Holistic Scale Research Articles

Towards a holistic internal market orientation measurement scale

This paper seeks to propose a conceptual framework for the development of a holistic measurement scale to determine the extent of internal market orientation (IMO) of a firm. To this end, the study reviewed the antecedent of the internal marketing (IM) constructs, and identified some disagreement and controversies surrounding the internal marketing philosophy. Some of the disagreement and arguments identified concerned internal marketing as an approach to human resource management (HRM); similarities regarding IMO and external marketing; and mutual misunderstanding on marketing and public administration. The paper also reviewed research works that confirmed the importance of employees to a firm's performance. Finally, the paper proposed a new direction of research that integrates institutional factors in the development of IMO measurement. The new direction of research is expected to facilitate response to calls for periodic review of an IMO measurement instrument that is consistent with changes in the marketing environment.

Environmental sustainability, complex systems, and the disruptive imagination

It is now widely recognized that a scientific approach to the environment requires recognition that all things environmental are embedded in complex systems. While it is theoretically possible to study elements of environmental systems in isolation, the knowledge derived will be of limited value for informing real decisions made in messy, context-rich situations. In environmental systems, it is not typical that all other variables remain equal. Thus, managers, decision-makers, and policy-makers are constrained from adjusting just one variable at a time. The interconnected, interdependent character of real-world environmental systems ensures that simplification risks masking the unintended consequences of decisions. Subsequently, new problems will emerge that require more study, increasingly ambitious interventions, and create further unintended consequences. An antidote to a spiral of ever-increasing effort yielding increasingly frustrating outcomes might be systems thinking. One goal of systems theory and methodology is to understand interconnectedness and interdependencies at an appropriately holistic scale, remaining sensitive to the limits of knowledge and willing to adapt present and future decisions to new information. Nonetheless, there is no single template that constitutes a systems approach. The degree to which systems analysts, decision-makers, and scientists can combine reductionist perspectives with holistic perspectives depends on the skill and experience with which methods or tools are employed. The paragraphs below describe several of these, in order from most narrow and quantitative to most broad and necessarily qualitative. Logical problem-solving requires analysts to pose wellformulated problems that typically yield one best right answer. For example, in systems optimization, the goal to identify a set of design variables that result in minimization or maximization of an objective (or merit) function that represents the values of decision-makers. Famous problems in transportation and economics are amenable to systems optimization, such as planning a bus route that picks up and delivers all passengers while driving the fewest possible miles. Taken collectively, these problems make up a field of study called operations research. When a systems optimization problem is not reducible to a single objective, it may be amenable to multi-criteria decision analysis (MCDA). Nonetheless, the optimization approach typically makes strong assumptions about the definition of boundaries and state of knowledge of the system, including the relationships among the state variables of the system. Typically, systems optimization is good for managing complicated systems from which reliable data and operational models can be extracted (such as air traffic control, supply chains, or manufacturing); however, it is not often appropriate for complex systems. The latter includes feedback loops that may operate on time scales that render it not useful to conceive of optimality. Some systems can be both simple and complex, in the T. P. Seager (&) Arizona State University, Glendale, AZ, USA e-mail: Thomas.Seager@asu.edu

When Raters Talk, Rubrics Fall Silent

Abstract The research reported here suggests that raters, when involved in writing assessment, are more concerned with their own criteria to set a basis for their judgment rather than the standards provided by scale descriptors. This study sampled think aloud of eight raters who scored 15 essays in accord with Test of Written English (TWE) holistic scoring guide. Verbal report data indicated that just less than five percent of the statements made by the raters are related to the issues assessed in TWE. These findings background the utility of holistic rating scale descriptors, foregrounding the raters' descriptors-independent judgments.

Patent litigation precaution method: analyzing characteristics of US litigated and non-litigated patents from 1976 to 2010

This study aims to propose an early precaution method which allows predicting probability of patent infringement as well as evaluating patent value. To obtain the purposes, a large-scale analysis on both litigated patents and non-litigated patents issued between 1976 and 2010 by USPTO are conducted. The holistic scale analysis on the two types of patents (3,878,852 non-litigated patents and 31,992 litigated patents in total) issued by USPTO from 1976 to 2010 has not been conducted in literatures and need to be investigated to allow patent researchers to understand the overall picture of the USPTO patents. Also, by comparing characteristics of all litigated patents to that of non-litigated patents, a precaution method for patent litigation can be obtained. Both litigated patents and non-litigated patents are analyzed to understand the differences between the two types of patents in terms of different variables. It is found that there are statistically significant differences for the two types of patents in the following 11 variables: (1) No. of Assignee, (2) No. of Assignee Country, (3) No. of Inventor, (4) Inventor Country, (5) No. of Patent Reference, (6) No. of Patent Citation Received, (7) No. of IPC, (8) No. of UPC, (9) No. of Claim, (10) No. of Non-Patent Reference, and (11) No. of Foreign Reference. Finally, logistic regression is used for predicting the probability of occurrence of a patent litigation by fitting the 11 characteristics of 3,910,844 USPTO patents to a logistic function curve.

Assessing quality of care from hospital case notes: comparison of reliability of two methods

ObjectivesTo determine which of the two methods of case note review provide the most useful and reliable information for reviewing quality of care.DesignRetrospective, multiple reviews of 692 case notes were...

Comparison of case note review methods for evaluating quality and safety in health care

To determine which of two methods of case note review--holistic (implicit) and criterion-based (explicit)--provides the most useful and reliable information for quality and safety of care, and the level of agreement within and between groups of health-care professionals when they use the two methods to review the same record. To explore the process-outcome relationship between holistic and criterion-based quality-of-care measures and hospital-level outcome indicators. Case notes of patients at randomly selected hospitals in England. In the first part of the study, retrospective multiple reviews of 684 case notes were undertaken at nine acute hospitals using both holistic and criterion-based review methods. Quality-of-care measures included evidence-based review criteria and a quality-of-care rating scale. Textual commentary on the quality of care was provided as a component of holistic review. Review teams comprised combinations of: doctors (n = 16), specialist nurses (n = 10) and clinically trained audit staff (n = 3) and non-clinical audit staff (n = 9). In the second part of the study, process (quality and safety) of care data were collected from the case notes of 1565 people with either chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) or heart failure in 20 hospitals. Doctors collected criterion-based data from case notes and used implicit review methods to derive textual comments on the quality of care provided and score the care overall. Data were analysed for intrarater consistency, inter-rater reliability between pairs of staff using intraclass correlation coefficients (ICCs) and completeness of criterion data capture, and comparisons were made within and between staff groups and between review methods. To explore the process-outcome relationship, a range of publicly available health-care indicator data were used as proxy outcomes in a multilevel analysis. Overall, 1473 holistic and 1389 criterion-based reviews were undertaken in the first part of the study. When same staff-type reviewer pairs/groups reviewed the same record, holistic scale score inter-rater reliability was moderate within each of the three staff groups [intraclass correlation coefficient (ICC) 0.46-0.52], and inter-rater reliability for criterion-based scores was moderate to good (ICC 0.61-0.88). When different staff-type pairs/groups reviewed the same record, agreement between the reviewer pairs/groups was weak to moderate for overall care (ICC 0.24-0.43). Comparison of holistic review score and criterion-based score of case notes reviewed by doctors and by non-clinical audit staff showed a reasonable level of agreement (p-values for difference 0.406 and 0.223, respectively), although results from all three staff types showed no overall level of agreement (p-value for difference 0.057). Detailed qualitative analysis of the textual data indicated that the three staff types tended to provide different forms of commentary on quality of care, although there was some overlap between some groups. In the process-outcome study there generally were high criterion-based scores for all hospitals, whereas there was more interhospital variation between the holistic review overall scale scores. Textual commentary on the quality of care verified the holistic scale scores. Differences among hospitals with regard to the relationship between mortality and quality of care were not statistically significant. Using the holistic approach, the three groups of staff appeared to interpret the recorded care differently when they each reviewed the same record. When the same clinical record was reviewed by doctors and non-clinical audit staff, there was no significant difference between the assessments of quality of care generated by the two groups. All three staff groups performed reasonably well when using criterion-based review, although the quality and type of information provided by doctors was of greater value. Therefore, when measuring quality of care from case notes, consideration needs to be given to the method of review, the type of staff undertaking the review, and the methods of analysis available to the review team. Review can be enhanced using a combination of both criterion-based and structured holistic methods with textual commentary, and variation in quality of care can best be identified from a combination of holistic scale scores and textual data review.

Rating scale impact on EFL essay marking: A mixed-method study

Educators often have to choose among different types of rating scales to assess second-language (L2) writing performance. There is little research, however, on how different rating scales affect rater performance. This study employed a mixed-method approach to investigate the effects of two different rating scales on EFL essay scores, rating processes, and raters’ perceptions. Four EFL teachers in Tunisia rated a set of 24 EFL essays silently and two subsets of four essays while thinking aloud using a holistic scale and then a multiple-trait rating scale. The essay scores were analyzed using G-theory while the think-aloud protocols were coded in terms of Cuming, Kantor, and Power's (Cumming, A., Kantor, R., & Powers, D. (2002). Decision making while rating ESL/EFL writing tasks: A descriptive framework. Modern Language Journal, 86 (1), 67–96.) rater decision-making scheme. The holistic scale resulted in higher inter-rater agreement. Raters employed similar processes with both rating scales. Raters were the main source of variability in terms of scores and decision-making behavior. These findings have implications for writing assessment practices and for further research.

Practical management of psoriasis in the elderly: epidemiology, clinical aspects, quality of life, patient education and treatment options.

Psoriasis in the elderly will constitute a significant challenge for the practising physician in this new millennium. Special considerations for the elderly include drug-induced or drug-aggravated psoriasis, especially for patients receiving polypharmacy or with recent worsening or poor response to conventional therapy. Other frequently encountered forms of psoriasis in the elderly include psoriatic arthritis and its complications, inverse psoriasis and potentially life-threatening complications such as erythrodermic or acute pustular psoriasis, where early recognition and systemic therapy is critical. Faced with an array of topical and systemic drug therapy options, it is of paramount importance that the physician remains focused on the holistic management of the patient, in order to achieve optimal compliance and benefit. This can be achieved through careful attention to quality-of-life issues, especially since many elderly patients may have other medical, social and economic comorbidities that can further negatively affect their overall quality of life. It is also essential that the severity of psoriasis be assessed on a more balanced, holistic scale that incorporates both physical and psychological parameters, such as the Salford Psoriasis Index. The patient and caregiver education should be multi-faceted, regularly conducted and practically orientated. Treatment goals should be kept simple and individualised for each patient, based on concomitant comorbidities, potential adverse effects, existing quality of life, self-care capability, drug history, caregiver situation, financial needs, feasibility for follow-up and patient's preferences. Topically applied medications, such as topical corticosteroids, salicylic acid, tar and dithranol preparations, calcipotriol and tazarotene, are the favoured first-line therapeutic options in the elderly. Narrowband ultraviolet B phototherapy is also well established as a standard therapy for psoriasis. Systemic therapy with agents such as methotrexate, acitretin and cyclosporin should be judiciously reserved for severe, extensive cases in view of their lower therapeutic index in the elderly. The ambulatory psoriasis treatment centre is an integral part of the overall cost-effective management of patients with psoriasis that can function as a 'one-stop' treatment and resource centre for the elderly patient.

An Approach That Examines Sources of Misfit to Improve Performance Assessment Items and Rubrics

This article discusses an approach to analyzing performance assessments that identifies potential reasons for misfitting items and uses this information to improve on items and rubrics for these assessments. Specifically, the approach involves identifying psychometric features and qualitative features of items and rubrics that may possibly influence misfit; examining relations between these features and the fit statistic; conducting an analysis of student responses to a sample of misfitting items; and finally, based on the results of the previous analyses, modifying characteristics of the items or rubrics and reexamining fit. A mathematics performance assessment containing 53 constructed-response items scored on a holistic scale from 0 to 4 is used to illustrate the approach. The 2-parameter graded response model (Samejima, 1969) is used to calibrate the data. Implications of this method of data analysis for improving performance assessment items and rubrics are discussed as well as issues and limitations related to the use of the approach.

Development of an analytic rating scale for Japanese L1 writing

The present study developed an analytic rating scale for Japanese university students’ first language (L1) expository writing. Research proceeded in four stages. In Stage 1, we devised a questionnaire to investigate Japanese L1 teachers’ criteria for evaluating expository writing. A total of 102 teachers responded to the questionnaire, and rated the 35 related descriptions according to their importance. In Stage 2, based on the questionnaire results, we either eliminated or reorganized these 35 descriptions under six analytic criteria: 1) Clarity of the theme; 2) Appeal to the readers; 3) Expression; 4) Organization; 5) Knowledge of language forms; and 6) Social awareness. Then, in Stage 3, we attempted to investigate possible weighting of these six criteria. We asked 106 teachers to rate two to four compositions with varied profiles using both a holistic scale and the obtained analytic scale. The results showed that the explanatory power of each criterion can vary from composition to composition, and thus we concluded that the six criteria should have equal weighting. Finally, in Stage 4, we pilot-tested the obtained scale using a new set of 69 compositions. The results indicate that the present scale is both valid and reliable, and that it is superior to a traditional analytic scale in capturing such composition qualities as appeal to the readers and social awareness.

Measures of Linguistic Accuracy in Second Language Writing Research

Because a literature review revealed that the descriptions of measures of linguistic accuracy in research on second language writing are often inadequate and their reliabilities often not reported, I completed an empirical study comparing 3 measures. The study used a holistic scale, error‐free T‐units, and an error classification system on the essays of English as a second language (ESL) students. I present detailed discussion of how each measure was implemented, give intra‐ and interrater reliabilities and discuss why disagreements arose within a rater and between raters. The study will provide others doing research in the area of L2 writing with a comprehensive description that will help them select and use a measure of linguistic accuracy.

Partial Credit Analysis of Writing Ability

The direct assessment of the writing ability of 2000 randomly selected secondary school students was performed using the partial credit model. The effects on item parameter estimates of rating scale and type of writing sample were investigated. The rating scales used were a sum and an averaging of the individual raters' ratings and the types of items were expository and narrative. Results showed that expository items tended to provide more information for high ability examinees than did narrative items and that the sum holistic rating method yielded greater information than did the average holistic rating scale. Additional analyses of the rating scales used as well as implications for test construction are discussed.

Testing Proficiency in Writing at San Francisco State University

and C omm/miralion ;ldren,q Rmarrb in (/7! -died in some business .- problems. Often. the idinon. sortie business knowledge. has never -rsona which is to be Btmrim (Chicago. IL: 0213 in which they will 11 Council of Teachers Writing and Changes “i. EDRS Document 80:. ed. B. Anderson we Ratings of Writing ii on Measurement in ibers to suggest omes Associate ,-cretary; Execu- ee (three open- mbers are wel- itory letters of 3 Chair of the -borough Com- CCC members e to attend an in Thursday 17 n Resolutions. nation at the ist five CCCC solutions. with it“. do NCTE. Testing Proficiency in Writing at San Francisco State University Sara Warshauer Freedman and William S. Robinson At San Francisco State University, we have been involved in testing our stu- dents’ proficiency in written composition since 1960. long before the current proficiency movement gained momentum. Through our years of experience, we have learned how to design a reasonably reliable, reasonably economical testing program capable of handling large populations of students semester in and semester out. Here we will present an overview of our testing program and discuss in some detail three important features: the selection of essay topics, special issues in scoring, and the development of a counseling pro- gram for students who fail. The examination at San Francisco State is called the junior English Profi- ciency Essay Test OEPET). It consists of a single assigned essay topic, on which every student writes an expository response in one hour. The test is required early in the junior year following a semester of freshman and one of sophomore composition, and students who fail it must take a junior exposi- tory writing course. The test is meant to be seen as an upper-division mini- mal proficiency test of a student's ability to write exposition. (Readers should remember that the term qminimal proficiencyq is relative and means what- ever local standards cause it to mean.) The essays are graded on a six-point holistic scale following, in general, the procedure developed by Educational Testing Service. Students who fail are invited to see a counselor, whose prin- cipal job is to see that no one fails who should have passed. Before beginning our discussion, we want to caution that in an absolute sense, the notion of testing writing proficiency is nonsense. for proficiency, as noted, is a relative term, and writing comes in as many guises as there are human interests and occupations. A poet may be inept in the world of busi- Sarah \X/arshauer Freedman is now Assistant Professor of Writing Research and Instruction in the School of Education at the University of California, Berkeley. She works with teacher- researchers on processes of classroom inquiry. She has published essays in (among other jour- nals) CCC. Eng/irb journal. Renard) in II): Teaching of Eng/irb. and Educational Psychology. Wil- ll2I|1} Robinson is Professor English and Coordinator of Composition at San Francisco State Uni- versity. He has served on the English Equivalency Examination and English Placement Test committees in the California State University system, and has acted as a consultant on test de- velopment to other campuses in the system. College Composition and Communication, Vol. 33, No. 4, December 1982 393

La evaluación de la competencia oral en segundas lenguas. El caso del inglés en el mundo profesional

La evaluación de la competencia oral es una de las más subjetivas en la enseñanza de una segunda lengua y a veces la que más conflictos origina en cuanto la evaluación justa e injusta dependiendo de los objetivos de dicha evaluación. Además del problema de la subjetividad hay que añadir la complejidad del consumo de tiempo que requiere si se quiere realizar de forma individual, la preparación de la actividad, la rúbrica específica que se quiere utilizar y las exigencias del proceso o protocolo que se debería de seguir para una correcta evaluación.En este documento realizaremos un planteamiento teórico de la evaluación de la competencia oral en segundas lenguas, el proceso de evaluación y la importancia de las escalas de valoración. Veremos las que son utilizadas por las instituciones más reconocidas en la enseñanza y evaluación del inglés además de sus descriptores, poniendo ejemplos de dicha evaluación en el mundo laboral y además propondremos una rúbrica para evaluar de forma holística que puede ser utilizada en un proceso de selección de candidatos a un trabajo.