The purpose of this study was to investigate the relationship between differing stated causes of deviant behavior which is commonly labelled mental illness, and the perceived seriousness of these behaviors in determining judgments of the degree of responsibility attributed to described deviant individuals. This was accomplished by having subjects rate four different vignettes as to degree of perceived seriousness and degree of responsibility for behavior. The subjects were 76 undergraduate students enrolled in either introductory psychology and/or introductory anthropology. The subjects were divided into four groups. Each group of 19 subjects received the same four vignettes. Each vignette gave a behavioral description which was characteristic of one of four categories of mental illness: paranoid schizophrenic, simple schizophrenic, depressed neurotic, and phobic compulsive. Each group received a different stated cause for the described behavior. These causes were biological, social learning, unknown, and both biological and social learning. The subjects were asked to rate the individual described in each vignette as to how serious they perceived the individual's behavior to be on a scale of 1-4. Subjects were also asked to rate how responsible the described individual was, in their judgment, for his behavior on a scale of 1-5. The specific questions addressed by this study were: (1) Does the degree of responsibility for deviant behavior attributed by normal individuals to various types of described deviant behavior vary as a function of the stated cause of behavior? (2) Does the degree of responsibility for deviant behavior attributed by normal individuals to various types of described deviant behavior vary as a function of the perceived seriousness of the behavior? and (3) Do stated cause and perceived seriousness of behavior interact in determining the degree of responsibility normal individuals attribute to deviant individuals. The results of this study indicated that there is a significant relationship between the perceived seriousness and degree of responsibility attributed to deviant individuals. More specifically, the paranoid schizophrenic individual, rated as the most serious, was seen as significantly less responsible than the less serious depressed neurotic or phobic compulsive individual. No significant main effect was found for the stated cause of behavior and no significant interaction, cause by perceived seriousness, was found. These results provide support for the notion that perceived seriousness contributes more to the determination of attribution of responsibility than does the stated cause of behavior. The implications of these findings as they relate to psychiatric rehabilitation were discussed as were the limitations of this study which included concerns regarding instrumentation and statistical analysis.

Magister Artium - MA / This study examines the foundations of the various methods of identifying legal cause (masālik al-ʿillah). It studies its various theories, spanning the classical and premodern period and investigates its application in contemporary times. The investigation analyses the theories of masālik al-ʿillah while placing the legal cause (ʿillah) contextually within the convention of analogical reasoning (qiyās). The findings of this investigation are then used to study practical applications of identifying legal cause, in a selection of three case constructions of qiyas, under the topic of suicide attacks.

No description available.

<p> "A Worthy Cause" brings to life a topic never before researched on the nineteenth-century Regular Baptist position surrounding the preservation of the Lord's Day (also known as Sabbatarianism) in Upper Canada. Within nineteenth-century Evangelicalism in the province the crusade for the protection of the Lord's Day was preeminent among social reform initiatives. Canadian Regular Baptists in Upper Canada viewed the observance and celebration of the Lord's Day as vital and of paramount significance in the quest for social reform and religious piety. Viewing this topic through the lens of various newspapers that made up the Regular Baptist press, this thesis demonstrates why the Lord's Day was considered to be one of the most worthy causes among nineteenth-century Upper Canadian Regular Baptists. The thesis contends that Baptist support for the Lord's Day was rooted in a number of interrelated convictions: its scriptural, doctrinal and confessional significance, its observation strengthened personal holiness and the family unit, its desecration was harmful to society, and lastly, its observance would bring a blessing to the nation. The Baptist approach was especially unique in that Baptists, champions of the separation of Church and State and religious liberty, deviated from their evangelical counterparts when it came to the legal enforcement of the Lord's Day. The thesis is an original contribution to the social and intellectual history of Baptists and the province at large.</p> / Thesis / Master of Arts (MA)

No description available.

Introduction Both elevated levels of physical activity (PA) and high cardiorespiratory fitness (CRF) are associated with a decreased risk of all-cause mortality. The degree to which an individual's PA level and CRF status interact to influence mortality is not currently fully understood. This study investigated whether PA and CRF were independently related to all-cause mortality, and to what degree PA was associated with improved mortality risk in individuals with low CRF. Methods This is a prospective cohort study using health assessments on individuals gathered between 1975 and 2002. Health assessment data were matched with the National Death Registry to assess all-cause mortality. This study employed a self-reported measure of PA and Bruce protocol maximal treadmill to estimate CRF. Survival analyses were conducted using Cox proportional hazards regressions. Results Of 3,829 clients who were assessed, a total of 180 clients died within the follow-up period. The mean follow-up period was 25.4 ± 7 years. CRF was significantly and strongly related to all-cause mortality in a dose response manner. PA was not significantly related to all-cause mortality under a multivariable model. Discussion The primary finding was a strong inverse, dose response relationship between CRF and risk of all-cause mortality. This relationship further strengthens a large body of evidence suggesting that CRF may be a better predictor of all-cause mortality than an individual's self-reported PA. It is hypothesized that the apparent lack of relationship here observed between PA and all-cause mortality is largely due to the lack of specificity in the measure of PA employed, as well as the inaccuracy of self-report generally. Conclusion Physicians may benefit from employing objective measures of CRF in clinical settings instead of self-report-based measures of PA for the assessment of mortality risk. When studying the relationship between PA status and mortality, a more specific measure of PA than minutes of moderate to vigorous PA per week may be required. Further research should investigate the way in which PA is related to mortality in individuals with low CRF.

Yes / In AD 1836, the General Register Office (GRO) was established to oversee the national system of civil registration in England and Wales, recording all births, deaths and marriages. Additional data regarding population size, division size and patterns of occupation within each division permit urban and rural areas (and those with both urban and rural characteristics, described here as ‘mixed’) to be directly compared to each other. The annual Reports of the Registrar General summarize the collected data, including cause of and age at death, which is of particular value to historical demographers and bioarcheologists, allowing us to investigate demographic patterns in urban and rural districts in the nineteenth century. Overall, this paper aims to highlight how this documentary evidence can supplement osteological and paleopathological data to investigate how urbanization affected the health of past populations. It examines the data contained within the first Registrar General report (for 1837-8), in order to assess patterns of mortality of diverse rural, urban, and mixed populations within England and Wales at a point in time during a period of rapid urbanization. It shows that urban and mixed districts typically had lower life expectancy and different patterns in cause of death compared to rural areas. The paper briefly compares how the documentary data differs from information regarding health from skeletal populations, focusing on the city of London, highlighting that certain age groups (the very young and very old) are typically underrepresented in archeological assemblages and reminding us that, while the paleopathological record offers much in terms of chronic health, evidence of acute disease and importantly cause of death can rarely be ascertained from skeletal remains. / This research was funded by the Royal Society of London (Grant Reference IES\R1\180138) and supported by the University of Bradford and SUNY Plattsburgh.

Yes / Illness representations shape responses to illness experienced by the self or by others. The illness representations held by family members of those with long-term conditions such as dementia influence their understanding of what is happening to the person and how they respond and provide support. The aim of this study is to explore components of illness representations (label, cause, control and timeline) in caregivers of people with dementia. This was an exploratory study; the data reported came from the Memory Impairment and Dementia Awareness Study (MIDAS). Data from semi-structured interviews with 50 caregivers of people with dementia were analysed using content analysis. The majority of caregivers gave accounts that appeared to endorse a medical/diagnostic label, although many used different terms interchangeably. Caregivers differentiated between direct causes and contributory factors, but the predominant explanation was that dementia had a biological cause. Other perceived causes were hereditary factors, ageing, lifestyle, life events and environmental factors. A limited number of caregivers were able to identify things that people with dementia could do to help manage the condition, while others thought nothing could be done. There were varying views about the efficacy of medication. In terms of timeline, there was considerable uncertainty about how dementia would progress over time. The extent of uncertainty about the cause, timeline and controllability of dementia indicated that caregivers need information on these areas. Tailored information and support taking account of caregivers' existing representations may be most beneficial.

2025 / Attribution theory literature provides various ways to discuss the relationships between success or failure and the reasons perceived to be responsible for an outcome. This study is based on Weiner’s (1986) attribution theory of achievement motivation and explores the attributions of choral ensemble performances made by choral directors who work in academic settings. The aims of this research were to determine whether participants’ own successful performances are attributed differently from those they consider unsuccessful and to determine the relationships between attribution responses and personal or work-related differences. An online survey was distributed to collect choral directors’ responses. Participants were asked about their degree backgrounds, the number of years at their current institutions, how many choral ensemble classes they conducted, the size of their institutions’ choral programs, the grade levels of students with whom they worked, whether their institutions were public or private, and demographic self-identifications. The second part of the questionnaire prompted participants to recall their most and least successful choral performances in recent history, then to rate their beliefs regarding 12 statements along a 9-point scale based on McAuley et al.’s (1992) Revised Causal Dimension Scale (CDSII). The statements corresponded to four subscales: locus, internal controllability, external controllability, and stability of the cause they believed most responsible for each prompt. A sample of N = 167 choral directors completed the questionnaire. The sample included choral directors in elementary, secondary, post-secondary, and multiple settings. Reliability testing was particularly poor on one stability test item, which was removed from subsequent analyses. Testing consisted of both parametric and non-parametric tests when applicable. Results from paired Wilcoxon and t-tests both revealed that participants significantly rated attributions of successful and unsuccessful performances differently on three subscales: locus, internal control, and stability. Among the personal and vocational questions, Pearson’s correlation revealed that years at institution negatively correlated with internal control with both success (R = -.220) and failure (R = -.227). The size of choral program was also related to internal control with success according to Spearman’s rho (ρ = -.155). External control with success was also related to level of teaching via Welch’s one-way ANOVA (F = 3.678) and related to public versus private school via independent samples t-test (t = -2.513). Finally, stability with failure significantly varied according to both gender (t = 1.982) and race (t = 02.474). Linear regression was initially used to test which variables could predict each subscale score, but no model produced sufficient R2 values. After converting subscale totals to Z-statistics and reorganizing them into ordinal quartiles, ordinal logistic regression (OLR) produced three modest but statistically significant models for locus with success, external control with success, andexternal control with failure. Alternatively, generalized linear mixed-effect model (GLMM) regression indicate at least one variable as predictive of each dimension for both success and failure. Private versus public institution, level of student taught, size of choral program, and number of ensembles appeared to predict more than one subscale. Limitations and concerns with the instrument and data are subsequently addressed. Discussion includes implications for how choral ensemble leaders might more intentionally reconsider the possible reasons for their own performance disappointments and how they convey those reasons to others. Results may additionally help those who serve in mentorship or adjudication capacities. Directions for future research are also offered.

Introdução: A proporção de óbitos classificados como de causa básica mal definida é um dos principais indicadores da qualidade das estatísticas de mortalidade, de grande importância na avaliação da situação e na orientação das políticas de saúde. Estudos preliminares encontraram uma evolução temporal discrepante na comparação da mortalidade proporcional por causa mal definida no Brasil, no Estado de São Paulo, na Baixada Santista e no Município do Guarujá. Este estudo foi realizado com o objetivo de tentar compreender tais diferenças. Métodos: A evolução temporal da proporção de óbitos por causa mal definida foi analisada no período de 1980 a 2002, dividindo-se o Estado de São Paulo em grupos de municípios com e sem o Serviço de Verificação de Óbitos (SVO) e a Baixada Santista. Além da mortalidade proporcional, a classificação do óbito por causa mal definida foi estudada com base no que se convencionou chamar de ?primeiro médico? a avaliar a causa de morte. Ou seja, o profissional que preenche a Declaração de Óbito ou encaminha o caso ao SVO ou ao Instituto Médico Legal (IML). Exclui os médicos do SVO e do IML que preenchem a declaração. A qualidade do preenchimento foi avaliada nos óbitos ocorridos em hospitais e em domicílios, baseada nas informações do tipo de atestante. Resultados: Observou-se um aumento na proporção de óbitos por causa mal definida pelo primeiro médico avaliador da causa de morte em todas as áreas do Estado de São Paulo. Em 1980, na Baixada Santista, a mortalidade proporcional por causa mal definida (MPCMD) era muito baixa, pois mais de 90% dos casos classificados como de causa mal definida pelo primeiro médico avaliador da causa de morte eram encaminhados aos IMLs da região ou ao SVO do Guarujá, onde a maioria dos casos era reclassificada para óbito de causa definida sem a realização de necropsia. A partir de 1984, progressivamente, os casos deixaram de ser encaminhados aos IMLs e passaram a ser classificados como de causa mal definida, com aumento da mortalidade proporcional de mais de nove vezes. A MPCMD no Estado de São Paulo manteve-se estável no período analisado em virtude do aumento da proporção de óbitos em serviços de saúde e de realização de necropsias. No Brasil, onde se observou uma queda de 36,4% da MPCMD, pode-se atribuir ao aumento dos óbitos hospitalares mais de 50% da redução desse indicador. O aumento do encaminhamento dos casos aos SVOs e aos IMLs foi fator importante na redução da mortalidade por causa mal definida nos óbitos domiciliares. Na Baixada Santista, no Estado de São Paulo e nos óbitos hospitalares do país, verificou-se uma piora na qualidade do preenchimento da Declaração de Óbito. Conclusão: A despeito da melhoria dos recursos diagnósticos, observou-se no período estudado uma piora na qualidade do preenchimento da Declaração de Óbito no Estado de São Paulo e nos óbitos hospitalares do país. Para enfrentar o problema da elevada mortalidade proporcional por causa mal definida, sugere-se rediscutir o modelo do fluxo de preenchimento das declarações de óbito, com redefinição das atribuições dos SVOs e dos IMLs. / Introduction: The proportion of deaths classified as due to ill-defined causes is one of the major indicators of the quality of mortality statistics, and is of great value for evaluating and orienting public policies. Preliminary studies indicate discrepant time trends in the evolution of the proportion of deaths due to ill-defined causes between Brazil as a whole, the state of Sao Paulo, the Baixada Santista region, and the municipality of Guarujá. The present study was designed as an attempt to understand these discrepancies. Methods: We analyzed the temporal evolution in the proportion of deaths due to illdefined causes between 1980 and 2002, dividing the state of Sao Paulo into three groups of municipalities: those with Death Verification Service (DVS), those without DVS, and those located in the Baixada Santista. In addition to proportional mortality, we also studied the classification of ill-defined deaths based on what was defined as the ?first physician? to evaluate cause of death. This consisted either of the professional who completed the Death Certificate or who referred the case to the DVS or medical examiner. This definition excludes any DVS or Medical Examiner physicians who filled certificates. The quality of the information in the certificate was evaluated for deaths occurred in hospitals and at home based on information on the type of physician. Results: There was an increase in the proportion of deaths due to ill-defined causes as defined by the first physician to evaluate cause of death in all areas of the State of Sao Paulo. In 1980, in the Baixada Santista, proportional mortality due to ill-defined causes (PMIDC) was very low, with over 90% of cases considered as due to illdefined causes by the first physician being referred to the region?s Medical Examiners or to the Guarujá DVS, where the majority of cases was assigned to a defined cause without need for autopsy. Beginning in 1984, the number of cases referred to Medical Examiners began to fall, leading to a 9-fold increase in PMIDC. PMIDC in the State of Sao Paulo remained stable throughout the period as a consequence of the increase in the proportion of autopsies and of deaths occurred within healthcare facilities. In the country as a whole, there was a 36.4% decrease in PMIDC, of which more than 50% can be attributed to the increase in the number of hospital deaths. Increased referral of cases to DVSs and medical examiners was an important factor in the reduction of mortality due to ill-defined causes among athome deaths. The quality of information in Death Certificates decreased in the Baixada Santista, in the State of Sao Paulo, and among hospital deaths in Brazil as a whole. Conclusion: Despite improvements in diagnosis, quality of information in Death Certificates decreased during the studied period in the State of Sao Paulo and among hospital deaths in the country as a whole. In order to tackle the issue of high proportional mortality due to ill-defined causes, we suggest a reevaluation of the flow of information in Death Certificates, with a redefinition of the role of medical examiners and DVSs.