Weight stigma represents discrimination associated with the social beliefs that people in larger bodies have low willpower, are unmotivated, and are personally responsible for their elevated weight. Internalized weight stigma is the extent to which social perceptions of weight stigma are attributed to the self by people in larger bodies. Dual process models may be uniquely situated to help us understand how weight stigma becomes internalized and whether this impacts (physical activity) PA participation. Within dual process models two systems regulate how we think; the associative system reflects automatic associations and feelings, whereas the propositional system represents deliberate and controlled reasoning. Past research has examined social perceptions of explicit weight stigma alongside implicit measures, rather than examining the internalized form of weight bias. The purpose of this study was to examine whether implicit weight bias (an associative process) and internalized weight bias (a propositional process) are significantly associated with the expectation of experiencing weight stigma, self-regulatory efficacy, the tendency to avoid PA, PA intention, and PA. All eligible participants (n = 154) were over 18, self identified as a woman, had a BMI over 25 and self-identified as a person living in a larger body. Implicit weight bias was measured using a single category Implicit Association Test, while the other study variables were measured using validated survey measures. We conducted a series of hierarchical multiple regression analysis, entering covariates in step 1, implicit weight bias in step 2, and internalized weight bias in step 3. In step 3, both implicit and internalized weight bias were significantly associated with self-regulatory efficacy (p <.001, r2 = .183) and light past PA (p < .05, r2 = .065). Contrarily, the expectation of experiencing weight stigma (p <.05, r2 =.120) and the tendency to avoid PA (p <.001, r2 = .297) were both significantly associated with implicit weight bias in step 2. However, once internalised weight bias was added into the equation in step 3, the implicit association became not significant. No relationship was observed between PA intention, implicit weight bias and internalized weight bias. Similarly, there was no relationship observed between moderate to vigorous physical activity, implicit weight bias and internalized weight bias (p > .05). Implicit weight bias and explicitly measured internalized weight bias were associated with psychological cognitions that may deter PA. They seemed to be more strongly related to cognitions than behaviours, which might suggest that they have indirect relationships with PA. Examining both implicit and internalized weight bias together, through a dual process lens provided insight into the nuanced relationship that people in larger bodies have with PA participation. Future health promotion strategies should consider these findings and must work to shift away from their weight centric approach that may exacerbate internalized weight bias and instead, adopt a more weight-neutral approach towards PA participation.

Three potentially chiral alkoxide ligands, α-methyl-2-pyridine-methanol (mpmH), dimethyl-2-pyridine-methanol (dmpmH) and methyl-2-pyrazine-methanol (mpzmH), are presented together with select 3d ions for the synthesis and study of three novel polynuclear clusters. The first, a {Ni7} complex prepared from chiral-mpmH, has a unique capped trigonal prismatic topology. Magnetostructural studies reveal that at low temperature it has an S = 0 spin ground state and is not an SMM. The second two complexes are both prepared from rac-dmpmH under the same reaction conditions. Dark green, single crystals, of the kinetic product, a {Ni6} cluster were isolated after 2 weeks. This cluster has a structural topology, comprising four edge-sharing cubanes with missing vertices. Magnetostructual studies reveal the cluster is spin frustrated with an S = 2 ground state at low temperature. AC magnetic susceptibility studies are consistent with field induced SMM properties. After two months, blue plates of a {Ni8} cluster, the thermodynamic product, were obtained. The magnetic core of this cluster has a trapezoidal prismatic topology, containing bridging methyl tetrazolate (mtz−) ligands formed via the in situ, NiII-assisted click reaction between the N3− ions and the MeCN solvent. Reaction of mpzmH with Mn benzoate in the presence of azide ions afforded single crystals of a large mixed valence nanosized {Mn22} cluster which has a pyramidal like structural topology comprised of three layers of Mn4O4 and Mn3O4. DC studies are consistent with the presence of 10 MnII and 12 MnIII ions and the presence of dominant antiferromagnetic interactions at low temperature. AC studies reveal an increase in the in-phase susceptibility (χ′) upon cooling, reaching a broad maximum around 4 K, and the emergence of an out-of-phase component (χ″) below 7 K. However, the sample shows very little frequency dependence to the position of the maximum in χ″. Below 2 K there is the beginnings of an uptick in χ″ suggesting the presence of two distinct relaxation processes. The ac data is complex, and not consistent with the slow relaxation behavior typically observed in polynuclear 3d-SMMs.

Outbreaks like the recent COVID-19 pandemic underscore the importance of quick and informed responses to control and mitigate the epidemic. This thesis aims to develop a model that can provide deeper insights into how epidemics progress and behave. Accurate epidemic simulation can provide valuable insights into how an epidemic affects the population. This thesis considers both epidemic spread and epidemic severity, and integrates fading immunity into the epidemic model, creating a more realistic representation of real-life scenarios. This research also extends the model by considering diverse population structures in the contact network where different age groups have different levels of immunity strength. An evolutionary algorithm was used to generate and evolve personal contact networks. We analyzed the epidemic dynamics within these networks, focusing on how different proportions of young and old individuals impact the spread and severity of the epidemic. Results reveal that older populations with weaker immunity experience more severe infections, while younger populations with stronger immunity mitigate both spread and severity. The thesis also explores the impact on variant generation, showing that when using the epidemic spread fitness function there is a tendency to produce more variants than when using the epidemic severity fitness function, highlighting the virus's need to mutate in response to existing immunity. When the population is dominated by younger individuals, even though fewer variants are being generated, successful variants tend to exhibit a higher mutation distance to overcome the robust immunity present in the community.

This dissertation explores the experiences of psycho-emotional disablism in individuals with learning disabilities (LDs) and examines how, despite these challenges, they can reframe their LD as a resource. Employing a Critical Disability Studies (CDS) and a social-relational framework, three interconnected studies were conducted. The first study analyzed the public narratives of three prominent LD advocates—Richard Branson, Henry Winkler, and Barbara Corcoran—highlighting how they view their LDs as unique strengths. The second study focused on disability memoirs, revealing both the disabling and empowering experiences of individuals with LDs, highlighting their distinctive strengths. The third study involved qualitative analyses through individual interviews and journal entries with post-secondary LD students, providing a comprehensive understanding of both the challenges and empowering aspects of their lived experiences. These discussions underscore one of the greatest strengths of this dissertation: its ability to integrate positive psychology with disability studies to explore how individuals with LDs, within the broader context of social structures, can navigate psycho-emotional disablism and reconceptualize disability as a resource. The research emphasizes the importance of understanding disability within broader socio-cultural contexts and recognizing the potential for growth, innovation, and success inherent in neurodiversity. It calls for a paradigm shift in education and support systems to promote inclusivity and equity. By highlighting the voices and experiences of individuals with LDs, this dissertation contributes to the broader discourse on disability, empowerment, and self-advocacy, advocating for a more nuanced and strengths-based understanding of LDs. Keywords: learning disabilities, critical disability studies, social-relational, psycho- emotional disablism, strengths-based, resource

This thesis research investigated the impact of delays in periodontal maintenance appointments during the COVID-19 pandemic on clinical periodontal outcomes (PD, BOP, PI) in a sample size of 350 patients who either received (n=260) or had never received (n=90) sanative therapy. A hierarchical multiple regression including 3 models was used to evaluate the effect of various predictors on post-pandemic clinical outcomes in both groups for a total of 6 regression analyses. The predictors of interest were a disruption due to COVID-19 (Model 1, 2, and 3), length of delay (Model 2 and 3), pre-COVID-19 clinical measures (Model 2 and 3), sex (Model 3), and smoking status (Model 3). The findings showed that a delay in appointment – regardless of duration – predicted a worsened PD in patients who have received ST (Model 1). Moreover, a longer delay and poorer pre-COVID-19 clinical measures predicted a worsening of all outcomes in patients who have received ST (Model 2). These factors also predicted a greater PI in individuals who have never received ST (Model 2). Smoking status and sex in combination influenced all outcomes for patients who have received ST, wherein current smokers and female sex were linked to a worsening of PD (Model 3). PI was the only clinical outcome significantly affected by smoking status and sex in patients who have never received ST (Model 3). Results of this study suggest that patients who have received sanative therapy to treat periodontal disease are more clinically fragile than patients who have never received sanative therapy. Practically, these findings extend beyond the pandemic, offering insights into patient care strategies for managing disruptions in periodontal maintenance.

People with disabilities are vulnerable to experiencing trauma due to a complex interaction of systemic and individual factors (McGilvery, 2018), urging for supports that promote safety and control, such as Trauma-Informed Care (TIC) and Positive Behaviour Support (PBS). Behavioural Skills Training (BST) is a competency-based training procedure used to teach a wide selection of professionals work-related skills (Gormley et al., 2019). This study evaluated a multicomponent training package consisting of didactic and activity-based training plus BST implemented with 12 direct support professionals recruited from a community-based organization supporting adults with intellectual and developmental disabilities. A pre-post- follow-up design was used to determine the effectiveness of didactic and activity-based training on knowledge and application of TIC and PBS. BST was used to increase skills related to trauma-informed PBS for a subset of six participants using a multiple probe within-participants single-case experimental design (Ledford & Gast, 2018). The three skills trained were providing opportunities for choice, multiple stimulus without replacement, and paired item preference assessments. Training resulted in increased knowledge and application of PBS and TIC on post- tests and at follow-up. BST was effective in training all skills to mastery, while maintenance and generalization were evident for most skills four to five weeks after training. Implications of the findings, strengths and limitations of the study, and future steps are discussed.

The rapid advancement of 5G technology has transformed vehicular networks, delivering high bandwidth, low latency, and faster data rates for real-time applications in smart vehicles and smart cities. This enhances traffic safety and the quality of entertainment services. However, challenges remain, such as 5G's limited coverage range, which requires the installation of additional base stations, and frequent handovers, known as the "ping-pong effect," that can cause network instability, especially in high-mobility environments. Traditional reactive methods struggle to manage these issues effectively. In this study, we propose TH-GCN (Throughput-oriented Graph Convolutional Network), which optimizes handover management in dense 5G environments using graph neural networks (GNNs). TH-GCN predicts optimal connections and the best handover choices by modeling vehicles and towers as nodes in a dynamic graph, with connections depicted as edges and incorporating features like signal quality, vehicle mobility, throughput, and tower load. By shifting from a purely user-centric to a combined user equipment and base station-centric approach, our method provides a comprehensive view of the network and enhances adaptability in real-time handover decisions. After conducting several batch tests in our Simu5G simulator, the results showed significant improvements, including up to a 78% reduction in handovers and a 10% improvement in signal quality compared to state-of-the-art methods. TH-GCN effectively reduced handovers while maintaining optimal levels of throughput and latency, particularly in high-density, high-mobility scenarios.

Research examining how to train facilitators to implement the Picture Exchange Communication System (PECS) with caregivers and children is scarce. This research gap presents a barrier to offering PECS as a community service. Currently, there is some empirical research supporting the effectiveness of behaviour skills training (BST) and pyramidal training to train facilitators to implement behavioural interventions. Building on this foundation, the present study used a quasi-experimental, non-randomized group design to explore the effectiveness of a manualized BST training model (i.e., the PECSperts Facilitator Training Package) within a pyramidal training approach. Sixteen community facilitators participated in the study. Participants who immediately received training demonstrated a significant increase in treatment integrity from pre- to post-training assessments. These results maintained during the five week follow up period and generalized to the participants’ clinical practice with families in the community. Participants who did not immediately receive training, did not demonstrate an increase in treatment integrity from pre- to post-training assessments. Later, the training procedures were replicated with the participants who did not initially receive training. After participation in the PECSperts Facilitator Training, these participants’ treatment integrity scores also significantly increased. Participants rated the training positively on a social validity questionnaire. The results provide preliminary evidence for the use of the PECSperts Facilitator Training as an effective training model for training facilitators to teach caregivers to implement PECS with their autistic children. Results of this study have implications for increasing community capacity and access to facilitator PECS training.

The main objective of this study was to examine whether invincibility mediates the relationship between psychopathic traits and fear enjoyment. Brock University undergraduate student participants (N = 81) viewed either a neutral video or a video intended to decrease feelings of invincibility and then played a horror game in Virtual Reality. Participants rated the videogame on a list of adjectives which captured fear and exciting affective appraisals. As expected, psychopathic traits were associated with lower fear scores and higher excitement scores. The video condition was not a significant predictor of mediation in the initial model. However, in the control condition the relationship between psychopathy and fear enjoyment was replicated, when each condition was examined separately. More specifically, psychopathic traits were related to a less negative and more positive perception of their emotional state. When participants’ feelings of invincibility were manipulated, this relationship was no longer significant suggesting that feelings of invincibility may be important in being able to enjoy fear-inducing stimuli. These findings align with the Fear Enjoyment Hypothesis (FEH). Future research could investigate invincibility as a mediator with a larger sample size.

Insect-specific viruses (ISVs) are viruses that are described to only infect and replicate in insect cells. Viruses such as cell fusing agent virus (CFAV), Phasi Charoen-like virus (PCLV) and Negev virus (NEGV) are ISVs that are often found in wild mosquitoes and have been shown to suppress the replication and transmission of arthropod-borne viruses (arboviruses), like dengue, chikungunya, and Zika viruses. In particular, it has been shown that wild-type and modified negeviruses can suppress, in vitro, the replication of chikungunya virus and Venezuelan equine encephalitis virus. ISVs have been indicated as a potential biological tool for pathogen control because of this ability to inhibit the replication of arboviruses. To be able to use ISVs to decrease the spread of arboviruses, their routes of transmission and infection rates among insects need to be understood. In this thesis, experiments were used to determine if mosquitoes could be infected with ISVs during their larval aquatic life stage and during their adult life stage. The larval stage of Aedes aegypti mosquitoes, a major vector of arboviruses, was exposed to cell cultures co-infected with CFAV, PCLV and NEGV, as well as to cell cultures infected with NEGV alone. Our results indicate that NEGV can be horizontally transmitted to the mosquitoes during their aquatic stage of development during coinfections with other ISVs and when alone. Next adult mosquitoes were exposed to NEGV through sugar meals that were spiked with NEGV. This method also resulted in successful infection, which was followed by the confirmation of vertical transmission, from the infected parents to their offspring, as well. These experiments revealed desirable characteristics for ISVs that can be used as biological control agents and makes NEGV a potential candidate to combat mosquito- borne pathogens.