Cross-validation of the Jesness Inventory with delinquents and nondelinquents.

Using the Jesness Inventory (JI), personality patterns of 2 groups of 12–16 yr old institutionalized delinquents—those formally adjudicated by the courts for 2 or more charges and those not formally charged—were compared with a socially acting-out group and a matched control group. The Asocial Index of the JI was significant across and between all groups with a progressive increase in T scores directly related to delinquent involvement. The JI scales of Social Maladjustment, Value Orientation, Autism, Manifest Aggression, and Denial all demonstrated significant differences between controls and various delinquent Ss. Findings demonstrate that the JI is a valid personal instrument for both gross and specific aspects of delinquency differentiation. (25 ref) (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Predictive and concurrent validity of the Jesness Inventory Asocial Index: When does a delinquent become a delinquent?

Analyzed Jesness Inventory Asocial Index scores of 3 male juvenile delinquent groups (N?=?91; 11–18 yrs of age) and 1 male nondelinquent control group of 35 14–27 yr olds. Incarcerated Ss scored higher than all other groups and were more frequently classified as delinquent using cutoff scores. Probationers scored higher than controls but were not significantly higher in frequency of delinquency classifications. The unadjudicated juvenile intake group did not differ from controls, but those who became adjudicated offenders within 1 yr scored higher and were more frequently classified as delinquent. (7 ref) (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

The Child Behavior Scale: A teacher-report measure of young children's aggressive, withdrawn, and prosocial behaviors.

Few instruments provide reliable, valid data on peer-behavioral indicators of risk and competence in young children. The authors developed a teacher-report measure of young children's behavior with peers at school—the Child Behavior Scale (CBS)—and evaluated its reliability and validity. Data were gathered on 2 cohorts (n?=?206 per cohort) of 5- to 6-year-old children; teachers rated children on Aggressive With Peers, Prosocial With Peers, Asocial With Peers, Excluded by Peers, Anxious–Fearful, and Hyperactive–Distractible subscales twice during the school year. Scores were internally consistent, distinct, and relatively stable over time. The validation paradigm produced a network of correlations that was, overall, consistent with the hypothesized conceptual structure of the CBS. These findings replicated across cohorts and provide sufficient evidence of the reliability and validity of the CBS to recommend its use for behavioral assessment with young children. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Multiphasic measurement of child personality: Construction of content scales using the Personality Inventory for Children.

The application of objective test methodology to child personality is seen as having potential for improvement of similar problems in child care or treatment settings such as mental health centers, hospitals, and schools. Intuitive and statistical (internal consistency) procedures were combined to construct 10 scales for measuring child personality: Somatic Concern, poor Family Relations, Asocial Behavior, Aggression, poor Intellectual-Physical Development, Withdrawal, Anxiety, Reality Distortion, Excitement, and poor Social Skills. 4 independently collected samples were used in the construction of the content scales. These samples were designated as clinic (n = 73), psychotic (n = 60), normative (n = 2,386), and general abnormal (n = 198). A 5th sample, normal contrast, was drawn from the normative sample (n = 600). Ss were 5-16 yrs old. The scales were judged to be internally consistent, potentially applicable to clinical decision making, and to require empirical validation. (18 ref) (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Brachymesophalangia-V in five samples of children: a descriptive and methodological study

The occurrence of brachmesophalangia-V (BMP-V) in 2,012 individuals from five samples of children of different ethnic backgrounds was determined using two indices. Frequencies of BMP-V were analyzed for three variants: BMP-V alone, BMP-V with clinodactyly, and BMP-V with a cone-shaped epiphysis. The two indices used to identify BMP-V indicated highest relative frequencies among Mexican children, moderate frequencies among children of European ancestry (Pennsylvania White, Canadian, West German), and lower frequencies in Pennsylvania Black children. Index 1, based on the ratio of the width to the length of the fifth mid-phalanx, consistently produced higher frequencies than Index 2, based on the ratio of the length of the fifth to the length of the fourth mid-phalanges. Index 1 was also more selective of BMP-alone, while Index 2 selected primarily BMP-V with clinodactyly and/or cone-shaped epiphyses. The differences between indices were largely due to the fact that Index 1, which basically defines shape, selected both the shortest and/or widest mid-phalanges, while Index 2 related actual length differences. It is suggested that Index 2 provided a more suitable criterion of BMP-V in comparative studies, due to possible population differences in phalangeal shape.     

Rorschach prediction of success in clinical training: A second look.

Reports the development of a Rorschach Index based on an ego-psychological conceptualization of an optimal personality picture of the successful trainee in clinical psychology. Rorschach Index prediction for 155 trainees of the Veterans Administration assessment project were compared with dichotomous predictions from the Miller Analogies Test (MAT) and the SVIB. The Rorschach Index predicted success and failure and identified failures for personality reasons more effectively than the MAT or the SVIB. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Mercer's Adaptive Behavior Inventory, the McCarthy scales, and dental development as predictors of first-grade achievement.

Administered a battery of tests to 65 1st graders. Nine months later the Metropolitan Achievement Test was administered to 62 of the Ss. The McCarthy General Cognitive Index, the Adaptive Behavior Inventory for Children Average Scaled Score, and the McCarthy Motor Index demonstrated significant correlations with achievement. The McCarthy General Cognitive Index emerged as the only significant predictor of achievement in multiple regression analyses. Implications for 1st-grade screening are discussed. (19 ref) (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

The Patient Reactions Assessment: A brief measure of the quality of the patient-provider medical relationship.

Reports 3 studies in the development of the Patient Reactions Assessment (PRA). The PRA is composed of 3 5-item scales designed to measure the perceived quality of the informative (Patient Information Index) and affective (Patient Affective Index) behaviors of the provider and the patient's perceived ability to initiate communication (Patient Communication Index) about the illness. The PRA was constructed according to factor-analytic procedures using cancer patients as Ss. The PRA and its subscales demonstrated high internal consistency. Concurrent validity for the PRA was shown by its ability to differentiate known groups of providers with respect to quality of patient relationships. As predicted, replicated confirmatory factor analyses supported the conceptual model on which the scale was constructed and indicated that the subscales represented related but separate relationship factors. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Pairwise and ipsative comparisons of WISC-III IQ and Index scores.

Two methods to compare the Wechsler Intelligence Scale for Children—Third Edition (WISC-III) Index scores were computed. First, pairwise comparisons of the Index and IQ scores were computed using the Bonferroni correction for the number of comparisons made. Second, the differences required for significance when comparing an individual's Index score to the mean of all the Index scores were computed at the .05 and .01 levels following the method presented by F. B. Davis (1959) and A. B. Silverstein (1982) for other multiscore intelligence tests. An example of the use of the technique is provided as are interpretation cautions. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Disseminated intravascular coagulation and sustained systemic inflammatory response syndrome predict organ dysfunctions after trauma: application of clinical decision analysis

OBJECTIVE: To compare the construct validity and sensitivity to change of 2 spondylitis-specific measures of functional disability, the Health Assessment Questionnaire Disability Index modified for the spondyloarthropathies (HAQ-S) and the Dougados Functional Index, with 2 more generic instruments, the Health Assessment Questionnaire (HAQ) and the Arthritis Impact Measurement Scales-2 (AIMS2), in patients with ankylosing spondylitis (AS). METHODS: Construct validity was assessed in 2 ways: (1) by comparisons of the cross sectional correlations between each functional disability instrument and 6 measures of physical impairment in 216 patients, and (2) by relating changes over time in the HAQ-S and the Functional Index with changes in patient reported pain and stiffness in 153 patients followed for at least 2 years. Sensitivity to change was measured from the responses of 155 patients who reported a qualitative change in the activity of their AS during followup. RESULTS: Most patients had mild functional disability, with median scores of 0.5 on the HAQ-S (possible range 0-3), 0.375 on the HAQ (possible range 0-3), 11 on the Functional Index (possible range 0-40), and 5 on the AIMS2 (possible range 0-60). Scores on the HAQ-S (R2 = 0.24) and the unmodified HAQ (R2 = 0.18) were more highly correlated with measures of physical impairment than were scores on the AIMS2 (R2 = 0.10) or the Functional Index (R2 = 0.09). Changes over time in the HAQ-S and HAQ were more closely related to changes in pain and stiffness than were changes in the Functional Index. The HAQ-S and HAQ were also more sensitive to change than the Functional Index. CONCLUSION: The HAQ-S showed greater construct validity and sensitivity to change than the Functional Index, but performed similarly to the unmodified HAQ.     

The Asthma Impact Record (AIR) index: a rating scale to evaluate the quality of life of asthmatic patients in France

Asthma is a chronic disease, which affects patients' daily lives. The goal of this study was the development of a disease-specific scale to evaluate quality of life in asthmatic patients in France: The Asthma Impact Record Index (AIR Index). The study was conducted with the participation of 486 asthmatic patients using the following steps: 1) selection of dichotomous items; 2) reduction of the number of items; 3) study of reproducibility of the questionnaire; 4) weighting of items; 5) study of the reliability and validity of the final version of the AIR Index. The final version of the AIR Index contains 63 unweighted items. The items were classified into subscales representing the main dimensions of quality of life: 1) physical, which was itself split into two subscales: a) physical activities; and b) symptoms; 2) psychological; and 3) social or relational. The internal consistency, measured by Cronbach's alpha coefficients, was found to be high, for the global scale and all subscales (range 0.79-0.94). The concurrent validity, evaluated by studying the relationship between the score values on the global scale and the subscales, and the parameters reflecting disease severity, was also high. We conclude that the AIR Index might represent a useful evaluative and discriminant instrument in studying quality of life in asthma in French populations.     

Remote Sensing and GIS Application in the Detection of Environmental Degradation Indicators

The main aim of this research is to highlight the environment change indicators during the last 20 years in a representative area of the southern part of Iraq (Basrah Province was taken as a case) to understand the main causes which led to widespread environment degradation phenomena using a 1:250000 mapping scale. Remote sensing and GIS's software were used to classify Landsat TM in 1990 and Landsat ETM+ in 2003 imagery into five land use and land cover (LULC) classes: vegetation land, sand land, urban area, unused land, and water bodies. Supervised classification and Normalized Difference Vegetation Index (NDVI),Normalized Difference Build-up Index (NDBI), Normalized Difference Water Index (NDWI), Normalized Difference Salinity Index (NDSI), and Topsoil Grain Size Index (GSI) were adopted in this research and used respectively to retrieve its class boundary.The results showed a clear deterioration in vegetative cover (514.9 km2) and an increase of sand dune accumulations (438.6 km2),accounting for 10.1, and 10.6 percent, respectively, of the total study area. In addition, a decrease in the water bodies' area was detected (228.9 km2). Sand area accumulations had increased in the total study area, with an annual increasing expansion rate of(33.7 km2·yr-1)during the thirteen years covered by the study.It is therefore imperative that Iraqi government undertake a series of prudent actions now that will enable to be in the best possible position when the current environmental crisis ultimately passes.     

镁橄榄石在铁矿球团中的应用试验研究

应用镁橄榄石粉末，并配以膨润土或新型wkd粘结剂，对大冶铁精矿进行了实验室球团试验。试验研究表明：镁橄榄石粉的添加对生球质量的提高可以起到一定程度的促进作用，而且对造球工艺参数不会造成影响；适当提高焙烧温度是保证球团各项指标合格的关键，其中抗压强度、FeO含量等主要与焙烧温度有关，与镁橄榄石配比无明显关系。另外，冶金性能研究也表明：随着镁橄榄石用量的增加，球团还原度有一定提高，低温还原粉化率、膨胀性能和软熔性能显著改善。     

WISC-IV profiles in children with traumatic brain injury: Similarities to and differences from the WISC-III.

The Wechsler Intelligence Scale for Children—Fourth Edition (WISC–IV; D. Wechsler, 2003a) is often utilized to assess children with traumatic brain injury (TBI), although little information is available regarding its psychometric properties in these children. The current study examined WISC–IV performance in a sample of 61 children with TBI. As compared to the standardization sample, results indicated that the TBI group exhibited relative deficits on all subtest and index scores, with the greatest deficits on the Processing Speed Index (PSI) and Coding subtest scores. However, the Perceptual Reasoning Index score was not uniquely sensitive to brain injury, and the Cognitive Processing Index score was less sensitive to TBI than the PSI score. Also, the PSI did not uniquely predict learning and memory abilities, as had been reported in previous studies of the Wechsler Intelligence Scale for Children—Third Edition (WISC–III; D. Wechsler, 1991). The present findings indicate substantive differences between the WISC–III and WISC–IV profiles of children with TBI. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Wechsler Intelligence Scale for Children-Third and -Fourth Edition predictors of academic achievement in children with attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder.

IQ and achievement scores were analyzed for 678 children with attention-deficit/ hyperactivity disorder (ADHD; 6-16 years of age, IQ≥80) administered the Wechsler Intelligence Scale for Children-Third Edition (WISC-III; n=586) and Wechsler Intelligence Scale for Children-Fourth Edition (WISC-IV, n=92). Approximately 76% of children in both samples were identified with a learning disability (LD). LD in written expression was more common than in reading or math. For both the WISC-III and the WISC-IV, full-scale IQ was the strongest single predictor of achievement in all areas. The verbal subtests comprising the Freedom from Distractibility/Working Memory Index (FDI/WMI) and Verbal Comprehension Index were more highly correlated with achievement scores than the nonverbal subtests on both the WISC-III and WISC-IV. The most powerful predictors of LD, however, were the FDI/WMI and Processing Speed Index (PSI) subtests. These findings suggest that verbal intelligence is more influential in determining level of academic achievement, whereas cognitive abilities assessed by FDI/WMI and PSI are more important in determining LD in children with ADHD. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Online tools for evaluating patient change: Statistical foundations, clinical applications, research relevance.

Purpose: To present Internet-based tools for evaluating whether meaningful change has occurred in individual patients across time. These tools were developed to make empirically based analyses of clinical change readily available to clinicians and clinical researchers. Method: Tools were developed on the basis of 4 statistical paradigms, including (a) the Reliable Change Index, (b) the Reliable Change Index with an adjustment for bias, (c) bivariate regression, and (d) multivariate regression. A library of measures that uses these platforms is described. Conclusions/Implications: Clinical indications and limitations for using these tools are explained. Clinical reasoning involved in using these tools is discussed and demonstrated with case illustrations. The clinical and research potential of these tools is discussed. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Alleged acceptance of the occupational role of teaching.

At the beginning of graduate training, 122 inexperienced liberal arts graduates took a questionnaire dealing with acceptance of teaching as an occupation. They were studied 2 years later after having had a year in teaching. An Index was determined for 3 groups according to degree of permanancy in teaching. "The Index has a small predictive validity, but only for the women in the sample." (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)