The explanatory role of spontaneously generated analogies in reasoning about physiological concepts     

David R. Kaufman  Vimla L. Patel  Sheldon A. Magder 《International Journal of Science Education》2013,35(3):369-386

Analogical reasoning is increasingly recognized as an important instrument for promoting conceptual change in science learning. This study characterized students' and physicians' spontaneous use of analogies in reasoning about concepts related to the mechanical properties of cardiovascular physiology. The analogies were made in response to questions at different levels of abstraction from basic physiology to clinical problems. The results indicate that analogies generated by subjects facilitated explanations in a number of ways. These include creating coherent representations in novel situations, bridging gaps in understanding, and triggering associations which result in modified explanations. Subjects at different levels of expertise used analogies differently. The more expert subjects used analogies to facilitate articulation and communication; that is, to illustrate and expand on their explanations. Novices and advanced medical students used more between‐domain analogies to explain all categories of questions. This is less evident in physicians' responses to pathophysiological and clinical problems. The paper discusses ways in which analogies can be used productively, and identifies factors that can lead to a counter‐productive use of analogies resulting in misconceptions and erroneous explanations.  相似文献   

Identifying children at high risk for a child maltreatment report     

Dubowitz H  Kim J  Black MM  Weisbart C  Semiatin J  Magder LS 《Child abuse & neglect》2011,35(2):96-104

Objective

To help professionals identify factors that place families at risk for future child maltreatment, to facilitate necessary services and to potentially help prevent abuse and neglect.

Method

The data are from a prospective, longitudinal study of 332 low-income families recruited from urban pediatric primary care clinics, followed for over 10 years, until the children were approximately 12 years old. Children with prior child protective services involvement (CPS) were excluded. The initial assessment included sociodemographic, child, parent and family level variables. Child maltreatment was assessed via CPS reports. Risk ratios (RRs) and their 95% confidence intervals (CIs) were estimated using Cox regression models.

Results

Of the 224 children without a prior CPS report and with complete data who were followed for an average of 10 years, 97 (43%) later had a CPS report. In a multivariate survival analysis, 5 risk factors predicted CPS reports: child's low performance on a standardized developmental assessment (RR = 1.23, 95% CI = 1.01-1.49, p = .04), maternal education ≤ high school (RR = 1.55, CI = 1.01-2.38, p = .04), maternal drug use (RR = 1.71, CI = 1.01-2.90, p < .05), maternal depressive symptoms (RR per one standard deviation higher score = 1.28, CI = 1.09-1.51, p < .01), and more children in the family (RR per additional child = 1.26, CI = 1.07-1.47, p < .01).

Conclusions

Five risk factors were associated with an increased risk for later maltreatment. Child health care and other professionals can identify these risk factors and facilitate necessary services to strengthen families, support parents and potentially help prevent child maltreatment.  相似文献