VictorJuiz/thesis huggingface dataset:
Probing high energy Higgs bosons using H → bb̄ decays in √s = 13 TeV proton-proton collisions at the ATLAS experiment
Keywords: Higgs Boson
Experimental Particle Physics
Higgs decay to b quarks
High energy Higgs Boson
inclusive Hbb
High energy limit on Higgs Boson production
ATLAS
Higgs momentum Higgs Boson
H to bb
Hbb
CERN

This thesis presents a novel study of Higgs boson production using H → bb̄ decays produced with large transverse momentum boosts, with an additional high energy jet in the event, using √s = 13 TeV proton-proton collision data collected by the ATLAS experiment, corresponding to an integrated luminosity of 136 ifb. Higgs boson signal estimates were extracted from candidate jet mass spectra using binned likelihood fits. The Higgs boson signal estimate was probed inclusively using Higgs boson candidate jets with pTjet > 250 GeV. The inclusive Higgs boson production cross-sections were examined in a fiducial region defined by Higgs boson pTH > 450 GeV, and differential bins of pTH = [300, 450] GeV; [450, 650] GeV; [650, 1000] GeV; and > 1000 GeV inclusively. As sensitivity was not sufficient to make statistically significant measurements of the Higgs boson cross-section, in all cases 95% CLs limits were set, including a first-time limit set for Higgs bosons with pTH > 1 TeV, σH (pT > 1 TeV) < 74 fb. A differential Z boson signal measurement was also made under the same conditions and compared to theoretical predictions. All results were found to be consistent with Standard Model predictions. Particular emphasis is given to the development and validation of the analysis fit model.
The therapeutic alliance, dropout from psychotherapy and the role of formal feedback in repairing alliance ruptures
Keywords: Dropout in Psychotherapy
Task Analysis
Therapeutic Alliance
Feedback Informed Therapy
Alliance Ruptures

The therapeutic or ‘working’ alliance in psychotherapy has consistently been shown to be an important factor in patient outcome from psychotherapy. Poor alliance has been suggested to be a factor in patients dropping out or prematurely terminating therapy. Developing a strong alliance and identifying and resolving any tension or difficulties between therapist and patient, described as therapeutic alliance ‘ruptures’, has been suggested as a means of retaining patients in therapy so that they can derive a benefit from it and as a potential mechanism of change.
The systematic review evaluates the links between the strength of the therapeutic alliance and dropout from individual psychotherapy for adults. A moderate link was found between with stronger alliance being associated with a reduction in the risk of dropout from psychotherapy.
The empirical paper used a Task Analytic design to validate a previously developed model of repairing ruptures in the therapeutic alliance using a ‘formal feedback’ tool to aid patients in giving feedback on the alliance to their therapists and to provide a basis for the dyad to identify, discuss and attempt to resolve ruptures. Dyads were observed to complete the model stages and more model stages being completed was linked to greater observed resolution of ruptures. However, rupture resolution did not appear to link to the session being found more helpful for the patient from either the patient or therapist perspective. Rupture resolution was also not found to link to the overall clinical outcome for patients. The limitations of the study, possible implications for clinical practice and further research are discussed.
Caregivers of intellectually disabled children: a qualitative study of caregivers’ perceptions on educational services in developing areas of China
Keywords: China
Inclusive education
Qualitative research
Special education
Caregivers
RDM2021
Rural areas
Thematic analysis
Interviews
Home schooling
Special education needs and disabilities
RDM

This research was of concern to the fields of inclusive education and educational equity, specifically investigating caregivers’ perceptions of educational services for their intellectually disabled children in China. The study adopted a constructivist perspective that emphasised the diversity of perceptions and self-constructed understanding of reality as an important information source to learn the social phenomenon. By employing Bourdieu’s concepts of field, habitus and capital, an in-depth understanding of the educational inequality and segregation towards children with intellectual disabilities (ID) was acquired within developing areas of China. Through the use of semi-structured interviews, the study collected perceptions from a purposive sample group of 19 caregivers whose children receive different types of primary education in a prefecture of Henan province. The results showed that almost all the caregivers experienced a challenging process in seeking appropriate education for their children due to limited schooling opportunities, scarcity of educational support, and public stigmas towards disability. These results suggest that the children with ID were disadvantaged in accessing, and benefitting from, formal education, despite their caregivers having sacrificed excessive family capital to improve the situation. Thus, these children and their families require more social support and public awareness to participate in schools and even in society. Caregivers’ perceptions should be taken into account as an indicator of the accessibility and quality of education for future service implementation and improvement.
The implementation of digital communication (DC) in parent-teacher partnership in China: teachers’ and parents’ views.
Keywords: RDM
Parent-teacher partnership
RDM2021
Quantitative research
China
Digital communication
Online questionnaires
Involvement

Focus - Two-way communication is at the heart of the Parent-Teacher Partnerships (PTPs) and paves the way for consistent and congruent perspectives and involvement from both parents and teachers. This study aims to investigate how Digital Communication (DC) has been implemented into the current education system in China, according to parents’ and teachers’ views. Specifically, this dissertation analyses (1) both parents’ and teachers’ views of DC using a modified version of the Digital Communication Scale (DCS), (2) how these views of DC are associated with personal characteristics of teachers and parents, and (3) how these views were reflected in three open-ended questions to both. The current study investigates the implications of PTPs guidance and policies and their collaborative DC patterns in China. At the same time, from the perspective of individual characteristics and the contents of DC, this study understood how individuals generate different opinions in DC, thus affecting the efficiency and quality of PTPs.
Research Design - Online surveys were selected as the data collection method, including a Chinese version of the Digital Communication Scale (DCS) and three open-ended questions. The DCS was initially created and examined in Finland, after which exploratory and confirmatory factor analyses were conducted, allowing the relevant factorial structure of DCS to be extracted. A Structural Equation Modelling (SEM) was specified to associate characteristics of Chinese parents (n = 537) and teachers (n = 149) and the extracted factors. Following the open-ended questions, the qualitative data were coded using inductive coding.
Findings - A four-factor structure of DC elucidated parents’ and teachers’ views on their involvement, partnership, sufficiency of information, and feedback. Parents’ and teachers’ views of DC were overall congruent in their partnerships and positive attitudes towards DC. Gender and attitudes towards the usage of DC were found to be associated with involvement affect respondents’ experience of using DC significantly. The responses to the open-ended questions revealed that both parents and teachers saw DC as a valuable tool for receiving and providing study-related matters.
Family background and home literacy environment as predictors of the early literacy development of children in Wales - findings from the millennium cohort study
Keywords: Longitudinal structural equation model
RDM
Millennium Cohort study dataset
RDM2021
Wales
Secondary data analysis
Early childhood development
Family background
Quantitative research
Developmental relationships
Home literacy environment

Early literacy and language development plays a vital role in later school success. Home literacy environment has long been recognised as a strong predictor of such development, which is in turn influenced by a child’s family background. We aimed to replicate some of these well-established relationships in a sample of 612 children in Wales, with secondary data obtained from a UK national longitudinal survey, the Millennium Cohort Study. Specifically, we examined the developmental relationships between family background around childbirth (family income, maternal education, maternal literacy/numeracy skills), home literacy environment at age 3 (home tutoring, home literacy practices), precursor English literacy and language skills at age 5 (vocabulary, phonological awareness, print concept), and later English literacy and language outcomes at age 7 (decoding, speaking/listening, reading, writing), controlling for child sex, season of birth, and household single-parent status. Results from a longitudinal structural equation model showed that the effects of family background on literacy and language development were partially mediated by variations in home literacy practices, but not home tutoring; meanwhile, effects of home literacy practices (but not home tutoring) on later outcomes at age 7 were fully mediated by the precursor skills at age 5. Additionally, direct pathways were revealed between family income to early vocabulary at age 5, between maternal education to English writing at age 7, and between maternal literacy/numeracy skills and English reading at age 7. The results suggest that home tutoring may be insufficient to close the attainment gaps from early disparities, and the effects of family background are more salient than previously thought.
Exploring the critique environment of industrial design education in the US: the influence of critique experience in recent graduates’ performance in the design industry
Keywords: Knowledge transfer
RDM2021
Transition from academia to history
Novice designers
RDM
Critique
Qualitative research
Industrial design
Recent graduates
In-depth interviews

Today, the influence of industrial design (ID) is expanding beyond the traditional field of physical modelling. However, ID students seem to struggle to cope with the changing trends of society under the traditional curriculum of design education. Even with this mismatch between ID education and the design industry, not many studies made connections between ID education and the design industry to understand how design students transfer their knowledge into the professional field of design. Despite the lack of literature on the bridge between ID education and the design industry, many studies emphasized the critique environment as an essential pedagogical space for design education and its foundational knowledge generation. Therefore, this study aims to explore the ID students’ knowledge application in professional areas through reviewing the critique environment. Two research questions formed around the research aim: (1) what knowledge gained from critique helps and hinders recent graduates’ performance in the design industry? and (2) how accurately does the critique environment portray the professional design field? With a qualitative approach, the study conducted in-depth interviews with six major stakeholders of industrial design in the US (recent graduates, educators, and designers). The study suggests that critique experience supports the identity formation of design students. In contrast, it hinders coworking with non-design fields due to students’ lack of awareness of the cross-functional culture in the design industry. Additionally, the study indicated systematic complexities existed in a collaboration between higher education institutions and companies in the US, which inhibit the active involvement of professional insights in academic critique. The study concludes by highlighting strategies to improve the critique experience of industrial design students and further support a successful transition after graduation
Conceptualising teacher resilience: A comparative systematic multidisciplinary review of teacher resilience literature
Keywords: Resilience (psychology)
Systematic review
Thematic synthesis
RDM2021
RDM
Ecological systems (educaions)
Teacher resilience

Background – Substantive research into teacher resilience has focused on a variety of individual and contextual factors that hinder or help teachers to overcome challenging situations in the exercise of their profession. Rooted primarily in psychological theories, extant teacher resilience literature has largely focused on personal dispositions, social relations, and school processes, with little attention to cultural and structural factors that affect teachers’ work. Comparative, cross-country analysis has also been limited.
Purpose – This systematic review aims to conceptualise teacher resilience based on empirical literature regarding three countries (the Philippines, United Kingdom, and United States), as well as appraise the breadth and quality of the evidence base.
Methods – A systematic review was conducted to identify relevant articles based on pre-defined eligibility criteria. The following databases were searched: Education Resources Information Center (ERIC), British Education Index (BEI), PsycINFO, Scopus, and Web of Knowledge. Identified articles were analysed via thematic synthesis and appraised for methodological quality using the Mixed Methods Appraisal Tool (MMAT).
Findings – The thematic synthesis revealed a multi-dimensional framework of teacher resilience, incorporating four dimensions: personal, social, organisational-institutional, and cultural-structural. The cultural-structural dimension was the least examined among the four dimensions. The review also demonstrated gaps pertaining to the geographical distribution of the articles, population of interest, and sub-sectoral coverage (i.e., early childhood care and education, primary, secondary, tertiary, technical and vocational, non-formal). These results were discussed in relation to the research questions and possible areas for future enquiry.
Exploring science capital with primary-school-aged children
Keywords: Equitable STEM participation
Critical theory
Questionnaires
Research with children
Constructivism
Semi-structured interviews
RDM2021
RDM
Thematic analysis
Case study
Diary methods
Science capital
Informal science learning

It is widely recognised that there is an urgent need to make access to and engagement in science, technology, engineering, and maths (STEM) education more equitable, from both a social justice and economic perspective. The concept of science capital has been used as a tool to understand patterns in young people’s perceptions of science, science identity and aspirations, with those categorised as having high science capital being more likely to feel that science is something they identify with and to continue with science post-compulsory education. Science capital encompasses all of the resources available to an individual that could be advantageous in the context of science, for example, knowing people who have science-related jobs, or consuming science-related media. Research has shown that science capital is patterned by structural inequalities, such as class, gender, and ethnicity. To date, the majority of the available research related to science capital has been conducted with children and young people aged 10–19 years old and in the context of formal science education. This study explored the concept of science capital in everyday settings through a multiple case study with four children aged 8–10 years old. Diaries, interviews, and questionnaires provided an insight into who and what children considered to be science-related in their lives. Thematic analysis of their responses demonstrated that there is a mismatch between the breadth of what children considered to be science-related and what is important for being science person, and what is traditionally valued and represented in the field of science. This apparent disconnect with everyday science by the field was reflected by a surprising absence of school science in children’s diaries and interviews. The findings also added to a recognised challenge for equitable STEM education initiatives: none of the children agreed that people like them work in science despite agreeing that anyone can become a scientist. In light of this insight to science in the lives of a group of primary-school-aged children, reflections and recommendations are offered for the field of STEM education, including support for a science capital teaching approach that broadens what counts as science, and a call for time and training to equip young people, families, educators, and policymakers to actively challenge traditional and dominant science representations and practices.
An investigation in student agency between vocational and research students in chinese higher education
Keywords: Mixed methods research
Reflexivity
Interviews
Questionnaires
Student agency
HE
Vocationalism
HE2021
Habitus transformation
Bourdieu

Despite improvements in Chinese higher education, vocational education and students still experienced stagnation, in terms of both resources and perceptions. Their disadvantages include structural, institutional and cultural aspects. The study investigates and compares student agency in both vocational education and research universities, enriching and critiquing the macro-level structural lens by emphasizing students as active agents. It offers a bottom-up explanation of student agency, investigating contributing factors from all of internal, external, and collective perspectives.
The study deploys a mix-method design. The survey of students shows no significant difference in composite agency factors between the vocational and research university students t(69) = .427, p = .670. However, it finds that students who received bursaries were significantly lower in agency than students who did not, t(66) = -2.13, p = .037. The institutional constraints on low SES students are discussed in relation to structural theorisations such as the Bourdieusian framework. In contrast, the semi-structured interviews with twenty-three participants revealed the transformational and reflective power of student agency. The thesis argues that among these students, habitus and capital were not determinants of student agency. Misfits between habitus and circumstances led to habitus transformation, resilience and resistance. The process of transformation was apparent in evolving identity, values and future plans. Reflexivity was encouraged through deep learning, participatory activities and mobility. Finally, conformity was identified as a form of collective agency among Chinese higher education students as a means of resisting ‘powerlessness’.
Agency works both as a mean and as an end in the recognition and empowerment of less resourced members in the higher education system. Recommendations are made in relation to both students and policies.
University-industry-government cooperation in the context of poverty alleviation in Shanxi Province, China
Keywords: China
Semi-structured interviews
Beihang university
Education and development
HE
Poverty alleviation
HE2021
Qualitative research

In recent years, the United Nations has emphasized the sustainable development goals (SDGs), and the Chinese government is also actively promoting the poverty alleviation, aiming to change the development mode of the underdeveloped regions and eradiate absolute poverty. In this process, prestigious universities have become an essential force to boost regional development. They provided various education programmes for students and various training courses for adults from all walks of life. Furthermore, they have cooperated with local government and enterprises to drive the transformation and upgrading of local economy from the perspective of industrial development, technical and scientific assistance, human resources assistance, and so on. They have adhered to the notion that the financial support is temporary, and only when the underdeveloped region owns its internal force could it be truly lifted out of poverty. This study aims to explore the contribution and influence of Higher Education Institutions (HEIs) in Chinese poverty alleviation from a critical perspective.
Underpinned by a constructionist methodology, this study conducted 18 semistructured interviews with residents, local government officials, university students, and university staff members from Beihang University and Beijing Institute of Technology. This research includes the following parts: the analysis of summer camp programme, the cooperation between universities, enterprises and the local government, novel assistance strategies, and the prospect of Rural Revitalization. Furthermore, this study compares the assistance provided by two prestigious universities to the assistance provided by other organisations as local universities, NGOs, and doctoral students service group in Lvliang.
This study finds that though higher education institution was not the original driver in this cooperation, it has played indispensable role in contributing to local development. It not only introduced various resources to assist economic development, but also subtly influenced the passive mindset of local people. Further, its role is constantly changing, conforming to the policy requirement and the characteristics of disciplines in universities. The focus of a future study would be on how to consolidate and expand the previous achievements in poverty alleviation and deepen the assistance mechanism. Hopefully, the situation of passive waiting for assistance can be converted to active cooperation among the different organisations and people involved.