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This study combines both descriptive, qualitative analyses of caregiver-child interaction and fine-grained, quantitative analyses of the communicative intentions expressed in conversations between caregivers and their children in two cultural settings. Participants in the study were 10 James Bay Cree families from the northern Quebec communities of Eastmain and Wemindji and 10 Mainstream families from the greater Montreal area. Data were derived from several sources including two-hour videotaped samples of naturalistic caregiver-child interaction, interviews of the caregivers, and informal observation notes. The data from all sources were compared and contrasted to produce qualitative descriptions of the normative structure of caregiving, caregiving activities, and communicative interaction in the two cultural settings. Transcripts of the videotaped data were coded for communicative intention using the Inventory of Communicative Acts - Abridged (Ninio et al., 1994) and were analyzed quantitatively to permit direct cross-cultural comparison of the communicative interaction in the Cree and Mainstream cultures. Three continua of variation between the two cultures in the style of communicative interaction emerged from the qualitative analyses: reactive vs. interactive, comprehension vs. elicitation, and directive vs. child-centred. Comparisons of the communicative intentions expressed in caregiver-child interactions revealed both similarities and differences between the two cultures. The patterns of communicative interaction and the distribution of communicative intentions reflected differences in the structure of caregiving and the stated beliefs and values of the caregivers in the two cultural groups. The implications of the findings for the social interaction theory of language acquisition are discussed.

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The Notch and TGF13 signaling pathways have been shown to play important roles in regulating endothelial-to-mesenchymal transition (EndMT) during cardiac morphogenesis. EndMT is the process by which endocardial cells of the atrioventricular canal and the outflow tract repress endothelial cell phenotype and upregulate mesenchymal cell phenotype. EndMT is initiated by inductive signals emanating from the overlying myocardium and inter-endothelial signals and generate the cells that form the heart valves and atrioventricular septum. The Notch and TGFf3 pathway are thought to act in parallel to modulate endothelial phenotype and promote EndMT. Vascular endothelial (VE) cadherin is a key regulator of cardiac endothelial cell phenotype and must be downregulated during EndMT. Accordingly, VE-cadherin expression remains stabilized in the atrioventricular canal and outflow tract of Notchl-deficient mouse embryos, while activation of the Notch or TGFP pathways results in decreased VE-cadherin expression in endothelial cells. However, the downstream target gene(s) that are involved in regulating endothelial cell phenotype and VE-cadherin expression remain largely unknown. In this thesis the transcriptional repressor Slug is demonstrated to be expressed by the mesenchymal cells and a subset of endocardial cells of the atrioventricular canal and outflowtract during cardiac morphogenesis. Slug is demonstrated to be required for cardiac development through its role in regulating EndMT in the cardiac cushion. Data presented in Chapter 6 further suggests that Slug-deficiency in the mouse is compensated for by a increase in Snail expression after embryonic day (E) 9.5, which restores EndMT in the cardiac cushions. Additionally, the Notch pathway, via CSL, directly binds and regulates expression of the Slug promoter, while a close Slug family member, Snail is regulated by the TGFB pathway in endothelial cells. While Notch does not directly regulate Snail expression, Notch and TGFB act synergistically to regulate Snail expression in endothelial cells. It is further demonstrated that Slug is required for Notch mediated EndMT, binds to and represses the VE-cadherin promoter, and induces a motile phenotype. Collectively the data demonstrate that Notch signaling directly regulates Slug, but not Snail, expression and that the combined expression of Slug and Snail are required for cardiac cushion morphogenesis.

Two groups of 5- to 8-year-olds, and a comparison sample of adults, were examined in an effort to explore the developing relationships between false belief understanding and an awareness of the individualized nature of personal taste, on the one hand, and, on the other, a maturing grasp of the interpretive character of the knowing process. In Study 1,20 children between 5 and 8, and in Study Two, a group of 15 adults, all behaved in accordance with hypotheses by proving to be indistinguishable in their good grasp of the possibility of false beliefs, and in their common assumption that differences of opinion concerning matters of taste are legitimate expressions of personal preferences. By contrast, only the 7- and 8-year-old children and adults gave evidence of recognizing that ambiguous stimuli allow for warrantable differences of interpretation. Study 3 replicated and extended these findings with a group of 48 5- to 8-year-old subjects, again showing that while 5-year-olds easily pass a standard test of false belief understanding, only children of 7 or 8 ordinarily evidence an appreciation of the interpretative character of the knowing process.

<p> Despite plentiful research on the physical, psychological, and emotional demands on adult child caregivers, there are few studies that highlight developmental issues in the adult child/dependent parent dyad. This study was designed to highlight the dependency factor in this dyad, thus addressing the gap in the literature. With family systems theory, attachment theory, and role conceptualizations constituting the bases for the study, research questions addressed how adult child caregivers experience parental dependency and how dependency affects the caregiving/care-receiving dynamic. Ten volunteer participants were interviewed, and the results were analyzed using a variation of the van Kaam method of data analysis in which themes emerged from qualitative phenomenological data. Results of this study revealed 6 main themes; in descending order of the number of participants endorsing each, the themes were as follows: caregivers did not receive enough help from family/friends (n = 10), caregiving evolved on its own (n = 8), expectations changed (n = 8), roles changed (n = 8), dementia caused changes (n = 7), and new relationship provided benefits (n = 5). The first 2 themes indicated the ways in which adult child caregivers experience parental dependency. The remaining 4 themes illuminated participant-reported changes following the addition of dependency to the adult child/parent dynamic. Findings from this study can influence social change by promoting appropriate support interventions that support the physical and mental health of the caregiver population.</p>

<p> Human development involves numerous interactions between the individual and social typecasts, family values, cultural traditions, media stereotypes, and a variety of external sources placing normative values and expectations on human development. These interactions can provide strong gender role typecasting, especially in developing adolescents, and sets boundaries for social interaction, support, and peer group associations (Hall-Lande, Eisenberg, Christenson, &amp; Sztainer, 2007). One critical phase of development occurs between pre-pubescence and adolescence (Greenfield, Keller, Fuligni, &amp; Maynard, 2003). The focus of this study is on female adolescent development and the effects of social/parental stressors utilized to force conformity and describe appropriate gender expectations to achieve essentials for success. The presence of gender role stressors during development will be utilized to establish the existence and effects of gender role conflict. The manifestation of Gender Role Conflict (GRC) occurs when external perceptions, gained through parental or social influences, formalize within developing females and creates incongruence between individual goals and social forces pressures acting on the developmental process (Hoffman, 2006a). Female adolescence provides a challenge to individual awareness or submission to social compliance when forming developmental pathways to adulthood. All women do not necessarily experience gender role stress during adolescence development. However, for those who do, gender role related stress creates varied levels of dissonance between personal determination and social context (Fine, 2011). GRC is the resultant stresses which often mark the difference between successful developmental achievements or confounding socially prescribed developmental attitudes with unresolved conflict and elevated stress (Small &amp; Memmo, 2004). This study will examine gender role conflict as it develops from intra-familial stress, social structure, and regional cultural influences and the resultant negative effect in achieving individuation, positive sense of self, and attainment of life goals (Hertzman, 2002). Stress has the potential to develop positive or negative connotations during development. However, this study focuses on the negative aspects of stress related gender role conflict and the long term effects on development (Dickerson, 2004). The researcher will utilize qualitative comparative case study design to examine the development of, or effects from parental, social, and cultural influences on adolescent female development and goal achievement (Martin &amp; Fabes, 2009). The experiences of adult women who currently occupy gender variant career fields will be examined in order to identify the personal or social influences that affected career decisions. This research is not a study of career fields. Rather, it is a study of women who by career choice have broken career related social stereotypes and were more likely to have experienced gender role stress during development (Worell &amp; Goodheart, 2006). Social and familial developmental expectations are primarily predicated on gender role assignment as specified by birth sex (Fine, 2011). The resultant developmental gender role conflict emerges when external developmental influences are not congruent with individual values or goals (Allison &amp; Schultz, 2004). Gender role preconceptions, as determined by birth sex alone, have been framed without regard to individual differences or consideration of the developing female's self-expression or experience as she matures (Barnett, Biener, &amp; Baruch, 1997). As such, the adolescent female is unwittingly placed in narrowly defined categories formed by societal and familial influences without regard to her individual characteristics or her voice (Anthony, Holmes, &amp; Wood, 2007). The experiences of adult women as related to adolescent development, parental or social influences apparent, and/or existence of GRC prior to entering gender variant career fields will be obtained and discussed within this dissertation.</p>