Technical Skills Required: How Technological Efficacy Influences Online Political Behavior

Rapid advances in technology have provided the potential to connect citizens to their surroundings in unprecedented ways. While many scholars examine different types of efficacy as a predictor of behavior (e.g., internal, external, and political), it is essential to examine how confident citizens feel in their ability to use the technology before understanding how they will use it politically. Research shows that perceived competence increases motivation, which is correlated with behavior. This study examined how traditional measures of efficacy and a new measure affect online political behaviors, concluding that technological efficacy is a reliable construct predicting online news use and expression.     

The effect of modifiers on the stability of a vinyl acetate/ethylene copolymer dispersion

This paper examines the effect of modifiers on the stability of a vinyl acetate/ethylene copolymer dispersion adhesive upon aging. Eighteen common modifiers were added to a well-characterized vinyl acetate/ethylene copolymer dispersion (Dur-O-Set^® E-150) in known concentrations and dry-film samples were subjected to 16–17 years of dark aging and seven to eight years of light aging. Yellowing, pH, gloss, swelling, cohesive strength, and flexibility were monitored for changes upon aging. Generally, the neat Dur-O-Set^® E-150 (no additives) was found to become acidic on aging, but was fairly resistant to yellowing. It also swelled substantially in toluene, was of high gloss, medium strength, and flexible, and remained so on aging. No modifier was found to improve these properties. Various solvents, wetting agents, and thickeners did not alter the properties by much, while plasticizers, freeze-thaw stabilizer, glycerin, and certain fillers had a more negative effect.     

Media's influence on immigration attitudes: An intergroup threat theory approach

The current study tests the influence of threatening-mediated intergroup contact on intergroup relations. A 2 (Immigration: Threat, No-threat) × 2 (Ingroup Group Exemplar: Present, Absent)?+?1 (Control Condition) experimental design was used to examine both the direct and indirect influence of news exposure on attitudes toward immigration. The moderating role of previous local news consumption was also investigated. Results indicate that exposure to a threatening news story about immigration directly affected attitudes toward immigrants’ human rights, but not attitudes toward immigration policy. News exposure also indirectly influenced both types of immigration attitudes through feelings of intergroup anxiety, particularly for heavy news consumers. The discussion highlights the implications for both intergroup threat theory and cultivation research.     

Public Library Services for Veterans: Selected Brief Case Studies

Public libraries across the country design and deliver programs for military veterans and their families, often collaborating with other organizations and agencies. The examples were assembled from both general and specialized interviews with librarians, and literature and Internet searches, with summaries of programs assembled and written by multiple researchers. The specific limitations on the listing in this article are clearly outlined in the first section. Overall, however, the article provides a good introductory overview of what’s going on in veteran’s programs and services in America’s public libraries in over seventy libraries in forty states. We hope this list of what public libraries have organized or are doing will supply other public librarians with ideas on how to provide new services or enhance their existing ones.     

Biomechanical characteristics of adults walking forward and backward in water at different stride frequencies

The aim of this study was to examine spatiotemporal characteristics and joint angles during forward and backward walking in water at low and high stride frequency. Eight healthy adults (22.1 ± 1.1 years) walked forward and backward underwater at low (50 pulses) and high frequency (80 pulses) at the xiphoid process level with arms crossed at the chest. The main differences observed were that the participants presented a greater speed (0.58 vs. 0.85 m/s) and more asymmetry of the step length (1.24 vs. 1.48) at high frequency whilst the stride and step length (0.84 vs. 0.7 m and 0.43 vs. 0.35 m, respectively) were lower compared to low frequency (P < 0.05). Support phase duration was higher at forward walking than backward walking (61.2 vs. 59.0%). At initial contact, we showed that during forward walking, the ankle and hip presented more flexion than during backward walking (ankle: 84.0 vs. 91.8º and hip: 22.8 vs. 8.0º; P < 0.001). At final stance, the knee and hip were more flexed at low frequency than at high frequency (knee: 150.0 vs. 157.0º and hip: ?12.2 vs. –14.5º; P < 0.001). The knee angle showed more flexion at forward walking (134.0º) than backward walking (173.1º) (P < 0.001). In conclusion, these results show how forward and backward walking in water at different frequencies differ and contribute to a better understanding of this activity in training and rehabilitation.     

Inter-participant variability in daily physical activity and sedentary time among male youth sport footballers: independent associations with indicators of adiposity and cardiorespiratory fitness

Participation in youth sport is assumed to promote and contribute towards more physically active lifestyles among children and adolescents. The aim of this study was to examine inter-participant variability in objectively measured habitual physical activity (PA) behaviours and sedentary time among youth sport participants and their implications for health. One-hundred-and-eighteen male youth sport footballers (Mean ± s = 11.72 ± 1.60) wore a GT3X accelerometer for 7 days. Average daily PA [min · day^?1, in light (LPA), moderate (MPA), vigorous (VPA) and combined moderate-to-vigorous (MVPA)] and sedentary time were calculated. Participants’ body mass index adjusted for age and sex (BMI–standard deviation score), per cent body fat (BF%), waist circumference and cardiorespiratory fitness were assessed. Results revealed that variability in daily PA behaviours and sedentary time (min · day^?1) was associated with BMI–standard deviation score [VPA (?), MVPA (?)], BF% [sedentary time (+), VPA (?), MVPA (?)], waist circumference [sedentary time (+), LPA (?)] and cardiorespiratory fitness [sedentary time (?), MPA (+), VPA (+), MVPA (+)]. Whilst sedentary time and MVPA were not related to health outcomes independent of one another, associations with markers of adiposity and cardiorespiratory fitness were stronger for sedentary time. Sedentary time was also significantly positively related to waist circumference independent of VPA. Results demonstrate inter-participant variability in habitual PA and sedentary time among youth sport participants which holds implications for their health. Thus, promoting PA and, in particular, reducing sedentary time may contribute towards the prevention of adverse health consequences associated with a physically inactive lifestyle for children and adolescents active in the youth sport context.