Digital Commons Network^™

Improving Psychological Well-Being Of Young Adults By Conducting Family History Research At A Religious University, Barry M. Lunt, Kelly R. Summers, David A. Wood

Faculty Publications

Prior research suggests that knowledge of one’s family is correlated with, but does not produce, psychological well-being. We test this conjecture, by examining whether participating in family history research (i.e., genealogical research) is associated with psychological well-being above and beyond the effects of knowledge of one’s family, documented in prior research. To test this, we examine whether students enrolled in a university level family history course, improve in family identification, self-esteem, anxiety, resilience, and locus of control more than a control sample. For students enrolled in the family history course, we find an increase in family identification, which in turn …

A Preliminary Investigation Of A Brief Tier 1 Classroom Management Measure, Allison F. Gilmour, Joseph H. Wehby, Jessica Boyle, Howard P. Wills, Paul Caldarella

Faculty Publications

Multitiered systems for supporting students’ behavior in schools rely on teachers using generally effective classroom management strategies, such as Tier 1 practices. However, few tools exist to easily assess classwide Tier 1 practices. In this brief report, we describe one potential tool, the Classroom Atmosphere Rating Scale–Brief (CARS-B) and assess the properties of the tool using item response theory and multilevel models. We found that most items on the CARS-B had acceptable discriminations and difficulty estimates. Teachers’ CARS-B latent scores were positively associated with student group on-task. We discuss potential changes to the CARS-B and its use in research and …

Auditing With Data And Analytics: External Reviewers’ Judgments Of Audit Quality And Effort, Scott A. Emett, Steven E. Kaplan, Elaine G. Mauldin, Jeffrey Pickerd

Faculty Publications

Audit firms hesitate to take full advantage of data and analytics (D&A) audit approaches because they lack certainty about how external reviewers evaluate those approaches. We propose that external reviewers use an effort heuristic when evaluating audit quality, judging less effortful audit procedures as lower quality, which could shape how external reviewers evaluate D&A audit procedures. We conduct two experiments in which experienced external reviewers evaluate one set of audit procedures (D&A or traditional) within an engagement review, while holding constant the procedures’ level of assurance. Our first experiment provides evidence that external reviewers rely on an effort heuristic when …

The Icfr Process: Perspectives Of Accounting Executives At Large Public Companies, Eldar Maksymov, Jeffrey Pickerd, T. Jeffrey Wilks, Devin Williams

Faculty Publications

The Sarbanes-Oxley Act charges management with the primary responsibility for internal control over financial reporting (ICFR). However, prior research tells us little about the ICFR process from management’s perspective. We develop a theoretical model of the ICFR process from management’s perspective and examine that model by surveying 145 and interviewing 35 accounting executives at large US public companies. Our primary finding is that executives feel constrained in their ability to direct ICFR and hold perspectives that reflect these constraints. Specifically, most executives feel compelled by auditors to follow the PCAOB’s preferences even though executives believe these preferences often tend to …

Managers’ Use Of Humor On Public Earnings Conference Calls, Andrew C. Call, Rachel W> Flam, Joshua A. Lee, Nathan Y. Sharp

Faculty Publications

Despite the prevalence and importance of humor in interpersonal communication, the disclosure literature is silent on the use of humor in the context of corporate communication. Using a sophisticated machine learning algorithm, we identify managers’ successful uses of humor during public earnings conference calls. When managers use humor on an earnings call, stock market returns and analyst forecast revisions following the call are more positive, primarily because of a muted response to negative earnings news. Consistent with managers’ successful use of humor being a favorable signal of future firm performance, we find no evidence of a return reversal over the …

Does Gender And Ethnic Diversity Among Audit Partners Influence Office-Level Audit Personnel Retention And Audit Quality?, Eric R. Condie, Ling Lei Lisic, Timothy Seidel, J. Mike Truelson, Aleksandra "Ally" B. Zimmerman

Faculty Publications

Motivated by prior literature on organizational identification and 23 semistructured interviews with a variety of U.S. audit partners and directors, we examine whether the gender and ethnic diversity of an office’s audit partners influences the retention of the office’s audit professionals and the quality of the audits conducted by the office. Using hand-collected data on U.S. audit partners, we find that greater levels of (or changes in) diversity in office audit partners’ gender and ethnicity are associated with lower (reduced) turnover among office audit professionals and higher (increased) office-level audit quality. To provide further insight into the audit quality results, …

Reduced Audit Quality Acts: A Review And Organizational Model, Troy A. Hyatt, Douglas F. Prawitt, Kyle M. Stubbs

Faculty Publications

With increasing regulatory focus on improving audit quality, research on drivers of audit quality remains important to academics, professionals and regulators. One compelling branch of this research focuses on auditors' intentional actions that reduce audit quality, often referred to in the literature as reduced audit quality acts (RAQAs). This paper provides a review and synthesis of the RAQA literature, including a unifying definition for RAQAs and a model for organizing past and future RAQA research. With the model, we explore antecedents to RAQAs as well as the discovery of, responses to and subsequent consequences of RAQAs. We also discuss potential …

Current Issues Faced By Controllers, Anthony C. Bucaro, T. Jeffrey Wilks, Christopher Yust

Faculty Publications

We conduct a series of semi-structured interviews with controllers and chief accounting officers from large public and private companies—over half are Fortune 500—to identify the current issues faced by the controllership function. We map these issues into the Institute of Management Accountants (IMA®) Management Accounting Competencies and highlight recent research that addresses these issues and where there are gaps. Our findings suggest three IMA competencies that weigh heavily on controllers’ minds: (1) collaboration, teamwork, and relationship management; (2) information systems and technology; and (3) talent management. Finally, we describe how the insights from controllers suggest important improvements to accounting curriculum …

Automatic Enrollment With A 12 Percent Default Contribution Rate, Josh Beshears, Ruofei Guo, David Laibson, Brigitte C. Madrian, James J. Choi

Faculty Publications

We study a retirement savings plan with a default contribution rate of 12 percent of income, which is much higher than previously studied defaults. Twenty-five percent of employees had not opted out of this default 12 months after hire; a literature review finds that the corresponding fraction in plans with lower defaults is approximately one-half. Because only contributions above 12 percent were matched by the employer, 12 percent was likely to be a suboptimal contribution rate for employees. Employees who remained at the 12 percent default contribution rate had average income that was approximately one-third lower than would be predicted …

Speed-Accuracy Tradeoffs In Decision Making: Perception Shifts And Goal Activation Bias Decision Thresholds, Jeff Larson, Guy Hawkins

Faculty Publications

A fundamental aspect of decision making is the speed-accuracy tradeoff (SAT): slower decisions tend to be more accurate, but because time is a scarce resource people prefer to conclude decisions more quickly. The current research adds to the SAT literature by documenting two previously unrecognized influences on the SAT: perception shifts and goal activation. Decision makers’ perceptions of what constitutes a fast or a slow decision, and what constitutes an accurate or inaccurate decision, are based on prior experience, and these perceptions influence decision speed. Similarly, previous experience in a decision context associates the context with a particular decision goal. …

Typing Fast Versus Typing Slow: Using Typing Dynamics To Reveal Authentic And Imposter Users, David Kim, Joseph S. Valacich, Jeffrey L. Jenkins, Manasvi Kumar

Faculty Publications

Real-time assessment of users' cognitive states has practical importance, allowing organizations to infer user behaviors. Realizing its importance, prior studies – specifically those using mouse cursor movements – have applied various theories to answer a similar question, i.e., how does a high cognitive load influence the users' device usage behavior? While numerous activities can increase cognitive load, we argue that the mechanisms behind how humans process information can more holistically be explained using Dual Process Theory (DPT) (i.e., when cognitive load is either low or high) and can be applied under a broad range of usage contexts. Using a within-participant …

An Angry Face And A Guilty Conscience: The Intrapersonal Effects Of Fake Anger In Negotiation, David Hunsaker, Teng Zhang, Mckenzie Rees

Faculty Publications

Research on anger in negotiation suggests that expressing anger can have detrimental effects on the relationship between the parties but may also improve the expresser’s economic outcomes, resulting in the use of fake anger (i.e., anger that is expressed but not felt) as a negotiation strategy. Based on research on moral emotions, we argue that fake anger in negotiation will lead to expressers’ guilt, which in turn negatively impacts their self-perception and their overall subjective experience of the negotiation. Across three studies (two online and one face-to-face), we consistently demonstrate that fake anger lowers negotiators’ feelings about themselves as well …

Are We Essential, Or Sacrificial? The Effects Of Felt Public Gratitude On Essential Worker Recovery Activities During Covid-19, Hee Young Kim, Sijun Kim, Taeya M. Howell, Sarah P. Doyle, Nathan C. Pettit, Michael Bizzarro

Faculty Publications

COVID-19 has been characterized by unprecedented levels of public gratitude to some, but not all, essential workers. In this research, we integrate insights from the stigmatized occupations and gratitude literature to build theory on the positive and negative relationships between such displays of public gratitude and essential workers’ recovery activities. We argue that felt public gratitude positively relates to adaptive recovery activities (e.g., exercise) and negatively relates to maladaptive recovery activities (e.g., overdrinking). We further explain how felt public gratitude impacts (mal)adaptive recovery activities through (a) felt invisibility and (b) negative/positive affect. We find support for our predictions in a …

Evaluation Of An Educational Program For People With Dementia And Their Caregivers, Beverly O'Connell, Manonita Ghosh, Melissa Dunham, Aisling Smyth

Research outputs 2022 to 2026

Objectives: This study evaluated the impact of a 5-week educational and supportive program for people newly diagnosed with dementia and their caregivers. Methods: The study involved a pretest–posttest survey followed by interviews. Wilcoxon signed-rank test was conducted to determine postprogram changes. Kruskal–Wallis tests measured variation in responses between the people with dementia and their caregivers. Interviews were analysed using the NVivo software identifying themes against the program objectives of improving knowledge on dementia, coping strategies, communication and support services for people with dementia and their caregivers. Results: Fifty-three dyads (n = 106) completed the survey. There were significant improvements in …

Needing More, Needing Less: Unravelling Why A Prompt Dependency Cycle Forms In Neurodiverse Relationships, Bronwyn Maree Wilson, Susan Main, John O’Rourke, Eileen Slater

Research outputs 2022 to 2026

Social interaction is a fundamental component of relationships; however, the key features of Autism Spectrum Disorder (ASD) include marked and lifelong impairments in social interaction that adversely affects abilities to fulfil this essential relationship requirement. Despite the momentum of worldwide research on ASD, there is insufficient empirical study on adults with ASD and their relationships. This research examined the reported social interaction needs of adults when involved in neurodiverse relationships (relationships that include adults with ASD and neurotypical (NT) adults). The use of an advocacy/participatory approach allowed for a detailed investigation of the characteristics of participants’ interpersonal communication. It was …

Perceived Nexus Between Non-Invigilated Summative Assessment And Mental Health Difficulties: A Cross Sectional Studies, Amanda Graf, Esther Adama, Ebenezer Afrifa-Yamoah, Kwadwo Adusei-Asante

Research outputs 2022 to 2026

The COVID-19 pandemic rapidly led to changes in the mode of teaching, learning and assessments in most tertiary institutions worldwide. Notably, non-invigilated summative assessments became predominant. These changes heightened anxiety and depression, especially among individuals with less resilient coping mechanism. We explored the perceptions and experiences of mental health difficulties of students in tertiary education regarding non-invigilated alternative assessments in comparison to invigilated assessments. A pragmatic, mixed method cross sectional design was conducted online via Qualtrics. Thematic analysis of text was carried out using NVivo 12. In the quantitative analysis, univariable and multivariable ordinal logistic models were used to examine …

The Benefits To Bone Health In Children And Pre-School Children With Additional Exercise Interventions: A Systematic Review And Meta-Analysis, Callum Mccaskie, Aris Siafarikas, Jodie Cochrane Wilkie, Vanessa Sutton, Paola Chivers, Nicolas H. Hart, Myles C. Murphy

Research outputs 2022 to 2026

Objective: Determine if exercise interventions, beyond what is already provided to children and preschool children, improve bone health and reduce fracture incidence. Design: Systematic review and meta-analysis reported using the PRISMA guidelines. Certainty of evidence was assessed using GRADE recommendations. Data sources: Five electronic databases were searched for records: PUBMED; CINAHL; CENTRAL; SPORTDiscus; Web of Science. Eligibility criteria for selecting studies: Randomised, quasi-randomised and non-randomised controlled trials (including cluster-randomised) assessing the impact of additional exercise interventions (e.g., increased physical education classes or specific jumping programs) on bone health in children (6 – 12 years) and pre-school children (2 – 5 …

Summary Of Alcohol And Drug Treatment For Aboriginal And Torres Strait Islander Peoples, Australian Indigenous Healthinfonet

Research outputs 2022 to 2026

This summary is based on the Review of alcohol and drug treatment for Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples. It provides an overview of the available evidence for treatment approaches to help a person reduce or stop substance use. These are treatments for when a person has evidence of either hazardous use or problem alcohol and other drug (AOD) use (see Box 1 for terms used). Some approaches to address substance use are not included in this summary (e.g. for tobacco cessation or volatile substance use). This summary presents information on:

• the available research and other evidence that underpins …

The Experiences Of Uncertainty Amongst Musculoskeletal Physiotherapists In First Contact Practitioner Roles Within Primary Care, Simon Ingram, Robert Stenner, Sue May

School of Health Professions

Aim: The aim of this research was to explore the experiences of uncertainty amongst Musculoskeletal First Contact Practitioners working in primary care.Background: The Musculoskeletal First Contact Practitioner role involves advanced physiotherapists providing an alternative to the GP by acting as first point of contact for people presenting to primary care with musculoskeletal conditions. Limited research into the role exists but the first-contact aspect, clinical complexity and time pressures are deemed to contribute to uncertainty within the role.Method: A qualitative research design was undertaken using a hermeneutic interpretative phenomenological approach. Data was collected using semi-structured interviews with subsequent thematic analysis of …

Efficacy And Acceptability Of Mobilisation And Stretches Of The Foot And Ankle In People With Diabetic Peripheral Neuropathy, Vasileios Lepesis

School of Health Professions Theses

People with diabetic peripheral neuropathy and limited joint mobility syndrome (LJMS) can experience increased forefoot peak plantar pressures (PPPs). Elevated PPPs are a risk factor for diabetic neuropathic foot ulceration. Diabetic peripheral neuropathy can also affect balance and increase the risk of falling. This thesis investigated the efficacy and acceptability of foot and ankle mobilisations combined with home stretches in people living at risk of neuropathic diabetic foot ulceration and falling. A systematic review and meta-analysis examined the effects of foot and ankle physical therapy modalities for the management of foot and ankle joint mobility, PPPs, and balance. The review …

Covid-19 And The Physio4fmd Trial: Impact, Mitigating Strategies And Analysis Plans, Louise Marston, Novere M Le, Federico Ricciardi, Irwin Nazareth, Alan Carson, Mark Edwards, Laura H. Goldstein, Jonathan Marsden, Hayley Noble, Markus Reuber, Jon Stone, Rachael M. Hunter, Glenn Nielsen

School of Health Professions

Introduction Functional motor disorder (FMD) is a common cause of disabling neurological symptoms such as weakness and tremor. Physio4FMD is a pragmatic, multicentre single blind randomised controlled trial to evaluate effectiveness and cost effectiveness of specialist physiotherapy for FMD. Like many other studies this trial was affected by the COVID-19 pandemic. Methods The planned statistical and health economics analyses for this trial are described, as well as the sensitivity analyses designed to assess the disruption caused by COVID-19. The trial treatment of at least 89 participants (33%) was disrupted due to the pandemic. To account for this, we have extended …

Anticipatory Reward Dysfunction In Alcohol Dependence: An Electroencephalography Monetary Incentive Delay Task Study, Mica Komarnyckyj, Chris Retzler, Robert Whelan, Oliver Young, Elsa Fouragnan, Anna Murphy

School of Psychology

A wealth of functional magnetic resonance imaging monetary incentive delay task (MIDT) research has shown alcohol dependency is associated with a hypoactive striatal response during gain anticipation (gain > neutral) and loss anticipation (loss > neutral). Electroencephalography (EEG) holds clinical advantages over fMRI (high temporal resolution, low cost, portable) however its use to study reward processing in alcohol dependence is limited. We aimed to carry out the first EEG MIDT (eMIDT) study in alcohol dependence. 21 abstinent alcohol dependent individuals and 26 controls performed an MIDT while neural activity was recorded using 64-channel EEG. Trial averaged event-related potentials (ERPs) and single-trial machine …

Does Variability In Recognition Memory Scale With Mean Memory Strength Or Encoding Variability In The Uvsd Model?, Rory W. Spanton, Christopher J. Berry

School of Psychology

The unequal variance signal detection (UVSD) model of recognition memory assumes that the variance of old item memory strength (σo) is typically greater than that of new items. It has been suggested that this old item variance effect can be explained by the encoding variability hypothesis. However, Spanton and Berry (2020) failed to find evidence for this account, suggesting that σo may simply scale with mean memory strength ( d) in the UVSD model. Experiments 1 and 2 examined the effects of encoding variability and strength scaling on old item variance by creating conditions in which mean memory strength and …

Digital Deception And The Illusion Of Choice: How Dark Patterns Undermine Informed Consent Gdpr, Wajeeha Khan

Computer Science

Our investigation builds on prior research to examine global e-commerce data privacy, focusing on compliance with GDPR and CCPA laws introduced in 2018 and 2020. This study reveals uneven adherence to GDPR and CCPA regulations across e-commerce platforms, underscoring the persistent use of dark patterns. UK and French sites lead in GDPR compliance at 85% and 80%, while U.S. sites showed 65% adherence to CCPA. Turkish websites displayed a surprising 85% - 95% compliance with European standards. In contrast, South African platforms showed a low 30% compliance, often utilizing implicit consent methods. These findings expose significant gaps and inconsistencies in …

Standardised Data Collection From People With Dementia Over The Telephone: A Qualitative Study Of The Experience Of Determind Programme Researchers In A Pandemic, Kate Gridley, Josie Dixon, Ben Hicks, Yvonne Birks, Kate Baxter, Eleanor Miles, Louise Robinson, Rotem Perach, Sube Banerjee

More Faculty of Health Research

There is a notable lack of evidence on what constitutes good practice in remote quantitative data collection from research participants with dementia. During the COVID-19 pandemic face-to-face research became problematic, especially where participants were older and more at risk of infection. The DETERMIND-C19 study, a large cohort study of people with dementia, switched to telephone data collection over this period. This paper explores the experiences of researchers who collected quantitative data over the telephone from people with dementia during the first COVID-19 lockdowns in England. The aim was to learn from these experiences, share insights and inform future research practice …

Meaningful Youth Work Careers: Assumptions, Misconceptions, And Realities, John Sutcliffe, Trudi Cooper

Research outputs 2022 to 2026

The existing literature pertaining to youth work as a career is sparse, limited, and outdated, with the literature that does exist representing a largely negative image of youth work as a career. What then of those who have had a long-term career in youth work? The authors use a recent phenomenological research study to question assumptions and identify misconceptions about youth work as a career, and to discuss the findings from this research to provide a more realistic and contemporary understanding of long-term youth work careers. The phenomenological study discussed in this paper interviewed ten degree-qualified youth workers in Western …

Time-Out For Well-Being: A Mixed Methods Evaluation Of Attitudes And Likelihood To Engage In Different Types Of Online Emotional Well-Being Programmes In The Perinatal Period, Jacqueline A. Davis, Amy L. Finlay-Jones, Natasha Bear, Susan L. Prescott, Desiree T. Silva, Jeneva L. Ohan

Research outputs 2022 to 2026

Background: Positive maternal mental health during the perinatal period contributes to general well-being and positive emotional bonds with the child, encouraging an optimal developmental trajectory. Online interventions to enhance maternal well-being and develop coping skills, such as meditation-based interventions, can be a low-cost way to improve mother and child outcomes. However, this depends on end-user engagement. To date, there is limited evidence about women’s willingness to engage and preferences for online programmes. Objectives: This study explored pregnant women’s attitudes towards and likelihood to undertake minimal online well-being training programmes (mindfulness, self-compassion, or general relaxation), engagement barriers and enablers, and programme …

Public Mental Health During And After The Sars-Cov-2 Pandemic: Opportunities For Intervention, Melissa M Karnaze, Brent M Kious, Lindsay Z Feuerman, Sarah Classen, Jill O Robinson, Cinnamon S Bloss, Amy L Mcguire

Center for Medical Ethics and Health Policy Staff Publications

Importance: During the pandemic, the number of United States adults reporting clinically significant symptoms of anxiety and depression sky-rocketed, up from 11% in 2020 to more than 40% in 2021. Our current mental healthcare system cannot adequately accommodate the current crisis; it is therefore important to identify opportunities for public mental health interventions.

Objective: Assess whether modifiable emotional factors may offer a point of intervention for the mental health crisis.

Design setting and participants: From January 13 to 15, 2022, adults living in the United States were recruited via Amazon Mechanical Turk to complete an anonymous survey.

Main outcomes and …

How Do Higher Education Administrators And Leaders Perceive Academic Persistence And Achievement Of Afro Caribbean Immigrant Students?, Rory T. Richards

Publications and Research

This research looked at Higher Education Leaders’ Perceptions of Persistence and Achievement of Afro Caribbean Immigrant Students. The research was qualitative and took a phenomenological, narrative approach. Sixteen administrators, across three campuses, one private for-profit and two public nonprofits were interviewed. The participants consisted of one President, one Senior Vice President, three Vice Presidents, one Assistant Vice President, three Deans, two Assistant Deans, two Directors, one Department Chair, and one Special Assistant to the President. The participants were also multiethnic, comprising eight Black leaders, five white leaders, two Latino leaders, and one Asian leader. The research found that leaders at …

Neuroanatomical Correlates Of The Late Positive Potential In Youth With Pediatric Bipolar Disorder, Alessio Simonetti, Marijn Lijffijt, Sherin Kurian, Johanna Saxena, Delfina Janiri, Marianna Mazza, Giulio Carriero, Lorenzo Moccia, Benson Mwangi, Alan C Swann, Jair C Soares

Faculty, Staff and Student Publications

BACKGROUND: The late positive potential (LPP) could be a marker of emotion dysregulation in youth with pediatric bipolar disorder (PBD). However, the neuroanatomical correlates of the LPP are still not clarified.

OBJECTIVE: To provide cortical and deep gray matter correlates of the LPP in youth, specifically, youth with PBD.

METHODS: Twenty-four 7 to 17 years-old children with PBD and 28 healthy controls (HC) underwent cortical thickness and deep gray matter volumes measurements through magnetic resonance imaging and LPP measurement elicited by passively viewing emotional faces through electroencephalography. T-tests compared group differences in LPP, cortical thickness, and deep gray matter volumes. …