Evaluating the quality of teaching in higher education institutions frequently relies on student ratings, which are popular and efficient, but biased and ineffective. Peer review of teaching warrants investigation for its usefulness in the tenure and promotion process within higher education institutions. A peer review of teaching study also has potential benefits for other instructors who seek to improve their teaching. This mixed methods study evaluates a proposed approach to peer review that is being considered for adoption across all colleges at Brigham Young University. This proposed approach includes peer observations and a submission of a professional teaching portfolio designed to follow the current research of best teaching practices and sustain ethical and professional standards. Data were gathered from 107 participants in treatment and control groups in the form of pre- and post-surveys and focus group interviews. A 2x2 Split Plot ANOVA was used to analyze continuous variables to determine interaction and main effects between groups (pre/post x experimental/control groups). We used a constant comparative method to identify themes in focus group responses, using open, axial, and selective coding of participants' focus group interviews (Glaser & Strauss, 1967). Global themes identified were the positive and negative impacts of the peer review of teaching process. Most of the positive impact themes were gathered from those who had participated as peer reviewers, whereas much of the negative impact themes were gathered from those who had experienced a peer review of their teaching. Significant interaction effects between the assignment of treatment and time provide corroborating evidence for the themes identified. The results from this study provide better understanding of the peer review of teaching process that can ultimately lead to better evaluation practices as well as improved teaching and learning for higher education institutions.

The scientific evidence required to make policy decisions that protect human health can be challenging to organize. Primary research is often silo-ed between different agency repositories, the pace of publication is unflagging and wide-spread interdisciplinary collaboration can be logistically difficult. Since 2012, the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD) adverse outcome pathway (AOP) framework has provided solutions for some of the challenges of supplying relevant and accessible scientific data for evidence-based decision-making. Development of AOPs is guided by a crowd-sourced approach in which progressions of adverse outcomes (AO) are distilled into pathways containing only the essential key events (KEs) and the causal key event relationships (KERs) that connect them. The framework has widely been adopted in the toxicology community and more recently projects have applied it to the radiation safety field. Presently, a collaborative effort aims to further expand the use of AOPs through creating a network linking exposure to the space exposome with resulting human health outcomes. The network contains four adverse non-cancer outcomes for which participants of future long-range space missions will be at risk. The work of this thesis has contributed to the construction of the space-health AOP network by accomplishing two main objectives. The first was the creation of a novel protocol for collecting a weight of evidence (WOE) that included the benefits of scoping review and artificial intelligence (AI) tools for literature screening. The scoping review WOE collection strategy was then deployed for collecting data across all four outcomes in the space-health network. The second objective was to identify KEs and KERs and summarize the WOE linking space exposure to one of the four AOs: vascular remodeling. In addition to summarizing the pathway, we have also highlighted important modulating factors and knowledge gaps in the WOE. This thesis work contributes to the future of the AOP framework by formulating a new development protocol and employing it in a novel regulatory context. Using the new protocol, this thesis has furthered biological understanding of the effects of space exposure on the cardiovascular system by collating mechanistic information across scientific disciplines to identify KEs and KERs in occurrence of vascular remodeling.

Background: The exponential growth of the aging population makes research on reversing frailty increasingly important. Objective: To explore the concept of reversing frailty in older adults and identify existing interventions that achieve frailty reversal as an outcome. Methods: We used a five-stage scoping review methodology outlined by Arksey and O’Malley and enhanced by Joanna Briggs, Levac, and colleagues. We critically appraised all eligible studies and synthesized data using descriptive and narrative analyzes. We searched CINAHL, EMBASE, PubMed, and Web of Science. Results: The concept of reversing frailty seems complex, and no standard intervention exists.That notwithstanding, a few types of single- or multi-component intervention characteristics showed effectiveness in reversing frailty. Conclusion: Frailty can be reversed. However, concept analysis is needed to clarify and define reverse frailty. To ensure maximum effectiveness, the identified interventions, ranging from mostly physical activity to a combination of physical activity and nutrition, could be tailored to each individual’s needs.

This paper sought to accomplish three goals. First, it provided a systematic, comparative review of several intelligent tutoring systems (ITS). Second, it summarized problems and solutions presented and solved by developers of ITS by consolidating the knowledge of the field into a single review. Third, it provided a unified language from which ITS can be reviewed and understood in the same context. The findings of this review centered on the 5-Component Framework. The first component, the domain model, showed that most ITS are focused on science, technology, and mathematics. Within these fields, ITS generally have mastery learning as the desired level of understanding. The second component, the tutor model, showed that constructivism is the theoretical strategy that informs most ITS. The tutoring tactics employed in the ITS stem from this paradigm. The third component, the student model, describes the several ways ITS infer what a student knows. It described the variety of data that is collected by an ITS and how it is used to build the student model. The fourth component, the interface, revealed that most ITS are now web-based, but vary in their capacity to interact with students. It also showed that user experience is underreported and ought to be included more in the research. Finally, the fifth component, learning gains, demonstrated that ITS are capable of producing learning gains equivalent to a human tutor. However, reporting learning gains does not seem to be a focus of the literature.

Review of: The Retreats of Reconstruction: Race, Leisure, and the Politics of Segregation at the New Jersey Shore, 1865–1920. David Goldberg. New York: Fordham University Press, 2016. ISBN 978-0-8232-7272-3. 188 pp., paper, $28.00. Excerpt: David Goldberg's The Retreats from Reconstruction: Race, Leisure, and the Politics of Segregation at the New Jersey Shore, 1865–1920 continues the historiographical trend that expands our understanding of Reconstruction and the Civil War's consequences beyond the plantation South. In this case, Goldberg examines the politics of race and segregation in the resort communities of Asbury Park and Atlantic City, New Jersey. He argues that over the last decade of the nineteenth century and first decades of the twentieth century, consumption and consumer freedom replaced the free labor political economy of the Civil War era at the Jersey shore. Subsequent clashes between working-class African Americans, middle-class white tourists, and white business elites prompted the implementation of Jim Crow segregation there by 1920 [...]

Informal caregiving is growing in demand and is far from a uniform experience. Some caregivers report burdensome effects, while others attest to a wide range of benefits associated with their role. In the context of informal caregivers of persons affected by chronic neurological conditions (CNCs), psychological resilience is increasingly being explored as a protective factor that may account for variability in the caregiver experience; however, multiple sclerosis (MS) caregivers are noticeably absent from this body of work. To synthesize current evidence concerning resilience conceptualizations, assessments, and health correlates within this population, this thesis included a systematic review of resilience in CNC informal caregivers in which MS caregivers were unrepresented. Following this review, a qualitative study was conducted in informal MS caregivers to ascertain MS caregivers’ conceptualizations and unique lived experiences of resilience. Twenty-four semi-structured interviews of Canadian MS informal caregivers were conducted. Informed by the socioecological model of resilience in caring relationships, transcripts were analyzed using flexible thematic analysis. In support of the conceptual ambiguity of resilience, caregivers did not concur on a single resilience conceptualization. Emergent themes contributed to the creation of a cyclical model of resilience that incorporates adversity in the form of continuous loss and obstructed health-related self-care, individual and community resources, and multilevel adaptive pathways. We use our model to prompt future research directions and inform the development of effective resilience-enhancing interventions for MS caregivers.

<p>OBJECTIVES: The primary objective of this systematic review was to illustrate the various definitions authors of methodology articles have offered for intention to treat (ITT) in relation to loss to follow up (LTFU).</p> <p> METHODS: We searched MEDLINE® for publications appearing between 1950 to 2008. Eligible papers devoted at least one paragraph to ITT and two other paragraphs to either ITT or LTFU. Investigators independently extracted relevant information from each eligible article. Discrepancies between data extractors were adjudicated. Data was extracted and variables used during data extraction were analyzed using the Landis and Koch guidelines kappa values.</p> <p> RESULTS: The MEDLINE® search yielded 1007 articles. One-hundred and ten articles underwent full text screening yielding 66 articles. All kappa's were substantial to near perfect agreement (>0.74). Of the 66 articles, five (8%) did not define ITT, 25 (41%) mentioned LTFU but did not discuss its relationship with ITT, 36 (59%) commented on LTFU in the context of ITT. These 36 articles segregated into three distinctive definitions for ITT: "full-follow-up required" (mentioned 58%), "ITT and LTFU are separate issues" (mentioned 17%), and "ITI involves specific strategy for LTFU" (mentioned 78%). Of the 36 articles, 17 (47%) had multiple definitions for ITT. The most frequent strategies mentioned for handling LTFU were last outcome carried forward (50%), sensitivity analysis (50%), and use of available data to impute (46%). Most articles (81%) specifically excluded complete case analysis under ITI.</p> <p> CONCLUSION : The most striking finding of our systematic review is that there is no meaningful consensus on the definition of ITI. This review, considered alongside previous reviews of RCTs, demonstrates that simply stating a study employed ITT is useless at best and misleading and dangerous at worst. It is the recommendation of this thesis that trialists replace the term ITI with a clear statements about analytic strategies applied to participants who were followed and with those not followed.</p> / Thesis / Master of Science (MS)

The broad purpose of this dissertation is to enhance the quality of managerial decisions through evidence-based management. Specifically, it raises three key questions: What is evidence? What are the attributes of knowledge that can facilitate informed decision making? How can such knowledge be generated? To answer these questions this thesis proposes a theory of evidence, suggesting that the strength of evidence is contingent upon its methodological fit, contextuality, transparency, replicability, and consensus. A model of evidence-based decision making is offered that explores how managers’ judgment, experience, and personal values along with the values of other stakeholders, contextual factors, and ethical constraints, may affect the decision process. Moreover, this thesis argues that in order to foster evidence-based management practice we need knowledge that is rigorous, relevant and actionable. To this end, a theory of actionability is proposed, and an empirical study is conducted to determine the attributes of actionable management knowledge. Based on the study, an actionability index is suggested. Evidence that is actionable requires sustainable collaborative effort to produce, curate and communicate. To accomplish that a theory of evidence-based collaboration is proposed. This theory conceives the collaboration as an independent organization that oversees the process of bringing rigour, relevance, and actionability together, and provides an interactive platform for producers, arbiters and users of management knowledge to communicate and collaborate. A template, guided by the theory of collaboration, is designed to produce systematic reviews that are useful for management practice. / Dissertation / Doctor of Philosophy (PhD)

Background: Suicide is a worldwide concern, claiming nearly one million lives each year. The causes of suicidal behaviour are unclear, but a variety of biological, psychological, social, and environmental factors are thought to contribute to suicide risk. Many cases of suicidal behaviour cannot be explained by conventional risk proposed by clinical and research observations. Recent research has focused on biomarkers of suicidal behaviour, including brain-derived neurotrophic factor (BDNF). This thesis aims to determine the association between BDNF and suicidal behaviour by reviewing the literature and by analyzing clinical data. An additional aim of this thesis is to explore the associations between social factors and suicidal behaviour, with a particular focus on sex differences within these factors. Methods: We explored the associations between biological and social risk factors and suicidal behaviour in several ways. We conducted a systematic review to summarize and evaluate the literature regarding BDNF levels and suicidal behaviour. The protocol for this systematic review was designed and published a priori. We performed a qualitative review of the literature and a meta-analysis of studies of serum BDNF and attempted suicide. Then, we assessed the association between serum BDNF and attempted suicide using a case-control study design. We analyzed data collected from the Study of Determinants of Suicide Conventional and Emergent Risk (DISCOVER), and age- and sex-matched study of attempted suicide. In a sample of 250 participants (84 cases of attempted suicide, 104 psychiatric controls, and 93 community controls), we used linear regression analysis to determine the association between BDNF level and attempted suicide, adjusting for age, sex, body mass index, current smoking status, and antidepressant use. Finally, using the same dataset, we explored the associations of a number of social factors with attempted suicide. In a sample of 343 participants (146 cases, 104 psychiatric controls, and 93 community controls), we used logistic regression analyses to determine the associations between social risk factors and attempted suicide in men and women separately. These included age, education level, employment status, marital status, religious practice, stressful life events, and childhood abuse. Results: Our systematic review included 14 studies. The meta-analysis of three studies of serum BDNF and attempted suicide showed no significant association. The qualitative review of all studies revealed inconsistent findings regarding associations between BDNF and suicidal behaviour. In our study of serum BDNF and attempted suicide in the DISCOVER dataset, attempted suicide was not significantly associated with BDNF level. In our study of social factors for attempted suicide, some sex differences were found: Completion of post-secondary education and religious practice were found to be significant protective factors against attempted suicide only in women, and unemployment and stressful life events were significant risk factors only in men. Conclusion: This thesis provides important findings about the biological and social risk factors for suicidal behaviour. Understanding the determinants of suicidal behaviour can aid clinicians in identifying and treating vulnerable individuals. / Thesis / Master of Science (MSc)

Background and Objectives: Mesothelin, identified as a tumor-associated biomarker, is more often overexpressed in triple receptor-negative breast cancer (TNBC) than in common luminal breast tumor subtype or normal tissues. The objective of this systematic review is to determine the association between the expressions of mesothelin with survival outcomes in patients with TNBC. Methods We searched the following electronic databases: MEDLINE, EMBASE, the Cochrane Central Register of Controlled Trials, PubMed, and Web of Science with no time or language restriction till May 19, 2016. Any prospective or retrospective longitudinal studies that investigate the prognosis of TNBC with mesothelin baseline measurement were selected. Two reviewers independently assessed every article for inclusion, extracted data, and assessed the methodological quality of every eligible trial. Pooled measures of associations were summarized with meta-analyses. Results and conclusions Among the 592 patients with TNBC included in the four eligible studies, 269 patients (45.4%) demonstrated mesothelin expression. For the primary outcome OS, we found the trend toward decreased survival for patients with mesothelin-positive TNBC than those without mesothelin expression. We also found that for long-term OS, the association was statistically significant (OR = 0.46; 95% CI= 0.30 to 0.73; P< 0.001). For the secondary outcomes, we found that mesothelin expression in patients with TNBC was associated with lower DFS and higher overall mortality than those without mesothelin expression. Despite the limitations of sample size, this present study shows a significant association between mesothelin expressions and survival outcomes in patients with TNBC. Patients with mesothelin-positive TNBC could benefit from mesothelin-targeted immunotherapies recently in the development. / Thesis / Master of Science (MSc) / It is unclear whether mesothelin expression in triple-negative breast cancer (TNBC) is an independent prognostic marker for survival. To the best of our knowledge, no systematic review or meta-analysis has ever been done on this topic. The present systematic review aims to evaluate the role of mesothelin as a prognostic marker for TNBC. The primary objective of this review is to synthesize available evidence on the association between the expression of mesothelin and overall survival (OS) of patients with TNBC. The secondary objectives include determining the relationship between the expression of mesothelin and disease-free survival (DFS), distant metastases, and mortality. Despite some limitations, this study shows a significant association between mesothelin expressions and long-term OS rate as well as DFS rate and mortality rate in patients with TNBC. Mesothelin has a prognostic significance for patients with mesothelin based on our findings. Patients with mesothelin-positive TNBC could benefit from mesothelin-targeted immunotherapies in development.