The social environment has been recognised as one of the key aspects in determining the quality of life throughout the human lifespan. Human behaviour, thoughts, feelings and attitudes are socially constructed and can only be understood when viewed from the perspective of social interaction. Older individuals, who live in residential facilities experience a diminished quality of life due to factors such as loss of independence, reduced social networks, functional dependence, and contextual changes. Depression, loneliness and social isolation are an integral part of these individuals’ lives. People develop specific styles of relating, also referred to as interpersonal styles. The systems theory is used to explain the circular processes of the interaction between people. In particular the Self-Interactional Group Theory (SIGT) is proposed as theoretical framework to explore the relational qualities of older people in a residential care facility. SIGT views the interaction between people on three levels, namely the intra-personal level, the interpersonal level and the group level, which operate interdependently in the interaction between people. The interpersonal level of analysis consists of the definition of the relationship, relational qualities, motivation to engage with people to address needs and needs satisfaction as well as the circular processes of which the interaction consists of. The interactions between people always take place in an interpersonal context, embedded in broader environments. A qualitative and exploratory research design was selected to explore the relational qualities in interactions between older individuals living in a residential care facility. This study is based on data collected during a primary research study at a residential care facility for older individuals in 2013. The purpose of study was to explore the quality of life of older individuals residing in a residential care facility in Gauteng, South Africa. The data-gathering process in the primary research study involved the Mmogo-Method, a visual projective data-gathering method, the World Café method and person-centred interviews to gain insight into the participants’ life experiences at the residential care facility. For the purpose of this research, only the person-centred interviews were used for the secondary analysis of the data. Twelve purposely-selected individuals (aged 80 to 95; 3 men and 9 women) from the residential care facility participated voluntarily in the person-centered interviews, which were audio recorded. The collected data were transcribed verbatim and subjected to two different methods of analyses. First, data were analysed thematically by adopting an inductive approach. The themes identified in this first phase were next subjected to a deductive content analysis. The themes were categorised according to the relational variables in accordance with the Interactional Pattern Analysis (IPA), thereby contributing to the trustworthiness of the findings. The findings revealed that the interactions between older individuals take place in a broader environment that advocate the active participation of people. Active participation takes place both in and outside the facility and older people reported that this contributed to their quality of life. The relational qualities that could be described as enhancing interpersonal connectivity and satisfying older people’s needs for confirmation were identified as empathy, unconditional acceptance of others, confirmation and interpersonal flexibility. This research, however, highlighted relational qualities that restrained quality of life of older people, namely confusing self-presentation, ineffective expression on needs and withdrawal due to physical immobility. Needs were expressed in a very unspecific, blaming or manipulative manner, and consequently needs were not satisfied, but provoked, instead, feelings of frustration, pain and guilt. This research highlighted the predicament that older people find themselves in. Their decreased physical abilities and limited emotional repertoire to move towards others and the environment also limit their needs satisfaction. The presenting problem of social isolation can be explained by the combination of limited physical mobility and relational qualities that restrain quality of life for older people. This research study thus holds important implications for relationship-focused approaches in residential facilities for older individuals in order to empower and enable them to enhance their quality of life. Specific recommendations include interventions to assist older people to express their needs more effectively and to use opportunities in interaction to confirm them as autonomous functioning older people. / MA (Psychology), North-West University, Potchefstroom Campus, 2014

The success or failure of any criminal investigation often depends on the recognition of physical evidence left at a crime scene and the proper analysis of that evidence. Crime scenes that involve bloodshed often contain a wealth of information in the form of blood patterns, the location, and its cause. Any criminal investigation has specific tasks, from the time when the crime is reported to the reconstruction of crime scenes. A lot of work needs to be done. Once the investigation starts at the crime scene, BPA needs to be done at the crime scene and the investigating officer must identify this evidential tool. The investigating officer should not necessarily have specialised training in blood pattern analysis, but rather know when to use these experts at their bloody crime scenes. With the interviews and docket analysis done, the researcher found that this was a problem as the investigating officers, either had no knowledge on the subject of BPA or very little knowledge on this research. The purpose of this study was to determine the use of BPA to CSR, and for the investigating officer to realise that it is not just a bloody crime scene, but also contains a wealth of evidence. The researcher had two research questions. Once the investigating officer follows the objectives of criminal investigation, they should be able to have a strong case against the perpetrators. How could BPA be used in the reconstructing of a crime scene? The researcher wanted to bring it to the investigating officers’ attention that it is not just a bloody crime scene, but rather that it contains a wealth of evidence, which can give them a perspective of the movement of both the victim and perpetrator during the commencement of the crime. Regardless of the lack of knowledge of BPA, it is proposed that investigating officers are to be informed, either through station lectures or by yearly refresher workshops and courses of the evidential tool of BPA. When the bloody crime scene is reconstructed with the use of BPA, an insight of what transpired at the crime scene will help them to finalise their cases. For recommendations, it is proposed that investigating officers are to be trained in more in depth courses in criminal investigation as well as crime scene reconstruction and evidence collection using FSL. / Criminology and Security Science / M.Tech. (Forensic Investigation)

La compréhension des processus écologiques qui sous-tendent l’assemblage des communautés végétales et la coexistence des espèces est un objectif central en écologie. Ces processus sont potentiellement nombreux et de natures contrastées. Ainsi, la composition d’une communauté de plantes dépend de processus déterministes liés aux conditions environnementales abiotiques (climat, conditions physiques et chimiques du sol, lumière) et d’interactions biotiques complexes, positives (facilitation, symbioses) comme négatives (compétition, prédation, pathogènes). En outre, les communautés sont influencées par des processus stochastiques (capacité de dispersion limitée, dérive écologique). Si les mécanismes à l’origine de ces processus sont très différents, ils ont néanmoins en commun la génération de motifs (patterns) spatiaux de distribution d’espèces dans les communautés. L’analyse de la structure spatiale des communautés permet ainsi une étude indirecte des processus régissant les communautés. La nature complexe de ces patterns spatiaux a mené au développement de nombreuses méthodes statistiques de détection et de description de patterns. Les méthodes basées sur des vecteurs propres spatiaux sont parmi les plus puissantes et précises pour détecter des patterns complexes et multi-échelles. Ces vecteurs propres, utilisés comme prédicteurs spatiaux, peuvent être combinés à un ensemble de variables environnementales dans un cadre de partition de variation. Celui-ci permet, en théorie, de démêler les effets uniques et l’effet conjoint des variables environnementales et spatiales sur la variation de composition d’une communauté. Il mène ainsi à une quantification de l’action des processus déterministes et des processus stochastiques sur l’assemblage de la communauté. Néanmoins, je montre dans cette thèse qu’un certain flou méthodologique concernant deux étapes déterminantes des analyses basées sur les vecteurs propres spatiaux a mené une proportion élevée d’études à utiliser ces méthodes de manière sous-optimale, voire fortement biaisée. Ceci compromet la fiabilité des patterns spatiaux détectés et des processus écologiques inférés. Une autre limitation de ce cadre d’analyse concerne la fraction de la partition de variation décrivant l’effet environnemental spatialement structurés qu’aucune méthode ne permet de tester.Cette thèse présente des solutions non biaisées, puissantes et précises à ces différentes limitations méthodologiques et permet d’élargir le cadre de l’inférence de processus écologique à partir de patterns spatiaux de communautés. Les différentes étapes d’amélioration de ces méthodes ont également été illustrées dans la thèse au travers de trois cas d’études fournis par deux communautés d’arbres tropicale et tempérée et une communauté de champignons symbiotiques des arbres. / Doctorat en Sciences / info:eu-repo/semantics/nonPublished

Mangroves are intertidal ecosystems found along the tropical and subtropical coastlines.<p>Though globally recognised as ecosystems of ecological, biological and economical<p>remarkable importance, these ecotone formations are characterised by a continuously<p>increasing anthropization. However, very little studies have been focused on the impact of<p>various anthropogenic activities on the mangrove vegetation structure.<p>We have firstly (a) assessed the commercial and subsistence utilization of mangrove<p>wood products in the Littoral region (Cameroon estuary). Then, we have confronted the<p>subsistence usages of mangrove wood products in the Southern region (close to the mouth of<p>the Nyong River and Mpalla village (Kribi)) in comparison with the Littoral region. By doing,<p>we have compared the local residents‟ perceptions on environmental changes that occurred<p>within the two regional mangrove forests. Also, we have (c) studied the structural dynamic of<p>mangrove vegetation neighbouring the Douala city (Cameroon). Always in the vicinity of this<p>town, we have (d) reconstructed the original structure of largely disturbed mangrove forests.<p>Moreover, we have (e) map the mangrove structure in a non peri-urban setting located within<p>the Cameroon estuary. Here, we have finally (f) analysed the spatial distribution of a black<p>mangrove namely Avicennia germinans (L.) Stearn.<p>Our results underlined an excessive utilization of mangrove wood products in the<p>Cameroon estuary. We have showed that the frequency of mangrove harvesting was relatively<p>fewer in Kribi (Mpalla) and the mouth of the Nyong River. The local people inhabiting these<p>two localities perceived mangroves as less degraded areas. In contrast, those established<p>within the Cameroon estuary stated that mangroves were largely disturbed. When combining<p>the local people statements with our field observations, we recorded that it a complex mix of<p>causes (e.i. clear-felled corridors, agriculture, sand and gravel extraction, over-harvesting and<p>anarchic urbanization) that have led to the largely degradation (vegetation and sediment) of<p>the peri-urban mangroves in Cameroon. A diachronic analysis (1974, 2003, 2009) of their<p>coverage revealed that over the 35-year period, mangrove had decreases in cover of 53.16%<p>around Douala. We have also showed that in the peri-urban settings, wood harvesting was<p>commonly applied on the structurally more complex (highly dense stands neighbouring the<p>habitations) mangrove forests (Mboussa Essengue) and, in a lesser extent, on the structurally<p>more developed mangrove stands (fewer dense stands faraway from Douala). On the other<p>hand, the mapping analysis of the non peri-urban mangroves (distant from Douala) has<p>revealed that the structure of these intertidal forests was relatively less impacted. In the<p>Cameroon estuary, we also showed that A. germinans trees were randomly distributed on<p>almost one-half of the sampling plots and clumped at some scales on the remaining plots.<p>Accordingly, this species might play a significant role in the recovery process of artificial<p>gaps found in the non peri-urban areas.<p>The multi-disciplinary approach employed in this study has allowed a better<p>understanding of the direct and indirect impacts of anthropogenic activities on the mangrove<p>vegetation structure in Cameroon. These results constitute a fundamental data base quite<p>useful for the multi-temporal monitoring of these littoral ecosystems perpetually disturbed.<p>The application of similar approach in other mangroves facing high anthropogenic pressures<p>appears important. / Doctorat en Sciences / info:eu-repo/semantics/nonPublished

En se développant, les plantes produisent des organes le long des tiges suivant des organisations stéréotypées, appelées phyllotaxies. Ces structures se forment dans les méristèmes, qui abritent une niche de cellules souches : les organes y sont produits successivement et leur positionnement dépendrait d'interactions dynamiques avec les organes pré-existants. Ces interactions seraient notamment dues à des champs inhibiteurs générés par le transport polaire de l'hormone végétale auxine. Afin de rechercher si d'autres facteurs que l'auxine contrôlent la phyllotaxie chez Arabidopsis thaliana, nous nous sommes intéressés au rôle possible des cytokinines, une autre hormone végétale. Nous avons développé des nouvelles méthodes statistiques pour analyser la structure de la phyllotaxie. Cette approche nous a permis d'identifier des anomalies de phyllotaxie chez des plantes mutantes pour le gène AHP6 (ARABIDOPSIS HISTIDINE PHOSPHOTRANSFER protein 6), un inhibiteur de la signalisation des cytokinines. Notre analyse suggérait des possibles perturbations du plastochrone, la période de temps séparant l'initiation de deux organes, ce que nous avons alors confirmé par imagerie confocale en temps réel. Nos données montrent que AHP6 contrôle la régularité du plastochrone, et suggèrent que les perturbations de phyllotaxies sont dues à l'initiation simultanée de deux à trois organes dans le méristème. De plus, AHP6 est exprimé dans les organes et sa protéine établit des champs qui inhibent la signalisation des cytokinines au delà des organes. Pour mieux comprendre les rôles possibles de ces champs, nous avons généré un modèle numérique théorique de la phyllotaxie. Notre étude suggère que le plastochrone pourrait être déstabilisé par du bruit affectant le seuil d'activation nécessaire aux cellules méristématiques pour se différencier en organe. Des champs inhibiteurs pourraient filtrer les effets de ce bruit en influant sur la cinétique d'émergence des organes. Les propriétés observées des champs de AHP6 sont en accord avec ce modèle et nos données expérimentales suggèrent en effet que AHP6 et les cytokinines peuvent moduler la signalisation auxine lors de l'émergence des organes. Nous proposons comme modèle que le transport et la signalisation de l'auxine positionnent de manière robuste les organes mais génèrent un plastochrone irrégulier en présence de bruit. Des champs inhibiteurs de cytokinines stabiliseraient le plastochrone, assurant un couplage plus robuste entre le temps et l'espace lors de l'établissement de la phyllotaxie. / During development, plant aerial organs are produced along the stems following stereotyped patterns. This so-called phyllotaxis is initiated at the shoot meristem, which contains the stem cell niche: organs are produced iteratively and their precise position is thought to depend on dynamic interactions with preexisting organs. These interactions would notably result from inhibitory fields generated by the polar transport of the plant hormone auxin. To investigate whether other factors than auxin regulate phyllotaxis, we studied the potential role of cytokinin signaling. We developed a new pipeline of methods based on statistics to analyze phyllotactic patterns. This approach allowed us to identify phyllotactic perturbations in mutants of the AHP6 (ARABIDOPSIS HISTIDINE PHOSPHOTRANSFER protein 6), an inhibitor of cytokinin signaling that suggested perturbations in the plastochron, the time between two organ initiations. This was further confirmed using confocal live-imaging. We demonstrated that AHP6 controls the regularity of the plastochron, and our results suggest that the defective phyllotaxis in ahp6 is caused by concomitant initiations of two or three organs in the meristem. Interestingly, AHP6 is expressed in organs and the protein can move beyond these domains, generating cytokinin signaling inhibitory fields. To explore further the putative role of these secondary fields, we generated a mathematical model of phyllotaxis. This suggested that plastochron instabilities could be caused by noise affecting the threshold at which meristematic cells are recruited into organs. Inhibitory fields generated by AHP6 could filter out the effect of noise by modifying the kinetics of early organ emergence. Consistently, the properties of AHP6 fields fit the model predictions and our experimental data show that AHP6 and cytokinin modulate auxin signaling during organ emergence. We thus propose a model in which auxin transport and signaling robustly control organ positioning but generates plastochron instablities in noisy backgrounds. In this scenario cytokinin inhibitory fields would stabilize the rhythmicity of organ initiation, ensuring a robust coupling of space and time during pattern formation.

The problem that was identified is that physical surveillance is not generally used by general detectives in the South African Police Service as a technique during their investigations. According to the researcher’s experience, this can be due to lack of understanding or experience or may stem from ignorance. A lack of training on the use of physical surveillance as a method to obtain information for the investigation process was also identified as a problem. This study therefore investigated the role and use of physical surveillance within the forensic investigation process. The focus of the research was on basic static (stationary), foot and vehicle surveillance as these types of surveillance are usually conducted in conjunction with each other. An empirical research design was used to conduct the research. A qualitative research approach enabled the researcher to obtain first-hand information from interviews with general detectives. Information was also obtained from a thorough literature study and from the researcher’s own experience on the topic. To conduct effective investigation, it is important for investigators to be familiar with the concept of physical surveillance, its elements, its influence and its values. A physical surveillance operation is a forensic tool used to gather evidence, to recover stolen property, and to identify and arrest the perpetrator. The use of physical surveillance during investigations serves the purpose of gathering evidence and information that can be used as intelligence. Successful forensic investigation requires skill and places extraordinary demands on detectives to utilise all available methods and techniques. The recognition of the use of physical surveillance as a method of evidence gathering is of outmost importance. The research has revealed that general detectives do not acknowledge the importance of physical surveillance as a method to obtain information for the investigation process. It is of vital importance that all detectives be properly trained with the necessary knowledge and skills to make use of this valuable investigative tool. / Police Practice / M. Tech. (Forensic Investigation)

No description available.

L’expression faciale est un vecteur de communication important dans l’expérience de douleur. Cependant, les corrélats neuronaux associés à cette manifestation de la douleur demeurent peu investigués. Le but de ce mémoire était de développer un modèle neurobiologique permettant de prédire l’expression faciale évoquée par des stimuli douloureux afin d’approfondir nos connaissances sur les mécanismes cérébraux de la douleur et de la communication non verbale. La signature cérébrale de l’expression faciale de la douleur a été élaborée sur un jeu de données d’IRMf acquis chez des adultes en santé en utilisant des algorithmes d’apprentissage machine pour prédire des scores d’expression faciale évoquée par des stimulations douloureuses phasiques (c.-à-d. de courtes stimulations) à l’échelle de la population. Les résultats suggèrent qu’il est possible de prédire ces réponses faciales à partir d’un patron d’activation multivoxels. Cette signature cérébrale se distingue, du moins partiellement, de signatures cérébrales prédictives de l’intensité et du caractère déplaisant de la douleur rapportée et de la valeur future de la douleur. Bien que d’autres études soient nécessaires pour examiner la spécificité et la généralisabilité de la signature cérébrale de l’expression faciale de la douleur, ce mémoire souligne l’existence d’une représentation cérébrale spatialement distribuée prédictive des réponses faciales en lien avec la douleur, et suggère l’importance de cette mesure comportementale dans l’expérience de la douleur comme étant complémentaire aux mesures autorapportées de l’intensité perçue. / Facial expression is an important communication vector in the experience of pain. However, the neural correlates associated with this manifestation of pain remain relatively unexplored. The goal of this thesis was to develop a neurobiological model to predict facial expression evoked by painful stimuli in order to expand our knowledge of the brain mechanisms of pain and non-verbal communication. The brain signature of facial expressions of pain was developed on a dataset including healthy adults using machine learning algorithms to predict facial expression scores evoked by phasic painful stimuli (i.e., short stimulation) at the population level. The results suggest that it is possible to predict the facial expression of pain from a multivoxel activation pattern. This brain signature of facial pain expression is at least partially distinct from other brain signatures predictive of reported pain intensity and unpleasantness, and future pain value. Although further studies are needed to examine the specificity and generalizability of the brain signature of facial expression of pain, this master thesis highlights the existence of a spatially distributed brain representation predictive of pain-related facial responses, and suggests the importance of this behavioural measure in the experience of pain as complementary to self-reported measures of pain intensity.

No description available.

Die Arbeit ist in drei Teile untergliedert: Die Struktur "Hypodermales Wasserspeichergewebe" wird unter anatomischen, ökomorphologischen und evolutionsbiologischen Gesichtspunkten betrachtet. Die Anwesenheit eines farblosen Hypoderms erschwert bei der Musteranalyse variegater Periklinalchimären die Bestimmung der Konstitution der L2. Variegate Periklinalchimären mit Hypodermbildung wurden auf die Möglichkeiten der Bestimmung der L2 hin untersucht. Es werden verschiedene Entstehungsformen von maskierenden Mustern und die noch nicht beschriebenen Ringzellen vorgestellt, die den Idiotyp der L2-bürtigen Schicht anzeigen können. Ringzellen sind die Zellen, die im Bereich der Schließzellen an den substomatären Interzellularraum grenzen. Sie bilden dabei einen Ring um die Schließzellen, der im Flächenschnitt zu erkennen ist. Hypodermale Wasserspeichergewebe sind hauptsächlich bei tropischen Arten verbreitet. Die xeromorphe Struktur kommt sowohl bei den epiphytischen Bromelien als auch bei den hygromorphen Schattenpflanzen des tropischen Regenwaldes vor. Die beiden Selektionsfaktoren Trockenheit und Lichtintensität werden als mögliche Einflussfaktoren auf die Hypodermbildung diskutiert. Beispiele dafür, dass der Faktor Licht auch einen modifikativen Einfluss auf die Differenzierung der Hypodermzellen zu haben scheint, werden vorgestellt. Die Struktur "Hypodermales Wasserspeichergewebe" ist sowohl bei Monokotylen als auch Dikotylen gleichermaßen verbreitet. Es wird daher vermutet, dass es sich um eine analoge Struktur handelt, die mehrmals voneinander unabhängig zu verschiedenen Zeiten bei verschiedenen Arten entstanden ist. Innerhalb einer Gruppe verwandter Arten konnte sie mithilfe der Homologiekriterien als homolog eingestuft werden. / This paper contains three different issues: The structure "hypodermal water storage tissue" is considered from the anatomical, the ecomorphological and evolutionary aspect. Because hypodermal layers are non-green, it is difficult to make a pattern analysis of variegated periclinal chimeras and to determine the constitution of L2. Variegated periclinal chimeras with hypodermal layers were examined to the possibilities of determining L2. Different origins of masking patterns and the non-yet described ring cells are presented. Both structures are able to show the L2-genotype. Ring cells are those cells bordering the intercellular space near the stomata. In a cut parallel to the surface the ring built by ring cells is seen. The hypodermal water storage tissue is mainly distributed among tropical species. The xeromorphic structure occurs both to the epiphytic bromeliads and to the hygromorphic shadow plants of the tropical rainforest. The environmental factors humidity and solar radiation are discussed as possible influences on the development of hypodermal layers. Examples for the apparent modifying influence of solar radiation on the development of hypodermal cells are presented. The structure "hypodermal water storage tissue" occurs both to monocots and dicots. That indicates that it is an analogues structure and that it evolved several times independent of each other in different species. Among a group of nearly related species it could be classified by the aid of the criteria of homology as a homologues structure.