Impact ofUuninsured Population Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1250 words

Impact ofUuninsured Population - Essay Example Health premiums alone rose threefold over average American incomes during the period 2000 - 04. This was largely the cause of 'under' insurance. A serious concern with Americans today is the possible fall out of being ill or injured in such circumstances. Most of the increase in the uninsured is due to an increase in the adult population to over 8 million equaled by a rise in the uninsured population to about 6 and a half million. About 4 million of this segment is below 200 percent of the poverty level. There are increases in uninsured even among the high income bracket of the population. Moreover, the shift in employment patterns suggests a large number veering toward employment in small size firms or self employment. Major figures for the uninsured or under insured are seen in this segment and most likely the trend will continue. The decline in employer sponsored health coverage will continue and costs of health insurance are far in excess of earnings and will continue to be so. Government intervention through public sponsored initiatives like tax credits or health programs is sure to be hampered by large budget deficits hampering state initiatives. In some states the growth in health care costs even outpaces state incomes. What are the implications in all this, fo... If the costs of health coverage are now being passed on to the individual, how do we widen the net to protect the underinsured and prevent the uninsured from drifting off into total hopelessness Suggested below are three initiatives can start and manage to face the risks from the uninsured population turning its back on us: Profit balanced with growth Product Mix Re-organize Structure (King, 2006) Profit balanced with growth drives the Business The issue - Economies of scale exist in the health care management industry but do not enable low premiums and ensure growth. Promotion of growth actually hampers profits as the issue concerning us is to be able to keep servicing our corporate clients, many of whom are offloading costs to each employee. We need aggressive double digit increases and pursue expansion of enrolments. Profits are important to us as they will help us survive a possible downturn caused by a low premium regime. Our goal would be achieve a premium yield of about 20% which would help us outpace the cost of expansion. This would come through our corporate clients It is suggested we that we prune down our client list to include those who would be able to share these costs. Ultimately, we would benefit from reducing the growing numbers of uninsured and passing off associated costs to those who can afford these. Degree of risk - Growth in enrollment would probably put us for a while in the path of unpredictable developments like rate of inclusion of new clinical technologies which would make costs spiral. This trend could be weathered by us as we have a mix of clients including those who came to us from other providers. This would be more preferable to the present trend of holding premium prices down in order to

Paper for management Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 500 words

Paper for management - Essay Example Training junior managers to increase their involvement with junior employees will reduce unwanted behavior among employees. Managers will be on the importance of efficient communication between themselves and employees. Junior managers will also be with the knowledge about mechanisms to detect and solve problems efficiently (Ciavarella, 2003). Getting to the root of the problem is one of the primary concerns, in this case. Training managers on how to accurately detect a problem among employees will be fundamental in solving this problem. Early identification of a problem that workers are facing might protect the problem from escalating into a verbal or an emotional confrontation. Managers will be trained to inform employees clearly on what is of them. A comprehensive job description to new employees will help them know what the manager expects from them. After informing employees on what is of them, performance standards will be implemented to evaluate employee performance. Contrasting performance measures against employee performance will indicate which and where employees are facing problems. Managers will be trained to engage employees properly when coming up with performance standards. Highly engaging employees mainly contributes to reducing conflicts between managers and junior staff (Ciavarella, 2003). Managers will also be on how to maintain effective communication between themselves and their supervisees. Mostly, conflict arises when there is no proper channel of communication between employees and management. Managers will be trained to be tolerant of the diversity of employees from different backgrounds. Employees might be in conflict because of their personal and cultural differences. Training managers on how to handle diversity and be open to individual differences will significantly reduce conflict between employees. Managers

French Opposition to the Muslim Veil (Headscarf) Essay

French Opposition to the Muslim Veil (Headscarf) - Essay Example Over the years, French legislators came up with law and approved it with a large majority banning any form of conspicuous signs of religion in public schools. The law prohibited the Islamic headscarf and excessively large crucifixes, as well as kippas (Ezekiel, 2006). The law has seen students being expelled, and public workers losing their jobs, especially for wearing hijab; consequently, the law seems to be against the hijab, but not the other sign of religion, as it is the only conspicuous piece of cloth or sign that cannot be concealed. In addition, it has led to discrimination against Muslim in certain aspects of their lives, such as jobs and even social relations in weddings and other public places and events. Parties Involved Those that are involved in the controversy of the French hijab are parties interested in human rights and religious interests. In this light, feminist groups are involved in the controversy due to the headscarf’s symbolism in the Islamic religion a nd the role it plays in the identity of Muslim women and girls. This is concerning women’s submission to men, and it concerns this party, as the veil is believed to influence the school system. In addition, they are interested in fighting for women’s rights as the headscarf in public schools will allow incorporation of Muslim practices into the school system and influence other students, as well as challenge the fight against violation of women’s rights. In addition, an ethical issue is raised at this point in relation to the persons charged with the responsibility of making decisions that cover the rights of women and freedom of choice in following that which they believe in, both morally and religiously. This is because the hijab is viewed as a piece of cloth that limits the freedom of women, and that wearing the hijab itself is not a choice. This issue complicates matters considerably complicated. Educators and educational stakeholders are also involved in th e controversy, and a majority are against the headscarf. This is following the debate on the social and cultural nature of the country in relation to religion. The argument is that France is a secular state making the headscarf a violation of the secular of this social and cultural state of the nation, and disrupts the state of harmony by expressing community affiliation making other interested parties in interacting with the said community locked out. The above two parties argue against the veil and have a strong basis for it despite the implications raised. However, they are the crucial voices involved in the entire issue. Rights The first issue is the violation of human rights despite French declaration of the universal human rights, which state that all human beings are entitled to their own religion, which goes together with the issue of religious expression. The headscarf is a form of self-expression relating to the Islamic faith and religion. The banning of the headscarf in p ublic by the law is in clear violation of the women’s rights, particularly with the support of the law, which was mainly for political reasons and did not have the best interests of the group in mind (Gendrot, 2007). Following the ban in France, where human rights are advocated in all aspects,

Paper for management Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 500 words

Paper for management - Essay Example Training junior managers to increase their involvement with junior employees will reduce unwanted behavior among employees. Managers will be on the importance of efficient communication between themselves and employees. Junior managers will also be with the knowledge about mechanisms to detect and solve problems efficiently (Ciavarella, 2003). Getting to the root of the problem is one of the primary concerns, in this case. Training managers on how to accurately detect a problem among employees will be fundamental in solving this problem. Early identification of a problem that workers are facing might protect the problem from escalating into a verbal or an emotional confrontation. Managers will be trained to inform employees clearly on what is of them. A comprehensive job description to new employees will help them know what the manager expects from them. After informing employees on what is of them, performance standards will be implemented to evaluate employee performance. Contrasting performance measures against employee performance will indicate which and where employees are facing problems. Managers will be trained to engage employees properly when coming up with performance standards. Highly engaging employees mainly contributes to reducing conflicts between managers and junior staff (Ciavarella, 2003). Managers will also be on how to maintain effective communication between themselves and their supervisees. Mostly, conflict arises when there is no proper channel of communication between employees and management. Managers will be trained to be tolerant of the diversity of employees from different backgrounds. Employees might be in conflict because of their personal and cultural differences. Training managers on how to handle diversity and be open to individual differences will significantly reduce conflict between employees. Managers

The Skeletal System Assignment Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 2000 words

The Skeletal System - Assignment Example The appendicular skeleton, on the other hand, as the name implies, consists of the appendages, which include the upper limbs and the lower limbs. The upper limbs include the humerus, the radius and ulna, and the carpals and metacarpals. The lower limbs include the femur, the tibia, the fibula, the tarsals, and the metatarsals. Other components of the appendicular skeleton include the shoulder girdles, consisting of the scapulae and the collar bones, or clavicles, and the pelvic girdle, made up of the coxal or hip bones, which include the ilium, ischium and pubis. The appendicular skeleton functions for helping the various joints of the body perform better and make the body run in a smoother fashion. The appendicular skeleton too functions for movement, locomotion and the performance of any tasks done by the arms, hands, legs and feet (â€Å"Axial and Appendicular Skeleton†). Detailed Functions of the Skeleton The functions of the skeleton include providing support for soft tissues, production of red blood cells, storage of minerals and lipids, and coordination of the muscular system to effect movement and support for the body, in order to carry out the will of the individual concerning any activity that requires physical movements (â€Å"The Skeletal System† 2013). As for support and physical movement, the structure of the bone in the form of a tubular shape with a hard and dense circumference and a hollow center is the one that efficiently and effectively affords maximum support for the body. ... As for support and physical movement, the structure of the bone in the form of a tubular shape with a hard and dense circumference and a hollow center is the one that efficiently and effectively affords maximum support for the body. Moreover, in terms of the protective support that it gives the soft organs, the skull protects the brain; the rib cage and sternum protect the lungs and the heart; and the pelvis and the pelvic girdle provide protection for the reproductive system. In terms of movement, the bones provide anchorage for the muscles. The origin is where the muscle is fixed to a bone, and the insertion is the moving point of attachment. Finally, still in terms of the movement function, bones meet other bones at joints in order to allow varying degrees of movement (â€Å"The Skeletal System – Introduction† 2013). Another function of the skeletal system, particularly the bone marrow, is to carry out hematopoiesis, or the process by which a single type of stem cell gives rise to all types of mature red blood cells in the body. In the adult human being, this is carried out by the bone marrows of the skull, and those of the ribs, sternum, vertebra, pelvis, and the proximal ends of the thigh bones or femurs (Ownby 2002). In terms of the storage of minerals and lipids, the bone is where several metabolically active minerals are stored, especially calcium, which is the most abundant mineral in the human body. Calcium is essential in regulating the intracellular activities of muscle cells and neurons. Moreover, lipids are stored in the yellow marrow of the bone. These lipids are essential in the regulation of body heat, for providing heat, and as a structural component of cell membranes (â€Å"Osseous Tissue and Bone Structure† 2013). 1.3 Structure of Bone Tissue

Women in Greek Mythology Essay Example for Free

Women in Greek Mythology Essay A myth is a legendary traditional story, usually concerning a hero or an event, and typically involving supernatural beings and events. Informally, the term is also used to describe false stories, due to the usual lack of determinable basis or fact in most myths, but the academic use of the word has nothing to do with truth or falsity. Myths are stories woven from the need of having models for behavior. They are sacred stories revolving around sacred events and sacred characters idealized perfectly to be the suitable role-models in the eyes of the society from which they spring, which makes myths a valuable resource for explaining how the human race came to what it is today. Ancient Greek society had very specific gender roles, where men were expected to be controlling and domineering, and women passive and obedient. It was believed that if women were busy in their domestic homes, then they will not turn to their evil nature in which men of that time strongly believed in. â€Å"From her is descended a great pain to mortal men† (Leftowitz and Fant, p25). In Homer’s Odyssey, one of the oldest and most fundamental works of literature to western canon, the importance of women in the poem’s plot lies in their roles as seductresses. When Odysseus crew arrives on Circes island, they are attracted to Circes house because of the alluring voice of the beautiful but monstrous goddess. Homer describes her as singing in a sweet voice, as she fared to and fro before the great web imperishable, such as is the handiwork of goddesses, fine of woof and full of grace and splendor. (Homer, 850 BC) But evil seductresses was not the only portrait of women offered by Greek Mythology. Penelope, the wife of the main character in the Odyssey, Odysseus, is a prime example of what an ideal wife was in Ancient Greek society. She has only one son by Odysseus, born just before Odysseus was called to fight in the Trojan War. Penelope remained faithful to Odysseus for 20 years as he was away fighting, doing all she can to curb the unwanted attention of many suitors and their requests for her hand. She has devised many plans to delay an answer, one of which was pretending to weave a burial shroud for Odysseus’ old father, and promising to choose which to marry of her suitors when she finishes it. Every night for three years she undid a part of the shroud until her trick was exposed. She is a symbol of fidelity in marriage, even though she begins to get restless and ambivalent, due mainly to Athena’s encouragement, after 20 years of waiting. As Irene De Jong comments: â€Å"As so often, it is Athena who takes the initiative in giving the story a new direction Usually the motives of mortal and god coincide, here they do not: Athena wants Penelope to fan the Suitors desire for her and (thereby) make her more esteemed by her husband and son; Penelope has no real motive . . . she simply feels an unprecedented impulse to meet the men she so loathes adding that she might take this opportunity to talk to Telemachus (which she will indeed do)† (De Jong, p.44) But as Odysseus comes back disguised as a beggar, Penelope vows to marry whoever can string Odysseus Bow and shoot an arrow, which leads to Odysseus and Penelope reuniting together. Penelope’s story shows what Greek men expected from women, undying fidelity and a good, sharp and reliable mind. And albeit the fact that Penelope starts longing to show off for her suitors and eventually agrees to marry whoever strings her former husband’s bow, she is still shown in a good light in Greek myth. On a high contrast to the passive Penelope is Medusa, the gorgon female monster, who is well known for hair of snakes and her horrifying glare that turned onlookers to stone. She was born an exceptional beauty, the jealous aspiration of many suitors, with her hair being her best feature, but after she was ravished in Athena’s temple, the goddess was so enraged she punished her by turning her hair into snakes and whoever looked at her into stone. She was later killed by the hero Perseus, who beheaded her and used her head as a weapon, then gave it up for Athens. Medusa has become a symbol of feminine rage, she was punished for being a victim of rape, while the man escaped with no consequence, and she had spread terror and fright as her revenge for the unfairness of the world, and later is beheaded, and her murderer is labeled a hero, giving her head to the goddess who had started it all with her curse. Interestingly enough, her name means the protector, or the guardian. The most interesting Greek mythical woman in my opinion is Pandora, the beginning of it all. Her name means â€Å"The giver of all†. She was Zeus punishment to mankind after Prometheus stole the secret of fire, the symbol of education. Zeus ordered her to be mould out of the earth, and he and all the other gods joined in offering this â€Å"beautiful evil† all manners of seductive gifts. It is said that she had opened a jar, known in modern days as Pandora’s Box, out of curiosity, and unintentionally released all the evils of mankind, disasters and illnesses and malaises, leaving only hope inside after she hastened to close it. The curious part is how women were viewed not just as a punishment, but a punishment for man’s attempts to broaden his mind and satiate his curiosity, and how the evils of mankind all came to be, not as a result of malice or malevolence, but that same innocent curiosity, which is one of the natural attributes of the human race. It appears as though the Greek did not approve of snooping around, especially of women, which brings to mind the modern stereotype of nosey idle housewives. Her other name is Anesidora, which means â€Å"She who sends up gifts†, implying her lower status as a female. In conclusion, while myths might not describe real events, they are nonetheless one of the most valuable tools to understanding human nature and ideals, they are fantasies that man had created and they reflect his thoughts and theories and explanations and hopes and ideals. Women had took up major roles in the Greek mythical world, as villains and victims, but rarely as heroines, which shows that the society at the time and place of the creation of those legends was dominantly ruled by men, with women staying to their homes and looking after their families. These gender stereotypes have continued for many years after the downfall of the Greek Empire, and are still popular throughout the world even today. References Bulfinch, T. , and Goodrich, N. (1995). Bulfinchs mythology: The age of fable. Plume. De Jong, I. (2001). A Narratological commentary on the odyssey. Cambridge University Press. Retrieved Dec 6, 2009 from http://en. wikipedia. org/wiki/Penelope Definition of Myth. Dictionary. com unabridged. Retrieved (2009, December 6) from http:// dictionary. reference. com/browse/myth Gender in Odyssey. Bookrag. Retrieved Dec 6, 2009 from http://www. bookrags. com/ essay- 2005/11/23/13450/292 Graf, F. , and Marier, Thomas. (1996). Greek mythology. Johns Hopkins Univ Pr. Hesiod, Schlegel, C. , and Weinfield. (2006). Theogony and works and days. University of Michigan Pr. Homer (fl. 850 B. C. ). The Odyssey. The Harvard Classics. 1909–14.. Bartleby. Retrieved Dec 6, 2009 from http://www. bartleby. com/22/10. html Homer, Fagles, R. , and Knox, B. (1998). The Iliad. Penguin Classics. Katz, M. (1991). Penelopes renown: Meaning and indeterminacy in the odyssey. Princeton University Press. Lefkowitz, M. R. , and Fant, M. B. (2005). Men’s Opinion. Women’s life in Greek and Rome. USA: The John Hopkins University Press. Pandora, by Jules Joseph Lefebvre(1836–1911), Oil on Canvas.

Intergenerational Observation Scale Analysis

Intergenerational Observation Scale Analysis Abstract Innovative intergenerational programs continue to grow in number and scope. The development of standardized evaluation instruments, however, lags behind, leaving many researchers and practitioners without tools to effectively assess their programs. Evaluation data often focus on outcomes without attention to the nature of the interactions between generations. Understanding the process of intergenerational contact is central to understanding its outcomes. We developed the Intergenerational Observation Scale to assess the social interactions and affect of young and old participants during intergenerational activities. Our 3-step observer training process demonstrated good scale reliability. We present the process of developing the scale, achieving observer reliability, and next steps to continue exploring the scales utility across intergenerational populations and settings. Development of a standardized tool for intergenerational programming: The Intergenerational Observation Scale Providing opportunities for meaningful engagement to persons with dementia challenges family and professional caregivers alike. While some practitioners and researchers seek innovative means to support client well-being (e.g., Allen-Burge, Burgio, Bourgeois, Sims, Nunnikhoven, 2001; Orsulic-Jeras, Judge, Camp, 2000), many dementia care programs are characterized by extreme levels of inactivity (Ice, 2002), which may result from infantilization (Salari Rich, 2001) and can lead to agitation and depression and detract from well-being (Teri et al., 2003; Voelkl, 1986). Kitwood and Bredin (1992) emphasized caregivers responsibility for supporting the personhood of individuals with diminished capacity to do so for themselves. Personhood, or the dignity and respect owed to each individual, encompasses an individuals experiences, preferences and values. For many people, their social history involves significant time spent interacting with and caring for children. Recently, care profession als have turned to intergenerational programming (IGP) as one therapeutic method to support personhood and well-being of persons with dementia (e.g., Camp et al., 1997; Jarrott Bruno, 2001). Though contact between young and old generations remains an integral part of most families (Eggebeen Davey, 1998), non-familial IGP remains a relatively new treatment milieu in elder care. IGP as a whole varies widely, depending on the populations involved, program objectives, and available resources. Interventions targeting children at risk for drug use (Taylor, LoSciuto, Fox, Hilbert, Sonkowsky, 1999), older adults needing employment (Larkin Newman, 2001), and foster care families needing community support (Eheart Hopping, 2001) have utilized intergenerational strategies to achieve program goals. Programs have employed IGP to promote positive affect and engagement of older adults (Xaverius Matthews, 2003), improved attitudes about aging among children (Middlecamp Gross, 2002), and greater sense of community among staff (Jarrott, Morris, Kemp, Stremmel, 2004). Despite the significant cognitive impairment of many elder care clients, practitioners have found elders experiences interacting with and caring for children so ingrained that they remain able to interact appropriately and positively with children until late in the progress of a dementing illness (Camp et al., 1997). The means of assessing IGP vary as much as the programs themselves. Researchers have utilized interviews (Jarrott Bruno, 2007), observational scales (Marx, Pannell, Papura-Gill, Cohen-Mansfield, 2004; Xaverius Matthews, 2003), attitudinal surveys (Jantz, Seefeldt, Galper, Serlock, 1977; Kocarnik Ponzetti, 1986), drawings (Lichtenstein, et al., 2001), and cognitive assessments (Newman, Karip, Faux, 1995) to evaluate the impact of IGP on one or more groups of participants. While the range of scales utilized is not inherently problematic, the current state of intergenerational research tools requires significant improvement for several reasons. First, scales are often created for a single study without any report of psychometric properties (Kuehne, 2004). Consequently, researchers reinvent the wheel rather than use valid, reliable scales. Second, most scales assess the experiences of a single generation (e.g., Camp et al., 1997; Underwood Dorfman, 2006) although IGP should, by de finition (Newman Smith, 1999), provide mutual benefit for young and old participants. Third, the developmental and disease characteristics of a large portion of IGP participants, pre-school age children and frail elders (e.g., Epstein Boisvert, 2006; Middlecamp Gross, 2002; Salari, 2002), limit the opportunity for valid self-report measures. Consequently, researchers often rely on proxy report and direct observation to tap participants experiences with IGP. A critical limitation of much IGP research lies in the black box that conceals the process of bringing young and old together. That is, assessments targeting the impact of IGP often neglect what actually transpired during the IGP. Useful process data will vary from project to project; it might detail the level of activity, the type of interpersonal interactions, the physical environment, facilitators behaviors, or the activitys age appropriateness. For example, Xaverius and Matthews (2003) assessed the impact of IGP involving fourth graders and senior center participants who met for six intergenerational activities. The authors described the theme and setting of activities where elderly participants engagement was coded. Data were not gathered regarding the nature of the activities or what happened when participants were engaged in the intergenerational activity (i.e., if they engaged with the activity materials, with an age peer, or with an intergenerational partner). In contrast, Taylor and colleagues (1999) reported on a senior mentoring program targeting attitudes towards aging, drug use, and civic engagement of participating at-risk youth. The treatment group as a whole demonstrated improved attitudes towards school, civic engagement, aging, and resisting drug use compared to a control group. The authors also tapped into important process data by rating seniors intensity of involvement as a mentor. The researchers found a greater degree of attitudinal improvement among children whose senior mentors were more intensely involved with their student partners. Such studies exemplify the importance of capturing process as well as outcome data. The variety of populations and settings that avail themselves of IGP supports the study of multiple paths leading to positive outcomes. Most would agree that a one-size-fits-all model of IGP is impossible and inappropriate; however, identification of practices and processes that optimize outcomes improves the overall quality of IGP and enhances understanding of how IGP uniquely meets individuals needs across the lifecourse. In turn, greater understanding of the processes by which positive IGP outcomes are achieved informs development of theory pertaining to intergenerational relationships. For example, while the contact theory (Allport, 1954) provides necessary conditions for achieving positive intergroup contact, Allport did not describe the processes by which these outcomes would be achieved (Pettigrew, 1998). The limitations of IGP and related research stem from the relative infancy of IGP research. Researchers have been studying IGP for only the last 30 years (e.g., Jantz, et al., 1977), yet they are trying to raise the field to match those of child and adult development. Practitioners are anxious to know how IGP affects the physical, cognitive, and mental health of participants, yet the more basic question about whether and how children and elders interact with each other during proscribed IGP remains largely unanswered. Before we can reliably draw conclusions about the effects of IGP on children and elderly participants, we must determine the nature of their time spent together. Kuehnes (2003) state of our art report on intergenerational research implored researchers to tap the experiences of young and old participants and to develop and disseminate standardized measures relevant to IGP. By addressing these points, researchers can better inform practitioners efforts and build a cohesiv e body of research. The scale described in the current paper addresses each of these recommendations. We sought to address the challenge of measuring the experiences of young and old IGP participants, focusing on frail elders and pre-school age children because they constitute a large portion of participants involved in IGP (Goyer Zuses, 1998). We conducted a three-phase study to develop an observational scale tapping the social behavior and affect of both young and old IGP participants. We turned to the child development literature, with its long history of observational research, for inspiration. Partens (1933) categories of childrens play behaviors appealed to us; they encompassed categories reflecting a continuum of social behaviors ranging from non-engagement to cooperative engagement. Rubin (2001) developed the Play Observation Scale, drawing on Partens work and childrens cognitive development research. The broad social behaviors of unoccupied, watching, solitary, parallel, and cooperative captured by the Play Observation Scale reflect behaviors of interest to practitioners working to support meaningful engagement among elders and children. For example, a code for unoccupied behavior is salient given the high rates of inactivity found at elder care programs (Ice, 2002) and the goal of utilizing intergenerational strategies to promote positive social engagement. Furthermore, our experiences with IGP (e.g., Gigliotti, Morris, Smock, Jarrott, Graham, 2005; Jarrott Bruno, 2003; Jarrott Bruno, 2007; Jarrott, Gigliotti, Smock, 2006; Jarrott, Gladwell, Gigliotti, Papero 200 4; Jarrott et al., 2004; Weintraub Killian, 2007) highlighted interaction as the central mechanism for achieving mutual benefit during IGP. Thus, a code for solitary behavior is relevant as it reflects engagement in a presented activity without social interaction. The first author used the original Play Observation Scale to observe elders during structured IGP (Gladwell Jarrott, 2003), determining that older adults engagement was greater during IGP than non-IGP. However, Gladwell and Jarrott found the scale cumbersome as they gathered salient data as well as information of little contemporary significance to IGP. Furthermore, they violated some of the scales specifications by utilizing the Play Observation Scale in a structured activity setting. We made several adaptations to Rubins Play Observation Scale for use with structured IGP (see Table 1 for descriptions of the scale categories).   First, Rubins social behavior categories included sub-categories indicative of cognitive development; however, given our emphasis on interactions irrespective of developmental abilities, we eliminated cognitive behaviors from our scale. Second, the Play Observation Scale was designed to be used during free play sessions where children self-initiate behaviors. However, intergenerational researchers have repeatedly emphasized the need for structure to optimize IGP (e.g., Camp et al., 1997; Jarrott, 2006; Xaverius Matthews, 2003), and so we developed the scale with planned IGP in mind. Finally, we expanded the IOS to distinguish between social behaviors with age peers and intergenerational partners (i.e., interactive peer versus interactive intergenerational). The first phase of the study involved qualitative observations of IGP conducted at a shared site intergenerational program serving frail elders and pre-school age children. The observations were then used to modify Rubins Play Observation Scale for use in a structured intergenerational setting. Phase two involved piloting the scale with two observers coding video of IGP and working with the second author to reach consensus and create a master coding scheme for the video sessions. In phase three, the scale was further modified and tested with a larger group of four observers coding video and live IGP. The current paper describes the three phases of the development and initial validation of the Intergenerational Observation Scale (IOS). While the IOS captures both behavior and affect of targeted child and elderly participants, the current paper focuses on social behaviors, which comprise the more complex sub-scale of the instrument. Method Participants Virginia Techs Neighbors Growing Together, is a shared site intergenerational program designed to improve the lives of people across the lifespan through intergenerational collaboration involving teaching, research, and outreach. Neighbors Growing Together includes two co-located programs: Adult Day Services and the Child Development Center for Learning and Research. Adult Day Services provides activities, care, and supervision daily to approximately 15 adults (50+ years old) with cognitive and/or physical impairments. The Child Development Center provides year-round, full-day care for 41 children ages 15 months to 5 years. Through daily programming designed to nurture development, enhance competencies, and facilitate positive social interactions between the generations, Neighbors Growing Together provides high quality services to children, older adults, and their families. Children from each of three classrooms have one to two weekly opportunities to join their elderly â€Å"neighb ors† for IGP, which typically involves three children and three older adults in a variety of activities, such as gardening, art, or sensory projects. Children and adults work together in a group facilitated by staff and students from the Child Development Center and Adult Day Services. Staff partners plan and implement activities that support an overarching goal of positive interactions. Activities further target developmental goals for both generations, such as fine motor skills or cooperation. Children and adults meet in a shared space adjoining the two programs. Child- and adult-sized chairs designed to put all participants at eye level and developmentally appropriate books and art materials are provided. Procedures Phase 1: Scale development In fall 2005, four research students gathered qualitative observations of IGP involving Adult Day Services participants and Child Development Center children. Observers attended different intergenerational sessions. Each week, observers had a distinct focus, starting with holistic observation to orient the observers to the setting and proceeding to target the environment, the participants, and the facilitators. Following their weekly observations, the observers and the first and second authors discussed the observational data, focusing on the interactions between participating children and elders and factors that influenced those interactions. After observing 3-5 intergenerational sessions apiece, observers read and reviewed the IOS scale and codebook developed by Gladwell and Jarrott (2003) and closely mirroring the Play Observation Scale developed by Rubin (2001). They discussed how well the categories applied to the intergenerational context they observed and how to modify the sca le to reflect the social behaviors critical to intergenerational interactions in planned activities. Through an iterative process, the first two authors used observers notes and conversations to modify the Play Observation Scale to capture data reflecting the interactive process of IGP. Based on the observations from Phase 1, we further developed and refined the IOS (see Table 1). The scale builds on earlier observational research (Rubin, 2001) by coding participants behavior and affect and the affect of intergenerational partners with whom a target participant interacts.   The IOS was developed for live coding. It captures observations for the duration of an intergenerational activity, which tends to last 15-30 minutes. Each observer identifies 4-5 participants for observation and watches them for 1-2 minutes to become familiar with the participants behaviors before beginning to record data. He or she codes a participant for one 15-second interval, then codes the next participant for 15 seconds, followed by the third participant, etc. After the last participant is coded, the observer cycles back to begin observing participant one again. All observers in a session start coding when the facilitators begin the activity and end when the activity completes. When coding, if a behavior occurs for the majority of the coding interval, it is coded as the predominant behavior. When multiple behaviors are observed for equal intervals during a 15-second coding episode, we use the following hierarchy to code the predominant behavior most indicative of intergenerational interactions: Interactive Intergenerational, Parallel Intergenerational, Interactive Peer, Parallel Peer, Staff, Watching, Solitary, and Unoccupied. Phase 2: Establishment of reliability Video coding of the observations was introduced during Phase 2 of scale development because learning the IOS through the use of video has several advantages. When first learning the scale, observers watched a 15-second interval repeatedly to better understand the IOS behavioral scoring. The video coding procedure allowed observers to review their coding with the second author, who is experienced in observational coding. Weekly meetings were held during which observers coding was reviewed and discussed until observers reached a consensus on what behaviors constituted the IOS categories. Weekly review helped observers achieve acceptable reliability in assigning predominant codes to participants social behaviors. The video procedure enabled us to refine the IOS manual. The video coding process began with two observers who both had experience with live coding during IGP. After studying the manual, observers filmed three weekly sessions of planned IGP between the elders and each of the three classrooms of children (one session per classroom per week). The procedure for using video to establish acceptable reliability was completed in three steps. First, observers independently coded sessions in 15-second intervals and re-watched these as many times as necessary to determine the predominant social behavior. In the second step, observers more closely approximated live coding by watching the 15-second intervals on video only once to code the predominant social behavior.   In the third step, observers coded live sessions (scoring participant behaviors individually but observing the same participants at the same intervals) and filmed the activities, which allowed observers to review their coding at the weekly meetings and resolve discrepancies. Based on the consensus between the two coders and the expert coder, master coding sheets were developed indicating agreement on the predominant behavior for each 15-second interval of the coded sessions. Before observers could proceed to the next step in the training process, they had to achieve acceptable inter-rater reliability measured by Cohens kappa. A kappa score of .60 or higher was considered acceptable (Cohen, 1960). The kappa scores for the two observers in Phase 2 were .67 for the first step, .85 for the second step, and .81 for the live coding in the third step. Replication of reliability In Phase 3, we used the IOS video coding procedure to train four new observers. In addition to establishing that the video coding procedure would work with observers new to the IOS, we wanted to determine the amount of training necessary to achieve acceptable reliability with our 3-step process. The observers started with an introductory period where they read the manual and watched live IGP to observe the range of behaviors common to IGP. Observers attended weekly meetings where they watched IGP videos and received instruction on using the IOS. The introductory period lasted approximately 3 weeks or until observers felt comfortable with the coding, which was an additional 2 weeks for one of the observers. After the introductory period, the observers started on step 1 in the video coding procedure. Each step lasted approximately 4 weeks. At the weekly coding meetings, observers reviewed any discrepancies between their coding and the master codes determined in Phase 2. Once the observers achieved acceptable reliability in step 1, they moved on to step 2. Coding pairs were formed, and they coded live IGP during step 3, achieving acceptable kappas of .92, .69, and .75. Discussion In the current paper, we discuss the development of the IOS, a scale designed to measure young and old participants social interaction and affect during IGP.   In developing the IOS, we began with qualitative observations of IGP to refine a well-established child development observational scale (Rubin, 2001). We modified the scale for observations of elder and child participants in a typical range of intergenerational programs.   Based on two groups of observers, we present a system for training individuals to use the scale and establish inter-rater reliability.   Currently, the use of standardized measure within the field of IGP research is extremely limited, and our goal is to develop a scale to address this need. The IOS addresses several of Kuehnes (2003) recommendations for advancing   intergenerational research and evaluation.   First, the IOS is grounded in theory that shaped our view of positive IGP outcomes. Personhood theory (Kitwood Bredin, 1992) leads us to intergenerational relationships as a once common source of positive social interaction for many elders that can continue to support their well-being in late life. Contact theory (Allport, 1954; Pettigrew Tropp, 2000) elucidates necessary conditions for positive intergroup exchange, such as that between youth and elders. The conditions of cooperation and shared goals inform our expectation that the central mechanism of effective IGP is positive intergenerational interactions. The IOS captures the level of interactive behaviors between generations, thus reflecting the presence or absence of cooperation and shared goals of participants. Second, we draw from standardized measures of social interaction, namely the work of Parten (1933) and Rubin (2001).   Working from their concepts, we qualitatively looked at the behaviors seen during IGP.   We then refined the social behaviors described within Rubins scale to fit an intergenerational population and to capture levels of social engagement or interaction during IGP.   Third, we steer away from the over-reliance on attitudinal measures, moving instead to behavioral and affective outcomes of IGP. Fourth, by taking steps to develop a standardized scale, we contribute to the research tools available to IGP researchers, which increases the capacity to compare outcomes across studies, thus advancing the collective understanding of IGP. Our results establish the IOS as a replicable measure of social interactions during IGP.   The three-step process we used to achieve acceptable inter-rater reliability proved effective with two groups of observers. The process allows observers to develop a thorough understanding of the social behaviors in the IOS. Observers coding is checked against the master coding scheme to insure observers accuracy coding observed behaviors.   The master coding scheme allows for faster, more accurate training on the use of the IOS. Now that we have developed a successful process for training observers to use the IOS and achieve acceptable inter-rater, observers could be trained relatively quickly, most likely within four to eight weeks. A reliable, quick training method will allow data collection to begin at an earlier date and will allow more researchers to use the scale with confidence. An important strength of the IOS is its utility with both generations of IGP participants. Most research on individual outcomes of IGP participation focuses on one generation or the other (e.g., Middlecamp Gross 2002), neglecting the experiences of the other generation. When researchers do evaluate both age groups, they typically use non-parallel measures because parallel scales for disparate age groups rarely exist.   Not only will the IOS allow for standardized data collection across sites; it enables standardized data collection across generations. We expect the IOS to yield valuable process and outcome data for practitioners and researchers. Considering first the IOS as a source of outcome data, a program introducing or modifying an IGP could, for example, use IOS data to determine the affect and social behavior of participants during IGP with a goal of achieving high levels of positive affect, increasing intergenerational interaction, and reducing inactivity. In regards to process data, the IOS can be used in conjunction with salient outcome measures (e.g., depression or attitudes towards aging) to help interpret the effects of IGP (another recommendation by Kuehne, 2003). In asserting that IGP positively affects (or does not affect) targeted outcomes, researchers analyses would be strengthened by including data on the level of intergenerational interaction and affect that transpired among participants. For example, Seefeldt (1987) reported that children who participated in regular intergenerational visits to a nursing home h ad worse attitudes about aging than children who did not.   These findings would have been more easily interpreted if they incorporated process data such as the affect and level of interaction between children and elders.   Because these data were not included in the analyses, readers are left to speculate whether all IGP involving nursing home residents would negatively affect childrens attitudes or if the nature of the IGP in that study contributed to the negative outcomes. Seefeldt described IGP that yielded little support for intergenerational interaction (i.e., children performing in the center of the room, surrounded by the elders). She also indicated that elders were largely non-responsive to the children, suggesting that the negative outcomes may have been due to the nature of the IGP. While IGP professionals advocate standards of IGP practice (Epstein Boisvert, 2006; Rosebrook Larkin, 2003), significant variability on dimensions of IGP likely affects targeted outcomes and should be assessed. By capturing data that reflect the process of connecting generations, the IOS promotes understanding of why IGP succeeds or fails. As outlined above, the IOS provides many benefits for IGP research and evaluation. Our next step in establishing the scales value and utility to the intergenerational field entails establishing the reliability for coding occurrence of behaviors and predominance and occurrence of affect. Second, we plan to use a variety of means to establish validity, including video training to address substantive validity, expert panels to assess content validity, and statistical modeling of IOS data and related measures to determine convergent or divergent validity. Third, the scale was developed within the Neighbors Growing Together shared site intergenerational program, which involves structured programming between preschoolers and frail older adults. Generalizability is a critical indicator of validity and depends on the scales utility across intergenerational sites, populations, and programmatic approaches. Fourth, the behavior category codes are developmentally salient for pre-school age child ren and frail elders; we need to determine if the categories will be equally informative when applied to older children and well elders. Finally, the scale should be tested across cultures to support Kuehnes (2003) recommendation to take a more global view of IGP innovation. Initial indicators reveal that the IOS could become a useful tool to researchers and practitioners alike. As they seek to develop, improve, and sustain IGP while linking programming data to instrumental outcomes of interest to practitioners and funders, the availability of a standardized scale appropriate for use with young and old will prove invaluable. At a time characterized by tremendous creative energy and innovation in the intergenerational field, the IOS can capture the essence of IGP as practitioners support meaningful outcomes through intergenerational relationships. References Allen-Burge, R., Burgio, L. D., Bourgeois, M. S., Sims, R., Nunnikhoven, J. (2001). Increasing communication among nursing home residents.   Journal of Clinical Geropsychology, 7, 213-230. Allport, G. W. (1954). The nature of prejudice. Reading, MA: Addison-Wesley Camp, C. J., Judge, K. S., Bye, C. A., Fox, K. M., Bowden, J., Bell, M., et al.. (1997). An intergenerational program for persons with dementia using Montessori methods. The Gerontologist, 37, 688-692. Cohen, J. (1960). A coefficient of agreement for nominal scales. Educational and Psychological Measurement, 20, 37-46. Eggebeen, D. J., Davey, A. (1998). Do safety nets work? The role of anticipated help in times of need. Journal of Marriage and the Family, 60, 939-950.   Eheart, B. K., Hopping, D. (2001). Generations of hope. Children and Youth Services Review, 23, 675-682 Epstein, A. S., Boisvert, C. (2006). Lets do something together: Identifying effective components of intergenerational programs. Journal of Intergenerational Relationships, 4(3), 87-109. Gigliotti, C. M., Morris, M., Smock, S., Jarrott, S. E., Graham, B. (2005). Supporting community through an intergenerational summer program involving persons with dementia and pre-school children. Educational Gerontology, 31, 425-441. Gladwell, M. S., Jarrott, S. E. (2003, November). An observational assessment of elders with dementia during intergenerational activities. Poster presented at the meetings of the Gerontological Society of America, San Diego, CA. Goyer, A., Zuses, R. (1998). Intergenerational Shared Site Project, A Study of Co-located Programs and Services for Children, Youth, and Older Adults: Final Report. Washington, DC: AARP. Ice, G. H. (2002). Daily life in a nursing home: Has it changed in 25 years?   Journal of Aging Studies, 16, 345-359. Jantz, R. K., Seefeldt, C., Galper, A., Serlock, K. (1977). Childrens attitudes toward the elderly. Social Education, 41, 518-523. Jarrott, S. E. (2006). Tried and true: A guide to successful intergenerational activities at shared site programs. Washington, DC: Generations United. [Electronic version available at www.gu.org] Jarrott, S. E., Bruno, K. A. (2003). Intergenerational Activities Involving Persons with Dementia: An Observational Assessment. American Journal of Alzheimers and Related Diseases, 18, 31-38. Jarrott, S. E., Bruno, K. (2007). Shared site intergenerational programs: A case study. Journal of Applied Gerontology, 26, 239-257. Jarrott, S. E. Gigliotti, C. M., Smock, S. A.,   (2006). Where do we stand? Testing the foundation of a shared site intergenerational program. Journal of Intergenerational Relationships, 4. Jarrott, S. E., Gladwell, M. S., Gigliotti, C. M., Papero, A. L. (2004). Fostering intergenerational community between child adult care programs: A Results Management approach. Canadian Children, 29(2), 4-13. Intergenerational Observation Scale Analysis Intergenerational Observation Scale Analysis Abstract Innovative intergenerational programs continue to grow in number and scope. The development of standardized evaluation instruments, however, lags behind, leaving many researchers and practitioners without tools to effectively assess their programs. Evaluation data often focus on outcomes without attention to the nature of the interactions between generations. Understanding the process of intergenerational contact is central to understanding its outcomes. We developed the Intergenerational Observation Scale to assess the social interactions and affect of young and old participants during intergenerational activities. Our 3-step observer training process demonstrated good scale reliability. We present the process of developing the scale, achieving observer reliability, and next steps to continue exploring the scales utility across intergenerational populations and settings. Development of a standardized tool for intergenerational programming: The Intergenerational Observation Scale Providing opportunities for meaningful engagement to persons with dementia challenges family and professional caregivers alike. While some practitioners and researchers seek innovative means to support client well-being (e.g., Allen-Burge, Burgio, Bourgeois, Sims, Nunnikhoven, 2001; Orsulic-Jeras, Judge, Camp, 2000), many dementia care programs are characterized by extreme levels of inactivity (Ice, 2002), which may result from infantilization (Salari Rich, 2001) and can lead to agitation and depression and detract from well-being (Teri et al., 2003; Voelkl, 1986). Kitwood and Bredin (1992) emphasized caregivers responsibility for supporting the personhood of individuals with diminished capacity to do so for themselves. Personhood, or the dignity and respect owed to each individual, encompasses an individuals experiences, preferences and values. For many people, their social history involves significant time spent interacting with and caring for children. Recently, care profession als have turned to intergenerational programming (IGP) as one therapeutic method to support personhood and well-being of persons with dementia (e.g., Camp et al., 1997; Jarrott Bruno, 2001). Though contact between young and old generations remains an integral part of most families (Eggebeen Davey, 1998), non-familial IGP remains a relatively new treatment milieu in elder care. IGP as a whole varies widely, depending on the populations involved, program objectives, and available resources. Interventions targeting children at risk for drug use (Taylor, LoSciuto, Fox, Hilbert, Sonkowsky, 1999), older adults needing employment (Larkin Newman, 2001), and foster care families needing community support (Eheart Hopping, 2001) have utilized intergenerational strategies to achieve program goals. Programs have employed IGP to promote positive affect and engagement of older adults (Xaverius Matthews, 2003), improved attitudes about aging among children (Middlecamp Gross, 2002), and greater sense of community among staff (Jarrott, Morris, Kemp, Stremmel, 2004). Despite the significant cognitive impairment of many elder care clients, practitioners have found elders experiences interacting with and caring for children so ingrained that they remain able to interact appropriately and positively with children until late in the progress of a dementing illness (Camp et al., 1997). The means of assessing IGP vary as much as the programs themselves. Researchers have utilized interviews (Jarrott Bruno, 2007), observational scales (Marx, Pannell, Papura-Gill, Cohen-Mansfield, 2004; Xaverius Matthews, 2003), attitudinal surveys (Jantz, Seefeldt, Galper, Serlock, 1977; Kocarnik Ponzetti, 1986), drawings (Lichtenstein, et al., 2001), and cognitive assessments (Newman, Karip, Faux, 1995) to evaluate the impact of IGP on one or more groups of participants. While the range of scales utilized is not inherently problematic, the current state of intergenerational research tools requires significant improvement for several reasons. First, scales are often created for a single study without any report of psychometric properties (Kuehne, 2004). Consequently, researchers reinvent the wheel rather than use valid, reliable scales. Second, most scales assess the experiences of a single generation (e.g., Camp et al., 1997; Underwood Dorfman, 2006) although IGP should, by de finition (Newman Smith, 1999), provide mutual benefit for young and old participants. Third, the developmental and disease characteristics of a large portion of IGP participants, pre-school age children and frail elders (e.g., Epstein Boisvert, 2006; Middlecamp Gross, 2002; Salari, 2002), limit the opportunity for valid self-report measures. Consequently, researchers often rely on proxy report and direct observation to tap participants experiences with IGP. A critical limitation of much IGP research lies in the black box that conceals the process of bringing young and old together. That is, assessments targeting the impact of IGP often neglect what actually transpired during the IGP. Useful process data will vary from project to project; it might detail the level of activity, the type of interpersonal interactions, the physical environment, facilitators behaviors, or the activitys age appropriateness. For example, Xaverius and Matthews (2003) assessed the impact of IGP involving fourth graders and senior center participants who met for six intergenerational activities. The authors described the theme and setting of activities where elderly participants engagement was coded. Data were not gathered regarding the nature of the activities or what happened when participants were engaged in the intergenerational activity (i.e., if they engaged with the activity materials, with an age peer, or with an intergenerational partner). In contrast, Taylor and colleagues (1999) reported on a senior mentoring program targeting attitudes towards aging, drug use, and civic engagement of participating at-risk youth. The treatment group as a whole demonstrated improved attitudes towards school, civic engagement, aging, and resisting drug use compared to a control group. The authors also tapped into important process data by rating seniors intensity of involvement as a mentor. The researchers found a greater degree of attitudinal improvement among children whose senior mentors were more intensely involved with their student partners. Such studies exemplify the importance of capturing process as well as outcome data. The variety of populations and settings that avail themselves of IGP supports the study of multiple paths leading to positive outcomes. Most would agree that a one-size-fits-all model of IGP is impossible and inappropriate; however, identification of practices and processes that optimize outcomes improves the overall quality of IGP and enhances understanding of how IGP uniquely meets individuals needs across the lifecourse. In turn, greater understanding of the processes by which positive IGP outcomes are achieved informs development of theory pertaining to intergenerational relationships. For example, while the contact theory (Allport, 1954) provides necessary conditions for achieving positive intergroup contact, Allport did not describe the processes by which these outcomes would be achieved (Pettigrew, 1998). The limitations of IGP and related research stem from the relative infancy of IGP research. Researchers have been studying IGP for only the last 30 years (e.g., Jantz, et al., 1977), yet they are trying to raise the field to match those of child and adult development. Practitioners are anxious to know how IGP affects the physical, cognitive, and mental health of participants, yet the more basic question about whether and how children and elders interact with each other during proscribed IGP remains largely unanswered. Before we can reliably draw conclusions about the effects of IGP on children and elderly participants, we must determine the nature of their time spent together. Kuehnes (2003) state of our art report on intergenerational research implored researchers to tap the experiences of young and old participants and to develop and disseminate standardized measures relevant to IGP. By addressing these points, researchers can better inform practitioners efforts and build a cohesiv e body of research. The scale described in the current paper addresses each of these recommendations. We sought to address the challenge of measuring the experiences of young and old IGP participants, focusing on frail elders and pre-school age children because they constitute a large portion of participants involved in IGP (Goyer Zuses, 1998). We conducted a three-phase study to develop an observational scale tapping the social behavior and affect of both young and old IGP participants. We turned to the child development literature, with its long history of observational research, for inspiration. Partens (1933) categories of childrens play behaviors appealed to us; they encompassed categories reflecting a continuum of social behaviors ranging from non-engagement to cooperative engagement. Rubin (2001) developed the Play Observation Scale, drawing on Partens work and childrens cognitive development research. The broad social behaviors of unoccupied, watching, solitary, parallel, and cooperative captured by the Play Observation Scale reflect behaviors of interest to practitioners working to support meaningful engagement among elders and children. For example, a code for unoccupied behavior is salient given the high rates of inactivity found at elder care programs (Ice, 2002) and the goal of utilizing intergenerational strategies to promote positive social engagement. Furthermore, our experiences with IGP (e.g., Gigliotti, Morris, Smock, Jarrott, Graham, 2005; Jarrott Bruno, 2003; Jarrott Bruno, 2007; Jarrott, Gigliotti, Smock, 2006; Jarrott, Gladwell, Gigliotti, Papero 200 4; Jarrott et al., 2004; Weintraub Killian, 2007) highlighted interaction as the central mechanism for achieving mutual benefit during IGP. Thus, a code for solitary behavior is relevant as it reflects engagement in a presented activity without social interaction. The first author used the original Play Observation Scale to observe elders during structured IGP (Gladwell Jarrott, 2003), determining that older adults engagement was greater during IGP than non-IGP. However, Gladwell and Jarrott found the scale cumbersome as they gathered salient data as well as information of little contemporary significance to IGP. Furthermore, they violated some of the scales specifications by utilizing the Play Observation Scale in a structured activity setting. We made several adaptations to Rubins Play Observation Scale for use with structured IGP (see Table 1 for descriptions of the scale categories).   First, Rubins social behavior categories included sub-categories indicative of cognitive development; however, given our emphasis on interactions irrespective of developmental abilities, we eliminated cognitive behaviors from our scale. Second, the Play Observation Scale was designed to be used during free play sessions where children self-initiate behaviors. However, intergenerational researchers have repeatedly emphasized the need for structure to optimize IGP (e.g., Camp et al., 1997; Jarrott, 2006; Xaverius Matthews, 2003), and so we developed the scale with planned IGP in mind. Finally, we expanded the IOS to distinguish between social behaviors with age peers and intergenerational partners (i.e., interactive peer versus interactive intergenerational). The first phase of the study involved qualitative observations of IGP conducted at a shared site intergenerational program serving frail elders and pre-school age children. The observations were then used to modify Rubins Play Observation Scale for use in a structured intergenerational setting. Phase two involved piloting the scale with two observers coding video of IGP and working with the second author to reach consensus and create a master coding scheme for the video sessions. In phase three, the scale was further modified and tested with a larger group of four observers coding video and live IGP. The current paper describes the three phases of the development and initial validation of the Intergenerational Observation Scale (IOS). While the IOS captures both behavior and affect of targeted child and elderly participants, the current paper focuses on social behaviors, which comprise the more complex sub-scale of the instrument. Method Participants Virginia Techs Neighbors Growing Together, is a shared site intergenerational program designed to improve the lives of people across the lifespan through intergenerational collaboration involving teaching, research, and outreach. Neighbors Growing Together includes two co-located programs: Adult Day Services and the Child Development Center for Learning and Research. Adult Day Services provides activities, care, and supervision daily to approximately 15 adults (50+ years old) with cognitive and/or physical impairments. The Child Development Center provides year-round, full-day care for 41 children ages 15 months to 5 years. Through daily programming designed to nurture development, enhance competencies, and facilitate positive social interactions between the generations, Neighbors Growing Together provides high quality services to children, older adults, and their families. Children from each of three classrooms have one to two weekly opportunities to join their elderly â€Å"neighb ors† for IGP, which typically involves three children and three older adults in a variety of activities, such as gardening, art, or sensory projects. Children and adults work together in a group facilitated by staff and students from the Child Development Center and Adult Day Services. Staff partners plan and implement activities that support an overarching goal of positive interactions. Activities further target developmental goals for both generations, such as fine motor skills or cooperation. Children and adults meet in a shared space adjoining the two programs. Child- and adult-sized chairs designed to put all participants at eye level and developmentally appropriate books and art materials are provided. Procedures Phase 1: Scale development In fall 2005, four research students gathered qualitative observations of IGP involving Adult Day Services participants and Child Development Center children. Observers attended different intergenerational sessions. Each week, observers had a distinct focus, starting with holistic observation to orient the observers to the setting and proceeding to target the environment, the participants, and the facilitators. Following their weekly observations, the observers and the first and second authors discussed the observational data, focusing on the interactions between participating children and elders and factors that influenced those interactions. After observing 3-5 intergenerational sessions apiece, observers read and reviewed the IOS scale and codebook developed by Gladwell and Jarrott (2003) and closely mirroring the Play Observation Scale developed by Rubin (2001). They discussed how well the categories applied to the intergenerational context they observed and how to modify the sca le to reflect the social behaviors critical to intergenerational interactions in planned activities. Through an iterative process, the first two authors used observers notes and conversations to modify the Play Observation Scale to capture data reflecting the interactive process of IGP. Based on the observations from Phase 1, we further developed and refined the IOS (see Table 1). The scale builds on earlier observational research (Rubin, 2001) by coding participants behavior and affect and the affect of intergenerational partners with whom a target participant interacts.   The IOS was developed for live coding. It captures observations for the duration of an intergenerational activity, which tends to last 15-30 minutes. Each observer identifies 4-5 participants for observation and watches them for 1-2 minutes to become familiar with the participants behaviors before beginning to record data. He or she codes a participant for one 15-second interval, then codes the next participant for 15 seconds, followed by the third participant, etc. After the last participant is coded, the observer cycles back to begin observing participant one again. All observers in a session start coding when the facilitators begin the activity and end when the activity completes. When coding, if a behavior occurs for the majority of the coding interval, it is coded as the predominant behavior. When multiple behaviors are observed for equal intervals during a 15-second coding episode, we use the following hierarchy to code the predominant behavior most indicative of intergenerational interactions: Interactive Intergenerational, Parallel Intergenerational, Interactive Peer, Parallel Peer, Staff, Watching, Solitary, and Unoccupied. Phase 2: Establishment of reliability Video coding of the observations was introduced during Phase 2 of scale development because learning the IOS through the use of video has several advantages. When first learning the scale, observers watched a 15-second interval repeatedly to better understand the IOS behavioral scoring. The video coding procedure allowed observers to review their coding with the second author, who is experienced in observational coding. Weekly meetings were held during which observers coding was reviewed and discussed until observers reached a consensus on what behaviors constituted the IOS categories. Weekly review helped observers achieve acceptable reliability in assigning predominant codes to participants social behaviors. The video procedure enabled us to refine the IOS manual. The video coding process began with two observers who both had experience with live coding during IGP. After studying the manual, observers filmed three weekly sessions of planned IGP between the elders and each of the three classrooms of children (one session per classroom per week). The procedure for using video to establish acceptable reliability was completed in three steps. First, observers independently coded sessions in 15-second intervals and re-watched these as many times as necessary to determine the predominant social behavior. In the second step, observers more closely approximated live coding by watching the 15-second intervals on video only once to code the predominant social behavior.   In the third step, observers coded live sessions (scoring participant behaviors individually but observing the same participants at the same intervals) and filmed the activities, which allowed observers to review their coding at the weekly meetings and resolve discrepancies. Based on the consensus between the two coders and the expert coder, master coding sheets were developed indicating agreement on the predominant behavior for each 15-second interval of the coded sessions. Before observers could proceed to the next step in the training process, they had to achieve acceptable inter-rater reliability measured by Cohens kappa. A kappa score of .60 or higher was considered acceptable (Cohen, 1960). The kappa scores for the two observers in Phase 2 were .67 for the first step, .85 for the second step, and .81 for the live coding in the third step. Replication of reliability In Phase 3, we used the IOS video coding procedure to train four new observers. In addition to establishing that the video coding procedure would work with observers new to the IOS, we wanted to determine the amount of training necessary to achieve acceptable reliability with our 3-step process. The observers started with an introductory period where they read the manual and watched live IGP to observe the range of behaviors common to IGP. Observers attended weekly meetings where they watched IGP videos and received instruction on using the IOS. The introductory period lasted approximately 3 weeks or until observers felt comfortable with the coding, which was an additional 2 weeks for one of the observers. After the introductory period, the observers started on step 1 in the video coding procedure. Each step lasted approximately 4 weeks. At the weekly coding meetings, observers reviewed any discrepancies between their coding and the master codes determined in Phase 2. Once the observers achieved acceptable reliability in step 1, they moved on to step 2. Coding pairs were formed, and they coded live IGP during step 3, achieving acceptable kappas of .92, .69, and .75. Discussion In the current paper, we discuss the development of the IOS, a scale designed to measure young and old participants social interaction and affect during IGP.   In developing the IOS, we began with qualitative observations of IGP to refine a well-established child development observational scale (Rubin, 2001). We modified the scale for observations of elder and child participants in a typical range of intergenerational programs.   Based on two groups of observers, we present a system for training individuals to use the scale and establish inter-rater reliability.   Currently, the use of standardized measure within the field of IGP research is extremely limited, and our goal is to develop a scale to address this need. The IOS addresses several of Kuehnes (2003) recommendations for advancing   intergenerational research and evaluation.   First, the IOS is grounded in theory that shaped our view of positive IGP outcomes. Personhood theory (Kitwood Bredin, 1992) leads us to intergenerational relationships as a once common source of positive social interaction for many elders that can continue to support their well-being in late life. Contact theory (Allport, 1954; Pettigrew Tropp, 2000) elucidates necessary conditions for positive intergroup exchange, such as that between youth and elders. The conditions of cooperation and shared goals inform our expectation that the central mechanism of effective IGP is positive intergenerational interactions. The IOS captures the level of interactive behaviors between generations, thus reflecting the presence or absence of cooperation and shared goals of participants. Second, we draw from standardized measures of social interaction, namely the work of Parten (1933) and Rubin (2001).   Working from their concepts, we qualitatively looked at the behaviors seen during IGP.   We then refined the social behaviors described within Rubins scale to fit an intergenerational population and to capture levels of social engagement or interaction during IGP.   Third, we steer away from the over-reliance on attitudinal measures, moving instead to behavioral and affective outcomes of IGP. Fourth, by taking steps to develop a standardized scale, we contribute to the research tools available to IGP researchers, which increases the capacity to compare outcomes across studies, thus advancing the collective understanding of IGP. Our results establish the IOS as a replicable measure of social interactions during IGP.   The three-step process we used to achieve acceptable inter-rater reliability proved effective with two groups of observers. The process allows observers to develop a thorough understanding of the social behaviors in the IOS. Observers coding is checked against the master coding scheme to insure observers accuracy coding observed behaviors.   The master coding scheme allows for faster, more accurate training on the use of the IOS. Now that we have developed a successful process for training observers to use the IOS and achieve acceptable inter-rater, observers could be trained relatively quickly, most likely within four to eight weeks. A reliable, quick training method will allow data collection to begin at an earlier date and will allow more researchers to use the scale with confidence. An important strength of the IOS is its utility with both generations of IGP participants. Most research on individual outcomes of IGP participation focuses on one generation or the other (e.g., Middlecamp Gross 2002), neglecting the experiences of the other generation. When researchers do evaluate both age groups, they typically use non-parallel measures because parallel scales for disparate age groups rarely exist.   Not only will the IOS allow for standardized data collection across sites; it enables standardized data collection across generations. We expect the IOS to yield valuable process and outcome data for practitioners and researchers. Considering first the IOS as a source of outcome data, a program introducing or modifying an IGP could, for example, use IOS data to determine the affect and social behavior of participants during IGP with a goal of achieving high levels of positive affect, increasing intergenerational interaction, and reducing inactivity. In regards to process data, the IOS can be used in conjunction with salient outcome measures (e.g., depression or attitudes towards aging) to help interpret the effects of IGP (another recommendation by Kuehne, 2003). In asserting that IGP positively affects (or does not affect) targeted outcomes, researchers analyses would be strengthened by including data on the level of intergenerational interaction and affect that transpired among participants. For example, Seefeldt (1987) reported that children who participated in regular intergenerational visits to a nursing home h ad worse attitudes about aging than children who did not.   These findings would have been more easily interpreted if they incorporated process data such as the affect and level of interaction between children and elders.   Because these data were not included in the analyses, readers are left to speculate whether all IGP involving nursing home residents would negatively affect childrens attitudes or if the nature of the IGP in that study contributed to the negative outcomes. Seefeldt described IGP that yielded little support for intergenerational interaction (i.e., children performing in the center of the room, surrounded by the elders). She also indicated that elders were largely non-responsive to the children, suggesting that the negative outcomes may have been due to the nature of the IGP. While IGP professionals advocate standards of IGP practice (Epstein Boisvert, 2006; Rosebrook Larkin, 2003), significant variability on dimensions of IGP likely affects targeted outcomes and should be assessed. By capturing data that reflect the process of connecting generations, the IOS promotes understanding of why IGP succeeds or fails. As outlined above, the IOS provides many benefits for IGP research and evaluation. Our next step in establishing the scales value and utility to the intergenerational field entails establishing the reliability for coding occurrence of behaviors and predominance and occurrence of affect. Second, we plan to use a variety of means to establish validity, including video training to address substantive validity, expert panels to assess content validity, and statistical modeling of IOS data and related measures to determine convergent or divergent validity. Third, the scale was developed within the Neighbors Growing Together shared site intergenerational program, which involves structured programming between preschoolers and frail older adults. Generalizability is a critical indicator of validity and depends on the scales utility across intergenerational sites, populations, and programmatic approaches. Fourth, the behavior category codes are developmentally salient for pre-school age child ren and frail elders; we need to determine if the categories will be equally informative when applied to older children and well elders. Finally, the scale should be tested across cultures to support Kuehnes (2003) recommendation to take a more global view of IGP innovation. Initial indicators reveal that the IOS could become a useful tool to researchers and practitioners alike. As they seek to develop, improve, and sustain IGP while linking programming data to instrumental outcomes of interest to practitioners and funders, the availability of a standardized scale appropriate for use with young and old will prove invaluable. At a time characterized by tremendous creative energy and innovation in the intergenerational field, the IOS can capture the essence of IGP as practitioners support meaningful outcomes through intergenerational relationships. References Allen-Burge, R., Burgio, L. D., Bourgeois, M. S., Sims, R., Nunnikhoven, J. (2001). Increasing communication among nursing home residents.   Journal of Clinical Geropsychology, 7, 213-230. Allport, G. W. (1954). The nature of prejudice. Reading, MA: Addison-Wesley Camp, C. J., Judge, K. S., Bye, C. A., Fox, K. M., Bowden, J., Bell, M., et al.. (1997). An intergenerational program for persons with dementia using Montessori methods. The Gerontologist, 37, 688-692. Cohen, J. (1960). 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