Sport Ability Beliefs, 2 x 2 Achievement Goals,and Intrinsic Motivation

We examined whether perceived competence moderated the relationships between implicit theories, 2 x 2 achievement goals, and intrinsic motivation for sports and physical activity. We placed 309 university students into high and moderate perceived competence groups. When perceived competence was high, entity beliefs did not predict the performance-avoidance goal; yet when perceived competence was moderately low, entity beliefs did predict this goal. The mastery-avoidance goal had no relationship with intrinsic motivation when perceived competence was high, but had a significant negative relationship when perceived competence was moderately low. Our findings highlight the importance of reexamining the role of perceived competence when studying implicit beliefs and the 2 x 2 achievement goals.     

Martial arts and socially vulnerable youth. An analysis of Flemish initiatives

Notwithstanding the lack of empirical support for its positive socio-psychological effects, numerous educators and welfare workers make use of martial arts in their work with socially vulnerable youth. Using qualitative methodology, the aims, approaches and personal experiences were analysed of teachers and co-ordinators involved in specific martial arts programmes (n=12) for disadvantaged youth in Flanders (Belgium). Results revealed that although all respondents were very positive with regard to the effects of their programmes on the youngsters they work with, most would not regard these as different from the effects resulting from regular participation in sport or other social activities. Martial arts were selected because of their specific attraction to youth. Findings also showed that great importance was attached to the type of guidance used.     

Cricket

In this study we analysed technique, ball speed and trunk injury data collected at the Australian Institute of Sport (AIS) from 42 high performance male fast bowlers over a four year period. We found several notable technique interrelationships, technique and ball speed relationships, and associations between technique and trunk injuries. A more front‐on shoulder alignment at back foot contact was significantly related to increased shoulder counter‐rotation (p < 0.001). Bowlers who released the ball at greater speeds had an extended front knee, or extended their front knee, during the front foot contact phase (p < 0.05). They also recorded higher braking and vertical impact forces during the front foot contact phase and developed those forces more rapidly (p ≤ 0.05). A maximum hip‐shoulder separation angle occurring later in the delivery stride (p = 0.05) and a larger shoulder rotation to ball release (p = 0.05) were also characteristics of faster bowlers. Bowlers suffering lower back injuries exhibited typical characteristics of the ‘mixed’ technique. Specifically, the hip to shoulder separation angle at back foot contact was greater in bowlers who reported soft tissue injuries than in non trunk‐injured bowlers (p = 0.03), and shoulder counter‐rotation was significantly higher in bowlers who reported lumbar spine stress fractures than non trunk‐injured bowlers (p = 0.01). The stress fracture group was also characterised by a larger hip angle at front foot contact and ball release, whereas a more flexed front knee at ball release characterised the non trunk‐injured group.     

Language planning for the 21st century: revisiting bilingual language policy for deaf children

For over 25 years in some countries and more recently in others, bilingual education involving sign language and the written/spoken vernacular has been considered an essential educational intervention for deaf children. With the recent growth in universal newborn hearing screening and technological advances such as digital hearing aids and cochlear implants, however, more deaf children than ever before have the potential for acquiring spoken language. As a result, the question arises as to the role of sign language and bilingual education for deaf children, particularly those who are very young. On the basis of recent research and fully recognizing the historical sensitivity of this issue, we suggest that language planning and language policy should be revisited in an effort to ensure that they are appropriate for the increasingly diverse population of deaf children.     

Cultural Approaches to Parenting

This article first introduces some main ideas behind culture and parenting and next addresses philosophical rationales and methodological considerations central to cultural approaches to parenting, including a brief account of a cross-cultural study of parenting. It then focuses on universals, specifics, and distinctions between form (behavior) and function (meaning) in parenting as embedded in culture. The article concludes by pointing to social policy implications as well as future directions prompted by a cultural approach to parenting.     

The BASES expert statement on emotion regulation in sport

Emotions experienced before and during sports competition have been found to influence sports performance. Emotion regulation is defined as the automatic or deliberate use of strategies to initiate, maintain, modify or display emotions (Gross & Thompson, 2007) and is proposed to occur when a discrepancy exists between current and desired emotions. Two distinct motivations to regulate emotion - hedonic and instrumental (in short, for pleasure or for purpose) - have been proposed (Tamir, 2009). The instrumental approach might provide a more fruitful area of investigation for sports researchers as some athletes hold beliefs that supposedly pleasant emotions such as happiness and calmness associate with poor performance and supposedly unpleasant emotions such as anxiety and anger associate with good performance (Hanin, 2010). Athletes are more likely to try to regulate an emotion if they believe that doing so will facilitate performance. Strategies that encourage re-appraisal of factors that trigger emotions are proposed to be preferable. In this British Association of Sport and Exercise Sciences (BASES) expert statement, a summary of the key theoretical issues are offered leading to evidence-based recommendations for practitioners and researchers.     

Social Characteristics of Belgian Primary Teachers in the Twentieth Century

It is often claimed, both in the literature and by public opinion, that the status of teachers has declined sharply compared with the situation in the past. This article takes a more detailed look at the complex phenomenon of the ‘status’ of teachers. It does so on the basis of seven variables which ‘operatiohalise’ the process of social approval: the level of feminisation of the teaching corps, its social background, education, legal position and salary, the degree to which control has been obtained over the profession and its degree of social integration. Although a certain loss of prestige has undeniably occurred in comparison with other professions, it is evident that the status issue is not as clear cut as sometimes implied. In the first place, several contradictory trends were detected amongst the factors studied, indicating that the process of status acquisition and/or loss has not developed in a uniform manner. Moreover, statements concerning the relative status of this particular professional group always have to be related to other professions, regarding which the necessary basic data is not always present. It is evident, nonetheless, that the old (and not always very realistic) image of the ‘schoolmaster’ or ‘mistress’ with a ‘noble vocation’ to fulfil has faded nowadays, without the new ideal of the ‘education specialist’ yet establishing itself in the social context.     

Persistent Reusable Java Virtual Machine unter z/OS und Linux

Zusammenfassung Die Nutzung von Java zur Entwicklung von Anwendungen für Hochleistungstransaktionssysteme stellt besondere Anforderungen an die Isolation und das Leistungsverhalten in der transaktionalen Ausführung. In dem vorliegenden Beitrag wird eine neuartige Technologie beschrieben, die verbesserte Isolationseigenschaften und eine erhebliche Leistungssteigerung erm?glicht. Die Persistent Reusable Java Virtual Machine erweitert eine normale Java Virtual Machine um gemeinsam genutzte Klassen und um eine Reset-Funktionalit?t, die eine serielle Wiederverwendbarkeit erm?glicht. In einer Benchmark-Untersuchung unter z/OS wurde hiermit ein Performance-Gewinn um einen Faktor 325 im Vergleich mit einer normalen JVM erreicht. Für das Erstellen von Transaktionsanwendungen unter dem Betriebssystem z/OS sind Enterprise Java Beans damit eine ernstzunehmende Alternative zu bisherigen Programmiermodellen.

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The use of Java for the development of new applications in high-end transaction systems generates special isolation and performance requirements. A new technology offering improved isolation and a significant performance improvement is discussed in this article. The Persistent Reusable Java Virtual Machine extends a regular Java Virtual Machine by adding the facility to share classes and by providing a reset functionality, which permits serial reuse of the JVM. A z/OS benchmark demonstrated a performance improvement by a factor of 325, compared to a regular JVM. Thus the use of Enterprise Java Beans has to be considered as a serious alternative when developing new transactional applications under the z/OS operating system.

     

Defining functional requirements for acquisitions records: Vendor metadata

Vendor records are one of the key components underpinning the acquisitions record in the integrated library system. Acquisitions and collection development practitioners increasingly need to record, access, and manipulate acquisitions vendor metadata for purposes not foreseen by the architects of current generation ILSs. The authors posit that vendor records can serve as an appropriate metaphor for the entire acquisitions record in the development of standards. The analysis of data elements and proposed grouping into fields, records, and metarecords suggests a direction for further development and enhanced functionality. The authors call on librarians, systems vendors, and materials vendors to engage in a dialog aimed at creating an accepted standard for vendor records that will meet the needs of all parties.     

Solving information-based problems: Evaluating sources and information

The focus of this special section is on the processes involved when solving information-based problems. Solving these problems requires from people that they are able to define the information problem, search and select usable and reliable sources and information and synthesise information into a coherent body of knowledge. An important aspect throughout the whole search process is the critical evaluation of sources and information. Evaluation processes are of particular importance when searching information on the Internet, because of the masses of information, and the open publication principle of the Internet. The articles in the present special section take different perspectives in studying the evaluation processes. Influencing factors such as students' domain-specific prior knowledge, metatextual knowledge, and students' epistemic beliefs are addressed.