Analysis of nonorthogonal fixed-effects designs.

Discusses nonorthogonal fixed-effects experimental designs using both the full-rank and reduction in error sums of squares conceptualizations of data analysis. The hypotheses tested by several commonly used methods of analysis are clarified, and suggestions for choice of the most appropriate procedure are proposed. (17 ref) (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Interaction-dominant dynamics in human cognition: Beyond 1/?α fluctuation.

It has been suggested that human behavior in general and cognitive performance in particular emerge from coordination between multiple temporal scales. In this article, we provide quantitative support for such a theory of interaction-dominant dynamics in human cognition by using wavelet-based multifractal analysis and accompanying multiplicative cascading process on the response series of 4 different cognitive tasks: simple response, word naming, choice decision, and interval estimation. Results indicated that the major portion of these response series had multiplicative interactions between temporal scales, visible as intermittent periods of large and irregular fluctuations (i.e., a multifractal structure). Comparing 2 component-dominant models of 1/fα fluctuations in cognitive performance with the multiplicative cascading process indicated that the multifractal structure could not be replicated by these component-dominant models. Furthermore, a similar multifractal structure was shown to be present in a model of self-organized criticality in the human nervous system, similar to a spatial extension of the multiplicative cascading process. These results illustrate that a wavelet-based multifractal analysis and the multiplicative cascading process form an appropriate framework to characterize interaction-dominant dynamics in human cognition. This new framework goes beyond the identification of 1/fα power laws and non-Gaussian distributions in response series as used in previous studies. The present article provides quantitative support for a paradigm shift toward interaction-dominant dynamics in human cognition. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

rwg: An assessment of within-group interrater agreement.

F. L. Schmidt and J. E. Hunter (1989) critiqued the within-group interrater reliability statistic (rwg) described by L. R. James et al (1984). S. W. Kozlowski and K. Hattrup (1992) responded to the Schmidt and Hunter critique and argued that rwg is a suitable index of interrater agreement. This article focuses on the interpretation of rwg as a measure of agreement among judges' ratings of a single target. A new derivation of rwg is given that underscores this interpretation. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

"McMaster-Bauer symposium on Consciousness": Open discussion.

Presents an open discussion on topics relevant to the symposium on consciousness (see record 2007-09336-001), including abstraction of sensory input; prophets, the voice of God and the role of the right hemisphere in religiosity; transcendental, mystical, and religious experiences; and critical periods, brain development, and their relation to consciousness. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Direct estimates of SDy and the implications for utility analysis.

Utility analysis suggests that human resources policies can have an economically significant impact on business organizations. Confidence in such conclusions, however, requires an accurate estimate of SDy. This article provides a validity check on prevailing subjective methods of SDy estimation by directly estimating SDy from unique field data. Using both simulated and field data, the range of potential bias associated with predictor unreliability in regression analyis is illustrated, and how to calculate corrected values is shown. The methodological problems of directly estimating SDy with organizational data is discussed, and a range of estimates for SDy is provided. Direct estimation of SDy yielded values ranging from 74% to 100% of mean salary, which are considerably greater than conventional subjective judgments. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Testing the significance of Kendall's τ and Spearman's r[s]..

An overview of procedures for testing the significance of Kendall's τ and Spearman's r[s], as presented in well-known textbooks for the behavioral sciences, is given. Testing Kendall's τ proceeds in an almost uniform way and seldom leads to erroneous conclusions. For N?>?20, the exact test can be replaced by an approximate z test. Testing Spearman's r[s] varies from textbook to textbook. Some textbooks present tables with significant values that are in error; this seems partly due to the discrete character of r[s]. The well-known Statistical Package for the Social Sciences computer package presents false results, both for τ and for r[s], when N is small. Although tables for exact tests of r[s] for N?=?12(1)16 exist, they seem to be unknown to textbook writers, except Zar (1984). Testing ΣD–2 instead of r[s] prevents a clear view of the degree of dependence. For these reasons, a table with exact values of r[s] for α?=?.01 and .05, one- and two-tailed, is presented for N?=?4(1)16. For N?>?16, an approximate t test may be used, although Zar's (1972, 1984) approximation yields slightly better results. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Assessing interrater agreement on the job relevance of a test: A comparison of CVI, T, rWG(J)}, and r*WG(J)} indexes.

This article examines the problem of estimating interrater agreement about the job relevance of test items by examining 4 different indexes: C. H. Lawshe's (1975) Content Validity Index (CVI); H. E. A. Tinsley and D. J. Weiss's (1975) T; L. R. James, R. G. Demaree, and G. Wolf's (1984) r{wg(j)}; and M. K. Lindell, C. J. Brandt, and D. J. Whitney's (1999) r*{wg(j)}. These 4 indexes are shown to be systematically related to each other, but r*{wg(j)} is computationally simpler and is more generally applicable than the other indexes. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Statistical properties of the rWG(J) index of agreement.

L. R. James, R. G. Demaree, and G. Wolf (1984) introduced rwg(J) to estimate interrater agreement for a group. This index is calculated by comparing an observed group variance with an expected random variance. As researchers have gained experience using this index, several questions have arisen. What are the consequences of replacing values beyond the unit interval by 0? What is the dependence of rwg(J) on the group size? The authors' simulations show that a positive bias is caused by the truncation, but for large population values of rwg(J) it is negligible. Also, in this case, the group size has no effect on the expected value of rwg(J). For inference on rwg(J), researchers can exploit the availability of computers to simulate data from the hypothesized distribution and then compare the simulation results for rwg(J) with the actual values. In addition, it is shown how the bootstrap method can be used for comparing the indices of 2 groups. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

A model-averaging approach to replication: The case of prep.

The purpose of the recently proposed prep statistic is to estimate the probability of concurrence, that is, the probability that a replicate experiment yields an effect of the same sign (Killeen, 2005a). The influential journal Psychological Science endorses prep and recommends its use over that of traditional methods. Here we show that prep overestimates the probability of concurrence. This is because prep was derived under the assumption that all effect sizes in the population are equally likely a priori. In many situations, however, it is advisable also to entertain a null hypothesis of no or approximately no effect. We show how the posterior probability of the null hypothesis is sensitive to a priori considerations and to the evidence provided by the data; and the higher the posterior probability of the null hypothesis, the smaller the probability of concurrence. When the null hypothesis and the alternative hypothesis are equally likely a priori, prep may overestimate the probability of concurrence by 30% and more. We conclude that prep provides an upper bound on the probability of concurrence, a bound that brings with it the danger of having researchers believe that their experimental effects are much more reliable than they actually are. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Exact probability treatments of factorial designs.

An exact probability analysis of data which represent frequency of use in various response categories is described. The test can be generalized for any number of classifications and to any order interaction. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Naissance de l'ordre scolaire aux XVIIe et XVIIIe siècles et évolution des représentations psychosociales de l'enfance.

Describes the development of educational concepts and methods during the 17th and 18th centuries, with an emphasis on the origin of the differentiation between "normal" and "abnormal" school children. Psychosocial conceptualizations of childhood and educational concepts and methods that have led to the gradual integration of abnormal children into the regular school system are emphasized. (English abstract) (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Development and psychometric evaluation of the Index of Dental Anxiety and Fear (IDAF-4C+).

The measurement of dental fear is important due to its high prevalence and appreciable individual, clinical, and public health consequences. However, existing measures of dental anxiety and fear (DAF) have theoretical or practical limitations. This study describes the development and subsequent assessment of the reliability and validity of test scores of a new DAF scale for adults. The Index of Dental Anxiety and Fear (IDAF-4C+) contains 3 modules that measure DAF, dental phobia, and feared dental stimuli. The final 8-item DAF module (IDAF-4C) assesses emotional, behavioral, physiological, and cognitive components of the anxiety and fear response. The proposed scale dimensionality received support from exploratory factor analysis. IDAF-4C items showed good internal consistency (Cronbach's α = .94) and test–retest reliability at 4 months (r = .82), and the scale was strongly associated with other dental fear scales as well as with dental visiting patterns, avoidance of the dentist, and dental phobia diagnosis. The convergent and predictive validity of the IDAF-4C compared positively to Corah's (1969; Corah, Gale, & Illig, 1978) Dental Anxiety Scale and a single-item measure of dental fear, and the scale predicted future dental visiting and visit perceptions. Both phobia and stimulus modules showed strong and statistically significant associations with DAF ratings. In all, sufficient evidence is provided to demonstrate that the new scale would be a useful tool to assess DAF in an adult population. The IDAF-4C+ is based on strong theoretical underpinnings, yet the scale is practical enough for application across a variety of potential uses. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Administration of a Ca2+/calmodulin-dependent protein kinase II (CaMKII) inhibitor prevents the learning deficit observed in spinal rats after noncontingent shock administration.

Research has shown that spinal rats given shock to the hind leg when it is in an extended position (contingent shock) will learn to maintain a flexion response. However, subjects that experience shock irrespective of leg position (noncontingent shock) do not exhibit this learning. The current studies examined the role of Ca2+/calmodulin-dependent protein kinase II (CaMKII) in this learning deficit. Subjects were given intrathecal injections of CaMKII inhibitor solution or artificial cerebrospinal fluid (aCSF) 15 min prior to and immediately or 4 hr following noncontingent shock training. Results demonstrate that the CaMKII inhibitor successfully reversed the learning deficit when injected prior to and immediately following training. These results indicate the importance of CaMKII in the learning deficit present in spinal animals trained with noncontingent shock. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Y2O3-SiO2∶Eu3+,Bi3+荧光材料的结构及性能研究

用溶胶-凝胶法(Sol-gel法)低温合成了Y2O3-SiO2∶Eu3+,Bi3+红色发光粉.X射线实验研究发现,850℃时,样品晶体结构为Y2SiO5,属单斜晶系(a=9.012,b=0.979,c=6.630),空间点群为PI1/C;SEM实验显示发光体为不规则片层结构;粒度分析表明发光体粒度分布均匀,平均粒度为0.79μm;T≥600℃时,发光体出现温度猝灭现象.     

燃烧法合成稀土纳米长余辉发光材料SrO·xAl2O3:Eu2+,Dy3+

应用燃烧法在空气中较低的温度(＜900℃)下成功地合成了SrO·xAl2O3∶Eu2+,Dy3+稀土纳米长余辉发光材料,并研究了炉温、反应物中铝锶比、助溶剂和可燃物等对发光材料性能的影响.研究结果表明,反应物置于温度为600℃的高温炉中时燃烧得到的产物性能最好,发光粉的粒径在70nm左右,发射光谱的最大波长在520nm左右.与其它合成方法相比,该方法具有合成温度低、反应时间短,获得的产物疏松、硬度小、粒度小等优点.     

Killeen's (2005) prep coefficient: Logical and mathematical problems.

In his article, “An alternative to null-hypothesis significance tests,” Killeen (2005) urged the discipline to abandon the practice of pobs-based null hypothesis testing and to quantify the signal-to-noise characteristics of experimental outcomes with replication probabilities. He described the coefficient that he invented, prep, as the probability of obtaining “an effect of the same sign as that found in an original experiment” (Killeen, 2005, p. 346). The journal Psychological Science quickly came to encourage researchers to employ prep, rather than pobs, in the reporting of their experimental findings. In the current article, we (a) establish that Killeen's derivation of prep contains an error, the result of which is that prep is not, in fact, the probability that Killeen set out to derive; (b) establish that prep is not a replication probability of any kind but, rather, is a quasi-power coefficient; and (c) suggest that Killeen has mischaracterized both the relationship between replication probabilities and statistical inference, and the kinds of claims that are licensed by knowledge of the value assumed by the replication probability that he attempted to derive. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

A comparison of economic utility estimates for alternative SDy estimation procedures.

Compared the per-selectee and total utility estimates for an assessment center that was used to select midlevel sales managers when 2 consensus-seeking procedures, the F. L. Schmidt et al (see record 1981-02231-001) procedure and 40% and 70% of mean salary, were used for estimating the standard deviation of job performance in dollars (SDy). Using the Schmidt et al procedure as the base, the overall utility estimates varied from 21 to 125% of the Schmidt et al values. For most cases, the different SDy estimation procedures produced somewhat similar utility estimates. The resulting estimated dollar gains from the use of the assessment center to select sales managers were substantial in all cases. The dollar gains from the current selection strategy were, at a maximum, only 63% of estimated top-down selection utility gains. Findings illustrate the value of economic utility analysis for evaluating human resource programs regardless of the type of SDy estimation procedure used. (21 ref) (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Comparison of two strategies for analysis of variance in nonorthogonal designs.

Compared the M. I. Appelbaum and E. M. Cramer (see record 1974-28956-001) comparison of models strategy for analysis of data from nonorthogonal designs with the J. E. Overall and D. K. Spiegal (see record 1970-01534-001) Method 1 general linear model analysis. Data were generated by Monte Carlo methods to include known true ANOVA main and interaction effects. In the presence of a true but nonsignificant interaction, estimates of main effect parameters derived from the Method 1 general linear model analysis were significantly closer to the true values. Greater accuracy in estimation of main effects in the presence of a significant interaction was also observed. The danger of letting observed data determine the ANOVA model and the hypotheses to be tested is emphasized. (12 ref) (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)