Over the last two decades the incidence of overweight and obesity among children and adolescents has reached epidemic proportions in both developed and developing nations. Reducing the incidence of childhood overweight and obesity is of particular importance in countries undergoing social and cultural transitions, such as Trinidad and Tobago, where chronic diseases, such as childhood obesity may have severe social and economic impacts on public health. Although there are a number of studies that have investigated the health and lifestyle behaviours of school aged children, very little information exists about health and lifestyle behaviours of school age children in Trinidad and Tobago. Also, little information exists on the development of questionnaires to address health related issues within this culture and age group. The purpose of this study was to describe the development and pre-test of a knowledge, attitude, belief and practice (KABP) questionnaire to assess healthy lifestyle outcomes of school aged children in Trinidad and Tobago. Three data sources were used for the design and pre-testing of the questionnaire: content analysis of the literature, interview of key stakeholders, and onsite observations. An in-depth review of the literature was conducted for insights about questionnaire development. Interviews (individual and focus groups) were conducted of key stakeholder groups (school staff, the national school feeding program and curriculum officers) and children to determine current policies and practices, beliefs, barriers, and attitudes towards promoting health lifestyles (nutrition and fitness) in Trinidad and Tobagos elementary schools. Site observations provided insight into the school food environment, class room practices, and food services offered at school. Observations were recorded using field notes and interviews were tape recorded and transcribed verbatim. Interview data from each participant was analyzed separately for dominant themes and recurring topics. The interviews were then compiled to establish the main issues which the questionnaire needed to address. The KABP questionnaire addressed general knowledge about healthy eating and activity, screen time, physical activity, snack and food choices, and self efficacy. The KABP questionnaire consisted of question items that were developed to fit the issues unique to Trinidad and Tobago, and items from previously validated questionnaires which were modified to fit the context of Trinidad and Tobago. The questionnaire was then pre-tested with a sample group of the target population. Pre-testing was done one-on one, in small groups and in the classroom setting. Based on pre-test results the questionnaire was then modified to form version 1.0 of the KABP questionnaire. Version 1.0 of the KABP questionnaire consisted of 30 questions divided into four categories. This culturally sensitive age appropriate questionnaire was the foundation of the KABP questionnaire which was used to collect baseline, midpoint and endpoint of the larger project.

Designing domestic violence shelters for women must be considered from a feminist perspective, inclusive of theories of embodiment, as the female victim's emotional state (mind) is a critical component in determining her overall state (i.e., level of distress). The primary objective of this study (Specific Aim 1) was to identify the mental and emotional state of female domestic violence victims upon entry into a shelter as a means of establishing specific user needs which should directly impact the design of the shelter. The primary hypothesis (Hypothesis 1) was that upon entry into a shelter environment, victims are experiencing high levels of distress compared to normative controls. The secondary objective of this study (Specific Aim 2) was to identify shelter users? perceptions of the current shelter environment in which they lived as a foundation for matching specific design criteria with the specific needs of the female domestic violence victim (i.e., stress reduction) in an attempt to understand the relationship between user needs and individual design characteristics of the shelter. The secondary exploratory hypothesis (Hypothesis 2) was that anxiety or stress is reduced over time; therefore, the architectural design of a shelter that promotes independence will result in less distress among domestic violence victims utilizing the shelter. Thirty-three domestic violence victims in Fort Worth, Texas participated in focus groups and interviews conducted over a four-month period of time in 2009. Qualitative analysis of this data yielded four emergent themes: (1) loss of independence and control: the second layer of fear; (2) the search for security; (3) reconnecting to self; and (4) expressions of humanity. Quantitative analysis was utilized to measure participant stress levels at three intervals during their thirty day shelter program: (1) within the first twenty-four hours of shelter entry; (2) seven to ten days after shelter entry; and (3) fourteen or more days after shelter entry. Findings of this researcher have been utilized to generate design objectives that can be extrapolated to apply to other locations of shelters and could impact the design of new facilities as well as the redesign of current shelters.

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The R&D Alliance was developed as the third strategic option to face the environment in a rapid change world. Based on the operating mechanism of the R&D Alliance, the beneficial results such as resource gathering, development risk and capital dropping will be achieved. However, when all members in the R&D Alliance mutually cooperate for the given benefits and targets, another question about keeping the own characteristics risen and need to further reconsider it. Therefore, the connective patterns between members play an important role in determining whether these operations will be successful, especially for the Chinese-major communities which have more obvious interference hiding in relational capital. The present study focuses on pattern of the R&D Alliance from the view of the relational capital. Adopting the individual case to study two R&D Alliances related with the juridical-person institutions is the main framework of this research and the results are analyzed from the three subcomponents in the relational capital that are trust, friendship and respect. Conclusions are drawn as follows: 1.Impacts of the trust relationship in the R&D alliance: members were constrained by the long-run contact, mutual cooperation experience and the formal contract (e.g. cooperation signatures or nondisclosure agreements) to reduce member suspicions and lead the positive Impact to the R&D alliance. 2.Impacts of the friendship in the R&D alliance: through the way of the frequent interaction, the beneficial receptions, and the explicit cooperative objectives, a conflict or a distant feeling between each others will be reduced, instead of increasing communication or rapidly uniting members to smoothly work the alliance. 3.Impacts of the respect in the R&D alliance: through the way of the good-will interactions, suppressing the opportunistic behaviors, globally adopting the opinions, predicting the next move about members, regulations in the contracts as well as self-constraints, the harmonics and the advantages existed in the members will be benefited for the development of the R&D alliance. 4.Impacts of the achievements in the R&D alliance: In the operating process, the partnership in the R&D alliance achieved the goals by means of the well, routine and miscellaneous communications, an explicit objective management, and the good interactions.

Objective: To date there have been few if any qualitative studies of adults who have experienced childhood sexual abuse (CSA) followed by psychotic experiences later in life. This study aimed to explore how a sample of four women make sense of their childhood experiences of sexual abuse and their psychotic experiences later in life. Methodology: Data was gathered through semi-structured interviews with four women. The data were analysed using Interpretative Phenomenological Analysis (IPA) in order to develop a detailed understanding of the women’s search for meaning in their own lives. Results: Four major themes emerged from the analysis of the women’s accounts: ‘Interpersonal difficulties,’ ‘Striving to Get Better’ and ‘A Relationship with Shame’ and ‘Links Between CSA, Mental health & Psychosis’. These are explored in detail. Conclusions: The women’s accounts highlight the ongoing difficulty of living with psychosis and CSA, in particular, the role of psychosis in exacerbating isolation, shame and negative self perceptions. Attention is also drawn to the development of competence for therapists in this area of work. Clinical Implications: Supporting and validating existing healthy coping strategies as well as exploration of the interaction of psychosis and CSA through psychological mechanisms of shame as well as family / society discourses. Therapist/ researcher selfawareness is crucial in supporting clients with such traumatic histories.

Researchers and companies are paying increasing attention to corporate social responsibility (CSR) programs and the reaction to them by consumers. But despite such corporate efforts and an expanding literature exploring consumers' response to CSR, it remains unclear how consumers perceive CSR and which "Gestalt" consumers have in mind when considering CSR. Moreover, academics and managers lack a tool for measuring consumers' perceptions of CSR. This research explores consumers' perceptions of CSR and develops a measurement model for them. Based on qualitative data from interviews with managers and consumers, a conceptualization of consumers' perceptions of CSR is developed. Subsequently, this model is tested and validated on three large quantitative data sets. The conceptualization and the measurement scale help companies assess consumers' perceptions of CSR relative to their performance. They also enable managers to identify shortcomings in CSR engagement and/or communication. Finally, the paper discusses implications for marketing practice and future research. (authors' abstract)

Child sexual abuse is a burning issue raising concern because of the statistics which indicate that one in five children are victims of some kind of abuse. The protective program, the “Underwear Rule” was launched by the European Council in order to inform and equip parents, caregivers and children towards this sensitive issue. The program is addressed to all European countries in the exact same form and content, with only differentiation the language. This study tries to examine theoretically and empirically the applicability of the “Underwear Rule” to Greek parents, in the sense that each country has its own cultural background and cast of mind, which differentiate the acceptance and the applicability of the Rule. This relates mainly to prior research of Kirana exploring Greek parents’ perspective towards sexual education, as well to Babatsiko’s research about developing national protective programs corresponding to local and cultural demands. An interview study has been carried out, focusing on parents’ point of view about the Underwear Rule. The analysis is based on the subjective experiences and thoughts of seven parents whose children are in the age-target group covered by the Underwear Rule. The parents’ interviews have been analyzed thematically. Overall this study argues that The Underwear Rule is a good protective program, but parents would like improvements and enrichment in order the burning topic of child sexual abuse to be covered more effectively

Defined as an awareness of suffering coupled with a willingness to do something to relieve suffering, compassion has recently received an incredible amount of attention in popular culture, social media, and academic and scientific research (Jinpa, 2015). Qualitative research is needed to investigate the experiences of adults learning to cultivate compassion. The present study adds to the body of research on compassion by investigating compassion cultivation with first person accounts, and by providing examples of somatic learning, or learning through the body. In this qualitative study, I investigate individuals' perceptions of the course Compassion Cultivation Training (CCT), developed at Stanford University's Center for Compassion and Altruism Research and Education (CCARE). I explore three questions: 1) How do participants find CCT and why do they take the course? 2) How do participants describe the CCT course and their learning experiences? 3) How do participants describe the impact of CCT and integrate what they learned into their daily lives? I conducted 1-hour open-ended interviews with 18 CCT alumni and a qualitative analysis of interview transcripts to identify themes across the data. I identified four cases that exemplify elements of cultivating compassion, including: a case of depression relief, a case of increasing the capacity to stay, a case of dealing with self-criticism and a case of reducing empathy fatigue. I then organized findings across the entire data set into three categories according to my research questions; in each finding, I identified four themes and clustered participants' responses according to themes. Findings indicate that the 18 participants' reasons for taking CCT are diverse, including the desire to connect with others, curiosity about compassion and contemplative science, and the need for compassion in their personal and professional lives. All respondents reported CCT as a powerful and meaningful learning experience, describing the value of learning through the body, through meditation practices, and as a group. Participants attributed substantial positive changes to the course, citing improvements in their relationships to themselves and others, and increased awareness of their own mental and emotional states.

This study is aimed at to identify and to understand the role of information in what concerns the mobility process of top executives, helping organisations to make the most of their expatriatesâ experiences. The methodological approach chosen was the case study, carried out in an economic group of the Portuguese financial sector with several business operations abroad. Several data collection methods were used, including a questionnaire survey, in-depth interviews and in loco interaction with the expatriates in three different countries. Based on the analysis of expatriatesâ information needs, a typology of information throughout the complete cycle is described and two critical moments are identified. These moments correspond to transitions of expatriatesâ informational spaces: first the moment of arrival to the host country and second, when they return to their home country. The incorporation of expatriatesâ information in the organizational information system, across the various phases of the expatriation cycle, is summarized.

This qualitative research study focuses explicitly on understanding the experiences and perceptions of urban Aboriginal women living with HIV/AIDS. Stigmatizing attitudes and language have serious impacts upon the lives of HIV-positive Aboriginal women. The ways our society presently addresses the women needs to change. With the insights and assistance of four Aboriginal women living with HIV, this project adds to the presently sparse qualitative literature in this research area. Current research indicates that there are many factors associated with urban Aboriginal women being at higher risk for infection and lower physical and mental health, such as race, socio-economic conditions, isolation, oppression and violence, family history, substance abuse, discrimination, and often the responsibilities of childrearing. However, current research analysis and presentation is insufficient, and more in-depth questions arise. Material was collected using semi-structured, open-ended questioning conversations with the participants. Two guiding research questions were asked: 1) What is it like for you, living with HIV right now? and 2) What would you want other people to learn from your experiences? The women’s stories provide an avenue for participants to voice some of their triumphs and challenges about being an Aboriginal woman living with HIV/AIDS. For the community at large, this is also an opportunity to hear first hand, important information such as this. In this work, I have tried to adhere to the tenets of Indigenous methodologies by allowing the life-stories to resonate as holistic representations. Rather than deconstructing the women’s stories through naturalistic analysis (which continues to categorize and to objectify participants), the stories are viewed through a Health Narrative Topography whereby thematic genres such as Restitution, Chaos, and Quest are illuminated, while also being critically aware of some of the limitations to this framework. Three overarching themes are revealed through the women’s stories: 1) the empowerment and resiliency demonstrated by the participants; 2) the need for cultural competency in a society that continues to stigmatize Aboriginal and HIV-positive women; and, 3) the need for a more holistic approach within society when it comes to education, learning, and healing.