Effect of relaxation training on personal adjustment and perceptions of organizational climate

The chief aim of the present study was to investigate the effect of relaxation training on personal adjustment and perceptions of organizational climate. The Stern Activity Index and Organizational Climate Index along with the Bendig Manifest Anxiety Scale were administered to 71 volunteer Ss (28 males and 43 females) as pre- and post-test measures. The Ss were randomly assigned to three groups, seminar and relaxation training, seminar and a placebo condition, and no treatment. A one-way multivariate analysis showed a significant mean difference. Results obtained from t tests indicated a significant reduction in anxiety and an increase in personal adjustment. Changes in perceptions of organizational climate, although in the predicted direction, were not statistically significant.

The combination test as a quick screening device to differentiate levels of retardation

This study attempted to determine whether a completion test could be used as a quick screening device to distinguish the retarded. The two-part combination test requires 7 min. for administration and consists of (a) incomplete figures, which were designed especially for the study and (b) a passage containing incomplete and missing words. Correlations of .93, .86, .80, and .72 were obtained between the two-part combination test and the Stanford-Binet, Ammons FRPV, Columbia, and Wechsler-Bellevue, respectively. All coefficients were significant ( p < .001). The data indicate that the two-part combination test can be validly used in screening the retarded.

Intensive care nurse: job tension and satisfaction as a function of experience level

It has been suggested that experienced ICU nurses are better able to cope with the complexity of their environment and, as a result, achieve greater satisfaction than their less-experienced counterparts. One hundred ten ICU nurses from a large Midwestern medical center were requested to fill out a job tension and job satisfaction questionnaire. The results showed that job tension and job satisfaction remained relatively constant as the number of years on the job increased, refuting the notion that work experience automatically facilitates a mastery of environmental demands. As expected, job tension was inversely related to job satisfaction.

Facial imagery and personality development

The empirical relationship between judgments obtained with a motorized facial-distortion mirror and relevant personality and rating measures was examined. Subjects were 88 school children. The findings indicated general trend differences between males and females in perceiving facial distortion shown in a mirror. Although not statistically significant, a relationship between teachers' ratings on hygiene, self-concept, sociability, and two scales of the High School Personality Questionnaire were noted.

Effect of sensory isolation upon intracranial self-stimulation by Sprague-Dawley rats

The present research investigated “pleasurable” intracranial self-stimulation in 8 Sprague-Dawley rats as a function of 3-hr. sensory isolation. A significantly higher rate of responding was obtained during the sensory-isolation confinement than under the control conditions.

Quantitative pupillometry as a biomarker for prediction of return to play in mild traumatic brain injury: a Military Traumatic Brain Injury Initiative study

OBJECTIVE

This study aimed to determine the validity of quantitative pupillometry to predict the length of time for return to full activity/duty after a mild traumatic brain injury (mTBI) in a cohort of injured cadets at West Point.

METHODS

Each subject received baseline (T0) quantitative pupillometry, in addition to evaluation with the Balance Error Scoring System (BESS), Standardized Assessment of Concussion (SAC), and Sport Concussion Assessment Tool 5th Edition Symptom Survey (SCAT5). Repeat assessments using the same parameters were conducted within 48 hours of injury (T1), at the beginning of progressive return to activity (T2), and at the completion of progressive return to activity protocols (T3). Pupillary metrics were compared on the basis of length of time to return to full play/duty and the clinical scores.

RESULTS

The authors' statistical analyses found correlations between pupillometry measures at T1, including end-initial diameter and maximum constriction velocity, with larger change and faster constriction predicting earlier return to play. There was also an association with maximum constriction velocity at baseline (T0), predicting faster return to play.

CONCLUSIONS

The authors conclude that that pupillometry may be a valuable tool for assessing time to return to duty from mTBI by providing a measure of baseline resiliency to mTBI and/or autonomic dysfunction in the acute phase after mTBI.

Quantitative Pupillometry Predicts Return to Play and Tracks the Clinical Evolution of Mild Traumatic Brain Injury in US Military Academy Cadets: A Military Traumatic Brain Injury Initiative Study

BACKGROUND AND OBJECTIVES

The objective of this study was to determine the utility of the pupillary light reflex use as a biomarker of mild traumatic brain injury (mTBI).

METHODS

This prospective cohort study was conducted at The US Military Academy at West Point. Cadets underwent a standard battery of tests including Balance Error Scoring System, Sports Concussion Assessment Tool Fifth Edition Symptom Survey, Standard Assessment of Concussion, and measure of pupillary responses. Cadets who sustained an mTBI during training events or sports were evaluated with the same battery of tests and pupillometry within 48 hours of the injury (T1), at the initiation of a graded return to activity protocol (T2), and at unrestricted return to activity (T3).

RESULTS

Pupillary light reflex metrics were obtained in 1300 cadets at baseline. During the study period, 68 cadets sustained mTBIs. At T1 (<48 hours), cadets manifested significant postconcussion symptoms (Sports Concussion Assessment Tool Fifth Edition P < .001), and they had decreased cognitive performance (Standardized Assessment of Concussion P < .001) and higher balance error scores (Balance Error Scoring System P < .001) in comparison with their baseline assessment (T0). The clinical parameters showed normalization at time points T2 and T3. The pupillary responses demonstrated a pattern of significant change that returned to normal for several measures, including the difference between the constricted and initial pupillary diameter (T1 P < .001, T2 P < .05), dilation velocity (T1 P < .01, T2 P < .001), and percent of pupillary constriction (T1 P < .05). In addition, a combination of dilation velocity and maximum constriction velocity demonstrates moderate prediction ability regarding who can return to duty before or after 21 days (area under the curve = 0.71, 95% CI [0.56-0.86]).

CONCLUSION

This study's findings indicate that quantitative pupillometry has the potential to assist with injury identification and prediction of symptom severity and duration.