Thesis (Ph. D.)--University of Texas at Austin, 2006. / Vita. Includes bibliographical references.

Thesis (M.P.H.)--University of Hong Kong, 2006.

Thesis (MSc.(Anatomy)--Faculty of Health Sciences)-University of Pretoria, 2007. / Includes bibliographical references.

Thesis (M.A.I.S.)--Oregon State University, 2008. / Printout. Includes bibliographical references (leaves 89-95). Also available on the World Wide Web.

This dissertation reports the findings of a critical ethnographic study of the cultures of five secondary schools in Western Canada, focusing on the structural and symbolic systems related to information and communications technologies (ICT).

No description available.

The purpose of this study was to determine whether there were sex-related differences in students' attitudes toward computers at the Grade 4 level. A questionnaire was constructed, consisting of twenty-five multiple choice items, two subjective items and eight background items. The multiple choice items were grouped into six reporting categories: (1) Interest in and Enjoyment in Using Computers, (2) Anxiety and Confidence About Computer Use, (3) Perceived Usefulness of Computers, (4) Perceived Sex Roles in Attitudes Toward Computers, (5) Relationship Between Mathematics and Computers, and (6) Attitudes Toward Mathematics. The questionnaire was administered to a sample of 290 students. The sample consisted of 143 girls and 147 boys. The data were analysed to determine any sex differences in responses to each of the items in each of the reporting categories. Attitudes toward individual items and reporting categories were defined to be positive if 50% or more of the students/girls/boys responded to the item/category in a manner established by the author as positive. To identify significantly different responses, median polish was used on the item-by-gender tables. Results of the median polish revealed items that had been reacted to, by all students, in a more strongly positive or negative manner in comparison to the other items within the category. In addition, sex differences in responses to each of the items and the reporting categories were indicated and any patterns related to either items or gender were revealed. In addition to the analysis of individual items and reporting categories, results from the 25 items for girls were compared based on whether or not their mothers use computers and also for all students based on whether or not they had computers at home. The results of the questionnaire indicate that there were no sex differences in responses to five of the six reporting categories. Girls and boys at this age would seem to have comparable positive attitudes toward computers with regard to "Interest in and Enjoyment in Using Computers", "Anxiety and Confidence About Computer Use", "Perceived Usefulness of Computers" and "Relationship Between Mathematics and Computers", and "Attitudes Toward Mathematics". There were significant sex-related differences in one category, "Perceived Sex Roles in Attiudes Toward Computers". It was found that while both girls and boys have a positive attitude in this category, 22% more girls than boys displayed this positive attitude. However, in view of the difficulty of interpreting these results, one cannot provide a strong argument for concluding that one gender has a stronger positive (less sexist) attitude than the other. Girls and boys at this age feel it is just as important for either sex to use and learn about computers. / Education, Faculty of / Curriculum and Pedagogy (EDCP), Department of / Graduate

A confirmatory approach based on a multidimensional model (Douglas, Roussos, & Stout, 1996; Shealy & Stout, 1993; Stout & Roussos, 1995) was used to identify sources of differential item functioning (DIF) and differential bundle functioning (DBF) for boys and girls on the British Columbia Principles of Mathematics Exam for grade 12 (PME12). Data consisted of a total of 9404 examinees; 4335 girls and 5069 boys. There were 45 multiple choice items in the exam. Analyses were completed in two stages. In stage 1, patterns present in the gender DIF research in mathematics were identified. Stage 2 was the statistical confirmation of these patterns. Sources of gender DIF were confirmed for the content areas: polynomial, quadratic relations, logarithms and exponents. Items tapping higher cognitive levels dealing with patterns and relation, word problems, and items containing visuals were also confirmed as a source of DIF. Exploratory analyses indicated that computation items for which no equations are provided may be a source of DIF along with trigonometry items. This study contributes to an increased understanding of sources of gender DIF that may assist test developers to ensure that mathematics items measure the construct that they are intended to measure and that the test as a whole measures that which it purports to measure. The findings of this research provide an additional source of information about the differential performance of boys and girls that may be used to develop guidelines and test construction principles for reducing gender DIF in mathematics. This research also contributes to a greater understanding of gender differences in mathematics learning and achievement. / Education, Faculty of / Educational and Counselling Psychology, and Special Education (ECPS), Department of / Graduate

It is well established that older adults display marked impairments in the heat loss responses of sweating and skin blood flow relative to young adults which can exacerbate body heat storage by compromising whole-body heat loss (evaporative + dry heat exchange). Similarly, young women display reductions in whole-body heat loss relative to young men during exercise in dry heat. As such, it is possible that the age-related decline in whole-body heat loss will be greater among women relative to men. To examine whether the age-related decline in whole-body heat loss would be greater in women relative to men during exercise in dry heat, and whether this response would be more pronounced with a greater elevation in the level of heat stress, whole-body heat loss (evaporative ± dry heat exchange) was evaluated in 80 individuals (46 men, 34 women) aged between 18-70 years. Participants completed an incremental exercise model involving three, 30-min bouts of semi-recumbent cycling at fixed rates of metabolic heat production (150, 200, 250 W/m2), each separated by a 15-min recovery period in hot-dry conditions (40˚C, ~15% relative humidity). Whole-body heat loss was measured using direct calorimetry whereas metabolic heat production was measured using indirect calorimetry. Whole-body heat loss declined with age (across men and women) during moderate- and vigorous-intensity exercise by 4.2 and 6.6 W/m2 (both P < 0.050), respectively, however, these relationships were not modified by sex (both P > 0.050). Nonetheless, whole-body heat loss was lower in women relative to men during moderate- and vigorous-intensity exercise by 8.4 and 12.1 W/m2 (both P < 0.05), respectively. Therefore, the results of this thesis demonstrate that the age-related decline in whole-body heat loss is not dependent on sex.

Thesis advisor: John P. Christianson / Stress is a risk factor for neuropsychiatric disorders such as post-traumatic stress disorder and depression, yet not all individuals who are exposed to stress develop such disorders. Several factors influence susceptibility versus resilience to the effects of stress, including coping strategy biological sex. A growing body of research in humans has demonstrated that active coping strategies – defined as using available resources to problem solve – are positively correlated with resilience. In rodents, resilience to a potent acute stressor can be achieved through active coping, such as controlling the termination of a stressor, but only in males. During controllable stress males engage a stress mitigating pathway between the prelimbic (PL) and dorsal raphe nucleus (DRN), but this pathway isn’t engaged by control in females or when stress is uncontrollable in both sexes. Thus, neural activity within the ventromedial prefrontal cortex (vmPFC) is a critical determinant of stressor-induced anxiety. The mechanism that engage vmPFC excitability are not well understood. Therefore, the goals of the dissertation were 1) determine if eCBs in the PL promote neuronal excitability and behavioral resilience 2) test if ES and IS result in differential activation PL afferents, and will specifically test if ES results in greater activation PL-inputs from action-outcome associated regions, while IS leads to greater engagement of stress/fear inputs to the PL, and 3) identify network-wide patterns of activation and test the hypothesis that the stress and action-outcome networks are differentially activated as a function of stressor controllability and/or sex. We’ve demonstrated that augmenting eCBs in the PL increased excitability through a CB1 and GABA receptor dependent mechanism and was sufficient to block the stress induced decrease in social exploration. Regarding goal 2, PL inputs from the orbitofrontal cortex and DRN were activated in response to stress per se, but were not sensitive to stressor controllability and did not differ between males and females. PL afferents from the basolateral amygdala and mediodorsally thalamus were not sensitive to stress. Lastly, we quantified Fos expression in response to controllable and uncontrollable stress in male and female rats in 24 brain regions associated with stress, action-outcome learning, and showing sex differences in response to stress. Using interregional correlations, we found differences in functional connectivity as a function of stressor controllability and sex when considering all 24 regions and when considering only stress associated regions. Females showed greater overall functional connectivity compared with males, and IS resulted in greater overall connectivity than ES. We also reveal potentially important nodes in functional connectivity networks using centrality measures to identify network hubs. The findings of this research emphasize the need to study differences between males and females across all realms of neuroscience, particularly in relation to disorders of stress and anxiety. / Thesis (PhD) — Boston College, 2019. / Submitted to: Boston College. Graduate School of Arts and Sciences. / Discipline: Psychology.