Dissertations / Theses on the topic 'Influences'

This study examined the interaction of religion and politics in Bangladesh in light of the hypothesis that the nature of the particular process of Islamization of the state of Bangladesh, leading to its present semi-Islamic status, has been a function of three independent variables: the specific nature of Islam in the society; the configuration of political interests; and the international environment. The study found that the semi-Islamic status of the state in Bangladesh achieved under military rule is a consequence more of the manipulation of Islam by the military for the sake of legitimacy and of the influence of the Middle East, particularly the flow of remittances, rather than changes in the value orientation of the people of Bangladesh.

Research on children’s and early adolescents’ time use indicates that siblings are fixtures in each other’s lives. Given their ubiquity, it is surprising that the ways in which brothers and sisters influence each other’s development has been relatively neglected. In comparison, over the past 25 years there has been over 45 times more work on parenting processes and nearly seven times more on peer influences (McHale et al. 2012) than on siblings. An emerging body of work, however, documents that siblings are indeed important and can influence one another in a variety of ways. The goals of this essay are to review the main pathways through which siblings influence each other’s development. Specifically, we highlight two broad avenues through which siblings influence each other: (a) directly – through observation and daily interactions with one another, as well as modeling and differentiation processes; and (b) indirectly – by virtue of their impact on the larger family system, in ...

Background: The Chinese market is growing fast and rapidly in a high pace. Many foreign companies see the possibilities in this and are expanding their business to China. When operating business in China strategic decisions are taken by the management, sometimes without reflection of what influences the process. This makes the influence on the management strategic decision-making process vital when expanding to China, since it may reflect on the company’s strategic plans.   Purpose: To further explore and extend the research area on how the expansion to China influences the management and their strategic decision-making process.   Research questions: RQ1: Do the expansion to China influence the management strategic decision-making process?   RQ2: How does the expansion to China influence the management strategic decision-making process?   Methodology: Conducted as an abductive qualitative multiple case study, examined with semi-structured interviews with an exploratory purpose.   Conclusion: The empirical investigation showed that the management and their strategic decision-making process are influenced by the expansion to China. The influences are; rationality, decision speed, environment, politics, culture and how management view their strategy through the strategic lenses.

Cette etude s'efforce de demontrer la realite des influences cosmiques. Elle essaye de prouver que l'astrologie n'est pas indigne de notre societe mais contient des verites. Dans notre expose, nous avons suivi l'ordre suivant : a) arguments donnes par les scientifiques contre l'astrologie. Nous avons tente d'y repondre. En opposition, nous citons des etudes de caractere scientifique qui montrent l'impact des influences cosmiques sur les phenomenes biologiques, chimiques, physiques, geophysiques, meteorologiques, psychologiques. Actuellement il existe des laboratoires s'occupant de l'etude des rythmes biologiques (clermont-ferrand). B) sciences frontieres : a) bio-rythmes qui montrent l'importance des rythmes biologiques. B) biometeorologie qui etudie l'influence des conditions atmospheriques et cosmiques sur les etres vivants. C) l'histoire de l'astrologie depuis son origine jusqu'a nos jours, les methodes et les interpretations de l'astrologie occidentale et les autres ecoles (chinoise, arabe, azteque, indienne, etc. ). D) la reapparition et l'evolution de l'astrologie depuis le debut du vingtieme siecle et les resultats de nos enquetes sur l'attitude des personnes de niveaux d'etudes differents, vis-a-vis de l'astrologie. E) enfin l'application de l'astrologie a l'etude caracterologique et les conclusions specifiques qu'on peut en tirer. Analyse du caractere de quelques personnes par la methode astrologique. Etude des rapports de l'astrologie avec la methode des tests et l'observation directe
The purpose of this essay is to demonstrate the reality of the cosmical influences. The aim is also to prove that astrology is worthy of respect in society and contain some truth. This is the following order of the book. A) arguments given by scientist against astrology. We have attempted to respond to them. On the other hand, we quote scientifical studies that underline the impact of the cosmical influences on the biological, chemical, physical, geophysical, meteorological phenomenons. At present, there are laboratories taking as interest in the study of biological rhythms (clermont-ferrand). B)fringe-science : a)bio-rhytmes that point out the importance of the biological rhythms. B) biometeorology that studies the influences of the atmospherical and cosmical conditions on human beings. C)the history of astrology from its origin until the present, the methods, the intrepretations of occidental astrology and of other schools as well : chinese, arab, aztec, indien, etc. D)the reappearance and evolution of astrology since the beginning of the twentieth century and the results dards towards astoloty. E)finally, the application of astrology to the caracterological study and the specific conclusions, you can draw. Caracter analyses of a few people through astrological methods. Study of the connection between astrology, testing methods and direct observation

This thesis examines the reception of the works of Adam Ferguson, a major thinker of the Scottish Enlightenment, by a range of German readers in the late eighteenth century. It provides a survey of Ferguson's main political ideas, and argues that many of his prominent German readers did not come to terms with them. The thesis contrasts the political realities and concerns of Ferguson's Scotland with the profoundly different political concerns of his German readers, and their often vague and inaccurate ideas of Scotland, and of the British constitution. Their documented responses to Ferguson's works are brought as evidence for a cumulative and complex case of misreception. The terms in which Ferguson expressed his political ideas can be fruitfully analyzed as a political language, a vocabulary of recognizable and mutually complementing political terms. After a close examination of this particular vocabulary, the thesis proceeds to show in detail how Ferguson's German translators, commentators, reviewers and readers unwittingly dismantled this vocabulary, lost or ignored its republican and activist elements, and sometimes shifted it into other vocabularies which were far removed from the author's political intentions. However, the differences between the individual readers are emphasized, not only with respect to their varied intellectual backgrounds and works, but also touching on their personal profiles as readers and thinkers. The thesis aims especially to highlight three aspects of this Scottish- German encounter: the capacity of Ferguson's texts to be removed from their contexts and misread; the failure of civic humanist ideas to make a serious entry into German political discourse; and the merits of close textual analysis for supporting a type of explanation, which may supplement or counter-balance other explanations, about the limited effect of "imported" political ideas in eighteenth-century German discourse.

In an ever changing global economy, higher education experiences accountability issues in educating the workforce. Graduates require the knowledge and skills necessary to succeed in the global workplace. For graduates to have the opportunity to attain this understanding and expertise, it is critical to identify what influences curriculum development to create a curriculum that meets workplace needs. The purpose of this study was to contribute to a better understanding of curriculum development in higher education fashion merchandising programs. More specifically what impacts the curriculum and if skill standard(s) and/or competency list(s), are used when developing program-level curriculum for higher education fashion merchandising programs. Descriptive research examined the internal and external influences and standard(s) and/or competency list(s) used in curriculum development. Electronically, an invitation to participate and the survey instrument were sent to faculty in apparel and textile programs across the United States. Data were collected from 96 apparel and textile faculty. Data revealed internal influences, more so than external influences, impacted curriculum development in higher education fashion merchandising programs. The largest percentage and extent of internal influence on curriculum development in higher education fashion merchandising programs was faculty background; program mission was also a major internal influence. The largest percentage and extent of external influence on curriculum development in higher education fashion merchandising programs was marketplace/employers. No statistically significant relationship was found between the participants' type of institution (undergraduate and graduate granting) and internal and external influences. However, more research is called for to examine the specific internal influence of program mission and the external influence of marketplace/employers. Current curriculum influences, skill standard(s) and/or competency list(s) used, and type of institution were examined in this research study. The study proposes that the higher education fashion merchandising curriculum is influenced, in varying degrees, by internal and external influences and that skill standard(s) and/or competency list(s) from many sources are used in curriculum development. Undergraduate or graduate institutions were not differentially influenced by internal or external factors.

Ce travail de thèse explore les influences maternelles non génétiques chez un oiseau nidifuge, la caille japonaise Coturnix c. japonica. Un premier axe s'intéresse à l'influence d'un facteur intrinsèque sur le comportement de la femelle pondeuse, les caractéristiques de ses œufs et le développement de ses descendants. Nos travaux montrent que les caractéristiques intrinsèques du comportement de ponte modulent l'émotivité des femelles. Les œufs pondus par des femelles présentant un profil de ponte stable (i.e. ovipositions à la même heure chaque jour) diffèrent des œufs pondus par des femelles présentant un profil de ponte décalé (i.e. ovipositions un peu plus tard chaque jour). Les descendants de ces femelles montrent une plus grande émotivité face à la nouveauté et à la séparation sociale. De plus, il existe des variations des caractéristiques des œufs spécifiques à chaque profil de ponte. Le second axe s'intéresse à une influence environnementale. Au sein de l'environnement biotique, le partenaire sexuel est un congénère particulier pour la femelle. Lorsque les deux partenaires ont la possibilité de développer un lien (par un appariement permanent), leurs descendants sont moins émotifs et plus sociaux comparés à des jeunes dont les parents ont été appariés de façon ponctuelle et n'ont pas développé de lien. Enfin, le dernier axe explore pour la première fois chez l'oiseau nidifuge l'interaction entre des influences maternelles prénatales et postnatales. Ainsi, des jeunes stressés prénatalement ont une émotivité moindre face à la nouveauté et à la séparation sociale si ils sont maternés après l'éclosion, comparés à des jeunes non maternés. L'ensemble de ce travail améliore nos connaissances des facteurs de variations des influences maternelles, leurs mécanismes et leurs conséquences, permettant de mieux comprendre la variabilité phénotypique des individus et l'évolution des populations
This thesis explored non-genetic maternal influences in a precocial bird, the Japanese quail Coturnix c. japonica. A first approach investigated the influence of an intrinsic factor on the behaviour of a laying female, its eggs' characteristics and its offspring's development. Our results demonstrate that intrinsic characteristics of egg laying behaviour influence females' emotivity. Eggs laid by females that present a stable laying profile (i.e. ovoposition at the same time each day) differed from eggs laid by females that present a delayed laying profile (i.e. oviposition later each day). Offspring of females delayed laying profile showed higher emotivity in novel situations and social isolation. Moreover, eggs presented specific characteristics within each of both egg laying profiles. A second approach focused on the biotic environment. For a female, the mating partner is a particular congener. When mates could develop a pair bond (by continuous pairing), their offspring were more emotive and less social compared to chicks whose parents were not continuously paired and thus did not develop a pair bond. In a final approach and for the first time in a precocial bird, interactions between prenatal and postnatal maternal influences were explored. Chicks that were prenatally stressed showed lower emotivity in novel situations and social isolation when they are mothered after hatching compared to non-mothered, prenatally stressed chicks. Overall, our work improves the knowledge about maternal influence factors of variation, their mechanisms and consequences, allowing a better understanding of individuals' phenotypic variability and populations' evolution

Thesis (Honors)--Ohio State University, 2007.
Title from first page of PDF file. Document formatted into pages: contains 52 p. Includes bibliographical references (p. 51-52). Available online via Ohio State University's Knowledge Bank.

In the competitive environment, organizational knowledge became one of the most valuable strategic resources for a company. Indeed, it is said to be the only resource that cannot be imitated, and thus, that provides a reliable competitive advantage. Hence, knowledge management has become a highly investigated field of study. In fact, knowledge sharing, one of the facets of knowledge management is considered as a helpful leverage within a company’s strategy. Knowledge sharing has been studied widely, it is found to be a powerful process to ensure that the developed knowledge within the company is kept in the company and made usable. Even though knowledge sharing has been investigated by researchers, when looking at the practices within organizations, it appears that those are not as efficient as they could be, due to organizational, technical, as well as individual hindrances that affect the establishment of such processes.   This thesis aims to increase the understanding of which factors influence individuals’ sharing behavior and which role a knowledge sharing policy takes. Therefore, interviews have been conducted with the employees within the communications department of the Alstom group. Alstom France is multinational company, which is providing transportation and energy producing solutions; this implies that the communication is a support function and needs to work efficient, which makes the matter of knowledge sharing even more important. It was found that the strategic importance of knowledge sharing is highly acknowledged within Alstom, since the company has introduced a knowledge transfer department, which has released the “Alstom Knowledge Management Transfer Handbook”, the company’s internal knowledge sharing policy. It provides a guideline for the managers within the departments. The perceived motivations and hindrances to share knowledge are mainly about the manager’s role, language and the team culture.

There has been a resurgence of interest in prosocial behaviour in recent years, but many authors avoid the topic of altruism due to the difficulty of discerning the motives behind the behaviour. The present thesis takes a behavioural definition of altruism (i.e. that the point of interest is the altruistic action rather than the underlying motives) and employs a paradigm from experimental economics that minimises the impact of motivating factors aside from altruism: the dictator game. Preschool children's emerging altruistic behaviour is assessed and the norms governing this behaviour are hypothesised. Chapter 1 gives an introduction to prosocial behaviour in general, before focussing on altruism and the dictator game. It demonstrates that while behaviour in older children and adults is influenced by numerous intrinsic and extrinsic factors, little is known about influences on the altruistic and dictator game behaviour of preschool children. Chapter 2 conducts a standard DG with 4-5 year-old children with particular focus on the influence of siblings. It also examines the impact of endowment size, providing a reduced endowment in order to ascertain whether children's understanding of the numerosities involved influences dictator game behaviour. There was no effect of endowment size upon DG behaviour, but sibling status was found to influence donations, with children with older siblings being more likely to donate than those without older siblings. These results are discussed in terms of models of sibling influence. Chapter 3 extends these findings by examining whether adults behave similarly to children and whether the influence of older siblings remains in adulthood. A shift in the influence of siblings was observed, with adults with siblings being more generous than those without siblings, rather than older siblings in particular being beneficial. How these findings further inform models of sibling influence is discussed. Chapter 4 examines how the source of the endowment influences preschoolers' altruistic behaviour in the dictator game by asking children to earn their endowments rather than provide them as a windfall. While previous work has shown that adults are less generous when they have earned their endowment than when it is a windfall, children showed little difference in behaviour according to the source of their endowment, although there is evidence to suggest that children with older siblings are beginning to internalise the relevant norms (otherwise there was no effect of sibling status). Chapter 5 examines the effect of framing upon children's altruistic behaviour by providing different information about the recipient (rather than no information as is standard in the DG). Children gave more to a recipient with positive characteristics than one with negative characteristics and were also influenced by the mere possession of information. Chapter 6 sums up by demonstrating how these findings interact to inform our understanding of preschoolers' altruistic behaviour and outlines areas for future research. Altogether, this thesis demonstrates that there are numerous influences on preschoolers' altruistic behaviour but children are nonetheless similarly altruistic to adults rather than more selfish, as is often assumed.

The majority of literature concerning carers of people with acquired brain injury (ABI) concentrates on the negative consequences. Knowledge of post-traumatic growth (PTG) and positive gain from caring is expanding in the literature. The aim of this study was to explore the experience and report of PTG in carers of people with ABI. Chapter 2 looked at the self-report of PTG, positive and negative changes in relation to coping and mental health symptoms. The results of thirty-six carers suggest that carers will report at least one positive change as a result of being a carer. However, a stronger relationship between negative than positive changes for mental health symptoms and maladaptive coping. The experiences of being a wife of someone with ABI were further explored in Chapter 3. Thematic analysis using Interpretive Phenomenological Analysis (IPA) was used to analyse interviews of wives’ experiences and report of PTG. The themes identified relate to adjustment, coping and the life domains associated with PTG, in particular to interpersonal relationships and philosophy of life. Consideration of informal carers led to speculation of the motivations of professional carers, including psychological therapists. A literature review (Chapter 1) was conducted of the empirical evidence describing the influence of personality and family of origin on choice of career as a psychological therapist. The results are discussed in relation to methodological limitations, clinical implications and future directions for research. Chapter 4 offers reflections on the process of carrying out research and the impact, particularly of qualitative research, on the researcher. Some clinical implications from Chapters 2 and 3 are expanded to that contained within the chapters.

Understanding the influence of solar variability on the Earth's climate requires knowledge of solar variability, solar-terrestrial interactions, and the mechanisms determining the response of the Earth's climate system. We provide a summary of our current understanding in each of these three areas. Observations and mechanisms for the Sun's variability are described, including solar irradiance variations on both decadal and centennial time scales and their relation to galactic cosmic rays. Corresponding observations of variations of the Earth's climate on associated time scales are described, including variations in ozone, temperatures, winds, clouds, precipitation, and regional modes of variability such as the monsoons and the North Atlantic Oscillation. A discussion of the available solar and climate proxies is provided. Mechanisms proposed to explain these climate observations are described, including the effects of variations in solar irradiance and of charged particles. Finally, the contributions of solar variations to recent observations of global climate change are discussed.

Excerpt: Tinnitus: Clinical and Research Perspectives summarizes contemporary findings from basic and clinical research regarding tinnitus mechanisms, effects, and interventions. The text features a collection of international authors, active researchers, and clinicians who provide an expansive scope of material that ensures relevance for patients and professionals. Reviews and reports of contemporary research findings underscore the text s value for classroom use in audiology and otolaryngology programs. Patients and students of audiology will benefit from the text s coverage of tinnitus mechanisms, emerging practice considerations, and expectations for outcomes--for example, recent successes of cognitive behavioral therapy, neuromodulation, and hearing aid use. These and other topics, such as the effects of noise and drugs on tinnitus, are reported in a way that enhances clinicians ability to weave such strategies into their own work. The influence of tinnitus on all aspects of life is explored, from art to medicine and communication to isolation, thereby providing clinicians and patients a deeper understanding of and greater facility managing a tinnitus experience. Finally, this text includes case studies that provide a practical view of tinnitus effects and management approaches. The editors hope that the consideration of mechanisms, interventions, and outcomes resonates with patients, clinicians, and students of audiology.

This study presents a topical and chronological analysis of the published works of Fritz Perls with particular attention to specified theoretical continua. The theoretical continua specified are: 1. Determinism vs. Free Will, 2. Unconscious vs. Conscious, 3. Monism vs. Dualism, A. Physical vs. Mental, 5. Nativism vs. Environmental ism, 6. Elementalism vs. Holism, 7. Reactive vs. Proactive, 8. Subjective vs. Objective, 9. Responsibility vs. Helplessness, 10. Thinking vs. Feeling, and 11. Heterostasis vs. Homeostasis. Each continuum is analyzed in reference to Perls' published thought and his stated beliefs are described and reported. Large sections of the dissertation are devoted to the intellectual, philosophical, and emotional influences that led Perls to write the theory of Gestalt therapy. The dissertation concludes with the report of Perls' position on each defined continuum, with discussion of empirical studies, Gestalt therapy and other major theories of counseling that hold parallel theoretical positions, concluding with a discussion of the limitations of the theory of Gestalt therapy and of this dissertation.

The overall aim of  this thesis is create awareness about the importance of linking projects to their historical, organizational and environmental context. This dissertation concerns the analysis of a project contract developed by a new urban transport company in Bogotá, Colombia, with large and complex settings. The project was studied during 4 months, using and ethnographic research approach and different qualitative data collection methods, such as formal interviews, archival research and informal meetings. The study involves an inductive process from which discussion is developed from the observation of empirical reality of this particular case study. The main outcome of the study was to illustrate that tough the impact of contextual variables is difficult to foresee and translate into project management concepts, the analysis of sources of complexity, dynamics and uncertainty in different aspects of the context environment, e.g. legal, political, economical, and cultural, gives a good understanding about the influence of the context dimension in projects. Contextual parameters are often outside the scope of project management, and for this reason, high quality of project planning cannot always compensate for the possible negative effects of these external variables. In addition, the boundaries inside and outside the project’s organization increase the complexity inside the project, and tensions between these boundaries can be of great impact during the project--‐planning phase. This dissertation shows through empirical reality that “o project is an island, they are open systems, with permeable boundaries”(Engwall, 2003).

“To build a nation in the true sense (...) is to build the character of its people-of ourselves, to build an attitude of mind which will enables us to live together with our fellow citizen (...), in mutual friendliness and cooperation” Tanzania is a country consisting of more than 130 ethnicities and three major religions. It is surrounded by continuous conflict which could be seen as a suitable environment for identity-related violence to flourish, but instead it is a country that should be seen as a role model in dealing with ethnic religious identities through a self-created system, which includes a political vision and an ideology. The purpose of this thesis has been to explore and describe a country that has worked through politics for a society that has a place for religion, but not religion mixed with politics. The study is based on secondary empirical material and on field work done in the Babati district in Tanzania. The result is important for several reasons, in today’s identity-focused world, since it illustrates the need to recognize people's multiple identities, to be able to integrate to create a foundation of tolerance and respect between religions.

Adults spend about 40% of their waking hours at work. The workplace is an important setting both in affecting people’s health and as an environment in which to promote health. Health in working life is not a technical, value-free process, but rather one influenced by the ideologies, beliefs and values of key actors, such as officials, workers and unions, employers, corporations and managers, experts and others (Levenstein & Woodings, 1997). Indeed, one of the defining characteristics of the workplace setting is that it brings together a variety of groups and individuals who have different agendas and priorities with regard to work and health (Naidoo & Wills, 2000). Hence, the relationship between work and health may be viewed in different ways by different actors; a conflict of interest may arise between the actors with regard to what comes first, health or productivity. This text begins with a look at key concepts, theories and models to explain the relationship between health and work. This is followed by a discussion of important empirical findings and research concerning strategies to improve workplace health.

Background: Childhood overweight has become a growing public health challenge. It has been suggested that inadequate or excessive gestational weight gain (GWG) may result in permanent metabolic and neuronal changes in the developing fetus. Although effects of GWG on birth weight are established, less is known about its effects on the long-term weight status of the child. In 2009, the Institute of Medicine (IOM) and the National Research Council (NRC) published recommendations for trimester-specific and total GWG depending on maternal pre-pregnancy body mass index (BMI). It is unknown, however, how well the trimester-specific IOM/NRC recommendations for GWG identify women at risk of total GWG outside those recommendations. It is also unknown, whether a reverse from excessive GWG in early or mid-pregnancy reduces the risk of childhood overweight. Aims: Contribute to the existing knowledge on the association between GWG and childhood overweight (study 1). Examine whether and to what extent inadequate or excessive total GWG can be predicted in the first, second and third trimester, based on trimester-specific GWG cut-off values (study 2). Investigate whether a reverse from excessive GWG before the third trimester is associated with a risk reduction of childhood overweight (study 3). Methods: A retrospective cohort study was conducted. The sample was recruited prior to the school entry health examinations in 2009 and 2010. Data on maternal weight was derived from medical records and child’s anthropometric data were measured. From 11,730 mother-child pairs available, 6,837 were included in study 1, 7,962 in study 2 and 6,767 in study 3. To investigate the effect of total GWG, overall and stratified by maternal pre-pregnancy BMI, and reverse from excessive GWG in early or mid-pregnancy, multivariate logistic regression analyses were conducted including a large number of potential confounders. Odds ratios (OR) and 95% confidence intervals (CI) were calculated. The prognostic values of lower and upper trimester-specific GWG cut-off values were examined by calculating sensitivity, specificity, positive predictive value (PPV), negative predictive value (NPV) and positive diagnostic likelihood ratio (DLR+). Results: 1) Overall, the risk of childhood overweight increased by 4% per additional kg GWG (OR: 1.04, 95% CI: 1.02, 1.05). Excessive total GWG was associated with a 57 % higher risk of childhood overweight (OR: 1.57, 95% CI: 1.30, 1.91). Stratified by maternal pre-pregnancy BMI, significant associations between excessive GWG and childhood overweight found among normal weight mothers (OR: 1.29, 95% CI: 1.01, 1.66) and overweight mothers (OR: 1.64, 95% CI: 1.06, 2.63). 2) Prediction of total GWG within the IOM/NRC recommendations increased with gestational age and was related to the maternal BMI category and outcome. In trimester two, inadequate total GWG could be predicted with a sensitivity of 49% and 60.2% and a PPV of 72.1% and 68.3% in underweight and normal-weight mothers, respectively. Excessive GWG could be predicted with a sensitivity of 72.7% and 70.4% and a PPV of 94.3% and 93.3% in overweight and obese mothers, respectively. 3) Compared to mothers who always gained below the excessive GWG cut-off values (reference category), children of mothers with excessive GWG in the third and any previous trimester had a 42% higher risk of overweight at school entry (OR: 1.42, 95% CI: 1.17, 1.72). There was a 39% higher risk if mothers gained excessively in the third trimester only (OR: 1.39, 95% CI: 1.06, 1.82). No higher risk was observed for mothers who reversed from excessive GWG before the third trimester compared to reference category. Conclusions: Excessive total GWG appears to be a risk factor for childhood overweight. It can be well predicted from the second trimester on, in particular in overweight and obese women. Reverse from excessive GWG before the third trimester may reduce the risk of childhood overweight. More research is required to further establish the strength of association between GWG and childhood overweight. It appears possible to identify women at risk of gaining outside the recommendations as early as the second trimester. Those women should be allocated to appropriate weight modifying measures. The long-term benefit of GWG modifying measures on childhood overweight, especially a reverse from excessive GWG in the first or second trimester, should be investigated in randomised controlled studies.
Hintergrund: Kindliches Übergewicht stellt eine wachsende Herausforderung an das Gesundheitssystem dar. Es wird angenommen, dass eine inadäquate oder exzessive mütterliche gestationale Gewichtszunahme (GGZ) zu dauerhaften metabolischen und neuronalen Veränderungen im heranwachsenden Fötus führen kann. Zusammenhänge zwischen der GGZ und dem Geburtsgewicht des Kindes wurden umfassend belegt. Weniger erforscht ist der Einfluss der GGZ auf die langfristige Gewichtsentwicklung des Kindes. Im Jahre 2009 veröffentlichten das Institute of Medicine (IOM) und das National Research Council (NRC) Grenzwerte für die trimester-spezifische und totale GGZ in Abhängigkeit des mütterlichen Body Mass Index (BMI). Bisher unbekannt ist, in wie weit sich diese trimester-spezifischen Grenzwerte dazu eigenen, um eine Abweichung von den Grenzwerten am Ende der Schwangerschaft vorherzusagen und somit gefährdete Mütter frühzeitig zu identifizieren. Zudem ist ungeklärt, ob eine Umkehr von der exzessiven GGZ vor dem dritten Trimester mit einer Risikoreduktion für kindliches Übergewicht einhergeht. Ziele: Beitrag zur existierenden Literatur über den Zusammenhang zwischen GGZ und kindlichem Übergewicht (Studie 1). Analyse, ob und in welchem Ausmaß inadäquate oder exzessive GGZ am Ende der Schwangerschaft durch trimester-spezifische IOM/NRC GGZ Grenzwerte vorhergesagt werden kann (Studie 2). Analyse, ob eine Umkehr von exzessiver GGZ in der frühen oder mittleren Schwangerschaft das Risiko von späteren kindlichen Übergewichts reduziert (Studie 3). Methoden: In einer retrospektiven Kohortenstudie wurden Daten von 11.730 Mutter-Kind Paaren erhoben. Die Stichprobenrekrutierung erfolgte im Rahmen der Schuleingangsuntersuchungen in den Jahren 2009 und 2010. Angaben zum mütterlichen Gewicht wurden dem Mutterpass entnommen und die anthropometrischen Daten des Kindes gemessen. Von 11.730 verfügbaren Mutter-Kind Paaren, wurden 6.837 in Studie 1, 7.962 in Studie 2 und 6.767 in Studie 3 eingeschlossen. Multivariate logistische Regressionsanalysen wurden herangezogen, um den Effekt von totaler GGZ während der Schwangerschaft, über alle Mütter hinweg und stratifiziert nach präkonzeptionellen BMI, und der Umkehr von exzessiver GGZ vor dem dritten Trimester zu analysieren. Odds Ratios (OR) und 95% Konfidenzintervalle (CI) wurden berechnet und eine große Anzahl an potenziellen Störvariablen eingeschlossen. Die Vorhersagekraft der trimester-spezifischen Grenzwerte wurde mittels der Berechnung von Sensitivität, Spezifität, positiver prädiktiver Wert (PPV), negativer prädiktiver Wert (NPV) und der positive diagnostische Likelihood Ratio (DLR+) analysiert. Ergebnisse: 1) Insgesamt war jedes zusätzliche kg GGZ mit einer 4%igen Risikoerhöhung für kindliches Übergewicht assoziiert (OR: 1.04, 95% CI: 1.02, 1.05). Eine exzessive totale GGZ war mit einer 57%igen Risikosteigerung verbunden (OR: 1.57, 95% CI: 1.30, 1.91). Die stratifizierte Analyse ergab signifikante Effekte für exzessive totale GGZ innerhalb der normalgewichtigen (OR: 1.29, 95% CI: 1.01, 1.66) und übergewichtigen Mütter (OR: 1.64, 95% CI: 1.06, 2.63). 2) Die Vorhersage der totalen GGZ innerhalb der IOM/NRC Empfehlungen verbesserte sich mit fortschreitendem Gestationsalter und war abhängig von der mütterlichen BMI Kategorie und der Zielgröße. Bei den untergewichtigen bzw. normalgewichtigen Müttern konnte mit den trimester-spezifischen GGZ Grenzwerten des zweiten Trimesters eine inadäquate totale GGZ mit einer Sensitivität von 49% bzw. 60.2% und einem PPV von 72.1% bzw. 68.3% vorhergesagt werden. Bei den übergewichtigen und adipösen Müttern konnte mit den trimester-spezifschen GGZ Grenzwerten des zweiten Trimesters eine totale exzessive GGZ mit einer Sensitivität von 72.7% bzw. 70.4% und einem PPV von 94.3% bzw. 93.3% vorhergesagt werden. 3) Im Vergleich zu Müttern die während der gesamten Schwangerschaft unterhalb des Grenzwertes für exzessives GGZ lagen (Referenzkategorie), war eine exzessive Gewichtszunahme im dritten und mindestens einem vorhergehenden Trimester mit einer 42%igen Risikoerhöhung assoziiert (OR: 1.42, 95% CI: 1.17, 1.72). Nahmen die Mütter nur im letzten Trimester exzessiv zu, lag die Risikoerhöhung bei 39% (OR: 1.39, 95% CI: 1.06, 1.82). Kein erhöhtes Risiko für kindliches Übergewicht zeigte sich bei den Müttern die ausschließlich in den ersten zwei Trimestern exzessiv zugenommen hatten. Diskussion: Exzessive GGZ scheint ein Risikofaktor für kindliches Übergewicht zu sein. Insbesondere bei übergewichtigen und adipösen Müttern kann eine exzessive GGZ außerhalb der IOM/NRC Empfehlungen ab dem zweiten Trimester vorhergesagt werden. Die Umkehr einer exzessiven GGZ vor dem dritten Trimester scheint das Risiko für kindliches Übergewicht zu reduzieren. Weitere Forschung über Stärke des Zusammenhangs zwischen GGZ und kindlichem Übergewicht ist notwendig. Es scheint möglich, Frauen deren totale GGZ potenziell außerhalb der Empfehlungen liegt ab dem zweiten Trimester zu identifizieren. Diese Frauen sollten wirkungsvollen gewichtsmodifizierenden Maßnahmen zugeführt werden. Die langfristige positive Auswirkung dieser Maßnahmen, insbesondere eine Umkehr von exzessiver GGZ vor dem dritten Trimester, auf die Prävention von kindlichem Übergewicht, sollte in randomisiert-kontrollierten Studien untersucht werden.

The aim of this PhD was to investigate the factors that affect community nurse prescribing decision-making. Findings: Nurses placed great importance upon factors affecting patient satisfaction and compliance. District nurses felt they had sufficient time to discuss prescribing with patients whilst health visitors felt the time available in their clinics was not conducive to prescribing. The risks that nurses associated with a product affected their prescribing such that they were happy to initiate a 'low risk' product but would prefer a GP to initiate a 'high risk' product. There is an abundance of pharmacological information to support prescribers but most of this is aimed at medical prescribers and therefore was not in a format that was accessible for nurse prescribers. Assessing and influencing the quality and cost effectiveness of prescribing by community nurses and providing them with feedback on their performance did not appear to be a priority for PCTs. Barriers with the potential to reduce the impact of nurse prescribing on patient care were identified and some of these barriers were more significant in some localities compared to others. The selection of products by community nurse prescribers was largely influenced by their mentor during their training as a district nurse and subsequently modified for some nurses by representatives from the pharmaceutical industry, colleagues in their team and their own experience. Prescribing data helped to identify research questions when prescribing was compared across professional boundaries but the differences in case mix between different professions meant it was not a suitable research tool when used in isolation from other methods.

Natural spoken language is full of disfluency. Around 10% of utterances produced in everyday speech contain disfluencies such as repetitions, repairs, filled pauses and other hesitation phenomena. The production of disfluency has generally been attributed to underlying problems in the planning and formulation of upcoming speech. However, it remains an open question to what extent factors known to affect the selection and retrieval of words in isolation influence disfluency production during connected speech, and whether different types of disfluency are associated with difficulties at different stages of production. Previous attempts to answer these questions have largely relied on corpora of unconstrained, spontaneous speech; to date, there has been little direct experimental research that has attempted to manipulate factors that underlie natural disfluency production. This thesis takes a different approach to the study of disfluency production by constraining the likely content and complexity of speakers utterances while maintaining a context of naturalistic, spontaneous speech. This thesis presents evidence from five experiments based on the Network Task (Oomen & Postma, 2001), in addition to two related picture-naming studies. In the Network Task, participants described to a listener the route of a marker as it traverses a visually presented network of pictures connected by one or more paths. The disfluencies of interest in their descriptions were associated with the production of the picture name. The experiments varied the ease with which pictures in the networks could be named by manipulating factors known to affect lexical or pre-lexical processing: lexical access and retrieval were impacted by manipulations of picture-name agreement and the frequency of the dominant picture names, while visual and conceptual processing difficulty was manipulated by blurring pictures and through prior picture familiarisation. The results of these studies indicate that while general production difficulty does reliably increase the likelihood of disfluency, difficulties associated with particular aspects of lexical access and retrieval have dissociable effects on the likelihood of disfluency. Most notably, while the production of function word prolongations demonstrates a close relationship to lexical difficulties relating to the selection and retrieval of picture names, filled pauses tend to occur predominantly at the beginning of utterances, and appear to be primarily associated with message-level planning processes. Picture naming latencies correlated highly with the rates of observed hesitations, establishing that the likelihood of a disfluency could be attributed to the same lexical and pre-lexical processes that result in longer naming times. Moreover, acoustic analyses of a subset of observed disfluencies established that those disfluencies associated with more serious planning difficulties also tended to have longer durations, however they do not reliably relate to longer upcoming delays. Taken together, the results of these studies demonstrate that the elicitation of disfluency is open to explicit manipulation, and that mid-utterance disfluencies are related to difficulties during specific production processes. Moreover, the type of disfluency produced is not arbitrary, but may be related to both the type and location of the problem encountered at the point that speech is suspended. Through the further exploration of these relationships, it may be possible to use disfluency as an effective tool to study online language production processes.

In this thesis, we highlight the importance of thin-film magnetism and use density functional theory (DFT) calculations to investigate how the surface magnetic properties of several ferromagnetic (FM) systems can be altered through gas-phase adsorption. We begin by looking at the ferromagnetic fcc Co{110} surface, taking note of the structural, electronic and magnetic properties it possesses with a view to its potential use in novel magnetoelectronic devices. We identify crucial modifications that occur to the surface properties upon adsorption of varying quantities of hydrogen, boron, carbon, nitrogen, oxygen and fluorine. With a wide range of adsorbates, we investigate the similarities and differences between adsorption of a much smaller range of species on several different FM surfaces. Here we are comparing adsorption of carbon, nitrogen and oxygen on fcc iron, cobalt and nickel surfaces, and looking in particular at their influence on the surface layer spin magnetic moment. Following this, we study the influence of oxygen and nitrogen on a specific magnetic property that can be measured experimentally – the second electron spin polarisation (SESP). We introduce a novel theoretical method for calculating the SESP from our ab initio simulations which shows excellent agreement with the experimental measurements. Here, adsorption is modelled on fcc Co{100} surfaces. Continuing to investigate large-scale magnetic properties of thin-film systems, we initially compare and contrast three different facets of bi-layered Co/Co surfaces and then investigate several multilayered arrangements where two FM layers are separated by a non-magnetic ‘spacer’ layer. These systems can have layers that are aligned ferromagnetically or anti-ferromagnetically, and preference for either alignment is controlled via the interlayer exchange coupling. We investigate this effect in the ultrathin regime, and with fcc Co/Cu/Co and Fe/Cu/Co systems.

The following thesis is an examination of the way Seneca constructs Phaedra, the main character of an eponymous tragedy. It aims to prove that the tragedian uses a mixing of mainly two literary genres, tragedy and elegy, and it analyzes the way the elegiac genre is transformed so it can fit this new generic hybrid. Seneca finds inspiration for the elegiac topoi in Ovid's love poems. The author uses the recurrent elegiac convention involving a soft man, the lover, and a dominant woman, the beloved, but he reverses this literary tradition: Phaedra becomes the lover while Hippolytus becomes the beloved. Besides a series of elegiac topoi such as fiery love metaphors, servitium amoris or symptoms of love, Seneca also deals with the erotic hunting. Roman love elegy often associates the lover, the feeble man, with a hunter, while it represents the beloved, the dominant woman, as his prey. In Phaedra, Hippolytus, a true hunter, becomes an erotic prey, while the female character takes on the role of the erotic predator, which causes the young man's tragic death.
Dans ce mémoire de maîtrise on examine la manière dont Sénèque construit Phèdre dans la tragédie portant le même nom. On prouve que pour créer son personnage, le tragédien romain mélange deux genres littéraires : la tragédie et l'élégie. On analyse aussi la façon dont Sénèque altère le genre élégiaque afin qu'il puisse créer un nouveau genre littéraire hybride. L'auteur trouve son inspiration pour les topoi élégiaques dans les poèmes érotiques ovidiens. En dépit de l'utilisation d'une convention élégiaque par excellence qui concerne la relation entre un amoureux, un homme faible, et une bien-aimée, une femme forte et dominante, Sénèque inverse ces éléments et Phèdre devient l'amoureux, tandis qu'Hyppolite se voit attribué le rôle du bien-aimé. À part une série de topoi élégiaques comme les métaphores érotiques du feu, le servitium amoris ou les symptômes de l'amour, le tragédien emploie aussi le lieu commun de la chasse érotique. L'élégie romaine associait très souvent l'homme faible à un chasseur et la femme forte à sa proie. Dans Phèdre, Hippolyte, un vrai chasseur, devient une proie érotique, tandis que le personnage féminin prend le rôle du prédateur, ce qui mène le jeune homme à une fin tragique.

The aims of this project were to determine the phenotype of migrating monocytes and examine the influence transmigration has on their differentiation to macrophages or DC. To determine stages of differentiation and activation of monocytes cultured in the presence of autologous serum without endothelium nine cell surface receptors were used.  These cells matured over time with an increase in CD16⁺ cells and increased major histocompatibility complex II and macrophage mannose receptor (MMR) expression suggesting alternative activation over time compared to cells cultured in foetal calf serum.  Monocyte contact with unstimulated endothelium and a gradient of CCL2 also results in cells with an alternatively activated phenotype with a proportion having a tendency to form dendritic cells (DC). Migration of monocytes is markedly enhanced and endothelium is activated by chemokines and cytokines in the context of inflammation.  Contact with endothelium activated with interferon gamma (IFNg) prevents monocytes development into alternatively activated macrophages and may bias them towards classical activation.  However contact with endothelium activated with an interleukin 10 (IL-10) results in cells with an alternatively activated phenotype with a subpopulation of cells, which remain on the apical surface, showing a tendency to become DC. These results show that IFNg and IL-10 confer different effects on endothelium and  monocytes.  Manipulation or activation of the endothelium to program the transmigrating cells to become alternatively activated may provide a novel option to alter macrophage function for therapeutic gain.

The study of platelet messenger and micro-RNAs is of increasing interest owing to the fact that platelets contain the machinery to splice and translate mRNA into proteins in response to inhibitory or activating signals. However, the relatively small size (roughly 4000-5000 transcripts) and short half-life of the platelet transcriptome makes this a technically challenging aspect of platelet biology to investigate. The aims of these thesis investigations were therefore to optimise protocols for the isolation of platelets for downstream RNA analyses and function testing, to investigate the functional capabilities of platelet subpopulations rich in RNA, and to understand the functional and transcriptomic impact of gene mutations predicted to influence platelet function. I found that the optimal method for isolating platelets from whole blood is to use simple single step centrifugation to obtain platelet rich plasma. This method is as effective as more involved methods at reducing white blood cell contamination whilst causing minimal platelet activation. Using this method in combination with flow cytometric cell sorting techniques I was able to isolate the newly formed reticulated platelet sub-population and to confirm the link between reticulation status and increased RNA content. Furthermore, using a range of platelet function assays I demonstrated that reticulated platelets are more reactive than non-reticulated platelets. By obtaining blood samples from a patient with a PLA2G4A mutation I was able to show that loss of cPLA2α enzymatic activity alters both platelet function and the expression of certain mRNA transcripts. My investigations using samples from a range of patients with bleeding tendencies show the benefit of combining deep platelet phenotyping with next generation sequencing to understand the causation of bleeding disorders. Together these investigations highlight the utility of genomic DNA and platelet specific mRNA studies in providing novel insights in to pathways regulating platelet reactivity.

Thesis: Ph. D., Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Department of Brain and Cognitive Sciences, 2018.
Cataloged from PDF version of thesis.
Includes bibliographical references (pages 129-170).
Adults greatly impact children's learning: they serve as models of how to behave, and as parents, provide the larger social context in which children grow up. This thesis explores how adults impact children's learning across two time scales. Chapters 2 and 3 ask how a brief exposure to an adult model impacts children's moment-to-moment approach towards learning, and Chapters 4 and 5 look at how children's long-term social context impacts their brain development and capacity to learn. In Chapter 2, I show that preschool-age children integrate information from adults' actions, outcomes, and testimony to decide how hard to try on novel tasks. Children persist the longest when adults practice what they preach: saying they value effort, or giving children a pep talk, in conjunction with demonstrating effortful success on their own task. Chapter 3 demonstrates that social learning about effort is present in the first year of life and generalizes across tasks. In Chapter 4, I find that adolescents' long-term social environments have a selective impact on neural structure and function: socioeconomic-status (SES) relates to hippocampal-prefrontal declarative memory, but not striatal-dependent procedural memory. Finally, in Chapter 5 I demonstrate that the neural correlates of fluid reasoning differ by SES, suggesting that positive brain development varies by early life environment. Collectively, this work elucidates both the malleable social factors that positively impact children's learning and the unique neural and cognitive adaptations that children develop in response to adverse environments.
by Julia Anne Leonard.
Ph. D.

Recently, cognitive psychologists have focused their research on the survival aspects of human memory, showing advantages for remembering information encoded for adaptive qualities. When participants rated words related to survival relevance (stranded in grasslands), Nairne et al. (2007) and others found survival processing’s retention superior to many semantic encoding techniques, however, we questioned the global application of survival processing. In the present adaptive memory experiment we used the thematic word list paradigm pioneered by Deese, Rodeiger and McDermott, allowing us to measure false recall of critical items from sets of word lists. To investigate recall differences based on the material type encoded, we separated recalled material into two categories: survival and non-survival. Because arousal can influence memory performance, we extended research on adaptive memory to include social arousal induced by videotaping participants during study and recall tasks. Videotaping subjects has been shown to induce arousal levels similar to those when being observed, and may parallel arousal experienced in survival scenarios. Overall, recall was lower for survival processing. Survival-relevant information was more accurately remembered, and was not hindered by camera presence, unlike non-survival information. Additionally, false memories were higher under videotaped conditions. While our results did not support Nairne and colleagues, our findings may support the development of evolved brain mechanisms. The current findings are discussed with an emphasis on contemporary high arousal situations that may influence the activation of adaptive memories. We join a growing set of literature that questions the overall benefits of survival processing.

The effects of ambient room temperature on social cognition were examined in the current study. This study included 202 participants who completed a computer-based survey consisting of eight items measuring participants’ self-perception and desired social dynamics. I included these constructs because they serve to empirically examine the claims put forth by the Socio-Relational Framework of Expressive Behavior (Vigil, 2009). Participants completed the survey in experimental settings with the ambient room temperature ranging from 67.8 °F to 77.2 °F. I identified several important relationships that support the current theoretical framework, such as the differential desire for either affiliative or avoidant social responses, and the differential inflation of either empowerment or trustworthiness descriptors in colder and warmer conditions, respectively. Implications of the findings for future research are discussed.

The tropical high forests of West Africa have been under stress due to a greater dependence on wood resources. Logging rate has more than doubled within the last decade. However, the exact effects of logging on vegetation composition and the degree of canopy opening that should be created in the forest to ensure the regeneration of timber tree species are not known. Three major experiments were carried out to determine the ecophysiological responses of timber tree species in different irradiances and red:far-red ratios. (1) 16 tree species were grown in six neutral shade treatments (2, 6, 27, 42 and 65% full sun) and their growth assessed by standard measurements used in growth analysis (biomass, height, stem diameter, leaf area, leaf production and mortality). (2) Eight species, of which six were also used in the shade house experiment, were grown in a series of artificially-created gaps in two forest sites differing in annual rainfall. Gaps created received 1-2, 5, 10, 15, 30 and 66% full sun. (3) Possible differences in the results between shade house and forest experiments due to differences in light quality (red:far-red ratio) were tested separately. Differences in red:far-red ratio has little effect of growth but showed some influence on allocation of biomass. Seedling growth response of species were higher in shade houses compared to the two field sites and higher in the wet compared to dry forests. Sixteen tropical timber tree species were ranked on an ecological (shade tolerance) gradient based on their differential growth response to light. The results indicate that the ranking of species on an ecological gradient is robust and potentially more reliable than intuitive classification of species into groups.

Research on entrepreneurial actions has thus far been dominated by individual-level and dispositional approaches. These approaches assume that individuals’ entrepreneurial actions are regulated by individuals’ enduring characteristics that operate in a similar way in all contexts and in total isolation with their surroundings. This assumption has continued to dominate research on entrepreneurial actions in spite of the widespread recognition of the fact that entrepreneurial actions are also influenced by contextual factors. The dispositional approach thus presents an under-socialized view of entrepreneurial opportunity creation and ignores that entrepreneurial process of opportunity discovery are strongly influenced by contextual factors, such as organisational environments, institutions, social reference groups, cultural orientations, environmental munificence. This thesis addresses this gap and contributes towards answering “How do individuals’ context influence entrepreneurial actions?” We provide answer by extending McMullen and Shepherd’s proposed theoretical model and argue that entrepreneurial actions depend upon not only an individual’s personal feasibility and desirability considerations (McMullen and Shepherd 2006), but also upon the context within which the individual evaluates the consequences of those actions. In order to test and provide evidence in favour of this argument, an empirical design is proposed that comprises of three separate empirical studies, each of which considers the cross-level effects on entrepreneurial actions by combining the influences of individual-level as well contextuallevel factors on those actions and offers explanations on the pertinent mechanisms through which an individual’s context exercises a regulatory influence on entrepreneurial actions by individuals. The thesis acknowledges and further consolidates the multi-level nature of entrepreneurial actions and considers cross-level effects by combining the influence of individual-level and contextual-level factors on entrepreneurial actions. A multi-level methodology has been developed and tested to bring forth the cross-level moderation effects of contextual factors that operate at a higher level on individual-level entrepreneurial actions. Three multi-level empirical studies feature in this thesis that elucidates the mechanisms through which an individual’s context constitutes a regulatory influence on the feasibility and desirability to undertake entrepreneurial actions. The first study examines the influence of prevailing norms in an individual’s social reference group on individual-level entrepreneurial actions. The second empirical study examines the influence of national-level cultural orientations on individual-level entrepreneurial actions and the third study investigates the influence of national-level cultural orientations on persistence in the entrepreneurial process. The third empirical study examines the influence of national-level cultural orientations on an individual’s persistence into entrepreneurship.