Right-Left Discrimination and Finger Localization in Schizophrenic Subjects

Much interest has been evidenced recently in right-left discrimination and finger localization tasks as techniques for demonstrating behavioral impairment in patients with known cerebral disease or injury. Defective performance by brain injured patients on both types of tasks has been described in numerous case reports (cf. 3) and has· been demonstrated in experimentally-produced cerebral dysfunction (1). In a systematic study of the incidence of defective performance in brain-injured and control patients, Benton and Cohen (2) found that the brain-injured patients, who did not suffer from serious general intellectual deficit, showed significant impairment in finger-localization performance when compared to the matched controls. There were, however, no differences in right-left discrimination performances between the two groups. These findings, while, of course, interesting and significant in their own right, raise some important questions which now require empirically derived answers. One such question, of considerable theoretical significance and practical importance, is whether the observed deficit in performance is specifically characteristic of brain-injured patients or whether it represents another instance of psychological deficits common to most psychopathological individuals (4). The present study attempts to answer this question in part by replicating the Benton and Cohen study with a group of adult schizophrenic patients

A Statement of the Problem

While discussions of the magnitude of the mental health problem here in Iowa and throughout the United States are commonplace, the facts and figures concerning this problem are nevertheless still quite overwhelming. For example, the average daily resident population in Iowa publicly supported mental hospitals for 1956 was 5,200 persons, while the national average was 556,000 (1); these figures exclude persons in federally supported hospitals, private hospitals and those receiving only out-patient treatment. The total expenditures for the maintenance of these patient populations (excluding capital improvements) in 1956 was $6,900,000 in Iowa alone; the national total for 1956, again excluding the costs of federal hospitals, private hospitals, and out-patient care was$662,000,000 (1). These population statistics are rather stable for the past three years while the expenditures keep rising. Mental health is clearly a problem of tremendous importance at this time and there has been considerable discussion of how best to deal with this problem in public and professional circles

The Relationship Between \u27\u27Achievement Imagery and Stuttering Behavior in College Males

The empirical work of Johnson (3), Darley (1), Moncur (9) and the yet unpublished research recently completed at the University of Iowa Speech Clinic under a grant from the Hill Family Foundation lends considerable support to these speculations. These studies have reported that the parents of stuttering children, as compared with the parents of non-stutterers, are generally more perfectionistic, have higher standards and expectations both for themselves and their children and are less well satisfied with the progress they and their children make in achieving these expectations

Psychological Research and Mental Health: A Symposium

Leonard D. Goodstein, State University of Iowa, Iowa City, Chairman Mental Health Research in a Veterans Administration General Hospital Edwin Cohen, Veterans Administration Hospital, Iowa City. Mental Health Research in an Academic Setting Alfred B. Heilbrun, Jr., State University of Iowa, Iowa City. Mental Health Research in a Psychopathic Hospital Irwin J. Knopf, Iowa Psychopathic Hospital, Iowa City. The Implications of Animal Research for Mental Health Problems Leon S. Otis, State University of Iowa, Iowa City. Discussants: James Freeman, Iowa State College, Ames, and Leonard Worell, State University of Iowa, Iowa City

Knowledge-to-action processes in SHRTN collaborative communities of practice: A study protocol

<p>Abstract</p> <p>Background</p> <p>The Seniors Health Research Transfer Network (SHRTN) Collaborative is a network of networks that work together to improve the health and health care of Ontario seniors. The collaborative facilitates knowledge exchange through a library service, knowledge brokers (KBs), local implementation teams, collaborative technology, and, most importantly, Communities of Practice (CoPs) whose members work together to identify innovations, translate evidence, and help implement changes.</p> <p>This project aims to increase our understanding of knowledge-to-action (KTA) processes mobilized through SHRTN CoPs that are working to improve the health of Ontario seniors. For this research, KTA refers to the movement of research and experience-based knowledge between social contexts, and the use of that knowledge to improve practice. We will examine the KTA processes themselves, as well as the role of human agents within those processes. The conceptual framework we have adopted to inform our research is the Promoting Action on Research Implementation in Health Services (PARIHS) framework.</p> <p>Methods/design</p> <p>This study will use a multiple case study design (minimum of nine cases over three years) to investigate how SHRTN CoPs work and pursue knowledge exchange in different situations. Each case will yield a unique narrative, framed around the three PARIHS dimensions: evidence, context, and facilitation. Together, the cases will shed light on how SHRTN CoPs approach their knowledge exchange initiatives, and how they respond to challenges and achieve their objectives. Data will be collected using interviews, document analysis, and ethnographic observation.</p> <p>Discussion</p> <p>This research will generate new knowledge about the defining characteristics of CoPs operating in the health system, on leadership roles in CoPs, and on the nature of interaction processes, relationships, and knowledge exchange mechanisms. Our work will yield a better understanding of the factors that contribute to the success or failure of KTA initiatives, and create a better understanding of how local caregiving contexts interact with specific initiatives. Our participatory design will allow stakeholders to influence the practical usefulness of our findings and contribute to improved health services delivery for seniors.</p

Finishing the euchromatic sequence of the human genome

The sequence of the human genome encodes the genetic instructions for human physiology, as well as rich information about human evolution. In 2001, the International Human Genome Sequencing Consortium reported a draft sequence of the euchromatic portion of the human genome. Since then, the international collaboration has worked to convert this draft into a genome sequence with high accuracy and nearly complete coverage. Here, we report the result of this finishing process. The current genome sequence (Build 35) contains 2.85 billion nucleotides interrupted by only 341 gaps. It covers ∼99% of the euchromatic genome and is accurate to an error rate of ∼1 event per 100,000 bases. Many of the remaining euchromatic gaps are associated with segmental duplications and will require focused work with new methods. The near-complete sequence, the first for a vertebrate, greatly improves the precision of biological analyses of the human genome including studies of gene number, birth and death. Notably, the human enome seems to encode only 20,000-25,000 protein-coding genes. The genome sequence reported here should serve as a firm foundation for biomedical research in the decades ahead

Conceptualizing and measuring strategy implementation – a multi-dimensional view

Through quantitative methodological approaches for studying the strategic management and planning process, analysis of data from 208 senior managers involved in strategy processes within ten UK industrial sectors provides evidence on the measurement properties of a multi-dimensional instrument that assesses ten dimensions of strategy implementation. Using exploratory factor analysis, results indicate the sub-constructs (the ten dimensions) are uni-dimensional factors with acceptable reliability and validity; whilst using three additional measures, and correlation and hierarchical regression analysis, the nomological validity for the multi-dimensional strategy implementation construct was established. Relative importance of ten strategy implementation dimensions (activities) for practicing managers is highlighted, with the mutually and combinative effects drawing conclusion that senior management involvement leads the way among the ten key identified activities vital for successful strategy implementation

Applied Strategic Planning

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A practical guide to job analysis

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