Social and Behavioral Sciences Commons^™

Mindfulness As A Buffer Against Death Anxiety: Implications For End-Of-Life Care, Chad Alexander

University Honors Theses

Death anxiety, defined as the distress associated with the awareness of mortality, has profound psychological and cultural impacts. Western societies often respond to death salience through avoidance and medicalization, reinforcing defensive strategies described by Terror Management Theory. This project aimed to investigate whether mindfulness can serve as a buffer against death anxiety. A structured literature review was conducted using PsycINFO, PubMed, the Portland State University Library, and Google Scholar between January 2025 and April 2025. One study found that mindfulness moderated the effects of death anxiety on health-related quality of life in people living with HIV. Two experiments linked mindfulness …

The Impact Of Nicu Death On Bereaved Mothers, Jennie Terranova

University Honors Theses

Infant loss in the United States occurs 5.6 per 1,000 live births. This paper examines risk factors that contribute to neonatal death. Prematurity is a risk factor for NICU admission. A portion of premature babies receiving care in the NICU will die. The stressful nature of the NICU has been studied widely in journals. The impact of NICU death on hospital staff and bereaved parents has been studied less. Mortality studies suggest that bereaved mothers are at a high risk of dying within the first 5 years after their child has died. Despite the frequency of maternal death post-child loss, …

More Than Hormones: Psychological Consequences Of The Medicalized Menopausal Experience, Haley Derrickson

University Honors Theses

Menopause, a transitional period that roughly half the population may experience, has a high degree of variability in onset and intensity of symptoms, one of which is depression. It is also a period in which the lives of those transitioning are highly medicalized. This literature review investigates how medicalization has increased since the term was created, and how it impacts perimenopause, menopause, and mental health.

The Influence Of Ethnic Racial Identity On The Critical Consciousness Of Asian American College Students, Aliyah Sukkram

University Honors Theses

Ethical and racial identity (ERI) and critical consciousness play crucial roles in how youth of color understand themselves, contextualize their racialized experiences, and navigate oppressive social conditions. However, there has been a lack of research on both constructs in the lives of Asian American youth. Thus, this thesis aims to study the influence of ERI on the critical consciousness of Asian American college students by conducting semi-structured interviews. ERI was found to influence critical reflection and critical action but not political efficacy. The relationship between ERI and critical consciousness is understood through how youth engage with their ERI and contextualize …

Cultural Ecologies And Local Policies: A Comparative Analysis, Alexis M. Gonzalez

University Honors Theses

In recent years, the role of arts and culture in economic development, community outreach, and local government has become focused on as a field of study. However, this is a new field of academic study, and there have not been many systematic comparative analyses of the role of arts and culture at the local level. Indeed, there is limited information at the state and federal level as well. Historically undervalued and underrepresented, yet with a streak of elitism involved, arts and culture is now being looked at as a major economic driver and social connector by policymakers at all levels …

Cultural Shadows: Vampires And The Shifting Fears Of The West, A Creative Exploration Of Vampire Media And Its Reflection Of Evolving Social Anxieties, Tasha Sayre

University Honors Theses

Cultural Shadows: Vampires and the Shifting Fears of the West is a creative-critical thesis that explores vampire media as a reflection of evolving social anxieties in Western culture. Focusing primarily on film and television, with reference to key literary texts, this study examines how the vampire figure is used to articulate and dramatize recurring societal fears—particularly those surrounding women's sexuality and autonomy, queer identity, and class-based inequality. Through close readings of influential vampire narratives, the thesis demonstrates how these stories mirror cultural tensions and moral panics, transforming the vampire into a symbol of both fear and fascination. Drawing on gender …

The Relationship Between Perceived Stress, Psychological Distress And Thwarted Belongingness Among Military Service Members, Isaac Greenblatt

University Honors Theses

Suicide remains a leading cause of death among members of the military, with psychological distress, perceived stress and thwarted belongingness emerging as key variables which impact this behavior. This thesis aimed to investigate the relationship between perceived stress, psychological distress and thwarted belongingness in a population of Active Duty Army Service Members (ADASM) at baseline and longitudinally. The Resilience-Supportive Leadership Training (RESULT) dataset was originally collected to assess the effectiveness of an intervention in the military. However, this thesis is a secondary data analysis of this dataset, including 273 ADASM participants. The K6 psychological distress test was used to measure …

A Postcolonial Re-Telling Of The Life And Times Of Dr. Bethenia Owens-Adair, Lucille Marie Walker

University Honors Theses

This thesis seeks to explore the story of Dr. Bethenia Owens-Adair, one of the first female doctors in the Pacific Northwest, who wrote the bill that would one day enact Oregon's long standing eugenic sterilization laws. Utilizing postcolonial framework primarily provided by psychiatrist and political writer Frantz Fanon, and supplemental literature from historian Ann Stoler, this paper will look into Dr. Adair's life story and her eugenic efforts in an attempt to understand the colonial roots of turn-of-the-century beliefs about bodies, behavior, and will ultimately aim to question how these beliefs may still reverberate through society today.

"Change Is All There Is": Exploring Journalistic Coverage Of Gentrification In The St. Johns Neighborhood Of Portland, Or, Eva Kovolitsky

University Honors Theses

Gentrification, as an increasingly significant characteristic of contemporary urban spaces, has been the subject of a vast body of literature. This has prompted further research into how gentrification is described and the implications of language used in both academic research and popular media accounts. This study explores discourse used in journalistic coverage of gentrification in the St. Johns neighborhood of Portland, Oregon. Guided by past work in discourse analysis and critical urban geography, this study attempts to understand how academic discourse on gentrification is both reflected in and divergent from neighborhood-level discourse. This study used data from the St. Johns …

Surveying Management Strategies For Pediatric Autoimmune Hepatitis, Lillie Baca

University Honors Theses

Pediatric autoimmune hepatitis (PAIH) is a long-term condition that requires ongoing treatment and regular monitoring. It is characterized by its elevation of liver enzymes, interface hepatitis, and the specific presence of circulating autoantibodies. There is a general lack of consensus on appropriate measures of diagnostic criteria, treatment medication, and beneficial practices for monitoring the disease. The existing literature contains several subtle discrepancies that challenge a practitioner's judgement for care management of children with autoimmune hepatitis. This study is a retrospective chart review aimed at understanding the current diagnostics, treatment, and long-term management strategies of PAIH at a single center. Also, …

The Impact Of Emotions On Informal Learning Experiences In The Workplace, Jennifer L. Walavalkar

University Honors Theses

This study investigates the role of emotion--specifically valence and arousal--on informal learning experiences in the workplace. As remote and flexible work environments grow, informal learning has become the dominant method through which employees acquire new skills. Drawing on theories such as Cognitive Load Theory and Ego Depletion Theory, this research explores how emotions influence cognitive processes critical to learning, such as attention, memory, and self-regulation. Prior literature suggests that both positive and negative affect (valence) impact learning outcomes, but the specific influence of emotional intensity (arousal) in informal learning remains underexplored. Using a longitudinal survey method, ten employees at Portland …

Indigenous Science And The Legacy Of Fire: Resilience, Fuels, Mosaics, And Eco-Cultural Landscapes In Oregon’S Coastal And Cascade Range, Julia Alcalá

University Honors Theses

Most of Oregon's western Cascade and Coastal range is a landscape that has historically been considered devoid of mid to low-intensity fires by Western science. However, for time immemorial, Indigenous peoples have been stewarding the forests through the use of "good fire," creating diverse and heterogenous landscapes with mixed fire regimes, ranging from less than a decade to several centuries since the last fire, resulting in a mosaic of patchy forest, oak savannas, prairies, and wetlands. Yet centuries of Indigenous displacement, cultural assimilation, and suppression of cultural burning contributed to this prevailing belief. Despite that, in recent decades, Western scientists …

The Necessity Of Improved Pica Assessment Tools And Screening Practices For Harm Reduction, Deborah Arakelian

University Honors Theses

Pica disorder refers to the consumption of non-food items, and has historically been understudied. Dangerous medical complications often arise as result of this behavior, making this a critical area of continued research. This paper reviews literature on the prevalence of pica disorder, as well as its etiologies and risk factors with the intention to identify at-risk groups who would benefit from increased screening. The current assessment tool used for screenings and research is vague and insufficient, and the development of a more comprehensive tool is critical to reduce harm. This paper discusses what should be included in an improved questionnaire, …

Why Democracy Has Lost The Trust Of Modern People In The Modern Era, Erica Rubel

University Honors Theses

This thesis examines the growing crisis of democratic legitimacy among young people in the 21st century. Across the United States and globally, young people are increasingly disillusioned with formal democratic systems, not because they are disengaged or apathetic, but because they feel systematically excluded from structures that claim to represent them. Through an interdisciplinary framework rooted in political theory, affect studies, intersectionality, and critical media analysis, this research argues that democratic trust cannot be repaired without emotional truth, structural accountability, and reimagined participation.

Drawing on the work of Lipset (1959), Crenshaw (1989), Cohen (2020), Papacharissi (2015), and Spade (2020), this …

Framing Economic Inequality On Tiktok: A Qualitative Analysis Of Gen Z'S Engagement Across Three Issues, Braydan Brown

University Honors Theses

This thesis investigates how economic inequality is framed and engaged with on TikTok, particularly in comparison to two other highly-salient sociopolitical issues to Gen Z: racial justice and climate change. Through a qualitative content analysis of 45 TikTok posts tied to specific public events, the study examines how issues are visually and emotionally presented on a platform heavily used by Gen Z. Drawing on existing literature in digital political expression and social movement theory, the research identifies eight coding categories including tone, emotional appeal, and identity framing, to analyze content. Findings show that economic inequality is consistently portrayed with less …

Access To Healthcare For Rural Transgender Adults In The United States, Devon Smith

University Honors Theses

Urban and rural healthcare differ significantly in the amount of facilities, providers and kinds of specialty care that are offered in each environment. The United States is split into urban and rural counties in any given region, and based on those population sizes, are the allocation of healthcare resources for residents. In rural areas in the U.S., transgender adults lack access to gender-affirming care and encounter a lack of gender-affirming care providers due to workforce shortages, discrimination, and a lack of cultural competency. To determine if these residents lacked access to care compared with their urban counterparts, I performed a …

Enchanted April, Christopher V. Hollister, Allison Hosier, Jacqulyn A. Williams

Communications in Information Literacy

This editorial is a tribute to former CIL co-editor-in-chief, April Schweikhard.

From Novice To Expert: Exploring The Relationship Between Information Literacy Threshold Concepts And Epistemological Development, Amanda L. Folk

Communications in Information Literacy

The Framework for Information Literacy for Higher Education articulates the ways of thinking, knowing, and doing that are valued in the academic community. Prior to the Framework, several scholars explored the potential relationship between information literacy and epistemological development, or the ways in which learners develop their understanding of and positionality to knowledge creation. However, the intersections of information literacy and epistemological development have been underexamined in the era of the Framework. In this article, I analyze the Framework through the lens of two epistemological development models, the Epistemological Reflection Model (Baxter-Magolda, 1992) and Reflective Judgement Model (King …

From Cynicism To Trust: Strategies For Teaching Students Source Evaluation Skills, Mandi Goodsett, Melanie Gagich

Communications in Information Literacy

Concerns about the spread and adoption of misinformation abound, and academic librarians have played a part in trying to stem the tide through information literacy instruction. However, teaching students how to evaluate sources can be complicated—teaching fact-checking skills may be insufficient if it increases students’ overall cynicism about information ecosystems. This study explores how teaching fact-checking and lateral reading skills, along with instruction about “bias filters,” can help to reduce the cynicism of first year writing students, while also increasing their misinformation detection skills. Results are mixed, but teaching about the information creation process and “bias filters” is especially promising. …

Visual Literacy Instruction At Scale: Developing Asynchronous Learning Objects For First-Year Art And Design Students, Jacqueline Huddle, Sarah Carter

Communications in Information Literacy

While learning modules are not new to academic librarianship, student-centered, asynchronous learning modules are an innovative approach not commonly considered within the academic librarianship literature. This article discusses the development and implementation of visual literacy asynchronous learning modules created by two librarians for a cohort of first-year studio art students. In creating these modules, the goal was to offer studio art students visual literacy instruction specific to their personal interests and future careers. Specifically, this article discusses the module design process and how student-centered learning can be incorporated into modules in order to offer deep learning opportunities.

Their Will Is Wealth: American Billionaires, Illiberal Capital, And Their Immunity To Federal Law, Conor Kawika Carroll

Dissertations and Theses

Billionaires are inherently unique political actors. They, and their wealth, are a species apart. This rarity is measurable by quantifying relative consequences for actions made on behalf of that wealth. This thesis explores whether or not a billionaire's political power provides them with immunity to federal laws and regulations that govern wealth and its political use. The objective of this research is two-fold: to illustrate the scholarship gap regarding American billionaires and their relative immunity from federal law, and to instigate academia to study billionaires politically at increasing rates, providing more data for lawmakers regarding the most economically powerful political …

The Failure Of The Annan Plan And Suggestions For Peace In Cyprus, Haley Grace Morrow

Dissertations and Theses

The following study explicates the conflict in Cyprus between the Greek Cypriots and the Turkish Cypriots. The conflict began around 70 years ago and came to its height in the 1970s when a Greek coup occurred, and subsequently, Turkey invaded the northern part of the island. This drove the two parties apart physically and mentally. The Annan Plan, a UN peace plan in 2004, attempted to bring peace to the island by reunifying the two parties into a bi-communal federation. However, this plan failed as the Greek Cypriots voted against it. The failure of the plan was primarily due to …

Navigating Sovereignty And Human Rights: A Legal Analysis Of Palestinian Detention Under Israeli Jurisdiction In Comparison To International Law, Amani Nidal Odeh

Dissertations and Theses

This thesis examines whether Israeli detention practices of Palestinians conform to or contravene Israeli domestic legislation and international legal standards using a doctrinal legal analysis. This thesis evaluates six key areas through four hypotheses: the detention of minors, geographic disparities (particularly Gaza), administrative detention procedures, the use of military courts, due process violations, and detention conditions. While Israeli domestic law formally authorizes these practices, the analysis finds they routinely violate crucial international legal norms, including the ICCPR, CRC, CAT, and the Fourth Geneva Convention. The use of secret evidence, prolonged administrative detention without trial, and discriminatory legal frameworks undermines the …

"I'M Strictly T4t": Trans For Trans Connections In The Contemporary, Madi Lou Alexander

Dissertations and Theses

Trans for trans relationships, referred to as "t4t", are a relationship type specific to trans individuals. Linguistically originating from Craigslist personal ad spaces, t4t indicates a trans person seeking out and engaging with another trans person. The scope of relationships under the t4t label are often largely associated with sexuality and dating scenes due to their conception in online cruising spaces. Through qualitative analysis, I assess the range of what t4t relationships are through 30 in-depth interviews with participants identifying as trans. This work moves away from focusing on the deficits of holding a marginalized identity, instead aiming to center …

Spousal Bereavement Enhances Proinflammatory Cytokine Production To Acute, Psychological Stress., E Lydia Wu-Chung, Ryan L. Brown, Robert Suchting, Jensine Paoletti-Hatcher, Michelle A. Chen, Angie S. Leroy, Kyle W. Murdock, Cobi J. Heijnen, Christopher P. Fagundes

Psychology Faculty Publications and Presentations

Early widowhood is characterized by chronic stress and is associated with a higher risk of incident depression and cardiovascular-related morbidity and mortality. Peripheral inflammation is involved in the pathogenesis of major depressive disorder and atherothrombosis and may represent a common mechanism underlying widow(er)'s elevated risk for both health conditions. Chronic psychological stress sensitizes the release of proinflammatory cytokines during the peripheral stress response. The present study examined whether recent spousal bereavement enhances the inflammatory response to an acute, psychological stressor. Recently widowed older adults (n = 143) and non-widowed controls (n = 69) participated in a quasi-experimental study, during which …

A Resource-Based Perspective Of Stem Career Development: A Latent Class Analysis, Erika Ann Schemmel

Dissertations and Theses

Through technological developments and the growing concerns around climate change, the need and demand for electric vehicles has been steadily increasing. A trained and qualified STEM workforce is required to meet these demands, yet standard STEM education may not be sufficient. The STEM development program centered in the present study is a collegiate workforce development program that provides North American students with training and hands-on experience in the engineering of electric vehicles. Drawing from central principles of COR theory, the present study explores the experiences of students within the program utilizing a resource-based perspective and a mixed-methods approach. First, the …

Effects Of Climate Change On Stream Temperature And Salmonid Habitats In A Cascades River Basin, Michael Krochta, Kara Anlauf-Dunn, Dave Bugni, Heejun Chang

Geography Faculty Publications and Presentations

Rising stream temperatures pose significant challenges to aquatic ecosystems, particularly for coldwater-adapted organisms like salmonids. This study examines the effects of climate change on stream temperatures and salmonid habitats in the Clackamas River Basin, Oregon, USA. Using spatial stream network models and CMIP6 climate projections under SSP2-4.5 and SSP5-8.5 scenarios, we project mid- (2045-2074) and late-century (2075-2100) stream temperature changes. These projections are then integrated with thermal tolerances and intrinsic habitat metrics to assess future habitat suitability for key species, including steelhead, coho, Chinook, and bull trout. Stream temperature trends from 1991 to 2023 reveal basin-wide warming, with high-elevation tributaries …

"This Revolution Been Televised": Media As A Tool Of Justice And An Apparatus Of State Violence, Nahal Rastegarpour

Dissertations and Theses

This study utilizes case information from an online database called Fatal Encounters, which has over 30,000 incident reports of civilian deaths involving a police officer. From this larger population, a sample of 415 cases is used to run an additional mixed method research design, which integrates quantitative data analysis and qualitative content analyses. The quantitative analysis sample includes all 415 cases, and the qualitative content analysis uses a subsample of 34 cases. Using demographic data provided by Fatal Encounters, this study expands case information to create new data sets. Both quantitative and qualitative data are collected, developed, and then analyzed. …

The Effects Of Family Cohesion On The Relationship Between Trauma And State-Level Social Policy Provision In The United States, Brandon Kendall Ross Fielding

Dissertations and Theses

This dissertation examines how childhood trauma and family cohesion interact to shape state-level social policy generosity in the United States. The study begins with a multilevel quantitative analysis using data from the National Survey of Children’s Health and the State Safety-Net Generosity Index to assess how individual-level experiences of trauma and family support relate to state-level welfare generosity. Two trauma indices--one focused on adverse childhood experiences and bullying, and the other on food-related hardship--are used to explore how trauma influences attitudes toward public assistance, and whether family cohesion moderates this relationship. Results from marginal effects analyses indicate that family cohesion, …

Symbolic Leverage: Nominating (Non)Veiled Women As An Electoral Competition Strategy In Polarized Turkey, Elif Sari-Genc

Politics and Global Affairs Faculty Publications and Presentations

Do party elites strategically nominate (non)veiled women? While research exists on Muslim-minority countries, little is known about the dynamics of such strategies in Muslim-majority contexts, where the interplay of Islam, secularism, gender, and veiling is complex. To address this gap, I examine electoral competition in Turkey, investigating whether parties strategically nominate (non)veiled women for mayoral seats in opposing party strongholds to capitalize on the political symbols associated with women's identities — a strategy | term "symbolic leverage." Using an original dataset, elite interviews, and electoral discourse analysis, I find that parties leverage the symbolic value of veiled and nonveiled women …