Zusammenfassung Das Thema der Diplomarbeit ist Verkehrskriminalität und ihre Prävention. Ich habe dieses ausgewählt, weil ich es sehr aktuell betrachte. Der Verkehr ist gegenwärtig ein üblicher Bestandteil unseres Lebens. Verkehrkriminalität betrifft fast alle Menschen. Jeder von uns kann sowohl Obfer, als auch Täter werden. Zugleich handelt es sich um das Thema. Das die Aufmerksamkeit noch nicht verdient. Angesichts der Schadenhöhen, der Anzahl der Todesfälle und der Verletzten handelt es sich um einen Bereich, der einen erheblichen Einfluss auf das Leben sowohl der ganzen Gesellschaft, als auch einer individuellen Person hat. Das Hauptziel dieser Arbeit ist es, die Hauptuhrsachen der Verkehrkriminalität zu analysieren und anschlieβend die Vorbeugungen zu erzielen. Die Diplomarbeit besteht aus Einleitung, 3 Kapitel und Schlussvollgerung. Das erste Kapitel widmet sich Fenomenologie der Verkehrskriminalität. Es werden hier die Fachbegriffe von Vekehrsdelikten erklärt, die üblichsten Verkehrsstraftaten beschrieben und es wird auch aufmerksam auf Besonderheiten dieser Art von Straftaten gemacht. Das 2. Kapitel gibt einen überblick über die Ursachen und bedingungen der Verkehrskriminalität. Es wird hier der Begriff Verkehrsunfall, als die Hauptuhrsache der Verkehrkriminalität, definiert. Im Weiteren...

Thesis advisor: Ellen K. Mahoney / Purpose: The purpose of this qualitative descriptive study was to investigate the experiences of post stroke survivors (PSSs) during transition from hospital discharge home during the first four weeks. Background: PSSs describe the transition from hospital to home as an important time in recovery and stress various physical and cognitive concerns early within the recovery period. Research to date fails to adequately reflect PSSs' experiences early after discharge home. This gap in research limits the ability to create interventions for PSSs during this critical time period. Methods/analysis: Semi-structured telephone interviews were conducted with 31 participants, recruited from a large metropolitan hospital in the northeastern United States. The use of in-vivo codes lead to the development of themes that described PSSs' experiences during the four week transitional period. Credibility and transferability of findings were strengthened through memoing, field notes, reflexivity of analysis, member checking, and peer review throughout the analysis process by qualitative experts. Results: The five major themes were: (a) the shock of a stroke interrupting a normal day, (b) transition to an unfamiliar home, (c) experiencing a life riddled with uncertainty, (d) a journey to a new sense of self, and (e) adjusting to a new sense of self. Throughout their journey all PSSs had to cope with uncertainty and adjust to a new sense of self. PSSs that experienced less uncertainty were able to return to their prior daily routine, knew how to prevent another stroke, had a helpful support system, and had frequent follow-up and communication with health care professionals. Conclusion: All PSSs are at risk for complications regardless of stroke severity. To address PSSs complex needs, nurses can provide care beyond symptom management by fostering a dynamic intentional relationship to support recovery. The framework resulting from this study can provide the platform for advanced neuroscience nurses to engage with PSSs to improve their recovery and adjustment to a new sense of self as they transition from hospital to home. / Thesis (PhD) — Boston College, 2014. / Submitted to: Boston College. Graduate School of Arts and Sciences. / Discipline: Philosophy.

The problem of providing adequate wet-road skid resistance on urban roads has received relatively little attention from highway maintenance authorities. This study is an assessment of the potential for reducing accident rates by improving skid resistance levels on such roads. Reasons for the neglect of urban skid resistance are discussed and an assessment made of the scale of the skidding problem in this context. Evidence is presented to demonstrate that the potential for accident reduction is greater than is indicated by the statistics for reported skidding accidents. The pattern of frictional demand and the measurement of skid resistance are discussed, as are the technical difficulties associated with maintaining good skid resistance on heavily-trafficked roads. The performance of conventional surfacing materials is assessed and recently-developed materials are evaluated. It is suggested that the attainment of high skid resistance is inhibited by economic rather than technical factors. Nationally-proposed standards for skid resistance are examined and modifications are suggested for urban use. The problem of defining accident risk at an individual site is examined and the relationship between accident rate and skid resistance investigated using regression techniques with data from the Greater London area. Criteria are developed for identifying sites where an improvement in skid resistance is likely to be effective in reducing accidents and consideration is given to the economic justification for skid resistance improvements. Alternative strategies are considered and a policy is proposed which would be practicable and cost-effective and, it is argued, could lead to a substantial reduction in accident rates.

Le but de cette étude était d'évaluer les limitations fonctionnelles chez les adultes avec antécédent d’AVC et de décrire le devenir fonctionnel des patients admis en rééducation en France, suite à un AVC aigu, en fonction du type de structure (spécialisée ou non). Les données de l’enquête Handicap-Santé et les bases PMSI 2009 (Programme de Médicalisation du Système d'Information) ont été utilisé. La prévalence globale de l'AVC était de 1,6% de la population française adulte (dont 34,4% dépendants). Les difficultés pour l’autonomie augmentent avec l'âge, mais le risque relatif de dépendance diminuait avec l’âge (17 à 25 avant 60 ans ; 1,5 à 2,2 après 85 ans). 10,3% des participants ont déclaré raideur articulaire liée à l'AVC mais son impact fonctionnel n'était pas significatif lorsqu’était inclus dans le modèle le niveau de déficience motrice (OR = 1,18; IC = 0,60-2,29). Enfin suite à un AVC, parmi les 83 505 survivants, 28 201 ont été admis pour la réhabilitation (33,8%). Après ajustement, la rééducation en centre spécialisé était liée à une plus grande probabilité d'amélioration fonctionnelle (OR = 1,75, p <0,001) / The aim of this study was to evaluate functional limitations in adults with and without self-reported stroke and to describe the functional outcome of post-stroke patients admitted for rehabilitation in France as a function of the rehabilitation setting (specialized or not). Data from a survey named “the Disability Health survey” and from the French Hospital Discharge Diagnosis databases were used. The overall prevalence of stroke was 1.6%. The mRS was over 2 for 34.4% of participants with stroke. Difficulty with activity of daily living increased with age but the relative risk was higher below the age of 60 (17 to 25) than over 85 years (1.5 to 2.2). 10.3 % of the participants reported stroke-related stiffness. When included motor impairment, multivariate analysis of the functional impact of the joint stiffness was not significant (OR= 1.18; CI = 0.60-2.29). Among the 83 505 survivors of acute stroke in 2009, 28 201 were admitted for rehabilitation (33.8%). After adjustment, rehabilitation in specialized center lead to a greater probability of functional improvement (OR=1.75, p<0.001)

In reconstruction of on-roadway vehicle accidents, roadway surface gouges and the forces and energy attributed to the related vehicle components become important keys to resolving an accurate accident reconstruction. These roadway gouge forces vary depending upon such factors as surface temperature and the velocity and geometry of the gouging mechanism. Accounting for the forces applied to vehicle components and the energy dissipated from such forces can be helpful in accident reconstruction where supporting data exists. This research documents the force necessary to create a given roadway gouge geometry. Controlled pavement gouging tests were performed using roadway surface temperature and gouging velocity as main factors. The results of this testing and analysis are useful in quantifying gouge forces and energies for use in accident reconstruction. The findings show that the temperature of the roadway surface that is being damaged significantly affects the amount of force required to cause the damage. A summary of experiments and techniques as applied to accident reconstruction are presented.

Four families of contagious distributions--generalized Poisson distributions, generalized binomial distributions, generalized Pascal distributions, and generalized log-zero distributions--are investigated in this thesis. The family of generalized Poisson distributions contains five distributions: the Neyman Type A, the "Short," the Poisson binomial, the Poisson Pascal, and the negative binomial. The family of generalized binomial distributions contains eight distributions: the binomial Poisson, the binomial binomial, the binomial Pascal, the binomial log-zero, the Poisson with zeros, the binomial with zeros, the Pascal with zeros, and the log-zero with zeros. The family of generalized Pascal distributions contains four distributions: the Pascal Poisson, the Pascal binomial, the Pascal Pascal, and the Pascal log-zero. The family of generalized log-zero distributions contains four distributions: the log-zero Poisson, the log-zero binomial, the log-zero Pascal, and the log-zero log-zero. For each family of contagious distributions, the common probability generating function based on a biological model is derived by application of Feller's compound distribution theorem and Gurland's generalized distribution terminology. The common recurrence relation and the common factorial moments or cumulants are derived from the common probability generating function by using the successive differentiation method. Then for each distribution within this family, the particular probability generating function, recurrence relation, and factorial moments or cumulants are easily obtained from common ones. The equations of factorial moments or cumulants are solved. The maximum likelihood equations are derived for some distributions which have been shown to provide a good or excellent moment fitting. These equations are solved by an iteration procedure, Except for the Neyman Type A distribution and the "Short" distribution in which the maximum likelihood equations are derived from the probability generating functions and solved by the method of scoring, the maximum likelihood equations a re derived from the probability functions and solved by the Newton-Raphson method. Forty sets of biological and accident data classified into five types have been collected from various sources. A Fortran program has been written for fitting each distribution and a numerical example is given to illustrate the fitting procedure. In comparing the fits among these distributions, the chi-square goodness- of-fit values have been calculated and tabulated. The results suggest that the binomial distribution with zeros and the Pascal distribution with zeros be used if one is to describe the empirical data arising from populations having a contagious character. This is not only due to the fact that the two distributions have provided better fits to all five types of data, but also the fact that their maximum likelihood estimate procedures have no common disadvantages of other distributions. These disadvantages are that not every moment estimate can allow the iteration process to converge and that the probabilities must be recalculated after each iteration.

Professional practice change and the transfer of research into practice are critical issues for the public health field. The program of research presented here investigated the potential for practice change in dental hygienists’ and Emergency Department nurses’ provision of brief interventions targeting smoking (of tobacco) and alcohol consumption respectively. Smoking and risky alcohol consumption are two high prevalence public health issues that have a substantial impact on the burden of death and illness in Australia. Research on dental hygienists’ and nurses’ uptake of these interventions is limited and has largely focused on descriptions of perceived barriers. Little research has been conducted on the attitudes and motivations of health professionals to engage in these interventions. The present research was designed to address that gap. Specifically, two behaviours by dental hygienists and Emergency Department nurses were investigated: identification of patients at risk and provision of assistance to such patients. The program of research applied the Theory of Planned Behaviour to these behaviours in order to: 1) examine the role of dental hygienists and Emergency Department nurses in the provision of brief interventions for smoking and alcohol consumption respectively, 2) assess the ability of the Theory of Planned Behaviour to understand and predict health professionals’ identifying and assisting behaviour, 3) assess the ability of the theory to account for the influence of organisational factors on workers’ behaviour, and 4) design and evaluate a Theory of Planned Behaviour-based professional practice change intervention. This is the first research to apply the Theory of Planned Behaviour to these behaviours, to examine the potential of the theory to account for the influence of organisational factors on workers’ behaviour, and to trial an intervention targeting behaviour in an organisational setting. The four studies undertaken provided a comprehensive application of the Theory of Planned Behaviour. In the first study, a meta-analysis of published research examined the ability of the Theory of Planned Behaviour to predict behaviours in an organisational setting. This was the first meta-analysis of studies applying the Theory of Planned Behaviour applications to organisational settings. The findings were comparable to results of a meta-analysis of studies applying the theory to social and health behaviours, supporting the application of the theory to the organisational setting, and also highlighted the potential importance of perceived behavioural control for work behaviours. Studies 2 to 4 were designed to follow Ajzen and Fishbein’s (1975) 3-step methodology for applying the theory. In Study 2, the behavioural, normative, and control beliefs held by dental hygienists and Emergency Department nurses, and potentially relevant organisational factors, such as workload and available support, were identified through in-depth qualitative interviews. Study 3 measured the ability of the Theory of Planned Behaviour to predict dental hygienists’ and Emergency Department nurses’ frequency of identifying and assisting. The theory was most successful in predicting dental hygienists’ frequency of assisting patients who smoke. The self-efficacy dimension of perceived behavioural control was the strongest predictor of this behaviour. The findings for Emergency Department nurses indicated that subjective norms were an important predictor of intentions to identify and assist patients. The Theory of Planned Behaviour accounted for the influence of organisational factors on behaviour for both dental hygienists and nurses. Study 4 involved a randomised controlled trial which evaluated a professional intervention targeting dental hygienists’ assistance of patients who smoke. Trends indicated potential benefits of the intervention, but overall no significant changes in dental hygienists’ role adequacy, role legitimacy, and targeted control beliefs emerged. This outcome was attributed to ceiling effects and the influence of a media campaign that coincided with the intervention. The research presented here provides partial support for the application of the Theory of Planned Behaviour to professional practice change efforts. Specifically, the ability of the theory to explain the impact of organisational factors and identify variables most predictive of behaviour may provide valuable insight for prioritising future professional practice change efforts.

Waka have a special place in the heart of many Maaori. The waka that brought the ancestors of the Maaori to Aotearoa and Te Waipounamu are valued symbols of identity, both culturally and metaphorically. With the effects of colonisation the use of waka as a means of transport disappeared leaving it to re-emerge in the 20th century as a symbol of the revitalisation of Maaori society. Through the construction of waka-taua, ocean going waka and the emergence of waka-ama as a sport, Maaori have endeavoured to reclaim their association to the seas and waterways of New Zealand. This research is a case study of Tupuwae, a kaupapa Maaori injury prevention project using traditional Maaori concepts regarding waka and applying it to a contemporary context. Tapuwae have used this attachment of Maaori to different forms of waka to associate the message of not drinking and driving using purpose-built waka-ama in the southern part of Te Waipounamu. This research identifies some of the wider outcomes that come from a kaupapa Maaori project, but, more importantly it identifies some of the processes that are important in implementing such a project by Maaori living in Otago, outside their tribal boundaries. This research also raises questions about the theoretical underpinnings of kaupapa Maaori theory and argues that there are two threads to this approach, one from a critical theory informed approach and the other from a native theory approach. Key words:Waka, Community Action, Community Development, Kaupapa Maaori, Maaori Development, Maaori Advancement, Native Theory.

This thesis represents my research work relating to rugby union from 2000 to 2007. During this time I was the Manager of Injury Prevention and Research for the New Zealand Rugby Union (NZRU). The main priorities of this role were to increase understanding of risk factors for rugby injury, to implement preventive measures, and to assess the effect of those preventive measures. The thesis is presented as a series of peer-reviewed, published papers. A key concern of the NZRU when I undertook the role was to decrease the number and severity of spinal cord injuries occurring in New Zealand rugby. The first paper is a review of literature of rugby union injuries to the cervical spine and spinal cord. This paper was published in Sports Medicine, and the knowledge derived there from formed an important element in RugbySmart, which was the nationwide injury prevention partnership between the NZRU and ACC. The second paper, which was published in the British Medical Journal, outlines the effect of RugbySmart on serious spinal injuries in New Zealand. Eight spinal injuries occurred in New Zealand in 2001-2005, whereas the predicted number based on previous incidence was 19 (relative rate 0.46, 95% confidence interval 0.19 to 1.14). The main reason for the decline was a decrease in the number of injuries from scrums, from a predicted number of nine only one was observed (relative rate 0.11; 0.02 to 0.74). Injury prevention initiatives in New Zealand appear to have been successful in areas beyond spinal injuries. The third paper deals with the effect of RugbySmart in general. RugbySmart was associated with a decrease in injury claims per 100,000 players in most areas the programme targeted; the programme had negligible impact on non-targeted injury sites. The decrease in injury claims numbers was supported by results from player behaviour surveys pre- and post-RugbySmart. There was an increase in safe behaviour in the contact situations of tackle, scrum and ruck technique. The fourth paper, which was published in the British Journal of Sports Medicine, examines the effect of mandating mouth guard usage on mouth guard wearing rates and ACC dental injury claim rates. The self reported rate of mouth guard use was 67% of player-weeks in 1993 and 93% in 2003. A total of 2644 claims were reported in 1995. There was a 43% (90% confidence interval 39% to 46%) reduction in dental claims from 1995 to 2003. On the reasonable assumption that the number of players and player-matches remained constant throughout the study period, the relative rate of injury claims for non-wearers versus wearers was 4.6 (90% confidence interval 3.8 to 5.6). In New Zealand the tackle is the facet of play associated number of injuries, and over the past decade tackles have overtaken scrums as the cause of the greatest proportion of spinal injuries. To address the lack of knowledge regarding risk factors for injuries in the tackle, a large scale study of tackles in professional rugby matches was undertaken. In 434 matches, over 140,000 tackles were coded. The impact of the tackle was the most common cause of injury, and the head was the most common site, but an important mechanism of lower limb injuries was loading with the weight of another player. Rates of replacement increased with increasing player speed. The resulting paper was published in the American Journal of Sports Medicine. A commonly cited model of injury causation in sport posits that risk factors for injury can be considered as those related to the athlete (intrinsic) and those related to the activity (extrinsic). To examine the extent to which the activities comprising rugby matches at the international level has changed over time the first match in each Bledisloe Cup series from 1972 to 2004 was coded. Increases in passes, tackles, rucks, tries, and ball-in-play time were associated with the advent of professionalism, whereas there were reductions in the numbers of lineouts, mauls, kicks in play, and in mean participation time per player. Noteworthy time trends were an increase in the number of rucks and a decrease in the number of scrums. With the advent of professionalism, players have become heavier and backs have become taller. A number of articles written to communicate injury prevention messages to rugby union coaches, players and administrators are presented as appendices, along with two peer reviewed papers that closely relate to the thesis, but which I excluded from the thesis proper.

<p>The Functional Resonance Accident Model is a method developed to analyze complex systems for the purpose of accident prevention. In FRAM-analysis a visualization of the complex system is created as an aid for identifying points of interaction in the system where the risk of accidents is high, and to determine where preventive measures are to be placed. FRAM Visualizer is a computer program developed as a tool for creating such visualizations.</p><p>Many usability problems have been identified in FRAM visualizations created both manually according to established method and by using the FRAM Visualizer software. The purpose of this paper is to give a basis for how FRAM visualizations can be improved in accordance with usability criteria for use in future qualitative studies.</p><p>The author suggests alterations to the FRAM visualization to resolve usability issues identified in previous articles and to achieve usability goals derived from visual communication theory. The design process is guided by established design principles. The author outlines a proposal for usability testing of the redesigned FRAM visualization to verify that it achieves the usability goals.</p><p>The author concludes that though the redesign offers solutions for the most important problems (providing the user with detailed information as a basis for analysis and enabling the layout of clearer and more easily overviewed structures in the FRAM diagrams) the visualization must be subjected to usability testing to determine whether the design criteria have been achieved and the solutions of design problems are satisfactory. The redesigned visualization appears most effective when presented in an interactive format. It often requires multiple optimized static views to satisfactorily support browsing both in overview and in detail.</p><p> </p>