Social and Behavioral Sciences Commons^™

Justice Served Fresh: Associations Between Food Insecurity, Community Gardening, And Property Value, Micajah Daniels, Courtney Coughenour Ph.D

McNair Poster Presentations

Numerous stakeholders in Nevada have used a variety of efforts to combat the growth of food insecurity facing Nevadans. The purpose of this research project is to understand the association between food insecurity, community gardens, and property value. Following the wealth of scholarship on these topics and data collected from community garden agencies in Southern Nevada, the research questions for this project include: (1) Where are community gardens located in SNV? (2) What efforts community gardens agencies are doing to address food insecurity (most interested in their efforts using community gardens)? (3) What are the perceptions of supports and barriers …

Anti-Queer Microaggressions Towards Queer Black Men, Camisha D. Fagan, Anna Smedley-López

McNair Poster Presentations

Microaggressions are reoccurring derogatory messages that degrade and/ or discredit one’s identity. While invisible and unknown to many, they remain visible and apparent to those impacted by them. The research questions for this project are: (1) What microaggressions do Queer Black men experience within larger society? (2) To contrast with larger society, what microaggressions do Queer Black men experience within Black communities? By conducting focus groups, I will examine the intersectional microaggressions that Queer Black males experience in their own community, as well as document microaggression that they experience in larger society. After conducting my focus groups, I will be …

Higher Quality At Lower Cost: Community Health Worker Interventions In The Health Care Innovation Awards, Caitlin Cross-Barnet, Sarah Ruiz, Megan Skillman, Rina Dhopeshwarkar, Rachel Singer, Rachel Carpenter, Suzanne Campanella, Maysoun Freij, Lynne Snyder, Erin Colligan

Journal of Health Disparities Research and Practice

Background: Published evidence regarding cost savings, reduced utilization, and improved quality associated with employing community health workers (CHWs) is largely lacking. This paper presents findings from the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services Health Care Innovation Awards (HCIA), with a focus on six diverse programs that employ CHWs. We examine outcomes associated with programs incorporating CHWs into care teams for a broad age range of patients with various health issues such as cancer, asthma, and complex conditions.

Methods: This mixed-methods study used data from claims and site visits to assess the effectiveness of CHW programs. In difference-in-differences analyses of Medicare …

Is It Still Impossible To Be Black And American?, Darrian Carroll

UNLV Theses, Dissertations, Professional Papers, and Capstones

This thesis engages Bill Clinton’s presidential rhetoric to investigate how liberal rhetorical practices can be used to extend and sustain the oppression of Black Americans. By adopting Du Bois’ concepts of the color-line and double-consciousness this thesis examines how Bill Clinton was able to recreate the color-line in the Mason Temple speech and benefit from and recreate a world devoid of consciousness in other selected speeches from his corpus. This project takes up three separate speeches by Bill Clinton as texts. The second chapter focuses on Bill Clinton’s “Remarks to the Rainbow Coalition” and “Remarks announcing the initiative” to make …

Perceptions Of Chronic Disease Among Older African Americans: A Qualitative Analysis, Karon Phillips, Charles Rogers, Adrienne Morgan

Journal of Health Disparities Research and Practice

Research has documented that African Americans suffer disproportionately from chronic diseases when compared to the general population. Yet, limited research examines older African Americans’ perceptions about having chronic diseases. Accordingly, the first aim of the study provided insight into this disparity with the intent of revealing how older African Americans feel about their overall health, and how much they understand about their individual chronic disease(s). The second aim was to gather information about strategies and coping mechanisms older African Americans use to manage their chronic diseases. The purpose of this aim was to determine if any of the strategies they …

An Ambivalent Embrace: Service Needs And Gaps For Asian Immigrants In New Destinations, John J. Chin

Journal of Health Disparities Research and Practice

Asian immigrants to the U.S. are settling in "new destinations," but there has been little research on their health care and social service needs. Our analysis of Census data to identify cities with the fastest Asian immigrant population growth (1990-2000) yielded 33 smaller cities in 13 states. The cities ranged in population from 7,677 to 86,660; were spread across 13 states in the Northeast, South, and Midwest regions of the US; and varied widely demographically. Pilot surveys conducted in 2009 indicated that, although many residents had positive attitudes towards immigrants, many were also concerned about job competition and dilution of …

Racial Minority Immigrant Acculturation: Examining Filipino Settlement Experiences In Canada Utilizing A Community-Focused Acculturation Framework, Renato M. Liboro

Psychology Faculty Research

By incorporating perspectives from Community Psychology into Berry’s (1997) acculturation framework from Cross-cultural Psychology, a more community-focused acculturation framework was developed and proposed in this essay. Elements from Community Psychology that focus on group-specific settings, community-level analysis, sociocultural resources, sociopolitical forces, and roles of grassroots organizations and host societies in challenging institutional power were consolidated into Berry’s acculturation framework to establish a new framework with a stronger community focus. In a theoretical application utilizing the new community-focused framework, socio-historical accounts of and discourse on Filipino experiences prior to the beginnings of the Filipino diaspora to Canada in the mid-1990s and …

The Relationship Between African- American Male Education And Employment Opportunities Through The Lenses Of Critical Race Theory And Stereotype Threat In The Historical Context Of The 1965 Moynihan Report, Robert Paul Walker

UNLV Theses, Dissertations, Professional Papers, and Capstones

The purpose of this study is to examine the connection between education and employment outcomes for African American males through the dual lenses of Critical Race Theory (CRT) and Stereotype Threat (ST) in the historical context of the 1965 Moynihan Report. A qualitative case study design allowed for the collection of rich data through in-depth interviews designed to elicit the Black male participants’ perspectives and lived experience of education and employment. For more than fifty years, the trajectory of African American male education and employment has been a negative one. This study documented, in their own voice, the African American …

Race, Resilience, And Resistance: A Culturally Relevant Examination Of How Black Women School Leaders Advance Racial Equity And Social Justice In U.S. Schools, Tonya Evette Walls

UNLV Theses, Dissertations, Professional Papers, and Capstones

This culturally relevant qualitative examination of the leadership of Black women educational leaders (BWEL) committed to advancing a social justice leadership agenda within the contested spaces (Stovall, 2004) comprising United States (U.S.) P-12 schools, employs an African centered emancipatory methodology (Kershaw, 1990, 1992; Tillman, 2002), situated in a conceptual framework grounded in the research on applied critical leadership (Santamaria, 2013). It examines, highlights, celebrates, and makes transparent, the unique leadership of BWEL. Engaged to rebuke the silencing and marginalization of women educational leaders of color in the educational leadership discourse, this study bridges engages a multiple case study approach, phenomenological …

A Historical Case Study Of Title Ix In Nevada: An Excellent Investment In Our Youth, Jason Clark

UNLV Theses, Dissertations, Professional Papers, and Capstones

The purpose of this study was to examine and document the history of Title IX in the American West, specifically at the University of Nevada, Reno (UNR), and at Clark County School District (CCSD) in Las Vegas, Nevada. This thesis contends that since the late nineteenth-century, women have utilized sports as a method to shed discriminatory stereotypes, fight for inclusion, and promote gender equality. In addition, the progressive actions of educational administrators and community leaders regarding Title IX make both UNR and CCSD exceptional institutions for gender equality. This thesis contains six chapters including the introduction and conclusion. Chapter 1 …

Risk For Cardiovascular Disease In Blacks With Hiv/Aids In America: A Systematic Review And Meta-Analysis, Calvin Odhiambo, Jessica Davis, Bernard Omolo

Journal of Health Disparities Research and Practice

Cardiovascular disease (CVD) related to HIV infection is becoming a major public health concern in the United Stated. Epidemiologic studies show that prolonged use of Highly Active Antiretroviral Therapy, HIV/AIDS itself, and a combination of traditional vascular risk factors increase the risk for CVD among people with HIV/AIDS. However, little is known about any racial disparities in the risk for CVD in the HIV/AIDS population. We conducted a systematic review and meta-analysis of literature on HIV/AIDS and CVD (June 1, 2010-July 31, 2014) through MEDLINE to examine whether and how HIV-positive African Americans are disproportionately affected by CVD compared to …

Social Determinants Of Health Associated With Hbv Testing And Access To Care Among Foreign-Born Persons Residing In The United States: 2009 - 2012, Kevin M. Greene, Wayne A. Duffus, Jian Xing, Hope King

Journal of Health Disparities Research and Practice

Objectives: To describe how select Social Determinants of Health (SDH) are associated with the burden of hepatitis B virus (HBV) infection among foreign-born persons residing in the United States.

Methods: Multivariate logistic regression was used to examine the Racial and Ethnic Approaches to Community Health (REACH) 2010 Risk Factor Survey data to investigate the independent relationship between SDH and HBV testing and access to care.

Results: HBV infected persons with insurance were more likely to see a physician than those without. Respondents worried about money to pay rent or mortgage were more likely to report HBV infection than …

Jornaleros Engaged In A Multidimensional Struggle: A Critical Ethnography With Day Laborers In Las Vegas, Jorge Adrian Castrejon

UNLV Theses, Dissertations, Professional Papers, and Capstones

Day labor work has spread across the entire Unite States as part of the secondary labor market, or as Cherrie Moraga describes it- survival work. Day laborers in Las Vegas, Nevada have become a significant part of this trend in the Southwest, where the highest rate of day laborers work, and for which little community and scholarly work has been produced. The National Day Labor Survey, the most comprehensive study with day laborers, reports that the day labor market is rife with abuse and violations of worker rights. But, the exploitation of this predominantly migrant workforce would not be possible …

The Relationship Of Education And Acculturation With Vigorous Intensity Leisure Time Physical Activity By Gender In Latinos, Erick B. Lopez, Takashi Yamashita

Sociology Faculty Research

Objectives: Latinos have poorer health outcomes among certain conditions (e.g. diabetes, obesity, mental health) compared to non-Latino Whites in the U.S., in part due to difference in the amount of physical activity, which are heavily influenced by sociocultural factors such as educational attainment and acculturation. Vigorous-intensity leisure time physical activity (VLTPA) may provide health benefits with a shorter amount of time than moderate-to-light physical activity. However, VLTPA has been significantly understudied compared to LTPA in general. The purpose of this study is to examine the associations between educational attainment, acculturation, and VLTPA by gender among Latino adults in the U.S. …

Race, Age, And Neighborhood Socioeconomic Status In Low Birth Weight Disparities Among Adolescent Mothers: An Intersectional Inquiry, Sheryl L. Coley, Tracy R. Nichols

Journal of Health Disparities Research and Practice

Introduction: Few studies examined socioeconomic contributors to racial disparities in low birth weight outcomes between African-American and Caucasian adolescent mothers. This cross-sectional study examined the intersections of maternal racial status, age, and neighborhood socioeconomic status in explaining these disparities in low birth weight outcomes across a statewide sample of adolescent mothers.

Methods: Using data from the North Carolina State Center of Health Statistics for 2010-2011, birth cases for 16,472 adolescents were geocoded by street address and linked to census-tract information from the 2010 United States Census. Multilevel models with interaction terms were used to identify significant associations between maternal racial …

Prescribing Change For Minority Students: Diagnosing Inequalities In Science Education In The Clark County School District, Brianna K. Cotter

Calvert Undergraduate Research Awards

Promoting entry of underrepresented minority groups into the allied health professions is paramount to developing a balanced workforce that reflects the needs of an evolving populace. Currently, significant underrepresentation of racial minority groups in health and science related fields correlates with data showing an overrepresentation of black and Latino students in Title 1 (at-risk and low-income) schools. Data suggest that students who are exposed to “higher quality” science education, such as “hands on” experiences, have increased interest in pursuing a health or science related career. These findings prompt the hypothesis that Title 1 schools face inequalities in their science education …

A Performance Analysis Of Dorothy Rudd Moore's Sonnets On Love, Rosebuds, And Death, Cordelia Elizabeth Anderson

UNLV Theses, Dissertations, Professional Papers, and Capstones

The purpose of this document is to evaluate Dorothy Rudd Moore’s Sonnets on Love, Rosebuds, and Death through a performance analysis, and to discuss the significance of the Harlem Renaissance in relation to the song cycle. Moore used seven reputable poets from the Harlem Renaissance to compile this song cycle. The poets are Alice Dunbar Nelson, Clarissa Scott Delany, Gwendolyn Bennett, Langston Hughes, Arna Bontemps, Countee Cullen, and Helene Johnson. A few of them were a part of the core group that spurred this powerful movement. The Harlem Renaissance was a flourishing time in American history when African Americans felt …

Image, Narrative, & Concept Of Time In Valerie Capers's Song Cycle Song Of The Seasons, Lillian Channelle Roberts

UNLV Theses, Dissertations, Professional Papers, and Capstones

Once I was a classical pianist, then I was a jazz pianist, but now I’m a pianist – No label. And in my writing, I’m not concerned with any particular style. I’ve found that if you have musical groundwork and some idea of the emotional impact the music should have, the musical style will hang together.

—Valerie Capers

Primarily known as a renowned jazz pianist, Valerie Capers is a blind, African-American woman composer who defied all odds by becoming the first blind graduate of The Juilliard School. Dr. Capers also became valedictorian of the New York Institute for the Education …

Self-Care And Mobility Disability At Mid-Life In Lucky Few, Early-, And Late-Baby Boom Birth-Cohorts, Carlos Siordia

Journal of Health Disparities Research and Practice

Disability is related in definite ways with makers of social stratum, as it can be influenced by and has the potential to contribute to the production and reproduction of social stratification. Intersectional markers of social stratification processes are ignored determinants of health. The Class, Race, Sex (CRS) hypothesis presented here argues that a low-education, racial-minority, and female disadvantage will compound to affect the prevalence and risks of disability. The evidence presented validates the CRS hypothesis by showing that disability prevalence and risk clusters first by class, race, and then sex. The cross-sectional study of community-dwelling adults in the Unites States, …

Hispanic Representation In A Longitudinal Birth Cohort Study, Julie Postma, Lisa R. Younglove, Kerry Brooks, Tamara Odom-Maryon, Shirley Beresford, Thomas Burbacher, Phillip Butterfield, Patricia Butterfield, Nicole Cederblom, Kimberly Grant, Elaine M. Faustman

Journal of Health Disparities Research and Practice

Background: The purpose of this paper is to report: 1) strategies used to engage Hispanic women and their families in a longitudinal birth cohort study, and 2) comparisons of Hispanic and non-Hispanic groups that received those strategies. This paper augments the current literature by reporting methods and results specific to a subpopulation of Hispanic women, that of self-identified Mexican women. Comparisons between Hispanic and non-Hispanic groups that received those strategies will build the evidence base that supports effective outreach and engagement strategies.

Methods: Cultural responsiveness theory was used to structure outreach and engagement, including: 1) assembling a culturally competent team; …

Doctor, Lawyer, Social Worker?: Exploring The Experiences Of Asian American Pacific Islander (Apia) Social Work Students, Jiabao Zhang, Kathleen J. Bergquist, Arthur Tabrizi

Graduate Research Symposium (GCUA) (2010 - 2017)

This study examined preliminary result using a snowball sample of 121 APIA social work students from accredited institutions that offer social work programs. The purpose of this study was to explore APIA social work students’ perceptions and experiences in the program and their expectations from classmates, APIA faculty, field liaison, and agencies. A 44-item survey was sent through an online survey site to APIA students. The results indicated that while most participants reported that family do not have a strong influence on their profession, 39% out of 83 respondents reported positive experiences with social workers drove them to pursue this …

The Role Of Adaptive Capacity On The Subjective Career Success Of Former D-I African-American Male Athletes: A Mixed-Method Study, Leon Antonio Jackson

UNLV Theses, Dissertations, Professional Papers, and Capstones

African-American male student-athletes who played a revenue-generating sport enter the labor market having relatively poor social networks, low grade point averages, few marketable skills outside of sports, restricted work experiences, and marginal subject matter knowledge; most of which are the result of their participation in sports (Singer, 2008). Therefore making the transition more difficult than even the average African-American male (Edwards, 1980). The purpose of this study was to: (1) Determine the factors that predict subjective career success for former D-I African-American male athletes who played a revenue-generating sport, and (2) Explore how former D-I African-American male athletes, who played …

Creating The Black California Dream: Virna Canson And The Black Freedom Struggle In The Golden State’S Capital, 1940-1988, Kendra M. Gage

UNLV Theses, Dissertations, Professional Papers, and Capstones

This dissertation examines the black struggle for racial equality in the Golden State’s capital from 1940-1988 and an integral leader of the movement, Virna Canson. Canson fought for nearly fifty years to dismantle discriminatory practices in housing, education, employment and worked to protect consumers. Her lifetime of activism reveals a different set of key issues people focused on at the grassroots level and shows how the fight for freedom in California differed from the South because the state’s discriminatory practices were harder to pinpoint. Her work and the larger black community’s activism in Sacramento also reveals how the black freedom …

Disparities In Hospital Services Utilization Among Patients With Mental Health Issues: A Statewide Example Examining Insurance Status And Race Factors From 1999-2010, Viann N. Nguyen-Feng, Hind A. Beydoun, Michael K. Mcshane, James D. Blando

Journal of Health Disparities Research and Practice

There exist many disconnects between the mental and general health care sectors. However, a goal of the Affordable Care Act (ACA) of 2010 is to change this by improving insurance access and the intersection of mental and general health care. As insurance status intersects with race, the present study examines how race, insurance status, and hospital mental health services utilization differ across groups within the state of New Jersey. The present study aims to determine trends in hospital mental health care utilization by insurance status and race from 1999 to 2010. The rate of self-pay for mental health disorders in …

Gathering Perspectives On Extended Family Influence On African American Children's Physical Activity, Natasha A. Brown, Katherine Clegg Smith, Rachel L.J. Thornton, Janice V. Bowie, Pamela J. Surkan, Darcy A. Thompson, David M. Levine

Journal of Health Disparities Research and Practice

Background: The family environment is a key determinant of children’s physical activity. The importance of the extended African American family is well established, but there is little research on its influence on school age children’s physical activity. Methods: We recruited eight families in which grandparents and other adult relatives played a central role in child supervision. Semi-structured interviews with parents, other adult relatives, and children revealed various perspectives on the influences of culture and families on children’s weight-related behaviors. Results: Children were between the ages of 6 and 11, and five of the families resided in neighborhoods in which at …

Cultural Competence: New Conceptual Insights Into Its Limits And Potential For Addressing Health Disparities, Shireen S. Rajaram, Susan Bockrath

Journal of Health Disparities Research and Practice

The increasing interest in the role of racism and racialization in health disparities, calls for exploring new paradigms in addressing and eliminating health disparities related to race/ethnicity. Cultural competence is conceptualized as one of the keys ways to address racial/ethnic disparities in public health and healthcare. However, for cultural competence to fulfill this role, it requires a critical understanding of the underlying socio-political and economic processes of power, privilege and institutional racism that create, support and maintain existing health disparities. This paper outlines how the concept of cultural competence can be made more robust, by incorporating concepts such as Public …

Are There Gender Differences In Perceived Sexual Self-Efficacy Among African-American Adolescents?, Michelle L. Redmond, Rhonda K. Lewis

Journal of Health Disparities Research and Practice

Background: African American adolescents accounted for more than half of all HIV/AIDS cases in 2009. Behavioral Strategies are needed to help lessen the incidence of HIV/AIDS among this population.

Purpose: The aim of his study was to examine sexual self-efficacy practices and beliefs among African American adolescents. We also examined gender differences between African American adolescents to better understand their perceptions of sexual self-efficacy, condom use intention, and other safer sex practices and beliefs.

Methods: A cross-sectional study was conducted with 214 African American adolescents using survey instruments to examine their beliefs, perception and intentions on the use of condoms, …

No Prejudice Here: Racism, Resistance, And The Struggle For Equality In Denver, 1947-1994, Summer Marie Cherland

UNLV Theses, Dissertations, Professional Papers, and Capstones

This study chronicles a story of civil rights that has been left untold until now. Recent scholarship contributing to the history of the "long civil rights movement" has reframed our understanding of civil rights beyond the years of the late 1950s and early 1960s. In addition, it has also demonstrated that civil rights activity occurred in regions other than the South. However, most work on the long civil rights movement demonstrates that activism among blacks began much earlier than the Brown v. Board Supreme Court case and instead, was a part of a longer freedom struggle that, in many ways, …

Physical Child Abuse And Cultural Differences In Reporting, Emily Frances Reed

UNLV Theses, Dissertations, Professional Papers, and Capstones

Previous research using both National Child Abuse and Neglect Data System (NCANDS) data and other sources has found that biases do exist with regard to racial differences. The current study will build on past research of biases in the Child Protective Services (CPS) involvement and reporting. This study uses a secondary data set, the 2009 NCANDS dataset; which consists of child specific data of all investigated reports of maltreatment to state CPS agencies. This research seeks to determine if there are disparities in cases reported to and substantiated by CPS as reflected by race (Black, White, & Hispanic children) and …

Strategic Planning For Recruitment And Retention Of Older African Americans In Health Promotion Research Programs, Laura Dreer, Cynthia Owsley, June Weston

Journal of Health Disparities Research and Practice

The purpose of this study was to 1) describe a strategic plan for recruitment and retention used in conducting eye health education research with African-Americans living in urban and rural areas of Alabama and 2) characterize recruitment and retention patterns for this project.

We evaluated an eye health education program tailored specifically to older African Americans. InCHARGE was designed to promote eye disease prevention by conveying the personal benefits of annual dilated comprehensive eye care and teaching strategies to minimize barriers to eye care. The InCHARGEÓ program or a social contact control program was delivered at 20 senior centers in …