Social and Behavioral Sciences Commons^™

Assisted Reproductive Technology (Art) In The Mountain West, 2022, Caitlin J. Saladino, Kristian Thymianos, William E. Brown Jr., Monserrat Cristando-Romo, Taylor Volk, Yashesvi Sharma

Health

This fact sheet examines data on Assisted Reproductive Technology (ART) clinics located in five Mountain West states: Arizona, Colorado, Nevada, New Mexico, and Utah. The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention 2022 Fertility Clinic Success Rates Report includes data from all 50 states and provides information on ART services offered by individual clinics, including data on total cycles, fertility preservation cycles, pregnancies, deliveries, and total infants born.

Social Security And Retirement Income In The Mountain West, 2022, Dre Boyd-Weatherly, Taylor Volk, Caitlin J. Saladino, William E. Brown Jr.

Cities & Metros

This fact sheet presents data on the mean total retirement income for forty-four cities in the Mountain West: Arizona (13), Colorado (14), Nevada (9), New Mexico (3), and Utah (5). The Smart Asset report, “Social Security and Retirement Income Are Highest in These Cities – 2024 Study,” reports data from the 2022 one-year American Community Survey conducted by the U.S Census Bureau.

National Cancer Centers And Cancer Rates In Nevada, 2017-2021, Yashesvi Sharma, Ivan Sun, Taylor Volk, Caitlin J. Saladino, William E. Brown Jr., Fatma Nasoz

Health

This fact sheet presents data from the National Institutes of Health including the National Cancer Institute’s (NCI) “State Cancer Profiles” report and includes age-adjusted cancer incidence rates by race/ethnicity in Nevada, between 2017 and 2021. The fact sheet also shows data from the 2024 National Cancer Institute’s “NCI-Designated Cancer Centers” map, listing NCI-Designated Cancer Centers by state, and the distance to the nearest NCI-Designated Cancer Centers from the Las Vegas metro and Reno metro.

Community-Driven Policy Solutions To Police Accountability, Rashawn Ray

Brookings Scholar Lecture Series

George Floyd’s death shifted public opinion as 76% of Americans agreed that incidents such as the killing of Floyd are signs of racism within law enforcement. While police reforms such as implicit bias training and body-worn cameras gained public support, they insufficiently address the structural, cultural, and organizational components of policing that can obstruct accountability and contribute to racial disparities in policing. In this lecture, Brooking Senior Fellow Rashawn Ray presents interview, survey, social media, and virtual reality data with police officers, activists, and civilians, and demonstrates state- and city-level databases on police reform legislation. Ray posits that evidence-based policy …

Reading The Rainbow: Exploring Themes And Identities In Lgbtqia+ Picture Books, Amanda Melilli, Alicia G. Vaandering, James W. Rosenzweig

Library Faculty Presentations

This presentation shares an analysis of over 275 picture books featuring LGBTQIA+ identities, providing evidence that the depiction of queerness in children’s literature is complex and varied. Tools for defining narrative themes and LGBTQIA+ identities will be shared as well as data on queer characters with intersecting identities. By exploring the nuances of LGBTQIA+ representation in picture books, attendees will gain a better understanding of novel research inquiries into representation.

Improved Open Access Support Through A Popular Open Access Fund, Andrea A. Wirth

Library Faculty Research

This paper describes results of a 2023 survey of authors who applied to University of Nevada, Las Vegas (UNLV) Open Article Fund, a fund that supports article processing charges (APCs). The survey sought feedback about the fund’s impact, value, and award criteria as well as opinions on other open access topics. Results show that the fund has had a positive impact on open access uptake and opinions of open access. Respondents reported that they participate in other open publishing activities and believe that most publications should be made open access. The results suggest opportunities for better strategic connections between the …

Chronic Student Absenteeism In The Mountain West, 2018-2023, Anirudh Polagani, Yashesvi Sharma, Zachary Billot, Caitlin J. Saladino, William E. Brown Jr.

K-12 Education

This fact sheet examines data on chronic student absenteeism rates across five Mountain West states: Arizona, Colorado, Utah, New Mexico, and Nevada. The “Tracking State Trends in Chronic Absenteeism” report by FutureEd, an education policy think tank at Georgetown University, provides data for 42 states and the District of Columbia for the school years of 2018-2019, 2021-2022, and 2022-2023.

The Causes And Impact Of Evictions In Southern Nevada, Mohit Pande

Student Research

As the Southern Nevada region continues to quickly grow, evictions have become a structural feature of the region’s rental market. The region has one of the highest eviction filing rates in the country and this trend has continued to increase in the wake of the Covid-19 pandemic. This paper examines the availability of market-rate affordable housing and the expansion of subsidized affordable housing to understand how the local housing conditions contribute to the number of evictions in Southern Nevada. Additionally, the paper studies local legal processes, such as the summary eviction system and habitability procedures, to understand the relationship between …

Relational Database Schema To Support Research Profiling Studies, Natural Language Processing, And Bibliometric Analysis, Darnelle Melvin

Library Faculty Research

In this paper, a relational database schema is introduced that supports rapid prototyping, data preprocessing, and warehousing tasks associated with research profiling studies, natural language processing, and bibliometric analysis. Python scripts are leveraged for the seamless retrieval and processing of data from Semantic Scholar. This schema is tailored to efficiently analyze entities such as authors, their scientific papers, referenced papers, and cited papers. Adhering to the relational model, this schema offers a standardized approach to data storage and detailed information retrieval for scientific papers. Enhancing knowledge discovery in scientific databases, this schema provides researchers with a powerful platform for robust …

Introduction, Amanda Koziura, Amy Tureen

Library Faculty Research

Introduction to the book Making Values-Based Decisions in the Academic Library.

Hypnosis: An Evidenced Based Treatment, Gregory P. Brown

Psychiatry & Behavioral Health Faculty Research

Review of meta analyses and systemic review level studies of hypnosis in the treatment of anxiety, burnout, and depression.

Don’T Do More With Less: Sustainable Work As A Management Value, Amanda Koziura

Library Faculty Research

Discusses a series of decisions a middle manager made to keep the work of her department sustainable and how she incorporated her values into her process.

Tax Education For Financial Empowerment, Job Buenrostro-Diaz

Second-Year Seminar Posters (COE 202)

Research Question: In what ways can understanding tax concepts help with financial literacy in improving money management decisions for lower income individuals?

This proposal outlines a strategy to increase quality education in middle to low income communities.

Is It Real Enough? A Mixed-Methods Study Of Realism, Engagement And Counterargument In Transmedia Edutainment For Sustainable Behaviors, Aya Shata, Michelle Selig

Hank Greenspun School of Journalism and Media Studies Faculty Research

Advancements in technology have driven media convergence, paving the way for innovative storytelling formats like Transmedia Edutainment (TE-E), a new promising strategy for advocating prosocial behaviors. However, there is limited research on narrative processing and the persuasive outcomes of TE-E, particularly in environmental contexts. Therefore, this paper examines TE-E as a new communication strategy that leverages storytelling across multiple platforms to promote pro-environmental messaging. Drawing on entertainment-education literature and narrative persuasion theories, specifically the narrative engagement model and perceived realism as theoretical frameworks in this study, to help understand the role and influence of TE-E. Using a mixed-method design, five …

The Scientific Landscape Of The Aging-In-Place Literature: A Bibliometric Analysis, Saman Jamshidi, Nastaran Hashemi

Architecture Faculty Research

The world’s population is aging and, as populations age, they exhibit an increased prevalence of chronic diseases, which can reduce the independence of elderly individuals. The set of initiatives known as aging in place, a common policy response to the aging population, is preferred by both the elderly population and policymakers. Aging in place is a broad and multifaceted topic that involves multiple stakeholders and academic disciplines. A science map of the literature on aging in place can help researchers pinpoint their efforts and help policymakers make informed decisions. Thus, this study maps the scientific landscape of the aging-in-place literature. …

How Couples Navigate Interethnic Differences In Asian American Population: A Grounded Theory Approach, Michelle Nakaula

UNLV Theses, Dissertations, Professional Papers, and Capstones

Several studies have discussed the impact of cultural factors in Asian American families. Previous research has demonstrated useful strategies used in dealing with distress and relationship dissatisfaction regarding cultural differences. There is limited data or studies that explore additional challenges faced by interethnic couples, rather than interracial couples and the impact of family dynamics on these relationships. Each partner’s identity development process was influenced by their understanding of different cultural traditions and customs. These unique experiences shaped their understanding of roles and expectations within their relationship and parenting styles. Additionally, these family relationships and cultural backgrounds play a role in …

The Effects Of First Responder Stress & Trauma On Spouses And Romantic Partners, Eden Thiess

UNLV Theses, Dissertations, Professional Papers, and Capstones

First responder jobs pose unique difficulties due to the sheer number of traumatic events that they witness and personally experience. Research has demonstrated some effects of stress and trauma on family relationships, but the literature lacks an understanding of the ways that first responder trauma and stress affects their marriages and romantic relationships. The current study’s purpose was to investigate the experiences of first responder spouses and partners within the Las Vegas area in regards to stress, trauma, and relationship dynamics as influenced by the first responder role. In this study, 11 participants who were in a marriage or romantic …

Music And Narrative Memory, Maxwell Kayser

UNLV Theses, Dissertations, Professional Papers, and Capstones

Music can overlap with many activities, but its effects on our memory for those activities are not fully understood. The experiments here investigated the effects of calm and intense background music on both memory and narrative transportation (the feeling that one is absorbed into the events of a narrative) during reading. Participants read narratives either in silence or with background music and completed a measure of narrative transportation (Transportation Scale-Short Form; Appel et al., 2015). Participants were then tested, either in silence or with background music, on memory for explicit details and inferences from the narrative. Across both experiments, memory …

Understanding Levels Of Perceived Racism And Discrimination When Utilizing Perinatal Care, Alexandria S. Evans

UNLV Theses, Dissertations, Professional Papers, and Capstones

Social and structural determinants of health, grounded in historical racism and discrimination, significantly influence maternal health outcomes. Because of this, communities of color experience a higher burden of maternal health disparities. In the last several decades, there has been an increased awareness of the need to integrate critical race theory into public health research to address maternal health disparities in the context of perinatal care delivery, policy, and funding decisions.

This three-manuscript dissertation utilized mixed methods to examine the ways in which systemic racism and discrimination are perceived and how it impacts the utilization of perinatal care services in historically …

Effect Of Epistemic Cognition And Self-Regulation On The Evaluation Of Online Information, Devin T. Foschi

UNLV Theses, Dissertations, Professional Papers, and Capstones

While research has shown that epistemic cognition plays an important role in self-regulation, the way in which it does so in online contexts needs further research. The objective of this dissertation was to examine the relationship between Internet-specific epistemic cognition and Internet-specific self-regulated learning, and to use a mixed-methods approach in order to expand upon the way learners undergo the evaluation of information in online spaces beyond the traditional method of only using self-report measures and other common quantitative techniques. Using an explanatory sequential mixed-methods design, Phase 1 (N = 117) used quantitative methods to first look at the relationship …

Social Network Analysis: How Social Media Groups Can Influence Policies Among Hispanic Families, Valeria Gurr

UNLV Theses, Dissertations, Professional Papers, and Capstones

The COVID-19 pandemic in March 2020 impacted the entire world in various ways. On March 15, 2020, education in Nevada was significantly impacted when the Governor announced the closure of public schools due to the pandemic. When the schools were closed, students were forced to stay home and receive their education through virtual instruction. This transition to distance education affected the Hispanic/Latino(a) communities in pronounced ways and highlighted issues such as limited access to the Internet, technology, lack of hardware devices, as well as language barriers and more. This study uses social networking analysis techniques to examine the nature of …

The Impact Of Father-Daughter Relationships On Dating And Relationship Behaviors For African American Women: A Qualitative Analysis, Neeah A. Lofton

UNLV Theses, Dissertations, Professional Papers, and Capstones

This study examines how African American father-daughter relationships can impact their dating and relationship behaviors. This highlights an important role African American fathers play in shaping their daughter’s development and expectations within romantic relationships. The purpose of this qualitative (grounded theory) study was created to unravel the unique dynamics that shapes African American women's views on intimacy, self worth and relationships expectations. The research seeks to fill existing gaps in literature, moving beyond the notion of African American father presence to explore the emotional context that influences their daughter’s romantic lives. The research question for this study is for African …

Exploring The Interactive Effects Of Officer, Subject, And Encounter Factors On Police Use Of Force Outcomes, Jeremy David Barnum

UNLV Theses, Dissertations, Professional Papers, and Capstones

Police use of force incidents are highly complex events that can be characterized by factors pertaining to the officers, subjects, and immediate encounter. These factors and the dynamic interrelationships between them encompass the situational context of use of force and have been widely studied in the criminological literature (Bolger, 2015). However, extant research has almost exclusively focused on identifying the main effects of situational factors on use of force with little consideration of how effects may vary across specific situational contexts. This limits our understanding of police use of force and complicates efforts to develop policy or training that ensures …

The Relationship Between Police Stress And Officer Misconduct, Leobardo Lopez-Cristobal

UNLV Theses, Dissertations, Professional Papers, and Capstones

Recent high-profile and controversial police-related incidents have sparked an intensified public discourse on police misconduct. This has resulted in increasing calls for greater accountability and transparency within U.S. police agencies. Much of the existing research on police misconduct centers around two competing explanations: the "bad apples" perspective, which attributes misconduct to individual officers, and the "bad barrels" perspective, which points to systemic or organizational factors (Rojek, Decker, & Wagner, 2015). However, one factor that has been underexplored in the literature is the role of police stress in influencing deviant police behavior. Previous studies suggest a potential link between police-related stress …

Symptom Network Comparisons Between Pre- And Post-Concussion, Christine Salva

UNLV Theses, Dissertations, Professional Papers, and Capstones

Increased awareness about the short and long-term negative outcomes associated with sport-related concussion has resulted in active monitoring of cognitive and symptom profiles of athletes using a variety of assessments. The traditional approach to interpretation of cognitive and symptom measures has been based on a latent construct framework where domain scores reflecting latent constructs representing cognitive or symptom domains are collected at baseline and then compared to those obtained after concussion during the acute injury phase, with repeated additional assessments to determine when cognitive and symptom alterations have resolved. More recently, network approaches have been used to examine changes in …

The Motherhood Wage Penalty: Estimation Across Various Factors, Mario Velazquez

Undergraduate Research Symposium Posters

Maternity and family leave policies are implemented in the workplace and sometimes even mandated by governments to allow first-time mothers to provide care for their newborns and recover from childbirth. However, these policies vary by country, and previous research publications have found that women face a “motherhood penalty” when they take a leave from work, leading to reduced earnings compared to women who do not have children. The main purpose of this paper is to validate whether new mothers do in fact face a decrease in their earnings over time, to compare this penalty across numerous variables, and to explore …

Factors Related To Racial Trauma Distress Among Bipoc College Students, Miguel Castano, Richard Chang, Giezel Guevarra

Undergraduate Research Symposium Posters

Racial trauma distress is when post-traumatic stress disorder symptoms occur due to repeated and cumulative experiences of racism and can negatively impacted Black, Indigenous, and people of color (BIPOC). Consensus in research findings strongly suggest that BIPOC students are more likely to experience racism on university campuses than non-BIPOC students. To mitigate some of these negative outcomes, existing research has shown that psychological safety, resilience, and intraminority solidarity are protective factors for BIPOC students experiencing race-related distress. However, little is known about the frequency of racial trauma distress among BIPOC college students and how these variables may protect against racial …

Alternatives To Screen Time Given In Parenting Advice, Emma Romeo

Undergraduate Research Symposium Lightning Talks

Screen time within the last decade is an area of rising interest, especially in a "Post-Covid" world. Despite a diversity of opinions being written and research being done on screen time, what is being presented as an alternative is lesser known. In this research, the aim is to identify types of activities that are presented to parents as alternatives' to screen time in parenting websites and blogs. This study uses qualitative content analysis of over 240 articles from 2019-2023 mentioning media use or screen time from two regularly consumed and popular parenting websites, Sheknows.com and Parents.com. The data so far …

Exploring Mental Health Providers' Willingness To Integrate Digital Applications For Gen-Z Students, Chanlinee Karawek

Undergraduate Research Symposium Lightning Talks

Mental health services have expanded significantly throughout recent years, alongside the virtualization of said services since the COVID-19 pandemic. As a result, digital mental health applications (DMHAs) are now widely available. Generation-Z college students are a demographic that both grew up with this technology and is associated with a high risk of mental illness development during their time in higher education. Integration of familiar technology and necessary mental health services could potentially help address their unique psychological needs. This study explores mental healthcare providers’ perspectives on incorporating DMHAs into their therapy services to Gen-Z college students. An anonymous survey was …

Climate Change And Its Effects On Maternal Mental Health, Sara Cordero

Undergraduate Research Symposium Lightning Talks

Climate change refers to long-term shifts in temperatures and weather patterns primarily caused by human activities, which have facilitated more climate crises, such as floods, wildfires, hurricanes, etc. They tend to have the greatest effect on vulnerable populations, such as women and children. This study is aimed to view how climate change-related environmental stressors impact the mental health and well-being of mothers. A scoping literature review approach was used by analyzing scientific databases (i.e. APA-Psycinfo, Scopus, PRIMO) to find peer-reviewed papers that studied the effects of extreme weather events and climate change on maternal mental health. Results suggest that hurricanes, …