<p dir="ltr">Psychological assessment contributes important information that strengthens the understanding of individual characteristics and capabilities, and often is intended to screen for mental disorder. However, assessment measures reflect the cultures in which they originate. As such, it is worth investigating whether these measures can aptly assess the experiences of those who come from outside of the dominant culture and/or those who may be in intercultural transition, for whom expressions of distress may reflect distinct cultural norms. One culturally relevant measurement of distress for South Asian women is the Tension Scale. Given the novelty of this scale and its limited use and testing in representative populations, the current study examines the underlying factor structure of the Tension Scale and the impact of language of administration on symptom reporting on various psychological scales in English and in Bangla. Using a community sample of South Asian immigrant women (<i>N =</i> 247), we found that a three factor model best fits the Tension Scale in both English and Bangla. Furthermore, we found that language of administration had a modest impact on symptom reporting. The results of this study suggest that some aspects of the psychological constructs of interest are universally experienced, while their manifestation and reporting are subtly influenced by cultural and linguistic factors. Overall, this research builds on the preliminary literature surrounding the Tension Scale to examine its latent structure and the impact of language of administration on responding patterns. Implications for psychological assessment within this community are discussed.</p>

This thesis document seeks to find a common thread between three of my plays; The Tides of Aberdeen, The Death of Beth, and Highway Play, written during my MFA program at The University of Texas at Austin. Each play deals with the theme of disappearance in a different way. The lens with which I will examine each play can be defined as “the presence of absence”. I define the presence of absence as having three necessary elements; a liminal space, a palpable void and an unseen tension. The essay also deals with the presence of absence in The Walls by Griselda Gambaro. By defining the presence of absence and how it works in each of my plays I hope to develop a rewriting strategy that incorporates structuring a plot. Also included in this thesis document are the three plays I examine in my thesis, The Tides of Aberdeen, The Death of Beth and Highway Play. / text

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This thesis is a description and analysis of work I produced at the University of New Orleans during my Graduate studies. My work centers on the theme of tension, human interaction, and the vulnerability and dominance of those interactions. I create paintings, drawings, and prints to articulate my theme of tension. These works of art are meant to describe the feeling of tension through my mark making.

Thesis advisor: Dorothy Jones / Background/Purpose: The growth of clinical research trials to improve patient outcomes has significantly affected nursing and the implementation of the nurse research coordinator role. The purpose of this study was to explore how the research nurse coordinator (RNC) perceives this role and associated responsibilities for patients enrolled in a clinical research study and associated problems and ethical tensions that emerge during the delivery of a clinical research protocol. The research questions were 1) How does the RNC perceive his or her role responsibility for patients enrolled in a clinical trial? 2) Does the nurse experience ethical tension during the implementation of the RNC role? Methods: A qualitative descriptive study was used to answer the questions. RNCs from a large Northeastern teaching hospital participated in 1:1 interviews with the investigator. Data were analyzed for this study according to the methods described in Lincoln and Guba (1985) for qualitative research and presented as themes. Results: Eleven RNC participated in the study. Data from the interviews were distilled into five final themes: 1) The RNC develops intentional and mutual relationships with patients and their families that fosters trust; 2) In coming to know the patient the RNC as a clinical expert is able to advocate for the unique needs of patients enrolled in clinical trials; 3) The RNC is respected by the team for his or her skills and as a result is able to practice autonomously; 4) In reflecting on past experiences, RNCs identify with medical science philosophy of cure as opposed to nursing’s one of caring/healing and; 5) In reflecting on some aspects of clinical trials, RNCs recognize ethical tensions and as such are able to influence protocol implementation and future studies. Knowledge gained from this study provides insights about the RNC role perception and highlighted multiple dimensions of care delivery faced by nurses who practice as an RNC. The study participants described practicing in the RNC role with clarity about the role and described practicing with autonomy and independence. / Thesis (PhD) — Boston College, 2016. / Submitted to: Boston College. Connell School of Nursing. / Discipline: Nursing.

Oxygen tension and biomechanical signals are factors that regulate inflammatory mechanisms in chondrocytes. We examined whether low oxygen tension influenced the cells response to TNFα and dynamic compression. Chondrocyte/agarose constructs were treated with varying concentrations of TNFα (0.1 to 100 ng/ml) and cultured at 5% and 21% oxygen tension for 48 hours. In separate experiments, constructs were subjected to dynamic compression (15%) and treated with TNFα (10 ng/ml) and/or L-NIO (1 mM) at 5% and 21% oxygen tension using an ex-vivo bioreactor for 48 hours. Markers for catabolic activity (NO, PGE2) and tissue remodelling (GAG, MMPs) were quantified by biochemical assay. ADAMTS-5 and MMP-13 expression were examined by real-time qPCR. 2-way ANOVA and a post hoc Bonferroni-corrected t-test were used to analyse data. TNFα dose-dependently increased NO, PGE2 and MMP activity (all p < 0.001) and induced MMP-13 (p < 0.05) and ADAMTS-5 gene expression (p < 0.01) with values greater at 5% oxygen tension than 21%. The induction of catabolic mediators by TNFα was reduced by dynamic compression and/or L-NIO (all p < 0.001), with a greater inhibition observed at 5% than 21%. The stimulation of GAG synthesis by dynamic compression was greater at 21% than 5% oxygen tension and this response was reduced with TNFα or reversed with L-NIO. The present findings revealed that TNFα has dose-dependent catabolic activities and increased production of inflammatory mediators at low oxygen tension. Dynamic compression or the NOS inhibitor downregulated the inflammatory effects induced by TNFα, linking both types of stimuli to reparative activities. Future therapeutics should develop oxygen-sensitive antagonists which are directed to interfering with the TNFα induced pathways.

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