Digital Commons Network^™

Evaluating Ict Adoption In Rural Brazil: A Quantitative Analysis Of Telecenters As Agents Of Social Change, Paola Prado, Mauro Araújo Câmara, Marco Aurélio De Figueiredo

Arts & Sciences Faculty Publications

This quantitative study surveyed 538 adults in isolated rural settings in the state of Minas Gerais, Brazil, to examine whether telecenters operated by the non-profit organization Gems of the Earth improve digital literacy and promote social change. Using multivariate logistic regression, the study examined how individuals use information and communication technologies (ICTs) at the telecenter, and tested for predictors of their use. The findings confirm that these rural communities use ICTs for entertainment, to engage in civic participation, and to practice professional skills. The findings suggest that digital inclusion impacts these isolated communities by creating opportunities that may foster human …

You Can’T Go To Zion With A Carnal Mind: Slackness And Culture In The Music Of Yellowman, Brent Hagerman

Theses and Dissertations (Comprehensive)

Jamaican deejay Yellowman is best known for “slackness” lyrics centred on masculine heterosexual potency, sexist objectification of women and graphic sexual narratives. Yet a deeper look at Yellowman’s life and recorded output suggests that when his slackness is read in the context of Afro-Jamaican culture, reggae history and his Rastafarian faith, a more complex interpretation of his slackness is needed. This study will draw on Carolyn Cooper’s (2001) theory that slackness is a “metaphorical revolt against law and order, an undermining of consensual standards of decency” (p. 141). Whereas the term “culture” is used in reggae to depict music that …

The Social Ethic Of Religiously Unaffiliated Spirituality, Siobhan Chandler

Theses and Dissertations (Comprehensive)

Since the sixties, sweeping social change has led to a massive restructuring of North American religious life. This includes the emergence of privatized forms of religiosity that operate without an institutional context. This trend is captured by the growing prevalence of individuals who describe themselves as ‘spiritual but not religious’. Despite its popularity, critics worry that privatized religiosity is undermining more socially responsive forms of traditional religious engagement. They think that private religion does not lead to the types of face-to-face interactions needed to build social trust and foster a vibrant public sphere. In short, they think it lacks social …

To Tell Or Not To Tell: Predictors Of Disclosure And Privacy Settings Usage In An Online Social Networking Site (Facebook), Amanda Nosko

Theses and Dissertations (Comprehensive)

Use of social networking sites has grown exponentially over the last decade. Facebook, a popular social networking site, currently boasts membership of over 500 million users (www.facebook.com). In the present research, four studies were conducted to examine factors that impact on self-disclosure and privacy settings use. The primary goal for Studies 1 A, B and C involved developing methods for organizing and understanding the information that individuals disclose through social networking sites. Specifically, in Study 1 A, a scoring tool was developed in order to comprehensively assess the content of the personal profiles. In Study 1 B, grouping categories (default/standard …

Interprofessional Empathy In An Acute Healthcare Setting, Keith Adamson

Theses and Dissertations (Comprehensive)

Interprofessional collaboration is emerging as a key factor in reshaping healthcare practices in Canada over the last eight years. Collaboration in healthcare necessarily implies health providers sharing responsibility and partnering with each other in order to provide comprehensive patient care. A review of the empirical literature on teamwork in healthcare settings suggests that relationships between service providers remain conflictual and variable in their commitment to interprofessional collaboration (Zwarnstein & Bryant 2000). Recently, social psychologists have given considerable attention to the possibility that empathy could be used to improve intergroup attitudes and relations (Batson & Ahmad, 2009). Although empathy may be …

Neural Mechanisms Of Interference And Storage In Vibrotactile Working Memory, Tyler D. Bancroft

Theses and Dissertations (Comprehensive)

Vibrotactile working memory has attracted increasing attention in recent years. Substantial research into the neural correlates has been conducted, especially using single-cell paradigms in non-human primates (Romo & Salinas, 2003). The vibrotactile working memory system uses a relatively simple neural code for the representation of stimuli, making it possible to determine when stimulus information is present in the various cortical areas thought to be involved. In humans, vibrotactile working memory displays properties (such as overwriting mechanisms of interference) that make it an ideal system for testing general theories of working memory. In the present study, we demonstrate that vibrotactile working …

Exploring Perfectionism, Rumination And Social Anxiety: Theoretical And Causal Implications, Jaclyn R. Brown

Theses and Dissertations (Comprehensive)

Clark and Wells’ (1995) cognitive model of Social Anxiety (SA) posits that those with (SA) have a strong fear of negative evaluation and engage in excessive rumination following social interactions or performances. Fear of negative evaluation is also a key component of perfectionism; perfectionism has also been correlated with rumination. The purpose of the research was to examine the relationships among SA, rumination and perfectionism across two studies. For Study 1, participants were recruited (N=232) to complete online questionnaires. Psychometrics, including factor structure, were examined. It was expected that SA and rumination, rumination and perfectionism, and SA and …

The Internalization Of Mathematics Stereotypes In Elementary School Children, Amanda Schell

Theses and Dissertations (Comprehensive)

This study investigated mathematics-related gender stereotypes, internalization of these stereotypes in 2nd and 5th grade children, and whether there is a relationship between internalization and the underperformance of girls in mathematics. There is evidence that gender stereotype internalization occurs throughout elementary school with an increasing impact on girls’ mathematical competence and performance (e.g., Muzzatti & Agnoli, 2007). However, there has been no definite determination with respect to the point at which this process begins. Parents and teachers have displayed gender stereotypical beliefs concerning children as young as three years of age (Lee & Schell, under review). This factor can influence …

An Exploration Of Factors Impacting Youth Volunteers Who Provide Indirect Services, Andrea M. Mcarthur

Theses and Dissertations (Comprehensive)

Youth volunteerism is highly researched by volunteer organizations, but little is known about the factors impacting youth who provide indirect volunteering and the strengths and challenges which they face. Volunteering is indirect when the results of a volunteer’s work travels through more than one channel, (usually stakeholders spreading a message or raising funds), before reaching the intended client. Awareness raising and fundraising activities are two common examples of indirect volunteering that are attractive to many youth.

Ten youth volunteers from five different organizations in the Greater Toronto Area were interviewed in order to investigate three important questions about indirect volunteering. …

Summer Library Reading Programs And Literacy: An Assessment Of Children’S Reading Progress After Having Participated In A Summer Library Reading Program, Ashley Kristina Van Andel

Theses and Dissertations (Comprehensive)

This study examined the effects of a summer library reading program on children’s reading progress. Sixty-nine children in second to fifth grade, ages 7–11, completed reading ability measures at two points: before and after participating in the summer library reading program, for the duration of July and August. For this quasi-experimental design, the treatment group consisted of 16 children who participated in the program, while the control group included 53 classmates who did not participate. Results showed that those who participated in the summer library reading program scored higher than the control group only in reading comprehension and not other …

Multi-Tasking: The Effects Of Interacting With Technology On Learning In A Real-Time Classroom Lecture, Lucia Zivcakova

Theses and Dissertations (Comprehensive)

An experiment was conducted with the primary purpose of determining whether multitasking while listening to lectures impacts on learning performance. Four digitally-based multi-tasking activities (texting using a cell-phone, emailing, MSN messaging and Facebook) were compared to 3 control groups (a paper-and-pencil note-taking, a word-processing note-taking and a natural technology/note condition) over three sessions. The natural use control group was included to assess what level of multi-tasking, if any, occurs naturally in an authentic classroom lecture. The 7 (condition) X 3 (session) mixed design, revealed that participants m the Facebook and MSN conditions performed more poorly than participants in the paper-and-pencil …

Integrated Computational Intelligence And Japanese Candlestick Method For Short-Term Financial Forecasting, Takenori Kamo

Doctoral Dissertations

"This research presents a study of intelligent stock price forecasting systems using interval type-2 fuzzy logic for analyzing Japanese candlestick techniques. Many intelligent financial forecasting models have been developed to predict stock prices, but many of them do not perform well under unstable market conditions. One reason for poor performance is that stock price forecasting is very complex, and many factors are involved in stock price movement. In this environment, two kinds of information exist, including quantitative data, such as actual stock prices, and qualitative data, such as stock traders' opinions and expertise. Japanese candlestick techniques have been proven to …

Effect Of Web Atmospheric Cues On Users' Emotional Responses In Ecommerce, Tanvi Joginapelly

Masters Theses

"The internet has revolutionized the shopping experience. As consumers' emotional responses play an important role in predicting behavioral intentions and satisfaction, it is imperative to study e-commerce from an affective perspective and identify the website design features that influence consumers' emotional responses. This research adopted the stimulus-organism-response (S-O-R) model to examine the effects of web atmospheric cues. mainly vividness and interactivity, on users' emotional responses in e-commerce, and their influence on users' purchasing intentions.

The study had three stages: First, experts in human computer interaction (HCI) were recruited and asked to evaluate and rate 25 different e-commerce websites on interactivity …

The Legal Academy As Dinner Party: A (Short) Manifesto On The Necessity Of Inter-Interdisciplinary Legal Scholarship, Paul Stancil

Faculty Scholarship

This Article explores the need for an increase in inter-interdisciplinary legal scholarship, suggesting that legal scholars from different traditions and backgrounds need to sit down at the same table and start talking to one another. The author presents an argument in favor of an integrated model of legal scholarship in which norms of intellectual modesty and cooperation fuel the development of interdisciplinary work. He develops a functional hierarchy which allows scholars to start with the first, threshold question, then work down to the operational details as they carefully consider our accumulated learning about why and how people actually act. After …

Findings: College Of Education Research Report, 2010, College Of Education, Illinois State University

Annual Report and Findings

No abstract provided.

Sotl At Isu, Vol. 5, January 2011, Illinois State University, Scholarship Of Teaching And Learning

Scholarship of Teaching and Learning Newsletter

Newsletter for the Scholarship of Teaching and Learning

Investment Recommendations And The Essence Of Duty, Onnig H. Dombalagian

American University Law Review

No abstract provided.

The Freedom Of Information Act Trial, Margaret B. Kwoka

American University Law Review

This Article examines the paucity of Freedom of Information Act (FOIA) cases that go to trial and courts’ preference for resolving these disputes at the summary judgment stage. Using traditional legal analysis and empirical evidence, this Article explores whether we should expect FOIA cases to go to trial and how the scarcity of FOIA trials compares to the trial rate in civil litigation generally. It concludes that the unusual use of summary judgment in FOIA cases has unjustifiably all but eliminated FOIA trials, which occur in less than 1% of FOIA cases. It further examines how conducting FOIA trials in …

School Counseling Site Supervisor Training: An Exploratory Study, Lorraine Dekruyf, Dale-Elizabeth Pehrsson

Faculty Publications - Graduate School of Counseling

This study explored the supervision training needs of site supervisors of master’s program school counseling interns via the construct of selfefficacy. Using the Site Supervisor Self-Efficacy Survey developed for this study, the authors surveyed school counseling site supervisors in the states of Oregon and Washington (N = 147) regarding their hours of supervision training and their supervisor self-efficacy. Results indicated that 54% of school counseling site supervisors had little or no counseling supervision training. Supervisor self-efficacy appeared to be relatively strong, consistently so for school counseling site supervisors with over 40 hours of supervision training. A partial correlation indicated a …

The Financial Management Behavior Scale: Development And Validation, Jeffrey P. Dew, Jing Jian Xiao

Faculty Publications

Although research on financial management behavior is common, few financial management behavior scales exist that are simultaneously multi-dimensional, psychometrically validated, and validated using nationally representative data. Using data from a nationally representative sample of adults, this study developed and examined the psychometric properties of a new scale of financial management behaviors. The Financial Management Behavior Scale (FMBS) displayed adequate reliability (alpha = .81). The FMBS was highly associated with other measures of financial management behaviors and was predictive of participants’ actual levels of savings and consumer debt. These findings suggest that the full FMBS is a reliable and valid measure …

Religiosity In Adolescence And Emerging Adulthood, Carolyn Mcnamara Barry, Larry J. Nelson

Faculty Publications

According to IEA Civic Education Study, approximately half of American adolescents participate in religious groups (Torney-Purta et al. 2001) and half of American 18–24-year-olds report religious beliefs to be important (Inglehart et al. 2004). Thus, religious experiences are an important aspect of the lives of many adolescents and emerging adults (approximately ages 18 to the mid-20s) in the USA. Specifically, adolescents are fully immersed in identity exploration and ideally resolve this search in emerging adulthood. They embark on a quest to solidify their values and beliefs about countless issues, including religiosity. This essay will review the literature on religiosity among …

Drilling For Micro-Foundations Of Human Capital Based Competitive Advantages, Russell Coff, David Kryscynski

Faculty Publications

From the origins of the Resource Based View, scholars have emphasized the importance of human capital as a source of sustained competitive advantage and recently there has been great interest in gaining a better understanding of the micro-foundations of strategic capabilities. Along these lines, there is little doubt that heterogeneous human capital is often a critical underlying mechanism for capabilities. Here, we explore how individual level phenomena underpin isolating mechanisms that sustain human capital-based advantages but also create management dilemmas that must be resolved in order to create value. The solutions to these challenges cannot be found purely in generic …

Cooperating Teacher's Expectations For Student Teachers During The Student Teaching Experience In Physical Education, Robert Christenson, David C. Barney

Faculty Publications

The student teaching experience is important. The student teacher wants to be successful during their student teaching experience. Part of working successfully with the cooperating teacher can greatly impact a student teacher's success. The purpose of this study was to investigate school based cooperative teachers' experiences with student teachers for the purpose of better preparing physical education teacher education majors for their student teaching. For this study 100 experienced physical educators were surveyed to find out what student teachers should expect to do to be successful when student teaching. One of the main findings from this study was for student …

Association Of Retinoic Acid Receptor Genes With Meningomyelocele, Phong X Tran, Kit Sing Au, Alanna C Morrison, Jack M Fletcher, Kathryn K Ostermaier, Gayle H Tyerman, Hope Northrup

Faculty, Staff and Student Publications

BACKGROUND: Neural tube defects (NTDs) occur in as many as 0.5-2 per 1000 live births in the United States. One of the most common and severe neural tube defects is meningomyelocele (MM) resulting from failed closure of the caudal end of the neural tube. MM has been induced by retinoic acid teratogenicity in rodent models. We hypothesized that genetic variants influencing retinoic acid (RA) induction via retinoic acid receptors (RARs) may be associated with risk for MM.

METHODS: We analyzed 47 single nucleotide polymorphisms (SNPs) that span across the three retinoic acid receptor genes using the SNPlex genotyping platform. Our …

Case Of “Slow” Stroke From Carotid Artery Occlusion Treated By Delayed But Cautious Endovascular Intervention, Kachi Illoh, Emilio Supsupin, Hashem M Shaltoni, Edwin D Cacayorin

Faculty, Staff and Student Publications

In a challenging case of carotid occlusion with slowly evolving stroke, we used brain imaging to facilitate endovascular revascularization resulting in the relief of the patient's symptoms. Patients with carotid occlusion and continued neurological worsening or fluctuations present enormous treatment challenges. These patients may present "slow" strokes with subacute infarcts that present significant challenges and risks during attempts at revascularization of the occluded artery. We present such a case in which we used multimodal imaging techniques, including MR-perfusion, to facilitate endovascular revascularization. Our approach of delayed but cautious intra-arterial thrombolytic therapy, guided by brain imaging, and followed by stent placement …

Hired Guns And Moral Torpedoes: Balancing The Competing Moral Duties Of The Public Relations Professional, Kati Tusinski Berg, Kevin Gibson

College of Communication Faculty Research and Publications

Public relations helps an organisation and its publics adapt mutually to each other. However, this does not mean that the profession is value neutral or anything goes. There will be cases where professionals have to make discretionary ethical decisions and negotiate their roles and responsibilities, especially when faced with novel or difficult issues. In this conceptual paper, we describe how the notion of professional role morality not only shapes the individual struggles that practitioners endure but also highlights the organisational structures that foster or shun ethics in the decision-making process. Thus we provide a means of assessing professional action that …

The Specter Of Nature, Stephanie Clark

Theses

The Specter of Nature is a photographic series that examines the tenuous boundaries between culture and Nature. Through this thesis, I address how, within culture, Nature is defined, distorted, fantasized and then realized through various forms of representation. To this end, Nature historically serves as a backdrop in culturally constructed fantasies and storytelling, as well as historically playing a role in the development of a female identity. The Specter of Nature,examines these concerns through staged photographs of settings created from fabrics and cutouts of decorative papers. By cutting along the patterns embedded in materials such as wrapping papers, wallpapers, scrapbooking …

Exploring Cultural Integration Among High School Youth Through Participatory Action Research, Kathryn Leigh Schill Schommer

Theses and Dissertations

No abstract provided.

Visual Field Preference In Emotion Recognition For Children With Autism Spectrum Disorders And Typical Development, Rachelle Hansen

Theses and Dissertations

No abstract provided.

Airline Service : Effects On Travel And Economic Development In North Dakota Following The Airline Deregulation Act Of 1978, Rodney L. Iverson

Theses and Dissertations

No abstract provided.