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Modern organizations need to adapt quickly to on-going changes. The present study sought to examine employees' agility during periods of sudden, unplanned, and during periods of planned change. It was investigated to what extent one's trust in the organization and resistance to change could predict proactive agility and adaptive agility. Data came from employees (N = 188) in two different organizations, one undergoing an unplanned change and one undergoing a planned change. In both contexts, organizational trust had a negative relationship with resistance to change. In an unplanned change context (organization one), trust of employees in the organization had a positive effect on the adaptive component of agility through the (negative) mediation by affective resistance to change. In this context, trust did not have any (mediated) effect on the proactive component of agility. In contrast, in a planned change context (organization two), trust had a positive effect on the proactive component of agility, partially through the (negative) mediation by resistance to change. In this context, trust also had a positive effect on the adaptive component of agility, partially through the (negative) mediation by resistance to change. These results imply that trust works in different ways depending on the type of change. More trust through less resistance implies better adaptation during unplanned organizational change. More trust works directly and partially through less resistance to change to enhance employee proactivity and adaptability during planned change.

Samenvatting McCarthy et al. (2010) en Sacco et al. (2003) vonden geen effect van demografische gelijkenis tussen beoordelaar en kandidaat op beoordelingen van het selectie-interview. Beide studies onderzochten hierarchisch lineaire modellen (HLM). Gebruikmakend van eenzelfde HLM-procedure is binnen het huidige onderzoek nagegaan wat het effect is van gelijkenis op scores die gegeven zijn aan cultureel diverse kandidaten tijdens de selectie van politieagenten op een ander veelgebruikt instrument, namelijk het assessment center (AC). Meer specifiek onderzochten we het similar-to-me-effect van demografische gelijkenis (d.w.z. culturele gelijkenis van de beoordelaar ten aanzien van de kandidaat) en van waargenomen gelijkenis (d.w.z. gelijkenis ten aanzien van specifieke culturele groepen, zoals waargenomen door individuele beoordelaars) op scores op het AC. Demografisch similar-to-me bleek gerelateerd te zijn aan Agency-scores van autochtoon Nederlandse kandidaten en kandidaten met een migratieachtergrond, maar niet aan Communion-scores. Waargenomen similar-to-me had geen effect op de beoordelingen van het AC (d.w.z. Agency en Communion). In zijn algemeenheid bleken de effectgrootten erg klein (R2 < .015). Derhalve kan worden geconcludeerd dat we geen bewijs vonden voor een differentieel effect van gelijkenis op de beoordeling van het AC van cultureel diverse kandidaten, wat bevindingen van McCarthy et al. en Sacco et al. repliceert en uitbreidt.

The purpose of the study reported here was to observe the effects of examination practices on the extent to which university students procrastinate. These examination practices were: (1) limiting the number of resits, (2) compensatory rather than conjunctive decision-making about student progress, and (3) restricting the time available for completing the first bachelor year. Study success in the first academic year (successful completion within one year, delay, or dropout) of 12,432 students entering a Dutch university before the introduction of the new examination practices was compared with that of 17,036 students admitted after its introduction. After the implementation of the new examination practices successful completion increased with 23% and delay decreased with 25%. The data were collected using an interrupted time series design. Three attempts were made to deal with possible threats to its internal validity. (1) Potential confounding variables were demonstrated not to play a role in explaining the effect of the new examination practices. (2) Interrupted time series regression demonstrated that the intervention, not other changes over time, contributed to study success. And (3), extraneous events interfering with the effect of the intervention were shown to be unlikely. In conclusion, the study presented here is the first to demonstrate the effect of examination rules on study delay. The findings indicate that delays, as usually observed in higher education, are not necessarily the result of lack of ability. Nor are they necessarily the effect of some inherent personality disorder.

In higher education, many students do not complete their studies within the term allotted. A Dutch university implemented an intervention aimed to reduce this form of academic procrastination. The intervention consisted of three measures: (1) requiring students to acquire all first-year credits within their first year in university, (2) reducing the number of resits, and (3) introducing compensation opportunities for insufficient grades. In this study, we investigated which groups of students (if any) benefited most from this intervention. We divided 29,629 students entering the university between 2009 and 2015 into subgroups based on their gender, ethnic background, and level of achievement during pre-university education. For each subgroup, we determined both first-year completion and three-year bachelor graduation rates, both before and after the introduction of the intervention. It was demonstrated that almost all subgroups profited from the intervention. Particularly students from subgroups that in the past performed less well showed much better first-year completion rates and much lower study delay rates. Dropout rates did not change significantly. For most subgroups, an effect of the intervention was still visible after three years: Three-year graduation rates were higher, although the effect was smaller than completion rates in the first academic year.

textabstractThe fast-paced and changeable nature of contemporary society results in organizations that increasingly need to train their employees to become more energetic, flexible, and adaptable: the so called “agile” employees. This study used personal development portfolios including frequent feedback interviews (with mentors and peers) over 2.5 years to assist 32 employees working in an organization undergoing change to become more agile. A portfolio implies setting agility goals, recording and assessing progress in one's agility. Data were collected on employees' agility, and were related to their portfolio. Results showed that the portfolio use significantly increased employees' agility and significantly enhanced the agreement between self-rated and other-rated agility. Findings favor the use of development portfolios by organizations in improving agility among their employees. Therefore, this study gives tools for the practice of Human Resources Development (HRD).

American and European societies' (ATS/ERS) criteria for spirometry are often not met in primary care. Yet, it is unknown if quality is sufficient for daily clinical use. We evaluated quality of spirometry in primary care based on clinical usefulness, meeting ATS/ERS criteria and agreement on diagnosis between general practitioners (GPs) and pulmonologists. GPs included ten consecutive spirometry tests and detailed history questionnaires of patients who underwent spirometry as part of usual care. GPs and two pulmonologists assessed the spirometry tests and questionnaires on clinical usefulness and formulated a diagnosis. In total, 149 participants covering 15 GPs were included. Low agreements were found on diagnosis between GPs and pulmonologists 1 (κ = 0.39) and 2 (κ = 0.44). GPs and pulmonologists rated >88% of the tests as clinically useful, although 13% met ATS/ERS criteria. This real-life study demonstrated that clinical usefulness of routine primary care spirometry tests was high, although agreement on diagnosis was low. ispartof: NPJ PRIMARY CARE RESPIRATORY MEDICINE vol:30 issue:1 ispartof: location:England status: published

Background Insight in the influence of intelligence on the mastery of communication skills is important for improving the microcounselling method, an effective training programme for acquiring these skills. Method Participants were 323 bachelor psychology students. The participants׳ level of verbal, spatial and numerical intelligence was determined. Participants followed either a course in basic skills or a course in advanced skills. Their level of mastery of these skills was assessed with a video test. Results Both training programmes proved to be effective in training communication skills. As expected, numerical and spatial intelligence were no significant predictors for the mastery of these skills. Verbal intelligence did matter for the mastery of basic communication skills, but only when students are not acquainted with the use of these skills. Discussion Students profit from training these skills, regardless of their intelligence level.

In this study, a mixed-method design was employed to investigate the association between a student-centred, problem-based learning (PBL) method and law students’ motivation. Self-determination theory (SDT) states that autonomous motivation, which is associated with higher academic performance, can be reached when there is fulfillment of three psychological needs: autonomy, competence and relatedness. PBL aims to trigger autonomous motivation. In Study 1, 85 PBL law students (37% male; Mean age = 21.99 years) and 69 law students of a lecture-based, non-PBL program (39% male; Mean age = 22.72 years) filled out the Self-Regulation Questionnaire and an adapted version of the Work-related Basic Need Satisfaction Scale in order to measure autonomous and controlled motivation and perceived autonomy, competence and relatedness. In order to compare both groups, two MANOVAs were conducted and results showed differences neither in autonomous and controlled motivation, nor in feelings of autonomy and competence. However, PBL students experienced more relatedness. Additionally, in Study 2, focus-group discussions that were conducted indicated that PBL contains both autonomy-supportive and controlling elements, which might explain why no differences were found in perceptions of autonomy and autonomous and controlled motivation between PBL and non-PBL students. Furthermore, students reported that tutorial groups in PBL contributed to feelings of relatedness.

Resume Introduction Cet article rapporte les donnees francaises de l’enquete Continuing to confront COPD (C2C) menee en 2013 dans 12 pays. Son objectif etait de decrire les caracteristiques, symptomes et impact global de la bronchopneumopathie chronique obstructive (BPCO) sur l’etat de sante, les activites quotidiennes et professionnelles chez des adultes rapportant soit un diagnostic de BPCO, d’emphyseme ou de bronchite chronique, soit des symptomes de bronchite chronique, presents ou pour lesquels ils etaient traites (« repondants BPCO »). Methodes Des adultes âges de 40 ans ou plus ont ete selectionnes selon une enquete telephonique a composition aleatoire. Les repondants BPCO etaient invites a completer l’enquete. Resultats La proportion de repondants BPCO a ete estimee a 7,5 %. Parmi 300 repondants BPCO, 48 % etaient des hommes, 44 % âges de plus de 70 ans, 45 % en surpoids et 72 % avaient des antecedents de tabagisme. La BPCO avait un impact severe/tres severe (COPD assessement test > 20) sur la sante pour 43 % ; 70 % rapportaient une dyspnee (mMRC ≥ 1) et 65 % une limitation dans plus de 20 % de leurs activites quotidiennes. Le nombre moyen d’exacerbations etait de 2/an et 16 % des patients avaient ete hospitalises pour motif respiratoire dans l’annee ecoulee. Pourtant, 80 % consideraient leur maladie moderement severe. Conclusion L’impact de la BPCO reste sous-estime malgre un retentissement important en termes de symptomes, d’etat de sante et d’exacerbations.

In educational theory, deep processing (i.e., connecting different study topics together) and self-regulation (i.e., taking control over one’s own learning process) are considered effective learning strategies. These learning strategies can be influenced by the learning environment. Problem-based learning (PBL), a student-centered educational method, is believed to stimulate the use of these effective learning strategies. Several aspects of PBL such as discussions of real-life problems, selecting literature by the students themselves, and formulating answers to learning issues encourage students’ use of deep processing and self-regulation. In the present study, third-year PBL law students were compared to third-year law students of a lecture-based program with respect to their learning strategies, which were measured with the Inventory Learning Styles (ILS; Vermunt in British Journal of Educational Psychology, 68, 149–171, 1998). In addition, the relation between time invested in self-study and learning strategies, when taking the instructional method into account, was explored. Results showed that PBL students reported to apply deep processing, self-regulation, and external regulation more frequently than their non-PBL counterparts. PBL seems to contribute to the use of effective learning strategies, but PBL students also relied more often on external sources for their regulation, such as teachers, course material, and assessment.

Background: Problem-based learning (PBL) and distance education (DE) have been combined as educational approaches in higher education. This combination has been called distributed PBL. In health professions education it has been called online PBL (OPBL). However, more research on the effectiveness of OPBL is needed. The present study aims at evaluating the effectiveness of an OPBL curriculum for training family medical doctors in Brazil. Methods: We used a pretest–posttest control group design in this study. Thirty family physician participants were non-randomly assigned to the experimental group and the same number to the control group. Three instruments for collecting data were used: A multiple choice question knowledge test, an Objective Structural Clinical Examination (OSCE) for assessing the ability to apply the Mini Mental State Exam (MMSE) and a test based on clinical cases for assessing the ability to make an adequate differential diagnosis of dementia. Multivariate Analysis of Variance (MANOVA) and univariate tests were conducted to see if the difference between the two groups was significant. The effect size was measured by Cohen's d. Results: A total of 50 participants completed the study. The results show significant effects of the course on participants' knowledge and diagnostic skills. Discussion: The results may indicate that innovative pedagogical approaches such as PBL can be effective in an online environment in a low-resources context, with the advantages of DE approach.

Background The Minimal Clinically Important Difference (MCID) assesses what change on a measurement tool can be considered minimal clinically relevant. Although the recall period can influence questionnaire scores, it is unclear if it influences the MCID. This study is the first to examine longitudinally the impact of the recall period of an anchor question and its design on the MCID of COPD health status tools using the COPD Assessment Test (CAT), Clinical COPD Questionnaire (CCQ) and the St. George’s Respiratory Questionnaire (SGRQ). Methods Moderate to very severe COPD patients without respiratory co-morbidities were recruited during 3-week Pulmonary Rehabilitation (PR). CAT, CCQ and SGRQ were completed at baseline, discharge, 3, 6, 9 and 12 months. A 15-point Global Rating of Change scale (GRC) was completed at each follow-up. A five-point GRC was used as second anchor at 12 months. Mean change scores of a subset of patients indicating a minimal improvement on each of the anchor questions were considered the MCID. The MCID estimates over different time periods were compared with one another by evaluating the degree of overlap of Confidence Intervals (CI) adjusted for dependency. Results In total 451 patients were included (57.9 ± 6.6 years, 65% male, 50/39/11% GOLD II/III/IV), of which 309 completed follow-up. Baseline health status scores were 20.2 ± 7.3 (CAT), 2.9 ± 1.2 (CCQ) and 50.7 ± 17.3 (SGRQ). MCID estimates for improvement ranged − 3.1 to − 1.4 for CAT, − 0.6 to − 0.3 for CCQ, and − 10.3 to − 7.6 for SGRQ. Absolute higher – though not significant – MCIDs were observed for CAT and CCQ directly after PR. Significantly absolute lower MCID estimates were observed for CAT (difference − 1.4: CI -2.3 to − 0.5) and CCQ (difference − 0.2: CI -0.3 to −0.1) using a five-point GRC. Conclusions The recall period of a 15-point anchor question seemed to have limited impact on the MCID for improvement of CAT, CCQ and SGRQ during PR; although a 3-week MCID estimate directly after PR might lead to absolute higher values. However, the design of the anchor question was likely to influence the MCID of CAT and CCQ. Trial registration RIMTCORE trial #DRKS00004609 and #12107 (Ethik-Kommission der Bayerischen Landesärztekammer). Electronic supplementary material The online version of this article (10.1186/s12955-018-0950-7) contains supplementary material, which is available to authorized users.

Figure S1. 15-point Global Rating of Change anchor question used at each follow-up moment. Figure S2. Five-point Global Rating of Change anchor question used at 12-months follow-up. (DOCX 163 kb)

Objective: To evaluate effects of a communication training for specialists on the quality of their reply letters to general practitioners (GPs) about patients with medically unexplained physical symptoms (MUPS). Methods: Before randomization, specialists included = 1 reply letters, 285 letters were assessed. Trained doctors reported (61% versus 37%, OR =2.55, F(1281) = 6.60, p(group*time)=.01) and answered (63% versus 33%, OR=3.31, F(1281)=5.36, p(group*time)=.02) patients' questions more frequently than untrained doctors. Conclusion: Training improves reply letters with regard to patients' questions, but not with regard to the following: GPs' referral questions, somatic findings, additional testing, explaining, and advice. Practice implications: Training specialists to write appropriate reply letters needs more focus on explanation and advice. (C) 2015 Elsevier Ireland Ltd. All rights reserved.

Background: Diagnosis and management of allergic patients are often performed exclusively by general practitioners (GPs). Because of the increasing prevalence of allergic diseases and because of the limited knowledge of GPs on allergy, an allergy management support system (AMSS) was developed. The aim of this study was to test the feasibility of an AMSS for primary care in a pilot study. Method: Using a randomized controlled design, GPs in the intervention group received AMSS advice in addition to sIgE test results and GPs in the control group performed usual care based on sIgE test results only. The AMSS advice was based on the AMSS history questionnaire completed by patients and sIgE test results. The AMSS advice included probable diagnoses and recommendations for management. AMSS advice was also formulated for patients in the control group for evaluative purposes only. Patients were included by GPs when ordering an sIgE test. GPs in both groups completed a short questionnaire on diagnosis and management at the time of inclusion (T1) and after sIgE test outcomes were known (T2). A total agreement score between GP and AMSS was calculated as the number of concordant diagnoses minus the number of false negative and false positive diagnoses. The AMSS was considered feasible when >70% of the AMSS advice was sent to the GP within 10 workdays of sIgE testing. Results: Of the 75 GPs that agreed to participate, 27 GPs (37%) included one or more patients in the study. Together they included 101 patients of which 66 (67%) completed the AMSS history questionnaire. The majority of the AMSS advice (93%) was sent back to the GP within 10 workdays after sIgE test results were known (mean (SD) 4.7 (4.0) workdays). GPs in the intervention group reported that the AMSS advice was complete and to-the-point in 80% of cases, agreed for the most part with the AMSS advice in 80% of cases and followed the AMSS advice for the most part in 71% of cases. The difference in total agreement scores on diagnosis (T2 minus T1), was significantly higher in the intervention group than in the control group (mean (SD) 0.9 (1.8); -0.8 (1.0); P

This study aims to investigate the mediating effect of affective commitment on the relationship between personality and organizational citizenship behavior (OCB) in a non-Western culture. We attempt to increase understanding of how personality and work attitudes affect OCB in a culture where relationships are highly valued. Data collected among employees in an Indonesian cement factory indicate that affective commitment partially mediates the relationship between extraversion and OCB directed at individuals (OCB-I) and at the organization (OCB-O), and also partially mediates the relationship between emotional stability and OCB-O. We confirm the importance of examining work attitudes in personality-OCB relationships in collective cultures.

textabstractA few years ago, the Erasmus School of Law implemented problem-based learning (PBL) as an instructional method in the bachelor’s program. Transition to a PBL program often brings some difficulties for the teaching staff. To find out whether the implementation at the Erasmus School of Law has been successful, students and teachers were asked about their experiences with and perceptions of the PBL program. Both students and teachers reported positive study behaviors, such as regular studying and active involvement of students as a result of PBL. However, some issues also arose after implementintig PBL: staff members reported dissatisfaction regarding the PBL program and students reported feelings of insufficient preparation for the legal profession. Recommendations on how to address these issues are discussed.

Three questionnaires are recommended in the management of chronic obstructive pulmonary disease by the global initiative for obstructive lung disease, of which two are the more comprehensive assessments: the chronic obstructive pulmonary disease assessment test and the clinical chronic obstructive pulmonary disease questionnaire. Both are carefully designed high-quality questionnaires, but information on the feasibility for routine use is scarce. The aim of this study was to compare the time to complete the chronic obstructive pulmonary disease assessment test and the clinical chronic obstructive pulmonary disease questionnaire and the acceptability of the questionnaires. Furthermore, the agreement between electronic and paper versions of the questionnaires was explored. The time to complete the electronic versions of the questionnaires was 99.6 [IQR 74; 157] vs. 97.5 [IQR 68; 136] seconds for clinical clinical chronic obstructive pulmonary disease questionnaire and chronic obstructive pulmonary disease assessment test, respectively. The difference in time to complete the questionnaire was not significant. The two questionnaires did not differ in “easiness to complete” or “importance of issues raised in questionnaires”. Electronic vs. paper versions revealed high agreement (ICC CCQ = 0.815 [0.712; 0.883] and ICC CAT = 0.751 [0.608; 0.847]) between the administration methods. Based on this study it can be concluded that both questionnaires are equally suitable for use in routine clinical practice, because they are both quick to complete and have a good acceptability by the patient. Agreement between electronic and paper versions of the questionnaires was high, so use of electronic versions is justified., COPD: questionnaires equally suitable for clinical practice Two questionnaires commonly used to manage chronic obstructive pulmonary diseases (COPD) are equally suitable for routine primary care. Researchers in The Netherlands, led by Janwillem Kocks from the University Medical Center Groningen, administered both the COPD assessment test (CAT) and the clinical COPD questionnaire (CCQ) to 95 patients with the lung disease. These two tests are the most comprehensive assessments recommended by the global initiative for obstructive lung disease for guiding treatment decisions. The researchers found that both tests took approximately 95–100 s on average. Both tests were also equally easy to complete and provided similar types of information. Most patients said they had no preference for either one, and they filled out both electronic and paper versions of the questionnaires in much the same way. The authors conclude that both tests seem fine for routine use.

Two studies examined the general factor of personality (GFP) in relationship to performance on video-based situational tests measuring social knowledge and skills. Study 1 (N = 180 candidates of an assessment center) showed that high-GFP individuals were better able to indicate the appropriate social behavior in a situational judgment test. Moreover, in that study, high-GFP participants were also rated higher by others on leadership skills. Study 2 (N = 153 psychology students) showed that the GFP was related to actual display of social behavior in a situational webcam test. In both studies, high-GFP individuals reported more leadership experience in organizations. These findings support the idea of the GFP as a substantive personality factor that may also be relevant for personnel selection. © 2014 Hogrefe Publishing.

BackgroundGenomewide association studies (GWASs) of asthma have identified single-nucleotide polymorphisms (SNPs) that modestly increase the risk for asthma. This could be due to phenotypic heterogeneity of asthma. Bronchial hyperresponsiveness (BHR) is a phenotypic hallmark of asthma. We aim to identify susceptibility genes for asthma combined with BHR and analyse the presence of cis-eQTLs among replicated SNPs. Secondly, we compare the genetic association of SNPs previously associated with (doctor's diagnosed) asthma to our GWAS of asthma with BHR.MethodsA GWAS was performed in 920 asthmatics with BHR and 980 controls. Top SNPs of our GWAS were analysed in four replication cohorts, and lung cis-eQTL analysis was performed on replicated SNPs. We investigated association of SNPs previously associated with asthma in our data.ResultsA total of 368 SNPs were followed up for replication. Six SNPs in genes encoding ABI3BP, NAF1, MICA and the 17q21 locus replicated in one or more cohorts, with one locus (17q21) achieving genomewide significance after meta-analysis. Five of 6 replicated SNPs regulated 35 gene transcripts in whole lung. Eight of 20 asthma-associated SNPs from previous GWAS were significantly associated with asthma and BHR. Three SNPs, in IL-33 and GSDMB, showed larger effect sizes in our data compared to published literature.ConclusionsCombining GWAS with subsequent lung eQTL analysis revealed disease-associated SNPs regulating lung mRNA expression levels of potential new asthma genes. Adding BHR to the asthma definition does not lead to an overall larger genetic effect size than analysing (doctor's diagnosed) asthma.

Background: For many patients suspected of allergy, management is initially and often ultimately the responsibility of general practitioners (GPs). However, previous studies have shown that GPs find that providing such care is difficult, especially when anaphylactic symptoms occur. An area of concern is the interpretation of sIgE tests. The purpose of this study is to obtain insight in characteristics of primary care patients for whom an IgE test was requested, with a view to developing a system for providing additional information to the GP together with the test results. Method: Patients who were sent to a laboratory for one or more sIgE tests received a questionnaire which was completed at home. This questionnaire was specifically developed and tested to obtain key information about the patients' medical allergy history. Parents reported about their child's allergy. Results: From the patients (n = 118, Mage = 31.7 years; range 12 months to 81 years) 40% was male. For 55% of the patients no diagnosis had been established. A single allergy diagnosis had been made for 26.5% of the patients and 19% reported to have multiple allergies. Of the patients for whom one or more diagnoses were reported, 15.4% had asthma, 23.9% rhinitis, 18.8% eczema, 4.3% food allergy, and 6.8% had an unspecified allergy. The main reasons for requesting a sIgE test were rhinitis and asthma, 51% and 26% respectively. Less frequent referrals for IgE testing were: eczema 15%, food related allergy 9%, non-food induced anaphylaxis 1%, and other allergy disorders 18%. Conclusion: Although previous studies show that GPs feel more comfortable managing asthma and rhinitis than patients with food allergy and anaphylaxis, this is not reflected in the request for sIgE testing. A management support system for GPs should therefore include information on airway allergy as well as anaphylaxis.

The aim of the present field study is to expand the understanding of how characteristics of recruiters relate to their adoption of new selection technology. In two studies, among 198 recruiters, we used the Technology Acceptance Model (TAM), together with two measures of personality (i.e., openness to experience and neuroticism), two information technology specific individual differences (i.e., personal innovativeness in information technology and computer self-efficacy), and reactions to and actual usage of new technology. Both studies showed that all recruiter characteristics (except openness to experience) relate to perceptions of usefulness and ease of use, and that these perceptions relate to intentions to use new selection technologies. Study 2 showed that recruiter characteristics predict perceptions of usefulness and ease of use over and above established predictors of the TAM. Perceptions of usefulness and ease of use were better predictors of intentions to use new technology than perceptions of face validity, predictive validity, and fairness. Thus, when it comes to the adoption of new selection technology, recruiter characteristics, and perceptions of usefulness and ease of use play an important role. © 2013 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

Abdullah M Alzahem,1 Henk T van der Molen,2 Benjamin J de Boer31Advanced Education in General Dentistry (AEGD) Residency Program, King Abdullah International Medical Research Center/King Saud bin Abdulaziz University for Health Sciences/National Guard Health Affairs, Riyadh, Saudi Arabia; 2Institute of Psychology, Faculty of Social Sciences, Erasmus University, Rotterdam, The Netherlands; 3Clinical Psychology, Princess Nora University, Riyadh, Saudi ArabiaObjective: Stress among dental students can be a significant threat, resulting in physical and/or mental illness, and have a negative effect on students' performance and the professional practice of dentistry. Stress can occur from different sources. The purpose of this study is to test whether the year of study has an effect on the stress levels of dental students.Method: Our study consisted of a cross-sectional survey using a modified version of the Dental Environment Stress (DES) questionnaire. The questionnaires were filled out by male undergraduate dental students at King Saud University in Riyadh City during the 2010–2011 academic year (n = 214).Results: The results show the most common sources of stress: examinations and completing clinical requirements. Moreover, in the five-year lecture-based traditional curriculum, the third year students reported the highest level of stress, whereas the first year reported the lowest level of stress.Conclusion: Third year undergraduate dental students reported the highest level of stress. This stress could be reduced by reviewing and modifying the dental curriculum by allowing students to have contact with patients more gradually, starting from the first year, in addition to adding stress prevention and intervention programs in dental curricula.Keywords: dental, education, students, stress, study year

Assessment of the effectiveness of the Assessment of Burden of COPD (ABC) tool on disease-specific quality of life in patients with Chronic Obstructive Pulmonary Disease (COPD).Cluster-randomised controlled trial.This concerned a trial in 39 Dutch primary care practices and 17 hospitals, involving 357 patients with COPD (postbronchodilator FEV1/FVC ratio0.7) aged ≥ 40 years. Healthcare providers were randomized to an intervention or control group. Patients in the intervention group were treated with the ABC tool. This innovative tool consists of a short validated questionnaire and a number of objective parameters, which collectively give a visual overview of the combined integral health; the tool subsequently produces an individualized treatment plan by means of a treatment algorithm. Patients in the control group received usual care. The primary outcome measure was the proportion of patients with a clinically relevant improvement in disease-specific quality of life measured, as measured by means of the St. George's Respiratory Questionnaire (SGRQ) score, between baseline and 18 months follow-up. Secondary outcomes included the SGRQ total score and the Patient Assessment of Chronic Illness Care (PACIC) score.At 18-month follow-up, a significant and clinically relevant improvement in the SGRQ score was seen in 34% of the patients (N=49) in the intervention group, and in the control group this figure was 22% (N=33). This difference between the two groups was significant (OR 1.85, 95% CI 1.08 to 3.16). Patients in the intervention group experienced a higher quality of care than patients in the control group (0.32 points difference in PACIC, 95% CI 0.14 to 0.50).Use of the ABC tool increases the disease-specific quality of life and the quality of care for COPD patients; it may therefore offer a valuable contribution to improvements in the daily care of COPD. Replication of this study in other (non-Dutch) health-care settings is recommended.

A study of the effectiveness and functioning of an asthma/COPD service (AC service).Observational study.General practitioners (GPs) in the northern part of the Netherlands can refer patients with airway symptoms to the AC service, which was set up in 2007 by local pulmonologists, GPs and the primary care laboratory CERTE. Before the assessment, patients fill in three questionnaires at home: the Clinical COPD Questionnaire (CCQ), the Asthma Control Questionnaire (ACQ) and a medical history list. The laboratory assesses lung function and a physical examination is carried out. All data is sent via the Internet to a pulmonologist, who advises the GP on diagnosis and treatment via an information system. The pulmonologist can offer a follow-up service if required. For this publication we had access to data from 14,748 registered patients and 3721 follow-up consultations.The pulmonologist diagnosed 6201 (42%) patients with asthma, 2728 (19%) with COPD and 1039 (7%) with 'asthma/COPD overlap syndrome'. The pulmonologist advised that 940 patients (6%) should have a change in medication and reassessment after 3 months. In this group, the number of unstable COPD patients (CCQ ≥ 1) dropped from 134 (67%) to 99 (50%). The number of patients with unstable asthma (ACQ ≥ 1.5) dropped from 245 (3%) to 137 (24%). For 1642 (11%) patients the pulmonologist advised no change in medication and the GP referred the patient for reassessment after 12 months. These patients were generally stable, with a slight improvement in smoking status, exacerbations and inhalation technique.Approximately 60% of all patients with asthma or COPD in this region were assessed by the AC service at least once in the period 2007-2014. Advice on diagnosis and treatment given to the GP resulted in better patient-related outcomes in both asthma and COPD patients.

Background Mastering communication skills is often emphasized as an important aspect of job or academic performance. However, research into the relationships between personality factors and these skills is scarce. Purpose This study investigated whether the big-five personality factors and assertiveness predict mastery of communication skills before and after following communication skills training. Method The skills level of 143 psychology students was assessed after two communication skills courses, namely a basic and an advanced communication skills training. Personality factors were assessed with the Five Factor Personality Inventory and the Scale for Interpersonal Behavior. Results Participants showed substantial progress in their mastery of the communication skills after both courses. Surprisingly, none of the personality factors predicted the level of mastery of these skills. Discussion This seems to imply that trainees can become professional communicators, regardless of their scores on these personality factors.

To explain why situational judgment tests are often correlated with personality measures, Motowidlo, Hooper, and Jackson (2006a, 2006b) developed the implicit trait policy theory. Implicit trait policies are beliefs about causal relationships between personality traits and behavioral effectiveness. Among 180 employees, this field study examined whether a multimedia situational judgment test that was intended to assess leadership skills can capture individual differences in such policies. Furthermore, it was examined whether these implicit trait policies were able to predict leadership behavior. Results confirmed that the situational judgment test was able to capture individual differences in implicit trait policies for Extraversion and Conscientiousness. Furthermore, results showed that implicit trait policies for Extraversion can predict leadership behavior over and above leadership experience and the associated personality trait. © 2012 Copyright Taylor and Francis Group, LLC.

This paper investigated the effects of a paternalistic and empowering leadership style on organizational citizenship behaviour (OCB) in an experimental design using 100 Turkish and 100 Dutch students who held part-time jobs. Confirming our expectations, a paternalistic leadership style had a more positive effect on job dedication and organizational support in Turkey than in the Netherlands. Contradicting our expectations, an empowering leadership style did not have a more positive effect on any of the OCB dimensions in the Netherlands than it did in Turkey. However, in the Netherlands an empowering leadership style had a stronger effect on interpersonal facilitation, job dedication, and organizational support than a paternalistic leadership style. Paternalistic and empowering leadership styles both had positive effects on OCB dimensions in Turkey. As expected, collectivism moderated the relationship between paternalistic leadership style and other oriented OCB (i.e., interpersonal facilitation). Specifically, people who had more collectivistic tendencies were more positively influenced by a paternalistic leader than people who had low collectivistic tendencies in both countries. However, individualism did not have any moderating effects on the relationship between empowering leadership style and self-oriented OCB (i.e., job dedication). Our findings are relevant for understanding the effects of leadership styles and cultural orientations on self- versus other-oriented OCB in Turkey and the Netherlands.