Thesis (Ed.D.)--Boston University / PLEASE NOTE: Boston University Libraries did not receive an Authorization To Manage form for this thesis or dissertation. It is therefore not openly accessible, though it may be available by request. If you are the author or principal advisor of this work and would like to request open access for it, please contact us at open-help@bu.edu. Thank you. / 2031-01-01

Thesis (M.S.)--Boston University by Beatriz Fernandez. Sargent College of Allied Health Professions. Dept. of Occupational Therapy. / PLEASE NOTE: Boston University Libraries did not receive an Authorization To Manage form for this thesis or dissertation. It is therefore not openly accessible, though it may be available by request. If you are the author or principal advisor of this work and would like to request open access for it, please contact us at open-help@bu.edu. Thank you. / The principle of proximo-distal direction of motor development is investigated in this study. Treatment of motor dysfunction has often been based upon the assumption that development occurs first in proximal muscle groups and then in distal groups. A longitudinal study was done on ten infants at five, seven, and nine months of age. Proximal and distal skills were measured and the relationship between them was studied. Two scales were used to assess the infant's reaching abilities (proximal skills), and prehension abilities (distal skills). The scales were developed by Loria (1978) and represented a combination of fmdings from studies done by Halverson (1931, 1932), Gesell and Amatruda (1947) and Kopp (1974). In Loria's scales (1980) unequal weight was given to the criteria used. In the present study however, the scales were modified so that each item was weighted equally. Both scales were used in this research, Loria's Original Scales and the new Adapted Scales. High positive correlations were found between proximal and distal scales of infant motor development at 5, 7, and 9 months of age. An exception was observed at the 9 months of age when using Loria's Original Scales, where results showed significantly lower correlations. However, when using the modified version of the scales, the correlations found suggest that both skills develop simultaneously or co-occur in infants at these ages. / 2031-01-01

A research report submitted to the Faculty of Health Sciences, University of the Witwatersrand, Johannesburg, in partial fulfillment of the requirements for the degree of Master of Science in Occupational Therapy Johannesburg, 2019 / Rugby, as a contact sport, has inherent risks of injury. Children and adolescents playing rugby at schoolboy level have a developing skeletal system and therefore injuries through this age of play may result in injuries to under-developed bones. This research study looked to identify whether the laws of rugby align to protect skeletal development of children and adolescents through law adaptations. Framework Analysis was used to develop a matrix which aligned the adapted laws of rugby with bone fusion ages. In future studies this can be used as a base for other areas of development and other sports. This matrix was further analysed to determine a severity rating scale and this scale identified some bones of the skull (occipital, sphenoid and zygomatic), upper limb (scapular, glenoid and clavicle) and lower limb (sacrum and pelvic girdle) as having a higher risk for severe injury. While these bones are at severe potential risk of injury it is important to note that only one measure of maturation was used and in future additional measures of maturation should be used. In conclusion, while the adapted laws of rugby do protect some bones of the developing skeletal system, they do not protect all of the developing bones of the skeletal system. The matrix could be used to guide future law makers in their endeavour of making the game of rugby safer for children and adolescents / MT 2020

Background: Child development in developing countries is often evaluated using assessment tools created for 'Western' settings. Recent work has demonstrated that, for certain developmental milestones, 'Western' tools may be inaccurate as they include items unfamiliar to children of different cultural settings. Methods: We used qualitative methods to gather information about normal development in an African setting. Ten village and two professional focus group discussions (FGDs) were conducted. We used purposive sampling methods to recruit groups of mothers, grandmothers and men in four areas of Southern Malawi for village FGDs. Separate FGDs were carried out with professionals working in areas relating to child development. A thematic content analysis established main patterns and themes and dissemination of results and continued feedback allowed for respondent validation and reflection of results. The information then gathered was used to create questions for a revised Malawian developmental assessment tool. Results: Social and gross motor milestones were the main focus of interest for village and professional FGDs with the latter creating new language and fine motor concepts. Social milestones highlighted included 'duties and chores', 'sharing' and 'taking up leadership roles'. Language milestones included 'reporting events' and 'shrugging to indicate no' and fine motor milestones included 'peeling bananas', 'sorting maize' and 'making patterns with bottle tops'. Intelligence was described in relation to social and community integrity rather than 'Western' concepts of numeracy and literacy. Conclusions: Concepts, ideas and language relating to normal development in a sub-Saharan African setting have been gathered in this study. These have been used to create items for a more culturally appropriate developmental assessment tool.

Attention-Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder (ADHD) is currently one of the most frequent problems for which children are referred to mental health clinics in this country, affecting approximately 3-5% of the childhood population. Although adequate assessment and identification of this disorder is imperative, most of the currently existing measures to assess for ADHD in children are inadequate . The present research study involved the development and content validation of a new behavior rating scale prototype for assessing ADHD in the school-age (K-12) population. This research was conducted in five distinct steps: (a) item development; (b) development of the prototype; (c) content validation by an expert panel; (d) evaluation of the prototype; and ( e) modification of the prototype. Initial behavioral descriptors were obtained from a comprehensive and systematic review of the literature related to ADHD in school-age children. Potential items were then reviewed by a panel of experts in the area of ADHD in children. A panel of teachers and a panel of parents rated the usability of the prototype and the overall quality of the items. Two different types of rating formats were developed to help determine, through the content validation and the usability ratings of the prototype, which rating format would be most appropriate and useful for the eventual users of the rating scale. A final version of the prototype was constructed, including the revised items, a rating scale format, instructions to the informant, questions regarding the demographic characteristics of the child being assessed, and a mixed order presentation of the items.

The purpose of this research was to determine parents and teenagers slang awareness and when this awareness begins to appear in the vocabulary of the younger generation. Two studies were construed to measure the intended purpose of t his research. Study A was conducted to determine if semantic influence and concept attainment of slang definitions would be greater for teenagers than that for adults. The instrument was an open ended word list consisting of 25 slang terms. Criterion for the selection of words was assessed by determining if each word used could be found in three of the five sources. They not only need to be present, but also have the same or related definition. It was thought that these words would be the ones generally accepted as having a universal meaning. These words were also characterized by having: Dictionary definition--The definition found in any abridged dictionary. Traditional slang definition--The general slang usage as indicated by the dictionary. Drug slang definition--The definition used in the drug culture. Study B was conducted to evaluate the terms used to determine at v1hat grade level these terms appear in the vocabulary of the younger generation. The sane word list used in Study A was used in Study B, only instead of writing a definition, subjects were asked to write next to each word, the first drug word that came to their mind in association to the stimulus word, and if they couldn't think of a drug word, then any word. The findings of Study A indicate that an interaction barrier of slang understanding does exist between parents and teenagers. A t-test was computed on the dictionary definitions of parents and teenagers, as was on each of the traditional slang and drug slang definitions. There was no significant differences in the understanding of dictionary meanings; however, both the traditional and drug slang were significant at beyond the .01 level. From the results of Study B, one can with some certainty depict the period that one begins understanding slang terminology , Though some Elementary subjects have a slang knowledge, the results suggest that from the Junior High on through College there is a steady increase of one's understanding of slang terms.

McCarthy's Draw-A- Child test was administered to 20 lower class and 20 middle class four-year-old children matched for age and sex. The purpose of the test was to find if socioeconomic class and sex differences effected the child's ability to draw a same sex figure. Analysis of results supported the theory that girls do better than boys. Analysis of socioeconomic differences suggests that lower-class children do not have the ability to draw as well as middle class children but the difference is not significant at the .O5 level. It was concluded that the McCarthy Draw-A-Child test measures the general drawing abilities which are influenced by life experiences.

The Metropolitan Readiness Test, 1964 edition, Form A, was administered to forty children who were enrolled in kindergarten classes in Logan, Utah, during the school year 1967-1968. Twenty of these children (nursery attenders) had attended the Utah State University Child Development Laboratory for at least two, but not more than three quarters with at l east half of this nursery experience being during the year preceding kindergarten. The other 20 children (non-attenders) had not experienced any type of pre-school or day care program prior to kindergarten. The two groups were matched by pairs on age, sex, kindergarten teacher and socio-economic level of the father. The sample of 40 included 12 pairs of boys and eight pairs of girls. The primary null hypothesis was rejected because the nursery attenders did significantly better (to the .05 level) on the Metropolitan Readiness Test than the non-attenders. In analyzing this result, sex was found to be an important variable. The boy nursery school attenders did significantly better (to the .01 level) than the boy nonattenders on the Metropolitan Readiness Test. There was no significant difference between the scores of the girl nursery attenders and the girl non-attenders although the nursery attenders tended to score higher on the Metropolitan Readiness Test. However, the secondary null hypothesis was held tenable. The variables of mother's education, mother working ouside of home, number of chi ldren in family and birth order position were not found to be significantly related to readiness.

The purpose of this study was to investigate the degree of similarity or differences between the attitudes of high school and college females toward family life and children. Data for this study were collected by administering a standardized questionnaire with 35 items to both groups of students. The students' responses were evaluated and each question analyzed separately. The findings of this study indicate that the responses of the college sample were more realistic than for the high school sample. Also the high school sample appeared to have more glamorous expectations of marriage than did the college sample.

The purpose of this study was to determine if the mothers' feelings of self-esteem influence her attitudes toward child behavior. Two groups were studied: One group of mothers who were receiving psychotherapy, and one group who were not. Data for this study were collected by individually interviewing twenty-five mothers who were receiving psychotherapy and twenty-five mothers who were not. The mothers were presented a standardized questionnaire with thirty-five items. The mothers' responses were evaluated and the two groups were compared. The findings of this study indicate that the mothers' feelings of self-esteem do influence her attitudes toward child behavior and that there is a difference in attitudes between mothers receiving psychotherapy and those who are not.