Bakgrund: Kronisk hjärtsvikt drabbar främst den äldre (≥65 år) befolkningen och påverkar hela personens livssituation. Tidigare forskning påvisar att personer med hjärtsvikt upplevde bristande information och kommunikation från vården. Sjuksköterskans uppgift är att identifiera dessa brister för att förbättra den personcentrerade omvårdnaden samt upprätthålla hälsa hos personer med hjärtsvikt. Syfte: Att beskriva äldre personers upplevelser av att leva med kronisk hjärtsvikt utifrån KASAM. Metod: Litteraturöversikten har genomförts utifrån kvalitativ metod och deduktiv ansats. Den teoretiska referensramen som använts är Antonovskys (2005) teori om Känsla av Sammanhang (KASAM). Fribergs (2012a) femstegsmodell för kvalitativa studier har använt i analysprocessen där 11 vetenskapliga artiklar har tolkats. Resultat: Information och kommunikation från sjukvården upplevdes brista, vilket resulterade i sämre hantering av sjukdomen. Hjärtsvikten medförde begränsningar i det dagliga livet och personerna hittade strategier genom att prioritera annorlunda samt utföra aktiviteter som gav dem tillfredsställelse. Meningsfulla aktiviteter, självständighet i vardagen samt socialt stöd ansågs betydelsefullt.  Slutsats: Personernas hälsa, vardag och välbefinnande påverkades av att leva med hjärtsvikt. Sjuksköterskan kan utifrån litteraturöversikten förbättra den personcentrerade omvårdnaden, vilket förväntas generera förbättrad hälsa och välbefinnande för personer med hjärtsvikt. / Background:  Chronic heart failure affects mainly the elderly (≥65 years) and affects the entire person's life situation. Previous research shows that people with heart failure experienced lack of information and communication from health care. Nurses role is to identify these shortcomings to improve person-centered care to maintain health of people with heart failure. Purpose: To describe older peoples experiences of living with chronic heart failure based on KASAM. Method: The literature review has been conducted using qualitative method and deductive approach. The theoretical framework used was Antonovsky's (2005) theory of Sense of Coherence (SOC). Friberg (2012a) five-step model for qualitative studies were used in the analys process and 11 scientific articles where interpreted. Results: Lack of information and communication from health care were experienced, resulting poor management of the disease. Heart failure resulted in limitations in daily life and people found strategies by prioritizing differently and perform activities that gave satisfaction. Meaningful activities, independence and social support was considered significant. Conclusion: Health, living and well-being were affected by living with heart failure. Nurses can based on this literature review improve person-centered care, health and well-being for people with heart failure.

Developmental transitions are experienced throughout the life-span and necessitate adapting to significant and unpredictable changes (Heckhausen et al., 2010; Perry, 2003). The shift from high school to university in young adulthood serves as an exemplar of how these challenging junctures can undermine motivation and well-being. Recent evidence suggests that most (85%) young adults making this transition feel overwhelmed, half (50%) experience immense anxiety (ACHA, 2012), and more than one quarter (28%) withdraw from their institutions by the end of their first year (Snyder & Dillow, 2013). The present dissertation was designed to counter these developments by conducting a systematic analysis of whether motivation-focused thinking (selective secondary control) sustained young adults’ goal striving, goal attainment, and well-being based on propositions stemming from the motivational theory of life-span development (Heckhausen et al., 2010). Study 1 comprised a seven-month field study and showed that motivation-focused selective secondary control striving positively predicted young adults use of behavior-focused selective primary control strategies, which in turn influenced academic performance. Study 2 was based on a seven-month field study and built on Study 1 by demonstrating that increasing selective secondary control striving was related to lower levels of depressive and stress-related physical symptoms for young adults with low high school grades. These effects were mediated by theoretically-derived mechanisms involving selective primary control and discrete emotions. Building on the preceding studies, Study 3 involved a seven-month, pre-post, field design and showed that students with low high school grades and high perceived control who received a motivation-enhancing selective secondary control treatment attained year-end course grades that were 8% higher than their no-treatment peers (74.85% vs. 66.68%). Consistent with theory, treatment effects were mediated by selective secondary and primary control strategies and emotions. Findings from these studies advance the literature by documenting previously unexplored antecedents, consequences, mediators, moderators, and manipulations (treatment) of selective secondary control for young adults in the midst of a challenging life course transition. / October 2016

Obesity within the Canadian population is on the rise, as people continue to lead hurried lifestyles there is little time to slow down and prepare a meal for oneself or one’s family. As younger generations grow up in these rushed lifestyles, the opportunities to learn about food and nutrition in the home is quickly disappearing. As a result this practicum project explores promoting healthy lifestyles by reconnecting people with food through the creation of a Culinary Learning Centre located in The Forks Market Building, in Winnipeg, Manitoba. Individuals who are motivated to change the way they view and value food are provided with a comprehensive learning environment that approaches teaching through a holistic and collaborative manner. Informed by an extensive literature review into the Slow Food Movement, and learning theory; research into four case studies; and detailed programming, culminated in an interior design solution promoting positive learning, social interaction, and student well-being. / October 2016

Bakgrund: Sjukdomen Amyotrofisk Lateral Skleros (ALS) går inte att bota vilket skapar mycket ångest och lidande. Att finna mening med livet lutar sig åt att få stöd i familjen, sin livskamrat, vänner och fritidsintressen. När tal- sväljsvårigheter samt andningssvikt ger sig till kända finner dessa personer hjälp genom teknisk utrustning för att uppnå en bättre livskvalitet. Syfte: Syftet med litteraturstudien är att beskriva personers erfarenhet och livskvalitet av att leva med ALS, samt att granska datainsamlingsmetoderna i de inkluderade artiklarna. Metod: Denna beskrivande litteraturstudie är resultatet av 16 granskade artiklar av både kvantitativ och kvalitativ ansats. Huvudresultat: Det finns mycket symtom som behöver lindras i olika skeden av sjukdomen. Anhöriga och fritidsintressen ger ett viktigt stöd då sjukdomen präglas av ett enormt lidande. Senare i sjukdomsprocessen då kroppens funktioner avtar finns det teknisk utrustning att tillgå för att förbättra livskvaliteten. Slutsats: För att finna livskvalitet i denna förödande sjukdom vänder sig dessa personer till sina anhöriga och fritidsintressen. Idag finns det teknisk utrustning som dessa personer kan tillgå för att bland annat kunna fortsätta kommunicera och få hjälp med sin andningssvikt som förbättrar deras livskvalitet. Mera forskning behövs för att finna botemedel samt bättre behandlings metoder så att symtomen i denna sjukdom kan lindras så att bättre livskvalitet kan skapas. / Background: The disease Amyotrophic Lateral Sclerosis (ALS) cannot cure which creates a lot of anxiety and suffering. Finding meaning in life leans to get support in family, life partners, friends and hobbies. When the speech and swallowing gets difficulty and respiratory failure makes itself known these people finds help through technical equipment to achieve a better quality of life. Aim: The aim of this study is to describe people´s experience and quality of life of living with ALS and to review data collection methods in the included articles. Method: This descriptive study is the result of 16 articles of both quantitative and qualitative approach. Main results: There are many symptoms that need to be mitigated in various stages of the disease. Relatives and leisure activities provide important support as the disease is characterized by enormous suffering. Later in the disease process when the body’s functions slow down, there is technical equipment available to improve quality of life. Conclusion: In order to find the quality of life in this devastating disease turns these people into their families and hobbies. Today, there are technical equipment that these individuals may have access to, inter alia, to continue to communicate and get help with their breathing failure that improves their quality of life. More research is needed to find cures and better treatment methods so that the symptoms of this disease can be alleviated so that quality of life can be created.

SAMMANFATTNING Bakgrund: Demens är en folksjukdom som blir allt större i och med att befolkningen växer och människorna blir äldre. Detta kostar samhället enorma summor pengar eftersom dessa utsatta människor är i konstant behov av vård. Därför krävs effektiva och billiga hjälpmedel för att stärka den nuvarande vården av människor med demens idag. Djuren har levt nära människan väldigt länge och har varit till stor nytta genom tiderna genom att både ha agerat som arbetskraft och som sällskap. Syfte: Syftet med den här studien var att utforska betydelsen av djurs inverkan på personer med demens välbefinnande genom att undersöka interaktionen mellan människor och djur. Metod: En litteraturstudie användes. 12 originalartiklar valdes från databaserna Pubmed, CINAHL och Google Scholar som sedan lästs, granskats och bearbetats till fyra olika resultatkategorier. Joyce Travelbee’s teori användes som teoretisk ram. Resultat: Fyra kategorier av betydelsen av djurs inverkan på välbefinnandet identifierades: Positiv effekt, förändring av negativa psykologiska beteende, ingen eller obetydlig effekt och ökad fysisk aktivitet/balans. Genom att låta personer med demens få umgås med sällskapsdjur kontinuerligt visar sig ha en god effekt på social interaktion, ökad kognitiv förmåga och psykologiska problem såsom aggression, ängslan, oro och stress. Det finns också tecken på att sessioner med hundar även kan förstärka balansen genom att inspirera personerna till att gå och röra på sig mer än vad de gjorde innan interventionen. Slutsats: Närvaron av djur tenderar att ha en positiv inverkan på äldre personer med demenssjukdom. Även om mer forskning i ämnet behövs så kan ändå sällskapsdjur användas inom hälso- och sjukvården för att tillfälligt uppmuntra, aktivera och bidra med glädje och livslust i vardagen. / ABSTRACT Background: Dementia is a disease that is increasing as the population grows and people around the world gets older. This costs society enormous amount of money because these vulnerable people are in constant need of care. This requires effective and inexpensive means of assistance to strengthen the current care of people with dementia today. The animals have lived close to the human being for a long time and have been very useful of all time both by acting as labor and as company. Purpose: The purpose of this study was to explore the significance of the animal influences on person with dementia´s well-being through the interaction between human beings and animals. Methods: A literature study was used. 12 original articles were selected from the databases PubMed, CINAHL, and Google Scholar, which then were read, reviewed and analyzed to the four categories of results. Joyce Travelbee’s theory was used for the theoretical frame. Results: The four categories of the importance of animal influences in well-being were; positive effect, changing of negative psychological behavior, none or insignificant effect and increased physical activity or balance. By allowing people with dementia to socialize with pets continuously proves to have a good effect on social interaction, increased cognitive ability and psychological problems such as aggression, anxiety, worry and stress. There are also signs that sessions with a therapy dog can enhance balance by inspiring people to walk and mobilize themselves more than what they did before the intervention. Conclusion: The presence of animals tends to have a positive impact on older people with dementia. Although more research is needed on the subject, one can still use pets within healthcare to temporarily encourage, activate and to bring joy and happiness in everyday life.

BACKGROUND: School discipline—how schools manage and respond to student misbehavior—is a central component of how schools seek to create safe and productive learning environments. School suspensions have been a popular discipline strategy in recent decades. Yet, recent studies have demonstrated the association between punitive discipline strategies and poor outcomes in youth, including increased high school dropout rates, decreased odds of enrolling in postsecondary school, and increased mental health concerns. There is an urgent need to examine alternate mechanisms for addressing school discipline other than punitive exclusionary or reward-based systems. This dissertation seeks to develop an integrated model of promising approaches and define how such a system could work. OBJECTIVES: This dissertation is made up of three studies addressing three aims: (1) to synthesize the existing literature on how school discipline has been constructed and its impact on student well being; (2) to develop a novel conceptual model for an alternate discipline approach, "kind discipline," and; (3) to develop and validate a measure for assessing the practice of kind discipline in elementary and middle schools. METHODS: Study one is a theoretical review utilizing a social ecological model to frame how school discipline models address an individual, relational, or structural level. Study two is a formative evaluation that develops a novel conceptual model for an alternative discipline approach. This study utilized concept mapping to elicit and integrate perspectives on school discipline from teachers, administrators, school staff, and other stakeholders involved in school programming. The concept mapping included a brainstorming phase, a statement analysis phase, a sorting and rating phase, and multidimensional scaling and hierarchical cluster analysis of the collected data. It culminated in a map that visually represent the group's ideas and how they are interrelated. Study three validated a newly developed measure of kind discipline through an assessment of the measure’s internal consistency, an exploration of convergent and discriminant validity, and a descriptive analysis of the strength of relationships between kind discipline and school-level discipline frequency. RESULTS: The theoretical review illustrated how different school discipline approaches address disparate explanations of what may lead to student misbehavior. The formative evaluation developed a conceptual model for kind discipline in which three core themes emerged from 11 identified clusters in the conceptual model: (1) proactively developing a positive school climate, (2) responding to conflict with empathy, accountability, and skill, and (3) supporting staff skills in understanding and sharing expectations. When mapped onto a social ecological model, the identified components of kind discipline encompassed all levels of that model including the individual, relational, environmental/structural, and even community levels. In the study validating a measure of kind discipline, teacher and student assessments of kind discipline were strongly correlated (Pearson’s Correlation -.772, p=0.005). Convergent validity of the measure was supported by our finding that the more positively students assessed kind discipline in their schools, the lower the school disciplinary action rate (β=-0.759, p=0.05). Mixed linear models showed teachers' perceived kind discipline at the school level predicted individual students' perception of kind discipline. Girls reported higher levels of kind discipline than boys; and students in higher grades reported lower levels of kind discipline than students in lower grades. CONCLUSIONS: Effective school discipline programs may need to operate on multiple levels. There is increasing support for the importance of a relationship-level component to disciplinary approaches. This contrasts with the dominant individual-behavioral discipline approaches that focus on fewer levels and may not lead to sustained student and staff motivation. The findings from the concept mapping illustrate the importance of setting and communicating clear expectations and the need for them to be collaboratively developed. The student and teacher measures for assessing the level of kind discipline in a school show promise as tools for evaluating schools working to improve approaches to discipline and for guiding interventions that aim to promote positive and relational motivation strategies.

This purpose of this study was to investigate the effects of Gender Role Conflict upon college men's scores of psychological well-being, substance usage, and attitudes toward psychological help-seeking. It was found that the Success, Power, and Competition variable of Gender Role Conflict was the one variable that was consistently related to the measures of interest. Moreover, it was found to be significantly related to a decrease in psychological well-being, including Trait Anger, Angry Reaction subtype of trait anger, Angry Temperament subtype of trait anger, and Trait Anxiety. It was also found that this same variable was significantly related to increased reports of alcohol usage. Where as four of the possible five Gender Role Conflict variables were related to a negative attitude toward help-seeking, the Success, Power, and Competition variable was most heavily weighted.

Myten om att styrketräning är fysiskt skadligt för barn och ungdomar har motbevisats i vetenskapliga studier. Syftet med studien var att undersöka hur unga män (16-20 år) upplever att deras psykiska hälsa påverkas av styrketräning. Studien bygger på 13 djupintervjuer med styrketränande unga män. Materialet analyserades genom meningskoncentrering. Resultatet visar att hos styrketränande unga män (1) uppstår positiva och negativa känslor, (2) är teknik, kost, sömn och struktur viktigt, (3) påverkas självbilden av strävan efter muskler, (4) påverkas självbilden av strävan efter en bättre version av sig själv, (5) varierar självkänslan, (6) finns medvetenhet om kroppen, (7) finns en strävan efter bättre utseende och (8) uppnås specifika resultat. En strävan efter något bättre genomsyrar studien som i sin tur har effekt på den psykiska hälsan. Ytterligare forskning behövs för att undersöka om långvariga konsekvenser på den psykiska hälsan föreligger.

Background: The most commonly reported side effects experienced by breast cancer patients receiving chemotherapy are fatigue, anxiety and depression. Alongside psychosocial difficulties, evidence suggests chemotherapy treatment for breast cancer is associated with perceived cognitive impairment and that which is objectively detected in domains of memory, attention, concentration and executive function. As these concerns are becoming more prominent, research has shifted towards managing these side effects and helping to improve overall quality of life and well-being of breast cancer patients and survivors. To our knowledge, intervention studies have not yet considered physical activity as a potential for maintaining cognitive difficulties in breast cancer patients undergoing chemotherapy. Physical activity interventions are reported to be effective in alleviating emotional distress and fatigue in those with breast cancer. It has also been reported to improve cognitive functioning in the elderly, in those suffering with dementia and in children. It is proposed that physical activity could also help to manage cognitive impairment in female breast cancer patients and improve levels of psychosocial functioning. The aim of this PhD research was to implement a home-based, self-managed, physical activity intervention to alleviate cognitive and psychosocial difficulties experienced by female breast cancer patients undergoing chemotherapy. The intervention was designed using goal setting techniques enabling patients to self-manage their walking schedules and minimise input from NHS staff. Method: The randomised controlled trial compared a home-based, self-managed walking intervention to usual care alone among breast cancer patients receiving chemotherapy. Fifty participants were randomised to either the intervention group (n=25), receiving 12 weeks of moderate intensity walking, or the control group (n=25) mid-way through chemotherapy. Participants in the intervention group were provided with a pedometer and were asked to set goals and keep weekly diaries outlining the duration, intensity and exertion of their walking. Levels of psychosocial and cognitive functioning were assessed pre and post intervention in both groups. Primary outcome measures for this intervention were changes in cognitive functioning. Four domains of cognitive functioning were assessed using neuropsychological tests and subjective functioning was measured using The Cognitive Failures Questionnaire. Secondary outcome measures were on psychosocial functioning. Results: The self-managed intervention had positive effects on fatigue, self-esteem, mood, levels of physical activity and stage of motivational readiness but not anxiety and depression. Positive benefits of walking were also detected in perceived cognitive function but not in sustained attention, executive function, memory and visual spatial skills when assessed objectively. Qualitative data indicated that the self-managed intervention was feasible, adhered to and received positively during active chemotherapy. Conclusion: The home-based self-managed intervention was beneficial for improving psychosocial well-being and maintaining perceived cognitive functioning among breast cancer patients treated with chemotherapy.

Conduct disorder is characterized by behaviors that take a large toll on the individuals, families, and communities afflicted. Thus, improving treatment effectiveness should be a high priority. Currently, common intervention programs do not address parental depression, even though it has been linked to adolescent conduct disorder behaviors in some studies. The current study assessed whether the relation between maternal depression and adolescent conduct disorder behaviors is mediated by another factor which has been linked to conduct disorder behaviors, maternal monitoring. Results did not support the hypothesized mediated association, but did show significant individual associations for both maternal depression and maternal monitoring with adolescent conduct disorder behaviors. Secondary analyses showed that adolescent age and household income were significantly related to maternal monitoring and maternal depression, respectively. Findings also suggested that child disclosure may drive the association between maternal monitoring and adolescent conduct disorder behaviors. Implications for intervention are discussed.