Why Problem Gamblers Quit Gambling: A Comparison of Methods and Samples

Reasons for quitting gambling were reported by two samples of problem gamblers, long-term quitters and recent quitters, using two methodologies. The participants first described their reasons for quitting in an open-ended fashion and then with a 15-item checklist. There was a fair degree of similarity between the responses of the two samples. Both groups most frequently reported that their resolution was a conscious decision, although recent quitters were more likely to report that the decision evolved over a long period of time vs. being an immediate decision. About a third of both groups described their decision as related to a specific event and involving a crisis. In both methods, negative emotions and financial concerns were most often reported. The checklist method yielded about three times as many reasons as the open-ended method. There were no gender differences in reasons although participants with a treatment history reported more reasons than those who had not sought treatment.     

What is a problem drug user?

The term ‘problem drug user’ (PDU) has risen to prominence in policy and research discourse over the past 25 years or so, particularly in the UK and Europe, largely at the expense of the older ‘addiction’ and ‘dependence’ concepts. How should we understand this shift? Is it merely a change in terminological fashion or does it signify something more significant? In exploring this question, the work of the philosopher Ian Hacking is drawn on, in particular his related ideas of ‘making up people’ and ‘looping effects’. Although it first emerged in the early 1980s, it is shown how the idea of the ‘PDU’ in fact has a long and mixed genealogy which can be traced back at least as far as the 1930s, a heritage which continues to exert influence today. Following Hacking, it is argued that the invention just over 25 years ago of the ‘PDU’ constituted the creation of a new kind of person which did not exist before and which has shaped how those so labelled are governed and controlled.     

Sensitivity of the children's category test level 2 to brain dysfunction

The current study examined the psychometric properties and sensitivity to brain dysfunction of a popular test of abstraction and problem solving ability, the Children's Category Test Level 2 (CCT-2; Boll, 1993). Participants were 113 children with various forms of structural brain damage (n = 82) or with Attention-Deficit/Hyperactivity Disorder (n = 31). Results indicated that while there is some support for the validity of the CCT-2, the test is not particularly sensitive to brain dysfunction. The composite T-score, subtest scores and factor scores did not distinguish children with ADHD from those with structural brain damage and the T-scores of both groups were within the normal range. These results illustrate the importance of validating measures of neurocognitive function with clinical populations as even tests with otherwise excellent psychometric properties may not be sensitive to brain dysfunction. It is recommended that the CCT-2 not be used to draw conclusions regarding the impact of brain damage on abstraction and problem solving abilities.     

Problem solving and prior play experience: an observational study

One of the criticisms of previous studies of the effect of prior play on children's problem solving abilities, is that children have been instructed to play for relatively short periods. The present study looked at the quality of spontaneous play with sticks, nuts and bolts in 18 children (CA 44 months) over a four week period and the effect of this on a subsequent problem whose solution required two sticks to be bolted together. The most striking result was that children who had discovered the elongation principle during play were significantly better problem solvers than those who had not. Neither play frequency nor fantasy play was significantly related to problem solving.     

中医药国际化存在的问题和对策

中医药国际化进程日益加速，但暴露出的问题同样严峻。如境外中医药从业人员素质参差不齐，海外华人中医药团体内部矛盾重重，中医药国际化中的去中国化现象触目惊心等等。本文在广泛调研的基础上针对中医药国际化存在的问题进行认真剖析并提出对策，希冀为中医药国际化的健康发展提供决策参考。     

How Do Engineering Scientists Think? Model‐Based Simulation in Biomedical Engineering Research Laboratories

Designing, building, and experimenting with physical simulation models are central problem‐solving practices in the engineering sciences. Model‐based simulation is an epistemic activity that includes exploration, generation and testing of hypotheses, explanation, and inference. This paper argues that to interpret and understand how these simulation models function in creating knowledge and technologies requires construing problem solving as accomplished by a researcher–artifact system. It draws on and further develops the framework of “distributed cognition” to interpret data collected in ethnographic and cognitive‐historical studies of two biomedical engineering research laboratories, and articulates the notion of distributed model‐based cognition to answer the question posed in the title.     

应用品质圈提高冠心病患者认知效能和康复意识的效果研究

目的探讨实施品质圈活动对提高冠心病患者康复意识和认知效能的方法与效果。方法成立品质圈活动小组，对50例冠心病患者进行干预前后对照研究，分别于入院当日、出院前I d通过发放问卷调查了解患者干预前后对冠心病疾病及康复相关知识的掌握情况。结果通过品质圈活动，患者对疾病的认识程度提高，医疗、护理的依从性提高，与活动前比较差异具有统计学意义，P＜0．01。结论品质圈活动能有效地提高冠心病患者康复意识和认知效能。     

医院绩效管理存在的缺陷及对策探讨

绩效管理已被众多医院管理者接受。许多医院进行了尝试并取得了显著效益,但仍存在许多问题。文章结合多家医院的共性问题,进行了分析并提出了对策,以及时改善,提升绩效。