Education Commons^™

Disparities In Response, Motivations, And Self-Efficacy To Entrepreneurially Minded Learning Within Underrepresented Students' Groups, Kaitlin Hall

Biomedical Engineering Undergraduate Honors Theses

Systemic racism in the United States is embedded within the policies that have created oppression for certain groups. Women, people of color, and those from low-income families have less access to entrepreneurial knowledge due to the education gap. It has been determined that less than 20 percent of US patents entail a female inventor. Black and Hispanic college graduates also lack this access as fewer than half as many individuals hold patents. Ensuring that these populations are educated in inventor knowledge can facilitate greater inclusion. The historical Brown vs the Board of Education intended to end unequal public schooling. It …

Making Meaning Of The Shared Experience Of Participants In An Undergraduate Lgbtq+ Mentorship Program, Brendan Corbett Csaposs

Graduate Theses and Dissertations

The purpose of this phenomenological study was to examine the ways in which LGBTQ+ students at the University of Miami make meaning of their shared experiences in the LGBTQ+ Mentorship Program that the university offers, in order to explore ways in which higher education institutions might consider better supporting this key group of students. This study draws upon a variety of theories of sexual identity development, building on the work of Rosario et al. (2011) in looking at the ways that students make meaning of their sexual identity based on self-identification, association with the larger community, and engagement in a …

Gender Perceptions And Female Students' Academic Engagement And Success In Stem Fields, Rheanna Morgan

School of Social Work Undergraduate Honors Theses

Despite an increase of females in higher education and the workforce, fields such as science, technology, engineering, and mathematics (STEM) continue to be male-dominated. One explanation for this trend is the lack of gender representation and counterstereotypical role models to encourage female engagement in these fields at the university level. Previous research has looked at instructor gender, classroom gender composition, and involvement in extracurricular activities as possible factors influencing students' engagement and success in the classroom. However, few studies have investigated how gender perceptions influence female students in STEM fields. This study uses self-report data from a voluntary survey to …

Alone Together: The Experiences Of Lgbtqia+ Undergraduates At Faith-Based Colleges, Jennifer Edwards

Graduate Theses and Dissertations

This qualitative study aimed to explore the experiences of LGBTQIA+ alumnix who attended faith-based colleges. The study was guided by Strayhorn’s (2019) College Students’ Sense of Belonging Theory and Abes’ et al. (2007) Reconceptualized model of multiple dimensions of identity. The scope of experiences explored was narrowed to three of the five categories in Schreiner’s (2010a) Thriving Quotient. These categories were: positive perspective (outlook on life), social connectedness, and diverse citizenship.

The study included 11 participants from 7 faith-based colleges and represented various intersections of sexual and gender identity. The study employed constructivist grounded theory methodology, an inductive research approach …

Effects Of Abstinence-Based Sexual Education Compared To Evidence-Based Sexual Education In K-12 Schools, Lily Probst

The Eleanor Mann School of Nursing Undergraduate Honors Theses

Background: Historically, sexual education in the United States has been abstinence-based (ABSE), meaning that sexual education is centered around encouraging adolescents to abstain from sexual activity outside of wedlock. On the other hand, evidence-based sexual education (EBSE) includes abstinence in its curriculum but does not emphasize it, instead highlighting contraception and prevention strategies. Additionally, EBSE teaches adolescents about healthy relationships, attitudes towards sexuality, gender roles, and provides resources for sexual and reproductive health services. Supplying adolescents in K-12 schools with access to evidence-based sexual education may not only decrease teen pregnancy rates and incidence of sexually transmitted infections (STIs) but …

Lgbtq+ College Students' Perceptions Of Social Presence And Self-Disclosure In Online Learning: A Single-Case Study, Scott Anthony Wright

Graduate Theses and Dissertations

Social interaction among learners plays a significant role in online learning environments (Garrison, 2006; Kreijns et al., 2014; Mykota, 2017). The construct of social presence in online courses is important because it influences interaction and connectedness among learners and its effects on their learning outcomes and emotional well-being. Social presence at its essence refers to how an individual is perceived as a "real person" in an online environment (Gunawardena & Zittle, 1997). Online students must decide what aspects of their social identities they share in their interactions with their peers and instructors. Furthermore, LGBTQ+ students must negotiate what aspects of …

The Impact Of Social Situations On College Students’ Perceptions Of Sexual Consent, Casey Jane Ward

Graduate Theses and Dissertations

The majority of research examining sexual consent among college students focuses on how young adults communicate sexual consent during interactions immediately preceding a sexual encounter. However, preliminary research suggests that college students perceive that individuals begin to communicate sexual consent within social settings (e.g., at a bar) and through nonsexual interactions (e.g., text messaging); this has been labeled “outside the bedroom” consent. In order to further explore “outside the bedroom” consent, college students (n= 789) were randomly assigned to read four of sixteen vignettes. Within each vignette, four variables were manipulated: gender of the initiator (male or female), the social …

Male Privilege, Sexual Double Standard, And Sexual Scripts: College Students' Perceptions And Influences Of Hooking Up, Mary Ellen Hunt

Graduate Theses and Dissertations

Approximately three-fourths of young adults in college hook up at least once by their senior year (i.e., engage in a casual sexual encounter outside the context of a committed relationship). There are important gender differences which may inform how men and women conceptualize hooking up. Men and women may have different predictors of interest, expectations of sex, or attitudes toward sex. These gender differences are likely culturally constructed by the sexual double standard and traditional sexual scripts which project men to be the aggressive sexual initiators who want sex all the time, and women to be passive gatekeepers who desire …

Content Of Sexual Assault Prevention Programs: What Evidence Could Change College Women's Minds?, Abigail Lee Moser

Graduate Theses and Dissertations

Sexual assault is a serious health issue for college women. Unfortunately, the results of previous research revealed that intervention programs designed for women have been largely ineffective at changing women's attitudes, knowledge, and victimization concerning sexual assault. The purpose of the present investigation was to identify forms of persuasive evidence that women report as having changed their attitudes, knowledge, and behavior concerning sexual assault. Focus groups were used to identify common themes college women use to explain their understandings of these topics. These focus groups discussed how close family members impacted their behaviors concerning sexual assault, how they gained their …