Thesis (M. Ed.)--University of Hong Kong, 1995. / Includes bibliographical references (leaf 61-77).

Thesis (M. Ed.)--University of Hong Kong, 1995. / Includes bibliographical references (leaf 158-167).

Thesis (M.Ed.)--University of Hong Kong, 1995. / Includes bibliographical references (leaves 61-77). Also available in print.

Thesis (M.Ed.)--University of Hong Kong, 1995. / Includes bibliographical references (leaves 158-167). Also available in print.

This study explores the factors that influence the English language learning motivation of first generation immigrant students from a low socio-economic class in the city of Växjö, Sweden. Qualitative research methods are applied and semi-structured, in-depth individual as well as group interviews are used to collect the empirical data. The results indicate that students from socio-economically disadvantaged background feel excluded from the society and lack intrinsic motivation to learn English. This lack of motivation is explained in connection with their socio-economic background and the roadblocks currently existing in the Swedish education policy. The findings are analyzed using a theoretical framework consisting of Maslow’s hierarchy of needs, social comparison theory and some aspects of intrinsic and extrinsic motivation. A concluding discussion is presented in the end.

The aim of this thesis was to better understand English as second language Nigerian children’s reading comprehension attainment, the first such study to be conducted in Nigeria. In the thesis three studies were conducted to investigate the influence of cognitive and decoding/reading skills on the children’s reading comprehension attainment, namely the preliminary study (Chapter-3) with one primary school in Nigeria, the main study (Chapter-4) with 13 state-run primary schools, and the control study (Chapter-5) including four primary schools in London, respectively. It was found that English as second language children’s reading comprehension performance is significantly influenced by cognitive, decoding and chronological age. The development of cognitive skills which is necessary for success in reading comprehension development is also dependent upon chronological age. That is, age-related increase in cognitive skills brings about increased engagement and more efficient reading comprehension attainment in the children. The normal cognitive development of the children had a positive role also on the children’s performance on language tests necessary for text comprehension. The study found that school socioeconomic background played a significant impact in the performance of Nigerian English as second language children – the better the socioeconomic background of the school the higher the reading comprehension attainment of the children. Furthermore gender was not a factor in the performance and development of reading comprehension by English as Second Language Nigerian children. This implies that parents, teachers and schools motivate and support children irrespective of being boys or girls to realise their full potentials without any discrimination. Having reviewed few theories of reading acquisition/development, the Simple view of reading (SVR) was found to be more appropriate for adoption in this study of Nigerian English as second language children’s reading comprehension attainment. The theory postulates that text comprehension is achieved when children have decoding skills and linguistic comprehension knowledge. The results obtained in Chapters 3 and 4 were in line with the Simple view of reading’s assertion – text comprehension depends on decoding and cognitive skills.

My diploma work deals with the relationship between the oral health condition of patients and their socio-economic status. The theoretical section of my work is focussed on stomatology and its division, oral cavity disorders and their treatment, prevention and prophylaxis, the distribution of teeth defects and their treatment. The practical section is based on a hypothesis. The objective of my paper consists in the evaluation of the impact of the socio-economic status of a person on his or her KPE index value. The hypothesis has been evaluated on the basis of a secondary analysis of data acquired from the case histories of patients attending a dental practice as well as on a questionnaire survey. The oral health evaluation has been supported by KPE index and the supplementary CPITN and API indexes. Goldthorp´s class diagram has been used for the purposes of the respondents´ socio-economic status evaluation. The status creating factors applied in my research have been the standard and level of education and professional training of a respondent, family income, his or her share in the power and decision sphere etc. It has been found that there is a correlation between a higher level of achieved education and professional training, a higher social status, a higher income on the one side and more favourable KPE index values as well as a better overall dental health on the other side. Primarily, the research presents the basis of my diploma work. It may also be published in a journal for stomatologists, nurses and dental hygienists. It is also aimed at internal use in the dental practice.

This research tested the hypothesis that militarization of societies, as defined by the percent of national budgets spent on military expenditures, has adverse effects on women's economic status relative to men's. This study also examined other predictor variables known to affect women's status. Data from sixty different nations were analyzed by means of multiple regression techniques. Results show that the militarization variable increased women's share of agriculture, which suggests that as men are mobilized into military activities, women are left to produce food for the country, a situation which can have contradictory effects on women's economic status. What is more important than militarization in predicting women's economic status relative to men's are high birth rates and sex ratios, which clearly depress women's economic opportunities.

Background: Lower respiratory illnesses (LRIs) and asthma are common diseases in children < 5 years of age. Few studies have investigated the relationships between multiple, home-based social and environmental risk factors and asthma and LRIs in children. Of those that have, none have focused exclusively on children < 5 years of age, who are more physiologically vulnerable and spend more time at home compared to older children. Further, no studies have done so at the community level. Methods: We modeled relationships between emergency department visits and hospitalization rates for asthma and LRIs for children < 5 years and geographic risk factors, including socio-economic and housing characteristics, ambient air pollution levels, and population density in Maricopa and Pima Counties, Arizona, from 2005 to 2009. We used a generalized linear model with a negative binomial observation distribution and an offset for the population of very young children in each tract. To reduce multicollinearity among predictors, socio-economic characteristics, and ambient air pollutant levels were combined into unit-less indices using the principal components analysis (PCA). Housing characteristics variables did not exhibit moderate-to-high correlations and thus were not included in PCA. Spatial autocorrelation among regression model residuals was assessed with the Global Moran's I test. Results: Following the regression analyses, almost all predictors were significantly related to at least one disease outcome. Lower socio-economic status (SES) and reduced population density were associated with asthma hospitalization rates and both LRI outcomes (p values < 0.001). After adjusting for differences between counties, Pima County residence was associated with lower asthma and LRI hospitalization rates. No spatial autocorrelation was found among multiple regression model residuals (p values > 0.05). Conclusions: Our study revealed complex, multi-factorial associations between predictors and outcomes. Findings indicate that many rural areas with lower SES have distinct factors for childhood respiratory diseases that require further investigation. County-wide differences in maternal characteristics or agricultural land uses (not tested here) may also play a role in Pima County residence protecting against hospitalizations, when compared to Maricopa County. By better understanding this and other relationships, more focused public health interventions at the community level could be developed to reduce and better control these diseases in children < 5 years, who are more physiologically vulnerable.

Enhancing primary care is key to the Canadian health care reform. Considered as an indicator of primary care access and quality, hospitalisations for ambulatory care sensitive (ACS) conditions are commonly reported by Canadian organisations as sentinel events signaling problems with the delivery of primary care. However, the literature calls for further research to identify what lies behind ACS hospitalisation rates in regions with a predominantly urban population benefiting from universal access to health care. A theoretical model was built and, using an ecological design, multiple regressions were implemented to identify which neighbourhood characteristics explained the socio-economic gradient in ACS hospitalisation rates observed in Ottawa. Among these neighbourhoods, healthy behaviour and - to a certain extent - health status were significantly associated with ACS hospitalisation rates. Evidence of an association with primary care accessibility was also signaled for the more rural neighbourhoods. Smoking prevention and cessation campaigns may be the most relevant health care strategies to push forward by policy makers hoping to prevent ACS hospitalisations in Ottawa. From a health care equity perspective, targeting these campaigns to neighbourhoods of low socio-economic status may contribute to closing the gap in ACS hospitalisations described in this current study. Reducing the socio-economic inequalities of neighbourhoods would also contribute to health equity.