Barbora Hrušková, Rodičovství osob s těžkým zrakovým postižením Abstract (in English) The diploma thesis researches practical aspects of the parental role of persons with severe visual impairment. Its aim is to describe the experiences of visually impaired parents with preparing for the arrival of a child, with parental role and with childcare during a preschool age. At the same time it aims to chart the social services available to this group and to determine the extent to which they actually use these services, or whether they are missing some services. Due to differences in the availability of services in Prague and in smaller towns, the whole diploma thesis is focused on the territory of Prague. The theoretical part describes a person with severe visual impairment, including its specifics in different areas of life. It also deals with possible different aspects of parenting for people with visual disabilities. It provides a description of compensatory aids and explains their important role in the lives of visually impaired people. Next it acquaints readers with the possibilities of financial support for visually impaired parents primarily by the state. The conclusion of the theoretical part is devoted to listing and description of Prague organizations that provide some services for parents with severe...

Vi har studerat svenska börsnoterade bolag på Stockholmsbörsens largecap-lista som omfattar de största börsnoterade bolagen i Sverige. Syftet med denna studie är att söka samband mellan bolagens nedskrivningar av goodwill och väsentliga händelser. Dessa väsentliga händelser utgörs av byte av revisor och verkställande direktör. Den teoretiska referensramen utgår från tidigare teorier om företagsledningars olika sätt att subjektivt bedöma behovet av nedskrivningar. Det är inte alltid en ledning tar beslut som är för företagets bästa utan kan ha egna incitament för att maximera den egna nyttan. Metoden som vi utgått från i vår studie har varit en kvantitativ metod där vi samlat in data från bolagens årsredovisningar och kvantifierat det för att söka samband genom regressionsanalys. Vårt resultat ger inga indikationer på samband mellan nedskrivningar av goodwill och väsentliga händelser. / We have studied Swedish listed companies on the Stockholm Stock Exchange largecap list, which includes the largest listed companies in Sweden. The purpose of this study is to seek connection between the companies' impairment losses on goodwill and significant events. These significant events consist of a change of accountant and CEO. The theoretical frame of reference is based on previous theories on the different ways of management to subjectively assess the need for write-downs. It is not always a management decision that is for the good of the company but may have its own incentives to maximize its own benefit. The method we used in our study has been a quantitative method where we collected data from the companies´ annual reports and quantified it to seek connection through regression analysis. Our results do not give any indication of the relationship between impairment of goodwill and significant events.

Psychosocial working conditions play a significant role for health during working age, as well as in post-retirement life. However, little is known about the impact of work stressors on cognitive and physical impairment assessed in combination. The aim was to study associations between midlife work stressors and physical and cognitive impairment in older age for women and men separately. The data were derived from two Swedish nationally representative surveys. The same participants were followed through three waves at the mean ages of 54, 61, and 81 (n=360). Multinomial logistic regression was used to assess the association between work stressors, and test of cognitive and physical function. Low control and passive jobs were associated with higher odds of cognitive impairment, and cognitive and physical impairment when assessed in combination. These findings were driven by associations found among men. Accumulated low control and passive jobs across midlife were associated with physical impairment in older age among men, but not among women. These results highlight the importance of work stressors for physical and cognitive impairment in older age. Improving psychosocial working conditions in midlife, in particular increasing the level of control among employees, may promote healthy aging.

Dans le contexte du diagnostic précoce de la maladie d’Alzheimer, une direction de la recherche émerge autour de l’informatisation de tests cognitifs. Nous avons conçu un test de barrage informatisé sur tablette (test e-CT), développé à partir d’un test de barrage papier-crayon. Nous avons étudié les variables influençant les performances au test e-CT et ses propriétés psychométriques. Nous avons observé que chez les sujets âgés sains, la seule variable influençant était l’âge. Les performances au test e-CT n’étaient pas influencées par l’expérience avec un appareil informatique. Cependant, chez les patients présentant des troubles cognitifs, ceux qui utilisaient quotidiennement un appareil informatique avaient une meilleure performance que ceux qui n’avaient pas un usage quotidien. En effet, les patients utilisant quotidiennement un appareil informatique présentaient de meilleures capacités cognitives. Le test e-CT était corrélé avec plusieurs tests des fonctions exécutives (validité convergente), mais pas avec le test de la mémoire épisodique (validité divergente). Il présente aussi une bonne fidélité test-retest. Le test e-CT présente des bonnes performances diagnostiques, permettant de différencier les personnes âgées saines des patients présentant des troubles cognitifs. En conclusion, le test e-CT présente des propriétés psychométriques satisfaisantes et peut être utilisé pour l’évaluation cognitive chez le sujet âgé. / In the context of early detection of cognitive impairment associated with dementia, an area of research focus concerns development and validation of computerized tests. We have developed a tablet-based cancellation test (e-CT), based on an existing paper-and-pencil cancellation test (K-T test). We studied the variables influencing performance on the e-CT and its psychometric properties. Among healthy older adults, only age was found to be an influencing variable. The performance on the e-CT was not influenced by experience with a computer-based device. However, for patients suffering from cognitive impairment, those using a computer-based device daily outperformed those who were not daily users. Further analyses showed that daily users conserved better cognitive capacities than non-daily users. The e-CT showed significant correlations with several measures of executive functions (convergent validity), but there was no relationship between the e-CT and the episodic memory test (divergent validity). It showed good test-retest reliability. The e-CT had good diagnostic accuracy in differentiating between healthy elderly subjects and patients with cognitive impairment. In conclusion, the e-CT test shows satisfying psychometric properties and is a promising tool for neuropsychological assessment in older adults

Les hypersignaux de la substance blanche (HSB) ont été associés à des déficits exécutifs et mnésiques et à une atteinte des circuits corticaux et sous-corticaux frontaux. Leur présence, en plus du dépôt ß-amyloïde chez de nombreux patients avec un MCI (Mild Cognitive Impairment ou trouble cognitif léger) augmenterait le risque de conversion vers une maladie d'Alzheimer (MA). Un des enjeux importants dans la phase préclinique de la maladie est d'explorer le potentiel des interventions cognitives pour prévenir le déclin cognitif et la progression vers une MA. Alors que les HSB sont de plus en plus considérés comme un des facteurs déterminant l'hétérogénéité des patients MCI, peu d'étude ont pris en compte leur présence dans les interventions cognitives. L'hypothèse qu'une intervention pourrait induire des effets différentiels selon l'existence ou non d'hypersignaux dans le MCI reste inexplorée à notre connaissance, et est au cœur de ce travail de thèse. / White matter hyper signals (WMH) were associated with executive and memory deficits and impairment of the cortical and subcortical frontal circuits. Their presence, in addition to amyloid deposition in many patients with Mild Cognitive Impairment (MCI), would increase the risk of conversion to Alzheimer's disease (AD). An important issues in the preclinical phase of MCI is to explore the potential of cognitive interventions to prevent cognitive decline and progression to AD. While WMH are increasingly considered as one of factors determining the heterogeneity of MCI patients, few studies have take into account their presence in cognitive interventions. The hypothesis that an intervention could induce differential effects according to the existence or not of WMH in MCI remains unexplored to our knowledge, and is at the heart of this work of thesis.

No description available.

Mental health problems are associated with significant losses in work productivity and, consequently, have significant ramifications for business entities and the general economy. Several instruments have been developed to measure productivity-related constructs such as absenteeism and presenteeism. The current study examines the utility of the Outcome Questionnaire-45 (OQ), a commonly used mental health questionnaire, in predicting work productivity. This relationship is explored as a preliminary step in assessing the degree to which changes in mental health brought about by psychotherapy will improve work productivity. Forty-nine participants were recruited from a call center in a small market research firm based in the Western United States. Work productivity was measured using four subscales of the Work Productivity and Activity Impairment (WPAI) questionnaire as well as an objective measure. The OQ and WPAI were administered on a weekly basis over the course of five weeks. Participant characteristic variables and work-time variables were also measured. A mixed models analysis of covariance (ANCOVA) with repeated measures showed that the Social Role (SR) Scale, a subscale of the OQ, was a significant predictor of Presenteeism, Overall Work Impairment, and Activity Impairment subscales. Latent growth modeling (LGM) was used to examine the relationship between the variables while accounting for individual trajectory differences. Although the results suggested that an unconditional model of Overall Work Impairment with SR as a time-varying covariate provided a good fit for the data, standardized regression weights between the variables were not significant. Implications of findings, limitations, and recommendations for future research are discussed.

Separation anxiety is highly prevalent among intellectually and visually impaired individuals, yet little research has been done into its treatment in this population. Due to delayed cognitive skills, these individuals struggle to develop the abstract concept of person permanence, which is necessary to diminish separation anxiety. The first aim of this study was to investigate whether using technology alone or including caregivers was the most beneficial approach to developing person permanence using technology-assisted therapy. The caregivers received training in advance in an attachment-based protocol about securing attachment relationships with the participant. It was hypothesised that the inclusion of attachment figures in technology-assisted therapy would enhance the acquisition of the person permanence concept. The second aim of this study was to determine whether technology-assisted therapy in tandem with the participation of caregivers consequently decreased separation anxiety and challenging behaviour in an adult with intellectual and visual impairment. It was hypothesised that the subject’s anxiety and challenging behaviour levels would significantly decrease due to the intervention. The final aim was to determine how the caregivers and the participant experienced this intervention. It was hypothesised that they would regard it as a positive experience. This single-subject design used a pre-experimental quantitative approach. It was based on the familiar ABAB design and comprised six phases. Phase A served as baseline, giving the participants time to become acquainted with the technology. Phase B consisted of automated responses to the participant’s messages. In phase C caregivers directed the active reply. The daily messages were discussed when the participant and caregiver reunited, incorporating the attachment-based protocol. Phase B and C were repeated. Phase D followed after the devices were handed in. The technology was a specially adapted touch iPhone with an application comprising coloured emoticons. When the participant was physically separated from the caregiver, he could send happy, sad, angry or scared emoticons, or request help. The caregiver, who had a similar device, responded by sending a pre-determined response such as acknowledging the participant’s “I am angry” message with a “You are angry” message. Due to the association between anxiety and challenging behaviour in this population, standardised instruments were used to measure changes in these behaviours. Repeated measure ANOVA and a non-parametric Friedman test were used to analyse the data, specifically comparing phase B and C. Overall, the results showed that behaviour did significantly change over the course of the intervention. The frequency of the various iPhone messages sent by the participant was recorded daily. ANOVA contracts results demonstrated significantly fewer anxious and angry messages sent during the C phases compared with the B phases. The professional caregivers recorded the frequency and intensity of anxiety and challenging behaviours. The ANOVA contrast results showed a significantly lower frequency and intensity of these behaviours in the C phases compared with the B phases. A questionnaire was developed to evaluate the social validity of the intervention. The independent samples t-test demonstrated a significant difference between the mean scores rated by the caregivers at the beginning and the end of the invention. The participant and caregivers were positive about the intervention. Although the results cannot be generalised, it can be concluded that the inclusion of caregivers in technology-assisted therapy can serve as an invaluable aid to developing the person permanence concept. The findings also indicate that the anxiety and challenging behaviour levels shown by the adult with ID and visual impairment decreased due to technology-assisted therapy applied by caregivers, while responses to the social validity of the intervention were positive. / MSc (Research Psychology), North-West University, Potchefstroom Campus, 2015

Separation anxiety is highly prevalent among intellectually and visually impaired individuals, yet little research has been done into its treatment in this population. Due to delayed cognitive skills, these individuals struggle to develop the abstract concept of person permanence, which is necessary to diminish separation anxiety. The first aim of this study was to investigate whether using technology alone or including caregivers was the most beneficial approach to developing person permanence using technology-assisted therapy. The caregivers received training in advance in an attachment-based protocol about securing attachment relationships with the participant. It was hypothesised that the inclusion of attachment figures in technology-assisted therapy would enhance the acquisition of the person permanence concept. The second aim of this study was to determine whether technology-assisted therapy in tandem with the participation of caregivers consequently decreased separation anxiety and challenging behaviour in an adult with intellectual and visual impairment. It was hypothesised that the subject’s anxiety and challenging behaviour levels would significantly decrease due to the intervention. The final aim was to determine how the caregivers and the participant experienced this intervention. It was hypothesised that they would regard it as a positive experience. This single-subject design used a pre-experimental quantitative approach. It was based on the familiar ABAB design and comprised six phases. Phase A served as baseline, giving the participants time to become acquainted with the technology. Phase B consisted of automated responses to the participant’s messages. In phase C caregivers directed the active reply. The daily messages were discussed when the participant and caregiver reunited, incorporating the attachment-based protocol. Phase B and C were repeated. Phase D followed after the devices were handed in. The technology was a specially adapted touch iPhone with an application comprising coloured emoticons. When the participant was physically separated from the caregiver, he could send happy, sad, angry or scared emoticons, or request help. The caregiver, who had a similar device, responded by sending a pre-determined response such as acknowledging the participant’s “I am angry” message with a “You are angry” message. Due to the association between anxiety and challenging behaviour in this population, standardised instruments were used to measure changes in these behaviours. Repeated measure ANOVA and a non-parametric Friedman test were used to analyse the data, specifically comparing phase B and C. Overall, the results showed that behaviour did significantly change over the course of the intervention. The frequency of the various iPhone messages sent by the participant was recorded daily. ANOVA contracts results demonstrated significantly fewer anxious and angry messages sent during the C phases compared with the B phases. The professional caregivers recorded the frequency and intensity of anxiety and challenging behaviours. The ANOVA contrast results showed a significantly lower frequency and intensity of these behaviours in the C phases compared with the B phases. A questionnaire was developed to evaluate the social validity of the intervention. The independent samples t-test demonstrated a significant difference between the mean scores rated by the caregivers at the beginning and the end of the invention. The participant and caregivers were positive about the intervention. Although the results cannot be generalised, it can be concluded that the inclusion of caregivers in technology-assisted therapy can serve as an invaluable aid to developing the person permanence concept. The findings also indicate that the anxiety and challenging behaviour levels shown by the adult with ID and visual impairment decreased due to technology-assisted therapy applied by caregivers, while responses to the social validity of the intervention were positive. / MSc (Research Psychology), North-West University, Potchefstroom Campus, 2015

The overall aim was to improve knowledge of the consequences of cognitive dysfunction in everyday life and of instruments to make these assessments. The thesis contains four studies each of different design using different populations. In study I, the relationship between cognitive function, ability to perform activities of daily living and perceived health-related quality of life were investigated in a population of 85-year-old individuals in the community of Linköping (n = 373). The study was part of the Elderly in Linköping Screening Assessment 85 (ELSA 85). Even mild cognitive dysfunction correlated with impaired ability to perform activities of daily living and lower health-related quality of life. In study II, the diagnostic accuracy and clinical utility of Cognistat, a cognitive screening instrument, were evaluated for identifying individuals with cognitive impairment in a primary care population. Cognistat has relatively good diagnostic accuracy with a sensitivity of 0.85, a specificity of 0.79 and a Clinical Utility Index (CUI) of 0.72. The corresponding values were 0.59, 0.91 and 0.53 for the Mini Mental State Examination (MMSE), and 0.26, 0.88 and 0.20 for the Clock Drawing Test (CDT). In study III, the aim was to develop an instrument measuring self-perceived or caregiver reported ability to perform everyday life activities in persons with suspected cognitive impairment or dementia and to perform psychometric testing of this instrument, named the Cognitive Impairment in Daily Life (CID). The CID was found to have good content validity. In study IV, experiences of cognitive impairment, its consequences in everyday life and the need for support in persons with mild cognitive impairment (MCI) or mild dementia and their relatives were explored. Interviews were performed with five people with MCI, eight people with mild dementia and their relatives (n = 13). The main finding was that persons with MCI and dementia experienced cognitive changes that could be burdensome and result in changed activity patterns. In conclusion, the findings support earlier research and show that cognitive dysfunction even at mild stages has an impact on everyday life and reduces perceived quality of life. To improve interventions for persons with cognitive impairment, it is important to assess not only cognitive function but also its consequences in everyday life activities.