Social and Behavioral Sciences Commons^™

The G5 Sahel: An Insufficient Organization For A Failed Region?, Beder Dine El Khou

Graduate Program in International Studies Theses & Dissertations

In the wake of mass kidnapping and terrorist attacks launched by Boko Haram and other extremist groups in the Sahel of West Africa, along with the rise of the Islamic State in Libya that started to have immediate impact on the Sahel’s already problematic situation, five states from the region of Sahel decided to create a coalition in 2014 not only to fight insurgencies rampaging in the area but also to work on the development of the region. With a very small capacity in terms of man power and equipment, the G5 Sahel coalition attempts to achieve what other intervening …

How Health Problems Affect Children's Anti-Social Behaviors And Their Attitudes Towards School, Prosper Kwame Mensah

Sociology & Criminal Justice Theses & Dissertations

The purpose of this study is to examine how health impacts certain aspects of children’s educational experience. The study examined how health influences anti-social behaviors among children as well as their attitudes towards school. Children with health issues often experience disruptions in education leading to factors that impact their attitudes and behaviors towards school. The data for this study was taken from Health Behavior of School-Aged Children (HBSC), 2009-2010. The sample population consisted of 12,642 students. The files contained data on 12,642 students from 314 participating schools. Of the 314 participating schools a school administrator questionnaire was completed by 283 …

Examining The Effect Of Interruptions At Different Breakpoints And Frequencies Within A Task, Sarah Anastazia Powers

Psychology Theses & Dissertations

Research on the effects of interruptions shows that they can be either costly or beneficial depending on which aspects of an interruption are manipulated. One important aspect that contributes to these conflicting results concerns when an interruption occurs. The present study explored how event segmentation theory (EST) can be used to determine optimal moments for an interruption relying on hierarchical task analysis (HTA) to identify coarse and fine event boundaries. Utilizing a 2 X 3 mixed design, undergraduate students completed a trip planning task divided into three task trials. The within-subjects factor was interruption timing, which had three levels: none, …

The Influence Of Neural Reward Processing On Memory In Depression, Nathan M. Hager

Psychology Theses & Dissertations

Theories and research suggest that depression involves impaired reward sensitivity and a deficit in memory for rewarding stimuli. Some researchers propose that this memory deficit may result from reduced neural reward sensitivity, which impairs the encoding of reward-related memories, but few studies have directly probed this connection. Such research may benefit from examining the reward positivity (RewP), an event-related potential (ERP) previously linked to reduced reward sensitivity in depression. Undergraduates with high or low self-reported depression completed a task in which they chose one of three doors, revealing a neutral word written in a color which indicated an outcome of …

The Effect Of Standardised Learning Diaries On Self-Regulated Learning, Calibration Accuracy And Academic Achievement, Avanelle Joseph-Edwards

STEMPS Theses & Dissertations

The online learning environment is a dynamic yet complex learning modality. Students are physically separated from their peers, they grapple with feelings of isolation, and they may be unable to self-regulate their learning. Studies have shown that self-regulation is related to academic achievement and student metacognitive monitoring in online settings. The present study investigated the effects of a standardized diaries on students’ self-regulatory behaviors, calibration accuracy and academic achievement within an online learning environment. Using this self-monitoring and evaluation tool, forty online graduate students enrolled in a research methods course at a southeastern university in the United States participated in …

Medical Specialty Camps: A Holistic Approach To Assist In The Management Of Diabetes, Takeyra Monique Collins

Human Movement Sciences & Special Education Theses & Dissertations

From toddlers to adolescents, poor medical regimen and adherence occurs as youth face adversities caused by type 1 diabetes mellitus (T1DM). This inquiry-based research sought to explore the process of promoting resilience to attain personal diabetes management through outcome-focused programming. This dissertation was structured in a three-paper format to highlight three sectors of a medical specialty camp to identify the significance of building resilience among youth with T1DM, incorporating family support, and providing service-learning opportunities for students. The purpose of this study was to examine the impacts associated with campers’ resilience from pre- to post-camp based on their participation in …

The Effect Of Differing Degrees Of Automation And Reliability On Simulated Luggage Screening Performance, Molly M. Liechty

Psychology Theses & Dissertations

The present work examined the effects of two types of decision support systems in a simulated luggage screening task: An input aid and an output aid. An input aid supports an operator’s information gathering. An output aid supports decision making and action selection. A Time-Accuracy Function (TAF) analysis was applied to isolate processing time from performance asymptote, which conventional performance measures such as sensitivity and response time do not distinguish one from the other. Sixty participants performed a luggage screening task unaided (manual condition), with the assistance of an input aid (spatial aid), and with the assistance of an output …

Around Her Table: A Digital Community Archive Featuring Azorean-American Women In New England, Suzanne Lyn Parenti Sink

English Theses & Dissertations

Around Her Table is a born-digital dissertation dedicated to collecting, preserving, and validating the Azorean-American woman’s immigrant experience and cultural identity through the transformative power of participatory archives. The site address is www.aroundhertable.org. The digital exhibit features the oral histories and artifacts related to the domestic sphere of six Azorean-American families, with particular emphasis on artifacts related to the kitchen, hand-worked textiles, and religious practices. Driving the urgency for the creation of new archival records for this community is that fact that despite the nearly one million North Americans who trace their ancestry to the Azores, traditional institutional and civic …

The Effect Of Task Interruptions And Reliable Cues On Detection Changes Within Dynamic Scenes, Kimberly N. Perry

Psychology Theses & Dissertations

Interruptions are a common problem for attention and pose a threat to visual task performance. The Memory for Goals (MFG) theory suggests that strongly and accurately encoded cues can assist the ability to resume a primary task after an interruption (Altmann & Trafton, 2002). Encoded cues can undergo an activation decay during an interruption and become forgotten. Currently, there has been limited research on how visual interruptions affect cued recall within a dynamic environment. Thus, the goal of the present study was to examine the effect of cuing and task interruptions on change detection within dynamic scenes. Undergraduate students watched …

Estimation Of Correlation Confidence Intervals Via The Bootstrap: Non-Normal Distributions, John Mart V. Delosreyes

Psychology Theses & Dissertations

Estimating confidence intervals (CIs) for the correlation has been a challenge. The challenge stems from the metamorphic nature of the sampling distribution of the correlation being bound by-1≤ρ≤1. The nonparametric nature of the bootstrap makes it a good option for estimating correlation CIs. However, there have been mixed results about the robustness of bootstrap CIs for the correlation with non normal data. This had led the literature to suggesting the use of transformation methods to estimate correlation CIs. However, transformation methods carry a risk of the original data being misrepresented. Thus, further investigation of bootstrap CIs for the correlation is …

From Compassion To Resistance: Lesbos Refugee Crisis, Luz Diaz

Graduate Program in International Studies Theses & Dissertations

“What would I do if I wasn’t given freedom? I would protest every day.” This illustrates the empathy that locals in Lesbos shared with the struggles of refugees when the European Refugee Crisis arrived on the shores of Lesbos in 2015. Locals on the island helped refugees get off boats—or saved them from the water—and offered to take them to the city center to claim asylum. But soon, with the arrival of humanitarian aid organizations, life on Lesbos changed considerably. Meanwhile, refugees continue to sit in camps that are over capacity to await asylum processing. Echoing the frustration on the …

The Business Of Choice: Why Students Select For-Profit Career Colleges In Northeast Florida And The Implications For Community College Leaders, Tameiko Allen Grant

Educational Leadership & Workforce Development Theses & Dissertations

Over the past decade, for-profit career colleges have faced significant scrutiny and increased governmental regulation. Even with the skepticism of critics, for-profit enrollments surged and had one of the fastest enrollment growths among higher education sectors. For-profit career colleges are typically known for their predatory marketing practices and exorbitant costs. However, there is a significant concern surrounding why students would attend an institution with such a high cost and a socially perceived low-probability of return on investment (Cellini, 2012; Iloh & Tierney, 2013). This study employs a case study methodology to examine the decision-making process of students who selected for-profit …

Workplace Bullying: A National Survey Of Dental Hygienists, Savannah Dawn Sundburg

Dental Hygiene Theses & Dissertations

Problem: Workplace bullying in health care affects career satisfaction, career longevity and patient outcomes. The purpose of this study was to determine if bullying was occurring in dental hygiene employment settings as well as its prevalence in a convenience sample of dental hygienists.

Methods: After IRB approval, 1200 subscribers to a professional dental hygiene journal were invited to participate. Employing the validated Negative Acts Questionnaire-Revised (NAQ-R), participants were asked to indicate how often they experienced 22 defined negative behaviors according to rate of occurrence (never, now and then or monthly, weekly or daily) over the past six months. Bullying was …

The Weight Of Words: A Content Analysis Of Rhetoric In Online News Articles Reporting On Sex Crimes, Julie Snell

Sociology & Criminal Justice Theses & Dissertations

The purpose of this study is to examine the rhetoric that is used in online news articles about sexual assault to see if discriminatory language is prevalent when reporting on different races. A content analysis of 100 online news articles was conducted to answer two research questions: 1) In what ways, if any, does the media use discriminatory rhetoric in online news articles when reporting on sexual assault offenders who are, or appear to be, racial minorities? 2) In what ways, if any, does the media use discriminatory rhetoric in online news articles when reporting on sexual assault victims who …

Indicators And Thresholds For Black Bear Viewing Proximity Preferences At Alligator River National Wildlife Refuge, Meghan M. Roberts

Human Movement Sciences & Special Education Theses & Dissertations

Human-wildlife interactions in protected areas are complex, and visitor preference for close proximity to wildlife continues to challenge managers. Two indicators and thresholds questionnaires with varying photo panel orders were distributed to a total of 302 visitors at Alligator River National Wildlife Refuge in North Carolina to examine the acceptability of various distances and management actions for black bear viewing. Results show average minimum acceptability for black bear viewing is 38 yards for a single bear and 38 - 44 yards for a black bear sow with two cubs; photo panel viewing order influenced participants’ evaluations, illustrating the potential for …

The Effects Of Vehicle Automation Level And Warning Type On Responses To Vehicle Hacking, Wyatt D. Mcmanus

Psychology Theses & Dissertations

Modern surface transportation vehicles often include different levels of automation. Higher automation levels have the potential to impact surface transportation in unforeseen ways. For example, connected vehicles with higher levels of automation are at a higher risk for hacking attempts, because automated driving assistance systems often rely on on board sensors and internet connectivity. As the automation level of vehicle control rises, it is necessary to examine the effect of different levels of automation have on the driver-vehicle interactions. In addition, auditory warnings have been shown to effectively attract a driver’s attention while performing a driving task, which is often …

Associations Between Drinking, Condom Use Resistance, And Condom Use Among College Students, Caitlin B. Turner

Psychology Theses & Dissertations

Alcohol use and sexual intercourse are common behaviors among young adults in college. Drinking is considered a risk factor for unprotected sexual intercourse. Having condomless sex is associated with increased risk of contracting an STI or becoming pregnant unintentionally. Although correct and consistent condom use protects against such consequences, many individuals may resist condom use during sexual intercourse. As such, condom use resistance beliefs may be the factor through which alcohol reduces condom use. Evidence from Theory of Planned Behavior (TPB), Alcohol Expectancy Theory, and a body of evidence supports individual beliefs to be predictive of condom use intentions and …

Modeling Social Learning: An Agent-Based Approach, Erika G. Ardiles Cruz

Computational Modeling & Simulation Engineering Theses & Dissertations

Learning is the process of acquiring or modifying knowledge, behavior, or skills. The ability to learn is inherent to humans, animals, and plants, and even machines are provided with algorithms that could mimic in a restricted way the processes of learning. Humans learn from the time they are born until they die because of a continuous process of interaction between them and their environment. Behavioral Psychology Theories and Social Learning Theories study behavior learned from the environment and social interactions through stimulus-response. Some computer approaches to modeling human behavior attempted to represent the learning and decision-making processes using agent-based models. …

"They Think We’Re The Drama-Makers”: Examining Middle-Class African American Girl Perceptions Of School Discipline And Mistreatment, Asha M. Ralph

Sociology & Criminal Justice Theses & Dissertations

Historically in the United States, African Americans have faced much adversity in the fight towards educational equality. Beginning with the complete denial of education during slavery, the struggle to attain an education continued following the Civil War, throughout Reconstruction and the rise of Jim Crow. Their formal education remained segregated from white students and was often severely underfunded. Ultimately, Plessy v. Ferguson’s 1896 “separate but equal” decision was challenged and the Supreme Court justices unanimously voted that racial segregation of children in public-schools was unconstitutional in Brown v. Board of Education in 1954. Although major advances have been seen over …

Rhetorical Agency In Algorithm-Centered Digital Activity: Methods For Tracing Agency In Online Research, Daniel L. Hocutt

English Theses & Dissertations

Contemporary scholars in rhetoric studies and technical communication have theorized rhetorical agency as engaging human and nonhuman actors in online spaces. One such space, where the work of scholarship, teaching, and technical communication practice intersect, is online research. In online research interfaces, scholars and students alike conduct research; scholars teach and students learn the online research process toward contributing knowledge; and technical communicators design and test meaningful user experiences in these interfaces.

However, the field offers few comprehensive methodologies for studying the emergence of rhetorical agency in online search environments, where the activities of technologies, humans, corporations, and environments coalesce. …

Effects Of Focal On Driver Calibration Of Attention Maintenance Performance Using Normalized Difference And Brier Scores, James Richard Unverricht

Psychology Theses & Dissertations

Young drivers are specifically poor at maintaining attention to the forward roadway while driving. Additionally, drivers are poorly calibrated to their own abilities, often overestimating their driving skills. The current research examines the effect of FOCAL on a young driver’s calibration using two different measures, normalized difference scores and the Brier score. Thirty-six participants received either FOCAL or Placebo training program, immediately followed by driving simulator evaluation of their attention maintenance performance. In the evaluation drive, participants had driven through four scenarios in a driving simulator with their eyes tracked. Participants were asked to perform a mock visual search task …

Exploring The Lived Experiences Of Career Oriented Military Spouses Pursuing Education For Career Advancement, Melody D. Agbisit

Counseling & Human Services Theses & Dissertations

In the United States, the number of dual career couples has been increasing due to economic and personal growth needs (Pixley, 2009). Furthermore, more careers are requiring specialized education than before (O'Neill & Thomson, 2013). However, there is a limited understanding of the trailing career oriented military spouse as a student population (Gleiman & Swearengen, 2012). This phenomenological qualitative study aimed to explore the lived experiences of 11 military spouses pursuing education to advance their career options. Participants were military spouses who valued career development and who were currently enrolled or admitted in a post-secondary educational or training program. In …

Assessing The Relationship Between Flood Risk Perceptions And Adaptive Behaviors Of Households, Dontá Council

School of Public Service Theses & Dissertations

The purpose of this dissertation research is to examine the multiple relationships that explain household adaptive behaviors to flooding, and if risk perceptions play a mediating role in these relationships. Given the shift in transferring risks from public flood risk governance structures to households, there is a renewed interest in promoting private adaptive behavior amongst households that are vulnerable to flood impacts. Currently, the literature purports that flood risk perceptions rarely account for the variance explained in statistical models that examine household adaptive behaviors. This study analyzed an integrated conceptual framework that explored the mediating role of risk perceptions. The …

Who Am I Now? Teachers’ Development Of Leadership Identity A Phenomenologically-Informed Qualitative Research Study, Kimberly Alicia Richardson

Educational Leadership & Workforce Development Theses & Dissertations

Due to the complexity of schools and more challenges to teaching and learning, teacher leadership is an answer to reform that addresses both improving teaching and restructuring of schools (Smylie & Denny, 1990). While empirical research exists that speaks to teacher leadership work, what teacher leaders do and why particular teachers emerge as leaders. An expanding body of research (e.g., Day and Harrison, 2007; Day, Kington, Stobart, & Sammons, 2006; Lord and Hall, 2005) advocates the acceptance of coupling identity and leadership, and the acknowledgment of the influence on leader’s development and behaviors. This phenomenological study examined the leadership identity …

The Impact Of Diet And Psychosocial Factors Post Bariatric Surgery, Eva Rani Panigrahi

Psychology Theses & Dissertations

Bariatric surgery is a medical procedure that has been found to be an effective option for weight loss. Despite the benefits of bariatric surgery, little is known about the psychosocial factors that may impact weight outcome. The present study attempted to examine patients’ level of perceived stress, depressed mood, and diet, and the association of these factors with percent weight loss in the first 6-months after surgery. Eighty patients completed pre- and 6-months post-operative depressed mood assessment (Patient Quality Health Questionnaire – 7 [PHQ-7]), a perceived stress measure (Cohen’s Perceived Stress Scale – 10 [PSS-10]), and dietary measures (Block Dietary …

A Comparison Of College Student-Athletes With Attention-Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder (Adhd) And Nonathletes With Adhd: Academic Adjustment, Severity Of Mental Health Concerns, And Complexity Of Life Concerns, Sonja Lund

Counseling & Human Services Theses & Dissertations

College student-athletes traditionally experience more stressors than their nonathletic peers due to their dual roles. ADHD causes impairments in executive functioning which can cause additional stress for the college student. The combination of ADHD and student-athlete status may impact academic adjustment, mental health severity, and complexity of college life concerns. Presently, no study has explored how student-athletes with ADHD may compare with nonathletes with ADHD in terms of these elements. The purpose of this study is to address this gap in literature and by analyzing archival data collected from university students across the United States. This study utilized an ex-post …

A Case Study Of Participant Responses To Organizational Change Involving Technology In The National Security Domain: How Informal Processes Iterate Structure And Outcomes, Brian E. Martinez

School of Public Service Theses & Dissertations

Nuanced differences between organizations and the pace of change within the national security domain have routinely produced equivocal results involving information and communication technology (ICT) development. These results are characterized by unpredictable costs, unrealistic delivery schedules, and dubious ICT performance in-use. This research is a case study exploration of organizational change involving technology (also referred to as ICT) in the national security domain of the public sector.

This research used machine learning and manual content analysis to compare the results of three experiments on interview transcripts. The first experiment investigated linkages between empirical and interpretive elements of organizational change. Empirical …

Improving The Sensitivity Of The Vrin-R Scale On The Mmpi-A-Rf, Stefan E. Latulip

Psychology Theses & Dissertations

When respondents to self-report measures fail to answer in accordance with item content it distorts the accuracy of obtained test scores, degrading the ability of clinicians to use results to make accurate diagnoses and recommendations. The Variable Response Inconsistency (VRIN) scale was created for the MMPI-2 and was later revised as the VRIN-r scale for the MMPI-2-RF and MMPI-A-RF in order to detect and invalidate protocols over saturated with random responding. Analyses conducted by Pitta (2016) revealed that the VRIN-r scale for the MMPI-A-RF was not ideally sensitive to the detection of random responding in protocols. This study explored adding …

At The Hands Of Fate: The Political Economy Of Islamic Insurance In Indonesia, Malaysia, And Pakistan, C. 1980 To The Present, Muhammad S. Rahman

Graduate Program in International Studies Theses & Dissertations

Why have Islamic insurance systems developed well in some countries, but not in others? Malaysia is considered as Islamic insurance elite due to its relatively large number of operators it houses as well as the sustained growth of Islamic insurance sales within the country, while Indonesia and Pakistan are still in early stages of development. Analyzing the political and social history of Islamization of insurance systems in these three Muslim majority countries in Asia since 1980s, this dissertation demonstrates the development gap between these countries on Islamic insurance results from; firstly, complex bargains made between various groups within each country …

The Trojan Horse In Your Head: Cognitive Threats And How To Counter Them, Lora Pitman

Graduate Program in International Studies Theses & Dissertations

Vulnerabilities of the human mind caused by the way it is designed to process information have always been exploited in warfare, since the dawn of humanity. History is marked with frequent use of deceits and manipulations over the centuries, with examples ranging from the use of the Trojan Horse to Facebook’s user-profiling. While largely used over time, these tactics, that I call cognitive threats, have not been collectively examined. I hypothesize that they pose a security issue to which prevention strategies on different levels could be successfully applied. The research questions that this study asks are what the characteristics of …