Specific Reference Group Research Articles

A dispute about poems and beyond

The article is written in response to I. Plekhanova’s study published in the same issue of Voprosy Literatury, which calls A. Dolgareva’s poetry an undoubtedly leading phenomenon of contemporary poetry. E. Pogorelaya also acknowledges key defining characteristics of Dolgareva’s output: preference for lively colloquial language, references to personal experience and the reader’s civic stance, reliance on plots and archetypical images and motifs, as well as a leaning towards the Soviet literary tradition and Soviet past as the last era of stability and relative normalcy. Polemizing with Plekhanova and other admirers of Dolgareva’s poetry, the author points out that the backbone of her poetics is drawn from 2010s’ Internet poetry, e. g., A. Kudryasheva’s works. The author argues that Dolgareva’s free and unrestricted, if not haphazard, treatment of the language is rooted in that background and that her works share a lot of similarities with those by authors from the Internet. Therefore, Pogorelaya suggests a more critical and reflective approach to Dolgareva’s oeuvre, stressing that it is primarily written with a specific reference group in mind and mirrors the group’s emotional charge.

The Wechsler Adult Intelligence Scale-Fourth Edition, Greek Adaptation (WAIS-IV GR): confirmatory factor analysis and specific reference group normative data for Greek Australian older adults

ABSTRACT Objectives In the absence of reliable and valid neuropsychological measures, accurate assessment of culturally diverse groups is a challenge facing the Australian neuropsychological community. This study aimed to investigate the construct validity and to develop specific reference group norms using the WAIS-IV Greek adaption (WAIS-IV GR) for Greek Australian older adults. Method A convenience sample of 90 healthy older Greek Australians (M = 77.14 ± 4.46; range = 70–85; 39 males & 51 females), with a primary school level of education (M = 5.60 ± 0.68; Range = 4–6) were recruited throughout the Melbourne metropolitan area. Results Regression modelling showed that age was the most significant predictor, therefore, subtest normative data were stratified according to three age bands. Normative data for all WAIS-IV GR subtests and indices were calculated, in addition to values for the 90% and 95% confidence levels. Confirmatory factor analysis indicated that a four-factor solution consisting of the WAIS-IV GR Index Scores displayed a superior fit with significant parameters of acceptable magnitude. Conclusion Findings support the application of the traditional WAIS-IV factor structure to a Greek Australian sample. Utilising specific reference group norms for Greek Australians with limited education will facilitate and improve access of cognitive assessment within this population.

The Greek Australian neuropsychological normative study: tests & norms for Greek Australians aged 70-85 years

ABSTRACT Objective Access to valid and reliable neuropsychological measures for use with culturally diverse groups in Australia is limited. The aim of this study was to adapt and translate a selection of English language neuropsychological tests, employ several existing standardised Greek language tests, and provide specific reference group normative data for Greek Australian older adults. Method A convenience sample of 90 healthy older Greek Australians (M = 77.14 ± 4.46; range = 70–85), with a primary school level of education (M = 5.60 ± 0.68; Range = 4–6), was recruited throughout the Melbourne metropolitan area. Several neuropsychological measures were administered which assessed domains such as verbal and visual memory, confrontational naming, and executive functions. Results Regression modelling revealed that age, education and sex predicted between 5% and 35% of the variance of test scores, with age being the most significant predictor of performance across a majority of measures. Therefore, the normative data for all tests were stratified according to three age bands (70–74, 75–79, 80–85). Conclusions The use of culture-specific tests and norms for assessment of older Greek-Australians with limited education may facilitate accuracy of assessment findings, improve diagnostic outcomes, and reduce misclassification.

Fine-grained age-matching improves atrophy-based detection of mild cognitive impairment more than amyloid-negative reference subjects

IntroductionIn clinical practice, differentiating between age-related gray matter (GM) atrophy and neurodegeneration-related atrophy at early disease stages, such as mild cognitive impairment (MCI), remains challenging. We hypothesized that fined-grained adjustment for age effects and using amyloid-negative reference subjects could increase classification accuracy. MethodsT1-weighted magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) data of 131 cognitively normal (CN) individuals and 91 patients with MCI from the Alzheimer’s disease neuroimaging initiative (ADNI) characterized concerning amyloid status, as well as 19 CN individuals and 19 MCI patients from an independent validation sample were segmented, spatially normalized and analyzed in the framework of voxel-based morphometry (VBM). For each participant, statistical maps of GM atrophy were computed as the deviation from the GM of CN reference groups at the voxel level. CN reference groups composed with different degrees of age-matching, and mixed and strictly amyloid-negative CN reference groups were examined regarding their effect on the accuracy in distinguishing between CN and MCI. Furthermore, the effects of spatial smoothing and atrophy threshold were assessed. ResultsApproaches with a specific reference group for each age significantly outperformed all other age-adjustment strategies with a maximum area under the curve of 1.0 in the ADNI sample and 0.985 in the validation sample. Accounting for age in a regression-based approach improved classification accuracy over that of a single CN reference group in the age range of the patient sample. Using strictly amyloid-negative reference groups improved classification accuracy only when age was not considered. ConclusionOur results demonstrate that VBM can differentiate between age-related and MCI-associated atrophy with high accuracy. Crucially, age-specific reference groups significantly increased accuracy, more so than regression-based approaches and using amyloid-negative reference groups.

Sexual identity management of working lesbian women

Purpose The purpose of this study is to provide a closer look at being out in the work environment. What are the characteristics that distinguish lesbian women who are out at work from those who are not? What role do companies play with their diversity-related measures? Design/methodology/approach This paper investigates characteristics that distinguish lesbian women who were out at work and analyzes the use of various sexual identity management strategies in relation to specific reference groups within a company. Furthermore, the method of multiple correspondence analysis is used to visually map the associations between company-specific characteristics and being out. Findings Results show that being out in the work environment is subject to a complex interplay of several factors, from personal resources to the diversity-friendliness of the company. A company’s lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender, and intersexual (LGBTI)-related measures, such as in-house LGBTI networks or diversity workshops, can not only promote the coming out of lesbian employees, and thereby help to increase their overall satisfaction with life, but can also reduce their experiences of discrimination. Originality/value In this paper, the method of multiple correspondence analysis is used to examine the relationships between several diversity-related measures of the company and being out at the workplace. A visualization of these relationships in a two-dimensional space allows a more comprehensive view of these features and their possible effect on being out at the workplace.

Latin Questionnaire: a threshold strategy for anamnestic screening of occupational musculoskeletal disorders through specific reference groups

IntroductionHealth surveillance programs conducted for both individual workers and working populations as a whole are managed by occupational health physicians and focus on disorders and diseases caused by biomechanical overload, primarily for preventive purposes.ObjectivesThe purpose of the paper is to update an anamnestic protocol for studying musculoskeletal disorders after more than 40 years experience of its application. The updated version has been re-named the Latin Questionnaire. The protocol enables preliminary epidemiological evaluation, by comparing results of exposed populations to those from a reference population, thanks to the introduction of a severity threshold, a concept lacking in similar questionnaires.MethodsThe Latin Questionnaire is based on symptoms of discomfort, pain, and paraesthesia. Each symptom is described in terms of location, duration, number of episodes, irradiation, and treatment. The model covers present symptoms during the previous 12 months and is designed to identify positive anamnestic cases (when positive according to the threshold), cases with minor disorders, and negative cases for conditions involving the spine and upper and lower limbs.ResultsThe updated anamnestic model was validated again through the collaborative effort involving 37 physicians from 14 Latin countries. To enable comparisons with exposed populations, an updated reference population (4,000 unexposed workers) is presented, evaluating the percentages of subjects positive according to thresholds for spine and upper and lower limbs and the incidence of acute lower back pain, broken down by gender and age groups. Examples of application of the questionnaire are also presented.ConclusionsThe Latin Questionnaire, which has also been implemented in digital form (free download), allows selection of significant anamnestic cases compared to cases with minor disorders. This strategy is indispensable for correctly conducting preliminary epidemiological studies. Example applications confirm the presence of significant differences between the percentages of subjects with positive thresholds in exposed compared to reference groups, with surpluses proportional to their levels of biomechanical overload.

Testovanie pripravenosti na phishingový útok v zdravotníckych zariadeniach

This article deals with testing the preparedness of a selected group of users for phishing attacks. It consists of a theoretical and a practical part. The theoretical part defines the basic framework of phishing attacks. It describes the basic knowledge and definitions that need to be mastered to understand the given area. The practical part consists of testing the preparedness of a specific reference group of users through phishing training and phishing tests. The data collected from thetesting was further analysed and compared to determine the potential use of phishing training and phishing testing in organisations.

Testovanie pripravenosti na phishingový útok v zdravotníckych zariadeniach

This article deals with testing the preparedness of a selected group of users for phishing attacks. It consists of a theoretical and a practical part. The theoretical part defines the basic framework of phishing attacks. It describes the basic knowledge and definitions that need to be mastered to understand the given area. The practical part consists of testing the preparedness of a specific reference group of users through phishing training and phishing tests. The data collected from thetesting was further analysed and compared to determine the potential use of phishing training and phishing testing in organisations.

Reflected appraisals across multiple reference groups: Discrepancies in self and individual delinquency

We explore the implications of multiple reference groups for symbolic interaction explanations of delinquency. Specifically, we test the idea that dissimilarity in reflected appraisals across reference groups weakens the effect of the appraisals of a single group on behavior. We also assess whether the relative influence of different reflected appraisals is moderated by differences in the amount of time spent in and attachment to the roles taken among specific reference groups. Using data from the National Youth Survey, our findings mostly support symbolic interactionist predictions: Dissimilarity in reference groups' reflected appraisals weakens the influence of a single group's appraisals on behavior. We also found some evidence that, relatively, the more time an individual spends and the more attached they are to a role in a particular reference group, the more strongly correlated the respective appraisals are with delinquent behavior. Contrary to our predictions, we found that relatively strong attachments to one's role with their parents weakens the influence of parental reflected appraisals as a rule violator.

Correlates of Self-Reported HIV Testing Among Patients in Specialized Substance Abuse Treatment Centers in South Africa.

Substance use is a recognized risk factor for HIV acquisition, transmission and progression in South Africa. Persons who use drugs (PWUD) and access specialist substance abuse treatmentcenters (SSATCs)are a potentially critical target group for HIV services because of the severity of their substance use and associated health risks. SSATCsrepresent an opportunity for integrated programming, particularly HIV testing services (HTS), to reach PWUD who are at an increased risk of or living with HIV. This analysis of national SSATC admission dataexploresself-reported HIV testing and associated factors to identify coverage gaps and integration opportunities. The South African Community Epidemiology Network on Drug Use (SACENDU) collects routine surveillance data to monitor national treatment admission trends in alcohol andother drug use. SACENDU data from 2012 to 2017 was analyzed usingchi-square test of independence and logistic regression to examine associations betweenHTS, demographic characteristics and substances of use. Of 87,339 treatment admissions,47.5% (n = 41,481) of patients had not accessedHTSin the prior 12months.HTS was reported less frequently by patients whose primary substance of use was cannabis or those with polysubstance use (36.9% and 41.1%, respectively).None of the substance use sub-groupsreported a testing rate above 70%.Compared to specific reference groups, logistic regression showed those with lower odds of HTS were:15-19years (OR = 0.59); had primary-level education (OR = 0.51); were scholars/learners (OR = 0.27); andprimarily cannabis users (OR = 0.64). Patients whose primary drug was heroin had higher odds of testing (OR = 2.45) as did those who injected drugs (OR = 2.86). Given the low coverage and decreased odds of self-reportedHTSamong sub-groups of patients inSSATCs, the integration of HIV services for PWUD should be a priority inSouth Africa and a focus of the national HIV strategy.

Advancing the Measurement of Organizational Legitimacy, Reputation, and Status: First-order Judgments vs Second-order Judgments—Commentary on “Organizational legitimacy, reputation and status: Insights from micro-level management”

As improving the construct validity of measures has been a fundamental concern in management research, we commend Bitektine, Hill, Song, and Vandenberghe (2019) for their efforts to develop and validate individual-level measures for organizational legitimacy, reputation, and status. These measurement instruments undoubtedly will be helpful to advance research on the micro-level antecedents and outcomes of these social evaluations and will prove instructive for the development of measures for related evaluations, such as organizational stigma, and celebrity. However, while we appreciate the authors’ work and contribution to a microfoundational agenda in research on social evaluations, we have some concerns with regard to their measurement approach. Specifically, although Bitektine and colleagues (2019) stress the multi-level nature of social evaluations, they do not translate this insight into a measurement instrument that acknowledges that individual evaluators hold both private judgments (“first-order judgments”) and judgments about the collective-level judgment (i.e., judgments of the judgments of other evaluators in a specific reference group, or “second-order judgments”). These two types of individual judgments reflect different facets of social evaluations and have different effects on individual behavior, and thus researchers need to avoid conflating them within a measurement instrument. Our commentary seeks to complement the approach of Bitektine and colleagues (2019) by sensitizing readers to the distinction between first-order and second-order judgments and by developing recommendations for future scale development efforts. These recommendations are given in a spirit of collegiality and with an understanding that progress in social evaluation research requires the concerted effort of many researchers over many years.

Compared to whom? Reference groups in socio-economic comparisons and self-reported health

Abstract Background The association between socio-economic position and health is believed to be mediated, in part, by psycho-social comparison of one’s situation to that of others. But with who? Possibilities include family, friends, elites, or even those in other countries or in previous times. So far, there has been almost no research on whether the reference point matters. Methods We take advantage of a comparative data set that, uniquely, allows us to ask this question. The Life in Transition Survey was conducted in four Southern European and 30 Central and Eastern European and Eurasian countries. We sought differences in the probability of good self-reported health among those using different reference groups, including own family, friends and neighbours, domestic elites, people living in other countries and, those living prior to the major politico-economic transition. We used multivariable and multilevel mixed-effects Poisson regressions and estimated treatment effects via the regression adjustment of Poisson models. Results In most cases the choice of reference group did not matter but in some it did. Among men in Eastern European and Eurasian societies, those who compared themselves to their parents and their own families before the start of transition were less likely to report good health compared to those who did not compare their own economic situation with any specific reference group. Conclusions For some individuals, the choice of who to compare one’s situation with does seem to matter, pointing to an area for future investigation in research on psycho-social determinants of health. Key messages We found no difference in self-reported health between those who compare their situation with friends and neighbours, domestic elites, and people living in other countries. In post-communist countries, those who compared their situation to that of their parents and their own situation before the politico-economic transition were less likely to report good health.

The Impact of Investments in New Digital Technologies on Wages – Worker-Level Evidence from Germany

AbstractThe strong rise of digitalization, automation, machine learning and other related new digital technologies has led to an intense debate about their societal impacts. The transitions of occupations and the effects on labor demand and workers’ wages are still open questions. Research projects dealing with this issue often face a lack of data on the usage of new digital technologies. This paper uses a novel linked employer–employee data set that contains detailed information on establishments’ technological upgrading between 2011 and 2016, a recent period of rapid technological progress. Furthermore, we are the first to develop a digital tools index based on the German expert database BERUFENET. The new index contains detailed information on the work equipment that is used by workers. Hence, we observe the degree of digitalization on both the establishment level and the worker level. The data allow us to investigate the impact of technology investments on the wage growth of employees within establishments. Overall, the results from individual level fixed effects estimates suggest that investments in new digital technologies at the establishment level positively affect the wages of the establishments’ workers. Sector-specific results show that investments in new digital technologies increase wages in knowledge intensive production establishments and non-knowledge intensive services. The wage growth effects of employees indigital pioneerestablishments relative to the specific reference group of workers indigital latecomerestablishments are most pronounced for low- and medium-skilled workers.

An exploratory study of the psychological determinants of mobility of older people in Malta

An ageing population is a social phenomenon affecting transport systems in many cities. More attention is being given to how older people travel so as to increase independence in later life but at the same time ensure sustainable mobility. Despite an increasing ageing population, the small island state of Malta still needs improvements in the way ageing is considered in its overall transport policy. Together with an ageing population, Malta also suffers from a very high population density and motorisation rate. This paper seeks to explore the psychological determinants that affect older people's mobility using Malta as case study. Based on the Theory of Interpersonal Behaviour, data was collected using telephone surveys and analysed using Structural Equation Modelling. The results reveal that older people's mobility is primarily motivated by their intentions which are predominantly affected by social norms (pressures from specific reference groups). The results also show that cognitive thinking (intentions) has a much higher effect on mobility than habit. Although ranked negatively by older people, transport infrastructure and other road users' behaviour barely affect the way they travel. The paper concludes by discussing the implications of the results on transport policy and infrastructure management.

Effect of estimation method, definition of ratio, and the plausible range in estimating social network size

A prime for network scale-up studies is the calculation of network size (C). To estimate C, respondents are asked about the number of their acquaintances belonging to specific reference groups with known sizes. The aim of this manuscript is to address influence of method of estimation and exclusion of unreliable reference groups on C. Recruiting 1275 women and using 25 reference groups, C was calculated applying traditional and Means of Sums (MoS) estimators. This C is applied to back-calculate the size of reference groups. To assess the closeness of back-calculated and real size, two types of ratio were calculated: back-calculated over real size, and its reverse. The tolerable range for ratio was defined as (0.5, 1.5), (0.5, 2), and < 1 based on the absolute logarithmic scale. The reference group corresponding to the poorest ratio was omitted. New C was estimated based on the remainder of the reference groups. The whole process continued in an iterative fashion until all ratios fall within the plausible range. In the traditional approach, C was robust with respect to definition of ratio and its tolerable range. Minimum and maximum C were 174 and 186. In the MoS analysis, C values hugely diverse ranged 185–557. This might partially be due to small number of eligible reference groups contributing in the estimation of C. As C is used to estimate size of hidden groups, its calculation needs careful plan. We recommend authors to provide a range of values for C.

Celiac Disease and Increased Risk of Pneumococcal Infection: A Systematic Review and Meta-Analysis

BackgroundCeliac disease has been associated with hyposplenism, and multiple case reports link celiac disease and pneumococcal infections; however, increased risk of pneumococcal infection in celiac disease has not been confirmed. The purpose of this study was to conduct a systematic review to determine the risk of pneumococcal infections in celiac disease. MethodsRelevant studies were identified using electronic bibliographic searches of PubMed, OVID, Medline, and EMBASE (1980 to February 2017) and reviewing abstracts from major conferences in gastroenterology. Using number of events in celiac patients and referent patients, we calculated a summary relative risk of pneumococcal infections. All analyses were conducted in Comprehensive Meta-Analysis software using random-effects assumptions. ResultsOf a total of 156 articles, 3, representing 3 large databases (the Swedish National Inpatient Register; the Oxford Record Linkage Study; and the English National Hospital Episode Statistics) were included. Each compared patients with celiac disease and confirmed pneumococcal infection to a specific reference group: inpatients and/or the general population. Overall, the odds of pneumococcal infection were higher among hospitalized celiac patients compared with controls (odds ratio 1.66; 95% confidence interval 1.43-1.92). There was no evidence of heterogeneity (Q[1] = 1.17, P = .56, I2 = 0%). ConclusionsCeliac disease is associated with an increased risk of pneumococcal infection. Preventive pneumococcal vaccination should be considered for those with celiac disease, with special attention to those aged 15-64 years who have not received the scheduled pneumococcal vaccination series as a child.

Is Non-destructive Provenancing of Pottery Possible With Just a Few Discriminative Trace Elements?

This study outlines how to perform a fully non-destructive compositional analysis of pottery, but with the limited number of discriminative elements quantifiable by pXRF. The spectrometer was calibrated with fired clay samples spiked with Ti, Fe, Ga, Rb, Sr, Y, Zr and Nb. Methodological outliers resulting from surface modifications and paste heterogeneity were identified by multiple spot analysis per fragment and sorted out. From ten late medieval/early modern potting centres located all over Germany 75 to 360 waster sherds were analysed, resembling plain earthenware, proto-stoneware and glazed stoneware. The 90% quantiles of the assemblages could be distinguished by simple bi- and trivariate scattergrams of the trace elements, although the overall compositional difference was low. As a general trend paste group distinction of similar wares got less pronounced with decreasing geographic distance of the production sites. With the limited total spread of elemental concentrations, the n≤15 dimensional space of discriminative elements is too small to separate hundreds of paste recipes generated over centuries in a densely populated territory. Thus a restriction to the anthropologically reasonable context is required when compositional provenancing of unknown pottery is undertaken, and the successful resolution of production sites needs to be confirmed on a case by case basis. Statement of significance Apart from cultural heritage and art historical conservation aspects, non-destructive XRF analysis allows for high, though non-automatized throughput of even very small ceramic fragments, which strongly improves the significance and validity of location, ware and style specific reference groups. However, pottery also provides considerable methodological constraints to true non-destructive compositional analysis, and the difference in chemical pattern between production centres is generally small. Diligent instrument calibration and a stringent protocol are therefore prerequisites for distinguishing geographically neighbouring pottery produces, and assemblages with adjacent and partially overlapping chemical composition in general.

RCT of web-based personalized normative feedback for college drinking prevention: Are typical student norms good enough?

Personalized normative feedback (PNF) interventions are generally effective at correcting normative misperceptions and reducing risky alcohol consumption among college students. However, research has yet to establish what level of reference group specificity is most efficacious in delivering PNF. This study compared the efficacy of a web-based PNF intervention using 8 increasingly specific reference groups against a Web-BASICS intervention and a repeated-assessment control in reducing risky drinking and associated consequences. Participants were 1,663 heavy-drinking Caucasian and Asian undergraduates at 2 universities. The referent for web-based PNF was either the typical same-campus student or a same-campus student at 1 (either gender, race, or Greek affiliation), or a combination of 2 (e.g., gender and race), or all 3 levels of specificity (i.e., gender, race, and Greek affiliation). Hypotheses were tested using quasi-Poisson generalized linear models fit by generalized estimating equations. The PNF intervention participants showed modest reductions in all 4 outcomes (average total drinks, peak drinking, drinking days, and drinking consequences) compared with control participants. No significant differences in drinking outcomes were found between the PNF group as a whole and the Web-BASICS group. Among the 8 PNF conditions, participants receiving typical student PNF demonstrated greater reductions in all 4 outcomes compared with those receiving PNF for more specific reference groups. Perceived drinking norms and discrepancies between individual behavior and actual norms mediated the efficacy of the intervention. Findings suggest a web-based PNF intervention using the typical student referent offers a parsimonious approach to reducing problematic alcohol use outcomes among college students.

The Ability of Narrative Communication to Address Health-related Social Norms

Social norms are an important predictor of health behavior and have been targeted by a variety of health communication campaigns. However, these campaigns often encounter challenges related to the socially specific context in which norms exist: specifically, the extent to which the target population identifies with the reference group presented in the ad and the extent to which the target population believes the campaign's message. We argue that because of its capacity to effect identification among viewers, narrative communication is particularly appropriate for impacting social norms and, consequently, behavioral intention. This manuscript presents the results of a randomized trial testing the effectiveness of two films - one narrative, one non-narrative - in changing perceived social norms and behavioral intention regarding Pap testing to detect cervical cancer. Results of the study indicate that the narrative film was in fact more effective at producing positive changes in perceived norm and intention.

Abstract 2984: A comprehensive bioinformatic analysis of the representativity of 460 cancer cell lines as model systems for 88 different clinical cancer types

Abstract Cell lines are routinely used as model systems in cancer research, drug discovery and pharmacogenomics. An alarming number of cell lines have been reported not to represent their original cancer type due to cross contamination or due to having evolved or dedifferentiated extensively. However, a systematic evaluation on the extent to which each cell line accurately represent the corresponding in vivo tumors has not been done across all types of tumors. The aim of this study was to comprehensively examine how well cancer cell lines resemble the uncultured primary tumors they supposedly are derived from and to identify genes and pathways which are particularly coherent or divergent. We examined 1268 Affymetrix gene expression profiles from 460 established cell lines and compared them against reference gene expression data from 13 961 in vivo cancer samples. These data originated from the In Silico Transcriptomics (IST TM) database (www.medisapiens.com), a more comprehensive version of the GeneSapiens database (Kilpinen et al. 2008), and were analyzed by the Alignment of Gene Expression Profiles (AGEP) method (Kilpinen et al. 2011). AGEP compares gene expression profiles from individual samples to groups of reference samples, and returns a gene-by-gene analysis of how much, as well as how uniquely, the sample resembles each reference group. We compared each of the 1268 cell line samples against 32 main cancer groups as well as 88 specific cancer reference groups. Thus, our comparison was unique in that it measured not only how well each of the cancer cell lines resembled the expected in vivo tumor tissue, but also how much they resembled all other tumor types. Our results showed that 38% of the cell lines had the highest similarity to the expected main cancer type. This percentage was lower when looking at the more specific groups (21%). Similar classification of individual clinical tumors to the average tumor classes with the AGEP method achieved 88% accuracy. A few cell line types had a high percentage of matches with the corresponding clinical tumors, with melanoma (95% match), T-ALL (74%) and colorectal cancer (79%) showing highest similarities. In contrast, pancreatic and ovarian tumor cell lines showed the lowest match percentages to the corresponding primary tumors (0%). We also studied the results on a gene-by-gene basis and identified those genes that were contributing to the match or discordant classification in each case. Interestingly, several genes were common to the majority of cell lines that clearly deviated from each of the primary tumor types (mostly cell cycle and cell adhesion genes), while other differences were more cancer-specific, e.g. MLANA and SILV genes, which were lost from some melanoma cell lines. These results will be useful for selecting optimal cancer model systems for each cancer type, and for each gene and pathway of interest. Citation Format: {Authors}. {Abstract title} [abstract]. In: Proceedings of the 103rd Annual Meeting of the American Association for Cancer Research; 2012 Mar 31-Apr 4; Chicago, IL. Philadelphia (PA): AACR; Cancer Res 2012;72(8 Suppl):Abstract nr 2984. doi:1538-7445.AM2012-2984