Social and Behavioral Sciences Commons^™

Darkness As A Positive Reinforcer In Weakly Electric Fish, Amber Lea D. Kincaid

Theses and Dissertations

Darkness was used as a positive reinforcer in 14 Gnathonemus petersii fish in an object discrimination task. One subject showed a significant learning response. This study provides preliminary support for the use of darkness as positive reinforcement in weakly electric fish and presents potential areas of interest for future study.

An Investigation Of The Phylogenetic Affinities Of Sivaladapidae Within Adapoidea, Kathleen Rust

Theses and Dissertations

This study presents a phylogenetic analysis incorporating 82 dental characters to clarify the evolutionary relationships of Sivaladapidae within the broader context of Adapoidea. Results suggest that sivaladapids share a close evolutionary relationship with European adapoids.

A New Keynesian Approach To Estimating Welfare Losses Under Strict And Flexible-Targeting Regimes, Shawn Weber

Theses and Dissertations

How do different inflation-targeting regimes affect the monetary loss-function of a central bank aiming at stabilizing inflation around an inflation target and stabilizing the real economy? Under a basic New-Keynesian framework, this paper examines the effect of inflation-targeting regimes on the monetary loss function of a central bank.

Perceived Corruption In Ukraine: A National Analysis Using Individual Level Data From 2012-2014, Cody X. Weglinski

Theses and Dissertations

This study examines the relationship of perceived corruption in Ukraine and the factors that influence that perception. In particular, this paper investigates the idea that an influential Russian presence affects the perception of governmental corruption amongst Ukrainian business owners and managers.

Hashtag: Journey To Me: Self-Fulfillment Via Education, Janice Riley

Departmental Honors & Graduate Capstone Projects

In this paper, a non-traditional student in college (disabilities aside) is defined as someone who didn’t enter college directly after high school but undertook life’s responsibilities – job, family, military. My paper is an autoethnography titled “Hashtag: My Journey to Self-fulfillment Via Education and shares my educational journey to higher learning as a non-traditional student deciding, at the age of fifty-nine, to matriculate at a community college then continue to a major university in my sixties. My non-traditional journey depicts my path in the job market and having to come to terms that a change was needed after facing brick …

The Progression Of Communications: The Lifeline Between Deployed Military Personnel And Their Families, Cierra Mckinney

Departmental Honors & Graduate Capstone Projects

In order to understand how far communication between deployed personnel and their families has progressed we have to examine the history of communication. As technology has advanced communication to those deployed has changed over the course of time. In the last century communication with military family members deployed overseas was regulated to letters, phone calls, telegrams, audio and videotapes and possibly the Military Auxiliary Radio System or MARS line when available. However, today communication has vastly improved allowing people to communicate in real-time or near real-time by utilizing communication tools such as: email, Skype, FaceTime, Hangouts and Facebook. These types …

Karl Marx And Liberation Theology: Dialectical Materialism And Christian Spirituality In, Against, And Beyond Contemporary Capitalism, Peter Mclaren, Petar Jandrić

Education Faculty Articles and Research

This paper explores convergences and discrepancies between liberation theology and the works of Karl Marx through the dialogue between one of the key contemporary proponents of liberation theology, Peter McLaren, and the agnostic scholar in critical pedagogy, Petar Jandrić. The paper briefly outlines liberation theology and its main convergences with the works of Karl Marx. Exposing striking similarities between the two traditions in denouncing the false God of money, it explores differences in their views towards individualism and collectivism. It rejects shallow rhetorical homologies between Marx and the Bible often found in liberation theology, and suggests a change of focus …

Handedness And The Oldowan Tool Industry: Is Preferential Right-Handedness A Relic From Our Evolutionary Past?, Jessica Dymon

Senior Honors Projects, 2010-2019

Although there is literature on psychological, anthropological, and biological reasons for global preferential right-handedness, there has yet to be literature studying the connection among these three disciplines. The goal of this pilot study is to shed light on the correlation of handedness and Oldowan tool manufacturing in order to provide direction for future study. By taking a cross-disciplinary perspective on evolutionary advantages, genetics, and brain lateralization, it is believed researchers may be able to understand why 90% of the human population is preferentially right-handed. This study concludes that there is a correlation between handedness and toolmaking efficiency, and that further …

Explaining Anthropophagy And Social Violence In The Mesa Verde Region Of The American Southwest, Riley Smith

Senior Honors Projects, 2010-2019

This thesis is an examination of a controversial problem in anthropology and archaeology – the motives and cultural context of anthropophagy, or cannibalism. Views that the practice was a reflection of a primitive state of humanity have given way to a more ethnographically-informed appreciation of the practice as culturally situated with a diverse set of potential motives. Claims of anthropophagy in the ancient past influence perceptions of both prehistoric and modern groups. Because of the wealth of information gathered from recent excavations, it is now possible to explore the context of, motives for, and consequences of anthropophagy in the American …

The Librarians’ Guide To The Information Literacy Galaxy: Leading Campus Conversations, Sarah Richardson, Heather K. Beirne, Ashley J. Cole, Trenia Napier

EKU Faculty and Staff Scholarship

Sarah Richardson (Business Library Team Leader), Heather Beirne (Reference and Instruction Librarian), Ashley Cole (Reference and Instruction Librarian) and Trenia Napier (Associate Director, Programs & Outreach - Noel Studio for Academic Creativity) @ Eastern Kentucky University Situating librarians as information literacy experts and leaders in pedagogical best practices, presenters led a professional learning community (PLC) to create purposeful campus-wide conversations centered around the ACRL Framework and its place in teaching and learning. PLC faculty participants from across campus partnered with liaison librarians to create new and innovative approaches to developing discipline-specific information …

You Can See Them From Space: Collecting 4,000 Post-Its From Business Writing Students As Minute-Paper Formative Assessment, Heidi Blackburn

Criss Library Faculty Proceedings & Presentations

A QUICK OVERVIEW

• New course curriculum approved 2015

• Cumulative formal report accounts for approximately 30% of a student's grade

• One 75-minute presentation for every section

• Minute papers are used at the beginning and end of each library presentation

Healthcare Utilization For Behavioral Health Disorders: Policy Implications On Nationwide Readmissions, And Outcomes In The States Of Nebraska And New York, Rajvi J. Wani

Theses & Dissertations

The main goal of this dissertation was to estimate national-level inpatient readmissions and state-level hospital-based emergency department (ED) visits with behavioral health (BH) conditions in the states of Nebraska and New York. The dissertation aims to assess the impact of the policy mandates under the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act on these state and national estimates. The Nationwide Readmissions Database and the State Emergency Department databases maintained by the Healthcare Cost and Utilization Project were used for this dissertation. US Adult population with high-risk of readmissions in the inpatient departments for alcohol-related disorders (ARD) and of visiting ED for …

Electrophysiological Biomarkers Of Chemotherapy-Related Cognitive Impairment In Hematological Malignancy Patients, David E. Anderson

Theses & Dissertations

Multiple cancer populations frequently report cognitive impairment following treatment with chemotherapy agents (“chemo-brain”). Impaired neuropsychological performance is commonly reported in cognitive domains of attention and executive function. Understanding neural mechanisms underlying cognitive impairments is essential to developing prevention and rehabilitation strategies. Brain imaging studies frequently show chemotherapy-related impairments within the attentional control network, which is comprised of a constellation of cortical regions that govern reportedly impaired cognitive functions. In the current dissertation research, I developed a novel electrophysiology battery aimed at recording near-instantaneous neural activity within the attentional control network during cognitive task performance. Cancer patients diagnosed with hematological malignancy …

Evaluating And Mitigating The Relapse Of Undesirable Caregiver Behavior, Daniel R. Mitteer

Theses & Dissertations

The success of behavioral treatments like functional communication training depends on their continued implementation outside of the clinical context, where failures in caregiver treatment adherence can lead to the relapse of destructive behavior (St. Peter Pipkin, Vollmer, & Sloman, 2010). In Chapter 2, we developed a laboratory model for evaluating the relapse of undesirable caregiver behavior (e.g., delivering reinforcers following destructive behavior) in which we used an adult confederate who engaged in destructive behavior to simulate a treatment-adherence challenge. Undesirable caregiver behavior relapsed in three of four treatment-adherence challenges despite a behavior analyst using behavioral skills training (BST) to teach …

A Comparison Of Function- And Nonfunction-Based Extinction For Inappropriate Mealtime Behavior, Caitlin Kirkwood

Theses & Dissertations

Previous literature supports the use of a functional analysis to prescribe treatment for children with feeding disorders (Bachmeyer et al., 2009; Piazza, Fisher, et al., 2003). Nevertheless, clinicians often train caregivers to use healthy contingencies, independent of whether those contingencies are function based. We do not know, however, whether including nonfunction-based contingencies differentially affects inappropriate mealtime behavior. In the current study, we observed that caregivers of 3 children with feeding disorders provided escape from bites and drinks and attention following inappropriate mealtime behavior. Results of a functional analysis showed escape from bites or drinks, but not attention, reinforced inappropriate mealtime …

Review Of Queer Library Alliance: Global Reflections And Imaginings, Matthew P. Messbarger

Journal of Contemporary Archival Studies

With global perspectives from librarians and archivists who promote innovative methods to improve services to LGBTQ populations, Queer Library Alliance serves as an excellent primer and resource for critical thinking about how information professionals can best serve queer communities.

Exploring The American Archivist: Corpus Analysis Tools And The Professional Literature, J. Gordon Daines Iii, Cory L. Nimer, Jacob R. Lee

Journal of Contemporary Archival Studies

The literature of a professional community provides insights into what members of that community value and underscores key professional issues. Periodic analyses of professional literature are an important way for these communities to identify trends that deserve further exploration. This article introduces the use of corpus analysis tools such as Voyant Tools and discusses their value in performing periodic analyses of professional literature. As an example, it presents a limited study examining the use of the term “theory” in the American Archivist.

Monoamine Oxidase In The Regulation Of Biopsychological Factors: A Literature Review Of The Correlates Of Time Perspective, Sensation-Seeking, Boredom Proneness, And Affect, Sabrina K. Mcallister, David F. Nichols

Modern Psychological Studies

This literature review will explore relationships between several psychological factors, such as affect, time perspective, and boredom, with levels of relevant neurotransmitters, namely dopamine and serotonin. For instance, the neurological processes involved in affect could also influence sensation-seeking through changes in cognition and boredom. Additionally, a more negative mood resulting from decreased dopamine levels could result in short-term shifts in one’s time perspective. Monoamine oxidase plays a role in the regulation of neurotransmitter levels in the brain. Large amounts of this enzyme result in reduced levels of dopamine and serotonin. Understanding such relationships has the potential to propel further research …

Examining The Impact Of Education On Diabetes Rates, Mackenzie Bogiages

Undergraduate Economic Review

Diabetes rates are a problem of growing concern in the U.S. Over 30 million people in the U.S. have been diagnosed with diabetes, and over 90 percent of that group has the largely preventable type 2 diabetes. In order to thwart the disease that costs the U.S. $245 billion a year, the populations most susceptible to diabetes need to be identified and educated. Using data from MEPS, education and several other factors have been identified and their relationships with diabetes have been analyzed to target at risk populations and outline tactics to educate those in dire need of preventative care.

Greening The Graduate Experience: An Exploration In Sustainability Education For Higher Education Leadership Students At The University Of San Diego, David Horber

M.A. in Higher Education Leadership: Action Research Projects

The purpose of this research is to understand the impact of interactive educational interventions, namely a sustainability inventory (Green Graduate Inventory), campus tours, and sustainability game events, on sustainability engagement in graduate students studying Higher Education Leadership at the University of San Diego. Utilizing an Appreciative Inquiry lens, I aim to celebrate sustainability achievements of participants and the University of San Diego community. My research question is, how can I help develop and empower environmentally conscious leaders, amongst higher education leadership graduate students at the University of San Diego, through intentional educational interventions? Additionally, this research will examine the culture …

Shifting Bilateralism: Understanding Change In The Us-Japan Alliance During The Cold And Gulf War, Grant Anderla

All College Thesis Program, 2016-2019

Emerging from a violent past as unlikely partners, the alliance of the United States and Japan has withstood years of cooperation and competition. Today, the two nations face regional threats from North Korea and China. Considering the unique alliance, I hope to provide a framework for understanding inter-alliance management and policy making processes. Subsequently, I consider one main question in my research. What factors explain continuities and changes within this alliance relationship? To address this question, I consider leadership role conception, role prescription, and norms of consultation that contribute to changes within alliance relations.

Analyzing these variables in the case …

Candidate Forum: County Clerk, Brad Stacy

Media Collection

No abstract provided.

The Light Of Nature: John Locke, Natural Rights, And The Origins Of American Religious Liberty, Steven Heyman

All Faculty Scholarship

No abstract provided.

Gop Sales Tax: Here We Go Again, Evan Barrett

Highlands College

A newspaper column by Evan Barrett.

Published newspaper columns written by Evan Barrett on this topic, which vary somewhat in content from this commentary, appeared in the following publications:

Montana Standard, May 4, 2018

Helena Independent Record, May 7, 2018

Livingston Enterprise, May 4, 2018

Last Best News, May 11, 2018

Missoulian, May 12, 2018

Montana Post, May 13, 2018

Experiences Building, Training, And Deploying A Chatbot In An Academic Library, David Meincke

Library Staff Publications

No abstract provided.

Ua61/16 White Coat Ceremony Program, Wku Physical Therapy

WKU Administration Documents

White coat ceremony program for WKU Physical Therapy class of 2018.

Nebraska Business And Consumer Confidence Indexes: May 4, 2018, Eric Thompson

Leading Economic Indicator Reports

The Leading Economic Indicator – Nebraska (LEI-N) rose by 1.00% during January of 2019. The increase in the LEI-N, which is designed to predict economic activity six months into the future, implies solid economic growth in Nebraska into the third quarter of 2019. Strong business expectations were the primary reason for the increase in the leading indicator. Respondents to the January Survey of Nebraska Business reported plans to increase both sales and employment at their businesses over the next six months. The value of the U.S. dollar also dropped in January for the first time in a year, providing relief …

Unseen And Unheard: The Experiences Of Immigrants Who Work As Low-Level Healthcare Providers, Daniela Belice

Honors Program Theses and Projects

This research investigated the experiences and aspirations of low-status immigrant healthcare workers in Massachusetts. Using snowball and convenience sampling, I conducted 50 interviews with immigrant Certified Nursing Assistants, Personal Care Assistants, and Home Health Aides about their daily work, compensation, and workplace culture and conditions. Massachusetts’ low-status healthcare positions are disproportionately filled by Caribbean and African female immigrants, so my sample was comprised of Haitian, Nigerian, and Cape Verdean women. Most had not worked in the healthcare sector in their native countries. Their experiences show how Caribbean and African immigrants get funneled toward particular low-skilled sectors of the labor market, …

Safety, Not Salary: The Security Of Ontario’S Nuclear Plants Should Be An Election Priority, Not The Salaries Of Top Hydro One Execs, Erika Simpson

Political Science Publications

In her analysis of Ontario's energy landscape, Erika Simpson discusses the implications of potential nuclear accidents, focusing on the Pickering Nuclear Generating Station. She highlights concerns over safety, citing the station's proximity to densely populated areas and the potential consequences of a Fukushima-type disaster. Simpson underscores the economic and social costs projected in the event of a nuclear accident, including massive evacuations, health impacts, and property losses. She contrasts nuclear energy's risks with the potential benefits of transitioning to hydroelectricity from Quebec, emphasizing cost savings and environmental considerations. Simpson's assessment calls for heightened scrutiny of Ontario's nuclear facilities and proposes …

Failure To Reproduce: The Replication Crisis In Research — Can Librarians Help?, Andrée J. Rathemacher, Amanda Izenstark, Harrison Dekker

Technical Services Faculty Presentations

Slides from a presentation, "Failure to Reproduce: The Replication Crisis in Research — Can Librarians Help?," presented at the 2018 ACRL New England Chapter Annual Conference, Failing Forward: Experimentation and Creativity in Libraries, on May 4, 2018 in Plymouth, Massachusetts.

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Room: Carver

A recent survey by Nature found that more than 70% of researchers have tried and failed to reproduce another scientist’s experiments and more than half have failed to reproduce their own experiments! Learn more about the “reproducibility crisis” in research and how librarians are helping by teaching researchers about reproducible workflows, proper management of code and data, …