Sensitivity to prior independence via Farlie-Gumbel-Morgenstern model

Statistical Methods

Perceived parenting and social support: can they predict academic achievement in Argentinean college students?

The aim of this study was to test the ability to predict academic achievement through the perception of parenting and social support in a sample of 354 Argentinean college students. Their mean age was 23.50 years (standard deviation =2.62 years) and most of them (83.3%) were females. As a prerequisite for admission to college, students are required to pass a series of mandatory core classes and are expected to complete them in two semesters. Delay in completing the curriculum is considered low academic achievement. Parenting was assessed taking into account the mother and the father and considering two dimensions: responsiveness and demandingness. Perceived social support was analyzed considering four sources: parents, teachers, classmates, and best friend or boyfriend/girlfriend. Path analysis showed that, as hypothesized, responsiveness had a positive indirect effect on the perception of social support and enhanced achievement. Demandingness had a different effect in the case of the mother as compared to the father. In the mother model, demandingness had a positive direct effect on achievement. In the case of the father, however, the effect of demandingness had a negative and indirect impact on the perception of social support. Teachers were the only source of perceived social support that significantly predicted achievement. The pathway that belongs to teachers as a source of support was positive and direct. Implications for possible interventions are discussed.Fil: de la Iglesia, Guadalupe. Universidad de Buenos Aires. Facultad de Psicología; Argentina. Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas; ArgentinaFil: Freiberg Hoffmann, Agustín. Universidad de Buenos Aires. Facultad de Psicología; Argentina. Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas; ArgentinaFil: Fernandez Liporace, Maria Mercedes. Universidad de Buenos Aires. Facultad de Psicología; Argentina. Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas; Argentin

Key features of a succesful invasive macroalgae: the case of asparagopsis taxiformis in Alboran Sea

Asparagopsis taxiformis (Bonnemaisoniales, Rhodophyta) is considered one of the most invasive seaweeds in the Mediterranean, and is included in the spanish checklist of invasive species. Recorded for first time in Southern Spain nearly twenty years ago, we are now ready to highlight its key features to have become a successful invader in Alboran Sea. Genetic studies showed that only one lineage of this species complex, is invasive in Alboran Sea, the lineage 2, which exhibits a wide physiological plasticity, exhibited in a wide thermal adaptation of performances of photosynthetic parameters like Pmax and α. Furthermore, the species is able to inhabit from shallow subtidal up to depths over -30m, due to its low Ic. The species exhibits a trigenetic life-cycle, with an invasive gametophyte dominating the host community, and a free-living tetrasporophyte (Falkenbergia phase) being the dispersal one. The gametophyte is present all the year round, and exhibits a high recruitment and vegetative growth capacity, which support more than 90% of the community biomass. Furthermore, sexual reproduction was perfomed during the whole year, except in winter months, accounting in summer months with more than 50% of the population with reproductive structures. Minimum size for reproduction was low (4-6 cm), considering the maximal size observed for the species in the study site (30 cm). Statistical anaylisis has shown no relationship of reproduction with environmental factors, such as nutrients or temperatura. These features, together with some other more, become A. taxiformis in an invasive species already well settled in Alboran Sea.Universidad de Málaga. Campus de Excelencia Internacional Andalucía Tech

Escuela infantil en Arteixo

Proxecto fin de carreira (UDC.ETSA). Curso 2012/201

Paradoxical personality scale: Its development and construct validity analysis

Se presenta el proceso de construcción y validación de la Escala de Personalidad Paradójica, diseñada a partir de la propuesta de Csikszentmihalyi (1996), quien describiera el concepto evaluado en relación a los individuos creativos. Se redactaron 150 reactivos que fueron sometidos a juicio experto y a examen de validez aparente en un estudio piloto. La versión resultante fue usada en un estudio factorial exploratorio (473 estudiantes; 50.5% varones, 49.5% mujeres; 18 a 35 años; = 21.82; DT= 3.14). La estructura resultante, de 6 dimensiones y 30 ítems, fue confirmada mediante un análisis factorial confirmatorio (800 estudiantes universitarios; 44.4% varones, 55.6% mujeres; 18 a 35 años; = 23.47; DT= 3.30). Ambas muestras provenían de la población de estudiantes universitarios de Buenos Aires, Argentina. También se analizó la consistencia interna y la estabilidad temporal de las puntuaciones, obteniéndose en ambos casos coeficientes aceptables, dada la composición de las dimensiones subyacentes al constructo analizado. Se discuten los resultados a la luz de los modelos teóricos propuestos, las ventajas de la brevedad y sencillez de aplicación y según nuevas líneas de investigación.The development and construct validation process of the Paradoxical Personality Scale is presented in this paper. The concept assessed has been posed by Csikszentmihalyi (1996) and was described as related to creative individuals. Following his guidelines, 150 items were designed and judged by five experts, and later analysed from a facies standpoint. The resulting version was used in a sample of college students (n=473; 50.5% males, 49.5% females) from 18 to 35 years (M = 21.82; DT= 3.14), to explore underlying dimensions. A 30item/6-factor solution was firstly isolated and after confirmed by a confirmatory factor analysis developed with 800 college students (44.4% males, 55.6% females), between18 and 35 years (M = 23.47; DT= 3.30). Both samples were selected from the population of college students from Buenos Aires, Argentina. Internal consistency and temporal stability of scores were also tested, obtaining adequate coefficients in both cases, in view of the composition of the dimensions underlying the construct analysed. Results show acceptable psychometric properties as well as shortness and simplicity for data gathering, which are discussed taking into account theoretical models and new research lines.Fil: Freiberg Hoffmann, Agustín. Universidad de Buenos Aires. Facultad de Psicología; Argentina. Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas; ArgentinaFil: de la Iglesia, Guadalupe. Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas; Argentina. Universidad de Buenos Aires. Facultad de Psicología; ArgentinaFil: Stover, Juliana Beatriz. Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas; Argentina. Universidad de Buenos Aires. Facultad de Psicología; ArgentinaFil: Fernandez Liporace, Maria Mercedes. Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas; Argentina. Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas. Universidad de Buenos Aires; Argentin

Perceived Parenting Styles and Parental Inconsistency Scale: Construct Validity in Young Adults

The study examinesevidences of construct validity of the Perceived Parental Styles and Parental Inconsistency scale –EPIPP–, on a sample of 369 young adults. Individuals were asked about their father and their mother by means of 24 items. These conformsix subscales that constitutea first-order-model–Affection, Dialogue, Indifference, Verbal Coercion, Physical Coercion and Prohibition–that additionally group into two major scales –a second-order model–:Responsiveness and Demandingness.A confirmatory factor analysis was carried out on the first-orderand second-order factor structures,using maximum likelihood anda bootstrap procedure with 500 random samples. Resulting indexes showed an excellent fit in both modelsfor theFatherand Motherversions. Furthermore, adequate resultswere obtained in a cross-validation and afactorial invariance analysis. This way, solid evidences of construct validity were obtained for the EPIPP, suggesting it for the assessmentof perceived parenting in young adults.Fil: de la Iglesia, Guadalupe. Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas; Argentina. Universidad de Buenos Aires; ArgentinaFil: Stover, Juliana Beatriz. Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas; Argentina. Universidad de Buenos Aires; ArgentinaFil: Freiberg Hoffmann, Agustín. Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas; Argentina. Universidad de Buenos Aires; ArgentinaFil: Fernandez Liporace, Maria Mercedes. Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas; Argentina. Universidad de Buenos Aires; Argentin

Predicting academic achievement: The role of Motivation and Learning Strategies

The aim of this study consists in testing a predictive model of academic achievement including motivation and learning strategies as predictors. Motivation is defined as the energy and the direction of behaviors; it is categorized in three types of motivation –intrinsic, extrinsic and amotivation (Deci & Ryan, 1985). Learning strategies are deliberate operations oriented towards information processing in academic activities (Valle, Barca, González & Núñez, 1999). Several studies analysed the relationship between motivation and learning strategies in high school and college environments. Students with higher academic achievement were intrinsically motivated and used a wider variety of learning strategies more frequently. A non-experimental predictive design was developed. The sample was composed by 459 students (55.2% high-schoolers; 44.8% college students). Data were gathered by means of sociodemographic and academic surveys, and also by the local versions of the Academic Motivation Scale –EMA, Echelle de Motivation en Éducation (Stover, de la Iglesia, Rial Boubeta & Fernández Liporace, 2012; Vallerand, Blais, Briere & Pelletier, 1989) and the Learning and Study Strategies Inventory –LASSI (Stover, Uriel & Fernández Liporace, 2012; Weinstein, Schulte & Palmer, 1987). Several path analyses were carried out to test a hypothetical model to predict academic achievement (Kline, 1998). Results indicated that self-determined motivation explained academic achievement through the use of learning strategies. The final model obtained an excellent fit (χ2=16.523, df= 6, p=0.011; GFI=0.987; AGFI=0.955; SRMR=0.0320; NFI=0.913; IFI=0.943; CFI=0.940). Results are discussed considering Self Determination Theory and previous research.Fil: Stover, Juliana Beatriz. Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas; Argentina. Universidad de Buenos Aires; ArgentinaFil: Freiberg Hoffmann, Agustín. Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas; Argentina. Universidad de Buenos Aires; ArgentinaFil: de la Iglesia, Guadalupe. Universidad de Buenos Aires; Argentina. Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas; ArgentinaFil: Fernandez Liporace, Maria Mercedes. Universidad de Buenos Aires; Argentina. Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas; Argentin

Field Trials for the Empirical Characterization of the Low Voltage Grid Access Impedance From 35 kHz to 500 kHz

The access impedance of low-voltage (LV) power networks is a major factor related to the performance of the narrow-band power line communications (NB-PLCs) and, in a wider sense, to electromagnetic compatibility (EMC) performance. Up to date, there is still a lack of knowledge about the frequency-dependent access impedance for frequencies above 9 kHz and up to 500 kHz, which is the band where the NB-PLC operates. The access impedance affects the transmission of the NB-PLC signal, and it determines the propagation of the non-intentional emissions that may disturb other electrical devices, including malfunctioning or reduced lifetime of equipment. This paper presents the results of field measurements of the LV access impedance up to 500 kHz in different scenarios, with measurement locations close to end users and near transformers. The results provide useful information to analyze the characteristics of the LV access impedance, including variation with frequency, ranges of values for different frequency bands, and analysis of specific phenomena. Moreover, the results reveal a diverse frequency-dependent behavior of the access impedance in different scenarios, depending on the grid topology, the number of end users (that is, number and type of connected loads), and the type of transformation center. Overall, the results of this paper offer a better understanding of the transmission of NB-PLC signals and EMC-related phenomena.The authors would like to thank Iberdrola for the availability and the collaboration of authorized staff for carrying out the field trials