The Importance of Improving Implementation Research for Successful Interventions and Adaptations

This special issue explores the theoretical underpinnings, triumphs, and challenges of implementing four early childhood education interventions. In doing so, each article highlights the importance of studying the implementation context as part of the evaluation process. This commentary reflects on the entire issue, ultimately arguing that future evaluations must continue to conduct—and improve on—implementation research. Specifically, to understand evaluation findings and scale up or adapt interventions effectively, researchers must examine implementation processes systematically, using both quantitative and qualitative methods. This includes: explaining how interventions were designed, theorizing the relationships between implementation processes and outcomes, defining the implementation phase under study, examining the validity and reliability of implementation measures, and using accessible language in reports.     

Are the Core and Periphery Irreconcilable? The Curious World of Publishing in Contemporary International Relations

While divisive inter- and intraparadigm debates over theories and methodology abound in thhe discourse of International Relations, issues surrounding geographically based divides between developed and developing world International Relations scholars have received considerably less attention. Trends of globalization and internationalization in the past decade have strengthened the argument that such divides must be bridged. This article first investigates whether there have been changes in the level of dialogue between core and periphery IR scholars throughout the 1990s by looking at publishing practices in twenty leading IR journals worldwide over seven years. It suggests explanations for the continuing lack of communication based on interviews with IR scholars from the developing world.     

Corrections,implementation, and organizational ecology: an introduction to the Purveyor Core-Skills Model

It has been a decade since Implementation Research: A Synthesis of the Literature was first published bringing Implementation Science into the mainstream of American corrections. Since that time much focus has been placed upon Implementer and organization level core implementation components, contributing to their disproportionate representation in the literature. This has led to a gap as it pertains to the Purveyor. What literature is available on the Purveyor largely reviews their activities and does not thoroughly identify what core-skills are necessary to be successful in those activities. To address this gap, this article weaves a conceptual framework using open systems and organizational ecology to illustrate key differences between correctional Purveyors and Implementers and to introduce The Purveyor Core-Skills Model, offering the following core-skill domains to the implementation lexicon: competency, change fluency, leadership, and systems thinking. Finally, an agenda for future research and practice implications are presented.     

Inferencing and television: A developmental study

Little research has been done to examine the cognitive processes engaged by television viewing in general, and with adolescent viewers in particular. The present study examined the extent of inferencing in adolescents' and young adults' interpretations of 3-min video segments taken from prime-time drama series and from rock music videos. It was predicted, and the results confirmed, that the less structured music video segments resulted in higher level inferencing than prime-time dramas. It was also found that young adults produced more higher-level inferences than adolescents, and prime-time drama led to more fact-based responses than music video. Correlations between television inferencing and scores on the Peel Lack of Closure Test were also examined to see if inferencing from video and from written text were related. Generally, these correlations were nonsignificant, confirming the hypotheses of other researchers that video inferencing involves unique knowledge structures that warrant further investigation.Received Ph.D. from Wayne State University. Research interest is adult cognitive development.Received Ph.D. from Vanderbilt University. Research interest is cognitive development.Received Ph.D. from Yale University. Research interest is human thinking and memory.     

Mandatory reporting by nurses of child abuse and neglect

Most Australian jurisdictions have mandatory reporting legislation to compel members of selected professional groups, including nurses, to report suspicions that a child has been or is likely to be subjected to abuse or neglect. This article details the legal obligations of nurses in each jurisdiction, and highlights differences between jurisdictions. Problematic features of the laws are identified, including the use of ambiguous concepts like "reasonable" suspicion and "significant" harm. Literature is reviewed to identify what is known about nurses' legal knowledge, actual reporting practice, and the practical problems that arise for nurses in this context. It is concluded that empirical research needs to be conducted, because it is not known if the laws are practically effective, whether nurses have sufficient training in, and knowledge of, their reporting duties, or what factors influence sound reporting. Such research can inform both the development of sound training systems and recommendations for legal reform.