Investigating the theoretical structure of the DAS‐II core battery at school age using Bayesian structural equation modeling

Bayesian structural equation modeling (BSEM) was used to investigate the latent structure of the Differential Ability Scales—Second Edition core battery using the standardization sample normative data for ages 7–17. Results revealed plausibility of a three‐factor model, consistent with publisher theory, expressed as either a higher‐order (HO) or a bifactor (BF) model. The results also revealed an alternative structure with the best model fit, a two‐factor BF model with Matrices (MA) and Sequential and Quantitative Reasoning (SQ) loading on g only with no respective group factor loading. This was only the second study to use BSEM to investigate the structure of a commercial ability test and the first to use a large normative sample and the specification of both approximate zero cross‐loadings and correlated residual terms. It is believed that the results produced from the current study will advance the field's understanding of not only the factor structure of the DAS‐II core battery but also the potential utility of BSEM in psychometric investigations of intelligence test structures.     

Student psychological distress and degree dropout or completion: a discrete-time,competing risks survival analysis

Studies of psychological distress (PD) in university students have shown that they have high prevalence rates. These findings have raised concerns that PD may be leading to poorer student outcomes, such as elevated dropout rates. The aim of this study was to examine the association of PD in undergraduate university students with the competing risks of degree dropout or completion. It analysed data from the Household Income and Labour Dynamics in Australia (HILDA) survey. The sample comprised 1265 university students. PD (i.e., probable depression and/or anxiety) was measured with a validated cut-off score of ≤65 on the 5-item Mental Health Inventory (MHI-5) from the Short Form 36 (SF-36). The study used an accelerated longitudinal design with student year of study as the metric of time and estimated dynamic discrete-time, competing risks survival models. Contrary to expectations, the study found that students with PD had lower odds of degree dropout and higher odds of degree completion than students without PD in year 4 of their degrees. This study contributes to the empirical literature on university student mental health by showing that, while PD can be debilitating and negatively affect students’ general educational experience, it is not as harmful to academic progress as might be assumed.     

Revise the ICMJE Recommendations regarding authorship responsibility!

Key points

• A clear set of rules regarding authorship responsibilities in academic publications is much needed.
• The leading research integrity guidelines on scientific authorship, the International Committee of Medical Journal Editors Recommendations, are unclear about authorship responsibilities in case of misconduct.
• The source of the problem is the fourth authorship criterion – it should be revised.

     

Preschool twin study of the relation between attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder and prereading skills

Numerous studies have examined the etiology of the association between reading difficulties and attention-deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) in school-age children, but little is known about the relation between prereading skills and ADHD behaviors prior to the beginning of formal reading instruction. A population-based sample of 809 pairs of preschool twins completed an extensive battery of prereading measures, and the parent of each twin completed an ADHD rating scale. Phenotypic analyses revealed small but significant correlations between DSM-IV inattention ratings and six prereading composite measures, whereas hyperactivity–impulsivity symptoms were not independently associated with any of the prereading scores. Multivariate twin analyses indicated that virtually all of the phenotypic correlation between inattention and prereading performance is attributable to common genetic influences, consistent with results obtained in studies of older twins. Although additional research is needed to test alternative causal models in children younger than five years old, these results are most consistent with the hypothesis that reading difficulties and inattention symptoms are attributable to common genetic influences.     

Preservice mathematics teachers’ beliefs about peer feedback,perceptions of their peer feedback message,and emotions as predictors of peer feedback accuracy and comprehension of the learning task

Peer feedback is increasingly used to train assessment skills in teacher-training programs. However, studies investigating the roles of peer feedback providers’ beliefs about peer feedback provision, their perceptions of their peer feedback message and their experienced emotions are still limited. This study aimed to explore how peer feedback accuracy and providers’ comprehension of the learning task were related to these characteristics. Analysis of peer feedback provided by 53 preservice mathematics teachers revealed that peer feedback accuracy was predicted by cognitive-verification, cognitive elaboration and self-efficacy types of peer feedback. Providers’ perceptions of their peer feedback message and anxiety also predicted peer feedback accuracy. No evidence was found that peer feedback related beliefs and perceptions predicted providers’ comprehension of the learning task.     

The Impact of Explicit Teaching of Methodological Aspects of Physics on Scientistic Beliefs and Interest

We assessed the impact of teaching methodological aspects of physics on students’ scientistic beliefs and subject interest in physics in a repeated-measurement design with a total of 142 students of upper secondary physics classes. Students gained knowledge of methodological aspects from the pre-test to the post-test and reported reduced scientistic beliefs, both from their own views and from their presumed prototypical physicists’ views. We found no direct impact of teaching on students’ subject interest in physics. As path analysis indicates, this result can be traced back to opposing paths: Lower scientistic beliefs of students attenuate subject interest while lower presumed scientistic beliefs that they hold of physicists foster subject interest. This finding is in accordance with the self-to-prototype matching theory that predicts an impact of the overlap between students’ self-image and their prototypical image on subject interest in physics.     

Kinetics of elite unilateral below-elbow amputee running

The role of the upper limbs in human locomotion and their influence on ground reaction force (GRF) have been extensively examined for walking and slow running. However, research has focused on unimpaired populations and has not evaluated high-speed running. In this study, the GRFs of an unilateral upper limb amputee athlete [missing right forearm, personal bests (PB): 400 m: 0:48.45 min, 800 m: 1:50.92 min] running at speeds of 5.4 and 8 m/s were collected using four floor-mounted force plates in a 100 m tartan track recording at 1000 Hz. The amputee athlete also performed trials with a running speed of 8 m/s wearing a weighted cuff on his impaired arm (0.5 and 1 kg, respectively). GRF data (without additional weight) were compared to those of an unimpaired athlete with similar PBs and anthropometry (age, height, weight). All data were evaluated for anterior–posterior, medial–lateral and vertical GRF as well as for stance phase (SP) duration and free moment (FM) values and a paired Student-t test (\(\alpha =5\) %) was performed on maximum and minimum values of the respective data sets comparing the left and right side of both athletes with each other, but no intersubjective comparisons were performed. The results revealed that vertical GRF showed significant differences for the impaired athlete at both running speeds comparing left and right foot, whereas the unimpaired athlete showed no significant differences in this matter at all. Medial–lateral GRF showed highly significant differences between the left and right foot of both athletes at both running speeds, whereas the results for anterior–posterior GRF and FM, however, showed ambiguous results. The trials with additional weight on the impaired limb led to significant differences for SP duration, but not for all conditions, and left–right differences did not change with additional weight. GRFs were found to differ in minimum medial–lateral GRF with no and heavy weight, maximum medial–lateral GRF within all weight conditions and maximum vertical GRF with no and heavy weight. For the FM, the overall pattern changed drastically and maximum FM showed a highly significant difference between the left and right foot, but none between the different conditions for both feet. Even though more significant asymmetries could be revealed for the impaired athlete, no general conclusion can be drawn at this point, given the limitations of the here presented study (low number of subjects available, anthropometric data of the impaired athlete could not be assessed).     

Theoretical framework and empirical evidence of students' cognitive processes in three dimensions of content,complexity, and time

In the literature, learners' cognitive development is mainly discussed with respect to changes in learners' content‐dependent knowledge (conceptual change or growth). Additional dimensions of time and complexity may also be taken into account to describe cognitive processes in at least three dimensions. We discuss these three dimensions of content, complexity, and time theoretically and show empirically what results can be found with such a framework. The primary database consists of 27 students who worked in groups of three on physics tasks during three sessions in an experimental setting. All activities were videotaped and analyzed in great detail. Results indicate that students' meanings always refer to a narrow area of content, are developed bottom‐up with respect to complexity, and show time‐dependent dynamics in which maxima of 30 seconds and 5 minutes are important time scales. Comparison with outcomes of additional experimental settings on the same topic with more and less advanced students indicate the results to have a greater validity. © 2003 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. J Res Sci Teach 40: 616–648, 2003     

Training Interventions to Foster Skill and Will of Argumentative Thinking

Argumentative thinking requires not only the skill to apply argumentative strategies such as supporting theories with evidence but also the will to apply these strategies by considering argumentative thinking to be both reasonable and worthwhile. Focusing on direct instruction for the initial acquisition of both skill and will, we developed a new short-term computer-based training intervention. We tested its effects on learning processes and learning outcomes in an experimental study with 147 German high school students. Our intervention fostered facets of both skill (i.e. a declarative knowledge about argumentation) and will (i.e., epistemic orientation, intellectual values, and epistemic knowledge). We gained additional insights into learning mechanisms, such as the mediating effects of the learners' self-explanation activities and the advantage of addressing will before skill.