Vitamin supplementation practices: health/nutrition education implications

A sample of 310 supplement users, 216 nonsupplement users and 247 inconsistent (user/nonuser) supplementers were followed for 18 months to examine the consistency of supplementation. Since supplementation is often not required for a healthy diet, factors associated with persistence or stability of supplement use have implications for appropriate health/nutrition education. Consistent supplementation (at least 18 months' duration) was associated (P < 0·01) with (i) female sex, (ii) health beliefs in the efficacy of supplementation, (iii) seeking health information from physicians, nurses, dietitians and nutritionists, (iv) using periodicals, TV/radio and books for sources of nutrition information, (v) older age, (vi) higher income and (vii) higher levels of education. Nonusers were more likely to attribute health to chance on the Multidimensional Health Locus of Control scale, and inconsistent users were more likely to have experienced a change in employment status, relocation to another town/city and a higher number of ‘change’ events in the previous 18 months. Based on the characteristics of the consistent supplement user, ‘academic controversy’ may be an effective educational strategy to employ, if changes in supplementation attitudes and beliefs are desired.     

Innovation,Growth, and Asset Prices

We examine the asset pricing implications of a production economy whose long‐term growth prospects are endogenously determined by innovation and R&D. In equilibrium, R&D endogenously drives a small, persistent component in productivity that generates long‐run uncertainty about economic growth. With recursive preferences, households fear that persistent downturns in economic growth are accompanied by low asset valuations and command high‐risk premia in asset markets. Empirically, we find substantial evidence for innovation‐driven low‐frequency movements in aggregate growth rates and asset market valuations. In short, equilibrium growth is risky.     

Consumer Perceptions of Advertising as Misleading

A mail survey was conducted of 314 residents of two California cities to measure consumer perception of the prevalence of misleading advertising. Information was obtained concerning the extent of misleading advertising in the various media, for 30 products and services and for three age groups. The findings indicate that over half of the sample viewed “most” or “all” mail and telephone advertising as misleading, and that 38 percent of the respondents regarded “most” or “all” television advertising as misleading. Newspaper advertising was considered the most credible. Findings indicate that “most” or “all” advertising for products and services was viewed as misleading by 30 percent of the respondents. Findings for actions taken concerning misleading advertising indicate that nearly half of the sample had registered a complaint to the store or person advertising and that 29 percent of the respondents had complained to a manufacturer. Also, findings for the age groups indicate that two out of three respondents regarded “most” or “all” advertising directed at children as seriously misleading. Advertising directed at senior citizens was viewed as seriously misleading by 45 percent of the sample, and advertising directed at young and middle-aged adults was viewed as only slightly less misleading.     

Jump-Diffusion Processes and the Term Structure of Interest Rates

The authors investigate the term structure of interest rates when the underlying state variables and production technologies follow the jump-diffusion processes. Even in some cases where the traditional expectations theory about the term structure is consistent with general equilibrium under diffusion processes, the traditional theory is not consistent under jump-diffusion processes. It is shown that bond prices are strictly higher under jump risks than otherwise and that consumers with logarithmic utility functions will develop hedge portfolios in the presence of jump diffusion.     

Systems Model of the Performance Appraisal Interview Process

A model of the performance appraisal interview, adapted from open systems theory, is proposed. The linkages within the model are examined and examples of hypotheses regarding the patterns of relationships which can be generated from this systems perspective are provided. The open systems framework is useful for examining the performance appraisal interview process because it integrates past models and research, generates issues and ideas for future research, and provides a multivariate perspective.     

A COMPARISON OF THE EFFICIENCY OF MANUAL AND AUTOMATIC DISHWASHING FOR THE REMOVAL OF BACTERIA FROM DOMESTIC CROCKERY

A comparison was made between dinner plates washed by hand and dried by tea towel, and plates washed in a dishwasher. The results indicate that during hand washing and drying the total number of bacteria found on the plates increased seven-fold. Mechanical dishwashing almost totally removed naturally occurring bacteria from the plates; bacteria were also almost completely removed from plates artificially contaminated with a culture of Escherichia coli.