Phylogeography of Sardinian Cave Salamanders (Genus Hydromantes) Is Mainly Determined by Geomorphology

Detecting the factors that determine the interruption of gene flow between populations is key to understanding how speciation occurs. In this context, caves are an excellent system for studying processes of colonization, differentiation and speciation, since they represent discrete geographical units often with known geological histories. Here, we asked whether discontinuous calcareous areas and cave systems represent major barriers to gene flow within and among the five species of Sardinian cave salamanders (genus Hydromantes) and whether intraspecific genetic structure parallels geographic distance within and among caves. We generated mitochondrial cytochrome b gene sequences from 184 individuals representing 48 populations, and used a Bayesian phylogeographic approach to infer possible areas of cladogenesis for these species and reconstruct historical and current dispersal routes among distinct populations. Our results show deep genetic divergence within and among all Sardinian cave salamander species, which can mostly be attributed to the effects of mountains and discontinuities in major calcareous areas and cave systems acting as barriers to gene flow. While these salamander species can also occur outside caves, our results indicate that there is a very poor dispersal of these species between separate cave systems

Fidelity At a Distance: Assessing Implementation Fidelity of the Early Risers Prevention Program in a Going-to-Scale Intervention Trial

The present study examined the feasibility of an innovative technology designed to assess implementation fidelity of the Early Risers conduct problems prevention program across 27 geographically dispersed school sites. A multidimensional construct of fidelity was used to assess the quantity of services provided (exposure), the degree to which program strategies conformed to the manual (adherence), and how well implementers delivered the program (quality of delivery). The measurement technology featured a fidelity monitoring system that required (a) weekly reporting on a web-based documentation system to assess program exposure and adherence, and (b) five annually administered telephone interviews with a technical assistant to assess quality of program implementation. The results showed that the fidelity monitoring system was feasible, with all sites achieving 100% compliance in completion of their required on-line reporting and on average over 80% of the required teleconference interviews. User feedback indicated satisfaction with the web-based program. The system was successful in measuring multiple indices of fidelity. The strengths and limitations of measuring fidelity at a distance with web-based and teleconferencing technologies are discussed

Understanding Parent Participation in a Going-to-Scale Implementation Trial of the Early Risers Conduct Problems Prevention Program

We examined parent participation in the context of a going-to-scale implementation trial of the evidence-based, multi-component Early Risers conduct problems prevention program. In this study we examine the participation of parents in two parent/family-focused components of Early Risers that were delivered over 2 years across 21 rural school sites with 155 primarily Caucasian families. One component is a standardized Parent Skills curriculum delivered at participating schools and the second component delivers Family Support via tailored case management services through school and non-school site contacts. The study examines predictors of parent participation for each parent-focused component using multilevel modeling analyses. Previous research is extended by examining parent participation within the context of a going-to-scale trial and by looking at a broader array of child/parent/family and implementation context predictors. Parent participation in Parent Skills is predicted by higher level of parent\u27s frustration in parent-child relationships, while their participation in Family Support is related to lower family income. Implementers with higher previous work experience with children/families and lower education levels, as well as those manifesting more extroverted and less agreeable personality characteristics, elicit more participation in Parent Skills. Greater participation in Family Support is also predicted by lower levels of implementer neuroticism. Finally, implementers who achieve higher quality of delivery fidelity have greater participation in Parent Skills and a lower level of adherence fidelity predicts more participation in Family Support. The results are discussed within the context of going-to-scale service provision and in terms of implications for future prevention efforts

Practitioner and Site Characteristics that Relate to Fidelity of Implementation: The Early Risers Prevention Program in a Going-to-Scale Intervention Trial

Despite the increased availability of evidence-based prevention programs targeting serious mental health problems, an ongoing challenge within the field of prevention science is transporting prevention programs into real-world settings where their health impact can be fully realized. As part of a going-to-scale study, we examined how context, namely the characteristics of the practitioners and organizations, promotes or impedes fidelity of implementation of prevention efforts. Practitioners delivered Early Risers, an intensive, multicomponent, indicated prevention program across 27 geographically dispersed elementary schools and recorded 3 indexes of fidelity-exposure, adherence, and quality of implementation. As predicted, practitioner characteristics, including personality traits (low neuroticism, high extraversion, openness, and conscientiousness), beliefs (pre-implementation beliefs about program success), and use of flexible coping strategies (reappraisal coping) were related to various fidelity indexes. Contrary to predictions, teachers\u27 negative perceptions of the organizational structure were positively related to fidelity. Follow-up regression analyses suggested that practitioner characteristics differentially predict fidelity for child and family programming

Going-to-Scale with the Early Risers Conduct Problems Prevention Program: Use of a Comprehensive Implementation Support (CIS) System to Optimize Fidelity, Participation and Child Outcomes.

The present study is a descriptive report of a comprehensive implementation support (CIS) service that was used to promote high levels of program fidelity in a going-to-scale intervention trial of the Early Risers conduct problems prevention program. The program was delivered across 27 geographically dispersed, elementary school sites over a two-year period. In this study we examined the level of fidelity achieved by program implementers across intervention components, the rate of child and parent participation across intervention components, and proximal child outcomes targeted by the intervention across two years of programming. Results showed that over the two-year intervention period the program was implemented with high fidelity, participation rates were acceptable, and children made positive gains on target outcomes similar to those found in previous randomized controlled trials. The results suggest that implementation support services may be advantageous in the wide-scale implementation of prevention programs that aim to achieve high implementation fidelity