Adaptive lighting design as a holistic approach to public lighting

Dissertação para obtenção do grau de Doutor em Design, apresentada na Universidade de Lisboa - Faculdade de Arquitetura.

Impact assessment: from theory to practice

Foreign aid is intended to be a major contributor to poverty reduction. However, significant questions arise as to the capacity for development funding to contribute to human development, through service provision, through advocacy, through actions and interventions that change power relations, change the social and institutional arrangements that reinforce inequality, threaten or reproduce well-being, and prevent the fulfillment of human rights. In conjunction with questions about what aid “does,” there is equal focus on how it does it. Questions of efficiency, effectiveness, transparency, accountability, social license to operate, relevance, and many others are all embedded in contemporary aid discourse and practice. The aim of this volume was to contribute to a critical understanding of Impact Assessment (IA) clearly informed by contemporary development theory and practice. There is a significantly increasing push for impact assessment, across the whole aid architecture. This is exacerbated by a much stronger focus on value for money, and accountability – to taxpayers specifically in the context of public funds, and donors in an increasingly competitive NGO environment. As was noted by many authors, since the GFC, a significant number of donor governments have reduced or are considering funding reduction for bilateral aid agencies and their contributions to multilateral aid agencies. At the same time they imposed a more stringent and rigorous requirement focusing on “aid-for-trade” and “value-for-money” strategies. There is a drive to ensure the positive impacts of the grant or loan in a sustainable manner.

Psychological health and lifestyle management preconception and in pregnancy

Healthful lifestyles before and during pregnancy are important to facilitate healthy outcomes for mother and baby. For example, behaviors such as a sedentary lifestyle and consuming an energy-dense/nutrient-poor diet increase the risk of overweight/obesity before pregnancy and excessive weight gain during pregnancy, leading to adverse maternal and child health outcomes. Maternal psychopathology may be implicated in the development of suboptimal maternal lifestyle behaviors before and during pregnancy, perhaps through impacts on motivation. This article explores this notion using maternal obesity and excessive gestational weight gain as examples of the health impacts of psychological states. We suggest that factors such as psychological well-being, individual motivation for behavior change, and broader environmental influences that affect both individual and system-wide determinants all play important roles in promoting healthy lifestyles periconception and are key modifiable aspects for intervention designers to consider when trying to improve dietary behaviors and increase physical activity before and during pregnancy. In addition, implementing system-wide changes that impact positively on individual and environmental barriers to behavior change that are sustainable, measureable, and effective is required.

Stickability, transformability and transmittability: alternative, pull-out programs within schools - what the literature says about effective practice and provision for disenfranchised young people

This paper draws on the findings of a recent and extensive literature review to examine the efficacy of pull-out education programs (alternative programs) in schools in relation to student learning, well-being, and pathways. It synthesises the research on alternative education programs and their contribution to student outcomes using three main conceptual categories: how sustainable these programs are their stickability; how effective these programs are in achieving their stated purpose of improving and enhancing vulnerable students’ learning, well-being, and pathways, their transformability; and how these programs may be used successfully in other locations and contexts— their transmittability. It concludes with recommendations for future practice, suggesting that school systems should prioritise prevention and early intervention in providing support to vulnerable students in ways that take account of students’ own reasons for why they are disengaged from schooling.

International development : issues and challenges

This comprehensive and broad-ranging introductory text examines the key aspects of contemporary international development from both a practical and theoretical perspective. It addresses the fundamental question of what 'development' actually is and examines social, economic and environmental development across the globe.Written by experts with extensive field experience across a range of development settings, the book addresses key issues in the development debate. These issues include definitions of development, global influences on development, measurements of development, the contribution of international aid, the relationship between global development and gender equality, the idea of development as 'modernization', theories of underdevelopment, and regional variation.The third edition has been revised and updated to include discussion of recent events and challenges in the field, as well as coverage of the rise of new economic powers, the impact of new security challenges, and the increasing importance of sustainable development goals.

La influencia de la religión en la formación de la nación, estudio de caso: el budismo en Bután

El Reino de Bután es el único Estado de la cordillera del Himalaya cuya población es en su mayoría practicante del Budismo Mahayana Tántrico y cuyo desempeño tanto en la arena internacional como en su administración interna está estrechamente vinculado con los valores y principios budistas de reciprocidad, felicidad, solidaridad, vida familiar, cooperación, entre otros. Ejemplo de esto es la creación del Índice de Felicidad Nacional Bruta y la iniciativa del Nuevo Paradigma de Desarrollo. El presente artículo analiza los factores nacionales fundamentales que han permitido el desarrollo de la nación hacia las mencionadas políticas; y explica la influencia del Budismo en la formación de la Nación butanesa, para lo cual se hace un análisis cualitativo de fuentes, biografías, documentos oficiales y encuestas nacionales. Lo anterior permitirá explicar la estrecha relación ente el budismo y la nación butanesa actual, así como la importancia del Nuevo Paradigma del Desarrollo.

The Palace of Quinta do Marquês do Alegrete: restitution strategies for space, time and memory

Palaces, as an architectural typology, can be found in recreation Quintas that surrounded the main cities in Portugal, which preserved its rural character since the 16th century until the middle of the 19th century. Consisting of cultivated land and farm buildings, the palace of the Quinta was the owner´s temporary residence, for summer holidays and festive events, with gardens, pavilions, fountains and lakes for recreational purposes and leisure. The focus on palaces, as a historic building and as in need of new uses, clearly shows how current the debate on contemporary interventions in this heritage typology is. Interventions in architectural heritage require multidisciplinary teams to identify conservation strategies which enable a qualified use of its spaces, such as for example the experience of security and well-being, which can contribute to a better quality of life and simultaneously to the quality of the urban environment. This paper presents the Palace of Quinta Alegre and its rehabilitation project for contemporary use and public esteem, both of which are considered fundamental prerequisites for its sustainable maintenance in space, in time and in memory. [versão Portuguesa] Sob a denominação de tipologia arquitectónica, o edifício Palácio pode ser encontrado nas Quintas de Recreio que rodeavam as principais cidades Portuguesas, tendo preservado o seu carácter rural, desde o século XVI até metade do século XIX. Consistindo as Quintas em terra cultivada e edifícios rurais, o Palácio da Quinta consistia na residência temporária do proprietário, para férias de verão e eventos comemorativos, dispondo de jardins, pavilhões, fontes e lagos para recreação e lazer. O tema dos Palácios, entendido como edifício histórico que procura novos usos, demonstra como é actual o debate sobre intervenções contemporâneas nesta tipologia de valor patrimonial. A intervenção em património arquitectónico requer a definição de estratégias de conservação por equipas multidisciplinares que permitam estabelecer um uso qualificado dos seus espaços, proporcionando experiências sensoriais de bem-estar e segurança, contribuindo para uma melhor qualidade de vida e, simultaneamente, para a qualidade do ambiente urbano em que se insere. Este artigo tem por objectivo apresentar o Palácio da Quinta Alegre e o projecto de reabilitação, devolvendo-o a um uso contemporâneo e à estima pública, factores fundamentais para a sua manutenção sustentável no espaço, no tempo e na memória.

Work/Family Balance: HRM Policy and Practice in Australia

An employee's inability to balance work and family responsibilities has resulted in an increase in stress related illnesses. Historically, research into the nexus between work and family has primarily focused on the work/family conflict relationship, predominately investigating the impact of this conflict on parents, usually mothers. To date research has not sufficiently examined the human resource management practices that enable all parents to achieve a balance between their work and family lives. This paper explores the relationship between contemporary family friendly HRM policies and employed parents perceptions of work/family enhancement, work/family satisfaction, propensity to turnover, and work/family conflict. Self-report questionnaire data from 326 men and women is analysed and discussed to enable organisations to consider the use of family friendly policies and thus create a convergence between the well-being of employees and the effectiveness of the organisation.

Creating a therapeutic environment : a non-randomised controlled trial of a quiet time intervention for patients in acute care

Background: Noise is a significant barrier to sleep for acute care hospital patients, and sleep has been shown to be therapeutic for health, healing and recovery. Scheduled quiet time interventions to promote inpatient rest and sleep have been successfully trialled in critical care but not in acute care settings. Objectives: The study aim was to evaluate as cheduled quiet time intervention in an acute care setting. The study measured the effect of a scheduled quiet time on noise levels, inpatients’ rest and sleep behaviour, and wellbeing. The study also examined the impact of the intervention on patients’, visitors’ and health professionals’ satisfaction, and organisational functioning. Design: The study was a multi-centred non-randomised parallel group trial. Settings: The research was conducted in the acute orthopaedic wards of two major urban public hospitals in Brisbane, Australia. Participants: All patientsadmitted to the two wards in the5-month period of the study were invited to participate, withafinalsample of 299 participants recruited. This sample produced an effect size of 0.89 for an increase in the number of patients asleep during the quiet time. Methods: Demographic data were collected to enable comparison between groups. Data for noise level, sleep status, sleepiness and well being were collected using previously validated instruments: a Castle Model 824 digital sound level indicator; a three point sleep status scale; the Epworth Sleepiness Scale; and the SF12 V2 questionnaire. The staff, patient and visitor surveys on the experimental ward were adapted from published instruments. Results: Significant differences were found between the two groups in mean decibel level and numbers of patients awake and asleep. The difference in mean measured noise levels between the two environments corresponded to a ‘perceived’ difference of 2 to 1. There were significant correlations between average decibel level and number of patients awake and asleep in the experimental group, and between average decibel level and number of patients awake in the control group. Overall, patients, visitors and health professionals were satisfied with the quiet time intervention. Conclusions: The findings show that a quiet time intervention on an acute care hospital ward can affect noise level and patient sleep/wake patterns during the intervention period. The overall strongly positive response from surveys suggests that scheduled quiet time would be a positively perceived intervention with therapeutic benefit.

Career development and personal functioning differences between work-bound and non-work bound students

We surveyed 506 Australian high school students on career development (exploration, planning, job-knowledge, decision-making, indecision), personal functioning (well-being, self-esteem, life satisfaction, school satisfaction) and control variables (parents’ education, school achievement), and tested differences among work-bound, college-bound and university-bound students. The work-bound students had the poorest career development and personal functioning, the university-bound students the highest, with the college-bound students falling in-between the other two groups. Work-bound students did poorest, even after controlling for parental education and school achievement. The results suggest a relationship between career development and personal functioning in high school students.

Supporting fathers in the transition to parenthood

Knowledge of the experience of parenthood is usually from a woman’s perspective. The resulting outcome is that knowledge about the experience of fatherhood has been limited. Fathers are starting to change this situation by sharing their experience as is evidenced by the overall response of 267 fathers to this study. This paper focuses on the exploration of 22 men’s feelings and beliefs about fatherhood; and their expectations and views about parenting. The paper will also investigate how fathers’ antenatal expectations matched the reality of early family life including emotional well-being, attitudes to parenting, adjustment to family life and sources of support. The quantitative and qualitative data of the 22 fathers who responded to both the antenatal and postnatal questionnaires used within this paper are drawn from a larger Queensland survey of women and men during the antenatal and postnatal period.

The effect of social support derived from World of Warcraft on negative psychological symptoms

Previous research examining players of Massively-Multiplayer Online Games (MMOGs) suggests that players form meaningful relationships with each other. Other research indicates that people may derive social support from online sources and this social support has been associated with greater wellbeing. This study used an online survey of players (N = 206) of the MMOG “World of Warcraft” (WoW) to examine if social support can be derived from MMOGs, and to examine its relationship with negative psychological symptoms. Players of WoW were found to derive social support from playing and a positive relationship was found between game engagement and levels of in-game social support. Higher levels of in-game social support were associated with fewer negative psychological symptoms, although this effect was not maintained after accounting for social support derived from the offline sources. Additionally, a small subsample of players (N = 21) were identified that played for between 44 and 82 hours per week (M = 63.33). These players had significantly lower levels of offline social support and higher levels of negative symptoms compared to the rest of the sample. This study provides evidence that social support can be derived from MMOGs and the associated potential to promote well being, but also highlights the potential harm from spending excessive hours playing.

"Okay girl, it's up to you": a case study of the use of a seizure alert dog to improve the wellbeing of a student with epilepsy

The relationship between student well-being and the other vital outcomes of school is unequivocal. Improved outcomes in all aspects of student well-being are positively associated with improved outcomes in all other aspects of schooling. This educational imperative only serves to strengthen and support the moral imperative for schools and schooling to be inclusive, supportive and nurturing in order to maintain and support student well-being. (Fraillon 2005, p. 12)

The NOURISH randomised control trial : positive feeding practices and food preferences in early childhood - a primary prevention program for childhood obesity

Background Primary prevention of childhood overweight is an international priority. In Australia 20-25% of 2-8 year olds are already overweight. These children are at substantially increased the risk of becoming overweight adults, with attendant increased risk of morbidity and mortality. Early feeding practices determine infant exposure to food (type, amount, frequency) and include responses (eg coercion) to infant feeding behaviour (eg. food refusal). There is correlational evidence linking parenting style and early feeding practices to child eating behaviour and weight status. A focus on early feeding is consistent with the national focus on early childhood as the foundation for life-long health and well being. The NOURISH trial aims to implement and evaluate a community-based intervention to promote early feeding practices that will foster healthy food preferences and intake and preserve the innate capacity to self-regulate food intake in young children. Methods/Design This randomised controlled trial (RCT) aims to recruit 820 first-time mothers and their healthy term infants. A consecutive sample of eligible mothers will be approached postnatally at major maternity hospitals in Brisbane and Adelaide. Initial consent will be for re-contact for full enrolment when the infants are 4-7 months old. Individual mother- infant dyads will be randomised to usual care or the intervention. The intervention will provide anticipatory guidance via two modules of six fortnightly parent education and peer support group sessions, each followed by six months of regular maintenance contact. The modules will commence when the infants are aged 4-7 and 13-16 months to coincide with establishment of solid feeding, and autonomy and independence, respectively. Outcome measures will be assessed at baseline, with follow up at nine and 18 months. These will include infant intake (type and amount of foods), food preferences, feeding behaviour and growth and self-reported maternal feeding practices and parenting practices and efficacy. Covariates will include sociodemographics, infant feeding mode and temperament, maternal weight status and weight concern and child care exposure. Discussion Despite the strong rationale to focus on parents’ early feeding practices as a key determinant of child food preferences, intake and self-regulatory capacity, prospective longitudinal and intervention studies are rare. This trial will be amongst to provide Level II evidence regarding the impact of an intervention (commencing prior to age 12 months) on children’s eating patterns and behaviours. Trial Registration: ACTRN12608000056392

Mainstreamed students with learning difficulties : failing and underachieving in the secondary school

Despite the rhetoric that students with learning difficulties are adequately supported within schools, the evidence suggests that they continue to experience school failure with devastating consequences. Students with learning difficulties are disproportionately represented as juvenile delinquents, as the unemployed and in mental health statistics. However, the defining of this group remains confused and imprecise and has not been a national priority. This has repercussions for both secondary schools and for the students themselves. This paper highlights research related to teaching practices, policies and school structure and their effects on the academic outcomes and emotional well being of students with learning difficulties. Finally, it makes a number of recommendations to change the status quo for these students.