Severe gross and microscopic lesions and other changes were found in adult aquatic birds and in embryos from Kesterson Reservoir (a portion of Kesterson National Wildlife Refuge), Merced County, Calif., during 1984. Adult birds from that area were emaciated, had subacute to extensive chronic hepatic lesions, and had excess fluid and fibrin in the peritoneal cavity. Biochemical changes in their livers included elevated glycogen and non-protein-bound sulfhydryl concentrations and glutathione peroxidase activity but lowered protein, total sulfhydryl, and protein-bound sulfhydryl concentrations. Congenital malformations observed grossly in embryos were often multiple and included anophthalmia, microphthalmia, abnormal beaks, amelia, micromelia, ectrodactyly, and hydrocephaly. Mean concentrations of selenium in livers (94.4 ppm, dry weight) and kidneys (96.6 ppm) of birds collected at the Kesterson ponds were about 10 times those found at a nearby control area (8.3 and 12.2 ppm). We conclude that selenium present in the agricultural drainage water supplied to the Kesterson ponds accumulated in the food chain of aquatic birds to toxic concentrations and caused the lesion and other changes observed.

A broader definition of social validity is proposed wherein a socially valid behavior-change intervention is directed to a problem of verifiable importance, the intervention is valued and used appropriately by designated target groups, and the intervention as used has sufficient behavioral impact to substantially reduce the probability of the problem's occurrence in target populations. The verifiable importance of a problem is based on epidemiological data, and the value and appropriate use of an intervention are enhanced through the use of conceptual frameworks for social marketing and behavior change and considerable formative and pilot research. Behavioral impact is assessed through efficacy and effectiveness studies. Thus, the social validity of a behavior-change intervention is established through a number of interactive, a priori steps. This approach to defining social validity is related to critical analysis and intervention issues including individual and population perspectives and "top-down" and "bottom-up" approaches to intervention design. This broader definition of social validity is illustrated by a project to reduce the risk of HIV infection among adolescents. Although the various steps involved in creating socially valid interventions can be complicated, time-consuming, and ratings are the ones more likely to be purposely disseminated and adopted. Interventions with dear evidence ofbehavioral outcome, but with low social validity, may be purposely disseminated but will have a lower probability of being adopted (Stolz, 1981). The last point indicates that social validity is directly related to such broader areas as the dissemination of innovations (Rogers, 1983) and appropriate community technologies (Fawcett, Seekins, Whang, & Muiu, 1984).The early exposition of social validity (Wolf, 1978) was apparently presented as a resolution of the conffict between objective behavioral measures of outcome and more subjective post hoc measures of value, importance, and utility by consumers. It was decided that post hoc subjective consumer measures can be an admissible part of behavior-analytic work because these measures are necessary to refine and validate interventions. This discussion offers a broader perspective of social validity. From our perspective, social validity should be a process using epidemiological data and a series of interactive a priori steps, induding frequent contact with potential users of an intervention and the application of both objective and subjective measures. Thus, we 215 19911 249, [215][216][217][218][219][220][221][222][223][224][225][226][227][228][229][230] NumBER 2 (summER 1991) RICHARD A. WINETT et al. have prepared this discussion artide to (a) broaden the boundaries of social validity, (b) articulate measures and processes involved in assessing social validity, and (c) provide examples of the interactive steps involved in designing, refining, and evaluating a socially valid intervention program. DEFINMION AND BouNDARIEsA socially valid behavior-change intervention ...

No abstract

No abstract