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BACKGROUND: HIV-related stigmatizing attitudes are persistent concerns in developing countries and have been shown to fuel the spread of the epidemics. The purpose of this study is to provide a comparative analysis between Haiti and the Dominican Republic in regards to the population’s attitude towards People Living with HIV/AIDS (PLWHA). METHODS: Cross-sectional data from the Demographic Health Surveys involving 15,715 Haitians and 55,170 Dominicans from 2005 to 2007 were used. A score of attitudes was established from six items such as the willingness to care for infected relatives, the willingness to buy vegetables from an HIV infected vendor, the perception that HIV patients should be ashamed of themselves, the agreement to blame and force them to keep their serostatus secret and finally the agreement to allow infected teachers to continue their jobs. Descriptive statistics, univariate and multivariate analyses of selected socio-demographic variables were obtained by using the Statistical Package for Social Sciences (SPSS). RESULTS: Logistic regression models showed that female Dominicans and male Haitians, respondents of higher socio-economic status and with more accurate HIV-related beliefs were significantly more tolerant towards PLWHA (p<.001). Furthermore, the Dominican Republic’s data analysis suggested that those aged between 30 and 44 years old, living in urban areas and married expressed more tolerance for the HIV- infected individuals. Overall, the attitudes and beliefs of the Haitians adjusted for socio-demographic variables did not differ markedly from the Dominicans. CONCLUSION: The attitudes towards PLWHA seem to be associated with the nature of the HIV-related beliefs in some vulnerable groups. The findings of this study should guide the design of appropriate programs aimed at the education of targeted populations.

Auctoritas was the foundation of Augustus' legitimacy, success, and survival in Roman politics. The necessary precondition of successfully founding political legitimacy upon auctoritas, however, was that Augustus' auctoritas had to be supreme. This thesis will show that one of the most important ways Augustus achieved supreme auctoritas was by integrating himself into traditional beliefs about the stars and by harnessing the associations with the divine and supernatural that were latent in these beliefs. Augustus reinforced his association with these beliefs by employing a number of powerful symbols drawn from among the stars. Chapters Two and Three will focus upon one of these symbols, the sidus Iulium (the comet of Caesar). Chapter Two will demonstrate how Augustus harnessed the general acceptance of Caesar's astral apotheosis (catasterism) and of catasterism in general in the Roman world at that time and then used the sidus Iulium as a symbol of his connection with Divus Iulius and of his own semi-divine status. Chapter Three will explore how Augustus promoted the sidus Iulium as the harbinger of a golden age for the Roman people and as an omen of the fact that it was his destiny to lead them into it. Chapter Four will turn to another astral symbol, the constellation Capricorn. This chapter will examine how Augustus integrated himself into the greatly popular discipline of astrology and used its language of fate to promote himself as a man of great destiny. Throughout we will consider a variety of evidence, particularly numismatic and literary. This will help us to achieve the fullest possible picture of the lengths to which Augustus went to create a useful ally of the stars in his never-ending quest for auctoritas. / Thesis (Master, Classics) -- Queen's University, 2009-09-14 18:14:44.877

No abstract available. / Thesis (Ph.D.)-University of Durban-Westville, 1985

In many developing countries, particularly Small Island Developing States (SIDS), coastal tourism impacts local economies and societies in significant ways, and plays an important role in transforming the environment. Rather than simply interpreting the changes that occur around coastal tourist enclaves as impacts, I argue that it is important to recognize the urban nature of spaces proliferating around these enclaves and to understand the role of the actors of coastal tourism in the production of these spaces. Utilizing a case study (Bávaro-Punta Cana, Dominican Republic), my research draws from over one year of fieldwork, including 97 semi-structured interviews with local residents, researchers, and various stakeholders. I examine the power relations between the private sector, local residents, and different levels and sectors of the State in the area’s urban development process. The context of Bávaro-Punta Cana is characterized by the following three issues. First, the newly established local government is generally impotent vis-á-vis other State actors and powerful private sector interests, and is unable to ensure the public good for its citizens. Second, many local residents live in conditions that are worse than traditional urban areas in the country. Third, the private sector has inserted itself as pivotal actor in the development and governance of the newly urbanizing area through practices of corporate social responsibility. Based on my analysis, I refer to the realities of Bávaro-Punta Cana as ‘resort urbanism.’ I utilize this term to illustrate the manifestations of tourism-related urbanization. Drawing from planning concepts, namely splintering urbanism, informality and citizenship, I analyze the physicality and spatiality of urbanization, the processes of urban development, and the rights of citizens and the relations between actors in the production of this new urban space. First, I argue that urban space in Bávaro-Punta Cana is produced as a form of ‘splintered urbanism.’ Second, this space is materially shaped by practices of informality or what is known locally as arrabalización. Last, the area lacks a local governance structure through which residents can adequately make claims to fulfill their basic needs, raising important questions regarding the rights and responsibilities of different actors in urban development.

ABSTRACT BACKGROUND: Child malnutrition contributes to more than 33% of child deaths and is directly related to the productivity and success of the adult population. To combat these stark figures, the United Nations Millennium Development Goals set out to halve levels of malnutrition by 2015. While recent U.N. reports indicate that many countries are on track to reach the MDGs, there may be sub-populations within these countries that do not fair as well. The purpose of this study is to provide a comparative analysis of the nutritional status of children younger than five years of age in the Dominican Republic and the Dominican Batey sub-population. This comparison will be based on stunting levels, reportedly the best indicator of child malnutrition, as it indicates sustained levels of nutritional deficiency. METHODS: Cross-sectional data from the 2007 Dominican Republic Standard and Special Demographic Health Surveys involving 11,149 Dominican children and 919 children from Dominican Bateyes, respectively, were used. Version 20 of the Statistical Package for Social Sciences (SPSS) was used to conduct descriptive statistics, analysis of variance tests, and independent samples T-test using selected socio-demographic variables. RESULTS: A significant difference in height-for-age (stunting) was identified between Bateyes (M= -83.52, SD =134.783) and the general population (M = -51.88, SD = 134.576; t (10,032) = -6.301, p = .00, two-tailed). Study findings indicate that overall, children under five years of age who reside in Dominican Bateyes are more malnourished than their Dominican counterparts (15.9% in Bateyes as opposed to 10.8% in the general population). Furthermore, Batey children are .34 times more moderately stunted, and one time more severely stunted, than children who reside in other areas of the Dominican Republic. CONCLUSION: While the Dominican Republic is on track to meet MDG Goal 1, a significant portion of the population does not fair as well. The substantial underlying differences that exist between the Dominican the Batey sub-population have led to higher rates of stunting and require further analysis. The findings of this study should guide the design of appropriate interventions aimed at reduction of malnutrition within Batey communities. KEY WORDS: stunting, malnutrition, children, Dominican Republic, Batey, Millennium Development Goals

Most of what we know of the socioecology and behaviour of gorillas comes from studies of mountain gorillas (Gorilla beringei beringei), despite their representing less than 1% of all gorillas in the wild. Western lowland gorillas (Gorilla gorilla gorilla) have received far less research effort, and difficulties in habituation have led previous studies to rely heavily on indirect trail evidence. This has prevented any in-depth comparison of social structure and behaviour between species. The discovery of swampy clearings frequented by western lowland gorillas in northern Congo has offered the first opportunity to obtain accurate demographic and behavioural data. This thesis reports on 6273 hours of observer presence at Mbeli Bai, which yielded 1681 hours of direct gorilla observation. Most data come from a population of 13 groups and 7 solitary silverbacks. Group size ranged from 2 to 16 (mean = 8.4, SD 4.3) which does not differ significantly from data published on most other populations. Female natal and secondary transfer were recorded, and male emigration from the natal group appeared universal (no multi-silverback groups were recorded). No evidence of sub-grouping or a fission-fusion grouping pattern was found. During intra-group interactions, no evidence was recorded of female philopatry, and silverbacks herded and intimidated females (especially new immigrants) to prevent emigration. Inter-unit interactions took place on only 42% of shared bai-use occasions, and levels of silverback agonism were much lower than in mountain gorillas, with peaceful mingling of groups recorded. Display behaviour was common, and two previously unrecorded agonistic displays (the splash display and the crest display) are described. No contact aggression between silverbacks was observed but evidence of wounding sustained in the forest suggests that the bai environment may inhibit such aggression. High visibility and the ease of silverback 'policing' are thought to create an unusually tolerant social dynamic, and as such, frequencies of certain social behaviours should probably be viewed as site-specific. The thesis offers the fullest account of western gorilla social structure and behaviour to date. Long-term monitoring of life history variables, if continued, will provide an unparalleled opportunity to understand the effects of habitat and food availability and more stochastic influences on western gorilla social structure, fitness, and survival.