Significant Amount Of Variance Research Articles

Self-Evaluation, Coping, and Depressive Affect in African American Adults with Sickle Cell Disease

Selective evaluation theory suggests that when individuals are faced with a threat such as a chronic illness they may compare themselves to less fortunate others, worse times, or hypothetical worse worlds to help cope with the threat. Research testing this model has demonstrated that these downward comparisons are associated with better psychological functioning. Although the assumption that upward comparisons are associated with poorer psychological functioning is implicitly stated in the selective evaluation theory, systematic research has not been conducted to test this hypothesis. To examine this question and to extend the generalizability of the selective evaluation theory, patients with sickle cell disease were asked to rate the frequency of use of both downward and upward comparisons when they have sickle cell disease pain and to rate their level of depressive affect. The results demonstrated that self-evaluation style accounts for a significant amount of variance in patients' level of depressive affect over and above demographic, pain, and disease-related variables. Moreover, as predicted, upward comparison was associated with higher levels of depressive affect and downward comparison was associated with lower levels of depressive affect.

A comparison of incident-based and scale measures of work stressors

Occupational stress researchers have often questioned whether scale measures of work-related stressors accurately reflect the day-to-day experiences of employees. As an alternative to such measures, some have suggested the use of qualitative measures. Unfortunately, however, there have been no direct comparisons of these two measurement methods. In the present study, female employees (n = 151) were asked to complete scale measures of three common work stressors, strains, and self-esteem. Stressors were also measured using a qualitative methodology based on critical incidents. Results indicated good convergence between stressors measured by these two methods, although there was some indication that order effects may have led to method bias in the qualitative procedure. Both sets of measures explained a significant amount of variance in strains, although the scale measures explained more. Only the stressors measured by scales were related to self-esteem, suggesting that these may be more influenced by dispositions than qualitative measures. Implications of these findings for occupational stress research are discussed.

Indicators of long-term family functioning following severe traumatic brain injury in adults.

This study investigated the degree of association between four sets of predictor variables (demographic, injury-related, patient functioning, and caregiver functioning variables) and the criterion variable of long-term family functioning following severe traumatic brain injury (TBI). Thirty families participated in the study and a minimum of 3.5 years had elapsed since the time of injury. The mean length of post-traumatic amnesia (PTA) for the brain-injured individuals was 92.4 days. Data collection took place in the family home and both the brain-injured family members and primary caregivers were involved. Standard regression analyses revealed that two sets of variables accounted for a significant amount of variance in long-term family functioning. The largest amount of variance, 55% (44% adjusted), was accounted for by the caregivers' self-report variables which measured caregivers' depression, social support, and coping as well as caregivers' preceptions of patient competency. Overall, measures of severity of injury (PTA), residual neurobehavioural function, and adequacy of social support for caregivers proved to be reliable and significant indicators of family functioning. These findings are discussed with respect to their implications for service delivery and long-term provision of support for caregivers of severely brain-injured individuals living with their families.

CORRELATES OF EMPLOYEE THEFT: A MULTI‐DIMENSIONAL JUSTICE PERSPECTIVE

In a field study, we build on previous research examining employee theft, which has focused on the influence of job dissatisfaction and pay inequity (distributive injustice). In a survey of employees at 18 fast food restaurants, where employee theft was a problem, we examine the relationship between employee‐observed theft and justice perceptions (distributive, procedural, and interactional justice), employees' job satisfaction, and judgments regarding the deviancy of theft. As expected, perceptions of procedural justice and employees' judgments regarding the deviancy of theft explained a significant amount of variance in employee‐observed theft; the other predictor variables did not. Theoretical and practical implications for managing employee theft are discussed.

Job burnout and job leaving in public school teachers: Implications for stress management

This study addressed the questions of whether selected teacher and organizational variables contributed to (a) significant amounts of variance in teachers' scores on three components of burnout, and (b) teachers' intentions to leave special education teaching. Study participants (N =490) included a sample of respondents to a survey of all of the 1096 special education teachers in Hawaii. Instruments used in this study included the Maslach Burnout Inventory, the Porter Need Satisfaction Questionnaire, and the Special Education Teacher Survey. Results of multiple regression analyses indicated that for the burnout components, Emotional Exhaustion and Depersonalization, relatively large and significant amounts of variance could be accounted for by a set of predictor variables. For the third burnout component, Personal Accomplishment, the variance accounted for by a set of predictor variables was significant but small. Stepwise discriminant function analysis was used to distinguish between teachers who stated they did or did not intend to leave special education teaching. Eight variables were identified as predictors of “Intention to leave special education teaching, ” correctly classifying 73% of teachers into the appropriate “Yes-Leaving” and “No-Leaving” groups.

The Importance of Needle Terpene Composition in Determining the Macrolepidoptera Species Richness of Canadian Conifers

The effect of host-plant biochemical relatedness (using needle terpene data) in explaining the variation in macrolepidoptera species richness of Canadian conifers was investigated. Conifer geographic range accounted for 25-35% of the variance in species richness. A total of 61% of species richness variance was explained by adding tree height as a variable. Taxonomic relatedness (number of species per genus) did not explain a significant amount of variance. Five measures of biochemical relatedness were calculated, including number of terpenes and similarity/dissimilarity indices using presence and absence as well as abundance of individual terpenes

Public reactions towards people with AIDS: an attributional analysis

This article addresses the issue of stigmatization and discrimination towards people with AIDS (PWAs) using Weiner's attributional theory of motivation and emotion. In a field experiment, subjects responded to vignettes describing patients with AIDS, syphilis, lung cancer or tuberculosis. In these vignettes, the onset of the diseases was either described as personally controllable or as uncontrollable. Results show that although attributional variables do account for a significant amount of variance in helping behavior and emotions towards PWAs, other variables such as the incurability of the disease, the risk of infection and associations with (homo)sexuality, may be more useful in explaining reactions to PWAs. Implications for education tailored at the prevention of the stigmatization of PWAs are discussed.

Validity of the DSM-III-R personality disorder Clusters

This study assessed the validity of the DSM-III-R personality disorder clusters (i.e., odd-eccentric, dramatic-emotional-erratic, and anxious-fearful) by examining the relationships between self-report measures that tap the “core” features shared by disorders from each cluster and Cluster scores established via a semistructured interview in a sample of 57 outpatients. Results indicated a high degree of correlation among the DSM-III-R personality disorder Cluster scores. In addition, a series of regression analyses revealed that self-report scores did not account for a significant amount of variance in their respective Cluster scores over and above that accounted for by other self-report measures and other Cluster scores. These results suggest that the current DSM-III-R cluster classification scheme may not be appropriate, and it is recommended that a more empirically justifiable classification of the personality disorders be adopted in DSM-IV.

Developmental Differences in the Use of Prototype and Exemplar-Specific Information

This study is an attempt to clarify the nature of developmental differences in the use of prototypical features or information about specific exemplars for object categorization and to identify stimulus factors that may modulate the use of these information sources. To this end, 6-year-olds, 11-year-olds, and adults were taught to sort visual patterns into one of two overlapping categories. Immediately or 24 h following category acquisition subjects were presented with a set of transfer stimuli consisting of both old and new patterns, including the theoretical prototype. Categorization responses to these test stimuli were examined against predictions derived from the prototype and nearest-old-exemplar accounts of categorization. A significant developmental change in the process of categorization was noted. For the youngest group, only the prototype model was found to fit the test data, whereas for the older groups both models independently explained significant amounts of variance in performance. This trend was not affected by the delay between training and testing, nor by a manipulation of intracategory variability. The emergence of the specific exemplar model as a viable explanation of ill-defined categorization thus appears to be related to the developmental level attained.

Age differences in word finding in discourse and nondiscourse situations.

Measures of word finding in discourse (video description task) and nondiscourse situations (word fluency tasks) were obtained from a sample of 90 community-dwelling healthy adults. Age differences were found in the accuracy and uncertainty of the labels used to refer to the characters and objects depicted in the video description task and in the number of correct responses in the category fluency task. There was a significant amount of shared variance between the 2 types of tasks. More important, there was a significant amount of variance in the video discourse task associated with age that was independent of performance in the word fluency task. The communicative impact of a word-finding problem and need for discourse level study are discussed.

Family Risk Factors, Parental Alcohol Use, and Problem Behaviors among School-Age Children

This study examined maternal ratings offamilyfunctioning and children's depression, anxiety, andproblem behaviors among 53 families (26 with alcohol-dependent men, 27 comparison families). Women with alcohol-dependent partners reported significantly more marital and family disruption, as well as higher levels of child problem behaviors. Both fathers' alcohol dependence and a family risk factor index accounted for significant amounts of variance in concurrent ratings of child functioning

Finishing First Grade

Factors that influence school achievement in very-low-birth-weight (< 1,500 g) children were investigated at the completion of first grade. The subjects were 71 children and their primary caregivers. Thirty-nine children were very low birth weight (VLBW) and 32 were normal birth weight (NBW). After controlling for birth weight status, over one third of the variance in children's school achievement was accounted for by the age of the child's mother when she began childbearing. Birth weight status accounted for significant amounts of variance in information processing skills. Significantly more children in the VLBW group required special services and fewer were promoted to second grade, although the difference was not significant.

Nurse practitioners: Leadership behaviors and organizational climate

The purpose of this article is to examine the relationships of individual nurse practitioners' perceptions of the leadership climate in their organizations and self-reported formal and informal leadership behaviors. The nine climate dimensions (Structure, Responsibility, Reward, Perceived Support of Risk Taking, Warmth, Support, Standard Setting, Conflict, and Identity) identified by Litwin and Stringer in 1968 were used to predict five leadership dimensions (Meeting Organizational Needs, Managing Resources, Leadership Competence, Task Accomplishment, and Communications). Demographic variables of age, educational level, and percent of time spent performing administrative functions were forced as a first step in each multiple regression analysis and used to explain a significant amount of variance in all but one analysis. All leadership dimensions were predicted by at least one organizational climate dimension: (1) Meeting Organizational Needs by Risk and Reward; (2) Managing Resources by Risk and Structure; (3) Leadership Competence by Risk and Standards; (4) Task Accomplishment by Structure, Risk, and Standards; and (5) Communication by Rewards.

Predicting Utilization of Home Health Resources

This study examined the feasibility of using routinely collected information on patients enrolled in home health care to predict their subsequent use of services. Data were gathered from 1,984 episodes of care randomly sampled from home health care agencies of the Virginia Health Department. Age, sex, Medicare and Medicaid enrollment, referral source, medical diagnosis, and prognosis were used to predict the total number of visits, the duration of enrollment, and the intensity of service. Since the data were originally gathered to study the effects of the implementation of diagnosis-related groups (DRGs) on home health services, half of the patients were enrolled before and half after the implementation of DRGs. Using multiple linear regression analysis, significant amounts of variance in each measure of home health care utilization were explained by the predictor variables (R2 = 0.04 to 0.10). For example, after controlling for other predictor variables, age 75 years or older predicted longer durations of enrollment and lower intensities of service as compared with other age groups (P less than 0.05), and four of 14 diagnosis categories predicted at least one measure of utilization (P less than 0.05). Medicaid enrollment predicted longer durations of enrollment and lower intensities of service in home health care (P less than 0.05) in the post-DRG but not the pre-DRG period. These results demonstrate the value of routinely collected information in predicting the use of home health services. To develop more accurate estimates of needs for home health services for particular groups of patients, additional information on chronic functional impairments, informal caregiving, and the chronicity of needs may be useful.

Analyzing chronic low back pain: the relative contribution of pain coping strategies

Sixty-two chronic low back pain patients were administered the Coping Strategies Questionnaire (CSQ) to assess the frequency of use and perceived effectiveness of a variety of cognitive and behavioral pain coping strategies. Analysis of individual variables revealed that CSQ factors, gender, physical examination findings, and chronicity of pain had significant effects on one or more of a series of pain, psychological distress or behavioral measures. To assess the relative contribution of each of these variables hierarchical stepwise regression analyses were carried out. These analyses revealed that the Helplessness factor of the CSQ explained 50% of the variance in psychological distress (Global Severity Index of the SCL-90R), and 46% of the variance in depression (Beck Depression Inventory). Patients scoring high on this CSQ factor had significantly higher levels of psychological distress. None of the demographic or medical status variables explained a significant proportion of variance in the psychological distress measures. The Diverting Attention and Praying factor of the CSQ explained a moderate (9%), but significant amount of variance in pain report. Patients scoring high on this factor had higher scores on the McGill Pain Questionnaire. Coping strategies were not strongly related to pain behavior measures such as guarding or uptime. A consideration of pain coping strategies may allow one to design pain coping skills training interventions so as to fit the needs of the individual low back pain patient.

The effect of homemaker's employment status on children's time allocation in single- and two-parent families

This study compares the effect of homemaker's employment status on children's time allocation in single- and two-parent families. Specifically under investigation is the effect of living in a family in which the mother is employed professionally, employed non-professionally, or not employed outside the home on older child's time allocated to household work, school work, and recreation in single- and two-parent families. Age and sex of older children and constraints on their time, such as school attendance, are controlled for in the analysis. The data are from a California study. A two-step multiple regression procedure is used. The effect of homemaker's employment status on older child's time allocated to household work, school work, and recreation is not found to differ by family structure. Homemaker's employment status does not explain a significant amount of variance in older child's time allocation.

Predicting parental anticonvulsant medication compliance using the theory of reasoned action.

One approach to better understanding compliance behavior is the use of the theory of reasoned action. In this article, the theory of reasoned action is used to predict the compliance behavior of 29 parents of children with epilespy. In support of the theory, behavioral intention was found to significantly predict (p less than 0.01) parental medicine-giving behavior. Contrary to the results predicted by the theory, parents' attitudes toward giving the medication correlated with a significant amount of variance in medicine-giving behavior beyond that accounted for by behavioral intention.

Caregiver assessment of personal adjustment after stroke in a Veterans Administration Medical Center outpatient cohort.

We evaluated 80 stroke patients to examine the contributions of caregiver anxiety, self-care ability, age, time since onset, marital and residential status, and need for health care services on personal adjustment as reported by caregivers. Mean age of the patients was 65.4 years, and the average time from stroke onset to evaluation was 415 days. Multiple regression analyses indicated that a significant amount of variance in patient adjustment was accounted for by caregiver anxiety (R2 = 0.28, p less than 0.05) and patient self-care ability (R2 = 0.13, p less than 0.05). Compared with community norms, stroke patients were reported to be more depressed, confused, and anxious and they demonstrated fewer household management skills. Stroke patients were not different from a normative sample on measures of interpersonal involvement or social activity. Caregivers had high levels of anxiety compared with norms. Our results may aid in developing methods for identifying stroke patients and caregivers at risk for suboptimal adjustment.

Hemispherically Lateralized EEG as a Response to Television Commercials

EEG was recorded from 21 right-handed women as they watched commercial television. A significant amount of variance in hemispheric dominance shifts of lateralized EEG was explained as a function of the onset of easily identifiable variables in the stimulus. There were hemispheric differences in EEG due to the verbal and nonverbal components of the stimulus. Lags between stimulus onset and change in EEG also were observable. The data were found to be reliable within this study, between this study and a prior one, and between this study and others in the EEG literature that uses less complex stimuli.

Early Adolescents' Performance on the WRAT Compared to their WISC-R IQs, Reading Achievement Score, and Selected Demographic Variables

The relationship between the Wide Range Achievement Test (WRAT) subtest scores and WISC-R IQs, performance on the Gates MacGinitie Reading Test (GMRT), age, grade placement, and parents' educational and occupational levels were examined for a sample of 120 middle-school students. Performance on the GMRT Vocabulary subtest accounted for a significant amount of variance in the WRAT Reading subtest scores, while the GMRT Vocabulary subtest score, subject's grade-achievement level, and the primary occupation in the family contributed significantly to the amount of variance in the WRAT Spelling subtest scores. Results of the data analyses indicated that the WRAT is an effective quick measure for classroom teachers to use with middle-school students who are experiencing learning difficulties in reading and spelling. In contrast with previous findings, WRAT subtest scores were not affected by subjects' WISC-R IQs.