Social and Behavioral Sciences Commons^™

Epa, Tva And Pollution Control: A Comparative Analysis Of Intragovernmental Policy Implementation, Robert F. Durant

Doctoral Dissertations

Of late the substance, organization, and context of federal policies have been altered. This study examines one manifestation of these developments: the burgeoning necessity of one federal agency having to hold another accountable to national policy goals. Its analytical focus is the Environmental Protection Agency's experience with the Tennessee Valley Authority during the former's implementation of the Clean Air Act and the Federal Water Pollution Control Act. Specifically examined are the EPA's efforts to apply SO₂ and thermal pollution control policies to the TVA power program during the 1970's. Using a comparative case study design, the divergent responses of …

A Comparative Analysis Of John Foster Dulles And Henry A. Kissinger And The Impact Their Personalities Had On The Formulation Of American Foreign Policy, Denis Joseph Sullivan

Masters Theses

This thesis examines the impact of personality on the making of American foreign policy. John Foster Dulles and Henry A. Kissinger dominated the American foreign policy process. Their performance allows the political analyst to study the relationship between personality and policy-making.

What follows is a study of John Foster Dulles and Henry Kissinger, their personal background and development, and especially the problems they faced as presidential advisors. Both men were challenged by wars in the Middle East. These Middle East conflicts are here presented as case studies and they reveal how each of these figures met the test. Efforts are …

The Applicability Of The "Best Books For Young Adults" List As A Book Selection Tool In Public High Schools In A Three County Area, Ricki Hemenway Chowning

Masters Theses

The purpose of this study is to gather statistical evidence to determine attitudes toward the "Best Books for Young Adults" booklist as a positive selection tool for book selectors in public high schools in a three county area. The survey method was used to investigate attitudes towards the list and specific collection holdings of titles recommended by the "Best Books for Young Adults." Data were collected through questionnaires to book selectors in twenty-five high schools in Kent, Muskegon and Ottawa counties. Results of the survey indicate that book selectors are ambivalent toward the list, and that selection patterns correlated slightly …

A Comparison Of Reading And Listening Performances Of Braille And Print Readers, Betty P. Zook

Masters Theses

Blind and sighted subjects were tested on their capability to retain information after both reading and listening to specially prepared printed and taped materials. The sample consisted of graduate students and professional individuals. It was found that, on the average, subjects retained more after reading than listening. This effect was more pronounced in the braille reading subjects. As the level of complexity of the material increased, the difference in the points earned between the two modalities, reading and listening, increased significantly. A behavioral analysis suggested some reasons for this difference. It was suggested that further research into reading and listening …

The Evolution Of Ideas On The Subject Of Trade And Development With Reference To The Brazilian Experience, Mona Raouf Naaman

Archived Theses and Dissertations

No abstract provided.

Effects Of Phenytoin On Schedule-Controlled Performance, Kathleen M. Krafft

Dissertations

The present studies examined the effects of acute and chronic administrations of phenytoin on the responding of pigeons and rats maintained under fixed-ratio, fixed-interval, and interresponse-time-greater-than-t schedules of food reinforcement. These schedules typically engender different rates and temporal patterns of responding and are often differentially affected by drugs. The results indicated that phenytoin, given acutely, produced dose-dependent decreases in the response rate of rats and pigeons maintained under fixed-ratio and fixed-interval schedules. Response rates under the fixed-interval and inter response-time-greater-than-t schedules were little affected by the drug. A degree of tolerance was observed to phenytoin's rate-decreasing effects when the drug …

Self Care As An Innovation In Health Care Delivery: The Health Systems Agency As Medium And Barrier, Yvonne Marie Vissing

Dissertations

This is an inquiry into the attitudes of Health Systems Agency Boards of Directors toward the use of self care as part of the health and delivery system. Self care is viewed as a current social movement in health care. Contributions and limitations of both classical social movement theory and resource mobilization theory were examined for their utility in understanding and making predictions about the self care movement. Self care attitudes of the boards of directors from all eight Michigan Health Systems Agencies (HSAs) were analyzed through the Self Care Attitude Index (SCAI). Data were gathered via self-administered, mail questionnaires. …

Structural And Organizational Forces In The Etiology Of Corporate Crime, Beti Thompson

Dissertations

In an effort to gain understanding of the etiology of corporate crime, a theoretical framework for examining the problem has been developed. This framework includes structural features such as a capitalistic organization of society, the importance of political economy, the importance of market structure, and the importance of corporate influence over the legal environment, in understanding corporate crime. Corporations within this society are affected by the structural features of society. Organizations are organized according to capitalistic principles and effectively force their employees into certain kinds of actions and activities. It was theorized that such organizational factors might have an influence …

Improving On-The-Job Performance Of Restaurant Employees Through Behavior Modification Techniques, Patricia A. Kershek

Masters Theses

Behavior modification techniques were used to improve the performance of individual employees in a restaurant setting. Desired performance was defined in operational terms. Contingent upon observations of desired behavior, procedures involving praise, performance charts, and bonuses were implemented according to an ABCB design. After applying both praise and performance charts, bonuses were added so that all three techniques were in operation. Then, bonuses were discontinued. Results indicated that while employee performance (quality of performance and time spent on the job) improved when praise and performance charts were applied, the addition of a bonus led to even further improvement. Hence, bonuses …

The Perceived Utility Of The Job Model As A Planning Document For Faculty Members, Victoria Kai-Cacho

Masters Theses

A job model for faculty activity plans was developed based on an interview and a questionnaire response from 14 Western Michigan University professors. Perceived accuracy and usefulness of the job model were measured by a questionnaire designed by the investigator. Responses were analyzed by computing the mean ratings of each item included in the questionnaire. The job model was perceived as an accurate and useful instrument for faculty activity plans, self-development and faculty evaluation. However, methodological limitations suggest that further empirical research with a large sample and participation of administrative officers and students, in addition to faculty members, will be …

Effects Of Informational Data Upon Attendance In An Industrial Setting, Karen T. Suarez

Masters Theses

The purpose of this study was to determine the effects of informational data on employee attendance in an industrial setting. It was believed that knowledge of attendance rates would encourage employees to improve their attendance. An average of 50 male employees ranging from 22 to 55 years of age were included in the study. The procedure involved the implementation of publicly posted graphs which displayed attendance rates for the total department and each shift according to an ABA reversal design. Attendance rates were calculated and graphs updated each week by the department's superintendent. In addition, a brief questionnaire was distributed …

Prompts And Feedback As A Means Of Increasing A Customer Service Behavior In A Family Restaurant, David B. Lennox

Masters Theses

Although waiters and waitresses traditionally receive a gratuity based upon quality of service from customers, it may be difficult for them to interpret the amount of the gratuity as an indicator of good service or bad service. This ambiguity could be a result of different amounts of customer checks or faulty comparisons of total dollar amounts (total for the working shift) without taking into consideration the total dollar amount of the customer checks or the number of customers served. This study was conducted to provide accurate information for waitresses regarding gratuity percentage received from customers while monitoring its effects on …

The Structure And Rhetorical Effect Of Seven Questions In Koine Greek, Peter E. Unseth

Theses and Dissertations

Most of the latest work in understanding Koine Greek questions has concerned itself with taxonomies based on the dichotomy between real and rhetorical questions, as epitomized by John Beekman and John Callow (1974). However, some are now pointing out that other factors, beyond the grasp of this taxonomy, enter into questions within conversations.

In an effort to look at these questions in more depth, this paper applies two analytical models to seven questions in Koine Greek. The first is the illocutionary force model, particularly as formalized by John Searle (1977). The second is the rules of Repartee as formulated by …

An Analysis Of Residential Camp Site Structure !Or Two Early Archaic Assemblages From Rose Island (40mr44), Tennessee, Larry R. Kimball

Masters Theses

The site structure of two Early Archaic period assemblages is defined through spatial analysis of artifact and facility distributions at the Rose Island site (40MR44) in the lower Little Tennessee River valley. These assemblages derive from well controlled excavation of deeply buried alluvial deposits attributable to LeCroy (c. 6100-6500 B.C.) and St. Albans (c. 6600-7000 B.C.) temporal units. Spatial patterning is detected using multivariate statistical analysis of formal implement, instant tool, and debitage categories. The observed spatial patterns are interpreted through a comparison with expected spatial patterns generated from an a priori model of hunter-gatherer residential camp activity structure. The …

Effect Of Informational Posting And Employee Inspection On Safety Hazard Reduction In A Retail Drug Store, Craig A. Berger

Masters Theses

Undesired safety conditions were operationally defined for a large retail drug store. The recording of unsafe conditions were conducted for two different employee shifts for ten weeks. A multiple baseline design (ABC-ACB) was used in which three conditions were introduced: (a) baseline, (b) public posting of a safety performance chart, and (c) individual employee inspections. Results indicated that the frequency of safety hazards declined 23% from baseline for the public post-condition and declined 44% for the employee inspection condition (averaged across both shifts). An advanced analysis of variance indicated significant mean differences (p < .01) between baseline and employee inspection for both shifts. An additional measure was taken correlating photograph ratings by employees on a safety dimension and an attractiveness dimension. The coefficient of correlation was statistically significant (r = .76; p <.05). The results indicate that a training program involving employee inspections may be an effective way of reducing undesirable safety conditions.

The Effects Of Music On The Duration Of Time Spent In A Store By A Customer, Danita J. Mussatto

Masters Theses

The present study was compared the effects of employing music and withholding music in a retail setting. Over a three week experimental period, the duration of time customers spent in a store was recorded. The music system was first employed (Phase I), next the customers were subject to an environment void of music (Phase II), and then the music system was reimplemented (Phase III). During Phase II customers spent significantly less time in the store than in Phase I or Phase III. Another store, employing music continually, was used to control extraneous sources of variability. The results provide empirical verification …

Distributive Fairness: An Exploration Of Male-Female Differences In Allocation Behavior, Daryl G. Kelley

Masters Theses

Previous research has shown that males and females follow different strategies in allocating rewards for unequal performance on a team task: Males tend to utilize an exploitive allocation strategy, while females tend to be more accommodating in their, allocations. Research has also shown that allocation strategies may differ depending on whether the allocation of rewards is to be made public or is known only to the allocator. Public reward allocations of males tend to be more exploitive than females, while this difference is reversed for private allocations. The present study sought to replicate and extend previous studies, using a factorial …

Matching-To-Sample In The Pigeon: An Analysis Of The Effects Of Correction And Noncorrection Procedures, Deborah Lou Grossett

Masters Theses

Contradictory results concerning the effect that presence or absence of a correction procedure has on matching-to-sample were obtained by past studies (Carter and Werner, 1978; Thomas, 1979). Carter and Werner (1978) reported that exposure to a correction procedure resulted in an increase in accuracy, while Thomas (1979) found no difference between the noncorrection and correction procedures. The present study showed that exposure to a correction procedure resulted in an increase in accuracy in comparison to a noncorrection procedure during acquisition, but not during maintenance.

Past studies (Holt and Shafer, 1973; Thomas, 1979), using a correction procedure, showed that presence of …

Affective Perspective-Taking And Sympathy In Young Children, Mary Driver Leinbach

Dissertations and Theses

The present study focused upon both behavioral and cognitive aspects of sympathetic responses in preschool children. Subjects, 36 boys and girls aged 33-75 months, were seen at their regular day care center. An attempt was made to promote comforting behavior through the use of a peer model both alone and accompanied by an adult's inductive statement regarding the consequences of a sympathetic response; a six year-old girl served as the sympathetic model and as an apparently injured victim in need of comforting. In addition, age- and sex-related relationships for the measures of social cognition, affective perspective-taking and knowledge of strategies …

The Effect Of Early Handling On The Sexually Dimorphic Rate Of Extinction Of A Conditioned Taste Aversion In Rats, Rebecca Lee Yoder

Dissertations and Theses

Male rats have been found to extinguish a conditioned taste aversion slower than females. It has also been found that female rats that have been "handled" (i.e., exposed to daily brief isolation from siblings and mother) during the preweaning period extinguish a taste aversion faster than nonhandled females. The present study sought to combine and extend these findings by testing handled and nonhandled females and males in a conditioned taste aversion under the methodological conditions used in the sex difference research.

The Determination Of A Relative Chronology For A Surface Archeological Site Using The Obsidian Hydration Dating Method, Scott Preston Thomas

Dissertations and Theses

This methodological study is an attempt to develop relative chronologies for surface archaeological sites from the obsidian hydration analysis of waste flake samples. Two sites in southeastern Oregon were selected and their surface components sampled. The results of the obsidian hydration analysis indicate, that with the use of random sampling methods and general geochemical control, a fairly accurate representation of the history of an archaeological surface site can be obtained.

The Effects Of Correctional Education On Recidivism, William L. Hiser

Dissertations and Theses

The effectiveness of programs intended to rehabilitate criminal offenders has been widely debated during the last decade. This thesis represents an attempt to evaluate the effects of education and training programs in particular, insofar as these effects have been measured in terms of recidivism.

The Development And Effects Of An Educational Audiovisual Presentation On Female Masturbation Upon The Attitudes And Masturbatory Behavior Of College Females, Catherine Ann Hogan

Dissertations and Theses

The current study was designed: (1) to develop an educational tool on female masturbation capable of reaching a wide audience of women with accurate and complete information on female masturbation; (2) to provide initial validation for the further educational usefulness of this tool and (3) to assess its potential ability for improving overall sexual functioning in women by possibly altering negative attitudes toward masturbation and/or by dis-inhibiting masturbatory behavior.

The Use Of Function In Infant Concept Acquisition, Carolyn S. Held

Student Work

The use of function for concept formation in 5 and 8 month old infants was studied in an experiment employing a conceptual adaptation of the standard habituation paradigm. A total of 64 male and female infants were shown videoptaped presentations which involved changes in form and functional attributes of selected stimuli. The stimuli consisted of striped figures which could vary in form (shmoo-shaped or H-shaped) and function (side-to-side movements or up-down movements). During habituation, all infants were shown multiexemplars of a specific figure performing a single movement pattern; the figures varied only in color. During test trials, the infants were …

Recognition And Recall Memory As A Function Of Intentional And Incidental Learning Of An Eyewitness Account, Jill L. Ricke

Master's Theses

The purpose of this study was to investigate the relationship between recognition and recall memory as a function of intentional and incidental learning of a eyewitness event. A total of 188 college students participated in the experiment with 47 students in each of four conditions. The two learning conditions were produced by giving either intentional or incidental learning instructions while the two memory conditions, either recognition or recall, were defined on the basis of one of two forms of the retention questionnaire. All subjects viewed two groups of slides; the first group depicted a wallet of paired-associate nonsense syllables. The …

The Transgenerational Effects Of Father-Daughter Incest, Kevin M. Conlee

Retrospective Theses and Dissertations

The notion of "Transgenerationality" as it pertains to father-daughter incest, has been the source of speculation in research on incest. This study examines the relationship between the manifestation of family system factors often found in father-daughter incest families and the incidence of childhood sexual experience reported by parents actively or passively participating in this dysfunctional system. Fathers sexually abused or witnesses to incestuous relationships in childhood appear to most extensively violate the incest taboo. Mothers in incestuous family's who were victims of sexual assault as children tend to function in more stereotypic incest family systems as described routinely in the …

A Comparison Of The Relative Success Of Two Pay Incentive Plans Under Controlled Conditions, Richard J. Poole

Retrospective Theses and Dissertations

No abstract provided.

A Comparison Of Current Close Friendships And Lapsed Close Friendships, Teresa A. Rodgers

Retrospective Theses and Dissertations

No abstract provided.

The Effect Of Machine Pacing Of Simulated Inspection Tasks On Physiological And Psychological Stress Reactions, Norma Roll

Retrospective Theses and Dissertations

The purpose of this study was to obtain data on the impact of machine-paced industrial inspection tasks upon workers. Psychological and physiological stress reaction measures were gathered from subjects under simulated work conditions. Typical stress indicators such as heart rate, electromyograph readings, temperature, and psychological stress scales comprised the raw data. After being subjected to statistical analysis, results and conclusions will be discussed in order to gain knowledge and insight as to the stress reactions of the machine-paced inspection worker, and to provide implications for further research.

The Role Of Women In The Modern Navy: Issues And Attitudes, Mary A. Johnston

Retrospective Theses and Dissertations

No abstract provided.