Questioning the merits and demerits of electronic communication in Social Work

This paper examines the social dynamics of electronic exchanges in the human services, particularly in social work. It focuses on the observable effects that email and texting have on the linguistic, relational and clinical rather than managerial aspects of the profession. It highlights how electronic communication is affecting professionals in their practice and learners as they become acculturated to social work. What are the gains and losses of the broad use of electronic devices in daily lay and professional, verbal and non-verbal communication? Will our current situation be seriously detrimental to the demeanor of future practitioners, their use of language, and their ability to establish close personal relationships? The paper analyzes social work linguistic and behavioral changes in light of the growth of electronic communication and offers a summary of merits and demerits viewed through a prism emerging from Baron’s (2000) analysis of human communication.

Item and task difficulty in a B2 reading examination: perceptions of test-takers and CEFR alignment experts compared with psychometric measurements

The article presents a study of a CEFR B2-level reading subtest that is part of the Slovenian national secondary school leaving examination in English as a foreign language, and compares the test-taker actual performance (objective difficulty) with the test-taker and expert perceptions of item difficulty (subjective difficulty). The study also analyses the test-takers’ comments on item difficulty obtained from a while-reading questionnaire. The results are discussed in the framework of the existing research in the fields of (the assessment of) reading comprehension, and are addressed with regard to their implications for item-writing, FL teaching and curriculum development.

The use of cues for attention in ancient Greek art: aspects that influence concentration in the work of art and its elements

The goal of this study is to identify cues for the cognitive process of attention in ancient Greek art, aiming to find confirmation of its possible use by ancient Greek audiences and artists. Evidence of cues that trigger attention’s psychological dispositions was searched through content analysis of image reproductions of ancient Greek sculpture and fine vase painting from the archaic to the Hellenistic period - ca. 7th -1st cent. BC. Through this analysis, it was possible to observe the presence of cues that trigger orientation to the work of art (i.e. amplification, contrast, emotional salience, simplification, symmetry), of a cue that triggers a disseminate attention to the parts of the work (i.e. distribution of elements) and of cues that activate selective attention to specific elements in the work of art (i.e. contrast of elements, salient color, central positioning of elements, composition regarding the flow of elements and significant objects). Results support the universality of those dispositions, probably connected with basic competencies that are hard-wired in the nervous system and in the cognitive processes.

Validación de dos herramientas para la evaluación de cambios en las actitudes de alumnos en situaciones frecuentes en cuidado paliativo

Objective: To determine the psychometric properties of two scales designed to examine attitudes regarding palliative care: Comfort Scale in Palliative Care (CSPC, Pereira et al.) and Tanatophobia Scale (TS, Merrill et al.)Method: Seventy-seven students who completed an online course on psychosocial aspects of palliative care offered by the Latin American Association of Palliative Care participated in the study. They also completed the scales before and after the course. Construct validity and reliability of the CSPC and the TS were assessed using a Principal Components Analysis, internal reliability coefficient and test-retest reliability. Further, comparative statistics between the pre-course and post-course results were obtained in order to determine changes in attitudes.Results: The Principal Components Analysis showed satisfactory fit to the data. 3 components were extracted: two for the CSPC and one for the TS, which explained 55.37% of the variance. Internal consistency coefficients were satisfactory in all cases and Cronbach´s Alphas were satisfactory for all the scales, particularly for the CSPC. Test-retest reliability in t1 and t2 was found to be non significant, indicating that measures were not related in time. Regarding pre-course/post-course comparisons, significant changes in comfort assisting patients (p = 0.004) and comfort assisting families (p = 0.001) following the course were identified, but changes in thanatophobia were non significant (p > 0.05).Conclusions: both scales are valid and reliable. Attitudes regarding the practice of palliative care and how they change, particularly regarding psychosocial issues, can be accurately measured using the examined scales.