Showing papers by "York University published in 2002"

Individual Creativity and Group Ability to Utilize Individual Creative Resources: A Multilevel Model

Abstract: The performance of 94 groups on 13 different open-ended tasks was studied. At the individual-team-member level, domain knowledge and performance-relevant behavioral measures of the three components of Amabile's (1983, 1996) theory of individual creativity related in predicted ways to individual differences. Support was found for new “cross-level” processes, labeled “team creativity-relevant processes.” At the group level, these processes moderated the relationship between aggregated individual creativity and group creativity.

Validation of a new scale for measuring problematic internet use: implications for pre-employment screening.

Abstract: The current study introduced a theory-driven, multidimensional measure of problematic Internet use: the Online Cognition Scale (OCS). Undergraduate students (n = 211) in an industrial/organizational psychology course completed the OCS, along with measures of procrastination, rejection sensitivity, loneliness, depression, and impulsivity. A confirmatory factor analysis indicated that problematic Internet use consists of four dimensions: diminished impulse control, loneliness/depression, social comfort, and distraction. As hypothesized, the OCS predicted all of the study variables in the expected directions. Representing a departure from previous research in this area, the current article focused on procrastination, impulsivity, and social rejection as key elements of problematic Internet use. Furthermore, interactive applications (e.g., chat) were most related to problematic Internet use, and scores on the OCS predicted being reprimanded at school or work for inappropriate Internet use. As a result, the ut...

The architecture of diagnostic research

Abstract: This is the second in a series of five articles Considerable effort has been expended at the interface between clinical medicine and scientific methods to achieve the maximum validity and usefulness of diagnostic tests. This article focuses on the specific kinds of questions that arise in diagnostic research and the study architectures (the conversions of these clinical questions into appropriate research designs) used to answer them. As an example we shall take shall take assessment of the value of the plasma concentration of B-type natriuretic peptide (BNP) in the diagnosis of left ventricular dysfunction.1 Randomised controlled trials are dealt with elsewhere. As in other forms of clinical research, there are several different ways studying the potential or real diagnostic value of a physical sign or laboratory test, and each is appropriate to one kind of question and inappropriate for others. Among the possible questions about the relation between a putative diagnostic test and a target disorder (for example, the concentration of BNP and left ventricular dysfunction), four are most relevant. #### Summary points Diagnostic studies should match methods to diagnostic questions The keys to validity in diagnostic test studies are Both specificity and sensitivity may change as the same diagnostic test is applied in primary, …

Corrgrams: Exploratory displays for correlation matrices

Abstract: Correlation and covariance matrices provide the basis for all classical multivariate techniques. Many statistical tools exist for analyzing their structure, but, surprisingly, there are few techniques for exploratory visual display, and for depicting the patterns of relations among variables in such matrices directly, particularly when the number of variables is moderately large. This paper describes a set of techniques we subsume under the name “corrgram”, based on two main schemes: (a) rendering the value of a correlation to depict its sign and magnitude. We consider some of the properties of several iconic representations, in relation to the kind of task to be performed. (b) re-ordering the variables in a correlation matrix so that “similar” variables are positioned adjacently, facilitating perception. In addition, the extension of this visualization to matrices for conditional independence and partial independence is described and illustrated, and we provide an easily-used SAS implementation of these methods.

Narrative Research in TESOL: Narrative Inquiry: More Than Just Telling Stories

Abstract: TESOL Quarterly publishes brief commentaries on aspects of qualitative and quantitative research. For this issue, we asked two researchers to discuss narrative research in TESOL.

Background-free observation of cold antihydrogen with field-ionization analysis of its states.

Abstract: A background-free observation of cold antihydrogen atoms is made using field ionization followed by antiproton storage, a detection method that provides the first experimental information about antihydrogen atomic states. More antihydrogen atoms can be field ionized in an hour than all the antimatter atoms that have been previously reported, and the production rate per incident high energy antiproton is higher than ever observed. The high rate and the high Rydberg states suggest that the antihydrogen is formed via three-body recombination.

Acquisition of Literacy in Bilingual Children: A Framework for Research

Abstract: Much of the research that contributes to understanding how bilingual children become literate is not able to isolate the contribution of bilingualism to the discussion of literacy acquisition for these children. This article begins by identifying three areas of research that are relevant to examining literacy acquisition in bilinguals, explaining the contribution of each, and associating each type of research with a skill required by monolingual children in becoming literate. Three prerequisite skills for the acquisition of literacy are competence with the oral language, understanding of symbolic concepts of print, and establishment of metalinguistic awareness. A review of the literature explores the extent to which these skills that influence literacy acquisition in monolinguals develop differently for bilingual children. The conclusion is that the relation between bilingualism and the development of each of the three skills is different, sometimes indicating an advantage (concepts of print), sometimes a disadvantage (oral language competence), and sometimes little difference (metalinguistic concepts) for bilingual children. Therefore, bilingualism is clearly a factor in children's development of literacy, but the effect of that factor is neither simple nor unitary. Since the publication of this article, our research has continued to explore the themes set out in this framework and provided more detail for the description of how bilingualism affects the acquisition of literacy. Two important advances in this research are the finding that some aspects of reading ability, notably phonological awareness, are rooted in general cognitive mechanisms and transfer easily across languages, whereas others, such as decoding, are more language dependent and language-specific and need to be relearned with each new writing system (Bialystok, Luk, & Kwan, 2005). Second, writing systems and the differences between them have a greater impact on children's acquisition of literacy than previously believed. Not surprisingly, this relation has been found for emerging ability with phonological awareness (Bialystok, McBride-Chang, & Luk, 2005) but, more surprisingly, has recently been shown to have a subtle influence on children's emerging concepts of print (Bialystok & Luk, in press). The interpretation that bilingualism must be considered in terms of both advantages and disadvantages has also been pursued in studies of cognitive and linguistic processing in adults. Recent research has shown that adult bilinguals display disadvantages on tasks measuring lexical retrieval and fluency (Michael & Gollan, 2005) but advantages on tasks assessing cognitive control of attention (Bialystok, Craik, Klein, & Viswanathan, 2004). This approach leads to a more detailed and, ultimately, more accurate description of how bilingualism affects cognitive performance.

Handbook of father involvement: Multidisciplinary perspectives

Abstract: Contents: C.S. Tamis-LeMonda, N. Cabrera, Multidisciplinary Perspectives on Father Involvement: An Introduction. L.A. Roggman, H.E. Fitzgerald, R.H. Bradley, H. Raikes, Methodological, Measurement, and Design Issues in Studying Fathers: An Interdisciplinary Perspective. Part I: S.L. Hofferth, The Demography of Fathers. D.J. Hernandez, P.D. Brandon, Who Are the Fathers of Today? S.L. Hofferth, J. Pleck, J.L. Stueve, S. Bianchi, L. Sayer, The Demography of Fathers: What Fathers Do. Part II: M.E. Lamb, Father Involvement and Child Development. M.E. Lamb, Infant-Father Attachments and Their Impact on Child Development. R. Palkovitz, Involved Fathering and Child Development: Advancing Our Understanding of Good Fathering. R.D. Parke, D.J. McDowell, M. Kim, C. Killian, J. Dennis, M.L. Flyr, M.N. Wild, Fathers' Contributions to Children's Peer Relationships. M.E. Lamb, Nonresidential Fathers and Their Children. Part III: L.M. Burton, Sociological and Anthropological Perspectives on Fatherhood: Traversing Lenses, Methods, and Invisible Men. D.J. Eggebeen, Sociological Perspectives on Fatherhood: What Do We Know About Fathers From Social Surveys? R.L. Jarrett, K.M. Roy, L.M. Burton, Fathers in the "Hood": Insights From Qualitative Research on Low-Income African-American Men. N. Townsend, Cultural Contexts of Father Involvement. J.L. Roopnarine, Father Involvement in English-Speaking Caribbean Families. Part IV: F. Marlowe, Father Involvement: Evolutionary Perspectives. J. Bock, S.E. Johnson, Male Migration, Remittances, and Child Outcome Among the Okavango Delta Peoples of Botswana. D. Waynforth, Evolutionary Theory and Reproductive Responses to Father Absence: Implications of Kin Selection and the Reproductive Returns to Mating and Parenting Effort. S.C. Josephson, Fathering as Reproductive Investment. Part V: I. Garfinkel, Father Involvement: Economic Perspectives. P. England, N. Folbre, Involving Dads: Parental Bargaining and Family Well-Being. W. Sigle-Rushton, I. Garfinkel, The Effects of Welfare, Child Support, and Labor Markets on Father Involvement? J.W. Graham, A.H. Beller, Nonresident Fathers and Their Children: Child Support and Visitation From an Economic Perspective. Part VI: J. Brooks-Gunn, S. McLanahan, Father Involvement: Social Policy and Intervention. M.J. Carlson, S.S. McLanahan, Fragile Families, Father Involvement, and Public Policy. N. Cabrera, J. Brooks-Gunn, K. Moore. J. West, K. Boller, C.S. Tamis-LeMonda, Bridging Research and Policy: Including Fathers of Young Children in National Studies. T.J. Nelson, S. Clampet-Lundquist, K. Edin, Sustaining Fragile Fatherhood: Father Involvement Among Low-Income, Noncustodial African-American Fathers in Philadelphia. R.B. Mincy, H.W. Pouncy, The Responsible Fatherhood Field: Evolution and Goals. C.S. Tamis-LeMonda, N. Cabrera, Closing Chapter: Cross-Disciplinary Challenges to the Study of Father Involvement.

The time course and chromosomal localization of recombination-related proteins at meiosis in the mouse are compatible with models that can resolve the early DNA-DNA interactions without reciprocal recombination.

Abstract: During mouse meiosis, the early prophase RAD51/DMC1 recombination protein sites, which are associated with the chromosome cores and which serve as markers for ongoing DNA-DNA interactions, are in ten-fold excess of the eventual reciprocal recombinant events. Most, if not all, of these early interactions are eliminated as prophase progresses. The manner in which these sites are eliminated is the focus of this investigation. We report that these sites acquire replication protein A, RPA and the Escherichia coli MUTS homologue, MSH4p, and somewhat later the Bloom helicase, BLM, while simultaneously losing the RAD51/DMC1 component. Eventually the RPA component is also lost and BLM sites remain. At that time, the MUTL homologue, MLH1p, which is essential for reciprocal recombination in the mouse, appears in numbers and locations that correspond to the distribution of reciprocal recombination events. However, the MLH1 foci do not appear to coincide with the remaining BLM sites. The MLH1p is specifically localized to electron-microscope-defined recombination nodules. We consider the possibility that the homology-search RAD51/DMC1 complexes are involved in homologous chromosome synapsis but that most of these early DNA-DNA interactions are later resolved by the anti-recombination RPA/MSH4/BLM-topoisomerase complex, thereby preventing the formation of superfluous reciprocal recombinant events.

When rejection stings: How self-esteem constrains relationship-enhancement processes.

Abstract: Three experiments examined how needs for acceptance might constrain low versus high self-esteem people's capacity to protect their relationships in the face of difficulties. The authors led participants to believe that their partner perceived a problem in their relationship. They then measured perceptions of the partner's acceptance, partner enhancement, and closeness. Low but not high self-esteem participants read too much into problems, seeing them as a sign that their partner's affections and commitment might be waning. They then derogated their partner and reduced closeness. Being less sensitive to rejection, however, high self-esteem participants affirmed their partner in the face of threat. Ironically, chronic needs for acceptance may result in low self-esteem people seeing signs of rejection where none exist, needlessly weakening attachments.

Ecological statistics of Gestalt laws for the perceptual organization of contours.

Abstract: Although numerous studies have measured the strength of visual grouping cues for controlled psychophysical stimuli, little is known about the statistical utility of these various cues for natural images. In this study, we conducted experiments in which human participants trace perceived contours in natural images. These contours are automatically mapped to sequences of discrete tangent elements detected in the image. By examining relational properties between pairs of successive tangents on these traced curves, and between randomly selected pairs of tangents, we are able to estimate the likelihood distributions required to construct an optimal Bayesian model for contour grouping. We employed this novel methodology to investigate the inferential power of three classical Gestalt cues for contour grouping: proximity, good continuation, and luminance similarity. The study yielded a number of important results: (1) these cues, when appropriately defined, are approximately uncorrelated, suggesting a simple factorial model for statistical inference; (2) moderate image-to-image variation of the statistics indicates the utility of general probabilistic models for perceptual organization; (3) these cues differ greatly in their inferential power, proximity being by far the most powerful; and (4) statistical modeling of the proximity cue indicates a scale-invariant power law in close agreement with prior psychophysics.

Exposure to Human Tragedy, Empathy and Trauma in Ambulance Paramedics

Abstract: Paramedics are exposed to events involving human pain and suffering on a daily basis, many of which are the result of violence perpetrated by 1 individual on another. For the most part, these emergency workers have learned to deal with such events and take them in stride. At times, however, certain circumstances lead workers to develop an emotional connection with the victim or his or her family. When this occurs, paramedics report increased symptoms of traumatic stress. Aspects that can trigger this connection include the victim's alienation from others, profound loss, or the abuse of an innocent child. One of the coping strategies described in these circumstances is to manage the events on a cognitive and technical level while maintaining an emotional distance. Although such a strategy may be protective, it may also have long-term negative effects in terms of interpersonal relationships. This mixed-methods study attempts to better understand factors that lead to higher levels of distress among paramedics within the theoretical framework of emotional and cognitive empathy.

Paradoxes and dilemmas for stakeholder responsive firms in the extractive sector: lessons from the case of Shell and the Ogoni

Abstract: This paper examines some of the paradoxes and dilemmas facing firms in the extractive sector when they attempt to take on a more stakeholder-responsive orientation towards issues of environmental and social responsibility We describe the case of Shell and the Ogoni and attempt to draw out some of the lessons of that case for more sustainable operations in the developing world We argue that firms such as Shell, Rio Tinto and others may well exhibit increasingly stakeholder-responsive behaviours at the corporate, strategic level However for reasons of strategy, lack of competency or institutional will this increasing level of corporate responsiveness may not be mirrored effectively in dealings between subsidiary business units and their most important direct stakeholders: for example local communities and in the developing world We contrast the struggles of Shell to replicate its corporate stakeholder-responsiveness at the local level in Nigeria with the experiences of other firms that seem to have developed managerial capabilities at a somewhat deeper level throughout the firm with consequent benefits both for stakeholders and the business

Self-control and alcohol restraint: an initial application of the self-control strength model

Abstract: Individuals whose self-control strength is depleted through the prior exertion of self-control may consume more alcohol in situations that demand restraint. Male social drinkers either exerted self-control by suppressing their thoughts or did not exert self-control while doing arithmetic. They then sampled beer. Participants expected a driving test after drinking and therefore were motivated to limit their intake. Individuals who suppressed their thoughts consumed more and achieved a higher blood alcohol content than those who did arithmetic. The groups did not differ in mood, arousal, or frustration. Individuals higher in trait temptation to drink consumed more after suppressing their thoughts relative to those lower in trait temptation. Alcohol intake may be a function of temptation to drink and self-control strength.

Toronto Inc? Planning the Competitive City in the New Toronto

Abstract: This paper analyses recent developments in urban planning in the City of Toronto. A municipality of 2.4 million inhabitants that makes up the inner half of the Greater Toronto Area, the City of Toronto was consolidated from seven municipalities in 1998. Planning practice, discourse, and “vision” in the new City of Toronto are shaped by the city’s bid for the 2008 Olympics, related proposals for waterfront redevelopment, and preparations for a new official plan. In the context of comparative debates on trends in local governance, we see current planning strategies in Toronto as one of several strategic sites in which Toronto is consolidated into a “competitive city.” Historically, the formation of the competitive city in Toronto must be seen as a result of the impasse of postwar metropolitan planning in the early 1970s, the sociospatial limitations of downtown urban reform politics in the 1970s and 1980s, and the neoliberal restructuring and rescaling of the local state in the 1990s. Theoretically, we draw on the global city research paradigm, regime and regulation theory, and neo-Gramscian urban political theory to suggest that planning the competitive city signals shifts in the sociopolitical alliances, ideological forms, and dominant strategies that regulate global-city formation. These constellations and strategies threaten to reconstitute bourgeois hegemony in Toronto with a series of claims to urbanity.

Are sex differences in navigation caused by sexually dimorphic strategies or by differences in the ability to use the strategies

Abstract: When navigating, women typically focus on landmarks within the environment, whereas men tend to focus on the Euclidean properties of the environment. However, it is unclear whether these observed differences in navigational skill result from disparate strategies or disparate ability. To remove this confound, the present study required participants to follow either landmark- or Euclidean-based instructions during a navigation task (either in the real-world or on paper). Men performed best when using Euclidean information, whereas women performed best when using landmark information, suggesting a dimorphic capacity to use these 2 types of spatial information. Further, a significant correlation was observed between the mental rotation task and the ability to use Euclidean information, but not the ability to use landmark information.

“Common–Sense” Neoliberalism: Progressive Conservative Urbanism in Toronto, Canada

Abstract: This paper argues that urban neoliberalism can best be understood as a contradictory re–regulation of urban everyday life. Based on an analysis of neoliberalism as a new political economy and as a new set of technologies of power, the paper argues that the urban everyday is the site and product of the neoliberal transformation. Governments and corporations play a key role in redefining the conditions of everyday life through neoliberal policies and business practices. Part of this reorientation of everydayness, however, involves new forms of resistance and opposition, which include the kernel of a possible alternative urbanism. The epochal shift from a Keynesian–Fordist–welfarist to a post–Fordist–workfarist society is reflected in a marked restructuring of everyday life. The shift changes the socioeconomic conditions in cities. It also includes a reorientation of identities, social conflicts, and ideologies towards a more explicitly culturalist differentiation. Social difference does not disappear, but actually becomes more pronounced; however, it gets articulated in or obscured by cultural terms of reference. The paper looks specifically at Toronto, Ontario, as a case study. An analysis of the explicitly neoliberal politics of the province’s Progressive Conservative (Tory) government under Mike Harris, first elected in 1995, demonstrates the pervasive re–regulation of everyday life affecting a wide variety of people in Toronto and elsewhere. Much of this process is directly attributable to provincial policies, a consequence of Canada’s constitutional system, which does not give municipalities autonomy but makes them “creatures of provinces.” However, the paper also argues that Toronto’s elites have aided and abetted the provincial “Common–Sense” Revolution through neoliberal policies and actions on their own. The paper concludes by outlining the emergence of new instances of resistance to the politics of hegemony and catastrophe of urban neoliberalism.

Effects of Exposure to Thin Media Images: Evidence of Self-Enhancement among Restrained Eaters

Abstract: The effects of viewing media-portrayed idealized body images on eating, self-esteem, body image, and mood among restrained and unrestrained eaters were examined. Study 1 found that restrained eaters (i.e., dieters), but not unrestrained eaters, rated both their ideal and current body sizes as smaller and disinhibited their food intake following exposure to idealized body images. These results suggest that restrained eaters are susceptible to a “thin fantasy” brought about by viewing ideal body images. Study 2 found that strengthening thinness attainability beliefs can further enhance the thin fantasy demonstrated by restrained eaters following exposure to idealized body images. Study 3 examined whether demand characteristics moderate these effects of media-portrayed idealized body images. As predicted, when explicit demand characteristics were present, participants reported feeling worse following exposure to thin models. The complexities of the media’s role in the development and maintenance of body diss...

Uncertainties and assessments of chemistry-climate models of the stratosphere

Abstract: . In recent years a number of chemistry-climate models have been developed with an emphasis on the stratosphere. Such models cover a wide range of time scales of integration and vary considerably in complexity. The results of specific diagnostics are here analysed to examine the differences amongst individual models and observations, to assess the consistency of model predictions, with a particular focus on polar ozone. For example, many models indicate a significant cold bias in high latitudes, the "cold pole problem", particularly in the southern hemisphere during winter and spring. This is related to wave propagation from the troposphere which can be improved by improving model horizontal resolution and with the use of non-orographic gravity wave drag. As a result of the widely differing modelled polar temperatures, different amounts of polar stratospheric clouds are simulated which in turn result in varying ozone values in the models. The results are also compared to determine the possible future behaviour of ozone, with an emphasis on the polar regions and mid-latitudes. All models predict eventual ozone recovery, but give a range of results concerning its timing and extent. Differences in the simulation of gravity waves and planetary waves as well as model resolution are likely major sources of uncertainty for this issue. In the Antarctic, the ozone hole has probably reached almost its deepest although the vertical and horizontal extent of depletion may increase slightly further over the next few years. According to the model results, Antarctic ozone recovery could begin any year within the range 2001 to 2008. The limited number of models which have been integrated sufficiently far indicate that full recovery of ozone to 1980 levels may not occur in the Antarctic until about the year 2050. For the Arctic, most models indicate that small ozone losses may continue for a few more years and that recovery could begin any year within the range 2004 to 2019. The start of ozone recovery in the Arctic is therefore expected to appear later than in the Antarctic. Further, interannual variability will tend to mask the signal for longer than in the Antarctic, delaying still further the date at which ozone recovery may be said to have started. Because of this inherent variability of the system, the decadal evolution of Arctic ozone will not necessarily be a direct response to external forcing.

Peer to peer sexual harassment in early adolescence: A developmental perspective

Abstract: The goal of this study was to examine sexual harassment in early adolescence. Available data indicate that peer to peer sexual harassment is prevalent in high school and is associated with psychosocial problems for both victims and perpetrators. For the present study, we adopted a developmental contextual model to examine the possibility that this behavior develops during the late elementary and middle school years and is linked to the biological and social changes that occur at this time. Youths from Grades 6-8 (N = 1,213) enrolled in seven elementary and middle schools in a large south-central Canadian city were asked to report on their sexual harassment behaviors with same- and cross-gender peers; their pubertal development, and the gender composition of their peer network. The results revealed that cross-gender harassment was distinct from same-gender harassment, increased in frequency from Grade 6 to Grade 8, and was linked to pubertal maturation and participation in mixed-gender peer groups. The implications of a developmental contextual model for understanding the emergence of this problematic behavior in adolescence are discussed.

Factors contributing to teachers' successful implementation of IT

Abstract: It has become increasingly important for educators to examine successful ICT implementations with the aim of understanding precisely what makes them successful in teaching and learning. In this study, an analysis of data from qualitative case studies of four Canadian schools illuminates factors that facilitate successful ICT implementation. Findings suggest that informal ICT education, such as 'just-in-time' learning, is most influential. Furthermore, supportive and collaborative relationships among teachers, a commitment to pedagogically sound implementation of new technologies, and Principals who encourage teachers to engage in their own learning are viewed as highly useful factors.

Psychometric properties of a new metamemory questionnaire for older adults.

Abstract: Subjective memory ratings provide information that is distinct from objective memory performance, and there is a need for reliable and valid metamemory measures. The Multifactorial Memory Questionnaire (MMQ), developed to assess separate dimensions of memory ratings that are applicable to clinical assessment and intervention, includes scales of Contentment (i.e., affect regarding one's memory), Ability (i.e., self-appraisal of one's memory capabilities), and Strategy (i.e., reported frequency of memory strategy use). Among a group of 115 older adults, analyses revealed excellent content validity, factorial validity, test-retest and intratest reliability, convergent and discriminant construct validity, and independence from demographic variables. The psychometric strengths of the MMQ, together with descriptive statistics provided for healthy older adults, make this questionnaire useful in both clinical and research settings.