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Biomedical subjects

A Cornwall

Publications and source records attributed to A Cornwall.

8 recordsLinked to original sources
PubMed1996

Childhood sexual victimization as a factor in the treatment of substance misusing adolescents.

The impact of childhood sexual abuse on the treatment for substance misuse of 194 adolescents was examined. At treatment onset, adolescents reporting sexual abuse, when compared to those reporting no sexual abuse, demonstrated more serious involvement with substances, a greater incidence of physical abuse and parental substance misuse, and, among males, increased suicidal ideation and school failure. The two groups did not differ on rate of treatment completion nor on change scores obtained from an assessment battery administered at the beginning and end of treatment. There were no differences between the two groups on adolescent ratings of treatment effectiveness. Therapists, however, rated adolescents who reported sexual abuse as showing greater improvement in two areas. Implications for treatment are discussed.

Adolescent↗
PubMed1995

What is participatory research?

Research strategies which emphasize participation are increasingly used in health research. Breaking the linear mould of conventional research, participatory research focuses on a process of sequential reflection and action, carried out with and by local people rather than on them. Local knowledge and perspectives are not only acknowledged but form the basis for research and planning. Many of the methods used in participatory research are drawn from mainstream disciplines and conventional research itself involves varying degrees of participation. The key difference between participatory and conventional methodologies lies in the location of power in the research process. We review some of the participatory methodologies which are currently being popularized in health research, focusing on the issue of control over the research process. Participatory research raises personal, professional and political challenges which go beyond the bounds of the production of information. Problematizing "participation', we explore the challenges and dilemmas of participatory practice.

Community Participation↗
PubMed1995

The relationship between phonological awareness and reading and spelling achievement eleven years later.

This study reports follow-up data from 24 teenagers (mean age = 17 years; 11 boys and 13 girls) who had participated in a study of phonological analysis and reading and spelling abilities 11 years earlier, when they were enrolled in kindergarten. The results indicated that phonological awareness ability assessed during kindergarten (via the Auditory Analysis Test) was a significant predictor of word identification and spelling skills 11 years later, when both socioeconomic status and vocabulary development were controlled. In contrast, socioeconomic status, vocabulary development, word recognition, and spelling achievement assessed at kindergarten were not significantly correlated with reading and spelling achievement 11 years later. Results are discussed regarding the relative stability of phonological awareness and the importance of this awareness as a precursor to the development of word identification and spelling skills.

Adolescent↗
PubMed1994

Pretreatment variables that predict completion of an adolescent substance abuse treatment program.

The present study was designed to determine the utility of pretreatment data in predicting completion and dropout from adolescent substance abuse treatment. One hundred thirty-two consecutively admitted adolescents (mean age = 16.4 years; 93 male subjects, 39 female subjects) with significant substance abuse were administered a battery of standardized substance abuse, psychopathology, and social questionnaires immediately after admission to an intensive, set-length substance abuse treatment program. Seventy-four adolescents completed the program. Using discriminant function analyses, five pretreatment measures were found to predict treatment completion in male subjects, including: greater severity of problems with alcohol; greater use of drugs other than alcohol, cannabis, and tobacco; higher degree of internalizing problems; and lower self-esteem. Significant predictors for completion by female subjects were not found. The role of treatment readiness and motivation for male subjects is examined, and the lack of significant findings for female subjects is discussed.

Adolescent↗
PubMed1992

Reading disabilities and aggression: a critical review.

Several authors have suggested that there is a strong association between specific learning disabilities and aggression, antisocial behavior, and juvenile delinquency. Claims that learning disabilities cause aggressive behavior and delinquency are increasingly common in the popular press, and a variety of theories concerning this purported causal relationship have been proposed. This research is flawed by a lack of specificity in the definition of learning disabilities, with studies often examining heterogeneous groups of children with learning problems. The present review examines the relationship between specific reading disabilities (the most frequently diagnosed learning disability) and aggressive behavior. The data suggest that there is not enough evidence to conclude that reading disability causes aggressive or delinquent behavior, although limited evidence does suggest that reading disability may worsen preexisting aggressive behavior.

Adolescent↗
PubMed1992

The relationship of phonological awareness, rapid naming, and verbal memory to severe reading and spelling disability.

The present study examined the relationship of phonological awareness, naming speed, and verbal memory to the scores obtained from five tests assessing word attack, word identification, reading comprehension, and spelling skills in 54 children with severe reading disabilities (48 boys and 6 girls; M age = 9 years, 7 months). Multiple regression analyses indicated that the best predictor of achievement across the five academic tests was the Verbal Comprehension factor from the Wechsler Intelligence Scale for Children-Revised. Age, socioeconomic status (SES), and externalizing behavior problems were also significant predictors of achievement, depending on the academic measure. After controlling for age, SES, behavior problems, and intelligence, the phonological awareness task added significantly to the prediction of word attack, spelling, and reading comprehension scores; rapid letter naming added significantly to the prediction of word identification and prose passage speed and accuracy scores; and a word-list memory task added significantly to the prediction of word recognition scores. These results suggest that several independent processes interact to determine the extent and severity of reading problems.

Anomia↗
PubMedDate not supplied

Social validation of psychoeducational assessment reports.

The present study obtained written feedback concerning psychoeducational reports about youngsters referred to a pediatric hospital for known or suspected learning difficulties. A total of 269 questionnaires, with reference to 80 reports, were sent to parents and professionals. The results indicated that the reports were rated favorably in terms of understandability, explanatory value, and usefulness. There was a trend for parents and physicians to rate the report as less understandable than did school professionals. Parents rated the recommendations as more useful and reported implementing more of the recommendations than did teachers. These results are discussed with reference to service delivery.

Child↗