Assessing Outcomes: Practical Methods and Evidence

University counseling center clients’ (N = 52) perceptions of precounseling functioning were highly correlated with their actual well‐being scores at intake. The magnitude of change based on perceptions of precounseling functioning to current well‐being was approximately double of what is found from the difference of actual precounseling well‐being to current well‐being scores. Retrospective methods for assessing precounseling functioning are best suited for comparison among clients or counseling processes.     

Transitioning in higher education: an exploration of psychological and contextual factors affecting student satisfaction

In view of recent changes in the higher education sector, such as increased tuition fees, a greater focus has been placed on widening participation initiatives and monitoring student satisfaction. The aims of the current study were twofold: (1) to explore whether pre-entry programmes foster successful transition to higher education, and (2) to examine longitudinally the factors associated with course satisfaction. Eighty-eight first-year psychology students completed a questionnaire measuring academic self-efficacy, social identity and student satisfaction at the start (Time 1, November 2015) and end (Time 2, March 2016) of the academic year. Findings indicated that students who participated in a pre-entry programme reported higher academic self-efficacy and satisfaction compared to typical route students. Moreover, academic self-efficacy predicted student satisfaction at the start of the academic year, whereas in-group affect (a facet of social identity) predicted this at the end of the academic year. The current findings indicate that pre-entry programmes may have a positive impact on students’ sense of academic self-efficacy. On a more general level, the findings also suggest that academic self-efficacy and social identity may be key indicators of student satisfaction. This highlights the complexities of the concept of ‘student satisfaction’, and demonstrates the utility of examining multiple factors relating to student satisfaction across different time points.     

What Katy Did

What Katy Didwas the second of more than twenty books written for children by Susan Coolidge, the pen name of Sarah Chauncey Woolsey (1835–1905). Early in Sarah's childhood, the Woolseys moved from Cleveland to Connecticut, where she and her younger sisters and brother grew up. They and her relations provided the models for the fictional Carr family of the Katy novels, Sarah having much in common with Katy herself. What Katy Didwas published by Roberts Brothers of Boston in 1872 and is often compared with Louisa M. Alcott's Little Women,published very successfully by the same firm only four years earlier. Katy Carr was as immediately popular as Jo March, who may well have created an eager market for her. Elizabeth Jennings was born in 1926 in Boston, Lincolnshire, but since the age of six has lived mostly in Oxford. She was educated at Oxford High School and read English Language and Literature at Oxford University. Her first book,Poems (1953), won an Arts Council Award, andA Way of Looking brought her the Somerset Maugham Award in 1956. The latter enabled her to make the first of many visits to Rome, a city which has had a formative influence on her work. She has published fifteen volumes of poetry as well asCollected Poems (1986), which was awarded the W. H. Smith Award in 1987. She has also written two books of poems for children (now out of print) calledThe Secret Brother andAfter the Ark, has translated Michelangelo'sSonnets (reissued in 1988), has edited four anthologies, and has written four critical books, includingEvery Changing Shape andRobert Frost. Over the years she has received five Arts Council prizes or bursaries.CLE invited her to revisit a favorite book of her childhood.     

The effects of isolation and handling on reactivity to footshock and tactile dorsal stimulation

The effects of isolation and handling on the reactivity of rats to two tactile stimuli were assessed in two experiments. In the first experiment, reactivity to more intense footshock was increased in rats raised in isolation but was not affected by handling by an experimenter. In the second experiment, increased reactivity to airpuff stimuli presented to the dorsal surface of isolation-reared rats was reduced by handling. The data suggest that the effects of handling on shock-motivated behaviors are not due to altered reactivity to shock and that the effect of housing or handling must be considered in behavioral tests in which reactivity to tactile stimulation might play a role as dependent or independent variables.     

The impact of data reduction on the intra-trial reliability of a typical measure of lower limb musculoskeletal stiffness

Double-leg repeated jumping tasks are commonly used as measures of lower limb stiffness in exercise science research. Within similar stiffness calculations, variation in data-reduction criteria exists. The impact of these varied data-reduction methods on stiffness measures is unknown. Sixteen adolescent female participants from varied physical activity backgrounds performed 15 self-paced, bent-knee continuous jumps (CJb) on two force plates. Leg stiffness was calculated as the ratio of the peak force and the centre of mass displacement for each contact. Using combinations of criteria based on previous literature, 83 data-reduction methods were applied to the raw data. Data reduction suitability was assessed based on intra-trial reliability, the number of participants excluded and the average contacts excluded. Four data-reduction methods were deemed suitable for use with adolescent female populations, with three consecutive contacts within 1 SD of the average jump frequency considered optimal. The average individual stiffness values were not greatly influenced by the data-reduction method; however, for a single participant, a stiffness change of up to 6 kN · m^?1 (30%) was observed. The role and potential impact of data-reduction methods used to evaluate measures of lower limb stiffness during repeated jumping tasks warrants consideration.     

Using Six Sigma and Lean in the Library

Businesses have long relied on a variety of strategies to improve quality, efficiency, and service. Some ideas that have persisted over time are Six Sigma and Lean. While Six Sigma, originally intended for manufacturing, focuses on quality and Lean mainly addresses waste, many of the tools and principles involved can also apply to libraries. This article will review the literature on Lean and Six Sigma as they are used in business and then as they have been used in libraries. The resulting discussion will cover how the principles can be applied to better connect with stakeholders by mapping processes and discovering what is value added (VA) versus nonvalue added (NVA), anticipating failure modes using the failure mode and effects analysis (FMEA) framework, and implementing control plans to maintain quality processes and service.     

The Jazz Archives Fellowship: Professional Development and Diversity at the Institute of Jazz Studies

The Institute of Jazz Studies (IJS) started the Jazz Archives Fellows program in 2012 with two purposes in mind. First, the program focuses on improving diversity in the archives profession. Second, it provides a meaningful professional development opportunity for archivists in the early stages of their careers and for students in graduate programs who intend to become archivists. In addition, the IJS benefits directly from the fellows' work to process a collection and create a digital project. This article presents a case study of the Fellowship with a focus on program design, values, and lessons learned and includes recommendations for establishing similar programs.