Specific Research Purposes Research Articles

Issues Affecting the Selection of Participation Measurement in Outcomes Research and Clinical Trials

Whiteneck GG. Issues affecting the selection of participation measurement in outcomes research and clinical trials. The ever-growing number of participation measures without consensus on which is best makes it difficult to determine which measure to use in rehabilitation research and clinical trials. In an effort to address issues affecting the selection of a participation measure for a specific research purpose, this article (1) outlines the types and characteristics of participation measures, (2) enumerates various uses of participation measures in disability and rehabilitation research, (3) discusses appropriate matching of the type of participation measure with the research task, and (4) offers recommendations for future participation research. Participation instruments vary in terms of their degree of participation specificity, the conceptual model that underlies their development, whether they include multiple domains or take a more global approach, the extent to which they are objective versus subjective, whether they use general population norms, who is the respondent, the method of item and scale development, and their psychometric properties. Participation measures are used in individual and population assessments, observational research, and interventional research. Selection of a participation measure for use in a specific study requires an understanding of the characteristics of available tools and the nature of the research design, but most importantly, it requires matching the instrument to the specific research question or hypothesis. Instruments assessing participation are currently appropriate as secondary outcomes in trials evaluating interventions targeting activity limitation, and they will become appropriate as primary outcomes when interventions are tested that target participation directly. It will be easier to apply participation measures appropriately to their many research uses once substantial progress is made in obtaining better participation measurements and consensus is reached about the best tools.

Exploring the impact of advertising and R&D expenditures on corporate brand value and firm-level financial performance

A parsimonious framework linking advertising expenditures and research and development expenditures to brand value, and brand value in turn to firm-level financial performance, was proposed and empirically investigated under four data conditions: data form, brand type, financial performance metric, and lag structure. Using pooled data from 125 firms (848 firm-year observations) over the period 1991–2007, 108 path analyses were conducted to compute five path model output metrics. Data on these metrics were then compared for each of the data conditions by means of analysis of variance. Although significant relationships were generally observed among framework variables, study results differed considerably across three of the four data conditions. The principal take-away from the study is that the impact of marketing activities on firm-level financial performance is likely to be in large part a function of the specific research purpose and methodology employed. As such, the take-away has implications when interpreting value-relevance findings, when constructing theories involving market-based assets, and when designing studies to investigate relationships between marketing and financial performance.

Quantification of the shape of fiber tracts

The fiber tracts generated using diffusion MRI are usually simply displayed and assessed visually for a specific clinical or medical research purpose. This paper proposes computational techniques that can be used to study the shape of the tracts and make interindividual comparisons. These methods make use of fundamental geometric invariants, such as curvatures and torsions, or Fourier descriptors, together with the link of a pair of curves. Intersubject comparisons only require that the starting and ending points of the tracts can be defined and do not require point-by-point correspondences such as obtained using image registration. Principal component analysis-based shape analysis is also investigated. The invariants are tested on simulations and in vivo datasets, and the scale dependence and noise sensitivity of the measures are assessed. The potential for these techniques to be used in neuroscience research and clinical applications is demonstrated.

The European population since 1945

The European Population since 1945 is the companion volume to the previously published The European Population 1850-1945: together they provide the most comprehensive statistical set available on Western European demography. It is a comparative and historical data handbook with accompanying CD-ROM, presenting series data on demographic developments, population and household structures for the countries of Western and Central Europe. All major fields of demographic change are covered: fertility, mortality, marriage and divorce. Population figures are given for each population census by sex, civil status and age. Major demographic developments within the family are described providing a commentary on the main population structures and trends in Europe since 1945 to the end of the 20th century. As a supplement to the handbook, a CD-ROM provides data for further analyses of demographic developments, population and household structures in Western and East-Central Europe. The CD-ROM includes not only the printed country tables in computerized form, it also contains additional data tables with basic data on demographic developments that may be used for specific research purposes and statistical analyses. Thus, with the help of the CD-ROM, the reader can study population questions with respect to main trends in demographic developments, the population by size and composition according to region, sex, age and marital status, shifts in the population structure and the composition of households—for individual countries or comparatively.

Back to basics: pBR322 and protein expression systems in E. coli.

The extensive variety of plasmid-based expression systems in E. coli resulted from the fact that there is no single strategy for achieving maximal expression of every cloned gene. Although a number of strategies have been implemented to deal with problems associated to gene transcription and translation, protein folding, secretion, location, posttranslational modifications, particularities of different strains, and the like and more integrated processes have been developed, the basic plasmid-borne elements and their interaction with the particular host strain will influence the overall expression system and final productivity. Plasmid vector pBR322 is a well-established multipurpose cloning vector in laboratories worldwide, and a large number of derivatives have been created for specific applications and research purposes, including gene expression in its natural host, E. coli, and few other bacteria. The early characterization of the molecule, including its nucleotide sequence, replication and maintenance mechanisms, and determination of its coding regions, accounted for its success, not only as a universal cloning vector, but also as a provider of genes and an origin of replication for other intraspecies vectors. Since the publication of the aforementioned reviews, novel discoveries pertaining to these issues have appeared in the literature that deepen the understanding of the plasmid's features, behavior, and impact in gene expression systems, as well as some important strain characteristics that affect plasmid replication and stability. The objectives of this review include updating and discussing the new information about (1) the replication and maintenance of pBR322; (2) the host-related modulation mechanisms of plasmid replication; (3) the effects of growth rate on replication control, stability, and recombinant gene expression; (4) ways for plasmid amplification and elimination. Finally, (5) a summary of novel ancillary studies about pBR322 is presented.

Quality of life in patients with coronary heart disease-I: Assessment tools

Health-related quality of life (HRQL) assessment is an important measure of the impact of the disease, effect of treatment and other variables affecting people's lives. The review focused on the assessment of HRQL in patient with coronary heart disease (CHD) by appropriate tools. Although no consensus exists about the precise definition of HRQL, a plethora of instruments have been developed to assess it. Two broad types – generic and disease-specific – have been developed but there is some debate about their relative merits. There is a wide selection of instruments available but choice should be based on a careful consideration of an instrument's psychometric properties, the breadth and depth with which it addresses relevant health domains and the specific clinical or research purpose for which it is intended.

Some Common Ground That Can Provide a Basis for Collaboration Between Action Researchers and Scientists: A Philosophical Case That Works in Practice

By analysing 22 case studies of “good” research, both action research and agricultural science, I believe I have found some criteria of good research that is common to all of them. These criteria match the philosophical pragmatists argument that the best a researcher can do is to provide a “warranted assertion” from a methodology which is fit for the specific research purpose and is internally consistent. They also include Popper's requirement that a methodology needs to seek disconfirming evidence and Habermas's requirement that subjective data is important in all research. These criteria have provided me with a basis for collaboration with my scientific colleagues and can provide a basis for collaboration between other researchers, whatever their methodology.

Phylogenetics of rat inbred strains.

Laboratory rats (Rattus norvegicus) have played animportant role in biomedical research for over 100years with more than 200 strains bred as physiologi-cal models of human disease (Lindsey 1979; Steenet al. 1999; Kwitek-Black and Jacob 2001). Unlikemouse inbred strains, little is known about rela-tionships among rat strains (Festing 1979). TheAllele Characterization Project (ACP; lgr.mcw-edu/research/lgr_acp.html) was initiated to guide theidentification of individual strains, ensure purity ofstrains used for specific research purposes, and pro-vide a means of mapping genes based on linkage(Jacob et al. 1995; Brown et al. 1998; Steen et al.1999). The ACP genotyped 48 commonly used ratinbred strains by using over 4800 microsatellitemarkers with known genomic locations. The mi-crosatellite markers are spread relatively evenlyacross the rat genome and have been integrated intothe rat radiation hybrid (RH) map (Steen et al. 1999).Using the ACP microsatellite data and a limitednumber of isozymes, Canzian (1997) conducted agenealogic study of inbred rat strains to better un-derstand relationships among strains and to providea basis for the selection of rat strains for biomedicalresearch. Similar research of mouse inbred strainshas been significant for studies of evolution anddisease (Fitch and Atchley 1985; Beck et al. 2000).The Canzian (1997) study used a simple distancemodel (Fitch and Margoliash 1967) with percentagesof genotype differences. The results of this studyhave been cited by other authors to justify the use ofparticular rat strains for the study of a disease (Rapp2000) and to support the phylogenetic hypothesisthat a given strain of interest is ancestral to otherstrains (D’Cruz et al. 2000; Lorincz et al. 2001).Evolutionary models of microsatellite changehave been shown to more accurately reconstructdivergence patterns involving this type of marker,and there is a rich tradition in the evolutionary bi-ology literature of these models. These models havebeen used to measure population subdivision (Slat-kin 1995), investigate human evolution (Goldsteinet al. 1995b; Perez-Lezaun et al. 1997), map disease-related traits (Fishman et al. 2001), and understandmutations (Colson and Goldstein 1999). Models in-corporating specific hypotheses about mutationalmechanisms of microsatellite markers can clearly besuperior to simple percentage difference models thatpose no hypotheses about how markers mutate. Es-timates of mutation rates for microsatellite markersare approximately 10

Rationally and empirically derived dimensions of children's symptomatology: Expert ratings and confirmatory factor analyses of the CBCL.

Expert ratings and confirmatory factor analyses were used to develop an alternative system for scoring the Child Behavior Checklist (CBCL; T. M. Achenbach, 1991) to measure specific dimensions corresponding to current conceptualizations of child symptomatology. Data were from a nonclinic and 2 independent clinic samples. Subscales measuring Anxiety, Attention Problems/Hyperactivity, Conduct Problems, Depression, Oppositional Defiant, Social Problems/Immaturity, and Somatization were created. Logistic regressions were conducted to evaluate the diagnostic efficiency and discrimination of the new and original approaches to scoring the CBCL. Some of the new subscales demonstrated better sensitivity, positive predictive power, and discriminant validity than the original CBCL subscales; however, subscales from both approaches demonstrated low sensitivity. Results support the use of the new subscales for specific research purposes.

Some Reflections on Researching Drama Classrooms

There has never been a better time for researching our own drama workplaces than the present. The aim of this research article is to share reflections on my own use of three common approaches to contemporary drama research, namely 'Traditional-Empirical', 'Ethnographic-Interpretive' and 'Action Research'. As a teacher-researcher, I reflect on the efficacy of these approaches when driven by specific research questions and/or purposes.

Driving assessment with computer-video scenarios: More is sometimes better

Several factors are critical in designing effective simulator systems for driving research and driver assessment. First, there is cost, in terms of which, less is better. Costly systems are sometimes fine for specific research purposes, but they are impractical for most other purposes. Second, there is realism; in this case, more may be better, but we don’t know how much realism is really necessary for good prediction of actual driving behaviors. Recent evidence suggests that real-world clutter may enhance prediction, but it also makes interpreting research more difficult. More realism may increase cost, but this is not necessarily the case. Third, there is user-friendliness, in terms of which, again, more is better. Systems that are easier to operate require less-highly trained personnel; hence, increasing user-friendliness also decreases cost, especially for assessment. We demonstrated a highly user-friendly, low-cost, moderately realistic, and partly interactive computer-video driving research and assessment system. In recent research, we obtained multipleR values ofA7 for older drivers with only three to four scenarios predicting a real-world crash index.

Mirror system synthesis for radiant energy concentration—An inverse problem

Technical and technological demands account for the growing development of the mirror concentration systems (MCS) for powerful radiation flux. At present there are two major methods available for MCS calculation. One, the method of a point source, is used to solve MCS calculation problems in light engineering. For power application MCS where the dimensions of the object are comparable with those of the image the direct calculation method is used. However, to raise the MCS efficiency for solar power installations and to accomplish specific research purposes, it is more appropriate to employ an inverse problem statement, i.e., given are the characteristics of the radiation flux and MCS parameters ensuring the required receiver irradiation level are to be determined. The mathematical model of this inverse problem is reduced to the integro-differential equation of the first kind the solution of which in a general form seems impossible. However, it is of interest to solve this problem in terms of engineering, which makes it possible to obtain practical results. In this case the solving of the integro-differential equation is replaced by the solution of a variational problem that is in the practical sense close to the initial equation solution. The paper presents the solution of the inverse problem for the most important MCS class formed by the rotation surfaces. The first task, with this approach, is to choose the concentrator generatrix type. Here the generatrix is approximated by second-degree polynomials using the piece-wise approximation method. The results are proposed for a number of practically important objectives.

An evaluation of techniques used for the detection of anthelmintic resistance in nematode parasites of domestic livestock.

In vitro and in vivo techniques used for the detection of anthelmintic resistance are reviewed in terms of their versatility, reliability, accuracy, cost and simplicity. The faecal egg count reduction test is considered the most suitable for field screening of resistance but the larval development assay is likely to prove a valuable adjunct in such investigations. Other in vitro techniques, such as egg hatch tests, larval motility and tubulin binding assays are recommended as suitable only for research investigations. Similarly, in vivo procedures such as the critical and controlled anthelmintic efficacy tests are considered to be appropriate only for specific research purposes because of the costs involved in such studies.

Photoelectronic displacement sensor with nanometre resolution

The design of an ultraprecision displacement sensor with sub-nanometre resolution is proposed for the use of ultraprecision technologies. The sensor is based on the highly sensitive detection of power change at a specific point in light reflected from an object surface when the surface is subject to a small displacement. The sensor consists of a single light source, the reflective object and reference surfaces, optical fibre bundles for tranmission of the illuminating and the reflected light, and the photodiode set-up. In operation, the object and the reference surfaces are illuminated by light transmitted through the optical fibre bundle from the single light source. The reflected light from both surfaces is then transmitted through the optical fibre bundle to two individual but equivalent photodiodes. By using a differential amplifier, the diodes give a highly sensitive displacement signal which is included in the total signal of the reflected light. The sensor proposed has some distinctive features in its performance, such as non-contact measurement, a high resolution of 0.5 nm, a wide working range of about 30 μm within 5% linearity, and the sufficient stability of 1 nm in 20 s for specific research purposes.

Design and validation of matching tests to form equal groups for tracking experiments

Abstract The main obstacle to using matched groups in human performance experiments is the general unavailability of valid matching tests. To remove this deficiency, a tracking performance test was developed for use in forming matched groups for continuous tracking experiments. The need for such a matching test and the advantages of matched groups over randomized groups (in between-subjects experimental designs) are discussed, as well as the authors' preference for between-subjects over within-subjects designs. The matching test's reliability was measured (099) and predictive and matching validities were determined in two validation experiments. Validation coefficients of 0·79-0·93 were obtained, which are considerably higher than necessary to prefer matched groups to randomized groups. The strategy used in developing this matching test is explained and may be useful to those who wish to develop their own matching tests for specific research purposes.

Observations on the clinical validity of the HOD and IMPS

A random sample of 91 first admissions to a Provincial Psychiatric Hospital, were tested with the Hoffer-Osmond Diagnostic Test (HOD) and the Inpatient Multidimensional Psychiatric Scale (IMPS) to permit comparison of the tests' ability to discriminate between various diagnostic groups, and to discriminate patients diagnosed as schizophrenic from all others in the sample. Both tests were found to yield significant discriminations between the diagnostic groupings, the IMPS generally yielding more significant probabilities of difference. Discriminant analyses and a survey of mean score values suggested that the IMPS was tapping a wider variety of distinct sympton-dimensions, than the HOD. Canonical correlation indicated that the two tests appeared to reflect some similarities in dimensions of psychopathology. The results are discussed in terms of the relative values of the two tests for specific research purposes.

Twin registers: a progress report.

The Mendel Institute in Rome houses a Twin Register that was initiated by the senior author even before the opening of the Institute (September 1953).The purpose of the Twin Register, originally limited to research on twin concordances as to blood glutathione levels (a subject that is still under investigation, as shown by the report presented at this Symposium by Gedda and Tatarelli), was gradually widened to cover the full horizon of twin studies.The realization that the twin method, in its various formulations, is irreplaceable in most areas of biomedical research, led to the decision to include in the Register each and every contactable twin pair; wide use of mass media was made for recruitment purposes.Recruitment generally occurred at very early ages, and all pairs are constantly followed. Formerly, definite zygosity determinations were obtained only for those pairs that were selected for specific research purposes. Zygosity determinations are currently being extended to all those pairs who come to the Institute's clinics, within the limits of the available budget (it should be noted that the Institute is a private foundation which provides free medical care to any twin. Lack of capital funds forces the Institute to limit its research activities to those for which grants are obtained).

Industrial Statistics of the State Planning Committee of the U.S.S.R. (Gosplan)

There are few more important facts about Soviet industrial (and other economic) data than that there are three separate streams of statistical information, each with an individual orientation. These are systems of Central Statistical Administration, State Planning Committee (Gosplan), and Ministry of Finance. This paper emphasizes importance of Gosplan system and its potential use to analysts. Even though Gosplan statistics are not generally available to public, their existence is confirmed by official questionnaires, instructions for their completion, and numerous Soviet discussions and comparisons of data which they provide. The outline of Gosplan system presented in this paper is intended to serve two purposes. First, despite fact that data of this system of information as a whole are virtually secret, their significance for operational management has forced Soviet authorities to publish increasing bits and pieces of Gosplan statistics. This paper, it is believed, will help analysts to identify Gosplan indicators and to reconstruct components of Gosplan system. Second, it is intended to provide a fuller appreciation both of statistical resources available for Soviet decisionmaking and of necessity for discretion by analysts in selection of data for specific research purposes. For instance, use of more readily available data of Central Statistical Administration (and to a lesser degree, of Ministry of Finance) is not valid for inquiries on composition of either industrial output or armaments output and expenditures, because these systems exclude such specific information. The Central Statistical Administration has a general statistical function; in particular, for censuses of population, coordination and compilation of foreign economic information, and prompt processing and publication of data on fulfillment of principal economic indicators of plan. The Ministry of Finance has a general statistical responsibility for preparation of financial statistics, external audit of accounts, and in particular, for information on state (centralized) accumulations and measurement of their expenditure through state budget. Gosplan's statistics are highly strategic and operational; that is, they are used in construction of national economic and in management and measurement of its fulfillment. They are also used for management purposes by enterprises and supervisory authorities. Only statistics of Central Statistical Administration are regularly published. The Soviet scholarly community, however, deems much of Statistical Administration's data only approximately reconcilable with corresponding and more refined indicators of Gosplain. For example, Professor Gromov, a leading statistician in Soviet Union, has written in Komlnunist that Administration's indicator of gross industrial activity (valovaya prodcuktsiya) greatly distorts real volume of production and does not permit measurement of its effectiveness. Even with substantial corrections, it is possible to obtain only an approximation of volume of production. ' The actual volume of production referred to by Gromov is given only in data collected by product in physical and value terms by Gosplan. These data are included in national economic plani. A copy of this document for 1941, captured by German Army during World War II, confirmed continued preparation of this classified source and provided benchmarks to analysts for many years. The economic reform initiated in 1965 has now given an exclusive role to Gosplan's measurements (e.g., sales and volume of production in physical terms) as officially approved indicators of fulfillment, in replacement of historical series on aggregate industrial output of Central Statistical Administration. Thus, regardless of latter's continued use and value, increasing amounts of Gosplan data and methodology are being published. The use of these data can be considerably enhanced by a knowledge of system of data collection, data flows, and procedures for their compilation. Data collection for Gosplan.-Far more industrial data are collected for Gosplan than for other two systems combined. The reporting of industrial enterprises includes (1) daily, 5-day, and 10-day detailed schedules on production of specific industrial products; (2) continuous supply and sales documents which justify both requisitions and orders for sales; and (3) voluminous sets of summary reports such as (a) director's clarifying appendix to annual report (a set of supplementary reports prepared by director of each industrial organization in clarification of data in annual report), (b) quarterly and annual summaries of separate organizational-technical plans (orgtekhplan) for use of resources per unit of output, and (c) various preplanning and planning documents.2 Among last, most important is enterprise's report termed the technical-industrial-financial plan * The opinions expressed in this paper are those of author and do not necessarily reflect official views of United States Government.

Cohort migration

Most migration analyses focus on net migration and are concerned with areal redistributions of population. Migration may also be studied as an event in the life-cycle of an individual, and migration rates may be defined as properties of cohorts. A number of efforts to examine migration as a cohort process has been hampered by the character of available data [or the United States. Rather than await the development of a registration system-either directly or via social security and tax records-the collection of residence histories is suggested as the most feasible approach to obtaining suitable data. A schematic representation of residence histories clarifies their relation to other types of migration data and illustrates the need to design such surveys with specific research purposes in mind. Exploratory work with the 1958 Residence History Supplement to the Current Population Survey (by Beale, Shryock, myself, and various colleagues) demonstrates the utility of this approach.Local studies have made fruitful use of residence histories but typically are unable to delineate birth cohorts or other appropriate base populations exposed to risk. Development of cohort migration techniques analogous to the life table approach to mortality or cohort Jertility analysis requires national data. But migration, unlike Jertility and mortality, involves events that are reversible and repeatable. Hence the demographer's stock of analytic tools requires expansion. To the sociologist-demographer, experimentation with cohort migration models seems to be getting at one of the crucial methodological problems of sociology, the analysis of social mobility. A mutually profitable interchange with students of social mobility is envisaged.

Research and Testing

Equipment, Programmes, Techniques and Projects. The first of the awards to be made for specific research purposes under the DSIR ‘Earmarked Grants’ scheme has been allocated to the British Welding Research Association. The grant, of up to £107,200 spread over a period of six years, will be applied to programme fatigue investigations of welded construction. The estimated cost of the project is about £130,000 and the balance of the cost will be met from Association's funds.