National data show a continuing decline in the willingness of people to respond to surveys. This trend is troubling given the central role that survey research plays in collecting data for institutional research purposes. This paper examines the effectiveness of a weighting procedure described by Astin and Molm for adjusting survey results to correct for nonresponse bias. Using data from a Cooperative Institutional Research Program (CIRP) follow-up survey, the results indicate that the weighting procedure is highly effective at reducing nonresponse bias in univariate distributions. The effectiveness of the weighting procedure in adjusting correlation and regression analyses is less clear. This may be due in part to the observation that even when individual variables are noticeably biased, their relationships with each other tend not to be. 相似文献
In Australia, the inception of veterinary technology, as a higher education discipline underpinning an emerging, mid-tier paraveterinary field, reflected global trends for more highly educated veterinary paraprofessionals to meet changing societal demands. In this study, veterinary technology graduates were surveyed about their experiences in the workforce and reflections on their education. Seeking feedback on how well a new programme has prepared graduates for the workforce is a useful quality assurance tool. Clinical veterinary practice was the primary employment sector with the majority of respondents in full-time employment. Career advancement, professional recognition and salaries were identified as key career challenges. The important roles of the veterinary and veterinary nursing professions, the university, government and graduates in the development of this mid-tier, veterinary paraprofession were elucidated. Graduates’ feedback on criteria that underpinned ‘work-readiness’ revealed seven key domains: communication skills, research skills, knowledge, critical thinking/problem-solving, employability, practical skills and professionalism. Veterinary nursing skills, work placement, practice management and production animal health were flagged as areas for curricular improvement. This study illuminated facilitators and barriers critical to establishing a mid-tier veterinary paraprofession, bridging the divide between the vocational and higher education sectors in Australia.
Abbreviations: AUD: Australian dollar; AVA: Australian Veterinary Association; AVBC: Australasian Veterinary Boards Council; AVMA: American Veterinary Medical Association; BVNA: British Veterinary Nursing Association; CSU: Charles Sturt University; DAF: Department of Agriculture and Fisheries; FWC: Fair Work Commission; GCA: Graduate Careers Australia; HE: Higher Education; NHMRC: National Health and Medical Research Council; QLD: Queensland; RCVS: Royal College of Veterinary Surgeons; UK: United Kingdom; UQ: University of Queensland; VN: Veterinary nursing; VNCA: Veterinary Nurses Council of Australia; VSB: Veterinary Surgeons Board; VT: Veterinary technology; WIL: Work-integrated learning. 相似文献
Britain’s exit from the European Exchange Rate Mechanism in 1992 and the Second Iraq War in 2003 are two infamous examples of disastrous policy, but governments blunder all the time – whatever party is in power. Infrastructure projects overrun. The aims and techniques of different departments clash. Scandals erupt among officials and politicians. Controversies stymie attempts at agreement and consensus. But why exactly do these failures happen? Are they more or less widespread than in the private sector? And can studying British governments’ decision-making across the twentieth century improve it in the future? In his May 2018 inaugural lecture, Professor O'Hara recommended a slow, deliberative, transparent, democratic and above all humble and sensitive approach in order to avoid another Black Wednesday or ruinous war – an approach in contrast to the populist tone of much recent debate. 相似文献
Prospective application of serum cytokines, lipopolysaccharide (LPS), and heat shock proteins (eHSPs) requires reliable measurement of these biomarkers that can signify exercise-induced heat stress in hot conditions. To accomplish this, both short-term (7 day) reliability (at rest, n = 12) and the acute responsiveness of each biomarker to exercise in the heat (pre and post 60-min cycling, 34.5°C and 70% RH, n = 20) were evaluated. Serum was analysed for the concentration of C-reactive protein (CRP), interleukin-6 (IL-6), heat shock protein 72 (eHSP72), immunoglobulin M (IgM) and LPS. Test–retest reliability was determined as the coefficient of variation (CV). Biomarkers with the least short-term within-participant variation were IL-6 (19%, ±20%; CV, ±95% confidence limits (CL)) and LPS (23%, ±13%). Greater variability was observed for IgM, eHSP72 and CRP (CV range 28–38%). IL-6 exhibited the largest increase in response to acute exercise (95%, ±11%, P = < 0.001) and although CRP had a modest CV (12%, ±7%), it increased substantially post-exercise (P = 0.02, ES; 0.78). In contrast, eHSP72 and LPS exhibited trivial changes post-exercise. It appears variation of common inflammatory markers after exercise in the heat is not always discernible from short-term (weekly) variation. 相似文献