Digital Commons Network^™

Study Of Sexually Transmitted Infections Among Urban Men In Pakistan: Identifying The Bridging Population, Ali M. Mir, Laura Reichenbach, Abdul Wajid, Mumraiz Khan

Reproductive Health

Pakistan currently has low levels of HIV infection, however the country is considered at high potential risk for an HIV epidemic. In major cities there are large concentrations of individuals whose behaviors make them extremely vulnerable to the rapid spread of HIV and of classical sexually transmitted infections (STIs), including male and female sex workers, men who have sex with men, and injecting drug users. HIV can spread to the general population through individuals who have contact with both high-risk groups and the general heterosexual population (the “bridging population”). Identifying the bridging population and bridging behaviors among urban men and …

Assessment Of Knowledge And Attitudes Of Married Women On Maternal And Newborn Health (Mnh) In Selected Union Councils Of Project Districts, Pakistan Initiative For Mothers And Newborns (Paiman)

Reproductive Health

The World Health Organization estimates that 585,000 women die from pregnancy-related conditions each year. Pregnancy-related conditions, including dysfunctional labor, hemorrhage, infection, toxemia, and unsafe abortion, are the leading cause of death among women of reproductive age in many developing countries. The Pakistan Initiative for Mothers and Newborns (PAIMAN) is a five-year project funded by USAID. Its goal is to reduce maternal and newborn mortality in Pakistan, through viable initiatives and capacity building of existing programs and structures within health systems and communities to ensure improvements and supportive linkages in the continuum of health care for women from the home to …

Assessing Routine Health Information System In Selected Paiman Districts By Using Lot Quality Assurance Sampling (Lqas) Technique, Pakistan Initiative For Mothers And Newborns (Paiman)

Reproductive Health

The Pakistan Initiative for Mothers and Newborns (PAIMAN) is a five-year project funded by USAID. Its goal is to reduce maternal and newborn mortality in Pakistan through viable initiatives and capacity building of existing programs and structures within health systems and communities to ensure improvements and supportive linkages in the continuum of health care for women from the home to the hospital. PAIMAN is compiling data from three data sources and making efforts to improve the functioning of these Health Information Systems (HISs) for efficient management of health services at the district level through generation of quality data and their …

Stages Of Progression In Drug Abuse Involvement Across Generations In Jeddah, Saudi Arabia, Medhat M. Bassiony

Neurosciences

OBJECTIVE: To investigate the stages of progression in drug involvement among adolescents and adults in Saudi Arabia. METHODS: One hundred and one consecutive male patients (91 adults and 10 adolescents), with substance abuse or dependence according to DSM-IV criteria, admitted to Al-Amal Hospital in Jeddah, Saudi Arabia, during July and August 2002 for treatment, were included in the study. All participants answered a questionnaire, which included questions pertaining to the ages and stages of progression in drug abuse. RESULTS: Adolescents started using tobacco and drugs at a younger age than adults. The difference is statistically significant for drugs (14.6 +/- …

Brain Death Criteria. The Neurological Determination Of Death, Mohammed M. Jan

Neurosciences

Brain death implies the permanent absence of all cerebral and brainstem functions. The diagnosis of brain death is usually made clinically. The criteria require the occurrence of acute and irreversible CNS insult. Drug intoxication, poisoning, metabolic derangements, and hypothermia should be corrected for accurate brain death evaluation. At least 2 expert examiners are required to make the brain death determination. It is advisable to involve an independent examiner not involved in the patients care or the recovery of donated organs. The objective of this article is to present updated guidelines for the process of brain death determination. All brain and …

Longwood University Catalog 2008-2009, Longwood University

Undergraduate Catalogs

No abstract provided.

Civic Habits: A Predictive Model Of Volunteer Behavior, Susan G. White

Theses and Dissertations

The findings of this research indicate that volunteering is influenced by a number of factors, one of which is gender. The data used in this study reveal a different profile of the volunteer than is presented in much of the research on volunteering, which tends to profile the "most likely" volunteer as female, employed by the public sector, possessing a higher education and having children. The questions addressed in this research are: 1) What are the contextual effects of volunteering and 2) Is there a relationship of one or more of these effects to gender? The findings indicate men in …

Family Support Within A Child Care Centre: A Case Study, Rikki Maynard

Theses : Honours

This review explored the effects of stress in the family environment and the role that family support plays in reducing this stress. Specifically, research concerning the role that child care workers play in providing support to families who utilise their services was examined. The literature showed that there are many stressors facing families today and that the experience of stress in the family environment can have a detrimental effect on children's developmental outcomes. While the literature showed that experiencing social support can reduce stress in the family environment, it was also found that many families face isolation from such forms …

Host Community Acculturation Expectations Toward Immigrant Groups; An Evaluation Of Theoretical Models, Perspectives, And Factors Encouraging The Development Of Multicultural Societies, Carmen Vakis

Theses : Honours

The ability of immigrants to integrate into a new society is dependent on a number of factors including the strength of an immigrant's ethnic identity, willingness of the immigrant to accept the beliefs, values, and cultural practices of the host society, and attitudes of members of the host society toward immigrants. This paper reviews research on attitudes toward immigration, in relation to theoretical approaches including Berry's (2003) model of acculturation expectations. Factors discussed throughout this review as contributing to host community acceptance of immigrants include cultural awareness and understanding, preconceived misconceptions and stereotypes, and perceptions of threat to resources and …

Gender Composition Of Sociological Publications : A Content Analysis Of Scholarly Journals, Lynette L. Neppel

Theses and Dissertations

No abstract provided.

Testing For Heteroskedasticity And Serial Correlation In A Random Effects Panel Data Model, Badi H. Baltagi, Byoung Cheol Jung, Seuck Heun Song

Center for Policy Research

This paper considers a panel data regression model with heteroskedastic as well as serially correlated disturbances, and derives a joint LM test for homoskedasticity and no first order serial correlation. The restricted model is the standard random individual error component model. It also derives a conditional LM test for homoskedasticity given serial correlation, as well as a conditional LM test for no first order serial correlation given heteroskedasticity, all in the context of a random effects panel data model. Monte Carlo results show that these tests, along with their likelihood ratio alternatives, have good size and power under various forms …

Financial Development And Openness: Evidence From Panel Data, Badi H. Baltagi, Panicos O. Demetriades, Siong Hook Law

Center for Policy Research

This paper addresses the empirical question of whether trade and financial openness can help explain the recent pace in financial development, as well as its variation across countries in recent years. Utilizing annual data from developing and industrialized countries and dynamic panel estimation techniques, we provide evidence which suggests that both types of openness are statistically significant determinants of banking sector development. Our findings reveal that the marginal effects of trade (financial) openness are negatively related to the degree of financial (trade) openness, indicating that relatively closed economies stand to benefit most from opening up their trade and/or capital accounts. …

Public School Choice And Integration: Evidence From Durham, North Carolina, Robert Bifulco, Helen F. Ladd, Stephen Ross

Center for Policy Research

Using evidence from Durham, North Carolina, we examine the impact of school choice programs on racial and class-based segregation across schools. Theoretical considerations suggest that how choice programs affect segregation will depend not only on the family preferences emphasized in the sociology literature but also on the linkages between student composition, school quality and student achievement emphasized in the economics literature. Reasonable assumptions about the distribution of preferences over race, class, and school characteristics suggest that the segregating choices of students from advantaged backgrounds are likely to outweigh any integrating choices by disadvantaged students. The results of our empirical analysis …

Attitudes Toward Teacher Styles And Teaching Styles In An International Business Management Program: Case Study Comparison, Ruchirat Patanathabutr

EDU-COM International Conference

The researcher utilized a descriptive method of research, and the data was interpreted, analysed, discussed and presented by using the descriptive-analytical one. The objective was to identify the teacher styles and the teaching styles that encourage lifelong learning in an International Business Management (IBM) program comparing a native English-speaking university (Whitworth University, USA) with a non-native English-speaking one (Payap University, Thailand). The results showed that satisfactory teacher styles and teaching styles encouraged students toward lifelong learning. The styles have to be equally balanced between teacher styles: teacher-oriented method, task participation of students, and independent study, and teaching styles: based on …

Teacher‟S Autonomy Support And Esl Classroom Engagement: The Road Less Traveled, Rajaletchumi Thaliah, Rosna Awang Hashim

EDU-COM International Conference

This study investigated the construct of Teacher Autonomy Support Scale (TASS) in the context of ESL classroom in Malaysia and how it influenced student‘s classroom engagement. The sample comprised 378 students from 14 day schools in a rural area. An empirical study (N=378) was conducted to explore aspects of reliability and validity of the TASS. Confirmatory Factor Analysis via AMOS (7.0) showed evidence of convergent validity of the newly developed scale. A covariance structural analysis shows that teacher‘s autonomy support is a significant predictor for cognitive and behavioural engagement for students in ESL classroom.

Race And Resistance In The Communication Classroom, Paul Fotsch

Basic Communication Course Annual

Teaching diversity is no longer segregated to ethnic studies departments or to intercultural communication courses. Consequently, many students have become resistant to the idea of spending time--"yet again"--on the issue of race. Communication scholars have described a kind of resistance found frequently in the basic communication classroom and likewise proposed various responses to this resistance. Through a review of the literature and drawing on my ten years of experience teaching diversity in the university, this essay assesses these responses. One source of white student discomfort comes from the increasing visibility of whiteness, so two strategies used to address this discomfort …

Breast Health Behavior Among Lesbians: The Role Of Health Beliefs, Heterosexism, And Homophobia, Dana Dehart

Faculty and Staff Publications

The Health Belief Model was used as a conceptual framework for exploring how health beliefs and perceptions of heterosexism and homophobia in health care relate to lesbians' breast health behaviors, including use of breast exams and mammograms, visits to health care providers, and use of complementary/alternative care. A total of 173 exclusively homosexual women completed survey measures assessing health beliefs, experiences of heterosexism/homophobia, and health maintenance behaviors as these related to breast health. Findings indicated that women perceived heterosexism and homophobia from providers to influence the amount of discussion they had with providers and, to a lesser extent, care received, …

Agricultural Systems: Agroecology And Rural Innovations For Development, Edited By Sieglinde Snapp And Barry Pound [Book Review], Charles A. Francis

Department of Agronomy and Horticulture: Faculty Publications

To welcome yet another book on sustainable development, a reviewer must look for what is unique and what adds value to the volumes already published. In Agricultural Systems, editors Sieglinde Snapp and Barry Pound have assembled a collection of chapters that goes beyond the usual praise and criticism of the green revolution and the focus on economic development. Their book provides a first-hand story by people with lengthy experiences in the field, especially in Africa, who have developed and tested grassroots, participatory development approaches. The result is a valuable set of principles, strategies and case studies that paint a new …

Fabrication And Evaluation Of Specialty Nonwoven Materials, Nan Jiang

LSU Doctoral Dissertations

The present work is to develop multifunctional materials with high performance on chemical absorption, adsorption and on acoustic absorption and insulation using natural fiber nonwovens via carbonization and activation. Evaluation of these textile materials includes tensile strength, thermogravimetric analysis, sound absorption and transmission loss, scanning electronic microscopy and surface properties. Carbonization of cotton nonwoven was carried out in a high temperature oven with nitrogen between 300 °C and 500 °C. The physical activation was undertaken using CO2. The N2 adsorpton isotherm curves of the cotton nonwoven showed the presence of micropores and macropores. High BET surface area and average pore …

Differing Immigrant Wages: Causes For Differences In Immigrants Standards Of Living, Sahana Zutshi

Empirical Economic Bulletin, An Undergraduate Journal

This paper looks at the relationship between immigration workers and their differing standards of living based on various variables. The variables chosen were gender, place of origin/ethnicity, number of years living in the United States, education level and finally, the age of the immigrants. The model incorporates all these variables and then finds the connection between them and the earning status of the immigrants. The results show that gender and ethnicity often impact the earnings negatively whereas age, number of years living in the US and education level impact immigrant earnings positively.

An Analysis Of The Female Labor Force Participation Rate In The U.S. 1980-2004, Larry Martins

Empirical Economic Bulletin, An Undergraduate Journal

This research uses census data from the Bureau of Labor Statistics to examine the female labor force participation from 1980 to 2004. These statistics are used to find the determinants of women’s decisions to enter the job market. The purpose of studying the female involvement in the labor force is to illustrate if females are still having trouble in the market. This article also reviews historical labor force statistics to determine how the labor force has changed and which factors have affected its changes between 1980 and 2004. The model, estimated with U.S. data, has provided empirical support for the …

Early Cumulative Caregiver Sensitivity And Its Relationship With Children's Later Perceptions Of Peer And Maternal Acceptance, Loredana Apavaloaie

LSU Master's Theses

The study examined the possibility of relationships between caregiver sensitivity across multiple caregivers during the child’s first three years of life and both children’s later perceived peer acceptance and children’s later perceived maternal acceptance. Data were collected from 26 children, aged between 5 and 8-years old, and the 32 unique caregivers that the children had experienced during their first 36 months in child care. Assessments were made using the Pictorial Scale of Perceived Competence and Social Acceptance for Young Children (PSPC, Harter & Pike, 1984) and the Caregiver Interaction Scale (CIS, Arnett, 1989). Correlations were calculated among the 7 primary …

Perspectives On The Post-Degree Supervision Needs Of Ontario Social Workers, Heather Jane Hair

Theses and Dissertations (Comprehensive)

The dominant contemporary post-degree supervision literature reflects a long held belief that social workers employed in various practice settings need a combination of further education, support, and administrative guidance from someone more expert than themselves. In spite of these claims, a noticeable gap in knowledge is learning what, if anything, social workers need from supervision to help them provide effective services.

My particular interest is post-degree supervision within the social work landscape of Canada. I chose to focus this research project on the supervision needs of social workers in Ontario, the province where I have spent many years working as …

Protecting Minors From Online Pornography Without Violating The First Amendment: Mandating An Affirmative Choice, Robert A. Gomez

SMU Science and Technology Law Review

No abstract provided.

Is She Chinese Or American? On The Identity Communication Patterns Between Caucasian Parents And Their Adopted Chinese Daughters In The U.S., May H. Gao, Deanna F. Womack

Faculty Articles

This study explored patterns of identity communication between Caucasian parents and their adopted Chinese daughters. As they grow up in "biracial" and "bicultural" families, adoptees must integrate multiple identities of being "ethnically Chinese," "culturally American," "female," "abandoned," and "adopted." Using qualitative methods, the researchers conducted 1-1 ½ hour in-depth interviews of adoptive parents to identify communication patterns and strategies used to create and manage the bicultural identities of their Chinese daughters.

The Fusion Model Of Instructional Design: A Proposed Model For Faculty Development Programs In Technology Integration, Lori C. Soule

LSU Doctoral Dissertations

University faculty are increasingly challenged to integrate technology into their teaching to meet the needs of technology-savvy students today. The purpose of this dissertation is to introduce and examine an instructional design model, the Fusion Model of Instructional Design, for designing and implementing more effective faculty development programs in technology integration. The model builds on positive aspects of participatory design (Vincini, 2001), rapid prototyping (Tripp & Bichelmeyer, 1990), and Keller’s (1983) ARCS model of motivation. Key characteristics of the Fusion Model are participation of early adopters in the design and implementation of training, recursive training of early adopters first and …

Destructive Behavior Among Adolescents: The Role Of Social Integration In The Academic Institution, Matthew E. Wilkinson

LSU Doctoral Dissertations

This study explores the relationships between the social environment of the academic institution and the self-destructive behavior of the students within it. My approach combines elements of strain and social control theories to expand the concept of social integration and its importance in influencing adolescent deviant behavior; I include theories of identity, efficacy and locus of control, and self-concept in my theoretical model. My primary focus is on the importance of social integration in anchoring the individual into the social environment, providing him/her with pro-social sources for identity, efficacy, and social support. For students, the social environment of the school …

The Rhetorical Myth Of The Athlete As A Moral Hero: The Implications Of Steroids In Sport And The Threatened Myth, Karen L. Hartman

LSU Doctoral Dissertations

This research analyzes changes in the rhetoric of a sustaining myth in order to better assess what happens when a myth is threatened. By examining American sport and its current struggle to withstand the widespread use of steroids, the author investigates how public discourse about the scandal turns athletes from mythical heroes to cheaters. The author begins by explicating the rhetorical construction of the athlete as a moral hero in America and how this myth is perpetuated today. The author then examines how steroids threaten the myth of the moral athlete and uses Major League Baseball as a case study …

Development And Validation Of The Adolescent Routines Questionnaire: Parent And Self-Report, Kara Meyer

LSU Doctoral Dissertations

The popular parenting literature often has stressed the importance of establishing predictable routines in the lives of young children. In addition, routines as a part of parenting treatment packages have been shown to reduce child behavior problems, as well as disruptive meal and bedtime behavior. Establishing homework routines can lead to increased cooperation and work completion during homework as well as classroom preparedness. Furthermore, empirical literature suggests that the presence of routines is related to overall child health and adherence to medical regimens. Although promising new instruments have been developed to assess daily routines in preschool and school-aged children, none …

New Media In New Democracies: Perceptions Of Good Governance Among Traditional And Internet-Based Media Users In Kyrgyzstan, Svetlana Viktorovna Kulikova

LSU Doctoral Dissertations

This dissertation explores the potential and role of the Internet-based media in the Kyrgyz Republic’s political processes after the 2005 March Revolution. It uses a model of interaction between the government and citizens through various types of realities: the reality constructed and imposed by the state-controlled media, the reality created by alternative, independent sources of information online, and the realities experienced by citizens in their daily lives. The model pulled together various theories from political science, sociology, psychology, and mass communication and focused on the exit-voice-loyalty options available for the citizens in response to governance practices. The research project uses …