<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>

<p> This curriculum was developed to train social workers, foster parents, and supportive adults who work with Transitional Age Youth (TAY). This curriculum is designed to train on the best practices in the areas of team collaboration and building and permanency. The TAY population faces immediate adulthood and lacks emotional and developmental skills to be successful in society. Youth who have a team of supportive adults and a permanent connection to a committed adult have a greater chance of overcoming the negative odds. This curriculum focuses on training supportive adults (social workers, foster parents, and mentors) about the emotional needs of TAY including communication skills, coping skills, and decision making. These developmental needs have been overlooked in program implementation on state and federal levels. Research suggests that these skills are most effective when learned in a natural setting by adults TAY know and trust. This thesis will review the TAY population, the challenges, and the current responses to the problem. The second part of the thesis will include the curriculum modules and outline a facilitator's guide for each module.</p>

Dynein, a microtubule motor protein complex, plays critical roles in cell-cycle progression in many systems. The dynein accessory factor <i>LIS1</i>, first identified as a causative factor of the human brain disorder Lissencephaly when lost in one copy, is essential for a majority of the cellular activities of dynein. To gain insight into the in vivo functions of LIS1, we characterized a male-sterile allele of the <i>Drosophila</i> homolog of human <i>LIS1</i>. We found defects in centrosome migration and attachments in <i>Lis-1</i> spermatocytes and spermatids. The localization pattern of LIS-1 protein throughout <i>Drosophila</i> spermatogenesis mirrors that of dynein, and dynein recruitment to the nuclear surface and spindle poles is severely reduced in <i>Lis-1</i> male germ cells. We previously identified <i>asunder</i> (<i>asun</i>) as a novel regulator of dynein localization during <i>Drosophila</i> spermatogenesis. We present a model in which <i>Lis-1</i> and <i>asun</i> cooperate to regulate dynein localization and centrosome positioning during <i>Drosophila</i> spermatogenesis. Expression of <i>asun</i> is much higher in <i>Drosophila</i> ovaries than in testes. We therefore sought to determine whether ASUN plays roles in oogenesis. We characterized the female germline phenotypes of flies homozygous for a null allele of <i>asun</i> (<i>asun^d93</i>). <i>asun^d93</i> females lay very few eggs, and a majority of these eggs are ventralized, possibly as a result of mislocalization of <i>gurken</i> transcripts, a dynein-regulated step, within <i>asun^d93</i> oocytes. Dynein localization and dynein-mediated processes are disrupted in <i>asun^d93</i> oocytes. Taken together, our data indicate that <i>asun</i> is a critical regulator of dynein during <i>Drosophila</i> gametogenesis. As <i>asun</i> plays a conserved role in regulating dynein during <i>Drosophila</i> gametogenesis, we sought to identify other proteins that cooperate with <i>asun</i> to perform this function. We utilized a set of publicly available 2nd chromosome deficiency lines to initiate a dominant modifier screen to identify genes that could enhance or suppress the <i>asun</i> male phenotype when lost in one copy. Further testing will be required to identify and characterize the individual genes within these deficiency intervals that cooperate with <i>asun</i> to regulate dynein during <i>Drosophila</i> spermatogenesis.

The role of Four jointed box 1 (FJX1) in colorectal cancer (CRC) is presented in this dissertation. FJX1 was identified as a candidate gene for regulating tumor formation in CRC as it was inhibited in rectal cancers after one week treatment with celecoxib. FJX1 mRNA and protein are upregulated in human CRC, and high expression of FJX1 is associated with poor patient prognosis. Novel FJX1 antibodies and expression vectors were developed and used to characterize recombinant FJX1 in vitro. In vivo, FJX1 promotes tumor formation by increasing tumor cell proliferation and vascularization. In vitro, conditioned media from FJX1 expressing cells promoted endothelial cell capillary tube formation in a HIF1-α dependent manner. In addition to these experimental observations, microarray expression profiling of CRC cells with manipulated FJX1 expression is also presented. In sum, these results support the conclusion that FJX1 is a novel regulator of tumor progression, due in part, to its effect on tumor vascularization.

<p>The purpose of the current study was to conduct an investigation about parenting perceptions in an early childhood separation program for toddlers. Due to the important role of parents, caregivers, and teachers for the children in this program, 67 participants completed the Parent Behavior Importance Questionnaire-Revised (PBIQ-R), a questionnaire applicable for both parents and non-parents based upon the parent development theory (PDT). This first quantitative glimpse into how a program of this nature conceptualizes parenting demonstrated significant results when comparing parents and teachers within the parenting dimensions of Bonding, General Welfare and Protection, Responsivity, and Sensitivity and when comparing caregivers and teachers within the dimension of negative parenting. Other inquiries included investigating the difference between non-parent and parent participant responses and how age of participants may impact responses to the PBIQ-R. This study also gave participants the opportunity to share thoughts, reactions, and specifically explain what influenced their responses on the questionnaire. This study has the potential to impact programs of this nature in terms of providing evidence based research for staff development, furthering dialogue amongst parents, caregivers, and teachers, and guiding programmatic changes. </p>

Entry into kindergarten marks the beginning of formal education and has the potential to pave the way for future academic success or failure. The transition into school is expected to be a challenging time for children and their families and these challenges are likely to be enhanced for children with developmental delays (DD). Despite the importance of this period, school transition for children with DD has not been well researched. Twenty-nine parents of preschool aged children with DD, and 17 parents of children without DD participated in three one-hour phone interviews throughout the course of the child’s transition into school. The Double ABCX Model was used as a framework for the current study to measure the outcome of transition (X) (using quality of life and school readiness), which is influenced by characteristics of the child (A), resources (B) and parental perceptions (C). The objectives of the study were to: 1) describe a sample of children and their families who were transitioning into school, investigate the similarities and differences between children with DD and without DD, and investigate changes over the course of transition; and 2) determine which factors contribute to a successful transition for children with and without DD. Results showed that children with DD had lower adaptive and higher maladaptive behaviour; and were utilizing more formal services and participating in less social activities than children without DD. Parents of children with DD reported lower family income, higher parental stress, different patterns and types of perceptions, and different use of coping. Very few variables changed over the course of transition. There were no significant predictors of the child’s quality of life; and only adaptive behaviour predicted all aspects of school readiness, with family income also predicting the child’s social and emotional well-being. Implications and directions for future research are discussed. / Thesis (Master, Psychology) -- Queen's University, 2008-09-03 00:38:05.333

During the preschool years, children across all cultures that have been tested seem to come to an explicit understanding of the fact that mental states are related to but ultimately separate from the reality that they are meant to represent. This understanding is sometimes called a representational theory of mind (RTM). I hypothesized that the neurotransmitter dopamine (DA) would be associated with RTM development in preschoolers. I selected DA because several lines of work now suggest that the medial prefrontal cortex (mPFC) is critical for RTM and its development. In both animals and humans DA has been shown to play a crucial role in the development of frontal regions. In the first study, I recorded the spontaneous eyeblink rates (EBR) of 60 preschool aged children (range: 48-62 months) who were also given tasks that assessed their RTM and response-conflict executive functioning (RC-EF) skill. In both animal and human models EBR increases with available DA, and thus EBR can be used as an indirect measure of DA functioning. Regression analyses showed that EBR predicted unique variance in RTM and one Stroop-like measure of RC-EF performance after controlling for the effects of age and language ability. In the second study, I also administered a battery of RTM and RC-EF tasks to 79 preschool aged children (range: 42- 54 months). I recorded their spontaneous EBR in addition to collecting genetic material which was processed for allelic variations of DA turnover, transport, and receptor genes. Polymorphisms of catechol-O-methyl transferase gene (COMT) and the dopamine receptor D4 gene (DRD4) were associated with children’s RTM performance. These findings provide preliminary evidence that DA functioning is associated with RTM development in the preschool years. Results suggest that there may be a selective effect of DA on RTM ability. / Thesis (Master, Psychology) -- Queen's University, 2009-09-08 12:45:24.627

Discrimination of a word-final stop consonant voicing contrast, /bid/-/bit/, by 12 infants (6-8 and 10-12 months) and 6 adults was investigated in a category-change conditioned headturn procedure across three stimulus conditions: full cue (FC), burst and closure cues neutralized (BCCN), and vowel duration neutralized (VDN). Adults performed at ceiling levels for all three conditions. No infant age differences were observed. However, there was some evidence that infants benefitted from the presence of redundant acoustic cues (FC $>$ BCCN, but FC $ le$ VDN). Infants performed significantly better with the VDN stimuli indicating that final release burst information is more salient to infants than vowel duration differences for this /bid/-/bit/ contrast. This result differs from findings of prior research on adult and infant perception of such contrasts which showed a prominent use of the preceding vowel duration cue. This finding suggests that vowel duration becomes useful as a cue to final stop voicing with linguistic sophistication.

To investigate the lineage relationships that are postulated to underlie the origins of phenotypically different neurons, Thy-1.1 $ leftrightarrow$ Thy-1.2 and hNF-L $ leftrightarrow$ +/+ mouse chimeras were examined for the distribution of the two neuron genotypes. Throughout the nervous system, a finely variegated pattern of mosaicism was always observed and, in each chimera, similar genotype proportions were found in all analysed neuronal populations of the peripheral and central nervous system. These findings require that the chimera neuroectoderm was a homogeneous mix of the two genotypes and that different neuronal phenotypes do not arise clonally from a small number of prespecified progenitors. Rather it would seem that all progenitors contribute daughter cells to all of the neuronal subpopulations at each level of the neuroaxis.

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