A Mixed-Methods Investigation of Factors and Scenarios Influencing College Students’ Decision to Complete Surveys at Five Mid-Western Universities

Achieving respectable response rates to surveys on university campuses has become increasingly more difficult, which can increase non-response error and jeopardize the integrity of data. Prior research has focused on investigating the effect of a single or small set of factors on college students’ decision to complete surveys. We used a concurrent mixed-method design to examine (1) college students’ rationales for choosing to complete or not complete a survey presented to them and (2) their perceptions on the importance of multiple factors on their decision to complete or not complete surveys in a higher education setting. A total of 837 undergraduate and graduate students across five institutions in the state of Ohio completed the qualitative survey component, 808 completed the 72-scenario close-ended survey component, and 701 completed the rank- order component. The survey was administered in the classroom either at the beginning or end of the class period. The college students reported that the person administering, topic, incentives, length, and method of administration are the factors most influencing their decision to complete a survey. The undergraduate students were significantly more likely than graduate students to include incentives as one of the top three important factors in deciding to complete a survey. Qualitative results additionally revealed that the students felt day/time and location of survey request plays an important role in their decision. Recommendations are provided to survey administrators regarding potential effective and ineffective survey recruitment strategies

Bacteria-inducing legume nodules involved in the improvement of plant growth, health and nutrition

Bacteria-inducing legume nodules are known as rhizobia and belong to the class Alphaproteobacteria and Betaproteobacteria. They promote the growth and nutrition of their respective legume hosts through atmospheric nitrogen fixation which takes place in the nodules induced in their roots or stems. In addition, rhizobia have other plant growth-promoting mechanisms, mainly solubilization of phosphate and production of indoleacetic acid, ACC deaminase and siderophores. Some of these mechanisms have been reported for strains of rhizobia which are also able to promote the growth of several nonlegumes, such as cereals, oilseeds and vegetables. Less studied are the mechanisms that have the rhizobia to promote the plant health; however, these bacteria are able to exert biocontrol of some phytopathogens and to induce the plant resistance. In this chapter, we revised the available data about the ability of the legume nodule-inducing bacteria for improving the plant growth, health and nutrition of both legumes and nonlegumes. These data showed that rhizobia meet all the requirements of sustainable agriculture to be used as bio-inoculants allowing the total or partial replacement of chemicals used for fertilization or protection of crops

Percent of sequences matching HF8 and Lachno2 clusters by fecal source.

<p>The 16S rRNA gene was sequences from total DNA extracted from stool or filtered fecal sediment (Human). There were ∼1 million sequences per sample generated and matched to species or family. All fecal samples were collected from the village of Jenipapo, 10 humans, 2 cows, 3 pigs, 3 dogs, and 2 horses. Species of the genus Blautia are one component of the Lachno2 group.</p><p>Percent of sequences matching HF8 and Lachno2 clusters by fecal source.</p

Self-management interventions for quality of life in adults with visual impairment

Objectives: This is a protocol for a Cochrane Review (intervention). The objectives are as follows:. The objective of this review is to assess the impact of self-management interventions on quality of life in adults with visual impairment compared with inactive or active (usual care) control interventions

Distribution of bacterial concentration along the Jiquiriçá River.

<p>qPCR measurement of target DNA from anaerobic bacterial families and <i>E. coli</i> in water samples collected along the length of the river in Jenipapo, Bahia, Brazil. S1–S8 primary sites of human water contact. Distances along the river are provided in meters. <i>Bacteroides</i> and <i>Prevotella</i> - general, Lachno2 - human-indicative Lachnospiraceae gene cluster, HF8 - human-indicative Bacteroidales gene cluster, BacR - ruminant-indicative Bacteroidales gene cluster.</p

Population characteristics.

<p>Population characteristics.</p

Primers used in this study.

<p>Primers used in this study.</p