Social and Behavioral Sciences Commons^™

Factors Influencing Familial Decision-Making Regarding Human Papillomavirus Vaccination, Heather L. Gamble, James L. Klosky, Gilbert R. Parra, Mary E. Randolph

Department of Child, Youth, and Family Studies: Faculty Publications

Objective The purpose of this review is to summarize the research regarding Human Papillomavirus (HPV) vaccination uptake among families with adolescent/preadolescent daughters.

Methods Literature searches (utilizing PubMed and PsychInfo databases) were conducted and research examining psychological and environmental factors which relate to HPV vaccine uptake and intentions was reviewed.

Results Factors such as physician recommendations, perceptions of the beliefs of peers and significant others, history of childhood immunizations, and communication with adolescents regarding sexual topics appear to influence HPV vaccination outcomes.

Conclusions Although primary prevention of cervical and other cancers is available for preadolescent and adolescent girls, rates of HPV …

Using The World Wide Web To Educate And Inform The Public About Risk And Agricultural Biotechnology, Douglas A. Golick, Robert D. Peterson, Leon G. Higley

Department of Entomology: Faculty Publications

The University of Nebraska and AgBios, Inc. launched the AgBiosafety website (http://agbiosaftzy.unl.edu) with the purpose of educating the public about agricultural biotechnology risk and safezy issues through science-based content. This article discusses the creation ofthe website, its components, and data gathered from usage statistics and a web-delivered survey. Also included is a discussion of the results ofdata gathered and recommendations for future web-based educational efforts in biotechnology safety and risk assessment.

Family Legacies: Constructing Individual And Family Identity Through Intergenerational Storytelling, Blair Thompson, Jody Koenig Kellas, Jordan Soliz, Jason Thompson, Amber Epp, Paul Schrodt

Department of Communication Studies: Faculty Publications

The current study focused on discovering the ways in which the intergenerational transmission of family legacy stories both enables and constrains individual family members’ sense of their own identities. Using semistructured interviews, 17 third-generation family members identified a multitude of both positive and negative family legacies. Both positive and negative legacies were influenced by the storytelling context. Positive legacies portrayed families as hardworking, caring, and cohesive while negative legacies were more idiosyncratic. Individual family members typically responded to their family legacies by embracing the positive and rejecting the negative. However, individuals’ responses also pointed to additional complexities in accepting or …

Communicative And Relational Dimensions Of Shared Family Identity And Relational Intentions In Mother-In-Law/Daughter-In-Law Relationships: Developing A Conceptual Model For Mother-In-Law/Daughter-In-Law Research, Christine Rittenour, Jordan Soliz

Department of Communication Studies: Faculty Publications

From the perspective of daughters-in-law (N = 190), this study examined communicative and relational factors associated with positive and negative mother-in-law/daughter-in-law relationships. A structural model tested perceptions of shared family identity as a mediator between communicative factors (supportive communication, nonaccommodation, self-disclosure), family-of-origin factors, and daughter-in-law intentions regarding caregiving and future contact with the mother-in-law. Further, open-ended responses were content analyzed to identify additional relational aspects associated with satisfying mother-in-law relationships. Results from both analyses were integrated into a conceptual model to guide future research on this relationship.

The Elasticity Of Taxable Income: Influences On Economic Efficiency And Tax Revenues, And Implications For Tax Policy, Seth H. Giertz

Department of Economics: Faculty Publications

While research into the elasticity of taxable income (ETr), which measures the responsiveness of reported taxable income to changes in tax rates, dates back to at least Lindsey (1987), recognition of its importance as a central parameter for tax policy design did not begin to take hold until the second half of the 1990s. In fact, a 1998 survey to determine public and labor economists' views on key policy parameters (Fuchs, Krueger, and Poterba 1998) included no questions on the ETI. I suspect that a 2008 survey would include such questions, just as I suspect that a 1998 conference entitled …

A Response To Seth H. Giertz, Daniel Feenberg

Department of Economics: Faculty Publications

There are two aspects of Seth Giertz's excellent chapter that I want to talk about. One is slightly technical; I want to try to provide some explanation for why estimating elasticity of taxable income (ETI) is so difficult. I think this difficulty is unappreciated by nonspecialists, who are quick to latch onto a favorite estimate without understanding the weaknesses in the estimation. The other aspect is a bit more philosophical and addresses the different functions of the partial equilibrium analysis done here and the general equilibrium work done a few years back in the macro group at the Congressional Budget …

Unauthorized Immigration, Örn  B. Bodvarsson, Hendrik F. Van Den Berg

Department of Economics: Faculty Publications

One of the results of the clash between immigration policies and economic incentives is unauthorized immigration. There is no accurate data on unauthorized immigration, but estimates permit some empirical work. The motives for immigrants to enter the destination country without formal authorization are the same as those that lead immigrants to seek legal entry, and the static labor market model of immigration can be used to explain the flows of unauthorized immigrants. There are additional factors to consider, however. Unauthorized immigrants do not normally enjoy the same civil rights as legal immigrants, so the potential rewards from immigrating are …

Predatory Senescence In Ageing Wolves, Daniel R. Macnulty, Douglas W. Smith, John A. Vucetich, L. David Mech, Craig Packer

United States Geological Survey, Northern Prairie Wildlife Research Center: Publications

It is well established that ageing handicaps the ability of prey to escape predators, yet surprisingly little is known about how ageing affects the ability of predators to catch prey. Research into long-lived predators has assumed that adults have uniform impacts on prey regardless of age. Here we use longitudinal data from repeated observations of individually-known wolves (Canis lupus) hunting elk (Cervus elaphus) in Yellowstone National Park to demonstrate that adult predatory performance declines with age and that an increasing ratio of senescent individuals in the wolf population depresses the rate of prey offtake. Because this ratio fluctuates independently of …

Problems With The Claim Of Ecotype And Taxon Status Of The Wolf In The Great Lakes Region, Matthew A. Cronin, L. David Mech

United States Geological Survey, Northern Prairie Wildlife Research Center: Publications

Koblmuller et al. (2009) analyzed molecular genetic data of the wolf in the Great Lakes (GL) region of the USA and concluded that the animal was a unique ecotype of grey wolf and that genetic data supported the population as a discrete wolf taxon. However, some of the literature that the researchers used to support their position actually did not, and additional confusion arises from indefinite use of terminology. Herein, we discuss the problems with designation of a wolf population as a taxon or ecotype without proper definition and assessment of criteria.

Koblmuller et al. (2009) wrote ‘The GL …

A Serological Survey Of Infectious Disease In Yellowstone National Park’S Canid Community, Emily S. Almberg, L. David Mech, Douglas W. Smith, Jennifer W. Sheldon, Robert L. Crabtree

United States Geological Survey, Northern Prairie Wildlife Research Center: Publications

Background: Gray wolves (Canis lupus) were reintroduced into Yellowstone National Park (YNP) after a .70 year absence, and as part of recovery efforts, the population has been closely monitored. In 1999 and 2005, pup survival was significantly reduced, suggestive of disease outbreaks.

Methodology/Principal Findings: We analyzed sympatric wolf, coyote (Canis latrans), and red fox (Vulpes vulpes) serologic data from YNP, spanning 1991–2007, to identify long-term patterns of pathogen exposure, identify associated risk factors, and examine evidence for disease-induced mortality among wolves for which there were survival data. We found high, constant exposure to canine …

Feeding Ecology Of Arctic-Nesting Sandpipers During Spring Migration Through The Prairie Pothole Region, Jan Eldridge, Gary Krapu, Douglas Johnson

United States Geological Survey, Northern Prairie Wildlife Research Center: Publications

We evaluated food habits of 4 species of spring-migrant calidrid sandpipers in the Prairie Pothole Region (PPR) of North Dakota. Sandpipers foraged in several wetland classes and fed primarily on aquatic dipterans, mostly larvae, and the midge family Chironomidae was the primary food eaten. Larger sandpiper species foraged in deeper water and took larger larvae than did smaller sandpipers. The diverse wetland habitats that migrant shorebirds use in the PPR suggest a landscape-level approach be applied to wetland conservation efforts. We recommend that managers use livestock grazing and other tools, where applicable, to keep shallow, freshwater wetlands from becoming choked …

Body Size And Predatory Performance In Wolves: Is Bigger Better?, Daniel R. Macnulty, Douglas W. Smith, L. David Mech, Lynn E. Eberly

United States Geological Survey, Northern Prairie Wildlife Research Center: Publications

Summary

1. Large body size hinders locomotor performance in ways that may lead to trade-offs in predator foraging ability that limit the net predatory benefit of larger size. For example, size-related improvements in handling prey may come at the expense of pursuing prey and thus negate any enhancement in overall predatory performance due to increasing size.

2. This hypothesis was tested with longitudinal data from repeated observations of 94 individually known wolves (Canis lupus) hunting elk (Cervus elaphus) in Yellowstone National Park, USA. Wolf size was estimated from an individually based sex-specific growth model derived from …

Wolf Use Of Summer Territory In Northeastern Minnesota, Dominic J. Demma, L. David Mech

United States Geological Survey, Northern Prairie Wildlife Research Center: Publications

Movements of wolves (Canis lupus) during summer 2003 and 2004 in the Superior National Forest were based around homesites but included extensive use of territories. Away from homesites, wolves used different areas daily, exhibiting rotational use. Mean daily range overlap was 22% (SE = 0.02) and that of breeding wolves was significantly greater than for nonbreeders (x = 25% and 16%, respectively). Rotational use may improve hunting success. Managers seeking to remove entire packs must maintain control long enough to ensure that all pack members are targeted.

Vulnerability Of Rehabilitated Agricultural Production Systems To Invasion By Nontarget Plant Species, Sara G. Baer, David M. Engle, Johannes M. H. Knops, Kenneth A. Langeland, Bruce D. Maxwell, Fabian D. Menalled, Amy J. Symstad

United States Geological Survey, Northern Prairie Wildlife Research Center: Publications

Vast areas of arable land have been retired from crop production and ‘‘rehabilitated’’ to improved system states through landowner incentive programs in the United States (e.g., Conservation and Wetland Reserve Programs), as well as Europe (i.e., Agri-Environment Schemes). Our review of studies conducted on invasion of rehabilitated agricultural production systems by nontarget species elucidates several factors that may increase the vulnerability of these systems to invasion. These systems often exist in highly fragmented and agriculturally dominated landscapes, where propagule sources of target species for colonization may be limited, and are established under conditions where legacies of past disturbance persist and …

Farmers And Nature Conservation: What Is Known About Attitudes, Context Factors And Actions Affecting Conservation?, Johan Ahnström, Jenny Höckert, Hanna L. Bergea, Charles A. Francis, Peter Skelton, Lars Hallgren

Department of Agronomy and Horticulture: Faculty Publications

Farmers’ attitudes towards viability of specific conservation practices or actions strongly impact their decisions on adoption and change. This review of ‘attitude’ information reveals a wide range of perceptions about what conservation means and what the impacts of adoption will mean in economic and environmental terms. Farmers operate in a tight financial situation, and in parts of the world they are highly dependent on government subsidies, and cannot afford to risk losing that support. Use of conservation practices is most effective when these are understood in the context of the individual farm, and decisions are rooted in land and resource …

Global Influences, Will Norton

College of Journalism and Mass Communications: Faculty Publications

Greater freedoms in the Balkans may come through knowledge and skills of journalism graduates.

Promoting Consumerism In West Germany During The Cold War: An Agency Perspective, Frauke Hachtmann

College of Journalism and Mass Communications: Faculty Publications

This historical study attempts to explore how advertising, from the perspective of the J. Walter Thompson (JWT) Agency, contributed to the development of consumerism in West Germany during the Cold War (roughly the early 1950s until the late 1980s). The article describes how West Germany rebuilt its economy and eventually developed into the largest exporting country in the world. It also illustrates how advertising as an institution contributed to a functioning consumer society and chronicles the agency’s development in the U.S. and expansion to Germany. Finally, it explores the agency’s insights into consumer behavior in West Germany during the Cold …

Hispanic Immigration To The United States, Örn B. Bodvarsson, Hendrik F. Van Den Berg

Department of Economics: Faculty Publications

This chapter presents some of the exceptional characteristics of recent Hispanic immigration to the United States. In 2005, there were nearly 40 million Hispanic immigrants and descendants of Hispanic immigrants living in the U.S. The assimilation experience of this large cultural group does not seem to be following the path past immigrants to the U.S. followed. Most third generation Hispanics in the U.S. still find themselves with income and education levels below the U.S. averages. Most forecasts predict that about 60 million Hispanics and Hispanic-Americans will be living in the U.S. by 2030.

The Elasticity Of Taxable Income With Respect To Marginal Tax Rates: A Critical Review, Emmanuel Saez, Joel B. Slemrod, Seth H. Giertz

Department of Economics: Faculty Publications

This paper critically surveys the large and growing literature estimating the elasticity of taxable income with respect to marginal tax rates (ETI) using tax return data. First, we provide a theoretical framework showing under what assumptions this elasticity can be used as a sufficient statistic for efficiency and optimal tax analysis. We discuss what other parameters should be estimated when the elasticity is not a sufficient statistic. Second, we discuss conceptually the key issues that arise in the empirical estimation of the elasticity of taxable income using the example of the 1993 top individual income tax rate increase in the …

Prpl: An Open-Source General-Purpose Parallel Raster Processing Programming Library, Qingfeng Guan

Geography Program: Faculty Publications

pRPL is an open-source general-purpose programming library developed by the author to parallelize almost any raster-processing algorithm with any arbitrary neighborhood configuration, and support any data type. This paper introduces the advanced features of pRPL, compares it with other similar programming libraries, and demonstrates the performance of a parallel geographic Cellular Automata (CA) model developed using pRPL with real-world datasets. In conclusion, pRPL effectively reduces the development complexity of parallel programming, and efficiently reduces the computing time.

Managing Risks Associated With The Jbcc(Principal Building Agreement) From Thesouth African Contractor’S Perspective, Ayman Ahmed Ezzat Othman, Nishani Harinarain

Architectural Engineering

Construction is a complex and risky business. It is a time-consuming process involving a multitude of organisations with different objectives and skills. In addition, increasing client expectations coupled with the technological development of materials and equipment made the construction industry subject to more risks than any other industry. Contracts are essential tools for organising the relationship between involved parties and managing associated risk. For years the South African construction industry had a very poor reputation in managing construction risks. In order to improve the image of the South African construction industry and to assist contractors to develop their proper risk …

Corporate Social Responsibility Of Architectural Design Firms Towards Sustainable Built Environment In South Africa, Ayman Ahmed Ezzat Othman

Architectural Engineering

The construction industry makes a vital contribution to the social and economic development of every country. Buildings provide their users with places for housing, education, culture, medication, business, leisure and entertainment. None of these buildings will perform its function unless supported with efficient road networks, superlative telecommunications facilities, water and electricity. On the other hand, the construction industry has major impacts on the environment. It is a very large consumer of non-renewable resources, a substantial source of waste, pollution, land dereliction and energy consumption. This highlights the responsibility of present generations to use the available resources in a way that …

The Relationship Among Social Phobia, Objective And Perceived Physiological Reactivity, And Anxiety Sensitivity In An Adolescent Population, Emily R. Anderson, Debra A. Hope

Department of Psychology: Faculty Publications

Physiological theories may be important in the development and maintenance of social phobia in youth. A limited literature base indicates that youth with social phobia experience increases in objective physiological arousal during social-evaluative situations and are more aware of such increases compared to nonanxious youth. Recent research suggests that youth with social phobia also evidence heightened levels of anxiety sensitivity, which may lead to interpretation of physiological arousal as dangerous or distressing, and, as a result, in avoidance of situations which produce increased physiological arousal. The purpose of the current study was to examine interaction among objective physiological arousal, perceived …

Emotional Reactivity Across Individuals With Varying Trauma And Substance Dependence Histories, Alicia K. Klanecky, Dennis E. Mcchargue

Department of Psychology: Faculty Publications

Background—Research has reported a high rate of substance dependence in traumatized individuals who do not develop PTSD (TWP). While past studies have failed to consistently demonstrate that TWP individuals experience PTSD symptoms, findings have indicated that TWP and a history of substance dependence aside from nicotine dependence (SDH) are linked to affect disruption.

Aims—The present study explored positive and negative affective mechanisms across four groups with varying SDH and TWP including TWP + SDH, TWP only, SDH only, or no history. Researchers hypothesized that adults (n = 78) would be more emotionally reactive to an experimentally-induced negative mood compared to …

Tests Of The Dynamic Field Theory And The Spatial Precision Hypothesis: Capturing A Qualitative Developmental Transition In Spatial Working Memory, Anne R. Schutte, John P. Spencer

Department of Psychology: Faculty Publications

This study tested a dynamic field theory (DFT) of spatial working memory and an associated spatial precision hypothesis (SPH). Between three and six years of age there is a qualitative shift in how children use reference axes to remember locations: 3-year-olds’ spatial recall responses are biased toward reference axes after short memory delays, whereas 6-year-olds’ responses are biased away from reference axes. According to the DFT and the SPH, quantitative improvements over development in the precision of excitatory and inhibitory working memory processes lead to this qualitative shift. Simulations of the DFT in Experiment 1 predict that improvements in precision …

Attention Shaping: A Reward-Based Learning Method To Enhance Skills Training Outcomes In Schizophrenia, Steven . M. Silverstein, William D. Spaulding, Anthony A. Menditto, Adam Savitz, Robert P. Liberman, Sarah Berten, Hannah Starobin

Department of Psychology: Faculty Publications

Disturbances in sustained attention commonly interfere with the ability of persons with schizophrenia to benefit from evidence-based psychosocial treatments. Cognitive remediation interventions have thus far demonstrated minimal effects on attention, as have medications. There is thus a gap between the existence of effective psychosocial treatments and patients’ ability to effectively engage in and benefit from them. We report on the results of a multisite study of attention shaping (AS), a behavioral intervention for improving attentiveness and learning of social skills among highly distractible schizophrenia patients. Patients with chronic schizophrenia who were refractory to skills training were assigned to receive either …

The International Law Of Outer Space And Consequences At The National Level For India: Towards An Indian National Space Law?, Frans G. Von Der Dunk

Space, Cyber, and Telecommunications Law Program: Faculty Publications

The discussion on a forum on the famous web-based LinkedIn networking site has already taken off: should India, as party to the four most important international space treaties, also develop a national space law, as other states increasingly are doing? That India is currently one of the leading spacefaring nations in the world is beyond discussion. In itself, however, that does not necessarily necessitate going through the trouble of drafting and implementing a national space law.

This article, however, argues that indeed, following the examples of a growing number of spacefaring states around the world discussed in some detail as …

Neighbors In The Pews: Social Status Diversity In Religious Congregations, Philip Schwadel

Department of Sociology: Faculty Publications

For the most part, Americans interact with other people like themselves—those with similar social and economic backgrounds. This homogeneity of social networks contributes in turn to social stratification and to the unequal distribution of social capital and civic integration. Religious congregations offer a rare opportunity for Americans to interact across social status lines. I use data from the 2001 U.S. Congregational Life Survey, which includes survey responses from relatively large samples of attendees nested within a large random sample of congregations, to examine the prevalence of income and education diversity in religious congregations. In contrast to racial diversity, which is …

Studying Oil, Islam, And Women As If Political Institutions Mattered, Alice J. Kang

Department of Political Science: Faculty Publications

By asserting that oil, not Islam, hurts gender equality, Michael Ross (2008) has made an important contribution to the debate on whether Islam bodes ill for women (Fish 2002; Inglehart and Norris 2003; Spierings, Smits, and Verloo 2009). Ross suggests that oil production decreases the number of female workers in countries with occupational segregation. The more women are left out of the formal economy, the fewer opportunities and resources they have for becoming influential political constituencies. According to Ross, "[t]his leaves oil-producing states with atypically strong patriarchal cultures and political institutions" (p. 107). Employing the same set of countries and …

Forced Abstinence Model Of Relapse To Study Pharmacological Treatments Of Substance Use Disorder, Carmela M. Reichel, Rick A. Bevins

Department of Psychology: Faculty Publications

Understanding and preventing relapse to drug use is one of the most difficult challenges faced by clinicians and practitioners in the struggle to help people remain abstinent. In this paper, we review basic preclinical research on forced abstinence periods that identify the neural substrates involved and neural adaptations that occur after a drug-free period. Our attention focuses on forced abstinence after self-administration because of its promise for translational research in the development of candidate medications to reduce relapse. This model requires subjects (often rats) to initially acquire drug self-administration. However, rather than extinguishing behavior with daily drug-free sessions as in …