Parent-Implemented Pivotal Response Treatment to Promote Social Communication Skills in Children with Autism

Providing children with autism with early intensive behavioral interventions has become a research priority. Specifically, early and intensive behavioral intervention of Pivotal Response Training (PRT) has been targeted as an effective natural behavioral intervention. The present study extended the use of PRT to teaching parents to implement this intervention in their home natural settings and was hypothesized to intensify and increase the time access to the intervention; hence, enhance maintenance and generalization of social communication skills for children with autism. A multiple-probe-across-setting design was used in this study to determine if training parents of children with autism to use Pivotal Response Treatment (PRT), specifically teaching their children to label and use query responses, enhanced social communication skills and also led to generalization in other settings. The results of this study of three distinct families who participated in this study showed that parents were able to learn, implement, and generalize the Pivotal Response Treatment (PRT) intervention. Also, the children of these parents significantly increased their communication responses at home and generalized these communication responses across different settings. Implications of the findings of this study were discussed and further lines of research were suggested. The implications included that social conversation could be enhanced through the implementation of naturalistic behavioral intervention that included motivational variables

Antecedents of the perceived organizational justice: An aggregated theoretical framework

The interest of the perceived organizational justice realm remains an increased manifold. It is a behavioral concept that emphasizes how people subjectively assess the ethical and moral norms of organizational management. Perceived organizational justice (OJ) is sometimes studied as a dependent variable, but often as an independent variable. For that reason, various OJ antecedents are examined in this paper, such as factors related to individual characteristics (Demographic characteristics, personality traits), culture (Individualism/collectivism, uncertainty avoidance, power distance, long, term/court term orientation, masculinity/femininity), organizational processes (organizational structure, HR practices, CSR initiatives), and interpersonal relationship (Leader-member-exchange and social contagion). Besides, the current paper presents an analytic review of the existing perceived organizational justice literature, and attempts to respond to the following question: What contributes to framing a fairness perception? Because of the multidisciplinary and interdisciplinarity of this field, we consolidated more than 125 theoretical and empirical papers, to portray firstly a holistic overview of fairness theories (cognitive/process and content theories), and highlight secondly the different relationships between perceived organizational justice and an array of predictors. Thereby, this review aims to contribute to the enrichment of the state of knowledge of justice or fairness, by providing a clear roadmap and deeper insight for researchers and practitioners concerned with perceived organizational justice, and enabling them to understand how and why people make such fairness perceptions in the workplace. To do so, we discuss its relationships with various antecedent aspects and propose an aggregated theoretical framework to identify multiple areas for future investigation and guide the field forward.The interest of the perceived organizational justice realm remains an increased manifold. It is a behavioral concept that emphasizes how people subjectively assess the ethical and moral norms of organizational management. Perceived organizational justice (OJ) is sometimes studied as a dependent variable, but often as an independent variable. For that reason, various OJ antecedents are examined in this paper, such as factors related to individual characteristics (Demographic characteristics, personality traits), culture (Individualism/collectivism, uncertainty avoidance, power distance, long, term/court term orientation, masculinity/femininity), organizational processes (organizational structure, HR practices, CSR initiatives), and interpersonal relationship (Leader-member-exchange and social contagion). Besides, the current paper presents an analytic review of the existing perceived organizational justice literature, and attempts to respond to the following question: What contributes to framing a fairness perception? Because of the multidisciplinary and interdisciplinarity of this field, we consolidated more than 125 theoretical and empirical papers, to portray firstly a holistic overview of fairness theories (cognitive/process and content theories), and highlight secondly the different relationships between perceived organizational justice and an array of predictors. Thereby, this review aims to contribute to the enrichment of the state of knowledge of justice or fairness, by providing a clear roadmap and deeper insight for researchers and practitioners concerned with perceived organizational justice, and enabling them to understand how and why people make such fairness perceptions in the workplace. To do so, we discuss its relationships with various antecedent aspects and propose an aggregated theoretical framework to identify multiple areas for future investigation and guide the field forward

Modeling the Near-Surface Using High-Resolution Seismic Data

In the Arabian Peninsula, the near-surface represents a major challenge in seismic exploration. For accurate deep subsurface reservoir imaging, an accurate near-surface velocity model is required. In this dissertation, I review the regional geology and geomorphology and the existing methods used for velocity modeling. A new method is developed, which depends on acquiring high-resolution shallow seismic data. The data is processed to obtain a near-surface velocity. The numerical modeling shows that the accuracy required for accurate imaging can be obtained through this new method. Alternative existing methods either lack the required accuracy or are very expensive to use. Three real field data cases are presented. In each case a high-resolution velocity model is obtained and used to process the conventional data. To make the new method more practical, I recommend using the CMP mode and a land streamer for data acquisition. I show that some artifacts in the data acquired using a land streamer can be overcome by using optimally-designed plate-mounded geophones. The two main factors in the design are the plate weight and area. From the experimental data, I conclude that land-streamer data over sand dune can be more coherent than conventional data, especially the first-arrival events

AlSub: Fully Parallel and Modular Subdivision

In recent years, mesh subdivision---the process of forging smooth free-form surfaces from coarse polygonal meshes---has become an indispensable production instrument. Although subdivision performance is crucial during simulation, animation and rendering, state-of-the-art approaches still rely on serial implementations for complex parts of the subdivision process. Therefore, they often fail to harness the power of modern parallel devices, like the graphics processing unit (GPU), for large parts of the algorithm and must resort to time-consuming serial preprocessing. In this paper, we show that a complete parallelization of the subdivision process for modern architectures is possible. Building on sparse matrix linear algebra, we show how to structure the complete subdivision process into a sequence of algebra operations. By restructuring and grouping these operations, we adapt the process for different use cases, such as regular subdivision of dynamic meshes, uniform subdivision for immutable topology, and feature-adaptive subdivision for efficient rendering of animated models. As the same machinery is used for all use cases, identical subdivision results are achieved in all parts of the production pipeline. As a second contribution, we show how these linear algebra formulations can effectively be translated into efficient GPU kernels. Applying our strategies to $\sqrt{3}$, Loop and Catmull-Clark subdivision shows significant speedups of our approach compared to state-of-the-art solutions, while we completely avoid serial preprocessing.Comment: Changed structure Added content Improved description

Magnetic and transport properties of sputtered iron-aluminium films under vacuum

Sputter deposition is one of the vapour quenching methods used to produce alloying compounds in thin film form. The alloying compounds produced by this method have a chemically homogeneous, non-equilibrium structure which is dill'erent from that of alloys produced by solid quenching, liquid quenching, or mechanical alloying methods. In the present investigation the Fe 1-:x.A1x alloy thin films were prepared using multisource magnetron sputtering. The samples were deposited onto a water cooled substrate and their thickness was kept constant at t- 300nm. To investigate the effect of the deposition parameters on the properties of the films, the samples were deposited at various argon gas pressures PAr I, 3, or 4 mtorr. The effect of gas pressure is consistent with the thermalization of the deposited material by collisions with gas atoms in the chamber. The composition range of the samples varied from pure iron to pure aluminium. The composition, structure and morphology of the films was obtained using Transmission Electron Microscopy (TEM). X-ray diffraction patterns were also used to obtain the structure of the films. Structure analysis showed that a bcc crystalline structure was obtained in samples of composition range x= 0 to - 50%, an amorphous structure in samples of composition range x- 55% to - 83%, and a fcc crystalline structure in samples of composition range x- 85% to 100%. These composition ranges are affected by altering the deposition gas pressure. The morphology of the deposited films was observed to be affected by the deposition gas pressure. The samples deposited at low gas pressure Par=1 mtorr consist of a fibrous structure with densely packed boundaries, while the samples deposited at high gas pressure Par=4 mtorr consist of columnar structures separated by open boundaries. Room temperature resistivity measurements show a drop in resistivity in the composition range x- 30% to 50%. This drop is thought to be due to the formation of chemically ordered Fe3Al and FeAI compounds. Also the resistivity increases with increasing argon gas pressure. The effect of altering the argon gas pressure is to change the morphology of these alloys, and this has a significant effect on the magnetic properties. The effect of annealing on the magnetisation and morphology was also studied in the samples. A low temperature resistivity measurement system was constructed. A closed cycle helium refrigerator, which provided a working temperature range of T= l5°K to 3000K was used for the cooling process. The resistivity measurements revealed three distinct characteristics dependent on composition :- 1. x= 0 to 46%: The samples in this range exhibit a metallic behaviour, with the samples in the composition range x= 27% to 46% showing a resistivity minimum at low temperature which is thought to be due to spin glass formation. 2. x= 48% to 83%: These samples have a semiconductor or metallic glass-like behaviour. 3. x= 85% to 100%: These samples show a metallic behaviour. The above properties are associated with the change in the structure of the fiIrns as the composition varies. A computer controlled AC susceptometer was designed and constructed to measure the AC susceptibility of the samples in the temperature range T= 20 OK to T= 300 OK. A closed cycle helium refrigerator was used to provide the cooling process. The AC susceptibility measurements for the samples with resistivity minima show a sharp peak at low temperature which confirms the presence of spin glass in these samples at low temperature. The results of magnetic and transport properties can be related to the structure and morphology of the filrns. The results have been compared with those obtained from bulk samples with the same composition

The consequences of the perceived organizational justice: a holistic overview

Organizational justice gained a bourgeoning interest in academic and corporate areas, it is a virtue of social organizations. In the working environment, individuals react depending on their perceptions. Therefore, perceived organizational justice is a behavioral concept that refers to the subjective description of the fairness of remuneration, decision-making processes and relationships within the organization. These justice perceptions have been empirically related to positive and negative consequences on attitudes, behaviors, and health such as greater identification and commitment, better organizational trust, increased job satisfaction, reinforced job performance, promoted employees’ organizational citizenship behavior, improved health and wellbeing as well as counterproductive behaviors. Despite the vigor of fairness research, the rapid flourishment of this literature has made relevant a variety of new issues. Hence, drawing upon equity theory and social exchange theory, this theoretical paper is designed to investigate the prominent literature in order to develop a holistic overview portraying the individual level of the perceived organizational justice and point out its salient consequences, based on recent theoretical and empirical research. It is anticipated that this paper will have a significant contribution to the advancement of organizational justice research literature and provide managers and scholars to get a better insight into harmonizing the relationship between employee and employers. Since, organizational justice has the potential to produce powerful benefits for organizations and employees alike. In the present paper, we discuss the main definitions and dimensions of organizational justice in accordance with the descriptive and subjective approach, in addition, we present the principal outcomes of fairness and unfairness treatments.   Organizational justice gained a bourgeoning interest in academic and corporate areas, it is a virtue of social organizations. In the working environment, individuals react depending on their perceptions. Therefore, perceived organizational justice is a behavioral concept that refers to the subjective description of the fairness of remuneration, decision-making processes and relationships within the organization. These justice perceptions have been empirically related to positive and negative consequences on attitudes, behaviors, and health such as greater identification and commitment, better organizational trust, increased job satisfaction, reinforced job performance, promoted employees’ organizational citizenship behavior, improved health and wellbeing as well as counterproductive behaviors. Despite the vigor of fairness research, the rapid flourishment of this literature has made relevant a variety of new issues. Hence, drawing upon equity theory and social exchange theory, this theoretical paper is designed to investigate the prominent literature in order to develop a holistic overview portraying the individual level of the perceived organizational justice and point out its salient consequences, based on recent theoretical and empirical research. It is anticipated that this paper will have a significant contribution to the advancement of organizational justice research literature and provide managers and scholars to get a better insight into harmonizing the relationship between employee and employers. Since, organizational justice has the potential to produce powerful benefits for organizations and employees alike. In the present paper, we discuss the main definitions and dimensions of organizational justice in accordance with the descriptive and subjective approach, in addition, we present the principal outcomes of fairness and unfairness treatments.  &nbsp

Exploring the Intersection of Digital Virtual Consumption and Family Rituals

Since Rook (1985) first described important linkages between rituals and consumer behavior, scholars have examined consumer rituals from the perspectives of the individual consumer, marketers, marketing exchanges, and cultural institutions. New modes of communication and expression (e.g., digital media), and globalization calls for a thorough understanding of the consumption-related ritual topics, and what areas they should explore in the future. In this paper, we systematically review articles in the top marketing and consumer behavior journals to provide an overview of the current composition of ritual scholarship, and of prospective areas for future research. In so doing, we hope to categorize ritual scholarship into broad conceptual domains and evaluate our current understanding of rituals in each, identify gaps in our understanding based on the changing market environment, and suggest areas of inquiry to address these gaps. We examined articles in the top twelve marketing journals identified in the SCImago Journal Rank of all marketing journals, each with an impact factor of at least 2.5. We searched for articles pertaining to consumption rituals in the twelve journals by consulting the three business databases included in the EBSCO database. Of these journals, five included pertinent articles: Journal of Marketing, Journal of Consumer Research, Journal of the Academy of Marketing Science, Journal of Consumer Psychology, and the Journal of Retailing. We determined that the authors’ foci led to an emergent partition of the literature into five domains (albeit with a few overlaps). The research team engaged in close reads and iterative discussion of articles, identifying various themes and research extensions within each domain. The themes are: foundational, macro-level, meso-level, marketplace-level, and micro-level

On The Determination of MDI High-Degree Mode Frequencies

The characteristic of the solar acoustic spectrum is such that mode lifetimes get shorter and spatial leaks get closer in frequency as the degree of a mode increases for a given order. A direct consequence of this property is that individual p-modes are only resolved at low and intermediate degrees, and that at high degrees, individual modes blend into ridges. Once modes have blended into ridges, the power distribution of the ridge defines the ridge central frequency and it will mask the true underlying mode frequency. An accurate model of the amplitude of the peaks that contribute to the ridge power distribution is needed to recover the underlying mode frequency from fitting the ridge. We present the results of fitting high degree power ridges (up to l = 900) computed from several two to three-month-long time-series of full-disk observations taken with the Michelson Doppler Imager (MDI) on-board the Solar and Heliospheric Observatory between 1996 and 1999. We also present a detailed discussion of the modeling of the ridge power distribution, and the contribution of the various observational and instrumental effects on the spatial leakage, in the context of the MDI instrument. We have constructed a physically motivated model (rather than some ad hoc correction scheme) resulting in a methodology that can produce an unbiased determination of high-degree modes, once the instrumental characteristics are well understood. Finally, we present changes in high degree mode parameters with epoch and thus solar activity level and discuss their significance.Comment: 59 pages, 38 figures -- High-resolution version at http://www-sgk.harvard.edu:1080/~sylvain/preprints/ -- Manuscript submitted to Ap