EPRs in the consultation room: A discussion of the literature on effects on doctor-patient relationships

In this paper we discuss expected and reported effects on care provider-patient relations of the introduction of electronic patient records (EPRs) in consultation settings by reviewing exemplary studies and literature on the subject from the past decade. We argue that in order for such assessments to be meaningful, talk of effects of “the” EPR needs to be replaced by an “unpacking” of EPR systems into their constituent parts and functionalities, the effects of which need to be assessed individually. Following from this principle, the paper discusses EPR systems ranging from simple data entry and retrieval systems to more sophisticated multi-user and multifunctional on-line systems. On a second level, our analysis of the literature is informed by the question which model of ideal patienthood underlies the assessment of effects of EPRs. To this end, we identify three “models of patienthood” implicit in writing about benefits and drawbacks of EPRs for patients: the autonomy, the consumer, and the holistic models, and argue that assumptions concerning these models need to be reflected upon more critically to improve understanding of what exactly EPR use does to the doctor-patient relationship.     

How open source software works: “free” user-to-user assistance

Research into free and open source software development projects has so far largely focused on how the major tasks of software development are organized and motivated. But a complete project requires the execution of “mundane but necessary” tasks as well. In this paper, we explore how the mundane but necessary task of field support is organized in the case of Apache web server software, and why some project participants are motivated to provide this service gratis to others. We find that the Apache field support system functions effectively. We also find that, when we partition the help system into its component tasks, 98% of the effort expended by information providers in fact returns direct learning benefits to those providers. This finding considerably reduces the puzzle of why information providers are willing to perform this task “for free.” Implications are discussed.     

Profiting from voluntary information spillovers: how users benefit by freely revealing their innovations

Empirical studies of innovation have found that end users frequently develop important product and process innovations. Defying conventional wisdom on the negative effects of uncompensated spillovers, innovative users also often openly reveal their innovations to competing users and to manufacturers. Rival users are thus in a position to reproduce the innovation in-house and benefit from using it, and manufacturers are in a position to refine the innovation and sell it to all users, including competitors of the user revealing its innovation. In this paper, we explore the incentives that users might have to freely reveal their proprietary innovations. We then develop a game-theoretic model to explore the effect of these incentives on users’ decisions to reveal or hide their proprietary information. We find that, under realistic parameter constellations, free revealing pays. We conclude by discussing some implications of our findings.     

Advance organizers in videos for software training of Chinese students

The effectiveness of demonstration-based training (DBT) videos for software training has been investigated for a Western audience. These studies have generally found that the demonstration videos significantly enhanced self-efficacy and task performance, but also that there was a gap between task practice and learning with the latter lagging behind. The present study investigated the effectiveness of DBT-videos for software training of Chinese students. The control condition presented demonstrations only. In the experimental condition demonstrations were preceded with advance organizers that aimed to enhance learning. The 61 participants (mean age 11.8 years) came from a middle school in China. Data analyses revealed that self-efficacy significantly improved in both conditions. Task performance success also increased significantly over time. The familiar gap between task practice and learning was found between task practice and outcomes on an immediate post-test. However, on the delayed post-test this difference had disappeared. An effect of the advance organizer was found for accuracy of the self-efficacy appraisals, and for gain scores from pretest to delayed post-test. It is concluded that DBT-based demonstration videos are moderately effective for software training of Chinese students, and that it can be beneficial to precede these with advance organizers.     

Are Socially Anxious Children Poor or Advanced Mindreaders?

Why are some children more socially anxious than others? One theory holds that socially anxious children are poor mindreaders, which hampers their social interactions; another that socially anxious children are advanced mindreaders leading to heightened self-consciousness in social situations. To test these theories simultaneously, this study (N = 105, ages 8–12) assessed children's mindreading (accuracy in detecting mental states from the eye region), self-consciousness (indexed as physiological blushing during public performance), and social anxiety levels. Results support both theories, showing a quadratic relation between mindreading and social anxiety. Low mindreading was related to clinical levels of social anxiety. High mindreading was related to subclinical levels of social anxiety through blushing. Our findings suggest two social-cognitive pathways to heightened social anxiety.     

Predictors for grade 6 reading in children at familial risk of dyslexia

The present study investigates whether grade 6 reading outcomes, reading fluency, and reading comprehension can be predicted by grade 3 reading fluency, familial risk of dyslexia (FR), and grade 3 reading related skills: rapid automatized naming (RAN), phonological awareness (PA), and vocabulary. In a sample of 150 children, of whom 83 had a parent with dyslexia, correlation and regression analyses were performed. FR, measured on a continuous scale, was by itself related to all outcomes. However, FR did not explain any variance on top of grade 3 reading fluency. Grade 3 reading fluency strongly predicted grade 6 reading fluency and was also related to reading comprehension. RAN improved the prediction of grade 6 reading fluency, though the additional explained variance was small. Vocabulary and PA fully explained the variance that grade 3 reading fluency explained in grade 6 reading comprehension. Vocabulary explained a substantial amount of variance in grade 6 reading comprehension making it an interesting clinical target. As we used continuous measures of reading fluency and FR, our findings are not biased by distinct diagnostic criteria.     

Exam Scams and Classroom Flimflams: Urban Legends as an Alternative Lens for Viewing the College Classroom Experience

Campus-based urban legends have the potential to convey and construct student culture in higher education. Basic qualitative and humanistic research methods were used to collect, analyze, and interpret legends related to the academic experience of collegiate life.

The paradox in international cooperation: Institutionally embedded universities in a global environment

As a response to processes of globalisation and regional integration, internationalisation activities in universities have changed. Flows have become more massive, the range of activities has broadened, and internationalisation has shifted from a marginal activity to a central institutional issue with strategic importance (van der Wende 2001, European Journal of Education 36(4), 431–441). These shifts can also be observed in international cooperation among universities. One of the manifestations of this shift is the increase and change of inter-organisational arrangements in higher education. One type of such arrangements – higher education consortia – are analysed in detail in the study. This analysis takes inter-organisational diversity as a starting point (Parkhe 1991, Journal of International Business Studies 22(4), 579–601). The basic thesis is that partners need to be similar, yet different, or in other words, there needs to be sufficient complementarity as well as sufficient compatibility among the participating universities. The article also explores the ways in which the management of consortia can improve the levels of complementarity and compatibility and thus the success of such consortia. Eric Beerkens is a postdoctoral research fellow at the School of Policy & Practice, Faculty of Education and Social Work at the University of Sydney. In 2004 he completed his PhD at CHEPS on the study reported in this article. Marijk van der Wende is professor at CHEPS.     

Problems in the planning of higher education

With the growing demand for places in German universities, the present system of allowing entrance to everyone who holds the Abitur has become unsatisfactory. This paper looks at ways of controlling the size of the higher education system and allocating resources from the viewpoint of economic theory.Three ideal type educational planning models are sketched, one of which - a market model - is argued to have the greatest advantages. It would involve a state credit scheme for students with repayments via a graduate tax; student fees would provide all or most of the universities' funds. It would remove the inequity of the present system which involves a transfer of income from today's (relatively poorer) earners to tomorrow's, and from those with lower earning potential to those with higher. Since students would be in a position to choose the most satisfying and/or cheapest courses of study and would find it easier to change courses if they wished, it would reward cost-saving and student-satisfying innovation. By providing more finely graded levels of qualification within subject areas, it would reduce the extent to which jobs are ordered hierarchically in an irrational and inefficient way; and the universities would respond more flexibly to changes in labour market demands.This is a translation, with minor amendments, of a paper published in Fundamental Problems of Infrastructure Planning for Growing Economies, Proceedings of the Conference of the Society for Social Policy, Innsbruck, 1970, Berlin: Verlag von Duncker und Humblot, 1971. It is reproduced here by arrangement with the publisher. The article was translated into English by David Webster.     

Cryptography in Context: Co-teaching Ethics and Mathematics

Abstract

Many of the applied mathematics courses we teach touch upon a range of rich and important ethical issues – issues that, for a number of reasons, are rarely openly discussed in class. In this work, we describe a sequence of activities co-designed and co-taught by philosophy and mathematics faculty in the hopes of bridging the divide between the application and implementation of modern cryptography and the ethical dilemmas it creates. Although we have specifically focused on one area of applied mathematics at one particular type of institution, we highlight throughout the work the areas in which our approach can be changed to suit different content areas and student populations.