Assimilation Of New Information Research Articles

"This whole journey was sacred": Latter-day Saint parents' process in coming to accept a transgender child.

This constructivist grounded theory (CGT) study examines Latter-day Saint (LDS) parents' process in coming to accept a transgender or gender diverse (TGD) child and the factors that impact acceptance. Data come from interviews with 38 LDS parents of TGD children and 130 Facebook posts from the same population. Data were analyzed using CGT methodology in coding and theory construction. A model of LDS parents' process in accepting a TGD child and the factors that impact that process are presented. The results indicate that coming to accept a TGD child tends to engage LDS parents cognitively, emotionally, socially, and spiritually, and is a developmental process. We identified four stages of parents' process: assimilation of new information, deconstruction and disequilibrium, reconstruction and accommodation, and acceptance; as well as typical emotional responses in each stage. We found that factors thatimpacted parents' process included parents' pre-process characteristics and contexts, religiously defined meaning making, social embeddedness, external resources, community building, and spiritual autonomy. Additionally, we found that parents' commitment to their child's wellbeing and connection with their child (i.e., attachment) motivates their process and that their personal spiritual experiences tend to guide it. Parents in the study who reached a state of acceptance expressed that their process had been both deeply challenging and profoundly, personally meaningful. This study strengthens the case for using attachment-based therapies with this population and indicates the value of incorporating spirituality into the therapeutic work.

What next for "counseling" in genetic counseling training: Areflection on how CBT and ACT approaches can contribute to the genetic counseling toolkit.

Counseling techniques are an important component of genetic counseling training and are focused on the person-centered counseling philosophy. While this has a long tradition within the profession and underpins the empowerment goal, it should not limit consideration of the potential benefits of education on other psychotherapeutic approaches such as the cognitive philosophy. The goal of empowerment in genetic counseling requires patients to receive information in a way that is accessible to them and to make sense of it in relation to their own health, lifestyle, and family information. This assimilation of new information is a complex cognitive process, and yet it is one that genetic counselors do not routinely actively facilitate. Rather the counseling component of genetic counseling has traditionally focused on emotionally supporting the patient which is driven by the person-centered philosophy that is covered in genetic counseling training. This paper argues for the potential for adopting more cognitive approaches informed by cognitive-behavioral therapy (CBT) and acceptance and commitment therapy (ACT), as these short interventions can have wide impact, including engaging patients who do not want to discuss feelings, helping people to make sense of information (not just gain knowledge), and helping people to change the relationship they have with their thoughts. This paper advocates for an introduction to CBT and ACT to be incorporated into prequalification training and for more advanced training to be available to postqualification genetic counselors.

Development of clinical decision-making among undergraduate nursing students: the effect of unfolding case-based learning.

This prospective cohort study evaluated the effect of unfolding case-based learning on undergraduate nursing students' self-perceived clinical decision-making ability. Students' self-reported responses to Jenkins's Clinical Decision Making in Nursing Scale were compared between the unfolding case-based learning cohort (n=140) and the comparison cohort (n=126) at a school of nursing in the United States. The results revealed similar students' responses between the two study cohorts. However, unfolding case-based learning significantly increased students' perceived proficiency in "search for information and unbiased assimilation of new information". Findings from the present study highlight possibilities presented by unfolding case-based learning in undergraduate nursing education. The study supports that unfolding case studies can be introduced early on, and then nurtured throughout the undergraduate program to influence the development of nursing students' clinical decision-making skills.

Palestinian Nursing Students' Perspective of Clinical Decision-Making.

One of the most important aspects of nursing education and practice is clinical decision-making (CDM), which is also crucial to clinical competency. The study aimed to assess the CDM of undergraduate nursing students by using the CDM nursing scale. The study was cross-sectional and involved 315 nursing student participants. Data collection utilized the Clinical Decision-Making Scale, which comprises domains such as "canvassing of objectives and values," "search for alternatives or options," "evaluation and reevaluation of consequences," and "search for information and unbiased assimilation of new information." Statistical analyses included Pearson correlation, ANOVA, and independent t-tests. Data collection occurred during the second semester of 2023. The results indicated that the mean age of the students was 21.69 (SD = 1.6) years. In terms of gender, the majority were males, constituting 216 (68.6%) of the participants. Among the participants, 105 (33.3%) were from the second year, 108 (34.3%) from the third year, and 102 (32.4%) from the fourth year. The analysis revealed that the average CDM score was 129.8 (SD = 17.5). Additionally, examination of the subscales of CDM showed that the highest subscale score was for "search for information and unbiased assimilation of new information" (M = 33.1, SD = 5.3), while the lowest subscale score was for "search for alternatives or options" (M = 31.8, SD = 6.0). Furthermore, the analysis demonstrated a significant difference between academic year level and the mean CDM scores (p < .05), along with a positive relationship between the CDM score and students' age (r = .67, p = .001). The findings revealed that nursing students exhibit a moderate level of CDM. Moreover, it was revealed that students' CDM is influenced by both their age and academic year level.

THE CONCEPTUALITY OF THE TEXT AS A MANIFESTATION OF THE ETHNO-CULTURAL CODE OF THE NATIONAL-AUTHOR PICTURE OF THE WORLD

The purpose of the article is to describe conceptuality as a subcategory of the textual category of informativeness, to focus on the linguistic means of expressing this typological feature of the verbal whole. The outlined goal involves the following tasks: to substantiate the existence of conceptuality as a subcategory of informativeness in the categorical hierarchy of the text; to focus attention on conceptuality in the aspect of revealing ethnocultural codes of national and individual author’s pictures of the world; describe key words, lexical repetitions, author’s aphorisms, as well as dedications, epigraphs, titles as linguistic means of realizing conceptuality. The source base of the research is Ukrainian-language artistic verbal objects, from which the selection of units (metaphors, epithets, periphrasis, oxymorons, etc.) was carried out, which reveal conceptuality as a textual subcategory of informativeness. The focus is on literary texts of both classical Ukrainian literature and modern ones — by Ihor-Bohdan Antonych, Ivan Bagryany, Oksana Zabuzhko, Maria Matios, Natalia Nazar, Roman Skiba, Hryhoriy Skovoroda, Vasyl Stus, Lesya Ukrainka, Hnat Khotkevich, Taras Shevchenko. The object of study is Ukrainian poetic discourse and its components (concepts), and the subject is artistic images of Ukrainian poetry and prose as expressions of conceptuality as a type of textual category of informativeness. The result of the scientific search was the deepening of the idea of hierarchical ordering of text categories and subcategories and the definition of conceptuality as an invariant characteristic of the verbal whole, which reflects a separate aspect of the typological feature of the verbal whole. We study artistic and poetic communication in the aspect of a discursive approach as a process in which the result of verbal interaction between its participants is a manifestation of the specificity of the linguistic and national picture of the world of Ukrainians. The conclusion is that the informativeness category represents the text as a communicative unit. The phenomenon of informativeness is caused by the presence of conceptual information in the artistic text, which is projected into the plane of the author — with the idea of the work, into the plane of the reader — with the process of perceiving the text as assimilation of new information and approaching the author’s idea. Ukrainian-language artistic texts are components of the world picture of the ethnos, they contain collective experience, the genetic and evolutionary basis of which is expressed by the textual subcategory of conceptuality. Conceptuality implements the aesthetic idea of the work, harmonizes the theme and plot, determines the selection of language means, etc. The concept is an axiological prism of worldview. Artistic communication is able to reveal the unique culture of the nation, its traditions, customs, mentality, reproduce people’s lives in national-historical originality, and also represent the worldview of the unique personality of the author-addressee. Linguistic means of implementing conceptuality as a subcategory of the text category of informativeness are keywords, lexical repetitions, author’s aphorisms, as well as dedications, epigraphs, titles.

What good are positive emotions for treatment? A replication test of whether trait positive emotionality predicts response to exposure therapy for social anxiety disorder

BackgroundPositive valence emotions serve functions that may facilitate response to exposure therapy – they encourage approach behavior, diminish perceived threat reactivity, and enhance assimilation of new information in memory. Few studies have examined whether positive emotions predict exposure therapy success and extant findings are mixed. Methods: We conducted a secondary analysis of an exposure therapy trial for social anxiety disorder to test the hypothesis that patients endorsing higher trait positive emotions at baseline would display the greatest treatment response. N = 152 participants enrolled in a randomized controlled trial of d-cycloserine augmentation completed five sessions of group exposure therapy. Pre-treatment positive emotionality was assessed using the NEO Five-Factor Inventory. Social anxiety symptoms were assessed throughout treatment by blinded evaluators using the Liebowitz Social Anxiety Scale. Results: Accounting for baseline symptom severity, multilevel growth curve models revealed that patients with higher pre-treatment positive emotionality displayed faster social anxiety symptom reductions and lower scores at 3-month follow-up. This predictive effect remained significant after controlling for baseline depression and extraversion (without the positive emotionality facet). Conclusions: These findings add to emerging evidence suggesting that explicitly targeting and enhancing positive emotions during exposure to perceived threat may improve treatment outcomes for anxiety and fear-based disorders. Trial registrationClinicalTrials.gov: NCT02066792https://clinicaltrials.gov/ct2/show/NCT02066792

METHODS OF STUDYING THE SEMANTICS OF PROGRAMMING LANGUAGES BY THE STUDENTS OF PROFESSIONAL EDUCATION INSTITUTIONS

The article shows that in institutions of professional (vocational and technical) education, the inclusion of a block of questions devoted to the semiotics of programming languages into the content of learning languages and programming methods will contribute to the successful implementation of the system of their fundamental training in the subject field «Information Technologies». The methodological system of education, built within the framework of the methodologicalical theory, helps students acquire knowledge and skills in the semiotics of programming languages. The main theoretical and methodological provisions are outlined, on the basis of which a methodical system of teaching the semiotics of programming languages ​​and a metamodel of the teaching method itself in the form of a methodical theory have been built. On the basis of the classification of models of syntax and semantics of programming languages, carried out to build a conceptual basis for the methodological theory of teaching semiotics of programming languages, there have been selected the following sections for teaching semiotics of programming languages: formal syntax of programming languages; meaningful operational semantics of programming languages; formal operational semantics of programming languages; formal deductive semantics of programming languages; denotational semantics of programming languages. At the stage of selecting the content of the elements of the model of the methodical system for teaching the semiotics of programming languages, the central place is occupied by the problem of setting learning goals, since the selection of the content of other elements is aimed at achieving the set goals. Semiotic educational models include a system of tasks, in which the subject area of activity is developed within the framework of specific teaching methods, which involve textual statements of educational problems or tasks. The goals and content of learning the semiotics of programming languages, largely influencing each other, determine the choice of teaching methods for the section in question. For example, when considering the last block of learning content, there has been chosen a simulation or social learning model, which provides for the student’s assimilation of new information, as well as attempts to get involved in the situation of solving professional tasks based on it.

On Reading Mathematical Texts, Question-Asking and Cognitive Load

In this study, we examined aspects relating to the impact of integrating question-asking activities and providing answers to these questions while reading historical mathematical texts on prospective mathematics teachers’ self-reported cognitive load. The research design of the study was quasi-experimental. The study participants included two groups of 20 students each (experimental and control). The experimental group was instructed to ask questions while coping with the texts, whereas the control group received no special instructions. The experimental group participants were asked to think aloud while coping with the texts and audio record themselves. These records were transcribed into written protocols. Both groups had to respond to a self-esteem index questionnaire in which they had to report the level of difficulty they experienced during their attempts to cope with the texts, as an indicator of their sense of cognitive load. This process was repeated at three time points, relating to three different texts. The data were analyzed using quantitative and qualitative methods. Two main observations were obtained: (1) A significant difference was found between the control and the experimental groups regarding the decrease in cognitive load along the time points. Because the only difference between the control and experimental groups was the activity of question-asking, it might be concluded that question-asking affects the reduction in cognitive load. (2) Question-asking supports the assimilation of new information up to a specific limit, depending on the gap between existing knowledge and new information.

The role of evaluation tools in the formation of linguistic competence of students of non-linguistic specialties

This article discusses ways to control the formation of linguistic competence of students of non-linguistic directions of training in modern conditions of teaching foreign languages. Special attention is paid to such types of control as dictation, test, translation tasks and mental map, which can be effectively used both as part of the current control and during the final certification. There are different types of dictations: bilingual, monolingual, continuous and selective. The basic requirements for tests as one of the evaluation tools are established. The importance of translation tasks in the framework of monitoring the formation of students' language competence is noted. The role of creating mental maps and working with them in the integrated assimilation of new information, as well as in the development of creative abilities when learning foreign languages on the example of French and German, is emphasized. In the conditions of technologization of the educational process, new forms of conducting these types of control are proposed: online dictation, computer testing, creating mental maps using various Internet services. Attention is focused on training sites containing monolingual online dictation and tests designed for different age groups and levels of foreign language proficiency.

The Factors Influencing Nurses' Clinical Decision-Making in Emergency Department.

In an emergency, making the correct decision is vital. It is a necessary element of professional nursing care, and the ability of nurses to make successful clinical decisions is the most critical element influencing care quality. The purpose of this study was to assess the factors influencing nurses' clinical decision-making in the emergency department of Palestinan hospitals. A cross-sectional study was targeted at all nurses working in emergency departments at the Palestinian hospitals. The study was completed with 227 nurses, and collecting data was performed with the Clinical Decision Making in Nursing Scale. Results of the study revealed that the average score for the total clinical decision-making score was 3.3 (SD = 0.23). The subscales of clinical decision making were "search for alternatives or options," "canvassing of objectives and values," "evaluation and reevaluation of consequences," and "search for information and unbiased assimilation of new information." Furthermore, multiple linear regression analysis revealed that degree and work hours accounted for 11.7% of the variance in clinical decision-making. The study confirmed the average score for clinical decision-making was slightly higher than the average score. Also, it approved that nursing degree and work hours were predictors of clinical decision-making among nurses in emergency departments.

Radiology department of geriatric hospital: staff-patient interactions

Medical care organization for older patients in geriatric centers is of particular interest due to the increase proportion of older population in Russian Federation. Geriatric patients experience cognitive, neurological, sensory changes, including decreased vision, hearing, rate of reaction, as well as increased time for assimilation of new information. Patients with age-related characteristics may encounter various problems during examination in radiology departments. This article presents methodological recommendations for examination of older patients based on personal experience and analyzed literature.

The Relationship Between Nursing Informatics Competency and Clinical Decision-Making Among Nurses in West Bank, Palestine.

This study aimed to examine the relationship between nursing informatics competencies and clinical decision-making by taking into account nurses' individual characteristics and job-related characteristics. A cross-sectional design was used. The cluster random sampling method was adopted to select 14 governmental hospitals in West Bank, Palestine, in which all nurses in these hospitals were invited to participate in this study. Results found that the total mean (SD) score for the nursing informatics competency scale was 2.6 (0.88), which indicates that the nurses had lower nursing informatics competency, and the informatics skills subscale had the lowest mean score (mean [SD], 2.4 [1.00]). Concerning clinical decision-making, the total mean (SD) score was 2.59 (0.38), which indicates that the nurses had lower clinical decision-making. Regarding clinical decision-making subscales, searching for information and unbiased assimilation of new information had the highest mean score (mean [SD], 2.64 [0.39]); on the contrary, the canvassing of objectives and values subscale had the lowest mean score (mean [SD], 2.53 [0.38]). Nursing informatics competency had a positive relationship with clinical decision-making. Thus, it is necessary to enhance nurses' informatics competency, especially informatics skills and clinical decision-making, by developing training programs about this technology directed to nurses.

The role and effectiveness of the use of digital technologies in distance education

The effective use of digital technologies in the organization of distance education plays an important role in the rapid assimilation of new information introduced into science. It will also be possible to quickly enter additional information within the virtual subject being studied. Therefore, the study of methods for introducing digital technologies and their effective use in distance learning processes, the creation of distance learning courses belongs to the group of topical scientific and technical problems. At present, the importance of using digital technologies in improving the quality of education is very high. The purpose of the research work is the effective use of digital technologies in distance education and the theoretical basis for testing its effectiveness. The article mentions the possibilities of the Moodle system, the advantages of course elements, effective methods of teaching science. The use of modern digital technologies and means of communication in distance education will also be discussed. The article outlines the stages of development of digital technologies, defines the meaning and content of the concepts “Digital technologies”, “Digital educational technologies”. Description of information about the Kahoot and Quizizz software platforms for an interesting organization of the educational process. The advantages of this platform in developing the intellectual and creative abilities of students and increasing their enthusiasm for learning are emphasized. Regardless of whether the educational process is traditional or distance learning, it is necessary to increase students’ interest in the lesson, encourage them to work on themselves, and form independent learning skills. Organization of the educational process on gaming platforms, creation of a set of electronic tests and its use in teaching, increasing the effectiveness of the lesson and increasing the independence of thinking of students, interest in the lesson, and a high level of mastery of the subject being taught. It is advisable to use digital technologies in the educational process to develop students’ interest, to develop the skills and abilities to use additional literature outside the textbook, to direct students to scientific research, as well as to constantly transfer knowledge to students.

Coping factors underlying academic achievement in senior adolescence

Educational activity is accompanied by dramatic qualitative changes in the structure of human consciousness associated with the search, acquisition and assimilation of new information, its use to increase the productivity of one’s activities in various fields. Such dramatic changes are accompanied by stress and, accordingly, the formation and development of methods for overcoming it, coping, aimed at reducing the negative consequences of difficult life situations, their resolution or avoidance. The subject of the research are common factors underlying coping strategies of a complex object — school performance in older adolescents (158 older adolescents aged 15–17 years with different levels of academic achievement). The study used data of the student’s electronic diary and questionnaire “Methods of coping behavior”. According to the results of the Wilcoxon criterion, the choice of coping behavior strategy in older adolescence is not determined by the gender or age of the subject of activity. A similar situation was obtained with respect to academic performance indicators. The explanation of the lack of influence of gender and age on academic performance can be explained by the cumulative score on this very “school intellectual success”, which levels the differences between individual subgroups in individual subjects. The results of factor analysis indicate groups (styles) of coping strategies based on their “passivity”, and at the same time — “emotionality” and “activity”, coupled with a preference for rationality with elements of meta-analytical abilities, their social/individualistic and problematic oriented focus. Moreover, cognitive abilities are interrelated with problem-oriented coping strategies

Neuroscience of Object Relations in Health and Disorder: A Proposal for an Integrative Model.

Recent advances in the neuroscience of episodic memory provide a framework to integrate object relations theory, a psychoanalytic model of mind development, with potential neural mechanisms. Object relations are primordial cognitive-affective units of the mind derived from survival- and safety-level experiences with caretakers during phase-sensitive periods of infancy and toddlerhood. Because these are learning experiences, their neural substrate likely involves memory, here affect-enhanced episodic memory. Inaugural object relations are encoded by the hippocampus-amygdala synaptic plasticity, and systems-consolidated by medial prefrontal cortex (mPFC). Self- and object-mental representations, extracted from these early experiences, are at first dichotomized by contradictory affects evoked by frustrating and rewarding interactions (“partial object relations”). Such affective dichotomization appears to be genetically hardwired the amygdala. Intrinsic propensity of mPFC to form schematic frameworks for episodic memories may pilot non-conscious integration of dichotomized mental representations in neonates and infants. With the emergence of working memory in toddlers, an activated self- and object-representation of a particular valence can be juxtaposed with its memorized opposites creating a balanced cognitive-affective frame (conscious “integration of object relations”). Specific events of object relations are forgotten but nevertheless profoundly influence the mental future of the individual, acting (i) as implicit schema-affect templates that regulate attentional priorities, relevance, and preferential assimilation of new information based on past experience, and (ii) as basic units of experience that are, under normal circumstances, integrated as attractors or “focal points” for interactive self-organization of functional brain networks that underlie the mind. A failure to achieve integrated object relations is predictive of poor adult emotional and social outcomes, including personality disorder. Cognitive, cellular-, and systems-neuroscience of episodic memory appear to support key postulates of object relations theory and help elucidate neural mechanisms of psychodynamic psychotherapy. Derived through the dual prism of psychoanalysis and neuroscience, the gained insights may offer new directions to enhance mental health and improve treatment of multiple forms of psychopathology.

NECESSITY OF IMPLEMENTATING DATA SCIENCE COURSE IN ECONOMICS CURRICULA

The article describes the relevance and feasibility of implementation Data Science courses for leading economics majors: 051 Economics, 075 Marketing, 073 Management. Application of computer technology, mathematical methods and models, statistical analysis in the study process for economics students became routine long time ago, then why is Data Science linked mostly only to the faculties of information technologies? The specificity of economic professions requires the acquisition of skills in the work with large data sets, qualitative evaluation of statistics, predicting a large number of economic phenomena, so the economist of the future should be not only a specialist in the main subject area, but also a specialist in Big Data and Data Mining. The study outlines the underlying background for essential changes. The article analyzes relevant educational and professional programs, blocks of disciplines, providing qualitative assimilation of new information by students and acquisition of those abilities and skills that are needed by the modern specialist in the field of economy and will form student as a serious competitor in the labor market. It has been conducted the analysis of modern international commercial on-line courses, specifying the topics and aspects necessary for the future economics graduates. The logical scheme of Data Science specialties introduction which follows the relevant cycle of the existing disciplines of general and professional training is proposed. Mastering the knowledge of qualitative data analysis and tools for optimal work with them should be one of the main tasks of the methodological system of education and research at the faculties of economics. Modern educational technologies and scientific facilities of universities should help to expand the understanding and perception of the economist, marketologist, and manager profession, because the digital advertising, SMM, social networks, online applications, project management, State in a Smartphone, and other rapid transformations encourage to train not classic specialists, but universals who will be able to adapt quickly to the needs of the future.

АКТИВІЗАЦІЯ ТВОРЧОГО ПОТЕНЦІАЛУ СТУДЕНТІВ У ПРОЦЕСІ ПРОФЕСІЙНОЇ ПІДГОТОВКИ

Статтю присвячено вивченню творчого потенціалу студента у процесі його професійної підготовки у закладі вищої освіти. Здійснено теоретичний аналіз психолого-педагогічної літератури з проблеми дослідження, проведено діагностичне виявлення особливостей становлення творчого потенціалу студентів, проаналізовано виховні заходи зі студентами педагогічного університету, організовано систематичне спостереження за проявами творчого потенціалу студентів під час практичних занять та у процесі проведення творчих конкурсів, культурно-масових і виховних заходів.Ученими доведено, що творчий потенціал – це інтегруюча якість особистості, що характеризує міру її можливостей ставити й вирішувати нові завдання у сфері своєї діяльності та має суспільне значення. З’ясовано, що до сфери творчого потенціалу відносяться: задатки, нахили, інтереси (домінування пізнавальних інтересів); допитливість (схильність до пошуку розв’язання проблем); швидкість у засвоєнні нової інформації; здатність створювати еталони для подальшого вибору; вияви загального інтелекту; емоційне ставлення до подій тощо. Нами було надане тлумачення професійної підготовки майбутніх фахівців, а саме: професійна підготовка – це не тільки здобуття певної кваліфікації за відповідним напрямом, а й засіб соціалізації сучасного студента, його гармонізації з реальною дійсністю, набуття ним фундаментальних знань у певній галузі та якостей професійної культури, розвитку його творчих можливостей. Сутність творчого потенціалу розглядаємо у сукупності таких основних компонентів та критеріїв до них: когнітивний компонент (обізнаність про власні творчі можливості), мовленнєвий компонент (вербальна креативність); діяльнісний компонент (конструктивна активність, оригінальність створюваного образу).Результати діагностики засвідчили недостатній рівень розвитку творчого потенціалу студентів, особливо за мовленнєвим і діяльнісним компонентами. Для активізації творчого потенціалу студентів – майбутніх вихователів закладів дошкільної освіти та практичних психологів, ми розробили психологічну програму, що містить систему практичних занять і виховних заходів, серед яких детальніше представлено театралізацію казок.

Studies of Learning during Sleep: Problems, Progress, and Perspectives

Sleep has been shown to play an important role in memory consolidation. The direction of studies of learning during sleep is based on the hypothesis that assimilation of new information can occur during the state of sleep. We present here a review of articles addressing the question of the formation of new memory traces during sleep with retention to waking, as well as reports of work seeking to identify the mechanisms of this learning. Associative conditioned reflex, perceptual, and other forms of learning are demonstrated, the main type being implicit learning.

A boon and a bane: Comparing the effects of prior knowledge on memory across the lifespan.

We tested 6- to 7-year-olds, 18- to 22-year-olds, and 67- to 74-year-olds on an associative memory task that consisted of knowledge-congruent and knowledge-incongruent object-scene pairs that were highly familiar to all age groups. We compared the 3 age groups on their memory congruency effect (i.e., better memory for knowledge-congruent associations) and on a schema bias score, which measures participants' tendency to commit knowledge-congruent memory errors. We found that prior knowledge similarly benefited memory for items encoded in a congruent context in all age groups. However, for associative memory, older adults and, to a lesser extent, children overrelied on their prior knowledge, as indicated by an enhanced congruency effect and schema bias. Functional MRI (fMRI) performed during memory encoding revealed an age-independent Memory × Congruency interaction in the ventromedial prefrontal cortex (vmPFC). Furthermore, the magnitude of vmPFC recruitment correlated positively with the schema bias. These findings suggest that older adults are most prone to rely on their prior knowledge for episodic memory decisions, but that children can also rely heavily on prior knowledge that they are well acquainted with. Furthermore, the fMRI results suggest that the vmPFC plays a key role in the assimilation of new information into existing knowledge structures across the entire life span. vmPFC recruitment leads to better memory for knowledge-congruent information but also to a heightened susceptibility to commit knowledge-congruent memory errors, in particular in children and older adults. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2019 APA, all rights reserved).

Optimising enterprise resource planning system to leverage a firm’s absorptive and adaptive capabilities

Background: Enterprise resource planning (ERP) systems of enormous amounts of data. In the case where uncertainties and volatilities exist in a firm’s environment, this data can help a business to reconfigure and modify its capabilities to adapt to the emerging changes. However, as most studies have only focused on the evaluation of the methodologies and challenges of ERP implementation, only little seems to have been performed to evaluate how ERP systems can be scaled to leverage a firm’s absorptive and adaptive capabilities. Objective: This research explores how ERP systems can be optimised to leverage the acquisition and assimilation of new information to bolster a firm’s absorptive and adaptive capabilities. Method: Using a qualitative exploratory research approach, primary research was based on the manufacturing businesses in the Gauteng area. In this analysis, 23 operational managers who were purposively drawn from 23 manufacturing businesses were interviewed to discern how ERP optimisation leverages a firm’s absorptive and adaptive capabilities. Results: Enterprise resource planning was found to create a business system that leverages new information acquisition and assimilation. Although this spawns a firm’s absorptive and adaptive capabilities, findings still revealed the adopted management philosophy and organisational culture to influence how ERP can be optimised to bolster the acquisition and assimilation of new information in product, operational and strategic changes and modifications. Conclusion: The study concludes with a framework that offers new insights on how ERP can be optimised to bolster a firm’s absorptive and adaptive capabilities.