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Mukti Ashram is a rehabilitation center in north India that works with ex-child laborer boys. Fieldwork completed at the ashram in 1997-98 centered around the issue of the organization's attempt to enact social change through the engineering of community within the ashram's walls. Several fundamental processes that contribute to this goal have been identified: the construction and presentation of personal narratives which are ideally encased in a common structure; the encompassment of heterogeneity through careful focus on a singular point of commonality; and, the creation of national and transnational ties of horizontal solidarity, literal and "imagined." The nature of the activists' intervention, which becomes codified in the dominant ethos of the institution, presents an internal contradiction that is essentially unresolvable. It is found that power is always to some extent fought using those same tools of the powerful. Though in this case their goal of empowering the boys is to some extent compromised, such attempts still constitute a positive influence. Mukti Ashram's example demonstrates both the constraints and opportunities that may be met by organizations that work with subjugated groups. / Graduation date: 2000

The purpose of this study was to investigate the relationship of family size, birth order, socioeconomic status, and parent-child relationships to young children's intellectual development. Seventy-four children, 39 boys and 35 girls, with a mean age of 4 years-8 months, and their parents (mothers and fathers), selected from 9 preschool programs and daycare centers in Corvallis, Oregon, acted as subjects for this study. Ninety-five percent of the families came from upper or upper-middle socioeconomic classes. All the families were intact, consisting of children and their biological parents, representing one-, two, and three-child families. The children in this study were either first-, second- or third-born children. Family socioeconomic status was determined via Hollingshead's Four Factor Index of Social Status. Information on family size and birth order was obtained through a Demographic Questionnaire. Parent-child relationship was assessed via the Parent Attitude Research Instrument-Short Form. Children's intellectual level was measured with the Peabody Picture Vocabulary Test-Revised. Zajonc and Markus' Confluence Theory, Page and Grandon's Admixture Theory, and Falbo and Polies Parent-Child Relationships Theory were utilized as the basis for investigating the relative contributions of family size, birth order, socioeconomic status, mother-child relationship, and father-child relationship to children's intellectual development. The regression procedure was used in data analyses. The .05 probability level was used as the criterion for statistical significance. Findings revealed that the variables of socioeconomic status and quality of father-child relationships contributed significantly to children's intellectual development. The higher the socioeconomic status of the family, and the more supportive the father-child relationships, the higher the children's intellectual development scores. Birth order and family size made no contributions to children's intellectual development. These findings, therefore, provided support for Page and Grandon's Admixture Theory and Falbo and Polies Parent-Child Relationships Theory, but not for Zajonc and Markus' Confluence Theory. / Graduation date: 1995

Thesis (M. Phil.)--Dept. of Architecture, Design Science and Planning, Faculty of Architecture, University of Sydney, 2003. / Bibliography: leaves 164-171.

Thesis (M. Phil.)--University of Sydney, 2003. / Title from title screen (viewed Apr. 28, 2008). Submitted in fulfilment of the requirements for the degree of Master of Philosophy to the Dept. of Architecture, Design Science and Planning, Faculty of Architecture. Degree awarded 2003; thesis submitted 2002. Includes bibliography. Also available in print form.

Thesis (M. Ed.)--University of Hong Kong, 1996. / Includes bibliographical references (leaf i-x).

Thesis (M.Ed.)--University of Hong Kong, 1996. / Includes bibliographical references (leaves i-x). Also available in print.

The title of the thesis is Children in children´s homes ? perception of residential stays and their assessment. The first chapter provides the paper´s theoretical groundwork and consists of five sections that define the basic terminology and outline the key issues related to the thesis´ topic. The first section describes the development of social services and children´s homes as well as the current situation regarding shelter homes for parents and single mothers with children in the Czech Republic. The second section provides an insight into the phases of childhood corresponding to the age structure of the group of children that participated in the questionnaire survey described in the practical part of the thesis. The description of the individual phases focuses primarily on psychological development, the phases´ key moments and objectives and on the relationships with family, friends and peers. The third section looks into the influence of the environment on an individual´s development and life quality, focusing on home, family, the understanding of home and the influence of colours. The fourth section narrows its focus onto children in children´s homes. The second chapter is practical-oriented. It starts with a definition of the paper´s objective and its four hypotheses. The objective of the thesis is to identify variable factors influencing how children perceive their residential stays in children´s homes. The following chapter provides an insight into the research methods and the techniques used to collect the data. It also defines the target group and describes the actual research process. The research was carried out on the basis of a quantitative method, using data collected by means of a questionnaire survey. The target group consisted of 132 children aged 8 to 14living in shelter homes for mothers with children in the Czech Republic. The survey was conducted from 30th October to 29th November 2012. The fourth chapter presents the results of the research. It is divided into two sections. The first provides descriptive statistics of the questionnaire survey results, giving an overview of the answers to individual questions. The second sectionuses the SPSS 16.0 software to test the individual hypotheses and determine the dependent variables. Hypothesis H1: The presence of friends in a children´s home has a positive influence on a child´s impression of the children´s home. The influence of friends on the child´s impression of the children´s home is analysed in the following aspects: the building of the children´s home, the room in the children´s home and the interior of the children´s home. It has been proven that having friends in the children´s home positively influences only the impression of the child´s room. Hypothesis H2: The more often children stay in children´s homes, the more they like their stay. This hypothesis has not been confirmed. Hypothesis H3: The younger the children, the more they like their stay in the children´s homes. A statistically significant relation between the age and the positive acceptance of the stay in the children´s homes has been established. Hypothesis H4: The presence of friends has a positive influence on the feeling the children get from the home. Also in this case a statistically significant relation has been confirmed. Chapter five presents a discussion of the results, comparing the hypotheses and the findings of the questionnaire survey. The conclusion of the thesis summarizes the research results and discusses the general situation of children in homes and the handicap connected with their stay there. At the very end, the paper reflects on the situation and possible recommendations for practical work.

The aim of this study was to investigate the relationship between preschool children&rsquo / s reading attitudes and their home literacy environment. In addition, children&rsquo / s perceptions of reading in terms of their reading attitudes were examined as a part of this study. The sample of this study consisted of 261 parents and their 5 year-old children who were enrolled preschool in Ankara, Turkey. The data of this study were collected through child interviews, demographic information forms, and the following questionnaires: the Home Literacy Environment Questionnaire (Umek et al., 2005) and the Preschool Children Reading Attitudes (Saracho, 1986) questionnaire. These questionnaires were both translated into Turkish, and statistical analyses were conducted to control for validity and reliability issues through a pilot study. The results of the study showed that there was a statistically significant relationship between preschool children&rsquo / s reading attitudes and their home literacy environment. In addition, the study revealed there were some differences in children&rsquo / s reading attitudes and their home literacy environment in regards to demographic variables. Furthermore, the study demonstrated that children who have more positive reading attitudes tended to give clearer and more detailed responses to questions and were more aware that writing contains messages. In addition, those children mentioned letters and the role of letters in the learning to read process.

Thesis (Ph. D.)--University of Toronto, 2005. / Includes bibliographical references (leaves 230-245).