Digital Commons Network^™

A Considertation Of Cost-Benefit Analysis In The Context Of Public Policy Decision-Making, Kathleen M. Wong

Honors Theses

Just what is to be understood by the term "cost-benefit analysis" ("benefit-cost analysis")? The question itself arises from a curiosity into how government decisions (which affect all) are made. This paper gives an elementary discussion of constitutive parts, raising and responding to some initial criticisms. It seems fairly evident, unneedful of additional explanation or elaboration. The individual on the street would simply declare that it sounded like some rather ordinary decision-making process which involved the consideration of the costs and benefits incurred by the paths of action that might be selected. "Ordinary" means accessible to anyone and not the exclusive …

The Influence Of Gender Schema On The Perception Of Advertising, Kim Seitz

Honors Theses

Schemas are used to organize knowledge about a stimulus or concept. They help to show what information should be notice or ignored, interpret between long-term memory and the current stimulus, and aid in efficiently storing information. Individuals' responses to decisions are guided by schemas. The process of eleviating cognitive dissonance between reality and existing schemas serves as their motivation (Ruble & Stangor, 1986).

Outcome-Biased Correspondent Inferences And Choice Behavior In Social Dilemmas : "Acting On Inference", Shannon J. Pratt

Honors Theses

An experiment employing 38 intro-psychology students was performed in order to a) observe the outcome-biased correspondent inference, b) investigate whether this inference may be manifested in social dilemma behavior, and c) investigate the role of social values in reactions to feedback, investment behaviors, and sensitivity to the correspondent inference. The experiment consisted of two parts. The first part categorized subjects as either cooperators or defectors using the Ring Measure of Social Values. In the second part, subjects completed a booklet with the aid of taped instructions. The booklet contained a questionnaire, a bogus scenario, and three investment situations. Results showed …

Jealousy : An Investigation Of Attribution, Margaret L. Offerdahl

Honors Theses

The purpose of this study was to examine the determinants of jealousy in different situations. Specifically, the research extended a study which identified five major categories of jealousy: romantic jealousy, jealousy of others' social acceptance, jealousy of others' undeserved accomplishments, jealousy of others' traits, and jealousy of others' happiness (Baldwin, 1988).

The investigation utilized a questionnaire narrating one scenario for each of the five jealousy provoking situations. Subjects rated the appropriateness of the jealous response in each situation on a scale from 1 to 7 and generated perceived causes for each jealous response. An analysis of variance of the appropriateness …

Warning Compliance : Behavioral Effects Of Cost And Consensus, Nancy A. Mckenna

Honors Theses

The behavioral effects of cost and consensus on warning compliance were examined. Cost was defined as the amount of effort expended to perform the instructed behavior, while consensus was defined as whether the presence of another person who complies or fails to comply affects the rate of compliance of another. Subjects performed a chemistry laboratory task during which, they read a warning directing them to wear a safety mask and gloves. The frequency of the subjects' compliance was recorded. The results show reduced compliance when the cost was high. The results also show that the behavior of just one other …

The Development Of The Child And Adolescent Coping Inventory, Laura K. Mcgraw

Honors Theses

The development of the Child and Adolescent Coping Inventory (Cobb, Gwanter, & Newcomb, 1987) is described and reliability and validity statistics are reported. The inventory consists of a parent form and a child form. The parent form contains 91 descriptions of children's behaviors when faced with difficulties. The child form is in interview format and asks children to describe seven positive and negative events and their reactions to them.The Inventory in both forms is capable of obtaining both observable and subjective reactions of children to stress. Reliability and validity is stronger for the child form. Suggestions are made for possible …

The "Ten Words", James R. Luck Jr

Honors Theses

One of the most exciting trends in the field of religion today is the continuing development of the late-in-coming Jewish-Christian dialogue. It is hoped that as the two groups continue to approach each other in open inquiry - emphasizing both those beliefs that unite the groups in spirit, as well as those which distinguish them as separate faiths - the resulting experience would enhance the lives of Jews and Christians alike.

One of the fields of academic study which naturally lends itself to this type of dialogue is the Hebrew Scriptures; more familiar in the Christian context as the "Old …

An Exploratory Analysis On The Situational Determinants Of Jealousy, Renee Jean Baldwin

Honors Theses

The purpose of this study is to transcend the trait and affective boundaries in order to account for the situational and cognitive variables which provoke the responses elicited by jealous emotion. The focus of the study is comprised of two major objectives: (1). To discover and define the structural dimensions associated with people's conceptions of jealous situations and (2) to deter mine whether there are gender differences in the interpretation and conceptualization of jealous emotion. Thirty-one undergraduate psychology students participated in the study. A cluster analysis was performed on the co-occurrence of situations. Five major categories of the situational determinants …

A Study Of The Self In The Red And The Black And The Confessions Of Felix Krull, Confidence Man, Roberta Mowery

Honors Theses

Although there are many reasons for reading and writing literature, perhaps the most compelling one is to gain knowledge of and access to the self. One of the most interesting aspects in the literary study of the self involves the individual's perception of his public and private self. This differentiation between the public an dprivate persona is developed in dept in Stendhal's The Red and the Black and Thomas Mann's The Confessions of Felix Krull, Confidence Man. The protagonists of these two works lead lives of duplicity and hypocrisy, each submerging his private personality in order to get ahead in …

William Courtenay's England : An Aristocratic Bishop In The Fourteenth Century, Michael P. Gwaltney

Honors Theses

Despite religious controversy that threatened the church and

endangered the state, William Courtenay, as an aristocratic bishop,

succeeded in preserving the traditional structure of the medieval

English Church. During the second half of the fourtheenth century,

England sustained reversals abroad in the renewed war with France.

The military setbacks aggrevated the domestic unrest, which existed

under the uncertain leadership of senile Edward III and then young

Richard II. Church and state in medieval society were so closely

interwoven by means of a cohesive religion that "any substantial

alteration of the church system could have led to a revolution of a …

Lady Jane Grey The Nine Days Queen : A Study Of The Dynastic Questions, Religious Reforms, And Unique Personalities That Influenced Her Fate, Susan Elizabeth Plunkett

Honors Theses

Lady Jane Grey's short life was one of constant uncertainty, derogatory remarks from her parents, and manipulation; yet she retained her faith till the end. Her story was intriguing if not for its romance and pathos, then for the way in which it reflected the chaotic polltical, social, and religious tendencies of this period in English history. It was a time of intrigues and conspiracies where the true desire for nothing less than outright greed and a cut-throat willingness to employ any means to attain a goal ran rampant. Her llfe provided a unique perspective from which to view the …

From Allies To Enemies, Robin J. Cowan

Honors Theses

R.G. Collingwood concludes his book, The Idea of History, with a powerful statement. He says, "We ought by now to realize that no kindly law of nature will save us from the fruits of our ignorance." Collingwood argues that the only way to overcome ignorance is to have a solid understanding based on historical thought. The job of the historian is to search through existing evidence and the theories of other authorities and to present what she believes is the historical truth.

After reading Collingwood and always having had a strong interest in the Cold War, I was inspired to …