Digital Commons Network^™

The Relationship Between Status Motives And Social Activism, Olajuwon Olagbegi

Honors Theses

Numerous social and cultural events have resulted in increased interest and participation in social activism in the United States, stemming from mounting dissatisfaction with social inequality. Though explanations have previously included increased issue exposure and awareness due to the proliferation of digital media and increases in progressive ideology amongst the nation’s younger generation, the current study tests the hypothesis that social activism may in part be motivated by interest in status acquisition, given the evolutionary value of status for securing access to resources and mates. To test this hypothesis, participants were randomly assigned to a status versus control priming condition …

Mitochondrial Replacement And Mitonuclear Interactions In The Broadstripe Topminnow (Fundulus Euryzonus), Auburn Ansley

Honors Theses

When species hybridize, mitochondrial and nuclear introgression can take place. This is commonly observed in freshwater fish species, such as the Fundulus notatus complex, which is composed of F. notatus, F. olivaceus, and F. euryzonus. The broadstripe topminnow, F. euryzonus, is only found in the Amite and Tangipahoa Rivers in the Lake Pontchartrain drainage, where it overlaps in distribution with F. olivaceus. Previous studies determined that F. euryzonus in the Tangipahoa River system possesses mitochondrial DNA (mtDNA) from F. olivaceus as a result of hybridization between the two species. The goal of this thesis was …

The Exacerbation Of Gender Inequality: The Effects Of Overwork On Work Outcomes, Loribeth Fitzgerald

Honors Theses

Gender disparity in the workplace is a pervasive problem that has been widely studied, especially as to why women do not progress in their careers to the same degree as their male counterparts. Measures have been established for work-family conflict, and it has been claimed that this is the main factor that prevents women from advancing in their careers. Research into the unequal distribution of time, labor, and pay has become increasingly popular as a means to understand the forces contributing to women’s stalled advancement. This study furthers this work to determine if gender inequality is a factor in overwork, …

Leadership, Job Stress And Uncertainty Among Nurses During The Covid-19 Pandemic: Impacts And Implications In Lieu Of Pertinent Theoretical Constructs, Davis Woodson

Honors Theses

The purpose of this study is to determine the effect of the COVID-19 pandemic on practicing nurses in the United States. The study considered the effect of communication, self-efficacy, intolerance to uncertainty, and life satisfaction on nurses’ job satisfaction; additionally, this study considered the extent to which nurses perceived organizational response efficacy was predicted by their perceptions of communication and perceived threat susceptibility. A total of 191 nurses participated in the online survey. The study revealed that life satisfaction was positively predicted by communication, self-efficacy, and life satisfaction in multiple regression analyses. Perceived communication positively predicted perceived organizational response efficacy …

Engaged Pedagogy And Teacher Discourse: A Critical Examination Of Public Education In Mississippi, Kelsi Ford

Honors Theses

This thesis explores Mississippi K-12 public education in terms of inequality and critical pedagogy with a focus on historical factors, state testing, and personal accounts of current teachers. The research is based on ten in-depth interviews with current schoolteachers regarding their perspectives on education and personal experiences and draws from previous scholarship, notably bell hook’s concept of engaged pedagogy. Critical pedagogy offers a model for transformative education for resisting social inequity and promoting democracy and citizenship, but teacher interviews suggest that the structure and culture of classrooms are contradictory to adopting critical pedagogy. Specifically, the research finds that both standardized …

What Have Mississippi Band Directors Found Successful When Teaching The Horn?: A Qualitative Survey, Madeleine Case

Honors Theses

This study surveyed band directors in the state of Mississippi, asking them what methods they use to teach the horn. The purpose of this research was to find some solid methods and concepts that participants found successful in their horn teaching, as well as open the discussion on what makes horn teaching unique to that of other instruments. Participants were selected for an online survey on two criteria: they had to have at least a Bachelor’s degree in Music or Music Education, and they had to have at least one year of teaching experience in Mississippi.

After participants were surveyed, …

Exploring How Popular Media Affects The Motivations And Hesitations Of Women Who Go Through Sorority Recruitment At The University Of Southern Mississippi, Whitley W. Howell

Honors Theses

Fraternity and sorority life is an important part of many college students’ experiences. Sororities provide college women with many opportunities for leadership, service, academics, and growth. Even though sororities have many benefits, they often have negative connotations in popular and social media. Often, these negative stereotypes affect people’s perception of sororities, and many women have hesitations about joining a sorority because of the way sororities are portrayed.

Sorority women express concern with the media’s negative representation of Greek life. The negative connotations affect how people see the sororities. Recruitment of new women into the chapters is an important part of …

The Role Of Parenting Practices In Adolescent Aggression And Impulsivity, Elizabeth G. Payne

Honors Theses

Parents have an influential role in adolescent development. Previous findings have found a relationship between parenting practices and adolescent behavioral problems. The purpose of this study was to analyze different parenting practices’ influence on impulsive and aggressive behaviors in adolescents. This study uses data gathered from a unique population of at-risk adolescents from a military-style bootcamp who were asked about their parents’ behaviors and their own behaviors. Findings from this study expand upon previous research on parenting practices by analyzing a specific population of at-risk youth and looking at specific forms of impulsive and aggressive behaviors. Data was collected through …

Emotional Intelligence As A Moderator Of The Relationship Between Psychopathic Personality Traits And Relational Aggression, Aria T. Smith

Honors Theses

Psychopathy is a robust predictor of aggressive behavior and psychopathic personality traits have been shown to predict relational aggression in non-clinical samples of college students. Given the manner in which emotional intelligence appears to be useful in navigating complex social interactions, some have suggested that it may be involved in certain forms of deceitful or manipulative behavior, including those that may be part of relational aggression. The current project evaluated the role of psychopathic personality traits and emotional intelligence in the prediction of relational aggression among college students. In addition to examining the direct relationship of these variables to relational …

Perceived Support And Connectedness In Greek-Letter Organizations During The Covid-19 Pandemic, Julia Bishop

Honors Theses

The goal of this project is to assess whether or not students involved in the fraternity and sorority life community at The University of Southern Mississippi feel supported and connected in their respective chapters. To understand students’ perspectives in this area, a survey was developed. The survey included questions pertaining to the experiences of Greek-letter organization members with the chapter environment, efforts of chapter leadership, and personal feelings of connectedness during the COVID-19 pandemic. The survey was sent out to all 26 fraternity and sorority chapter presidents at The University of Southern Mississippi, including the College Panhellenic Council, National Pan-Hellenic …

Interregulation Between Msaabcr Operon And Ccpe To Determine Staphylococcal Metabolism And Virulence, Erin R. Cox

Honors Theses

Staphylococcus aureus is a complex human pathogen that causes problems in both healthcare and community settings. Staphylococcus aureus is a gram-positive, sphere shaped bacterium that usually colonizes in the nasal cavity of healthy individuals. Staphylococcus aureus infections are a growing health concern due to its ability to produce virulence factors, such as pigmentation, protease production, and capsule formation. Two regulators in S. aureus virulence factors are msaABCR, which is a newly characterized operon, and ccpE. In order to determine the interaction between these two regulators in regulating virulence and metabolism in S. aureus, ccpE and ccpE/ …

Synesthesia: Does It Have An Effect On Memory?, Elizabeth Evans

Honors Theses

Synesthesia is a perceptual phenomenon involving an inducer (a stimulus) and a concurrent (elicited response). For many years, scientists have striven to explain synesthesia and whether or not there are benefits to the people who experience it. In this study, nineteen participants were asked to complete a questionnaire in an attempt to see if their synesthetic experiences gave them advantages in the area of memory. The seven questions were given in a multiple-choice or text entry format, and the questionnaire was approved by The University of Southern Mississippi’s IRB before being sent out in an electronic format. The majority of …

The Impact Of Graduate School Ranking On An Economics Professor’S Annual Earnings, Shailee Manandhar

Honors Theses

What are the economic returns to attending a more selective college? This thesis adds to the growing literature on college choices and economic returns by analyzing the effects of graduate school ranking on the annual earnings of economics professors in the United States. In order to answer this question, the author collected an original data set using publicly available salary information from a number of US-based institutions. The data in this paper uses McPherson’s ranking of US Economics Departments, h-index, and other factors collected from the individuals’ CVs to estimate the economic returns. The results from Ordinary Least Squares regression …

How Workplace Attire Affects Employee Perceptions And Organizational Culture, Ethan Surrett

Honors Theses

Companies invest millions of dollars into developing workplace attire policies in their organizations to control outcomes (Rafaeli & Pratt, 1993). This research focuses on seeing the impact that workplace attire plays on employees' perceptions of themselves and their organization's culture. Through Qualtrics, an online survey instrument, information was gathered from respondents in various industries and workplaces all over the United States. These employees answered questions about the attire in their workplace, the impact of attire, the organization's policies, characteristics of their organization, the management of the organization, and execution of policies. Results illustrated that most respondents felt that workplace attire …

Energy Therapies In Nursing Practice: Effects, Barriers, And Limitations, Sydney J. Stone

Honors Theses

Complementary and alternative medicine (CAM) is a growing field of holistic treatment modalities that aim to promote health and well-being or treat illness. Energy therapies are a subsection of CAM that have the potential to revolutionize the way that nurses manage their patient’s comfort. Past research has noted that more money is spent in the United States each year on CAM than is spent on conventional care, and researchers have identified the high spending as a discrepancy due to CAM’s general inaccessibility. This study aimed to analyze the existing research and evidence pertaining to the effects of energy therapies and …