Managing contactability in telephone surveys

The Australian market research industry relies on telephone interviewing as one of its major data collection methods. Through Its LIST initiative, the industry has committed to best practice In research methods in order to address various concerns, especially the decline in response rates for telephone interviews. Response rates are determined by the co-operation of eligible respondents and their degree of contactabllity. The reported study is concerned with the way the industry attempts to manage contactabiIity. A study of fieldwork managers responSible for over 75% of all phone interviews in Australia revealed a limited use of contact enhancing strategies such as longer fieldwork periods and more callbacks. Commercial imperatives for timely surveys and a lack of end-user concern for response rate issues, along with cost issues, were believed to be responsible.<br /

Vibrational properties of SrVO2 H with large spin-phonon coupling

The antiferromagnetic transition metal oxyhydride SrVO2H is distinguished by its stoichiometric composition and an ordered arrangement of H atoms. The tetragonal structure is related to the cubic perovskite and consists of alternating layers of VO2 and SrH. d2 V(III) attains a sixfold coordination by four O and two H atoms. The latter are arranged in a trans fashion, which produces H-V-H chains along the tetragonal axis. Here, we investigate the vibrational properties of SrVO2H by inelastic neutron scattering and infrared spectroscopy combined with phonon calculations based on density functional theory. The H-based vibrational modes divide into a degenerate bending motion perpendicular to the H-V-H chain direction and a highly dispersed stretching motion along the H-V-H chain direction. The bending motion, with a vibrational frequency of approximately 800 cm-1, is split into two components separated by about 50 cm-1, owing to the doubled unit cell from the antiferromagnetic structure. Interestingly, spin-phonon coupling stiffens the H-based modes by 50-100cm-1 although super-exchange coupling via H is very small. Frequency shifts of the same order of magnitude also occur for V-O modes. It is inferred that SrVO2H displays the hitherto largest recognized coupling between magnetism and phonons in a material

Gravitational field around a screwed superconducting cosmic string in scalar-tensor theories

We obtain the solution that corresponds to a screwed superconducting cosmic string (SSCS) in the framework of a general scalar-tensor theory including torsion. We investigate the metric of the SSCS in Brans-Dicke theory with torsion and analyze the case without torsion. We show that in the case with torsion the space-time background presents other properties different from that in which torsion is absent. When the spin vanish, this torsion is a $\phi$-gradient and then it propagates outside of the string. We investigate the effect of torsion on the gravitational force and on the geodesics of a test-particle moving around the SSCS. The accretion of matter by wakes formation when a SSCS moves with speed $v$ is investigated. We compare our results with those obtained for cosmic strings in the framework of scalar-tensor theory.Comment: 22 pages, LaTeX, presented at the "XXII - Encontro Nacional de Fisica de Particulas e Campos", Sao Lourenco, MG, Brazi

An aggravated trajectory of depression and anxiety co-morbid with hepatitis C: : A 21 to 62 month follow-up study in 61 South Australian outpatients

BACKGROUND: This study aimed to explore the course of depression and anxiety in chronic hepatitis C patients. METHODS:   Data were combined from two studies: (1) Hospital Anxiety and Depression Scale (HADS) scores in 395 consecutive Australian outpatients from 2006 to 2010 formed the baseline measurement; and (2) Depression Anxiety Stress Scales (DASS) scores in a survey of a sub-sample of these patients in 2011 formed the follow-up measurement. After converting DASS to HADS scores, changes in symptom scores and rates of case-ness (≥8), and predictors of follow-up symptoms were assessed. RESULTS:   Follow-up data were available for 61 patients (70.5% male) whose age ranged from 24.5 to 74.6 years (M=45.6). The time to follow-up ranged from 20.7 to 61.9 months (M=43.8). Baseline rates of depression (32.8%) and anxiety (44.3%) increased to 62.3% and 67.2%, respectively. These findings were confirmed, independent of the conversion, by comparing baseline HADS and follow-up DASS scores with British community norms. Baseline anxiety and younger age predicted depression, while baseline anxiety, high school non-completion, and single relationship status predicted anxiety. CONCLUSION:  This study demonstrated a worsening trajectory of depression and anxiety. Further controlled and prospective research in a larger sample is required to confirm these findings