Development of student drivers' self-assessment accuracy during French driver training: Self-assessments compared to instructors' assessments in three risky driving situations

Promoting self-assessment accuracy among student drivers could help improve road safety for young novice drivers (Minimum Requirement for Driving Instructor Training, 2005). It is crucial to investigate the development of this ability in student drivers, although few studies have been conducted on this issue to our knowledge. The present study was aimed at examining the development of accuracy in student drivers’ self-assessments. Students’ self-ratings of their skills were compared to instructors’ ratings based on the students’ progression through the four steps of the French driver training course. The ratings were collected from two versions of an ad hoc questionnaire about students’ ability to turn right, overtake another vehicle, and turn left in driving situations. The questionnaire included a three-part assessment scale (six driving subtasks required to perform the maneuver, the number of driving subtasks managed simultaneously, and the student's autonomy), demographic data, and the students’ progress in the training program. The participants were 149 student drivers (58 men and 91 women) with a mean age of 22.2 years, and 38 professional driving instructors (36 men and 2 women) from 13 driving schools in Paris. The psychometric quality of the scale was satisfactory (α_s > .9) concerning the self-ratings as well as the instructors’ ratings in the three parts of the scale. As a whole and as expected, the self-ratings and the instructors’ ratings became increasingly positive as the training progressed, on each part of the assessment scale. The students’ and the instructors’ ratings did not differ significantly between the three driving situations tested, nor between male and female students in each training step. Furthermore, students’ overestimation of their driving skills was mainly observed on step 1, less on steps 2 and 3, but never on step 4. Thus, the students became rather aware of their current driving skills as the driver training course progressed. The results on the development of the self-assessment accuracy in driver training are discussed.     

Processing and characterization of durum wheat bread enriched with antioxidant from yellow pepper flour

The effect of the addition of yellow pepper flour on bread physico-chemical and sensorial properties was addressed in this study. In particular, vegetable flour concentration was set at 25%; in order to optimize the bread sensorial properties, yellow pepper flour was separately hydrated at three different water content levels. Texture analysis were carried out on both dough and bread samples to evaluate their firmness. Furthermore, tomographic analysis was performed on the same samples in order to provide a more detailed view of their texture. Estimation of the glycemic response, determination of the carotenoids content and sensory analysis of the fortified bread were also determined. Results highlighted that the highest glycemic index was achieved in bread sample having the highest water content and that showed the worst results in terms of texture. Among the studied samples, bread with medium hydration level showed good structural characteristic, double anti-oxidant content compared to the control bread (CTRL S) and the highest sensorial quality.     

Bank management via stochastic optimal control

This paper examines a problem related to the optimal risk management of banks in a stochastic dynamic setting. In particular, we minimize market and capital adequacy risk that involves the safety of the securities held and the stability of sources of funds, respectively. In this regard, we suggest an optimal portfolio choice and rate of bank capital inflow that will keep the loan level as close as possible to an actuarially determined reference process. This set-up leads to a nonlinear stochastic optimal control problem whose solution may be determined by means of the dynamic programming algorithm. The above analysis is reliant on the construction of continuous-time stochastic models for bank behaviour upon which a spread method for loan capitalization is imposed.     

Girls' dating behavior as a function of social context and maturation.

Examined how environmental and physical characteristics contribute to the emergence of adolescent girls' dating behavior. The premise was that one set of individual characteristics, pubertal processes, may have more influence on girls' dating behavior in one context than in another, specifically more in girls who attend dance schools than in those who do not. Seventh to ninth grade girls were seen, 59 who were enrolled in national classical ballet company school and 328 who were not. Body image, dating behavior, career aspirations, pubertal status, and maturational timing were assessed via self-report and maternal report. Dancers were less likely to date than nondancers. A Dance/Nondance Group?×?Pubertal Status interaction was found: Premenarcheal dancers had lower dating scores than postmenarcheal dancers, whereas menarcheal status was not related to dating in nondancers. With regard to body image, a Breast Development?×?Dance/Nondance Group interaction was found, with breast development being negatively related to body image in dancers and unrelated in nondancers. Findings are discussed in terms of interactions between environmental and physical characteristics and the goodness of fit between contextual demands and a girl's particular physical characteristics. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

The dynamics of midstream consulting.

The prevalence of change in the business world today has resulted in the need for organizational consultants to learn new skills and approaches to working with their client systems. Typically, this process includes integrating consulting efforts with preexisting client initiatives, efforts, and directives, a trend called midstream consulting. After an overview of the changing nature of the field, 2 case examples are used to help illustrate the issues and concerns involved in midstream consulting efforts. The 1st case describes issues that arose from the authors' involvement in an organization in the midst of a major reengineering and restructuring plan, and the 2nd concerns the integration of a large-scale survey assessment with existing organizational initiatives regrading leadership and team spirit. Each case is described in terms of the context of existing organizational change initiatives, the practitioners' role in the consulting efforts, and subsequent outcomes and implications arising from the process and the relationship. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Characterization of sol-gel Pb(Zr0.53Ti0.47O3) in thin film bulk acoustic resonators

The behavior of {f111g}-textured Pb(Zr(0.53Ti0.47O3) (PZT) deposited by the sol-gel technique in thin film bulk acoustic resonators (TFBAR's) was investigated at a resonance frequency of about 1 GHz. The resonators were fabricated on Si wafers using deep silicon etching to create a membrane structure and using platinum as top and bottom electrodes. The best response of the resonators was observed at a bias voltage of -15 kV/cm with values of about 10% for the coupling constant and about 50 for the quality factor. This voltage corresponds to optimal values of piezoelectric constant d33 and dielectric constant measured as a function of the electric field. The influence of a bias voltage on the resonance frequency, antiresonance frequency, and coupling constant were observed. Both the resonance and antiresonance frequency show a hysteretic change with applied bias. This effect can be used to shift the whole band of a filter by applying a voltage. The TFBAR structure also allowed us to extract values for materials parameters of the PZT film. Dielectric, piezoelectric, and elastic properties of the f111g-textured PZT film are reported and compared to direct measurements and to literature values.