Path analysis: A model for the development of scientific reasoning abilities in adolescents

A model was formulated and tested for the development of scientific reasoning abilities in adolescents. Piagetian theory provided the framework for choosing potential determinants of the dependent variable, scientific reasoning abilities. A model reflecting hypothesized causal relationships among determinants and with the dependent variable was developed a priori on the basis of theoretical and substantive reasoning. The hypothesized model was tested and revised using path analysis. Data from intact classes of middle-school (n = 101) and high-school (n = 89) students from an upper-middle-class suburb of a midwestern city revealed significant (p < 0.05) path coefficients for these variables and scientific reasoning abilities: age, I.Q., field dependence–independence, and experience. A path from locus of control to scientific reasoning abilities through field dependence-independence was also statistically significant. The revised model explained 61 percent of the variance in scientific reasoning abilities.     

The Relations Between Early Working Memory Abilities and Later Developing Reading Skills: A Longitudinal Study From Kindergarten to Fifth Grade

This study investigated the relations of early working‐memory abilities (phonological and visual‐spatial short‐term memory [STM] and complex memory and episodic buffer memory) and later developing reading skills. Sixty Hebrew‐speaking children were followed from kindergarten through Grade 5. Working memory was tested in kindergarten and reading in Grades 1, 2, and 5. All memory measures, but phonological STM, correlated with reading up to Grade 5. Regression analyses (with intelligence quotient controlled) demonstrated that phonological complex memory predicted all reading skills in Grade 1, and accuracy in Grade 2. The rather understudied visual‐spatial memory predicted comprehension in Grades 2 (STM) and 5 (complex memory). The results point to an important role of the phonological complex memory in early assessment, and suggest a long‐lasting role of early visual‐spatial memory in predicting variance in reading. Whether this role of the visual‐spatial memory is unique to the Hebrew orthography because of its visual features requires, however, further investigation.     

Peer review: still king in the digital age

The article presents one of the main findings of an international study of 4,000 academic researchers that examined how trustworthiness is determined in the digital environment when it comes to scholarly reading, citing, and publishing. The study shows that peer review is still the most trustworthy characteristic of all. There is, though, a common perception that open access journals are not peer reviewed or do not have proper peer‐review systems. Researchers appear to have moved inexorably from a print‐based system to a digital system, but it has not significantly changed the way they decide what to trust. They do not trust social media. Only a minority – although significantly mostly young and early career researchers – thought that social media are anything other than more appropriate to personal interactions and peripheral to their professional/academic lives. There are other significant differences, according to the age of the researcher. Thus, in regard to choosing an outlet for publication of their work, young researchers are much less concerned with the fact that it is peer reviewed.     

The citation evolution law of papers published in the same year but different month

To explore the citation evolution of papers published in the same year but different month, we selected papers from a discipline (physical geography), a subject (diabetes: endocrine and metabolism) and a journal (Journal of Biological Chemistry) published in 2005 as research objects. These papers were divided into six groups according to the difference in publication month, and we analyzed citations to these papers for the 9 years after publication. The results showed that within 5 years after papers from physical geography were published, the overall differences in citations of papers in different groups were statistically significant (P < 0.05); after that, the differences were not statistically significant. Within 5 years after papers from diabetes (endocrine and metabolism) were published, the overall differences in citations of papers in different groups were statistically significant (P < 0.05); thereafter, the differences were not statistically significant. Within 7 years after papers from the Journal of Biological Chemistry were published, the overall differences in citations of papers in different groups were statistically significant (P < 0.05); thereafter, the differences were not statistically significant. Citations of papers followed the same pattern irrespective of discipline, subject or journal: citations of papers published in the same year but different month were obviously different in the first few publishing years, but as time went on, only the difference in publication month in a calendar year did not affect the papers' longer‐term citation.     

Investigating the Development of the “Mobile Museum” from the Perspective of Service

During economic development, modern museums face competition from various leisure activities and entertainment sites, and to achieve sustainable development, museums should reflect on providing high‐quality service to satisfy visitors’ expectations. Based on service design‐related theories, this research team conducted a case study to explore the planning, implementation, and meaning of Mobile Museums. It investigated design development from the perspective of public service design and summarized the policy, design, and service satisfaction results for Mobile Museums. Finally, the similarities in service processes are discussed between Mobile Museums and the general service industry. According to this study, attracting more visitors is the biggest issue facing museums today, as are the ways in which museums must actively provide service and become recognized to compete with others. This study identifies the onstage and backstage support of museums as well as their cultural features and non‐profit services.