Digital Commons Network^™

The Cultural Integration Experience Of Chinese Immigrant Teachers In The United States: An Interpretive Phenomenological Analysis, Andrew W. Hustad

College of Education and Human Sciences: Dissertations, Theses, and Student Research

The focus of this phenomenological study was the cultural integration experience of Chinese immigrant language teachers into US culture in general, and more specifically how they navigated a new educational culture upon entering the classroom. The need to conduct this study emerged from the researcher’s involvement with the multi-year Nebraska Chinese Acquisition Project FLAP grant. A key element of this grant focused on summer residential professional development institutes for teachers of Chinese in an effort to further develop and expand Chinese language programs in Nebraska public schools. Data collected by the researcher identified vast differences between the educational cultures of …

Parenting Young Children In Contemporary Chinese Society: A Mixed Methods Study, Lixin Ren

Department of Psychology: Dissertations, Theses, and Student Research

The purpose of this mixed methods study was to examine contemporary Chinese parents’ childrearing expectations, goals, and practices for their preschool-aged children. Participants included 154 parents with preschool-aged children (children’s mean age was 52.48 months with a standard deviation of 6.84) and 27 teachers recruited from seven preschools located in three small cities in northeastern China. In the quantitative phase, parents completed questionnaires measuring parental expectations (social-emotional and academic expectations), parenting styles, child social competence, and child pre-academic performance. The head teacher of each target child reported the child’s social competence and pre-academic performance. It was hypothesized that parental expectations …

Methodological Considerations For A New Household Panel Survey, Kristen Olson, J. Michael Brick

Department of Sociology: Faculty Publications

This paper identifies new opportunities for innovation and expansion on current survey practice in the design of a new household panel survey, including an increased use of new and mobile technologies, more frequent data collection, modified clustering, and use of non-traditional survey measures such as administrative data, planned missing/matrix sampling questionnaire design, real-time data collection, and biomarkers. These innovative data collection methods require rethinking traditional panel survey methods, but can help reduce respondent burden and expand on current social science knowledge. The paper concludes that a new household panel survey would improve knowledge about important social, economic and health issues …

A Case Study: Exploring The Experiences Of Administrators And Teacher Leaders In A Midwestern Turnaround School, Bary Habrock

Department of Educational Administration: Dissertations, Theses, and Student Research

Economic conditions too often create disadvantages for students and their achievement in schools (Reeves, 2004). Educators must better understand high poverty and high minority schools that overcome the odds to improve student achievement. Researchers have studied turnaround schools that improve student achievement in chronically low-performing schools in a relatively short time period (Herman, Dawson, Dee, Greene, Maynard, Redding, & Darwin, 2008). Still there is inadequate national research on the actual experiences of principals and teachers in these schools as told through their perspectives.

This study identified themes from participant interviews to add to the research currently available in this area. …

How People Evaluate Others With Social Anxiety Disorder: A Comparison To Depression And General Mental Illness Stigma, Kristen N. Anderson, Andrew B. Jeon, Jordan A. Blenner, Richard L. Wiener, Debra A. Hope

Department of Psychology: Faculty Publications

Despite the availability of effective interventions, most individuals with social anxiety disorder do not seek treatment. Given their fear of negative evaluation, socially anxious individuals might be especially susceptible to stigma concerns, a recognized barrier for mental health treatment. However, very little is known about the stigma specific to social anxiety disorder. In a design similar to Feldman and Crandall (2007), university undergraduate students read vignettes about target individuals with a generic mental illness label, major depressive disorder, and social anxiety disorder. Subjects rated each of 3 people in the vignettes on social distance and 17 dimensions including dangerousness, heritability …

Stress And Eyewitness Memory: Timing Of Stressor And Association With Cortisol Stress Responding, Timothy Ryan Robicheaux

Department of Psychology: Dissertations, Theses, and Student Research

Witnesses to and victims of criminal events can face significant stress during such encounters. Stress responding consists of a multitude of responses (e.g., anxiety, cardiovascular changes, cortisol responding). In the current study, I utilized a physiological stressor (i.e., the cold-pressor test) and a facial recognition paradigm to examine the relationship between cortisol change following stress exposure and memory accuracy. More specifically, I examined whether cortisol levels at specific memory stages (i.e., acquisition and retrieval) predicted stress responding differently.

Findings suggested that individual differences in cortisol stress responding to the cold-pressor test predicted facial recognition when peak cortisol was at a …

Twenty Years Of The Nebraska Rural Poll, Randolph L. Cantrell

Cornhusker Economics

The 2015 edition of the Nebraska Rural Poll will be mailed to 6,000 non-Metropolitan Nebraska house-holds in March. Having run every year since 1996, the Poll is the largest and oldest annual survey of its kind in the nation. Over the Poll’s nineteen years, surveys have been completed by over 49,000 respondents in 84 non-Metropolitan Counties. This amounts to roughly 6.6% of that population (755,000 in 2010). In a number of very small rural counties, the portion of the population reached is closer to 10%. More im-portantly, the Poll has reached over 16% of all non-Metropolitan Nebraska households (305,891 in …

Nebraska Libraries - Volume 3, Number 1 (February 2015)

Nebraska Libraries

No abstract provided.

Tier 1 Intervention: School Values & Expectations, Reece L. Peterson, Jenna Strawhun, Natalie Hoff

Department of Special Education and Communication Disorders: Faculty Publications

Conclusion

At present, school value statements are believed to be a useful component of efforts to improve student behavior and school climate. These statements of values or expectations have been particularly emphasized as one of the key components of Positive Behavior Interventions and Supports. Although there is strong research related to the overall outcomes of PBIS, there has been virtually no research about these values or expectations independent of PBIS. However, there has been some research on more global school mission statements, which appears to provide promise for future research on these more specific behavioral expectations. Based on the PBIS …

Best Practice Recommendations For Data Screening, Justin A. Desimone, Peter D. Harms, Alice J. Desimone

Department of Management: Faculty Publications

Survey respondents differ in their levels of attention and effort when responding to items. There are a number of methods researchers may use to identify respondents who fail to exert sufficient effort in order to increase the rigor of analysis and enhance the trustworthiness of study results. Screening techniques are organized into three general categories, which differ in impact on survey design and potential respondent awareness. Assumptions and considerations regarding appropriate use of screening techniques are discussed along with descriptions of each technique. The utility of each screening technique is a function of survey design and administration. Each technique has …

Is It Still Science If You Don’T Call It ‘Science’? Discovery Orientation And Science Identity Among Middle School Youth., Patricia Wonch Hill, Julia Mcquillan

Discipline-Based Education Research Group Speaker Series

To investigate the role of friendships in science identity formation, we are conducting a longitudinal survey of 441 students in an ethnically diverse Title I Middle School. This research-based approach, framed within a sociological conceptual model, will provide depth in our understanding of how to motivate and engage youth from groups underrepresented in biomedical science, and will contribute to the sociological literature on identity formation. Science educators assume most youth have a natural propensity toward science and inquiry, and will engage with science activities and ideas if they are presented in fun and appealing ways. We call this natural propensity …

Engaging Teenagers With Science Through Comics, Judy Diamond

Discipline-Based Education Research Group Speaker Series

Graphic novels or comics are powerful tools to motivate youth to become interested in science. Embedding science concepts into a story with graphics that appeal to teen culture makes abstract content approachable, stimulates youth interest, and promotes learning. This presentation will discuss the goals of the NIH‐funded World of Viruses and Biology of Human comic series and the research results that support using these approaches.

One-To-One Laptop Initiative: Perceptions Of Teachers And Administrators, Damon Mcdonald

Department of Educational Administration: Dissertations, Theses, and Student Research

The purpose of this explanatory mixed methods study was to explore the perceptions of teachers and administrators about the one to one laptop initiative in Nebraska schools. Parallel studies from the five largest and five smallest school districts were identified by the Nebraska Department of Education School Finance Formula and Organization Services. High schools in each district were chosen that have had one-to-one laptop initiatives for four or more years. The study examined teachers and administrator perceptions regarding: (a) the one-to-one implementation, (b) student engagement, (c) student grades, (d) benefits of one-to-one technology, and (e) the continued success of one-to-one …

Temperament And Preschool Children’S Peer Interactions, Ibrahim H. Acar, Kathleen Moritz Rudasill, Victoria J. Molfese, Julia C. Torquati, Amanda Prokasky

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

Research Findings: The current study is an examination of children’s temperament as a predictor of their interactions with peers in preschool, with a particular focus on children’s regulatory temperament characteristics (i.e., inhibitory control and attentional focusing) as moderators of associations between shyness and interactions with peers. Participants were 40 children (19 boys) ages 3 to 5 years enrolled in 8 different preschools in a midwestern city in the United States. Temperament was assessed via parent report when children were approximately 3 years old, and peer interactions were assessed via observations of children during the preschool day (using the Individualized Classroom …

"'The Law’S The Law, Right?' Sexual Minority Mothers Navigating Legal Inequities And Inconsistencies.”, Emily Kazyak

Department of Sociology: Faculty Publications

LGB parents face a number of legal inequities and confront a legal landscape that not only varies drastically by state but also quickly changes. Research has shown that some LGB parents and prospective parents have inaccurate knowledge about the laws relating to parenting. Drawing on data from 21 interviews, I ask how sexual minority mothers gain knowledge about the law. I found that people were very aware of the legal inequities they face and sought to become knowledgeable about the law before they had children. Sexual minority mothers reported using four primary methods to learn about the law: doing independent …

One-To-One Laptop Initiative: Perceptions Of Teachers And Administrators, Brian Maschmann

Department of Educational Administration: Dissertations, Theses, and Student Research

The purpose of this explanatory mixed methods study was to explore the perceptions of teachers and administrators about the one to one laptop initiative in Nebraska schools Parallel studies from the five largest and five smallest school districts were identified by the Nebraska Department of Education School Finance Formula and Organization Services. High schools in each district were chosen that have had one-to-one laptop initiatives for four or more years. The study examined teachers and administrator perceptions regarding: (a) the one-to-one implementation, (b) student engagement, (c) student grades, (d) benefits of one-to-one technology, and (e) continued success of one-to-one initiatives. …

Bullying And Peer Victimization: An Examination Of Cognitive And Psychosocial Constructs, Kisha M. Radliff, Cixin Wang, Susan M. Swearer

Department of Educational Psychology: Faculty Publications

Research has demonstrated a link between internalizing factors and bullying perpetration and peer victimization; however, few studies have examined predictors of cognitive and psychosocial factors, such as locus of control and hopelessness. The current study examined cognitive and psychosocial factors in bullying perpetration and peer victimization in a sample of 469 middle school students. A mediator model of hopelessness was also investigated. Students involved in bullying reported a greater external locus of control compared with peers who were not involved in bullying. Bully victims endorsed the highest externality. Results showed that hopelessness fully mediated the relationship between verbal/relational victimization and …

Accountability In Networked Governance: Learning From A Case Of Landscape-Scale Forest Conservation, Theresa Jedd, R. Patrick Bixler

School of Natural Resources: Faculty Publications

No abstract provided.

In-Service Teachers' Attitudes, Knowledge And Classroom Teaching Of Global Climate Change, Shiyu Liu, Gillian Roehrig, Devarati Bhattacharya, Keisha Varma

School of Natural Resources: Faculty Publications

No abstract provided.

Are Preserved Farms Actively Engaged In Agriculture And Conservation?, Paul D. Gottlieb, Brian J. Schilling, Kevin Sullivan, J. Dixon Esseks, Lori Lynch, Joshua M. Duke

School of Natural Resources: Faculty Publications

This study addresses the question of whether farms enrolled in land preservation programs are actively engaged in agricultural or conservation activities. Data are drawn from an original survey administered to preserved farm owners in the states of New Jersey, Maryland, and Delaware in 2011. “Actively engaged” is defined as investment in conservation projects, buildings, equipment, or irrigation since the land was preserved. Affirmative answers to the survey’s investment questions range from a low of 19% for irrigation to a high of 69% for equipment. Special attention was paid to differences between lifestyle farmers and small and large commercial farmers, which …

Caregiver Perceptions Of Their Influence On Cancer Treatment Decision Making: Intersections Of Language, Identity, And Illness, Janice L. Krieger, Angela L. Palmer-Wackerly, Jessica L. Krok-Schoen, Phokeng M. Dailey, Julianne C. Wojno, Nancy Schoenberg, Electra D. Paskett, Mark Dignan

Department of Communication Studies: Faculty Publications

Serious illness of a loved one can disrupt a caregiver’s sense of self and relationships. We examined the language caregivers use to describe the cancer treatment decision making of a loved one to understand how caregivers frame their own identity relative to a patient’s illness. We analyzed transcripts from in-depth interviews conducted with caregivers (N = 58) of cancer patients to examine the intersection among language, identity, and illness. Caregivers with a patient-level personal identity frame used phrases such as their body, their decision. Caregivers with a relational identity frame used plural pronouns such as we or our when describing …

Organizational Secrecy And The Fbi’S Cointelpro–Black Nationalist Hate Groups Program, 1967–1971, Kristen Hoerl, Erin Ortiz

Department of Communication Studies: Faculty Publications

In this article, we explain how secrecy influenced the communication and decision-making processes within COINTELPRO–Black Nationalist Hate Groups, the FBI’s covert program to disrupt left-leaning Black political organizations between 1967 and 1971. Memos exchanged between the FBI Director and field offices reveal how the organization strategized to conceal its identity as the source of anonymous communication. The Bureau developed explicit techniques for managing the content of their messages, the materials used to construct print messages, and the distribution of those messages. The Bureau’s techniques suggest that organizational secrecy involves a high degree of coordination between members, but it may also …

Power To The People? Psychological Mechanisms Of Disengagement From Direct Democracy, Ellie Shockley, Amir Shawn Fairdosi

University of Nebraska Public Policy Center: Publications

The goal of direct democracy is to bring power to change laws to ordinary citizens. However, it may alienate citizens because policy language is often complex, perhaps impacting citizens’ voting likelihood and support for policies. We invoke theory on processing fluency and compensatory control motivations to explain voting likelihood and policy attitude formation. Using experiments and mediational analyses, we tested theorized links between policy language complexity and these out-comes. Findings suggest that policy language complexity motivates compensatory trust in policy institutions but this does not likely explain decreased voting likelihood. We also found that low processing fluency associated with reading …

Research At The University Of Nebraska-Lincoln: 2014-2015 Report, Vicki Miller, Ashley Washburn, Monica Norby, Elizabeth Banset, Gillian Klucas

Office of Research and Economic Development: Publications

The 2014-2015 UNL Research Report, published by the University of Nebraska-Lincoln Office of Research and Economic Development, highlights some of the diverse research, scholarship and creative activity at the heart of UNL’s research enterprise. A companion website includes more photos, videos and additional resources.

Diverse Perspectives Of Parents, Diverse Concepts Of Parent Involvement And Participation: What Can They Suggest To Researchers?, Carolyn P. Edwards, Traci Shizu Kutaka

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

Diversity of experiences and perspectives, it is widely agreed, should be a source of strength in home-school partnerships, as in other aspects of educational endeavor. Yet often, in the literature, diversity is presented as a complication to be overcome. A limiting mindset often prevails, both in theory and practice, where diversity is regarded as an issue or barrier, even amidst the best of intentions to be inclusive. In this chapter, we argue that this limiting mindset on diversity may in fact derive in part from the conceptual frameworks with which we in the United States contemplate and conduct research on …

Optimism In Nonmetropolitan Nebraska: Perceptions Of Well-Being, 2015 Nebraska Rural Poll Results, Rebecca J. Vogt, Cheryl A. Burkhart-Kriesel, Randolph L. Cantrell, Bradley Lubben, L. J. Mcelravy

Nebraska Rural Poll

This year, rural Nebraskans are the most positive about their current situation as they’ve been in all 20 years of this study. Just over one-half (53%) of rural Nebraskans believe they are better off than they were five years ago (the highest proportion in all 20 years of this study, tied in 2008). This is up slightly from 50 percent last year. And, rural Nebraskans’ outlook on their future is the most optimistic in all 20 years of this study. Almost one-half of rural Nebraskans (48%) believe they will be better off ten years from now (the highest of all …

Psychometric Evaluation Of The Symptoms And Functioning Severity Scale (Sfss) Short Forms With Out-Of-Home Care Youth, Thomas J. Gross, Kristin Duppong-Hurley, Matthew C. Lambert, Michael Epstein, Amy L. Stevens

Department of Special Education and Communication Disorders: Faculty Publications

BACKGROUND—There is a need for brief progress monitoring measures of behavioral and emotional symptoms for youth in out-of-home care. The Symptoms and Functioning Severity Scale (SFSS; Bickman et al., 2010) is one measure that has clinician and youth short forms (SFSS-SFs); however, the psychometric soundness of the SFSS-SFs with youth in out-of-home care has yet to be examined.

OBJECTIVE—The objective was to determine if the psychometric characteristics of the clinician and youth SFSS-SFs are viable for use in out-of-home care programs.

METHODS—The participants included 143 youth receiving residential treatment and 52 direct care residential staff. The current study assessed internal …

Diverse Perspectives Of Parents, Diverse Concepts Of Parent Involvement And Participation: Contrasts Between Italy And The United States, Carolyn P. Edwards, Traci S. Kutaka

Department of Psychology: Faculty Publications

Diversity of experiences and perspectives, it is widely agreed, should be a source of strength in home-school partnerships, as in other aspects of educational endeavor. Yet often, in the literature, diversity is presented as a complication to be overcome. A limiting mindset often prevails, both in theory and practice, where diversity is regarded as an issue or barrier, even amidst the best of intentions to be inclusive. In this chapter, we argue that this limiting mindset on diversity may in fact derive in part from the conceptual frameworks with which we in the United States contemplate and conduct research on …

Challenging The Political Assumption That “Guns Don’T Kill People, Crazy People Kill People!”, Heath J. Hodges, Mario Scalora

Department of Psychology: Faculty Publications

Every time an infamous mass shooting takes place, a storm of rhetoric sweeps across this country with the fury of a wild fire. “Why are we letting these people carry guns?” “Why were they not hospitalized?” “The government needs to crack down on this issue!” What is the government’s response to these cries of concern? Politicians and the media attempt to ease public fears by drawing tenuous connections among a handful of poorly understood tragedies. The salient commonality is that these high-profile shooters had some history of mental illness. A cursory review of the Internet will paint a troubling picture …

Leveraging Library Ecology: Growing Beyond Boundaries To Cultivate A Sustainable Knowledge Community Through Team-Based Librarianship, Ellen R. Urton, Meagan J. Duever, Casey D. Hoeve, Jenny K. Oleen, David Vail

University of Nebraska-Lincoln Libraries: Faculty Publications

Higher education increasingly challenges libraries to thrive while adapting to fiscal realities, imploring institutions to accomplish more with less, and leverage assets creatively. When competing demands vie for attention, interdisciplinary concepts such as sustainability may be neglected, or simply absent from a library’s mission. A team-based community of librarians can galvanize existing assets wherever they reside within an organization. This approach requires that librarians transcend traditional boundaries to reveal untapped or underutilized expertise. Interdepartmental teams within a library can address topics difficult to assign to one designated specialist, and access the education, interests, or networks possessed by multiple individuals across …