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The Effects Of Collective Efficacy And Dissatisfaction With Law Enforcement On Neighborhood Crime Rates, Kelly E. Cobb

Sociology & Criminal Justice Theses & Dissertations

The purpose of this thesis was to examine the effects of collective efficacy and dissatisfaction with law enforcement on neighborhood crime rates. A data set was obtained from the Inter-University Consortium for Political and Social Research titled, Project on Human Development in Chicago Neighborhoods: Community Survey 1994-1995 (PHDCN). This is one of the only studies which ask specific questions concerning collective efficacy and dissatisfaction with law enforcement, accompanied with a large, diverse sample. This research is important because it looks at two concepts, collective efficacy and dissatisfaction with law enforcement and their combined effect on neighborhood crime rates; violent …

Psychometric Evaluation Of An Instrument For Assessing Policy Outcomes For Families With Children Who Have Severe Developmental Disabilities: The Beach Center Family Quality Of Life Scale, Joni Taylor Mcfelea

Health Services Research Dissertations

The purpose of the study was to evaluate the psychometric properties of the Beach Center Family Quality of Life Scale (BCFQLS) in a sample of families with children who have severe developmental disabilities. The study sought to determine whether or not the scale could be used to measure the quality of life of such families and to differentiate between the quality of life of two family groups—those whose child lives in the family home and those whose child lives outside the family home.

The study used an observational, cross-sectional design and both qualitative and quantitative methods. Self-identified primary caregivers of …

Intimate Partner Homicide, Karitta A. Page

Sociology & Criminal Justice Theses & Dissertations

Using data collected from the Chicago Women's Health Risk Study (Block 2000), this study looked at female perpetrated intimate partner homicide. The purpose of this study was to identify what factors, if any, differentiate between abused women who kill versus abused women who do not kill their intimate partners. Through conducting this study, several factors such as substance abuse, support networks and severe violence were compared between abused women who kill their intimate partner versus those who were abused women but did not kill. It was found that severe abuse, substance abuse by the abuser and the abused person were …

College Students' Concerns Regarding Prison Rape, Laura A. Rapp

Sociology & Criminal Justice Theses & Dissertations

Abstract unavailable.

Vital Tooth Whitening Effects On Oral Health-Related Quality Of Life In Older Adults, Ann Michelle Poindexter

Dental Hygiene Theses & Dissertations

This study determined if vital tooth whitening affects oral health-related quality of life (OHRQOL) in adults ≥50-years old, and if tooth whitening promotes individuals to seek regular professional dental care and participation in social activities. Using a two-group, single blind, randomized, pre-test-post-test design, 62 participants were enrolled. The experimental group used a whitening product twice daily for three weeks, while the control group used no whitening products. Tooth color satisfaction was assessed using the Tooth Color Satisfaction Scale and was correlated with overall oral health-related quality of life. The Oral Health Impact Profile (OHIP), used as the pre-test …

Down-Regulation Of Natural Killer Cell Activation In Response To Influenza Virus In Older Adults, Yu Jing

Theses and Dissertations in Biomedical Sciences

Immune senescence contributes to influenza-associated high mortality and morbidity and reduced vaccine efficacy in elderly people. Type I T cell (Thl)-mediated immunity plays a significant role in Immune responses to influenza infection and vaccination. Natural killer (NK) cells secrete significant amount of IFN-7 , a hallmark Thl cytokine, in response to influenza infection. How aging influences human NK cell IFN-7 production in response to influenza virus has not been well documented. In this study we employed human peripheral blood mononuclear cells (PBMC) and performed intracellular cytokine staining and flow cytometry primarily to investigate how aging influences NK cell activation with …

The Impact Of Privatization On Economic Growth And Income Inequality In Developing Countries, Samuel Adams

School of Public Service Theses & Dissertations

In the 1960s and 1970s academicians, economists and politicians favored state ownership over private ownership in the production and provision of goods and services. By the end of the 1980s, however, there was a reversal of public policy from state domination of the production and provision of goods and services to private ownership and operation. This was due in part to what the World Bank referred to as "state failure”, which was characterized by inefficient service delivery, unprofitable SOEs, high government debt, and stagnant economic growth rates. Accordingly, privatization caught on in many countries as a policy tool to foster …

The Bachelor Primetime Construction Of Romance, Fairy Tales, And Melodrama, Susan E. Beck

Institute for the Humanities Theses

This thesis is centered on the reality television program The Bachelor. Presenting itself as a modem day Cinderella story, The Bachelor speaks directly to women's fantasies and their familiarity with fairy tales. In the process, women are molded into convenient and stale stereotypes. Furthermore, the show uses melodrama to create suspense as well as sensational episodes and romantic sentiments to keep the viewer tuned in. Instead of "reality" the show highlights a series of marginalized, sexualized, commodified, and pacified women who place marriage at the epicenter of their selfworth. From Queen for a Day to The Phil Donahue Show …

Social Disadvantage And Family Violence: Neighborhood Effects On Attitudes About Intimate Partner Violence And Corporal Punishment, Deeanna M. Button

Sociology & Criminal Justice Theses & Dissertations

Family violence is widespread and occurs everyday in the United States. The consequences of the various forms of family violence and physical discipline are both immediate and long lasting. As nearly every family is victimized by some type of family violence (Payne and Gainey 2005), it is important that all dynamics of family life be explored. Extending the focus of family violence risk factors to include neighborhood experiences allows for the potential development of different social policies. The purpose of this thesis was to analyze the effects of perceived neighborhood characteristics, in addition to a macro-level measure of crime, on …

Using Peer Mediation As A New Alternative For Conflict Resolution: The Effects On Students' Behaviors And Attitudes, Shanika Anicia Testamark

Sociology & Criminal Justice Theses & Dissertations

During the recent years, countless incidents regarding school violence have captured the attention of many, and have disrupted the lives of numerous young students in the United States. In an effort to rebuild a healthier and safer school climate in America schools, many studies have been conducted on peer mediation programs. Peer mediation programs were developed to educate students on how to resolve conflicts constructively.

The purpose of this study was to examine whether the implementation of a peer mediation program called Project S.T.O.P (Students Teaching Options for Peace) could reduce school violence and students' aggressive behaviors and attitudes. To …

Employers Preferences: What Type Of Employers Are Hiring Ex-Offenders?, Gia M. Dyke

Sociology & Criminal Justice Theses & Dissertations

The purpose of this study is to explore the relationship between employers and ex-offenders. The focus here is on which employers have experience in hiring ex-offenders and which do not. More specifically, the central research question of this study is what type of employers' are more inclined to hire what type of offenders? This question is examined by utilizing secondary data collected by the Michigan State Survey Center during spring of 2002. The data were collected for a research project entitled Consequences of a Criminal Record for Employment in Milwaukee, Wisconsin. For the purpose of this study, only data …

Probation And Parole Officers Speak Out--Caseload And Workload Allocation, Matthew Demichele, Brian K. Payne

Sociology & Criminal Justice Faculty Publications

The article deals with the perceptions of the Probation and Parole Officers on making case load and workload decisions. Caseload is the number of offenders an officer supervised while the workload is the amount of time needed to accomplish a task. The American Probation and Parole Association (APPA) provides baseline data in assisting policy-makers to resolve caseload and workload allocation issues. According to the article, officials should establish a definite goal to diminish recidivism through research-based processes.

Teaching Parenting Skills In A Methadone Treatment Setting, Randy R. Gainey, Kevin P. Haggerty, Charles B. Fleming, Richard F. Catalano

Sociology & Criminal Justice Faculty Publications

Family factors significantly affect children’s risk of substance abuse, delinquency, and other problem behaviors (Arthur, Hawkins, Pollard, Catalano, & Baglioni, 2002). Children of substance abusers represent a particularly high-risk population. Prenatal exposure to addictive substances and the medical complications that may arise are important factors that, from conception, place this population at high risk of drug abuse and other problem behaviors (Griffith, Azuma, & Chasnoff, 1994). As children of substance abusers mature, their lives are characterized by exposure to continued drug and alcohol abuse by family members, recurrent or chronic illnesses, frequent moves, financial troubles, legal conflicts, family disorganization, and …

Generational Differences Among Community College Students In Their Evaluation Of Academic Cheating, Kathleen E. Wotring

Educational Foundations & Leadership Theses & Dissertations

Values development is an important part of the mission of community colleges, and upholding academic integrity is one way in which colleges advance this mission. Community colleges serve a multigenerational student body, more diverse than most four-year institutions of higher education, and different generational cohort groups hold different values and attitudes. The purpose of this study was to determine whether community college students varied by generation in their evaluation of academic activities as cheating, and to further determine whether such variation interacted with demographic variables and the extent to which personal morality is grounded in a religious belief system. Based …

Wealth And Achievement Gaps: An Examination Of Virginia Middle Schools, Paulette Natasha Richmond

Theses and Dissertations in Urban Studies

Achievement gaps, the focus of this research, result from unequal achievement and the variance in achievement existing between different segments of the student population, for example, the difference in achievement between minority students and non-minority students. The No Child Left Behind Act of 2001 and AYP (Adequate Yearly Progress) focus on achievement gaps despite contradictory expressions about the efficacy of the act. The No Child Left Behind Act has created discussion and awareness of race, SES (economically advantaged and disadvantaged) and academic achievement.

There are conflicting beliefs about the impact of resources, funding and wealth on student achievement. This study …

Changes In Formal-Informal Caregiving In Elderly Stroke Survivors, Holly Anne Beard

Health Services Research Dissertations

The purpose of this study is to determine the extent to which the Andersen and Aday Model of Health Services Use to predict cross-sectional and longitudinal differences in the caregiving source among stroke survivors (n=477) over a six-year period. This study involves a secondary analysis of a longitudinal panel study focusing upon three waves of interview data from the HAS/AHEAD study spanning 1998 through 2002. Multinomial logistic regression was utilized to examine caregiving source cross-sectionally at each wave. Clustered multinomial logistic regression was used to examine relationships between predictor variables in the model and caregiving source across waves while holding …