Individual Differences in Accident Liability: A Review and Integrative Approach

Author(s):  
Rebecca Lawton ◽  
Dianne Parker

This paper reviews research since 1970 on the relationship between accident liability and individual differences, focusing specifically on accidents at work. The history of research into accident liability and the methodological problems associated with the research are considered. The review goes on to examine work on the impact of personality factors, cognitive factors, and social factors on the likelihood of accident involvement at work. We suggest that research into individual differences in accident liability should consider two possible routes to accident involvement via errors and/or violations. Although errors are predominantly associated with cognitive factors, violations have their origins in social psychological factors. We also consider the role of stress in mediating the personality-accident association. It is contended that individuals differ in their reactions to stress, so that although some respond by an increase in risk-taking behavior, the effect on others is to increase the likelihood of suboptimal performance in terms of information processing. Actual or potential applications of this research include the development of a more sophisticated model of individual differences in accident liability, which should be useful to organizations attempting to promote safety.

2021 ◽  
Author(s):  
Thomas Theurer ◽  
David Muirhead ◽  
David Jolley ◽  
Dmitri Mauquoy

<p>Raman spectroscopy represents a novel methodology of characterising plant-fire interactions through geological history, with enormous potential. Applications of Raman spectroscopy to charcoal have shown that this is an effective method of understanding intensity changes across palaeofire regimes. Such analyses have relied on the determination of appropriate Raman parameters, given their relationship with temperature of formation and microstructural changes in reference charcoals. Quantitative assessments of charcoal microstructure have also been successfully applied to the assessment of carbonaceous maturation under alternate thermal regimes, such as pyroclastic volcanism. Palaeowildfire systems in association with volcanism may present a complex history of thermal maturation, given interactions between detrital charcoals and volcanogenic deposition. However, whilst palaeofire and volcanic maturation of carbonaceous material are well understood individually, their interaction has yet to be characterised. Here we present the first analysis of palaeofire charcoals derived from volcanic ignition utilising Raman spectroscopy. Our results indicate that complex interactions between volcanism and palaeofire systems may be better understood by the characterisation of charcoal microstructure, alongside palaeobotanical and ecosystem studies. Understanding the unique relationship between wildfires and volcanism, and the impact that this has on the fossil record, may better assist our understanding of wildfire systems in deep history. Further still, this highlights the potential for better understanding the socioecological impacts of modern and future wildfire systems closely associated with volcanic centres. </p>


Author(s):  
Alexandra Shiller

This article is dedicated to examination of the role of guilt and shame, namely to prevalence one of these emotions in a particular culture as the leading mechanism of social control. The prevalence of guilt or shame as a cultural “dimension” has become one of the first criteria for the division of cultures into Western and Eastern, and was used by the researchers as a basic postulate for cross-cultural r. Over time, the perception of emotions as the criterion for the division of cultures has been revised. The article traces the history of research on emotions in general, namely the emotions of guilt and shame as social emotions, as well as describes guilt and shame as collective and individual experiences. Analysis is conducted on the role of guilt and shame in methodology of research on social emotions, cross-cultural studies. The author outlines certain methodological problems and contradictions, and assesses the current state of scientific research dedicated to social emotions. The conclusion is made that the research on collective sense of guilt and shame is more advanced from the perspective of cross-cultural psychology and philosophy, as well as the overall methodology of science; it allows shifting from the study of the role of individual emotions in interpersonal (conditioned by collective ties), intergroup and intragroup communication towards the integrated study of emotions associated with interaction of the individual and society, i.e. social experiences.


2018 ◽  
Vol 13 (S349) ◽  
pp. 71-74
Author(s):  
Hans Rickman

AbstractA brief history of research concerning the risk of impacts by asteroids or comets onto the Earth is presented with attention to the role played by the IAU. Special focus is placed on the events that occurred about 20 years ago, which caused the IAU to become seriously involved in dealing with the impact hazard and to take a leading role in international coordination of these activities.


2019 ◽  
Vol 114 ◽  
pp. 399-443
Author(s):  
Antonis Kotsonas

Politics and research agendas have had a major role in shaping the archaeology of Crete. This article focuses on the history of research on Lyktos, one of the most important ancient cities of the island, to explore the impact of academic and non-academic factors on archaeological fieldwork. Relying on wide-ranging archival research and extending from the Renaissance to the early twenty-first century, the analysis covers the fluctuation of international scholarly interest in Lyktos, the often abortive plans for excavations by numerous British, Italian, German and Greek archaeologists, and the ways in which fascination with the ancient city relates to broader political and disciplinary history. I also synthesise the small-scale fieldwork conducted at the site and reconstruct its archaeological landscape from the Bronze Age to the Medieval period, offering several new insights in local topography and material culture. This work challenges the characterisation of Lyktos as a ‘phantom city’ and highlights the significance of the site for the archaeology of Crete.


LingVaria ◽  
2019 ◽  
Vol 14 (27) ◽  
pp. 35-47
Author(s):  
Bogusław Dunaj

The Past and the Present of Research into Cracow PolishThe paper presents the history of research into the urban spoken Polish of Cracow. Its most intensive period fell between 1976 and 1991. The research project was initiated by Professor M. Karaś. After his untimely death in 1977, the work was directed by Professor B. Dunaj. It was twin-track; both collective and individual studies were carried out. Under the supervision of B. Dunaj, five doctoral theses have been written; in total, nine books have been published: four collective and five individual ones. Some collective works have not been published, i.a. Słownik frekwencyjny nieoficjalnej odmiany polszczyzny mówionej (‘A frequency dictionary of an unofficial variety of spoken Polish’). Also other projects grew out of the research into the language spoken in Cracow, e.g. Słownik współczesnego języka polskiego (1996; ‘A dictionary of contemporary Polish’). In the first decade of the 21st century, B. Dunaj and M. Mycawka conducted research into regional vocabulary, focusing primarily on theoretical problems. Under the supervision of B. Dunaj, 28 unpublished monographies have been prepared on the subject of regional words in the speech of inhabitants of selected towns (mainly in Lesser Poland). In 2018, the dictionary Powiedziane po krakowsku. Słownik regionalizmów krakowskich (‘Said like in Cracow. A dictionary of Cracow regional words’, ed. by D. Ochmann and R. Przybylska) has been published, growing out of and referring to previous research. The present paper presents the controversial methodological problems related to research into regional vocabulary.


Author(s):  
Joanna Brück

The Bronze Age is frequently framed in social evolutionary terms. Viewed as the period which saw the emergence of social differentiation, the development of long-distance trade, and the intensification of agricultural production, it is seen as the precursor and origin-point for significant aspects of the modern world. This book presents a very different image of Bronze Age Britain and Ireland. Drawing on the wealth of material from recent excavations, as well as a long history of research, it explores the impact of the post-Enlightenment 'othering' of the non-human on our understanding of Bronze Age society. There is much to suggest that the conceptual boundary between the active human subject and the passive world of objects, so familiar from our own cultural context, was not drawn in this categorical way in the Bronze Age; the self was constructed in relational rather than individualistic terms, and aspects of the non-human world such as pots, houses, and mountains were considered animate entities with their own spirit or soul. In a series of thematic chapters on the human body, artefacts, settlements, and landscapes, this book considers the character of Bronze Age personhood, the relationship between individual and society, and ideas around agency and social power. The treatment and deposition of things such as querns, axes, and human remains provides insights into the meanings and values ascribed to objects and places, and the ways in which such items acted as social agents in the Bronze Age world.


2019 ◽  
Vol 30 (6) ◽  
pp. 811-821 ◽  
Author(s):  
Eugene L. Kwok ◽  
Gaelle Leys ◽  
Roger Koenig-Robert ◽  
Joel Pearson

The ability to control one’s thoughts is crucial for attention, focus, ideation, and mental well-being. Although there is a long history of research into thought control, the inherent subjectivity of thoughts has made objective examination, and thus mechanistic understanding, difficult. Here, we report a novel method to objectively investigate thought-control success and failure by measuring the sensory strength of visual thoughts using binocular rivalry, a perceptual illusion. Across five experiments ( N = 67), we found that thought-control failure may occur because of the involuntary and antithetical formation of nonreportable sensory representations during attempts at thought suppression but not during thought substitution. Notably, thought control was worse in individuals with high levels of anxiety and schizotypy but more successful in mindful individuals. Overall, our study offers insight into the underlying mechanisms of thought control and suggests that individual differences play an important role in the ability to control thoughts.


2001 ◽  
Vol 75 (6) ◽  
pp. 1079-1089 ◽  
Author(s):  
Carl W. Stock

The history of research on the “true” stromatoporoids, a presumably monophyletic group of sponges that occurred from the Ordovician through the Devonian, is examined in detail. Stromatoporoid published research is summarized in five categories: quantity of publication; biological affinities; systematics; skeletal microstructure; and paleoecology. Quantity of publication is measured from each of the 75 years. Moderate levels of publication in the late 1920s and 1930s declined in the early 1940s, and were reduced to zero for four years due to the impact of World War II. Levels similar to that of the 1930s returned in the 1950s, after which there was an overall increase until the mid-1980s, when levels began a decrease that persists today. The proportion of research on paleoecology has increased as research on systematics decreased through time. Post-Devonian forms assigned to the stromatoporoids are a polyphyletic grouping of several apparently unrelated taxa, possibly representing both Porifera and Cnidaria. Publications on the post-Devonian “stromatoporoids” amount to less than one-third that on the true stromatoporoids during the same 75 years.


Author(s):  
T.S. Kellerman

South Africa is blessed with one of the richest floras in the world, which - not surprisingly - includes many poisonous plants. Theiler in the founding years believed that plants could be involved in the aetiologies of many of the then unexplained conditions of stock, such as gousiekte and geeldikkop. His subsequent investigations of plant poisonings largely laid the foundation for the future Sections of Toxicology at the Institute and the Faculty of Veterinary Science (UP). The history of research into plant poisonings over the last 100 years is briefly outlined. Some examples of sustained research on important plant poisonings, such as cardiac glycoside poisoning and gousiekte, are given to illustrate our approach to the subject and the progress that has been made. The collation and transfer of information and the impact of plant poisonings on the livestock industry is discussed and possible avenues of future research are investigated.


Author(s):  
Jeffrey J. Martin

Personality is typically thought to be stable and possess consistency over time and across situations. Personality is also referred to as individual differences or distinctiveness. The study of personality has a long history in psychology, and after a lull in sport psychology research on personality, it has become more prevalent in research with able-bodied athletes and athletes with disabilities. This chapter discusses the history of personality research in sport psychology. The most common personality model, the Big Five factors, used in research today is explained and the five factors defined. Researchers have also examined personality-trait-like individual differences (PTLID) such as grit, hardiness, resilience, sensation seeking, and perfectionism. The chapter addresses how an acquired disability has the potential to change certain facets of personality while other personality factors can help athletes cope with an acquired disability and maintain their mental health.


Sign in / Sign up

Export Citation Format

Share Document