This study examined the recall of televised stories for younger (4-6 years) and older (7-9 years) children with and without ADHD under two different viewing conditions (toys present/toys absent). Each child watched two Rugrats television programs, once with toys present and once with toys absent. Immediately after viewing a program, the child completed a free recall of the observed story. Nonreferred childrens recall increased more than ADHD childrens as importance level increased, and older nonreferred children recalled more information overall than older children with ADHD. For the toys condition, children with ADHD had smaller correlations between the story units recalled and the order of these units in the story than did nonreferred children. Children with ADHD demonstrated multiple difficulties in story comprehension. They were less sensitive to thematic importance and they produced less coherent recalls than their nonreferred peers.

Lithuania has one of the highest suicide rates for men in the world (81.7 per 100,000 men). 21.7% of the population feels depressed. A salutogenic model of health developed by Antonovsky provides new knowledge for betterunderstanding of the behaviour of individuals and explains why some individuals fall ill under stress and why some do not. The study is focussed on the analysis of sense of coherence (SOC) on the population sample of Lithuania (n=3390) using a simplified way of measuring SOC developed by Lundberg and Nyström Peck at the Swedish Institute for Social Research of Stockholm University. The data of the study showed that people with low SOC (60.1%) predominate among the Lithuanian population. A strong correlation between low SOC, depression and stress was found. Additional studies, preferably longitudinal, are needed to identify possible relationshipsbetween cognitive processes (SOC) and biological mechanisms, causing adverse effects on mental health / <p>ISBN 91-7997-106-7</p>

When information is abundant, it becomes increasingly difficult to fit nuggets of knowledge into a single coherent picture. Complex stories spaghetti into branches, side stories, and intertwining narratives; search engines, our most popular navigational tools, are limited in their capacity to explore such complex stories. We propose a methodology for creating structured summaries of information, which we call metro maps. Our proposed algorithm generates a concise structured set of documents that maximizes coverage of salient pieces of information. Most importantly, metro maps explicitly show the relations among retrieved pieces in a way that captures story development. The overarching theme of this work is formalizing characteristics of good maps, and providing efficient algorithms (with theoretical guarantees) to optimize them. Moreover, as information needs vary from person to person, we integrate user interaction into our framework, allowing users to alter the maps to better reflect their interests. Pilot user studies with real-world datasets demonstrate that the method is able to produce maps which help users acquire knowledge efficiently. We believe that metro maps could be powerful tools for any Web user, scientist, or intelligence analyst trying to process large amounts of data.

Organisations throughout the world have to cope with an increasing rate of change. These organisational changes are due to a number of reasons, which include social, technological, economic and political reasons. These result in a change in government regulations. In South Africa, the changes include the merging of higher education institutions and changes in the educational landscape. The public higher education institutions were reduced by the Department of Higher Education and Training from 36 to 23. Same changes include new universities of technologies and mergers of other universities plus more comprehensive universities. Recently, government established two new universities, one in Mpumalanga and another in the Northern Cape. Job insecurity, job satisfaction, occupational stress, sense of coherence, and general health are key aspects of the higher education institutions during and after the transformation process. This study aimed to determine the relationship between job insecurity, job satisfaction, occupational stress, sense of coherence, and general health of employees in a higher education institution. The literature reviewed showed that job insecurity occurs as a result of a merger, which is one of the multiple antecedents in a job insecurity model. However, a merger, as an organisational condition, changes individual perceptions about job insecurity and its consequences. Job satisfaction, occupational stress, and general health are consequences of job insecurity. From the reviewed literature, it is clear that the employees’ lack of resources is a very serious challenge in their endeavour to perform their duties. Lack of resources results in the poor performance of employees and their inability to use their capabilities to deal with every day work-related challenges. A cross-sectional design with employees in higher education institution (N=229) was used. The Job Insecurity Inventory, Minnesota Job Satisfaction Questionnaire, An Organisation Stress Screening Tool, Orientation to Life Questionnaire, and General Health Questionnaire, and a biographical questionnaire were utilised. Statistical analyses were carried out for the three articles in the study with the help of the Statistical Package for Social Sciences (IBM-SPSS) program. Statistical methods used in this article consisted of descriptive statistics (for example, means, standard deviations and frequencies), Cronbach alpha coefficients, explanatory factor analyses, Pearson product-moment correlation coefficients, multiple regression analysis and mediation analysis (Omnibus procedure). The results of article 1 showed that job insecurity was statistically significantly related to general health (somatic symptoms, social dysfunction, hopelessness and worthlessness). This implies that employees who experience high job insecurity also experience problems with their health. General health had a practically significant negative correlation with sense of coherence. Literature reviewed states that a weak sense of coherence leads employees to perceive situations as threatening (that is, high job demands and low job resources), and could lead to ill health. The research findings clearly indicate that sense of coherence does not moderate the relationship between job insecurity and general health. Regarding the results of article 2, a practically significant negative relationship exists between occupational stress and job satisfaction (intrinsic, supervision, extrinsic). This means that employees with high levels of occupational stress display lower job satisfaction and vice versa. Occupational stress and general health have a negative relationship, implying that different occupational stress factors (work demands, insecurity and work relations) relate to the general health of employees. Employees, who experience high work demands, are insecure and experience poor work relations with their colleagues or supervisors, have problems with their health and do not enjoy normal day-to-day activities in the organisation. Job satisfaction displays a practically significant negative correlation with general health. This implies that employees who are not satisfied with the intrinsic satisfaction of their job and working environment experience headaches and lack physical energy. Such employees generally feel sick. They do not enjoy every day activities since they doubt their own competence and the meaning of life. Both occupational stress and job satisfaction are statistically significant predictors of general health. In conclusion, the results of this article report that job satisfaction mediates the relationship between occupational stress and the general health of employees in a higher education institution. The results of article 3 showed that practically significant positive relationships exist between sense of coherence and job satisfaction. Employees with a higher sense of coherence are more satisfied and motivated to work. They are more comfortable with other colleagues and the general working conditions. Employees with a strong sense of coherence are more resourceful in handling different work-related aspects, and they tend to experience higher job satisfaction. It was concluded that sense of coherence moderates the relationship between job satisfaction and some aspects of general health. The results imply that people with lower levels of sense of coherence are more dependent on job satisfaction to experience good health. This has direct implications for vocational and industrial psychologists, as well as higher educational institutions. Recommendations for future research were made. / PhD (Industrial Psychology) North-West University, Vaal Triangle Campus, 2014

Purpose: The aim of the present study was to compare and investigate morphometric characteristics of limbal vasculature within the superior and inferior limbal regions using ultra-high resolution optical coherence tomography. Method: Cross-sectional images of the human corneo-scleral limbus were acquired with a research grade ultra-high resolution optical coherence tomographer (UHR-OCT) from 14 healthy subjects after manual retraction of the upper and lower eyelid. The UHR-OCT provides an axial and lateral resolution in biological tissue of ~3μm and ~18μm, respectively. 3D stacks of OCT images (1000 x 1024 x 256) were acquired of the transition from cornea to bulbar conjunctiva at the superior and inferior limbal region. All visible vessels within the limbal region were measured using an Image J circle or ellipse tool. Vessel depth and size measurements were repeated for the same vessel and the concordance correlation coefficient was computed. Quantitative differences in vessel size and depth in the limbal region were analyzed using repeated measured ANOVA. R and SPSS were used for all data analysis procedures. Results: The average vessel size for superior and inferior limbus were 29.28µm ± 17.649 µm (SD) and 23.68µm ± 18.118µm (SD) respectively. The average vessel depth for superior and inferior limbus were 176.76µm ± 108.698µm (SD) and 205.62µm ± 131.991µm (SD) respectively. The concordance correlation coefficient for superior and inferior limbal vessel size were 0.95 (95% CI, 0.935 to 0.964) and 0.994 (95% CI, 0.991 to 0.995) respectively, while that of vessel depth were 0.998 (95% CI, 0.997 to 0.999) and 0.998 (95% CI, 0.997 to 0.998) respectively. The vessels within the superior limbus were larger than the vessels found in the inferior limbus (RM-ANOVA POS p = 0.004), and the vessels within the inferior limbus were on average deeper than the vessels found within the superior limbus (RM-ANOVA POS p = 0.042). There was a positive linear relationship between limbal vessel depth and size within the superior and inferior limbus with a Pearson correlation coefficient of 0.803 and 0.754, respectively. There were on average 9 vessels per subject within the superior limbal region as compared to 13 vessels per subject with the inferior limbal region. Conclusion: This study provided evidence that the UHR-OCT was capable of imaging (and therefore measuring) morphometric characteristics such as the size and depth of vessels within the limbus in a repeatable manner. A positive linear association between vessel depth and size was identified in the superior and inferior limbal regions. The results of this study suggest a definite difference in the size and depth of vessels across different positions of the limbus, and this may be indicative of adaptations to chronic hypoxia caused by the constant covering of the superior limbus by the upper eyelid.

Precise measurements of corneal layer thickness are required to treat, evaluate risk of, and determine the progression of pathologies within the eye. The thickness measurements are typically acquired as 2d images, known as tomograms, from an optical coherence tomography (OCT) system. With the creation of ultra-high resolution OCT (UHROCT), there is active research in precisely measuring, in vivo, previously unresolvable corneal structures at arbitrary locations within the cornea to determine their relationship with corneal health. In order to obtain arbitrary corneal thickness measurements, existing reconstruction techniques require the cornea to be densely sampled so that a 3d representation can be interpolated from a stack of tomograms. Unfortunately, tomogram alignment relies solely on image properties such as pixel intensity, and does not constrain the reconstruction to corneal anatomy. Further, the reconstruction method cannot properly compensate for eye-motion. The deficiencies due to eye-motion are exacerbated due to the amount of time required in a single imaging session to acquire a sufficient number of tomograms in the region of interest. The proposed methodology is the first to incorporate models of the anatomy and the imaging system to address the limitations of existing corneal reconstruction methods. By constructing the model in such a way as to decouple anatomy from the imaging system, it becomes less computationally expensive to estimate model parameters. The decoupling provides an iterative methodology that can allow additional constraints to be introduced in the future. By combining sparsely sampled UHROCT measurements with a properly designed corneal model, reconstruction allows researchers to determine corneal layer thicknesses at arbitrary positions in both sampled and unsampled regions. The proposed methodology demonstrates an approach to decouple anatomy and physiology from measurements of a cornea, allowing for characterization of pathologies through corneal thickness measurements. Another significant contribution resulting from the corneal model allows five of the corneal layer boundaries to be automatically located and has already been used to process thousands of UHROCT tomograms. Recent studies using this method have also been used to correlate contact-lens wear to hypoxia and corneal layer swelling. While corneal reconstruction represents the main application of this work, the reconstruction methodology can be extended to other medical imaging domains and can even represent temporal changes in tissue with minor modifications to the framework.

A high speed, high resolution spectral domain optical coherence tomography (SD-OCT) system was used to study in-vivo early morphological changes and optical nerve head (ONH) blood flow in the Long Evans rat retina, induced by administration of sodium iodate (NaIO3). Linear and circular scanned OCT images were acquired at the same location in the retina from healthy control rats and from rats injected with 40mg/kg of NaIO3 solution at 1, 3, 6 12, 24, 72 and 168 hours post drug administration. Morphological OCT images showed changes in the optical reflectance and layer thickness of the photoreceptor IS and OS. The formation of a new low reflective layer between the photoreceptor OS and the RPE was observed in all tested rats. This new layer appeared as early as 1 hour, increased in thickness after 6 hours, and disappeared by 12 hours post NaIO3 injection. The low optical reflectance and the dynamics of this new layer suggest that it was most likely fluid accumulation. Comparison with H&E stained histological sections and IgG immunohistochemistry revealed minimal photoreceptor OS cell swelling at hour 1, detachment of the OS from the RPE by hour 3, and breaking of the blood-retina barrier with significant fluid accumulation by hour 6 post NaIO3 injection. The Doppler Optical Micro-Angiography (DOMAG) algorithm was used to carry out quantitative analysis of the ONH blood flow. Estimation of flow rate on each ONH vessel was done by measurements of the Doppler angle, vessel size and the axial velocity. This study has demonstrated that the capability of UHR-OCT to study optical reflectance and layer thickness changes, rearrangement and detachment of the photoreceptor OS and RPE layers, together with flow rate estimation of retinal blood vessels. Therefore, it can serve as markers in future non-invasive, in-vivo studies of disease or drug induced retinal degeneration in ophthalmic research.

The dissertation explores the question of the possibility of a moral theory compatible with common sense morality. Common sense morality is limited to its two fundamental features, or suppositions: moral judgements are truth apt and practical, i.e. they are at the same time in some sense objectively right or wrong and necessarily action guiding. In contemporary philosophy, the two fundamental features of common sense morality seem to be incompatible: only descriptions can have truth values, but descriptions are not prescriptions, or, to put it otherwise, from the way the things are, it does not follow straightforwardly how the things should be. However, analyses of the methodological, ontological, epistemological and semantic possibilities of moral theories enable a positive answer: a moral theory which embodies the two fundamental features of common-sense morality is possible, only if it makes coherence its constitutive value and uses the approach of rationalist internalism. In this research, the main controversies and distinctions of contemporary meta ethics (moral realism/anti realism, motivational internalism/externalism) are discussed and an account of rationalist internalism is explicated and enforced. / Disertacijoje nagrinėjama su sveiko proto morale suderinamos moralės teorijos galimybė. Sveiko proto moralė apribojama dviem pamatinėm prielaidom, arba savybėm: moraliniai sprendiniai turi teisingumo reikšmes ir yra praktinio pobūdžio, t.y. jie yra kažkuria prasme objektyviai teisingi arba klaidingi ir būtinai kreipia mūsų veiksmus. Šiandienėje filosofijoje šios dvi pamatinės sveiko proto moralės savybės atrodo esančios nesuderinamos: juk teisingumo reikšmes gali turėti tik deskripcijos, o deskripcijos nėra preskripcijos, arba iš to, kaip yra, tiesiogiai neseka tai, kaip turėtų būti. Vis dėlto nagrinėjant metodologines, ontologines, epistemologines bei semantines moralės teorijų galimybes, disertacijoje į pagrindinį klausimą atsakoma teigiamai: abi pamatines sveiko proto moralės savybes įkūnijanti moralės teorija yra galima, tik jei ji padaro koherentiškumą savo konstituojančia vertybe ir naudoja racionalistinio internalizmo prieigą. Darbe aptariamos pagrindinės šiandienės metaetikos kontroversijos bei skirtys (moralinis realizmas/antirealizmas, motyvacinis internalizmas/eksternalizmas), išskleidžiama bei papildoma racionalistinio internalizmo teorija.

Disertacijoje nagrinėjama su sveiko proto morale suderinamos moralės teorijos galimybė. Sveiko proto moralė apribojama dviem pamatinėm prielaidom, arba savybėm: moraliniai sprendiniai turi teisingumo reikšmes ir yra praktinio pobūdžio, t.y. jie yra kažkuria prasme objektyviai teisingi arba klaidingi ir būtinai kreipia mūsų veiksmus. Šiandienėje filosofijoje šios dvi pamatinės sveiko proto moralės savybės atrodo esančios nesuderinamos: juk teisingumo reikšmes gali turėti tik deskripcijos, o deskripcijos nėra preskripcijos, arba iš to, kaip yra, tiesiogiai neseka tai, kaip turėtų būti. Vis dėlto nagrinėjant metodologines, ontologines, epistemologines bei semantines moralės teorijų galimybes, disertacijoje į pagrindinį klausimą atsakoma teigiamai: abi pamatines sveiko proto moralės savybes įkūnijanti moralės teorija yra galima, tik jei ji padaro koherentiškumą savo konstituojančia vertybe ir naudoja racionalistinio internalizmo prieigą. Darbe aptariamos pagrindinės šiandienės metaetikos kontroversijos bei skirtys (moralinis realizmas/antirealizmas, motyvacinis internalizmas/eksternalizmas), išskleidžiama bei papildoma racionalistinio internalizmo teorija. / The dissertation explores the question of the possibility of a moral theory compatible with common sense morality. Common sense morality is limited to its two fundamental features, or suppositions: moral judgements are truth apt and practical, i.e. they are at the same time in some sense objectively right or wrong and necessarily action guiding. In contemporary philosophy, the two fundamental features of common sense morality seem to be incompatible: only descriptions can have truth values, but descriptions are not prescriptions, or, to put it otherwise, from the way the things are, it does not follow straightforwardly how the things should be. However, analyses of the methodological, ontological, epistemological and semantic possibilities of moral theories enable a positive answer: a moral theory which embodies the two fundamental features of common-sense morality is possible, only if it makes coherence its constitutive value and uses the approach of rationalist internalism. In this research, the main controversies and distinctions of contemporary meta ethics (moral realism/anti realism, motivational internalism/externalism) are discussed and an account of rationalist internalism is explicated and enforced.

Vi möts allt oftare av ett ökat intresse för hälsa och en förväntan att leva sunt och hälsosamt. Detta för att vi ska hålla oss friska, orka mer och prestera bättre. I motsats till detta ökar ohälsotalen. Fler och fler blir sjukskrivna samtidigt som sjuknärvaron på arbetsplatser sägs öka. Ett intresse för detta motsatsförhållande var ursprunget till min studie. Den organisation jag undersökt har ett uttalat hälsofrämjande perspektiv, med ett salutogent fokus. Det salutogena perspektivet kopplas ofta ihop med känsla av sammanhang – KASAM. En stark känsla av KASAM kopplas ihop med bättre egen-upplevd hälsa. Deltagarna i min undersökning har gått en kurs i hälsofrämjande livsstilsfaktorer anordnad av arbetsgivaren. Syftet med undersökningen var att undersöka deltagarnas känsla av sammanhang och deras upplevelse av lärande samt om kursen haft någon påverkan på deras KASAM. Studien hade en kvalitativ ansats och jag har genomfört intervjuer med sex av sju deltagare från kursen. Som komplement till intervjuerna har deltagarna även besvarat ett KASAM-livsfrågeformulär. Resultatet från intervjuerna kopplades till de i KASAM ingående begreppen begriplighet, hanterbarhet och meningsfullhet, samt till lärande. Resultatet visade att deltagarna överlag hade relativt höga värden på KASAM-livsfrågeformuläret, med ett undantag. Det motsvarade den uppfattning jag fick under intervjuerna. Analysen kopplar ihop resultatet med tidigare forskning och teori och visar att det hälsofrämjande arbetet lönar sig. Undersökningen visade att deltagarnas KASAM har stärkts av kursen. Undersökningen visade också att återkopplingen av deltagarnas förändrade kunskap tillbaka till arbetsplatsen var liten. Ytterligare forskning om hur ökad kompetens kring hälsofrämjande faktorer på chefsnivå har effekt för medarbetare och verksamhet är önskvärt.