Made available in DSpace on 2016-04-29T13:17:48Z (GMT). No. of bitstreams: 1 Larissa Gomes Lacerda.pdf: 718140 bytes, checksum: b435ea39accd2e28173856939c3a4690 (MD5) Previous issue date: 2013-05-29 / Conselho Nacional de Desenvolvimento Científico e Tecnológico / Chronic Mild Stress (CMS) an experimental animal model of anhedonia induced by exposing the rats to a protocol of chronic stress for a long period of time. At the Laboratório do Programa de Pós Graduação em Psicologia Experimental: Análise do Comportamento, a research line about CMS and its relation with the operant behavior has been developed since 2001, as in Pereira (2009). Unlike other studies conducted in this laboratory, Pereira (2009) did not observe sucrose intake and preference reducing (anhedonia) along stressors. One pointed hypothesis was the neonatal handling was a responsible variable for that. The goal of this study was to investigate whether the neonatal handling alters the fluid intake and preference on rats that were submitted to the stressors protocol (CMS) during the adult phase. Three groups were divided among experimental conditions: 1) neonatal handling, 2) protocol and 3) neonatal handling and protocol. The used measures were: weight, ration and water intake and weekly tests over intake and fluid preference. Results found show that stressors protocol reduced weight of subjects from the manipulation group (MP) as for the ones from only stressors protocol group (P). Food and water intake also presented similar results for Groups P and MP: all subjects presented water intake enhance and ration intake reducing during protocol. For fluid intake and preference tests, both Group P and MP presented preference oscillation at no stressors period and sucrose intake enhance during protocol submission weeks, that means, they did not produced anhedonia. Results allow to assure that the group submitted to maternal manipulation with 15min mother s separation did not show any difference in comparison to the nohandling group, specially related to preference and intake tests, when submitted to CMS / Chronic Mild Stress (CMS) um modelo animal experimental de anedonia induzida através da exposição de ratos a um protocolo de estressores crônicos por um longo período de tempo. No Laboratório do Programa de Pós Graduação em Psicologia Experimental: Análise do Comportamento, uma linha de pesquisa sobre o CMS e a relação com o comportamento operante tem sido desenvolvida desde 2001, como em Pereira, 2009. Diferente de outros estudos realizados nesse laboratório, Pereira (2009) não observou redução da ingestão e preferência de sacarose (anedonia) durante os estressores. Uma das hipóteses levantadas foi que a manipulação neonatal tenha sido uma variável responsável por isso. O objetivo do presente estudo foi investigar se a manipulação neonatal, altera a ingestão e preferência de líquidos em ratos que passaram pelo protocolo de estressores (CMS) durante a fase adulta. Três grupos foram divididos entre as condições experimentais: 1) manipulação neonatal, 2) protocolo e 3) manipulação neonatal e protocolo. As medidas utilizadas foram: peso, consumo de ração e de água e testes semanais de ingestão e preferência de líquido. Os resultados encontrados mostram que o protocolo de estressores diminuiu o peso dos sujeitos tanto para o grupo que passou pela manipulação (MP) quanto para o que passou apenas pelo protocolo de estressores (P). O consumo de alimento e água também apresentou resultados semelhantes para os Grupos P e MP: todos apresentaram aumento na ingestão de água e diminuição do consumo de ração durante o protocolo. Para os testes de consumo e preferência de líquido, tanto o Grupo P quanto o MP apresentaram oscilação de preferência no período sem estressores e aumento da ingestão de sacarose durante as semanas de submissão ao protocolo, ou seja, não produziram anedonia. Os resultados permitem afirmar que o grupo que passou pelo procedimento de manipulação neonatal separados da mãe por 15min não apresentou diferença em comparação com o grupo que não foi manipulado, principalmente em relação aos testes de ingestão e preferência, quando submetidos ao CMS

Made available in DSpace on 2016-04-29T13:18:05Z (GMT). No. of bitstreams: 1 ana carmen.pdf: 438103 bytes, checksum: 918d056717333d77fc09477efa760621 (MD5) Previous issue date: 2004-04-15 / Coordenação de Aperfeiçoamento de Pessoal de Nível Superior / Chronic Mild Stress-induced anhedonia is an animal experimental model that exposes rats to a mild stressors regime for a long period of time. This model was proposed in 1987 Willner, Towell, Sampson, Sophokleus e Muscat. The purpose of the present study was to verify whether the exposure of rats to an operate procedure when a concurrent schedule with equal FR component, each one producing a different reinforcer (water or sucrose) would alter: a) the body weight; b) the water and sucrose intake, measured on weekly consumption and preference tests; c) the number of lever pressing responses on operant sessions, before, during and after the stress regime. The experimental design had three experimental conditions: total fluid intake and preference of sucrose over water tests, operant sessions of concurrent and the chronic mild stress regime. The subjects were differently exposed to these conditions. Group 1 subjects were exposed to six weeks of stress regime. Group 2 subjects were first submitted to the concurrent sessions (FR water FR sucrose), then they were exposed to the stress regime for six weeks and finally were put back in the concurrent schedule sessions. Group 3 subjects were submitted to concurrent sessions during the stress regime. All subjects of the three groups were submitted weekly to fluid intake and sucrose preference tests before, during and after the stress regime. A control subject was submitted to the consumption and preference tests without exposure either to stress regime or the operant sessions. Results showed five major points: 1) a change of body weight for all subjects exposed to the stress regime; 2) reduction in sucrose intake and in the preference for sucrose over water during the stress regime, measured by consumption and preference tests; 3) subjects submitted to the concurrent sessions before the stress regime recovered sucrose intake and preference for sucrose in the consumption and preference tests after the stress regime; 4) subjects submitted to the operant sessions presented more responses in the sucrose correspondent lever than in the water correspondent lever before and after the stress regime; 5) subjects submitted to operant sessions during the stress regime decreased response in sucrose correspondent lever during the stress regime, however two out of these three subjects recovered to the level of responding prior to stress regime before the stress regime was terminated / Chronic Mild Stress é um modelo animal experimental de anedonia induzida através da exposição de ratos a estressores moderados por um longo período de tempo. Este modelo foi proposto, em 1987, Willner, Towell, Sampson, Sophokleus e Muscat . O objetivo do presente estudo foi verificar se a exposição de ratos a sessões operantes de esquema concorrente FR água FR sacarose, de mesmo valor, durante este regime crônico de estressores moderados iria produzir alterações: a) no peso corporal dos sujeitos; b) no consumo de água e de sacarose, medido em testes semanais de consumo e de preferência de líquidos c) no número de respostas de pressão à barra emitidas nas sessões operantes comparado-se o número de respostas emitidas antes, durante e depois do regime de estressores. O delineamento foi composto de três condições experimentais: teste de consumo e de preferência de líquidos, sessões operantes de esquema concorrente e regime crônico de estressores moderados. Essas condições ocorreram de três diferentes maneiras para três grupos. Os sujeitos do grupo 1 foram expostos a seis semanas de regime de estressores. Os sujeitos do grupo 2 foram, primeiramente, expostos a sessões operantes de esquema concorrente FR água FR sacarose e, logo em seguida, passaram pelo regime de estressores e depois, novamente, pelas sessões de esquema concorrente. No grupo 3, as sessões de esquema concorrente FR água FR sacarose continuaram a acontecer uma vez por semana, durante o regime de estressores. Todos os sujeitos dos três grupos foram submetidos aos testes semanais de consumo e de preferência de líquidos antes, durante e depois do regime de estressores. Um sujeito controle foi submetido apenas aos testes de consumo e de preferência de líquidos, não houve exposição aos estressores nem foi submetido à sessões operantes. Cinco pontos principais foram observados nos resultados: 1) uma alteração do peso corporal presente em todos os sujeitos que foram exposto ao regime de estressores.; 2) uma redução na ingestão de sacarose e na preferência pela sacarose sobre a água ocorridas durante a exposição ao regime de estressores, medido através do teste de consumo e de preferência de líquidos; 3) os sujeitos que haviam sido submetidos às sessões operantes antes do regime de estressores voltaram a apresentar, nos teste de consumo e de preferência de líquidos, a mesma ingestão anterior à exposição aos estressores, ao contrário daqueles que não haviam sido submetidos às sessões operantes; 4) todos os sujeitos submetidos às sessões operantes responderam com maior freqüência na barra correspondente à liberação de sacarose do que na barra correspondente à água, tanto nas sessões realizadas antes do início, quanto nas realizadas após o término da exposição ao regime de estressores e 5) todos sujeitos submetidos a sessões operantes durante o regime de estressores reduziram o número de respostas na barra correspondente à sacarose durante da exposição aos estressores. Entretanto, dois destes três sujeitos retornaram aos valores anteriores antes do término da exposição aos estressores

Made available in DSpace on 2016-04-27T16:32:44Z (GMT). No. of bitstreams: 1 Ismael Pereira de Siqueira.pdf: 897738 bytes, checksum: 4a22bb2c1d50bec50291376c88174d45 (MD5) Previous issue date: 2013-03-20 / Coordenação de Aperfeiçoamento de Pessoal de Nível Superior / The present study, developed in 2012, aimed to investigate the configuration of social interactions Contact established mixed by an individual with mild mental retardation, within a public school. . The problem was guiding: The social relations of the individual with mild mental retardation, while a brand body bearer invisible and socially ascribed, are affected by stigma to set a career morale in the school environment? We hypothesized that the stigma of mild mental retardation interferes negatively in social interactions in mixed contact the individual with mild mental retardation, established in the school, being raised from reconfigurations in how individual belongs to these relationships. These reconfigurations are proportionate to the level of degradation of self and marked by individual conflict before the social contact. As a research subject, we selected a 16 year old student of 8th year of elementary school in a public school of education, who was diagnosed with mild mental retardation and showed no brand visible body that could refer directly to the diagnostic that he had been charged. To collect data, we used the ethnographic record of observations of social relations of the research subject in school. The data obtained in the remarks passed by content analysis, from which, databus are four categories of analysis: Social Isolation, Social Search of Contact, Response to Social Contact and Reference to Stigma. These categories of analysis were problematized and discussed according to the theoretical framework of stigma, Goffman elaborated by considering also contributions from other authors in this area. The results show that social relations of the individual with mild mental retardation in school are marked by social isolation and non-recognition by peers and teachers. The influence of stigma in these relationships can be perceived surreptitiously with effects similar to that Goffman describes for individuals with a stigma immediately accessible to perception / O presente estudo, desenvolvido em 2012, teve por objetivo investigar a configuração das interações sociais de contato misto estabelecidas por um indivíduo com retardo mental leve, no espaço de uma escola pública. O problema norteador foi: As relações sociais do indivíduo com retardo mental leve, enquanto portador uma marca corporal invisível e socialmente atribuída, são afetadas pelo estigma de modo a configurar uma carreira moral no ambiente escolar? Tivemos como hipótese que o estigma do retardo mental leve interfere de maneira negativa nas interações sociais de contato misto do indivíduo com retardo mental leve, estabelecidas no espaço escolar, sendo manifestadas a partir de reconfigurações na maneira como indivíduo se insere nestas relações. Estas reconfigurações serão proporcionais ao nível de degradação do eu e marcadas pelo conflito individual diante do contato social. Como sujeito de pesquisa, selecionamos um jovem de 16 anos, estudante do 8º ano do Ensino Fundamental, em uma escola pública de ensino regular, que recebeu o diagnóstico de retardo mental leve e não apresentava qualquer marca corporal visível que pudesse remeter diretamente ao diagnóstico que lhe fora imputado. Para a coleta de dados, utilizou-se o registro etnográfico de observações das relações sociais do sujeito de pesquisa no espaço escolar. Os dados obtidos nas observações passaram por análise de conteúdo, a partir da qual, elencou-se quatro categorias de análise: Isolamento Social, Busca do Contato Social, Resposta ao Contato Social e Referência ao Estigma. Estas categorias de análise foram problematizadas e discutidas de acordo com o referencial teórico do estigma, elaborado por Goffman, considerando-se também as contribuições de outros autores de referência na área. Os resultados obtidos evidenciam que as relações sociais do indivíduo com retardo mental leve no espaço escolar são marcadas por isolamento social e não-reconhecimento por colegas e professores. A influência do estigma nestas relações pode ser percebida de maneira sub-reptícia com efeitos similares aos que Goffman descreve para indivíduos portadores de um estigma imediatamente acessível à percepção

INTRODUÇÃO: O comprometimento cognitivo leve tem sido estudado em tarefas de linguagem com alta demanda cognitiva. Análises com base em compreensão de textos que exigem realização de inferências são recentes. Este estudo teve como objetivo verificar o desempenho de sujeitos com comprometimento cognitivo leve em tarefas de compreensão textual que necessitem da realização de inferências e compara-lo ao desempenho de sujeitos normais. MÉTODOS: Foram avaliados 60 sujeitos com idade entre 60 e 89 anos, de ambos os sexos. Os sujeitos foram divididos em dois grupos, sendo 30 sujeitos normais e 30 sujeitos com comprometimento cognitivo leve e pareados por faixa de escolaridade (até 4 anos, de 4 a 8 anos e acima de 9 anos). O instrumento utilizado foi a versão em português do teste do \"Gerenciamento do Implícito\" que utiliza cinco tipos distintos de inferências (explícitas, lógicas, pragmáticas, distratoras e outras). Foi avaliado o raciocínio inferencial ao fornecer a resposta de 60 questões referentes à leitura de 20 textos pequenos e comparado o desempenho entre os grupos. RESULTADOS: O grupo de sujeitos com comprometimento cognitivo leve mostrou desempenho significativamente menor na realização de inferências do tipo pragmáticas do que o grupo de sujeitos normais. Para os demais tipos de inferências não houve diferença estatística. CONCLUSÃO: Sujeitos com comprometimento cognitivo leve apresentam pior desempenho na realização de inferências do tipo pragmáticas. A semelhança no desempenho entre os grupos para realizar as demais inferências reforça a preservação de aspectos linguístico-cognitivos no comprometimento cognitivo leve. Os resultados confirmam a possibilidade de diferenciar sujeitos com comprometimento cognitivo leve e normais por meio de testes de linguagem / INTRODUCTION: The mild cognitive impairment has been studied in language tasks with high cognitive demand. Analyses based on comprehension of texts that require carrying out inferences are recent. This study aimed to verify the performance of subjects with mild cognitive impairment in textual comprehension tasks that require carrying out inferences and compares it to the performance of normal subjects. METHODS: We evaluated 60 subjects aged between 60 and 89 years, of both sexes. The subjects were divided into two groups, 30 normal subjects and 30 subjects with mild cognitive impairment, matched for education (up to 4 years, 4-8 years and over 9 years). The instrument used was the Portuguese version of the test of \"Managing the implied\" that uses five distinct types of inferences (explicit, logical, pragmatic, distracting and other). We evaluated the inferential reasoning to provide the answer 60 questions about reading 20 small texts and compared the performance between groups. RESULTS: The mild cognitive impairment group showed significantly lower performance in the type inferences pragmatic than the group of normal subjects. For other types of inferences there was statistical difference. CONCLUSION: The group with mild cognitive impairment showed worse performance in carrying out pragmatic type inferences. The similarity in performance between the groups to perform the other inferences demonstrates the preservation of linguistic-cognitive aspects in mild cognitive impairment. The results confirm the possibility of differentiating subjects with mild cognitive impairment and normal through language tests

On admet aujourd'hui que les tests psychométriques traditionnels paraissent insuffisants pour détecter précocement des troubles cognitifs. Parallèlement, des cliniciens observent une perte de l'automaticité de la marche lors du vieillissement normal ou de pathologies neurodégénératives qui peut être directement imputée au déclin des fonctions exécutives (FE) et aggravé lors des situations de double-tâche (DT). Plusieurs auteurs ont montré que la présence prématurée d'une atteinte motrice pouvait prédire une évolution défavorable vers une démence de type Alzheimer. Dans ce contexte, il devient évident que l'évaluation de la marche doit faire l'objet d'une investigation spécifique lors d'un bilan cognitif. Les travaux de cette thèse s'articulent autour du concept de troubles cognitifs légers, des FE et de l'évaluation motrice lors de diverses situations de marche.L'objectif principal est de déterminer si l'évaluation de la marche spontanée et/ou en DT constitue un outil de détection précoce des troubles cognitifs. Un objectif secondaire est de préciser les FE qui affectent la performance motrice dans les situations de DT. L'originalité de ce travail de thèse réside dans le développement de nouveaux exercices de DT de navigation spatiale basés sur l'adaptation de tests neuropsychologiques (test de Corsi, de Stroop et Trail Making Test) à la marche. Finalement, nous avons aussi proposé un « stroop écologique » qui s'intéresse à la prise de décision de traverser de rue au feu piéton.Les résultats révèlent que les interférences provoquées par les situations de DT entrainent une modification spécifique du schéma de marche du sujet âgé ayant des troubles cognitifs même lorsqu'ils sont infracliniques. De plus, la résolution des tests de DT nécessite la participation commune de plusieurs FE.En conclusion, la batterie de test que nous proposons présente un intérêt potentiel dans la détection précoce des troubles cognitifs chez les sujets âgés, mais aussi dans la compréhension des mécanismes régulant les FE. / Traditional psychometric and/or neuropsychologic tests alone, are not powerful enough to detect cognitive disturbances in aging subjects and therefore new criteria and tests should be developed to get relevant screening tools. Since walking is not anymore considered as a pure automatic motor task but as a task depending both on cognitive and executive functions (EF), clinicians became interested in studying walking disturbances in the course of neurodegenerative pathology development. Walking tasks can be complex and could be assimilated as a double-task (DT) when individuals have to simultaneously proceed with cognitive and motor tasks. Several authors have suggested that disturbances in walking abilities could predict cognitive disorders (e.g. Alzheimer Disease, Mild Cognitive Impairment (MCI)). Therefore, walking abilities should specifically be evaluated during cognitive clinical investigation.The main goal of our work is to evaluate whether a walking task alone and/or walking tasks in the context of DT could be of interest in detecting early stages of cognitive disorders in the elderly. A secondary goal is to investigate what are the executive functions that can influence walking during a DT. The originality of our approach also stems from the new motor ability tests we have developed. They are based on validated neuropsychological tests (Corsi, Stroop and Trail Making Tests) and are adapted to the context of walking. Moreover, we also present an adaptation of the Stroop test in the situation of a pedestrian at the cross light intending to cross a street ("ecological Stroop test").Our results show that DT situations induce specific changes in walking scheme in the elderly with established cognitive disorders and also -and this is one of our most important result- with borderline patients. We also show that the DT we tested required the involment of several EF.In conclusion, the new tests we present could be of interest in detecting early stages of cognitive disorders in elderly subjects and moreover can give clues to the mechanisms involved in the regulation of executive functions.

This research explored different catalytic cracking zeolite additives to improve propylene selectivity and minimize dry gas yield. A comprehensive study of the effect of zeolite structure, pore system and crystal size on maximizing propylene production in FCC unit and the effect of post synthetic modifications on the physicochemical properties and cracking activity of ZSM-5 was investigated using X-ray diffraction (XRD), pyridine adsorption fourier transform infra-red (FTIR), 27Al and 29Si magic-angle spinning nuclear magnetic resonance (MAS NMR) and the catalytic cracking using n-heptane, as a model compound for heavy naphtha. The catalytic performances of these additives were evaluated in a fixed-bed reactor unit using n-heptane as a model compound for naphtha at temperatures 450 - 500 oC and W/F 38 - 92 gcat.h/mol. A range of zeolites were tested with ZSM-5 showing the optimum results at high feed conversion. Further studies on ZSM-5 crystal size illustrated that nano ZSM-5 (300 nm) was superior compared to the regular ZSM-5 (2000 - 4000 nm) in achieved conversion level and propylene selectivity. These improvements were attributed to the shorter path lengths for the reactant reducing diffusion constraints significantly. Modifying nano ZSM-5 acidity using steaming, acid leaching and silanation showed significant improvement over nano ZSM-5 parent. Mild steaming of nano ZSM-5 improved both n-heptane conversion and propylene selectivity whilst severe steaming only improved propylene selectivity. This work attempted to address the often discussed catalytic activity enhancement from mild steaming and identified newly created moderate acid sites as the source of increased activity. Dealumination by acid leaching decreased the total aluminium content of nano ZSM-5 and changed the Brønsted/Lewis ratio. Increasing the B/L ratio, increased the conversion and propylene selectivity. In addition, this research focussed for the first time on the silanation of nano ZSM-5 and its effect on n-heptane cracking, in particular, propylene and dry gas selectivity. Silica was deposited on the external surface of nano ZSM-5 neutralising the acidic sites and as a result, dry gas yield was significantly decreased due to the elimination of non-selective cracking. However, the trade off with conversion was high.

Este trabalho apresenta uma análise do fenômeno da transição no regime de desgaste por deslizamento dos aços. Esta análise foi feita usando as abordagens termodinâmicas do desgaste e estudando tópicos como a temperatura superficial, o papel da remoção das partículas de desgaste e a evolução nas propriedades das superfícies desgastadas ao longo do ensaio de desgaste. Foram realizados ensaios de desgaste por deslizamento de pinos de aço AISI 4140 sobre discos de aço AISI H13. Foram usados dois níveis de dureza dos pinos e três níveis de dureza dos discos por cada condição dos pinos. Foi utilizada uma carga normal de 35 N, uma velocidade de deslizamento de 0,1 m/s e um tempo de deslizamento de 3600 s. Foram executados ensaios parciais, com tempos menores que 3600 s, para avaliar o estado das superfícies ao longo do ensaio, e ensaios com remoção das partículas de desgaste para analisar o seu papel na atuação dos regimes. A variação da força de atrito e da temperatura subsuperficial do pino foi monitorada durante os ensaios. A caracterização dos materiais antes e depois dos ensaios foi efetuada através da observação em lupa e em microscópio eletrônico de varredura, e de medições de perdas de massa, dureza, microdureza e rugosidade superficial. Os resultados mostraram que a operação dos regimes moderado e severo de desgaste foi influenciada pela dureza inicial dos materiais. Na condição de dureza alta dos pinos (serie a), a diminuição da dureza dos discos promoveu a operação de um regime severo de desgaste prévio à atuação de um regime moderado de desgaste (condições a2 e a3). Na condição da dureza baixa dos pinos (serie b) se observou um regime severo de desgaste que com o aumento da dureza dos discos resultou na transição para um regime moderado de desgaste (condições b2 e b1). Os ensaios com a remoção das partículas de desgaste mostraram que o terceiro corpo contribuiu com aproximadamente um 50% da força de atrito, mas não parece ter nenhuma influência sobre a operação dos regimes de desgaste. A caracterização das superfícies de desgaste sugeriu que a oxidação durante o regime moderado não foi originada pelo calor dissipado por atrito, e as altas temperaturas de contato, e sim preferivelmente pelo comportamento mecânico dos corpos deslizantes. Os resultados indicam que a transição no regime de desgaste foi causada pela mudança da natureza da deformação no contato entre as superfícies. Um contato predominantemente elástico e plástico resultou na atuação dos regimes de desgaste moderado e severo, respectivamente. / This work presents an analysis of the phenomenon of the sliding wear regime transition of steels. This analysis was made using the thermodynamic approaches of wear and studying topics such as the surface temperature, the role of wear debris removal and the evolution of worn surfaces properties during the wear tests. Sliding wear tests of AISI 4140 steel pins on AISI H13 steel disks were performed. Two levels of pin hardness and three levels of disk hardness for each condition of the pins were used. A normal load of 35 N, a sliding velocity of 0.1 m/s and a sliding time of 3600 s were applied. Tests interrupted at lower sliding times smaller than 3600 s were run to assess the worn surfaces state during tests. Tests with wear debris removal were executed to analyze its role on the wear regimes operation. The variation of the friction force and the pin subsurface temperature was monitored during tests. The characterization of materials before and after tests was performed by observation in stereoscopic and scanning electron microscopy, and by measurements of mass loss, hardness, microhardness and surface roughness. The results showed that the operation of mild and severe wear regimes was in_uenced by the initial hardness of materials. At the high pin hardness condition (run a), a decrease in disk hardness promoted the severe wear regime operation prior to the action of a mild wear regime (conditions a2 and a3). At the low pin hardness (run b) a severe wear regime, which resulted in the wear regime transition from mild to severe (conditions b2 and b1), was observed with the increase in disk hardness. Tests with removal of wear particles showed that the third body contributed with approximately 50% of the friction force, but seems to have no in_uence on the wear regimes operation. The characterization of worn surfaces suggested that the oxidation during mild wear regime was not caused by the dissipated heat by friction, and high contact temperatures, but by the mechanical behavior of the sliding bodies. The results indicate that the wear regime transition caused a change in the nature of deformation at the contacting surfaces. A predominantly elastic and plastic contact resulted in the action of mild and severe wear regime, respectively.

Background: Previous studies have shown that ICT applications could affect elderly people who suffer from mild dementia (MD) or mild cognitive impairment (MCI) positively. These applications might help patients with MD or MCI, improving their cognitive performance, independency and, their quality of life. Elderly may also be able to live alone at their own home with the help of these ICT applications. Therefore, the burden of caregivers and family members can be reduced. An IT-enabled solution was proposed to create new knowledge and experience among MCI and MD patients and their caregivers. The project was funded by European union and four countries i.e. Sweden, Spain, Italy and Israel were involved in it. Purpose: The purpose of this study was to apply a technology-enabled integrated care model. Two aspects of the study were to measure the quality of life of the elderly with mild cognitive impairment (MCI) or mild dementia (MD) after using the model and to understand the professional caregivers’ perspectives of the model. Method: A mixed-method approach was applied in this research which was a combination of using standard and internally developed questionnaires and semi-structured interviews. Conclusion: The result of the study showed that DECI could have positive effect as a complementary tool for the care process of the elderly who suffered from dementia. The general perception in all sites was positive and professionals confirmed the willingness to use DECI in the future.

No description available.

Accommodating students with disabilities in a general education class often requires instructional modification and extra student support. Research has shown that making required changes can evoke different responses from teachers and can influence their willingness to accommodate the needs of students with disabilities. However, research has not examined the relationships between middle school teachers' preparation for and experiences with inclusion instruction and their attitudes toward inclusion. The purpose of this correlational study was to explore possible relationships between middle school teachers' attitudes about including students with mild to moderate disabilities in the general education setting and the teachers' education level, length of time teaching, and role as general or special education teachers. Social learning theory informed the study. Teachers from 3 middle schools in a large, primarily suburban school district in the southern United States were identified and sent the link for an online survey that included both demographic questions and the Attitude Toward Teaching All Students validated research instrument (N = 220). Despite several efforts to acquire enough responses to determine statistical significance, the sample obtained (n = 55) was too small for those calculations. However, Spearman correlations calculated with the smaller sample acquired indicated possible relationships between variables and indicated conducting the study in another location with a larger sample would provide valuable insights into teachers' behaviors and beliefs. This study contributes to positive social change by demonstrating a need to examine teachers' background and experiences and their attitudes toward and, as a result, behaviors in inclusion settings.