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Identifying Risk Factors For Ptsd Symptom Clusters In Maltreated, Multiracial Youth Using Nonparametric Modeling, Mallory Constantine

UNLV Theses, Dissertations, Professional Papers, and Capstones

Multiracial youth are one of the most at-risk racial groups for child maltreatment. Multiracial individuals are also more likely to report mental health concerns than other racial or ethnic groups. This study aimed to identify demographic and psychological risk factors that are unique to multiracial, maltreated youth with respect to PTSD symptoms (i.e., re-experiencing, hyperarousal, avoidance) through classification and regression tree (CART) analyses. Participants included 99 multiracial, maltreated youth directly following their placement in an emergency group shelter due to substantiated maltreatment. The first hypothesis was that female gender, English first language, questions related to guilt and self-blame, and depressive …

Creating A Structural Empowerment Culture: A Professional Development Module For The Novice Nurse Leader, Beth A. Hock

UNLV Theses, Dissertations, Professional Papers, and Capstones

Nursing leadership shoulders the responsibility for the performance of their nurses (McNeeseSmith, 1992). When a nurse leader creates a culture of structural empowerment, the work environment is more likely to produce higher quality patient outcomes and highly satisfied healthcare consumers. Novice nurse leaders are often ill-equipped early in their careers to forge a structural empowerment culture. Unfortunately, education programs to address the developmental needs related to structural empowerment do not seem to exist. Incorporating the theoretical underpinnings from Kanter theory (1977, 1993) and the Donabedian model (1966) to create an educational tool for the novice nurse leader in learning how …

The Effects Of Problems Attributed To Culture On The Mental Health Of Athletes, Corey Rae Kuhn

UNLV Theses, Dissertations, Professional Papers, and Capstones

Demographic changes in the United States during the past century and recognition of the importance of diversity have increased interest in research involving ethno-cultural factors that impact mental health. For example, important psychological constructs, such as self-concept and ethnic identity, have been indicated to develop within cultural context and impact psychological wellbeing (Brittian et al., 2013). The field of psychology, as a whole, is evaluating the merits of etic and emic approaches to research and clinical practice while exploring the importance and application of multicultural counseling/therapy (MCT; Sue & Sue, 2013). In contrast, within sport psychology, the influence of ethnic …

Fighting For Fellowship: An Ethnographic Exploration Of Mixed Martial Arts Culture In Las Vegas, Brian O'Hara

UNLV Theses, Dissertations, Professional Papers, and Capstones

Due to the legalization of social taboos including prostitution, gambling, and marijuana, many historical portrayals of Las Vegas have been unfavorable. Furthermore, powerful mediated imagery complete with vivid pictures of encouraged hedonism and celebrated debauchery has added to negative perceptions of this city. Despite negative sentiments, city officials are often unapologetic, and even publicly boastful about the absence of traditional values and communal appeal. However, I argue that many depictions of this city do not tell the full story of what is going on here. I looked beyond surface-level imagery and representations of Las Vegas, to discover a strong sense …

Bursting The Backpacker Bubble: Exploring Backpacking Ideology, Practices, And Contradictions, Mark J. Salvaggio

UNLV Theses, Dissertations, Professional Papers, and Capstones

In this dissertation, I discuss the growing development of international backpacking in Central America. I focus on backpackers because they are a significant, yet understudied and undertheorized, part of the newly mobile world. Drawing from more than 12 months of ethnographic data collected in Central America, I explore backpacking as a youth subculture. I used a subcultural framework to explain backpacking ideology, practices, and contradictions. Understanding backpacking as a youth subculture tells us a lot about the myths and realities of 21st century adventure in the context of global mobility, globalization, and economic changes in international tourism that shape what …

The Predictors Of Cultural Competence In The Baccalaureate Degree Nursing Curriculum: Implications For Nursing Education, Angela Elizabeth Silvestri-Elmore

UNLV Theses, Dissertations, Professional Papers, and Capstones

Health care providers are members of a helping profession and need to provide quality care to all members of society. As a result of current and projected demographic changes within the United States (U.S.), health care professionals are faced with the challenges of providing culturally competent care and fulfilling the role as the “helping profession.” From 2000 to 2010, the Asian population increased by 43.3%, the Hispanic population grew by 43%, the Native Hawaiian and other Pacific Islander population increased by 35.4%, the American Indian or Alaskan Native population increased by 18.4%, and the African American population increased by 12.3%. …

Assessing The Conceptual Equivalence Of Measure Of Suppression In Culturally Diverse Samples, Amanda Louise Haboush

UNLV Theses, Dissertations, Professional Papers, and Capstones

In Western populations, some emotion regulation strategies have been associated with positive interpersonal abilities and mental health outcomes, while others, such as suppression, have been associated with negative physical and mental health outcomes (e.g., Eisenberg et al., 1997; Esterling, Antoni, Kumar, & Schneiderman, 1993; Gross & Muñoz, 1995; Kovacs, Joormann, & Gotlib, 2008). However, Butler, Lee, & Gross (2007) have demonstrated that the negative effects of suppression do not occur in some Eastern cultures. This inconsistency may be due to a lack of measurement equivalence across cultures.

To examine suppression in other cultural groups, researchers often adapt existing measures that …

Cultural Competence In The Baccalaureate Degree Nursing Curriculum, Angela Elizabeth Silvestri

UNLV Theses, Dissertations, Professional Papers, and Capstones

Health care providers are members of a helping profession and need to provide quality care to all members of society. As a result of current and projected demographic changes within the United States (U.S.), health care professionals are faced with the challenges of providing culturally competent care and fulfilling the role as the "helping profession." In the past 10 years, minority populations have increased in the U.S. For example, the African American population experienced an approximate 12.3% increase, and the Hispanic population increased by 43%. Just as it is necessary for health care professionals to respond to the increase in …

Exploratory Study Of Construction Safety Culture Through Systems Thinking, Charles J. Jr Benford

UNLV Retrospective Theses & Dissertations

Since its conception, in 1986 after the Chernobyl accident, the term "safety culture" has gained major popularity throughout many systems, especially the construction industry. Although this concept has gained much popularity over the course of two decades, it remains a heavily debated topic between advocates and skeptics for various reasons. Much of the skepticism is due to the failure of proponents of the concept to clearly define and provide an understanding of those factors that comprise what "safety culture" is, and how it can be achieved. A system (particularly a construction system) that possesses a safety culture is one in …

Poppe Culture, Jaq Greenspon

UNLV Retrospective Theses & Dissertations

We open in Venice Beach, with the hung-over Skids Poppe (30's). Skids, a former biker, is now a cult journalist for a variety of magazines. He still retains his dubious friends, one of which, Guantanamo Bey (30's), is an ex-military loafer who's sleeping on Skids' floor. Skids refers to Guantanamo as his "faithful sidekick." So, when another old friend, Bernie, calls Skids up and says he needs help, Skids and Guantanamo figure they'll get a free breakfast out of it at their favorite hang-out, the Sidewalk Cafe, a Venice Beach landmark; Skids says he knows better, but he still agrees …

The Effects Of Trauma Experiences In Maltreated Adolescents With Respect To Familial And Cultural Variables, Amie Marie Lemos-Miller

UNLV Retrospective Theses & Dissertations

Child maltreatment is a societal problem that affects thousands of youths in the United States. Substantial amounts of youths affected by child maltreatment develop Posttraumatic Disorder (PTSD) symptoms. Depression, maladaptive cognitions, dissociation, and anger are symptoms often associated with presentations of PTSD. Specifically, these PTSD-related symptoms may influence development and maintenance of PTSD. This study examined PTSD-related symptoms and PTSD associated with child maltreatment within a culturally competent, ecologically-based framework; The first hypothesis was that family expressiveness, cohesion, control, conflict, and independence would mediate the relationship between (1) PTSD-related symptoms of depression, dissociation, maladaptive cognitions, and anger and (2) PTSD …

Acculturation Effects On Culture And Conflict Style, Mae-Li Amick Allison

UNLV Retrospective Theses & Dissertations

In light of globalization, it is ever more valuable to understand how culture influences the way people manage conflict. Opportunities for individuals from varied cultural backgrounds to interact, and therefore conflict, are inherently greater because the technologies, economies, and livelihoods of people of many countries are increasingly interdependent. The purpose of this study was to examine factors influencing people's individualistic-collectivistic culture tendencies and conflict styles, and investigate acculturation as a moderating factor between individualism-collectivism and conflict style among foreign nationals living within the United States. In addition to acculturation, variables that could affect acculturation were also measured, including media use, …

A Model Of The Interplay Of Culture And Immigration Stress In The Development And Maintenance Of Alcohol-Related Disorders In Hispanic/Latino Immigrants, Marilyn J Strada

UNLV Retrospective Theses & Dissertations

The Hispanic/Latino population represents the largest ethnic minority group in the United States, with immigrants comprising a substantial portion of this population. For both U.S.-born and immigrant Hispanic/Latinos, alcohol abuse and dependence is of particular concern given their reported high prevalence rates, the severe alcohol-related consequences that they experience, and the various barriers to obtain treatment that they encounter. In comparison to members of other ethnic groups, Hispanics/Latinos have the lowest rates of perceived need for treatment, the lowest past and current rates of participation in treatment and the highest dropout rates after attending just one counseling session. Although there …

Voices From Two Sides Of The Atlantic: A Multiple Case Study Of Women's Leadership, Eva Anneli Adams

UNLV Retrospective Theses & Dissertations

People learn and adopt cultural values through socialization. "Voices from Two Sides of the Atlantic" is a multiple-case study about the influence of national socialization on women's leadership experiences. The main research question of the study was: Does national enculturation impact how women lead, and if so, how is it reflected in participants' responses?;This study examined leadership experiences of three Finnish and three American women. It investigated how the participants associate their values with their leadership experience and how they perceive the social context in which they grew up influences leadership. The theoretical framework of the study was based on …

A Poetic Canvas: Byron And Visual Culture, William Donati

UNLV Retrospective Theses & Dissertations

A Poetic Canvas: Byron and Visual Culture argues for a reading of Byron's poems within the cultural context of the sister arts of poetry and painting. In addition, the theatre and sculpture were also influential as visual inspiration for Byron. This study reveals the poet's substantial knowledge of the visual arts; consequently, informed by images he knew, readings convey a richer context of significance. The influence of drawings, print caricature, and paintings is found to be substantial, and the research challenges Byron's own statements, often repeated, that he knew nothing of painting. Although Byron is regarded as a poet of …

The Buildings At The Center: Latter-Day Saint Tabernacles In The Mormon Culture Region, Aaron James Mcarthur

UNLV Retrospective Theses & Dissertations

Tabernacles are a largely overlooked feature of communities in the Mormon Culture Region. Though the tabernacle on Temple Square in Salt Lake City has world-wide recognition, very little has been written about the other 78 that the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints built between 1847 and 1953. This thesis discusses the religious, cultural, and social motivations behind the planning and construction of tabernacles, as evidenced by developments such as the Plat of the City of Zion and the Priesthood Reorganization of 1877, as well as the numerous uses of these buildings. The significance of the buildings in the …

Youth Culture, Clothing, And Communicative Messages, Eric Batson

UNLV Retrospective Theses & Dissertations

As a nonverbal form of communication, clothing reveals much about its wearers. In addition to exposing attitudes, values, beliefs, and other personal traits, individuals can utilize clothing to disseminate deliberate, symbolic messages. This project focuses on youth subcultures and the messages associated with their strategically constructed clothing images. It addresses how they display in-group affiliation and out-group separation through the management of clothing. It discusses how individuals can increase their personal value with in-group members as they manage their apparel in appropriate and deliberate ways. This thesis also notes the multiple influences that affect the clothing choices of youth subcultures …

Culture Clash: Making The Case For A New Paradigm In Police Cultural Training, Hal S Edwards

UNLV Retrospective Theses & Dissertations

Hiring standards in most police agencies result in most officer candidates having little, if any, meaningful exposure to the "oppositional" culture of the urban, minority poor. Given the current popularity of the Community Oriented Policing paradigm---with its emphasis on positive police/community relations---current police hiring and training practices handicap police agencies in their efforts to gain the trust of urban, minority communities. A content analysis of United States Department of Justice Civil Rights Division investigations under the Violent Crime Control and Law Enforcement Act of 1994 (42 U.S.C. 14141) was found to support the hypothesis that the interface between the police …

A Case Study Of Culture And Change In A Small Architecture Firm, Valerie L Bugni

UNLV Retrospective Theses & Dissertations

Founded in 1982, Elphant1 is a 25-person architecture and interior design firm located in one of America's most "postmodern" cities (Venturi, Brown and Izenour 1977; Fontana and Preston 1990; Gottschalk 1995; Dickens 1999). In order to design better buildings that respond to as well as support people, organizations, and society, Elphant is engaged in an organizational change effort to incorporate sociological theories and methods into their design processes and operational activities; According to organization culture theorist Joanne Martin (2002), few researchers have integrated what is known about organizational change with cultural change. Applying Martin's (2002) three-perspective approach and Schein's (1992) …

Biology, Culture, And Environment: The Struggle For Hegemony In Arizona, Sondra Kae Cosgrove

UNLV Retrospective Theses & Dissertations

This is an examination of the various cultural groups who have attempted to extend hegemony control over what is now the state of Arizona. Each chapter focuses on the ways different societies adapted to the region's challenging environment; paying particular attention to those that sought to integrate their neighbors into their own socioeconomic systems, whether by force or through negotiation. The rise and fall of the indigenous Hohokam civilization marks the first phase in this struggle for hegemony, while conflicts between Spaniards and Indians characterize the second. The third, and so far, final cycle concludes with Euro-Americans seizing the region …

The Effects Of Jasmonates On The Proliferation Of Human Prostate Cancer Cell Lines In Culture, Daniel Emeka Ezekwudo

UNLV Retrospective Theses & Dissertations

Jasmonic acid (JA), cis-Jasmone (CJ), and Methyl jasmonate (MJ), belong to a family of plant stress hormones known as the jasmonates. In plants, these compounds function as activators of cellular responses to diverse situations including cell death. Proliferation and cytotoxicity assays showed that the jasmonates inhibited the proliferation of the prostate cancer cell lines (PC-3 and DU-145), cultured in vitro. In addition, the type of inhibition exhibited by these agents was analyzed using flow cytometry (BrdU assay and Annexin V-FITC/PI staining) and fluorescence microscopy. The mechanism of inhibition was studied using 5-lipoxygenase enzyme. All agents (CJ, JA and MJ) inhibited …

Radiometric Evaluation Of The Prehistoric Mortuary Practices Of The Chinchorro Culture In Northern Chile, Matthew Ray Doubrava

UNLV Retrospective Theses & Dissertations

The Chinchorros were the aboriginal, pre-ceramic peoples of the northern Chilean and southern Peruvian coastline. The Chinchorro culture used four types of mummification techniques (red, black, natural and mud-coated). Each of these types may be distinct to the chronological time period in which it was used and, therefore, the typology would be used to define the Chinchorro chronology. Also, if the mummification styles are unique to a particular time period it would support the idea that this was an egalitarian group that did not recognize individual social rank in mortuary practices. To test these hypotheses 16 samples from 15 Chinchorro …

A Descriptive Study Of The Organizational Culture And Structure Of Accelerated Schools, Susan Virginia Steaffens

UNLV Retrospective Theses & Dissertations

The purpose of this study was to survey teachers at five accelerated schools in the Clark County School District to determine their perceptions of the organizational culture and properties of their respective schools, and to determine if there are any differences between the results on these surveys and the original studies; Two instruments, the Organisational Culture Assessment Inventory (OCAI) and the Structural Properties Questionnaire (SPQ), were administered in the Spring of 2001 to 277 teachers from five selected accelerated schools in the Clark County School District. This resulted in a response rate of 35%. The stories and metaphors obtained from …

Building Community In A Virtual Classroom: Construction Of Classroom Culture In A Postsecondary Distance Education Class, Virginia Anne Bielman

UNLV Retrospective Theses & Dissertations

The purpose of this dissertation was to investigate how a community was constructed in a postsecondary distance education class that relied only on computer-mediated communications. The use of a social constructionist perspective with Interactional Ethnography provided a theoretical and methodological means to make visible how the actions and interactions of the class members constructed their community. This study was built on and expanded qualitative research in K--12 traditional classrooms, which provided a lens with which to view the processes that shaped on-line community development. Past research has used ethnography and discourse analysis to investigate how traditional classroom participants' interactions over …

A Cause-And-Effect Relationship Between Leadership And Corporate Culture: An Educational Perspective, Shane C Blum

UNLV Retrospective Theses & Dissertations

The purpose of this exploratory research was to examine the relationship between the corporate culture of four-year hospitality management programs and the leadership styles of individuals responsible for leading these programs. Separate instruments were used to survey faculty and program heads of four-year hospitality management programs in an attempt to explore numerous research questions. Certain questions focused on the leadership styles of individuals in positions of authority within the program's administration. Other questions were geared toward evaluating the strength of the program's culture measured along a number of criteria. By examining these questions a theoretical relationship between leadership and culture …

Las Vegas In Popular Culture, Edward E Baldwin

UNLV Retrospective Theses & Dissertations

Las Vegas in Popular Culture is a survey and analysis of the depiction of Las Vegas in American popular culture. The dissertation identifies themes and patterns of interpretations of Las Vegas, a city which has come to occupy a central position in popular American mythology. The primary emphasis is on nationally published novels, short stories, and magazine articles, with a brief section on films. The material is evaluated in chronological order so that the depictions of Las Vegas can be seen in their historical contexts. Since the 1930s, writers in each succeeding decade emphasize different aspects of Las Vegas which …

Frank Norris's "Mcteague" And Popular Culture, Ruby M Fowler

UNLV Retrospective Theses & Dissertations

Popular culture consists of the events and artifacts of which everyday life is composed. In McTeague: A Story of San Francisco, the popular culture of 1890's working class San Franciscans is reported by Frank Norris with scrupulous accuracy. In twentieth century versions of McTeague, popular culture continues to be employed in innovative ways. Erich von Stroheim in Greed expands on Norris's use of popular culture in an attempt to create on film a mirror reflection of life. In the opera McTeague, William Bolcom and Robert Altman combine popular culture with elite culture in unconventional ways to bring the story to …

An-Pan Man: Language And Culture In A Japanese Children's Cartoon, Debra Jane Occhi

UNLV Retrospective Theses & Dissertations

This thesis examines a Japanese children's fantasy story, An-Pan Man, an animated television cartoon. The cartoon employs stereotypical characterizations that are (a) defined by language use, especially politeness markers encoded in referents for self and other, and (b) exhibited through enacted nonverbal behavior. Since the episodic An-Pan Man story is directed toward a young audience, it can be considered as a presentation that models appropriate and inappropriate language and behavior to children through the media of popular culture. I present an interpretation of culturally specific identities established by language use through translation and interpretation of the cartoon assisted by native-speaker …

"For The Continuance Of Their Favours": Women, The Public Sphere And The Print Culture In England, 1750-1760, Sharlene Shalimar Sayegh

UNLV Retrospective Theses & Dissertations

Focussing on letters from readers of "ladies' thinspace" periodicals as well as advertisements placed by women in the provincial newspaper, The Ipswich Journal, this thesis historically examines women's use of the growing print culture in England from 1750 to 1760. Notions that women overwhelmingly accepted and articulated the "domestic sphere" ideology at this time are contradicted by historical evidence. Despite the constraints imposed by prescriptive literature, women who used the print culture in eighteenth-century England asserted their public economic and social lives. Women's public and non-domestic lives were not effectively stifled by the didactic literature and domestic ideology they daily …

The Cult Of Culture: An Analysis And Plan For Teaching About Organizational Culture, James E Mason

UNLV Retrospective Theses & Dissertations

Five general themes are prevalent in the literature of organizational culture: Meaning, structure, language, stability/instability, and reification. This thesis gives a broad general overview of the concept of culture as it relates to communication, analyzes the literature in terms of the above, and makes suggestions for its use to develop in students an understanding and appreciation of the concept of organizational culture. A prescriptive reading plan and a teaching plan are included to allow teachers to select topics that have importance either for themselves or their students.