Social and Behavioral Sciences Commons^™

An Exploration Of Task Independence For High School Students In A Self-Contained Classroom Using Structured Work Systems, Lorinda Rene Otto

Theses and Dissertations

This study investigated the effects of a method to support higher levels of independent performance and generalization of skills using a structured work system with a visual schedule when teaching online task completion skills to high school students with ASD and intellectual disabilities. Students with ASD and intellectual disabilities are typically deficient in independent skills. They often struggle to initiate and complete tasks on their own. By learning to complete tasks independently, high school students with ASD and intellectual disabilities gain essential life skills needed for employment. Structured work systems, along with visual schedules, have shown to be useful in …

The Link Between Animal Cruelty And Violent Crime Victimization: An Assessment Of The Lifetime Impact Of Animal Cruelty On Secondary Victims, Amber Ahern

Theses and Dissertations

Animal cruelty and the secondary victimization of humans caused by animal cruelty are significant social problems. The dissertation presented a comparative research study on the developmental, psychological, and emotional symptomatology experienced by crime victims who had prior experiences with animal cruelty as a secondary victimization versus those who had not. Secondary victimization, as well as animal cruelty experiences, were operationally defined. This dissertation presented a broad literature review focusing on animal cruelty, its overall impact, and the link to other forms of criminality. This dissertation reviewed the importance of this line of research and possible implications for policy, future research, …

Student Veterans: Factors Impacting Campus Adjustment, Allyssa Lynn Borak

Theses and Dissertations

Veterans represent a growing part of the student body on college campuses. Yet, retention rates continue to remain lower among student veterans in comparison to their civilian peers. A majority of research regarding the student veteran population focuses solely on the physical and mental challenges they face as they transition into student life. However, limited research has explored the relationship experiential avoidance and student engagement has on psychosocial functioning and reintegration difficulties, leaving a gap in universities empirical knowledge about how to successfully meet student veteran needs. Therefore, the current study examined the relationships between factors such as traumatic exposure, …

Law Enforcement Officers As Victims Of Felonious Killings And Assaults: An Analysis Of The Predictors Of Lethality And The Likelihood Of Officer Assault Or Death, Gabriella Mercado

Theses and Dissertations

This study was designed to explore the predictors of lethality for the outcome of police officer assault with injury and felonious death. Recent news has focused on police brutality and their excessive use of force. Conversely, the inverse relationship has not received much focus. To explore the aforementioned relationship, data from the LEOKA program on 1,375 officers who were feloniously killed or assaulted with serious injury between the years of 2008 and 2017 were examined to determine the statistical significance between several predictor variables and the outcome variable.

Binary logistic regression was used to answer the research questions posed by …

Asd Training: Knowledge, Attitudes & Perceptions Of A South Georgia Police Officer, Heather Banks Mcneal

Theses and Dissertations

This study offered a preliminary look at the evidence to support the benefits of training South Georgia Police Officers on the phenomenon that is autism. Research suggested that there was limited experimental data available regarding why persons with ASD entered the criminal justice system, as well as how to manage them once they are there (Chovanec, 2013). Various regions of the United States embraced the importance of ASD training amongst their law enforcement officers; however, Georgia has only recently taken steps to do the same by the inclusion of a voluntary, online course regarding autism and de-escalation. Participants shared their …

The Second Shift.” Female Police Officers And The Struggle Of Work/Life Balance And Promotion, Ashlyn Decruise-Fortune

Theses and Dissertations

This study examined how women in law enforcement maintained a work-life balance with responsibilities such as motherhood, domestic responsibility and other care-taker roles. While there has been some research conducted on female police officers, much of the literature was outdated. Further, many of these studies focused on women’s performance and competence as police officers, and the associated burnout rate of female police officers. Very few studies examined the gender gaps in supervisory positions in relation to the Law Enforcement field within the United States, as well as the continued underrepresentation of women in Law Enforcement. Additionally, previous literature did not …

Perceptions Of Barriers In Prosecuting Human Trafficking Cases, Jennifer Nelms

Theses and Dissertations

Human trafficking is a world-wide problem with many barriers. Human trafficking cases are criminal but are also a violation of human rights. Human trafficking victims are lured from their homes based on the allusion from the trafficker of a better life. The victims are then beaten, forces to use drugs, and essentially broken. Once the victim is broken they are forced to perform sexual acts. Due to the initial promises and threats the victims endure, they also suffered from fear of trusting others especially law enforcement as well as other psychological issues similar to that of a domestic violence victim. …

Self-Service Technology In A Library System: An Examination Of Potential Library Member Adoption Of Self-Service Checkout At A Southeastern County Library System, Grace Keisha Phillips-Daley

Theses and Dissertations

This applied dissertation examined potential library member adoption of self-service technology (SST) in a southeastern county library system. The research framework of this study was based on the Technology Acceptance Model (TAM). More distinctively, this study explored the significance of motivation factors, to include both intrinsic and extrinsic factors, for choosing to use SST in a library environment as the reasonable effect of familiarity in influencing the possibility of its adoption.

The researcher used a non-probability sampling method to identify participants for the study. Edmonds and Kennedy (2013) suggested that surveys were primarily utilized to observe trends, personal attitudes, or …

Globalizmi Ne Aspektin Ekonomik, Agon Dedushi

Theses and Dissertations

Globalizmi është bërë fjala më e përdorur në çdo kohë dhe në çdo kontekst, në diskurset ndërkombëtare zyrtare dhe jozyrtare në kontekstin e ndërvarësisë së ekonomisë dhe kombeve. Globalizimi ka evoluar me kalimin e kohës. Globalizimi ka filluar të jetë i rëndësishëm që prej përfundimit të luftës së ftohtë dhe ka përshpejtuar çlirimin e shpejtë të ekonomive në zhvillim. Globalizimi nuk është një fenomen thjesht bashkëkohor. Sipas Chanda:"i punuar në heshtje për mijëra vite pa iu dhënë një emër". Vërtet, proceset e globalizimit po evoluojnë vazhdimisht, të shtyrë nga aspiratat ekonomike të miliona rreth globit sa më shumë …

Planifikimi Strategjik Në Rritjen E Shërbimeve Publike, Blerona Aliu

Theses and Dissertations

Zhvillimi i burimeve njerëzore është konceptuar shume nga teoricienë te ndryshëm, dhe gjatë kësaj kohe është vënë gjithashtu ne funksion nga organizata te ndryshme. Megjithëse ka një marrëveshje ne objektivin e gjerë të zhvillimit të burimeve njerëzore i cili ka si qellim te përmirësoje zhvillimin dhe performancën individuale, mosmarrëveshjet përqendrohen ne mjetet e këtij përfundimi. Zhvillimi i burimeve njerëzore mbetet një koncept i ndërlikuar dhe i diskutueshëm. Zhvillimi i burimeve njerëzore përfshin shume disiplina: për shembull ekonomi, sociologji dhe psikologji; dhe ka pak a shume lidhje dhe marrëdhënie direkt me një game të gjerë idesh dhe funksionesh menaxhimi; për shembull …

Performanca Dhe Menaxhimi I Performancës Në Sektorin Publik (Komuna E Pejës), Lorik Ibrahimi

Theses and Dissertations

Në punim është shqyrtuar se si bëhet menaxhimi i performancës në sektorin publik dhe sa ndikon menaxhimi dhe vlerësimi i performancës së punonjësve të sektorit publik. Menaxhimi i burimeve njerëzore është një proces i cili është i fokusuar tek marrëdhëniet njerëzore, ku në mënyrë që kontributi i tyre në punë të jetë sa më i madh, me anë të menaxhimit bëhet sigurimi i mirëqenies së tyre.

Vlerësimi i performancës lidhet ngushtë me suksesin e një institucioni sepse sa më e madhe të jetë performanca e punonjësve aq më shumë edhe institucioni në tërësi do të korr sukses, por për të …

Unique New York: Examining The Impact Of Breed Labels, Phenotypic Variations, And Geography On Length Of Stay In A Multi-Location New York Limited Intake Animal Shelter, Nicole Passmore

Theses and Dissertations

New York City (NYC) is a unique area for a shelter welfare as it has limited dog-friendly housing and an abundance of dogs. A common barrier to entry for NYC dog adopters trying to rent apartments is the breed label the shelter assigned to their dog, despite the fact breed labelling is primarily based off intuition and physical appearance. Following research by Gunter, Barber and Wynne (2016) that saw adoption rates at a Florida animal shelter increase following the removal of breed labels from the shelter’s kennel cards, some shelters ceased using breed labels. One was Bideawee, a limited admission …

Evaluative Discourse As Community Identity Among Expatriates In Shenzhen, China, Karyn Harding

Theses and Dissertations

Expatriates are a modern-day community built by a rapid advance towards globalization. Expatriates are now likely to be self-initiated; that is, they chose to live in a foreign country rather than having been sent there by an employer, and they are changing the face of the global job market. However, their social interactions have not been the subject of much previous study. This paper delves into the ways that expatriates build and maintain their communities. In this case, participant observation and discourse analysis are used to study an expat community living in Shenzhen, China. As a group not defined by …

Phonology And Morphology Of Bolgo, Katie Ann Tikka

Theses and Dissertations

Bolgo [bvo] is a language spoken in central Chad. It is a Bua language within the Adamawa branch of the Niger-Congo language family. This thesis provides an overview of the phonology and morphology of Bolgo, focusing on the underdocumented Bolgo Dugag dialect. The data on which the thesis is based consist of original research; approximately 600 nouns, 350 verbs, and 50 adjectives were elicited, as well as a number of phrases and sentences.

A significant aspect of Bolgo phonology is its ATR harmony system, which contains nine phonemic vowels. In this harmony system, words contain either the +ATR vowels /i/, …

The Role Of The Autonomic Nervous System In The Relationship Between Emotion Regulation And Conflict Tactics In Couples, Natalie Gold Orr

Theses and Dissertations

Gross' emotion regulation model, Porges' polyvagal theory, and other existing research suggest that regulation of emotions, tactics used to handle conflict, and certain physiological processes that occur within the autonomic nervous system (ANS) in response to stress are significantly related, especially in relational contexts. However, despite their pervasiveness and negative impacts, there is a noticeable lack of research on predictors of violent, aggressive, or abusive conflict tactics in couples. In the current study, the predictive role of emotion regulation in relation to conflict tactics was examined, in addition to the role of respiratory sinus arrhythmia (RSA) and pre-ejection period (PEP) …

Impact Of Intercultural Competence On Communicative Success In L2 Environments(With Reference To Missionaries Of The Church Ofjesus Christ Of Latter-Day Saints), David Milford Lucero

Theses and Dissertations

This study explores the impact of cultural competence on success in completing key missionary tasks. Qualitative survey results are supported by data from an intercultural effectiveness assessment and a Mandarin Chinese listening proficiency test to describe themes related to missionary communicative success and to explore correlations between intercultural effectiveness and listening proficiency. Missionary communicative tasks are clarified into themes:"obtaining referrals,"obtaining teaching opportunities," and"helping people make and keep commitments." Factors perceived as associating with communicative success include"feeling and communicating love" and receiving"spiritual guidance." The effect of training on intercultural competence is also described. The intercultural effectiveness subcategory of positive regard is …

Association Between Lifetime Adverse Events, Emotion Dysregulation, Posttraumatic Stress Symptoms, Acculturation, And Chronic Pain: A Moderated Mediation Model, Miriam El-Haj

Theses and Dissertations

The association between traumatic experiences and chronic pain is well established. Lesser is known about how acculturation might affect this relation, specifically with Hispanics. In the present study, self-report measures on traumatic experiences, posttraumatic stress symptoms, emotion dysregulation, chronic pain, and acculturation were administered to 140 participants (71.4% females) aged 18–65 years old (M = 35.06, SD = 11.55), to determine whether acculturation moderates the relation between adverse lifetime experiences and chronic pain as mediated by posttraumatic stress symptoms and emotion dysregulation.

Those who were highly acculturated to the U.S. Anglo culture were higher on chronic pain than those who …

Measuring Disaster Resiliency In The Rio Grande Valley, Alma R. Provencio

Theses and Dissertations

People are now becoming more conscious of the effects of climate change. They are seeking to understand how to manage their resources and prepare for when a disaster strikes. The growing studies of disaster resilience lend that opportunity. In this spatial and temporal study, disaster resilience was measured for each census tract within the four counties of the Rio Grande Valley. Utilizing GIS tools and methods, the study examines resilience patterns between 2010 and 2017.

Results showed that even though various census tracts from each of the four counties increased in resilience from 2010 to 2017, the overall total resilience …

Women In Law Enforcement: The Impacts And Obstacles They Face In A Hispanic- And Male-Dominated Culture, Lisa M. Seiser

Theses and Dissertations

Despite a lack of female law enforcement representation in police departments across the country and especially in the Border Patrol, there have been minimal studies performed that focus on the obstacles women face in these professions. The purpose of this study was to attempt to understand the lived experiences of female law enforcement officers/border patrol agents in this male-dominated profession, but also adding the aspect of them working in a Hispanic-dominated culture.

The findings revealed these women in law enforcement working in a Hispanic area face many of the same obstacles as women in other parts of the country - …

Degree Of Bilingualism, Age, Income And Teacher Ratings Of Giftedness As Potential Predictors Of Dichotic Listening Performance, Francisco J. Sierra

Theses and Dissertations

Bilinguals and gifted individuals have consistently shown distinctive patterns of performance on measures of brain laterality and auditory processing. The purpose of this study is to examine the relationship between bilingualism, teacher ratings of giftedness, and auditory divided attention by comparing children and adults with income partialed out. Child participants from first to fifth grade were included in addition to an adult comparison group. Assessment of bilingualism, auditory divided attention, and giftedness occurred via the Woodcock-Munoz Language Survey-III (WMLS-III), the Dichotic Test of Attention (DITA), and the Hispanic Bilingual Gifted Screening Instrument (HBGSI). The main hypothesis of this study is …

A Text-Based Exploration Of Topics In White Hmong Grammar, Katherine Ann Birnschein

Theses and Dissertations

This thesis traces the historical development of the understanding of White Hmong grammar, comparing, contrasting, and synthesizing the extant analyses. It then responds to these analyses, based exclusively on a corpus of interlinearized texts included as appendices. It proposes new elements in the grammar including an indefinite article, a potential prefix (the perfective aspect marker), and several aspect markers that have grammaticalized from adverbs. It resolves conflicting descriptions of the constituent order of the noun phrase. It clarifies a number of incomplete or inaccurate descriptions including the lexical and structural ambiguity of constructions involving the homophones of tau (a lexical …

The Use Of Video-Based Instruction To Teach Life Skills To Individuals With Developmental Disabilities, Kori Paige Esplin

Theses and Dissertations

Individuals with developmental disabilities struggle to learn important life skills. This deficit impedes their ability to function in the community and live meaningful lives. Video prompting (VP) is an evidence-based practice that has been used to teach a wide variety of skills to individuals with disabilities. VP utilizes technology to create step-by-step videos to teach academic, social, vocational and other life skills This article extends the current literature on VP interventions to hygiene skills and investigates the efficacy, skill maintenance, social validity, and level of independence that can be achieved using VP to teach hygiene skills. Three participants with developmental …

Multimethod Assessment Of Interpersonal Dysfunction Using The Rorschach And The Mmpi-2-Rf, Ryan Daniels

Theses and Dissertations

Well established and widely used personality measures such as the Minnesota Multiphasic Personality Inventory-2-Restructured Form (MMPI-2-RF) and Rorschach contain several scales or indices related to interpersonal dysfunction, but from very different methodologies. Using a multimethod assessment framework, the current study examined four primary areas of interpersonal dysfunction assessed by these measures in a sample of 65 adult outpatient clients who underwent services at a Community Psychological Services center. The four areas examined were hostility and aggression; isolation and avoidance; passivity and dependency; and insecurity and ineffectiveness. First, the study postulated that MMPI-2-RF and Rorschach variables within an interpersonal domain would …

Fool Me Once: Response To Trust Violation In Collaborative Dyads, Trevor Noah Fry

Theses and Dissertations

Much of what is known about trust violation in collaborative contexts has emerged in the body of trust repair literature, broadly implicating that trust repair behaviors will be the immediate response to follow a trust-related transgression. However, when trust is violated in the workplace, it is possible that substantial time may pass before any movements toward trust repair are attempted. During that time between a trust violation experience and attempts to repair trust the trustor may experience a range of thoughts, feelings, and behaviors in response to the violation. This dissertation aims to begin unpacking that black box through systematic …

A Comparison Of Mmpi-2-Rf Profiles Of Outpatients With Reported Chronic Medical Conditions, Reported Disability, Or Psychological Ailments, Natalie Hicks

Theses and Dissertations

Past personality assessment research using MMPI instruments has examined their use in a variety of contexts, including in healthcare settings. The utility of the more recently developed Minnesota Multiphasic Personality Inventory-2 Restructured Form (MMPI-2- RF), however, has not been examined in these contexts to the same degree. The present study evaluated differences between MMPI-2-RF scores in a sample of 154 adult outpatient community mental health clients who (a) reported a preexisting physical condition in conjunction with psychological symptoms (n = 66), (b) were either in the process of applying for or were already receiving Social Security disability compensation (n = …

The Impact Of Culturally Different Types Of Faking On Test Properties, Yumiko Mochinushi

Theses and Dissertations

Personality measures have become a key component of the human capital strategies of organizations (Hough & Oswald, 2008). Multinationals often conduct employee selection across countries, and opportunities have expanded for using personality tests in selection across cultures. However, few studies have yet investigated applicant faking behavior in cross-cultural contexts, despite research suggesting that psychometric assessment tools are vulnerable to this (Salgado, 2016). One of main causes of the limited number of cross-cultural faking studies is the difficulty in data collection. Simulation is one of the more promising methods, and current research of similar problems often uses simulation (e.g., Jin & …

Millon Clinical Multiaxial Inventory-Iv (Mcmi-Iv) Profile Patterns And Scale Score Correlates For Jail Inmates Referred For Mental Health Services, Lauren Ashley Price

Theses and Dissertations

Personality assessment measures have been heavily used and researched with criminal offender populations in the realms of clinical, forensic, and correctional psychology for reasons including assessing reoffending risk, informing predictions regarding future behavior, and treatment planning. The Millon Clinical Multiaxial Inventory (MCMI) features among the personality assessment measures widely used in evaluating criminal offenders. This current study compromised of adults male inmates (N=95) incarcerated in Brevard County, Florida examined scores from the recently released Millon Clinical Multiaxial Inventory-Fourth Edition (MCMI-IV). The study’s goals included (a) providing reference data based on a sample of jail inmates receiving mental health services, (b) …

Motivated Interpersonal Emotion Regulation In Leadership, Julianna Jasmin Walsh

Theses and Dissertations

Emotions are important and prevalent workplace phenomena. Previous research has found that emotions can impact different workplace-related outcomes, from increasing employee performance to increasing employee well-being (Barsade & Gibson, 2007). Leaders are expected to engage in interpersonal emotion regulation (IER) strategies that influence their followers’ emotions to facilitate these outcomes. However, little is known about this process. Leaders might have different motives for regulating followers’ emotions, such as to help them learn a skill, to be compassionate with them, or to push them to get work done. Additionally, they might target specific emotions depending on that intention and, in turn, …

An Evaluation Of The Utility Of The Performance Diagnostic Checklist - Human Services (Pdc-Hs): A Comparison Of Formal And Informal Assessment Strategies, Cherish Chalk

Theses and Dissertations

The PDC-HS is a performance assessment tool that assists in the identification of variables contributing to performance problems among human service employees. The purpose of this study was to evaluate the utility of the PDC-HS as a formal assessment strategy. Specifically, the PDC-HS was compared to an informal assessment strategy consisting of a single open-ended interview question and a single structured interview question. Participants included 40 supervisors in varying positions in the human services industry. Descriptive statistics were used to compare participant responses to the open-ended and structured questions to the results indicated by the PDC-HS. Results suggest that the …

Playing Isn’T Just For The Kids: The Effects Of Video Modeling On Adult Play Behavior, Grace Fancine Boatman

Theses and Dissertations

Children with Autism Spectrum Disorder lack appropriate play skills. To provide quality care to these children, practitioners who work with these children should be versed in how to play. The researchers for the current study used a multiple baseline design across stimulus sets. A pre-experimental assessment, naturalistic generalization probe, and a toy generalization probe were conducted prior to baseline. The baseline phase demonstrated the participant’s performance in playing with a confederate researcher. Task clarification represented the participant’s performance in playing with a confederate researcher after a verbal prompt to play more. The researchers implemented video modeling to increase the frequency …