This study provides information regarding the validity and reliability of the Wood Prospective Meory Test (WPMT), a newly developed test consisting of three main subscales intended to measure prospective memory. Subjects were 69 college students (50 female, 19 male, age range 18-24), who were administered several memory tasks including the WPMT.The results of this study suggest that the subscales of the WPMT do not have sufficient internal reliability (.50, .60, and .44), and therefore, would be unlikely to correlate highly with any other measures. The usefulness of the WPMT as a clinical instrument is discussed.

This research focuses on the experiences of adolescents dealing with parental loss through death, irrespective of the age of the child at the time of loss. Through an increased understanding of this phenomenon, the researcher highlights the need for supporting and guiding adolescents who are dealing with parental loss. Role players are identified and insight into the task of assisting adolescents who are dealing with parental loss through death, is developed. A qualitative approach was followed in order to gain in-depth data regarding the experiences of adolescents dealing with parental loss through death. The general orientation to the research methodology is discussed in chapter one. The first objective of the study was to build a theoretical frame of reference regarding the field of adolescence as well as the influence of parental loss and the grief process, on this developmental stage. This objective is achieved in chapters two and three The second objective was to conduct an empirical study on the experiences of adolescents who were dealing with parental loss through death. The researcher conducted interviews at the school in which she works. Play techniques were implemented by the researcher to assist in exploring the adolescents’ experiences and therefore facilitate the research process. Themes and sub-themes were identified during the data collecting and analyzing processes. The findings are discussed in chapter four. The main themes, relating to the experiences of adolescents dealing with parental loss, identified in this study, are: <ul> <li> Emotions and needs vary and are linked to both the process of grieving and the development of a separate identity. <li> Although many possible support systems exist, insufficient guidance and support, both formal and informal, are being offered. <li> The adolescents’ focus on the past, present and future is affected by parental loss. <li> The relationship with the parents, both deceased and surviving, affects the adolescents’ functioning in the present. <li> Secondary implications of parental loss affect the adolescents’ experience of the loss. <li> Identity formation is affected by the bereavement process. <li> Risk and protection factors include present relationships and support systems; being offered the opportunity to grieve; spiritual beliefs and the adolescents’ behaviour. <li> Physical effects of dealing with parental loss though death included symptoms of depression.</li> </ul> The final objective of the research was to provide conclusions and recommendations and receives attention in chapter five. Recommendations are made to the South African Government, Department of Education and schools and include proposed strategies and policies for offering support to adolescents dealing with parental loss within the school systems. Recommendations to social workers and other professional support structures include bereavement training, flexible service delivery options and the developing and empowering of community-based structures. Knowledge of the experiences of adolescents dealing with parental loss through death is increased and the need for offering support and guidance to this vulnerable group in our society receives attention through this research. / Dissertation (MSD)--University of Pretoria, 2009. / Social Work and Criminology / unrestricted

The purpose of this study was to gain a better understanding of the factors that constitute a positive and negative supervisor-supervisee relationship as perceived by speech-language pathology graduate students. Clinical practicum experiences were analyzed using qualitative methods via recorded in-depth participant interviews. After the data were collected and transcribed, the narratives were analyzed to draw useful inferences and discover underlying themes using a phenomenological methodology approach. Two overlaying themes, ASHA’s Task 1 of Supervision and Anderson’s Continuum Model of Supervision, were identified from the participants’ interviews and were used to categorize the data. Results indicate the most likely factors attributed to a positive clinical experience included constructive feedback, respect, positive praise, clear expectations and structured clinical guidance while the factors that were most likely attributed to a negative experience were lack of constructive feedback, lack of perceived respect, negative criticism, unclear expectations, and minimal clinical guidance.

The purpose of this study was to evaluate the utility of the Adaptive Tasks Framework for assessing parental needs when providing primary care for their child with a chronic health condition. A qualitative descriptive methodology framed the study and two methods were employed to collect data: a secondary analysis of existing interview data from seven parents of children with chronic health conditions and interviews with four parents who were currently providing primary care for their child with a chronic health condition. The data was analyzed using content analysis, whereby interview data was explored to determine if it fit into one or more of the eight adaptive tasks categories. Parents reported needs in all of the eight adaptive tasks categories, with the need for information regarding their child's chronic health condition being the foremost concern among parents. The need for caring, empathetic, and patient health care professionals who are sympathetic to the informational needs of parents, while at the same time acknowledging their expertise, was the second need expressed by the parents in this study. Implications of these findings for nurses is that the Adaptive Tasks Framework provides a useful tool for assessing parental needs when managing their child's chronic health condition and for determining areas in which the parents may require support. / Applied Science, Faculty of / Nursing, School of / Graduate

This study developed propositions concerning the nature of academic tasks as they are experienced in classrooms. Specifically, the purpose of this study was to analyze academic task structures in two language-arts classes, one designated as average-ability and one designated as high-ability. Few studies have concentrated on tasks as they are experienced in classrooms. While propositions concerning task systems are sparse in any curriculum area, language arts classes would seem to be particularly appropriate for supplying information about a wide range of task types. The present research thus described the nature of tasks in two junior high language arts classes.

Motion capture technology and Magnetic Resonance Imaging with Diffusion Tensor Imaging (MRI-DTI) were used in this work to detect subtle abnormalities in patients with mild traumatic brain injury (MTBI). A new concept, termed dynamic variability, is introduced in this work to quantify and localize gait variability. Three chronic MTBI patients were recruited from the Veterans Affair Medical Center in Iowa City, IA, and three healthy controls with height, weight, and gender matched to the patients were recruited from the Reserve Officers' Training Corps in Iowa City, IA. Kinematic and kinetic data of the subjects were collected during the performance of three gait testing scenarios. The first test involved single-task walking and was used as a baseline. The second and third tests were dual tasks that involved walking while performing a cognitive or motor task and were designed to magnify gait abnormalities. The results showed that MTBI patients had reduced gait velocity, shortened stride length, and larger step width; findings that are consistent with those published in the literature. The new dynamic variability factor found that, as compared to controls, MTBI patients had more variability in their hip and ankle joint moments. MRI-DTI has been used to detect dysfunction of the major white matter tracts in chronic MTBI patients; although, the sample size of this study was too small to detect a difference between the MTBI and control subjects. The imaging and gait abnormalities are suggestive of frontal lobe-white matter tracts dysfunction.

Physical educators are concerned with the development of the whole child, as reflected by the affective cognitive and psychomotor domains that drive our standards. However, many times the focus is on one, maybe two, domains in a single task. This session will provide examples and strategies for incorporating all three domains into learning tasks, creating rich learning experiences. These ideas will help teachers of all experience levels and those preparing for edTPA.

The problem this study addressed was the determination of those real estate tasks perceived to be most essential by successful residential salespersons (defined as the recipients for the past five years of the Salesperson of the Year award, (or, designation) and in some cases, Realtor Associate of the Year designation awarded annually by some local Texas boards of realtors). Out of 116 local boards of REALTORS listed in the 19781979 Texas membership directory, twenty-eight awarded the Salesperson of the Year designation. During the years 1973 through 1977, ninety-five individuals received the award. Of these sixty-nine returned usable questionnaires for the study. The final list of task statements ranked by the participants in the study were selected by a panel composed of Advisory Council members from post-secondary institutions offering real estate programs, and chairpersons of education committees from local boards of realtors.

京都大学 / 新制・課程博士 / 博士(工学) / 甲第23504号 / 工博第4916号 / 新制||工||1768(附属図書館) / 京都大学大学院工学研究科機械理工学専攻 / (主査)教授 松野 文俊, 教授 泉田 啓, 教授 藤本 健治 / 学位規則第4条第1項該当 / Doctor of Philosophy (Engineering) / Kyoto University / DGAM

Although saving plays an important role in our everyday lives, including the lives of children, we know little about how this capacity develops, including the factors affecting it and the most effective means to measure it. This study examines the impact of age, a verbal prompt to save, and how internal (children’s inhibitory control, impulsivity, attentional focus) and external factors (household income, parents’ level of education, parents’ saving practices with their child, and parents’ beliefs about the importance of saving) influence both children’s saving in a novel laboratory saving task and parent-reported saving. 187 children between 3 to 7 years of age participated in this study. In the laboratory saving task, which was based on the saving task by Metcalf and Atance (2011), children received tokens that they could exchange for a less desirable reward now, or save for a highly desirable reward three minutes later. Children were assigned to either the “prompt” or baseline condition. Children in the baseline condition only received basic instructions for completing the task, whereas children in the prompt condition received the additional reminder, before beginning the task, that they could save if they wanted to. Parent-reported saving was assessed with a questionnaire, asking parents about their child’s saving at home. The internal and external factors were also measured using questionnaires completed by parents. Results show that assigned condition was associated with whether or not children saved (“saving status”), and that higher inhibitory control and parents’ saving practices predicted increased parent-reported saving. These results show that internal and external factors impact children’s saving behaviour and provides a new paradigm for assessing saving in young children. Implications for future research and limitations are discussed.