School Belonging in Different Cultures: The Effects of Individualism and Power Distance

Limited evidence exists on how the larger cultural framework affects psychological processes related to schooling. We investigated how the cultural dimensions of indi- vidualism/collectivism and power distance in uence the sense of school belongingness using 2003 Programme for International Student Assessment survey data on 15-year-old students from 31 countries. Hierarchical linear modeling analysis indicated that power distance (i.e., hierarchical nature of social relationships) is a better predictor of school belongingness on the cultural level than individualism/collectivism. Accordingly, students living in cultures with high degree of power distance (particularly East Asian countries in these data sets) report lower school belongingness than students living in cultures with more lateral power relationships (Western countries). Positive teacher student relations and preference for cooperative learning environment predict higher school belonging- ness across cultures.Peer Reviewedhttps://deepblue.lib.umich.edu/bitstream/2027.42/147229/1/Cortina, Arel, Smith-Darden 2017.pdfDescription of Cortina, Arel, Smith-Darden 2017.pdf : main articl

Developing Cross-System Communication to Promote Educational Well-Being in Foster Care Youth: Recommendations for a National Research, Practice, and Policy Agenda

This study captures the voices of school-based behavioral specialists who are employed across the state of Michigan to share how well schools and child welfare agencies communicate and collaborate to address the educational well-being of foster care children on their caseloads. This includes knowledge of federal policies and how they support and hinder communication across systems. Participants included a total of 249 K-12 employed school psychologists, counselors, and social workers. Survey methodology was used and both inferential and narrative analyses revealed that these school practitioners were highly unaware of how to identify the foster care children in their schools, and what supports they need. The three groups of school-based professionals were similarly unaware, minimal communication is occurring with outside agencies, and they largely do not take initiative in reaching out to communicate and collaborate with community-based agencies outside the school. Despite that, collectively, the work of child welfare and education professionals could have a substantial impact on retention and the overall student performance of children who are living in out of home care. Implications of this lack communication and awareness are discussed. Recommendations to guide a national research agenda for advocacy and policy efforts are also identified

"Safety First" Childhood Maltreatment, Attachment, and Cognitive Processing: A Mediation Model.

Childhood maltreatment is a pervasive problem, with severe developmental consequences across multiple domains. A growing body of empirical evidence indicates that there are critical periods in childhood during which the experience of maltreatment has a profound impact on the developing brain. The developing brain drives cognitive, emotional, social, and psychological development and functioning; thus, understanding the relationship among environmental interactions and the subsequent impact on childhood neurodevelopment can provide insights into how the maltreated child self-regulates social and emotional experiences (such as attachment and interpersonal relationships) and processes information (such as auditory verbal information within social and therapeutic relationships). Those insights can inform the design of more effective treatment approaches for maltreated children that promise to more effectively reduce the long-term impact of the multiple developmental sequelae associated with maltreatment. This dissertation investigates the interface between childhood relational maltreatment, attachment, and cognitive processing, specifically: auditory and language processing. A sample of 117 incarcerated male adolescents, mean age of 17, from a Midwestern detention center participated in a survey study. The central hypothesis of this study was that attachment acts as a mediator between early relational maltreatment and later deficits in cognitive processing, deficits that then have negative consequences to the social and emotional functioning. A Structure Equation Modeling strategy was utilized to examine the role of attachment and cognitive processing deficits in child relational maltreatment. A significant relation was revealed between attachment on auditory processing as well as internalizing and externalizing behaviors including withdrawal, anxiety, social problems, and aggression. However, when attachment was held constant, the relation between child relational maltreatment and auditory processing became significant in its influence on withdrawal, anxiety, social problems and aggression indicating support for a partially mediated model. The current study supports the need for multi-model intervention approach when working with maltreated children and youth.Ph.D.Social Work and PsychologyUniversity of Michigan, Horace H. Rackham School of Graduate Studieshttp://deepblue.lib.umich.edu/bitstream/2027.42/61687/1/smithjp_1.pd

In Search of Modifiable Risk and Protective Factors for Teen Dating Violence

Peer Reviewedhttps://deepblue.lib.umich.edu/bitstream/2027.42/137513/1/jora12280_am.pdfhttps://deepblue.lib.umich.edu/bitstream/2027.42/137513/2/jora12280.pd

Integrated and Open Interpreter Education: The Open Educational Resource Reader and Workbook for Interpreters

https://digitalcommons.wou.edu/facbooks/1001/thumbnail.jp

The ZERO: Zip-Tie Revolver

The Boise State University Microgravity Team has been challenged with designing a mechanical Zip-tie tool to be used during EVA missions on the ISS. NASA is looking for a new tool that will allow astronauts to fasten zip-ties to secure wires and hoses. This tool would need to have a number of zip-ties stored internally, be quickly reusable, and would need to be easily and safely operated by an astronaut in a single handed operation

Comparison of text-messaging to voice telephone interviews for active surveillance of adverse events following immunisation

Objectives: In 2013, the Follow-up and Active Surveillance of Trivalent Influenza Vaccine in Mums (FASTMum) program began using short message service (SMS) to collect adverse event information in pregnant women who recently received trivalent influenza vaccine (TIV). This study was designed to compare data collected via SMS and telephone for the purposes of monitoring vaccine safety. Methods: A number of 344 women who received TIV were randomly assigned to a telephone interview group. They were telephoned seven days post-vaccination and administered a standard survey soliciting any adverse events following immunisation (AEFI) they experienced. They were matched by brand of vaccine, age group, and residence to 344 women who were sent a SMS seven days post-vaccination. The SMS solicited similar information. AEFI reported by SMS and telephone interview were compared by calculating risk ratios. Results: Response rate was higher to SMS compared to telephone interview (90.1% vs. 63.9%). Women who were surveyed by SMS were significantly less likely to report an AEFI compared to women who were surveyed by telephone (RR: 0.41; 95% CI: 0.29–0.59). The greatest discrepancies between SMS and telephone interview were for self-reported injection site reactions (3.1% vs. 16.8%) and unsolicited (or “other”) events (11.4% vs. 4.1%). Data collected by SMS was significantly timelier. Conclusions: Data collection by SMS results in significantly improved response rates and timeliness of vaccine safety data. Systems which incorporate SMS could be used to more rapidly detect safety signals and promote more rapid public health response to vaccine quality issues

Investigating dispersal of the invasive red swamp crayfish (Procambarus clarkii) and its effects on the distribution and status of native crayfish populations

The goal of this report was to determine the current abundance and distribution of native and invasive crayfish in South Carolina’s northeastern coastal plain and assess dispersal pathways for the invasive red swamp crayfish Procambarus clarkii

Structural Determination of Three Different Series of Compounds as Hsp90 Inhibitors Using 3D-QSAR Modeling, Molecular Docking and Molecular Dynamics Methods

Hsp90 is involved in correcting, folding, maturation and activation of a diverse array of client proteins; it has also been implicated in the treatment of cancer in recent years. In this work, comparative molecular field analysis (CoMFA), comparative molecular similarity indices analysis (CoMSIA), molecular docking and molecular dynamics were performed on three different series of Hsp90 inhibitors to build 3D-QSAR models, which were based on the ligand-based or receptor-based methods. The optimum 3D-QSAR models exhibited reasonable statistical characteristics with averaging internal q2 > 0.60 and external r2pred > 0.66 for Benzamide tetrahydro-4H-carbazol-4-one analogs (BT), AT13387 derivatives (AT) and Dihydroxylphenyl amides (DA). The results revealed that steric effects contributed the most to the BT model, whereas H-bonding was more important to AT, and electrostatic, hydrophobic, H-bond donor almost contributed equally to the DA model. The docking analysis showed that Asp93, Tyr139 and Thr184 in Hsp90 are important for the three series of inhibitors. Molecular dynamics simulation (MD) further indicated that the conformation derived from docking is basically consistent with the average structure extracted from MD simulation. These results not only lead to a better understanding of interactions between these inhibitors and Hsp90 receptor but also provide useful information for the design of new inhibitors with a specific activity

C-mannosylation supports folding and enhances stability of thrombospondin repeats.

Previous studies demonstrated importance of C-mannosylation for efficient protein secretion. To study its impact on protein folding and stability, we analyzed both C-mannosylated and non-C-mannosylated thrombospondin type 1 repeats (TSRs) of netrin receptor UNC-5. In absence of C-mannosylation, UNC-5 TSRs could only be obtained at low temperature and a significant proportion displayed incorrect intermolecular disulfide bridging, which was hardly observed when C-mannosylated. Glycosylated TSRs exhibited higher resistance to thermal and reductive denaturation processes, and the presence of C-mannoses promoted the oxidative folding of a reduced and denatured TSR in vitro. Molecular dynamics simulations supported the experimental studies and showed that C-mannoses can be involved in intramolecular hydrogen bonding and limit the flexibility of the TSR tryptophan-arginine ladder. We propose that in the endoplasmic reticulum folding process, C-mannoses orient the underlying tryptophan residues and facilitate the formation of the tryptophan-arginine ladder, thereby influencing the positioning of cysteines and disulfide bridging