Pharmacometric model-based analysis using nonlinear mixed-effects models (NLMEM) has to date mainly been applied to learning activities in drug development. However, such analyses can also serve as the primary analysis in confirmatory studies, which is expected to bring higher power than traditional analysis methods, among other advantages. Because of the high expertise in designing and interpreting confirmatory studies with other types of analyses and because of a number of unresolved uncertainties regarding the magnitude of potential gains and risks, pharmacometric analyses are traditionally not used as primary analysis in confirmatory trials. The aim of this thesis was to address current hurdles hampering the use of pharmacometric model-based analysis in confirmatory settings by developing strategies to increase model compliance to distributional assumptions regarding the residual error, to improve the quantification of parameter uncertainty and to enable model prespecification. A dynamic transform-both-sides approach capable of handling skewed and/or heteroscedastic residuals and a t-distribution approach allowing for symmetric heavy tails were developed and proved relevant tools to increase model compliance to distributional assumptions regarding the residual error. A diagnostic capable of assessing the appropriateness of parameter uncertainty distributions was developed, showing that currently used uncertainty methods such as bootstrap have limitations for NLMEM. A method based on sampling importance resampling (SIR) was thus proposed, which could provide parameter uncertainty in many situations where other methods fail such as with small datasets, highly nonlinear models or meta-analysis. SIR was successfully applied to predict the uncertainty in human plasma concentrations for the antibiotic colistin and its prodrug colistin methanesulfonate based on an interspecies whole-body physiologically based pharmacokinetic model. Lastly, strategies based on model-averaging were proposed to enable full model prespecification and proved to be valid alternatives to standard methodologies for studies assessing the QT prolongation potential of a drug and for phase III trials in rheumatoid arthritis. In conclusion, improved methods for handling residual error, parameter uncertainty and model uncertainty in NLMEM were successfully developed. As confirmatory trials are among the most demanding in terms of patient-participation, cost and time in drug development, allowing (some of) these trials to be analyzed with pharmacometric model-based methods will help improve the safety and efficiency of drug development.

The purpose of this research is to identify the factors that influence organizational insiders to violate information security policies. There are numerous accounts of successful malicious activities conducted by employees and internal users of organizations. Researchers and organizations have begun looking at methods to reduce or mitigate the insider threat problem. Few proposed methods and models to identify, deter, and prevent the insider threat are based on empirical data. Additionally, few studies have focused on the targets or goals of the insider with organizational control as a foundation. From a target perspective, an organization might be able to control the outcome of a malicious insider threat attack. This research applied a criminology lens as an organization policy violation is, or resembles, a criminal activity. This research uses the Routine Activities Theory (RAT) as a guide to develop a theoretical model. The adoption of RAT was for its focus on the target and the protective controls, while still taking into account the motivated offender. The study identified the components of the model concerning insider threats, espionage, and illicit behavior related to information systems through literature. This led to the development of 10 hypotheses regarding the relationships of key factors that influence malicious insider activity. Data was collected using a scenario-based survey, which allowed for impartial responses from a third-person perspective. This technique has become popular in the field of criminology, as the effects of social desirability, acceptance, or repudiation will not be a concern. A pilot test verified the survey's ability to collect the appropriate data. The research employed Structural Equation Modeling (SEM) and Confirmatory Factor Analysis (CFA) techniques to analyze and evaluate the data. SEM and CFA techniques identified the fit of the model and the factors that influence information security policy violations. The result of the analysis provided criteria to accept the hypotheses and to identify key factors that influence insider Information System policy violations. This research identified the relationships and the level of influence between each factor.

Introdução: A Síndrome de Burnout representa um importante fenômeno psicossocial da atualidade que ocorre como consequência do estresse laboral crônico. Demonstra ser um fenômeno bastante complexo e multifatorial. Os profissionais de saúde estão entre os profissionais mais acometidos pelo Burnout, e entre eles, encontram-se os profissionais que atuam nos serviços de emergências, que estão trabalhando constantemente em contato direto nos eventos traumáticos. Devido essa particularidade do serviço, podem estar mais suscetíveis ao comprometimento de seu bem-estar físico e emocional e, somado as variáveis individuais e ambientais desenvolverem Burnout. Objetivo: Avaliar a validade fatorial do Maslach Burnout Inventory - Human Services Survey (MBI-HSS) na amostra, verificar a prevalência de Burnout em profissionais de saúde e sua relação com as variáveis laborais, individuais e consequências para a saúde (adoecimento). Métodos: Estudo transversal, analítico de abordagem quantitativa. Avaliaram-se 282 profissionais de saúde (equipe de enfermagem, médicos e radioperadores) atuantes nos serviços de urgência e emergência (serviço móvel, pré-hospitalar e hospitalar) de um município do interior do estado de São Paulo (Brasil). Procedeu-se a avaliação por meio da autoaplicação dos seguintes instrumentos: questionário sociodemográfico de condições de trabalho e saúde, o Inventário de Burnout de Maslach, Childhood Trauma Questionnaire, Inventário de Sintomas de Stress, Escala de Estresse Percebido, Psychiatric Screeming Questionnaire, Questionário de Estilo de Vida Fantástico, Escala Hospitalar de Ansiedade e Depressão e Escala de Reajustamento Social de Homes- Rahe. Os dados foram analisados por meio de análise fatorial confirmatória (AFC) e testes Qui-Quadrado de Pearson ou do teste Exato de Fisher para proceder os testes correlacionais. Adotou-se um nível de significância de 5%. Resultados: Os resultados obtidos mostram que o MBI-HSS é um instrumento confiável e fatorialmente válido para medir o Burnout. Todos os itens que compõem a escala apresentaram assimetria e curtose adequadas, atestando a sensibilidade psicométrica desses itens na amostra. A análise fatorial confirmou a estrutura trifatorial proposta para o MBI-HSS. Os itens 9, 12, 15 e 16 apresentaram peso fatorial abaixo do considerado adequado e foram removidos do modelo. O modelo hierárquico de segunda ordem com as modificações mencionadas apresentou ajustamento adequado aos dados e pode ser considerado o melhor e mais parcimonioso modelo testado de acordo com os índices da teoria da informação. O Burnout foi identificado em 13,2% da amostra e 24,5% dos participantes sofreram estresse precoce na infância, 11,3% apresentaram um estilo de vida considerado regular, 35,5% apresentaram ansiedade, 27,7% apresentaram depressão, 46,5% apresentaram sintomas de estresse e 37,9% apresentam fortes chances de adoecer e também apresentam transtornos mentais comuns. Houve associação entre Burnout e as seguintes variáveis: escolaridade, estresse precoce, sintomas de estresse, fase do estresse, tipo de sintomas, percepção de estresse, sofrimento mental comum, estilo de vida, ansiedade e depressão. As correlações foram evidenciadas entre Burnout e: tipo de serviço (p=0,032; OR: 0,187), escolaridade (p=0,029; OR: 2,313), percepção do estresse (p=0,037; OR: 1,67) e chances razoáveis de adoecer (p=0,031; OR: 0,279). Considerações finais: Os resultados confirmaram ambas as hipóteses do estudo, confirmando o modelo tridimensional que foi proposto para o MBI-HSS e demonstrando ser um instrumento confiável e fatorialmente válido para medir o Burnout e que algumas variáveis se associaram e/ou correlacionaram à variável desfecho, comportando-se como mediadoras do processo de desenvolvimento do Burnout / Introduction: Burnout syndrome represents an important psychosocial phenomenon of current that occurs as a consequence of chronic stress. It proves to be a very complex and multifactorial phenomenon. Health professionals are among the most affected by Burnout, and among them, are professionals working in emergency services who are constantly working in direct contact with traumatic events. Because of this particularity of service, they may be more susceptible to compromising their physical and emotional well-being and, in addition to individual and environmental variables, develop Burnout. Objective: To evaluate the factorial validity of Maslach Burnout Inventory - Human Services Survey (MBI-HSS) in the sample, to verify the prevalence of Burnout in health professionals and its relationship with labor and individual variables and consequences for health (illness). Methods: Cross- sectional, analytical, quantitative approach. Were avaluated a total of 282 health professionals (nursing staff, physicians and radio operators) working in the emergency services (mobile, prehospital and hospital services) of a city in the interior of São Paulo (Brazil). The following instruments were used: the sociodemographic questionnaire on working and health conditions, the Maslach Burnout Inventory, the Childhood Trauma Questionnaire, the Stress Symptom Inventory, the Self- Perceived Stress Scale, Psychiatric Screening Questionnaire, Fantastic Lifestyle Questionnaire, Hospital Anxiety and Depression Scale, and Homes-Rahe Social Readjustment Scale. Data were analyzed by means of confirmatory factorial analysis (CFA) and Pearson\'s Chi-square test or Fisher\'s Exact test to perform correlational tests. Adopted a significance level of 5%. Results: The results obtained show that MBI-HSS is a reliable and factorially valid instrument for measuring Burnout. All the items that compose the scale presented adequate asymmetry and kurtosis, attesting the psychometric sensitivity of these items in the sample. The factorial analysis confirmed the proposed three-factor structure for MBI-HSS. Items 9, 12, 15 and 16 presented a factorial weight below that considered not adequate and were removed from the model. The second-order hierarchical model with the mentioned modifications presented adequate adjustment to the data and can be considered the best and most parsimonious model tested according to the indices of information theory. Burnout was identified in 13.2% of the sample and 24.5% of the participants suffered from early childhood stress, 11.3% had a regular lifestyle, 35.5% presented anxiety, 27.7% presented depression, 46.5% had symptoms of stress and 37.9% % have a strong chance of becoming ill and also have common mental disorders. There was association between Burnout and the following variables: schooling, early stress, stress symptoms, stress phase, type of symptoms, perceived stress, common mental suffering, lifestyle, anxiety and depression. Correlations were evidenced between Burnout and: type of service (p = 0.032, OR: 0.187), schooling (p = 0.029, OR: 2,313), stress perception (p = 0.037, OR: 1.67) and reasonable chances of becoming ill (P = 0.031, OR: 0,279). Conclusions: The results confirmed both hypotheses of the study, confirming the three-dimensional model that was proposed for MBI-HSS and demonstrating that it is a reliable and factorially valid instrument to measure Burnout and that some variables were associated and / or Correlated with the outcome variable, behaving as mediators of the Burnout development process

A sociedade, em especial a mídia e os investidores, vem demonstrando certa preocupação com a qualidade das informações evidenciadas pelos entes públicos. Ao final do ano de 2012, algumas operações realizadas pelo governo federal brasileiro, com o objetivo de melhorar o superávit fiscal, não foram bem vistas por bancos e consultorias, que questionaram e ajustaram os números governamentais em seus relatórios. No caso brasileiro, a preocupação demonstrada pelo mercado é uma evidência de que esses agentes podem fazer uso das informações contábeis governamentais, além de se preocuparem com o processo gerador dessas informações. A literatura internacional destaca evidências sobre a capacidade preditiva das informações contábeis governamentais em relação aos mercados de títulos de dívida pública, em especial para os títulos dos governos subnacionais. Todavia, há poucas evidências na literatura acerca do papel das informações contábeis dos governos nacionais. A partir da observação dessa lacuna, a presente pesquisa buscou identificar com que intensidade as informações contábeis governamentais influenciam o apreçamento dos títulos públicos emitidos pelo governo federal brasileiro, negociados no mercado secundário. Nesta pesquisa, foram analisadas as negociações realizadas sem a participação direta do governo federal e registradas no Sistema Especial de Liquidação e de Custódia. Foram verificadas as capacidades preditiva e confirmatória das informações contábeis do governo federal brasileiro, no período compreendido entre 2003 a 2012, em bases mensais. Considerando a abordagem da value relevance, foram desenvolvidos modelos de preços e de retornos para as seguintes séries temporais: (i) LFT - Série Única; (ii) LTN - Série Única; (iii) NTN - Série B; (iv) NTN - Série C; e (v) NTN - Série F. Após a análise da presença de raízes unitárias nas séries de preços e / ou retornos, foram estimadas regressões utilizando o método dos mínimos quadrados ordinários, para as séries estacionárias, e os modelos ARIMAX e ARCH, para as séries não estacionárias. As análises realizadas evidenciaram que as informações contábeis do governo federal brasileiro possuem capacidade preditiva e / ou confirmatória no apreçamento dos títulos negociados no mercado secundário. Todavia, isso não significa que as informações contábeis governamentais são plena e diretamente utilizadas pelos investidores de títulos de dívida, mas que essas funcionam como proxies das informações analisadas pelos investidores no momento de negociar tais títulos, considerando esses investidores como agentes racionais limitados. Evidenciou-se ainda que, apesar da associação entre as informações contábeis governamentais e os valores do mercado secundário, características específicas dos títulos ou do emissor e fatores macroeconômicos exercem influência no apreçamento dos títulos. Apesar da consistência do modelo teórico utilizado, a principal limitação desta pesquisa se refere à não identificação do real modelo decisório dos investidores dos títulos brasileiros. / The society, especially media and investors, has shown some concern about the evidenced information quality by public entities. At 2012\'s end, aiming to improve the fiscal surplus, some operations carried out by the Brazilian federal government were not well seen by banks and consultancies, who questioned and adjusted the government numbers in theirs reports. In the Brazilian case, the concern shown by the market is evidence that these agents can make use of governmental accounting information in addition to worrying about the generating process such information. The international literature highlights evidence on the predictive ability of accounting information in relation to government markets bonds, particularly for securities of subnational governments. However, there is little evidence in the literature about the role of accounting information from national governments. From the observation of this gap, this research sought to identify to what extent accounting information influence the pricing of government bonds issued by the Brazilian federal government, which were traded on the secondary market. In this study, I analyzed the trades without the direct participation of the federal government and registered in the Sistema Especial de Liquidação e de Custódia. I studied the predictive and confirmatory capabilities of Brazilian federal government accounting information, in the period 2003-2012, on a monthly basis. Considering the value relevance approach, I developed prices and returns models for the following series: (i) LFT - Série Única; (ii) LTN - Série Única; (iii) NTN - Série B; (iv) NTN - Série C; and (v) NTN - Série F. After the analysis of the presence of unit roots in the series of prices and / or returns, regressions were estimated using the method of ordinary least squares, for stationary series, and ARIMAX and ARCH models, for non-stationary series. The analyzes showed that the accounting information of the Brazilian federal government have predictive and / or confirmatory capabilities in the pricing of secondary market bonds. However, this does not mean that government accounting information are fully and directly used by bond investors, but these act as proxies of analyzed information by investors at the time of trading such bonds, considering these investors as bounded rational agents. It was evident that although the association between accounting information government and secondary market values secondary market, specific characteristics of the bonds or issuer and macroeconomic factors influence the pricing of bonds. Despite the consistency of the used theoretical model, the main limitation of this research relates to the failure to identify the real decision model of investors of Brazilian securities.

The psychometric properties of a parent-completed developmental questionnaire for children at 6 years of age were investigated. Currently, few developmental screening instruments for 6-year-old children have been validated, and most available instruments are designed to be completed by teachers or professionals, who may not witness an optimal sample of child behavior. Thus a screening tool with robust psychometric properties is needed that can be completed by parents or caregivers who see the child across settings and time. A total of 169 children participated in this research. Data collection included online and paper completion during well child visits, in clinics, at preschool programs, and in parents' homes. A random subsample was asked to participate in reliability and convergent validity studies. Cronbach's alpha coefficient was used to measure internal consistency reliability. Results indicated a Cronbach alpha of agreement with the Child Development Inventory was used. A Confirmatory Factor Analysis with categorical data confirmed the 6-Year Ages and Stages Questionnaire domains, e.g., communication, personal social, fine motor, gross motor, and problem solving. Limitations of the current study and directions for future research are discussed. / 10000-01-01

Social action and communication constitute the building blocks in the organizational structure and the agents of change, as well as shape the relationships among working parties, that can become inconsistent, due to the same desire of two or more people for a similar resource which is in scarcity, introducing the issue of human relations in an organizational context and especially the issue of conflict prevention. In this study we investigate conflict in a group based on different parameters by providing some insights on what is the impact between these different factors when interrelated. The research is carried out by adopting the survey path and performing multivariate statistical analysis techniques where we simultaneously examine the relationship between latent factors in an organizational conflict environment.

abstract: The tendency for psychopathology to aggregate within families is well-documented, though little is known regarding the level of specificity at which familial transmission of symptomology occurs. The current study first tested competing higher-order structures of psychopathology in adolescence, indexing general and more specific latent factors. Second, parent-offspring transmission was tested for broadband domain specificity versus transmission of a general liability for psychopathology. Lastly, genetic and environmental mechanisms underlying the familial aggregation of psychopathology were examined using nuclear twin-family models. The sample was comprised of five hundred adolescent twin pairs (mean age 13.24 years) and their parents drawn from the Wisconsin Twin Project. Twins and parents completed independent diagnostic interviews. For aim 1, correlated factors, bifactor, and general-factor models were tested using adolescent symptom count data. For aim 2, structural equation modeling was used to determine whether broadband domain-specific transmission effects were necessary to capture parent-offspring resemblance in psychopathology above and beyond a general transmission effect indexed by the latent correlation between a parental internalizing factor and offspring P-factor. For aim 3, general factor models were fitted in both generations, and factor scores were subsequently extracted and used in nuclear twin-family model testing. Results indicated that the bifactor model exhibited the best fit to the adolescent data. Familial aggregation of psychopathology was sufficiently accounted for by the transmission of a general liability. Lastly, the best fitting reduced nuclear twin-family model indicated that additive genetic, sibling-specific shared environmental, and nonshared environmental influences contributed to general psychopathology. Parent-offspring transmission was accounted for by shared genetics only, whereas co-twin aggregation was additionally explained by sibling-specific shared environmental factors. Results provide novel insight into the specificity and etiology of the familial aggregation of psychopathology. / Dissertation/Thesis / Masters Thesis Psychology 2019

Innovative people seize the opportunity to make lives better and more comfortable, which contribute to economy growth and financial gain. Stakeholders study innovativeness of business students, in depth, to understand gender differences, and the factors affecting students' innovativeness. Literature explains how males and females differ in their proneness to guilt and shame. However, a model that explains the dynamic of guilt, shame, and gender on innovativeness will help make policies to improve students' innovativeness. This study describes factor analysis approach to examine the TOSCA-3 subscales guilt, shame, and the DNA instrument of innovativeness. It also describes the measurement invariance across gender for each construct, and for the full measurement model to identify the differences between genders. Moreover, this study examines the total effect of gender on innovativeness, which includes the direct effect, and indirect effect via guilt and shame. The results indicated that guilt is positively associated with innovativeness, and shame and gender are negatively associated with innovativeness. This dissertation can be freely accessed and downloaded from (http://etd.byu.edu/).

More than 8 million of America's middle and high school students are struggling readers. Two-thirds of all eighth graders read below grade level, and the reading scores of high school students have not improved since 1974. Low literacy levels affect learning in all subject areas and impede student opportunity for future success. The No Child Left Behind Act of 2001 and the accountability measures associated with the Act have heightened public awareness of the deficiency in adolescent literacy. School districts are choosing to respond in one of two ways. Some school districts are opting to invest in teacher-proof curricula that negate the effect of the teacher. Other districts are opting to invest in the professional development of their teachers. The goal of this study was to support district efforts to provide strategic professional development opportunities for teachers by investigating the effects of teacher efficacy for instructional strategies, classroom management and student engagement on ninth and tenth grade students' reading achievement. Teachers with high efficacy were hypothesized to impact students' reading gains positively. Student contextual variables of prior achievement, socioeconomic status, ethnicity and grade were controlled for in the study. The participants included 2,061 students in 23 classrooms taught by 110 teachers in two school districts on the west coast of Florida. The results indicated that there was no statistically significant relationship between teacher efficacy and student reading achievement gains. The only variables of statistical significance were race (white vs. Non-white) and grade. As more researchers use the findings and recommendations from this study to inform new investigations of the complex relationship between teacher efficacy and student achievement in reading, teacher educators, policymakers, teachers and administrators will be better informed as they continue to work towards improving the reading achievement scores of and narrowing the achievement gaps in adolescent literacy.

The aim of this thesis was to describe fatigue, functional limitations due to fatigue and health in patients with chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD), as well as to compare patients with individuals from the general population and to test if pulmonary rehabilitation can reduce fatigue and functional limitations, and thus improve health. A further aim was to test the Fatigue Impact Scale (FIS) among patients with COPD. Two studies (I, II) had a descriptive comparative design with data from 36 and 151 patients with COPD respectively, and 37 and 95 individuals respectively, randomly selected from the general population. One study (III) was a randomised pre-test post-test study with 12 patients with COPD randomised to 12 weeks’ pulmonary rehabilitation and 14 patients in a control group. In a further study (IV), the FIS was tested for validity and reliability among 296 patients with COPD who reported fatigue. Assessments: Structured questions frequency, duration and severity of fatigue, functional limitations due to fatigue with FIS, six minutes’ walking distance, hand grip strength, functional performance and satisfaction with Canadian Occupational Performance Measure and health with St George’s Hospital Respiratory Questionnaire and Short Form-36. Almost half of the patients with COPD had a problem with fatigue every day and experienced fatigue as a severe symptom. More than 44% reported that fatigue was one of the worst symptoms. The experience of fatigue was related to the patients’ functional performance and health perceptions. Patients with COPD experienced a higher frequency, longer daily duration and greater severity of fatigue than individuals from the general population. After a 12 week pulmonary rehabilitation programme, there were no statistically significant differences between the patients randomised to the rehabilitation group and those in the control group. The patients in the rehabilitation group improved walking distances, performance and satisfaction with regard to their own selected activities compared with baseline. Confirmatory factor analysis on the three-factor model proposed for FIS showed that the fit of the model was not acceptable. Further validation of the FIS resulted in a removal of 15 items (FIS-25) and support for Pipers´ theoretical framework of subjective manifestations of fatigue including physical, emotional and cognitive dimensions and a general behavioural factor. The internal consistency, sensitivity and stability correlations of FIS-25 were satisfactory. In conclusion, fatigue is a major concern among patients with COPD, impacting on functioning and health. Interventions with 12 weeks’ pulmonary rehabilitation might not be effective enough to reduce fatigue and the functional limitations due to fatigue. More research is needed to solve the symptom burden of fatigue and its impact on functioning and health in patients with COPD.