Social and Behavioral Sciences Commons^™

Estimation Of Performance Indices For The Planning Of Sustainable Transportation Systems, Alexander Paz, Pankaj Maheshwari, Pushkin Kachroo, Sajjad Ahmad

Civil and Environmental Engineering and Construction Faculty Research

In the context of sustainable transportation systems, previous studies have either focused only on the transportation system or have not used a methodology that enables the treatment of incomplete, vague, and qualitative information associated with the available data. This study proposes a system of systems (SOS) and a fuzzy logic modeling approach. The SOS includes the Transportation, Activity, and Environment systems. The fuzzy logic modeling approach enables the treatment of the vagueness associated with some of the relevant data. Performance Indices (PIs) are computed for each system using a number of performance measures. The PIs illustrate the aggregated performance of …

An Examination Of Attitudes Toward Sexualized Advertising In Las Vegas, Ashley Crisp, Alexis Kennedy

McNair Poster Presentations

This study explores the attitudes of college-level criminal justice students as to their perception of sexualized advertising in Las Vegas, and if these attitudes have any correlation with the participant’s length of residency. The study also correlates college-level student’s attitudes toward sexualized advertising and how religious they rate themselves. Female participants who lived in Las Vegas for 5 years or more on average agreed advertisements in Las Vegas are too sexualized. In contrast, female participants who were either born in Las Vegas or lived there less than 5 years neither agreed nor disagreed that advertising was too sexualized. As for …

Correlates Of Compulsive Buying, Brittaney Benson-Townsend, N. Clayton Silver

McNair Poster Presentations

Compulsive buying is a chronic issue for shoppers exacerbated by a nation obsessed with consumption. To predict compulsive buying behavior, a survey was administered to 283 college students in southern Nevada. The results suggested that the compulsive buyer exhibits am ex­ternal consumer locus of control and purchases goods with the intent to increase social status or quell anxiety. Given that responsible financial behavior changes as a function of age, college students are particularly vulnerable to compulsive purchasing behavior, as it is exacerbated by irresponsible credit spending behaviors.

The Effect Of Experience On Infants’ Visual Preferences, Jennifer Bolick, Jennifer L. Rennels

McNair Poster Presentations

Research has shown that 3 to 4-month-olds with female primary caregivers show visual preferences for female relative to male faces (Quinn, Yahr, Kuhn, Slater, & Pascalis, 2002). Facial experience is likely an important influence on these preferences. From birth, infants’ experiences guide face processing skills. This processing ability influences the development of efficient face recognition later in life. The following study investigated (1) How visual pref­erences are influenced by real world experience with males and females, and (2) How experi­ence affects older infants’ visual preferences (i.e., 10-month-olds).

Effects Of Restraint Stress And Allopregnanolone Inhibition On Amphetamine Locomotor Sensitivity, Kelly Abuali, Laurel M. Pritchard

McNair Poster Presentations

The chronic, recurring nature of addiction remains a worldwide problem. Even after apparently successful clinical treatment and long term abstinence, individuals may still relapse many months or years later. Although many individual differences exist among substance abusers, relapse tends to occur during periods of high stress (Sinha et al., 2006). Behavioral training and therapy can help cope during these high stress times, but pharmacological interventions have not been shown to be effective (Ross & Peselow, 2009). Although some therapeutic options decrease relapse rates, more effective treatments for relapse need further consideration.

The effect of stress on use of and relapse …

An Acute Inflammatory Response In A Diabetic Alzheimer’S Disease Model, Krystal Courtney D. Belmonte, Jefferson Kinney

McNair Poster Presentations

Alzheimer’s disease (AD) is the most common form of dementia, accounting for 50 to 80 percent of all dementia cases. This neurodegenerative disease leads to neuronal death and tissue loss in the brain, resulting in the slow deterioration of memory, thinking skills, and eventually even the ability perform daily tasks. While it is not a normal part of aging, AD is mostly diagnosed in people over the age of 65; thus, the main risk factor for Alzheimer’s disease is increased age, though it is most likely other additional factors also contribute (Heese & Akatsu, 2006). Neuropathological hallmarks of AD include …

Evolution Of The Human Diet: What We Can Learn From Hunters And Gatherers, Kara Osborne, Alyssa Crittenden

McNair Poster Presentations

The study of hunter-gatherer populations around the world can greatly inform our understanding of the evolution of the human diet. Ethnographic research of modern hunter-gatherers has been used to infer the possible food consump­tion and acquisition patterns of our ancestors. Hunter-gatherers provide the in­formation necessary for the understanding of the past human diet, due to these populations living similar lifestyles in similar environments, therefore procuring similar foods.

The Hadza, a group of nomadic hunters and gatherers living in Tanzania, East Africa, are one of the primary populations that nutritional anthropologists study to infer what possible foods our ancestors acquired and …

The Impact Of Electronic Communication On Personal Relationships, Lori Shannon

Communication & Leadership Dissertations and Theses

Electronic communication is clearly becoming a reliable and chosen form of communication. The goal of this study is to determine how users perceptions of electronic communication, specifically text-based electronic communication, including e-mail, instant messaging, text messaging, and the social media networks Twitter and Facebook, impacts interpersonal relationships. Knowing how electronic communication affects our relationships will help users ensure they use electronic communication to its fullest potential and in the most effective way. This study begins by identifying and explaining the aspects of communication theory and their application to the affect on personal relationships by electronic communication. After reviewing the literature …

Subordinate-Supervisor Communication: Junior Naval Officer Feelings And Obstacles When Communicating Up The Chain Of Command, Neva R. Fuentes

Communication & Leadership Dissertations and Theses

Research on subordinate-supervisor communication has revealed that employees in civilian organizations often stay silent about workplace problems. Comfort levels between subordinates and supervisors, was a major factor to this silence. Currently, there exists very little literature on upward communication from subordinate to supervisor amongst U.S. Naval Officers. The purpose of this thesis was to explore Junior Officer (JO) feelings and perceived obstacles about communicating up the chain of command with senior officers. Interview questions from a previous study (Milliken, Morrison, & Hewlin, 2003) on subordinate-supervisor communication were adapted for an electronic survey and used to explore JO feelings and perceived …

Professional Women And Cognitive Dissonance, Amber T. Lewis

Communication & Leadership Dissertations and Theses

Women and their work is a topic ofinterest in various fields ofacademia. Numerous research articles discuss a range oftopics as it relates to the unique experiences women endure to earn wage. However, the primary focus ofmost articles is grounded in the analysis ofhow women compare to men. This qualitative study utilizes the work experiences of women to help identify and define any sense ofcognitive dissonance of working women and whether or not the likelihood ofdissonance changes depending on their chosen career tracks. In this study the interview responses of working women are considered in conjunction with research articles to determine …

Intercultural Training: A Thesis Project, Laura Snyder

Communication & Leadership Dissertations and Theses

This study examines the scholarly journals and literature of intercultural competency, intercultural communication, and the communication theories examining culture shock, cross-cultural adaptation, immersion techniques, and training methods used in multicultural competence. It then presents intercultural training modules with the ambition to be adopted and incorporated into all intercultural expatriation trainings utilized both by private individuals, as well as international businesses and government programs with employees relocating internationally. The training modules are specifically directed at learners who need to know about the cultural climate, rules, and communication expectations of Singapore.

Facebook And Social Penetration Theory, Amanda M. Olson

Communication & Leadership Dissertations and Theses

This research identified patterns of self-disclosure in the online social network Facebook. The purpose was to test hypothesized relationships between individuals that use Facebook to build relationships through self-disclosure and how this positively affects their self-esteem. One of the most important purposes of this study is understanding Social Penetration Theory and the relation to Facebook and increasing self-esteem. This study used both a survey and a focus group which asked participants to disclose ifthey use social media to build relationships. Eighty one percent ofthe participants who responded to the survey, reported that they agree or strongly agree that they feel …

Paralinguistic Cues And Their Effect On Leader Credibility, Monte Brian Reid

Communication & Leadership Dissertations and Theses

Paralinguistic cues are powerful non-verbal communication elements that have the ability to make even good news sound horrible or bad news more palatable. Drawing upon the hermeneutical phenomenology communication theory of Dilthey (1961) and Shannon’s (1949) communication channel model, this thesis targeted the six primary paralinguistic cues of fluidity, articulation, sonority, tempo, emotion, and dynamic intensity to discover how these cues interact and affect the credibility and palatability of a leader’s message. To facilitate remembrance of these cues, the acronym F.A.S.T.E.D. was coined and used. Three different groups consisting of managers, non-managers, and media and public relations professionals were surveyed …

Information Overload: The Effects Of Advertising Avoidance On Brand Awareness In An Online Environment, Gregory David Salyer

Communication & Leadership Dissertations and Theses

When information overload occurs, an individual consumes information at the expense of other information. Advertising avoidance, or banner blindness, is a protective mechanism that can be triggered when an individual receives too high an informational load. This study uses methods developed from information overload theory, selective attention studies, information entropy and information redundancy to seek the connection between information overload and banner blindness. In aiming to measure the overall effect that these two phenomena have on brand awareness and individual’s ability to recall an ad from a web browsing session, this study relies on prior work in the area of …

The Influence Of Communication Strategies On Charitable Races, Vicky Jean Daniels

Communication & Leadership Dissertations and Theses

Charitable races are happening all over the United States. These races are a competitive way for charities to receive funds to help support their causes. However, not all charity athletic events and races are promoted equally. This success or lack thereof is in part due to how the events’ messages are communicated and perceived by potential attendees. This study interviewed experts in the field of marketing charitable events, and surveyed participants of charitable events to see what communication strategies most influenced their decisions to attend. The study highlighted the Rock ‘n’ Roll Marathon series, which has been very successful for …

Analyzing Reader Response To The Plotlines Of Secondary Characters In Jane Austen's Pride And Prejudice And Northanger Abbey Through Walter Fisher's Narrative Paradigm, Kendal Mcdermott Sasso

Communication & Leadership Dissertations and Theses

Humans communicate lessons and messages through multiple mediums; including the written word. Classic novels transcend time and continue to reach out to generations of people to offer insight into human nature. The best stories can maintain relevance years after they have been created. This has been true for Jane Austen’s novels. Her works have received much criticism and research over the last 200 years with screen and book adaptations, as well as fan clubs and societies. Where much of the research emphasis is on the main characters or themes, there is a lack of information about the effect of secondary …

Communication In A Traditional Organization, Nidia Haydee Marichalar

Communication & Leadership Dissertations and Theses

This study examines if a mismatch exists between the traditional structure of communication, and the communication needs and expectations of teachers and staff in a rapidly growing and changing charter school system, which in turn contributes to the burgeoning turn-¬‐over and the perceived plummeting morale amongst teachers and staff at the school. Anonymous surveys were administered, and interviews and focus groups were conducted at one school, seeking to gauge teacher and staff perceptions of 1) How well leaders communicated about the school’s and teachers’ mission, strategy, and goals; 2) How well were these ideas and expectations matched to the experiences …

Are Individuals Better Able To Acquire And Retain News Information That Is Consonant Or Dissonant With Their Ideological Beliefs?, James Lee Jenkins

Communication & Leadership Dissertations and Theses

The purpose of this study was to find out whether people can better recall news information that is consonant or dissonant with their personal ideological beliefs. This study is a follow-on study to Joel Turner’s study (2007) that found that people’s perceived biases in the news are often triggered prior to the people reading the actual news information. The scope of this research was to determine the type of news information people are better able to recall. The two main research questions this study was attempting to find answers for were:

• RQ1: Are conservatives better able to recall news information …

Diplomatic Communication In Response To Religious Conflict, Kim Alba

Communication & Leadership Dissertations and Theses

The purpose of this study was to evaluate a strategy for diplomatic dialogue in response to religious conflict. Kenneth Burke’s theory of dramatism provides a means of rhetorical evaluation on Secretary of State Hillary Clinton’s response to the attacks on the U.S. consulate in Benghazi, Libya, that were widely seen as caused in some way by an anti-Islam video published online on YouTube. The study discusses how Clinton’s use of identification and division is used in diplomatic dialogue in order to resolve the differences caused by religious conflict, specifically in a speech at the U.S.-Morocco Strategic Dialogue on September 13, …

Global Journeys: Exploring The Communication Strategies Successful Longterm Sojourners Use For Cultural, Language, Identity And Family Adjustment, Lynne H. Green

Communication & Leadership Dissertations and Theses

With a growing number of multinational corporations sending workers into new locations, the need for knowledge about how individuals and families successfully integrate and connect to their host country is paramount. This study focuses on the phenomenological communication strategies used for cross cultural adjustment and adaptation of longterm sojourners in a new culture. Longterm sojourners who have lived for three years or longer in two host countries were interviewed to explore their communication strategies of adaptation for meaning making for themselves and for their families. Specifically, perspectives around the experience of cross culture adjustment, language acquisition, and identity shift were …

Intergenerational Farm Family Communication And Succession Planning, Cayla M. Waters

Communication & Leadership Dissertations and Theses

This thesis studies intergenerational communication in farm families during the succession planning process. The research focuses on intergenerational relationships between fathers and sons. Due to the lack of research on intergenerational communication in farm families, this thesis examines the role communication plays in this relationship, and how communication affects the succession planning process of passing down the family farm. Communication accommodation theory is used to understand the communication processes taking place within the father-son relationship. The research methods used to gather information for this study are focus groups. The focus groups are made up of 3 father/son pairs who are …

Female Pop Singers On Twitter: Use For Branding And Implications For Publicists, Jessica Sincavage

Communication & Leadership Dissertations and Theses

A celebrity’s success depends upon building and maintaining their ‘well-knownness.’ The increase in usage of and access to social media platforms like the micro-blogging platform Twitter have led celebrities and their publicity teams to incorporate social media into their branding and communication strategies. The purpose of this thesis is to examine celebrity presence on and usage of Twitter and its implications for the role of celebrity publicists. The study is based in the narrative paradigm, which recognizes and honors each individual’s story telling abilities. A case study including three influential female pop singers was conducted, and the results were analyzed …

Women For Obama: A Metaphor Criticism Of Political Facebook Use, Natasha Merkle

Communication & Leadership Dissertations and Theses

The political rhetoric of U.S. Presidential Elections has been studied for years, but not significantly through the lens of social media. While the statistical relevance of social media as a political communication tool is not yet widespread, the numbers have grown drastically since 2008. This increase in usage prompted the author to determine how rhetoric is most effectively communicated over social media to key audiences. This study is a metaphor criticism of the Women for Obama Facebook page as it appeared during the final 90 days prior to the 2012 U.S. Presidential Election. Four metaphors are used to describe the …

The Effects Of Sibling Relationships On The Social Development Of Children With Autism Spectrum Disorder, Barbara J. Higgins

Communication & Leadership Dissertations and Theses

Relationships among siblings are the longest lasting and most consistent in the life of an individual. Relationships among siblings are no different when one of the siblings has Autism Spectrum Disorder (ASD). Among the various obstacles children with ASD encounter, social developmental delays are the most prominent and treatment plans are often established for the social education of children with ASD. This study reviews the impact of the incorporation of typically developing children into the treatment plans of their siblings with ASD. The literature reviews relationship status between siblings when one child has ASD and how the presence of ASD …

Virtualization Of Teams And Group Sustainability, Valerian Eshelman

Communication & Leadership Dissertations and Theses

Corporations today are looking for ways to cut costs as well as generate additional revenue. One of the most popular methods is to virtualize your employees. Computer mediated communication (CMC), which is propagated through information and communication technology (ICT), enables virtual interaction through email, instant messaging, teleconferences. But what is the impact on team cohesion and individual citizenship in an organization when members never interact face-to-face? This thesis leverages the results of five previous studies which reached the collective conclusion that when team members simply exchange information using CMC it has a corrosive effect on cohesion and team member's job …

Promoting Information Literacy Through Media Literacy, Greg Pond

Communication & Leadership Dissertations and Theses

Mass media messages have overwhelmed modern culture. Many of these messages are not created with the best interest of the recipient in mind (Potter, 2008). The Mass media does not operate as a public service. It’s big business. Good daily decision making has become increasingly dependent on the ability to be “information literate” – to effectively evaluate the accuracy, currency, and completeness of media messages. But these critical information literacy skills are surprisingly lacking today (Asher & Duke, 2012). One recent study suggests that information literacy skills can be effectively developed through training in media literacy (Van De Vord, 2010). …

Establishing The Need For Cross-Cultural Communication Training For Pre-Hospital Medical Providers, Brenda Lee Tappan

Communication & Leadership Dissertations and Theses

It is apparent by the supporting research that the actual front-line providers have not been given a place at the table in an attempt to identify cross-cultural communication training needs for prehospital medical personnel. This lack of dialogue, in addition to a homogenous industry, has resulted in inconsistencies and inadequate care of diverse patients. This work examined both knowledge of how ethnicity impacts the pre-hospital medical encounter as well as attitudes toward cross-cultural nuances held by current pre-hospital medical providers. Specifically, this study analyzed survey responses designed to identify current knowledge and attitudes. The data was obtained using a quantitative …

Rhetoric And Framing: Influence On Public Opinion In The Martin/Zimmerman Case, Milagros Figueredo Sowers

Communication & Leadership Dissertations and Theses

This study seeks to analyze the importance of framing on public opinion. This analysis looks at the characteristics of communication and how they are conveyed. It also seeks to examine underlying themes in cases where public opinion was radically shifted and perceptions changed. This style of qualitative measurement is able to provide suggestions on why a media source would present a specific topic one way and then slant a similar topic in a different manner or format . Mass media is looked at in a critical manner with an attempt to hypothesize as to its purpose in use of framing. …

Part One: An Instructional Module Template For Orientation To The Situated Practice Of Oral Communication Online In The Community College, Martha A. Lane

Communication & Leadership Dissertations and Theses

The community college serves a diverse student population with numerous programs and degrees designed to complete general education requirements and prepare students for job placement. As these students enter their anticipated occupation, most are unprepared for the oral skill requirements of their new job. They lack confidence to navigate any number of scenarios demanding interpersonal poise, teamwork, conflict resolution, presentation skills, and other occupation-specific speaking tasks. Since many of these degrees and certificates are offered partially or completely online, this Project presents a practical means of introducing speaking skills into the coursework of the growing online learning environment. The research …

Football Coach Training Curriculum For Parents, James Nicholas Knight

Communication & Leadership Dissertations and Theses

Football is an extremely passionate game and has created interest from many different age groups in the United States. In particular, youth football is especially popular with children in the fifth and sixth grade age group and their parents. With injuries such as concussions becoming a massive concern nationally across all playing levels (youth, high school, college, and professional), the popularity of football is not diminishing with parents continuing to register their children to play youth football. In many youth football leagues across the country, parents are often used as coaches. Some parents, who have limited to no experience coaching …