The essential characteristic of the future is uncertainty. A basic feature of the economy, and life in general, is that decisions are made under conditions of uncertainty-the future is unknowable. Having reliable guidelines or indicators that provide discipline and signposts to the future is required for the process of successful investing. Conditions are constantly changing, and there are no rewards for replaying the same old game over and over. To answer for this demand, continued from the previous studies (Choi, 1996; Choi et al., 1997a; Choi et al., 1997b; Choi et al., 1999), this study developed the restaurant industry business cycle models and examined financial practices of the high and low performing firms over the industry cycles. The U.S. restaurant industry demonstrated three cycles (peak to peak or trough to trough) for the period of 1970 through 1998. The restaurant industry peaked in 1973, 1979, and 1989. The industry troughed in 1970, 1974, 1980, and 1991. The mean duration of the restaurant industry cycles is 8 years (SD: 2) calculated by peak to peak and 6.5 years (SD: 2.08) calculated by trough to trough. Expansion takes an average of 6 years in the restaurant industry but declines sharply after it reaches the peak taking average 1.33 years. The restaurant industry experienced high growth (boom) every five years on average. The troughs of the growth cycles, contrasted to the peaks of the growth cycles, coincided with those of the restaurant industry business cycles in each case except one (1985). During that year a low growth phase interrupted industry business expansion but did not terminate it. Restaurant industry growth cycles, then, tend to be relatively symmetrical: since 1970 the average duration was about 2.25 years for both expansion (L-H) and contraction (H-L). In contrast, the restaurant industry business cycles in the same period show a strong asymmetry: the expansions lasted on the average 6 years; the contractions, 1.33 years. The expansions have varied in duration much more than the high growth phases have (the respective standard deviations are 2.58 and 0.95 years). This study supports the view that the cyclical fluctuations of the growth of the restaurant industry can be projected by measuring and analyzing series of economic indicators and each economic indicator has specific characteristics in terms of time lags, and thus can be classified into leading, coincident, and lagging indicators. This study formed a set of composite indices with twelve indicators classified in the leading category, six as coincident, and twenty as lagging. The high performing firms' financial practices regarding investment decisions measured by capital spending, and price earning ratio, and part of financing and dividend decisions measured by market value of common share outstanding are independent of the cyclical fluctuations of the industry cycles. But, their practices regarding dividend decisions measured by the earning per share, investment decision measured by cash flow per share, and financing decisions measured by asset value per share and long term debt level are dependent on the events (Expansion/Contractions) in the Restaurant Industry Cycles. Conclusively, high performers exercise their capital investment (reflected by capital spending) and equity management (reflected by common share outstanding and P/E ratio) independently while being less influenced by the industry swings. They exercise, however, their working capital management (reflected by cash flow per share), earning management (reflected by EPS), asset management, and long term debt management quite dependently while being more influenced by the industry swings. The financial practices exercised by the low performing firms are independent from the events in the industry cycle. Although some financial practices are related to the events in the industry cycle, the directions are opposite to the events in the industry cycle. Specifically, for all of the selected financial strategies except common share outstanding and long-term debt, the low performers practice them independently from the cyclical fluctuations of the industry cycles. Even for common share outstanding and long-term debt strategies, they practiced their strategies in opposite directions to the events (Expansion/Contractions) in the Restaurant Industry Cycles. It is expected that the above results can be used for improving investment performance through understanding the cyclical behavior of the economy and the restaurant industry. With that model, investors should be able to take part in the upswings while avoiding the cyclical downturns, and to structure a portfolio that keeps risk to a minimum. This should then presumably result in competitive investment decisions of firms, thereby improving the effectiveness of resource allocation. / Ph. D.

Teacher education programs have long grappled with the disconnects between campus and classroom in the preparation of teacher candidates. Both are important sites of learning for teacher candidates, and yet the design of conventional teacher education programs leaves little room for teacher candidates to explore theory and practice simultaneously in ways that recognize the multifaceted nature of learning how to teach. In addition, teacher educators are faced with the complex demands of being responsive to the needs of teacher candidates while at the same time challenging assumptions and beliefs in order to ensure new teachers are responsive to the diverse needs of their students. Teacher educators, too, need to make their own dilemmas and tensions of practice observable both to teacher candidates and to one another as they consider and interrogate their beliefs and assumptions about teaching. This study explores Link2Practice, a partnership between the University of Victoria and SD 62 (Sooke) which was organized to provide a campus and classroom experience for Elementary Post-Degree Program students from the beginning of their program. A group of participants involved as teacher educators in Link2Practice engaged in a self-study with the purpose of examining how sharing leadership in teacher education provided the participants the opportunity to engage in conversations about the partnership, and how our professional learning, understandings of teacher education, and understandings of ourselves as teacher educators were informed through the research. / Graduate

Philosophiae Doctor - PhD / Parenting practices play a significant role in the raising healthy functioning children. Traditionally, Black African families have had their own way of parenting their children, like all other cultural groups. However, few guidelines have been developed and recorded regarding their parenting practices. Most available parenting practices guidelines have been developed from a Western perspective. The purpose of this study was to explore the indigenous parenting practices of Black African families, with the aim of developing indigenous parenting practices guidelines for parents and caregivers, including grandparents in the Makhuduthamaga Municipality of the Sekhukhune district. The theoretical framework underpinning this study is an Afrocentricity, which focuses on reclaiming African practices. A qualitative research method was used, guided by a case study research design. The researcher used purposive sampling to select a sample of 52 participants from six villages in the Makhuduthamaga Municipality of the Sekhukhune Districts, in Limpopo Province. The participants recruited were grandparents, traditional leaders and three age categories of parents. The number of participants were as follows: 18 parents, 29 grandparents, and 5 traditional leaders. Participation in the study was voluntary, while confidentiality and anonymity was maintained. Participants were thoroughly informed about the study, and offered their by signing the relevant consent forms.

This project investigates how the everyday practices and supporting narratives surrounding personal security for development researchers in Nairobi, Kenya, are communicated, transmitted and replicated among the community of practice. Everyday practices affect development, but are understudied. A Communication for Development approach show us how these practices are communicated, transmitted and replicated.It does so through a case study of one organisation, the Busara Center for Behavioral Economics. 8 interviews have been conducted with Busara staff.The most prominent personal security practices concern transportation and observed security measures at malls and compounds. At work, the main security practices are seeking expertise, community engagement, election-related office closures and improvisation in the field. The most important narratives informing these practices are Kenyanness and local rootedness, the need to balance effectiveness against duty of care, and a lack of information. There is strong variation in all this, evident between Kenyans and expatriates, by gender, and over time.The means of transmission for these narratives and practices have evolved over time in Busara. They presently include formal methods such as update emails and a WhatsApp group, while briefings are rarer. Unofficial means of transmission include conversations with peers, personal experiences, and broadcast and written media.Security practices and narratives are more varied, and the means of transmission more informal, than is commonly understood. Dominant narratives of insecurity and technical best practice are certainly important – but organisations are aware of these, and may deliberately deploy other counter-narratives. Above all, the means of transmission matter, and practices, narratives and means of transmission are intertwined and mutually supporting.

The growing population of Latino students in the United States requires a focus on culturally relevant practices for teaching Latino students. The purpose of this study was to investigate music educators’ Latino cultural knowledge and their use of that knowledge for teaching Latino students. Ladson-Billings’ (1995b) theory of culturally relevant pedagogy frames this study. Three questions guided this study. First, what cultural knowledge do music educators hold about Latino students and the communities in which they teach? Second, how do music educators use cultural knowledge to inform their pedagogical practice with Latino students? Finally, what specific culturally relevant pedagogical practices are enacted by music educators for teaching Latino students? To address the research questions, I interviewed three music teachers and observed their teaching practices. Interviews with a sample of the teachers’ Latino students also informed the study. I utilized elements of portraiture to present the data through vignettes followed by discussions and personal reflections. An analysis of the data through the lens of culturally relevant pedagogy revealed numerous methods that music educators frequently used when teaching Latino students. After I categorized those methods and aligned them with current research on core instructional practices, a list emerged of 12 culturally relevant core instructional practices that facilitate learning for Latino students. Based on the findings of this study, I recommend that teachers take an asset-based approach when working with Latino students and families, understand and make distinctions between Latino cultures, find ways to communicate effectively with Latino students and families, implement Latino language and culture into class curriculum, and enact characteristics of caring for Latino students. In addition, teacher education programs may benefit from developing courses in culturally relevant pedagogy specifically for working with Latino students.

Ethical codes and principles, and laws govern the behavior of health-care professionals. Yet, the impact that ethical codes and laws have on the actual moral behaviors of health-care professionals is relatively unknown. A survey on the ethical beliefs and practices of health-care professionals was sent to the United States membership of the Association for Applied Psychophysiology and Biofeedback. AAPB's heterogeneous membership offers a unique opportunity to compare the ethical beliefs and behaviors of professionals across various health-care professions, educational levels, licensure and certification statuses, age, years in practice, and gender. The survey examined the respondents' ethical beliefs and practices in the domains of confidentiality, dual relationships, and professional practice. Five hundred thirty-six surveys were returned completed. The results of the survey indicate that all respondents have substantially the same reported ethical beliefs and practices across the three domains. There were no statistically significant differences between the reported ethical beliefs or practices when compared across disciplines, educational levels, licensure or certification statuses, age, or years in practice. Statistically significant gender differences were found.

Paper waste discarded by families of five persons in Logan City was studied for two seven-day periods. The sample consisted of 42 families comprised of a father who was employed full-time, a mother, and three children living at home. A questionnaire was administered to each family for the purpose of describing the sample, and to determine some of their family conditions and practices. Sample families were given plastic bags for storing of waste paper, which was collected at the end of each seven-day period. The weight of all paper discards was tabulated for each family. Seven of these families were put in a category of high paper output and seven families were put in a category of low paper output. Averages were tabulated for the total sample, high paper output category, and low paper output category. The highest and lowest total paper weights recorded for the 14 days were 62 pounds 5 ounces and 7 pounds 15 ounces respectively. The average weight for all families was 18 pounds 12 ounces. The average high paper output category was 37 pounds 11 ounces. The average low paper output category was 9 pounds 3 ounces. Through comparing these weights with information found on the questionnaires, the following may be said to have an effect on the amount of paper families discard: method of disposing of newspapers, income, and perhaps occupation of the father.

Bereavement beliefs and practices in the modern, American culture have been well documented. However, virtually no research has been conducted on traditional and contemporary death, dying, grief, and bereavement beliefs and practices among native tribes, such as the Lakota. The present study was conducted with the Lakota, and fulfilled two goals. iii First, the contemporary and traditional death, dying, grief, and bereavement beliefs and practices of the Lakota were documented and summarized. Such documentation may help bereaved Lakota tribal members who are experiencing problems with death and bereavement, and may help preserve traditional knowledge, beliefs, and practices. Second, the consensus of opinion among Lakota tribal elders about death, dying , grief, and bereavement practices and beliefs was qualitatively evaluated and compared with that of mental health and substance abuse workers who serve the Lakota. Two main theoretical conclusions to this study were reported. First, the Lakota elders' preferred interventions for bereavement for their people included family, social, community, tribal , and ceremonial activities. These findings likely resulted from the functional aspects of these types of culturally appropriate practices not only to help the bereaved Lakota individual, but also to help "fill the hole in the circle" left by the death of a tribal member. A cultural mechanism for continued tribal unity and wholeness is provided by these tribal bereavement practices. Second, the ancient historical Lakota ceremonies used to ameliorate grief within the tribe appear to have been fragmented over time, but these rituals still exist and their derivatives are used in various contemporary forms. Two main clinical findings were reported. First, a careful clinical assessment of the bereaved Lakota client's level of acculturation is required as a prerequisite to treatment planning. Second, intervention with grieving Lakota clients should include informed attention to both "western" bereavement treatment methods and traditional Lakota family, community, and social bereavement practices. The relative value of various Lakota family, social, community, and tribal bereavement practices and a rank ordering of various Lakota ceremonies were provided. These ceremonies and Lakota tribal practices were compared to modern "western" bereavement treatment methods.

Play is necessary for the social, emotional, intellectual, and physical development of all children. Although playgrounds are designed to support the play of children, children with disabilities are often unable to fully participate in play on playgrounds. As a result, children with disabilities experience fewer opportunities to participate in play, and hence have fewer developmental opportunities. Because of the lack of awareness of evidence-based practices supporting the play of children with disabilities, playground designers continue to perpetuate this disparity. Therefore, the purpose of this study was to determine the evidence-based practices for inclusive playground design that support peer interaction between children of all abilities, and to demonstrate how they can be implemented into a playground design. Through a systematic literature review and design implementation, 10 evidence-based practices of inclusive playground design were determined and then implemented into a playground design located on the Utah State University campus. The design for this inclusive playground was evaluated, analyzing the ease and difficulty of including each of the 10 practices of inclusive playground design. The results of this study provide designers with a concise list of 10 practices that, if implemented, should create an inclusive playground setting. These practices also have research-based evidence to support their effectiveness in facilitating peer interactions between children of all abilities. As our society strives to make various environments and built structures more inclusive, the results of this study provide a helpful resource to guide designers, administrators, businesses, city councils, and many more organizations in their work to create inclusive playgrounds.

Parenting practices greatly influence child behavior. It is important to study the relationship between parenting practices and child behavior in specific religious contexts. Members of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints (LDS) have not been extensively studied in the psychological literature despite there being a relatively large number of LDS individuals in the U.S. The purpose of this study was to determine the effect of religiosity on parenting practices and child behavior outcomes in an LDS sample. The influence of perfectionism on religiosity and parenting practices was also studied. The relationship between parents’ interpretation of the bible and their view on God’s involvement in their parenting was also examined. The Qualtrics Online Sample Tool was used to recruit participants for this study. The 210 participants completed an online survey. The results indicated that a more literal interpretation of the bible was associated with a perception of increased involvement from God in one’s role as a parent and increased religiosity. The perception of increased involvement from God in one’s role as a parent was also associated with increased religiosity. Higher levels of parental religious beliefs and spiritual experiences had a positive impact on parenting practices and child behavior. However, religious behavior had a negative impact on parenting practices and child behavior. High levels of perfectionism were associated with more effective parenting practices in individuals high in religious belief and spiritual experiences while high levels of perfectionism led to less effective parenting practices in individuals high in religious behavior. Given the overall high levels of ineffective parenting practices and child disruptive behavior that were reported in the sample, encouraging LDS parents to attend parenting classes may be an appropriate recommendation.