Application of virtual reality for peritoneal dialysis exchange learning in patients with end-stage renal disease and cognitive impairment

Virtual Reality - Cognitive impairment is not uncommon in patients with end-stage renal disease and can make it more difficult for these patients to carry out peritoneal dialysis (PD) on their own....     

Evaluating reactivity to ecological momentary assessment during smoking cessation.

Ecological momentary assessment (EMA) consists of assessing phenomena in real time in the natural environment. EMA allows for more fine-grained analyses of addictive behavior and minimizes threats to internal validity, such as recall biases and errors. However, because of the intensive monitoring involved in EMA, measurement reactivity is a concern. To test whether EMA with palmtop personal computers induces reactivity, the authors compared smoking-related outcomes between smokers using EMA and those not using EMA during a quit attempt. The use of no-EMA control groups has been rare in reactivity investigations to date. The EMA protocol included event-contingent assessments (smoking episodes, urge episodes) and random assessments. Outcomes included biologically confirmed abstinence and self-report measures of withdrawal, self-efficacy, motivation, affect, and temptations. Participants were smokers motivated to quit (N = 96). They were randomized to 1 of 3 groups: EMA for the week preceding a planned quit date, EMA for the week following the quit date, and no EMA. Abstinence rates did not differ between the groups at Day 7 or at Day 28 postcessation. For the 20 subscales assessed at each of 3 assessment times, there were significant differences between participants with and without EMA experience for 3 subscales at the 1st of 3 assessment times, and significant differences for 3 different subscales at the 3rd assessment time. These differences suggest some reactivity to EMA, although the inconsistent pattern across time indicates that further research is needed to definitively conclude that EMA induces reactivity. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

The 3D Chinese head and face modeling

Perfect fit for people has always been a target for product design. Designers commonly use traditional anthropometric dimensions for 3D product design thus creating a lot of fitting problems when dealing with the complexities of human body shapes. The development of recent 3D anthropometric survey has created an opportunity for complex shape analysis on human model by collecting 3D scan data. Using 3D point cloud data from the SizeChina survey, a methodology of creating a homologous 3D head and face model was demonstrated in this study. Anatomical and virtual landmarks, and surface modeling algorithm based on point cloud data were applied in building the model. The head and face models for all scans had the same amount of vertices with consistent features. The average Chinese models showed obvious differences between male and female. The variations of head and face shapes were analyzed using Principal Component Analysis and the results showed that the largest variations among people were general size, especially for width and depth. However face height, forehead, back of the head, chin and jaw area were also important when describing the 3D shape. The results from this study may be useful in the design of head and facial products.     

The role of women's alcohol consumption in evaluation of vulnerability to sexual aggression.

The authors examined the impact of alcohol consumption on women's risk perceptions and intended behaviors in a hypothetical situation in which the potential for establishing a relationship with an attractive man was coupled with the potential for sexual aggression. Fifty-nine single women, ages 21–29, were randomly assigned to 1 of 3 beverage conditions: (a) alcohol (dose sufficient to raise blood alcohol level to .08); (b) placebo, in which they were led to believe that they had consumed alcohol but had not; or (c) no alcohol, in which they neither expected nor received alcohol. Compared with women in the no–alcohol condition, women in the alcohol condition (a) rated the male character in the vignette more positively, (b) anticipated less risk and more benefit resulting from a series of behaviors likely to facilitate the relationship while increasing sexual vulnerability (e.g., engaging in consensual sexual activities), and (c) anticipated greater involvement in those behaviors. The placebo appeared to exert similar but weaker effects. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Yesterday and tomorrow: Development of early understanding of the terms.

Data from 90 2-, 3-, and 4-yr-old children indicate that there is a differential pattern of comprehension of the terms "yesterday" and "tomorrow" among the 3 age groups. Findings also suggest that the Ss learned the terms in an asymmetrical manner, with "yesterday" being understood as having 2 referential aspects (i.e., a time other than this day and past time) and "tomorrow" being understood only in terms of future reference. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Daily Fluctuations in Self-Control Demands and Alcohol Intake.

Predictions made by the self-control strength model were tested in a sample of underage social drinkers using ecological momentary assessment methodology. On days that participants experienced more self-control demands than average, they were more likely to violate their self-imposed drinking limit after controlling for mood and urge to drink. There was no relationship between self-control demands and urge or intention to drink, nor were self-control demands related to plans to limit drinking. When individuals planned to limit their alcohol intake, they were more affected by self-control demands than when they did not plan to limit their alcohol intake. Trait self-control moderated these relationships. Consistent with the self-control strength model, it appears that exerting self-control in nondrinking areas undermines individuals' capacity to exert self-control of drinking in daily life. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

COMPETING DRYING AND REACTION MECHANISMS IN THE FORMATION OF SOL-TO-GEL FILMS, FIBERS, AND SPHERES

Drying of films, fibers, and spheres undergoing sol-to-gel transformation is greatly affected by the strong dependence of the diffusion coefficients on composition, molecular weight, and temperature. This dependence is probed by solving the equations of mass and heat transfer by diffusion or conduction and associated convection, along with chemical reaction. A one-dimensional analysis is used that encompasses the planar, cylindrical, and spherical configurations. The solutions are obtained by Galerkin's method with finite element basis functions and entail large-scale computation.

Skinning and solidification phenomena in silica sol-to-gel systems are greatly affected not only by falling diffusion coefficients, but also by the competition between drying and reaction. The kinetics of silica reactions are modeled with the statistical scheme of Kay and Assink (1988). Gelation is predicted by the recursive technique of Bailey et al. (1990). Results show that at intermediate reaction rates, high molecular weight silica polymers are formed first near the evaporating free surface and gelation proceeds from that surface inwards, but at high or low reaction rates, gelation occurs before or after drying, respectively. These results help predict conditions in which uniform films can be cast, uniform fibers can be drawn, and uniform microspheres can be formed by spray drying.     

Alcohol and the balanced-placebo design: Were experimenter demands in expectancy really tested? Comment on Knight, Barbaree, and Boland (1986).

Knight, Barbaree, and Boland (1986) recently conducted a study designed to assess the role of experimenter demand in the balanced-placebo design. The study's methodology is critiqued as providing an inadequate test of the research question. In addition, the interpretation of the results includes issues that are not addressed by the implementation of the design. The need for attention to conceptual clarity and methodological rigor in tests of extant research is discussed. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Commitment and the prevention of adolescent cigarette smoking.

Tested the effects of commitment (CM) to nonsmoking on resistance to arguments favoring cigarette smoking. In Exp I, 37 7th graders were assigned to a public CM condition, in which they were audiotaped as they explained why they would not become smokers, or to information control or no-treatment conditions. In Exp II, 51 7th graders participated in conditions of (1) high CM, in which they were given high choice to write and publicly audiotape a speech about why smoking is bad; (2) low CM, in which they were given low choice to write an anonymous essay about why smoking is bad; or to (3) a no-treatment condition. Ss then listened to arguments favoring smoking. CM failed to enhance resistance to persuasion in either experiment. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)