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Network Science: Activity Guide Introduction

Worlds of Connections Resources

Welcome to the Worlds of Connections network science activity guides. We are

happy to share our fun, engaging, and hands-on activities and hope you enjoy them. College students, teachers, middle school youth in afterschool programs, learning researchers, artists/designers, psychologists, and sociologists helped create these guides over several years. We suggest that you use them to build community in clubs, classrooms, and camps; develop systems thinking and network science knowledge; plus promote curiosity and opportunities to discover.

Perceptions Of The Farm Bill Among Nonmetropolitan Nebraskans, Rebecca J. Vogt, Heather Akin, Cheryl A. Burkhart-Kriesel, Bradley D. Lubben, L. J. Mcelravy, Timothy Meyer, Steven A. Schulz

Nebraska Rural Poll

The federal legislation known as the farm bill encompasses all things related to agriculture and food. This includes not only farm income safety net and conservation programs that typically come to mind when thinking about the farm bill, but also domestic food assistance programs (like SNAP), rural development (providing funding for items like broadband service, utilities, and housing programs) as well as programs that are focused on specific producers and crops. Given the variety of programs it entails, how familiar are rural Nebraskans with the farm bill and federal agricultural policy? Do rural Nebraskans support federal spending on the various …

The Perception Of Natural Resource Management In Nebraska: Efforts For Cross-Boundary Collaborative Management, Daniel Morales

School of Natural Resources: Dissertations, Theses, and Student Research

Nebraska’s agricultural landscapes are rapidly changing, affecting natural resources and their successful management. I utilized two surveys and scenario planning (Chapters 1: statewide survey, 2: local survey, and 3: scenario-planning workshop) to investigate attitudes and perceptions of natural resource management and cross-boundary collaboration. My first objective focused on determining what prevents Nebraskans from addressing natural resources challenges, considering demographics amongst generations and the type of areas they live in (rural versus urban). The second objective focused on whether landowners engaged with their community in managing natural resources. The third objective was to develop alternative future scenarios for the Denton Hills …

Impact Of The Built Environment On The End-Of-Life Journey, Kelechi Akwazie

Masters in Architecture Program: Theses

Several research studies and personal anecdotes show that home-based hospice care patients report better quality of life than their inpatient care counterparts – suggesting that the location of care/built environment is a critical component of hospice care. As a result, other research studies have attempted to provide evidence-based design recommendations for inpatient hospice facilities; however, several of these recommendations either conflict with each other or are vaguely prescribed – which may dull any attempts to implement them.

This literature review takes a unique approach to the provision of evidence-based design recommendations for inpatient hospice facilities by holistically assessing hospice care, …

Value Added By Using Joint Displays In Mixed Methods Research, Elizabeth Svoboda

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

Mixed methods research collects, analyzes, and integrates rigorous qualitative and quantitative methods to gain a deeper understanding of a phenomenon than would be gained by using either method alone. Integration is one of the key features of mixed methods research and consists of mixing qualitative and quantitative research in a systematic way to generate new inferences or follow-up studies. However, the process of integration can be challenging to draw on expertise in both qualitative and quantitative methods, decide when and how to integrate qualitative and quantitative research, and combine multiple data sources in a coherent way to generate new inferences. …

Human Dimensions Of Woody Encroachment Management In Nebraska, Emily Rowen

School of Natural Resources: Dissertations, Theses, and Student Research

Woody plant encroachment (WPE) is a social-ecological problem that will challenge conservation professionals and agricultural producers to adapt their management strategies. This research first examined WPE from the perspective of individual conservation professionals through an online survey. Conservation professionals’ attitudes about adaptation to vegetation transitions, such as WPE, were of interest because these attitudes are one measure of how prepared this group is to respond to WPE. Hypothesized predictors of adaptation attitude were tested through linear regression modeling. These predictors included ecological change, observation of WPE, or risk perception. It was found that risk perception was the strongest predictor of …

The Influence Of Invasive Species On Fishers’ Satisfactions, Caroline M. Laplante

School of Natural Resources: Dissertations, Theses, and Student Research

Invasives species are prevalent and widespread in North America. Outdoor recreational activities, such as fishing, introduce a point in which humans may interact with invasive species and have to adapt their own behaviors. Bigheaded carp in the Missouri River below Gavin’s Point Dam are a group of invasive fish species that were thought to be negatively relating to recreational fishers’ satisfactions. Using a content analysis and an importance-grid, we conclude that invasive species do not strongly relate to recreational paddlefish fishers’ satisfactions. Paddlefish fishers represent a small sub-set of recreational fishers in Nebraska and South Dakota. The content analysis revealed …

Understanding Avidities Of Recreational Activities For People Possessing Fishing Licenses And Residing In Urban Environments, Kyle F. Hansen

School of Natural Resources: Dissertations, Theses, and Student Research

Recreational fishing is one of the world's most popular pastimes, wherein participation is associated with sociodemographic factors. Even so, fishing license sales are declining in the USA in conjunction with a reduction in rural populations as people move to urban areas. Thus, urban areas are constantly growing in population size, population diversity, and geographic size suggesting a need to understand fishing participation in these growing areas. Natural resource managers often use participation to understand recreationists, yet avidity could provide a new way to understand recreationists. The goal of our study is to understand what sociodemographic factors influence the fishing avidity …

The Impact Of The Covid-19 Pandemic On The Well-Being Of People Incarcerated In United States Prisons, Kimberly Rivera

Department of Sociology: Dissertations, Theses, and Student Research

The COVID-19 pandemic has negatively impacted the population as a whole. However, the incarcerated population (which also experiences a variety of health disparities) has been disproportionately affected by the pandemic. Due to overcrowding, poor ventilation, and lack of resources, the incarcerated population already is at a heightened risk for negative health outcomes, made worse by the recent pandemic. To adapt to the rapidly changing conditions during the pandemic in 2020 and into 2022, new safety measures were implemented, but the unintended consequences associated with the implementation of these procedures have yet to be examined empirically. I conducted a qualitative content …

Early Childhood Language Gains, Kindergarten Readiness, And Grade 3 Reading Achievement, Jessica A.R. Logan, Shayne B. Piasta, Kelly M. Purtell, Robert Nichols, Rachel E. Schachter

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

In this preregistered study, we used latent change score models to address two research aims: (1) whether preschool-aged children's language gains, over a year of early childhood education, were associated with later performance on state-mandated, literacy-focused kindergarten readiness and Grade 3 reading achievement assessments, and (2) whether gains in language, a more complex skill, predicted these outcomes after controlling for more basic emergent literacy skills. There were 724 participating children (mean = 57 months; 51% male; 76% White, 12% Black, 6% multiple races, and 5% Hispanic or Latino). We found that language gains significantly predicted kindergarten readiness when estimated in …

United States Social Security Administration Response To The Office Of Science And Technology Policy Memo, 2022: Public Access Plan (December 2023)

Copyright, Fair Use, Scholarly Communication, etc.

SSA response to OSTP memo, 2022: Public Access Plan (December 2023)

Agriculture And Community Well-Being: A Review Of Three Research Studies, Marilyn R. Schlake

Cornhusker Economics

Personal observations are often obscure to the facts. For instance, recently I worked at a booth at Husker Harvest Days. The booth focused on rural community development. My observations were that many of the agricultural producers decided to not stop at our booth or for those who did stop, conversations showed a disconnect of the importance of their local community to their farm operations. Similarly, when working with communities, I have observed the lack of understanding of the importance of the agricultural producers to the local community’s well-being. Why the disconnect between these two very important components of our rural …

An Analysis Of Racially Disparate Impacts On Housing For The City Of Tukwila, Washington, Neil Tabor

Community and Regional Planning Program: Professional Projects

The housing crisis within the Pacific Northwest of the United States has prompted action from Washington legislators, resulting in Governor Inslee identifying housing as a key priority and the legislature passing a number of forward-thinking bills in the last half decade, requiring the allocation of more resources, and asking more of jurisdictions to address current housing needs and anticipated future growth. Layered within the planning efforts for future growth are concerns and considerations for the potential of new housing development to perpetuate and exacerbate societal inequities built on discriminatory housing policies and practices of generations past and present. In an …

Rates Of Recent Adverse Childhood Experiences Among Indigenous Children, Emily A. Waterman, Katie Edwards, Natira Mullet, Ramona Herrington, Skyler Hopfauf, Preciouse Trujillo, Naomi Even-Aberle, Lorey Wheeler

Department of Educational Psychology: Faculty Publications

The current paper describes rates of recent (past six months) adverse childhood experiences (ACEs) and examines the association of ACEs with cultural connection and depressive symptoms among Indigenous children aged 10 to 14 (N = 177; mean age = 11.8; 48.3% boys; 44.3% girls; 7.4% another gender identity). Children completed baseline surveys as part of a larger evaluation of a culturally grounded, strengths-focused, family-based program to prevent ACEs. Surveys included an inclusive measure of ACEs developed for the current study, an adapted measure of connection to culture, and the Children’s Depression Screener. Results for ACEs indicated that 18.6% of …

Value Added By Using Joint Displays In Mixed Methods Research, Elizabeth Svoboda

Dissertations and Doctoral Documents, University of Nebraska-Lincoln, 2023–

Mixed methods research collects, analyzes, and integrates rigorous qualitative and quantitative methods to gain a deeper understanding of a phenomenon than would be gained by using either method alone. Integration is one of the key features of mixed methods research and consists of mixing qualitative and quantitative research in a systematic way to generate new inferences or follow-up studies. However, the process of integration can be challenging to draw on expertise in both qualitative and quantitative methods, decide when and how to integrate qualitative and quantitative research, and combine multiple data sources in a coherent way to generate new inferences. …

Perceptions Of Childcare In Nonmetropolitan Nebraska, Rebecca J. Vogt, Heather Akin, Cheryl A. Burkhart-Kriesel, Bradley D. Lubben, L. J. Mcelravy, Timothy Meyer, Steven A. Schulz

Nebraska Rural Poll

Lack of childcare is an issue in many rural Nebraska communities. According to a report from Voices for Children, most counties in the state (91%) do not have enough available licensed childcare slots to meet the current demand there. Furthermore, 11 counties in the state have no licensed childcare facilities. Many communities are exploring options of how to address these shortages to maintain their current residents or to be able to attract new residents. Given these challenges, what types of childcare are rural Nebraskans currently using? How far do they drive to get to their childcare? And how do rural …

Attitudes Towards Public Basic Needs Programs: An Analysis Of Question Order Effect, Period And Cohort Changes, And Differences Across Religious Traditions, Jamy Rentschler

Dissertations and Doctoral Documents, University of Nebraska-Lincoln, 2023–

This dissertation examines public opinions towards public basic needs programs (PBNPs), focusing specifically on differences in attitudes towards spending on assistance to the poor (ATP) and welfare. To do this, I use two different approaches, one focusing on survey methodology and the other looking at social change across time and religious tradition. The first research question addresses potential survey question order effects based upon which question came first, ATP or welfare, and examines how other federal spending priorities may impact opinions towards welfare. I do find question order effects, some of which vary based on the respondent’s race, but the …

Housing Discrimination And Negative Attitudes Towards Ex-Offender Parents, Julie Wertheimer-Meier

Department of Psychology: Dissertations, Theses, and Student Research

While the Fair Housing Act prohibits housing discrimination because of race, gender, religion, sex, disability, family status, and national origin, it allows housing providers to discriminate on the basis of criminal history. Prior research shows that housing providers disproportionately deny housing to ex-offender applicants and single parent applicants with young children. An ex-offender parent’s inability to acquire safe and affordable housing decreases the potential for reunification with their children and increases the risk of lost custody or parental rights termination. This dissertation consisted of two experiments that examined the effects of negative attitudes towards ex-offender parents on those parents’ ability …

Off The Rails: Cinematic Trains As Technological Controls Of The Natural World, Trinity Thompson

Honors Program: Senior Projects (Public)

Short train rail lines across the United States are seeing increased national funding to reduce toxic chemical spills caused by train derailments, the most notable of which happened in February 2023 in East Palestine, Ohio. A year prior, the film White Noise (2022) featured a similar toxic train derailment incident, taking place, too, in Eastern Ohio, and featuring actors from the town of East Palestine. In considering other films featuring trains, I identified a pattern of environmental conflict, leading me to question the relationship between trains and the natural environment as portrayed in popular cinema. To conduct my research, I …

Development And Psychometric Validation Of The Pandemic-Related Traumatic Stress Scale For Children And Adults, Courtney K. Blackwell, Phillip Sherlock, Kathryn L. Jackson, Julie A. Hofheimer, David Cella, Molly A. Algermissen, Akram N. Alshawabkeh, Lyndsay A. Avalos, Tracy Bastain, Clancy Blair, Michelle Bosquet Enlow, Patricia A. Brennan, Carrie Breton, Nicole R. Bush, Aruna Chandran, Shaina Collazo, Elisabeth Conradt, Sheila E. Crowell, Sean Deoni, Amy J. Elliott, Jean A. Frazier, Jody M. Ganiban, Diane R. Gold, Julie B. Herbstman, Christine Joseph, Margaret R. Karagas, Barry Lester, Jessica A. Lasky-Su, Leslie D. Leve, Kaja Z. Lewinn, W. Alex Mason, Elisabeth C. Mcgowan, Kimberly S. Mckee, Rachel L. Miller, Jenae M. Neiderhiser, Thomas G. O’Connor, Emily Oken, T. Michael O’Shea, David Pagliaccio, Rebecca J. Schmidt, Anne Marie Singh, Joseph B. Stanford, Leonardo Trasande, Rosalind J. Wright, Cristiane S. Duarte, Amy E. Margolis

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

To assess the public health impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on mental health, investigators from the National Institutes of Health Environmental influences on Child Health Outcomes (ECHO) research program developed the Pandemic-Related Traumatic Stress Scale (PTSS). Based on the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders, 5th Edition (DSM-5) acute stress disorder symptom criteria, the PTSS is designed for adolescent (13–21 years) and adult self-report and caregiver-report on 3–12-year-olds. To evaluate psychometric properties, we used PTSS data collected between April 2020 and August 2021 from non-pregnant adult caregivers (n = 11,483), pregnant/postpartum individuals (n = 1,656), …

Gray Literature In The Institutional Repository: Partnership Between The University Of Nebraska-Lincoln Libraries And Two Textile Societies, Sue Ann Gardner, Paul Royster

University of Nebraska-Lincoln Libraries: Faculty Publications

Gray literature (GL) often contains valuable, unique knowledge but is sometimes difficult to source, collect, and preserve. Institutional repositories can serve as excellent platforms for such material due to their open accessibility for anyone with an internet connection. This chapter includes a brief discussion about gray literature as a material type in libraries generally and covers the partnership of the University of Nebraska-Lincoln Libraries with the Textile Society of America and the Centre for Textile Research that has resulted in the publishing of the groups’ conference papers. Together, as of mid-2022, these materials have been full-text downloaded nearly 1,500,000 times …

A Brief Comparison Of Two Early Neighborhoods: Consumerism And Social Class In 20th Century Lincoln, Nebraska, Mariska Molnar

Department of Anthropology: Theses and Student Research

In the Fall of 2018, Matthew Hansen monitored the destruction of a parking lot two blocks north of the Capitol Building in Lincoln, Nebraska for the subsequent building of a geothermal system. During this period, and excavation was conducted with the aid of the University of Nebraska-Lincoln Campus Archaeology Project, and 12 features were identified. Five features produced artifacts, with Feature 11, a cistern, being the most fruitful. The collection was named the Capitol Wellfield, and a portion of the artifacts, which includes diagnostic glass and ceramic pieces, are housed on campus for studying.

Most research and publication have been …

Queer Perspectives On Mentorship In Higher Education: A Phenomenological Study, Anthony T. Fucci

Dissertations and Doctoral Documents, University of Nebraska-Lincoln, 2023–

This qualitative study explored the way in which LGBTQ+ college students experienced mentorship. Despite improvements in LGBTQ+ rights over the last 50+ years, recent scholarship has shown that queer students still face unique challenges, including discrimination and harassment based on their queer identity. Mentorship has been found to be an effective resource for assisting marginalized student populations transition successfully into college. The purpose of this study was to investigate how LGBTQ+ students experienced mentorship in order to better understand how these relationships may (or may not) contribute to their experience on college campuses. A phenomenological research design and queer theory …

Amultidimensional Examination Of Children’S Endorsement Of Gender Stereotypes, Cindy Faith Miller, Lorey A. Wheeler, Bobbi Woods

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

The present research applied a multidimensional framework to the study of gender stereotypes by investigating whether elementary school children display different levels of endorsement when considering distinct gender stereotype constructs (ability, category, and interest) and feminine versus masculine stereotypes. Study 1 (N = 403) compared children’s ability and category beliefs using a set of gender-neutral skill items. Study 2 (N = 539) extended this research by examining whether children showed different patterns of ability and category decisions for feminine versus masculine occupational items. Study 3 (N = 974) furthered our understanding of the construct dimension by comparing …

Moral Narratives Of Sobriety: A Qualitative Study Of A Lived Religion Framework Of Alcoholics Anonymous, Maia C. Behrendt, Kelsy Burke

Department of Sociology: Faculty Publications

This study examines how Alcoholics Anonymous (AA) can be understood as a “lived religion” that seeks to legitimize and moralize certain experiences and beliefs through narratives that are affirmed by the substance abuse recovery community. Through a qualitative analysis of 20 in-depth interviews with both actively recovering and non-actively recovering participants of AA, we identify three distinct moral narratives described by participants related to the construction of spiritual beliefs, individual health, and social belonging that highlight how the structure of AA reifies stories of addiction recovery as morally charged. We contribute to sociology of religion and addiction studies by examining …

Les Pollinator Habitat, Chloe Herbert, Dillon Richert, Melissa Landis

Environmental Engagement in the Community (ENVR 319): Student Projects

Environmental Engagement in the Community projects, fall 2023

A poster titled LES Pollinator Habitat for client Lincoln Electric System (C. Herbert and D. Richert with M. Landis).

Local Energy For Local Water: Developing Off-Grid Backup Power For Rural Communities In Nebraska, Brian Mock, Michael Ryan, Clement Konmegne Magaptche, James Persson

Environmental Engagement in the Community (ENVR 319): Student Projects

Environmental Engagement in the Community projects, fall 2023

A poster titled Local Energy for Local Water: Developing Off-grid Backup Power for Rural Communities in Nebraska for clients Nebraska local water operators (prepared by B. Mock, M. Ryan, and C. Konmegne Magaptche with J. Persson).

Nine Mile Prairie Environs 2020 Master Plan Implementation Assessment, Tessa Fiore, Cole Brady, Miles Godfrey

Environmental Engagement in the Community (ENVR 319): Student Projects

Environmental Engagement in the Community projects, fall 2023

A poster titled Nine Mile Prairie Environs 2020 Master Plan Implementation Assessment for client Nine Mile Prairie Working Group (prepared by T. Fiore, C. Brady, and M. Godfrey).

Organic Waste In Lincoln: Drop-Off Program, Alora Schneider, Olivia Miller, Carter Probst

Environmental Engagement in the Community (ENVR 319): Student Projects

Environmental Engagement in the Community projects, fall 2023

A poster titled Organic Waste in Lincoln: Drop-Off Program for client Uribe Refuse, Waste to Energy LLC (Mellissa Mercier).

Lincoln Business Sustainability Assessment And Incentive Strategies For Emission Reduction, Jacson Farho, Moira Gonzales, Isabella Mccollum

Environmental Engagement in the Community (ENVR 319): Student Projects

Environmental Engagement in the Community projects, fall 2023

A poster titled Lincoln Business Sustainability Assessment and Incentive Strategies for Emission Reduction for client Coalition for Environmental Improvement (C. Eichorn and G. Hanlon).