Modularity and innovation in knowledge-intensive business services: IT outsourcing in Germany and the UK

Drawing on an empirical study of IT outsourcing in the UK and Germany, this paper explores the lessons for modularity that can be drawn from the outsourcing of knowledge-intensive business services (KIBS). Because of the inseparability of information and production technologies, IT outsourcing is frequently accompanied by wider transformations in clients’ production technologies. This results in the need for knowledge and organisational coordination in the form of the transfer of staff from the client and the retained IT organisation. Modularity is often presented as a design strategy that stimulates innovation. Our research findings challenge the generalisability of this claim when examining KIBS outsourcing. We show that intangibility of services exacerbates the conflicts between clients and suppliers, which may present obstacles to innovation.     

Adaptation of the Multidimensional Trauma Recovery and Resilience (MTRR) questionnaire in a sample of Chilean mothers with a history of child abuse

OBJECTIVE: Adaptation of the Multidimensional Trauma Recovery and Resilience (MTRR) in a Chilean sample. METHOD: Participants were 80 mothers drawn from two large metropolitan areas (Santiago and Temuco). Sample participants (in a case control design) were redivided in two groups: 40 mothers identified as physical abusers with history of physical child abuse and 40 mothers identified as nonabusers with history of physical child abuse. Groups were matched on 5 sociodemographic variables. Reliability analysis, item analysis, and group comparisons on the 8 scales of the instrument were performed. RESULTS: Interrater agreement level was .79 (Kendall's W coefficient) and the internal consistency as measured by Cronbach's alpha coefficient was .75. Twenty-five items (26.3%) significantly discriminated between the groups. Group comparison tests (Wilcoxon Rank-sum Test) also indicated that six of the eight domains discriminated between the groups. CONCLUSION: In our sample, the instrument has reliable results which discriminate between the studied groups. These preliminary findings support future work toward the development of a Chilean version of this instrument.     

Reciprocal effects between fluid and crystallized intelligence and their dependence on parents' socioeconomic status and education

The investment theory of Cattell supposes an influence of fluid on crystallized intelligence. The development of fluid intelligence largely depends on biological factors, of crystallized intelligence on fluid intelligence and environmental stimulation. To test this theory two contrasting samples representing a broad ability range were chosen, a Brazilian sample (ages 7 to 15, N = 833, mean IQ 92) and a sample with a higher ability level in Germany (ages 11 to 19, N = 722, IQ 118). Analyses of cross-lagged effects across two year intervals show similar effects of fluid intelligence on crystallized and vice versa (around β = .17). Parental socioeconomic status and parental education have in both samples a slightly stronger effect on crystallized than on fluid intelligence. The first result refutes Cattell's theory, the second gives some support. The development of fluid intelligence also seems to be influenced by non-biological environmental factors resulting in a concept of intelligence as a malleable ability.     

Biomedical and health informatics in Peru: significance for public health

Introduction

This issue of the feature column reports on developments in Peru on the use of information and communication technologies to improve public health. The authors describe how cell phones and hand‐held devices are being deployed to monitor diseases. Recent concerns about the spread of swine flu highlight the importance of robust public health systems in developing countries. 1 Jeannete Murphy

Reference

1 Swine flu could be a disaster for weak public health systems in developing countries . British Journal of Healthcare Computing and Information Management , 30 April 2009. http://www.bjhcim.co.uk/news/2009/n904046.htm (accessed 18/05/09).     

Hows and whys of parental involvement in a national ‘neoliberal laboratory’: aspirations,values and beliefs in relation to children’s education among Chilean urban lower-middle-class parents

Abstract

This paper sought to shed light on the beliefs, aspirations and values in relation to education that shape parental ways of involvement among Chilean urban lower-middle-class parents. Using the capability approach as the main theoretical framework and a critical epistemology, the discussion focuses on the way in which the pre-eminence of instrumental and positional dimensions of education arguably places limitations on how education is understood and valued; sets boundaries for parental involvement and overloads families. This situation ultimately diminishes the power of education to disrupt intergenerational cycles of disadvantage among Chilean urban lower-middle-class families.     

Teachers and differentiated instruction: exploring differentiation practices to address student diversity

Given the increasing diversity of the student body, teachers are called to appropriately address students’ various learning needs by means of differentiated instruction (DI). However, empirical research has yielded mixed evidence on teachers’ reported use of DI. Using nationally representative data from the National Educational Panel Study in Germany, this article aimed to explore German (as native language) and Mathematics teachers’ use of DI practices. In addition, this study took into consideration contextual factors, such as school track, and investigated the impact of teachers’ constructivist beliefs on their DI implementation. Results from a mixed analysis of covariance indicated that teachers occasionally implement DI practices. Furthermore, between‐subject effects reported differences across school tracks. It appears that advanced secondary school teachers implement less often DI practices. The covariate of teachers’ constructivist beliefs was also positively linked to overall teachers’ implementation of DI. Implications of the results, as well as further lines of research are discussed.     

Comparison of diagnostic accuracy for eight SARS-CoV-2 serological assays

IntroductionSevere acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) serological tests have been suggested as an additional diagnostic tool in highly suspected cases with a negative molecular test and determination of seroprevalence in population. We compared the diagnostic performance of eight commercial serological assays for IgA, IgM, and IgG antibodies to the SARS-CoV-2 virus.Materials and methodsThe comparison study was performed on a total of 76 serum samples: 30 SARS-CoV-2 polymerase chain reaction (PCR)-negative and 46 SARS-CoV-2 PCR-positive patients with asymptomatic to severe disease and symptoms duration from 3-30 days. The study included: three rapid lateral flow immunochromatographic assays (LFIC), two enzyme-linked immunosorbent assays (ELISA), and three chemiluminescence immunoassays (CLIA).ResultsAgreement between IgM assays were minimal to moderate (kappa 0.26 to 0.63) and for IgG moderate to excellent (kappa 0.72 to 0.92). Sensitivities improved with > 10 days of symptoms and were: 30% to 89% for IgM; 89% to 100% for IgG; 96% for IgA; 100% for IgA/IgM combination; 96% for total antibodies. Overall specificities were: 90% to 100% for IgM; 85% to 100% for IgG; 90% for IgA; 70% for IgA/IgM combination; 100% for total antibodies. Diagnostic accuracy for IgG ELISA and CIA assays were excellent (AUC ≥ 0.90), without significant difference. IgA showed significantly better diagnostic accuracy than IgM (P < 0.001).ConclusionThere is high variability between IgM assays independently of the assay format, while IgG assays showed moderate to perfect agreement. The appropriate time for testing is crucial for the proper immunity investigation.     

How do students coordinate context-based information and elements of their own knowledge? An analysis of students’ context-based problem-solving in thermodynamics

ABSTRACT

In science education, context-based learning is mostly based on problem-oriented tasks [Gilbert, J. K. (2006). On the nature of “context” in chemical education. International Journal of Science Education, 28(9), 957–976]. Therefore, a relevant question is, how do students integrate the information given in the task into their problem-solving process? The basic assumption is that there is a transition from the situation described in the task to a science model needed to solve the problem [Mestre, J. (2002). Probing adults’ conceptual understanding and transfer of learning via problem posing. Journal of Applied Developmental Psychology, 23(1), 9–50]. The transition needs to be described by parameters of the situation, the science model and the transition process itself. This investigation focuses on the influence of these three elements on the problem-solving process to understand variations in performance [Bennett, J., Lubben, F., & Hogarth, S. (2007). Bringing science to life: A synthesis of the research evidence on the effects of context-based and STS approaches to science teaching. Science Education, 91(3), 347–370]) and the interaction with interest. Despite the large body of research on the mutual influence of context-based problem-solving and interest, research attempting to examine their interplay regarding performance is still lacking. We conducted a hierarchical regression analysis with 178 participants from German high-track schools to investigate three parameters with regard to their influence on affective variables and successful problem-solving: contextualisation of the situation described in the task; the complexity of the scientific model underlying the task; and transparency, which assesses whether and how the learner can identify this model [Löffler, P., & Kauertz, A. (2015). Modellanwendung in kontextualisierten Problemlöseaufgaben [Applying models in contextualised problem solving tasks]. In S. Bernholt (Ed.), Heterogenität und Diversität - Vielfalt der Voraussetzungen im naturwissenschaftlichen Unterricht (Vol. 35, pp. 648–650). Kiel: IPN; Durik, A., & Harackiewicz, J. (2007). Different strokes for different folks: How individual interest moderates the effects of situational factors on task interest. Journal of Educational Psychology, 99(3), 597–610)]. Our findings suggest that these parameters have different effects on how interest is triggered and maintained. Aspects of transparency exhibit small effects on successful problem-solving processes. The results support the assumption that the transition process is the main aspect of context-based problem-solving and can therefore be operationalised as the use of elements of the scientific model in students’ statements. Surprisingly, the usage of such elements cannot be sufficiently explained by pre-knowledge or cognitive abilities.