A mail questionnaire was employed to measure the attitudes of Virginia resident hunters toward game laws and regulations, sportsmanship in hunting, game law violations, game law enforcement, and Virginia game wardens; to determine background and hunting-related correlates of attitudes; and, to compare the ability of three social psychological models to predict the attitudes of Virginia hunters toward game laws and regulations. An initial mailing of a 17-page questionnaire and three follow-up reminders yielded a usable return of 1,245 (40.0 percent) questionnaires. A comparison of responses of respondents and telephone-interviewed nonrespondents suggested that nonresponse bias was negligible. Attitudes toward game laws and regulations, sportsmanship in hunting, game law enforcement, and Virginia game wardens were generally favorable. Mean attitude scores were in the upper range of possible mean scores. Attitudes toward game law violations were bimodally distributed. Approximately one-half of the sample was opposed to game laws violations, 11 percent were neutral, and 36.6 percent favored game law violations. Few background and hunting-related variables were associated or correlated with most or all of the five attitudes. Important negative correlates of most or all of the five attitudes were reported irritating 1977-78 warden contacts; reported irritating warden contacts in the past; the number of times a respondent reported having been bothered by a warden contact; receiving a warning or a citation for violation of a game law or regulation during the period 1973-1978; and, the number of warnings and citations received for violation(s) of game laws and regulations from 1973 to 1978. The three social psychological models tested were Fishbein’s beliefs-based model, Rosenberg’s value importance-perceived instrumentality model, and a modification of Fishbein's subjective behavioral norm. Population-modal beliefs were employed in Fishbein's beliefs-based model, Rosenberg's model employed hunting activities, and Fishbein's subjective norm model contained modal referents. Fishbein's beliefs-based model had a correlation of 0.29 with attitudes toward game laws, Rosenberg's model had a correlation of 0.12 with attitudes, and Fishbein’s subjective norm had a correlation of 0.30 with attitudes. The hypothesis that the models were related in an additive manner to attitudes toward game laws was not supported. Rosenberg's model did not achieve significance in a multiple regression model. Fishbein's two models met a retention criterion in the final model but were also interactive as evidenced by the significance of the interaction term. Fishbein’s two models appear to have both additive and multiplicative influences on attitudes toward game laws and regulations. The final model accounted for 16 percent of the variance in attitudes toward game laws and regulations. Fishbein’s beliefs-based model was supported by a superior performance over a model created by investigator-developed beliefs. A modification of Fishbein’s model of a subjective behavioral norm and a measure of a generalized subjective attitude norm each accounted for nine percent of the variance in attitudes toward game laws and regulations. Hunter perceptions of warden contacts as being irritating, the number of perceived irritating contacts with wardens, and receiving a citation for violation of game laws and regulations appear be the only significant hunting-related factors identified in this study related to unfavorable attitudes among hunters towara game laws and regulations. / Ph. D.

Hunting is a very common instability exhibited by rail vehicles operating at high speeds. The hunting phenomenon is a self excited lateral oscillation that is produced by the forward speed of the vehicle and the wheel-rail interactive forces that result from the conicity of the wheel-rail contours and the friction-creep characteristics of the wheel-rail contact geometry. Hunting can lead to severe ride discomfort and eventual physical damage to wheels and rails. A comprehensive study of the lateral stability of a single wheelset, a single truck, and the complete rail vehicle has been performed. This study investigates bifurcation phenomenon and limit cycles in rail vehicle dynamics. Sensitivity of the critical hunting velocity to various primary and secondary stiffness and damping parameters has been examined. This research assumes the rail vehicle to be moving on a smooth, level, and tangential track, and all parts of the rail vehicle to be rigid. Sources of nonlinearities in the rail vehicle model are the nonlinear wheel-rail profile, the friction-creep characteristics of the wheel-rail contact geometry, and the nonlinear vehicle suspension characteristics. This work takes both single-point and two-point wheel-rail contact conditions into account. The results of the lateral stability study indicate that the critical velocity of the rail vehicle is most sensitive to the primary longitudinal stiffness. A method has been developed to eliminate hunting behavior in rail vehicles by increasing the critical velocity of hunting beyond the operational speed range. This method involves the semi-active control of the primary longitudinal stiffness using the wheelset yaw displacement. This approach is seen to considerably increase the critical hunting velocity. / Master of Science

A questionnaire was sent to 1,506 randomly selected agricultural producers and homeowners in Virginia during 1996 to determine perceptions about deer damage and management during 1995 (response rate 52%). Overall, 58% of respondents experienced damage by deer to their plantings during 1995. Producers (71%) were more likely to experience deer damage than homeowners (37%) Among farmers, producers of soybeans, tree fruits, and peanuts were most likely to experience damage and generally rated it as being more severe than that reported by others. Regardless of perceptions regarding damage, most (70%) individuals believed that Virginia's deer population should be reduced to some degree in the future. Respondents' perceptions regarding the level of damage influenced their opinion about the level to which deer populations should be reduced; those perceiving greater damage were increasingly likely to desire a dramatic decrease in Virginia's deer population. Similarly, perception about the level of damage affected a respondent's general opinion about deer; respondents who experienced severe damage also were more likely to believe that deer are a nuisance. Overall, a majority (84%) of respondents favored recreational hunting as a means to manage deer in Virginia. A respondent's gender and the situation in which they were raised (e.g., urban, rural, farm) were strongly related to preference for management options. Female respondents and those raised in more urban areas were more likely to favor "non-lethal" management options (i.e., contraception, trapping and relocating individuals, allowing nature to take its course, fencing, and repellents) than were male respondents and those raised in rural environments. Deer density in a respondent's county of residence was directly related to perception regarding deer damage and desire for future population management (e.g., reduction versus increase). A pilot study was conducted to assess the impacts of refugia on traditional deer management efforts via recreational hunting during 1996. Two study areas in Virginia were selected and, using information supplied by the county tax office, questionnaires were sent to individuals who owned land in the respective areas to determine distribution of land-uses, extent and severity of deer damage, and role of recreational hunting within each site. Deer damage was strongly related to land-use; respondents who owned lands on which some agricultural activity occurred were more likely to experience damage than respondents who owned non-agricultural lands. Respondents in each study area harvested more deer from their land than the mean harvest rate for the county in which they resided. Thus, it appears that, in some situations, deer harvest did not reduce damage to an acceptable level. The presence of local refugia theoretically had the potential to contribute to this relationship, but more research is needed to make definitive conclusions. / Master of Science

Psychologists have begun to assess the effectiveness of interventions focused on assisting unemployed subjects to find work. One of the most comprehensive of these is the Job Club (i.e., Azrin et al., 1980, 1981), a multi-component treatment package which has proven effective in helping various populations to gain employment. The present study utilized three treatment groups to assess the efficacy of the group component of the Job Club program. Subjects (N=32), present or former psychiatric patients, were assigned to either a Job Club (group), a Job Bank (individualized Job Club), or a Standard Treatment (control) condition. It was hypothesized that Job Club condition subjects would show the greatest improvements over treatment on self-report measures of job-hunting assertiveness, self-efficacy, anxiety, depression, and hostility, on measures of interview skills, and on job-finding and rehospitalization related outcome measures. The Job Club condition was also predicted to be the most cost-effective. The Standard Treatment group was hypothesized to show the least improvement on the self-report, interview, and outcome measures and to be least cost-effective. It was predicted that Job Bank condition results would be intermediate between those of the other two groups on these measures. Finally, it was hypothesized that attendance at Job Club or Job Bank sessions would correlate positively with job-finding. Partial support was found for the hypothesis that Job Club subjects would show the greatest improvements in interview behavior. None of the other hypotheses was supported. Possible reasons for the present findings were discussed, including constraints external to the program itself, indicating the importance of a systems analysis approach to interventions such as this. It was concluded that future research should.focus on developing an assessment methodology so that treatment programs appropriate to particular situations may be formulated. / Ph. D.

Private lands play a crucial role in protecting at-risk species in the Southeast, and finding ways to increase landowner participation in conservation efforts is essential. I surveyed non-industrial private forest owners in Mississippi to assess how their motivations for land management relates to their willingness to manage for at-risk species. I also assessed if landowners who hunt are more willing to manage for at-risk species. Results showed that landowners are motivated by a sense of stewardship for the land, but there is a lack of awareness about at-risk species. Although the effect size was minimal, there is a significant relationship between landowners who hunt and a willingness to manage for at-risk species. I also surveyed Mississippi landowners about chronic wasting disease (CWD) in white-tailed deer. Overall, there was moderate concern about CWD, but it had a minimal effect on landowners’ motivation for managing their land.

Yes

The purpose of this thesis is to discuss the constitutional right of the Métis to hunt in the Canadian legal consciousness in the four levels of court that heard the Powley case and comment on the judicial approach and observations. After a comparative analysis of the precedent setting Powley decision, a brief examination is undertaken of two recent cases regarding Métis rights in Canada: Laviolette and Willison. <p>Ultimately, the purpose of this research has been to show the treatment of Métis and First Nations Aboriginal rights have not been treated equally and to confront the challenges that this analysis raises. Section 35 of the Canadian Constitution has not provided the protections to Aboriginal rights that one would expect. In order to make changes to the legal system I have identified some fundamental problems with Aboriginal law in Canada associated with the identification of the source of those rights. <p>Further, I have made some suggestions on the approaches that could be taken to change the direction of the Supreme Court of Canada regarding its interpretations of Métis rights.

The purpose of this thesis is to discuss the constitutional right of the Métis to hunt in the Canadian legal consciousness in the four levels of court that heard the Powley case and comment on the judicial approach and observations. After a comparative analysis of the precedent setting Powley decision, a brief examination is undertaken of two recent cases regarding Métis rights in Canada: Laviolette and Willison. <p>Ultimately, the purpose of this research has been to show the treatment of Métis and First Nations Aboriginal rights have not been treated equally and to confront the challenges that this analysis raises. Section 35 of the Canadian Constitution has not provided the protections to Aboriginal rights that one would expect. In order to make changes to the legal system I have identified some fundamental problems with Aboriginal law in Canada associated with the identification of the source of those rights. <p>Further, I have made some suggestions on the approaches that could be taken to change the direction of the Supreme Court of Canada regarding its interpretations of Métis rights.

The content of this dissertation is the life and œuvre of Johann Georg de Hamilton, a relatively obscure painter of hunts, portraits of horses, hunting still-lifes and hunting scenes. Johann Georg de Hamilton (1672-1737), a painter belonging to a famous Scottish family, was influenced in his creative work considerably by the 17th -century Flemish painters of still-lifes and hunting scenes. He was active predominantly in Vienna and in South Bohemia, in service of Adam František, Prince of Schwarzenberg, as well as Karl VI of House Habsburg. He created hunting-themed paintings and portraits of horses to members of both the secular and the ecclesiastic aristocracy of the lands of the Austrian Empire, such as the Houses of Liechtenstein, Serényi, Althan and others. This dissertation is the very first attempt at a monographic analysis of the life and œuvre of this painter. In addition to new bibliographic data, it offers an in-depth insight into the relationship between the person who commissioned his work, Adam František, Prince of Schwarzenberg, and the painter Johann Georg de Hamilton on the basis of extant correspondence, and also attempts to present the painter's œuvre in a cultural-historical and artistic context. The dissertation mentions the first exhibition of a collection of Hamilton's work,...

Despite the rationalism implicit in contemporary thinking, in many parts of the world like South Africa, belief in witchcraft exists and is a core belief, influencing the world-view of many people. In these contexts, witchcraft is believed to be responsible for every social experience including, illnesses, sickness and death. The witch-figure, imbued with jealousy, is believed to derive power to harm others with witchcraft through supernatural capacity and an association with the Devil. Witchcraft, it seems represents a theory of misfortune guiding the interactions between people and provides explanations, steeped in the supernatural, for almost every misfortune. Extending on the commonly held notion of violence against women, this doctoral study reflects witchcraft accusations and its violent consequences as an under-represented facet thereof. This follows the fact that historic and contemporary accounts of witchcraft position women as primary suspects and victims. Accused of witchcraft, many women face torture and ultimately death, even today. In this study it is argued that witchcraft accusations result from within a social context, supporting gendered relations that are powered. To this end, I apply a feminist psychological approach as a theoretical lens, allowing us to see witchcraft accusations as one strategy among those supporting male domination. In the first chapter, I outline the feminist psychological approach as an appropriate lens to view witchcraft-related violence. The understanding of witchcraft accusations gained through the application of feminist psychological theory is then applied in the second chapter, focusing on news reports. A focus on the newspaper representations of witchcraft violence is vital, given the media’s influential role in the lives of many. Attention is then focused on understanding of witchcraft held by community members, usually responsible for the violent attacks on those accused. The final chapter locates the witchcraft experience with women so accused. The purposeful repetition of theoretical points made in each chapter was essential. The repetition enabled me to apply the theoretical lens appropriately for each paper and to elaborate on the fundamental premise the PhD argues towards. The reader’s attention is drawn towards awareness of this purposeful repetition of the theoretical lens. It is imperative as together and separately, the chapters in this PhD, function to accentuate on an expression of gendered violence, steeped in a tradition supporting male domination. / Psychology / D.Litt. et Phil.