Membership Stability Research Articles

Prosocial development throughout the toddlerhood: A person‐centred approach

AbstractAddressing the debate on whether there are reliable individual differences in toddler's prosociality, this study employed a person‐centred approach to investigate (1) profiles of instrumental helping, sharing and empathic helping at 22, 28 and 34 months, and (2) the predictive role of toddler's temperament (anger/frustration, impulsivity and inhibitory control) to these profiles. Variable‐centred analyses examined cross‐task and over time associations. Participants were 93 Dutch toddlers observed in standardised behavioural assessments at each wave. Parents rated their toddler's temperament at wave 1. Results revealed small but significant across‐task and over time associations of the prosocial behaviours and children were distinguished into three profile groups at 22 months (high prosocial, instrumental helper and low prosocial), three at 28 months (high, moderate and low) and two profiles at 34 months (high prosocial and instrumental and empathic helpers), with low to moderate membership stability across waves. For 34‐month‐olds, those in the high prosocial group were rated as being less impulsive compared to their peers in the helper group. These findings indicate reliable individual differences of prosociality exist at early ages with impulsivity as a potential precursor to these individual differences.

Interprofessional team membership stability and medical errors in emergency departments

IntroductionDelays to care and treatment in emergency departments (EDs) can lead to medical errors that harm patients. To optimize ED outcomes, indicators exist that define time frames within which patients should be assessed, receive care, and be discharged and they include time to triage, time to physician assessment (PIA), and time to discharge. The purpose of this study was to examine the relationship between temporal TMS and medical errors as delays to care in EDs. Methods: A nonexperimental, quantitative, cross-sectional, and correlational research design was used to study the relationship between differences in IP team membership due to shift work schedules (i.e., TMS) and medical errors as patient outcomes within EDs. Fifteen EDs and urgent care centres (referred collectively as EDs) located in the province of Manitoba, Canada were selected for this study. Results: medical errors occurred at each ED but to different extents; ED teams had low temporal stability; TMS and medical errors were not statistically significant, but worked experience captured by the individual team competence index (ITCI) decreased time to physician and length of stay was. TMS had a negative moderating effect on ITCI and neither TMS nor ITCI were statistically significant when patient volumes and levels of acuity were controlled. In contrast, when team size was controlled, TMS had a large effect size on time to physician. Conclusion: low TMS was not a significant factor in medical errors measured as delays to care but probably related to other organizational factors and team dynamics.

Neurocognitive Subgroups in Children at Familial High-risk of Schizophrenia or Bipolar disorder: Subgroup Membership Stability or Change From Age 7 to 11-The Danish High Risk and Resilience Study.

Subgroups with distinct levels of neurocognitive functioning exist in children of parents with schizophrenia or bipolar disorder. However, studies investigating the temporal stability of subgroup membership are currently lacking. We hypothesized that a minority of children at familial high-risk of schizophrenia (FHR-SZ) or bipolar disorder (FHR-BP) would transition to a different neurocognitive subgroup from age 7 to 11 and that most transitions would be to a more impaired subgroup. Latent profile analysis was used to identify subgroups at two assessments (age 7 and 11) based on the performance of 320 children at FHR-SZ or FHR-BP across eight neurocognitive functions. Temporal stability in subgroup membership was evaluated with latent profile transition analysis. Population-based controls (age 7, n = 199; age 11, n = 178) were included as a reference group. Children transitioning to a more impaired subgroup were compared with nontransitioning children on sex, FHR-status, global functioning, and psychopathology. At both assessment points, we identified three subgroups based on neurocognitive performance: a moderately-severely impaired, a mildly impaired, and an above-average subgroup. A total of 12.8% of children transitioned to a different subgroup, of which the majority (85.2%) moved to a more impaired subgroup. Parental diagnosis of schizophrenia, but neither parental diagnosis of bipolar disorder, global functioning at age 7, psychopathology, nor sex significantly differentiated children transitioning to a more impaired subgroup from nontransitioning children. During pre-adolescence, neurocognitive developmental lag is associated with being at FHR-SZ. Close attention to these children's neurocognitive development is indicated.

Examining the costs and benefits of male-male associations in a group-living equid

In feral horse (Equus caballus) populations, females can associate in year-round social groups with one male (single-stallion (SS) groups) or multiple males (multi-stallion (MS) groups). Given the expectation of intense male competition for mating opportunities, male-male associations raise questions regarding their supporting mechanisms and adaptive consequences. The function of MS groups has been highly debated which led to a series of conflicting hypotheses attempting to describe the relationship between the males, and the costs and benefits of this association in relation to SS groups. Based on previous studies, our goal was to compare the group size and stability, males’ defence behaviour against group outsiders and access to females, levels of male aggression to group members, and the activity budget and body condition of horses in MS and SS groups. Between the months of May to August (breeding season) from 2016 to 2021, we collected demographic and behavioural data from feral Garrano horses living in northern Portugal, where wolf (Canis lupus signatus) predation is an important factor. Contrary to mutualistic hypotheses, our results indicated that SS males had more breeding females than MS groups and group type did not influence female membership stability. However, dominant males in MS groups may be benefitting from the presence of another male via decreased effort in group defence and more resting time. We recorded less aggressive behaviours from dominant to subordinate males in MS groups when subordinates displayed more defensive behaviours against outsiders, but we found little evidence that subordinates were being rewarded with access to females, as proposed by reciprocal-altruism hypotheses. Females in MS groups did not suffer higher levels of male aggression when compared with SS females, and the number of males in the group had no significant influence on the time females spent grazing and resting, and ultimately on their body condition. Future research should explore how MS male associations shape male-female relationships, which could provide further insights to the existence and maintenance of subordinate males. This study is the first to report on predation impact by wolves in MS and SS groups, highlighting the need to further explore how different ecological pressures shape horse behaviour and social organization. Furthermore, our results provide information that can help improve the welfare of domestic horses and can make informed management decisions of feral and free-ranging horse populations, particularly in instances where males are targeted for removals. Considering the advantages, as well as costs, provided by extra males may be useful to managers and horse owners, who can then act accordingly and with the least disturbance to horse populations.

A Comparison Study of Measures to Quantify the Evolution of Prolific Research Teams

Scientific research teams play an increasingly significant role in scientific activities. To better understand the dynamic evolution process of research teams, we explored measures that quantify the evolution of prolific research teams. We collected our data from the Web of Science in the field of artificial intelligence, and applied the label propagation algorithm to identify research teams in the co-authorship network. The Top 1‰ prolific teams were selected as our research object, whose node stability and two types of edge stabilities were measured. The results show that prolific teams are much more stable during the evolution process, in terms of both member and membership stability. The measure of stability has varying degrees of impact on teams with different sizes, and small-sized teams get considerably different stability results by different measures.

Specialization without Autonomy: An Informational Approach to the Development of Permanent Committees in China’s National People’s Congress

ABSTRACTThis article attempts to discover whether the National People’s Congress (NPC), China’s law-making body, is becoming more specialized and thereby losing its rubber-stamp image. The exploration of the composition of the NPC’s permanent committees demonstrates that specialization is indeed a discernible trend. More and more social elites have been co-opted onto them. The empirical results further attest to the usefulness of the information efficiency theory. Unfortunately, specialization has yet to give the Chinese legislature more autonomy. Only 30% of committee members are privileged to serve more than one five-year term. The influence of the Party-state core and the lack of membership stability have put additional restraints on the NPC’s autonomy.

Long-term group membership and dynamics in a wild western lowland gorilla population (Gorilla gorilla gorilla) inferred using non-invasive genetics.

The social organization of a group-living animal is defined by a balance between group dynamic events such as group formation, group dissolution, and dispersal events and group stability in membership and over time. Understanding these processes, which are relevant for questions ranging from disease transmission patterns to the evolution of polygyny, requires long-term monitoring of multiple social units over time. Because all great ape species are long-lived and elusive, the number of studies on these key aspects of social organization are limited, especially for western lowland gorillas (Gorilla gorilla gorilla). In this study, we used non-invasive genetic samples collected within an approximately 100 km2 area of Loango National Park, Gabon to reconstruct group compositions and changes in composition over more than a decade. We identified 98 gorillas and 11 mixed sex groups sampled during 2014-2017. Using published data from 85 individuals and 12 groups surveyed between 2005 and 2009 at the same locality, we tracked groups and individuals back in time. The identification of 11 silverbacks via parentage analyses and the genetic tracking of 39 individuals across studies allowed us to infer six group formations, five group dissolutions, and 40 dispersal events within 12 years. We also observed four groups persisting across the sampling periods with a maximum inferred existence of nearly 17 years and exhibiting variation in membership stability. Our results highlight the variation in composition and stability among groups of western lowland gorillas and illustrate the power of non-invasive genetic sampling for long-term monitoring.

A LONGITUDINAL, PERSON-CENTERED ANALYSIS OF EARLY HEAD START MOTHERS' PARENTING.

This study used a person-centered approach to examine stability and change in parenting typologies across early childhood. Profiles were associated within and across time with contextual covariates, including demographic characteristics, risk factors, and Early Head Start participation. Participants were drawn from the Early Head Start Research and Evaluation Project (N = 2, 876). Parenting profiles were identified based on observed parenting dimensions at 14, 24, and 36 months, and pre-Kindergarten (pre-K). Results suggested a four-profile solution at each time point: Supportive, Lukewarm (14 & 24 months)/Sufficient (36 months and pre-K), Harsh, and Detached. Supportive was the largest, most stable, and most likely transitioned into profile while Harsh and Detached represented rare profiles with moderate to low membership stability across time. Depression and family conflict emerged as important correlates of unsupportive parenting profiles both within and across time. Findings are discussed in terms of their relevance for both policy and implementation practices for low-income mothers with young children.

A Novel Approach to Assessing Professionalism in Preclinical Medical Students Using Multisource Feedback Through Paired Self- and Peer Evaluations

ABSTRACTPhenomenon: Professionalism is integral to the role of the physician. Most professionalism assessments in medical training are delayed until clinical rotations where multisource feedback is available. This leaves a gap in student assessment portfolios and potentially delays professional development. Approach: A total of 246 second-year medical students (2013–2015) completed self- and peer assessments of professional behaviors in 2 courses following a series of Team-Based Learning exercises. Correlation and regression analyses were used to examine the alignment or misalignment in the relationship between the 2 types of assessments. Four subgroups were formed based on observed patterns of initial self- and peer assessment alignment or misalignment, and subgroup membership stability over time was assessed. A missing data analysis examined differences between average peer assessment scores as a function of selective nonparticipation. Findings: Spearman correlation demonstrated moderate to strong correlation between self-assessments completed alone (no simultaneous peer assessment) and self-assessments completed at the time of peer assessments (ρ = .59, p < .0001) but weak correlation between the two self-assessments and peer assessments (alone: ρ = .13, p < .013; at time of peer: ρ = .21, p < .0001). Generalized estimating equation models revealed that self-assessments done alone (p < .0001) were a significant predictor of self-assessments done at the time of peer. Course was also a significant predictor (p = .01) of self-assessment scores done at the time of peer. Peer assessment score was not a significant predictor. Bhapkar's test revealed subgroup membership based on the relationship between self- and peer ratings was relatively stable across Time 1 and Time 2 assessments (χ2 = 0.83, p = .84) for all but one subgroup; members of the subgroup with initially high self-assessment and low peer assessment were significantly more likely to move to a new classification at the second measurement. A missing data analysis revealed that students who completed all self-assessments had significantly higher average peer assessment ratings compared to students who completed one or no self-assessments with a difference of –0.32, 95% confidence interval [–0.48, –0.15]. Insights: Multiple measurements of simultaneous self- and peer assessment identified a subgroup of students who consistently rated themselves higher on professionalism attributes relative to the low ratings given by their peers. This subgroup of preclinical students, along with those who elected to not complete self-assessments, may be at risk for professionalism concerns. Use of this multisource feedback tool to measure perceptual stability of professionalism behaviors is a new approach that may assist with early identification of at-risk students during preclinical years.

Does Your Pay Determine My Satisfaction? Pay Structure and Pay Level Satisfaction in Groups

Affective responses in groups are an important factor in long-term group membership stability. In this paper, we investigate a specific affective response, pay satisfaction, in a group context. We ...

Identifying Children at Risk of Problematic Development: Latent Clusters Among Childhood Arrestees

The presence of clusters characterized by distinct profiles of individual, family and peer characteristics among childhood arrestees was investigated and cluster membership stability after 2years was determined. Identification of such clusters in this heterogeneous at-risk group can extend insight into the presence and severity of children's co-occurring problems and guide intervention and prevention efforts. Latent class analysis (LCA) was used to detect clusters among 308 childhood arrestees (mean age 10.7years), based on dichotomous dynamic correlates of offending present at the time of first arrest. Correlates in the individual, peer and family domains were assessed at baseline and 2-year follow-up, using standardized instruments. This resulted in identification of a low problem group characterized by few problems across all domains (40.2%), an externalizing intermediate problem group characterized by mainly externalizing problems on the individual and peer domains (39.4%), and a pervasive high problem group characterized by numerous problems across all domains (20.4%). Cluster membership was most stable for the low problem group (71.4%), followed by the externalizing intermediate problem group (49.5%). Transition was highest in the pervasive high problem group (63.0%), with the majority of children progressing to the externalizing intermediate problem group. The identification of such distinct clusters among childhood arrestees, differing in the presence of co-occurring problems, stresses the importance of a first police arrest as an opportunity for early recognition of children in need of care. As problems present at the time of first arrest do not persist in every child, careful periodic monitoring is needed.

Team Scaffolds: How Minimal In-group Structures Support Fast-paced Teaming

Across many industries, particularly in health care delivery, interdependent work is performed under conditions that make bounded stable teams infeasible, creating a need to understand factors that foster teaming in the absence of team stability. Teaming refers to coordination and mutual adjustment that occurs during episodes of interdependent work. The present research investigates teaming in the high-stakes, fast-paced setting of a hospital emergency room, and focuses on the effects of a new organizational structure, which we call a team scaffold, on teaming effectiveness and performance outcomes. Using a hybrid research design that adapts and blends quantitative network methods with qualitative interview and observational data, we examine whether and how team scaffolds facilitate teaming in a dynamic, knowledge-intensive work environment. Although team scaffolds were implemented with little or no membership stability, their introduction triggered significant changes in teaming networks and behaviors in ways that improved operational performance.

Membership stability and performance: a study of baseball clubs and laboratory groups

This research aims to analyse the association across membership stability, group boundary and group performance. Using Professional Chinese Baseball League's data (Seasons 2003–2007), Study One reveals that the membership stability of baseball clubs was correlated with their annual rank and win-probability, and that stable teams outperformed unstable teams. Membership stability also predicted win-probability in four out of five seasons. Using undergraduate students, Study Two reveals that members from unstable groups (i.e. groups with higher membership turnover) had higher intention of leaving their groups and more departures. Members from stable groups had better group performance, group cohesion, and group dynamics, which all resulted in members displaying more trust in their colleagues and an increased willingness to cooperate with them. Implications of the findings include that stable membership is a crucial factor in the promotion of group dynamics and overall performance, and that the nature of a group's boundary affects its membership turnover. Policies should also be devised to manage membership stability, as maintaining an appropriate turnover rate is essential both to individuals and to groups, such as employees and their organizations.

School District Leadership Stability: The Relationship between the Stability of a Board of Education and the Superintendent

Board of education membership changes that are numerous or frequent appear to cause some level of disruption to the educational process in a school district. A board of education that is changing can be vulnerable to special interest groups. The purpose of this study is to determine the interrelationships among the following five variables and board of education membership stability: (1) changes in student scores on the Ohio tests of achievement, (2) changes in the district's operational millage rates, (3) changes in the number of staff conflicts and anxiety, (4) changes in the percentage of enrolled minority students, and (5) changes in overall student enrollment.

Euro Membership and Bank Stability – Friends or Foes? Lessons from Ireland

Hit by loan-losses from a bursting property bubble, the Irish banks were brought to near-collapse, contributing to one of the worst economic downturns of the global crisis. The sharp fall in nominal and real interest rates and the removal of exchange risk from foreign borrowing after euro membership played a part in these events. At the same time, several other countries have got into similar trouble, both recently and in decades gone by, so there is no guarantee that staying out of the eurozone would have prevented something comparable from happening. And the euro provided an anchor as the crisis broke.

Reducing Problems of Sociability in Online Communities: Integrating Online Communication With Offline Interaction

Social network researchers have claimed that relations offline affect relations online; however, it is unclear which characteristics of online interaction are affected by the existence of offline relations. This article examines whether a mixture of virtual and real-life interaction—in contrast to purely virtual interaction—among some members of knowledge-sharing online communities reduces the prevalence of problems that the whole community faces. Typical problems of sociability that increase risk of failure in knowledge sharing include a lack of trust between members, free rider behavior, and a lack of stable membership. This analysis uses survey data from 26 online communities that are part of a virtual organization that hosts communities for teachers. The findings provide evidence for the existence of more trust and less free riding in mixed communities but not for greater membership stability. Results contribute to knowledge of how offline networks influence online relations; namely, offline networks reduce problems of sociability, thereby facilitating online knowledge sharing. Moreover, the results modify earlier claims about the integration of online communication with offline interaction by showing that complete integration is unnecessary.

Does Team Training Improve Team Performance? A Meta-Analysis

This research effort leveraged the science of training to guide a taxonomic integration and a series of meta-analyses to gauge the effectiveness and boundary conditions of team training interventions for enhancing team outcomes. Disparate effect sizes across primary studies have made it difficult to determine the true strength of the relationships between team training techniques and team outcomes. Several meta-analytic integrations were conducted to examine the relationships between team training interventions and team functioning. Specifically, we assessed the relative effectiveness of these interventions on team cognitive, affective, process, and performance outcomes. Training content, team membership stability, and team size were investigated as potential moderators of the relationship between team training and outcomes. In total, the database consisted of 93 effect sizes representing 2650 teams. The results suggested that moderate, positive relationships exist between team training interventions and each of the outcome types. The findings of moderator analyses indicated that training content, team membership stability, and team size moderate the effectiveness of these interventions. Our findings suggest that team training interventions are a viable approach organizations can take in order to enhance team outcomes. They are useful for improving cognitive outcomes, affective outcomes, teamwork processes, and performance outcomes. Moreover, results suggest that training content, team membership stability, and team size moderate the effectiveness of team training interventions. Applications of the results from this research are numerous. Those who design and administer training can benefit from these findings in order to improve the effectiveness of their team training interventions.

Judicial Tenure on the U.S. Supreme Court, 1790–1868: Frustration, Resignation, and Expiration on the Bench

After more than a decade of membership stability, the U.S. Supreme Court experienced a pair of vacancies following its 2004–2005 term. In July 2005, Justice Sandra Day O'Connor announced her intention to retire. It is widely believed that her own health, that of her husband, and the favorable political environment influenced her decision to step down in January 2006. In the interim, Chief Justice William Rehnquist, after struggling with ill health for many months, passed away on 3 September 2005, becoming the first sitting justice to die in more than five decades.

Long-Term Stability of Membership in a Wechsler Intelligence Scale for Children–Third Edition (WISC-III) Subtest Core Profile Taxonomy

Although often applied in practice, clinically based cognitive subtest profile analysis has failed to achieve empirical support. Nonlinear multivariate subtest profile analysis may have benefits over clinically based techniques, but the psychometric properties of these methods must be studied prior to their implementation and interpretation. The current study posed the following question: Is Wechsler Intelligence Scale for Children–Third Edition (WISC-III) cluster membership based on nonlinear multivariate subtest profile analysis stable over a 3-year period? Membership stability to a subtest taxonomy, including constancy of displaying an unusual profile, was based on data from 585 students. General (.39) and partial (.26 to .51) kappa coefficients either failed to reach statistical significance or indicated poor classification stability, with the exception of two profile types. It was concluded that, with these two possible exceptions, profile-type membership to an empirically derived WISC-III subtest taxonomy should not be used in interpretation or educational decision making.

Electoral Reforms, Membership Stability and the Existence of Committee Property Rights in American State Legislatures

One of the most creative theories advanced about legislative organization in recent years is Katz and Sala's linkage of the development of committee property rights in the US House of Representatives to the introduction of the Australian ballot. Katz and Sala argue that the Australian ballot – a government-printed ballot cast in secret that replaced a party-produced ballot that was cast in public – gave members of the House an incentive to pursue personal constituency votes. This, in turn, led to the rise of committee property rights as members sought to keep their committee assignments from term to term because of the potential electoral benefits they derived from them. In this Note we use the state legislative committee membership dataset collected by Hamm and Hedlund and their colleagues to test whether committee property rights appeared in American state legislatures at roughly the same time as Katz and Sala find they emerged in the US House. State legislatures were, of course, exposed to the same electoral innovation at the same time. But, while in some ways state legislatures were much like Congress as organizations, in other ways they were very different. Our cross-sectional data and the variance in important institutional variables they provide allow us to test a critical proposition about the importance of membership stability rates in mediating the rise of committee property rights. We also go beyond Katz and Sala's analysis by testing to see if differences in Australian ballot design (office column and party bloc) across the states influenced the behaviour of legislators in the way their theory suggests.