Using goal orientations to understand motivation in strength training

Despite the importance that today's athletics place on strength training, research exploring the motivation of athletes in this arena is sparse. It is known that not all athletes will use the same motivational cognitions as inspiration, and these differences can be explored through achievement goal orientations. Through questionnaire data and semistructured interviews, the present study investigated how collegiate athletes maintain high levels of motivation over a period of time during strength training and explored relationships among five goal orientations: task-orientation, self-enhancing ego-orientation, self-defeating ego-orientation, social-approval orientation, and work-avoidance orientation. Subjects (N = 133), comprising 90 men and 43 women, were current varsity collegiate athletes from 15 different sports at a major Midwestern university. In addition, using a screener survey to assess achievement goal orientations, 15 subjects from the sample group who demonstrated a stronger inclination to only one achievement goal orientation were interviewed to gain a more in-depth understanding of their motivation cognitions in strength training. Results showed that the strongest achievement goal orientations reported from all athletes were task-orientation and social-approval. Additionally, five higher-order themes (significant others, improvement, competitive demands, being stronger than others, and miscellaneous) were consistent among the interviewed athletes when describing how they stay motivated during strength training. Whereas all athletes were able to describe at least one motivational strategy they employed during strength training, the dominant achievement goal orientation of some athletes influenced their motivational strategy. By employing the T.A.R.G.E.T. model (), strength coaches can foster adaptive achievement goal orientations and thereby enhance intrinsic motivation for athletes engaging in strength training.     

Effects of One-Hour Training Course and Spirometry on the Ability of Physicians to Diagnose and Treat Chronic Obstructive Pulmonary Disease

BackgroundsIn China, the prevalence of chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) in persons 40 years of age or older is estimated at 8.2%, but this is likely a substantial underestimate.MethodsEight secondary hospitals which didn’t have spirometries were chosen randomly in Hunan province of central south China. Physician subjects at these hospitals underwent a one-hour training course on the Chinese COPD guidelines. Physicians answered questionnaires assessing their knowledge of the guidelines before and after the training session. The mean correct scores of questionnaires were compared before and after training. Four out of the eight hospitals were given access to spirometry. Eligible patient subjects underwent spirometry testing prior to the physician visit. After seeing the patient, physicians were asked to answer a questionnaire relating to the diagnosis and severity of COPD. Physicians were then given the results of the spirometry, and asked to answer the same questionnaire. Physicians’ responses before and after receiving the spirometry results were compared.Results225 physicians participated in the training session. 207 questionnaires were completed. Mean scores (out of 100) before and after the training were 53.1 ± 21.7 and 93.3 ± 9.8, respectively. 18 physicians and 307 patient subjects participated in the spirometry intervention. Based on spirometric results, the prevalence of COPD was 38.8%. Physicians correctly identified the presence of COPD without spirometric data in 85 cases (76.6%); this increased to 117 cases (97.4%) once spirometric data were available. Without spirometric data, physicians incorrectly diagnosed COPD in 38 patients; this decreased to 6 patients once spirometric data were available. Spirometric data also improved the ability of physicians to correctly grade COPD severity.ConclusionsSimple educational training can substantially improve physicians’ knowledge relating to COPD. Spirometry combined with education improves the ability of physicians to diagnose COPD and to assess its severity.     

The Effect of Ratio and Interval Training on Pavlovian-Instrumental Transfer in Mice

Conditional stimuli (CS) that are paired with reward can be used to motivate instrumental responses. This process is called Pavlovian-instrumental transfer (PIT). A recent study in rats suggested that habitual responses are particularly sensitive to the motivational effects of reward cues. The current experiments examined this idea using ratio and interval training in mice. Two groups of animals were trained to lever press for food pellets that were delivered on random ratio or random interval schedules. Devaluation tests revealed that interval training led to habitual responding while ratio training produced goal-directed actions. The presentation of CSs paired with reward led to positive transfer in both groups, however, the size of this effect was much larger in mice that were trained on interval schedules. This result suggests that habitual responses are more sensitive to the motivational influence of reward cues than goal-directed actions. The implications for neurobiological models of motivation and drug seeking behaviors are discussed.     

Psychophysiological Study of the Information Theory of Emotions Using the Model of Positive Emotion

The pattern of interhemisphere distribution of EEG amplitude and frequency as a function of the levels of emotional experience and motivation as well as probability of the goal achievement was studied in 20 probands. An emotional state was evoked by simulating emotionally colored events. A modified test of Priseet al.(1985) was used to evaluate the level of motivation for the simulated event as well as the probability of goal achievement from the lengths of line segments marked by the probands. Here, we studied a simulated emotion of joy. The highest correlation coefficients were observed between the awareness and alpha activity in the both hemispheres. The levels of emotional experience and motivation inversely correlated with the delta and theta activity mostly in the left hemisphere. The beta activity correlated with both the emotional and motivation levels     

Factor analysis of teacher professional development in Chinese military medical universities

Background and purpose: Teacher professional development potentially enhances teachers’ professional morale, knowledge, skills and autonomy, which helps improve the quality of education. The military medical university is an important medical education institution in China; however, studies of teacher professional development within military medical universities are still lacking. This study aimed to explore the factors that influence teacher professional development in Chinese military medical universities. Methods: We interviewed 19 experts from China’s Third Military Medical University to identify factors that affect teacher professional development and used these factors to prepare a questionnaire. The data were collected through a random, anonymous questionnaire survey of 371 teachers at three military universities in China, analysed by exploratory factor analysis and verified by confirmatory factor analysis (CFA). Results: We obtained five main factors, which explained 66.691% of the total variance and were found to have a good data fitting according to the CFA results. Conclusions: Teaching experience, shared vision, policy and material security, professional competence and psychological motivation primarily affect teacher professional development in Chinese military medical universities. We can only achieve teacher professional development goals through comprehensive consideration, coordinated arrangement and content improvement of these five factors.     

Profiling First-Year Students in STEM Programs Based on Autonomous Motivation and Academic Self-Concept and Relationship with Academic Achievement

The low success rate of first-year college students in Science, Technology, Engineering, and Mathematics (STEM) programs has spurred many academic achievement studies in which explanatory factors are studied. In this study, we investigated from a person-oriented perspective whether different motivational and academic self-concept profiles could be discerned between male and female first-year college students in STEM and whether differences in early academic achievement were associated with these student groups. Data on autonomous motivation, academic self-concept, and early academic achievement of 1,400 first-year STEM college students were collected. Cluster analyses were used to distinguish motivational profiles based on the relative levels of autonomous motivation and academic self-concept for male and female students. Differences in early academic achievement of the various profiles were studied by means of ANCOVA. Four different motivational profiles were discerned based on the dimensions of autonomous motivation (A) and academic self-concept (S): students scoring high and respectively low on both dimensions (HA-HS or LA-LS), and students scoring high on one dimension and low on the other (HA-LS or LA-HS). Also gender differences were found in this study: male students with high levels of academic self-concept and autonomous motivation had higher academic achievement compared to male students with low levels on both motivational dimensions. For female students, motivational profiles were not associated with academic achievement. The findings partially confirm the internal and external validity of the motivational theories underpinning this study and extend the present insights on identifying subgroup(s) of at risk students in contemporary STEM programs at university level.     

A Survey to Assess Family Physicians’ Motivation to Teach Undergraduates in Their Practices

Background

In Germany, family physicians (FPs) are increasingly needed to participate in undergraduate medical education. Knowledge of FPs’ motivation to teach medical students in their practices is lacking.

Purpose

To describe a novel questionnaire that assesses the motivation of FPs to teach undergraduates in their practices and to show the results of a subsequent survey using this instrument.

Methods

The questionnaire was developed based on a review of the literature. Previously used empirical instruments assessing occupational values and motivation were included. A preliminary version was pretested in a pilot study. The resulting 68-item questionnaire was sent to 691 FPs involved in undergraduate medical education. Reliability was assessed and subgroups were analyzed with regard to differences in motivation.

Results

A total of 523 physicians in n = 458 teaching practices participated (response rate 75.7%). ‘Helping others’ and ‘interest’ were revealed as the predominant motives. Responses showed a predominantly intrinsic motivation of the participating FPs. Their main incentives were an ambition to work as a medical preceptor, to generally improve undergraduate education and to share knowledge. Material compensation was of minor importance. Time restraints were indicated as a barrier by some FPs, but were not a general concern.

Conclusion

German FPs involved in medical education have altruistic attitudes towards teaching medical students in their practices. Motivational features give an important insight for the recruitment of FP preceptors as well as for their training in instructional methods.     

Testing the predictive performance of distribution models

Distribution models are used to predict the likelihood of occurrence or abundance of a species at locations where census data are not available. An integral part of modelling is the testing of model performance. We compared different schemes and measures for testing model performance using 79 species from the North American Breeding Bird Survey. The four testing schemes we compared featured increasing independence between test and training data: resubstitution, random data hold‐out and two spatially segregated data hold‐out designs. The different testing measures also addressed different levels of information content in the dependent variable: regression R² for absolute abundance, squared correlation coefficient r² for relative abundance and AUC/Somer’s D for presence/absence. We found that higher levels of independence between test and training data lead to lower assessments of prediction accuracy. Even for data collected independently, spatial autocorrelation leads to dependence between random hold‐out test data and training data, and thus to inflated measures of model performance. While there is a general awareness of the importance of autocorrelation to model building and hypothesis testing, its consequences via violation of independence between training and testing data have not been addressed systematically and comprehensively before. Furthermore, increasing information content (from correctly classifying presence/absence, to predicting relative abundance, to predicting absolute abundance) leads to decreasing predictive performance. The current tests for presence/absence distribution models are typically overly optimistic because a) the test and training data are not independent and b) the correct classification of presence/absence has a relatively low information content and thus capability to address ecological and conservation questions compared to a prediction of abundance. Meaningful evaluation of model performance requires testing on spatially independent data, if the intended application of the model is to predict into new geographic or climatic space, which arguably is the case for most applications of distribution models.     

A bivariate pseudolikelihood for incomplete longitudinal binary data with nonignorable nonmonotone missingness

For analyzing longitudinal binary data with nonignorable and nonmonotone missing responses, a full likelihood method is complicated algebraically, and often requires intensive computation, especially when there are many follow-up times. As an alternative, a pseudolikelihood approach has been proposed in the literature under minimal parametric assumptions. This formulation only requires specification of the marginal distributions of the responses and missing data mechanism, and uses an independence working assumption. However, this estimator can be inefficient for estimating both time-varying and time-stationary effects under moderate to strong within-subject associations among repeated responses. In this article, we propose an alternative estimator, based on a bivariate pseudolikelihood, and demonstrate in simulations that the proposed method can be much more efficient than the previous pseudolikelihood obtained under the assumption of independence. We illustrate the method using longitudinal data on CD4 counts from two clinical trials of HIV-infected patients.     

A components analysis of biofeedback in the treatment of fecal incontinence

Fecal incontinence is a socially disabling symptom for which rectosphincteric biofeedback has been reported to be dramatically effective. The most commonly employed biofeedback procedure incorporates three separate and potentially effective components: (1) exercise of the external sphincter muscle, (2) training in discrimination of rectal sensations, and (3) training synchrony of the internal and external sphincter responses. This paper reports the results of single case experiments employed with eight incontinent patients to examine the contributions of each of these components. All eight patients improved, but only one required the biofeedback procedure as it was originally described. Three responded to sensory discrimination training, one to exercise training, and one to the training of synchronous sphincteric responses; three recovered independently of the effects of biofeedback. Despite the achievement of continence, the rectosphincteric reflexes following treatment continued to be abnormal in every case. These findings suggest that the character of the external sphincter response to rectal distension is an unreliable index of sphincter function and that exercise and sensory discrimination training procedures are effective for some cases of fecal incontinence.The work described in this paper was supported by Grant No. MA 6241 from the Medical Research Council of Canada.     

Mixed effects models with bivariate and univariate association parameters for longitudinal bivariate binary response data

When two binary responses are measured for each study subject across time, it may be of interest to model how the bivariate associations and marginal univariate risks involving the two responses change across time. To achieve such a goal, marginal models with bivariate log odds ratio and univariate logit components are extended to include random effects for all components. Specifically, separate normal random effects are specified on the log odds ratio scale for bivariate responses and on the logit scale for univariate responses. Assuming conditional independence given the random effects facilitates the modeling of bivariate associations across time with missing at random incomplete data. We fit the model to a dataset for which such structures are feasible: a longitudinal randomized trial of a cardiovascular educational program where the responses of interest are change in hypertension and hypercholestemia status. The proposed model is compared to a naive bivariate model that assumes independence between time points and univariate mixed effects logit models.     

Are Autonomous and Controlled Motivations School-Subjects-Specific?

This research sought to test whether autonomous and controlled motivations are specific to school subjects or more general to the school context. In two cross-sectional studies, 252 elementary school children (43.7% male; mean age = 10.7 years, SD = 1.3 years) and 334 junior high school children (49.7% male, mean age = 14.07 years, SD = 1.01 years) were administered a questionnaire assessing their motivation for various school subjects. Results based on structural equation modeling using the correlated trait-correlated method minus one model (CTCM-1) showed that autonomous and controlled motivations assessed at the school subject level are not equally school-subject-specific. We found larger specificity effects for autonomous (intrinsic and identified) than for controlled (introjected and external) motivation. In both studies, results of factor loadings and the correlations with self-concept and achievement demonstrated that more evidence of specificity was obtained for autonomous regulations than for controlled ones. These findings suggest a new understanding of the hierarchical and multidimensional academic structure of autonomous and controlled motivations and of the mechanisms involved in the development of types of regulations for school subjects.     

Does self-esteem lead to high achievement of the science college’s students? A study from the six health science colleges

Background and objectiveSelf-esteem refers to a degree to which a person esteem himself or herself, the summation in light of cognizant self-evaluative considerations and feeling or in short as global emotional placement of self. This study investigates the relationship between self-esteem, social factors, and academic achievement in the form of grade point average (GPA) standing for academic achievement in the health science colleges.MethodsThis study is a quantitative cross-sectional design. The study was conducted at Princess Nourah bint Abdulrahman University (PNU), and the participants were health Science Colleges' undergraduate students. The questionnaire is composed of 24 questions in 4 main sections. The self-esteem was evaluated by using a validated Rosenberg Self-Esteem 7-questions Scale used only.ResultsA total of 551 questionnaires were distributed to the students, and 507 of them responded. Out of 507 responded, 7 were excluded due to a lack of the information. 47 (9.4%) were Foundation year students, 109 (21.8%) Medical students, 44 (8.8%) Dental students, 97 (19.4%) Pharmacy students, 101 (20.2%) Nursing students and 102 (20.4%) from Applied science. The students’ overall responses demonstrated that most of the health science students agreed in a positive way of self-esteem (1.68 ± 0.31).ConclusionThe findings from the current study contribute to the resources to better oversee projects to upgrade health sciences students' self-esteem, some short term courses (i.e. English, personality development and motivation) are requested to boost the academic career and confidence by lifting self-esteem; it indirectly helps to better academic performance. Students also need special counseling for how to deal with stress, anxiety and depression.     

How Long Is Too Long in Contemporary Peer Review? Perspectives from Authors Publishing in Conservation Biology Journals

Delays in peer reviewed publication may have consequences for both assessment of scientific prowess in academia as well as communication of important information to the knowledge receptor community. We present an analysis on the perspectives of authors publishing in conservation biology journals regarding their opinions on the importance of speed in peer-review as well as how to improve review times. Authors were invited to take part in an online questionnaire, of which the data was subjected to both qualitative (open coding, categorizing) and quantitative analyses (generalized linear models). We received 637 responses to 6,547 e-mail invitations sent. Peer-review speed was generally perceived as slow, with authors experiencing a typical turnaround time of 14 weeks while their perceived optimal review time was six weeks. Male and younger respondents seem to have higher expectations of review speed than females and older respondents. The majority of participants attributed lengthy review times to reviewer and editor fatigue, while editor persistence and journal prestige were believed to speed up the review process. Negative consequences of lengthy review times were perceived to be greater for early career researchers and to have impact on author morale (e.g. motivation or frustration). Competition among colleagues was also of concern to respondents. Incentivizing peer-review was among the top suggested alterations to the system along with training graduate students in peer-review, increased editorial persistence, and changes to the norms of peer-review such as opening the peer-review process to the public. It is clear that authors surveyed in this study viewed the peer-review system as under stress and we encourage scientists and publishers to push the envelope for new peer-review models.     

重复经颅磁刺激联合等速肌力训练对不完全性脊髓损伤患者神经电生理指标、下肢肌力和脊髓功能独立性的影响

摘要 目的：探讨重复经颅磁刺激（TMS）联合等速肌力训练对不完全性脊髓损伤（SCI）患者神经电生理指标、下肢肌力和脊髓功能独立性的影响。方法：选取2018年3月~2019年12月期间我院收治87例不完全性SCI患者,根据入院奇偶顺序分为观察组（n=44）和对照组（n=43）,两组均给予常规康复训练,对照组在此基础上联合等速肌力训练,观察组在对照组基础上联合TMS,对比两组神经电生理指标[静息运动阈值（RMT）和运动诱发电位（MEP）]、下肢肌力指标[屈、伸肌群的峰力矩（PT）、力矩加速能（TAE）以及胭绳肌与股四头肌肌力比率（H/Q）]、功能独立性评定(FIM)量表、疼痛简化McGill疼痛问卷(SF-MPQ）、Barthel指数评定量表（BI）评分。结果：治疗4周后,观察组RMT较治疗前降低,且低于对照组（P<0.05）;MEP较治疗前升高,且高于对照组（P<0.05）。治疗4周后,两组屈肌群PT、屈肌群TAE、伸肌群PT、伸肌群TAE、H/Q、FIM、BI评分均较治疗前升高,且观察组高于对照组（P<0.05）;两组SF-MPQ评分均较治疗前下降（P<0.05）,且观察组低于对照组（P<0.05）。结论：TMS联合等速肌力训练治疗不完全性SCI患者可刺激患者神经功能恢复,提高患者脊髓功能独立性,改善下肢肌力,减轻患者的神经性疼痛。     

Impact of education and network for avian influenza H5N1 in human: knowledge, clinical practice, and motivation on medical providers in Vietnam

Background

Knowledge, clinical practice, and professional motivation of medical providers relating to H5N1 infection have an important influence on care for H5N1 patients who require early diagnosis and early medical intervention.

Methods/Principal Findings

Novel educational programs including training and workshops for medical providers relating to H5N1 infection in Vietnam were originally created and implemented in 18 provincial hospitals in northern Vietnam between 2008 and 2010. A self-administered, structured questionnaire survey was conducted in 8 provincial hospitals where both educational training and workshops were previously provided. A total of 326 medical providers, including physicians, nurses, and laboratory technicians who attended or did not attend original programs were enrolled in the survey. Knowledge, clinical attitudes and practice (KAP), including motivation surrounding caring for H5N1 patients, were evaluated. The study indicated a high level of knowledge and motivation in all professional groups, with especially high levels in laboratory technicians. Conferences and educational programs were evaluated to be the main scientific information resources for physicians, along with information from colleagues. The chest radiographs and the initiation of antiviral treatment in the absence of RT-PCR result were identified as gaps in education. Factors possibly influencing professional motivation for caring for H5N1 patients included healthcare profession, the hospital where the respondents worked, age group, attendance at original educational programs and at educational programs which were conducted by international health-related organizations.

Conclusions

Educational programs provide high knowledge and motivation for medical providers in Vietnam caring for H5N1 patients. Additional educational programs related to chest radiographs and an initiation of treatment in the absence of RT-PCR are needed. Networking is also necessary for sharing updated scientific information and practical experiences. These enhanced KAPs by educational programs and integrated systems among hospitals should result in appropriate care for H5N1 patients and may reduce morbidity and mortality.     

Ways of coping as predictors of satisfaction with curriculum and academic success in medical school

The purpose of the present study was to determine the coping strategies of medical students and to investigate the effects of coping strategies on student satisfaction and academic achievement with different instruction methods. A total of 152 medical students was followed throughout the first 2 yr of medical education between 2008 and 2010. Students completed a sociodemographic questionnaire and revised form of the Ways of Coping questionnaire both at the beginning of the first year and at the end of the second year. These forms provided data about the characteristics and main coping strategies (problem focused or emotion focused) of the students and revealed the change over time. At the end of the second year, participants also completed a satisfaction questionnaire asking their satisfaction with lectures, problem-based learning, and practicals. The authors used block, problem-based learning, and practical exam scores of the students attained in the past 2 yr as academic achievement indicators. No sociodemographic variable was related to coping strategy. The majority of students (80.9%) adopted problem-focused coping. A shift occurred in the main coping strategies of some students in both sides. Problem-focused coping scores decreased over time. Problem-focused coping positively correlated with satisfaction with practicals and practical exam scores, whereas emotion-focused coping showed the same correlation negatively. The main coping strategy also predicted satisfaction and exam success in practicals. In conclusion, a main coping strategy may be helpful to predict student satisfaction and academic achievement with some student-centered instruction methods. Determining undesired coping strategies may provide an opportunity for intervention to prevent relevant dissatisfaction and failure.     

Selecting Shelter Dogs for Service Dog Training

Service dogs are an essential aid to persons with disabilities, providing independence, mobility, and improved self-esteem. Because of these proven benefits, the growing use of service dogs is creating a demand and supply crisis. One major cause is the 50% average dropout rate for dogs selected for training. Weiss and Greenber (1997) recently found that a dog, successful on the most commonly used selection test items, was as likely to be either a poor or a good candidate for service work. The experiment presented here evaluated test items developed by the author in 15 years of experience with dogs. The test items were administered to 75 dogs from the Kansas Humane Society. Once tested, the dogs received obedience and retrieval training. The experiment assessed each dog on behavior over 5 weeks of training versus performance on each selection test item. A subset of the selection items, combined in a regression analysis, accounted for 36.4% of the variance with R = 0.603. This research also revealed a reliable test for dog aggression without risking injury to dog or tester. Items for testing included fear, motivation, and submission. Another set of selection items reliably predicted the trait of "high energy" commonly described as "high strung." Future research should involve investigating the effectiveness of both cortisol levels and blood pressure in predicting traits to help strengthen the predictive value of the tool and then testing on dogs trained to be full service dogs.     

Selecting shelter dogs for service dog training

Service dogs are an essential aid to persons with disabilities, providing independence, mobility, and improved self-esteem. Because of these proven benefits, the growing use of service dogs is creating a demand and supply crisis. One major cause is the 50% average dropout rate for dogs selected for training. Weiss and Greenber (1997) recently found that a dog, successful on the most commonly used selection test items, was as likely to be either a poor or a good candidate for service work. The experiment presented here evaluated test items developed by the author in 15 years of experience with dogs. The test items were administered to 75 dogs from the Kansas Humane Society. Once tested, the dogs received obedience and retrieval training. The experiment assessed each dog on behavior over 5 weeks of training versus performance on each selection test item. A subset of the selection items, combined in a regression analysis, accounted for 36.4% of the variance with R = 0.603. This research also revealed a reliable test for dog aggression without risking injury to dog or tester. Items for testing included fear, motivation, and submission. Another set of selection items reliably predicted the trait of “high energy ”commonly described as “high strung. ”Future research should involve investigating the effectiveness of both cortisol levels and blood pressure in predicting traits to help strengthen the predictive value of the tool and then testing on dogs trained to be full service dogs.     

Testing for marginal independence between two categorical variables with multiple responses

Questions that ask respondents to "choose all that apply" from a set of items occur frequently in surveys. Categorical variables that summarize this type of survey data are called both pick any/c variables and multiple-response categorical variables. It is often of interest to test for independence between two categorical variables. When both categorical variables can have multiple responses, traditional Pearson chi-square tests for independence should not be used because of the within-subject dependence among responses. An intuitively constructed version of the Pearson statistic is proposed to perform the test using bootstrap procedures to approximate its sampling distribution. First- and second-order adjustments to the proposed statistic are given in order to use a chi-square distribution approximation. A Bonferroni adjustment is proposed to perform the test when the joint set of responses for individual subjects is unavailable. Simulations show that the bootstrap procedures hold the correct size more consistently than the other procedures.