Thesis (Ph.D.)--University of Nebraska-Lincoln, 2007. / Title from title screen (site viewed July 9, 2007). PDF text: 111 p. : ill. UMI publication number: AAT 3251358. Includes bibliographical references. Also available in microfilm and microfiche formats.

Thesis (Ph. D.)--Michigan State University, 2008. / Includes bibliographical references (leaves 265-287).

Behaviour changes including apathy, disinhibition, irritability or social skills difficulties are commonly reported in individuals following an acquired brain injury (ABI) or presence of a neurodegenerative condition. In addition, there is evidence that these behaviour changes are related to increased caregiver burden and early nursing home and hospital admissions. Yet, very little is known about possible factors relating to behaviour change in ABI or neurodegeneration. Social cognition difficulties have been proposed as possible predictors of behaviour change in ABI or neurodegeneration. However, the evidence for the existence of a link between behaviour and social cognition remains weak. The aims of the current thesis were twofold; firstly, it aimed to systematically examine the current evidence on the link between social cognition and behaviour change in ABI or neurodegeneration. Secondly, the thesis aimed to assess the relationship between social cognition and behaviour change in the context of relationship quality in a sample of 27 individuals with a diagnosis of Dementia of the Alzheimer Type (DAT) or mixed DAT and vascular dementia and their co-residing partners. A review of the current literature showed a discrepancy in the evidence for an association between behaviour change and social cognition between ABI and neurodegenerative participant samples. The link between social cognition and behaviour changes in ABI, although suggested, was not found in the three included studies. However, this was not the case for neurogenerative samples. Although most of the included studies focused on a particular condition, frontotemporal dementia (FTD), evidence for this link was also present in one study focusing on DAT. Following from this review, the present thesis examined the existence of this association further in individuals with DAT/ mixed dementia. The study used partners’ reports on behaviour and relationship quality and examined their associations with individuals with DAT/mixed dementia’s performance on a social cognition task. Although the DAT/mixed dementia group showed an impaired performance on a social cognition task compared to their partners, there were no significant relationships between reported behaviour changes, relationship quality and social cognition performance in individuals with DAT/mixed dementia. These findings suggest that despite previous literature indicating a link between behaviour change and social cognition in DAT or mixed dementia, this relationship is yet to be fully established in this population and further research is needed to inform current practice and models of behaviour change in neurodegeneration. The present findings are also discussed with regards to implications for clinical practice and adaptations in psychotherapy for people with DAT or mixed dementia and their partners.

Advance care planning for adults is a process of consideration, discussion and decisions about care at the end of life. There is evidence that advance care planning improves outcomes such as the achievement of preferred place of death and the quality of dying. However, the uptake of advance care planning is variable. There are calls for more research to understand what influences people to carry it out to plan services and improve the quality of life of patients and their families. This dissertation reports on a qualitative, video interview study of 15 adult hospice patients. The study was interpretative influenced by the narrative approach with data driven thematic analysis and a video aide memoir. Coding was carried out using the Computer Assisted Qualitative Data Software programme Transana. The rigour and credibility of the study was viewed through the lens of trustworthiness which included the development of a Continuous Conversation Framework. The aim of the study was to investigate what would influence hospice patients to discuss their advance care planning to develop future education programmes based upon the perspectives of people at the end of their life: 1. What influences hospice patients in their advance care planning? 2. What communication skills do hospice patients find helpful when clinicians discuss advance care planning? Three findings are reported. These suggest that the influences on advance care planning activity and conversations is the less reported relationship of the personal context of a person's life (as well as services, diagnosis and prognosis considerations). First, the findings highlight the relevance of how people with an incurable illness live with and talk about their dying within the individual context of their daily lives. Secondly, differences are illustrated between how people prepare (for themselves) and plan (for others) in their dying. Thirdly, clinician communication behaviours such as empathy (through mutual connection and visible behaviours), tailored conversations (through accessible and selective honesty) and the design and use of space empower people to carry out conversations which support them as they live with, prepare and plan for dying. The three findings contribute to the perspective which supports the complexity of advance care planning that should focus on the context of person's life as well as the paperwork, prognosis or diagnosis. A contribution to person-centred care is suggested through a model of relational advance care planning.

The purpose of this study was to illuminate the barriers to persistence underprepared students at the community college experience after the initial successful completion of one semester. A qualitative interview study, grounded in phenomenology, was implemented. Participants were identified through a process of purposeful selection, which included the following criteria: (a) beginning the development reading sequence at the most basic level (DEV 65) and passing that course; (b) immediately enrolling in a subsequent semester at the institution; and (c) exiting the institution before acquiring any credit-bearing English coursework. The examination of institutional archival data resulted in 42 potential participants. Participants were recruited via telephone and mail, and of the 42 attempted telephone and 39 mailed contacts, five individuals volunteered to participate in the study. Each participant was interviewed individually, with sessions varying in length between 51 and 119 minutes. Immediately after each interview was complete, the audio recording was listened to in its entirety and transcribed verbatim. The resulting transcripts were analyzed through a modified version of Devinish's (2002) applied method for phenomenological explication of interview transcripts. This involved a multi-layered process of recursive analysis beginning with line-by-line open coding, extracting 333 natural meaning units (NMU). In a second stage of analysis, the NMU were further sorted, analyzed, and grouped to arrive at 46 central themes. The third stage of analysis involved collating and grouping central themes into related fields employing a concept map to form at 13 interpretive themes. The final stage of analysis included a further examination of the 13 interpretive themes, where each was rank ordered by importance (frequency x intensity = priority) and then synthesized with data from lesser themes, which resulted in the following six explicative themes: (a) significant environmental stressors; (b) a sense of self-sufficiency and independency; (c) reading problems; (d) a belief in the power of perseverance; (e) instructor characteristics; and (f) financial aid restrictions. These six explicative themes captured the essence of what it meant for the participants to be an underprepared student at the college and identified the perceived barriers to persistence.

Thesis (Ed.M.)--Boston University / The purpose of this study is to build a vocabulary for supplementary reading in a second grade which is using the Ginn and Gates Readers as basic textbooks. This vocabulary will be built from fifteen story books not used as school texts.

Thesis (Ed.M.)--Boston University / Language development has been studied for many years. The beginning vocabularies are easy to count ana record. As tne child grows and moves about, his speaking vocabulary increases very rapidly. Some estimates suggest that a minimum speaking vocabulary at six years would include three thousand words. New words have come into children's speaking vocabularies as a result of modern technology since World War II. Lists of spontaneous vocabulary furnish material for teachers and text book writers. The purpose of this study is to analyze two lists recorded in 1954 and 1955. An attempt has been made to classify the new list. The lists were compared with three existing lists, Rinsland, International Kindergarten Union and Gates.

Thesis (Ed.D.)--Boston University. Missing page 28

This research work is based upon a training technique devised and recommended by J. Smith (1985) in a pamphlet published by The British Historical Association. The technique involves training school pupils in the making of notes from text books and references and then selecting appropriate points to answer specific questions. The technique was slightly adapted and used on a small Experimental Group drawn from Black first year College of Education students at an Eastern Cape College. A Control Group from the same College received conventional lectures on two topicS from the first year college syllabus - the San and Khoi peoples of Southern Africa. The Experimental Group was given a brief training period in Smith's technique and then worked independently on extended reading passages on the same topics. Both groups received a similar introduction of a video tape on the San and a slide presentation on the Khoi. Both groups wrote the same final test after their learning experiences were over and both groups completed questionnaires on the initial visual input and on their reactions to the learning experience. Comparisons are drawn between the results and the students' reaction to those learning experiences.

This thesis evaluates the effectiveness of having students reflect upon their experiences of learning and use of critical thinking in their first year of study at University. Specifically, it responds to the debate on whether teaching a general course on critical thinking skills constitutes a 'syntax or semantic' for the students. McPeck (1990) initiated this debate, claiming that teaching general courses on critical thinking skills do not improve students' processes of reasoning. He believes that such courses are not meaningful to students and their learning, stating that the thinking skills the students require, must instead be derived directly from the subjects that they are studying. Educators such as Paul (1991; Siegel 1990) disagree with McPeck and argue that these courses improve students' reasoning processes at University level. In responding to this debate, I designed an introductory critical thinking skills course entitled the <em>Process of Learning</em>. This course was implemented with first year students enrolled on a design and media management course at a University in the United Kingdom. This case study was evaluated using an action research methodology. The findings of this research are discussed within the framework of student learning theory and the learning environment. The data includes student and staff interviews conducted over 18 months, triangulated findings from the course sessions and analysis of related assignments. This research found that students can benefit from first year introductory critical thinking courses in several ways. Students become sensitised or aware of the critical thinking skills that they use in first year. The subsequent application of these skills can lead to improvement in learning quality outcomes in subsequent studies. Students with a higher level of competency discuss these thinking skills more coherently and recognise their personal responsibility in learning. Students achieve insights into their own personal perception of learning and begin to assess objectively the implications of what they have learnt from this. Wide ranging feedback from students discussing critical thinking skills and learning activities can provide a medium for staff committed to improving both pedagogy and the curriculum. Better understanding of critical thinking skills can improve the students' confidence in learning. Further insights are presented in this research that help us to further understand the nature of `confidence' in learning. Students identified a number of difficulties with the <em>Process of Learning</em>. This would appear initially to support McPeck's belief that such courses arc not helpful to students in the first year of study. However, four key findings are presented in this thesis which explain why these difficulties arose. Consequently, this research supports educators who advocate the teaching of general critical thinking skills courses in higher education, due to the benefits for students and staff. It concludes that the 'syntax versus semantic' dichotomy is an oversimplification of the debate and explains why this is so. Finally, suggestions are made for future research directed at integrating critical thinking skills courses across the degree level at University.