Attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) is a source of diagnostic and intervention confusion and uncertainty for practitioners and parents. Questions creating some of the confusion were answered in a series of three studies. The sample was parent and teacher behavioral ratings for 389 children and 502 adolescents with ADHD and 3131 children and 3161 adolescents without ADHD in public and private schools and mental health clinics in forty states. In the first study, data was derived from participant T-scores on the Behavior Assessment System for Children (2nd ed.) to evaluate the construct validity using first and second order factor analyses. Sufficient construct validity was established. In the second study, descriptive discriminant analyses (DDA) and item level ANOVAs were used to investigate whether behaviors that discriminate between the target (i.e., ADHD) and comparison groups were associated with the primary symptoms, comorbid conditions, functional impairment, or some combination of the three. Analyses were completed using subscale T-scores and individual item scores from the target and comparison groups. Results were compared to determine if the behaviors that discriminated between the groups were consistent across developmental stages and between parents and teachers as raters. Primary symptoms, comorbid conditions, and functional impairment explained the variance as rated by parents and teachers. Primary symptoms were found to be the strongest discriminators of children and adolescents as rated by parents. Atypicality explained the largest variance (72.25%) between children and learning problems explained the largest variance (64.32%) between adolescents when rated by teachers. The third study was a literature review of intervention studies to increase the academic performance of youth with ADHD in light of the statistical significance controversy. Fifty-one single subject and group design studies of academic, behavioral, multimodal and parent training were found. Both sides of the statistical significance controversy were summarized. The method of result reporting for 23 group design studies was investigated. Seventy-seven percent of the studies reported results as ?significant? with 26% reporting effect sizes. Researchers are encouraged to report effect sizes and explicitly compare results to previous studies in order to establish replicability for ease of educator interpretation.

This study examined the relationship between executive function and externalizing behaviors within a student population that was assessed for special education services. Executive function was measured by using the Comprehensive Executive Function Inventory (CEFI). Externalizing behaviors and school problems was measured using the Behavior Assessment System for Children, Third Edition (BASC-3). Four separate structural equation models were produced and analyzed to examine this relationship. The results from this study indicate that there is a significant direct effect from executive function on externalizing behaviors and school problems, such that higher scores in executive function yielded lower externalizing behavior and school problems scores. Differences in average full scale CEFI scores were noted between types of special education placements and between various groupings of students in regards to what category they qualified in. The data indicates programs that facilitated more environmental supports and services had students with lower full scale CEFI scores, while students that qualified under Other Health Impairment and Emotional Disturbance shared comorbid features with other distinct processing deficits.

The purpose of this study was twofold: to determine the construct validities of comparable AD/HD instruments that were developed according to our current, DSM-IV classification system for AD/HD; and to identify potential +neurocognitive and socioemotional markers for AD/HD. The sample consisted of 145 children ages 8 to 11 years of age who were diagnosed with Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder (AD/HD), or Central Auditory Processing Disorder (CAPD). Children were administered a battery of neurocognitive tests and completed a self-report measure of personality. Parents completed several, AD/HD instruments pertaining to their children. The AD/HD instruments used in this study were the Attention Deficit Disorder Evaluation Scale-Home Version (ADDES), Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder Test (ADHDT), and the Attention Problems and Hyperactivity scales from the BASC-Monitor (BASC-M). Of interest was how each AD/HD instrument compared to the DSM-IV, particularly in terms of the cross-consistency of AD/HD subtype classifications. The findings showed that the AD/HD instruments classified participants differently from the initial, DSM-IV entry diagnosis. Rates of agreement were better for some of the AD/HD instruments than for others yet there was little overall consistency. The neurocognitive measures used in the study were the Cognitive Assessment System-Basic Battery scales. The socioemotional measures used in the study were two parent-report scales from the BASC-M (Internalizing Problems and Adaptive Skills), and the child report scales from the BASC-Self Report of Personality. Results showed that the neurocognitive measures were relatively insensitive to AD/HD symptomatology while a nearly opposite trend was observed on the socioemotional measures. For the most part, participants classified as the ADHD-Combined Type (ADHD-CT), (regardless of which AD/HD instrument was used) had the most significant impairment in areas of social functioning and emotional symptoms across parent and self-reports.

El objetivo de la presente investigación responde a la voluntad de abordar un acercamiento al pensamiento unamuniano desde una doble perspectiva, la literaria y artística, desvelando cómo las ideas estéticas se integran en su discurso hasta configurar un todo indisoluble. He establecido cinco períodos: La primera etapa, que comprende de 1888 a 1895, se inicia con el artículo “Madrid y Bilbao. Reflexiones de un bilbaíno en la corte” de marzo de 1888, en el cual expresa por primera vez inquietud por la cultura artística. Al cabo de un año, en “Alcalá de Henares. Castilla y Vizcaya” de 1899, Unamuno sienta las bases de su credo estético al plantear la existencia del arte vascongado, la búsqueda intrahistórica que desarrollará en los ensayos de En torno al casticismo de 1895 y los valores estéticos del paisaje. La segunda etapa, que oscila de 1896 a 1900 al ser nombrado Rector de la Universidad de Salamanca, continúa con el planteamiento intrahistórico, cuya premisa resume en que hay que buscar en el pueblo la materia prima del arte (“Sobre el cultivo de la demótica”, 1896). Otro de los pilares sobre el que entreteje su discurso enlaza con la visión de un arte plenairista que entronca con Beruete y Francisco Giner de los Ríos, Miguel de Unamuno se asoma al nuevo siglo como espectador reticente a las nuevas vanguardias que irrumpen en el panorama artístico. La tercera etapa, la más extensa, abarca de 1901 a 1914, resulta crucial para adentrarnos en el juicio estético de Unamuno ya que es cuando ejerce propiamente de crítico de arte y desarrolla todas las concepciones estéticas gestadas en los anteriores años. Se inmiscuye en el ámbito de la crítica teniendo como referente la Estética de Hegel, El Breviario de estética de Benedetto Croce y la Historia de las ideas estéticas de Marcelino Menéndez Pelayo y vierte las bases de su crítica pictórica en “De arte pictótica I y II” de 1912. No obstante la principal aportación es la de erigirse en estandarte de la escuela vasca con Zuloaga a la cabeza, escribió: “Zuloaga el vasco” de 1908, “Nemesio Mogrobejo” de 1910, “Darío de Regoyos” de 1913 y “La escultura honrada” de 1913. La cuarta etapa se extiende de 1915 a 1924, año del exilio a Fuerteventura. Se ratifica a favor de la libertad de expresión y se posiciona contra el estilo grandilocuente del arte germánico. En el contexto de la Primera Guerra Mundial la implicación periodística del escritor es esencialmente política, a excepción de varios artículos dedicados a artistas vascos como: “La labor patriótica de Zuloaga” de 1917, “La obra de arte de Adolfo Guiard”, de 1918 y “En el Museo del Prado” de 1919. La quinta y última etapa, de 1925 a 1936, marcada por el destierro voluntario en París y Hendaya, por la inestabilidad política y por la emergente Guerra Civil. Todo ello sume al escritor en un estado de desaliento que le aleja de las inquietudes artísticas, a excepción de “Mis santas campañas. Paco Iturrino”. Datan de esta época algunos de los retratos más sobresalientes del escritor, como el de Zuloaga de 1925, los de Juan de Echevarría, y el de Daniel Vázquez Díaz de 1936. Del Unamuno dibujante, al Unamuno retratado; el escritor convertido en asunto pictórico, motivo que le lleva a relacionarse fraternalmente con los pintores coetáneos hasta el punto de compartir con los artistas de la vertiente cántabra no sólo una confesada amistad sino también un mismo credo estético, tal y como se analiza a lo largo del presente estudio "Unamuno y las artes". / This research aims to reveal the possible links that existed between the paradigmatic thinker, Miguel de Unamuno, and art, according to their particularities and various forms of expression, artists, concepts and aesthetic preferences. However the facet of Unamuno seen in some biographies (perhaps Colette and Jean - Claude Rabaté along with Jon Juaristi have delved deeper into the subject), his relationship with art remains known but not studied in depth. Some authors have explored this direction with valuable contributions and many of them have highlighted the ideological-plastic understanding between Unamuno and Zuloaga as Tellechea Idígoras, Calvo Serraller, José Carlos Mainer, F. Garín, F. Tomás and Miguel Zuzaga. It is essential to consult catalogs as El Greco: La seva revaloració pel modernisme català, Sorolla y la Hispanic Society – Una visión de la España de entre siglos -, Sorolla - Zuloaga. Dos visiones para un cambio de siglo, and above all: La huella del 98 en la pintura española contemporánea. From his beginnings as an artist in the garret of the painter Lecuona, recognition of his drawing skills and his confession of longing to be a painter, has drawn a line of permanent contact with the arts that has been strengthened by regular treatment with contemporary painters. His incursion in arts as an art critic, as did also Valle-Inclán and Azorín, the interest generated by almost all the artistic intellectuality of end of century, Cossio's monograph on El Greco, the Historia de las ideas estéticas en España by Marcelino Menéndez Pelayo, and the Breviario de estética by Benedetto Croce, all favored the gestation of a culture broth which acquired consistency early in the century with the emergence of the avant-garde and the theoretical background of the manifestos. By philosophical-artistic compenetration Unamuno polls reality and extracts from it the intrahistorical formula. Both Velazquez and Zuloaga rose up the genuinely “castizo” reveling the essence of being. The writer oscillates between tradition and progress to enrich his speech with the visual art component, while claims for the humanizing role and drives with Giner de los Ríos the aesthetic appreciation of landscape. From a social conception of art, Unamuno becomes chronicler and critic to establish the basis of creed aesthetic that will be described in the following pages.

El principal objeto de esta tesis está relacionado con la idea que la persistencia es una característica importante de la lluvia diaria en el País Vasco. El área de estudio está situado en la zona norte de España, en la misma frontera entre las regiones biogeográficas eurosiberiana y mediterránea.Para demostrar esta hipótesis, se han recogido datos diarios de 41 estaciones meteorológicas del País Vasco del período comprendido entre 1965 y 1994. Dichas estaciones se hallan distribuidas de una manera homogénea. Las tecnologías de información geográfica (GIS) han desempeñado un importante papel en esta tesis; se han usado para desarrollar grandes series de mapas climáticos. Igualmente han sido empleados métodos avanzados de geoestadística. Los resultados obtenidos han sido los siguientes: - En primer lugar, se ha definido el contexto climático de la región utilizando varios indicadores numéricos de precipitación. - En segundo lugar se ha definido la estructura de las precipitaciones para cada ubicación particular. La frecuencia absoluta de secuencias húmedas de "n" días se ha identificado en cada estación meteorológica concreta para el periodo estudiado, así como su probabilidad empírica bajo tres parámetros de lluvia (1, 5 y 10 mm. diarios). Por otra parte, las secuencias húmedas se han analizado interiormente considerado la manera en que se encuentran relacionadas secuencias distintas de días húmedos y secos. - Tercero, se han usado cinco órdenes markovianos para calcular las probabilidades teoréticas de tener una cadena húmeda de "n" días bajo los tres parámetros definidos anteriormente. Los modelos markovianos estiman la probabilidad teorética de tener un día lluvioso después de tener uno, dos, tres o "n" días lluviosos antes. Los valores probabilísticas teóricos y empíricos se han comparado con la significación estadística de los modelos teóricos producidos basándose en el indicador estadístico "X2". Finalmente, la persistencia se ha regionalizado de acuerdo con los modelos markovianos que mejor encajan con la realidad física de la lluvia en el área de estudio. / RAINFALL PERSISTENCE ANALYSIS AT THE BASQUE AUTONOMOUS COMMUNITY BASED ON MARKOVIAN MODELS AND GEOGRAPHIC INFORMATION SYSTEMS The main aim of this work is related to the idea that persistence is an important characteristic of the daily rainfall in the Basque Country. The study area is located in the North of Spain, just in the border between the Eurosiberian and the Mediterranean biogeographical regions. In order to demonstrate the mentioned hypothesis, daily data have been collected at 41 weather stations over the Basque autonomous territory for the period 1,965-1,994. These stations are homogeneously distributed on space. Geographic information system technologies (GIS) have played an important role in this thesis. They have been used to develop large series of climatic maps and advanced geostatistical methods have also been applied. Firstly, it is defined the climatic context of the region using several precipitation numeric indicators. Spatial and temporal distribution of rainfall are also analysed for the study period. Secondly is defined the rainfall structure on each particular location. The absolute frequency of wet chains of n days is identified in each weather station for the study period and its empirical probability under three different rainfall cut points (1, 5 and 10 mm/day) Moreover, wet chains are analysed internally considering the way in which different sequences of wet and dry days are linked. Conditioned probabilities have been estimated and empirical persistence curves have been graphically represented for each weather station datasets. Thirdly, five markovian orders are used to calculate the theoretical probabilities of having a wet chain of "n" days under the three cut points defined before. The markovian models estimate the theoretical probability of having a rainy day after having one, two, three or "n" rainy days before. Empirical and theoretical probabilities values are compared and the statistical significance of theoretical models is produce based on the X2 statistical indicator. Finally persistence is regionalised according to the markovian models that better fit the physical reality of the rainfall in the study area.

Emotional and Behavioral Disorders (EBD) directly influence learning, relationships, mood, and overall scholastic experiences. Research provides evidence that early intervention and prevention efforts can address the needs of students with EBD (Allen-DeBoer, Malmgren, & Glass, 2006; Cook, et al. 2008; Lien-Thorne & Kamps, 2005; Regan, Mastropieri, & Scruggs, 2005; Rivera, Al-Otiba, & Koorland, 2006), but in order to identify these at-risk youth, a screening system is needed to broadly consider Social, Emotional, and Behavioral Concerns (SEBC).This dissertation evaluated the alignment of a teacher nomination process (Teacher Nomination Form (TNF)) and a normative screener of EBD risk (BASC-2 Behavioral and Emotional Screening System (BESS), Kamphaus & Reynolds, 2007). Teacher nominations and rankings were significantly correlated to the BESS in the internalizing (.177), externalizing (.246), and combined categories (.304) groups. Multiple teacher nominations were not significantly related to BESS scores. Social validity evidence was gathered and interpreted.

El setembre de l'any 1998 les formacions nacionalistes basques van firmar un pacte que pretenia traçar una via de solució al conflicte polític que viu Euskadi, pocs dies després ETA anunciava una treva. Durant aquell període de treva hi va haver diferents passos, entre elles negociacions entre ETA i el govern espanyol. Al final les coses es van torçar i a finals de l'any 1999 ETA va anunciar la fi de la treva. En aquest treball s'analitza com van tractar aquell període els diaris de difusió general a Catalunya, comparant-ho amb els diaris de la resta de l'Estat i d'Euskadi, estudiats en un projecte d'investigació. L'anàlisi de continguts està basat en portades i editorials i està complementat amb un marc teòric, contextual i metodològic. / En septiembre del año 1998 las fuerzas nacionalistas vascas firmaron un pacto que pretendía trazar una vía de solución al conflicto político que vive Euskadi, pocos días después ETA anunció una tregua. Durante aquel periodo de tregua hubo diferentes pasos, entre ellos negociaciones entre ETA y el gobierno español, pero a finales del año 1999 ETA anunció el fin de la tregua. En este trabajo se analiza como trataron aquel periodo los diarios de difusión general en Catalunya, comparándolo con el de los diarios del resto del Estado y de Euskadi, estudiados en uno proyecto de investigación. El análisis de contenidos se basa en portadas y editoriales y está complementado con un marco teórico, contextual y metodológico. / In September 1998 the Basque nationalistic forces signed an agreement trying to clear a way on the politic conflict in Euskadi. Few days later ETA announced a truce. During that period of truce there were different stages, such as negotiations between Spanish Government and ETA. But at the end of 1999 ETA announced the end of the truce. In this work it is analyzed how the newspapers in Catalonia treated that period, comparing with the newspapers of the rest of the State and of Euskadi, wich were studied in one project of investigation. This analysis of contents is based on some front pages and editorials and is complemented with a theoretical, contextual and methodological frame.