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2022 — Clinical-Gan: Trajectory Forecasting of Clinical Events using Transformer and Generative Adversarial NetworksAbstract
Predicting the trajectory of a disease at an early stage can aid physicians in offering effective treatment and prompt care to patients. Previous work has used Electronic Health Record (EHR) data and leveraged sequence models to forecast patients’ diagnosis, procedure, and medication codes. However, current deep learning models have difficulty learning from such EHR data—which comprises multivariate time series and multimodal data distribution. We propose a novel method called Clinical-GAN to tackle this learning issue, which combines Transformer and Generative Adversarial Networks (GAN) to forecast diagnosis, procedure, and prescription drugs while maintaining the interpretability of the model’s outcome. A Transformer … Read more
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2016 — Exploring the core phenomena of positive discipline in everyday parenting programsAbstract
This qualitative study explored the lived experience of 9 parents, 8 of whom indicated that they were newcomers to Canada. All 9 participated in Positive Discipline in Everyday Parenting (PDEP), a parenting program based on the rights of the child, to determine what it is in the program that reduces their approval of child physical punishment. In a Canadian study on PDEP, it was found that 95% of 321 parents indicated a reduction in the approval of child physical punishment, and more than 80% believed that they would use physical punishment less often (Durrant, et al., 2014). The current study … Read more
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2022 — Deciphering Metabolic Adaptations in Salmonella Enterica Serovar Typhimurium 14028S During Batch Growth and Gentamicin Exposure Using Absolute Quantitative ProteomicsAbstract
Understanding the mechanisms underlying antibiotic-mediated bacterial cell death is crucial for the development of novel strategies to control bacterial infections. Although the primary targets of antibiotics are well known, the actual molecular events leading to bacterial growth inhibition and cell death remain unclear. Recent studies have suggested that the interaction of antibiotics with their primary targets in bacteria results in harmful events, such as futile cycles, activation of toxic pathways, and accumulation of harmful by-products that cause bacterial growth inhibition and death. However, these events remain only partially understood and evidence suggests an intricate interplay between metabolic activities of the … Read more
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2020 — High-Precision Half-Life Measurement of Oxygen-14Abstract
Precision measurements of the ft values for Superallowed Fermi beta decays between nuclear isobaric analogue states of spin-parity Jπ= 0+, T = 1 provide fundamental tests of the electroweak interaction. These transitions are used to constrain the conserved vector current (CVC) hypothesis and provide the most precise value of Vud, the updown element of the Cabibbo-Kobayashi-Maskawa (CKM) quark-mixing matrix. A high precision half-life measurement for one of these superallowed emitters,14O, has been performed in 2017 at the Isotope Separator and Accelerator (ISAC) facility at TRIUMF. The half-life of 14O was deduced using a 4π gas-filled proportional counter and fast tape … Read more
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2019 — Application of Machine Learning Techniques for the Classification of Lower Back Pain in Human BodyAbstract
Advancement of technology in the field of medical science is providing promising results in this modern era. Intelligent systems designed especially for this sector not only help doctors to solve complex situations but also take comparatively lesser computational time which can be a really important factor as longer time in critical cases may lead to death of a patient. These days, everyone experiences long waiting time to see a doctor. It would be really desirable if an Intelligent System makes the work easy for a doctor by giving accurate decisions after processing patient’s data, reducing examination time for the current … Read more
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2020 — Blurring Divisions in a Fuzzy World: Climate Change, Nuclear Power, Public Engagement, and Energy JusticeAbstract
This study addresses the lack of trust, stakeholder conflict and binary ways of thinking that are creating barriers to the implementation of policy solutions to climate change. The divisive nature of the public debate over nuclear energy was explored through the inclusion of participants who held a diversity of opinions on the role of nuclear energy in climate change mitigation. This study uses a method of public engagement called deliberative mapping (Stirling and Davies 2004b) to bring citizens and specialists together to assess options for the reduction of greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions in small, remote or off-grid communities, including assessment … Read more
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2019 — Weil Representations of Unitary GroupsAbstract
Let A be a finite, commutative, local and principal ideal ring, with maximal ideal r, endowed with an involution , possibly trivial, and let R be the fixed ring of . We distinguish three types of extensions A=R: symplectic, when is trivial and A = R; unramified, when the involution that induces on A=r is nontrivial; ramified, when the involution that induces on A=r is trivial. The last case further divides into two cases, even or odd, depending on the nilpotency degree of r. Whatever the case, let Um(A) be the unitary group of rank m over A associated to … Read more
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2012 — The Weaver and The Web: A Foucauldian Analysis of the Discourses Which Produce Women Abusing Women in the WorkplaceAbstract
Bullying of women by other women in the workplace has rarely been the focus of research. This dissertation uses feminist poststructural theory and Foucauldian discourse analysis to problematize the belief that workplace bullying is the result of individual personality flaws, skill deficits, or psychopathology in the abuser or in the target, and to trouble the individualization of a serious social problem which has resulted in victim blaming, and turning the focus of public attention away from the consequences of gender and race. This dissertation analyzes research texts based on transcriptions of open interviews with five women who have experienced abuse … Read more
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2021 — Classification, Quality Analysis and Development of Circuit Design and Simulation Software for Computing EducationAbstract
Circuit design and simulation software environments are an integral part of computing education, where experimental results play a key role. Existing software products often lack consistency and usability, which is detrimental to their deployment in education. In this thesis, a contemporary methodology for circuit design and simulation software development is presented. Through proper classification and quality analysis of existing products, key aspects of development are recognized, described and incorporated into a solidi ed heuristic for future development of better software for remote computing education in the post-COVID-19 world. Read more
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2014 — Plan “B” Strategies: A Qualitative Inquiry of High Schools’ Contingency Plans for Targeted School ViolenceAbstract
Targeted school violence (TSV), or armed attacks in schools, represent an essential part of school safety planning similar to fire drills (Lassiter & Perry, 2009), despite the rarity of both. Typically, schools use lockdown or evacuation procedures to respond to a TSV event. However, there are many types of violent events and variables within each situation. Therefore, it is argued that TSV emergency preparedness requires multiple plans (McDaniel & Ellis, 2008), or flexible responses that can accommodate diverse incidents, particularly what occurs during the event; once the perpetrator(s) enter(s) the premises until the arrival of law enforcement (Buerger & Buerger, … Read more
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2023 — Inclusive internal governance policies to support women’s representation: A case study of three mid-sized municipalities in CanadaAbstract
This thesis explores the recent phenomenon of inclusive internal governance policies (IIGPs) for municipal councils. Prior research urges the adoptions of IIGPs as they may help mitigate one of the biggest barriers to women’s representation – the negative political environment on municipal councils (Federation of Canadian Municipalities [FCM], 2018; Seasonova, 2022; Seiferling, 2016). IIGPs are needed to act as safeguards enabling a safer, more respectful and inclusive council workspace environment. Municipalities only recently started to adopt IIGPs, therefore, there has not been much research about these policies. The objective of this research is to expand the knowledge of IIGPs and … Read more
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2020 — Experimental Study of Foamy oil Characteristics and Post-CHOPS CSI Processes Based on CO2-C3H8 Mixture SolventAbstract
As the demand of crude oil increases sharply nowadays, heavy oil, an unconventional liquid hydrocarbon representing more than 70% of the world’s total oil, needs to be further produced in the coming decades. Although some laboratory experiments have been conducted to find out the mechanism of foamy oil during pressure depletion processes. There are still some difficulties in understanding the characteristics of foamy oil flow in Cold Heavy Oil Production (CHOP). Large amounts of heavy oil samples used in previous studies were mixed with methane, carbon dioxide and butane. Only several studies were conducted under heavy oil-mixture solvent systems. Therefore, … Read more
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2017 — Immobilization of Tetrabromobisphenol A On Pinecone-Derived BiocharAbstract
In the past decades, Tetrabromobisphenol A (TBBPA), one of brominated flame retardants (BFR), has been widely used in a variety of commercial and industry applications to improve fire resistance, and it is also commonly used in fire safety of laminates in printed circuit boards, plastics in electrical and electronic equipment. Due to its large part of world production of BFRs for covering around 60% of the total BFR market and the use of TBBPA is currently not restricted in many countries including America and China, TBBPA is of great concern as a relatively persistent organic pollutant released through manufacturing, recycling, … Read more
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2017 — Engagement Paper for Hybrid Format Film MeatAbstract
After having suffered the pressure of being a single woman at the age of twenty-five when I was in China, I have made a hybrid format short film Meat to remember my personal experience as being a sheng nu (left-over woman). This engagement paper puts Meat into a theoretical, historical, and personal context. Through the personal-experience-based story, a sheng nu’s relationship with the society and her family will be explored, in an attempt to analyze the social, historical and political problems, faced by single Chinese women during this decade. The paper will also discuss how the creative choices behind the … Read more
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2012 — Organ Donation and Transplantation: Considering International Policy Options for CanadaAbstract
Organ donation is the most cost-effective, if not the only, option for the treatment for end-stage organ failure. End-stage organ failure is an epidemic, costing the Canadian healthcare system over $35 billion dollars per year. As organ donation and transplantation (ODT) is the most cost-effective solution, it is in Canada’s best interest to maximize the number of donors to allow for the maximum number of transplants. Canada currently lags behind most developed countries and the literature describes most of the world being in an “organ shortage”, with demand for transplants far exceeding the supply of viable, donated organs. Current efforts … Read more
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2020 — Three-Way Analysis of an Ordered Information Table with Categorical and Numerical AttributesAbstract
Ordered data analytics is frequently mentioned in many areas including theoretical research, commercial analysis, and industrial application. In 2001, Yao and Sai proposed a method for mining ordering rules in an ordered information table. The foundation of an ordered information table is a standard information table adding order relations. In 2012, Yao proposed a theory of three-way decision based on three pair-wise disjoint regions in rough set theory. The theory is then generalized as thinking in threes. This thesis focuses on building an ordered information table with two types of attributes. Order relations are binary relations that reveal the user … Read more
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2013 — NMR Analysis of Various Amine-CO2-H2O Systems Interactions for Studies of Vapour-Liquid Equilibrium and Catalyst Aided and Unaided Solvent RegenerationAbstract
The removal of CO2 by chemical absorption and regeneration has been researched for decades. CO2-amine interactions in solvent chemistry have been studied via the Vapour-Liquid Equilibrium (VLE) model. Databases for VLE models have been generated either through software simulators or conventional pH meter + Nuclear magnetic resonance (NMR) experiments. Studies have focused mostly on single amines solutions (MEA, MDEA, BEA, AMP, etc.) below 40 degrees C. limitations have restricted research in VLE modeling. Solvent regeneration or CO2 stripping studies have also been of research interest for years. However, the heat duty is very high, even with stripping performed at reboiler … Read more
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2020 — Multivariate Zero-Inflated Double Poisson Distribution With ApplicationAbstract
In this thesis, a new multivariate zero-inflated double Poisson distribution is proposed, which is considered as the generalization of univariate zero-inflated double Poisson distribution. The statistical properties of new distribution, such as joint probability mass function, expectation, covariance matrix, marginal distribution and conditional distribution, are derived. The maximum likelihood estimates of parameters are obtained. The score test statistic is derived to test zero inflation of multivariate count data with many zeros by using score function and information matrix. The empirical powers of score test are gained by a simulation study. The application of real data is performed to test zero … Read more
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2019 — Assessment of Greenhouse Gas Emissions From Spring Wheat Cropping System in SaskatchewanAbstract
The assessment of GHG emissions from spring wheat cropping system in Saskatchewan was conducted in this study. A general emission assessment model was developed. The main sources of GHG included emissions from farming operations, emissions from the manufacturing and transportation of N/P fertilizer, emissions from herbicides usage, and direct and indirect emissions from agricultural land. A case study based on spring wheat in Saskatchewan was then investigated. The results show that the total GHG emissions mainly come from the manufacture, storage, delivery, and application of nitrogen and environmental conditions have a significant effect on the total GHG emissions. In addition, … Read more
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2017 — Nonequilibrium phase Behaviour and Mass Transfer of Alkane Solvents(s)-CO2-Heavy Oil Systems Under Reservoir ConditionsAbstract
During primary heavy oil recovery, a unique phenomenon has been found to be closely associated with an unexpected high recovery factor, a remarkably low gas-oil ratio, and a higher-than-expected well production rate due mainly to the foamy nature of viscous oil containing gas bubbles. Even for secondary and tertiary recovery techniques, it is possible to artificially induce foamy oil flow in heavy oil reservoirs by dissolution with injected gases (e.g., CO2 and alkane solvents), which is characterized by time-dependent (i.e., nonequilibrium) phase behaviour. The entrained gas bubbles in the heavy oil are considered as the main mechanism accounting for such … Read more
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2020 — Faculty Engagement in Professional Development: A Bangladesh Case StudyAbstract
Professional development for faculty members in higher education institutions is a normal part of their careers. Effective teaching depends on effective teachers, which in turn depends on the extent to which those teachers engage in professional development. The objectives of this study involved exploring faculty members’ engagement in professional development (PD) at the University of Dhaka in Bangladesh. Specifically, the study examined the nature and outcomes of professional development interventions at that institution, as well as the opportunities and challenges faculty members faced in relation to their engagement in professional development programs. The study uses the findings to offer some … Read more
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2016 — Teacher Engagement in National Partisan Politics: A Bangladesh Case StudyAbstract
The purpose of this study was to explore the ways teacher engagement in national partisan politics in two Bangladeshi higher educational institutions influenced the teaching of four university teachers, the learning of students, as well as the two educational institutions for which they worked. The study also examined the teachers' perceptions of the benefits and challenges arising from their engagement in partisan politics. Two bodies of literature were reviewed for the study. They related to the perspectives on teaching in adult and higher education as well as perspectives on teacher engagement in partisan politics, including the implications for teaching and … Read more
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2022 — Detailed item analyses of the Postraumatic Stress Disorder Checklist for DSM-5 (PCL-5): Use in public safety personnelAbstract
Public safety personnel (PSP; e.g., correctional workers, firefighters, paramedics, police officers) are regularly exposed to diverse potentially psychologically traumatic events (PPTE). More frequent exposure to PPTE is associated with greater reporting of posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD) symptoms. In a landmark study of Canadian PSP, more than 23% screen positively for PTSD. PSP depend on PTSD screening tools to comprehensively assess their symptoms as part of early warning systems that facilitate rapid access to evidence-based care. The PTSD Checklist – Version 5 (PCL-5) is a commonly used PTSD screening tool. A recent study (Shields et al., 2017) using the PCL-5 evidenced … Read more
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2023 — Analysis and prediction of traffic accidents at urban intersectionsAbstract
Traffic accidents generate significant harm, injuries, and fatalities on a global scale, making their investigation an important topic of study. In the initial phase of the study, we examine the influence of three micro traffic parameters, namely standstill distance, headway duration, and following distance oscillation, on both traffic flow and intersection safety. A data-driven approach is proposed for identifying the Pareto optimal sets of parameter combinations that both maximise the flow volume and minimise the risk of crashes. The analysis of traffic flow is conducted by considering different scenarios involving standstill distances ranging from 0 to 5 metres, headway times … Read more
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2017 — Evolutionary Winner Determination in Advanced Combinatorial Reverse AuctionsAbstract
Traditional Combinatorial Reverse Auctions (CRAs) are already very hard problems to solve. By considering the multiplicity of units, attributes and objectives of items; the complexity of CRAs increases. Winner Determination (WD) is one of the main challenges of CRAs, and which has been shown to be NP-complete. Researchers limit the auction features because of the issue of time efficiency. We address several types of advanced CRAs by varying the auction parameters. We tackle the combinatorial procurement problem instances using Genetic Algorithms (GAs). In the first instance, we consider multiple units, single attribute and objective. To this end, we propose a … Read more
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2013 — Elicitation of Constraints and Qualitative Preferences in Multi-Attribute AuctionsAbstract
Multi-Attribute Reverse Auctions (MARAs) allow negotiation between the buyer and sellers over price along with other non-price attributes such as delivery time, sellers' reputation, and product quality. The seller with the most preferable product speci cation over multiple attributes wins. Much research has been done in the con- text of MARAs, but several challenging problems still need to be addressed. Eliciting the buyer's requirements, which consist of constraints and preferences, and deter- mining the winner, which has been shown to be computationally complex, are hot research topics. Multi-Attribute Utility Theory (MAUT), which has been used in MARAs, only permits the … Read more
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2020 — Lower respiratory system disease (LRSD) diagnosis using fuzzy inference systemAbstract
Lower Respiratory System Diseases (LRSD) are one of the most deathcausing diseases in the world. In a large number of cases, people stay unaware of their body reactions and symptoms as they begin with a cold, cough, and fever. These symptoms on later stages lead to cause Chronic Obstructive Pulmonary Diseases (COPD), Influenza, Pneumonia, Asthma, Lung Cancer, and other threatening respiratory tract diseases. Past researches and studies related to Common cold and Influenza show that they have several similarities and can also develop into acute Bronchitis and Pneumonia. There are over 8 million deaths in the year 2016 related to … Read more
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2016 — A New Steam Assisted Gravity Drainage Process Utilizing Vertical WellsAbstract
A novel process utilizing vertical wells to enhance heavy oil recovery during steam assisted gravity drainage has been developed. In the vertical well steam assisted gravity drainage (VWSAGD) process, the vertical well includes two production strings which are separated by three packers (one dual and two single packers): the short injection string (SIS) is attached to the bottom of the annulus and completed in the top quarter of the perforated formation, while the long production string (LPS) is attached to the bottom of the production tubing and completed in the bottom quarter of the perforated formation. The new process (VWSAGD) … Read more
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2020 — A Qualitative Exploration of the Information and Service Needs of Youth Siblings of Individuals with Cystic FibrosisAbstract
Cystic Fibrosis (CF) is a progressive, fatal inherited disease common amongst Caucasian children and young adults in Canada. In addition to being one of the most difficult chronic health conditions to manage, siblings of children and adolescents with CF have been shown to experience elevated psychological symptoms (e.g., depression and anxiety), negative social adjustment, and internalizing behaviours. While the need to address these concerns by providing appropriate information and services is evident, to date there are no tailored mental health programs designed for siblings of children and adolescents with CF. There were five main objectives for the present research: To … Read more
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2020 — Understory Composition, Seedling Growth, and Snag Frequency Across a Water-Limited Forest LandscapeAbstract
Global change is expected to increase drought intensity and make precipitation more uncertain. These changes can affect forest plant communities directly by altering demographic rates, and indirectly through interspecific interactions. Impacts can vary among forest strata. Here, I asked how different forest strata respond to topographic variation in soil moisture and other resources across a water-limited landscape. The objective of the second chapter was to compare responses of understory plant communities to soil moisture, nitrogen, and light, and to understand whether responses to soil moisture depend on the latter two. I measured functional traits (individual-level plant characteristics) of understory vascular … Read more
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2019 — Electrical Considerations for Siting of a Small Modular Reactor: A Case Study of Saskatchewan, CanadaAbstract
Distributed generation resources (DGs) can help to mitigate the growth in electricity demand and the large burden on the central grid by reducing transmission and distribution power losses. DGs are typically small-scale power sources that can produce electricity close to the distribution network. Choosing a suitable site for a new DG is a critical step in DG planning for long-term e cient power generation. Locating optimal sites for DGs involves consideration of many factors (e.g., such as economic, social, environment, geographic, availability of electrical infrastructure, etc.). Solar panels, micro wind turbines, small hydropower units, fuel cells and Small Modular Reactors … Read more
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2019 — Distorting the Reality of Climate Change: Anti-Reflexive Narratives of Conservative Think Tanks in Canadian NewspapersAbstract
Despite the existential threat to life on this planet posed by climate change, many North Americans continue with ‘business as usual’. While the substance of the debate is different, in each country awareness of the gravity of the situation seems lacking. Given that the perception and meaning of reality determines how it is acted towards, this thesis examines how climate change in Canada has come to be discursively constructed so that its reality is recognized, but its seriousness is overshadowed by other issues. Western society is transitioning from modernity into reflexive modernization whereby pre-existing institutions and underlying principles are challenged … Read more
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2013 — A Workshop to Improve Experienced Therapists’ Capacity to Integrate a Client’s Cultural and Spiritual IdentityAbstract
Spirituality has not been extensively included in the training curriculum of academic programs for therapists. Therapists have expressed a desire for continuing education to support their capacity to be responsive to clients’ spirituality (e.g., Plumb, 2011). In light of a need and desire for training, experienced therapists should have access to continuing educational opportunities to hone their capacity. Workshops are an option for such continuing education (Orlinsky, Botermans, & Ronnestad, 2001). I sought to understand the relevance of a continuing education workshop that was designed to enable therapists to better integrate their clients’ spirituality into therapy. Therapists who participated in … Read more
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2021 — Klink Search: Enabling Exploratory Browsing Activities in Digital LibrariesAbstract
Complex search tasks within academic digital libraries go beyond simple lookup. They are open-ended, multi-faceted, with ill-defined information needs, requiring cognitive processing of the encountered information and learning. Academic digital library searchers often use exploratory search strategies for complex search tasks. However, the present academic digital library search interfaces provide limited support for exploratory browsing activities, which is a crucial step that supports learning during the exploratory search process. The present research addresses this issue by designing and implementing a novel search interface called KLink Search, to support exploratory browsing activities via two new features: visually linked keywords and interactive … Read more
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2014 — Exploring the Relationship Between Cheerleading Injury, Coping Skills, and Athlete Burnout with PerformanceAbstract
Cheerleading is transitioning from a dance-like activity to an acrobatic, gymnastic-like sport. In the process, injuries have increased substantially, including higher rates of catastrophic injury. To date, no studies have addressed the psychological wellness of performers in relation to injury rates among cheerleaders, or used these psychometric measures over short time-frames. This study has two main objectives. Objective #1 is to explore the difference in scores between the Athlete Burnout Questionnaire (ABQ; Raedeke & Smith, 2001) and the Athletic Coping Skills Inventory-28 (ACSI-28; Smith, Schutz, Smoll, & Ptacek, 1995) over a short duration, high-intensity performance timeframe. Objective #2 is to … Read more