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This study aims to compare commonly used dietary assessment methods in non-obese young adults.

This study was carried out on 22 females and 21 males, who were aged between 20 and 25, with no chronic diseases and were not obese or on any diet. The data was collected face to face. In this study, the authors evaluated the consistency of nonconsecutive three-day 24-h recall method (3 × 24HR), which was chosen as a reference for the determination of food consumption, with one-day 24-h recall method (1 × 24HR), three-day food record method (3 × FR) and food frequency questionnaire (FFQ), which has been frequently used in food consumption research. Intraclass correlation coefficients (ICC), Pearson correlation coefficient (PCC) and Bland–Altman graphs were performed in the statistical analyses to determine the association between dietary assessment methods.

When the data obtained from the food consumption records were evaluated according to reference method, it was found that the PCC was at moderate and higher level (mean r = 0.513 for 1 × 24HR; r = 0.564 for 3 × FR; and r = 0.452 for FFQ), and the mean ICC was 0.456 for 1 × 24HR, 0.557 for 3 × FR and 0.377 for FFQ. In addition, it was determined that energy and macronutrient values analyzed with Bland–Altman method were consistent with the reference method and that the other methods could also be used instead of the reference method. Under and over reporting was detected in all methods. The method with the highest accurate reporting was 3 × 24HR (72.1%) according to Goldberg standard. In FFQ method, accurate reporting is higher in males (p = 0.01); in other methods, it was determined that there was no significant difference by gender.

In this study, the consistency of the reference, 3 × 24HR method, with the other three methods was determined to be at a moderate and higher level and that they could replace each other according to characteristics of the participants.

Prevalence of vitamin D insufficiency among young Qatari women is ∼85%. The purpose of the study was to develop a food frequency questionnaire (FFQ) and to assess the degree of agreement between food vitamin D intakes derived from FFQ and 24-h food recall (24HFR) in young Qatari women.

A vitamin D-centric, 40-item FFQ was developed based on foods consumed in Qatar. In total, 36 Qatari women provided food intakes using FFQ and 24HFR. Vitamin D contents of foods reported in FFQ and 24HFR were computed. Spearman rank correlation was used to evaluate the relation between vitamin D intakes of FFQ and 24HFR. Bland–Altman (BA) plot and quartile comparisons were performed to determine the degree of agreement between food intakes of FFQ and 24HFR.

Median intakes of vitamin D from FFQ were significantly higher compared to the vitamin D content from 24HFR (213 IU vs 126 IU; p < 0.008). Vitamin D intakes were lower with 24HFR when compared with the intakes of FFQ. There was no significant relationship between food vitamin D intake from FFQ and 24HFR (Spearman rho = 0.16; p < 0.35). In cross classification, ∼64% were assigned to the same or adjacent quartiles. As per BA plot, more than 95% food intakes were within the limits of agreement (LOA) (BA index, 2.8%).

There was a moderate agreement between vitamin D intakes and FFQ and 24HFR. 24HFR should be used with caution in assessing the habitual food vitamin D intake because of limited sources of the vitamer in Qatari cuisine. The FFQ is suitable for estimating the food vitamin D intake in young Qatari women.

This study aimed to develop the construct validity for the Malay version of the Paffenbarger physical activity questionnaire (PPAQ) by adapting the original questionnaire to suit the local context.

The PPAQ was adopted and translated into the Malay language and modified to reach good content agreement among a panel of experts. A total of 65 participants aged 22–55 years old, fluent and literate in the Malay language were selected. Principal component analysis (PCA) was used to investigate construct validity. Reliability of this adapted instrument was analyzed according to types of variables.

The panel of experts reached a consensus that the final four items chosen in the adapted Malay version of PPAQ were valid and supported by a good content validity index (CVI). In total, two domains consonant with the operational domain definition were identified by PCA. Based on scores from intensity and duration of exercise, the study further divided the group into who were physically active and those who chose the unstructured physical activity. Relative reliability after a 14-day interval demonstrated moderate strength of agreement with an acceptable range of measurement error.

PPAQ has been used worldwide but was less familiar in the local context. The Malay-four item PPAQ will provide the locally validated version of physical activity questionnaire. In addition, the authors have improved the original PPAQ by dividing the question items into two distinct domains which will effectively identify those who are physically active and those who are involved in unplanned exercise. Nevertheless, further research is recommended in bigger and heterogeneous samples along with a number of reliability tests.

To the authors’ knowledge, this is the first study to assess internal structure of the four-item version of PPAQ. This analysis successfully identified two components with eigenvalue more than one in the Malay four-item PPAQ. Based on this, the authors were able to separate pool of population into two groups, which are physically active and unplanned exercise (involved in unstructured exercise). The ability of the validated questionnaire to divide the population into various intensities of physical activity is a novel one, which may be useful in many public health studies where high intensity of physical activity; hence, greater energy expenditure is associated with increased longevity, better health benefit and improved cognitive function.

In addition, the second domain “unplanned exercise” was successfully grouped together. Implication of the unplanned exercise component is to identify pool of population with active lifestyle awareness and choose the unstructured exercise instead of vigorous and formal exercising. Even though the amount of intensity and duration of incidental exercise does not reach recommended public health recommendation, it has been proven that preferred healthier lifestyle is positively associated with better cognition in later life.

The adapted Malay version of PPAQ has sound psychometric properties and could assist in differentiating groups of population based on their physical activity.

While English is the most commonly used language for market research, surveys and customer feedback in India, it does not reach the subcontinent’s entire population. Therefore, many questionnaires are bilingual, offering the respondent a choice between English and an indigenous Indian language. This, however, presupposes that answers to items are not influenced by people’s language proficiencies and response styles in different languages. This paper aims to examine whether market researchers in India should be careful about nonrandom measurement error caused by language response bias.

English and Kannada questionnaires are administered in a test-retest scenario to 160 respondents in the Indian Tier-II city of Mysore. The data evaluation is organized by dispositional (language proficiency in English and Kannada) and situational influences (language of the questionnaire in English or Kannada); a series of tests to elucidate language response bias is conducted.

While the significance of the two-tailed English-Kannada paired-sample tests is borderline, a more detailed look reveals surprising differences for the dispositional as well as situational linguistic influences. Moreover, the response style peculiarities in the Indian multilingual environment are not always consistent with differences in other international bilingual environments.

High-quality data are central to all empirical research, but situational and dispositional language response bias seems to contaminate questionnaires in the Indian multi-lingual environment. This study highlights the effect and provides Indian market researchers with some first strategies for managing the challenge.

There is a lack of valid and reliable generic measures of Health-Related Quality of Life (HRQoL) for children under eight. The purpose of this paper is to assess the psychometric properties of the newly formulated Quality of Life Scale for Children (QoL-C), which uses a pictorial response format.

In total, 335 primary school children completed the QoL-C on two occasions, two weeks apart. Children aged four to seven were interviewed one-to-one while children aged eight to nine completed the measure as a class activity. Test-re-test reliability, convergent validity and child-parent concordance were assessed.

Only one child refused to complete the QoL-C, which suggests the measure is user-friendly. Test-re-test reliability was moderate for the measure's total score (intraclass correlation coefficient =0.48, 95 percent CI 0.39, 0.57) but low to fair for individual items (K from 0.13 to 0.37). Internal consistency was moderate (α=0.42 time one, 0.53 time two). A small significant correlation was found between the QoL-C and Child Health Meter in the expected direction (r=−0.32), suggesting convergent validity. There was low concordance between the children's QoL-C responses and parent's responses (r=0.19) to a parallel measure.

The results suggest that further development of this measure is needed. However, the findings indicate that one-to-one support increases the reliability of very young children's responses. The use of pictures, emoticons and minimal text used in the QoL-C should be investigated further.

Low parent-child concordance underscores the importance of younger children getting the opportunity to share their views about their HRQoL.

Improvement is sorely needed to the National Health Service (NHS) care for people with trauma induced emotional regulation and interpersonal relational difficulties (TIERI), currently labelled as a variant of personality disorder [PD; borderline personalty disorder/emotionally unstable personality disorder (BPD/EUPD)]. This study aims to improve staff training.

A mixed-methods evaluation demonstrated the benefits of offering 495 staff three-day trainings with a clinician-designed, unique training package.

Statistically significant improvements were reported in both staff confidence and optimism when dealing with people with a diagnosis of PD (PWDPD) and scores on the Helping Alliance questionnaire. No statistically significant changes in social attitude resulted. Qualitative data shows negative descriptions generated by staff decreased post-training with an increase in positive and neutral descriptions. The responses generated six different themes: resources, client demand, medical model, emotional, human and positive rewards. Differing proportions were found pre and post-training.

This was a clinical-world evaluation, not a formal research project. Different pairs/combinations of experienced clinicians (predominantly clinical psychologists) acted as trainers. Some minor variation occurred within the training package used and presentation.

Given the expense of staff time and resources, this evaluation shows the resultant positive changes achieved. TIERI staff about the difficulties experienced by PWDPD and how to negotiate the relational dynamic is essential. Training helps improve staff perception of the people involved, improves staff confidence and promotes better therapeutic alliances (key to providing the relational and trauma work needed). Ongoing supervision is likely needed post-training.

Positive changes resulted from a mixed-methods evaluation of three-day trainings by using a specially designed training package.

This paper aims to investigate the effect of metaphor “Digital India-Power to Empower” on citizens’ intention to adopt the e-governance while taking citizens’ attitude and emotional attachment with Digital India as mediating variables between citizens’ involvement and intention to adopt e-governance.

After reviewing the extant literature and using the learning from Technology Acceptance Model-Extension (TAME), a conceptual model has been proposed. The model is empirically tested on 224 respondents from India using structural equation modeling technique.

The paper suggested that the metaphoric promotion of E-Governance leads to a higher intention to adopt E-Governance. Metaphoric promotion has a positive influence on citizen involvement with E-Governance, which leads to positive attitude toward E-Governance. This positive attitude leads to citizens’ emotional attachment with E-Governance, which in turn leads to citizens’ positive behavioral intention to adopt E-Governance. In addition, there is a significant difference in attitude toward E-Governance with respect to education level and metro city dwelling, but there is no difference in intention to adopt E-Governance with respect to education and metro city dwelling.

As there is a dearth of research on the usage of metaphor by government and its effect on citizens’ adoption of E-Governance, a conceptual model has been prepared by using learning from metaphor studies majorly in non-government services.

As marketing and metaphors are rarely spoken words in E-Governance research, present study starts the much-needed conversation. In the past, adoption of E-Governance is studied in terms of technology attributes using TAM Model. The present study is first to explore the behavioral impact of E-Governance metaphoric promotion on citizens’ intention to adopt E-Governance based on TAME model. It raises the issue of marketing foundation of E-Governance in mobilizing the citizens’ intention to adopt the E-Governance.

The purpose of this paper is to examine green building legislation requirements and practices in the construction project execution stage within the context of the South African construction industry. The rationale for this examination rests with the perception that the implementation of green practices (per se) has been recognised as being “behind” the legislation enacted to control the design and construction of green buildings.

The research process consisted of a literature review to identify existing green building legislation and practices applicable to the project execution phase. This was supported by a sequential mixed-method research approach, which involved a survey of contracting companies based in the Western Cape Province of South Africa. Purposive sampling was used to undertake focused interviews with management staff and site operatives.

Research findings established a number of issues, not least: a gap between green building practices and legislation requirements; a high degree of unawareness of green building legislation/practices by construction company stakeholders; selective implementation of health and safety legislative requirements; that management staff had a more “positive” attitude to green building practices than site-based staff who tended to be less motivated and open to such practices.

Results from this study are considered generalisable with the sample frame only. Research inference and projections should therefore only be made within this set, and not to the wider population of South African contractors (as this study was limited to the Western Cape Province).

Implications from this research are applicable to construction company stakeholders within the population set. Practical considerations include the need to acknowledge a formal commitment to developing a sustainable built environment – especially cognisant of the gap between practices on site and green building legislation requirements. Moreover, this lack of awareness in respect of green building practices and legislation requirements impinges upon several wider areas, not least: construction company stakeholders’ positioning, health and safety practices; managerial and operational staff perceptions, and stakeholders’ willingness and motivation to proactively address these gaps.

Government bodies and allied professionals in charge of construction industry development are encouraged to consider the implementation of green building legislation requirements on construction sites. This reflection should encourage engagement through formative legislative provision and transparent awareness campaigns.

This work is original insofar as it directly addresses the alignment of legislation to current practices within the context of the South African construction industry. However, similar exercises have been undertaken on green building legislation in other countries such as USA, UK and Australia.

Screening for fall risks is an important part of fall and fracture prevention. This study aims to investigate cross-sectional inter-instrumental agreement and participants’ preferences of the self-rated Falls Risk Questionnaire (FRQ) and Activities Specific Balance Confidence 6 items (ABC-6). This study also aimed to compare FRQ and ABC-6 scores in older adults with and without a history of falls.

Through an online and snowball sampling survey, 114 respondents were recruited from six countries. Respondents were asked to perform FRQ and ABC-6 surveys.

The mean respondent age was 67 years, and 44.8% reported falls in the past year. The mean of rescored FRQ and ABC-6 scores were 68.6% and 66.2%, respectively. The FRQ and ABC-6 scores for fallers were lower than non-fallers. Bland and Altman’s method indicated the mean −2.6 and two standard deviations 20.9 differences between ABC-6 and FRQ, which means an overall agreement between these tools. Most of the respondents, 36% had no preference between ABC-6 and FRQ, 34% preferred none, 21% preferred the ABC-6 and 9% preferred the FRQ for screening future falls risk.

Both ABC-6 and FRQ can distinguish between fallers and non-fallers, and findings of this study can be used to support the use of the FRQ for falls screening in older adults.

The purpose of this paper is to examine the reliability and validity of the Abbreviated Mental Test (AMT) and the agreement with the Mini-Mental State Examination (MMSE).

This cross-sectional study included 446 older adults who were recruited by cluster sampling from 200,481 adults aged more than 60 years. For each participant, the AMT was administered by village health volunteers and, on a separate day, by a trained professional who also administered the MMSE. Descriptive statistics, Bland and Altman levels of agreement, and Receiver Operator Curves (ROCs) were used to analyze data.

Administration of the AMT by village health volunteers during the annual health screening found cognitive impairment in only 1.12% of the sample. When the AMT was given to these same individuals by trained professionals, the rate of cognitive impairment was almost 24 times greater. Two items in the Thai AMT may require modification due to markedly elevated failure rates. At the cut score of 8, the sensitivity and specificity of the AMT relative to the MMSE were moderate (78.83 and 66.67%, respectively). The degree of agreement between AMT and MMSE was 0.49 (p < 0.001) and the correlation between the difference scores and the mean is exceptionally low (0.048).

Reliable and valid cognitive screening assessment requires the administrator to be well trained and the tools to be appropriate for the population. Although AMT is short and easy for a nonprofessional to administer, some items were not suitable due to construct validity and contextual issues.