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Family firms are a unique setting to study constructive conflict management due to the influence of family ties of the owning family imprinting a sense of common purpose and shared destiny, and high levels of trust. We study the relationship between shared vision and trust that intervene in the adoption of constructive conflict management. To achieve our purpose, we carried out a systematic indirect observation using a mixed methods approach. We used the narratives of 17 semi-structured interviews, audio-recorded and transcribed, of family and non-family managers or directors from five Spanish family firms in the siblings' partnership stage, combined with documentary data obtained from different sources. Intra- and inter-observer reliability were confirmed. Results show a dynamic relationship between shared vision and specific components of trust (benevolence and ability) at different levels of conflict management. We also provide evidence of specific processes of concurrence-seeking and open-mindedness in family and ownership forums accounting for the relevance of family governance in these type of organizations. Family firms are a sum of several subsystems which exhibit a particular resources configuration. This study sheds light on constructive conflict management in family firms opening interesting avenues for further research and offering practical implications to managers, owners, and advisors. ispartof: FRONTIERS IN PSYCHOLOGY vol:12 ispartof: location:Switzerland status: published

After-school programs (ASPs) might influence the activities and behaviors of children. The aim of the reported study was to investigate how stationary behavior unfolds during ASP time in a sample of Norwegian first graders. A total of 42 first graders from 14 ASPs were observed during one entire ASP day. ActiGraph accelerometers were used to measure the intensity of their physical activity (PA). Children were found to be involved in stationary behavior for 54.9% of the studied ASP time—a median of 79.5 min (IQR = 62.0). However, there was considerable variation among the children in the sample. Most stationary behavior—63.5% of all stationary behavior during ASP time—was accumulated when the children were sitting indoors. The proportion of stationary behavior was significantly higher indoors than outdoors, during adult-managed time than child-managed time, and during time spent together with other children than time spent alone (p &lt, 0.05). In child-managed physical activity play outdoors, stationary behavior commonly occurred during short periods of standing still. Stationary behavior was usually rapidly broken up by longer periods of PA. Stationary periods involved activities in close relationship with other children and appeared to be important for social interaction and friendship building. The researchers suggest that ASP staff members should actively promote physical activity play that breaks up sedentary time and replaces some stationary behaviors with PA, especially among the least active children.

This study examined the relationships among wisdom, cultural synergy (i.e., incorporating lessons learned from different cultures), and social change by re-analyzing 220 “wisdom incidents” (i.e., real-life displays of wisdom) collected from 1997 to 2003 from 66 Taiwanese adults nominated as wise individuals (Yang, 2008a). We addressed these questions empirically with a mixed-methods approach: (a) “What are the features of cultural synergy involved in the Taiwanese wisdom nominees’ narratives about their displays of wisdom?”; and (b) “How are real-life displays of wisdom related to cultural synergy and social change?” Wisdom is defined as a real-life process that entails three components: (a) cognitive integration—an individual incorporates separate or conflicting ideas to form an integrated idea; (b) embodying actions—the individual acts to implement the unified idea; and (c) positive effects for oneself and others—the individual's actions generate positive effects for the self and others. The 220 wisdom incidents were re-analyzed qualitatively by young Taiwanese for themes related to cultural synergy and lessons learned from culture; the incidents were re-evaluated quantitatively by young Taiwanese for indications of wisdom, cultural synergy, and social change. A model proposing relationships among wisdom, cultural synergy, and social change was then evaluated using path analysis. Results, which may be generalized to young Taiwanese, show that displays of wisdom had (a) a direct relationship with cultural synergy and social change; and (b) an indirect relationship with social change through cultural synergy. Findings suggest that what the Taiwanese wisdom nominees learned from both their own culture and other cultures is significantly related to cultural synergy which, in turn, is significantly related to promoting social change.

Personalized medicine (PM) to tailor healthcare (HC) to the individual, is a promising but challenging concept. So far, no study exists investigating stakeholders&rsquo, perspectives on PM in oncology in Austria potentially hindering implementation, which was the aim of this study. We performed semi-structured interviews among experts (n = 14) and cancer patients (n = 2) of the Vienna General Hospital and the Medical University of Vienna and analyzed them by a mixed methods network theoretical approach. Study results show a great variety of topics addressed by the interviewees. Clear differences in the topic selection between patients and experts could be observed. Patient-doctor relationship was the most prominent theme among experts, whereas HC systems and public health in PM was more relevant for the patients. Although promising new molecular pathology methods were explicitly mentioned, the experts believed that their practical implementation and the implementation of PM in standard care will take a long time in Austria. A variety of concerns regarding PM were mentioned by the experts, including communication issues and knowledge gaps. Besides important insights into the current situation of PM in Austria, the study has shown that network theory is a powerful tool for analyzing qualitative interview data.

Pig production in Germany is experiencing an increasing discrepancy between social attitudes, wishes and the reality. To investigate the actual perception and knowledge of fattening pig husbandry by German citizens, a mixed methods approach was carried out. First, six focus group discussions were conducted. Content analysis showed that space availability, fresh air supply and flooring type are particularly relevant in citizens&rsquo, perception, whereas surgical interventions on the animal are perceived less. Furthermore, preventive use of antibiotics is seen critically by the participants. Based on these results, an online survey with 399 respondents was conducted to quantify the results. Findings from the focus groups were confirmed: Lack of space as well as the perceived precautionary use of medication were seen most critically. Results are influenced by if respondents have visited a farm before, the dietary behavior and sex.

Communication represents the core of psychotherapy. The dynamic interaction between verbal and non-verbal components during patient-therapist exchanges, indeed, promotes the co-construction of meanings bringing about change within a process of reciprocal influence of participants. Our paper aims to illustrate the building of a new observational instrument of the therapeutic discourse, the Communicative Modes Analysis System in Psychotherapy (CMASP), and its reliability study from Mixed Methods framework. The CMASP is a single classification system analyzing the communication features within therapeutic exchanges. Born to overcome the limits of traditional psychotherapy research which considers verbal and non-verbal dimensions of communication as in polar opposition, the CMASP building was based on the performative function derived from the Speech Act Theory. We used this function as a comprehensive theorization to interpret the communication components in psychotherapy as an integrated and interacting system. In fact, the instrument detects and classifies, at the overall and dimension level, the verbal and extra-linguistic components of psychotherapeutic communication implemented by the therapist and patients in the form of communicative modes. From the observational methodology framework, it was built an instrument able to record and analyze verbal, vocal and interruption behaviors by combining elements of qualitative and quantitative research approaches. The sample consisted of 30 psychotherapy audio recordings and verbatim transcripts of psychotherapy sessions (for a total of 8327 speaking turns). Four main dimensions were elaborated (Verbal Mode-Structural Form, Verbal Mode-Communicative Intent, Vocal Mode, and Interruption Mode) according to the agency role of communication components. The instrument is a field format combined with category systems. For each dimension, we built a category system that is exhaustive and mutually exclusive. From all dimensions, we have a total of 33 categories. Intra-and inter-judge reliability among four independent judges was computed on a total of 503 speaking turns coded through Cohen's κ and Krippendorff's canonical agreement coefficients (Cc), respectively. The CMASP showed high intra-and inter-judge agreement at the global, dimensional, and categorical level providing researchers and professionals with a single and flexible classification system, able to give multiple and concurrent information about the psychotherapy process.

Background A broad range of psychopathological sequelae was found in adult survivors of institutional childhood maltreatment (IM). Childhood maltreatment is also associated with lower self–esteem (SE). In previous qualitative research, adult survivors of IM reported feelings of worthlessness and self-doubts, but research on IM and its associations with SE is still scarce. Method To investigate the emotional facet of SE in 46 adult survivors of IM in foster care settings provided by the City of Vienna we used the Emotional SE subscale of the Multidimensional Self-Esteem Scale (‘Multidimensionale Selbstwertskala’, MSWS) and applied a semi-structured interview with open-ended questions. Qualitative data were analyzed with thematic analysis. Finally, qualitative and quantitative data were merged in a mixed method approach to detect similarities and differences between both assessment modalities. Results Findings showed a significantly lower emotional SE level (MSWS) in adult survivors compared to a norm sample. Qualitative findings revealed five main themes reporting positive and negative emotions and attitudes towards oneself. Merged data showed a tendency of more positive attitudes and emotions within participants with higher emotional SE levels and more negative attitudes within participants with lower levels. No gender differences were found in both data sets. Conclusions IM seems to predict lower emotional SE. Observed qualitative aspects of emotional SE seem to concur with symptoms of disturbances in self-organization (DSO) that are typically present in persons suffering from Complex PTSD. Considering emotional SE in future research could facilitate the understanding of the sequelae of complex trauma.

Assessment is a curricular component that branches out and reaches virtually every aspect of a course. Over time, assessments seem to have lost their wide response characteristics, becoming restricted to measure the amount of knowledge retained by the students. Faced with the scenario of clear expansion of knowledge, it is widely recommended to develop more instructional methods of evaluation, emphasizing the development of skills such as problem solving and critical argumentation. Objective: This study aimed to verify if the use of small groups’ assessment constitute an instrument of instruction as well as of evaluation, which would help the students to learn more solidly and efficiently. Procedures: Seven written tests were applied during an introductory Biochemistry course, one at each end of a module. Students first answer the test individually and then answer the same test in small groups (4-5 students), giving one response per group. Results were treated by Mixed Methods Analysis . Qualitative data were collected through questionnaires and semi-structured interviews; quantitative data were obtained analyzing individual and groups tests performances. Results and discussion: 72,2% of the students (n = 75-159) consider the double assessment procedure an instructional process; 63,7% believe there are benefits with the use of these assessments for Biochemistry learning. Comparing individual and group performances, 71,8% of students who had low individual performance benefit from group assessment. This result gets clear when we consider the student’s average performance in the individual and group assessments: 94,1% of the students improve their grades. In other words, on average the group’s grade is higher than any individual’s grade. Additionally, the questionnaires patterns were confirmed by the interviews analysis. Conclusion: The overall results show that the groups’ assessments can be considered as a good instructional feature, increasing the student’s performance and improving their abilities in problem solving and critical argumentation.

A review of: Forbes, Dorothy, Christine Neilson, Janet Bangma, Jennifer Forbes, Daniel Fuller, and Shari Furniss. “Saskatchewan Residents’ Use of The Cochrane Library.” Partnership: the Canadian Journal of Library and Information Practice and Research 2.2 (2007). Objective – To evaluate the use of The Cochrane Library by librarians, health care providers and consumers in the Canadian province of Saskatchewan. Design – Volunteer telephone interviews and surveys of training participants at multiple time points; usage statistics. Setting – Saskatchewan. Subjects – Ninety-four volunteers participated in the study. Participants were self-selected from approximately 300 health practitioners and 100 public library staff attending training sessions, located primarily in rural areas. The majority of public library staff who attended training sessions were not professional librarians, although 31.5% of the study participants were librarians. Nurses made up the next largest group (16.3%), followed by therapists (7.6%), library support staff (5.4%), pharmacists (4.3%), physicians (3.3%), other health care providers (20.7%), and other (9.8%). Most were 40-65 years of age (71.6%) and female (92.4%). Methods – Forty-six training sessions were provided upon request between October 2004 and December 2006. Attendees were invited to participate in the study. Telephone interviews were conducted at three, six, nine, and twelve months following training sessions. Demographic information and data on the use of and satisfaction with The Cochrane Library were collected. Additionally, monthly statistics were tracked by Wiley-Blackwell for user sessions, number of searches, and the number of full-text articles and abstracts visited. Main Results – Telephone interviews revealed that 65.2% of participants had accessed The Cochrane Library at three months; 64.2% had at six months. At nine months access dropped to 45.2%. At twelve months only 27.4% of participants reported using the resource. Of those who used The Cochrane Library, 16.4% reported at the three-month interview that it was not helpful. This number decreased at six months (11.6%), nine months (7.7%) and twelve months (11.8%). 57.5% of respondents claimed to have learned something from The Cochrane Library, although a few (11.1%) reported that the information found had no impact. Others reported that the knowledge gained confirmed their beliefs (26.1%) and/or helped in decision-making (32.6%). No time points were reported for the data collected about the use and helpfulness of information found in The Cochrane Library. Three-year data from Wiley-Blackwell showed that The Cochrane Database of Systematic Reviews was most frequently accessed (abstracts=26,016; full texts=15,934). The Cochrane Central Register was accessed 5,640 times and Database of Abstracts of Reviews of Effects was accessed 1,612 times. Periods of low usage corresponded with summer and Christmas breaks. The type of search strategy used was tracked; the authors note that an emphasis on MeSH during training between October 2004 and December 2006 corresponded with the higher number of MeSH searches during the same time period. Participants reported using The Cochrane Library in response to patron requests, to prepare educational materials, and to support health care policy and practice changes. Reasons for not using The Cochrane Library included lack of time, limited access to the Internet, forgetting how to find and use the Web site, and disappointment with the content. Conclusion – Since the fall of 2004, The Cochrane Library has been promoted and made available free of charge to all Saskatchewan residents. Usage fluctuates during the year, with less use during the summer and winter holidays; it is reasonable to presume that students use The Cochrane Library during the academic school year. Most telephone interviewees who used The Cochrane Library reported that it was somewhat to very helpful; this number increased slightly over time while the number of respondents who used the resource fell measurably over twelve months. In other words, those who continued to use The Cochrane Library over time were more likely to report a higher level of satisfaction with the resource. Interviews indicated how librarians used The Cochrane Library, why they do or do not use the resource, and their level of satisfaction. The study revealed less about how others, such as practitioners or consumers, use the resource. Based on the limits of the telephone interviews, follow-up studies should try to capture more detailed usage data to describe the attributes of those who do and do not use The Cochrane Library. The authors note that additional data collected through online surveys or the Wiley-Blackwell website could help determine how to sustain use of the resource.

There is strong evidence of failure to translate research findings into the health care decision-making process of consumers, practitioners and policy makers (Grimshaw, 2007). Recognizing that The Cochrane Database of Systematic Reviews contained in The Cochrane Library (the Library) are the “gold standard” of systematic reviews, Saskatchewan’s Health Quality Council provided funding for a provincial license and an evaluation study. In July 2004, Saskatchewan became the first province in Canada to provide all residents with access to the Library. The primary aim of the study was to enhance and evaluate the use of the Library over three years. Since September 2004, over 46 training sessions have been conducted on searching the Library online databases. Attendees at the workshops were informed of the evaluation study and invited to participate. Those who consented to participate were telephoned following the workshops and audio-taped interviews were conducted. Usage of the Library was also tracked using data available from Wiley InterScience. Three month (n=94), six month (n=71), nine month (n=79), and 12 month (n=72) telephone interviews were conducted. Most participants were librarians (n=31.5%), followed by nurses (16.3%), therapists (7.6%), library support staff (5.4%), pharmacists (4.3%), physicians (3.3%), and others (30.5). Most were between 40 to 65 years of age (71.6%) and female (92.4%). Most respondents had accessed the Library at the three-month (65.2%) and six-month (64.2%) follow-up interviews. However, this percent fell to 45.2% at the nine-month and 27.4% at the twelve-month interview. MeSH searches were more frequent than standard keyword searches and HTML full text retrievals were more common than PDF versions. It is assumed that HTML versions were scanned for particular information whereas PDF versions were selected when the person wished to save and read the whole review. Librarians, practitioners and consumers are more likely to be scanning a review for specific information whereas students and researchers may wish to save and read the whole review. At the three-month interview, 16.4% did not find the Library helpful. However, this percent decreased to 11.6% by the six-month, 7.7% in the nine-month and 11.8% in the twelve-month interview. Most respondents (57.5%) claimed to have learned something from the Library; others reported that the knowledge gained helped in their decision-making (32.6%) or confirmed their beliefs (26.1%). Respondents’ primary reason for accessing the Library was in response to patron requests for information on medications, herbal therapies, lifestyle modifications, injury prevention, assessments, and treatments related to chronic conditions such as diabetes, heart condition, cancer, and arthritis. Information was used to support changes in health care practice and policy and for the preparation of educational papers, handouts, and presentations. The primary reasons for not using the Library were lack of time, limited access to an internet ready computer in the work setting, reliance on dial-up internet in some rural areas, forgetting how to find and navigate the website, and being disappointed with information available in the Library. The plain language summaries were well received, however, some felt the sophisticated language and length of the reviews were more appropriate for researchers and healthcare providers than the general public. Understanding the frequency of use and reasons why and why not consumers, practitioners, and policy makers access the Library will assist in meeting their needs and promoting the use of the Library. Only when health care providers and consumers use the best available research evidence will improvements be made in health outcomes.