Application of supervised and nonsupervised microcounseling paradigms in the training of paraprofessionals.

Studied the effect of supervision on the learning of basic clinical interviewing skills within the microcounseling format. Ss were 12 19-33 yr old paraprofessional counselors (4 women and 8 men) employed in the drug research center of a midwestern psychiatric institute. Each S was assigned randomly to either a supervised or a nonsupervised microcounseling training condition. Trained coders categorized 32 trainee utterances from each S's pre- and posttraining videotaped interviews as 1 or more of the microcounseling skills, 1 or more of the opposite skills, or a miscellaneous skill. Analysis revealed only 1 significant effect indicating more frequent use of microcounseling than opposite skills. No significant differences were found between training conditions or across time. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Status and independence as variables in microcounseling training of adolescents.

Studied 104 high school sophomores aspiring to be peer counselors to determine whether trainees, blocked on the variable of dependency-independency, would learn the helping skill of open-ended comments more effectively from microcounseling training in which no special status was attributed to the model. The interaction of model status and trainee dependency-independency and its effect on training outcome was also examined. Results from a posttest-only design using a 2 * 2 analysis of variance show that adolescent trainees exposed to a high-status model employed the target counseling skill at a significantly higher level than trainees whose model's status was not indicated. Independent trainees employed the target skill at a significantly higher level than dependent trainees, contrary to expectation. No significant interaction effect was found. Results suggest applicability of the microcounseling paradigm for training adolescents in a helping skill, but for maximum effect it must be used differentially. (24 ref) (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

An evaluation of microcounseling as an interviewer training tool.

Assigned 24 male 2nd-yr medical students to 1 of 2 interviewing training groups. The 12 microcounseling Ss received training in the use of attending behavior, open-ended questions, minimal activity responses, paraphrases, reflections of feeling, and summarization through the use of the microcounseling paradigm. The 12 comparison Ss received equivalent interview training. Pretraining and posttraining interviews with real patients were videotaped for each S. Data analysis reveals that both groups of Ss became better interviewers, but those receiving microcounseling training improved more than the comparison Ss. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Experimental techniques of job interview training for the disadvantaged: Videotape feedback, behavior modification, and microcounseling.

Assigned 64 clients from 3 manpower agencies to 1 of 3 treatment conditions: (a) a combined-treatment program of videotape-feedback and behavior-modification techniques (n = 24), (b) a videotape-feedback-only program (n = 21), and (c) a no-treatment (control) program (n = 19). The Culture Fair Intelligence Test was administered to all Ss prior to the program. Results show that on 9 out of 10 measures of observable interview behavior, personnel interviewers, acting as judges in randomly presented videotaped interviews, reported greater positive change from the initial to the final interview among the combined-treatment group. Moreover, on 2 of these items, analysis of variance showed that the change was statistically significant, and on an overall evaluation item concerning the probability of hire, positive change also reached statistical significance. On the probability of hire item, both the video and combined groups' IQ test scores were significantly related to positive change. Results suggest that the application of these techniques could substantially increase the chances of a disadvantaged person's obtaining suitable employment. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

A study of the educational and research priorities of registered nurses in rural Australia

This study set out to identify the educational and research priorities of registered nurses practising in rural and remote areas of Australia. It included two groups of participants, one which identified as rural and another which identified as remote. The findings for the rural cohort in the study are presented in this article. Research participants represented a national sample. The Delphi method was used to obtain the most reliable consensus of the nurse participants. In the final phase of the study, 13 high priorities were identified. Study findings highlight perceived needs for clinical nursing research and continuing education for nurses practising in rural Australia.     

Ratings of the performances of practicing internists by hospital-based registered nurses

PURPOSE: To examine the feasibility and reliability of ratings completed by hospital-based registered nurses of the humanistic qualities, communication skills, and selected aspects of the clinical skills of practicing internists. METHOD: In 1988-1989, registered nurses who worked in the same 175 hospitals as 232 internists with admitting privileges at these hospitals rated the internists' performances. The nurses were selected from medicine floors, specialty floors, and intensive care units and/or critical care units, using lists provided by head nurses. A total of 1,877 rating questionnaires with 13 performance categories were collected (with a mean of 8.01 nurses per internist). The ratings were analyzed to determine measurement characteristics and the relationships of the nurses' demographic characteristics to the ratings. In addition, for each of ten performance categories for 152 of the internists, the average rating each internist received from nurses was compared with the average rating each internist received from peer physicians. Statistical analysis used Pearson correlations, canonical correlations, factor analyses, Student's t-tests, analysis of variance, and stepwise multiple regression. Finally, the internists themselves, including physicians who were not actually rated by the nurses, were asked to complete a brief questionnaire that included questions about their opinions of the use of nurses' ratings. RESULTS: The nurses' ratings correlated moderately strongly with the peer physicians' ratings and had a common structure. However, the nurses' ratings were lower for several humanistic qualities, including respect, integrity, and responsibility, and their ratings were higher for medical knowledge and verbal communications. Across the 13 performance categories, approximately 10-15 ratings from nurses were needed to obtain a reliable assessment of an internist's humanistic qualities and communication skills. Many internists felt that nurses' ratings should be used equally with, or at least as a lesser contribution to, ratings by peer physicians of humanistic qualities and communication skills. CONCLUSION: Nurses' ratings appear to provide a feasible and reliable method of evaluating the internists' communication skills and humanistic qualities, when used in conjunction with ratings by peer physicians.     

The roller coaster supply of registered nurses: lessons from the eighties

The strong labor demand of the eighties for nurses has evaporated under reform proposals and cost constraints. In this study, the 1984 and 1988 National Sample Surveys of Registered Nurses (NSSRN) were used to examine the labor supply of nurses. Ordinary least squares and logistic regression analyses indicated that the responsiveness of registered nurses to the wage was greater than previous research has indicated. If wage growth is slow relative to other occupations due to a decreased demand for nurses, registered nurses will in turn reduce their supply of labor more than previous research has indicated. Whether the response by nurses will balance the reduction of demand by employers remains to be seen.     

Component analysis of occupational stress inoculation applied to registered nurses in an acute care hospital setting.

The stress inoculation (SI) paradigm, which consists of education (ED), coping skills training (CST), and exposure to simulated stressors (EX), was applied to the occupational stress experienced by nurses. Occupational stress was operationally defined in terms of 13 dependent measures reflecting problem areas summarized by the acronym ReACT (retrograde complaints, assertiveness deficits, competency concerns, and time stress). ReACT also stood for the ingredients of the CST component (relaxation training, assertive skill building, cognitive restructuring, and time management instruction). To determine which SI components produce a treatment effect, 60 White female acute-care registered nurses (mean age 33.8 yrs) were randomly assigned to 1 of 4 active treatment cells: SI, CST, EX, ED, or no treatment (NT). Ss were administered a battery of tests that included the State–Trait Anxiety Inventory and Rathus Assertiveness Schedule. A MANOVA at posttest, and subsequent univariate analyses simultaneously considering 4-mo follow-up data, demonstrated that SI is an effective treatment with durable benefits and that CST is its principal ingredient. Additional demand-characteristics analyses indicated that these effects are not due to placebo-related phenomena. (54 ref) (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Through the looking glass: the labor market for registered nurses in the 21st century

From the 1950s through the early 1990s, nurses enjoyed employment security. Now supply outstrips demand and nursing student enrollments are declining. What are the forces at work and how can the rules of the marketplace be used to predict the future?     

A history of the training of asylum nurses

The national training scheme for asylum attendants, devised in the late 19th century, did not arise ex nihilo. Several philanthropic and imaginative madhouse keepers of the previous century had understood the link between successful treatment of lunatics and the quality of staff who cared for them. They had therefore aimed to recruit a 'good class' of person to work in their institutions, and to create an environment which would tend towards the civilization of the patients. A few even entertained the notion that training attendants would enhance their ability to understand and care for those in their charge. Training received increasing attention in both medical and political circles throughout the 19th century until a national scheme was inaugurated in 1891. The scheme achieved only a modest success in that, while it drew upon the undoubted enthusiasm of those who trained under it, it did not enhance the attendants' career opportunities or their pay once they had qualified. Training as a means of solving management problems was doomed to failure, and widespread dissatisfaction amongst asylum nurses erupted during the 1920s, only 30 years after the scheme had started.     

Interference effects in the Stroop and Simon paradigms.

The possibility that Stroop and Simon effects reflect the same cognitive processes was tested in 3 experiments with 62 adult Ss. The words LEFT and RIGHT were shown left and right of screen center. Similar levels of interference were found for a Simon task (keypress to meaning of word) and a spatial Stroop task (name its location). A reverse Simon task (keypress to word location) showed minimal interference from the irrelevant word, but in a reverse spatial Stroop task (read the word aloud) interference from the irrelevant location was sizeable. This poses difficulty for translational accounts of Stroop interference. Presenting LEFT and RIGHT laterally balanced by a color-name foil yielded a Simon effect inconsistent with an orienting response hypothesis. With bilateral stimuli in a reverse Simon task, interference was marked, supporting an integrative account of Stroop and Simon effects in terms of cognitive activation and the salience of irrelevant stimuli. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Application of two neural network paradigms to the study of voluntary employee turnover.

Two neural network paradigms—multilayer perceptron and learning vector quantization—were used to study voluntary employee turnover with a sample of 577 hospital employees. The objectives of the study were twofold. The 1st was to assess whether neural computing techniques offered greater predictive accuracy than did conventional turnover methodologies. The 2nd was to explore whether computer models of turnover based on neural network technologies offered new insights into turnover processes. When compared with logistic regression analysis, both neural network paradigms provided considerably more accurate predictions of turnover behavior, particularly with respect to the correct classification of leavers. In addition, these neural network paradigms captured nonlinear relationships that are relevant for theory development. Results are discussed in terms of their implications for future research. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

From frustration to red fury: a description of work-related anger in male registered nurses

This article is Part II of a three part article. Part I described work-related anger experiences of female registered nurses, and in this article findings from a companion study of male RNs are presented. In phenomenological interviews, male nurses describe their work environment as hostile, causing them to be on the defensive and less productive. Sources of angle included attacks from physicians, coworkers, and managers; lack of assistance and support from peers; and differential treatment based on gender. The men stated they were called upon for physical tasks rather than for their nursing knowledge. Severed relationships and feelings of guilt, powerlessness, isolation, humiliation, and incompetence were concomitant with, or consequences of, anger. Part III provides recommendations for channeling anger constructively.     

Staff attitudes to oral health care. A comparative study of registered nurses, nursing assistants and home care aides

The diagnosis of early ectopic pregnancy remains challenging for the gynecologist. Although early detection of a suspected pregnancy has been facilitated by quantitative beta human chorionic gonadotropin studies and ultrasonography, a patient subgroup remains with an ambiguous presentation. In this group of patients, the clinician must rely on microscopic examination of products of conception in a uterine curettage specimen to rule out the presence of an extrauterine pregnancy. The presence of an implantation site, chorionic villi, or trophoblastic tissue in uterine curettage samples is conventionally held as definitive evidence of an intrauterine pregnancy. We present a series of four cases that challenge this convention. In these cases, chorionic villi or an implantation site were identified in uterine samples of pregnant women who each ultimately proved to have an ectopic pregnancy. If clinical suspicion is high, the finding of either chorionic villi or an implantation site should not preclude further workup of a possible ectopic pregnancy. In cases where only a few villi or a single chorionic villus are identified, other signs of intrauterine implantation such as intermediate trophoblastic cells, hyalinized vessels, and a fibrinoid matrix should be sought to establish firmly the diagnosis of an intrauterine pregnancy.     

Declarations by registered nurses from the 1980s: an aid to the understanding of nursing today

This study is part of a more extensive project that aims to rescue significant aspects related to the evolution of nursing care from 1950s until 1990s. This study was developed using the technique of oral declaration by active and retired registered nurses, in the context of a school-hospital from the interior of the S?o Paulo State. The present study particularizes the outcomes regarding to 1980s. As result becomes evident the undertaken effort by nurses in the struggle for profession's recognition and prestige; intense and deep transformations related to nurse's new roles as leadership of the nursing staff and members of the medical team.     

应用型本科院校财务管理专业人才实践能力的培养

实践能力和创新精神作为衡量大学生质量的一个关键性要素,在财务管理专业教学中显得尤其重要。根据应用型本科院校财务管理专业人才实践能力培养模式和财务管理课程的性质,就如何构建财务管理专业实践教学体系进行了初步探讨。     

Differential control by context in the inflation and reinstatement paradigms.

Examined, in 5 conditioned suppression experiments, the influence of summation between fear of the CS and the context in experimental paradigms in which the rat is exposed to UCSs following conditioning or extinction. Context-preference tests assessed contextual fear. In Exps I–III with 88 female Wistar rats, the inflation paradigm, in which fear of a CS paired with a weak UCS is enhanced by exposure to intense UCS alone, was investigated. Results show that the contextual fear that was present when the target CS was tested was reduced by presenting the intense UCSs in a different context, by exposing Ss to the context following their presentation, and by signaling the intense UCSs with a 2nd CS. In Exp IV with 32 female Wistar rats, UCS exposures following conditioning or extinction both produced contextual fear, but only fear of the extinguished CS was reinstated by that fear. In Exp V with 32 female Wistar rats, identical amounts of contextual fear reinstated fear of an extinguished CS, but not a nonextinguished CS, when the 2 types of CSs were arranged to evoke comparable amounts of fear prior to testing. It is suggested that contextual fear plays a role in the reinstatement paradigm but not in the inflation paradigm. (33 ref) (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Testing a model of absence and intent to stay in employment: a study of registered nurses in Malta

This review presents the major animal models usually used for the study of the pathological processes related to insulin-dependent diabetes mellitus (IDDM), non-insulin-dependent diabetes mellitus (NIDDM) and to the main diabetic complications. These models can be observed spontaneously or can be obtained by selective cross-breeding or toxic exposure (chemical or viral), as well as genetically induced. They reproduce some aspects of the human pathology without combining them all in a single model. Consequently, a pertinent pharmacological approach may compare the results obtained with several models. The examination of the recent results obtained with transgenesis does not allow these animal models to replace more classical ones but they may constitute a future challenge for gene therapy despite the multifactorial aspect of diabetic disease.