A qualitative study of the perceptions of public school teachers and administrators on the teachers\u27 association and the collective bargaining process in an Iowa urban school setting

Previous studies have looked at collective bargaining and teachers’ associations and their impact on student achievement, but the results are mixed. Absent from the literature are studies that analyze data gathered after the passage of the federal No Child Left Behind Act of 2001. The focus of this study was to explore urban Iowa public school administrators’ and teachers’ current perceptions of the relationship between teacher associations and collective bargaining. It is the intent of this research to understand what the administrators and teachers in this study perceive about teacher associations and collective bargaining and why they maintain these perceptions. For this study, semi-structured interviews were used to understand the perceptions of school administrators and teachers on collective bargaining and teacher associations in an urban Iowa school district. These interviews were designed to explain current teacher and administrative perception on this research topic. The research offers a number of implications for educators at all levels. The data collected from this study could assist school administrators and public school teachers in understanding the perceptions of others prior to entering collective bargaining negotiations. The various groups could use this information to provide professional development for each group to support working together and ensuring actions that serve the best interest of the students, all while protecting their own professional interests

New Product Innovation with Multiple Features and Technology Constraints

We model a firm\u27s decisions about product innovation, focusing on the extent to which features should be improved or changed in the succession of models that comprise a life cycle. We show that the structure of the internal and external environment in which a firm operates suggests when to innovate to the technology frontier. The criterion is maximization of the expected present value of products during the life cycle. Computational studies complement the theoretical results and lead to insights about when to bundle innovations across features. The formalization was influenced by extensive interviews with managers in a high-technology firm that dominates its industry

The Relationship between Pre-Employment Expectations, Experiences, and the Length of Stay in Public Accounting

This study examines the relationship between work-family conflict, employment expectations, and length of stay in public accounting. Length of stay is modeled as a function of demographic factors and job characteristics associated with work-family balance, measured in terms of the extent to which the employees\u27 expectations matched their actual employment experiences. Results indicated that gender, the presence of children in the household, flexible schedules, and the presence of mentors were related to length of stay in public accounting

Importance of highly selective LC–MS/MS analysis for the accurate quantification of tamoxifen and its metabolites: focus on endoxifen and 4-hydroxytamoxifen

The antiestrogenic effect of tamoxifen is mainly attributable to the active metabolites endoxifen and 4-hydroxytamoxifen. This effect is assumed to be concentration-dependent and therefore quantitative analysis of tamoxifen and metabolites for clinical studies and therapeutic drug monitoring is increasing. We investigated the large discrepancies in reported mean endoxifen and 4-hydroxytamoxifen concentrations. Two published LC–MS/MS methods are used to analyse a set of 75 serum samples from patients treated with tamoxifen. The method from Teunissen et al. (J Chrom B, 879:1677–1685, 2011) separates endoxifen and 4-hydroxytamoxifen from other tamoxifen metabolites with similar masses and fragmentation patterns. The second method, published by Gjerde et al. (J Chrom A, 1082:6–14, 2005) however lacks selectivity, resulting in a factor 2–3 overestimation of the endoxifen and 4-hydroxytamoxifen levels, respectively. We emphasize the use of highly selective LC–MS/MS methods for the quantification of tamoxifen and its metabolites in biological samples

Use of alcohol and drugs by Norwegian employees: a pilot study using questionnaires and analysis of oral fluid

<p>Abstract</p> <p>Background</p> <p>The use of alcohol and drugs may affect workplace safety and productivity. Little is known about the magnitude of this problem in Norway.</p> <p>Methods</p> <p>Employee recruitment methods with or without individual follow-up were compared. The employees filled in a questionnaire and provided a sample of oral fluid. Samples were analysed for alcohol, ethyl glucuronide (EtG; a biological marker of recent large alcohol intake), psychoactive medicinal drugs and illegal drugs.</p> <p>Results</p> <p>Participation rates with and without individual follow-up were 96% and 68%, respectively. Alcohol was negative (≤0.1 mg/ml) in all samples, but 21.0% reported the intake of alcohol during the last 24 h. EtG was positive (>2.2 ng/ml) in 2.1% of the samples. In-efficiency or hangover at work during the past year was reported by 24.3%, while 6.2% had been absent from work due to the use of alcohol. The combination of self-report and analytical testing indicated that medicinal or illegal drugs had been used during the last 48 h by 5.1% and 1.7% of the participants, respectively; while only 4.2% and 0.4% admitted the use in the questionnaire.</p> <p>Conclusions</p> <p>Self-reported data suggest that hangover after drinking alcohol appears to be the largest substance abuse problem at Norwegian workplaces, resulting in absence and inefficiency at work. Analysis of oral fluid revealed that the use of illegal drugs was more common than drinking alcohol before working or at the workplace. The analysis of oral fluid may be a valuable tool in obtaining additional information on alcohol and drug use compared to using questionnaires alone.</p

Maternal prenatal depressive symptoms and risk for early-life psychopathology in offspring: results from a genetically-informative, population-based sample

Background: Maternal prenatal depression is a known risk factor for early-life psychopathology among offspring; however, potential risk transmission mechanisms need to be distinguished. We aimed to test the relative importance of passive genetic transmission, direct exposure, and indirect exposure in the association between maternal prenatal depressive symptoms and early-life internalising and externalising psychopathology in offspring. Methods: We used structural equation modelling of phenotypic data and genetically informative relationships from the families of participants in the Norwegian Mother and Child Birth Cohort Study (MoBa). The analytic subsample of MoBa used in the current study comprises 22 195 mothers and 35 299 children. We used mothers' self-reported depressive symptoms during pregnancy, as captured by the Symptom Checklist, and their reports of symptoms of psychopathology in their offspring during the first few years of life (measured at 18, 36, and 60 months using the Child Behavior Checklist). Findings: Maternal prenatal depressive symptoms were found to be associated with early-life psychopathology primarily via intergenerationally shared genetic factors, which explained 41% (95% CI 36–46) of variance in children's internalising problems and 37% (30–44) of variance in children's externalising problems. For internalising problems, phenotypic transmission also contributed significantly, accounting for 14% (95% CI 5–19) of the association, but this contribution was found to be explained by exposure to concurrent maternal depressive symptoms, rather than by direct exposure in utero. Interpretation: Associations between maternal prenatal depressive symptoms and offspring behavioural outcomes in early childhood are likely to be at least partially explained by shared genes. This genetic confounding should be considered when attempting to quantify risks posed by in-utero exposure to maternal depressive symptoms. Funding: UK Economic and Social Research Council, Norwegian Research Council, Norwegian Ministries of Health and Care Services, and Education &amp; Research, Wellcome Trust, Royal Society, and National Institute for Health Research

Bacteraemia, Malaria, and Case Fatality Among Children Hospitalized With Fever in Dar es Salaam, Tanzania

Background Febrile illness is the commonest cause of hospitalization in children <5 years in sub-Saharan Africa, and bacterial blood stream-infections and malaria are major causes of death. Methods From March 2017 to July 2018, we enrolled 2226 children aged 0-5 years hospitalized due to fever in four major public hospitals of Dar es Salaam namely; Amana, Temeke and Mwananyamala Regional Hospitals and Muhimbili National Hospital. We recorded social demographic and clinical data, performed blood-culture and HIV-antibody testing. We used qPCR to quantify Plasmodium falciparum parasitaemia and Matrix-Assisted Laser Desorption/Ionization-Time of Flight (MALDI-TOF) to identify bacterial isolates. Disk diffusion method was used for antimicrobial susceptibility testing. Results Nineteen percent of the children (426/2226) had pathogens detected from blood. Eleven percent (236/2226) of the children had bacteraemia/fungaemia and 10% (204/2063) had P. falciparum malaria. Ten children had concomitant malaria and bacteraemia. Gram-negative bacteria (64%) were more frequent than Gram-positive (32%) and fungi (4%). Over fifty percent of Gram-negative bacteria were extended-spectrum beta-lactamase (ESBL) producers and multidrug resistant. Methicillin resistant Staphylococcus aureus (MRSA) was found in 11/42 (26.2%). The most severe form of clinical malaria was associated with high parasitaemia (>four million genomes/µL) of P. falciparaum in plasma. Overall, in-hospital death was 4% (89/2146) and it was higher in children with bacteraemia (8%, 18/227) than malaria (2%, 4/194, P=0.007). Risk factors for death were bacteraemia (p=0.03), unconsciousness at admission (p<0.001) and admission at a tertiary hospital (p=0.003). Conclusions Compared to previous studies in this region, our study showed a reduction in malaria prevalence, a decrease in in-hospital mortality and an increase in antimicrobial resistance (AMR) including ESBLs and multidrug resistance. An increase of AMR highlights the importance of continued strengthening of diagnostic capability and antimicrobial stewardship programs. We also found malaria and bacteraemia contributed equally in causing febrile illness but bacteraemia caused higher in-hospital death. The most severe form of clinical malaria was associated with P. falciparum parasitaemia

Matrilineal diversity and population history of Norwegians

Background While well known for its Viking past, Norway's population history and the influences that have shaped its genetic diversity are less well understood. This is particularly true with respect to its demography, migration patterns, and dialectal regions, despite there being curated historical records for the past several centuries. In this study, we undertook an analysis of mitochondrial DNA (mtDNA) diversity within the country to elaborate this history from a matrilineal genetic perspective. Methods We aggregated 1174 partial modern Norwegian mtDNA sequences from the published literature and subjected them to detailed statistical and phylogenetic analysis by dialectal regions and localities. We further contextualized the matrilineal ancestry of modern Norwegians with data from Mesolithic, Iron Age, and historic period populations. Results Modern Norwegian mtDNAs fell into eight West Eurasian (N, HV, JT, I, U, K, X, W), five East Eurasian (A, F, G, N11, Z), and one African (L2) haplogroups. Pairwise analysis of molecular variance (AMOVA) estimates for all Norwegians indicated they were differentiated from each other at 1.68% (p < 0.001). Norwegians within the same dialectal region also showed genetic similarities to each other, although differences between subpopulations within dialectal regions were also observed. In addition, certain mtDNA lineages in modern Norwegians were also found among prehistoric and historic period populations, suggesting some level of genetic continuity over hundreds to many thousands of years. Conclusions This analysis of mtDNA diversity provides a detailed picture of the genetic variation within Norway in light of its topography, settlement history, and historical migrations over the past several centuries.publishedVersio