Consistent Pattern Of Response Research Articles

Model-based prediction of autoregulatory exhaustion in response to lower-body negative pressure–induced shock

We assessed the ability of a normalized autonomic nervous system (ANS) stress measure defined as an increase in the percentage of pulse rate from a baseline homeostasis state to identify corresponding changes in circulating blood volume to quantitatively recognize hypovolemia and predict subsequent autoregulatory exhaustion. Autoregulatory exhaustion is defined as the point where decreased circulatory volume exceeds the compensatory mechanism capacity to maintain flow and pressure. We derived frequency-based measures of pulse rate and pulse strength using a reflective pulse oximeter waveform of a photoplethysmograph placed on the forehead. This study was performed at the Penn State Heart and Vascular Institute, Hershey, Pennsylvania, in June 2010. Ten healthy subjects (5 each male and female) were placed supine in a lower-body negative-pressure chamber to induce central volume loss. Systolic blood pressure was continuously measured, and a value of less than 90 mm Hg defined autoregulatory exhaustion. Derived measures of circulating blood volume were compared with echocardiographic measures to access photoplethysmograph-derived circulatory volume measure relative to traditional cardiac hemodynamics. All 10 subjects produced consistent patterns of response characterized as a progressively increasing ANS stress in response to increasing lower-body negative pressure. Three subjects exhibited autoregulatory exhaustion, and ANS stress increased markedly on the step before displaying hypotension in these subjects but not the others. Results demonstrate the potential to use model-based measures to serve as a definitive presymptom predictive tool to recognize an impending hypovolemic condition, making this approach suitable for chronic care or for the management of hemodialysis patient where resting baseline measures can be obtained.

Observational Stance as a Predictor of Subjective and Genital Sexual Arousal in Men and Women

Observational stance refers to the perspective a person takes while viewing a sexual stimulus, either as a passive observer (observer stance) or an active participant (participant stance). The objective of the current study was to examine the relationship between observational stance and sexual arousal (subjective and genital) across a range of sexual stimuli that do or do not correspond with a participant's sexual attraction (preferred or nonpreferred stimuli, respectively). Regression analyses revealed that, for men (n = 44), participant stance significantly predicted subjective and genital arousal. Women's (n = 47) observer and participant stance predicted subjective arousal but not genital arousal. Analysis of variance showed that participant stance was greatest under preferred sexual stimuli conditions for all groups of participants, while observer stance scores revealed a less consistent pattern of response. This was particularly true for opposite-sex-attracted women, whose ratings of observer stance were lowest for preferred stimuli. Observational stance does not appear to account for gender differences in specificity of sexual arousal; for men, however, participant stance uniquely predicted genital response after controlling for sexual attractions. Similarities in the relationships between men's and women's observational stance and sexual responses challenge previous claims of gender differences in how men and women view erotica.

Differential Neural Activation Patterns in Patients with Parkinson's Disease and Freezing of Gait in Response to Concurrent Cognitive and Motor Load

Freezing of gait is a devastating symptom of Parkinson's disease (PD) that is exacerbated by the processing of cognitive information whilst walking. To date, no studies have explored the neural correlates associated with increases in cognitive load whilst performing a motor task in patients with freezing. In this experiment, 14 PD patients with and 15 PD patients without freezing of gait underwent 3T fMRI while performing a virtual reality gait task. Directions to walk and stop were presented on the viewing screen as either direct cues or as more cognitively indirect pre-learned cues. Both groups showed a consistent pattern of BOLD response within the Cognitive Control Network during performance of the paradigm. However, a between group comparison revealed that those PD patients with freezing of gait were less able to recruit the bilateral anterior insula, ventral striatum and the pre-supplementary motor area, as well as the left subthalamic nucleus when responding to indirect cognitive cues whilst maintaining a motor output. These results suggest that PD patients with freezing of gait are unable to properly recruit specific cortical and subcortical regions within the Cognitive Control Network during the performance of simultaneous motor and cognitive functions.

Disadvantageous Decision-Making as a Predictor of Drop-Out among Cocaine-Dependent Individuals in Long-Term Residential Treatment

Background: The treatment of cocaine-dependent individuals (CDI) is substantially challenged by high drop-out rates, raising questions regarding contributing factors. Recently, a number of studies have highlighted the potential of greater focus on the clinical significance of neurocognitive impairments in treatment-seeking cocaine users. In the present study, we hypothesized that disadvantageous decision-making would be one such factor placing CDI at greater risk for treatment drop-out.Methods: In order to explore this hypothesis, the present study contrasted baseline performance (at treatment onset) on two validated tasks of decision-making, the Iowa Gambling Task (IGT) and the Cambridge Gamble Task (CGT) in CDI who completed treatment in a residential Therapeutic Community (TC) (N = 66) and those who dropped out of TC prematurely (N = 84).Results: Compared to treatment completers, CDI who dropped out of TC prematurely did not establish a consistent and advantageous response pattern as the IGT progressed and exhibited a poorer ability to choose the most likely outcome on the CGT. There were no group differences in betting behavior.Conclusion: Our findings suggest that neurocognitive rehabilitation of disadvantageous decision-making may have clinical benefits in CDI admitted to long-term residential treatment programs.

Behavioural Responses of <i>Crangon crangon</i> (Crustacea, Decapoda) to Reduced Seawater pH Following Simulated Leakage from Sub-Sea Geological Storage

Carbon capture and storage (CCS) in sub-sea geological formations is being developed and promoted to mitigate CO2 discharges to the atmosphere from point sources such as power stations. There remain some questions on the risks associated with the possible loss of gas from storage and the environmental harm this could pose to marine organisms associated with the sea bed in these regions. This study investigated the effect of exposing the common shrimp (Crangon crangon) to reduced pH conditions and presents the results of stepwise pH-reductions (0.2 pH units from pH 7 down to pH 6). Behaviour was monitored continuously throughout 8 hours of exposure. In three subsequent experiments we could show a consistent and repeatable behavioural response pattern consisting of immediate avoidance reactions expressed as “shooting behaviour” following each pH-reduction every hour. The animals responded in a rapid manner to the shifts at all pH values, suggesting that these animals are sensitive to even relatively small changes. The results indicate that repeated acute pH-stress caused by CO2-leakage from carbon storage sites might affect the behaviour and subsequent fitness of natural populations of common shrimps. Changes in behaviour are likely to lead to increased predation on these animals and migration away from affected areas.

Intra-specific Variation in the Effect of Male Seminal Substances on Female Oviposition and Longevity in Callosobruchus chinensis

Male seminal substances have been shown to induce oviposition and reduce female longevity in a number of species including the adzuki bean beetle Callosobruchus chinensis. Here the micro-injection of extracts of male reproductive tissues is used to determine the effect of male and female strain on female fecundity and longevity. Four strains of C. chinensis, known to differ in their propensity to remate were assayed. The results indicate that male and female strain both influence female fecundity and longevity. However, consistent patterns of response were not observed as revealed by a significant interaction between male and female strains. The evolutionary implications of these results are discussed.

Meta‐analysis of avian and small‐mammal response to fire severity and fire surrogate treatments in U.S. fire‐prone forests

Management in fire‐prone ecosystems relies widely upon application of prescribed fire and/or fire surrogate (e.g., forest thinning) treatments to maintain biodiversity and ecosystem function. Recently, published literature examining wildlife response to fire and fire management has increased rapidly. However, none of this literature has been synthesized quantitatively, precluding assessment of consistent patterns of wildlife response among treatment types. Using meta‐analysis, we examined the scientific literature on vertebrate demographic responses to burn severity (low/moderate, high), fire surrogates (forest thinning), and fire and fire surrogate combined treatments in the most extensively studied fire‐prone, forested biome (forests of the United States). Effect sizes (magnitude of response) and their 95% confidence limits (response consistency) were estimated for each species‐by‐treatment combination with two or more observations. We found 41 studies of 119 bird and 17 small‐mammal species that examined short‐term responses (≤4 years) to thinning, low/moderate‐ and high‐severity fire, and thinning plus prescribed fire; data on other taxa and at longer time scales were too sparse to permit quantitative assessment. At the stand scale (<50 ha), thinning and low/moderate‐severity fire demonstrated similar response patterns in these forests. Combined thinning plus prescribed fire produced a higher percentage of positive responses. High‐severity fire provoked stronger responses, with a majority of species possessing higher or lower effect sizes relative to fires of lower severity. In the short term and at fine spatial scales, fire surrogate forest‐thinning treatments appear to effectively mimic low/moderate‐severity fire, whereas low/moderate‐severity fire is not a substitute for high‐severity fire. The varied response of taxa to each of the four conditions considered makes it clear that the full range of fire‐based disturbances (or their surrogates) is necessary to maintain a full complement of vertebrate species, including fire‐sensitive taxa. This is especially true for high‐severity fire, where positive responses from many avian taxa suggest that this disturbance (either as wildfire or prescribed fire) should be included in management plans where it is consistent with historic fire regimes and where maintenance of regional vertebrate biodiversity is a goal.

Are We more Consistent when Talking about Ourselves than when Behaving? Consistency Differences through a Questionnaire and an Objective Task

The present paper aimed to examine questionnaire response patterns and objective task-based test behavioral patterns in order to analyze the differences people show in consistency. It is hypothesized that people tend to be more consistent when talking about themselves (when describing themselves through verbal statements) that when they solve a task (when behaving). Consistency is computed using the pi* statistic (Hernandez, Rubio, Revuelta, & Santacreu, 2006). According to this procedure, consistency is defined as the value and the dimensionality of the latent trait of an individual (theta) remaining invariant through out the test of. Participants who are consistent must show a constant theta and follow a given response pattern during the entire course of the test. A sample of 3,972 participants was used. Results reveal that 68% of participants showed a consistent response pattern when completing the questionnaire. When tackling the task-based test, the percentage was 66%. 45% of individuals showed a consistent pattern in both tests. Implications for personality and individual differences assessment are discussed.

Modeling the Effect of Midrotation Fertilization on Specific Gravity of Loblolly Pine (Pinus taeda L.)

Abstract Ring specific gravity, earlywood and latewood specific gravity, and percent latewood were measured on cores collected at breast height from a thinned and fertilized midrotation loblolly pine (Pinus taeda L.) plantation in the lower Coastal Plain of North Carolina. The study was laid out in a randomized complete block design receiving four levels of nitrogen (N) fertilizer in 1984: 000 (control), 112, 224, and 336 kg/ha plus 28 kg/ha of phosphorus with each treatment. A consistent pattern of response was observed in latewood specific gravity (LWSG) after the application of different levels of fertilizer and used as a variable for modeling. The LWSG profiles of unfertilized trees followed a nonlinear relation with ring number from pith. A three-parameter asymptotic function was used to explain the LWSG profile of unfertilized trees with ring number as a covariate. Application of N reduced LWSG and was modeled using a two-parameter response function with year since fertilization as a covariate and separate parameter estimates for each fertilization level. On the basis of the model, the magnitude of maximum cumulative response was −0.025, −0.049, and −0.074 attained at 3.7, 1.9, and 0.8 years after fertilization for the 112, 224, and 336 kg/ha treatments, respectively.

Guardrail Optimization for Rural Roads

Guardrail barriers are optimized to provide a recommended lower-cost barrier solution for rural roadways in the United States, Europe, and developing countries. Physics-based guardrail analysis has determined that barrier behaviors are not random but tend to follow consistent characteristic patterns of response to vehicle impacts. Performance variability in conventional W-beam guardrails is closely associated with components that introduce variability into these patterns. Independent variations in release load of around 360% and 40% combine to result in the three primary guardrail failure modes, known as vehicle pocketing, vaulting, and hard wheel snagging. The solution to this performance variability problem is to optimize the release load in relation to support-post-section properties. This operation is accomplished by introducing a separate deformable release member that consistently provides the needed release load. This procedure enables the simultaneous optimization of cost and performance by reestablishing stable patterns in guardrail response to vehicle impacts; addressing the three primary guardrail failure modes; eliminating complexity associated with unnecessary components such as offset blocks, backup plates, and midspan splices; upgrading the reliability of existing guardrail systems on a retrofitable basis with minimal disruption; enabling a range of standard post types to accommodate local material preferences; and enabling a range of post spacings for diverse terrains and a range of rail heights to accommodate roadway overlays. A versatile W-beam guardrail incorporating these improved capabilities has been successfully crash tested and accepted by FHWA at NCHRP Report 350 test levels and Test Level 3 of the AASHTO Manual for Assessing Safety Hardware.

Passive Polarimetric Microwave Signatures Observed Over Antarctica

WindSat fully polarimetric passive microwave observations, expressed in the form of the Stokes vector, were analyzed over the Antarctic ice sheet. The vertically and horizontally polarized brightness temperatures (first two Stokes components) from WindSat are shown to be consistent with previous studies. Azimuthal modulations in the third and fourth Stokes components were analyzed and related to surface topography, roughness, and snow morphology. A second harmonic sine function of the azimuth angle was used to estimate the orientation angle of snow features, such as topographic slope and sastrugi. The results show good agreement with the orientations derived in a previous study using scatterometer data at similar frequencies. Seasonal variability in the third and fourth Stokes components is discussed. A consistent pattern of response emerged for 10.7 GHz. Under winter conditions, the large contribution of multiple volume scattering causes a high and regionally varying 10.7-GHz fourth Stokes signal. Under summer conditions, surface scattering dominates and results in a high 10.7-GHz third Stokes signal. The third and fourth Stokes observations at 37 GHz were found to correspond to the smaller penetration depth at this higher frequency, resulting in a low difference between the amplitudes of summer and winter. The study demonstrates the potential of the spaceborne fully polarimetric passive microwave radiometers in monitoring the thermal and morphological properties of large ice sheets.

Integrity of emotional and motivational states during the prodromal, first-episode, and chronic phases of schizophrenia.

Emotional and motivational dysfunction is fundamental to schizophrenia, and yet, the nature and scope of associated deficits are not well understood. This study assessed the integrity of emotional responding from the perspective of its underlying motivational systems during different phases of schizophrenia. Evaluative, somatic, and autonomic responses were measured during viewing of pictures categorized by emotional content, including threat, mutilation, contamination, illness, pollution, mild erotica, families, food, and nature. Participants were 13 patients at ultra high risk or prodromal for psychosis, 40 first-episode schizophrenia patients, 37 chronic schizophrenia patients, and 74 healthy comparison subjects. Irrespective of phase of illness, schizophrenia patients showed a robust and normal pattern of response across multiple systems, with differential engagement of the defensive and appetitive systems as a function of the motivational significance assigned to specific emotional contexts. Although the integrity of core motivational states also appeared to be intact in prodromal patients, a less consistent pattern of response was observed. As continuing efforts are made to identify emotional and motivational abnormalities in schizophrenia, identified deficits will likely be independent of a fundamental dysfunction in basic emotion and motivation response systems and involve integration with higher order processes.

Preservice and Inservice Science Teachers' Responses and Reasoning about the Nature of Science.

An adequate understanding of the nature of science (NOS) is essential for science teachers. The Myths of Science Questionnaire (MOSQ) consisting of 14 items, which comprised both optional and written types of response, was utilized to explore 113 Thai preservice and 101 inservice science teachers’ understanding and reasoning about the NOS, particularly scientific knowledge, scientific method, scientists’ work and scientific enterprise. A highly consistent pattern of responses emerged regarding the status of theories and laws, a hierarchical relationship between theory and law, tentativeness of science and science as cumulative knowledge. Most of them were uninformed understanding of the NOS. The MOSQ expressed, to some extent, the effectiveness in illustrating respondents’ reasoning about the NOS. The implications concerning the MOSQ and science teacher preparation and professional development are also discussed. Key words: Preservice science teacher, inservice science teacher, nature of science, reasoning, Thailand.

Decision-Making Styles of Young Malay, Chinese and Indian Consumers in Malaysia

Although consumer decision-making style represents a relatively consistent pattern of cognitive and affective responses, culture has been proven to impact significantly on individual values and attitudes, thus, culture is expected to have a significant influence on consumer decision-making styles. This paper investigates the decision-making styles of young Malay, Chinese and Indian consumers in Malaysia using Consumer Style Inventory (CSI) developed by Sproles and Kendall (1986). An examination of the psychometric properties of CSI shows some similarities and differences in consumer decision-making styles among the three ethnic groups, suggesting that ethnicity affects shopping behavior. Identification of new traits exclusive to each ethnic group suggests that CSI cannot be applied without considering the cultural factors.

Online Travel Surveys and Response Patterns

This article reviews the benefits and issues with online surveys as it relates to response rates, speed of response, representativeness of the samples, and the differences in results due to different survey media. Analysis of the response data for four travel-related online surveys showed consistent response patterns. This article demonstrates that an exponential growth model is most appropriate when modeling the numbers of returns over time. The model can predict the final number of returns based on 7 or 8 days’ survey return numbers with a relatively small degree of error. The study suggests that surveying a pilot sample and analyzing their responses can allow a researcher to estimate the parameters of the response model for a large-scale survey and thus conduct a study in a more effective way.

Cardiovascular state changes during performance of a simulated ambulance dispatchers' task: Potential use for adaptive support

Adaptive support has the potential to keep the operator optimally motivated, involved, and able to perform a task. In order to use such support, the operator's state has to be determined from physiological parameters and task performance measures. In an environment where the task of an ambulance dispatcher was simulated, two studies have been carried out to evaluate the feasibility of using cardiovascular measures for adaptive support. During performance of this 2–3 h lasting planning task, a pattern of results is found that can be characterized by an initial increase of blood pressure and heart rate and a decrease of heart rate variability (defense reaction pattern) followed by an ongoing increase of blood pressure counteracted by a decrease in heart rate. This pattern can be explained by an augmented short-term blood pressure control (baroreflex), which is reflected in an increase of baroreflex sensitivity. Additionally, in this latter phase heart rate variability (HRV) increases as a function of time, while blood pressure variability decreases. In the two studies performed, the baroreflex pattern was consistent for all the relevant variables. In both studies there were periods with high and low workload. Effects of task load are mainly reflected in the variability measures, while in the second study, additionally, blood pressure level was higher during periods with high task demands. The conclusion of the studies is that consistent cardiovascular response patterns can be recognized during this semi-realistic planning task, where variability measures are most sensitive to task demand changes, while blood pressure and baroreflex sensitivity are most informative with respect to cardiovascular state changes. These findings can be seen as a great potential benefit for future use in adaptive support applications.

Historical Thinking in Higher Education

This article provides an introduction to the results of a nationwide scoping study of student and staff perceptions of the nature and roles of historical thinking. In 2008–09, over 1400 students and 50 staff from 12 universities around Australia completed interviews and questionnaires. This research report examines student and staff responses to the second questionnaire item, asking for an assessment of the connection between particular activities and historical thinking. The national data reflected a surprisingly consistent pattern of responses and highlighted at least three things which should be of interest and concern to academics: first, students far more than their teachers associated the handling of secondary sources with historical thinking; second, students drew few connections between online work and historical thinking; and third, there were few discernible differences in the responses of introductory and upper-level students. These findings underscore the need for sector-wide work on promoting primary materials work with students, for developing the opportunities provided by computer-assisted learning and articulating and communicating to students the standards of achievement valued by the profession as marking the development of historical thinking at tertiary level.

Influence of metal concentrations, percent salinity, and length of exposure on the metabolic rate of fathead minnows ( Pimephales promelas)

Understanding the effects of chemical toxicants on energetic processes is an important aspect of ecotoxicology. However, the influence of toxicant concentration and time of exposure on metabolism in aquatic organisms is still poorly understood. The purpose of this investigation was to determine the influence of increasing levels of three stressors (Cu, Cd, percent salinity) and exposure time (24 h and 96 h) on the metabolic rate of fathead minnows ( Pimephales promelas). In all 24-h exposures, there existed a threshold concentration, above which metabolic rate decreased significantly compared to the control and lower concentrations. In contrast, the metabolic rate of fish exposed for 96 h increased significantly in all concentrations compared to fish from the control. We suggest fathead minnows exhibit a consistent pattern of metabolic response to stressors, regardless of the physiological mechanisms involved, and that this response differs as a function of time of exposure.

Mutagenicity assessment of acrylate and methacrylate compounds and implications for regulatory toxicology requirements

Esters of acrylic acid and methacrylic acid, more commonly known as acrylates and methacrylates, respectively, are key raw materials in the coatings and printing industry, with several of its chemical class used in food packaging. The results of over 200 short-term in vitro and in vivo mutagenicity studies available in the open literature have been evaluated. Despite differences in acrylate or methacrylate functionality or in the number of functional groups, a consistent pattern of test response was seen in a typical regulatory battery of mutagenicity tests. No evidence of point mutations was observed when acrylic acid or over 60 acrylates and methacrylates were investigated in Salmonella bacterial tests or in hprt mutation tests mammalian cells, and no evidence of a mutagenic effect was seen when tested in whole animal clastogenicity and/or aneuploidy (chromosomal aberration/micronucleus) studies. Consistent with the in vivo testing results, acrylic acid exhibited no evidence of carcinogenicity in chronic rodent cancer bioassays. In contrast, acrylic acid and the entire acrylate and methacrylate chemical class produced a consistently positive response when tested in the mouse lymphoma assay and/or other in vitro mammalian cell assays designed to detect clastogenicity. The biological relevance of this in vitro response is questioned based on the non-concordance of in vitro results with those of in vivo studies addressing the same mutagenic endpoint (clastogenicity). Thus, in short-term mutagenicity tests, the acrylates and methacrylates behave as a single chemical category, and genotoxicity behavior of a similar chemical can be predicted with confidence by inclusion within this chemical class, thus avoiding unnecessary testing.

You Stab My Back, I'll Stab Yours: Management Experience and Perceptions of Organization Political Behaviour

This paper reports the findings of a survey of 250 British managers, exploring their experience and perceptions of organization politics. Political behaviour appeared to be common. Most managers viewed political behaviour as ethical and necessary, and aspects of organizational effectiveness, change, resourcing and reputation were attributed to political tactics, although 80% had no training in this area. Tactics experienced frequently included networking, using ‘key players’ to support initiatives, making friends with power brokers, bending the rules, and self‐promotion. Tactics experienced as rare, but not unknown, included misinformation, spreading rumours, and keeping ‘dirt files’ for blackmail. A consistent pattern of responses concerning willingness to engage in politics, the need to act ruthlessly and the appropriateness of reciprocity when faced with political behaviour implies an attitude of ‘you stab my back, I'll stab yours’. Findings are discussed using an ‘antecedents–behaviours–consequences’ framework of perceived organization politics to guide research.