Identification of characteristics and causes of childhood posttraumatic stress disorder

There has been growing research and clinical interest in children who meet the criteria for Posttraumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD). A rise in family violence, violence within schools, and a variety of other stressors are suspected of leading to the characteristic PTSD symptoms of reexperiencing the trauma, psychological numbing, and increased states of arousal. Despite our increasing awareness of childhood PTSD there is some confusion over the nature and causes of this disorder. This paper examines the characteristics of childhood PTSD and its causes.     

Evaluating the usability and instructional design quality of Interactive Virtual Training for Teachers (IVT-T)

Educational technology research and development - Simulation offers unique affordances over traditional training (e.g., remote access, mastery learning experiences, immediate feedback) relevant to...     

Implementation of anti-bullying lessons in primary classrooms: how important is head teacher support?

Background: Evidence suggests that the KiVa anti-bullying programme may contribute to a reduction in bullying and victimisation, especially in primary school level. What is more, the level of implementation moderates the programme effects: the more the programme was implemented, the more bullying was reduced.Purpose: Consequently, it is of interest to investigate the factors affecting the implementation of the KiVa anti-bullying programme. We analysed whether teachers’ perceptions of support from the head teacher predicted the implementation adherence of the programme.Sample: We used a randomised sample of 93 Grade 1–3 (students’ age 7–9 years) teachers in 27 Finnish primary schools.Design and methods: Online surveys on perceptions of two types of head teacher support: (1) general support as a superior and (2) programme support for the KiVa anti-bullying programme were administered to the teachers; written observational reports on implementation adherence (frequency, contents and duration) were also utilised. Data was collected during the academic year 2008–2009. Effects of head teacher support on implementation adherence were modelled both at the teacher level and at the school level.Results: On average, implementation adherence of the student lessons was good. Teacher’s experience of programme support from the head teacher was positively related to implementation adherence, whereas, surprisingly, teacher’s experience of general support did not enhance implementation and was even negatively related to it.Conclusions: The school-based prevention and intervention programmes are delivered through social systems and individuals, and they inevitably trigger multilevel dynamics. Implementation is not only the responsibility of individual teachers but it happens in the context of the school community, the head teacher and the local-level resources and policies.     

Visualizing spatial tasks: A comparison of computer graphic and full-band video displays

Three spatial tasks were created in two forms, as video and as computer graphics. Both forms of each task were presented to third graders, middle schoolers, and adults preferred working with the video but were more accurate working with computer graphics. Third graders preferred the computer but were equally successful working with both displays. The study suggests that the expectations with which students approach an instructional technology may determine the effectiveness of that technology more than characteristics of the technology in question.     

An intensive study of the reliability of Rhode Island Pupil Identification Scale

A recent study of the factorial structure of the Rhode Island Pupil Identification Scale (RIPIS), a pupil behavior-observation scale for use by classroom teachers for detecting young children with learning problems, has led to profile scoring. This study describes the procedures and the results of an intensive and comprehensive investigation of the homogeneity of the subscales and their reliabilities as well as those of the two profiles yielded by the scale. All subscales, profiles, and composites were found to be highly internally consistent and stable over a time interval of five months. The authors also wish to show why complex psychometric scales require that more than cursory attention be paid to reliability issues.     

Inferring Mental States From Dynamic Faces in Adolescents With Autism Spectrum Disorder: Insights From Eye Tracking

There is mixed evidence concerning whether individuals with autism spectrum disorder (ASD) can infer mental states from the eyes. This study aims to elucidate whether they use less efficient strategies. Sixteen adolescents with ASD (11–16 year olds) were compared to a chronological age- and IQ-matched sample of 16 typically developing (TD) adolescents. Eight mental states were presented as full dynamic faces and in conditions altering the presence of expressive dynamic information from the eyes and mouth. Bayes factors revealed that adolescents with ASD had similar accuracy, response times (less conclusive), and fixations to TD adolescents. Findings imply that adolescents with ASD spontaneously fixate on the eyes, and not all individuals with ASD have difficulties inferring mental states from faces.     

Human and non-human intermediation in rural agricultural markets

ABSTRACT

A central trope of the information society is that of ‘information flows.’ The implicit assumption underlying such a vision involves the removal of gatekeepers and intermediaries who are perceived to impede such flows. Drawing from field research on information circulation, trade, and money in rural markets in Myanmar and India, we show why intermediaries persist alongside information and communication technologies (ICTs) in trade and financial transactions in the ‘Information Age.’ We examine the range of roles, (human and non-human) actors, and material practices that are involved in conducting financial transactions, and we show the importance of historical legacies and politics in explaining why both cash and financial intermediaries persist in the digital age. Focusing on the different value that human and non-human intermediaries bring to financial encounters helps explain what characteristics make each resilient or replaceable in a time of change. By situating intermediaries and mediations in the social relations within which they operate, we bring back the role of power and politics – an element that is often missing in accounts focused on the unmediated and ‘free’ circulation of information using ICTs – in explaining processes of mediation and circulation.