Social and Behavioral Sciences Commons^™

Mary Elise Sarotte, The Collapse: The Accidental Opening Of The Berlin Wall, Basic Books, 2014. Barry Rubin And Wolfgang G. Schwanitz, Nazis, Islamists, And The Making Of The Modern Middle East, Yale University Press, 2014., Laina Farhat–Holzman

Comparative Civilizations Review

No abstract provided.

P300 Latency In Alzheimer’S Disease: A Meta-Analysis And Meta-Regression, David Payne Bennett, Dawson Hedges

Journal of Undergraduate Research

Developing a biomarker for accurate assessment and detection of Alzheimer’s disease was the goal of our research. The P300 component of the event-­‐related potential has been indicated to apparently change with the progression of Alzheimer’s disease. As measuring the P300 is non-­‐invasive and relatively easy, we sought to investigate abnormalities in the latency of the P300 in probable Alzheimer’s disease compared to healthy controls. Should such abnormalities be present, they would constitute a strong foundation for clinically significant biomarkers.

Openness And Inflation In The Long Run, David Beheshti, Richarch Evans

Journal of Undergraduate Research

Since the collapse of the Bretton-Woods Agreement in 1973, inflation rates have been steadily decreasing in most of the developed world. At the same time, countries have become increasingly open to international trade (see Figure 1). A possible explanation is that openness to trade and inflation are negatively correlated. This relationship is predicted in a highly-cited theoretical model by economist Kenneth Rogoff (1985) and in most of the previous literature on the subject. However, a more recent theoretical paper (Evans 2012) predicts that countries may engage in inflationary policy in order to tax foreign holders of domestic currency. As countries …

The Dynamic Effects Of Changes To Japanese Immigration, Ryne Belliston, Kerk Phillips

Journal of Undergraduate Research

Immigration issues create tough political problems for policy makers. Whether or not to allow workers from low wage countries to migrate to high wage countries is a source of constant domestic and international political debate. Japan is a country facing an aging population and low birthrates, and thus is forced to consider changes to their immigration policies. Immigration would likely help Japanese firms and capital owners but would likely hurt Japanese workers. Additionally, as incomes have risen, the lure of higher wages has made Japan a more attractive place for non-Japanese laborers to work.

A Big Data Approach To Optimal Taxation, Christian Baker, Richard W. Evans

Journal of Undergraduate Research

In this project we develop a big data computational technique to solve optimal policy problems and use this method to perform an analysis of optimal sales taxation. This approach provides for the consideration of a much richer sales tax schedule than current theoretical models allow. These same tools can also be used for a wide array of economic policy research.

The Constitution: Who Knows, Who Cares?, Luke Bell, Jeremy Pope

Journal of Undergraduate Research

In recent years, significant attention has been directed toward the role and relevance of the Constitution in contemporary politics. Conservative and Tea Party voters, for example, tout their dedication to the “founding principles” in the Constitution. Despite the prevalence of Constitutionally-charged rhetoric among political activists, national surveys have repeatedly found that most Americans are, at best, poorly informed about the nation’s founding document.

Adaptation Of D2 Dopamine Receptors Following Acute Ethanol, Brian Behnke, Scott Steffensen

Journal of Undergraduate Research

The purpose of my experiment was To study the effects that ethanol (EtOH) has on the D2 receptors (D2R) in the nucleus accumbens (NAc) and ventral tegmental area (VTA), in order to determine if D2 is a key contributor to an alcohol addictive state.

Context Matters: Exploring Methods Of Dissonance Reduction In Conflict Resolution, James L. Martherus

Student Works

One of the first steps in intergroup conflict resolution is to humanize the "enemy" or outgroup. Unfortunately, this humanization often fails. My goal in this paper is to answer the following question: Why does positive information about a group sometimes lead to negative responses? Specifically, this paper tests three hypotheses. First, I hypothesize that Individuals with high ingroup-centric beliefs will react differently to the treatments compared to individuals with low ingroup-centric beliefs. Second, I hypothesize that individuals who experience dissonance as a result of the treatments will react negatively to the treatments. Finally, I hypothesize that the framing of these …

Large Developments And Light Rail Stops: An Analysis Of Development And Transit In The Sacramento Metropolitan Region, Chelsea Bakaitis, Michael Clay

Journal of Undergraduate Research

The traditional downtown and suburban form of a metropolis is becoming an obsolete model to describe the Sacramento region. The region has five commercial centers among the communities (described as “edge cities”) surrounding the traditional downtown of the City of Sacramento (Garreau 1991). Developers of the region have been building and are building large (over 100,000 square feet) units to house multiple uses from medical offices to shopping malls. These buildings are a part of the urban form of Sacramento and are primary to the landscape of the region. The road system is central to landuse practice of the region, …

Memory Processes In Autism, Storm Atwood, Dr. C Brock Kirwan

Journal of Undergraduate Research

The prevalence of autism, a neurodevelopmental disorder impairing social interaction, communication, and behavior, has risen from 1 in 110 affected to 1 in 88 affected (Centers for Disease Control, 2012). The rise in prevalence of autism has increased the awareness of autism and increased the desire and need for more research. In general, it has been found that memory performance remains largely unchanged in autism. For example, a recent study on recognition memory in autism found that there was no difference in the ability of an autistic participant versus a control participant in identifying whether a stimulus was old or …

The Effects Of Genes On The Stress Response, S. Andrew Aston

Journal of Undergraduate Research

Corticotropin-releasing hormone (CRH) acts as one of the primary coordinators of the physiological, behavioral, and autonomic stress response. CRH secreted from the paraventricular nucleus (PVN) of the hypothalamus initiates the hypothalamic pituitary adrenal (HPA) axis response by signaling the secretion of adrenocorticotropic hormone (ACTH) from the anterior pituitary. ACTH then travels to the adrenal glands, leading to the release of cortisol Thus, CRH plays a key role in preparing an individual to adaptively respond to a stressful situation.

Is Healthcare A Right?, Ben Ader, Kelly Patterson

Journal of Undergraduate Research

This project was an experiment to help understand the views of Utahns on healthcare and whether or not healthcare can be included in a list of basic rights. We also assessed the many dimensions of healthcare and where Utahns lie on a graph measuring the intrinsic motivations for or against healthcare as a basic right.

The Smc Matrix Bridging The Gap Between Traditional Strategic Communications And Digital Media, Rebecca Winchel, Dr. Kenneth Plowman

Journal of Undergraduate Research

As digital media communications continue to grow and become an integral part of organizations’ business strategy, there is a significant gap between traditional strategic communications and the current strategies employed by social media practitioners. In order to address this gap, we wrote a book based upon Wilson and Ogden’s Matrix System for strategic communication planning¹ that allows current and future social media practitioners to employ the foundational strategy that has thrived in the PR sector (see Figure 1). This publication also helps traditional PR, marketing and other communication professionals understand and embrace the changes happening in and because of …

Counterterrorism In Authoritarian And Democratic Governments, Tai Gray

FHSS Mentored Research Conference

This research project aims to determine if significant differences exist in the types of counterterrorism used by authoritarian and democratic governments. A case study of the counterterrorism methods used by the United States and Chinese governments shows that authoritarian governments' methods seem to be more extreme due to a greater influence over domestic media and public opinion, but similarities in the realm of human rights also exist that could suggest a more similar response between the two regime types.

A Tall Tale: How Stories Can Change U.S. Public Opinion, Matthew B. Young

FHSS Mentored Research Conference

“In this age, in this country, public sentiment is everything.” Just as in Abraham Lincoln’s day, today our nation’s course is influenced by public opinion. Thus, understanding which frame best elicits a change in public opinion will provide agencies with a more effective model to change voters’ opinions.

A frame is the presentation of an idea or fact, meant to encourage a specific interpretation. In this study, the issue of foreign aid will be framed as stories and facts. A story frame will portray information about a community or individual affected by U.S. foreign aid using the “Universal Story Structure.” …

The Marital Paradigm Study: Wave 2, Brian J. Willoughby, Spencer L. James

Journal of Undergraduate Research

This project had mentored goals related to student involvement with conducting a research project and collecting data, student independent research projects with data, and general student learning. Below we outline these goals and discuss how each goals was met.

Cybersecurity And The Future International Competitiveness Of The United States, Tai Gray

Student Works

Cybersecurity is inseparably connected to the future international competitiveness of the United States and must play a more significant role in both governmental and private spheres of American society. To increase the strength of U.S. cybersecurity and defend against future attacks, the government should devote more resources to providing cybersecurity tools and information to the public, promoting the implementation of secure forms of communication and purchasing, as well as researching and developing both offensive and defensive cyber tools. By focusing efforts on these three key areas, the U.S. government can better prepare for future cyberattacks and minimize risk to both …

Marital Satisfaction, Error-Observation, And The Brain: Harmful Or Beneficial Effects Of Spouse Observation?, Chelsea E. Romney, Michael Larson, Jonathan Sandberg, Patrick R. Steffen, Scott Baldwin

FHSS Mentored Research Conference

Introduction

Rewarding marital relationships are associated with many positive outcomes in one’s physical and mental health, including improved cardiovascular functioning, decreased depression risk, higher self-reported levels of happiness, and overall lower rates of mortality. The purpose of this study was to observe the differences in performance monitoring between males and females (while being observed by their spouses) using error-related brain activity (ERN). ERN is a response-locked, negative deflecting event-related potential (ERP) that occurs 50-100 milliseconds following an error. Heightened (i.e., more negative) ERN amplitude is associated with stressful or anxiety-provoking situations. Conversely, dampened ERN amplitude (i.e., less negative ERN) may …

Seeing A More Complete Worker: Religiosity, Income, & Job Satisfaction, Rolf David Dixon Jr.

FHSS Mentored Research Conference

A central assumption to the study of individuals in work settings it to study only the those factors directly connect to the work context. The purpose of this study is to examine whether a more holistic approach to a generally very compartmentalized phenomena, such as job satisfaction, is in order. Using the 1979 National Longitudinal Survey of Youth data collected in 2000, I examine the effects of religious attendance frequency of job satisfaction under the hypothesis that religious attendance will have a statistically significant effect on job satisfaction and that that effect will be positive. The results show that there …

The Segregating Effects Of The Social Construction Of Academic Quality, Maika M. Tuala

FHSS Mentored Research Conference

Brown v. Board concluded 60 years ago that “separate but equal” schools are “inherently unequal”. Yet, schools are more separate and unequal today than four decades ago. Take the district that I have been studying, for example. The north side has mostly affluent white students attending B+ schools while the south has 80 percent poor minorities in D+ Schools

Ironically, school segregation practices are none existent, and today, poor minority parents have more opportunities to choose schools for their children rather than attending low performing zoned schools. In fact, this district offers ideal opportunities for school choice. The parents in …

Adolescent Body Dissatisfaction And Emotional Distress, Marina Potter

FHSS Mentored Research Conference

Based on data from a nationally representative survey of adolescents in the U.S., this study examines the association between body dissatisfaction and emotional distress, mediated by family, peer, and school relationships. In a sample of 5,110 adolescent girls, I use least squares regression to estimate the models. I find satisfaction with family relationships, self-esteem, time with friends, peer victimization, and feelings about school to be associated with emotional distress. In addition, body dissatisfaction remains the strongest predictor of emotional distress, even when all other variables are held constant.

The Effects Of Loss Aversion And Investment Type On The Sunk Cost Fallacy, Veronika Tait, Harold Miller Jr

FHSS Mentored Research Conference

The sunk-cost fallacy (SCF) occurs when an individual makes an investment with a low probability of a payoff because an earlier investment has already been made. It is considered an error because a rational decision maker should not factor in now-irretrievable investments, as they do not affect current-outcome likelihoods. Previous research has measured the tendency to commit the SCF by using hypothetical scenarios in which participants must choose to make a future investment or not after making an initial investment. Loss aversion, the preference for uncertain over certain losses, may be related to SCF. In this study, participants were asked …

Connecting To Disconnect: Internet Access And Loss Of Trust In Pre-Arab Spring Egypt, Rolf David Dixon Jr.

FHSS Mentored Research Conference

Research has shown that seeking out and deliberating with like-minded individuals can contribute to the fragmentation and polarization of societies. The study posits that the internet can contributes to just such like-minded reinforcement, via a phenomenon called the echo chamber effect. An analysis of the World Values Survey of Egypt in 2001 supports the claim that the internet can contribute to fragmentation and polarization, as measured by a lack of trust. The analysis shows that access to the Internet, even as early as 2001, with the limited penetration it had in in Egypt at that time, still had a measurable, …

More Money, Less Problems? New Answers To Aid Allocation Questions, Jackson Beazer

FHSS Mentored Research Conference

I wanted to investigate how the economic growth of developing countries affects the amount of aid it receives. In a study of the models previously used in aid allocation research, I noticed that the literature alternates between aid per capita and total commitment amounts as the dependent variable. After trying both, I found that economic growth is significant in the aid allocation models, but not in the aid per capita models. I hypothesized that while aid per capita models embody an individual focus on the needs of the recipient country, total aid allocation models embody more of a focus on …

Stepfamily Experiences Project (Step), Kevin Shafer, Erin K. Holmes

Journal of Undergraduate Research

The Stepfamily Experience Project (STEP) is a data set made up of approximately 1,500 emerging adults (aged 18-29) that was collected in 2013. STEP was motivated by a research literature which argues that stepfamilies are worse off than two-biological parent families (sometimes called biologically-intact families). While, on average, this may be true, STEP researchers thought that this research ignored what makes a successful stepfamily. This is unfortunate, because stepfamilies are of immense worth which can positively impact men, women, and children. As a result, we collected data, with the support of BYU and generous donors, to find out exactly what …

Gender And Political Ambition, Jessica Preece, Olga Bogach

Journal of Undergraduate Research

The purpose of this proposal was to fund a field experiment that examined the ways in which political parties could increase women’s desire to run for office (their “political ambition”). Specifically, we worked with the Utah County Republican Party¹ to organize a “Prospective Candidate Information Seminar” to which they invited over 11,000 active party members. However, there were several versions of the invitation that made different kinds of appeals (to civic duty or by talking about the part-time nature of political positions in Utah, for example).

Assessing The Effects Of Common Social Identity On Individual Effort And Cooperation In Cross-Gender Teams., Joseph Price

Journal of Undergraduate Research

The academic objectives of this projects included introducing mentored students to experimental methods in economics and providing them with a unique experience working with the tools of this new field. This was particularly important for our students preparing to attend graduate school and likely to work for companies such as Savvysherpa, for which experimental methods are becoming a very important tool.

Assessing The Effects Of Common Social Identity On Individual Effort And Cooperation In Cross-Gender Teams., Joseph Price

Journal of Undergraduate Research

The academic objectives of this projects included introducing mentored students to experimental methods in economics and providing them with a unique experience working with the tools of this new field. This was particularly important for our students preparing to attend graduate school and likely to work for companies such as Savvysherpa, for which experimental methods are becoming a very important tool.

The Effects Of Classwide Function-Related Intervention Teams On Preschool Behavior, Krystine Alycia Jolstead

Theses and Dissertations

Challenging behavior in preschool is a serious concern for teachers. In recent years, positive behavior support (PBS) has been shown to be effective in reducing such behaviors. Class-Wide Function-related Intervention Teams (CW-FIT) is a specific program for implementing PBS principles in classroom settings. CW-FIT is a group contingency that utilizes social skills training, teacher praise, and positive reinforcement to improve student behavior. Students are taught specific social skills and then work in teams to earn a group reward based on the use of these skills. CW-FIT has been shown to be effective in elementary classrooms but has not yet been …

Student Perceptions Of Book In A Bag As An Integrated Social Skills Instruction Program, Hans Ryckaert Gaul

Theses and Dissertations

Positive behavioral support and social emotional learning (SEL) are important ingredients in fostering student success and mitigating the incidence of aggressive and harmful behaviors. Although schools provide the ideal environment in which to implement these interventions, there are obstacles to doing so. These obstacles include the amount of time and resources an intervention takes, as well as the social validity of the intervention. To determine social validity, those who implement interventions must consider stakeholder groups’ perceptions and buy in towards the intervention. Because students are typically the primary target population, their perceptions of proposed interventions are particularly important. Each month …