Digital Commons Network^™

Vaccine Education And Compliance Statistics In The Greater Indianapolis Area, Matthew Brennan Budi

Undergraduate Honors Thesis Collection

Background: Recently, rates of certain vaccine-preventable diseases have increased and outbreaks have occurred. For example, in 2014, the incidence of measles in the United States reached a record high since 2000, with 644 total cases reported to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention's (CDC's) National Center for Immunization and Respiratory Diseases. Increases such as this may likely be due to widespread public fears that vaccines can cause serious adverse events.Therefore, due to their accessibility, pharmacists can play a crucial role in lessenning these public fears through proper education.

Study objective: The primary objective of this study was to dispel …

The Effects Of Tylenol On Non-Social Emotional Memory, Renato Puga

Undergraduate Honors Thesis Collection

The present study proposes utilizing a slide-show presentation analogous to the one employed in Puga, Spelman, and Bohannon (2014). However, a new series of precritical, critical, and post-critical slides will be utilized, counterbalancing perceptuallycentral/peripheral items across all ofthem as well as counterbalancing the pre-critical and post-critical slides. The ultimate goal of this manipulation is twofold: To provide a strong methodological scenario in which (1) the "preceding information effect" found in Puga, Atkinson, and Bohannon (2012) as well as (2) the acetaminophen-post critical effect found in Puga, Spelman and Bohannon (2014) can both be re-tested and solidified.

The Impact Of Peptide Nucleic Acid Fluorescence In Situ Hybridization (Pna Fish®) Rapid Diagnostic Testing On The Initiation Of Appropriate Antifungal Therapy In Patients With Candida Species Bloodstream Infections, Jenna Lee Ksiazkiewicz

Undergraduate Honors Thesis Collection

Background: Traditional methods for detecting positive blood cultures include the use of broth bottles with sensitive indicators for growth. These techniques can take 24-48 hours to signal a positive test. Another 24 hours are often required to determine the species of the organism. The use of rapid diagnostic testing for Candida species bloodstream infections provides accurate species identification in less than two hours.

Objective: Evaluate the time to appropriate antifungal therapy in patients in which rapid diagnostic testing was utilized.

Methods: This study was a retrospective, observational cohort of patients who had positive blood cultures for Candida species and had …

Experiential Learning: An Exploration, John Santo Verdico

Undergraduate Honors Thesis Collection

There is a problem with education in the United States. Students coast through school focused on grades, and leave school prepared for homework and controlled situations; they are not ready for the rigor and unpredictability of every day life in the real world. Studies on experiential learning show that the best way to gain professional skills and understanding is not necessarily in the classroom with a teacher, but outside the classroom with peers. Butler University's Music Industry Association (BMIA), provides such an opportunity. Producing the annual BMIA Sampler album increases students' understanding of concepts learned in the classroom and encourages …

Stereotype Threat And Ocd: The Impact Of Messy Vs. Clean Environments On Cognitive Test Performance, Ellen Rebecca Kendall

Undergraduate Honors Thesis Collection

Stereotype threat has been researched in a variety of contexts such as African Americans' intellect, older adults' memory, and women's performance in math. Despite this extensive research, little has been done in the domain of mental illness. This study examines whether stereotype threat can be induced in people high in OCD symptoms. I hypothesized that, when given explicit information about their OCD tendencies, individuals high in OCD symptoms would perform less well on cognitive tests in a messy than a clean environment compared to those low in OCD symptoms. Group testing sessions included a mix of college students high (n=25) …

A Wind From Below: The Zapatista Movement And Its Assertion Of Pluri-Ethnic Mexican Citizenship, Noah Jacob Huyette

Undergraduate Honors Thesis Collection

No abstract provided.

The Creation Of Fear Through Censorship: Repression Of Artistic Freedom In The Music Of The Syrian Revolution, Rebecca Aliah Ajamoughli

Undergraduate Honors Thesis Collection

"God, Syria, freedom, and that is all." These four words embody the goals of the Syrian Revolution. Yet, there is one key element of this chant that raises questions surrounding its meaning: freedom. For decades, the people of Syria have been subjected to restricted freedom by the Assad regime-especialIy musicalIy. The regime has artfulIy used music to legitimize its claim to the country. This utilization varies from early-learned pro-Baath chants to the monitoring of all performances held in the country. As Lisa Wedeen says in her work Ambiguities of Domination, "[this control of culture] isolates Syrians from one another, and …

The Ecology Of Phenotypic Plasticity In The Cabbage White Butterfly, Pieris Rapae, Isabella Thompson Lambert

Undergraduate Honors Thesis Collection

Phenotypic plasticity is the ability of an organism to alter its expressed phenotype in response to the environment in which it develops. There are many different environmental factors that can influence the phenotype of organisms such as photoperiod, temperature, mechanical strain, as well as nutrient availability (Stoehr and Goux 2008; Schneider et al. 2014). Adaptive plasticity allows organisms to cope with varying and complex environments and changing conditions. Along with these factors, the effects of changing environments caused from habitat alterations or climate change need to be studied more in depth. Understanding the ecology of plastic organisms is important for …

Teacher Perceptions Of Elementary Students With An Articulation Disorder Of Varying Degrees, Morgan Lee Johnson

Undergraduate Honors Thesis Collection

The purpose of this study is to examine teacher perceptions of elementary students who have an articulation disorder. An electronic survey was given to teachers in two elementary schools within Indianapolis, and specifically, Pike Township. The teachers rated six hypothetical student profiles on competence, intelligence, and various behaviors. Utilizing a standard Likert scale, the different hypothetical student profiles yielded scores that showed how positively the teachers viewed the hypothetical students. To ensure validity, there were control student profiles with no label or other, non-speech related disorders. It was hypothesized that the profiles for typically developing students would be given the …

Assessment Of Empathy Scores In A Pharmacy Professional Nutrition Support Elective Course, Megan M. Mayhew

Undergraduate Honors Thesis Collection

Background: Clinical empathy may be defined as "the ability to listen to, understand, sympathize with, and provide support to another individual." Empathy has been shown to influence patient satisfaction, adherence, and improve clinical outcomes. Teaching empathy skills in the classroom and clinical setting is imperative to allow students to develop and enhance their communication with patients.

Study Objective: To evaluate two empathy projects in the RX 618 Nutrition Support Professional Elective to identify if the projects are effective in improving pharmacy students' knowledge of empathy.

Methods: The study objective was met using a prospective cohort survey based study. An interactive …

Conversational Scaffolding With Couples With An Aphasic Partner, Mary Jo Bissmeyer

Undergraduate Honors Thesis Collection

Aphasia is an acquired language disorder experienced by approximately one million Americans today, many recovering from stroke or traumatic brain injury. Traditional therapy has focused solely on regaining specific linguistic skills, including auditory comprehension, speech, reading, and/or writing. Conversation partner training is a newer trend in aphasia intervention that has emerged thanks to an increasingly social model of disability and the pressure to deliver meaningful and cost effective health services. It fits nicely with the Life Participation Approach to Aphasia, which encourages clinicians to help individuals with aphasia and their families set and meet their own goals for therapy, which …

Concern About The Freshman 15, Peer Influence, & Weight-Control Behavior Among Freshmen, Sarah Bauman

Undergraduate Honors Thesis Collection

Objective: The author investigated how individual and perceived concern about the Freshman 15 influences weight-control behaviors among collegc freshmen, if peers have an effect on an individuals' concern about the Freshman 15, and whether students exercise, diet, or exhibit disorderly eating habits. Gender differences were also examined. It was hypothesized that (1) higher levels of concern about the Freshman 15 will result in greater weight control measures (2) peers influence individuals' use of weight-control measures and individuals who perceive their peers as concerned about the Freshman 15 will be more likely to engage in weight-control behaviors (3) that although females …

A Departure From Blood And Iron: A Comparative Analysis Of The Role Of Culture In Societal Reintegration Of Ex-Combatant Military Members And Reentry Of Ex-Convicts, Devon Danielle Lott

Undergraduate Honors Thesis Collection

While there exists a multitude of information regarding the societal reintegration of both formerly deployed military members and ex-convicts, there is a lack of research comparing and contrasting each group's previous experiences and their effects on the processes of reintegration. From a national focus, the United States' incarceration rate is increasing and the recidivism rate between 2005 and 2010 was surveyed at seventy-five percent of prisoners being arrested again within five years of their release.1 From a military perspective in the United States, the rates of suicide among military members are exceeding the combat-related death rates for soldiers deployed to …

Existing On Earth And Stage: Exploring Human Relationships With Ecosystems Through Performance, Julia Stephanie Levine

Undergraduate Honors Thesis Collection

"You're on Earth. There's no cure for that," says the character Hamm, in Samuel Beckett's Endgame. The stage offers a unique lens through which to explore the reality of human existence on Earth, sharing the behaviors of characters in imagined circumstances with audiences. My honors thesis production, GAIA: an eco-theatre project explores human relationships with the environment and comes out of research conducted during the 2014 Butler Summer Institute. My thesis project began by raising the following questions: How do we impact the environment, and how do we react to changes in our ecosystems? What do our actions in our …

An Investigation Of Howard Gardner's Intrapersonal And Interpersonal Intelligence In Dance Educational Outreach Programs, Catherine Lynn Jue

Undergraduate Honors Thesis Collection

Can you remember the first time you were exposed to the arts? Might it have been in elementary school? Many schools in today's society face budget cuts to art programs since they are overlooked for their educational benefit. However, one might not even realize that these art programs, such as dance classes, can have positive effects on a student's self esteem and social interactions with others.

An alternate way for students to become exposed to the arts is through educational outreach programs. Dance educational outreach programs have been established by schools, community centers, and dance companies as a means of …

"I'M Just Not Talented With Languages!" The Role Of Self-Efficacy And Attribution Theory In The Foreign Language Classroom., Justice Nicolette Rioux

Undergraduate Honors Thesis Collection

With many secondary and post-secondary institutions implementing foreign language requirements of at least two years of study of the same language, it is imperative that educators understand how to properly encourage their students so that they become motivated to complete the necessary language learning tasks. Moreover, foreign language teachers need to know how to motivate their students to continue learning the foreign language even after they have met their institution's requirements, so that the foreign language is eventually acquired as a second language by their students. In the current study, the interrelationship between achievement in the foreign language classroom and …

Evaluating The Non-Evidence Based Practice Of Rounding Serum Creatinine In The Elderly And The Impact On Medication Dosing, Kelly Lynn Roden

Undergraduate Honors Thesis Collection

Background: The Cockcroft and Gault equation is widely accepted in practice as the most appropriate way to calculate an estimated creatinine clearance. Geriatric patients often present with reduced muscle mass, and therefore lower creatinine production, due to normal changes in body composition associated with aging. Because serum creatinine and creatinine clearance are inversely proportional using the Cockcroft and Gault equation, a lower serum creatinine may falsely overestimate renal function in the elderly population. Rounding to a normal serum creatinine is believed by some practitioners to prevent over estimation of creatinine clearance and renal function.

Objective: The objective of this study …

Integrating Math And Literature In The Elementary Classroom, Megan Maureen Boebinger

Undergraduate Honors Thesis Collection

Growing up, I was the student who hated to go to math class. I was not bad at math, I just could not seem to find a way to make it interesting or exciting. I had trouble understanding the purpose of math and how it was applicable to my own life. Word problems were my worst enemy; I appreciated the attempt to make math seem relatable, but never saw the use. Many of these problems involved building or buying something; topics I had no experience with in elementary school. I did not see why I needed to know the exact …

Reform Judaism And Lgbtq Identity In Indiana: A Sociological Study Toward Greaterunderstanding And Inclusion, Gregory Ethan Zemtsov

Undergraduate Honors Thesis Collection

LGBTQ Jews are collectively an underrepresented population, and their identification with two minority groups exposes this group of individuals to a great deal of potential hardships. Jewish culture, the largely secular LGBTQ community, and the ever-present gaze of heteronormative Christian society at large unfortunately have the ability to permutate and coalesce in a myriad of destructive ways at the expense of LGBTQ Jews. While the media and academia largely ignore this community at the national level, LGBTQ Jewry in the Midwest is worse off still. Today, there has yet to be a single published article about LGBTQ Jews in the …

Chains & Whips: Gender Roles In Bdsm Erotica Published After "Fifty Shades Of Grey", Laura Lines

Undergraduate Honors Thesis Collection

Ever since the release of E. L. James' erotic romance novel, Fifty Shades of Grey, in 2011, more novels with bondage/discipline/dominance/submission/sadomasochism (BDSM) content invaded the romance market, targeting adult women. These novels sparked controversy: some applaud the increased popularity as a way for women to be more open about their sexuality and embrace experimentation with kink in the bedroom. Others criticize these novels as harmful examples of unrealistic, abusive relationships where women are subservient to a dominant man. Since these novels became popular in recent times, my research consists of a content analysis of popular BDSM erotic romance novels published …

An Equivocal Truth: An Analysis Of Climate Change Communication In Respect To The Double Ethical Bind, Taylor Whitney Brown

Undergraduate Honors Thesis Collection

The purpose of my thesis will be to analyze how climate change translators address the double ethical bind, which includes how the communicators struggle and succeed in explaining environmental evidence while revealing the whole truth of the situation, which includes the doubts, caveats, and questions while still motivating the public to action (Russill, 2010, p. 63). To construct my thesis, I will first evaluate the key texts surrounding climate change communication in an integrated literature review that incorporates defining the role of climate change communicators, determining common restraints and problems communicators face, describing communication techniques, and illustrating the usefulness of …

The Ontogenetic Effects On The Shell Strength Of Turtles, Dakota Wayne Speck

Undergraduate Honors Thesis Collection

The shell of a turtle acts as its first line of defense by resisting the compressive forces applied by a potential predator. Changes in shell size and shape that are associated with ontogenesis and sexual dimorphism have been shown to greatly impact the strength a turtle's shell in a variety of species. Here I have tested the effects of ontogenetic changes on the shell strength of Graptemys geographica. The results suggest that the morphological changes that occur during ontogenesis work to increase the overall strength of the shell. The data did not show any obvious morphological or mechanical differences between …

Hollywood's Hindering Of Homosexuality For Heroes: Sexuality In Comic Books And Their Movies, Makenna E. Imholte

Undergraduate Honors Thesis Collection

Since the inception of comic books, superheroes have populated American households. These heroes, such as Superman, Batman, and Spider-Man, instill various values in youth. These values include honor, strength, and justice. Comic books have become a staple of America and have recently regained interest through film adaptations. These films reinforce the hegemonic masculinity and limited opportunities of women. While the comic books themselves also impose these themes, they also have begun to introduce LGBT themes into story lines and characters. However, these LGBT themes continuously get removed as the stories transform from comic book to film. The purpose of this …

Justifying The Implementation Of A Collaborative Drug Therapy Management (Cdtm) Protocol In An Outpatient Psychiatric Clinic: A Retrospective Chart Review, Kevin Michael Bozymski

Undergraduate Honors Thesis Collection

Objective

To identify opportunities where pharmacists could intervene and justify the benefits of outpatient clinical pharmacy services through a CDTM protocol within Gallahue Mental Health Center by assessing current antipsychotic monitoring

Methods

A retrospective chart review was performed of patients visiting an outpatient psychiatric clinic over 14 months. A review was also completed of patients followed at two primary care clinics within Community Health Network. Patients were at least 18 years old and had at least one active antipsychotic prescription. A standardized data collection sheet was used to document monitoring frequency and appropriateness as recommended by the 2004 American Diabetes …

Examining Implicit Person Theory And Feedback Environment In Undergraduate Research Relationships, Ian Katz

Undergraduate Honors Thesis Collection

This study examined the relationship between implicit person theory, our thoughts about malleability of human traits, and the trust students have for their faculty research advisor. There was no relationship between implicit person theory and trust. The faculty feedback environment was also captured to understand the day-to-day interactions of the student and their faculty research advisor. There was a significant relationship between a positive feedback environment and students' intention to continue collaboration with the faculty member.

Surgery As A Science: The Intellectual And Practical Evolution Of European Surgery From The 16th To The 18th Century, Molly Nebiolo

Undergraduate Honors Thesis Collection

This thesis will highlight some of the major technological inventions in the field of surgery during this time range, but more importantly will utilize the scarce resources available to piece together why these technologies did advance and how they played a role in the professionalization of surgery as a whole. The resources currently available to determine the advances in surgical tools and techniques either lack written descriptions of their uses, and are just picture books, or are beyond my ability to use since they are in foreign languages. Not only this, but there are no written works already published that …

The Impact And Interaction Of Music Familiarity And Congruency On Responses To Advertisements, Michael Blecha

Undergraduate Honors Thesis Collection

Music is commonly used by marketers to enhance the effectiveness of ads. Research shows that music can make ads more memorable and shape a viewer's response to the ad. This study explores the impact of three music characteristics, its likability, its familiarity and its "fit" with the ad (referred to as congruency), on consumer response to an ad. I hypothesized that all three music characteristics would positively impact responses to an ad. Additionally, I hypothesized that there would be a significant interaction between music familiarity and congruency with subjects responding the most positively to an ad when the music was …

The Role Of Rnai In Downregulation Of Physcomitrella Patens Defense Genes And The Preliminary Steps Of Peg Mediated Transformation Of Mosses, Adam Beswick

Undergraduate Honors Thesis Collection

When attacked by a pathogen, the moss Physcomitrella patens will undergo both a hypersensitive response (HR) as well as a systematic acquired resistance (SAR) response. The SAR response turns on genes that ready the plant for future pathogen attacks. The hormone jasmonic acid (JA) is one of the products of SAR response in P. patens. In this study interference RNA (RNAi) was used to decrease gene expression of the allene oxide cyclase (ACe) gene, a key gene in the production pathway of JA. Using quantitative reverse transcriptase polymerase chain reaction (qRT-PCR), RNAi was found to significantly lower ACC gene levels …

Relationship Between Attribute Variables And First-Year Physician Assistant Students' Ratings Of Professional Attire, Jaclyn Demeter

Undergraduate Honors Thesis Collection

Objective. The purpose of this survey study was to investigate the noncausal relationships between various attribute variables of first year PA students (age, gender, ethnicity, education level, family income, and professional phase GPA) and their professionalism ratings of photos of three different outfits depicting each of five categories of attire (scrubs, casual, business casual, business, and white coat) worn in clinical settings.

Methods. An observational ecological design was utilized to measure students' perceptions of professional attire. First-year physician assistant students from Butler University in Indianapolis, Indiana were asked to rank outfits from 1= unprofessional to 7= professional using a semantic …

Symmetries And Patterns In Non-Euclidean Settings, Sarah Elizabeth Stoops

Undergraduate Honors Thesis Collection

From the Megalithic Temples of Malta constructed over 5,500 years ago, to the Pyramid of Djoser in Egypt built some 4,700 years ago, to more recent works of architectural wonder such an the Taj Mahal, the testimonials to the innate human genius for creating beauty through symmetry, color, and patterns abound. Evidently, the mathematical underpinnings of many architectural marvels are mostly rooted in the Euclidean Geometry. Now, as marvelous as these monuments are, one may wonder what would be the concepts of beauty and symmetry in a non-Euclidean universe. It turns out that this is not a far-fetched thought. It …