Displaying publications 21 - 40 of 45 in total

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  1. Mamuda M, Sathasivam S
    MATEMATIKA, 2017;33(1):11-19.
    MyJurnal
    Medical diagnosis is the extrapolation of the future course and outcome of a disease and a sign of the likelihood of recovery from that disease. Diagnosis is important because it is used to guide the type and intensity of the medication to be administered to patients. A hybrid intelligent system that combines the fuzzy logic qualitative approach and Adaptive Neural Networks (ANNs) with the capabilities of getting a better performance is required. In this paper, a method for modeling the survival of diabetes patient by utilizing the application of the Adaptive NeuroFuzzy Inference System (ANFIS) is introduced with the aim of turning data into knowledge that can be understood by people. The ANFIS approach implements the hybrid learning algorithm that combines the gradient descent algorithm and a recursive least square error algorithm to update the antecedent and consequent parameters. The combination of fuzzy inference that will represent knowledge in an interpretable manner and the learning ability of neural network that can adjust the membership functions of the parameters and linguistic rules from data will be considered. The proposed framework can be applied to estimate the risk and survival curve between different diagnostic factors and survival time with the explanation capabilities.
    Matched MeSH terms: Linguistics
  2. MUHAMMAD IQBAL NORDIN, NOOR HAFHIZAH ABD RAHIM
    MyJurnal
    Parser is aprocess of classifying sentence structuresof a language. Parser receives a sentence and breaks it up into correct phrases. The purpose of this research is to develop a Malay single sentence parser that can help primary school studentsto learn Malay language according to the correct phrases. Thisis because research in Malay sentenceparsinghasnot gottenenough attention from researchers tothe extent ofbuildingparserprototypes. This research used top-down parsing technique,and grammar chosen was context-free grammar (CFG) for Malay language. However, to parse a sentence with correct phrase was a difficult task due to lack of resourcesfor obtainingMalay lexicon. Malay lexicon is a database that storesthousands of words with their correct phrases. Therefore, this research developeda Malay lexicon based on an articlefrom Dewan Masyarakatmagazine. In conclusion, this research can providehelpto the primaryschoolstudentsto organize correct Malay single sentences.
    Matched MeSH terms: Linguistics
  3. Khan TM, Al-Haider I, Syed Sulaiman SA, Hassali MA
    J Ren Care, 2013 Dec;39(4):222-7.
    PMID: 24152068 DOI: 10.1111/j.1755-6686.2013.12038.x
    Pruritus is one of the commonest skin complaints in end-stage kidney disease. Pruritus can be effectively managed if proper assessment is carried out to categorise its severity. The objective of this study is to test the reliability of an Arabic version of the 5D-Itching scale (5D-IS).
    Matched MeSH terms: Linguistics*
  4. Katsos N, Cummins C, Ezeizabarrena MJ, Gavarró A, Kuvač Kraljević J, Hrzica G, et al.
    Proc Natl Acad Sci U S A, 2016 08 16;113(33):9244-9.
    PMID: 27482119 DOI: 10.1073/pnas.1601341113
    Learners of most languages are faced with the task of acquiring words to talk about number and quantity. Much is known about the order of acquisition of number words as well as the cognitive and perceptual systems and cultural practices that shape it. Substantially less is known about the acquisition of quantifiers. Here, we consider the extent to which systems and practices that support number word acquisition can be applied to quantifier acquisition and conclude that the two domains are largely distinct in this respect. Consequently, we hypothesize that the acquisition of quantifiers is constrained by a set of factors related to each quantifier's specific meaning. We investigate competence with the expressions for "all," "none," "some," "some…not," and "most" in 31 languages, representing 11 language types, by testing 768 5-y-old children and 536 adults. We found a cross-linguistically similar order of acquisition of quantifiers, explicable in terms of four factors relating to their meaning and use. In addition, exploratory analyses reveal that language- and learner-specific factors, such as negative concord and gender, are significant predictors of variation.
    Matched MeSH terms: Linguistics*
  5. Kamarudin, R., Moon, R.
    MyJurnal
    The purpose of this study is to investigate how reference materials (i.e. dictionaries) commonly
    prescribed to Malaysian school learners address and describe a very common and important linguistic
    feature - phrasal verbs. Two bilingual learner dictionaries frequently recommended for secondary
    school learners in Malaysia were examined. Analysis of common phrasal verbs like pick up, come out,
    and go out was carried out by examining entries in the dictionaries that discuss this linguistic feature.
    Descriptive analysis was conducted to examine how this particular language form is described by
    looking at the selection of phrasal verbs, as well as information provided with respect to phrasal verbs.
    Results of the analysis have revealed some interesting findings with regard to the selection and
    description of phrasal verbs in these dictionaries, which may have also contributed to learners'
    difficulties in understanding and learning the language form. The paper will be concluded by
    discussing some recommendations with respect to the inclusion and selection of phrasal verbs in
    language reference materials particularly dictionaries in Malaysian schools.
    Matched MeSH terms: Linguistics
  6. Jatupol Kampuansai, Siriwadee Chomdej
    Sains Malaysiana, 2015;44:1453-1459.
    Microsatellite DYS385 is a highly polymorphic marker in the Y chromosome. It has been used for investigating population genetic structure and personal identification in various ethnic groups of the world. This research aimed to analyze the microsatellite DYS385 polymorphism among 9 Tai and 11 Mon-Khmer speaking populations of northern Thailand. Fiftysix different haplotypes were found in 453 samples from 20 populations. Haplotype diversities and discrimination powers of populations belonging to the Tai linguistic family was higher than those of the Mon-Khmer group. Genetic affinities based on DYS385 variation do not conform to linguistic classification but a fraction of genetic divergence patterns can be explained by geographic distances.
    Matched MeSH terms: Linguistics
  7. Jacob SA, Chong EY, Goh SL, Palanisamy UD
    Mhealth, 2021;7:29.
    PMID: 33898598 DOI: 10.21037/mhealth.2020.01.04
    Background: Deaf and hard-of-hearing (DHH) patients have trouble communicating with community pharmacists and accessing the healthcare system. This study explored the views on a proposed mobile health (mHealth) app in terms of design and features, that will be able to bridge the communication gap between community pharmacists and DHH patients.

    Methods: A community-based participatory research method was utilized. Two focus group discussions (FGDs) were conducted in Malaysian sign language (BIM) with a total of 10 DHH individuals. Respondents were recruited using purposive sampling. Video-recordings were transcribed and analyzed using a thematic approach.

    Results: Two themes emerged: (I) challenges and scepticism of the healthcare system; and (II) features of the mHealth app. Respondents expressed fears and concerns about accessing healthcare services, and stressed on the need for sign language interpreters. There were also concerns about data privacy and security. With regard to app features, the majority preferred videos instead of text to convey information about their disease and medication, due to their lower literacy levels.

    Conclusions: For an mHealth app to be effective, app designers must ensure the app is individualised according to the cultural and linguistic diversity of the target audience. Pharmacists should also educate patients on the potential benefits of the app in terms of assisting patients with their medicine-taking.

    Matched MeSH terms: Linguistics
  8. Jacob SA, Palanisamy UD, Napier J, Verstegen D, Dhanoa A, Chong EY
    Acad Med, 2021 May 25.
    PMID: 34039854 DOI: 10.1097/ACM.0000000000004181
    There is a need for culturally competent health care providers (HCPs) to provide care to deaf signers, who are members of a linguistic and cultural minority group. Many deaf signers have lower health literacy levels due to deprivation of incidental learning opportunities and inaccessibility of health-related materials, increasing their risk for poorer health outcomes. Communication barriers arise because HCPs are ill-prepared to serve this population, with deaf signers reporting poor-quality interactions. This has translated to errors in diagnosis, patient nonadherence, and ineffective health information, resulting in mistrust of the health care system and reluctance to seek treatment. Sign language interpreters have often not received in-depth medical training, compounding the dynamic process of medical interpreting. HCPs should thus become more culturally competent, empowering them to provide cultural- and language-concordant services to deaf signers. HCPs who received training in cultural competency showed increased knowledge and confidence in interacting with deaf signers. Similarly, deaf signers reported more positive experiences when interacting with medically certified interpreters, HCPs with sign language skills, and practitioners who made an effort to improve communication. However, cultural competency programs within health care education remain inconsistent. Caring for deaf signers requires complex, integrated competencies that need explicit attention and practice repeatedly in realistic, authentic learning tasks ordered from simple to complex. Attention to the needs of deaf signers can start early in the curriculum, using examples of deaf signers in lectures and case discussions, followed by explicit discussions of Deaf cultural norms and the potential risks of low written and spoken language literacy. Students can subsequently engage in role plays with each other or representatives of the local signing deaf community. This would likely ensure that future HCPs are equipped with the knowledge and skills necessary to provide appropriate care and ensure equitable health care access for deaf signers.
    Matched MeSH terms: Linguistics
  9. Harith S, Tan SL
    Ann Geriatr Med Res, 2020 Jun;24(2):115-124.
    PMID: 32743332 DOI: 10.4235/agmr.20.0005
    Background: This study aimed to translate and validate the comprehensive geriatric assessment (CGA) questionnaire among older adult patients in Malaysia in the Malay language.

    Methods: The questionnaire contained items on the socio-demographic characteristics, medical condition, quality of life (QOL), nutritional status, functional capacity, and depression status. The forward and backward translation processes of the original English language version of the questionnaire were undertaken by three independent linguistic translators, while its content was validated by an expert team consisting of seven geriatricians, physicians, dietitian, and lecturers. The Malay version of the questionnaire was tested for face validity in 10 older adult patients over 65 years of age. The internal consistency reliability and construct validity were evaluated among 166 older adult patients (mean age, 71.0 years; 73.5% male). The questionnaire was administered through face-to-face interviews with the patients. Minor amendments were made after the content and face validity tests.

    Results: The internal consistency reliability was good, as the Cronbach's alpha for most of the scales surpassed 0.70, ranging from 0.70 to 0.98, with only one exception (Mini Nutritional Assessment Short-Form, Cronbach's alpha=0.62). The factor loadings for all scales were satisfactory (>0.40), ranging from 0.45 to 0.90.

    Conclusion: The Malay-version CGA showed evidence of satisfactory internal consistency reliability and construct validity in Malaysian geriatric patients.

    Matched MeSH terms: Linguistics
  10. Ghoshal UC, Gwee KA, Chen M, Gong XR, Pratap N, Hou X, et al.
    J Neurogastroenterol Motil, 2015 Jan 1;21(1):83-92.
    PMID: 25537673 DOI: 10.5056/jnm14045
    The development-processes by regional socio-cultural adaptation of an Enhanced Asian Rome III questionnaire (EAR3Q), a cultural adaptation of the Rome III diagnostic questionnaire (R3DQ), and its translation-validation in Asian languages are presented. As English is not the first language for most Asians, translation-validation of EAR3Q is essential. Hence, we aimed to culturally adapt the R3DQ to develop EAR3Q and linguistically validate it to show that the EAR3Q is able to allocate diagnosis according to Rome III criteria.
    Matched MeSH terms: Linguistics
  11. Dunn M, Kruspe N, Burenhult N
    Hum Biol, 2013 Feb-Jun;85(1-3):383-400.
    PMID: 24297234
    The Aslian language family, located in the Malay Peninsula and southern Thai Isthmus, consists of four distinct branches comprising some 18 languages. These languages predate the now dominant Malay and Thai. The speakers of Aslian languages exhibit some of the highest degree of phylogenetic and societal diversity present in Mainland Southeast Asia today, among them a foraging tradition particularly associated with locally ancient, Pleistocene genetic lineages. Little advance has been made in our understanding of the linguistic prehistory of this region or how such complexity arose. In this article we present a Bayesian phylogeographic analysis of a large sample of Aslian languages. An explicit geographic model of diffusion is combined with a cognate birth-word death model of lexical evolution to infer the location of the major events of Aslian cladogenesis. The resultant phylogenetic trees are calibrated against dates in the historical and archaeological record to infer a detailed picture of Aslian language history, addressing a number of outstanding questions, including (1) whether the root ancestor of Aslian was spoken in the Malay Peninsula, or whether the family had already divided before entry, and (2) the dynamics of the movement of Aslian languages across the peninsula, with a particular focus on its spread to the indigenous foragers.
    Matched MeSH terms: Linguistics*
  12. Cila Umat, Nahazatul Islia Jamari
    MyJurnal
    The study examined the use of linguistic contextual cues among native, Malay-speaking normal hearing young adults. Ten undergraduate students of Universiti Kebangsaan Malaysia participated in the study. All subjects had normal hearing with the average hearing threshold levels for the overall left and the right ears of 7.8 dB (SD 4.1). The Malay Hearing in Noise Test (MyHINT) materials were employed and presented to the subjects at an approximately 65 dBA presentation level. Testing was conducted in a sound field in three different listening conditions: in quiet, in noise with +5 dB signal-to-noise ratio (SNR) and 0 dB SNR. In every test condition, three lists of MyHINT were administered to each subject. The magnitude of context effects was measured using the j factor, which was derived from measurements of recognition probabilities for whole sentences (13,) and the constituent words in the sentences (PP) in which j = log P./ log P P. Results showed that all subjects scored 100% identification of words in sentences and whole sentences in quiet listening condition, while subjects' performances in 0 dB SNR were significantly poorer than that in quiet and in +5 dB SNR (p < 0.001). The j-values were significantly correlated with the probability of recognizing words in the sentences (r = 0.515, p = 0.029) in which lower j values were associated with lower P ps. Subjects were not significantly different from each other in their use of contextual cues in adverse listening conditions [F(9, 7) = 1.34, p = 0.359]. Using the linear regression function for j on word recognition probabilities, the predicted P. were calculated. It was found that the predicted and measured probabilities of recognizing whole sentences were highly correlated: r = 0.973, p < 0.001. The results suggested that linguistic contextual information become increasingly important for recognition of sentences by normal hearing young adult listeners as SNR deteriorates.
    Matched MeSH terms: Linguistics
  13. Chu SY, Lee J, Barlow SM, Ben-David B, Lim KX, Foong JH
    Int J Speech Lang Pathol, 2021 08;23(4):419-429.
    PMID: 33059474 DOI: 10.1080/17549507.2020.1808701
    PURPOSE: This study examined the effects of non-word versus real word, age, and gender on oral-DDK rates among healthy Malaysian-Mandarin speakers. Comparison between non-word of Malaysian-Mandarin and Hebrew speakers was examined.

    METHOD: One-hundred and seventeen speakers (18-83 years old, 46% men) were audio-recorded while performing non-word (repetition of "pataka") and real-word oral-DDK tasks ("butter cake" and " ([pha4tha1khan4])"). The number of syllables produced in 8 seconds was counted from the audio recording to derive the oral-DDK rates. A MANOVA was conducted to compare the rates between age groups (young = 18-40 years, n = 56; middle = 41-60 years, n = 39; older = 61-83 years, n = 22) and gender. In a second analysis, "pataka" results were compared between this study and previous findings with Hebrew speakers.

    RESULT: No gender effects were found. However, rates significantly decreased with age (p  non-words (5.29 ± 1.23) > Mandarin words (4.91 ± 1.13). Malaysian-Mandarin speakers performed slower than Hebrew speakers on "pataka" task.

    CONCLUSION: Aging has a large impact on oromotor functions, indicating that speech-language pathologists should consider using age-adjusted norms.

    Matched MeSH terms: Linguistics*
  14. Choudhry FR, Khan TM, Park MS, Golden KJ
    Front Public Health, 2018;6:187.
    PMID: 30065918 DOI: 10.3389/fpubh.2018.00187
    The Kalasha are a religious, ethnic, and linguistic minority community in Pakistan. They are indigenous people living in remote valleys of the Hindu Kush Mountains in northern Pakistan, neighboring Afghanistan. The Kalasha are pastoral, as well as agricultural people to some extent, although they are increasingly facing pressures from globalization and social change, which may be influencing youth and community development. Their traditional world view dichotomizes and emphasizes on the division of the pure (Onjeshta) and the impure (Pragata). There remains a scarcity of literature on mental health and resilience of indigenous communities in South Asia and Pakistan generally, and the polytheistic Kalasha community specifically. Thus, the current study was conducted with the aim to explore the cultural protective factors (resilience) of the Kalasha youth (adolescents and emerging adults) and to explore their perceived etiological understandings and preferred interventions for mental health support systems. The theoretical framework of Bronfenbrenner's (1, 2) ecological systems model was used. Interpretative Phenomenological Analysis (IPA) was conducted, considering the advantage of its idiographic approach and the "double hermeneutic" analytic process. This methodology was consistent with the aim to understand and make sense of mental health and resilience from the Kalasha indigenous perspective. A total of 12 in-depth interviews were conducted with adolescents and emerging adults (5 males, 7 females), along with ethnographic observations. The analysis revealed 3 superordinate themes of mental health perceptions and interventions, each with more specific emergent themes: (1) Psychological Resilience/Cultural Protective Factors Buffering Against Mental Health Problems (Intra-Communal Bonding & Sharing; Kalasha Festivals & Traditions; Purity Concept; Behavioral Practice of Happiness and Cognitive Patterns); (2) Perceived Causes of Mental Health Issues (Biological & Psychosocial; Supernatural & Spiritual; Environmental); and (3) Preferred Interventions [Shamanic Treatment; Ta'awiz (Amulets); Communal Sharing & Problem Solving; Medical Treatment; Herbal Methods]. The overall findings point to the need for developing culturally-sensitive and indigenous measures and therapeutic interventions. The findings highlighted the Kalasha cultural practices which may promote resilience. The findings also call for indigenous sources of knowledge to be considered when collaboratively designing public health programs.
    Matched MeSH terms: Linguistics
  15. Chooi WT, Logie R
    Mem Cognit, 2020 11;48(8):1484-1503.
    PMID: 32661910 DOI: 10.3758/s13421-020-01066-w
    Contemporary cognitive training literature suggests that training on an adaptive task produces improvements only in the trained task or near transfer effects. No study has yet systematically explained the mechanism behind improved performance on the N-back. In this study, we first investigated how improvements in an N-back task using eight pairs of phonologically similar words as stimuli occurred by examining error distributions of the task over training sessions. Nineteen participants (non-native English speakers) trained for 20 sessions over 5 weeks. We observed a reduction in false alarms to non-target words and fewer missed target words. Though the absolute number of phonological-based errors reduced as training progressed, the proportion of this error type did not decrease over time suggesting participants increasingly relied on subvocal rehearsal in completing the N-back. In the second experiment, we evaluated if improvements developed during N-back training transferred to tasks that relied on serial order memory using simple span tasks (letter span with phonologically distinct letters, letter span with phonologically similar letters, digit span forward, and digit span backward). Twenty-nine participants trained on the N-back and 16 trained on the Operation Span (OSPAN) for 15 sessions over 4 weeks. Neither group of participants showed improvements on any of the simple span tasks. In the third experiment, 20 participants (16 native English speakers) trained on the N-back for 15 sessions over 4 weeks also showed increasing reliance on subvocal rehearsal as they progressed through training. Self-report strategy use did not predict improvements on the N-back.
    Matched MeSH terms: Linguistics
  16. Bosher S, Bowles M
    Nurs Educ Perspect, 2008 May-Jun;29(3):165-72.
    PMID: 18575241
    Recent research has indicated that language may be a source of construct-irrelevant variance for non-native speakers of English, or English as a second language (ESL) students, when they take exams. As a result, exams may not accurately measure knowledge of nursing content. One accommodation often used to level the playing field for ESL students is linguistic modification, a process by which the reading load of test items is reduced while the content and integrity of the item are maintained. Research on the effects of linguistic modification has been conducted on examinees in the K-12 population, but is just beginning in other areas. This study describes the collaborative process by which items from a pathophysiology exam were linguistically modified and subsequently evaluated for comprehensibility by ESL students. Findings indicate that in a majority of cases, modification improved examinees' comprehension of test items. Implications for test item writing and future research are discussed.
    Matched MeSH terms: Linguistics
  17. Blust R
    Hum Biol, 2013 Feb-Jun;85(1-3):401-16.
    PMID: 24297235
    Within recorded history, most Southeast Asian peoples have been of "southern Mongoloid" physical type, whether they speak Austroasiatic, Tibeto-Burman, Austronesian, Tai-Kadai, or Hmong-Mien languages. However, population distributions suggest that this is a post-Pleistocene phenomenon and that for tens of millennia before the last glaciation ended Greater Mainland Southeast Asia, which included the currently insular world that rests on the Sunda Shelf, was peopled by short, dark-skinned, frizzy-haired foragers whose descendants in the Philippines came to be labeled by the sixteenth-century Spanish colonizers as "negritos," a term that has since been extended to similar groups throughout the region. There are three areas in which these populations survived into the present so as to become part of written history: the Philippines, the Malay Peninsula, and the Andaman Islands. All Philippine negritos speak Austronesian languages, and all Malayan negritos speak languages in the nuclear Mon-Khmer branch of Austroasiatic, but the linguistic situation in the Andamans is a world apart. Given prehistoric language shifts among both Philippine and Malayan negritos, the prospects of determining whether disparate negrito populations were once a linguistically or culturally unified community would appear hopeless. Surprisingly, however, some clues to a common negrito past do survive in a most unexpected way.
    Matched MeSH terms: Linguistics*
  18. Barrett RJ
    Commun Med, 2004;1(1):25-34.
    PMID: 16808686
    An analysis is presented of psychiatric research interviews conducted among the Iban, a longhouse dwelling people of Sarawak, Malaysia. It draws on transcripts of interviews recorded in the course of carrying out research into schizophrenia in this group. The article examines three different interview spaces within the longhouse--public, family, and private--in order to explore the interplay between ethnographic context and interview conversation. The public setting is notable for the number of relatives who join in and transform the communication from dyadic to collective interlocution; the role of repetition in recruiting them into the conversation is explored. Indirect contrast is the private space, which allows for a level of confidentiality commensurate with Western psychiatric research practice. Intermediate between the two is the family space. The communicative forms that correspond to these settings influence the way symptoms of schizophrenia are experienced and expressed in the Iban. Implications for the practice of psychiatry cross-culturally are examined.
    Matched MeSH terms: Linguistics
  19. Barki N, Choudhry FR, Munawar K
    PMID: 33500886 DOI: 10.47176/mjiri.34.159
    Background: The construct of satisfaction with life has been studied across various cultures through the Satisfaction with Life Scale. The Satisfaction with Life Scale (SWLS) has been validated across several populations and languages. There are no published psychometric properties of its Urdu version. Hence, the aim of this study was to ascertain the psychometric properties of the Urdu version of the SWLS among the Urdu speaking population of Pakistan. Methods: The SWLS has already been translated into Urdu, and the Urdu version is available on the author's website however there is no information about its psychometric properties. To establish the psychometric properties especially the factor structure of the already translated Urdu SWLS, the SWLS-Urdu was administered to Urdu speaking population residing in Pakistan. The statistical analyses (i.e., normality through skewness and kurtosis, Kaiser-Meyer-Olkin (KMO) and Bartlett's test of sphericity, and test and re-test reliability) were conducted through SPSS version 25.0. Structure Equation Modelling via maximum likelihood method of estimation was used to perform confirmatory factor analysis on the data using AMOS 20.0. The significance level was set at p < 0.05. Results: The study was completed by recruiting 120 participants from different universities in Lahore, Pakistan. The sample was equally divided between male and female participants. The mean age of participants was 22.7(3.6) years. Test of the adequacy of the sample through Kaiser-Mayer-Olkin showed KMO=0.88 and Bartlett's test of sphericity (p<0.001). The Cronbach's alpha reliability of the scale was 0.90 and Confirmatory Factor Analysis confirmed a one-factor model as a good fit with strong statistical evidence. No factorial group variances were noticed in male and female participants. Conclusion: This study shows that Urdu SWLS has sound psychometric properties, is linguistically and culturally acceptable, and equally useful in assessing satisfaction with life in the Urdu speaking population.
    Matched MeSH terms: Linguistics
  20. Awaisu A, Samsudin S, Amir NA, Omar CG, Hashim MI, Mohamad MH, et al.
    PMID: 20492717 DOI: 10.1186/1471-2288-10-46
    The purpose of the linguistic validation of the Wisconsin Smoking Withdrawal Scale (WSWS) was to produce a translated version in Malay language which was "conceptually equivalent" to the original U.S. English version for use in clinical practice and research.
    Matched MeSH terms: Linguistics*
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