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The Gap Between What We Know And What We Do About Childhood Obesity: A Multi-Factor Model For Assessment, Intervention, And Prevention, Kim Hiatt, Linda Riebel, Harris Friedman

Journal of Social, Behavioral, and Health Sciences

Childhood obesity in the United States has increased alarmingly and much is becoming known about multiple factors that contribute to this epidemic. These include environmental (e.g., prevalent junk foods), behavioral (e.g., inactivity), intrapsychic (e.g., depression), interpersonal (e.g., parenting style), as well as biological, socioeconomic, and cultural factors, to name just a few. A comprehensive multi-factor model of childhood obesity is presented based on extant research and its implications for assessment, intervention, and prevention are explored. Emphasis is placed on the importance of developing sound assessment approaches, on the potential value of treatment matching using interventions focused on assessment results on …

Pretreatment Variables For The Innovative Application Of Urine Alarm Treatment For Young Children In Fourteen Outpatient Clinics In Israel, Bettina Shapira, Pamela K.S. Patrick

Journal of Social, Behavioral, and Health Sciences

The influence of specific pretreatment variables (i.e., age, gender, birth order, number of children in the family, and family history of enuresis) on outpatient urine alarm treatment outcomes was examined. A total of 186 Israeli children between the ages of 4 to 7 participated in the study, and of those, 55 children were 4 years old. The entire sample was used to test the age-related pretreated variable, and all other pretreatment variables were solely analyzed using the sample of 4-year-old children at the time of treatment. The data were derived from two different sources: (a) treatment files from a clinical …

Risk And Protective Factors For Drug Use Among Polydrug-Using Urban Youth And Young Adults, Gary J. Burkholder, Jean J. Schensul, Raul Pino

Journal of Social, Behavioral, and Health Sciences

The purpose of the study was to examine the influence of traditional risk and protective factors for drug use on six different popular drugs on a population that is primarily Black and Latino between the ages of 16 and 24. Multiple regression analysis was used to test the relative importance of risk and protective indexes, and their interaction, in predicting drug use. Findings suggested: (a) traditional risk and protective factors, as well as situationally specific factors such as gang involvement, predicted drug use; and
(b) the relative contribution of risk and protective factors toward explained variances differs substantially among the …

Linking Beauty And Health Among African- American Women: Using Focus Group Data To Build Culturally And Contextually Appropriate Interventions, Karen Hye-Cheon Kim, Laura Linnan, Noel Kulik, Veronica Carlisle, Zoe Enga, Margaret Bentley

Journal of Social, Behavioral, and Health Sciences

African-American women suffer a disproportionate burden of morbidity and mortality compared to Caucasian women. Addressing racial/ethnic disparities in health requires the engagement of African-American women in the development of interventions that are culturally and contextually appropriate. Three age groups of African-American women who attend beauty salons (18-29; 30-49; 50+) were recruited into six focus groups. Participants reviewed a series of magazine pictures of African-American women and discussed their perceptions of beauty and health. In addition, we explored ideas for how to best intervene in beauty salons. Focus group discussions were recorded, transcribed, and analyzed with NVivo 2.0. After a thematic …

Relations Of Changes In Self-Efficacy, Exercise Attendance, Mood, And Perceived And Actual Physical Changes In Obese Women: Assessing Treatment Effects Using Tenets Of Self- Efficacy Theory, James J. Annesi, Jennifer L. Unruh, Ann C. Whitaker

Journal of Social, Behavioral, and Health Sciences

Obese and sedentary women ( N = 76) initiated an exercise and nutrition program based on self-efficacy theory. Significant within-group improvements in body fat, waist size, and body mass index were found over 6 months. Changes in Physical Self-Concept (task self-efficacy) and Exercise Self-Efficacy (self-regulatory efficacy) scores, together, accounted for a significant portion of the variance in exercise session attendance, R2 = .24, F = 11.67, p < .001, with both significantly contributing to the overall explained variance. Exercise attendance was significantly related to changes in Body Areas Satisfaction (β = .39) and Total Mood Disturbance (β = -.27) scores. Findings suggested a path from increased self-efficacy, to exercise attendance, to improvements in body satisfaction and overall mood. Suggestions for replication and extensions were given.

Effects Of The Youth Fit For Life Protocol On Physiological Factors, Mood, Self-Appraisal, Voluntary Physical Activity, And Fruit And Vegetable Consumption In Children Enrolled In Ymca After-School Care, James J. Annesi, Avery D. Faigenbaum, Wayne L. Westcott, Alice E. Smith, Gayle M. Dixon

Journal of Social, Behavioral, and Health Sciences

Changes associated with the Youth Fit For Life physical activity intervention were assessed with 5- to 12-year-old children in after-school care ( N = 477). Body mass index (BMI), strength, and flexibility significantly improved over 12 weeks. Initial BMI was negatively related to observed changes, r = -.29, p < .001. Significant within-group improvements in tension, vigor, and physical self-concept scores, and levels of voluntary moderate-to-vigorous physical activity/week were also found in the 9- to 12-year-olds (n = 91). Multiple regression analysis indicated that changes in physical self-concept, exercise self-efficacy, and general self scores explained a portion of the variance in changes in voluntary physical activity that approached significance, R2 = .08, F = 2.55, p = .06. Revisions and extensions of the protocol were suggested.

The Impact Of Daily Writing On Kindergarten Students' Phonemic Awareness., C. A. Snell

Walden Dissertations and Doctoral Studies

The purpose of this quantitative study was to determine whether or not a significant relationship exists among daily writing and student growth in phonemic awareness. The study also considered the impact of writing on the phonemic awareness development of students at different literacy levels. Although studies exist on the importance of phonemic awareness development in reading acquisition, a deficit exists examining the correlation among daily writing and the phonemic awareness development of students representing different literacy levels. Forty students in an experimental group engaged in daily writing opportunities, while 37 students in the control group engaged in less frequent writing …

Public Humiliation As A Mitigator In Criminal Sentencing, Barbara Benoliel

Walden Dissertations and Doctoral Studies

This study examined the relationship between the public humiliation and shaming of offenders in the sentencing portion of a criminal trial and the subsequent severity of the sentence the offender receives. Judicial moral shaming of offenders is returning to popularity in the courts, influencing the final sentence outcome as an under-identified mitigator, that substitutes for judges’ other punitive sanctions. Support for this shaming is found in Heider’s attribution theory and in Homans’ theory of social exchange; however Braithwaite found this form of shaming is overly punitive and ineffective. This four phase study used a sequential, mixed method, exploratory research design. …

Impact Of Central Venous Catheter Type And Methods On Catheter-Related Colonization And Bacteraemia, E. W. Moretti, C. Ofstead, R. M. Kristy, H. P. Wetzler

School of Health Sciences Publications

A prospective, randomized, controlled, multi-centre clinical trial was performed to test the effectiveness of an antimicrobial central venous catheter (CVC) made of polyurethane integrated with silver, platinum and carbon black (Vantex). Adults expected to require a CVC for more than 60 h were eligible, and were randomized to receive the test or control catheter. All CVCs were inserted with new venipunctures using full aseptic technique. Following catheter removal, the distal tip and an intracutaneous segment were removed and cultured using semiquantitative and quantitative methods. Peripheral blood samples were obtained and cultured to confirm cases of catheter-related bloodstream infection (CRBSI). Bacterial …

Impact Of Central Venous Catheter Type And Methods On Catheter-Related Colonization And Bacteraemia, E. W. Moretti, C. Ofstead, R. M. Kristy, H. P. Wetzler

Walden Faculty and Staff Publications

A prospective, randomized, controlled, multi-centre clinical trial was performed to test the effectiveness of an antimicrobial central venous catheter (CVC) made of polyurethane integrated with silver, platinum and carbon black (Vantex). Adults expected to require a CVC for more than 60 h were eligible, and were randomized to receive the test or control catheter. All CVCs were inserted with new venipunctures using full aseptic technique. Following catheter removal, the distal tip and an intracutaneous segment were removed and cultured using semiquantitative and quantitative methods. Peripheral blood samples were obtained and cultured to confirm cases of catheter-related bloodstream infection (CRBSI). Bacterial …

A Probabilistic Multidimensional Data Model And Its Applications In Business Management, Bhaskara Reddy Moole

Frank Dilley Award for Outstanding Doctoral Study

This dissertation develops a conceptual data model that can efficiently handle huge volumes of data containing uncertainty and are subject to frequent changes. This model can be used to build Decision Support Systems to improve decision-making process. Business intelligence and decision-making in today's business world require extensive use of huge volumes of data. Real world data contain uncertainty and change over time. Business leaders should have access to Decision Support Systems that can efficiently handle voluminous data, uncertainty, and modifications to uncertain data. Database product vendors provide several extensions and features to support these requirements; however, these extensions lack support …

Nursing Students' Experiences Of Workplace Violence And Aggression: Making Sense Of The Phenomenon For Educators, Bonnie Jean Beardsley

Frank Dilley Award for Outstanding Doctoral Study

This phenomenological study explored female nursing students' perceptions of their experiences of workplace violence and aggression, their methods for coping with and adjusting to the violence, and the implications for nursing education.

A notice soliciting volunteers was posted on student bulletin boards in multiple schools of nursing throughout Illinois. Ten participants were selected from a pool of volunteers who met predetermined criteria. Open-ended interviews each lasting approximately 60 minutes were conducted and tape-recorded. Four interview questions that guided the process changed as the narrative unfolded, and in some cases, probing became necessary to gain a rich description. Data analysis was …

Psychosocial Adjustment To Breast Cancer: The Role Of Marital Support And Approach Coping, Jacqueline K. Schonholtz

Frank Dilley Award for Outstanding Doctoral Study

This quantitative correlational study examined the role of approach coping and marital support in predicting psychosocial adjustment in 21 married women receiving chemotherapy for breast cancer. Psychosocial adjustment was assessed with the Psychosocial Adjustment to Illness Scale, a measure of overall adjustment to illness. Approach coping was assessed with the Coping Responses Inventory, an inventory that measures coping strategies for dealing with a stressful event. Marital support was assessed with the Family Relationships Index, a measure of relationship functioning that focuses on the amount of togetherness, open communication, and conflict in the marriage. The independent variables of approach coping and …

Cross-Cultural Interpretations Of Fraud: An Attitudinal Study In A Middle Eastern Multinational Corporation, Douglas Moore Watson

Harold L. Hodgkinson Award for Outstanding Dissertation

This research tested the theory that cultural heritage affects attitudes toward business-related fraud and, as a consequence, influences ethical decisions. A sample of 695 white-collar employees from a Middle Eastern multinational corporation (MNC), who represented nine world cultures, were asked to evaluate scenarios describing five business frauds--bribery, conflict of interest, embezzlement, management fraud, and industrial espionage--against a 7-point Likert-type scale that measured levels of approval. Analysis of variance (ANOVA) of the responses revealed those claiming African, Caribbean/South American, European, Middle Eastern, and North American cultural heritage viewed fraudulent behavior with a greater degree of disapproval than did those claiming Asian, …

An Analysis Of Physicians' Reluctance To Follow Terminally Ill Patients' Advance Directives, Norma Poirier

Harold L. Hodgkinson Award for Outstanding Dissertation

This explanatory study examined the reasons why physicians have difficulty respecting the wishes of terminally ill patients who refuse treatment. Consistent with the relevant literature, three alternative explanations were hypothesized in answering the question: fear of litigation, religious beliefs, and medical professional values.

Evidence was gathered from three different sources. Semistructured interviews were carried out with 24 emergency physicians from the Moncton Area in the Canadian province of New Brunswick and submitted to both quantitative and qualitative content analysis. Nineteen cases of terminally ill patients whose wishes not to be treated were not respected were collected and submitted to content …

Portrait Of Success: A Situational Analysis Case Study Of Students Challenged By Attention-Deficit/Hyperactivity Disorder, Sandra Hundley Zimmermann

Harold L. Hodgkinson Award for Outstanding Dissertation

This study examined factors that encouraged and supported academic success for students diagnosed with Attention-Deficit/Hyperactivity Disorder (ADHD). Students with ADHD are often not academically successful and do not graduate from high school, due in large measure to ADHD symptoms of (a) impulsive and reckless behaviors, (b) alienation from significant others including peers, and (c) disorganization. Students in this study overcame symptoms of ADHD and were academically successful.

The situational analysis case study design for this research utilized both qualitative methods (interview, observation, and record review) and quantitative instrumentation. Five students with ADHD comprised the case study sample. Data from student, …

The Midlife Quest For Meaning As Revealed In Critical Reflective Journals Of Midlevel Community College Academic Administrators Participating In A Continuing Professional Education Program: A Phenomenological Analysis, Roberta Albom Liebler

Frank Dilley Award for Outstanding Doctoral Study

The purpose of the study was to discover the phenomenology of a particular cohort of midlife professionals who explored their professional life through an inquiry of critical reflective practice. Propelled by career advancement, the complexity of the workplace, and their inner drive to find meaning at the mid-point of their lives, the midlevel North American community college academic administrators enrolled in a year-long continuing professional education program. During the practicum phrase, they recorded their impressions of their own quest for meaning through critical reflective practice. Reflective passages, extracted from the unstructured journals of a cohort of 13 self-selected participants, were …

A Content Analysis Study Of Portable Assisted Study Sequence Mathematics Curricular Materials For Migrant Students Using The National Council Of Teachers Of Mathematics Standards, Karen I. Conger

Harold L. Hodgkinson Award for Outstanding Dissertation

The need for change in the mathematics curricula in our public schools has been well documented (Kirwan, 1990; National Commission on Excellence in Education, 1983; National Research Council, 1989; Overby, 1993). Testing surveys show low overall performance at every age throughout the K-12 levels. The Curriculum and Evaluation Standards for School Mathematics, (Standards) issued by the National Council of Teachers of Mathematics (NCTM) in 1989 are designed to move mathematics curricula forward to meet the needs of students for the future. The analysis of new curricular materials is essential in order to produce materials that meet recommended standards.

Migrant students …

Parent Satisfaction With Staff Interactions At A Community Based Mental Health Center, Chrisanne Marie Christensen

Walden Dissertations and Doctoral Studies

This study investigates an important issue in mental health service provision, the level of parental satisfaction with staff interactions at a community based mental health center. A small target population, which included all families who had received services within a one year time frame, were surveyed via mail to determine levels of satisfaction. Parents responded to a questionnaire and data were collected to determine overall satisfaction, areas of service in need of improvement and areas of interaction which were most unsatisfactory. Additionally, data were compared to past study material to determine either an increase or decrease in parent satisfaction within …

Environmental Public Policy: An Analysis Of Public Opinion And Environmental Legislation In North Carolina, John Carson Cato

Frank Dilley Award for Outstanding Doctoral Study

The research was designed to give additional insight into the public policy process. Specifically, the focus of the study was on environmental public policy and the assumed relationship between public opinion on environmental issues and environmental legislation. A secondary emphasis of the research was to review environmental quality and consider the environmental quality as a function of legislative and regulatory impact. The study was restricted to the state of North Carolina and used a public opinion survey, legislative record review, and environmental quality data as the primary indicators.

The results of the study showed that (a) citizens in North Carolina …

Diversity Deprivation Overcome: A Predominately Caucasian Catholic High School Addresses Societal Racial Prejudice, Michele Ray Campbell

Walden Dissertations and Doctoral Studies

This study examines Monsignor Donovan High School, Toms River, Trenton Diocese, New Jersey's situation as a predominately Caucasian environment seeking to prepare students to adapt successfully to an increasingly diverse society. The author identifies the need for the students to gain a broader view of the world than evidenced by their school's population, examines the societal situations that led to the problem of prejudice in American society, explores the role of Catholic education in addressing prejudice and reports on polls of the MDHS Classes of 1994 and 1997 relative to their racial attitudes. Through a qualitative case study, the researcher …

A Comparative Analysis Of Adlerian And Theocentric Philosophies, Daniel A. Briggs

Walden Dissertations and Doctoral Studies

This research was a comparative historical analysis of Adler's Individual Psychology, Freud's system of psychoanalysis, and Theocentric Psychology. It was assumed that Adlerian constructs are very distinct from Freud's and are greatly influenced by Judaism and Judeo-Christianity.

It was further assumed that if these distinctions and influences could be elucidated via historical research, Adlerian Psychology would seem more palatable to Apostolics (an Apostolic is any individual that adheres to the Apostle's fundamental dogma as presented in the book of Acts chapter two and Hebrews chapter six) as well as more compatible with Theocentric Psychology.

Some of the various theories, constructs, …

A Correlational Study Of The Extrinsic Variables That Influence Job Satisfaction In Social Services Workers, Delores B. Cauthen

Walden Dissertations and Doctoral Studies

This correlational study examined the job satisfaction of seventy eight social service workers in a small unit of a large bureaucratic agency of the Department of Social Services. Extrinsic factors (education, job level, and organizational tenure) were correlated with job satisfaction. Job satisfaction was measured by the Minnesota Satisfaction Questionnaire. The results yielded three scores: intrinsic, extrinsic, and general satisfaction. Pearson's and Spearman's correlations were used. Intrinsic and extrinsic satisfaction were found to be moderately correlated (r=.40). Although the employees' intrinsic and extrinsic percentile rankings were low, the general satisfaction ranking was in the average range.

Education, organizational tenure, and …

Management Reorganizations In The Thb Global Banks - A Case Study, David Clancy

Walden Dissertations and Doctoral Studies

The dissertation focuses on the multiple reorganizations of Manufacturers Hanover between March 1985 and June 1991. The research sought to find a relationship with the reorganizations and the stock price and performance measures of the Bank. The purpose was to determine if the reorganizations provided a measurable impact on theperformance of the Bank. The conclusions of this research established that the reorganizations, if intended to improve the performance of the Bank, were not effective.

The Role Of The Facilitator In Computer-Supported Environments: A Critical Incidents Study, Victoria K. Clawson

Walden Dissertations and Doctoral Studies

The Role of the Facilitator in Computer-supported Environments

This multiphased study represents a rigorous exploration of the role of the facilitator in computer-supported environments. The purpose of the study was to identify and empirically measure the importance of the critical dimensions of the facilitator's role. The study examined the following research questions:

1) What are the critical dimensions and their related behaviors that contribute to the role of the effective facilitator in face-to-face computer supported environments?

2) Are there impacts on or differences in critical facilitator role dimensions/behaviors when facilitating with different types of group support systems (GSS) (computer based …

The Role Of Small To Medium-Size Private Companies As Change Agents In Manpower Development In The Eastern Province Of Saudi Arabia, Abdulrahman Mohammed Al-Kadi

Walden Dissertations and Doctoral Studies

The purpose of the study was to explore in depth the problem of the skilled Saudi labor shortage in Saudi Arabia. More specifically, it investigated the role of small to medium-size private companies in developing manpower for the kingdom. To investigate this role, the study sought to answer the following research questions:

1. To what extent do small and medium-size firms attract Saudi youth to work in practical skill areas?

2. Do small and medium-size firms offering training take traditional values or customs into consideration when determining training needs?

3. Is Saudization a factor when determining training needs?

4. Are …

To What Extent Current In Service Education Programs At Hospital Level In Puerto Rico Help The Newly Professional And Technical Nurse In The Development Of Practical Nursing Skills, Andrea Guzman Berrios

Walden Dissertations and Doctoral Studies

THE PROBLEM

This study was directed to determine to What Extent Inservice Educational Programs in Puerto Rico help the Newly Professional and Technical Nurse in the Development of Practical Nursing skills and Fulfillment of Needs.

PROCEDURE

Eight current inservice educational programs were analyzed from four private and four state hospitals. The sample was composed of two hundred professional and technical nurses both sexes, plus a number of forty seven administrative nursing personnel included in the study, based on their relationship within inservice programs and graduate nurses' performance in practice. The main instrument used in the study was a questionnaire validated …

The Effects Of A Psychologically Based Training Program Upon Athletic Performance, Bertram Burke

Walden Dissertations and Doctoral Studies

The purpose of this study was to develop a psychologically based training technique that would help maximize athletic performance. The technique entitled the Six Step Technique was then experimentally tested to determine its effect on lowering state anxiety and improving foul shooting under experimental conditions.

Specifically three schools were randomly selected from a suburban athletic conference and their Varsity and Junior Varsity male basketball teams comprised the samples of the study. The three schools were then randomly assigned to an experimental treatment group, a placebo treatment group and a control treatment group. Prior to the start of treatment(s) the. groups …

The Frontier Nursing Service As An Agent Of Change, Nancy Dammann

Walden Dissertations and Doctoral Studies

The purpose of this dissertation was to analyze the influence of the Frontier Nursing Service (FNS) on the area in which it operated. Mary Breckinridge founded the FNS in 1925 to demonstrate a method of delivering health care in an isolated rural area. She selected Leslie County in southeast Kentucky for its locale because of its isolation; there were no roads in the county and no licensed physicians.

The FNS program centered on nurse-midwives who provided health care from decentralized district clinics so situated that no family was more than an hour's horseback or jeep ride away. A hospital and …

To Determin Whether Or Not Significant Change In Spirituality Occurred In Persons Who Attended A Kubler-Ross Life, Death, And Transition Workshop During The Period June 1977 Through February 1979, John B. Alexander

Walden Dissertations and Doctoral Studies

The Problem. The problem was to determine whether or not significant change in spirituality occurred in people who attended a Life, Death, and Transition workshop during the period June 1977 through February 1979.

Procedures. To measure change in spirituality, an instrument, the Spirituality Change Survey, was designed and tested. The instrument, which contained seven open-ended items and eleven semantic differential items, was determined to have moderately high internal reliability, 0.759, based on Coefficient Alpha. Two forms of the instrument were used, Eighty-seven participants from two workshops responded to a pretest- posttest mode, while 157 participants from eleven additional workshops responded …