Valid Justification Research Articles

Thing one and thing two1: What 'Doctors use' to doctor you?

This perspective piece is a detailed analysis of the critique by Gordon Parker of the mood disorders clinical practice guidelines (MDcpg2020), in which he claims that bipolar II disorder has been 'banished' despite its formal status in current taxonomies. In this article, I defend the reasoning used by the Committee to adopt a dimensional model for describing and managing mood disorders, in particular bipolar disorder. I also robustly contend the many erroneous inferences made by him in his Viewpoint regarding management recommendations within the MDcpg2020 and demonstrate that there is no valid justification for subtyping bipolar disorder - especially in the manner proposed by the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders, 5th edition. Thus, I argue that it was appropriate for the MDcpg2020 Committee to pursue an alternative model to the usual subtyping of bipolar disorder into 'thing one' and 'thing two' and conclude that the now clearly redundant model of Bipolar II should be altogether removed from our lexicon and clinical practice. Indeed, it is time to develop new and alternative models for defining bipolar disorder and among these a dimensional model should be given consideration.

On Performance Measurement Approach for the Connected and Automated Transportation Networks

Different Performance Measures could be applied to Urban Road Networks controlled and operated by Connected and Automated Transportation (CAT) Smart Systems for the purpose of verification “Whether CAT technology based System helped in the improving of traffic situation and reducing of congestion”. Without engaging with Performance Measurement approach there is no valid justification supporting the use of CAT based Systems at Urban Road Networks. Presented here Forum Article purely indicates few (commonly known) ideas and conclusions, possibilities and facts related to the above topic as one of the first steps in inviting Transport Research Community to study this domain of scientific problems.

The critical mechanics of the initiation of loess flow failure and implications for landslides

Abstract An essential hypothesis is that the flow failure landslides occurring in the Chinese Loess Plateau may initiate in the high-moisture-content loess in the capillary zone rather than in the saturated zone within the slope. Two effective stress paths, namely, the monotonically increasing loading and wetting-based constant loading under undrained conditions, are performed on intact and mechanically compacted loess, aiming at specifying their hydromechanical trajectories when subjected to an increasing water content. The results indicate that static liquefaction is initiated when the soil moisture reaches a threshold during the wetting process after exhibiting a sharp increase in pore water pressure accompanied by strain-softening behavior. Accordingly, we define this state as the initiation of flow failure under the unsaturated framework to distinguish it from static liquefaction, and first propose its corresponding critical mechanics and criterion. Its validity and physical justification are mainly evidenced by the following observations: i) Significant difference in the pore characteristics of the test samples before and after flow failure initiation; ii) Approximate equivalence between the measured and predicted hydromechanical thresholds at the flow failure initiation state; iii) Existence of the strength envelope corresponding to the flow failure initiation state; and iv) The uniqueness of the modified critical state line in the full suction range. This paper provides a general approach to accurately identify the flow failure potential for unsaturated loess, especially in the capillarity zone within a slope, which is of vital importance to the early identification and risk mitigation of loess landslides with a fluidization pattern.

An audit of platelet transfusion indications in acute leukaemia patients: six-year experience at an Academic Centre.

Platelet transfusion plays a critical role in the supportive treatment of acute leukaemia patients who receive chemotherapy and haematopoietic stem cell transplantation (HSCT). There are few studies assessing appropriateness of platelet transfusion in this population. An audit was conducted to determine how appropriately platelets are transfused in acute leukaemia patients at a tertiary care health institution. A six-year retrospective audit was conducted in acute lymphoblastic (ALL) and acute myeloid leukaemia (AML) patients in an Academic Centre. Episodes were assessed as either appropriate or inappropriate based on guidelines from the British Society for Haematology (BSH). Pre-transfusion platelet count, transfusion indication, World Health Organization (WHO) bleeding score, and antibiotic use were all documented. Overall, 745 platelet transfusion episodes in 154 patients were audited. The proportion of episodes appropriately indicated according to BSH guidelines was 75.3%. Paediatrics and Internal Medicine had the lowest and highest proportion of appropriateness by department at 63.9% and 86.8%, respectively. The best alignment to guidelines was found on the wards (82.3%). Inpatient cases were significantly better indicated (p=0.002), whereas therapeutic and HSCT-related transfusions were not. The majority of inappropriate transfusions had a pre-transfusion count >20×109/L without a valid justification (45.1%), whereas appropriate episodes were mainly accounted for by a pre-transfusion count <10×109/L (69%). The 25% rate of inappropriate platelet transfusion in acute leukaemia patients underscores the learning needs of physicians, particularly those in training, regarding adequate use of platelets in haematologic malignancies to optimise its utilisation and patient outcome.

The Output-Welfare Fallacy

A fallacy lies at the core of modern antitrust. The same scholars who successfully advanced a singular consumer-welfare goal simultaneously argued that output effects should be the exclusive criterion for analysis. This output–welfare framework entered mainstream discourse, was endorsed by enforcers and judges, and played a pivotal role in the Supreme Court’s recent Ohio v. American Express opinion. Yet despite its centrality, outputism has largely escaped notice. When exposed to systematic evaluation, the previously assumed link between output and welfare breaks down. A wide variety of conduct can push output and welfare in opposite directions. Moreover, purely outputist analysis is often unworkable in markets—for labor, social networking, online search, and more—that are of particular interest to contemporary antitrust. Recognizing the Output–Welfare Fallacy offers substantial payoffs. It illuminates and undercuts a fundamental illogic that motivates outputist judicial decisions, which warrant swift reversal. Market power can be defined as the power to control competition, rather than power to profitably reduce output. Plaintiffs need not demonstrate an output reduction to carry their initial burden of proof. Conversely, defendants need not prove that output increased in order to make out a valid procompetitive justification. In general, moving beyond the narrow confines of output-based analysis enables the application of a more coherent, practical, and efficient antitrust framework.

Effecting Consistency in Investor-State Dispute Settlement Through the Introduction of Precedent in a Multilateral Investment Court

In recent years, the current Investor-State Dispute Settlement (ISDS) system has been a subject of reform discussions triggered by several factors, amongst which includes the lack of consistency in ISDS decisions commonly rendered by arbitration tribunals. This undesirable fact places the current ISDS system in conflict with essential rule of law values such as stability, reliability, predictability, and equality - which inevitably diminish the legitimacy of the current system. Undeniably, the un-uniform investment treaties underlying ISDS decisions is a valid justification for divergent outcomes, however, the recognition that a majority of investment treaties share similar if not identical legal standards also makes the argument for consistent ISDS decisions legitimate and in fact necessary to foster the harmonious development of investment law across the network of identical treaty standards. To this end, the use of “precedent” is critical in achieving the aforesaid goal. Notably, albeit informally, the use of precedent is already a recognised practice in ISDS, yet inconsistent decisions persist. As a turning point, this article advocates that consistency in ISDS decisions can be best achieved through the “formal introduction of a system of precedent”, in “a Multilateral Investment Court (MIC)”, which is possible without jeopardizing the inherent differences contained in International Investment Agreements (IIA).

Digital contact tracing and data protection: assessing the French and Portuguese applications

The rapid outbreak of COVID-19 has necessitated a global response to manage the transmission, spread, and impact of the virus. Many countries started developing digital contact tracing applications to contribute to the process of lifting the restrictions imposed on its citizens. Generally, the protection of personal data is a right that appears in constitutional and legal provisions, and its processing can only be performed under very restricted circumstances, the protection of health being a valid justification. This article focusses on the systems developed as digital contact tracing tools in France (StopCovid) and in Portugal (STAYAWAY COVID), presenting their characteristics and the most relevant aspects concerning the processing of personal data. The most relevant positive characteristics of these systems are their voluntary adoption, their developers’ concern with the people’s security and privacy, and the transparency of their functioning. With the negative characteristics, the most relevant are the restricted interoperability with the systems from other EU countries, and the permanent risk to people’s privacy of collecting lists of contacts and the circumstances of their interactions with other users of the systems.

An Analysis of Prospective Teachers’ Mathematical Reasoning on Number Concepts

This paper presents and discusses the results of a case study that was carried out to understand the mathematical reasoning of 73 second-year student teachers at a university in Zambia. The paper also demonstrates why it is important to develop the reasoning abilities of mathematics student teachers during their initial training programs. The questionnaire items presented to student teachers required them to justify the validity of selected algebraic statements and arguments on odd and even numbers. Factors that influenced participants’ modes of argumentation were also identified, clearly highlighting their implications for mathematics teacher education. Findings of the study revealed that 70% of the participants gave explanations that were aligned to an empirical or inductive mode of argumentation while 7% used the analytical or deductive argumentation mode. The rest of the participants gave explanations that did not reflect valid mathematical justification of the given algebraic statements and arguments. These results clearly indicate that only the minority of participants exhibited an adequate understanding of representing odd and even numbers in general form. Analysing and developing prospective teachers’ mathematical reasoning abilities are necessary to anticipate how they would practice when they are professionally qualified.

Normatif Hukuki Pozitivizm ve Kapsam Sorunu: Uluslararası Hukuk Örneği

While the concept of normative positivism expresses the thesis that legal positivism should be entrenched in legal systems and the participants of those legal systems should regard law as analyzed by legal positivism, it also encapsulates a group of criticisms directed to legal positivism. In this paper, it will be argued that the criticism directed at legal positivism in the way that it is a normative theory, regardless of all appearances, could be right in terms of determining and describing the boundaries of the social fact in question, though not in terms of the descriptiveness of legal positivism per se. The aspect of this approach that cannot be met by the previous counter-arguments is that it concedes that legal positivism’s analysis is a descriptive one and instead focuses on the scope of that analysis. In this paper, H.L.A. Hart’s ideas on international law will be examined in the context of this approach. We argue that, though Hart’s analysis of municipal law could be taken as successful, he is wrong that his analysis presents a general and exclusive analysis of the concept of law. In this sense, it will be argued that the fact that Hart excludes international law from his analysis without a valid justification implies a normative attitude.

No one should die alone on our watch

Dying alone has never been a normative event in our society. The coronavirus pandemic has precipitously created an environment of fear and panic, leading to the elimination of the dying vigil as a societal spiritual norm. Many patients have died, and continue to die, alone in their beds without their families or loved ones. Protection of healthcare workers and mitigation of legal liability are purported to be valid justifications for policies that have implemented these restrictions. Yet, historically, the death vigil has been a highly valued event, and seen as an act of community and a spiritual event, in which the person is recognised as more than just a note in the medical record. Two institutions developed policies that respect the death vigil while simultaneously remaining postured to protect healthcare workers. These institutions defied the current trend observed in many clinical environments and refused to let patients die alone.

Decision-making processes of a nurse working in mental health, regarding disclosure of confidential personal health information of a patient assessed as posing a risk

Background Nurses working in mental health routinely face difficult decisions regarding confidentiality and disclosure of patient information. There is public interest in protecting patient confidentiality, and there is a competing public interest in disclosing relevant confidential information to protect the patient or others from harm. However, inappropriate disclosures may constitute a breach of confidentiality. Despite the gravity of this situation, there is a paucity of literature to guide nurses’ decision-making processes regarding confidentiality and disclosure. Aim To examine decision-making processes of a nurse working in mental health, regarding disclosure of personal health information of a patient assessed as posing a risk. Methods Qualitative interpretivist approach using thematic analysis of data derived from an instrumental case study of NK v Northern Sydney Central Coast Area Health Service 2010, a Civil and Administrative Tribunal matter in New South Wales, Australia. Findings Three important legal concerns relevant to nurses’ decision-making processes are illuminated. Firstly, for risk assessment there was an emphasis on a static notion of dangerousness. Secondly, rules of confidentiality and disclosure were not adequately observed. Thirdly, confidential information was disclosed without valid justification. Discussion Inappropriate decision-making processes that may lead to a breach of patient confidentiality were evident in the findings. Gaps in understanding nurses’ decision-making processes pertaining to confidentiality and disclosure of patient information that may be addressed by future research were also revealed. Conclusion Future research that addresses gaps in understanding nurses’ decision-making processes identified by this instrumental case study would provide greater guidance for nurses when making decisions regarding confidentiality and disclosure related to risk.

Governance disclosure quality and market valuation of firms in UK and Germany

AbstractThis study develops a “comply or explain” index which captures compliance and quality of explanations given for non‐compliance with the corporate governance codes in UK and Germany. In particular, we explain, how compliance and quality of explanations provided in non‐compliance disclosures, and various other internal corporate governance mechanisms, affect the market valuation of firms in the two countries. A dynamic generalised method of moments (GMM) estimator is employed as the research technique for our analysis, which enabled us to control for the potential effects of endogeneity in our models. The findings of our content analysis suggest that firms exhibit significant differences in compliance, board independence and ownership structure in both countries. The “comply or explain” index is positively associated with the market valuation of UK firms suggesting that compliance and quality governance disclosure are value relevant in the UK. Institutional blockholders' ownership is, however, negatively associated with the market value of firms, which raises questions about the monitoring role of institutional shareholders in both countries. We argue that both compliance and explanations given for non‐compliance are equally important, as long as valid reasons and justifications for non‐compliance are provided by the reporting companies. These findings thus imply that the “comply or explain” principle is working well and that UK and German companies could benefit from the flexibility offered by this principle. With respect to the role of board size, board independence, ownership structure, and institutional ownership of firms, this study offers policy implications.

A systematic review: the application of virtual reality on the skill-specific performance in people with ASD

ABSTRACT Given the prevalence of Autism Spectrum Disorder (ASD) and the demand for treatment, there is a continuous seeking and uncertainty of effective interventions for people with ASD. As technology continues to advance, the application of Virtual Reality is emerging in clinical settings. This systematic review summarised findings to evaluate the application of virtual reality (VR) on the skill-specific performance in people with ASD. The purpose is to determine (1) if VR is an effective treatment for people with ASD in skill-specific performance and (2) can Occupational Therapists employ VR in their practice. Eight databases were systematically searched for peer-reviewed articles that were published from January 2012 to February 2018. Eight articles met the inclusion criteria. The measurements of specific skills were categorised into three main domains: job interviewing, driving, and other ADLs. A diverse range of outcome measures were utilised and provided various results. Despite the consistent positive results reported in the studies, the current evidence base lacks justification of sample sizes, reliability and validity of the findings. Although VR shows potential as an effective intervention, limitations and bias of studies should be considered. Results of studies must be interpreted with caution if Occupational Therapists are interested in employing VR in their practice.

Exploring Mathematical Reasoning of Elementary Preservice Teachers

The purpose of this study is to understand the characteristics of mathematical reasoning of elementary preservice teachers (EPTs). For this purpose, 68 EPTs were presented with two tasks related to mathematical reasoning, and their written responses were analyzed. The EPTs’ mathematical reasonings were investigated on the one hand as a whole and on the other hand between the three groups -the full successful, partial successful, and unsuccessful provers-, with focusing on the affordances from and strategies for using examples proposed in the CAPS framework. As the results of this study, it was revealed that the EPTs had insufficient competencies in terms of exploring with examples, finding structural features, building generalizations, developing conjectures, and producing proofs. In contrast, the EPTs had great strength with regard to representing their chosen examples in formal expression, which was a decisive contributor on the one hand but an impediment on the other in producing valid justifications to the given conjectures. Based on the results, the implications for elementary preservice teacher education were suggested.

Intertwining special education and mathematics education perspectives to design an intervention to improve student understanding of symbolic numerical magnitude

In our study we examined changes in student justifications over time with an intervention that drew from the best instructional practices in the fields of special education and mathematics education. These justifications were provided by teacher-identified struggling second-grade students while engaging in symbolic numerical magnitude comparisons. Following screening, we conducted 8 instructional sessions to promote conceptual understanding of fundamental ideas for numerical magnitude. Using data collected from 71 instructional tasks, we analyzed the types of justifications students provided and how these justifications changed over time. Prior to the intervention, most student justifications involved few components of a valid mathematical justification. Over the course of the study, students provided more valid and generalizable mathematical justifications.

The C-test as predictor of the academic success of international students

ABSTRACT The present article gives an overview of several studies on the predictive validity of the C-test. In the first part of the article, we discuss the construct validity of this test format. Only if the underlying construct of this test is understood, can a justification for high predictive validity be made. In the second part, we discuss several previous studies where the C-test format is used to predict the study and training success of international students. The third part discusses the findings of two as yet unpublished studies on the predictive validity of the C-test. We wish to contribute to the ongoing discussion of the validity of the C-test and argue that it is not only a language test, but also a test of processing speed which is related to working memory. For international students, processing speed in English as a foreign language is related to vocabulary knowledge, which includes statistical knowledge about the probability of words occurring in a given context as well as the probability of words following or preceding each other. The C-test taps precisely into these aspects of language proficiency which explains its high predictive validity for the study success of international students.

The Sociological Idea of the State: Legal Education, Austrian Multinationalism, and the Future of Continental Empire, 1880–1914

AbstractIf historians now recognize that the Habsburg Monarchy was developing into a strong, cohesive state in the decades before the First World War, they have yet to fully examine contemporaneous European debates about Austria's legitimacy and place in the future world order. As the intertwined fields of law and social science began during this period to elaborate a binary distinction between “modern” nation-states and “archaic” multinational “empires,” Austria, like other composite monarchies, found itself searching for a legally and scientifically valid justification for its continued existence. This article argues that Austrian sociology provided such a justification and was used to articulate a defense of the Habsburg Monarchy and other supposedly “abnormal” multinational states. While the birth of the social sciences is typically associated with Germany and France, a turn to sociology also occurred in the late Habsburg Monarchy, spurred by legal scholars who feared that the increasingly hegemonic idea of nation-based sovereignty threatened the stability of the pluralistic Austrian state. Proponents of the “sociological idea of the state,” notably the sociologist, politician, and later president of Czechoslovakia Tomáš Masaryk and the Polish-Jewish sociologist and jurist Ludwig Gumplowicz, challenged the concept of statehood advanced by mainstream Western European legal philosophy and called for a reform of Austria's law and political science curriculum. I reveal how, more than a century before the “imperial turn,” Habsburg actors came to reject the emerging scholarly distinction between “nations” and “empires” and fought, with considerable success, to institutionalize an alternative to nationalist social scientific discourse.

The peace education imperative: a democratic rationale for peace education as a civic duty

ABSTRACTThis paper articulates a normative philosophical justification for Peace Education as a civic duty understood from within the imperatives of democratic political legitimacy. A normative philosophical rationale is present that outlines how and in what ways valid public justification is the source of political legitimacy in a democracy, which in turn gives citizens a justified claim to political rights (including a right to justification) and an education that develops the knowledge and capacity to participate in public justification and critique. From this perspective, political education is a civic duty. It is also argued that democracy faces in two directions, inward toward the basic structure of society and outward toward relations with other nations and peoples. Given this dual nature of democracy it is argued that a basic civic duty to provide peace education as a form of democratic, global, political education to all future citizens is morally imperative. It is argued that we need to educate future citizens as global agents of justice, building a formidable bulwark against arbitrary power and constituting the means for the realization of a just peace. Peace education should be affirmed as a civic duty at the heart of democracy in an interdependent world.

The Role of Intertheoretical Connections in the System of Sciences (by the Example of Applying the Information Approach to the Theory of Evolution)

Introduction. The process of intertheoretical adaptation of the conceptual apparatus is considered on the example of transferring the terminology of information theory and thermodynamics to the field of evolution theory. The author analyzes the grounds for such adaptation, its validity and epistemological justification. Methodology and sources. Methodologically, the work is based on a logical analysis of primary sources and research literature, as well as on the application of philosophical reflection. Results and discussion. The paper shows that conceptual transfer is a type of heuristic that allows one to advance in understanding problems that are not initially solvable within a separate discipline. Reformulation of scientific problems in another language allows us to explain the features of a number of phenomena and better understand their mechanisms. The conceptual transference in the course of intertheoretic adaptation is not complete: some concepts do not find a direct analogy, others change their original meaning and have a limited scope. The disadvantage of conceptual adaptation is the insufficient validity of its foundations, since it is often based on informal methods of scientific knowledge, such as analogy, modeling, etc. Conclusion. In the case of stagnation of a mature scientific theory, conceptual can pose new problems and give new methodological approaches, which serves as a new incentive for the development of the established theory

High-impact teaching practices in higher education: a best evidence review

ABSTRACT In this paper, we report on an attempt to systematically discover reliable and high-quality evidence on teaching practices that have an impact on student learning. We adopted an innovative approach that was modelled on some of the practices of a systematic review. Papers that met certain quality criteria (population generalisability, ecological validity, measurement validity, logical clarity and design justification) were examined and a weighted-average score for each paper was calculated. These were then ranked to derive lists of best-evidenced and most impactful teaching and curriculum strategies. The results reveal that this method provides a reasonable approach to distilling the available literature into a concise representation of the most effective practices that are backed by good research design attributes. The results will be useful for curriculum designers, university leaders and policy makers, and have already informed policy at one Australian university.