Social and Behavioral Sciences Commons^™

Ella Sharp's Hillside Farm: Expressions Of Class And Gender In Nineteenth Century Rural Michigan, Carol A. Nickolai

Masters Theses

This study examined ways in which social class and gender were expressed in the landscape and material culture of the Merriman-Sharp Farm, a nineteenth century upper class farm owned by women in Jackson, Michigan. Material culture studies, landscape architecture, and architectural history were used in addition to available documents to focus on how the Merriman-Sharp family reflected their class and gender affiliations.

The social construction of reality is an ongoing process at the Merriman-Sharp farm through the Ella W. Sharp Park and Ella W. Sharp Museum. The ways in which the Ella W. Sharp Park and Ella W. Sharp Museum …

A Descriptive Study Of Offenders Sentenced To Special Alternative Incarceration From 1988-1990 In Kalamazoo County, Sherri Deboef Chandler

Masters Theses

This is a descriptive study of the first two-year cohort of offenders sentenced in Kalamazoo County to Special Alternative Incarceration (SAI). Data were compiled from the Kalamazoo County Probation Department records which indicated 84 young men were sentenced to SAI from its inception in 1988 to 1990. Data were gathered on these offenders spanning 1988 to 1992. Successful graduation from SAI, completion of the probationary period, and recidivism were compared to offense, race, SES, education, employment, and other variables. The data of this group were also compared to national data of those sentenced to Special Alternative Incarceration programs. This group …

An Interactionist Perspective On Centrality And Racial Discrimination In Professional Baseball, David S. Czurak

Masters Theses

The structuralist version of centrality has measured racial discrimination in professional baseball for the past two decades. Its reliance on positional groupings, based on location, has resulted in a count of racial occupancy at these locations, often without a comparative racial baseline. The structuralist premise has accused baseball of playing field discrimination, citing it as a black versus white issue while discounting other motivations. From a symbolic interactionist perspective, this structuralist account of centrality is flawed in that it lacked action. Nor has it correctly identified what is central to baseball, and many of its findings have been inconclusive. An …

Stimulant Medication And Attributional Style In Adhd Children, Maria Zoubek

Masters Theses

The results of this study indicated that stimulant medicated ADHD children do not exhibit a more external global academic attributional style than a nonreferred control group. Further, the ADHD children's specific level attributions suggested that these children believed their medication was at least somewhat helpful and that they rated as providing a good effort on the spelling test. Additional analyses revealed that children who did not attribute successful outcomes to their effort tended to report higher levels of depression. Discussion focuses on implications for the role of global and specific level attributions in ADHD children's depressive symptomatology.

Evidence For The Endoparasite Giardia Lamblia In Human Paleofeces From Salts Cave. Mammoth Cave National Park, Kentucky, Lisa Karen Ruppert

Masters Theses

Three desiccated human feces recovered from Salts Cave, Mammoth Cave National Park, Kentucky, were analyzed for evidence of parasitic infection, specifically Giardia Lamblia. Positive detection of Giardia cysts was made using a direct immunofluorescent assay (IFA) technique. Scanning electron microscopy revealed what appear to be Giardia lamblia trophozoites. One additional fecal sample, analyzed for its dietary content, was composed primarily of Helianthus annuus (sunflower) and Chenopodium berlandieri (goosefoot). Over one hundred seeds of Cucurbita pepo (squash) were also contained within this specimen. This sample has been radiocarbon dated to 2420±90 B.P., falling into the cluster of previous dates from …

Gis Application For Nitrogen Dioxide Pollution Monitoring In Moscow, Russia, Maria V. Privalsky

Masters Theses

The focus of this study was nitrogen dioxide pollution monitoring in Moscow, Russia. ERDAS GIS was used to create maps of nitrogen dioxide distribution on the territory of the city for the years from 1983 to 1991.

A special model was written to compare the consecutive pairs of years in respect to the nitrogen dioxide pollution change. Results of model application were analyzed in order to determine the territories that experienced maximum changes during the study period.

Relationship between street density as a measure of car flow and nitrogen dioxide pollution was estimated. Two measures of the relationship were used: …

The Borders Of A Canvas Tent: An Analysis Of Feminist Utopian Novels, Catherine R. Caldwell

Masters Theses

This thesis is a critical examination of three feminist utopian novels: Woman on the Edge of Time, by Marge Piercy; Herland, by Charlotte Perkins Gillman, and Les Guerilleres, by Monique Wittig. The study, derived from the sociology of knowledge and deconstruction theory, focuses on similarities and differences involving: (a) sexuality; (b) community building; (c) religion; (d) decision making processes, political systems, and modes of production; (e) crime, deviance and political conflict resolution; and (f) child rearing. The analysis demonstrates that utopia may serve to critique dominant ideology. It also shows how utopian novels treat, and suggest possibilities …

Children's Tool Making Capabilities: Implications For Hominid Intelligence Models And Skill Acquisition Theory, Jill S. Mccleary

Masters Theses

The focus of this study was on morphological differences in stone tools that could be attributed to varied instruction and cognition levels.

In this study two groups of children, one second grade class and one fourth grade class, were selected to make stone tools. The tools that they made included both Oldowan-type flake tools and Acheulean-type handaxes. The primary variables considered in this study were the subjects' level of cognitive development (pre-operational versus concrete operational) as determined by a series of Piagetian tests, and the effects of varied instructional techniques.

Results suggest that Oldowan flake tools can be produced, at …

Effective Supervision In Community-Based Services For The Developmentally Disabled, Laura L. Methot

Masters Theses

This study investigated the effects of a supervisor training program on the subsequent use of objective measures and contingent consequences by a manager when monitoring and evaluating the performance of supervisors, and by supervisors when monitoring and evaluating the performance of direct care staff in a human service agency. Data also were collected to examine whether changes in supervisor performance produced changes in the direct care staff's use of contingent consequences for client performance and changes in client behaviors. One manager, 4 supervisors, 7 staff and 16 clients from an employment training center and a group home participated in the …

American Foreign Policy: Constitutionality Of Congressional Initiatives Into Presidential Prerogative—Who Controls The War Powers?, Jay F. Donaldson

Masters Theses

This paper examines the executive-legislative relations on foreign policy formulation, debate, authorization, funding and implementation. The research shows that the founding fathers never intended one branch to totally control the "war powers." Inter-branch rivalry and conflict were intended.

The research establishes a pattern this inter-branch relationship has taken since the Constitutional Convention. This "pattern" clearly indicates the natural ability of the executive branch in handling foreign affairs especially those key events involving the use of force or where the potential for violence exists.

The paper also examines the surge of congressional authority (1970's) which attempted to apply restraint on what …

The Effects Of Sensory Integrative Therapy And Functional Communication Training On Stereotypic Behavior, Thomas M. Starzynski

Masters Theses

Three developmentally delayed individuals who exhibited self-stimulatory behaviors were exposed to sensory-integrative therapy. Prior to treatment, a Motivation Assessment Scale was completed and a functional analysis baseline was conducted to identify the maintaining variables of the self-stimulatory behavior. Each subject displayed a pattern of responding suggesting that stereotypic behaviors were maintained by automatic reinforcement. Results show that sensory-integrative therapy had no effect on self-stimulatory behaviors. The stereotypic behaviors of Subject 1 and Subject 2 were later reduced when functional communication plus response interruption was applied. The self-stimulatory behavior of Subject 3 was not affected by the implementation of functional communication …

The Ethnic Aspects Of Population Change In Latvia After Independence, Ilmars Mezs

Masters Theses

This study examines current and historic ethnic and demographic trends and their spatial and cultural contexts within Latvia. Comparisons with the other two Baltic states are also presented and discussed. The Latvian population underwent fifty years of Soviet rule, with deliberate policies to dilute the homogeneity of Latvians through Russification, in-migration, and political dominance. The period from 1940 to 1991 greatly impacted Latvians and immigrants, who were mainly Russians, by placing stresses on the spatial structure of the ethnic groups and their cultural relationship.

Latvians in particular feared ethnic and cultural extinction. The process of ethnic dilution and mixing under …

The Effects Of Regular Aerobic Exercise On Sexual Desire In Women, Joanne Louise Kolean-Burley

Dissertations

A multiple baseline design across subjects was used to evaluate the effects of an 8-week aerobic walking program on sexual desire in 7 previously sedentary married women who met the DSM-III-R criteria for Hypoactive Sexual Desire Disorder (HSDD). Sexual desire was assessed on a weekly basis through a 6 to 9-week baseline period and the 8-week walking intervention using the Self-Acceptance and Mate- Acceptance subscales of the Sexual Interaction Inventory (SII) (LoPiccolo & Steger, 1974), the Sexual Activity Form, developed for this study to measure the frequency of female sexual initiation and responsivity, a behavioral counter and the Sexual Thoughts …

Nutrition, Fitness, Stress And Genital Herpes Recurrences, Carman E. Stark

Dissertations

The purpose of this research was to extend the existing literature by assessing the relationship between several factors separately and combined, nutrition, fitness and stress, and herpes recurrence rates. It was hypothesized that the results from this study would indicate an inverse correlation between nutrition, fitness, and genital herpes recurrence rates and a positive correlation between stress and genital herpes. Each participant was asked to complete and return (a) two Computerized Nutrition Assessment Forms that provide a health history profile and a record of food choices and portions over two, three-day periods; (b) The Hassle Scale that provides a weekly …

The Unprepossessing Mr. Ryan: Understanding Exemplary Legislative Leadership, Barbara A. K. Adams

Dissertations

This study focuses on the character attributes, philosophy, political skills, policy agenda, and administrative activities of William A. Ryan, Speaker of the Michigan House of Representatives from 1969 through 1974 and a House member from 1958 through 1982. The case study is embedded in a history of Michigan’s political culture, which is characterized by moralistic and individualistic strands often in conflict with one another.

The research hypothesis was that administrative virtue in legislative leadership is best described in terms of utilitarian ethics, the ability to control and manage factionalism in the interest of incremental change. The rival hypothesis was that …

Attitudes Toward Euthanasia And Suicide For The Terminally Ill: An Updated Analysis, Thomas Melvin Stankewicz

Masters Theses

Replication of Monte's (1991) analysis of euthanasia and suicide correlates was the focus of this study. In addition, a right to die index was created and results were compared to the replication findings. The data used in the analyses were from the 1985 and 1991 General Social Surveys.

Cross-tabulation and multiple regression analysis were conducted to determine: (a) whether euthanasia and suicide approval increased significantly between 1985 and 1991, (b) which variables were significant predictors of euthanasia and suicide attitudes, (c) whether changes had occurred between 1985 and 1991, and (d) whether results obtained using the right to die index …

Nuclear Threats By The United States In The Korean And Vietnam Wars: Toward A Grounded Theory Of International Governmental Crime, David Kauzlarich

Dissertations

Criminologists have generally ignored the crimes of governmental actors and agencies. This study delves into this neglected area of sociological inquiry by addressing definitional, legal, empirical, and theoretical dimensions of the phenomenon of governmental crime. The four research objectives are to:

1. Demonstrate that socially deleterious governmental actions can be studied criminologically through the epistemological framework of international law.

2. Document the existence of such governmental crimes in the area of nuclear weapons.

3. Describe and compare the patterns of the United States' violations of international laws during the Korean and Vietnam wars.

4. Inductively generate hypotheses and theoretical propositions …

A Comparison Between Computer Assisted Group Therapy And Group Psychotherapy, Dennis A. Hunyadi

Dissertations

The comparison of two forms of group psychotherapy, a computer assisted group therapy model, the Therapeutic Learning Program (TLP), and a conventional model, was the focus of this study. A control group of subjects on a waiting list to begin treatment in an outpatient psychiatric clinic was also used in the analyses. The participants were diagnosed according to DSM-IIIR criteria.

The groups were compared on gender, age, race, diagnosis, length of time in treatment, number of group sessions received, length of time on the waiting list, and pre and post test scores on Taylor’s Manifest Anxiety Scale and Rotter’s Locus …

The Testing Of A Protocol For Validating Claims Of Facilitated Communication, Jorge Teodoro

Masters Theses

Facilitated Communication (FC), is a new and controversial augmentative communication technique. This study examined the facilitated messages of six severely mentally impaired school children, produced under naturalistic, yet controlled, experimental conditions. The students were removed from the presence of their facilitators and experienced out-of-classroom events. When the students returned, their facilitators read descriptions containing True, False or No Information about the students' experiences. Messages produced in the ensuing facilitation sessions indicated that the facilitators influenced the facilitated messages, although they appeared unaware that they were doing so. Meanwhile, students showed little resistance to the testing procedures. Based on these results …

Social Change And Attitudes Of Educated Elite Toward The Role Of Women In Qatari Society, Jassim Al-Nassr

Masters Theses

The purpose of this study was to investigate attitudes of educated elite toward \ the role of women in Qatari society. Attitudes were viewed as reactionary, traditional, and liberal.

A questionnaire technique was used to gather data for this study. Five hundred eighty-two questionnaires Were distributed at eighteen Qatari ministries and official establishments. The response rate was 62.37%.

The six hypotheses tested in the study examined the relationships between the independent variables of gender, level of education, major and place of study, religious commitment, and job status, and the dependent variable of attitudes of Qatari educated elite toward the role …

Lesbian's Perception Of Parental Support And The Disclosure Of Sexual Orientation, Janet Trudee Snyder Tarkowski

Dissertations

The relationship between lesbian perception of parental support and disclosure of sexual orientation was examined in the study. From the 200 questionnaires prepared for distribution, a purposive sample of 180 (90%) lesbian-identified adults returned data for analysis. The participants completed a questionnaire addressing demographics and lesbian life-experiences. Three self-report inventories, the Perceived Social Support-Family Scale (PSS-Fa) (Procidano & Heller, 1983), the Silencing the Self Scale (STSS) (Jack, 1991), and the Beck Depression Inventory (BDI) (Beck, Ward, Mendelson, Mock, & Erbaugh, 1961), were also administered.

Data gathering procedures used in the study resulted in a sample which was largely white, well …

Gold-Encrusted Chaos: An Analysis Of Auschwitz Memoirs, Mary D. Lagerwey

Dissertations

One way to better understand the Holocaust is to look closely at several survivors' stories. In my dissertation I closely examine six published memoirs of women and men from one time and place: Auschwitz, 1942-1945. Specifically, I ask three questions:

1. How do Holocaust memoirs relate a universal human story?

2. How are Auschwitz memoirs informed by gender?

3. How do Auschwitz memoirs exemplify a polyphony of voices which engulfs and transcends gender differences?

In exploring the first question, I develop a thesis, that there is a universal story which captures the experiences of Auschwitz survivors' experiences. Next, I develop …

Reducing Dietary Fat And Cholesterol Consumption: An Evaluation Of A Behaviorally Focused Nutrition Education Program, Peter F. Carey

Dissertations

Coronary heart disease (CHD) is the leading cause of death in the United States, killing more than 500,000 people annually. Serum cholesterol is a principal risk factor for the development of atherosclerosis, a primary precipitant of CHD. Unfortunately, elevated serum cholesterol is a common but often undetected health risk for many Americans. Furthermore, the typical American diet contains high levels of fat and cholesterol which contribute to elevated serum cholesterol levels. The National Cholesterol Education Program (NCEP), created to improve awareness of serum cholesterol as a CHD risk factor, recommends that dietary changes constitute the initial step in the treatment …

A Previous Suicide Attempt As A Factor To Predict Successful Completion Of A Residential Alcohol Treatment Program, Michael William Glover

Dissertations

The focus of the study was an examination of patient reports of a prior suicide attempt(s) as a predictor variable in completing a residential alcohol treatment program. Data were extracted from the records of 308 patients diagnosed as alcohol dependent based on criteria from the DSM III-R (APA, 1987). Additional demographic information, i.e. age, race, marital status, employment status, and substance use in family of origin, was collected for comparison to completion rates and prior suicide attempts.

Previous suicide attempt(s) was a statistically significant predictor for noncompletion of an alcohol treatment program for this study. The demographic factors of employment …

Kinematic Analysis Of Sprinting With And Without The Speed Chute, Douglas Roy West

Masters Theses

The problem under investigation was to determine if kinematic differences existed when sprinting with and without the speed chute. Eight Western Michigan University Track and Field Athletes were filmed at 100 frames per second as they sprinted two trials with and without the speed chute.

Three ANOVAs and descriptive statistics were used to evaluate the effects of sprinting with and without the speed chute. Descriptive statistics provided information for numerous dependent variables. Although statistically significant differences (R < .05) existed between sprinting with and without the speed chute, those differences may not be practical for the coach to use in terms of evaluation of sprinting technique, because the differences would be difficult for the human eye to see. Therefore, the speed chute may be a viable training tool as kinematics were only minimally affected.

A Clinical Trials Evaluation Of A Double-Blinded Protocol To Assess The Therapeutic Effectiveness Of Stimulant Medication Prescribed For Children Diagnosed Adhd, Ann V. Thompson

Dissertations

This clinical trials investigation developed and evaluated a protocol for determining the therapeutic effectiveness of medication prescribed for children diagnosed ADHD. The protocol included two separate baseline periods of two week durations, each of which were followed by four randomly assigned probes of one week duration, consisting either of Methylphenidate or placebo capsules. Baseline probes were unblinded, but medication and placebo probe trials were double-blinded. Therapeutic effect, expectancies, and integrity of the double-blind control were assessed through a battery of rating scales and forms completed by the parent, teacher and child at the end of each protocol week, including baseline …

Changes In Labor Force Activities And Income Of The Elderly Before And After Retirement: A Longitudinal Analysis, Namkee G. Choi

The Journal of Sociology & Social Welfare

This paper analyzes the changes in work hours and the economic profile of the elderly for a period of 11 years before and after retirement. Workers of all economic status decreased their work hours gradually as retirement approached. But findings show that, as they decreased their work hours, workers with higher preretirement economic status experienced more drastic reduction in income than those with lower economic status. Nevertheless, the preretirement income gap was maintained in postretirment economic status mostly due to differences in asset income and pension benefits. Policies to assist low-income retirees are recommended.

A View From The Inside Out: Recipients' Perceptions Of Welfare, Mark R. Rank

The Journal of Sociology & Social Welfare

Welfare use is a highly stigmatized behavior in American society. The word itself conjures up various images of disdain in the minds of most Americans. Yet how do the recipients of welfare discern and react to being on public assistance? The focus of this paper is on understanding the manner in which recipients view their own situation, how they perceive the general public's attitudes toward themselves, and their views on fellow welfare recipients. Also examined are how such attitudes influence recipients' behavior towards welfare. These perceptions and behaviors are explored in detail through the use of in-depth, open-ended qualitative interviews …

Social Work, Social Science And The Disease Concept: New Directions For Addiction Treatment, Douglas Frans

The Journal of Sociology & Social Welfare

The perception of alcoholism and other substance abuse disorders as disease entities is a view ardently defended not only among chemical dependency professionals but, increasingly, by the general public as well. Over the past two decades, this perspective has also become so ensconced within the addiction treatment industry that alternative interventions are almost nonexistent even though evidence of their effectiveness is available (Miller & Hester, 1989). And yet, "no leading research authorities accept the classic disease concept" (Fingarette, 1988, p. 3). Competing views are generally characterized as irresponsible, and their sponsors summarily dismissed as dangerously uninformed by disease view proponents …

Client-Driven Advocacy And Psychiatric Disability: A Model For Social Work Practice, David P. Moxley, Paul P. Freddolino

The Journal of Sociology & Social Welfare

This paper presents an innovative advocacy model designed to assist people coping with psychiatric disabilities to fulfill their basic living needs. The model emphasizes the importance of clients defining their own needs for advocacy and then, with the support and assistance of an advocate, taking direct action to fulfill these needs. The model is elaborated in terms of its basic attributes, the interlocking roles of both clients and advocates, the importance of the advocacy relationship, and seven core processes of advocacy. The authors conclude with a discussion of possible effects of introducing the model into social work practice in mental …