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This paper investigates clinical outcomes of children with asthma treated in a hospital clinic and thus develop a method for the monitoring of clinical performance. Prospective, before‐and‐after analyses of clinic information for first hospital visits and long‐term follow‐ups. For initial referrals we assessed the change in asthma symptom scores between initial and first follow‐up visits. For long‐term follow‐up yearly changes in symptom scores, hospital admissions, school absences and oral steroid use were measured. Multiple regression was used to study the role of possible predicting factors, where applicable. The subjects studied were children attending hospital children’s asthma clinics in Tayside. Initial referral to hospital asthma clinic was associated with a significant improvement in mean symptom scores. In contrast, children on long‐term hospital follow‐up were maintained at a relatively steady state. Measurement of these outcomes in children’s asthma clinics could facilitate the assessment of clinical performance and monitor changes on a longitudinal basis.

This chapter reviews recent research regarding behavior interventions for young children. We first consider the implications of allowing maladaptive behavior to remain untreated in young children. The reasons that people may select for inaction are illustrated through a case example of an individual who manifested behavior problems that were allowed to continue through accommodations rather than being addressed through interventions. We then consider several examples of promising behavior interventions for very young children that can be carried out in home and preschool environments. Next, we review promising interventions that are appropriate for school-based settings. We conclude with the observation that while it is absolutely necessary to deal with urgent situations evoked by maladaptive behavior, it is critical to keep sight of the goal that we should always work to promote more mature, self-regulated, and acceptable behaviors across settings.

This chapter analyzes the ways that individuals develop person-to-group ties. The chapter reviews the development and evidentiary basis of the theory of relational cohesion, the affect theory of social exchange, and the theory of social commitments.

We survey twenty-five years of published literature on these theories, and review unpublished theoretical tests and extensions that are currently in progress.

The research program has grown substantially over the past twenty-five years to encompass more varied and diverse phenomena. The findings indicate that structural interdependencies, repeated exchanges, and a sense of shared responsibility are key conditions for people to develop affective ties to groups, organizations, and even nation-states.

The research implies that if people are engaged in joint tasks, they attribute positive or negative feelings from those tasks to their local groups (teams, departments) and/or to larger organizations (companies, communities). To date, empirical tests have focused on microlevel processes.

Our work has practical implications for how managers or supervisors organize tasks and work routines in a way to maximize group or organizational commitment.

This research helps to understand problems of fragmentation that are faced by decentralized organizations and also how these can be overcome.

The chapter represents the most complete and comprehensive review of the theory of relational cohesion, the affect theory of social exchange, and the theory of social commitments to date.