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MPH / Department of Public Health / Abstract Lecturers are important agents in the provision of tertiary education at Technical Vocational Education and Training Colleges, however their effectiveness is highly compromised by health related factors. Lecturers can be exposed to variety of hazards in the workplace owing to chemicals, biological agents, physical factors, adverse ergonomic conditions, allergens and a complex network of safety risks. This conditions can led to the development of certain health related factors that can intern impose negative effects on lecturers job performance. The aim of the study was to determine the health-related factors affecting lecturers’ job performance at Vhembe Technical Vocational Education and Training College. A quantitative approach in the form of a survey, using a descriptive research design, was used in this study. Data was collected from permanent lecturers at Vhembe Technical Vocational Education and Training College. Total sampling was used due to the number of lecturers which is already low. A total of 250 respondents were used to collect data, with edge ranges from 26 to 60 years. A structured questionnaire was used to collect data regarding demographic characteristics, physical health problems, emotional problems, mental health problems and chronic diseases. The Statistical Package for Social Sciences version 25.0 was used to analyse the data. Validity and reliability was ensured. The researcher also observed the primary ethical principles upon which standards of ethical conduct in research was based. The results of this study indicate that health related factors affect lecturers’ job performance. About 85% of the respondents indicated that they are absent from work due to work related problems. More than 50% of the respondents revealed that lecturers consult doctors several times within a year due to health related problems, are affected by emotional problems, mental health problems, physical health problems as well as chronic diseases. It is recommended that Management should address the issue of absenteeism comprehensively. An institution of higher learning should have a clinic which is fully supplied with medicines including health professionals such as registered Nurses. Management should employ registered counsellors and registered Psychometrics. Management should put in place health-promoting conditions within the campuses. Giving lecturers reasonable amount of work load would be useful. Management should develop a plan to monitor and evaluate the working environment. Lecturers should organise their work and prioritise activities to avoid rush production. / NRF

Submitted in Partial Fulfillment of the Requirements for the Degree of PhD (Community Psychology) Faculty of Arts University of Zululand, 2008. / Research indicates that the prevalence of childhood depression is increasing, the onset of depression is occurring earlier in life, and that depression coexists with other mental health problems such as anxiety and disruptive behaviour disorders. Teachers are more responsive to behavioural manifestations such as hyperactivity, disruptive behaviour and aggression. They are less responsive to interpersonal difficulties and less disruptive behaviours such as withdrawal and social isolation. While they can correctly recognize that internalizing symptoms such as withdrawal and sadness are indicators of depression, they are unable to correctly recognize that externalizing behaviours such as disruptiveness and aggression can also be indicators of depression. Since many of these symptoms of depression manifest in the school, it is imperative that teachers are able to correctly identify the symptoms of depression. The correct management of the child prevents the depression from worsening and leading to disastrous consequences. The purpose of this study was to establish whether teachers were fully knowledgeable about the behavioural symptoms of depression. A former purpose was to determine the management strategies used at school, and to develop a guideline document for teachers. Survey methodology and interview techniques were used to collect data for the study. These methods provided quantitative and qualitative data. The participants comprised 56 primary school teachers from three randomly selected schools. Two questionnaires were specially designed to gather data for the study. The results of the study revealed that teachers were not fully knowledgeable about the behavioural symptoms of depression and that they lacked the depth of knowledge required to recognize the significance of the diagnostic criteria of depression "which manifest as behavioural symptoms in school. The results showed mat more than 57 % of participants felt that parents and home factors were responsible for depression. Results also indicated that the majority of participants were not able to recognize the multiplicity of factors that could cause and result in depression. In the perceived absence of psychological support from the Department of Education, participants indicated a need for guidelines for identification and management of symptoms of depression. There was overwhelming support for the implementation of a self-esteem programme at schools. At the conclusion of the study, a document which outlined recognition and management of the behavioural symptoms of depression, was developed by the researcher. As a result of the findings of the study, recommendations were made to teachers, the schools' management team, as well as to the Department of Education. Recommendations made to teachers included training the child in social skills and cognitive strategies, and maintaining contact with parents. One important recommendation to the schools' management was the timely referral of depressed children to mental health professionals. Recommendations made to the Department of Education included the facilitation of the formation of multidisciplinary teams which would comprise teachers, management staff, parents and school psychologists. These multidisciplinary teams would manage the successful implementation of programmes that will foster healthy social and emotional development of all children.

Master of Science / Department of Family Studies and Human Services / Sandra Stith / The Rutgers Alcohol Problem Index (RAPI) is a well-known instrument used as a primary outcome measure in intervention studies with college students. It has been used in studies assessing the developmental trajectory of high-risk drinking and also used in studies which address the predictors of alcohol-related problems among college students (Carey & Correia, 1997; Ham & Hope, 2005; Levy & Earleywine, 2003). Martens et al. (2006) found that the RAPI individual items were able to be grouped in three distinct subfactors (Abuse/Dependence, Personal Consequences, and Social Consequences). The objective of this study was to examine the relationship between various mental health problems (depression, posttraumatic stress disorder, physical abuse victimization, physical abuse perpetration, sexual coercion victimization, sexual coercion perpetration, and self-esteem) and the three subscales of the RAPI. It was anticipated that the mental health problems explain more of the variance on Abuse/Dependence than on Personal or Social Consequences. Results indicated that even though mental health problems explain more of the variance on Abuse/Dependence than on Personal or Social Consequences, the difference did not appear large enough to suggest that the subfactors represent unique domains. In conclusion, it cannot be assumed that the three subfactors measure distinct and exclusive types of consequences. A student that scores high on Abuse/Dependence also may be experiencing Personal and Social Consequences.

Title: The most common health problems for mountain bikers. Objectives: Uncover the most common localities of health problems of mountain bikers. Find the differences in selected localities of health problems of men and women. Methods: Data were collected using questionnaires with nine questions. Data was been collected after the race mountain bikes for 50 km. The most important monitored parameters were sex and location difficulties. Results: 57 male and 33 female randomly selected recreational cyclists responded to questionnaire. The most common anatomical sites for overuse injury/complaints reported by the male and female cyclists combined were the neck (22,23 %), followed by back (14,44 %), small of the back (13,33 %) and without difficulty (10,8 %). Significant differences were observed between male and female site selection problems. List of health problems in women: neck, knees, back, smal of the back. List of health problems in men: neck, without difficulty, small of the back, back. Keywords: mountain biking, health problems

Mental health problems have incapacitating effects on an individual’s capacity to hold and maintain employment. Over half a million Canadians are absent from work due to mental health problems every day, which costs Canadian companies an estimated 14% of their net annual profit. Individuals who miss work for mental health reasons often experience longer periods of absence, and return to work at a much lower rate than individuals absent for other reasons (e.g., physical injury). Regrettably, empirically based return to work interventions focused on mental health problems are lacking, likely the product of a lack of consensus surrounding salient predictors of return to work. The current study sought to add to current literature aimed at identifying factors that influence the likelihood of successful re-entry into the workforce. A review of patient files from a private psychological practice yielded the sample. Clients were selected based on their satisfaction of one central criterion: having experienced a workplace absence and suffered from a mood or anxiety disorder as classified by the DSM-IV-TR. Recruitment letters and consent forms were mailed to 74 eligible participants, for a response rate of 68% (n=50). The sample was predominantly female (n=38 or 76%). Of the 50 participants, 27 successfully reintegrated to the workforce (RTW=54%), following a mean absence of 13 months (SD=7.37). Emerging from the results are higher risk categories (e.g., physically injured workers, low educational requirements, disability providers) of reduced likelihood of successful return to work. The role of symptom severity and availability of social support is also discussed along with best practice implications for stakeholder/practitioners.

China's modernization process is in a stage of rapid development. With the improvement of the education level of young people, their expectations on their study, career, and living standards are also being high-stress level. The various health problems are increasing among young people who may be experienced high-level stress. Despite the attention mental health has received, there is still little research on stress-related health problems and consequences, particularly in China. Therefore, the study aims to describe different aspects of stress-related health problems among young people in China, from the perspective of community health professionals. This master's thesis is based on a literature review and a theoretical framework including the perspective of the psycho-neuroendocrine-immune (PNEI) model. The empirical data originates from 20 informants and qualitative full-text questionnaires, resulting in key findings and conclusions. On the one hand, physiological and psychological systems interact to exacerbate health problems, among young people, such as nervous system-related headaches, fatigue, and sleep disturbances due to stress; immune system-related colds, asthma; endocrine and metabolic problems such as for overweight or obesity, gastric acid secretion disorders and so on, These problems could be seen as reflecting the bidirectional influence of an “overloaded” psycho-neuro-endocrine-immune system. Further, the results show that the vicious circle related to stress may lead to severe health consequences for young people.

The purpose of this study was to analyze and record the characteristics of grandparents who are raising school-aged children as they relate to how the United States is responding to their needs and the needs of their grandchildren. The researcher sought to determine the characteristics of grandparent-headed households with no parent present in regards to housing, nutritional assistance, transportation, employment, age of children in the household, language spoken in the home, and family type, as measured by the 2010 United States Census Bureau. This study was conducted using a quantitative, descriptive research design. The data used for this study were indirect estimates produced by statistical model-based methods using sample survey, decennial census, and administrative data sources compiled by the United States Census Bureau. The Census Bureau collects data about American families for the nation, states and communities, and data related to socioeconomic status, family composition, and language spoken were used to more fully understand characteristics of households where grandparents are raising grandchildren outside of the traditional 1-2 parent American households. Participants included the 92 grandparent-headed households from among the 15,482 participants in the American Community Survey, which included 556 households where grandparents were living with grandchildren. To address the research questions, descriptive statistics were used, including frequencies and percentages. The statistical package SPSS was used to analyze the data. The results of this study revealed that of the grandparents who lived with their grandchildren where there was no parent present, 100% lived in housing units, 75% participated in the yearly food stamp/supplemental nutrition assistance program, 36% had no transportation, 26% were female householders who were unemployed and did not have a husband living in the household, 74% had related children who were 6-17 years old in the household, 51% lived in homes where only English was spoken, and 53% resided in homes where there was a married couple, while 39% of them were in homes with female householders with no husband present.

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Bakalauro darbe nagrinėjami akademinio jaunimo gyvensenos aspektai. Sveikos gyvensenos elementai yra sveika mityba, grūdinimąsis, fizinis aktyvumas, tinkamas poilsis, žalingų įpročių atsisakymas ir kita. Šiame darbe nagrinėjami keli, didžiausią Lietuvos ir užsienio mokslininkų susidomėjimą sukėlę, gyvensenos aspektai. Suformuluota hipotezė, kad akademinis jaunimas nėra pati sveikiausia visuomenės dalis. Gyvensenos analizė turėtų patvirtinti jaunimo sveikatos problemas, susijusias su žalingų medžiagų vartojimu, polinkiu į pasyvų gyvenimo būdą, nesveikos mitybos bei stresu. Subjektyvus savo sveikatos vertinimas turėtų įrodyti studentų nuostatą sveikos gyvensenos atžvilgiu. Tyrime dalyvavo 120 Šiaulių universiteto antro kurso studentų. Dalyvavo įvairaus profilio būsimų specialistų: 40 Socialinės gerovės ir negalės studijų fakulteto, 40 Humanitarinio fakulteto ir 40 Technologinio fakulteto studentų. Anketinės apklausos metodu tirti Šiaulių universiteto antro kurso studentų gyvensenos aspektai. Pirmoji anketos dalis, skirta išsiaiškinti studento nuomonę, kiek svarbūs žmogaus sveikatai yra įvairūs dalykai, ir kiek pats studentas juos realizuoja. Antrąja anketos dalimi siekiama įvertinti studento nuomonę apie svarbiausias sveikatos problemas konkrečiai aukštojoje mokykloje, kurioje mokosi. Trečiojoje anketos dalyje studentai prašomi pažymėti, kiek realiai įgyvendinamos sveikatos stiprinimo įvairios priemonės dabartiniu metu Lietuvoje. Tyrimu nustatyta, kad Šiaulių universiteto... [toliau žr. visą tekstą] / The bachelor paper deals with aspects of academic youth lifestyle. Healthy lifestyle comprises healthy nutrition, hardening, physical activity, due rest, refusal from bad habits etc. The paper deals with a number of lifestyle aspects, causing largest attention of both Lithuanian and foreign researchers. Hypothesis is formulated: academic youth is not the healthiest part of population. Lifestyle analysis should confirm youth health problems, related with consumption of harmful substances, tend to passive way of living, unhealthy nutrition and stress. Subjective self-evaluation should prove students’ attitude towards healthy lifestyle. 120 2nd year students from Siauliai University participated in the study. Their profiles varied as follows: 40 students from Social Wellbeing and Disability Faculty, 40 from The Humanities Faculty and 40 from Technology Faculty. Questioning survey was used to examine lifestyle aspects of 2nd year students from Siauliai University. The first part of survey was used to find out students’ opinion on how important for human health are various factors and how he/she realizes them. The second part was used to assess students’ opinion on the most important health problems in the university he/she is studying. The third part asked the students to note how various health strengthening means are realized in practice in today’s Lithuania. The study disclosed that lifestyle of 2nd year students from Siauliai University is not the healthiest. Among the... [to full text]