Social and Behavioral Sciences Commons^™

A Search For Aristotelian Political Friendship In Thomas Jefferson’S Ideal American Regime, Christopher Hiatt O'Connor

Undergraduate Theses and Capstone Projects

In this project, I elucidate the presence of Aristotelian political friendship within Thomas Jefferson's ideal American regime. The project considers the aspects of Aristotle's political thought that are relevant to political friendship, and draws parallels to Jefferson's political philosophy through: (1) the organization of the regime and its citizens (the constitution and construction of the regime, the class demographics of its citizens, etc.); and (2) the philosophical principles that inform the aim(s) and end (telē) of the regime.

Despite notable differences between their political philosophies--such as Jefferson's inclusion of Christian moral philosophy in his thought--I conclude that Jefferson's attempts to …

The Impact Of Religiosity And Personality On Resilience And Coping Strategies, Leah Eldred

Undergraduate Theses and Capstone Projects

The purpose of the current study was to examine the impact of religiosity and personality on resilience and coping strategies amongst undergraduate college students. Participants completed four different questionnaires measuring religiosity, personality, resilience, and coping skills, as well as a demographic questionnaire. A two-way factorial ANOVA statistical analysis and correlation analyses were conducted. The findings indicated that participants who were pessimistic reported more use of maladaptive coping strategies than optimistic participants. The main implication of this study was that people who are more pessimistic can be taught how to utilize adaptive coping strategies rather than the maladaptive ones that they …

Analysis Of The Evolution Of The Hominin Jaw & Dentition, Matthew Koelbel

Undergraduate Theses and Capstone Projects

The food an organism consumes impacts the evolution of its dentition and facial morphology. As the teeth of early hominins are often some of the only parts of the skeleton to be fossilized, their morphological changes throughout time are better documented and understood than many other body parts. A literature review of articles focusing on the evolution of the dentition and mandibular morphology of members of the tribe Homininae was conducted. We deduced the ways in which tool use and cooking directly affected the teeth of hominins from the late Pleistocene to Pliocene from this information. The tangible ways that …

Predicting The Federal Funds Rate, Danielle Herzberg

Undergraduate Theses and Capstone Projects

This thesis examines various economic indicators to select those that are the most significant in a predictive model of the Effective Federal Funds Rate. Three different statistical models were built to show how monetary policy changed over time. These three models frame the last economic downturns in the United States; the tech bubble, the housing bubble, and the Great Recession. Many iterations of statistical regressions were conducted in order to achieve the final three models that highlight variables with the highest levels of significance. It is important to note the economic data has high levels of autocorrelation, and that these …

The Role Of Guaranteed Sexual Education In Argentina And Its Influence In The #Abortolegalya Movement, Shannon Mcgovern

Undergraduate Theses and Capstone Projects

This paper focuses on the role the 2006 Sexual education law in Argentina has on the current #AbortoLegalYa #QueSeaLey movements. With the implementation of guaranteed, free sexual education for every student in Argentina, more individuals began wanting to have a say over their bodies. As more people learned about their reproductive rights, they also learned that they had the right to speak up and demand what they consider necessary. This paper focused on the Campaña national por aborto seguro, legal, y gratuito and their role on influencing both the current movement, and the 2006 passing of the sexual education law. …

Media Content Analysis Of Governmental Impact On Terrorist Reporting, Maggie Kaliszak

Undergraduate Theses and Capstone Projects

When terrorism occurs, the government has to respond to it. The media also has the need to respond to terrorism if it is to report the news. Therefore, if both have a connection to terrorism, how do they work together, how do they impact each other, and is the Agenda Setting Theory useful to them? Using three recent attacks, the Boston Marathon Bombing, the Manchester Arena Attack, and the Orlando Nightclub Shooting, this paper analyzes the kind of wording used by the media reporting on terrorism and how the government influences that wording through press releases. The study hypothesizes that …

Predicting Academic Dishonesty Using Personality, Impulsiveness, Morality, And Somatic Faking, Lauren Barbee

Undergraduate Theses and Capstone Projects

Violations of academic honor are relative to many of the same factors that lead to dishonesty by individuals subject to the criminal justice system. Malingering is defined as the feigning of psychological or physical ailment for gain, which is a technique regularly used to exploit both academic institutions and the U.S. court system. While malingering in legal environments is generally to receive less harsh sentencing, access to drugs, or other benefits, the aim of faking illness in students is to avoid consequences for missing required classes or examinations. The purpose of this research is to identify the relationship between “faking-bad” …

Our Local Dam, Cortez Yannie

Student Scholar Showcase

No abstract provided.

Once A Lake Now A Stream, Josh Desper

Student Scholar Showcase

No abstract provided.

A Seasonal Crime?: A Quantitative Examination Of The Relationship Between Criminal Charges In The City Of Lynchburg And Seasons Of The Year With Reference To Gender And Race, Caitlin Ann Ann Dorsch

Undergraduate Theses and Capstone Projects

Previously, many criminologists have focused on the intersectionality of gender and race with reference to only one or a few specific crime categories, such as theft or illegal drug use (Sommers et al., 1996; Bushman et al., 2005; Stalans & Ritchie, 2008). According to Sommers & Baskin (1992), gender causes misinterpretation without the inclusion of race when researching violent crime because both characteristics are inherently linked to an individual’s identity. Furthermore, there is a seasonal component to analyzing crime (Hipp et. al., 2004). Using data from the City of Lynchburg Office of Corrections in Virginia from January 2010 to July …

Hosting The Fifa World Cup: An Economic Analysis Of How The World Cup Has Impacted The Economy Of A Developed And A Developing Nation, Juan Borga

Undergraduate Theses and Capstone Projects

This thesis is a microeconomic study of the economic impact hosting the FIFA World Cup can have on both a developed and developing nation. I will examine the economies of Germany and Brazil, three years prior and three years after hosting the tournament in 2006 and 2014 respectively. The pressures imposed by the Fédération Internationale de Football Association (FIFA) require significant monetary investments for the World Cup to be considered successful, but have countries been allocating their resources effectively? The purpose of this thesis is to determine the extent to which it is economically advantageous for a nation to host …

The Impact Of The Legalization Of Marijuana In Colorado On Education Funding And Car Crash Fatality Rates, Lauren Mcdonald

Undergraduate Theses and Capstone Projects

The objective of this thesis is to investigate and report the impact of the legalization of marijuana on the funding of education and car crash fatality rates in the state of Colorado. Legalization has been a controversial topic, and marijuana has already been legalized for recreational use in 11 states, and medically in 22 states across the United States. The tax revenues from marijuana are used in school funding, though the allocations of these funds have varied in different years. As we approach the impact that legalization has had on Colorado, it will be interesting to see if the newly …

The Effectiveness Of The European Union’S Environmental Policies, Wendolyn Borkoski

Undergraduate Theses and Capstone Projects

The European Union has some of the highest environmental standards in the world. However, multiple member states fail at reaching the deadlines set by the European Union (EU). This thesis examines the effectiveness of the European Union’s environmental directives on gaining compliance from member states to reach the agreed-upon standards. This is assessed by using three European Union directives from different environmental areas and analyzing their requirements. Each directive represents either a hierarchical policy, negotiated policy, or voluntary policy transfer. This study hypothesizes that the hierarchical policy, represented by EU Directive 2008/98/EC, will be more effective at gaining compliance than …

The Impact Of Temporary Gender Embodiment On The Accuracy Of Personality Judgment: Drag Performance As A Lens, Adele Weaver

Undergraduate Theses and Capstone Projects

Accurately perceiving the personalities of others may allow a person to be more successful in social and professional settings. Past research has supported that drag performers who are extroverted tend to be more successful in their job (Hopkins, 2004). It also has been supported that extroverted people, who are also referred to by Vogt and Colvin as “interpersonally-oriented,” are better at accurately judging others’ personalities (2003).The influence of gender on perceiving abilities is addressed in this study; it observes whether or not drag performers more accurately perceive the personalities of others because of their interpersonal orientation. It has been found …