Social interactions of chronic psychiatric patients in organized ward recreational programs

Thesis (M.S.)--Boston Universit

The making of a standardized test of language errors

Thesis (Ed.M.)--Boston Universit

The detrimental effects of emotional process dysregulation on decision-making in substance dependence

Substance dependence is complex and multifactorial, with many distinct pathways involved in both the development and subsequent maintenance of addictive behaviors. Various cognitive mechanisms have been implicated, including impulsivity, compulsivity, and impaired decision-making. These mechanisms are modulated by emotional processes, resulting in increased likelihood of initial drug use, sustained substance dependence, and increased relapse during periods of abstinence. Emotional traits, such as sensation-seeking, are risk factors for substance use, and chronic drug use can result in further emotional dysregulation via effects on reward, motivation, and stress systems. We will explore theories of hyper and hypo sensitivity of the brain reward systems that may underpin motivational abnormalities and anhedonia. Disturbances in these systems contribute to the biasing of emotional processing toward cues related to drug use at the expense of natural rewards, which serves to maintain addictive behavior, via enhanced drug craving. We will additionally focus on the sensitization of the brain stress systems that result in negative affect states that continue into protracted abstinence that is may lead to compulsive drug-taking. We will explore how these emotional dysregulations impact upon decision-making controlled by goal-directed and habitual action selections systems, and, in combination with a failure of prefrontal inhibitory control, mediate maladaptive decision-making observed in substance dependent individuals such that they continue drug use in spite of negative consequences. An understanding of the emotional impacts on cognition in substance dependent individuals may guide the development of more effective therapeutic interventions

Evaluación a escala de planta piloto de un nutrimento comercial de levadura para fermentar mieles ricas

A pilot plant nutrient study was performed with fed-batch fermentation mode, 10% seed inoculum, and the sugar concentration needed to obtain 9% (v/v) ethyl alcohol using high test molasses. The nutrients consisted of ammonium sulfate (2 g/L), ammonium phosphate (0.5 g/L) and yeast nutrient (1 g/L) for treatment 1, and ammonium sulfate (2 g/L) for treatment 2. After 24 hours, samples were analyzed for alcohol yield and congener composition. The additional nutrients for treatment 1 sped up the fermentations and thus increased yields at 24-hour fermentation time.Se hicieron estudios a escala de laboratorio experimental con un proceso semicontinuo de 10% de inóculo de levadura y el azúcar necesario para obtener 9% (v/v) de etanol. Los nutrimentos añadidos fueron sulfato amónico (2 g./l.), fosfato monobásico de amonio (0.5 g./l.) y nutrimento comercial de levadura (1 g./l.). Después de 24 horas las muestras se analizaron para medir el rendimiento alcohólico y la composición de congenéricos. La adición de nutrimentos de levadura logró que las fermentaciones progresaran más rápidamente y produjeran rendimientos más altos

Study of fifty-seven bereaved children placed by the Children's aid association and discharged from their care in 1932

Thesis (M.S.)--Boston University, 194

Transnational Ties and Mental Health of Caribbean Immigrants

Immigration scholars have demonstrated the increasing importance of transnational activities among contemporary immigrants. While much of the previous research has emphasized social and economic outcomes, very little attention has been paid to psychological well-being or mental health. Using a community sample of West Indian immigrants, we developed an empirical measure of the nature and frequency of transnational practices. The resulting Transnationalism Scale is examined for psychometric properties using an exploratory principal components factor analysis, and bivariate correlations with pre-existing measures of psychological well-being, perceived social support, and ethnic identity. Results reveal five factors, some of which are significantly correlated with measures of psychological well-being, social support, and ethnic identity. Findings suggest that transnationalism, as a construct, is a valid measure for this population. We argue that transnational ties shape various aspects of immigrants' lives.Peer Reviewedhttp://deepblue.lib.umich.edu/bitstream/2027.42/44944/1/10903_2004_Article_NY00000300.pd

A marginal modelling approach for predicting wildfire extremes across the contiguous United States

This paper details a methodology proposed for the EVA 2021 conference data challenge. The aim of this challenge was to predict the number and size of wildfires over the contiguous US between 1993 and 2015, with more importance placed on extreme events. In the data set provided, over 14\% of both wildfire count and burnt area observations are missing; the objective of the data challenge was to estimate a range of marginal probabilities from the distribution functions of these missing observations. To enable this prediction, we make the assumption that the marginal distribution of a missing observation can be informed using non-missing data from neighbouring locations. In our method, we select spatial neighbourhoods for each missing observation and fit marginal models to non-missing observations in these regions. For the wildfire counts, we assume the compiled data sets follow a zero-inflated negative binomial distribution, while for burnt area values, we model the bulk and tail of each compiled data set using non-parametric and parametric techniques, respectively. Cross validation is used to select tuning parameters, and the resulting predictions are shown to significantly outperform the benchmark method proposed in the challenge outline. We conclude with a discussion of our modelling framework, and evaluate ways in which it could be extended.Comment: 13 pages, 5 figure

The Stability Of Parental Bonding Reports: A 20-year Follow-up

Background: Addressing the long-term reliability of retrospectively assessed parenting is underscored by the well-documented association between parenting behaviors, and mood disorders in offspring. The rarity of longitudinal research with follow-up periods exceeding 10 years creates a need for additional studies. Methods: 134 offspring of depressed and non-depressed parents were assessed on Parental Bonding Instrument (PBI) scores, lifetime major depression (MDD), and current depressive symptoms at four waves across 20 years. PBI rank order and mean level stability, individual trajectories, and the impact of baseline age, gender, and lifetime MDD on stability, were obtained using multiple regression and linear mixed model analyses. Results: Besides paternal overprotection which showed a 1.6-point average decrease, the PBI domains remained non-significant for mean level change over 20 years. However, there was a significant individual variation for all PBI domains. Lifetime MDD and age did not significantly impact retest correlations; older age at baseline was associated with higher average paternal overprotection. Sons had lower retest correlations than daughters, but did not differ from daughters on mean level stability. Current depressive symptoms were associated with PBI scores, but did not impact the effect of lifetime MDD, gender or age on mean level stability and individual trajectories. Limitations: Small sample sizes and measuring lifetime MDD as present or absent may have restricted our ability to detect effects of MDD history on PBI stability. Conclusion: The PBI is a robust measure of an important environmental risk for depressive disorders, and can be variably sensitive to sample characteristics, the passage of time and mood fluctuations. However, this sensitivity does not appear to significantly bias the long-term stability of this instrument