Social and Behavioral Sciences Commons^™

Along For The Journey: Graduate Student Perceptions Of Research, Alissa Droog, Kari D. Weaver, Frances Brady

Faculty Peer-Reviewed Publications

Graduate student identities and personal lives are heavily tied to their experiences of research, and many struggle to find, understand, and use information for research purposes. Using a drawing exercise rooted in visual research methods combined with semi-structured interviews, a research team in the United States and Canada explored graduate student perceptions of research with 19 participants. Thematic analysis identified six themes: research is abstract; research is an odyssey; social support makes or breaks the student experience; research is an emotional continuum; interplay between identity/values; information is problematic. The study has implications for how librarians support graduate student research.

The Relationship Between Autistic Traits, Autistic Camouflaging, And Adults’ Representations Of Abstract And Social Concepts, Henry Tomiser, Katja Wiemer Dr.

Honors Capstones

Concrete concepts (e.g., BUTTON) can be experienced directly by the senses, whereas abstract concepts (e.g., FRIENDSHIP) cannot. Additionally, the mind may represent abstract concepts using more introspective, social, and emotional information than concrete concepts. Social difficulties are one defining feature of autism, and autistic individuals may use social camouflaging to hide these difficulties, but the precise nature of social processing in autism is not known. This study aims to explore possible links between autistic traits, autistic camouflaging, and mental representations of concepts. Participants gave open-ended definitions for concepts varying in concreteness and social content via an online survey. Responses were …

Antagonism Attenuates The Relationship Between Childhood Polyvictimization And Distress In Adulthood, Benjamin D. Carsten

Honors Capstones

The cumulative effects of childhood polyvictimization, including incremental increases in experiences of childhood maltreatment (CM) types, such as sexual abuse and emotional neglect are associated with an increase in psychological distress. Personality trait domains as measured by the Personality Inventory of the DSM-5, are independently associated with psychological distress, and are thought to moderate the association between traumatic events and distress. The present study was conducted with a sample of undergraduate students (N = 485) who were administered a battery of questionnaires including the Childhood Trauma Questionnaire (CTQ), Inventory of Depression and Anxiety Symptoms (IDAS-II) and the Personality Inventory for …

Childhood Sexual Abuse And The Role Of Experiential Avoidance In College Alcohol Use, Regina Montes

Honors Capstones

Childhood trauma has been related in numerous studies to maladaptive behavior as well as risky behaviors in adulthood, such as alcohol use. However, few studies have focused specifically on the relationship between childhood sexual abuse (CSA) and alcohol use. Moreover, experiential avoidance has been shown to be an important factor in poor behavioral outcomes in young adults with a history of childhood trauma. The present study explores experiential avoidance as a mediating factor of the relationship between CSA and alcohol severity in college students. Data for this current investigation was collected as a part of a larger study of undergraduate …

Test Anxiety Inflation, Brian Podkulski, David P. Valentiner

Honors Capstones

Mental health conditions are higher than ever worldwide, despite best efforts to increase public awareness and deliver informed solutions. To account for this rise, some suggested models argue that measures taken to ameliorate mental health problems are actually contributing to their inflation through iatrogenic effects. The current proposed study seeks to identify the possibility of iatrogenic effects on test anxiety as a product of psychoeducational material. The scope of this study includes the immediate effects of viewing a typical short-form informational video on core and adjacent symptoms of test anxiety. Participants will engage with our study entirely through an online …

Trauma Type, Resilience And Sense Of Self, Caitlin R. Callahan

Honors Capstones

Most individuals will experience at least one traumatic event in their lifetime (Alim et al., 2008), potentially leading to a diagnosis of Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder. PTSD can have significant psychological and physical repercussions (Brady et al., 1997). Experiencing trauma, such as interpersonal or non-interpersonal, can negatively impact resiliency and sense of self. The current study hypothesized that participants who reported interpersonal trauma as their worst event would report lower resilience and sense of self compared to participants reporting a non-interpersonal trauma. Four hundred and twenty-nine undergraduate students were given questionnaires to assess traumatic experiences, resiliency, and sense of self using …

Belonging And Disagreeing: Arab Student Activism On A College Campus, Angelina E. Baroud

Honors Capstones

There has not been sufficient research on Arab college students and their activism in the United States. This topic is especially important because of the new wave of protests across college campuses due to the Israel-Hamas war. This project focused on what made Arab students join an Arab organization at a university in the Midwest and the disagreements that exist within the group. Data was gathered through participant observations of the group meetings and semi-structured interviews with the group members. This study found that the desire to connect with their culture and find a sense of community brought Arab students …

Understanding Civic Engagement Through The Perspective And Experiences Of Mixed-Status Latinx Students In Higher Education, Alexandra Alcantar

Honors Capstones

This paper captures the perspectives and experiences of eight Latinx college-aged students from mixed-status families related to civil engagement. This paper identifies varied definitions of civic engagement and shows that students’ experiences within their mixed-status families and their academic experiences shaped how they understood their level of civic engagement and informed their career paths. The eight oral history interviews conducted as part of this project show that most of the participants consider their level of political involvement as insufficient. Interviews reveal an understanding of “civic engagement” that exists on an evolving spectrum of participation. Participants shared that work responsibilities and …

Sexual Exploitation: The Crisis And Eradicative Solution, Tonnie Adams Bracey

Student Capstone Projects

French writer Jean-Baptiste Alphonse Karr wrote, “The more things change, the more they stay the same.” I find this to be true in our current era of the digital age. Although technology has gifted a newly improved and vast method of making worldwide connections and broadening our perceptions and views, a change in how we communicate has conveniently presented itself, but the historic pattern of how we handle these new advancements have indeed stayed the same.
Smart phones are a mainstream vessel employing the world with a plethora of information while giving all sorts of people access to individual’s lives …

A Holy Decline, Destiny Ervins

Student Capstone Projects

Christian churches have been a visible contributor to American religion for centuries. However, there has been a noticeable decline in Christian church membership attendance rates. A survey at a small church called Mt. Ebal was conducted to further analyze this topic. The survey was short and concise and rendered around 30 responses. Around 50% of respondents said there had been a decrease in membership attendance. The other 50% consisted of those that said there was an increase, those that said there was no change, and those that were not able to judge based off their less than 10-year membership. The …

Designing For Everyone: Accessibility, Inclusion, And Equity In Online Instruction, Kimberly Shotick

Faculty Books & Book Chapters

This chapter introduces practices that promote equity and inclusion in online learning spaces through the lens of Universal Design for Learning.

A Survey Of Fear For Others, Fear For Self, And Pandemic Anxiety Predicting Intention To Take The First Booster Vaccine To Combat Covid-19, Joseph N. Scudder, Dennis P. Debeck

Faculty Peer-Reviewed Publications

This study examined the impact of fear and anxiety on the intent to take the first COVID-19 booster vaccine. The objective of this study is to provide guidance for messaging campaigns of public health practitioners. A survey approach provided insights about individuals’ emotions of fear and anxiety related to adopting the first booster vaccine for the Coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19). Methods: Three independent variables were considered in their ability to predict the intent to take the first COVID-19 booster vaccine (BINT): Fear for Others (FOTH), Fear for SELF (FSELF), and COVID-19 Anxiety (CANX). Results: The confirmatory factor analysis supported an …

Gender Differences In Youth’S Mental Health Problems During The Covid-19 Pandemic, Kimberly A. Hohlfeld

Honors Capstones

The purpose of this research paper is to examine whether young girls were more likely to experience depression and anxiety symptoms than young boys during the COVID-19 pandemic at two time points, in April of 2020 and May of 2020. An additional hypothesis that was examined was whether the presence of siblings in the home moderated the association between gender and depression and anxiety symptoms during the COVID-19 pandemic. T-tests were used to analyze the mean differences in youth mental health symptoms based on gender. Young girls were found to experience significantly higher anxiety symptoms in May of 2020 than …

Assessing The Association Between Experiential Avoidance, Resilience, And Post-Traumatic Stress Symptoms, Victoria G. Latayan

Honors Capstones

Resilience is a specific skill that can be fostered over time which, when mastered in greater amounts, allows individuals to more readily cope with interpersonal conflict and stress. The purpose of this study was to examine the extent to which experiential avoidance of distressing stimuli and trait resilience predict Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD) symptoms. To test this, participants were instructed to complete self-report questionnaires that assessed experiential avoidance and resilience. Each participant also completed the PTSD checklist for DSM-5. The results of the study showed that while trait resilience did not significantly predict Post-Traumatic Stress Symptoms (PTSS), experiential avoidance and …

Let The Music Play:Using Community Engagement To Develop A New Sustainable Audience, Leslie D. Wilcher

Student Capstone Projects

Abstract

The Symphony is a dying breed of live music. The lack of classical music education and interest has left barriers to the symphony. Around the country, nonprofit symphonies are adapting to build a sustainable audience. So, how do we stop the closures of the orchestras? How does the Kishwaukee Symphony Orchestra engage the community through programming and events to accommodate a new sustainable audience for the Kishwaukee Symphony Orchestra (KSO)? My research will show that new audience members are waiting to be introduced to the symphony.

This research shows that community engagement is the key to bringing a sustainable …

Breaking The Loop: Strategies For Fighting Climate Change On U.S. Farms, Ashley Barry

Honors Capstones

Climate change is an increasingly urgent area of research due to the hardships it causes for lands and communities across the globe. Specifically in regard to the United States (U.S.), climate change has many concerning implications on our agricultural system. Increased weather hazards, decreased crop production, and drought are just a few of the hardships American farmers are facing in their fight to keep their farms alive and feed their communities, despite a rapidly changing climate. This study investigates how farmers can fight and prevent climate change through the use of specific mitigation and adaptation strategies on their farms. Semi- …

Panem's Parallel's: Authoritarianism In The Real World, Quentin J. Stewart

Honors Capstones

Throughout the twentieth century, there has been an increasing awareness and fear of authoritarian governments in the Western world, the United States in particular. While these methods of governance were steadily becoming more present in Western media throughout the twentieth and twenty-first centuries, portrayals of authoritarianism and dystopia experienced a peak in popularity toward the end of the two-thousands decade, with book and film franchises like The Hunger Games by Suzanne Collins spearheading this emergence. Many of the themes and aspects of the series setting alert the audience to many of the ways authoritarianism can be seen in real life, …

Train Travel As An Adventure, Stormy Kara

Honors Capstones

The train is often seen as a slow, old, and antiquated mode of transportation, and the prevalence of train travel in the modern-day United States is nowhere near where it once was. Other methods of transportation, such as the airplane or the automobile, have taken over as primary choices for travelers in the country. The Bureau of Transportation Statistics (2022) reported approximately 80,400,000 trips were taken by airplane in July 2022, compared with just 2,500,000 trips taken via intercity rail in the same time period. However, more than 300 intercity trains operate daily via the quasi-public corporation Amtrak and serve …

The Effects Of Color On Flavor, Tiffany S. Yoo

Honors Capstones

Color and its relation to flavor, is a complex cognitive phenomenon that researchers today are still trying to decipher. The present literature review is an examination of the history of color, process of color perception, the effects of additional factors such as saturation, the exploration of senses that may potentially contribute to perception itself, and the different modern theories suggested. The purpose of this project was to review, revise, and narrow down which theories can be deemed as accurate in terms of the amount of support addressed by modern literature. While a clear-cut answer was not concluded, three potential theories …

Odds At A Job: The Post – Graduate Success Of Nngo Students, Dasha Denia Randle

Student Capstone Projects

This capstone is a case study on graduates from Northern Illinois University who majored, minored, or received a certificate in Nonprofit and NGO studies. This qualitative and quantitative study seeks to measure the employment trends of graduates from the Nonprofit and NGO studies major. As well as make a comparison between the post-graduate experiences of graduates who interned via the Center for Nonprofit and NGO studies and graduates who didn’t. Prior research suggests that paid internships generally have a positive correlation with entry-level career success. However, there is not much research on this relationship within the social sector. I’m interested …

Factors That Influence Black Youth Voter Turnout, Arianna T. Ramos

Honors Capstones

This paper examines the factors that influence black youth voter turnout. First, this paper discusses how it is related to and implemented into black studies. After a brief justification of the need, this paper examines specific factors that influence black youth voter turnout. These factors are then applied with factors that affect youth voter turnout. This paper ends with a survey for black students between the ages of 18-25 to study the factors that influence black youth voter turnout.

Analyzing Parent Trust As A Predictor Of Parental Involvement With Adhd As Moderator, Justin D. Ligeski

Honors Capstones

The current study examined the relationship between parent trust and parent involvement. Higher levels of parent involvement have been shown to have positive effects on child behavior and achievement, and past studies have found significant positive correlations between levels of trust and involvement. ADHD was examined as a possible moderator of the association between trust and parent involvement. Extant data from a larger study involving parents of students in kindergarten was examined. Regression was used to examine the association between parent trust and parent involvement behaviors. ADHD was included in the regression models as a moderator. Results indicated that some …

Nonprofit Employee Work Engagement: A Ripple Effect Impacting Communities, Isabel Raymundo

Student Capstone Projects

The nonprofit sector is experiencing a growth in professionalization, and as such it is important to pay attention to keeping employees engaged at work to be able to compete in a competitive job market. As most nonprofit employees do direct service work, keeping employees engaged should be a primary focus since the sector is known for burnout. Not only is work engagement essential for employee retention, but due to the intensity of the work to meet the mission of the organization, keeping employees engaged is better for the overall health of the organization. If employees are engaged in their work, …

Thrifting Your Way To The Bank: How Student Consumption Of Recycled Clothing Impacts Financial Stability, Ally Mikos

Student Capstone Projects

This qualitative study examines the impact that is made upon university student’s finances when purchasing recycled clothing. It analyzes how utilizing recycled, free or reduced price clothing sources affects student finances as compared to full price/new purchases. Previous research has indicated that two thirds of college students have acquired debt by the time of graduation, yet students have been found to spend as much as $1,000 on clothing per semester. Despite the clear financial burden of paying for college, students still prioritize shopping for clothing, which prompts the research question: To what extent does college student’s use of recycled clothing …

Only 2000 Psi Of Bottom-Time Air: A Case Study Of Diveheart Participant Social Capital, Kirk J. Williams

Student Capstone Projects

Social capital development for many, but not all, is a relatively organic process, and as social creatures, people work together to reach collective goals. The defined interactions related to the practices of societal norms, taboos, and broad cultural acceptance are constructs of communal decisions lending deep credence to the value of any number of the social capital definitions. However, opportunities are not always readily available to individuals living with disabilities, so they can and do get left out to varied degrees. With unsurprising results, previous research relied on comparing survey data from individuals with and without disabilities to identify possible …

The Effect Of Abortion Rights’ Political Activity On Engagement With Planned Parenthood, Emma C. Hazen

Student Capstone Projects

In 2022, Roe v. Wade was overturned by the Supreme Court of the United States. Abortion became a hot topic of debate. Activists turned their attention to the issue with new vigor, and countless nonprofits became involved as well. The purpose of this study serves to explore the influence of political activity pertaining to abortion rights on Planned Parenthood. The aim is to analyze the ways that Planned Parenthood, as a national nonprofit, is affected by changes in the political sphere, which in turn generates activity via abortion activists.

This study will evaluate the extent to which abortion activity in …

Mothers’ Use Of Internal State Words With Toddlers With And Without Hearing Loss During Natural Play, Sarah D. Screnock

Honors Capstones

This study examined differences between mothers’ use of internal state words with toddlers with hearing loss and toddlers without hearing loss. Mothers’ speech to toddlers without hearing loss and mothers of toddlers with hearing loss while engaging in natural play was transcribed and analyzed using Systematic Analysis of Language Transcripts (SALT) software. Twelve toddlers with hearing loss were age matched with 12 toddlers without hearing loss and were also language matched with twelve additional toddlers without hearing loss to create three participant groups- hearing loss, age matched, and MLU matched controls. Mothers’ internal state words were identified and categorized by …

Christianity And Mental Health Counseling: Voices Of The Black-Negro American Experience, Kyle Preston Goodwin

Graduate Research Theses & Dissertations

The narration of the lived experiences of Black-Negro Christian Americans in relation to mental health counseling services is vital because opportunities for researchers and clinicians to hear their voices instead of a story written for them by the leading culture is created. Specifically, when it comes to Black-Negro spirituality and religion as part of Black-Negro culture, it is one of the most beautiful and intriguing experiences that exists. A critical theory paradigm is being used for how knowledge is created and disseminated for the purposes of social change. Narrative Qualitative research is used to capture the Black-Negro voice, along with …

Nigerian Media: A Comparative Media Analysis, Temilade Inumidun Adeeko

Graduate Research Theses & Dissertations

The comparative media analysis of Nigeria using Hallin and Mancini's model provides an insightful examination of the country's media system. Hallin and Mancini's model analyzes four dimensions: the degree of state intervention, the degree of political parallelism, the level of journalistic professionalism, and the role of the state. They offer three models of media and politics: The Liberal model, the Democratic Corporatist, and the Polarized Pluralist. Nigeria’s media system is characterized by high state intervention and political parallelism, significant control over media content by the state, a close relationship between the media and political parties, and a low level of …

Herstory 101: Examining The Representation Gap Of Bipoc Women Educational Leaders, Kinasha Brown

Graduate Research Theses & Dissertations

Background/Purpose: The purpose of this study was to examine how lived experiences influenced perceptions of leadership self-efficacy amongst Black, Indigenous, or Person of Color (BIPOC) women educational leaders in order to minimize future representation gaps in educational leadership. Methods: Qualitative interviews were conducted with 14 BIPOC cis-gender female leaders who worked in a large school district in the southwestern region of the United States. Results: Examining the social constructs of race, gender, leadership makes clear how BIPOC women are socially constructed as inferior and how that played out in this educational leadership settings. The interconnectedness of both approaches contributes to …