The proposal of a broadening of perspective in evaluative bibliometrics by complementing the times cited with a cited reference analysis

A proposal is made in this paper for a broadening of perspective in evaluative bibliometrics by complementing the (standard) times cited with a cited reference analysis for a field-specific citation impact measurement. The times cited approach counts the citations of a given publication set. In contrast, we change the perspective and start by selecting all papers dealing with a specific research topic or field (the example in this study is research on Aspirin). Then we extract all cited references from the papers of this field-specific publication set and analyse which papers, scientists, and journals have been cited most often. In this study, we use the Chemical Abstracts registry number to select the publications for a specific field. However, the cited reference approach can be used with any other field classification system proposed up to now.     

END-OF-LIFE DECISION MAKING: PRACTICES,BELIEFS AND KNOWLEDGE OF SOCIAL WORKERS IN HEALTH CARE SETTINGS

The aim of the present study was to examine the involvement, beliefs, and knowledge of social workers in health care settings in the process of making decisions regarding life-sustaining treatments. A convenience sample of 68 social workers participated in the study (65 F and 3 M; mean age = 42.4 ; SD = 10.0 . Fifty-two participants worked at hospitals and 16 at nursing homes. The area in which social workers reported being more involved were activities related to family members. The extent of social workers' involvement was related to their beliefs regarding their role and their knowledge about life-sustaining treatments. Findings of this study emphasize the need for developing educational programs aimed at expanding social workers' knowledge in order to increase their autonomy and professional involvement in end-of-life decision making.     

Physical and perceptual-cognitive demands of top-class refereeing in association football

The aim of this study was to examine the physical and perceptual-cognitive demands imposed on UEFA top-class referees and assistant referees during the final round of the Euro 2000 Championship. To investigate the physical workload, the heart rates during matches were monitored by short-range radio telemetry and translated to different workloads expressed as a percentage of maximal heart rate. For measurement of the perceptual-cognitive workload, video-recordings of games were used to obtain the average number of observable decisions taken by a referee. On average, referees and assistant referees performed the matches at 85±5% and 77±7% of their maximal heart rate, respectively. Over the 31 games, the mean number of observable decisions was 137 (range 104–162), 64% of which were based on communication with the assistant referees and/or the fourth official. To optimize the physical preparation of top-class match officials, the results of this study support the application of intensive and intermittent training sessions, which should place priority on high-intensity aerobic stimuli. In addition, video training is discussed as an additional method for improving match officials' decision making.     

Errors in judging “offside” in association football: Test of the optical error versus the perceptual flash-lag hypothesis

Abstract

The objective of this study was to analyse the correctness of the offside judgements of the assistant referees during the final round of the FIFA 2002 World Cup. We also contrasted two hypotheses to explain the errors in judging offside. The optical error hypothesis is based on an incorrect viewing angle, while the flash-lag hypothesis refers to perceptual errors associated with the flash-lag effect (i.e. a moving object is perceived as spatially leading its real position at a discrete instant signalled by a briefly flashed stimulus). Across all 64 matches, 337 offsides were analysed using digital video technology. The error percentage was 26.2%. During the first 15 min match period, there were significantly more errors (38.5%) than during any other 15 min interval. As predicted by the flash-lag effect, we observed many more flag errors (86.6%) than non-flag errors (13.4%). Unlike the predictions of the optical error hypothesis, there was no significant difference between the correct and incorrect decisions in terms of the positioning of the assistant referees relative to the offside line (0.81 and 0.77 m ahead, respectively). To reduce the typical errors in judging offside, alternative ways need to be considered to teach assistant referees to better deal with flash-lag effects.     

A ménage À trois: the eye,the hand and on-line processing

This review summarizes research conducted in our laboratories over the past 5 years aimed at determining the temporal and spatial relationships between eye and hand movements and the amount of central processing that must occur before performing a manual aiming movement, relative to the amount of processing that is done online. All of our research to date points to a two-component model of speed-accuracy control in manual aiming. Several studies have shown that eye and hand movements in manual aiming are inextricably linked both temporally and spatially. Typically, the eye arrives in the vicinity of the target first; this coincides with peak acceleration of the finger during the initial impulse phase of a movement. There is also significant temporal and spatial coupling of the finger, elbow and shoulder in aiming, and movements appear to evolve in a proximal-to-distal fashion. Movements are endpoint driven and variability is reduced with distal approximation to the target. This movement control strategy means that visual information is not only available for use in modifying responses, but there is sufficient time available for its use. In sequential complex aiming movements, the use of visual feedback and on-line processing become even more important. Practice does not diminish the need for on-line processing; rather, its use appears to ensure greater movement efficiency.     

A primer for effective organization of professional conferences

The challenge of organizing a successful conference is a tremendous commitment requiring extensive preparation and teamwork. It is tempting but dangerous to underestimate the details needed to coordinate an outstanding event. Conferences follow a natural life cycle from proposal, gaining administrative support, planning, implementing, and then finally evaluating outcomes. These guidelines identify the tasks and areas of responsibilities required including setting objectives, budgeting, selecting a venue, publicity, programming, and working with vendors.     

Bernd-Christian Funk ein 65-er!

Im gro?en Bedenk- und Gedenkjahr 2008 feiert der vielf?ltig aktive Rechtswissenschafter o. Univ.-Prof. Mag. Dr. Bernd-Christian Funk seinen 65. Geburtstag; dies darf zum Anlass genommen werden, das unermüdlich wirkende Beiratsmitglied der "Zeitschrift für Hochschulrecht, Hochschulmanagement und Hochschulpolitik" zu würdigen.     

A Q-Sort measure of beliefs about abortion

Debate over the availability and use of induced abortion continues in the US. The author introduces a Q-sort procedure for assessing beliefs about abortion and presents results from its application. The measure permits the assessment of reactions to a fuller list of beliefs than has been employed in many previous studies, while being person-centered instead of more variable-centered with regard to the analyses of reactions to the abortion issue. 119 university respondents of mean age 19.6 years in a range of 18-46 years from an introductory psychology class sorted 41 items, derived in part from open-ended responses of a large community sample, into a seven-category forced distribution. 55.5% of the sample was male. Cluster analysis of respondents' sorts yielded two types reflecting pro-life orientations toward the issue and two representing pro- choice orientations. Significant differences were found among the types on eight scales of the California Psychological Inventory, including scales assessing interpersonal effectiveness, intellectual competence, and flexibility. The types did not, however, differ on scales assessing respondents' orientation toward norms. These results demonstrate the strong feasibility and utility of employing the Abortion Beliefs Q-Sort in additional studies on the issue.