379 research outputs found
An empirical investigation of issues in the assessment of social skill
Research in the assessment and training of
social skills has been hampered by the absence of adequate
measurement and assessment instruments. The present study
investigated a number of assessment issues in the area of
social skill. These issues concerned the reliability and
validity of untrained judges, the utility of role play, the
behavioural consistency of skilled and unskilled subjects
and the predictive power of nonverbal, paraverbal and
verbal behaviours in social skill.
Forty-three subjects were videotaped in two
roleplays and a waiting interaction with a confederate of
the opposite sex. Nine untrained judges provided
criterion ratings of global social skill, while raters
scored the paraverbal taped performances on a and verbal measures.
The results indicated that untrained judges were fairly reliable; behaviour in role play and waiting interaction differed for unskilled
subjects, but not for skilled subjects; skilled subjects
did not show greater behavioural variability than
unskilled subjects.
A series of regression analyses revealed that
the amount and timing of speech had the greatest influence
on skill judgements. In general, predictive behaviours
were able to account for considerably more of the variance in unskilled subjects than in skilled subjects. These
findings suggest that nonverbal and paraverbal behaviours
are significant at the lower end of the skill spectrum,
but that other factors, probably verbal, influence
judgements of high skill. The implications of these
results for social skill assessment and training and for
further research in the area are discussed
Knowledge brokers and rapid reviews: what do they do and how do they do it?
Knowledge brokering is a strategy frequently utilised to increase interaction between policymakers and researchers and build capacity for research. The Sax Institute uses knowledge brokers in one-off brief interventions to commission rapid reviews for use in decision making. Using knowledge brokers has been found to increase the clarity of rapid review proposals, yet little is known about how knowledge brokers assist policymakers to define their rapid research needs
Handling missing items in the Hospital Anxiety and Depression Scale (HADS): a simulation study
Additional file 1: Appendix S1. Individual results
The trials and tribulations of conducting an m-health pilot randomized controlled trial to improve oral cancer therapy adherence: recommendations for future multisite, non-drug clinical trials
Abstract Objective Integrating mobile phone-based health (m-health) interventions into healthcare systems is one solution to improve access to services for the growing number of patients with chronic illness. Practical challenges such as poor recruitment and inadequate resource allocation can hamper the assessment of such interventions with clinical trial methodology. This paper highlights the challenges encountered during a pilot randomized controlled trial of an m-health medication adherence intervention and offers recommendations for future multi-site, non-drug clinical trials. Results Eighteen patients were recruited to the study; eight were randomly allocated to the intervention arm. Intervention participants responded to their daily medication-reminder text messages, indicating that medication had been taken or not, and nurses were able to organize their calls around their workload. The trial closed prematurely primarily due to inadequate numbers of eligible patients; however, other potentially resolvable feasibility issues were identified. These included lack of infrastructure at study sites, poor screening data acquisition and management processes, and inexperience in conducting supportive care trials at participating sites. M-health intervention trials are designed to inform implementation of best supportive care practice. Adequate skills and infrastructure are research prerequisites that require careful consideration and sufficient investment for the successful execution of multi-site supportive care trials. Trial registration Australian and New Zealand Clinical Trials Register: ACTRN1261200063586
The TRIO Framework : Conceptual insights into family caregiver involvement and influence throughout cancer treatment decision-making
This research was supported under Australian Research Council's Discovery Projects funding scheme (Project Number: DP140103838).Peer reviewedPostprin
From normal response to clinical problem : definition and clinical features of fear of cancer recurrence
Research to date on fear of cancer recurrence (FCR) shows that moderate to high FCR affects 22-87 % of cancer survivors and is associated with higher psychological morbidity (Simard et al J Cancer Surviv 7:300-322, 2013). Despite growing research interest in FCR, the lack of consensus on its definition and characteristics when it reaches a clinical level has impeded knowledge transfer into patient services. In order to address these gaps, expert researchers, policy makers, trainees, and patient advocates attended a 2-day colloquium at the University of Ottawa in August 2015. A Delphi method was used to identify the most relevant definition of FCR, and the attendees generated possible diagnostic characteristics of clinical FCR. After three rounds of discussion and voting, the attendees reached consensus on a new definition of FCR: "Fear, worry, or concern relating to the possibility that cancer will come back or progress." Regarding clinical FCR, five possible characteristics were proposed: (1) high levels of preoccupation, worry, rumination, or intrusive thoughts; (2) maladaptive coping; (3) functional impairments; (4) excessive distress; and (5) difficulties making plans for the future. The new proposed definition of FCR reflects the broad spectrum in which patients experience FCR. A consensual definition of FCR and the identification of the essential characteristics of clinical FCR are necessary to accurately and consistently measure FCR severity and to develop effective interventions to treat FCR. We hope this broad definition can encourage further research and the development of inclusive policies for all cancer patients and survivors who are struggling with this issue.PostprintPeer reviewe
Can consumers learn to ask three questions to improve shared decision making? A feasibility study of the ASK (AskShareKnow) PatientāClinician Communication ModelĀ® intervention in a primary health-care setting
Funded by Informed Medical Decisions Foundation. Grant Number: #0175-1 National Health and Medical Research Council Public Health Training Fellowship. Grant Number: 568962Peer reviewedPublisher PD
Interventions before consultations to help patients address their information needs by encouraging question asking: systematic review
Objective To assess the effects on patients, clinicians, and the healthcare system of interventions before consultations to help patients or their representatives gather information in consultations by question asking
The pivotal position of 'liaison people': facilitating a research utilisation intervention in policy agencies
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