Calibration and Validation of the Dutch-Flemish PROMIS Pain Interference Item Bank in Patients with Chronic Pain.

Science.gov (United States)

Crins, Martine H P; Roorda, Leo D; Smits, Niels; de Vet, Henrica C W; Westhovens, Rene; Cella, David; Cook, Karon F; Revicki, Dennis; van Leeuwen, Jaap; Boers, Maarten; Dekker, Joost; Terwee, Caroline B

2015-01-01

The Dutch-Flemish PROMIS Group translated the adult PROMIS Pain Interference item bank into Dutch-Flemish. The aims of the current study were to calibrate the parameters of these items using an item response theory (IRT) model, to evaluate the cross-cultural validity of the Dutch-Flemish translations compared to the original English items, and to evaluate their reliability and construct validity. The 40 items in the bank were completed by 1085 Dutch chronic pain patients. Before calibrating the items, IRT model assumptions were evaluated using confirmatory factor analysis (CFA). Items were calibrated using the graded response model (GRM), an IRT model appropriate for items with more than two response options. To evaluate cross-cultural validity, differential item functioning (DIF) for language (Dutch vs. English) was examined. Reliability was evaluated based on standard errors and Cronbach's alpha. To evaluate construct validity correlations with scores on legacy instruments (e.g., the Disabilities of the Arm, Shoulder and Hand Questionnaire) were calculated. Unidimensionality of the Dutch-Flemish PROMIS Pain Interference item bank was supported by CFA tests of model fit (CFI = 0.986, TLI = 0.986). Furthermore, the data fit the GRM and showed good coverage across the pain interference continuum (threshold-parameters range: -3.04 to 3.44). The Dutch-Flemish PROMIS Pain Interference item bank has good cross-cultural validity (only two out of 40 items showing DIF), good reliability (Cronbach's alpha = 0.98), and good construct validity (Pearson correlations between 0.62 and 0.75). A computer adaptive test (CAT) and Dutch-Flemish PROMIS short forms of the Dutch-Flemish PROMIS Pain Interference item bank can now be developed.

Calibration and Validation of the Dutch-Flemish PROMIS Pain Interference Item Bank in Patients with Chronic Pain.

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Martine H P Crins

Full Text Available The Dutch-Flemish PROMIS Group translated the adult PROMIS Pain Interference item bank into Dutch-Flemish. The aims of the current study were to calibrate the parameters of these items using an item response theory (IRT model, to evaluate the cross-cultural validity of the Dutch-Flemish translations compared to the original English items, and to evaluate their reliability and construct validity. The 40 items in the bank were completed by 1085 Dutch chronic pain patients. Before calibrating the items, IRT model assumptions were evaluated using confirmatory factor analysis (CFA. Items were calibrated using the graded response model (GRM, an IRT model appropriate for items with more than two response options. To evaluate cross-cultural validity, differential item functioning (DIF for language (Dutch vs. English was examined. Reliability was evaluated based on standard errors and Cronbach's alpha. To evaluate construct validity correlations with scores on legacy instruments (e.g., the Disabilities of the Arm, Shoulder and Hand Questionnaire were calculated. Unidimensionality of the Dutch-Flemish PROMIS Pain Interference item bank was supported by CFA tests of model fit (CFI = 0.986, TLI = 0.986. Furthermore, the data fit the GRM and showed good coverage across the pain interference continuum (threshold-parameters range: -3.04 to 3.44. The Dutch-Flemish PROMIS Pain Interference item bank has good cross-cultural validity (only two out of 40 items showing DIF, good reliability (Cronbach's alpha = 0.98, and good construct validity (Pearson correlations between 0.62 and 0.75. A computer adaptive test (CAT and Dutch-Flemish PROMIS short forms of the Dutch-Flemish PROMIS Pain Interference item bank can now be developed.

The importance of rating scale design in the measurement of patient-reported outcomes using questionnaires or item banks.

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Khadka, Jyoti; McAlinden, Colm; Gothwal, Vijaya K; Lamoureux, Ecosse L; Pesudovs, Konrad

2012-06-26

To investigate the effect of rating scale designs (question formats and response categories) on item difficulty calibrations and assess the impact that rating scale differences have on overall vision-related activity limitation (VRAL) scores. Sixteen existing patient-reported outcome instruments (PROs) suitable for cataract assessment, with different rating scales, were self-administered by patients on a cataract surgery waiting list. A total of 226 VRAL items from these PROs in their native rating scales were included in an item bank and calibrated using Rasch analysis. Fifteen item/content areas (e.g., reading newspapers) appearing in at least three different PROs were identified. Within each content area, item calibrations were compared and their range calculated. Similarly, five PROs having at least three items in common with the Visual Function (VF-14) were compared in terms of average item measures. A total of 614 patients (mean age ± SD, 74.1 ± 9.4 years) participated. Items with the same content varied in their calibration by as much as two logits; "reading the small print" had the largest range (1.99 logits) followed by "watching TV" (1.60). Compared with the VF-14 (0.00 logits), the rating scale of the Visual Disability Assessment (1.13 logits) produced the most difficult items and the Cataract Symptom Scale (0.24 logits) produced the least difficult items. The VRAL item bank was suboptimally targeted to the ability level of the participants (2.00 logits). Rating scale designs have a significant effect on item calibrations. Therefore, constructing item banks from existing items in their native formats carries risks to face validity and transmission of problems inherent in existing instruments, such as poor targeting.

Evaluation of item candidates for a diabetic retinopathy quality of life item bank.

Science.gov (United States)

Fenwick, Eva K; Pesudovs, Konrad; Khadka, Jyoti; Rees, Gwyn; Wong, Tien Y; Lamoureux, Ecosse L

2013-09-01

We are developing an item bank assessing the impact of diabetic retinopathy (DR) on quality of life (QoL) using a rigorous multi-staged process combining qualitative and quantitative methods. We describe here the first two qualitative phases: content development and item evaluation. After a comprehensive literature review, items were generated from four sources: (1) 34 previously validated patient-reported outcome measures; (2) five published qualitative articles; (3) eight focus groups and 18 semi-structured interviews with 57 DR patients; and (4) seven semi-structured interviews with diabetes or ophthalmic experts. Items were then evaluated during 3 stages, namely binning (grouping) and winnowing (reduction) based on key criteria and panel consensus; development of item stems and response options; and pre-testing of items via cognitive interviews with patients. The content development phase yielded 1,165 unique items across 7 QoL domains. After 3 sessions of binning and winnowing, items were reduced to a minimally representative set (n = 312) across 9 domains of QoL: visual symptoms; ocular surface symptoms; activity limitation; mobility; emotional; health concerns; social; convenience; and economic. After 8 cognitive interviews, 42 items were amended resulting in a final set of 314 items. We have employed a systematic approach to develop items for a DR-specific QoL item bank. The psychometric properties of the nine QoL subscales will be assessed using Rasch analysis. The resulting validated item bank will allow clinicians and researchers to better understand the QoL impact of DR and DR therapies from the patient's perspective.

A 67-Item Stress Resilience item bank showing high content validity was developed in a psychosomatic sample.

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Obbarius, Nina; Fischer, Felix; Obbarius, Alexander; Nolte, Sandra; Liegl, Gregor; Rose, Matthias

2018-04-10

To develop the first item bank to measure Stress Resilience (SR) in clinical populations. Qualitative item development resulted in an initial pool of 131 items covering a broad theoretical SR concept. These items were tested in n=521 patients at a psychosomatic outpatient clinic. Exploratory and Confirmatory Factor Analysis (CFA), as well as other state-of-the-art item analyses and IRT were used for item evaluation and calibration of the final item bank. Out of the initial item pool of 131 items, we excluded 64 items (54 factor loading .3, 2 non-discriminative Item Response Curves, 4 Differential Item Functioning). The final set of 67 items indicated sufficient model fit in CFA and IRT analyses. Additionally, a 10-item short form with high measurement precision (SE≤.32 in a theta range between -1.8 and +1.5) was derived. Both the SR item bank and the SR short form were highly correlated with an existing static legacy tool (Connor-Davidson Resilience Scale). The final SR item bank and 10-item short form showed good psychometric properties. When further validated, they will be ready to be used within a framework of Computer-Adaptive Tests for a comprehensive assessment of the Stress-Construct. Copyright © 2018. Published by Elsevier Inc.

Electronics. Criterion-Referenced Test (CRT) Item Bank.

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Davis, Diane, Ed.

This document contains 519 criterion-referenced multiple choice and true or false test items for a course in electronics. The test item bank is designed to work with both the Vocational Instructional Management System (VIMS) and the Vocational Administrative Management System (VAMS) in Missouri. The items are grouped into 15 units covering the…

An Item Bank for Abuse of Prescription Pain Medication from the Patient-Reported Outcomes Measurement Information System (PROMIS®).

Science.gov (United States)

Pilkonis, Paul A; Yu, Lan; Dodds, Nathan E; Johnston, Kelly L; Lawrence, Suzanne M; Hilton, Thomas F; Daley, Dennis C; Patkar, Ashwin A; McCarty, Dennis

2017-08-01

There is a need to monitor patients receiving prescription opioids to detect possible signs of abuse. To address this need, we developed and calibrated an item bank for severity of abuse of prescription pain medication as part of the Patient-Reported Outcomes Measurement Information System (PROMIS ® ). Comprehensive literature searches yielded an initial bank of 5,310 items relevant to substance use and abuse, including abuse of prescription pain medication, from over 80 unique instruments. After qualitative item analysis (i.e., focus groups, cognitive interviewing, expert review, and item revision), 25 items for abuse of prescribed pain medication were included in field testing. Items were written in a first-person, past-tense format, with a three-month time frame and five response options reflecting frequency or severity. The calibration sample included 448 respondents, 367 from the general population (ascertained through an internet panel) and 81 from community treatment programs participating in the National Drug Abuse Treatment Clinical Trials Network. A final bank of 22 items was calibrated using the two-parameter graded response model from item response theory. A seven-item static short form was also developed. The test information curve showed that the PROMIS ® item bank for abuse of prescription pain medication provided substantial information in a broad range of severity. The initial psychometric characteristics of the item bank support its use as a computerized adaptive test or short form, with either version providing a brief, precise, and efficient measure relevant to both clinical and community samples. © 2016 American Academy of Pain Medicine. All rights reserved. For permissions, please e-mail: journals.permissions@oup.com

Development of an item bank for the EORTC Role Functioning Computer Adaptive Test (EORTC RF-CAT)

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Gamper, Eva-Maria; Petersen, Morten Aa.; Aaronson, Neil

2016-01-01

a computer-adaptive test (CAT) for RF. This was part of a larger project whose objective is to develop a CAT version of the EORTC QLQ-C30 which is one of the most widely used HRQOL instruments in oncology. METHODS: In accordance with EORTC guidelines, the development of the RF-CAT comprised four phases...... with good psychometric properties. The resulting item bank exhibits excellent reliability (mean reliability = 0.85, median = 0.95). Using the RF-CAT may allow sample size savings from 11 % up to 50 % compared to using the QLQ-C30 RF scale. CONCLUSIONS: The RF-CAT item bank improves the precision...

Redefining diagnostic symptoms of depression using Rasch analysis: testing an item bank suitable for DSM-V and computer adaptive testing.

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Mitchell, Alex J; Smith, Adam B; Al-salihy, Zerak; Rahim, Twana A; Mahmud, Mahmud Q; Muhyaldin, Asma S

2011-10-01

We aimed to redefine the optimal self-report symptoms of depression suitable for creation of an item bank that could be used in computer adaptive testing or to develop a simplified screening tool for DSM-V. Four hundred subjects (200 patients with primary depression and 200 non-depressed subjects), living in Iraqi Kurdistan were interviewed. The Mini International Neuropsychiatric Interview (MINI) was used to define the presence of major depression (DSM-IV criteria). We examined symptoms of depression using four well-known scales delivered in Kurdish. The Partial Credit Model was applied to each instrument. Common-item equating was subsequently used to create an item bank and differential item functioning (DIF) explored for known subgroups. A symptom level Rasch analysis reduced the original 45 items to 24 items of the original after the exclusion of 21 misfitting items. A further six items (CESD13 and CESD17, HADS-D4, HADS-D5 and HADS-D7, and CDSS3 and CDSS4) were removed due to misfit as the items were added together to form the item bank, and two items were subsequently removed following the DIF analysis by diagnosis (CESD20 and CDSS9, both of which were harder to endorse for women). Therefore the remaining optimal item bank consisted of 17 items and produced an area under the curve (AUC) of 0.987. Using a bank restricted to the optimal nine items revealed only minor loss of accuracy (AUC = 0.989, sensitivity 96%, specificity 95%). Finally, when restricted to only four items accuracy was still high (AUC was still 0.976; sensitivity 93%, specificity 96%). An item bank of 17 items may be useful in computer adaptive testing and nine or even four items may be used to develop a simplified screening tool for DSM-V major depressive disorder (MDD). Further examination of this item bank should be conducted in different cultural settings.

Differential item functioning of the patient-reported outcomes information system (PROMIS®) pain interference item bank by language (Spanish versus English).

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Paz, Sylvia H; Spritzer, Karen L; Reise, Steven P; Hays, Ron D

2017-06-01

About 70% of Latinos, 5 years old or older, in the United States speak Spanish at home. Measurement equivalence of the PROMIS ® pain interference (PI) item bank by language of administration (English versus Spanish) has not been evaluated. A sample of 527 adult Spanish-speaking Latinos completed the Spanish version of the 41-item PROMIS ® pain interference item bank. We evaluate dimensionality, monotonicity and local independence of the Spanish-language items. Then we evaluate differential item functioning (DIF) using ordinal logistic regression with item response theory scores estimated from DIF-free "anchor" items. One of the 41 items in the Spanish version of the PROMIS ® PI item bank was identified as having significant uniform DIF. English- and Spanish-speaking subjects with the same level of pain interference responded differently to 1 of the 41 items in the PROMIS ® PI item bank. This item was not retained due to proprietary issues. The original English language item parameters can be used when estimating PROMIS ® PI scores.

Development of a lack of appetite item bank for computer-adaptive testing (CAT)

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Thamsborg, Lise Laurberg Holst; Petersen, Morten Aa; Aaronson, Neil K

2015-01-01

to 12 lack of appetite items. CONCLUSIONS: Phases 1-3 resulted in 12 lack of appetite candidate items. Based on a field testing (phase 4), the psychometric characteristics of the items will be assessed and the final item bank will be generated. This CAT item bank is expected to provide precise...

Development of an item bank for computerized adaptive test (CAT) measurement of pain

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Petersen, Morten Aa.; Aaronson, Neil K; Chie, Wei-Chu

2016-01-01

PURPOSE: Patient-reported outcomes should ideally be adapted to the individual patient while maintaining comparability of scores across patients. This is achievable using computerized adaptive testing (CAT). The aim here was to develop an item bank for CAT measurement of the pain domain as measured...... were obtained from 1103 cancer patients from five countries. Psychometric evaluations showed that 16 items could be retained in a unidimensional item bank. Evaluations indicated that use of the CAT measure may reduce sample size requirements with 15-25 % compared to using the QLQ-C30 pain scale....... CONCLUSIONS: We have established an item bank of 16 items suitable for CAT measurement of pain. While being backward compatible with the QLQ-C30, the new item bank will significantly improve measurement precision of pain. We recommend initiating CAT measurement by screening for pain using the two original QLQ...

Evaluation of the box and blocks test, stereognosis and item banks of activity and upper extremity function in youths with brachial plexus birth palsy.

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Mulcahey, Mary Jane; Kozin, Scott; Merenda, Lisa; Gaughan, John; Tian, Feng; Gogola, Gloria; James, Michelle A; Ni, Pengsheng

2012-09-01

One of the greatest limitations to measuring outcomes in pediatric orthopaedics is the lack of effective instruments. Computer adaptive testing, which uses large item banks, select only items that are relevant to a child's function based on a previous response and filters items that are too easy or too hard or simply not relevant to the child. In this way, computer adaptive testing provides for a meaningful, efficient, and precise method to evaluate patient-reported outcomes. Banks of items that assess activity and upper extremity (UE) function have been developed for children with cerebral palsy and have enabled computer adaptive tests that showed strong reliability, strong validity, and broader content range when compared with traditional instruments. Because of the void in instruments for children with brachial plexus birth palsy (BPBP) and the importance of having an UE and activity scale, we were interested in how well these items worked in this population. Cross-sectional, multicenter study involving 200 children with BPBP was conducted. The box and block test (BBT) and Stereognosis tests were administered and patient reports of UE function and activity were obtained with the cerebral palsy item banks. Differential item functioning (DIF) was examined. Predictive ability of the BBT and stereognosis was evaluated with proportional odds logistic regression model. Spearman correlations coefficients (rs) were calculated to examine correlation between stereognosis and the BBT and between individual stereognosis items and the total stereognosis score. Six of the 86 items showed DIF, indicating that the activity and UE item banks may be useful for computer adaptive tests for children with BPBP. The penny and the button were strongest predictors of impairment level (odds ratio=0.34 to 0.40]. There was a good positive relationship between total stereognosis and BBT scores (rs=0.60). The BBT had a good negative (rs=-0.55) and good positive (rs=0.55) relationship with

Development of the PROMIS positive emotional and sensory expectancies of smoking item banks.

Science.gov (United States)

Tucker, Joan S; Shadel, William G; Edelen, Maria Orlando; Stucky, Brian D; Li, Zhen; Hansen, Mark; Cai, Li

2014-09-01

The positive emotional and sensory expectancies of cigarette smoking include improved cognitive abilities, positive affective states, and pleasurable sensorimotor sensations. This paper describes development of Positive Emotional and Sensory Expectancies of Smoking item banks that will serve to standardize the assessment of this construct among daily and nondaily cigarette smokers. Data came from daily (N = 4,201) and nondaily (N =1,183) smokers who completed an online survey. To identify a unidimensional set of items, we conducted item factor analyses, item response theory analyses, and differential item functioning analyses. Additionally, we evaluated the performance of fixed-item short forms (SFs) and computer adaptive tests (CATs) to efficiently assess the construct. Eighteen items were included in the item banks (15 common across daily and nondaily smokers, 1 unique to daily, 2 unique to nondaily). The item banks are strongly unidimensional, highly reliable (reliability = 0.95 for both), and perform similarly across gender, age, and race/ethnicity groups. A SF common to daily and nondaily smokers consists of 6 items (reliability = 0.86). Results from simulated CATs indicated that, on average, less than 8 items are needed to assess the construct with adequate precision using the item banks. These analyses identified a new set of items that can assess the positive emotional and sensory expectancies of smoking in a reliable and standardized manner. Considerable efficiency in assessing this construct can be achieved by using the item bank SF, employing computer adaptive tests, or selecting subsets of items tailored to specific research or clinical purposes. © The Author 2014. Published by Oxford University Press on behalf of the Society for Research on Nicotine and Tobacco. All rights reserved. For permissions, please e-mail: journals.permissions@oup.com.

Australian Chemistry Test Item Bank: Years 11 & 12. Volume 1.

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Commons, C., Ed.; Martin, P., Ed.

Volume 1 of the Australian Chemistry Test Item Bank, consisting of two volumes, contains nearly 2000 multiple-choice items related to the chemistry taught in Year 11 and Year 12 courses in Australia. Items which were written during 1979 and 1980 were initially published in the "ACER Chemistry Test Item Collection" and in the "ACER…

Cognitive interviewing methodology in the development of a pediatric item bank: a patient reported outcomes measurement information system (PROMIS study

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

DeWalt Darren A

2009-01-01

Full Text Available Abstract Background The evaluation of patient-reported outcomes (PROs in health care has seen greater use in recent years, and methods to improve the reliability and validity of PRO instruments are advancing. This paper discusses the cognitive interviewing procedures employed by the Patient Reported Outcomes Measurement Information System (PROMIS pediatrics group for the purpose of developing a dynamic, electronic item bank for field testing with children and adolescents using novel computer technology. The primary objective of this study was to conduct cognitive interviews with children and adolescents to gain feedback on items measuring physical functioning, emotional health, social health, fatigue, pain, and asthma-specific symptoms. Methods A total of 88 cognitive interviews were conducted with 77 children and adolescents across two sites on 318 items. From this initial item bank, 25 items were deleted and 35 were revised and underwent a second round of cognitive interviews. A total of 293 items were retained for field testing. Results Children as young as 8 years of age were able to comprehend the majority of items, response options, directions, recall period, and identify problems with language that was difficult for them to understand. Cognitive interviews indicated issues with item comprehension on several items which led to alternative wording for these items. Conclusion Children ages 8–17 years were able to comprehend most item stems and response options in the present study. Field testing with the resulting items and response options is presently being conducted as part of the PROMIS Pediatric Item Bank development process.

Development and psychometric characteristics of the SCI-QOL Bladder Management Difficulties and Bowel Management Difficulties item banks and short forms and the SCI-QOL Bladder Complications scale.

Science.gov (United States)

Tulsky, David S; Kisala, Pamela A; Tate, Denise G; Spungen, Ann M; Kirshblum, Steven C

2015-05-01

To describe the development and psychometric properties of the Spinal Cord Injury--Quality of Life (SCI-QOL) Bladder Management Difficulties and Bowel Management Difficulties item banks and Bladder Complications scale. Using a mixed-methods design, a pool of items assessing bladder and bowel-related concerns were developed using focus groups with individuals with spinal cord injury (SCI) and SCI clinicians, cognitive interviews, and item response theory (IRT) analytic approaches, including tests of model fit and differential item functioning. Thirty-eight bladder items and 52 bowel items were tested at the University of Michigan, Kessler Foundation Research Center, the Rehabilitation Institute of Chicago, the University of Washington, Craig Hospital, and the James J. Peters VA Medical Center, Bronx, NY. Seven hundred fifty-seven adults with traumatic SCI. The final item banks demonstrated unidimensionality (Bladder Management Difficulties CFI=0.965; RMSEA=0.093; Bowel Management Difficulties CFI=0.955; RMSEA=0.078) and acceptable fit to a graded response IRT model. The final calibrated Bladder Management Difficulties bank includes 15 items, and the final Bowel Management Difficulties item bank consists of 26 items. Additionally, 5 items related to urinary tract infections (UTI) did not fit with the larger Bladder Management Difficulties item bank but performed relatively well independently (CFI=0.992, RMSEA=0.050) and were thus retained as a separate scale. The SCI-QOL Bladder Management Difficulties and Bowel Management Difficulties item banks are psychometrically robust and are available as computer adaptive tests or short forms. The SCI-QOL Bladder Complications scale is a brief, fixed-length outcomes instrument for individuals with a UTI.

Validation of a mobility item bank for older patients in primary care.

Science.gov (United States)

Cabrero-García, Julio; Ramos-Pichardo, Juan Diego; Muñoz-Mendoza, Carmen Luz; Cabañero-Martínez, María José; González-Llopis, Lorena; Reig-Ferrer, Abilio

2012-12-05

To develop and validate an item bank to measure mobility in older people in primary care and to analyse differential item functioning (DIF) and differential bundle functioning (DBF) by sex. A pool of 48 mobility items was administered by interview to 593 older people attending primary health care practices. The pool contained four domains based on the International Classification of Functioning: changing and maintaining body position, carrying, lifting and pushing, walking and going up and down stairs. The Late Life Mobility item bank consisted of 35 items, and measured with a reliability of 0.90 or more across the full spectrum of mobility, except at the higher end of better functioning. No evidence was found of non-uniform DIF but uniform DIF was observed, mainly for items in the changing and maintaining body position and carrying, lifting and pushing domains. The walking domain did not display DBF, but the other three domains did, principally the carrying, lifting and pushing items. During the design and validation of an item bank to measure mobility in older people, we found that strength (carrying, lifting and pushing) items formed a secondary dimension that produced DBF. More research is needed to determine how best to include strength items in a mobility measure, or whether it would be more appropriate to design separate measures for each construct.

Australian Chemistry Test Item Bank: Years 11 and 12. Volume 2.

Science.gov (United States)

Commons, C., Ed.; Martin, P., Ed.

The second volume of the Australian Chemistry Test Item Bank, consisting of two volumes, contains nearly 2000 multiple-choice items related to the chemistry taught in Year 11 and Year 12 courses in Australia. Items which were written during 1979 and 1980 were initially published in the "ACER Chemistry Test Item Collection" and in the…

Calibration of the PROMIS physical function item bank in Dutch patients with rheumatoid arthritis.

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Martijn A H Oude Voshaar

Full Text Available OBJECTIVE: To calibrate the Dutch-Flemish version of the PROMIS physical function (PF item bank in patients with rheumatoid arthritis (RA and to evaluate cross-cultural measurement equivalence with US general population and RA data. METHODS: Data were collected from RA patients enrolled in the Dutch DREAM registry. An incomplete longitudinal anchored design was used where patients completed all 121 items of the item bank over the course of three waves of data collection. Item responses were fit to a generalized partial credit model adapted for longitudinal data and the item parameters were examined for differential item functioning (DIF across country, age, and sex. RESULTS: In total, 690 patients participated in the study at time point 1 (T2, N = 489; T3, N = 311. The item bank could be successfully fitted to a generalized partial credit model, with the number of misfitting items falling within acceptable limits. Seven items demonstrated DIF for sex, while 5 items showed DIF for age in the Dutch RA sample. Twenty-five (20% items were flagged for cross-cultural DIF compared to the US general population. However, the impact of observed DIF on total physical function estimates was negligible. DISCUSSION: The results of this study showed that the PROMIS PF item bank adequately fit a unidimensional IRT model which provides support for applications that require invariant estimates of physical function, such as computer adaptive testing and targeted short forms. More studies are needed to further investigate the cross-cultural applicability of the US-based PROMIS calibration and standardized metric.

Monetary Policy Instruments and Bank Risks in China

OpenAIRE

Zhongyuan Geng; Xue Zhai

2013-01-01

The authors use a panel data regression model to examine the effects of main monetary policy instruments on commercial bank risks in China from 1998 to 2011. The interest rate has a positive effect on bank risk while the interest rate margin, the reserve requirement ratio and open market operation have a negative effect. Among the three monetary policy instruments, the reserve requirement ratio has the greatest effect on bank risk, the interest rate (the interest rate margin) the second large...

Analysis of differential item functioning in the depression item bank from the Patient Reported Outcome Measurement Information System (PROMIS: An item response theory approach

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

JOSEPH P. EIMICKE

2009-06-01

Full Text Available The aims of this paper are to present findings related to differential item functioning (DIF in the Patient Reported Outcome Measurement Information System (PROMIS depression item bank, and to discuss potential threats to the validity of results from studies of DIF. The 32 depression items studied were modified from several widely used instruments. DIF analyses of gender, age and education were performed using a sample of 735 individuals recruited by a survey polling firm. DIF hypotheses were generated by asking content experts to indicate whether or not they expected DIF to be present, and the direction of the DIF with respect to the studied comparison groups. Primary analyses were conducted using the graded item response model (for polytomous, ordered response category data with likelihood ratio tests of DIF, accompanied by magnitude measures. Sensitivity analyses were performed using other item response models and approaches to DIF detection. Despite some caveats, the items that are recommended for exclusion or for separate calibration were "I felt like crying" and "I had trouble enjoying things that I used to enjoy." The item, "I felt I had no energy," was also flagged as evidencing DIF, and recommended for additional review. On the one hand, false DIF detection (Type 1 error was controlled to the extent possible by ensuring model fit and purification. On the other hand, power for DIF detection might have been compromised by several factors, including sparse data and small sample sizes. Nonetheless, practical and not just statistical significance should be considered. In this case the overall magnitude and impact of DIF was small for the groups studied, although impact was relatively large for some individuals.

Development of an item bank and computer adaptive test for role functioning

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Anatchkova, Milena D; Rose, Matthias; Ware, John E

2012-01-01

Role functioning (RF) is a key component of health and well-being and an important outcome in health research. The aim of this study was to develop an item bank to measure impact of health on role functioning.......Role functioning (RF) is a key component of health and well-being and an important outcome in health research. The aim of this study was to develop an item bank to measure impact of health on role functioning....

Designing a Virtual Item Bank Based on the Techniques of Image Processing

Science.gov (United States)

Liao, Wen-Wei; Ho, Rong-Guey

2011-01-01

One of the major weaknesses of the item exposure rates of figural items in Intelligence Quotient (IQ) tests lies in its inaccuracies. In this study, a new approach is proposed and a useful test tool known as the Virtual Item Bank (VIB) is introduced. The VIB combine Automatic Item Generation theory and image processing theory with the concepts of…

Individuals with knee impairments identify items in need of clarification in the Patient Reported Outcomes Measurement Information System (PROMIS®) pain interference and physical function item banks - a qualitative study.

Science.gov (United States)

Lynch, Andrew D; Dodds, Nathan E; Yu, Lan; Pilkonis, Paul A; Irrgang, James J

2016-05-11

The content and wording of the Patient Reported Outcome Measurement Information System (PROMIS) Physical Function and Pain Interference item banks have not been qualitatively assessed by individuals with knee joint impairments. The purpose of this investigation was to identify items in the PROMIS Physical Function and Pain Interference Item Banks that are irrelevant, unclear, or otherwise difficult to respond to for individuals with impairment of the knee and to suggest modifications based on cognitive interviews. Twenty-nine individuals with knee joint impairments qualitatively assessed items in the Pain Interference and Physical Function Item Banks in a mixed-methods cognitive interview. Field notes were analyzed to identify themes and frequency counts were calculated to identify items not relevant to individuals with knee joint impairments. Issues with clarity were identified in 23 items in the Physical Function Item Bank, resulting in the creation of 43 new or modified items, typically changing words within the item to be clearer. Interpretation issues included whether or not the knee joint played a significant role in overall health and age/gender differences in items. One quarter of the original items (31 of 124) in the Physical Function Item Bank were identified as irrelevant to the knee joint. All 41 items in the Pain Interference Item Bank were identified as clear, although individuals without significant pain substituted other symptoms which interfered with their life. The Physical Function Item Bank would benefit from additional items that are relevant to individuals with knee joint impairments and, by extension, to other lower extremity impairments. Several issues in clarity were identified that are likely to be present in other patient cohorts as well.

The Dutch-Flemish PROMIS Physical Function item bank exhibited strong psychometric properties in patients with chronic pain.

Science.gov (United States)

Crins, Martine H P; Terwee, Caroline B; Klausch, Thomas; Smits, Niels; de Vet, Henrica C W; Westhovens, Rene; Cella, David; Cook, Karon F; Revicki, Dennis A; van Leeuwen, Jaap; Boers, Maarten; Dekker, Joost; Roorda, Leo D

2017-07-01

The objective of this study was to assess the psychometric properties of the Dutch-Flemish Patient-Reported Outcomes Measurement Information System (PROMIS) Physical Function item bank in Dutch patients with chronic pain. A bank of 121 items was administered to 1,247 Dutch patients with chronic pain. Unidimensionality was assessed by fitting a one-factor confirmatory factor analysis and evaluating resulting fit statistics. Items were calibrated with the graded response model and its fit was evaluated. Cross-cultural validity was assessed by testing items for differential item functioning (DIF) based on language (Dutch vs. English). Construct validity was evaluated by calculation correlations between scores on the Dutch-Flemish PROMIS Physical Function measure and scores on generic and disease-specific measures. Results supported the Dutch-Flemish PROMIS Physical Function item bank's unidimensionality (Comparative Fit Index = 0.976, Tucker Lewis Index = 0.976) and model fit. Item thresholds targeted a wide range of physical function construct (threshold-parameters range: -4.2 to 5.6). Cross-cultural validity was good as four items only showed DIF for language and their impact on item scores was minimal. Physical Function scores were strongly associated with scores on all other measures (all correlations ≤ -0.60 as expected). The Dutch-Flemish PROMIS Physical Function item bank exhibited good psychometric properties. Development of a computer adaptive test based on the large bank is warranted. Copyright © 2017 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

Validation of the PROMIS Sleep Disturbance and Sleep-Related Impairment item banks in Dutch adolescents.

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van Kooten, Jojanneke A M C; van Litsenburg, Raphaёle R L; Yoder, Whitney R; Kaspers, Gertjan J L; Terwee, Caroline B

2018-04-16

Sleep problems are common in adolescents and have a negative impact on daytime functioning. However, there is a lack of well-validated adolescent sleep questionnaires. The Patient-Reported Outcomes Measurement Information System (PROMIS) Sleep Disturbance and Sleep-Related Impairment item banks are well-validated instruments developed for and tested in adults. The aim of this study was to evaluate their structural validity in adolescents. Test and retest data were collected for the Dutch-Flemish V1.0 PROMIS Sleep Disturbance (27) and Sleep-Related Impairment (16 items) item banks from 1046 adolescents (11-19 years). Cross-validation methods, Confirmatory (CFA), and Exploratory Factor Analyses (EFA) were used. Fit indices and factor loadings were used to improve the models. The final models were assessed for model fit using retest data. The one-factor Sleep Disturbance (CFI = 0.795, TLI = 0.778, RMSEA = 0.117) and Sleep-Related Impairment (CFI = 0.897, TLI = 0.882, RMSEA = 0.156) models could not be replicated in adolescents. Cross-validation resulted in a final Sleep Disturbance model of 23 and a Sleep-Related Impairment model of 11 items. Retest data CFA showed adequate fit for the Sleep-Related Impairment-11 (CFI = 0.981, TLI = 0.976, RMSEA = 0.116). The Sleep Disturbance-23 model fit indices stayed below the recommended values (CFI = 0.895, TLI = 0.885, RMSEA = 0.105). While the PROMIS Sleep Disturbance-23 for adolescents and PROMIS Sleep-Related Impairment-11 for adolescents provide a framework to assess adolescent sleep, additional research is needed to replicate these findings in a larger and more diverse sample.

Measuring stigma after spinal cord injury: Development and psychometric characteristics of the SCI-QOL Stigma item bank and short form.

Science.gov (United States)

Kisala, Pamela A; Tulsky, David S; Pace, Natalie; Victorson, David; Choi, Seung W; Heinemann, Allen W

2015-05-01

To develop a calibrated item bank and computer adaptive test (CAT) to assess the effects of stigma on health-related quality of life in individuals with spinal cord injury (SCI). Grounded-theory based qualitative item development methods, large-scale item calibration field testing, confirmatory factor analysis, and item response theory (IRT)-based psychometric analyses. Five SCI Model System centers and one Department of Veterans Affairs medical center in the United States. Adults with traumatic SCI. SCI-QOL Stigma Item Bank A sample of 611 individuals with traumatic SCI completed 30 items assessing SCI-related stigma. After 7 items were iteratively removed, factor analyses confirmed a unidimensional pool of items. Graded Response Model IRT analyses were used to estimate slopes and thresholds for the final 23 items. The SCI-QOL Stigma item bank is unique not only in the assessment of SCI-related stigma but also in the inclusion of individuals with SCI in all phases of its development. Use of confirmatory factor analytic and IRT methods provide flexibility and precision of measurement. The item bank may be administered as a CAT or as a 10-item fixed-length short form and can be used for research and clinical applications.

Investigating the Construct Measured by Banked Gap-Fill Items: Evidence from Eye-Tracking

Science.gov (United States)

McCray, Gareth; Brunfaut, Tineke

2018-01-01

This study investigates test-takers' processing while completing banked gap-fill tasks, designed to test reading proficiency, in order to test theoretically based expectations about the variation in cognitive processes of test-takers across levels of performance. Twenty-eight test-takers' eye traces on 24 banked gap-fill items (on six tasks) were…

Development and Evaluation of the PROMIS® Pediatric Positive Affect Item Bank, Child-Report and Parent-Proxy Editions.

Science.gov (United States)

Forrest, Christopher B; Ravens-Sieberer, Ulrike; Devine, Janine; Becker, Brandon D; Teneralli, Rachel; Moon, JeanHee; Carle, Adam; Tucker, Carole A; Bevans, Katherine B

2018-03-01

The purpose of this study is to describe the psychometric evaluation and item response theory calibration of the PROMIS Pediatric Positive Affect item bank, child-report and parent-proxy editions. The initial item pool comprising 53 items, previously developed using qualitative methods, was administered to 1,874 children 8-17 years old and 909 parents of children 5-17 years old. Analyses included descriptive statistics, reliability, factor analysis, differential item functioning, and construct validity. A total of 14 items were deleted, because of poor psychometric performance, and an 8-item short form constructed from the remaining 39 items was administered to a national sample of 1,004 children 8-17 years old, and 1,306 parents of children 5-17 years old. The combined sample was used in item response theory (IRT) calibration analyses. The final item bank appeared unidimensional, the items appeared locally independent, and the items were free from differential item functioning. The scales showed excellent reliability and convergent and discriminant validity. Positive affect decreased with children's age and was lower for those with a special health care need. After IRT calibration, we found that 4 and 8 item short forms had a high degree of precision (reliability) across a wide range of the latent trait (>4 SD units). The PROMIS Pediatric Positive Affect item bank and its short forms provide an efficient, precise, and valid assessment of positive affect in children and youth.

Development and psychometric evaluation of the PROMIS Pediatric Life Satisfaction item banks, child-report, and parent-proxy editions.

Science.gov (United States)

Forrest, Christopher B; Devine, Janine; Bevans, Katherine B; Becker, Brandon D; Carle, Adam C; Teneralli, Rachel E; Moon, JeanHee; Tucker, Carole A; Ravens-Sieberer, Ulrike

2018-01-01

To describe the psychometric evaluation and item response theory calibration of the PROMIS Pediatric Life Satisfaction item banks, child-report, and parent-proxy editions. A pool of 55 life satisfaction items was administered to 1992 children 8-17 years old and 964 parents of children 5-17 years old. Analyses included descriptive statistics, reliability, factor analysis, differential item functioning, and assessment of construct validity. Thirteen items were deleted because of poor psychometric performance. An 8-item short form was administered to a national sample of 996 children 8-17 years old, and 1294 parents of children 5-17 years old. The combined sample (2988 children and 2258 parents) was used in item response theory (IRT) calibration analyses. The final item banks were unidimensional, the items were locally independent, and the items were free from impactful differential item functioning. The 8-item and 4-item short form scales showed excellent reliability, convergent validity, and discriminant validity. Life satisfaction decreased with declining socio-economic status, presence of a special health care need, and increasing age for girls, but not boys. After IRT calibration, we found that 4- and 8-item short forms had a high degree of precision (reliability) across a wide range (>4 SD units) of the latent variable. The PROMIS Pediatric Life Satisfaction item banks and their short forms provide efficient, precise, and valid assessments of life satisfaction in children and youth.

[Instrument to measure adherence in hypertensive patients: contribution of Item Response Theory].

Science.gov (United States)

Rodrigues, Malvina Thaís Pacheco; Moreira, Thereza Maria Magalhaes; Vasconcelos, Alexandre Meira de; Andrade, Dalton Francisco de; Silva, Daniele Braz da; Barbetta, Pedro Alberto

2013-06-01

To analyze, by means of "Item Response Theory", an instrument to measure adherence to t treatment for hypertension. Analytical study with 406 hypertensive patients with associated complications seen in primary care in Fortaleza, CE, Northeastern Brazil, 2011 using "Item Response Theory". The stages were: dimensionality test, calibrating the items, processing data and creating a scale, analyzed using the gradual response model. A study of the dimensionality of the instrument was conducted by analyzing the polychoric correlation matrix and factor analysis of complete information. Multilog software was used to calibrate items and estimate the scores. Items relating to drug therapy are the most directly related to adherence while those relating to drug-free therapy need to be reworked because they have less psychometric information and low discrimination. The independence of items, the small number of levels in the scale and low explained variance in the adjustment of the models show the main weaknesses of the instrument analyzed. The "Item Response Theory" proved to be a relevant analysis technique because it evaluated respondents for adherence to treatment for hypertension, the level of difficulty of the items and their ability to discriminate between individuals with different levels of adherence, which generates a greater amount of information. The instrument analyzed is limited in measuring adherence to hypertension treatment, by analyzing the "Item Response Theory" of the item, and needs adjustment. The proper formulation of the items is important in order to accurately measure the desired latent trait.

Measuring psychological trauma after spinal cord injury: Development and psychometric characteristics of the SCI-QOL Psychological Trauma item bank and short form.

Science.gov (United States)

Kisala, Pamela A; Victorson, David; Pace, Natalie; Heinemann, Allen W; Choi, Seung W; Tulsky, David S

2015-05-01

To describe the development and psychometric properties of the SCI-QOL Psychological Trauma item bank and short form. Using a mixed-methods design, we developed and tested a Psychological Trauma item bank with patient and provider focus groups, cognitive interviews, and item response theory based analytic approaches, including tests of model fit, differential item functioning (DIF) and precision. We tested a 31-item pool at several medical institutions across the United States, including the University of Michigan, Kessler Foundation, Rehabilitation Institute of Chicago, the University of Washington, Craig Hospital and the James J. Peters/Bronx Veterans Administration hospital. A total of 716 individuals with SCI completed the trauma items The 31 items fit a unidimensional model (CFI=0.952; RMSEA=0.061) and demonstrated good precision (theta range between 0.6 and 2.5). Nine items demonstrated negligible DIF with little impact on score estimates. The final calibrated item bank contains 19 items The SCI-QOL Psychological Trauma item bank is a psychometrically robust measurement tool from which a short form and a computer adaptive test (CAT) version are available.

Measuring resilience after spinal cord injury: Development, validation and psychometric characteristics of the SCI-QOL Resilience item bank and short form.

Science.gov (United States)

Victorson, David; Tulsky, David S; Kisala, Pamela A; Kalpakjian, Claire Z; Weiland, Brian; Choi, Seung W

2015-05-01

To describe the development and psychometric properties of the Spinal Cord Injury--Quality of Life (SCI-QOL) Resilience item bank and short form. Using a mixed-methods design, we developed and tested a resilience item bank through the use of focus groups with individuals with SCI and clinicians with expertise in SCI, cognitive interviews, and item-response theory based analytic approaches, including tests of model fit and differential item functioning (DIF). We tested a 32-item pool at several medical institutions across the United States, including the University of Michigan, Kessler Foundation, the Rehabilitation Institute of Chicago, the University of Washington, Craig Hospital and the James J. Peters/Bronx Department of Veterans Affairs medical center. A total of 717 individuals with SCI completed the Resilience items. A unidimensional model was observed (CFI=0.968; RMSEA=0.074) and measurement precision was good (theta range between -3.1 and 0.9). Ten items were flagged for DIF, however, after examination of effect sizes we found this to be negligible with little practical impact on score estimates. The final calibrated item bank resulted in 21 retained items. This study indicates that the SCI-QOL Resilience item bank represents a psychometrically robust measurement tool. Short form items are also suggested and computer adaptive tests are available.

Dutch-Flemish translation of nine pediatric item banks from the Patient-Reported Outcomes Measurement Information System (PROMIS)®.

Science.gov (United States)

Haverman, Lotte; Grootenhuis, Martha A; Raat, Hein; van Rossum, Marion A J; van Dulmen-den Broeder, Eline; Hoppenbrouwers, Karel; Correia, Helena; Cella, David; Roorda, Leo D; Terwee, Caroline B

2016-03-01

The Patient-Reported Outcomes Measurement Information System (PROMIS(®)) is a new, state-of-the-art assessment system for measuring patient-reported health and well-being of adults and children. It has the potential to be more valid, reliable, and responsive than existing PROMs. The items banks are designed to be self-reported and completed by children aged 8-18 years. The PROMIS items can be administered in short forms or through computerized adaptive testing. This paper describes the translation and cultural adaption of nine PROMIS item banks (151 items) for children in Dutch-Flemish. The translation was performed by FACITtrans using standardized PROMIS methodology and approved by the PROMIS Statistical Center. The translation included four forward translations, two back-translations, three independent reviews (at least two Dutch, one Flemish), and pretesting in 24 children from the Netherlands and Flanders. For some items, it was necessary to have separate translations for Dutch and Flemish: physical function-mobility (three items), anger (one item), pain interference (two items), and asthma impact (one item). Challenges faced in the translation process included scarcity or overabundance of possible translations, unclear item descriptions, constructs broader/smaller in the target language, difficulties in rank ordering items, differences in unit of measurement, irrelevant items, or differences in performance of activities. By addressing these challenges, acceptable translations were obtained for all items. The Dutch-Flemish PROMIS items are linguistically equivalent to the original USA version. Short forms are now available for use, and entire item banks are ready for cross-cultural validation in the Netherlands and Flanders.

Dutch translation and cross-cultural adaptation of the PROMIS® physical function item bank and cognitive pre-test in Dutch arthritis patients.

Science.gov (United States)

Oude Voshaar, Martijn Ah; Ten Klooster, Peter M; Taal, Erik; Krishnan, Eswar; van de Laar, Mart Afj

2012-03-05

Patient-reported physical function is an established outcome domain in clinical studies in rheumatology. To overcome the limitations of the current generation of questionnaires, the Patient-Reported Outcomes Measurement Information System (PROMIS®) project in the USA has developed calibrated item banks for measuring several domains of health status in people with a wide range of chronic diseases. The aim of this study was to translate and cross-culturally adapt the PROMIS physical function item bank to the Dutch language and to pretest it in a sample of patients with arthritis. The items of the PROMIS physical function item bank were translated using rigorous forward-backward protocols and the translated version was subsequently cognitively pretested in a sample of Dutch patients with rheumatoid arthritis. Few issues were encountered in the forward-backward translation. Only 5 of the 124 items to be translated had to be rewritten because of culturally inappropriate content. Subsequent pretesting showed that overall, questions of the Dutch version were understood as they were intended, while only one item required rewriting. Results suggest that the translated version of the PROMIS physical function item bank is semantically and conceptually equivalent to the original. Future work will be directed at creating a Dutch-Flemish final version of the item bank to be used in research with Dutch speaking populations.

The PROMIS fatigue item bank has good measurement properties in patients with fibromyalgia and severe fatigue.

Science.gov (United States)

Yost, Kathleen J; Waller, Niels G; Lee, Minji K; Vincent, Ann

2017-06-01

Efficient management of fibromyalgia (FM) requires precise measurement of FM-specific symptoms. Our objective was to assess the measurement properties of the Patient-Reported Outcome Measurement Information System (PROMIS) fatigue item bank (FIB) in people with FM. We applied classical psychometric and item response theory methods to cross-sectional PROMIS-FIB data from two samples. Data on the clinical FM sample were obtained at a tertiary medical center. Data for the U.S. general population sample were obtained from the PROMIS network. The full 95-item bank was administered to both samples. We investigated dimensionality of the item bank in both samples by separately fitting a bifactor model with two group factors; experience and impact. We assessed measurement invariance between samples, and we explored an alternate factor structure with the normative sample and subsequently confirmed that structure in the clinical sample. Finally, we assessed whether reporting FM subdomain scores added value over reporting a single total score. The item bank was dominated by a general fatigue factor. The fit of the initial bifactor model and evidence of measurement invariance indicated that the same constructs were measured across the samples. An alternative bifactor model with three group factors demonstrated slightly improved fit. Subdomain scores add value over a total score. We demonstrated that the PROMIS-FIB is appropriate for measuring fatigue in clinical samples of FM patients. The construct can be presented by a single score; however, subdomain scores for the three group factors identified in the alternative model may also be reported.

Fair value accounting for financial instruments: some implications for bank regulation

OpenAIRE

Wayne Landsman

2006-01-01

I identify issues that bank regulators need to consider if fair value accounting is used for determining bank regulatory capital and when making regulatory decisions. In financial reporting, US and international accounting standard setters have issued several disclosure and measurement and recognition standards for financial instruments and all indications are that both standard setters will mandate recognition of all financial instruments at fair value. To help identify important issues for ...

Legal Instruments of Regulation of Development of Banking Activity in Ukraine

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Senyshch Pavlo M.

2014-03-01

Full Text Available The article considers main approaches to identification of essence of legal instruments of regulation of development of the banking activity, identifies the mechanism of legal regulation of the banking activity and its elements and justifies the system and form of legal regulation of the banking activity in Ukraine. It describes subjects of legal regulation of the banking activity at the international level, which are the Basel Committee on Banking Supervision, European Central Bank, IMF, International Financial Reporting Standards Foundation and others. The article considers specific features of the regulatory requirements of Basel II and Basel III and specific features of their introduction into the banking activity. It describes anti-cyclic measures offered by the Basel Committee, which should facilitate formation of such conditions, under which the banking sector could have a lower level of leverage and stability with respect to influence of system risks. Significant attention is paid to international instruments of regulation of the banking activity, which include the following legal acts: Uniform Rules for Collections, Uniform Customs and Practice for Documentary Credits, and Unified Rules for Loan Guarantees. The article shows that the share of subordinate legal acts is significant in the Ukrainian system of banking regulatory and legal acts since the state cannot operatively react to the changing processes in banking at the legislative level and, that is why, basic provisions on carrying out banking activity should be fixed in law.

Psychometric evaluation of an item bank for computerized adaptive testing of the EORTC QLQ-C30 cognitive functioning dimension in cancer patients

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Dirven, Linda; Groenvold, Mogens; Taphoorn, Martin J. B.

2017-01-01

on the field-testing and psychometric evaluation of the item bank for cognitive functioning (CF). METHODS: In previous phases (I-III), 44 candidate items were developed measuring CF in cancer patients. In phase IV, these items were psychometrically evaluated in a large sample of international cancer patients...... model, showing an acceptable fit. Although several items showed DIF, these had a negligible impact on CF estimation. Measurement precision of the item bank was much higher than the two original QLQ-C30 CF items alone, across the whole continuum. Moreover, CAT measurement may on average reduce study...... sample sizes with about 35-40% compared to the original QLQ-C30 CF scale, without loss of power. CONCLUSION: A CF item bank for CAT measurement consisting of 34 items was established, applicable to various cancer patients across countries. This CAT measurement system will facilitate precise and efficient...

Measuring self-esteem after spinal cord injury: Development, validation and psychometric characteristics of the SCI-QOL Self-esteem item bank and short form.

Science.gov (United States)

Kalpakjian, Claire Z; Tate, Denise G; Kisala, Pamela A; Tulsky, David S

2015-05-01

To describe the development and psychometric properties of the Spinal Cord Injury-Quality of Life (SCI-QOL) Self-esteem item bank. Using a mixed-methods design, we developed and tested a self-esteem item bank through the use of focus groups with individuals with SCI and clinicians with expertise in SCI, cognitive interviews, and item-response theory-(IRT) based analytic approaches, including tests of model fit, differential item functioning (DIF) and precision. We tested a pool of 30 items at several medical institutions across the United States, including the University of Michigan, Kessler Foundation, the Rehabilitation Institute of Chicago, the University of Washington, Craig Hospital, and the James J. Peters/Bronx Department of Veterans Affairs hospital. A total of 717 individuals with SCI completed the self-esteem items. A unidimensional model was observed (CFI=0.946; RMSEA=0.087) and measurement precision was good (theta range between -2.7 and 0.7). Eleven items were flagged for DIF; however, effect sizes were negligible with little practical impact on score estimates. The final calibrated item bank resulted in 23 retained items. This study indicates that the SCI-QOL Self-esteem item bank represents a psychometrically robust measurement tool. Short form items are also suggested and computer adaptive tests are available.

Item Banks for Substance Use from the Patient-Reported Outcomes Measurement Information System (PROMIS®): Severity of Use and Positive Appeal of Use*

Science.gov (United States)

Pilkonis, Paul A.; Yu, Lan; Dodds, Nathan E.; Johnston, Kelly L.; Lawrence, Suzanne; Hilton, Thomas F.; Daley, Dennis C.; Patkar, Ashwin A.; McCarty, Dennis

2015-01-01

Background Two item banks for substance use were developed as part of the Patient-Reported Outcomes Measurement Information System (PROMIS®): severity of substance use and positive appeal of substance use. Methods Qualitative item analysis (including focus groups, cognitive interviewing, expert review, and item revision) reduced an initial pool of more than 5,300 items for substance use to 119 items included in field testing. Items were written in a first-person, past-tense format, with 5 response options reflecting frequency or severity. Both 30-day and 3-month time frames were tested. The calibration sample of 1,336 respondents included 875 individuals from the general population (ascertained through an internet panel) and 461patients from addiction treatment centers participating in the National Drug Abuse Treatment Clinical Trials Network. Results Final banks of 37 and 18 items were calibrated for severity of substance use and positive appeal of substance use, respectively, using the two-parameter graded response model from item response theory (IRT). Initial calibrations were similar for the 30-day and 3-month time frames, and final calibrations used data combined across the time frames, making the items applicable with either interval. Seven-item static short forms were also developed from each item bank. Conclusions Test information curves showed that the PROMIS item banks provided substantial information in a broad range of severity, making them suitable for treatment, observational, and epidemiological research in both clinical and community settings. PMID:26423364

Measuring depression after spinal cord injury: Development and psychometric characteristics of the SCI-QOL Depression item bank and linkage with PHQ-9.

Science.gov (United States)

Tulsky, David S; Kisala, Pamela A; Kalpakjian, Claire Z; Bombardier, Charles H; Pohlig, Ryan T; Heinemann, Allen W; Carle, Adam; Choi, Seung W

2015-05-01

To develop a calibrated spinal cord injury-quality of life (SCI-QOL) item bank, computer adaptive test (CAT), and short form to assess depressive symptoms experienced by individuals with SCI, transform scores to the Patient Reported Outcomes Measurement Information System (PROMIS) metric, and create a crosswalk to the Patient Health Questionnaire (PHQ)-9. We used grounded-theory based qualitative item development methods, large-scale item calibration field testing, confirmatory factor analysis, item response theory (IRT) analyses, and statistical linking techniques to transform scores to a PROMIS metric and to provide a crosswalk with the PHQ-9. Five SCI Model System centers and one Department of Veterans Affairs medical center in the United States. Adults with traumatic SCI. Spinal Cord Injury--Quality of Life (SCI-QOL) Depression Item Bank Individuals with SCI were involved in all phases of SCI-QOL development. A sample of 716 individuals with traumatic SCI completed 35 items assessing depression, 18 of which were PROMIS items. After removing 7 non-PROMIS items, factor analyses confirmed a unidimensional pool of items. We used a graded response IRT model to estimate slopes and thresholds for the 28 retained items. The SCI-QOL Depression measure correlated 0.76 with the PHQ-9. The SCI-QOL Depression item bank provides a reliable and sensitive measure of depressive symptoms with scores reported in terms of general population norms. We provide a crosswalk to the PHQ-9 to facilitate comparisons between measures. The item bank may be administered as a CAT or as a short form and is suitable for research and clinical applications.

Item response theory, computerized adaptive testing, and PROMIS: assessment of physical function.

Science.gov (United States)

Fries, James F; Witter, James; Rose, Matthias; Cella, David; Khanna, Dinesh; Morgan-DeWitt, Esi

2014-01-01

Patient-reported outcome (PRO) questionnaires record health information directly from research participants because observers may not accurately represent the patient perspective. Patient-reported Outcomes Measurement Information System (PROMIS) is a US National Institutes of Health cooperative group charged with bringing PRO to a new level of precision and standardization across diseases by item development and use of item response theory (IRT). With IRT methods, improved items are calibrated on an underlying concept to form an item bank for a "domain" such as physical function (PF). The most informative items can be combined to construct efficient "instruments" such as 10-item or 20-item PF static forms. Each item is calibrated on the basis of the probability that a given person will respond at a given level, and the ability of the item to discriminate people from one another. Tailored forms may cover any desired level of the domain being measured. Computerized adaptive testing (CAT) selects the best items to sharpen the estimate of a person's functional ability, based on prior responses to earlier questions. PROMIS item banks have been improved with experience from several thousand items, and are calibrated on over 21,000 respondents. In areas tested to date, PROMIS PF instruments are superior or equal to Health Assessment Questionnaire and Medical Outcome Study Short Form-36 Survey legacy instruments in clarity, translatability, patient importance, reliability, and sensitivity to change. Precise measures, such as PROMIS, efficiently incorporate patient self-report of health into research, potentially reducing research cost by lowering sample size requirements. The advent of routine IRT applications has the potential to transform PRO measurement.

Development and psychometric characteristics of the SCI-QOL Ability to Participate and Satisfaction with Social Roles and Activities item banks and short forms.

Science.gov (United States)

Heinemann, Allen W; Kisala, Pamela A; Hahn, Elizabeth A; Tulsky, David S

2015-05-01

To develop a spinal cord injury (SCI)-focused version of PROMIS and Neuro-QOL social domain item banks; evaluate the psychometric properties of items developed for adults with SCI; and report information to facilitate clinical and research use. We used a mixed-methods design to develop and evaluate Ability to Participate in Social Roles and Activities and Satisfaction with Social Roles and Activities items. Focus groups helped define the constructs; cognitive interviews helped revise items; and confirmatory factor analysis and item response theory methods helped calibrate item banks and evaluate differential item functioning related to demographic and injury characteristics. Five SCI Model System sites and one Veterans Administration medical center. The calibration sample consisted of 641 individuals; a reliability sample consisted of 245 individuals residing in the community. A subset of 27 Ability to Participate and 35 Satisfaction items demonstrated good measurement properties and negligible differential item functioning related to demographic and injury characteristics. The SCI-specific measures correlate strongly with the PROMIS and Neuro-QOL versions. Ten item short forms correlate >0.96 with the full banks. Variable-length CATs with a minimum of 4 items, variable-length CATs with a minimum of 8 items, fixed-length CATs of 10 items, and the 10-item short forms demonstrate construct coverage and measurement error that is comparable to the full item bank. The Ability to Participate and Satisfaction with Social Roles and Activities CATs and short forms demonstrate excellent psychometric properties and are suitable for clinical and research applications.

Calibration of the PROMIS Physical Function Item Bank in Dutch Patients with Rheumatoid Arthritis

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Oude Voshaar, M.A.H.; ten Klooster, P.M.; Glas, C.A.W.; Vonkeman, H.E.; Taal, E; Krishnan, E.; Moens, H.J.B.; Boers, M.; Terwee, C.B.; van Riel, P.L.C.M.; van de Laar, M.A.F.J.

2014-01-01

Objective: To calibrate the Dutch-Flemish version of the PROMIS physical function (PF) item bank in patients with rheumatoid arthritis (RA) and to evaluate cross-cultural measurement equivalence with US general population and RA data. Methods: Data were collected from RA patients enrolled in the

THE EFFECT OF DERIVATIVE FINANCIAL INSTRUMENTS ON BANK RISKS, RELEVANCE AND FAITHFUL REPRESENTATION: EVIDENCE FROM BANKS IN HUNGARY

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Toth Kornel

2014-07-01

Full Text Available In a continuously changing business environment accounting data have to provide useful information in order to achieve relevant and faithful representation in financial statements. Since global markets have changed radically, growing international trade means the horizons of investors and borrowers have now become global, which has increased the level of their risks. Concerning international trade and investment, one of the most important risks is uncertainty about future foreign currency exchange rates and interest rates. Changes in financial markets have increased the use of derivative instruments (such as forwards, futures, swaps, and options to hedge risk exposure worldwide, while the related accounting standards have not kept pace with those changes. Because of the complexity and variety of these instruments, reporting on derivatives faces many difficulties, since a different framework and different accounting concepts are required to present useful financial information. For these reasons the growing use of derivative financial instruments and the challenges of the global financial system have intensified and sharpened debates about whether derivative instruments increase or decrease the risk of banks, affecting faithful representation based on their financial statements and decision usefulness of the reported information. This study aims to describe the transformation of accounting concepts and its effect on fair value accounting for derivative financial instruments in the information economy. The research question of the paper is whether the advantages of fair value accounting exceed the disadvantages, especially in the case of derivatives, in reducing the uncertainty and risk associated with financial reporting. Based on this question, the purpose of the empirical research is to assess the level of different risks which banks operating in Hungary face when using derivative financial instruments and to investigate how and to what extent

Psychometric evaluation of an item bank for computerized adaptive testing of the EORTC QLQ-C30 cognitive functioning dimension in cancer patients.

Science.gov (United States)

Dirven, Linda; Groenvold, Mogens; Taphoorn, Martin J B; Conroy, Thierry; Tomaszewski, Krzysztof A; Young, Teresa; Petersen, Morten Aa

2017-11-01

The European Organisation of Research and Treatment of Cancer (EORTC) Quality of Life Group is developing computerized adaptive testing (CAT) versions of all EORTC Quality of Life Questionnaire (QLQ-C30) scales with the aim to enhance measurement precision. Here we present the results on the field-testing and psychometric evaluation of the item bank for cognitive functioning (CF). In previous phases (I-III), 44 candidate items were developed measuring CF in cancer patients. In phase IV, these items were psychometrically evaluated in a large sample of international cancer patients. This evaluation included an assessment of dimensionality, fit to the item response theory (IRT) model, differential item functioning (DIF), and measurement properties. A total of 1030 cancer patients completed the 44 candidate items on CF. Of these, 34 items could be included in a unidimensional IRT model, showing an acceptable fit. Although several items showed DIF, these had a negligible impact on CF estimation. Measurement precision of the item bank was much higher than the two original QLQ-C30 CF items alone, across the whole continuum. Moreover, CAT measurement may on average reduce study sample sizes with about 35-40% compared to the original QLQ-C30 CF scale, without loss of power. A CF item bank for CAT measurement consisting of 34 items was established, applicable to various cancer patients across countries. This CAT measurement system will facilitate precise and efficient assessment of HRQOL of cancer patients, without loss of comparability of results.

Measuring anxiety after spinal cord injury: Development and psychometric characteristics of the SCI-QOL Anxiety item bank and linkage with GAD-7.

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Kisala, Pamela A; Tulsky, David S; Kalpakjian, Claire Z; Heinemann, Allen W; Pohlig, Ryan T; Carle, Adam; Choi, Seung W

2015-05-01

To develop a calibrated item bank and computer adaptive test to assess anxiety symptoms in individuals with spinal cord injury (SCI), transform scores to the Patient Reported Outcomes Measurement Information System (PROMIS) metric, and create a statistical linkage with the Generalized Anxiety Disorder (GAD)-7, a widely used anxiety measure. Grounded-theory based qualitative item development methods; large-scale item calibration field testing; confirmatory factor analysis; graded response model item response theory analyses; statistical linking techniques to transform scores to a PROMIS metric; and linkage with the GAD-7. Setting Five SCI Model System centers and one Department of Veterans Affairs medical center in the United States. Participants Adults with traumatic SCI. Spinal Cord Injury-Quality of Life (SCI-QOL) Anxiety Item Bank Seven hundred sixteen individuals with traumatic SCI completed 38 items assessing anxiety, 17 of which were PROMIS items. After 13 items (including 2 PROMIS items) were removed, factor analyses confirmed unidimensionality. Item response theory analyses were used to estimate slopes and thresholds for the final 25 items (15 from PROMIS). The observed Pearson correlation between the SCI-QOL Anxiety and GAD-7 scores was 0.67. The SCI-QOL Anxiety item bank demonstrates excellent psychometric properties and is available as a computer adaptive test or short form for research and clinical applications. SCI-QOL Anxiety scores have been transformed to the PROMIS metric and we provide a method to link SCI-QOL Anxiety scores with those of the GAD-7.

17 CFR 229.1115 - (Item 1115) Certain derivatives instruments.

Science.gov (United States)

2010-04-01

... 17 Commodity and Securities Exchanges 2 2010-04-01 2010-04-01 false (Item 1115) Certain derivatives instruments. 229.1115 Section 229.1115 Commodity and Securities Exchanges SECURITIES AND EXCHANGE COMMISSION STANDARD INSTRUCTIONS FOR FILING FORMS UNDER SECURITIES ACT OF 1933, SECURITIES EXCHANGE ACT OF...

Development of a computer-adaptive physical function instrument for Social Security Administration disability determination.

Science.gov (United States)

Ni, Pengsheng; McDonough, Christine M; Jette, Alan M; Bogusz, Kara; Marfeo, Elizabeth E; Rasch, Elizabeth K; Brandt, Diane E; Meterko, Mark; Haley, Stephen M; Chan, Leighton

2013-09-01

To develop and test an instrument to assess physical function for Social Security Administration (SSA) disability programs, the SSA-Physical Function (SSA-PF) instrument. Item response theory (IRT) analyses were used to (1) create a calibrated item bank for each of the factors identified in prior factor analyses, (2) assess the fit of the items within each scale, (3) develop separate computer-adaptive testing (CAT) instruments for each scale, and (4) conduct initial psychometric testing. Cross-sectional data collection; IRT analyses; CAT simulation. Telephone and Internet survey. Two samples: SSA claimants (n=1017) and adults from the U.S. general population (n=999). None. Model fit statistics, correlation, and reliability coefficients. IRT analyses resulted in 5 unidimensional SSA-PF scales: Changing & Maintaining Body Position, Whole Body Mobility, Upper Body Function, Upper Extremity Fine Motor, and Wheelchair Mobility for a total of 102 items. High CAT accuracy was demonstrated by strong correlations between simulated CAT scores and those from the full item banks. On comparing the simulated CATs with the full item banks, very little loss of reliability or precision was noted, except at the lower and upper ranges of each scale. No difference in response patterns by age or sex was noted. The distributions of claimant scores were shifted to the lower end of each scale compared with those of a sample of U.S. adults. The SSA-PF instrument contributes important new methodology for measuring the physical function of adults applying to the SSA disability programs. Initial evaluation revealed that the SSA-PF instrument achieved considerable breadth of coverage in each content domain and demonstrated noteworthy psychometric properties. Copyright © 2013 American Congress of Rehabilitation Medicine. Published by Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

Measuring the post-adoption customer perception of mobile banking services.

Science.gov (United States)

Yu, Tai-Kuei; Fang, Kwoting

2009-02-01

With liberalization and internalization in the financial market and progress in information technology, banks face dual competitive pressures to provide service quality and administrative efficiency. That these recent developments are fueled by technology might misleadingly suggest that the adoption of mobile banking is largely based on technological criteria. The purpose of this study is to establish a better measurement model for postadoption user perception of mobile banking services. Based on 458 valid responses of mobile banking users, the results show that the instrument, consisting of 21 items and 6 factors, is a reliable, valid, and useful measurement for assessing the postadoption perception of mobile banking.

Statistical power as a function of Cronbach alpha of instrument questionnaire items.

Science.gov (United States)

Heo, Moonseong; Kim, Namhee; Faith, Myles S

2015-10-14

In countless number of clinical trials, measurements of outcomes rely on instrument questionnaire items which however often suffer measurement error problems which in turn affect statistical power of study designs. The Cronbach alpha or coefficient alpha, here denoted by C(α), can be used as a measure of internal consistency of parallel instrument items that are developed to measure a target unidimensional outcome construct. Scale score for the target construct is often represented by the sum of the item scores. However, power functions based on C(α) have been lacking for various study designs. We formulate a statistical model for parallel items to derive power functions as a function of C(α) under several study designs. To this end, we assume fixed true score variance assumption as opposed to usual fixed total variance assumption. That assumption is critical and practically relevant to show that smaller measurement errors are inversely associated with higher inter-item correlations, and thus that greater C(α) is associated with greater statistical power. We compare the derived theoretical statistical power with empirical power obtained through Monte Carlo simulations for the following comparisons: one-sample comparison of pre- and post-treatment mean differences, two-sample comparison of pre-post mean differences between groups, and two-sample comparison of mean differences between groups. It is shown that C(α) is the same as a test-retest correlation of the scale scores of parallel items, which enables testing significance of C(α). Closed-form power functions and samples size determination formulas are derived in terms of C(α), for all of the aforementioned comparisons. Power functions are shown to be an increasing function of C(α), regardless of comparison of interest. The derived power functions are well validated by simulation studies that show that the magnitudes of theoretical power are virtually identical to those of the empirical power. Regardless

Assessment of the psychometrics of a PROMIS item bank: self-efficacy for managing daily activities.

Science.gov (United States)

Hong, Ickpyo; Velozo, Craig A; Li, Chih-Ying; Romero, Sergio; Gruber-Baldini, Ann L; Shulman, Lisa M

2016-09-01

The aim of this study is to investigate the psychometrics of the Patient-Reported Outcomes Measurement Information System self-efficacy for managing daily activities item bank. The item pool was field tested on a sample of 1087 participants via internet (n = 250) and in-clinic (n = 837) surveys. All participants reported having at least one chronic health condition. The 35 item pool was investigated for dimensionality (confirmatory factor analyses, CFA and exploratory factor analysis, EFA), item-total correlations, local independence, precision, and differential item functioning (DIF) across gender, race, ethnicity, age groups, data collection modes, and neurological chronic conditions (McFadden Pseudo R (2) less than 10 %). The item pool met two of the four CFA fit criteria (CFI = 0.952 and SRMR = 0.07). EFA analysis found a dominant first factor (eigenvalue = 24.34) and the ratio of first to second eigenvalue was 12.4. The item pool demonstrated good item-total correlations (0.59-0.85) and acceptable internal consistency (Cronbach's alpha = 0.97). The item pool maintained its precision (reliability over 0.90) across a wide range of theta (3.70), and there was no significant DIF. The findings indicated the item pool has sound psychometric properties and the test items are eligible for development of computerized adaptive testing and short forms.

ANTESEDEN ATTITUDE TOWARDS M-BANKING DAN DAMPAKNYA TERHADAP BEHAVIORAL INTENTION TO ADOPT M-BANKING

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Titon Adrinanto

2016-02-01

Full Text Available The background of this research was m­banking users in Indonesia is still low despite the mobile phone users in developed and developing countries in the world has increased rapidly since 21st century. Some bank companies in Indonesia has been offering m­banking service but the use of m­banking for financial transaction is still low and limited. The objectives of this research was to analyze the antecedents of attitude towards m­banking and its impact on behavioral intention to adopt m­banking. The design of this research applies hypothesis testing. 200 samples selected from prospective user of 3 government bank. The sampling technique was purposive sampling with cross­sectional study. Data analysis used in this research was collected by questionnaire technique with item of statements for each variable. In order to obtain valid and reliable instrument tool, validity and reliability test has been done. The result of this research conclude that there is positive effect perceived usefulness, perceived ease of use, perceived competence, perceived communication, perceived privacy and security, society influence, and facilitating condition on attitude towards m­banking. This study supports that there is positive influence on attitude towards m­banking on behavioral intention to adopt m­banking.

A model of the demand for Islamic banks debt-based financing instrument

Science.gov (United States)

Jusoh, Mansor; Khalid, Norlin

2013-04-01

This paper presents a theoretical analysis of the demand for debt-based financing instruments of the Islamic banks. Debt-based financing, such as through baibithamanajil and al-murabahah, is by far the most prominent of the Islamic bank financing and yet it has been largely ignored in Islamic economics literature. Most studies instead have been focusing on equity-based financing of al-mudharabah and al-musyarakah. Islamic bank offers debt-based financing through various instruments derived under the principle of exchange (ukud al-mu'awadhat) or more specifically, the contract of deferred sale. Under such arrangement, Islamic debt is created when goods are purchased and the payments are deferred. Thus, unlike debt of the conventional bank which is a form of financial loan contract to facilitate demand for liquid assets, this Islamic debt is created in response to the demand to purchase goods by deferred payment. In this paper we set an analytical framework that is based on an infinitely lived representative agent model (ILRA model) to analyze the demand for goods to be purchased by deferred payment. The resulting demand will then be used to derive the demand for Islamic debt. We also investigate theoretically, factors that may have an impact on the demand for Islamic debt.

Psychometric evaluation of the pediatric and parent-proxy Patient-Reported Outcomes Measurement Information System and the Neurology and Traumatic Brain Injury Quality of Life measurement item banks in pediatric traumatic brain injury.

Science.gov (United States)

Bertisch, Hilary; Rivara, Frederick P; Kisala, Pamela A; Wang, Jin; Yeates, Keith Owen; Durbin, Dennis; Zonfrillo, Mark R; Bell, Michael J; Temkin, Nancy; Tulsky, David S

2017-07-01

The primary objective is to provide evidence of convergent and discriminant validity for the pediatric and parent-proxy versions of the Patient-Reported Outcomes Measurement Information System (PROMIS) Anxiety, Depression, Anger, Peer Relations, Mobility, Pain Interference, and Fatigue item banks, the Neurology Quality of Life measurement system (Neuro-QOL) Cognition-General Concerns and Stigma item banks, and the Traumatic Brain Injury Quality of Life (TBI-QOL) Executive Function and Headache item banks in a pediatric traumatic brain injury (TBI) sample. Participants were 134 parent-child (ages 8-18 years) days. Children all sustained TBI and the dyads completed outcome ratings 6 months after injury at one of six medical centers across the United States. Ratings included PROMIS, Neuro-QOL, and TBI-QOL item banks, as well as the Pediatric Quality of Life inventory (PedsQL), the Health Behavior Inventory (HBI), and the Strengths and Difficulties Questionnaire (SDQ) as legacy criterion measures against which these item banks were validated. The PROMIS, Neuro-QOL, and TBI-QOL item banks demonstrated good convergent validity, as evidenced by moderate to strong correlations with comparable scales on the legacy measures. PROMIS, Neuro-QOL, and TBI-QOL item banks showed weaker correlations with ratings of unrelated constructs on legacy measures, providing evidence of discriminant validity. Our results indicate that the constructs measured by the PROMIS, Neuro-QOL, and TBI-QOL item banks are valid in our pediatric TBI sample and that it is appropriate to use these standardized scores for our primary study analyses.

12 CFR 210.8 - Presenting noncash items for acceptance.

Science.gov (United States)

2010-01-01

... for acceptance. (a) A Reserve Bank or a subsequent collecting bank may, if instructed by the sender, present a noncash item for acceptance in any manner authorized by law if— (1) The item provides that it... 12 Banks and Banking 2 2010-01-01 2010-01-01 false Presenting noncash items for acceptance. 210.8...

Danish translation of a physical function item bank from the Patient-Reported Outcome Measurement Information System (PROMIS)

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Schnohr, Christina W.; Rasmussen, Charlotte L.; Langberg, Henning

2017-01-01

of the Physical Function item bank into Danish. METHODS: We followed the PROMIS standard procedure, including: 1) two independent translations, 2) back translation, 3) independent reviews of translation quality, and 4) cognitive interviews with a representative sample of the adult population from the municipality...

Development and Validation of a Novel Generic Health-related Quality of Life Instrument With 20 Items (HINT-20

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Min-Woo Jo

2017-01-01

Full Text Available Objectives Few attempts have been made to develop a generic health-related quality of life (HRQoL instrument and to examine its validity and reliability in Korea. We aimed to do this in our present study. Methods After a literature review of existing generic HRQoL instruments, a focus group discussion, in-depth interviews, and expert consultations, we selected 30 tentative items for a new HRQoL measure. These items were evaluated by assessing their ceiling effects, difficulty, and redundancy in the first survey. To validate the HRQoL instrument that was developed, known-groups validity and convergent/discriminant validity were evaluated and its test-retest reliability was examined in the second survey. Results Of the 30 items originally assessed for the HRQoL instrument, four were excluded due to high ceiling effects and six were removed due to redundancy. We ultimately developed a HRQoL instrument with a reduced number of 20 items, known as the Health-related Quality of Life Instrument with 20 items (HINT-20, incorporating physical, mental, social, and positive health dimensions. The results of the HINT-20 for known-groups validity were poorer in women, the elderly, and those with a low income. For convergent/discriminant validity, the correlation coefficients of items (except vitality in the physical health dimension with the physical component summary of the Short Form 36 version 2 (SF-36v2 were generally higher than the correlations of those items with the mental component summary of the SF-36v2, and vice versa. Regarding test-retest reliability, the intraclass correlation coefficient of the total HINT-20 score was 0.813 (p<0.001. Conclusions A novel generic HRQoL instrument, the HINT-20, was developed for the Korean general population and showed acceptable validity and reliability.

A Differential Item Functioning (DIF) Analysis of the Communicative Participation Item Bank (CPIB): Comparing Individuals with Parkinson's Disease from the United States and New Zealand

Science.gov (United States)

Baylor, Carolyn; McAuliffe, Megan J.; Hughes, Louise E.; Yorkston, Kathryn; Anderson, Tim; Jiseon, Kim; Amtmann, Dagmar

2014-01-01

Purpose: To examine the cross-cultural applicability of the Communicative Participation Item Bank (CPIB) through a comparison of respondents with Parkinson's disease (PD) from the United States and New Zealand. Method: A total of 428 respondents--218 from the United States and 210 from New Zealand-completed the self-report CPIB and a series of…

Validation of the alcohol use item banks from the Patient-Reported Outcomes Measurement Information System (PROMIS).

Science.gov (United States)

Pilkonis, Paul A; Yu, Lan; Dodds, Nathan E; Johnston, Kelly L; Lawrence, Suzanne M; Daley, Dennis C

2016-04-01

The Patient-Reported Outcomes Measurement Information System (PROMIS) includes five item banks for alcohol use. There are limited data, however, regarding their validity (e.g., convergent validity, responsiveness to change). To provide such data, we conducted a prospective study with 225 outpatients being treated for substance abuse. Assessments were completed shortly after intake and at 1-month and 3-month follow-ups. The alcohol item banks were administered as computerized adaptive tests (CATs). Fourteen CATs and one six-item short form were also administered from eight other PROMIS domains to generate a comprehensive health status profile. After modeling treatment outcome for the sample as a whole, correlates of outcome from the PROMIS health status profile were examined. For convergent validity, the largest correlation emerged between the PROMIS alcohol use score and the Alcohol Use Disorders Identification Test (r=.79 at intake). Regarding treatment outcome, there were modest changes across the target problem of alcohol use and other domains of the PROMIS health status profile. However, significant heterogeneity was found in initial severity of drinking and in rates of change for both abstinence and severity of drinking during follow-up. This heterogeneity was associated with demographic (e.g., gender) and health-profile (e.g., emotional support, social participation) variables. The results demonstrated the validity of PROMIS CATs, which require only 4-6 items in each domain. This efficiency makes it feasible to use a comprehensive health status profile within the substance use treatment setting, providing important prognostic information regarding abstinence and severity of drinking. Copyright © 2016 Elsevier Ireland Ltd. All rights reserved.

New Instruments In Corporate Governance Of EU Bank Groups

OpenAIRE

Nedelchev, Miroslav

2013-01-01

The corporate governance practices of EU bank group were based on the principle of self-regulation. The negative effects of adoptation of the principle were on stakeholders account – deposit insurance funds, government loans, depositors, and taxpayers. The international financial crisis gives reasons for new institutional framework. The taken measures on pan-European level defined new role for traditional actors in which key actors are shareholders and regulators. The new instruments in m...

NEW INSTRUMENTS IN CORPORATE GOVERNANCE OF EU BANK GROUPS

OpenAIRE

Nedelchev, Miroslav

2013-01-01

The corporate governance practices of EU bank group were based on the principle of self-regulation. The negative effects of adoptation of the principle were on stakeholders account – deposit insurance funds, government loans, depositors, and taxpayers. The international financial crisis gives reasons for new institutional framework. The taken measures on pan-European level defined new role for traditional actors in which key actors are shareholders and regulators. The newn instruments in mode...

Biological Science: An Ecological Approach. BSCS Green Version. Teacher's Resource Book and Test Item Bank. Sixth Edition.

Science.gov (United States)

Biological Sciences Curriculum Study, Colorado Springs.

This book consists of four sections: (1) "Supplemental Materials"; (2) "Supplemental Investigations"; (3) "Test Item Bank"; and (4) "Blackline Masters." The first section provides additional background material related to selected chapters and investigations in the student book. Included are a periodic table of the elements, genetics problems and…

Service quality in banking: developing and testing measurement instrument with Latvian sample data

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Jelena Titko

2013-01-01

Full Text Available The paper highlights the importance of managing service quality in banking that can positively affect customer satisfaction. The goal of the given study is to develop an instrument for measuring service quality perceived by Latvian banks’ retail customers and to determine the most important contributors to customer satisfaction. To achieve this purpose, randomly selected customers of Latvian banks were surveyed, using the authors’ developed questionnaire. The proposed instrument was tested for reliability and validity, using techniques of confirmatory factor analysis. Exploratory factor analysis yielded five service quality dimensions (factors that allowed constructing customer satisfaction factor model EPICA: E – expenses, P – product, I – image, C – competence and emotional intellect, A – access. The subsequent correlation analysis revealed that the strongest relationship is between customer satisfaction and C factor. The results of the current research are crucially important for Latvian banks’ executives because the majority of previous studies in the related field offered measurement scales adequate for measuring service quality in other industries. Besides, the proposed questionnaire is exclusively developed for Latvia and considers Latvian banking sector specifics.

Single-item screening for agoraphobic symptoms : validation of a web-based audiovisual screening instrument

NARCIS (Netherlands)

van Ballegooijen, Wouter; Riper, Heleen; Donker, Tara; Martin Abello, Katherina; Marks, Isaac; Cuijpers, Pim

2012-01-01

The advent of web-based treatments for anxiety disorders creates a need for quick and valid online screening instruments, suitable for a range of social groups. This study validates a single-item multimedia screening instrument for agoraphobia, part of the Visual Screener for Common Mental Disorders

Item-level psychometrics of the ADL instrument of the Korean National Survey on persons with physical disabilities.

Science.gov (United States)

Hong, Ickpyo; Lee, Mi Jung; Kim, Moon Young; Park, Hae Yean

2017-10-01

The aim of this study is to investigate the psychometrics of the 12 items of an instrument assessing activities of daily living (ADL) using an item response theory model. A total of 648 adults with physical disabilities and having difficulties in ADLs were retrieved from the 2014 Korean National Survey on People with Disabilities. The psychometric testing included factor analysis, internal consistency, precision, and differential item functioning (DIF) across categories including sex, older age, marital status, and physical impairment area. The sample had a mean age of 69.7 years old (SD = 13.7). The majority of the sample had lower extremity impairments (62.0%) and had at least 2.1 chronic conditions. The instrument demonstrated unidimensional construct and good internal consistency (Cronbach's alpha = 0.95). The instrument precisely estimated person measures within a wide range of theta values (-2.22 logits  5.0%). Our findings indicate that the dressing item would need to be modified to improve its psychometrics. Overall, the ADL instrument demonstrates good psychometrics, and thus, it may be used as a standardized instrument for measuring disability in rehabilitation contexts. However, the findings are limited to adults with physical disabilities. Future studies should replicate psychometric testing for survey respondents with other disorders and for children.

The practical impact of differential item functioning analyses in a health-related quality of life instrument

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Scott, Neil W; Fayers, Peter M; Aaronson, Neil K

2009-01-01

Differential item functioning (DIF) analyses are commonly used to evaluate health-related quality of life (HRQoL) instruments. There is, however, a lack of consensus as to how to assess the practical impact of statistically significant DIF results.......Differential item functioning (DIF) analyses are commonly used to evaluate health-related quality of life (HRQoL) instruments. There is, however, a lack of consensus as to how to assess the practical impact of statistically significant DIF results....

Grievance redressal instrument and inclination of diverse modes used to enlist complaints in indian banks

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Gagandeep K. Nagra

2016-03-01

Full Text Available   Background: Customer grievances are a bit of the business life of any corporate component. This is more so for banks in light of the way that they are organization affiliations .Indeed the organization business is planned to pass on what its customers conclusively need .Banking industry in India was considered as standard section 10 years back yet the sharp tries of RBI in the later past has changed and changed the substance of Indian dealing with a record industry. It has in like manner understood the challenges which the business has not defied until then and making an unrivaled purchaser reliability and experience is one of them. The engaged differentiator of banks depends on upon the ability to give a better issue than the customers other than offering a wide blend of things. Methods: The path in which banks talk and oversee customer grumblings is a key variable in picking the way of customer organization .Having an inside and out plot redressal instrument for addressal of all the customer grievances is of prime hugeness. The destinations of the paper are to get a comprehension into the grievance redressal instrument followed in banks, care about it among general populace and its sufficiency. Data has been accumulated with the help of a sorted out survey by 200 bank customer's .With the aid of Statistical Package for Social Sciences (SPSS, both realistic experiences including frequencies, rates, mean, and standard deviations and moreover inferential tests, for instance, Pearson chi-square and ANOVA were joined. Results and conclusions: Results exhibited a low level of care about grievance redressal approach and demonstrated that private part banks have a more practical grievance redressal framework when appeared differently in relation to open range banks The study has recommendations for the bank customers to show himself seeing protesting determination handle the and furthermore the banks in suitably arranging a reasonable model of

How does fair value measurement under IAS 39 affect disclosure choices of European banks?

OpenAIRE

Bischof, Jannis; Wüstemann, Jens

2007-01-01

There is a considerable degree of heterogeneity in the way how European banks present their financial instruments in IFRS financial statements. In a sample of 109 European banks, we identify three major presentation formats that are currently applied: a presentation by measurement category, by product, and by purpose. We find the use of the measurement categories, which were originally designed by IAS 39 for measurement purposes, as line items to be the prevalent choice across countries. We a...

Bank Accounting and Market Valuation in Japan: An Overview of Accounting Issues of Financial Instruments

OpenAIRE

Marie Ogawa; Takashi Kubota

1995-01-01

This paper considers a framework for introducing market valuation to Japanese bank accounting, focusing on practical issues to be solved. Reflecting the growing concern over the present historical cost accounting, it is argued that market valuation should be introduced to bank accounting for disclosure purpose in Japan. Particularly, there are strong arguments for market valuation of certain types of financial instruments. Specific considerations include: the overview of present accounting in...

Measuring Environmental Factors: Unique and Overlapping International Classification of Functioning, Disability and Health Coverage of 5 Instruments.

Science.gov (United States)

Heinemann, Allen W; Miskovic, Ana; Semik, Patrick; Wong, Alex; Dashner, Jessica; Baum, Carolyn; Magasi, Susan; Hammel, Joy; Tulsky, David S; Garcia, Sofia F; Jerousek, Sara; Lai, Jin-Shei; Carlozzi, Noelle E; Gray, David B

2016-12-01

To describe the unique and overlapping content of the newly developed Environmental Factors Item Banks (EFIB) and 7 legacy environmental factor instruments, and to evaluate the EFIB's construct validity by examining associations with legacy instruments. Cross-sectional, observational cohort. Community. A sample of community-dwelling adults with stroke, spinal cord injury, and traumatic brain injury (N=568). None. EFIB covering domains of the built and natural environment; systems, services, and policies; social environment; and access to information and technology; the Craig Hospital Inventory of Environmental Factors (CHIEF) short form; the Facilitators and Barriers Survey/Mobility (FABS/M) short form; the Home and Community Environment Instrument (HACE); the Measure of the Quality of the Environment (MQE) short form; and 3 of the Patient Reported Outcomes Measurement Information System's (PROMIS) Quality of Social Support measures. The EFIB and legacy instruments assess most of the International Classification of Functioning, Disability and Health (ICF) environmental factors chapters, including chapter 1 (products and technology; 75 items corresponding to 11 codes), chapter 2 (natural environment and human-made changes; 31 items corresponding to 7 codes), chapter 3 (support and relationships; 74 items corresponding to 7 codes), chapter 4 (attitudes; 83 items corresponding to 8 codes), and chapter 5 (services, systems, and policies; 72 items corresponding to 16 codes). Construct validity is provided by moderate correlations between EFIB measures and the CHIEF, MQE barriers, HACE technology mobility, FABS/M community built features, and PROMIS item banks and by small correlations with other legacy instruments. Only 5 of the 66 legacy instrument correlation coefficients are moderate, suggesting they measure unique aspects of the environment, whereas all intra-EFIB correlations were at least moderate. The EFIB measures provide a brief and focused assessment of ICF

Newly Discovered Items of the Zoomorphic Style from the Left Bank of the Lower Dniester

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Sinika Vitalij S.

2017-09-01

Full Text Available The article presents an overview of items corresponding to the Scythian zoomorphic style discovered at barbaric and ancient sites of the Northwestern Black Sea Region, and a publication of two new findings. They were discovered on the left bank of the Lower Dniester. The first item discovered at Parkany-II settlement is a fragment of a bronze horse plaque (its lower part crafted in the shape of a "rooster"-hippocampus. The other artifact discovered near Tokmazeya village also represents a horse plaque with an image of a cat predator's head. Presently, there are no counterparts of the images on these findings in the Northwestern Black Sea Region, which is the westmost periphery of the Scythian steppe culture. These fragments of horse apparel broaden our knowledge of the Scythian "bestiary" in the region. Besides, apart from the other items of material culture, the published findings confirm the presence of Scythian population at settlement sites, which contradicts the generally accepted opinion on the exclusively nomadic cattle breeding lifestyle of the Scythians in 5th –4th centuries B.C.

Development of a simple 12-item theory-based instrument to assess the impact of continuing professional development on clinical behavioral intentions.

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France Légaré

Full Text Available Decision-makers in organizations providing continuing professional development (CPD have identified the need for routine assessment of its impact on practice. We sought to develop a theory-based instrument for evaluating the impact of CPD activities on health professionals' clinical behavioral intentions.Our multipronged study had four phases. 1 We systematically reviewed the literature for instruments that used socio-cognitive theories to assess healthcare professionals' clinically-oriented behavioral intentions and/or behaviors; we extracted items relating to the theoretical constructs of an integrated model of healthcare professionals' behaviors and removed duplicates. 2 A committee of researchers and CPD decision-makers selected a pool of items relevant to CPD. 3 An international group of experts (n = 70 reached consensus on the most relevant items using electronic Delphi surveys. 4 We created a preliminary instrument with the items found most relevant and assessed its factorial validity, internal consistency and reliability (weighted kappa over a two-week period among 138 physicians attending a CPD activity. Out of 72 potentially relevant instruments, 47 were analyzed. Of the 1218 items extracted from these, 16% were discarded as improperly phrased and 70% discarded as duplicates. Mapping the remaining items onto the constructs of the integrated model of healthcare professionals' behaviors yielded a minimum of 18 and a maximum of 275 items per construct. The partnership committee retained 61 items covering all seven constructs. Two iterations of the Delphi process produced consensus on a provisional 40-item questionnaire. Exploratory factorial analysis following test-retest resulted in a 12-item questionnaire. Cronbach's coefficients for the constructs varied from 0.77 to 0.85.A 12-item theory-based instrument for assessing the impact of CPD activities on health professionals' clinical behavioral intentions showed adequate validity and

Differential item functioning (DIF) analyses of health-related quality of life instruments using logistic regression

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Scott, Neil W; Fayers, Peter M; Aaronson, Neil K

2010-01-01

Differential item functioning (DIF) methods can be used to determine whether different subgroups respond differently to particular items within a health-related quality of life (HRQoL) subscale, after allowing for overall subgroup differences in that scale. This article reviews issues that arise ...... when testing for DIF in HRQoL instruments. We focus on logistic regression methods, which are often used because of their efficiency, simplicity and ease of application....

ACCOUNTING PRACTICES FROM FINANCIAL INSTRUMENTS DISCLOSURE PERSPECTIVE – THE CASE OF ROMANIAN BANKING SYSTEM

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Stefanescu Cristina Alexandrina

2012-12-01

Full Text Available International harmonization and convergence of accounting had gradually become one of the most challenging topic of worldwide research and a very hot debated issue in practitioners’ sphere, too. Several studies have addressed both formal and material accounting harmonization along time, a wide range of instruments have been developed and various statistical tools have been used in this respect. Basing on this background, we focused our attention on Romanian banking system which is now experiencing a great challenge by finally entirely adopting IFRS after the first step from 2005 when consolidated financial statements in accordance with IFRS were required and the second one from 2009 when informative individual financial statements under IFRS begun compulsory. Therefore, the objective of our paper is to empirically measure and compare the levels and progress of material accounting harmonization in Romanian banking sector focusing on financial instruments and their related disclosure requirements. First studies conducted in the measurement of harmonization practices (Nair and Frank, 1981; McKinnon and Janell, 1984; Doupnik and Taylor, 1985 started at the beginning of the 80’s, but were merely descriptive, focused on examining how IAS had been adopted in various countries around the world. In the earliest 90’s, there were developed the first instruments for measuring material harmonization, namely the concentration indices (H, C and I Index (Van der Tas, 1988; 1992 and various other forms of these (Archer et al., 1995, which were widely used in various research studies (Herrmann and Thomas, 1995; Aisbitt, 2001; Taplin, 2004. Basing on these measurement tools and cconsidering the main aim of our study – to measure material accounting harmonization in Romanian banking sector – we stated four hypotheses, thus trying to answer our questions: “Are the accounting practices related to financial instruments

Identifying Promising Items: The Use of Crowdsourcing in the Development of Assessment Instruments

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Sadler, Philip M.; Sonnert, Gerhard; Coyle, Harold P.; Miller, Kelly A.

2016-01-01

The psychometrically sound development of assessment instruments requires pilot testing of candidate items as a first step in gauging their quality, typically a time-consuming and costly effort. Crowdsourcing offers the opportunity for gathering data much more quickly and inexpensively than from most targeted populations. In a simulation of a…

Detecting The Expected Rate of Return Volatility of Financing Instruments of Indonesian Islamic Banking through GARCH Modeling (Generalized Autoregressive Conditional Heteroscedasticity

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Nurul Huda

2015-04-01

Full Text Available Objective - Islamic banks are banks which its activities, both fund raising and funds distribution are on the basis of Islamic principles, namely buying and selling and profit sharing. Islamic banking is aimed at supporting the implementation of national development in order to improve justice, togetherness, and equitable distribution of welfare. In pursuit of supporting the implementation of national development, Islamic banking often faced stability problems of financing instruments being operated. In this case, it is measured by the gap between the actual rate of return and the expected rate of return. The individual actual RoR of this instrument will generate an expected rate of return. This raises the gap or difference between the actual rate of return and the expected rate of return of individual instruments, which in this case is called the abnormal rate of return. The stability of abnormal rate of return of individual instruments is certainly influenced by the stability of the expected rate of return. Expected rate of return has a volatility or fluctuation levels for each financing instrument. It is also a key element or material basis for the establishment of a variance of individual instruments. Variance in this case indicates the level of uncertainty of the rate of return. Individual variance is the origin of the instrument base for variance in the portfolio finance that further a portfolio analysis. So, this paper is going to analyze the level of expected RoR volatility as an initial step to see and predict the stability of the fluctuations in the rate of return of Indonesian Islamic financing instruments.Methods – Probability of Occurence, Expected Rate of Return (RoR and GARCH (Generalized Autoregressive Conditional Heteroscedasticity.Results - The expected RoR volatility of the murabaha and istishna financing instruments tend to be more volatile than expected RoR volatility of musharaka and qardh financing instruments

Central banks' use in East Asia of money market instruments in the conduct of monetary policy

OpenAIRE

Robert F. Emery

1992-01-01

The paper examines the greater use in the past decade of money market instruments in the conduct of monetary policy by the central banks, or their equivalent, in six of the main East Asian developing economies. Some of these economies have been successful in using various money market instruments to control liquidity, while others have been much less successful. A common theme in the case of the successful economies has been one of employing money market instruments that have yields based on ...

The impact of diabetic retinopathy on quality of life: qualitative findings from an item bank development project.

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Fenwick, Eva K; Pesudovs, Konrad; Khadka, Jyoti; Dirani, Mohamed; Rees, Gwyn; Wong, Tien Y; Lamoureux, Ecosse L

2012-12-01

Assessing the efficacy of treatment modalities for diabetic retinopathy (DR) from the patient's perspective is restricted due to a lack of a comprehensive patient-reported outcome measure. We are developing a DR-specific quality of life (QoL) item bank, and we report here on the qualitative results from the first phase of this project. Eight focus groups and 18 semi-structured interviews were conducted with 57 patients with DR. The sessions were transcribed verbatim and iteratively analysed using the constant comparative method and NVIVO software. Participants had a median age of 58 years (range 27-83 years). Twenty-seven (47%) participants had proliferative DR in the better eye, and 14 (25%) had clinically significant macular oedema. Nine QoL domains were identified, namely visual symptoms, ocular surface symptoms, vision-related activity limitation, mobility, emotional well-being, health concerns, convenience, social, and economic. Participants described many vision-related activity limitations, particularly under challenging lighting conditions; however, socioemotional issues were equally important. Participants felt frustrated due to their visual restrictions, concerned about further vision loss and had difficulty coping with this uncertainty. Restrictions on driving were pervasive, affecting transport, social life, relationships, responsibilities, work and independence. Patients with DR experience many socioemotional issues in addition to vision-related activity limitations. Data from this study will be used to generate data for a DR-specific QoL item bank.

Examining item content and structure in health status and health outcomes instruments: toward the development of a grammar for better understanding of the concepts being measured.

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Erickson, Pennifer; Willke, Richard J

2013-06-01

Health outcomes instruments assess diverse health concepts. Although item-level concepts are considered fundamental elements, the field lacks structures for evaluating and organizing them for decision making. This article proposes a grammar using item stems, response options, and recall periods to systematically identify item-level concepts. The grammar uses "core concept," "evaluative component," and "recall period" as intuitive terms for communicating with stakeholders. Better characterization of concepts is necessary for classifying instrument content and linking it to treatment benefit. Items in 2 generic and 21 disease-specific instruments were evaluated to develop and illustrate the use of the grammar. Concepts were assigned International Classification of Functioning, Disability and Health codes for exploring the value that the grammar and a classification system add to the understanding of content across instruments. The 23 instruments include many core concepts; emotional function is the only concept assessed in all instruments. Concepts in disease-specific instruments show obvious patterns; for example, arthritis instruments focus on physical function. The majority of instruments used the same response options across all items, with five-point scales being the most common. Most instruments used one recall period for all items. Shorter recall periods were used for conditions associated with "flares," such as chronic obstructive pulmonary disease and "skin disease." Every diagnosis, however, showed variation across instruments in the recall period used. This analysis indicates the proposed grammar's potential for discerning the conceptual content within and between health outcomes instruments and illustrates its value for improving communication between stakeholders and for making decisions related to treatment benefit. Copyright © 2013 International Society for Pharmacoeconomics and Outcomes Research (ISPOR). Published by Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

The use of focus groups in the development of the PROMIS pediatrics item bank.

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Walsh, Tasanee R; Irwin, Debra E; Meier, Andrea; Varni, James W; DeWalt, Darren A

2008-06-01

To understand differences in perceptions of patient-reported outcome domains between children with asthma and children from the general population. We used this information in the development of patient-reported outcome items for the Patient-Reported Outcomes Measurement Information System Pediatrics project. We conducted focus groups composed of ethnically, racially, and geographically diverse youth (8-12, 13-17 years) from the general population and youth with asthma. We performed content analysis to identify important themes. We identified five unique and different challenges that may confront youth with asthma as compared to general population youth: (1) They experience more difficulties when participating in physical activities; (2) They may experience anxiety about having an asthma attack at anytime and anywhere; (3) They may experience sleep disturbances and fatigue secondary to their asthma symptoms; (4) Their health condition has a greater effect on their emotional well-being and interpersonal relationships; and (5) Youth with asthma report that asthma often leaves them with insufficient energy to complete their school activities, especially physical activities. The results confirm unique experiences for children with asthma across a broad range of health domains and enhance the breadth of all domains when creating an item bank.

Contribution of Macroprudensial Policy of Central Bank On Microprudensial Islamic Banking

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Riduwan Riduwan

2018-03-01

Full Text Available The purpose of this research will be to answer the contribution of the macroprudential policy of Central Bank to the microprudential of islamic banking during the period of January 2008 - February 2016. The method used by quantitative analysis with panel data regression to be able to describe macroprudential policy contribution to FDR of islamic banking in Indonesia. Macroprudential policy instruments use Loan-to-Value Ratio (LTR, Statutory Reserves (GWM based on Loan-to-Funding Ratio (LFR and Countercyclical Capital Buffer (CCB. The islamic bankingmicroprudential instrument used is Financing to Deposit Ratio (FDR. The result shows that macroprudential policy contribution through LTV instrument to FDR has negative and significant influence. Statutory Reserves based on LFR on FDR have a positive and significant influence and CCB on FDR of Indonesia’s islamic banking shows negative and significant influence.

Development of a Mechanical Engineering Test Item Bank to promote learning outcomes-based education in Japanese and Indonesian higher education institutions

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Jeffrey S. Cross

2017-11-01

Full Text Available Following on the 2008-2012 OECD Assessment of Higher Education Learning Outcomes (AHELO feasibility study of civil engineering, in Japan a mechanical engineering learning outcomes assessment working group was established within the National Institute of Education Research (NIER, which became the Tuning National Center for Japan. The purpose of the project is to develop among engineering faculty members, common understandings of engineering learning outcomes, through the collaborative process of test item development, scoring, and sharing of results. By substantiating abstract level learning outcomes into concrete level learning outcomes that are attainable and assessable, and through measuring and comparing the students’ achievement of learning outcomes, it is anticipated that faculty members will be able to draw practical implications for educational improvement at the program and course levels. The development of a mechanical engineering test item bank began with test item development workshops, which led to a series of trial tests, and then to a large scale test implementation in 2016 of 348 first semester master’s students in 9 institutions in Japan, using both multiple choice questions designed to measure the mastery of basic and engineering sciences, and a constructive response task designed to measure “how well students can think like an engineer.” The same set of test items were translated from Japanese into to English and Indonesian, and used to measure achievement of learning outcomes at Indonesia’s Institut Teknologi Bandung (ITB on 37 rising fourth year undergraduate students. This paper highlights how learning outcomes assessment can effectively facilitate learning outcomes-based education, by documenting the experience of Japanese and Indonesian mechanical engineering faculty members engaged in the NIER Test Item Bank project.First published online: 30 November 2017

Pengelolaan Likuiditas Bank Syariah

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Nurul Ichsan

2014-01-01

Full Text Available Islamic Banking Liquidity Management. This article is about management of liquidity which discuss about the position of cash money in the company and its ability to fulfill the obligation (pay the debt on time. Management of liquidity is one of the essential function which is done by banking institution and inside its efficient management, is needed instrument and finance market which is taking not only short term but also long term, and not only conventional banking but also syariat. Through that natural necessity (placement and fulfillment of short term need, for Islamic banking in Indonesia has been availabled some instruments such as (IMA certificate of Mudhorobah Investment between bank, (PUAS market banking regulations between syariat bank, (SWBI Bank of Indonesia Wadiah certificate, (FPJPS provision about short term cost facility for Islamic banks  DOI:10.15408/aiq.v6i1.1371

Varying the item format improved the range of measurement in patient-reported outcome measures assessing physical function.

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Liegl, Gregor; Gandek, Barbara; Fischer, H Felix; Bjorner, Jakob B; Ware, John E; Rose, Matthias; Fries, James F; Nolte, Sandra

2017-03-21

Physical function (PF) is a core patient-reported outcome domain in clinical trials in rheumatic diseases. Frequently used PF measures have ceiling effects, leading to large sample size requirements and low sensitivity to change. In most of these instruments, the response category that indicates the highest PF level is the statement that one is able to perform a given physical activity without any limitations or difficulty. This study investigates whether using an item format with an extended response scale, allowing respondents to state that the performance of an activity is easy or very easy, increases the range of precise measurement of self-reported PF. Three five-item PF short forms were constructed from the Patient-Reported Outcomes Measurement Information System (PROMIS®) wave 1 data. All forms included the same physical activities but varied in item stem and response scale: format A ("Are you able to …"; "without any difficulty"/"unable to do"); format B ("Does your health now limit you …"; "not at all"/"cannot do"); format C ("How difficult is it for you to …"; "very easy"/"impossible"). Each short-form item was answered by 2217-2835 subjects. We evaluated unidimensionality and estimated a graded response model for the 15 short-form items and remaining 119 items of the PROMIS PF bank to compare item and test information for the short forms along the PF continuum. We then used simulated data for five groups with different PF levels to illustrate differences in scoring precision between the short forms using different item formats. Sufficient unidimensionality of all short-form items and the original PF item bank was supported. Compared to formats A and B, format C increased the range of reliable measurement by about 0.5 standard deviations on the positive side of the PF continuum of the sample, provided more item information, and was more useful in distinguishing known groups with above-average functioning. Using an item format with an extended

An Item Bank to Measure Systems, Services, and Policies: Environmental Factors Affecting People With Disabilities.

Science.gov (United States)

Lai, Jin-Shei; Hammel, Joy; Jerousek, Sara; Goldsmith, Arielle; Miskovic, Ana; Baum, Carolyn; Wong, Alex W; Dashner, Jessica; Heinemann, Allen W

2016-12-01

To develop a measure of perceived systems, services, and policies facilitators (see Chapter 5 of the International Classification of Functioning, Disability and Health) for people with neurologic disabilities and to evaluate the effect of perceived systems, services, and policies facilitators on health-related quality of life. Qualitative approaches to develop and refine items. Confirmatory factor analysis including 1-factor confirmatory factor analysis and bifactor analysis to evaluate unidimensionality of items. Rasch analysis to identify misfitting items. Correlational and analysis of variance methods to evaluate construct validity. Community-dwelling individuals participated in telephone interviews or traveled to the academic medical centers where this research took place. Participants (N=571) had a diagnosis of spinal cord injury, stroke, or traumatic brain injury. They were 18 years or older and English speaking. Not applicable. An item bank to evaluate environmental access and support levels of services, systems, and policies for people with disabilities. We identified a general factor defined as "access and support levels of the services, systems, and policies at the level of community living" and 3 local factors defined as "health services," "community living," and "community resources." The systems, services, and policies measure correlated moderately with participation measures: Community Participation Indicators (CPI) - Involvement, CPI - Control over Participation, Quality of Life in Neurological Disorders - Ability to Participate, Quality of Life in Neurological Disorders - Satisfaction with Role Participation, Patient-Reported Outcomes Measurement Information System (PROMIS) Ability to Participate, PROMIS Satisfaction with Role Participation, and PROMIS Isolation. The measure of systems, services, and policies facilitators contains items pertaining to health services, community living, and community resources. Investigators and clinicians can measure

Identifying instruments to quantify financial management skills in adults with acquired cognitive impairments.

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Engel, Lisa; Bar, Yael; Beaton, Dorcas E; Green, Robin E; Dawson, Deirdre R

2016-01-01

Financial management skills-that is, the skills needed to handle personal finances such as banking and paying bills-are essential to a person's autonomy, independence, and community living. To date, no comprehensive review of financial management skills instruments exists, making it difficult for clinicians and researchers to choose relevant instruments. The objectives of this review are to: (a) identify all available instruments containing financial management skill items that have been used with adults with acquired cognitive impairments; (b) categorize the instruments by source (i.e., observation based, self-report, proxy report); and (c) describe observation-based performance instruments by populations, overarching concepts measured, and comprehensiveness of financial management items. Objective (c) focuses on observation-based performance instruments as these measures can aid in situations where the person with cognitive impairment has poor self-awareness or where the proxy has poor knowledge of the person's current abilities. Two reviewers completed two systematic searches of five databases. Instruments were categorized by reviewing published literature, copies of the instruments, and/or communication with instrument authors. Comprehensiveness of items was based on nine key domains of financial management skills developed by the authors. A total of 88 discrete instruments were identified. Of these, 44 were categorized as observation-based performance and 44 as self- and/or proxy-reports. Of the 44 observation-based performance instruments, 8 had been developed for acquired brain injury populations and 24 for aging and dementia populations. Only 7 of the observation-based performance instruments had items spanning 6 or more of the 9 financial management skills domains. The majority of instruments were developed for aging and dementia populations, and few were comprehensive. This review provides foundation for future instrument psychometric and clinimetric

Promotional activities of banks in Serbia

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Zelenović Vera

2008-01-01

Full Text Available The paper is focused on banking sector in Serbia, particulary on promotional activities of banks in public and on media. The authors of paper tried to find cause and effect relationship between business success and working quality on the one hand and investment in promotion activities of bank on the other hand, like important instrument of bank's business policy realization. Promotional activities appear like successful instrument in order to increase satisfaction of the bank's clients, which effect the increase of successfulness of banks' business.

12 CFR 210.29 - Agreement of receiving bank.

Science.gov (United States)

2010-01-01

... 12 Banks and Banking 2 2010-01-01 2010-01-01 false Agreement of receiving bank. 210.29 Section 210.29 Banks and Banking FEDERAL RESERVE SYSTEM BOARD OF GOVERNORS OF THE FEDERAL RESERVE SYSTEM COLLECTION OF CHECKS AND OTHER ITEMS BY FEDERAL RESERVE BANKS AND FUNDS TRANSFERS THROUGH FEDWIRE (REGULATION...

A Non-Parametric Item Response Theory Evaluation of the CAGE Instrument Among Older Adults.

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Abdin, Edimansyah; Sagayadevan, Vathsala; Vaingankar, Janhavi Ajit; Picco, Louisa; Chong, Siow Ann; Subramaniam, Mythily

2018-02-23

The validity of the CAGE using item response theory (IRT) has not yet been examined in older adult population. This study aims to investigate the psychometric properties of the CAGE using both non-parametric and parametric IRT models, assess whether there is any differential item functioning (DIF) by age, gender and ethnicity and examine the measurement precision at the cut-off scores. We used data from the Well-being of the Singapore Elderly study to conduct Mokken scaling analysis (MSA), dichotomous Rasch and 2-parameter logistic IRT models. The measurement precision at the cut-off scores were evaluated using classification accuracy (CA) and classification consistency (CC). The MSA showed the overall scalability H index was 0.459, indicating a medium performing instrument. All items were found to be homogenous, measuring the same construct and able to discriminate well between respondents with high levels of the construct and the ones with lower levels. The item discrimination ranged from 1.07 to 6.73 while the item difficulty ranged from 0.33 to 2.80. Significant DIF was found for 2-item across ethnic group. More than 90% (CC and CA ranged from 92.5% to 94.3%) of the respondents were consistently and accurately classified by the CAGE cut-off scores of 2 and 3. The current study provides new evidence on the validity of the CAGE from the IRT perspective. This study provides valuable information of each item in the assessment of the overall severity of alcohol problem and the precision of the cut-off scores in older adult population.

On Studying Common Factor Dominance and Approximate Unidimensionality in Multicomponent Measuring Instruments with Discrete Items

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Raykov, Tenko; Marcoulides, George A.

2018-01-01

This article outlines a procedure for examining the degree to which a common factor may be dominating additional factors in a multicomponent measuring instrument consisting of binary items. The procedure rests on an application of the latent variable modeling methodology and accounts for the discrete nature of the manifest indicators. The method…

ASSESING THE DETERMINANTS OF BANK LIQUIDITY. CASE STUDY ROMANIAN BANKING SYSTEM

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Florin Alexandru LUCA

2016-06-01

Full Text Available The financial crisis has highlighted the importance of liquidity risk for the banking system. Therefore, this study focuses on identifing the determinants of liquidity of Romanian banks. The data cover the period from 2006 to 2013 and take into account only bank-specific factors. The empirical study was applied on 16 Romanian banks and based on previous studies and uses different liquidity ratios, encompassing different points of view on liquidity. Regarding the explanatory variables considered in this analysis, they include various items of internal character concerning: capital adequacy, asset quality, profitability, efficiency of financial intermediation and the size of the banks. The results of our regression analysis indicate that bank liquidity is positively related to capital adequacy of banks and bank profitability and negatively related to the rate of non-performing loans, net interest margin and the size of the bank.

Fair value hierarchy in financial instrument disclosure. Is there transparency for investors? Evidence from the banking industry

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Enrico Laghi

2012-11-01

Full Text Available The debate on fair value accounting is still open although the last 20 years have been spent in looking for solutions by academics, practitioners and institutions. After long and continuous discussion both on the basic concepts and the information level contained in fair value measurements and on the different solutions that are possible to adopt in mark to market measurements, IASB and FASB have recently issued new standards on fair value measurements applying some principles not only to financial instruments but also to property and other investments. To verify if the solutions adopted in these Standards really improve the disclosure level and the “usefulness of data for investors”, this paper analyzes the actual level of transparency and the “usefulness” of the “fair value hierarchy” (which from some points of view synthesized the Board’s way of thinking regarding to fair value which has already been introduced for financial instruments by IFRS 7, Financial Instruments: Disclosure. The paper presents results of an empirical investigation on a sample of domestic and foreign listed banks that adopted fair value hierarchy in line with SFAS 157 and IFRS 7 recommendations. Research questions can be summarized as follows: (i does fair value hierarchy improve transparency in financial instrument evaluation in bank annual reports, or can it be considered as a tool for earnings management?

An emotional functioning item bank of 24 items for computerized adaptive testing (CAT) was established

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Petersen, Morten Aa.; Gamper, Eva-Maria; Costantini, Anna

2016-01-01

of the widely used EORTC Quality of Life questionnaire (QLQ-C30). STUDY DESIGN AND SETTING: On the basis of literature search and evaluations by international samples of experts and cancer patients, 38 candidate items were developed. The psychometric properties of the items were evaluated in a large...... international sample of cancer patients. This included evaluations of dimensionality, item response theory (IRT) model fit, differential item functioning (DIF), and of measurement precision/statistical power. RESULTS: Responses were obtained from 1,023 cancer patients from four countries. The evaluations showed...... that 24 items could be included in a unidimensional IRT model. DIF did not seem to have any significant impact on the estimation of EF. Evaluations indicated that the CAT measure may reduce sample size requirements by up to 50% compared to the QLQ-C30 EF scale without reducing power. CONCLUSION...

Recogida y gestión de datos de respuesta en bancos de items: análisis de un sistema informático

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J. Gabriel Molina Ibáñez

1998-02-01

Full Text Available Item banks play a basic role as the base to build computerized adaptive tests but, in practice, the development of item banks suppose an important effort and no much support of software exists for this task. This paper is centered on the item response data collection and management involved in the work with item banks, as part of the analysis of a computer program oriented to support the development of item banks

The Astronomy and Space Science Concept Inventory: Assessment Instruments Aligned with the K-12 National Science Standards

Science.gov (United States)

Sadler, Philip M.

2011-01-01

We report on the development of an item test bank and associated instruments based on those K-12 national standards which involve astronomy and space science. Utilizing hundreds of studies in the science education research literature on student misconceptions, we have constructed 211 unique items that measure the degree to which students abandon such ideas for accepted scientific views. Piloted nationally with 7599 students and their 88 teachers spanning grades 5-12, the items reveal a range of interesting results, particularly student difficulties in mastering the NRC Standards and AAAS Benchmarks. Teachers generally perform well on items covering the standards of the grade level at which they teach, exhibiting few misconceptions of their own. Teachers dramatically overestimate their students’ performance, perhaps because they are unaware of their students’ misconceptions. Examples are given showing how the developed instruments can be used to assess the effectiveness of instruction and to evaluate the impact of professional development activities for teachers.

ACER Chemistry Test Item Collection. ACER Chemtic Year 12.

Science.gov (United States)

Australian Council for Educational Research, Hawthorn.

The chemistry test item banks contains 225 multiple-choice questions suitable for diagnostic and achievement testing; a three-page teacher's guide; answer key with item facilities; an answer sheet; and a 45-item sample achievement test. Although written for the new grade 12 chemistry course in Victoria, Australia, the items are widely applicable.…

Item validity vs. item discrimination index: a redundancy?

Science.gov (United States)

Panjaitan, R. L.; Irawati, R.; Sujana, A.; Hanifah, N.; Djuanda, D.

2018-03-01

In several literatures about evaluation and test analysis, it is common to find that there are calculations of item validity as well as item discrimination index (D) with different formula for each. Meanwhile, other resources said that item discrimination index could be obtained by calculating the correlation between the testee’s score in a particular item and the testee’s score on the overall test, which is actually the same concept as item validity. Some research reports, especially undergraduate theses tend to include both item validity and item discrimination index in the instrument analysis. It seems that these concepts might overlap for both reflect the test quality on measuring the examinees’ ability. In this paper, examples of some results of data processing on item validity and item discrimination index were compared. It would be discussed whether item validity and item discrimination index can be represented by one of them only or it should be better to present both calculations for simple test analysis, especially in undergraduate theses where test analyses were included.

Pancreatitis Quality of Life Instrument: Development of a new instrument

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Wahid Wassef

2014-02-01

Full Text Available Objectives: The goal of this project was to develop the first disease-specific instrument for the evaluation of quality of life in chronic pancreatitis. Methods: Focus groups and interview sessions were conducted, with chronic pancreatitis patients, to identify items felt to impact quality of life which were subsequently formatted into a paper-and-pencil instrument. This instrument was used to conduct an online survey by an expert panel of pancreatologists to evaluate its content validity. Finally, the modified instrument was presented to patients during precognitive testing interviews to evaluate its clarity and appropriateness. Results: In total, 10 patients were enrolled in the focus groups and interview sessions where they identified 50 items. Once redundant items were removed, the 40 remaining items were made into a paper-and-pencil instrument referred to as the Pancreatitis Quality of Life Instrument. Through the processes of content validation and precognitive testing, the number of items in the instrument was reduced to 24. Conclusions: This marks the development of the first disease-specific instrument to evaluate quality of life in chronic pancreatitis. It includes unique features not found in generic instruments (economic factors, stigma, and spiritual factors. Although this marks a giant step forward, psychometric evaluation is still needed prior to its clinical use.

Using CSR to mitigate information asymmetry in the banking sector

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Semenescu Andreea

2015-12-01

Full Text Available The paper examines the power of corporate social responsibility to reduce information asymmetry and to act as a marketing instrument in the banking sector. Trust is the most important asset of a bank. Therefore, banks are motivated to use the most effective instruments to diminish information asymmetry with their stakeholders. The fact that cash disbursements in CSR actions are not directed towards shareholders makes them more valuable signals to other stakeholders regarding the financial soundness of the bank. The empirical study conducted based on limited dependent variable models supports the effectiveness of the CSR as marketing instrument in banking. It reveals the circumstances associated to a higher probability of an active CSR policy conducted by a banking institution. The results support the hypothesis that in the banking sector CSR is perceived as an instrument which helps stakeholders reduce information asymmetry. As marketing instrument, CSR contributes to increasing the tangibility of the banking products, decreasing their perceived variability and thus making them more attractive for the clients and allowing for differentiation between competitors.

Proposta de um instrumento de medida para avaliar a satisfação de clientes de bancos utilizando a Teoria da Resposta ao Item Proposal of tool to assess the satisfaction of bank customers using the Item Response Theory

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Alceu Balbim Junior

2011-01-01

Full Text Available Este artigo apresenta um instrumento de medida para avaliação da satisfação de clientes de bancos utilizando a Teoria da Resposta ao Item (TRI. Satisfazer os clientes tem sido uma busca constante das organizações que procuram manterem-se competitivas no mercado. Estudos constatam a relação entre a qualidade percebida pelos clientes, a satisfação e fidelidade. A avaliação da satisfação pode ser realizada por meio da qualidade percebida pelos clientes e a construção de ferramentas de avaliação deve contemplar características específicas da atividade em questão. Embasando-se em artigos que avaliam a satisfação de clientes de bancos, propõe-se um instrumento formado por 29 itens. Os itens foram aplicados a 240 clientes a fim de avaliar a satisfação com o banco de maior relacionamento. Utilizando a Teoria da Resposta ao Item, foram identificados os parâmetros dos itens e a curva de informação. A análise do grau de discriminação dos itens indicou que todos são apropriados. A curva de informação obtida evidenciou o intervalo no qual o instrumento apresenta melhores estimativas para níveis de satisfação. O trabalho apresentou o nível médio de satisfação da amostra e a concentração de clientes nos diferentes níveis de satisfação da escala.This paper presents a model for assessing the satisfaction of bank customers using the Item Response Theory (IRT. Organizations are constantly making effort to satisfy customers seeking to remain competitive. Several studies have reported on the relationship between perceived quality, satisfaction, and loyalty. The assessment of satisfaction can be accomplished through the perceived quality, and the development of assessment tools should address specific features of the activity in question. Based on articles that assess the satisfaction of bank customers, this study proposes an assessment tool consisting of 29 items. The items were applied to 240 clients to assess their

National phantoms bank for the service of nuclear medicine in Cuba. Utility for the quality control of the instrumentation

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Varela C, C.; Diaz B, M.; Lopez B, G.M.

2006-01-01

Although, most of the applications in Nuclear Medicine have diagnostic ends, its going enlarging considerably the therapeutic applications. So that the diagnostic accuracy or the therapy effectiveness have not been affected, it becomes indispensable the quality control of the instrumentation, independently of its technological complexity and/or its exploitation period. Before the real lack of phantoms in the institutions, it was created a bank that puts to disposition of all the institutions, the existent phantoms in the country, and those that are going acquired, centralized by the State Control of Medical Equipment Center (CCEEM) and with Web access in its place www.eqmed.sld.cu. Having like base the elaboration of the National Protocol for the Quality Control of the Instrumentation in Nuclear Medicine that keeps in mind the international normative and the own existent conditions, were dictated and established two national regulations and its are being carried out the first audits to the instrumentation quality. These have evidenced the partial realization of the established quality controls in the services, the necessity to make aware as for the fulfillment of the criteria and quality concepts for the instrumentation, as well as the necessity to increase the phantoms number to the bank to guarantee the fulfillment of the Quality Control Programs. (Author)

Adaptive screening for depression--recalibration of an item bank for the assessment of depression in persons with mental and somatic diseases and evaluation in a simulated computer-adaptive test environment.

Science.gov (United States)

Forkmann, Thomas; Kroehne, Ulf; Wirtz, Markus; Norra, Christine; Baumeister, Harald; Gauggel, Siegfried; Elhan, Atilla Halil; Tennant, Alan; Boecker, Maren

2013-11-01

This study conducted a simulation study for computer-adaptive testing based on the Aachen Depression Item Bank (ADIB), which was developed for the assessment of depression in persons with somatic diseases. Prior to computer-adaptive test simulation, the ADIB was newly calibrated. Recalibration was performed in a sample of 161 patients treated for a depressive syndrome, 103 patients from cardiology, and 103 patients from otorhinolaryngology (mean age 44.1, SD=14.0; 44.7% female) and was cross-validated in a sample of 117 patients undergoing rehabilitation for cardiac diseases (mean age 58.4, SD=10.5; 24.8% women). Unidimensionality of the itembank was checked and a Rasch analysis was performed that evaluated local dependency (LD), differential item functioning (DIF), item fit and reliability. CAT-simulation was conducted with the total sample and additional simulated data. Recalibration resulted in a strictly unidimensional item bank with 36 items, showing good Rasch model fit (item fit residualsLD. CAT simulation revealed that 13 items on average were necessary to estimate depression in the range of -2 and +2 logits when terminating at SE≤0.32 and 4 items if using SE≤0.50. Receiver Operating Characteristics analysis showed that θ estimates based on the CAT algorithm have good criterion validity with regard to depression diagnoses (Area Under the Curve≥.78 for all cut-off criteria). The recalibration of the ADIB succeeded and the simulation studies conducted suggest that it has good screening performance in the samples investigated and that it may reasonably add to the improvement of depression assessment. © 2013.

Item-saving assessment of self-care performance in children with developmental disabilities: A prospective caregiver-report computerized adaptive test

Science.gov (United States)

Chen, Cheng-Te; Chen, Yu-Lan; Lin, Yu-Ching; Hsieh, Ching-Lin; Tzeng, Jeng-Yi

2018-01-01

Objective The purpose of this study was to construct a computerized adaptive test (CAT) for measuring self-care performance (the CAT-SC) in children with developmental disabilities (DD) aged from 6 months to 12 years in a content-inclusive, precise, and efficient fashion. Methods The study was divided into 3 phases: (1) item bank development, (2) item testing, and (3) a simulation study to determine the stopping rules for the administration of the CAT-SC. A total of 215 caregivers of children with DD were interviewed with the 73-item CAT-SC item bank. An item response theory model was adopted for examining the construct validity to estimate item parameters after investigation of the unidimensionality, equality of slope parameters, item fitness, and differential item functioning (DIF). In the last phase, the reliability and concurrent validity of the CAT-SC were evaluated. Results The final CAT-SC item bank contained 56 items. The stopping rules suggested were (a) reliability coefficient greater than 0.9 or (b) 14 items administered. The results of simulation also showed that 85% of the estimated self-care performance scores would reach a reliability higher than 0.9 with a mean test length of 8.5 items, and the mean reliability for the rest was 0.86. Administering the CAT-SC could reduce the number of items administered by 75% to 84%. In addition, self-care performances estimated by the CAT-SC and the full item bank were very similar to each other (Pearson r = 0.98). Conclusion The newly developed CAT-SC can efficiently measure self-care performance in children with DD whose performances are comparable to those of TD children aged from 6 months to 12 years as precisely as the whole item bank. The item bank of the CAT-SC has good reliability and a unidimensional self-care construct, and the CAT can estimate self-care performance with less than 25% of the items in the item bank. Therefore, the CAT-SC could be useful for measuring self-care performance in children with

Development of an instrument to measure behavioral health function for work disability: item pool construction and factor analysis.

Science.gov (United States)

Marfeo, Elizabeth E; Ni, Pengsheng; Haley, Stephen M; Jette, Alan M; Bogusz, Kara; Meterko, Mark; McDonough, Christine M; Chan, Leighton; Brandt, Diane E; Rasch, Elizabeth K

2013-09-01

To develop a broad set of claimant-reported items to assess behavioral health functioning relevant to the Social Security disability determination processes, and to evaluate the underlying structure of behavioral health functioning for use in development of a new functional assessment instrument. Cross-sectional. Community. Item pools of behavioral health functioning were developed, refined, and field tested in a sample of persons applying for Social Security disability benefits (N=1015) who reported difficulties working because of mental or both mental and physical conditions. None. Social Security Administration Behavioral Health (SSA-BH) measurement instrument. Confirmatory factor analysis (CFA) specified that a 4-factor model (self-efficacy, mood and emotions, behavioral control, social interactions) had the optimal fit with the data and was also consistent with our hypothesized conceptual framework for characterizing behavioral health functioning. When the items within each of the 4 scales were tested in CFA, the fit statistics indicated adequate support for characterizing behavioral health as a unidimensional construct along these 4 distinct scales of function. This work represents a significant advance both conceptually and psychometrically in assessment methodologies for work-related behavioral health. The measurement of behavioral health functioning relevant to the context of work requires the assessment of multiple dimensions of behavioral health functioning. Specifically, we identified a 4-factor model solution that represented key domains of work-related behavioral health functioning. These results guided the development and scale formation of a new SSA-BH instrument. Copyright © 2013 American Congress of Rehabilitation Medicine. Published by Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

Measuring social science concepts in pharmacy education research: From definition to item analysis of self-report instruments.

Science.gov (United States)

Cor, M Ken

Interpreting results from quantitative research can be difficult when measures of concepts are constructed poorly, something that can limit measurement validity. Social science steps for defining concepts, guidelines for limiting construct-irrelevant variance when writing self-report questions, and techniques for conducting basic item analysis are reviewed to inform the design of instruments to measure social science concepts in pharmacy education research. Based on a review of the literature, four main recommendations emerge: These include: (1) employ a systematic process of conceptualization to derive nominal definitions; (2) write exact and detailed operational definitions for each concept, (3) when creating self-report questionnaires, write statements and select scales to avoid introducing construct-irrelevant variance (CIV); and (4) use basic item analysis results to inform instrument revision. Employing recommendations that emerge from this review will strengthen arguments to support measurement validity which in turn will support the defensibility of study finding interpretations. An example from pharmacy education research is used to contextualize the concepts introduced. Copyright © 2017 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

Maintenance proficiency evaluation test bank

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Maier, Loran

2003-01-01

The Maintenance Proficiency Evaluation Test Bank (MPETB) is an Electric Power Research Institute- (EPRJ-) operated, utility-sponsored means of developing, maintaining, and disseminating secure, high-quality written and performance maintenance proficiency tests. EPRTs charter is to ensure that all tests and test items that go into the Test Bank have been validated, screened for reliability, and evaluated to high standards of psychometric excellence. Proficiency tests of maintenance personnel.(mechanics, electricians, and instrumentation and control [I and C] technicians) are most often used to determine if an experienced employee is capable of performing maintenance tasks without further training. Such tests provide objective evidence for decisions to exempt an employee from what, for the employee, is unnecessary training. This leads to considerable savings in training costs and increased productivity because supervisors can assign personnel to tasks at which their competence is proven. The ultimate objective of proficiency evaluation is to ensure that qualified maintenance personnel are available to meet the maintenance requirements of the plant Numerous task-specific MPE tests (both written and performance) have been developed and validated using the EPRI MPE methodology by the utilities participating in the MPETB project A task-specific MPE consists of a multiple-choice written examination and a multi-step performance evaluation that can be used to assess an individual's present knowledge and skill level for a given maintenance task. The MPETB contains MPEs and test items for the mechanical, electrical, and I and C classifications that are readily available to participating utilities. Presently, utilities are placing emphasis on developing MPEs to evaluate outage-related maintenance tasks that demonstrate the competency and qualifications of plant and contractor personnel before the start of outage work. Utilities are also using the MPE methodology and process to

The 4-Item Negative Symptom Assessment (NSA-4) Instrument: A Simple Tool for Evaluating Negative Symptoms in Schizophrenia Following Brief Training.

Science.gov (United States)

Alphs, Larry; Morlock, Robert; Coon, Cheryl; van Willigenburg, Arjen; Panagides, John

2010-07-01

Objective. To assess the ability of mental health professionals to use the 4-item Negative Symptom Assessment instrument, derived from the Negative Symptom Assessment-16, to rapidly determine the severity of negative symptoms of schizophrenia.Design. Open participation.Setting. Medical education conferences.Participants. Attendees at two international psychiatry conferences.Measurements. Participants read a brief set of the 4-item Negative Symptom Assessment instructions and viewed a videotape of a patient with schizophrenia. Using the 1 to 6 4-item Negative Symptom Assessment severity rating scale, they rated four negative symptom items and the overall global negative symptoms. These ratings were compared with a consensus rating determination using frequency distributions and Chi-square tests for the proportion of participant ratings that were within one point of the expert rating.Results. More than 400 medical professionals (293 physicians, 50% with a European practice, and 55% who reported past utilization of schizophrenia ratings scales) participated. Between 82.1 and 91.1 percent of the 4-items and the global rating determinations by the participants were within one rating point of the consensus expert ratings. The differences between the percentage of participant rating scores that were within one point versus the percentage that were greater than one point different from those by the consensus experts was significant (pnegative symptoms using the 4-item Negative Symptom Assessment did not generally differ among the geographic regions of practice, the professional credentialing, or their familiarity with the use of schizophrenia symptom rating instruments.Conclusion. These findings suggest that clinicians from a variety of geographic practices can, after brief training, use the 4-item Negative Symptom Assessment effectively to rapidly assess negative symptoms in patients with schizophrenia.

Better assessment of physical function: item improvement is neglected but essential.

Science.gov (United States)

Bruce, Bonnie; Fries, James F; Ambrosini, Debbie; Lingala, Bharathi; Gandek, Barbara; Rose, Matthias; Ware, John E

2009-01-01

Physical function is a key component of patient-reported outcome (PRO) assessment in rheumatology. Modern psychometric methods, such as Item Response Theory (IRT) and Computerized Adaptive Testing, can materially improve measurement precision at the item level. We present the qualitative and quantitative item-evaluation process for developing the Patient Reported Outcomes Measurement Information System (PROMIS) Physical Function item bank. The process was stepwise: we searched extensively to identify extant Physical Function items and then classified and selectively reduced the item pool. We evaluated retained items for content, clarity, relevance and comprehension, reading level, and translation ease by experts and patient surveys, focus groups, and cognitive interviews. We then assessed items by using classic test theory and IRT, used confirmatory factor analyses to estimate item parameters, and graded response modeling for parameter estimation. We retained the 20 Legacy (original) Health Assessment Questionnaire Disability Index (HAQ-DI) and the 10 SF-36's PF-10 items for comparison. Subjects were from rheumatoid arthritis, osteoarthritis, and healthy aging cohorts (n = 1,100) and a national Internet sample of 21,133 subjects. We identified 1,860 items. After qualitative and quantitative evaluation, 124 newly developed PROMIS items composed the PROMIS item bank, which included revised Legacy items with good fit that met IRT model assumptions. Results showed that the clearest and best-understood items were simple, in the present tense, and straightforward. Basic tasks (like dressing) were more relevant and important versus complex ones (like dancing). Revised HAQ-DI and PF-10 items with five response options had higher item-information content than did comparable original Legacy items with fewer response options. IRT analyses showed that the Physical Function domain satisfied general criteria for unidimensionality with one-, two-, three-, and four-factor models

BANKING BUSINESS MODELS IN UKRAINIAN BANKING SYSTEM

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Yuliya Onyshchenko

2015-11-01

Full Text Available The purpose of the paper is to work out and characterize bank business models that are formed in Ukraine. Methodology. Our research we will spend among banks that are functioning on the Ukrainian financial market and are not on the stage of liquidation, so the sample under study in our work is comprised of 131 banks which are different in their ownership structure and size. The core of the methodology is a statistical clustering algorithm that allows identifying the groups of banks (clusters with similar business models as banks with similar business model strategies have made similar choices regarding the composition of their assets and liabilities. The cluster analyses were taken on the base of seven chosen indicators: bank loans, bank liabilities, enterprise loans, enterprise liabilities, household loans, household liabilities and trading assets. Results. The traditional business model of bank is worked out. The bank business models that are functioning in Ukraine are identified on the base of cluster analyses using balance sheet characteristics of 131 Ukrainian banks. We find that in Ukraine were formed three types of bank business models: “Focused retail”, “Diversified retail” and “Corporative retail”. The description of each model is given. Practical implications. More detailed research of distinguished models allows not only to find out the main advantages and disadvantages of each bank model, but also the main problems that follow the development of Ukrainian banking sector. Identifying of bank models and their studying simplifies searching and elaboration of regulatory instruments as there is a two-way causation between regulation and bank business models. This implies a symbiotic relationship between regulation and bank business models: business models respond to regulation which in turn responds to the evolution of new business models. Value/originality. Such survey is conducted at the first time among Ukrainian banks. The

Bank Ethics:An Empirical Investigation of the Banking in China

Institute of Scientific and Technical Information of China (English)

刘春红; 宋玮

2004-01-01

Business ethics is considered critical for the reputation and competitive power of banks, especially in China after WTO Entry. This study applied the theory and research on ethical practices of successful managers and ethics control mechanisms to identify the ethical climates that result in ethical behaviors in the banking. 141 employees from different banks in Shanghai, China, completed measures of all scales in the survey. The results support the theorizing of the value of well-formed business ethics in the banking in China. The correlation and structural equation analysis suggests that ethical practices of successful managers and ethics control mechanisms of banks reinforce three ethical climates of 'service', 'law and rules' and 'caring' that promote the ethical level of employees, and the independence and instrumental climate on the contrary. This study also found that there are three ethics control mechanisms most commonly used in the banking and ethics-focused reward system is believed to be a mostly effective one by the employees of banking in China.

The influence of bank employees on bank customer relationship management

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

C. Rootman

2007-12-01

Full Text Available Purpose: Despite extensive research in services marketing, much is still unknown to specific service providers on the influence of their employees on their services. This paper attempts to address this limitation and investigates the influence of employees on the customer relationship management (CRM of banks. The primary objective of this paper is to investigate the influence of selected independent variables, namely attitude and knowledgeability, on the CRM of banks. Design/Methodology/Approach: An empirical investigation was conducted with a structured questionnaire with items that related to banks' CRM in terms of attitude and knowledgeability. The sample consisted of 290 banking clients in the Nelson Mandela Metropolitan area and the response rate was 91.03%. Findings: Significant positive relationships exist between both the knowledgeability, and attitude of bank employees and a bank's CRM. These relationships imply that more extensive knowledgeability and more positive attitudes of bank employees lead to improved, maintained relationships between a bank and its clients. Employees play an important role in banks’ client relationships. Implications: Banks should focus on increasing their employees' knowledgeability and improving their attitude to ensure higher levels of CRM. This paper provides strategies for banks and could create greater awareness among South African banks of the advantages of CRM, how their employees influence their CRM, and ways to adapt to these influences. Originality/Value: No study has focused exclusively on CRM within banks in South Africa. Prior research focused on customer service and service quality; both possible results of superior CRM. However, this research differs, as it identifies the variables influencing CRM in banks in South Africa. It is proposed that this paper will be beneficial for South African banks, as the recommendations may be used to ensure higher levels of CRM in banks.

Development of a self-report physical function instrument for disability assessment: item pool construction and factor analysis.

Science.gov (United States)

McDonough, Christine M; Jette, Alan M; Ni, Pengsheng; Bogusz, Kara; Marfeo, Elizabeth E; Brandt, Diane E; Chan, Leighton; Meterko, Mark; Haley, Stephen M; Rasch, Elizabeth K

2013-09-01

To build a comprehensive item pool representing work-relevant physical functioning and to test the factor structure of the item pool. These developmental steps represent initial outcomes of a broader project to develop instruments for the assessment of function within the context of Social Security Administration (SSA) disability programs. Comprehensive literature review; gap analysis; item generation with expert panel input; stakeholder interviews; cognitive interviews; cross-sectional survey administration; and exploratory and confirmatory factor analyses to assess item pool structure. In-person and semistructured interviews and Internet and telephone surveys. Sample of SSA claimants (n=1017) and a normative sample of adults from the U.S. general population (n=999). Not applicable. Model fit statistics. The final item pool consisted of 139 items. Within the claimant sample, 58.7% were white; 31.8% were black; 46.6% were women; and the mean age was 49.7 years. Initial factor analyses revealed a 4-factor solution, which included more items and allowed separate characterization of: (1) changing and maintaining body position, (2) whole body mobility, (3) upper body function, and (4) upper extremity fine motor. The final 4-factor model included 91 items. Confirmatory factor analyses for the 4-factor models for the claimant and the normative samples demonstrated very good fit. Fit statistics for claimant and normative samples, respectively, were: Comparative Fit Index=.93 and .98; Tucker-Lewis Index=.92 and .98; and root mean square error approximation=.05 and .04. The factor structure of the physical function item pool closely resembled the hypothesized content model. The 4 scales relevant to work activities offer promise for providing reliable information about claimant physical functioning relevant to work disability. Copyright © 2013 American Congress of Rehabilitation Medicine. Published by Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

Language-related differential item functioning between English and German PROMIS Depression items is negligible.

Science.gov (United States)

Fischer, H Felix; Wahl, Inka; Nolte, Sandra; Liegl, Gregor; Brähler, Elmar; Löwe, Bernd; Rose, Matthias

2017-12-01

To investigate differential item functioning (DIF) of PROMIS Depression items between US and German samples we compared data from the US PROMIS calibration sample (n = 780), a German general population survey (n = 2,500) and a German clinical sample (n = 621). DIF was assessed in an ordinal logistic regression framework, with 0.02 as criterion for R 2 -change and 0.096 for Raju's non-compensatory DIF. Item parameters were initially fixed to the PROMIS Depression metric; we used plausible values to account for uncertainty in depression estimates. Only four items showed DIF. Accounting for DIF led to negligible effects for the full item bank as well as a post hoc simulated computer-adaptive test (German general population sample was considerably lower compared to the US reference value of 50. Overall, we found little evidence for language DIF between US and German samples, which could be addressed by either replacing the DIF items by items not showing DIF or by scoring the short form in German samples with the corrected item parameters reported. Copyright © 2016 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.

Uncertainties in the Item Parameter Estimates and Robust Automated Test Assembly

Science.gov (United States)

Veldkamp, Bernard P.; Matteucci, Mariagiulia; de Jong, Martijn G.

2013-01-01

Item response theory parameters have to be estimated, and because of the estimation process, they do have uncertainty in them. In most large-scale testing programs, the parameters are stored in item banks, and automated test assembly algorithms are applied to assemble operational test forms. These algorithms treat item parameters as fixed values,…

Few items in the thyroid-related quality of life instrument ThyPRO exhibited differential item functioning.

Science.gov (United States)

Watt, Torquil; Groenvold, Mogens; Hegedüs, Laszlo; Bonnema, Steen Joop; Rasmussen, Åse Krogh; Feldt-Rasmussen, Ulla; Bjorner, Jakob Bue

2014-02-01

To evaluate the extent of differential item functioning (DIF) within the thyroid-specific quality of life patient-reported outcome measure, ThyPRO, according to sex, age, education and thyroid diagnosis. A total of 838 patients with benign thyroid diseases completed the ThyPRO questionnaire (84 five-point items, 13 scales). Uniform and nonuniform DIF were investigated using ordinal logistic regression, testing for both statistical significance and magnitude (∆R(2) > 0.02). Scale level was estimated by the sum score, after purification. Twenty instances of DIF in 17 of the 84 items were found. Eight according to diagnosis, where the goiter scale was the one most affected, possibly due to differing perceptions in patients with auto-immune thyroid diseases compared to patients with simple goiter. Eight DIFs according to age were found, of which 5 were in positively worded items, which younger patients were more likely to endorse; one according to gender: women were more likely to report crying, and three according to educational level. The vast majority of DIF had only minor influence on the scale scores (0.1-2.3 points on the 0-100 scales), but two DIF corresponded to a difference of 4.6 and 9.8, respectively. Ordinal logistic regression identified DIF in 17 of 84 items. The potential impact of this on the present scales was low, but items displaying DIF could be avoided when developing abbreviated scales, where the potential impact of DIF (due to fewer items) will be larger.

Liquidity coinsurance and bank capital

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Castiglionesi, F.; Feriozzi, F.; Lóránth, G.; Pelizzon, L.

Banks can deal with their liquidity risk by holding liquid assets (self-insurance), by participating in interbank markets (coinsurance), or by using flexible financing instruments, such as bank capital (risk sharing). We use a simple model to show that undiversifiable liquidity risk, that is, the

Increasing Donations to Supermarket Food-Bank Bins Using Proximal Prompts

OpenAIRE

Farrimond, Samantha J; Leland, Louis S

2006-01-01

There has been little research into interventions to increase participation in donating items to food-bank bins. In New Zealand, there has been an increased demand from food banks (Stewart, 2002). This study demonstrated that point-of-sale prompts can be an effective method of increasing donations to a supermarket food-bank bin.

The Protective Behavioral Strategies for Marijuana Scale: Further examination using item response theory.

Science.gov (United States)

Pedersen, Eric R; Huang, Wenjing; Dvorak, Robert D; Prince, Mark A; Hummer, Justin F

2017-08-01

Given recent state legislation legalizing marijuana for recreational purposes and majority popular opinion favoring these laws, we developed the Protective Behavioral Strategies for Marijuana scale (PBSM) to identify strategies that may mitigate the harms related to marijuana use among those young people who choose to use the drug. In the current study, we expand on the initial exploratory study of the PBSM to further validate the measure with a large and geographically diverse sample (N = 2,117; 60% women, 30% non-White) of college students from 11 different universities across the United States. We sought to develop a psychometrically sound item bank for the PBSM and to create a short assessment form that minimizes respondent burden and time. Quantitative item analyses, including exploratory and confirmatory factor analyses with item response theory (IRT) and evaluation of differential item functioning (DIF), revealed an item bank of 36 items that was examined for unidimensionality and good content coverage, as well as a short form of 17 items that is free of bias in terms of gender (men vs. women), race (White vs. non-White), ethnicity (Hispanic vs. non-Hispanic), and recreational marijuana use legal status (state recreational marijuana was legal for 25.5% of participants). We also provide a scoring table for easy transformation from sum scores to IRT scale scores. The PBSM item bank and short form associated strongly and negatively with past month marijuana use and consequences. The measure may be useful to researchers and clinicians conducting intervention and prevention programs with young adults. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2017 APA, all rights reserved).

Central Bank Financial Strength and the Cost of Sterilization in China

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Ljungwall, Christer; Xiong, Yi; Yutong, Zou

2013-01-01

Using a unique monthly data set over the period 2000:1-2008:12, this paper presents empirical findings on China's central bank, the People's Bank of China, from the viewpoint of its financial strength and the cost of monetary policy instruments. The results show that PBoC is constrained...... by the costs of its monetary policy instruments. PBoC tend to use less costly but market-distorting instruments such as the deposit interest rate cap and reserve-ratio requirements, rather than more market-oriented but more costly instruments such as central bank note issuance. These costs remain under control...

Increasing Donations to Supermarket Food-Bank Bins Using Proximal Prompts

Science.gov (United States)

Farrimond, Samantha J.; Leland, Louis S., Jr.

2006-01-01

There has been little research into interventions to increase participation in donating items to food-bank bins. In New Zealand, there has been an increased demand from food banks (Stewart, 2002). This study demonstrated that point-of-sale prompts can be an effective method of increasing donations to a supermarket food-bank bin. (Contains 1…

Assessing the Equivalence of Paper, Mobile Phone, and Tablet Survey Responses at a Community Mental Health Center Using Equivalent Halves of a 'Gold-Standard' Depression Item Bank.

Science.gov (United States)

Brodey, Benjamin B; Gonzalez, Nicole L; Elkin, Kathryn Ann; Sasiela, W Jordan; Brodey, Inger S

2017-09-06

The computerized administration of self-report psychiatric diagnostic and outcomes assessments has risen in popularity. If results are similar enough across different administration modalities, then new administration technologies can be used interchangeably and the choice of technology can be based on other factors, such as convenience in the study design. An assessment based on item response theory (IRT), such as the Patient-Reported Outcomes Measurement Information System (PROMIS) depression item bank, offers new possibilities for assessing the effect of technology choice upon results. To create equivalent halves of the PROMIS depression item bank and to use these halves to compare survey responses and user satisfaction among administration modalities-paper, mobile phone, or tablet-with a community mental health care population. The 28 PROMIS depression items were divided into 2 halves based on content and simulations with an established PROMIS response data set. A total of 129 participants were recruited from an outpatient public sector mental health clinic based in Memphis. All participants took both nonoverlapping halves of the PROMIS IRT-based depression items (Part A and Part B): once using paper and pencil, and once using either a mobile phone or tablet. An 8-cell randomization was done on technology used, order of technologies used, and order of PROMIS Parts A and B. Both Parts A and B were administered as fixed-length assessments and both were scored using published PROMIS IRT parameters and algorithms. All 129 participants received either Part A or B via paper assessment. Participants were also administered the opposite assessment, 63 using a mobile phone and 66 using a tablet. There was no significant difference in item response scores for Part A versus B. All 3 of the technologies yielded essentially identical assessment results and equivalent satisfaction levels. Our findings show that the PROMIS depression assessment can be divided into 2 equivalent

Validation of self-directed learning instrument and establishment of normative data for nursing students in taiwan: using polytomous item response theory.

Science.gov (United States)

Cheng, Su-Fen; Lee-Hsieh, Jane; Turton, Michael A; Lin, Kuan-Chia

2014-06-01

Little research has investigated the establishment of norms for nursing students' self-directed learning (SDL) ability, recognized as an important capability for professional nurses. An item response theory (IRT) approach was used to establish norms for SDL abilities valid for the different nursing programs in Taiwan. The purposes of this study were (a) to use IRT with a graded response model to reexamine the SDL instrument, or the SDLI, originally developed by this research team using confirmatory factor analysis and (b) to establish SDL ability norms for the four different nursing education programs in Taiwan. Stratified random sampling with probability proportional to size was used. A minimum of 15% of students from the four different nursing education degree programs across Taiwan was selected. A total of 7,879 nursing students from 13 schools were recruited. The research instrument was the 20-item SDLI developed by Cheng, Kuo, Lin, and Lee-Hsieh (2010). IRT with the graded response model was used with a two-parameter logistic model (discrimination and difficulty) for the data analysis, calculated using MULTILOG. Norms were established using percentile rank. Analysis of item information and test information functions revealed that 18 items exhibited very high discrimination and two items had high discrimination. The test information function was higher in this range of scores, indicating greater precision in the estimate of nursing student SDL. Reliability fell between .80 and .94 for each domain and the SDLI as a whole. The total information function shows that the SDLI is appropriate for all nursing students, except for the top 2.5%. SDL ability norms were established for each nursing education program and for the nation as a whole. IRT is shown to be a potent and useful methodology for scale evaluation. The norms for SDL established in this research will provide practical standards for nursing educators and students in Taiwan.

Role of Islamic Banking and Conventional Against Poverty with The Dual Banking System

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Iwan Setiawan

2016-12-01

Full Text Available Islamic banking in Indonesia is present in a dual banking system. Islamic banking is expected to contribute more in the process of economic development and improving people’s welfare. The  main  objective of  this  study is  to  analyze the  role  of  financing Islamic banking and conventional banking credit to the improvement of people’s welfare as measured by reductions in poverty. The study was conducted using  the explanatory method, applying the  panel  regression estimation techniques simultaneously with the  Two Stage Least Square  method (TSLS  using  data from the period 1992-2012. Results  of the study reveals that the increased of  financing Islamic banking and conventional banking credit assign roles  to poverty reduction in Indonesia. The role of Islamic banking financing is lower  than conventional bank  credit role  in reducing poverty. In addition to improve financing and credit, changes should be applied in the value  of the instruments of monetary policy, economic growth, unequal distribution  of income and  the depreciation  of the local  currency that contribute towards poverty conditions.

Assessing nicotine dependence in adolescent E-cigarette users: The 4-item Patient-Reported Outcomes Measurement Information System (PROMIS) Nicotine Dependence Item Bank for electronic cigarettes.

Science.gov (United States)

Morean, Meghan E; Krishnan-Sarin, Suchitra; S O'Malley, Stephanie

2018-04-26

Adolescent e-cigarette use (i.e., "vaping") likely confers risk for developing nicotine dependence. However, there have been no studies assessing e-cigarette nicotine dependence in youth. We evaluated the psychometric properties of the 4-item Patient-Reported Outcomes Measurement Information System Nicotine Dependence Item Bank for E-cigarettes (PROMIS-E) for assessing youth e-cigarette nicotine dependence and examined risk factors for experiencing stronger dependence symptoms. In 2017, 520 adolescent past-month e-cigarette users completed the PROMIS-E during a school-based survey (50.5% female, 84.8% White, 16.22[1.19] years old). Adolescents also reported on sex, grade, race, age at e-cigarette use onset, vaping frequency, nicotine e-liquid use, and past-month cigarette smoking. Analyses included conducting confirmatory factor analysis and examining the internal consistency of the PROMIS-E. Bivariate correlations and independent-samples t-tests were used to examine unadjusted relationships between e-cigarette nicotine dependence and the proposed risk factors. Regression models were run in which all potential risk factors were entered as simultaneous predictors of PROMIS-E scores. The single-factor structure of the PROMIS-E was confirmed and evidenced good internal consistency. Across models, larger PROMIS-E scores were associated with being in a higher grade, initiating e-cigarette use at an earlier age, vaping more frequently, using nicotine e-liquid (and higher nicotine concentrations), and smoking cigarettes. Adolescent e-cigarette users reported experiencing nicotine dependence, which was assessed using the psychometrically sound PROMIS-E. Experiencing stronger nicotine dependence symptoms was associated with characteristics that previously have been shown to confer risk for frequent vaping and tobacco cigarette dependence. Copyright © 2018 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

HUBUNGAN ANTARA PSYCHOLOGICAL CAPITAL DENGAN WORK ENGAGEMENT PADA KARYAWAN PT. BANK MEGA REGIONAL AREA SEMARANG

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Dwi Ari Setyo Nugroho

2015-07-01

Full Text Available This study aimed to assess the relationship between psychological capital with work engagement employees of PT. Bank Mega Regional Area Semarang. Psychological capital is an individual’s positive psychological state of development and is characterized by self- efficacy, optimism, hope and resiliency. Then, work engagement is defined as a positive, fulfilling, work-related state of mind that is characterized by vigor, dedication, and absorption. This study used proportional sampling technique. The subjects were all employees of PT. Bank Mega Regional Area Semarang which have staff levels (N=73. The research instrument was psychological capital scales with 28 items (α = 0.953 and work engagement scales with 29 items (α = 0.938. The results by simple regression analysis obtained rxy = 0.716, with p value = 0.000 (p <0.05. The results indicated that there was a positive correlation between psychological capital and work engagement. The higher psychological capital was higher work engagement. Coefficient of determination by 51,3, it meaning that psychological capital effectively contributed for 51,3 % of work engagement. The remaining 48,7 % determined by other factors that are not revealed in this study, for example: job resources and job demands. Keywords: Psychological capital, work engagement, employee

Evaluation of Social Networks Sites in the Banking Sector: An Analysis of Top 200International Banks

OpenAIRE

FRANCISCO JAVIER MIRANDA; ANTONIO CHAMORRO; SERGIO RUBIO; VÍCTOR MORGADO

2013-01-01

Social networks have become an interesting marketing tool for the banking sector to manage contact and interaction with their actual and potential customers. The purpose of this study was to evaluate the use of Facebook by the top 200 international banks. Our paper proposes a new instrument called Facebook Assessment Index (FAI), which uses three categories to evaluate the essential information on a firm's Facebook page: popularity, interactivity, and content. Only 60% of the banks tested had...

Few items in the thyroid-related quality of life instrument ThyPRO exhibited differential item functioning

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Watt, Torquil; Grønvold, Mogens; Hegedüs, Laszlo

2014-01-01

To evaluate the extent of differential item functioning (DIF) within the thyroid-specific quality of life patient-reported outcome measure, ThyPRO, according to sex, age, education and thyroid diagnosis.......To evaluate the extent of differential item functioning (DIF) within the thyroid-specific quality of life patient-reported outcome measure, ThyPRO, according to sex, age, education and thyroid diagnosis....

Lost fishing gear and litter at Gorringe Bank (NE Atlantic)

Science.gov (United States)

Vieira, Rui P.; Raposo, Isabel P.; Sobral, Paula; Gonçalves, Jorge M. S.; Bell, Katherine L. C.; Cunha, Marina R.

2015-06-01

Studies concerning marine litter have received great attention over the last several years by the scientific community mainly due to their ecological and economic impacts in marine ecosystems, from coastal waters to the deep ocean seafloor. The distribution, type and abundance of marine litter in Ormonde and Gettysburg, the two seamounts of Gorringe Bank, were analyzed from photo and video imagery obtained during ROV-based surveys carried out at 60-3015 m depths during the E/V Nautilus cruise NA017. Located approximately 125 nm southwest of Portugal, Gorringe Bank lays at the crossroad between the Atlantic and the Mediterranean and is therefore characterized by an intense maritime traffic and fishing activities. The high frequency of lost or discarded fishing gear, such as cables, longlines and nets, observed on Gorringe Bank suggests an origin mostly from fishing activities, with a clear turnover in the type of litter (mostly metal, glass and to a much lesser extent, plastic) with increasing depth. Litter was more abundant at the summit of Gorringe Bank (ca. 4 items·km- 1), decreasing to less than 1 item·km- 1 at the flanks and to ca. 2 items·km- 1 at greater depths. Nevertheless, litter abundance appeared to be lower than in continental margin areas. The results presented herein are a contribution to support further actions for the conservation of vulnerable habitats on Gorringe Bank so that they can continue contributing to fishery productivity in the surrounding region.

The effect of quality of electronic banking services on agility of a bank

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Hooman Pourmohammad

2016-07-01

Full Text Available Studies have shown that in service organizations, quality can have a growth in customer satisfaction as its consequence, and when it regards the banking services, factors are brought up with regard to the quality of banking services, which include the speed in responding, providing products proportionate to the customer needs, and gaining competence. These concepts are shared by the issue of organizational agility; hence, the qualities as well as the bank's agility of the banking system embrace these concepts in common. Therefore, the study aims at studying the effect of the quality of electronic banking services on the bank's agility, and assesses the role of two mediator variables of the quality of service system and personnel behavior quality. Using a questionnaire comprised of 76 items about the above components and asking the line personnel in Bank Saderat Iran (BSI in the branches both inside and outside of Iran, the research data was collected, and stratified random sampling was used. To analyze the data, the Structural Equation Model (SEM was used and the PLS software was employed to perform the computations. Results indicated that the model of the study has a high Goodness of Fit, and the quality of the electronic banking services had a significant effect on the bank's agility. In addition, the quality of electronic banking services affects the service system quality. The system service quality, also affects the employees' behavior. Therefore, it can be said that the electronic services quality and the bank's agility affect the personnel behavior quality through the mediated effect of the service system quality. The results of the present study can help the bank's executives to promote their bank's agility and the personnel behavior quality.

Bank Value: Comparing Customer and Employee Perceptions

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Jelena Titko

2012-06-01

Full Text Available In the modern competitive environment, banks create the value generally using the relational capital. Thus, customer satisfaction and loyalty are the main components of bank success in a market. In turn, customer satisfaction is affected by bank service quality that determines bank’s value perceived by clients. The main goal of the research is to determine factors affecting bank value perceived by customers to examine the gaps in customers’ and employees’ perceptions of these factors. The goal of the paper is to prepare a theoretical basis for the survey and to describe and theoretically validate the design of the research instrument. To achieve the goal the brief literature review was conducted in the fields of relationship value management, service quality and customer buying behaviour. The statements of the questionnaire were developed based on Kotler’s concept of a customer perceived value and different variations of the SERVQUAL model. To purify the developed questionnaires, the authors conducted focus group interview. We believe that bank performance depends directly on the bank’s ability to capture and retain clients and on customer-employee relationships. Thus, it is crucial to know factors affecting customer perceived bank value. Using our developed instrument it is possible to measure the level of service quality in Latvian banks and to examine the difference between customers’ and employees’ viewpoints on the quality of bank services.

The formulation of financial, governance and social index of Malaysian Islamic banks: An integrative approach

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Asri Marsidi

2016-02-01

Full Text Available The study proposes and discusses the development of an index of Islamic Financial and Social Reporting (IFSR for Islamic banks. The index of IFSR is carefully developed based on the relevant and applicable standards, guidelines and literature from an Islamic perspective such as the Malaysian Accounting Standards Board (MASB, Accounting and Auditing Organisation for Islamic Financial Institutions (AAOIFI, Islamic Financial Services Board (IFSB, Bank Negara Malaysia (BNM and Islamic social reporting literature. The index is developed in three parts, namely, financial, social, and auditing and governance. The items within the finance section are developed to ensure that the Islamic banks disclose relevant financial information. The items for the social part aim to ensure that the Islamic banks provide the relevant information regarding social and environment. The items within the auditing and governance part are developed to ensure that the Islamic banks provide relevant information regarding the monitoring and supervising activities that the Islamic banks have undertaken. The IFSR index may be lacking in terms of its usage generalisability as it is specifically developed for IFIs. The developed index of IFSR aims to promote a more appropriate level of disclosure among the Islamic banks. The need for the index is motivated by the growing importance of Islamic banks, not only from the economic perspective but also from the social perspective

Job Tactics of Women in Banking.

Science.gov (United States)

Larwood, Laurie; Kaplan, Mindy

1980-01-01

Investigated tactics used by women branch bank officers for succeeding in management. Results showed a high degree of agreement about the importance of a number of items, including the ability to make decisions and the demonstration of competence. (Author)

Operational Efficiency of Bank Loans and Deposits: A Case Study of Vietnamese Banking System

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Tram Nguyen

2018-01-01

Full Text Available This paper examines whether there is a causal relationship between bank loans and deposits in the Vietnamese banking system and the efficiency of the use of loans and deposits by the Vietnamese banks. In a country such as Vietnam, where inter-bank money markets are relatively underdeveloped, one would expect a reasonably strong relationship between deposits and loans. A pooled cross-sectional sample of financial ratios is collected from annual reports of 44 Vietnamese banks covering the period 2008–2015. The explanatory power of instrumental variables in relation to the endogenous variables is tested. A deterministic frontier model based on corrected ordinary least squares, estimated by three-stage least squares on a simultaneous equations model, is employed to derive the frontiers for the sampled banks as well as to estimate the causality between bank loans and deposits. Our findings suggest that, in an underdeveloped banking system such as Vietnam, bank deposits have a positive and significant impact on bank loans, but the reverse relationship is not significant. It is further suggested that in deposit-taking and loan-creating activities, Vietnamese banks performed moderately well over the period examined; however, in the near future, they should start to focus more on deposit-taking activities.

Monitoring the Quality of Services in Electronic Banking

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Jovovic Radislav

2016-09-01

Full Text Available Successful development of electronic banking is in direct correlation with the quality of services in electronic banking. Therefore, it is necessary that the banks are familiar with the attributes of electronic services on which clients assess the bank’s quality and client’s satisfaction with them, in order to be able to monitor, correct and improve the performance of electronic banking. We start from the hypothesis that there are already developed theoretical models for measuring the quality of e-banking services but they must be adjusted to the specific environment that is analysed in order to obtain reliable and quality information. The qualitative and quantitative research methods are applied in this paper in order to a get adjusted theoretical model (instrument for measuring the quality of electronic banking services. As a result of the conducted analysis, the initial theoretical model has been modified, so that the final version of the model (instrument for measuring quality of online banking allows obtaining reliable data, and information in the particular environment. And the results are: significant information about the quality of e-banking, modified theoretical model, information about the dimensions of quality of e-banking, customer satisfaction, and pathways and guidelines for the improvement of e-banking. The measuring of quality of electronic banking services in not one time activity but repeated one, as permanent monitoring strategy. This research is widely applicable even though it was conducted in the context of Montenegrin e-banking, since most of the banks in Montenegro are owned by well-known European banks, and it is expected that the obtained knowledge and information can be generalized.

Central Bank independence

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Vasile DEDU

2012-08-01

Full Text Available In this paper we present the key aspects regarding central bank’s independence. Most economists consider that the factor which positively influences the efficiency of monetary policy measures is the high independence of the central bank. We determined that the National Bank of Romania (NBR has a high degree of independence. NBR has both goal and instrument independence. We also consider that the hike of NBR’s independence played an important role in the significant disinflation process, as headline inflation dropped inside the targeted band of 3% ± 1 percentage point recently.

Pre-validation methods for developing a patient reported outcome instrument

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Castillo Mayret M

2011-08-01

Full Text Available Abstract Background Measures that reflect patients' assessment of their health are of increasing importance as outcome measures in randomised controlled trials. The methodological approach used in the pre-validation development of new instruments (item generation, item reduction and question formatting should be robust and transparent. The totality of the content of existing PRO instruments for a specific condition provides a valuable resource (pool of items that can be utilised to develop new instruments. Such 'top down' approaches are common, but the explicit pre-validation methods are often poorly reported. This paper presents a systematic and generalisable 5-step pre-validation PRO instrument methodology. Methods The method is illustrated using the example of the Aberdeen Glaucoma Questionnaire (AGQ. The five steps are: 1 Generation of a pool of items; 2 Item de-duplication (three phases; 3 Item reduction (two phases; 4 Assessment of the remaining items' content coverage against a pre-existing theoretical framework appropriate to the objectives of the instrument and the target population (e.g. ICF; and 5 qualitative exploration of the target populations' views of the new instrument and the items it contains. Results The AGQ 'item pool' contained 725 items. Three de-duplication phases resulted in reduction of 91, 225 and 48 items respectively. The item reduction phases discarded 70 items and 208 items respectively. The draft AGQ contained 83 items with good content coverage. The qualitative exploration ('think aloud' study resulted in removal of a further 15 items and refinement to the wording of others. The resultant draft AGQ contained 68 items. Conclusions This study presents a novel methodology for developing a PRO instrument, based on three sources: literature reporting what is important to patient; theoretically coherent framework; and patients' experience of completing the instrument. By systematically accounting for all items dropped

Difference in method of administration did not significantly impact item response

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Bjorner, Jakob B; Rose, Matthias; Gandek, Barbara

2014-01-01

assistant (PDA), or personal computer (PC) on the Internet, and a second form by PC, in the same administration. Structural invariance, equivalence of item responses, and measurement precision were evaluated using confirmatory factor analysis and item response theory methods. RESULTS: Multigroup...... levels in IVR, PQ, or PDA administration as compared to PC. Availability of large item response theory-calibrated PROMIS item banks allowed for innovations in study design and analysis.......PURPOSE: To test the impact of method of administration (MOA) on the measurement characteristics of items developed in the Patient-Reported Outcomes Measurement Information System (PROMIS). METHODS: Two non-overlapping parallel 8-item forms from each of three PROMIS domains (physical function...

Algorithmic test design using classical item parameters

NARCIS (Netherlands)

van der Linden, Willem J.; Adema, Jos J.

Two optimalization models for the construction of tests with a maximal value of coefficient alpha are given. Both models have a linear form and can be solved by using a branch-and-bound algorithm. The first model assumes an item bank calibrated under the Rasch model and can be used, for instance,

Importance ratings on patient-reported outcome items for survivorship care: comparison between pediatric cancer survivors, parents, and clinicians.

Science.gov (United States)

Jones, Conor M; Baker, Justin N; Keesey, Rachel M; Eliason, Ruth J; Lanctot, Jennifer Q; Clegg, Jennifer L; Mandrell, Belinda N; Ness, Kirsten K; Krull, Kevin R; Srivastava, Deokumar; Forrest, Christopher B; Hudson, Melissa M; Robison, Leslie L; Huang, I-Chan

2018-04-18

To compare importance ratings of patient-reported outcomes (PROs) items from the viewpoints of childhood cancer survivors, parents, and clinicians for further developing short-forms to use in survivorship care. 101 cancer survivors, 101 their parents, and 36 clinicians were recruited from St. Jude Children's Research Hospital. Participants were asked to select eight items that they deemed useful for clinical decision making from each of the four Patient-Reported Outcomes Measurement Information System Pediatric item banks. These item banks were pain interference (20 items), fatigue (23 items), psychological stress (19 items), and positive affect (37 items). Compared to survivors, clinicians rated more items across four domains that were statistically different than did parents (23 vs. 13 items). Clinicians rated five items in pain interference domain (ORs 2.33-6.01; p's important but rated three items in psychological stress domain (ORs 0.14-0.42; p's important than did survivors. In contrast, parents rated seven items in positive affect domain (ORs 0.25-0.47; p's important than did survivors. Survivors, parents, and clinicians viewed importance of PRO items for survivorship care differently. These perspectives should be used to assist the development of PROs tools.

KARAKTERISTIK BUTIR SOAL ULANGAN KENAIKAN KELAS SEBAGAI PERSIAPAN BANK SOAL BAHASA INGGRIS

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Nur Hidayanto Pancoro

2013-01-01

Abstract This research aims at developing a pilot english test item bank of the 2nd grade junior high school based on: (1 the characterisctics of test items for final semester test; (2 the total number of test items for the 2nd grade junior high school in Yogyakarta Special Province. This descriptive quantitative research used 6554 samples of students’ answer sheets in 2009 and also employs expert judgment to review the construct, language, as well as the materials of the questions. Students’ responses were also analyzed by using Iteman 3.00, Bilog MG 3.0 3 PL. The result of qualitative analysis with expert judgment which shows that 105 out of the 150 test items are categorized as “good”, and the other are “bad”. The quantitative analysis with Iteman 3.00 shows that 115 out of the 150 test items are categorized as “good” and the quantitative analysis with Bilog MG 3.00 3 PL shows that 67% test items are categorized as good. Keywords: item bank, level of difficulty, discrimination index, pseudoguessing, expert judgment, item and test information function

Development of an assessment tool to measure students′ perceptions of respiratory care education programs: Item generation, item reduction, and preliminary validation

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Ghazi Alotaibi

2013-01-01

Full Text Available Objectives: Students who perceived their learning environment positively are more likely to develop effective learning strategies, and adopt a deep learning approach. Currently, there is no validated instrument for measuring the educational environment of educational programs on respiratory care (RC. The aim of this study was to develop an instrument to measure students′ perception of the RC educational environment. Materials and Methods: Based on the literature review and an assessment of content validity by multiple focus groups of RC educationalists, potential items of the instrument relevant to RC educational environment construct were generated by the research group. The initial 71 item questionnaire was then field-tested on all students from the 3 RC programs in Saudi Arabia and was subjected to multi-trait scaling analysis. Cronbach′s alpha was used to assess internal consistency reliabilities. Results: Two hundred and twelve students (100% completed the survey. The initial instrument of 71 items was reduced to 65 across 5 scales. Convergent and discriminant validity assessment demonstrated that the majority of items correlated more highly with their intended scale than a competing one. Cronbach′s alpha exceeded the standard criterion of >0.70 in all scales except one. There was no floor or ceiling effect for scale or overall score. Conclusions: This instrument is the first assessment tool developed to measure the RC educational environment. There was evidence of its good feasibility, validity, and reliability. This first validation of the instrument supports its use by RC students to evaluate educational environment.

Determinants of The Application of Macro Prudential Instruments

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Zakaria Firano

2017-09-01

Full Text Available The use of macro prudential instruments today gives rise to a major debate within the walls of central banks and other authorities in charge of financial stability. Contrary to micro prudential instruments, whose effects remain limited, macro prudential instruments are different in nature and can affect the stability of the financial system. By influencing the financial cycle and the financial structure of financial institutions, the use of such instruments should be conducted with great vigilance as well as macroeconomic and financial expertise. But the experiences of central banks in this area are sketchy, and only some emerging countries have experience using these types of instruments in different ways. This paper presents an analysis of instruments of macro prudential policy and attempts to empirically demonstrate that these instruments should be used only in specific economic and financial situations. Indeed, the results obtained, using modeling bivariate panel, confirm that these instruments are more effective when used to mitigate the euphoria of financial and economic cycles. In this sense, the output gap, describing the economic cycle, and the Z-score are the intermediate variables for the activation of capital instruments. Moreover, the liquidity ratio and changes in bank profitability are the two early warning indicators for activation of liquidity instruments.

The difference between lending interest rate and funds interest rate. Link with sustainable banking. Particularities of Romanian Market

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Cristian Gheorghe Iacob

2015-05-01

Full Text Available The article, is trying to capture the way difference between active and passive interest rates influence macroeconomic sustainable development in a country. However the theory is limited on this area and the author is intending to merge practical aspects with conceptual terms. The role of banks in an economy is very important, as all inflows and outflows are done through financial institutions. Bank sustainability is the area of study and practice that captures the contribution of banks in sustainable development of a country. Banking instruments are the means by which banks are present and act in the economy. Banking techniques are the mechanisms of banking instruments. The most important banking instruments are the loans and the deposits. So banks take deposits from different entities and use them as resource to finance other entities. A bank is considered contributing to sustainable development, if lending divisions allocates resources to investments that bring long-term welfare to the community not only for today people, but for future generations. Therefore, we can establish a correlation between banking sustainability and sustainable development through the evolution of banking instruments. Looking to detail, bank sustainability is highly affected by the local macroeconomic issues, but also from global influences.

Brief Sensation Seeking Scale: Latent structure of 8-item and 4-item versions in Peruvian adolescents.

Science.gov (United States)

Merino-Soto, Cesar; Salas Blas, Edwin

2018-01-01

This research intended to validate two brief scales of sensations seeking with Peruvian adolescents: the eight item scale (BSSS8; Hoyle, Stephenson, Palmgreen, Lorch, y Donohew, 2002) and the four item scale (BSSS4; Stephenson, Hoyle, Slater, y Palmgreen, 2003). Questionnaires were administered to 618 voluntary participants, with an average age of 13.6 years, from different levels of high school, state and private school in a district in the south of Lima. It analyzed the internal structure of both short versions using three models: a) unidimensional (M1), b) oblique or related dimensions (M2), and c) the bifactor model (M3). Results show that both instruments have a single dimension which best represents the variability of the items; a fact that can be explained both by the complexity of the concept and by the small number of items representing each factor, which is more noticeable in the BSSS4. Reliability is within levels found by previous studies: alpha: .745 = BSSS8 and BSSS4 =. 643; omega coefficient: .747 in BSSS8 and .651 in BSSS4. These are considered suitable for the type of instruments studied. Based on the correlation between the two instruments, it was found that there are satisfactory levels of equivalence between the BSSS8 and BSSS4. However, it is recommended that the BSSS4 is mainly used for research and for the purpose of describing populations.

Liquidity and Capital of Islamic Banks in Indonesia

OpenAIRE

Hosen, Muhammad Nadratuzzaman; Muhari, Syafaat

2017-01-01

This study is aimed to analyzed the factors that affect the liquidity and capital of Islamic banks in Indonesia. The method is used multiple linear regression. This result shows that the main problem of Islamic banks in Indonesia is how to increase equity in line with increasing third party fund. Another problem is that Islamic bank face difficulties to find debt for solving liquidity problem due to lack of instruments for liquidity derivative. Therefore Islamic banks rely on third party fund...

Transformative Science for the Next Decade with the Green Bank Observatory

Science.gov (United States)

O'Neil, Karen; Frayer, David; Ghigo, Frank; Lockman, Felix; Lynch, Ryan; Maddalena, Ronald; minter, Anthony; Prestage, Richard

2018-01-01

With new instruments and improved performance, the 100m Green Bank Telescope is now demonstrating its full potential. On this 60th anniversary of the groundbreaking for the Green Bank Observatory, we can look forward to the future of the facility for the next 5, 10, and even 20 years. Here we describe the results from a recent workshop, “Transformative Science for the Next Decade with the Green Bank Observatory: Big Questions, Large Programs, and New Instruments,” and describe the scientific plans for our facility.

78 FR 74041 - Collection of Checks and Other Items by Federal Reserve Banks and Funds Transfers through Fedwire...

Science.gov (United States)

2013-12-10

... Services Analyst (202) 453-3638, Division of Reserve Bank Operations and Payment Systems; or Kara Handzlik... notice of dishonor) before midnight of the banking day on which the paying bank received the check.\\3\\ A paying bank that has settled for a check before midnight of the banking day on which it received the...

Development of an instrument for the evaluation of advanced life support performance.

Science.gov (United States)

Peltonen, L-M; Peltonen, V; Salanterä, S; Tommila, M

2017-10-01

Assessing advanced life support (ALS) competence requires validated instruments. Existing instruments include aspects of technical skills (TS), non-technical skills (NTS) or both, but one instrument for detailed assessment that suits all resuscitation situations is lacking. This study aimed to develop an instrument for the evaluation of the overall ALS performance of the whole team. This instrument development study had four phases. First, we reviewed literature and resuscitation guidelines to explore items to include in the instrument. Thereafter, we interviewed resuscitation team professionals (n = 66), using the critical incident technique, to determine possible additional aspects associated with the performance of ALS. Second, we developed an instrument based on the findings. Third, we used an expert panel (n = 20) to assess the validity of the developed instrument. Finally, we revised the instrument based on the experts' comments and tested it with six experts who evaluated 22 video recorded resuscitations. The final version of the developed instrument had 69 items divided into adherence to guidelines (28 items), clinical decision-making (5 items), workload management (12 items), team behaviour (8 items), information management (6 items), patient integrity and consideration of laymen (4 items) and work routines (6 items). The Cronbach's α values were good, and strong correlations between the overall performance and the instrument were observed. The instrument may be useful for detailed assessment of the team's overall performance, but the numerous items make the use demanding. The instrument is still under development, and more research is needed to determine its psychometric properties. © 2017 The Acta Anaesthesiologica Scandinavica Foundation. Published by John Wiley & Sons Ltd.

Framing of mobility items: a source of poor agreement between preference-based health-related quality of life instruments in a population of individuals receiving assisted ventilation.

Science.gov (United States)

Hannan, Liam M; Whitehurst, David G T; Bryan, Stirling; Road, Jeremy D; McDonald, Christine F; Berlowitz, David J; Howard, Mark E

2017-06-01

To explore the influence of descriptive differences in items evaluating mobility on index scores generated from two generic preference-based health-related quality of life (HRQoL) instruments. The study examined cross-sectional data from a postal survey of individuals receiving assisted ventilation in two state/province-wide home mechanical ventilation services, one in British Columbia, Canada and the other in Victoria, Australia. The Assessment of Quality of Life 8-dimension (AQoL-8D) and the EQ-5D-5L were included in the data collection. Graphical illustrations, descriptive statistics, and measures of agreement [intraclass correlation coefficients (ICCs) and Bland-Altman plots] were examined using index scores derived from both instruments. Analyses were performed on the full sample as well as subgroups defined according to respondents' self-reported ability to walk. Of 868 individuals receiving assisted ventilation, 481 (55.4%) completed the questionnaire. Mean index scores were 0.581 (AQoL-8D) and 0.566 (EQ-5D-5L) with 'moderate' agreement demonstrated between the two instruments (ICC = 0.642). One hundred fifty-nine (33.1%) reported level 5 ('I am unable to walk about') on the EQ-5D-5L Mobility item. The walking status of respondents had a marked influence on the comparability of index scores, with a larger mean difference (0.206) and 'slight' agreement (ICC = 0.386) observed when the non-ambulant subgroup was evaluated separately. This study provides further evidence that between-measure discrepancies between preference-based HRQoL instruments are related in part to the framing of mobility-related items. Longitudinal studies are necessary to determine the responsiveness of preference-based HRQoL instruments in cohorts that include non-ambulant individuals.

The Islamic Inter bank Money Market and a Dual Banking System : The Malaysian Experience

OpenAIRE

Bacha, Obiyathulla I.

2008-01-01

This paper examines the operation of an Islamic Interbank Money market (IIMM), within a dual banking system. The paper argues that even though an Islamic Money market operates in an interest free environment and trades shariah compliant instruments, many of the risks associated with conventional money markets, including interest rate risk is relevant to an Islamic Money Market operating within a dual banking system. The empirical evidence based on Malaysian data, points to Islamic money marke...

Varying the item format improved the range of measurement in patient-reported outcome measures assessing physical function

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Liegl, Gregor; Gandek, Barbara; Fischer, H. Felix

2017-01-01

precision between the short forms using different item formats. Results: Sufficient unidimensionality of all short-form items and the original PF item bank was supported. Compared to formats A and B, format C increased the range of reliable measurement by about 0.5 standard deviations on the positive side...

Banking Sector of Ukraine: Realities, Tendencies, Prospects

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Doroshenko Hanna O.

2014-01-01

Full Text Available The article analyses the modern state of the banking sector of Ukraine, its sources and prospects. It identifies that the main obstacle for stable development is dissociation of banking segments, absence of functional unity and orientation at formation of optimal conditions for satisfaction of financial requirements of the domestic economy. In order to create the efficient banking system it is necessary to introduce new banking supervision standards oriented at specialisation of the banking activity. The banking market should be segmented and both major banks that form the nucleus of the segment and minor ones operating in their niches should co-operate within each segment. Universal banks that have a developed branch network should unite specialised segments. Moreover, it is necessary to introduce changes into the mechanism of application of some instruments of money and loan regulation with respect to specialised banks and introduce some restrictions upon spheres of activity of the foreign capital.

Customer Satisfaction in Online Banking : A Comparative Study of Local and Foreign Commercial Banks in the South of Vietnam, Ho Chi Minh City

OpenAIRE

Nguyen, Le Ngoc Diep

2014-01-01

The purpose of this research is to construct a conceptual model with related instruments that affect customer satisfaction in using online banking in Ho Chi Minh City and Southern Vietnam. An important task of this work is the comparison of customer satisfaction in using online banking between customers of Vietnamese local banks and customers of foreign banks. Further discussions of the relationship among online service quality, perceived value, e-trust, relationship quality, customer satisfa...

Readability and Comprehension of the Geriatric Depression Scale and PROMIS® Physical Function Items in Older African Americans and Latinos.

Science.gov (United States)

Paz, Sylvia H; Jones, Loretta; Calderón, José L; Hays, Ron D

2017-02-01

Depression and physical function are particularly important health domains for the elderly. The Geriatric Depression Scale (GDS) and the Patient-Reported Outcomes Measurement Information System (PROMIS ® ) physical function item bank are two surveys commonly used to measure these domains. It is unclear if these two instruments adequately measure these aspects of health in minority elderly. The aim of this study was to estimate the readability of the GDS and PROMIS ® physical function items and to assess their comprehensibility using a sample of African American and Latino elderly. Readability was estimated using the Flesch-Kincaid and Flesch Reading Ease (FRE) formulae for English versions, and a Spanish adaptation of the FRE formula for the Spanish versions. Comprehension of the GDS and PROMIS ® items by minority elderly was evaluated with 30 cognitive interviews. Readability estimates of a number of items in English and Spanish of the GDS and PROMIS ® physical functioning items exceed the U.S. recommended 5th-grade threshold for vulnerable populations, or were rated as 'fairly difficult', 'difficult', or 'very difficult' to read. Cognitive interviews revealed that many participants felt that more than the two (yes/no) GDS response options were needed to answer the questions. Wording of several PROMIS ® items was considered confusing, and interpreting responses was problematic because they were based on using physical aids. Problems with item wording and response options of the GDS and PROMIS ® physical function items may reduce reliability and validity of measurement when used with minority elderly.

Understanding and quantifying cognitive complexity level in mathematical problem solving items

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SUSAN E. EMBRETSON

2008-09-01

Full Text Available The linear logistic test model (LLTM; Fischer, 1973 has been applied to a wide variety of new tests. When the LLTM application involves item complexity variables that are both theoretically interesting and empirically supported, several advantages can result. These advantages include elaborating construct validity at the item level, defining variables for test design, predicting parameters of new items, item banking by sources of complexity and providing a basis for item design and item generation. However, despite the many advantages of applying LLTM to test items, it has been applied less often to understand the sources of complexity for large-scale operational test items. Instead, previously calibrated item parameters are modeled using regression techniques because raw item response data often cannot be made available. In the current study, both LLTM and regression modeling are applied to mathematical problem solving items from a widely used test. The findings from the two methods are compared and contrasted for their implications for continued development of ability and achievement tests based on mathematical problem solving items.

Bank Size and Small- and Medium-sized Enterprise (SME) Lending: Evidence from China.

Science.gov (United States)

Shen, Yan; Shen, Minggao; Xu, Zhong; Bai, Ying

2009-04-01

Using panel data collected in 2005, we evaluate how bank size, discretion over credit, incentive schemes, competition, and the institutional environment affect lending to small- and medium-sized enterprises in China. We deal with the endogeneity problem using instrumental variables, and a reduced-form approach is also applied to allow for weak instruments in estimation. We find that total bank asset is an insignificant factor for banks' decision on small- and medium-enterprise (SME) lending, but more local lending authority, more competition, carefully designed incentive schemes, and stronger law enforcement encourage commercial banks to lend to SMEs.

Control of Bank Consolidated Financial Statements Quality

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Margarita S. Ambarchyan

2013-01-01

Full Text Available The author presents the multiple linear regression model of bank consolidated financial statements quality. The article considers six characteristics that can be used to estimate the level of bank consolidated financial statements quality. The multiple linear regression model was developed, using the results of point-based system of consolidated financial statements of thirty European bank and financial groups on the basis of the developed characteristics. The author offers to use the characteristic significance factor in the process of consolidated financial statements appraisal by points. The constructed regression model is checked on accuracy and statistical significance. The model can be used by internal auditors and financial analytics as an instrument for bank and non-bank consolidated financial statements quality control

ASSESSMENT OF E-COMMERCE USAGE FOR EFFECTIVE SERVICE DELIVERY IN NIGERIA BANKING SECTOR

OpenAIRE

Soneye Gbolade Michael

2017-01-01

This study assessed the extent of e-commerce usage for effective service delivery in Nigeria banking sector. Four research questions and four null hypotheses guided the study. Descriptive survey research design was adopted for the study. The study covered 64 microfinance banks in Oyo State, South-West, Nigeria. The population was made up of 1275 staffs from the 64 microfinance banks. The sample size consisted of 28 microfinance banks of which 280 staffs were purposively selected. A 28-item st...

The Difference GAP – The Main Instrument Used in the Management of Banking Assets and Liabilities

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Luminita Gabriela Istrate

2016-01-01

Full Text Available The analysis of the difference GAP is the main instrument used to manage bank assets and liabilities, to administer the net interest from income and to protect it against interest rate risk and to manage cash flow in the short term. The information obtained from the analysis shall be used either to protect the net income from interest compared to the interest rate change by adjusting the sensitive assets / liabilities or to amend by means of the speculative operations the dimension of the difference GAP, while trying to increase the net income from interest. This is done by means of the speculative use of changes in interest rates which implies an interest rate forecast as close as possible to the market.

Organization of eye bank

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Reddy, S.C.

1999-01-01

Comeal transplantation is the only method of combating the blindness due to corneal opacity caused by infections, malnutrition, trauma and hereditary diseases. Comeal blindness is more prevalent in the developing countries. The availability of the donor cornea, trained ophthalmic surgeons and microsurgery facilities are the key factors in restoring vision in-patients with comeal blindness. The eye bank organization is somewhat similar to that of blood bank. The eye bank should be located in a hospital or a medical centre in which a laboratory may be established for the evaluation and storage of donor tissue. The medical director (Ophthalmologist), technician, secretary and public relation officer are the persons who play an important role in the successful organization of eye bank. The function of the eye bank are procurement, assessment, processing, distribution of donor eyes/corneas, training of technicians/doctors, and conducting research related to storage of donor tissue and corneal transplantation. The necessary infrastructure required for the organization of an eye bank include separate accommodation area for the personnel and the laboratory, telephone, computer, refrigerator, laminar air flow hood. Slitlamp, specular microscope, storage media and equipment, instrument for enucleation of donor eyes, and a motor vehicle. The details of responsibilities of the staff of eye bank, source of donor eyes, suitability of donor material, procurement of the donor cornea, tissue assessment, storage and preservation, distribution of donor tissue, and limitation of eye bank will be discussed at the time of presentation

Fractional Reserve in Banking System

OpenAIRE

Valkonen, Maria

2016-01-01

This thesis is aimed to provide understanding of the role of the fractional reserve in the mod-ern banking system worldwide and particularly in Finland. The fractional reserve banking is used worldwide, but the benefits of this system are very disputable. On the one hand, experts say that the fractional reserve is a necessary instrument for the normal business and profit making. On the other hand, sceptics openly criticize the fractional reserve system and blame it for fiat money (money n...

The World Bank and climate change

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Shih, W.-C.

2000-01-01

The reduction of greenhouse gas emissions is inextricably linked with economic and development policies. This raises the question, to what extent do the commitments to reduce carbon dioxide emissions under the Climate Change Convention affect the practices and policies of the World Bank? After briefly describing the interaction between climate change and economic development, as well as the respective instruments of the Climate Change Treaty and the World Bank, this paper identifies several windows through which the obligations set out by the Climate Change treaty affect the World Bank. These include the Global Environmentally Facility, the Operational Policies adopted by the Executive Directors of the World Bank, specific loan structures and conditions as well as the recent Prototype Carbon Fund. (Author)

Securities and banking: bridges and walls

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Tommaso Padoa-Schioppa

2002-09-01

Full Text Available The paper examines the relationship between banking and securities activities in the light of financial market developments (securitisation, institutionalization of investment, emergence of complex financial instruments, conglomeration and consolidation, with particular reference to Europe. The enhanced links between banking and securitiesbusinesses have generated increased and new risks to financial institutions. However, banks' stability remains crucial for the stability of the financial system as a whole, because of their unique role as provider of liquidity. The paper also addresses the implications of the banking-securities combination for regulatory and supervisory arrangements. The exporting of prudential requirements traditional in banking (such as capital ratios into the securities field, and the importing of securities regulation (such as transparency requirements into the banking sector, can be deemed mutually beneficial. As regards supervision, there is a need to monitor the continued effectiveness of the current framework. This entails strengthening co-operation both at the national level and on a cross-border basis among sectoral supervisors in the micro-prudential field, and between them and central banks in the macro-prudential field.

Central banking and financial innovation. A survey of the modern literature

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Jan Marc Berk

2002-09-01

Full Text Available We review the literature regarding the impact of financial innovation on the monetary transmission mechanism and on the way the central bank can achieve its ultimate goal, that is to control the price level. We argue that, although the form ofcentral bank instruments and current methods for implementing monetary policy may change, the goals that the policy makers try achieve by employing these instruments remain valid, and achievable.

Automated Item Generation with Recurrent Neural Networks.

Science.gov (United States)

von Davier, Matthias

2018-03-12

Utilizing technology for automated item generation is not a new idea. However, test items used in commercial testing programs or in research are still predominantly written by humans, in most cases by content experts or professional item writers. Human experts are a limited resource and testing agencies incur high costs in the process of continuous renewal of item banks to sustain testing programs. Using algorithms instead holds the promise of providing unlimited resources for this crucial part of assessment development. The approach presented here deviates in several ways from previous attempts to solve this problem. In the past, automatic item generation relied either on generating clones of narrowly defined item types such as those found in language free intelligence tests (e.g., Raven's progressive matrices) or on an extensive analysis of task components and derivation of schemata to produce items with pre-specified variability that are hoped to have predictable levels of difficulty. It is somewhat unlikely that researchers utilizing these previous approaches would look at the proposed approach with favor; however, recent applications of machine learning show success in solving tasks that seemed impossible for machines not too long ago. The proposed approach uses deep learning to implement probabilistic language models, not unlike what Google brain and Amazon Alexa use for language processing and generation.

Business culture and dishonesty in the banking industry.

Science.gov (United States)

Cohn, Alain; Fehr, Ernst; Maréchal, Michel André

2014-12-04

Trust in others' honesty is a key component of the long-term performance of firms, industries, and even whole countries. However, in recent years, numerous scandals involving fraud have undermined confidence in the financial industry. Contemporary commentators have attributed these scandals to the financial sector's business culture, but no scientific evidence supports this claim. Here we show that employees of a large, international bank behave, on average, honestly in a control condition. However, when their professional identity as bank employees is rendered salient, a significant proportion of them become dishonest. This effect is specific to bank employees because control experiments with employees from other industries and with students show that they do not become more dishonest when their professional identity or bank-related items are rendered salient. Our results thus suggest that the prevailing business culture in the banking industry weakens and undermines the honesty norm, implying that measures to re-establish an honest culture are very important.

Measuring Islamic Business Ethics Within Indonesia Islamic Banks

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Gusti Ngurah Oka Widana

2014-12-01

Full Text Available The business characteristic of Islamic banks is the implementation of Islamic business ethics. Parallel with the trend of increasing preference to ethical institution, Islamic banks should put this as its competitive edge toward its competitor conventional competitor banks. However, only few previous studies discussed about the implementation of Islamic business ethics within Islamic banks and none suggested how to measure such implementation. This paper is a study of the literature on ethics and Islamic business ethics as the first step in developing a measurement tool of Islamic business ethics implementation within Islamic banks. This paper synthesizes the dimensions of Islamic business ethics that is excavated from the Quran and Sunna, being proposed by previous studies. There are seven dimensions, namely unity of God, benevolence, justice and equity, sincere, equilibrium, trusteeship and responsibility. Subsequently, this paper outlines these dimensions into 21 items. The opportunity of future empirical study is recommended at the end of this paper.

BIGGEST CZECH BANKS IN THE MIRROR OF ANNUAL REPORTS

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Vladislav PAVLAT

2016-02-01

Full Text Available The aim of the Paper is to characterise and analyse the biggest Czech banks Annual reports (ARs. Since 2004, the behaviour of Czech banks has been changing, as can be seen – inter alia - from the big banks´ financial statements and annual reports. During the period of 2007 – 2013 the implementation of IFRS continued and its impact on the institutional structure of banking is visible. From the point of view of banks, annual reports present not only the financial results, but they serve as an important instrument of competition and marketing as well. Comparative analysis of the three Czech leading banks gives a picture of their specific features as reflected in their annual statements.

Controversies in hybrid banking: attitudes of Swiss public umbilical cord blood donors toward private and public banking.

Science.gov (United States)

Manegold, Gwendolin; Meyer-Monard, Sandrine; Tichelli, André; Granado, Christina; Hösli, Irene; Troeger, Carolyn

2011-07-01

Umbilical cord blood (UCB) stored in public inventories has become an alternative stem cell source for allogeneic stem cell transplantation. The potential use of autologous UCB from private banks is a matter of debate. In the face of the limited resources of public inventories, a discussion on "hybrid" public and private UCB banking has evolved. We aimed to explore the attitudes of the donating parents toward public and private UCB banking. A standardized, anonymous questionnaire was sent to the most recent 621 public UCB donors including items regarding satisfaction with recruitment process, the need for a second consent before release of the UCB unit for stem cell transplantation, and the donors' views on public and private UCB banking. Furthermore, we asked about their views on UCB research. Of the questionnaires, 48% were returned, and 16% were lost due to mail contact. Of our donors, 95% would donate to the public bank again. As much as 35% of them were convinced that public banking was useful. Whereas 27% had never heard about private UCB banking, 34% discussed both options. Nearly 70% of donors opted for public banking due to altruism and the high costs of private banking. Of our public UCB donors, 81% stated that they did not need a re-consent before UCB release for stem cell transplantation. In case of sample rejection, 53.5% wanted to know details about the particular research project. A total of 9% would not consent. Almost all donors would choose public banking again due to altruism and the high costs of private banking. Shortly after donation, mail contact with former UCB donors was difficult. This might be a relevant issue in any sequential hybrid banking.

Development and evaluation of the Korean Health Literacy Instrument.

Science.gov (United States)

Kang, Soo Jin; Lee, Tae Wha; Paasche-Orlow, Michael K; Kim, Gwang Suk; Won, Hee Kwan

2014-01-01

The purpose of this study is to develop and validate the Korean Health Literacy Instrument, which measures the capacity to understand and use health-related information and make informed health decisions in Korean adults. In Phase 1, 33 initial items were generated to measure functional, interactive, and critical health literacy with prose, document, and numeracy tasks. These items included content from health promotion, disease management, and health navigation contexts. Content validity assessment was conducted by an expert panel, and 11 items were excluded. In Phase 2, the 22 remaining items were administered to a convenience sample of 292 adults from community and clinical settings. Exploratory factor and item difficulty and discrimination analyses were conducted and four items with low discrimination were deleted. In Phase 3, the remaining 18 items were administered to a convenience sample of 315 adults 40-64 years of age from community and clinical settings. A confirmatory factor analysis was performed to test the construct validity of the instrument. The Korean Health Literacy Instrument has a range of 0 to 18. The mean score in our validation study was 11.98. The instrument exhibited an internal consistency reliability coefficient of 0.82, and a test-retest reliability of 0.89. The instrument is suitable for screening individuals who have limited health literacy skills. Future studies are needed to further define the psychometric properties and predictive validity of the Korean Health Literacy Instrument.

Australian Biology Test Item Bank, Years 11 and 12. Volume II: Year 12.

Science.gov (United States)

Brown, David W., Ed.; Sewell, Jeffrey J., Ed.

This document consists of test items which are applicable to biology courses throughout Australia (irrespective of course materials used); assess key concepts within course statement (for both core and optional studies); assess a wide range of cognitive processes; and are relevant to current biological concepts. These items are arranged under…

Australian Biology Test Item Bank, Years 11 and 12. Volume I: Year 11.

Science.gov (United States)

Brown, David W., Ed.; Sewell, Jeffrey J., Ed.

This document consists of test items which are applicable to biology courses throughout Australia (irrespective of course materials used); assess key concepts within course statement (for both core and optional studies); assess a wide range of cognitive processes; and are relevant to current biological concepts. These items are arranged under…

Factor Analysis and Item Reduction of the Banff Patella Instability Instrument (BPII): Introduction of BPII 2.0.

Science.gov (United States)

Lafave, Mark R; Hiemstra, Laurie; Kerslake, Sarah

2016-08-01

Clinical management of patellofemoral (PF) instability is a challenge, particularly considering the number of variables that should be taken into consideration for treatment. Quality of life is an important measure to consider with this patient population. To factor analyze and reduce the total number of items in the Banff Patella Instability Instrument (BPII). Subsequent to the factor analysis, the new, item-reduced BPII 2.0 was tested for validity, reliability, and responsiveness. Cohort study (diagnosis); Level of evidence, 2. Quality of life was measured for PF instability patients (N = 223) through use of the original BPII at their initial consultation. Data from the BPII scores were used in a principal components analysis (PCA) to factor analyze and reduce the total number of items in the original BPII, to create a revised BPII 2.0. The BPII 2.0 underwent content validation (Cronbach alpha, patient interviews, and grade-level checking), construct validation (analysis of variance comparing the initial visit and the 6-, 12-, and 24-month postoperative visits, eta-square), convergent validation (Pearson r correlation to the original BPII), responsiveness testing (eta-square, anchor-based distribution testing), and reliability testing (intraclass correlation coefficient [ICC]). The BPII was successfully reduced from 32 to 23 items with excellent Cronbach alpha values in the new BPII 2.0: initial visit = 0.91; 6-month postoperative visit = 0.96; 12-month postoperative visit = 0.97; and 24-month postoperative visit = 0.76. Grade-level reading for all items was assessed as below grade 12. The BPII 2.0 was able to discriminate between all time periods with significant differences between groups (P correlated with the BPII 2.0 (0.82, 0.90, 0.90, and 0.94 at the initial visit and 6-, 12-, and 24-month postoperative visits, respectively), providing evidence of convergent validity. A significant correlation was found between the 7-point scale and 24-month postoperative

Overview of classical test theory and item response theory for the quantitative assessment of items in developing patient-reported outcomes measures.

Science.gov (United States)

Cappelleri, Joseph C; Jason Lundy, J; Hays, Ron D

2014-05-01

The US Food and Drug Administration's guidance for industry document on patient-reported outcomes (PRO) defines content validity as "the extent to which the instrument measures the concept of interest" (FDA, 2009, p. 12). According to Strauss and Smith (2009), construct validity "is now generally viewed as a unifying form of validity for psychological measurements, subsuming both content and criterion validity" (p. 7). Hence, both qualitative and quantitative information are essential in evaluating the validity of measures. We review classical test theory and item response theory (IRT) approaches to evaluating PRO measures, including frequency of responses to each category of the items in a multi-item scale, the distribution of scale scores, floor and ceiling effects, the relationship between item response options and the total score, and the extent to which hypothesized "difficulty" (severity) order of items is represented by observed responses. If a researcher has few qualitative data and wants to get preliminary information about the content validity of the instrument, then descriptive assessments using classical test theory should be the first step. As the sample size grows during subsequent stages of instrument development, confidence in the numerical estimates from Rasch and other IRT models (as well as those of classical test theory) would also grow. Classical test theory and IRT can be useful in providing a quantitative assessment of items and scales during the content-validity phase of PRO-measure development. Depending on the particular type of measure and the specific circumstances, the classical test theory and/or the IRT should be considered to help maximize the content validity of PRO measures. Copyright © 2014 Elsevier HS Journals, Inc. All rights reserved.

Development of an item bank for food parenting practices based on published instruments and reports from Canadian and U.S. parents

Science.gov (United States)

Research to understand how parents influence their children's dietary intake and eating behaviors has expanded in the past decades and a growing number of instruments are available to assess food parenting practices. Unfortunately, there is no consensus on how constructs should be defined or operati...

Methods of Analysis of Electronic Money in Banks

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Melnychenko Oleksandr V.

2014-03-01

Full Text Available The article identifies methods of analysis of electronic money, formalises its instruments and offers an integral indicator, which should be calculated by issuing banks and those banks, which carry out operations with electronic money, issued by other banks. Calculation of the integral indicator would allow complex assessment of activity of the studied bank with electronic money and would allow comparison of parameters of different banks by the aggregate of indicators for the study of the electronic money market, its level of development, etc. The article presents methods which envisage economic analysis of electronic money in banks by the following directions: solvency and liquidity, efficiency of electronic money issue, business activity of the bank and social responsibility. Moreover, the proposed indicators by each of the directions are offered to be taken into account when building integral indicators, with the help of which banks are studied: business activity, profitability, solvency, liquidity and so on.

University Reactor Instrumentation Program

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Vernetson, W.G.

1992-11-01

Recognizing that the University Reactor Instrumentation Program was developed in response to widespread needs in the academic community for modernization and improvement of research and training reactors at institutions such as the University of Florida, the items proposed to be supported by this grant over its two year period have been selected as those most likely to reduce foreed outages, to meet regulatory concerns that had been expressed in recent years by Nuclear Regulatory Commission inspectors or to correct other facility problems and limitations. Department of Energy Grant Number DE-FG07-90ER129969 was provided to the University of Florida Training Reactor(UFTR) facility through the US Department of Energy's University Reactor Instrumentation Program. The original proposal submitted in February, 1990 requested support for UFTR facility instrumentation and equipment upgrades for seven items in the amount of $107,530 with $13,800 of this amount to be the subject of cost sharing by the University of Florida and $93,730 requested as support from the Department of Energy. A breakdown of the items requested and total cost for the proposed UFTR facility instrumentation and equipment improvements is presented

Monetary Policy: Its Impact On The Profitability Of Banks In India

OpenAIRE

Punita Rao

2011-01-01

This purpose of this study is to investigate the impact of monetary policy on the profitability of banks in the context of financial sector reforms in India. We discuss the financial sector reforms and the implication of the banks, the various instruments of monetary policy in India, and the impact of monetary policy on the profitability of banks.

Payment Instrument Characteristics

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Holst, Jacques; Kjeldsen, Martin; Hedman, Jonas

2015-01-01

Over the last decade, we have witnessed payment innovations that fundamentally have changed the ways we pay. Payment innovations, such as mobile payments and on-line banking, include characteristics or features that are essential to understand if we want to know how and why payers choose among...... payment innovations. Using the Repertory Grid technique to explore 15 payers’ perception of six payment instruments, including coins, banknotes, debit cards, credit cards, mobile payments, and on-line banking, we identify 16 payment characteristics. The characteristics aggregate seventy-six unique...

Interference between work and nonwork roles: The development of a new South African instrument

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Eileen Koekemoer

2010-10-01

Research purpose: The purpose of this study was to, (1 develop new items for a more comprehensive work−nonwork interference instrument, (2 evaluate the newly developed items to retain those items that accurately capture the different dimensions and (3 eliminate undesirable items from the different subscales in the instrument. Motivation for the study: Although the interaction between work and personal life has received extensive attention in the work−family fields of research, various theoretical, empirical and measurement issues need to be addressed. Research design, approach and method: A cross-sectional survey design was used to collect the data. Main findings: Initially, 89 items were developed. During the pilot study among mineworkers (n = 245, 41 poor items were eliminated on the basis of descriptive statistics, inter-item correlations, item-total correlations and the qualitative investigation of items highly redundant in terms of wording. Thereafter, the instrument (48 items was administered to 366 support and academic personnel at a tertiary institution. Using Rasch analyses and item correlations, 18 additional items were eliminated, resulting in a 30-item instrument (15 items were retained to measure work-nonwork interference and 15 items to measure nonwork-work interference. Practical/managerial implications: A major theoretical limitation to the measurement of work−family interference relates to the dimensionality and inconsistent measurement of the directionality of interference. Contribution/value-add: With the development of this new instrument, several of the theoretical and measurement limitations voiced by previous researchers have been addressed, providing this instrument with distinct advantages over previous work−family instruments.

Analisis Faktor Kualitas Pelayanan di Bank Syariah (Studi Pada PT Bank Muamalat Indonesia

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S. Suryani

2015-03-01

Full Text Available Factor Analysis on Services Quality in Islamic Bank (Study at PT Bank Muamalat Indonesia. The aim of this study is to determine and identify the factors forming quality of service in PT. Bank Muamalat Indonesia, Tbk Branch Medan. Instruments of research use questionnaires and factor analysis. This research is quantitative research using survey methods. The sample method that used in this research is accidental sampling. The reliability and validity test shown that 13 question had been fulfilled the reliability and validity requirements. From the extraction gives three factors. Factor 1 explained 45,299%, factor 2 explained 12,819%, and factor 3 explained 8,904%. The results show that quality of communication is dominant factor to explain service quality. Then product innovation and physical aspects  DOI:10.15408/aiq.v6i2.1233

Using item response theory to address vulnerabilities in FFQ.

Science.gov (United States)

Kazman, Josh B; Scott, Jonathan M; Deuster, Patricia A

2017-09-01

The limitations for self-reporting of dietary patterns are widely recognised as a major vulnerability of FFQ and the dietary screeners/scales derived from FFQ. Such instruments can yield inconsistent results to produce questionable interpretations. The present article discusses the value of psychometric approaches and standards in addressing these drawbacks for instruments used to estimate dietary habits and nutrient intake. We argue that a FFQ or screener that treats diet as a 'latent construct' can be optimised for both internal consistency and the value of the research results. Latent constructs, a foundation for item response theory (IRT)-based scales (e.g. Patient Reported Outcomes Measurement Information System) are typically introduced in the design stage of an instrument to elicit critical factors that cannot be observed or measured directly. We propose an iterative approach that uses such modelling to refine FFQ and similar instruments. To that end, we illustrate the benefits of psychometric modelling by using items and data from a sample of 12 370 Soldiers who completed the 2012 US Army Global Assessment Tool (GAT). We used factor analysis to build the scale incorporating five out of eleven survey items. An IRT-driven assessment of response category properties indicates likely problems in the ordering or wording of several response categories. Group comparisons, examined with differential item functioning (DIF), provided evidence of scale validity across each Army sub-population (sex, service component and officer status). Such an approach holds promise for future FFQ.

Monetary Operations and Islamic Banking in The GCC: Challenges and Options

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Ritu Basu

2018-03-01

Full Text Available The assessment provides evidence of market segmentation across Islamic and conventional banks in the Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC, leading to excess liquidity, and an uneven playing field for Islamic banks that might affect their growth. Liquidity management has been a long-standing concern in the global Islamic finance industry as there is a general lack of Shari’ah compliant instruments that can serve as high-quality short-term liquid assets. The degree of segmentation and bank behavior varies across countries depending on Shari’ah permissibility and the availability of Shari’ah-compliant instruments. A partial response would be to support efforts to build Islamic liquid interbank and money markets, which are crucial for monetary policy transmission through the Islamic financial system. This can be achieved, to a large extent, by deepening Islamic government securities and developing Shari’ah-compliant money market instruments.

MEASURING AND MODELLING INTERNET BANKING SERVICE QUALITY IN SOUTH AFRICA

OpenAIRE

Redda, Ephrem Habtemichael; Surujlal, Jhalukpreya

2017-01-01

The purpose of this study was to develop a measuring and modelling instrument of Internet banking service quality (IBSQ) for the South African banking sector. Snowball and convenience sampling, both non-probability techniques were used to recruit participants for the study. A total of 310 Internet banking customer responses were utilised in the analysis. Using exploratory factor analysis (EFA), eight determinant factors that explained IBSQ were extracted. Following this, the study...

Factoring handedness data: I. Item analysis.

Science.gov (United States)

Messinger, H B; Messinger, M I

1995-12-01

Recently in this journal Peters and Murphy challenged the validity of factor analyses done on bimodal handedness data, suggesting instead that right- and left-handers be studied separately. But bimodality may be avoidable if attention is paid to Oldfield's questionnaire format and instructions for the subjects. Two characteristics appear crucial: a two-column LEFT-RIGHT format for the body of the instrument and what we call Oldfield's Admonition: not to indicate strong preference for handedness item, such as write, unless "... the preference is so strong that you would never try to use the other hand unless absolutely forced to...". Attaining unimodality of an item distribution would seem to overcome the objections of Peters and Murphy. In a 1984 survey in Boston we used Oldfield's ten-item questionnaire exactly as published. This produced unimodal item distributions. With reflection of the five-point item scale and a logarithmic transformation, we achieved a degree of normalization for the items. Two surveys elsewhere based on Oldfield's 20-item list but with changes in the questionnaire format and the instructions, yielded markedly different item distributions with peaks at each extreme and sometimes in the middle as well.

Franchise Values, Regulatory Monitoring, and Capital Requirements in Optimal Bank Regulation

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Andersen, Thomas Barnebeck; Harr, Thomas

2008-01-01

This paper demonstrates that financial deregulation is likely to make standard prudential regulatory instruments less effective in curbing excessive risk-taking incentives among banks. This has interesting implications for optimal bank regulation. When there is an increase in competition, the opt...

An Attitude Scale on Individual Instrument and Individual Instrument Course: Validity-Reliability Research

Science.gov (United States)

Kuçukosmanoglu, Hayrettin Onur

2015-01-01

The main purpose of this study is to develop a scale to determine students' attitude levels on individual instruments and individual instrument courses in instrument training, which is an important dimension of music education, and to conduct a validity-reliability research of the scale that has been developed. The scale consists of 16 items. The…

To assess the investment policy and investment activity of banks of Russia

OpenAIRE

Mandron V.; Buzaeva O.

2016-01-01

A priority to increase the profits of banks is investment operations in the stock market. Investment banking includes activities on raising capital using capital market instruments with the objective of capital appreciation. The article describes the investment objectives of the banks to improve their profitability, financial stability and enhance the effectiveness of the whole. The basic tools that enable banks to achieve the relevant objectives: profit, risk diversification, the maintenance...

Using personality item characteristics to predict single-item reliability, retest reliability, and self-other agreement

NARCIS (Netherlands)

de Vries, Reinout Everhard; Realo, Anu; Allik, Jüri

2016-01-01

The use of reliability estimates is increasingly scrutinized as scholars become more aware that test–retest stability and self–other agreement provide a better approximation of the theoretical and practical usefulness of an instrument than its internal reliability. In this study, we investigate item

Instruments to measure anxiety in children, adolescents, and young adults with cancer: a systematic review.

Science.gov (United States)

Lazor, Tanya; Tigelaar, Leonie; Pole, Jason D; De Souza, Claire; Tomlinson, Deborah; Sung, Lillian

2017-09-01

The primary objective was to describe anxiety measurement instruments used in children and adolescents with cancer or undergoing hematopoietic stem cell transplantation (HSCT) and summarize their content and psychometric properties. We conducted searches of MEDLINE, Embase, PsycINFO, HAPI, and CINAHL. We included studies that used at least one instrument to measure anxiety quantitatively in children or adolescents with cancer or undergoing HSCT. Two authors independently identified studies and abstracted study demographics and instrument characteristics. Twenty-seven instruments, 14 multi-item and 13 single-item, were used between 78 studies. The most commonly used instrument was the State-Trait Anxiety Inventory in 46 studies. Three multi-item instruments (Children's Manifest Anxiety Scale-Mandarin version, PROMIS Pediatric Anxiety Short Form, and the State-Trait Anxiety Inventory) and two single-item instruments (Faces Pain Scale-Revised and 10-cm Visual Analogue Scale, both adapted for anxiety) were found to be reliable and valid in children with cancer. We identified 14 different multi-item and 13 different single-item anxiety measurement instruments that have been used in pediatric cancer or HSCT. Only three multi-item and two single-item instruments were identified as being reliable and valid among pediatric cancer or HSCT patients and would therefore be appropriate to measure anxiety in this population.

Bank Size and Small- and Medium-sized Enterprise (SME) Lending: Evidence from China

Science.gov (United States)

SHEN, YAN; SHEN, MINGGAO; XU, ZHONG; BAI, YING

2014-01-01

Summary Using panel data collected in 2005, we evaluate how bank size, discretion over credit, incentive schemes, competition, and the institutional environment affect lending to small- and medium-sized enterprises in China. We deal with the endogeneity problem using instrumental variables, and a reduced-form approach is also applied to allow for weak instruments in estimation. We find that total bank asset is an insignificant factor for banks’ decision on small- and medium-enterprise (SME) lending, but more local lending authority, more competition, carefully designed incentive schemes, and stronger law enforcement encourage commercial banks to lend to SMEs. PMID:26052179

Factors Influencing Job Satisfaction of Banking Sector Employees

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Abdolshah Mohammad

2018-01-01

Full Text Available Satisfaction in life and everyday work is important in everyone’s life. We spend most of our time working or being involved in some economic activity to make a living. This paper focuses on the relative importance of job satisfaction factors and their impact on the overall job satisfaction of employees. The present study is a cross-sectional type of research performed in 2015. The study population is senior executives of the Asgariyeh and MehrIran Banks in Qazvin and Alborz. The research instruments included two questionnaires based on individual characteristics and proprietary. The Individual characteristics questionnaire consists of 4 questions and the Proprietary questionnaire consists of 70 items, including a dependent variable of Job satisfaction. SPSS software was used for data analysis. One-sample t-Test was used to investigate the condition of each of the dependent and independent variables in the research. In conclusion, it can be said that the colleagues, upgrade, and compensation variables are respectively in the first, second, and third place influencing job satisfaction.

SERENITY in e-Business and Smart Item Scenarios

Science.gov (United States)

Benameur, Azzedine; Khoury, Paul El; Seguran, Magali; Sinha, Smriti Kumar

SERENITY Artefacts, like Class, Patterns, Implementations and Executable Components for Security & Dependability (S&D) in addition to Serenity Runtime Framework (SRF) are discussed in previous chapters. How to integrate these artefacts with applications in Serenity approach is discussed here with two scenarios. The e-Business scenario is a standard loan origination process in a bank. The Smart Item scenario is an Ambient intelligence case study where we take advantage of Smart Items to provide an electronic healthcare infrastructure for remote healthcare assistance. In both cases, we detail how the prototype implementations of the scenarios select proper executable components through Serenity Runtime Framework and then demonstrate how these executable components of the S&D Patterns are deployed.

Methodical Approaches to Risk Management in a Regional Commercial Bank

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Elena Vladimirovna Altukhova

2016-03-01

Full Text Available The article presents the results of the research of the methodological and information infrastructure of the integrated risk management in a regional commercial bank. Within the study of the general development tendencies of the regional banking services market, the most significant risks for a regional bank are revealed. The analysis is carried out on the basis of the stress testing technique developed at the Plekhanov Russian University of Economics. It is based on a technique of dynamic economic and mathematical modeling with the application of information technologies. The created combination of the methodological and instrumental tools allows to carry out the dynamic scenario analysis of the activity of a commercial bank for the identification of potential risks and for the development of the strategy of financial management reducing the potential risks and leveling the consequences of their realization. The received tool allows during the computer test to watch the predicted dynamics of the condition of the key indicators of the activity of a regional commercial bank changing under the influence of the exogenous regulatory measures and instruments of bank management applied to decrease risk and at the same time to introduce adjustments in the perspective strategy of management. As the result of the analysis, the universal management model of the main bank risks in a regional commercial bank within three alternative scenarios is created. The software product allowing to develop and acquire the practical skills of the students in banking is developed. It also may help to develop the methodological support for the regulation of the organizational procedures of risk management in a regional commercial bank. The received software product may be used in a system of the improving the professional skills, and also for obtaining the expected data in a risk management system in a regional commercial bank.

Modelling the liquidity ratio as macroprudential instrument

OpenAIRE

Jan Willem van den End; Mark Kruidhof

2012-01-01

The Basel III Liquidity Coverage Ratio (LCR) is a microprudential instrument to strengthen the liquidity position of banks. However, if in extreme scenarios the LCR becomes a binding constraint, the interaction of bank behaviour with the regulatory rule can have negative externalities. We simulate the systemic implications of the LCR by a liquidity stress-testing model, which takes into account the impact of bank reactions on second round feedback effects. We show that a flexible approach of ...

220 AUTOMATED CLEARING SYSTEM AND THE BANKING ...

African Journals Online (AJOL)

time services to the banks and easy movement of financial instrument transfers. It would be ..... Akujuobi, L.E. (2006) Corporate Finance, Owerri: Springfield Publishers Ltd. Alade ... (2001) Fundamentals of Applied Quantitative Techniques for.

Developing self-concept instrument for pre-service mathematics teachers

Science.gov (United States)

Afgani, M. W.; Suryadi, D.; Dahlan, J. A.

2018-01-01

This study aimed to develop self-concept instrument for undergraduate students of mathematics education in Palembang, Indonesia. Type of this study was development research of non-test instrument in questionnaire form. A Validity test of the instrument was performed with construct validity test by using Pearson product moment and factor analysis, while reliability test used Cronbach’s alpha. The instrument was tested by 65 undergraduate students of mathematics education in one of the universities at Palembang, Indonesia. The instrument consisted of 43 items with 7 aspects of self-concept, that were the individual concern, social identity, individual personality, view of the future, the influence of others who become role models, the influence of the environment inside or outside the classroom, and view of the mathematics. The result of validity test showed there was one invalid item because the value of Pearson’s r was 0.107 less than the critical value (0.244; α = 0.05). The item was included in social identity aspect. After the invalid item was removed, Construct validity test with factor analysis generated only one factor. The Kaiser-Meyer-Olkin (KMO) coefficient was 0.846 and reliability coefficient was 0.91. From that result, we concluded that the self-concept instrument for undergraduate students of mathematics education in Palembang, Indonesia was valid and reliable with 42 items.

Design and Implementation Content Validity Study: Development of an instrument for measuring Patient-Centered Communication

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Vahid Zamanzadeh

2015-06-01

Full Text Available ABSTRACT Introduction: The importance of content validity in the instrument psychometric and its relevance with reliability, have made it an essential step in the instrument development. This article attempts to give an overview of the content validity process and to explain the complexity of this process by introducing an example. Methods: We carried out a methodological study conducted to examine the content validity of the patient-centered communication instrument through a two-step process (development and judgment. At the first step, domain determination, sampling (item generation and instrument formation and at the second step, content validity ratio, content validity index and modified kappa statistic was performed. Suggestions of expert panel and item impact scores are used to examine the instrument face validity. Results: From a set of 188 items, content validity process identified seven dimensions includes trust building (eight items, informational support (seven items, emotional support (five items, problem solving (seven items, patient activation (10 items, intimacy/friendship (six items and spirituality strengthening (14 items. Content validity study revealed that this instrument enjoys an appropriate level of content validity. The overall content validity index of the instrument using universal agreement approach was low; however, it can be advocated with respect to the high number of content experts that makes consensus difficult and high value of the S-CVI with the average approach, which was equal to 0.93. Conclusion: This article illustrates acceptable quantities indices for content validity a new instrument and outlines them during design and psychometrics of patient-centered communication measuring instrument.

CTTITEM: SAS macro and SPSS syntax for classical item analysis.

Science.gov (United States)

Lei, Pui-Wa; Wu, Qiong

2007-08-01

This article describes the functions of a SAS macro and an SPSS syntax that produce common statistics for conventional item analysis including Cronbach's alpha, item difficulty index (p-value or item mean), and item discrimination indices (D-index, point biserial and biserial correlations for dichotomous items and item-total correlation for polytomous items). These programs represent an improvement over the existing SAS and SPSS item analysis routines in terms of completeness and user-friendliness. To promote routine evaluations of item qualities in instrument development of any scale, the programs are available at no charge for interested users. The program codes along with a brief user's manual that contains instructions and examples are downloadable from suen.ed.psu.edu/-pwlei/plei.htm.

Standard NIM instrumentation system

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

1990-05-01

NIM is a standard modular instrumentation system that is in wide use throughout the world. As the NIM system developed and accommodations were made to a dynamic instrumentation field and a rapidly advancing technology, additions, revisions and clarifications were made. These were incorporated into the standard in the form of addenda and errata. This standard is a revision of the NIM document, AEC Report TID-20893 (Rev. 4) dated July 1974. It includes all the addenda and errata items that were previously issued as well as numerous additional items to make the standard current with modern technology and manufacturing practice

Item-Level Psychometrics of the Glasgow Outcome Scale: Extended Structured Interviews.

Science.gov (United States)

Hong, Ickpyo; Li, Chih-Ying; Velozo, Craig A

2016-04-01

The Glasgow Outcome Scale-Extended (GOSE) structured interview captures critical components of activities and participation, including home, shopping, work, leisure, and family/friend relationships. Eighty-nine community dwelling adults with mild-moderate traumatic brain injury (TBI) were recruited (average = 2.7 year post injury). Nine items of the 19 items were used for the psychometrics analysis purpose. Factor analysis and item-level psychometrics were investigated using the Rasch partial-credit model. Although the principal components analysis of residuals suggests that a single measurement factor dominates the measure, the instrument did not meet the factor analysis criteria. Five items met the rating scale criteria. Eight items fit the Rasch model. The instrument demonstrated low person reliability (0.63), low person strata (2.07), and a slight ceiling effect. The GOSE demonstrated limitations in precisely measuring activities/participation for individuals after TBI. Future studies should examine the impact of the low precision of the GOSE on effect size. © The Author(s) 2016.

Risk exposure mitigation: Approaches and recognised instruments (5

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Matić Vesna

2014-01-01

Full Text Available The risk management function development in banks, along with the development of tools that banks can use throughout this process, has had the strong support in international standards, not only in the recommended approaches for calculating economic capital requirements, but also in the qualitatively new treatment of risk exposure mitigation instruments (Basel Accord II. The array of eligible instruments for exposure mitigation under the recommended approaches for their treatment becomes the essential element of economic capital requirements calculation, both in relation to certain types of risk, and in relation to aggregate exposure.

Risk exposure mitigation: Approaches and recognised instruments (3

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Matić Vesna

2014-01-01

Full Text Available The risk management function development in banks, along with the development of tools that banks can use throughout this process, has had the strong support in international standards, not only in the recommended approaches for calculating economic capital requirements, but also in the qualitatively new treatment of risk exposure mitigation instruments (Basel Accord II. The array of eligible instruments for exposure mitigation under the recommended approaches for their treatment becomes the essential element of economic capital requirements calculation, both in relation to certain types of risk, and in relation to aggregate exposure.

Risk exposure mitigation: Approaches and recognised instruments (6

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Matić Vesna

2015-01-01

Full Text Available The risk management function development in banks, along with the development of tools that banks can use throughout this process, has had the strong support in international standards, not only in the recommended approaches for calculating economic capital requirements, but also in the qualitatively new treatment of risk exposure mitigation instruments (Basel Accord II. The array of eligible instruments for exposure mitigation under the recommended approaches for their treatment becomes the essential element of economic capital requirements calculation, both in relation to certain types of risk, and in relation to aggregate exposure.

Quantitative Analysis of Complex Multiple-Choice Items in Science Technology and Society: Item Scaling

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Ángel Vázquez Alonso

2005-05-01

Full Text Available The scarce attention to assessment and evaluation in science education research has been especially harmful for Science-Technology-Society (STS education, due to the dialectic, tentative, value-laden, and controversial nature of most STS topics. To overcome the methodological pitfalls of the STS assessment instruments used in the past, an empirically developed instrument (VOSTS, Views on Science-Technology-Society have been suggested. Some methodological proposals, namely the multiple response models and the computing of a global attitudinal index, were suggested to improve the item implementation. The final step of these methodological proposals requires the categorization of STS statements. This paper describes the process of categorization through a scaling procedure ruled by a panel of experts, acting as judges, according to the body of knowledge from history, epistemology, and sociology of science. The statement categorization allows for the sound foundation of STS items, which is useful in educational assessment and science education research, and may also increase teachers’ self-confidence in the development of the STS curriculum for science classrooms.

77 FR 37409 - Request for Domains, Instruments, and Measures for Development of a Standardized Instrument for...

Science.gov (United States)

2012-06-21

... experience as well. On both issues, CMS is interested in instruments and items which can measure quality of... Measures for Development of a Standardized Instrument for Use in Public Reporting of Enrollee Satisfaction..., communication, coordination of care, customer service), instruments, and measures for measuring the level of...

An Exploration of Customers’ Switching Behavior In Islamic Banking Industry

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Ali Rama

2017-02-01

Full Text Available The existence of the switching behavior among Islamic bank customers may affect to the survival of the Islamic banks of the country. Switching behavior is mostly as an outcome of the negative service experience that may be related to several factors. The purpose of the study is to provide an insight of the drivers that lead to a bank customer switching behavior from one Islamic bank to another bank. The study employed survey method through questionnaire instrument and distributed to Islamic banking customers in several areas of Banten Province, Indonesia. The result of statistical analysis shows that customer satisfaction, service quality, shariah compliance, prices and involuntary switching have their significant effect on customers’ switching behavior in the Islamic banks. However, service failure and advertisement are not statistically significant in driving bank switching. Therefore, the Islamic bank manager should shape their business model around customers’ needs and focuses operational improvements on customers’ most valued interactions.

Liquidity and Capital of Islamic Banks in Indonesia

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Muhammad Nadratuzzaman Hosen

2017-02-01

Full Text Available This study is aimed to analyzed the factors that affect the liquidity and capital of Islamic banks in Indonesia. The method is used multiple linear regression. This result shows that the main problem of Islamic banks in Indonesia is how to increase equity in line with increasing third party fund. Another problem is that Islamic bank face difficulties to find debt for solving liquidity problem due to lack of instruments for liquidity derivative. Therefore Islamic banks rely on third party funds, which are high cost of funds due to time deposit fund, rather than using current deposit and saving deposit fund. Another result, negative coefficient of Gross Domestic Product (GDP to Quick Ratio (QR indicate that if macroeconomics of Indonesia is stable and good environment, Islamic banks will expansive the market, meanwhile Islamic banks have now low level of liquidity buffer. This means Islamic banks face high level of risk, if core depositors withdraw money rushly it became defaultDOI:  10.15408/sjie.v6i1.4405

Banking and Fiscal Unions in the EU: What is More Relevant?

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Anna N. Tsibulina

2014-01-01

Full Text Available The article deals with financial system structures in the eurozone member states, linkages between banking sectors and fiscal solvency of states and EU initiatives towards improving frameworks to prevent and if necessary to deal with crises in the future. The global economic and financial crisis has revealed a close interrelation between banks problems and sovereigns in the EU. The instruments which were used by national governments in order to save systemically important banks forced the EU to revise approaches to bank supervision and establish new mechanisms for banks' restructuring. At the same time sovereign debt crises in a number of member-states, on the one hand, showed lack of an effective EU-wide system of control over a fiscal discipline and, on the other hand raised questions about lack of any system of fiscal transfers to countries hit by a negative shock. The New Banking and Fiscal unions have been designed to withshand those challenges. The author analyses problems which might be solved with the help of the new instruments established within theabove mentioned unions. At the same time far from all initiatives aimed at achieving greater fiscal consolidation might turn out to be effective when dealing with systemic problems in times of a crisis.

Assessment of Differential Item Functioning in the Experiences of Discrimination Index

Science.gov (United States)

Cunningham, Timothy J.; Berkman, Lisa F.; Gortmaker, Steven L.; Kiefe, Catarina I.; Jacobs, David R.; Seeman, Teresa E.; Kawachi, Ichiro

2011-01-01

The psychometric properties of instruments used to measure self-reported experiences of discrimination in epidemiologic studies are rarely assessed, especially regarding construct validity. The authors used 2000–2001 data from the Coronary Artery Risk Development in Young Adults (CARDIA) Study to examine differential item functioning (DIF) in 2 versions of the Experiences of Discrimination (EOD) Index, an index measuring self-reported experiences of racial/ethnic and gender discrimination. DIF may confound interpretation of subgroup differences. Large DIF was observed for 2 of 7 racial/ethnic discrimination items: White participants reported more racial/ethnic discrimination for the “at school” item, and black participants reported more racial/ethnic discrimination for the “getting housing” item. The large DIF by race/ethnicity in the index for racial/ethnic discrimination probably reflects item impact and is the result of valid group differences between blacks and whites regarding their respective experiences of discrimination. The authors also observed large DIF by race/ethnicity for 3 of 7 gender discrimination items. This is more likely to have been due to item bias. Users of the EOD Index must consider the advantages and disadvantages of DIF adjustment (omitting items, constructing separate measures, and retaining items). The EOD Index has substantial usefulness as an instrument that can assess self-reported experiences of discrimination. PMID:22038104

Measuring positive affect and well-being after spinal cord injury: Development and psychometric characteristics of the SCI-QOL Positive Affect and Well-being bank and short form.

Science.gov (United States)

Bertisch, Hilary; Kalpakjian, Claire Z; Kisala, Pamela A; Tulsky, David S

2015-05-01

To develop an item response theory (IRT)-calibrated spinal cord injury (SCI)-specific Positive Affect and Well-being (PAWB) item bank with flexible options for administration. Qualitative feedback from patient and provider focus groups was used to expand on the Neurological Disorders and Quality of Life (Neuro-QOL) positive affect & well-being item bank for use in SCI. New items were created and revised based on expert review and patient feedback and were then field tested. Analyses included confirmatory factor analysis, graded response IRT modeling and evaluation of differential item functioning (DIF). We tested a 32-item pool at several rehabilitation centers across the United States, including the University of Michigan, Kessler Foundation, Rehabilitation Institute of Chicago, the University of Washington, Craig Hospital and the James J. Peters/Bronx Department of Veterans Affairs hospital. A total of 717 individuals with SCI answered the PAWB questions. A unidimensional model was observed (Confirmatory Fit Index=0.947; Root Mean Square Error of Approximation=0.094) and measurement precision was good (reliability in theta of -2.9 to 1.2 is roughly equivalent to classical reliability of 0.95 or above). Twelve items were flagged for DIF, however, after examination of effect sizes, the DIF was determined to be negligible and would have little practical impact on score estimates. The final calibrated item bank resulted in 28 retained items This study indicates that the Spinal Cord Injury--Quality of Life PAWB bank represents a psychometrically robust measurement tool. Short form items are also suggested and a computer adaptive test is available.

STUDY ON THE EVOLUTION AND USE OF INTERNET BANKING SERVICES IN ROMANIA

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KISS MARTA

2017-12-01

Full Text Available Nowadays, Internet banking is a service provided by all Romanian banks which has become a daily need for millions of users. This study contains a brief overview of the Internet banking services usage level in the European Union for the period 2007-2016. An increasing in the use of Internet banking services in the EU can be observed at the level of the analysed period. At the same time we compared the users (individuals aged 16 to 74 of Internet banking services to other European countries and we found that the users of the Internet banking services in Romania are still far below the European average but the trend is an upward one. In this study we have focused our attention only on Internet banking, as it is the most commonly used payment instrument in the Romanian practice of remote access payment instruments. The indicators considered in this study were the Internet banking users and the Internet users. We have used the model of the simple linear regression to highlight the existence of a relationship between the variables. In this respect we used statistical data taken from Eurostat and Romanian Ministry of Communications and Information Society as well as data provided by the Romanian National Institute of Statistics for the period 2009-2014. The results of the model have pointed out the fact that the rise of the number of Internet users leads to an increase of the number of Internet banking users.

Modelling Central Bank Independence and Inflation: Deus Ex Machina?

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Dumiter Florin

2015-11-01

Full Text Available Central bank independence represents the core element of assessing the complex relationship between government and central bank, having at background the fundamental issue of a free monetary policy decision-making process from the hands of the political circle. However, central bank independence is a multilevel concept within some social, economic and behavioral implications both for the central banks and for the society at whole. Central bank independence is needed in order to establish an autonomous central bank with a high degree of freedom in choosing its’ instruments, objectives, techniques and tactics. Moreover, a high degree of transparency for the public disclosure and monitoring of central bank operation and transaction is needed for the social barometer of the central bank. Consequently the central bank must have a high degree of accountability and responsibility vis - á - vis of the most democratic institution, i.e. Parliament. In this article it is presented a comprehensive study regarding the complex relationship between central bank independence and inflation by modeling these two monetary policy panacea, in order to make a fine tuning regarding the causal relationship established in a heterodox manner.

Translation, Validation, and Reliability of the Dutch Late-Life Function and Disability Instrument Computer Adaptive Test.

Science.gov (United States)

Arensman, Remco M; Pisters, Martijn F; de Man-van Ginkel, Janneke M; Schuurmans, Marieke J; Jette, Alan M; de Bie, Rob A

2016-09-01

Adequate and user-friendly instruments for assessing physical function and disability in older adults are vital for estimating and predicting health care needs in clinical practice. The Late-Life Function and Disability Instrument Computer Adaptive Test (LLFDI-CAT) is a promising instrument for assessing physical function and disability in gerontology research and clinical practice. The aims of this study were: (1) to translate the LLFDI-CAT to the Dutch language and (2) to investigate its validity and reliability in a sample of older adults who spoke Dutch and dwelled in the community. For the assessment of validity of the LLFDI-CAT, a cross-sectional design was used. To assess reliability, measurement of the LLFDI-CAT was repeated in the same sample. The item bank of the LLFDI-CAT was translated with a forward-backward procedure. A sample of 54 older adults completed the LLFDI-CAT, World Health Organization Disability Assessment Schedule 2.0, RAND 36-Item Short-Form Health Survey physical functioning scale (10 items), and 10-Meter Walk Test. The LLFDI-CAT was repeated in 2 to 8 days (mean=4.5 days). Pearson's r and the intraclass correlation coefficient (ICC) (2,1) were calculated to assess validity, group-level reliability, and participant-level reliability. A correlation of .74 for the LLFDI-CAT function scale and the RAND 36-Item Short-Form Health Survey physical functioning scale (10 items) was found. The correlations of the LLFDI-CAT disability scale with the World Health Organization Disability Assessment Schedule 2.0 and the 10-Meter Walk Test were -.57 and -.53, respectively. The ICC (2,1) of the LLFDI-CAT function scale was .84, with a group-level reliability score of .85. The ICC (2,1) of the LLFDI-CAT disability scale was .76, with a group-level reliability score of .81. The high percentage of women in the study and the exclusion of older adults with recent joint replacement or hospitalization limit the generalizability of the results. The Dutch LLFDI

Development of a questionnaire to assess patient satisfaction with allergen-specific immunotherapy in adults: item generation, item reduction, and preliminary validation

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Justícia JL

2011-05-01

Full Text Available Jose Luis Justícia1, Eva Baró2, Victoria Cardona3, Pedro Guardia4, Pedro Ojeda5, José Maria Olaguíbel6, José Maria Vega7, Carmen Vidal81Medical Department, Stallergenes Ibérica, Barcelona, Spain; 2Health Outcomes Research Department, 3D Health Research, Barcelona, Spain; 3Hospital Vall d'Hebron, Barcelona, Spain; 4Hospital Virgen Macarena, Sevilla, Spain; 5Clínica de Asma y Alergia Dres. Ojeda, Madrid, Spain; 6Complejo Hospitalario de Navarra, Pamplona, Spain; 7Hospital Regional Universitario Carlos Haya Málaga, Spain; 8Complejo Hospitalario Universitario de Santiago, Santiago de Compostela, SpainBackground: Allergen-specific immunotherapy (SIT is a treatment capable of modifying the natural course of allergy, so ensuring good adherence to SIT is fundamental. Up until now there has not existed an instrument specifically developed to measure patient satisfaction with SIT, although its assessment could help us to comprehend better and improve treatment adherence and effectiveness. The aim of this study was to develop an instrument to measure adult patient satisfaction with SIT.Methods: Items were generated from a literature review, focus groups with allergic adult patients undergoing SIT, and a meeting with experts. Potential items were administered to allergic patients undergoing SIT in an observational, cross-sectional, multicenter study. Item reduction was based on quantitative and qualitative criteria. A preliminary assessment of feasibility, reliability, and validity of the retained items was performed.Results: An initial pool of 70 items was administered to 257 patients undergoing SIT. Fifty-four items were eliminated resulting in a provisional instrument with 16 items. Factor analysis yielded four factors that were identified as perceived efficacy, activities and environment, cost-benefit balance, and overall satisfaction, explaining 74.8% of variance. Ceiling and floor effects were negligible for overall score. Overall score was

Development and validation of a ten-item questionnaire with explanatory illustrations to assess upper extremity disorders: favorable effect of illustrations in the item reduction process.

Science.gov (United States)

Kurimoto, Shigeru; Suzuki, Mikako; Yamamoto, Michiro; Okui, Nobuyuki; Imaeda, Toshihiko; Hirata, Hitoshi

2011-11-01

The purpose of this study is to develop a short and valid measure for upper extremity disorders and to assess the effect of attached illustrations in item reduction of a self-administered disability questionnaire while retaining psychometric properties. A validated questionnaire used to assess upper extremity disorders, the Hand20, was reduced to ten items using two item-reduction techniques. The psychometric properties of the abbreviated form, the Hand10, were evaluated on an independent sample that was used for the shortening process. Validity, reliability, and responsiveness of the Hand10 were retained in the item reduction process. It was possible that the use of explanatory illustrations attached to the Hand10 helped with its reproducibility. The illustrations for the Hand10 promoted text comprehension and motivation to answer the items. These changes resulted in high acceptability; more than 99.3% of patients, including 98.5% of elderly patients, could complete the Hand10 properly. The illustrations had favorable effects on the item reduction process and made it possible to retain precision of the instrument. The Hand10 is a reliable and valid instrument for individual-level applications with the advantage of being compact and broadly applicable, even in elderly individuals.

Content validation of an instrument of evaluation of body scheme for blind children

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Patricia Santos de Oliveira

2012-11-01

Full Text Available The aim of this study was to describe the process of content validation of an instrument of evaluation of Body Scheme for children with congenital blindness with aged between 6 and 9 years old. The population was composed of seven judges who received a first version of the instrument, they analyzed each item in the categories, clarity of language, theoretical pertinence, viability of application, and adequacy of construction. Item 1 – “Exploring the body” obtained 80% agreement; item 2 – “Playing getting dressed” received 70% agreement; item 3 – “Imitating gestures” 60% agreement; item 4 – “Puzzle” 75% agreement. It was adopted as a criterion of permanence in the proof at least 80% agreement. The item 1 remained as it was in the first version; item 2 was excluded and items 3 and 4 were modified. Based on the suggestions of the judges and the rate of agreement, a second version of the instrument composed of three items was elaborated. It was possible to consider the changes suggested by the judges were important to ensure the content validity of the instrument.

Improving Measurement Efficiency of the Inner EAR Scale with Item Response Theory.

Science.gov (United States)

Jessen, Annika; Ho, Andrew D; Corrales, C Eduardo; Yueh, Bevan; Shin, Jennifer J

2018-02-01

Objectives (1) To assess the 11-item Inner Effectiveness of Auditory Rehabilitation (Inner EAR) instrument with item response theory (IRT). (2) To determine whether the underlying latent ability could also be accurately represented by a subset of the items for use in high-volume clinical scenarios. (3) To determine whether the Inner EAR instrument correlates with pure tone thresholds and word recognition scores. Design IRT evaluation of prospective cohort data. Setting Tertiary care academic ambulatory otolaryngology clinic. Subjects and Methods Modern psychometric methods, including factor analysis and IRT, were used to assess unidimensionality and item properties. Regression methods were used to assess prediction of word recognition and pure tone audiometry scores. Results The Inner EAR scale is unidimensional, and items varied in their location and information. Information parameter estimates ranged from 1.63 to 4.52, with higher values indicating more useful items. The IRT model provided a basis for identifying 2 sets of items with relatively lower information parameters. Item information functions demonstrated which items added insubstantial value over and above other items and were removed in stages, creating a 8- and 3-item Inner EAR scale for more efficient assessment. The 8-item version accurately reflected the underlying construct. All versions correlated moderately with word recognition scores and pure tone averages. Conclusion The 11-, 8-, and 3-item versions of the Inner EAR scale have strong psychometric properties, and there is correlational validity evidence for the observed scores. Modern psychometric methods can help streamline care delivery by maximizing relevant information per item administered.

Subordinate debt, deposit insurance and market oriented monitoring of banks

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Gaurav S. Chauhan

2016-09-01

Full Text Available We present a model of a bank with endogenous risk choices, where delegated monitoring by an active market in subordinate debt helps in containing the bank's risk shifting in the presence of deposit insurance. In comparison to static ex ante contracting, an active market enables continuous monitoring by subordinate debt to penalise the bank's risk shifting. The model is instrumental in deriving optimal level of subordinate debt required to achieve equilibrium where banks choose risk levels consistent with the first best as envisaged by a social planner. The optimal quantity of subordinate debt further eliminates any risk shifting associated even with risk insensitive premiums.

Liberalization, Moral Hazard in Banking, and Prudential Regulation: Are Capital Requirements Enough?

OpenAIRE

Kevin C. Murdock; Thomas F. Hellmann; Joseph E. Stiglitz

2000-01-01

In a dynamic model of moral hazard, competition can undermine prudent bank behavior. While capital-requirement regulation can induce prudent behavior, the policy yields Pareto-inefficient outcomes. Capital requirements reduce gambling incentives by putting bank equity at risk. However, they also have a perverse effect of harming banks' franchise values, thus encouraging gambling. Pareto-efficient outcomes can be achieved by adding deposit-rate controls as a regulatory instrument, since they f...

Psychometric evaluation of the Patient-Reported Outcomes Measurement Information System (PROMIS) Nicotine Dependence Item Bank for use with electronic cigarettes.

Science.gov (United States)

Morean, Meghan; Krishnan-Sarin, Suchitra; Sussman, Steve; Foulds, Jonathan; Fishbein, Howard; Grana, Rachel; O'Malley, Stephanie S

2018-01-02

Psychometrically sound measures of e-cigarette dependence are lacking. We modified the PROMIS Nicotine Dependence Item Banks for use with e-cigarettes and evaluated the psychometrics of the 22-, 8- and 4-item adapted versions. 1009 adults who reported using e-cigarettes at least weekly completed an anonymous survey in Summer 2016 (50.2% male, 77.1% White, mean age 35.81 [10.71], 66.4% daily e-cigarette users, 72.6% current cigarette smokers). Psychometric analyses included confirmatory factor analysis, internal consistency, measurement invariance, examination of mean-level differences, convergent validity, and test-criterion relationships with e-cigarette use outcomes. All PROMIS-E versions had confirmable, internally consistent latent structures that were scalar invariant by sex, race, e-cigarette use (non-daily/daily), e-liquid nicotine content (no/yes), and current cigarette smoking status (no/yes). Daily e-cigarette users, nicotine e-liquid users, and cigarette smokers reported being more dependent on e-cigarettes than their counterparts. All PROMIS-E versions correlated strongly with one another, evidenced convergent validity with the Penn State E-cigarette Dependence Index and time to first e-cigarette use in the morning, and evidenced test-criterion relationships with vaping frequency, e-liquid nicotine concentration, and e-cigarette quit attempts. Similar results were observed when analyses were conducted within subsamples of exclusive e-cigarette users and duals-users of cigarettes and e-cigarettes. Each PROMIS-E version evidenced strong psychometric properties for assessing e-cigarette dependence in adults who either use e-cigarette exclusively or who are dual-users of cigarettes and e-cigarettes. However, results indicated little benefit of the longer versions over the 4-item PROMIS-E, which provides an efficient assessment of e-cigarette dependence. The availability of the novel, psychometrically sound PROMIS-E can further research on a wide range of

FINANCIAL REPORTING: PERFORMANCE AND FAIR VALUE THE CASE OF THE EUROPEAN BANKING SECTOR

OpenAIRE

Elisabeth Combes-Thuelin; Lionel Escaffre

2003-01-01

International audience; Regarding financial reporting, information about performances is one of the preferred items banking institutions are referring to. Therefore, quantitative and qualitative performance indicators are a significant part of annual reports. Reporting about performances raises some other issues: valuation at cost or at fair value, registration versus disclosure. In the case of the banking industry, the accounting information disclosed is all the more important as this sector...

The Dif Identification in Constructed Response Items Using Partial Credit Model

OpenAIRE

Heri Retnawati

2017-01-01

The study was to identify the load, the type and the significance of differential item functioning (DIF) in constructed response item using the partial credit model (PCM). The data in the study were the students’ instruments and the students’ responses toward the PISA-like test items that had been completed by 386 ninth grade students and 460 tenth grade students who had been about 15 years old in the Province of Yogyakarta Special Region in Indonesia. The analysis toward the item characteris...

AN EXPLORATION OF CUSTOMERS’ SWITCHING BEHAVIOR IN ISLAMIC BANKING INDUSTRY

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Ali Rama

2017-02-01

Full Text Available The existence of the switching behavior among Islamic bank customers may affect to the survival of the Islamic banks of the country. Switching behavior is mostly as an outcome of the negative service experience that may be related to several factors. The purpose of the study is to provide an insight of the drivers that lead to a bank customer switching behavior from one Islamic bank to another bank. The study employed survey method through questionnaire instrument and distributed to Islamic banking customers in several areas of Banten Province, Indonesia. The result of statistical analysis shows that customer satisfaction, service quality, shariah compliance, prices and involuntary switching have their significant effect on customers’ switching behavior in the Islamic banks. However, service failure and advertisement are not statistically significant in driving bank switching. Therefore, the Islamic bank manager should shape their business model around customers’ needs and focuses operational improvements on customers’ most valued interactions.     Keywords: Switching behavior, Customer satisfaction, Service quality, Shariah compliance, Prices JEL Classification: G14, G20, G21, M30, D10

Assessment on Hybrid E-Learning Instrument

OpenAIRE

Intan Farahana Kamsin; Rosseni Din

2015-01-01

This study aims to improve Hybrid e-Learning 9.3. A total of 233 students of International Islamic University Malaysia, Gombak who have the experience in hybrid teaching and learning were involved as respondents. Rasch Measurement Model was used for this study. Validity analyses conducted were on (i) the compatibility of the items, (ii) mapping of items and respondents, (iii) scaling of instruments, and (iv) unidimentional items. The findings of the study show that (i) the items developed cor...

A Behavioural Model of E-Banking Usage in Italy

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Guendalina Capece

2013-06-01

Full Text Available E‐banking is defined as the automated delivery of new and traditional banking products and services directly to customers through electronic, interactive communication channels. “Pure online” banks are characterized by the absence of physical windows and front‐office personnel. Traditional banks are still integrating traditional distribution channels with online ones; the scenario is therefore still evolving over time. Despite the intrinsic potentialities, Italy is far from being a leader in the usage of innovative online instruments in the banking system and will struggle with new innovation waves. In this paper, we measure the potential effective ebanking usage. Furthermore, we investigate the behaviour of users and adopters, identifying the major causes influencing satisfaction and usage and the impact of these different causes on the intensity of utilization. The analysis is based on a panel of 495 real users, thus allowing the profiling of the Italian adopter to discover the causes of usage and outline strategies for the growth of e‐banking services in Italy.

A prototype NDT inspection data bank

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Wells, N.S.

1978-01-01

Existing reliability data banks provide information on items with catastrophic failure modes. However, many system components in a nuclear generating station, e.g., the steam generators, have a time-dependent degradation failure mode. Non-destructive tests associated with this failure mode require a different data base to permit predictive estimates of the component service life and performance. A data base suitable for this failure mode is presently being tested at Chalk River Nuclear Laboratories. (author)

'Too far ahead of its time': Britain, Burroughs and real-time banking in the 1960s

OpenAIRE

Martin, Ian

2010-01-01

In 1969, the popular British television programme, Tomorrow's World, featured an item that predicted point of sale terminals in every high street shop ushering in the country's computerised cashless economy. The basis for the show's prediction was a succession of ambitious projects initiated by the British banks, each with the aim of introducing a new real-time computer banking system to its network of branches by 15 February 1971. The banks, threatened by state-sponsored competition, inspire...

FUTURE CHALLENGES TO THE ORGANIZATION OF ACCOUNTING IN TRADE BANKS

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Radka Andasarova

2014-06-01

Full Text Available Trade banks are on the threshold of the introduction of two big projects which would qualitatively change the organization of accounting. The first one is the adoption of long-expected accounting standard Financial instruments IFRS 9, and the second is connected to the introduction of new world standards in bank capital famous as Basel III - a global, voluntary regulatory standard on bank capital adequacy, stress testing and market liquidity risk, through accepted in June 2013 by the EU Capital Requirements Directive 2013/36/EC and Capital Requirements Regulation 575/2013.

APPLICATION OF CLUSTERIZATION FOR DETERMINATION OF COMPETITIVE BENEFITS OF BANKING INSTITUTIONS

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Mikulyak Kateryna

2018-01-01

Full Text Available Introduction. In the minds of the growing dynamic competition, the crisis of the crisis, the role of cluster structures is postponed, the clusters of clusters are one of the main mechanisms for integrating commercial banks, and that of the minds for the development of business. Clusters in the national economy of new models of management of commercial banks is important and relevant for both theoretical and practical positions. Purpose. The method of operation is the creation of competitive competitiveness of commercial banks in Ukraine for the sake of self-motivation of Kohonen’s self-government maps. Results. The article deals with the concept of cluster analysis of banking institutions on the basis of Kohanen’s self-organizing maps. The methodology of cluster analysis of business models is described and the features of constructing cells on maps are analyzed. The instruments by which banking institutions are grouped into clusters are determined, depending on the types of operations and the amount of activity they do. The risks which can arise when a combination of special borrowers, a large turnover of capital and high concentration are presented. Attention is paid to the peculiarities of clusters placed on maps, their changes depending on the instruments that determine the competitive advantages of banking institutions of different clusters. The importance of cluster analysis for assessing the activities of banking institutions and identifying the anomalies and risks that may arise in the course of banking activities in the financial services market is substantiated. Conclusions. The theoretical and methodical aspects of the motivation of self-organizing maps of Kohonen were supplemented; the activity of commercial banks of Ukraine in terms of competitiveness indicators was analysed; commercial banks of Ukraine were grouped in clusters and business models of Ukrainian banks on the basis of cluster analysis were established; it was

A Proposal of Client Application Architecture using Loosely Coupled Component Connection Method in Banking Branch System

Science.gov (United States)

Someya, Harushi; Mori, Yuichi; Abe, Masahiro; Machida, Isamu; Hasegawa, Atsushi; Yoshie, Osamu

Due to the deregulation of financial industry, the branches in banking industry need to shift to the sales-oriented bases from the operation-oriented bases. For corresponding to this movement, new banking branch systems are being developed. It is the main characteristics of new systems that we bring the form operations that have traditionally been performed at each branch into the centralized operation center for the purpose of rationalization and efficiency of the form operations. The branches treat a wide variety of forms. The forms can be described by common items in many cases, but the items include the different business logic and each form has the different relation among the items. And there is a need to develop the client application by user oneself. Consequently the challenge is to arrange the development environment that is high reusable, easy customizable and user developable. We propose a client application architecture that has a loosely coupled component connection method, and allows developing the applications by only describing the screen configurations and their transitions in XML documents. By adopting our architecture, we developed client applications of the centralized operation center for the latest banking branch system. Our experiments demonstrate good performances.

Sperm banking is of key importance in patients with prostate cancer.

Science.gov (United States)

Salonia, Andrea; Capogrosso, Paolo; Castiglione, Fabio; Russo, Andrea; Gallina, Andrea; Ferrari, Matteo; Clementi, Maria Chiara; Castagna, Giulia; Briganti, Alberto; Cantiello, Francesco; Damiano, Rocco; Montorsi, Francesco

2013-08-01

To assess the need for sperm banking among patients with prostate cancer (PCa) who are candidates for radical prostatectomy (RP). Cross-sectional study. Urologic department. Cohort of 510 Caucasian-European candidates for RP. A 10-item self-administered questionnaire to assess opinions on sperm banking before RP, to which descriptive statistics and logistic regression models were applied. PCa patients' wishes for preoperative sperm banking. Data collection was completed for 495 patients (97.1%). Ninety-nine (20%) expressed a wish for preoperative sperm banking. Men who wanted to bank sperm were younger (mean 62.2 vs. 65.1 years), were more frequently childless (21.2% vs. 8.8%), and more frequently had a more intense desire for fatherhood (64.7% vs. 9.3%) than the patients not interested in banking sperm. Willingness to bank sperm was not affected by the patient's educational or relationship status. Moreover, the interest for sperm banking was maintained regardless of cost issues. Overall, 84% of the patients considered it necessary to have a dedicated service of preoperative sperm cryopreservation. One out of five PCa patients would bank sperm before RP. Most patients considered it necessary to establish a dedicated service for preoperative sperm cryopreservation, regardless of their own motivation to bank sperm. Copyright © 2013 American Society for Reproductive Medicine. Published by Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

Improving the System of Risk Management in Ukrainian Banks

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Skasko Oleh I.

2014-01-01

Full Text Available The goal of the article lies in the study of evolution of formation of the risk management system in Ukrainian banks, main instruments, methods of risk management and organisational approaches to formation of subdivisions of risk management and corporate management in banks. Analysing recommendations of the Basel Committee on Banking Supervision, legislative and regulatory acts, which form organisational and methodological requirements by risk management in banks, the article reveals shortcomings of its functioning. The article gives proposals on improvement of riskology in Ukrainian banks, namely: introduction of the requirement for risk assessment and stress testing by banks in the medium-term prospective (up to 3 years, which would reveal risks of realisation of long-term bank programmes, potential losses of receipts and capital due to existing gaps between the terms of performance of obligations by assets and liabilities, etc. In the result of the study the article establishes that in order to realise requirements of the Basel Committee on Banking Supervision on organisation of subdivisions of risk management in banks, it is necessary to introduce qualification requirements to managers of these services and procedures of their assignment/retirement in co-ordination with the banking supervision service, the status of which in the bank is not lower than managers of the internal audit and financial monitoring services, assignment of whom should be mandatory co-ordinated with NBU.

Validation of the HIV/AIDS Stigma Instrument - PLWA (HASI-P).

Science.gov (United States)

Holzemer, William L; Uys, Leana R; Chirwa, Maureen L; Greeff, Minrie; Makoae, Lucia N; Kohi, Thecla W; Dlamini, Priscilla S; Stewart, Anita L; Mullan, Joseph; Phetlhu, René D; Wantland, Dean; Durrheim, Kevin

2007-09-01

This article describes the development and testing of a quantitative measure of HIV/AIDS stigma as experienced by people living with HIV/AIDS. This instrument is designed to measure perceived stigma, create a baseline from which to measure changes in stigma over time, and track potential progress towards reducing stigma. It was developed in three phases from 2003-2006: generating items based on results of focus group discussions; pilot testing and reducing the original list of items; and validating the instrument. Data for all phases were collected from five African countries: Lesotho, Malawi, South Africa, Swaziland and Tanzania. The instrument was validated with a sample of 1,477 persons living with HIV/AIDS from all of the five countries. The sample had a mean age of 36.1 years and 74.1% was female. The participants reported they knew they were HIV positive for an average of 3.4 years and 46% of the sample was taking antiretroviral medications. A six factor solution with 33 items explained 60.72% of the variance. Scale alpha reliabilities were examined and items that did not contribute to scale reliability were dropped. The factors included: Verbal Abuse (8 items, alpha=0.886); Negative Self-Perception (5 items, alpha=0.906); Health Care Neglect (7 items, alpha=0.832); Social Isolation (5 items, alpha=0.890); Fear of Contagion (6 items, alpha=0.795); and Workplace Stigma (2 items, alpha=0.758). This article reports on the development and validation of a new measure of stigma, HIV/AIDS Stigma Instrument - PLWA (HASI-P) providing evidence that supports adequate content and construct validity, modest concurrent validity, and acceptable internal consistency reliability for each of the six subscales and total score. The scale is available is several African languages.

Green banking

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Maja Drobnjaković

2013-06-01

Full Text Available There is an urgent need to march towards “low - carbon economy”. Global challenges of diminishing fossil fuel reserves, climate change, environmental management and finite natural resources serving an expanding world population - these reasons mean that urgent action is required to transition to solutions which minimize environmental impact and are sustainable. We are at the start of the low - carbon revolution and those that have started on their low - carbon journey already are seeing benefits such as new markets and customers, improved economic, social and environmental performance, and reduced bills and risks. Green investment banks offer alternative financial services: green car loans, energy efficiency mortgages, alternative energy venture capital, eco - savings deposits and green credit cards. These items represent innovative financial products.

Developing and testing items for the South African Personality Inventory (SAPI

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Carin Hill

2013-11-01

Research purpose: This article reports on the process of identifying items for, and provides a quantitative evaluation of, the South African Personality Inventory (SAPI items. Motivation for the study: The study intended to develop an indigenous and psychometrically sound personality instrument that adheres to the requirements of South African legislation and excludes cultural bias. Research design, approach and method: The authors used a cross-sectional design. They measured the nine SAPI clusters identified in the qualitative stage of the SAPI project in 11 separate quantitative studies. Convenience sampling yielded 6735 participants. Statistical analysis focused on the construct validity and reliability of items. The authors eliminated items that showed poor performance, based on common psychometric criteria, and selected the best performing items to form part of the final version of the SAPI. Main findings: The authors developed 2573 items from the nine SAPI clusters. Of these, 2268 items were valid and reliable representations of the SAPI facets. Practical/managerial implications: The authors developed a large item pool. It measures personality in South Africa. Researchers can refine it for the SAPI. Furthermore, the project illustrates an approach that researchers can use in projects that aim to develop culturally-informed psychological measures. Contribution/value-add: Personality assessment is important for recruiting, selecting and developing employees. This study contributes to the current knowledge about the early processes researchers follow when they develop a personality instrument that measures personality fairly in different cultural groups, as the SAPI does.

Developing a short version of the Toronto Structured Interview for Alexithymia using item response theory.

Science.gov (United States)

Sekely, Angela; Taylor, Graeme J; Bagby, R Michael

2018-03-17

The Toronto Structured Interview for Alexithymia (TSIA) was developed to provide a structured interview method for assessing alexithymia. One drawback of this instrument is the amount of time it takes to administer and score. The current study used item response theory (IRT) methods to analyze data from a large heterogeneous multi-language sample (N = 842) to investigate whether a subset of items could be selected to create a short version of the instrument. Samejima's (1969) graded response model was used to fit the item responses. Items providing maximum information were retained in the short model, resulting in the elimination of 12-items from the original 24-items. Despite the 50% reduction in the number of items, 65.22% of the information was retained. Further studies are needed to validate the short version. A short version of the TSIA is potentially of practical value to clinicians and researchers with time constraints. Copyright © 2018. Published by Elsevier B.V.

The IKARUS instrument

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Gerster, H.J.; Stein, G.

1994-01-01

When the Federal Government decided on a 25% reduction of CO 2 emissions till 2005 in 1990 the necessity resulted that an instrument has to be developed for the analysis and assessment of the ecological, economic and energetic impact of different reduction strategies. The development task was awarded by the BMFT to the Research Centre Juelich in cooperation with well-known institutions of energy system research. The total instrument is scheduled to be finished by the end of 1994. For the decentral use of the instrument by a wide specialist public the developed models and data banks which are equipped with a user-friendly surface are suited for larger PCs (486, 16 MB RAM/500-1000 MB ROM). (orig.) [de

Marketing channels of banking products and services in contemporary business environment

OpenAIRE

Rakita Aleksandra

2016-01-01

Marketing application in banking is dating back to the 50s of 20th century, and since then its role is constantly changing. His modern role of synthesis of analysis, planning and control of the bank in the financial markets, achieved by the use of instruments of marketing mix (product, price, distribution and promotion). The paper is an analysis of the distribution function, and is primarily an overview of the modern distribution channels of banking products and services in the US, as the mos...

Nutritional quality and price of university food bank hampers.

Science.gov (United States)

Willows, Noreen D; Au, Vivian

2006-01-01

Food insecurity appears to be a growing problem for post-secondary students, but little study has been made of the 51 campus-based food banks that exist. In 2003-04, the University of Alberta Campus Food Bank (CFB) distributed hampers intended to supply four days of food to 630 unique clients, of whom 207 (32.8%) were children. The nutritional adequacy of food hampers and cost saving to students were evaluated in the current study. Hampers prepared for one adult, and for one adult with one child, were nutritionally evaluated and scored for number of servings according to Canada's Food Guide to Healthy Eating. Two types of hampers were evaluated: those containing only non-perishable items, and those containing non-perishable and perishable items. Hamper contents were priced to establish the cost saving to students. The study revealed that a student with one child would receive up to 58.02 Canadian dollars worth of food in a hamper that contained perishable items. All hampers met the recommended minimum servings for each food group, but were very low in fat and protein from animal sources. Because students can obtain hampers only twice each month, the CFB is not the solution to food insecurity on campus. Awareness of the issue of post-secondary student food insecurity needs to be raised.

Reliability and validity of the Spanish version of the 10-item Connor-Davidson Resilience Scale (10-item CD-RISC in young adults

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García-Campayo Javier

2011-08-01

Full Text Available Abstract Background The 10-item Connor-Davidson Resilience Scale (10-item CD-RISC is an instrument for measuring resilience that has shown good psychometric properties in its original version in English. The aim of this study was to evaluate the validity and reliability of the Spanish version of the 10-item CD-RISC in young adults and to verify whether it is structured in a single dimension as in the original English version. Findings Cross-sectional observational study including 681 university students ranging in age from 18 to 30 years. The number of latent factors in the 10 items of the scale was analyzed by exploratory factor analysis. Confirmatory factor analysis was used to verify whether a single factor underlies the 10 items of the scale as in the original version in English. The convergent validity was analyzed by testing whether the mean of the scores of the mental component of SF-12 (MCS and the quality of sleep as measured with the Pittsburgh Sleep Index (PSQI were higher in subjects with better levels of resilience. The internal consistency of the 10-item CD-RISC was estimated using the Cronbach α test and test-retest reliability was estimated with the intraclass correlation coefficient. The Cronbach α coefficient was 0.85 and the test-retest intraclass correlation coefficient was 0.71. The mean MCS score and the level of quality of sleep in both men and women were significantly worse in subjects with lower resilience scores. Conclusions The Spanish version of the 10-item CD-RISC showed good psychometric properties in young adults and thus can be used as a reliable and valid instrument for measuring resilience. Our study confirmed that a single factor underlies the resilience construct, as was the case of the original scale in English.

Consumer perceptions of banking services: Factors for bank’s preference

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Adefulu Adesoga

2016-12-01

Full Text Available The paper examined consumer perceptions of banking services as a factor for bank’s preference among open and distance learning students. Survey research method was adopted. The population of study was the ODL students from which sample were selected using stratified random sampling technique. Questionnaire was administered on selected samples. The research instrument was validated through content validity while reliability was done through test-re-test method. Respondents’ perceptions of banking services were captured using the factor analysis technique to determine perceptions order of importance while T-Test determined its significance. The study revealed that the different perceptions of the customers were significant in influencing the choice of bank especially by the students. The paper concluded that the consumer perceptions of the banking services were essential requirements for understanding how well to delight banking customers. The study recommended that bank delivery services must be customer oriented and customer relationship focused

Adaptation of WHOQOL as health-related quality of life instrument to develop a vision-specific instrument.

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Dandona Lalit

2000-01-01

Full Text Available The WHOQOL instrument was adapted as a health-related QOL instrument for a population-based epidemiologic study of eye diseases in southern India, the Andhra Pradesh Eye Disease Study (APEDS. A follow-up question was added to each item in WHOQOL to determine whether the decrease in QOL was due to any health reasons including eye-related reasons. Modifications in WHOQOL and translation in local language were done through the use of the focus groups including health professionals and people not related to health care. The modified instrument has 28 items across 6 domains of the WHOQOL and was translated into the local language, Telugu, using the pragmatic approach. It takes 10-20 minutes to be administered by a trained interviewer. Reliability was within acceptable range. This health-related QOL instrument is being used in the population-based study APEDS to develop a vision-specific QOL instrument which could potentially be used to assess the impact of visual impairment on QOL across different cultures and for use in evaluating eye-care interventions. This health-related QOL instrument could also be used to develop other disease-specific instruments as it allows assessment of the extent to which various aspects of QOL are affected by a variety of health problems.

Results of Instrument Observations and Adaptive Prediction of Thermoabrasion of Banks of the Vilyui Reservoir

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Velikin, S. A.; Sobol’, I. S.; Sobol’, S. V.; Khokhlov, D. N.

2013-01-01

Quantitative data derived from observations of reformation of the thermoabrasive banks of the Viliyui Reservoir in Yakutia during the service period from 1972 through 2011, and results of analytical prediction of bank formations over the next 20 years for purposes of monitoring the ecological safety of this water body are presented

Results of Instrument Observations and Adaptive Prediction of Thermoabrasion of Banks of the Vilyui Reservoir

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Velikin, S. A. [Vilyuisk Permafrost Scientific-Research Station, Institute of Permafrost Science, Siberian Division of the Russian Academy of Sciences (Russian Federation); Sobol' , I. S.; Sobol' , S. V.; Khokhlov, D. N. [Nizhnii Novgorod State Architectural and Civil-Engineering University (Russian Federation)

2013-11-15

Quantitative data derived from observations of reformation of the thermoabrasive banks of the Viliyui Reservoir in Yakutia during the service period from 1972 through 2011, and results of analytical prediction of bank formations over the next 20 years for purposes of monitoring the ecological safety of this water body are presented.

14 CFR 121.303 - Airplane instruments and equipment.

Science.gov (United States)

2010-01-01

... 14 Aeronautics and Space 3 2010-01-01 2010-01-01 false Airplane instruments and equipment. 121.303... Airplane instruments and equipment. (a) Unless otherwise specified, the instrument and equipment... airspeed limitation and item of related information in the Airplane Flight Manual and pertinent placards...

Independent Orbiter Assessment (IOA): Assessment of instrumental subsystem FMEA/CIL

Science.gov (United States)

Gardner, J. R.; Addis, A. W.

1988-01-01

The McDonnell Douglas Astronautics Company (MDAC) was selected in June 1986 to perform an Independent Orbiter Assessment (IOA) of the Failure Modes and Effects Analysis (FMEA) and Critical Items List (CIL). The IOA effort first completed an analysis of the Instrumentation hardware, generating draft failure modes and potential critical items. To preserve independence, this analysis was accomplished without reliance upon the results contained within the NASA FMEA/CIL documentation. The IOA results were then compared to the NASA FMEA/CIL baseline. A resolution of each discrepancy from the comparison is provided through additional analysis as required. The results of that comparison for the Orbiter Instrumentation hardware are documented. The IOA product for Instrumentation analysis consisted of 107 failure mode worksheets that resulted in 22 critical items being identified. Comparison was made to the Pre 51-L NASA baseline with 14 Post 51-L FMEAs added, which consists of 96 FMEAs and 18 CIL items. This comparison produced agreement on all but 25 FMEAs which caused differences in 5 CIL items.

Developing a workplace resilience instrument.

Science.gov (United States)

Mallak, Larry A; Yildiz, Mustafa

2016-05-27

Resilience benefits from the use of protective factors, as opposed to risk factors, which are associated with vulnerability. Considerable research and instrument development has been conducted in clinical settings for patients. The need existed for an instrument to be developed in a workplace setting to measure resilience of employees. This study developed and tested a resilience instrument for employees in the workplace. The research instrument was distributed to executives and nurses working in the United States in hospital settings. Five-hundred-forty completed and usable responses were obtained. The instrument contained an inventory of workplace resilience, a job stress questionnaire, and relevant demographics. The resilience items were written based on previous work by the lead author and inspired by Weick's [1] sense-making theory. A four-factor model yielded an instrument having psychometric properties showing good model fit. Twenty items were retained for the resulting Workplace Resilience Instrument (WRI). Parallel analysis was conducted with successive iterations of exploratory and confirmatory factor analyses. Respondents were classified based on their employment with either a rural or an urban hospital. Executives had significantly higher WRI scores than nurses, controlling for gender. WRI scores were positively and significantly correlated with years of experience and the Brief Job Stress Questionnaire. An instrument to measure individual resilience in the workplace (WRI) was developed. The WRI's four factors identify dimensions of workplace resilience for use in subsequent investigations: Active Problem-Solving, Team Efficacy, Confident Sense-Making, and Bricolage.

Methods of Payment to Banks: e-Banking. Comparative Study on Three Banks

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Miranda Petronella VLAD

2012-11-01

Full Text Available E-banking website, majority offers the banks. At first it was electronic-banking, Internet-banking followed, followed by mobile-banking service. These services offer the same facilities, Customer Bank just that varies the channel used for communication with the Bank. The services offered by banks through E-banking, approves: compilation of orders; scheduled payments; orders for payment of wages; internal transfers; pay rates on internal or external; currency exchanges; view balances of accounts at any time; information about foreign exchange rates; view and print account statements; the definition of beneficiaries of direct payments by the client.

Collateral Determinats In Bank Risk Mananagement: The Regional Case

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A. M. Karminsky

2018-01-01

Full Text Available Regional banks are struggling with significant obstacles in the modern Russian economy. Among them are strong competition with major big banks, strong resource restrictions, tightening the Bank of Russia’s requirements, and quite rapid expansion of financial technologies. Thus, the reduction of regional banks occurs, that produces both a negative impact on the development of small and medium enterprises (SMEs and challenges for balanced competition on the Russian market. Basically, these banks provide the settlement of region’s social and economic problems while maintaining local companies and enterprises. Collateral, as a source for losses covering, became the essential element of credit risk management in banks. Providing lenders to implement such instruments, it helps to reduce bank losses under borrower’s default. The purpose of the article relates to revealing of collateral determinants with higher impact on bank risk with the application of empirical methods (including regional level. This study is based on linear regression models evaluated by the least square method. Private data of secured small and medium business loans is used. This article presents LTV (loan-to-value as a major collateral determinant. The empirical evidence of interlinkage between collateral requirements, by the means of LTV, and risk premium is provided for loan portfolio of Russian regional banks. The hypothesis that LTV conversely correlates with risk premium is statistically proved.

ONLINE BANKING IN THE ROMANIAN BANKING SYSTEM

OpenAIRE

IMOLA DRIGĂ

2014-01-01

In the world of banking, the development of IT has a huge effect on development of more flexible payments methods and more user-friendly banking services. Recently, modern electronic banking services, internet and mobile banking, have rejuvenated banking transactions. Electronic banking over the Internet is one of the newest e-banking services with several benefits both for banks and for customers. The paper aims to provide an overview of online banking services highlighting various aspect...

Empirical Study on the Relationships of Internet Banking Quality, Customer Value, and Customer Satisfaction

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Umbas KRISNANTO

2017-06-01

Full Text Available The purpose of this conducted study was to test the direct and indirect effects of internet banking quality and customer value to customer satisfaction. This study uses descriptive analysis and multiple regression analysis to examine these relationships. The study is based on a survey conducted with respondents who use internet banking in their day-to-day activities, and all questionnaire items are deemed valid and reliable. For data analysis, the descriptive analysis for the indicators, dimensions, and variables proved to be in a good category. Research findings and implications of the regression analysis show that internet banking quality and customer value had a greater direct impact on customer satisfaction, rather the partial relationships of these variables to satisfaction. In the partial relationships, customer value has a higher influence on customer satisfaction, than internet banking quality. As a research recommendation, banks should provide a more humanistic internet banking service for better consumer satisfaction. A major research limitation of the study is that it does not measure service quality of internet banking, and only focuses on customers of internet banking use of one single bank. The originality of this research relies on the insights of internet banking quality leading to customer satisfaction and increasing the value of a bank to its main target markets.

12 CFR 619.9140 - Farm Credit bank(s).

Science.gov (United States)

2010-01-01

... 12 Banks and Banking 6 2010-01-01 2010-01-01 false Farm Credit bank(s). 619.9140 Section 619.9140 Banks and Banking FARM CREDIT ADMINISTRATION FARM CREDIT SYSTEM DEFINITIONS § 619.9140 Farm Credit bank(s). Except as otherwise defined, the term Farm Credit bank(s) includes Farm Credit Banks...

ONLINE BANKING IN THE ROMANIAN BANKING SYSTEM

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

IMOLA DRIGĂ

2014-12-01

Full Text Available In the world of banking, the development of IT has a huge effect on development of more flexible payments methods and more user-friendly banking services. Recently, modern electronic banking services, internet and mobile banking, have rejuvenated banking transactions. Electronic banking over the Internet is one of the newest e-banking services with several benefits both for banks and for customers. The paper aims to provide an overview of online banking services highlighting various aspects globally as well as in the Romanian banking system. Even if there already are several studies on web banking, this topic still remains a resourceful area for academic research in the next decade.

Class-Wide Access to a Commercial Step 1 Question Bank During Preclinical Organ-Based Modules: A Pilot Project.

Science.gov (United States)

Baños, James H; Pepin, Mark E; Van Wagoner, Nicholas

2018-03-01

The authors examined the usefulness of a commercially available Step 1 question bank as a formative academic support tool throughout organ-based modules in an integrated preclinical medical curriculum. The authors also determined the extent to which correlation between question bank utilization and academic metrics varied with Medical College Admission Test (MCAT) scores. In 2015, a cohort of 185 first-year medical students at University of Alabama School of Medicine were provided with 18-month full access to a commercially available Step 1 question bank of over 2,100 items throughout organ-based modules, although there were no requirements for use. Data on student use of the question bank were collected via an online administrative portal. Relationships between question bank utilization and academic outcomes including exams, module grades, and United States Medical Licensing Examination (USMLE) Step 1 were determined using multiple linear regression. MCAT scores and number of items attempted in the question bank significantly predicted all academic measures, with question bank utilization as the stronger predictor. The association between question bank utilization and academic outcome was stronger for individuals with lower MCAT scores. The findings elucidate a novel academic support mechanism that, for some programs, may help bridge the gap between holistic and mission-based admissions practices and a residency match process that places a premium on USMLE exam scores. Distributed formative use of USMLE Step 1 practice questions may be of value as an academic support tool that benefits all students, but particularly those entering with lower MCAT scores.

ANALISIS KOMPARATIF DAN EKSPLORATIF TERHADAP KUALITAS PELAYANAN BANK SYARIAH DAN BANK KONVENSIONAL DI KOTA PEKALONGAN

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Nalim Nalim

2015-12-01

Full Text Available Abstract: For the last ten years, the focus for sharia trading industry has shifted from emphasising on price to service quality. Some of the reasons for this are: the rise of banking industry rivalry, stable business environment, more challenges faces, modern technology and the increasing number of service provider systems. Additionally, within the global market, the service quality has become more prominent in surviving the banking industry. Furthermore, the service quality also influences customers' satisfactory level. For these reasons, I am interested in researching further about service quality in banking industry. This study aims at (1 finding out factors that influence customers' banking choice (sharia and conventional banks, finding out service index comparison between sharia and conventional banks, and finding out the service quality difference between sharia and conventional banks. The instrument used to compare the service quality was SERVQUAL. The data was descriptively analysed and comparatively analysed using T-test. Descriptive analysis was employed to find out the emerging patterns within the data while the T-test was utilised to analyse the correlation among variables in the questionnaire. The result of the study indicated that there were four components (tangibleness, assurance, reliability and empathy of the service quality which ranked the highest, scoring 3.69. The similar result of highest score of tangibleness, scoring 3.65, was also indicated for conventional bank. Additionally, the result of the study also indicated that sharia bank scored higher in terms of its quality on the point of 3.53, while conventional bank was on the point of 3.50. Abstrak: Sejak sepuluh tahun terakhir, fokus strategis layanan industri ritel perbankan telah mengalami pergeseran dari harga (price menuju kepada kualitas pelayanan (service quality. Alasannya adalah karena munculnya persaingan, tantangan yang berat, lingkungan bisnis yang stabil

The cultural fairness of the 12-item General Health Questionnaire among diverse adolescents.

Science.gov (United States)

Bowe, Anica

2017-01-01

The 12-item general health questionnaire (GHQ-12) was used in the Longitudinal Study of Young People in England (LSYPE; N = 15,770) to collect measures on adolescent mental health. Given the debate in current literature regarding the dimensionality of the GHQ-12, this study examined the cultural sensitivity of the instrument at the item level for each of the 7 major ethnic groups within the database. This study used a hybrid approach of ordinal logistic regression and item response theory (IRT) to examine the presence of differential item functioning (DIF) on the questionnaire. Results demonstrated that uniform, nonuniform, and overall DIF were present on items between White and Asian adolescents (7 items), White and Black Caribbean adolescents (1 item), and White and Black African adolescents (7 items), however all McFadden's pseudo R² effect size estimates indicated that the DIF was negligible. Overall, there were cumulative small scale level effects for the Mixed/Biracial, Asian, and Black African groups, but in each case the bias was only marginal. Findings demonstrate that the GHQ-12 can be considered culturally sensitive for adolescents from diverse ethnic groups in England, but follow-up studies are necessary. Implications for future education and health policies as well as the use of IR-based approaches for psychological instruments are discussed. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2016 APA, all rights reserved).

Embassy bank accounts and State immunity from execution : Doing justice to the financial interests of creditors

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Ryngaert, C.M.J.

Embassy bank accounts are among the properties of statesmost widely presentin foreign states. Accordingly, they constitute an ideal target for attachment by creditors. International instruments have largely upheld state immunity from execution regarding bank accounts, however. Likewise, state

Overview of Classical Test Theory and Item Response Theory for Quantitative Assessment of Items in Developing Patient-Reported Outcome Measures

Science.gov (United States)

Cappelleri, Joseph C.; Lundy, J. Jason; Hays, Ron D.

2014-01-01

Introduction The U.S. Food and Drug Administration’s patient-reported outcome (PRO) guidance document defines content validity as “the extent to which the instrument measures the concept of interest” (FDA, 2009, p. 12). “Construct validity is now generally viewed as a unifying form of validity for psychological measurements, subsuming both content and criterion validity” (Strauss & Smith, 2009, p. 7). Hence both qualitative and quantitative information are essential in evaluating the validity of measures. Methods We review classical test theory and item response theory approaches to evaluating PRO measures including frequency of responses to each category of the items in a multi-item scale, the distribution of scale scores, floor and ceiling effects, the relationship between item response options and the total score, and the extent to which hypothesized “difficulty” (severity) order of items is represented by observed responses. Conclusion Classical test theory and item response theory can be useful in providing a quantitative assessment of items and scales during the content validity phase of patient-reported outcome measures. Depending on the particular type of measure and the specific circumstances, either one or both approaches should be considered to help maximize the content validity of PRO measures. PMID:24811753

Banking system trust, bank trust, and bank loyalty

NARCIS (Netherlands)

van Esterik-Plasmeijer, P.; van Raaij, W.F.

2017-01-01

Purpose The purpose of this paper is to test a model of banking system trust as an antecedent of bank trust and bank loyalty. Six determinants of trust and loyalty are included: competence, stability, integrity, customer orientation, transparency, and value congruence. The study provides insights

Operator/instrumentation interactions during the Three Mile Island incident

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Cummings, G.E.

1979-10-01

A discussion is presented of the operator/instrumentation interactions which had an effect on the course of the incident at the Three Mile Island-2 Nuclear Power Plant. A brief review of the sequence of occurrences at TMI-2 over the first 16 hours of the incident is given with particular emphasis on operator/instrumentation interactions. A breakdown of the six major items that seemed to have contributed to the characteristics of the incident is then given and also an outline of some of the currently proposed operator/instrumentation improvements. The six major items involve water level indication in the reactor, electromatic relief valve operation, auxiliary feed-water flow indication, containment isolation, extended range instrumentation, and computer readout

Use of Questions from the Medical Biochemistry Question Bank with the "Q" Instruction Package.

Science.gov (United States)

Aesche, Darryl W.; Parslow, Graham R.

1988-01-01

Discusses the use of a bank of about 9,000 test items in a computer-assisted instructional program at Adelaide University (South Australia). Describes the program and outlines the steps in producing an instructional program. (TW)

Combining within and between instrument information to estimate precision

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Jost, J.W.; Devary, J.L.; Ward, J.E.

1980-01-01

When two instruments, both having replicated measurements, are used to measure the same set of items, between instrument information may be used to augment the within instrument precision estimate. A method is presented which combines the within and between instrument information to obtain an unbiased and minimum variance estimate of instrument precision. The method does not assume the instruments have equal precision

The Caregiver Contribution to Heart Failure Self-Care (CACHS): Further Psychometric Testing of a Novel Instrument.

Science.gov (United States)

Buck, Harleah G; Harkness, Karen; Ali, Muhammad Usman; Carroll, Sandra L; Kryworuchko, Jennifer; McGillion, Michael

2017-04-01

Caregivers (CGs) contribute important assistance with heart failure (HF) self-care, including daily maintenance, symptom monitoring, and management. Until CGs' contributions to self-care can be quantified, it is impossible to characterize it, account for its impact on patient outcomes, or perform meaningful cost analyses. The purpose of this study was to conduct psychometric testing and item reduction on the recently developed 34-item Caregiver Contribution to Heart Failure Self-care (CACHS) instrument using classical and item response theory methods. Fifty CGs (mean age 63 years ±12.84; 70% female) recruited from a HF clinic completed the CACHS in 2014 and results evaluated using classical test theory and item response theory. Items would be deleted for low (.95) endorsement, low (.7) corrected item-total correlations, significant pairwise correlation coefficients, floor or ceiling effects, relatively low latent trait and item information function levels ( .5), and differential item functioning. After analysis, 14 items were excluded, resulting in a 20-item instrument (self-care maintenance eight items; monitoring seven items; and management five items). Most items demonstrated moderate to high discrimination (median 2.13, minimum .77, maximum 5.05), and appropriate item difficulty (-2.7 to 1.4). Internal consistency reliability was excellent (Cronbach α = .94, average inter-item correlation = .41) with no ceiling effects. The newly developed 20-item version of the CACHS is supported by rigorous instrument development and represents a novel instrument to measure CGs' contribution to HF self-care. © 2016 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. © 2016 Wiley Periodicals, Inc.

Empirical Study on the Relationships of Internet Banking Quality, Customer Value, and Customer Satisfaction

OpenAIRE

Umbas KRISNANTO

2017-01-01

The purpose of this conducted study was to test the direct and indirect effects of internet banking quality and customer value to customer satisfaction. This study uses descriptive analysis and multiple regression analysis to examine these relationships. The study is based on a survey conducted with respondents who use internet banking in their day-to-day activities, and all questionnaire items are deemed valid and reliable. For data analysis, the descriptive analysis for the indicators, dime...

Relationship Banking in Labor Bank

OpenAIRE

三村, 聡

2012-01-01

As Labor bank is seemed as business partner of labor union, it contributes each community activities. For example, Labor bank helps retired employee, laborer and inhabitants. In addition, after the amendment of Money Lending Business Act of 2010, labor bank became clearly community based bank by consulting for heavily-indebted people and their education. This paper analyzes the new role of labor bank such as community contribution and enhancing financing service by collecting of the opinion o...

CENTRAL BANK INDEPENDENCY ON THE DEVELOPMENT OF THE FINANCIAL SECTOR. A CASE OF RESERVE BANK OF ZIMBABWE (1998-2008

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KOSMAS NJANIKE

2010-01-01

Full Text Available The study looks deeper in the relationship between central bank independence and Gross Domestic product growth and other economic variables which are indicative of improved performance with specific reference to a developing economy. It seeks to find out how the central bank policies affected the state of development of the financial sector and the extent to which the banking sector influenced economic development in the economy. The research also aims to find out how the government affected or influenced the state of development of the financial sector in the country. It was found that the government was sorely dependent on central bank financing as a matter of survival due to limited sources of finance as GDP decline meant a reduction tax revenue base. Rising inflation and contracting real incomes put pressure on the fiscal budget. Questionnaires, interviews and document review were used to obtain information for the study. It was concluded that the cohesion between fiscal and monetary policy is of paramount importance; and there was need for a high degree of formal instrument independence.

Bank, Banking System, Macroprudential Supervision, Stability of Banking System

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Tetiana Vasilyeva

2016-10-01

Full Text Available Intensification of financial development during last decade causes transformation of banking sector functioning. In particular, among the most significant changes over this period should be noted the next ones: convergence of financial market segments and appearance of cross-sector financial products, an increase of prevailing of financial sector in comparison with real economy and level of their interdependent, an intensification of crisis processes in financial and especially banking sector and a significant increase of the scale of the crisis consequences etc. thus, in such vulnerable conditions it is become very urgent to identify the relevant factors that can influence on the stability of banking sector, because its maintenance seems to be one of the most important preconditions of the stability of the national economy as a whole. Purpose of the article is to analyze key performance indicators of the Ukrainian banking system, clarify its main problems, identify relevant factors of the stability of the Ukrainian banking system and the character of their influence on the dependent variable. Realization of the mentioned above tasks was ensured by regression analysis (OLS regression. Analysis of key indicators that characterize current situation in the Ukrainian banking system found out the existence of numerous endogenous and exogenous problems, which, in turn, cause worsening most of analyzed indicators during 2013-2015. Unfavorable situation in Ukrainian banking system determined the necessity of identification of relevant factors of banking system stability to avoid transmission of financial shocks. According to the results of regression analysis on the stability of banking sector positively influence such factors as increase of interest margin to gross income ratio, reserves to assets ratio, number of branches, ratio of non-performing loans to total loans. Meanwhile, negative impact on stability of banking system has an increase of liquid

Bank Credit and Aggregate Import Demand in Nigeria: A Cointegration Analysis

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Philip Chimobi Omoke

2012-06-01

Full Text Available This study reformulated the aggregate import demand for Nigeria by including a financial variable (bank credit into the traditional import demand function for the period 1970-2009. The Johansen Multivariate cointegration analysis was used to estimate the function. The result obtained from the study shows no evidence of the existence of cointegrating relations between bank credit and import demand. This shows that bank credit is found to be insufficient as a policy instrument for long term import demand in Nigeria. Thus, the financial variable should not be included in modelling the aggregate import demand for Nigeria.

The Response of Performance to Merger Strategy in Indonesian Banking Industry: Analyses on Bank Mandiri, Bank Danamon, and Bank Permata

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Murti Lestari

2010-05-01

Full Text Available This study analyzes the responses of performances of BankMandiri, Bank Danamon, and Bank Permata to merger strategy.This paper harnesses the quantitative approach with structuralbreak analysis method and impulse response function. Theplausible findings indicate that the merger of Bank Permataproduces a better performance response in comparison to theconsolidation of Bank Mandiri and the merger of Bank Danamon.The merger of Bank Permata does not result in performanceshocks, and the structural break does not prevail either. On theother hand, the consolidation of Bank Mandiri and the mergerof Bank Danamon result in structural breaks, particularly in thespread performance. In order to return to the stable position, themergers of Bank Mandiri and Bank Danamon require a longertime than does the merger of Bank Permata. This researchindicates that for large banks, the mergers and acquisitions(retaining one existing bank will deliver a better performanceresponse than will the consolidations (no existing bank. Keywords: impulse response function; merger; structural break

Development and validation of an instrument to assess job satisfaction in eye-care personnel.

Science.gov (United States)

Paudel, Prakash; Cronjé, Sonja; O'Connor, Patricia M; Khadka, Jyoti; Rao, Gullapalli N; Holden, Brien A

2017-11-01

The aim was to develop and validate an instrument to measure job satisfaction in eye-care personnel and assess the job satisfaction of one-year trained vision technicians in India. A pilot instrument for assessing job satisfaction was developed, based on a literature review and input from a public health expert panel. Rasch analysis was used to assess psychometric properties and to undertake an iterative item reduction. The instrument was then administered to vision technicians in vision centres of Andhra Pradesh in India. Associations between vision technicians' job satisfaction and factors such as age, gender and experience were analysed using t-test and one-way analysis of variance. Rasch analysis confirmed that the 15-item job satisfaction in eye-care personnel (JSEP) was a unidimensional instrument with good fit statistics, measurement precisions and absence of differential item functioning. Overall, vision technicians reported high rates of job satisfaction (0.46 logits). Age, gender and experience were not associated with high job satisfaction score. Item score analysis showed non-financial incentives, salary and workload were the most important determinants of job satisfaction. The 15-item JSEP instrument is a valid instrument for assessing job satisfaction among eye-care personnel. Overall, vision technicians in India demonstrated high rates of job satisfaction. © 2016 Optometry Australia.

Development and validation of 26-item dysfunctional attitude scale.

Science.gov (United States)

Ebrahimi, Amrollah; Samouei, Rahele; Mousavii, Sayyed Ghafour; Bornamanesh, Ali Reza

2013-06-01

Dysfunctional Attitude Scale is one of the most common instruments used to assess cognitive vulnerability. This study aimed to develop and validate a short form of Dysfunctional Attitude Scale appropriate for an Iranian clinical population. Participants were 160 psychiatric patients from medical centers affiliated with Isfahan Medical University, as well as 160 non-patients. Research instruments were clinical interviews based on the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual-IV-TR, Dysfunctional Attitude Scale and General Heath Questionnaire (GHQ-28). Data was analyzed using multicorrelation calculations and factor analysis. Based on the results of factor analysis and item-total correlation, 14 items were judged candidates for omission. Analysis of the 26-item Dysfunctional Attitude Scale (DAS-26) revealed a Cronbach's alpha of 0.92. Evidence for the concurrent criterion validity was obtained through calculating the correlation between the Dysfunctional Attitude Scale and psychiatric diagnosis (r = 0.55), GHQ -28 (r = 0.56) and somatization, anxiety, social dysfunction, and depression subscales (0.45,0.53,0.48, and 0.57, respectively). Factor analysis deemed a four-factor structure the best. The factors were labeled as success-perfectionism, need for approval, need for satisfying others, and vulnerability-performance evaluation. The results showed that the Iranian version of the Dysfunctional Attitude Scale (DAS-26) bears satisfactory psychometric properties suggesting that this cognitive instrument is appropriate for use in an Iranian cultural context. Copyright © 2012 Wiley Publishing Asia Pty Ltd.

Content validity--establishing and reporting the evidence in newly developed patient-reported outcomes (PRO) instruments for medical product evaluation: ISPOR PRO good research practices task force report: part 1--eliciting concepts for a new PRO instrument.

Science.gov (United States)

Patrick, Donald L; Burke, Laurie B; Gwaltney, Chad J; Leidy, Nancy Kline; Martin, Mona L; Molsen, Elizabeth; Ring, Lena

2011-12-01

The importance of content validity in developing patient reported outcomes (PRO) instruments is stressed by both the US Food and Drug Administration and the European Medicines Agency. Content validity is the extent to which an instrument measures the important aspects of concepts that developers or users purport it to assess. A PRO instrument measures the concepts most significant and relevant to a patient's condition and its treatment. For PRO instruments, items and domains as reflected in the scores of an instrument should be important to the target population and comprehensive with respect to patient concerns. Documentation of target population input in item generation, as well as evaluation of patient understanding through cognitive interviewing, can provide the evidence for content validity. Developing content for, and assessing respondent understanding of, newly developed PRO instruments for medical product evaluation will be discussed in this two-part ISPOR PRO Good Research Practices Task Force Report. Topics include the methods for generating items, documenting item development, coding of qualitative data from item generation, cognitive interviewing, and tracking item development through the various stages of research and preparing this tracking for submission to regulatory agencies. Part 1 covers elicitation of key concepts using qualitative focus groups and/or interviews to inform content and structure of a new PRO instrument. Part 2 covers the instrument development process, the assessment of patient understanding of the draft instrument using cognitive interviews and steps for instrument revision. The two parts are meant to be read together. They are intended to offer suggestions for good practices in planning, executing, and documenting qualitative studies that are used to support the content validity of PRO instruments to be used in medical product evaluation. Copyright © 2011 International Society for Pharmacoeconomics and Outcomes Research (ISPOR

EFISIENSI PERSAINGAN BANK UMUM SYARIAH: PENDEKATAN DATA ENVELOPMENT ANALYSIS (DEA DAN BOSTON CONSULTING GROUP (BCG

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Rizqon Halal Syah Aji

2015-10-01

Full Text Available Islamic Banking industry in Indonesia has begun dynamic. Product availability and standardization of Islamic banking products, the level of understanding by the public of products of Islamic banks and human resources. Market share of Islamic Banking in Indonesia to lock everything. Recent data Directorate of Islamic Banking in 2011 reached Rp 127,19 T, assets of BPRS amounting to Rp 3.35 T, can be calculated total Islamic banking assets as of October 2011 reached Rp 130,5 T. Financing very important factor, Data Envelopment Analisys (DEA is a measuring instrument of financing. Map of the Bank's performance in the competition between banks can be analyzed by matrix BCG (Boston Consulting Group. This matrix is used to describe the difference between the position of the relative market share of the Bank.DOI: 10.15408/sjie.v3i1.2059

Differential item functioning (DIF) analyses of health-related quality of life instruments using logistic regression

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Scott, Neil W.; Fayers, Peter M.; Aaronson, Neil K.

2010-01-01

Differential item functioning (DIF) methods can be used to determine whether different subgroups respond differently to particular items within a health-related quality of life (HRQoL) subscale, after allowing for overall subgroup differences in that scale. This article reviews issues that arise...

An empirical research on evaluating banks' credit assessment of corporate customers.

Science.gov (United States)

Tsai, Sang-Bing; Li, Guodong; Wu, Chia-Huei; Zheng, Yuxiang; Wang, Jiangtao

2016-01-01

Under the rapid change of the global financial environment, the risk control of the credit granting is viewed as the foremost task to each bank. With the impact one by one from financial crisis and European debt crisis, the steady bank business is also facing the severe challenge. Banks approve the credits for their customers and then make money from the interest. Credit granting is not only the primary job but also the main source of income. The quality of credit granting concerns not just the reclaims of creditor's rights; it also affects the successful running of banks. To enhance the reliability and usefulness of bank credit risk assessment, we first will delve in the facets and indexes in the bank credit risk assessment. Then, we will examine the different dimensions of cause-effect relationships and correlations in the assessment process. Finally, the study focuses on how to raise the functions and benefits of the bank credit risk assessment. In those five credit risk evaluation dimensions, A "optional capability" and D "competitiveness" are of high relation and high prominence among those dimensions, influencing other items obviously. By actively focusing on these two dimensions and improving their credit risk assessment ability will solve the foremost problems and also solve other facets of credit risk assessment problems at the same time.

Role Of Banking-Sector To Inclusive Growth Through Inclusive Finance In Bangladesh

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Sarker Sandip

2015-08-01

Full Text Available The study attempts to identify the relationship between the banking sector’s financing in agriculture and total agricultural output at national level. To assist the study, a simple linear regression model has been developed. The results suggest that there is a strong correlation between banking sectors’ financing in agriculture and agriculture output in Bangladesh. It is also evident that banking sector’s credits are significantly facilitating financial inclusion in Bangladesh. The model can be instrumental for developing countries that are seeking ways of inclusive growth. In addition; the study recommends some policy measures to overcome the challenges of financial inclusion with regards to the banking sector’s initiatives in financing agriculture in Bangladesh.

Quality of prenatal care questionnaire: instrument development and testing.

Science.gov (United States)

Heaman, Maureen I; Sword, Wendy A; Akhtar-Danesh, Noori; Bradford, Amanda; Tough, Suzanne; Janssen, Patricia A; Young, David C; Kingston, Dawn A; Hutton, Eileen K; Helewa, Michael E

2014-06-03

Utilization indices exist to measure quantity of prenatal care, but currently there is no published instrument to assess quality of prenatal care. The purpose of this study was to develop and test a new instrument, the Quality of Prenatal Care Questionnaire (QPCQ). Data for this instrument development study were collected in five Canadian cities. Items for the QPCQ were generated through interviews with 40 pregnant women and 40 health care providers and a review of prenatal care guidelines, followed by assessment of content validity and rating of importance of items. The preliminary 100-item QPCQ was administered to 422 postpartum women to conduct item reduction using exploratory factor analysis. The final 46-item version of the QPCQ was then administered to another 422 postpartum women to establish its construct validity, and internal consistency and test-retest reliability. Exploratory factor analysis reduced the QPCQ to 46 items, factored into 6 subscales, which subsequently were validated by confirmatory factor analysis. Construct validity was also demonstrated using a hypothesis testing approach; there was a significant positive association between women's ratings of the quality of prenatal care and their satisfaction with care (r = 0.81). Convergent validity was demonstrated by a significant positive correlation (r = 0.63) between the "Support and Respect" subscale of the QPCQ and the "Respectfulness/Emotional Support" subscale of the Prenatal Interpersonal Processes of Care instrument. The overall QPCQ had acceptable internal consistency reliability (Cronbach's alpha = 0.96), as did each of the subscales. The test-retest reliability result (Intra-class correlation coefficient = 0.88) indicated stability of the instrument on repeat administration approximately one week later. Temporal stability testing confirmed that women's ratings of their quality of prenatal care did not change as a result of giving birth or between the early postpartum

Quality of prenatal care questionnaire: instrument development and testing

Science.gov (United States)

2014-01-01

Background Utilization indices exist to measure quantity of prenatal care, but currently there is no published instrument to assess quality of prenatal care. The purpose of this study was to develop and test a new instrument, the Quality of Prenatal Care Questionnaire (QPCQ). Methods Data for this instrument development study were collected in five Canadian cities. Items for the QPCQ were generated through interviews with 40 pregnant women and 40 health care providers and a review of prenatal care guidelines, followed by assessment of content validity and rating of importance of items. The preliminary 100-item QPCQ was administered to 422 postpartum women to conduct item reduction using exploratory factor analysis. The final 46-item version of the QPCQ was then administered to another 422 postpartum women to establish its construct validity, and internal consistency and test-retest reliability. Results Exploratory factor analysis reduced the QPCQ to 46 items, factored into 6 subscales, which subsequently were validated by confirmatory factor analysis. Construct validity was also demonstrated using a hypothesis testing approach; there was a significant positive association between women’s ratings of the quality of prenatal care and their satisfaction with care (r = 0.81). Convergent validity was demonstrated by a significant positive correlation (r = 0.63) between the “Support and Respect” subscale of the QPCQ and the “Respectfulness/Emotional Support” subscale of the Prenatal Interpersonal Processes of Care instrument. The overall QPCQ had acceptable internal consistency reliability (Cronbach’s alpha = 0.96), as did each of the subscales. The test-retest reliability result (Intra-class correlation coefficient = 0.88) indicated stability of the instrument on repeat administration approximately one week later. Temporal stability testing confirmed that women’s ratings of their quality of prenatal care did not change as a result of giving

About The Future Of The Institution Of The Central Bank

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

POP Napoleon

2012-12-01

Full Text Available The evolution of the financial crisis is touching more and more the future of the central banks by forcing them, for the sake of solutions to the sovereign debts, to do what in so far appeared almost impossible. We can presume such a future, but for the moment we have to observe that central banks, mainly those emitting money used as reserve currencies – for example FED or ECB – are confronted with a strong depletion of their monetary instruments (their monetary policy interest rates are around zero and a great expansion of their balance sheet as an excuse for being the lenders of last resort. At this point, we have to discuss the perverse effect of reaching the minimum efficacy of the instruments used by the central banks regarded as institution and not only as policy makers enjoying a quite long historical building of their credibility and independence. The latest context of the expansion of their balance sheet is giving strong arguments of their implication in fiscal policy, which might ruin their credibility at a time when we say that the core problem of the global economy is the lack of trust of the investors. The same thing is true with their independence, both issues being conducive to the challenge to the future role of the institution of the central bank. The present realities, encompassing already more than five years of seeking solutions to the crisis still in evolution, incite us to tackle with the outcome for the central banks having in mind that the institutions becoming what we feel today as being central banks are under a certain pressure which is affecting exactly their core features giving to them the greatness we were proud of.

Lending booms, reserves, and the sustainability of short-term debt - inferences from the pricing of syndicated bank loans

OpenAIRE

Eichengreen, Barry; Mody, Ashoka

1999-01-01

Academics pay little attention to international bank lending, focusing instead on rapidly growing market segments such as the international bond market and derivative credit instruments. The authors argue for paying more attention to international bank lending. Why? Three reasons. First, the syndicated bank loan is one of the workhorses of international capital markets. Second, international bank lending is especially important for private-sector borrowers, whose participation in internationa...

Brand Relationship and Its Effect Towards Brand Evangelism to Banking Service

OpenAIRE

Sri Vandayuli Riorini; Christine Catur Widayati

2015-01-01

The purpose of this study was to analyze the effect of Brand relationship, Brand trust, Brand identification, Brand involvement, Brand commitment to Brand evangelism. This study using purposive sampling technique in which samples were selected in this study as much as 200 commercial Banks customers have used the services of the Bank at least 12 months. Data analysis instrument used was Multiple Regression Analysis with SPSS assistance. The results obtained are consistent with previous...

Capital Regulation and Bank Risk-Taking Behavior: Evidence from Pakistan

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Badar Nadeem Ashraf

2016-08-01

Full Text Available In response to the global financial crisis of 2007–2009, risk-based capital requirements have been reinforced in the new Basel III Accord to counter excessive bank risk-taking behavior. However, prior theoretical as well as empirical literature that studies the impact of risk-based capital requirements on bank risk-taking behavior is inconclusive. The primary purpose of this paper is to examine the impact of risk-based capital requirements on bank risk-taking behavior, using a panel dataset of 21 listed commercial banks of Pakistan over the period 2005–2012. Purely regulatory measures of bank capital, capital adequacy ratio, and bank assets portfolio risk, risk-weighted assets to total assets ratio, are used for the main analysis. Recently developed small N panel methods (bias corrected least squares dummy variable (LSDVC method and system GMM method with instruments collapse option are used to control for panel fixed effects, dynamic dependent variables, and endogenous independent variables. Overall, the results suggest that commercial banks have reduced assets portfolio risk in response to stringent risk-based capital requirements. Results also confirm that all banks having risk-based capital ratios either lower or higher than the regulatory required limits, have decreased portfolio risk in response to stringent risk-based capital requirements. The results are robust to alternative proxies of bank risk-taking, alternative estimation methods, and alternative samples.

RELATION BETWEEN ISLAMIC BANK AND CENTRAL BANK

OpenAIRE

PAKSOY, H. Mustafa; ABAROSS, Nour

2015-01-01

This study deals with the nature of Islamic banks and their features, and requirements of these features in terms of control tools and methods appropriate with the particularity of their business and their relation with the traditional central bank. At the same time aims to view the relationship between Islamic bank and central bank. To explain this relation the researcher started to explain what is the central bank, objectives of central bank, and characteristics, what is Islamic bank and ob...

Brand building process of banking services

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Filipović V.

2006-01-01

Full Text Available Changes related to competitive surroundings, legislation, and use of technology in banking business created new challenges for the managers in banking sector and emphasized the importance of brand building in the field of financial services. The need for financial institutions to manage its users in a way that provides them satisfaction, two-way communication and trust developing into loyalty was created. Regarding the research methodology, it is important to emphasize that the main discussion related to the purpose of research is to determine, improve, and better comprehend the main problems appearing in the process of brand building of banking services on the Belgrade market from the users standpoint. In order to realize the established purpose of the research, answers to the following research questions shall be provided: 1 Which problems in communication with the users are important for bank brand building?, 2 In what way do users see the image and personality of a bank? 3 In which way does brand of the origin of a bank influence the choice of users for the banking services? And 4 In which way the strategy of communication in the process of brand building of banking services can be improved? The quantitative approach to the research has been used. This study is based on the research procedure of surveys and data collection through a questionnaire, as an instrument in the research which was given to the adult citizens on the territory of the city of Belgrade. Statistic treatment of the data was conducted by using the SPSS software. The results are presented by using the combined techniques: in written form, in tables and graphs. So, the basic conclusions would be such as: after the marketing research on how banks carry on the processes of brand building was conducted, certain conclusions could be drawn from it: It is very important for a client to be involved in the process of brand building. By taking into consideration the criteria based on

17 CFR 229.905 - (Item 905) comparative information.

Science.gov (United States)

2010-04-01

... 17 Commodity and Securities Exchanges 2 2010-04-01 2010-04-01 false (Item 905) comparative...) comparative information. (a)(1) Describe the voting and other rights of investors in the successor under the successor's governing instruments and under applicable law. Compare such rights to the voting and other...

The Aphasia Communication Outcome Measure (ACOM): Dimensionality, Item Bank Calibration, and Initial Validation

Science.gov (United States)

Hula, William D.; Doyle, Patrick J.; Stone, Clement A.; Hula, Shannon N. Austermann; Kellough, Stacey; Wambaugh, Julie L.; Ross, Katherine B.; Schumacher, James G.; St. Jacque, Ann

2015-01-01

Purpose: The purpose of this study is to investigate the structure and measurement properties of the Aphasia Communication Outcome Measure (ACOM), a patient-reported outcome measure of communicative functioning for persons with aphasia. Method: Three hundred twenty-nine participants with aphasia responded to 177 items asking about communicative…

[Development of an Instrument to Assess the Quality of Childbirth Care from the Mother's Perspective].

Science.gov (United States)

Jeong, Geum Hee; Kim, Hyun Kyoung; Kim, Young Hee; Kim, Sun Hee; Lee, Sun Hee; Kim, Kyung Won

2018-02-01

This study aimed to develop an instrument to assess the quality of childbirth care from the perspective of a mother after delivery. The instrument was developed from a literature review, interviews, and item validation. Thirty-eight items were compiled for the instrument. The data for validity and reliability testing were collected using a questionnaire survey conducted on 270 women who had undergone normal vaginal delivery in Korea and analyzed with descriptive statistics, exploratory factor analysis, and reliability coefficients. The exploratory factor analysis reduced the number of items in the instrument to 28 items that were factored into four subscales: family-centered care, personal care, emotional empowerment, and information provision. With respect to convergence validation, there was positive correlation between this instrument and birth satisfaction scale (r=.34, pinstrument could be used as a measure of the quality of nursing care for women who have a normal vaginal delivery. © 2018 Korean Society of Nursing Science.

Gender Invariance of the Gambling Behavior Scale for Adolescents (GBS-A): An Analysis of Differential Item Functioning Using Item Response Theory.

Science.gov (United States)

Donati, Maria Anna; Chiesi, Francesca; Izzo, Viola A; Primi, Caterina

2017-01-01

As there is a lack of evidence attesting the equivalent item functioning across genders for the most employed instruments used to measure pathological gambling in adolescence, the present study was aimed to test the gender invariance of the Gambling Behavior Scale for Adolescents (GBS-A), a new measurement tool to assess the severity of Gambling Disorder (GD) in adolescents. The equivalence of the items across genders was assessed by analyzing Differential Item Functioning within an Item Response Theory framework. The GBS-A was administered to 1,723 adolescents, and the graded response model was employed. The results attested the measurement equivalence of the GBS-A when administered to male and female adolescent gamblers. Overall, findings provided evidence that the GBS-A is an effective measurement tool of the severity of GD in male and female adolescents and that the scale was unbiased and able to relieve truly gender differences. As such, the GBS-A can be profitably used in educational interventions and clinical treatments with young people.

REPO Operations - a Way to Adjust Liquidity Crisis on Banking Institutions

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Lucean Mihalcea

2016-07-01

Full Text Available Money market operations (open market operations constitute the most important instrument of the monetary policy of the NATIONAL BANK of ROMANIA. They shall be carried out on the initiative of the Central Bank, having the following functions: guiding interest rates, managing the liquidity conditions of the monetary market and signaling the orientation of the monetary policy. In this context, a systematic and a market organization is essential able to adapt to the new conditions imposed by the relaxation of credit operations. Implementation and operational systematization of such types of transaction can help banking entities in adjusting the liquidity crisis and the support on the way to economic growth.

Identifying service quality dimensions as antecedents to customer satisfaction in retail banking

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Iča Rojšek

2010-06-01

Full Text Available This paper explores service quality in a retail bank setting in Slovenia and its influence on customer satisfaction. In previous studies both SERVQUAL and SERVPERF scales have been used for measuring service quality. Based on SERVPERF a 28-item scale has been developed for this study. Through factor analysis four dimensions of service quality have been obtained. The results from regression analysis suggest that all four dimensions of service quality as well as service range influence customer satisfaction. The information provided by this research can be used when designing marketing strategies to improve customer satisfaction in retail banking.

PENGEMBANGAN TES BERPIKIR KRITIS DENGAN PENDEKATAN ITEM RESPONSE THEORY

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Fajrianthi Fajrianthi

2016-06-01

Full Text Available Penelitian ini bertujuan untuk menghasilkan sebuah alat ukur (tes berpikir kritis yang valid dan reliabel untuk digunakan, baik dalam lingkup pendidikan maupun kerja di Indonesia. Tahapan penelitian dilakukan berdasarkan tahap pengembangan tes menurut Hambleton dan Jones (1993. Kisi-kisi dan pembuatan butir didasarkan pada konsep dalam tes Watson-Glaser Critical Thinking Appraisal (WGCTA. Pada WGCTA, berpikir kritis terdiri dari lima dimensi yaitu Inference, Recognition Assumption, Deduction, Interpretation dan Evaluation of arguments. Uji coba tes dilakukan pada 1.453 peserta tes seleksi karyawan di Surabaya, Gresik, Tuban, Bojonegoro, Rembang. Data dikotomi dianalisis dengan menggunakan model IRT dengan dua parameter yaitu daya beda dan tingkat kesulitan butir. Analisis dilakukan dengan menggunakan program statistik Mplus versi 6.11 Sebelum melakukan analisis dengan IRT, dilakukan pengujian asumsi yaitu uji unidimensionalitas, independensi lokal dan Item Characteristic Curve (ICC. Hasil analisis terhadap 68 butir menghasilkan 15 butir dengan daya beda yang cukup baik dan tingkat kesulitan butir yang berkisar antara –4 sampai dengan 2.448. Sedikitnya jumlah butir yang berkualitas baik disebabkan oleh kelemahan dalam menentukan subject matter experts di bidang berpikir kritis dan pemilihan metode skoring. Kata kunci: Pengembangan tes, berpikir kritis, item response theory   DEVELOPING CRITICAL THINKING TEST UTILISING ITEM RESPONSE THEORY Abstract The present study was aimed to develop a valid and reliable instrument in assesing critical thinking which can be implemented both in educational and work settings in Indonesia. Following the Hambleton and Jones’s (1993 procedures on test development, the study developed the instrument by employing the concept of critical thinking from Watson-Glaser Critical Thinking Appraisal (WGCTA. The study included five dimensions of critical thinking as adopted from the WGCTA: Inference, Recognition

Pressure ulcers: development and psychometric evaluation of the attitude towards pressure ulcer prevention instrument (APuP).

Science.gov (United States)

Beeckman, D; Defloor, T; Demarré, L; Van Hecke, A; Vanderwee, K

2010-11-01

Pressure ulcers continue to be a significant problem in hospitals, nursing homes and community care settings. Pressure ulcer incidence is widely accepted as an indicator for the quality of care. Negative attitudes towards pressure ulcer prevention may result in suboptimal preventive care. A reliable and valid instrument to assess attitudes towards pressure ulcer prevention is lacking. Development and psychometric evaluation of the Attitude towards Pressure ulcer Prevention instrument (APuP). Prospective psychometric instrument validation study. A literature review was performed to design the instrument. Content validity was evaluated by nine European pressure ulcer experts and five experts in psychometric instrument validation in a double Delphi procedure. A convenience sample of 258 nurses and 291 nursing students from Belgium and The Netherlands participated in order to evaluate construct validity and stability reliability of the instrument. The data were collected between February and May 2008. A factor analysis indicated the construct of a 13 item instrument in a five factor solution: (1) attitude towards personal competency to prevent pressure ulcers (three items); (2) attitude towards the priority of pressure ulcer prevention (three items); (3) attitude towards the impact of pressure ulcers (three items); (4) attitude towards personal responsibility in pressure ulcer prevention (two items); and (5) attitude towards confidence in the effectiveness of prevention (two items). This five factor solution accounted for 61.4% of the variance in responses related to attitudes towards pressure ulcer prevention. All items demonstrated factor loadings over 0.60. The instrument produced similar results during stability testing [ICC=0.88 (95% CI=0.84-0.91, Ppressure ulcer prevention in patient care, education, and research. In further research, the association between attitude, knowledge and clinical performance should be explored. Copyright 2010 Elsevier Ltd. All rights

Adoption of financial innovation in the Ghanaian banking industry

African Journals Online (AJOL)

financial instruments, and the massive growth in information technology have fueled the growing ... positive effect on consumers' adoption of those innovations. Perceived ... coupled with virtually absolute control over their banking. Mobile ..... et al., 2006). Thus, these values suggest good internal consistency of the factors.

Risk Reporting: An Analysis of the German Banking Industry

NARCIS (Netherlands)

L. van Oorschot (Laura)

2010-01-01

textabstractExecutive summary The recent financial crisis resulted in an increased attention on the risks of banks and their financial instruments. This article discusses the outcomes of a study on the quantity and quality of market, credit, and liquidity risk disclosures and the relationship 1)

Is shadow banking really banking?

OpenAIRE

Bryan J. Noeth; Rajdeep Sengupta

2011-01-01

To those who don't know, the term "shadow banking" probably has a negative connotation. This primer draws parallels between what has been termed the shadow banking sector and the traditional banking sector—showing that they are similar in many ways.

Components of formalized description of selecting tools for ensuring stability of banking system

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

N.P. Pogorelenko

2015-09-01

Full Text Available A banking system is one of the key elements of a financial market of any country. Effectiveness and functional orientation of a banking system provide continuous and targeted financial resources flowing between different sectors of economy and this allows to perform economic activities of various entities. Thus, a banking system plays an essential role in the formation of market relations. A question of stable functioning of a banking system can be defined as a key one. The basic task is to improve the management of a banking system by achieving its stability. The disclosure of formalized description of the definition of tools to influence the selection procedure for ensuring stability of a banking system should be determined as the primary objective. For reaching the goal a comparative study has been introduced and generalized concerning the concept definition of «banking system» and the ideology of its management according to the circumstances and factors of influence. The combination of individual components is to determine the instruments of influence on the banking system activity in the form of chain ties. On the base of the analysis carried out the article grounds the necessity of the generalized use of formalized description of the procedures for selecting instruments for ensuring stability of a banking system. For the purpose of this procedure the author has also grounded, determined and disclosed some of its components. To implement the relevant qualitative phase of formalization the author has proposed the use of chain patterns, and to quantify the individual parameters of such a procedure the methodology of border stochastic analysis has been offered. As a scientific novelty of the present research it is necessary to note the qualitative and quantitative phases for formal presentation of describing procedures for the selection of tools to ensure banking system stability as well as the introduction of chain schemes for the

Measuring the fiscal revenue loss of VAT exemption in commercial banking

OpenAIRE

Genser, Bernd; Winker, Peter

1997-01-01

The closing of tax loopholes is one important instrument for fiscal consolidation. We concentrate on the value added tax exemption of banking services in Germany. The potential tax revenue under full value added taxation cannot be estimated from national accounting data, as it is necessary to apportion the value added between final consumption and intermediate production. We develop a method which allows to base our estimates on disaggregated banks' balance sheet data and obtain an estimate f...

BANK RUN AND STABILITY OF ISLAMIC BANKING IN INDONESIA

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Rahmatina A. Kasri

2017-08-01

Full Text Available Bank run is an important economic phenomenon which increasingly occurred in in modern banking system and potentially threatened banking stability as it could trigger a banking crisis. However, most studies related to bank run focus on the occurrence of bank run in conventional banking system. Very few of them discuss the bank run phenomenon under Islamic banking system or dual banking system where Islamic banks jointly operating with conventional banks. Therefore, this study attempts to analyze the determinants of bank run in the Indonesian Islamic banking industry by employing primary data from 256 customers of Indonesia Islamic banks in 2015 and by utilizing factor analysis and descriptive statistics. In theory, Islamic banks tend to be more resilient towards any macroeconomic or financial shocks as compared to conventional banks due to the nature of its asset-based and risk-sharing arrangement. However, the result exhibits that both psychological and fundamental factors (i.e. macroeconomics and bank fundamentals strongly influence the behaviors of Islamic banking depositors to withdraw their funds, which might trigger the occurrence of bank runs in the country. Insider information, macroeconomic condition and bank fundamental factors are also shown to have the highest impacts among all variables. Hence, in the context of banking stability, the finding implies that Islamic banks are not completely immune to the impacts of macroeconomic shocks or financial crisis. As a country with a dual banking system, Indonesia had experienced several bank runs since 1990s. Therefore, the findings of the study should provide the policy makers important insight into research based-policy in order to attain financial stability as one of the main economic goals of the country. Keywords: Bank run, Islamic bank, Factor analysis, Indonesia JEL Classification: C83, G21, G28

Instruments and Taxonomy of Workplace Bullying in Health Care Organizations

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Eun-Jun Park, PhD, RN

2017-12-01

Full Text Available Summary: Purpose: This study was aimed to evaluate the methodological issues and comprehensiveness of workplace bullying instruments and to suggest a taxonomy of psychological abuse. Methods: Nineteen instruments applied in health care organizations and 469 questionnaire items mainly regarding psychological abuse were collected through a literature review. Three researchers classified the questionnaire items according to a “taxonomy of psychological abuse in the workplace.” Results: Many instruments of workplace bullying were developed in the 2000s using a reflective measurement model, but their psychometric property was not sufficient and the measurement model is questioned. Based on the questionnaire items, the “taxonomy of psychological abuse in the workplace” was modified by adding two new subcategories (unachievable work and unfair treatment and clarifying some operational definitions. According to the modified taxonomy of 11 (subcategories, the reviewed instruments assessed 6.5 (subcategories on average. No instrument measured all (subcategories. Category 4.2 (disrespect, humiliation, and rejection of the person was measured in all instruments, followed by Categories 5 (professional discredit and denigration and 1.2 (social isolation behaviors. Conclusion: The current instruments are not comprehensive enough. It is suggested that the modified taxonomy is verified and guide more reliable and inclusive instruments in the future. Furthermore, a formative measurement model, which defines a bullying as an inventory of different types of behaviors, should be used. Keywords: aggression, bullying, hostility, mobbing, surveys and questionnaires

The Perspectives of Haematological Cancer Patients on Tissue Banking.

Science.gov (United States)

Turon, Heidi; Waller, Amy; Clinton-McHarg, Tara; Boyes, Allison; Fleming, Jennifer; Marlton, Paula; Harrison, Simon J; Sanson-Fisher, Rob

2016-01-01

A high level of support for tissue banking has been identified amongst both the general public and patients. However, much debate remains about the regulatory framework of tissue banks. This study explored the views of haematological cancer patients regarding tissue banking and how tissue banks should operate. Haematological cancer patients from three outpatient clinics in Australia completed a questionnaire examining their preferences for tissue banking as well as items about their sociodemographic characteristics, disease and treatment history. The majority of participants (95%) reported being willing to allow their leftover tissue to be used for medical research. Three quarters (76%) supported the idea of their medical record being linked to their tissue sample, and 77% preferred a blanket (one-off) consent model for future research use of their tissue sample. Only 57 (27%) participants had been asked to give a tissue sample for research, 98% of whom gave permission. The majority of haematological cancer patients are willing to donate their leftover tissue to a tissue bank and have their medical records linked to tissue samples and prefer a one-off consent process. These novel data from potential donors inform the debate about how tissue banks might operate. Strategic Research Partnership Grant from the Cancer Council NSW to the Newcastle Cancer Control Collaborative (New-3C) and infrastructure funding from the Hunter Medical Research Institute (HMRI). A.W. is supported by an Australian Research Council DECRA fellowship (DE150101262). T.C.M. was supported by a Leukaemia Foundation of Queensland Post-Doctoral Fellowship. A.B. is supported by National Health and Medical Research Council (APP1073317) and Cancer Institute NSW (13/ECF/1-37) Early Career Fellowships.

Mothers' views of milk banking: sample of İzmir.

Science.gov (United States)

Ekşioğlu, Aysun; Yeşil, Yeşim; Turfan, Esin Çeber

2015-06-01

The studies on human milk banking in Turkey, has being carried out at a hospital in Izmir province. There are different point of views about milk banking. The aim of the study is to determine the knowledge and the views of the mothers towards milk banking. This study is a cross-sectional survey. The study was carried out with 404 mothers who gave birth in a two maternity hospitals and one university hospital in İzmir using the face-to-face interview technique between March 2014 and June 2014. The study data were collected using a 30-item socio-demographic questionnaire. The mothers' mean age was 28.4 years (16-46 years). Of the mothers, 45.5% were primary school graduates, 80.2% were members of a nuclear family, 75.7% had less than three children, 63.4% gave birth by caesarean section and only 79.5 percent were able to breastfeed before being discharged. Of the mothers, 41.6% were aware of milk banking, 71.3% were willing to receive milk bank services and 68.8% were willing to donate breastmilk. 62.2% of those who did not want to make donation stated risk of contagion as a reason, 8.2% of the participants had worked as wet-nurse before. Most mothers revealed positive approaches and opinions about establishment of milk banking and milk donation. However, there were some concerns due to the risk of infectious diseases and religious beliefs. Efforts should be made to raise awareness and mothers should be informed about the importance of breast milk and breastfeeding so that milk banks can be regarded as an additional choice.

Shortening of an existing generic online health-related quality of life instrument for dogs.

Science.gov (United States)

Reid, J; Wiseman-Orr, L; Scott, M

2017-10-11

Development, initial validation and reliability testing of a shortened version of a web-based questionnaire instrument to measure generic health-related quality of life in companion dogs, to facilitate smartphone and online use. The original 46 items were reduced using expert judgment and factor analysis. Items were removed on the basis of item loadings and communalities on factors identified through factor analysis of responses from owners of healthy and unwell dogs, intrafactor item correlations, readability of items in the UK, USA and Australia and ability of individual items to discriminate between healthy and unwell dogs. Validity was assessed through factor analysis and a field trial using a "known groups" approach. Test-retest reliability was assessed using intraclass correlation coefficients. The new instrument comprises 22 items, each of which was rated by dog owners using a 7-point Likert scale. Factor analysis revealed a structure with four health-related quality of life domains (energetic/enthusiastic, happy/content, active/comfortable, and calm/relaxed) accounting for 72% of the variability in the data compared with 64% for the original instrument. The field test involving 153 healthy and unwell dogs demonstrated good discriminative properties and high intraclass correlation coefficients. The 22-item shortened form is superior to the original instrument and can be accessed via a mobile phone app. This is likely to increase the acceptability to dog owners as a routine wellness measure in health care packages and as a therapeutic monitoring tool. © 2017 British Small Animal Veterinary Association.

Simulating Retail Banking for Banking Students

Science.gov (United States)

Supramaniam, Mahadevan; Shanmugam, Bala

2009-01-01

The purpose of this study was to examine the implementation flow and development of retail bank management simulation based training system which could provide a comprehensive knowledge about the operations and management of banks for the banking students. The prototype of a Retail banking simulation based training system was developed based on…

Item-focussed Trees for the Identification of Items in Differential Item Functioning.

Science.gov (United States)

Tutz, Gerhard; Berger, Moritz

2016-09-01

A novel method for the identification of differential item functioning (DIF) by means of recursive partitioning techniques is proposed. We assume an extension of the Rasch model that allows for DIF being induced by an arbitrary number of covariates for each item. Recursive partitioning on the item level results in one tree for each item and leads to simultaneous selection of items and variables that induce DIF. For each item, it is possible to detect groups of subjects with different item difficulties, defined by combinations of characteristics that are not pre-specified. The way a DIF item is determined by covariates is visualized in a small tree and therefore easily accessible. An algorithm is proposed that is based on permutation tests. Various simulation studies, including the comparison with traditional approaches to identify items with DIF, show the applicability and the competitive performance of the method. Two applications illustrate the usefulness and the advantages of the new method.

Open Single Item of Perceived Risk Factors (OSIPRF toward Cardiovascular Diseases Is an Appropriate Instrument for Evaluating Psychological Symptoms

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Mozhgan Saeidi

2016-12-01

Full Text Available Psychological symptoms are considered as one of the aspects and consequences of cardiovascular diseases (CVDs, management of which can precipitate and facilitate the process of recovery. Evaluation of the psychological symptoms can increase awareness of treatment team regarding patients’ mental health, which can be beneficial for designing treatment programs (1. However, time-consuming process of interviews and assessment by questionnaires lead to fatigue and lack of patient cooperation, which may be problematic for healthcare evaluators. Therefore, the use of brief and suitable alternatives is always recommended.The use of practical and easy to implement instruments is constantly emphasized. A practical method for assessing patients' psychological status is examining causal beliefs and attitudes about the disease. The causal beliefs and perceived risk factors by patients, which are significantly related to the actual risk factors for CVDs (2, are not only related to psychological adjustment and mental health but also have an impact on patients’ compliance with treatment recommendations (3.It seems that several risk factors are at play regarding the perceived risk factors for CVDs such as gender (4, age (5, and most importantly, patients’ psychological status (3. Accordingly, evaluation of causal beliefs and perceived risk factors by patients could probably be a shortcut method for evaluation of patients’ psychological health. In recent years, Saeidi and Komasi (5 proposed a question and investigated the perceived risk factors with an open single item: “What do you think is the main cause of your illness?”. According to the authors, the perceived risk factors are recorded in five categories including biological (age, gender, and family history, environmental (dust, smoke, passive smoking, toxic substances, and effects of war, physiological (diabetes, hypertension, hyperlipidemia, and obesity, behavioral (lack of exercise, nutrition

Bank Diversification Effects on Bank Performance and Risk Profile of Bank in Indonesia

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Anthony Lukmawijaya

2015-05-01

Full Text Available We investigate the relationship of Indonesian bank diversification towards its long term performance and risk profile with Indonesian bank data from 2009 to 2013. Non-interest income to total operating income of the bank measures its bank diversification level. Bank value is measured by the adjusted Tobin's Q and risk profile which is broken down into total risk, idiosyncratic risk, and systematic risk. The result shows that bank non-interest income diversification has a positive influence on its franchise value. There is, however, no strong evidence that diversification can lower a bank's risk profile.

Denying Foreign Bank Entry: Implications For Bank Interest Margins

OpenAIRE

Ross Levine

2003-01-01

This paper examines the impact of restricting foreign bank entry on bank net interest margins while controlling for (a) impediments to domestic bank entry, (b) the degree of foreign bank ownership of the domestic banking industry, (c) an array of bank-specific characteristics, (c) banking sectorconcentration, and (d) various country traits. Using data on almost 1200 banks across 47 countries, the results suggest that restricting foreign bank entry boosts bank net interest margins. Also, restr...

E-BANKING- MODERN BANKING SERVICES

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

MIRANDA PETRONELLA VLAD

2009-05-01

Full Text Available E-banking is the first of those banking services that really economize time, because it allows to the user to accomplish from behind the computer many operations in the bank account, represents the computational solution that allows to the holder to have

Content validity of governing in Building Information Modelling (BIM) implementation assessment instrument

Science.gov (United States)

Hadzaman, N. A. H.; Takim, R.; Nawawi, A. H.; Mohamad Yusuwan, N.

2018-04-01

BIM governance assessment instrument is a process of analysing the importance in developing BIM governance solution to tackle the existing problems during team collaboration in BIM-based projects. Despite the deployment of integrative technologies in construction industry particularly BIM, it is still insufficient compare to other sectors. Several studies have been established the requirements of BIM implementation concerning all technical and non-technical BIM adoption issues. However, the data are regarded as inadequate to develop a BIM governance framework. Hence, the objective of the paper is to evaluate the content validity of the BIM governance instrument prior to the main data collection. Two methods were employed in the form of literature review and questionnaire survey. Based on the literature review, 273 items with six main constructs are suggested to be incorporated in the BIM governance instrument. The Content Validity Ratio (CVR) scores revealed that 202 out of 273 items are considered as the utmost critical by the content experts. The findings for Item Level Content Validity Index (I-CVI) and Modified Kappa Coefficient however revealed that 257 items in BIM governance instrument are appropriate and excellent. The instrument is highly reliable for future strategies and the development of BIM projects in Malaysia.

Development of the Oxford Participation and Activities Questionnaire: constructing an item pool

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Kelly L

2015-05-01

Full Text Available Laura Kelly, Crispin Jenkinson, Sarah Dummett, Jill Dawson, Ray Fitzpatrick, David Morley Health Services Research Unit, Nuffield Department of Population Health, University of Oxford, Oxford, UK Purpose: The Oxford Participation and Activities Questionnaire is a patient-reported outcome measure in development that is grounded on the World Health Organization International Classification of Functioning, Disability, and Health (ICF. The study reported here aimed to inform and generate an item pool for the new measure, which is specifically designed for the assessment of participation and activity in patients experiencing a range of health conditions. Methods: Items were informed through in-depth interviews conducted with 37 participants spanning a range of conditions. Interviews aimed to identify how their condition impacted their ability to participate in meaningful activities. Conditions included arthritis, cancer, chronic back pain, diabetes, motor neuron disease, multiple sclerosis, Parkinson's disease, and spinal cord injury. Transcripts were analyzed using the framework method. Statements relating to ICF themes were recast as questionnaire items and shown for review to an expert panel. Cognitive debrief interviews (n=13 were used to assess items for face and content validity. Results: ICF themes relevant to activities and participation in everyday life were explored, and a total of 222 items formed the initial item pool. This item pool was refined by the research team and 28 generic items were mapped onto all nine chapters of the ICF construct, detailing activity and participation. Cognitive interviewing confirmed the questionnaire instructions, items, and response options were acceptable to participants. Conclusion: Using a clear conceptual basis to inform item generation, 28 items have been identified as suitable to undergo further psychometric testing. A large-scale postal survey will follow in order to refine the instrument further and

Internet Banking integration within the banking system

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Constantin Marian MATEI

2008-01-01

Full Text Available Internet Banking developed due to increasing demand of online banking transactions. The biggest advantages of Internet Banking consist of complex banking solutions, 24 hours availability, quick and secure access to the back-end application through Internet. These advantages are due to the use of SOA (service-oriented architecture. SOA appeared as a necessity of companies to integrate big and independent portions of applications, in order to obtain an homogeneous functionality of the system. For the Internet Banking applications, SOA proved to be the optimal architectural solution, for a smoth integration between banking services from the front-end to the back-end.This paper intend to offer an insite analyse of the Internet Banking applications architecture integrated with other banking systems. A SOA oriented analyse will establish the scope of the integration architecture.

Hand-related physical function in rheumatic hand conditions

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Klokker, Louise; Terwee, Caroline B; Wæhrens, Eva Ejlersen

2016-01-01

as well as those items from the Patient Reported Outcomes Measurement Information System (PROMIS) Physical Function (PF) item bank that are relevant to patients with rheumatic hand conditions. Selection will be based on consensus among reviewers. Content validity of selected items will be established......INTRODUCTION: There is no consensus about what constitutes the most appropriate patient-reported outcome measurement (PROM) instrument for measuring physical function in patients with rheumatic hand conditions. Existing instruments lack psychometric testing and vary in feasibility...... and their psychometric qualities. We aim to develop a PROM instrument to assess hand-related physical function in rheumatic hand conditions. METHODS AND ANALYSIS: We will perform a systematic search to identify existing PROMs to rheumatic hand conditions, and select items relevant for hand-related physical function...

Hand-related physical function in rheumatic hand conditions

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Klokker, Louise; Terwee, Caroline; Wæhrens, Eva Elisabet Ejlersen

2016-01-01

INTRODUCTION: There is no consensus about what constitutes the most appropriate patient-reported outcome measurement (PROM) instrument for measuring physical function in patients with rheumatic hand conditions. Existing instruments lack psychometric testing and vary in feasibility...... and their psychometric qualities. We aim to develop a PROM instrument to assess hand-related physical function in rheumatic hand conditions. METHODS AND ANALYSIS: We will perform a systematic search to identify existing PROMs to rheumatic hand conditions, and select items relevant for hand-related physical function...... as well as those items from the Patient Reported Outcomes Measurement Information System (PROMIS) Physical Function (PF) item bank that are relevant to patients with rheumatic hand conditions. Selection will be based on consensus among reviewers. Content validity of selected items will be established...

Interest Free Banking in Nigeria - Welcome Islamic Banking ...

African Journals Online (AJOL)

Interest Free Banking in Nigeria - Welcome Islamic Banking; Welcome Christian Banking. ... banks pay interest on deposits, and charge interest on loans and advances, ... However, the literature on interest rates, in relation to Commercial Bank ...

A Computer-Based Instrument That Identifies Common Science Misconceptions

Science.gov (United States)

Larrabee, Timothy G.; Stein, Mary; Barman, Charles

2006-01-01

This article describes the rationale for and development of a computer-based instrument that helps identify commonly held science misconceptions. The instrument, known as the Science Beliefs Test, is a 47-item instrument that targets topics in chemistry, physics, biology, earth science, and astronomy. The use of an online data collection system…

Math Garden: A new educational and scientific instrument

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Straatemeier, M.

2014-01-01

This dissertation describes the research concerning the construction of a new educational and scientific instrument. This instrument, Math Garden, is a web application in which children can practice arithmetic by playing math games in which items are tailored to their ability level. At the same

Transition to IFRS 9 : Practical Guidance for the Foreign Reserves of Central Banks

OpenAIRE

Ha, Yunjung S.

2017-01-01

This paper provides practical guidance to central banks on accounting practices for their foreign reserves, in connection with the transition from International Accounting Standard 39 Financial Instruments: Recognition and Measurement (IAS 39) to International Financial Reporting Standard 9 Financial Instruments (IFRS 9). The IFRS 9 preparation process can be summarized in three steps: (1)...

Instrument for assessing the quality of mobile emergency pre-hospital care: content validation

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Rodrigo Assis Neves Dantas

2015-06-01

Full Text Available OBJECTIVES To validate an instrument to assess quality of mobile emergency pre-hospital care. METHOD A methodological study where 20 professionals gave their opinions on the items of the proposed instrument. The analysis was performed using Kappa test (K and Content Validity Index (CVI, considering K> 0.80 and CVI ≥ 0.80. RESULTS Three items were excluded from the instrument: Professional Compensation; Job Satisfaction and Services Performed. Items that obtained adequate K and CVI indexes and remained in the instrument were: ambulance conservation status; physical structure; comfort in the ambulance; availability of material resources; user/staff safety; continuous learning; safety demonstrated by the team; access; welcoming; humanization; response time; costumer privacy; guidelines on care; relationship between professionals and costumers; opportunity for costumers to make complaints and multiprofessional conjunction/actuation. CONCLUSION The instrument to assess quality of care has been validated and may contribute to the evaluation of pre-hospital care in mobile emergency services.

The medial tibial stress syndrome score: Item generation for a new ...

African Journals Online (AJOL)

The medial tibial stress syndrome score: Item generation for a new patient reported outcome measure. ... instrument that evaluates injury severity and treatment effects for medial tibial stress syndrome (MTSS) patients. ... from 32 Countries:.

Impact of E-Banking on Traditional Banking Services

OpenAIRE

Vyas, Shilpan Dineshkumar

2012-01-01

Internet banking is changing the banking industry, having the major effects on banking relationships. Banking is now no longer confined to the branches were one has to approach the branch in person, to withdraw cash or deposit a cheque or request a statement of accounts. In true Internet banking, any inquiry or transaction is processed online without any reference to the branch (anywhere banking) at any time. Providing Internet banking is increasingly becoming a "need to have" than a "nice to...

Pengaruh Kualitas Layanan Mobile Banking (M-Banking Terhadap Kepuasan Nasabah di Indonesia [Effect of Mobile Banking (M-Banking Service Quality on Customer Satisfaction in Indonesia

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Aditya Wardhana

2015-09-01

Full Text Available The research aim was to assess the influence of the service quality of mobile banking (m-banking against customer satisfaction at the greatest banks in Indonesia. Elements of the quality of mobile banking services (m-banking were speed, security, accuracy, and trust. The population of this study was bank customers from eight of the greatest bank in Indonesia -- Bank Mandiri, Bank BRI, Bank BCA, Bank BNI, Bank CIMB Niaga, Bank Danamon, Bank Permata, and Bank Panin -- who used mobile banking which totaled 19.9 million customers with the size of the sample being 400 respondents. The sampling method used nonprobability sampling by incidental sampling. The results by using a structural equation modeling (SEM found significant influences between service quality of mobile banking (m-banking partially and simultaneously to customer satisfaction.

Measurement equivalence and differential item functioning in family psychology.

Science.gov (United States)

Bingenheimer, Jeffrey B; Raudenbush, Stephen W; Leventhal, Tama; Brooks-Gunn, Jeanne

2005-09-01

Several hypotheses in family psychology involve comparisons of sociocultural groups. Yet the potential for cross-cultural inequivalence in widely used psychological measurement instruments threatens the validity of inferences about group differences. Methods for dealing with these issues have been developed via the framework of item response theory. These methods deal with an important type of measurement inequivalence, called differential item functioning (DIF). The authors introduce DIF analytic methods, linking them to a well-established framework for conceptualizing cross-cultural measurement equivalence in psychology (C.H. Hui and H.C. Triandis, 1985). They illustrate the use of DIF methods using data from the Project on Human Development in Chicago Neighborhoods (PHDCN). Focusing on the Caregiver Warmth and Environmental Organization scales from the PHDCN's adaptation of the Home Observation for Measurement of the Environment Inventory, the authors obtain results that exemplify the range of outcomes that may result when these methods are applied to psychological measurement instruments. (c) 2005 APA, all rights reserved

ASPECT OF LANGUAGE ON A QUALITATIVE ANALYSIS OF STUDENT’S EVALUATION INSTRUMENT

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Ismanto Ismanto

2016-11-01

Full Text Available This article examined the characteristics of good student’s evaluation instrument. There are at least two requirements that must be met. Those are valid and reliable. The validity of the instrument can be seen from the instrument's ability to measure what should be measured. The fact the existence of the validity of an instrument may be a grain fill, the response process, internal structure, relationship with other variables, and the consequences of the implementation of the charging instrument. Analysis of the content is then known as content validity, i.e. rational analysis of the domain to be measured to determine the representation of each item on the instrument with the ability to be measured. Content validity is submitting pieces of blue print and items of the instrument to the experts to be analyzed quantitatively and qualitatively.

Instrument adaptation and validation to evaluate psychosocial skills and healthy habits in schoolchildren

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Lucila Niño-Bautista

2017-12-01

Full Text Available Objective: To adapt and validate an evaluation tool on psychosocial skills for life and healthy habits in Schoolchildren from a locality in Bogota, Colombia. Materials and methods: This quantitative transversal with empirical analytical non-experimental approach study evaluated responses of schoolchildren in third and fourth grade of primary school with the instrument adapted and reconstructed to establish technical quality of items, reliability and validity of it. The instrument (18 psychosocial skills and 19 healthy habits, plus 4 identification items was self-diligence with Yes, No dichotomous answer option. It had evidence of apparent validity with schoolchildren from other peer institutions and was tested at 32 Public schools and analyzed using the Rasch model. Results: 1,066 schoolchildren participated in total. The items of the two constructs showed a good fit to the Rasch model as well as unidimensionality, reliability and separation measures above the recommended values. There was no differential functioning of the item by sex. Conclusion: The instrument of 37 items presented good properties of validity, reliability and adjustment to Rasch; although it does not have enough items of high difficulty level, which can be corrected in future applications.

A comparison of RANZCR and Singapore-designed radiation oncology practice audit instruments: how does reproducibility affect future approaches to revalidation

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Lu, Jiade J.; Wynne, Christopher J.; Kumar, Mahesh B.; Shakespeare, Thomas P.; Mukherjee, Rahul; Back, Michael F.

2004-01-01

Physician competency assessment requires the use of validated methods and instruments. The Royal Australian and New Zealand College of Radiologists (RANZCR) developed a draft audit form to be evaluated as a competency assessment instrument for radiation oncologists (ROs) in Australasia. We evaluated the reliability of the RANZCR instrument as well as a separate The Cancer Institute (TCI) Singapore-designed instrument by having two ROs perform an independent chart review of 80 randomly selected patients seen at The Cancer Institute (TCI), Singapore. Both RANZCR and TCI Singapore instruments were used to score each chart. Inter- and intra-observer reliability for both audit instruments were compared using misclassification rates as the primary end-point. Overall, for inter-observer reproducibility, 2.3% of TCI Singapore items were misclassified compared to 22.3% of RANZCR items (P < 0.0001, 100.00% confidence that TCI instrument has less inter-observer misclassification). For intra-observer reproducibility, 2.4% of TCI Singapore items were misclassified compared to 13.6% of RANZCR items (P < 0.0001, 100.00% confidence that TCI instrument has less intra-observer misclassification). The proposed RANZCR RO revalidation audit instrument requires further refinement to improve validity. Several items require modification or removal because of lack of reliability, whereas inclusion of other important and reproducible items can be incorporated as demonstrated by the TCI Singapore instrument. The TCI Singapore instrument also has the advantage of incorporating a simple scoring system and criticality index to allow discrimination between ROs and comparisons against future College standards Copyright (2004) Blackwell Publishing Asia Pty Ltd

An evaluation of the feedback loops in the poverty focus of world bank operations.

Science.gov (United States)

Fardoust, Shahrokh; Kanbur, Ravi; Luo, Xubei; Sundberg, Mark

2018-04-01

The World Bank Group in 2013 made the elimination of extreme poverty by 2030 a central institutional focus and purpose. This paper, based on an evaluation conducted by the Independent Evaluation Group of the World Bank Group, examines how, and how well, the Bank uses feedback loops to enhance the poverty focus of its operations. Feedback loops are important for every element of the results chain running from data, to diagnostics, to strategy formulation and finally to strategy implementation. The evaluation uses a range of instruments, including surveys of stakeholders and World Bank staff, focus group meetings, country case studies and systematic reviews of Bank lending and non-lending operations. We find that while the Bank generates useful information on poverty reduction from its projects and programs, the feedback loops - from outcomes to data analysis to diagnostics to strategy formulation and implementation - have generally been weak, with sizable variation across countries. Copyright © 2017 The World Bank. Published by Elsevier Ltd.. All rights reserved.

Role of Foreign Banks in Integration of Banking Industry

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Roman Šubić

2009-12-01

Full Text Available Dynamic development of financial industry in some last ten years that, considering the kind of financial agents, remained bank-oriented represents a suficient reason to investigate the causes that brought to the present structure of banking system. After having presented theoretical bases of the integration forms and banks connection, the paper analyzes the influence of foreign banks on the development of Croatian bank system. Thus, beside the knowledge of quantitative changes in the banking system, the paper researched the motivations of the banks regarding integration that, among other things, brought to creating the effects of scale and scope economies. However, the concentrations among banks can lead to creation of negative externalities that later become potential dangers for the banking. Pre-cognitions on development of banking system are used to create projection of future banking development while the data basis of the countries from the region enabled the comparative analysis of banks integration in these countries. The conclusion is that the foreign banks have been the largest promoters of bank integration in the Republic of Croatia contributing also to qualitative development of banking market and to deepening of financial market spectrum.

Innovative Trends Of International Banking Business (Case Of Azerbaijan

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F. F. Murshudli

2018-01-01

Full Text Available Development of the international banking business, the formation of its new paradigm in the context of globalization of the financial system and the intensification of global economic relations in recent years requires the innovative component. The combination of innovations, financial and external economic environment is one of the most important factors that characterize the phenomenon of the “new economy”. Therefore, innovative processes should be considered in conjunction with the changes of the processes connected with the foreign trade banking. The article gives a brief overview of the scientific literature on the international banking business and its innovative trends. Prerequisites are disclosed, direction and purpose of banking innovations, the area of their implementation and multi-vector forms of manifestation, reveals problems of innovative development of the international banking business, identifies potential paths of their solutions. The necessity of implementation of the innovative methods and instruments of bank service of foreign economic activity is justified and measures for their introduction in this process are offered. A wide spectrum of innovative trends of international banking business is defined as internal competitive environment, and external vectors. The author draws the attention to the contribution of the improvement of the sustainability and competitiveness of the business in terms of volatility of market processes. In the article on the example of the Republic of Azerbaijan presents practical recommendations on the development of innovative technologies in the banking system, the implementation of main tasks in this area, which are aimed to the development of effective management decisions on innovative international banking business in the foreseeable short and medium term.

Assessing the Life Science Knowledge of Students and Teachers Represented by the K-8 National Science Standards

Science.gov (United States)

Sadler, Philip M.; Coyle, Harold; Cook Smith, Nancy; Miller, Jaimie; Mintzes, Joel; Tanner, Kimberly; Murray, John

2013-01-01

We report on the development of an item test bank and associated instruments based on the National Research Council (NRC) K-8 life sciences content standards. Utilizing hundreds of studies in the science education research literature on student misconceptions, we constructed 476 unique multiple-choice items that measure the degree to which test…

Analisis Perbandingan Bank Umum Konvensional Dan Bank Umum Syariah

OpenAIRE

Nuryati; Gendis Gumilar, Amethysa

2011-01-01

This study analyzes and compares the financial risk of the two types of commercial banks, namely conventional commercial bank and Islamic commercial bank. Analysis tools used in this study is to use financial ratios and dicriminant values (Z values). Analysis showed that the ratio of liquidity and solvability ratios higher islamic commercial bank than conventional commercial bank. Z values higher islamic commercial bank than conventional commercial bank. The commercial banks are in a state of...

Strategies Adopted by Romanian Banks to Reduce the Payment Incidents

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Oana BĂRBULESCU SEITAN

2013-03-01

Full Text Available In the past few years, the lack of the market liquidity generated some difficulties in the process of recovering the claims from the partners. This has determined the banks to find solutions with which to protect their clients against the financial imbalances of their partners, imbalances that otherwise would directly affect their own business. However, the permanent changes of the banking regulations led to a continuous diversification of the relations between the bank and its customers. In this context, during January-February 2013, it was drawn up a qualitative marketing research, its main objective consisting in identifying and analyzing the main measures taken by banks to reduce the number and the value of payment incidents generated by the use of debt instruments. The study also considered the outline of potential measures that can be taken for adapting the regulations in the field to the needs of the Romanian business environment.

The Dysexecutive Questionnaire advanced: item and test score characteristics, 4-factor solution, and severity classification.

Science.gov (United States)

Bodenburg, Sebastian; Dopslaff, Nina

2008-01-01

The Dysexecutive Questionnaire (DEX, , Behavioral assessment of the dysexecutive syndrome, 1996) is a standardized instrument to measure possible behavioral changes as a result of the dysexecutive syndrome. Although initially intended only as a qualitative instrument, the DEX has also been used increasingly to address quantitative problems. Until now there have not been more fundamental statistical analyses of the questionnaire's testing quality. The present study is based on an unselected sample of 191 patients with acquired brain injury and reports on the data relating to the quality of the items, the reliability and the factorial structure of the DEX. Item 3 displayed too great an item difficulty, whereas item 11 was not sufficiently discriminating. The DEX's reliability in self-rating is r = 0.85. In addition to presenting the statistical values of the tests, a clinical severity classification of the overall scores of the 4 found factors and of the questionnaire as a whole is carried out on the basis of quartile standards.

Developing Item Response Theory-Based Short Forms to Measure the Social Impact of Burn Injuries.

Science.gov (United States)

Marino, Molly E; Dore, Emily C; Ni, Pengsheng; Ryan, Colleen M; Schneider, Jeffrey C; Acton, Amy; Jette, Alan M; Kazis, Lewis E

2018-03-01

To develop self-reported short forms for the Life Impact Burn Recovery Evaluation (LIBRE) Profile. Short forms based on the item parameters of discrimination and average difficulty. A support network for burn survivors, peer support networks, social media, and mailings. Burn survivors (N=601) older than 18 years. Not applicable. The LIBRE Profile. Ten-item short forms were developed to cover the 6 LIBRE Profile scales: Relationships with Family & Friends, Social Interactions, Social Activities, Work & Employment, Romantic Relationships, and Sexual Relationships. Ceiling effects were ≤15% for all scales; floor effects were item bank, computerized adaptive test, and short forms are all scored along the same metric, and therefore scores are comparable regardless of the mode of administration. Copyright © 2017 American Congress of Rehabilitation Medicine. Published by Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

The Dif Identification in Constructed Response Items Using Partial Credit Model

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Heri Retnawati

2017-10-01

Full Text Available The study was to identify the load, the type and the significance of differential item functioning (DIF in constructed response item using the partial credit model (PCM. The data in the study were the students’ instruments and the students’ responses toward the PISA-like test items that had been completed by 386 ninth grade students and 460 tenth grade students who had been about 15 years old in the Province of Yogyakarta Special Region in Indonesia. The analysis toward the item characteristics through the student categorization based on their class was conducted toward the PCM using CONQUEST software. Furthermore, by applying these items characteristics, the researcher draw the category response function (CRF graphic in order to identify whether the type of DIF content had been in uniform or non-uniform. The significance of DIF was identified by comparing the discrepancy between the difficulty level parameter and the error in the CONQUEST output results. The results of the analysis showed that from 18 items that had been analyzed there were 4 items which had not been identified load DIF, there were 5 items that had been identified containing DIF but not statistically significant and there were 9 items that had been identified containing DIF significantly. The causes of items containing DIF were discussed.

Is banking supervision central to central banking?

OpenAIRE

Joe Peek; Eric S. Rosengren; Geoffrey M. B. Tootell

1997-01-01

Whether central banks should play an active role in bank supervision and regulation is being debated both in the United States and abroad. While the Bank of England has recently been stripped of its supervisory responsibilities and several proposals in the United States have advocated removing bank supervision from the Federal Reserve System, other countries are considering enhancing central bank involvement in this area. Many of the arguments for and against these proposals hinge on the effe...

The knowledge, efficacy, and practices instrument for oral health providers: a validity study with dental students.

Science.gov (United States)

Behar-Horenstein, Linda S; Garvan, Cyndi W; Moore, Thomas E; Catalanotto, Frank A

2013-08-01

Valid and reliable instruments to measure and assess cultural competence for oral health care providers are scarce in the literature, and most published scales have been contested due to a lack of item analysis and internal estimates of reliability. The purposes of this study were, first, to develop a standardized instrument to measure dental students' knowledge of diversity, skills in culturally competent patient-centered communication, and use of culture-centered practices in patient care and, second, to provide preliminary validity support for this instrument. The initial instrument used in this study was a thirty-six-item Likert-scale survey entitled the Knowledge, Efficacy, and Practices Instrument for Oral Health Providers (KEPI-OHP). This instrument is an adaption of an initially thirty-three-item version of the Multicultural Awareness, Knowledge, and Skills Scale-Counselor Edition (MAKSS-CE), a scale that assesses factors related to social justice, cultural differences among clients, and cross-cultural client management. After the authors conducted cognitive and expert interviews, focus groups, pilot testing, and item analysis, their initial instrument was reduced to twenty-eight items. The KEPI-OHP was then distributed to 916 dental students (response rate=48.6 percent) across the United States to measure its reliability and assess its validity. Both exploratory and confirmatory factor analyses were conducted to test the scale's validity. The modification of the survey into a sensible instrument with a relatively clear factor structure using factor analysis resulted in twenty items. A scree test suggested three expressive factors, which were retained for rotation. Bentler's comparative fit and Bentler and Bonnett's non-normed indices were 0.95 and 0.92, respectively. A three-factor solution, including efficacy of assessment, knowledge of diversity, and culture-centered practice subscales, comprised of twenty-items was identified. The KEPI-OHP was found to

Psychometric validation of the Persian nine-item Internet Gaming Disorder Scale - Short Form: Does gender and hours spent online gaming affect the interpretations of item descriptions?

Science.gov (United States)

Wu, Tzu-Yi; Lin, Chung-Ying; Årestedt, Kristofer; Griffiths, Mark D; Broström, Anders; Pakpour, Amir H

2017-06-01

Background and aims The nine-item Internet Gaming Disorder Scale - Short Form (IGDS-SF9) is brief and effective to evaluate Internet Gaming Disorder (IGD) severity. Although its scores show promising psychometric properties, less is known about whether different groups of gamers interpret the items similarly. This study aimed to verify the construct validity of the Persian IGDS-SF9 and examine the scores in relation to gender and hours spent online gaming among 2,363 Iranian adolescents. Methods Confirmatory factor analysis (CFA) and Rasch analysis were used to examine the construct validity of the IGDS-SF9. The effects of gender and time spent online gaming per week were investigated by multigroup CFA and Rasch differential item functioning (DIF). Results The unidimensionality of the IGDS-SF9 was supported in both CFA and Rasch. However, Item 4 (fail to control or cease gaming activities) displayed DIF (DIF contrast = 0.55) slightly over the recommended cutoff in Rasch but was invariant in multigroup CFA across gender. Items 4 (DIF contrast = -0.67) and 9 (jeopardize or lose an important thing because of gaming activity; DIF contrast = 0.61) displayed DIF in Rasch and were non-invariant in multigroup CFA across time spent online gaming. Conclusions Given the Persian IGDS-SF9 was unidimensional, it is concluded that the instrument can be used to assess IGD severity. However, users of the instrument are cautioned concerning the comparisons of the sum scores of the IGDS-SF9 across gender and across adolescents spending different amounts of time online gaming.

Validation of the PHEEM instrument in a Danish hospital setting

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Aspegren, Knut; Bastholt, Lars; Bested, K.M.

2007-01-01

The Postgraduate Hospital Educational Environment Measure (PHEEM) has been translated into Danish and then validated with good internal consistency by 342 Danish junior and senior hospital doctors. Four of the 40 items are culturally dependent in the Danish hospital setting. Factor analysis...... demonstrated that seven items are interconnected. This information can be used to shorten the instrument by perhaps another three items...

Evaluation of biological samples for specimen banking and biomonitoring by nuclear methods

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Stone, S.F.; Zeisler, R.

1984-01-01

In a pilot program for environmental specimen banking, human livers and marine mussels (Mytilus edulis) were sampled, analyzed and banked. Nuclear methods played a major role in the evaluation of the samples by providing concentration data for up to 37 major, mineral, and trace elements. Instrumental neutron activation analysis was complemented by neutron-capture prompt gamma activation analysis, radiochemical separations and, for the mussels, by instrumental X-ray fluorescence analysis. A cryogenic homogenization procedure was applied for sample preparation and evaluated. Assessment of accuracy was made by analyzing Standard Reference Materials and by intercomparing the techniques. Results are reported for 66 individual human liver specimens, collected at three locations in the United States, and for batches of 65 mussels from a collection made at Narragansett Bay, RI. 19 references, 23 figures, 4 tables

Safety analysis code input automation using the Nuclear Plant Data Bank

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Kopp, H.; Leung, J.; Tajbakhsh, A.; Viles, F.

1985-01-01

The Nuclear Plant Data Bank (NPDB) is a computer-based system that organizes a nuclear power plant's technical data, providing mechanisms for data storage, retrieval, and computer-aided engineering analysis. It has the specific objective to describe thermohydraulic systems in order to support: rapid information retrieval and display, and thermohydraulic analysis modeling. The Nuclear Plant Data Bank (NPBD) system fully automates the storage and analysis based on this data. The system combines the benefits of a structured data base system and computer-aided modeling with links to large scale codes for engineering analysis. Emphasis on a friendly and very graphically oriented user interface facilitates both initial use and longer term efficiency. Specific features are: organization and storage of thermohydraulic data items, ease in locating specific data items, graphical and tabular display capabilities, interactive model construction, organization and display of model input parameters, input deck construction for TRAC and RELAP analysis programs, and traceability of plant data, user model assumptions, and codes used in the input deck construction process. The major accomplishments of this past year were the development of a RELAP model generation capability and the development of a CRAY version of the code

National phantoms bank for the service of nuclear medicine in Cuba. Utility for the quality control of the instrumentation; Banco de fantomas nacional para los servicios de medicina nuclear en Cuba. Utilidad para el control de calidad de la instrumentacion

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Varela C, C.; Diaz B, M. [CCEEM, Calle 4 No. 455 (altos) e/19 y 21, Vedado, Ciudad Habana (Cuba); Lopez B, G.M. [CPHR, Calle 20 No. 4113 e/41 y 47, Playa Ciudad Habana (Cuba)]. e-mail: consuelo.varela@infomed.sld.cu

2006-07-01

Although, most of the applications in Nuclear Medicine have diagnostic ends, its going enlarging considerably the therapeutic applications. So that the diagnostic accuracy or the therapy effectiveness have not been affected, it becomes indispensable the quality control of the instrumentation, independently of its technological complexity and/or its exploitation period. Before the real lack of phantoms in the institutions, it was created a bank that puts to disposition of all the institutions, the existent phantoms in the country, and those that are going acquired, centralized by the State Control of Medical Equipment Center (CCEEM) and with Web access in its place www.eqmed.sld.cu. Having like base the elaboration of the National Protocol for the Quality Control of the Instrumentation in Nuclear Medicine that keeps in mind the international normative and the own existent conditions, were dictated and established two national regulations and its are being carried out the first audits to the instrumentation quality. These have evidenced the partial realization of the established quality controls in the services, the necessity to make aware as for the fulfillment of the criteria and quality concepts for the instrumentation, as well as the necessity to increase the phantoms number to the bank to guarantee the fulfillment of the Quality Control Programs. (Author)

Experimental determination of harmonic conditions amplification in a distribution network by capacitor bank switching

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Baloi, Alexandru; Kocewiak, Lukasz Hubert; Bak, Claus Leth

2012-01-01

The paper presents a study comprising laboratory measurements for the evaluation of the harmonic amplification due to capacitor bank switching. The mathematical model of the amplification factors of the current flowing on the circuit elements is presented. Theoretical aspects, regarding the total...... harmonic distortion (THD) of the capacitor current computed using the amplification factor, are originally presented. Nonlinear loads as six pulse rectifier and National Instruments measurement sensors together with LabView software were used on the laboratory set-up. The main instrument of the method...... is the harmonic impedance, “seen” in the bus of the capacitor bank switching. MatLab Simulink is used for the determination of the harmonic impedance....

Construction and validation of the Self-care Assessment Instrument for patients with type 2 diabetes mellitus

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Simonize Cunha Barreto de Mendonça

Full Text Available ABSTRACT Objective: to construct and validate the contents of the Self-care Assessment instrument for patients with type 2 diabetes mellitus. Method: methodological study, based on Orem's General Theory of Nursing. The empirical categories and the items of the instrument were elucidated through a focus group. The content validation process was performed by seven specialists and the semantic analysis by 14 patients. The Content Validity Indices of the items, ≥0.78, and of the scale, ≥0.90, were considered excellent. Results: the instrument contains 131 items in six dimensions corresponding to the health deviation self-care requisites. Regarding the maintenance, a Content Validity Index of 0.98 was obtained for the full set of items, and, regarding the relevance, Content Validity Indices ≥0.80 were obtained for the majority of the assessed psychometric criteria. Conclusion: the instrument showed evidence of content validity.

Marketing channels of banking products and services in contemporary business environment

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Rakita Aleksandra

2016-01-01

Full Text Available Marketing application in banking is dating back to the 50s of 20th century, and since then its role is constantly changing. His modern role of synthesis of analysis, planning and control of the bank in the financial markets, achieved by the use of instruments of marketing mix (product, price, distribution and promotion. The paper is an analysis of the distribution function, and is primarily an overview of the modern distribution channels of banking products and services in the US, as the most developed markets and global trends carrier. In the paper is drafted the comparison of traditional and alternative distribution channels, in order to compare their advantages and disadvantages with the aim to find the optimum balance between them with the purpose to, on the one hand, meet customer needs, and on the other increase the efficiency of banking operations and lowered costs.

Regional Banks in the Russian Banking System

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Mikhail Vitalyevich Leonov

2015-06-01

Full Text Available Despite the lack of a uniform definition of «a regional bank», problems of their activities are widely discussed in the context of increasing regulation of the banking sector and creation of conditions for accelerated development of certain regions. The author analyses the Russian-language scientific literature in order to define «a regional bank» and systematize its key differences from other commercial banks. The researcher shows that the allocation of regional banks in a separate group should be related to specific features of the environment and not by endogenous factors associated with the selection of activities and balance sheet structure. The low level of financial market development and concentration of specific undiversified risks are the principal qualifiers differentiating between regional banks and other credit institutions in Russia. As classification criteria the author uses following: spatial representation (the bank does not have structural subdivisions in Moscow and the ownership structure (among the bank’s owners there are no national and international financial groups that have a direct impact on the operations of the bank

Mobile banking: New trend in the contemporary banking sector

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Sanader Dušica

2014-01-01

Full Text Available In the late 1990s and early 2000s, banking has undergone and is still undergoing some considerable changes, adjusting itself to the new circumstances and challenges in its environment. Modern information technologies have granted an opportunity to banks to expand their operations and adjust their offer of products and services, placing them through the new communication channels. The increasing reliance on mobile devices, especially the so-called smart phones, has facilitated the development of a new form of banking, known as mobile banking. Mobile banking is a specific channel of electronic banking, enabling clients to communicate with the bank via mobile devices. The bank's products and services are, thus, available to the clients at any time and at any place, and the banking sector is expected to perfectly understand the needs of today's clients, before implementing mobile banking. The research in this paper focuses on mobile banking, as a segment of electronic banking, which has developed under the influence of modern information technologies. The paper elaborates on the main characteristics of mobile banking, its advantages, but also its drawbacks that the banks and their clients are facing in the process of its utilization (or its implementation in practice. Moreover, the paper presents the trends of using mobile banking in the world and in Serbia, along with the tendencies for developing new services.

Qualitative Evaluation of Pediatric Pain Behavior, Quality, and Intensity Item Candidates and the PROMIS Pain Domain Framework in Children With Chronic Pain.

Science.gov (United States)

Jacobson, C Jeffrey; Kashikar-Zuck, Susmita; Farrell, Jennifer; Barnett, Kimberly; Goldschneider, Ken; Dampier, Carlton; Cunningham, Natoshia; Crosby, Lori; DeWitt, Esi Morgan

2015-12-01

As initial steps in a broader effort to develop and test pediatric pain behavior and pain quality item banks for the Patient-Reported Outcomes Measurement Information System (PROMIS), we used qualitative interview and item review methods to 1) evaluate the overall conceptual scope and content validity of the PROMIS pain domain framework among children with chronic/recurrent pain conditions, and 2) develop item candidates for further psychometric testing. To elicit the experiential and conceptual scope of pain outcomes across a variety of pediatric recurrent/chronic pain conditions, we conducted 32 semi-structured individual and 2 focus-group interviews with children and adolescents (8-17 years), and 32 individual and 2 focus-group interviews with parents of children with pain. Interviews with pain experts (10) explored the operational limits of pain measurement in children. For item bank development, we identified existing items from measures in the literature, grouped them by concept, removed redundancies, and modified the remaining items to match PROMIS formatting. New items were written as needed and cognitive debriefing was completed with the children and their parents, resulting in 98 pain behavior (47 self, 51 proxy), 54 quality, and 4 intensity items for further testing. Qualitative content analyses suggest that reportable pain outcomes that matter to children with pain are captured within and consistent with the pain domain framework in PROMIS. PROMIS pediatric pain behavior, quality, and intensity items were developed based on a theoretical framework of pain that was evaluated by multiple stakeholders in the measurement of pediatric pain, including researchers, clinicians, and children with pain and their parents, and the appropriateness of the framework was verified. Copyright © 2015 American Pain Society. Published by Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

FRACTIONAL BANKING

OpenAIRE

Maria Klimikova

2010-01-01

Understanding the reasons of the present financial problems lies In understanding the substance of fractional reserve banking. The substance of fractional banking is in lending more money than the bankers have. Banking of partial reserves is an alternative form which links deposit banking and credit banking. Fractional banking is causing many unfavorable economic impacts in the worldwide system, specifically an inflation.

Brand Relationship and Its Effect Towards Brand Evangelism to Banking Service (33-45)

OpenAIRE

Sri Vandayuli Riorini; Christine Catur Widayati

2016-01-01

The purpose of this study was to analyze the effect of Brand relationship, Brand trust, Brand identification, Brand involvement, Brand commitment to Brand evangelism. This study using purposive sampling technique in which samples were selected in this study as much as 200 commercial Banks customers have used the services of the Bank at least 12 months. Data analysis instrument used was Multiple Regression Analysis with SPSS assistance. The results obtained are consistent with previous studies...

HUMAN RESOURCE MANAGEMENT AND EMPLOYEE JOB SATISFACTION: EVIDENCE FROM THE NIGERIAN BANKING INDUSTRY

OpenAIRE

Omotayo Adewale OSIBANJO; Oladele Joseph KEHIDE; Abolaji Joachim ABIODUN

2011-01-01

The paper examines the effect of human resources management (factors) on employees’ job satisfaction using data collected from two banks in the Nigerian banking industry. The study attempts to determine the effect of training and development on employee job satisfaction; to determine the influence of working conditions on employee job satisfaction; and to determine the impact of human resources factors on employee job satisfaction. The survey instrument used in the collection of data was t...

The Spanish version of the Self-Determination Inventory Student Report: application of item response theory to self-determination measurement.

Science.gov (United States)

Mumbardó-Adam, C; Guàrdia-Olmos, J; Giné, C; Raley, S K; Shogren, K A

2018-04-01

A new measure of self-determination, the Self-Determination Inventory: Student Report (Spanish version), has recently been adapted and empirically validated in Spanish language. As it is the first instrument intended to measure self-determination in youth with and without disabilities, there is a need to further explore and strengthen its psychometric analysis based on item response patterns. Through item response theory approach, this study examined item observed distributions across the essential characteristics of self-determination. The results demonstrated satisfactory to excellent item functioning patterns across characteristics, particularly within agentic action domains. Increased variability across items was also found within action-control beliefs dimensions, specifically within the self-realisation subdomain. These findings further support the instrument's psychometric properties and outline future research directions. © 2017 MENCAP and International Association of the Scientific Study of Intellectual and Developmental Disabilities and John Wiley & Sons Ltd.

An intelligent instrument for measuring the dynamic parameters of groundwater

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Du Guoping

2002-01-01

An intelligent instrument was developed for measuring direction and velocity of the groundwater, permeability coefficient, hydraulic transmitting coefficient, static level, hydraulic gradient and flow direction of each layer. The instrument can be widely applied for detecting seepage of abutment and river bank, exploitation of groundwater, conservation of water and soil, water surging in mine, survey of groundwater resource and environment protection etc

Providing nuclear reactor control information in the presence of instrument failures

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Tylee, J.L.; Purviance, J.E.

1986-01-01

A technique for using unfailed instrument outputs to generate optimal estimates of failed sensor outputs is presented and evaluated. The technique uses a bank of discrete, linear Kalman filters, each dedicated to one instrument, and a combinatory logic to perform the output estimation. The technique is tested using measurement data from a university research reactor

Titoli e attività bancaria: ponti e mura (Securities and Banking: Bridges and Walls

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)