Social and Behavioral Sciences Commons^™

Sustainable Small House Project, Mollie Jo George

UNO Student Research and Creative Activity Fair

The Sustainable Small House Project was developed in cooperation with UNO/UNL Engineering, UNO Gerontology, and Metro Community College. This project merges both sustainable living with the small house movement to promote aging-in-place for older adults. This presentation describes the journey of Dr. Bing Chen as he envisioned the Sustainable Small House Project to its development and finally to implementation at its current location--west of Baxter Arena or adjacent to the UNO ballfield.

From a gerontological lens, the project focuses on principles of universal design which allows for aging-in-place, fall-detection and prevention using smart technologies such as Nobi, and voice-activated technologies …

Mapping Pressure Points In The U.S. Healthcare System: A Stakeholder Analysis Of Healthcare Industries And Healthcare Cost Inflation, Gabriella Rizzo

UNO Student Research and Creative Activity Fair

Compared to other high-income countries, U.S. healthcare has similar utilization rates but much higher costs, and with mixed results on quality measures (Papanicolas, Woskie, & Jha, 2018). These patterns have led to ongoing national discussions about how to make healthcare affordable for patients. A better understanding of industry dynamics involved in rising healthcare costs could be instrumental in creating realistic solutions to control them. However, consideration of healthcare spending tends to ignore how complex interrelatedness of healthcare industries contributes to the problem of healthcare cost inflation. The nature of these network connections has vital implications for industry commitment to solving …

Analyzing The Necessity And Feasibility Of The Freedom Dividend, Patrick Hodson

Theses/Capstones/Creative Projects

Job displacement stemming from automation has already taken away millions of jobs in the United States. Andrew Yang fears that future advancements could replace further jobs and exacerbate the wealth inequality already prevalent in our country. This has motivated his plan for change, the Freedom Dividend. This paper was designed to begin with an analysis of the motives for Yang’s plan. It then goes on to cover the details of his plan and assess the economic and administrative feasibility. The paper is concluded by looking at the potential outcomes of the plan and identifying major problem areas that need to …

Cloud Control And Monitoring: Personal Food Computer Version 2.0, Deepika Angelene Jantz

UNO Student Research and Creative Activity Fair

Trends in Agricultural development and growth rates in crop yields have slowed down due to harsh weather conditions. Also, use of pesticides, fertilizers and genetically modified organisms in food(GM0) has caused attenuation of nutrition, thus giving rise to Food Crisis. To address this concern, Caleb Harper, Principal Research Scientist at MIT shares his vision of “Food Computer” through an initiative called OpenAg, that dwells upon the concept of Controlled Environment for the growth of the plant. The objective of this research is to bring awareness in the young minds – the kids at K12 level to get familiar with current …

Community Partnership Initiative (Cpi), Deepika Angelene Jantz, Joseph Nabiry, Doris Uwaezuoke

UNO Student Research and Creative Activity Fair

UNO is committed to community involvement. The Community Partnership Initiative (CPI) was created with the goal of combining community partners with campus groups in order to work together to serve communities nationwide. The CPI application was designed to give partners and users a way to create and manage their projects online. Additionally, the tool was designed as a way for the CPI office to highlight the ways they are working to benefit the community and create a more dynamic way to analyze, track, and display the projects, partners, and communities they are working in. The CPI application is currently being …

Follow My Voice: The Future Of Phr Authentication, Jeanette M. Rose, Ryan Schuetzler, John R. Windle, Ann L. Fruhling

UNO Student Research and Creative Activity Fair

The current electronic personal health record (PHR) has low patient adoption [1]. Increasing use and adoption of the PHR will improve patient-centered care. Users often have difficulty remembering passwords or share them, giving multiple people access to one account.

Utilizing biometrics for authentication is becoming more common in our daily lives – think of the fingerprint sensor on a smartphone or retina scanners at high security corporations. The quickly evolving technology that runs our lives calls for incorporating biometric authentication into more systems. Using biometric authentication can ensure that passwords would not need to be remembered and that only the …

University Of Nebraska At Omaha 2018-2019 Course Catalog, University Of Nebraska At Omaha

Undergraduate Catalogs

Located in one of America’s best cities to live, work and learn, the University of Nebraska at Omaha (UNO) is Nebraska’s premier metropolitan university. With more than 15,000 students enrolled in 200-plus programs of study, UNO is recognized nationally for its online education, graduate education, military friendliness, and community engagement efforts.Founded in 1908, UNO has served learners of all backgrounds for more than 100 years and is dedicated to another century of excellence both in the classroom and in the community.

University Of Nebraska At Omaha 2017-2018 Course Catalog, University Of Nebraska At Omaha

Graduate Catalogs

The University of Nebraska Omaha (UNO) is a premier metropolitan university that combines the resources of a doctoral research institution with a thriving community in the heart of Omaha.

With a global reach and vision, UNO is large enough to provide opportunities students seek, yet personal enough to include the mentorship they need to achieve academic excellence, creativity, and engaged learningat competitive tuition rates.

UNO is committed to and engaged with the city surrounding it, allowing students unique hands-on opportunities, internships, service learning,applied research, and other collaborative activities that enhance time in the classroom.

This is the ”O” we want …

Value Creation And Value Capture In The Automotive Industry: Empirical Evidence From Czechia, Petr Pavlinek, Jan Ženka

Geography and Geology Faculty Publications

This article investigates how distinct tiers of firms contribute to value creation and value capture in the automotive industry. We employ firm-level indicators to evaluate the value creation and capture of distinct supplier tiers in the Czech automotive industry, while considering differences between foreign-owned and domestic firms. Our analysis suggests that the economic effects of the automotive industry largely depend on its capital intensity and that mostly foreign-owned higher tier firms generate and capture greater value than lower tier firms, which include the vast majority of domestic suppliers.

The Technology Effect: How Perceptions Of Technology Drive Excessive Optimism, Brent B. Clark, Christopher Robert, Stephen A. Hampton

Marketing and Management Faculty Publications

Purpose: We propose that constant exposure to advances in technology has resulted in an implicit association between technology and success that has conditioned decision makers to be overly optimistic about the potential for technology to drive successful outcomes. Three studies examine this phenomenon and explore the boundaries of this “technology effect.”

Design/Methodology/Approach: In Study 1, participants (N = 147) made simulated investment decisions where the information about technology was systematically varied. In Study 2 (N = 143), participants made decisions in a resource dilemma where technology was implicated in determining the amount of a resource available for harvest. Study 3 …

Linkages And Spillovers In Global Production Networks: Firm-Level Analysis Of The Czech Automotive Industry, Petr Pavlinek, Pavla Žížalová

Geography and Geology Faculty Publications

The aim of this article is to analyze the linkages between and spillovers from foreign-owned (foreign) to domestic-owned (domestic) firms in the Czech automotive industry. Theoretically and conceptually, our research draws on two strands of literature: spillovers, linkages and effects of foreign direct investment on domestic firms and regional economic development; and literature on global production networks, global value chains and industrial upgrading. Empirical analysis is based upon unique data collected by the authors through a questionnaire completed by 317 foreign and domestic firms in 2009 and on-site interviews with 100 firms conducted between 2009 and 2011. Data analysis has …

Foreign Investment In Eastern And Southern Europe After 2008. Still A Lever Of Growth?, Béla Galgóczi, Jan Drahokoupil, Magdalena Bernaciak, Petr Pavlinek

Faculty Books and Monographs

Editors:Béla Galgóczi,Jan Drahokoupil, and Magdalena Bernaciak

Chapter, Foreign direct investment and the development of the automotive industry in central and eastern Europe, authored by Petr Pavlinek, UNO faculty member.

This book investigates the role that foreign direct investment (FDI) in central-eastern and southern Europe has played in the post-crisis period, comparing patterns across countries and sectors.

An overarching objective of this publication is to assess the extent to which FDI can still be seen as a key driver of economic development, modernisation and convergence for Europe’s low- and middle-income economies, taking into account also the risks and limiting factors associated …

Time-Consistent Optimal Fiscal Policy Over The Business Cycle, Zhigang Feng

Economics Faculty Publications

This paper examines a dynamic stochastic economy with a benevolent government that cannot commit to its future policies. I consider equilibria that are timeconsistent and allow for history-dependent strategies. A new numerical algorithm is developed to solve for the set of equilibrium payoffs. For a baseline economy calibrated to the U.S. economy, the capital income tax with the highest social welfare is slightly procyclical, while the labor income tax is countercyclical. Compared with the data, this equilibrium provides a better account of the cyclical properties of U.S. tax policy than other solutions that abstract from history dependence. The welfare cost …

Keep Relationships Positive Or Do Things Right: Bridging Women Leaders’ Conflict Management Strategies In Non-Profit Organizations In Taiwan And The Us, Chin-Chung Chao, Dexin Tian

Communication Faculty Publications

Purpose – The present study aims at contributing to the knowledge of organizational communication and cross-cultural female leadership by examining the conflict management strategies between Taiwanese female presidents and their American counterparts in Rotary Clubs.

Design/methodology/approach – Data were collected through field observations and 25 in-depth interviews with 14 Taiwanese female presidents and 11 American female presidents in Rotary Clubs. Theme analysis of the interpretive method was used in this research.

Findings – This study revealed that the female presidents in both cultures applied obliging and integrating strategies to handle management conflicts. Yet, due to the interference of past presidents, …

The Czech Automotive Industry In Global Production Networks: Regional Dimensions Of Upgrading Between 1998 And 2008, Jan Ženka, Petr Pavlinek

Geography and Geology Faculty Publications

n this article, we draw on the global production networks (GPNs) and global value chains perspectives to examine the regional development effects of economic upgrading in the Czech automotive industry between 1998 and 2008. We investigate how the position of Czech-based automotive firms in GPNs affects the intensity of upgrading and the amount of value captured for the benefit of the host regions through wages, corporate taxes revenues and reinvested profits. Based on the statistical analysis of firm-level data aggregated at the micro-regional level, the intensity of economic upgrading and value capture is measured for groups of regions and for …

Climatequal® And Thinklets: Using Climatequal® With Group Support Systems To Facilitate Discussion And Set Priorities For Organizational Change At Criss Library, Audrey Defrank, Nora Hillyer

Criss Library Faculty Publications

Objective – This article discusses a series of actions taken by the Criss Library at the University of Nebraska at Omaha to implement organizational change, using the ClimateQUAL® survey and facilitated discussions with ThinkTank™ group decision software. The library had experienced significant changes over a five-year period, with a renovation of the facility and three reorganizations resulting in a 50% staff turnover. Recognizing the strain that years of construction and personnel changes had placed on the organization, there was a desire to uncover the mood of the employees and reveal the issues behind low morale, uneasiness, and fear.

Methods – …

Climbing The Himalayas: A Cross-Cultural Analysis Of Female Leadership And Glass Ceiling Effects In Non-Profit Organizations, Chin-Chung Chao

Communication Faculty Publications

Purpose – The present study aims at contributing to the knowledge of organizational communication and cross-cultural leadership by examining the relationship between cultural values and expected female leadership styles in non-profit organizations in Taiwan and the US. Design/methodology/approach – In total, 307 Rotarians in Taiwan and the US completed a survey meant to reveal their cultural values and expected female leadership styles. In addition, the method of semi-structured interviews was used to raise the participants’ consciousness of and critical reflections upon social practices regarding female leadership.

Findings – The research results are threefold. First, among the three major leadership styles, …

Culturally Universal Or Culturally Specific: A Comparative Study Of The Anticipated Female Leadership Styles In Taiwan And The United States, Chin-Chung Chao, Dexin Tian

Communication Faculty Publications

Guided by Bass and Avolio’s leadership frameworks and Hofstede’s modified cultural dimensions, the present cross-cultural study aims to compare and explore the relationships between cultural values and anticipated female leadership styles in non-profit organizations in Taiwan and the US. Regression and t-test analyses of 307 participants in 138 Rotary Clubs in the two societies reveal two research findings. First, Rotary Club members in Taiwan have higher scores in all the cultural dimensions of collectivism, masculinity, and life-long relationships than their US counterparts. Second, transformational leadership proves to be the most anticipated leadership style among Rotary Club members in both cultures. …

Functional Upgrading Through Research And Development In The Czech Automotive Industry, Petr Pavlinek, Jan Ženka, Pavla Žížalová

Geography and Geology Faculty Proceedings & Presentations

Based on firm-level research and development (R&D) data, we evaluate the extent of functional upgrading in the Czech automotive industry between 1998 and 2008. The analysis draws on a unique database of 476 Czech-based automotive firms with 20 and more employees in the broadly defined automotive industry, a survey of 274 automotive firms and twenty-five in-depth company interviews. In addition to assessing changes in the extent of automotive R&D, we analyze the most important locational factors of automotive R&D in Czechia and its regional distribution in the country. We examine changes in the spatial concentration of automotive R&D between 1998 …

Climatequal® And Thinklets: Using Climatequal® With Thinklets To Facilitate Discussion And Set Priorities For Organizational Change At Criss Library, Audrey Defrank, Nora Hillyer

Criss Library Faculty Proceedings & Presentations

Criss Library conducted the ClimateQUAL survey during the 2009 fall semester. The library had been experiencing numerous changes due to a three year library renovation, several personnel resignations and library reorganizations. There was an over-riding perception of mistrust, fear and uncertainty that needed to be addressed. Our first step in addressing the negative perceptions was to run the ClimateQUAL survey to gather statistics for a better understanding of staff perceptions. Our next step was to report on the ClimateQUAL data to the library staff and start discussions on goals and solutions for addressing the organization climate. The third step was …

Book Review: The Concept Of Community: Lessons From The Bronx, Angela M. Eikenberry

Public Administration Faculty Publications

A book review of DeRienzo, H. (2008). The Concept of Community: Lessons From the Bronx. Milan, Italy: IPOC di Pietro Condemi.

The Hidden Costs Of Cause Marketing, Angela M. Eikenberry

Public Administration Faculty Publications

From pink ribbons to Product Red, cause marketing adroitly serves two masters, earning profits for corporations while raising funds for charities. Yet the short-term benefits of cause marketing—also known as consumption philanthropy—belie its long-term costs. These hidden costs include individualizing solutions to collective problems; replacing virtuous action with mindless buying; and hiding how markets create many social problems in the first place. Consumption philanthropy is therefore unsuited to create real social change.

Cultural Values And Anticipations Of Female Leadership Styles A Study Of Rotary Clubs In Taiwan And The United States, Chin-Chung Chao

Faculty Books and Monographs

Although the status of women in general has gradually improved in education, employment and leadership over the years, the big picture for women is still disheartening, and female leadership in higher positions is disproportionately represented. To address this issue for more satisfactory gender equality, this study undertakes a comparative quantitative and qualitative study of female leadership in non-profit organizations in the East and the West by exploring the relationships between the Rotary Club members¿ cultural values and their anticipated female leadership styles in Taiwan and the United States. Specifically, this study will provide more academic perspectives on female leadership in …

Telling Stories Of Libraries And Leadership, Audrey Defrank

Criss Library Faculty Proceedings & Presentations

A presentation outlining the four frames of leadership and storytelling as they relate to libraries. Leadership Orientation Questionnaire; Overview; Inspiration; Leadership; Reframing Leadership; Structural Frame; Human Resources Frame; Political Frame; Symbolic Frame; Where do you fit in the frame?; Native American Storytelling; Organizations as Cultures; Story Narrative; Telling the Story.

A Long Spell Of Uncertainty, John Austin, Chris Decker, Tom Doering, Ernie Goss, Bruce Johnson, Lisa Johnson, Ken Lemke, Franz Schwarz, Scott Strain, Eric Thompson, Keith Turner

Economics Faculty Publications

We find ourselves in a period of sustained economic uncertainty. Today, like 6 months ago, the U.S. economy is on the brink of a recession. Weakness in lending activity, coupled with weakness in the housing sector and related manufacturing industries has stymied economic growth since late 2007. At times, recession seems imminent. But, the official measures, such as quarterly gross domestic product, do not clearly signal that the economy is contracting. Further, prices are rising rapidly for food and energy. That is the uncertainty. Will 2008 be remembered as a recession year, or as a period of disappointing but slow …

Risk And Recovery, John Austin, Chris Decker, Tom Doering, Ernie Goss, Bruce Johnson, Lisa Johnson, Ken Lemke, Franz Schwarz, Scott Strain, Eric Thompson, Keith Turner

Economics Faculty Publications

The crisis in the housing and financial sectors has led to a dramatic slowdown in U.S. economic growth. Fourth quarter GDP growth and job growth are expected to be anemic and the economy may fall into recession in 2008. Indeed, several of the dozen members of the Nebraska Business Forecast Council do believe that the U.S. economy will likely slip into recession during 2008. However, the overall consensus of the Council is that the U.S. economy will avoid a recession. Economic growth will be slow in the first three quarters of 2008 before recovering in late 2008 and 2009.

A Soft Landing And A Long Layover, John Austin, Chris Decker, Tom Doering, Ernie Goss, Philip Baker, Bruce Johnson, Lisa Johnson, Ken Lemke, Franz Schwarz, Scott Strain, Eric Thompson

Economics Faculty Publications

The U.S. economy achieved a soft landing in 2006. This was a desirable outcome. The economy needed a break from its rapid, and potentially inflationary, growth in 2004 and 2005, before taking off again. But, that new flight has been delayed. The aggregate economy has remained mired in slow growth in the first half of 2007. Pockets of the economy, such as the labor market, have been strong, but a weak housing sector has limited overall growth. Further, signs point to one or two more quarters of weaker growth, before the economy is able to take off again.

Best Practices For Implementing Agile Methods: A Guide For Department Of Defense Software Developers, Ann L. Fruhling, Alvin E. Tarrell

Information Systems and Quantitative Analysis Faculty Publications

Traditional plan-driven software development has been widely used in the government because it's considered to be less risky, more consistent, and structured. But there has been a shift from this approach to Agile methods which are more flexible, resulting in fast releases by working in an incremental fashion to adapt to the reality of the changing or unclear requirements.

This report describes the Agile software development philosophy, methods, and best practices in launching software design projects using the Agile approach. It is targeted to Defense Department software developers because they face broad challenges in creating enterprise-wide information systems, where Agile …

A Soft Landing, Steady Growth, And Accelerating Farm Income, John Austin, Chris Decker, Tom Doering, Ernie Goss, Nick Hernandez, Bruce Johnson, Ken Lemke, Franz Schwarz, Scott Strain, Eric Thompson, Keith Turner

Economics Faculty Publications

After years of accelerating growth, the U.S. economy achieved a soft landing in 2006. The rate of economic growth remained positive but slowed sufficiently to reduce inflation pressures and the need for further interest rate increases. At the same time the economy remained strong enough to continue the current expansion which has been in place since late 2001. Such a soft landing is vital because it should allow the economy to continue to expand for years to come, but with moderate inflation.

Pillars Of Growth In Nebraska's Non-Metropolitan Economy, Eric Thompson, Ernie Goss, Chris Decker, Cheryl A. Burkhart-Kriesel, Bruce Johnson, Ben Schmitz, Julian Neira, Pavel Jeutang

Economics Faculty Publications

Agriculture is a critical part of Nebraska’s economy, and changes in the fortunes of agriculture play an important role in the success of the state’s non-metropolitan regions. Trends toward consolidation and rising productivity in agriculture, however, have raised concerns about the future of non-metropolitan Nebraska. Some citizens and policymakers have begun to wonder if the economy can create sufficient job opportunities for non-metropolitan residents. The answer to this question depends not only upon the relative strength of the agricultural sector, but also upon the presence of other industries that can join agriculture as pillars for employment growth in non-metropolitan Nebraska. …