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An Experimental Analysis Of Instructional Technologies Applied To The Three Contingency Model Of Performance Management, Judith S . Devoe

Dissertations

This research had four goals: (1) to refine the theory of performance management based on rule-governed behavior and refine the three-contingency model of performance. management, (2) to develop a university-level programmed instruction unit to teach the three-contingency model of performance management, (3) to test for functional independence between response classes—using concept-discrimination and concept-exemplification, and (4) to test a common assumption of programmed instruction— the necessity for active responding (this assumption was tested with both concept-discrimination training and concept-exemplification training).

Participants included fifty-nine undergraduates enrolled in a behavior analysis course. They were randomly assigned to one of four groups: (1) the …

An Extension To The Avc Discrimination Test By The Addition Of One Level Above Avc Level Vi, Charles P. Butler

Dissertations

Kerr, Meyerson and Flora (1977) devised a series of six small learning tasks that could be used to assess developmentally disabled individuals on the typical tasks to be performed in a school setting or sheltered workshop and required very simple equipment. The tasks were imitation, position discrimination, visual discrimination, match-to sample, auditory discrimination and combined auditory visual discrimination. Davinc (1990) suggested that there may be transitional skills between AVC levels IV and V not found by Kerr et al. Davine (1990), Wilson (1991) and Buder (1992) devised a series of experimental tasks designed to test this notion. All used nonidentity …

A Causal-Comparative Study Of The Relationship Of Mathematics, Science, Athletics And The Career Expectations Of Adolescent Women, Elwood Martin Bowers

Dissertations

The premise of this study is that high school women who complete course work in advanced mathematics and advanced science and participate in organized athletic programs will develop skills, knowledge, and attitudes that facilitate and encourage expanded options in their occupational expectations. It was hypothesized that such women would have occupational expectations that reflect a greater degree of gender integration or nontraditionality than women who do not participate in such activities. Other environmental or attribute variables such as parents' occupation, birth order, and constructs of self concept, were examined for intervening or modifying effects on the major premise.

Participants in …

The Relationship Between Codependency And Kohlberg's Stages Of Moral Development, David L. Arkesteyn

Dissertations

The phenomenon of codependency is currently under considerable scrutiny as to its actual meaning and whether the concept is biased against women, ignores normal psychological development, and is subject to the "Bamum effect". Codependent relationships are widely considered dysfunctional, yet normal psychological development may play a role in these relationships which is not dysfunctional. The purpose of this study was to investigate the relationship between codependency and Kohlberg's stages of moral development It was proposed that codependency would be highly correlated with Kohlberg's interpersonal concordance orientation stage. The sample consisted of sixty adult subjects who were assessed as codependent Thirty-one …

The Effects Of Relaxation Exercises On Young Persons With Moderate Asthma, Robert Edward Obrecht

Dissertations

This experiment studied the acute and cumulative effects of relaxation exercises on young persons (mean age 11.4 years) with moderate asthma. In order to assess the acute effects of relaxation, treatment group subjects were instructed to perform relaxation exercises immediately before and during methacholine inhalation challenge procedures that produced a 20% reduction in forced expiratory volume in one-second (FEXA,). The control group subjects were not taught the relaxation exercises, but still underwent the methacholine challenges. In order to assess the cumulative effects of the treatment group subjects practicing relaxation exercises twice daily at home for 10-weeks, they were instructed to …

A Bootstrap Method To Analyze An Intervention Model With Autoregressive Error Terms, Scott D. Mcknight

Dissertations

The analysis of a particular time-series intervention model involving lag one autoregressive (AR(1)) error terms is the focus of this dissertation. The method of ordinary least squares, and several two stage procedures that are commonly used to analyze this intervention model are examined. The two stage Cochrane-Orcutte, Durbin, and generalized least squares procedures each requires estimation of the AR(1) parameter in stage one before hypothesis testing about the intervention parameters can be performed in stage two. Using Monte Carlo experiments we show that the AR(1) estimates commonly used in these procedures are poor and consequently the stage two hypothesis tests …

The Effects Of A Monetary Bonus And Penalty On The Performance Of A Simple Monitoring Task, Gordon Henry

Dissertations

The purpose of the present study was to compare the effects of three different pay systems on human monitoring performance. With increasing automation, monitoring tasks are becoming increasingly common, but methods of compensation that will promote good performance remain unexamined. Although hourly pay is typically used, data suggest that contingent pay may be more effective in motivating high levels of performance.

In the current study, six undergraduate students, four females and two males ranging in age from 19 to 21 years, performed a monitoring task analogous to one performed by a security guard. Specifically, subjects observed a television screen and …

The Effects Of Systems-Centered Versus Individual-Centered Training On The Analysis Of Organizational Problems, Jane E. Devries

Dissertations

This study analyzed the effects of systems-centered (S) training, individual centered (I) training, and no formal training (C) on the ability to identify organizational problems. Three groups of 10-14 undergraduates participated. Subjects completed a pre-test that required analysis of 10 one-page vignettes describing some type of organizational problem. Each participant rated the quality of the vignettes to assess the amount of critical information presented, and identified the organizational problem, the rationale for targeting the problem, and questions that should be asked of the management to obtain more information. Groups S and I received six hours of systems-centered training or individual …

The Writing Response In Studies Of Topography-Based And Selection-Based Verbal Behavior, Osborn Cresson

Dissertations

The position taken in this paper is that the observable world is the only one needed in our analysis, that behavior is a reaction to the environments in which it occurs, and that language is more behavior that can be studied effectively as a dependent variable that varies as a function of independent variables manipulated by the experimenter.

Our goal was to study topography-based and selection-based verbal behavior with emphasis on the writing response and then to produce a report that would serve as a guide for other students of behavior and environment.

Sixteen undergraduate college students participated in 115 …

High Breakdown Rank-Based Estimates For Linear Models, William H. Chang

Dissertations

No abstract provided.

The Effects Of A Problem-Solving And Imagery-Based Suggestion On Analgesic Responding In Low, Medium, And High Hypnotizable Females, Gloria Haddad Taggett

Dissertations

This study assessed the effects of a problem-solving suggestion as compared with an imagery-based suggestion on analgesic responding in subjects scoring in the low, medium, and high ranges on scales of hypnotizability. Subjects were exposed at separate intervals to either an hypnotic suggestion patter containing specific imagery designed to enhance analgesic performance, or alternatively to a suggestion patter that provided only general problem-solving direction, but contained no specific imaginal guidance. Performance was assessed using two duration measures on a cold-pressor test. Specific measures included both the total time duration a subject held the target hand in cold water (tolerance) as …

The Theory And Applications Of Stratified Graphs, Reza Rashidi

Dissertations

Physical design is one of several stages in the design of a VLSI chip. In this stage, the specifications of an electrical circuit are converted into a geometrical model. Problems concerning the physical design stage can often be studied by means of graphs. The problems encountered here are routing problems and concern placement of vertices, which represent wires, into layers. All this gives rise to a class of graphs whose vertices are partitioned into classes. Such graphs are called stratified graphs. In this dissertation, we formally define stratified graphs, study their properties, and investigate various algorithmic problems related to these …

Improvement Of Waterjet And Abrasive Waterjet Nozzle, Zheng Li

Dissertations

This investigation is concerned with the improvement of the nozzle design for water and abrasive water jet machining. The mechanism of formation and characteristics of pure water and abrasive water jets are investigated in order to determine quasi-optimal process conditions.

To improve the pure water jet machining, a pulsed water jet nozzle, which employs the principle of the Helmholtz type resonator, is investigated experimentally and numerically. The experiments show the advantages of this nozzle over the commercial nozzle in cutting and cleaning. A numerical solution of the differential equations of continuity, momentum conservation, turbulent kinetic energy and dissipation for two …

Analytical And Simulation Models Of Weaving Area Operations Under Non-Freeway Conditions, Muhammad Shahid Iqbal

Dissertations

The Highway Capacity Manual covers adequately the operation of weaving areas on freeways. Weaving on non-freeway facilities, however, has not been addressed as yet. This research effort presents a state-of-the-art procedural analytical approach and simulation models for the analysis of the level of service and operation of non-freeway weaving areas. Weaving under non-freeway conditions is classified into two broad categories; basic weave and ramp weave. The analytical models for these two weaving categories are calibrated and validated based on data obtained from several sites selected in the states of New Jersey and New York. New level of service criteria are …

Local Thermal Stress Factor Of Pipe-Nozzle, David Chihwei Chen

Dissertations

A comprehensive study of local thermal stresses at the juncture of pipe-nozzle is presented in this thesis. The thermal loading is assumed to be a linear thermal gradient across the thickness of the pipe and nozzle. Currently, there exists neither experimental nor analytical data that is sufficient for pressure vessel designers to analyze the local thermal stresses at the juncture of pipe-nozzle. In order to provide a comprehensive database to calculate these thermal stresses, the finite element technique is used to provide a series of local thermal stress factor plots as a function of pipe-nozzle geometrical parameters.

For the local …

Algorithms In Fault-Tolerant Clos Networks, Hyunyeop Lee

Dissertations

No abstract provided.

An Office Document Retrieval System With The Capability Of Processing Incomplete And Vague Queries, Qianhong Liu

Dissertations

TEXPROS (TEXt PROcessing System) is an intelligent document processing system. The system is a combination of filing and retrieval systems, which supports storing, classifying, categorizing, retrieving and reproducing documents, as well as extracting, browsing, retrieving and synthesizing information from a variety of documents. This dissertation presents a retrieval system for TEXPROS, which is capable of processing incomplete or vague queries and providing semantically meaningful responses to the users. The design of the retrieval system is highly integrated with various mechanisms for achieving these goals. First, a system catalog including a thesaurus is used to store the knowledge about the database. …

Local Stress Factors Of Pipe-Nozzle Under Internal Pressure, Jih-Lian Jack Ha

Dissertations

This thesis presents a comprehensive study of local stresses around a pipe-nozzle due to internal pressure. The finite element method (FEM) was employed to provide a numerical solution which will furnish a database for stress analysts to compute local stresses of pipe-nozzle due to internal pressure. The local pressure stresses for both the pipe and the nozzle around the pipe-nozzle juncture are first normalized into pressure stress factors which are then plotted as functions of geometrical parameters, beta, β, (nozzle mean radius / pipe mean radius) and gamma γ, (pipe mean radius / pipe thickness). These local pressure stresses at …

Behavior Of Concrete And Slender Reinforced Concrete Columns Under Cyclic Axial Compression With Bidirectional Eccentricities, Byong Youl Bahn

Dissertations

A rational analysis of reinforced concrete (R/C) structures requires satisfactory modeling of the behavior of concrete under general loading patterns. The behavioral characteristics of concrete dominantly depends upon its load history. For the study of concrete behavior, parametric study and experimental investigation into the behavior of concrete under load history of random cycles are performed. Through parametric study, the applicability of the previous concrete models is examined and a physically motivated modeling for the cyclic stress-strain relationships is proposed. The present modeling of concrete under general cyclic loading is initiated to provide substantial applicability, flexibility of mathematical expressions and furthermore …

Theoretical Evaluation Of The Break Off Test For Concrete, Arjuna Priyara Ranasinghe

Dissertations

Strength of concrete is normally measured using the standard cylinder or cube. The measured strength is used for design. The accuracy of concrete strength is frequently challenged, particularly in large concrete structures where size effect of the test specimens is attributed for the differences. Many nondestructive tests were developed to evaluate concrete strengths. In recent years, it was obvious that these tests are unreliable. As the infrastructure decays, more nondestructive tests are required to evaluate the existing structures.

The Break Off Test is a recently developed nondestructive test. Although substantial amount of experimental investigations have been carried out on this …

An Exploratory Study Of Sentient Evaluators: Communication, Ethics, And Relationships In The Evaluation Process, Mary Elizabeth Piontek

Dissertations

The purpose of this exploratory study was to develop hypotheses about the ways evaluators involve stakeholders, clients, and audiences in the evaluation process and communicate their findings to these groups. A sentient evaluator was defined as an evaluator who takes an active role in promoting the program that s/he is investigating and deliberately seeks to represent underrepresented stakeholders. This type of evaluator has her/his own ethical or moral agenda through which s/he views the program being evaluated and takes a formative perspective on program development and improvement.

Evaluators (n=12) believed to be sentient because they displayed certain characteristics were compared …

A Descriptive Study Of Michigan Auto Workers' (Uaw) Physical And Psychological Responses To 1987 Plant Closures, Lorraine Marie Oginsky

Dissertations

A descriptive study ( 1991-1992) examined 166 closing and nonclosing UAW auto workers in two General Motors settings, as to how they cope mentally and physically with unemployment and displacement 5 years after plant closure and mass layoffs. Workers were asked the question, "Is job loss a threat, a loss, or a challenge?"

Lazarus and Folkman' s ( 1984) Stress, Appraisal and Coping and the Stress Coping Model (Lazarus, 1980) provided the theoretical basis for this study. Measures included the investigator designed Plant Closing Questionnaire, Revised Ways of Coping (Folkman & Lazarus, undated), Hassles and Uplifts Scale (Lazarus & Folkman, …

The Effects Of Regular Aerobic Exercise On Sexual Desire In Women, Joanne Louise Kolean-Burley

Dissertations

A multiple baseline design across subjects was used to evaluate the effects of an 8-week aerobic walking program on sexual desire in 7 previously sedentary married women who met the DSM-III-R criteria for Hypoactive Sexual Desire Disorder (HSDD). Sexual desire was assessed on a weekly basis through a 6 to 9-week baseline period and the 8-week walking intervention using the Self-Acceptance and Mate- Acceptance subscales of the Sexual Interaction Inventory (SII) (LoPiccolo & Steger, 1974), the Sexual Activity Form, developed for this study to measure the frequency of female sexual initiation and responsivity, a behavioral counter and the Sexual Thoughts …

Nutrition, Fitness, Stress And Genital Herpes Recurrences, Carman E. Stark

Dissertations

The purpose of this research was to extend the existing literature by assessing the relationship between several factors separately and combined, nutrition, fitness and stress, and herpes recurrence rates. It was hypothesized that the results from this study would indicate an inverse correlation between nutrition, fitness, and genital herpes recurrence rates and a positive correlation between stress and genital herpes. Each participant was asked to complete and return (a) two Computerized Nutrition Assessment Forms that provide a health history profile and a record of food choices and portions over two, three-day periods; (b) The Hassle Scale that provides a weekly …

Urban Teachers’ Views And Ranking Of Five Home And School Variables With Respect To Effective Teaching Of Disadvantaged Students, Loraine Constance Enniss

Dissertations

There is a range of information on effective teaching of disadvantaged students, with educators supporting either the home or school, as the variable with the greatest impact. What are the opinions of classroom teachers on this topic?

In this exploratory study, Group 1 teachers included all those who ranked the impact (on their ability to effectively teach disadvantaged students), of the home variables: parental involvement, dialects of English, socioeconomic status as 3, 4. and 5 and the school variables: teaching methodology and teacher expectations, as 1 and 2. All others were in Group 0. Scores of these two groups of …

A Descriptive Study Of Programmatic And Curricular Components Of Regular And Developmental Kindergartens, Stephen A. Anderson

Dissertations

The purpose of this study was to assess and describe programmatic and curricular differences between developmental and regular kindergartens. The research questions were to find how regular and developmental teachers describe their program and to determine from these descriptions any differences or similarities. A descriptive research design was used. A survey was developed from a search of literature, review by a panel of experts, and a pilot study.

The population for the study was all kindergarten teachers and the sample was all kindergarten teachers in a metropolitan Detroit county. Surveys were returned by 82% of the sample which met a …

Integrating Chronic Illness Into One's Life: A Phenomenological Inquiry, Susan Rush Michael Dnsc, Ms, Rn

Dissertations

Chronic illness is currently the number one health problem facing the United States; however, little is known about the experience of making chronic illness a part of one's life, particularly from the perspective of the chronically ill person. If nurses are to assist people in living with chronic illness, then an understanding of this experience is essential. Therefore, the purpose of this phenomenological inquiry was to explore how chronically ill adults integrate chronic illness into their lives. Seventeen chronically ill adults were interviewed by the researcher, and asked to describe how they integrated chronic illness into their lives. Each interview …

The Environment: Alive, Whole, Interconnected And Interacting, Dorothy Kleffel Dnsc, Mph, Bsn, Rn

Dissertations

Nurses frequently care for individuals whose conditions are related to destructive environmental influences. Although the environment is a central construct in the nursing paradigm, its definition is client oriented, circumscribed, and does not adequately explain situations emanating from the larger physical, social, cultural, political, or economic spheres of the environment. This research described an expanded, ideal, environmental nursing domain derived from selected upstream scholars whose work has addressed broad environmental dimensions. Using the concept of future search, once this idealized environmental domain is envisioned, the nursing profession can begin to discover the knowledge base that is needed in order to …

Comparisons Of Several Medians In A Lognormal K-Sample Context Where Some Data May Be Left-Censored, Stavros Costa Pouloukas

Dissertations

No abstract provided.

The Unprepossessing Mr. Ryan: Understanding Exemplary Legislative Leadership, Barbara A. K. Adams

Dissertations

This study focuses on the character attributes, philosophy, political skills, policy agenda, and administrative activities of William A. Ryan, Speaker of the Michigan House of Representatives from 1969 through 1974 and a House member from 1958 through 1982. The case study is embedded in a history of Michigan’s political culture, which is characterized by moralistic and individualistic strands often in conflict with one another.

The research hypothesis was that administrative virtue in legislative leadership is best described in terms of utilitarian ethics, the ability to control and manage factionalism in the interest of incremental change. The rival hypothesis was that …