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Technology And Religion: Remaining Human In A Co-Created World (Book Review), Kristina M. Kays

Faculty Publications - Psychology Department

Reviews the book, "Technology and religion: Remaining human in a co-created world" by Noreen Herzfeld (see record 2009-04118-000). In this book, the author urges laypersons and professionals to consider the complexities of moral decision making about technology. Herzfeld explores how Christian, Jewish, and Islamic thinkers evaluate three categories of new technologies: “technologies of the human body, technologies of the human mind, and technologies of the external environment” (p. viii). This text is part of the Templeton Science and Religion series, which addresses the intersection between science and religion. While all books in this series are authored by specialists in the …

Steps For Prioritizing Academic Advising: A Small-School Case Study, Chris Koch, Kristina M. Kays

Faculty Publications - Psychology Department

This paper presents a case study of the steps taken to prioritize academic advising at a small, four-year, liberal arts university. Assessment data from several sources and an advising task force shaped the plan for changing the importance and culture of academic advising within the institution.

Social Transmission Of Fear In Rats: The Role Of 22-Khz Ultrasonic Distress Vocalization, Eun Joo Kim, Earnest S. Kim, Ellen Covey, Jeansok J. Kim

Faculty Publications - Psychology Department

Background

Social alarm calls alert animals to potential danger and thereby promote group survival. Adult laboratory rats in distress emit 22-kHz ultrasonic vocalization (USV) calls, but the question of whether these USV calls directly elicit defensive behavior in conspecifics is unresolved.

Methodology/Principal Findings

The present study investigated, in pair-housed male rats, whether and how the conditioned fear-induced 22-kHz USVs emitted by the ‘sender’ animal affect the behavior of its partner, the ‘receiver’ animal, when both are placed together in a novel chamber. The sender rats’ conditioned fear responses evoked significant freezing (an overt evidence of fear) in receiver rats that …

Psychology Apprenticeship Scheme – Re-Titled Pilot Mini-Placement Scheme In Psychology, Pamela Jacobs, Mandy Burns, Kassandra Clemens

School of Health Professions

Aims of project • The aim of this project was to design and trial a model of short work based experience that can be adapted for use in other academic schools • To develop materials to recruit students and employers for mini-placements scheme • To design and run training programmes for students who wish to take part in mini-placement scheme. The training program will be designed specifically to encourage deeper understanding of competences and deeper learning reflection. • To create on line materials that support students on mini-placement • To contact and visit local employers to introduce scheme • To …

Bio-Inspired Log-Polar Based Color Image Pattern Analysis In Multiple Frequency Channels, Xiaolu Li

Master's Theses and Capstones

The main topic addressed in this thesis is to implement color image pattern recognition based on the lateral inhibition subtraction phenomenon combined with a complex log-polar mapping in multiple spatial frequency channels. It is shown that the individual red, green and blue channels have different recognition performances when put in the context of former work done by Dragan Vidacic. It is observed that the green channel performs better than the other two channels, with the blue channel having the poorest performance. Following the application of a contrast stretching function the object recognition performance is improved in all channels. Multiple spatial …

Paying Women For Their Eggs For Use In Stem Cell Research, Pamela Foohey

Scholarly Works

On June 11, 2009, the Empire State Stem Cell Board (“Board”), which administers the $600 million in New York State funds allotted to stem cell research, voted to allocate a portion of those funds to compensate women up to $10,000 for “donating” their eggs for use in stem cell research. The Board's decision makes New York the first state to affirmatively allow state funds to be used to compensate women for providing their eggs for use in stem cell research beyond mere reimbursement of associated medical and other expenses, and, similarly, distinguishes it from most international countries, which either prohibit …

What's Race Got To Do With It?: A Historical Inquiry Into The Impact Of Color-Blind Reform On Racial Inequality In America's Public Schools, Lillian Dowdell Drakeford

Antioch University Dissertations & Theses

This dissertation examines the history and impact of color-blind educational reform in the post-Brown era on racial inequality of educational opportunities and outcomes in America's public schools. Through the lens of critical race theory and race critical theory, the dissertation employs a dual analysis. A macro analysis of the evolution and impact of colorblind educational reform on the national level is juxtaposed with a micro, case-study analysis of the history of color-blind educational reform at a historically Black high school. The historical analysis of the relationship between race and education encompasses intellectual and social aspects of education in the U.S. …

The Influence Of Treatment Team Cohesion In The Success Of In-Home Mental Health Treatment For Children And Adolescents With Emotional And Behavioral Disorders, Jaimie C. Orndorff

Antioch University Dissertations & Theses

Background: The author pursued this area of interest due to having had a positive experience working as a therapist within a high cohesion treatment team in an in-home setting. This experience with a high cohesion team seemed to lead to more successful results than other teams that were deemed low cohesion, in the same format. This experience led to a general curiosity about why the team this author was on was more effective. Additional research allowed this author to determine the possible link between cohesion, success of treatment and reduced risk for burnout, defined as a response to chronic job …

The Phenomenology Of Obsessive Compulsive Disorder From The Perspective Of The Adult Support Group Attendee, Richard R. Thomas Jr.

Antioch University Dissertations & Theses

This qualitative phenomenological dissertation utilizes the empirical descriptive phenomenological method, a modified Husserlian (1931) approach developed by A. P. Giorgi (1975, 1985, 1997) in order to lend voice to a vulnerable population of eight (four men and four women) adult Obsessive-Compulsive Disorder (OCD) sufferers while also gleaning a greater understanding of their in vivo (or lived) experience. Though extensive quantitative research into the disorder exists, this study utilizes the words of the participants and searches for emergent themes amongst their collective experience. This study addresses the treatment gap of this crippling disorder, increases community awareness, and allows for emergence of …

Monkey Brains And Monkey Bars: An Ecological Approach To The Values Of School Recess, Emily L. Stanley

Antioch University Dissertations & Theses

Recess is a cherished part of the school day for countless children. Its value, however, has been increasingly questioned in many communities as academic performance standards and management of playground risks take precedence over play. This research examined the multiple outdoor play values held by constituents of a small, independent school for dyslexic students. Students have the choice of several recess options, including traditional playground equipment and a woodland with a stream. Ethnographic methods, including videotaped observations and interviews, were used to inquire into the values that children demonstrated through activity in their chosen play settings, as well as those …

Anatomy Of A Sex Trafficking Case, Terry Coonan

Intercultural Human Rights Law Review

This article contends that a different conceptual model is needed to describe and analyze contemporary U.S. sex trafficking. The experience of the North Florida sex trafficking victims makes clear that neither the semantics nor the underlying ideologies that have dominated the current debate - especially as regards the role of consent in prostitution - are particularly helpful or illuminating. This article proposes a third model entitled "Commercial Sex as a Compromised Choice" that seeks to more accurately delineate the role of consent in prostitution and sex trafficking cases. It also proposes that U.S. law incorporate the provision of the UN …

An Investigation Of The Individual Differences In Cognitive Factors That Contribute To Bilingual Lexical Disambiguation, Ana B. Areas Da Luz Fontes

Open Access Theses & Dissertations

The objective of this study was to investigate the effects of working memory capacity, access to subordinate meanings of L1 homonyms and degree of cross-language activation on the access to subordinate meanings of L2 homonyms. In Experiment 1, Spanish-English bilinguals completed a word recognition task which assessed how quickly and accurately they accessed subordinate meanings of English homonyms that were either noncognates (e.g. fast/rápido) or cognates (e.g. letter/letra) with Spanish. In Experiment 2, another group of Spanish-English bilinguals read sentences while having their eye-movements recorded for measures of lexical access. On the critical trials, sentences contained a homonym that was …

The Effects Of Self Management, Education And Their Combination On Glucose Control Among Hispanics Visting A Community Health Clinic, Isela De Baca

Open Access Theses & Dissertations

The purpose of the present study was to measure the impact of diabetes self-management instruction alone, and in combination with diabetes education, on glucose control among diabetic patients at a local community clinic. The researcher of the study was particularly interested in assessing whether self-management goals and diabetes classes positively influence A1C values in this sample.

For this study, the medical charts of 131 patients at Centro San Vicente Health Clinic, a Federally Qualified Community Health Center in El Paso, Texas were reviewed. In addition to collecting A1c values at pretest (baseline) and at three and six months post intervention, …

Ni De Aquí Ni De Allá: Transnationalism And Political Participation In Latino/A Communities, Sergio I. Garcia-Rios

Open Access Theses & Dissertations

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"Now That We're Married, Does That Change Anything?": The Role Of Change In Romantic Relationships And The Implications For Alibi Research, Kevin W. Jolly

Open Access Theses & Dissertations

Research on alibis has focused on how the presence of a relationship between an alibi corroborator and a defendant affects how jurors perceive the alibi itself. Some published studies have examined how the relationship between the alibi corroborator and the defendant affects evaluations of the alibi. The extant literature on alibis now warrants investigations of how differences among types of relationships between an alibi corroborator and the accused influence the evaluation of the alibi claim. The first study examined whether alibi evaluations are affected by the length of a romantic relationship between an alibi corroborator and a defendant and by …

Passing, Segregation, And Assimilation: How Nella Larsen Changed The Passing Novel, Vivian Maguire

Open Access Theses & Dissertations

In 1929, Nella Larsen wrote Passing, a novel that delves into the lives of two African-American women living in segregated society. Passing portrays the reunion of two childhood friends, Clare Kendry and Irene Westover. The two had lost touch when Clare's father died and Clare was forced to move in with her two white and racist aunts. When they meet again, Irene is living in Harlem with her two children and her husband, who practices medicine. Clare has married a successful businessman, John Bellew. Clare's husband however, is a white racist who is unaware that Clare is in fact black. …

Making Africans And Indians: Colonialism, Identity, Racialization, And The Rise Of The Nation-State In The Florida Borderlands, 1765-1837, John Paul A. Nuño

Open Access Theses & Dissertations

The Florida Borderlands from 1765 to 1837 was a fluid space in which established colonial and Indigenous social, political, and economic systems were in dialogue with emerging discourses associated with the market economy, nationalism, and race. Utilizing British, Spanish, and United States government documents, diplomatic correspondence, and slave claims, this work traces the racialization of diverse Indigenous and African populations. Older colonial powers and nascent nation states sought to create political and social space between individuals within these categories in an effort to better control their labor, movement, and economic status. Consequently, Seminoles and Africans resisted and adapted, depending on …

Two Sides Of The Same Coin: Biculturalism, Cultural Ideologies, And Perceptions Of Cultural Change, Stephanie Ann Quezada

Open Access Theses & Dissertations

Ethnic minorities are adopting a bicultural identity to simultaneously identify with their heritage culture and mainstream American culture. While much research has investigated the extent to which ethnic majority and minority groups differentially respond to cultural ideologies, bicultural reactions to cultural ideologies remain uninvestigated. Bicultural individuals' differential endorsement of cultural ideologies has critical implications for implementation of assimilation and multiculturalism in multicultural societies. Therefore, the aim of the present study was to test the extent to which the salience of cultural identity predicts bicultural individuals' endorsement of assimilation and multicultural ideologies. Identity saliency was manipulated for bicultural Latino Americans and …

Disclosure Of Hiv Serostatus In Latinos As A Function Of Acculturation: The Role Of Attitudinal Components And The Theory Of Reasoned Action, John Andrew Sauceda

Open Access Theses & Dissertations

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School And Campus Characteristics Of Non-Graduating Seniors Due To Failure Of Taks Tests In The Western Independent School District, Patricia Silva

Open Access Theses & Dissertations

This study examined TAKS test scores of seniors that did not graduate with their cohort group due to failure of TAKS test. The data was for the 2007-2008, 2008-2009 and 2009-2010 school years and included students from ten traditional high schools. This researched focused on the relation between this senior cohort group and student and campus factors. The student characteristics included gender, ethnicity, at-risk status and students identified as economically disadvantaged and Limited English Proficient. The school characteristics included campus size, longevity of campus principal, teachers' classroom years of experience, and state and federal accountability factors. Through an observational and …

The Co-Existence Of Diabetes Mellitus Type 2 And Depression Symptoms In Mexican American Adults: Its Relation To Glucose Control, Perceived Stress And Physical Health, Guillermina Rincon Solis

Open Access Theses & Dissertations

Type 2 diabetes is a common chronic metabolic disease affecting 23.6 million people (7.8%) in the U.S. and is the 6th leading cause of death among adults (CDC, 2007). Mexican-Americans, the largest group within the Hispanic U.S population, have double the rate of type 2 diabetes. Long-term glucose control (HbA1C) is essential to lessen the risk of diabetes complications; self-care demands for diabetes management may be overwhelming and creates stress that predisposes individuals to depression and affects long-term glucose control (Anderson et al., 2000; Black, 1999; Black, Markides, & Ray, 2003). The purpose of this study was to evaluate the …

Observer-Dependent Model For Analyzing Subjective Parameters In Epidemiology, Milad Zarei

Open Access Theses & Dissertations

Although medical technologies for preventing the contagion and spread of infectious diseases have improved steadily throughout the last century, new infectious diseases are still emerging and spreading swiftly. The modeling of infectious disease spread is crucial in addressing the lack of predictive ability in epidemiology. Managing the spread of infectious diseases requires processing quantitative epidemiological data and the ability to capture the dynamics of the infectious disease in order to provide a measure of control.

In this thesis, I have introducing cognitive biases in diseases spread modeling. For the first time, to the author's knowledge, the human subjective experience has …

Neighborhood Deprivation, Neighborhood Aculturation, And The Retail Food Environment In A U.S.-Mexico Border Urban Area, Teresa Mercedes Anchondo

Open Access Theses & Dissertations

The prevalence of obesity in the United States is increasing at a rapid rate, and is the result of an imbalance of caloric intake and expenditure. Obese individuals are at significantly greater risk for coronary artery disease, high blood pressure, diabetes, and cancer, as compared to non-obese individuals. Both individual correlates and neighborhood conditions contribute to the risk for obesity. For example, family history, race/ethnicity, and residence in a low socioeconomic status neighborhood are all associated with increased risk of obesity. The retail food environment is one aspect of low socioeconomic status neighborhoods that may contribute to increased obesity risk. …

Smoking Cessation, Reduction And Motivation Change In A Predominantly Hispanic Sample, Jose Alonso Cabriales

Open Access Theses & Dissertations

To date, few studies have focused on smoking cessation specifically for light and intermittent smokers (fewer than 10 cigarettes per day). Light and intermittent smoking have been on the rise for the past years, and multiple studies have documented the detrimental health effects of low-level smoking. This study assessed the efficacy of a brief smoking cessation intervention for light smokers in a predominantly Hispanic community sample. Additionally, predictors of quitting were also assessed. Two hundred and fifty light and intermittent smokers were recruited primarily from a family health clinic and the UTEP campus. Participants completed baseline measures assessing demographics, tobacco …

Social Understanding And The Effect Of Social Pressure On Children's Suggestibility, Catherine Camilletti

Open Access Theses & Dissertations

The current study investigated the effect of varying levels of social pressure in a suggestive interview on children's recall for a witnessed event as well as the relationship between children's social understanding and their suggestibility. Children were randomly assigned to take part in one of four suggestive interviews about a confederate's visit to their classroom. Children also completed several tasks to assess their knowledge and understanding of social situations. Children receiving high levels of social pressure in an interview had higher rates of suggestibility than children receiving lower levels of social pressure in an interview. Children's overall comprehension of a …

Recasting The Role Of Memory In The History Of Rhetoric: The Case Of Nineteenth And Twentieth Century Autobiographies By Rhetors Of Color, Hector Carbajal

Open Access Theses & Dissertations

The primary object of study in this dissertation is memory within autobiographical writing among writers of color. Specifically, this project uses autobiographies by Gloria E. Anzaldúa and Frederick Douglass as case studies for how minority writers of color remember within the act of writing. Memory is an important object of study because it is partially the medium by which knowledge is reproduced, reconstructed, and invented. Autobiographical writing is significant because it is a genre that has enabled individuals to write themselves as part of history. Being a part of history is important because it allows a subject to change the …

Engineering Design Educational Model: From Skills To Objectives, Jose Gabriel Davila Rangel

Open Access Theses & Dissertations

The objective of this thesis is to develop an engineering design educational pedagogy on how to improve the engineering design learning experience. The design engineering activity is a complex mix of skills and knowledge that has been taught over decades by directly delivering to the students the design methodologies developed by design researchers and by exposing the students to open ended projects that could develop their design skills. Understanding this we can conclude that the three main pedagogical components of a successful educational design experience are: the design skills, the design methods and the design projects. On one hand, the …

The Sunk Cost Fallacy And Individual Differences In Health Decisions, Norma P. Fernandez

Open Access Theses & Dissertations

The Sunk Cost fallacy is a biased committed when individuals base their decisions to stop or continue a course of action solely on past irrecoverable invested costs (i.e., monetary or time-related). Individuals' susceptibility to the Sunk Cost fallacy has been justified as the need to try to avoid appearing wasteful, to avoid appearing inconsistent, to learn a lesson from and to punish self for a poorly made decision. A study by Bornstein and Chapman (1995) evaluated these justifications along with a normative response and found statistical differences among all justifications. However, the study of the Sunk Cost fallacy and these …

Repeated Measures Of Impact Verbal Memory Scores Of Concussed And Non-Concussed Individuals, Deshea Davis Gornowicz

Open Access Theses & Dissertations

This study compared ImPACT verbal memory scores of concussed and non-concussed athletes (n=6). This purpose of this study was to determine stability of verbal memory scores with repeated measures. Stability was determined using the ImPACT normative data for university of men and women published in the ImPACT manual. Based on visual inspection of the data, differences between groups was observed. All concussed participants demonstrated scores that were not stable according to the operational definition. All non-concussed participants were demonstrated stable verbal memory scores.

Analysis Of Secondary Data On The Causes And Consequences Of Migration In Central American Children, Jacquelin Hawley

Open Access Theses & Dissertations

It is said that immigration is approaching historic levels, and it is believed that one-third of the foreign-born population in the United States is undocumented. By examining the available research on Central American families that migrate to the United States, it seems plausible to argue that one of the main causes for migration is the lack of employment opportunities in their home country. The purpose of this study is to analyze the relationship between the migration of Central American youth and low employment opportunities. The paper intends to address the following questions. Is lack of employment opportunities a cause for …