Digital Commons Network^™

Creating Positive Experiences: Increasing Parent Participation In A Low Income Elementary School, Krista Stinson Cayer

USF Tampa Graduate Theses and Dissertations

Previous research has examined the effectiveness of placing parents on a variety of incentive programs which would increase their likeliness to participate in school related activities. That research suggested that establishing school as a reinforcing environment for parents was vital. Due to these findings, this study examined the effects of a token economy on parent involvement at a low-income elementary school. Teachers were trained in the data collection method, and parental behavior was observed on a daily, weekly and bi-weekly schedule. Measures of social validity were obtained through teacher and parent questionnaires.

The data from the research study suggested that …

Bioterrorism Syndromic Surveillance: A Dual-Use Approach With Direct Application To The Detection Of Infectious Disease Outbreaks, Kristin Broome Uhde

USF Tampa Graduate Theses and Dissertations

The threat of bioterrorism forces the public health infrastructure to focus attention on overall issues related to challenges posed by emerging and re-emerging infectious diseases. There is a crucial need to strengthen existing surveillance systems and to validate real-time approaches to surveillance that can provide timely alerts of epidemics whether they occur naturally or through a bioterrorism attack. The purpose of this study is to implement and evaluate a bioterrorism syndromic surveillance system called BioDefend™, to determine if the system could detect a potential epidemic/bioterrorism attack within 24-36 hours, more rapidly than it would be identified by routine health surveillance. …

On The Indemonstrability Of The Principle Of Contradiction, Elisabeta Sarca

USF Tampa Graduate Theses and Dissertations

In this thesis I examine three models of justification for the epistemic authority of the principle of contradiction. Aristotle has deemed the principle "that the same attribute cannot at the same time belong and not belong to the same subject and in the same respect" the most certain and most prior of all principles, both in the order of nature and in the order of knowledge, and as such it is indemonstrable. The principle of contradiction is involved in any act of rational discourse, and to deny it would be to reduce ourselves to a vegetative state, being incapable of …

Flat Chests And Crossed Eyes: Scrutinizing Minor Bodily Stigmas Through The Lens Of Cosmetic Surgery, Joan Ann George

USF Tampa Graduate Theses and Dissertations

If cosmetic surgery has become the cultural lens through which Americans look at issues of beauty and ugliness (Haiken 1997), then minor bodily stigma is the personal lens through which we scrutinize our bodies and self-diagnose our own flaws in the first place (Ellis 1998). In this dissertation, I interrogated the stories of eight women who struggled with two specific minor bodily stigmas--strabismus (crossed eyes) and micromastia (small breasts). Cosmetic surgery presents a potential "cure" for both of these conditions, however, as some of my interviewees could testify, the results are unpredictable. While some women reported being grateful that they …

Validity Generalization And Transportability: An Investigation Of Distributional Assumptions Of Random-Effects Meta-Analytic Methods, Jennifer L. Kisamore

USF Tampa Graduate Theses and Dissertations

Validity generalization work over the past 25 years has called into question the veracity of the assumption that validity is situationally specific. Recent theoretical and methodological work has suggested that validity coefficients may be transportable even if true validity is not a constant. Most transportability work is based on the assumption that the distribution of rho ( ρ_i ) is normal, yet, no empirical evidence exists to support this assumption. The present study used a competing model approach in which a new procedure for assessing transportability was compared with two more commonly used methods. Empirical Bayes estimation (Brannick, 2001; …

Evaluating Anger, Depression, And Anxiety In Aggressive/Homicidal And Depressive/Suicidal Children And Adolescents, Thomas Michael, Brunner

USF Tampa Graduate Theses and Dissertations

The goals of this study were to evaluate anger, depression, and anxiety in children and adolescents with aggressive/homicidal (A/H) and depressive/suicidal (D/S) problems and to compare these clinical groups with each other and a normal control group. The State Trait Anger Expression Inventory for Children and Adolescents (STAXI C/A), the Children's Depression Inventory (CDI), and the Pediatric Anxiety Scale (PANX) were administered to the Clinical (N=114) and Normal (N=353) groups ranging from 9-18 years of age. The Clinical group was comprised of 18 A/H, 87 D/S, and 18 Comorbid children with both problems.

The Clinical group had significantly higher scores …

Computer Mediated Peer Response And Its Impact On Revision In The College Spanish Classroom: A Case Study, Ruth Roux-Rodriguez

USF Tampa Graduate Theses and Dissertations

Peer response in which students work together in dyads or small groups to critique and provide feedback on one another's writing is compatible with communicative approaches to foreign language teaching and process approaches to the teaching of writing. Computer-mediated communication has been considered a viable tool for both the teaching of languages and the teaching of writing. There is, however, scant information on how computer-mediated peer response functions in the foreign language classroom. This dissertation investigated how college Spanish learners provided feedback to their peers and the impact of feedback on revision. It also examined the factors that influenced how …

Construction Of Smoking-Relevant Risk Perceptions Among College Students: The Influence Of Need For Cognition And Message Content, Jennifer Elaine Irvin

USF Tampa Graduate Theses and Dissertations

The primary purpose of this study was to examine the potential joint influence of need for cognition (NC), the dispositional preference for engaging in (or avoiding) effortful cognitive processing of information, and type of smoking risk message (i.e., factual and evaluative messages similar in message content and length) on the construction of smoking-relevant risk perceptions among college smokers. A secondary purpose was to examine potential mechanisms through which changes in risk perception might occur. 227 college smokers evaluated one of three pamphlets, (1) a factual (i.e., primarily fact-based) smoking risk pamphlet, (2) an evaluative (i.e., primarily emotion based) smoking risk …

The Forgotten History: The Deinstitutionalization Movement In The Mental Health Care System In The United States, Nana Tuntiya

USF Tampa Graduate Theses and Dissertations

The development of ideas on deinstitutionalization of mental patients has a much longer history in the United States than is commonly acknowledged. Evidence of intense discussion on the rights of the mentally disturbed, curative as opposed to control measures in their treatment, and the drawbacks of congregating the afflicted in large institutions can be found as early as the middle of the 19th century. This discussion was provoked by dissemination of knowledge about the oldest community care program of all: the colony of mental patients in Gheel, Belgium. Based on document analysis of publications in the American Journal of Insanity …

The Experience Of Loss Of Voice In Adolescent Girls: An Existential-Phenomenological Study, Deborah A. Cihonski

USF Tampa Graduate Theses and Dissertations

The purpose of this study was to examine the meaning of the Loss of Voice experience in adolescent girls using an existential-phenomenological interview approach. An open-ended interview was conducted and participants were asked to "Please think of a specific time when you had something important to say, but did not say it. In as much detail as possible, describe that experience." Each interview was tape-recorded, transcribed by the investigator, and then independently thematized (Jones, 1984) by the author and a doctoral colleague trained in Jones' (1984) analysis method. Interrater reliability of the themes reached 96% agreement for the overall sample. …

Failure Of The Russian Democratic Reforms: The Democratization Of The Big Bear, Nicolé M. Hicks

USF Tampa Graduate Theses and Dissertations

Looking back at the past twelve years, many would say that it appears Russia has lost the battle for liberal democratic reform. Among Russia watchers, the following question has been circulated: "Who lost Russia?" This debate has polarized most scholars into one of two camps: those who feel the reforms failed (the critics) and those who feel the reforms were a success (the supporters).

This paper will explain why the Russian reforms failed. By filling in the holes left by current research, the author will demonstrate that the truth may lie somewhere in between the two opposing sides.

Hearing Evaluation In Infants: An Update For Pediatricians, Janet E. Sullivan

USF Tampa Graduate Theses and Dissertations

This paper provides an overview of developmental timetables relevant to hearing and of current pediatric audiological techniques and practices. The first sections summarize structural and functional development of the auditory pathway and the development of primary auditory processing. These developmental sequences appear to follow similar paths in humans and animals. Speech and music perception involve more complex processing and are strongly influenced by experience. Hearing disorders affect the perception of complex sounds in a variety of ways, depending on the site(s) of lesions. Early onset hearing impairment, including conductive loss from chronic otitis media, can seriously impede language development.

Language …

Harold Frederic's The Damnation Of Theron Ware: A Study Guide With Annotated Bibliography, Robin Taylor Rogers

USF Tampa Graduate Theses and Dissertations

Harold Frederic's The Damnation of Theron Ware (1896) is an important work of American fiction that deserves greater critical attention. My intention in creating a website devoted to Frederic's masterpiece is not only to promote awareness of the novel but also to provide high school and undergraduate students, as well as their teachers, with a resource that will situate The Damnation of Theron Ware within an historical as well as a literary and cultural context. Significant events and discoveries in the fields of science, technology, religion, philosophy, art, and literature shaped Frederic's thinking and writing, particularly the events and characters …

Gender Stereotypes Of Citizenship Performance, Lisa Wilkinson

USF Tampa Graduate Theses and Dissertations

The relationship between citizenship performance and overall performance and the relationship between citizenship performance and reward recommendations were investigated, with gender and scale type as possible moderators. Two hundred and fifty-four University of South Florida students were used in this study. The majority of these participants were undergraduate, psychology majors, female, and between the ages of 17 and 23. Participants were given statements describing a teacher's performance and were asked to evaluate the professor on citizenship and overall performance and recommend them for rewards. No support was found for the hypothesis that men would have a stronger relationship than women …

School Psychologists' Perspectives On Parent Involvement Activities, Michelle M. Darter-Lagos

USF Tampa Graduate Theses and Dissertations

The purpose of this research study was to analyze school psychologists' perspectives on 27 parent involvement and empowerment activities focused upon improving students' school success. A sample of 36 school psychologists from high and low minority schools in a large urban school district rated the degree to which they believed the activities should be offered to parents and the extent to which they were feasible to implement over the next five years. The activities rated highest for offer and feasibility by psychologists at both high and low minority schools were related to information dissemination and one-to-one meetings. The activities rated …

Pipe Dreams And Primitivism: Eugene O'Neill And The Rhetoric Of Ethnicity, Donald P. Gagnon

USF Tampa Graduate Theses and Dissertations

Eugene O'Neill included within his vision of humanity a series of complex, emotionally and psychologically developed black characters. Despite critical controversy over his methods or effectiveness, from his eerily silent mulatto in "Thirst" through the grandiose incarnation of The Emperor Jones and the everyman of Joe Mott and The Iceman Cometh, O'Neill created characters of African descent that thrilled and infuriated critics and audiences alike.

A closer exploration of the issues involved in his portrayal of ethnically identified characters seems necessary, an exploration that does not limit itself to an interrogation of ethnicity per se in O'Neill's plays, but …

Perception Of Leadership Qualities In Higher Education: Impact Of Professor Gender, Professor Leader Style, Situation, And Participant Gender, Michela A. Larocca

USF Tampa Graduate Theses and Dissertations

This experimental study used eight written vignettes to analyze the effects of professor gender, professor leadership style (democratic/autocratic), and type of situation (task/personal) and participant gender on evaluations of professorsʹ competence, likeability and masculinity characteristics. Undergraduates from the College of Arts and Science (N=932; Males=464, Females=467), and the College of Education (N=722; Males=140, Females=582) were used. Results indicated that research participants rated democratic professors significantly more competent, likeable, and more feminine than autocratic professors. Contrary to expectations derived from gender spill-over and gender congruency theories, male participants did not rate female professors more negatively than their male counterparts when they …

Engaging Smokers With Schizophrenia In Treatment For Tobacco Dependence: A Brief Motivational Interviewing Intervention, Marc L. Steinberg

USF Tampa Graduate Theses and Dissertations

The purpose of this study was to determine how to best motivate smokers with schizophrenia or schizoaffective disorder to seek treatment for tobacco dependence. Smokers with schizophrenia or schizoaffective disorder (N=78) were randomly assigned to receive a Motivational Interviewing, Psychoeducational, or Minimal Control intervention. A greater proportion of participants receiving the Motivational Interviewing intervention followed through on a referral for tobacco dependence treatment within one-week and one-month post-intervention. Mixed model Analyses of Variance found no differences between groups at one-week or at one-month with respect to tobacco use or motivation to quit. Within group analyses indicated that participants in the …

Prepulse Inhibition And The Acoustic Startle Response In Nine Inbred Mouse Strains, Jennifer Robin O'Steen

USF Tampa Graduate Theses and Dissertations

This study examined the effects of genetic background on the acoustic startle response (ASR) and its modulation by prepulse inhibition (PPI) by comparing nine inbred strains of mice. The ASR, a jerk-like motor reflex, is elicited by bursts of noise or tones with sound pressure levels of 80-90 dB and greater. PPI is a type of modulation of the ASR, requires no training, and results in observable response in both mice and humans.

Data were obtained from nine inbred mouse strains, sixteen per strain, which were shipped at approximately 3-5 weeks old from The Jackson Laboratory. In general, ASRs were …

Computerized Measurement Of Psychological Vital Signs In A Clinical Setting, Ryan K. Russon

USF Tampa Graduate Theses and Dissertations

Due to the increasing demands of third-party payers to show measurable results in a decreased amount of time, mental health practitioners need new tools and techniques to quickly and efficiently assess their client's current status and progress in treatment. The goal of this study was to develop and validate a brief computerized measure of emotional states and personality traits for use as an assessment tool in a clinical setting. Adapted from the State-Trait Personality Inventory (STPI; Spielberger, 1998), the computerized instrument measured state and trait anxiety, anger, depression, and curiosity. The computerized STPI was examined for equivalence with the traditional …

Attention-Deficit/Hyperactivity Disorder: General Education Elementary School Teachers' Knowledge, Training, And Ratings Of Acceptability Of Interventions, Stacey Small M.A.

USF Tampa Graduate Theses and Dissertations

Given that researchers estimate approximately one child in every classroom has Attention-Deficit/Hyperactivity Disorder (ADHD), and that most of these students are served in the general education classroom, it is imperative that general education teachers know how to effectively teach these students. Seventy-two general education elementary school teachers completed a survey containing demographic information, a knowledge of ADHD questionnaire, and a survey on interventions for students with ADHD. Results indicated that teachers scored an average of 57% correct on the Knowledge of Attention Deficit Disorders Scale (KADDS), scoring statistically significantly higher on the Symptoms/Diagnosis subscale compared to the General and Treatment …

The Role Of Individual Differences In Learning Alcohol Expectancy Associations, Howard R. Steinberg

USF Tampa Graduate Theses and Dissertations

Alcohol expectancy theory suggests that genetically influenced personality characteristics may lead to differential acquisition of expectancy information, and that this information then may serve as one mediational pathway for alcoholism risk. Research has already shown that expectancy information can predict and even mediate risk, but it has yet to be shown that personality traits can influence the acquisition of alcohol expectancy information. To that end, personality characteristics known to be risk factors for the development of excessive alcohol use were assessed in 83 male undergraduates. In addition, each participant studied, in a paired-associate learning/cued-recall test paradigm, a list of word …

Choral Music Education: A Survey Of Research 1996-2002, Amber Turcott

USF Tampa Graduate Theses and Dissertations

The purpose of this study was to review and summarize selected choral music education research published between 1996-2002. Four major research surveys in this area were previously published by Gonzo (1973), Hylton (1983), Phillips (1992), and Grant and Norris (1998). Each of these authors stressed a need for research in all areas of choral music education beyond the dissertation level and called for research that mimicked "real-world" experiences that would benefit choral music educators.

This study investigated the following: (a) whether research studies in choral music education have increased beyond doctoral dissertation studies; (b) whether previous research studies have been …

Factors Associated With Adolescent Suicidal Gestures, Heidi Jennifer Liss

USF Tampa Graduate Theses and Dissertations

Incidence of suicide has been shown to increase dramatically during adolescence. Despite an established pattern of depression and hopelessness leading to suicide in adults, no such pattern emerges in the adolescent literature. Recent investigations suggest that impulsivity may play a key role in adolescent suicide attempts. This study examined the role of impulsivity in adolescent suicidal gestures, as well as the relationships among demographic variables, anger expression, impulsivity, and suicidal behavior. A total of 100 participants (ages 11-17; 71 females and 29 males) were recruited from 2 inpatient crisis centers for children. The Children’s Depression Inventory, Hopelessness Scale for Children, …

Body Image As A Function Of Colorism: Testing A Theoretical Model, Alicia V. Hall

USF Tampa Graduate Theses and Dissertations

A Covariate Structure Model was used to examine a possible relationship between colorism as a component of body image and global psychological functioning in the hypothesized model. Two hundred-fifty-five African-American women were recruited from undergraduate psychology and social work classes to participate in the current study from state and community colleges in the southeastern United States, and from social groups and church organizations. The results indicated that the hypothesized model was not a good fit to the data; therefore, the model was re-evaluated. The results of the analysis of the revised model indicated that the revised model was not plausible. …

Leading Learning Through Imposition Of Leadership Learning Standards, Raymond D. Jorgensen

USF Tampa Graduate Theses and Dissertations

This study explored the impact of an imposed standards movement on attitudes and behaviors of a team of line leaders. A case method was employed to describe, to explain, and to draw conclusions about results of standards imposition. Standards were designed and implemented by an executive leadership team frustrated with lack of effective leadership practices of a line leaders team under their supervision. The investigation took an historical perspective, chronicling the story of the company, emerging leadership challenges, and executive leadership responses leading up to the research.

The line or team leaders of an educational software company served as participants. …

Evaluation Of Differences In Depression, Defensiveness, Social Support, And Coping Between Acute And Chronic Chd Patients Hospitalized For Myocardial Infarction Or Unstable Angina, Ashley Ellen Owen

USF Tampa Graduate Theses and Dissertations

The goal of this study was to examine differences in the psychological characteristics of patients admitted to the hospital for acute or chronic Myocardial Infarction (MI) or Unstable Angina (UA). Depression, anger, anxiety, curiosity, defensiveness, social support, and coping were evaluated for 165 patients (86 MI and 79 UA), who were tested on the Cardiology Stepdown Ward of Tampa General Hospital. The following psychological measures were administered to these patients: the Beck Depression Inventory (BDI), the State-Trait Anger Expression Inventory (STAXI-2), the Rationality/Emotional Defensiveness (R/ED) Scale, the Adult Form of the Coping Responses Inventory (CRI-Adult), the Interpersonal Support Evaluation List …

Hamlet Haven: An Online, Annotated Bibliography, Harmonie Loberg

USF Tampa Graduate Theses and Dissertations

The Challenge: Today a daunting quantity of scholarship relating to Hamlet exists. While databases and electronic catalogues aid research, these directories present a virtual wall of minimal bibliographic data. Sorting through lists still takes eons. Meanwhile, new publications are constantly added to the academic stacks that ever threaten to tumble over.

The Solution: A web site that groups together scholarly publications using similar approaches and treating similar subjects will translate the overwhelming into the maneuverable. The online medium will provide accessibility to everyone--student, research assistant, instructor, scholar--and will guarantee the opportunity to update this resource on a regular basis.

Scope: …

A Comparison Of Job Stressors And Job Strains Among Employees Holding Comarable Jobs In Western And Eastern Societies, Cong Liu

USF Tampa Graduate Theses and Dissertations

In this study, comparisons on job stressors and job strains have been made between American and Chinese employees. Data were collected from two jobs differing in social status: university professors and university administrative and support staff. Both quantitative and qualitative methods were used. The quantitative part involved traditional Likert scales for measuring job stressors (e.g., lack of job autonomy, interpersonal conflict, and organizational constraints), and job strains (e.g., turnover intention, frustration, negative emotions, job dissatisfaction, depression, and physical symptoms). The qualitative part was an open-ended questionnaire asking about a stressful job incident. Independent t-tests were used to compare the United …

The Effects Of Animated Textual Instruction On Learners' Written Production Of German Modal Verb Sentences, Elizabeth A. Caplan

USF Tampa Graduate Theses and Dissertations

This study investigated the effects of animation for a technology-assisted German grammar presentation on modal verbs. The premise was that many intangible concepts of dynamic grammar involve syntactic components that possess visuo–spatial characteristics. It was further speculated that these characteristics could be more effectively represented by animated versus static instructional presentations.

The supposition that animation would lend pedagogical advantage was supported by dual coding theory (Paivio, 1971, 1990), which posits two functionally separate representational systems, the verbal and the nonverbal, with dynamic mental imagery residing solely in the nonverbal system. The strength of dually coded information is that it is …