Social and Behavioral Sciences Commons^™

A Comparison Of Methods For Teaching Auditory-Visual Conditional Discriminations To Children With Autism Spectrum Disorders, Laura Lee Grow

Dissertations

Early and intensive behavioral intervention (EIBI) is an approach to treating the behavioral deficits and excesses observed in children with autism spectrum disorders. The magnitude of improvement in the overall functioning of children receiving EIBI has stimulated additional research and widespread clinical dissemination through the publication of EIBI curricular manuals. Many EIBI manuals recommend teaching conditional discriminations using the simple/conditional method. Initially, component simple discriminations are taught in isolation and in the presence of a distracter stimulus. Finally, conditional discriminations, which include stimuli previously taught as simple discriminations, are presented to the learner. Although the simple/conditional method is often recommended …

Effects On Digital Image Quality When Photographing Through A Transparent Material Used To Hold Or Flatten An Original Object, Paul E. Howell

Masters Theses

An increasing number of libraries and archives are initiating projects where new and updated technologies make it practical to digitize materials containing color and fine detail. Many of the imaging systems and methods used for this process require that some type of glass or plastic be placed over the original to hold it flat and in the correct position during image capture. The physical properties of a material placed between an original object and the capture system or camera, during digitization, could possibly affect the accuracy of image color and quality being reproduced by the system. This investigation provides an …

Understanding The Impact Of The Kalamazoo Promise From The Perspectives Of Parents And Community Group Members, Charles Pearson

Dissertations

The purpose of this study was to uncover the emerging views of parents and community group stakeholders in regards to The Kalamazoo Promise, and what they believed were the important issues that must be understood by implementers of The Promise in order to provide more effective implementation.

The Kalamazoo Promise is a full-tuition scholarship provided to all eligible graduates of the school district. The qualification criteria are simple, and all graduates attending at least the four years of high school are eligible.

A case study was conducted in one representative school in this midsized, urban district. A multiple-phase approach was …

Improving Reading Fluency And Comprehension In Elementary Students Using Read Naturally, Rebecca Arvans

Dissertations

Difficulty learning how to read is a risk factor for school failure, low grades, behavior problems, juvenile delinquency, truancy, unemployment, jail time, and substance abuse. Reading difficulties are common in the educational setting, afflicting anywhere from 20-40 percent of students. Read Naturally is a computer-based reading program which targets the third "big idea" (i.e„ accuracy and fluency with reading). The current study assessed the efficacy of the Read Naturally program in second through fourth grade elementary students in a public elementary school. Additionally, this study assessed whether improving reading abilities resulted in changes in classroom behavior problems or self-esteem. Eighty-two …

Adolescents' Experience Of The Factors Influencing Their Diabetes Treatment Regimen, Roger W. Apple

Dissertations

The purpose of this study is to better understand and provide a description of the factors that influence adolescents' adherence to the diabetic treatment regimen from the adolescents' experience. The sample consisted of nine adolescents diagnosed with Type I diabetes. A qualitative phenomenological methodology is used to look for significant statements, meanings, and themes that resulted in an exhaustive description of the adolescents' experience.

In-depth interviews are the primary method of data collection. Data analysis includes: transcribing the interviews and reading the transcripts, extracting significant statements, developing formulated meanings, organizing the formulated meanings into clusters of themes, and developing an …

Persistence And Success: A Study Of Cognitive, Social, And Institutional Factors Related To Retention Of Kalamazoo Promise Recipients At Western Michigan University, Michelle Ann Bakerson

Dissertations

The Kalamazoo Promise, a universal scholarship program announced in November 2005 provides four years of tuition and fees at any of Michigan's two- or fouryear public colleges or universities for students who have attended Kalamazoo Public Schools. This investment in the community is being replicated elsewhere across the nation, including Denver and Pittsburgh. The scholarship program lowers the cost of postsecondary education, thereby increasing incentives for high school graduation, college enrollment, and college completion. Of the 307 Kalamazoo Promise Scholarship recipients who have attended Western Michigan University since its inception, 16% have been academically dismissed.

The main objectives of this …

Measuring Graduating M.S.W. Students' Knowledge Of The Steps Of Evidence-Based Practice, Kellie D. Cody Jr.

Dissertations

Knowledge of evidence-based practice (EBP) is essential to social workers entering the workforce. The literature review revealed no studies that have measured the knowledge students have of the steps of EBP in the final semester of their master's of social work (M.S.W.) degree programs.

The purpose of this study was to administer a newly validated instrument to graduating M.S.W. students to measure their knowledge of the steps of EBP. Eighty-six students in four schools in Michigan completed the instrument and scored a mean of 6.23 out of a possible score of 15. An ANOVA showed no statistically significant difference in …

The Politics And Consequences Of Stakeholder Participation In International Development Evaluation, Anne Cullen

Dissertations

Participatory approaches to evaluation have long been vogue in the international development evaluation community. However, despite their widespread use, there is a dearth of research on the impact of stakeholder participation in international development evaluations. Although proponents of participatory approaches to international development evaluation assert many advantages of their use, the evidence to support these claims is largely anecdotal. Similarly, critics of participatory approaches do not have empirical data on which to base their assertions. Further confusing the matter are multiple and conflicting definitions of stakeholder and participation. Some interpret stakeholders to mean funders while others view stakeholders as those …

The Heterosexual Mother-Lesbian Daughter Relationship: Using Consensual Qualitative Research (Cqr) To Understand Perceptions Among Predominately White, Formally Educated Mothers, Julie Meredith Davis

Dissertations

Little research specifically addresses the heterosexual mother-lesbian daughter relationship. Given this, a core research team of six utilized a Consensual Qualitative Research (CQR) approach to gain insight into two broad ideas. The first broad idea was about how heterosexual mothers perceive that their relationship with their lesbian daughters unfolds after the mothers accepted their daughters' minority sexual orientation. The second broad idea was how changes in the heterosexual mothers' values, beliefs, and attitudes (from the mothers' perspectives) influenced their postacceptance relationship with their daughters. The 10 women who agreed to participate in the study were predominately white, formally well-educated, psychologically …

A Molecular Analysis Of Training Multiple Versus Single Manipulations To Establish A Generalized Manipulative Imitation Repertoire, Breanne K. Hartley

Dissertations

This study evaluates the necessity of training multiple versus single manipulativeimitations per object in order to establish generalized manipulative-imitation. Training took place in Croyden Avenue School's Early Childhood Developmental Delay preschool classroom in Kalamazoo, MI. Two groups of 3 children each were trained to imitate in order to determine the most appropriate number of manipulations required (per object) to establish a generalized manipulative-imitation repertoire. Three children received single-manipulations training, and 3 children received multiple-manipulations training. It was anticipated that the multiple-manipulations training group would acquire a greater amount of generalized manipulative-imitation because the training required that the children discriminate between …

Empirical Essays On The Impact Of Health-Aid On Health Outcomes, Elsy Thomas Kizhakethalackal

Dissertations

This dissertation consists of three essays that empirically explore the impact of multilateral health-aid on health outcomes like infant mortality rate (IMR) and incidences of an infectious disease, Tuberculosis, in developing economies. The first essay uses parametric and semiparametric mean regressions (additive and non-additive specifications) to capture the impact of education and health-aid on the IMR, after controlling for other covariates. Both specifications confirm education as an important factor in reducing IMR. However, the effect of health-aid on IMR is not significant. In our additive model, we do see a threshold level of health-aid after which the impacts of health-aid …

An Evaluation Of A Sexual Assault Education Program, Angela P. Hatcher

Dissertations

Sexually aggressive behavior, especially on college campuses, is an issue of major concern. Previous research has found that 54% of college women report being sexually victimized (Koss, Gidycz, & Wisniewski, 1987). Given the scope of this problem, effective prevention strategies are necessary. Sexual assault prevention programs have included those targeting a mixed gender audience as well as gender specific programs. Research examining the effectiveness of these programs, at both post-intervention and follow-up, have provided mixed results.

The goal of the current study was to examine the effectiveness of a video-based sexual assault education program in decreasing rape myths, increasing victim …

The Collective Voices Of Asian International Doctoral Students In Counseling Psychology In The U.S.: Recommendations For Faculty And Training Programs, Miki Koyama

Dissertations

There is growing interest among scholars to understand the training experiences of international students in applied psychology. Few empirical studies have specifically investigated international doctoral students in counseling psychology. The purpose of the present study was to create an opportunity for the voices of Asian international students in U.S. doctoral counseling psychology programs could be expressed, and to convey their collective voices.

Twelve Asian international students, predominately women from East Asia, participated in two phone interviews. Participants were asked to illustrate their overall training experiences, share helpful and unhelpful aspects of their training, and identify recommendations for faculty and training …

Important Or Impotent? Radical Right Political Parties And Public Policy In Germany And Austria, Marcella J. Myers

Dissertations

Across Western Europe throughout the 1990s radical right political parties emerged and gained some electoral success. Since that time, particularly in the face of the popularity of the National Front in France and the Freedom Party in Austria, many studies have been conducted examining the voting behavior, party membership and ideologies of these parties, and what the parties mean to democratic governments. Largely unexamined are the effects of radical right political parties on public policy. This study attempts to evaluate the effect of radical right parties on public policy by using a most similar, case study research design, relying heavily …

The Ethnic Identity Of Returning Immigrants To A Pueblo In Yucatan, David Piacenti

Dissertations

This study seeks to understand: 1) motivations for leaving and, if applicable, racialized, segregated environment, which is represented by the returned cholo, whose "urban gangbanger" mentality confronts the traditional, rural ethnic identity. San Francisco also affects the overall perception of immigration and desire for permanent U.S. residence. Of the San Francisco cohort, 42% say immigration is "positive overall." Conversely, 62% of the Kalamazoo cohort says that immigration is "positive overall." Only 29% of the San Francisco cohort desire permanent residence in the U.S. while 54% of the Kalamazoo cohort desire permanent U.S. residence. Therefore, the suburban context of Kalamazoo may …

Three Essays On Foreign Aid, Poverty And Growth., Aberra Senbeta

Dissertations

This dissertation studies how foreign aid impacts poverty and economic growth and addresses three interrelated issues: whether aid reduces poverty, how aid affects economic growth, and whether the poverty mitigating role of aid depends on the levels of poverty.

The first essay, "Does Foreign Aid Reduce Poverty?" examines the direct effects of foreign aid on poverty in developing countries using dynamic panel estimation techniques. The results suggest that aid has a significant poverty reducing effect even after controlling for average income. The findings are robust to model specification and estimation techniques. The policy implication is that poverty reduction can be …

Validating The Attitudes Toward Sex Offenders Scale, Charmeka. Whitehead

Dissertations

This study investigated the reliability and validity of the Attitudes Toward Sex Offenders Scale (ATS) measurement by assessing attitudes of counselors in training towards juvenile sex offenders. The specific aims of this study were to determine (a) internal consistency of the ATS, (b) construct validity of the ATS based on exploratory factor analysis, and (c) the degree to which this instrument has convergent and discriminate validity. The intellectual merit of this study was to provide appropriate scale validation of the ATS so that it might be used to assess attitudes of mental health professionals who work with juvenile sex offenders. …

Informed Consent As A Predictor Of Working Alliance And Perception Of Counselor/Psychotherapist, Scott E. Kerby

Dissertations

Client informed consent is an important component and ethical dimension of counseling and psychotherapy required by each of the mental health professions. The purpose of this study was to examine the extent to which informed consent in counseling/psychotherapy may relate to client perceptions of the working alliance, measured by the Working Alliance Inventory - Short Version (WAI-S) (Tracey and Kokotovic, 1989), and clients' general opinion of the counselor/psychotherapist, measured by the short form of Counselor Rating Form (CRF-S) (Corrigan and Schmidt, 1983). In particular, the study investigated: (1) how discussion and understanding of informed consent related to client perceptions of …

Phenomenological Study Of Resilience In The Lives Of White, Midlife Lesbian Psychologists In Clinical Practice, Melissa A. Lidderdale

Dissertations

The unique experiences and adversities encountered by midlife lesbian therapists have not been directly investigated. How the midlife lesbian women in this study were influenced by their individual experiences and cultural changes, both in general society and within the mental health profession, are paramount to more fully understanding the adversities, support, and resilience that they experienced while becoming psychologists. Due to the scarcity of empirical literature pertaining to the therapist's experience of resilience and the paucity of empirical literature related to resilience in lesbians, phenomenological research methods were chosen for this study. The goal of this study was to provide …

Exploring The Relationships Between White Racial Consciousness, Feminist Identity Development And Family Environment For White Undergraduate Women, Kara E. Wolff

Dissertations

Although the literature has emphasized the importance of understanding between White racial consciousness, feminist identity development and family environment. Based on the relationships described by the canonical functions considered noteworthy in the analyses three main findings appeared to emerge. First, family environments that were perceived by White undergraduate women to promote engagement with a variety of outside perspectives were related to more actively antiracist worldviews and well-developed feminist identities; while family environments perceived to reflect a more insular focus (i.e. less exposure to divergent opinions) were related to more prejudicial racial attitudes and less feminist identity development. Second, the more …

On The Battleground Of Environmental And Competition Policy: The Renewable Electricity Market, Matyas Tamas Meszaros

Dissertations

Renewable energy resources have become increasingly important in the effort to provide energy security and to fight global warming. In the last decade environmental policy has increased the support for renewable electricity. At the same time the electricity sector was often subject to antitrust investigation because of relevant market concentration and market power. This dissertation looks at the renewable electricity market to analyze the effect of environmental policy on competition.

The first chapter provides a short introduction to the regulatory schemes employed in electricity markets. The second chapter analyzes the demand side of the electricity market. The estimations show that …

Exploring The Relationship Between Religious Faith, Mental Health Help Seeking Attitudes, And Preferences For Counselor Characteristics Among Black American Churchgoers, Darryl P. Plunkett

Dissertations

Empirical data has shown that Black American churchgoers have generally higher baseline rates of religious involvement than the general U.S. population, as well as higher rates of religious involvement than most Black Americans (Chatters, Taylor & Lincoln. 1999). Researchers have noted the influence of religion on the help seeking attitudes of Black Americans (Abernethy, Houston, Mimms, & Boyd-Franklin, 2006) and have also identified counselor characteristics preferred by Black Americans when seeking help for mental health problems (Atkinson, Furlong, & Poston, 1986). However, Black American churchgoers are rarely identified as the target population in empirical studies and little is known about …

Career Decision Making For Male Students With Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder: A Model Of Critical Factors Aiding In Transitional Efforts, Gregory B. Gray

Dissertations

This study is intended to reveal helpful information that will guide high school practitioners in serving students with attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) more effectively. ADHD is neurological in origin, making it invisible. This disorder makes people susceptible to distractibility, impulsivity, disorganization, frustration, anxiety, and moodiness (Janus, 1999). Fifteen percent or more of the U.S. population has ADHD. These individuals, who often are viewed by career counselors, teachers, and employers as frustrating or difficult, are uniquely vulnerable in high school and beyond. Because individuals with ADHD have invisible handicaps, their academic performance and social behaviors can be interpreted incorrectly. Thus, …

Science Education Policy For Emergency, Conflict, And Post-Conflict: An Analysis Of Trends And Implications For The Science Education Program In Uganda, Betty Pacutho Udongo

Dissertations

This study analyzes the impact of armed conflicts on the development of education policy and particularly science education program in Uganda. Since independence from the British colonial rule, Uganda has experienced a series of armed conflicts, with the most devastating being the 21 years of conflict in Northern Uganda.

The research study was guided by the following questions: (1) What is the level of government funding towards improving science education program in Uganda? (2) Have recent initiatives, such as free Primary and Secondary education, compulsory science, and 75% sponsorship for science-based courses, had a measurable impact on the proportion of …

Degrees Of Institutionalization: Family Planning Policies And Programs In Senegal, 1980-2005, Yazmine Michelle Watts

Dissertations

Senegal's population growth rate of 2.7% is greater than double that of the world average of 1.16%. The Government of Senegal acknowledges the population problem and has made efforts to address this issue. For over the past two decades the United States Agency for International Development (USAID) has served as the predominant donor in Senegal's health sector and has been a strong supporter of Senegal's family planning program. The evolution of family planning in Senegal cannot be understood without considering the roles of culture, religion, decentralization and funding in the institutionalization process. This research addresses important questions concerning factors that …

African-American Girls And Scientific Argumentation: Lived Experiences, Intersecting Identities And Their Roles In Constructing And Evaluating Claims, Phyllis Haugabook Pennock

Dissertations

Scientific argumentation can be traced back to ancient times; yet has seen a recent upswing over the last decade in the area of science education. This is due to current national education standards that ascribe this practice as a way of promoting scientific literacy for all. Current literature reflects an evolution of scientific argumentation – accommodating emerging research that uses socio-scientific issues. National standards highlight the need to teach argumentation, yet also recognize the urgent demand for educational equity of all students.

The purpose of this research was to narrow the gap dividing argumentation studies from other science discourse research. …

The Comparative Efficacy Of Dosed, Enhanced Dosed, Prolonged Exposure, And Mindfulness In The Reduction Of Anxiety, Sophie Rubin

Dissertations

Exposure-based treatments have proven effective in treating a range of fears and phobias and can be accounted for by mechanisms described in behavioral theory. Enhanced dosed and dosed-only exposure are promising new behavioral approaches for treating fears and phobias. Fifty participants with speech anxiety were randomly assigned to a prolonged exposure condition (PE), a dosed-only exposure condition (DE), a positively enhanced dosed exposure condition (PDE), a negatively-supplemented dosed exposure condition (NDE), or a mindfulness enhanced dosed exposure condition (MDE). End of session results for all of the enhanced groups resulted in significantly lower subjective ratings of discomfort than the non-enhanced …

Implementing A Mastery Model Through Self Quizzing In An Online Learning Environment, Amy E. Scrima

Dissertations

Mastery learning has an extensive and long-standing research base as an efficacious instructional methodology. The use of mastery learning with current technological advances, however, is a new endeavor. The current study evaluated the effects of adding a mastery learning component to an introductory college course by using an online course management system to facilitate frequent, self-given, chapter review quizzes. Thirty-two first- and second-year college students of similar demographic makeup at a midsize community college were the participants for this study. An alternating treatment design was used to assign students to mastery and nonmastery conditions in two sections of an introductory …

Curriculum-Based Measures In Writing: A School-Based Evaluation Of Predictive Validity, Christina M. Terenzi

Dissertations

Recent research in the area of Curriculum-Based Measures (CBM) in writing has shown that traditionally used metrics, such as total words written and total words correct, may not be the best tools for measuring writing performance, for both secondary and elementary aged children (e.g., Gansle, Noell, VanDerHeyden, Naquin, & Slider, 2002; Tindal & Parker, 1989a; Watkinson & Lee, 1992). Evidence suggests that more advanced measures, such as production-independent measures (e.g., percentage of correct word sequences) may be stronger predictors of student skill level in the area of writing. The present study replicated portions of a recent seminal study and investigated …

Get On The Solar Track To Accelerate Your Wmu Experience, Amanda Jandahl, Andrea Sell

Honors Theses

The Western Michigan University Sunseeker solar car team is faced with the challenge to raise awareness and educate the WMU community about the excellent opportunities that the team provides to WMU students. The team, as a whole, seeks to increase public education about renewable energy, especially solar energy, through the races in which the solar car competes. In order to recruit new participants, raise funds for construction and competition, and keep the solar car as a point of pride at Western Michigan University, the team needs to increase promotional activity. The promotional campaign titled Get on the Solar Track to …