Interactive relationships among multiple dimensions of professional commitment: Implications for stress outcomes in lawyers

The purpose of this study was to examine the main and interactive effects of four dimensions of professional commitment on strain (i.e., depression, anxiety, perceived health status, and job dissatisfaction) for a sample of 176 law professionals. The study utilized a two-wave design in which professional commitment and strain were measured at Time 1 and strain was measured again at Time 2 (T2), 2 months later. A significant two-way interaction indicated that high affective commitment was related to less T2 job dissatisfaction only for lawyers with low accumulated costs. A significant four-way interaction indicated that high affective professional commitment was only related to fewer symptoms of T2 anxiety for lawyers with high normative professional commitment and both low limited alternatives and accumulated costs. A similar pattern of results emerged in regard to T2 perceived health status. The theoretical and practical implications of these results for career counselors are discussed.

Re-theorizing the “digital divide”: Identifying dimensions of social exclusion in contemporary media technologies

The digital divide is the disparancy in access to information, in the ability to communicate, and in the capacity to make information and communication serve full participation in the information society. Indeed, the conversation about the digital divide has developed over the last decade from a focus on connectivity and access to information and communication technologies, to a conversation that encompasses the ability to use them and to the utility that usage provides (Wei et al., 2011). However, this conversation, while transitioning from technology to the skills of the people that use them and to the fruits of their use is limited in its ability to take into account the social role of information and communication technologies (ICTs). One successful attempt in conceptualizing the social impact of the differences in access to and utilization of digital communication technologies, was developed by van Dijk (2005) whose sequential model for analyzing the divide states that: 1. Categorical inequalities in society produce an unequal distribution of resources; 2. An unequal distribution of resources causes unequal access to digital technologies; 3. Unequal access to digital technologies also depends on the characteristics of these technologies; 4. Unequal access to digital technologies brings about unequal participation in society; 5. Unequal participation in society reinforces categorical inequalities and unequal distributions of resources.” (p. 15) As van Dijk’s model demonstrates, the divide’s impact is the exclusion of individuals from participation. Still left to be defined are the “categorical inequalities,” the “resources,” the “characteristics of digital technologies,” and the different levels of “access” that result in differentiated levels of participation, as these change over time due to the evolving nature of technology and the dynamics of society. And most importantly, the meaning of “participation” in contemporary society needs to be determined as it is differentiated levels of participation that are the result of the divide and the engine of the ever-growing disparities. Our argument is structured in the following manner: We first claim that contemporary digital media differ from the previous generation of ICTs along four dimensions: They offer an abundance of information resources and communication channels when compared to the relative paucity of both in the past; they offer mobility as opposed to the stationary nature of their predecessors; they are interactive in that they provide users with the capability to design their own media environments in contrast to the dictated environs of previous architectures; and, they allow users to communicate utilizing multi forms of mediation, unlike the uniformity of sound or word that limited users in the past. We then submit that involvement in the information society calls for egalitarian access to all four dimensions of the user experience that make contemporary media different from their predecessors and that the ability to experience all four affects the levels in which humans partake in the shaping of society. The model being cyclical, we then discuss how lower levels of participation contribute to the enhancement of social inequalities. Finally, we discuss why participation is needed in order to achieve full membership in the information society and what political philosophy should govern policy solutions targeting the re-inclusion of those digitally excluded.

Axial binding of 2-methylimidazole to the tetraarylcarboxylatodiruthenium (II, III) core: X-ray crystal structure of [Ru-2(O2CC6H4-p-OMe)(4)(2-mimH)(2)](ClO4). 1.75CH(2)Cl(2).H2O

Diruthenium (II. III) complexes of the type [Ru-2(O2CAr)(4) (2-mimH)(2)](ClO4) (Ar = C6H4-p-X : X=OMe,1, X=Me, 2, 2-mimH=2-methylimidazole) have been isolated from the reaction of Ru2Cl(O2CAr)(4) with 2-mimH in CH2Cl2 followed by the addition of NaClO4. The crystal structure of 1.1.75CH(2)Cl(2).H2O has been determined. The crystal belongs to the monoclinic space group p2(1)/c with the following unit cell dimensions for the C40H40N4O16ClRu2.1.75CH(2)Cl(2).H2O (M = 1237.0) : a = 12.347(3)Angstrom, b = 17.615(5)Angstrom, c = 26.148(2)Angstrom,beta = 92.88(1)degrees. v = 5679(2)Angstrom(3). Z=4, D-c = 1.45 g cm(-3). lambda(Mo-K-alpha) = 0.7107 Angstrom, mu(Mo-K-alpha) = 8.1 cm(-1), T = 293 K, R = 0.0815 (wR(2) = 0.2118) for 5834 reflections with 1 > 2 sigma(I). The complex has a tetracarboxylatodiruthenium (II, III) core and two axially bound 2-methylimidazole ligands. The Ru-Ru bond length is 2.290(1)Angstrom. The Ru-Ru bond order is 2.5 and the complex is three-electron paramagnetic. The complex shows an irreversible Ru-2(II,III)-->Ru-2(Il,II) reduction near -0.2 V vs SCE in CH2Cl2-0. 1 MTBAP. The complexes exemplify the first adduct of the tetracarboxylatodiruthenium (II,III) core having N-donor ligands

A head-mounted display as a personal viewing device: Dimensions of subjective experiences

The use of head-mounted displays (HMDs) can produce both positive and negative experiences. In an effort increase positive experiences and avoid negative ones, researchers have identified a number of variables that may cause sickness and eyestrain, although the exact nature of the relationship to HMDs may vary, depending on the tasks and the environments. Other non-sickness-related aspects of HMDs, such as users opinions and future decisions associated with task enjoyment and interest, have attracted little attention in the research community. In this thesis, user experiences associated with the use of monocular and bi-ocular HMDs were studied. These include eyestrain and sickness caused by current HMDs, the advantages and disadvantages of adjustable HMDs, HMDs as accessories for small multimedia devices, and the impact of individual characteristics and evaluated experiences on reported outcomes and opinions. The results indicate that today s commercial HMDs do not induce serious sickness or eyestrain. Reported adverse symptoms have some influence on HMD-related opinions, but the nature of the impact depends on the tasks and the devices used. As an accessory to handheld devices and as a personal viewing device, HMDs may increase use duration and enable users to perform tasks not suitable for small screens. Well-designed and functional, adjustable HMDs, especially monocular HMDs, increase viewing comfort and usability, which in turn may have a positive effect on product-related satisfaction. The role of individual characteristics in understanding HMD-related experiences has not changed significantly. Explaining other HMD-related experiences, especially forward-looking interests, also requires understanding more stable individual traits and motivations.

Development of the dimensions of adult mastery motivation questionnaire

Mastery motivation is an important developmental construct that has implications for development across the lifespan. Research to date has focused predominantly on infants and children, with the Dimensions of Mastery Questionnaire (DMQ) being the most widely used measure of mastery motivation. This paper reports on the development and initial validation of an adult measure: the Dimensions of Adult Mastery Motivation Questionnaire (DAMMQ). Six hundred and twenty-eight adults (68 % female) aged 18 to 90 years completed the questionnaire. Factor analysis produced 24 items that represented five factors: task persistence, preference for challenge, task related pleasure, task absorption and competence/self-efficacy. The DAMMQ was found to have good internal consistency, test-retest reliability and concurrent validity. Within group differences for age, gender and education are reported. The development of the DAMMQ paves the way for future research about mastery motivation in adult populations.

Unpacking the perceived opportunity to misbehave: The influence of spatio-temporal and social dimensions on consumer misbehavior

Purpose This study aims to use opportunity as a theoretical lens to investigate how the spatio-temporal and social dimensions of the consumption environment create perceived opportunities for consumers to misbehave. Design/methodology/approach Drawing on routine activity theory and social impact theory, the authors use two experiments to demonstrate that spatio-temporal and social dimensions can explain consumer theft in retail settings. Findings Study 1 reveals mixed empirical support for the basic dimensions of routine activity theory, which posits that the opportunity to thieve is optimised when a motivated offender, suitable target and the absence of a capable formal guardian transpire in time and space. Extending the notion of guardianship, Study 2 tests social impact theory and shows that informal guardianship impacts the likelihood of theft under optimal routine activity conditions. Originality/value The study findings highlight important implications for academicians and retail managers: rather than focusing on the uncontrollable characteristics of thieving offenders, more controllable spatio-temporal and social factors of the retail environment can be actively monitored and manipulated to reduce perceived opportunities for consumer misbehaviour.

A note on fractal dimensions of biomedical waveforms

In this paper, we study performance of Katz method of computing fractal dimension of waveforms, and its estimation accuracy is compared with Higuchi's method. The study is performed on four synthetic parametric fractal waveforms for which true fractal dimensions can be calculated, and real sleep electroencephalogram. The dependence of Katz's fractal dimension on amplitude, frequency and sampling frequency of waveforms is noted. Even though the Higuchi's method has given more accurate estimation of fractal dimensions, the study suggests that the results of Katz's based fractal dimension analysis of biomedical waveforms have to be carefully interpreted.

The reproducibility of acquiring three dimensional gait and plantar pressure data using established protocols in participants with and without type 2 diabetes and foot ulcers

Background Several prospective studies have suggested that gait and plantar pressure abnormalities secondary to diabetic peripheral neuropathy contributes to foot ulceration. There are many different methods by which gait and plantar pressures are assessed and currently there is no agreed standardised approach. This study aimed to describe the methods and reproducibility of three-dimensional gait and plantar pressure assessments in a small subset of participants using pre-existing protocols. Methods Fourteen participants were conveniently sampled prior to a planned longitudinal study; four patients with diabetes and plantar foot ulcers, five patients with diabetes but no foot ulcers and five healthy controls. The repeatability of measuring key biomechanical data was assessed including the identification of 16 key anatomical landmarks, the measurement of seven leg dimensions, the processing of 22 three-dimensional gait parameters and the analysis of four different plantar pressures measures at 20 foot regions. Results The mean inter-observer differences were within the pre-defined acceptable level (<7 mm) for 100 % (16 of 16) of key anatomical landmarks measured for gait analysis. The intra-observer assessment concordance correlation coefficients were > 0.9 for 100 % (7 of 7) of leg dimensions. The coefficients of variations (CVs) were within the pre-defined acceptable level (<10 %) for 100 % (22 of 22) of gait parameters. The CVs were within the pre-defined acceptable level (<30 %) for 95 % (19 of 20) of the contact area measures, 85 % (17 of 20) of mean plantar pressures, 70 % (14 of 20) of pressure time integrals and 55 % (11 of 20) of maximum sensor plantar pressure measures. Conclusion Overall, the findings of this study suggest that important gait and plantar pressure measurements can be reliably acquired. Nearly all measures contributing to three-dimensional gait parameter assessments were within predefined acceptable limits. Most plantar pressure measurements were also within predefined acceptable limits; however, reproducibility was not as good for assessment of the maximum sensor pressure. To our knowledge, this is the first study to investigate the reproducibility of several biomechanical methods in a heterogeneous cohort.

Depression, Anxiety, Psychiatric Comorbidity and Dimensions of Temperament and Personality

This study is part of the Mood Disorders Project conducted by the Department of Mental Health and Alcohol Research, National Public Health Institute, and consists of a general population survey sample and a major depressive disorder (MDD) patient cohort from Vantaa Depression Study (VDS). The general population survey study was conducted in 2003 in the cities of Espoo and Vantaa. The VDS is a collaborative depression research project between the Department of Mental Health and Alcohol Research of the National Public Health Institute and the Department of Psychiatry of the Peijas Medical Care District (PMCD) beginning in 1997. It is a prospective, naturalistic cohort study of 269 secondary-level care psychiatric out- and inpatients with a new episode of Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders, 4th edition (DSM-IV) MDD. In the general population survey study, a total of 900 participants (300 from Espoo, 600 from Vantaa) aged 20 70 years were randomly drawn from the Population Register Centre in Finland. A self-report booklet, including the Eysenck Personality Inventory (EPI), the Temperament and Character Inventory Revised (TCI-R), the Beck Depression Inventory and the Beck Anxiety Inventory was mailed to all subjects. Altogether 441 participants responded (94 returned only the shortened version without TCI-R) and gave their informed consent. VDS involved screening all patients aged 20-60 years (n=806) in the PMCD for a possible new episode of DSM-IV MDD. 542 consenting patients were interviewed with a semi-structured interview (the WHO Schedules for Clinical Assessment in Neuropsychiatry, version 2.0). 269 patients with a current DSM-IV MDD were included in the study and further interviewed with semi-structured interviews to assess all other axis I and II psychiatric diagnoses. Exclusion criteria were DSM-IV bipolar I and II, schizoaffective disorder, schizophrenia or another psychosis, organic and substance-induced mood disorders. In the present study are included those 193 (139 females, 54 males) individuals who could be followed up at both 6 and 18 months, and their depression had remained unipolar. Personality was investigated with the EPI. Personality dimensions associated not only to the symptoms of depression, but also to the symptoms of anxiety among general population and in depressive patients, as well as to comorbid disorders in MDD patients, supporting the dimensional view of depression and anxiety. Among the general population High Harm Avoidance and low Self-Directedness associated moderately, whereas low extraversion and high neuroticism strongly with the depressive and anxiety symptoms. The personality dimensions, especially high Harm Avoidance, low Self-Directedness and high neuroticism were also somewhat predictive of self-reported use of health care services for psychiatric reasons, and lifetime mental disorder. Moreover, high Harm Avoidance associated with a family history of mental disorder. In depressive patients, neuroticism scores were found to decline markedly and extraversion scores to increase somewhat with recovery. The predictive value of the changes in symptoms of depression and anxiety in explaining follow-up neuroticism was about 1/3 of that of baseline neuroticism. In contrast to neuroticism, the scores of extraversion showed no dependence on the symptoms of anxiety, and the change in the symptoms of depression explained only 1/20 of the follow-up extraversion compared with baseline extraversion. No evidence was found of the scar effect during a one-year follow-up period. Finally, even after controlling for symptoms of both depression and anxiety, depressive patients had a somewhat higher level of neuroticism (odds ratio 1.11, p=0.001) and a slightly lower level of extraversion (odds ratio 0.92, p=0.003) than subjects in the general population. Among MDD patients, a positive dose-exposure relationship appeared to exist between neuroticism and prevalence and number of comorbid axis I and II disorders. A negative relationship existed between level of extraversion and prevalence of comorbid social phobia and cluster C personality disorders. Personality dimensions are associated with the symptoms of depression and anxiety. Futhermore these findings support the hypothesis that high neuroticism and somewhat low extraversion might be vulnerability factors for MDD, and that high neuroticism and low extraversion predispose to comorbid axis I and II disorders among patients with MDD.

A solution framework for scheduling a BPM with non-identical job dimensions

A Batch Processing Machine (BPM) is one which processes a number of jobs simultaneously as a batch with common beginning and ending times. Also, a BPM, once started cannot be interrupted in between (Pre-emption not allowed). This research is motivated by a BPM in steel casting industry. There are three main stages in any steel casting industry viz., pre-casting stage, casting stage and post-casting stage. A quick overview of the entire process, is shown in Figure 1. There are two BPMs : (1) Melting furnace in the pre-casting stage and (2) Heat Treatment Furnace (HTF) in the post casting stage of steel casting manufacturing process. This study focuses on scheduling the latter, namely HTF. Heat-treatment operation is one of the most important stages of steel casting industries. It determines the final properties that enable components to perform under demanding service conditions such as large mechanical load, high temperature and anti-corrosive processing. In general, different types of castings have to undergo more than one type of heat-treatment operations, where the total heat-treatment processing times change. To have a better control, castings are primarily classified into a number of job-families based on the alloy type such as low-alloy castings and high alloy castings. For technical reasons such as type of alloy, temperature level and the expected combination of heat-treatment operations, the castings from different families can not be processed together in the same batch.

Melting of an Anchored Bilayer: Phase Transitions in the Organic-Inorganic Hybrid Pervoskite (CH3NH3)(CH3(CH2)(n)NH3)(2)Pb2I7 (n=11, 13, 15, 17)

The conformation, organization, and phase transitions of alkyl chains in organic-inorganic hybrids based on the double pervoskite-slab lead iodides, (CH3NH3)(CH3(CH2)(n)NH3)(2)Pb2I7 (n = 11, 13, 15, 17) have been investigated by X-ray diffraction, calorimetry, and infrared vibrational spectroscopy. In these hybrid solids, double pervoskite (CH3NH3)Pb2I7 slabs are interleaved with alkyl ammonium chains with the anchored alkyl chains arranged as tilted bilayers and adopting a planar all-trans conformation at room temperature. The (CH3NH3)(CH3(CH2)(n)NH3)(2)Pb2I7 compounds exhibit a single reversible phase transition above room temperature with the associated enthalpy change varying linearly with alkyl chain length. This transition corresponds to the melting in two-dimensions of the alkyl chains of the anchored bilayer and is characterized by increased conformational disorder of the methylene units of the chain and loss of tilt angle coherence leading to an increase in the interslab spacing. By monitoring features in the infrared spectra that are characteristic of the global conformation of the alkyl chains, a quantitative relation between conformational disorder and melting of the anchored bilayer is established. It is found that, irrespective of the alkyl chain length, melting occurs when at least 60% of the chains in the anchored bilayer of (CH3NH3)(CH3(CH2)(n)NH3)(2)Pb2I7 have one or more gauche defects. This concentration is determined by the underlying lattice to which the alkyl chains are anchored.

Experimental studies on a two stage pulse tube cryocooler reaching 2.5K

A two stage Pulse Tube Cryocooler (PTC) is designed and fabricated which reaches a no-load temperature of 2.5K in the second stage and similar to 60 K in the first stage respectively. The system provides a cooling power of similar to 250 mW at 5K in the second stage. Stainless steel meshes (size 200) and lead (Pb) granules are used as the first stage regenerator materials and combination of Pb with Er3Ni / HoCu2 are used as the second stage regenerator materials. The system operates at 1.6 Hz using a 6 kW water cooled helium compressor. Studies conducted by varying the dimensions of Pulse Tubes and regenerators show that the dimensions of the Pulse Tubes are more critical to the performance of the Cryocooler than those of the regenerators. Experimental studies show that the optimum volume ratios of Er3Ni to Pb and HoCu2 to Pb in the second stage regenerator should be 3:2 and 2:3 respectively for the best performance. Further, systems with HoCu2 performed better than those with Er3Ni. The theoretical analysis of the system has been carried out using a simple isothermal model. The experimentally measured cooling powers are in good agreement with the theoretical predictions.

Crystal And Molecular-Structure Of 8-Acetoxy-6-(2,4-Dimethoxy-5-Bromophenyl)-3-Methyl-Tricyclo[5,2,1,03,8 ]Decan-2-One

The crystal and molecular structure has been determined by the heavy-atom method and refined by the least-squares procedure to R= 8"3 % for 2033 photographically observed reflexions. The compound crystallizes in the space group P]" with two molecules in a unit cell of dimensions a = 11"68 + 0-02, b = 12"91 +0"02, c= 10"43+0"02/~, e= 114"7+ 1, fl=90-2+ 1 and 7,= 118.3+ 1 °. The unit cell also contains one molecule of the solvent, benzene. The 'cage' part of the molecule exhibits a large number of elongated bonds and strained internal valency angles. The bridgehead angle in the bicyclic heptane ring system is 89 °. The acetate group at C(16) and the methyl group at C(15) are cis to each other.

Investigations of a two-stage pulse tube cryocooler operating down to 2.5K

A two-stage pulse tube cryocooler (PTC) which produces a no-load temperature of similar to 2.5 K in its second stage at an operating frequency of 1.6 Hz has been designed and fabricated. The second stage of the system provides a refrigeration power of similar to 250 mW at 5.0 K. The system uses stainless steel meshes (mesh size 200) along with lead (Pb) granules and combinations of Pb, Er3Ni, and HoCu2 as the first and second stage regenerator materials, respectively. Experimental studies have been carried out on different pulse tube configurations by varying the dimensions of the pulse tubes and regenerators to arrive at the best one, which leads to the lowest no-load second stage cold head temperature. Using this configuration, detailed experimental studies have been conducted by varying the volume percentage ratios of the second stage regenerator materials such as HoCu2, Er3Ni, and Pb (with an average grain size of similar to 250 mu m). This article presents the results of our experimental studies on cryocoolers with the regenerator material arranged in layered structures. Comparative studies have also been presented for specific cases where the regenerator materials are arranged as a homogeneous mixture in the second stage. The experimental results clearly indicate that the design of PTCs should use only layered structures of regenerator materials and not homogenous mixtures.