Social and Behavioral Sciences Commons^™

Positive Outcomes Of Divorce: A Multi-Method Study On The Effects Of Parental Divorce On Children, Grant W. Mohi

The Pegasus Review: UCF Undergraduate Research Journal

Previous literature on parental divorce focuses on the negative effects it has on children and young adults in terms of relationships (romantic and familial) and academic standing. The implications of such research are that parental divorce brings harm to families and, consequentially, should be avoided for the sake of the children's wellbeing. What is often missing from this research is a focus on the potential positive outcomes of parental divorce. The current study explores the effects of parental divorce on young adults' ability to form and maintain romantic relationships, exploring the possibility for positive outcomes of parental divorce on young …

The Influence Of Previous Traumatic Experiences On Haitian Child Refugees' Conceptualization Of Fear, Jessy Guler, Courtney Guler, Dr. Judit Szente

The Pegasus Review: UCF Undergraduate Research Journal

This study investigates how children's experiences as Haitian refugees influence the development of atypical childhood fears. Eighteen child refugees were interviewed about their personal primary fear objects and their interpretation of fear in a series of drawing and picture observation exercises. Five of these eighteen children were Haitian refugees. Each of the refugee children had one adult representative who was interviewed about the child, the family's demographic information, and the child's previous traumatic experiences in his/her native country. The refugee children and their adult representatives' responses to the interview questions were coded and analyzed according to themes. Results suggest that …

What Is Appealing?: Sex And Racial Differences In Perceptions Of The Physical Attractiveness Of Women, Rachel Sewell

The Pegasus Review: UCF Undergraduate Research Journal

Beauty and physical appearance are considered to be of great importance in today's society. In the U.S., many strive for physical perfection, and much attention is focused on the way one looks. A beauty ideal has been created over time through the combination of several elements within American culture, and this ideal image attempts to define female beauty as fitting into a certain mold. Certain characteristics have been deemed the most attractive when it comes to female physical attractiveness, and a model of beauty has been presented by the media. This research focuses on whether everyone buys into that ideal. …

In The World But Not Of It: Negotiating Evangelical Tradition And Gendered Identity In Contemporary Family Life, Lauren Hansbury

The Pegasus Review: UCF Undergraduate Research Journal

Evangelical Protestants are an influential force in the world of politics, particularly in bringing debates over family values to the forefront of public life within the last thirty years. Their perspectives on gender have become a central point of contention in the so-called "culture wars" in American society. Recent research shows that the majority of evangelicals do not embody gender roles that fit within traditional, patriarchal, and gender essentialist models once central to evangelical thought on family life. Evangelicals live out their everyday family lives in much the same way as non-evangelicals and non-religious Americans. Research on evangelicals and subcultural …

Are Florida's Children Safe? Evaluating Safety In District 7 Privatized Child Welfare Services, Antoinette Bazunu

The Pegasus Review: UCF Undergraduate Research Journal

In 1998, the Florida state legislature mandated the privatization of child welfare services. The decision to contract child welfare services to non-profit organizations was instituted in an effort to lower costs and to increase the effectiveness and quality in service delivery. The 1998 initiative came to be known as "Community-Based Care" and was based on the idea of giving local communities incentives to be more accountable for children.

The federal government requires that the safety of all children be the paramount goal for the child welfare system. The purpose of this study was to assess whether Community-Based Care was indeed …

Social Class Justifications: The Capitalist Conspiracy?, Wendi Kane

The Pegasus Review: UCF Undergraduate Research Journal

The purpose of this research is to better understand the attitudes of University of Central Florida students concerning the stereotypes, myths, and ideologies related to social class inequality. This research measures gender, race, social class, and level of exposure to the lower class as key factors in students' beliefs. The data were collected through the use of self-administered surveys distributed to 1496 UCF students from a variety of different colleges on the Orlando campus. The most significant findings were in relation to the "work hard, get ahead" ideology, as well as the equal opportunity myth. This is a non-probability sample; …

Gender Presentation And Membership Bias In Greek Organizations, Jason L. Metzger, Patrick Williams, Mailyn Chen, Genie Chartier

The Pegasus Review: UCF Undergraduate Research Journal

The study objective was to explore the possibility of discrimination and bias based on perceived gender presentation. In this study, subjects were female and male undergraduate students of both Greek and non-Greek affiliations at a University in the Southeastern United States. Subjects were asked to rate the probability of extending group membership to others based on perceived visual gender appearance. In the pilot study, 150 University of Central Florida students were polled to assess three categories of visual gender presentation in pictures: average gender presentation (typical female or male), extreme gender presentation (extremely feminine or extremely masculine) and non-traditional gender …

The Effects Of College Student Employment On Academic Achievement, Lauren E. Watanabe

The Pegasus Review: UCF Undergraduate Research Journal

With college tuition and the cost of living rising, many students find themselves in the position of having to be employed while trying to attend classes. This study examines the effects that employment has on college students' academic achievement and other possible factors that might have contributed.

Predictors Of Fear Of Crime And The Relationship Of Crime Rates And Fear Of Crime, Jennifer Truman

The Pegasus Review: UCF Undergraduate Research Journal

Research has shown that demographic characteristics, media exposure, perceived risk to crime, and victimization are associated with a person's perception of crime. Also, many times a person's perception of crime does not coincide with the actual crime rates. Using data from a survey of 315 college students, this study examined the effects of the aforementioned factors on a person's perception of crime, as well as compared these perceptions with actual crime rates. Results indicate that females, minorities, and people who frequently viewed local television news all reported a higher fear of crime, which is consistent with literature. The respondents' perceptions …

Commitment And Acceptance Of Relationship Violence, Jennifer Harrison

The Pegasus Review: UCF Undergraduate Research Journal

Dating violence is often thought of as a precursor for spousal abuse and that understanding is beneficial. However, according to Makepeace (1981), all the reasons that married individuals give for remaining in violent relationships do not apply to courtship relationships, thus inspiring the question as to why do individuals in dating relationships remain in abusive relationships. Emotional commitment has been a prominent response and has been found to play a powerful role in the individual's acceptance of violence and the outcome of the relationship (Arriaga, 2002). For this reason, it is believed that individuals in committed relationships will be more …