Digital Commons Network^™

Substitution Of Religiosity For Socioeconomic Status And Its Correlation With Adolescent Drug Use, Jordan Coburn, Mikaela Dufur

FHSS Mentored Research Conference

Adolescents with higher socioeconomic status participate in fewer negative activities. Religiosity is correlated with more positive activities. Religiosity can help through socialization: interacting with people who influence pro-social norms.

Family Educational Backgrounds Variations In Student Attitudes And Experiences Using The Sharps Utah Data, 2015, Mandy Chidester

FHSS Mentored Research Conference

This research analyzed 150 variables within the SHARPS 2015 data to find the majority of differences that are coming between those grade school students who live with adults who have an education level of high school or less compared to the those who live with an adult who has completed college. The analyzed variables showed three main themes of major differences: monitoring of the student’s actions, neighborhood the student lives in, and student’s perception of drug risk. Also included is those variables who showed significant differences, but did not fall into any particular category. This categories show us areas of …

Comparison Of Lifestyles Between Married And Unmarried Emerging Adults, Braden Wake, Jessica Hadfield, Makenzie Lewis, Toree Hafen

FHSS Mentored Research Conference

Emerging adulthood contains many lifestyle changes such as leaving the comfort of home, working full time, and for some, getting married (Arnett, 2012). To unmarried emerging adults, marriage seems to be an important factor in the changing dynamics of friendship. Married friends seem to no longer attend social gatherings or participate in the same activities they once did. The question that this research team set out to answer is whether or not these observations actually exist or if they are imagined. This study examined areas of lifestyle, such as sociality, financial trends, personal priorities, stress, and religion for unmarried and …

Second Generation Immigrants: Their Self-Esteem And Educational Aspirations, Anika Price

FHSS Mentored Research Conference

Immigrants experience unique stresses & discrimination, which leads to lower levels of self-esteem. (Stets & Burke, 2003; Kao, 1999; Gee et al., 2010). Do Second-Generation Immigrants experience the same thing? If so, will that affect their educational expectations for the future?

Time For A Change: Continuous And Discontinuous Transformation In Highly Religious Families, Ashley Tuft

FHSS Mentored Research Conference

While change is a natural occurrence in marital and family relationships, there is an inadequate amount of literature that discusses how this “spontaneous” change occurs within families independent of professional intervention (Fincham, Stanley, & Beach, 2007). Religion is one instrument through which these changes are facilitated in families. We use life course, as explained in Elder (1994), as the theoretical framework for understanding religiously related transformation, focusing especially on the principles of timing, transitions, and turning points. While some research has used life course to understand religion, most of it does not discuss family-level change (Petts, 2009, 2014). The purpose …

Reconciliation In Religious Families, Betsy Hughes Barrow, David C. Dollahite, Loren D. Marks

FHSS Mentored Research Conference

How do religious families resolve conflict and heal relationships? Through an in-depth study of interviews with 198 highly religious families, we explored motivations, processes, and outcomes of reconciliation. Through this analysis we have identified spiritual, relational, personal and practical processes, in the context of everyday family life, that help families strengthen relationships and resolve differences.

Sex And Money: Exploring How Sexual And Financial Stressors, Perceptions And Resources Influence Marital Instability For Men And Women, David B. Allsop, E. Jeffrey Hill, Ashley B. Lebaron, Roy A. Bean

FHSS Mentored Research Conference

This project explores how finances and sex relate to each other and to marital in-stability for men and women. Data come from the Flourishing Families Project (N = 301 couples) and are organized using the ABC-X model of family stress. Financial stress predicted sexual dissatisfaction for men but not for women. Parenting stress predicted sexual dissatisfaction for women but not for men. Financial dissatisfaction and sexual dissatisfaction predicated marital instability for both men and women. Financial and relational communication fully mediated all significant relationships with marital instability except in the mediational model, couple income still predicted marital instability for men.

Exercise After Retirement: The Secret To Productive Aging, Taradita Subiantoro, Erin Kaseda, Tyler C. Graff, Kristina Hall, Maren Wright Voss, Jerry Bounsanga, Lori L. Wadsworth, Man Hung, Wendy C. Birmingham

FHSS Mentored Research Conference

In this study, we interviewed and surveyed participants and attendees of the Huntsman Senior World Games in order to determine factors associated with successful aging post retirement on older adults who are highly active compared to average older adults in physical and psychological well-being.

"Do You Kiss Your Mother With That Mouth?": Profanity In Popular Pg-13 Movies, Jason Eldredge, Stephen M. Trotter, Kirt Haynie, Melissa Littlefield

FHSS Mentored Research Conference

Exposure to profanity in the media is a concern shared by many. Profanity is often portrayed as humorous and/or innocent. A content analysis of popular PG-13 movies from the 1990s to the present shows the use of profanity is regularly portrayed as having no consequence. The overall amount of profanity in PG-13 movies has decreased since the 1990s.

Women's Autonomy And Hypertension, Benjamin J. Fife

FHSS Mentored Research Conference

Based on a nationally representative sample of women in the Dominican Republic, I examine how the amount of autonomy predicts the development of hypertension. Using logistic regression techniques for a sample of 4,869 women, I find that in the presence of demographic controls autonomy does not significantly predict the diagnosis of hypertension. In the case of women in the Dominican Republic, older age, higher weight, lower wealth, urban living and distance to a healthcare facility are better predictors of hypertension.

Do All Blacks & African Americans Have The Same Outcome?, Amelia F. Belchior

FHSS Mentored Research Conference

Do blacks and African Americans have the same outcome in terms of self-esteem, GPA, and SEC? Those who are aware of black history and understand the civil rights movement have higher self-esteem. Those blacks who accept their skin color and apply the self-fulling prophesy of what black is know to be, they have higher self-esteem as well. Black immigrants are more likely to accept their skin color and not associate blackness with living in the ghetto, being good at playing sports and dancing; they are more likely to have have self-esteem than native born African-Americans.

Explaining Demographic Differences In Marital Quality: The Role Of Mental And Physical Health, Kara Henderson, Jessica Harris, Spencer Young, Spencer James

FHSS Mentored Research Conference

A vast body of literature has measured the demographic differences in marital quality. According to literature on marriage, the poorly educated, females, racial ethnic minorities, and premarital cohabitors report less marital satisfaction. The main focus and goal of our study is to link the various demographic differences with poor marital quality. Much of the research on marital quality has found a link between physical health and marital outcomes. The current research neglects the other factors of mental and physical health are related to marital satisfaction and conflict. We want to observe how mental and physical health may serve as mediators …

Popular Music: Sexually Saturated? A Content Analysis Of Sexual References In Popular Music, Meghan Terry, Mariah Ramage, Crystal Gardner, Jessica Van Alfen, Emilee Gregson

FHSS Mentored Research Conference

Adolescents and young adults listen to 2-3 hours of music per day. The sexual content of that music is important to identify formation and how they perceive sex and relationships, and genre of music can influence lyrics. This paper analyzes the effect that genre has on both presence and attitude of sexual references in popular music. The sample consisted of 200 of the best-selling songs on iTunes. Results suggest a significant relationship between both genre and presence of sexual references and genre and attitudes toward sex. This study shows that sexual content is prevalent in popular music and could suggest …

Faroosh And Elina, Faroosh, Elina, Tsos

TSOS Interview Gallery

Faroosh was a cameraman for a private television program in Afghanistan working on a documentary about the Taliban. When he and his crew were discovered, the Taliban attacked them and he and his wife fled to Turkey, walking 12 hours to get there. Upon arrival the police arrested and harassed them. Turkey was not a safe place. After several suicide bombings in the area, they decided to move on to Greece, where they are in a refugee camp without any progress in their situation. They have no money to move forward and no ability to work and the economic situation …

Fawad And Zakeela, Fawad, Zakeela, Tsos

TSOS Interview Gallery

Fawad and his wife, Zakeela, have three children. Zakeela was a beautician, and Fawad was a singer in the Baghlan district in Afghanistan. The music he produced was not in accordance with the strict restrictions of the Taliban. They threatened his life and assaulted him many times, so he decided to leave with his family to Kabul. Fawad’s day job was as an FM radio producer; at night, he moonlighted as a singer and musician. He produced music for ceremonies and weddings, often performing for the women’s part, which the Taliban did not accept. Eventually, his life was again threatened, …

Ilhan, Nura, Radwa, Ziagull And Children, Ilhan, Tsos

TSOS Interview Gallery

Ilhan, his wife Nura, and their children resided near Kabul, in a region where both the Taliban and ISIS were active. As Shias, Ilhan’s family faced numerous menaces, including threats from ISIS that they would be beheaded if they did not display ISIS flags. Ilhan’s sister Radwa, who is deaf and mute, was forced to marry a regional leader. In addition to being threatened on religious grounds, Ilhan’s family was also threatened by an elder of their town. Out of desperation, Ilhan’s family sold their house appliances, escaped Afghanistan, and arrived at the …

The Segregating Effects Of The Social Construction Of Academic Quality, Maika M. Tuala

FHSS Mentored Research Conference

Brown v. Board concluded 60 years ago that “separate but equal” schools are “inherently unequal”. Yet, schools are more separate and unequal today than four decades ago. Take the district that I have been studying, for example. The north side has mostly affluent white students attending B+ schools while the south has 80 percent poor minorities in D+ Schools

Ironically, school segregation practices are none existent, and today, poor minority parents have more opportunities to choose schools for their children rather than attending low performing zoned schools. In fact, this district offers ideal opportunities for school choice. The parents in …

Adolescent Body Dissatisfaction And Emotional Distress, Marina Potter

FHSS Mentored Research Conference

Based on data from a nationally representative survey of adolescents in the U.S., this study examines the association between body dissatisfaction and emotional distress, mediated by family, peer, and school relationships. In a sample of 5,110 adolescent girls, I use least squares regression to estimate the models. I find satisfaction with family relationships, self-esteem, time with friends, peer victimization, and feelings about school to be associated with emotional distress. In addition, body dissatisfaction remains the strongest predictor of emotional distress, even when all other variables are held constant.

Seeing A More Complete Worker: Religiosity, Income, & Job Satisfaction, Rolf David Dixon Jr.

FHSS Mentored Research Conference

A central assumption to the study of individuals in work settings it to study only the those factors directly connect to the work context. The purpose of this study is to examine whether a more holistic approach to a generally very compartmentalized phenomena, such as job satisfaction, is in order. Using the 1979 National Longitudinal Survey of Youth data collected in 2000, I examine the effects of religious attendance frequency of job satisfaction under the hypothesis that religious attendance will have a statistically significant effect on job satisfaction and that that effect will be positive. The results show that there …

Connecting To Disconnect: Internet Access And Loss Of Trust In Pre-Arab Spring Egypt, Rolf David Dixon Jr.

FHSS Mentored Research Conference

Research has shown that seeking out and deliberating with like-minded individuals can contribute to the fragmentation and polarization of societies. The study posits that the internet can contributes to just such like-minded reinforcement, via a phenomenon called the echo chamber effect. An analysis of the World Values Survey of Egypt in 2001 supports the claim that the internet can contribute to fragmentation and polarization, as measured by a lack of trust. The analysis shows that access to the Internet, even as early as 2001, with the limited penetration it had in in Egypt at that time, still had a measurable, …

Sexual Desire Discrepancy: A Dyadic Longitudinal Study, Anthony A. Hughes, James Harper

FHSS Mentored Research Conference

Using questionnaires, self-report, and partner report of spouse, this five year longitudinal investigation examined the growth trajectory of the sexual desire discrepancy (SDD) of married partners within midlife, with insecure attachment at time 1 as a predictor. Findings showed that insecure attachment was a significant predictor of wives intercept but not for husbands. Insecure attachment wasn't a significant predictor of either partner's slope. As husbands SDD score changed, their growth across time had an inverse change. Husband slope and intercept had an inverse correlation. Wives intercept and husband intercept correlated or changed together. Wife slope and husband intercept had an …

Does Attachment To Parents Mediate The Relationship Between Marital Conflict And Child Self-Regulation, Lisa T. Hansen, James M. Harper, Jeremy Yorgason

FHSS Mentored Research Conference

This longitudinal study considers the effect of parent-child attachment on the self-regulation of children. Four hundred and forty-eight families from the Northwestern U.S. were surveyed as part of Brigham Young University's Flourishing Families Project. Each family studied included a child between the ages of 11 and 13. Couple conflict and the child's attachment to parents were assessed at time 1 and the child's self-regulation was assessed each year thereafter for three years. Higher couple conflict predicted lower attachment to father and to mother at time 1 with a greater negative effect for fathers. Higher scores on attachment to father predicted …

Television Media Consumption: Measuring Attitudinal Levels Towards Capital Punishment, Bryson D. Jones, Stephen J. Bahr

FHSS Mentored Research Conference

This study argues that the frequency of consumption and type of television media that one views is indicative of attitudinal formation on sensitive Political Science issues such as executing convicted murderers. In this setting, I investigate whether Americans who watch more television, and those who watch prime-time dramas or comedies or national or world news programs are more likely to support the death penalty. I hypothesize that such viewing habits increases ones likelihood for supporting punitive punishment like the death penalty because of the type of media messages they are exposed to such as violence, criminal dramas, law enforcement, and …

Does This Marriage Make Me Look Fat? Marital Quality As A Predictor Of Body Weight, Activity Level, And Eating Habits, Lori C. Schade, Jonathan Sandberg, Dean Busby

FHSS Mentored Research Conference

Survey data from married couples (N=374) was analyzed for effects of marital quality on weight as a problem in the marriage, activity level and eating habits. Results indicate that wife marital quality was positively associated with weight being a problem for wives, while husband marital quality was negatively associated with weight being a problem for both husbands and wives in the relationship. Wife marital quality was also positively associated with husband activity level, while husband marital quality was negatively associated with husband activity level. Implications of findings are discussed.

Sexual Satisfaction And Differentiation, Anthony A. Hughes, James Harper

FHSS Mentored Research Conference

Using questionnaires, self report, and partner report of spouse, this investigation examined the relationship between differentiation of self and sexual satisfaction of each partner for a sample size of 681. The data was collected from a large northwestern city and was part of the Flourishing Families Project. Actor and partner effects were both examined. Findings showed that both husbands and wives were impacted by both actor and partner effects of differentiation of self. The latent variable of differentiation of self measured the lack of differentiation, while the latent variable of sexual satisfaction measured the lack of sexual satisfaction within the …

Poverty Attributions And Attitudes Toward Government Spending, Laurel George, Leila N. Kempf, Kristie Phillips

FHSS Mentored Research Conference

The U.S. has the greatest economic inequality of any industrialized nation, and does the least to reduce this inequality (Dreier 2007). This inequality may reflect attitudes about the causes of poverty that may diminish willingness to support policy designed to alleviate its effects. Prior research has examined differences in attitudes toward the poor and those receiving welfare and about poverty beliefs, but not whether a relationship exist between these beliefs and opinions on Political Science. In order to investigate this explanation, we analyze data from the 1992 American National Election Survey (N=674) for a possible link between whether people attribute …

Who Wants To Be In America? A Generalized Linear Mixed Model To Predict Satisfaction With Life In The United States Among The Children Of Immigrants, Brian D. Harris, Joe Olsen

FHSS Mentored Research Conference

Stratification theory and various theories of immigrant integration suggest that it may be more important to measure integration outcomes among the children of immigrant than first-generation immigrants themselves. While many researchers use outcomes that can be measured directly such as income or educational attainment, more research is needed on the subjective interpretations of the children of immigrants. I use a multilevel generalized linear mixed model to predict satisfaction with the United States among the children of immigrants. Data come from the first two waves of the Children of Immigrants Longitudinal Study (CILS). Parents' citizenship status, students' citizenship status, previous experiences …

Using Media To Connect In Romantic Relationships: Effects On Attachment, Relationship Satisfaction And Stability, Lori C. Schade, Jonathan Sandberg, Roy Bean

FHSS Mentored Research Conference

This study was designed to explore in a path analysis how non-vocal and non-facial forms of media communication in emerging adults' romantic relationships might influence attachment, relationship satisfaction and relationship stability. For both males and females, using these forms of media to connect in their relationships seemed to be positively associated with attachment. Attachment was positively correlated with both relationship satisfaction and stability for both groups. Using media to communicate in a hurtful way was negatively related to satisfaction and stability. Differences between groups are presented and implications discussed.

Fathers Of Flourishing Families, Daniel H. Erickson, Randal D. Day

FHSS Mentored Research Conference

Researchers have found that father involvement is a critical part of healthy child development. Fathers’ perspectives and qualities greatly influence and affect children. Researchers’ findings tell us that father involvement is correlated to positive outcomes in children, including increased cognitive competence, increased empathy, less sex-stereotyped beliefs, a greater internal locus of control, and acting out less often. The purpose of this study is to advance the extant literature by showing how father involvement over time impacts child self-esteem, depression, perseverance, hope, and leadership in the lives of 500 teens.

Antecedents Of Paternal Involvement: Is It More Than Just Being There?, Heidi Harris, Nathan Jorgensen, Jessica Francis, Stacia Svedi

FHSS Mentored Research Conference

Our primary research question focuses on what predicts higher levels of father involvement. Previous research has only touched on the variables that influence a father's involvement and very few assess father involvement using a multiple factor definition of involvement and fewer still assess multiple predictors of involvement in one model. Using the Lamb-Pleck model (1987) father involvement was measured (see Marsiglio, Amato, Day, & Lamb, 2000; Hawkins et al., 2002) in three aspects: accessibility, engagement, and responsibility). In the current study, items measuring responsibility did not factor together in a way that allowed for further analysis and this element was …