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Electronic Theses and Dissertations

South Dakota State University

2016

Articles 1 - 26 of 26

Full-Text Articles in Social and Behavioral Sciences

Investigating Grassland And Cropland Conversion Decisions In The Dakotas, 2015 Producers Survey And Analysis, Md Niaz Murshed Chowdhury Jan 2016

Investigating Grassland And Cropland Conversion Decisions In The Dakotas, 2015 Producers Survey And Analysis, Md Niaz Murshed Chowdhury

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

This study investigates grassland and cropland conversion decisions in the Dakotas. Data from a 2015 survey completed by 1,026 producers located in 57 counties of the Prairie Pothole Region (PPR) were used to evaluate land conversions. This thesis attempts to identify the land use conversion incidence and rate (grass to crop and crop to grass); the link between past and projected land use conversion decisions in the Dakotas, and determinants of land use conversion using different statistical tools, including logistic regression methods. A regional analysis of converted acres reveals that the grass to crop conversion rates (as percent of 2014 …

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Consumer Animosity In Cross Cultural Context, Anne-Marie Junker Jan 2016

Consumer Animosity In Cross Cultural Context, Anne-Marie Junker

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

Social Entrepreneurship (SE) has shown to have substantial potential to address social concerns and it prompted the question if an SE might be a viable option for Native American groups in South Dakota. This unique situation could pose an additional challenge for marketers because of the common shared history that contributed to the current inequality. The SE could serve as a cue about unresolved tensions, prompting the question about possible morality and even culpability. Recent government actions regarding restoration and even restitution to Native Americans could signal changing attitudes regarding possible responsibility. Depending on personal beliefs and societal norms, this …

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Identifying Data Centers From Satellite Imagery, Adam Buskirk Jan 2016

Identifying Data Centers From Satellite Imagery, Adam Buskirk

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

We develop two different descriptors which can be utilized to describe satellite imagery. The first, the differential-magnitude and radius descriptor, describes a scene by computing the directional gradient of the scene with respect to a vector field whose solutions are circles around a pixel to be described, and then counts pixels in a descriptor matrix according to the magnitude of this gradient and the distance at which this magnitude occurs. The second, the radial Fourier descriptor, extracts from the scene a sequence of annuloid sectors, and uses this to approximate the behavior of the image on a circle around the …

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Government Policy And Initiatives On Maternal Mortality Reduction In Nigeria, Enifome U. Eto Jan 2016

Government Policy And Initiatives On Maternal Mortality Reduction In Nigeria, Enifome U. Eto

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

This research is a case study of the decline in Nigeria’s maternal mortality ratio from 1990 to 2013. The goal was to examine the reasons behind the decline. Using a combination of ideas from Eager (2004) and Nathanson (1996) as the theoretical framework, this study explained the factors that resulted in the decline. Both theorists focus on the processes of normative change relative to public health outcomes at a societal or international level. Available secondary or documentary data were used for this study. Data sources include: Nigerian government reports on maternal health interventions; nongovernmental reports on maternal health interventions; reports …

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Temporal And Spatial Influences On South Dakota Farm Economies Of Size, Henry Brown Jan 2016

Temporal And Spatial Influences On South Dakota Farm Economies Of Size, Henry Brown

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

Census of Agriculture data are evaluated to test for economies of size of South Dakota farms. Economies of size occur when per-unit costs decrease as the size of a firm increases. This research measures technical economies of size, which assume that all firms pay identical input prices and receive identical output prices. The dependent variable of the model is expenses per dollar of sales. This is a typical measure of efficiency in agricultural statistics. The data come from the four prior Census of Agriculture years, 1997, 2002, 2007, and 2012. A state-wide model and a county-wide model were developed to …

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Land Cover Land Use Change And Soil Organic Carbon Under Climate Variability In The Semi-Arid West African Sahel (1960-2050), Amadou M. Dieye Jan 2016

Land Cover Land Use Change And Soil Organic Carbon Under Climate Variability In The Semi-Arid West African Sahel (1960-2050), Amadou M. Dieye

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

Land Cover Land Use (LCLU) change affects land surface processes recognized to influence climate change at local, national and global levels. Soil organic carbon is a key component for the functioning of agro-ecosystems and has a direct effect on the physical, chemical and biological characteristics of the soil. The capacity to model and project LCLU change is of considerable interest for mitigation and adaptation measures in response to climate change. A combination of remote sensing analyses, qualitative social survey techniques, and biogeochemical modeling was used to study the relationships between climate change, LCLU change and soil organic carbon in the …

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Simulating The Impacts Of Land-Use Land-Cover Changes On Cropland Carbon Fluxes In The Midwest Of The United States, Zhengpeng Li Jan 2016

Simulating The Impacts Of Land-Use Land-Cover Changes On Cropland Carbon Fluxes In The Midwest Of The United States, Zhengpeng Li

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

Understanding the major drivers of the cropland carbon fluxes is important for carbon management and greenhouse gas mitigation in agriculture. Past studies found that agricultural land-use and land-cover (LULC) changes, such as changes in cropland production technologies, tillage practices, and planted crop species, could have large impacts on carbon fluxes. However, the impacts remain highly uncertain at regional to global scales. Satellite remote sensing is commonly used to create products with geospatial information on LULC changes. This geospatial information can be integrated into biogeochemical models to simulate the spatial and temporal patterns of carbon fluxes. We used the General Ensemble …

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Outsourcing To The Developing Economy: Its Impacts On Gdp And Unemployment. A Case Study Of India And The United States Of America, Abidemi Akinyemi Jan 2016

Outsourcing To The Developing Economy: Its Impacts On Gdp And Unemployment. A Case Study Of India And The United States Of America, Abidemi Akinyemi

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

Outsourcing of services from the U.S. to developing country like India has been importantly debated over the year on media and amongst Americans, also fears and discussions that increased imports of services will decrease employment and wages. This paper estimates how the services exports from India have helped reduce unemployment and built a better India using a production equilibrium model. The analysis finds that these services exported had a positive effect on GDP, and unemployment in India. Moving the analysis away from India to the U.S., the econometric analysis used a fixed effect panel dataset on the U.S. manufacturing industries …

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Coping And Adjustment Of Spouses Of International Students At South Dakota State University, Elizabeth Nayebare Jan 2016

Coping And Adjustment Of Spouses Of International Students At South Dakota State University, Elizabeth Nayebare

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

This research investigated acculturation of female spouses of international students to life in Brookings, specifically, how they cope and adjust. It was guided by the following questions: what are the socio-economic and cultural attributes of female spouses, and how do they impact their ability to cope and adjust to life in Brookings; what strategies and activities do spouses of international students rely on or develop in order to adjust and cope with life in the United States (Brookings); and what are the processes and experiences of coping and adjustment among spouses of different professional and cultural backgrounds? The investigation was …

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The Effect Of Nba Free Agency On Player Utility, Austin Erikson Jan 2016

The Effect Of Nba Free Agency On Player Utility, Austin Erikson

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

Observably, free agents in the National Basketball Association often make misguided decisions during the free agency period. These decisions may have a direct effect on a player’s performance and salary, affecting their overall utility. Research exists confirming that moving through free agency leads to an effect on player performance, but no study has explored the effect of changing teams through free agency on a player’s salary. As a significant number of players enter this market every year, research on this area is crucially important. The null hypothesis for performance is: H0: moving to a different team through free agency leads …

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Relationship Of Grain Stocks And Farmer Marketings, Tyler Holmquist Jan 2016

Relationship Of Grain Stocks And Farmer Marketings, Tyler Holmquist

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

This research explores the relationship between quarterly grain stocks and monthly grain marketings. Reviewing when, how, and why stocks move from on-farm and off-farm inventories, an interpretation of quarterly commodity disappearance and crop marketings is formed. An explanatory model is first developed for farmer marketings, where price expectations are used to assess market signals to change ownership of crops. The model is applied to South Dakota corn, soybeans, and wheat from 1985 through 2015. The subsequent analysis contributes to a model that explains quarterly changes in stocks in terms of supply levels and the expected effect from marketings on disappearance. …

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Student-Athlete: A Study Of Student-Athlete Workload Compared With Traditional Student Workload, Chuck Provencio Jan 2016

Student-Athlete: A Study Of Student-Athlete Workload Compared With Traditional Student Workload, Chuck Provencio

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

Purpose: The purpose of this study was to collect and analyze data on the workload of students and student-athletes to determine if there is a significant difference in the workloads of student-athletes compared with non-athletes, including undergraduate and graduate students. It was hypothesized that student-athletes would spend more time in athletic activities, but would sacrifice time in other areas. Method: This analysis of variance study collected data from 22 students at South Dakota State University using the Student Activity Log and categorized those students using a combination of three of six labels (student-athlete or non-athlete, undergraduate or graduate, and working …

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Differences In Running Mechanics Between Overweight/Obese And Healthy Weight Children, Kristen Roles Jan 2016

Differences In Running Mechanics Between Overweight/Obese And Healthy Weight Children, Kristen Roles

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

Background/Purpose: Physical activity is commonly prescribed to reduce childhood obesity. However, due to differences in mechanics during low-impact activities, such as walking, obese children may be more prone to negative physical complications during high-impact activities, such as running. Therefore, this study analyzed the mechanical differences in running mechanics between healthy weight (HW) and overweight/obese (OV/OB) children. We hypothesized that when compared to HW children, OV/OB children would display higher vertical loading, greater joint moments and greater joint angular impulses during running. We also expect decreased sagittal plane range of motion and increased frontal plane range of motion of the hip, …

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Influencers And Barriers To Consumption Of Healthful Diets In Rural Youth In Context Of The Bioecological Model, Megan Bren Jan 2016

Influencers And Barriers To Consumption Of Healthful Diets In Rural Youth In Context Of The Bioecological Model, Megan Bren

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

The purpose of this study is to determine influencers and barriers to healthful dietary intake in rural youth in context of the bioecological model. Four focus groups as part of Ignite, a tri-state, five-year, community based partipatory research (CBPR) intervention were conducted with 6th to 8th grade adolescents from an economically disadvantaged community of rural South Dakota. Results were categorized into the context of the bioecological model. Within the model, the process, person, context and time (PPCT) design with the three types of personal characteristics were used to describe the framework in which the systems are embedded. Focus group content …

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The Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program And Childcare, Kyle Kopplin Jan 2016

The Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program And Childcare, Kyle Kopplin

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

This paper attempts to analyze the effects of subsidized food dollars on the amount of daily childcare in households. More specifically, households in the low income category are of interest because they are the most likely to receive food subsidies. There has been a political debate recently in the United States which argues over the appropriate level of subsidies, if any. More importantly, food insecurity is an issue in the world; many do not know where will the next meal come from. This paper provides statistical evidence that food subsidies in the form of the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP) …

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Body Satisfaction And Ability To Identify Weight Status Of Preschool-Aged Children By Their Caregivers, Andrea Brown Jan 2016

Body Satisfaction And Ability To Identify Weight Status Of Preschool-Aged Children By Their Caregivers, Andrea Brown

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

Rates of childhood obesity have been rising consistently across the nation and internationally. As a result, interventionists have been working to develop ways to combat this and have focused on interventions involving caregivers. Previous research indicates caregivers experience challenges in identifying obesity among their own children, which leads to barriers in addressing and reducing rates of obesity as caregivers remain unaware of any problems. The current study explored caregivers’ ability to correctly assign their child to the appropriate weight category and whether their ability was impacted by caregivers’ own weight status. Further, it also explored caregivers’ level of body satisfaction …

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Attitude Comparison Among South Dakota Family Members Regarding Estate Planning And Farm Transitions, Heather Gessner Jan 2016

Attitude Comparison Among South Dakota Family Members Regarding Estate Planning And Farm Transitions, Heather Gessner

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

Estate planning and intergenerational farm transitions are the focus of research and extension programs across the nation due to the potential tax consequences faced by farm operations, retirement funding options available and utilized by farmers, changes in asset transition tools available, and communication (or lack of communication) issues related to bringing an heir back to the family operation.
Past plans for research projects and extension programming developed across the nation and in South Dakota (SD), were created with many assumptions regarding the attitudes of farm family members towards the transition of ownership of the operational assets and personal assets of …

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Evaluation Of Bison (Bison Bison) Ecology At The Olson’S Bison Conservation Ranches, Pine River Ranch, Manitoba, Canada, Joshua L. Leonard Jan 2016

Evaluation Of Bison (Bison Bison) Ecology At The Olson’S Bison Conservation Ranches, Pine River Ranch, Manitoba, Canada, Joshua L. Leonard

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

Bison (Bison bison), the largest mammalian species in North America, historically numbering in the tens of millions (Roe 1970, McHugh 1972, Dary 1989, Shaw 1995), was nearly extirpated at the turn of the 19th century (Knapp et al. 1999; Gates et al. 2010). At the time, estimates of less than 1,000 bison remaining in North America are widely accepted (Hornaday 1889; Seton 1927; Gates et al. 2010). The decline of bison includes factors such as disease (Flores 1991; Isenberg 2000), sport hunting (Danz 1997; Dary 1989; Hewitt 1919; Isenberg 2000; McHugh 1972), and unofficially funded commercial hunting by the U.S. …

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Understanding The Factors Associated With Engaged Scholarship: A Case Study Of Sociologists In The University Of Cape Coast, Ghana, Rebecca Maame Ahima Tachie Jan 2016

Understanding The Factors Associated With Engaged Scholarship: A Case Study Of Sociologists In The University Of Cape Coast, Ghana, Rebecca Maame Ahima Tachie

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

Although initially established for the purpose of training teachers and management staff for the formal education sector, one of the major objectives of the University of Cape Coast (UCC) is to establish partnerships with both local and international communities and organizations in ways that simultaneously enhance academic scholarship and socioeconomic development. For this reason, this study examined the significance of university policies on community engagement and the practice of public sociology. Specifically, the influence of epistemological dispositions and perceptions concerning disciplinary, institutional and social demands on engaged scholarship are addressed. The challenges associated with the practice of engaged scholarship and …

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Developing Management Guidelines That Balance Cattle And Timber Production With Ecological Interests In The Black Hills Of South Dakota, Kurt M. Chowanski Jan 2016

Developing Management Guidelines That Balance Cattle And Timber Production With Ecological Interests In The Black Hills Of South Dakota, Kurt M. Chowanski

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

Forested lands contribute to the United States (US) economy by providing livestock and timber production. Livestock grazing of forested lands has been widespread throughout the western US since the settlement era, and currently occurs on 51.4 million hectares (ha) representing 16% of all US grazing land and 22% of all US forested land (Nickerson et al. 2011). While livestock grazing and timber harvest are occurring on a substantial amount of forested land, relationships between management practices, tree stocking, timber production, forage production, livestock grazing, wildlife, aesthetics, and ecological integrity are not well documented. Whether considering timber or cattle, finding a …

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Effects Of Visitors And Enrichments On Behavior Of Captive Red Wolves’ (Canis Rufus) At The Great Plains Zoo, Sioux Falls, South Dakota, Kylee S. Shotkoski Jan 2016

Effects Of Visitors And Enrichments On Behavior Of Captive Red Wolves’ (Canis Rufus) At The Great Plains Zoo, Sioux Falls, South Dakota, Kylee S. Shotkoski

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

Red wolves (Canis rufus) are the first animals to maintain a wild population from captive, released individuals. A captive breeding program for red wolves was started before complete extirpation, and 4 breeding pairs were released in Alligator River National Wildlife Refuge (North Carolina) in 1987 and a small wild population still exists there. Currently, there are several captive breeding facilities for red wolves within the Species Survival Plan (SSP) program. The Great Plains Zoo in Sioux Falls, South Dakota participates in the SSP program. My study was initiated to create a natural history background and evaluate interaction between …

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Using Remote Sensing And Biogeographic Modeling To Understand The Oak Savannas Of The Sheyenne National Grassland, North Dakota, Usa, Mandira Sigdelphuyal Jan 2016

Using Remote Sensing And Biogeographic Modeling To Understand The Oak Savannas Of The Sheyenne National Grassland, North Dakota, Usa, Mandira Sigdelphuyal

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

Oak savannas are valuable and complex ecosystems that provide multiple ecosystem goods and services, including grazing for livestock, watershed regulation, and recreation. These ecosystems of the woodland-prairie ecoregion of the Midwestern United States are, however, in danger of disappearing. The Sheyenne National Grassland, North Dakota, a protected Prairie grassland-savanna, is a representative of such rare habitats, where oak savanna is found at the landscape scale. In this research, I map the distribution patterns of oak savanna in the Sheyenne using a combination of remote sensing and geospatial datasets, including landscape topography, soils, and fire disturbance. Further, I interpret the performance …

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Identity Theory And Women’S Choice Of Medical Specialty, Kelli A. Rolfsmeyer Jan 2016

Identity Theory And Women’S Choice Of Medical Specialty, Kelli A. Rolfsmeyer

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

The purpose of this study was to answer the research question: Does a self theory of social action account for female physicians’ perceptions of past choice of specialty? Perceptions of self changed as she prepared herself to become a physician. During her medical training, a medical student gains a better sense of who she is as a person who will become a doctor. The ability to act back on one’s self, called selfreflexivity, is the mechanism involved in the transitions of a physician’s biographical self. The data for this study was collected through interviews centered on questions chosen from the …

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Monitoring Global Forest Land-Use And Change, Erik J. Lindquist Jan 2016

Monitoring Global Forest Land-Use And Change, Erik J. Lindquist

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

Earth’s forests contain nearly three-fourths of the World’s floral and faunal diversity, function as a large carbon sink capable of mitigating the effects of global climate change, affect local and regional physical and chemical cycles and provide wood and non-wood products. However, humans are now capable of modifying their environment in ways more impactful and at rates faster than at any other time in history. Consistent and comparable estimates of global forest land-use and change are critical for monitoring human impacts on the Earth system. International treaties and reporting requirements aimed at safeguarding the delivery of forest-related ecosystem services depend …

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Causes Of Alienation Among Black Students At Two Predominantly White Universities, Anton Mighty Jan 2016

Causes Of Alienation Among Black Students At Two Predominantly White Universities, Anton Mighty

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

The purpose of this study was to examine the factors that foster or inhibit the academic and social integration of Black students at two predominately white institutions. A second purpose of this study is to discover the factors influencing Black student alienation. The survey instrument was administered to 52 Black students (8.7% of the total Black student population) enrolled in two universities located in the upper Midwest. Six indices were developed for these independent variables: pre-entry characteristics, institutional environment, academic integration, faculty interaction, social integration, and peer involvement. The results of this study add to the limited literature on alienation …

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Application Of Routine Activities Theory To The Study Of Residential Armed Robbery In Ghana, Neeh Nhai Lhayea Jan 2016

Application Of Routine Activities Theory To The Study Of Residential Armed Robbery In Ghana, Neeh Nhai Lhayea

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

This study utilized Routine Activities theory to explain deterrent and motivating factors associated with residential armed robbery in Ghana. Although several studies have examined crime through the lenses of Routine Activities theory, none such studies have been dedicated to the study of residential armed robbery in Ghana. This study, therefore, attempts to fill that void by applying Routine Activities theory to the study of residential armed robbery. This research samples 56 of armed robbers in three selected prisons of contemporary Ghana to provide a fuller criminological and descriptive analysis of the offence, the offenders, motivation and guardianship to committing residential …

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