Are sliders too slick for surveys? An experiment comparing slider and radio button scales for smartphone, tablet and computer based surveys

"The continued rise in smartphone penetration globally afford survey researchers with an unprecedented portal into personal survey data collection from respondents who could complete surveys from virtually any place at any time. While the basic research into optimizing the survey experience and data collection on mobile devices has continued to develop, there are still fundamental gaps in our knowledge of how to optimize certain types of questions in the mobile setting. In fact, survey researchers are still trying to understand which online design principles directly translate into presentation on mobile devices and which principles have to be modified to incorporate separate methods for these devices. One such area involves the use of input styles such as sliding scales that lend themselves to more touch centric input devices such as smartphones or tablets. Operationalizing these types of scales begs the question of an optimal starting position and whether these touch centric input styles are equally preferred by respondents using less touch capable devices. While an outside starting position seems optimal for slider questions completed via computer, this solution may not be optimal for completion via mobile devices as these devices are subjected to far more space and layout constraints compared to computers. This experiment moves the mixed device survey literature forward by directly comparing outcomes from respondents who completed a collection of survey scales using their smartphone, tablet or computer. Within each device, respondents were randomly assigned to complete one of 20 possible versions of scale items determined by a combination of three experimental factors including input style, length and number formatting. Results from this study suggest more weaknesses than strengths for using slider scales to collect survey data using mobile devices and also suggest that preference for these touch centric input styles varies across devices and may not be as high as the preference for the more traditional radio button style." (author's abstract

Le parcours de réussite d’une démarche en gestion du stress en milieu scolaire : au carrefour de la recherche, de l’éducation pour la santé et de la pédagogie

Ce texte met à contribution trois axes professionnels indissociables (recherche, soins infirmiers, direction d’école) qui ont permis l’élaboration et la réalisation d’un projet en gestion du stress qui célébrait son 25e anniversaire en 2013. Des résultats de recherches qualitatives servent comme balises orientant cette expérience de terrain ralliant la pédagogie et le bien-être en milieu scolaire. L’enjeu est de faire de l’école un environnement favorable à la santé et à la réussite de tous par la promotion d’une gestion saine du stress au quotidien. Cette démarche de partenariat parents/élèves/personnel scolaire sous-tend la nécessité de travailler en complémentarité pour permettre aux élèves/enfants d’acquérir les compétences essentielles tant pour la santé et le bien-être que pour la réussite scolaire. Le Projet en gestion du stress chez l’enfant de l’école Notre-Dame d’Edmundston et le Programme de formation du formateur en gestion du stress confirment la fécondité de partenariats novateurs en éducation pour la santé qui soutiennent concrètement le lien « théorie/pratique » et la pertinence du pilotage institutionnel qui en assure la légitimité et la crédibilité.This text is a contribution of three indissociable professional sectors (research, nursing and school management) that allowed the development and the realization of a stress management project which celebrated its 25th anniversary in 2013. The results of qualitative research and analyses serve as guidelines directing this field exploration rallying pedagogy and well-being in an educational setting. The objective is to make the school a favorable environment to facilitate everyone’s well-being and success by promoting healthy stress management on a daily basis. This partnership initiative involving parents/students/school personnel underlies the necessity to work in complementarity to allow students/children to acquire the essential skills to maintain health and well-being, as well as to optimize academic achievement. The « Notre-Dame’s School Stress Management Program for Children » and the « Train the Trainer Program in Stress Management » confirm the innovative partnership in health education that concretely supports the link « theory/practice » and the relevance of the institutional guidance that assures its legitimacy and credibility

Smart Polymer Composite Deck Monitoring Using Distributed High Definition and Bragg Grating Fiber Optic Sensing

Fiber-reinforced polymer composites are an excellent choice for bridge decks due to high strength, lightweight, resistance to corrosion, and long-term durability with a 100-year design life. Structural health monitoring is useful for the long-term assessment of the condition of the bridge structure and obtaining a response to complex loads considering environmental conditions. Bridge structures have been studied primarily using distributed fiber optic sensing, such as Brillouin scattering; however, critical events, including damage detection, can be missed due to low spatial resolution. There is also a critical need to conduct a comprehensive study of static and dynamic loading simultaneously for fiber-reinforced composite bridge structures. In this study, a novel approach was implemented using two sensor technologies, optical frequency domain reflectometry and fiber Bragg grating-based sensors, embedded in a glass-fiber-reinforced composite bridge deck to simultaneously monitor the deformation response of the bridge structure. The optical frequency domain reflectometry sensor utilizing Rayleigh scattering provides high spatial strain resolution were positioned strategically based on expected stress distributions to measure strain in the longitudinal, transverse, and diagonal directions along the span of the composite bridge. Furthermore, fiber Bragg grating based sensors are used to monitor the response to dynamic vehicular loading and deformations from an automotive-crash-type event on the bridge structure. To monitor environmental variables such as temperature, a custom wireless configured sensor package was developed for the study and integrated with a composite bridge located in Morgan County, Tennessee. Additionally, a triaxial accelerometer was used to monitor the vehicular dynamic loading of the composite bridge deck in parallel with fiber Bragg grating sensors. When appropriate, mid-point displacements were compared with strain-distribution measurements from the fiber optic sensor-based data