Social and Behavioral Sciences Commons^™

Alcohol Use And Strenuous Physical Activity In College Students: A Longitudinal Test Of 2 Explanatory Models Of Health Behavior, Heather A. Davis, Elizabeth N. Riley, Gregory T. Smith, Richard S. Milich, Jessica L. Burris

Psychology Faculty Publications

Objective: To help clarify the effect of gender on the bidirectional relationship between alcohol use and strenuous physical activity in college students. Participants: Five hundred twenty-four (52% female) college students recruited in August 2008 and 2009 and followed up in April 2009 and April 2011, respectively. Methods: Participants reported their alcohol use and strenuous physical activity on 2 occasions (baseline and follow-up) spaced approximately 1 or 2 years apart. Results: For females, alcohol use quantity at baseline was associated with increased strenuous physical activity at 1- and 2-year follow-ups, and alcohol use frequency at baseline was …

The Carrot And The Stick? Strategies To Improve Compliance With College Campus Tobacco Policies, Amanda Fallin-Bennett, Maria Roditis, Stanton A. Glantz

Nursing Faculty Publications

Objective: Tobacco-free policies are being rapidly adopted nationwide, yet compliance with these policies remains a challenge. This study explored college campus key informants' experiences with tobacco policies, and their perceived benefits, drawbacks, and outcomes. Participants: The sample for this study was 68 key informants representing 16 different California universities with varying tobacco policies (no smoking indoors and within 20 feet of entrances, designated smoking areas, 100% smoke-free, and 100% tobacco-free). Methods: Qualitative, descriptive study. Semistructured interviews were transcribed verbatim and analyzed using content analysis. Results: Strategies to improve compliance ranged from a social approach to a …

Perceived Effectiveness And Satisfaction Of A Community-Based Positive Youth Development Program: Findings Based On High School Students, Daniel T. L. Shek, Janet T. Y. Leung, Moon Y. M. Law, Kles S. Y. Chan

Pediatrics Faculty Publications

This study examined participants’ perceptions of a community-based positive youth development (PYD) program (the Project P.A.T.H.S.) based on the responses of 16,420 junior secondary students who joined the program in 2015. Subjective outcome evaluation approach was adopted to examine the students’ views of program content, program instructors, and program effectiveness. Consistent with previous studies, results showed that students generally perceived the program positively, and positive relationships were found amongst the three domains of evaluation. Multiple regression analyses showed that perceived program content and instructor qualities were significant predictors and could explain 35% of the variance in program effectiveness perceived by …

Psychological Needs, Self-Regulation, And Motivation Profiles Among A Sample Of Hong Kong Chinese University Students: A Person-Centered Approach, Cecilia M. S. Ma, Daniel T. L. Shek, Catie C. W. Lai

Pediatrics Faculty Publications

To better understand factors that influence individuals’ motivation to engage in physical activity, this study aimed to identify the motivational profiles among the Chinese university students, compare the motivational profiles between genders, and explore whether satisfaction of various psychological needs vary with different motivational profiles. Two thousand and twenty-two Chinese university students completed a battery of self-report questionnaires assessing motivation regulation and psychological needs satisfaction. Three motivational profiles were identified for both genders. The overall patterns of the motivational profiles for both genders were similar. However, males (44%) were more likely than their female counterparts (19%) in self-determined profile group. …

Qualitative Evaluation Of A Service Leadership Subject In A Chinese Context, Daniel T. L. Shek, Jing Wu, Li Lin, Emma X. P. Pu

Pediatrics Faculty Publications

Adopting a qualitative methodology, views of the students on a subject on service leadership were examined. Students taking the subject (n=153) were invited to use descriptors and metaphors to describe their experiences about the subject. Regarding the descriptors given by the students, most of them were positive in nature. Similar positive findings were obtained for the metaphors. The findings are generally consistent with those studies using the same methodology reported in the literature. In conjunction with other evaluation findings, the present findings suggest that students had positive experiences about taking the subject and regarded the subject to be able to …

Teaching With Oer At Uk, Allison Soult

Open in Action: Open Educational Resources Contribute to Student Success

Dr. Allison Soult shares her insights and experience of teaching with open educational resources at the University of Kentucky.

Slides of this presentation are available by clicking the Download button on the right.

Photos and the video file of this presentation are available as the additional files listed below.

Open Educational Resources: Promoting Student Success Through Equal, Day-One Access To Customizable Materials, Jeff Gallant

Open in Action: Open Educational Resources Contribute to Student Success

Jeff Gallant provides an overview of the current textbook market, the benefits of open educational resources (OER), and the success in adopting OER at higher education institutions.

Slides of this presentation are available by clicking the Download button on the right.

Photos and the video file of this presentation are available as the additional files listed below.

Open Educational Resources: Faculty, Libraries, Publishers, And Students Working Together, Leila W. Salisbury

Open in Action: Open Educational Resources Contribute to Student Success

Leila W. Salisbury introduces the audience to the landscape of open educational resources and discusses how a professor collaborated with her students to create an openly licensed textbook.

Slides of this presentation are available by clicking the Download button on the right.

Photos and the video file of this presentation are available as the additional files listed below.

Intergenerational Education Mobility Trends By Race And Gender In The United States, Joseph J. Ferrare

Educational Policy Studies and Evaluation Faculty Publications

Researchers have examined racial and gender patterns of intergenerational education mobility, but less attention has been given to the ways that race and gender interact to further shape these relationships. Based on data from the General Social Survey, this study examined the trajectories of education mobility among Blacks and Whites by gender over the past century. Ordinary least squares and logistic regression models revealed three noteworthy patterns. First, Black men and women have closed substantial gaps with their White counterparts in intergenerational education mobility. At relatively low levels of parental education, these gains have been experienced equally among Black men …

Exploring Faculty Perceptions Of Student Incivility In Social Work: Results From A National Survey, Elizabeth A. Wahler, Karen Badger

Social Work Faculty Publications

The literature suggests that incivility is a growing problem in college classrooms, but few studies have examined incivility within social work programs. Using a national sample of social work instructors (n=327), this study examined faculty experiences with social work student incivility in both undergraduate and graduate education. Results showed that some behaviors often deemed disrespectful or inattentive do occur in social work classrooms, and they occur more frequently in undergraduate classes than graduate classes. Although rare, hostile behaviors were also reported by faculty. Discussion of these findings includes recommendations for addressing incivility in the context of preparing social work students …

What Can Parents Do? Examining The Role Of Parental Support On The Negative Relationship Between Racial Discrimination, Depression, And Drug Use Among African American Youth, Tamika C. B. Zapolski, Sycarah Fisher, Wei-Wen Hsu, Jessica Barnes

Educational, School, and Counseling Psychology Faculty Publications

African American youth who experience racial discrimination are at heightened risk to use drugs as a coping response to distress. Based on the buffer-stress hypothesis, we proposed that parental support would attenuate this effect. Participants were 1,521 African American youth between 4th and 12th grade. As hypothesized, a mediation pathway was observed among racial discrimination, depression symptoms, and drug use. This effect was observed for both genders, although the pathway was partially mediated for males. In addition, as hypothesized, parental support buffered the negative effect of depression symptomatology on drug use as a consequence of discrimination. Our findings highlight the …

Learning From Texts: Activation Of Information From Previous Texts During Reading, Katinka Beker, Dietsje Jolles, Robert F. Lorch Jr., Paul Van Den Broek

Psychology Faculty Publications

Learning often involves integration of information from multiple texts. The aim of the current study was to determine whether relevant information from previously read texts is spontaneously activated during reading, allowing for integration between texts (experiment 1 and 2), and whether this process is related to the representation of the texts (experiment 2). In both experiments, texts with inconsistent target sentences were preceded by texts that either did or did not contain explanations that resolved the inconsistencies. In experiment 1, the reading times of the target sentences introducing inconsistencies were faster if the preceding text contained an explanation for the …

Labor Market Returns To The Ged Using Regression Discontinuity Analysis, Christopher Jepsen, Peter Mueser, Kenneth R. Troske

Economics Faculty Publications

We evaluate returns to General Educational Development (GED) certification for high school dropouts using state administrative data. We apply a fuzzy regression discontinuity method to account for test takers retaking the test. For women we find that GED certification has no statistically significant effect on either employment or earnings. For men we find a significant increase in earnings in the second year after taking the test but no impact in subsequent years. GED certification increases postsecondary school enrollment by 4–8 percentage points. Our results differ from regression discontinuity approaches that fail to account for test retaking.

The Mediating Role Of Cognitive Flexibility On The Relationship Between Cross-Race Interactions And Psychological Well-Being, Robert D. Cardom

Theses and Dissertations--Educational, School, and Counseling Psychology

Counseling psychologists are tasked with understanding optimal psychological and cognitive functioning. Recent theoretical predictions (Crisp & Turner, 2011) and growing evidence suggest that cross-race interactions are important ways individuals might improve their cognitive and psychosocial functioning. However, the theoretical predictions from Crisp and Turner have not yet been tested in one model. Further, much of the empirical support for the theoretical predictions has been from studies using 1) undergraduate samples and 2) weak theory-measurement fit.

The present study used an online, community survey (N = 270) to test Crisp and Turner’s (2011) predictions that cognitive flexibility would mediate the …

A Study Of The Effects Of County Characteristics On College Enrollment, Patrick La Mar

MPA/MPP/MPFM Capstone Projects

For the past 100 years, policy analysts studied college enrollment at the individual level. Yet little research has been performed on whether the surrounding community characteristics contribute to enrollment rates. This is in part due to seeing college attendance as an individual choice whereas K-12 enrollment is typically predetermined by place of residence. However, this ignores the potential impact economic and social characteristics a community has on students while growing up. This paper attempts to add to the literature by testing county level variables with a panel regression with high school fixed effects.

The results show higher averages of KEES …

Determinants Of Student Engagement In Undergraduate Research At The University Of Kentucky, Tricia Coakley

MPA/MPP/MPFM Capstone Projects

No executive summary.

The Impact Of Bantuan Operasional Sekolah (Bos) Program: School Operational Assistance To The Household Expenditures In Education: A Case Study Of Indonesia, Anton Abdul Fatah

MPA/MPP/MPFM Capstone Projects

The Bantuan Operasional Sekolah (BOS) Program was launched in 2005 as a grant directly from the government to each school’s bank account based on the number of the students. The main goal of BOS is to cover school tuition in the public schools, lighten operational expenses in the private schools, and to provide free education for poor students, both in public and private schools. Since the BOS Program has been implemented nationally and the funding is granted based on the number of students, this study hypothesizes that the BOS Program will have an impact on the household expenditure in education. …

Measuring The Levels Of Athletic Identity And Identity Foreclosure Of National Association Of Intercollegiate Athletics (Naia) Student-Athletes, Gavin P. Washington

Theses and Dissertations--Educational Policy Studies and Evaluation

During a person’s college years they are beginning to form identities and develop a sense of self. One of the most salient identities that college student-athletes identify with is their athletic identity. Numerous research studies have been conducted on the saliency of a student-athlete’s athletic identity, however the vast majority of those research studies examined student-athletes participating at the NCAA (National Collegiate Athletic Association) Division I level. This study was designed to extend the previous investigation of athletic identity and identity foreclosure among college students by focusing on athletes participating at the NAIA (National Association of Intercollegiate Athletics) level.

By …

Using Wii Technology And Experiential Learning To Teach Newtonian Mechanics To Rural Middle School Students, Joseph S. Dvorak, Tanya C. Franke-Dvorak, Shane Neel

Biosystems and Agricultural Engineering Faculty Publications

This study looked at the effects of an experiential learning activity using the accelerometer in the Wii Remote to teach basic concepts of Newtonian mechanics, e.g., acceleration, to middle school students in a rural school district. A major prerequisite for students at the mid-level in biosystems engineering programs is that they have a good knowledge of basic science, including physics. Education in these concepts must begin before college, such as at the middle school level. Improvements in science education are vitally necessary to achieve essential learning outcomes for middle school students in the U.S. and to prepare these students for …

Kentucky's Educational Performance & Points Of Leverage, Michael T. Childress

Issue Brief on Topics Affecting Kentucky’s Economy

This issue brief explores the links between obstacles students face and educational outcomes.

The Role Of Adult Attachment In International Students’ Acculturation Process, Miao Li

Theses and Dissertations--Educational, School, and Counseling Psychology

International students face a variety of challenges in their acculturation process. The acculturation process is a highly variable process that is influenced by the mediating and moderating effects of individual factors that exist prior to, or arise during, acculturation (Berry, 1997). Among the moderating personal factors existing prior to acculturation, adult attachment has received heightened attention as an important variable impacting the acculturation process and adaptation outcomes. Wang and Mallinckrodt (2006a) suggested that successful adaptation involves exploration of unfamiliar social situations that resemble the infants’ exploration of their physical surroundings. The acculturation process can be challenging and stressful because individuals …

An Evaluation Of The Techniques And Strategies For Recruiting African-Americans By 1862 Land-Grant Universities, Rashawn P. Franklin

Theses and Dissertations--Community & Leadership Development

As post-secondary education becomes more important for the American citizen to generate wealth, universities are struggling to retain and graduate African-Americans, the third-most represented demographic in the country, especially at predominately white colleges and universities. The Colleges of Agriculture at these particular institutions are struggling to even get Black students to apply, let alone graduate. One of the major issues is the disconnect between the African-American community and the idea of post-secondary education in the agricultural field. One way that disconnect can be combatted is new techniques and strategies in recruiting African-Americans. This study identifies three themes based on interviews …

Comprehensive Sexuality Education In Kentucky, Luciana D. Hockersmith

Theses and Dissertations--Community & Leadership Development

Discussions of sex education of any kind can be controversial in a given setting. Traditional approaches to sex education prompt debate regarding effectiveness. Key indicators central to the effectiveness of sex education continue to be rates of teen pregnancy and transmission of sexually transmitted diseases (STDs). With discontentment surrounding the effectiveness of “traditional approaches,” a more wide-ranging method is worthy of being explored. The curriculum approach of Comprehensive Sexuality Education (CSE) includes six key concepts, and subsequent sub-concepts, intended to provide a broad and even all-inclusive range of topics for a similarly broad and even all-inclusive range of ages of …

Construction And Validation Of A Holistic Education School Evaluation Tool Using Montessori Erdkinder Principles, Anthony Philip Setari

Theses and Dissertations--Education Sciences

The purpose of this study was to construct a holistic education school evaluation tool using Montessori Erdkinder principles, and begin the validation process of examining the proposed tool. This study addresses a vital need in the holistic education community for a school evaluation tool. The tool construction process included using Erdkinder literature to justify the development of each item through the use of an item matrix, ultimately leading to the development of the 23 item formative Montessori Erdkinder School Evaluation Survey. The validation process included a series of three Rasch Rating Scale Model analyses with data from a sample school. …

Does The Mentors & Meals After School Program Have An Effect On Student Grades?, Lisa Caswell Johnson

MPA/MPP/MPFM Capstone Projects

While technology continues to progress and the United States continues to be considered one of the most privately wealthy nations in the world, the education gap for African American and Hispanic students continues to be a concern for teachers, school administrators, state and local politicians, and all who study public education policy. School districts persistently look for ways to improve student achievement in traditional as well as non-traditional ways, while aligning with state and local education goals and staying within budget.

This study examines a new mentoring model for middle school students. The program, Mentors & Meals (M&Ms), was the …

A Review Of University Responses To Informal Queries And Open Records Requests For Aggregate Hiring-Related Data, Sheila Brothers

MPA/MPP/MPFM Capstone Projects

Open records (OR) laws ensure that members of the public, including public managers, directors of nonprofit organizations, and individual citizens, have access to the records created by public agencies. Local government and state government agencies are generally recognized to be subject to OR laws, but so are Kentucky’s public universities. The author created a survey to review the responses to both an informal query and a formal open records request made of Kentucky’s eight public, four-year universities (Eastern Kentucky University; Kentucky State University; Morehead State University; Murray State University; Northern Kentucky University; University of Kentucky; University of Louisville; and Western …

Educational Experiences Of Foster Children And Communication Patterns Of Key Stakeholders: The Foster Parent Perspective, Teresa Hardin

Theses and Dissertations--Family Sciences

This research explored the perspective of foster parents on the educational experiences of foster children and experiences of communication patterns with other key stakeholders (social workers, and teachers). Factors focused on were educational experience of foster children, communication patterns, the impact of communication patterns on the educational experience, and barriers to effective communication. Five individuals who were, at the time of the study, foster parents to at least one child were interviewed. Participants openly shared a variety of positive and negative experiences. This study adopted the theoretical framework of Bronfenbrenner’s cultural-ecological theory. Participant interviews were transcribed verbatim and inductive coding …

Improvement Of Under-Represented Minority Individuals In The Healthcare Field Of Communication Sciences And Disorders, Allison Webb

Lewis Honors College Capstone Collection

Individuals from under-represented minority backgrounds are scarce within healthcare careers. Former research has suggested that this lack of diversity begins at the undergraduate level. This proposal discusses a potential solution to this problem occurring at the University of Kentucky and other colleges across the United States. Suggested intervention targeted diverse populations, connected students with faculty and staff, and provided shadowing resources for individuals from under-represented minority backgrounds. Based on research and current diversity statistics, populations of individuals from diverse backgrounds are expected to increase within the Communication Sciences and Disorders program. Demographic information for the fall 2016 semester will become …

Hosting An International Exchange Youth: The Influence On The Family, Mark Mains

Theses and Dissertations--Family Sciences

This study explores how hosting an international exchange youth influences families. Participants in the study took part in a four-week summer exchange by hosting a middle school aged Japanese youth through the Kentucky 4-H/Labo program. Labo is a Japanese club program that encourages youth to learn about American culture through international travel. As society becomes more globalized, the skills and abilities associated with international travel are increasingly important (Anderson, Lawton, Rexeisen & Hubbard, 2006). Hosting international youth through exchange programs is one method of developing these skills and abilities. This qualitative study uses thematic analysis to analyze three primary data …