Variable-based Analyses Research Articles

Attributable mortality benefit of digoxin treatment in hypoplastic left heart syndrome after the Norwood operation: An instrumental variable-based analysis using data from the Pediatric Health Information Systems Database

BackgroundObservational studies have demonstrated an association between the use of digoxin and reduced interstage mortality after Norwood operation for hypoplastic left heart syndrome (HLHS). Digoxin use has increased significantly but remains variable between different hospitals, independent of case-mix. Instrumental variable analyses have the potential to overcome unmeasured confounding, the major limitation of previous observational studies and to generate an estimate of the attributable benefit of treatment with digoxin. MethodsA cohort of neonates with HLHS born from January 1, 2007 to December 31, 2021 who underwent Norwood operation at Pediatric Health Information Systems Database hospitals and survived >14 days after operation were studied. Using hospital-specific, 6-month likelihood of administering digoxin as an instrumental variable, analyses adjusting for both unmeasured confounding (using the instrumental variable) and measured confounders with multivariable logistic regression were performed. ResultsThe study population included 5,148 subjects treated at 47 hospitals of which 63% were male and 46% non-Hispanic white. Of these, 44% (n = 2,184) were prescribed digoxin. Treatment with digoxin was associated with superior 1-year transplant-free survival in unadjusted analyses (85% vs 82%, P = .02). This survival benefit persisted in an instrumental-variable analysis (OR: 0.71, 95% CI: 0.54-0.94, P = .01), which can be converted to an absolute risk reduction of 5% (number needed to treat of 20). ConclusionsIn this observational study of patients with HLHS after Norwood using instrumental variable techniques, a significant benefit in 1-year transplant-free survival attributable to digoxin was demonstrated. In the absence of clinical trial data, this should encourage the use of digoxin in this vulnerable population.

Measuring Positive Mental Health and Depression in Africa: A Variable-Based and Person-Centred Analysis of the Dual-Continua Model.

The dual-continua model of mental health provides a contemporary framework for conceptualising and operationalising mental health. According to this model, mental health is distinct from but related to mental illness, and not the opposite or merely the absence of psychopathology symptoms. To examine the validity of the dual-continua model, previous studies have either applied variable-based analysis such as confirmatory factor analysis (CFA), or used predetermined cut-off points for subgroup division. The present study extends this contribution by subjecting data from an African sample to both CFA and latent class analysis (LCA) to test the dual-continua model in Africa. We applied CFA separately for the Mental Health Continuum—Short Form (MHC-SF) and Patient Health Questionnaire—9 (PHQ-9); and LCA on combined item responses. College students (N = 892; average age = 22.74, SD = 4.92; female = 58%) from Ghana (n = 309), Kenya (n = 262), Mozambique (n = 232), and South Africa (n = 89) completed the MHC-SF and PHQ-9. With minor modifications to the measurement models, the CFA results of this study confirm the three-factor structure of the MHC-SF, and a unidimensional solution for the PHQ-9. LCA results show the presence of three distinct latent classes: languishing with moderate endorsement of depressive symptoms (25.9%), flourishing with low endorsement of depressive symptoms (63.7%), and moderate mental health with high endorsement of depressive symptoms (10.4%). These findings further contribute to affirming the evidence for the dual-continua model of mental health, with implications for the assessment of mental health, to inform policy, practise, and future research in community and clinical settings in Africa.

Describing Rosé: An Embedding-Based Method for Measuring Preferences

Many products and services are best (and typically) described in prose. In extant preference-measurement methods, however, due to the challenge of numerically representing prose in econometric models, products can only be described to participants and portrayed in the utility model as a list of attributes. In this research, the authors develop an embedding-based utility model and preference method that addresses this limitation; in it, products are described to participants in (unstructured) prose. The proposed method provides three benefits: (1) in it, products can be described more completely, (2) it improves study realism, and (3) it enables a more detailed measurement of preferences. The authors employ the proposed method to measure consumer preferences in Australia, New Zealand, and the United States for wines made in 427 wine-growing regions in 44 wine-growing countries, from 708 wine-grape varietals. They find the proposed model has superior in-sample fit and generates better out-of-sample predictions than benchmark models. Importantly, the method is able to capture differences in consumers’ valuation for wines (products) that are observationally equivalent in categorical attributes, and therefore indistinguishable in classical categorical variable-based analysis. The use of the proposed model as a decision support system for marketing activities is demonstrated.

Emotional intelligence development: necessary modern technologies in students training

It is very important for a specialist to be able to make a deliberate, balanced choice when making a decision, not to succumb to momentary emotions. The ability to recognize and manage one’s own emotions is an important professional quality, on which professional efficiency depends; these are all components of emotional intelligence. Using N. Hall’s method of diagnosing emotional intelligence, we analyzed emotional intelligence of Western branch of The Russian Presidential Academy of National Economy and Public Administration students according to five main indicators: Emotional Awareness, Managing Emotions, Self-Motivation, Empathy, Managing of other people’s emotions. We conducted a variable-based analysis of the obtained indicators characterizing the components of emotional intelligence. As a result of the study, we found that the indicators "Managing emotions" and "Emotional awareness" are close to an inverse linear relationship–and their distribution does not obey the laws of normal distribution of a random value. We found that the distribution according to the scales "Emotional awareness" and "Managing Emotions" has significant left-sided asymmetry, i.e. demonstrate values below expected. In order to improve the training of students, we designed the content part of a new educational technology–"Emotional literacy development" course to form important professional qualities of specialists and contribute to ensuring global security.

THE PAST, PRESENT, AND FUTURE ALL MATTER: HOW TIME PERSPECTIVE IS ASSOCIATED WITH OPTIMISM AND SENSATION SEEKING AMONG YOUNG ADULTS

We used a multidimensional model of time perspective to examine how feelings and thoughts about the past, present, and future were related to optimism and sensation seeking among young adults. The dimensions of time perspective assessed were time feelings, the positive and negative emotions one has about the past, present, and future; time frequency, the amount of thinking about each time period; and time orientation, the relative emphases toward the time periods. Optimism and sensation seeking were self-reported and participants included 463 young adults. Variable-based analyses indicated that reporting more positive and less negative feelings about the time periods or emphasizing the present and future simultaneously were associated with greater optimism. For sensation seeking, boredom susceptibility was especially associated with the time perspective dimensions. Person-centered analyses based on time feelings and time frequency yielded four profiles (i.e., Mindful, Discontent, Bleak, and Indifferent) that were associated with both optimism and sensation seeking.

Keyword-based patent citation prediction via information theory

ABSTRACTPatent citation shows how a technology impacts other inventions, so the number of patent citations (backward citations) is used in many technology prediction studies. Current prediction methods use patent citations, but since it may take a long time till a patent is cited by other inventors, identifying impactful patents based on their citations is not an effective way. The prediction method offered in this article predicts patent citations based on the content of patents. In this research, Reconstructability Analysis (RA), which is based on information theory and graph theory, is applied to predict patent citations based on keywords extracted from the abstracts of selected patents. After applying three classes of RA (variable-based analysis without and with loops and state-based analysis), nine specific IV states of a predicting model are extracted. These states involve the four keywords of “chamber”, “hous”, “main”, and “return”. Lastly, the abstracts of the patents are examined to identify the technical subjects relevant to smart building technologies for which these keywords are proxies.

Latent Cognitive Phenotypes in De Novo Parkinson's Disease: A Person-Centered Approach.

Cognitive impairment is an important aspect of Parkinson's disease (PD), but there is considerable heterogeneity in its presentation. This investigation aims to identify and characterize latent cognitive phenotypes in early PD. Latent class analysis, a data-driven, person-centered, cluster analysis was performed on cognitive data from the Parkinson's Progressive Markers Initiative baseline visit. This analytic method facilitates identification of naturally occurring endophenotypes. Resulting classes were compared across biomarker, symptom, and demographic data. Six cognitive phenotypes were identified. Three demonstrated consistent performance across indicators, representing poor ("Weak-Overall"), average ("Typical-Overall"), and strong ("Strong-Overall") cognition. The remaining classes demonstrated unique patterns of cognition, characterized by "Strong-Memory," "Weak-Visuospatial," and "Amnestic" profiles. The Amnestic class evidenced greater tremor severity and anosmia, but was unassociated with biomarkers linked with Alzheimer's disease. The Weak-Overall class was older and reported more non-motor features associated with cognitive decline, including anxiety, depression, autonomic dysfunction, anosmia, and REM sleep behaviors. The Strong-Overall class was younger, more female, and reported less dysautonomia and anosmia. Classes were unrelated to disease duration, functional independence, or available biomarkers. Latent cognitive phenotypes with focal patterns of impairment were observed in recently diagnosed individuals with PD. Cognitive profiles were found to be independent of traditional biomarkers and motoric indices of disease progression. Only globally impaired class was associated with previously reported indicators of cognitive decline, suggesting this group may drive the effects reported in studies using variable-based analysis. Longitudinal and neuroanatomical characterization of classes will yield further insight into the evolution of cognitive change in the disease. (JINS, 2017, 23, 551-563).

When Mothers and Fathers Are Seen as Disproportionately Valuing Achievements: Implications for Adjustment Among Upper Middle Class Youth.

High achievement expectations and academic pressure from parents have been implicated in rising levels of stress and reduced well-being among adolescents. In this study of affluent, middle school youth, we examined how perceptions of parents' emphases on achievement (relative to prosocial behavior) influenced youth's psychological adjustment and school performance, and examined perceived parental criticism as a possible moderator of this association. The data were collected from 506 (50 % female) middle school students from a predominately white, upper middle class community. Students reported their perceptions of parents' values by rank ordering a list of achievement- and prosocial-oriented goals based on what they believed was most valued by their mothers and fathers for them (the child) to achieve. The data also included students' reports of perceived parental criticism, internalizing symptoms, externalizing symptoms, and self-esteem, as well as school-based data on grade point average and teacher-reported classroom behavior. Person-based analyses revealed six distinct latent classes based on perceptions of both mother and father emphases on achievement. Class comparisons showed a consistent pattern of healthier child functioning, including higher school performance, higher self-esteem, and lower psychological symptoms, in association with low to neutral parental achievement emphasis, whereas poorer child functioning was associated with high parental achievement emphasis. In variable-based analyses, interaction effects showed elevated maladjustment when high maternal achievement emphasis coexisted with high (but not low) perceived parental criticism. Results of the study suggest that to foster early adolescents' well-being in affluent school settings, parents focus on prioritizing intrinsic, prosocial values that promote affiliation and community, at least as much as, or more than, they prioritize academic performance and external achievement; and strive to limit the amount of criticism and pressure they place on their children.

Complex variable-based analysis for two semi-permeable collinear cracks in a piezoelectromagnetic media

ABSTRACTThe problem of two equal collinear cracks weakening a poled transversely isotropic piezo-electro-magnetic plate is addressed under semi-permeable electro-magnetic boundary conditions on the crack faces. The problem is formulated employing Stroh formalism and solved using a complex variable technique. Closed form analytical expressions are derived for various fracture parameters. An illustrative numerical case study is presented for poled BaTiO3 − CoFe2O4 ceramic cracked plate to study the effect of prescribed electric load, magnetic load, and inter-crack distance on fracture parameters. Moreover, a comparative study is done of volume fraction, impermeable, and semi-permeable boundary conditions on fracture parameters.

ASL Loci: Variables or Features?

American Sign Language famously disambiguates pronoun antecedents with the use of space. In ASL, both referential and quantificational NPs can be signed at different locations (‘loci’) in the signing space. Pronouns can later retrieve these NPs by pointing at the same locus. Many analyses of ASL pronouns assume that these spatial loci are the overt realization of formal variables (Lillo-Martin and Klima 1990, a.o.), based on the observations that there are arbitrarily many loci and that pronoun ambiguity can be resolved under multiple levels of embedding. In this paper, I argue that loci should not be analyzed as variables, but rather as morphosyntactic features. First, I show that the variable-based analysis under-generates: it is possible for two loci-sharing pronouns to appear free in the same expression but nevertheless receive different interpretations. Second, I show that loci share certain important properties with morphosyntactic features, including their behavior under focus-sensitive operators and their ability to induce complex agreement patterns. These results directly bear on the theory of Variable-Free Semantics (Jacobson 1999), which posits that the logic underlying natural language does not make use of formal variables. As proof of concept, I provide a variable-free fragment of ASL loci.

Framed by Gender: How Gender Inequality Persists in the Modern World By Cecilia L. Ridgeway Oxford University Press. 2011. 248 pages. $24.95 paper

In Framed by Gender: How Gender Inequality Persists in the Modern World, Cecilia Ridgeway has given a true gift to the field of gender inequality. The book moves the field forward in a number of ways. First, whereas many studies focus either on the workplace or the household as sites of gender-role reproduction and negotiation, Ridgeway provides a theoretical framework to explain gender inequality in both of these spheres. Second, research on gender inequality has been dominated by a structural framework and what Andrew Abbott (1997) has termed “variable-based analysis.” While Ridgeway's analysis is arguably a deeply institutional one, cultural understandings of gender take center stage and processes assume pride of place over variables in her book. Third, Ridgeway draws on a breathtaking array of fields to substantiate her theoretical perspective, from social and cognitive psychology to evolutionary psychology, from cultural anthropology to studies of labor market gender stratification to sociological inquiries into the private sphere of the household and intimate relations. The book's bibliography is a treasure trove of high-quality studies in all of these fields, representing much of the best social scientific work on gender in recent decades. Fourth, and most important, Ridgeway shows us a new path to follow in research and teaching on gender, a point to which I will return below.

Who are the resilient children in conditions of military violence? Family- and child-related factors in a Palestinian community sample.

The prevalence of resilience in the presence of military violence and the role of child and family characteristics fostering that resilience were analyzed in a Palestinian community sample using a person-based approach. The participants consisted of a random sample of 640 Palestinian children and adolescents, their parents, and their teachers, all living on the Gaza Strip. A medical examination of the children and adolescents was conducted to assess health status on somatic, sensory, and cognitive domains. The results revealed an equal share of resilient (21%; high level of trauma and low level of disorders) and traumatized (23%; high level of trauma and high level of disorders) children. As hypothesized, characteristics of the resilient group were good parental mental health, supportive parenting practices, good school performance, superior cognitive functioning, good physical health, high body weight, and normal birth weight. Variable-based analyses revealed no support for the hypothesis that these fami...

Escaping Poverty: Patterns and Causes of Poverty Exits in Rural Bangladesh

This paper uses findings from 293 life-history interviews, conducted by the author and a small team of researchers in rural Bangladesh in 2007, to examine what can be learned about patterns of exit from poverty. The author argues that narrative-based studies of how individuals move out of, or into poverty can complement variable-based analyses of aggregate poverty trends. The analysis of poverty exits in this paper shows that individuals on trajectories of long-term improvement in well - being tend to more effectively exploit a limited set of work - oriented or asset-related opportunity types, and many of these can be identified from life-history interviews. The most important of these included, in order of frequency across the set of life histories: rural farm and non-farm-related businesses (some supported by loans); land asset accumulation, livestock production; remittances and support from sons’ and (to a lesser extent) daughters’ incomes; and crop production. Life histories also show that individuals enjoying long-term well-being improvement differed in key ways from people showing trajectories of long-term well-being decline. The paper explores these differences and discusses implications for both productive and protective poverty reduction policies.

Five Bridges along Students’ Pathways to College: A Developmental Blueprint of Families, Teachers, Counselors, Mentors, and Peers in the Puente Project

What program components might enhance our effectiveness in promoting college access for all students? This article considers five bridges along students’ pathways to college: family involvement, culturally enriched teaching, counseling, mentoring, and peers. Longitudinal case studies of Puente students highlight how these bridges function along Latino students’pathways to their college and career aspirations. Bridges often extended beyond high school to support students’college enrollment, transfer, and retention. A developmental model and prototype database are proposed for both qualitative case studies and variable-based analyses of bridges across students’worlds, family demographics, college and career aspirations, math and English pathways, and college admission and enrollment. Developmental models and longitudinal research can help outreach programs such as Puente strengthen bridges along multiple pathways to college and careers. As these tools advance science, policy, and practices, they can also transformacademic pipelines.

Organizational Stress, Job Satisfaction and Job Performance: Where Do We Go From Here?

This article reviews and summarizes two decades of empirical literature concerned with both direct and moderating variable-based analyses of the relationship of organizational stress with job satisfaction and job performance. Moderating influences of various constructs operationalized at the individual, group and organizational level of analysis are classified and then reviewed systematically. An evaluative summary of this research suggests that although there have been significant improvements in the analytical methods employed to investigate such phenomena, much of this research still does not consider the role of reciprocal relationships that evolve over time. We provide four guidelines for improving the quality of both theoretical rigor and methodological robustness in this important area of organizational inquiry.