Social and Behavioral Sciences Commons^™

Code-Switching And Its Challenges: Perspectives On Translanguaging In The Efl/Esl Classroom, Michael Spooner

All Graduate Plan B and other Reports, Spring 1920 to Spring 2023

Structured in sections that represent the author’s teaching perspectives and research perspectives, the portfolio comprises reflective pieces written at the end of the Master of Second Language Teaching program and other pieces written as coursework during the author’s study in that program. In the first section, the author describes the principles that guide his own teaching and, in light of those principles, he reviews his experience as a learner, reports on observations of other teachers, and assesses his own performance based on observations done by others. The second section offers a set of four research papers that progressively develop and …

Land Use Dynamics And Implications For Water Management In The Urbanizing Wasatch Range Metropolitan Area Of Utah, Enjie Li

All Graduate Theses and Dissertations, Spring 1920 to Summer 2023

Utah is one of the fastest growing states in the USA. Utah’s Wasatch Range Metropolitan Area (WRMA), where 80% of Utah’s population resides, is growing at unprecedented rates and has seen extensive urban landscape transformation in the last half century. Many of Utah’s agricultural lands, grasslands, and wetlands have been transformed into urban areas during this time. Local residents have watched and experienced these changes to their local environment, but without a clear understanding of the processes and impacts of urbanization. It is not until we study these landscapes from a spatial perspective and the time scale of decades that …

Renewable Energy: Prospects, Politics, The Public, And Proximity, Peter G. Robertson

All Graduate Theses and Dissertations, Spring 1920 to Summer 2023

The way our electricity is generated is in a period of rapid change; in the United States and many other countries the system is becoming less reliant on coal based power systems, while natural gas and solar and wind power are becoming more and more important. Technological advances have made solar and wind power more efficient and increasingly cost-effective. While these changes to the electrical system come with great benefits, such as less pollution, these technologies are not free of impacts. The electrical system is inseparable from our modern lifestyle, and because the system is so large this transition will …

Acculturation And Language Use In Intimate And Sexual Relationships Among Chinese Bilinguals, Tianyi Xie

All Graduate Theses and Dissertations, Spring 1920 to Summer 2023

People of Chinese heritage often face complex challenges because of the conflicting values from China and America, especially on sexuality. Through two thousand years of socialization, Chinese culture grew to endorse conservative sexual values and gender roles. In traditional Chinese culture, women are expected to remain chaste and play submissive roles in marriage. Sexuality is treated as a taboo topic that should not be discussed directly. Asian American youth who endorse less traditional Chinese values experience lower sexual satisfaction, lower confidence in their own abilities, and higher adherence to traditional gender roles. Language has also been found to potentially influence …

Exploring The Effect Of Disability Microaggressions On Sense Of Belonging And Participation In College Classrooms, Lynsie Harris

All Graduate Theses and Dissertations, Spring 1920 to Summer 2023

Microaggressions are a form of interpersonal discrimination towards marginalized groups that are often ambiguous in nature and delivered unintentionally. The subtleness of these attacks on identity can make them difficult to recognize and address.

Emerging research reveals that the targets of microaggressions are experiencing negative effects on their wellbeing; however, the bulk of existing literature on this topic only addresses microaggressions perpetrated towards racial minority or LGBT individuals. Little is known about pervasiveness and potential impact of microaggressions directed towards people with disabilities- particularly in academic contexts.

This study pilots a measurement tool, the Microaggressions Towards Students with a Disability …

Rancher Perceptions Of Ecosystem Services From Rangelands Of The Intermountain West, Elisabeth C. York

All Graduate Theses and Dissertations, Spring 1920 to Summer 2023

Rangelands within the Great Basin are responsible for the provision of multiple resources that humans depend on for a variety of reasons. Ranchers in this region are dependent on public lands to remain economically viable in their cattle operations. As a majority of land in this region is publically owned, there are varying interests at play in what should and could be the focus of management. Ranchers are charged with implementing strategies aimed at conserving these landscapes and their motivations for what to manage may significantly influence resource provision from Intermountain West ecosystem.

In this study, I sought to understand …

Allowing The Untellable To Visit: Investigating Digital Folklore, Ptsd And Stigma, Geneva Harline

All Graduate Theses and Dissertations, Spring 1920 to Summer 2023

In the introduction of 2012 issue of The Journal of Folklore Research, Diane Goldstein and Amy Shuman issue a “call to arms for folklorists … to concentrate on the vernacular experience of the stigmatized.” (Goldstein and Shuman, 2012:116). Drawing on this call to arms, this thesis investigates how Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD) is portrayed in social media through memes and captioned images. I argue that the genres of memes and captioned images in digital folklore work to help mitigate the stigma of PTSD because the veneer of anonymity in the digital world allows people with PTSD to be willing …

Regulation And Energy Poverty In The United States, Michael C. Jensen

All Graduate Theses and Dissertations, Spring 1920 to Summer 2023

Energy poverty is a topic often neglected in the discussion about global climate change. Apocalyptic prophecies about the negative future effects of climate change ignore the suffering of people around the globe whose lives could be drastically improved with access to reliable sources of energy. Though energy poverty from a global perspective is much more serious than energy poverty from a domestic perspective, high home energy bills are a serious cause for concern for many Americans.

This research examines the relationship between regulation, the prices of electricity and natural gas, and the household energy burden, which is the ratio of …

Experiences And Perceptions Of Human Vulnerability To Climate Change In Calakmul, Mexico, Lisa Green

All Graduate Plan B and other Reports, Spring 1920 to Spring 2023

This report explores how residents of Calakmul, Mexico perceive and experience their own vulnerability to climate change, and how these perceptions and experiences are differentiated among communities, households, and individuals. Fifty-five semi-structured interviews in 2013 and 45 follow-up interviews in 2016 provide data on familiarity with climate change and perceived effects of climate-related stressors on livelihood activities, health, and experiences of hunger. We found that coping responses to the effects of climate change often require cash inputs, and communities are differentiated in their experiences of vulnerability, based in part on their access to wage labor and importantly governmental support.

Business Development And Entrepreneurship On The Navajo Reservation, Sierra Hoffer

All Graduate Plan B and other Reports, Spring 1920 to Spring 2023

In this paper, I explore the underdevelopment of the business sector on the Navajo reservation. I investigate why the Navajo reservation continues to be economically depressed and find that institutions unique to the reservation create barriers that disincentivize formal business development. I first conducted a literature review on general barriers to entrepreneurship. Second, I reviewed the institutional analysis of the Navajo reservation to understand how institutions affect potential entrepreneurs. Next, I summarized a three-phased entrepreneurship training program on the reservation. Finally, I assessed the results of the program and how it was effected by barriers to business development.

I conclude …

I Heard But Didn't Hear Analyzing Women's Narrative Devices In Difficult Family Stories, Deanna Allred

All Graduate Plan B and other Reports, Spring 1920 to Spring 2023

This thesis analyzed the narrative devices women use when telling difficult or sad stories in familial settings. I documented a story told by my mother, Myrle Hoagland, about the death of her twin brother at age 17. I provided a textual analysis concentrating on the storyteller’s use of silence, additional information, and non-linear structure, to provide meaning and instruction to her family. I also contextually analyzed the story, illuminating the unique way informal learning affected the storyteller’s performance. My analysis demonstrated how I, as an emic ethnographer, documented a familiar story about a death in my family. Upon deeper study, …

Quantitative Easing: Money Supply And The Commodity Prices Of Oil, Gold, And Wheat, Aaron Kasteler

All Graduate Plan B and other Reports, Spring 1920 to Spring 2023

The recent financial crisis has raised awareness among the public regarding the role the Federal Reserve has in the broader economy, primarily as it pertains to overall price levels, and especially to commodities. Has the implementation of quantitative easing had an effect on underlying commodity prices and, if so, to what degree? Specifically, has the rise in the money supply created a subsequent rise in prices that are transferred onto the end consumer? This paper surveys the recent empirical evidence of the policy of quantitative easing as it relates to the money supply and commodity prices. It then uses this …

Community Supported Agriculture At Indian Creek Nature Center's Sugar Grove Farm: Sustainable Farming For Iowa, Erin Anzalone

All Graduate Plan B and other Reports, Spring 1920 to Spring 2023

Agriculture is the largest revenue source for the state of Iowa and the state’s two priority crops are corn and soybeans. Farming practices that emphasize monoculture production of these crops can reduce biological diversity and habitat for all-important pollinators, and exacerbate runoff and erosion that sends nutrient-rich soil, herbicides, and pesticides into streams and rivers. The industrial agriculture model is lucrative now, but unsustainable for Iowa over the long run. Sugar Grove Farm, a subset of Indian Creek Nature Center (ICNC), plans to grow a variety of food crops on a large-scale, economically sustainable farm, and support low-income households in …

Same Revolution, Different Outcome: Why Did The Syrian Regime Survive The Arab Spring?, Adam Alrowaiti

All Graduate Plan B and other Reports, Spring 1920 to Spring 2023

The Arab Region faced a wave of massive public demonstrations in 2011. People across the region demanded freedom, justice, and equality. That movement overthrew some of the region’s dictatorship regimes that had been in power since decades. In Tunisia, Egypt, Libya and Yemen the regimes collapsed in the face of the people’s revolution. However, public demonstrations and opposition could not overcome the Al-Assad regime in Syria. This thesis seeks the reasons behind the survival of the Syrian regime when other regimes collapsed. The thesis analyzes the case of Syria by comparing it to the case of Libya, since Libya went …

Mountain Bike Use On The Tahoe Rim Trail: An Analysis Of Management Practices In Restricted Use Areas, Christopher M. Binder

All Graduate Plan B and other Reports, Spring 1920 to Spring 2023

This project presents research into the historic and contemporary use of mountain bikes in restricted use areas on the Tahoe Rim Trail and examines management approaches to increase compliance with existing regulations and advisories. Data from geomagnetic trail counters is utilized to gain insight into where and when such use occurs, while archival and contemporary sources of information are consulted to establish the context of mountain bike use on the trail. The project concludes with specific, actionable recommendations for trail managers, with information regarding likely outcomes and costs included in the analysis.

Making Connections Across Language Barriers, Aaron Salgado

All Graduate Plan B and other Reports, Spring 1920 to Spring 2023

This compilation of academic papers is a portfolio designed to invite the reader to explore the author’s beliefs and ideas concerning effective second language learning and teaching. Divided into three main parts, this portfolio addresses: 1. expressing the author’s teaching philosophy while putting his position into the context from which it formed, 2. exploring the research perspectives that drive the author to continue participating in this academic field, 3. and chronicling the process of studying the academic material that inspired the previous two sections. Major topics include a macro view of the U.S. government’s and its education system’s dance together …

Measuring The Adaptive Response To Drought, Kyle Eagar

All Graduate Plan B and other Reports, Spring 1920 to Spring 2023

Scientific evidence suggests that future climate change has the potential to bring about an increase in both the frequency and duration of drought in some regions of the world (United Nations, 2012). Economists have theorized that at least some of the adverse effects of these droughts will be mitigated through various adaptive responses by agricultural producers. The effectiveness of any adaptive response to climate change will depend on how quickly producers can recognize a change in climatic patterns and respond accordingly. The following paper investigates the relationship between a specific climate signal (prolonged drought) and the land use decision of …

The Use Of Metacognitive Verbs By A Student With Asd: Marking Perspective In Conversational Discourse During Narrative Intervention, Mary Ann Hammon Stenquist

All Graduate Plan B and other Reports, Spring 1920 to Spring 2023

The purpose of this study was to assess whether a program designed to teach narrative language skills was effective for improving the use of metacognitive verbs produced during conversations that took place during intervention to mark perspective.

Effectively Teaching A Second Language: Principles And Practices, Alexander Gatica

All Graduate Plan B and other Reports, Spring 1920 to Spring 2023

This portfolio is the amalgamation of the author’s research and experience during his time in the Master of Second Language Teaching program. The first section contains the Teaching Philosophy, which centers on applying effective teaching methods, increasing learner motivation, and incorporating technology into the classroom. The next section consists of three artifacts in which the author further investigates specific aspects of language teaching. The language paper focuses on the effect that identity has on motivation to learn a language. The literacy paper discusses how to increase vocabulary acquisition via a mobile-assisted language learning application called Duolingo. The culture paper addresses …

How High School Records And Act Scores Predict College Graduation, Lianqun Sun

All Graduate Theses and Dissertations, Spring 1920 to Summer 2023

The primary purpose of this study is to assess the degree to which ACT scores and high school records predict success in college. I used large public university admission and graduation panel data in order to address the following questions: (1) Are high school records (class rank, high school grade point average (GPA), and Advanced Placement (AP) test credits) better predictors of college success than ACT scores, and which is the best predictor among high school records and ACT scores? (2) Is there any heterogeneity in these effects across race, sex and residency (state or non-state students)?

By answering these …

Speech Rate Entrainment In Children And Adults With Autism Spectrum Disorder, Camille Wynn

All Graduate Plan B and other Reports, Spring 1920 to Spring 2023

Purpose: Conversational entrainment, the phenomenon whereby people modify their behaviors to match their communication partner, has been evidenced as critical to successful conversation. It is plausible that deficits in entrainment contribute to the conversational breakdowns and social difficulties exhibited by people with autism spectrum disorder (ASD). The present study examined speech rate entrainment in populations with and without ASD.

Method: Sixty participants including typically developing children, children with ASD, typically developed adults, and adults with ASD, participated in a quasi-conversational paradigm with a pseudo-confederate. The confederate’s speech rate was digitally manipulated to create slow and fast speech rate conditions.

Results: …

Increasing Knowledge And Detection Of Racial And Ethnic Microaggressions In White College Students, Christina A. Patterson

All Graduate Theses and Dissertations, Spring 1920 to Summer 2023

Scholars have strongly suggested that to combat microaggressions and their impact on persons of color, there needs to be an increased awareness and ability to detect microaggressions when they occur. There is limited research on how to practically address these concerns. This study examined the efficacy of a multimedia intervention aimed at increasing White individuals’ ability to accurately detect microaggressions. The high-exposure intervention was compared against two other conditions, low-exposure and control, at pre-, post-, and 1-week follow-up from intervention.

Undergraduate university students were recruited from two predominantly white universities (PWU). Participants watched a series of videos to determine if …

Extension Of Behavioral Momentum Theory To Conditions With Changing Reinforcer Rates, Andrew R. Craig

All Graduate Theses and Dissertations, Spring 1920 to Summer 2023

Behavior is more likely to persist when disrupted in some way in the presence of stimuli correlated with frequent delivery of reward than in the presence of stimuli correlated with infrequent rewards. In laboratory investigations, the correlation between reward rates and specific stimuli are almost always held constant before testing for persistence. In the real world, however, how often rewards are encountered is likely to vary substantially over time. The major goal of the work described in this dissertation was to explore effects of reward rates that change over time on persistence of behavior in controlled laboratory settings using pigeon …

Assessment Of The Impact Of The Premarital Interpersonal Choices And Knowledge (Pick) Program On Adolescents, Raquel R. Boehme

All Graduate Theses and Dissertations, Spring 1920 to Summer 2023

This study was conducted to determine if the information from the Premarital Interpersonal Choices and Knowledge (PICK) program How to Avoid Falling for a Jerk/ette helped positively change adolescents’ attitudes about relationships. The program was taught to 9,130 high school students (ages 14 -18) from 35 different high schools in a Western state.

Surveys were given at the beginning of the first class (pretest) and at the end of the final class (posttest). In addition to demographic information, students rated (1) their attitudes about what it takes to get to know a potential partner, (2) their belief that love alone …

Attitudes And Experiences Of Close Interethnic Friendships Among Native Emerging Adults: A Mixed-Methods Investigation, Merrill L. Jones

All Graduate Theses and Dissertations, Spring 1920 to Summer 2023

Members of small minority groups like Natives, along with other minority groups that are rapidly growing in population are increasingly receiving research focus. With 1 in 3 U.S. residents identifying with racial or ethnic minority groups, close interethnic relationships are likely to increase as well. It will be important to understand processes of close friendship development between racially-different friends, along with the factors that help establish and maintain these close interethnic friendships. This information will be especially important for members of small minority groups, such as Natives.

We investigated Native friendship development and factors of close friendship with non-Native emerging …

Effectiveness Of Acceptance And Commitment Therapy As A Treatment For Posttraumatic Stress Disorder And Moral Injury, Ellen J. Bluett

All Graduate Theses and Dissertations, Spring 1920 to Summer 2023

Posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD) is a common condition among military personal and veterans. Despite strong empirical support for first line treatments for PTSD, many veterans do not complete or respond to treatment. Research suggests that experiential avoidance is a contributing factor to both treatment dropout and minimal treatment gains. Acceptance and commitment therapy (ACT) is an empirically supported cognitive behavioral intervention that aims to decrease experiential avoidance while increasing psychological flexibility. Research has shown ACT to be a promising intervention for the treatment of PTSD; however, its effectiveness in veterans with PTSD is limited.

In conjunction with Utah State University …

Shallow Bones, Brian Lee Cook

All Graduate Theses and Dissertations, Spring 1920 to Summer 2023

The research for this thesis examined historical and recent events embodying persecution both directed towards and perpetuated by the Mormon church. In order to convey the complexity of persecution, I examined stories told by church members, accounts written during the early years of the religion, and scholarly pieces written about the church's history. These stories revolved around the assassination of Joseph Smith and the Mountain Meadows massacre.

To portray the events surrounding the Mountain Meadows massacre, I performed a site visit, documented scenery, and discussed the massacre with others visiting the site. The great majority of my Mountain Meadows descriptions …

Misconduct-Related Discharge From Active Duty Military Service: An Examination Of Precipitating Factors And Post-Deployment Health Outcomes, Emily Brignone

All Graduate Theses and Dissertations, Spring 1920 to Summer 2023

U.S. military service members who are discharged from service for misconduct are at high risk for mental health and substance use disorders, homelessness, mortality, and incarceration. The purpose of this dissertation was to investigate the pre- and post-discharge experiences and characteristics of this highly vulnerable population in order to inform improved prevention and intervention strategies.

Administrative data from the Department of Defense and Veterans Health Administration for veterans of recent conflicts were used to conduct 3 related retrospective cohort studies. These included (1) an evaluation of the demographic and military service characteristics and service-connected disabilities associated with discharge for misconduct; …

A Tournament Approach To Price Discovery In The Us Cattle Market, Jeffrey Wright

All Graduate Theses and Dissertations, Spring 1920 to Summer 2023

Cattle price discovery is a process of determining the price in the market through the interactions of cattle buyers (packers) and sellers (ranchers). Locating the price discovery center or market, and estimating price interactions among the regional fed cattle markets and also among feeder cattle markets can help define a relevant fed cattle procurement market. This research identifies that the U.S. cattle markets is discovered in the futures markets, feeder cattle futures and fed futures.

Diversity-Related Experiences Among College Students In The Promotion Of Social Justice Orientation, Multicultural Openness, And Community Involvement, Alexandra K. Reveles

All Graduate Theses and Dissertations, Spring 1920 to Summer 2023

Institutions of higher education serve students in more ways than simply fostering academic growth. University and college campuses are often the introduction people have to the societal, interpersonal, and career/field specific expectations they will be guided by after completing their degree. One way for universities to do this is through the cultivation of critical consciousness by way of encouraging engagement in diversity-related activities. This study examined associations between engagement in diversity-related activities and reported levels of critical consciousness, along with differences between students of color and White students in patterns of association.

Diversity-related experiences, including extracurricular diversity activities, positive cross-racial …