Social and Behavioral Sciences Commons^™

The Effect Of Cultural Affiliations On Attitudes, Beliefs, And Reactions To The Fighting Sioux Nickname Issue Between Northern Plains American Indian And Majority Culture College Students, Angela Larocque

Theses and Dissertations

The main puqjo.sc of this study was to compare the effect of cultural affiliation on altitudes, beliefs, and reactions to the Fighting Sioux Nickname and logo issue for 60 Nonhem Plains American Indian college students and 61 non-Indian college students at the University of North Dakota. Subjects completed a demographic questionnaire and the University of North Dakota Fighting Sioux Nickname Attitudes, Beliefs, and Reactions (UNDFSNABR) survey. In addition, American Indian subjects completed the Nonhem Plains Bicuhuralism Inventory (NPBI), Using the Northern Plains Biculluralisin Inventory (NPBI) to identify cultural identification among American Indian participants, the hypotheses of the current study were;: …

Modeling And Analysis Of Social Networks, Robert S. Renfro Ii

Theses and Dissertations

This dissertation develops new methods for the modeling and analysis of social networks. Social networks describe the complex relationships of individuals and groups in multiple overlapping contexts. Influence in a social network impacts behavior and decision making in every setting in which individuals participate. This study defines a methodology for modeling and analyzing this complex behavior using a Flow-Model representation. Multiple objectives in an influencing effort targeted at a social network are modeled using Goal Programming. Value Focused Thinking is applied to model influence and predict decisions based on the reaction of the psychological state of individuals to environmental stimuli. …

A Comparison Of Intellectual Test Performance Across Native American And European American Children, Austin P. Keith

Theses and Dissertations

Differential scoring across Native American and European .American groups on the Wechsler Intelligence Scales for Children - Third Edition (WISC-IIi) was examined while controlling for Full Scale IQ and age. Comparisons were made across the groups on Verbal IQ and Performance IQ, individual subtests, individual subtest items and two composite index scores. Results indicated no significant scorino differences between the two groups on Performance IQ or, on the Perceptual Organization Index, Significant scoring differences were also not evident on the Coding, Picture Arrangement, Arithmetic, Block Design, Vocabulary-, Object Assembly and Comprehension subtests. Significant scoring differences were found across the groups …

A Role And Reference Account Of Information Structure In Somali, Jennifer Girard

Theses and Dissertations

This thesis is a study of focus structure in Somali within the framework of Role and Reference Grammar (RRG). Focus is an important phenomenon in Somali, and this thesis investigates the different types of focus which occur in Somali, the effects of the focus markers on other features in the language, and the interaction between syntax and focus structure. Data on Somali focus structure was collected in consultation with three native speakers of Somali, and also gathered from previous research on the Somali Language. Although word order in Somali is relatively free, focus structure is correspondingly rigid, a finding which …

Word Order And Information Structure In Russian Syntax, Elena V. Rodionova

Theses and Dissertations

This thesis attempts to explain variability of word order in Russian declarative sentences. I argued that Russian word order is not "free" but encodes different types of focus: predicate, sentence, and narrow. Chapter 1 of this thesis critiques several theories of grammar that attribute alternative word orders in Russian primarily to differences in style. Chapter 2 discusses the advantages of Lambrecht's information structure theory and Role and Reference Grammar as a theoretical framework for my research. Chapter 3 presents the empirical core of the paper, a detailed revision of Krylova and Khavronina's (1986) classification of Russian word order types into …

Two Studies Of Mixtec Languages, Inga Mckendry

Theses and Dissertations

This thesis consists of two independent papers and a text. One paper is centered on Mixtec languages as a whole, the other paper and the text present the variety of Mixtec spoken in the southeastern portion of the district of Nochixtlán, Oaxaca, Mexico.

The first paper builds on work published by Stephen A. Marlett in which it is posited that nasalization is a feature of the morpheme rather than the syllable. Data not included in Marlett's study, which corroborates his findings, are presented. Also in the light of these data, modifications to his analysis are suggested. This paper also presents …

Hindi-Urdu: Stress Accent Or Non-Stress Accent?, Lars O. Dyrud

Theses and Dissertations

The Hindi-Urdu stress system has been a problematic topic for over a century. Hayes (1995) says, '... this topic has its empirically dismaying aspects: the published descriptions almost all disagree with one another, and seldom mention the disagreement.'

The literature today divides languages between 'stress accent' languages and 'non-stress accent' languages. According to Beckman (1986), 'stress accent' languages are those that use phonetic attributes other than pitch to indicate a prominent syllable, while 'non-stress accent' languages are those that use only pitch to mark a prominent syllable.

In the past, several quantitative studies of phonetic correlates of stress in Hindi-Urdu …

The Analysis Of Selective Information Processing And Neuropsychological Functioning In Individuals At-Risk For Eating Disorders: The Use Of A Pictorial Adaptation To The Stroop Paradigm, Using Print Media Advertisements, Kristine L. Lokken

Theses and Dissertations

There is evidence that women with bulimic symptoms are characteristically impulsive and have difficulty inhibiting various behaviors. Neuropsychological profiles of women with bulimic symptoms show patterns of impulsivity, inefficient problem solving ability, and an inability to inhibit irrelevant information. Women with bulimic symptoms also express substantially greater acceptance and internalization of sociocultural mores of thinness, and are more vulnerable to negative influence from laboratory exposure to stimuli representing “thin ideal” stereotypes. The present study examined a possible common link between the characterological and neuropsychological features of women with bulimic symptoms and their susceptibility to negative influence from mass media representations …

A Study Of Native American Ged Graduates At Four Tribal Community Colleges In North Dakota, Karen Starr Gillis

Theses and Dissertations

This study focused on the General Educational Development (GED) graduates of four tribal colleges in North Dakota. The purpose was to provide answers to five research questions and to determine baseline data on Indian education in an area not fully studied. The study will assist in closing the gap between research already conducted with Hispanics and African American populations.

The study accumulated data on participants in GED programs at the four adult education and/or testing centers at the tribal colleges in North Dakota for the years 1990–1999. The participants were analyzed using a set of variables that was specific to …

User Satisfaction With The Interlibrary Loan System At Camden County Library: A Case Study, Jennifer L. Pierce

Theses and Dissertations

The purpose of the study was to determine patron satisfaction with the interlibrary loan system at Camden County Library in New Jersey. The researcher experienced the interlibrary loan process fist-hand at the main library in Voorhees. Protecting patron confidentiality and anonymity, a four-page questionnaire survey was included with 150 interlibrary loan items that were picked up by patrons between March 9, 2000 and June 6, 2000. Of the 79 surveys returned, 76 were usable for this study. The overall conclusion is that respondents were satisfied: 96.05% were satisfied with staff helpfulness, 82.89% were satisfied with the time it took to …

Socially Defined "Pms", Lora J. Bertelsen

Theses and Dissertations

No agreed upon definition for “PMS” exists. This study was designed to explore the conceptualizations of the expression “PMS” held by college students. It was hoped that results would inform not only assessment and treatment of premenstrual disorders, but also the debate regarding inclusion in future diagnostic and statistical manuals of the American Psychiatric Association.

Participants included 47 college students recruited from Freshman English classes at a small university in the Midwestern United States. Thirty female and 17 male participants were primarily Caucasian (43), single (36), and heterosexual (45). Each participant completed an in-class essay, an adjective checklist, and a …

The Negative Halo Effect Of Oppositional Defiant Behaviors On Teacher Ratings Of Adhd: Impact Of Child Gender, David A. Jackson

Theses and Dissertations

This study explored one potential reason for differences in diagnostic rates of attention-deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) between genders: teacher-based rating bias. Abikoff, Courtney and Pelham (1993) showed elementary teachers two tapes of a male child in a fourth grade classroom, then had the teachers complete ADHD and ODD rating scales. One tape depicted a normal child; another depicted a child exhibiting either ADHD or ODD behaviors. Rating comparisons from the ADHD v. ODD tapes showed biases: the ADHD tape was rated higher than the ODD tape on ADHD rating scales and lower on ODD rating scales; while the ODD tape …

A Study Of Directorial Choices In Tennessee Williams' Play Out Cry Focused On Selected Expressionistic Elements, Joyce A. Johnson

Theses and Dissertations

Tennesse Williams' play, OUT CRY, uses many of the expressionistic and symbolic elements he used successfully throughout his career. The characters of OUT CRY struggle with the fear of isolation, of entrapment and of sexual relationship. The aim of my thesis is to focus on selected expressionistic elements in OUT CRY and to elaborate on the choices I made as a director in using the expressionistic elements to convey the theme of fear inherent in the play.

I have highlighted the methodology of director Harold Clurman in my analysis of the script. Additionally, I adhered to theory of director Francis …

The Design And Analysis Of A Wireless Lan Relayed Frame Protocol Extension, Jody A. Grassel

Theses and Dissertations

Computing stations networked on wireless LANs (wLANs) typically have a limited range of mobility: the station must always be within an access point’s coverage area. If a station moves outside of that area, and if it is unable to locate another base station within its range to perform a handover of communication connectivity responsibility, then it will ex perience a disruption in network services until it migrates into the coverage area of another wLAN. Typical causes for such losses of service include station migration to outside of the wLAN’s coverage area, changing environmental conditions, and “holes” within the cumu lative …

Information Structure In Acadian French, Emma Pavey

Theses and Dissertations

This paper examines aspects of information structure in Acadian French, focusing on the use of detached (also referred to as 'moved' or 'dislocated') syntactic structures in the spoken language. The data is from interviews with Acadian French speakers and is analyzed using Role and Reference Grammar as a theoretical framework. One section of this paper also reviews existing literature on the subject. This study is innovative empirically in that it studies a Canadian variety of French which has not been significantly discussed previously in the literature on information structure nor within the RRG model. The detached clauses are subdivided into …

The Effect Of Alcohol Consumption And Alcohol Expectancy On Women's Responses To A Date Rape Analogue, Beth A. Lewis

Theses and Dissertations

Research indicates that two factors, alcohol consumption and having a sexual assault history, increases a woman's risk of being sexually assaulted; however, the mechanism underlying this relationship is not yet fully understood. The majority of studies in this area of research have relied on self-report data or vignettes studies in which the effect of alcohol is examined by manipulating the content of the character's beverage. The purpose of present study was to better understand the effects of alcohol consumption and sexual assault history on perceptions of sexual assault by conducting a laboratory study in which 80 female participants consumed an …

Kinetic Modeling Of A Transport Coal Gasifier, Ryan Zebadiah Knutson

Theses and Dissertations

The Energy and Environmental Research Center (EERC) in Grand Fork:, Morth Dakota is administering the research on the Transport Reactor Development Unit (TRDU) optimization project. This endeavor is sponsored by the Department of Energy, and it has an ultimate goal to justify the transition to a scaled-up version of the TRDU.

The focus of this research was to kinetically model char gasification in the TRDU, which will help define control parameters and optimize production. Kinetic parameters of char were determined with the use of Thermogravimetry (TGA). TGA is a thermal analysis and involves studying the change in the mass of …

An Analysis Of Rowan University Fund Raising And Communication Practices, Karen D. Dunnington

Theses and Dissertations

Public colleges and universities need more income than government can provide. States now typically provide less than half the funding for public universities, like Rowan University. Alumni fund raising and other gifts bridge this gap. This study describes variables that affect donor motivation in other schools, and measures those variables among Rowan University subjects. The author applied a 16-question protocol to a purposive sample of 31. The sample was comprised of key fund raising personnel and target study subjects from students to college presidents in seven groups. Extensive individual commentary supplements the sample's small size. The major findings clearly support …

Study Of Small Businesses’ Need For, And Interest In, A Course On How To Produce Effective Publications, Lori Wagoner

Theses and Dissertations

With the advent of PageMaker and other user-friendly publications programs almost anyone can create publications, with or without an understanding of typography or layout and design. These publications represent the organization and affect its image, as well as its bottom line.

These software programs allow an organization to produce its own publications and handle its own publicity. This is a great advantage for small entrepreneurial businesses that may not be able to hire a professional to produce brochures, flyers or newsletters. The problem, however, is that unless the person has an understanding of typography and layout and design, the publication …

Recruiting And Retaining Healthcare Association Members, Ronette Wilson

Theses and Dissertations

The purpose of this study is to identify popular techniques used to recruit and retain members for healthcare and medical associations. The author compared and contrasted three medical associations and their membership benefits to show which benefits members value most.

Related research indicated recruiting and retaining members has become increasingly competitive among healthcare and medical associations. A new-member survey was conducted for three healthcare associations. Research indicated people primarily join organizations for specialized information, but they also hope to fulfill status-seeking needs.

A successful recruiting and retaining plan involves more than attractive benefits. Members' motivational needs must be included. Based …

Amusement Park Crisis Management, Joe Costal

Theses and Dissertations

This thesis attempts to establish a benchmark for amusement park crisis management through the careful examination of two contrasting crisis response case studies.

The first study, a deadly fire at Six Flags Great Adventure, in Jackson Township, New Jersey, exemplifies the causes, components and effects of improper crisis planning. Analysis of the study closely examines all events leading to and resulting from the fire, with most content coming from the memories of professionals directly involved in the tragedy. Designations of the Six Flags case provided the basis of every amusement crisis plan written since.

The second study, a deadly boat …

Webbing Egypt, Ivan Panovic

Theses and Dissertations

This thesis is an ethnographic description of practices of the producers of Egypt-based and Egypt-related websites.

The Implications Of The Financial Services Modernization Act On Life Insurance Industry Communications, Michael A. Weinberg

Theses and Dissertations

This study's purpose was to assess the effects of legislation known as The Financial Services Modernization Act on life insurance industry communicators. The November, 1999 legislation effectively broke down the barriers separating the major financial services industries in the U.S. - life insurance, banking, and securities.

An email survey of a random sample of the Life Communicators Association (LCA) U.S. membership was conducted. The LCA is a professional organization of marketing communications, advertising, and public relations professionals working for life insurance and other financial services firms. 242 surveys were emailed.

The results indicated that most of the LCA members were …

Rutgers Camden Center For The Arts Audience Study, Meridith Auerbach

Theses and Dissertations

The Rutgers Camden Center for the Arts strives to serve the regional community with diverse types of programming and to promote a love for the performing arts. The center wants to program events people are interested in attending. Audience likes and dislikes need to be studied and considered when choosing events for a season. The audience's opinion is important because they bring in revenue and therefore play a key role in the success of a theater.

There are factors that may persuade people to attend programs at the Rutgers Camden Center for the Arts. Likewise, audiences may have negative perceptions …

Development Of A Course Of Study For An Undergraduate Course In Global Communication, Kim Lynn Mullikin

Theses and Dissertations

This thesis studies the components of successful undergraduate global communication courses. The thesis examines curriculum of American and European colleges and universities' global communication courses and programs. The author analyzed syllabi and course textbooks and surveyed Rowan University College of Communication staff members to develop a course of study for an undergraduate course in global communication.

The study determined that the top 10 topics to be included in a global communication course are: culture, globalization, politics, adaptation, race, television and film, business, conflict and culture shock.

Culture and globalization were covered in more than 50% of the syllabi studied. Adaptation, …

Branding For Nonprofit Organizations, Shannon Cogan

Theses and Dissertations

In the world, 546,000 nonprofit organizations all compete for the same thing: time and money. With the ease of Internet philanthropic giving, traditional nonprofit organizations must change with the times or be left in the wake. In an age of constant message bombardment, nonprofits must continually reinvent themselves to avoid getting lost in the crowd. Today, many nonprofits have found branding is the answer.

To determine the importance of nonprofit branding, the author reviewed all available literature and interviewed a senior-level manager at United Way of America. In addition, the author performed a literature review of all materials obtained from …

Public Relations Efforts To Promote New Graduate Programs, Joe Chambers

Theses and Dissertations

The purpose of this thesis was to accumulate information relative to the various public relations practices, methods, and procedures utilized by Rowan University, a state institution of higher learning, and comparing and contrasting them with that of a private institution of higher learning. The differences and similarities between public and private institutions of higher learning were examined and a survey of Undergraduate Accounting students at Rowan was evaluated quantitatively.

Twenty-four questions were on the survey that covered the universe of undergraduate Accounting I and Accounting Il students at Rowan University during the fall semester 2000. Of these twenty-four questions, thirteen …

Char Reaction Kinetics In A Transport Gasifier, Jason P. Jacobsen

Theses and Dissertations

In the field of energy generation, coal gasification is one of the burgeoning technologies that are becoming an attractive alternative to conventional coal conversion. This study will provide valuable data to aid in optimizing and understanding this type of technology, in particular the char reactions of a transport coal gasifier that utilizes the M. W. Kellogg process. It has been very difficult to develop an accurate model for this process due to the lack of kinetic/equilibrium data of the coal char re-bum reaction and its effects on the gasification process.

Char reaction data on carbon monoxide (CO) and carbon dioxide …

Our Duty, Our Rights, Our America: Women In American Nativism 1830 - 1930, Tanis Lovercheck-Saunders

Theses and Dissertations

This paper assesses the role women played in organizing and maintaining anti-Catholic nativist movements between 1830–1930. It analyzes women's motivations for joining nativist sororities and describes the activities they participated in. It pays special attention to women involved in antebellum nativist sororities, late nineteenth century nativist sororities, and the Women of the Ku Klux Klan. It looks at how nativist women used the concepts of Republican Motherhood, woman's moral superiority, and woman's innate patriotism to justify their activities and campaign for woman suffrage.

Am I The Leader? Resident Assistant's Assessment Of Roles And Training, Renee J. Bourdeaux

Theses and Dissertations

Students attend colleges and unversities across the nation in the hopes of receiving an education. Campus culture not only educates students academically, but socially as well. Once area that focuses on developinng community skills is the residential department. A Resident Assistant (RA) is a student who works in the residence halls. RAs must understand four skill areas in order to be effective in their job performance: Leadership, communication, administrative, and problem solving. The questions that this thesis will address by surveying RAs are: "How do RAs perceive their roles and training?", "How can training be improved?", and "Is there a …