Objective: To determine which website characteristics are preferred by orthodontists, adult patients, and parents of patients. Materials and Methods: 1,000 active members of the American Association of Orthodontists and 750 active orthodontic patients/parents were sampled. Participants rated the importance of website characteristics, indicated presence of those characteristics on the current website, and ranked sample website images. Preferences were compared between orthodontist and the patient/parent group using t-tests and sample websites were compared using ANOVA models and Tukey’s adjusted post-hoc tests. Significance level was set at 0.05. Results: 11 of the 16 website features showed significant differences between patients/parents and orthodontists. Participants preferred sample websites with images of people, information at the top of the page, and an ‘about the doctor’ page with a greater amount of information. Conclusion: This study showed significant differences in preferences between orthodontists and patients/parents, by gender, and between adult patients and parents of adolescent patients.

Drug and alcohol addiction in pregnant women is a significant public health issue. The purpose of this study was to assess drug and alcohol addiction in pregnant women and the setting in which they sought service or treatment to determine whether U.S. census regions and race data could predict the type of addiction service or treatment that pregnant addicts chose. The theories of self-efficacy, cognitive behavioral therapy, and rational emotive behavioral therapy were used as the theoretical framework for this study. The research questions were used to examine whether there was a relationship between the source of addiction treatment referral and the type of addiction service or treatment setting for pregnant addicts that reside in the United States at the time of their initial admission for treatment. This quantitative study used archival data from the 2012 Treatment Episode Dataset – Admission from the Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration. Data analysis included the Chi square (χ2) test of independence and a multinomial regression. There was a significant relationship (p < .001) between the source of treatment program referral and type of service/treatment setting for pregnant women who were diagnosed with only an alcohol addiction and both an alcohol and illicit drug addiction. U.S. census region and race did predict the type of addiction service/treatment setting for pregnant addicts diagnosed with an alcohol addiction, as well as those diagnosed with a drug addiction, at the time of treatment admission. Results from this study can be used to address an under researched area of addiction treatment and could aid in changing the behaviors of pregnant addicts, thereby potentially promoting positive social change.

<p>Abstract</p><p>Purpose/Aim: This essay deals with The Swedish Red Cross Society and their work concerning strategical information and communication about HIV and AIDS in the Swedish context. In a broader sense the relation between the global and the local will be investigated and a discussion about what it means to work in an organization operating on a global arena will be held.</p><p>Material/Method: This essay is based on relevant theories about culture and health communication which I have studied, selected and put together, with purpose to analyse The Swedish Red Cross Society and their informational work with HIV and AIDS- prevention. Furthermore I have interviewed four of the organizations co- workers to collect data about their experiences in working in the Red Cross organization with this specific mission. Moreover I and my colleague Hillevi Good attended at seminars and lectures to observe activities held by the organization and to get inside information about what people working with HIV and AIDS are discussing and considering as critical issues. The study holds a qualitative approach focusing on understanding this typical case rather then generalizing facts in a larger sense.</p><p>Main results: The Swedish National Society of The Red Cross has a difficult mission in their work to inform the public about HIV and AIDS, although it is the perfect organization when it comes to communication due to their well-known profile and a huge geographical spread. Foremost this is due to the fact that the problem in Sweden concerns attitudes rather than medical supplies, access to information and other more practical issues.</p><p>The Swedish citizen is individualistic and the HIV- problem does not exist in his/hers reality in the same way as in a high- endemic country, a fact that complicates information and communication. The organization is well aware of the situation and has a good informational approach with networking and education as examples among others, but this is not enough. Changing behaviour and attitudes takes a long time and a lot of resources that does not exist because of HIV and AIDS low priority in Sweden. Although we have an envied situation when it comes to the number of HIV- positive the situation is critical when it comes to knowledge and empathy among the population.</p><p>Keywords: HIV and AIDS, The Swedish National Society of The Red Cross, Stiftelsen Noaks Ark- Röda Korset, Culture, Structure of Society, Health communication, Behavioural Change, Knowledge and Information</p>

Abstract Purpose/Aim: This essay deals with The Swedish Red Cross Society and their work concerning strategical information and communication about HIV and AIDS in the Swedish context. In a broader sense the relation between the global and the local will be investigated and a discussion about what it means to work in an organization operating on a global arena will be held. Material/Method: This essay is based on relevant theories about culture and health communication which I have studied, selected and put together, with purpose to analyse The Swedish Red Cross Society and their informational work with HIV and AIDS- prevention. Furthermore I have interviewed four of the organizations co- workers to collect data about their experiences in working in the Red Cross organization with this specific mission. Moreover I and my colleague Hillevi Good attended at seminars and lectures to observe activities held by the organization and to get inside information about what people working with HIV and AIDS are discussing and considering as critical issues. The study holds a qualitative approach focusing on understanding this typical case rather then generalizing facts in a larger sense. Main results: The Swedish National Society of The Red Cross has a difficult mission in their work to inform the public about HIV and AIDS, although it is the perfect organization when it comes to communication due to their well-known profile and a huge geographical spread. Foremost this is due to the fact that the problem in Sweden concerns attitudes rather than medical supplies, access to information and other more practical issues. The Swedish citizen is individualistic and the HIV- problem does not exist in his/hers reality in the same way as in a high- endemic country, a fact that complicates information and communication. The organization is well aware of the situation and has a good informational approach with networking and education as examples among others, but this is not enough. Changing behaviour and attitudes takes a long time and a lot of resources that does not exist because of HIV and AIDS low priority in Sweden. Although we have an envied situation when it comes to the number of HIV- positive the situation is critical when it comes to knowledge and empathy among the population. Keywords: HIV and AIDS, The Swedish National Society of The Red Cross, Stiftelsen Noaks Ark- Röda Korset, Culture, Structure of Society, Health communication, Behavioural Change, Knowledge and Information

El estudio examinó la posible influencia del lenguaje y lugar de origen de un lector en la comprensión de mensajes de comunicación en salud y en la formación de actitud e intención hacia la realización de una conducta preventiva. Un instrumento de medición con escala de comprensión de lectura, actitud e intención fue suministrado a un grupo de puertorriqueños y dominicanos N=40) residentes en San Juan, Puerto Rico. La escala de comprensión tenía dos textos en diversos niveles de dificultad (bastante fácil y medio) de acuerdo con la Fórmula de Legibilidad para el idioma español de Francisco Szigriszt Pazos. Se encontró que no hubo diferencia estadísticamente significativa (p>.05) entre la muestra en el nivel de dificultad bastante fácil, no obstante en el nivel de dificultad medio sí hubo diferencia estadísticamente significativa (p<.05). Los análisis reflejaron que la comprensión y actitud en conjunto no predicen de manera significativa el grado de intención para la adopción de una conducta preventiva de salud. / This study examines the possible influence of a reader's place of origin on the comprehension of health communication messages and on the formation of attitudes and intentions of preventive behavior. A measurement instrument with a reading comprehension, attitude and intention scale was administered to a group of individuals of Puerto Rican and Dominican origin (N=40) living in San Juan, Puerto Rico.The reading comprehension scale used two texts with different levels of difficulty (relatively easy and intermediate) in accordance with the Readability Formula for Spanish of Francisco Szigriszt Pazos. There was no statistically significant difference (p>.05) among the samplefor the relatively easy level of the reading test; however, for the intermediate level, there was a statistically significant difference (p<.05). Analyses showed that comprehension and attitude together do not significantly predict the degree of intention to adopt healthy preventive behavior.

HIV/AIDS is widely spread in Zambia. Numerous organizations work to disseminate information about how individuals can prevent themselves and others from infection. Youth Vision Zambia (YVZ) is a non- governmental organization that works from Lusaka, Zambia to increase knowledge about sexual reproductive health and rights among young people aged 10-24. This qualitative case study explores which means of communication strategies YVZ uses to reach and inform their target group about Sexual Reproductive Health and Rights (SRHR) by interviewing staff working for the organization. A qualitative survey was also conducted where 29 respondents belonging to the target group answered questions regarding the information about SRHR they have received from YVZ, how they were reached and if they find the work of YVZ of importance. In order to also get a perception about the interpersonal communication channels YVZ use I attended four meetings arranged for young people where the purpose was to discuss sexual health related issues conducting participant observations. In addition, YVZ put an extensive effort on providing an SMS-short code system which allows people to send questions related to SRHR and in turn get answers from a YVZ councilor. The aim was to seek answers to whether the users had found the SMS service useful or not. The results show a variety of different communication tools that YVZ uses in their daily work and in the light of previous research on communication for development and social change and health communication an analysis was carried out. / HIV/AIDS har stor spridning I Zambia. Ett flertal organisationer jobbar med att sprida information om hur individer kan förhindra sig själva och andra att bli smittade. Youth Vision Zambia (YVZ) är en icke- statlig organisation som verkar i Lusaka, Zambia och jobbar för att öka kunskapen om sexuell reproduktiv hälsa och rättigheter (SRHR) bland unga människor i åldrarna 10-24 år. Denna kvalitativa fallstudie utforskar vilka typer av kommunikationsstrategier YVZ använder sig av för att nå ut till samt informera deras målgrupp om dessa områden. För att göra detta intervjuades personal som jobbar på organisationen. Studien ämnar också undersöka hur ungdomar som tagit del av YVZ’s information uppfattar den, om de anser den värdefull samt hur de fick kännedom om deras arbete, detta gjordes genom att utforma en kvalitativ enkät. 29 enkäter var det som i slutändan användes till sammanställningen av resultat och genomförandet av analys. YVZ jobbar även till stor grad med interaktiv kommunikation i deras arbete i att informera och engagera ungdomar vilket styrde intresset till att även genomföra deltagarobservationer. Vid fyra tillfällen blev således dessa observationer genomförda. Vidare lägger YVZ stor vikt vid att kommunicera via mobiltelefoni vilket visar sig genom deras short message system (SMS) där de erbjuder tjänsten att genom att skicka ett SMS till ett kortnummer innehållande frågor rörande SRHR och genom att göra det få svar och råd från personal från YVZ. Detta resulterade i att en SMS-enkät skickades ut innehållande endast en fråga med syfte att ta reda på om användare av tjänsten har funnit den värdefull eller ej. Resultaten som framkommit genom att tillämpa dessa metoder visar på en variation av kommunikationskanaler som YVZ använder sig av i deras dagliga arbete och i ljuset av litteratur som belyser kommunikation för utveckling och social förändring and hälsokommunikation så lägger denna studie fram en analys angående dessa.

The purpose of this research project was to develop a reliable and valid scale to assess the perceived message sensation value (PMSV) of print messages. The goal of this project was accomplished by conducting two studies. Study one involved collecting 397 undergraduate students’ responses to one high and one low sensation value anti-smoking message, while for study two, 284 undergraduate students’ responses to one high and one low sensation value anti-crystal meth message were collected. The results of the studies highlighted that the PMSV of a print message can be assessed using three dimensions (emotional arousal, novelty, and dramatic impact) and 12 items. Additionally, the newly developed PMSV scale for print messages remained stable across sensation-seeking levels and two different sets of anti-drug messages. Analysis of the data collected also provided support for the convergent, divergent, and predictive validity of the PMSV scale for print messages. Furthermore, from the data it can be inferred that PMSV is an important element that contributes to perceived message effectiveness and attitude towards the ad. The findings associated with this research project also suggest that both high and low sensation seekers preferred high over low sensation value print messages. Lastly, the implications of the PMSV scale for print messages were addressed.

Vaccination is an important public health measure that can help reduce disease at the population level. Substantial evidence exists that vaccines are safe and effective at reducing the incidence of diseases like pertussis, measles and cervical cancer. However, on Internet parenting forums, parents discuss whether or not vaccination is the right choice for their children. In this thesis, I highlight the historical context of the anti-vaccine movement in mid 19th century to early 20th century Victorian Britain in the era of compulsory smallpox vaccination. Vaccination in this time was a very different and more overtly dangerous process, and preexisting dissenting movements took up anti-vaccination as a cause. Today, the rhetoric on Internet parenting forums has grown to include arguments of safety, efficacy and necessity of vaccination. I gathered much of the information from the mothering.com and mumsnet.com parenting forums, and other websites like Sanevax.org.

Thesis (Ph. D.)--University of California, San Diego, 2007. / Title from first page of PDF file (viewed October 10, 2007). Available via ProQuest Digital Dissertations. Vita. Includes bibliographical references (p. 291-305).

Thesis (M.T.S.C.)--Miami University, Dept. of English, 2004. / Title from first page of PDF document. Includes bibliographical references (p. 31).