Lemko linguistic identity: Contested pluralities

In their efforts to organize as a recognized minority within the Polish state, the Lemkos have faced a number of obstacles, both internal and external to the community. This article explores three aspects of self-representation of the Lemko community - group membership, victimhood and “speakerhood” – and examines how these representations are contested on a number of levels.National Foreign Language Resource Cente

Nonparametric Tests of Interaction for the Two-Way Design With Skewed Distributions

The most common parametric procedure used to test main and interaction effects in the two- or more-groups factorial design is the analysis of variance (ANOVA) F test. Researchers in the behavioral and social sciences fields require statistical methods that are robust in the presence of deviations from the common parametric ANOVA assumptions of (a) normality, (b) homogeneity of variances among groups, and (c) independence of observations. When there is concern that the parametric assumptions are violated, nonparametric procedures can be employed that do not make as many initial assumptions about the parent populations. Of particular interest in the two-factor design is the test for interaction among the factors. This paper seeks to contribute to the research of nonparametric methods by exploring the properties of various nonparametric tests in detecting and inferring interaction effects when the population distributions are skewed or asymmetrical. A review of rank-based nonparametric tests for interaction is provided to determine what methods have been proposed to test for interaction and how these methods have performed in comparative research studies. This review includes research findings regarding normal scores to determine the potential of a normal scores transformation when testing for interaction. A comparative study of nonparametric methods that have been shown by past research to provide reasonable power and Type I error control is conducted to determine if these methods also perform well when testing for interaction effects using Monte Carlo simulated data with skewed and asymmetric distributions. A second comparative study explores the performance of three novel nonparametric tests for interaction. These three tests are the rank transform test, aligned rank transform test, and McSweeney test with a Van der Waerden normal scores transformation in place of a rank transformation. For the studied designs, the aligned rank transform test, the aligned rank transform test using normal scores, and the McSweeney test using normal scores provide nonparametric tests of interaction that maintain Type I error rate, are as powerful as the ANOVA F test when the underlying population is normal, and have more power when the underlying population is not normal

Addressing the Confusion Within Periodization Research

In this editorial, we focus on recent problematic developments in sport science, and more specifically, problems related to periodization research. Primary areas discussed are (1) appreciation of history, (2) considerations for training studies, (3) the development of concepts, and (4) programming-driven training models

Effects of Weightlifting Training on Isometric Mid-Thigh Pull Rate of Force Development

PURPOSE: To examine the influence of three distinct training phases on isometric mid-thigh pull (IMTP) measures in well-trained weightlifters. METHODS: Pre- and post-block IMTP data from 11 collegiate weightlifters was used for analysis. The mean of the best two attempts from each athlete for measures of PF and RFD from 0-50ms, 0-100ms, 0-150ms, 0-200ms, and 0-250ms were used for comparison. In total, results from five timepoints for each of the 11 athletes were examined in order to compare the effects of the three training phases. RESULTS: A repeated measures ANOVA revealed no statistically significant (p ≥ 0.05) effects of training on any of the variables measured. When comparing post block values from each phase to pre-training cycle values, the largest increase in RFD200 (d = 0.22) and RFD250 (d=0.22) occurred post strength-power (SP) phase, while the peak in RFD50 (d = 0.32), RFD100 (d = 0.31), and RFD150 (d = 0.22) occurred after the peak/taper (PT) phase. CONCLUSIONS: Based on the results of the study, it is possible that changes in IMTP RFD may reflect the expected adaptations of block periodization. Rather than examining RFD changes at only one time-band, it may be valuable to monitor RFD across multiple time bands as changes in early and late RFD may not occur proportionally during a peak/taper phase