolers from 25 classrooms were videotaped. Only the first conflict event generated by each target-child observation was included in the analysis. Of the 400 target-child observations, 322 generated a conflict event. In general, there was a shift in the issues of conflict from tangible material concerns to those that were more mental and social. 2-year-olds had a higher proportion of distribution of resources conflicts than did 3- and 4-year-olds. Conflicts about play and ideas significantly increased with age while those stemming from physical harm were low overall. Further, child-generated resolutions increased while insistence decreased significantly with age. What changes with development appears to be the issues of conflict and the way they are handled; not the incidence of conflict per se. These findings support the proposal that conflicts are natural contexts in which ch...

Journal ArticleDOI
TL;DR: The findings suggest that information about work-related rewards may be useful in targeting individuals who might benefit from retirement planning programs, in developing planning programs to help workers realize more complex retirement plans, and in assisting employers who hope to retain older workers.
Abstract: The authors used data from the first wave of the Health and Retirement Study ( F. Juster and R. Suzman 1995) to evaluate whether certain job-related gratifications might reduce retirement planning. Three definitions of retirement planning were evaluated and then regressed separately on a set of variables that included 3 types of job-related satisfactions (intrinsic gratification, positive social relations, and ascendance in the workplace) and 7 covariates: education, age, sex, health, marital status, race, and pension eligibility. Findings indicated that jobs high in ascendance were related to an increase in certain types of retirement planning, but jobs high in intrinsic rewards and positive social relations were related to less planning, regardless of how planning was defined. The findings suggest that information about work-related rewards may be useful in targeting individuals who might benefit from retirement planning programs, in developing planning programs to help workers realize more complex retirement plans, and in assisting employers who hope to retain older workers.

Book ChapterDOI
01 Jan 2001
TL;DR: In this paper, a multiple criteria linear programming (MCLP) approach has been identified as the potential technology to predict the cardholders' future behavior, which can be easily adapted from two-group to multi-group separation problems.
Abstract: The objective of this research is to search an alternative data mining approach that could outperform the current approaches in credit card portfolio management. A multiple criteria linear programming (MCLP) approach has been identified as the potential technology to predict the cardholders’ future behavior. The testing results on development samples showed that (i) the MCLP approach is fully controlled by the formulation; (ii) the 3000 is a stable sample size for the robustness in the separation process; and (iii) the MCLP model can be easily adapted from two-group to multi-group separation problems.

Journal ArticleDOI
TL;DR: The authors examined change in the organizational priorities of the three core functions of American policing (crime control, order maintenance, and service provision) in an era of community policing and found that police core function priorities have remained largely unchanged during this period.

Journal ArticleDOI
TL;DR: Case study findings from several corporate environments suggest that successful virtualization does not depend on the degree of technological sophistication, but on how the tools are used that matters.
Abstract: Case study findings from several corporate environments suggest that successful virtualization does not depend on the degree of technological sophistication. It's how the tools are used that matters.

Journal ArticleDOI
TL;DR: An assumption of retirement theory that typifies older workers as preretirees who are planfully engaged in paths toward retirement is examined, finding that categorical uncertainty about form and timing was theoretically predictable in a framework that supposed that workers less subject to a socially attended life would be more undecided about the future.
Abstract: OBJECTIVE This study examined an assumption of retirement theory that typifies older workers as preretirees who are planfully engaged in paths toward retirement. METHODS Using survey responses among workers in the 1992 and 1994 waves of the Health and Retirement Study, we described the prevalence of nonsubstantive answers to questions about the expected form and timing of retirement (e.g., "don't know," "haven't thought about it"). We tested explanations for this uncertainty as an artifact of the survey process, but also as an outcome of the opportunity structure for retirement planning. RESULTS Survey procedure did generate some of these noncommittal responses. Depending on question type, approximately 10% to 40% of workers did not state when or how they would retire, and such responses were less prevalent across age and time. In addition, categorical uncertainty about form and timing was theoretically predictable in a framework that supposed that workers less subject to a socially attended life--at work or away--would be more undecided about the future. DISCUSSION Uncertainty is an authentic, meaningful stance toward retirement that theory and research design should not ignore. Just as actual transitions to retirement can be ambiguous or blurred, the expectation of retirement, as well, can be untidy.

Journal ArticleDOI
TL;DR: This article evaluated a sexual harassment program for staff and faculty employees at a metropolitan university and found that participants showed more knowledge about sexual harassment than did non-participants and had a stronger attitude that sexual behavior at work is inappropriate.
Abstract: This study evaluated a sexual harassment program for staff and faculty employees at a metropolitan university. One hundred men and 97 women who participated in the program and 141 men and 178 women who did not participate responded to a self-report questionnaire through campus mail. Analysis of variance was used to test for effects of program participation and employee gender on five outcome variables. Results indicated that participants showed more knowledge about sexual harassment than did nonparticipants and had a stronger attitude that sexual behavior at work is inappropriate. Men had more favorable attitudes toward sexual behavior at work than did women. Moreover, program participation and employee gender interacted, indicating an adverse reaction to the program among male participants. Male participants were less likely than other groups to perceive coercive sexual harassment, less willing to report sexual harassment, and more likely to blame the victim. Implications of the findings are discussed.

Book ChapterDOI
01 Jan 2001
TL;DR: In this article, Corcoran extended Tullock's model to a long-run setting, i.e., free entry, and found that under these conditions rents will be dissipated.
Abstract: The original work on rent-seeking conjectured that rent-seeking expenditures would completely dissipate the rent sought (Posner, 1975; Becker, 1968). Presently it appears to be accepted as a fundamental tenet in spite of the lack of knowledge of how such a result would come about (Demsetz, 1976; Foster, 1981). Tullock (1980) using a game-theoretic approach with a Cournot-Nash (C-N) response function showed that total expenditures can be greater than, equal to, or less than the rent payoff depending on the number of players and the marginal cost of influencing the probability of winning. Corcoran (1983) extended Tullock’s model to a long-run setting, i.e., free entry, and found that under these conditions rents will be dissipated. Tullock (1983) agreed in part, but still maintained that where marginal costs were rapidly falling or rising throughout, Corcoran’s long-run solution does not pertain.

Journal ArticleDOI
TL;DR: This article explored the generality of Agnew's general strain theory using a sample of 596 Baltimore, Maryland male poličers and found that it is one of the more recent advances in criminological theory.

Journal ArticleDOI
TL;DR: The electronic commerce assurance market has been estimated to be potentially worth $11 billion, yet with electronic data interchange (EDI) being mandated by large companies and government agencies, smallto medium-sized firms have struggled to acquire and implement this technology with little understanding of this new age of electronic commerce.
Abstract: The electronic commerce assurance market has been estimated to be potentially worth $11 billion. To date, the focus of assurance services has largely been on web commerce (and, therefore, business-to-consumer or B2C) related services, leaving the business-to-business (B2B) electronic commerce market relatively untapped. Yet, with electronic data interchange (EDI) being mandated by large companies and government agencies, smallto medium-sized firms have struggled to acquire and implement this technology with little understanding of this new age of electronic commerce. As the ubiquitous Internet allows more firms to become EDI-