Internal-external control and temporal orientation among southeast Asians and white Americans.

This study examined ethnic group differences with the use of the Model of Human Occupation (Kielhofner, 1985b). Three groups--immigrants from Thailand, immigrants from Cambodia, and white Americans--were contrasted on two constructs--internal versus external control and temporal orientation. The study attempted to identify whether nonpatient subjects have an internal locus of control and a strong future orientation, as the Model of Human Occupation would predict.

A cross-cultural test of the validity of occupational therapy assessments with patients with schizophrenia.

The validity and use of psychosocial assessments in occupational therapy are ongoing concerns (Moyer, 1984) and were the focus of this study. Fifty African patients with schizophrenia and 10 nondysfunctional African volunteers took an an assessment battery that included the Schroeder, Block, Campbell Adult Psychiatric Sensory Integration Evaluation (SBC) (Schroeder, Block, Trottier, & Stowell, 1978), a daily activity, work, and leisure activity interview based on the Model of Human Occupation (Kielhofner, 1985), and a culture-specific test of functional performance. Data on subjects' psychiatric histories and demographics were collected.

What occupational therapists can do to eliminate racial barriers to health care access.

Now is the time for the American Occupational Therapy Foundation and individual institutions of higher education that house occupational therapy programs to step into the leadership vacuum created by this issue. We must not only design new minority scholarships programs, but also be prepared to defend existing ones. Given the current confusion and fluctuations of opinion on this issue, what is policy now may not be policy after the next presidential election.

The use of computers in occupational therapy for visual-scanning training.

This study examined the effect of computer-assisted remediation, with the use of specific visual-scanning software, in the retraining of a functional scanning deficit. Three subjects who displayed significant deficits in visual scanning were selected. A single-subject study was conducted, involving an ABA multiple baseline across-subjects design.

Schizophrenia:

In Zanzibar, as in many "third world" places, there are two health care systems, one traditional and the other "European." Among the Swahili people of East Africa spirits are believed to be the cause of disturbed behavior or "madness." Data and observations gathered during one year of mental health practice in Zanzibar and over many years of practice in the U.

A perspective on consulting in guatemala.

Attempting to offer short-term help in a center for disabled, delayed and nutritionally deprived children in Antigua Guatemala was quite a learning experience. Good intentions and conventional Northern approaches often collided with reality, providing the author with perhaps as many learning experiences as she was able to provide to the center.

Educating entry-level occupational therapy students in gerontology.

The need for gerontic occupational therapists is increasing as the number of elders increases. The practice of including gerontologic content in occupational therapy entry-level curricula is relatively new. This article provides a rationale for including gerontologic content in entry-level occupational therapy curricula and presents the results of a brief survey conducted in November 1990 of all accredited and developing entry-level professional occupational therapy programs in the United States.

Positioning for head control to access an augmentative communication machine.

The purpose of this paper was to study the effect of therapeutic positioning on the functional use of augmentative communication equipment. Recent literature on therapeutic positioning as it affects muscle tone and functional activities is reviewed. The effect of positioning intervention on rate and accuracy of head-controlled typing on an augmentative communication machine was measured.

Activity patterns and life changes in people with depression.

The Activity Pattern Indicator (API) (Diller, Fordyce, Jacobs, & Brown, 1978) and the Schedule of Recent Experience (SRE) (Holmes, 1981) were used to determine activity patterns and life changes for 15 depressed patients admitted to an acute care mental health unit. Eight categories on the API were correlated with six categories on the SRE to determine the relationship between activity patterns 1 week and 1 month before hospitalization and life changes for the past year. Two correlations indicated that as the total number of life changes and home and family life changes increase, activity related to personal care decreases.

Spectral Irradiance and Distribution of Pigments in a Highly Layered Marine Microbial Mat.

The spectral irradiance from 400 to 1,100 nm was measured with depth in the intertidal sand mats at Great Sippewissett Salt Marsh, Mass. These mats contained at least four distinct layers, composed of cyanobacteria, purple sulfur bacteria containing bacteriochlorophyll a (Bchl a), purple sulfur bacteria containing Bchl b, and green sulfur bacteria. Spectral irradiance was measured directly by layering sections of mat on a cosine receptor.

Hemophilia, AIDS, and occupational therapy.

This article describes the blood clotting disorder of hemophilia, including its transmission, incidence, and physical and psychosocial effects. The epidemiology of persons with both hemophilia and HIV are discussed, as well as HIV's rapid spread due to contaminated blood products and the mechanisms commonly used to cope with HIV infection. Specific suggestions on occupational therapy intervention are provided, including helping clients learn to cope with HIV by transferring skills previously learned for coping with hemophilia; teaching stress reduction, anger management, communication, and energy conservation skills; educating families and helping them set appropriate goals; designing adaptive systems for dealing with neurological deficits; and designing exercise programs.

Assessing the impact of HIV disease.

This article presents a definition of HIV disease as a four-stage process. The Sickness Impact Profile (SIP) (Bergner, Bobbitt, Carter, & Gilson, 1981) was used to measure behavioral dysfunction in a sample of 15 persons with Stage 3 or Stage 4 (symptomatic) HIV disease. The areas of work, leisure, cognitive behavior, and emotional behavior were found to be, on the average, most affected by HIV disease.

A comparison of motor performance of preschoolers enrolled in mental health programs and non-mental health programs.

Recognizing that the etiologies of some major mental illnesses may be in the physical domain, this study described and compared the motor performance of 27 preschool children enrolled in mental health programs with 27 children enrolled in Project Head Start, a non-mental health program. The two groups were matched for age, race, and sex. The Gross and Fine Motor scales of the Peabody Developmental Motor Scales were administered to all subjects.

Sexual consequences of disability:

No abstract available for this article.

Ethnic/Racial considerations in occupational therapy:

Examination of the occupational therapy literature related to cultural facotrs in treatment inspired investigation into the levels of cultural awareness of currently practicing therapists. White, black, Asian-American, Puerto Rican and Mexican-American therapists were selected to receive a questionaire involving factors that encourage or discourage cultural sensitivity in the clinical setting. Some of the results of the study will be reported and discussed.

Physiological ecology of a gliding bacterium containing bacteriochlorophyll a.

A filamentous, gliding, thermophilic bacterium, found growing abundantly as a surface mat in a limited number of alkaline hot springs in Oregon, is described and designated F-1. The bacteria were studied in the field and in coculture with an aerobic chemoheterotroph. The bacteria are phototrophic and contain bacteriochlorophyll a and several carotenoid pigments.