Smoke Signals: Adolescent Smoking and School Continuation

This paper presents an exploratory analysis using NLSY97 data of the relationship between the likelihood of school continuation and the choices of whether to smoke or drink. We demonstrate that in the United States as of the late 1990s, smoking in 11th grade was a uniquely powerful predictor of whether the student finished high school, and if so whether the student matriculated in a four-year college. For economists the likely explanation for this empirical link would be based on interpersonal differences in time preference, but that account is called in question by our second finding -- that drinking does not predict school continuation. We speculate that the demand for tobacco by high school students is influenced by the signal conveyed by smoking (of being off track in school), one that is especially powerful for high-aptitude students. To further develop this view, we present estimates of the likelihood of smoking as a function of school commitment and other, more traditional variables. There are no direct implications from this analysis for whether smoking is in some sense a cause of school dropout. We offer some speculations on this matter in the conclusion.

A survey of the use and perceptions of analytical procedures

In order to comply with generally accepted auditing standards (GAAS), auditors are required to gather sufficient, competent evidence to support their opinion concerning the amounts and disclosures in the client\u27s financial statements. Auditors have numerous ways by which to obtain such evidence, and one whose use is continually increasing--largely due to its cost-effectiveness--is analytical procedures. Analytical procedures (APs) are defined as evaluations of financial information made by a study of plausible relationships among both financial and non-financial data (SAS No. 56). For non-auditors, an example of an AP is using historic gross profit percentages to determine if the gross profit percentage for the year under audit appears reasonable. Professional guidance on the use of APs originated in 1978 when they were recommended for use in audits by the Auditing Standards Board. Guidance culminated with the issuance of Statement on Auditing Standards No. 56 (SAS No. 56), which mandates the use of APs in both the planning and final review stages of audits. Many research studies have investigated the use of APs. The methodologies employed range from surveys of practicing auditors (see Ameen and Strawser 1994; Biggs and Wild 1984; Tabor and Willis 1985) to case studies in which auditors were asked to utilize APs (see Heintz and White 1989; Holder 1983) to interviews with auditors from the Big Six firms (see Hirst and Koonce 1996). In one of the more recent studies, Ameen and Strawser (1994) surveyed practicing auditors to determine the current use (as of 1991) of APs during audits and arrived at several major conclusions. In their research, Ameen and Strawser (1994) found that auditors tended to use simpler APs, such as comparison to prior year\u27s balance or judgmental trend analysis, rather than their more sophisticated counterparts, such as time-series analysis and regression analysis, when performing audits. They also found that the use of APs constituted nearly onethird of total audit hours for smaller firms; the ratio increased to nearly one-half for Big Six firms. Also, Ameen and Strawser\u27s research identified two major reasons for the heavy reliance on APs: increased fee pressure felt by public accounting firms and increased use of microcomputers in audits. It has been over 5 years since their data was gathered. Due to increased competition and exposure to liability litigation, auditors have needed to utilize procedures such as APs that would cost-effectively increase the effectiveness and efficiency of their audits. Also, the use of microcomputers during audits has continued to increase. Therefore the level of use of APs would be expected to increase. In addition to updating previous research and identifying the current level of use of APs, this research was designed to explore new issues. Participating auditors were asked to identify the level of use of specific APs during each of the three stages of an audit identified by SAS No. 56: planning, substantive testing, and final review. Previous research (Ameen and Strawser 1994) did not separate the stages when questioning the level of use of APs. Second, the types of APs provided to the respondents were revised and expanded. Third, the line of questioning was altered in an attempt to gather information as to the reasons why auditors choose to use various types of APs-primarily why auditors continue to choose simpler APs over more sophisticated APs even though previous research (e.g., Kinney 1978; Knechel 1986; Wilson and Colbert 1989) has shown that sophisticated APs are more effective during audits. Finally, this study investigated what factors have influenced the use of APs over the past five years. The results of this research are of interest for standard setters, researchers, practitioners, and educators. For standard setters and researchers, this study provides an update to previous research and a more in-depth analysis of the use of APs in the various stages of an audit. It also researches topics suggested by previous researchers (Ameen and Strawser 1994, Hirst and Koonce 1996). For practitioners, it provides a better understanding of the current use of APs so it may be determined if more guidance is needed. For educators, this research may be used to complement textbook discussions of APs by illustrating how much and when different types of APs are used

Impact of palliative care consultations for patients admitted to Maine Medical Center with acute exacerbations of COPD

Background and purpose: • COPD is the 3rd leading cause of death. • Specialty Palliative Care (PC) is underutilized in COPD patients. •PC involvement has been shown to improve quality of life and satisfaction with overall care. • We sought to evaluate the association of receipt of palliative medicine consultation during an admission for acute exacerbation of COPD with a documented Goals of Care conversations and/or presence of an advanced directive and/or POLST

Exploration of telemedicine for the delivery of Substance Use Disorder treatment during the COVID-19 Pandemic

https://knowledgeconnection.mainehealth.org/lambrew-retreat-2021/1015/thumbnail.jp

The Influence of the Five Factor Model of Personality on the Perceived Effectiveness of Executive Coaching.

Limited research attention has been paid to the influences on executive coaching effectiveness. This study explores whether a relationship exists between the Five Factor Model of personality and coachee perceptions of effectiveness of executive coaching. Thirty coachees completed a cross sectional survey measuring personality using scales from the International Personality Item Pool (Goldberg, 1999). There was a significant positive relationship between extraversion and perceived coaching effectiveness. The findings have implications for organisations when considering whether their employees are suited to the development interventions on offer and whether the intervention will subsequently provide a good return on investment. Our study also contributes to the emerging literature on antecedents of coaching effectiveness by examining core aspects of individual differences

Temporal discrimination: Mechanisms and relevance to adult-onset dystonia

Temporal discrimination is the ability to determine that two sequential sensory stimuli are separated in time. For any individual, the temporal discrimination threshold (TDT) is the minimum interval at which paired sequential stimuli are perceived as being asynchronous; this can be assessed, with high test-retest and inter-rater reliability, using a simple psychophysical test. Temporal discrimination is disordered in a number of basal ganglia diseases including adult-onset dystonia, of which the two most common phenotypes are cervical dystonia and blepharospasm. The causes of adult-onset focal dystonia are unknown; genetic, epigenetic, and environmental factors are relevant. Abnormal TDTs in adult-onset dystonia are associated with structural and neurophysiological changes considered to reflect defective inhibitory interneuronal processing within a network which includes the superior colliculus, basal ganglia, and primary somatosensory cortex. It is hypothesized that abnormal temporal discrimination is a mediational endophenotype and, when present in unaffected relatives of patients with adult-onset dystonia, indicates non-manifesting gene carriage. Using the mediational endophenotype concept, etiological factors in adult-onset dystonia may be examined including (i) the role of environmental exposures in disease penetrance and expression; (ii) sexual dimorphism in sex ratios at age of onset; (iii) the pathogenesis of non-motor symptoms of adult-onset dystonia; and (iv) subcortical mechanisms in disease pathogenesis

Northern New England Palliative Care Teleconsult Research Laboratory

Introduction: • Palliative care (PC) is an approach that improves the quality of life of patients and their families. • Delivery of PC via telehealth technology (tele-PC) has been proposed as a solution to increase access to PC in rural areas. • The feasibility, acceptability, and effectiveness of applying telehealth technology to PC remains unknown. • The overarching purpose of the proposed study is to 1) evaluate the feasibility and acceptability of a tele-PC intervention for seriously ill patients, and 2) generate pilot data to better understand provider-patient communication during tele-PC consultation