Factors affecting neurobehavioral responses of preterm infants at term conceptional age

A revised Prechtl Neurological Examination was administered to 510 singleton infants at term conceptional age to assess the influence of gestational age, race, and sex on neurobehavioral responses in a "typical" newborn population. The infants were born at 1 of 5 centers and were subjects of the NIH Collaborative Study on Antenatal Steroid Therapy. Of these babies, 392 were born at less than 37 weeks gestational age, whereas 118 infants were born at greater than or equal to 37 weeks. Of a total of 50 items of interest, 12 differed significantly based on race, 14 items differed in terms of gestational age at birth, and 5 items were influenced by the sex of the baby. These data suggest that singleton preterm infants born at differing gestational ages should not be considered to comprise a homogeneous sample. Further, caution should be exercised when considering babies of heterogeneous race groupings, and the babies' sex has minimal impact on neurobehavioral responses at term conceptional age.     

The Ontogeny of Social Information Gathering

When facing the unknown, humans tend to consult others for guidance. This propensity to treat others as information sources has wide-ranging implications, being in part responsible for the breadth and depth of our world knowledge. As yet, little is known concerning when and how young children acquire this important skill. Social referencing and communicative abilities in infancy have been interpreted by many as reflecting precocious social information-seeking ability, but the evidence is far from compelling and equally compatible with an attachment regulation interpretation. While the evidence indicates that infants as young as 12 months are good consumers of social information, it falls well short of demonstrating that they are active seekers of that information. Moreover, genuine social information seeking requires an implicit conception of the knowledge-ignorance distinction, and existing research on children's theories of mind suggests that such a conception is most likely not available in infancy. For these reasons, we argue for a developmental account of social information-gathering ability, one that is consistent with the larger body of evidence concerning sociocognitive abilities in infants and young children.     

Fathers' birth attendance, early contact, and extended contact with their newborns: a critical review

Research concerning fathers' birth attendance, early contact, and extended contact with newborn infants is reviewed in this paper. Relationships between fathers' early history with infants and subsequent patterns of involvement are discussed. The methodological challenges of studying the effects of fathers' birth attendance and early contact with infants are considered. In contrast to popular belief, no conclusive statements can be made at this time concerning the effects of paternal birth attendance, early contact, and extended contact on father involvement in infancy. Implications for future research and policy-making are discussed.     

基于信息化时代开展高校档案管理创新建设

高校档案管理的主要任务是积极、及时地开发和利用档案信息资源,不断创新档案管理服务机制,满足学校教学、科研等方面的需要。档案和档案管理对于高校意义十分重要,本文基于信息化时代,提出了开展当前高校档案工作创新建设的建议和意见。     

Intermanual transfer of shapes in preterm human infants from 33 to 34 + 6 weeks postconceptional age

This study investigated the ability of preterm infants to learn an object shape with one hand and discriminate a new shape in the opposite hand (without visual control). Twenty-four preterm infants between 33 and 34 + 6 gestational weeks received a tactile habituation task with either their right or left hand followed by a tactile discrimination task in the opposite hand. The results confirmed that habituation occurred for both shapes and both hands. Infants subsequently held the novel shape longer in the opposite hand. The results reveal that preterm infants are capable of intermanual transfer of shape information. In spite of the immaturity of the corpus callosum in preterm infants, its development seems to be sufficient to allow some transfer of information between both hands.     

Infants' sensitivity to accretion and deletion of texture as information for depth at an edge

Based on Gibson's hypothesis that accretion and deletion of texture in the optic array provides unambiguous information for the spatial layout of surfaces, we sought evidence of early responsiveness to this information with infant subjects. 5- and 7-month-olds viewed computer-generated random-dot displays in which accretion and deletion of texture provided the only information for contours, specifying either a foreground surface moving in front of and occluding a moving background surface or 2 partially overlapping surfaces. The infants in both age groups showed significant preferences to reach for the apparently nearer regions in the displays. Since previous research has shown that infants reach more frequently for the nearer of 2 surfaces, these results indicate that 5- and 7-month-olds are sensitive to accretion and deletion of texture as information for the spatial layout of surfaces.     

The Development of a Linkage between Count Nouns and Object Categories: Evidence from Fifteen- to Twenty-One-Month-Old Infants

Recent research suggests that, although young children appreciate many different kinds of conceptual relations among objects, they focus specifically on taxonomic relations in the context of word learning. However, because the evidence for children's appreciation of this linkage between words and object categories has come primarily from children who have made substantial linguistic and conceptual advances, it offers limited information concerning the development of this linkage. In the experiments reported here, we employ a match-to-sample task to focus specifically on the development of an appreciation of the linkage between words (here, count nouns) and object categories in infants in the period just prior to and just subsequent to the naming explosion. The results demonstrate that, for 21-month-old infants, most of whom have recently entered the vocabulary explosion (Experiment 1), and for 16-month-old infants, most of whom have yet to commence the vocabulary explosion (Experiment 2), novel nouns focus attention on taxonomic relations among objects. This is important because it reveals a nascent appreciation of a linkage between words and object categories in infants who are at the very onset of language production. Results are interpreted within a developmental account of infants' emerging appreciation of a specific linkage between count nouns and object categories.     

Undergraduate Research Methods: Does Size Matter? A Look at the Attitudes and Outcomes of Students in a Hybrid Class Format versus a Traditional Class Format

The goal of this study is to understand if there are any variations regarding student engagement and course outcomes based on the course format. A new course format was introduced in fall of 2006 that involves a hybrid approach (large lecture with small recitations) with a higher level of student enrollment than traditional research methods courses. During the same time frame, the discipline maintained its traditional research methods courses as well. A survey was administered to all students enrolled in research methods regardless of course format in fall 2006 and spring 2007. Student responses are discussed, including information concerning the preparation, design, cost and benefits of offering a hybrid research methods course format.     

Exploring the Group Prenatal Care Model: A Critical Review of the Literature

Few studies have compared perinatal outcomes between individual prenatal care and group prenatal care. A critical review of research articles that were published between 1998 and 2009 and involved participants of individual and group prenatal care was conducted. Two middle range theories, Pender’s health promotion model and Swanson’s theory of caring, were blended to enhance conceptualization of the relationship between pregnant women and the group prenatal care model. Among the 17 research studies that met inclusion criteria for this critical review, five examined gestational age and birth weight with researchers reporting longer gestations and higher birth weights in infants born to mothers participating in group prenatal care, especially in the preterm birth population. Current evidence demonstrates that nurse educators and leaders should promote group prenatal care as a potential method of improving perinatal outcomes within the pregnant population.     

现代信息技术在地方高师教学应用的实证分析

在信息技术时代。信息技术在教育教学实践中的广泛应用,带来了高师教学方式的深刻变革。本研究采用《地方师范院校教师信息技术教学状况调查问卷》对183住高师院校教师进行调查研究,结果显示：地方高师院校教师运用信息技术的教学观念、教学态度与教学行为较好,其次是教学能力,环境评价最差;计算机培训时间和使用时间与教师运用信息技术和各维度呈正相关,即二者的时间越长,教师运用信息技术情况越好;理科教师教学中运用信息技术的态度明显好于文科系教师;教学观念、教学态度与教学行为呈显著正相关,即观念和态度明显影响教学行为的发生;教学环境与教学能力存在明显的正相关,即教学环境影响教师运用信息技术的能力提高。     

Adolescents and music lyrics: Implications of a cognitive perspective

This essay addresses the relevance of cognitive research in memory processes and auditory information processing for the resolution of policy issues concerning the regulation of popular music. Several assumptions are offered regarding music listening, and conclusions are presented which center on appropriate research methods for resolution of questions surrounding music listening and regulation.     

Effective Action by Infants to Contact Objects by Reaching and Leaning

The ability of infants aged 8–12 months to coordinate their arm and trunk movements to contact an object located in different positions was investigated in 2 experiments. In the first, 8- and 10-month-old infants reached for near objects but both reached and leaned for more distant ones indicating that they perceived that forward leaning extends the range of contact beyond that of reaching alone. In addition, arm and trunk movements were initiated simultaneously; visual information concerning object distance was sufficient to activate an integrated reaching-and-leaning response. Object distances were increased and a mechanical aid was provided on half the trials in the second experiment with 10- and 12-month-old infants. For both age groups the degree of leaning was reduced for objects that were out of reach without the aid. Only older infants were able to use the aid to extend partially their range of contact. Overall the results support the conclusions that, by at least 8 months, infants perceive that leaning extends their effective reaching space; by 10 months they perceive the limits within which reaching together with leaning is likely to be effective; and by 12 months they begin to perceive how this space may be extended by a mechanical aid.     

The development of infant sensitivity to biomechanical motions

3 experiments were conducted to examine infant sensitivity at 20, 30, and 36 weeks of age to the 3-dimensional structure of a human form specified through biomechanical motions. All 3 experiments manipulated occlusion information in computer-generated arrays of point-lights moving as if attached to the major joints and head of a person walking. These displays are readily recognized as persons by adults when occlusion information is present, but not when it is absent or inconsistent with the implicit structure of the human body. Converging findings from Experiments 1 and 2 suggested that 36-week-old infants were sensitive to the presence of occlusion information in point-light walker displays; neither 20- nor 30-week-old infants showed any sensitivity to this information. The results of Experiment 3 revealed further that 36-week-old infants were sensitive to whether or not the pattern of occlusion was consistent with the implicit form of the human body, but only when the displays were presented in an upright orientation. These findings are interpreted as suggesting that infants, by 36 weeks of age, are extracting fundamental properties necessary for interpreting a point-light display as a person.     

Teachers' source evaluation self‐efficacy predicts their use of relevant source features when evaluating the trustworthiness of web sources on special education

Building on prior research and theory concerning source evaluation and the role of self‐efficacy in the context of online learning, this study investigated the relationship between teachers' beliefs about their capability to evaluate the trustworthiness of sources and their reliance on relevant source features when judging the trustworthiness of websites concerning special education. We constructed the Source Evaluation Self‐Efficacy Scale (SESES) and used the scores of 263 teachers on this measure to predict their reliance on source features related to the product and the producer of websites when evaluating their trustworthiness. Results showed that even after variance related to gender, age, domain knowledge and frequency of searching the Internet for special education information had been accounted for, teachers' source evaluation self‐efficacy beliefs uniquely predicted their self‐reported use of information about websites' products and producers when judging their trustworthiness. Thus, this research applies self‐efficacy theory and research to a new area and contributes to the burgeoning literature on source evaluation within both reading and information literacy.     

Behavioral and Electrophysiological Evidence for Gestational Age Effects in Healthy Preterm and Fullterm Infants Studied Two Weeks after Expected Due Date

We investigated the effects of gestational age at birth on behavioral and electrophysiological measures of 135 medically healthy infants, studied at 42 weeks postconception, and stratified into 3 groups--early-born preterms, 26-32 weeks (n = 55); middle-group preterms, 33-37 weeks (n = 43); and fullterms, 38-41 weeks (n = 37). Subjects were studied behaviorally with the Assessment of Preterm Infants' Behavior (APIB) and electrophysiologically with brain electrical activity mapping (BEAM). Fullterms showed significantly better behavioral function than both preterm groups. Less difference was found between the preterm groups. EEG spectral and photic evoked response were of significantly less amplitude for the preterms than the fullterms. Path analysis showed gestational age effects on behavioral (3 of 6) and electrophysiological (13 of 17) variables due to postnatal complications. We conclude that some differences attributable to gestational age at birth are explained by the cumulative effect of minor but unavoidable complications associated with premature birth. We speculate that remaining effects may result from developmentally inappropriate sensorimotor stimulation consequent to the premature experience of an extrauterine environment.     

A developmental perspective on day care

Issues surrounding early day care become clarified when brought within a developmental perspective. Day care is examined in the context of normal developmental issues. A series of questions emerges. How does development commonly unfold in the context of nondisrupted parental care? How is development organized; what are major sequences of development and, especially, how does one phase build upon and set the stage for others? What is required of social partners to promote optimal development? How does this change with age? In brief, what do infants need from the social environment, and how do they typically get it in the context of the family? One then asks questions concerning day care. For example, what kinds of arrangements are and are not generally compatible with infant needs and under what circumstances? A developmental perspective also provides a framework for organizing findings from day care research and even suggests strategies for intervention research. While not fully explicit, Belsky's review (in this issue) provides a valuable service by introducing developmental concepts to the day care discussion. In the present paper this viewpoint is elaborated.     

Sleep/wake states of preterm infants: stability, developmental change, diurnal variation, and relation with caregiving activity

Using time-lapse video, we recorded the sleep/wake states of 95 preterm infants, born under 1500 g and cared for in three hospitals, for three 24-hr periods at 33 and 35 weeks conceptional age. The videotapes were scored in 5-min epochs for quiet sleep (QS); active sleep (AS); wakefulness (Wa); bout lengths of QS (QSBL), AS (ASBL), and waking (WaBL); nursing/caregiving periods (Crgv); bout lengths of Crgv (CrgvBL); and time out of the crib (OOC). The infants' sleep showed significant individual differences at each age, over age, and from day to nighttime. They showed developmental changes in QS, AS, Wa, and QSBL. QS and QSBL were positively related to caregiving time; ASBL was related to maternal age; and QS was related to gestational age and birth weight. Thus, very low birth weight preterm infants show marked stability and developmental change in the organization of the sleep/wake states from a very early age, and their states are related to demographic variables as well as temporal measures of caregiving.     

网络环境下成人有效学习方式探究

网络时代的成人教育,更加注重对成人有效学习方式的研究,目的是使成人教育真正成为整个人类教育系统中越来越重要的组成部分。面临知识经济时代,我们每一个人都应该学会学习,而什么是网络环境下真正适合成人学生特点的有效学习方式,正是本文探讨的重点。成人教育只有跟上时代的步伐,充分结合互联网络,形成和完善适应网络时代的教与学的新兴模式,才能有力地推动终身教育和学习型社会的实现。