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A Case Study Of Problems And Possibilities In The Establishment Of A Guide Training Institute In Uttarakhand, India, Benjamin Schwartz

Graduate Student Theses, Dissertations, & Professional Papers

This project sought to explore the problems and possibilities experienced during the establishment of a guide training institute in Uttarakhand, India. As originally proposed by the Mountain Shepherds Initiative, a small tourism organization based in Uttarakhand, the aim of the guide training institute was to provide participants with the knowledge and skills needed to gain employment as guides within, and expand the extent of, high quality/low quantity birdwatching tourism within northern Uttarakhand. This project was undertaken in conjunction with the Mountain Shepherds Initiative and the problems and possibilities were identified during a six month stay in the region from May-November, …

Can Sheep Control Leafy Spurge Without Compromising Efforts To Restore Native Plants?, Eva S. Masin

Graduate Student Theses, Dissertations, & Professional Papers

This thesis includes two studies on the ecological effects of using sheep to control Euphorbia esula (leafy spurge). While sheep can effectively reduce E. esula when used as a long-term management strategy, little is known about their impacts on native plants. The efficacy of sheep grazing for restoration depends both on its potential for controlling undesirable plants and its ability to promote native species that provide key ecosystem goods and services. I investigated the effects of sheep grazing on native plants at both seed and mature-plant stages. To assess impacts on seedling establishment, I measured density of forb and graminoid …

An Examination Of Elementary Physical Education Teachers’ Perceived Self-Efficacy Toward Teaching Children With Orthopedic Impairments In Montana: Do Teachers Feel Competent?, Patricia A. Holman

Graduate Student Theses, Dissertations, & Professional Papers

An Examination of elementary physical education teachers' perceived self-efficacy toward teaching children with orthopedic impairments in Montana: Do teachers feel competent? Chairperson: Dr. Arthur Miller The purpose of this study was to explore elementary physical educators' self-efficacy beliefs toward teaching children with orthopedic impairments in general physical education class and identify adapted physical education teacher training needs in Montana. The method for this study is based on the Physical Educators' Self-Efficacy Toward Including Students with Disabilities - Autism (PESEISD-A) (Talliaferro et al, 2010) electronic survey instrument and Bandura's (2006) guidelines. A modification of the PESEISD-A instrument was utilized to examine …

Comparison Of Distance Education Leadership Styles And Future Investment In Two-Year Colleges, Ryan R. Schrenk

Graduate Student Theses, Dissertations, & Professional Papers

This foundational descriptive quantitative study examined leadership styles, traits of distance education leaders (e.g. VPs, Deans, Directors and Coordinators) and distance education program characteristics as well as funding priorities at the post-secondary level. Participants were subjected to Bass and Avolio's Multifactor Leadership Questionnaire (MLQ-5X), which identified leadership characteristics as transformational, transactional or passive-avoidant as manifest by nine scales as follows: Individualized Influence Attributes, Individualized Influence Behavior, Inspirational Motivation, Intellectual Stimulation, Individualized Consideration, Contingent Reward, Active Management-by-Exception, Passive Management-by-Exception and Laissez-Faire. In addition, the questionnaire further assessed leadership outcomes scaled as Extra Effort, Effectiveness and Satisfaction.

There were 55 respondents from …

Wild Collaboration: Ecological Restoration, Religion, And The Reformation Of The Human/Nature Relationship, Adam Carl Lohrmann

Graduate Student Theses, Dissertations, & Professional Papers

ABSTRACT Lohrmann, Adam, M.S., May 2011 Environmental Studies Wild Collaboration: Ecological Restoration, Religion, and the Reformation of the Human/Nature Relationship Chairperson: Dr. Daniel Spencer In recent years, the field of ecological restoration has gained momentum as an academic discipline, a scientific profession, and as a community-based form of environmental activism and land stewardship. At the same time, the number, scope, complexity, and diversity of restoration projects has expanded, and restoration is now being practiced in every corner of the globe. Witnessing this surge of activity and interest, many restorationists now believe that the practice of restoration can serve as a …

Conservation Genetics Of Sauger In The Upper Missouri River Drainage, Daniel Michael Bingham

Graduate Student Theses, Dissertations, & Professional Papers

Hybridization with non-native walleye may play a substantial role in sauger declines throughout the upper Missouri River drainage of Montana and Wyoming. I identified 11 microsatellite loci to detect interspecific hybridization and describe the genetic population structure of sauger. Two major population groupings of sauger were revealed by principal component analysis. The first consisted of samples from the Missouri and lower Yellowstone River drainages, which showed no evidence for genetic divergence among each other. The second major grouping contained samples from the Bighorn River drainage and the upper Yellowstone River. Samples from the upper Bighorn River drainage were genetically distinct …

Effects Of Different Canopy Tree Species On Belowground Biogeochemistry In A Wet Lowland Tropical Forest, Adrienne Blair Keller

Graduate Student Theses, Dissertations, & Professional Papers

Tropical rain forests are known for their tremendous biological diversity, but the effects of plant diversity on important ecosystem processes remain unclear. Interspecies differences in both the demand for nutrients and in foliar nutrient concentrations could drive differences in litter chemistry that affect both pools and fluxes of belowground resources. Yet, our understanding of the effects of aboveground biogeochemical heterogeneity on belowground ecosystems is poor, especially in the species-rich forests of the wet tropics. To investigate the effects of tree species diversity on belowground biogeochemical processes, I examined how carbon (C), nitrogen (N), and phosphorus (P) cycles vary under canopy …

Essential Elements Of Ecological Literacy And The Pathways To Achieve It: Perspectives Of Ecologists, Brooke Baldauf Mcbride

Graduate Student Theses, Dissertations, & Professional Papers

National assessments have led many to conclude that the level of ecological literacy among the general population in the United States is too low to enable effective social responses to current environmental challenges. However, the actual meaning of ecological literacy varies considerably between academic fields and has been a topic of intensive deliberation for several decades. Within the field of ecology in particular, a driving purpose behind this ongoing discussion has been to advance a complete, pedagogy-guiding, and broadly applicable framework for ecological literacy, allowing for the establishment of guidelines and tools for assessing educational achievement; yet, a widely accepted …

Evaluating Community Forestry In Huai Lu Luang, Thailand, Kimberly Beth Roberts

Graduate Student Theses, Dissertations, & Professional Papers

Forest tenure and the acquisition of land deeds for forest dwellers in Thailand remain problematic and inconsistent. The Royal Forestry Department (RFD) governs state forests in this politically decentralized country, with the state parlimentary government drafting, sometimes conflicting policies, to resolve conflict with forest dwellers. This study was conducted in the predominantly ethnic Black Lahu village of Huai Lu Luang in the Chiang Rai province. The village resides on RFD land designated as a forest reserve. With the possibility of the enactment of a parliamentary based community forestry bill, establishment of an RFD Mae Kok River Basin National Park, or …

Exploring Public Participation Decision-Making At Superfund Sites: A Mental Models Approach, Walter Steven Ackerlund

Graduate Student Theses, Dissertations, & Professional Papers

While public policies and programs in the United States encourage public participation in agency decisions on environmental issues, how best to engage the public remains controversial. Public participation is more challenging when complex and uncertain scientific or technical issues are involved. This research applies a mental model methodology to explore what people engaged in Superfund site cleanup decisions think about when making public participation decisions. The intent is to find better ways of engaging people in constructive processes that achieve mutual understanding and lead to better decisions.

An initial expert-informed mental model of public participation decision-making is developed based on …

Feeling The Burn: A Discursive Analysis Of Organizational Burnout In Seasonal Wildland Firefighters, Whitney Eleanor Marie Maphis

Graduate Student Theses, Dissertations, & Professional Papers

This qualitative study of seasonal wildland firefighters examined stress and burnout in firefighters, the discourse that helps to systematically form firefighters’ conceptualizations of burnout, and what factors enable firefighters to manage or mitigate burnout. Traditionally, burnout is studied in long-term, year-round positions, and this study took a unique angle in considering a temporary/seasonal workforce. A discursive lens was used to investigate the enduring systems of meanings that firefighters draw upon in their everyday talk to more comprehensively understand burnout. Three main Discursive resources emerged from the data: teamwork, a "can-do" attitude, and bureaucracy. Teamwork and a can-do attitude serve as …

Green Roofs In The Garden City: Exploring The Opportunities For Green Roof Policies In Missoula, Montana, Matthew Ryan Hodges

Graduate Student Theses, Dissertations, & Professional Papers

Global climate change is expected to have adverse impacts on the Rocky Mountain West, including impacts on water and land use, energy consumption, weather patterns, and wildlife stewardship. The State of Montana, Missoula County and the City of Missoula all have recognized these threats and are taking steps to address climate change impacts. In response to the unique challenges posed by urban environments, the practice of green, or vegetative, roofing has been promoted through policy measures by a number of cities in the United States and abroad. This project explores green roofing and the policies used to encourage the practice …

Heterogeneity Of Stand Structure, Fuels, And Wildfire Hazard In Dry And Moist Old-Growth Ponderosa Pine Forests: Case Studies From Western Montana, Kyle Crosby Stover

Graduate Student Theses, Dissertations, & Professional Papers

Silvicultural restoration treatments are increasingly proposed to restore ecological function and remediate catastrophic wildfire hazards in old-growth ponderosa pine stands throughout the western United States. However, stand heterogeneity has been inadequately addressed in restoration and fuel treatment planning. In response, we analyzed two old-growth ponderosa pine forest restoration projects in western Montana with different moisture regimes. We utilized available fixed-area plot data to describe heterogeneity by analyzing the distributions of current and anticipated post-treatment plot conditions, and contrasted these with stand-average depictions. The study’s findings illustrate that distributions of overstory structure, fuels, and modeled fire hazards are typically non-normal, skewed, …

Modeling Risk Of Hunting Pressure On Large Mammals In Northwestern Argentina, Loretta Kathleen Baker

Graduate Student Theses, Dissertations, & Professional Papers

The subtropical Yungas and Chaco forests of northwestern Argentina are two of the most biodiverse and threatened biomes in South America. It is unclear how development pressure and increased human presence may be affecting wildlife in this increasingly fragmented and degraded landscape. We initiated a broad-scale analysis of the spatial distribution and magnitude of anthropogenic factors that may influence large mammal mortality due to potential human hunting pressure in a landscape linkage connecting these threatened forests. We conducted a literature review of Neotropical study sites that reported hunting of large mammals by indigenous people or colonists, and used this information …

Opposition And Barriers To Conservation Easements: Insights From Montana Landowners, Alayna S. Dupont

Graduate Student Theses, Dissertations, & Professional Papers

A conservation easement (CE) is a voluntary agreement that perpetually limits development on private land in order to protect open space, agricultural land, and scenic amenities, as well as ecological or historic resources. Due to the fact that CEs are voluntary, an understanding of the landowner’s decision about whether or not to participate in conservation easement programs is imperative if CE use is to continue and expand. Moreover, understanding how non-participating landowners view CEs, how they regard the incentives, and how CEs fit or do not fit with their ideas regarding private property and conservation is of critical importance for …

Running Economy: Improvements In Physiological Efficiency Attained Through Changes In Muscle Structural Morphology, Joseph Kenneth Pellegrino

Graduate Student Theses, Dissertations, & Professional Papers

Running Economy (RE) is a crucial determinant for running performance. While strategies for improving RE have been determined, the mechanisms governing this phenomenon have eluded the scientific community. My objective was to determine what adaptations, physiological, morphological, or otherwise, occur to bring about the altered RE associated with plyometric training. Specifically this project was designed to examine whether measureable transformations in muscle protein isoform makeup brought on through specific training will result in better RE in moderately trained runners. Participants (n=25) were placed into either a plyometrics-training or control group. All participants underwent similar testing before and after the 6-week …

Salud, Dignidad, Justicia: Articulating "Choice" And "Reproductive Justice" For Latinas In The United States, Kathleen Maire De Onis

Graduate Student Theses, Dissertations, & Professional Papers

This investigation explores the rhetorical evolution of the National Latina Institute for Reproductive Health. The author argues that the rhetors of the reviewed texts reveal the organization’s dual goals of both altering and resonating with the values and attitudes of Latinas regarding their concerns, as well as the necessity of combating systemic barriers and oppressive dominant ideology hindering Latinas’ ability to exercise a full range of choices. Although this two-fold purpose is persistent throughout the artifacts, as the Latina Institute embraces the language of reproductive justice, the agency gradually shifts its rhetorical efforts from addressing internal issues directed toward its …

Specifying The Links Between Adolescent Substance Use And Traditional Delinquency Theories: A Negative Bionomial Approach, Anthony James Feuchter

Graduate Student Theses, Dissertations, & Professional Papers

The consumption of alcohol and illicit drugs among adolescents has been a growing concern in sociology and related disciplines (Hayes-Smith and Whaley 2009; Embry, Hankins, Biglan, and Boles 2009; Herman-Stahl, Krebs, Kroutil, Heller 2007). The societal and financial effects of substance use in Montana have been detrimental. For example, methamphetamine use accounted for 33 percent of children in foster care and over 50 percent of children were in foster care for drug-related reasons in 2006 (Methamphetamine in Montana 2008). Also, Bryant, Schulenberg, O’Malley, Bachman, and Johnston (2003) found consistent patterns in the prior literature that high truancy rates and low …

A Qualitative Investigation Of The Strategies Used By A Sample Of Native American Older Adults To Cope With Race-Related Stressors, Rita Haidle Billow

Graduate Student Theses, Dissertations, & Professional Papers

The present study explored how racism-related stress was characterized by respondents and investigated the ways in which these respondents coped with this type of stress. Using content analysis, four broad themes of race-related stress emerged: 1) Institutional, 2) Intergroup, 3) Bicultural, and 4) Intragroup. Race-related coping strategies, which included the cognitive, emotional and behavioral strategies respondents used to reduce and/or manage their experiences of racism, were also explored. Eight overarching coping strategies were described: 1) Taking action, 2) Acceptance, 3) Escaping, 4) Collective coping, 5) Meaning making, 6) Affective coping, 7) "Returning to what Indians did before", and 8) Creative …

Towards Sentence Compliance: Examining Pfma Offender Pathways Through Missoula Municipal And Justice Courts, Sara Justine Shapiro

Graduate Student Theses, Dissertations, & Professional Papers

In recent years, there has been great concern among those who work in the criminal justice system, in Missoula, Montana, about the processing of domestic violence offenders. Many of these people believe that domestic violence defendants are not being consistently prosecuted, and that convicted offenders are not completing their mandated anger management program. To address these concerns, this analysis examines the adjudication, from arrest to sentencing, of a cohort of defendants appearing in Missoula Municipal Court and Missoula County Justice Court. The sample includes defendants whose final charge between July 1, 2007 and June 30, 2008 was Partner/Family Member Assault …

The Dwellers Between: Yup'ik Shamans And Cultural Change In Western Alaska, Ahnie Litecky

Graduate Student Theses, Dissertations, & Professional Papers

This paper examines the history of the Yup'ik Eskimos of western Alaska and explores how their shamans shaped the response to introduced epidemic disease. As in the experiences of so many other Native American groups, disease epidemics played an important role in the history of relations between the Yup'ik Eskimos and white settlers in the nineteenth and twentieth centuries. I argue here that while the Yup'ik Eskimos grappled with the devastating effects of introduced diseases, they did not repudiate their shamans and traditional faith, which sets the Yup'ik people apart from other Native Americans. Before contact with Europeans, the Yup'ik …

Developing Successful Wilderness Stewardship Partnerships, Heather Day

Graduate Student Theses, Dissertations, & Professional Papers

Partnerships between federal land management agencies and non-profit organizations have existed in various forms for decades, benefiting public lands in myriad ways. However, the consistent decline in agency budgets and available staffing dedicated to Wilderness stewardship have created a need for and subsequent boom of Wilderness stewardship -focused nonprofit organizations across the country. Previous literature addresses the elements of a successful partnership in a more generalized fashion, leaving a need for more empirical examination of the key components of a successful Wilderness stewardship partnership. Thirty semi-structured interviews were conducted with Wilderness stewardship nonprofit staff and staff from the Forest Service, …

In The Game Of Love, Play By The Rules: Implications Of Relationship Rule Consensus Over Honesty And Deception In Romantic Relationships, Katlyn Elise Roggensack

Graduate Student Theses, Dissertations, & Professional Papers

The purpose of this study is to investigate the implications of relationship rule consensus over the meanings of honesty and deception in romantic relationships. Relationship rules are implicit understandings developed over time that guide individuals’ behavior in relationships, but they are often ambiguous and unspoken. Honesty and deception rules are particularly vulnerable to different interpretations given that honesty is held to such high esteem, yet deception is common in relationships. Since deception becomes a salient source of conflict when discovered, coordination of these rules should be linked to relational quality. In part one of the study, in-depth interviews helped identify …

Making A Comeback: An Exploration Of Nontraditional Students & Identity Support, Jessica Kate Mcfadden

Graduate Student Theses, Dissertations, & Professional Papers

The purpose of this qualitative study is to explore the effects of identity supportive messages on nontraditional students in terms of facilitating identification with the student role. Identity support involves the extent to which an individual believes that others understand, accept, and/or provide instrumental support for valued social identities. Considering the life-changing (identity altering) adjustment of resuming school in the middle of adulthood and assuming the new “student” role—especially in connection with other roles and responsibilities—the relationship between nontraditional students and identity support is particularly salient. Twenty-four in-depth interviews helped identify encouraging and discouraging messages students received from a variety …

Management And Life History Consequences Of Hybridization Between Westslope Cutthroat Trout (Oncorhynchus Clarkii Lewisi) And Rainbow Trout (Oncorhynchus Mykiss), Matthew Philip Corsi

Graduate Student Theses, Dissertations, & Professional Papers

The role of introductions of nonnative fishes in the decline of native fishes cannot be overstated. Westslope cutthroat trout (Oncorhynchus clarkii lewisi, WCT) are a salmonid native to the northern Rocky Mountains. These trout hybridize with rainbow trout (O. mykiss, RBT) where they are sympatric; however, in portions of the WCT range where RBT have been introduced, hybridization appears to spread rapidly and threatens continued existence of WCT. The conservation value of these hybridized populations is equivocal, and a better knowledge of the ecological, demographic, behavioral, and genetic consequences of hybridization is needed to better inform conservation strategies. I investigated …

A Comparative Analysis Between Knowledge And Bear Safety Information Utilization By Day Hikers In Glacier National Park, Phillip Wayne Zumstein

Graduate Student Theses, Dissertations, & Professional Papers

The purpose of this study was to identify Glacier National Park backcountry day users’ bear safety information source utilization, obtain their knowledge level of bear safety, and identify any differences in knowledge level when compared to sources used. The results of this study were intended to provide park managers with a means to more effectively implement the park’s bear safety information program. The study was conducted within Glacier National Park in Montana during the summer of 2011. A survey was given to 540 backcountry day users during their day hikes within the park. A bear safety quiz section was included …

Efficacy Of Riparian Revegetation Projects In The Inland Pacific Northwest, Susan Wall

Graduate Student Theses, Dissertations, & Professional Papers

Riparian areas have been severely damaged by the combined impacts of grazing, river regulation, development and other types of land use, so that many no longer provide key ecosystem functions and services. Revegetation is a common riparian restoration practice, but there is little information available on whether revegetation projects are effective. I reviewed the efficacy of riparian revegetation projects conducted in the inland Pacific Northwest (iPNW) between 1984 and 2007 based upon the Pacific Northwest Salmon Habitat Project (PNHSP) database. I found that 10% of the stream restoration projects in the iPNW included riparian revegetation (1,340 projects), and 11% of …

Eclectic Strings And Motivational Design:Guiding String Education In The Promotion Of Lifelong Musicianship, Elizabeth Ann Fortune

Graduate Student Theses, Dissertations, & Professional Papers

This paper explores preliminary data collected in two of Seattle’s public middle schools. The data collected shows that string students have a strong interest in listening to and playing varying types/ styles of music. A discussion follows, regarding the usage of Eclectic Strings music (the playing of musical styles appropriate for bowed and strummed string instruments derived from a broad range of sources (including classical) for individual instrumentalists and ensembles) in the public school secondary string program, coupled with the ARCS Model of Motivational Design (Attention, Relevance, Confidence, and Satisfaction) – a tool for effective curriculum design. The premise is …

Environmental Documentary Film: A Contemporary Tool For Social Movement, Rachel Gregg

Graduate Student Theses, Dissertations, & Professional Papers

Building a 21st century movement capable of inspiring social and structural change requires creative education, resourceful collaboration, and civic engagement. The U.S. environmental movement is in need of strategies that bring a wide spectrum of people together, facilitate appropriate interpretation of problems, and prompt innovative, forward-thinking solutions. Environmental documentary film has the ability to dramatize the reality of environmental issues and empower audiences to become an active part of the change necessary to address environmental crises. Utilizing a specific genre of environmental documentary film in novel and inventive ways, people can be gathered, educated, and inspired to become active participants …

Wildfire Science, Neil Larubbio

Graduate Student Theses, Dissertations, & Professional Papers

Wildfire Science by Neil LaRubbio firenews.firecenter.umt.edu