Relationship between Adverse Childhood Experiences and Illness Perceptions among Individuals with Fibromyalgia

Relationship between Adverse Childhood Experiences and Illness Perceptions among Individuals with Fibromyalgia by Susan D. Fay MS, Drexel University, 1994 BS, Metropolitan State University of Denver, 1983 Dissertation Submitted in Partial Fulfillment of the Requirements for the Degree of Doctor of Philosophy Psychology Walden University February 2015 Adverse childhood experiences (ACEs), including abuse and neglect, are a significant social health problem. Exposure to ACEs can place a child at a high risk for developing different diseases or illnesses in adulthood, including fibromyalgia. The purpose of this study was to determine if exposure to ACEs, moderated by perceived social support and/or social undermining, would result in more negative illness perceptions of personal control and/or treatment control. A survey research design was used in this quantitative study. Purposive convenience sampling methods were used to solicit 231 participants to complete an online survey. Moderated multiple regression analysis was used to assess the moderating roles of perceived social support and social undermining on the relationship between ACEs with personal control and treatment control facets of illness perceptions among individuals with fibromyalgia. Developmental traumatology, allostatic load, social support, social undermining, and illness perceptions served as the theoretical and empirical foundation for this study. Social undermining was found to be a significant moderator of the relationship between sexual abuse, perceived social support, and personal control perceptions, F(7, 174) = 1.28, p \u3c.001, but only when levels of social undermining were moderate to high. The relationship was not significant for treatment control perceptions as the criterion variable, or for physical or emotional abuse as predictor variables. Positive social change implications include an expanded knowledge of important social and psychological factors that influence the health of fibromyalgia patients, especially those exposed to sexual abuse. Such information can assist health care providers develop more effective therapies, treatments, and screening protocols

A qualitative instrumental case study investigating the interrelatedness of adult learning theory, targeted professional development, and the creation of professional learning communities during the implementation of an elementary school improvement model

Title from PDF of title page (University of Missouri--Columbia, viewed on August 29, 2012).The entire thesis text is included in the research.pdf file; the official abstract appears in the short.pdf file; a non-technical public abstract appears in the public.pdf file.Dissertation advisor: Dr. Cynthia MacGregorIncludes bibliographical references.Vita.Ed. D. University of Missouri-Columbia 2012"May 2012"Federal school reform mandates and open enrollment policies have challenged U.S. public school leaders to find and implement innovative improvement programs. Research has shown effective professional development that is targeted to student, teacher, and school needs is essential to implementing new programs. The purpose of this study was to illustrate the interconnectedness of adult learning theory, targeted professional development, and the creation of professional learning communities (PLCs) during the implementation of the International Baccalaureate Primary Years Program (IB PYP) at Southeast and Midtown Elementary Schools in the Midwestern U.S. The conceptual underpinnings of the study were adult learning theory and learner-centered theory for adults. Research questions developed investigated the extent to which staff members perceived the schools' professional learning activities supported their adult learning needs. The study's data indicated targeted professional development activities at both school met the adult learning needs of the teachers and professional learning communities were formed. Data and discussion of findings of this investigation would be useful to school leaders seeking guidance with implementing school improvement models.Includes bibliographical reference

Diabetes Mellitus and the Hmong: A Scoping Review of the Literature

Background and Purpose: Upon immigration to the US, the Hmong people transition to a more industrialized society which places them at an increased risk for diabetes. Hmong Americans are at increasing risk for developing diabetes. This article scopes research literature on the prevalence of diabetes and factors affecting diabetes care in the Hmong population. Methods: The literature was systematically scoped using four databases to search for studies examining factors that influence diabetes care in the Hmong. Results: A total of ten studies were retrieved. Key findings suggest that those living with diabetes have limited knowledge of the disease, and the Hmong possess cultural characteristics that ultimately affect diabetes care. Conclusion: This review revealed that there are limited published studies of diabetes in Hmong Americans and future research is needed to address these knowledge gaps in this population. Language, religion, and cultural beliefs are also significant factors to consider in diabetes care of the Hmong

"Oil actually". Chinese and U.S. energy security policies in the Caspian Region

China and the U.S. are both great powers with vast and rapidly increasing consumption of oil. Despite considerable domestic production, this has resulted in a need for imports. Dependence on unstable oil producers outside American or Chinese control is considered by both states as an economic problem, but more importantly as a potential threat to national security. The thesis particularly emphasizes the security aspects of this dependence, in other words questions of energy security, which are viewed as increasingly important by the governments of both countries. This is a case study looking at the policies of China and the U.S., aimed at improving their national energy security, in the Caspian Sea region, which is an emerging (or arguably re-emerging) oil producing region in a global context. A considerable volume of empirical data has been collected in order to gain an overview of these policies, which have then been analyzed in light of categories borrowed from neoliberal and neorealist theories of international relations. A main conclusion of the thesis is that the policies applied to ensure access to the oil resources of the Caspian Sea region vary a great deal and often cannot be satisfactorily explained by traditional theories of international relations. Furthermore, we conclude that aggressive state policies aimed at securing access to oil resources may result in a domino effect as oil becomes scarcer. The findings of this thesis leave the door open for, and will hopefully contribute to, further studies both of energy security policy in general and in the region in particular. The thesis could prove especially useful as a starting point for inter-state or inter-regional comparisons, which may potentially contribute to wider generalizations. Such generalizations were not attempted in this thesis, as case studies do not lend themselves well to such endeavors, although certain more context-specific generalizations were presented

Susan Fay and David DeArmond in a Joint Senior Recital

This is the program for the joint senior recital of pianist Susan Fay and baritone David DeArmond. Angela Barfield accompanied DeArmond. The recital took place on December 2, 1976, in the Mabee Recital Hall

Motivating Time as a First Class Entity

In hard real-time applications, programs must not only be functionally correct but must also meet timing constraints. Unfortunately, little work has been done to allow a high-level incorporation of timing constraints into distributed real-time programs. Instead the programmer is required to ensure system timing through a complicated synchronization process or through low-level programming, making it difficult to create and modify programs. In this report, we describe six features that must be integrated into a high level language and underlying support system in order to promote time to a first class position in distributed real-time programming systems: expressibility of time, real-time communication, enforcement of timing constraints, fault tolerance to violations of constraints, ensuring distributed system state consistency in the time domain, and static timing verification. For each feature we describe what is required, what related work had been performed, and why this work does not adequately provide sufficient capabilities for distributed real-time programming. We then briefly outline an integrated approach to provide these six features using a high-level distributed programming language and system tools such as compilers, operating systems, and timing analyzers to enforce and verify timing constraints

Beyond Collaboration: Principles and Indicators of Authentic Relationship Development in CBPR

Authentic relationships, crafted through an ongoing process of engagement that results in shared priorities, are essential to working with, versus for, in or on community. Using a comparative analysis of a CBPR case study with two rural Métis communities, authors present shifts in individual attitudes and behaviors that represent principles for authentic relationship development. Reciprocal capacity building, relational accountability, and honoring cultural and personal boundaries are principles for authentic relationships that may be generalized across contexts to inform CBPR. Based on a process of collaborative inquiry, the authors propose two indicators of authentic relationships, including adaptability, as shown in decision-making, and shared values, reflected and achieved through inclusive reflexive practices. Using quantitative and qualitative methods to explore authentic relationship development made apparent the absence of authentic relationships in one case study. In conclusion, authors present the discussion and ultimate decision to step back from program delivery when authentic relationships are lacking