Do we need to rethink guidance on repeated interviews?

Within the legal system, children are frequently interviewed about their experiences more than once, with different information elicited in different interviews. The presumed positive and negative effects of multiple interviewing have generated debate and controversy within the legal system and among researchers. Some commentators emphasize that repeated interviews foster inaccurate recall and are inherently suggestive, whereas others emphasize the benefits of allowing witnesses more than 1 opportunity to recall information. In this article, we briefly review the literature on repeated interviewing before presenting a series of cases highlighting what happens when children are interviewed more than once for various reasons. We conclude that, when interviewers follow internationally recognized best-practice guidelines emphasizing open-questions and free memory recall, alleged victims of abuse should be interviewed more than once to ensure that more complete accounts are obtained. Implications for current legal guidelines concerning repeated interviewing are discussed. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

The Strain Index (SI) and Threshold Limit Value (TLV) for Hand Activity Level (HAL): risk of carpal tunnel syndrome (CTS) in a prospective cohort

A cohort of 536 workers was enrolled from 10 diverse manufacturing facilities and was followed monthly for six years. Job physical exposures were individually measured. Worker demographics, medical history, psychosocial factors, current musculoskeletal disorders (MSDs) and nerve conduction studies (NCS) were obtained. Point and lifetime prevalence of carpal tunnel syndrome (CTS) at baseline (symptoms + abnormal NCS) were 10.3% and 19.8%. During follow-up, there were 35 new CTS cases (left, right or both hands). Factors predicting development of CTS included: job physical exposure (American conference of governmental industrial hygienists Threshold Limit Value (ACGIH TLV) for Hand Activity Level (HAL) and the Strain Index (SI)), age, BMI, other MSDs, inflammatory arthritis, gardening outside of work and feelings of depression. In the adjusted models, the TLV for HAL and the SI were both significant per unit increase in exposure with hazard ratios (HR) increasing up to a maximum of 5.4 (p = 0.05) and 5.3 (p = 0.03), respectively; however, similar to other reports, both suggested lower risk at higher exposures. Data suggest that the TLV for HAL and the SI are useful metrics for estimating exposure to biomechanical stressors. PRACTITIONER SUMMARY: This study was conducted to determine how well the TLV for HAL and the SI predict risk of CTS using a prospective cohort design with survival analysis. Both the TLV for HAL and the SI were found to predict risk of CTS when adjusted for relevant covariates.     

Metallic inductive and capacitive grids: theory and experiment

We present theoretical modeling and experimental validation of both capacitive (dot) and inductive (hole) metallic crossed gratings in the mid-infrared (2-5 microm). The gratings are fabricated by use of interferometric lithography and modeled by use of rigorous coupled-wave analysis. Our experimental and numerical investigations of the transmittance spectra of these gratings suggest that, as in inductive grids, the behavior of capacitive grids is described by the coupling of the incident light into surface plasma waves.     

Inductive reasoning on recursive equations

We investigate several methods of inductive reasoning in the domain of recursive equations, including the method of generalization with beliefs, the method of successive refinement, and temporal methods based on comparisons with previously solved problems.     

Effect of cholestyramine resin on single dose valproate pharmacokinetics

Cholestyramine, a nonabsorbable anion exchange resin, has been reported to bind concomitantly administered drugs and decrease their bioavailability. The objective of the study was to determine the effect of cholestyramine on the plasma concentrations of valproic acid (VPA) following concurrent and staggered (VPA 3 hours before cholestyramine) dosing. Six healthy volunteers participated in an open-label, 3-way crossover study. In each phase fasting subjects received 250 mg of VPA followed by serial blood sampling for VPA plasma concentrations over a 37-hour period. In the concurrent and staggered phase the subjects received 4 g of cholestyramine (CHOL) twice daily 24 hours prior to and following the VPA dose. During the concurrent phase the coadministration of CHOL resulted in a decrease (p < 0.05) in the area under the curve (AUC) for VPA compared to VPA alone (415.2 +/- 113.2 mg*hr/l vs 489.2 +/- 153.0 mg*hr/l, respectively). When the same dose of each drug was administered 3 hours apart, the AUC for VPA (454.8 +/- 123.1 mg*hr/l) was not significantly decreased when compared to VPA alone (489.2 +/- 153.0 mg*hr/l). Also, the bioavailability relative to VPA alone was 86.2% +/- 7.1 for the concurrent phase and 95.3% +/- 13.6 for the staggered phase. Based on the AUC of VPA concurrent administration of CHOL significantly decreases VPA absorption and separating the doses of the 2 drugs by 3 hours may lessen the interaction.     

Agreement and accuracy in children's interpersonal perception: A social relations analysis.

Agreement and accuracy in children's interpersonal perceptions during middle childhood were studied in the school environment. Sociocultural and ecological theories led to the prediction that, in middle childhood, peers' interpersonal perceptions would show high levels of agreement with those of teachers and would be accurate. A social relations analysis of data from a 3-year, cross-sequential study revealed that throughout middle childhood, peer perceptions of cognitive ability, observable behavior and characteristics, popularity, and affect correlated reliably with teacher perceptions. In addition, peer and teacher perceptions of targets' cognitive ability correlated with standardized test scores. Self-other agreement lagged behind teacher-peer agreement. The conceptual and statistical advantages of the social relations analysis of children's interpersonal perceptions were also considered. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Interpersonal perception of the AIDS risk potential of persons of the opposite sex.

Individuals engage in high rates of AIDS risk behavior, despite awareness that infection is preventable, and use biased decision rules for determining the AIDS risk potential of their own and others' behavior. In this laboratory study, 32 male and 32 female university students made judgments of the AIDS risk potential of persons of the opposite sex following exposure to explicit information regarding AIDS-related attitudes and behavior in a discussion group. A social relations analysis showed that judgments of AIDS risk potential were determined by perceiver-based assimilation that was stronger than target-based consensus for both men and women. Further, perceptions of others were related to self-perception. However, the consensus that was observed showed moderate accuracy. Implications for AIDS prevention are discussed. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)