Social and Behavioral Sciences Commons^™

Visitor Use Of Interpretive Facilities At Fossil Butte National Monument, Wyoming, Rizal Bukhari

All Graduate Theses and Dissertations, Spring 1920 to Summer 2023

Visitors expect to a gain high-quality outdoor experiences at any recreation site they visit. In order to support that effort, most recreation managers utilize interpretive facilities to educate and inform visitors about the site. It is important for interpretive managers to be aware of what kind of interpretive media could best be used in a given setting for the type of visitor anticipated. To accomplish this goal, it is necessary to understand visitors' behavior and incorporate that understanding into the interpretive planning process.

This study looks at visitor use of interpretive facilities provided at Fossil Butte National Monument, Wyoming. The …

Financial Innovation, José C. Blanco

All Graduate Theses and Dissertations, Spring 1920 to Summer 2023

This dissertation was a study of the impact of financial innovation upon financial institutions and some of the collateral macroeconomics effects. Financial innovation has impacted the distribution of household assets throughout the Group of Seven (G-7) countries and indirectly negatively influenced the usage of traditional monetary aggregates as a reliable tool to forecast the growth in the domestic money supply between 1960 and 1990.

The empirical results indicate that the adoption of financial innovations by large U.S. commercial banks has not influenced their return on equity and the return of assets between 1990 and 1994. The variability of the return …

The Relationships Of Parental Marital Status, Quality Of Family Interaction And Gender To Adolescent Tobacco, Alcohol, And Marijuana Use, Stephen K. Hunsaker

All Graduate Theses and Dissertations, Spring 1920 to Summer 2023

The tobacco, alcohol, and marijuana use of adolescents was examined to see if any differences existed in the marital status of the adolescent's parents, the quality of family interaction for the adolescent, and the gender of the adolescent. Marital status was defined as intact families where adolescents were living with both biological parents, and nonintact families where adolescents had parents who were single, divorced, widowed, never married, and remarried. Data were from a survey that examined youth issues of 500 adolescents from a rural Utah county. It was hypothesized that marital type and quality of family interaction (family kindness, family …

Developmental Stages Of Preschool Teachers In Selected Arab Gulf Countries, Najwa Mounla

All Graduate Theses and Dissertations, Spring 1920 to Summer 2023

The current study focused on examining the developmental stages of preschool teachers in the Arab Gulf region. Specifically, the needs and concerns of teachers were investigated using a pretest/posttest (12-month interval) design. Participants included two groups of preschool teachers, trained (n = 35) and untrained (n = 122)

Contrary to expectations, the sequential nature of development stages of teachers did not emerge. Instead, the results showed that teachers become less concerned about teaching as they progress in their careers.

When data from the present study were factor-analyzed they yielded only two areas of concerns that seemed applicable cross-cultrally. …

Perceived Children's Characteristics And Other Factors Relating To Parents' Psychological Well-Being In Midlife, Catherine D. Stogner

All Graduate Theses and Dissertations, Spring 1920 to Summer 2023

This research examined child-parent relationships from the perspective of the psychological well-being of parents during midlife and while launching children. A subsample of 1,253 parents from the National Survey of Families and Households was studied using variables from both waves (1988 and 1993) of longitudinal data. Fathers and mothers were analyzed separately for depression and self-satisfaction at the second wave (1993) in relation to their< perceptions of child, adjustment and child-parent relationships in 1988, and parents' employment and their marital status in 1993.

Analyses showed that fathers' depression scores in 1 g93 were significantly related to fathers' perceptions of child adjustment (total and positive), and fathers' age, marital, and employment status. Mothers' depression scores were associated with their …

Risk Factors Associated With Early Adolescent Sexual Values And Behaviors, David Macbeth

All Graduate Theses and Dissertations, Spring 1920 to Summer 2023

Adolescent sexual activity and subsequent pregnancy are ii an increasing dilemma facing American society . There appears to be an increase in the incidence of casual sexual activity among adolescents that leads to over 50% of students between grades 9 and 12 having been involved in sexual intercourse. This study examines changes in adolescent sexual attitudes, behaviors, and values in a select population over a 2-year time span.

A survey of 548 families with adolescents was used to determine the impact of the Facts and Feelings home-based sexual abstinence program on mean scores for academic aspirations, academic achievement , sexual …

Infant Physical Attractiveness, Affect, Temperament, And Gender In Relation To Tester Behavior, Andrea D. Hart

All Graduate Theses and Dissertations, Spring 1920 to Summer 2023

Easily observable infant characteristics have been shown to influence others; perceptions of infant competence. This study examined the relation between infant characteristics and a tester's willingness to repeat opportunities for the infant to pass items during administration of a cognitive test. Results showed that infant physical attractiveness was related to lower elicited infant performance (the ratio of items initially failed). Positive affect was related to higher test scores. Because first impressions are likely to contribute to future relationships, it may be important to educate adults who interact with infants about the effects of stereotyping infants based on first impressions.

An Interdisciplinary Theoretical Framework For The Mailed Questionnaire Process And The Development Of A Theory On Immediacy And Salience As Significant Variables Of Response Rates, Maribeth Christensen

All Graduate Theses and Dissertations, Spring 1920 to Summer 2023

The mailed questionnaire research process developed historically as part of the survey research movement, with guidelines and models drawn from an array of scientific research methods and disciplines. Although the mailed questionnaire has become one of the most popular research instruments for obtaining data beyond the reach of the observer, the response bias generated from the generally low return rate of the mailed questionnaire survey has remained a problem. For over three decades researchers have generated a plethora of research on the effectiveness of the various aspects of the mailed questionnaire process and the resultant impact of various constructs on …

Anorexia Nervosa And Bulimia Nervosa: The Patients' Perspective, Benita J. Quackenbush

All Graduate Theses and Dissertations, Spring 1920 to Summer 2023

Eating-disorder clients show low motivation, poor follow-through, and inordinate premature dropout rates in treatment. To date, little research has been conducted that might provide clinicians with an understanding of the critical factors that may aid clients' recovery. Such factors may be used by clinicians to better motivate clients to collaborate in treatment. The purpose of this study was to identify some of the critical factors that women with eating disorders believed were crucial in prompting or facilitating their recovery. Identification of these factors was accomplished through a systematic content analysis of semistructured interviews with recovered or recovering bulimics and anorexics. …

The Effect Of Rituals On Newlywed Marital Adjustment, Bryan D. Bingham

All Graduate Theses and Dissertations, Spring 1920 to Summer 2023

This study examined the relationship between rituals and marital adjustment among a sample of newlyweds. Rituals and marital adjustment were defined and their importance in family life outlined. Five research questions guided the study: (1) Is ritual activity associated with marital adjustment and length of courtship for newlyweds?; (2) Is ritual activity associated with marital satisfaction and length of courtship for newlyweds?; (3) Is ritual activity associated with cohesion and length of courtship for newlyweds?; (4) Is ritual activity associated with consensus and length of courtship for newlyweds?; and (5) Is there a difference between husbands and wives on the …

Adolescent Friendship Pairs: Similarities In Identity Status Development, Behaviors, Attitudes, And Intentions, James F. Akers

All Graduate Theses and Dissertations, Spring 1920 to Summer 2023

Similarities between adolescent friends have been established for many characteristics, including the physical, behavioral, psychological, academic, and social domains of development. Past research and theory also support the notion that psychological and behavioral characteristics are likely related to ego-identity characteristics. This study was primarily a test of the logical extension of the previous statements: Best friends are more similar than nonfriends on identity characteristics. It was also hypothesized that best friends are more similar than nonfriends on behaviors, attitudes, and intentions expected to be related to identity.

A sample of 1,159 grade 10-12 students responded to a survey that included …

Anorexia Nervosa And Bulimia Nervosa: The Patients' Perspective, Benita J. Quakenbush

All Graduate Theses and Dissertations, Spring 1920 to Summer 2023

Eating-disorder clients show low motivation, poor follow-through, and inordinate premature dropout rates in treatment. To date, little research has been conducted that might provide clinicians with an understanding of the critical factors that may aid clients' recovery. Such factors may be used by clinicians to better motivate clients to collaborate in treatment. The purpose of this study was to identify some of the critical factors that women with eating disorders believed were crucial in prompting or facilitating their recovery. Identification of these factors was accomplished through a systematic content analysis of semistructured interviews with recovered or recovering bulimics and anorexics. …

The Relationships Of Gender And Age With Peer Acceptance In Primary-Grade, Multiage Classrooms At Edith Bowen Laboratory School, Thomas Anthony Shuster

All Graduate Theses and Dissertations, Spring 1920 to Summer 2023

This study describes the effects of gender and age on peer acceptance in primary-grade, multiage classrooms at Edith Bowen Laboratory School at Utah State University. The population described consisted of six multiage classrooms composed of male and female students from 6 to 8 years old. The classrooms were approximately balanced by gender and age. Students spent the entire day and received all instruction in the multiage setting.

Students completed "Work With" and "Play With" sociometric rating-scale instruments. For both instruments, results revealed the existence of "gender cleavage"--both genders preferred work and play partners of their own gender. In general, age …

A National Survey Of Training Practices Of Agencies Employing Home Visitors, Nicole Hawkins

All Graduate Theses and Dissertations, Spring 1920 to Summer 2023

This study reports the characteristics of home visitor training based on the results of a national survey of nominated best practice home visiting programs that service children with disabilities and their families. Two hundred thirty-six programs were nominated by their state's director of Maternal-Child Health and/or their state's Part H Coordinator as community-based programs that have had success integrating home visiting services into their community's overall system of care for children eligible for Part H services and/or special health care needs. The return rate of the survey was 85%, and these 193 programs serve as the basis for this study. …

Is There A Connection? An Exploratory Study Of Abuse Experiences And Perpetration Patterns Among College Males, Monique R. Frazier

All Graduate Theses and Dissertations, Spring 1920 to Summer 2023

The purpose of this study was to examine self-reported experiences of primary, secondary, and perpetrated abuse of an emotional, physical, and sexual nature among a male, nonclinical, noncriminal sample. One hundred forty-two subjects completed the Youth Experiences and Behaviors Questionnaire (YEBQ) (developed by the author) and the Conflict Tactics Scale (CTS). Results indicated that overall, the YEBQ demonstrated moderate to high levels of internal consistency reliability and moderate levels of concurrent and divergent validity. Various descriptive statistics, scale, and subscale correlations for the YEBQ were provided.

Results indicated that secondary abuse information was most predictive of later abuse perpetration with …

Sources Of Recreational And Community Conflict From Tourism In Moab, Utah, Susan R. Van Patten

All Graduate Theses and Dissertations, Spring 1920 to Summer 2023

A written survey of 200 Moab residents was used to measure residents' attitudes 11 toward tourism. Three regression models were developed using variables identified in the tourism literature to measure the relative importance of interpersonal contacts with tourists, negative impacts to outdoor-recreation experiences, and community experience in predicting attitudes toward tourism. Interpersonal contacts and recreation impacts both had fairly high predictive capabilities. It was concluded that interactions between recreation visitors/tourists and local residents should be a focus of further research.

Data from the Moab resident survey were also used in conjunction with a survey of mountain bikers visiting or living …

The Effect Of Housing And Food Expenditures On Diet Quality Of Low-Income Households In Salt Lake County, Rebecca Low

All Graduate Theses and Dissertations, Spring 1920 to Summer 2023

During a time of national and local debate over welfare reform, research is needed to determine the effectiveness of specific welfare programs and the impact on the lives of households participating in these programs. The objective of this study was to determine the effect housing and food expenditures have on the diet quality of low-income families. Participants for the study were drawn from government-subsidized housing rolls and housing assistance waiting lists. Diet quality was measured by 16 variables: percent RDA protein, fiber, vitamin A, vitamin C, iron, and calcium consumed; percent calories from protein, carbohydrates, fat, and alcohol; and the …

The Effect Of Immediacy And Salience Questionnaire Response Rates, Audrey Matsumoto

All Graduate Theses and Dissertations, Spring 1920 to Summer 2023

In this study, a theory that identified salience and immediacy as two constructs that significantly determine questionnaire response rates was tested. This theory emphasized the importance of identifying and rating factors that impact the immediacy and salience of a questionnaire to a specific population. It was proposed that factors that make a questionnaire highly immediate and salient to a given population should be identified first, and then implemented into the construction and administration of the questionnaire. In this way, researchers can manipulate the variables, which will maximize the response rate for their specific population before distribution. A questionnaire that is …

A Partial Equilibrium Analysis Of Nafta And Its Impact On U.S. Beef Trade With Canada And Mexico, Srinidhi Ananthramiah

All Graduate Theses and Dissertations, Spring 1920 to Summer 2023

In September 1993, the United States Congress formally ratified the North American Free Trade Agreement (NAFTA) in conjunction with the legislatures of Canada and Mexico. NAFTA phases out tariff barriers between the United States, Canada, and Mexico over a period of several years.

The primary purpose of this study is to provide an empirical tool for evaluating the effects of NAFTA on beef trade between Canada, Mexico, and the United States. Trends were identified in U.S. beef exports and imports to Canada and Mexico over a period of several years. From the data on import/export quantities and prices, relevant elasticities …

The Relations Between Parenting Stress, Father Involvement, And Leisure, Among Fathers Of Preschool-Age Children, Patricia Mehl Brown

All Graduate Theses and Dissertations, Spring 1920 to Summer 2023

This study examined relations between fathers' parenting stress, father involvement in child care giving, and family leisure activity among 46 fathers of preschool age children. Results indicate that the relations between parenting stress and father involvement depend on child gender. A negative association was found between parenting stress and father involvement in caregiving among fathers of boys but a positive association was found between these two variables among fathers of girls. furthermore, higher levels of family play are associated with lower levels of parenting stress among fathers of boys. Results also indicated a negative association between father involvement and mothers' …

A Validation Study Of The Trio Measure Of Visual Processing Ability, Jonathan David Spach

All Graduate Theses and Dissertations, Spring 1920 to Summer 2023

Trio is a newly developed group-administered instrument designed to measure visual ability for application in cognitive styles research. This study investigated the validity of Trio as seen in its convergence or divergence with two established tests, one conceptually related and one conceptually unrelated. The correlation of Trio scores with scores on these other two tests was examined using a sample of undergraduate students.

The analysis of the relationship between scores on Trio and on the conceptually related Learning Figures Test failed to provide evidence that these two tests are measuring the same construct. At the same time, Trio's correlation with …

Analogical Problem Solving: An Exploratory Analysis Of The Facilitating Effects Of Type Of Training, Analog Type, And Level Of Expertise On Spontaneous Transfer, Dune E. Ives

All Graduate Theses and Dissertations, Spring 1920 to Summer 2023

Research on analogical problem solving has delineated several factors that impact one's ability to spontaneously generate a correct solution strategy to a target problem. These factors include, but are not limited to, type of analogy provided to subjects (i.e., partial versus complete), the level of isomorphism between analogies and target problems, and the solver's level of analogical problem-solving expertise

Recently, researchers have begun to focus on providing solvers with direct instruction on analogical problem-solving processes and strategies in an effort to augment analogical problem-solving ability. The most common type of instruction (i.e., teacher-generated) involves providing direct instruction on problem-solving processes …

Risk Factors And Bulimia Outcomes In Adolescent Women: A Longitudinal And Retrospective Analysis, Therese Elizabeth Barnett

All Graduate Theses and Dissertations, Spring 1920 to Summer 2023

The goal of the present study was to verify whether four purported risk factors predate the development of eating disorder symptoms, particularly bulimia nervosa. The four major purported risk factors for developing bulimia nervosa (and eating disorders in general) among female adolescents include: (a) over internalization of culture’s value of thinness in women, (b) inordinate dissatisfaction with body form, (c) depression, and (d) irrational beliefs and cognitions about thinness and the benefits of dieting. The present study involved a 5-year follow-up of adolescent girls initially identified as being either at high or low risk for developing an eating disorder, particularly …

A Survey Of Perceived Control And Domestic Environment Aspects Of Early Adolescent Boys With And Without Identified Externalizing Behavior Problems, Gary W. Mauk

All Graduate Theses and Dissertations, Spring 1920 to Summer 2023

Two demographically congruous groups of early adolescent boys, one group with identified externalizing behavior problems (ESP) and one group enrolled in regular education (RED), were surveyed using anonymous self-report questionnaires that assessed academic, social, and general domains of perceived control and aspects of familial experiences. Data from EBP and RED boys' extant scholastic archival records were also collected. Also, using anonymous self-report questionnaires, the parents of EBP and RED boys were surveyed regarding their levels of satisfaction regarding aspects of parenting.

This study found that EBP boys had statistically significantly lower reading, math, and language achievement scores and grade point …

Home Visiting For Children With Developmental Delays: An Empirical Evaluation, Tracy L. Black

All Graduate Theses and Dissertations, Spring 1920 to Summer 2023

Home visiting services have become an important and common component of early intervention for children with developmental delays. Currently, this group of children is the most frequent target of home visiting programs throughout the nation, although research evaluating the effectiveness of these programs is less pervasive. For this reason, a comprehensive analysis of studies within the home visiting literature that specifically focused on children with developmental delays and their families has been conducted. This effort has been accomplished through the process of meta-analysis. In addition to the computation of standardized mean difference effect sizes, emphasis was also placed on identifying …

Fulfillment Of Marital Expectations In Relation To Communication Style And Parents' Marital Interactions, Shawn Corey Edgington

All Graduate Theses and Dissertations, Spring 1920 to Summer 2023

The purpose of this study was to examine the relationships of communication variables and parent marital variables with the fulfillment of marital expectations among newlyweds. Little research has been done on newlywed expectations and communication. This is an exploratory study conducted to determine how newlyweds' exposure to parents' marital interactions and communication styles correlated with newlyweds' fulfillment of marital expectations. Fifty newlywed couples (married 3-6 months) filled out the Marital Comparison Level Index (MCLI) questionnaire about their level of fulfillment of expectations. Couples were then videotaped talking to one another about the strengths of their marriage followed by a discussion …

Adolescents' Recollection Of Early Physical Contact: Implications For Attachment And Intimacy, Mark D. Oleson

All Graduate Theses and Dissertations, Spring 1920 to Summer 2023

Three hundred seventy-six college students responded to a measure designed to examine retrospective accounts of the physical affection received during early childhood. The study looked exclusively from the perspective of the adolescent. Assessing the importance of touch in human development, and the role it plays in adult attachment and the ability to form and maintain close and intimate relations with others was the purpose of the study.

Six separate measures were used to assess the role of touch in adolescent development: three items from Gupta and Schork to assess physical affection (touch); Simpson's attachment style measure; Gerlsma, Arrindell, Van der …