From research to clinical settings: validation of the Affect in Play Scale \u2013 Preschool Brief Version in a sample of preschool and school-aged Italian children

Affect in Play Scale-Preschool (APS-P) is one of the few standardized tools to measure pretend play. APS-P is an effective measure of symbolic play, able to detect both cognitive and affective dimensions which classically designated play in children, but often are evaluated separately and are scarcely integrated. The scale uses 5 min standardized play task with a set of toys. Recently the scale was extended from 6 to 10 years old and validated in Italy preschool and school-aged children. Some of the main limitations of this measure are that it requires videotaping, verbatim transcripts, and an extensive scoring training, which could compromise its clinical utility. For these reasons, a Brief version of the measure was developed by the original authors. This paper will focus on an APS-P Brief Version and its Extended Version through ages (6\u201310 years), which consists \u201cin vivo\u201d coding. This study aimed to evaluate construct and external validity of this APS-P Brief Version and its Extended Version in a sample of 538 Italian children aged 4-to-10 years. Confirmatory factor analysis yielded a two correlated factor structure including an affective and a cognitive factor. APS-P-BR and its Extended Version factor scores strongly related to APS-P Extended Version factor scores. Significant relationships were found with a divergent thinking task. Results suggest that the APS-P-BR and its Extended Version is an encouraging brief measure assessing pretend play using toys. It would easily substitute the APS-P and its Extended Version in clinical and research settings, reducing time and difficulties in scoring procedures and maintaining the same strengths

Self-stigma, Stress, and Smoking among African American and American Indian Female Smokers: An Exploratory Qualitative Study

Research suggests that negative emotions and difficulty coping with stressful events might impede women’s ability to quit smoking. This study uses qualitative methods to explore interrelationships between smoking behavior and negative emotions among a sample of racial/ethnic minority female smokers with the aims of theory-building and hypothesis generation. Data were derived from a larger study involving sixteen focus groups with current and former smokers from ethnic minority communities. The present study consisted of three focus groups of female African American and American Indian smokers (N = 16). Data was analyzed following standard methods for in vivo coding of qualitative data. Consistent with prior research, participants reported using smoking as a tool to cope with stress and negative emotions. Deprivation from smoking was associated with negative states such as anger, irritability, and distress. However, continued smoking was also a source of negative emotion, as women felt shame, guilt and low self-esteem over their inability to quit, which was perceived by some as indicative of weakness. These negative self-perceptions are consistent with stigmatized views of smokers held by the public. Women also expressed feelings of defiance about their smoking despite pressure to quit and identified external factors which contributed to their inability to quit. The negative emotions, self-stigma and shame experienced by low income American Indian and African American women smokers may contribute to continued smoking and disrupt quit attempts. Additional research is needed in order to develop effective tobacco cessation interventions for this group

A Phenomenological Study of What Motivates Secondary Students to Enroll in Virtual Academies

The purpose of this qualitative, phenomenological study was to determine what motivates secondary students to enroll in virtual academies. Students at the Tennessee Virtual Academy (TeViA) were contacted via email to determine participation interest in this study. Students that chose to participate from TeViA were asked to complete a reflective journal and participate in a semi-structured interview at their residence. In vivo coding and initial coding were conducted on the reflective journals and semi-structured interviews. In vivo coding was also conducted on observation notes before theming of the data. The theory guiding this study was Ryan and Deci’s Self-Determination Theory directed by intrinsic and extrinsic motivation. Identifying motivating factors of secondary students that enroll in virtual academies directly relate to the Self-Determination Theory in that social and environmental factors contribute to one’s intrinsic motivation (Ryan & Deci, 2000). Results of the data analysis point to that more than one factor, intrinsic or extrinsic, motivated the majority of secondary students to enroll in virtual academies with parents being a large influence. The research utilized van Manen’s hermeneutic phenomenological research theory in defining unique themes in determining what motivates secondary students to enroll in a virtual academy. After theming the data, five unique themes evolved from this study with a large amount of wasted time in a brick-and-mortar school converging as the most noted theme that motivated secondary students to enroll in a virtual academy

A Whole New World: PreK-12 Teachers\u27 Perceptions of Instruction during a Pandemic

This manuscript explores educators’ perceptions about professional and personal challenges and successes with virtual instruction, along with their concerns about the impact on students and student learning in a virtual environment during the COVID-19 pandemic. Teachers from seventeen school systems in Tennessee and Alabama were invited to participate in the study with sixty-seven participants completing surveys. A phenomenology design model was used, and In Vivo Coding was conducted to analyze the data. Results revealed four main themes related to teachers’ experiences with virtual learning: personal perceptions, instruction, impact on students, and communication. Discussion of the results and their implications are addressed along with limitations and recommendations for future research

User expectations of partial driving automation capabilities and their effect on information design preferences in the vehicle

Partially automated vehicles present interface design challenges in ensuring the driver remains alert should the vehicle need to hand back control at short notice, but without exposing the driver to cognitive overload. To date, little is known about driver expectations of partial driving automation and whether this affects the information they require inside the vehicle. Twenty-five participants were presented with five partially automated driving events in a driving simulator. After each event, a semi-structured interview was conducted. The interview data was coded and analysed using grounded theory. From the results, two groupings of driver expectations were identified: High Information Preference (HIP) and Low Information Preference (LIP) drivers; between these two groups the information preferences differed. LIP drivers did not want detailed information about the vehicle presented to them, but the definition of partial automation means that this kind of information is required for safe use. Hence, the results suggest careful thought as to how information is presented to them is required in order for LIP drivers to safely using partial driving automation. Conversely, HIP drivers wanted detailed information about the system's status and driving and were found to be more willing to work with the partial automation and its current limitations. It was evident that the drivers' expectations of the partial automation capability differed, and this affected their information preferences. Hence this study suggests that HMI designers must account for these differing expectations and preferences to create a safe, usable system that works for everyone. [Abstract copyright: Copyright © 2019 The Authors. Published by Elsevier Ltd.. All rights reserved.

“The weight we carry in our backpack is not the weight of our books, it’s the weight of our community!”: Latinas negotiating identity and multiple roles

In the United States, out of 100 Latina/o elementary students, only 0.3 will complete a doctorate degree. Latinas/os/x as a fast-growing minority population in the United States continue to be underrepresented in higher education. The underrepresentation and limited empirical research on Latinas with advanced degrees calls for immediate attention to the inequities that exist within the Latina/o/x educational pipeline. Drawing from a Latina/o Critical Theory analysis and Chicana Feminist Epistemology standpoint these interviews explore the nuanced experiences of twelve Latinas in an Educational Leadership Doctoral Program.  Life history interviews were used to reveal how the women 1) balance and negotiate their multiple racial, social class, and gender identities and roles, 2) their first-generation college student identity and guilt and 3) their identity and roles as motivatio

The Lived Religious Experience of Black Students at a Southeastern CCCU Institution

The overall purpose of this qualitative study was to better understand the religious experiences of Black students at a Council for Christian Colleges & Universities (CCCU) institution. The researcher interviewed 22 participants at a private Christian university and analyzed the data using in vivo coding, constant comparison, and thematic analysis. Findings suggest formal religious activities that are required and presumed by the institution to be nurturing can have the opposite effect for some Black students at the institution. The researcher identified three major themes regarding how Black students perceive and experience religious activity. The themes provide helpful insight regarding participants’ thoughts related to dissatisfaction and concerns, acknowledgment of personal growth, and feedback on religious programming. The themes are presented and discussed along with implications for practice

Towards a taxonomy of strategic research in the IMP tradition

The project reported in this article is part of a wider project, the aim of which is to investigate the contribution that interaction and networks (IMP) research has made to the field of strategy (Baraldi et al 2006). The specific aim of the sub-project described here is to develop, from the archive of IMP research, a better understanding of both the implicit and the explicit contributions that IMP research has made to the strategy field. The method employed is a systematic analysis of the IMP research database, using a content analysis approach, with the aim of developing a robust taxonomy of strategic research that has emerged from this body of knowledge. Specifically, this paper concerns itself with the development of the analytical method for this task, and with the presentation of the results of a pilot study conducted on 55 IMP research papers to test the analytical approachPeer reviewedSubmitted Versio