Water leakages and subsequent water shortages is an occurrence that causes inconveniences to many people around the world. Expanding population groups have the potential to stimulate urban development rates which in turn leads to an increase in water demand. This places more pressure on water suppliers and the infrastructure involved in water distribution systems causing pipe bursts and water leakages to occur more frequently. Water resources are thus wasted, leading to costs associated with the impact of the pipe burst and water shortage for both water suppliers and consumers. This study focuses largely on the identification, causes, impacts and quantification of losses through water leakages and the subsequent cost associated with the leakage. The study area that was chosen is Vorna Valley, which is in the region of Midrand and falls within the Gauteng province. Midrand is rapidly expanding spatially and population rates are on the rise. To achieve the objectives of this study, residents, water suppliers and key informants were consulted through questionnaires and the results were statistically analysed. The Economic Model for Leakage Management, that is specifically aimed at determining when a water supplier should invest in active leakage control for a specific, zoned metered area, was applied. The model established the costs of leakages and pipe bursts and the appropriate interval for active leakage control by the municipality for the study area. Results from the Economic Model for Leakage Management suggests that an active leakage control interval of 6 months is best as the cost due to water loss is at its lowest. In the study region, 83,1% of residents experience burst pipes over 6 months. Findings of this study could benefit water suppliers when choosing the best mitigation method to apply during water leakages and water shortages. / Dissertation (MSc (Environment and Society))--University of Pretoria, 2020. / National Research Foundation / Geography, Geoinformatics and Meteorology / MSc (Environment and Society) / Restricted

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While overall rates of college student drinking have declined slightly since 1980, extreme forms of drinking are escalating. A comprehensive review of all aspects of alcohol use among college students completed by a panel of scientists and college presidents concluded that very few approaches for dealing with student drinking can be considered empirically validated, and they strongly encouraged additional efforts to develop and validate effective strategies. Expectancy challenge approaches designed to reduce risky drinking through changing key expectancies have been identified as one of the few validated strategies, but this approach has not been developed into a format that is reliably effective with females or readily delivered in a single meeting. Widespread implementation of expectancy-based strategies is dependent on further evolution of a pragmatic format of this approach while maintaining effectiveness with groups that has already been established and increasing effectiveness with other groups. The purpose of the present study was to develop and evaluate a new version of expectancy challenge to accomplish two specific goals that are critical for widespread dissemination and implementation. First, new content focused on key expectancies typically held by heavy drinking females was developed in an effort to achieve significant reductions in alcohol use among women. Second, the content of the intervention for men and women was condensed to a single session. To demonstrate the effectiveness of the redesigned expectancy challenge in reducing drinking among high-risk individuals, the intervention was implemented with heavy drinking males and females at a large state university. Exposure to the single session expectancy challenge led to significant changes in alcohol expectancies and significant reductions in subsequent drinking in both males and females in comparison to participants randomly assigned to an active control condition or an assessment-only control condition. These findings represent a critical step in the process of translating a theory-based intervention strategy validated in intensive academic laboratory designs, into a more practical format while maintaining, and even enhancing effectiveness. The single session expectancy challenge developed and validated in this project is more accessible to those seeking effective drinking reduction strategies for college campuses and will encourage further development of pragmatic strategies based on expectancy theory.

Mémoire numérisé par la Direction des bibliothèques de l'Université de Montréal.

Mémoire numérisé par la Direction des bibliothèques de l'Université de Montréal.

The present study is a Delphi design, mixed methods exploration of the training and skills needed for mobile crisis team professionals. It is estimated that 51.5 million adults in the United States live with mental illness (NIMH, 2021). Suicide is the second leading cause of death for those 10-34 years of age (CDC, 2021). When people are in a mental health crisis in the community, they often rely on law enforcement (Lamb et al., 2002) and emergency medical services for aid (Prener & Lincoln, 2015). Although neither profession includes comprehensive mental health training, they are the most common first responders. These interactions do not always end well. The Washington Post (Tan, 2021) reported that between 2016-2021 roughly a quarter of fatal police shootings involved someone in a mental health crisis. Mobile Crisis Team programs have been offered as an alternative to traditional police response. Following community outcry, cities like Baltimore, D.C., and Oakland have worked to create or expand existing mobile crisis programs. During this expansion of mobile crisis services, it is crucial for programs, and the mental health field in general, to have a clear understanding of the types of skills and training needed for mobile crisis professionals. Although there is a large body of research on mobile crisis programs, there is a gap in the literature regarding skills and training. The current study was conducted to address the existing gap in the literature, provide a comprehensive list of skills, training modalities, and professions that compose mobile crisis teams, and inspire future research in mobile crisis training. The study was conducted in three phases. In Phase 1, I recruited a panel of knowledgeable professionals from mobile crisis programs, law enforcement, and emergency medical services to share their expertise on aspects of crisis response in the community. The qualitative data were coded to create a list of skills and training. In Phase 2, panelists rated the items. Descriptive statistics were calculated and included as feedback for Phase 3. In Phase 3, panelists re-rated the items, with feedback, to build consensus. Three lists were produced: (a) Professions Composing Mobile Crisis Teams, (b) Skills and Training, (c) Training Modalities. These lists are composed of 163 items ranked by importance. A high level of consensus regarding importance was achieved by the panel. Differences in item ratings between professions were also explored. The items generated and rated by the panel may prove valuable in the design, improvement, or evaluation of mobile crisis programs and training curricula, and aid in future research on mobile crisis skills, training, design, or effectiveness.

The International School Project (ISP) developed a culturally-relevant intervention entitled The Future Begins Today (FBT) to address the need for school-based substance abuse prevention in Ukraine. Using a quasi-experimental pretest-posttest with control group design, this study evaluated the effectiveness of this intervention in regards to impact on attitudes and refusal self-efficacy. The study hypothesized that exposure to the FBT intervention would significantly increase adolescents' perceived harm of substance use and perceived ability to refuse drug offers. Students from three schools in Drohobych (N = 173) participated in the study between September and December 2013, with seven classes (n = 124) enrolled in the FBT course and three classes (n = 49) in the control group. Both groups were tested in September and December. ANOVA results suggested that between September and December, students in the FBT program statistically significantly increased their perceived harm of occasional substance use and perceived ability to refuse drug offers. There was no significant change in students' perceived harm of frequent use. Moreover, the extent to which FBT supplementary materials were incorporated also related positively with program outcomes. Qualitative data from follow-up written interviews supported these findings. Regression analyses showed that older students were less likely to perceive substance use as harmful. There were no significant relationships between program outcomes and gender, positive family influence, or negative peer influence. Relevance to the existing literature and recommendations for future research are discussed.

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