Digital Commons Network^™

The Effects Of Parental Engagement In Early Childhood On Academic Achievement In Adolescence, Alex Velez

Murray State Theses and Dissertations

Parental involvement and engagement have been used interchangeably in research regarding the academic outcomes of children. The current study assessed parental engagement and its relationship to academic achievement in adolescence. Specifically, the study looked at parental engagement with children aged 3 and its effects on academic achievement at age 15 in 1-parent and 2-parent homes. Exploratory analyses were also conducted to examine the effect of ethnicity on the relationship between parental engagement and academic achievement. Data were taken from participants (N = 3350) who were a part of the Fragile Families and Child Wellbeing study, a longitudinal dataset. Findings showed …

Predicting Academic Achievement With The Kaufman Assessment Battery For Children—Second Edition, Amy Cherry

Murray State Theses and Dissertations

ABSTRACT

Intelligence progresses in measurable and predictable stages and IQ tests are used to test basic intellectual functioning, such as conceptual thinking, language, and problem solving. The IQ test is used to diagnose developmental disabilities as well as learning disabilities and intellectual disabilities in schools. School aged children may be given an IQ test to determine eligibility and placement for special education services and to pinpoint specific deficits and/or strengths. Part of the strength of using IQ tests is their ability to predict specific attributes, such as academic skills and adaptive skills. However, these correlations change with the child’s age. …

A Survey Of Kentucky School Psychologists’ Perceived Competencies To Inform State-Level Professional Development, George Cavanah

Murray State Theses and Dissertations

This study investigated perceived knowledge and competencies of current Kentucky school psychologists regarding professional standards of practice. Thirty one participants responded to the survey that measured school psychologists’ perceptions across each of the 10 national standards for professional practice. A series of one-way ANOVAs were used to determine if there was significance different between the factors. Implications, limitations, and future research are discussed.

A Comparison Of The Rey Complex Figure And The Wechsler Scales, Amanda M. Brantley

Murray State Theses and Dissertations

This study was conducted to determine the correlation among the Wechsler Intelligence Scales and the Rey Complex Figure Test, a measure of visual memory, in a clinical sample. The purpose was to determine the point at which a difference between cognitive ability scores (at the overall ability level or at the index level) and visual memory scores would be statistically meaningful. Participants in this study were selected from clinical client folders with completed variables of interest. The mean age of the 64 participants was 21 years (SD = 12.6). Statistically significant correlations were found among three of the four …

Selecting Success: Admitting Adn Students With The Highest Probability Of Success, Elizabeth Ann Beverly

Murray State Theses and Dissertations

Abstract

Declining numbers in healthcare workers are nearing critical levels. In the next few years, more than a million nursing positions are predicted to be needed, increasing the demand on institutions to produce quality and competent graduates in health-related fields. Hundreds of potential students apply for nursing programs each semester, and numerous qualified applicants are denied admission due to limited space, thus placing emphasis on the selective admissions process.

This study serves to validate current admissions criteria utilized by the nursing program at Hopkinsville Community College (HCC) to ensure students with the highest probability for success are admitted. Participants include …

The Effect Of The Cycles Phonological Remediation Approach: A Case Study, Elizabeth A. Packard

Murray State Theses and Dissertations

The speech-language pathologist has many options regarding the course of action they deem the most efficient in remediating a phonological disorder. The purpose of this case study was to research the efficacy of using the Cycles Phonological Remediation Approach (Cycles Approach) as written by Hodson and Paden (Hodson & Paden, 1983; Hodson & Paden, 1991; Hodson, 2006; Hodson, 2007) on a six-year-old child with a moderate-to-severe phonological disorder with low intelligibility. This study included three phases: initial assessment, intervention, and the final assessment. One cycle of intervention over the course of approximately two semesters was administered to target three of …

A Survey On Horse Use And Management In Horse Clubs In China: A Pilot Study, Zhen Li, Zhen Li

Murray State Theses and Dissertations

During the past three decades, significant development of the Chinese equine industry has resulted in a rapid increase in the number of horses in the country. At the same time, many horse clubs face shortages of trained management personnel or specialists in equine science and technology. The objective of this survey was to document and evaluate horse management and use in Chinese horse clubs. A 29-question survey was developed using SurveyMonkey© and tested on a small pilot group before being revised and released to a general pool of participants. The questionnaire link was distributed through WeChat to specific personnel in …

If You Think It You Can Achieve It: The Relationship Between Goal Specificity And Magical Thinking, Brianna Jones

Murray State Theses and Dissertations

Previous research has found a connection between the type of goals that individuals set and psychopathology, specifically depression (Dickson & Moberly, 2013). Magical thinking is the belief that a person’s thoughts are connected to their actions or to future outcomes (Markle, 2010). Magical thinking has been found to be a primary feature in many psychological disorders such as obsessive-compulsive disorder (Shihata et al., 2014). The present study is the first of the literature to examine the relationships between goal setting and magical thinking as well as magical thinking and various psychological disorders such as depression. The current study examined the …

Masculine And Feminine Personality Profiles And Their Relationship With Athletic Identity, Scott York

Murray State Theses and Dissertations

Athletes represent a unique population of people with unique personality traits. It has been well documented the trait differences between males and females and how these manifest. There has been substantial work done on the personality of athletes and the sex differences that exist therein. This study aims to examine the athletic identity of college students and their personality traits to determine if the sex differences classically defined as masculine and feminine by the five-factor model (FFM) manifest in people who simply identify as athletes.

Social Networking Sites And Physical Activity: The Role Of Framed Health Messages, Cassie Gonzalez

Murray State Theses and Dissertations

Cardiovascular disease, cancer, and diabetes are the current leading causes of death in the United States, where most of these diseases are caused by a few specific risk behaviors including tobacco use, poor nutrition, and lack of physical activity (Rutledge, Lane, Merlo, & Elmi, 2018). Healthcare professional are being encouraged to educate patients and the community about the risks associated with health behaviors and lifestyle choices. I explore aspect of these health messages in the context of gain- vs loss-framed messages presented through two social networking sites, Twitter and Instagram, on subsequent health behavior changes. Whereas existing literature have explored …

Flexibility In The Brain And Muscles: Examining Psychological Flexibility, Athletic Identity, And Stigma Within Sport Culture, Brighton Claire Hollingsworth

Murray State Theses and Dissertations

Abstract

Interventions designed to increase psychological flexibility have been shown to reduce mental health stigma, and such interventions have shown to be effective in athletic populations. The current study assessed the relationship between athletic identity and mental health stigma while also observing the moderating effects of psychological flexibility within that relationship. An exploratory analysis was also conducted to observe the moderating effect of psychological flexibility on the relationship between athletic identity and barriers to care. Participants (N = 176) from online sport-themed communities completed measures to assess mental health stigma, barriers to care, athletic identity, current symptoms of distress, …

An Analysis Of Success In Rural Economic Development: The Case Of Daviess County, Kentucky, Timothy Roy

Murray State Theses and Dissertations

Over the last half-century, numerous factors have resulted in a significant economic downturn in American manufacturing, with particularly negative impacts on rural regions throughout the country. The purpose of this qualitative case study was to examine one rural Kentucky community’s attempts to bolster its industrial relevance, as well as the region’s overall economy, by employing an economic development strategy known as Kentucky’s Work Ready Communities (WRC). This initiative, introduced by the Kentucky Workforce Innovation Board in 2012, aims to attract new or expanding industry to communities or regions by demonstrating a strong infrastructure and a sustainable workforce that is prepared …

Assessing A Mid-Sized University With He-Tpack, Randall Joyce

Murray State Theses and Dissertations

The dissertation research project has the goal of looking at a mid-sized regional university and assessing the faculty in the college of education and human services to see how faculty members self-assess themselves with the higher education technological pedagogical and content knowledge (HE-TPACK) instrument while attempting to determine whether or not there is a difference between digital immigrant faculty and digital native faculty. The study also looks at the self-perception of what digital group faculty members think they belong in. The study examined (n=13) faculty members, including digital immigrants 9 and digital natives 4. According to the findings, there was …

The Concurrent Validity Of The Missouri Adaptive Ability Scale, Amber Pendergraft

Murray State Theses and Dissertations

This study was designed to determine the concurrent validity of the Missouri Adaptive Ability Scale (MAAS), a new measure of independent functioning and learning, by correlating it with the Vineland Adaptive Behavior Scales—Third Edition (VABS-III). Thirty participants (M = 11.0 years; SD = 4.1 years) were administered the MAAS and VABS-III. Kendall-Tau tests yielded moderate-to-strong correlations across all aspects of the MAAS, indicating good concurrent validity. The implications and limitations are discussed.

Evaluation Of A Nutraceutical Flex Choice For Anti-Arthritic Efficacy And Safety In Moderately Osteoarthritic Dogs, Rachael E. Webber

Murray State Theses and Dissertations

Arthritis is a very common chronic debilitating disease in people and dogs alike. It does not discriminate based on species, and one in five dogs suffer from osteoarthritis. The purpose of this study was to evaluate the safety and anti-arthritic efficacy of a nutraceutical, Flex Choice, in moderately arthritic canines. Five moderately arthritic canines that weighed between 40-65 pounds were selected for this study. Moderate arthritis was considered a ranking of 4-6 on a scale of 1-10 with 1 being no/minimal pain and 10 being severe and constant pain. All five canines were orally administered one Flex Choice soft chew …

Hanna Kesty, Hanna Kesty

Professional Practices (ART 399)

I am not one to make myself the center of attention, therefore self-portraits or any aspect of myself were never an obvious choice. My work is developed from a personal narrative through drawing and printmaking, and is an opportunity to have an open conversation about mental health as a complex form that has multiple parts and pieces. Innocent, metaphorical objects help illustrate a variety of internal disruptions of that form. During the production process of a drawing or print there is a conversation of acknowledgement and honesty happening between these objects and myself.

These objects are depicted in minimalistic settings …

Effects Of Naltrexone On Alcohol And Nicotine Use In Female P Rats, Usman Z. Hamid, Michael T. Bardo Ph.D.

Posters-at-the-Capitol

Title: Effects of Naltrexone on Alcohol and Nicotine Use in Female P Rats

Author: Usman Z. Hamid, Department of Psychology, University of Kentucky

Faculty Mentor: Michael T. Bardo, Ph.D., Department of Psychology, University of Kentucky

Alcohol is the most commonly abused substance worldwide. It is often co-abused with nicotine, which increases the difficulty of cessation of both alcohol and nicotine. Despite having similar mechanisms of action, there is no single medication to treat the co-abuse. The objective of the current study is to analyze the effects of the opiate antagonist naltrexone on alcohol consumption and the co-use of alcohol and …

2018-11-28 Student Forum, Board Of Regents, Murray State University

Board of Regents Meeting Minutes

No abstract provided.

A Crispr Platform For Rapid And Inducible Genome Editing In Human Non-Small Cell Lung Cancer Cells, Lloyd Bartley

Posters-at-the-Capitol

Non-small cell lung cancer (NSCLC) accounts for about 85% of lung cancer, which is the leading cause of cancer death in the world. High mortality rate associated with NSCLC is partially attributed to the limited understanding of NSCLC as well as ineffective therapeutic treatments. The initiation and progression of NSCLC involves genetic changes leading to alterations in the control of tissue development and homeostatic maintenance. Better knowledge about these genetic abnormalities is imperative for developing new chemotherapeutic drugs for NSCLC. Recent research demonstrates that the expression of paraoxonase 2 (PON2), a lactonase/arylesterase with anti-oxidant properties, are markedly enhanced in cancer …

Determinants Of Parking Fees On College Campuses, Hannah Huckeby

Posters-at-the-Capitol

The price of parking has recently been a hot topic around the Murray area, especially among the college students. Due to the drastic increase in parking pass prices there has been an abundant amount of discussion surrounding this idea of parking being a public good. Many individuals have been outraged which has brought up the questions of why there is a price tag on something that many people consider a public good. With that being said, this paper is going to take a deeper look into parking specifically pertaining to college campuses but also in the cities surrounding these institutions. …

Utilizing Municipal Compost And Equine Stall Waste As Potential Economic Alternatives In An In-Ground Pot-In-Pot Production System, Ashley Robert, Alyx Shultz

Posters-at-the-Capitol

For Western Kentucky farmers, one viable income source could be a pot-in-pot nursery production. One of the highest costs of production in this system was the planting media that the plants were grown in. Economical alternatives to high-priced, non-renewable peat-based mixes were important to consider. Unique to this region, were two renewable soil amendments that may help farmers to widen their profit margin in a pot-in-pot system. This research looked at the economic viability of locally sourced horse stall waste and municipal compost as soil amendments to a traditional bark and peat based mix. Initial cost projections were favorable for …

Quality Of Care Strategies And The Subsequent Improvement Of Kangaroo Care Incidence Rates In Premature Infants, Sarah Anderson

Posters-at-the-Capitol

Purpose: The benefits of kangaroo care (KC) has long been studied and proven. Despite the research, incidence rates of KC are low in the neonatal ICU at the Kentucky Children’s Hospital. Some barriers to KC exist in our NICU and this study strives to address them. This study aims to develop and implement strategies to increase utilization of KC from 41% to  75% for eligible infants.

Methods: KC occurrence was monitored in 364 infants with birth weight ≤ 1250 grams. Strategies implemented were education of nurses, improved nurse-to-patient ratio, emphasis of KC in multidisciplinary rounding, improved documentation, …

Consumption Profiles Of Illicit And Neuropsychiatric Drugs In Urban And Rural Communities In Kentucky Using Sewage Epidemiology, Tara Croft, Katelyn Foppe, Rhiannon Huffines, Bikram Subedi

Posters-at-the-Capitol

The drug overdose deaths in the USA increased by ~20% from 2015 to 2016 to the total >63,600 drug overdose deaths in 2016. Kentucky is among the highest rate of drug overdose death states in the USA. The current estimates of the prevalence of substance abuse are based on the self-reported surveys, overdose/toxicological reports, and drug-related crime statistics. Survey-based conventional approaches are not only cost and time-intensive but also underestimate the actual consumption of drugs. As “wastewater never lie,” the drug residues in raw wastewater collected from the centralized wastewater treatment plants were utilized to determine the consumption rate of …

Impact Of Aerobic Compost Tea On Growth Of Lactuca Sativa Within A Peat-Based Growing Media, Ella Potts, Jessica Stoner, Alyx Shultz, Iin Handayani

Posters-at-the-Capitol

Compost and compost tea have been shown in practice to be valuable soil amendments across many horticultural applications; however, little rigorous quantitative work has been completed. Researchers designed a side-by-side trial with two replications to quantifiably study the impact of compost tea on the growth and vigor of soil-grown lettuce. A recycled poultry-litter-based aerobic compost tea was used for the treatment. Six lactuca sativa plants received each treatment or control. Researchers hypothesized the treatment plants would show more vigor and vegetative growth than control. The null hypothesis was treatment plants would be identical to control lettuce. Researchers failed to reject …

World War I And The People Of The Purchase, Caroline Mikez, David Pizzo

Posters-at-the-Capitol

Title: World War I and The People of the Purchase

Author: Cari Mikez

Faculty Mentor: Dr. David Pizzo

Department: Murray State History Department

ABSTRACT

The extensive impacts of World War I pervaded society on a global scale during the early twentieth century. The United States officially joined the international conflict in April of 1917 by aligning with the Triple Entente composed of Britain, France and Russia in the fight against the central European powers of Germany, Austro-Hungary, and the Ottoman Empire. In a similar fashion as the other warring nations, the American war effort depended on the development of a …

An Evidenced-Based Protocol For Eliminating Errors Associated With Intravenous Medication Errors, Susie Chaney, Blake Smith, Andrea Howard, Chanel Wilder, Suzi White Msn, Phcns-Bc

Posters-at-the-Capitol

The purpose of our research is to decrease the number of IV medication errors. IV medication errors occur due to the wrong drug, wrong dose, wrong rate, wrong concentration, incorrect aseptic technique, known allergies, omitted medications, wrong time of administration, incorrect labeling, patient identification, and no order for the infusion. Nurses’ perceptions of why medication errors occur included physicians’ medication orders are not clear, the names of many medications are similar, pharmacy did not label the medication correctly, poor communication, lack of staff to patient ratio, fatigue from hard work, nurses' heavy workload, and working night shift. This quality improvement …

2018-11-12, Board Of Regents, Murray State University

Board of Regents Meeting Minutes

No abstract provided.

2018-11-12 Facuty And Staff Forum, Board Of Regents, Murray State University

Board of Regents Meeting Minutes

No abstract provided.

Are Dietary Factors And Exercise Levels Related To Fertility Status?, Britt Fugmann, Rachel Tinius

Posters-at-the-Capitol

BACKGROUND: Infertility is a major public health concern as it affects up to 25% of couples in Western Countries. While there is some evidence that diet and exercise may be linked to fertility, there is no official dietary or exercise guidance for couples when trying to conceive. Additional information regarding the relationship between diet, exercise, and fertility is needed to better inform the development of guidelines for couples trying to conceive.

PURPOSE: To examine the relationships between diet, exercise, and fertility among women.

METHODS: Participants were selected from on ongoing pregnancy study (N=33). All participants went on to have healthy …

Development Of A Pd-L1 Pet Imaging Biomarker, Caleb Jack Bridgwater

Posters-at-the-Capitol

Immunotherapy strategies are very promising treatments for cancer patients. Specifically, Immune checkpoint inhibitor therapy focusing on the PD-1/PD-L1 pathway shows long-lasting positive results in many cancer patients. Unfortunately, not all the patients can benefit from this highly effective treatment. Hence, there is a great need for predictive biomarkers. Immunohistochemical (IHC) staining has been used as a way of predicting patient response, yet shows many problems. For example, IHC utilizes an invasive biopsy and sample fixing, which creates an incomplete and delayed picture of the patient’s biochemistry and the tumor microenvironment, consequently ignoring metastases.

The purpose of this study is to …