Digital Commons Network^™

The Litigators: Perceptions Of Predictability, Definitions Of A Good Outcome, And An Alternative To Mass Tort Trials, Lisa K. Dicker, Shane K. Hebel

Faculty Publications

(Excerpt)

A pervasive theme in our understanding of civil legal disputes is the “big case”; that is, the generic mass tort that pits sympathetic clients against shadowy, villainous corporations. In John Grisham’s stories about these cases, a David-and-Goliath legal battle ensues, the parameters of the law shift, the attorneys’ ethics stretch, and the author uses characters to reveal both sides’ deep secrets unwillingly—and sometimes unwittingly. Ultimately, the case leads to a “win” for one side or the other—either a huge payday for the clients and a large percentage-based fee for the lawyers who stumbled across it, or a corporation that …

Constructing Two Phonological Systems: A Phonetic Analysis Of /P/, /T/, /K/ Among Early Spanish–English Bilingual Speakers, Earl K. Brown, Mary T. Copple

Faculty Publications

Aims and objectives/purpose/research questions: Many early Spanish-English bilingual speakers in the USA learn Spanish as their first language at home and English in school. This paper seeks to elucidate whether these speakers develop a separate phonological system for English and, if so, the role of primary and secondary cues in the development of the second language (L2) system.

Design/methodology/approach: The phonetic realization of the voiceless stops /p/, /t/, /k/ is analyzed among three groups: early Spanish-English bilinguals; L1 English speakers who are late learners of Spanish; and L1 Spanish speakers who are late learners of English. The participants (N = …

Not In My Backyard, Joey Franklin

Faculty Publications

For a few months one summer when I was a kid, a homeless man slept in the alleyway behind our home. Our backyard shared a fence with a two-story Methodist church that went largely unused during the week, and the small concrete patio beneath its back stairs made for a quiet, inviting shelter from the rain. The man generally came and went under the cover of night, so we didn’t notice him much, but occasionally we’d hear him cough, or smell cigarette smoke wafting over the fence, and we’d know he was back again. I don’t remember actually fearing him, …

Prenatal Parental Designing Of Children And The Problem Of Acceptance, David A. Jensen

Faculty Publications

Seemingly ever improving medical technology and techniques portend the possibility of prenatally enhancing otherwise healthy, normal children—seamlessly enhancing or adding to a child’s natural abilities and characteristics. Though parents normally engage in enhancing children, i.e., child rearing, these technologies present radically new possibilities. This sort of enhancement, I argue, is morally problematic for the parent: the expectations of the enhancing parent necessarily conflict with attitudes of acceptance that moral parenting requires. Attitudes of acceptance necessitate that parents are open to the essentially-individual choices of the child that will determine the kind of person he or she becomes. However, the intentional …

“Can’T Live With Or Without Them:” Transitions And Young Adults’ Perceptions Of Sibling Relationships, Alexander C. Jensen Phd, Shawn D. Whiteman, Karen L. Fingerman

Faculty Publications

Extant research documents how siblings’ relationships develop from childhood through adolescence; yet, we know little about how sibling relationships change in young adulthood. Rooted in life course theory, this 2-wave longitudinal study investigated changes in sibling closeness and conflict, and the roles of life transitions and sibling similarity in life stage. Participants included 273 young adults from 180 families who reported on 340 sibling relationships (Time 1 M age = 24.45, SD = 5.33; Time 2 M age = 30.23, SD = 5.33). Multilevel repeated measures analysis of covariance indicated that, on average, siblings’ perceptions of conflict declined over the …

Violent Video Games, Externalizing Behavior, And Prosocial Behavior: A Five-Year Longitudinal Study During Adolescence, Sarah M. Coyne, Wayne A. Warburton, Lee W. Essig, Laura A. Stockdale

Faculty Publications

Decades of research on the effects of media violence have examined associations between viewing aggressive material in the media and aggression and prosocial behavior. However, the existing longitudinal studies have tended to exclusively examine aggression and prosocial behavior as outcomes, with a limited range of potential mediators. The current study examines associations between playing violent video games and externalizing and prosocial behavior over a 5-year period across adolescence. Additionally, the study examines potential mediators of these associations, including empathic concern, benevolence, and self-regulation. Participants included 488 adolescents (MAge of child at Wave 1 􏰀13.83, SD 􏰀 0.98) and their parents, …

Teaching Children About Money: Prospective Parenting Ideas From Undergraduate Students, Ashley B. Lebaron, Christina M. Rosa-Holyoak, L. Ashley Bryce, E. Jeffrey Hill, Loren D. Marks

Faculty Publications

Many Millennials (aged 18-30 in 2016) are struggling with financial capability and independence. As efforts unfold to address this issue by improving financial education, Millennials themselves can offer helpful family-centered ideas for children 's financial learning. As part of the Whats and Hows of Family Financial $ocialization project, this qualitative study explored the ideas of 126 undergraduate students enrolled in family finance classes at three institutions from three regions of the United States about how and what they intend to teach their future children about finances. Thematic content analysis and coding of interviews revealed four core themes: (a) "Communicating Family …

Proactive Social Validation Of Methods And Procedures Used For Training Speech Production In Aphasia, Tyson G. Harmon, Lucy Hardy, Katarina L. Haley

Faculty Publications

Background: Social validation evaluates the importance and acceptability of treatment goals, procedures, and outcomes. Previous studies for treatments that train speech production in aphasia have applied social validation during the post-treatment period or to treatment protocols that are already fully developed.

Aims: The purposes of this study were to (1) examine the social validity of goals and procedures experienced in speech production treatment for people with aphasia and (2) evaluate the feasibility of procedural choice-making during such tasks.

Method: Seven people with aphasia and eight speech-language pathologists were interviewed about previous treatment that targeted speech production. Participants were also observed …

Reconsidering Design And Evaluation, Andrew S. Gibbons Iii, David D. Williams

Faculty Publications

In this paper we have put design and evaluation as it were under a microscope with multiple lenses. We use four different snapshots of design, each at a different level of resolution, to reveal new perspectives on the design-evaluation relationship. We believe that the disparate views of designers and evaluators can be resolved by resorting to the middle ground described by Klir. We believe also that the disparate views of educational technologists and learning scientists can be similarly resolved by appealing to the similar principle of Edelson.

Child Inhibitory Control And Maternal Acculturation Moderate Effects Of Maternal Parenting On Chinese American Children’S Adjustment, Jing Yu, Charissa L. Cheah, Craig H. Hart, Chongming Yang

Faculty Publications

The goals of this study were to examine: (a) bidirectional associations between maternal parenting (physical punishment and guilt induction) and Chinese American preschool children’s psychosocial adjustment and (b) the role of maternal cultural orientation and child temperament in moderating parenting effects. Participants were Chinese American mothers and children (N 163, Mage 4.56, 53% boys). Mothers reported on their parenting practices at both Wave 1 (W1) and Wave 2 (W2) and their cultural orientations and children’s inhibitory control at W1. Teachers rated children’s prosocial, internalizing, and externalizing behaviors at both W1 and W2. A Bayesian approach to path analysis was utilized …

Development And Preliminary Assessment Of Interprofessional Education Focused On Vulnerable Populations, Celia Pechak, Connie Summers, Barbara Schoen, Margie Padilla, Patricia Lara, Joanna Velasco, Stephanie Capshaw

Faculty Publications

With the current state of the U.S. healthcare system, interprofessional collaborative practice (IPCP) has never been more important. Health professions educators are increasingly incorporating interprofessional education (IPE) in their curricula in order to prepare students for IPCP. The HealthFocused IPE Community of Practice (representing nursing, occupational therapy, pharmacy, physical therapy, rehabilitation counseling, social work, and speech-language pathology) at the University of Texas at El Paso has created a unique IPE model centered on vulnerable populations. The purposes of this paper are to describe the early development of this innovative IPE model and present findings from an evaluation of an IPE …

Tolkien’S Phonoprint In Character Names Throughout His Invented Languages, Bruce L. Brown, Brad Wilcox, Wendy Baker-Smemoe, Timothy G. Morrison

Faculty Publications

J. R. R. Tolkien claimed to create names based on sound symbolism and invented languages. Previous studies revealed that Tolkien had his own phonoprint (tendency to use the same phonemes repeatedly for character names) regardless of his claims that they reflected different language origins. However, this research examined phonemes and syllables rather than names as whole units. This study compared 183 names from Tolkien’s works and 100 names from the nineteenth Century Us Census. The name recognition software linked names with known languages or provided a “generic” category when no match was found. Results showed no significant differences between the …

Sanctifcation And Cheating Among Emerging Adults, Scott Braithwaite, Paige Mcallister, Elena Henderson, Meghan Maddock, Krista Dowdle, Frank D. Fincham

Faculty Publications

Cheating—a general term for extradyadic romantic or sexual behavior that violates expectations in a committed romantic relationship—is common and leads to a number of poor outcomes. Religion has historically infuenced conceptions of romantic relationships, but societal attitudes about religion are in fux as many seek to retain spirituality even as afliations with formal religion decrease. The present study evaluated a potential predictor of cheating that is more spiritual than formally religious, the “psychospiritual” concept of relationship sanctifcation (i.e., the idea that one’s relationship itself is sacred). In a sample of college students in committed relationships (N=716), we found that higher …

Strength Of Belief: Religious Commitment, Knowledge, And Hpvvaccination Adherence, Wendy C. Birmingham, Janelle L. B. Macintosh, Allison A. Vaughn, Tyler C. Graff

Faculty Publications

Objective:Human papillomavirus (HPV) infects millions of men and women annu-ally and is a substantial contributing factor in many cancers including oral, penile, anal,and cervical. Vaccination can reduce risk but adherence nationwide and, particularlyin highly religious states, is suboptimal. Religious principles of abstinence before mar-riage and total fidelity following marriage may create a belief of protection throughadherence to religious guidelines. However, while one partner may remain monoga-mous, one cannot be assured of their partner's behavior both before and after mar-riage. These misconceptions may create a barrier to religious youth's adherence tovaccine recommendations.Methods:We sampled single young adults, age 18 to 25 years, …

Stories They Tell: The Rhetoric Of Recruiting Independent Consultants, Jacob D. Rawlins, Sarah E. Martin

Faculty Publications

This study investigates the themes that drive persuasive recruiting appeals, or stories, designed to attract new, entrepreneurial workers in the direct selling industry. It offers a rhetorical perspective informed by fantasy theme analysis on the themes present in the recruiting content on the corporate Web sites of three direct selling companies (Mary Kay, Stella & Dot, and Scentsy). The analysis indicates that rhetorical agency is a core theme in the persuasive recruiting stories for these companies. Offering a means for business and technical communication scholars to explore agency or other persuasive story themes in context, this study addresses how a …

Project Sweat (Summer Weight And Environmental Assessment Trial): Study Protocol Of An Observational Study Using A Multistate, Prospective Design That Examines The Weight Gain Trajectory Among A Racially And Ethnically Diverse Convenience Sample Of Economically Disadvantaged School-Age Children, Laura C. Hopkins, Christine Penicka, Carly Evich, Blake Jones, Carolyn Gunther

Faculty Publications

Introduction Racial/ethnic minority school-age children are at risk for unhealthy weight gain during the summer, and there is a dearth of information regarding the underlying behavioural and environmental factors. The study objective is to provide an in-depth examination of dietary and physical activity behaviours and food, physical activity, and social environments of African American and Hispanic school-age children during the summer.

Methods and analysis An observational study will be conducted using a multistate (Ohio and Indiana, USA) prospective design examining the weight gain trajectory among a racially/ethnically diverse convenience sample of economically disadvantaged school-age children. In addition, a subset of …

Online Student Use Of A Proximate Community Of Engagement In An Independent Study Program, Darin R. Oviatt, Charles R. Graham, Randall S. Davies, Jered Borup

Faculty Publications

Research has suggested that independent study students in online courses may benefit from engaging with a proximate community of engagement (PCE) and that students perceive that such engagement will help them succeed. Independent Study students were surveyed at the completion of their course to assess the level at which they actually interacted with a PCE. Survey findings were confirmed with follow-up interviews with students and their parents to triangulate survey data. Findings revealed that students in the study interacted with a PCE when completing the course. The percentage of students actually engaged with a PCE was lower than the percentages …

Exploring The Potential Of Lms Log Data As A Proxy Measure Of Student Engagement, Curtis R. Henrie, Robert Bodily, Ross Larsen, Charles R. Graham

Faculty Publications

This study examines the relationship between log data of student activity in learning management systems and self-reported student engagement survey scores. Log data has the potential to serve as a meaningful proxy for survey scores. Should this be the case, log data could be used as a minimally disruptive and scalable approach to quickly identify who needs help, evaluate design, and personalize instruction. We correlated LMS log data variables to student engagement survey scores to study the relationship between these two sources of data. Overall, log data was not a statistically significant proxy measure of students’ self-reported cognitive and emotional …

Blended Learning: The New Normal And Emerging Technologies, Charles Dziuban, Charles R. Graham, Patsy D. Moskal, Anders Norberg, Nicole Sicilia

Faculty Publications

This study addressed several outcomes, implications, and possible future directions for blended learning (BL) in higher education in a world where information communication technologies (ICTs) increasingly communicate with each other. In considering effectiveness, the authors contend that BL coalesces around access, success, and students’ perception of their learning environments. Success and withdrawal rates for face-to-face and online courses are compared to those for BL as they interact with minority status. Investigation of student perception about course excellence revealed the existence of robust if-then decision rules for determining how students evaluate their educational experiences. Those rules were independent of course modality, …

Generic Vs. Modality-Specific Competencies For K-12 Online And Blended Teaching, Emily Pulham, Charles R. Graham, Cecil R. Short

Faculty Publications

Although research has explored teacher competencies in K-12 blended and online learning, it has not specified which competencies are appropriate to an online or digital medium, which refer to blending in-person with online experiences, or which are generic—applicable in any teaching modality. This article explores selected K-12 online and blended teaching competency documents to determine which specific modalities (online, in-person, blended, or generic) the competencies address. Many competencies are still categorized as generic, and not specific enough to denote a particular context. The authors give recommendations for pre-service teacher education and indicate needs for further research in K-12 online and …

Comparing K-12 Online And Blended Teaching Competencies: A Literature Review, Emily Pulham, Charles R. Graham

Faculty Publications

This article presents a synthesis of reports and research on K-12 blended teaching competencies compared with K-12 online teaching competencies. The skills needed to teach in online and blended environments are distinct from traditional teaching, but teacher education programs often do not equip preservice teachers for the new modes of instruction. Additionally, there is a dearth of research on blended teaching competencies. This review synthesizes 8 blended teaching documents and 10 online teaching documents. Seven global themes identified in both competency domains are (1) pedagogy, (2) management, (3) assessment, (4) technology, (5) instructional design, (6) dispositions, and (7) improvement. The …

Controls And Cooperation In Interactive And Non-Interactive Settings, Jace Garrett, Jeffrey A. Livingston, William B. Tayler

Faculty Publications

Prior research finds that controls that induce cooperation among collaborators on a project increase trust, and that this increased trust increases subsequent cooperation among collaborators. We extend this work by investigating how controls influence cooperative behavior in two settings. The first is an interactive setting where people work together and can benefit from each other’s work. The second is a non-interactive setting where people do not work together directly, but where behavior can be observed. We propose that because controls are likely to engender greater trust and reciprocity in interactive settings than in non-interactive settings, the effect of controls on …

Citation-Based Benchmarks And Individual Accounting Faculty Research Rankings By Topical Area And Methodology, Garrison Nuttall, Neal Snow, Scott L. Summers, David A. Wood

Faculty Publications

This paper provides citation rankings and benchmarking data for individual accounting researchers disaggregated by topic and methodological area and studies which factors increase citation totals. Based on Google Scholar data from 7,113 articles published in respected accounting journals, we find that citation totals differ significantly based on accounting topic area (accounting information systems, audit, financial, managerial, tax, other) and methodology (analytical, archival, experimental, other), suggesting the need to separately benchmark authors who publish in these groups. We also find that authors who have a broad collaboration network, graduated from a school that started a journal, are topic specialists, or publish …

Toward Conflict Or Compromise? How Violent Metaphors Polarize Partisan Issue Attitudes, Nathan P. Kalmoe, Joshua R. Gubler, David A. Wood

Faculty Publications

We know much about how opinion leaders drive mass partisan polarization with position-taking cues but little on how different message types polarize citizens, and who responds most to those messages attributes. This article contributes new insights by investigating how exposure to common violent metaphors interacts with audience personality traits to polarize partisans on issues. Building from research on conflict orientations, we theorize that aggressive rhetoric primes aggression in aggressive partisans, motivating greater intransigence on party positions. As a consequence, aggressive partisans are pulled further apart on issues, thereby reducing prospects for compromise. We find support for our predictions in two …

Violence, Aggression, And Ethics: The Link Between Exposure To Human Violence And Unethical Behavior, Joshua R. Gubler, Skye Herrick, Richard Price, David A. Wood

Faculty Publications

Can exposure to media portrayals of human violence impact an individual’s ethical decision making at work? Ethical business failures can result in enormous financial losses to individuals, businesses, and society. We study how exposure to human violence—especially through media—can cause individuals to make less ethical decisions. We present three experiments, each showing a causal link between exposure to human violence and unethical business behavior, and show this relationship is mediated by an increase in individual hostility levels as a result of exposure to violence. Using observational data, we then provide evidence suggesting that this relationship extends beyond the context of …

Effects Of Parent-Implemented Interventions On Outcomes Of Children With Developmental Disabilities: A Meta-Analysis., Tina Dyches, Timothy B. Smith, Barbara Mandleco, Byran Korth

Faculty Publications

Background: A large body of literature exists related to parent-implemented interventions for children with disabilities, so it is helpful to synthesize the results of outcome-based interventions for children with developmental disabilities. Specifically, what are the effects of parent-implemented interventions intended to improve children’s (1) social behaviors, (2) life skills/adaptive behavior, and (3) communication skills?

Method: Using meta-analytic aggregation of effect sizes across 30 studies with a total of 1,356 participants, this review examined the association between parent-implemented interventions and intended outcomes of young children with developmental disabilities.

Results: Across all 30 studies comparing children’s outcomes to control groups, the random …

Why People Play At Work: A Theoretical Examination Of Leisure-At-Work, Mat D. Duerden, Stephen H. Courtright, Mark A. Widmer

Faculty Publications

Postmodern perspectives on work and leisure acknowledge the interwoven nature of these domains, an example being the increasing number of organizations intentionally incorporating leisure into the employee experience. Existing research, however, provides no specific theoretical guidance regarding the potential impacts of strategically integrating recreation activities into the work domain. Thus, based on positive organizational scholarship and leisure science theories, we build an individual level model describing the phenomenon of leisureat- work (LAW). We propose LAW activities have the ability to produce feelings of personal expressiveness at work as moderated by employees’perceptions of the activities. Personal expressiveness then mediates LAW activities’ …

Development And Validation Of The Outdoor Activity Profile (Oap): A Research Note, Andrew Lacanienta, Mat Duerden, Peter Ward, Ramon Zabriskie

Faculty Publications

This study sought to design and validate the Outdoor Activity Profile (OAP), which was based on the Family Leisure Activity Profile (FLAP; Zabriskie & McCormick, 2001). The OAP was designed to measure and categorize involvement as opposed to time in outdoor activities. Data were collected from undergraduate students on two occasions separated by four weeks. Significant correlations existed between all time one and time two involvement scores, thereby supporting the OAP’s test-retest reliability. Descriptive data is presented outlining involvement, satisfaction, and whom respondents were with during activity categories. One-way ANOVA results describe differences between male and female outdoor activity involvement …

Examining The Impact And Influence Of The Leisure Science Literature, Mat D. Duerden, Michael B. Edwards, Michael C. Goates, Justin Dyer

Faculty Publications

This study explored the impact and influence of the leisure sciences literature through an analysis of highly cited articles. Discriminant function analysis identified whether articles had more exclusive impact inside or outside the field. Research themes and methodologies were examined based on these classifications. Results indicate articles with the greatest impact within the leisure literature tended to be quantitative studies drawing upon survey data and non-experimental designs focused on general leisure and outdoor/forest recreation. Articles with the greatest impact outside the leisure literature were more recent and focused on place attachment, psychological motivation, or community parks and recreation and used …

The Effects Of Video Gaming On Work Group Performance, Mark Keith, Greg Anderson, Douglas Dean, James Gaskin, Trevor Wiser, Seth Gremmert, Katherine Payne

Faculty Publications

Organizational tasks are complex and time-sensitive, requiring group effort to achieve goals under pressure. To improve group performance, organizations often invest in a services designed to strengthen teams (e.g., ropes courses). However, such activities are time- and resource-expensive and have demonstrated mixed results. To proffer a more practical (shorter and less expensive) alternative, we explore the potential of video gaming as a team building activity. To this end, we employed a multi-experiment study in which we administered competitive and cooperative video games to newly formed work teams. To theoretically explain the effects of video gaming on group performance, we adapt …