Overall survival for pediatric patients with acute lymphoblastic leukemia (A.L.L.) treated with contemporary therapy now exceeds 85%; however, approximately 20% will experience relapse. Since A.L.L. is the most common malignancy in children, relapsed patients comprise a large proportion of the total number of children with cancer. The prognosis for long-term survival following relapse is generally poor; thus, relapsed A.L.L. is a significant contributor to cancer-related mortality in children. Poor adherence to oral medication is a substantial problem in contemporary health care and may contribute to unexplained relapses in children with A.L.L. Therapy for pediatric A.L.L. includes a prolonged “maintenance” phase that requires daily 6- mercaptopurine (6MP), a self- or parent/caregiver-administered oral chemotherapy agent given for approximately two years. 6MP has been shown to be a critical component of the curative regimen for A.L.L.; thus, children with A.L.L. who fail to adhere to oral 6MP chemotherapy as prescribed may be at increased risk of leukemia relapse. This study used extant questionnaire data from a cohort of children with A.L.L enrolled on a Children’s Oncology Group study (AALL03N1) to determine the prevalence of self/parent-reported non-adherence to oral 6MP during the maintenance phase of A.L.L. therapy, and to identify sociodemographic and behavioral predictors of non-adherence to oral 6MP. Twenty-two percent of children in the cohort were non-adherent to oral chemotherapy, defined as missing more than one dose of 6MP for non-medical reasons over the 112-day observation period. The risk of non-adherence was significantly increased for those who failed to perceive the severity of the child’s illness (Odds ratio [OR] 1.89, 95% Confidence Interval [CI] 1.00-3.55, P=0.049) or the benefits of treatment with oral 6MP (OR 1.78, 95%CI 1.07-2.94, P=0.025). Vulnerable subgroups included Hispanic ethnicity (OR 2.25, 95%CI 1.30-3.90, P=0.004) and older age (OR 1.07 per year, 95%CI 1.02-1.12, P=0.005). Study findings suggest that even occasional reports of missed 6MP doses may herald a significant adherence problem; that patients and their parents may need ongoing reminders regarding the subclinical and asymptomatic nature of leukemia in remission; and that frequent review with families regarding the purpose, function, and proper administration of oral 6MP is imperative.

Today desires are often confused with needs. As a result, we in the so-called highly developed countries cause ourselves unnecessary unhappiness by holding ourselves up to increasingly higher standards. These standards often seem inescapable, yet a thoughtful and deeper look would immediately identify them as mostly virtual. In what brand <are you?>, reconnoitering happiness, I explore personal happiness in today???s consumer society and our emotional relationship with objects, through an experimental documentary. This hybrid documentary uses classic elements of the interview driven genre such as contrasting vox pop with professional interviews to produce the story. At the same time it incorporates an aesthetic that crosses broadcast journalism and MTV music videos. By using this fast paced digital aesthetic based in motion-graphics, coupled with split as well as multiple screens, I reference the hyper-reality created by advertising and bestowed upon brands. In my video I raise, and sometimes provoke, questions such as: What is our 'brand' as people? Are we too, objects that can and should be branded? How do we feel about that? Why do we attach ourselves so strongly to certain things or brands? Do we believe it will make us happy? Where does happiness exist for us? What does happiness mean today on a personal level and in broader terms? what brand <are you?> is a moving portrait of today, whose value lies in the questions raised???prompting the viewer to reflect their significance on a personal level???and the meaning that can arise from the contemplation of their answers.

Thesis (Ph. D.)--University of Wisconsin--Madison, 1972. / Vita. Typescript. eContent provider-neutral record in process. Description based on print version record. Includes bibliographical references.

Thesis (Ph. D.)--University of Wisconsin--Madison, 1975. / Typescript. Vita. eContent provider-neutral record in process. Description based on print version record. Includes bibliographical references (leaves 308-315).

Background and Aims: There have been few studies examining ethnic differences in people's illness representations. The aim of this research was to explore the relationship between ethnicity and illness representations, coping, perceived health status and psychological adjustment in participants with coronary heart disease (CHD).Furthermore, within a Punjabi group, it aimed to explore the relationship between these variables and acculturation, as well as the relationship between illness representations, coping and adjustment. Design and Participants: The study was cross-sectional employing a between and within group design incorporating comparative and correlational analyses. The sample included 47 Punjabi participants and 44 Caucasian participants with diagnosed CHD,recruited from a cardiology clinic and a Gurdwara (Sikh temple). Measures: Variables were measured using a range of quantitative questionnaires, which were translated into Punjabi. Results: Ethnic differences were found in participants' illness representations and in particular causal beliefs. Only one coping strategy was significantly different between the two groups and there were no differences on perceived health status measures or in anxiety levels. However, the Punjabi group were significantly more depressed. Within the Punjabi group,acculturation was found to be associated with illness representations, coping and physical functioning. Illness representations were associated with adjustment measures, however there were few associations between illness representations and coping, and between coping and adjustment. Overall, ethnicity did not account for any of the variance in perceived physical functioning or anxiety levels, but accounted for 11 percent of the variance in depression levels. Illness representations were more important than ethnicity and coping in accounting for the variance in perceived physical functioning and psychological adjustment. Implications The results are discussed in terms of the self-regulatory model and future research is suggested. Clinical implications for the undertaking of culturally sensitive work with Punjabi clients with CHD, are discussed.

Submitted in partial fulfillment of the requirements for the degree of Doctor of Education in the Department of Educational Psychology, University of Zululand, 1994. / The aims of this study were threefold : * Firstly, by means of a literature study, it examined the possible misconceptions that Indian teachers have of the black teachers' occupational world and the circumstances which have led to these misconceptions. * Secondly, an empirical survey consisting of structural questionnaires were constructed in order to ascertain the Indian teachers' perception of the black teachers' occupational world. * Thirdly, certain recommendations were made which could possibly eliminate the Indian teachers' misconceptions of the black teachers' occupational world. Education in South Africa is marked by severely discriminatory inequalities of provision. These inequalities coincide with ethnically fragmented structures of control centred on "own affairs" departments of education answerable to the white, Indian and coloured chambers of the tricameral parliament, while black education falls under the Department of Education and Training. The Department of National Education plays an overall co¬ordinating role. In all, the South African education system comprises eighteen separate departments of education, linked through weak co-operative arrangements and separated by marked resource imbalances. Indian teacher training in the RSA has reached such a significant stage in its administrative and curricular development that one is apt to overlook the vicissitudes through which it has passed. Inadequate communication, fostered by the policy of separate development (apartheid), has resulted in Indian teachers having little understanding of the black teachers' occupational world. In view of the limited and misleading information, perceptions of each other's professions are often misconstrued and consequently, a large degree of misunderstanding and mistrust exists between the two groups. Perception in this context is identified as the understanding or view that educators have of their occupational world as life-world. The education system that has evolved in South Africa this century is one of extraordinary complexity. The objectives of the National Party were segregated, differentiated, and unequal education for different racial groups, and political control over all education in the interests of whites. In short, its policy was to divide and control. Black education has always served the needs of those who provided it. Since its inception, black education has never addressed the needs and aspirations of the blacks in South Africa. Decades of apartheid education and rising pupil numbers have resulted in gross inequalities and huge backlogs in provision, especially in black education. The conditions under which black teachers work are poor and demoralising. Quality in education is in the first place dependent upon the quality of the teacher, his qualifications, experience, competence in the classroom, professional confidence and commitment. In all these areas the black teacher is under siege and fighting for survival. In order to establish the Indian teachers' perception of the black teachers' occupational world, teachers from Indian secondary schools were approached with the request to complete a questionnaire. Prior to the submission of the mailed questionnaire a simple random sample, within the target population, of teachers riving in and around Durban, were interviewed. On the basis of these informal unstructured interviews, the questionnaire was refined before submission to the effective population. Statistical analyses were conducted to fulfil the aims of the investigation and to test the research hypotheses stated. On the basis of the aims of this study certain recommendations were also formulated : * That the South African Teachers Council must be established. * That educational institutions be established and/or expanded where black teachers can improve their qualifications through attendance and/or distance education. That the training of adequately qualified teacher educators should become a top priority in black education systems. That the sensitivities of each community be respected. The present research is an exploratory study in determining the Indian teachers' perception of the black teachers' occupational world. It is the hope of the researcher that the present study will serve as a catalyst for further research.

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