Social and Behavioral Sciences Commons^™

A Friendship Of Two Prima Donnas: The Letters Of Adelina Patti To Giulia Valda, Jacquelyn Ancelet

LSU Master's Theses

Of the many prima donnas of the nineteenth century, Adelina Patti (1843–1919) stands out as one of the most successful, with a fifty-year international concertizing career. Biographers across multiple languages have covered her career in great depth, but devote little attention to her close friendships. Herman Klein (in The Reign of Patti [1920]) and John Cone (in Adelina Patti: Queen of Hearts [1993]), for instance, claim that Patti was known by many, but understood by few. One who does seem to have understood her and developed a close relationship with her was Giulia Valda (1850–1925), herself a professional singer, if …

Language Discrimination Using Bilingual Picture Exchange For Culturally And Linguistically Diverse Children With Autism Spectrum Disorder, River Waits

LSU Doctoral Dissertations

Recent research suggests that one-fifth of United States households use non-English languages in the home setting. Ethically and effectively supporting culturally and linguistically diverse (CLD) clients (e.g., autistic individuals) presents a growing challenge to practitioners of Applied Behavior Analysis (ABA). Though efforts to address the linguistic needs of the population have grown in recent years, current literature focuses on language selection for monolingual services and underemphasizes the need for bilingual service provision. Studies were conducted to (I) evaluate the efficacy of bilingual picture exchange (i.e., mand response) across items, speakers, and languages (i.e., English and Spanish) as well as (II) …

The Collaborative Assessment And Management Of Suicdality As A Single Session Intervention For Patients Admitted To Inpatient Psychiatric Care For Suicidal Thoughts And Behaviors, D Nicolas Oakey-Frost

LSU Doctoral Dissertations

Inpatient psychiatric care is a critical contact point for individuals experiencing suicidal thoughts and behaviors (STB). The Zero-Suicide framework provides useful scaffolding for improving suicide prevention within inpatient psychiatry (i.e., Assess, Intervene, and Monitor [AIM-SP]). Available evidence suggests instruments are available for evidence informed risk assessment but are hindered by low construct validity and a limited collaborative approach. Additionally, extant interventions do not typically target STB and are not optimized for inpatient psychiatric care. The Collaborative Assessment and Management of Suicidality (CAMS) meets the criteria of the Zero-Suicide Framework and is often leveraged as a single session intervention (SSI) but …

Emotional Reactivity And Recognition Deficits In Individuals With Callous-Unemotional (Cu) Traits: A Multilevel Meta-Analysis, Emily C. Kemp

LSU Doctoral Dissertations

Youth and adults with antisocial behavior present a significant mental health concern. Elevated callous-unemotional (CU) traits, characterized by deficient empathy and remorse, distinguish clinically important subgroups of antisocial individuals who present with more severe behavior and distinct cognitive-affective characteristics that may help to explain the underlying causes of their antisocial behavior and inform more effective treatments. Specifically, two mechanisms theorized to underlie the development of elevated CU traits by way of atypical empathy development are deficient reactivity to and recognition of others’ emotions. Though a substantive literature base reports associations between CU traits and emotional processing deficits, significant inconsistencies remain. …

Factors Associated With Functioning In Older Black Adults, Katrail D. Davis

LSU Master's Theses

Activities of daily living can be simple tasks such as bathing, showering, toileting or as complex as managing finances, driving, and preparing meals. Independence in everyday functioning has been associated with successful aging and declines in functioning may be indicative of pathological cognitive decline. Social determinants of health, like economic status and access to health care, also play a role in everyday functioning. Understanding these factors are of particular importance for older Black adults who have had long-standing disparate access to care, education, and treatments. The current study aimed to evaluate social determinants of health, more specifically social engagement, as …

The Impact Of Social Stress And Alcohol Intoxication On Cognitive Processes Among College Students With Heavy Episodic Drinking, Caroline R. Scherzer

LSU Master's Theses

College students with high social anxiety and heavy episodic drinking appear to consume alcohol more frequently and at greater quantities, presumably because individuals with higher trait social anxiety may be more responsive to the stress-response dampening effects of alcohol in social contexts due to appraisal disruption and activation of implicit social cognitions. However, little work has tested this hypothesis within a controlled lab-based setting. The current study tested whether the sequence of alcohol intoxication and induction of an anticipatory social stressor interacts with trait social anxiety to predict changes in anticipatory social anxiety, craving, implicit drinking identity, and implicit self-esteem. …

Consumer Behavior Analysis Approach To Teacher Choice Of Reading Interventions, Rochelle N. Picardo

LSU Doctoral Dissertations

The use of Evidence-based Practices (EBPs) in schools is heavily emphasized in educational research and policy; however, many teachers do not use EBPs for reading instruction and intervention. Previous research on the limited use of EBPs in classrooms has primarily focused on teacher characteristics, such as their attitudes or beliefs toward these practices. As an alternative to this view, this study applied a behavioral economic approach to understanding teacher choice (i.e., EBPs over other alternatives, such as interventions with a base of limited empirical support; low-value practices [LVPs]). Hypothetical Intervention Choice Tasks were developed and used to evaluate how both …

Examining The Relations Between Number Of Opportunities To Self-Monitor And Self-Monitoring On-Task Or Accuracy In Children, Alison Ruby

LSU Doctoral Dissertations

Difficulties in academic achievement have been linked to adverse outcomes such as increased problem behavior and delays in development (Hinshaw, 1992). Early education should include training to self-monitor, as self-monitoring can improve academic performance and has a wide range of uses (Harris et al., 2005). Previous literature typically uses frequent self-monitoring opportunities ranging from every 30 seconds to 1 minute. The purpose of this study was to identify the effects of the number of self-monitoring opportunities when self-monitoring on-task behavior and self-monitoring accuracy of task completion, on-task behavior, disruptions, and accuracy of self-monitoring (types of errors) and determine the preferences …

Exploring Consumer Value Of Certified Sustainability Labels Of Local, Independent Versus National Coffee Brands, Mary Olivia H. Broussard

LSU Master's Theses

Local, oftentimes independent, coffee shops in the US now measure over 38,000. These shops must differentiate themselves from chain coffee brands in order to compete in the bagged coffee market. Research shows consumers value certified labels, and these labels have the potential to help differentiate independent shops. This paper will look at coffee drinkers’ willingness to pay for certifications (Fairtrade, USDA Organic, Rainforest Alliance, Carbon Trust) and how it differs between national brands (Dunkin, Folgers, Starbucks) and a local provider specified by the individual respondent. Data collection took place in spring of 2024. Results indicated a preference for branded bagged …

Evaluating The Relationship Between Parent-Adolescent Communication, Social Media Use, And Psychological Well-Being In Adolescents, Johannah Smith

LSU Doctoral Dissertations

Adolescents, particularly teenage girls, use social media substantially more than any other age group (Boneva et al., 2006; Gross, 2004; Padilla-Walker et al., 2020). Greater social media use has been linked to internalizing and externalizing problems; however, specific social media behavior and the relation to internalizing and externalizing problems is unknown. Additionally, how parent-adolescent communication impacts the relationships has not been explored. This is concerning as specific social media behavior, such as ruminating with peers and general social media addiction, has been linked to adolescents’ psychological well-being. (Sarmiento et al., 2020; Shensa et al., 2017; Nesi et al., 2020). The …

Direct And Indirect Effects Of And Preference For Feedback During The Good Behavior Game In Elementary Classes, Jensen Chotto

LSU Doctoral Dissertations

The Good Behavior Game (GBG) is an effective procedure for reducing disruptive classroom behavior. In this study, students in 3 fifth grade classes selected the rules of the GBG and then experienced the GBG with different forms of feedback delivery for rule violations (vocal and visual, vocal only, visual only, no feedback) on disruptive classroom behavior in a multielement design. All versions of the GBG substantially reduced disruptive behavior below baseline levels. Additionally, in 1 of 3 classes, losing the GBG produced an increase in negative peer interactions immediately following the GBG. Subsequently, students selected which condition they previously experienced …

Sexual Abuse: A Multi-Faceted Problem, Marcus Venable

LSU Doctoral Dissertations

On average, US citizens have experienced approximately 400,000 sexual assaults per year, which results in enormous immediate and long-term consequences for individuals, as well as society in general.

In the U.S., the principal method of combatting this crime has been the creation of Sex Offender Registries used to notify the public of the identity and location of convicted sex offenders who may be living in proximity to their residence. In addition to the Registry, laws have been passed forbidding convicted sex offenders from residing within buffer zones around areas of high child concentration [schools/parks/etc.].

The efficacy and consequences of these …

Pregnant Black Bodies In Peril: A Multi-Method Analysis Of Obstetric Outcomes And Gestational Experiences, Courtney E. Williams

LSU Doctoral Dissertations

My multi-method three-paper dissertation provides a better understanding of the relationship between maternal racial identity, obstetric outcomes, and gestational experiences. Using birth certificate data from the 2016 U.S. National Vital Statistics System and binary logistic regression models, in the first paper I explore heterogeneity in severe maternal morbidity (SMM) by maternal race, maternal education, and maternal age. To complement the first paper, in the second paper I allow 35 Black and White women/birthing people to describe pregnancy, birth, and early motherhood in their own words. I situate the Covid-19 pandemic as a unique cultural backdrop in this qualitative paper to …

“Everything Is Not What It Seems”: Discovering Public Relations In Business Sectors In Vietnam, Ba-Anh-Tu Truong

LSU Master's Theses

Vietnam is a shining star in emerging markets, with an annual economic growth rate of 6-7%. Its abundant labor supply, stable political climate, and geographic proximity to major global supply chains make it an ideal candidate for manufacturer planning in advanced economies such as the United States, Europe, Australia, Japan, China, and Korea. Investing in public relations and communication management, especially understanding the Vietnamese market, effectively prepares multinational corporations for future business expansion. This mission is difficult for academia and industrial professionals since Vietnam is a “silent country” in public relations research. To fill the gap, this thesis employs the …

Race And Racism Through The Lens Of Black Men: Exploring The Talk And Lessons Black Fathers Teach Their Children About Race And Racism In America., Conial C. Caldwell Jr

LSU Doctoral Dissertations

The history of racism and racial violence is embedded in the fabric of America and has driven Black people to develop strategies to navigate society that racism has produced. “The Talk” is a racial socialization practice and cultural phenomenon that has existed within Black families for centuries and remains a necessity due to the ongoing acts of racism and violence of Black Americans. Prior research has found that parents rear their children based on their own lived experiences, which many Black Americans have experienced or have been exposed to racism and racial violence. Yet, there are few empirical studies that …

Spatial Behavior Of Hospital Visits By Hand, Foot, And Mouth Disease Patients In Nanchang, China, Zeliu Zheng

LSU Doctoral Dissertations

Hand foot mouth disease (HFMD) is one of the widespread transmissible diseases that target preschool children, especially in urban regions in East Asia. Understanding the travel patterns of the HFMD patients helps us understand how the spatial behaviors of patients vary across space and what are the underlying forces. It is essential for understanding the healthcare market and planning for resource allocation. Foremost, health behavior and outcome change significantly across geographic regions of various urbanicities (i.e., degrees of urbanization) due to the uneven distribution of healthcare resource. In addition, health studies in the U.S. often use hospital service areas (HSAs) …

Round Ii: Exploring The Experiences Of Black, First-Generation Graduate And Professional Students At Historically Black Colleges And Universities (Hbcus), Derrick D. Lathan

LSU Doctoral Dissertations

This phenomenological study explores the experiences of Black, first-generation (first-gen) students pursuing advanced degrees at historically Black colleges and universities (HBCUs), following the COVID-19 pandemic and racial justice movements like Black Lives Matter. Additionally, this study examines the present-day motivations to pursue advanced degrees, particularly the benefits of doing so at an HBCU. The main research question guiding this study is: What are the experiences of Black, first-gen graduate and professional students at historically Black colleges and universities (HBCUs)? The sub-questions are:

1. How do Black, first-gen graduate and professional students describe being a first-gen student?
2. What barriers and supports impact …

Decoding Affective Information From Neuronal Populations In The Human Hippocampus, Alexander N. Lawriw

LSU Master's Theses

The hippocampus is understood to play a key role in the formation of episodic memories. Prominent theories suggest this is made possible through use of sparse encoding schemes, in which a small number of neurons encode each episodic event using a distinct pattern of neuronal activity. However, more recent computational models suggest that the hippocampus may also be capable of representing semantic structure, a notion previously thought to be exclusive to the neocortex. In our previous line of work, we trained multivariate classifiers to predict the semantic content, specifically affect, of computer-generated faces given spiking data taken from individual neurons …

Coming To America: Exploring The Cross-Cultural Adaptation Of African International Students At A Pwi And Hbcu In The U.S. South, Adwoa F. Baffour

LSU Master's Theses

African international students undergo significant challenges in their cross-cultural adaption in the United States. The cross-cultural adaptation of international students, particularly those from African countries, in a new environment assumes paramount importance due to its direct correlation with their mental and social well-being (Shafaei and Razak, 2016). Furthermore, the mental and social well-being of African international students attending universities in the southern United States has a profound impact on their overall success and overall college experience. This underscores the urgent need for future research to delve deeper into the cross-cultural adaptation experiences of African international students at United States universities, …

The Trump Effect: How Partisanship Shapes Perceptions Of The Fbi, Carly A. Watts

LSU Master's Theses

Following the 2016 presidential election, some Republicans viewed the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) as politically biased because the agency investigated the Trump campaign's possible collusion with the Russian government. Soon after, public opinion polling found that Republicans had diminishing levels of support for the agency. Using the 2020 ANES, I examine how partisanship affects perceptions of the FBI. I hypothesize that the relationship between partisanship and FBI evaluations is conditional on an individual's support for Donald Trump. The results from my analysis suggest that as support for Trump increases, the relationship between Republican partisan strength and FBI evaluations weakens.

The Association Between Problematic Drinking And Ends Use In College Students: The Role Of Alcohol Expectancies, Nina Glover

LSU Master's Theses

Electronic nicotine delivery system (ENDS) use and alcohol use are prevalent among young adults and college students. Recent data indicate that ENDS use is significantly associated with alcohol consumption and hazardous drinking behavior (e.g., binge drinking). Given the perceived benefits students report that are common across ENDS and alcohol use (e.g., tension reduction), it is important to examine the role these beliefs play in the co-use of alcohol and ENDS, as both behaviors are associated with risks. In the present study, we investigated the relationship among ENDS use, alcohol use, ENDS use motives, and alcohol expectancies in undergraduate college students …

Examining The Effects Of Differential Reinforcement And Time-Out On Unsafe Playground Behavior, Elizabeth K. Linton

LSU Master's Theses

The purpose of this study was to examine the effects of differential reinforcement (DRO) without extinction, and then the additive effects of time-out, on reducing unsafe playground behavior. The results of the DRO in isolation phase indicated that DRO alone was only consistently effective in reducing or eliminating unsafe behavior for one out of four participants. The other three participants moved on to the multielement comparison where the combination of DRO and time-out (DRO+TO) condition was added. The DRO+TO condition reduced and eliminated unsafe playground behavior for all participants who experienced the condition. Those participants engaged in higher levels of …

A Dance Of Resistance: The Puerto Rican Bomba As A Means To Challenge Intersections Of Discrimination On The Island, Daniel Loving

LSU Master's Theses

This thesis examines the Puerto Rican Bomba as a multifaceted cultural and political phenomenon, focusing on its pivotal role in challenging and subverting the enduring issues of racial and gender discrimination on the Island. Drawing from an interdisciplinary framework that encompasses cultural studies, anthropology, history, performance and film studies, this research elucidates the complex interplay between Bomba's rhythmic and choreographic elements, its historical evolution, and its contemporary significance in the context of Puerto Rico's sociopolitical landscape. By analyzing Bomba's historical roots in African and indigenous traditions, its adaptation during colonial and post-colonial eras, and its ongoing relevance in the struggle …

Investing In Farmland And Farmland Derivatives, Damilola Stephen Adebayo

LSU Master's Theses

Investing in farmland has evolved from the traditional ownership of farmland for farming to alternatives such as direct farmland purchases for rental income, farmland real estate investment trusts (Farmland REITs), investing in farmland stocks, mutual funds, ETFs, and crowdfunding platforms. This study analyzes the dynamic relationship between physical farmland values, farmland derivative prices, and the S&P 500 using annual data from 1970 to 2021. Cointegration methods are used to analyze dynamics and the capital asset pricing model (CAPM) and Sharpe ratios to measure risk-return properties of farmland assets. It is found that real farmland values, derivatives prices, and the S&P …

A Descriptive Study Of Louisiana 4-H 8th Through 12th Graders' Perceptions Of Career And College Readiness, Carrie M. Lane

LSU Master's Theses

As youth leave primary education and enter college or a career path, preparing those youth to ensure success has fallen, in large part, upon formal and non-formal youth educators. Encouraging students to apply and complete college has been a focus of education professionals for many years. Historically, gauging college and career readiness (CCR), academic institutions have relied on academic performance in areas of English Language Arts and Mathematics (Mattern, et. al, 2014). The use of academic focused measures instead of student-based evaluation had its drawbacks. While core education is important, measuring soft skills needed for the workforce and college environment …

Work Hard For The Money: Performance-Based Funding In The State Of Louisiana, Victoria C. Lloyd

LSU Doctoral Dissertations

The purpose of this study is to examine in what ways, if any, the introduction of the equity incentive portion of Louisiana’s performance-based funding model impacted the underserved student groups it was designed to support. I employed a quantitative quasi-experimental design for this study by running three outcome variables (Adult Learner Enrollment, First-Time Enrollment for Racially Minoritized Students, and Low-Income Student Enrollment) by sector (two- and four-year public institutions) and employing a differences-in-differences regression with panel data. In my analysis I uncovered two main findings: 1) Louisiana’s equity incentive is showing early signs of success for all three underserved groups …

Do Fishery Meeting Attendees Represent The Fishing Industries?, Dominique Seibert

LSU Master's Theses

Public meetings are a highly utilized tool for disseminating important or useful information. Many agencies rely on them to reach various stakeholders and community representation at these meetings is important. A substantial amount of research has been conducted on various aspects of public meetings including different techniques, factors impacting attendance, and representativeness, that is attendees’ opinions representing the opinions at-large. A noticeable gap in the research includes information on public fishery meetings, commercial fishing industries, and their members’ participation. With the U.S. commercial fishing industries supporting more than a million jobs and providing more than a 200-billion-dollar economic impact annually, …

Building Solidarity Between Minority Groups, Seonwoo Kim

LSU Doctoral Dissertations

Although a considerable number of scholars agree that an intergroup coalition among minorities will be more powerful in changing biased perceptions, regulations, and policies (e.g., Burson & Godfrey, 2020; Lane et al., 2019), cross-minority solidarity is challenging due to the inherent difficulties in establishing a shared goal and reaching a consensus on methods and tactics (Gawerc, 2021; Rogers, 2004) and competing policy stances and stereotypes (Hope, 2019; Nopper, 2006). Numerous instances of social movements that failed due to the failure of coalitions to form have been documented in the literature (e.g., Almeida, 2010; Ferree & Roth, 1998; Gelb & Shogan, …

Influences On Participation In The National Flood Insurance Program’S Community Rating System In Coastal Counties In Louisiana, Mississippi, Alabama, And Florida, Jennifer E. Argote

LSU Doctoral Dissertations

The National Flood Insurance Program provides an incentive-based program, the Community Rating System (“CRS”), to encourage communities to improve their hazard mitigation protocols to better protect against and prevent flood-related hazards. This dissertation analyzes factors that influence participation and points scored within the CRS to gain an understanding of the conditions under which communities are willing and able to take advantage of an incentive-based flood hazard mitigation program. It also includes an analysis of survey responses from 41 coastal county floodplain and CRS managers to gauge their opinions on the CRS and how it can be improved to better serve …

Narrative Infidelity And White Resentment In The Rhetorical Mobilization Of The Anti-Crt Movement, Julien Burns

LSU Master's Theses

Beginning in the summer of 2020, an activist movement has arisen in opposition to Critical Race Theory (CRT). This movement has mobilized tens of thousands of Americans and passed policy curtailing the discussion of race in classrooms despite a lack of evidence that CRT has any meaningful presence in many of the public institutions targeted. This movement challenges logic-based conceptions of rhetorical persuasion and demands an alternative model. In this thesis, I propose that a narrative conception of rhetoric provides a framework for understanding how this movement is rational, despite the falsifiability of its foundation. Specifically, I respond to Walter …