Social and Behavioral Sciences Commons^™

What Constitutes A Welcoming Community? Mankato Leaders Go Beyond The 'Welcome Wagon' For New Immigrants, Sarah Lieske, Sadie Leidall, Philip Munkvold

Undergraduate Research Symposium

The purpose of this study was to understand how leaders responded to the community’s increasing diversity. According to previous research, “adults in the state demonstrate both marked support for programs and policies supporting immigrants and refugees, and considerable xenophobia” (Fennelly, 2006). Of all the states receiving new immigrants, Minnesota has the greatest diversity (Somali, Hmong, Sudanese, Hispanic, Russian, South Asian) (Brower, 2013). Fennelly & Federico (2008) also found that rural residents hold more negative attitudes toward immigrants. Intergroup contact theory and acculturation studies address these issues. The study responded to these research questions: How do leaders conceptualize the ideas of …

Sexual Education And Attitudes Towards Masturbation, Jannine Ray

Undergraduate Research Symposium

The long-standing social stigma surrounding masturbation has led to its prohibition from being included in public school curriculum as a healthy sexual practice. Furthermore, not only is masturbation a healthy sexual practice for the individual, research has demonstrated masturbation to be helpful in treating sexual dysfunctions for couples. Therefore, if the topic of masturbation is included in comprehensive sexual education as a healthy sexual practice, it may promote sexual health among individuals both intra- and interpersonally. The present study recruited from a convenient sample from a medium sized state university in the upper Midwest. Participants completed two surveys, administered through …

High School Students Tell All: Analyzing Facebook Confession Sites, Chelsea Conrad

Undergraduate Research Symposium

Social media sites are gaining popularity, giving teenagers a venue to anonymously post secrets, rants, and insults. Recently, anonymous high school related Facebook confession sites have emerged. These sites, while not endorsed by the school, often contain the school’s name, mascot and location creating a forum for anonymous social interactions among high school students. Facebook confession sites have gained attention over concerns about cyber bullying and the potential negative influence on the reputation of schools. The purpose of this study is to analyze the language of Facebook confession sites to determine the degree of positive and negative emotionality as well …

Pre-Service Teacher Preparation Related To Classroom Management Techniques, Karley Weir

Undergraduate Research Symposium

Teachers are likely to encounter children with emotional and behavioral disorders (EBD) at least once throughout their career. These students demonstrate internalizing or externalizing behaviors that have a negative effect on their education. Pre-service teachers reported that almost a fourth of their students portrayed some forms of challenging behavior (Westling, 2010). These behaviors were described as defiance, noncompliance, disruption, and socially inappropriate behavior. Westling (2010) reported that dealing with these challenging behaviors take up a significant amount of teacher’s time, reduces their effectiveness as teachers, and inhibits the ability of the other children’s learning. Despite most teachers feeling inadequately prepared …

China And The Two Koreas: A New Era For The Rising Hegemon, Byeongho Mun

Undergraduate Research Symposium

Recently, the U.S. moved its pivot from the Middle East to East Asia. It was a belated reaction to deal with the new world order. China is rising as the sole competitor of the U.S. in world politics, and trying to consolidate its influence on the region. The Korean Peninsula seems likely to be a frontline again for U.S. and China, similar to the confrontation between the Soviet Union and the U.S. during the Cold War era. I was able to find some sources on this issue including books and scholarly articles with a great amount of information and details …

A Is For App: Surveying Teachers About The Use Of Ipads/Tablets In The Classroom, Christine Scheper

Undergraduate Research Symposium

iPads and tablets are now in classrooms for the children to use ranging from educational activities to leisure activities. Current research findings are mixed as to whether they are helping or hindering children’s learning. For the purpose of this study, a 14-item survey was administered to elementary school teachers working in Southern Minnesota area school districts. The focus of this survey was to gain a better understanding of how teachers are using iPads and tablets in the classroom and which apps are most commonly used. Information on which apps are most common in different classroom subjects as well as the …

Media Impact On Science Knowledge, Joanna Richardson

Undergraduate Research Symposium

This year, the worldwide web celebrates twenty-five years of existence. Its popularity has grown tremendously and we now see a majority of the population utilizing the Internet’s various outlets to achieve greater amounts of knowledge in lesser amounts of time. The broad spectrum of media sources enables a greater access of information to all people, increasingly impacting their level of science knowledge. The current study looked to explore the relationship between level of science knowledge, preferred media source and frequency of exposure. One hundred thirty-five participants were surveyed. Questions from the Pew Research Center’s “Science and Technology Knowledge Quiz” were …

The Benefits Of Exposure To Animals For Persons With Dementia: A Literature Review, Stephanie Bennett

Undergraduate Research Symposium

This literature review was performed to assess the current standing of the use of animals as a therapeutic agent for individuals suffering from dementia. This area of study is currently broad; therefore the intent of reviewing the current literature was to establish what has been studied at this point in time and to recommend future research directions in the field. The literature search was performed on three academic search sites (PsycINFO, PubMed, and AgeLine) using four search terms (“Pet therapy Alzheimer’s,” “Pet therapy dementia,” “Animal therapy Alzheimer’s,” “Animal therapy dementia”); search results were verified by having a second researcher independently …

Methods And Applications Of Geospatial Technologies, Hua Liu

Undergraduate Research Symposium

Chair: Dr. Hua Liu, Department of Political Science & Geography

Presenters: Daniel Felarca, Kyle Coolbaugh, Jacob Brunswick, Christopher Johnson

The Role Of Research In Participatory Evaluation, Narketta Sparkman

Undergraduate Research Symposium

Chair: Dr. Narketta Sparkman, Department of Counseling & Human Services Presenters: Priscilla Myers, Raquel Jefferson, De Marcus Greene, Jasmine Hobson

Empowerment Evaluation And Research: A Discussion Of Homelessness, Narketta Sparkman

Undergraduate Research Symposium

Chair: Dr. Narketta Sparkman, Department of Counseling & Human Services

Presenters: Ashley Reetz, Tamika Bright-Stubblefield, Rachel Haver, Jasmine Cottom