Goal Length (Short or Long Term) Interacts with Goal Scheduling Strategy (Clock Time or Event Time) for Optimal Achievement.

There are two strategies for scheduling personal goals: (i) clock-time, based on time passage; and (ii) event-time, based on the progress made. Neither strategy is always superior to the other; rather it is necessary to consider the environment and other conditions such as whether the goal is long or short term. We focused on goal lengthas an important factor for determining the best scheduling strategy, hypothesizing that clock-time and event-time strategies would differentially activate higher performance for long-term and short-term goals, respectively. Thus, we conducted a two-part laboratory experiment (Part 1: n = 63, Part 2: n = 86 ) in which we manipulated both goal length and scheduling strategy. Subsequently, we examined the effects of each combination of goal length and scheduling strategy on task performance (i.e., completion of a mathematical problem). Although our two studies were designed identically in most respects, they differed in the number of task problems, task time limits, and question content. Our data supported our hypothesis that clock-time scheduling was optimal for long-term goals while event-time scheduling was optimal for short-term goals.

Can Regulatory Fit Improve Elementary School Students' Performance? Effects of Different Types of Regulatory Fit.

Previous studies have demonstrated the effect of regulatory fit on Japanese elementary school students (aged 9-12 years). The hypotheses were that promotion focused students tend to show good performance related to speed when they use an eager manner; on the other hand, prevention focused students tend to show good performance related to accuracy when they use a vigilant manner. In Study 1, the class teacher assessed their student's regulatory focus and then manipulated the students' manner of solving a calculation task by asking the students to engage speedily so that they solve many tasks in eager manner condition, or accurately so that they can avoid making errors in the vigilant manner condition. The results indicated that students with a promotion focus tended to solve more tasks in the eager manner condition. In addition, the same result was replicated in Study 2. These combined results suggest that regulatory fit is experienced not only by adults but also by young children. Moreover, the influence of regulatory fit depended on the type of regulatory fit. It is suggested that regulatory fit theory could be applied to educational settings to efficiently enhance the performance of students.

Revaporization Behavior of Cesium and Iodine Compounds from Their Deposits in the Steam-Boron Atmosphere.

This paper presents our investigation on cesium and iodine revaporization from cesium iodide (CsI) deposits on stainless steel type 304L, which were initiated by boron and/or steam flow. A dedicated basic experimental facility with a thermal gradient tube (TGT) having a temperature range of 1000-400 K was used for simulating the phenomena. In the absence of boron, it was found that the initially deposited CsI at 850 K could be revaporized as CsI vapor/aerosol or reacted with the carrier gas and stainless steel (Cr2O3 layer) to form Cs2CrO4. The latter mechanism consequently released gaseous iodine that was later accumulated downstream. After introducing boron to the steam flow, a severe revaporization occurred. This, in addition to the revaporized CsI vapor/aerosol, was caused by cesium borate (Cs2B4O7 and CsB5O8) formation, which then largely released gaseous iodine that was capable of reaching the TGT outlet (<400 K). In the case of a nuclear severe accident, our study has demonstrated that an increase of gaseous iodine in the colder region of a reactor could occur after late release of boron or a subsequent steam flow after refloods of the reactor, thus posing its inherent risk once leaked to the environment.