Predictors Of Placement Research Articles

Placement patterns of English and French conjunctive adjuncts of contrast

AbstractIn many languages, conjunctive adjuncts (e.g.however, therefore) are syntactically mobile. Several corpus-based contrastive studies have shown that languages differ in the positions that they tend to prefer for conjunctive adjuncts. However, the studies available have formulated general cross-linguistic differences in placement for languages as wholes, without considering the possibility that such contrasts may be influenced by register. The objective of this paper is to investigate and compare the placement patterns of English and French conjunctive adjuncts of contrast in two written registers (viz. editorials and research articles) in order to measure the impact of register variation on the differences between these two languages. The results suggest that, although register variation plays a significant role on placement within each language system, language is a better predictor of placement than register, since cross-linguistic differences in placement between English and French are stable across communicative situations. In a second stage, the results obtained in the comparable corpus study are complemented with the analysis of translation data, with a view to assessing the translators’ degree of awareness of the inherent word order preferences of the target language. The study is grounded in the framework of Systemic Functional Linguistics and relies on the notions of Theme and Rheme to describe conjunctive adjunct placement.

How does reserve capacity influences transition into upper secondary school among adolescent Finns?

Abstract Background Educational inequalities occur when differences in educational outcomes are more strongly related to students' background than their own academic efforts. During adolescence, psychosocial resources such as social support and self-efficacy, collectively termed “reserve capacity” may serve as a pathway to educational transitions and help reduce educational inequalities. We study how reserve capacity affects transition of adolescents into upper secondary school in terms of non-placement or placement into vocational or academic track. Methods We use data from 9th graders in 128 schools at the 14 municipalities of Helsinki Metropolitan region who participated in the MetLoFin follow-up survey in 2014 (n = 7,344 students). The data were linked with the national Joint Application Registry containing information on whether student was placed in academic (65%) or vocational (32%) track or had no placement (3%) for upper secondary schools. Multinomial logistic regression models, adjusted for sex and school, were fitted to analyse the effect of students' background and reserve capacity on type of educational placement. Results Students whose parents had low education were more likely to be in vocational than academic track compared to those whose parents had high education (OR = 2.5 95% CI: 2.1-3.0). Having a foreign background increased the risk of having no placement than academic placement (OR = 1.5 95% CI: 1.1-2.2) compared to native students. Low social support and low self-efficacy predicted vocational placement of students relative to academic track but not no placement compared to academic placement. Academic grades remained strongest predictor of placement. Conclusions Students' background still determine educational outcomes, but psychosocial resources could likely reduce educational inequalities and ensure successful educational transitions in adolescence. Key messages Social backgrounds impact adolescents’ educational transitions. Adding students’ psychosocial resources could reduce educational inequalities.

Longitudinal Trajectories of Parenting Stress Among Ethnic Minority Adolescent Mothers.

Parenting stress has been linked with negative outcomes for parents and their infants (e.g., parental depression, negative parenting behaviors, poor attachment). Racial/ethnic minority adolescent mothers have increased risk for experiencing parenting stress compared to their White counterparts. Little is known about the changes in parenting stress over time for this population. Growth mixture modeling (GMM) was conducted to determine the growth trajectory classes of 185 African American and Latina/Hispanic adolescent mothers over 2 years. Risk and protective factors (e.g., maternal depression, social support, self-esteem) were examined to determine their influence on parenting stress trajectories. Three distinct trajectories of parenting stress were found: low stable stress (40.90%), decreasing stress (35.78%), and high stable stress (23.28%). Lower maternal depression (OR = 2.35), higher self-esteem (OR = 1.29), lower perceived social support from family (OR = 0.53) and higher perceived support from friends (OR = 1.65) predicted placement into the low stable parenting stress group over the high stable parenting stress group. Adolescents living with family (OR = 2.74) and Latina race/ethnicity (OR = 2.78) also served as predictors of placement into the low stable parenting stress group. Higher self-esteem (OR = 1.66) predicted placement into the decreasing parenting stress group over the high stable parenting stress group. These findings highlight the importance of perceived peer support by adolescent mothers, regardless of their support family support (e.g., living at home and receiving child care). Considering developmental factors such as peer relationships may be important when working with adolescent mothers.

Taking stock: A Meta-Analysis of the Predictors of Restrictive Housing

ABSTRACTTwo competing views on the use of restrictive housing have emerged in the literature. The first position has argued that restrictive housing helps make correctional institutions safer and more secure environments, largely by incapacitating violent and dangerous inmates. In contrast, a second perspective has maintained that restrictive housing not only causes serious psychological damage and increases criminal coping, but also that it has served as a mechanism for officials to punish certain groups of inmates unfairly. This study tests these competing hypotheses by meta-analyzing the literature on the predictors of placement in restrictive housing. The results of this investigation provide support for both perspectives. The implications of the study’s findings are discussed.

<em>Addressing Disproportionality in Special Education Using a Universal Screening Approach</em>

The disproportionate representation of specific groups of students in special education has been an area of concern since Dunn's (1968) seminal article over 40 years ago. Despite the longstanding acknowledgment of this problem, schools and districts across the United States continue to report the overrepresentation of African American and Native American students (e.g., Skiba et al., 2005, 2008; Sullivan & Bal, 2013) and boys (e.g. Bruce & Venkatesh, 2014; Coutinho & Oswald, 2005; Hibel, Farkas, & Morgan, 2010) in special education. Acknowledging the problems associated with disproportionality, reauthorizations of the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act (IDEA, 2004) have instituted policies that require schools to collect and report data on disproportionality in special education. Unfortunately, such policies have done little to remedy the problem to date, necessitating additional scholarship focused on potential contributing factors and solutions. Much of the existing research on disproportionality has focused on outcomes, rather than process factors. The present study sought to address disproportionate representation at the referral step of special education placement through the use of a data-driven process of identification, particularly for those who might qualify for services due to an emotional or behavioral difficulty.CURRENT DATA ON DISPROPORTIONALITYDisproportionality is defined as an overrepresentation or underrepresentation of a particular student group within a setting or outcome of interest, given that group's proportion in the total population. The overrepresentation of specific student groups in special education is problematic if the services provided by special education are not meeting the needs of, or are harming, those students (Algozzine, 2005; Bruce & Venkatesh, 2014). Special education services have been found to be most beneficial for students with milder academic-based disabilities served in minimally-restrictive environments (Fuchs & Fuchs, 1994). However, special education is largely perceived as ineffective for many students, with the consequences of being removed from general education outweighing the benefits of receiving additional services (Harry & Klingner, 2014; Hosp & Reschly, 2003; MacMillan & Reschly, 1998). The outcomes associated with special education placement indicate lower achievement across subject areas longitudinally (Wagner et al., 2006), with those qualified to receive special education services for emotional or behavioral problems often faring the worst academically (Bradley, Doolittle, & Bartolotta, 2008; Greenbaum et al., 1996; Wagner et al., 2005).Alarmingly, demographic characteristics such as race, gender, and primary home language are better predictors of special education placement than both academic performance and economic conditions (Bruce & Venkatesh, 2014; Hosp & Reschly, 2004; Skiba et al., 2005, 2008; Sullivan, 2011). When considering race as a predictor of placement, African American students are overrepresented in special education, particularly in the categories of intellectual disability (ID) and emotional disturbance (ED; Ahram, Fergus, & Noguera, 2011; Hosp & Reschly, 2003; Jasper & Bouck, 2013; MacMillan & Reschly, 1998; Skiba et al., 2005, 2008; Skiba, Simmons et al., 2006). In most studies, African American students are also more likely than their peers to be placed in more restrictive environments (Harry & Klingner, 2014; Serwatka, Deering, & Grant, 1995; Skiba et al., 2008), particularly for high incidence disabilities such as specific learning disabilities and mild emotional and behavioral disturbance (Albrect et al., 2012; Skiba, Poloni-Staudinger et al., 2006). Native American students are typically overrepresented in special education as well, particularly within the learning disabilities category (Harry & Kilngner, 2014; Skiba et al., 2008; Sullivan, 2011). …

Credential Privilege or Cumulative Advantage? Prestige, Productivity, and Placement in the Academic Sociology Job Market

Using data on the population of US sociology doctorates over a five-year period, we examine different predictors of placement in research-oriented, tenure-track academic sociology jobs. More completely than in prior studies, we document the enormous relationship between PhD institution and job placement that has, in part, prompted a popular metaphor likening academic job allocation processes to a caste system. Yet, we also find comparable relationships between PhD program and both graduate student publishing and awards. Overall, we find results more consistent with PhD prestige operating indirectly through mediating achievements or as a quality signal than as a “pure prestige” effect. We suggest sociologists think of stratification in their profession as not requiring exceptionalist historical metaphors, but rather as involving the same ordinary but powerful processes of cumulative advantage that pervade contemporary life.

Credential Privilege or Cumulative Advantage? Prestige, Productivity, and Placement in the Academic Sociology Job Market

Using data on the population of US sociology doctorates over a five-year period, we examine different predictors of placement in a research-oriented, tenure-track academic sociology jobs. More completely than prior studies, we document the enormous relationship between PhD institution and job placement that has, in part, prompted a popular metaphor that academic job allocation processes are like a caste system. Yet we also find comparable relationships between PhD program and both graduate student publishing and awards. Overall, we find results more consistent with PhD prestige operating indirectly through mediating achievements or as a quality signal than as a “pure prestige” effect. We suggest sociologists think of stratification in their profession as not requiring exceptionalist historical metaphors, but rather as involving the same ordinary but powerful processes of cumulative advantage that pervade contemporary life.

Being Black, Male, and Gifted in Miami: Prevalence and Predictors of Placement in Elementary School Gifted Education Programs

Although it is well established that Black male students are underrepresented in gifted educational programs in the United States, due to a scarcity of longitudinal prospective research, little is known about the protective factors at the child, family, and school level that increase the probability of Black male students being identified as gifted during early elementary school. Using data from the Miami School Readiness Project, we followed 6,926 low-income Black males from preschool through 5th grade to describe trajectories for the 453 Black males (6.5 %) who were identified as gifted, and examined child, family, and preschool variables associated with gifted classification. Boys were most commonly identified as gifted in first and second grade, and 15 % of the identified boys did not appear to be receiving gifted courses. Hierarchical multiple logistic regression analyses revealed that being classified as gifted in early elementary school was more likely for Black males who (a) attended public school pre-K programs at age four, (b) had higher cognitive, language, fine motor, behavioral, and emergent literacy school readiness skills before entering kindergarten, (c) spoke a language other than English at home, (d) were older upon entering kindergarten, (e) received higher grades in school, and (f) scored higher on standardized tests of math and reading. Predictors of gifted identification in the kindergarten year were different and weaker compared to identification in later years. Implications for early identification and intervention for talented Black males are discussed.

Predictors of Placement in Lower Level Versus Higher Level High School Mathematics

Educators and researchers have long been interested in determinants of access to honors level and college prep courses in high school. Factors influencing access to upper level mathematics courses are particularly important because of the hierarchical and sequential nature of this subject and because students who finish high school with only lower level courses lack readiness for college and have severely diminished chances for admission to college. Our research analyzes a district-level transcript data set. We examine whether probabilities of enrollment in upper level mathematics courses in high school vary by demographic characteristics, before and after controlling for prior achievement. Before controlling for prior achievement, minority and low-income students have significantly lower odds of placement in upper level mathematics courses; after controlling for prior achievement, the disparities disappear.

Caring for a Family Member with Alzheimer’s Disease: Coping with Caregiver Burden Post-Nursing Home Placement

Most nursing home research has focused on predictors for placement, the placement decision-making process, or the effects of placement on the nursing home resident. Little research is available on family caregivers' experiences after placing their loved ones in a nursing home. The purpose of this qualitative study was to identify how family caregivers coped with the burden of post-nursing home placement of a family member with Alzheimer's disease (AD). Several factors that positively or negatively affected coping among family caregivers were identified. Family caregivers' interactions with their loved one, other nursing home residents, family and friends, nursing staff, and the nursing home-sponsored support group all contributed positively to their coping with the burden of post-nursing home placement. Factors that decreased family caregivers' coping were role disruption, guilt over placement, and uncertainty about the future.

Predictors of Placement on a Jail Mental Health Unit: Assessing Equitable Access to Care

This paper presents findings about the clinical, criminal, and demographic characteristics associated with placement of inmates on the mental health unit of a county jail. Access to intensive mental health services was examined through retrospective review of the health and mental health records of 290 male and female jail inmates. Prior psychiatric treatment, use of greater numbers of illegal drugs, more days in jail, and being female were significantly associated with placement on the mental health unit. Overall, women of all races/ethnicities had greater health and mental health problems as measured by the clinical variables than men of all races/ethnicities.

Intensive Family Preservation in Children's Mental Health: Predictors of Placement

Intensive Family Preservation in Children's Mental Health: Predictors of Placement

Using multidimensional health measures in older persons to identify risk of hospitalization and skilled nursing placement.

We examine the relationship between multidimensional measures of function and outcomes in a cohort of older persons admitted to the residential care level of a multi-level long-term care facility. We collected self-reported measures of various aspects of health using the Medical Outcome Study Short-form Health Survey (SF-20) and the Dartmouth COOP charts, as well as performance-based measures of physical and cognitive function. Subjects (mean age 84.3 years) were followed for a median of 557 days. In multivariate analyses, emotional function (measured by either the SF-20 or COOP method) was a predictor of placement in skilled care. Self-reported overall health (measured by either the SF-20 or COOP method) and timed manual performance were predictive of hospitalization. Change on the functional status measures between 2 points in time was not associated with later placement in skilled care except in the case of timed manual performance. In an older population at risk for frequent and numerous health events, this study shows that two popularized self-report methods for assessing function yield results that predict future outcomes of great importance to older persons. However, measures that predict use of long-term care may not predict use of the hospital and vice versa.

Determinants of placement for sexually abused children

While conducting a prospective study of 100 sexually abused children, we found a much higher rate of out-of-home placement than has been previously described for child maltreatment. This study was designed to determine which factors were most influential in predicting the placement experiences of this cohort. The children, ages 6–17 years, were recently substantiated victims of intrafamilial sexual abuse whose parents or guardians permitted study involvement. We examined child and family demographics, abuse characteristics, and family response as possible determinants of immediate and later placement. At the initial assessment, within a few weeks of the disclosure. 50% of the children had already been removed. A follow-up assessment of 83 children two years later revealed that 73% had been removed from the abusing home. In a multivariate regression model, only maternal support of the child emerged as a significant predictor of immediate placement and placement over time. The offender's status as a resident in the child's home was an important predictor of immediate placement but was not significant as a predictor of all placements at any time. As maternal support is an important predictor of the need for placement, workers are encouraged to seek ways of enhancing maternal support as a means of reducing placement.

Personality Inventory for Children-Short Form: Useful for Educational Screening?

The Personality Inventory for Children (PIC) has been investigated for its validity in identifying children in school and clinical settings. The current study, an extension of an earlier study, used a sample of 95 children participating in public school programs for the nonhandicapped, the learning disabled, the mentally disabled, and the emotionally disabled to establish the best predictors of placement using the short form of the PIC. Additional analyses relating to the application of the nine scales identified as predictors of group assignment are reported.

Discharge planning for hospitalized older veterans.

A random sample of 175 patients in six nursing and personal care settings at the Veterans Administration Medical Center, Little Rock, Arkansas was drawn in order to develop a model for the classification of patients for the purpose of effecting more efficient and effective hospital discharge planning. Data that might effect significant changes in the placement dispositions and outcomes of patients were gathered and subjected to stepwise discriminant function and multiple regression analyses. It was found that the patient's socioeconomic status and the extent of social worker involvement in disposition rather than the patient's medical/psychiatric condition, constituted the best predictors of placement and success in placement. The model accurately predicted 90 percent of all dispositions and could provide a useful basis for assigning to placements a significant minority of patients who are not placed in accordance with the correlates of optimum placement and placement outcome as determined by the model.