A variety of psychotherapies have been demonstrated to be efficacious and effective treatments for depression. The cost of psychotherapy, however, and its low availability in some contexts pose significant treatment barriers for many depressed individuals. Based on the idea that peers (i.e., individuals who have successfully recovered from similar problems) may be uniquely able to provide empathy and support to those currently receiving treatment, some community mental health centers have implemented peer treatment models that employ recovered former clients as cost-effective adjunct providers. The effectiveness of these and other peer-administered interventions (PAIs) has not been well-established. The current study is a meta-analysis of the existing outcome research on PAIs for depression. Twenty-six studies were identified as eligible for inclusion and yielded 30 between-groups effect sizes and 29 pre-post PAI effect sizes. Study characteristics and methodological quality were coded and random-effects models were used to calculate and compare mean effect sizes. PAIs produced significant pre-to-post treatment reductions in depression symptoms that were comparable to those found in well-established professionally-administered interventions (.4554). In direct comparisons, PAIs performed as well as professionally-administered treatments (.0848). but not significantly better than treatment-as-usual (e.g., periodic physician check-ins or availability of community mental health services) and wait-list control conditions (.0978). These findings did not change after adjusting for the moderate degree of publication bias in the data. Moderation models revealed that professionally-co-administered PAIs produced significantly worse outcomes than those that were purely peer-administered, and that educational/skills-based PAIs (but not supportive PAIs) produced better outcomes compared with professional treatments. Limitations of this analysis included the heterogeneity of the included interventions and the lack of data on mediators and moderators. Still, these findings suggest that PAIs have promise as effective depression treatments and are worthy of further study.

Submitted by Tatiana Lima (tatianasl@ufba.br) on 2015-03-30T18:37:02Z No. of bitstreams: 1 Soares, Diego de Brito.pdf: 6646288 bytes, checksum: 834f0b8ee72d63e3954fc4de806b9004 (MD5) / Approved for entry into archive by Tatiana Lima (tatianasl@ufba.br) on 2015-04-06T18:25:28Z (GMT) No. of bitstreams: 1 Soares, Diego de Brito.pdf: 6646288 bytes, checksum: 834f0b8ee72d63e3954fc4de806b9004 (MD5) / Made available in DSpace on 2015-04-06T18:25:28Z (GMT). No. of bitstreams: 1 Soares, Diego de Brito.pdf: 6646288 bytes, checksum: 834f0b8ee72d63e3954fc4de806b9004 (MD5) / A pesquisa tem como objetivo analisar a competitividade do modelo de operadora de Autogestão de Saúde, sem fins lucrativos, administrada por departamento de recursos humanos, frente às demais opções de operadoras comerciais existentes no Brasil, sob o ponto de vista dos recursos internos disponíveis pela organização. Para este fim, teve como estratégia metodológica o Estudo de Caso do benefício AMS, auto-administrado pela Petróleo Brasileiro S.A. (Petrobras). Como referencial teórico foi utilizado um modelo adaptado do original desenvolvido por Ferraz, Kupfer e Haguenauer (1995), no qual a capacidade competitiva de uma organização no longo prazo é resultado de um ciclo dinâmico entre Estratégia, Capacitação e Desempenho. A análise foi feita através do cruzamento de múltiplas fontes de dados, obtidos por documentos e entrevistas semiestruturadas. Os resultados indicam que a Autogestão administrada por departamento de recursos humanos apresenta diversos aspectos natos que dificultam seu posicionamento competitivo no longo prazo. The research aims at analyzing the competitiveness of organizations with selfadministered health plans by human resources departments, as compared to other commercial health plan operators available in Brazil, from the point of view of the internal resources of the organization. To this end, a Case Study was developed focusing the self-administered health plan by an energy company: the Petróleo Brasileiro SA (PETROBRAS). The theoretical model used was adapted from the original one developed by Ferraz , Kupfer and Haguenauer (1995), in which, the competitiveness of an organization, over the long term, is the result of a dynamic cycle of Strategy, Competences and Performance. The analysis was made by crosschecking multiple data sources obtained from documents and semi-structured interviews. The results indicated that the organization with self-administered health plan by human resources department presents several aspects that hinder its competitiveness position in the long term.

The Self-Administered Interview© (SAI©) is an eyewitness interviewing tool designed to help protect eyewitness memory and elicit a comprehensive initial statement (Gabbert, Hope, & Fisher, 2009). Early research shows promising results in general adult samples. Whether the SAI© is an effective tool for older adult witnesses has not yet been fully addressed. Older adults will become increasingly important as a witness population in the future, yet perform worse compared to young adults. Some attempts have been made to aid older adult witnesses, but an easy-to-apply and effective method is yet to be introduced. This dissertation presents an overview of current knowledge on eyewitnesses and provides a theoretical basis for the empirical chapters. It further presents results of a systematic review and several meta-analyses on the effectiveness of the SAI© as a means to enhance eyewitness testimony. The meta-analyses cover 38 experimental comparisons from 22 empirical studies representing 1712 interviewees. Results indicate a strong benefit of the SAI both immediately after the witnessed crime (d = 1.20) and in a delayed recall (d = 0.92 compared to no initial recall) after one to three weeks. The third large chapter of this dissertation presents the results of an experiment that investigated the effectiveness of the SAI© for older witnesses’ testimony, suggestibility and lineup performance. 144 participants, half of which were 60 years or older and half aged 18-30 years, took part in two sessions. In the first session, they were shown a film of a staged crime and either filled in the SAI©, gave a written free recall or no initial recall. In the second session after one week they were then asked to give a free recall of what they remembered, answer questions including suggestive questions, and also to identify the perpetrator from the film from a 6-person simultaneous photo lineup. Results confirm the classic SAI© effect for young adults, show a small beneficial effect for older adults and also indicate a beneficial effect for lineup performance for the first time.

Esta pesquisa teórica investiga a deterioração da experiência do brincar infantil no contexto do mundo administrado e suas possíveis implicações. A pesquisa é realizada a partir de autores da Teoria Crítica, com ênfase em Walter Benjamin e Theodor Adorno. A investigação realizada aponta para a deterioração da experiência do brincar na infância como um brincar administrado - caracterizado pela submissão do brincar à razão instrumental. No âmbito da educação, o brincar sem finalidade produtiva é preterido pelo brincar como recurso de aprendizagem, de modo que se torna um instrumento da racionalidade produtiva. No âmbito da indústria cultural, o brincar é submetido ao princípio de dominação da organização social moderna e se torna atividade de consumo. O brincar administrado implica na expropriação da capacidade mimética de reconhecer e criar de semelhanças, prerrogativa do próprio brincar, e de suas possibilidades imaginativas. A ação imaginativa do brincar propicia as expressões de alteridade na cultura e relaciona-se com a dimensão estética da vida humana. Porém, ao atender às pressões adaptativas da organização social, o brincar administrado compromete a dimensão estética e submete os indivíduos à frieza. Deste modo, ele ameaça as expressões das diferenças e orienta os sujeitos às tendências regressivas da barbárie / This theoretical research investigates the deterioration of the playing experience in childhood in the context of the administered world, as well as its possible implications. The research is oriented by the Critical Theory, especially from the perspective of Walter Benjamin and Theodor W. Adorno. The survey points out to deterioration of the playing experience in childhood as a administered activity, characterized by its submission to the instrumental rationality. In the field of education, playing without any productive purpose is substituted by playing as a learning resource, leading to the transformation of the act of playing into instrument of productive rationality. Within the cultural industry, the playing experience in childhood is subject to the principle of domination of the modern social organization and becomes a consumer activity. The administered playing implies the expropriation of mimetic faculty to recognize and create similarities, which are prerogatives of the activity of playing, as well as of its imaginative possibilities. The imaginative action underlying the act of playing provides the expressions of cultural otherness and relates to the aesthetic dimension of human life. However, in order to attend the adaptive pressures of social organization, the administered playing compromises the aesthetic dimension and subjects individuals to the coldness. Thus, the administered playing threatens the expression of diferences in the society and leads the individuals to regressive tendencies to barbarism

Purpose: The relation between the causal attributions of individuals with panic disorder (PD) and their health outcomes remains relatively unexplored. Therefore we examined 1) the relationship between participants’ etiological beliefs about PD and baseline demographic and clinical characteristics and 2) whether participants’ etiological beliefs about PD predicted compliance, clinical response, and side effect profiles with the treatments they were assigned. Method: The study included 251 participants. A series of multiple linear regressions were used to evaluate the relationship between participants’ causal attributions, measured by the Etiological Model Questionnaire, and their baseline characteristics. To determine whether these beliefs predicted treatment outcome, logistic and linear regressions were conducted. Results: Our results revealed that participants with a family history of psychiatric illnesses were more likely to endorse biological etiological beliefs whereas those with a younger age, comorbid psychiatric disorders, and a history of suicide attempts were more likely to attribute their illness to psychological causes. Participants experiencing impairment in family life endorsed both psychological and environmental causal beliefs, while those reporting higher fear of body sensations and agoraphobic cognitions were more likely to attribute their illness to biological and psychological causes. With regards to treatment outcome, results indicated that participants who endorsed psychological and environmental etiological beliefs experienced more severe symptoms 12 weeks following treatment; irrespective of the type of treatment they received. Implications: The consideration of individuals’ causal attributions might help health-care professionals better assist clients by communicating a more balanced perspective of the causes of PD and deliver interventions that are in line with clients’ individual beliefs.

This study investigated whether a computer-administered mathematics test can provide equivalent results for normal and mathematically disabled students while retaining similar psychometric characteristics of an equivalent paper and pencil version of the test. The overall purpose of the study was twofold. First, the viability of using computer administered assessment with elementary school children was examined. Second, by investigating items on the computer administered mathematics test for potential bias between normally achieving and mathematically disabled populations, it was possible to determine whether certain mathematical concepts consistently distinguish between the two ability groups.

Little is known of the elderly's ability to use a food frequency questionnaire to describe their dietary intake. This study examines the elderly's ability to reliably describe their diets and how age, education, cognitive status, and gender may affect their ability to complete and return a food frequency questionnaire. The reproducibility of the questionnaire was tested by a repeated administration among 85 participants 65 years of age and older from the Preston, Idaho, area. Correlation coefficients between nutrient scores from the first and second administration ranged from 0.48-0.79 (total population), 0.44-0.88 (males), and 0.39-0.86 (females). Median values for the correlation coefficients were 0.60, 0.66, and 0.58 for total population, men, and women, respectively. Response rate and response quality were determined by distributing 4600 questionnaires to the residents of Cache County, Utah, who were 65 years or older. The overall response rate was 82.1%, 83.2% for men, and 81.3% for women. Little difference was found between the age, education level, and cognitive status of respondents compared to nonrespondents. Response quality was defined by the number of missing values per questionnaire. Age had a positive relationship with missing values. The linear regression model had a p-value significant at the p2=0.035), males (r2=0.020), and females (r2=0.044). The years of education had a negative relationship with the number of missing values. The p-value was significant at the p2=0.010), males (r2=0.004), and females (r2=0.018). The relationship between cognitive status and missing values was inconsistent. The p-values were significant at the p

When conducting initial forensic interviews, facilitating later retrieval in an efficient and timely manner is often important. A tool called The Self-Administered Interview (SAI) has been shown to facilitate later retrieval when completed initially. Even if less time-consuming than other interviewing protocols, it still takes considerable time to complete. This study compared the capability to facilitate later retrieval and temporal aspects of SAI and its separate parts to investigate the relative worth of each part. The two separate parts were a written, free recall and the rest of SAI without the free recall. Forty-five participants completed either of the parts after watching a fictious crime. Six days later a memory test was administered. This study used the same research design as two previous studies which allowed for integrated analysis using data from the three studies. SAI facilitated later retrieval by significantly increasing number of correct answers and decreasing number of incorrect answers. SAI without a free recall significantly decreased number of incorrect answers. SAI took approximately twice as long to complete as a written, free recall. SAI without free recall had comparable results as a free recall but took almost the same time to complete as SAI. An overall pattern for all initial actions was that an increase in complexity and comprehensive design, increased performance but also took longer to complete. If performance is priority and time is not a factor, SAI is recommended. If lowering time of completion is priority a free recall is the quickest action.

Esta pesquisa parte da percepção de que as propostas educacionais de diversas instituições de ensino superior privado, que correspondem ao modelo industrial e tecnicista da sociedade administrada, podem oprimir o professor universitário e restringir sua atuação como educador. Os interesses das instituições privadas que percebem a educação como um trato mercantil e se encontram em consonância com as políticas educacionais vigentes interferem não apenas na atividade docente, mas também na formação dos indivíduos que nela se encontram inseridos. Para investigar o tema, optou-se por um delineamento de pesquisa que consistiu em estudos de caso realizados com professores que trabalham nesse modelo de instituição. Foram entrevistados três professores, e os pontos discutidos a partir do instrumento de pesquisa foram: a formação e a trajetória profissional do docente; condições de contratação; estabilidade no emprego; atribuições do professor na instituição; recursos didáticos utilizados; e relações estabelecidas com outros membros da instituição. A análise dos dados obtidos na entrevista foi fundamentada na Teoria Crítica da Sociedade, principalmente nos textos de Adorno, Horkheimer e Marcuse, e também foram consideradas pesquisas acadêmicas que discutem a formação escolar, a mercantilização da educação, a utilização de tecnologias no ensino e a precarização das condições de trabalho do professor. A partir das manifestações de cada entrevistado, foram criadas quatro categorias principais: autonomia no trabalho docente; instabilidade no emprego e precarização das condições de trabalho; efeitos da inserção de tecnologias no contexto educacional; e relações institucionais mediadas pela lógica de mercado. Ao longo do processo de análise foram encontrados no discurso dos professores elementos que permitem afirmar que as instituições de ensino, os alunos e os próprios professores reproduzem a barbárie presente na cultura. Entretanto, ainda que discretas e nem sempre completamente conscientes, também foram encontradas diversas estratégias dos docentes para tentar resistir às imposições do sistema privado de ensino. Os resultados da análise indicaram uma predominância da heteronomia na formação universitária, bem como poucas condições dos professores para resistir ao processo de dominação social que se mantém no campo educacional, no qual o pensamento técnico e voltado para interesses econômicos prevalece sobre as possibilidades de uma formação para a autonomia e para uma consciência esclarecida / The starting point of the current research is the notion that the educational programmes adopted by several private higher education institutions, which correspond to the industrial and technicist models of the administered society, may in turn oppress and restrict lecturers and professors and their roles as educators. The interests of such institutions which see education as a business in accordance with present educational policies affect not only their educational activities but also the formation of the individuals that constitute them. In order to look deeper into the subject we opted to analize case studies conducted with lecturers and professors that work under this institutional model. We interviewed three individuals and the discussed points were: qualifications and professional trajectory; conditions for employment; stability; responsibilities; didatic resources and interpersonal relationship with colleagues. The analysis of the data obtained in the interviews was based on the Critical Theory, as outlined by Adorno, Horkheimer and Marcuse as well as in papers that discuss education and formation, the mercantilization of education, the use of technology in teaching and the erosion of working conditions. The statements given by each interviewee were then divided into four categories: teaching autonomy; instability and erosion of working conditions; the effects of technology in the teaching process and institutional relations mediated by the market logic. In the process we have found elements that assert the existence of barbarity in these institutions, present not only in the institutions themselves, but also in the students and in the teaching staff. However, yet discreetly and not entirely intentional, we have also identified strategies used by these educators as a means to resist the impositions of the private educational system. The results of the analysis show the predominance of heteronomy in higher education as a whole and the maintenance of the social dominance that permeates education, where instrumental reason prevails over the possibility of an autonomous formation and enlightenment

Background and Objectives Self - report data is known to be unrel iable and susceptible to factors such as social desirability bias. Methods used for collecting self - report data has thus far been unsuccessful in ameliorating known obstacles to honest self - disclosure. Considering the current HIV/AIDS pandemic and relate d health crises, it is imperative that self - report data is an accurate depiction of reality, since it informs research requirements and designs as well as intervention designs and the evaluation of the efficacy of the interventions. Aim To evaluate and co mpare the efficacy of the Informal Confidential Voting Interview (ICVI) to the FTFI (Face - to - Face Interview) and the SAQ (Self - Administered Questionnaire) in enhancing self - disclosure and minimizing social desirability bias on sensitive topics of sexual ex perience and sexual activity. Study Design A sample of 110 undergraduate and post - graduate students at various tertiary education institutions in Pietermaritzburg were randomly allocated to the ICVI, the SAQ or the FTFI. The ICVI combined a face - to - face interview with a voting box method devised to enhance response anonymity. The FTFI and the SAQ were administered according to a standardized procedure to maximize confidentiality and self - disclosure. Results The self - disclosure scores were significant ly higher for the ICVI in comparison to the FTFI and the SAQ, with a p = 0.005. Post - hoc tests revealed that the ICVI performed significantly better in self - disclosure scores than the FTFI with p = 0.022 and the SAQ with p = 0.015. There was no significa nt difference in self - disclosure scores between the SAQ and the FTFI. Using the Marlowe - Crowne scale of social desirability bias, a significant difference in social desirability bias scores were achieved with p = 0.043. However, the post - hoc analysis ind icated no affirmative significant mean difference in social desirability score among any of the methods. Males displayed greater self - disclosure than females with p = 0.013, but for both sexes the ICVI group achieved the highest mean self - disclosure score s than the FTFI - and the SAQ group. Conclusion The results of this study concluded that the employment of ICVI fundamentally resulted in better quality data than the SAQ and the FTFI on topics of sensitivity and controversial behaviours. The findings ar e suggestive of the successful implementation of the ICVI method across potentially diverse research contexts that rely on self - report data, as the method is adaptable to the target population and its characteristics. Further research is warranted to buil d on its current design and facilitate the implementation of the ICVI across the wide disciplines of self - report data. / Thesis (M.Sc.) - University of KwaZulu-Natal, Pietermaritzburg, [2009]