Deconstructing therapy outcome measurement with Rasch analysis of a measure of general clinical distress: the Symptom Checklist-90-Revised

Rasch analysis was used to illustrate the usefulness of item-level analyses for evaluating a common therapy outcome measure of general clinical distress, the Symptom Checklist-90-Revised (SCL-90-R; Derogatis, 1994). Using complementary therapy research samples, the instrument's 5-point rating scale was found to exceed clients' ability to make reliable discriminations and could be improved by collapsing it into a 3-point version (combining scale points 1 with 2 and 3 with 4). This revision, in addition to removing 3 misfitting items, increased person separation from 4.90 to 5.07 and item separation from 7.76 to 8.52 (resulting in alphas of .96 and .99, respectively). Some SCL-90-R subscales had low internal consistency reliabilities; SCL-90-R items can be used to define one factor of general clinical distress that is generally stable across both samples, with two small residual factors

Non-compliance, board structures and the performance of financial firms during crisis: UK Evidence

This paper examines the effectiveness of internal corporate governance mechanisms for improving the performance of financial firms in the UK. The research is first of its kind to look into the relationship between corporate governance and performance of financial firms in the UK before and during the financial crisis. Using Generalised Methods of Moments (GMM) estimates that control for dynamic endogeneity, this study shows that firm performance as measured by Total Shareholder Returns (TSR) and Return on Equity (ROE) is negatively associated with the level of non-compliance with the UK Corporate Governance Code. The study also finds that having higher number of internal controls is most effective monitoring mechanism and is positively associated with firm performance. However, board independence represented by the number of non-executive directs (NEDs) is the least effective monitoring mechanism and is negatively associated with the performance of firms. The study also shows that directors’ share ownership is an effective incentive mechanism for aligning their interests with shareholders as it is positively associated with firm performance. However, the findings suggest that remuneration is negatively associated with performance. Finally, the study provides evidence which indicates that board size impact the performance of firms differently in different time periods. As proposed by agency theory the study provides evidence that shows the positive impact of effective monitoring and incentive alignment for performance. It also provides support for the resource dependence view that directors are a critical resource during difficult economic times

Implementation Science and Fidelity Measurement: A Test of the 3-5-7 Model™

Children and youths engaged with the child welfare system can experience grief and loss as a result of trauma, broken relationships, and inadequate attachments. Interventionists are often challenged to implement effective strategies that help youths to reestablish trusting relationships and to promote overall psychological well-being. A 5-year federal demonstration project funded by the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, Children’s Bureau, guided by an implementation science model, sought to increase well-being in youths age 12–21 who were involved in the child welfare system. The 3-5-7 Model™, a strengths-based approach that empowers children, youths, and families to engage in grieving and integrating significant relationships, was studied. A fidelity system was created in order to test the model. Important lessons about implementation science guided the work of the demonstration project. Although definitive conclusions could not be reached, several indicators of psychological well-being were found to be associated with high levels of fidelity to the 3-5-7 ModelTM. Suggestions for future research are offered

Effects of innovation types on firm performance

Innovation is broadly seen as an essential component of competitiveness, embedded in the organizational structures, processes, products, and services within a firm. The objective of this paper is to explore the effects of the organizational, process, product, and marketing innovations on the different aspects of firm performance, including innovative, production, market, and financial performances, based on an empirical study covering 184 manufacturing firms in Turkey. A theoretical framework is empirically tested identifying the relationships amid innovations and firm performance through an integrated innovation-performance analysis. The results reveal the positive effects of innovations on firm performance in manufacturing industries

Effects of innovation types on firm performance

Innovation is broadly seen as an essential component of competitiveness, embedded in the organizational structures, processes, products, and services within a firm. The objective of this paper is to explore the effects of the organizational, process, product, and marketing innovations on the different aspects of firm performance, including innovative, production, market, and financial performances, based on an empirical study covering 184 manufacturing firms in Turkey. A theoretical framework is empirically tested identifying the relationships amid innovations and firm performance through an integrated innovation-performance analysis. The results reveal the positive effects of innovations on firm performance in manufacturing industries

TEACHER PERCEPTIONS OF SCHOOL CLIMATE: A NEW INSTRUMENT AND VALIDITY STUDY

The United States government has growingly emphasized school climate, as it has been involved as an accountability indicator in the Every Student Succeeds Act. However, there remains considerable debate on both conceptualizing and measuring school climate. Moreover, teachers, a critical informant of school climate, have been ignored because most previous studies have paid attention to the students. To better inform the research and practice related to the teacher perceptions of school climate and its measurement, this dissertation first identified the related instruments in the literature. The results showed only one survey measured three domains of school climate (academic climate, community, and institutional environment). However, it is too long to complete in a short time. Moreover, validity assessment was not sufficient in most previous measures, especially at the item level. Thus, the second goal of this study was to construct a more parsimonious but psychometrically sound new scale. Drawing upon the insights from previous instruments, this study used items from across School Effectiveness in Indiana survey, and constructed a 30-item scale called Indiana School Climate (ISC) to measure teachers’ views of school climate. Its psychometric properties were examined by employing Principal Component Analysis of residuals and Rasch Partial Credit Model (PCM) to assess the responses from 5399 teachers in primary and secondary schools in Indiana state. The results showed the revised ISC survey containing 25 items met the requirement of PCM and presented sound psychometric properties. Differential Item Functioning (DIF) analyses were conducted to determine whether items are biased in some manner with respect to sex (males vs. females), race (White vs. non-White), and school type (public vs. private). DIF Results showed the revised ISC survey did not measure in a significantly different manner across sex and race, but further analyses should be conducted when using the scale across school types because seven of 25 items presented DIF. This dissertation has several contributions. First, it magnified teachers’ voices. Although teachers are the second largest group in a school, scholars have paid varying degrees of attention to their attitudes towards school climate. Moreover, this study constructed a parsimonious, but psychometrically sound scale to measure teacher perceptions of school climate, which is time effective for schools and educators to use. Third, validity assessment was not sufficient in most identified scales, especially at the item level. This study is novel in applying Rasch PCM to examine not only the performance of the whole scale, but also the performance of each item. Fifth, item measure indicated that teachers have been meeting more challenges from the institutional environment of a school than its academic activity, which provided specific guidance on how to improve school climate from the teacher perceptive. Finally, the process of constructing ISC informed the measurement filed and legislation. Limitations and future research were discussed in the last section

Executive Remuneration And Firm Performance: Evidence From A Panel Of Mutual Organisations

The empirical relationship between the remuneration of: the highest paid director (HPD), mean Board remuneration (Director), and the Chairperson of the Board (Chair) and firm- level performance is examined on a panel of mutual building societies over the 1991 to 1996 period. Two measures of performance are employed: profitability and the change in total factor productivity (TFP). A strong positive relationship between profitability and pay is found for the HPD but not for the Director or Chair. The relationship between pay and TFP change is generally weak for all three measures of executive remuneration. A strong relationship between size and the executive remuneration measures is found, particularly for the Director. Although there is evidence of pay being used as a governance device, the pay-size relationship is consistent with managerial theories of the firm. Surprisingly, our results are similar to those reported for joint stock firms.Mutuals; executive remuneration; performance

How can we best assess the quality of life of people with dementia? The Bath Assessment of Subjective Quality of Life in Dementia (BASQID)

Purpose of the Study - The study aim was to develop a measure of self-reported QoL for people with mild to moderate dementia based on their views - the Bath Assessment of Subjective Quality of Life in Dementia (BASQID). Design and Methods - The measure was developed through multiple stages. Two field tests of the measure (n=60 & n=150) enrolled people with dementia from a memory clinic and the data were used to analyse the psychometric properties of the scale. Nested within this was a longitudinal investigation of 36 Alzheimer’s disease patients prescribed with acetylcholinesterase inhibitors. Results - The BASQID contains 14 items assessing a range of QoL issues. Results show that the BASQID satisfies the criteria of a valid, reliable, and acceptable assessment of subjective QoL. Scores were responsive to changes in QoL, over 3-months. Low association between the BASQID and Mini Mental State Examination indicates that cognitive function may influence QoL, but is an indirect measure of the QoL experienced during dementia. Implications – The BASQID provides a means of better understanding the experiences, perceptions, and beliefs of people with dementia. It does this through acknowledgement of the many influences on QoL, over and above health status. The BASQID can be used alongside objective assessments of dementia to provide a complete appraisal of a person’s QoL

Analysis of the evolution of the Spanish labour market through unsupervised learning

Unemployment in Spain is one of the biggest concerns of its inhabitants. Its unemployment rate is the second highest in the European Union, and in the second quarter of 2018 there is a 15.2% unemployment rate, some 3.4 million unemployed. Construction is one of the activity sectors that have suffered the most from the economic crisis. In addition, the economic crisis affected in different ways to the labour market in terms of occupation level or location. The aim of this paper is to discover how the labour market is organised taking into account the jobs that workers get during two periods: 2011-2013, which corresponds to the economic crisis period, and 2014-2016, which was a period of economic recovery. The data used are official records of the Spanish administration corresponding to 1.9 and 2.4 million job placements, respectively. The labour market was analysed by applying unsupervised machine learning techniques to obtain a clear and structured information on the employment generation process and the underlying labour mobility. We have applied two clustering methods with two different technologies, and the results indicate that there were some movements in the Spanish labour market which have changed the physiognomy of some of the jobs. The analysis reveals the changes in the labour market: the crisis forces greater geographical mobility and favours the subsequent emergence of new job sources. Nevertheless, there still exist some clusters that remain stable despite the crisis. We may conclude that we have achieved a characterisation of some important groups of workers in Spain. The methodology used, being supported by Big Data techniques, would serve to analyse any alternative job market.Ministerio de Economía y Competitividad TIN2014-55894-C2-R y TIN2017-88209-C2-2-R, CO2017-8678