"Rumination" and "Silencing the Self" have both been theorised to explain women�s greater vulnerability to depression. Rumination (Nolen-Hoeksema, e.g., 1987, 1991) refers to a passive focus on mood and symptoms, while Silencing the Self (Jack, 1991) refers to the socially-based belief that, broadly speaking, one should actively suppress one�s negative emotions and thoughts within romantic relationships. This thesis proposes that frequent suppression of negative emotional material within romantic relationships (self-silencing) makes that material more likely to be a target for rumination, resulting in greater depressed mood and depressive symptoms. It seems paradoxical that the more one tries to suppress one�s thoughts, the more one thinks about them. Wenzlaff and Luxton (2003) have demonstrated that frequent suppression may make material more accessible and a more likely target of rumination. Study 1 was a pilot investigation. It was found that self-silencing (the broad construct) and thought suppression (a narrower construct) were related, and that both were positively correlated with rumination. Furthermore, thought suppression contributed to the relationship between self-silencing and rumination for women. It was hypothesised that the more women suppress their negative feelings in romantic relationships (what Jack, 1991, describes as "Silencing the Self"), the more they will ruminate about these feelings and experience symptoms of depression. In Studies 2 and 3, the correlations among rumination, self-silencing and depression in adults and high school students were investigated. There were positive correlations among all the measured variables for adults and teenage girls, supporting the hypotheses. Regression analyses showed that for female adults and teenagers, rumination and self-silencing made unique, additive contributions to the prediction of depressive symptoms. In Studies 4 and 5, the causal relationship among self-silencing, rumination and depressed mood was investigated. Participants were asked either to write about a sad event that had happened in their relationships, or a typical (neutral) event. In Study 4, participants were also instructed to write either factually about these events, or to write in a ruminative way about them. Participants� chronic tendencies to self-silence were measured and they were classed as "high" or "low" self-silencers based on a median split. Female participants who chronically self-silenced more frequently and who ruminated experienced the most dramatic decrease in mood. In Study 5 participants wrote factually or suppressed their feelings about sad or neutral events and their tendency to ruminate was measured. Participants were divided into "high" and "low" ruminators based on a median split of their rumination scores. There was no support for the alternative hypothesis that chronic ruminators who suppressed would report depressed mood. Study 6 confirmed that in women, the combination of both chronic self-silencing in romantic relationships and acute rumination resulted in more severe symptoms of depression. Participants were e-mailed daily for one month about their self-silencing, rumination and negative mood. Chronic self-silencing, rumination and depressive symptoms were measured at the start and end of the month. Again, the combination of chronic self-silencing and acute rumination emerged as a better predictor of depressive symptoms than either variable alone. The six studies reported in this thesis support the hypothesis that self-silencing and rumination together explain short term negative mood as well as depressive symptoms even after one month. These studies explain why certain women are more likely to experience depressed mood in the context of romantic relationships. In particular, the combination of being a high self-silencer and ruminating makes one especially vulnerable to depressed mood and depressive symptoms. Clinically, there are already interventions targeted at rumination that are effective in reducing distress. However, the current research demonstrates that self-silencing may also be a promising target for intervention. Self-silencing is based on a wider understanding of the social context of depression. By targeting self-silencing, as well as rumination, depression may be more effectively treated.

<p>EU and China are important trade partners to each other; trade relationship is one of their crucial bilateral relationships. Within EU-China trade relationship, the dumping and anti-dumping issues play an important role. When EU commission initiates anti-dumping investigation, Chinese producers always have different responses. This study mainly focuses on the reasons behind Chinese producers’ various responses facing EU anti-dumping investigations. By digging out the real reasons behind Chinese producers’ various responses, this study is expected to make some contribution to the dumping and anti-dumping discussion between China and EU in academic level and to make some contribution to the policy adjusting of both sides in political lever.</p><p>Some hypotheses drawing from a Chinese lawyer Tao Jingzhou’s claim in an interview are tested in this study. These hypotheses listed some possible factors affecting Chinese producers’ responses. There are many anti-dumping cases between China and EU, CFL-i (Integrated electronic compact fluorescent lamps) case initiated in April 2000 was chosen as a research object for case study in this research. When it comes to theory, Hirschman’s theory of exit and voice is used as the basic theory structure of this study. His followers especially Barry and Birch refined Hirschman’s model into exit-voice-silence. This model is implemented in this study as a theory approach.</p><p>By interviewing some key people in the Chinese producers involving in CFL-i case and comparing the interview results with hypotheses, come conclusions are coming out:</p><p>First, in the case study level, Chinese producers’ choice of options is in a dynamic process. With the change of situation, a certain producer can choose different option in different period of time. While this study verified the variables influencing the choice of Chinese producers mentioned by Tao Jingzhou in the hypotheses such as degree of depending on EU market, sufficient of funds, supports from local government, financial system, ownership of the company and the diversity of products, it found several other variables which also affect the decision making of Chinese producers such as nationalism, previous success experience.</p><p>Second, when it comes to political level, for Chinese side, Chinese government especially local government should be more supportive when their enterprises are facing anti-dumping investigation from EU. In EU’s part, according to what has been discussed in the case study, currently it is not the time for EU to take China as a market economy treatment. However, its harsh criteria for applying for MET and individual treatment would get continuous severe critical from Chinese producers and government, which will negatively affect its trade relationship with China. For both sides, bilateral negotiations on anti-dumping duty or undertakings would be good for the long-run interests of both sides.</p>

In the aftermath of the events of 9/11, the U.S. executive branch has repeatedly maintained that its need for action to secure the nation requires a revised interpretation of individual liberties. This study will explore the tensions between the positive ideographs and in response to the negative ideograph in a contemporary United States court ruling. Using Burke’s pentad, and cluster analysis, as well as Brummett’s notion of strategic silence, the study examines how the FISCR substantially changed the interrelationship between the two ideographs. The study concludes that the FISCR situated strengthening national security as the purpose of the case it ruled on, which privileged national security over privacy. Throughout the expansion of security,> the court used silence to justify its decision. This analysis both adds to our understanding of the synchronic relationship between ideographs, and examines how the courts utilize such interplays to reconstitute community.

Avec pour point de départ les théories de Roland Barthes, de Maurice Blanchot et de Ginette Michaud, une étude du fragment est entreprise pour démontrer, dans un premier temps, les complexités relatives à l'emploi de cette forme (difficultés de définition, de traitement et d'analyse) ainsi que les principaux obstacles encourus lors de la lecture de récits fragmentés. Ce travail se veut d'abord une mise au point concernant les études du fragment pour ensuite laisser la place à l'analyse du silence et à son emploi dans la conversation mondaine, dans son inscription littéraire ainsi que dans son adaptation cinématographique. L'oeuvre de Valérie Mréjen se démarque par la multiplicité des médiums empruntés ainsi que par la réflexion qu'elle développe sur le langage et sa représentation. La lecture de ses récits fragmentés installe une impasse de la communication relevant de silences, représentés par l'arrêt de l'écriture et une mise en place du blanc. Cet entre-deux fragmentaire, utilisé comme déjoueur de la parole (mondaine, familiale et amoureuse), fait le pont entre la vacuité des paroles proférées (dans le but de servir un paraître social ou familial) et leur réception, leur incompréhension. Le récit Mon grand-père introduit l'univers banal et commun du quotidien familial par l'utilisation du fragment; il offre le portrait narratif et photographique des efforts entrepris entre les membres d'une famille pour resserrer les liens, pour installer une communication solide, ainsi que les échecs qui découlent de ces tentatives. D'une autre façon, L'Agrume met en scène les silences dans une relation amoureuse qui n'arrive pas à démarrer faute de communication Ici, c'est la gestuelle qui amplifie le manque dialogique entre les amoureux; la volonté de développer une communication amoureuse est transcrite par des actions, mais résulte systématiquement en un plus grand silence. Finalement, ce même silence est adapté dans La défaite du rouge-gorge, court-métrage mettant en images l'impasse de la communication, toujours en utilisant le fragmentaire comme moteur de la réflexion sur la langue et son silence. Mréjen tente une inscription de l'indicible à l'aide du fragment et notre étude se veut une observation de cette inscription qui passe par le littéraire, la photographie et le cinéma. ______________________________________________________________________________ MOTS-CLÉS DE L’AUTEUR : Mréjen, Fragment, Silence, Indicible, Polaroïd, Adaptation cinématographique.

Multistability is a fundamental attribute of the dynamics of neuronal systems under normal and pathological conditions. The mechanism of bistability of bursting and silence is not well understood and to our knowledge has not been experimentally recorded in single neurons. We considered four models. Two of them described the dynamics of a leech heart interneuron: the canonical model and a low-dimensional model. The other two models described mammalian pacemakers from the respiratory center. We investigated the low-dimensional model and identified six different types of multistability of dynamical regimes. We described six generic mechanisms underlying the co-existence of oscillatory and silent regimes. The mechanisms are based either on a saddle equilibrium or a saddle periodic orbit. The stable manifold of the saddle equilibrium or the saddle orbit sets the threshold between the regimes. In the two models of the leech interneuron the range of the controlling parameters supporting the co-existence of bursting and silence is limited by the Andronov-Hopf and homoclinic bifurcations (Malashchenko, Master Thesis 2007). The bistability was found in a narrow range of the leak currents' parameters. Here, we introduced a propensity index to bistability as the width of the range on a bifurcation diagram; we investigated how the propensity index was affected by modifications of the ionic currents, and found that conductances of only two currents substantially affected the index. The increase of the conductance of the hyperpolarization-activated current, Ih, and the reduction of the fast Ca2+ current, ICaF, notably increased the propensity index. These findings define modulatory conditions under which we suggest the bistability of bursting and silence could be experimentally revealed in leech heart interneurons. We hypothesize that this mechanism could be commonly found in a large variety of neuronal models. We applied our techniques to models of vertebrate neurons controlling respiratory rhythm, which represent two types of inspiratory pacemakers of the Pre-Bӧtzinger Complex. We showed that both types of neurons could exhibit bistability of bursting and silence in accordance with the mechanism which we described.

Based on the theory of Spiral of Silence from Noelle-Neumann, the main purpose of this research is to figure out internet users how to express their opinion after evaluating opinion climate and whether the characters of the Internet make their opinion- expression arbitrarily. Moreover, this research focuses on Chinese ¡¥face¡¦ culture to examine the cultural context how to influence opinion- expression of internet users. This research chooses ¡¥PeoPo¡¦ citizen journalism platform as research field, and adopts in-depth interview to analyze the opinion- expression of 9 PeoPo citizen reporters. As for the research topic, it¡¦s concerned with the issue of village migration of Taiwanese aborigine after the disaster caused by Typhoon Morakot in 2009. Therefore, this research attempts to figure out the PeoPo citizen reporters¡¦ inner process of opinion- expression and the influence of Chinese face culture. This research finds that the opinion-evaluation of internet users mainly rely on the Internet, and the fear of isolation that the spiral of silence theory emphasizes don¡¦t predict their willingness to speak up alone, but Chinese face culture does. Furthermore, the characters of the Internet don¡¦t prevent the spiral of silence effect. Although PeoPo not only accepts diverse viewpoints widely, but also inspires more citizens to voice local issues, the results show that actually PeoPo citizen reporters express their opinion with great pressure mostly lowering their willingness to speak up such as the foundation idea of PeoPo, reference group, threat of opposition, objective principle of journalism, and Chinese face culture. In sum, getting one¡¦s own way is discouraged on PeoPo; in other words, the characters of the Internet still unable to relieve PeoPo citizen reporters of speaking up.

With the advances in technology and popularization of the Internet, the interaction of human beings in real society has extended to the Internet forum. Due to the low barrier for entering the Internet, people can always speak their mind freely and make comments on whatever they want to. Behind a world that seems to have freedom and equality of speech, the expression of opinions is being tested by standards of different cultures and living backgrounds. Using Gossiping¢wthe most popular and interactive board on PTT¢w as the source data, this study identifies the spiral of silence between the mainstream opinions and non-mainstream opinions. Where the spiral of silence occurred, the study also examines the force which affected the spiral based on the theories of stigma and analyze its accompanying meanings. With different positions, people resulted in different critical standards and stigma phenomenon. When facing stigma, people should realize the causes of things from the social and cultural dimensions, and rethink the positive meanings that stigma brings to us instead of being afraid of it.

Spiral of silence has been published for 30 years, and been tested in many areas, however these test are not all qualified. This study aims to interpret spiral of silence theory and to inspect if there are any misuse in these test. First, we interpret these theory form the origin of the theory and it¡¦s deducing process, and built an theory model. Then inspect those test based on this model. The result discovered that most of these test stressed on testing people¡¦s willingness to speak out, and misleaded to compare one¡¦s opinion and one¡¦s perception of majority. This comprehension gap may comes from the wrong variable definition in the operational models. For this sake, this study offered a theory model to overcome this gap.

Thesis (MA)--University of Stellenbosch, 2008. / Bibliography. Also available via the Internet.

This paper represents an attempt to account for two projects completed during the course of the fall semester of 2009. It will ground and illuminate the projects, my experiences while completing them, and the program-space in which they were completed. Relying heavily on the narrativizing and working through of intimate personal experiences, the paper will conclude by suggesting that we rethink the value of silence in communication. / text