Thesis (MSD (Play Therapy)) -- University of Pretoria, 2005. / Includes bibliographical references.

Thesis (M.A.)--Bowling Green State University, 2005. / Document formatted into pages; contains vi, 65 p. Includes bibliographical references.

Thesis (M.A.)--Trinity International University, 2005. / Abstract. Includes bibliographical references (leaves 95-98).

Thesis (B.A. (Hons.)) - University of Queensland, 2005. / Includes bibliography.

Thesis (M.A.)--Trinity International University, 2005. / Abstract. Includes bibliographical references (leaves 95-98).

Since housing choice and strategy are the result of both an individual’s financial capability in a particular life stage, as well as overall political-economic circumstances, the study of housing behavior has been used to emphasize processes of urban development and social change. However, housing behavior in the Chinese context has not attracted much research attention. Although many studies have been done on various topics surrounding China’s housing reform, only several quantitative studies have touched upon the topic of individual housing behavior. All of the existing literature is based on statistics before 1998 when work-unit housing distribution was officially repealed. This thesis offers an update of qualitative information on how young white-collar workers approach homeownership after 1998. Ten young homeowners from Beijing, together with some practitioners in the housing market and two governmental officials were interviewed. Based on the information offered by the interviewees, this thesis examines how state policies, market situations, family structure, and special characteristics of Beijing as a capital city impact the housing choices and strategies of young homeowners. / Applied Science, Faculty of / Community and Regional Planning (SCARP), School of / Graduate

Background: Obesity has been identified as a global epidemic and is associated with significant morbidity and mortality. Although obesity has been widely recognized for its consequences on physical health, its psychological burden in the adult populations remains unclear. Objectives: Our purpose was to address the relationship between Obesity status and psychological health within the adult young population in the Middle East and particularly in Lebanon (first aim). In addition, we intended to develop and validate a screening tool for the assessment of psychological distress (PD) in the obese young adult populations (second aim). Methods: To achieve the first aim, three studies were conducted. The first study was a systematic review and meta-analysis of observational studies that investigate the association between obesity and depression among adult populations in Middle Eastern countries. The second study was a cross sectional that aimed to explore the relationship between obesity and PD among the Lebanese University Students. The third study was conducted to examine the effects of actual body weight and body image on PD using a convenient sample of obese Lebanese young adults. The second aim was accomplished by conducting a fourth study to develop and validate a measure of PD related to obesity using three different samples of obese young adults. Results: The systematic review identified eight observational studies from six countries of the Middle East. Meta-analysis showed a significant positive association between obesity and depression (OR 1.27; 95% CI 1.11–1.44) particularly in women (Study1). Among the Lebanese university students, no evidence of a positive association was found between obesity and PD for both genders (Study 2). This result was confirmed in our third study in which body image dissatisfaction rather than obesity per se was associated with greater risk for PD. Finally, the “Obesity Specific Distress scale” (OSD) developed to measure distress in the obese young adult population demonstrated good psychometric properties regarding internal consistency, test-retest reliability, and construct validity (Study 4). Conclusions: Our meta-analysis suggests a positive association between obesity and depression among adult population in the Middle East which appeared to be more marked among women. This is of public health significance and provides a framework for establishing policy interventions to diagnose and treat depression in obese adults. In Lebanon, young obese adults who suffer from body image dissatisfaction are at increased risk of PD. Public health interventions targeting PD at the population level may need to promote healthy attitudes towards body weight, body shape and self-acceptance, regardless of weight status. Finally, the developed instrument used to assess young obese persons with high risk of PD can help promote a better understanding of the association between PD and obesity. This might improve the outcome and provide the patients with more efficient treatment. / Doctorat en Santé Publique / info:eu-repo/semantics/nonPublished

The arena for finding an intimate partner has changed significantly in the 21st century with online love relationships becoming more prevalent. Research indicates that individuals do experience meaningful online romantic love relationships and that these relationships often lead to face to face (FTF) relationships. However, limited research has been done on exploring the experiences of those who are/were involved in online romantic love relationships. Furthermore, research conducted on online love romantic relationships generally fails to investigate how people experience passion online, hereby ignoring this integral component of romantic love. The primary aim of the research study was to explore young adults’ experiences of romantic love relationships in virtual space. More specifically, the study explored how young adults experienced intimacy and passion as elements of romantic love online. The study was viewed from an interpretative paradigm and made use of a qualitative approach. The researcher conducted in-depth, semi-structured interviews with seven participants which were transcribed, and analysed using Interpretative Phenomenological Analysis (IPA). Four superordinate themes were identified, namely, Online Intimacy, Online Romance and Passion, Online Love, and Social Exchange Online. The participants experienced romantic love online and reported that these relationships were very significant, real and impacted on their psychological well-being. The study created a heuristic base that will provide impetus for this emerging field in research.

Maternal smoking during pregnancy has often been associated with numerous adverse outcomes for the offspring. However, its long-term effects are not well established. Given the high prevalence of maternal smoking during pregnancy, an understanding of these effects is essential. Therefore, the aim of the present dissertation was to shed light on the long-term neurophysiological effects of prenatal nicotine exposure on three different executive functioning processes by assessing participants in young adulthood, using functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI). Participants imaged were members of the Ottawa Prenatal Prospective Study, a longitudinal study that collected a unique body of information on participants from infancy to young adulthood, which allowed for the measurement of an unprecedented number of potentially confounding drug exposure variables. The dissertation consists of three separate original manuscripts. In manuscript 1, participants completed a response inhibition task, in manuscript 2 participants completed a verbal working memory task and in manuscript 3 participants completed a visuospatial working memory task. Taken together, results from all three manuscripts showed that prenatal nicotine exposure leads to altered neural functioning during executive functioning processing that continues into young adulthood. These significant results highlight the need for education about the repercussions of women smoking during pregnancy.

Youths who attempt suicide may have many negative feelings about themselves which are manifested in a low level of self-acceptance. This factor is often overlooked in specific assessment and intervention measures while socio-economic and situational variables are treated. Nurses, because of their location in schools, are in a unique position to recognize and intervene with the potentially suicidal youth. Nurses however may have difficulty in recognizing the youth with poor self-acceptance. This exploratory study was undertaken in order to answer the question: 'is a low level of self-acceptance in youths age sixteen to twenty-five correlated with suicide attempts?' The answer was sought from information obtained from youths' self-reports on the Berger Scale of Self-Acceptance and the California Psychological Inventory. These tests were administered to thirty youths divided into three groups. Group A were suicide attempters seen in the emergency ward of a large general hospital, group B were non-suicide attempters seen in the emergency ward and group C were chosen from the community. An analysis of variance was carried out to discover if there was a significant difference in self-acceptance among the three groups. The findings supported the overall conclusion: youths between ages sixteen and twenty-five who attempted suicide had a significantly lower self-acceptance than control group youths. The variable of hospitalization did not effect self-acceptance. / Applied Science, Faculty of / Nursing, School of / Graduate