This study explores the experience of couples, married five or more years, of the Preventative and Relationship Enhancement Program (PREP). This study examined specific skills the couplesâ gleaned from the workshop, as well as, the relational impact that PREP had on the couples' marriage. Six couples were surveyed, ranging in age from mid-forties to mid-fifties and ranging in years married from 8.5 to 29 years. Content analysis was employed to examine the data. Two themes emerged—motivation and impact, and results were organized under these themes. Clinical implications were identified concerning working with couples married five or more years in therapy and future research is discussed. / Master of Science

AN ABSTRACT OF THE THESIS OF MARCUS C. ABSTON, for the Master of Science degree in ZOOLOGY, presented on 18 April 2017, at Southern Illinois University Carbondale. TITLE: EFFECTS OF OLFACTORY ENRICHMENT ON AFRICAN CHEETAHS (ACINONYX JUBATUS) MAJOR PROFESSOR: Dr. Carey Krajewski Environmental enrichment has been an essential part of felid husbandry in zoos, serving to reduce both physiological and psychological stress. Olfactory enrichment is one of many interventions used to prevent stereotypic behavior caused by stress in felids. However, little research has been done on this practice. The purpose of this study was to compare behavioral responses of four captive African cheetahs to six types of commercial fragrances used as olfactory enrichment stimuli. Three of these fragrances are marketed as “men’s cologne” and three as “women’s perfume”. The fragrances were also categorized as musky, spice, and floral types. Behavioral responses were recorded by live observations during 36 bouts at the St. Louis Zoo. There was a significant difference between cheetahs’ interaction time with male and female fragrances; they seemed to prefer male colognes. However, there was no significant difference in interaction time among fragrance types. Engagement behaviors varied among individuals (e.g. sniffing, scent rolling, pawing), but were similar to those reported by previous authors. These findings suggest that commercial fragrances may be a useful option for African cheetah olfactory enrichment.

Master of Science / Department of Food Science / Randall Phebus / Shiga toxin-producing Escherichia coli (STEC) are Gram negative rod-shaped bacteria that are causative agents of foodborne disease. While natural flora in the gastrointestinal tracts of bovines and other ruminants, certain enterohemorrhagic STEC strains cause serious or even fatal disease when ingested. In 2012, the USDA identified six STEC serotypes (O26, O45, O103, O111, O121, O145) as particularly dangerous (in addition to O157:H7; STEC-7) based upon data from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention and designated them adulterants in raw ground beef, its component materials, and non-intact raw beef products. This research addressed three important components for detection of the recently declared STEC adulterant serotypes. Part one evaluated traditional E. coli O157 selective enrichment media, and additional media types and additive levels, for STEC-7 cultural amplification. Buffered peptone water (BPW), universal pre-enrichment broth (UPB), tryptic soy broth (TSB), TSB with 8 mg/L novobiocin, Escherichia coli broth (EC), and EC with 5, 8, and 20 mg/L novobiocin added were evaluated. EC broth performed equally well compared to non-selective media types, but addition of novobiocin supplement, typically used to suppress overgrowth by background flora, suppressed non-O157 STEC growth. Higher levels of novobiocin inhibited most serotypes. Part two tested the ability of transport media to maintain original STEC-7 concentrations as samples are transported to analytical laboratories. Transport media BPW, maximum recovery diluent (MRD), and Cary-Blair transport medium (CB) were inoculated with individual STEC serotypes and held at 4 or 10 °C for 72 h. Growth/survival curves indicated that CB maintained STEC-7 populations nearest to inoculation levels during storage at either temperature. Part three, part of a field study determining STEC-7 prevalence rates for cattle, hides and dressed carcasses, compared qualitative results generated by two molecular-based detection systems (BioControl Assurance GDS® and Neogen NeoSeek™), analyzing 576 selectively enriched beef carcass sponge samples collected from a commercial processing facility. The GDS and NeoSeek systems indicated 28.7 and 6.1 percent presumptive positive rates for STEC-7, respectively. It was speculated the higher GDS prevalence rate was due to false-positive determinations from the mixed culture enrichments, as viable STEC-7 cells were not recovered by immuno-magnetic bead culture isolation.

No description available.

The subject study identifies some theoretical, methodological and program considerations that set the conditions in which the basic parameters, criteria of adequacy, and methodological rule and instruments are established. The study then sequences and analyzes the content of previous materials related to staff development in the literature as (1) activities, (2) processes, (3) purposes and goals, and (4) concepts and models, beginning with materials most distant from the definitive paradigm being sought and progressing to efforts most closely approaching the ends being pursued in this study. Finally, the study identifies the structural components (the categories) that must be contained in an effective staff development program. Further, it presents a taxonomy for ordering the terms identified to modify the word "development" in common usage; attempts an exhaustive listing of all the functions that must be performed to carry out any organizational mission for an educational institution; develops a format that adequately articulates the subject matter of staff development into the necessary and sufficient content categories; designs a paradigmatic model capable of ordering the variables that must be considered for incorporation into a staff development program while providing a conceptual reference system for relating and integrating the goals of the organizational development and staff development programs, and while identifying the documentation instruments that insure the necessary "paper trail" which make measurement, assessment, evaluation and valuation possible; discusses the various types of evaluation applicable to the paradigmatic model; reviews some extra-program considerations that influence the conditions in which staff development takes place and affects the success or failure of the programming; presents a process model for the design/evaluation of a staff development program; and develops an instrument (of questions to be answered) to be used for deciding whether the program now designed is a "good" program which, when implemented should accomplish the ends toward which the plans were directed.

O enriquecimento ambiental pode ser considerado uma condição que proporciona aumento da estimulação sensorial, cognitiva e motora, que levaria, a curto e longo prazos, a mudanças comportamentais importantes. O objetivo deste trabalho foi avaliar os efeitos da exposição ao enriquecimento ambiental (1) na ansiedade e memória aversiva, ambos no labirinto em cruz elevado, (2) na memória operacional espacial no labirinto aquático de Morris, e (3) na neurogênese hipocampal, em ratos. Os animais foram expostos ao enriquecimento ambiental a partir do desmame (22 dias), onde permaneceram até o último dia de teste (17º mês). Nesse período, foram submetidos ao Labirinto em Cruz Elevado (LCE) no 3º e 15º mês, e ao Labirinto Aquático de Morris (LAM) no 9º e 16º mês. Uma semana antes da exposição ao labirinto aquático, receberam uma injeção intraperitonal de bromodeoxyuridina (BrdU). Vinte e quatro horas e trinta dias após essa injeção grupos independentes de animais foram sacrificados e seus encéfalos processados imunohistoquímicamente para revelar o BrdU. O enriquecimento ambiental produziu um efeito ansiolítico em animais jovens, mas não nos idosos. A memória aversiva de animais jovens e idosos não se alterou. No labirinto aquático, enquanto os animais expostos ao ambiente enriquecido por 9 meses apresentaram uma estratégia mais eficiente de busca em relação aos respectivos controles, os animais expostos ao ambiente enriquecido por 15 meses apresentaram mais flexibilidade para se adaptar as novas situações; no entanto, o enriquecimento ambiental parece não alterar diretamente o desempenho na memória operacional espacial. Em relação a neurogênese hipocampal, o enriquecimento foi capaz de aumentar cerca de 2 vezes o número de novas células; no entanto, a exposição ao labirinto aquático foi capaz de aumentar a taxa de sobrevivência de novos neurônios / Environmental enrichment in laboratory animals is a housing condition that provides enhanced sensorial, motor and social stimulation as compared to maintenance in standard laboratory cages. It has been claimed that this kind of stimulation improves cognition. The aim of this study was to investigate the effects of exposure to environmental enrichment on anxiety and aversive memory in the elevated plus maze, spatial working memory in the Morris\' water maze, and hippocampal neurogenesis. The animals were subjected to environmental enrichment from weaning (22 days) up to the last test (17 months). During this period, they were tested in the 3rd and 15th months of life in the elevated plus maze, and in the 9th and 16th months of life in the Morris\' water maze. A week before exposure to the water maze, the animals received an intraperitoneal injection of BrdU. Twenty-four hours and 30 days after the injection independent groups of animals were sacrificed for performing immunohistochemistry. Exposure to the enriched environment rendered young animals, but not elderly, less anxious. In addition, the aversive memory of both groups remained unchanged along aging. In the Morris\' water maze, animals exposed to the enriched environment showed a more effective searching strategy to find the hidden platform on the first trial than the controls, when tested at 9 months. In addition, the flexibility to deal with novel situations at 15 months was greater for animals exposed to the enriched environment. Even though, exposure to the enriched environment did not alter performance of spatial working memory. Environmental enrichment doubled hippocampal neurogenesis, and the survival of the new neurons was greater when the subjects were exposed to the Morris\' water maze task

Espécies típicas de sub-bosque são pouco estudadas quanto à sua aplicação na restauração e enriquecimento de florestas degradadas. São em geral arvoretas ou arbustos finais de sucessão, tolerantes ao sombreamento, capazes de germinar, se estabelecer e completar seu ciclo de vida neste ambiente, representando importante fonte de recursos como alimento e abrigo para polinizadores e dispersores. Porém, não são amplamente utilizadas nos plantios de restauração por não serem espécies de dossel, e em paisagens altamente fragmentadas há poucas chances de chegarem naturalmente em áreas em processo de restauração. Visando contribuir para o desenvolvimento de técnicas de plantio e enriquecimento em áreas degradadas ou em processo de restauração que favoreçam a recuperação do subbosque, este trabalho teve o objetivo de avaliar a sobrevivência e o crescimento de mudas de 10 espécies típicas de sub-bosque plantadas em quatro diferentes condições: plantio inicial de restauração, áreas em processo de restauração com 5 e 10 anos de idade e um fragmento remanescente degradado. Todas as áreas de estudo localizam-se na região de Batatais, SP e estão inseridas no Bioma Mata Atlântica, mais especificamente na fisionomia de Floresta Estacional Semidecidual. As mudas foram plantadas em janeiro de 2012 e observadas durante 15 meses quanto ao crescimento e sobrevivência. As áreas de estudo foram caracterizadas quanto aos atributos químicos, físicos e granulométricos do solo, cobertura e florística do dossel. A análise de componentes principais (PCA) mostrou que entre estas variáveis a que teve maior relação com o crescimento relativo das mudas foi a cobertura do dossel. A área que teve maior eficiência na introdução das espécies típicas de sub-bosque, considerando crescimento e sobrevivência, foi o plantio inicial de restauração, onde 3 espécies foram muito eficientes e 6 foram eficientes. No plantio com 5 anos 1 espécie foi muito eficiente e 4 foram eficientes, porém, cresceram bem menos que no plantio inicial. Os resultados apontaram ainda que apenas 3 espécies foram eficientes na área em processo de restauração de 10 anos e nenhuma no fragmento remanescente degradado, mostrando a dificuldade de se realizar o enriquecimento de áreas com alto nível de sombreamento, e de se reverter o processo de degradação nessas áreas, reforçando a importância da utilização de alta diversidade de espécies e grupos funcionais nos plantios de restauração e da conservação das áreas florestais remanescentes. / Species typical from understory layers are poorly studied regarding their use in restoration and enrichment of degraded forests. They are generally treelets or shrubs of final successional phase, shade tolerant, able to germinate, establish and complete their life cycle in this environment. They are an important source of resources as food and shelter to pollinators and dispersers. Despite their ecological importance, these plants have not been widely used in restoration plantings because they are not canopy species. In fragmented landscapes, these species have little chance of being recruited naturally into areas undergoing restoration. In order to contribute to the development of techniques of planting and enrichment in degraded areas or areas being restored and promote the recuperation of understory layers, this study evaluated the survival and growth of seedlings of 10 understory species planted under four different conditions: initial planting; 5-year-old restoration area; 10- year-old restoration area; and degraded forest fragment. All sites are located in the region of Batatais, SP, Brazil, inside the Atlantic Forest biome, specifically in the Seasonal Semidecidual Forest type. Seedlings were planted in January 2012 and measured during 15 months for their survival and growth. Study sites were characterized regarding soil chemical and physical attributes and granulometry, and canopy composition and coverage. Principal components analysis (PCA) showed that relative growth of seedlings was more strongly related to canopy coverage. Considering survivorship and growth, introduction of understory species was more successful at the initial planting site, where three species were very successful and six were successful. In the 5-year-old restoration area, one species was very successful and four were considered successful, however, they grew considerably less than at the initial planting site. Results point out that only three species were successful at the 10-year-old restoration area and none at the forest fragment, which shows the difficulty of enriching areas with high levels of shading, and thus, the difficulty of reversing degradation of forest remnants. This reinforces the importance of using high diversity of species and functional groups in restoration plantings and also of conserving remnant forests.

A group of socially-housed chimpanzees, maintained in a zoo facility, were given the opportunity to access each of several purpose-designed and built enrichment items. Each item was made freely available in the chimpanzees' regular setting, with their normal activities available. The time members of the group spent engaging with each item gave an assessment of their relative preference for the items. The group were shown to have the greatest preference for a foraging enrichment item (Screwfeeder) and the least preference for an audiovisual enrichment item (TV/Video). Individual preferences for the items were evident. The chimpanzees were then taught to operate a weighted lever to get access to an item. Once all chimpanzees had operated the lever for access to the items, the number of lever operations required for access to each item was systematically doubled over a series of 3 hr sessions until the chimpanzees did not gain any access to that item for two consecutive sessions. One item was presented for two series of increases. The group response rates for an item increased with increased response requirement and then decreased with further increases, reflecting data from individuals in other research. The highest response requirement that maintained the group behaviour differed over the items. The number of times an item was accessed (consumption) was plotted against the response requirement (price) on logarithmic coordinates. Lines fitted to the data (demand functions) were shallowest for a foraging enrichment (Screwfeeder) and steepest for the audio enrichment (Musicbox). There were not enough data points to fit a function for the audiovisual enrichment. Differences in individual's demand within the group were evident. In general, the rank order of preference for the items and the rank order based on the parameters of the demand functions (slope or elasticity and initial intensity) was broadly the same. Three individual chimpanzees were exposed to two series of increasing response requirement for access to the Screwfeeder whilst housed alone, in one hour sessions. Response rates were again bitonic and the linear demand functions for these individuals were steeper (more elastic) than the functions fitted to data for group responding and differed idiosyncratically from the data for these individual when responding as part of the group. Thus the change of social setting had a different impact on the behaviour of each of the individuals. These results show that an animals‟ demand for a commodity is altered by the environment in which it is tested. ii Overall the research provides the first example of operant methodology in a zoo setting with a group of chimpanzees. It is also the first research to show differential responding for access to different enrichment items by a group and how this relates to their preference (based on time allocation) for those items.

HOME ENVIRONMENT AND CREATIVE AND ARTISTIC ACTIVITY by WILLIAM ALAN BARSH Under the direction of Melody Milbrandt ABSTRACT This study sought to delve into and analyze the home environment and its relation to creative and artistic activity. Three artistically exceptional third grade art students, their parents, and their previous year teacher were interviewed to collect data relating to students and their home environments. Factors related to a student’s home environment such as the origins of their artistic inspirations, environment in which they made art at home, materials available to them, and the cultural values and beliefs transmitted to them in their homes were looked at to see how they influenced a child’s artistic activity. Data was collected through interviews and teacher observations and combined with a review of literature to compile strategies that might be useful for parents to use to influence their children's artistic activity. INDEX WORDS: Home environment, Creativity, Artistic activity, Families, Artistic influence, Parents, Children

Rooting and exploring are two behaviours pigs in the wild spend considerable time doing. When kept in pens with limited access to bedding materials stress can originate and often lead to undesired behaviours. The purpose of this study was to investigate whether environmental enrichment in terms of ropes and an activity ball containing piglet food, can provide an outlet for their natural behaviours and thus reduce undesired behaviours. In total, 141 pigs were used and divided into three groups, control-, activity ball- and rope groups. The observation methods used were 1/0 recording and instantaneous recording with 15 second intervals. In the rope group a significant difference was seen in the interaction with enrichment, as it was higher on day 1. Between the three groups, a decrease in ear-, tail- and equipment biting was seen in the two enriched groups on day 1. On day 3 these difference could only be seen between the control group and the other two groups in equipment biting. However, few data ware collected and so we cannot confirm our hypotheses, concerning whether the environmental enrichments decreased the undesirable behaviours or not. However, most of our findings are in compliance with earlier studies as we among other things found that the rope worked better than the activity ball and that the interest of the enrichments decreased with time.