Social and Behavioral Sciences Commons^™

Am I My Neighbor's Keeper : Toward A Community-Based Model Of Local Violence, George F. Bills

Theses, Dissertations and Capstones

The purpose of this exploratory concurrent mixed methods study is to better understand the community context of domestic batterer intervention systems (Gondolf, 2002) by converging demographic trends in crime and arrest, family income, and marriage and divorce rates with community status indicators and marital conflict themes. In the study, county-level Uniform Crime Reports data, US Census data, and Vital Statistics data will be used to analyze community differences in social context and patterns of domestic violence in Cabell County, WV and Lawrence County, OH. At the same time, the local domestic batterer intervention system in Cabell County, WV, will be …

An Analysis Of The Relationships Between The Perceived Organizational Climate And Professional Burnout In Libraries And Computing Centers In West Virginia Public Higher Education Institutions, Arnold R. Miller

Theses, Dissertations and Capstones

The purpose of this study was to determine the relationships between the perceived organizational climate and professional burnout in libraries and computing services units in West Virginia higher education. Research questions were defined to investigate the differences between libraries and computing services units in the perceived organizational climate, professional burnout, organizational climate vs. burnout, demographics vs. organizational climate, demographics vs. burnout, and the combined effects of demographics and organizational climate upon burnout. The Work Environment Scale (WES) Form R, third edition, the Maslach Burnout Inventory (MBI) HSS, third edition, and a demographic questionnaire measured the organizational climate, burnout, and demographics. …

Analysis Of Faith-Based And Government-Based Adult Education Programs In Western West Virginia, Chad M. Trepinsk

Theses, Dissertations and Capstones

Faith-based and government-based organizations can provide meaningful adult education programs and services to strengthen a community. Organizations that offer adult education programs are vital partners in community development. This research identifies current adult programs and services offered by seven faith-based and six government based organizations in Huntington, West Virginia. Using a survey of eighty-one potential services or programs, data collected from thirteen community organizations determined what types and how many adult programs are available in Huntington, West Virginia. After identifying current adult programs, interviews with each of the thirteen organizations revealed current faith-based and government-based partnerships; questionnaires with faith-based organizations …

An Assessment Of The Fundamental Differences Between Mainstream And Independent Media : A Content Analysis Of The Print Media, Chadford D. Roush

Theses, Dissertations and Capstones

The mainstream media in the United States is an institutional arrangement of structural power within the political economy of capitalist society. The concentration and centralization of the media corporations creates the structural constraint for ideological social control. A few multinational corporations control a vast amount of media access that creates a filtering process for information. The mainstream media is extremely powerful in American society. The media helps to mold opinions on an array of news topics. Major media sources in the US are conforming their news coverage to be “industry friendly”. In simply terms the American people are only getting …

Witchcraft, Communism And Social Control, Kristi B. Salmons

Theses, Dissertations and Capstones

Society is composed of rules and regulations governing action, behavior and thoughts of its members. The Salem witch trials of 1692 and the McCarthy Era are discussed in terms of their how and why each event occurred so similarly. Findings suggest social stress and large scale societal shifts to be at the crux of the issue. Other factors discussed relating to causality are; gender, deviance and its functions, norms and conformity.

Gender Bias Among Mental Health Professionals, Joan B. Schroering

Theses, Dissertations and Capstones

The frequently cited Broverman study (Broverman, Broverman, Clarkson, Rosenkrantz, and Vogel, 1970) has motivated a great deal research in the area of gender bias, particularly investigations into the attitudes of mental health professionals. After a review of the literature referencing the Broverman study, the current study, utilizing the research patterns set forth in that research, examines if and to what degree gender bias affects mental health professionals in the state of West Virginia. The results of this study indicate that mental health professionals across the state hold fairly equitable and balanced views of the male and female gender, with one …

Expanding Self-Direction In Services For The Aged And People With Disabilities, Ruth A. Burgess

Theses, Dissertations and Capstones

Medicaid-funded long-term care services are traditionally delivered in nursing homes. States may apply for waivers which allow them to provide home and community based services with Medicaid funds. Because these services are by definition an alternative to nursing home care, waiver services are generally based upon a medical model which emphasizes medical deficits and tends to restrict consumers’ movements to inside the home. Recent developments such as the Olmstead Decision and federal New Freedom Initiatives have caused states to recognize that consumers desire and have a legal right to be part of a community rather than institutionalized or homebound. These …

Social Disorganization Theory And Crime In West Virginia, Billy Crum

Theses, Dissertations and Capstones

The purpose of this study is to test the social disorganization theory by determining how a community’s ability to maintain social control effects crime rate, especially in areas of West Virginia that are experiencing rapid social change. Do lack of social controls and rapid social change effect crime rates in rural areas, and if so, what kinds of crimes are likely to be effected? This study is going to attempt to answer this puzzling question. This study uses poverty rate, unemployment rate, and high school dropout rate as the independent variables, and crime rate as the dependent variable.

Final Frontier: The Methodist Church Involvement With The Recolonization Of Blacks To Liberia, Sharletta Michelle Green

Theses, Dissertations and Capstones

Missionary work over the course of one hundred years has changed the face of Liberia as a country. The work has affected the culture, economic structure, ethnic relationships within the country and surrounding areas and the political climate. The missionary movement into Africa did not start until the early eighteen hundreds.

In my thesis, I will focus on the ways the major stakeholders socially constructed the issues involved. I will focus on the ways in which the ideologies of racism in this period reflected American perceptions of the “dark continent.” This analysis will include the social constructions of church leaders, …

Association Of Knowledge, Attitudes, And Self-Efficacy With Sexual Risk Behaviors Among High School Students In Aguablanca District-Cali, Colombia, Zulma Hernandez

Theses, Dissertations and Capstones

The purpose of this study was to evaluate the level of knowledge, attitudes, and self-efficacy related to reproduction, contraception, STD/HIV and sexual risk behaviors among high school students. The study featured a cluster sampling involving eleventh grade students from two high schools in Aguablanca District - Cali, Colombia. A cohort of 313 students completed an anonymous questionnaire with a 20–item scale that measured level of knowledge in reproduction, contraception and STD/HIV; 5 item-scale that measured attitudes and self-efficacy related to practices of protective sexual behavior; and a 5-item scale that measured intentions toward their capabilities to perform specific actions that …