Social and Behavioral Sciences Commons^™

A Word From The Writing Team (May 2018), Jennifer Wilson, Ms, Els

A Word From the Writing Team (Newsletter)

This issue includes:

• Grammar Time
• What to Do Once Your Manuscript is Accepted
• Writing Café

Boys And Girls Club, Ines Rojas

Second-Year Seminar Posters (COE 202)

The mission of the Boys and Girls Club is to enable young adult to reach their full potential. They do this by providing them with the tools necessary to become successful citizen, classmates, and leaders. The facility recognizes that most of their members come from low-income families and that is why they support the young adults with food and a social emotional connection; as these things are vital when growing up. The Boys and Girls Club’s vision is that young adults all around America who roamed the streets with no positive guidance would get off the streets and get on …

Social Network And Black Students: Relative Effects Of Member Expectations On Academic Achievement, Lester Robert Collins Jr

Social Work Dissertations - Archive

Objective: The purpose of this study is to examine the relationship between social network member college expectations of Black students and the college expectations and college attendance of the students. Methods: This study conducted secondary analysis of the nationally representative data from the Educational Longitudinal Study of 2002. Selected variables were recoded into binary variables and binary logistic regression was conducted on the independent and control variables and the dependent variables of student college expectations and student college attendance. Results: Some of the independent variables were found to be predictors of student college expectations and college attendance. Conclusions: Members of …

A New Model For Creative Education, Carolina Schnapp R.

Creativity and Change Leadership Graduate Student Master's Projects

This project explored the design of a pedagogical model for the development of creativity, targeted for teachers and educational institutions. The development of creativity has become highly relevant over the past few decades, especially with the emphasis given to 21st Century Skills and the responsibility that schools have on fostering these skills. In this project, you will find the ideas based on research and experience, that were the foundation for the model, the creative process behind the design of the model, and the final version. The project was shared with experts who validated parts of the model and opened space …

Care Transitions From Patient And Caregiver Perspectives, Suzanne E. Mitchell, Vivian Laurens, Gabriela M. Weigel, Karen B. Hirschman, Allison M. Scott, Huong Q. Nguyen, Jessica Martin Howard, Lance Laird, Carol Levine, Terry C. Davis, Brianna Gass, Elizabeth Shaid, Jing Li, Mark V. Williams, Brian W. Jack

Communication Faculty Publications

PURPOSE: Despite concerted actions to streamline care transitions, the journey from hospital to home remains hazardous for patients and caregivers. Remarkably little is known about the patient and caregiver experience during care transitions, the services they need, or the outcomes they value. The aims of this study were to (1) describe patient and caregiver experiences during care transitions and (2) characterize patient and caregiver desired outcomes of care transitions and the health services associated with them.

METHODS: We interviewed 138 patients and 110 family caregivers recruited from 6 health networks across the United States. We conducted 34 homogenous focus groups …

Attitude Heuristics Of Mental Illness Proneness And Sexual Orientation, Summer Mcdonald

Master's Theses or Doctor of Nursing Practice

Every person unconsciously uses attitude heuristics to categorize individuals as either “good” or “bad.” The current study examines the question of whether or not age and gender play a role in the perceptions of lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender individuals being more prone to mental illness because of their sexual orientation based on the observer’s attitude heuristics. The participants for this study will be 200 anonymous online individuals from across the United States. Participants will complete a survey designed to measure their attitudes toward sexual orientation, mental illness, simple core beliefs/values, and attitude heuristics based on generalized standards of “good” …

Challenges In Stem Learning In Australian Schools, Michael J. Timms, Kathryn Moyle, Paul R. Weldon, Pru Mitchell

Policy Insights

Australian STEM education seems caught in a whirlpool of problems that are contributing to one another. Student engagement and performance in STEM are declining, but we do not have the supply of qualified teachers we need to improve learning. The STEM curriculum is unbalanced and fragmented, leading to less interest among students. It is not possible to break out of the downward cycle from within the current system and it requires policy changes that address the issues raised in this report. This means developing well-considered, systemic and joined-up policies that address the following challenges: Improving student outcomes, building the STEM …

"Triggers": Systematic And Social Cues For Black College Student Racial Self-Consciousness And Rejection Sensitivity, Race-Based., Leanna T. Luney

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

Scholars have examined black student well-being in varying ways including through the framing of race-based rejection sensitivity (Downey & Feldman, 1996; Mendoza-Denton, Downey, Purdie, Davis, & Pietrzak, 2002) and racial self-consciousness (Clark & Clark, 1939). Research shows that black students perform worse academically when they display high levels of race-based rejection sensitivity and racial self-conscious levels (Brannon & Taylor, 2015; Clark & Clark, 1939; Koehler & Skvoretz, 2010), and feelings of racial self-consciousness or rejection sensitivity stem from discriminatory and prejudicial experiences. However, research has not fully connected the broader context surrounding black students in college to their high levels …

Implementation Of Emergency Preparedness In Long Term Care And Rogers' Diffusion Of Innovation Theory., Elizabeth M. Shiels

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

Kentucky is one of the top ten states in the U.S. in the number of Presidential Declarations of Disaster (PDD) over the past ten years. This is due to its geology and weather patterns. The far western portion of Kentucky lies on the New Madrid Seismic Zone, one of the most dangerous fault lines in the United States; and natural hazards such as tornadoes, earthquakes, flash floods, severe storms offer only minutes or even seconds of advance notice. These “no-notice” emergencies with no timely warnings are the most common hazards experienced in Kentucky. In these events, individual long term care …

Feeding Behaviors And The Child With Posterior Tongue-Tie : Comparison To Norms., Mckenzie Sexton

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

The tongue is an important muscle used in speech, mastication, swallowing, and breastfeeding. It plays an important role in facial development, dentition, and periodontal status. Posterior ankyloglossia, also known as posterior tongue-tie (PTT), is characterized by a tether beneath the lingual mucosa. Upon visual inspection, the frenulum is non-prominent but with the use of a grooved director it may appear abnormally prominent, short, thick, or cord-like. Palpation of the frenulum may reveal tightness. There is a lack of empirical data about PTT and the impact on feeding beyond early infancy. PTT is not well recognized and can be missed resulting …

The Styles Of Criminology : Writing Among The Stars., Ethan Maxwell Higgins

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

This study investigates how criminological writing style is "a [more] complicated terrain" than we realize in criminology (Butler, 1990, p. xix). Data is drawn from interviews with forty of the one hundred most influential criminological writers (Walters, 2015) to explore perceptions of good writing in the field, namely in describing writing practices, norms and values. Thus, the findings of this study come in three chapters. The first two result chapters explore the terrain of writing in criminology by presenting perceptions of best practices and values of good writing. The third results chapter then examines these perceptions within a lens of …

The State And Place Of Mindfulness In Modern Research, Blake Manale

Senior Honors Theses

Originally derived from Eastern religions, the concept of mindfulness has been adapted and validated by psychology and medical science within recent decades. This project describes some of the religious viewpoints associated with mindfulness and its related practices, such as meditation. The primary focus however, are the forays into scientific study using validated methodology to understand what mindfulness can and cannot affect as it relates to physical and mental health. The initial studies serve as proof of concept and cover simple reductions in symptomology and suffering for conditions like anxiety and depression. The scope of mindfulness application grew as research progressed, …

Examining Generativity Development Among College Student Leaders Who Mentor, Hannah M. Sunderman

Department of Agricultural Leadership, Education, and Communication: Dissertations, Theses, and Student Research

The purpose of this cross-sectional study was to examine the influence, if any, of age cohort on generativity among college student leaders who mentor. While previous research has revealed that college student leaders who mentor tend to demonstrate higher levels of generativity than other college student leaders and general college students (Hastings, Griesen, Hoover, Creswell, & Dlugosh, 2015), research as to the development of generativity among college student leaders who mentor has not been determined. Additionally, a need exists for further research on the antecedents of generativity (McAdams, 2001, p. 434). The current study sought to fill these gaps in …

Exploring Adolescent Dating Violence In Rural Communities: A Mixed Methods Study, Sarah A. Taylor

College of Education and Human Sciences: Dissertations, Theses, and Student Research

Adolescent dating violence (ADV) occurs nearly twice as often among rural adolescents than it does among non-rural adolescents. Research has suggested several reasons for this population difference. First, people in the rural context oftentimes have traditional gender role attitudestowards male dominance over women, which can be displayed in the form of relationship violence. People in the rural context also tend to have less access to friends and resources (e.g., social services), whichcan further perpetuate violence by limiting a victim’s opportunity to seek help. In addition, rural individuals tend to have a reduced sense of anonymity, and thus, victims may be …

Parental Involvement Among Low-Income Filipinos: A Phenomenological Inquiry, Aileen S. Garcia

College of Education and Human Sciences: Dissertations, Theses, and Student Research

Parental involvement in children’s education is an integral component of young children’s academic achievement. In the Philippines, a developing country with high rates of poverty and input deficit in basic education, school dropout rates are high especially among the poor. Given that many children from disadvantaged backgrounds do not get enough support (PIDS, 2012) and many parents are not equipped with skills to support their children’s education, it is essential to investigate how Filipino parents can help and contribute to their children’s academic success. In response to the lack of parental involvement literature situated in the Philippine context, the present …

Aging And Biases In Spatial Memory: A Dynamic Field Approach, Gregory J. Degirolamo

Department of Psychology: Dissertations, Theses, and Student Research

Spatial cognition encompasses a wide variety of abilities and requires the interaction of several regions of the brain, including the hippocampus, striatum, and pre-frontal cortex (PFC). (Packard & McGaugh, 1996; Reuter-Lorenz et al., 2000). Given that these areas atrophy in later adulthood (Golomb et al., 1993; Raz et al., 2003; Aizenstein et al., 2006), it raises the question of how spatial cognition changes with age. It has been found that increased task complexity leads to an age-related decline in performance (Nagel et al., 2009). Other factors that lead to a decline in memory performance in older adults include whether the …

Ptsd And Dysfunctional Parenting: Emotional And Biological Mechanisms, Molly Franz

Department of Psychology: Dissertations, Theses, and Student Research

Women are disproportionately at risk for developing PTSD following exposure to trauma. Among its many harmful effects, PTSD is associated with a range of negative family outcomes, including impairments in parenting behaviors. Despite the prevalence of PTSD and its impact on parenting, little is known about the mechanisms responsible for this association. The present project addressed this gap by examining the impact of PTSD on dysfunctional parenting behaviors in a lab setting. Based on prior theory and empirical evidence, I expected that a diagnosis of PTSD would be associated with more dysfunctional parenting (i.e., harsh/overreactive and lax/permissive behaviors) during routine …

The Development Of Case Conceptualization Ability In Clinical Psychology Graduate Students, Grant Shulman

Department of Psychology: Dissertations, Theses, and Student Research

Case conceptualization is a core clinical skill across various schools of psychotherapy. Yet, surprisingly little research has examined how student therapists develop their case formulation abilities. The present study examined 110 conceptualizations written by 27 therapists throughout their graduate training. The majority of conceptualizations were collected during a student’s second or third year of clinical training. Conceptualization quality was measured with the Case Formulation Content Coding Method, and examined five primary aspects: Complexity, Precision of Language, Coherence, Multiculturalism, and Overall Quality. Additionally, the types of hypothesized mechanisms were recorded. Hierarchical linear modeling examined the contributions of time in training, previous …

The Wounded Warrior: Resilience Factors Minimizing Suicide Risk In Veterans With Posttraumatic Stress Disorder, Christina Hein

Department of Psychology: Dissertations, Theses, and Student Research

Veterans experience high rates of both posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD) and suicidal behaviors when compared to the general public. Moreover, PTSD is a significant predictor of suicidal behavior among clinical and non-clinical adult populations. Joiner’s Interpersonal-Psychological Theory (IPT) of suicide (Joiner et al., 2005) identifies three etiological factors that greatly increase risk of suicide, with PTSD potentially increasing risk of suicide by exacerbating these three components of IPT. Conversely, prior work has also identified resilience factors that may serve to buffer against the risk of suicide, particularly by counteracting the three components of IPT. These resilience factors fall into primary …

Conceal And Carry: Communicating About Trauma, Triggers, And Second Assaults In The Classroom, Amy Arellano

Department of Communication Studies: Dissertations, Theses, and Student Research

Challenging the predominance of rape culture within academia, this dissertation focuses on the intersection of academic conversations regarding the inclusion of trigger warnings. This project examines the academic trigger warning debate from its inception in January 2014 through its peak in May 2015. I argue that the implementation of trigger warnings serves as a visible adaptation within pedagogy to respond to the role trauma from sexual assaults may influence the classroom. To achieve this, I offer a careful examination of the trigger warning debate informed by an approach that puts Kenneth Burke’s indexing in conversation with Michael McGee’s ideographic analysis. …

Effects On Producers Of The Transition To Revenue-Based Federal Crop Insurance Programs, Evan Wiese

Honors Program: Senior Projects (Public)

Prior to the passage of each farm bill, there is much debate regarding the programs contained within it. One of these programs is federal crop insurance, which underwent a major shift in the mid-1990’s with the introduction of revenue-based crop insurance rather than yield-based. Revenue-based programs provide insurance of a certain revenue level, rather than a certain yield level, which contributed to their popularity among producers. These revenue-based programs have become a key component of federal crop insurance. From 2014 to 2018, the costs of federal crop insurance were approximately $41 billion, much of this a result of subsidized insurance …

School Library Research From Around The World: Where It's Been And Where It's Headed, Karen W. Gavigan

Faculty Publications

This article examines studies conducted by school library researchers around the world. The selected studies were conference papers, and articles published in School Libraries Worldwide. Findings from these studies are relevant to researchers and practicing school librarians, who may want to incorporate the findings into their library programs.

Executive Summary_Feasibility Of Harbor-Wide Barrier Systems: Preliminary Analysis For Boston Harbor, Paul Kirshen

Sustainable Solutions Lab

This report presents a preliminary feasibility assessment of harbor-wide barrier systems designed to protect Boston Harbor from coastal flooding caused by sea level rise (SLR) and storm surges. Conducted by the Sustainable Solutions Lab at the University of Massachusetts Boston and supported by the Boston Green Ribbon Commission, the study evaluates two primary configurations: an Outer Harbor Barrier (OHB) and an Inner Harbor Barrier (IHB). Using hydrodynamic modeling, economic cost-benefit analysis, and social vulnerability assessments, the study finds that while both barrier systems may reduce risk from extreme storm events, they do not mitigate regular tidal flooding without frequent gate …

Reactions To Fda E-Cigarette Regulation : How Vape Shops In Different Socioeconomic Areas Of Kentucky Use Facebook., Brooke A. Moody

College of Arts & Sciences Senior Theses

In May 2016 the FDA deemed e-cigarettes a tobacco product. The “deeming rule” gave regulation to e-cigarettes where none had existed prior. Some of the regulations included: prohibiting the sale of e-cigarettes to minors, prohibiting giving away free e-cigarette products, requiring FDA-approved warning labels on e-cigarette packaging, and requiring pre-market authorization of all new e-cigarette products. The consequences of these regulations primarily affected e-cigarette manufacturers and vape shops, where most e-cigarette sales take place. In July 2017 the FDA announced an extended timeline for some e-cigarette regulations, citing the reason as having limited research on if, and how, e-cigarettes can …

Confucius Institutes And Sino-American Soft Power Diplomacy., Christian L Bush

College of Arts & Sciences Senior Theses

Since 2004, China has attempted to promote its image abroad through a number of soft power initiatives including culture and language learning programs called Confucius Institutes. Though ostensibly a nonprofit organization akin to other language teaching programs like the German Goethe Institutes, Spanish Cervantes Institutes, Alliance Française, and the British Council, the Confucius Institute has drawn scrutiny from academic and political leaders for its close ties to the Chinese government, threat to academic freedoms, and other questionable practices. This essay seeks to examine that debate, assess critical viewpoints, and offer suggestions for future research and policy direction. Using recently published …

The Case For Management In The Turkish-Kurdish Conflict., Devin P. Brown

College of Arts & Sciences Senior Theses

The Turkish-Kurdish conflict has ravaged Turkey for nearly 34 years. It is one of the world’s longest enduring rivalries, garnering significant international attention. Since 1984, experts estimate that at least 30,000 people have died in this conflict. In just the past two years, the fighting has killed 3,362 peopleand displaced another half million people. Although the parties have attempted to resolve this dispute multiple times, a comprehensive peace deal has remained elusive. So what should be done about this conflict? Is there a way to compel these parties to forge a lasting peace deal? Or, should the international community focus …

Social Networking Sites And Gaining Political Support., Blake A. Gerstner

College of Arts & Sciences Senior Theses

Since the turn of the Century, Social Networking Sites (SNSs) have become a normal part of most modern American lives. As this has happened, we have seen a spillover of the entertainment and informational nature of these sites into the American political system. Specifically, these sites are used to build support, gain votes and seats, and mobilize political movements by gaining attention and recognition on these sites. Much study has gone into how effective these online campaigns are in doing their job of gaining different kinds of support, but few, if any, have studied how these sites could be used …

Exploring The Role Of Mindfulness In The Established Relationship Between Self-Efficacy And Exercise Motivation., Savannah M. Neace

College of Arts & Sciences Senior Theses

The purpose of this study was to investigate how exercise self-efficacy and self-reported mindfulness are related to motivation to be physically active. Investigating mindfulness in the field of exercise is at an early stage, and our findings may help bridge the gap between mindfulness and the lack of regular physical activity in the United States. Our initial hypothesis replicated an existing relationship between exercise self-efficacy and exercise motivation. Next, we hypothesized that mindfulness would be positively correlated with exercise motivation. Third, we predicted that mindfulness would be positively correlated with exercise self-efficacy. Finally, we hypothesized that intrinsic motivation (a type …

The Effects Of Parental Interaction On Infant Learning., Rachael D. Crenshaw

College of Arts & Sciences Senior Theses

It was previously thought that infants could not perceive causal events as causal (e.g., one ball rolls into another making the 2nd ball move) until the age of 6 months (Cohen & Amsel, 1998). However, more recent research has shown that infants are able to understand the concept of causality earlier than 6 months of age if given the opportunity to have “real-life” exposure to physical causality with "sticky mittens" (Rakison &Krogh, 2012). "Sticky mittens” play sessions allow infants to manipulate Velcro balls while wearing mittens with Velcro sewn on the palms. This allows young infants, who are otherwise unable …

On The Politics And Conceptualization Of Gender Non-Conformity : Exploring Thailand’S Kathoey Population., Macey E. Mayes

College of Arts & Sciences Senior Theses

The purpose of this thesis is to investigate the politics and conceptualization of gender in Thailand, drawing specifically on the Thai understanding of sex and gender with regard to the kathoey population. This work considers the solidification of a third-gender category and looks to the ways this solidification can inhibit the fluidity of gender and sexuality. It also analyzes the dangers of transnational advocacy and the superimposition of Western queer advocacy and theory on Thai gender identities. I approach this issue from an interdisciplinary framework that seeks to include historical, cultural, and theoretical perspectives. In examining anthropological research, critiques of …