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Biomedical subjects

J W Finney

Publications and source records attributed to J W Finney.

At least 91 records · Page 5Linked to original sources
PubMed1985

Improving pediatric appointment keeping with reminders and reduced response requirement.

We evaluated the effectiveness of appointment reminders and a reduced response requirement for improving appointment keeping in a hospital ambulatory pediatric clinic. Participants received mailed and telephoned reminders along with a parking pass that reduced the time and effort required to attend the clinic. A multiple baseline analysis of 5,261 appointments over one fiscal year showed that the intervention increased the percentage of appointments kept and decreased the percentage of appointments broken in the continuity clinics of five pediatric health care providers. Social validation, consumer satisfaction, and cost-effectiveness measures, as well as an interrupted time-series analysis, all support the effectiveness of the intervention.

Appointments and Schedules↗
PubMed1984

Life stressors and problem drinking among older adults.

Research on the prevalence of excessive drinking among persons age 60 and older is reviewed, and the inadequacy of general criteria for operationally defining problem drinking in this population is pointed out. We critically examine the empirical evidence relating life stressors (e.g., death of a spouse) to the onset of problem drinking in older age and, to a lesser extent, to the continuation of drinking problems into the later stages of the life cycle. Potential mediators and moderators of the stress-problem drinking relationship (e.g., personal coping methods and social resources) have generally been ignored in this research. Life stress is probably best viewed as a component of one or more of several combinations of factors that may trigger or perpetuate drinking problems. A comprehensive conceptual framework to guide future research is presented. The use of such a framework should serve to integrate research on problem drinking among older persons with work in the general field of adaptation to life stress.

Aged↗
PubMed1984

Environmental assessment and evaluation research: examples from mental health and substance abuse programs.

Evaluation researchers have been broadening the traditional client input--"black box" treatment--client outcome paradigm that has guided many evaluations of mental health, substance abuse treatment, and other intervention programs. The points of expansion are in the areas of treatment implementation and treatment processes, as well as "extratreatment" influences on treatment selection, duration, and, especially, outcome. This review illustrates the application of environmental assessment procedures--particularly social climate measures--in four aspects of evaluation research suggested by the more comprehensive model: (a) evaluating treatment implementation; (b) exploring treatment processes; (c) identifying extratreatment influences on client posttreatment functioning; and (d) operationalizing outcome variables. Conceptual and methodological issues raised by these applications are discussed, and the benefits to be derived from an expanded model of evaluation research--especially the greater potential for program improvement--are considered.

Evaluation Studies as Topic↗
PubMed1984

Behavioral assessment and treatment of chronic food refusal in handicapped children.

In this study, we examined the eating behavior of four handicapped children, none of whom exhibited self-feeding skills. All children had a history of food refusal and were nutritionally at risk; one child received all nourishment by way of gastrostomy tube. Baseline data taken during mealtimes indicated that all children accepted very little food, expelled food frequently, and engaged in a number of disruptive behaviors. Treatments consisted of one or more of the following contingent events: social praise, access to preferred foods, brief periods of toy play, and forced feeding. Results of multiple-baseline and reversal designs showed marked behavioral improvement for each child and increases in the amount of food consumed. Further improvements were noted at follow-up, which ranged from 7 to 30 months posttreatment.

Behavior Therapy↗
PubMed1983

Assessment and reduction of food stealing in Prader-Willi children.

A common behavior problem among Prader-Willi children is inappropriate foraging for food. Theft and subsequent consumption often go undetected and contribute to morbid obesity in many of these individuals. In this study an observational methodology was developed to assess food stealing in two children with Prader-Willi syndrome. The children were observed to steal food at a high rates under baseline conditions in three hospital settings. Subsequent treatment, based on differential reinforcement of other behavior (DRO), consisted of reinforcement of nonstealing at the end of progressively lengthening intervals, and was implemented in multiple baseline fashion across both subjects and settings. Results showed that both subjects' stealing rapidly ceased in treated settings, but failed to show generalization to untreated settings. Follow-up data collected in one setting after termination of active intervention reflected continued nonoccurrence of food stealing, although long-term weight data were not encouraging. Results are discussed in terms of their methodological contribution to the study and treatment of Prader-Willi syndrome.

Behavior Therapy↗