Dimensionality, Reliability and Validity of the InterRAI Depression Rating Scale in a Canadian Palliative Care Population

A reliable and valid instrument is needed to screen for depression in palliative patients. The interRAI Depression Rating Scale (DRS) is based on seven items in the interRAI Palliative Care instrument. This study is the first to explore the dimensionality, reliability and validity of the DRS in a palliative population. Palliative home care patients (n = 5,175) residing in Ontario (Canada) were assessed with the interRAI Palliative Care instrument. Exploratory factor analysis and Mokken scale analysis were used to identify candidate conceptual models and evaluate scale homogeneity/performance. Confirmatory factor analysis compared models using standard goodness-of-fit indices. Convergent and divergent validity were investigated by examining polychoric correlations between the DRS and other items. The “known groups” test determined if the DRS meaningfully distinguished among client subgroups. The non-hierarchical two factor model showed acceptable fit with the data, and ordinal alpha coefficients of 0.83 and 0.82 were observed for the two DRS subscales. Omega hierarchical (ωh) was 0.78 for the bifactor model, with the general factor explaining three quarters of the common variance. Despite the multidimensionality evident in the factor analyses, bifactor modelling and the Mokken homogeneity coefficient (0.34) suggest that the DRS is a coherent scale that captures important information on sub-constructs of depression (e.g., somatic symptoms). Higher correlations were seen between the DRS and mood and psychosocial well-being items, and lower correlations with functional status and demographic variables. The DRS distinguished in the expected manner for known risk factors (e.g., social support, pain). The results suggest that the DRS is primarily unidimensional and reliable for use in screening for depression in palliative care patients.

Evaluation of Video Presentation to Deliver Surgical Anatomy Teaching

Title Evaluation of Video Presentation to Deliver Surgical Anatomy Teaching

Authors Walsh I.K., Boohan M., Dorman A.

Objectives To evaluate the efficacy of newly introduced video presentation to deliver Surgical Anatomy teaching to undergraduate medical students.

Design and Setting Qualitative and quantitative study using questionnaires and focus groups, employing students undertaking the perioperative medicine module of the phase 4 undergraduate medical curriculum at Queen’s University Belfast.

Outcome Measures To determine:
(1) if video presentation is effective in delivering surgical anatomy teaching,
(2) student’s learning preferences regarding this teaching method.
Results The questionnaire response rate was 89% (216 of 244 students; female: male ratio 1.25) and 42 students participated in 6 focus groups. Mean questionnaire responses indicated a favourable opinion on quality assurance items, with a mixed response to video presentation as a learning method. 71% of students preferred to receive a lecture in person, rather than via video presentation. There were no statistically significant differences between genders regarding learning preferences in general and regarding video versus live presentation in particular. Exploratory factor analysis demonstrated that favourable responses to video presentation were strongly associated with perceived audiovisual quality and learning preferences (Cronbach’s alpha coefficient 0.77), with 72% of students considering video presentation worthwhile. Positive perception of overall quality was strongly associated with learning preferences as well as more generic quality assurance issues (80% students; alpha coefficient 0.83).
The results were supported by triangulation of the above quantitative data with qualitative data generated by the focus groups. Students further articulated the view that video presentation may be more appropriate and effective in a mixed method setting.

Reference Basu Roy R, McMahon GT. Video-based cases disrupt deep critical thinking in problem-based learning. Med Educ 2012 Apr;46(4):426-435.

Environmental Operations Management and its links with Proactivity and Performance: A study of the UK Food Industry

Two important strands of research within the literature on Environmental Operations Management (EOM) relate to environmental approach and performance. Often in this research the links between environmental approach, environmental performance and EOM are considered separately with little consideration given to the interrelationships between them. This study develops and tests a theoretical framework that combines these two strands to explore how UK food manufacturers approach EOM. The framework considers the relationships between an environmentally pro-active strategic orientation, EOM and environmental and cost performance. A cross-sectional survey was developed to collect data from a sample of 1200 food manufacturing firms located within the UK. Responses were sought from production and operations managers who are knowledgeable about the environmental operations practices within their firms. A total of 149 complete and useable responses were obtained. The reliability and validity of the scales used in the survey were tested using exploratory factor analysis, prior to the testing of the hypotheses underpinning the theoretical framework using hierarchical regression analysis. Our results generate support for a link between environmental proactivity, environmental practices and performance, consistent with the natural resource-based view (NRBV) and a number of studies in the extant literature. In considering environmental proactivity as a standalone concept that influences the implementation of environmental practices outlined in the NRBV, our study generates some novel insights into these links. Further our results provide some interesting insights for managers within the food industry who can identify the potential benefits of certain practices for performance within this unique context.

Climatic signals in the life histories of insects:the distribution and abundance of heather psyllids (Strophingia spp.) in the UK

1. The population density and age structure of two species of heather psyllid Strophingia ericae and Strophingia cinereae, feeding on Calluna vulgaris and Erica cinerea, respectively, were sampled using standardized methods at locations throughout Britain. Locations were chosen to represent the full latitudinal and altitudinal range of the host plants.

2. The paper explains how spatial variation in thermal environment, insect life-history characteristics and physiology, and plant distribution, interact to provide the mechanisms that determine the range and abundance of Strophingia spp.

3. Strophingia ericae and S. cinereae, despite the similarity in the spatial distribution patterns of their host plants within Britain, display strongly contrasting geographical ranges and corresponding life-history strategies. Strophingia ericae is found on its host plant throughout Britain but S. cinereae is restricted to low elevation sites south of the Mersey-Humber line and occupies only part of the latitudinal and altitudinal range of its host plant. There is no evidence to suggest that S. ericae has reached its potential altitudinal or latitudinal limit in the UK, even though its host plant appears to reach its altitudinal limit.

4. There was little difference in the ability of the two Strophingia spp. to survive shortterm exposure to temperatures as low as - 15 degrees C and low winter temperatures probably do not limit distribution in S. cinereae.

5. Population density of S. ericae was not related to altitude but showed a weak correlation with latitude. The spread of larval instars present at a site, measured as an index of instar homogeneity, was significantly correlated with a range of temperature related variables, of which May mean temperature and length of growing season above 3 degrees C (calculated using the Lennon and Turner climatic model) were the most significant. Factor analysis did not improve the level of correlation significantly above those obtained for single climatic variables. The data confirmed that S. ericae has a I year life cycle at the lowest elevations and a 2 year life cycle at the higher elevations. However, there was no evidence, as previously suggested, for an abrupt change from a one to a 2 year life cycle in S. ericae with increasing altitudes or latitudes.

6. By contrast with S. ericae, S. cinereae had an obligatory 1 year life cycle, its population decreased with altitude and the index of instar homogeneity showed little correlation with single temperature variables. Moreover, it occupied only part of the range of its host plant and its spatial distribution in the UK could be predicted with 96% accuracy using selected variables in discriminant analysis.

7. The life histories of the congeneric heather psyllids reflect adaptations that allow them to exploit host plants with different distributions in climatic and thereby geographical space. Strophingia ericae has the flexible life history that enables it to exploit C. vulgaris throughout its European boreal temperate range. Strophingia cinereae has a less flexible life history and is adapted for living on an oceanic temperate host. While the geographic ranges of the two Strophingia spp. overlap within the UK, the psyllids appear to respond differently to variation in their thermal environment.

Measuring critical thinking skills and dispositions in undergraduate students

This thesis investigates critical thinking with a particular focus on measurement in undergraduate students. A higher education context was chosen because many regard critical thinking development as a primary goal for third level education. Nine studies, both cross-sectional and longitudinal in design, were conducted with undergraduate psychology students (N=387), using the California Critical Thinking Disposition Inventory (CCTDI) and the California Critical Thinking Skills Test (CCTST). Studies 1-3 revealed psychometric weaknesses in the CCTDI and revised the scale with factor analysis and reliability analysis to form the CCTDI United Kingdom revision (CCTDI-UK). Study 4 investigated convergent validity and showed significant inter-correlation between the sub-scales of the CCTDI-UK, and significant correlations with the Openness scale of the NEO Personality Inventory (NEO PI-R). The study also provided evidence for improvement in scores on three of the six sub-scales in the CCTDI-UK (Truth-Seeking, Inquisitiveness, Open-Mindedness) during the course of an undergraduate degree. Study 5 explored a two factor structure for critical thinking dispositions. Study 6 used reliability analysis to revise the CCTST to produce the CCTST-UK. Study 7 showed that the CCTST-UK had a moderate correlation with degree attainment and a slightly higher correlation with a test of non-verbal intelligence (Raven’s Advanced Progressive Matrices short form); in addition, the study showed that scores on the CCTST-UK improved during the course of the degree. Studies 8 and 9 investigated the potential of critical thinking for predicting degree attainment. A-levels predicted approximately 10% of the variance of degree attainment while entry level scores on the CCTST-UK predicted an additional 5%. Exit level scores on the CCTST-UK and the Inquisitive sub-scale of the CCTDI-UK were found to be predictors of degree attainment The main conclusions of the thesis were that these tests had significant potential for predicting degree attainment and that they measured a substantial proportion of the theoretical constructs identified by the major authors in critical thinking.

Combining vitamin C and carotenoid biomarkers better predicts fruit and vegetable intake than individual biomarkers in dietary intervention studies

PURPOSE: The aim of this study was to determine whether combining potential biomarkers of fruit and vegetables is better at predicting FV intake within FV intervention studies than single biomarkers.

DESIGN: Data from a tightly controlled randomised FV intervention study (BIOFAV; all food provided and two meals/day on weekdays consumed under supervision) were used. A total of 30 participants were randomised to either 2, 5 or 8 portions FV/day for 4 weeks, and blood samples were collected at baseline and 4 weeks for plasma vitamin C and serum carotenoid analysis. The combined biomarker approach was also tested in three further FV intervention studies conducted by the same research team, with less strict dietary control (FV provided and no supervised meals).

RESULTS: The combined model containing all carotenoids and vitamin C was a better fit than either the vitamin C only (P < 0.001) model or the lutein only (P = 0.006) model in the BIOFAV study. The C-statistic was slightly lower in the lutein only model (0.85) and in the model based upon factor analysis (0.88), and much lower in the vitamin C model (0.68) compared with the full model (0.95). Results for the other studies were similar, although the differences between the models were less marked.

CONCLUSIONS: Although there was some variation between studies, which may relate to the level of dietary control or participant characteristics, a combined biomarker approach to assess overall FV consumption may more accurately predict FV intake within intervention studies than the use of a single biomarker. The generalisability of these findings to other populations and study designs remains to be tested. 

Green Space Attachment and Health: A Comparative Study in Two Urban Neighborhoods

The positive relationships between urban green space and health have been well documented. Little is known, however, about the role of residents’ emotional attachment to local green spaces in these relationships, and how attachment to green spaces and health may be promoted by the availability of accessible and usable green spaces. The present research aimed to examine the links between self-reported health, attachment to green space, and the availability of accessible and usable green spaces. Data were collected via paper-mailed surveys in two neighborhoods (n = 223) of a medium-sized Dutch city in the Netherlands. These neighborhoods differ in the perceived and objectively measured accessibility and usability of green spaces, but are matched in the physically available amount of urban green space, as well as in demographic and socio-economic status, and housing conditions. Four dimensions of green space attachment were identified through confirmatory factor analysis: place dependence, affective attachment, place identity and social bonding. The results show greater attachment to local green space and better self-reported mental health in the neighborhood with higher availability of accessible and usable green spaces. The two neighborhoods did not differ, however, in physical and general health. Structural Equation Modelling confirmed the neighborhood differences in green space attachment and mental health, and also revealed a positive path from green space attachment to mental health. These findings convey the message that we should make green places, instead of green spaces.

Reliability and factorial validity of Adolescent Time Inventory-Time Attitude (ATI-TA) Scores in Scottish and Northern Irish adolescents

The contemporary literature investigating the construct broadly known as time perspective is replete with methodological and conceptual concerns. These concerns focus on the reliability and factorial validity of measurement tools, and the sample-specific modification of scales. These issues continue to hamper the development of this potentially useful psychological construct. An emerging body of evidence has supported the six-factor structure of scores on the Adolescent Time Inventory-Time Attitudes Scale, as well as their reliability. The present study utilized data from the first wave of a longitudinal study in the United Kingdom to examine the reliability, validity, and cross-cultural invariance of the scale. Results showed that the hypothesized six-factor model provided the best fit for the data; all alpha and omega estimates were >. .70; scores on ATI-TA factors related meaningfully to self-efficacy scores; and the factor structure was invariant across both research sites. Results are discussed in the context of the extant temporal literature.