A unique cultural artifact, the bondage club known as Club DOMINION, existed in Muncie, Ind., from 1997 to 2001.This project is a 25,000-word work of literary journalism detailing the four years of DOMINION's existence and the inner lives of its participants. Using techniques of interviews, observation, and immersion journalism inspired by the work of Tom Wolfe, Gay Talese, and John McPhee, it tells the story of the founder of the club, known as Moth, and her close-knit circle of friends.The project also acts as an ethnographic study of a distinctive subculture operating in a conservative Midwestern community. / Department of Journalism

The present study investigated the extent to which right and left hemisphere stroke patients, within an acute care rehabilitation unit, differ in neuropsychological symptomatology as reported on a self-report instrument.The subjects were 90 patients admitted to an acute care rehabilitation unit within a midwestern hospital. Two groups of 30 were obtained on the basis of stroke location, either right or left hemisphere. In addition, a group of 30 orthopedic patients were selected to serve as a comparison group.Data was collected using the Neuropsychological Symptom Inventory (Rattan, Dean & Rattan, 1989). A discriminant analysis revealed two discriminant functions which were used to classify group membership. Slightly more than 86% of both left hemisphere stroke patients and orthopedic patients were correctly classified. However, only 46% of right hemisphere stroke patients were accurately predicted. The results clearly support the ability to differentiate the groups and suggest a homogeneous character of the left hemisphere stroke and orthopedic groups. The right hemisphere group appears heterogeneous in make-up. Further statistical analysis revealed no significant difference (a<.05) between stroke groups when examining a factor related to emotional/depression symptoms. However, when stroke patients were compared to orthopedic patients on this factor, a high degree of significance was revealed (p<.001).These results suggest that right hemisphere patients cannot be treated as if they make up a single disorder group within the rehabilitation setting. The use of a self-report measure may prove beneficial with this group is assessing the level of neuropsychological impairment and to make modifications in treatment planning. Additionally, the existence of depression within the stroke group suggest that rehabilitation should focus more on these reactions within the first few weeks post-stroke. / Department of Educational Psychology

The present study investigated hemispheric lateralization and the use of serial versus global processing of facial stimuli in a recognition task. The subjects were 19 male and 29 female undergraduate students. Identi-Kit faces which varied on four features (hair, eyes, mouth, and chin) were tachistoscopically presented. The accuracy of the subjects' responses were recorded. Analyses of variance suggested that subjects did not differ in use of inner or outer details, but did differ in use of upper and lower details. The data suggested a top-to-bottom order of processing for stimuli presented in both visual fields, with the most accurate recognition based on the hair, eyes, mouth, and chin, in that order.

The current study utilized a priming paradigm in conjunction with a visual halffield presentation to determine if the right hemisphere contributes to pragmatic processing. Primes included conversational dialogues that either performed a speech act or did not. The targets identified the speech act and were presented to one of the two visual fields (lvf-RH or rvf-LH). It was hypothesized that the right visual field-left hemisphere (rvf-LH) would be more accurate and faster at identifying targets regardless of the script type that preceded it and the left visual field-right hemisphere (lvf-RH) would be significantly more accurate and faster at identifying targets when preceded by a script that performed the identified speech act. Results indicated that the lvf-RH was more accurate and faster at identifying a target regardless of the type of script that preceded it, while the rvf-LH was differentially affected by the type of script. / Department of Psychological Science

No description available.

Previous research into everyday conception of personal relationships has been sparse and fragmented, and the various specialisms fail to deal with the broader issue of interpersonal understanding. Following review of the research and theoretical background, with particular reference to changing paradigms, a holistic approach is proposed for an exploration linking the content of explanation and reflection about relationships with the incidence of conceptualising. The methodology, employing content analysis, illustrative studies and a musical analogue, is outlined. Initially focusing on verbalised conception in the form of accounts, a procedure of 'simulated correspondence with a confidant' was employed to facilitate unrestricted disclosures in general descriptions of relationships. Three coding schemes were devised for content analysis of accounts (and for independent use in subsequent research). These pertained to: (1) specific concepts and themes; (2) explanation of interpersonal effect and significance; and (3) intersubjectivity in accounts. Overall indications from the content analyses are that accounts are characterised by superficiality of detail and insight, and concentrate more on basic viability, and on social and visible aspects of personal relationships than on intimate and psychological aspects. The limitations of content analysis, and the deficiencies disclosed, suggest attention should be given to omission in content as much as inclusion, and also to the prior issues of motivation and the extent of relationship "mindfulness". A musical analogy (with particular reference to representation, knowledge and appreciation) is employed to advance the exploration beyond the linguistic aspects of conception to a more general model of relationship awareness. A second set of studies turn to (1) the frequency and occasioning of reflection on relationships; (2) reappraisal over time; (3) interest in relationships compared with other subjects of general interest; and (4) factors which disincline conscious relationship deliberation and analysis. There are indications throughout of a sex difference, with men as less reflective, less inclined to participate in providing accounts, and less interested in personal relationships. Disincentives are suggested, and a theory of 'relationship mindlessness' is discussed, connecting impoverishment of content and incidence with the late emergence of 'personal relationships' as a subject of formal scholarly enquiry in psychology. It is proposed that such mindlessness, and associated disincentives, are implicated in relationship problems, and that extension of relationship education, knowledge and interest are indicated. The practicalities and possible form of learning about relationships and consciousness-raising were explored in a trial relationship understanding course. Counter-indicat ions for such consciousness-raising were evaluated by analogy with music appreciation.

This doctoral work consists of several studies that investigated the relationship between language lateralization and structural asymmetries found in auditory and language-related regions of the human brain. Language lateralization was determined via the intracarotid Sodium Amytal procedure in epilepsy patients. In study 1, three groups of patients were investigated: a left speech group (LSG); a right speech group (RSG); and a bilateral speech group (BSG). Two auditory cortex regions: Heschl's gyrus (HG) and the planum temporale (PT) were labelled on the magnetic resonance imaging scan of each subject. Additionally, an automatic voxel-based morphometry (VBM) analysis was performed. The overall findings suggested that the structural asymmetries found in the auditory regions did not clearly and directly relate to language lateralization. The VBM analysis, however, revealed a grey matter concentration difference in the region of Broca's area favoring the left hemisphere (LH) in the LSG, and the right hemisphere (RH) in the RSG. That structural difference did relate to language lateralization and was further investigated in studies 2 and 3. Previously collected positron emission tomography data were examined in these two studies. Three regions of interest (ROI) analyses and one group average analysis were performed. Activation related to various speech tasks was examined. The ROI analyses revealed a significant activation difference favoring the LH for two targeted speech-task subtractions but only for the LSG. The group analysis, in contrast, revealed that the LSG showed a functional asymmetry favoring the LH, and that the RSG showed a functional asymmetry favoring the RH. Overall, the present results provided only partial evidence for a relationship existing between structural asymmetry in Broca's area and language lateralization. The structural asymmetries found in HG and the PT, in contrast, did not clearly and directly relate to language

Doctor of Philosophy / Despite the number of bilinguals and speakers of English and Mandarin worldwide, up till now there have been no investigations of stuttering in any of the Chinese languages, or in bilinguals who speak both English and Mandarin. Hence, it is not known whether stuttering behavior in Mandarin mimics that in English, or whether speech restructuring techniques such as Prolonged Speech produce the same fluency outcomes in Mandarin speakers as they do for English speakers. Research into stuttering in bilinguals is available but far from adequate. Although the limited extant studies show that bilinguals who stutter (BWS) may stutter either the same or differently across languages, and that treatment effects in one language can automatically carry over to the other language, it is unclear whether these findings are influenced by factors such as language dominance or language structure. These issues need to be clarified because speech language pathologists (SLPs) who work with bilinguals often do not speak the dominant language of their clients. Thus, the language of assessment and treatment becomes an important clinical consideration. The aim of this thesis was to investigate (a) whether the severity and type of stuttering was different in English and Mandarin in English-Mandarin bilingual adults, (b) whether this difference was influenced by language dominance, (c) whether stuttering reductions in English generalized to Mandarin following treatment in English only, and (d) whether treatment generalization was influenced by language dominance. To achieve these aims, a way of establishing the dominant language in bilinguals was a necessary first step. The first part of this thesis reviews the disorder of stuttering and the treatment for adults who stutter, the differences between English and Chinese languages, and stuttering in bilinguals. Part Two of this thesis describes the development of a tool for determining language dominance in a multilingual Asian population such as that found in Singapore. This study reviews the complex issues involved in assessing language dominance. It presents the rationale for and description of a self-report classification tool for identifying the dominant language in English-Mandarin bilingual Singaporeans. The decision regarding language dominance was based on a predetermined set of criteria using self-report questionnaire data on language proficiency, frequency of language use, and domain of language use. The tool was administered to 168 English-Mandarin bilingual participants, and the self-report data were validated against the results of a discriminant analysis. The discriminant analysis revealed a reliable three-way classification into English-dominant, Mandarin-dominant, and balanced bilinguals. Scores on a single word receptive vocabulary test supported these dominance classifications. Part Three of this thesis contains two studies investigating stuttering in BWS. The second study of this thesis examined the influence of language dominance on the manifestation of stuttering in English-Mandarin BWS. Results are presented for 30 English-Mandarin BWS who were divided according to their bilingual classification group: 15 English-dominant, four Mandarin-dominant, and 11 balanced bilinguals. All participants underwent comprehensive speech evaluations in both languages. The English-dominant and Mandarin-dominant BWS were found to exhibit greater stuttering in their less dominant language, whereas the balanced bilinguals evidenced similar levels of stuttering in both languages. An analysis of the types of stutter using the Lidcombe Behavioral Data Language showed no significant differences between English and Mandarin for all bilingual groups. In the third study of this thesis, the influence of language dominance on the generalization of stuttering reductions from English to Mandarin was investigated. Results are provided for seven English-dominant, three Mandarin-dominant, and four balanced bilinguals who underwent a Smooth Speech intensive program in English only. A comparison of stuttering between their pretreatment scores and three posttreatment interval scores indicated that the degree of fluency transfer from the treated to the untreated language was disproportionate. English-dominant and Mandarin-dominant participants showed greater fluency improvement in their dominant language even if this language was not directly treated. In the final chapter, Part Four, a hypothesis is provided to explain the findings of this thesis. A discussion of the limitations of the thesis and suggestions for future research are also presented. The chapter concludes with a summary of the main contributions that this thesis makes to the field of stuttering in bilinguals.

Doctor of Philosophy / Despite the number of bilinguals and speakers of English and Mandarin worldwide, up till now there have been no investigations of stuttering in any of the Chinese languages, or in bilinguals who speak both English and Mandarin. Hence, it is not known whether stuttering behavior in Mandarin mimics that in English, or whether speech restructuring techniques such as Prolonged Speech produce the same fluency outcomes in Mandarin speakers as they do for English speakers. Research into stuttering in bilinguals is available but far from adequate. Although the limited extant studies show that bilinguals who stutter (BWS) may stutter either the same or differently across languages, and that treatment effects in one language can automatically carry over to the other language, it is unclear whether these findings are influenced by factors such as language dominance or language structure. These issues need to be clarified because speech language pathologists (SLPs) who work with bilinguals often do not speak the dominant language of their clients. Thus, the language of assessment and treatment becomes an important clinical consideration. The aim of this thesis was to investigate (a) whether the severity and type of stuttering was different in English and Mandarin in English-Mandarin bilingual adults, (b) whether this difference was influenced by language dominance, (c) whether stuttering reductions in English generalized to Mandarin following treatment in English only, and (d) whether treatment generalization was influenced by language dominance. To achieve these aims, a way of establishing the dominant language in bilinguals was a necessary first step. The first part of this thesis reviews the disorder of stuttering and the treatment for adults who stutter, the differences between English and Chinese languages, and stuttering in bilinguals. Part Two of this thesis describes the development of a tool for determining language dominance in a multilingual Asian population such as that found in Singapore. This study reviews the complex issues involved in assessing language dominance. It presents the rationale for and description of a self-report classification tool for identifying the dominant language in English-Mandarin bilingual Singaporeans. The decision regarding language dominance was based on a predetermined set of criteria using self-report questionnaire data on language proficiency, frequency of language use, and domain of language use. The tool was administered to 168 English-Mandarin bilingual participants, and the self-report data were validated against the results of a discriminant analysis. The discriminant analysis revealed a reliable three-way classification into English-dominant, Mandarin-dominant, and balanced bilinguals. Scores on a single word receptive vocabulary test supported these dominance classifications. Part Three of this thesis contains two studies investigating stuttering in BWS. The second study of this thesis examined the influence of language dominance on the manifestation of stuttering in English-Mandarin BWS. Results are presented for 30 English-Mandarin BWS who were divided according to their bilingual classification group: 15 English-dominant, four Mandarin-dominant, and 11 balanced bilinguals. All participants underwent comprehensive speech evaluations in both languages. The English-dominant and Mandarin-dominant BWS were found to exhibit greater stuttering in their less dominant language, whereas the balanced bilinguals evidenced similar levels of stuttering in both languages. An analysis of the types of stutter using the Lidcombe Behavioral Data Language showed no significant differences between English and Mandarin for all bilingual groups. In the third study of this thesis, the influence of language dominance on the generalization of stuttering reductions from English to Mandarin was investigated. Results are provided for seven English-dominant, three Mandarin-dominant, and four balanced bilinguals who underwent a Smooth Speech intensive program in English only. A comparison of stuttering between their pretreatment scores and three posttreatment interval scores indicated that the degree of fluency transfer from the treated to the untreated language was disproportionate. English-dominant and Mandarin-dominant participants showed greater fluency improvement in their dominant language even if this language was not directly treated. In the final chapter, Part Four, a hypothesis is provided to explain the findings of this thesis. A discussion of the limitations of the thesis and suggestions for future research are also presented. The chapter concludes with a summary of the main contributions that this thesis makes to the field of stuttering in bilinguals.

Thesis (PhD) - Swinburne University of Technology, Brain Sciences Institute, 2006. / Typescript. [A thesis submitted for requirements of the degree of Doctorate of Philosophy, Faculty of Life and Social Sciences, Brain Sciences Institute, Swinburne University of Technology - 2006]. Includes bibliographical references (p. 234-270).