Satisfaction in adult romantic relationships after parental divorce : the role of locus of control

Previous research has found that parental divorce influences both locus of control (LOC) and relationship satisfaction, and LOC also influences relationship satisfaction; therefore, LOC may play a mediating role in the relationship between parental divorce and relationship satisfaction. The purpose of this quantitative study was to explore the relationship between LOC and satisfaction in adult romantic relationships, comparing participants from intact and divorced families of origin. The influence of gender, age when parents divorced, and current age was also explored based on the following hypotheses: that parental divorce during early childhood would yield a more external LOC while parental divorce at an older age would yield a more internal LOC; that female participants would be more likely to have an external LOC; and older participants would have a more internal LOC. Additionally, this study hypothesized that an internal LOC would be associated with more relationship satisfaction in participants from both intact and divorced families. Finally, it was expected that offspring of divorced parents with an external LOC would have the lowest satisfaction in current relationships while participants from intact families with an internal LOC would report the most relationship satisfaction. The sample included 57 total participants who completed anonymous, internet surveys, including a demographic questionnaire, Rotter\u27s Locus of Control Scale (1967) and the Relationship Satisfaction Scale. No statistically significant relationships were found between LOC and age, LOC and gender, LOC and age at parental divorce, LOC and relationship satisfaction, nor parental marital status and relationship satisfaction. The implications of these findings for practice and research are discussed in light of the study\u27s methodological limitations

Restorative practice and behaviour management in schools: discipline meets care.

The history of restorative practices in New Zealand schools is directly related to projects such as the Suspension Reduction Initiative (SRI) and the more recent Student Engagement Initiative (SEI); thus the origins of restorative practices in schools are linked with behaviour management and school discipline. During the same period, teachers' work has become more complex: They are working with an increasingly diverse range of students, which in turn requires epistemologically diverse teaching and relationship-building approaches to ensure maximum participation for all. Teachers are looking for new and better ways to interact with students in their classrooms, and those responsible for disciplinary systems are looking to restorative practice for new ways to resolve the increasing range and number of difficulties between teachers and students, students and other students, and between the school and parents. Restorative practices (RP) are currently seen as a way of achieving all this, so they carry a huge burden of hope. Relationship skills are a key competency in the new curriculum, and the philosophy of restoration offers both a basis for understanding and a process for putting this agenda into practice. In effect, it means educating for citizenship in a diverse world, including teaching the skills of conflict resolution. If we accept this philosophy, the curriculum for teacher education will require significant changes in what students are taught about behaviour and classroom management

From Quest to Conquer: Traversing General Education at a Diverse Alaskan University to Integrate and Assess Transferable Information Literacy Skills in Foundational Courses

The University of Alaska Anchorage (UAA) is an open enrollment university that offers vocational, academic, and professional degrees in a northern region. UAA serves a culturally and demographically diverse population. Given this diversity, students display varying levels of information literacy (IL) competencies. Library Professors Anna Bjartmarsdóttir and Deborah Mole partner with faculty teaching composition and communication courses to create increasingly sophisticated and transferable IL learning opportunities. Strategies include: assessing students’ IL competencies; creating engaging activities; integrating IL throughout the semester; developing reflection opportunities to reinforce IL skills. UAA librarians, partnered with faculty, integrate and scaffold IL activities in foundational GE courses to develop increasingly sophisticated, transferable IL skills and knowledge practices. From team-based learning application exercises to workshops for teaching assistants, students learn how creativity partnered with initiative has helped to integrate transferable IL skill education at this diverse arctic university

Is the Brixton Spatial Anticipation Test sensitive to frontal dysfunction? Evidence from patients with frontal and posterior lesions

INTRODUCTION: The Brixton Spatial Anticipation Test is a widely used neuropsychological test, thought to assess executive functions and to be sensitive to frontal lobe lesions. Our aim was to investigate Brixton performance in patients with focal frontal or posterior lesions and healthy controls. METHOD: We compared performance on the Brixton in a sample of 24 frontal patients, 18 posterior patients and 22 healthy controls. Both overall performance (total number of errors) and error types were analyzed. RESULTS: We found no significant differences between frontal and posterior patients and healthy controls in overall Brixton performance. Moreover, our error analysis showed no difference between frontal patients, posterior patients and healthy controls. The only exception was that posterior patients had a greater tendency to guess and make more errors when following specific rules than healthy controls but this was no longer significant once fluid intelligence was controlled for. We also found no significant difference between the performance of patients with left lateral (n = 11), right lateral (n = 10) or superior medial (n = 18) frontal lesions and healthy controls. CONCLUSIONS: The Brixton test is not sensitive to frontal lobe dysfunction. It is likely that the test draws on a range of cognitive abilities not specific to frontal lobe lesions. Hence, caution should be taken when drawing conclusions about its neural substrates

The nutritional care of people living with dementia at home: A scoping review.

There are an increasing number of people with dementia living in their own home for longer, often supported by a family member. The symptoms of dementia can affect an individual's nutritional status, which can lead to a reduced quality of life for the person with dementia and their family members. A scoping review was conducted from July 2016 until September 2016, using a recognised framework, to explore what is currently known, and identify any gaps in the research regarding the nutritional care of people living with dementia at home. This included any interventions that may have been trialled or implemented, and the views of those living with dementia, carers and clinicians. Six electronic databases were searched from inception to July 2016. A review team was involved in screening and data extraction for selected articles. Published qualitative and quantitative studies were included that explored the nutritional care of people living with dementia at home. Methods included data extraction and conventional content analysis. Stakeholders were involved in the development of final categories. Following screening, 61 studies reported in 63 articles were included. Most studies were cross-sectional (n = 24), cohort (n = 15) or qualitative (n = 9). Only three were randomised controlled trials. Three overarching categories represented the results: Timely identification of nutritional risk and subsequent regular monitoring of nutritional status, multi-component tailored interventions and the influence of the care-giving dyad on nutritional status. Many studies identify people living at home with dementia as a vulnerable group prone to malnutrition; however, a lack of interventions exists to address the increased risk. There is a lack of research exploring the role of home care providers and healthcare professionals in the provision of nutritional care. Further research is required to explore how the emotional aspect of the care-giving dyad influences nutritional care

Is attending a mental process?

The nature of attention has been the topic of a lively research programme in psychology for over a century. But there is widespread agreement that none of the theories on offer manage to fully capture the nature of attention. Recently, philosophers have become interested in the debate again after a prolonged period of neglect. This paper contributes to the project of explaining the nature of attention. It starts off by critically examining Christopher Mole’s prominent “adverbial” account of attention, which traces the failure of extant psychological theories to their assumption that attending is a kind of process. It then defends an alternative, process-based view of the metaphysics of attention, on which attention is understood as an activity and not, as psychologists seem to implicitly assume, an accomplishment. The entrenched distinction between accomplishments and activities is shown to shed new light on the metaphysics of attention. It also provides a novel diagnosis of the empirical state of play

Is the Weigl Colour-Form Sorting Test Specific to Frontal Lobe Damage?

OBJECTIVE: The Weigl Colour-Form Sorting Test is a brief, widely used test of executive function. So far, it is unknown whether this test is specific to frontal lobe damage. Our aim was to investigate Weigl performance in patients with focal, unilateral, left or right, frontal, or non-frontal lesions. METHOD: We retrospectively analysed data from patients with focal, unilateral, left or right, frontal (n = 37), or non-frontal (n = 46) lesions who had completed the Weigl. Pass/failure (two correct solutions/less than two correct solutions) and errors were analysed. RESULTS: A greater proportion of frontal patients failed the Weigl than non-frontal patients, which was highly significant (p < 0.001). In patients who failed the test, a significantly greater proportion of frontal patients provided the same solution twice. No significant differences in Weigl performance were found between patients with left versus right hemisphere lesions or left versus right frontal lesions. There was no significant correlation between performance on the Weigl and tests tapping fluid intelligence. CONCLUSIONS: The Weigl is specific to frontal lobe lesions and not underpinned by fluid intelligence. Both pass/failure on this test and error types are informative. Hence, the Weigl is suitable for assessing frontal lobe dysfunction