Outcomes of a randomized trial of continuum of care services for children in a child welfare system

The Connecticut Department of Children and Families Title IV-E waiver demonstration evaluated whether the well-being of children approved for residential mental health services could be improved, and lengths of stay in restrictive placements reduced, by providing case rate payments to community agencies to provide continuum of care services. Children between ages 7 and 15 were randomly assigned to either the demonstration group (n = 78) or to usual state-supported services (n = 79). One-year outcome results indicated that in a situation that is less costly, improvement in outcomes occurred in less restrictive settings. Continuum of care services were more effective in 1) returning children to in-home placements, 2) reducing the length of stay in restrictive placements, and (3) utilizing higher levels of case management through coordination among agencies and family support services.     

Alcohol's effects on women's risk detection in a date-rape vignette

Researchers have established that alcohol is a risk factor for date rape for both victims and perpetrators. OBJECTIVE: The authors tried to experimentally address the link between alcohol consumption and women's risk detection abilities in a risky sexual vignette. PARTICIPANTS: The authors recruited 42 women from undergraduate classrooms at a large midwestern university and randomly assigned them to drink an alcoholic (.04 blood alcohol content) or a placebo beverage. METHODS: Participants completed self-report inventories and listened to a date-rape audiotaped vignette, which began with consensual sexual behavior and culminated in date rape, and the authors asked them to determine if and when the man should refrain from making further sexual advances. RESULTS: Student's t tests and Pearson r correlations showed that women who consumed alcohol and exhibited high levels of rape myth acceptance showed a significant decrease in risk recognition (p = .000 and .001, respectively). CONCLUSION: These findings highlight the significance of even small amounts of alcohol on behavior and cognition in women who are self-reported experienced drinkers.     

Testing for monotonic trend in time series based on resampling methods

In this paper, we propose several tests for monotonic trend based on the Brillinger's test statistic (1989, Biometrika, 76, 23–30). When there are highly correlated residuals or short record lengths, Brillinger's test procedure tends to have significance level much higher than the nominal level. It is found that this could be related to the discrepancy between the empirical distribution of the test statistic and the asymptotic normal distribution. Hence, in this paper, we propose three bootstrap-based procedures based on the Brillinger's test statistic to test for monotonic trend. The performance of the proposed test procedures is evaluated through an extensive Monte Carlo simulation study, and is compared to other trend test procedures in the literature. It is shown that the proposed bootstrap-based Brillinger test procedures can well control the significance levels and provide satisfactory power performance in testing the monotonic trend under different scenarios.     

Ethical Actions: A Comparison of Individual and Group Recommendations

In order to examine the way ethical decisions are made, we asked ethicists, regulatory officials, and experienced researchers to review a set of scenarios that depict important ethical tensions in research. The method employed was “protocol analysis,” a talk-aloud technique pioneered by cognitive scientists. Each individual was asked to make recommendations for courses of action. Later, we held a focus group of university faculty and staff with either institutional review board experience or research ethics training. They too were asked to recommend actions. The results show there are areas where the two data collection approaches agree, as well as areas of considerable difference. Implications for training in the responsible conduct of research are discussed.     

Idiosyncratic deals and individual effectiveness: The moderating role of leader-member exchange differentiation

Extending prior research on idiosyncratic deals (i-deals), in the current study we examine the functioning of i-deals in the context of leader-member exchange (LMX) differentiation. To that end, we integrate justice, social exchange, and social comparison theories and hypothesize that employee perceptions of their managers' procedural fairness and LMX quality partially mediate (in sequence) the positive relationship between i-deals and individual effectiveness, including job satisfaction, in-role performance, and helping behavior. Furthermore, we propose that LMX differentiation moderates this mediated relationship, such that the mediation effect becomes stronger when LMX differentiation within the group is greater. Data from a U.S. sample of 961 employees and their managers in 71 restaurants supported our hypothesized model. Results shed light on managerial practices regarding how to gain positive effects from i-deals by considering the influence of LMX differentiation.     

A comparison of carbon and nitrogen stocks among land uses/covers in coastal Florida

Coastal areas are rapidly developing due to population growth and the appeal of coastlines. In order to gain insight into how land use/cover affects carbon (C) storage in a coastal context, we examined soil and vegetation C and soil nitrogen (N) across land uses near Apalachicola, FL. Forested wetlands had the greatest soil C and N storage, while natural pine forests and pine plantations had the least. In paired plots, urban lawns had significantly greater mineral soil N content compared to urban forest remnants. Total ecosystem C (soil + vegetation) was higher in forested wetlands than all other land uses/covers combined due to the high organic content of those wetland soils. Urban forest remnants and lawns had greater total ecosystem C than natural pine forests and pine plantations, which likely reflects the differential influence of prescribed fire and less frequent anthropogenic disturbances between the rural and urban areas, respectively. Projections of land use change in Franklin County, FL combined with these data suggest that increases in C storage are possible with continued urbanization along the Gulf Coast, if forest remnants are left and lawns are incorporated in built-up areas. However, this study does not account for C emissions during land conversion, or any emissions associated with maintaining urban built-up and residential areas. A better understanding of land use/cover influences on C pools has applications for planning and development, as well as ecological and environmental protection in the region.     

Augmenting antidepressant medication treatment of depressed women with emotionally focused therapy for couples: a randomized pilot study

This is the first study to evaluate adding emotionally focused therapy for couples (EFT) to antidepressant medication in the treatment of women with major depressive disorder and comorbid relationship discord. Twenty-four women and their male partners were randomized to 6 months of medication management alone (MM) or MM augmented with EFT (MM + EFT). MM followed the Texas Medication Algorithm Project guidelines. Fifteen EFT sessions were delivered following the EFT treatment manual. The primary outcome was severity of depressive symptoms (assessed by the 30-item Inventory of Depressive Symptomatology-Clinician Rated version [IDS-C(30) ] administrated by evaluators blinded to cell assignment). Secondary outcome was relationship quality as assessed by the Quality of Marriage Index. Results from assessments at intake, termination, and two posttreatment follow-ups were analyzed using growth analysis techniques. IDS-C(30) scores improved over 6 months of treatment, regardless of the treatment assignment, and women receiving MM + EFT experienced significantly more improvement in relationship quality compared with women in MM. Because relationship discord after depression treatment predicts worse outcome, interventions improving relationship quality may reduce depression relapse and recurrence. Testing this hypothesis in larger samples with longer follow-up could contribute to knowledge on the mechanisms involved in determining the course of depressive illness.     

RADIOISOTOPE PRODUCTION SCHEDULING IN A NUCLEAR REACTOR

A multiperiod mixed integer programming model has been developed for the production scheduling of several grades of a radioisotope in a nuclear reactor. Of special interest is the model's capability to evaluate possible future product “short falls” due to the acceptance of an unforecasted demand sales opportunity. The model is essential to decisions concerning reactor loading after an extended shutdown of several periods for modifications, maintenance, and upgrading.     

An Exploratory Study of the Impact of e‐Service Process on Online Customer Satisfaction

Although extensive academic research has examined the dynamics of interpersonal interactions between service providers and customers, much less research has investigated customer service encounters through technological interfaces such as the Web in electronic commerce transactions. Corporate websites have become an important point of contact with customers for many companies. Service has been described as one of the most important attributes for online business to influence traffic and sales. However, more research is needed to understand how Web‐based technological capabilities of services affect customer satisfaction. In this paper, we propose viewing the interface between online buyers and sellers through the lens of service management to identify possible determinants of online customer satisfaction. A company's website is considered its electronic service delivery system. We look at this electronic service delivery system from its process point of view. Our findings indicate that as the electronic service delivery system process improves, a customer's perception of the website's ease of use increases, leading to increased service value and perceived control over the process, which increases customer satisfaction. The research provides evidence that the technological capabilities embedded in the website processes are an important factor in determining service quality and ultimately online customer satisfaction.     

Standardized testing and school segregation: like tinder for fire?

Recent research suggests that high-stakes standardized testing has played a negative role in the segregation of children by race and class in schools. In this article we review research on the overall effects of segregation, the positive and negative aspects of how desegregation plans were carried out following the 1954 Supreme Court decision Brown v. Board of Education, and the de facto re-segregation that followed the dismantling of many desegregation plans, along with the increase of school choice plans. We then analyze these effects in light of the ways that high-stakes standardized testing has grown in importance and intensity in US education policy and practice, especially during the most recent period of school re-segregation. Based on the evidence we argue that the intrinsic features of high-stakes testing, combined with current systems of school choice, function as mechanisms used for racial coding that facilitate segregation and compound inequalities found in schools.