Space Station Human Factors Research Review. Volume 4: Inhouse Advanced Development and Research

A variety of human factors studies related to space station design are presented. Subjects include proximity operations and window design, spatial perceptual issues regarding displays, image management, workload research, spatial cognition, virtual interface, fault diagnosis in orbital refueling, and error tolerance and procedure aids

Longitudinal Effects of the Family Support Program Chancenreich on Parental Involvement and the Language Skills of Preschool Children

When they enter primary school children already vary significantly in their language skills, depending at least in part on their family’s social background. In particular, the home learning environment plays a significant role in children’s development. For that reason, early intervention programs have been developed to obviate learning difficulties and to promote health, children’s development, and educational equality. The family support program Chancenreich aims to encourage the interaction and relationship between parents and children through two different course formats. The present study examines the longitudinal effects of attending the Chancenreich program and different course formats on (a) parents attending further educational services for children after completing the program, (b) children’s vocabulary and level of grammar development at the age of 5 and (c) the children’s vocabulary development between the ages of 3 and 5. Furthermore, we examine the relationship between family characteristics and the attendance rates of different course formats of the Chancenreich program at the first and second point of measurement. The study follows a longitudinal design with two points of measurements (T1: Mage = 41 months, T2: Mage = 68 months), and a sample size of 121 parents and their children at T2 in the intervention group and 41 parents and their children in the comparison group. Findings indicate that attendance of the Chancenreich program’s courses is related to child and family characteristics and to later patterns of course participation after completing the program. Further, both children’s level of vocabulary skills (PPVT) at the age of 5 and their development between the ages of 3 and 5 benefit from the parental participation in parenting skills training at the age of 3. Implications and future research on the effectiveness of family support programs are discussed

Pedagogical content knowledge of specialist counselling in parental cooperation

Im Zuge gesellschaftlicher Veränderungen gewinnt auch die Zusammenarbeit zwischen Kindertageseinrichtung und Familien an Bedeutung. Frühpädagogische Fachkräfte stehen vor der Herausforderung, ihre Kompetenzen aktuellen Entwicklungen anzupassen. Vor diesem Hintergrund dient Fachberatung als Qualifizierungsressource für Einrichtungen und ihre pädagogischen Fachkräfte. Die vorliegende Studie untersucht daher an 166 Fachberatungen die professionelle Kompetenzfacette des fachdidaktischen Wissens im Handlungsfeld Zusammenarbeit mit Familien. Die Ergebnisse zeigen, dass die Fachberatungen in vier verschiedene Wissenstypen eingeteilt werden können, die sich teilweise auf deren professionelle Voraussetzungen (z.B. Fort- und Weiterbildungsaktivität) zurückführen lassen. Die Befunde werden im Hinblick auf Implikationen für die Praxis und weiteren Forschungsbedarf diskutiert. (DIPF/Orig.)In the course of societal changes, the cooperation between daycare centers and families has also gained importance. Early childhood professionals face the challenge of adapting their competencies to current developments. Against this background, pedagogical quality consultants serve as a qualification resource for daycare institutions and their staff. Drawing on a sample of 166 pedagogical quality consultants, the present study investigates pedagogical content knowledge in the competence area \u27cooperation with families\u27. Results from cluster analysis show that the pedagogical quality consultants can be divided into four different types with regard to their knowledge. Further regression analysis reveal that these types are predicted by the professional qualifications of the pedagogical quality consultants (e.g., professional development activities). The findings are discussed with regard to the implications for practice and further research needs. (DIPF/Orig.

Moral panic and social theory: Beyond the heuristic

Copyright @ 2011 by International Sociological Association.Critcher has recently conceptualized moral panic as a heuristic device, or 'ideal type'. While he argues that one still has to look beyond the heuristic, despite a few exceptional studies there has been little utilization of recent developments in social theory in order to look 'beyond moral panic'. Explicating two current critical contributions - the first, drawing from the sociologies of governance and risk; the second, from the process/figurational sociology of Norbert Elias - this article highlights the necessity for the continuous theoretical development of the moral panic concept and illustrates how such development is essential to overcome some of the substantial problems with moral panic research: normativity, temporality and (un) intentionality

Clinicopathological Correlates in a PRNP P102L Mutation Carrier with Rapidly Progressing Parkinsonism-dystonia

Parkinsonism-dystonia is rare in carriers of PRNP P102L mutation. Severity and distribution of prion protein (PrP) deposition may influence the clinical presentation. We present such clinic-pathological correlation in a 56-year-old male with a PRNP P102L mutation associated with a phenotype characterized by rapidly progressing parkinsonism-dystonia. The patient was studied clinically (videotaped exams, brain MRIs); molecular genetically (gene sequence analysis); and neuropathologically (histology, immunohistochemistry) during his 7-month disease course. The patient had parkinsonism, apraxia, aphasia, and dystonia, which progressed rapidly. Molecular genetic analysis revealed PRNP P102L mutation carrier status. Brain MRIs revealed progressive global volume loss and T2/FLAIR hyperintensity in neocortex and basal ganglia. Postmortem examination showed neuronal loss, gliosis, spongiform changes, and PrP deposition in the striatum. PrP immunohistochemistry revealed widespread severe PrP deposition in the thalamus and cerebellar cortex. Based on the neuropathological and molecular-genetic analysis, the rapidly progressing parkinsonism-dystonia correlated with nigrostriatal, thalamic, and cerebellar pathology