Social and Behavioral Sciences Commons^™

Measuring Depression In Prostate Cancer Patients: Does The Scale Used Make A Difference?, Christopher Sharpley, Vicki Bitsika, David Christie, Myra Hunter

Vicki Bitsika

This study investigated differences in the scores, relative severity and major depressive disorder (MDD) and subsyndromal depression status from three standardised self-report scales for depression in prostate cancer (PCa) patients. The Hospital Anxiety and Depression Scale Depression subscale (HADS-D), the Self-rating Depression Scale (SDS) and the Patient Health Questionnaire (PHQ-9) for depression were administered to a sample of 138 PCa patients via mail-out self-reports in Queensland, Australia during May 2014. Despite significant correlations between the total scores from the three scales, severity classification differed across the three scales and there was evidence of considerable underestimation of depression by the HADS-D …

Differences In The Prevalence, Severity And Symptom Profiles Of Depression In Boys And Adolescents With An Autism Spectrum Disorder Versus Normally Developing Controls, Vicki Bitsika, Christopher Sharpley

Vicki Bitsika

The prevalence, severity and symptom profiles for major depressive disorder (MDD) were compared in samples of boys and adolescents with and without an autism spectrum disorder (ASD). Self-reports were obtained on the Depression subscale of the Child and Adolescent Symptoms Inventory (CASI-D) with 70 ASD and 50 non-ASD male participants between the ages of 8 and 18 from Queensland, Australia who were matched for age and IQ. Results indicated that the ASD participants had significantly higher total CASI-D scores, a greater proportion of participants who qualified for a diagnosis of MDD, and over 50% higher scores for 8 of the …

Agreement Between Self- Vs Parent-Ratings Of General Anxiety Disorder Symptoms And Salivary Cortisol In Boys With An Asd, Vicki Bitsika, Christopher Sharpley, Nicholas Andronicos, Linda Agnew

Vicki Bitsika

To determine the relative validity of parent-assessed and self-assessed symptoms of Generalised Anxiety Disorder (GAD) in boys with an Autism Spectrum Disorder (ASD). 140 boys with an Autism Spectrum Disorder (ASD) were assessed for GAD by their parents and by themselves, and gave a sample of cortisol during the afternoon of these assessments. There were significant differences between self-assessments and parents’ assessments for the total GAD score and on four of the eight individual GAD symptoms. Using cortisol concentrations as a validation index, the two key GAD items were most validly assessed via boys’ self-ratings. Key GAD symptoms in boys …

Variation In The Profile Of Anxiety Disorders In Boys With An Asd According To Method And Source Of Assessment, Vicki Bitsika, Christopher Sharpley

Vicki Bitsika

To determine any variation that might occur due to the type of assessment and source used to assess them, the prevalence of 7 anxiety disorders were investigated in a sample of 140 boys with an Autism spectrum disorder (ASD) and 50 non-ASD (NASD) boys via the Child and Adolescent Symptom Inventory and the KIDSCID Clinical Interview. Boys with an ASD were significantly more anxious than their NASD peers. Data collected from the boys with an ASD themselves showed differences in the severity and diagnostic criterion of anxiety disorders to data collected from the boys’ parents. There were age-related variations to …

Measuring The Outliers: An Introduction To Out-Of-Level Testing With High-Achieving Students, Karen Rambo-Hernandez, Russell Warne

Russell T Warne

Out-of-level testing is an underused strategy for addressing the needs of students who score in the extremes, and when used wisely, it could provide educators with a much more accurate picture of what students know. Out-of-level testing has been shown to be an effective assessment strategy with high-achieving students; however, out-of-level testing has not been shown to work well with low-achieving students. This article provides a brief history of out-of-level testing, along with guidelines for using it.

Beyond The Numbers: What You Can Say With Instruction Evaluation Data, Ashley Rosener, Barbara Harvey, Emily Frigo, James Gulvas, Anne Merkle

Barbara C. Harvey

While data driven decision making is a hot topic in librarianship, collecting, analyzing and interpreting data can be intimidating. Where and how to begin? Instruction librarians from Grand Valley State University will discuss how they scaled up from unshared, nonstandard evaluations to a standard form that would make participant perceptions of library instruction more widely accessible in order to make data driven decisions within the Instruction Program.

Information Literacy In The New Core Curriculum, Elisa Slater Acosta

Elisa Slater Acosta

Juvenile Fire-Setting: A Review Of Treatment Programs, Katarina Fritzon, Mairead Dolan, Rebekah Doley, Troy Mcewan

Rebekah Doley

The current paper provides a review of the literature on juvenile fire-setting, focusing on psychological contributions to the assessment and treatment of this population. The paper discusses research on the actions associated with deliberately lit fires by juveniles, as well as the psychological characteristics of the perpetrators. International perspectives on intervention are reviewed, and in conclusion the paper highlights the need to develop standardised protocols for intervention, which include a systematic assessment strategy for identifying high risk individuals, as well as a structured evidence-based approach to treatment incorporating psychological and fire-educational components.

The Campaign For Information Literacy: Politics, Personalities, & Perseverance, Elisa Slater Acosta

Elisa Slater Acosta

The Civilian Version Of The Mississippi Ptsd Scale: A Psychometric Evaluation, Dawn Vreven, David Gudanowski, Lynda King, Daniel King

Dawn L Vreven

This three-part study examined the reliability and validity of the civilian version of the Mississippi Scale for Combat-Related PTSD using data from the nonveteran participants in the National Vietnam Veterans Readjustment Study. The Civilian Mississippi Scale had a raw score distribution that was roughly symmetric, with an acceptable degree of dispersion and a reasonably high internal consistency reliability coefficient. Overall, however, measurement precision was weaker than that for the military version of the instrument, and confirmatory factor analytic findings differed from those found for the military version. Preliminary investigations of validity were in the form of correlations with indices of …

Assessing And Ensuring The Transfer Of Training, David Kruger, John Cochenour

David Delbert Kruger

Provides and introduction and overview of training transfer in ever-changing library environments. Examines how transfer can be assessed within a library organization, as well as steps and measures to optimize and ensure that trained behaviors truly transfer to the library workplace after the training is completed.

Video-Recorded Usability Testing Of A Web-Based Self-Administered Dietary Assessment, Yasmine Probst, David Steel, Linda Tapsell

Professor David Steel

No abstract provided.

Assessment Of Length Distributions Between Non-Coding And Coding Sequences Amongst Two Model Organisms, Ren Zhang, Rachel Caldwell, Yan-Xia Lin

Associate Professor Yan-Xia Lin

No abstract provided.

Navigating The One-Shot Instruction Session: Using Assessment To Drive Instruction, Elisa Slater Acosta

Elisa Slater Acosta

A Multi-Step Screening Strategy For Identifying Children With Autism Spectrum Conditions In The School Setting, Lee Wilkinson

Lee A Wilkinson, PhD

No abstract provided.

Making Reference Service Count: Collecting And Using Reference Service Statistics To Make A Difference, Judith Garrison

Judith Garrison

The Association of Research Libraries requirements for quantifying reference services are inadequate for a complete and accurate reflection of the complex nature of modern reference services. Using resources at hand, a medium-size academic library created an online system to collect, store, analyze, and use reference statistics. Information is entered at the point of service in a Web-based interface located on the computer desktop of each librarian. When record keeping and reporting processes were customized, automated, and made accessible to librarians, the data collected proved invaluable in tracking trends in reference service, monitoring library initiatives, and providing reference librarians information for …

Are Honors Students Losing Place In Cyberspace?, Steffen Wilson, Sarah Carty, Bruce Maclaren

Steffen Wilson

No abstract provided.

An Exploratory Analysis Of The Use Of Cognitive,Adaptive And Behavioural Indices For Cluster Analysis Of Asd Subgroups, Vicki Bitsika, Christopher Sharpley, Sharon Orapeleng

Vicki Bitsika

Background Autism spectrum disorder (ASD) includes symptoms that vary in severity and frequency between children. Consequently, multiple psychometric assessment procedures are recommended to detect an ASD, including scales which asses the presence and nature of ASD-related behaviour. However, to date, few studies have examined the relative and specific contribution which such behaviourally oriented scales can make to the diagnosis of individual children with ASD. Method Cluster analysis was used to explore the common characteristics of a group of 53 preschool and elementary school children with an ASD, based upon scores on tests of cognitive ability, adaptive behaviour and behavioural checklists …

Suffering In Silence: Girls With Asperger Syndrome, Lee Wilkinson

Lee A Wilkinson, PhD

No abstract provided.