Validation of the Reading Tendency Index in school-age children: Replication with a bilingual sample

Defining deficits in reading ability may be accomplished through the analysis of a child’s reading tendencies, representing a possible paradigm shift in the conceptualization and assessment of reading disabilities. Based on this premise, Mohl and colleagues (2018) developed a quantitative paradigm to measure reading tendency in children through performance on two lexical decision tasks (LDTs) that differentially rely on decoding and sightword reading abilities. The Reading Tendency Index (RTI; Mohl et al., 2018) is calculated from the differential between drift rates on the phonologic and orthographic LDTs. Scores closer to zero represent a balanced approach whereas scores as a negative or positive value suggest the tendency to rely on phonological decoding or sightword reading strategies, respectively. It was suggested that a balanced approach promotes more proficient reading abilities; however, this original study was performed with a small, male-only sample with a significant number of children with an ADHD diagnosis. The present study provided independent examination of the RTI paradigm, including the two LDT tasks and original calculations, to validate the tasks as a measure of reading abilities in a larger, representative sample of school-aged children. The present study involved the following goals: 1) to replicate the three-group reading tendency structure based on LDT performance in a larger representative sample of school-aged children, 2) to examine the construct validity of the RTI groupings and LDT tasks as a quantitative measure of reading ability, 3) to determine whether RTI group membership can be predicted based on reading and other cognitive skills, and 4) to explore performance differences, if any, in participants enrolled in French Immersion programs. The final sample included 92 participants aged 7 to 14 years (Mage = 9.96 years) recruited from English (n = 49) and French Immersion (n = 43) schools. Results indicated the following: 1) the three-group RTI structure was replicated in the larger sample of typically-developing school-aged children; 2) Sightword Readers had poorer performance on reading fluency, reading comprehension, and spelling than Balanced Readers and Decoders, but groups did not differ otherwise; 3) only reading comprehension predicted membership for the Sightword group; and 4) French Immersion students demonstrated similar patterns of performance on the RTI and other cognitive measures as English-only students. Supplemental post-hoc analyses were performed to explore different cut-off scores and methods for determining RTI groups. Implications and limitations of the current findings as well as considerations for future studies are discussed

Investigating the psychometric properties of the carers’ fall concern instrument to measure carers’ concern for older people at risk of falling at home: A cross-sectional study

© 2020 John Wiley & Sons Ltd Aims: This study aimed to investigate the psychometric properties of the Carers’ Fall Concern Instrument (CFC-I) for measuring carers’ concern for older people (care recipients) at risk of falling. Background: Family carers are crucial in preventing older people from falling at home. Their concerns for older people at risk of falling have severe implications on carers’ psychological well-being and ability to prevent falls. However, there is no validated instrument measuring this concern. Methods: A cross-sectional study was used to examine the validity and reliability of the CFC-I. Carers looking after older people living at home completed the 17-item CFC-I and provided information about their care arrangements and the older people\u27s fall history. Construct validity was tested using exploratory factor analysis and hypothesis testing. Internal consistency was determined by calculating Cronbach\u27s alpha coefficient. Results: 143 carers completed the survey either by face-to-face or by online. After deleting one item with an item-total correlation of below 0.3, the remaining 16-item CFC-I reported a Cronbach alpha of 0.93. Construct validity was supported by strong item-total correlations (0.51–0.76), mean inter-item correlations (0.47) and factor loadings (0.557–0.809). Factor analysis revealed three factors that include concerns about care recipients’ health and function, living environment and carers’ perception of fall and fall risk. The 16-item CFC-I can discriminate between carers of older people with and without recurrent (fallen 3/ more times) falls. Conclusion: The 16-item CFC-I is a valid and reliable scale for measuring carers’ concern for the older people\u27s risk of falling. Future analysis of test–retest and inter-rater reliability of the instrument will further support its clinical use for carers. Implications for practice: The newly developed multi-item CFC-I can be used to quantify the carers’ level of fall concern and inform targeted interventions for carers when caring for older people who are at risk of falling

Caregivers’ Falls Concern For Older Persons In The Singapore Community

This paper discusses the prevalence of caregivers’ concern, its impact on fall prevention strategies, falls risk awareness among older persons, clinical points and study potential. Older persons suffering from fall-related psychological concerns such as fear of falling has been well established in previous research, however little is known about caregivers’ falls concern in its relationship with the risk of older persons falling. In Singapore, families are regarded as the fundamental support system for older people. The potential influence of caregivers’ concern on the outcome of fall prevention strategies and falls risk awareness of older persons is expected given their significant involvement in the older persons’ care. However, it is difficult to accurately appreciate the impact of caregivers’ falls concern on the risk of falls among older persons in the local community given the Singaporean cultural differences and the dearth of Singaporean research on caregiver’s concern. It is promulgated in this paper that further research should address the impact of caregivers’ falls concern on fall-related issues associated with caring for an older person at risk of falling

Nonverbal Vocalizations as Speech: Characterizing Natural-Environment Audio from Nonverbal Individuals with Autism

The study of nonverbal vocalizations, such as sighs, grunts, and monosyllabic sounds, has largely revolved around the social and affective implications of these sounds within typical speech. However, for individuals who do not use any traditional speech, including those with non- or minimally verbal (nv/mv) autism, these vocalizations contain important, individual-specific affective and communicative information. This paper outlines the methodology, analysis, and technology to investigate the production, perception, and meaning of nonverbal vocalizations from nv/mv individuals in natural environments. We are developing novel signal processing and machine learning methods that will help enable augmentative communication technology, and we are producing a nonverbal vocalization dataset for public release. We hope this work will expand the scientific understanding of these exceptional individuals’ language development and the field of communication more generally

Nonverbal Vocalizations as Speech: Characterizing Natural-Environment Audio from Nonverbal Individuals with Autism

The study of nonverbal vocalizations, such as sighs, grunts, and monosyllabic sounds, has largely revolved around the social and affective implications of these sounds within typical speech. However, for individuals who do not use any traditional speech, including those with non- or minimally verbal (nv/mv) autism, these vocalizations contain important, individual-specific affective and communicative information. This paper outlines the methodology, analysis, and technology to investigate the production, perception, and meaning of nonverbal vocalizations from nv/mv individuals in natural environments. We are developing novel signal processing and machine learning methods that will help enable augmentative communication technology, and we are producing a nonverbal vocalization dataset for public release. We hope this work will expand the scientific understanding of these exceptional individuals’ language development and the field of communication more generally

Brief Report: Just-in-Time Visual Supports to Children with Autism via the Apple Watch:® A Pilot Feasibility Study

Using augmented input might be an effective means for supplementing spoken language for children with autism who have difficulties following spoken directives. This study aimed to (a) explore whether JIT-delivered scene cues (photos, video clips) via the Apple Watch® enable children with autism to carry out directives they were unable to implement with speech alone, and (b) test the feasibility of the Apple Watch® (with a focus on display size). Results indicated that the hierarchical JIT supports enabled five children with autism to carry out the majority of directives. Hence, the relatively small display size of the Apple Watch does not seem to hinder children with autism to glean critical information from visual supports

Diagnostic accuracy of the Enferplex Bovine Tuberculosis antibody test in cattle sera

Bovine tuberculosis is a contagious bacterial disease of worldwide economic, zoonotic and welfare importance caused mainly by Mycobacterium bovis infection. Current regulatory diagnostic methods lack sensitivity and require improvement. We have developed a multiplex serological test for bovine tuberculosis and here we provide an estimate of the diagnostic accuracy of the test in cattle. Positive and negative reference serum samples were obtained from animals from Europe and the United States of America. The diagnostic specificity estimate was 98.4% and 99.7% using high sensitivity and high specificity settings of the test respectively. Tuberculin boosting did not affect the overall specificity estimate. The diagnostic sensitivity in samples from Mycobacterium bovis culture positive animals following tuberculin boosting was 93.9%.The relative sensitivity following boosting in tuberculin test positive, lesion positive animals and interferon gamma test positive, lesion positive animals was 97.2% and 96.9% respectively. In tuberculin test negative, lesion positive animals and in interferon gamma test negative, lesion positive animals, the relative sensitivity following tuberculin boosting was 88.2% and 83.6% respectively. The results show that the test has high diagnostic sensitivity and specificity and can detect infected animals that are missed by tuberculin and interferon gamma testing

Is there a sex difference in mortality rates in paediatric intensive care units? A systematic review

Introduction: Mortality rates in infancy and childhood are lower in females than males. However, for children admitted to Paediatric Intensive Care Units (PICU), mortality has been reported to be lower in males, although males have higher admission rates. This female mortality excess for the subgroup of children admitted in intensive care is not well understood. To address this, we carried out a systematic literature review to summarise the available evidence. Our review studies the differences in mortality between males and females aged 0 to <18 years, while in a PICU, to examine whether there was a clear difference (in either direction) in PICU mortality between the two sexes, and, if present, to describe the magnitude and direction of this difference. Methods: Any studies that directly or indirectly reported the rates of mortality in children admitted to intensive care by sex were eligible for inclusion. The search strings were based on terms related to the population (those admitted into a paediatric intensive care unit), the exposure (sex), and the outcome (mortality). We used the search databases MEDLINE, Embase, and Web of Science as these cover relevant clinical publications. We assessed the reliability of included studies using a modified version of the risk of bias in observational studies of exposures (ROBINS-E) tool. We considered estimating a pooled effect if there were at least three studies with similar populations, periods of follow-up while in PICU, and adjustment variables. Results: We identified 124 studies of which 114 reported counts of deaths by males and females which gave a population of 278,274 children for analysis, involving 121,800 (44%) females and 156,474 males (56%). The number of deaths and mortality rate for females were 5,614 (4.61%), and for males 6,828 (4.36%). In the pooled analysis, the odds ratio of female to male mortality was 1.06 [1.01 to 1.11] for the fixed effect model, and 1.10 [1.00 to 1.21] for the random effects model. Discussion: Overall, males have a higher admission rate to PCU, and potentially lower overall mortality in PICU than females

Modeling Gamma-Ray Burst X-Ray Flares within the Internal Shock Model

X-ray afterglow light curves have been collected for over 400 Swift gamma-ray bursts with nearly half of them having X-ray flares superimposed on the regular afterglow decay. Evidence suggests that gamma-ray prompt emission and X-ray flares share a common origin and that at least some flares can only be explained by long-lasting central engine activity. We have developed a shell model code to address the question of how X-ray flares are produced within the framework of the internal shock model. The shell model creates randomized GRB explosions from a central engine with multiple shells and follows those shells as they collide, merge and spread, producing prompt emission and X-ray flares. We pay special attention to the time history of central engine activity, internal shocks, and observed flares, but do not calculate the shock dynamics and radiation processes in detail. Using the empirical E_p - E_iso (Amati) relation with an assumed Band function spectrum for each collision and an empirical flare temporal profile, we calculate the gamma-ray (Swift/BAT band) and X-ray (Swift/XRT band) lightcurves for arbitrary central engine activity and compare the model results with the observational data. We show that the observed X-ray flare phenomenology can be explained within the internal shock model. The number, width and occurring time of flares are then used to diagnose the central engine activity, putting constraints on the energy, ejection time, width and number of ejected shells. We find that the observed X-ray flare time history generally reflects the time history of the central engine, which reactivates multiple times after the prompt emission phase with progressively reduced energy...Comment: 32 pages, 11 figures. ApJ, in pres