Effect of corrective testing: An extension.

Conducted a straightforward parametric extension of the immediate feedback and partial credit components of S. L. Pressey's (see record 1950-06064-001) corrective testing procedure. 130 high- and low-test-anxious undergraduates served as Ss. Ss in the feedback conditions were given the opportunity to answer a given item once, twice, 3 times, or 4 times. For purposes of comparison, another group of Ss completed the item, using the conventional multiple choice format. On several measures of Ss' subjective reactions, corrective testing feedback was superior to the conventional multiple choice format. The differences between the various feedback conditions were small but consistent. In particular, providing Ss 2 attempts to answer each item met with the most positive reaction, especially among Ss high in test anxiety. (18 ref) (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

ANCA testing. New developments and clinical implications

Upregulation of keratinocyte-derived VEGF-A expression has recently been established in non-neoplastic processes of skin such as wound healing, blistering diseases and psoriasis, as well as in skin neoplasia. To further characterize the effects of VEGF-A in skin in vivo, we have developed transgenic mice expressing the mouse VEGF120 under the control of a 2.4 kb 5' fragment of keratin K6 gene regulatory sequences that confers transgene inducibility upon hyperproliferative stimuli. As expected from the inducible nature of the transgene, two of the three founder mice obtained (V27 and V208), showed no apparent phenotype. However, one founder (V2), mosaic for transgene integration, developed scattered red spots throughout the skin at birth. The transgenic offspring derived from this founder developed a striking phenotype characterized by swelling and erythema, resulting in early postnatal lethality. Histological examination of the skin of these transgenics demonstrated highly increased vascularization and edema leading to disruption of skin architecture. Expression of the transgene was silent in adult animals of lines derived from founders V27 and V208. Phorbol ester-induced hyperplasia resulted in transgene induction and increased cutaneous vascularization in adult transgenic mice of these lines. Skin carcinogenesis experiments performed on hemizygous crosses of V208 mice with activated H-ras-carrying transgenic mice (TG.AC) resulted in accelerated papilloma development and increased tumor burden. Previous results from our laboratory showed that VEGF upregulation is a major angiogenic stimulus in mouse epidermal carcinogenesis. By overexpressing VEGF in the skin of transgenic mice we now move a step further toward showing that VEGF-mediated angiogenesis is a rate-limiting step in the genesis of premalignant lesions, such as mouse skin papilloma. Our transgenic mice constitute an interesting model system for in vivo study of the cutaneous angiogenic process and its relevance in tumorigenesis and other skin diseases.     

Genetic testing: Psychological aspects and implications.

As the number of genes associated with inherited disease continues to grow, researchers and practitioners in behavioral medicine will encounter complex psychological issues faced by individuals at risk for these diseases. A review of the literature concerning prenatal, carrier, and predictive genetic testing suggests that the severity of psychological risks posed by research-based genetic testing is not great. However, subgroups of individuals with particular psychological traits may be more vulnerable to adverse effects. Available data do not provide evidence that genetic testing promotes changes in health-related behaviors. Thus, although there may be less of a role for mental health professionals in the psychological counseling of genetic testing participants, there is a need for research and practice to facilitate health protective behaviors in response to genetic risk information. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Ridicule as an educational corrective.

Tested the proposition that ridicule is an effective educational corrective by including 1 of 3 motivators (ridicule, insult, gentle reminder) or 1 of 3 controls in a handout of course reading assignments. Sex of Ss was included as an independent factor; 180 undergraduates participated. Scores on an unannounced test on the assigned readings, administered during the next class, provided a measure of information acquisition. Although the gentle reminder and insult increased test scores somewhat, relative to the controls, only ridicule produced a significant increase on information acquisition. Sex differences were found for the insult vs ridicule conditions: Males scored higher than females when insulted; females scored higher than males when ridiculed. (15 ref) (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Dental corrective procedures

Equine dentistry is not just carpentry work that involves floating the sharp enamel points off cheek teeth. Although floating is the most common and essential part of equine dentistry, every horse deserves a complete veterinary dental examination on a regular basis. Without such an examination, the equine practitioner can not determine the corrective procedures needed inside the horse's mouth. Dentistry for all ages is covered. Necessary instruments for a complete oral examination are also discussed.     

Supramalleolar corrective osteotomy

The general aspects for the analysis of malalignment of the low tibial region in the three-dimensional space are discussed. Recommendations of clinical and radiological diagnostics prior to low tibial osteotomies are given. Closing wedge, opening wedge, dome-shaped, distraction, rotational and step-shaped osteotomies as well as combined procedures are described. The possibilities of these techniques are pointed out for malalignment after lower leg, pilon and ankle fractures, as well as after trauma of the distal epiphysis of the tibia. Arthroscopy of the ankle is an additional tool for detailed planning of the adequate surgical procedure. The importance of determining an early correction cannot be underestimated.     

Performance of blacks and whites in computerized versus manual testing environments.

Discusses the problems of research on race and IQ, and describes a study which compared the results of manual and computer testing in judging the performance of blacks and whites. Ss were 10 white and 10 black male high school students. Performance by whites was the same under both procedures. Blacks performed significantly lower in manual tests, but in computerized tests their performance improved and was indistinguishable from that of whites. Theoretical reasons for these findings are discussed. It is felt that the computerized testing procedure circumvents many problems of earlier research. (15 ref) (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Emotional processing of fear: Exposure to corrective information.

Contends that emotions are represented by information structures in memory, and anxiety occurs when an information structure that serves as program to escape or avoid danger is activated. Emotional processing (EMP) is defined as the modification of memory structures that underlie emotions. It is argued that some form of exposure to feared situations is common to many psychotherapies for anxiety and that confrontation with feared objects or situations is an effective treatment. Physiological activation and habituation within and across exposure sessions are cited as indicators of EMP, and variables that influence activation and habituation of fear responses are examined. These variables and the indicators are analyzed to yield an account of what information must be integrated for EMP of a fear structure. The elements of such a structure are viewed as cognitive representations of the stimulus characteristic of the fear situation, the individual's responses in it, and aspects of its meaning for the individual. Treatment failures are interpreted with respect to the interference of cognitive defenses, autonomic arousal, mood state, and erroneous ideation with reformation of targeted fear structures. Implications for therapeutic practice and the study of psychopathology are discussed. (2? p ref) (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Appraisal and implications of predictive testing for insulin-dependent diabetes mellitus

A patient with systemic lupus erythematosus (SLE) developed reactive hemophagocytosis. This case did not show any underlying diseases such as infection or malignancy other than SLE itself. The mechanisms inducing hemophagocytosis in SLE seem to be heterogeneous and remain to be elucidated. Although an immune complex-mediated mechanism in cases with acute lupus hemophagocytic syndrome has been proposed, we suggest the possible involvement of IL-1beta as the pathogenesis of our case.     

Use of the Tactual Performance Test for cognitive ability testing with African children.

Researchers evaluated 195 rural Zairian children between 5 and 12 years of age with the Tactual Performance Test (TPT) used in the Reitan-Indiana Battery. For all of the TPT performance and memory measures, Zairian children with poorer anthropometric indicators of nutritional well-being were significantly below the age-matched groups of American and Canadian children. The Zairian children also did not demonstrate the typical improvements between the dominant and nondominant hand trials. Older Zairian children with such decrements tended to do more poorly on the Simultaneous Processing and Nonverbal ability portions of the Kaufman Assessment Battery for Children. Although probably not appropriate for direct intercultural comparisons, the authors concluded that neuropsychological measures derived from tasks such as the TPT may still be useful in monitoring the longitudinal brain–behavior impact of various health interventions for enhancing intellectual development for African children. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Pregnancy, drug testing, and the Fourth Amendment: Legal and behavioral implications.

In its efforts to protect the health of unborn children, the government is increasingly attempting to regulate pregnant women's conduct. As with other policies affecting pregnant women's autonomy, these policies have constitutional overtones. In Ferguson v. City of Charleston (2001), the Supreme Court struck down a South Carolina hospital's policy of testing pregnant women for cocaine and turning positive results over to law enforcement for prosecution. This article discusses the basis of the decision and its legal and behavioral implications. Although the decision came down on the side of pregnant women's rights, it left unresolved the issue of whether a similar policy could be constructed that would pass constitutional muster. The article concludes with a consideration of the likely effects of, and alternatives to, such a policy. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Considering the opposite: A corrective strategy for social judgment.

Proposes that several biases in social judgment result from a failure to consider possibilities at odds with beliefs and perceptions of the moment. Individuals who are induced to consider the opposite position, therefore, should display less bias in social judgment. In 2 experiments, with 150 undergraduates, this reasoning was applied to 2 domains—biased assimilation of new evidence on social issues and biased hypothesis testing of personality impressions. Ss were induced to consider the opposite through explicit instructions to do so and through stimulus materials that made opposite possibilities more salient. In both experiments, the induction of a consider-the-opposite strategy had greater corrective effect than more demand-laden alternative instructions to be as fair and unbiased as possible. Results are consistent with previous research on perseverance, hindsight, and logical problem solving, and they suggest an effective method of retraining social judgment. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Unindicated preoperative testing: ASA physical status and financial implications

Adenoid basal carcinoma of the uterine cervix is rare and its cell origin is still obscure. We report a case of adenoid basal carcinoma of the uterine cervix discovered incidentally in a 69-year-old woman who had been hysterectomized due to endometrial adenocarcinoma of the uterine corpus. Histologically, small round-to-oval cancer cell nests with peripheral cell palisading were seen budding from the basal cell layer of the uterine cervix showing carcinoma in situ. Immunohistochemically, the basaloid cells of the adenoid basal carcinoma were positive for keratins 14, 17 and 19 and resembled reserve cells of the cervical epithelium. The results of this study clearly demonstrated that adenoid basal carcinoma shows a phenotype similar to reserve cells of the uterine cervix. A review of the literature indicated that this tumor has a favorable prognosis and should be clearly separated from adenoid cystic carcinoma, which has a much poorer outcome.     

Performance implications of leader briefings and team-interaction training for team adaptation to novel environments.

The authors examined how leader briefings and team-interaction training influence team members' knowledge structures concerning processes related to effective performance in both routine and novel environments. Two-hundred thirty-seven undergraduates from a large mid-Atlantic university formed 79 three-member tank platoon teams and participated in a low-fidelity tank simulation. Team-interaction training, leader briefings, and novelty of performance environment were manipulated. Findings indicated that both leader briefings and team-interaction training affected the development of mental models, which in turn positively influenced team communication processes and team performance. Mental models and communication processes predicted performance more strongly in novel than in routine environments. Implications for the role of team-interaction training, leader briefings, and mental models as mechanisms for team adaptation are discussed. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Dynamic testing.

This article evaluatively reviews the literature on dynamic testing, a collection of testing procedures designed to quantify not only the products or even the processes of learning but also the potential to learn. The article considers a variety of approaches to dynamic testing and the strengths and weaknesses of each. Moreover, the literature on each approach is reviewed and analyzed in terms of the extent to which it fulfills the claims made for it. In all of these approaches, testing involves learning at the time of test, rather than just static testing of what has been learned before. It is concluded that dynamic testing has great potential for helping to understand people's potentials but that its potential has yet to be realized fully. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Computerized testing.

Professionals using computerized testing require substantial training in the principles and procedures of testing and an awareness of the variables that affect test-taking behavior, such as distractions, sensory defects, and motivational level. Legal and ethical considerations involved in the use of automated interpretation services are noted, and the question of the comparability of standard and computerized tests is discussed. (8 ref) (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

DNA testing for fragile X syndrome: implications for parents and family

The current discussion focuses on criticism as a positive force for improving epidemiologic practice through periodic reexamination of the basic approach to the discipline and the strategy for meeting the future educational needs of students and practicing epidemiologists. The types of epidemiologic research conducted and the settings within which the research will be conducted are also discussed. Epidemiology can be expected to play a major role in new areas of research that are created by changes in the medical care system and the development of large data systems associated with these approaches to health care delivery. This paper also discusses the growing threat to data access, the problems of communicating epidemiologic research findings to the public through the media, and the expanding interface between epidemiologic research and the legal system. The role of epidemiologic organizations in helping to shape the discipline's response to these issues and the opportunities these issues or problems present for improving epidemiologic research are also discussed.     

A primer of testing.

Presents a discussion of classical test theory, including test construction, administration, and use. The author covers basic statistical concepts in measurement, reliability, and validity; principles of sound test construction and item analysis; test administration and scoring; various procedures for transforming raw test data into scaled scores; and some future prospects in test design. Although basic testing concepts are discussed in the context of the popular multiple-choice group test of cognitive ability, the procedures and principles discussed are generic and applicable to most tests used in psychological and educational practice. (12 ref) (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Automation of psychological testing.

Programed the WAIS for automated administration to illustrate the usefulness of automated systems in providing psychological testing service to patients. The system can automatically administer the Block Design, Picture Arrangement, and Object Assembly subtests, measure the time each test item requires, and print out the seconds on a teletype machine. 35 male and female Ss were tested in a counterbalanced order on the 3 subtests under face-to-face testing procedures, and automated testing. Results indicate a high correlation in the scores obtained in the 2 methods. A higher mean Performance IQ was obtained with face-to-face testing. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)