<p> Despite the high incidence of prostate cancer (PC) amongst men of African descent, there is a paucity of qualitative data that explores how Afro-Caribbean men perceive their risk, susceptibility to, and management of this disease. This phenomenological study sought to explore and analyze beliefs about PC in a sample of Afro-Caribbean men who reside in the United States (U.S.). The research questions considered the perceptions, beliefs, and lived experiences of participants. The conceptual framework is a synthesis of the health belief model (HBM) and the theory of reasoned action (TRA), primarily because the TRA allows for a culturally-based relevance and perspective that is lacking in the HBM. Data were collected using in-depth interviews from a purposive sample of 13 U.S. participants from 7 Caribbean territories, who provided detailed descriptions of their perceptions. Data management and inductive, iterative analysis were facilitated through the use of the NVivo 10 software program. This study found that participants had a low level of awareness and education about PC, but they also believed that if PC were caught early, they have a good chance of a long life. There was no indication that culture played a significant role in their attitudes, beliefs, and perceptions of the disease. Education about PC should be targeted to this population as well as their significant others. In addition, qualitative research is needed to compare perspectives of Afro-Caribbean, African American, and African men who all reside in the United States. This study may contribute to positive social change by providing practical strategies that may increase screening and early diagnosis among Afro-Caribbean men, thereby reducing the mortality from this disease. </p>

<p> An elusive solution has been found, to a serious problem that has plagued the criminal justice response to domestic violence for decades: The need for a validated method that will significantly raise unacceptably low rates of prosecution and conviction. Rates of domestic violence prosecution hover at about 30% for non-arrest cases. Using empirical data this study validated a best practices method (BPM) for DV investigation, by police. Rates of prosecution increase about 60% if photographs are obtained, 68% if more than one witness is listed in the report, 94% if an arrest is made, 87% if an emergency protective order (EPO) is obtained, and 284% if more than one charge is listed. Conviction increases about 78% for arrest, 102% for an EPO, and 142% for more than one charge. Survival analysis shows odds drop off rapidly for both outcomes if the report is not submitted to the prosecutor within 10 days. Rates of use of the BPM are used to determine Probability Scores (P Scores), so that routinely low effort (RLE) and routinely greater effort (RGE) officers can be separated and compared. Prosecutors reject RLE investigations 370% more often. The rate of decline of female DV recidivism, as a function of age, was measured to be about 2.56% per year between ages 22-61. For males it is about 3.13% per year from ages 28-60. This finding brings claims of re-education and treatment programs into question, if they have not controlled for the natural decline of recidivism potential as a function of age. This work demonstrates the manner in which a problem-solving criminology can be operationalized. </p>

Thesis (Ph.D.)--Pacific Graduate School of Psychology, 1995. / Source: Dissertation Abstracts International, Volume: 56-06, Section: B, page: 3449.

Thesis (Ph.D.)--Indiana University, Dept. of Sociology, 2007. / Source: Dissertation Abstracts International, Volume: 68-09, Section: A, page: 4100. Adviser: Bernice A. Pescosolido. Title from dissertation home page (viewed May 8, 2008).

Thesis (Ph.D.)--University of California, San Francisco, 2006. / Source: Dissertation Abstracts International, Volume: 67-05, Section: B, page: 2477. Adviser: Erika S. Froelicher.

Thesis (Ph.D.)--University of California, San Francisco, 2006. / Source: Dissertation Abstracts International, Volume: 67-05, Section: B, page: 2472. Adviser: Catherine M. Waters.

Thesis (Ph.D.)--University of California, San Francisco with the University of California, Berkeley, 2009. / Source: Dissertation Abstracts International, Volume: 71-02, Section: A, page: . Adviser: Vincanne Adams.

Thesis (Ph.D.)--Fairleigh Dickinson University, 1998. / Source: Dissertation Abstracts International, Volume: 59-08, Section: A, page: 2874. Chair: Cynthia Radnitz.

Thesis (Ph.D.)--University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign, 2006. / Source: Dissertation Abstracts International, Volume: 67-11, Section: B, page: 6337. Adviser: Ramona F. Oswald. Includes bibliographical references (leaves 123-135) Available on microfilm from Pro Quest Information and Learning.

Made available in DSpace on 2014-07-29T15:27:26Z (GMT). No. of bitstreams: 1 Dissertacao_Linamar.pdf: 1949828 bytes, checksum: 59aa4c0da0250e8c1a8fb3c195d72988 (MD5) Previous issue date: 2009-04-17 / The treatment of uterine cancer, a slow-growing form of the disease, is particularly effective in regard to precursor lesions. In order to understand this illness from the perspective of health sociology, this study focused on women afflicted with uterine cancer. Semi-structured interviews were employed in an attempt to perceive these women s representations. The interviews revealed the coexistence of positive and negative aspects in experiences with cancer and confirmed the stigma borne by both the illness and the treatment. Results showed that public health policies and available health services need to complement individual prevention measures in attributing priority to information about the illness and the treatment, thus covering all dimensions of people s lives. This conclusion highlights the need for a humanized health system that guarantees access to quality health services and exposes the interface between sociology and health, which is essential for the promotion of humanization within the sociocultural context of the health-illness process. / O tratamento do câncer do colo do útero, uma doença com desenvolvimento lento, é eficaz, principalmente nas lesões precursoras. Para compreender essa doença, na perspectiva da sociologia aplicada à saúde, realizou-se um estudo com mulheres que vivenciaram a experiência do câncer uterino, mediante entrevista semiestruturada, visando apreender as representações criadas por elas. As entrevistas revelaram a coexistência tanto de aspectos positivos quanto negativos na experiência com a doença e confirmaram o estigma que a doença e o tratamento carregam. Os resultados demonstram que as ações de políticas públicas em saúde, dos serviços de saúde disponíveis, precisam ser complementares às ações individuais de prevenção, no sentido de priorizar a informação e o esclarecimento sobre a doença e o tratamento, contemplando as demais dimensões da vida dos sujeitos. Isso aponta para a necessidade de um sistema de saúde humanizado, que apresente garantias de acesso a bens e serviços de saúde de qualidade, evidenciando a interface entre a sociologia e a saúde, que é imprescindível para o alcance das propostas de humanização no contexto sociocultural do processo saúde-doença.