1,721,035 research outputs found

    Going Beyond Counting First Authors in Author Co-citation Analysis

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    The present study examines one of the fundamental aspects of author co-citation analysis (ACA) - the way co-citation counts are defined. Co-citation counting provides the data on which all subsequent statistical analyses and mappings are based, and we compare ACA results based on two different types of co-citation counting - the traditional type that only counts the first one among a cited work's authors on the one hand and a non-traditional type that takes into account the first 5 authors of a cited work on the other hand. Results indicate that the picture produced through this non-traditional author co-citation counting contains more coherent author groups and is therefore considerably clearer. However, this picture represents fewer specialties in the research field being studied than that produced through the traditional first-author co-citation counting when the same number of top-ranked authors is selected and analyzed. Reasons for these effects are discussed

    Variations on the Author

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    “Variations on the Author” discusses two of Eduardo Coutinho’s recent films (Um Dia na Vida, from 2010, and Últimas Conversas, posthumously released in 2015) and their contribution to the general question of documentary authorship. The director’s filmography is characterized by a consistent yet self-effacing form of authorial self-inscription: Coutinho often features as an interviewer that rather than express opinions propels discourses; an interviewer that is good at listening. This mode of self-inscription characterizes him as an author who is not expressive but who is nonetheless markedly present on the screen. In Um Dia na Vida, however, Coutinho is completely absent form the image, while Últimas Conversas, on the contrary, includes a confessional prologue that moves the director from the margins to the center of his films. This article examines the ways in which these works stand out in the filmography of a director who offers new insights into the notion of cinematic authorship

    Clinical and research developments in the treatment of paediatric obsessive-compulsive disorder

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    It is of crucial importance to identify and disseminate effective treatments for paediatric obsessive-compulsive disorder (OCD). OCD is time-consuming and distressing, and can substantially disable functioning at school, at home, and with peers (Piacentini, 2003). Children who do not receive treatment are at risk of psychological difficulties in adulthood, including continued OCD, clinical anxiety and depression, personality disorders, and social maladjustment (Wewetzer et al., 2001). Two-thirds of adult cases of OCD develop in childhood, and adults with OCD have lower employment, poorer academic achievement, and lower marital rates compared to non-OCD adults (Hollander et al., 1996; Koran, 2000; Lensi et al., 1996; Steketee, 1993). The distressing nature of OCD in childhood, accompanying psychosocial impairment and risk of future psychopathology, underscore the need to identify effective treatments. The primary aim of this thesis was to expand knowledge of evidence-based treatments for paediatric OCD. A mixed-methodology approach was employed to examine key issues in this area. The first study used meta-analytic methodology to determine the evidence supporting available treatments for paediatric OCD. An extensive literature search revealed over 100 published reports of treatments, encompassing a broad array of theoretical approaches and treatment strategies. Examples of treatments used for paediatric OCD included psychodynamic therapy, pharmacotherapy, cognitive-behavioural therapy (CBT), hypnosis, family therapy, immunotherapy, and homeopathy.Study 1 comprised the first known meta-analysis of randomised, controlled treatment trials (RCTs) for paediatric OCD. Included studies were limited to RCTs as they are the most scientifically valid means for determining treatment efficacy and provide a more accurate estimate of treatment effect by removing error variance associated with confounding variables. The literature search identified 13 RCTs containing 10 pharmacotherapy to control comparisons (N = 1016) and 5 CBT to control comparisons (N = 161). Random effects modelling yielded statistically significant pooled effect size (ES) estimates for pharmacotherapy (ES = 0.48, 95% CI = 0.36 to 0.61, p < .00001) and CBT (ES = 1.45, 95% CI = 0.68 to 2.22, p =.002). The results support the efficacy of CBT and pharmacotherapy, and confirm these approaches as the only two evidence-based treatments for paediatric OCD. Implications and suggestions for future research are discussed. The effectiveness of CBT provided impetus to further examine this treatment. Group CBT is an understudied treatment modality among children with OCD. It was hypothesised that group CBT would possess efficacy because of the effectiveness of individual CBT for children with OCD, the demonstrated effectiveness of group CBT among adults with OCD, the practical and therapeutic advantages afforded by a group treatment approach, and the embeddedness of the approach in robust psychological theory. The aim of the second study was to evaluate the efficacy of group CBT. The study comprised the largest known conducted randomised, placebo-controlled trial of group CBT for paediatric OCD.Twenty-two children and adolescents with a primary diagnosis of OCD were randomly assigned to a 12-week program of group CBT or a credible psychological placebo. Children were assessed at baseline, end of treatment, and at 1 month follow-up. Outcome measures included the Children’s Yale-Brown Obsessive-Compulsive Scale, global measures of OCD severity, Children’s Depression Inventory, and parent- and child-rated measures of psychosocial functioning. An intention-to-treat analysis revealed that children in the group CBT condition had statistically significantly lower levels of symptomatology at posttreatment and follow-up compared to children in the placebo condition. Analysis of clinical significance showed that 91% of children that received CBT were ‘recovered’ or ‘improved’ at follow-up, whereas 73% of children in the placebo condition were ‘unchanged’. Effect size analysis using Cohen’s d derived an effect of 1.14 and 1.20 at posttreatment and follow-up, respectively. These effects are comparable to results from studies of individual CBT. This study supported group CBT as an effective treatment modality for paediatric OCD and demonstrated that the effect extends beyond placebo and nonspecific treatment factors. In addition to treatment efficacy, the inherent worth of a treatment lies in its adoption by the relevant clinical population. Children with OCD are known to be secretive and embarrassed about symptoms, and there is often a long delay between onset of symptoms and treatment-seeking (Simonds & Elliot, 2001). An important observation during the course of conducting the RCT was that a high rate (39%) of eligible families declined participation.This led to the question, "What barriers prevent participation in group CBT for paediatric OCD?" Qualitative methodology was employed to address this research question. Eligible families that had declined participation in the RCT were contacted and invited to participate in semi-structured interviews that explored reasons for non-participation and positive and negative perceptions of group CBT. The average time between non-participation and interview was 1.33 years (SD = 3 months). Data were collected from nine families and thematic analysis methodology was utilised to identify emergent themes. Failure to participate was predicted by practical and attitudinal barriers. Practical barriers included a lack of time, distance, severity of OCD symptoms, financial, and child physical health. Attitudinal barriers included child embarrassment about OCD symptoms, child belief that therapy would be ineffective, fear of the social aspect of the group, lack of previous success with psychology, lack of trust in strangers, parental concern about the structure of the group, denial of a problem, and ‘not being ready for it’. Attitudinal barriers more frequently predicted treatment non-participation. Positive and negative perceptions of this treatment modality were informative. Parents showed no differences in preference for individual or group CBT. An important finding was that 56% of the children had not received treatment since parental expression of interest in the group CBT program. Application of the findings to methods that promote service utilisation is discussed

    A Statistical Analysis Plan Template for Observational Studies: Promoting Quality and Rigor in Research

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    Rigorous and transparent research practices are essential for trustworthy scientific findings, particularly in observational studies where data-driven analyses carry risks of questionable research practices. This paper introduces a statistical analysis plan (SAP) template specifically designed for observational research, an area where guidance on SAP development is crucially lacking. The template offers clear guidelines for prespecifying key aspects of the analysis. The guidance encompasses essential SAP components, including study objectives, measures and variables, and analytical methods, as well as administrative details to support documentation and reproducibility. Designed for broad useability, the template is intended to support researchers, statisticians, students, and interdisciplinary teams across clinical, academic, industry, and government sectors. By adopting this template, researchers can strengthen study integrity, reduce ad hoc analytic modifications, demonstrate the avoidance of questionable research practices such as p-hacking, and contribute to robust and reliable findings in observational research

    Appropriate Similarity Measures for Author Cocitation Analysis

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    We provide a number of new insights into the methodological discussion about author cocitation analysis. We first argue that the use of the Pearson correlation for measuring the similarity between authors’ cocitation profiles is not very satisfactory. We then discuss what kind of similarity measures may be used as an alternative to the Pearson correlation. We consider three similarity measures in particular. One is the well-known cosine. The other two similarity measures have not been used before in the bibliometric literature. Finally, we show by means of an example that our findings have a high practical relevance.information science;Pearson correlation;cosine;similarity measure;author cocitation analysis

    Dispelling the Myths Behind First-author Citation Counts

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    We conducted a full-scale evaluative citation analysis study of scholars in the XML research field to explore just how different from each other author rankings resulting from different citation counting methods actually are, and to demonstrate the capability of emerging data and tools on the Web in supporting more realistic citation counting methods. Our results contest some common arguments for the continued use of first-author citation counts in the evaluation of scholars, such as high correlations between author rankings by first-author citation counts and other citation counting methods, and high costs of using more realistic citation counting methods that are not well-supported by the ISI databases. It is argued that increasingly available digital full text research papers make it possible for citation analysis studies to go beyond what the ISI databases have directly supported and to employ more sophisticated methods

    Author Index

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    koamabayili/VECTRON-author-checklist: VECTRON author checklist

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    We have done our best to complete the author checklist relating to the use of animals in the hut study. Note that the objective for the hut study was to evaluate the IRS treatment applications for residual efficacy against Anopheles mosquitoes, including the local An. coluzzii mosquito population. Cows were only used to attract mosquitoes into the huts and no tests were carried out directly on the cows. The author checklist is intended for use with studies where experiments are carried out on animals, which is why we have had such difficulty in completing this for the hut study, as many of the questions do not relate to how the cows were used
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