Toward a document evaluation methodology: What does research tell us about the validity and reliability of evaluation methods?

Although the usefulness of evaluating documents has become generally accepted among communication professionals, the supporting research that puts evaluation practices empirically to the test is only beginning to emerge. This article presents an overview of the available research on troubleshooting evaluation methods. Four lines of research are distinguished concerning the validity of evaluation methods, sample composition, sample size, and the implementation of evaluation results during revisio

Promotion of leaf degradation by earthworms under laboratory conditions

Organic materials were applied to leaves from organic apple trees. Then, leaves were fed to earthworms in a laboratory culture. The objective was to select materials which promote leaf degradation by earthworms and consequently reduce the inoculum pressure of apple scab in orchards. Used earthworms were fully grown and consequently no effect of the leaf treatments was found on earthworm weights. However, leaf consumption tended to be increased by addition of amino acids and beet pulp to leaves. For beet pulp, this was especially the case when the dose was increased from 1 to 5 % or when it was freshly applied

Editorial: Understanding developmental dyslexia: linking perceptual and cognitive deficits to reading processes

The problem of causation has proven particularly elusive in the case of developmental dyslexia (DD). The field has been dominated by very general hypotheses, such as the idea that DD is caused by a phonological deficit and/or an impairment of the magnocellular pathway. Results are contrasting and causal unidirectional links have not been persuasively demonstrated. Some studies in the Research Topic (RT) re-examine these general hypotheses from the critical perspective of more selective predictions. Others focus on less general deficit hypotheses and stay closer to reading by investigating specific aspects of the reading process such as orthographic learning ability or the ability to deal with multiple-stimulus displays. Studies benefit from new research paradigms as well as new information from research areas such as neuroimaging or genetics. Below, we sketch the general questions tackled by these studies

A central limit theorem for generalized multilinear forms

AbstractLet X1, …, Xn be independent random variables and define for each finite subset I ⊂ {1, …, n} the σ-algebra FI = σ{Xi : i ϵ I}. In this paper FI-measurable random variables WI are considered, subject to the centering condition E(WI ∥ FJ) = 0 a.s. unless I ⊂ J. A central limit theorem is proven for d-homogeneous sums W(n) = Σ∥I∥ = dWI, with var W(n) = 1, where the summation extends over all (nd) subsets I ⊂ {1, …, n} of size ∥I∥ = d, under the condition that the normed fourth moment of W(n) tends to 3. Under some extra conditions the condition is also necessary

Implicit measures of actual versus ideal body image : relations with self-reported body dissatisfaction and dieting behaviors

Body dissatisfaction refers to a negative appreciation of one’s own body stemming from a discrepancy between how one perceives his/her body (actual body image) and how he/she wants it to be (ideal body image). To circumvent the limitations of self-report measures of body image, measures were developed that allow for a distinction between actual and ideal body image at the implicit level. The first goal of the present study was to investigate whether self-reported body dissatisfaction is related to implicit measures of actual and ideal body image as captured by the Relational Responding Task (RRT). Secondly, we examined whether these RRT measures were related to several indices of dieting behavior. Women high in body dissatisfaction (n = 30) were characterized by relatively strong implicit I-am-fat beliefs, whereas their implicit I-want-to-be-thinner beliefs were similar to individuals low in body dissatisfaction (n = 37). Implicit body image beliefs showed no added value over explicit body image beliefs in predicting body dissatisfaction and dieting behavior. These findings support the idea that the interplay between ideal and actual body image drives (self-reported) body dissatisfaction. However, strong support for the view that it would be critical to differentiate between explicit and implicit body image beliefs is missing