Getting the message: The adaptive potential of interpersonal judgments

According to the Social Message Model, interpersonal judgments are transactions in which judges convey important social messages to the individuals they evaluate (the targets); targets can then respond to the judgments in more or less adaptive ways. We argue that judges’ opinions emerge from their current concerns, be it to promote their own well-being, or to foster group cohesion. Targets of judgments can best interpret the meaning of a judgment they receive by understanding the judge’s concerns, competence of the judge, and other qualities of the transaction. We suggest that judges and targets who are better able to reason about the judgment process are likely to change their behaviors more adaptively than people less able to reason in this area

Navigating Barriers at Work: Exploring the Perceptions of Employees with Disabilities

To maintain successful employment, people with disabilities must often navigate attitudinal barriers that result in bias, conflict, and discriminatory treatment on the part of their supervisors and coworkers. Two studies were designed to investigate the idea that employees’ perceptions of and response to these types of barriers depend, in part, on their beliefs about their own self-competence, ability to cope with problems, and estimations of their relationships with others, particularly supervisors, in the workplace. Two models were developed and tested to assess how employees’ perceived potential at work, as measured by both self-judgment and lifespace data, as well as an ability-based measure of personal intelligence, related to their experience of attitudinal barriers. Survey respondents were 1,631 adults aged 18 to 64 who were currently or recently employed and who experienced one or more disabilities or disabling health conditions. Results showed that occupational self-efficacy, coping style, personal intelligence, and perceptions of person-focused and task-focused supervisor support were all useful in understanding employees’ with disabilities perceived potential at work and its associations with attitudinal barriers, decisions whether or not to disclose disability at work, and subjective work success. Conclusions address issues related to measurement and application to workplace policy and intervention. To maintain successful employment, people with disabilities must often navigate attitudinal barriers that result in bias, conflict, and discriminatory treatment on the part of their supervisors and coworkers. Two studies were designed to investigate the idea that employees’ perceptions of and response to these types of barriers depend, in part, on their beliefs about their own self-competence, ability to cope with problems, and estimations of their relationships with others, particularly supervisors, in the workplace. Two models were developed and tested to assess how employees’ perceived potential at work, as measured by both self-judgment and lifespace data, as well as an ability-based measure of personal intelligence, related to their experience of attitudinal barriers. Survey respondents were 1,631 adults aged 18 to 64 who were currently or recently employed and who experienced one or more disabilities or disabling health conditions. Results showed that occupational self-efficacy, coping style, personal intelligence, and perceptions of person-focused and task-focused supervisor support were all useful in understanding employees’ with disabilities perceived potential at work and its associations with attitudinal barriers, decisions whether or not to disclose disability at work, and subjective work success. Conclusions address issues related to measurement and application to workplace policy and intervention

Post-Concussion Symptom Score as a Possible Predictor of Protracted Recovery in High School Athletes

As concussion research shifts from diagnostic to managing return to play (RTF), many studies have sought to establish safe guidelines for recovery. Computer-based neuropsychological programs measure cognitive function performance typically affected by brain injury and include a self-report post-concussion symptoms scale. The use of the total score of a post-concussion symptoms scale as a possible predictor of protracted recovery in high school athletes following injury is still being researched. This study used stored data obtained from the Vanderbilt Sports Concussion Center involving concussed high school athletes with a post-concussion symptom score and subsequent documentation of recovery time. A one-way ANOVA compared the dependent variable of total initial symptom score to age, gender, days between, symptom change, and previous concussion history. A pot hoc regression analysis was used to determine if there was a relationship between the dependent initial post-concussion symptom score and independent variables above. Data analysis from this study presented evidence that a higher symptom load at injury correlated to a protracted recovery. Further results showed individuals with previous concussion history reported more symptoms at the onset of injury and had a protracted recovery from a concussion than those individuals with no previous history of concussion. There was also a significant effect of gender on symptom reporting

An Assessment of the Attractiveness of the U.S. Fresh Orange and Grapefruit Industry

Agribusiness,

Evaluating behavior change factors over time for a simple vs. complex health behavior

BACKGROUND: Researchers are working to identify dynamic factors involved in the shift from behavioral initiation to maintenance—factors which may depend on behavioral complexity. We test hypotheses regarding changes in factors involved in behavioral initiation and maintenance and their relationships to behavioral frequency over time, for a simple (taking a supplement) vs. complex (exercise) behavior. METHODS: Data are secondary analyses from a larger RCT, in which young adult women, new to both behaviors, were randomly assigned to take daily calcium (N = 161) or to go for a daily, brisk walk (N = 171), for 4-weeks. Factors (intentions, self-efficacy, intrinsic motivation, self-identity, habit strength) were measured weekly. Multi-level modeling evaluated their change over time. Bivariate correlations and multiple regression determined the relationships between factors and the subsequent-week behavioral frequency (self-report and objective). FINDING: Results were partly in-line with expectations, in that individuals’ intentions and self-efficacy predicted initial behavioral engagement for both behaviors, and habit strength increased for both behaviors, becoming a significant predictor of behavioral frequency in later weeks of the study in some analyses. However, results depended on whether the outcome was self-reported or objectively measured and whether analyses were bivariate or multivariate (regression). DISCUSSION: The factors theorized to play a role in behavioral maintenance (intrinsic motivation, self-identity, and habit strength) started to develop, but only habit strength predicted behavioral frequency by study-end, for both behaviors. Differences in initiation and maintenance between behaviors of differing complexity may not be as stark as theorized, but longer follow-up times are required to evaluate maintenance factors

The utility of the integrated behavior change model as an extension of the theory of planned behavior

INTRODUCTION: There are several widely used theories of health behavior change, which mostly utilize the social cognitive approach. These theories tend to posit that intention is a direct predictor of behavior, do not include automatic influences on behavior, and propose a one-size-fits-all theory for both initiators and maintainers. However, the intention-behavior gap is a well-observed phenomenon, researchers have highlighted that both automatic and reflective factors promote behavioral engagement, and predictors of behavior have been shown to differ between initiators and maintainers—three issues that necessitate theory advancement. To that end, the present research compares the utility of the Integrated Behavior Change Model (IBCM) – a social cognitive model that includes automatic factors involved in behavioral engagement and a moderator of the intention-behavior gap – to its theoretical predecessor, the Theory of Planned Behavior (TPB). Further, the relevance of the IBCM factors for predicting exercise behavior is compared in initiators versus maintainers. METHOD: Participants were 494 US undergraduates. Participants reported on variables from the IBCM (and TPB) at baseline and reported on their exercise behavior in two surveys at seven- and 14-days post-baseline. RESULTS: Findings supported the first hypothesis that the IBCM would be more relevant for initiators in comparison with maintainers, using structural equation modeling. Specifically, only the paths between intrinsic motivation and affective attitude, affective attitude and intention, and intention and behavior were reliably found for maintainers. For initiators, the aforementioned paths were also reliably supported and the additional following paths were also supported: intrinsic motivation and perceived behavioral control, perceived behavioral control and intention, and intention and action planning. However, results did not support the second hypothesis that the IBCM would predict significantly more variance in behavior than its theoretical predecessor, the TPB. Specifically, the addition of action planning, implicit attitude, implicit motivation, and the interaction between intention and action planning only predicted an additional 0.3% (p < 0:05) of the variance in exercise behavior above and beyond intention. CONCLUSION: Results highlight the continued need for theoretical refinement in terms of delineating mechanisms of initiation and maintenance and the need for further development in terms of improving upon current predictions of behavior engagement and change

Design of a Process to Implement an Annual Community Fundraiser for Sprout Up

Sprout Up—in San Luis Obispo—is currently a non-profit organization that teaches free environmental science education to first and second graders around the San Luis Obispo area. Due to recent circumstances, Sprout Up will soon be losing its non-profit status, and therefore they will be losing their funding as well. Their problem is that they need a stable annual fundraiser that will help the organization continue to provide free services to local elementary schools as a Cal Poly club rather than a non-profit. Multi-criteria analysis techniques were used to determine what would be the best solution to their problem and found that hosting an annual Gala would be the most beneficial. Using Industrial Engineering tools, a design was created for a process to implement the annual community fundraising event for Sprout Up. The Gala prototype event was held at Santa Rosa Park on May 13th from 3pm to 7pm, and raised roughly $1,200 for the organization. The recommendation is to continue to perform the event annually with changes to the facility layout and starting the project earlier to give more time for fundraising