A comparison of three behavioral methods for the treatment of shyness

The purpose of the present study was to compare both existing and new behavioral treatments for a prevalent problem, shyness. The relative contributions of mastery imagery, coping imagery, and self-instructions in a systematic desensitization procedure were evaluated in an SPF 3.3 design. Sixteen severely shy college students were randomly assigned to 3 groups of 5, 6, and 5, respectively, and were treated by either desensitization using mastery imagery, desensitization using coping imagery, or desensitization using both coping imagery and self instructions. Results indicate that although each of the three treatment procedures helped to reduce shyness anxiety, the treatment employing self-instructional training was the most effective. Suggestions for improving this study and the practical implications of this study\u27s findings are discussed

PoCoMo: Projected Collaboration using Mobile Devices

As personal projection devices become more common they will be able to support a range of exciting and unexplored social applications. We present a novel system and method that enables playful social interactions between multiple projected characters. The prototype consists of two mobile projector-camera systems, with lightly modified existing hardware, and computer vision algorithms to support a selection of applications and example scenarios. Our system allows participants to discover the characteristics and behaviors of other characters projected in the environment. The characters are guided by hand movements, and can respond to objects and other characters, to simulate a mixed reality of life-like entities

MemTable: An integrated system for capture and recall of shared histories in group workspaces

This paper presents the design, implementation, and evaluation of an interactive tabletop system that supports co-located meeting capture and asynchronous search and review of past meetings. The goal of the project is to evaluate the design of a conference table that augments the everyday work patterns of small collaborative groups by incorporating an integrated annotation system. We present a holistic design that values hardware ergonomics, supports heterogeneous input modalities, generates a memory of all user interactions, and provides access to historical data on and off the table. We present a user evaluation that assesses the usefulness of the input modalities and software features, and validates the effectiveness of the MemTable system as a tool for assisting memory recall

The emotional labour of academics : the rational and the relational

Q methodology and unstructured interviews were used to develop a thick description and typology of academics' views of emotional labour. An archetypal factor described an ideal of emotional labour. After it was rotated, a three-factor, polythetic typology emerged, confirmed by content analysis of the interviews. Factors A, B, and C represented "rational," "relational," and "reflective" orientations respectively. Academics who load on Factor A--i.e., hold the "rational" view--are task-oriented, energetic, comfortable with their authority, and seek opportunities to share their enthusiasm for their subjects. They are inner-directed; their primary audience is the internalized "generalized other." Faculty who load on B are "relational": student-oriented, conscious users of emotions, who deliberately involve their feelings in their teaching and student relations. They project an approachability they feel to be central to their praxis and personalities. C represents the approach of "reflective" academics who have blended the rational and the relational, and have a critical perspective on their profession. They acquiesce in institutional demands that faculty form close relationships with students, without feeling inauthenticity. Thirteen Q sorts loaded on two factors, raising questions about the evolution and stability of the types, the meaning of a dual type, and the phenomenological implications. A secondary purpose of the study was to explore the effect of their emotional labour on women academics' career outcomes. The literature suggested that women's experiences would predispose them to perform emotional labour in a different way and to a higher degree than male counterparts. It was anticipated that this would cause gender differences in factor loadings. These proved less marked than expected. More men than women loaded on A; almost twice as many women as men dual-loaded; twice as many women dual-loaded as loaded on any single factor. The gender difference on A approached significance (Ì = .05). For both sexes, more academics loaded on A than B, and B than C. The idea that institutions control women through demands for emotional labour received anecdotal confirmation. Further work will benefit from development of a metric for emotional labour and application of act frequency methodology

Challenges to driver licensing participation for Aboriginal people in Australia: a systematic review of the literature

Introduction: Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people are overrepresented in transport-related morbidity and mortality. Low rates of licensure in Aboriginal communities and households have been identified as a contributor to high rates of unlicensed driving. There is increasing recognition that Aboriginal people experience challenges and adversity in attaining a licence. This systematic review aims to identify the barriers to licence participation among Aboriginal people in Australia. Method: A systematic search of electronic databases and purposive sampling of grey literature was conducted, two authors independently assessed publications for eligibility for inclusion. Results: Twelve publications were included in this review, of which there were 11 reporting primary research (qualitative and mixed methods) and a practitioner report. Barriers identified were categorised as individual and family barriers or systemic barriers relating to the justice system, graduated driver licensing (GDL) and service provision. A model is presented that depicts the barriers within a cycle of licensing adversity. Discussion: There is an endemic lack of licensing access for Aboriginal people that relates to financial hardship, unmet cultural needs and an inequitable system. This review recommends targeting change at the systemic level, including a review of proof of identification and fines enforcement policy, diversionary programs and increased provision for people experiencing financial hardship. Conclusion: This review positions licensing within the context of barriers to social inclusion that Aboriginal people frequently encounter. Equitable access to licensing urgently requires policy reform and service provision that is inclusive, responsive to the cultural needs of Aboriginal people and accessible to regional and remote communities

Developing a metadata best practices model: the experience of the Colorado State University Libraries

Final, peer-reviewed manuscript.The Metadata Best Practices Task Force at the Colorado State University (CSU) Libraries developed a core set of metadata elements and an accompanying data dictionary to facilitate a coordinated metadata management approach for a central digital repository of diverse digital objects. This article describes the rationale for the Task Force and the process used for its work following a look at the background of digitization and past metadata practices at CSU. The article includes a literature review on institutional metadata projects and examples, and it ends with a description of the Task Force's ongoing work and plans for future assessment

The Processing of Experience and the Evaluation of the Self in Depressed and Nondepressed Females.

The hypotheses derived from Beck\u27s theory that depressed individuals minimize the positive and maximize the negative were investigated using a series of positive and negative imaginary interpersonal situations. Fifty-two depressed and nondepressed college females responded to the imagined situations by rating their self-esteem and mood at three time intervals. Results showed that depressed subjects maintained lower levels of self-esteem and mood across all three measurements yet were less adversely affected with exposure to the negative situations than were nondepressed subjects. Additionally, depressed subjects showed a greater enhancement effect from the positive imagined experience even while maintaining lower levels of self-esteem and mood across all measurements. These unexpected findings are discussed in light of the immediate versus prolonged effects of stress, the needed specificity in the measurement of cognitive reactions, and a limiting effect in the processing of positive experience by depressed subjects. Clinical and research implications are discussed