Digital Commons Network^™

Essential Parts, Sean Gray

Common Reading Essay Contest Winners

Second Place

"Tell Him I'M Gone" On The Margins In High-Tech City, Rachel Brahinsky

Politics

No abstract provided.

Exploring Alternative Funding Methods For The Lead Remediation Program In Scott County, Iowa, Dr. John Delaney, Brittany A. Poynor

2016-2017: Scott County, Iowa and the Scott County Health Department

Lead poisoning is an environmental as well as social problem. Areas with more older housing and higher rates of poverty are also the areas with the most lead poisoned children. Though the United States banned the use of lead paint in in 1978 and lead poisoning is preventable, lead poisoning remains a public health problem. Homes built before 1978 may pose risk of lead paint exposure, but of special concern to Scott County are the number of homes built before 1950.

Scott County, Iowa is home to some of the oldest housing units in the U.S. Iowa ranks fifth among …

Recognising Birth Children As Social Actors In The Foster-Care Process: Retrospective Accounts From Biological Children Of Foster-Carers In Ireland, David Williams

Articles

While a wealth of literature exists on the topic of fostering, limited research has been published on the experiences of the biological children of foster-carers (Younes and Harp, 2007; Sutton and Stack, 2013). Literature that exists identifies increased recognition of the importance of birth children’s contribution to successful foster-care placements and the prevention of placement breakdown (Kalland and Sinkonnen, 2001; Hojer et al., 2013). This paper reports findings from an interpretivist study that explored the retrospective experiences of fifteen adult birth children of foster-carers (aged between eighteen and twenty-eight years) in Ireland. Using semi-structured interviews, birth children’s experiences of fostering …

Habitus, The Writings Of Irish Hunger Strikers And Elias's The Loneliness Of The Dying, John Connolly, Paddy Dolan

Articles

»Habitus, die Texte der irischen Hungerstreikenden und Elias', Die Einsamkeit der Sterbenden'«. Elias maintained that over the course of several centuries death has become associated with greater shame and embarrassment feelings due mainly to four interwoven processes. In this paper we consider how these specific processes or 'special conditions' Elias referred to, in conjunction with other processes, shaped the experience of dying and the image of death for twentieth century Irish hunger strikers.

Producing Sacredness And Defending Secularity: Faith In The Workplace Of Taiwanese Scientists, Di Di, Elaine Howard Ecklund

Sociology

Although a recent body of scholarship focuses on how business professionals infuse spiritual practices in their workplaces, comparatively little attention has been paid to faith in the scientific workplace, especially in an Eastern, non-Christian context. Between 2014 and 2015, we conducted a survey of 892 scientists in Taiwan and completed interviews with 52 of our survey respondents. In this paper, we examine how scientists navigate religion in the scientific workplace. Survey results demonstrate that while scientists perceive religion and scientific research as generally separate in the abstract, in practice, they regard the boundary between religion and their workplace as somewhat …

A Catholic Science? Italian Scientistsconstruct Religious Identity During Religious Shifts, Elaine Howard Ecklund, Di Di

Sociology

Scholars have argued that learning science is linked to a decrease in personal faith among scientists. We do not know much, however, about the so-called secularizing effect of science among scientists outside the US, where such religious processes could operate differently. Because the negotiation between science and religion is more salient when faith is in transition, we examine how scientists in Italy (a predominantly Catholic context) construct religious identity during religious shifts. Drawing from interviews with 81 Italian physicists and biologists, we ask whether scientists have experienced any religious shifts and how they went through these shifts, addressing personal secularization …

Engagement In A Public Forum: Knowledge, Action, And Cosmopolitanism, Jennifer F. Brewer, Natalie Springuel, James Wilson, Robin Alden, Dana Morse, Catherine Schmitt, Chris Bartlett, Teresa Joihnson, Carla Guenther, Damian Brady

Geography

Facing challenges to the civic purpose of higher education, some scholars and administrators turn to the rhetoric of engagement. Simultaneously, the political philosophy of cosmopolitanism has gained intellectual favor, advocating openness to the lived experiences of distant others. We articulate linkages between these two discourses in an extended case study, finding that a cosmopolitan ethos of engagement in a rural context can improve (1) understanding among people ordinarily separated by spatialized social-ecological differences, (2) prospects for longer term environmental sustainability, and (3) the visionary potential of collaborative inquiry. Despite globalization of food systems and neoliberal shifts in fishery management, an …

Law-Based Arguments And Messages To Advocate For Later School Start Time Policies In The United States, Clark J. Lee, Dennis M. Nolan, Steven W. Lockley, Brent Pattison

Homeland Security Publications

The increasing scientific evidence that early school start times are harmful to the health and safety of teenagers has generated much recent debate about changing school start times policies for adolescent students. Although efforts to promote and implement such changes have proliferated in the United States in recent years, they have rarely been supported by law-based arguments and messages that leverage the existing legal infrastructure regulating public education and child welfare in the United States. Furthermore, the legal bases to support or resist such changes have not been explored in detail to date. This article provides an overview of how …

A Current And Increasing Problem Of Anti-Social Behavior Via Anonymity Using Electronic Mediums Demanding Recognition As A Biophsychosocial Disorder That Perpetuates Criminal Behavior Online, Hannah Wood Despres

Regis University Student Publications (comprehensive collection)

Most people who commit crime fall into a classification of criminological, sociological or psychological disorders called biopsychosocial disorders. Cyber-crime is unique in the fact that, cyber criminals can commit crimes behind completely closed doors and they are virtually anonymous. This makes for a varied environment of theory on the causation of cyber-crimes. The proposed disorder theory, computer mediated anonymity asocial disordered theory, is based on the notion that the anonymous nature of electronic mediums in communication has significantly changed people’s interpersonal skills. The change in interpersonal development is therefore affecting social engagement behavior online and has allowed a lack of …

Transgender Policy And Practice Development For The College Of Saint Benedict And Saint John’S University, Mary Geller, Doug Mullin Osb

Academic Affairs Publications

The CSB and SJU Vice Presidents for Student Development led the effort to research and develop policies and practices that would guide the College of Saint Benedict and Saint John’s University to be intentional with regard to the welcome, education, and services extended to transgender and gender non-conforming students in ways that are consistent with each of their respective institutional identities and missions as a Catholic Benedictine residential liberal arts college for women/men.

Preschool Children’S Biophilia And Attitudes Toward Nature: The Effect Of Personal Experiences, Ruddy E. Yanez, Bronwyn S. Fees, Julia C. Torquati

Department of Child, Youth, and Family Studies: Faculty Publications

Regular engagement outside may promote healthy physical and psychological development as well as a respect and appreciation for nature. This exploratory study compared biophilia and attitudes toward nature between young children living in an urban area to those in a rural area. Urban and rural areas may offer different opportunities for exposure and engagement with elements such as water, plants, and animals. A comparison between young children in these settings may determine if experience in these different environments affects their attitudes and biophilia. Thirty-six children (urban n = 27; rural n = 9) participated in one-on-one structured interviews about their …

Climate Change In The Hudson River Estuary: Promoting Adaptation And Resilience Through Stakeholder Engagement In Design And Visualization, Gabrielle S.D. Weiss

Bard Center for Environmental Policy

In response to the growing risk to communities from climate change impacts, Professor Cerra at the Cornell University School of Landscape Architecture developed the Climate Adaptive Design (CAD) program. CAD is being implemented as a partnership between the Hudson River Estuary Program (Estuary Program) and Cornell that utilizes participatory design and visualization to engage communities about planning for future climate impacts. The goal of CAD is to build climate resilience, galvanize community participation and education, and build links to external sources of support including local institutions of higher education. This thesis outlines background for the development of the program and …

Public Perception Of Environmental Programs In The Sierra Gorda Biosphere Reserve, Landa De Matamoros, Queretaro, Mexico, Danielle Marie Salisbury

Bard Center for Environmental Policy

Biological or ecological corridors have recently been sought out as a solution to biodiversity loss due to habitat fragmentation. In eastern Mexico, the Mexican and German governments are collaborating to connect fragmented landscapes and Natural Protected Areas (NPAs) over five states across a Madrean Pine-Oak biodiversity hotspot through the implementation of the Ecological Corridor of the Sierra Madre Oriental (CESMO). One of the ways the CESMO is accomplishing its conservation goals is by extending environmental programs that are currently in place within NPAs to other areas within the corridor, but outside of NPA borders. However, the success of the corridor …

Grief, Loss, And Separation: Experiences Of Birth Children Of Foster Carers, David Williams

Articles

Previous research identifies the increased exposure of birth children of foster carers to experiences of separation, grief, and loss due to the transient nature of foster care, but little is known about how birth children manage this loss. This paper reports findings from a qualitative study that examined the retrospective experiences of 15 adult birth children of foster carers (aged between 18 and 28 years) in Ireland. Findings suggest that birth children experience grief and loss when foster children leave their families. They report experiencing a range of emotional responses such as guilt, blame, and sadness. A reluctance to discuss …

Deconstructing Hypermasculinity: Combatting The War On Black Men, Aliyah Abu-Hazeem

Honors Papers

This research project aims to interrogate the rationale behind Black men’s disproportionate engagement in crime and violent behaviors. To do this, I aim to debunk hypermasculinity as the media and Police’s predominate rationale for Black men’s participation in violence and crime. Although narratives of hypermasculinity have become more insidious across time and space since the slavery era, they still contribute to the pervasive perception of Black men as savage hoodlums who are undeserving of success outcomes. The concept of hypermasculinity asserts that Black men have a biological, innate disposition to incite harm. To deracialize and demystify current stigmas of hypermasculinity …

Gender In The Global Research Landscape, Ludivine Allagnat, Stephane Berghmans, Holly J. Falk-Krzesinski, Shereen Hanafi, Rachel Herbert, Sarah Huggett, Stacey Tobin

Public Reports

Critical issues related to gender disparity and bias must be examined by sound studies. Drawing upon a collection of high-quality global data sources and analytical expertise, Elsevier has produced this report as an evidence-based examination of the outputs, quality, and impact of research worldwide through a gender lens and as a vehicle for understanding the role of gender within the structure of the global research enterprise. Gender in the Global Research Landscape employs bibliometric analyses and methodologies that enable gender disambiguation of authors within the Scopus® abstract and citation database and includes comparisons between twenty-seven subject areas, across twelve comparator …

It's Time: A Meta-Analysis On The Self-Control-Deviance Link, Alexander T. Vazsonyi, Jakub Mikuška, Erin L. Kelley

Family Sciences Faculty Publications

Purpose
The current meta-analysis examines the link between self-control and measures of crime and deviance, taking stock of the empirical status of self-control theory and focusing on work published between 2000 and 2010.

Methods
A total of 796 studies were reviewed for inclusion/exclusion criteria and yielded a final study sample of 99 studies (88 cross-sectional and 19 longitudinal effect sizes, analyzed separately). Random effects mean correlations between self-control and deviance were analyzed for cross-sectional and longitudinal studies, respectively. Publication bias was assessed using multiple methods.

Results
A random effects mean correlation between self-control and deviance was M_r = 0.415 …

Sibling Relationship Quality And Mexican-Origin Adolescents' And Young Adults' Familism Values And Adjustment, Sarah E. Killoren, Sue A. Rodriguez De Jesus, Kimberly A. Updegraff, Lorey A. Wheeler

Nebraska Center for Research on Children, Youth, Families, and Schools: Faculty Publications

We examined profiles of sibling relationship qualities in 246 Mexican-origin families living in the United States using latent profile analyses. Three profiles were identified: Positive, Negative and Affect-Intense. Links between profiles and youths’ familism values and adjustment were assessed using longitudinal data. Siblings in the Positive profile reported the highest familism values, followed by siblings in the Affect-Intense profile and, finally, siblings in the Negative profile. Older siblings in the Positive and Affect-Intense profiles reported fewer depressive symptoms than siblings in the Negative profile. Further, in the Positive and Negative profiles, older siblings reported less involvement in risky behaviors …

Small Landholders Battle The Leaf Folder: Improving Livelihoods In The Solomon Islands, Dalia Tayseer Najjar

Bard Center for Environmental Policy

Sweet Potato is an important staple food crop grown by subsistence farmers in the Solomon Islands. It plays an important food security role and a major source of nutrition and livelihood in the rural areas as well as urban areas in the country. However, the spread of agricultural pests, in particular, the green leaf folder pest (Psara hipponalis), has significantly increased in recent years leaving many smallholder farmers with reduced yields and food insecurity. In this thesis, I reviewed the literature on the common mechanisms used to evaluate the drivers of pest presence and identified the major factors …

Reliability And Validity Of The Hd-Pro-Triadtm, A Health-Related Quality Of Life Measure Designed To Assess The Symptom Triad Of Huntington's Disease., Nicholas R Boileau, Julie C Stout, Janes S Paulsen, David Cella, Michael K Mccormack, Martha A Nance, Samuel Frank, Jin-Shei Lai, Noelle E Carlozzi

Rowan-Virtua School of Osteopathic Medicine Departmental Research

BACKGROUND: Huntington's disease (HD), is a neurodegenerative disorder that is associated with cognitive, behavioral, and motor impairments that diminish health related quality of life (HRQOL). The HD-PRO-TRIADTM is a quality of life measure that assesses health concerns specific to individuals with HD. Preliminary psychometric characterization was limited to a convenience sample of HD participants who completed measures at home so clinician-ratings were unavailable.

OBJECTIVES: The current study evaluates the reliability and validity of the HD-PRO-TRIADTM in a well-characterized sample of individuals with HD.

METHODS: Four-hundred and eighty-two individuals with HD (n = 192 prodromal, n = 193 early, and n …

Folsom Mammoth Hunters? The Terminal Pleistocene Assemblage From Owl Cave (10bv30), Wasden Site, Idaho, L. Suzann Henrikson, David A. Byers, Robert M. Yohe, Matthew M. Decarlo, Gene L. Titmus

Sociology, Social Work and Anthropology Faculty Publications

The 1960s and 1970s excavations at Owl Cave (10BV30) recovered mammoth bone and Folsom-like points from the same strata, suggesting evidence for a post-Clovis mammoth kill. However, a synthesis of the excavation data was never published, and the locality has since been purged from the roster of sites with human / extinct megafauna associations. Here, we present data on bone from the oldest stratum, review provenience data, conduct a bone-surface modification study, and present the results of a protein-residue analysis. Our study fails to make the case for mammoth hunting by Folsom peoples. Although two of the fragments tested positive …

Exploring Teaching Methods Corresponding With The Theory Of Basic Human Values In Late Childhood And Early Adolescence Classrooms, Nicole Daly

Honors Undergraduate Theses

Recent research that indicates ten universal values are shared across cultures has developed into the Schwartz Value Systems Theory. This theory describes the ten basic human values that derive from different motivational forces such as social superiority, an inner desire in novelty, and loyalty to one’s group. The values and corresponding motivational forces guide an individual’s decisions. After the Schwartz Value Systems Theory had been developed, two surveys have been created in order to assess an individual’s value hierarchy. While both of these surveys accurately measure an adult’s values, further research has indicated children possess individual values similarly to adults. …

Colonialism's Role In The Success Of The Filipino Skin Whitening Industry, Francine Singson

AUCTUS: The Journal of Undergraduate Research and Creative Scholarship

In the Philippines and other developing countries, the skin whitening industry is prolific and expanding among native populations. However, this desire for white skin has dire health repercussions, both physical and psychological. Many researchers in the field of Filipino-American psychology attribute this desire for whiter skin to the American colonial rule of the Philippines, which began in 1898 and lasted for nearly fifty years. Historians often characterize the American occupation as cruel and demeaning, leading to colonial mentality that has continued into the post-colonial era. As a result, in order to ameliorate this dilemma, one must explore how the internalized …

Analysis Of The Progression Of The Representation Of Female Protagonists In The Sci-Fi/Fantasy Tv Shows Orphan Black And Buffy The Vampire Slayer: Girl Power, Appropriated “Masculinity” In Conjunction With Femininity, Empowered Sexuality, And The Heterosexual Script, Dakota Becker

AUCTUS: The Journal of Undergraduate Research and Creative Scholarship

Buffy Summers goes from urban Los Angeles to Sunnydale, California after she is expelled from her previous high school on the grounds of an assortment of Slayer-related incidents. Chosen as the Slayer, Buffy is fated to fight against the forces of darkness, although this responsibility is not always conducive to leading the life of an average teenage girl. Upon moving to Sunnydale, Buffy quickly learns that Sunnydale High School sits directly above a “Hellmouth,” a hub for demon activity. Specifically, the entrance to the Hellmouth is located directly beneath the Sunnydale High School library, home to a curious collection of …

Assessing Hiv-Related Outcomes Among Key Populations Accessing Community-Based Test And Start Services In Nigeria, Project Soar

HIV and AIDS

This activity brief describes a research study Project SOAR is conducting to better understand how to use existing key population community platforms in Nigeria to expand access to HIV treatment, the cost of such care provided outside of clinical health facilities, and the extent to which false positive misclassification may occur in outreach settings. Given the global “treat all” emphasis and the need to effectively scale up test and start services and minimize misclassification rates, these findings will be important in expanding timely antiretroviral treatment coverage in vulnerable communities in Nigeria and elsewhere.

Elementary Preservice Teachers’ Attitudes And Pedagogical Strategies Toward Hypothetical Shy, Exuberant, And Average Children, Qizhen Deng, Guy Trainin, Kathleen Moritz Rudasill, Irina Kalutskaya, Stephanie Wessels, Julia C. Torquati, Robert J. Coplan

Nebraska Center for Research on Children, Youth, Families, and Schools: Faculty Publications

Children’s learning and development are directly and indirectly influenced by teachers’ beliefs and pedagogical strategies toward child behaviors. This cross-sectional study explored elementary preservice teachers’ attitudes and pedagogical strategies for working with hypothetical children demonstrating temperament-based shy, exuberant, and average behaviors in the classroom. A secondary goal was to compare attitudes and pedagogical strategies at the beginning and end of teacher training program. A total of 354 participants responded to three vignettes describing children frequently displaying these behaviors. Results indicated preservice teachers were more likely to use social-learning strategies with shy children and high-powered strategies with exuberant children. Participants were …

Hopelessness Depression As A Predictive Risk Factor For Recidivism And Survival Time Among Juvenile Offenders, Todd Milton Mcginnis

Walden Dissertations and Doctoral Studies

In the United States, there is a high incidence of recidivism among juvenile offenders with mental health disorders. This is a critical social issue facing the public and the Department of Juvenile Justice Administration today. However, research is not clear on the role of psychological factors in recidivism frequency and survival time. The purpose of this study was to examine whether hopelessness depression, as measured by suicidal-ideation, depression-anxiety, anger-irritation, and alcohol-drug use, and offense type, were predictors of recidivism frequency and survival time when controlling for age, gender, and race. The total sample consisted of archival data from 404 juvenile …

“I Wonder What You Think Of Me”: A Qualitative Approach To Examining Stereotype Awareness In Appalachian Students, Chelsea G. Adams

Theses and Dissertations--Educational, School, and Counseling Psychology

Historically, Appalachia has been stereotyped as being a culture bred in poverty and ignorance. Much research has shown that stereotyping reveals a pattern of behavioral change and an impact on psychological well-being for the stereotyped (e.g., Pinel, 1999; Woodcock, Jernandez, Estrada, & Schultz, 2012), and has largely been centered on race and gender (e.g., Byrnes, 2008; Tuckman & Monetti, 2011). Less is known about the development of culture-specific stereotypes such as those related to Appalachians – a highly stigmatized group (Daniels, 2014; Otto, 2002). The purpose of this study was to gain an understanding of how adolescents in rural Appalachia …

Two Approaches, One Problem: Cultural Constructions Of Type Ii Diabetes In An Indigenous Community In Yucatán, Mexico, Elizabeth Durden

Faculty Journal Articles

The emerging epidemic of obesity and type II diabetes in Mexico has recently propelled the nation into the public health spotlight. In the state of Yucata n, the experience of diabetes is greatly impacted by two cultural constructions of disease. In this setting, elements of Yucatec Mayan health practices as well as the biomedical model affect the approach to type II diabetes. Both frameworks offer unique un- derstandings of the etiology of diabetes and recommend different ways to manage the condition. Based on in-depth and semi-structured interviews with both community members and clinicians, the present study seeks to understand how …