Incidental spatial memory in the domestic dog (<Emphasis Type="Italic">Canis familiaris</Emphasis>)

We built upon previous work by Fujita et al. (2012, Animal Cognition, 15(6), 1055–1063) to create an experiment that investigated the presence of incidental memory for the spatial location of uneaten food in the domestic dog. Here, we dissociated potentially incidental spatial memory from the incidental memory for the characteristics of objects, in this case, food bowls. Eighteen household domestic dogs of various breeds and age were presented with four bowls. Each bowl contained either a novel object, treats the dog could consume, treats it could not consume, or it was left empty. Following a delay, the dogs returned to the laboratory and were presented with empty bowls in the same spatial orientation as the initial exposure and could move freely between bowls. This experiment required no previous training outside of basic obedience and so avoids the possibility that performance on the test was a conditioned response. We hypothesized that domestic dogs would be able to remember the location of uneaten food when presented with an unexpected memory test. We found that dogs in this study showed no evidence that they encoded spatial location in the absence of other cues that could be used to distinguish food bowls at specific locations. This suggests that dogs in previous experiments were more dependent on incidentally encoding the “what” and “in what” of this task than the “where,” in the absence of features making each location distinct.     

That noun phrase may be beneficial and this may not be: discourse cohesion in reading and writing

This paper examines the effects of attended and unattended demonstratives on text processing, comprehension, and writing quality in two studies. In the first study, participants (n = 45) read 64 mini-stories in a self-paced reading task and identified the main referent in the clauses. The sentences varied in the type of demonstratives (i.e., this, that, these, and those) contained in the sentences and whether the referent was followed by a demonstrative determiner and noun (i.e., an attended demonstrative) or a demonstrative pronoun (i.e., an unattended demonstrative). In the second study, 173 persuasive essays written by high school students were rated by expert judges on overall writing quality using a standardized rubric. Expert coders manually counted the number and types of demonstratives (attended and unattended demonstratives) in each essay. These counts were used to predict the human scores of essay quality. The findings demonstrate that the use of unattended demonstratives as anaphoric references is disadvantageous to both reading time and referent identification. However, these disadvantages become advantages in terms of essay quality likely because linguistic complexity is a strong indicator of high proficiency writing. From a text processing and comprehension viewpoint, the findings indicate, then, that anaphoric reference is not always beneficial and does not always create a more cohesive text. In contrast, from a writing context, the use of unattended demonstratives leads to a more linguistically complex text, which generally equates to a higher quality text.     

Improved medical student perception of ultrasound using a paired anatomy teaching assistant and clinician teaching model

This study describes a new teaching model for ultrasound (US) training, and evaluates its effect on medical student attitudes toward US. First year medical students participated in hands‐on US during human gross anatomy (2014 N = 183; 2015 N = 182). The sessions were facilitated by clinicians alone in 2014, and by anatomy teaching assistant (TA)‐clinician pairs in 2015. Both cohorts completed course evaluations which included five US‐related items on a four‐point scale; cohort responses were compared using Mann‐Whitney U tests with significance threshold set at 0.05. The 2015 survey also evaluated the TAs (three items, five‐point scale). With the adoption of the TA‐clinician teaching model, student ratings increased significantly for four out of five US‐items: “US advanced my ability to learn anatomy” increased from 2.91 ± 0.77 to 3.35 ± 0.68 (P < 0.0001), “Incorporating US increased my interest in anatomy” from 3.05 ± 0.84 to 3.50 ± 0.71 (P < 0.0001), “US is relevant to my current educational needs” from 3.36 ± 0.63 to 3.54 ± 0.53 (P = 0.015), and “US training should start in Phase I” from 3.36 ± 0.71 to 3.56 ± 0.59 (P = 0.010). Moreover, more than 84% of students reported that TAs enhanced their understanding of anatomy (mean 4.18 ± 0.86), were a valuable part of US training (mean 4.23 ± 0.89), and deemed the TAs proficient in US (mean 4.24 ± 0.86). By using an anatomy TA‐clinician teaching team, this study demonstrated significant improvements in student perceptions of the impact of US on anatomy education and the relevancy of US training to the early stages of medical education. Anat Sci Educ 11: 175–184. © 2017 American Association of Anatomists.     

Primary school children’s perspectives and experiences of Emotional Literacy Support Assistant (ELSA) support

ABSTRACT

This study explores primary school aged children’s perspectives and experiences of their Emotional Literacy Support Assistant (ELSA) support. Thematic analysis was employed to analyse qualitative data from semi-structured interviews with 12 Key Stage 2 participants, who had had a minimum of one month’s ongoing ELSA support. Four core themes were identified: positive relationships, unique qualities, facilitates skill development, and positive impact. The findings suggest the importance of a positive therapeutic relationship with an ELSA, and that children value ELSAs teaching specific individualised coping strategies in particular. The findings may also be pertinent to practitioners outside of ELSA related work, highlighting the importance of listening to children of all ages and employing alternative methods, such as drawing, to support them in sharing their views. Since the evidence base for ELSA support is limited, this study contributes children’s views to this area, and should be used to inform future research.     

The Role of Campus Traditions in Campus Life at Christian Colleges and Universities

This article presents the preliminary findings of an ongoing Traditions Research Project (TRP) study on the impact of campus traditions on campus life within the context of Christian postsecondary institutions. In this initial phase, the researchers conducted 63 interviews with faculty, student development educators, and staff members, in addition to gathering data from 12 student focus groups at three institutional members of the Council for Christian Colleges & Universities. In the future, the researchers intend to identify several additional colleges that have tradition-rich environments in order to expand the qualitative database related to this topic. The initial process of data analysis identified three major themes, along with several subthemes, regarding the role of traditions in contributing to campus life. These themes provide valuable information regarding the characteristics of campus traditions, the important role they play in creating and maintaining campus culture, and the role of these events in the lives of participants and institutions. In addition to presenting and discussing the themes and subthemes, the authors provide implications for practice that may be helpful to higher education leaders as they seek to provide meaningful campus traditions that foster students’ holistic development.     

A Cross-Disciplines and Cross-Sector Mixed-Methods Examination of Design Thinking Practices and Outcome

Innovative Higher Education - This mixed method study investigated design thinking (DT) practices and outcomes from across disciplinary frameworks within one institution of higher education....     

Genetic Moderation of Intervention Efficacy: Dopaminergic Genes,The Incredible Years,and Externalizing Behavior in Children

This study investigated whether children scoring higher on a polygenic plasticity index based on five dopaminergic genes (DRD4, DRD2, DAT1, MAOA, and COMT) benefited the most from the Incredible Years (IY) parent program. Data were used from a randomized controlled trial including 341 Dutch families with 4‐ to 8‐year‐old children (55.7% boys) showing moderate to high levels of problem behavior. IY proved to be most effective in decreasing parent‐reported (but not observed) externalizing behavior in boys (but not girls) carrying more rather than fewer dopaminergic plasticity alleles; this Gene × Intervention effect was most pronounced in the case of boys whose parents’ manifested the most positive change in parenting in response to the intervention. These results proved robust across a variety of sampling specifications (e.g., intention to treat, ethnicity).     

O Bem Amado: A cinematic representation of humor,populism, and death in Brazilian politics

The theatrical play O Bem Amado is based on a tragic and comical Brazilian reality: the way politicians plot their interests, without regard for their voters’ well-being. Populist and eccentric, the protagonist Odorico Paraguaçu embodies gestures, spoken gags, unfilled promises, and other typical characteristics of Brazilian politicians. This article analyzes how the most recent cinematic version of the play staged a character who was born in the 1960s, became a television soap opera hit in the 1970s, starred a movie in the 2000s, and comes back to life in every election period. We intend to make clear that much of what was criticized in Brazilian politics then is still very much alive today. The characteristics that make Odorico laughable are described in the article and are the same ones that highlight aspects of Brazilian political culture, all played out in a lighthearted comedy of manners spiced with political satire. This article introduces the latest version of O Bem Amado with some important background information. Based on scenes extracted from the film, popular comedy is portrayed as an opportunity for the public to take revenge, through mockery, of those who take advantage of their public position in favor of private interest. The article also explores added dimensions of the most recent version, brought on by new technological aspects added when the story was adapted for the big screen.