Digital Commons Network^™

Living And Teaching For Social Justice: Teacher Educators' Stories And Experiences, Courtney Kay Clausen

Dissertations and Theses @ UNI

In the United States, the population of students’ with diverse racial/ethnic, linguistic, and economic backgrounds is on the rise, while teachers entering the field of education continue to be White or of European decent, monolingual, and female. These experiential differences between students and teachers can result in a demographic gap, where teachers struggle to meet the needs of all learners due to misperceptions, stereotypical beliefs, and biases. Educational scholars have called for the integration of social justice education into teacher preparation programs in order to assist preservice teachers in challenging their perceptions of students, to challenge the existing inequitable educational …

Food Insecurity And The Elder Male: Exploring The Gap From Needing Food To The Utilization Of Assistance Programs, Gale Carlson

Dissertations and Theses @ UNI

The purpose of the qualitative study was to explore the relationship between the male elder’s experience of food insecurity and the utilization of food assistance programs. Particular emphasis was placed on the meaning the men ascribe to their experiences in accessing food. In the review of the literature, the determinants of food insecurity, especially for the elder male population, were identified as having important implications for fulfilling food needs. Additionally, distinct characteristics of men, along with how they view their needs, surfaced as impacting their food insecurity. This study utilized participant observation and in-depth interviews with five elder men who …

Sick Of Deviants: How The Behavioral Immune System May Impact Responses To Violated Norms, Neal G. Pollock

Dissertations and Theses @ UNI

In order to protect themselves from harmful pathogens, individuals have evolved a behavioral immune system (BIS) that is sensitive to disease cues (Schaller, 2006). At the cultural-level, there are variations in norms based on the prevalence of pathogens within a region (Schaller & Murray, 2008). Previous findings support the notion that the BIS promotes conformity (Murray & Schaller, 2012; Murray, Trudeau, & Schaller, 2011; Gelfand et al., 2011), as this produces an environment that is more protected against harmful pathogens. The current study attempted to provide experimental evidence for increased punishment for norm violations when the BIS was activated. Seventy-six …

Impact Of Teacher Scientist Partnerships On High School Students' Perceptions Of Science, Kevin John Schneider

Dissertations and Theses @ UNI

There exist a multitude of global issues in the 21^st century that can be addressed with the scientific process. In response to these dilemmas, there are a number of education initiatives that aim to raise interest in science careers. This study provides an evaluation for one such effort. Over 200 students from 4 different high schools and 4 teachers were presented with a pre to post survey to measure the impact of Research Experience for Teachers (RET) curricula. High school science teachers participated in a research experience, created curriculum with a scientist, taught the content in their classrooms, and …

Gender Differences In Cognitive Dissonance Reduction Strategies For Partner's Physical Attractiveness, Lijing Ma

Dissertations and Theses @ UNI

Physical attractiveness is an important standard for mate selection for both men and women (Langlois et al., 2000). However, men may care more about their partners’ physical attractiveness than do women (Feingold, 1990). This study applied cognitive dissonance theory (Festinger, 1957) to physical attractiveness in mate selection. Not everyone can find a partner who is as attractive as he or she would ideally like, so this may create cognitive dissonance between their attitudes and behavior. Cognitive dissonance theory suggests that people try to reduce uncomfortable feelings caused by the differences between their attitudes and behaviors (Festinger, 1957). Because men care …

An Investigation Of The Assessment Practices Of Elementary General Music Teachers In Iowa, Michelle Linn Hyde Swanson

Dissertations and Theses @ UNI

Assessment, leading to informed decisions, is an integral part of music education and may be a means to justify the importance of music as a valued content subject (Brophy, 2000). The purpose of this study was to describe the elementary general music assessment practices in Iowa. The study was framed using Stiggins’ (2005) categorical definition of assessment as gathering, organizing, summarizing, and reporting data. Mixed methodologies were utilized to gather data regarding these four categories through survey questions (N=211) and two focus group discussions. The participants were from a variety of school district sizes as well as teachers with varying …

Constructing Identities In The West Branch Landscape: Herbert Hoover's Life And Legacy As A Common Man, 1935-1992, Ryan Lucas Wurtz

Dissertations and Theses @ UNI

This thesis examines the development of the Herbert Hoover National Historic Site, Herbert Hoover Presidential Library and Museum, and the town of West Branch's memorialization of Herbert Hoover. The memorialization process of Herbert Hoover's life began with the purchase of his childhood home by his wife, Lou Henry, and son, Allan Hoover in 1935. Backed by the town of West Branch, where the birth site was located, the memorial consisted of the home that Hoover lived in as a child. The Birthplace Society, comprised of leading West Branch community members, expanded the grounds and restored Hoover's father's blacksmith shop in …

Anti-Proliferative Effect Of Hibernating American Bullfrog, Lithobates Catesbeianus, Blood Plasma On The Thp-1 Cells, Sean L. Robbins

Dissertations and Theses @ UNI

Hibernation is a remarkable process that allows an organism to go dormant for long periods of time during the winter, when food is scarce and living conditions can be lethal. Much is unknown about the physiology behind hibernation, and most research comes from mammalian models. For example, it is known that during hibernation many of the cells in the body are impeded from going though mitosis but the mechanism that caused this was unknown. It was recently discovered that 13-lined ground squirrels (Ictidomys tridecemlineatus) and woodchucks (Marmota monax) have a protein, alpha-2-macroglobulin, in their blood plasma, …

Aquatic Managers Of Northeast Iowa : A Description Of Current Practices Of Staff Training And Implementation Detailing Competencies, Frequency, And Evaluation, Tracy N. Carey

Dissertations and Theses @ UNI

The purpose of this study is to identify and describe how aquatic managers implement aquatic staff training and development. According to the American Society for Training and Development, U.S. organizations spend more than $50 billion annually on employee training. Organizations place an important emphasis on training and development for their employees. Aquatic facilities play an important role in the communities they serve. Operating an aquatic facility has become increasingly more complex in recent years due to new technology with filtration systems, differentiating certifications and facility regulations.

Therefore, aquatic managers must ensure their lifeguards are capable and competent of doing everything …

The New North: Patents And Knowledge Economy Analysis In Alaska, Salma Zbeed

Dissertations and Theses @ UNI

In the last few years, Alaska's economy suffered as world oil prices plunged to very low levels, and the analysts predicting that Alaska output will continue to dwindle in the years to come. As a result of Alaska's dependence on oil economy, the state now faces a budget deficit. Modern economic development theories suggest searching for ways to manage northern frontiers. Investment in a knowledge –based economy seems to be new one of the appealing alternatives, and investing the human capacities is necessary. There is enough evidence from both central and peripheral regions that geographic proximity between the people and …

A Master's Recital In Horn, Casey M. Chlapek

Dissertations and Theses @ UNI

Casey Chlapek performed his graduate horn recital on November 9, 2017 at 6:00 pm in Davis Hall of the Gallagher Bluedorn Performing Arts Center on the campus of the University of Northern Iowa. He was assisted by pianist Natia Shioshvili. This recital represents the partial fulfillment of obtaining a Master of Music degree in Horn Performance. The program included works by Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart, Jan Koetsier Sigurd Berge, Carl Nielsen, and Jean Françaix. This abstract examines each piece in the context of its composer’s total musical output, explores the purpose and circumstances of composition, and provides brief comments regarding the …

Comparison Of Forward Lean During Bulgarian Split Squat At High And Low Box Heights, Craig Konrardy

Dissertations and Theses @ UNI

This study examined the difference between forward lean while performing the Bulgarian Spilt Squat at different box heights of 40 cm and 20 cm. The study also compared the maximal force output of the front foot during the BSS at the different heights.

Fifteen male athletes (standing height=180.73 ± 6.67 cm; mass= 80.45 ± 7.63 kg; age=18.55 ± 0.69 years) volunteered to complete the study. The participants performed three repetitions of each leg at two different heights of the Bulgarian Split Squat with 30% of self-reported back squat 1RM. Participants stood on a force plate to report maximal force during …

Intergenerational Conversation: Authentic Learning Through Critical Reflection Of A Community Engagement Learning Experience, Amy Davison

Dissertations and Theses @ UNI

The purpose of this study was to determine the type of reflection students are using in their final reflection stories to see if there was evidence of reflection in relation to authentic learning. Assignments from four Human Relations courses that included a community engagement learning component provided the data for a qualitative content analysis to determine authentic learning through the reflective writing assignments. Levels of reflection outlined in Kember, McKay, Sinclair, and Wong’s (2008) four category scheme for coding and assessing the level of reflection was applied to students’ written work. The student’s final essay written about their intergenerational community …

Properties Of Left-Separated Spaces And Their Unions, Eric Scheidecker

Dissertations and Theses @ UNI

Left-separated spaces are topological spaces which can be well ordered such that every initial segment is closed. In this paper, we examine what topological properties imply left-separation, and under what circumstances left-separation is preserved by unions. We also introduce several known theorems regarding elementary submodels as they are one of the primary tools that we use. We prove that for a topological space X;

1. If X has a point-countable base, then X is left-separated if and only if X has closed intersection with any elementary submodel M such that X ∈ M.

2. If every elementary submodel …

The Programmatic Manipulation Of Planar Diagram Codes To Find An Upper Bound On The Bridge Index Of Prime Knots, Genevieve R. Johnson

Dissertations and Theses @ UNI

The “bridge index” of a knot is the least number of maximal overpasses taken over all diagrams of the knot. A naïve method to determine the bridge index of a knot is to perform Reidemeister moves on diagrams of the knot, and this method quickly becomes tedious to implement by hand. In this paper, we introduce a sequence of Reidemeister moves which we call a “drag the underpass” move and prove how planar diagram codes change as Reidemeister moves are performed. We then use these results to programatically perform Reidemeister moves using Python 2.7 to calculate an upper bound on …

Valproic Acid: A Neural Outgrowth Model For The Autism Spectrum Disorder, Hannah M. Bergan

Dissertations and Theses @ UNI

Autism spectrum disorder has been dramatically on the rise since the early 1990s, with one in forty-five children being diagnosed in 2014. It is known that contributing factors to autism spectrum disorder may have genetic and epigenetic origins, as well as environmental triggers. What is still unclear, however, is the impact of teratogenic drugs, consumed by the mother, have on a developing fetus in utero. How can they lead to the child developing autistic-like behaviors? The current study documents the effects of one teratogenic drug Valproic acid, a known histone deacetylase inhibitor. It establishes the role it plays on developing …

Career Development And Trajectories: Women In Senior-Level Management Positions In Nonprofit Organizations And Government Agencies, Jennifer Diane Stevens

Dissertations and Theses @ UNI

Lighting the way for women today, pioneers like Jane Addams and others have helped women make gallant strides in the field of human and leisure services for the past 50 years. These women took necessary steps towards equality, which ultimately led to changes in attitudes of women, attitudes towards women, and gender roles. Women now make up half of the workforce and are accepted in all sectors today.

However, inequality still exists through transparent barriers that keep women from advancing to senior-level management and decision-making positions. Elements such as family, education, and organizational and personal factors can positively or negatively …

Spatial Competition In Airport Markets: An Application Of The Huff Model, Joel Heilman

Dissertations and Theses @ UNI

Airports typically attract travelers from the immediate vicinity, but travelers may be willing to travel farther for better fares and more frequent flights. This study attempts to map the spatial variation of airport catchment areas using the Huff model. This model, originally designed to analyze retail store competition, can be applied to many forms of spatial competition, but it is a relatively unexplored approach in the context of airports. Unlike other air transportation travel choice models, it emphasizes spatial variation in market share and provides spatial representation in the form of a map. It is used in this study to …

Factors Influencing Wood Turtle (Glyptemys Insculpta) Home Range Size In Iowa: A Comparison Between Suburban And Rural Populations, Joshua Gregory Otten

Dissertations and Theses @ UNI

Home range size, movement patterns, and site fidelity of wood turtles (Glyptemys insculpta) were compared between a suburban population in Black Hawk County (BH) and a rural population in Butler County (BC), Iowa. Approximately 89% of individuals captured for studies conducted in Iowa during 2014 and 2015 were >14 years old. 45 individuals (22 females, 18 males, and 5 juveniles) were used for radio telemetry surveys in 2014–2015, 24 of which were located in BC, and 21 at BH.

Home range size of male and female wood turtles was significantly different at the 100% Minimum Convex Polygon (MCP), …

Analyzing Rana Plaza Crisis Discourse From A Postcolonial Perspective: Implications For Identity And Crisis Communication Studies, Mir Ashfaquzzaman

Dissertations and Theses @ UNI

An inherently managerial commitment, functionalist/positivist theoretical orientation, and Western/U.S. bias characterize the dominant stream of crisis communication research and scholarship in the United States. These characteristics render analysis and assessment of crisis and crisis communication especially in nonWestern settings somewhat limited in scope and coverage. This limitation becomes all the more apparent when crisis is conceptualized as a social phenomenon, not merely an organizational one. Such conceptualization decenters the organization as the sole source of power to initiate crisis response and management, foregrounds the discursive terrain related to a crisis whereby multiple sources compete with their respective realities about the …

Using Blended Learning To Improve Undergraduate Introduction To Literature Courses: A Mixed Methods Approach, Julie Leigh Klein

Dissertations and Theses @ UNI

Blended learning is being used more and more in higher education. However, for humanities and other loosely content structured areas, blended learning can be challenging. It has generally been reserved for subject areas such as computer programing, mathematics, business, science, and statistics--courses where competence is commonly assessed by administering work on which performance is either right or wrong. Furthermore, agreement has not yet been reached on how to best incorporate the face-to-face and online teaching resources. This study examines one approach of implementing web-based instruction to improve undergraduate Introduction to Literature courses at a midsized Midwestern university.

This study was …

Smartphone Based Ubiquitous Sensing Platform Leveraging Audio Jack For Power And Communication, Ranjana Joshi

Dissertations and Theses @ UNI

With the popularization of smartphones, various smartphone centric ubiquitous sensing applications, which use a smartphone in conjunction with external sensors for data acquisition, processing, display, communication, and storage, have emerged. Because smartphones do not have a universal data interfaces, many ubiquitous sensing applications use the earphone and the microphone channels of the 3.5mm audio interface for data communications so that they can work with various types of smartphones. The earphone channels of the 3.5mm audio interface can only send AC signal out of a smartphone, hence DC power needs to be harvested from the earphone channels.

In this research, based …

A Qualitative Comparison Of General Chemistry And Advanced Placement Chemistry Students' Misconceptions Regarding Solution Chemistry, Megan J. Vandersee

Dissertations and Theses @ UNI

This study focused on identifying misconceptions which high school AP and collegiate general chemistry students hold with regards to solution chemistry topics and comparing the misconceptions held by each student group. Previous research has found that misconceptions can greatly impact students’ understanding of material and have a negative impact on student learning. However, not all solution chemistry topics had been explored in previous research. In addition, it has been suggested that collegiate students have reached a higher level of cognitive development as they are older and more advanced in their studies. If this is the case, one could assume that …

Anthropocentrism, The Other Face Of Patriarchy: An Investigation Into Patriarchal Attitudes And Perceptions Of Non-Human Nature, Alexis St. Claire

Dissertations and Theses @ UNI

Attitudes about gender and ethnicity are a critical dimension for understanding how human behaviors impact the climate. Plumwood (1997) argued that conceptually humans relate to the environment is ideologically connected to the way dominant and oppressed groups interact. Past research has found that exposure to nature decreased negative body image and other mental health issues that are connected to oppressive ideologies (Gidlow et al., 2016; Goldenberg & Soule, 2015; Holloway et al., 2014). The current study explicitly tested the link between patriarchal attitudes and connectedness to nature among a student group. It was found that higher levels of patriarchal attitudes …

Cops And Pleas: Police Officers' Influence On Plea Bargaining, Jonathan Abel

Faculty Scholarship

Police officers play an important, though little-understood, role in plea bargaining. This Essay examines the many ways in which prosecutors and police officers consult, collaborate, and clash with each other over plea bargaining. Using original interviews with criminal justice officials from around the country, this Essay explores the mechanisms of police involvement in plea negotiations and the implications of this involvement for both plea bargaining and policing. Ultimately, police influence in the arena of plea bargaining -long thought the exclusive domain of prosecutors -calls into question basic assumptions about who controls the prosecution team.

"Hail Mary, Full Of Haze": Physicalism And The Knowledge Argument, Jesse R. Powell

Honors College Theses

This project aims to provide a clear and compelling reason for rejecting dualism with respect to the mind, by undermining the support dualist positions receive from so-called knowledge arguments. In particular, I will show the error present in the many forms of what is variously called the “Mary’s Room” or “Mary the Brilliant Color Scientist” thought experiment.

The Effect Of Stretching The Gastrocnemius On Electromechanical Delay And Decreased Muscle Power Production, Kolyse E. Wagstaff

Honors College Theses

Previous studies in the field of biomechanics have determined that statically stretching muscles before explosive athletic events decreases muscle power production during performance. However, current research does not explain why muscle power production is lessened due to static stretching. Electromechanical delay (EMD) is the delay between muscle stimulation and force, and the purpose of this research is to determine if the decrease in muscle force production is due to a lengthened EMD of the muscle, potentially caused by static stretching. To test this, participants jumped on force plates and jump power produced by the gastrocnemius was calculated, with stretching and …

Individual Domestic Terrorism: An Analysis Of The Motivations And Radicalization Of Terrorism In The United States, Tony Hudson Jr.

Honors College Theses

Individual terrorist events have increased in the United States. What are the motivations behind these attacks and what led these individuals to participate in this form of political violence? In this paper, I provide a case study analysis of four domestic terrorist attacks in the United States that have been executed by individual perpetrators. I combine rational choice, sociological, and psychological theories in order to show a similar path of radicalization taken by each of the terrorists involved in these attacks. I build upon previous research on the importance of studying terrorism from an individual- analysis perspective.

Effects Of Mortality Salience On Anti- Atheist Prejudice: A Terror Management Perspective, Cassidy J. Keim

Honors College Theses

Terror Management Theory argues that mortality salience is an important motivator in how people behave throughout their lives, and can influence how prejudiced individuals become. In this study we triggered participants’ mortality salience to test this claim, as well as measured the attitudes of prejudice have for atheists compared to homosexuals to see if they differ. Mortality salience did not have an effect on prejudice in this experiment, but anti-atheist prejudice was significantly higher than anti-homosexual prejudice. Although these findings are small, they confirm a need for continued research on prejudice against religious minorities, such as atheists, and how to …

Marginalized To Mainstream: A Study Into Emerging Industry Under Stigma, Brandon K. Lee

Honors College Theses

This explorative study attempts to identify norms and practices of new businesses within the emerging industry of recreational cannabis retailers; specifically in the context of their entrepreneurial characteristics, start-up behaviors, and firm behaviors and strategies (Duchesneau & Gartner, 1990). Due to the nature of emerging industries, there are many opportunities for firms to create a successful position in a new market. However, firms in emerging industries face an innate “liability of newness”, increasing the challenge and risk of new venture creation (Stinchcombe, 1965). This risk and stigma is increased when the industry lacks legitimacy in the eyes of consumers and …