A proposta deste estudo foi analisar o desenvolvimento da força máxima de mordida em um grupo de pacientes que recebeu próteses parciais fixas sobre implantes (PPFSI) nas regiões de molares, pré-molares até caninos e incisivos antagonizando com dentes naturais e comparar os resultados obtidos com as áreas dentadas do mesmo grupo de pacientes, durante um período de 64 meses (5,3 anos). As forças de mordida foram medidas em cinco regiões da boca: molares em ambos os lados, pré-molares ou caninos em ambos os lados e incisivos; nas áreas de próteses sobre implantes e também nas áreas de dentes naturais. Para tanto, foi usado um transdutor medidor de força de mordida, que tem como princípio de funcionamento uma célula de força colada a um garfo de mordida, amplamente usado na literatura e sempre operado pelo pesquisador. As medições foram feitas imediatamente após a instalação das próteses, 3, 30 e 64 meses depois. Comparando o desenvolvimento das forças de mordida entre as áreas implantadas e de dentes naturais encontra-se já no primeiro controle, após 3 meses de instalação, um aumento das forças de mordida nas próteses sobre implantes instaladas na região de molares que supera as forças desenvolvidas por dentes naturais na mesma região. Para as próteses instaladas na área de incisivos, ao contrário, não foi registrado aumento estatístico destas forças, havendo uma tendência em permanecerem menores quando comparadas às forças desenvolvidas nas mesmas regiões por dentes naturais. Na região de pré-molares ou caninos não houve aumento estatístico de força nas PPFSI. Quando analisadas as áreas dentadas dos pacientes, não houve mudança estatística de força de mordida em nenhuma das regiões durante todo o experimento. / This study proposal was to analyse the changes on the maximal bite force on a patients sample who had implant-supported partial fixed prosthesis (FPP) installed and the results were compared to the ones obtained from the dentate areas on the same sample. Sixteen patients were followed for sixty-four months (5.3 years) and the bite forces were measured on the mouth regions which the prosthesis were installed (molars and premolars up to canines and incisors regions). This measured occurred on five regions of the mouth: both side molars, pre-molars or canines and incisives; either on the places it had a implant as well as on the natural teeth area. In order to do that, it was used as a measuring device, a largely used apparatus which consisted of a biting fork provided with a strain gauge. The bite forces recordings were made at the time of prosthesis installation, after 3, 30 and 64 months thereafter. It was found a bite force increase in the initial period of 3 months after the prosthesis installation in the area of FPP in the molar regions. In this period the bite forces became higher than in dentate situation in the same region and it manteined on this level until the final of the experiment. Comparing the bite straight development between the implanted areas and the natural teeth areas, we found a bite force increased on the prostheses installed over the molars region that overcome the straight development for natural teeth on the same area. On the other hand, for the prostheses installed on the incisive areas, we had not found a statistical straight increased. Actually, it was a tendency to keep smaller than the straight developed on the same regions by natural teeth. On premolars regions or canines, there was not a straight statistical increased on PPFSI. When we analyze the patients? teeth areas, there was not a statistical bite increase on any of the premolars or canines regions during the entire experiment.

A proposta deste estudo foi analisar o desenvolvimento da força máxima de mordida em um grupo de pacientes que recebeu próteses parciais fixas sobre implantes (PPFSI) nas regiões de molares, pré-molares até caninos e incisivos antagonizando com dentes naturais e comparar os resultados obtidos com as áreas dentadas do mesmo grupo de pacientes, durante um período de 64 meses (5,3 anos). As forças de mordida foram medidas em cinco regiões da boca: molares em ambos os lados, pré-molares ou caninos em ambos os lados e incisivos; nas áreas de próteses sobre implantes e também nas áreas de dentes naturais. Para tanto, foi usado um transdutor medidor de força de mordida, que tem como princípio de funcionamento uma célula de força colada a um garfo de mordida, amplamente usado na literatura e sempre operado pelo pesquisador. As medições foram feitas imediatamente após a instalação das próteses, 3, 30 e 64 meses depois. Comparando o desenvolvimento das forças de mordida entre as áreas implantadas e de dentes naturais encontra-se já no primeiro controle, após 3 meses de instalação, um aumento das forças de mordida nas próteses sobre implantes instaladas na região de molares que supera as forças desenvolvidas por dentes naturais na mesma região. Para as próteses instaladas na área de incisivos, ao contrário, não foi registrado aumento estatístico destas forças, havendo uma tendência em permanecerem menores quando comparadas às forças desenvolvidas nas mesmas regiões por dentes naturais. Na região de pré-molares ou caninos não houve aumento estatístico de força nas PPFSI. Quando analisadas as áreas dentadas dos pacientes, não houve mudança estatística de força de mordida em nenhuma das regiões durante todo o experimento. / This study proposal was to analyse the changes on the maximal bite force on a patients sample who had implant-supported partial fixed prosthesis (FPP) installed and the results were compared to the ones obtained from the dentate areas on the same sample. Sixteen patients were followed for sixty-four months (5.3 years) and the bite forces were measured on the mouth regions which the prosthesis were installed (molars and premolars up to canines and incisors regions). This measured occurred on five regions of the mouth: both side molars, pre-molars or canines and incisives; either on the places it had a implant as well as on the natural teeth area. In order to do that, it was used as a measuring device, a largely used apparatus which consisted of a biting fork provided with a strain gauge. The bite forces recordings were made at the time of prosthesis installation, after 3, 30 and 64 months thereafter. It was found a bite force increase in the initial period of 3 months after the prosthesis installation in the area of FPP in the molar regions. In this period the bite forces became higher than in dentate situation in the same region and it manteined on this level until the final of the experiment. Comparing the bite straight development between the implanted areas and the natural teeth areas, we found a bite force increased on the prostheses installed over the molars region that overcome the straight development for natural teeth on the same area. On the other hand, for the prostheses installed on the incisive areas, we had not found a statistical straight increased. Actually, it was a tendency to keep smaller than the straight developed on the same regions by natural teeth. On premolars regions or canines, there was not a straight statistical increased on PPFSI. When we analyze the patients? teeth areas, there was not a statistical bite increase on any of the premolars or canines regions during the entire experiment.

In recent years, foreign language program evaluation has gained greater attention among language educators, program administrators, and evaluators. Increased demands for demonstrated program performance, often motivated by external forces, such as accreditation pressures and decisions regarding the allocation of funding, have led to heightened focus on foreign language program evaluation practices, methodologies, and results. Despite this increased attention, there are few published evaluation studies within the field of foreign language learning that have examined foreign language program effectiveness over time. This longitudinal study was designed to quantitatively investigate the performance of one Japanese university English for Academic Purposes (EAP) program over the 20-year span of the program’s existence. Quantitative evaluation methodologies and advanced statistical procedures were utilized to examine changes in student English proficiency, as measured by the Institutional Test of English as a Foreign Language (TOEFL ITP) and English achievement, as measured by four semesters of EAP course grades, as students progressed through the two-year program. Twenty cohorts of students (cohort n-sizes ranging from approximately 250 to 550 students) were included in this study. The comprehensive data set included three repeated-measures of the TOEFL ITP and four English achievement grade point averages (GPAs) for each of the 20 cohorts. The research questions for this expansive longitudinal study addressed two levels of inquiry. First, at the program-global level, this study sought to investigate patterns of English proficiency change within and between cohorts across the life of the program, and the extent that programmatic events and external influences might have impacted those patterns. For this investigation, TOEFL ITP results for three proficiency domains—listening, grammar, and reading—were chronologically charted for the 20 cohorts and time-series analyses were conducted. The results indicated that all cohorts demonstrated significant gains in the three proficiency domains by the end of the two-year program. However, the overall trends across the program’s 20-year history revealed gradual negative trajectories for grammar and reading proficiency. Events that were hypothesized to have influenced proficiency patterns were tested, including (a) the addition of a new department specialization, (b) changes to department admissions, (c) the entrance of students who experienced new national reforms at the secondary education level, and (d) department expansion. While listening proficiency patterns were unaffected, grammar and reading proficiency trends were negatively impacted by the start of the new specialization and changes to admissions procedures. The entrance of students who had experienced secondary educational changes had an initial negative impact on the grammar trend, but positive grammar and reading proficiency trends emerged from that point onward. It was speculated that these events, as well as larger population trends impacting Japanese universities, led to gradual shifts in program student demographics, which contributed to the observed changes in proficiency patterns. Also of interest was an examination of the concept of English achievement coherence—or the extent that student English achievement, as measured by English course grade point averages (GPAs)—can be used to assess course interrelatedness. English course GPA data was used to statistically derive three rival achievement coherence metrics. These metrics were then tested separately, using hierarchical linear modeling techniques, to examine the extent that achievement coherence might serve to mediate any proficiency variation observed across the 20 cohorts. There were no significant findings for two of the metrics tested, while the third metric was found to have a significant negative effect for reading proficiency. This finding directly contradicted the hypothesized outcome that a greater amount of coherence would serve to facilitate proficiency development. Given the significant negative reading trend that emerged across the life of the program, this result might suggest that larger influences affecting student demographic changes could outweigh any potential facilitative effects of coherence on proficiency outcomes. Following the program-global analyses, the second level of inquiry was at the cohort-specific level. Individual cohorts that had demonstrated comparatively high and low listening and reading proficiency gains were selected for follow-up analyses. The aim was to examine if differences in coherence at the cohort level might account for the contrastive proficiency gains attained. For each target cohort, a recursive path model, including the program’s 16 English courses and final proficiency outcome, was tested to examine English achievement interrelatedness and contributions to the final proficiency outcome. A greater number of significant paths and larger final model R2 coefficient would suggest more coherence. Additionally, for each target cohort, grade residuals analyses using linear regression methods were conducted to investigate grading consistency at the course level. A greater number of outlying grade cases could indicate that the course assessment schemes were not followed, which would suggest less cohort coherence. The results of these analyses for the pairs of contrastive listening gain and reading gain cohorts were compared, but no significant differences were found. While these analytical methods were determined to be useful for ongoing formative evaluation processes, the resulting measures were likely too broad to capture any meaningful differences in coherence between cohorts at the program-global level. / Teaching & Learning

Abstract This dissertation aims to uncover emerging practices in how people seek information while on the move in augmented urban spaces. The backdrop for a majority of the work presented here is the City of Oulu in Finland, where we have installed a variety of new ubiquitous computing infrastructure and services including, among others, a network of large interactive public displays called UBI-hotspots. The hotspots serve as a versatile platform on top of which new types of services can be developed, deployed and tested in an authentic urban setting with real, non-coached users and a sufficiently long timespan to truly evaluate the impact of such services on the everyday life and practices of the city and its citizens. The case studies presented in this dissertation aim at understanding the effect of such highly visible additions to the urban space from the point of view of human information behaviour. I seek to understand the underlying information seeking strategies people employ while foraging the hotspots for information, and the types of information people see as valuable while attending their daily business in the downtown area of the City. Questions such as how do people utilize the new sources of information in their daily information seeking tasks, and what is the preferred medium for information delivery, are addressed. The theoretical framework for the studies is derived from both ubiquitous and urban computing, and from the field of human information behaviour research. The main findings of the presented studies indicate that people have adapted the new infrastructure and services as parts of their daily information seeking tasks. The detailed usage data logged by all hotspots provide insight into the browsing habits of users, and analysis of inter-session navigation show that various latent strategies of information seeking exist. Further, findings indicate that there is a clear difference between the types of services people perceive as useful prior to using the hotspots, and services that people actually use on the hotspots. Also, findings indicate that people are willing to download information items from the hotspots to their mobile devices for later reference, thus adding information to their personal information repository. / Tiivistelmä Tämä väitöskirja pyrkii löytämään ja selittämään uusia tapoja joilla ihmiset etsivät informaatiota älykkäissä kaupunkitiloissa. Tausta suurelle osalle työstä on Oulun kaupunki, jonne olemme asentaneet erilaisia jokapaikan tietotekniikan laitteistoja sekä palveluja. Erityisesti väitöskirjassa tutkitaan suurten julkisten näyttöjen – ”UBI-näyttöjen” – verkostoa. UBI-näytöt toimivat monipuolisena alustana jonka päällä uusia palveluja voidaan kehittää sekä testata autenttisessa kaupunkitilassa todellisten käyttäjien toimesta riittävän pitkällä aikavälillä, joka puolestaan mahdollistaa palveluiden todellisen merkittävyyden arvioimisen suhteessa ihmisten jokapäiväiseen informaatiokäyttäytymiseen sekä informaatiotarpeisiin. Väitöskirjassa esitetyt tapaustutkimukset pyrkivät ymmärtämään tällaisten erittäin näkyvien tietoteknisten laitteiden vaikutusta ihmisten käyttäytymiseen informaatiotutkimuksen näkökulmasta. Tarkastelun kohteena ovat ihmisten jokapäiväiseen tiedonhakuun liittyvät strategiat heidän käyttäessään UBI-näyttöjä, sekä erilaiset informaatiotyypit joita ihmiset pitävät tärkeinä hoitaessaan jokapäiväisiä asioitaan kaupunkitiloissa. Kysymykset kuten kuinka ihmiset käyttävät uusia informaation lähteitä etsiessään tietoa jokapäiväisiin tarpeisiinsa sekä millä laitteilla ihmiset mieluiten etsivät ko. tietoa ohjaavat suurta osaa tutkimuksesta. Tutkimuksen teoreettinen viitekehys muodostuu jokapaikan tietotekniikan tutkimuksesta, urbaanin tietotekniikan tutkimuksesta, sekä ihmisten informaatiokäyttäytymisen tutkimuksesta. Tutkimuksen tärkeimmät löydökset osoittavat että ihmiset ovat ottaneet uudet tietotekniset resurssit osaksi päivittäistä informaatiokäyttäytymistään. Yksityiskohtainen lokitieto yhdistettynä haastattelu- ja havainnointidataan tarjoaa syvällisen näkemyksen käyttäjien tiedontarpeisiin. Dataa analysoimalla olemme havainneet joukon strategioita joita ihmiset käyttävät etsiessään tietoa kaupunkitiloissa. Tutkimus osoittaa myös, että ihmisten oletettujen tiedontarpeiden sekä havainnoidun käyttäytymisen välillä on suuria eroavaisuuksia. Käyttäjät ovat myös halukkaita lataamaan tietosisältöä matkapuhelimiinsa myöhempää käyttöä varten, täten lisäten tietoa omaan henkilökohtaiseen tietovarastoonsa.

Contemporary conceptual models of health emphasize the importance of patient-based outcomes and recognize the complexity involved in their assessment. Various health conditions, personal, social, and environmental factors, are all thought to contribute to individual’s quality of life. However, the impact of orthodontic treatment on Oral Health-related Quality of Life (OH-QOL) outcomes in children has not yet been systematically studied. Hence, this research was planned to assess the effect orthodontic treatment has on pediatric OH-QOL outcomes. Further, the important moderational role of children’s psychological assets on OH-QOL reports is explored. Following completion of a preliminary study to confirm the psychometric properties of the Child Perception Questionnaire (CPQl1-14), the current two-phase study was undertaken. This consisted of a cross-sectional study examining the relationship among Self-Esteem (SE), malocclusion, and OH-QOL, and a longitudinal study examining the influence of orthodontics and children’s Psychological Wellbeing (PWB) on OH-QOL reports. This PhD dissertation is presented in the “Publishable Style”. The journals which hold the copyrights for the papers published from this thesis have given permission for the reproduction of the text and figures for this dissertation. The preliminary data confirmed that the CPQ11-14 is sensitive to change when used with children receiving orthodontic treatment. Our cross-sectional findings indicated that the impact of malocclusion on OH-QOL is substantial in children with low SE and identified SE as a salient determinant of OH-QOL in children seeking orthodontic treatment. Longitudinal data, on the other hand, detected significant improvement of OH-QOL outcomes after orthodontic treatment. As postulated, these improvements were most evident for the social and emotional domains of OH-QOL. However, covariate analysis emphasized the important role psychological factors play in moderating OH-QOL reports, as children with better PWB were more likely to report better OH-QOL regardless of their orthodontic treatment status. These results substantiate the validity of contemporary models of patient-based outcomes linking biological, personal, social, and environmental factors. Researchers and clinicians are encouraged to adopt this forward thinking approach when dealing with children with oro-facial conditions. Further studies with larger samples and longer follow-ups would be of value to expand on these findings.

Contemporary conceptual models of health emphasize the importance of patient-based outcomes and recognize the complexity involved in their assessment. Various health conditions, personal, social, and environmental factors, are all thought to contribute to individual’s quality of life. However, the impact of orthodontic treatment on Oral Health-related Quality of Life (OH-QOL) outcomes in children has not yet been systematically studied. Hence, this research was planned to assess the effect orthodontic treatment has on pediatric OH-QOL outcomes. Further, the important moderational role of children’s psychological assets on OH-QOL reports is explored. Following completion of a preliminary study to confirm the psychometric properties of the Child Perception Questionnaire (CPQl1-14), the current two-phase study was undertaken. This consisted of a cross-sectional study examining the relationship among Self-Esteem (SE), malocclusion, and OH-QOL, and a longitudinal study examining the influence of orthodontics and children’s Psychological Wellbeing (PWB) on OH-QOL reports. This PhD dissertation is presented in the “Publishable Style”. The journals which hold the copyrights for the papers published from this thesis have given permission for the reproduction of the text and figures for this dissertation. The preliminary data confirmed that the CPQ11-14 is sensitive to change when used with children receiving orthodontic treatment. Our cross-sectional findings indicated that the impact of malocclusion on OH-QOL is substantial in children with low SE and identified SE as a salient determinant of OH-QOL in children seeking orthodontic treatment. Longitudinal data, on the other hand, detected significant improvement of OH-QOL outcomes after orthodontic treatment. As postulated, these improvements were most evident for the social and emotional domains of OH-QOL. However, covariate analysis emphasized the important role psychological factors play in moderating OH-QOL reports, as children with better PWB were more likely to report better OH-QOL regardless of their orthodontic treatment status. These results substantiate the validity of contemporary models of patient-based outcomes linking biological, personal, social, and environmental factors. Researchers and clinicians are encouraged to adopt this forward thinking approach when dealing with children with oro-facial conditions. Further studies with larger samples and longer follow-ups would be of value to expand on these findings.