Social and Behavioral Sciences Commons^™

Effect Of Changing Appointment Making Procedures On Increasing The Number Of Initial Appointments Kept At A Family Planning Agency, Carla A. Jones

Masters Theses

The procedures for making initial client appointments at a family planning clinic were manipulated to increase the number of kept appointments. Receptionists and counselors made appointments on the two appointment forms used. Questions on the appointment sheet varied depending on the age of the caller. The 1,432 women participating in the study were placed into three groups (a) 19 years of age and under (b) 20 to 30 years of age and (c) 31 years of age and over. The results showed that the occupation of the person making the appointment at the agency did not affect the number of …

Citizen Advisory Committees: The Relationship Between Member Satisfaction And Committee Variables, Linda Kimmel Pifer

Masters Theses

The relationship between the satisfaction members of locally initiated citizen advisory committees have with their committees and the following types of independent variables were examined: (a) shortcomings of the committees; (b) external influences on the committees; (c) information available to the committees; (d) specific actions performed by the committees; and (e) personal characteristics of the members. The membership of eight citizen advisory committees in Kalamazoo, Michigan comprise the sample. A questionnaire was distributed to the members to collect information on the five groups of independent variables, member satisfaction with the committees, and socio-economic characteristics of the members. A satisfaction scale …

The 1973 Oil Embargo Arab Oil Diplomacy, Amal Mustafa Shamma

Masters Theses

The Arab oil producing countries, following years of a stalemate in the Arab-Israeli dispute,- decided to put their oil resource in the service of the Arab cause using it as an instrument of pressure against the West. Their objective was to induce a change in the Western world Middle East policy and to work toward achieving a lasting and peaceful solution for the Arab-Israeli problem.

The purpose of this thesis is to show that the application of Arab oil diplomacy has been effective into producing a more even handed policy in the area, and into breaking the deadlock in the …

An Analysis Of The Role Of Reinforcement Magnitude In The Transfer Of Stimulus Control In A Receptive Discrimination Task, Beverly S. Adler

Masters Theses

The role of reinforcement magnitude in the transfer of stimulus control was analyzed using a delayed prompting procedure. A delay was gradually lengthened between the presentations of the relevant discriminative stimulus and an imitative prompt. During one condition, the contingencies of reinforcement were arranged such that the reinforcement available for anticipatory and prompt-controlled responses were equal. During another condition, responses which preceded delivery of the prompt were given more reinforcement than prompt-controlled responses. Two subjects were exposed to these conditions in the context of acquiring a series of receptive discrimination tasks. Results were inconclusive. Mean trials to criterion showed little …

An Assessment Of Anthropology In The Elementary Social Studies Curriculum In Tennessee, Denise Shannon Woodhall Wilkinson

Masters Theses

The purpose of this study was to determine the extent to which anthropology is presently included in public elementary schools in Tennessee and to identify factors which tend to favor or disfavor its inclusion. Six factors were proposed as being likely influences determining whether or not anthropology is taught in Tennessee's public elementary schools. A questionnaire was devised in relation to these six factors and was sent to 302 randomly selected elementary schools across the state.

Of the 302 questionnaires which were sent, 163 (54%) were returned and analyzed. It was determined that 62% of those teachers in the sample …

An Analysis Of The Faunal Remains From The Schwerdt Site, A Late Prehistoric Encampment In Allegan County, Michigan, Michael J. Higgins

Masters Theses

Analysis of faunal remains from the Schwerdt site, a fifteenth century encampment on the Kalamazoo River, reveals a temporary late spring occupation with an exploitative strategy aimed primarily at the spawning sturgeon. The position of Schwerdt in a larger subsistence/ settlement system is examined through comparisons with other contemporaneous sites in the southeastern Lake Michigan region. Changes in subsistence strategies on the northern periphery of effective maize agriculture.

Teaching Self-Protective Behaviors To Preschool Children Using A Videotape Training Program, Paul James Yoder

Masters Theses

This study investigated the effectiveness of a videotape training program to teach self-protective skills to preschool children. Children were taught to say, "I have to ask my teacher/parent," and to run to their teacher/parent when presented with one of two lures commonly used by child molesters. The videotape incorporated the direct instructional techniques of active pupil responding; the model, lead, and test format; and use of minimally different stimuli to teach children to discriminate between correct and incorrect responses. The results showed that although none of the subjects showed any improvement in responding after only one viewing, five of the …

The Effects Of A Transfer Of Stimulus Control Procedure, Probes, And Reinforcement On The Acquisition And Generalization Of An Intraverbal Repertoire, Steven John Braam

Masters Theses

A deaf, mentally-impaired youth was trained to emit intraverbal responses within the same response class to verbal stimuli which were presented in daily probe sessions (e.g., "food" evoked "apple", "bread","hot dog", etc.). Training consisted of a transfer of stimulus control procedure. If an incorrect response was made, the therapist would re-present the verbal training stimulus and immediately present a non-verbal prompt (picture) which evoked a verbal response. Since the transfer procedure was only Implemented contingent upon incorrect responding, it resulted in longer delays to trade-in for back-up reinforcers in sessions where mistakes were made. Correct responding Increased only as training …

The Development And Validation Of Concept Programmed Materials Based On A Direct Instruction Model, Curt E. Lalonde

Masters Theses

The experiment validated a set of instructional materials designed to teach behavioral concepts. Twenty-two subjects matched on the basis of their scores on a pretest covering these concepts comprised the experimental and control groups. Following a pretest, subjects in these two groups completed both sets of materials. After exposure to the instructional materials, they took an alternate-form posttest on the same concepts. Gain scores on the posttest were significantly higher (p<.05, means = .91, -.55) for subjects who completed the experimental materials than for the subjects who completed the control materials, materials contained sequences of examples and nonexamples of the behavioral concepts which were designed to maximize learned of those concepts.

Preferences Of Students For The Hutchings "Low Stress" Compared To The Conventional Algorithm Under Conditions Of Differentially Increasing The Number Of Problems With And Without Reinforcement, Pamela G. Buitendorp Drew

Masters Theses

This study was an attempt to determine which computation procedure students would select under varying classroom conditions. It is a systematic replication of previous research by Gillespie (1976). Algorithm preferences of 14 third grade students, 10 high accuracy and four low accuracy on a math facts test, were investigated under conditions of differentially increasing the number of problems with and without reinforcement, Reversal designs were used. The students completed 4X5 array problems and chose which algorithm to use, but after choosing the same algorithm for three consecutive sessions, they were required to use the alternative algorithm the next session. Preference …

Effects Of Withdrawing Diphenylhydantoin (Dilantin) On Matching To Sample Performance In Mentally Retarded Persons, Vicky June Davis

Masters Theses

The present study was designed to examine the effects of gradual DPH withdrawal on the matching to sample performance of three mentally retarded persons. The percentage of correct responses per session served as the dependent variable and the sample and comparison stimuli were red, green, and blue illumination of translucent response windows. The results showed that doses of diphenylhydantoin considerably lower than the suggested optimim therapeutic level can impair the performance of mentally retarded individuals on a simple discrimination task. As doses were reduced for each subject, there were increases in the percentage of correct responding with the highest percentage …

A Treatment Package To Improve Academic Performance, Lynn Daniel Larrow

Masters Theses

Six high school students volunteered to participate in a research project to improve their academic grades. Of these six subjects, it was found that subjects with low grade point averages (GPA) were the main beneficiaries of a behavior treatment package consisting of contingency contracting, graphing, and a self-management lecture. In addition, this study demonstrated that a contingency contract, employing a weekly consequence, and graphing can control an academic behavior, note taking. Finally, it was shown that a cost effective treatment package could produce GPA increases comparable to more expensive and time consuming treatments. It is hoped that the findings of …

Availability And Utilization Of Student/Personnel Services For Academic And Personal Development At Kalamazoo Valley Community College, Verlyn R. Knowles

Masters Theses

No abstract provided.

The Development And Application Of Service Management By Objectives Within One Program Of One Division Of A Michigan Intermediate School District, James Harper Kaye

Masters Theses

No abstract provided.

The Effects Of Cumulative Review In An Interspersal Procedure On The Acquisition And Retention Of Sight Words, Kathleen M. Wright

Masters Theses

No abstract provided.

The Effects Of A Lottery On Completion Of Medical Records By Physicians, Richard William Beers

Masters Theses

Completion of hospital medical records by physicians is a frequent problem to hospital administrations. A performance based lottery was used to evaluate its effectiveness in reducing the number of medical records which were unfinished and considered delinquent. Thirty-three male physicians were included in this study. Physicians earned or lost lottery chances in weekly drawings for a dinner at a restaurant or gift certificate to a local store. Results show an immediate increase in rate of record completion which declines over the course of the eight week experimental condition. Age of records were inversely correlated to the rate of completion. The …

An Examination Of Certain Factors Which Contributed To The Separation Of Central America From Spain: 1808-1821, John R. Permesang

Masters Theses

The separation of Central America from Spain in 1321 was, unlike other similar occurrences, a peaceful event. This thesis, after presenting an historical overview, narrates certain happenings in the area during the thirteen years prior to the gaining of political independence. Commencing with the Napoleonic invasion of Spain in 1808, this thesis places special emphasis on political changes in the Spanish Empire which were brought about through the adoption of a liberal Spanish constitution in 1812. In Central America the new measures were opposed by a recently appointed Captain-General who effectively frustrated any creole ambitions towards having an enlightened government. …

Self-Protective Behavior: Acquisition And Generalization Of Preschool Children's Responses To Strangers, Pamela K. Kies

Masters Theses

No abstract provided.

Architectural Design, Neighboring, And Victimization In Group Housing: An Examination Of Relationships, Kathleen Anne Tiemann

Masters Theses

No abstract provided.

A Petrographic Analysis Of Black Mesa, Arizona Ceramics, Elizabeth M. Garrett

Masters Theses

Seven ceramic types from excavated Anasazi sites on Black Mesa were examined petrographically in order: (1) to obtain an accurate description of the geologic tempering m aterial; (2) to determine if specific ceramic types from Black Mesa and the surrounding area share a common area of manufacture; and (3) to compare the tempering material in the ceramics with the mineralogical components in the Wepo and Toreva Formations in order to determine if the ceramic items contain locally available material.

Each of the ceramic types examined appear to have had more than one manufacturing locus. Only Black Mesa Black-on-white has temper …

Citizen Perceptions Of Various Police Behaviors: A Conceptual Framework And Practical Recommendations For Improvement, H. Preston Elrod

Masters Theses

The ability of the police to better assess their role in the community lies in understanding, or-accurately perceiving, the public's attitudes toward various police behaviors. Although numerous studies have examined general attitudes toward the police, few have examined citizen attitudes toward specific police behaviors within a broad socio-historical framework and attempted to make practical recommendations to the police based on such findings. This is the intent of this study.

The findings of this study are based on a random sample of households in Kalamazoo, Michigan, during 1978 and employs both bivariate and multivariate statistical techniques. Generally, it was found that …

The Role Of Generalization In The Acquisition Of Autoshaping A Replication Procedure, Omar Mangrum

Masters Theses

No abstract provided.

A Formal Analysis Of The Prehistoric Ceramics From Draper Park (20-Sc-40): A Wayne Tradition Occupation On The St. Clair River In Southeastern Michigan, Robert David Hoxie

Masters Theses

No abstract provided.

The Effect Of Operant Conditioning Of Heart Rate On Ambient Skin Conductance And Cognitive Interpretation, Steven Scott Ehlert

Masters Theses

No abstract provided.

An Investigation Of Some Effects Of Timeout Using The Repeated Acquisition Design With Children, Anita Lynn Wilson

Masters Theses

No abstract provided.

The Schwerdt Site (20 Ae 127) Ceramics: A Berrien Phase Ceramic Assemblage In Allegan County, Michigan, Paul W. Mcallister

Masters Theses

No abstract provided.

Establishing Verbal Behavior: The Effects Of Using Establishing Operations And Imitative Prompts To Teach Mands To Two Non-Verbal Elderly Retarded Persons, Terry Steven Bradford

Masters Theses

The present study tested a procedure to establish vocal mands in a 47- year-old non-verbal male with Down's syndrome and manually signed mands in a 64-year-old severely retarded female who was physically incapable of speech. In a multiple baseline design across subjects and settings, subjects were taught to complete four behavioral sequences. An establishing operation was then introduced: an item required to complete each sequence was systematically removed once as a probe for manding. Following this, relevant establishing operations were paired with imitative prompts to train manding missing items. Following mastery of a ll mands during booster training, subjects were …

Effects Of Relative Heterogeneity Of Competence In Peer-Tutoring Dyads, Meredith Dawson Argyropoulos

Masters Theses

Students in a high school English class received simple instructions before and during participation in brief daily reciprocal tutoring sessions. Three levels of competence were established on the basis of spelling scores obtained on a group-administered standardized achievement test. Dyad members were twice unlike-paired and once like-paired in competence during the experiment, producing six competence during the experiment, producing six competency permutations. Differential assignment of instructional units after pretesting assured that scores reflected individual gains rather than individual competence relative to that of the other students. Differences in group means within and across pairing conditions were statistically insignificant, indicating that …

Job Enlargement And Job Enrichment - A Meta-Analytic Study, Kenny Benedict Cemane

Masters Theses

No abstract provided.

An Analysis Of The Functional Significance And Sexual Dimorphism Of The Neandertal Mastoid Process, Terry Stewert Zobeck

Masters Theses

This study examines the functional significance and sexual dimorphism of the Neandertal mastoid process. The mastoid process is identified as a part of the Posterior Cranial Complex which includes the nuchal and occipital planes, and a portion of the basicranium as well as the mastoid region of the temporal bone.

In order to draw conclusions regarding the functional significance and sexual dimorphism of the mastoid process, a number of multivariate statistical techniques are applied to a modern human sample; the Larson Site Arikara.

The examination of the morphological features of the Neandertal posterior cranial vault (a relatively long, low and …