In the past several years, IMU's have been widely used to measure the orientation of a moving body over a continuous period of time. Although, inertial navigation is a common approach for estimating the orientation, it greatly suffers from the accumulation of error in the orientation estimation. Most of the current common practices apply zero velocity update as a calibration method to address this problem and improve the estimation accuracy. However, this approach requires the sensors to be stationary frequently. This thesis introduces a novel method of calibration for estimating the elevation and bank angles of the orientation over a persistent human movement utilizing accelerometers and gyroscopes. The proposed technique incorporates the prior knowledge about the human motion to the estimation of the orientation to prevent the estimated position from growing unboundedly. The measurement model is designed to estimate the position for T seconds in the future. The knowledge of the estimated position for few seconds further in the future provides a feedback for orientation estimation during the periods of time when the accelerometer's readings are significantly deviated from gravity. This work evaluates the performance of the proposed method in two different ways: 1. a model of human movement is designed to generate synthetic data which resembles human motion. 2. an experimental design is implemented using a robot arm and an actual IMU to capture real data. The performance of the new technique is compared with the results from the inertial navigation approach. It is demonstrated that the new method significantly improves the accuracy of the orientation estimation.

African Americans who identify as gay, lesbian, bisexual, and transgender (GLBT) are discriminated against in the African American community. Sociodemographics such as income, education, age, and religion/spirituality have been shown to be associated with sexual prejudice. There is limited research on how African American cultural attitudes influence attitudes towards sexual orientation. The purpose of this study was to examine the extent to which demographic variables and African American cultural attitudes (measured by the African American Acculturation Scale-Revised; AAAS-R) predict attitudes toward sexual orientation in African American adults (measured by the Attitudes towards Lesbians and Gay Men Scale; ATLG). Social identity theory (SIT) was used to describe how group affiliation influences attitudes. A sample of African Americans who were 18 years or older (n = 236) completed the questionnaires online. Stepwise multiple regression analyses were conducted to examine the relative importance of demographics and cultural attitudes in predicting attitudes towards homosexuals and lesbians. The results of the study indicated that religious affiliation and religious beliefs and practices were statistically significant in predicting attitudes towards both homosexual and lesbian individuals. These findings suggest that individuals who identify as Christians and have stronger religious beliefs and practices are more likely to have negative attitudes towards lesbians and gay men. These results lend support to efforts to create programs to educate people about cultural misconceptions of the African American GLBT community and to encourage spiritual leaders to promote efforts support to them.

Nurses are often promoted or hired into leadership positions without the benefit of a formal orientation to their new leadership positions. The challenge of navigating the various expectations of the role of clinical nurse leader (CNL) such as fiscal ownership, staffing patterns, payroll, and disciplinary action process can be overwhelming. The lack of a formalized orientation process and an identified nurse leader to function as a mentor can contribute to the novice CNL feeling unsupported and overwhelmed. The purpose of this project was to identify, develop, and evaluate a CNL orientation manual, outline, and program for newly appointed CNLs. The desired outcome for this doctor of nursing practice project was the education and preparation of CNLs who will navigate the various facets of the role and retain their positions longterm. The Association of Nurse Executives nurse leader model was used to guide the project. A panel of 5 CNL experts evaluated the manual outline and content using a 5-question Likert scale survey. Findings indicated 100% of the participants agreed or strongly agreed with the importance of the topics covered and 80% agreed with the content covered in the manual outline. The project is expected to promote positive social change by preparing new CNLs to meet the requirements of leadership positions.

By using the creative process as a means to reflect this work delves into the themes of memory and identity as they relate to my struggle, as an adolescent, to define my sexual orientation.

An intrinsic religious orientation has been linked to improved cardiovascular health. Individuals may be protected by their beliefs against anger/hostility, which have been linked to increased cardiovascular reactivity and disease. Health locus of control differentiates between internals, who take responsibility for health, and externals, who attribute responsibility to chance or powerful others. Internal health locus of control has been linked to healthy behaviors, but its relationship to religious orientation is unclear. Intrinsically held religious beliefs and internally held expectancies for health may, through the mechanism of reactivity, reduce risk for cardiovascular disease. This study explored relationships among health locus of control, religious orientation, and cardiovascular reactivity to an interpersonal stressor in an older adult population. Intrinsic religiousness and internal health locus of control emerged as highly related potential buffers against anger/hostility and cardiovascular reactivity.

Problem The purpose of this study was to identify, implement, and evaluate a program of counseling intervention which could be described as preventative or developmental as opposed to remedial. An important consideration was the possibility of intervening with the student, the student's primary or associational groups, or the institutional groups that influence his behavior. A program of freshman orientation and career articulation was identified through institutional research, a review of literature, and the work of a student steering committee. Method An experimental population of 100 and a control population of 100 were selected from the 1971-72 entering freshman class at Weber State College. The experimental subjects were assigned to small groups (9-15) with a group leader. The experimental groups were then processed through a set of behaviorally defined steps with the goal of personalizing orientation and enabling them to determine a feasible career choice. A programmed rational decision-making model was used as the mode for articulating the career choice and establishing long-range plans for achieving that goal. This model required participation throughout this quarter. The control subjects were processed through the traditional large group, auditorium orientation. This treatment consists of three sessions of some three to four hours in length. Various administrators present information on WSC policies and practices followed by a tour of the campus. Main Findings The experimental small group process was preferred much more than the large group process and allowed students to feel that their individual needs were better met. Students in this experimental group also reported their treatment to be much more "helpful", "useful", and "informative." The time spent with experimental subjects exceeded the time spent with control subjects by 3 to 1, yet the experimental subjects indicated that the time spent was "about right" while control subjects reported their presentations were "too long". Experimental subjects reported that they were better informed about college services and policies than were control subjects. Attitudes of general satisfaction with the college as a whole were not significantly improved by the experimental treatment. Experimental subjects reported substantial gains over the control subjects in deciding a major or confirming previous plans and attributed these gains to their small group work with the decision-making model. After the experimental subjects were processed through the decision model they reported that they were more certain of their choice of major than were the control subjects. At the end of two quarters no statistically significant differences were determined about retention of subjects although approximately 16% more of the experimental subjects were still enrolled. Conclusions The review of literature presented a generally dismal picture as to the potential good to be derived from any orientation program. It was indicated that at best it may serve as a public relations function. To the contrary, the data and experience from this study indicate that orientation may be much more meaningful to participants than previous evidence would indicate. Indeed, it is believed that the introduction of career selection through a rational, sound, and logical process probably strikes at the heart of what orientation could and possibly should be about.

The purpose of this thesis was to explore the relationships between perceived feminine role orientation and positive self-concept, as measured by scores attained on the Inventory of Feminine Values (IFV), and the Total Positive Self Scale of the Tennessee Self Concept Scale (TSCS). Three objectives were established. First, to gather current information on women's realistic and ideal self-perceptions of their feminine roles, and determine whether these are liberal, traditional, or neutral in orientation. Second, to determine if there are significant differences in self-concept as measured by the TSCS among women who see themselves as either traditional, liberal or neutral in perceived feminine role. Third, to determine if differences in self-concept as measured by the TSCS are related to discrepancies between Real Self and Ideal Self scores on the IFV. Both instruments and a demographic questionnaire were completed by 87 undergraduate and graduate women at Utah State University. It was found that women in the sample as a whole saw themselves as neutral in perceived feminine role orientation, on both the Real Self and Ideal Self forms of the IFV. The mean attained on Form A (Real Self) was 4.011, while the Form B (Ideal Self) mean was 2.931. There was no significant difference between these two scores. An analysis of variance test was done to determine if there was a significant difference in positive self-concept for women who saw their feminine roles as liberal, those who saw their roles as traditional, and those who had a neutral role orientation. There was no significant difference. All three groups had Total Positive Self scores (TSCS) above the norm mean. The Pearson product-moment correlation technique was used to ascertain the degree of relationship between perceived feminine role orientation and positive self-concept. It yielded a coefficient of -.11, which did not reach significance. The Pearson product-moment correlation technique was used to determine the relationship between discrepancies in Forms A and B scores (IFV) and positive self-concept, as measured by scores on the Total Positive Self Scale of the TSCS. A coefficient of -.319 was obtained, significant at the 1% level. This verified the hypothesis as stated, evidencing that as the difference between scores attained on Forms A and B increases, positive self-concept decreases. Results were discussed in terms of the significance of the findings, mainly, that regardless of how a woman sees herself, as either traditional, neutral, or liberal in feminine role, she may have high or low self-concept. However, the more congruent she is in her realistic self-perception and in her idealistic self-perception, the higher her positive self-concept will be. Recommendations for future research were suggested. Among these were recommendations that research be undertaken with women who are not primarily college students; measures of other variables, as anxiety, be used in future research in conjunction with the IFV to explore relationships between perceived feminine role and other variables, as anxiety; and, research be undertaken to investigate whether there is a significant positive correlation between self-directedness on the IFV and graduate school attendance in a randomly selected sample of university students.

Texture in crystalline materials, i.e. preferred orientation (PO), is of interest in terms of texture-property relationships and also in X-ray diffraction science because PO can cause serious systematic errors in quantitative phase analysis using diffraction data. The single- parameter, pole-density distribution function (PDDF), proposed by March (1932) to represent PO in diffraction analysis, is used widely it Rietveld pattern-fitting following a suggestion by Dollase (1986). While the March model is an excellent descriptor of PO for gibbsite [AI(OH)3] x-ray powder diffraction (XRPD) data (O'Connor, Li and Sitepu, 1991), the model has proved to be deficient for Rietveld modelling with molybdite [Mo03], calcite [CaCO3] and kaolinite [A12O3.2SiO2.2H2O] XRPD data (Sitepu, 1991; O'Connor, Li and Sitepu, 1992; and Sitepu, O'Connor and Li, 1996). Therefore, the March model should not be regarded as a general-purpose PDDF descriptor.This study has examined the validity of the March model using XRPD and neutron powder diffraction (NPD) instruments operated, respectively, by the Curtin Materials Research Group in Perth and by the Australian Nuclear Science and Technology Organisation at the HIFAR reactor facility at Lucas Heights near Sydney. Extensive suites of XRPD and NPD data were measured for uniaxially-pressed powders of molybdite and calcite, for which the compression was systematically varied. It is clear from the various Rietveld refinements that the March model becomes increasingly unsatisfactory as the uniaxial pressure (and, therefore, the level of PO) increases.The March model has been tested with a physical relationship developed by the author which links the March r-parameter to the uniaxial pressure via the powder bulk modulus, B. The agreement between the results obtained from directly measured values of B and from Rietveld analysis with the March model are ++ / promising in terms of deducing the powder bulk modulus from the March r-parameter.An additional test of the March model was made with NPD data for specimens mounted, first, parallel to the instrument rotation axis and, then, normal to the axis. The results have provided some further indication that the March model is deficient for the materials considered in the study.During the course of the study, it was found that there are distinct differences between the direction of the near-surface texture in calcite, as measured by XRPD, and bulk texture characterised by NPD. The NPD-derived textures appear to be correct descriptions for the bulk material in uniaxially-pressed powders, whereas the XRPD textures are heavily influenced by the pressing procedure.An additional outcome of the NPD work has been the discovery, made jointly with Dr Brett Hunter of ANSTO, that the popular LHPM Rietveld code did not allow for inclusion of PO contributions from symmetry-equivalent reflections. Revision of the code by Dr Hunter showed that there is substantial bias in Rietveld-March r-parameters if these reflections are not factored correctly into the calculations.Finally, examination of pole-figure data has underlined the extent to which the March model oversimplifies the true distributions. It is concluded that spherical harmonics modelling should be used rather than the March model as a general PO modelling tool.

This deductive-hypothetico research addressed a literature void on the research problem: Impact of Shifts in Strategic Othodoxy on International Enterprise Performance. This study hypothesised: H11: Strategic orientation correlates with superior international performance; H12: Global strategy contributes to superior performance internationally; and, H13: Skills in strategy execution lead to superiior performance internationally. Three hundred and nine variables in three hypotheses were tested with data collected from a 'small,' but highly relevant sample. Ninety-two variables were positively correlated while 217 were negative. Due to the large number of variables for each hypothesis, no hypothesis was fully supported or rejected. Eleven models for superior international performance have been scientifically developed from data analyses. Models are designed to aid robust international franchising stategy development by strategists at varying continuum of international expertise. Significant serendipitous findings include: nullification of conventional wisdom that the larger the sample size, the higher the reliability the research findings; lateral instead of dedicated strategies can be more effective, in this instance, marketing strategy had no positive correlation with dependent marketing variables but correlated positively with financial variables; and, cost of Australian international franchising operations was determined. A cross sectional research in 2007 will degrade with passage of time. Environmental dynamics will affect its relevance. This study concerns Australian international franchisors, hence generalizability outside this dimension may not be appropriate. Contribution of this research to knowledge is significant: outcomes filled a literature void in relation to the research problem; findings of positively correlated variables help franchising strategists develop strategies that achieve superior performance, whereas negatively correlated variables help avoid costly mistakes; and, the research refuted previous postulations that fundamentals of western management were flawed. Culminating from this research, a window of opportunities has been created for further research in various areas such as varying types or research; methodologies; sectoral and geographical variations; and changes in research scope and width.

Abstract The past few decades has seen increasing agreement identifying approach and avoidance systems as central concepts in the understanding of human behaviour and personality (Carver, 2005; Carver & Scheier, 2000; Elliot, 1999, 2005). The central focus of this thesis lies in exploring the approach system. The approach system focuses on managing appetitive behaviour and represents a general sensitivity to rewarding stimuli. This system is thought to be accompanied by behavioural tendencies towards such rewarding stimuli and consequently, positive outcomes (e.g., Gable, Reis, & Elliot, 2003). This thesis will examine the approach system as portrayed firstly via the Behavioural Approach System (BAS) as part of one of the most recent and influential personality theories; Gray’s Reinforcement Sensitivity Theory (RST; Gray, 1982; Gray & Mc Naughton, 1996; Pickering & Gray, 1999) and secondly, by means of the social cognitive model of goal orientation (Diefendorff & Mehta, 2007; Dweck, 1996; Elliot & Church, 1997). The two constructs of approach goal orientations which will be chiefly discussed in this thesis are mastery approach orientation and performance approach orientation. The main purpose of this thesis is to investigate these three approach constructs in interaction with situational cues and in the prediction of everyday life outcomes. Work context is an important example of everyday life situation; therefore, this thesis aims to investigate the interaction between the three approach constructs and rewarding climates (situational cues) in the prediction of work outcomes. This thesis therefore contains two parts; the first part will investigate the Behavioural Approach System (BAS) and the second part will investigate performance approach and mastery approach orientations. The first part contains two chapters -two self contained papers- and the second part contains three chapters -three self contained papersix Each paper form it’s own individual chapter. In each chapter, the controversies and ambiguities in theoretical and practical implications involved in the construct will be discussed. In addition, major findings as well as limitations and practical implications will be discussed at the end of each chapter. Following as introduction is a brief review of each chapter.