Research has shown that the majority of young adults with autism achieve poor-fair outcomes. It is known that communication deficits in individuals with autism may persist throughout the lifespan. However, there is a paucity of information in the literature pertaining to the communication needs of adolescents and young adults with autism. To meet the complex needs of these individuals, transition plans and programs must be improved. One way in which transition programs can be improved is by incorporating evidence based assessment and intervention methods designed for this population that target communication skills. Caregivers (n=68) of adolescents and young adults with autism anonymously completed a survey pertaining to outcomes, goals, and communication skills. Outcomes for the young adults were mostly poor and communication skill performance was variable. Results revealed that overall, caregivers perceived some communication skills to be more important than others. Caregivers rated the importance of communication skills differently depending on the social goals of the individual with autism. Results achieved significance for the relationship between developmental language level and the perceived importance of certain communication skills. Findings demonstrate that specific communication skills should be assessed and targeted during transitional planning for individuals with autism. / text

The principal objectives of the research are to analyse the distribution and dynamics of plants of the Hadhramaut region and to evaluate the role of the physical parameters and human action on their distribution, survival and conservation. The study area is located in Hadhramaut Governorate and lies in the eastern part of the Republic of Yemen. This is a remote and inaccessible region; however, there has been rapid development in recent years with the discovery of oil, which has had a significant effect on the vegetation and landscape. The Hadhramaut region represents an important area of eastern Yemen, linking eastern and western phyto-geographical units, representing a key transition zone between northeast Africa and Southeast Asia. Previous studies in the study area have only dealt with individual species and there has been no complete botanical survey. Recent floristic studies are turning up new species with many endemic and near endemic plant species. The Hadhramaut region is a desert region, dissected by deep valleys where agriculture is possible and the main towns are surrounded by rocky, dry limestone plateaus. The northern section passes into the deserts of the Rub ‘al Khali or Empty Quarter. Hadhramaut has a long history of human occupation with ancient civilisations well reflected in the archaeological records. Archaeological sites suggest that agriculture, with a related development of irrigation technology, was more widespread during a period when rainfall was more abundant. Initially, a reconnaissance survey of the whole Hadhramaut Governorate was undertaken, leading to the selection the Wadi Hadhramaut for detailed study. Within this study area, three sites were selected for intensive survey. These sites were considered representative of the major landforms and vegetation of the area and reflect the principal patterns of land use. The three sites represent tracts of land that were either unaffected, undergoing change or already altered as a result of oil-related development. Transects were designed to cross each site, from the valley bottoms to the plateau surfaces, passing across the representative landforms and vegetation. Surveys were made of the vegetation associations, their structure and biodiversity, as well as their relationship with environment and human impact. Two preliminary transects were made across the entire region, from the southern coast to the plateau in the northwest and from east to west, in order to place the study area in a regional context. The research is the first detailed vegetation survey in the Hadhramaut region and has revealed relevant data that can be used for further studies in similar habitats or for further management and conservation activities. In the study area, major vegetation associations, their composition and biodiversity were identified and in addition, vegetation and land use maps were generated including local endemic, near-endemic and rare plant species. About 469 plant species have been identified from the Hadhramaut region. There are 107 taxa which are endemic and near-endemic; 68 of these are endemic to Yemen, of these 41 are confined to Hadhramaut region. A total of 134 species belonging to 42 families (about 30% of flora of Hadhramaut region) were recorded in the study area and, of these, seven species are endemic to Yemen (four of them endemic to Hadhramaut region). The study revealed 15 vegetation associations and thirty sociological species groups. The main wadis are covered by desert alluvial shrubland comprising Fagonia indica, Tephrosia apollinea, Cymbopogon schoenanthus, Boerhavia elegans and Dichanthium insculptum with scattered trees of Acacia campoptila. In contrast, much of the fertile lands of the main wadis, such as the bottom of the rocky slopes, are intensively cultivated with palm trees and other annual crops, notably sorghum and wheat. The rocky slopes facing the main wadis and the plateau surface are covered by stony and gravelly desert vegetation dominated by herbaceous plants, namely Stipagrostis hirtigluma, Farsetia linearis, Aristida triticoides, Fagonia paulayana, Boerhavia elegans and Dichanthium insculptum. Within the plateau there are some sloping sites and secondary wadis which support dense vegetation. The vegetation here comprises shrubland or grassland dominated by Jatropha spinosa with Zygophyllum decumbens, Commiphora foliacea, Commiphora kua, Maerua crassifolia. Dichanthium insculptum, Stipagrostis hirtigluma and Farsetia linearis. The research in the Hadhramaut region has revealed the importance of this region in terms of plant biodiversity, and particularly of endemic, rare and near-endemic species, which urgently require further management and conservation activities.

No description available.

The recent convergence in average earnings in the regions of Great Britain is in contrast to the increasing inequality in the overall structure of earnings. This thesis investigates the degree of earnings inequality in the regions of Great Britain over the period 1975 to 1995. The analysis employs the New Earnings Survey and the British Household Panel Survey datasets to decompose national earnings inequality into between-group and within-group inequality, both cross-sectionally ad over time, and finds that it is the increasing inequality within regions that is the primary source of increasing inequality in the national distribution of earnings. A decomposition of the Gini coefficient is also adopted to illustrate how regional convergence of the Gini coefficient is also adopted to illustrate how regional convergence in average earnings has been accompanied by increasing overall earnings inequality in Great Britain. The New Earnings Survey data is further used to model the determinants of regional earnings. Cross-section earnings equations are estimated to identify those factors that influence the determination of earnings within regions, and how these factors have contributed to the increase in overall earnings inequality over the twenty-year period. Quantile regression analysis is employed to show whether the effects of the determinants of regional earnings are the same across the regional earnings distributions, and national OLS and quantile regressions are estimated in order to test potential explanations for the rise in national earnings inequality. Using the panel nature of the NES a fixed-effects specification is also used to estimate regional earnings equations, where such a specification allows for the control of individual-specific heterogeneity.

No description available.

This is a report of an investigation of aspects of preservice teachers� perceptions of teaching and learning English and mathematics and factors influencing them. The participants of the investigation were primary preservice teachers from two tertiary institutions of Victoria, one located inner city, and the other in a regional centre. Of the 349 participants, 163 were commencing and 186 were graduating from their degrees. Preservice teachers completed questionnaires indicating their intentions to use particular practices in their literacy and numeracy lessons. Thirty-one of the 349 surveyed voluntarily discussed key issues arising from the survey during semi-structured audiotaped sessions. Five lecturers responsible for the planning of the compulsory English and mathematics education units at both institutions were interviewed about the survey data and provided written documentation for their units as evidence of their coursework. Data analyses indicated that preservice teachers often considered practices equally appropriate for literacy and numeracy teaching and intended to use them in similar ways. It seemed that preservice teachers enter their degrees with strong opinions about teaching and learning based not only on their recollections of experiences as learners but also from more recent relevant experiences such as their dealings with children as babysitters, tutors, and classroom helpers. They also gained knowledge about teaching contexts from their informal but regular conversations with friends and family who teach. From the examination of the documentation for coursework and discussions with lecturers, it seemed that the content of the literacy and numeracy education units at the two institutions were similar. Overall, the data indicated that many of the preservice teachers� intentions were consistent with the intent of coursework especially when they described general teaching practices. However, in cases where practices were discipline-specific there were limited changes in preservice teachers� intentions even after completing their courses. The prospective teachers reported that they considered their recent salient experiences of teaching and their observations of teachers� practices in schools more influential than coursework.

Risk perception for rare, low-probability hazards, such as tsunamis, tends to be low due to individual's unfamiliarity with them and the tendency to see them as synonymous with non-occurrence events. Visitors to an area tend to have even lower risk perception and knowledge of hazards, warning systems and appropriate actions to take during an event. Risk perception, however, can increase, if only temporarily, after a catastrophic event, such as the 2004 Boxing Day tsunami. To determine the changes in resident's knowledge and perception and the differences between those of residents and visitors two surveys were conducted. In the first survey interview style surveying was conducted at eleven locations in the coastal Christchurch and Banks Peninsula area of the Canterbury Region The questionnaire was composed of scaled, open, and closed ended questions and the main themes included knowledge of risk, preparation and warnings, what to do during a tsunami, and changes since the 2004 Boxing Day tsunami. The second survey of five coastal communities was conducted via a postal questionnaire and was aimed at obtaining residential views. Survey data was then analysed with Statistical Package for the Social Sciences (SPSS) statistical software. The residential data was compared with that of the non-residents to determine the differences in perception of residents and visitors. The residential information was then compared with survey data from the 2003 National Coastal Survey. Visitors knew less about general tsunami information such as when the last tsunami occurred and were less likely to believe that a tsunami could occur imminently. Non-residents reported less receipt of information and did considerably less information seeking. Differences in knowledge of warning systems were difficult to ascertain. The Boxing Day event certainly made an impact, increasing people's knowledge and awareness, though most likely only temporarily.

Proefschrift Universiteit Maastricht. / Met lit. opg. - Met samenvatting in het Nederlands en Arabisch.

Master of Agribusiness / Department of Agricultural Economics / Kevin Gwinner / Companies must weigh the trade-offs of support strategies and choose between the effectiveness of meeting customer expectations and the cost of implementing product support tools and services. These support strategies can be critical to the success of a company and therefore, must provide efficient problem resolution in order to meet the satisfaction of the customer and retailer. This thesis reviews survey data collected from a large agricultural equipment company’s retailers on their satisfaction of product support tools and services provided by the company, and how the retailers utilize these product support tools and services when attempting to resolve a product issue. This evaluation of a company’s product support strategy leads to the identification of potential solutions to help maximize the efficiency of the problem resolution process, as well as minimize the opportunity costs and financial costs of product support sources.

abstract: Individuals in urban low-income areas often do not have easy access to large grocery stores and supermarkets, and regularly shop at nearby small/corner stores. These stores stock an abundance of processed, energy-dense, nutrient poor foods, combined with few nutrient-dense products. A high concentration of small/corner stores is associated with poor diets by nearby residents. Interventions that target small food stores for increasing the availability and sale of healthy foods have been launched in many communities, and validated survey instruments have been developed to evaluate the effectiveness of the interventions. However, in-store surveys can take up to thirty minutes to conduct and require individual visits from investigators. Many projects assess the food environment in a large number of stores spread across broad geographical areas, making in-person evaluations infeasible and resource-prohibitive. The purpose of this study was to develop a valid and feasible short survey that could be used in-store or over the phone to capture the healthfulness of corner stores. An adapted version of the Nutrition Environment Measures Survey for Corner Stores (NEMS-CS) was used to conduct store audits of 230 corner stores in four New Jersey cities. Audit results were used in exploratory factor analysis and item response theory to develop a seven-item survey. The short survey was highly correlated with the full survey (r=0.79), and the short survey's classification of stores as healthy (top 20% of scores) versus unhealthy (bottom 80% of stores) matched NEMS-CS categorizations in 88% of cases. A second round of audits was conducted in 100 corner stores to confirm the validity of the seven-item survey and to test its feasibility as a phone audit tool. Complete phone responses were obtained from 86% of stores. Response matches indicated that store owners did not distinguish between 2% and low-fat milk, and tended to round up the fruit and vegetable count to five if they had fewer varieties. The seven-item short survey discriminates between healthy and unhealthy stores and is feasible for use as a phone audit tool. / Dissertation/Thesis / Doctoral Dissertation Physical Activity, Nutrition and Wellness 2015