Social and Behavioral Sciences Commons^™

All Donors Great And Small: Putting The 2008 Surge In Individual Political Contributions In Perspective, Dr. Jay Goodliffe

Journal of Undergraduate Research

Using funding from the Mentoring Environment Grant, we produced a full book manuscript that is currently under review at different university presses (“Message, Messenger, and Medium: Understanding the 2008 Presidential Donor Surge”). The book consists of 10 chapters and is over 500 manuscript pages.

Multilingual Extraction Ontologies, Dr. Deryle Lonsdale

Journal of Undergraduate Research

On December 29, 2009 we were informed that our application for a 2010 MEG grant was approved. This final report sketches the accomplishments attained during the project’s timeframe since then.

The Cognitive Neuroscience Of Long-Term Memory, Dr. Brock Kirwan

Journal of Undergraduate Research

Memory is an essential cognitive ability. It allows us to use past events to guide future actions. Research in my laboratory focuses on determining the mechanics of how the brain remembers what it does. We are interested in determining what will be remembered and what will be forgotten. Specifically, my research focuses on one aspect of memory encoding that allows us to form distinct memory representations for stimuli and events that are very similar. For example, the location where you parked your car this morning is probably very similar to the location where you parked your car many times before. …

Neurophysiological Substrates Of Alcohol Addiction, Dr. Scott Steffensen

Journal of Undergraduate Research

Research in my lab is dedicated to the elucidation of brain substrates underlying drug addiction. Elder Boyd K. Packer has stated, “It is my conviction, and my constant prayer, that there will come through research, through inspiration to scientists if need be, the power to conquer narcotic addiction through the same means which cause it.”(Packer 1989). This plea from Elder Packer is emblazoned on a poster at the entrance to my laboratory to remind us of the seriousness of addiction research and the stranglehold that addiction has on the lives of many of God’s children. We study critical brain circuits …

Screening For Emotional And Behavioral Problems In Secondary Schools, Dr. Ellie Young

Journal of Undergraduate Research

The academic objectives were achieved for this grant. Students were mentored in reviewing a large body of research that focused on understanding the needs, behaviors, and outcomes for adolescent students with behavioral and emotional concerns. This provided a foundation for developing an evidence-based screening measure.

Book In The Bag: An Integrated Approach To Social Skills Instruction, Dr. Michelle Marchant

Journal of Undergraduate Research

The following are the objectives we proposed to evaluate for this grant. Overall, each of the objectives were evaluated successfully. The majority of teachers at Lakeview chose to participate, but not all. The social studies and literacy component of the bags was used considerably less than the social skills. The perceptions of the teachers regarding the social skills component of Book in a Bag were favorable.

Validation Of A Secondary School Eating Disorder Prevention Curriculum, Dr. Lane Fischer

Journal of Undergraduate Research

In winter semseter, 2009, I received a Mentoring Environment Grant (MEG) to study the effectiveness of a secondary school eating disorder prevention curriculum. Four students, Jill Smedley, Rachel McCarty (Doyle) Jenna Johnson (Murray) and Janine Stickney worked as a team to execute the overall project which resulted in four masters theses, two integrated presentations at a national conference, one integrated local presentation, and one integrated research award of $1,000 from a national professional organization. An integrated publication in a peer reviewed journal will be the last product to emerge from the MEG. Overall, the MEG was a smashing success, one …

An Online Bibliography And Index Of 19th-Century Music Copyists, Dr. David Day

Journal of Undergraduate Research

The goals of this project as stated in the original proposal include the following academic objectives:

The creation of an online bibliography of research that documents music copyists. Creation of an online prototype index of music copyists’ hands. A joint conference presentation by two BYU students at the July 2010 meeting of the International Association of Music Libraries held in Moscow, Russia. A published article representing the revised conference presentation of the two students.

Does Killing Drug Cartel Leaders Increase Violence In Mexico?, Alex Wilson, Jay Goodliffe

FHSS Mentored Research Conference

Soon after Felipe Calderon became president of Mexico, he drastically changed the country's policy concerning drug cartels and drug trade. The policy moved from destroying production of drugs, such as burning poppy and marijuana fields, to an attack on the organization of the Drug Cartels. Opponents of this action, argue that the policy has been ineffective in reducing drug flow, but has only increased violence. One argument made for the increasing violence is that the killing of drug cartel leaders leads to fractionalization and competition within the cartel. This fractionalization then leads to violence as different members of the cartel …

Perceptual Influences For Potential Hoarders, Sam Hardy, Marie Ricks, Brian Appel, Alex Dresden

FHSS Mentored Research Conference

Hoarding is defined as "(1) the acquisition of, and failure to, discard a large number of possessions that appear to be ... of limited value, (2) living spaces sufficiently cluttered so as to preclude activities for which these spaces were designed, (3) significant ... impairment in functioning caused by the hoarding, and (4) reluctance ... to return borrowed items." The average age of onset for hoarders is 11-15 years of age, with most hoarders reporting symptoms before age 20. Our research sought to find correlations regarding public perceptions of hoarding, including demographic, personal, and socioeconomic factors. Using a 55-question online …

Measuring Maladaptive Perfectionism, Joanna Burton, Amber Veazey, Melissa Tingey, Kat Green

FHSS Mentored Research Conference

Perfectionism is a personality trait in which individuals set high standards for themselves that are in line with an ideal image of how they should look, act, and perform. Perfectionism can be both adaptive and maladaptive. Identifying maladaptive perfectionism may aid individuals in consciously overcoming the negative side effects associated with maladaptive perfectionism and help individuals practice an adaptive perfectionism. We hypothesized that our measure, the Maladaptive or Adaptive Personality Scale (MAPS) would reliably and validly indicate and measure the presence of maladaptive perfectionism. Our measure used ten 4-point Likert scale questions measuring behavioral and emotional manifestations of perfectionism. MAPS …

Book Reviews, Laina Farhat-Holzman, Bertil Haggman, Pedro Geiger, Michael Andregg

Comparative Civilizations Review

No abstract provided.

Sexual Desire Discrepancy: A Dyadic Longitudinal Study, Anthony A. Hughes, James Harper

FHSS Mentored Research Conference

Using questionnaires, self-report, and partner report of spouse, this five year longitudinal investigation examined the growth trajectory of the sexual desire discrepancy (SDD) of married partners within midlife, with insecure attachment at time 1 as a predictor. Findings showed that insecure attachment was a significant predictor of wives intercept but not for husbands. Insecure attachment wasn't a significant predictor of either partner's slope. As husbands SDD score changed, their growth across time had an inverse change. Husband slope and intercept had an inverse correlation. Wives intercept and husband intercept correlated or changed together. Wife slope and husband intercept had an …

The Best Way To Select State Court Judges, Curtis Thomas, Sven Wilson

FHSS Mentored Research Conference

Due to the spending increase in campaigns for state court judges and to the controversial positions taken by state court judges on high-profile issues, research has increased into the methods state use to select their judges. This poster highlights research into the best method for selecting state court judges. By comparing the different methods for selecting state court judges currently in use according to goals considered to be relevant to this issue, I conclude that the best method for selecting state court judges is a combination of appointment for a state's highest court judges and non-partisan elections for a state's …

Barriers To Accommodation Use For Students With Disabilities In Postsecondary Education, Michael James Lyman

Theses and Dissertations

Students with disabilities at the postsecondary level face a number of different barriers to accommodation use. Past research has shown that students with disabilities that use accommodations obtain greater academic achievement and higher graduation rates. Limited research has been conducted to identify barriers to accommodation use, and the research that has been conducted has not sampled a population that was specifically identified as having faced barriers to accommodation use. By interviewing students with disabilities, who had been identified as having faced barriers, this study identified seven themes. Four of the identified themes were considered complex as they contained sub-themes, while …

Children, Spouses, And Attitudes: Impact On Women's Work Status, Mengxi Li Seeley, James B. Mcdonald

FHSS Mentored Research Conference

Women face unique challenges in their balancing of career and family. Some questions women consider include children and childcare, spouses' earning potential and relationship stability, and their own attitudes on family relationships and gender roles. This study uses probit and probit with instrumental variables to examine the effects of these considerations on women's fulltime work status, the dependent variable. Under the assumption of traditional social views regarding men as breadwinners and women as nurturers, increased childcare pressures and spousal potential to provide are expected to decrease the incentive for women to work fulltime. The results of this study are mostly …

The Hispanic Mortality Paradox: A Systematic Review And Meta-Analysis Of The Longitudinal Literature, J. Ruiz, P. Steffen, Timothy B. Smith

Faculty Publications

Objectives: The current objective was to compare Hispanic mortality rates to those of other racial/ethnic groups in order to investigate the possibility of a Hispanic mortality advantage.

Methods: We conducted a systematic review and meta-analysis of the published longitudinal literature reporting Hispanic individuals’ mortality of any cause compared with that of any other racial/ethnic group.

Results: Across 58 studies (4,615,747 participants), the random effects weighted average effect size was OR = 0.825 (P < .001, 95% CI = 0.75 to 0.91), corresponding to a 17.5% lower risk of mortality among Hispanic populations compared to other racial groups. The difference in mortality risk tended to be greater among older populations and varied as a function of pre-existing health condition, with effects apparent for initially healthy samples and for those with cardiovascular diseases. The results also differed by racial group comparison: Hispanics had lower overall risk for mortality than non-Hispanic Whites and non-Hispanic Blacks, but overall higher risk for mortality than Asian Americans.

Conclusions: These findings provide evidence of a small Hispanic mortality advantage, with implications for conceptualizing and addressing racial/ethnic health disparities.

Predictors Of Perfectionism In Latter-Day Saint Students, Preston V. Tenney

Theses and Dissertations

The purpose of the present study was to gain insight into the prevalence, nature and etiology of perfectionism in a sample of devout Latter-day Saint college students at Brigham Young University. A number of variables-including self-conscious emotions, mental health, interpersonal/cognitive style, and religious orientation-were entered into multiple regression models to determine the strongest predictors of perfectionism. Participants were 245 students studying at Brigham Young University in Provo, UT in the spring of 1995. The self-conscious construct of shame demonstrated to be the strongest predictor of perfectionism followed by depression and religious fundamentalism. In addition to these findings, it was found …

Effects Of Teacher Gender On Screening For Social, Emotional, And Behavioral Concerns For A Middle School Population, Susan E. Hardman

Theses and Dissertations

Students with Emotional and Behavioral Disorders (EBD) often experience serious educational difficulties and negative outcomes (Gresham, MacMillan, & Bocian, 1996; Landrum, Tankersley, & Kauffman, 2003; Rock, Fessler, & Church, 1997). School-wide screening to identify students with social, emotional, and behavioral concerns (SEB) allows school personnel to identify at-risk students and connect them with needed resources. Some students appear to be identified disproportionally, with male students identified as at-risk more frequently then female students (Young, Sabbah, Young, Reiser, & Richardson, 2009). There are many possible factors that could contribute to this disproportionate identification. Since screening for EBD is often based on …

Stepfamily Functioning And Closeness: Children's Views On Second Marriages And Stepfather Relationships, Todd M. Jensen, Kevin Shafer

Faculty Publications

Current research on stepfamily well-being often overlooks the perspective of children, and deals primarily with factors as reported by the adults involved. The authors examine a number of family role characteristics, parental subsystem characteristics, and resources that might influence how children perceive the quality of their stepfamily relationships. A sample of 1,088 children in households with a mother and stepfather, ages 10 to 16 years, in the National Longitudinal Survey of Youth, 1979 cohort—Children and Young Adult Sample, is used for the analyses. Results indicate that open communication between children and their mothers, low amounts of arguing between mothers and …

The Influence Of Media On Himba Conceptions Of Dress, Ancestral And Cattle Worship, And The Implications For Culture Change, Austin Sterling Cameron

Theses and Dissertations

For the Himba, deeply embedded cultural symbols—traditional daily way of life, traditional beliefs about the sacredness of cattle, and religious beliefs of ancestral worship—are of ancient origin and have been retained in their culture throughout all of recorded history. While they still exist in Himba society today, some scholars have observed a potential widespread generational shift in adherence to these core cultural values and beliefs. This study presents the findings of 41 in-depth interviews with members of the Himba tribe in northern Namibia—specifically Opuwo and Otutati—ages 18 to 65. It examines the degree to which cultural differences are emerging as …

A Social History Of Technology In Libraries, Richard Hacken

Faculty Publications

For the International Conference on Information Systems and Technologies in Tangier, Morocco, on March 22, 2013, I presented a social history of technology in libraries over the past 30 years. In addition I speculated what the future may bring socially and technologically, obviously from my perspective as a librarian.

Evaluation Of Evaluation In Development Organizations, Dr. Tim Heaton

Journal of Undergraduate Research

In some respects, we did not achieve all of the goals of the proposed work, but in other ways this project lead to the development of a new program that has been a success. The first objective was to review the literature on evaluation. This phase of the proposal was completed as proposed. Students searched a variety of journal articles and classified published articles according to the type of organization, the type of project, research method used, and conclusions. This review confirmed our sense that a wide variety of organizations do evaluation, but that there is not a strong sense …

Blogging In Defense Of Themselves: Social Media Implications For Rhetorical Criticism And The Genre Of Apologia, Ramona Dee Wheeler

Theses and Dissertations

The advent of social media has provided an arena where barriers to entry are low. Individuals may persuade, question others and defend both their philosophies and their actions. This study examines the classic role of rhetorical criticism as it may apply in new media venues. A blog written by a public figure was examined through a synthesis of rhetorical criticism analyses derived from Ware and Linkugel, Vartabedian, and Downey. Four strategies and associated positioning in the practice of apologia were identified in selected blog posts, indicating the genre of apologia applies to social media apologies and extends the genre of …

Facing Reality: An Experimental Approach To Ethnic Identity, Dr. Michael Findley, Dr. Daniel Nielson

Journal of Undergraduate Research

The research project has been successful, overall, and we are continuing to prepare research for publication. When we recruited students to assist us with the research, we asked them to develop their own research project that they could carry out in addition to ours. Prior to leaving to South Africa in June, we helped the students develop several additional smaller projects.

Refinement
 And 
Validation 
Of 
Elicited 
Imitation 
As 
A 
Measure
 Of 
Oral
 Proficiency, Dr. Dan Dewey

Journal of Undergraduate Research

We 
were 
able 
to 
achieve 
most 
of 
the 
goals 
established
 in 
the 
MEG 
proposal 
we
 submitted
 in 
the 
Fall 
of 
2008 
(for
 a 
grant 
Winter, 
2009). 

We 
did 
end 
up
 adjusting
 the 
project 
and 
use 
of 
the 
funds 
slightly 
to 
adapt 
to 
changing 
needs 
and 
to 
fit 
the
 personnel 
available 
to 
accomplish
 the 
tasks. 

One 
example
 of 
adapting 
was
 that 
we
 had 
an 
outstanding 
graduate 
student 
in 
Linguistics 
who 
was 
able 
to 
team
 up 
with
 several 
undergraduates 
to
 create
 an 
Elicited
 Imitation 
(EI) 
test 
in 
Japanese. 

Much 
of
 our
 development 
occurred 
in 
Japanese
 as
 a
 result.

The Relationship Between Frequency Of Incest And Relational Outcomes With Family-Of-Origin Characteristics As A Potential Moderating Variable, Kathleen Diane Baxter

Theses and Dissertations

As we examined research on the relational effects of incest on survivors, several researchers noted that some of the negative outcomes may be moderated by certain family characteristic variables. Using RELATE data, we examined a subsample of females and males who reported being survivors of incest in childhood and compared them on key family-of-origin processes such as mother and father's marital satisfaction as well as family violence. We used a path analysis to determine whether family processes, specifically functional parents' marriage and low physical violence, moderate the relationship between incest and marital quality in adulthood. Functional family-of-origin processes significantly moderated …

Qualitative Analysis Of Women Who Make Motherwork A Career Choice: Religious Minorities, Karen Adell Jensen

Theses and Dissertations

Interviews were conducted with 44 highly religious women from three demographics: Mennonite, Evangelical Christians and Cajun Catholics. The results provide insight into the reasons that faith appears to play a part in making motherwork a deliberate choice for many women. Comparing and contrasting the interviews within and between demographics as well as allowing for the influences of modern academia and media on attitudes toward motherwork grants voice to these often marginalized religious minorities. The resulting analysis shows that all of these women, to varying degrees, find value in motherwork. Each group seemed to have a perspective of this work which …

Toward A More Inclusive Construct Of Native Chinese Speaker L2 Written Error Gravity, Steven K. Holland

Theses and Dissertations

The purpose of this study is to determine two types of error gravity in a corpus of texts written by native Chinese learners of English (ELLs)—one that enriches the traditional construct of gravity found in error gravity research by including error frequency, or how often an error occurs in a text relative to others, as an intervening variable, and one that applies the new error gravity data in a practical way to help establish salient grammatical focal points for written corrective feedback (WCF). Previous error gravity research has suggested that the amount of irritation caused by error is determined by …

Meta-Analysis Of The Effectiveness Of Biological And Non-Biological Treatments For Postpartum Depression, Sarah Jeung Soon Christian

Theses and Dissertations

I provided an updated, comprehensive review of treatments for mothers diagnosed with postpartum depression. Studies included in this meta-analysis were single-group pre-posttest, non-randomized and randomized controlled studies published from 1986 to 2010 that included face-to-face psychotherapy and psychopharmacology as well as non-traditional methods such as exercise and nurse-assisted counseling. 53 published studies were analyzed. The randomized studies showed a moderate to large effects (d= 0.72 to 1.25, k= 9) when postpartum interventions were compared to a control condition, and smaller effects (d= 0.3 to 0.57, k = 13) to treatment as usual. When postpartum interventions were compared to each other …