Abstract not available

This study investigated Taiwanese preschool teachers' awareness of cultural diversity of new immigrant children and how this awareness influences their educational practices. In particular, this study focused on the cultural awareness of preschool teachers who work with young Taiwanese children whose mothers are immigrants from Southeast Asia. This study used quantitative and qualitative methods. One hundred seventy-two Taiwanese preschool teachers from the different geographic areas of Taiwan participated in the study. Data were collected through the use of the Cultural Diversity Awareness Inventory (CDAI) survey and participant interviews. Research results of the study revealed: (a) most Taiwanese preschool teachers had an awareness of cultural diversity, but their perceptions of how to create a multicultural environment need to be improved; (b) Taiwanese preschool teachers' personal experiences with children from different cultures were more associated with their cultural awareness than their ages and educational levels; (c) Geographic location was the factor affecting preschool teachers' awareness of cultural diversity and educational practices. This study is informative to the understanding of Taiwanese preschool teachers' awareness of cultural diversity and the implications of this awareness for classroom practice. In addition, multicultural perspectives of the Taiwan society toward immigrant families and children can benefit from the findings of this study. Future research should include the cultural needs of new immigrant children and the implementation of practices for educating new immigrant children.

La biologie de la conservation est un domaine de recherche en pleine expansion en raison de la perte accélérée de la biodiversité à l’échelle mondiale. Pour mieux comprendre les processus et les menaces au maintien des populations de petite taille et les effets des facteurs anthropiques sur la biodiversité, la génétique est fréquemment utilisée en conservation. Des analyses génétiques peuvent, par exemple, nous informer sur les tendances à long terme, la diversité des populations et les stratégies de reproduction d’une espèce. La tortue des bois (Glyptemys insculpta) est une espèce endémique à l’Amérique du Nord qui est en danger d’extinction selon l’Union internationale pour la conservation de la nature. Dans le cadre de ma thèse, j’avais comme objectif de caractériser la diversité génétique de cette espèce menacée au Canada. À cet effet, j’ai analysé la génétique des populations de tortues des bois à plusieurs échelles spatiales et temporelles, afin de mieux cerner les processus ayant un impact sur la diversité des populations. Dans un premier temps, les relations de parentalité ont été reconstruites au sein d’une population de tortues des bois pour estimer la fréquence de paternité multiple et de paternité répétée. Les résultats de mes travaux suggèrent que l’emmagasinement de sperme chez la femelle et la reproduction multiple avec les mêmes partenaires pour plus d’une saison de reproduction pourraient expliquer ces phénomènes. Ces stratégies de reproduction pourraient dans ce cas être induites par la faible densité de la population à l’étude, ou encore par la fidélité au site d’hibernation où la majorité des évènements de copulation ont lieu. Par la suite, je me suis intéressée à la diversité génétique des populations de tortues de bois. J’ai voulu comprendre les effets de la configuration spatiale des éléments du paysage et les évènements de dispersion géographique sur la diversité des populations. À l’aide d’une approche de génétique du paysage, mes analyses montrent que la division des populations par bassins versants explique une large fraction de la diversité génétique interpopulations. Ces résultats confirment également que les bassins versants représentent des unités de gestion propices à la protection des populations de tortues des bois. Finalement, des analyses de réseaux ont été utilisées pour mieux cerner la dynamique de flux génique entre les populations de la rive nord et de la rive sud du fleuve Saint-Laurent. Plus spécifiquement, la rive nord se caractérise par un réseau robuste de populations isolées, alors que les populations de la rive sud présentent plutôt une structure de métapopulation. En utilisant les réseaux construits à partir de données génétiques, des scénarios hypothétiques furent comparés pour explorer la sélection de populations à l’aide du logiciel BRIDES. Les résultats de ces analyses ont permis de cibler l’importance de certaines populations de tortues des bois pour la connectivité du réseau. L’importance de ces populations n’aurait pu être prédite par les résultats de la diversité et de la différenciation génétique, les indices de centralité et les analyses d’élimination de nœuds. Grâce à la génétique, cette thèse apporte de nouvelles connaissances sur la tortue des bois, les stratégies de reproduction des différents sexes, le flux génique, la connectivité et l’influence du réseau hydrographique sur la diversité des populations. Ces résultats nous permettent d’avoir une meilleure compréhension des processus affectant la diversité génétique de cette espèce afin de mieux la protéger. Toutes les analyses réalisées pour cette thèse sont directement applicables à l’ensemble des autres espèces longévives avec des générations chevauchantes. / Conservation biology is a rapidly expanding field of research due to the accelerating loss of global biodiversity. To better understand the processes and threats to the persistence of small populations and the effects of anthropogenic factors on biodiversity, genetic approaches are frequently used in conservation. Genetic analyzes can, for example, inform us about long-term trends, population diversity and reproductive strategies of a species. The wood turtle (Glyptemys insculpta) is a species endemic to North America that is endangered according to the International Union for the Conservation of Nature. As part of my thesis, my objective was to characterize the genetic diversity of this threatened species in Canada. In order to better understand the impact of reproductive strategy and landscape structure on population diversity, I analyzed the genetics of wood turtle populations at several spatial and temporal scales. First, parentage relationships were reconstructed in a population of wood turtles to estimate the frequency of multiple and repeated paternity. The results of my work suggest that sperm storage in females and multiple reproduction with the same partners for more than one breeding season could explain these phenomena. These reproduction strategies could in this case be induced by the low density of the study population, or by fidelity to the overwintering site where the majority of copulation events take place. Subsequently, I assessed the genetic diversity of wood turtle populations. I wanted to understand the effects of the landscape configuration and geographic dispersion events on the diversity of populations. Using a landscape genetics approach, my analyzes show that the division of populations by watershed explains a large fraction of the genetic diversity between populations. These results also confirm that watersheds represent management units conducive to the protection of wood turtle populations. Finally, network analysis was used to better understand the gene flow dynamics among populations located on the north and south shores of the St. Lawrence River. More specifically, the north shore is characterized by a robust network of isolated populations, whereas the populations on the south shore present more of a metapopulation structure. Using population graphs, hypothetical scenarios were compared to explore the node selection process using the BRIDES algorithm. The results of these analyzes made it possible to point out specific populations of wood turtles, considering their importance for network connectivity. This could have not been predicted by using genetic diversity and distinctiveness estimates, node-based metrics, and node removal analysis for these populations. Thanks to genetics, this thesis brings new knowledge on the wood turtle, the reproductive strategies of both sexes, the gene flow, the connectivity and the influence of the hydrographic network on population diversity. These results allow us to have a better understanding of the processes affecting the genetic diversity of this species in order to better protect it. All analyses performed for this thesis are directly applicable to other long-lived species with overlapping generations.

During the Second World War, tens of thousands of Canadian soldiers stationed in Britain met and married British women. The majority of these British war brides and their husbands settled in Canada, where these women had to quickly adjust to Canadian customs. Based on interviews with fifteen British war brides currently living in the Victoria area, this thesis analyzes the way in which these women recount stories of their lives and experiences as war brides through recollections of food-centred narratives. Their recollections of the pre-war years, the war years and the post-war years often revolved around memories of food. This thesis will show how war brides make use of such food-centred narratives as a comfortable medium through which to express their emotions regarding the past and to relate their stories, be they joyful, traumatic, nostalgic, somber or elegiac.

Background Recently, Taiwan has been faced with the migration of numbers of women from Southeast Asian (SEA) countries. It was estimated that the aggregate number of SEA wives in Taiwan was more than 131,000 in 2007 (Ministry of Foreign Affairs, 2006).These women are often colloquially called, “foreign brides” or “alien brides”; most of them are seen as commodities of the marriage trade, whose marriages are arranged by marriage brokers. Some women can be regarded as being sold for profit by their families. These young Vietnamese immigrant women come to Taiwan alone, often with a single suitcase, and are culturally and geographically distinct from Taiwanese peoples; the changes in culture, interpersonal relationships, personal roles, language, value systems and attitudes exert many negative impacts on their health, so greater levels of acculturation stress can be expected. This particular group of immigrant women are highly susceptible and vulnerable to health problems, due to language barriers, cultural conflicts, social and interpersonal isolation, and lack of support systems. The aims of this study were to examine the relationships between acculturation and immigrantspecific distress and health outcomes among Vietnamese transnational married women in Taiwan. This study focuses on Vietnamese intermarriage immigrants, the largest immigrant group in the period from1994 through to 2007. Methodology The quantitative study was divided into two phases: the first was a pilot study and the second the main study. This study was conducted in a communitybased health centre in the south of Taiwan, targeting Taiwanese households with Vietnamese wives, including the Tanam, Kaohsiung, and Pentong areas. This involved convenience sampling with participants drawn from registration records at the Public Health Centre of Kaohsiung and used the snowball technique to recruit 213 participants. The instruments included the following measures: (1) Socio-demographic information (2) Acculturation Scale (3) Acculturative Distress Scale, and (4) HRQOL. Questions related to immigrant women’s acculturation level and health status were modified. Quantitative data was coded and entered into the SPSS and SAS program for statistical analysis. The data analysis process involved descriptive, bivariate, multivariate multiple regression, and classification and regression trees (CART). Results Six hypotheses of this study were validated. Demographic data was presented and it revealed that there are statically significant differences between levels of acculturation and years of residency in Taiwan, number of children, marital status, education, religion of spouse, employment status of spouse and Chinese ethnic background by Pearson correlation and Kendall’s Tau-b or Spearman test. The correlations of daily activity, language usage, social interaction, ethnic identity, and total of acculturation score with DI tend to be negatively significant. In addition, the result of the one-way ANOVA supported the hypothesis that the different types of acculturation had a differential effect on immigrant distress. The marginalized group showed a greater immigrant distresses in comparison with the integrated group. Furthermore, the comparison t-test revealed that the Vietnamese immigrant women showed a lower score than Taiwanese women in HRQOL. The result showed higher acculturative stress associated with lower score of HRQOL on bodily pain, vitality, social functioning, mental health, and mental component summary. The CART procedure to the conclusion that the predictive variables for the physical component of the SF-36 (PCS) were: alienation, occupation, loss, language, and discrimination (predicted 28.8% of the total variance explained). The predictive variables for the mental component of the SF-36 (MCS) were: alienation, occupation, loss, language, and novelty (predicted 28.4% of the total variance explained). Conclusion As these Vietnamese immigrant women become part of Taiwanese communities and society, the need becomes apparent to understand how they acculturate to Taiwan and to the health status they acquire. The findings have implications for nursing practice, research, and will assist the Taiwanese government to formulate appropriate immigrant health policies for these SEA immigrant women. Finally, the application of this research will positively contribute to the health and well being of thousands of immigrant women and their families.

The underage marriage of girls (UMG) practice by some parents continues to occur in Bo Town, Sierra Leone, and it is a problem. Regardless of the negative consequences, parents continue to marry off their young girls who become wives of rebels and participate in the civil war. The purpose of this qualitative case study was to explore the perceptions of adult women between 18 and 24 who experienced child marriage, parents who married off their young girls, and community leaders to understand why the UMG persisted in Bo Town. The theoretical frameworks used in this study were the social cognitive theory and self-efficacy behavioral theory. Data were collected through semi structured interviews. Participants in this study consisted of 5 community leaders, 5 adult women between 18 and 24 who experienced UMG before 18 years old, and 5 parents who married off their underage girls in the Bo Town district. Interview transcripts were analyzed, coded, and 16 themes emerged. Some of the themes included poverty, lack of awareness, education, enforcement, monitoring, leadership, child marriage, domestic violence, accountability, responsibility, dowry payment, and female genital mutilation. The findings may influence social change by using practices such as educating, monitoring, enforcing the banning of the UMG policy relentlessly. Furthermore, implementation of mentorship programs, counseling, leadership, and awareness training to young girls and parents could reduce the UMG practice in Bo Town. Consequently, if young girls are educated and allowed access to resources, they could become empowered and productive members of society as a whole, and the UMG problem may diminish in the Bo community.

本論文的研究目的，是以「老化態度」及「老年準備」之概念架構，探索中年男同志關於老化的生命經驗，希望藉由中年男同志的自身經驗，來理解他們對老化的意義詮釋、老年生活的想像及所從事的老年準備情形。 本研究使用質性取向的研究方法，以半結構式的深度訪談進行資料蒐集，訪談了十二位居住在大台北地區或桃園縣市，年齡介於四十歲至五十三歲的中年男同志，主要的研究結果如下：（一）受訪者談論的老化意義，是由生理、心理及社會文化等多方面所交織而成的概念，在不同的面向上也有不同程度的正、負向評價，整體來說，他們傾向於否定自己是老人、離老尚遠的「老年拒斥觀」；至於對老的界定，最明顯的是，當他們和同年齡層的異性戀者相比時，多半覺得自己保有年輕化的優勢。另外，許多受訪者也提到年輕男同志對中、老年同志的負面態度或刻板印象，某種程度上反映出男同志族群的怕老心態。（二）在受訪者描繪的老年生活圖像中，對「社會支持網絡」的老年想像尤其重視朋友及伴侶關係等非正式網絡，其中幾位已婚男同志也提及對婚姻家庭的老年生活想像（例如「含飴弄孫」）；在「社會參與」方面，他們期待能夠「參與志願服務」、「出錢出力貢獻社會」、「老年的再教育」、「工作者角色的延續」及「從事休閒活動與興趣」等，其共同的目的是為了達到自我成長及自我實現，但也可能因同志身份而面臨參與的障礙；至於「對老年的焦慮、擔心或害怕」，他們談論得最多、最擔心的是「怕重病」、「怕醜」，以及「怕失去外在吸引力」。（三）在受訪者實際從事的老年準備內容中，他們認為最需要準備、且實際準備程度較高的是「經濟準備」（工作收入及其他財務規劃），其次則是「抗老化的準備」（基於身體健康或外在吸引力而進行的保養）、「從事興趣或休閒活動」（偏向動態性、團體式的型態）以及「社會支持網絡維繫」，至於目前積極從事「社會學習與志願服務」及「老年居住安排」的受訪者則較少。總括來說，受訪者提及的準備內容都是屬於非正式的準備，較不重視正式組織（如政府、公司企業或非營利組織）在老年準備中扮演的角色。 再由生命週期觀點來檢視，則發現中年男同志的老化態度、老年生活想像及老年準備情形與中年異性戀者之間具有相似性，但也有差異性，同時，也呈現出一些動態歷程的改變。 值得深思的是，「老年準備」的概念本身有可能隱含著個人本位的意識型態，當政府的老年政策強調老年人的自我照顧責任時，也就忽視了對社經地位較弱勢者應有的保障。此外，本研究也發現，娶外籍新娘的已婚中年男同志，其婚姻關係凸顯出「性傾向弱勢」與「性別弱勢」之間的相互擠壓現象，基於自身利益的考量，弱勢者本身（已婚男同志）也可能會去壓迫比自己更弱勢的人（外籍新娘）。 / With “attitudes toward aging“ and “preparation for old age” as the conceptual framework, this study aims to explore the aging experience of middle-aged gay males, and tries to understand their interpretations, imaginations, and preparation of aging. This study employs qualitative research approach. The participants are twelve middle-aged gay males living in the Taipei metropolitan area and Taoyuan county, aging from forty to fifty-three. The researcher conducted semi-structural interview with them individually, and collected in-depth data. The study findings after data analyzed are listed below: First, the meaning of aging discussed by the twelve participants during the interview is a complicated complex, comprising of physical, psychological and social cultural dimensions, which are evaluated with different positive and negative appraisals separately. As a whole, participants tended to think they were not old and resist to aging. Most obviously, when compared with their heterosexual counterparts, they considered themselves much younger. Besides, many participants mentioned the negative stereotypes and prejudices young gay males tended to have against older ones, which reflects the fear of age widespread in this population, too. Second, The imaginations of later life participants in this study had involved “social support networks”, “social participation”, and “anxiety, worry and fear of old age”. They thought highly of informal support networks particularly, such as their friends and intimate partners, when it came to “social support networks”. Of participants entering traditional heterosexual marriage, some discussed their positive expectations that they hope to enjoy marriage and family life in later life as the heterosexual do. On the topic of “social participation”, they expected themselves to be volunteers, contribute to society with money and effort, pursue further education, keep working, and get engaged in their interests or hobbies. Their common purpose of social participation in old age was self-achievement, but they may encounter some obstacles because of their sexual orientation. In terms of their anxiety, worry, and fear of old age, what they talked and worried about most was getting ill, becoming ugly and unattractive. Third, as for preparation for old age, what the participants in this study considered most important, and thus prepared more was economic security. And other preparations included health maintenance, engagements in interests or hobbies, and connections to their social support networks. By and large, their preparations tended to be informal, and don’t emphasize the importance of formal preparation planning from formal organizations like the government, companies or non-profit organizations. With the life course developmental perspective, when we compare the attitudes toward aging, imaginations of later life, and preparation for old age between these middle-aged gay men and their heterosexual counterparts, we can find that some dimensions are similar and the others are different, and their attitudes, thinking or action about aging may change over time. Furthermore, the concept of “preparation for old age” itself may imply certain ideology of individualism inexplicitly. While aging policies emphasize the obligation of self-care of the elderly, it may ignore the security of those persons in lower social-economic status. Besides, this study also finds that the marriage relationships of middle-aged gay males who married “foreign brides” are some kind of mutual oppression in essential, the disadvantages itself（middle-aged gay males）are likely to oppress the other disadvantages in worse condition（”foreign brides”）.