hjlahgih / Thesis (DPhil (Human Movement Science))--University of Pretoria, 2005. / Biokinetics, Sport and Leisure Sciences / unrestricted

Cardiovascular fitness levels in physical education have decreased for males and females in an inner-city high school, with female cardiovascular fitness decreasing the most. Cardiovascular fitness is important because participating in cardio exercises decreases health issues such as obesity and cardio problems. The purpose of this qualitative research study was to explore the views of teachers regarding low cardiovascular fitness among adolescent females in physical education and how a professional development could help teachers to address the problem. Bandura’s social learning theory was used as the study’s conceptual framework. Semistructured and open-ended interview questions were used to collect data from 6 veteran PE teachers to address the research questions regarding teachers’ experiences in promoting cardiovascular exercises, levels of participation in cardiovascular exercises, and perceptions of professional development to help ameliorate the problem. Participant responses to the open-ended interview questions were analyzed by coding common words to create categories to develop themes. Qualitative findings revealed that participants started to notice low cardiovascular endurance in 9th grade, that professional development was not geared towards improving female adolescent activities nor assisting PE teachers in how to model these. A professional development, via the proposed project, was developed that will provide activities that can be used by both new and seasoned physical education teachers. Social change will occur in that implementation of the ideas shared in project may lead to a healthier and physically active lifestyle when students reach adulthood.

Title: A qualitative study within retail of self-identity and cultural ideals impact on Swedish females within Generation Z’s purchase behaviour Authors: Cecilia Menninge & Julia Bengtsson Institution: Linnaeus University, School of Business and Economics. Program: Detaljhandel and Service Management (180hp), Customer Experience Management (180 hp) Course: 2FE67E Supervisor: MaxMikael Wilde Björling  Examiner: Miralem Helmefalk Purpose: The purpose of this study is to, through interpretation and analysis of females within Gen Z, create knowledge and understanding of how self-identity and cultural ideals affect purchase behaviour Method: An interview study that addresses the topic of identity and cultural ideals impact on purchase behaviour. The study was conducted with a deductive approach and a qualitative method Conclusions: There is a versatile relationship between identity and Swedish females purchase behaviour in fashion. Self-image affects their purchase behaviour as Swedish females are highly conscious of their appearance. Swedish females in Generation Z follows the peripheral route in the Elaboration likelihood model.

Background: As retailing moves towards online shopping the number of online purchases have increased substantially over the last year in Sweden (Klarna Bank AB, 2019). The industry of high-end beauty and skincare products has experienced growth in 2019 (PostNord, 2019), which is of interest to investigate. There lies importance for firms in retrieving knowledge of how the target market thinks and reacts. This research allows for a deeper understanding of the motivations of consumer behavior, which will be of high value for retailers and marketers when further operating in 2020 and entering 2021.    Problem discussion: There is a growing body of literature that examines the motivations of consumer behavior, however, identified gaps have yet to accumulate. Even if online personalized advertising (OPA) is increasingly being used by retailers worldwide, its influence on Swedish females remains unexplored. This exploratory study was undertaken in response to the demand in Sweden and it attempts to draw meaningful connections between consumer response to OPA as well as the value motives explaining consumption behaviors.    Purpose: In order to fill gaps in previous literature, this research sought to build a theory, which will make meaningful sense of observations on Swedish females in the age group 18-35-year-old’s purchase behavior. More specifically, the research will create an understanding of how OPA influences Swedish females, and what values motivate the female consumer when completing a purchase of high-end beauty and skincare products, with and without respect to the influence of OPA.   Method: A qualitative approach with semi-structured in-depth interviews with 19 Swedish female participants in the age group 18-35 were conducted. The general analytical procedure for analyzing the collected data was used, and the data was further compared with previous literature.    Results: This research indicates that participants declare empathy and hedonic values to influence the completion of purchase. Within the category of empathy values, security is a key value when shopping online. When exposed to OPA, the values of being well-respected and self-respect were added to the explanation for consumer motives of purchases of high-end beauty and skincare products online.

Qualitative research is scant on success factors of professional identity development for female African American counselor educators, specifically those who graduated from CACREP-accredited counselor education and supervision programs at predominately White institutions (PWIs). The purpose of this qualitative study was to understand the lived experiences of female African American counselor educators who attended a CACREP-accredited counselor education and supervision program at a (PWI). This study focused on the phenomenon of success factors of professional identity development to doctoral degree completion. This study examined the lived experiences of 10 female African American counselor educators to gain a better understanding of how their experiences at CACREP-accredited counselor educations and supervision programs at a (PWI) impacted success of professional identity development to doctoral degree completion. It used a qualitative, phenomenological methodology grounded in Intersectionality theory, Black Feminist thought, and Critical Race theory as frameworks. There were three research questions to guide the study in the participants? perceptions of professional identity development and the impact of success factors of professional identity development on doctoral degree completion. This study conducted semi-structured interviews with ten female African American counselor educators who completed doctoral degrees in (PWIs) in the United States. Data were collected through semi-structured interviews and analyzed using Moustakas (1994) Modification of Stevick-Colaizzi-Keen data analysis. The goals of this study was to: a) review and present literature on female African American in the academy; b) increase knowledge on professional identity among female African American counselor educators who attended a CACREP -accredited counselor education and supervision program at (PWIs) in the United States; and c) explore ways to increase professional identity development to support female African American doctoral students to complete their doctoral degree and move into counselor education positions. Ten African American females who graduated from CACREP-accredited counselor education and supervision programs were interviewed. There were six themes: Convenience of the Location, Importance of support from Dissertation chair, Representation of African American women with PhDs in the community, I was needed and access, Being a Black woman in that space and Voice, Faith-based community and I prayed. Recommendations and directions for future research are discussed.

The secondary analysis undertaken for this MPH dissertation examines the global prevalence of trichiasis in relation to gender in trachoma endemic countries. Part A is the research protocol which outlines the background and the process of this research. This study is a population-based analytical study using data from the Global Trachoma Mapping Project (GTMP). GTMP was a standardized population-based trachoma prevalence survey undertaken to provide trachoma prevalence estimates. GTMP data was collected using the World Health Organisation–recommended population based prevalence survey methodology. Trachoma suspect district were identified for inclusion and multistage random sampling was used to sample households for examination of residents for clinical trachoma. Part B presents the background and highlights the importance of this research by exploring the existing theoretical and empirical literature relevant to the topic. It describes how trachoma is transmitted, its clinical manifestations, and the way it can lead to blindness. Results from previous studies on gender and trichiasis are presented. Part C presents the research project in a format suitable for journal submission. The background of this research project is summarized and the meta-analysis is conducted at the global level, at the country level, the regional level, the state level and at the EU level but all in accordance to prevalence of trichiasis in the EUs. The implications of the findings are discussed and limitations in interpretation presented.

On the basis of the MMPI R Factor Scale, 16 subjects were classified as high repressed and 14 as low repressed. Subjects were compared on patterns of bilateral differences in skin conductance as a function of three cognitive tasks intended to produce specific manipulations in the relative activation of the two cerebral hemispheres. Tasks 1 and 2 examined the effects of Verbal (left hemisphere) and Spatial (right hemisphere) tasks on amplitudes of electrodermal responses. Task 3 examined the effects of the presentation of double-entendre and asexual stimulus words (designed to produce an emotional stimulus) on the high and low repressed groups. Results showed no tasks were accompanied by significant bilateral differences in electrodermal activity although high repressed subjects showed a consistent tendency toward greater amplitudes in both hands to the sexual portion of the word task. These findings are in direct contradiction to research suggesting that hemisphere activation is task dependent, but support the theoretical postulation of ''hemisphericity" (the individual preference for the use of one hemisphere or the other). Subsequent to the tasks, each subject completed a Sexual Activity Questionnaire to determine categories of orgasmic or non-orgasmic. These data proved to be highly related to the personality variables of high and low repression. All subjects self-reported to be orgasmic (n = 3) scored in the low repressed group. Of 16 subjects self-reported to be non-orgasmic, 11 (69%) scored in the high repressed group. These findings argue strongly that sexual conflicts in high repressors leads to psychosomatic sexual dysfunctions as postulated by traditional psychoanalytic theory. Present findings were discussed in terms of the relationships between personality, repression, and sexual conflict and how these .variables influence electrodermal functioning. Implications for future research and theoretical complexities in the interpretation of the present results suggesting support for the "hemisphericity" postulation were also discussed.

Poor sexual function is comprised of diminished sexual desire and arousal, presence of sexual pain, inability to reach orgasm, and low satisfaction. Worse sexual function is associated with disordered eating behavior; however, the mechanism through which this association exists remains unclear. Theory of sexual function suggests that depression mediates the association of disordered eating behaviors and poor sexual function in female service members and veterans, but this has yet to be tested empirically. The purpose of the current study was to examine whether depression mediated the association of disordered eating behaviors and sexual dysfunction. Participants (N=511) were partnered females who completed measures of sexual function, disordered eating behavior, depression severity, and demographic and military characteristics. Nearly 60% reported probable sexual dysfunction, 19.6% reported probable eating disorder, and 44.4% reported probable depressive disorder. Higher depression symptoms were associated with lower sexual function (r=-.40, p<.001) and higher disordered eating behavior (r=.45, p<.001). Mediation analyses revealed that the association between disordered eating behavior and sexual function was indirect, through depression severity (indirect effect: -1.12, 95% confidence interval [-1.42, -0.85]). Depression is a potential mechanism through which disordered eating behaviors are related to poor sexual function. Findings are congruent with sexual function theory, and underscore the importance of addressing depression when treating sexual function in those with disordered eating behavior.

This applied dissertation was designed to provide university presidents with information on how to best address the shortage of minority female professors through understanding the factors that affect minority female success as professors in higher education. Essentially, this study sought to (a) identify factors that hindered or enhanced female minority success in their current career as professors and (b) identify factors that hindered or enhanced their success in preparation for their current careers as professors.

Selection strategies to increase productive traits of farm animals have been effective and highly specialized breeds and strains were obtained. At the same time, the effort made to obtain extremely high producing animals was accompanied by undesired effects, such as a reduced ability to sustain production, reproduction and health; especially under constrained conditions. The perception that selection was degrading robustness, lead to selection strategies aiming to improve the ability of animals to perform in a wider range of environmental constrain. However, at the present moment, the physiological mechanisms allowing farm animals to perform well in a wide range of environments, while others succumb, have not been described. The present thesis intended to address this question by describing the evolution of traits related to fitness, survival and to the adaptability to environmental constraints. Two maternal rabbit lines differing in their ability to face the environmental constraints, i.e. a `specialist¿ and a `generalist¿ maternal rabbit line were available. Additionally, two generations (20 generations apart) of the specialized line were simultaneously available. During the first two consecutive reproductive cycles, female rabbits were simultaneously subjected to three environmental conditions differing in the intensity and in the physiological constrain imposed. Digestive capacity, the acquisition of resources and the partitioning of resources into different function (i.e. litter size, milk yield, growth, body reserves, etc.) was also assessed. Results showed a greater acquisition capacity of `generalist¿ females in constrained conditions with respect to `specialist¿ females. Moreover, the greater acquisition capacity was not accompanied by a reduction in the digestive efficiency, allowing the `generalist¿ females a relative greater acquisition of digestible energy. The maintenance of reproductive performance by having a greater acquisition capacity, together with the avoidance of making an intensive use of body reserves were both related to the capacity of `generalist¿ females to sustain reproduction in a wide range of environmental conditions. Twenty generations of selection exclusively for reproduction (specialized line), was not accompanied by a higher acquisition capacity, but by a change in the relative priority between the litter being nursed (actual) and the litter being gestate (future litter). In this sense, females from the actual generation of selection for litter size at weaning had a greater milk yield in the first week of lactation (period of great importance to kits survival), reducing it by the end of lactation. The present thesis also evidenced the importance of the environment where the animals are being selected in the evolution of the interplay between competing functions. / Savietto, D. (2014). Environmental and genetic factors driving robustness in reproductive rabbit does [Tesis doctoral]. Universitat Politècnica de València. https://doi.org/10.4995/Thesis/10251/37198 / TESIS / Premios Extraordinarios de tesis doctorales