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Results for “Utility Theory”

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PubMedDate not supplied

Children's perceptions of asthma: establishing normality.

This qualitative research study explores children's perceptions of having asthma. The research methodology utilized a grounded theory approach. The study aimed to identify the beliefs and attitudes held by asthmatic children regarding their illness and to consider how this influences their asthma management. Ten asthmatic children, boys and girls, aged between 9 and 12 years, were interviewed. The transcribed interviews were analysed using the constant comparative method. Analysis revealed four major categories and a core variable identified as 'establishing normality'. These themes influenced each child's appraisal and response to having asthma. The findings show that their concern to establish normality and to be 'normal' does have benefits, but in some circumstances also encourages the acceptance of suboptimal control.

Asthma↗
PubMed1999

Garnering the interest of others: mediating the effects among physical attractiveness, self-worth and dominance.

OBJECTIVES: Evolutionary psychologists emphasize that self-worth and well-being are largely determined by the degree to which individuals garner and hold the interest of others. Personal attributes, such as physical attractiveness, are viewed as resources which serve as signals to others to pay attention to us. DESIGN AND METHOD: This study examined (a) the degree to which participant appraisals (N = 75) of self-worth were related to appraisals of how interested others were in them; and (b) the extent to which interest ratings account for the relation among self-worth, dominance and attractiveness ratings. RESULTS: The main findings of the present study showed (a) that the degree to which individuals derive self-worth from various attributes was strongly related to the degree to which individuals believed others were interested in them; and (b) that the amount of interest one believes others show in them mediated the relation between physical attractiveness and social self-worth. CONCLUSION: Results have a number of implications concerning the nature of self-worth and the utility of psychological theories that emphasize evolutionary principles.

Adult↗
PubMed2004

The "postmodern" heresy in special education: a sociological analysis.

The special education profession has witnessed a recent struggle between researchers who defend a positivistic approach to knowledge and practice and "postmodern" special educators who challenge that approach. In this analysis I utilize a sociological theory of heresy to examine the conflict between postmodern heresy and positivist orthodoxy. I also investigate the cultural model of the special education profession, a discursive definition of ideology and heresy, characteristics of heresy in an organization, and the presence of deep contradiction within agreement between orthodoxy and heresy. I conclude with an examination of the limitations of heresy theory and the democratic challenge facing the multiparadigmatic field of special education.

Education, Special↗
PubMed2006

Patient and parent/guardian perspectives on the health care of adults with mental retardation.

Individuals with mental retardation and their parents/guardians have long been neglected in health care research. In this study we used a qualitative methodology to describe the experiences adults with mental retardation and their parents/guardians have with the delivery of primary care services. Semi-structured in-depth interviews were conducted with 12 adults who had mental retardation and 9 parents/guardians. The grounded theory approach was utilized to guide data collection and analysis. Findings suggest an overall positive experience with primary care services. Unique themes were identified that distinguished parent/guardian experiences from those of adults with mental retardation, who focused on immediate, concrete issues related to service delivery, whereas parents/ guardians focused on more peripheral or abstract issues related to the delivery of primary care.

Adolescent↗
PubMed2004

Analysis of coupling between two slab waveguides in the presence of ring resonators.

The coupling phenomena between two slab waveguides in the presence of ring resonators are investigated through a rigorous integral equation analysis. A Green's-function-theory approach is utilized to develop the integral equation formulation. The solution is obtained by applying an entire-domain Galerkin technique, using the orthogonality properties of involved wave functions in the ring resonators. The field's transmission and reflection coefficients are accurately computed and a practical directional-coupler approach is discussed. The presented results reveal strong resonant coupling phenomena between the two waveguides and the resonators.

Journal Article↗
PubMed2000

[Experiencing a difficult and revealing passage with her hospitalized child--a live-in mother's experience].

This study was conducted with live-in mother in university hospital. The objectives were as follows: to understand the experienced interactions, to identify the meanings that a family attribute to the experience of going through the child's hospitalization, to identify what the experience of hospitalization provokes in the family life and construct a model theory representative of the experience. Reference Theory the Symbolic Interactionism and Reference Methodology Grounded Theory had been utilized. From results appeared the phenomenon Going in search of solution and Going through a difficult situation. Through these phenomena, the main category Experiencing a difficult and revealing passage with her child was identified.

Child↗
PubMed1984

Effects of social influences and waiting on time judgment.

Utilizing social judgment theory, the relationships of three social cues to time judgment under low physical temporal-cue conditions were explored. These social influences were as follows: being free to interact with another person, being told by the experimenter to expect to wait a specified period of time, and seeing another person's time judgment. 72 college students, randomly assigned to conditions of free social interaction (alone-interactive) and of waiting expectancy (expected-unexpected), made time estimates after 4 min., 7 sec. Each person under interactive conditions made another judgment after seeing a partner's judgment. Mean estimation was lower alone than under interactive conditions and lower under expected than unexpected waiting conditions. Under interactive conditions, correlations were positive between the individual's first and second judgments, between the partners' second judgments, and between the individual's second and the partner's first judgments. Social cues may influence time judgment.

Adult↗
PubMed1992

Peptide absorption: a review of current concepts and future perspectives.

Absorption of di- and tripeptides from the gastrointestinal tract is accepted as being an important biological phenomenon. The extent to which peptides are absorbed and the nutritional and metabolic significance of peptide absorption remain unclear. Evidence is strong for the existence of multiple peptide transport systems, including one type that is electrogenic in nature and that requires a protonmotive force and cotransports two H+ for every peptide transported. The rate of absorption of peptides can be responsive to level of dietary intake and level of dietary protein. Peptide absorption seems to be an important physiological process in ruminants, and this process may account for a large portion of absorbed amino acids. An important new observation is that the nonmesenteric portion of the portal-drained viscera of the ruminant is a major site of peptide absorption. These new observations may result in a reshaping of the currently accepted theory concerning protein utilization by ruminants.

Adaptation, Physiological↗
PubMed1995

Organizational frameworks of a substance use prevention program.

Failures to implement substance use prevention programs preclude success in program effectiveness and sustantation. Failures to initiate substance use prevention programs can result from the failure of program managers to meet the challenges which occur in the creation and management of program organizations. Attention to the program organization from a variety of frameworks is useful in the implementation process. Based on divergent organizational theories, four approaches utilized in the implementation of a substance use prevention program are presented.

Black or African American↗
PubMedDate not supplied

Application of Nursing Interventions Classification (NIC) in a cardiovascular critical care unit.

The nursing profession is moving toward developing a standardized language. Benefits of such a language are outlined. Nursing Interventions Classification (NIC) (Iowa Intervention Project, 1992), a standardized language for nursing interventions, has been recently developed by the Iowa Intervention Project. This article describes how NIC was incorporated into a nursing care plan in a tertiary acute care facility. Teaching strategies, which include aspects of adult learning theory and motivational theory, are discussed. Utilization of creativity and variability in the planning and implementation of a unit based inservice program were the most beneficial strategies used.

Adult↗
PubMed2006

[Adjustment of middle-aged people with hemiplegia after a stroke].

PURPOSE: The purpose of this study was to understand the adjustment process of middle-aged people in Korea with hemiplegia after a stroke. METHOD: For this study, the grounded theory method was utilized. RESULTS: After constant comparative analysis, the core category emerged as 'rebuilding the body which was ruined'. In addition, the causal conditions were 'restriction of physical function', and 'loss of roles'. The adjustment process consisted of the 'facing reality phase', 'overcoming depression phase', 'overcoming physical limits phase' and 'reestablishing roles phase'. The main strategies in the facing reality phase were 'holding on to a glimmer of hope', 'getting away from the harsh reality' and 'facing up to the reality'. The main strategies in the overcoming depression phase were 'soothing oneself', 'Self-introspection' and 'restoring self-esteem'. In addition, the main strategies in the self-initiative overcoming physical limits phase was 'discovering personal strategies and striving to recover'. The main strategies in the reestablishing roles phase were 'reestablishing a parents' role', 'reestablishing a spouse's role' and 'reestablishing social roles'. CONCLUSION: In conclusion, even though many middle aged stroke patients remained in the depression phase, most of them who overcame depression strived to conquer physical limits on their own initiative.

Adaptation, Psychological↗
PubMed2003

On the importance of nonlinearity of brain tissue under large deformations.

Linear shear properties of human and bovine brain tissue were determined from transient stress-relaxation experiments and their material functions were compared. Quasi-linear viscoelastic theory was then utilized to determine material constants for bovine brain tissue subjected to large deformations. The range of applicability for linear and quasi-linear constitutive models of brain tissue was determined. A nonlinear Green-Rivlin constitutive model was subsequently applied to characterize temporal nonlinearity of bovine brain tissue in shear. Overall, 10 brain specimens from 5 fresh human cadavers and 156 brain specimens from 26 fresh bovine cadaver brains were used to quantify and compare shear brain responses under various loading conditions. The assumptions of homogeneity, isotropy, and incompressibility of brain material were made in order to reduce the required number of experiments. A series of single-, two-, and three-step strain inputs was applied to one end of a cylindrical brain specimen and the stress-time histories were measured at the other end. The time delays between the applied strain step inputs were altered in order to determine the temporal nonlinearity of brain tissue. The study resulted in linear constitutive models for human and bovine brain tissue, and quasi-linear and nonlinear constitutive equations for bovine brain tissue in shear. It was found that human brain is somewhat stiffer than bovine brain; the difference, however, was not statistically significant and bovine brain may be a good substitute in studying nonlinear human brain response. A linear constitutive model was found to be sufficient to characterize brain tissue response when Lagrangian shear strains do not exceed 0.2 (advised to limit the range to the shear strain of 0.175), a quasi-linear constitutive model can then be used for loading conditions of up to 0.5 of Lagrangian shear strains (advised to limit the range to the shear strain of 0.325). For any shear strain magnitudes and histories a fully nonlinear Green-Rivlin viscoelastic constitutive model may be utilized.

Journal Article↗
PubMed1998

From the borders: reforming the curriculum for the at-risk student.

As the demographics of the United States change to reflect a growing, diverse population, higher education must address the needs of first-generation, low-income, and ethnically diverse students. This paper examines the problems of these students, presents a theoretical framework for a multicultural curriculum, and outlines a successful curricular approach designed to facilitate the retention of this student population. By utilizing Critical Multicultural Theory, the authors propose a program, the Academic Program for Excellence, comprised of a multicultural, thematically linked curriculum enhanced by academic support services, cultural activities, and career exploration.

Cultural Deprivation↗
PubMed1992

Running as fast as they can: organizational changes in home health care.

During the 1980s, as the health care industry experienced what observers have dubbed a revolution, the home health industry also experienced its own transformation. Utilizing three organizational theories (neoinstitutional, resource dependency and population ecology), the authors report on a study of a probability sample of 163 home health agencies (HHAs) that were interviewed in 1986 and again in 1987 on the effects of Medicare policy changes including prospective payment (DRGs). This study tests hypotheses concerning the influence of environmental factors (e.g., state policy and characteristics of the local market) and organizational characteristics of the HHA (e.g., tax status and Medicare reliance) in explaining the propensity of HHAs to be (or become) parts of chains and/or multi-facility systems; and to develop particular types of interorganizational relations. The paper discusses the results in the context of public policy changes and the implications for future research and practice.

Data Collection↗
PubMed2000

Intelligent aids for parallel experiment planning and macromolecular crystallization.

This paper presents a framework called Parallel Experiment Planning (PEP) that is based on an abstraction of how experiments are performed in the domain of macromolecular crystallization. The goal in this domain is to obtain a good quality crystal of a protein or other macromolecule that can be X-ray diffracted to determine three-dimensional structure. This domain presents problems encountered in real-world situations, such as a parallel and dynamic environment, insufficient resources and expensive tasks. The PEP framework comprises of two types of components: (1) an information management system for keeping track of sets of experiments, resources and costs; and (2) knowledge-based methods for providing intelligent assistance to decision-making. The significance of the developed PEP framework is three-fold--(a) the framework can be used for PEP even without one of its major intelligent aids that simulates experiments, simply by collecting real experimental data; (b) the framework with a simulator can provide intelligent assistance for experiment design by utilizing existing domain theories; and (c) the framework can help provide strategic assessment of different types of parallel experimentation plans that involve different tradeoffs.

Animals↗
PubMed2001

Divergent consequences of success and failure in japan and north america: an investigation of self-improving motivations and malleable selves.

Self-enhancing and self-improving motivations were investigated across cultures. Replicating past research, North Americans who failed on a task persisted less on a follow-up task than those who succeeded. In contrast, Japanese who failed persisted more than those who succeeded. The Japanese pattern is evidence for a self-improving orientation: Failures highlight where corrective efforts are needed. Japanese who failed also enhanced the importance and the diagnosticity of the task compared with those who succeeded, whereas North Americans did the opposite. Study 2 revealed that self-improving motivations are specific to the tasks on which one receives feedback. Study 3 unpackaged the cultural differences by demonstrating that they are due, at least in part, to divergent lay theories regarding the utility of effort. Study 4 addressed the problem of comparing cultures on subjective Likert scales and replicated the findings with a different measure.

Creativity↗
PubMed1996

[Post therapeutic PNX empyema].

Nowadays post-therapeutic PNX empyema represents a rare event because of the discovery of antitubercular drugs. The authors describe one of this cases utilizing the physiopathological theories formulated by Monaldi in 1935. These theories are still both actual and valid.

English Abstract↗