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Currently in the United States, 50 states, 5 territories, and the District of Columbia have established prekindergarten (pre-K) age 4 learning standards that are intended to outline skills and knowledge that set children on a path to success in kindergarten and upcoming grades. These standards are emphasized as a centralizing force in early childhood education, providing a bridge strengthening ties between preschool and elementary grades.This report presents a national study of pre-K age 4 learning standards based on an online survey completed by early childhood state and territory directors and administrators, geographically diverse focus groups representing a subsample of survey respondents, and one-on-one interviews composed of a sample of both focus group and survey participants. Data were collected from these sources and by direct examination of pre-K age 4 learning standards documents. Responses to survey, focus group, and interview questions advanced current knowledge regarding the purpose, history, and development of pre-K age 4 learning standards, comprehensiveness of standards documents, standards-related supports for teachers, and pre-K to kindergarten alignment. Systematic analysis of pre-K age 4 learning standards documents revealed extensive variation across titles, organization, terminology, and enriching materials, such as teacher strategies and child examples that assist teachers in implementing standards. A surprising finding is the positive view among early childhood leaders in focus groups and interviews toward establishing national pre-K age 4 learning standards. The report concludes with a brief discussion of implications of this study followed by recommendations to inform state and federal early childhood leaders, education-focused philanthropic foundations, and others in the field of early childhood education.

When the Salamanca Statement called upon States to recognise the 'necessity and urgency' of providing students with a disability access to the regular education system (UNESCO 1994, viii), both Australia and the United States of America had existing legislative and policy documents articulating the rights of students with a disability to access regular education. Since that time both countries have clarified and amended their respective laws and policies, and signed the Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities (UN 2006) which urges States to reallocate resourcing to inclusive education, and to reduce segregation. In this article, I examine the policy reforms in each country and analyse aggregated and disaggregated student placement data within each context to consider the impact of these reforms for different groups of students. Results show that the different reform journeys in each context produced different outcomes for students in each country, with segregation increasing in Australia and decreasing in the USA. The results also suggest that the impact of these policies has not been proportionate across categories as students on the Autism Spectrum are more likely to experience educational segregation or exclusion in both countries.

How creativity in education is applied by teachers to secondary school contexts is dependent on how the term 'creativity' is grounded, politicised, and practised. This paper reports on an international study of secondary schools in Australia, USA, Canada, and Singapore investigating how creativity is understood, negotiated, valued and manifested in secondary schools, focusing on teacher and student understandings, actions, benefits and impediments to creative and critical thinking. Participant reflections revealed inter-, trans- and cross-disciplinary learning shaped by teacher collaboration, dialogue and classroom organization that fosters critical and creative thinking. Implications are made for the ways practicing teachers develop and foster creativity via pedagogical approaches that enhance connectivity and interdisciplinarity of teaching practices between domains of learning. An education-based Creativity Index through which administrators and teachers can gauge, assess and implement creative skills, capacities, pedagogic practices and assessment of creativity within secondary schools is posited. Implications for STEM/STEAM education and centralizing creative capacities in teaching, learning, and educational change are offered.

Schools' administrators and teachers feel the necessity to apply creative education within their learning environments, despite grappling with understandings of what creativity is and how best teachers can foster it in their students. This qualitative international study spanning the USA, Canada, Singapore, and Australia investigates teachers' perceptions regarding creative pedagogies that enhance creativity. Analyzing teachers' reflections on classroom pedagogy and school practice, this study explores ways teachers nurture critical thinking that foster creative intelligences. This study identifies pedagogical practices involving dialogic scaffolding, inter-disciplinarity, and creative environments and school practices that promote learning and thinking "out-side the box" in secondary school learners. This article posits a creativity index through which schools can gauge and assess attributes to nurturing creativity.

As COVID-19 is rapidly unfolding in the United States, it is important to understand how individuals perceive the health and economic risks of the pandemic. In the absence of a readily available medical treatment, any strategy to contain the virus in the US will depend on the behavioral response of US residents. In this paper, we study individual's perceptions on COVID-19 and social distancing during the week of March 10–16, 2020, a week when COVID-19 was officially declared to be a pandemic by WHO and when new infections in the US were more than doubling every three days. Using a nationally representative sample of 5,414 respondents 18+ years of age from the Understanding America Study (UAS), we find that perceptions about COVID-19 health risks and economic consequences in the US population were largely pessimistic and highly variable by age and education. US residents who are young and do not have a college degree perceived a lower risk of getting infected but a higher probability of running out of money than others. Most individuals reported taking some steps to distance themselves from others but important differences emerge by gender and by source of information on COVID-19. Using state and day fixed-effect regressions, we show that perceptions of the health risks closely followed the number of COVID-19 cases in the country, and perceptions of the economic consequences and the prevalence of social distancing were driven upwards by both national and state-level cases. Unless addressed by effective health communication that reaches individuals across all social strata, variations in perceptions about COVID-19 epidemic raise concerns about the ability of the US to implement and sustain the widespread and restrictive policies that are required to curtail the pandemic. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Introduction: Perceptions of health risks inform decisions about protective behaviors, but COVID-19 was an unfamiliar risk as it began to spread across the U.S. In the initial stage of the epidemic, authors examined perceived risks for COVID-19 infection and infection fatality and whether these risk perceptions were associated with protective behaviors. They also examined whether findings differed between later versus earlier responders.Methods: Between March 10 and March 31, 2020, a cross-sectional online survey was conducted with a nationally representative U.S. sample (n=6,684). Half responded before March 13, 2020 (versus later). Participants assessed their risks of COVID-19 infection and infection fatality (0%-100%) which were transformed into quartiles (1-4). They reported their implementation of protective behaviors like handwashing and social distancing (yes/no). Analyses were conducted in April‒May 2020.Results: Median perceived risk was 10.00% for COVID-19 infection and 5.00% for infection fatality, but respondents showed large disagreement. An increase of 1 quartile in perceived infection risk was associated with being 1.45 times (95% CI=1.33, 1.58) more likely to report handwashing, with perceived infection fatality risk showing no significant association. When predicting social distancing behaviors such as avoiding crowds, both quartile-based risk perceptions were significant (OR=1.24, 95% CI=1.17, 1.30 for infection and OR=1.19, 95% CI=1.13, 1.26 for infection fatality). Perceived COVID-19 infection risk, protective behaviors, and their relationship increased among later (versus earlier) responders.Conclusions: Despite disagreements about the risks, people perceiving greater risks were more likely to implement protective behaviors-especially later (versus earlier) in March 2020. These findings have implications for risk communication. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Enteritis as the only manifestation of novel coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) in adolescents without features of multisystem inflammatory syndrome in children (MIS-C) or a prior history of inflammatory bowel disease (IBD) has not been described. We report two adolescent patients (a 14-year-old male and a 20-year-old pregnant female) presenting to tertiary-care centers in the United States with severe enteritis as the only manifestation of COVID-19 caused by severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) infection. The patients were hospitalized with acute abdominal pain and gastrointestinal (GI) bleeding, with no evidence of MIS-C, and were previously healthy with no history of IBD. The patients' nasopharyngeal swabs were positive for SARS-CoV-2 infection by reverse transcription polymerase chain reaction (RT-PCR), and testing for other infectious etiologies was negative. Both patients received intravenous corticosteroids and recovered without short-term complications. None of the patients died. This report highlights the need for keeping a high index of suspicion for SARS-CoV-2 infection in adolescents presenting solely with gastrointestinal manifestations, in the absence of respiratory symptoms or multisystem involvement, for prompt recognition and timely management. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Abstract: Background: Intensity of practice and task and context specificity are key factors for improving functional outcome in stroke survivors. Novel methods are needed to augment intensity of practice with minimal use of resources and costs. Caregiver‐mediated exercises (CMEs) focused on mobility, in which a caregiver acts as an exercise coach and can increase the intensity of practice. There is preliminary evidence that CME can improve functional outcome, reduce length of stay, and allow early supported discharge, without an increase in caregiver burden. In the CARE4STROKE programme (C4S), CME therapy and e‐health support are combined to promote a smoother transition from the inpatient setting to the home environment, with active rehabilitation continuing in the community. The objective of this paper is to describe the content of the C4S intervention in detail and explain implementation of this intervention in practice using the Template for Intervention Description and Replication checklist. Methods: Content, timing and intensity of the programme, participant screening and selection, and intervention procedures were described using the Template for Intervention Description and Replication checklist. Mobility exercises and use of a video application on tablet/smartphone are explained. The role of the caregiver as provider of the intervention is illustrated. Discussion: C4S prescribes an additional exercise dose of 1,200 min and may be a promising novel and effective method to augment the pallet of therapeutic options for stroke rehabilitation. Important aspects for successful implementation are availability and suitability of a caregiver. Suggestions for additional use of e‐health technology are described. Implications for physiotherapy practice: The presented description of C4S gives physical therapists practical guidelines to facilitate implementation of the CME intervention. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background: Dupilumab (an anti-interleukin-4-receptor-α monoclonal antibody) blocks signalling of interleukin 4 and interleukin 13, type 2/Th2 cytokines implicated in numerous allergic diseases ranging from asthma to atopic dermatitis. Previous 16-week monotherapy studies showed that dupilumab substantially improved signs and symptoms of moderate-to-severe atopic dermatitis with acceptable safety, validating the crucial role of interleukin 4 and interleukin 13 in atopic dermatitis pathogenesis. We aimed to evaluate the long-term efficacy and safety of dupilumab with medium-potency topical corticosteroids versus placebo with topical corticosteroids in adults with moderate-to-severe atopic dermatitis.Methods: In this 1-year, randomised, double-blinded, placebo-controlled, phase 3 study (LIBERTY AD CHRONOS), adults with moderate-to-severe atopic dermatitis and inadequate response to topical corticosteroids were enrolled at 161 hospitals, clinics, and academic institutions in 14 countries in Europe, Asia-Pacific, and North America. Patients were randomly assigned (3:1:3) to subcutaneous dupilumab 300 mg once weekly (qw), dupilumab 300 mg every 2 weeks (q2w), or placebo via a central interactive voice/web response system, stratified by severity and global region. All three groups were given concomitant topical corticosteroids with or without topical calcineurin inhibitors where inadvisable for topical corticosteroids. Topical corticosteroids could be tapered, stopped, or restarted on the basis of disease activity. Coprimary endpoints were patients (%) achieving Investigator's Global Assessment (IGA) 0/1 and 2-point or higher improvement from baseline, and Eczema Area and Severity Index 75% improvement from baseline (EASI-75) at week 16. Week 16 efficacy and week 52 safety analyses included all randomised patients; week 52 efficacy included patients who completed treatment by US regulatory submission cutoff. This study is registered with ClinicalTrials.gov, NCT02260986.Findings: Between Oct 3, 2014, and July 31, 2015, 740 patients were enrolled: 319 were randomly assigned to dupilumab qw plus topical corticosteroids, 106 to dupilumab q2w plus topical corticosteroids, and 315 to placebo plus topical corticosteroids. 623 (270, 89, and 264, respectively) were evaluable for week 52 efficacy. At week 16, more patients who received dupilumab plus topical corticosteroids achieved the coprimary endpoints of IGA 0/1 (39% [125 patients] who received dupilumab plus topical corticosteroids qw and 39% [41 patients] who received dupilumab q2w plus topical corticosteroids vs 12% [39 patients] who received placebo plus topical corticosteroids; p<0·0001) and EASI-75 (64% [204] and 69% [73] vs 23% [73]; p<0·0001). Week 52 results were similar. Adverse events were reported in 261 (83%) patients who received dupilumab qw plus topical corticosteroids, 97 (88%) patients who received dupilumab q2w, and 266 (84%) patients who received placebo, and serious adverse events in nine (3%), four (4%), and 16 (5%) patients, respectively. No significant dupilumab-induced laboratory abnormalities were noted. Injection-site reactions and conjunctivitis were more common in patients treated with dupilumab plus topical corticosteroids-treated patients than in patients treated with placebo plus topical corticosteroids.Interpretation: Dupilumab added to standard topical corticosteroid treatment for 1 year improved atopic dermatitis signs and symptoms, with acceptable safety.Funding: Sanofi and Regeneron Pharmaceuticals Inc. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Ethnic identity as a social dimension of identity is argued to be developmentally important for psychological well-being. However, the relationships between these constructs are mainly examined in Western contexts, amongst dominant-non-dominant groups. We investigate ethnic identity across the mainstream group of a prototypical Western society (the USA) and several multi-ethnic sub-Saharan African countries (Cameroon, Kenya, South Africa, and Zambia), as well as how it relates to psychological well-being. A total of 1255 university students (61.8% females, Mage = 20.94 years, SD = 2.97) completed a questionnaire with ethnic identity and psychological well-being measures. Results indicated that ethnic identity was most salient in two different South African ethnocultural samples and least salient in a mainstream US sample. These results suggest that groups that are more exposed to ethnic strain in multicultural societies tend to have more salient ethnic identities. Furthermore, the underlying structure in the ethnic identity psychological well-being relationship was similar across groups. Copyright © 2015 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Esteban Gonzalez Burchard and colleagues explore how making medical research more diverse would aid not only social justice but scientific quality and clinical effectiveness, too. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Crop production increase needed to satisfy a growing world population depends, at least partially, on increasing current genetic gain in yield. Theory proposes that increased genetic gain can be attained using diverse high-yielding parents. Physiological traits, compared to molecular or morphological markers, are hypothesized to better estimate parental diversity. A trait-based hybridization approach will require assessing diversity for physiological traits. Here, we phenotyped several traits using two physiological frameworks to assess diversity in 25 and 65 elite cultivars from Argentina (ARG) and the United States (USA), respectively. First, we identified the highest-yielding cultivar clusters across two environments in each country. These cultivars had the highest N uptake at both ARG and USA. Therefore, there was no genotypic diversity for total N uptake within each cluster. For other traits, the highest yielding clusters did not show the highest values. There was residual diversity within ARG and USA highest yielding clusters in the temporal pattern of N uptake, N use efficiency, and N harvest index. Stacking these traits in one cultivar could potentially increase yield by 13%. The possibility of such stacking, however, depends on the nature of the phenotypic correlation among traits. We demonstrated that several trade-off correlations between phenotyped traits, thought to hinder stacking, are actually not biologically based. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The article discusses the move of the Federal Reserve Bank of New York to collaborate with other institutions and academic consultants to develop a project to gather reliable information about inflation in the U.S. It highlights the importance of determining the inflation condition, which serves as an important factor in the household's decisions about spending and saving. An overview of the provisions of the Federal Reserve's Household Inflation Expectations Project is offered.

This article analyses the first series of both the original British and American remake of the sitcom The Office. We discuss how television format adaptations work through articulations of national identity, and suggest that the success of an adaptation may be linked to its ability to reflect and interpret its new context. Despite the global success of the sitcom genre there are clear differences in the situations, characters and humor used by British and American sitcoms which must be addressed by an adaptation. The way in which The Office has adapted to the institutional context, culture and humor of the United States, after its success as a British sitcom, illustrates that national identity is a vital part of the global television format trade. While it may appear that the growth of format adaptations reflects the increasingly globalized contemporary world, in fact, format adaptations encourage articulations of national identity and cultural belonging. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background: The Dizziness Handicap Inventory (DHI) is a validated, self-report questionnaire which is widely used as an outcome measure. Previous studies supported the multidimensionality of the DHI, but not the original subscale structure. The objectives of this survey were to explore the dimensions of the Dizziness Handicap Inventory - German version, and to investigate the associations of the retained factors with items assessing functional disability and the Hospital Anxiety and Depression Scale (HADS). Secondly we aimed to explore the retained factors according to the International Classification of Functioning, Disability and Health (ICF). Methods: Patients were recruited from a tertiary centre for vertigo, dizziness or balance disorders. They filled in two questionnaires: (1) The DHI assesses precipitating physical factors associated with dizziness/unsteadiness and functional/emotional consequences of symptoms. (2) The HADS assesses non-somatic symptoms of anxiety and depression. In addition, patients answered the third question of the University of California Los Angeles-Dizziness Questionnaire which covers the impact of dizziness and unsteadiness on everyday activities. Principal component analysis (PCA) was performed to explore the dimensions of the DHI. Associations were estimated by Spearman correlation coefficients. Results: One hundred ninety-four patients with dizziness or unsteadiness associated with a vestibular disorder, mean age (standard deviation) of 50.6 (13.6) years, participated. Based on eigenvalues greater one respectively the scree plot we analysed diverse factor solutions. The 3-factor solution seems to be reliable, clinically relevant and can partly be explained with the ICF. It explains 49.2% of the variance. Factor 1 comprises the effect of dizziness and unsteadiness on emotion and participation, factor 2 informs about specific activities or effort provoking dizziness and unsteadiness, and factor 3 focuses on self-perceived walking ability in relation to contextual factors. The first factor correlates moderately with disability and the HADS (values =0.6). The second factor is comparable with the original physical subscale of the DHI and factors retained in previous studies. Conclusions: The results of the present survey can not support the original subscale structure of the DHI. Therefore only the total scale should be used. We discuss a possible restructuring of the DHI. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background: Vancomycin resistant enterococcus (VRE) is a major cause of nosocomial infections in the United States and may be associated with greater morbidity, mortality, and healthcare costs than vancomycin-susceptible enterococcus. Current guidelines for the control of VRE include prudent use of vancomycin. While vancomycin exposure appears to be a risk factor for VRE acquisition in individual patients, the effect of vancomycin usage at the population level is not known. We conducted a systematic review to determine the impact of reducing vancomycin use through prescribing interventions on the prevalence and incidence of VRE colonization and infection in hospitals within the United States. Methods: To identify relevant studies, we searched three electronic databases, and hand searched selected journals. Thirteen studies from 12 articles met our inclusion criteria. Data were extracted and summarized for study setting, design, patient characteristics, types of intervention(s), and outcome measures. The relative risk, 95% confidence interval, and p-value associated with change in VRE acquisition pre- and post-vancomycin prescription interventions were calculated and compared. Heterogeneity in study results was formally explored by stratified analysis. Results: No randomized clinical trials on this topic were found. Each of the 13 included studies used a quasiexperimental design of low hierarchy. Seven of the 13 studies reported statistically significant reductions in VRE acquisition following interventions, three studies reported no significant change, and three studies reported increases in VRE acquisition, one of which reported statistical significance. Results ranged from a reduction of 82.5% to an increase of 475%. Studies of specific wards, which included sicker patients, were more likely to report positive results than studies of an entire hospital including general inpatients (Fisher's exact test 0.029). The type of intervention, endemicity status, type of study design, and the duration of intervention were not found to significantly modify the results. Among the six studies that implemented vancomycin reduction strategies as the sole intervention, two of six (33%) found a significant reduction in VRE colonization and/or infection. In contrast, among studies implementing additional VRE control measures, five of seven (71%) reported a significant reduction. Conclusion: It was not possible to conclusively determine a potential role for vancomycin usage reductions in controlling VRE colonization and infection in hospitals in the United States. The effectiveness of such interventions and their sustainability remains poorly defined because of the heterogeneity and quality of studies. Future research using highquality study designs and implementing vancomycin as the sole intervention are needed to answer this question. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This article previews the September, 2006 issue of "Entrepreneurship: Theory & Practice." The issue focuses on the topic of women's entrepreneurship, noting that thirty percent of all privately held firms in the U.S. are principally owned by women, controlling $1.2 trillion in revenue. The trend of women's entrepreneurship is even greater internationally, especially in countries such as Canada, Denmark, and New Zealand. The issue focuses on social perceptions of women entrepreneurs, building the female entrepreneurship community, and a discussion of research related to women-owned businesses.

The present study reports the expectations reported by teen respondents to the 1997 National Longitudinal Study of Youth (NLSY97) regarding 18 significant life events. The questions included in the study were formulated in order to allow comparison of answers with public health statistics. The set of questions was designed to evaluate the usage of the probability response mode of teens as well. The overall NLSY 97 question pool reflects the work of many investigators, specialists in the topics of the modules of NLSY 97 and was designed to be representative of the U.S. population with black and Hispanic youth being oversampled. These expectation questions were administered to a total of 3,544 adolescents born in 1980 and 1981, using computers brought into each respondents' homes. Its questions were refined through one-on-one focused interviews with a diverse group of teenagers living in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania where according to self-reports, 50.4 percent were male; mean age 15.8; 34.2 percent currently employed; 94.9 percent currently enrolled in school (mean grade 9.9; 90.2 percent in public school); 98.4 percent never married; 98.8 percent living with parent or guardian; 74.3 percent living in a house (13.5 percent in an apartment, 6.2 percent in a trailer, 5.1 percent in a townhouse or condo); 49.0 percent white, 26.7 percent black or African-American, 20.8 percent Hispanic, and 3.5 percent other. All item response rates were above 97 percent.

To understand novel diseases, patients may draw comparisons to other diseases. We examined whether mentally associating specific diseases with COVID-19 was related to self-reported protective behaviors early in the pandemic. In March 2020, a national sample of 6534 U.S. adults listed diseases that came to mind when thinking of COVID-19. They self-reported protective behaviors, demographics, and COVID-19 risk perceptions. Participants associated COVID-19 with common infectious diseases like seasonal influenza (59%), common cold (11%), and pneumonia (10%), or emergent infectious diseases like pandemic influenza (28%), SARS/MERS (27%), and Ebola (14%). Seasonal influenza was most commonly mentioned, in all demographic groups. Participants mentioning seasonal influenza or common cold reported fewer protective behaviors. Those mentioning pneumonia or emergent infectious diseases reported more protective behaviors. Mentioning pneumonia, SARS/MERS, and Ebola was associated with the most protective behaviors, after accounting for other generated diseases, demographics, and risk perceptions (e.g., for avoiding crowds, OR = 1.52, 95% CI = 1.26, 1.83; OR = 1.28, 95% CI = 1.13, 1.46; OR = 1.30, 95% CI = 1.11, 1.52, respectively). Early in the pandemic, most participants mentally associated COVID-19 with seasonal flu, which may have undermined willingness to protect themselves. To motivate behavior change, COVID-19 risk communications may need to mention diseases that resonate with people while retaining accuracy. • To understand a new disease, patients may draw comparisons to known diseases. • We asked US participants which diseases came to mind when thinking of COVID-19. • Seasonal influenza was most commonly mentioned, across demographic groups. • Pneumonia and emergent diseases (SARS, pandemic influenza) were also listed. • Which diseases came to mind was associated with reported protective behaviors. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Decision making is rarely taught in high school, even though improved decision skills could benefit young people facing life-shaping decisions. While decision competence has been shown to correlate with better life outcomes, few interventions designed to improve decision skills have been evaluated with rigorous quantitative measures. A randomized study showed that integrating decision making into U.S. history instruction improved students' history knowledge and decision-making competence, compared to traditional history instruction. Thus, integrating decision training enhanced academic performance and improved an important, general life skill associated with improved life outcomes. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The article discusses the concept of the focused factory model. Authors highlight that the focused factory model combines one of the key generic strategies and the ideas and concepts from manufacturing. The genesis of this model has its roots in trying to restore the competitive edge for manufacturing in the U.S. They assert that this model has much benefit for healthcare and, by applying such a model to the structuring of healthcare facilities, they can realize the benefits of this model that have been experienced in manufacturing.

Prolongation of the QT interval can predispose to fatal ventricular arrhythmias. Differences in QT-labeling language can result in miscommunication and suboptimal risk mitigation. We systematically compared the phraseology used to communicate on QT-prolonging properties of 144 drugs newly approved (1st January 2006 to 1st June 2012) in the European Union (EU) and the United States (US), of which 66 mentioned the term ‘QT’ (two EU only, 28 US only, 36 both). The agreement between authorities about the message on QT prolongation (does not prolong, unclear, possibly prolongs, prolongs) was moderate (kappa 0.434). However, the agreement in expected clinical decisions based on the product labels was much higher (kappa 0.673). The US drug label tends to be more explicit, especially when it considers absence of QT effects. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Abstract: Lighting accounts for nearly 20% of overall U.S. electricity consumption and 18% of U.S. residential electricity consumption. A transition to alternative energy-efficient technologies could reduce this energy consumption considerably. To quantify the influence of factors that drive consumer choices for light bulbs, we conducted a choice-based conjoint field experiment with 183 participants. We estimated discrete choice models from the data, and found that politically liberal consumers have a stronger preference for compact fluorescent lighting technology and for low energy consumption. Greater willingness to pay for lower energy consumption and longer life was observed in conditions where estimated operating cost information was provided. Providing estimated annual cost information to consumers reduced their implicit discount rate by a factor of five, lowering barriers to adoption of energy efficient alternatives with higher up-front costs; however, even with cost information provided, consumers continued to use implicit discount rates of around 100%, which is larger than that experienced for other energy technologies. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]