Designing and evaluating an interactive assessment instrument to improve the process for mobile service application innovation

Published Version

Design of a performance assessment instrument for blind employees of a social enterprise.

Tesis (Maestría en Psicología Laboral y Organizacional) UANL, 2011.

Reliability of the Brief Neuropsychological Assessment Instrument Neupsilin

This study aimed to evaluate the reliability of Neupsilin Brief Neuropsychological Assessment Instrument, a brief battery developed in Brazil. Hundred two Brazilian man and women participated, from 18 to 40 years of age. It was evaluated the test-retest reliability of the Neupsilin tasks and the reliability of the correction of the constructional praxis task by different evaluators. The data were analyzed by Spearman’s correlation, intraclass correlation and Cronbach’s alpha. Language, memory, praxis and executive functions presented the highest correlations in the test-retest analyses. The agreement in the correction of the constructional praxis task was moderate to high. The results indicate temporal reliability of Neupsilin tasks and inter-rater agreement in the correction of the constructional praxis task. Suggestions to improve the tasks, the validity and reliability of Neupsilin were presented.

Adaptação transcultural do Preschool Language Assessment Instrument (PLAI-2) em falantes do português brasileiro com desenvolvimento típico de linguagem

Pós-graduação em Fonoaudiologia - FFC

Preschool Language Assessment Instrument, second edition, in Brazilian Portuguese-speaking children

Fundação de Amparo à Pesquisa do Estado de São Paulo (FAPESP)

Cross-cultural adaptation of Preschool Language Assessment Instrument: Second Edition

Fundação de Amparo à Pesquisa do Estado de São Paulo (FAPESP)

Desempenho de pré-escolares com queixa de Distúrbios da Comunicação no Preschool Language Assessment Instrument (Plai-2)

Fundação de Amparo à Pesquisa do Estado de São Paulo (FAPESP)

Desempenho de pré-escolares com queixa de Distúrbios da Comunicação no Preschool Language Assessment Instrument (Plai-2)

Fundação de Amparo à Pesquisa do Estado de São Paulo (FAPESP)

Factor analysis of the North American Spine Society outcome assessment instrument: a study based on a spine registry of patients treated with lumbar and cervical disc arthroplasty.

Background context Studies involving factor analysis (FA) of the items in the North American Spine Society (NASS) outcome assessment instrument have revealed inconsistent factor structures for the individual items. Purpose This study examined whether the factor structure of the NASS varied in relation to the severity of the back/neck problem and differed from that originally recommended by the developers of the questionnaire, by analyzing data before and after surgery in a large series of patients undergoing lumbar or cervical disc arthroplasty. Study design/setting Prospective multicenter observational case series. Patient sample Three hundred ninety-one patients with low back pain and 553 patients with neck pain completed questionnaires preoperatively and again at 3 to 6 and 12 months follow-ups (FUs), in connection with the SWISSspine disc arthroplasty registry. Outcome measures North American Spine Society outcome assessment instrument. Methods First, an exploratory FA without a priori assumptions and subsequently a confirmatory FA were performed on the 17 items of the NASS-lumbar and 19 items of the NASS-cervical collected at each assessment time point. The item-loading invariance was tested in the German version of the questionnaire for baseline and FU. Results Both NASS-lumbar and NASS-cervical factor structures differed between baseline and postoperative data sets. The confirmatory analysis and item-loading invariance showed better fit for a three-factor (3F) structure for NASS-lumbar, containing items on “disability,” “back pain,” and “radiating pain, numbness, and weakness (leg/foot)” and for a 5F structure for NASS-cervical including disability, “neck pain,” “radiating pain and numbness (arm/hand),” “weakness (arm/hand),” and “motor deficit (legs).” Conclusions The best-fitting factor structure at both baseline and FU was selected for both the lumbar- and cervical-NASS questionnaires. It differed from that proposed by the originators of the NASS instruments. Although the NASS questionnaire represents a valid outcome measure for degenerative spine diseases, it is able to distinguish among all major symptom domains (factors) in patients undergoing lumbar and cervical disc arthroplasty; overall, the item structure could be improved. Any potential revision of the NASS should consider its factorial structure; factorial invariance over time should be aimed for, to allow for more precise interpretations of treatment success.

A STUDY TO INVESTIGATE DIET DIVERSITY AS A NUTRITION ASSESSMENT INSTRUMENT

Nutrient intake and specific food item data from 24-hour dietary recalls were utilized to study the relationship between measures of diet diversity and dietary adequacy in a population of white females of child-bearing age and socioeconomic subgroups of that population. As the basis of the diet diversity measures, twelve food groups were constructed from the 24-hour recall data and the number of unique foods per food group counted and weighted according to specified weighting schemes. Utilizing these food groups, nine diet diversity indices were developed.^ Sensitivity/specificity analysis was used to determine the ability of varying levels of selected diet diversity indices to identify individuals above and below preselected intakes of different nutrients. The true prevalence proportions, sensitivity and specificity, false positive and false negative rates, and positive predictive values observed at the selected levels of diet diversity indices were investigated in relation to the objectives and resources of a variety of nutrition improvement programs. Diet diversity indices constructed from the total population data were evaluated as screening tools for respondent nutrient intakes in each of the socioeconomic subgroups as well.^ The results of the sensitivity/specificity analysis demonstrated that the false positive rate, the false negative rate, or both were too high at each diversity cut-off level to validate the widespread use of any of the diversity indices in the dietary assessment of the study population. Although diet diversity has been shown to be highly correlated with the intakes of a number of nutrients, the diet diversity indices constructed in this study did not adequately represent nutrient intakes in the diet as reported, in this study, intakes as reported in the 24-hour dietary recall. Specific cut-off levels of selected diversity indices might have limited application in some nutrition programs. The results were applicable to the sensitivity/specificity analyses in the socioeconomic subgroups as well as in the total population. ^

Authentic Experiences Assessment Instrument: The Case of Millennial Students and Cultural Attractions in Central Florida

Three types of authenticity were chosen to analyze cultural attractions—they were: staged or real authenticity, sensory authenticity, and existential authenticity. A group of millennium students that visited Orlando’s cultural attractions from the University of Central Florida were part of this study. Results show that the term “culture” is unclear among students. Also gender might play a role in determining what is perceived as “authenticity.” In general the focus group discussion had a consensus that these three types of authenticity were the right ones to measured cultural attractions, people, and behaviors.