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2015

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Exploring The Epistemological And Practical Experiences Of Arts Practitioners Engaging With An Educational Development Programme, Jennie Winter, Colin Searls, Karen Treasure Jan 2015

Exploring The Epistemological And Practical Experiences Of Arts Practitioners Engaging With An Educational Development Programme, Jennie Winter, Colin Searls, Karen Treasure

School of Law, Humanities and Social Sciences

The aim of the project was to develop an understanding of the epistemological and practical experiences of Arts practitioners when engaging with an ED programme. Specifically the aims were threefold: • To explore the experiences of Arts practitioners engaging with an ED programme • To assess links between pedagogies and practices in ED and Arts disciplines • To provide recommendations for further development of ED programmes in ED and Arts disciplinesBackground/context to project: The rationale for this research was derived from recognition that Educational Development (ED) programmes are tasked with developing academics from all disciplines, which poses challenges for in–house …

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Discursive Designing Theory - Towards A Theory Of Designing Design -, Juergen Faust Jan 2015

Discursive Designing Theory - Towards A Theory Of Designing Design -, Juergen Faust

School of Art, Design and Architecture Theses

Discursive Designing Theory - Towards a Theory of Designing Design- Juergen Faust Motivated by the immature theoretical framework of design, this thesis employs transdisciplinary discourse to provide a contemporary and forward-looking model of design and design theory, as well as the linkages between the two, along with the necessary methodology. The discourse involves research into the current understanding of design, its principles, its practice and conceptual framework. The methodology developed and employed in this thesis can be outlined in five steps: 0. Design briefing 1. Developing a conceptual model based on the writings of Michel Foucault and Helmut Krippendorff. 2. …

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Subject And Aesthetic Interface - An Inquiry Into Transformed Subjectivities, Kathrine Elizabeth Lorena Johansson Jan 2015

Subject And Aesthetic Interface - An Inquiry Into Transformed Subjectivities, Kathrine Elizabeth Lorena Johansson

School of Art, Design and Architecture Theses

The present PhD-thesis seeks new definitions of human subjectivity in an age of technoscience and a networked, globalized, Information Society. The perspective presented relates to Philosophy of Science, which includes the Human, the Natural, the Social and the Life Sciences. The project is directed at addressing, and aims to participate in, the further development of Philosophy of Science, or rather, the philosophy of knowing, which leaves a perspective broader than that of science. Methodologically, I combine readings of technoetic artworks, which I approach from a hermeneutical-semiotic perspective, with transdisciplinary research into existing theory concerning the human subject. These readings form …

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A Postcolonial Critique Of Industrial Design: A Critical Evaluation Of The Relationship Of Culture And Hegemony To Design Practice And Education Since The Late 20th Century., Taslima Begum Jan 2015

A Postcolonial Critique Of Industrial Design: A Critical Evaluation Of The Relationship Of Culture And Hegemony To Design Practice And Education Since The Late 20th Century., Taslima Begum

School of Art, Design and Architecture Theses

A Postcolonial Critique of Industrial Design: A critical evaluation of the relationship of culture and hegemony to design practice and education since the late 20th century. This thesis specifically focuses on the professional practices and training of Western industrial designers using postcolonial theory to inform working practices in a complex global ecology. It investigates the culturally hegemonic construction of design solutions in man-made products. By adopting key ideas from postcolonial and cultural studies as a lens to evaluate fields of industrial design discourse, practice and pedagogy, the work proceeds from the premise that design is not intrinsic to a product …

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A Decision Support Framework For Selecting Innovative Sustainable Technologies For Delivering Low Carbon Retail Buildings, Syeda Dangana Jan 2015

A Decision Support Framework For Selecting Innovative Sustainable Technologies For Delivering Low Carbon Retail Buildings, Syeda Dangana

School of Art, Design and Architecture Theses

There is an urgent need to adopt innovative sustainable technologies (ISTs) to reduce energy consumption and carbon emissions whilst improving process efficiency of existing retail buildings, due to rising energy prices and the impacts of retail buildings on the environment. Despite their reported advantages, exhibited performance and numerous policies and legislations that encourage their adoption, there is a slow uptake of ISTs in the retail sector. This is due to the fact that the majority of stakeholders consider the task of selecting ISTs as a complex multi-attribute, multi-valued problem involving a large number of stakeholders with numerous, often conflicting objectives. …

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Automated Identification Of Neural Correlates Of Continuous Variables, Ian Daly, Faustina Hwang, Alexis Kirke, Asad Malik, James Weaver, Duncan Williams, Eduardo Miranda, Slawomir J. Nasuto Jan 2015

Automated Identification Of Neural Correlates Of Continuous Variables, Ian Daly, Faustina Hwang, Alexis Kirke, Asad Malik, James Weaver, Duncan Williams, Eduardo Miranda, Slawomir J. Nasuto

School of Art, Design and Architecture

No abstract provided.

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Music-Induced Emotions Can Be Predicted From A Combination Of Brain Activity And Acoustic Features, Ian Daly, Duncan Williams, James Hallowell, Faustina Hwang, Alexis Kirke, Asad Malik, James Weaver, Eduardo Miranda, Slawomir J. Nasuto Jan 2015

Music-Induced Emotions Can Be Predicted From A Combination Of Brain Activity And Acoustic Features, Ian Daly, Duncan Williams, James Hallowell, Faustina Hwang, Alexis Kirke, Asad Malik, James Weaver, Eduardo Miranda, Slawomir J. Nasuto

School of Art, Design and Architecture

No abstract provided.

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Developing Students’ Energy Literacy In Higher Education, D Cotton, W Miller, J Winter, I Bailey, S Sterling Jan 2015

Developing Students’ Energy Literacy In Higher Education, D Cotton, W Miller, J Winter, I Bailey, S Sterling

School of Geography, Earth and Environmental Sciences

No abstract provided.

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Real-Time Hallucination Simulation And Sonification Through User-Led Development Of An Ipad Augmented Reality Performance, Alexis Kirke, Joel Eaton, Eduardo Miranda Jan 2015

Real-Time Hallucination Simulation And Sonification Through User-Led Development Of An Ipad Augmented Reality Performance, Alexis Kirke, Joel Eaton, Eduardo Miranda

School of Art, Design and Architecture

The simulation of visual hallucinations has multiple applications. The authors present a new approach to hallucination simulation, initially developed for a performance, that proved to have uses for individuals suffering from certain types of hallucinations. The system, originally developed with a focus on the visual symptoms of palinopsia experienced by the lead author, allows real-time visual expression using augmented reality via an iPad. It also allows the hallucinations to be converted into sound through visuals sonification. Although no formal experimentation was conducted, the authors report on a number of unsolicited informal responses to the simulator from palinopsia sufferers and the …

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Community Resilience And Land Degradation In Forest And Shrubland Socio-Ecological Systems: Evidence From Gorgoglione, Basilicata, Italy, Claire Kelly, Agostino Ferrara, Geoff A. Wilson, Francesco Ripullone, Angelo Nolè, Nichola Harmer, Luca Salvati Jan 2015

Community Resilience And Land Degradation In Forest And Shrubland Socio-Ecological Systems: Evidence From Gorgoglione, Basilicata, Italy, Claire Kelly, Agostino Ferrara, Geoff A. Wilson, Francesco Ripullone, Angelo Nolè, Nichola Harmer, Luca Salvati

School of Geography, Earth and Environmental Sciences

Assessing the resilience of communities is assuming greater importance at a time of global economic upheaval, climatic and socio-demographic changes. The past 10–15 years have seen a significant increase in the number of studies addressing resilience issues at community level from a variety of perspectives,and although the resilience of communities in dealing with disturbance feature strongly in these studies, less work appears to have been undertaken at the interface between community resilience and land degradation. In addition, little attention has been paid to land degradation, desertification risk and community resilience at the forest–community interface, despite the fact that forest ecosystems …

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A Multi-Agent Emotional Society Whose Melodies Represent Its Emergent Social Hierarchy And Are Generated By Agent Communications, Alexis Kirke, Eduardo Miranda Jan 2015

A Multi-Agent Emotional Society Whose Melodies Represent Its Emergent Social Hierarchy And Are Generated By Agent Communications, Alexis Kirke, Eduardo Miranda

School of Art, Design and Architecture

No abstract provided.

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Delivering Zero Carbon Homes And Sustainable Communities: The Potential Of Group Self-Build Housing In England, Emma Elizabeth Heffernan Jan 2015

Delivering Zero Carbon Homes And Sustainable Communities: The Potential Of Group Self-Build Housing In England, Emma Elizabeth Heffernan

School of Art, Design and Architecture Theses

Concerns about anthropogenic climate change, fossil fuel depletion, energy security, and damage to our ecosystems are acting as a catalyst for action in many sectors of industry and society. One key sector which has been identified as crucial for addressing these issues is the building sector. Therefore, in the UK context, with the aim of reducing carbon dioxide emissions, the requirements for new homes in terms of their energy efficiency are becoming ever more stringent, leading to the introduction of the zero carbon homes standard from 2016. Alongside this, broader priorities for sustainable development have been established in the UK, …

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Capturing The City: Part Of The Portfolio Memory City, B Momchedjikova, I Rae, T Milbrandt Jan 2015

Capturing The City: Part Of The Portfolio Memory City, B Momchedjikova, I Rae, T Milbrandt

School of Art, Design and Architecture

Introduction to the book Capturing the City translated by Jorge De La Barre, Universidade Federal Fluminense, Rio, Brazil Antropolítica: Revista Contemporânea de Antropologia, n. 38 (2015) http://www.revistas.uff.br/index.php/antropolitica/article/view/333/pdf

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Soils And Interventions, Linus Lancaster Jan 2015

Soils And Interventions, Linus Lancaster

School of Art, Design and Architecture Theses

Linus Lancaster Soils and Interventions Dissertation Abstract The problem that I have identified during my research for this dissertation is the quantifiable depletion and exhaustion of large percentages of the world's soils through human activity in agriculture and other industrial practices. In the course of researching this problem I have looked closely at some of the primary causes, and a range of proposed and applied solutions in the field of ecology. The primary focus of the research has been in looking at how artists have responded to ecological issues and have engaged in environmental activism in their practices. Integral to …

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Icts And Technical Agency: A Case Study Of A Rural Brazilian Community, Lorena Melgaço, Katharine S. Willis Jan 2015

Icts And Technical Agency: A Case Study Of A Rural Brazilian Community, Lorena Melgaço, Katharine S. Willis

School of Art, Design and Architecture

This paper explores the role of information and communication technologies (ICTs) in rural, marginalised communities. We explore Feenberg's concept of technical agency in order to understand the ways in which technological capacity might contribute to community development. We discuss three conditions of technical agency as outlined by Feenberg: power, knowledge and appropriate occasion. We consider how this framework might enable an approach to understanding the role of ICTS in the particular socio-spatial contexts in marginalised communities. In order to test Feenberg's approach, we discuss a case study of a village in rural Brazil: Noiva do Cordeiro. The community is recognised …

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Accountability Practices Of Islamic Banks: A Stakeholders' Perspective, Sherif Ismail Jan 2015

Accountability Practices Of Islamic Banks: A Stakeholders' Perspective, Sherif Ismail

Plymouth Business School Theses

This study explores the concept of accountability in Islamic Banks (IB), which may achieve through disclosure. It aims to measuring the bank’s disclosure levels which contains Sharia, Social and Financial (SSF) as well as determinants and consequences of this disclosure. It moreover aims to identify the gap between Islamic banks’ board and stakeholders concerned with the accountabilities priorities of IBs. To achieve these objectives the researcher conducted six empirical studies. The first three empirical studies uses content analysis to measuring compliance level with Accounting and Auditing Organization for Islamic Financial Institutions (AAOIFI) standards as well as measuring the and sharia, …

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Informativeness Of Unaudited Forward-Looking Financial Disclosure: Evidence From Uk Narrative Reporting, Ahmed Hassanein Jan 2015

Informativeness Of Unaudited Forward-Looking Financial Disclosure: Evidence From Uk Narrative Reporting, Ahmed Hassanein

Plymouth Business School Theses

Forward-looking financial disclosure (FLFD) is potentially uninformative if it does not change from the previous year, especially after a significant change in firm performance. This study uses a sample of UK narrative statements of the annual reports over the period from 2005 to 2011. It employed the automated content analysis technique to measure change in FLFD over years to answer three research questions. First, to what extent does change in firms’ earnings performance drive managers to change FLFD over years? Second, what are the other drivers of the change of FLFD from year to year? Third, do investors use information …

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A Time Series Analysis Of Private And Public Investment In Iraq’S Economic Growth Process (1970 – 2010), Jwan Hussein Jan 2015

A Time Series Analysis Of Private And Public Investment In Iraq’S Economic Growth Process (1970 – 2010), Jwan Hussein

Plymouth Business School Theses

Abstract: Since the 1980s, there has been growing recognition among developing countries that an essential foundation for sustainable growth is capital investment, both public and private. While Iraq is an oil-rich country, with substantial oil revenue, only a small proportion of it has been allocated to importing the capital that is most needed, while the rest has mainly been used for consumption purposes. The effects of the oil-driven state development, conflicts, sanctions, high unemployment and delayed reforms have significantly shaped Iraq’s economy and limited the potential for private-sector-led growth over the past 40 years. This conclusion is worrying for a …

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Determinants Of Capital Structure: The Case Of Mena Countries, Mansour Saleh Albarrak Jan 2015

Determinants Of Capital Structure: The Case Of Mena Countries, Mansour Saleh Albarrak

Plymouth Business School Theses

This thesis examines the determinants of capital structure in the MENA coun- tries. The main interest is to investigate both financial firms specially banks and non-financial firms. This study test the main theories of capital structure, namely: trade off theory and pecking order theory. The countries included in this thesis are Saudi Arabia, United Arab Emirates (Include both Abo-Dhabi and Dubai stock indexes), Bahrain, Qatar, Kuwait, Oman, Egypt, Morocco, Tunisia, Palestine and Jor- dan. The characteristics it covers as suggested by previous literature are tangibility, profitability, risk, debt tax shield, growth, dividends,size, cash flow and liquidity. It will also investigate …

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The Impact Of Exchange Rate, Interest Rate And Oil Price Fluctuations On Stock Returns Of Gcc Listed Companies, Marim Alenezi Jan 2015

The Impact Of Exchange Rate, Interest Rate And Oil Price Fluctuations On Stock Returns Of Gcc Listed Companies, Marim Alenezi

Plymouth Business School Theses

Exchange rate risk, interest rate risk and oil price fluctuations are the most demonstrated risks in the GCC (Gulf Cooperation Council) countries (Arouri and Nguyen, 2010). Research, however, in this area is still underdeveloped. The importance of this study is to contribute to this research gap. This research aims to show how these three risks affect firms' market values by examining 473 listed firms in Bahrain, Kuwait, Oman, Qatar, Saudi Arabia and United Arab Emirates for the period January 2007 to June 2012. The research further examines the determinants of these risks. The study uses the AR (1) EGARCH-M model. …

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Government Export Promotion Programmes And Firms’ Export Behaviour: Exploring The Indirect Link. The Case Of Uk & Algerian Manufacturing Firms, Mohamed Yacine Haddoud Jan 2015

Government Export Promotion Programmes And Firms’ Export Behaviour: Exploring The Indirect Link. The Case Of Uk & Algerian Manufacturing Firms, Mohamed Yacine Haddoud

Plymouth Business School Theses

It has been recognised that exporting is an engine for growth at both country and firm levels. However, the challenging nature of international business often prevents companies from entering and surviving in international markets. In the Small and Medium-size Business context, lack of resource is normally the main reason behind the inability of firms to overcome export barriers. In recognition of the issue and for promoting exporting, the governments have been offering the so-called Government Export Promotion Programmes (GEPPs) to act as “resource supplements”. While there have been extensive practices, the mechanism and effectiveness of these programmes have not been …

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Effect Of Ownership Structure On Firm Stock Returns And Financial Performance:Evidence From The Egyptian Stock Market, Amal Elghouti Jan 2015

Effect Of Ownership Structure On Firm Stock Returns And Financial Performance:Evidence From The Egyptian Stock Market, Amal Elghouti

Plymouth Business School Theses

The effect of institutional ownership and ownership concentration on the firm’s stock returns and volatility and financial performance has long been an interesting issue in the international business literature. A lot of debate has been going on regarding the relationship between institutional ownership, ownership concentration, returns, volatility and financial performance. The objective of this thesis is to study the effect of institutional ownership and ownership concentration on firm stock returns and financial performance of the listed companies in the Egyptian Stock Exchange. For this purpose, panel data model is employed. The results from the analysis show that institutional ownership has …

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Britons Abroad Or European Citizens? The Negotiation Of (Trans)National Space And Citizenship By British Migrants In France, Fiona Ferbrache, Richard Yarwood Jan 2015

Britons Abroad Or European Citizens? The Negotiation Of (Trans)National Space And Citizenship By British Migrants In France, Fiona Ferbrache, Richard Yarwood

School of Geography, Earth and Environmental Sciences

No abstract provided.

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The Relational Geographies Of Policing And Security, Richard Yarwood, Till Paasche Jan 2015

The Relational Geographies Of Policing And Security, Richard Yarwood, Till Paasche

School of Geography, Earth and Environmental Sciences

AbstractThis paper considers the roles of policing and security in the geographies of everyday public and semi‐public space. We contend that while security is concerned with territory, policing relates to place. We consider the relationship between security and territory before examining the relationship between policing and place. In the final section, we argue that a relational view of space is needed to understand how practices of policing and security shape space and, in turn, the lives of people using it.

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‘Feed-Forward: Exploring The Staff And Student Experience Of Technology Facilitated Feedback - Can Technology Support And Engage Staff And Students In Dialogic Feedback?’, R Lowes, E Purnell, Helen Bowstead Jan 2015

‘Feed-Forward: Exploring The Staff And Student Experience Of Technology Facilitated Feedback - Can Technology Support And Engage Staff And Students In Dialogic Feedback?’, R Lowes, E Purnell, Helen Bowstead

School of Law, Humanities and Social Sciences

Aims of project: to explore the use of new feedback processes within four module groups in the Plymouth Business School; to evaluate how two of the institutionally provided learning technologies, Moodle and PebblePad, could support and enhance the online feedback experience for staff/students.Background/context to project: ELC101, ELC201, ELC305 and ELC307 are four English language modules where we seek to develop students’ capacity to self-regulate and develop strategies for autonomous learning, in order to further the development of their English language skills. We have noted over the years that students do not seem to engage with feedback as much as we …

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Evaluating The Impact Of Cross Professional Peer Tutoring Among Nursing And Physiotherapy Students, F Mcleod, Caroline Jamison, K Young, Karen Treasure Jan 2015

Evaluating The Impact Of Cross Professional Peer Tutoring Among Nursing And Physiotherapy Students, F Mcleod, Caroline Jamison, K Young, Karen Treasure

School of Nursing and Midwifery

This project aims to evaluate the impact of two peer tutored practical workshops designed to enhance clinical skills and inter-professional understanding among nursing and physiotherapy students. The tutors are student volunteers from the Stage Two physiotherapy and nursing programmes (K-Spa, Truro campus). The workshops are timetabled activities previously delivered by lecturing staff. The content was developed and led by students, but guided and supervised by academic staff.Objectives:1. To inform future teaching practice by enhancing the evidence base associated with inter-professional peer-tutoring 2. To develop recommendations that will inform future developments associated with this initiative

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Serotonin Stimulates Secretion Of Exosomes From Microglia Cells, K Glebov, M Löchner, R Jabs, T Lau, O Merkel, P Schloss, C Steinhäuser, J Walter Jan 2015

Serotonin Stimulates Secretion Of Exosomes From Microglia Cells, K Glebov, M Löchner, R Jabs, T Lau, O Merkel, P Schloss, C Steinhäuser, J Walter

Peninsula Medical School

Microglia are resident immune cells in the brain and exert important functions in the regulation of inflammatory processes during infection or cellular damage. Upon activation, microglia undergo complex morphological and functional transitions, including increased motility, phagocytosis and cytokine secretion. Recent findings indicate that exosomes, small vesicles that derive from fusion of multivesicular bodies with the plasma membrane, are involved in secretion of certain cytokines. The presence of specific receptors on the surface of microglia suggests communication with neurons by neurotransmitters. Here, we demonstrate expression of serotonin receptors, including 5‐HT2a,b and 5‐HT4 in microglial cells and their functional involvement in the …

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Making A Difference: An Interdisciplinary Social Engagement Project, Richard Ayres, Maria Tighe, Sebastian Stevens Jan 2015

Making A Difference: An Interdisciplinary Social Engagement Project, Richard Ayres, Maria Tighe, Sebastian Stevens

Peninsula Medical School

In Sept 2013 the Plymouth Peninsula Schools of Medicine and Dentistry enrolled its first students. From the beginning this new Plymouth-based medical school set out be distinctive and to enshrine our parent University principles in the curriculum that we offer. We decided that the term “making a difference” could be used both to summarize our mission as a medical and dental school, and to characterise the individual student experience that we offer.- The school as a whole would make a difference to the health and wellbeing of our population - Every student will be able to ‘make a difference’ during …

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The Use Of Virtual Patients To Promote Inter-Professional Learning For Medical And Dental Students, Hisham Khalil, Arunangsu Chatterjee, Ruth Endacott, Mel Joyner, Mahrukh Mirza Jan 2015

The Use Of Virtual Patients To Promote Inter-Professional Learning For Medical And Dental Students, Hisham Khalil, Arunangsu Chatterjee, Ruth Endacott, Mel Joyner, Mahrukh Mirza

Peninsula Medical School

The aim of the project is to develop a shared learning resource for nursing and medical students to promote inter-professional learning.Background/context to project:Virtual Patients (VP) are being developed with medical and nursing students to be used as a resource to promote inter-professional learning and patient safety. The main emphasis is on the use of VP to promote good practice in relation to medical ward rounds. The joint document by the Royal College of Physicians and the Royal College of Nursing “Ward rounds in Medicine, Principles for best practice” has been used as a guide to develop the themes.(1)There is no …

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Effectiveness Of Dance Movement Therapy On Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder Children Aged Between 6-12 Years, Shilpa J Ms, Asha P. Shetty Dr Jan 2015

Effectiveness Of Dance Movement Therapy On Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder Children Aged Between 6-12 Years, Shilpa J Ms, Asha P. Shetty Dr

Manipal Journal of Nursing and Health Sciences

Introduction: Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder (ADHD) is one of the most common behaviour disorders of childhood. Mental health and school practitioners are increasingly faced with the challenge of assessing children and adolescents who might have ADHD. The purpose of the study was to assess the effectiveness of dance movement therapy (DMT) among ADHD children. Methods: Data collection was done using demographic proforma; SNAP IV rating scale and an opinionnaire. Results: Analysis revealed post-test teacher and parent mean scores were significantly lower than the pre-test teacher and parent mean scores i.e. the t-value for teacher is t(29)=16.81 and for parent is …

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