Social and Behavioral Sciences Commons^™

Life Insurance: Nudges And Adverse Selection, Timothy F. Harris

Theses and Dissertations--Economics

Death of a breadwinner can have devastating financial consequences on surviving dependents through lost earnings and medical expenses. Life insurance is designed to help mitigate these financial burdens. Nonetheless, there are documented shortages in life insurance coverage. Adverse selection---where higher risk individuals are more likely to purchase coverage leading to market failure---could be one of the causes of uninsured vulnerabilities. I analyze both the existence of and welfare costs from adverse selection in individual term life insurance and employer-sponsored life insurance (ESLI) at a large public university. In the individual term market, using a representative sample of purchasers, I do …

Agricultural Input Intensification, Productivity Growth, And The Transformation Of African Agriculture, Didier Y. Alia

Theses and Dissertations--Agricultural Economics

This dissertation studies agricultural input intensification, defined as the increased use of modern inputs such as hybrid seeds, mineral fertilizer, herbicide, and pesticide in African agriculture. It also analyses the potential of this intensification to accelerate productivity growth and tests the effectiveness of two policies, input subsidies and land reforms, in promoting it and consequently in increasing crop yield. In the first essay, we argue that to create the conditions for the emergence of a green revolution in Africa, modern agricultural technologies have to be adopted as a package, not in a piecemeal fashion. This argument is consistent with a …

Service Before Self: The Health Consequences Of Working In Public Child Welfare, Austin Garrett Griffiths

Theses and Dissertations--Social Work

Child welfare workers respond to human tragedy and the job stresses associated with their positions that may result in their own trauma, secondary traumatic stress, compassion fatigue, emotional exhaustion, and burnout. Workers continue to leave their positions at alarming rates, influencing service quality and the ability to meet the needs of vulnerable populations. Decades of research have attempted to solve this national crisis by identifying salient factors found to influence the child welfare worker's experience and intention to leave their position. However, the problem prevails.

Addressing a major gap in the literature, this mixed methods study took a unique approach …

Workplace Bullying In Kuwait, Hamad A. Alaslawi

Theses and Dissertations--Social Work

Workplace bullying (WPB) is a pervasive problem in contemporary society, inflicting detrimental repercussions upon employees, employers, and organizations alike. It affects the physical, psychological, and financial wellbeing not only of its victims, but also their families, their communities, and society as a whole.

Research into this phenomenon has evolved significantly over the past two decades. While related to the physically violent phenomenon of schoolyard bullying, WPB is primarily a psychological phenomenon, manifesting as abusive power in workplace relationships, rather than as interpersonal conflict. Bullying at work comes in many forms, has many faces, and occurs in many places. It ranges …

The Impact Of Attitudes And Beliefs About Fat On Social Work Education In Appalachia: An Exploratory Study, Genesia Kilgore-Bowling

Theses and Dissertations--Social Work

Anti-fat bias and the resulting discriminatory behavior is widely documented and impacts almost every aspect of an obese person’s life, including healthcare/insurance, education, employment, interpersonal relationships, and protection under the law. This has serious psychological, social, physical health, and economic consequences for the obese person. The non-social work related literature provides an abundance of evidence that when obese people seek assistance from a helping professional, they are met with the same anti-fat bias and discrimination present in other areas of their lives.

Recognizing that anti-fat bias can lead to negative practice behaviors with obese patients and clients, many professional education …

Exploring The Influence Of Students' Perceptions Of Instructional Message Content Relevance And Experienced Cognitive Load On Students' Cognitive Learning, Benson T. Sexton

Theses and Dissertations--Communication

Connecting the relevance of course content to students’ lives has been a learning strategy for decades. In educational psychology, Keller (1983) suggested content relevance to be a component within the ARCS model to motivate students toward learning behaviors. Within instructional communication research, Frymier and Shulman (1995) argued that students enter classrooms with the expectation that they will understand the connection between the content and their lives. Specifically, students want to know why they are taking a course and how it impacts their interests, needs, and professional goals (Frymier, 2001). In both education and instructional communication literature, teacher content relevance strategies …

Using Social Cognitive Theory To Understand Child And Adolescent Psychiatrists’ Discussions Of Substance Abuse With Their Patients, Kevin A. Wombacher

Theses and Dissertations--Communication

This study investigates factors that influence the conversations that child and adolescent psychiatrists have with their patients about substance use. The goal of the study is to gain a better understanding of salient psychological and communication constructs in this context using social cognitive theory as a guide. The study consisted of a national online survey of child and adolescent psychiatrists (n = 170) focused on understanding factors that affect self-efficacy and communication competence related to discussing substance use with adolescent patients. Results show that communication apprehension has a strong negative association with perceptions of self-efficacy. Results also show that …

Managing Multiple Goals In Opioid Prescription Communication: Perspectives From Trauma Physicians, Elizabeth T. Adams

Theses and Dissertations--Communication

Prescription opioids and heroin account for more than half of all drug overdose fatalities, claiming an estimated 91 American lives every day (Rudd, Seth, David, & Scholl, 2016). The ongoing opioid epidemic represents a tremendous burden to the national economy and healthcare system (Rudd, Aleshire, Zibbell, & Gladden, 2016). In 2016, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention and the White House Office of National Drug Control Policy proposed action to train prescribers on the proper dispensing of opioids, which are indispensable pharmacologic resources for treating acute pain resulting from trauma or surgery. This study examines the prescribing practices of …

Face Threat Mitigation In Feedback: An Examination Of Student Apprehension, Self-Efficacy, And Perceived Emotional Support, Alexis A. Hadden

Theses and Dissertations--Communication

This experimental study examined the effects of an instructor’s face threat mitigation tactics on student self-efficacy for learning and perceived emotional support from the instructor in a written feedback setting. Participants (N = 401) were randomly assigned to one of four feedback scenarios in which level of face threat mitigation and instructor age and status were manipulated. Student grade orientation and state feedback apprehension were measured prior to being exposed to the feedback scenario. Results indicate that high face threat mitigation is positively associated with student self-efficacy for learning and perceived emotional support from the instructor. Results also revealed …

The Outsiders: Understanding How Activists Use Issues Management To Challenge Corporate Behavior, Chelsea Lane Woods

Theses and Dissertations--Communication

Increasingly, corporations receive pressure from activist organizations to alter activities that these individuals find problematic and irresponsible. Despite this escalation, research on activism from a public relations perspective progressed slowly; much of this literature privileges the perspective of corporations and rarely examines the process from the activist perspective. To address this gap, this dissertation examined how activist organizations use issues management and communication strategies to incite corporations to change their practices and policies while simultaneously building relationships with pertinent audiences. This study incorporated data collected from qualitative interviews with activist practitioners representing a variety of activist organizations, along with organizational …

Black Women’S Perspectives On Breast Cancer Detection Messaging, Denise M. Damron

Theses and Dissertations--Communication

A qualitative approach was used to explore the influence of mass media campaigns on Black women’s perceptions of breast cancer. The primary purpose of this study was to address the high breast cancer mortality rate among young Black women, thus informing strategies to increase awareness of risk and encourage prevention activities. Black women have higher incidence rates before age 45 and are more likely to die from breast cancer at every age. Although the breast cancer mortality variance has been linked to socioeconomic status, studies have shown that differences in cancer knowledge and beliefs persist even when educational and socioeconomic …

Comparing The Effects Of Mindfulness Meditation And Relaxation In A Brief Laboratory Induction, Carolina A. Caldera

Theses and Dissertations--Psychology

Mindfulness is the practice of being nonjudgmentally aware of the present moment. Researchers often study the effects of mindfulness using brief laboratory-based mindfulness inductions in which participants are guided through mindfulness exercises, after which outcome measures are examined. However, most studies have not assessed whether participants achieved a mindful state during the induction, or whether the effects of mindfulness inductions differ from the effects of similar procedures such as relaxation. The present study compared a mindfulness exercise to a relaxation exercise and a control condition. After the induction, participants completed measures of the extent to which they attained a mindful …

Personality And Learning Predictors Of Adolescent Alcohol Consumption Trajectories, Sarah J. Peterson

Theses and Dissertations--Psychology

In a sample of 1897 youth studied across the last year of elementary school to the second year of high school, we (a) characterized different developmental trajectories of drinking frequency and drinking-related problems and (b) tested an a priori risk model that predicted variation in trajectory group membership. Analyses revealed five separate trajectories for both drinking frequency and drinking problems. Wave 1 scores on impulsigenic traits, expectancies for the reinforcing and stimulating effects of alcohol, and early pubertal onset differentiated among the trajectory groups, in some cases before the groups differed in drinking behavior. We also found substantial covariation between …

Testing A Values-Based Approach To Healthcare Decision-Making In Older Adults, Paul Jefferson Geiger

Theses and Dissertations--Psychology

Despite natural declines in physical and cognitive function, older adults maintain good emotion regulation abilities, leading to emotional wellbeing and resilience. This phenomenon can partially be explained by socioemotional selectivity theory (SST), which posits that when time is perceived as a limited resource, older adults focus attention on positive environmental stimuli to regulate emotions. Although this positivity effect maintains emotional wellbeing, it may disrupt information processing related to healthcare decision-making. Older adults request less information from their doctors, are less likely to ask for a second opinion, make their decisions more quickly, and devote more attention to positive medical information, …

Behavioral Deficits Across Development In A Novel Mouse Model Of Fetal Ethanol Effects, Andrew B. Hawkey

Theses and Dissertations--Psychology

Fetal Alcohol Spectrum Disorders (FASD) are a spectrum of anatomical, developmental and neurobehavioral impairments resulting from ethanol (ETOH) exposure during fetal development. Efforts to develop and screen novel pharmacotherapies against fetal ETOH effects depend heavily upon rodent models to provide indicators of the safety and efficacy of such compounds, in addition to helping better understand the underlying mechanisms to develop and test these pharmacotherapies. The following experiments describe the development of a novel mouse model of FASD using behavioral batteries to assess behavioral or cognitive deficits in juvenile and adolescent offspring (Experiment 1, Experiment 2) and whether deficits with this …

The Effects Of Depletion And Brain Stimulation On Motivation, Sarah Beth Bell

Theses and Dissertations--Psychology

Mental fatigue decreases motivation. I tested whether applying electricity to a self-control region of the brain would replenish some of the motivation normally lost during mental fatigue. 224 people participated in this study. Each person received real or placebo brain stimulation while undergoing activities that increased mental fatigue. The dependent variable was a task where participants had to perform work by clicking a computer mouse repeatedly. Before performing this task, participants indicated how hard they were planning to work on this motivation task. Participants who received real brain stimulation were able to perform more work, but only if they also …

Usability Is Not Just Usability: Discovering The Strategies Used By Non-Experts In Making Usability Predictions, Michelle A. Sublette

Theses and Dissertations--Psychology

Much of the research on metacognition in human factors has focused on prescriptive, normative strategy training. That is, many researchers have concentrated their efforts on finding ways to improve system users’ prediction, planning, monitoring and evaluation strategies for tasks. However little research has focused on the strategies and heuristics users employ on their own to make usability predictions. Understanding usability prediction methods is critical because users’ predictions inform their expectations about whether they will make errors using a product, how much effort they will need to expend to be successful in using the product, whether they can perform two tasks …

Cross-Validation Of The Validity-10 Subscale Of The Neurobehavioral Symptom Inventory, Jordan P. Harp

Theses and Dissertations--Psychology

The present study is a cross-validation of the Validity-10 embedded symptom validity indicator from the Neurobehavioral Symptom Inventory (NSI) for the detection of questionable response validity during evaluation for mild traumatic brain injury (TBI).

The sample and data derived from a three-site Veterans Affairs (VA) parent study to validate the TBI Clinical Reminder, a routine set of questions asked of all recently returned veterans at VA facilities to screen for history of TBI. In the parent study, veterans recently returned from Iraq and Afghanistan underwent an evaluation for TBI with a physician and completed an assessment battery including neuropsychological tests …

The Influence Of Cocaine-Related Images On Inhibitory Control In Cocaine Users, Erika Pike

Theses and Dissertations--Psychology

Cocaine users display impaired inhibitory control. The influence of cocaine-related stimuli on inhibitory control has not been assessed. The Attentional Bias-Behavioral Activation (ABBA) task uses cocaine and neutral images as cues to determine if drug-related images impair inhibitory control in cocaine users. This dissertation was designed to assess the influence of cocaine images on inhibitory control in cocaine users through the conduct of studies designed to address four aims. The first aim was to demonstrate that cocaine users display impaired inhibitory control following cocaine images compared to neutral images on the ABBA task. This was accomplished through the conduct of …

Risk Factors For Abuse Of Prescription Stimulants In College Students: A Dissertation, Eric A. Haak

Theses and Dissertations--Psychology

The abuse of prescription stimulants among college students is a growing public health concern. While these substances are often viewed as safe, “smart drugs”, they are associated with a number of maladaptive outcomes, ranging from poorer academic performance to cardiovascular incidents and even death. To date, the majority of research on the abuse of these substances have focused on demographic factors which are not amenable to intervention, such as race, Greek organization status, and class rank. The current study examined family factors, academic stress, and impulsivity as potential risk factors which are amenable to intervention. In a sample of 335 …

Optimism And Pain Interference In Aging Women, Stephanie T. Judge

Theses and Dissertations--Psychology

Pain interferes with people's daily lives and often limits the extent to which they can pursue goals and engages in activities that promote well-being. The present study test how optimism affects and is affected by pain interference and activity among older women. Every three months for two years, middle- and older-age women (N = 199) complete daily diaries at home for a seven-day period, reporting their daily pain, pain interference, and activity. Optimism was measured at baseline and end-of-study. Multilevel models test the between- and within-person relationships among pain, optimism, pain interference and activity. Pain best predicted pain interference …

Caars-S:L Infrequency Index Validation: A Pilot Comparison Of Paper And Online Assessments, Elizabeth R. Wallace

Theses and Dissertations--Psychology

One obstacle to the accurate diagnosis of ADHD in college students is malingering, although many symptom self-report measures do not contain feigning validity scales. The Infrequency Index (CII) for the Conners’ Adult ADHD Rating Scale–Self-Report: Long Version (CAARS-S:L) was developed for this purpose, although further validation of the index is needed. Another topic of interest in ADHD malingering research is the increasing use of online assessments. Little is known about how ADHD is malingered in an online format, particularly on the CAARS-S:L. The current study aims to integrate these strands of research by examining the utility of the CII in …

Rooting A Successful Model For Agriculture In A Politics Of Possibility: The Case Of The Land Institute, Alicia Hullinger

Theses and Dissertations--Sociology

This research considers the potential for social movement organizations (SMOs) to bring about a comprehensive transformation to the current system of industrial agriculture by asking, How can a SMO outside a field of power advance an oppositional model while not being coopted by the dominant system? In Part One, I provide the background context for agricultural research systems in the U.S., describing the rise of the current landscape setting the national agenda and its consequences. To explain power dynamics, I apply a synthesis of Pierre Bourdieu’s and Raymond Williams’ relational theory models for considering the trends of dominant, alternative, …

Impact Of Food Insecurity And Snap Participation On Healthcare Utilization And Expenditures, Seth A. Berkowitz, Hilary K. Seligman, Sanjay Basu

University of Kentucky Center for Poverty Research Discussion Paper Series

We tested three hypothesis related to food insecurity and the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP), America’s largest anti-food insecurity program. We hypothesized that 1)food insecurity would be associated with increased healthcare expenditures, 2)food insecurity would be associated with increased use of emergency department and inpatient services, and 3) SNAP participation would be associated with lower subsequent healthcare expenditures. We used data from the 2011 National Health Interview Survey linked to the 2012-13 Medical Expenditures Panel Survey. We used zero-inflated negative binomial regression to test the relationship between food insecurity and healthcare cost and use. We evaluated the association between SNAP …

The Real Value Of Snap Benefits And Health Outcomes, Hilary W. Hoynes, Erin Bronchetti, Garret Christensen

University of Kentucky Center for Poverty Research Discussion Paper Series

The food stamp program (SNAP) is one of the most important elements of the social safety net and is the second largest anti-poverty program for children in the U.S. (only the EITC raises more children above poverty). The program varies little across states and over time, which creates challenges for quasi-experimental evaluation. Notably, SNAP benefit levels are fixed across 48 states; but local food prices vary widely, leading to substantial variation in the real value of SNAP benefits. In this study, we leverage time variation in the real value of the SNAP benefit across markets to examine the effects of …

Analyzing Songs Used For Lyric Analysis With Mental Health Consumers Using Linguistic Inquiry And Word Count (Liwc) Software, Ashley M. Miller

Theses and Dissertations--Music

Lyric analysis is one of the most commonly used music therapy interventions with the mental health population, yet there is a gap in the research literature regarding song selection. The primary purpose of this study was to determine distinguishing linguistic characteristics of song lyrics most commonly used for lyric analysis with mental health consumers, as measured by LIWC2015 software. A secondary purpose was to provide an updated song list resource for music therapists and music therapy students working with the mental health population. The researcher emailed a survey to 6,757 board-certified music therapists, 316 of whom completed the survey. Respondents …

Fast Friends: Implicit Bias Of Cross-Group Friendships In A College Of Agriculture, Tiffany Harper

Theses and Dissertations--Community & Leadership Development

Cross-group paired individuals were administered an intervention to measure impacts of inmate interactions and friendships on anxiety and implicit bias among participants. Researchers predicted the intervention would decrease levels of racial anxiety, implicitness, prejudice, and racial color-blindness among entering freshmen in the College of Agriculture, Food & Environment at the University of Kentucky. Results indicated that the control group had no change in implicitness. The treatment group yielded no change in implicitness on four out of five experimental measures with the exception of decrease in communal orientation, thus altering the implicit bias of participants.

A Multiple Goals Theoretical Approach To Sexting: Message Content And Scale Development, Christina Harris

Theses and Dissertations--Communication

Recently, sexting has gained popularity in both popular press and academic publications. Despite the prevalence of this communicative behavior, there is limited research that focuses on a theoretical explanation as well as how it can potentially enhance relationships. The purpose of this dissertation was threefold: to utilize the multiple goals theoretical perspective to examine sender goals when sexting, to assess if multiple goals within sexting was associated with relational behaviors and outcomes, and to develop a reliable and valid scale for sexting goals.

A two-phase study was implemented. In phase 1, participants provided actual sexting messages they had recently sent …

I Can’T Believe My Instructor Did That?! Middle Eastern Students’ Expectations Of Insturctors’ Verbal And Nonverbal Immediacy Behaviors, Mariam Alabdali

Theses and Dissertations--Communication

This study seeks to explore an understudied population, Middle Eastern students, in the area of instructional communication. Of particular interest, the study seeks to understand how Middle Eastern students’ view their Western instructors’ verbal and nonverbal immediacy. The literature review establishes a conceptualization for verbal and nonverbal immediacy and the relationship between immediacy and gender, and immediacy and culture. Expectancy violations theory is used to understand the phenomena from an expectancy violations perspective and Hofstede’s dimensions will be used in an instructional context to understand how Middle Eastern students’ culture may influence students’ expectations. This study uses a mixed method …