Showing papers by "University of North Carolina at Greensboro published in 2004"

The Generality of Working Memory Capacity: A Latent-Variable Approach to Verbal and Visuospatial Memory Span and Reasoning

Abstract: A latent-variable study examined whether verbal and visuospatial working memory (WM) capacity measures reflect a primarily domain-general construct by testing 236 participants in 3 span tests each of verbal WM, visuospatial WM, verbal short-term memory (STM), and visuospatial STM, as well as in tests of verbal and spatial reasoning and general fluid intelligence (Gf). Confirmatory factor analyses and structural equation models indicated that the WM tasks largely reflected a domain-general factor, whereas STM tasks, based on the same stimuli as the WM tasks, were much more domain specific. The WM construct was a strong predictor of Gf and a weaker predictor of domain-specific reasoning, and the reverse was true for the STM construct. The findings support a domain-general view of WM capacity, in which executive-attention processes drive the broad predictive utility of WM span measures, and domain-specific storage and rehearsal processes relate more strongly to domain-specific aspects of complex cognition.

Reliability and validity of the Biodex System 3 Pro Isokinetic Dynamometer velocity, torque and position measurements

Abstract: This study quantitatively assessed the mechanical reliability and validity of position, torque and velocity measurements of the Biodex System 3 isokinetic dynamometer. Trial-to-trial and day-to-day reliability were assessed during three trials on two separate days. To assess instrument validity, measurement of each variable using the Biodex System 3 dynamometer was compared to a criterion measure of position, torque and velocity. Position was assessed at 5° increments across the available range of motion of the dynamometer. Torque measures were assessed isometrically by hanging six different calibrated weights from the lever arm. Velocity was assessed (30°/s to 500°/s) across a 70° arc of motion by manually accelerating the weighted lever arm. With the exception of a systematic decrease in velocity at speeds of 300°/s and higher, the Biodex System 3 performed with acceptable mechanical reliability and validity on all variables tested.

Inequality in Preschool Education and School Readiness

Abstract: Attendance in U.S. preschools has risen substantially in recent decades, but gaps in enrollment between children from advantaged and disadvantaged families remain. Using data from the Early Childhood Longitudinal Study, Kindergarten Class of 1998-1999, we analyze the effect of participation in child care and early education on children's school readiness as measured by early reading and math skills in kindergarten and first grade. We find that children who attended a center or school-based preschool program in the year before school entry perform better on assessments of reading and math skills upon beginning kindergarten, after controlling for a host of family background and other factors that might be associated with selection into early education programs and relatively high academic skills. This advantage persists when children's skills are measured in the spring of kindergarten and first grade, and children who attended early education programs are also less likely to be retained in kindergarten. In most instances, the effects are largest for disadvantaged groups, raising the possibility that policies promoting preschool enrollment of children from disadvantaged families might help to narrow the school readiness gap.

The Classroom Assessment Scoring System: Findings from the prekindergarten year.

Abstract: Research on teacher-child relationships, classroom environments, and teaching practices provided the rationale for constructing a system for observing and assessing emotional and instructional elements of quality in early childhood educational environments: the Classroom Assessment Scoring System (CLASS). The CLASS provides a framework for observing key dimensions of classroom processes, such as emotional and instructional support, that contribute to quality of the classroom setting from preschool through third grade. This article provides information about the development, field testing, and use of this instrument in prekindergarten. Data from a national sample of 224 prekindergarten classrooms in 6 states are presented to provide reliability and validity information. The full range of the scale was used for the majority of ratings. Ratings reflected generally positive impressions of the classroom environment and teacher-child interactions. Factor scores from the CLASS were related to the Early Childhood...

Does Prekindergarten Improve School Preparation and Performance

Abstract: Prekindergarten programs are expanding rapidly, but to date, evidence on their effects is quite limited. Using rich data from Early Childhood Longitudinal Study, we estimate the effects of prekindergarten on children's school readiness. We find that prekindergarten increases reading and mathematics skills at school entry, but also increases behavioral problems and reduces self-control. Furthermore, the effects of prekindergarten on skills largely dissipate by the spring of first grade, although the behavioral effects do not. Finally, effects differ depending on children's family background and subsequent schooling, with the largest and most lasting academic gains for disadvantaged children and those attending schools with low levels of academic instruction.

Engaging youth through photovoice.

Abstract: The photovoice process aims to use photographic images taken by persons with little money, power, or status to enhance community needs assessments, empower participants, and induce change by informing policy makers of community assets and deficits. This article describes a youth photovoice project implemented in an after-school program that attempted to adapt the photovoice method to youth participants, test the effectiveness of the method with youth, and develop and refine a curriculum for replication. A process such as photovoice provides youth the opportunity to develop their personal and social identities and can be instrumental in building social competency. Youth should and need to be given the opportunity to build and confirm their abilities, to comment on their experiences and insights, and to develop a social morality for becoming a positive agent within their communities and society. For more examples of photos taken by the youth during this project, visit http://www.jhsph.edu/youthphotovoice.

Parental influences on adolescent problem behavior: revisiting Stattin and Kerr.

Abstract: High school students (approximately 14-18 years old; N=2,568) completed questionnaires in which they reported on their involvement in substance use and delinquency, and their perceptions of parental warmth, control, monitoring, and knowledge. Three alternative models were compared describing the nature of relations among these variables. Problem behavior was best predicted by a model that included indirect effects of warmth, control, and monitoring (all by way of parental knowledge), as well as direct effects of control and monitoring. Analyses are framed and findings are discussed with reference to recent work by Stattin and Kerr (2000; Kerr & Stattin, 2000) on the measurement and meaning of parental monitoring.

Factors Impacting the Adoption of the Internet among SMEs

Abstract: The Internet can extend market reach and operational efficiency of small and medium enterprises (SMEs) and enhance their contributions to the U.S. economy. This paper reports an empirical study conducted to identify the factors that impact SMEs' involvement with the Internet. Internal and external variables such as firm size, self-efficacy, prior technology use, etc. are used to predict the level of Internet involvement. This involvement is examined in terms of ownership of a web site (adoption) and use of the Internet for selling purposes (routinization). Logistic regression is used to examine the relationships between internal and external factors and SMEs' involvement with the Internet. The results suggest that specific factors contribute to the SMEs' involvement with the Internet — prior technology use and the customer service subscale of perceived competitive pressure influence both stages of Internet adoption. Moreover, the relative importance of some of these predictor variables decreases as the level of Internet involvement increases. Past media use does not explain SME behavior — in terms of adoption or routinization. These findings can be used to develop strategies to build SME involvement with the Internet.

Parental Employment and Child Cognitive Development

Abstract: Maternal employment during the first three years of the child’s life has a small deleterious effect on estimated verbal ability of three- and four year- olds and a larger negative impact on reading and mathematics achievement of five- and six-year-olds. This study provides a more pessimistic assessment than most prior research for two reasons. First, previous analyses often control crudely for differences in child and household characteristics. Second, the negative relationships are more pronounced for the reading and mathematics performance of ? ve- and six-year-old children than for the verbal scores of three- and four-year-olds.

The Cultural Production of Science in Reform-based Physics: Girls’ Access, Participation, and Resistance

Abstract: Recent literature in science education suggests that, to transform girls‘ participation, learning, and identities within school science, we must think about ways to engage girls in different kinds of educational activities that promote broader meanings of science and scientist. This study was designed to examine more deeply this call for a changed science curriculum and its implications for girls‘ participation, interest, and emerging science identities. In this ethnographic study, I examine the culturally produced meanings of science and scientist in a reform-based physics classroom that used a curriculum called Active Physics, how these meanings reproduced and contested larger sociohistorical (and prototypical) meanings of science and scientist, and the ways girls participated within and against these meanings. The girls in this upper middle class school were mostly concerned with accessing and maintaining a good student identity (rather than connecting to science in any meaningful way) and resisted promoted meanings of science and scientist that they perceived as threatening to their good student identities. Their embrace of the ways school defined success (via grades and college admission) produced a meaning of Active Physics as a way to get credentials on a transcript and ensured their disconnection from real-world, meaningful science and science identities. The story of girls‘ participation and resistance in Active Physics complicates our quest for gender-fair science and highlights the power of sociohistorical meanings of schooling and science in producing educational subjects.

Cardiac vagal regulation across the preschool period: Stability, continuity, and implications for childhood adjustment

Abstract: Stability and continuity of vagal regulation of the heart, operatio- nalized as suppression of respiratory sinus arrhythmia (RSA) during challenge, was examined in a longitudinal study of preschoolers. A sample of 154 two-year-old children was recruited for participation in a study of the effects of emotional and behavioral challenge on cardiac activity and behavioral indices of adjustment and self-regulation. A total of 122 of these children were assessed again at age 4.5 years. At both ages, the children were assessed in a series of laboratory procedures that were intended to be emotionally and behaviorally challenging, during which time heart rate was recorded. To assess vagal regulation, resting measures of RSA and RSA suppression to the challenge task were derived from these procedures. To assess childhood adjustment and self-regulation, a number of parent-report measures were administered when the children were 4.5 years of age. Results indicated that there was high stability in RSA suppression across the challenge tasks within both ages, modest cross-age stability in RSA suppression, and a significant decrease in the magnitude of RSA suppression across age. Second, children who displayed a pattern of stable and high suppression across the preschool period were less emotionally negative, and had fewer behavior problems and better social skills than other children. 2004 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. Dev Psychobiol 45: 101-112, 2004.

Infants' vagal regulation in the still-face paradigm is related to dyadic coordination of mother-infant interaction.

Abstract: The authors investigated relations between mother-infant dyadic coordination and infants' physiological responses. Mothers (N=73) and 3-month-old male and female infants were observed in the still-face paradigm, and mothers' and infants' affective states were coded at 1-s intervals. Synchrony and levels of matching between mother-infant affective states were computed, and infants' heart rate and vagal tone were measured. Infants showed increased negative affect and heart rate and decreased vagal tone during mothers' still-face, indicating physiological regulation of distress. Infants who did not suppress vagal tone during the still-face (nonsuppressors) showed less positive affect, higher reactivity and vagal suppression in normal play and reunion episodes, and lower synchrony in normal play with mothers. The results indicate that infants' physiological regulation in social interaction differs in relation to dyadic coordination of affective behaviors.

Contrasting modes of diversification in the Aux/IAA and ARF gene families.

Abstract: The complete genomic sequence for Arabidopsis provides the opportunity to combine phylogenetic and genomic approaches to study the evolution of gene families in plants. The Aux/IAA and ARF gene families, consisting of 29 and 23 loci in Arabidopsis, respectively, encode proteins that interact to mediate auxin responses and regulate various aspects of plant morphological development. We developed scenarios for the genomic proliferation of the Aux/IAA and ARF families by combining phylogenetic analysis with information on the relationship between each locus and the previously identified duplicated genomic segments in Arabidopsis. This analysis shows that both gene families date back at least to the origin of land plants and that the major Aux/IAA and ARF lineages originated before the monocot-eudicot divergence. We found that the extant Aux/IAA loci arose primarily through segmental duplication events, in sharp contrast to the ARF family and to the general pattern of gene family proliferation in Arabidopsis. Possible explanations for the unusual mode of Aux/IAA duplication include evolutionary constraints imposed by complex interactions among proteins and pathways, or the presence of long-distance cis-regulatory sequences. The antiquity of the two gene families and the unusual mode of Aux/IAA diversification have a number of potential implications for understanding both the functional and evolutionary roles of these genes.

A Factor Structure of Wellness: Theory, Assessment, Analysis, and Practice

Abstract: The Wheel of Wellness, a theoretical model of well-being, incorporates 16 dimensions of healthy functioning that can be assessed using the Wellness Evaluation of Lifestyle (WEL: J. E. Myers. T J. Sweeney, & J. M. Witmer, 1998). A series of studies are reported concerning the development and validation of the WEL based on a large database. In the current study, exploratory and confirmatory factor analyses of the items and scales revealed 5 primary factors of well-being (Creative, Coping, Social. Essential, and Physical) and 1 superordinate factor identified as "Wellness."

Incidence and Risk Factors for Concussion in High School Athletes, North Carolina, 1996–1999

Abstract: A prospective cohort study was used to quantify risk factors for sports concussions. Analysis was based on a stratified cluster sample of North Carolina high school athletes followed during 1996-1999. Clustering was by school and sport, and the sample included 15,802 athletes with 1-8 seasons of follow-up per athlete. Concussion rates were estimated for 12 sports, and risk factors were quantified using generalized Poisson regression. Concussion rates ranged from 9.36 (95% confidence interval: 1.93, 16.80) per 100,000 athlete-exposures in cheerleading to 33.09 (95% confidence interval: 24.74, 41.44) per 100,000 athlete-exposures in football, where "athlete-exposure" is one athlete participating in one practice or game. The overall rate of concussion was 17.15 (95% confidence interval: 13.30, 21.00) per 100,000 athlete-exposures. Cheerleading was the only sport for which the practice rate was greater than the game rate. Almost two thirds of cheerleading concussions involved two-level pyramids. Concussion rates were elevated for athletes with a history of concussion, and they increased with the increasing level of body contact permitted in the sport. After adjustment for sport, body mass index, and year in school, history of concussion(s) remained a moderately strong risk factor for concussion (rate ratio = 2.28, 95% confidence interval: 1.24, 4.19). The fact that concussion history is an important predictor of concussion incidence, even in this young population, underscores the importance of primary prevention efforts, timely identification, and careful clinical management of these injuries.

Impact of Exposure to Violence in School on Child and Adolescent Mental Health and Behavior.

Abstract: Exposure to violence at school remains a significant problem for children and adolescents. This study examined the relationship between exposure to violence at school and child reports of psychological trauma symptoms and violent behavior. The sample consisted of children in grades 3 through 12 in 17 public schools from two different states. Rates of witnessing violence ranged from 56% of elementary-school students witnessing someone else being beaten up to 87% of students witnessing someone else being hit, slapped, or punched at school in the past year. Nearly half (44 %) of middle-school youth were threatened at school. After accounting for demographic effects, witnessing violence at school accounted for more variance than being victimized by violence at school in predicting both psychological trauma symptoms and violent behavior. Students who were exposed to high levels of violence at school also were significantly more likely to experience clinical levels of trauma symptoms than students who were exposed to low levels of violence at school. The association between exposure to violence at school and child well being are discussed.

Real Estate Versus Financial Wealth in Consumption

Abstract: The consumption function for the U.S. economy is estimated with real estate and financial wealth for quarterly data for 1952:1–2001:4. An additional dollar of real estate wealth increases consumption by 8 cents in the current year, as compared with only 2 cents for financial wealth. The results are consistent with theoretical bounds on the marginal propensity to consume from aggregate wealth. The decline in the stock market during 2000–2001 had a limited impact on aggregate demand in part because of an offsetting real estate wealth effect.

Sexual Assault Perpetration and Reperpetration: From Adolescence to Young Adulthood

Abstract: Three incoming freshmen classes of men provided data in a 5-year longitudinal study of the relationship between childhood victimization experiences and sexually coercive behaviors during adolescence and 4 years of college. A key finding of this study was that men who were physically punished, sexually abused, or who witnessed domestic violence in childhood were at greater risk for sexual perpetration in high school. Furthermore, men who perpetrated in high school were at greater risk for sexual perpetration in college; and after controlling for perpetration in high school, those who were abused or witnessed violence in childhood were not at greater risk for college perpetration. The findings have a number of implications for research and practice: We need to identify high-risk populations and direct more targeted interventions toward them. These groups include those who witness or experience abuse as a child and young men who perpetrate violence in adolescence, regardless of childhood abuse experiences.

Long‐term responses of the kuparuk river ecosystem to phosphorus fertilization

Abstract: A long-term stream fertilization experiment was performed to evaluate the potential eutrophication of an arctic stream ecosystem. During 16 years of summer phosphorus (H3PO4) fertilization, we observed a dramatic change in the community structure of the Kuparuk River on the North Slope of Alaska. A positive response to fertilization was observed at all trophic levels with increases in epilithic algal stocks, some insect densities, and fish growth rates. After approximately eight years of P fertilization, bryophytes (mosses) replaced epilithic diatoms as the dominant primary producers in the Kuparuk River. The moss impacted NH4+ uptake rates, benthic gross primary production, habitat structure, and insect abundance and species composition. This study documents the long-term changes in an arctic tundra stream in response to nutrient enrichment. Predicting stream ecosystem responses to chronic perturbation requires long-term observation and experiments.

Cumulative Environmental Risk and Youth Maladjustment: The Role of Youth Attributes

Abstract: Using data from 5,070 youth ages 11 to 18 years old who participated in the National Longitudinal Study of Adolescent Health, concurrent and longitudinal associations among cumulative risk, protective factors, and youth maladjustment were examined. Cumulative risk was associated with concurrent conduct problems and depressed mood. For conduct problems, a compensatory effect was found for scholastic achievement and problem-solving ability. For depressed mood, a compensatory effect was found for scholastic achievement. A protective-reactive effect of self-esteem was found for both forms of maladjustment. Youth gender, grade, and ethnicity moderated these associations. Cumulative risk predicted change over time in depressed mood. Scholastic achievement and self-esteem compensated for this risk. Findings indicate that youth attributes offer limited protection when adolescents experience risk factors across life domains.

HE'S STEALING MY ISSUES!' Clinton's Crime Rhetoric and the Dynamics of Issue Ownership

Abstract: This research draws from theories of issue ownership and “crafted talk” to propose a way to systematically analyze how political elites use rhetoric to gain a strategic advantage over their opponents. The example described is President Clinton's success in neutralizing the Republican advantage on issues related to crime fighting. This research provides descriptive evidence to support Clinton's success in this endeavor. Moreover, using content analyses of elite attention to crime from 1981 to 2000, the analysis demonstrates that Clinton not only changed the dimension over which the parties discussed crime, from a focus on punishment to one stressing prevention, but also served as an agenda setter for media coverage of crime using this new emphasis.

Split management control and international joint venture performance

Abstract: A framework is presented to characterize four different ways in which management control is partitioned between a multinational enterprise (MNE) and local partners within international joint ventures (JVs): split control management, shared management, MNE-partner-dominant management, and local-partner-dominant management. The framework was tested using a sample of international JVs in Korea. We found that JVs following the split control management performed better than any other approach. No performance differences were found among the remaining three types of management control. This suggests that MNEs and local partners should split control: that is, choose the activities to control so that those chosen activities can be matched with their respective firm-specific advantages.

The relationship between marital characteristics, marital interaction processes, and marital satisfaction

Abstract: Structural Equation Modeling techniques were used to clarify the relationship between marital characteristics, marital processes, and the dependent variable-marital satisfaction-in a sample of 201 participants who were in 1st marriages. The Dyadic Adjustment Scale (DAS; G. B. Spanier, 1976) and the Enriching and Nurturing Relationship Issues. Communication and Happiness Inventory (ENRICH; D. H. Olson, D. G. Fournier. & J. M. Druckman, 1987) provided scales to measure marital interaction processes and marital satisfaction. A new instrument. the Characteristics of Marriage Inventory (CHARISMA; J. R. Rosen-Grandon & J. E. Myers, 2001), was developed using factor analysis to determine which marital characteristics were statistically significant. Structural equation modeling identified a path model wherein 6 marital interaction processes had a statistically significant influence on marital satisfaction when mediated by 3 latent factors of marital characteristics (love, loyalty. and shared values) and 2 moderating variables (length of marriage and gender of participant).

Predicting stability and change in toddler behavior problems: Contributions of maternal behavior and child gender.

Abstract: This study examined the stability and continuity of early-identified behavior problems and the factors associated with this stability. Children and their mothers (N = 125) were seen when the children were 2 and 4 years of age. Maternal reports of child externalizing behavior and laboratory observations of child noncompliance were stable from age 2 to age 4. Early externalizing behaviors decreased over time; however, child noncompliance in the laboratory did not. Although few associations were found between maternal positive behavior and child behavior problems, maternal controlling behavior was related to increases in child behavior problems, particularly at high levels of both prior noncompliance and prior maternal control. Child noncompliance was predictive of increases in maternal controlling behavior over time.