Willis and Grace (2008, 2009) developed a protocol for measuring quality of planning for community reintegration by sexual offenders, and showed that poor planning was a risk factor for sexual recidivism. The present study evaluated the reliability and predictive validity of Willis and Grace’s protocol with a large, representative sample of child molesters who completed a prison-based treatment programme between 1993 and 2000. Overall, the quality of reintegration planning was good for the sample as a whole, with an average equal to 61.7% of the maximum possible score. Results supported the reliability and predictive validity of the protocol in assessing reintegration quality. Reintegration scores were negatively correlated sexual recidivism and with measures of pre-treatment static and dynamic risk, particularly the Criminality and Treatment Responsivity factors of the Violence Risk Scale: Sexual Offender Version (VRS: SO; Olver, Wong, Nicholaichuk, & Gordon, 2007). Measures of intelligence and treatment outcome were positively correlated with reintegration quality, particularly the Standard Goal Attainment Scaling for Sex Offenders (SGAS; Hogue, 1994), suggesting that offenders who were successful in achieving treatment goals were also likely to have effective reintegration plans. Survival analyses (Cox regression) showed that reintegration planning contributed additional validity for predicting sexual recidivism when static risk but not dynamic risk was controlled. Overall, results support the utility of Willis and Grace’s protocol for measuring quality of reintegration planning. Future research should examine reintegration planning for other types of sexual and non-sexual offenders.

Case study analysis of the 2010-2011 Canterbury Earthquake Sequence (CES), which particularly impacted Christchurch City, New Zealand, has highlighted the value of practical, standardised and coordinated post-earthquake geotechnical response guidelines for earthquake-induced landslides in urban areas. The 22nd February 2011 earthquake, the second largest magnitude event in the CES, initiated a series of rockfall, cliff collapse and loess failures around the Port Hills which severely impacted the south-eastern part of Christchurch. The extensive slope failure induced by the 22nd February 200 earthquake was unprecedented; and ground motions experienced significantly exceeded the probabilistic seismic hazard model for Canterbury. Earthquake-induced landslides initiated by the 22nd February 2011 earthquake posed risk to life safety, and caused widespread damage to dwellings and critical infrastructure. In the immediate aftermath of the 22nd February 2011 earthquake, the geotechnical community responded by deploying into the Port Hills to conduct assessment of slope failure hazards and life safety risk. Coordination within the voluntary geotechnical response group evolved rapidly within the first week post-earthquake. The lack of pre-event planning to guide coordinated geotechnical response hindered the execution of timely and transparent management of life safety risk from coseismic landslides in the initial week after the earthquake. Semi-structured interviews were conducted with municipal, management and operational organisations involved in the geotechnical response during the CES. Analysis of interview dialogue highlighted the temporal evolution of priorities and tasks during emergency response to coseismic slope failure, which was further developed into a phased conceptual model to inform future geotechnical response. Review of geotechnical responses to selected historical earthquakes (Northridge, 1994; Chi-Chi, 1999; Wenchuan, 2008) has enabled comparison between international practice and local response strategies, and has emphasised the value of pre-earthquake preparation, indicating the importance of integration of geotechnical response within national emergency management plans. Furthermore, analysis of the CES and international earthquakes has informed pragmatic recommendations for future response to coseismic slope failure. Recommendations for future response to earthquake-induced landslides presented in this thesis include: the integration of post-earthquake geotechnical response with national Civil Defence and Emergency Management; pre-earthquake development of an adaptive management structure and standard slope assessment format for geotechnical response; and emergency management training for geotechnical professionals. Post-earthquake response recommendations include the development of geographic sectors within the area impacted by coseismic slope failure, and the development of a GIS database for analysis and management of data collected during ground reconnaissance. Recommendations provided in this thesis aim to inform development of national guidelines for geotechnical response to earthquake-induced landslides in New Zealand, and prompt debate concerning international best practice.

Dental caries is a very common chronic infectious disease that is preventable and related to dental behaviours. The objective of this study was to develop a parental questionnaire to predict the child’s caries risk without professional evaluation and assess if risk factors worked together and if behaviours changed over time. At baseline, a survey and examination for caries were administered to 100 subjects aged 1 to 3 years old in Winnipeg, Manitoba. Six months later the same survey and examination were administered. Statistical analysis included logistic regression, Pearson Chi-squared, McNemar’s, Fisher’s exact tests and paired T-tests. The main finding was this survey could not predict future caries risk. Parents’ reports of visible cavities/fillings in their child predicted caries. Few risk factors changed significantly over time. A change in developmental delay corresponded to a change in caries. Overall, caries risk was found to be complex and requires further investigation.

The purpose of this correlational study was to investigate the relationship of-hardiness, a personality characteristic composed of the elements control, challenge, and commitment, to health behavior practices among a midwestern university faculty and staff. The hypothesis of the study was there is a negative correlation between scores on the Health Related Hardiness Scale (HRHS) and the HealthPromoting Lifestyle Profile (HPLP) among university faculty and staff. Prior to conducting the study, approval of the university internal review board was obtained. Using a random numbers table and the university faculty and staff phone directory, a random sample of 100 participants was obtained. The participants were sent the Health Related Hardiness Scale (HRHS) to measure hardiness, the HealthPromoting Lifestyle Profile (HPLP) to measure health behaviors, a demographic questionnaire, and an addressed return envelope. Confidentiality of the participants was assured. Returned questionnaires implied consent to participate. The completed forms were returned to the researcher by campus mail in the envelope provided. Seventy-three questionnaires were returned; 50 could be used for analysis. The Pearson's r was used to analyze the data and tested at the 0.05 level of significance. Results revealed r = - 0.5473 with.R<0.001. The hypothesis of the study was supported. Post hoc analysis using the Pearson's r revealed negative correlations with varying degrees of significance between the three subscales of the HRHS and the six subscales of the HPLP. The information obtained from the study is valuable to nursing in planning educational and supportive strategies for a variety of clients in various settings. / School of Nursing

This research explores the complexities of database security, encompassing both the computer hardware and software. Also important is its nature as a people oriented issue. A risk analysis of a database system's security can be examined by creating a simulation model. Though, in order for it to be truly meaningful and accurate, all aspects of design, performance and procedure must be thoroughly and carefully scrutinized.Computer or data security is a major problem in today's world of data processing. This thesis outlines the security problem' and presents trends and issues. It also addresses current trends in computer security environments, database risk analysis, and simulations.Risk analysis is a technique used to quantitatively assess the relative value of protective measures. It is useful when appropriately applied and is in some cases required by regulatory agencies.The goal of security environments is to outline the framework which is valuable in assessing security issues and in establishing partitions in the overall environment within which this and other approaches to security can be examined.A simulation prototype is given which demonstrates the concepts of risk analysis for a database system. / Department of Computer Science

The current study explored how Hurricane Katrina and consecutive flooding were covered by a mainstream news media organization--the New York Times. The purpose of the study was to see and analyze if the natural disaster of such magnitude as Hurricane Katrina increased the New York Times awareness of potential risks faced by the coastal area of the United States? Can the New York Times play a role of a social change agent helping the public realize risks and be more prepared for them in the future?The researcher conducted frame analysis and 3279 paragraphs were coded in the following categories: disaster aftermath, human interest, political, responsiveness, recovery, risk, science, damage, conflict, blame frame, and other. A chi-square test was used to test the hypotheses.The first hypothesis stated: "In disaster news coverage there will be more non-risk oriented stories rather than risk oriented stories" was accepted. The secondhypothesis stated: "In stories that have risk related information there will be more quotes from officials rather than experts" was rejected.The study of the first research question: "What kinds of risks have been covered in risk framed stories?" demonstrated that reporters tend to cover more dramatic risks rather than mundane ones. The study of the second research question: "Were the sources in stories about Hurricane Katrina being quoted on subjects appropriate to their expertise?" showed that sources used in the stories were quoted according to their expertise. The study of the third question: "What kind of risk awareness (current risks) and risk prevention (hypothetical risks) coverage is there in the New York Times?" revealed that reporters tend to provide more information on current risks (risk awareness) rather than information on how to prevent future risks. / Department of Journalism

Naturally-occurring and technology-based hazards affect public health and safety to varying degrees. Naturally-occurring hazards include weather-related events and infectious disease epidemics/pandemics. Examples of technology-based hazards include hazardous materials incidents and electrical power outages. Due to limited resources, emergency planners have to prioritize hazards that may affect local jurisdictions. The purpose of the reported study was to construct a hierarchy of public safety hazards at the county and district levels to aid emergency planners. Public safety representatives from Indiana's District 6 region completed a survey, based on the Oregon Emergency Management Hazard Analysis Methodology, which assigns numerical scores to various hazard categories based on history, vulnerability, maximum potential, and probability of occurrence within a given jurisdiction. Participants also completed an open-ended question, in narrative form, to describe any additional hazards that may affect their jurisdiction. Significant differences were found in point totals for various hazards (p = .000). Significant differences were found among public safety disciplines in rating the infectious disease hazard (p = .02). No significant differences were found in point totals between naturally-occurring and technology-based hazards (p = .86). Overall, a high level of agreement between disciplines on rating hazards, and significant differences between hazard categories suggests that hazard category prioritization is warranted. / Department of Natural Resources and Environmental Management

The most urgent amphibian conservation issue in the Upper Midwest has been Blanchard's cricket frog (Acris crepitans blanchardi) declines over much of their northern range. Several causes have been proposed to explain these declines, including pesticide applications, disease, habitat loss, and habitat modification. My goal was to explore these proposed causes. Using a combination of field and laboratory analyses, including population analyses, gross inspections for malformations, and a histopathological analysis for indicators of fungus, disease and parasites, I found evidence for disease (a viral infection) and stress (fluctuating asymmetry, malformations and parasitism). Interestingly, the population most affected by these factors was also the one that contained the most animals and was located south of the presumed decline front (i.e., was assumed to be healthy). / Department of Biology

The purposes of this study were to determine which perinatal risk variables arecorrelated with phonological disorders and to determine how preschoolers' developmental functioning is related to phonological impairment. Subjects were 101 low SES boys (n=46) and girls (n=55) randomly selected from a county Head Start program in north-central Indiana. The mean age of the preschoolers was 65 months. Information about perinatal risks and developmental abilities was obtained from mothers or primary caregivers. Using the Maternal Perinatal Scale (Dean, 1985) and the Bankson Bernthal Test of Phonology (Bankson & Bernthal, 1990), it was found that three moderate inverse correlations existed between perinatal risk items and phonological scores (mothers' weight before pregnancy, the number of pregnancies prior to the birth of the child that resulted in death, and the number of medical conditions experienced by mothers before or during pregnancy). Hierarchical multiple regressions indicated that developmental scales of the Minnesota Preschool Inventory (Ireton & Thwing, 1979) significantly accounted for phonological ability in these children, with the scales of Letter Recognition, Self-Help, Expressive Language, and Fine Motor contributing the most unique variance. Implications of these findings are discussed relative to the developmental apraxia of speech debate. / Department of Educational Psychology

This project looked for differences in behavioral risk factors between Traditional and Non-Traditional students. The study was based on data collected from the 1993 Behavioral Risk Factor Survey administered to a sample of 290 Ball State University students by the Ball State University Institute for Wellness. Using the chi-square goodness-of-fit method, significant differences were found between the two groups on several risk factors. Using alpha=0.05, there were significant differences found for the following risk factors: hypertension, overweight, smoking, acute drinking, and no physical activity. No significant differences were found for the following: seatbelt use, chronic drinking, drinking and driving, sedentary lifestyle, and checking of cholesterol level. / Fisher Institute for Wellness