The thesis explores the role of inscription in the management of social work and the effect of this on front-line practice. Inscription is a response to current trends in public sector management, in particular the focus on transparency, accountability and performance management, which drive an increasing demand for the documentation of work in areas of professional practice, traditionally assumed to be at odds with codification. The research investigates the effect of new documenting procedures in social work, specifically, the introduction of a ‘standard assessment format’ and responses to this by social work practitioners. The thesis uses a constructivist theoretical framework drawn from Actor Network Theory, which understands inscription as a performative technology, which is used to manage the process and content of practice through representation and translation. The thesis is based upon an exploratory, critical case study in a Local Authority Children and Families Social Work Service between November 2004 and May 2006. The thesis explores the translations between practice (doing), articulation (describing) and textual representation (documenting). For front-line practitioners, practice is understood as the ‘doing’ of work whilst the ‘describing’ and ‘documenting’ of work are categorised as secondary, bureaucratic concerns, with no material effect on the core processes and outcomes of social work practice. The research indicates that social work practice is in fact is a series of practices, which include the doing, describing and documenting of work. The research suggests that the conceptualisation of practice as ‘doing’, rather than ‘describing’ and ‘documenting’ work determines practitioner responses to the use of inscription in managing social work practice.

Apoptosis is a regulated "programme" by which cells are induced to die in a manner which does not result in pathological inflammatory reactions, and involves dismantling of the cell into membrane-bound fragments that are removed by phagocytosis. This process is induced in order to remodel tissues and maintain homeostasis in cell numbers. Apoptosis may be induced via many pathways, many of which are redox-regulated, and is dysregulated in cancer cells, mainly due to mutational inactivation of certain pathways. Cancer cells also have a non-linear response to redox imbalance, a potentially exploitable characteristic for the therapeutic selective induction of apoptosis in cancer cells in mixed cell populations. Model cell culture systems are required for the selective toxicity testing of anti-cancer drugs, many of which work by inducing redox stress. In the current study, hydrogen peroxide was selected as the redox stress-inducing agent, and the test cells were an immortal, non-invasive breast epithelial cell line (MCFlOA) and its rastransfected, pre-malignant derivative (MCF10AneoT). A reliable, sensitive, cost effective and least time-consuming system for detection of apoptosis in such a system was sort and two novel methods, cytochrome c release and caspase-3 activity assays, were finally selected and compared with results seen by conventional DNA laddering and morphological examination at the light and electron microscopic level. No single procedure was found to be reliable individually. For the model system used, a combination of electron microscopy and DNA laddering was sufficient for simply detecting apoptotic cell death and necrosis. The caspase activity assay distinguished between apoptosis and necrosis, and cytochrome c release proved the most sensitive indicator of cell response. However, since cytochrome c release may be reversible and may not necessarily proceed to the downstream events of apoptosis in the time frame used in the current assays, it is not certain that cytochrome c release ultimately leads to apoptosis. However, three forms of cytochrome c were observed on western blots, the nature and significance of which remains to be determined. A comparison of the results of different methods allowed a model for the sequence of specific apoptotic events to be proposed. / Thesis (M.Sc.)-University of Natal, Pietermaritzburg, 2000.

This thesis explores the emotional responses of British servicemen's wives to the repeated relocation inherent in their lifestyles. Adopting a psycho-social perspective, it aims to achieve a deeper understanding of respondents' experiences than would be possible through utilising either a sociological or psychological perspective alone.

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Preclinical research using animals often precedes and informs clinical trials; however, most attempts to translate findings from “bench-to-bedside” fail. There is growing concern that an important cause of failed translations is that much of preclinical research is not reproducible, with poor experimental methodology believed to be a major contributor. Four studies were conducted: (1) an assessment of reported study designs of preclinical experiments published in leading cardiovascular journals; (2) an examination of sex bias in preclinical cardiovascular research; (3) a comparison of experimental practices between male and female preclinical cardiovascular researchers; and (4) an analysis of the influence of journal initiatives on preclinical research quality. These studies suggest that (1) methodological shortcomings are prevalent and persistent in preclinical cardiovascular research; (2) women’s involvement in preclinical cardiovascular research is positively associated with considering sex as a biological variable; and (3) journals can exert considerable influence on the quality of published data.

Killeen's (2005) Prep is an estimator of the replicability of an experiment. It is specifically defined as the probability of obtaining an effect of the same sign as that found in original experiment. Nevertheless, since it was announced, the validity and reliabliltiy of Prep has been challenged by a number of researchers. The present study aims at improving the performance of Prep by applying the nonparametric bootstrap method in its computation, and this bootstrap replication estimator is denoted as PBrep . A simulation study was carried out to compare the performance of Killeen's Prep and the proposed PBrep under different conditions. As expected, PBrep gives a more accurate estimation than Prep. However, PBrep occasionally fails to work properly when there is a zero population effect size, so there is still a room for improvement. / Killeen (2005) 發明的Prep是一種實驗重複估計量，它是指能夠獲得與最初實驗效應量一致方向的可能性。但自其發表以來，該系數的信度及效度仍受到不少學者的質疑。是次研究嘗試通過使用自助抽樣法以改善此系數的效能，並將改良的新系數命名為PBrep。不同環境下對兩個系數準確度的模擬測試結果顯示，PBrep比Prep能達到更準確的估計值。然而當目標總體不存在差別效應時，PBrep偶爾會出現較大的偏差，因此未來研究仍需在此方向作出改善。 / Chan, Man Lok. / Thesis M.Phil. Chinese University of Hong Kong 2014. / Includes bibliographical references (leaves 37-40). / Title from PDF title page (viewed on 14, September, 2016).

The field of counseling psychology has demonstrated a longstanding history to multiculturalism and social justice, which is reflected in the field’s professional standards of competence. Goodman et al. (2004) derived a set of social justice principles from feminist and multicultural counseling theories, which have served to guide counseling psychologists in social justice work. These six tenets include: ongoing self-examination, sharing power, giving voice, facilitating consciousness raising, building on strengths, and leaving clients with the tools to work toward social change. Graduate training has been identified as one essential component in the development of training social-justice oriented and competent counseling psychologists. Training programs have made attempts to address the training needs of the field of counseling psychology and its commitment to the development of social justice competencies in a variety of ways; however, there is lack of understanding regarding the efficacy of these approaches as well as an identified need for increased experiential training. Participatory Action Research (PAR) is an approach to research that has demonstrated potential as a tool for social justice training with its emphasis on collective participation, collaboration, empowerment, and positive social change. As such, the purpose of this study was to explore counseling psychology trainees’ experiences with PAR and the impact of these experiences on the development of social justice competencies. Data was collected through 12 semi-structured interviews with current and recently graduated doctoral- and masters-level trainees in the field of counseling psychology. Participant narratives were transcribed and then analyzed using Consensual Qualitative Research (CQR). Results illustrated participants’ understanding of social justice and PAR, descriptions of PAR projects, personal reasons for engaging in PAR as well as expectations and challenging experiences related to PAR. Participants also discussed the impact of PAR on clinical training and professional practice, specifically related to the development of social justice competencies and the development of their own self-awareness and multicultural identity development. Personal meaning and value of PAR experiences for participants as well community members engaged in PAR are also presented. Implications of the findings, limitations, and suggestions for future research are discussed.

Whole genome sequencing (WGS) is an attractive approach for mycobacteria diagnosis and epidemiological studies. It provides the potential for a rapid method that produces detailed information and could theoretically be used as a routine tool in clinical settings. This thesis focuses on the benefits and challenges involved in transforming molecular approaches into practical clinical mycobacteriology in general, and in particular WGS, as well as examining how it might be implemented. We first set out to improve the quantification of viable mycobacteria cells in vitro and make the molecular bacterial load assay (MBLA) sensitive enough to use in future clinical trials that monitor treatment response. The results showed the assay is rapid and accurate in its detection and count of viable bacteria. WGS was tested with different types of mycobacteria species to address different epidemiological questions. WGS not only provides a higher resolution result than traditional epidemiological methods but it can rapidly identify an outbreak, thus simplifying the investigation and reducing the cost. WGS accurately identified the sources of TB recurrence and could therefore have a potential role in determining the endpoints for clinical trials. Rapid genotyping of species in this way has been demonstrated in our studies. In addition, WGS has the ability to, in most circumstances, predict TB drug resistance. This could also prove very beneficial from a clinical standpoint. We used different approaches in our studies; for example, single nucleotide polymorphism threshold methods and the creation of a putative outbreak reference genome, which can be used in future outbreak investigations. WGS is a cost-effective, high-resolution method with a short turnaround. This makes it potentially usable as a routine tool in clinical settings and reference laboratories. Future studies are needed to improve the mycobacterial genome sequencing procedure, analysis and bioinformatics in order to implement WGS in clinical practice.

A research report submitted to the Faculty of Commerce, Law and Management, University of the Witwatersrand, in partial fulfilment of the requirements for the degree of Master of Management in Business Executive Coaching Johannesburg, 2017 / A flow experience is described by Mihaly Csikszentmihalyi, the founding thought leader of the experience, as “the holistic sensation present when we act with total involvement” (1975, p.43). Flow experiences have been linked to positive outcomes for individuals and organisations (Csikszentmihalyi & LeFevre, 1989; Engeser & Rheinberg, 2008; Privette, 1983; Salanova, Bakker, & Llorens, 2006) suggesting that this is a desirable experience to facilitate in the workplace. Csikszentmihalyi states that there is much that can be done to introduce more flow to the day-to-day experiences of life, including at work (1999), yet, despite the documented role of organisational leaders as “climate engineers” (Linley, Woolston, & Biswas-Diener, 2009, p. 37) there has been no specific consideration of the flow experiences of executives as leaders. The possible relationship between coaching and flow experiences has to date received attention in mainstream literary circles, and superficial attention in academic literature (Britton, 2008; Wesson & Boniwell, 2007). Coaching executives to achieve flow has not been considered in existing literature in the Executive Coaching domain, but since Executive Coaching is still viewed as emerging (Hamlin, Ellinger, & Beattie, 2008), a confirmation that Executive Coaching can be applied to foster flow experiences in the workplace would add to the credibility of this field. The purpose of this study has been to identify how the emerging discipline of Executive Coaching can facilitate the creation of flow experiences in executive workplaces. The answer to this question has been sought through building an understanding of how flow is experienced by executives in the workplace, and then investigating how flow experiences can be facilitated in executive workplaces. The research study adopted a qualitative approach due to the known suitability of this method to consider the life experiences of participants. Face- to-face, semi-structured interviews were used as the core data collection method addressing a sample size of 16 respondents, made up of 13 executives and three executive coaches. This approach has previously been applied to collect rich narrative data on flow experiences. The study found that whilst executive flow experiences show some commonalities with the existing literature on flow and flow experiences at work, several distinct antecedents for and characteristics of executive flow were identifiable. These precursors and features of executive flow were attributed at three levels: a) at the level of the organisation; b) through the type of work, and c) at the individual level. Executive experiences of anti-flow, the opposite of flow, were also identified. These were typically characterised and initiated by opposite factors to those linked to flow experiences. The study outcomes identified the ability of executives to proactively pursue flow experiences, and further showed that self-awareness and an awareness and use of one’s strengths increase the likelihood of flow experiences. The study thus found that there clear focus areas exist which can be manipulated through interventions to increase likelihood of executive flow experiences. The study outcome that the three areas that impact executive flow experiences correlate to Executive Coaching focus areas introduces the possibility that coaching may be a suitable intervention to increase the likelihood of executive flow experiences. This developing hypothesis is subsequently supported by the final research theme that Executive Coaching may be able to support the executive in cultivating the respective individual, organisational and work conditions to increase the likelihood of flow experiences at work. / MT2017

Human red blood cells (RBCs) must undergo severe deformation to pass through narrow capillaries and submicronic splenic slits for several hundred thousand times in their normal lifespan. Studies of RBC biomechanics have been mainly focused on cell deformability measured from a single application of stress using classical biomechanical techniques, such as optical tweezers and micropipette aspiration. Mechanical fatigue effect on RBCs under cyclic loadings of stress that contributes to the membrane failure in blood circulation is not fully understood. This research developed a new experimental method for mechanical fatigue testing of RBCs using amplitude-modulated electro-deformation technique. Biomechanical parameters of individually tracked RBCs show strong correlations with the number of the loading cycles. Effects of loading configurations on the cellular fatigue behavior of RBCs is further studied. The results uniquely establish the important role of mechanical fatigue in influencing physical properties of biological cells. They further provide insights into the accumulated membrane damage during blood circulation, paving the way for further investigations of the eventual failure of RBCs in various hemolytic pathologies. / Includes bibliography. / Dissertation (Ph.D.)--Florida Atlantic University, 2019. / FAU Electronic Theses and Dissertations Collection