Social and Behavioral Sciences Commons^™

Breaking The Mold: Voters’ Perceptions Of Femininity In Campaigns, Margaret E. Ulrich

Political Science Honors Projects

I designed a two pronged study to explore the relationship between femininity in candidate self- presentation and voter perception. First, I presented a sample of U.S. voters a series of images featuring either feminine or non-feminine female professionals. I then selected two images from this study to design two faux print political advertisements, one featuring a feminine candidate and one featuring a non-feminine candidate to establish a treatment and control condition featuring similarly “attractive” candidates. Then, I showed a quasi-representative sample of 540 potential U.S. voters one of these faux political advertisements and asked a series of questions regarding the …

Geriatric Psychology: Using Program And Curriculum Development As A Method Of Synthesizing And Assessing Best Practices In Improving Psychological Outcomes For Senior Populations, Sofia J. Onuscheck

Psychology Honors Projects

This project on geriatric psychology and improving psychological outcomes in elderly populations uses curriculum/program development to synthesize best practices. Chapter One reviews literature concerning and informing intergenerational friendships, concluding that intergenerational friendships present a novel opportunity to ease some social/cognitive concerns around aging. A program facilitating intergenerational relationships within communities is proposed. Chapter Two conducts a broader study of geriatric psychology in order to develop a 14 week course curriculum that provides an introduction to the field and asks students to apply literature-informed methods to more fully understand and connect with this growing population and their unique needs.

Partisan Perspectives On Inflation: Exploring Bias In Economic Expectations, Anna Durall

Economics Honors Projects

Inflation expectations are important determinants of future inflation and individual consumer behavior. Recent attention has been devoted to individual-level heterogeneity in inflation expectations. I consider political partisanship as a source of heterogeneity and question whether expectations are biased by partisanship. I find that they are, i.e., that individuals from the president's political party expect lower inflation relative to members of the opposing party (this difference is statistically insignificant during the Bush presidency), and that this result cannot be explained by additional sources of heterogeneity. I also examine whether belonging to the president's political party affects the rationality of expectations and …

Improvement Of Attitudes Towards People With Disabilities Through Education And Contact, Samuel L. Ash

Psychology Honors Projects

Two studies were conducted to investigate the impact of educational interventions and contact with individuals with disabilities on explicit and implicit attitudes towards people with disabilities. In study 1, 63 participants watched one of two videos, one on the social model of disability (experimental condition) and the other about wheelchair soccer (control condition). Participants also completed measures of contact, explicit, and implicit attitudes toward people with disabilities. Results from regression analyses indicated no significant effects of the videos or reported contact on either explicit or implicit attitudes, challenging previous findings that suggested positive effects of contact and education on explicit …

Predatory Inclusion In Higher Education: Labor And Financial Exploitation At A Predominantly White Institution In The Era Of Neoliberal Multiculturalism, Maia N. Pedrosa

Sociology Honors Projects

In the summer of 2020, racial justice movements that emerged in response to the murder of George Floyd at the hands of Minneapolis police officer Derek Chauvin passionately decried the systems and institutions at fault and complicit in still perpetuating racial discrimination towards Black people, as well as Indigenous and other People of Color (BIPOC). As a response to these racial justice demands, college institutions pushed for diversity in their student body and across college affairs in order to appear like they were effectively responding to student demands. However, this fight against racial inequality and inequity began long before during …

A Veneer Of Democracy: How El-Zu’Ama Dominate Lebanon’S Political System, Sami Banat

Political Science Honors Projects

As Lebanon has endured a never-ending cycle of crises for decades, scholars have sought explanations via the country’s intense sectarian system, and have investigated its origins extensively. However, this search has neglected the question of sectarianism’s permeance and maintenance. This paper will focus on the latter, and argues that the sectarian system is sustained by a sectarian elite class, known as el-zu’ama, via their own cults of personality enabling them to maintain control of their sects. This paper will examine pre-statehood history, the civil war, post-war reconstruction, and finally, modern failed challenges to the system to illustrate this thesis.

“This Is Not A Game:” Exploring Qanon Conspiracy As An Arg Through The Lens Of Theodor Adorno, Corbin Poyer

Departmental Honors & Graduate Capstone Projects

Since 2017, an insidious conspiracy theory has spawned and spread across various internet forums and social media platforms. Named QAnon (often shortened to simply "Q"), this conspiracy exists as a "catch-all" conspiracy with an inherently ambiguous set of core beliefs and ever-changing end goal surrounding a mythical event named "The Storm," a period of civil unrest that ends with the purported cabals prevalent in the American government being brought to justice and the heroic Q-adherents being placed in positions of power. However, this "Storm" has yet to occur, highlighting the myriad of non-occurring events and claims that, logically, should have …

Incorporating Institutions And Ideology: Why Covid Didn't Change Anything, Cullen Kendrick

Departmental Honors & Graduate Capstone Projects

In this paper, I investigate the aftermath of the COVID-19 pandemic through an economic and philosophical lens to try and understand why government aid was removed. Looking at the problem as solely a structural issue, with Jurgen Habermas’ Between Facts and Norms and Douglas North’s Institutions, Institutional Change, and Economic Performance guiding my understanding, provides useful insights. Namely, how the informal and formal structures of society interact, and their cyclical nature. However, that perspective does not provide a complete picture. And so, I developed an understanding of ideology to investigate the origins of informal societal structures. To do this I …

Homemade Language, Conservative Fro-Yo, And Sci-Fi Sloths: How Speculative Migration Fiction Confronts The Ends Of Worlds By Challenging The Nation-State, Zoe R. Scheuerman

English Honors Projects

This English literature thesis project explores an emerging, genre-defying body of fiction which I call “speculative migration fiction.” Speculative migration fiction imagines how ongoing global developments like climate change, technological development, and war may shape future migrations. Drawing on Benedict Anderson’s conception of national culture, Wendy Brown’s theory of the border, and Caroline Levine’s understanding of literary form, as well as close readings from Scattered All Over the Earth by Yōko Tawada, Exit West by Mohsin Hamid, and 2 A.M. in Little America by Ken Kalfus, I argue that transnational migrations move toward becoming postnational migrations as migrants evade border …

A Psychological Look At Burnout, Gracie Cole

Psychology Student Publications

No abstract provided.

Ican Bike Maine, Akua B. Obeng

LEND Trainee Presentations

iCan Bike Maine LEND Elective Project

The Bystander Effect: When No One Helps In A Crisis, Tatiyanna Garcia

Psychology Student Publications

No abstract provided.

Effects Of Social Media On Adolescents Self-Esteem And Body Image, Rylee Solheim

Psychology Student Publications

This paper is written about some of the effects social media can have on adolescents self esteem and body image. There are other variables talked about that contribute to changes in self-esteem and body image. This paper is supposed to talk about this while making it easier to read and entertaining compared to a general scientific journal article.

Spice Up Your Sleep Life, Marissa Engraf

Psychology Student Publications

presenting scientific literature to the general public in an entertaining fashion

A Matter Of Time: How Musical Training Affects Time Perception, Jahanvi Mittal, Khushi Kaur Juneja, Saumya Saumya, Anuj Shukla

Faculty, Staff and Student Publications

Musical training has been linked to changes in early attentional and perceptual processing. Thus, such an altered attentional and perceptual processing has enabled musicians to judge the duration differently than non-musicians. Although these claims seem intriguing, there are many questions that are not addressed yet, for example, how would the performance of musically-trained differ from that of untrained on visual and auditory temporal judgments? Is there any advantage to musically-trained person in temporal processing? To understand these questions, we thus conducted a series of Auditory and Visual Temporal Bisection Tasks on 32 musically-trained and 32 musically-untrained participants. We hypothesized that …

Anxiety In College Students, Sydney Fearing

Psychology Student Publications

No abstract provided.

How Do Men And Women View Stress Differently?, Ayrianna Ring

Psychology Student Publications

No abstract provided.

Telehealth: A Rising Intervention For Latina Mothers Experiencing Prenatal And Postpartum Depression, Britney Gutierrez

Nursing | Student Research Posters

Abstract: Background: Postpartum depression (PPD) is high among Latina women but often goes unrecognized and untreated. Recognition and management of PPD in this population is crucial as PPD contributes to negative health effects on the mother and infant. Purpose: This research aims to look into telehealth to improve screening methods and treatment for Latina mothers through a Spanish mobile health application that will provide screening and education on PPD. Method: This mixed-method quality improvement study will include 300 participants from an OB-GYN and Pediatrics community clinic, > 18 years old, of Hispanic/Latino ethnicity, Spanish speaking, currently pregnant, or had a child …

Sex Matters The Impact Of Skin Tone On Perceived Levels Of Attraction, Callie Vitro, Talisa J. Carter

Criminology and Criminal Justice Faculty Publications

Research finds that individuals of dark complexions are more likely to face prejudice or be discriminated against in a variety of contexts. Referred to as colorism, skin-tone-based discrimination has major implications for various life outcomes. Research on social interactions suggests that lighter skin tones are associated with a higher level of physical attractiveness, which is of particular interest for this study. This study uses quantitative survey data collected from undergraduate and graduate students from across the United States to explore the relationship between colorism, gender, and perceived physical attraction via a modified version of Harvey, Tennial, and Bank’s In-Group Colorism …

Democracy And Organized Crime: The Case Of Brazil, Abigail Tank

Departmental Honors & Graduate Capstone Projects

Local-level democracy is crucial to the strength of a country’s democracy. In Brazil, informal housing settlements known as favelas have started to outpace the growth of the cities in which they exist, yet favelas often lack equal access to democratic institutions that ensure citizens’ rights. Organized crime groups have emerged in these settlements that threaten the strength and stability of local-level democracy. This yields the question, “How does organized crime impact democracy in Brazil?” Through case studies of Rio de Janeiro and Belo Horizonte, this thesis explores whether criminal organizations influence political participation in Brazilian favelas. The case studies are …

Which War Stories Get Told? How The Identifiability Of Villains And Victims Impacts Media Coverage Of Conflicts, Anna D. Sène

Political Science Honors Projects

In the last decade, armed conflicts have been proliferating around the world. While most conflicts still get covered in the mass media, some have received more international attention than others. This disparity in attention can affect the resolution of conflicts and the support victims can get to rebuild their lives. This study seeks to answer the question of why some armed conflicts receive more media coverage than others. I hypothesize that journalists cover conflicts with clearer victims and villains more than conflicts with more vague victims and villains, because clear victims and villains provide stronger narrative frames and fewer actors …

Implementing And Marketing Diversity, Equity And Inclusion Practices And Resources: Creating The E‐Buzz!, Essraa Nawar, Kristin Laughtin-Dunker

Library Presentations, Posters, and Audiovisual Materials

Leatherby Libraries Librarians are committed to supporting and promoting diversity, equity, and inclusion for students, faculty, researchers, and staff. We demonstrate this commitment holistically through the provision of all resources and services in support of teaching, learning, and research. Our goal is to reduce obstacles to accessing diverse research resources, services, learning, and engagement through educational outreach in order to raise awareness of diversity related issues.

In 2020, Library administration selected a Diversity and Outreach librarian that was charged with creating a comprehensive Diversity, Equity and Inclusion (DEI) and Outreach plan. As a result, a number of practices and initiatives …

04.29.2024 Orsp Connect, Liz Williamson

ORED Newsletter

Locating ORSP training in Blackboard, Marta Panickar, MS Aerospace and Defense Symposium, NSF Common Forms in SciENcv

Systematic Reviews In The Engineering Literature: A Scoping Review, Margaret Phillips, Jason B. Reed, Dave Zwicky, Amy S. Van Epps, Amy G. Buhler, Erin M. Rowley, Qianjin Zhang, James M. Cox, Wei Zakharov

Purdue University Libraries Open Access Publishing Fund

A systematic review is a specialized type of literature review used to collect and synthesize all the available evidence related to a research question. The methods for systematic reviews should be transparent and reproducible so that other researchers can use, replicate, and build upon the findings. Systematic reviews have been published for decades in medical literature where it is necessary to bring together all the studies related to a particular disease or condition for healthcare professionals to make evidence-based recommendations. Conducting systematic reviews has expanded to other disciplines, including education, business, and engineering. The authors of this study conducted a …

Grandparents As Custodians Of Arabic As A Heritage Language In The United Kingdom, Fatma F.S. Said

All Works

The phenomenon of three-generation households is typical in many homes across the world, though perhaps less so in North America and Western Europe. When multigeneration families share the same physical space and take part in the same activities, the dynamics of parenting, eating, how time is spent and allocated, and relationships differ from families in which only parents and their children live together. One of the main (relevant) differences is that in these multilingual families there is easy access to the learning of heritage languages and socialisation into and through them. As the article will demonstrate shortly, such ease is …

Comparison Of Rip And Rcp Conditioning Procedures On Vocalizations In Children With Autism And Minimal Echoic Repertoire, Jacqueline Pecoraro

Theses

Pairing procedures have been utilized by researchers and in applied practice for many years to establish neutral stimuli as conditioned reinforcers. Recently, pairing procedures, specifically stimulus-stimulus pairing, have been applied to vocalizations. Vocalizations are an essential element for language development because once vocalizations are brought under echoic control, they can be used to further develop a child’s verbal behavior. Results of the research conducted on stimulus-stimulus pairing had varied results, and the effectiveness of stimulus-stimulus pairing on increasing vocalizations is uncertain. Lepper and Petursdottir (2017) conducted a study that compared traditional stimulus-stimulus pairing (or response-independent pairing (RIP)) to response-contingent pairing …

Towards Accessible Futures: Re-Imagining Space And Inclusion In Higher Education, Cecelia Kaufmann

Geography Honors Projects

Since the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA), an increased number of people with disabilities have participated in higher education, yet their experiences continue to differ from their able-bodied peers. This thesis considers these differences utilizing Dolmage’s academic ableism, Foucault’s theory of Biopower, and Lefebvre’s theory on the Production of Space. This research shows how physical infrastructure and levels of power reproduce instances of academic ableism. Utilizing a case study of a private college in Minnesota, this research draws on interviews with stakeholders, offering guidance to correct the broader social and physical exclusions created that people with disabilities encounter in higher …

Community Conservation In Madagascar: Aligning Local Livelihoods And Biodiversity Protection, Jane Slentz-Kesler

Geography Honors Projects

The management of natural resources in developing countries is of utmost importance as both high levels of biodiversity and local livelihoods often hang in the balance. The debate in conservation spheres often centers on 'fortress' versus 'community-based' conservation approaches, one emphasizing nature preservation and the other emphasizing the needs and empowerment of local communities in resource management. This study evaluates the management approach of a rainforest in northeast Madagascar, asking: how effectively does the COMATSA Sud protected area management system both preserve critical forest cover and provide for the local community? This research employs a mixed-methods approach, using interviews and …

Designed For Life: Unearthing Just And Sustainable Urban Design Through The Daylighting Of Phalen Creek, Corgan R. Archuleta

Geography Honors Projects

This thesis conceptualizes a relational approach to urban design. Often separated from justice, I argue urban design can shape spaces to enable respectful and reciprocal human and more-than- human relationships. Focusing on Phalen Creek in Saint Paul, Minnesota, I illuminate just and sustainable possibilities between ecologically sustainable and socially inclusive design. Phalen Creek was a natural waterway buried in a pipe during 20th century urbanization to be partially reconstructed through daylighting. The Indigenous and Immigrant stories driving restoration expand urban design’s liberatory potential. Combining just sustainabilities with infrastructure theory and Indigenous Knowledges, I contend urban design offers a relational approach …

Racing The Tides: Three Virginia Islands Threatened By Climate Change And The Challenge Of Preserving Their Stories, Sean M. Restivo

History Honors Projects

Among the tidal marshes of Virginia’s York River, there are three relatively obscure groups of uninhabited islands, all with fascinating stories, and all rapidly disappearing: the Goodwin Islands, the Catlett Islands, and Poropotank Island. These islands have been almost entirely overlooked by existing historical and archaeological research, and they are all imminently threatened by climate change-induced sea level rise and erosion. In the summer of 2023, I embarked on an interdisciplinary research project to study cultural heritage sites scattered across the islands. Drawing on my experience of studying these islands, as well as other related case studies, I demonstrate that …