Alcohol effects on driver performance under conditions of divided attention.
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Accidents, Traffic↗
Biomedical subjects
N Brewer
Publications and source records attributed to N Brewer.
Control of associated movement as a factor influencing reaction times of mentally retarded adults.
In choice reaction time (RT) tasks, the response of the appropriate finger by mentally retarded subjects is often accompanied by associated movements of responding and nonresponding fingers. To determine of the effects of such associated movements, we compared RTs in two conditions. When all fingers were kept in close proximity to their appropriate keys by fingers restraints, retarded subjects' RTs showed a small but significant improvement compared with those for an unrestrained condition. Nonretarded subjects showed no difference. This result suggests that difficulty in controlling associated movements of responding and nonresponding fingers contributes to the slower RTs of retarded persons. Possible mechanisms underlying this difficulty were discussed.
Adult↗
Speed and accuracy in the choice reaction time of mildly retarded adults.
Reaction times (RTs) to inside stimuli in an 8-choice task decreased for some retarded subjects when the response ensemble was concealed. Corresponding increases in errors suggested that these subjects made separate visual checks of the response keys in order to respond accurately. Other retarded subjects maintained accurate performance by taking longer to respond. An examination of error data from a number of RT experiments indicated that retarded subjects made more errors than did nonretarded subjects when stimuli and responses were less descriminable. A comparison of RTs for correct and incorrect responses reflected intermittent rather than general tendencies to sacrifice accuracy for speed, a result consistent with the possibility of occasional attentional lapses.
Adolescent↗
Discrimination, translation, or response organization: a clarification of factors underlying slower responding among mentally retarded persons.
Apparently contradictory findings regarding the locus of information-processing differences between retarded and nonretarded persons were discussed. We suggested that these apparent contradictions may be due to differences in the relative involvement of central processes associated with perception, stimulus--response translation, and response programming in the experimental tasks that have been used in this type of research.
Auditory Perception↗
Motor components in the choice reaction time of mildly retarded adults.
The contributions of specific motor-coordination disabilities and general slowness of motor function to the choice reaction times (RTs) of retarded subjects were examined in two experiments. RTs for the same stimulus-response (S-R) pairs were markedly shorter when presented in 2-choice than in 8-choice RT situations. Furthermore, in an 8-choice task, large RT differences between retarded and nonretarded subjects decreased markedly when processes of stimulus discrimination and S-R translation were minimized by direct stimulation of the response mechanisms.
Adolescent↗
Influence of contextual cues on the choice reaction time of mildly retarded adults.
Nonretarded and mildly retarded subjects were compared on an 8-choice reaction-time (RT) task. Removing a midline that divided the stimulus display in halves slowed RTs of retarded subjects to stimuli adjacent to the line. In the absence of this line, retarded subjects were also much more dependent upon the position of the preceding stimulus and response.
Adolescent↗
Effects of stimulus-response variables on the choice reaction time of mildly retarded adults.
Nonretarded and mildly retarded adults were compared in two experiments on an 8-choice reaction time (RT) task. Stimulus lights were either distant or close. Both groups responded more slowly when stimuli were distant, this effect being more marked for retarded subjects. Patterns of latencies suggested that, compared with nonretarded subjects, retarded subjects inspected information input for longer periods of time and made more inspections before responding. Faster RTs to stimuli nearest the ends and midline of the display and to stimulus repetitions indicated that retarded subjects were more reliant upon more discriminable cues in the stimulus display.
Adolescent↗
Temporal characteristics of evaluation anxiety.
The temporal characteristics of evaluation anxiety are not well-defined by previous research. We examined the effects of length of the pre-evaluation interval (3, 6, or 12 minutes) and stage of the pre-evaluation interval at which evaluation anxiety was measured (start, middle, or end) on evaluation anxiety while participants performed an activity that was the focus of the impending evaluation. Participants wrote their opinion on a controversial social issue while anticipating a subject matter expert's judgment of their social maturity, and evaluation anxiety was measured by a battery of state anxiety measures. Higher levels of evaluation anxiety were detected on the Worry-Emotionality Questionnaire (WEQ) Worry subscale at the end of the pre-evaluation interval than at earlier stages, regardless of interval length, although individual difference variables exerted an important influence. Individuals with high trait self-presentation concerns experienced particularly high state anxiety (State-Trait Anxiety Inventory) at the start of the longest pre-evaluation interval. Low self-efficacy individuals showed a U-shaped pattern across pre-evaluation stages on both the WEQ Worry and Emotionality subscales, while high self-efficacy participants showed either no change (worry) or an inverted-U pattern (emotionality). Implications for the experimental measurement of evaluation anxiety were discussed.
Adolescent↗
Pharmaceutical care in chain pharmacies: beliefs and attitudes of pharmacists and patients.
OBJECTIVE: To discuss with pharmacists and patients with reactive airways disease their beliefs about pharmaceutical care and the pharmacist's role in health care, obstacles to providing pharmaceutical care in community pharmacies, and strategies to overcome these obstacles. DESIGN: Two focus groups of patients, two focus groups of pharmacists. PARTICIPANTS: Thirteen patients with reactive airways disease and 11 chain pharmacists. MAIN OUTCOME MEASURES: Qualitative reports on the pharmacist's role in health care delivery and obstacles to implementing pharmaceutical care programs. RESULTS: Pharmacists wished to provide pharmaceutical care, and patients were supportive of pharmacists' involvement in their health care. Both viewed counseling as an important role for pharmacists and believed that pharmacists should work with patients' physicians. Reported obstacles included lack of time, inadequate privacy, and pharmacists' lack of direct access to patients' physicians. Pharmacists and patients believed pharmacists should have access to patient-specific clinical data. CONCLUSION: Focus groups provided valuable information for designing pragmatic pharmaceutical care. The obstacles and possible solutions identified through the discussions represent fertile ground for designing innovative pharmaceutical care programs.
Asthma↗
Analysis of chronic obstructive pulmonary disease referrals for lung volume reduction surgery. The University of California San Diego Emphysema Treatment Group.
BACKGROUND: Preliminary results of lung volume reduction surgery (LVRS) for patients with severe emphysema are promising, although many issues regarding the selection process for LVRS are still unaddressed. For example, it is unclear which patients should be referred for pulmonary rehabilitation, lung transplantation, or LVRS, and whether health-care providers are optimizing conservative treatment options before referral for surgical intervention. The purpose of this analysis is to describe preliminary results of the evaluation process for LVRS implemented as part of an integrated, programmatic approach to the evaluation, treatment, and rehabilitation of patients with advanced emphysema. METHODS: The records of 105 consecutive patients with chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) referred for consideration for LVRS at the University of California San Diego Medical Center were reviewed. Results of prospective data collection pertaining to patient demographic, baseline dyspnea scores, and history of prior treatment, including pulmonary rehabilitation, were extracted. Patient disposition after the evaluation was noted. RESULTS: One hundred five patients (mean age 65 years, range 40 to 84 years) completed evaluation. Fifty-eight had never before participated in pulmonary rehabilitation, and 47 of these patients were eventually referred to a rehabilitation program. Fourteen patients were referred for consideration of lung transplantation, 25 were considered eligible for LVRS, 13 were still undergoing rehabilitation and surgical eligibility had not yet been determined, and 53 were ineligible for LVRS because patients had other illnesses (n = 34), did not meet radiological or physiologic criteria (n = 5), were considered too ill (n = 5), or were too healthy (n = 9) after rehabilitation to warrant surgical intervention. CONCLUSIONS: Lung volume reduction surgery is a surgical option to be considered within the framework of an integrated medical evaluation program that includes pulmonary rehabilitation. Pulmonary rehabilitation remains an often underused therapeutic alternative in patients with severe COPD. It has become the central component of our comprehensive management program for patients with severe dyspnea and deteriorating quality of life.
Adult↗