Social and Behavioral Sciences Commons^™

Health Information Technology And Nurse Staff Efficiency: An Empirical Test In Residential Care Facilities, Jason D. Smith

Public Affairs Theses - Archive

This study examines the effects of health information technology (IT) on nursing staff efficiency. Specifically, the impact of clinical health IT applications on nursing staff efficiency is considered, along with the impact of health information exchange on nursing staff efficiency in those facilities with that utilize clinical IT. In an effort to elucidate these effects, I use data from the 2010 National Survey of Residential Care Facilities (NSRCF) to estimate six ordered logit models. The results indicate that clinical IT sophistication is positively associated with registered nurse (RN) HPPD. The effect on licensed practical nurses (LPN)/licensed vocational nurses (LVN) and …

The Nonprofit Sector's Involvement In Prisoner Reentry : A Mixed Methods Analysis, Michael Jay Woods

Public Affairs Theses - Archive

The 1990's were plagued with crime and high recidivism rates, and the State of Texas responded by embarking upon the largest expansion of a criminal justice system in its history. Having served their sentences, record numbers of offenders who were sent to prison in the 1990's are now flooding the streets. At the time of their release, some of these offenders will have unmet needs, such as a lack of food, housing, and clothing. Others may need help enrolling in school or finding a job. Whatever their needs, a host of nonprofit organizations stand ready to assist ex-offenders in their …

"Gone But Not Forgotten": A Study Of Gravestone Imagery And Iconography In Southwest Virginian Cemeteries, Amanda Marcus

Undergraduate Research Awards

"Cemeteries hold a strong relationship to our society and appear to mimic trends overtime; they memorialize not only the dead, but also important, broad social theories. Drawing on the work of Francaviglia (1971) and others, I chose to study these multilateral trends in memorialization. For this, I visited five cemeteries in southwest Virginia. Photographing and analyzing 250 stones, I found and examined their relative and cultural shifts over time and how they related to the different eras that coincided with them. Additionally, I note important developments after 1970, the last period studied by Francoviglia."--Author's abstract. Note: the PDF includes the …

Drinking With Friends: A Cellular Automata Approach To Modeling Peer Influence On Binge Drinking Behavior, Piper Jackson, Andrew Reid, Niki Huitson, Kathryn Wuschke, Vahid Dabbaghian

Criminology and Criminal Justice Faculty Publications and Presentations

In this project, we adopt Cellular Automata (CA) modeling as a means to focus solely on the elements of concern: individual state (binging) and local interactions (peer pressure). CA models are well suited for exploring the dynamics that occur within a population, and are useful for visualizing the clustering behaviour of communities. With this more abstract approach, it is possible to simulate large populations with reasonable computational requirements.

Practicing Polygamy: Multicultural Right Or Liberal Crime?, Jessica Freitas

Global Tides

Publication of polygamous practices in American media has brought the issue of the legality of polygamy into American politics and discussion forums as a question that pits multiculturalism and free choice versus liberalism. An evaluation of the legal history and current situation of polygamy reveals two sides to the issue. Advocates of multiculturalism such as Charles Taylor argue that different cultures have a right to recognition of their identity and that their practices are essential to forming that identity. Certain feminists and religious theorists also support this viewpoint. Liberalism, in contrast, argues that polygamy results in the subjugation of women …

God, Politics And The Environment: Religious Affiliation And Voting Patterns By Congress On Environmental Legislation, 1970-2010., Taylor Clayton, Billy Cole, Paul Henderson

Global Tides

Every year members of Congress vote on numerous bills that will have an impact on the vitality of our environment. But what factors, if any, contribute to the way in which Members of the House vote on environmental legislation? In this paper, we postulate that religion has a large role in influencing the voting habits of Representatives. In order to test for religion’s impact, we examined the roll call voting of Members of the House of Representatives spread over nine years from 1970-2010. We find that self- identified religious affiliation is an independently important factor in determining voting patterns of …

Identifying Associative Memory Deficits And Neurobiological Correlates Of Encoding And Performance In A National Sample Of Veterans With Gulf War Illness Using Magnetic Resonance Imaging, Crystal Marie Cooper Cortes

Psychology Dissertations - Archive

Roughly 26-32% of U.S. veterans who served in the Persian Gulf War of 1991 report suffering from chronic health problems (Golomb, 2008). Memory complaints are regularly reported by ill Gulf War veterans (GWV), but there is scarce data to verify their complaints. Using an associative memory paradigm of faces and names, the present study was conducted to investigate the memory deficits reported by ill GWV in a nationally representative sample comprised of both ill and well GWV. During administration of the memory task, functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI) was used to acquire the Blood Oxygenation Level Dependent (BOLD) contrast to …

Exergame Use As A Gateway To The Adoption Of And Adherence To Sport-Specific And General Physical Activity, Colin Jenney

Psychology Theses - Archive

Despite increasing the amount of information regarding the need for regular physical activity, rates of inactivity have not seen a corresponding decrease. The aim of the current study was to determine whether exergame use would serve as a gateway to the sport of racquetball, thereby providing a feasible and innovative way to influence behavior change regarding physical activity. The current study randomly assigned participants into one of three conditions for racquetball training: a no–exposure control group, a racquetball videogame (exergame) group, and a traditional training group. College aged adults (N = 103), who reported not being regular exercisers at recruitment …

Physcial Symptoms In Patients With Acute Tmd: The Influence Of Emotional Distress, Kara Lorduy

Psychology Theses - Archive

The current study investigated symptoms of central sensitization syndrome (CSS), as well as, pain and pain-related interference among those with acute temporomandibular disorder (TMD). Additionally, the current project investigated the influence of emotional distress on the prevalence of physical symptoms and on self-reports of pain as indicated by the Characteristic Pain Inventory (CPI) and pain-related interference on the Graded Chronic Pain Scale (GCPS). Consistent with our expectations, those with an Axis I muscle disorder and those at high-risk for chronicity had more symptoms of central sensitization, and higher CPI and GCPS compared to those without an Axis I muscle disorder …

Characterizing And Predicting Growth In Reading Skills In Children With Developmental Dyslexia Through Functional Neuroimaging, Emily A. Farris

Psychology Dissertations - Archive

Children with developmental dyslexia exhibit deficits in a wide variety of reading skills that are attributable to underlying deficits in phonological processing. Functional neuroimaging studies show that these children exhibit differences in the activation of a distributed network of brain regions during reading tasks when compared to children without reading impairments. It is anticipated that children with dyslexia who are enrolled in a reading intervention will exhibit significant growth in reading skills over the course of their intervention. Furthermore, research has shown that activation of a distributed network of brain regions during reading tasks can be used to predict changes …

Facilitation Of Surgical Decisions Within A Functional Restoration Program For Chronic Disabling Occupational Musculoskeletal Disorders, Emily Brede

Psychology Dissertations - Archive

Preventing delayed recovery is an important treatment goal in the treatment of chronic disabling occupational musculoskeletal disorders (CDOMDs). However, when CDOMD patients are potentially eligible for elective surgical procedures, decisions about whether or not to pursue surgery can be complicated by surgical uncertainty, which can decrease the likelihood of complete recovery from injury. Resolution of surgical uncertainty allows treatment to proceed, so that patients can reach Maximum Medical Improvement, and ideally return to productivity. The purpose of the current study was to resolve surgical uncertainty while preventing delayed recovery through a surgical option process. Patients who were undecided about pursuing …

Risk Of Resource Failure And Toolkit Variation In Small-Scale Farmers And Herders, M. Collard, A. Ruttle, B. Buchanan, Michael J. O'Brien

History Faculty Publications (Archived)

Recent work suggests that global variation in toolkit structure among hunter-gatherers is driven by risk of resource failure such that as risk of resource failure increases, toolkits become more diverse and complex. Here we report a study in which we investigated whether the toolkits of small-scale farmers and herders are influenced by risk of resource failure in the same way. In the study, we applied simple linear and multiple regression analysis to data from 45 small-scale food-producing groups to test the risk hypothesis. Our results were not consistent with the hypothesis; none of the risk variables we examined had a …

Beveled Projectile Points And Ballistics Technology, C. P. Lipo, R. C. Dunnell, Michael J. O'Brien, V. Harper, J. Dudgeon

History Faculty Publications (Archived)

Explanations for beveled blade edges on projectile points have been debated in North America archaeology since the first systematic description of lithic assemblages in the nineteenth century. Debate has centered around two opposing perspectives. One views beveled edges as features of projectile points that cause them to spin during flight. The other views beveling as a product of edge resharpening that is done unifacially to conserve scarce resources. Here we use a fluid-dynamics model to simulate the effect beveling has on projectiles. Expectations derived from this modeling are evaluated using wind-tunnel experiments. Our findings indicate that beveling produces in-flight rotation …

Statistical Analyses Cannot Be Divorced From Archaeological Theory: A Reply To Potter, A. Mesoudi, Michael J. O'Brien

History Faculty Publications (Archived)

Potter criticizes our experimental study of the roles played by indirect bias and guided variation in shaping prehistoric Great Basin projectile point variation. His criticisms are technically correct from the standpoint of statistical convention, but he fails to understand the theoretical rationale of our study. Without such an understanding, hi s assertion that our conclusions are questionable is incorrect. Here we point out again (1) how our experimental work bridges the gap between cultural-transmission theory and the empirical record and (2) why our conclusions are indeed valid.

How Well Do Home Energy Audits Serve The Homeowner?, Aaron Ingle, Mithra Moezzi, Loren Lutzenhiser, Richard Diamond

Center for Urban Studies Publications and Reports

Home energy audits administered by utilities and government typically provide homeowners with lists of technical upgrade recommendations intended to increase the technical energy efficiency of the house. Audits proceed with assessment of physical characteristics, subsequently processed with a computational model and transformed into a report, sometimes customized by the auditor. While the design of an energy audit reflects program and policy points of view – balancing program cost with expected program savings, educating people about the value of energy efficiency, etc. – it is crucial to consider the criteria for a good home energy audit and recommendations from homeowners’ points …

Myths And Measures: The Cultural Performance Of Portland’S Strip Club Identity, Wayne Coffey

Geography Masters Research Papers

Identities of place develop through a multitude of perceptions. Place myths guide much of this perception. Portland, Oregon’s identity has evolved in particular around a much quoted but unchallenged statistic regarding the volume of nude dancing venues. This paper focuses on the literature specific to both nude dance venues and place identity; Portland’s legal history that contributed to this phenomenon; and some of the cultural and spatial variables pertinent to this issue. Two initiatives, aimed at restructuring the state constitution specifically to deal with nude dance venues and other adult entertainment, are analyzed.

Review Of: Shadow Mothers: Nannies, Au Pairs, And The Micropolitics Of Mothering, Kei Nomaguchi

Sociology Faculty Publications

No abstract provided.

Three Interdisciplinary Studies On It Outsourcing, Sonia Gantman Vilvovsky

2012

This dissertation provides interdisciplinary insights into the role of client's internal collaborative experience in managing communication during a complex outsourced project, building a quality client-vendor relationship and ultimately achieving success in the project. Each of the three studies in this dissertation identifies a gap in existing scholarship and proposes an interdisciplinary research agenda.

The first essay advances the development of the public sector IT outsourcing (ITO) inquiry by consolidating the existing research into an analytical framework and validating a part of the framework with rich qualitative data collected from collaborative initiatives of public safety agencies ("Public Safety Networks", or PSN). …

Ironic Advertising: Theory, Evidence And Practice, Ekin Pehlivan Yalcin

2012

Irony is one mechanism that advertisers use to attract consumer attention. Although ironic advertising (IA) is utilized in the mass media, it has received surprisingly little conceptual or empirical attention from marketing scholars. Perhaps one reason for this is that in marketing irony has been viewed primarily from a postmodern perspective. This is in marked contrast to psycholinguists where the phenomenon is approached from a more ecumenical, realist point of view. This dissertation is based on the premise that a realist approach to ironic advertising would produce insights for both marketing theory and practice.

This dissertation comprises of three papers …

Public Safety Networks – Examining Mimetic, Complexity, And Legacy Effects On Interorganizational Collaborations, Martin A. Dias

2012

The purpose of this dissertation is to examine information systems-enabled interorganizational collaborations called public safety networks – their proliferation, information systems architecture, and technology evolution. These networks face immense pressures from member organizations, external stakeholders, and environmental contingencies. This dissertation investigates the role of three effects on these networks - the effect of peers in network proliferation, the effect of environmental and organizational complexity on their information systems, and the effect of legacy systems on capability scale and scope. Better understanding the conditions associated with network proliferation will assist decision-makers in assessing appropriate partnering opportunities. Better understanding the nature of …

Off-Duty & Under Arrest: A Study Of Crimes Perpetuated By Off-Duty Police, Philip M. Stinson, John Liederbach, Tina L. Freiburger

Criminal Justice Faculty Publications

The findings of independent commissions and research derived from a data-set of career-ending misconduct among New York Police Department (NYPD) officers suggests that police engage in a wide variety of crimes while they are off-duty including domestic violence, bar fights, drunk driving, burglary, and sex offenses (The Mollen Commission, 1994; Fyfe & Kane, 2006; Kane & White, 2009). The off-duty misbehavior of police is an important concern for police agencies exposed to potential liability costs, and scholars engaged in debates about whether studies on police deviance should include acts committed while an officer is technically off-duty. The problem for scholars …

The Role Of Defense Mechanisms Of Israeli Society In Relationship To The Israeli–Palestinian Conflict: From “1948 Repression” To Artistic Sublimation, Keren Shechter

Expressive Therapies Dissertations

Although many researchers have examined the concept of defense mechanisms, almost none have done so from a societal and cultural point of view. The author investigated the following research questions: (1) Which defense mechanisms are used in Israeli society within the context of the Israeli–Palestinian conflict? What changes, if any, have occurred in these defenses over the years? (2) What are the reasons for the use of these defenses? What are the consequences of the use? (3) How can a transition(s) from the use of a lower-level defense mechanism(s) to a higher-level one(s) occur? What is the role of the …

The Feasibility Of Implementing A Collaborative Recommender System For The Brigham Young University Harold B. Lee Library, Derrick Brinton

Student Works

With library users finding their information from other non-library sources, the Harold B. Lee Library at Brigham Young University has great need of a recommender system. The library already has years of checkout data that can be used to jump-start the recommender system's recommendations. Unfortunately, that data is difficult to format in a way that a recommender system can use. With some effort, it can be stored in a graph database and used to generate recommendations for users based on their preferences. Calculating recommendations before they are required and storing them for future use can speed up the amount of …

A Mirror Of Recognition: How The Empathetic Relationship Between Dusty Springfield And Her Not-Straight Fans Facilitates Their Identity Development, Nancy J. Young

Educational Studies Dissertations

This multi-case qualitative study explores the phenomenon of identity development of not-straight (more traditionally labeled as gay, lesbian, bisexual, and/or queer) fans through their attachment to British popular singer Dusty Springfield as a fan-object. A purposefully selected sample of four fans, aged 21-45, two male and two female, from the United Kingdom and the United States, were interviewed. The interdisciplinary conceptual framework of the study combines the fields of identity development, fan studies, and psychological theories related to projection.

The themes that emerge from the data suggest that Dusty Springfield’s emotional music draws the listener into fandom and that the …

Speaking Ill Of The Dead: Anonymity And Communication About Suicide On Mydeathspace.Com, Lynette G. Leonard, Paige W. Toller

Communication Faculty Publications

From birth to death, many individuals chronicle their lives online through blogs, pictures, games, Web sites, and social networks. Online spaces, created by the living about the dead, provide a glimpse into often invisible or silent grieving practices. To investigate the role computer-mediated communication (CMC) plays in influencing communication surrounding the often private and taboo topic of suicide, we analyzed the comments sections of MyDeathSpace.com. Our results suggest both a breaking down of social taboos (speaking ill of the dead) and a reaffirming of strict social norms (enforcing a narrow range of acceptable presentation of identity and purpose in life), …

Intellectual Property Rights (Ipr) Disputes In Cyberspace: U.S. Hegemony And Chinese Resistance, Dexin Tian, Chin-Chung Chao

Communication Faculty Publications

This paper aims at explicating the hegemonic pressure from the U.S. side and the constant resistance from the Chinese side during the U.S.-China IPR disputes in the cyberspace. The theory of hegemony and extended literature review reveal that during the U.S.-China IPR disputes in cyberspace, the dominant U.S. power has shaped the IPR world order so effectively for its own interests that China as a disadvantaged country has been included, albeit with reservations, in the broad consent of the U.S. hegemonic sphere of influence. This study has also demonstrated significant theoretical and practical implications.

Implementing A Health Care Reform Through Inter-Municipal-Cooperation: Adapting And Implementing The Norwegian Cooperation-Reform In Three Inter-Municipal Health Regions, Daf Olaf Torjesen, A. Bryce Hoflund

Public Administration Faculty Publications

In this explorative article we will try to identify some issues and questions about how the Norwegian municipalities are preparing to implement the Cooperation reform and the new health care legislation. Our main focus is on examples of measures municipalities in three Norwegian inter-municipality regions so far have developed with respect to the Cooperation reform which will be implemented from spring 2012. By comparing and contrasting this three regions, with different history and adjustment patterns, our aim is to investigate inter-municipal cooperation as an suitable organizational solutions the municipalities can use in their struggle to prepare for their new extended …

Hispanic/Latino Changes In Nebraska’S Population: 1980 To 2010, David Drozd

Past Publications

The Hispanic/Latino population has risen dramatically in Nebraska. After totaling about 28,000 Nebraska residents in 1980, the Hispanic/Latino population increased by about 9,000 or 32 percent to about 37,000 in 1990. Then the Hispanic/Latino population more than doubled in the 1990s, to more than 94,000 persons, an increase of more than 57,000 or about 155 percent. The 2010 census showed continued growth and more than 167,000 Hispanic/Latino Nebraska residents, an increase of nearly 73,000 or 77 percent since 2000.

Omaha Again Among Best Large Metros For Median Income Relative To The Cost Of Goods And Services, David J. Drozd

Past Publications

In 2007 the Center for Public Affairs Research (CPAR) released an analysis of 2006 American Community Survey (ACS) income data from the U.S. Census Bureau. These data were adjusted for the costs of goods as services (COGS) using indices released by the Council for Community and Economic Research. At that time the Omaha metro area ranked 2nd best among the 100 most populous metros for which data were available regarding this “purchasing power”. The Omaha metro’s median income in 2006 dollars was $51,627, but when accounting for Omaha’s relatively low cost of goods and services, this income had a purchasing …

Selected Characteristics From The 2006-2010 American Community Survey For Nebraska Counties, Center For Public Affairs Research (Cpar)

Past Publications

Selected Characteristics from the 2006-2010 American Community Survey for Nebraska Counties