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The article presents a study which examined the measurement properties of the fine motor scale of the Peabody Development Motor Scales-Second Edition in children through Rasch analysis. It involved a total of 419 children from Taiwan, wherein each of them was evaluated with the Peabody Development Motor Scales-Second Edition. Moreover, the Rasch analysis investigated the rating scale performance of the Peabody Development Motor Scales-Second Edition and found that the latter should be explored thoroughly.

The article provides information on the study concerning the dysexecutive function and cognitive capacities of patients in Great Britain. Significant differences between proxy and patient reports are routinely held as rima facie evidence of dysexecutive function, a crucial indicator of the generally poor rehabilitation prospects for the patients.

Outcome-based education (OBE) is a current initiative in Hong Kong universities, with widespread backing by governments and standards bodies. However, study of students’ perceptions of OBE and validation of understanding these perceptions are lacking. This paper reports on the validation of an OBE-specific instrument and resulting preliminary findings. Instrument responses (n = 89) were analysed using Rasch and exploratory/confirmatory factor analyses. Both approaches identified two dimensions (i.e. evaluation and comparison). Challenges and modifications to the instrument items and their relationships to constructs are discussed. Preliminary findings suggest students did not perceive significant differences between OBE and traditionally organised courses. Lack of explicit discussion of OBE with the students may have denied students the ability to make fully informed evaluations of OBE innovations. Implications for instrument validation and evaluation of initiatives in an OBE context are discussed as is the broader issue of transparency in teacher education curriculum design and implementation. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Aim. Our paper presents an instrument for recognising the psychological problems of caregivers: the short form of a previously validated questionnaire, the Family Strain Questionnaire. Background. Individuals caring for chronic patients frequently suffer from psychological problems, which are underestimated by medical professionals and, consequently, are not adequately treated. Therefore, clinical nurses, general practitioners and the members of home care teams have to recognise the psychological problems of caregivers. To do so, they need to quickly measure the problem’s severity quickly and track it over time, without a specific training in psychological diagnosis. Design. Survey. Method. Principal caregivers ( n = 811) completed the Family Strain Questionnaire in its original form (semi-structured interview plus 44 dichotomous items, administrable in about 20 minutes), aimed at investigating the subjective perception of emotional burden, problems in social involvement, the need for more information about the disease, satisfaction with family relationships and thoughts about death. Data were analysed using the Rasch model for the reduction of items. Thirty items were selected and reanalysed in a new sample of 40 caregivers. Results. The thirty items selected showed very good fit statistics and maintained the diagnostic qualities of the original form. They thus compose the Family Strain Questionnaire - Short Form that caregivers can complete in about five minutes. This brief measure can indicate the severity of stress and allows categorisation of caregivers by psychological risk, which is also represented by a graphic tool. Conclusion. This study confirms that the Family Strain Questionnaire – Short Form offers an initial measure of caregivers’ psychological status, regardless of the patient’s disease and allows professionals to monitor it over time with a rapid and effective instrument. Relevance to clinical practice. Clinical nurses, general practitioners and homecare teams should find the Family Strain Questionnaire – Short Form useful for assessing caregiving strain. The instrument is quick and easy to use and does not require any sophisticated psychological training. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Customary forms of resource management, such as taboos, have received considerable attention as a potential basis for conservation initiatives in the Indo-Pacific. Yet little is known about how socioeconomic factors influence the ability of communities to use customary management practices and whether socioeconomic transformations within communities will weaken conservation initiatives with a customary foundation. We used a comparative approach to examine how socioeconomic factors may influence whether communities use customary fisheries management in Papua New Guinea. We examined levels of material wealth (modernization), dependence on marine resources, population, and distance to market in 15 coastal communities. We compared these socioeconomic conditions in 5 communities that used a customary method of closing their fishing ground with 10 communities that did not use this type of management. There were apparent threshold levels of dependence on marine resources, modernization, distance to markets (<16.5 km), and population (>600 people) beyond which communities did not use customary fisheries closures. Nevertheless, economic inequality, rather than mean modernization levels seemed to influence the use of closures. Our results suggest that customary management institutions are not resilient to factors such as population growth and economic modernization. If customary management is to be used as a basis for modern conservation initiatives, cross-scale institutional arrangements such as networks and bridging organizations may be required to help filter the impacts of socioeconomic transformations. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]