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Efficacy of Canine - Assisted Therapy on Social Competence among INdividuals with Autism Spectrum Disorder
Adults with Autism Spectrum Disorder (ASD), because of their deficits in social newlinecompetence, often suffer a great deal in the community. Canine-assisted therapy (CAT) seems to be a useful approach to improve social functioning. This study aimed to investigate whether CAT can assist in improving the social competence of adults newlinewith ASD. The study employed an ABAB single case experimental design with four newlineparticipants. The social performance and social interactions with the therapy dog and newlinetherapist were the target measures of the study, and they were assessed using the newlineVellore Assessment of Social Performance and Animal-assisted Therapy Flowsheet. The baseline measures for the study were taken four times for 4 weeks for two newlinebaseline/reversal phases of the study. CAT was delivered by a trained dog along with newlinea certified animal-assisted practitioner twice a week for 4 weeks for 45-60 minutes newlineduring two intervention phases. The results were interpreted using descriptive, newlinegraphical, and numerical analysis. The mean scores indicated improvement in social newlineperformance and social interaction scores in the intervention phases. The visual newlineinspection showed similar results as indicated by the increasing trend line in newlineintervention phases. The results of the non-overlap of all pairs showed a medium to newlinestrong effect of CAT on improving social performance. The results validated the use newlineof CAT in the enhancement of social competence among adults with ASD. The study newlinesignificantly contributed to the field of CAT as well as has implications for aiding the newlineintegration of adults with ASD into mainstream society by enhancing their social newlinefunctioning. -
Effectiveness of performance appraisal systems in relation to teacher dedication in public and private secondary schools in zimbabwe
Performance appraisal systems need to be effective in improving or sustaining employee performance; otherwise, they are a sheer waste of time and money spent on their development and implementation. This study was an evaluation of the effectiveness of the current teacher performance appraisal system, in relation to teacher dedication to work, newlineas practised in Zimbabwean Secondary Schools. Since the introduction of the current teacher appraisal scheme in Zimbabwe in 2011, no research was carried out to determine whether it serves the purposes for which it was designed. Evaluating the effectiveness of the system encompasses a wide scope, including the perceptions of those appraised. The question that comes to the fore is,and#8214; What are teachers perceptions of the effectiveness of the current system of teacher appraisal as practised in public and private secondary schools in Zimbabwe?and#8214; Both quantitative newlineand qualitative methods of research were used to address the question. The study sought to establish the strength of the relationship that exist between the current teacher performance appraisal system and day to day newlineduties of the teacher, the extent to which it leads to improvements in the teaching and students learning process. It also seeks to establish how it addresses teacher development needs and whether the mechanisms and procedures for the management and implementation of the appraisal system in the schools are adequate. The current Performance Appraisal System, Result-Based Management and is output oriented. The main objective of this study was to assess the effectiveness of the current performance appraisal system on the performance of teachers in public and private secondary schools in Zimbabwe, by studying its implementation in five of the ten provinces. The overall purpose of the newlinestudy is to contribute to current policy and practice debate on how to improve and strengthen teacher performance appraisal and management system in Zimbabwe. -
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Corporate Insolvency Resolution Process Under Insolvency and Bankruptcy : A Critical Study
A robust legal system is essential for corporations to carry on business smoothly. Previously in India, winding up and corporate rescue were dealt in multiple legislations for different entities. Provisions relating to winding up of companies were found in The Indian Companies Act 1913, Indian Companies Act, 1956 and further in the Companies Act, 2013. These provisions did not ensure expeditious winding up procedures and the same affected the interest of stakeholders. newlineThe increase in NPA compelled the need to bring an efficient framework to protect the rights of creditors and debtors. As a solution to this IBC was enacted in 2016, to facilitate timely resolution of insolvency and bankruptcy. This research aims to critically analyze the provisions of corporate insolvency resolution process, to examine whether IBC is facilitating newlinerehabilitation of insolvent corporations and protecting the interest of creditors, so as to balance their interests. It further aims to outline a draft policy for a better insolvency resolution process in India. Primary data for the study was collected through a structured interview of stakeholders and conclusion was drawn through a qualitative thematic analysis using NVivo software. The findings showed that, through CIRP there is debt recovery for financial creditors, but it is not expeditious. There are multiple reasons for the delay. The operational creditors are not able to newlinerecover from the process and as a result, many of them are turning insolvent. The rights of the corporate debtor are protected under the Code but they are not adequately protected under the Code as there is no value maximization under the Code. There are many delays in the process, resulting in more companies going into liquidation. IBC is a debtor friendly legislation. Both resolution and liquidation benefit the corporate debtor as it helps the company to resolve its newlineinsolvency. -
Gender Differences In Health Habits And Psychological Well- Being Among Early Adults
The concept of health is both complex and important. Health and its importance is one of the universally recognized concepts. The aim of the study was to explore the gender differences among early adults with regard to their health habits and their psychological well-being. Total sample consisted of 100 participants of whom 50 were men and 50 were women. The sampling technique used was random sampling. The age range was 18 -25 years. Health promoting lifestyle profile (HPLP), developed by Walker, Sechrist & Pender (1982). It includes both health-protecting (preventive) behaviors that decrease risk for illness and health-promoting behaviors that sustain or increase well-being, self-actualization and personal fulfillment. Health Behavior checklist was developed by the researcher to understand the patterns of health behavior on the dimensions of nutrition, physical activity, medical care, alcohol consumption, smoking and dieting and PGI General well Being Measure (PGI GWBM) Psychological well-being- PGI GWBM (English Version) by S.K Verma and A.Verma was used to assess the psychological wellbeing of early adults. This is a twenty item simplified test to measure positive mental health. Results showed that there are no gender differences in health habits among early adults. There were gender differences in psychological well-being among early adults. Correlation between health habits and psychological well-being was not observed. The results from the analysis of the checklist indicate some differences between men and women; more men were involved in external physical activity than women and women seemed to be not worried about their health and not visiting hospitals for checkups than men. Key words: gender differences, health habits, psychological well-being. -
A catechism of pentecostal schisms and the efficacy of management in the stabilization of the church in zimbabwe
The Pentecostal church in Zimbabwe has of late experienced a rude awakening with the mushrooming of these incessant schisms which threaten the unity of purpose that should prevail in a religious set up. The current newlineincrease in schisms is of great concern to the Christian community. Are such schisms embedded in its original design, or are there other factors at play. The problem necessitated the commissioning of this study in order to explore the schism scourge with view to arresting it and bring stability to the splintering Pentecostal church. The conceptualization of the study began by identifying six hypothetical perspectives as the root hypothetical causes of church schisms, i.e., doctrinal, controversial relationship, secularization, institutionalism, leadership and management perspectives. Theoretical frameworks in the newlineexisting literature were reviewed to establish knowledge gaps that informed the newlinestudy approach. Using focus group discussion, document analysis, survey questionnaires, and interviews, the study sought causal and remedial validation on the problem at hand. To unveil the intricacies of the problem, an explorative mixed study framework was preferred. In order to generate a desired rich understanding and interpretation of schisms, a more qualitative catechism inquiry based on a combined ethno-methodology and hermeneutics paradigm was adopted. The study proposition was that church schisms are a result of management challenges in the Pentecostal church. The theoretical frame of the study was therefore modeled to explore newlinehow management protocols could be harnessed to induce real growth and stability. The Pentecostal church is renowned for shunning management, considering it secular and hence worldly. On one hand, the church is the most newlinecomplex institution, multifaceted and with multi-bottom lines, yet on the other hand, management is all about dealing with such complexities. -
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Artificial Intelligence Based Computational Framework for Identification and Classification of Interstitial Lung Diseases Using HRCT Images
Interstitial Lung Diseases (ILDs) refer to a wide array of respiratory disorders characterised via infection and scarring of the lung's interstitial tissue. These conditions affect the space within the air sacs, compromising the lungs' ability to expand and contract properly. ILDs manifest with a range of symptoms, including persistent cough, shortness of breath, and fatigue. Diagnosis of ILDs often involves imaging methods, mainly High-Resolution Computed Tomography (HRCT), to assess lung abnormalities. ILDs can have lasting effects on respiratory function, leading to progressive fibrosis. The primary obstacle in identifying ILDs lies in the diverse array of symptoms they present, making it challenging to distinguish them from other pulmonary disorders. The HRCT is a commonly employed method in ILD diagnosis. These images provide a detailed depiction of lung tissue, revealing its size, shape, and any notable abnormalities or changes. Moreover, HRCT plays a crucial role in monitoring disease progression over time. Deep Learning (DL) excels in detecting patterns in intricate medical images that may pose challenges for traditional methods. Moreover, DL algorithms exhibit the ability to identify subtle changes in medical images indicative of pathology, and they can automate object detection tasks. The application of DL in medical contexts can enrich the precision and rapidity of diagnoses. In this research aimed at improving the accuracy of artificial intelligence AI-based ILD identification, we harnessed the benefits of deep learning, employing full-training, Transfer Learning (TL), and ensemble voting techniques. Our approach involved the construction of three Convolutional Neural Networks (CNNs) from scratch for ILD detection. Additionally, we customized models named InceptionV3, VGG16, MobileNetV2, VGG19, and ResNet50 for both full-training and TL strategies. This comprehensive methodology aimed to take benefits of DL architectures to enhance the precision of ILD identification in medical imaging. Both the first dataset consisting of HRCT images and the second dataset comprising Chest X-ray were employed in our study. However, during the initial training phase of the TL models, we utilized pre-trained ImageNet weights. To enhance performance, modifications were made to the classification layers of all five models for both TL and full-training processes. To further improve training outcomes, a soft-voting ensemble approach was employed. The ensemble, combining the predictions of all three newly developed CNN models (ILDNetV1, ILDNetV2 and ILDNetV3), and ILDNetV1 achieved the highest test accuracy at 98.14%. Additionally, we incorporated machine learning (ML) models, including Logistic Regression, BayesNet, RandomForest, Multilayer Perceptron (MLP), and J48, using statistical measurements derived from HRCT images. Our study introduces a novel AI-based system for predicting ILD categories. This system demonstrated superior performance on unseen data by leveraging the results from the newly constructed CNNs, transfer learning, and ML models. This comprehensive approach holds promise for advancing ILD category prediction, providing a more robust and accurate tool for medical diagnosis and decision- making. -
A Study on emotional labour and job embeddedness amongst the frontline employees in hotel industry in bangalore
In various studies, researchers have pointed out that there exists a high turnover in the hotel industry. It is also found that employees in the hotel industry practice high emotional labor. However, the researcher, wanted to understand if people leave the industry or the organisation and how emotional labor plays positively in this phenomena. It was also curious to understand if Pride in work and Social Intelligence plays a role between Emotional Labor and Job newlineEmbeddedness. The present study investigated the emotional labor along with pride in work and social intelligence, experienced by employees of different hotels as a factor affecting their Job Embeddedness. A descriptive study was conducted using self-administered questionnaires among 341 frontline employees of different five-star and five-star deluxe hotels of Bangalore. newlineThe results exhibited a significant impact of Emotional Labor, Pride-in-Work, Social Intelligence on Job Embeddedness as well as significant differences in perceptions of variables based on demographic factors of the employees. The implications and suggestions for the hotel industry were discussed in the study. -
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Experience and Agency of Children with Intellectual Disabilities in Schools : An Ethnographic Study in Haryana, India
India currently has more than 24 million children within the age group of 0-18 years experiencing some form of disability. Among them, India has the highest population of children at risk of developmental disabilities (UNICEF, 2011). However, there is a significant dearth of knowledge regarding their lived experiences. Surprisingly, qualitative understandings of the lives of children with intellectual disabilities within their school environments are lacking in India. Thus, this research aims to fill this gap by focusing on comprehending the lived experiences and agency of these children within their schools, families, and neighborhoods. Recognizing them as social agents has the potential to challenge the marginalized status often attributed to them. The objective of this research was to understand the lived experiences of children with intellectual disabilities across various school setups, including government schools, private schools, and mainstream schools. Furthermore, it seeks to understand the values and perspectives of the schools, school authorities and teachers, and the manner in which children with intellectual disabilities employ their agency in their day- to-day lives within different educational structures. Ethnographic research was, therefore, conducted in four government schools, two private schools and two special schools in Karnal district, Haryana, India. Haryana was chosen due to the existence of previous research on the cultural understanding of disability in the state. A total of 25 children with intellectual disabilities and 44 school teachers were interviewed and observed. Classroom observations and shadowing also served as important methods of data collection. The findings reveal that policies, school structures and processes, as well as teachers' practices and attitudes, continue to perpetuate exclusionary practices for children with intellectual disabilities. The notion of "inclusive schooling" remains superficial within the Indian context. However, within these exclusionary systems and processes, a diverse range of differences were noted in terms of the experiences, beliefs, and preferences of children. These differences are influenced by a complex interplay of their social environment (school and home), cultural norms and personal attributes. Academic aspirations and experiences of personal friendship emerged as dynamic and intricate aspects of their lives. Evaluating these elements presents challenges as children's academic achievements and friendships are continually evolving, forming, and dissolving. Data analysis also demonstrates that children with intellectual disabilities not only actively construct meanings but also possess an awareness of the cultural context in which they exist. Their interactions with others, including the researcher, were heavily influenced by these cultural contexts. Their actions contribute differently to social and relational networks, depending on the barriers they encounter within each institution. The performativity of their agency was explored through an understanding of their "silences," which proved to be an essential element in analyzing their agency.Additionally, their agency was examined through their utilization of digital technologies which was actively used by children to maintain friendships with old friends, to develop new friendships and for entertainment purposes. This research, therefore, aims to integrate the notions of agency, culture, and structure in order to gain a comprehensive understanding of the experiences of children with intellectual disabilities in various educational environments in an Indian state. -
Isolation, Characterization and Evaluation of Potential Plant Growth-Promoting Bacteria From The Rhizosphere of Coffea arabica L. From Kodagu District, Karnataka
Agriculture is fundamental to food security and economic stability. The utilisation of newlineplant growth-promoting rhizobacteria (PGPR) an eco-friendly alternative to chemical newlinefertilisers is particularly promising as these microorganisms enhance nutrient newlineavailability, stimulate plant growth, and improve resistance to biotic and abiotic newlinestresses. This study aimed to isolate and characterise PGPR from the rhizosphere of newlineCoffea arabica L. in the Kodagu District of Karnataka, focusing on their potential as newlinebiofertilizers. Soil samples collected from ten different locations within Kamath Coffee newlineEstate led to the isolation of fourteen distinct bacterial colonies, labelled NJ01 to NJ14. These isolates were evaluated for various plant growth-promoting (PGP) traits like indole-3-acetic acid (IAA) siderophore and ammonia production, nitrogen fixation, newlinephosphate, and zinc solubilization and hydrogen cyanide (HCN) production. Further newlinestudies were carried out using 3 isolates with significant PGP traits. Enzyme activity newlineassays indicated that NJ01, NJ04, and NJ14 had positive results for protease, cellulase, newlineamylase, and catalase activity. These strains also displayed varying degrees of newlinehalotolerance, with NJ01, NJ04 and NJ14 tolerating up to 8%, 10% and 11% NaCl, newlinerespectively. Heavy metal tolerance tests revealed that NJ01 tolerated Pb up to 250 newlineg/mL, NJ04 tolerated Pb up to 1500 g/mL and Cd up to 50 g/mL, and NJ14 tolerated Pb up to 1000 g/mL and Hg up to 100 g/mL. Polyhydroxyalkanoate (PHA) production was confirmed in all isolates, with NJ01 yielding the highest amount (6.4 g/L). The isolates exhibited significant antifungal and the 16S rRNA sequencing identified NJ01 as Bacillus albus (OP784795), NJ04 as Bacillus licheniformis (OM780221), and NJ14 as Bacillus subtilis (OM780222). A consortium was prepared after confirming the plant growth promoting abilities of these PGPR strains by carrying out an initial plant growth studies. The optimisation of media parameters was by using a two-factor interaction model. -
Multi-Objective Optimization Approaches for Solar Photovoltaic Inverter Control and Energy Balance in A Smart Grid Environment
Placement of distributed generation in electrical distribution system is a critical newlineaspect of optimizing grid performance and ensuring effcient integration of renewable energy sources. Renewable based sources must be properly positioned and sized to avoid bidirectional power and#64258;ows, voltage/frequency and#64258;uctuations and performance degradation. Solar Photovoltaic Systems and Wind Turbines are potentially becoming the preferred renewable energy based, distribution generation sources. Precise control mechanisms like advanced inverter strategies and direct load control are crucial for regulating voltage, frequency and reactive power output, thereby optimizing grid operation and maximizing integration benefts from these sources. However, optimizing the allocation and operation of these systems in grid connected and islanded modes, particularly in radially confgured systems, requires addressing algorithmic challenges, problems related to nonlinear optimization, newlinevariable generations and load variations. To effectively allocate these systems in the newlineelectrical distribution system, advanced optimization techniques capable of newlinehandling multi-objective, nonlinear problems are needed. Similarly, optimizing the power factor of the distributed generation sources and optimizing the load factor in these systems demand adaptive algorithms that can manage nonlinear objectives and dynamic system conditions. In response to the above research questions, this study focuses on determining the optimal placement and sizing of the distributed generation sources in the electrical distribution system with the objective to minimize real power loss and improve voltage stability. Learning enthusiasm based teaching learning based optimization algorithm has been employed for location selection and sizing optimization. The effectiveness of the proposed approach is validated on standard IEEE 33-bus and newline69-bus test systems, demonstrating decreased distribution losses and improved voltage stability. -
Exploring the Dream Pattern among the Nightshift Workers
Globalisation led to the increase in technology and development of multinational companies in the developing countries. This development has caused the increased need for working round the clock and the only option for such a need is different shifts in the companies. Nightshift workers are increasing day by day, but many times, people forget the health and sleep effects caused by the nightshift. One such impact is the altered circadian rhythm, which is very important for proper functioning of the body and a good sleep. Freud put forward that dreams occurring during sleep serve as the guardian of sleep. Dreams are the reflections of the waking life. This altered circadian rhythm can have an impact on waking and sleep life of the nightshift workers. This qualitative study is to find the dream pattern among the nightshift workers and to find the frequency in dreaming among this group. This study is conducted with nine nightshift and nine dayshift workers, dream journal was used to collect the dreams from the participants. Also, semistructured interview was done among the nightshift workers for in-depth understanding on their sleep habits and dream pattern. The dream patterns among both the groups are similar but there are dreams that make the nightshift group different from the dayshift. The frequency of dreaming is seen more among the nightshift workers. The study shows that sexual dreams are seen majorly among the nightshift group. This finding can be further used to conduct researches on the impact of nightshift on the sexual health and overall well being of nightshift workers and the reflection of the same in their dreams. -
Effect Of Cooperative Learning Strategies on Self-Directed Learning and Reflective Thinking of Pre-Service Teachers
Cooperative learning (CL) research demonstrates its robustness. While acknowledging the empirical benefits, there is room for improvement in implementing CL in teacher education classrooms. Teacher educators often resist adopting CL, favouring the frontal teaching method. The cultivation of self-directed learning and reflective newlinethinking is crucial for pre-service teachers (PSTs) to evolve into lifelong learners, newlinemeeting the demands of 21st-century classrooms. Online cooperative learning (OCL) newlineplays a vital role in enhancing essential skill sets such as collaboration, digital newlineproficiency, communication, and interaction among pre-service teachers. This study newlineunfolded in two phases. The initial pilot study, utilizing a concurrent triangulation newlinemixed-method research design, delved into perceived challenges faced by teacher newlineeducators in India regarding cooperative learning implementation. The subsequent newlineexperimental stage employed a quasi-experimental non-equivalent control group newlinedesign to investigate the impact of OCL strategies on self-directed learning (SDL) and reflective thinking (RT) among Indian pre-service teachers. Following the newlineintervention with OCL modules, the researcher also assessed pre-service teachers newlinesatisfaction and perceptions towards OCL, utilizing a mixed-method research approach with concurrent triangulation. The sample for experimental stage encompassed 130 pre-service teachers from two teacher education colleges affiliated with Mangalore University, Karnataka, India. The researcher constructed OCL intervention modules for the study and experts validated it. The researcher adopted standardized instrument for measuring SDL by Acar et al. (2016), and standardised instrument for measuring RT by Kember et al. (2000). The pilot study revealed that teacher educators perceived challenges at an average rate of 63% due to teacher challenges, learner challenges, curriculum syllabus, and administrative challenges. -
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A Study on Partial Domination in Graphs
The theory of domination is one of the most studied fields in graph theory. Many new domination parameters have been defined and studied so far. One such parame- ter that was introduced in 2017 is partial domination number. For a graph G = (V, E) and for a p and#8712; (0, 1], a subset S of V (G) is said to partially dominate or p-dominate G if |N[S]| and#8805; p|V (G)|. The cardinality of a smallest p-dominating set is called the p-domination number and it is denoted by and#947;p(G). In scenarios wherein domination con-cepts are applied, partial domination concepts can also be applied with the added ad-vantage of being able to dominate the underlying graph partially, when the need arises. This advantage makes this parameter appear unique amongst most other domination parameters. We present some basic properties of partial dominating sets, some prop- erties related to particular values of p, some properties related to the eccentricity of a p-dominating set, some results in the line of classical domination and characterization of minimal and minimum p-dominating sets. Then we study partial domination in the con-text of prisms of graphs. We give some bounds for partial domination numbers of prisms of graphs G in terms of partial domination numbers of G for particular values of p. We define universal and#947;p-fixers and universal and#947;p-doublers and we characterize paths, cycles and complete bipartite graphs which are universal and#947;1 2 - fixers and universal and#947;1 2 - dou- blers. Then we concentrate on establishing a domination chain in the context of partial domination, which we call as partial domination chain . For this, we defined indepen-dent partial domination number (IPD-number), found exact values of IPD-numbers for some classes of graphs, found bounds for IPD-numbers in terms of independent domi-nation number and some relations between the independent partial dominating sets and the independent dominating sets. -
A study on partial domination in graphs
The theory of domination is one of the most studied fields in graph theory. Many new domination parameters have been defined and studied so far. One such parameter that was introduced in 2017 is partial domination number. For a graph G = (V,E) and for a p ∈ (0,1], a subset S of V(G) is said to partially dominate or p-dominate G if |N[S]| ≥ p|V(G)|. The cardinality of a smallest p-dominating set is called the p-domination number and it is denoted by γp(G). In scenarios wherein domination concepts are applied, partial domination concepts can also be applied with the added advantage of being able to dominate the underlying graph partially, when the need arises. This advantage makes this parameter appear unique amongst most other domination parameters. We present some basic properties of partial dominating sets, some properties related to particular values of p, some properties related to the eccentricity of a p-dominating set, some results in the line of classical domination and characterization of minimal and minimum p-dominating sets. Then we study partial domination in the context of prisms of graphs. We give some bounds for partial domination numbers of prisms of graphs G in terms of partial domination numbers of G for particular values of p. We define universal γp-fixers and universal γp-doublers and we characterize paths, cycles and complete bipartite graphs which are universal γ 1 2 - fixers and universal γ 1 2 - doublers. Then we concentrate on establishing a domination chain in the context of partial
domination, which we call as ‘partial domination chain’.