Social and Behavioral Sciences Commons^™

The 1-Back Matching/Mismatching Paradigm With Pigeons (Columba Livia): Evidence For Explicit Learning?, Daniel Peng

Theses and Dissertations--Psychology

With humans, a distinction can be made between explicit and implicit learning. language can be used to describe rule-based learning commonly seen in explicit, but not implicit learning. Unfortunately, we cannot do so with animals. Therefore, a non-verbal paradigm is needed to differentiate the types of learning. One method to make such a distinction is by training animals under a conditional discrimination task such as matching-to-sample with reinforcement delayed until a choice is made on the next trial: otherwise known as a 1-back procedure. In this experiment an alternating matching/mismatching to sample task under a 1-back schedule of reinforcement was …

Empowering Caregivers In The Prevention Of Clinical Delirium For At Risk Older Adults Boarding In The Emergency Department Setting, Danielle Brewer

DNP Projects

Background: Emergency Department (ED) overcrowding is a global healthcare crisis documented in the literature for more than a decade, impacting patient outcomes and resource availability. While awaiting delayed transfer to an inpatient room, older adults in the ED remain vulnerable to developing acute delirium. Boarding potentiates the risk for worsening health outcomes, which are further compounded by delirium. Scarcity of resources and time constraints delay delirium detection and increase risk for down-stream hospital-acquired complications, higher cost, and prolonged length of stay. Current ED models do not prioritize caregiver partnership or involvement in delirium-conscious care, which is a holistic approach to …

Profiles Of Satisfaction And Frustration Of Undergraduate General Chemistry Students’ Basic Psychological Needs At The Beginning And End Of The Semester, Cara E. Worick

Theses and Dissertations--Educational, School, and Counseling Psychology

The early college years represent an adjustment period characterized by motivational destabilization and academic and career-related uncertainty for many STEM majors (Robinson et al., 2019). Although students who begin college less academically prepared than their peers are at greater risk of struggling in introductory STEM courses, many still struggle in these courses despite adequate academic preparation (Perez et al., 2014). Self-determination theory proposes that motivation, optimal functioning, and psychological well-being occur through the satisfaction, as opposed to the frustration, of three basic psychological needs for autonomy, competence, and relatedness (Ryan & Deci, 2020). Although many studies in educational settings demonstrate …

Improving Nutrition Screening Practice In The Hospitalized Heart Failure Patient Population, Amanda J. Bourgeois

DNP Projects

Background: Heart Failure is a disease known to affect nearly 6.5 million adults in the United States. Characterized by recurrent hospitalizations, heart failure significantly contributes to morbidity, mortality, and healthcare costs in the United States and worldwide. Because malnutrition is prevalent in the heart failure population, healthcare providers must perform nutritional assessments on admission to intervene in the case of malnutrition, prevent deterioration, and improve patient prognosis. Without intervention and early identification of malnutrition, heart failure hospitalizations will remain a significant problem.

Purpose: The purpose of this study is to evaluate the effect of an evidence-based educational program for cardiac …

Attitudes Of Therapists Surrounding Sand Tray Therapy With Adults, Madalyn Cooke

Theses and Dissertations--Family Sciences

Sand tray therapy provides a unique experience for adults and children to interact with their experiences and feelings from a distance. However, it is not used as frequently as talk therapy techniques in adult therapeutic treatment. The following thesis explores therapists’ attitudes about using sand trays with adults. A qualitative thematic analysis suggests that while some therapists deem sand trays as helpful with treatment, especially for clients who have a history of trauma, there are barriers for therapists to overcome in order to incorporate sand trays more frequently into practice with adult clientele.

Sociocultural Predictors Of White Veterans’ Attitudes Towards Va Mental Health Care, Elyssa Christine Berney

Theses and Dissertations--Educational, School, and Counseling Psychology

U.S. Veterans are less likely to seek help than their civilian counterparts despite having higher levels of self-reported distress, in part due to comparatively poorer attitudes towards seeking mental health treatment. While some aspects of cultural socialization (e.g., gender role expectations, certain types of stigma) have been established to influence Veterans’ attitudes towards mental health treatment, other aspects of health care access (e.g., trust in health care institutions or individual providers) may benefit from increased focus. Additionally, one aspect of cultural socialization that is understudied in white Veterans is that of racial-cultural socialization (i.e., whiteness). Much of the research into …

Gambling On Growth: An Analysis Of The Early Impact Of Historical Horse Racing On Kentucky’S Thoroughbred Industry, Barrett W. Kerr

Theses and Dissertations--Agricultural Economics

With a continuous decline in on-track wagering on Thoroughbred racing, racetrack operators are exploring alternative revenue sources to fund purses and create better quality racing. Historical Horse Racing (HHR), which represents one of the most recent advancements in parimutuel wagering, has become a popular system used by many states to offset the live wagering decline. Proponents of HHR suggest that this alternative wagering option will benefit the live racing industry. Using data from Kentucky racetracks from 2002 – 2021, this study examines the relationship between HHR wagering and key industry metrics, such as purses, on-track wagering, sales prices, and foal …

The Conditions Of Oregon's Latinx Farmworkers, Kevin Alejandrez

Theses and Dissertations--Sociology

The goal of this three-paper dissertation is to better understand inequalities that Latinx farmworkers endure and the ways through which these inequalities can be addressed. As such, this dissertation examines pertinent inequalities Latinx farmworkers experience in the United States, their responses to resulting hardships, and the effects that crises such as the Covid-19 pandemic have in both exacerbating hardship and expanding opportunities to challenge inequitable systems in place. This is done through an intersectional analysis of a multi-year ethnographic study conducted in Oregon’s Willamette Valley.

First, paper one, titled, “Subordinate Adaptation: Intragroup Hierarchies Among Blueberry Pickers,” explores the ways in …

Social Transformation During The Middle - Late Preclassic (1,000 Bce - 150 Bce) At Ucí, Yucatan Mexico, Daniel Vallejo-Cáliz

Theses and Dissertations--Anthropology

The focus of this project is to track the social change developments in Ucí, Yucatan, Mexico, during the Middle (1,000 – 400 BCE) and Late Preclassic (400 – 150 BCE) that served as foundations to institutionalized hierarchy. This research is geared towards understanding if there were any expressions of social differentiation in the earliest, detectable moments in the history of Ucí, and what were the mechanisms used to eventually make distinctions permanent. Applying an agency approach, I argue that social actors may cause structural change, both consciously and inadvertently, through the application of several strategies aimed to enhancing their role …

Citizen Demand For Cultural Censorship: A Mixed Methods Study, Kelly Grenier

Theses and Dissertations--Political Science

This dissertation investigates the political causes and consequences of cultural censorship. One of the central arguments of this project is that cultural censorship is often a response to citizen demand. Using a mixed methods approach, this dissertation explores the demand for censorship and benefits a regime receives from censoring citizens in an effort to understand the calculus of cultural censorship. This project focuses on the Americas and looks at censorship in both democracies and autocracies across time. Leveraging high quality archival data, a survey experiment, and regional datasets, this project aims to understand the rationale behind cultural censorship and finds …

Estill County "Twin Cities" Consolidation Study, Logan Hart

MPA/MPP/MPFM Capstone Projects

To provide essential services without imposing an unreasonable financial burden on their residents, local governments, particularly those with a declining population or tax base, are seeking ways to maximize their resources. Municipal consolidation is one of the solutions that many local governments have considered. This study aimed to determine if municipal consolidation would improve the efficiency and financial standing of the Estill County, Kentucky cities of Irvine and Ravenna. The study's findings suggest that consolidation could lead to cost benefits for both cities. However, due to the limited availability of data, further research is required to gain a complete understanding …

A Study On Characteristics Associated With Unmet Adl Needs Among People With Disabilities In Korea, Sun-Gill Jung

MPA/MPP/MPFM Capstone Projects

Long-term care services are assistance provided to people with disabilities needing help with ADL (activities of daily living). This study aims to address two research questions regarding people with disabilities in Korea who have ADL needs: 1) who is served and not served by long-term care services from the government, and 2) what characteristics are associated with unmet ADL needs among those who are not served by long-term care services. To answer these questions, this study utilizes data from the supplementary survey of people with disabilities in the 2020 Korea Welfare Panel and conducts descriptive statistics and multiple regressions. The …

Did The Covid-19 Pandemic Cause A Learning Loss In Reading And Mathematics? Empirical Evidence Using 2022 Grade 8 Students In Kentucky., Tiyani Rodrigo

MPA/MPP/MPFM Capstone Projects

In 2020, most United States (U.S.) schools closed abruptly. Due to the pandemic, students and teachers were affected in multiple ways. Nearly three years post-pandemic, it is evident students lost in academic achievement. Lower academic performance may impact the future economy and labor force due to lower productivity. Therefore, understanding the causal impact COVID-19 had on academic achievement is vital to develop policy that will help mitigate the long-term impact. In this capstone, I will estimate the size and direction of the impact COVID-19 had on Mathematics and Reading skills for grade 8 students in Kentucky. Using a Difference-in-Differences (DiD) …

Association Of Diabetes Prevalence With Labor Force Participation Rates In Kentucky Counties, Ryan Montgomery

MPA/MPP/MPFM Capstone Projects

Compared to other states in the USA, Kentucky has one of the highest rates of diagnosed diabetes and one of the lowest levels of labor force participation. This project employs a multivariable linear regression model to estimate the correlation between county-level diabetes prevalence and county-level labor force participation rates in Kentucky counties from 2015-2019, using publicly available data from the Centers for Disease Control’s Behavioral Risk Factor Surveillance System (BRFSS) and the U.S. Census Bureau’s American Community Survey (ACS). Labor force participation rates serve as the dependent variable and diabetes prevalence rates serve as the primary independent variable, alongside nine …

Budget Models And Methods Used In Higher Education, Brad West

MPA/MPP/MPFM Capstone Projects

The Cambridge Dictionary defines a budget as “a plan to show how much money a person or organization will earn and how much they will need or be able to spend.” (Budget, 2023). The budget of an institution within higher education is how to allocate the planned amount of revenues received to support the planned expenditures across the organization for an upcoming period, usually a fiscal year or project duration. Various public higher education institutions have many different methods for allocating those planned revenues to support expenditures across their colleges, schools, and administrative units to support the university's mission. This …

Expanding The Samat In Kentucky Correction Institutions: Benefits And Funding, Blair Lozier

MPA/MPP/MPFM Capstone Projects

The United States has seen an increasing rate of substance use disorder among individuals. Those convicted and incarcerated are more likely to have substance use disorder. With correctional institutions becoming overcrowded, policymakers struggle to find an answer to the number of individuals incarcerated with substance use disorder. The Cabinet of Health and Family Services and the Department of Corrections created Supportive Assistance with Medication for Addiction Treatment (SAMAT) in Kentucky. SAMAT is an addictive services program focused on preventing overdose and relapse and aiding recidivism for individuals with opioid and alcohol use disorder. The SAMAT has been deemed successful through …

“Local, But Intelligent”: Language Ideologies In The Informant Biographies Of The Linguistic Atlas Project, Nicholas A. Passarelli

Theses and Dissertations--Linguistics

This thesis argues for the relevance of the Linguistic Atlas Project (LAP) for studies of language ideologies, indexicality, and enregisterment. The LAP represents the largest dialect survey of North American English to date, offering an abundance of historical linguistic data for research in dialectology, linguistic geography, and variation over space and time. Additionally, the LAP also contains additional sources of sociolinguistic data, including informant biographies — documents written by fieldworkers at the conclusion of the LAP interview that summarize an informant’s demographic profile, as well as their personality, speech, and caliber as an interviewee. Rife with subjective judgments from the …

Comparing The Efficacy Of Interventions Derived From Concurrent Operant Analysis And Indirect Assessment, Lane Marquardt

Theses and Dissertations--Early Childhood, Special Education, and Counselor Education

In this study, a simultaneous treatments design was used to conduct a concurrent operant analysis (COA) to evaluate the choice making behavior of one elementary aged student. The COA results were used as a possible reinforcer for one of the conditions for the intervention to increase work completion. An indirect assessment, Questions about Behavioral Function (QABF), was used identify a hypothesized function to the student’s lack of task completion behavior. The results from thee QABD were used as a possible reinforcer for one of the conditions for the intervention to increase work completion. An alternating treatments design (ATD) was used …

Evaluating The Differential Effects Of Using A Technology-Based Antecedent Intervention In Comparison To A Technology-Based Treatment Package, Rachel Fosnaught

Theses and Dissertations--Early Childhood, Special Education, and Counselor Education

This study investigated the differential effects of using non-contingent reinforcement in the form of attention as an antecedent intervention in comparison to using non-contingent reinforcement in addition to self-monitoring as a treatment package. A multi treatment single case research design was utilized in this study. Levels of student’s on-task behavior were measured to evaluate the differential effects of an antecedent intervention in comparison to the combination of an antecedent and consequent intervention. This study also only used treatments that were technologically delivered to the participants.

A Study On Motivators And Satisfaction In Arts And Culture Public Programs: Implications For Policy Implementation, Eunyoung Yi

MPA/MPP/MPFM Capstone Projects

This study examines individuals’ motivations related to their participation in arts and culture activity programs and their support for the active roles of the government in cultivating such programs in South Korea. In doing so, this study suggests policy implications that help policymakers and stakeholders develop effective arts and culture programs in the public sector.

This study claims that redesigning the program contents reflecting sociopsychological motivations, expanding the policy target to the general public, and embracing the concept of lifelong arts and culture education will ensure inclusive accessibility and promote lifelong learning opportunities for all citizens.

Guided by intrinsic and …

Improving Tax Compliance In Indonesia Through The 2022 Voluntary Disclosure Program, Farid Al Firdaus

MPA/MPP/MPFM Capstone Projects

Developed or developing countries have conducted Voluntary Disclosure Programs (VDP) to increase tax revenues and taxpayers' compliance. Non-compliant taxpayers prefer this way to regular law enforcement to be more compliant. This study focuses on supporting Indonesia, the lowest tax-to-Gross Domestic Product (GDP) ratio in Asia and the Pacific, in improving its taxpayers' long-term compliance through the 2022 VDP; this amnesty had fewer participants, shorter periods, and higher rates than the first one in 2016. Using descriptive analysis, it is concluded that the 2022 VDP could reveal taxpayers' wealth known and unknown by the tax authority, increase revenue as a fraction …

Examining Academic Performance And Education Stability Measures For Youth In Foster Care, Alex Asbury

MPA/MPP/MPFM Capstone Projects

The state of Kentucky has seen an increase in its population of youth who are involved with child welfare and in the foster care system while also seeing less cases end in reunification with families. While youth process trauma related to the removal from their homes and the potential of experiencing multiple moves through their time with child welfare, it is important that educational stability remain intact to promote normalcy and improve educational outcomes for youth in foster care. Following the signing of the federal Every Student Succeeds Act (ESSA), the Kentucky education system has seen improvement in its processes …

Solving The Healthcare Employee Shortage: The Effectiveness Of Incentive Programs In Enticing Young Health Professionals To Appalachian Kentucky Communities, Taylor Williams

MPA/MPP/MPFM Capstone Projects

Kentucky’s Appalachian counties have long been recognized as medically underserved areas, with access to care being limited by a shortage of healthcare professionals in the region. This issue, specifically as it pertains to primary care physicians, has been the focus of many programs hoping to improve access to care in these communities for many years. Is the ongoing effort to recruit and retain primary care physicians in Appalachian Kentucky counties effective? Hypotheses The mean number of people per physician in Appalachian Kentucky counties reported in 2013 is equal to the mean number of people per physician in Appalachian Kentucky counties …

The Effect Of Evidence-Based Funding On Student Performance, Jade Gates

MPA/MPP/MPFM Capstone Projects

Historically, education funding policies in the United States have been responsible for aiding the disproportionate allocation of resources to public school districts. Illinois school districts in particular have struggled with providing their students with an adequate education. The Evidence-Based Funding (EBF) model was implemented with the intent to distribute funds based on need and ability to reach an adequacy target. This research analyzes how student test scores have changed since the inception of the EBF policy in Illinois. This data is analyzed in an ordinary least squares and interrupted time series model to show the impact and significance of this …

Let's Not Do Anything Drastic: Processes Of Reproducing Rural Marginalization In Education Policy Decision-Making, Julia M. Miller

Theses and Dissertations--Sociology

At a school board meeting in micropolitan Athens County, parents of children attending the district’s smallest elementary school, Chauncey Elementary, packed in to defend the school against consolidation. They made calls for a levy to cover the impending budget shortfall and offered to reduce their classrooms by half if other schools would also bear some of the costs. They spent their holiday season defending their school, a source of vibrancy in the small town, from being closed. In the meeting, someone advocating for alternatives to closure suggested cutting administrator positions. The board response, according to one parent-leader? “Let’s not do …

‘A Category Of Their Own’: Quantitative Methods In The Use Of Pile-Sort Data In Perceptual Dialectology, Zachary Ty Gill

Theses and Dissertations--Linguistics

The purpose of this study is to investigate how Mississippi Gulf Coast Creoles perceive language differences in their home area. A pile-sort task was carried out in which respondents were given stacks of cards with local communities written on them and instructed to stack together the regions where people “talk the same.” Once the piles were made, the fieldworker discussed their sortings with the respondents. The stacks were analyzed by means of a hierarchal agglomerative cluster analysis and non-parametric multidimensional scaling with k-means cluster analysis overlays to extract the perceived dialect areas. The groupings reveal that respondent strategies are based …

Consumers’ Responses To New Technologies In The Marketplace, Umair Usman

Theses and Dissertations--Marketing and Supply Chain

Chapter 1. This research examines whether the use of blockchain technology to back a brand’s claims (i.e., blockchain augmented claims) influences consumer preference for sustainable products. Consumers are demanding higher levels of transparency from brands and are also showing keen interest in consuming sustainable products, which includes products that promote social, environmental and economic sustainability. Recent advancement in digital technology, specifically blockchain, is offering an opportunity for brands to meet both these consumer demands. In five laboratory studies, I demonstrate that blockchain augmented claims, as compared to traditional industry practices (i.e., use of third-party labels and brand’s self-made claims), increases …

Ideal Body Weight And Body Fat Percentage Predict Relative Energy Deficiency In Sport (Red-S) Scores In Collegiate Athletes, Emily Norman

Theses and Dissertations--Nutrition and Food Systems

Background: Low energy availability (LEA) is the underlying cause of Relative Energy Deficiency in Sport (RED-S) which negatively affects athletes' physiological function, health, and performance. RED-S results from inadequate dietary intake to support energy expenditure for daily living, growth, and optimal performance. It occurs in both male and female athletes, with or without disordered eating. However, screening and diagnosis in athletes can be difficult. Objective: This study aims to identify strong predictors of RED-S and assess its prevalence in collegiate male and female athletes. Methods: A total of 270 NCAA athlete test points from mixed sports were evaluated for RED-S …

Coalition Of The Ending: Why States Withdraw From International Military Coalitions, Weiss Mehrabi

Theses and Dissertations--Political Science

This dissertation examines the causes and conditions motivating states to discontinue supporting an ongoing military coalition operation and prematurely abandon their partners. In exploring coalition defection through a three-article dissertation, I advance three separate theoretical arguments focusing on three levels of analysis.

The first article contributes to the literature by investigating the effects of political regime types on coalition abandonment during interstate wars. I argue that anocracies are dependable wartime partners and will not abandon coalition warfare earlier than autocracies and democracies. I advance two arguments for the theory of anocratic reliability. First, leaders of mixed regimes expect severe post-defeat …

The Un-Intended Effects Of Risky Mandates, Robert Wood

Theses and Dissertations--Political Science

In May 1948, the United Nations launched its first peacekeeping mission named the United Nations Truce Supervision Organization (UNTSO). Since this first mission, the United Nations has launched over 70 peacekeeping missions in regions such as Europe, Latin America, Asia, and Africa (Bellamy and Williams, 2015). The overarching goal of the United Nations, and the Security Council as the organ responsible for authorizing peacekeeping missions, is to protect international peace (United Nations, 1945a). However, the means of achieving international peace differs across missions. One source of variation concerning the means of achieving peace is found in peacekeeping mission mandates. While …