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 …

President Lopez Obrador’S Response To Femicide, Paola Briones

UNO Student Research and Creative Activity Fair

Femicide is defined as the specific targeting and assassination of women. While femicide exists worldwide, particularly in Latin America, Mexico has one of the highest reported rates of femicide. This paper will analyze the Lopez Obrador administration’s lack of response to rising femicide rates. The administration has not created a special prosecutor’s office to address the phenomenon; ninety-three percent of femicides remain unsolved. Previous research maintains several factors contribute to femicide including machismo, high national crime rates, and poverty. Although previous research explores causes of femicide, it neglects to provide concrete explanations for the intentional inaction of acting administrations. In …

Does Institution Matter? An Analysis Of Two Types Of Public Transit Agencies In Midwest, Minshuai Ding

UNO Student Research and Creative Activity Fair

This study explores the consequence of using special-purpose and general-purpose forms of governments in public transit services. Since the 1950s, this form of local government has become prevalent yet remains an under-researched topic in the field of public administration. This study compares the performance of special-purpose and general-purpose governments in the field of public transit in the Midwest area of the United States. Performance in this context comprises four groups of variables: efficiency, effectiveness, solvency, and social responsiveness. Pooled cross-sectional data from the National Transit Database (NTD) of the agencies and census data from 2009-2018 are used for multilevel modeling …

Perceptions Of Religious Accommodations In The Workplace, Kelsey Ciagala

UNO Student Research and Creative Activity Fair

Although all forms of religious discrimination are understudied (Ghumman et al., 2013), we examined how Christian Americans, the dominant religious group in the U.S., perceive the fairness of religious workplace accommodations. We examined and two potential correlates of their perceptions: religious fundamentalism and prejudice towards outgroup religions. In one session, participants completed measures of religious fundamentalism and prejudice. Approximately three days later, they read three target and five filler descriptions of an employee requesting a workplace accommodation. Participants indicated how fair the request was to the employee, how fair the request was to the employee’s coworkers, how reasonable the request …

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 …

Risk Factor Assessment For Acl Injuries In D1 Soccer And Volleyball Athletes, Kaitlyn Guhl, Lindsey Remski

UNO Student Research and Creative Activity Fair

Introduction: Research has shown that non-contact ACL injuries are very common for female athletes involved in level I/II sports, specifically soccer and volleyball players. Injury prevention programs have been developed but still remain largely generalized to meet the needs of all athletes. Different sports place unique demands on their athletes which may lead them to develop different risk factors for injury. In order to develop the most effective injury prevention across different sports, we must first understand differences in biomechanics related to ACL injury risk between athletes specializing in different sports. Therefore, the purpose of this project is to determine …

Benevolence Toward Men And Political Conservatism Among Married And Never-Married Women, Tara Goering

UNO Student Research and Creative Activity Fair

Research indicates that sexism allows women to justify men’s privileged status; indeed, sexism has predicted women’s conservative vote choice (Cassese & Barnes, 2018). Less is known about how women’s attitudes towards men affect political preferences. Benevolent attitudes toward men (BM) are based in beliefs about women and men’s interdependence (Glick & Fiske, 1999). Married women may experience greater interdependence and may desire to preserve beneficial structural power systems and their benefits. The present research examined the relationship of BM to political conservatism among married and never-married women. We expected that married (vs. never-married) women would more strongly endorse BM and …

Examining Assistive And Interactive Technology Needs Of Older Adults, Joshua Idachaba, Julie Blaskewicz Boron, Sarah Hubner, Marcia Shade, Natalie Manley, Meaghan Walls, Ann Fruhling

UNO Student Research and Creative Activity Fair

Most older adults have expressed a desire to age in place. Advances in medicine and technology have helped improve the feasibility to fulfill this desire. Assistive and interactive technologies (AITs), which assist with at least one activity of daily living (ADL) or instrumental activity of daily living (IADL), may be key in supporting independent living, improving the user’s quality of life, and reducing caregiver burden. This study aimed to investigate the technology needs and preferences of older adults and how demographics, IADL/ADL function, and quality of life relate to these needs and preferences.

Older adults, mostly in Nebraska, were recruited …

Ok, Google: How Are You Supporting Working Women? An Evaluation Of How Working Women At Google Are Impacted By Covid19, Carlyn Corcoran

UNO Student Research and Creative Activity Fair

This case study evaluates how tech giant, Google, responded to the novel coronavirus pandemic from a policy and resource standpoint and the implications for the women employed by the company. Through the evaluation of company materials along with news reporting on the company response, this case study will attempt to draw conclusions on how working women at Google may have been able to navigate work life balance (WLB) in a work from home (WFH) environment. Using a feminist standpoint theory, which underlines that the experience of gender has a direct relationship to power dynamics and lived experience, this case study …

The Moderating Role Of Coping Resilience On The Relation Between Total Role Demands On Daytime Sleepiness In Working College Students, Emily Mcquade

UNO Student Research and Creative Activity Fair

The Moderating Role of Coping Resilience on the Relation Between Total Role Demands on Daytime Sleepiness in Working College Students

Emily A. McQuade & Lisa Scherer, Ph.D. (Faculty Mentor)

University of Nebraska-Omaha

Working college students are confronted with several life roles that are physically and psychologically demanding, which has led to an increase in poor sleep health and daytime sleepiness. Research related to sleep health and daytime sleepiness found that 74% of college students claimed to not get enough sleep and 50% claimed to experience daytime sleepiness (Hershner & Chervin, 2014). Adopting the Job-Demands Resources (J-DR) theory (Bakker & Demerouti, …

The Moderating Role Of Coping Resilience On The Relation Between Total Role Demands On Daytime Sleepiness In Working College Students, Emily Mcquade

UNO Student Research and Creative Activity Fair

The Moderating Role of Coping Resilience on the Relation Between Total Role Demands on Daytime Sleepiness in Working College Students

Emily A. McQuade & Lisa Scherer, Ph.D. (Faculty Mentor)

University of Nebraska-Omaha

Working college students are confronted with several life roles that are physically and psychologically demanding, which has led to an increase in poor sleep health and daytime sleepiness. Research related to sleep health and daytime sleepiness found that 74% of college students claimed to not get enough sleep and 50% claimed to experience daytime sleepiness (Hershner & Chervin, 2014). Adopting the Job-Demands Resources (J-DR) theory (Bakker & Demerouti, …

Predictors Of Testosterone In Male African Elephants (Loxodonta Africana), Kaitlyn Campbell

UNO Student Research and Creative Activity Fair

Male African elephant (Loxodonta africana) populations in zoos suffer from a range of reproductive complications. In particular, insufficient testosterone production can have a detrimental effect on spermatogenesis and fertility. Few studies have explored the potential social, environmental, physiological and physical factors that influence bull testosterone levels in a zoo environment. The present study will collect endocrine and metabolic information from weekly fecal and blood serum samples taken over the course of the six-month study period. Social and environmental data will be collected in a survey provided to the institutions. Results will highlight the key factors contributing to fluctuations in testosterone …

A Melting Pot Of Medications: Issues Regarding Over-Prescribing In Dementia Populations, Angela Gifford

UNO Student Research and Creative Activity Fair

Over-prescribing is an issue faced by many in the older population, but dementia patients statistically experience higher prescribing rates of potentially inappropriate medications compared to their peers. There are currently no FDA approved medications available for the direct treatment of dementia, but drug classes like anticholinergics and psychotropics are used for the management of behavioral symptoms associated with the disease. These drugs can cause negative side-effects in the dementia populations including gastrointestinal issues, neurological issues, increased hospitalizations, and increased mortality rates within this group. Most troubling, the benefits that are supposed to occur from taking these drugs have been show …

Widowhoods Effect On Careers, Jessica Lindahl, Jia Lee

UNO Student Research and Creative Activity Fair

Nearly one million people in the United States each year are widowed.⁵ The majority of these individuals continue to maintain employment.⁵ It is critical to examine the impact of widowhood on career maintenance and development. Widowers experience challenges related to identity confusion⁴, depression¹, role changes¹⁰, and financial stress⁴, all of which can adversely impact functioning at work. These challenges exist for widowers who continue in their current employment after the death of their spouse, as well as for those who may enter the world of work out of necessity upon …

Pharmacist-Prescribed Birth Control: A Policy Analysis, Brianna Full

UNO Student Research and Creative Activity Fair

Although unintended pregnancy in the United States has steadily decreased from 2008, rates are still unacceptably high as almost half (42%) of all pregnancies are not wanted or timed correctly (Finer & Zolna). In 2011, 2.8 million of the 6.1 million pregnancies in the United States each year were unintended. Public health professionals are worried about unintended pregnancy because research shows that unwanted or mistimed pregnancies come with associations to adverse maternal and child health outcomes, such as delayed prenatal care, premature birth, and negative physical and mental health effects for children (Frost, Frohwirth & Zolna, 2016). Also, two-thirds (68%) …

Juvenile Hormone Mediation In An Insect With Parental Care Behavior, Jessica M. Rodino

UNO Student Research and Creative Activity Fair

Juvenile hormone (JH) is a well-known catalyst for hormonal processes in insects. However, the role of JH in insects that exhibit parental behavior is unknown. We investigated the influence of JH on parental behavior in the burying beetle (Nicrophorus orbicollis). In the first experiment, we manipulated the JH production of females via the administration of varying doses of fluvastatin sodium immediately following oviposition. We found that with increasing fluvastatin dosage, the total mass of offspring and number of offspring decreased while at the same time less of the food source was consumed. These results suggest a link between …

Sometimes A Joke Is Not Just A Joke: Examining The Role Of Humor On Police Officers’ Workplace Experiences, Rachael Rief

UNO Student Research and Creative Activity Fair

Masculinity is pervasive in the field of policing, present in both the culture and organizational structure. As women continue to represent a low number of all sworn law enforcement officers, research has begun considering how culture and structural conditions interact with gender to affect women’s experiences in policing. This research suggests that many informal and formal practices in police culture, including the use of gendered jokes or sexist humor, work to exclude women and highlight the importance of gendered aspects of the job. However, little research has explored the extent to which humor and joking behavior explicitly interacts with women’s …

Mapping Core Processes Of Creativity To Teams: The Development Of A Behavioral Coding Scheme, Salvatore Leone

UNO Student Research and Creative Activity Fair

The study of creativity is of particular interest to modern organizations competing in a dynamic environment. Creativity is defined as the generation of novel ideas, solutions, and products that are both high quality and highly original (Amabile, 1996). Quality refers to the usefulness of the proposed idea, while originality refers to the uniqueness of an idea, and both standards must for high creativity (Mumford & Gustafson, 1988; Runco & Jaeger, 2012). Reviewing conceptualization of creative models, three core processes emerge: problem construction, idea generation, and idea evaluation. While much is known about how the three core processes operate at the …

Is There A Gender Bias In Creative Evaluations?, Payge Ehrp, Nadine Maliakkal

UNO Student Research and Creative Activity Fair

Creativity has become an increasingly important skill in today’s world. Because society increasingly values creativity, it is critical that women and men are evaluated equally in terms of their creative output. Unfortunately, previous research indicates that men tend to be perceived as more creative compared to women. The present study investigates this phenomenon further by examining whether participants view the same exact ideas as more creative when they come from a man compared to when they come from a woman. To test our hypothesis, participants will be given a vignette scenario that poses an ambiguous problem. Participants will be given …

Is The Relationship Between Early Life Stress And Attachment Modulated By Dna Methylation Of The Oxytocin Receptor Gene?, Lidia Boghean

UNO Student Research and Creative Activity Fair

Early life stress (ELS) has been linked to endocrine dysregulation, insecure attachment styles, and adult psychopathology. The enduring effects of ELS are likely regulated by epigenetic mechanisms in which the environment influences gene transcription and protein expression. We investigated oxytocin receptor gene (OXTR) methylation as a potential underlying mechanism by which early life stress affects stress reactivity and attachment later in life in a dog model system. 47 dog-owner dyads were grouped by dog early life history (ELS and non-ELS) and provided blood and saliva samples. Dyads participated in a behavioral attachment paradigm. ELS dogs showed increased methylation at one …

Comparing Individual Perceptions Of Food Desert With Quantitative Measures In Omaha, Nebraska., Hector N. Samani, Bradley Bereitschaft

UNO Student Research and Creative Activity Fair

Food deserts have been linked to an increase in chronic diseases such as obesity and diabetes, due to lower access to affordable and healthy foods. The United States Department of Agriculture (USDA) outlines various methods and variables for defining food deserts, in attempts to standardize what constitutes a food desert or their characteristics. The USDA identifies the state of Nebraska as having both rural and urban food deserts, with an increase of food insecurity from 1.1% – 3.0% between 2007 and 2012 and warns of further increase of food deserts and its impact if measures are not taken. However, there …

Role Of Resilience In Buffering The Effect Of Work-School Conflict On Negative Emotional Responses And Sleep Health Of College Students, Brandon Wood

UNO Student Research and Creative Activity Fair

More than 70% of college students are employed while taking classes, and juggling these demands create a strain on students, with strain manifesting itself in several ways including lower academic achievement (Markel & Frone, 1998), increased prevalence of mental health issues such as depression and anxiety (Mounsey, Vandehey, Diekhoff, 2013), and the inability to maintain proper sleep hygiene (Augner, 2011). This trend of working a significant amount of hours while taking college classes is unlikely to change, fostering a research emphasis on identifying factors that facilitate college students’ ability to handle the stress of these multiple competing demands. Resilience is …

A Content Analysis Of Advertisement To Volunteer In The Global South, Kristina Medero

UNO Student Research and Creative Activity Fair

In the past decade, volunteer tourism, or the venture to volunteer abroad as a learning or leisure activity, has grown immensely. This study conducted a content analysis through a cultural intelligence theoretical framework to examine the strategies of persuasive rhetoric and images in voluntourism advertisement. The data revealed that organizations that requested monetary donations used images of egoistic appeals on websites p> 0.05, t(13) = .76. However, no significant difference was recorded between volunteer tourism organizations that required time commitment or monetary donations when using expectations of exchange. Considering the volunteer tourism organizations used a variety of techniques with …

Using From The Heartland In The First-Year Writing Classroom: Measuring Instructor Reception Of The Customized Textbook, Sarah Cohen

UNO Student Research and Creative Activity Fair

The aim of the first-year writing program at the University of Nebraska at Omaha (UNO) is to equip students with critical reading and writing tools and strategies to advance effective written communication well into their future. This study examines and measures attitudes of UNO composition instructors – who come from a variety of pedagogical and theoretical backgrounds – toward the efficacy of UNO’s self-published Composition I textbook, From the Heartland: Critical Reading and Writing at UNO. In many ways, From the Heartland embraces what Richard Fulkerson refers to as “a critical cultural pedagogy” which encourages students to consider personal …

An Exploration Of Iranian Use Of Gray Zones And Their Deterrence, Lauren Zimmerman, Amanda Urick

UNO Student Research and Creative Activity Fair

Iran, being the religious minority in the Middle East, has begun to extend its reach outside of its borders by influencing the stability of other states within the region. They have been utilizing their economic revenue to fund terrorist organizations and cyber capabilities to threaten free use of the internet in the Middle East. Iran is the world's most active state sponsor of terrorism, but how do we deter them? Our paper will explore the history of deterring Iran and future possibilities.

Abiding By Poe's Law? How Users Interpret Ambiguous Messages Of Polarizing Content Posted On Social Networking Sites, Kelly Johnson

UNO Student Research and Creative Activity Fair

Today’s political climate is marked by a polarized citizenry and widespread use of social media for politically-charged exchanges. It can be difficult to discern whether posts that demonstrate an extreme position on face value intended the message to be parody or whether the author expressed sincerely held beliefs. In an online Creationism debate, a user summarized this difficulty with, “Poe’s Law: Without a winking smiley or other blatant display of humor, it is [utterly] impossible to parody a Creationist in such a way that someone won’t mistake [it] for the genuine article.” Studies have shown people are more inclined to …

Experienced Sexual Harassment In The Military: Why Soldiers Aren't Reporting, Jacqueline Jaramillo

UNO Student Research and Creative Activity Fair

The prevalence of U.S. military personnel experiencing sexual harassment is a significant problem that must be addressed. Recent estimates suggest that 26% of female service members and 7% of male service members experience sexual harassment in the military (Bell, Dardis, Vento, & Street, 2018). One purpose of this study is to review the research to determine the extent to which the culture of reporting in the military influences why soldiers demonstrate a strong tendency to not report sexual harassment they have experienced. A second goal of this research is to explore the evidence for soldiers’ fear of retaliation for reporting …

The Effects Of Leader Support And Leader Gender On Subordinate Creative Problem-Solving Performance, Nadine Maliakkal

UNO Student Research and Creative Activity Fair

This research draws on role congruity theory to examine whether the well-studied relationship between leader support and subordinate creativity differs when the leader is a man or a woman. Utilizing Amazon Mechanical Turk participants, the research employs experimental vignette methodology to examine (1) whether high (vs. low) leader support results in better subordinate creative problem-solving, (2) whether subordinate creative problem-solving is better under male (vs. female) leaders, and (3) whether the positive effect of support on subordinate creativity is greater for male than female leaders.

What Makes A Good Therapy Dog? Identifying Factors Associated With Calm Behavior In Therapy Dogs, Kristen Cunningham, Zachary L. Darwish, Rosemary Strasser

UNO Student Research and Creative Activity Fair

Dogs offer a variety of benefits to society, including the use of therapy dogs to provide therapeutic and physiological benefits, enhancing the lives of a wide range of recipients. Unlike service or emotional support animals, therapy dogs provide support to a multitude of individuals, often in hospitals, schools, nursing homes, or other venues. While many studies have examined behavioral assessments of service dog programs, little research has investigated the factors that make a good therapy dog. Therapy dogs must undergo strategic training before becoming certified. The present study seeks to illuminate what factors might distinguish therapy dogs from pet dogs …

Entertainment-Education Has A Potential Source For Comprehensive Sexuality Education: A Content Analysis Of The Netflix Series Big Mouth, Kristina Medero

UNO Student Research and Creative Activity Fair

Health communication researchers have studied the potential for entertainment-education, to increase health literacy amongst adolescents regarding sexuality education (Moyer-Guse, 2008). This study will analyze the Netflix series Big Mouth with normative theoretical framework laid out by Sexuality Information and Education Council of the United States (2008) to provide support about the extent to which the series can act as a potential source for comprehensive sexuality education. This content analysis of Big Mouth will potentially provide a significant level comprehensive sexuality education to its audience, p < .05 through a one-way ANOVA that will test topics covered, relevance of social context, and inclusivity of material presented in the series.