Dissertations / Theses on the topic 'Developmental health'

Inappropriate parental expectations of age-appropriate behaviors and unawareness of developmental milestones can increase instances of child maltreatment. Additionally, experiences of child maltreatment can have a negative impact on the developmental trajectory of a child. The present research describes a parental aide, the tDevelop, delivered to parents at risk for child maltreatment through SafeCare Parent-Child Interaction (PCI) training with the aim of increasing identification of developmental milestones and age-appropriate activities. Two high-risk families with children close to 24-months of age were recruited from a residential program for young mothers working to develop self-sufficiency skills. The families were presented with the tDevelop along with traditional PCI information, including Planned Activities Training and age-appropriate activities. Data from a multiple-probe, single-case experimental design, suggest that mothers are able to recognize developmental milestones with increased accuracy upon intervention with the tDevelop. These findings suggest that the enhanced PCI protocol may enhance parental identification of developmental milestones.

Little is known about the effectiveness of non-stigmatizing mental health interventions aimed at reducing or preventing the harmful impact of armed conflict on children, and how war affects the mental health of both non-resettled and resettled minors. This thesis presents, through a literature review, what is known about school-based interventions for minors living in war-exposed countries. Second, it investigates by an empirical study, how exposure to trauma is associated with increased risk for psychological symptoms in recently arrived migrant adolescents to Canada. Existing evidence for school-based programs as a means to reduce distress is promising. In general, recently resettled migrant youth may not be at risk. However, exposure to pre-migratory trauma predicts more emotional problems. Assessing how exposure to adverse events in the pre-migratory phase may be related to psychological adjustment immediately following resettlement may identify the needs of recently arrived migrant children and inform the design of school-based programmes.
Peu est connu sur l'efficacité de la non-stigmatisation des interventions de santé mentale visant à réduire ou prévenir les effets néfastes des conflits armés sur les enfants, et comment la guerre affecte la santé mentale des mineurs non-réinstallés et réinstallés. L'objectif de cette thèse est, dans un premier temps, d'établir au travers d'une étude bibliographique, les données existantes concernant les programmes de prévention en milieu scolaire pour les mineurs vivant dans des zones de conflit. Dans un deuxième temps, une étude empirique viendra analyser les répercussions de l'expérience du traumatisme quant à l'apparition de troubles psychologiques sur les adolescents migrants récemment arrivés au Canada. La littérature existante met en exergue le caractère prometteur des programmes de prévention en milieu scolaire, en montrant, que dans bien des cas, ils constituent un élément d'apaisement. De manière générale, les jeunes migrants nouvellement établis ne forment pas une population à risque. Cependant, le fait d'être confronté à un traumatisme prédispose à davantage de problèmes émotionnels. Déterminer la manière dont l'exposition à des événements éprouvants, dans la phase précédant la migration, peut engendrer des ajustements psychologiques immédiatement après l'installation, pourrait permettre d'identifier les besoins des enfants migrants nouvellement arrivés. Cela permettrait également de développer des programmes appropriés au milieu scolaire.

For the last 100 years, poor motor coordination in children has been recognized as a developmental problem. As early as 1937, these children were classified as “clumsy.” Since then, other terms such as “motorically awkward,” “motor impaired,” and “physically awkward” have been used to describe these children, and the terms “developmental apraxia” and “perceptual motor difficulties” have been used to characterize this developmental problem. Since the 1994 International Consensus Conference on Children and Clumsiness, the term “developmental coordination disorder” (DCD) has been used to describe the condition of children with motor incoordination.

A developmental-contextual approach to understanding sexuality education course content is used in this national study. Examining policy as a factor that may influence young people's environments and hence their development is an important role for developmental research. Using data from the CDC's School Health Policies and Programs Study (SHPPS) 2000 and the Alan Guttmacher Institute's State Policies in Brief Report (Alan Guttmacher Institute, 2001), three general topic areas are addressed. First, can school level be differentiated by the sexuality education topics taught at various school levels? Second, are there significant differences in state policies that regulate school-based sexuality education targeting different school levels? Third, how do state and classroom level variables contribute to variance in the likelihood of a given topic being taught as part of school health education? The two sources of data provide a nationally representative sample of 1,201 teachers and state level data from Department of Education administrators and policies from all 50 states. These data were analyzed using stepwise discriminant analysis and Hierarchical Linear Modeling (HLM). This study resulted in three primary findings. First, both state policies and classroom content were significantly different by school level. Second, state policy was not a good predictor of the course content being taught in the classroom. Third, teachers' desires for additional training significantly predicted the sexuality education course content taught in schools. Implications for both research and practice were discussed.

Pancreatic cancer is considered the fifth leading cause of cancer deaths in Canada and one of the most fatal diseases in the world. Its definite underlying cause is still unidentified, and its actual cell of origin remains unclear. Unfortunately, most of the current research on the pancreas is focused on one disease only, namely diabetes with much less consideration for other pancreatic diseases. Diabetes has been extensively studied from a developmental aspect, and continues to attract the interest of numerous researchers. On the contrary, few accomplishments have been done to decode the developmental errors occurring in pancreatic cancer. It is therefore necessary to allocate more research resources to address this disease from a developmental aspect.
This study provides a literature review of the pancreas concerning its anatomy and function, transcription factors and signaling pathways controlling its development, and the role of these signaling pathways in pancreatic cancer. The review provides distinct emphasis on three important aspects. First, a review of pancreas development is provided, with a focus on different transcription factors and signaling pathways involved in this process. Second, it addresses how the signaling pathways which play a role in pancreas development are the same signaling pathways that play a role in pancreatic cancer, additional emphasis is placed on describing the genetic alterations occurring in pancreatic cancer. Third, a methodology of approaching pancreatic cancer research from a developmental aspect is presented. Using an example of one gene, Anterior gradient 2 (Agr2), is highly expressed in pancreatic cancer in ductal cells only, and might play a role in ductal cell development of the pancreas. Thus, the main objective of this review is to provide a developmental framework for the analysis of pancreatic cancer.

The effect of the menstrual cycle on energy intake and the dieting habits of adolescents was examined retrospectively for three years in 64 eighth and ninth grade girls. Dieting episodes were found to be evenly distributed across the five menstrual phases with no greater proportion of dieting occurring during the follicular phase. Media, peers, family members, and social pressures have a larger impact on adolescent dieting behaviors as opposed to the menstrual cycle. Comparisons of energy intake between the pre- and postovulatory phases revealed no significant differences in any year. Fifty to eighty percent of the girls' cycles may have been anovulatory the first two years of the study. Variations in energy intake are not observed in anovulatory cycles due to low ovarian hormone levels. Changes in food consumption that correspond to menstrual phases may be observed in girls who are six years or more beyond menarche, when cycles are predominantly ovulatory.

Thesis (Ph.D.)--Indiana University, Dept. of Health Behaviour and the School of Health, Physical Education and Recreation, 2005.
Source: Dissertation Abstracts International, Volume: 66-06, Section: B, page: 3090. Chair: Mohammad R. Torabi. "Title from dissertation home page (viewed Dec. 4, 2006)."

Background: Early identification and intervention for infants and young children with developmental delays may negate or minimise the negative effect of a disability on a child's development. Poor follow-up on early detection referrals, however, undermines the effectiveness of early intervention programmes. Objectives: To identify factors, including text message reminders, that influence follow-up adherence for early intervention after developmental screening in primary health care. A secondary objective surveyed reasons for follow-up default. Methods: The PEDS Tools was used to screen 247 high-risk children. A risk assessment questionnaire was completed with caregivers whose children were referred for speech-language and/or occupational therapy (n=106, 43%). A quasi-experimental study was employed to identify risk factors for defaulting on appointments. A thematic analysis of telephonic interviews was also employed to determine reasons for follow-up defaults. Results: Follow-up adherence was 17%. Participants who were divorced, widowed or never married were 2.88 times more likely to attend a follow-up appointment than those who were married or living together (95%, CI 0.97- 8.63). Text message reminders did not significantly improve follow-up. More than half (58%) of participants who defaulted on appointments could be reached for telephonic interviews. During the telephonic interviews 87% of participants did not report concern about their child's development. Reasons for defaulting were employment, logistical issues, other responsibilities and forgetfulness. Conclusions: Detecting possible developmental delays did not lead to acceptable follow-up adherence for early intervention services at primary health care levels. Increased awareness and education regarding the importance of development for educational success is needed.
Dissertation (M Communication Pathology)--University of Pretoria, 2016.
Speech-Language Pathology and Audiology
MCommunication Pathology
Unrestricted

The history of health care for people with intellectual and developmental disability (IDD) shares simularities with the general population, but is compoed of inequalities, a lack of access, poorer quality, and higher costs. This chapter will explore this history through a discussion of major issues.

This research explores the cultural, sociopolitical, biological, and psychological aspects of spanking. Utilizing a hermeneutic methodology, it reviews the language used around spanking, such as abuse, trauma, violence, corporal punishment, maltreatment, adverse childhood experiences, interpersonal victimization, and discipline; its history in indigenous and post-Columbian America; and empirical findings about its effects on mental health. It concludes with suggestions as to how to use this information clinically, noting perspectives on treating intergenerational transmission of trauma and the ethical duties of mental health practitioners to advocate against abuse.

While much of the attention focused on college alcohol use has been on the prevalence of heavy drinking and alcohol-related physical and behavioral harm, little is known about individual drinkers' experiences with alcohol, that is, their fluctuations in alcohol consumption and consequences over time. The present study used an intensive repeated measures within-person design to explore the extent to which intraindividual variation in the experience of alcohol-related consequences was a function of frequency of intoxication and the role alcohol expectancies played in those relationships. Across 10 consecutive weeks in one semester, 200 first-year college students completed weekly telephone interviews. Testing hypotheses based on harm reduction principles, hierarchical linear models were used to examine: (1) whether the concept of the point of diminished returns applied to first-year college students' alcohol use, and (2) whether there was an expectancy effect in the relationship between frequency of intoxication and the experience of alcohol-related consequences. Within-person (Level 1) analyses examined whether students' reports of heavy alcohol use were associated with a differential likelihood of experiencing positive and negative consequences compared to when moderate amounts of alcohol were consumed. Between-person (Level 2) analyses examined the extent to which within-person co-variation between alcohol use and consequences was moderated by alcohol expectancies. The results supported the general hypothesis of harm reduction, that negative consequences were minimized with low to moderate amounts of alcohol consumption. In contrast, positive consequences increased with more days of intoxication, not supporting the concept of the point of diminished returns in this population. Finally, an expectancy effect was found for moderate drinking weeks, but not for intoxicated drinking weeks. Students who felt it was more important to experience positive and to avoid experiencing negative consequences reported more positive and fewer negative consequences on weeks of moderate drinking. Discussion focuses on implications for harm reduction in general and programming targeted for the college population.

Short-term memory function and learning in children with Fetal Alcohol Syndrome/Effects (FAS/E) was examined. Participants included twenty school-aged children diagnosed with either Fetal Alcohol Syndrome or Fetal Alcohol Effects (mean age = 11.13 years) and twenty normal controls (mean age = 11.11 years) matched on age and gender, all of which were Native American and lived on a rural reservation. All participants completed nine core subtests of the Wide Range Assessment of Memory and Learning. Results indicated that children with FAS/E performed significantly more poorly than controls on eight of the nine memory measures, including Number/Letter Memory, Sentence Memory, Story Memory, Finger Windows, Design Memory, Verbal Learning, Visual Learning, and Sound-Symbol. No statistically significant group differences were found on Picture Memory. Subsequent discriminant function analyses revealed that scores on the WRAML subtest provided useful discriminating information for children with FAS/E and controls. Scores on Story Memory, Design Memory, and Number/Letter Memory most strongly discriminated between groups. Implications of these results are discussed and recommendations for further research are provided.

Monitoring bodies in the District of Columbia articulated that people diagnosed with an intellectual and developmental disability (IDD) who reside in community-based group home settings are vulnerable to safety issues, poor quality of care from registered nursing services, and poor oversight. Those monitors have identified the lack of knowledge of roles and responsibilities among registered nurses (RNs) in these settings as a significant risk factor. The District of Columbia Developmental Disabilities Administration (DDA) has no formal orientation or training for RNs that encompasses the multifaceted needs of people diagnosed with IDD. This capstone project aimed to identify the effectiveness of an educational intervention and the effect of continuing education on RNs' perception of their practice in the field of IDD. After review of current literature, an educational presentation addressing all facets of entry-level registered nursing was developed. The presentation focused on the fundamentals of IDD nursing. A group of RNs working in the District of Columbia IDD community participated in an all-day educational program and completed a pre- and posttest evaluation to measure their knowledge prior to the intervention and their knowledge gain immediately after the intervention. A standard five-point Likert scale survey was delivered on the third and sixth months after educational intervention (EI). The survey asked the participants to rate the impact of the EI at three and six months post intervention to measure their perceived confidence level and actual practice changes. Eighty-seven percent of the RNs that participated in the EI and responded to the questionnaire reported that their role as an IDD nurse had changed because of participating in this training, and 93.8% reported that they would recommend this training to other RNs entering or working in this subspecialty.

In a previous prospective study from our laboratory, the prognostic significance of the auditory brainstem evoked response (ABR) was assessed in high risk neonates. An abnormal ABR predicted neurologic sequelae at 1 year; however there were false negatives. In this study, somatosensory evoked responses (SER) were performed together with the ABR so that a wider distribution of the nervous system could be evaluated. Testing was carried out on healthy and high risk neonates in the newborn period and in infancy. Infants were subsequently evaluated in a blind fashion at 1 year of age by a pediatric neurologist and psychologist. As part of this study, normative data and reliable testing procedures needed to be established. The effect of gestational age on evoked responses performed in the newborn period was also determined.
The results demonstrated that the ABR and SER can be reliably recorded in newborns. Latency and morphological changes on serial testing reflected maturation of the nervous system. Chi square analysis revealed that an abnormal SER or ABR predicted neuromotor impairment at 1 year of age. The type of SER abnormality further delineated the degree of disability. A normal SER and ABR predicted normal neurodevelopmental outcome. In conclusion, multi-modality evoked response testing yielded valuable prognostic information for the newborn at high risk for neurologic sequelae.

An increasing body of research has sought to determine the impact of Disorders of Sex Development (DSD) on the family of the affected child. Little is currently understood about the support needs of the family and how well these needs are met. With a focus on mothers as primary caregivers, Interpretive Phenomenological Analysis was used to analyse semi-structured interviews with eight mothers of children with DSD about their experiences of support. Four master themes emerged which encapsulated the stages in their child’s development when mothers most needed support, the importance of developing an understanding of the child’s condition, the lack of an acknowledgement of the emotional needs of the parent, and the importance of having close and trusted networks for support. Continuity and availability of support were considered important and while all participants prioritised maintaining privacy about the condition, a minority felt that this impacted on the level of support they received. Key periods of time for support were identified and while some felt that they were well supported others felt that their support did not meet their emotional needs. The results were discussed in light of previous research, and the clinical implications considered.

Thesis (Ph.D.)--Indiana University, School of Health, Physical Education and Recreation, 2007.
Source: Dissertation Abstracts International, Volume: 68-10, Section: A, page: 4218. Adviser: Mohammad R. Torabi. Title from dissertation home page (viewed May 20, 2008).

Despite the rapidly expanding body of literature relating to electronic nicotine delivery system (ENDS) use, notable gaps in the available literature are apparent. Many different models and types of ENDS are available, such as electronic cigarettes, electronic hookahs, and newer-generation ENDS devices (vapes/mods). Yet, the scientific community has been slow to identify and investigate different ENDS products other than “e-cigarettes.” The current project serves to bring a level of specificity to ENDS research that has not yet been seen in the published literature. The current study used a multi-site, cross-sectional, experimental design to test 1) whether endorsement of ENDS usage is affected by the language used in measurement, and 2) whether the perceived risk associated with ENDS differs by product type. Lifetime ENDS use was significantly affected by the specific terms used in measurement within a sample of 546 undergraduate students. When presented with response options for multiple ENDS types, lifetime use was 17% greater than when asking about e-cigarettes alone. Significant perceptual differences between ENDS devices were apparent. E-hookahs and vapes/mods were seen as significantly less harmful to use during pregnancy, less harmful to one’s health, and less addictive than either cigalike e-cigarettes or conventional tobacco cigarettes. Together, these findings suggest using generic, single-item measures that only ask about e-cigarettes are problematic.

The purpose of this research was to explore and describe the relationships among four concepts within a proposed nursing theory. The research questions which directed the research focus on the relationships among the concepts self-satisfaction, affirmatory communication, pregnancy timing synchrony and physical symptoms in pregnancy; and the combination of variables that best explain self-satisfaction experienced among pregnant women. A descriptive-correlational design was used to address the research questions. Purposive sampling was used to obtain a sample of 210 women who attended prenatal education classes in a Southwestern urban area. The instruments used to measure self-satisfaction in this research were: Index of Well-Being, Self-Esteem Scale," Myself as Mother-SR. Affirmatory communication was measured by the Affirmatory Communication in Pregnancy Instrument and the Personal Resources Questionnaire. Pregnancy timing synchrony was measured by the Pregnancy Timing Instrument. Physical symptomotology was measured by the Physical Symptoms Checklist-SE. Acceptable levels of reliability and validity were obtained for the instruments. The relationships were explored using correlational analysis, canonical correlation, multiple regression, and residual analysis. Positive correlations were found between affirmatory communication (measured with two variables), pregnancy timing synchrony and self-satisfaction. Negative relationships were identified between physical symptoms and self-satisfaction. The canonical correlation between the combined self-satisfaction measures and the combined pregnancy-related experiences measures yielded an Rc of.71 (Rc2 =.50). The largest predictors of self-satisfaction were affirmatory communication and pregnancy timing. Similar, but not parallel results were found when each measure of self-satisfaction was individually utilized as a criterion measure in multiple regression equations. The results indicate that childbearing experiences can be assessed from a life-span developmental perspective which includes an emphasis on developmentally relevant psychological and physical aspects of the pregnancy experience. Although in its infancy, the mid-level theory used to guide this research demonstrates relevance for gaining an understanding about factors that enhance self-satisfaction during pregnancy.

Paracetamol is a widely used non-prescription analgesic and antipyretic. Despite its wide usage, the mechanism of action of paracetamol is not fully known. It has been found that paracetamol interacts with the central cyclooxygenase system which is likely responsible for its antipyreticeffect whereas the analgesic effect of paracetamol mainly depends on cannabinoid receptor type 1 activation. Paracetamol is considered the first choice for treatment of pain and/or fever during pregnancy and can reach the developing brain following consumption since it crosses both blood-brain and placental barriers. However, increasing evidence from both animal and human studies show that developmental paracetamol exposure is associated with adverse behavioural outcomes later in life. Nonetheless, the mechanism behind paracetamol neurotoxicity is still unknown. The main aim of this study was to investigate whether adult mice neonatally exposed to paracetamol during a critical period of brain development known as brain growth spurt havealtered expression of biomarkers important for brain development. Mice were exposed to either paracetamol (30 + 30 mg / kg, 4-hour interval) or saline on postnatal day 10. The mice's brains were then dissected out when they were two months old. In this study, the brains were cryosectioned and examined by immunohistochemistry. This study shows that there is no significant difference in the protein levels of synaptophysin (SYP), a marker for synaptic density, in Cornu Ammonis subfield 3 (also known as CA3), Cornu Ammonis subfield 1 (also known as CA1), and dentate gyrus (DG) regions of adult hippocampus between paracetamol treated mice and controls. These findings suggest that previously observed adult behavioural changes after neonatal exposure to paracetamol may have other origins than effects on synaptic density using SYP marker. Further research on possible mechanisms behind paracetamol-induced adverse developmental effects is needed.

Background: Maternal stress during utero has been shown to have negative health consequences on the offspring, including low birth weight and increased risk of adult disease. Variation in breastmilk may act as an environmental cue of maternal stress and continue to program the infant during early life. This research aimed to explore the role of breastmilk on developmental programming of the infant. Specifically, to examine how breastmilk may act as a medium for the exposure of stress between the mother and the offspring, and see if variation in insulin like growth factor-1 (IGF-1) a potential mechanism for the relationship. Methods: Survey-interviews, anthropometrics of the mother and offspring (height and weight), and breastmilk samples were collected for 31 breastfeeding mother-offspring pairs in the Tampa Bay area. Breastmilk was analyzed for IGF-1 and fat content. Maternal stress was measured through the PSS-10 and two self-reported ten-point stress scales. Offspring length for age and weight for age Z-scores were calculated using LMS equation. Results: PPS-10 score was negatively correlated with child length for age and weight for age Z-scores. Child length for age and weight for age Z-scores were also negatively correlated with the breastmilk fat variables (creamatocrit percent, fat g/dL, and kcal/dL). No relationships were found between breastmilk IGF-1 and offspring length for age, weight for age, or maternal stress. Conclusions: Results indicate that maternal stress may negatively impact offspring growth. However, more research is necessary to better understand if or how breastmilk fat may act as a mechanism to mediate offspring growth due to maternal stress. This sample had low levels and prevalence of detectable IGF-1, which likely contributed to the lack of statistical relationships. Further research using lower dilutions and larger samples sizes is necessary to better explore the potential role of breastmilk IGF-1 on offspring growth and/or its relationship to maternal stress.

This research explores the therapeutic characteristics of the art‟s sensory properties in art therapy treatment for children with developmental trauma. The researcher used interview as a method for gathering data in the qualitative research design. Two art therapists were interviewed individually in order to gain a deeper understanding about the research topic. The participants were selected based on their knowledge and practice utilizing art therapy in cases related to developmental trauma. The data gathered were coded and analyzed for emergent findings. The researcher finds that sensory-based art therapy facilitates regulation of affect and behavior, attachment repair, and the potential to process trauma memory through regression in the art. Also, the therapist‟s role as a witness for the client and a provider of a safe holding space is found to be a crucial component in sensory-based art therapy. These findings suggest implications for clinical practice and the careful construction of sensory-based art therapy according to the client‟s developmental age. Regression stimulated by loose art media may be a key component of trauma treatment. In order to regulate a child‟s affect and behavior, the art material and its quantity must be carefully selected based on its inherent sensory properties. Containment and attachment repair as the overarching goals of the art therapy treatment may also influence the selection of which art materials may be utilized. The researcher recommends a broader research study to explore treatment implications concerning sensory-based art interventions for children with developmental trauma.

Every year approximately 17,000 adolescents ages 15-19 become pregnant in New York City. Most of these pregnancies are unintended and only a small percent of adolescents use effective contraception, with wide disparities by race/ethnicity and poverty level. While many studies have identified factors associated with contraceptive use, most research has focused on individual level factors, with little attention to the contribution of the school environment to sexual risk behavior and contraceptive use. This study investigates the effect of school-level factors on contraceptive use among adolescents in NYC public high schools before and after controlling for individual-level factors, and whether this effect varies with race/ethnicity. Using a cross-sectional design, the NYC Youth Risk Behavior Survey (YRBS) individual-level datasets for 2007, 2009 and 2011 were linked to a school-level dataset. Variables were selected based on empirical findings on factors associated with sexual behaviors, including contraceptive use, by adolescents. The analytic sample included all YRBS respondents aged 14 or older who reported having sexual intercourse in the past three months and had complete responses to the YRBS questions on contraceptive use at last sex (N=8,054). The chi square test of significance was used to evaluate significant associations between independent variables and contraceptive use in bivariate analyses; variables with a p value < 0.1 were included in the multivariable analyses. Binary and multinomial logistic regression analyses were conducted to estimate the strength of the associations of school-level factors with contraceptive use among sexually active adolescents. Findings included that use of any contraception and/or hormonal contraception at last sexual intercourse was associated with attending schools with a higher six-year graduation rate, higher percent of students strongly agreeing they were safe in their classrooms, higher percent of teachers at the school for over two years, and having a School-Based Health Center (SBHC) in the building. No known study has examined the contribution of school-level effects to contraceptive use in a dataset linking YRBS and school-level datasets. Implications of research findings are that schools providing a supportive, engaging and safe environment can protect students from sexual risk behaviors and increase contraceptive use among sexually active adolescents.  

The Erhardt Developmental Prehension Assessment (EDPA) was designed as a measure of hand function for use with developmentally and physically disabled children. In this study the inter-observer reliability of the EDPA, and the concurrent validity of the EDPA with the fine motor scale of the Peabody Developmental Motor Scales (PDMS) were evaluated. The EDPA was initially revised by standardizing the procedures for administering the test and developing an objective scoring system. Thirty developmentally disabled children ranging in age from 3 to 18 months were tested in this study.
The results indicate that the EDPA has high levels of inter-observer reliability, and that it has concurrent validity with the PDMS in this population. Further test revisions are necessary, however, to improve the EDPA's discriminative power. Normative data needs to be gathered on a large, cross-sectional sample of children so that future measures of impaired hand function will be based on a good understanding of the sequence of normal development.

Previous investigations of a single family aggregate with developmental language impairment have suggested that the impaired members are disabled in their ability to use anaphoric pronouns. The present thesis sought to investigate further the use of anaphoric reference in this family using detailed, discourse-oriented analyses. Oral narratives were elicited from eight mature-language users, four language-impaired and four unimpaired. Discourse analysis was accomplished using procedures taken from normal acquisitional studies in which both the form (pronominal or nominal) and the function served by each form (switching or maintaining reference) are considered. The analysis revealed some differences between the language-impaired and unimpaired subjects in their use of pronominals in their narratives. However, three of the four language-impaired subjects used the same nominal-pronominal reference tracking strategies as their unimpaired relatives. The implications of these findings for the general ability of the language-impaired subjects to use pronouns anaphorically as well as future research directions are discussed.

Children with disabling chronic illnesses are known to have complex and frequently unmet health care needs. Limited information exists in South Africa regarding the prevalence of children with disability, as well their needs and utilization of services. The purpose of the current study is twofold: (1) identify the number of children known with disability, or disabling chronic illnesses in the western health sub-district of Cape Town; (2) analyse the health services that currently exist for these children. A period prevalence survey was conducted between January 2010 and December 2011. Numerous sources of information were sought to identify as many children with disabling chronic illness as possible. These included the referral hospitals for the Western sub-district, namely Red Cross War Memorial Children's Hospital and New Somerset Hospital, as well as the institutions where children with disability are cared for or educated, and relevant non-profit organisations in the disability sector. Information was gathered between January 2011 and Sept 2012.

The purpose of this grant proposal project was to develop and identify funding for the implementation of a school-based teen dating violence prevention program for adolescents in the southeast Los Angeles, California area. Peace Over Violence was the host agency for this program and is located in Los Angeles, California. Through the review of the literature on the history, prevalence, risk factors, and the existing interventions for adolescents, the grant writer proposed and designed a school-based teen dating violence prevention program. Additionally, the grant writer explored potential public and private funding sources, which resulted in the selection of the California Endowment Foundation as the funding source due to having the most compatible goals and objectives of this program. The actual submission and/or funding of this grant were not required for the successful completion of this academic project.

Translation in Africa has been studied mostly through the prism of postcolonialism and literary studies. Some scholars have argued that this approach restricts translation studies scholarship on and about the continent. The gist of the postcolonial approach lies in the inherent power relations that exist in the inevitable cross-cultural contact arising from colonialism. Of late, some scholars have suggested that it is time to move beyond the post-colony. It is against such a backdrop that this dissertation broaches the study of translation phenomena in Africa from a developmental perspective. This thesis argues that the postcolonial era is not monolithic and that the African condition has evolved over the years. While it acknowledges the legacy of colonialism with all of its devastating consequences, the study understands the concept of the developmental context to offer the perspective of a continent in charge of its own destiny in contrast to the perspective that sees only a victim. Accordingly, this study seeks to explore translation practices within a developmental context and concentrates on one of the most important development issues: health. In line with global health priorities that now approach health from a preventive rather than a curative perspective, health promotion and communication have become central to the development agenda. This dissertation therefore discusses the historical, political, linguistic, socioeconomic, and cultural factors that inevitably affect translation in public health communication in Zambia and, to a lesser extent, the southern African region. While emphasizing the sociological context of the case study, this research takes translation as a cluster concept and a communicative act in order to investigate how translation is practiced. The research involves a contextual analytic exploration of a few selected health communication products. Drawing on Jakobson’s three types of translation, descriptive translation studies, and functionalist theories, this dissertation brings to light the importance of intersemiotic translation in societies that are anchored in oral culture.

The study examined developmental screening and communication delays in infants from underserved PHC contexts in South Africa. More specifically the Road to Health Booklet (RTHB) checklist was compared to a standardized international tool i.e. the PEDS tools, consisting of the PEDS and PEDS: DM. The relationship between psychosocial risks and communication delays was determined. The study also reported on the prevalence and nature of communication delays in these infants. Finally the study evaluated the accuracy of the PEDS tools to detect communication delays, against an internationally accepted diagnostic assessment tool, the Rossetti Infant Toddler Language Scale (RITLS). A comparative cross-sectional within-subject design was employed. Parent interviews to obtain background information, the PEDS tools, the RTHB developmental checklist and Rossetti Infant Toddler Language Scales (RITLS) were used to collect data from caregivers of 201 infants, aged six to 12 months, selected through convenience sampling, at PHC facilities in the Tshwane district, South Africa. Sensitivity of the RTHB developmental checklist was determined to be low (25%), but specificity values were high (86%-91%). The RTHB developmental checklist failed to identify more than half the infants at risk of delays or disorders. Hence, based on the results of this study, the nationally implemented developmental checklist was found to be ineffective in identifying at-risk infants. It is strongly recommended that the tool be adapted and validated or replaced in order to improve identification of at-risk infants. Associations between communication delays and risks were determined using Chi-square and Fisher s exact non-parametric test statistics and a log linear model was built to model the simultaneous effect of significant risks on the probability of having communication delays. Communication delays were present in 13% of infants. Association between three risk factors (i.e. housing status, age of mother and number of siblings) and language delays was established. Infants with two or more siblings, born from mothers aged 18-29 years who own their house have for example a 39% chance of presenting with communication delays. The impact of combined risk factors on language development revealed that an infant was at greatest risk (27% probability) of developing a language delay when 1) mothers were between the ages of 19 to 34 years; 2) when parents owned their own home and; 3) when there were three or more children in the household. The prevalence of communication delays in the sample population was high possibly due to the majority of infants being exposed to risks. The implementation of preventative measures, such as awareness campaigns and developmental screening and surveillance should be considered in the South African PHC context. This is especially relevant since a clear relationship has been established between three risks and communication delays in infants. The PEDS tools had low to very low expressive- and receptive language sensitivity scores across all three screens (ranging between 14%-44%). However, high sensitivity (71%) and specificity (73%) ratings for the receptive and expressive language and social emotional domain in combination were calculated. The results of this study may indicate that the PEDS tools may be an appropriate developmental screening tool for the detection of communications delays in infants in the South African PHC context. Future research determining accuracy of the PEDS, PEDS: DM and PEDS tools for children aged two to five years in detecting communication delays should be prioritised.
Thesis (DPhil)--University of Pretoria, 2015.
Speech-Language Pathology and Audiology
DPhil
Unrestricted

Infant vocalization undergoes dramatic changes during the transition from newborn cooing and infant babbling toward the production of meaningful speech. However, the processes underlying these changes are not fully understood, particularly at the age at which ambient language input begins to influence infant babbling. The aim of this study was to describe the babbling produced by Arabic infants―using acoustic and phonetic metrics―and then examine the effects of linguistic environmental input on babbling by comparing the babble produced by Arabic infants to that produced by English and French infants. Speech samples were collected from infants learning Arabic (N = 31; age: 281-591 days), English (N = 20; age: 303-553 days) or French (N = 23; age: 311-566 days). Each utterance was transcribed according to the International Phonetic Alphabet and then coded according to infraphonological categories. Two studies were conducted. Study one aimed to describe the vowel space of Arabic infants and then compare it to the vowel space of English and French infants. First (F1) and second (F2) formant frequencies were identified in all vowels produced with full resonance, normal phonation, and speech-like duration. These F1 and F2 frequencies were used to calculate the compact-diffuse (F2 - F1) and grave-acute ([F2+F1]/2) values for each vowel so that the extreme corners of each infant's vowel space could be identified. Multiple regression and analysis of variance analyses were used to examine the effects of language and age on the infant vowel space (centre, corners, and area of the space). Developmental changes in the expansion of the vowel space toward the grave corner were observed in all language groups. In addition, a language-specific pattern of changes on the vowel space were observed with age: Arabic infants showed unchanged F1 and F2 values at the centre of the space, expansion toward the compact corner, a larger vowel space than infants in the other language groups at all ages studied; French infants showed a decreased F1 and unchanged F2 values at the centre, an expansion toward the diffuse corner, and a shrinking from the acute corner toward the center of the vowel space; and English infants showed decreased F2 values but unchanged F1 values at the centre of the vowel space. Study two aimed to describe the consonantal repertoires of Arabic infants and then compare these consonantal repertoires across three infant language groups. Infants were organized into three age groups (10-12, 12-15 and 15-18 months), and the consonants produced in canonical (CS) and marginal (MS) syllables with normal phonation were grouped into manner and place categories. Analysis of variance revealed no significant crosslinguistic differences in the frequency of production of any manner or place categories.This study showed developmental and language-specific changes in the infant vowel space when vowels were submitted to acoustic analysis. However, early crosslinguistic differences in vowel space were not accompanied by crosslinguistic differences in the consonantal repertoires based on phonetic transcription analyses. The overall findings from the current study provide evidence for the interactional hypothesis and suggest that the development of infant babbling is influenced by a complex interaction of endogenous and exogenous processes including biological development of the vocal tract and language input from the ambient environment.
La vocalisation du nourrisson subit des changements importants, du gazouillis du nouveau-né et du babillage du bébé vers la production de la parole significative. Cependant, on ne comprend pas entièrement les processus sous-jacents à ces changements, en particulier l'âge auquel l'acquisition de la langue ambiante commence à influencer le babillage. L'objectif principal de cette étude était de décrire le babillage des tout-petits apprenant l'arabe à l'aide de mesures acoustiques et phonétiques et d'examiner les effets de l'apport de l'environnement linguistique sur le babillage infantile en comparant le babil produit par les jeunes enfants arabes à celui d'enfants apprenant l'anglais ou le français. Des échantillons de parole ont été recueillis auprès de jeunes enfants apprenant l'arabe (N=31; tranche d'âge: 281-591 jours), l'anglais (N=20; tranche d'âge: 303-553 jours) ou le français N=23; tranche d'âge: 311 à 566 jours). Chaque énoncé a été transcrit conformément à l'API, puis codé selon les catégories infraphonologiques.Deux expériences ont été menées. La première visait à décrire l'espace vocalique acoustique des jeunes enfants arabes, et de le comparer à celui de jeunes enfants anglais et français. Les 1res (F1) et 2es (F2) fréquences de formants ont été identifiées dans toutes les voyelles produites avec pleine résonance, phonation normale et durée comme celle de la parole. F1 et F2 ont été utilisées pour calculer les valeurs compact-diffus (F2 - F1) et grave-aigu ([F2 + F1] / 2) pour chaque voyelle, pour identifier les coins extrêmes de l'espace vocalique de chaque enfant. La régression multiple et l'observation des analyses de variance ont été utilisées pour examiner les effets de la langue et de l'âge sur l'espace vocalique infantile (centre, coins, et zone de l'espace). Des changements développementaux dans l'expansion de l'espace vocalique vers le coin grave ont été observés dans tous les groupes linguistiques. De plus, un modèle de changements spécifique au langage de l'espace vocalique a été observé avec l'âge: les enfants arabes ont montré des valeurs F1 et F2 inchangées au centre de l'espace, une expansion vers le coin compact, un espace vocalique plus grand que les enfants des autres groupes de tous les âges étudiés. Les enfants français ont montré une diminution de F1 et des valeurs F2 inchangées au centre, une expansion vers le coin diffus, et un rétrécissement du coin aigu vers le centre de l'espace vocalique et les enfants anglais ont montré une diminution des valeurs F2 et des valeurs F1 inchangées au centre de l'espace vocalique. La deuxième expérience visait à décrire les répertoires consonantiques des enfants arabes et de comparer ces répertoires consonantiques dans trois groupes linguistiques de jeunes enfants. Les consonnes qui ont été produites dans les syllabes canoniques (CS) et marginales (MS) avec la phonation normale ont été incluses dans l'analyse. Les enfants ont été divisés en trois groupes (10-12, 12-15 et 15-18 mois), et les consonnes, regroupées en catégories phonétiques en fonction de la manière et du lieu de production. L'analyse de variance n'a pas révélé de différences significatives translinguistiques dans la fréquence de production pour toutes catégories de manière ou lieu.L'étude a montré des changements développementaux et spécifiques au langage dans l'espace vocalique des tout-petits quand les voyelles ont été soumises à une analyse acoustique. Cependant, des différences translinguistiques précoces dans l'espace vocalique n'étaient pas accompagnées par des différences translinguistiques dans les répertoires consonantiques selon les analyses de transcription phonétique. L'étude actuelle a fourni des preuves de l'hypothèse interactionnelle et suggère que le développement du babillage infantile est influencé par une interaction complexe des processus endogènes et exogènes, notamment le développement biologique du conduit vocal et la langue de l'environnement ambiant.

This study assesses the nutritional status of Sudanese adolescent girls and examines the determinants of this nutritional status. To represent distinctive socioeconomic classes, the sample included 767 subjects, 11-18 year-old students attending private and public schools in Khartoum (the capital). Anthropometric measurements revealed that there are no significant differences in the heights of the girls in the two schools. However, underweight is common among public school girls (25%), while overweight is common among the private school girls (23%). Questionnaire data showed that the strongest determinants of the girl's nutritional status were whether she attained menarche, her health, mother's estimated weight, whether her mother drives a car and whether her father owns a car. Prevalence of weight changing behavior was common (at the time of the study, 28% were trying to gain weight and 20% were trying to lose weight). A tendency toward normal body weight was detected. Intentions of the girls to change their weights were strongly affected by the girl's body mass index as well as her poor body image. Family influences (advice, encouragement and attempts of parents to change their own weight) were found to play a big role in the girl's decisions to change her weight. Sudanese adolescent girls from both private and public schools are concerned about their body weight. Thus, this study provides information that can be used to enhance nutrition interventions targeting Sudanese adolescent girls.

Research on the negative impact of divorce on children’s well-being is extensive and indicates that, on average, children from divorced families suffer from more adjustment difficulties than those whose families remained intact. However, few studies have been done on the specific long-term effects on individuals who experienced parental divorce when they were particularly young. Are there maladaptive behaviors, or other implications for adult adjustment? This study explores the adaptive functioning of a college population of young adults whose parents divorced between the ages of two and seven. Participants completed questionnaires on demographic information, current level of functioning, parental marital status, and survey items taken from reliable measures. The responses of participants who were between the ages of two and seven during time of divorce were compared to the responses of two control groups: individuals whose parents divorced after the age of seven, and individuals whose families remained intact. Results indicated that marital status grouping (early divorce, later divorce, or intact family) did have a significant effect on certain aspects of adaptive functioning. Adult children of early childhood divorce indicated lower formal educational attainment, lower financial status, more reports of mental health diagnosis, higher number of transitory adult intimate relationships, less secure attachment to father, lower self-esteem, and greater learned helplessness than both later childhood divorce and intact family participants. The developmental timeframe in which divorce occurs plays a key role in young adult adaptive functioning.

Limited research has attempted to quantify Fear of Missing Out. Only one prior study has examined adolescents’ experience of Fear of Missing Out and did so with a small, homogenous Belgian sample. In order to expand upon this limited research base, the present study sought to examine Fear of Missing Out with an American adolescent sample. Specifically, the purpose of the present study was to analyze the reliability and validity of the Fear of Missing Out Scale (Przybylski, Murayama, DeHaan & Gladwell, 2013) that was originally developed with an adult population, as well as strengthen understanding of Fear of Missing Out as it pertained to specific demographics. Students (grades 5–12) participating in a large, urban school district after school program in North Texas were surveyed on their experience with Fear of Missing Out and frequency of social media engagement (n = 961; 55% male). Results of a principal components analysis confirmed the presence of a 1-factor model, maintaining all 10 original scale items with strong internal consistency (α = 0.93). Regression analysis suggested Fear of Missing Out was predictive of increased social media engagement ( p = .003). Gender and ethnicity were not related to Fear of Missing Out; grade level and Fear of Missing Out were inversely related, such that the older a student was, the less Fear of Missing Out was reported. Future researchers should utilize intentional and purposeful methodology for measuring social media engagement and focus on strengthening the validity and reliability of Fear of Missing Out as a unique construct. Further, theorists should consider updating their developmental perspectives related to adolescence based on advances in technology, media consumption, and interpersonal communication, particularly via social media. Practitioners are encouraged to understand and disseminate this information as it pertains to educating adolescents and their families about the benefits and costs of mobile technology and social media engagement.

The purpose of the study was to examine the effect of the Autonomous Student Experiences (ASE), a specific course component of OAE programming, on promoting youth developmental outcomes, including youth autonomy and positive youth development (PYD). The ASE component in this study was carried out as the “Final Expedition,” where students traveled as a group with limited supervision from instructors. Three outdoor courses offered by Northwest Outward Bound School were selected with 25 subjects in total.

This study used a mixed-method quantitative and qualitative research design to explain and interpret the effect of ASE on youth autonomy and PYD. A questionnaire was developed to collect quantitative data measured by three scales, including Noom’s (1999) Adolescent Autonomy Questionnaire, Lerner et al.’s (2005) Positive Youth Development Short Form Measurement, and Characteristics of the ASE scale adapted from Sibthorp’s Characteristics of the Experience Scale (2000). This questionnaire was administered three times throughout the course, including the first day of course, the day before the ASE, and after participants finished the ASE. Qualitative data were collected using semi-structured interviews. These one-on-one phone interviews were conducted with selected participants about two weeks after they returned home from their field experiences.

Findings from the quantitative data analysis showed that the overall OAE program can be effective in facilitating adolescents’ levels of youth autonomy and PYD. ASE may afford the opportunity for “learning reinforcement”, refers to a chance for adolescents to reinforce developmental outcomes that have evolved early on during the course. However, the differences in adolescents’ youth autonomy and PYD levels before and after completing the ASE course component did not reach a statistical significance. Higher levels of autonomy were associated more with adolescents who played follower roles in the ASE compared to those who played leadership roles. Findings from the qualitative data further shed light on the underlying mechanisms for linking ASE with youth developmental outcomes.