Creativity and Performance: The Effects of Working in Groups versus Working Individually

I-O Psychologists are interested in factors that can affect work productivity and performance among an organization’s employees. Some professionals argue that two heads are better than one when it comes to being innovative and coming up with creative solutions, however, others state the opposite given that group settings tend to result in many hindering factors such as conformity and production blocking. In the present study, we attempted to determine whether or not there is a differential impact of working groups and working individuals on creativity and performance. This was measured through a divergent thinking task based on Guilford’s Alternative Uses Task (1967) and a convergent thinking task based on Mednick’s Remote Association Task (1962). Introduction to Psychology students were asked to complete both tasks, once as a group and once as individuals. The alternative uses task asked participants to list as many possible uses for a single common household item within a span of three minutes while the remote association task asked participants to answer a number of questions made up of three words and list the one word that associates the other three together. I hypothesized that participants working in an individual setting will have a higher total mean score on the divergent and convergent thinking tasks than the same participants working on these tasks in a group setting

Sampling and evaluation of in-situ studies for 60Co diffusion in bentonite

This study focuses on evaluating the diffusion of 60Co in bentonite clay as part of an in-situ experiment made by SKB at Äspö. This experiment has been running for 20 years, and its purpose is to evaluate the potential of using bentonite clay as backfill material in a final repository for used nuclear fuel. Evaluating the diffusivity is one method of assessing the long-term structural integrity of the bentonite clay. This is done by using 60Co as a radioactive tracer placed in a block of bentonite inside a test parcel designed to mimic the proposed setup of the Swedish KBS-3 final repository model. This specific setup is under adverse conditions where the temperature is higher than the estimated temperature in the final repository. This is done to obtain a comparison with previous studies done under normal conditions. The bentonite around the radioactive source is sampled and crushed before the radioactivity is measured using an HPGe detector with sample changer. The calculated diffusivity is used to evaluate whether the diffusion model used in earlier studies is applicable on this test parcel as well. The results obtained in this study, shown in Table 0.1, supports earlier studies, as the calculated diffusivity fits well into the diffusion model and yields a diffusivity within an order of magnitude from the results obtained in earlier studies for the fast profiles, and in line with earlier results for the slow profiles. Combining this result with the previous studies on the subject show that the bentonite structure appears to be intact, which further supports the idea that bentonite clay is a very promising material for use as backfill material in a final repository

Heart Rate Variability: The Effects of Self-Compassion

Psychologists are interested in self-compassion and its effects on our biopsychological well-being. A common method found throughout much research in assessing this is through heart rate variability. In the present study, we attempt to see whether or not self-compassion has an impact on one’s heart rate variability as a higher HRV indicates one is better able to adapt to stress. Self-compassion was measured through a self-compassion survey and we hypothesized that heart rate variability would then be prone to change across three 5-minute test intervals. We unfortunately found no significant change in HRV predicted by our hypothesis. Given the results of previous research in this area and our lack of a larger number of participants however, there is still reason to be looking into the effects of self-compassion on heart rate variability

Heart Rate Variability: Impact of Neuroticism and Social Isolation

Psychologists are interested in self-compassion and its effects on our biopsychological well-being. A common method found throughout much research in assessing this is through heart rate variability. In the present study, we attempt to see whether or not self-compassion has an impact on one’s heart rate variability as a higher HRV indicates one is better able to adapt to stress. Self-compassion was measured beforehand through an online self-compassion survey that contained subscales measuring neuroticism. We also tested to see if social isolation would have an impact on HRV. Social isolation was implemented through a computer program game titled CyberBall, in which the researchers programmed the “game” to include or exclude the participants. There were two groups in the study with one starting in the isolation condition and ending in the non-isolation condition and the other starting in the non-isolation condition and ending in the isolation condition. Participants’ HRV was measured while they played CyberBall. We hypothesized that a lower heart rate variability would be produced during the isolation condition. We unfortunately found no significant change in HRV predicted by this hypothesis. However, our second hypothesis predicted that the more neurotic a participant was, the lower the heart rate variability would be. Results supported this hypothesis and suggest that neuroticism is an important variable when analyzing heart rate variability

Effects of Social Isolation on Heart Rate Variabilty

The present study looked at the interaction and effects of social isolation onheart rate variability (HRV). Participants in this study includedundergraduate (N=20) students from St. Johns University and the Collegeof Saint Benedict. This study included an online survey that measuredneuroticism as well as an online program participants played calledCyberBall. After participants took the neuroticism survey they wereattached to a BioPac machine using electrodes that monitored their heartrate variability while they played two rounds CyberBall. Heart ratevariability was collected for a total of twenty minutes. We hypothesized thatsocial isolation would decrease heart rate variability

Att arbeta nära dagens moderna pirater - En studie om hur den enskilde individen påverkas psykiskt av att vistas i pirattäta vatten och hur rederierna förbereder besättning och fartyg.

This study is written in Swedish. Piracy on the high seas coasts are a major issue for the global shipping industry and the people working on ships trafficking these areas. The main problems are found in the Gulf of Aden off the Horn of Africa, the Malacca Straits and more recently, the African west coast. The Swedish naval force are operating against pirate attacks in the Gulf of Aden, along with many other countries’ naval forces. Large sums of money are still spent to guard the vessels against pirate attacks because if a vessel is subjected to a robbery or hostage situation, it means a great loss for the shipping company concerned and may result in a major trauma for exposed personnel. However, many people are working on ships regularly sailing in pirate waters without ever seen a pirate or been near these. In this study, we investigate how these people are affected psychologically by that on a regular basis staying in pirate waters, whether they have experienced incidents or not. Also the preparations made by the shipping companies regarding crew and ship will be investigated. Delimitations have been made to the last 25 years since it is considered to be the time of the birth of modern piracy. The results are indicating that the crew becomes mentally affected to some degree and that the shipping companies’ preparations of the crew were diverse but that the preparations regarding the vessel were similar. The results are important because there are few studies on this specific topic but several studies regarding trauma and pirates in general

Evaluation of Patient Education Materials for the SMMART Clinic

Community health and health literacy go hand in hand. To better understand the extent of this in within their own community, a group of master’s students in the occupational therapy program at St. Catherine University examined the link between usable educational materials and the local community health clinic. Within the St. Paul community, there’s a strong partnership with the St. Mary’s Health clinics, their affiliate clinic St. Mary’s Medical And Rehabilitation Therapy Clinic (SMMART), and the university. The role of both medical clinics is to provide affordable and comprehensive care to underserved communities. A new element to this is the establishment of the Bienestar clinic under the wing of the SMMART clinic. As occupational therapy students, we developed our master project with an emphasis on identifying barriers that exist in primary healthcare settings from the perspective of Latino individuals. When developing our project, we observed the SMMART clinic and conducted a needs assessment by interviewing the interdisciplinary team members, including but not limited to dietitians, physical assistants, physical therapists, and occupational therapists, and their experience working within the clinic. As a result, responses reported expanding resources for Latino clients. We created client education materials utilizing the Patient Education Material Assessments Tools (PEMAT) to promote readability and accessibility for Latino individuals through an online website with embedded toolkits specific to anxiety, depression, and sleep deficits. Many clients could access these toolkits through the Bienestar website to participate intermittently between therapy sessions to cope with their mental health needs

Evaluation of Patient Education Materials for the SMMART Clinic

Community health and health literacy go hand in hand. To better understand the extent of this in within their own community, a group of master’s students in the occupational therapy program at St. Catherine University examined the link between usable educational materials and the local community health clinic. Within the St. Paul community, there’s a strong partnership with the St. Mary’s Health clinics, their affiliate clinic St. Mary’s Medical And Rehabilitation Therapy Clinic (SMMART), and the university. The role of both medical clinics is to provide affordable and comprehensive care to underserved communities. A new element to this is the establishment of the Bienestar clinic under the wing of the SMMART clinic. As occupational therapy students, we developed our master project with an emphasis on identifying barriers that exist in primary healthcare settings from the perspective of Latino individuals. When developing our project, we observed the SMMART clinic and conducted a needs assessment by interviewing the interdisciplinary team members, including but not limited to dietitians, physical assistants, physical therapists, and occupational therapists, and their experience working within the clinic. As a result, responses reported expanding resources for Latino clients. We created client education materials utilizing the Patient Education Material Assessments Tools (PEMAT) to promote readability and accessibility for Latino individuals through an online website with embedded toolkits specific to anxiety, depression, and sleep deficits. Many clients could access these toolkits through the Bienestar website to participate intermittently between therapy sessions to cope with their mental health needs

Purposeful Interventions for Older Adults Post-Joint Replacement Surgery: An Evidence-Based Project

The overall focus of each of case scenarios are related to assessment or interventions that are related to Choosing Wisely Campaign items 1, 2, 3, 5, 8, 10. Case scenarios were developed related to each initiative with clientele and conditions across the lifespan in various practice settings. Practice settings included school district, outpatient pediatric, primary care, skilled nursing facility, work rehabilitation, and acute care

Presumptive identification of Candida species other than C. albicans, C. krusei, and C. tropicalis with the chromogenic medium CHROMagar Candida

BACKGROUND: CHROMagar Candida (CaC) is increasingly being reported as a medium used to differentiate Candida albicans from non-albicans Candida (NAC) species. Rapid identification of NAC can assist the clinician in selecting appropriate antifungal therapy. CaC is a differential chromogenic medium designed to identify C. albicans, C. krusei, and C. tropicalis based on colony color and morphology. Some reports have proposed that CaC can also reliably identify C. dubliniensis and C. glabrata. METHODS: We evaluated the usefulness of CaC in the identification of C. dubliniensis, C. famata, C. firmetaria, C. glabrata, C. guilliermondii, C. inconspicua, C. kefyr, C. lipolytica, C. lusitaniae, C. norvegensis, C. parapsilosis, and C. rugosa. RESULTS: Most NAC produced colonies that were shades of pink, lavender, or ivory. Several isolates of C. firmetaria and all C. inconspicua produced colonies difficult to differentiate from C. krusei. Most C. rugosa isolates produced unique colonies with morphology like C. krusei except in a light blue-green color. C. glabrata isolates produced small dark violet colonies that could be differentiated from the pink and lavender colors produced by other species. All seventeen isolates of C. dubliniensis produced green colonies similar to those produced by C. albicans. CONCLUSION: C. glabrata and C. rugosa appear distinguishable from other species using CaC. Some NAC, including C. firmetaria and C. inconspicua, could be confused with C. krusei using this medium