The Behavior of Rotation Criteria in Exploratory Factor Analysis with Ordinal Data: The Role of Number of Indicators and Number of Factors

The Behavior of Rotation Criteria in Exploratory Factor Analysis with Ordinal Data: The Role of Number of Indicators and Number of Factor

Predicting Undergraduate Statistics Course Performance and Transfer through Students\u27 Implicit Theories and Achievement Goals

Students\u27 implicit theories of intelligence (TOI), implicit theories of statistics ability (TOSA), and achievement goals were analyzed as individual differences predictors of both statistics course performance and statistics transfer. Students enrolled in an introductory undergraduate statistics course completed inventories for the three individual differences under investigation as well as measures of course performance and transfer. We hypothesized that TOSA would be a stronger predictor of achievement goals, course performance, and transfer, and would outperform TOI in competing path models. We also anticipated that achievement goals would predict both statistics outcomes. Results demonstrated that (1) TOSA is a stronger predictor of achievement goals than TOI, (2) course performance is predicted negatively by entity TOSA and positively by mastery approach achievement goals, and (3) transfer is negatively predicted by performance avoidance achievement goals and entity TOSA. Results of path analysis were inconclusive

Predicting Undergraduate Statistics Course Performance and Transfer through Students\u27 Implicit Theories and Achievement Goals

Students\u27 implicit theories of intelligence (TOI), implicit theories of statistics ability (TOSA), and achievement goals were analyzed as individual differences predictors of both statistics course performance and statistics transfer. Students enrolled in an introductory undergraduate statistics course completed inventories for the three individual differences under investigation as well as measures of course performance and transfer. We hypothesized that TOSA would be a stronger predictor of achievement goals, course performance, and transfer, and would outperform TOI in competing path models. We also anticipated that achievement goals would predict both statistics outcomes. Results demonstrated that (1) TOSA is a stronger predictor of achievement goals than TOI, (2) course performance is predicted negatively by entity TOSA and positively by mastery approach achievement goals, and (3) transfer is negatively predicted by performance avoidance achievement goals and entity TOSA. Results of path analysis were inconclusive

Development and Validation of 18-Item Short Form for the Parents as Social Context Questionnaire

Parenting styles have been shown to have direct and indirect influences on child, adolescent, and adult psychosocial outcomes. The Parents as Social Context Questionnaire assesses how well an individual’s parenting style provides for their child’s psychological needs on six unipolar subscales: warmth, rejection, structure, chaos, autonomy, support, and coercion. The aim of the present study was to increase the clinical and research utility of the Parents as Social Context Questionnaire by: (1) establishing a short form; (2) evaluating the fit of the established short form with the unipolar, six dimensional and the bipolar, three-dimensional frameworks of parenting styles; and (3) assessing the reliability and validity of the established short form. Three-hundred and fifty-one parents of a child between the ages of 1 and 12 years were recruited by university students in the United States and completed the current study as part of a larger online survey. First, the number of items per latent factor in the 30-item Parents as Social Context Questionnaire was reduced. A unipolar, six-dimensional structure with positive and negative higher-order factors demonstrated good fit, while a bipolar, three-dimensional structure did not. Results demonstrated adequate to good internal consistency, convergent validity, and criterion validity. The current study produced preliminary support for an 18-item, unipolar, six-dimensional short form of the Parents as Social Context Questionnaire (i.e., PASCQ-18), which has the potential to allow for more widespread assessment of parenting styles in clinical and research settings by decreasing patient and participant burden and promoting a higher response rate

Self-Myofascial Vibro-Shearing: a Randomized Controlled Trial of Biomechanical and Related Changes in Male Breakdancers

Background: This randomized controlled trial explored the practicality and effectiveness of a novel tool-assisted self-help device, one that combines vibrational oscillation, leverage, and the shearing effect from the edges, for promoting meaningful changes in key biomechanical tissue indices and related parameters. Methods: One hundred and thirteen male breakdancers were randomized to an intervention or control group. Individuals assigned to the intervention group performed the self-help treatment on the quadriceps and the iliotibial band of their right thighs for 8 min, while individuals assigned to the control condition merely sat quietly during this period. Various primary outcome measures (e.g., elasticity, stiffness, range of motion, pain pressure threshold sensitization, and blood flow) were assessed before and after the intervention for each participant, with position and posture being standardized throughout. Subjective sensations and a measure selected to assess for potential experimental demand effects, serving as secondary measures, were also administered pre- to post-treatment. Results: Stiffness was significantly reduced for both structures (p \u3c 0.001), elasticity and flexibility of the quadriceps were increased significantly (p \u3c 0.001 for each), sensitization was significantly lessened (p \u3c 0.001), and local temperatures increased to a significant degree as well (p \u3c 0.001) when comparing change scores following application of the self-help tool on the treated thighs to those on the untreated thighs. Participants using the self-help tool reported their treated leg as being more relaxed, light, and stable. Conclusions: The vibro-shearing manipulation with a muscle-fascia tool resulted in significant improvements in various objective mechanical tissue properties, range of motion, and pain desensitization in healthy, well-conditioned dancers. These promising effects for a new tool-assisted self-treatment indicate further basic investigations are warranted, as are pilot investigations with patient populations

Developmental Trajectories of Pediatric Obsessive–Compulsive Symptoms

Children who experience obsessive–compulsive symptoms (OCS) may be at risk for developing Obsessive–Compulsive Disorder (OCD). The current study aimed to investigate developmental trajectories of OCS, as well as possible predictors, within a community-based sample of children. Children (N = 1147) from the longitudinal NICHD Study of Early Child Care and Youth Development (SECCYD) were assessed for OCS, via the Child Behavioral Checklist – Obsessive–Compulsive Scale (OCS-8), eight times between Pre-Kindergarten (54 months; Pre-K) and High School (15 years of age; HS.) Participants were recruited within the United States and included only maternal caregivers. Preliminary analyses indicated that approximately 3% of the sample was above the diagnostic cutoff score on the OCS-8 at the High School time-point. Latent growth models tested symptom trajectories. Findings demonstrated three groups of OCS trajectories. Most children fell within a low symptomatology group (the No Peak group) with low OCS across all time points. Two additional OCS trajectories were also demonstrated: Pre-K Peak (high to low OCS across time) and HS Peak (low to high OCS across time). Both higher attention problems and greater depression/anxiety symptoms at the Pre-K time point predicted children’s membership in the Pre-K Peak or HS Peak groups compared to the No Peak group. Membership within the HS Peak group predicted a high likelihood of children’s OCS being above previously established cutoff scores for an OCD diagnosis at age 15 years. Membership within either the Pre-K Peak or No Peak groups predicted a low likelihood. This study provides new evidence for the existence of different developmental trajectories for youth with OCS. From a clinical perspective, these results may have important implications when considering the identification and early intervention of childhood OCS and OCD within the community

How peer conflict profiles and socio-demographic factors influence type 1 diabetes adaptation

Objective: This study aimed to (a) validate the factor structure for a measure of peer conflict in youth with type 1 diabetes (T1D); (b) determine empirical patterns of peer conflict in terms of context (friend vs. nonfriend) and content (diabetes-specific vs. general) within a broader context of socio-demographic factors; and (c) examine how these patterns and socio-demographic factors relate to adolescents\u27 T1D adherence, quality of life, and glycemic control (HbA1c). Methods: Youth with T1D (N = 178), ages 12-18, reported demographic variables, illness duration, adherence, quality of life, and peer conflict. HbA1c was extracted from medical records. Confirmatory factor analysis validated a factor structure for the Diabetes Peer Conflict Scale (DPCS) and latent profile analysis (LPA) determined profiles of peer conflict. Results: A four-factor structure emerged for the DPCS: general friend conflict, general nonfriend conflict, T1D friend conflict, and T1D nonfriend conflict. Using these factors as indicators in LPA, four profiles were confirmed: (a) Low Overall Conflict (LOC) and (b) Moderate Overall Conflict (MOC), (c) a Nonfriend Conflict (NFC), and (d) a Friend Conflict (FC) profile. Differences were not identified between diabetes specific versus general conflict. Socio-demographic variables did not predict class membership. The LOC profile reported the highest quality of life and best glycemic control, whereas the FC profile reported the lowest adherence behaviors. Conclusions: Peer conflict uniquely contributes to diabetes adaptation above and beyond socio-demographic and illness factors

Predictors of Diabetic Ketoacidosis Hospitalizations and Hemoglobin A1c among Youth with Type 1 Diabetes

Diabetic ketoacidosis (DKA) and elevated hemoglobin A1c (HbA1c) in youth with Type 1 diabetes (T1D) can result in significant morbidity and mortality. Elucidating the risk factors for poor glycemic control and DKA hospitalizations is crucial for the refinement and development of prevention and treatment efforts. Method: Based on a conceptual framework, this study used path analysis to evaluate individual and family characteristics, psychosocial responses, and individual and family responses that prospectively predict the number of DKA hospitalizations and HbA1c approximately 1 year after assessment, accounting for sociodemographics. A total of 174 youth 12-18 years old with T1D (M 14.68, SD 1.77) and their caregivers completed measures assessing demographics, internalizing symptoms, diabetes stress, diabetes-related family conflict, and adherence. Medical records were reviewed to obtain the number of episodes of DKA and the HbA1c at 1-year follow-up. Results: Thirty-one participants had at least 1 episode of DKA based on chart review. Greater duration of diabetes, higher baseline HbA1c, lower income, identifying as non-Hispanic White, and higher youth report of internalizing symptoms were significant predictors of DKA at follow-up (p.05). Identifying as Black African American, a younger age, and higher baseline HbA1c significantly predicted higher HbA1c at follow-up (p .05). Conclusions: Future studies should assess the utility and accuracy of using screeners for internalizing symptoms in pediatric endocrinology clinics to identify youth at risk for DKA hospitalizations

Additional file 1: of Self-Myofascial Vibro-Shearing: a Randomized Controlled Trial of Biomechanical and Related Changes in Male Breakdancers

Relationship of the displacement oscillation (S) and oscillation velocity (V) in relation to the oscillation acceleration (a). After the single mechanical impulse is delivered and quick-released under constant precompression, the tissue being measured responds immediately in the form of a damped oscillation, causing the co-oscillation of: a) a tissue being measured, b) the pre-compressed subcutaneous tissue layers above the tissue (i.e., superficial skeletal muscle), c) the testing-end, d) measurement mechanism, and e) accelerometer attached to the measurement mechanism. Damped oscillation of a soft biological tissue is registered in the form of an acceleration graph (a). (DOCX 133 kb