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Articles 61 - 90 of 104

Full-Text Articles in Other Feminist, Gender, and Sexuality Studies

Diurnal And Nocturnal Avian Antipredator Behavior In Thermally Challenging Conditions, Jennie M. Carr Aug 2013

Diurnal And Nocturnal Avian Antipredator Behavior In Thermally Challenging Conditions, Jennie M. Carr

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Diurnal avian antipredator behavior has been the focus of much past research, yet the influence of the thermal environment on such behaviors is often overlooked. Far less is known about nocturnal avian antipredator behavior, including how these behaviors are influenced by challenging thermal environments. The first portion of my research focused on how the thermal environment influences the diurnal antipredator behavior of wintering birds while (i) exposed to high wind speeds, (ii) foraging in sunlit and shaded microhabitats, and (iii) when using thermoregulatory postures to conserve body heat. In addition to increasing convective heat loss, high wind speeds increase the …


“All Things Forget The Forest:” The Convergence Of The War And The Pastoral In Edward Thomas’S Body Of Work, Nicole Trobaugh Aug 2013

“All Things Forget The Forest:” The Convergence Of The War And The Pastoral In Edward Thomas’S Body Of Work, Nicole Trobaugh

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Edward Thomas, often identified as a war poet, eludes definitive characterization despite the fact that his poems are often anthologized as war poems. However, unlike other widely-known war poets, such as Siegfried Sassoon and Wilfred Owen, the imagery present in Thomas’s poetry contains much subtlety and features dominant usage of nature themes. This project attempts to navigate the multi-faceted world of Edward Thomas through consideration of his love for nature, his melancholic predispositions, and his preoccupations with the looming Great War in order to study Thomas’s use of natural imagery in the context of grief, melancholy, and traumatic experience. To …


Running On Fumes The Destabilization Of The World’S Interconnected Systems As A Result Of Unsustainable Human Proliferation On A Finite Planet, Eduardo Fradin Aug 2013

Running On Fumes The Destabilization Of The World’S Interconnected Systems As A Result Of Unsustainable Human Proliferation On A Finite Planet, Eduardo Fradin

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This thesis examines the global interconnectivity of critical and complex societal systems. Today, if consumption patterns continue to rise to unsustainable levels in concert with a soaring global population, these social and technological systems may begin to buckle, which will threaten the advancement of modern human civilization in the 21st century and beyond. The first globally-stressed system that is addressed in this paper is the global economic system. The second system I discuss is the global energy system and how it directly impacts the global economy. The following chapter looks at unsustainable population growth, freshwater scarcity, and food stresses. In …


The Effects Of Social Rank On Shame And Guilt, Alexandra Bohaska Jun 2013

The Effects Of Social Rank On Shame And Guilt, Alexandra Bohaska

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The differentiation of shame and guilt is not widely discussed. The reason why some people feel shame while others feel guilt is also not universally understood. Various theories have examined cultural influences and how individuals attribute the outcome of various situations. This paper discusses past theories of the reasons behind shame and guilt and conducts a study that examines how social rank, or lack thereof, could affect a person’s emotional response. It was predicted that when the participants, consisting of college undergraduates and residents of a private community, are primed towards feelings of superordination or equality, via vignettes, they would …


K-12 System Reforms Across Studies: The Significance Of Change, Meta-Analysis, And Logistics Regression, Mashal Almutairi May 2013

K-12 System Reforms Across Studies: The Significance Of Change, Meta-Analysis, And Logistics Regression, Mashal Almutairi

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No abstract provided.


Bias In A Just World? Sexual Prejudice, Gender Self-Esteem, And Intimate Partner Violence, Crystal D. Mahoy Sep 2012

Bias In A Just World? Sexual Prejudice, Gender Self-Esteem, And Intimate Partner Violence, Crystal D. Mahoy

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Each year, approximately 835,000 men and 1.3 million women are victims of intimate partner violence (IPV; American Bar Association, n.d). Although the prevalence of same-sex intimate partner violence (IPV) is approximately the same as IPV in heterosexual couples (Alexander, 2002), fewer studies have examined perceptions of IPV in same-sex couples or of IPV perpetrated against heterosexual men compared to heterosexual women. In the current study, Just World Theory (Lerner & Miller, 1978) is used as a framework for understanding factors associated with perceptions of heterosexual and same-sex IPV, including sexual prejudice and gender self-esteem. Perceptions of IPV were examined in …


Hear My Voice: An Examination Of The Views Of Parents Who Are Raising Children Of African American Descent, Chavez Maurice Phelps Dec 2011

Hear My Voice: An Examination Of The Views Of Parents Who Are Raising Children Of African American Descent, Chavez Maurice Phelps

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Researchers have demonstrated that children who attend early childhood education programs benefit academically and socially (National Institute for Early Education Research, 2003). However, other researchers have shown that African American students may still lag behind their counterparts when they enter school (National Center for Education Statistics ([NCES], 2004). To explain this phenomenon, scholars and practitioners have relied on deficit theories, such as Ruby Payne’s (2005) culture of poverty theory or John Ogbu’s (1992) oppositional culture identity theory, which shift the blame solely on the child or their parents. However, there are other researchers who have stressed the importance of examining …


Insect Abundance And Variability In An Urban-Rural Landscape And Comparison To Foraging Habitat Selection Of Bats, Nicole M. Oehler Dec 2011

Insect Abundance And Variability In An Urban-Rural Landscape And Comparison To Foraging Habitat Selection Of Bats, Nicole M. Oehler

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I conducted a study of the relationship between prey availability and foraging habitat selection of Indiana bats (Myotis sodalis), big brown bats (Eptesicus fuscus), eastern red bats (Lasiurus borealis) and evening bats (Nycticeius humeralis) in an urban-rural landscape matrix of southwestern Indianapolis. Insects were collected from nine different habitat types found within the range of these species. Insect data were collected from 2006 to 2008 using sticky traps placed in each habitat type. Habitat types were ranked by importance to each bat species (based on previous studies) and then compared to the average number of prey insects captured per habitat …


The Risk Factors Of Alcohol Abuse Among College Athletes, Jacob Jones Aug 2011

The Risk Factors Of Alcohol Abuse Among College Athletes, Jacob Jones

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Self-concept theory was used as a theoretical basis to investigate the utility of social norms alcohol prevention programs designed for college athletes. The predictive relationship among alcohol use and athletic identity, competitiveness, drinking game participation, and level of sport participation was investigated. It was discovered that drinking game participation is a significant predictor of total weekly alcohol use above and beyond the other predictors. In addition, drinking game participation and organized recreational sport participation were significant predictors of total binge drinking episodes. While controlling for drinking game participation and competitiveness, no significant differences were found in the amount of alcohol …


Self-Expansion And Couple Possessions: The Representation Of The Self And Other In Valued Possessions, Lindsey Paniccia Aug 2011

Self-Expansion And Couple Possessions: The Representation Of The Self And Other In Valued Possessions, Lindsey Paniccia

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The current study seeks to understand the influence of romantic relationships on identity symbolism, specifically the use of personal possessions as a means of achieving social validation. According to self-expansion theory (Aron & Aron, 1986), engaging in a romantic relationship alters one’s sense of self; romantic partners take on the qualities and characteristics of a partner and integrate them into the self. To understand the process of identity symbolism due to one’s newly expanded sense of self, this study investigated the link between the amount of reported self-expansion and couple representativeness as well as the function of one’s possessions (other-direct …


Perception Of Social Presence In Asynchronous And Synchronous Online Discussion From The Perspective Of Native And Non-Native Speaker, Abdullah A. Alruhaimi Aug 2011

Perception Of Social Presence In Asynchronous And Synchronous Online Discussion From The Perspective Of Native And Non-Native Speaker, Abdullah A. Alruhaimi

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The technology innovation of telecommunication gave confidence to educational institutions to substitute some of their courses from traditional courses into virtual ones. This switch in education inspired globalization. The learners use either synchronous or asynchronous communication tools to interact with each other. Most previous studies in this field show that social presence is correlated with learner achievement satisfaction and interaction. So the researcher measured the level of social presence for both groups of learners, native and non-native speakers, across both types of online communication, synchronous and asynchronous communication. The researcher conducted a 2x2 split-plot ANOVA design with repeated measure for …


Novel Phytol-Derived Immunostimulants (Phis-01) For Enhancement Of Vaccine Efficacy: A Comparative Study, Youssef Aachoui Aug 2011

Novel Phytol-Derived Immunostimulants (Phis-01) For Enhancement Of Vaccine Efficacy: A Comparative Study, Youssef Aachoui

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Adjuvants are used widely in vaccine formulations. However for humans, choices are very limited. Since they are selected empirically, it is not expected that any two adjuvants would influence immune mechanisms the same way. However they all influence host microenvironment, antigen presentation, and retention of immunological memory. This study focuses on new terpenoid adjuvants based on phytol derivatives. We previously observed that phytol and one of its derivatives PHIS-01 (a phytol-based immunostimulant, phytanol) are excellent adjuvants. To gain an understanding of the structural features important for adjuvanticity, we further studied compounds derived from a diterpene Phytol. We designed two new …


Disclosure Involving A Third-Party: Reciprocity And Liking Outcomes, Keith Cotterell Aug 2011

Disclosure Involving A Third-Party: Reciprocity And Liking Outcomes, Keith Cotterell

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This investigation examines the function of third-party disclosures on reciprocal self-disclosures and liking. Sixty-eight college students engaged in a social interaction with one or two computers. In the experiment, one computer would “disclose” information either about itself or about another computer (third-party). Each disclosure was followed by a question to the participant. Questions were asked either by the discloser or by third-party to assess reciprocation of disclosures. Afterwards, participants rated liking for the two computers-as-social-actors. Participants showed a tendency to disclose more (i.e., give longer responses) to an actor who disclosed to them, regardless of whether the disclosure was about …


Assessment And Impact Of Gentrified Public Housing Neighborhoods In The United States: A Case Study Of Chicago, Todd W. Sink Aug 2011

Assessment And Impact Of Gentrified Public Housing Neighborhoods In The United States: A Case Study Of Chicago, Todd W. Sink

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Social-mix housing policies play a unique role in shaping the geography of gentrification in cities throughout the U.S. and Europe. The HOPE VI program in the U.S. is one popular example. Since its inception in 1992, HOPE VI has simultaneously displaced thousands of urban poor from their homes and neighborhoods, reduced their housing opportunities, and created and encouraged housing development for a more affluent population. Yet over the years, very few empirical studies have emerged that examine the place-based outcomes of HOPE VI within the context of gentrification. As such, important empirical questions remain unanswered. This study focuses on the …


Using Growth Rate Of Reading Fluency To Predict Performance On Statewide Achievement Tests, Rachelle Whittaker Hinkle Aug 2011

Using Growth Rate Of Reading Fluency To Predict Performance On Statewide Achievement Tests, Rachelle Whittaker Hinkle

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Federal legislation has prescribed the increased use of statewide achievement tests as the culmination of a student’s knowledge and ability at the end of a grade level; however, schools need to be able to predict those who are at-risk of performing poorly on these high-stakes tests. Three studies served to identify a means of predicting statewide achievement test scores in either third or eighth grade based on CBM reading scores and rates of improvement at first, second, and third grades or third, fourth, and fifth grades using readily available statistical procedures. One-half of the third-grade data was used in Study …


Faculty Perceptions About Attributes And Barriers Impacting The Diffusion Of Online Education In Two Saudi Universities, Mohammed Mfarij Alhawiti May 2011

Faculty Perceptions About Attributes And Barriers Impacting The Diffusion Of Online Education In Two Saudi Universities, Mohammed Mfarij Alhawiti

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Recognizing that faculty are an essential part of the success of any distance education program, this study sought to examine faculty perceptions of attributes and barriers impacting diffusion of online education at two Saudi universities: Taif University and Tabuk University. More specifically, the study intended to (a) give an overview of faculty members’ current stage in the innovation-decision process in regards to online education, (b) examine faculty perceptions about attributes (motivating factors) and barriers (inhibiting factors) impacting diffusion of online education, (c) investigate the relationship between faculty members’ selected personal characteristics (including age, years of teaching, DE experience, gender, academic …


Place Construction, Identity, And Capital Investment: An Investigation Of Two Tourist Landscapes In Michigan, Andrew Stawarski May 2011

Place Construction, Identity, And Capital Investment: An Investigation Of Two Tourist Landscapes In Michigan, Andrew Stawarski

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Tourist communities exist all over the world. They are areas that are focused on tourism and are often tailored to resemble specific regions or themes to better achieve capital gain. In this study, two cities in Michigan are examined to better understand how the cultural landscapes are experienced and what practices are employed throughout the landscape. Specifically, this thesis investigates the spatial practices that are involved in re-creating and re-presenting ―themed‖ landscapes. Another question analyzed is whether the ―themed‖ landscapes reflect the resident‘s daily lives and/or their histories. This thesis examines the two Michigan cities of Gaylord and Frankenmuth, re-presenting …


With Us Or Against Us: Using Religiosity And Sociodemographic Variables To Predict Homophobic Beliefs, Erin Coale Schwartz May 2011

With Us Or Against Us: Using Religiosity And Sociodemographic Variables To Predict Homophobic Beliefs, Erin Coale Schwartz

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Affiliation with religious organizations is prevalent in the United States and within some of these organizations negative messages about lesbian, gay, and bisexual individuals are regularly espoused. Exposure to such homophobic sentiment has been found to have a detrimental impact on the mental health of sexual minorities and thereby, makes the exploration of religiosity and homophobia an imperative. This study examined differences in homophobia among the sociodemographic variables of gender, age, education level, religious affiliation, frequency of attendance at religious services, and amount of contact with lesbian, gay, and bisexual people. Additionally, a stepwise multiple regression was conducted to determine …


Characteristics Of Difficult Patients In Prisons Compared To Difficult Patients In Primary Care Settings, Emily Kistler May 2011

Characteristics Of Difficult Patients In Prisons Compared To Difficult Patients In Primary Care Settings, Emily Kistler

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Research has found that patients perceived as being difficult by their physicians share a number of characteristics. These “difficult” characteristics include Axis I disorders, personality disorders, somatization, complex health problems, and aggression. Current research has focused on defining “difficult patients” in community populations, while other populations have gone overlooked. One population that has high prevalence rates of the “difficult” characteristics identified in community samples is offenders. As a group, offenders tend to have high rates of mental illness, chronic health problems, and behavioral issues such as aggression. While difficult patients in prison may resemble difficult patients in the community, research …


Olfactory Mate Choice And Potential Chemical Signals Of The White-Throated Sparrow (Zonotrichia Albicollis), Peter Sebastian Dec 2010

Olfactory Mate Choice And Potential Chemical Signals Of The White-Throated Sparrow (Zonotrichia Albicollis), Peter Sebastian

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Chemical odor signals are well documented in mammals, and yet almost nothing is known about the use of chemical odor signals in birds due to the traditional view that birds have a no sense or a poor sense of smell. Recent studies have revealed the traditional view to be unfounded, but more work is necessary to 1) expand our knowledge of avian olfaction in passerine species and 2) determine whether birds utilize chemical signals. The aim of this thesis was to 1) test for olfactory-based choice in a passerine species, and examine the chemical composition of preen oil for potential …


Perception Of Control: Accuracy Among Optimists And Pessimists On Noncontingency And Contingengy Tasks, Spencer Baunn M.S. Dec 2010

Perception Of Control: Accuracy Among Optimists And Pessimists On Noncontingency And Contingengy Tasks, Spencer Baunn M.S.

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The learned helplessness theory asserts that depressed individuals unrealistically believe that they have little to no control over aversive outcomes in their lives. Paradoxically, research on judgment of control has demonstrated that depressed individuals are not necessarily pessimistic, but rather more realistic than non-depressed individuals. Most of the research on depressive realism has investigated individual’s perceived control in situations in which they have no actual control. Few studies have investigated perception of control in situations where control is possible. Considering that many circumstances in life are controllable, it is important to examine how different personality variables contribute to accurate judgments …


A Descriptive Study Of A Building-Based Team Problem-Solving Process, Alexander B. Brewer Aug 2010

A Descriptive Study Of A Building-Based Team Problem-Solving Process, Alexander B. Brewer

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The purpose of this study was to empirically evaluate Building-Based Teams for General Education Intervention or BBT for GEI. BBT for GEI is a team problem-solving process designed to assist schools in conducting research-based interventions in the general education setting. Problem-solving teams are part of general education and provide support to students with academic or behavioral concerns by creating individualized interventions that teachers can use in the classroom. Historically, problem-solving teams’ two primary goals were to reduce referrals to special education and improve student performance on academic or behavioral concerns. This study examined the effectiveness of BBT for GEI by …


Career Decisions: Goodness-Of-Fit And Attrition Of Teachers In Alternative Schools, Deidre S. Coulter Aug 2010

Career Decisions: Goodness-Of-Fit And Attrition Of Teachers In Alternative Schools, Deidre S. Coulter

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Teachers are the most important element in the education system (Stronge, 2002). However, studies of teachers in certain sectors are lacking. The paucity of research on teachers who work in the alternative school environment was a driving force behind this study, which is a case study of the characteristics of alternative schools, perceptions of teacher training, attrition, and goodness-of-fit. Interviews with teachers, administrators, and support staff in an alternative school were used to investigate interactions between teachers and students and between colleagues. Classroom observations of the teachers were used to help explore the classroom climate. Emergent themes such as communication, …


The Impact Of Maternal Factors On Female Juvenile Delinquency Trends, Anne Marie Price Aug 2010

The Impact Of Maternal Factors On Female Juvenile Delinquency Trends, Anne Marie Price

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This study examined the difference between female juvenile delinquents and nondelinquents in relationship to a combination of maternal factors (negative maternal behaviors, occupational stress, perceived social support, and maternal parenting stress). Participants were 128 biological mothers of daughters between the ages of 12 and 18 who were either mothers of clients or were clients themselves of a Midwest community health center in one of several clinics in Martinsville, Mooresville, Bedford, Bloomington, and Spencer, Indiana. Participants completed six questionnaires, including: the Demographics Questionnaire, the Maternal Behavior Index, the Adolescent Behavior Survey, the Occupational Crisis Survey, the Duke Social Support Inventory, and …


Transgenic Manipulation In Zebra Fish By Combination Of Cre-Loxp Recombinant System, Tol2 Transposon System, And Rnai Technique, Yang Bai Aug 2010

Transgenic Manipulation In Zebra Fish By Combination Of Cre-Loxp Recombinant System, Tol2 Transposon System, And Rnai Technique, Yang Bai

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The overall goal of this research is to make precisely controlled transgene constructs to target genes in zebrafish and facilitate their functional studies. Many of the previous transgenic techniques (e.g. morpholino) can only produce transient gene expression or inhibition, which is not good for long-term studies. Also, transgenes that randomly integrate into the chromosomes are typically difficult to control and are poorly regulated. Thus, it would be of great benefit to develop a reversibly controlled transgenic tool to help study gene function. Here, we propose to combine three distinct techniques to generate a stable transgenic tool to facilitate gene functional …


Police Brutality Makes Headlines: Retelling The Story Of The 1938 Pecan Shellers’ Strike, Laura Cannon Dixon Aug 2010

Police Brutality Makes Headlines: Retelling The Story Of The 1938 Pecan Shellers’ Strike, Laura Cannon Dixon

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The 1938 San Antonio pecan shellers’ strike was a unique labor event. It involved conflicts between a dominant white power elite and workers who were culturally, ethnically, linguistically, and religiously different. The power elite separated and suppressed Tejano workers, who were seen as inferior. The five-week strike was an attempt to shake off that suppression. As newspaper reports from the period showed, the power elite responded to picketers with brutal police tactics, but nightsticks, ax handles and tear gas failed to curb worker resistance. The strike was important, therefore, because unlike other Southern labor actions, workers in San Antonio succeeded, …


Cloning And Characterization Of Sas1738, A Hypothetical Exported Protein From Community-Associated Strain Of Staphylococcus Aureus, Deepak Kumar Vijaya Kumar Aug 2010

Cloning And Characterization Of Sas1738, A Hypothetical Exported Protein From Community-Associated Strain Of Staphylococcus Aureus, Deepak Kumar Vijaya Kumar

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Methicillin resistant Staphylococcus aureus (MRSA) is a group of S. aureus strains that has acquired resistance to a class of beta lactam antibiotics and is the major cause of hospital associated infections. Their discovery goes back to 1960 when the first cases were identified. Recently community associated MRSA infections have emerged and are caused by strains that are independent of those from the hospital environment, related only because they carry some of the same antibiotic resistance genes. Community associated infections (CA) are more severe, producing pus filled lesions that are painful and capable of invasion of deep tissues. Virulence factors …


Stay At Home Fathers: The New Gender Benders, Jessica Fischer Aug 2010

Stay At Home Fathers: The New Gender Benders, Jessica Fischer

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This study compared the gender roles and attitudes toward women‟s and men‟s social roles of stay at home fathers and employed fathers recruited on the Internet. The relationship between gender roles and attitudes toward women‟s and men‟s social roles on reasons for becoming a stay at home father were also investigated. It was predicted that stay at home fathers would endorse more traditionally feminine characteristics for themselves and would have more nontraditional attitudes toward men‟s and women‟s social roles than employed fathers. In addition, it was predicted that fathers who choose to stay at home for practical reasons (i.e. lost …


Attitudes Toward Transsexual People: Effects Of Gender And Appearance, Kelly R. Gerhardstein Aug 2010

Attitudes Toward Transsexual People: Effects Of Gender And Appearance, Kelly R. Gerhardstein

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The transgendered community, like other gender non-conforming communities, is the subject of stigmatization, discrimination, and violence. However, there is a notable lack of research investigating the specific attitudes toward various manifestations of transgenderism, and the factors that may be contributing to these attitudes. The goal of this study was to investigate factors that contribute to negative attitudes toward, and discrimination against, this consistently marginalized group of people. The present study explored the relationship between attitudes toward transsexuals and several gender-related variables, including gender of the rater, sex and apparent gender of the transsexual, as well as gender role beliefs, personal …


Sexual Selection And Plumage In The Polymorphic White-Throated Sparrow, Nathan Rathbun Jun 2010

Sexual Selection And Plumage In The Polymorphic White-Throated Sparrow, Nathan Rathbun

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Feather coloration has been known to be connected with sexual selection for many years. It also provides an opportunity to study evolution, focusing on sexual selection and natural selection. Plumage is affected by both of these forces and the equilibrium is where these forces balance. The white-throated sparrow gives us a unique opportunity to observe the effects of the different strengths of these forces within a species. First, I established that there were differences in plumage characteristics between the morphs and sexes. White males had the brightest white and darkest black feathers. White females and tan males were the next …