Social and Behavioral Sciences Commons^™

Addressing Barriers To Racial Health Disparity Policy Change Advocacy: Exploring White Defensiveness Strategies, Mary Beth Deline, Mary Katreeb, Emily Mj Mason, Laura N. Richard, Ertemisa Godinez, Kajsa E. Darlymple

Faculty Publications - Communications

Efforts to effect racial health disparity (RHD) policy change are urgent, necessary, and subject to a key barrier: defensiveness among White privileged audiences. Within the literature to date, such defensiveness is under-investigated, and when examined, is typically conceived of as an individual cognitive outcome—a message effect—rather than a communication interaction. Yet policy change advocacy efforts, ranging from community organizing to change campaigns, necessitate communication interactions between advocates and privileged policy change audiences, such as neighborhood groups or policymakers themselves. This defensiveness conceptualization, focused on individual cognitions, therefore limits our understanding of interactive communication barriers in RHD policy advocacy processes. To …

Effects Of Multitasking During Interpersonal Video Chats, Clementina Edema, Matthew W. Merkling, Gabriela Gomes, Alina Niftulaeva, Caleb T. Carr, Aimee E. Miller-Ott

Faculty Publications - Communications

Even when engaged in synchronous dyadic video chats, individuals can be distracted from their communication partner. Drawing on the concept of crosstalk in face-to-face interactions, two studies explored the impact of a video chat partner’s distraction on perceptions of that partner’s social attractiveness, electronic propinquity, conversational immediacy, and social presence. The first study (N = 40) used a survey to have respondents recall and describe three specific prior social dyadic video chats (i.e. dyadic, dual front mediated crosstalk, collective mediated crosstalk), and then provide metrics of study variables for each episode and partner. The second study (N = …

The Impact Of Crisis History And Media Framing On Customers Perception In Business Management: A Study Of Boeing, Daniel Sherrick Apambila, Janet Anani Laadi, Margaret Nana Yaa Asare, Clementina Edema

Faculty Publications - Communications

In our globally connected era, organizational crises can unfold rapidly, demanding swift and effective communication strategies. Crisis communication, a critical aspect of public relations, can significantly influence an organization’s ability to navigate difficult times and maintain its reputation. This case study examines Boeing’s crisis communication and the company’s reputation management following the January 2024 incident where a door panel blew off an Alaska Airlines 737-9 MAX aircraft mid-flight. This article analyses two historical crises in comparison with Boeing’s initial communication failures, including delayed and inadequate responses that lacked transparency and empathy. It evaluates media coverage across traditional and social media …

The Efficacy And Usability Of Motivational Interviewing Just-In-Time Trainings For Youth Mentors, Mackenzie J. Hart, Samuel D. Mcquillin, Aidyn Iachini Ph.D., Msw, Lsw, Daniel K. Cooper, Mark D. Weist

Faculty Publications

Using youth mentors to deliver evidence-based psychosocial services has been proposed to increase the reach of treatments, in part given the affordability and ubiquity of mentors in youth settings. Further, tests of mentor-delivered motivational interviewing (MI) have shown increases in youth mentees' academic performance and wellbeing. Yet, traditional methods of training mentors to use MI can be costly and time-consuming. Previous work has suggested the value of asynchronous, brief, just-in-time training (JITT) to help offset these challenges; however, MI JITT for mentors has not yet been formally evaluated. As such, here, we report on a preliminary study of MI JITT …

Preliminary Evaluation Of A Brief Intervention To Enhance Trauma-Informed Attitudes Among Educators And School Mental Health Counselors, Cheri Shapiro, Kara Lee, Courtnie Collins, Tristan Collier, Carl Sorensen

Publications

Professional development training designed to advance knowledge of the impacts of trauma and trauma-responsive practices for educators and counselors in schools and mental health settings have become common. Given the popularity of these training approaches, it is important to understand the potential impact on trauma-informed attitudes and beliefs. This descriptive, exploratory study examined changes in traumainformed care attitudes as a function of participating in a novel intervention designed to support trauma-informed practices in a sample of elementary school educators, administrators, and school mental health counselors (n=194) from one state in the Southeastern US. Positive changes in trauma-informed attitudes from pre …

Campus Legends And Mysteries: Building Institutional Identity Through Campus Lore, Viktoria Basham

Honors in Practice Online Archive

This essay presents an honors course designed to help students develop a holistic understanding of institutional history and identity while engaging with university culture. Author describes how students conduct research on the history, traditions, and local lore of both their home institution and broader geographic region by using a variety of campus resources and archival collections. Strong and personal bonds with the university are the touchstone for creating projects (n = 17) that contribute to campus lore, thereby extending student narratives to add to, enrich, and preserve an evolving institutional identity. Author suggests that course offerings such as this can …

Building Place-Based Experiential Learning Into The Honors Curriculum At Ohio University, Geoffrey L. Buckley, Nicole Finnicum, Michelle O'Malley, Jennifer Bowie, Yolonda Youngs

Honors in Practice Online Archive

Observing the demand for interdisciplinary experiential learning opportunities post-COVID, authors present a place-based curriculum in honors. Workshop-style special topics classes provide students with an immersive and flexible learning environment, energize faculty, and engage alumni and community partners. Coursework, fieldwork, internships, and study abroad opportunities all contribute to the development of an informed and engaged citizenry. Authors address challenges in funding, access, and equity, and they suggest ways these challenges might be met.

Partnering For Research At Your Center For Independent Living: Tips From Your Peers, Krys Standley, Hannah W. Pepprock, Rayna Sage

Independent Living and Community Participation

RTC:Rural researchers present advice on collaborative and participatory research projects with Centers for Independent Living (CILs) based on work with CIL partners. The guide includes feedback and priorities from CIL staff on the most effective conditions to address when entering into a research partnership.

Cohesive Model Of Supervision: An Empirically Based Approach, Gülşah Kemer

Counseling & Human Services Faculty Publications

Supervision models are fundamental to our supervision practices and criticized for lacking empirical support. As a data-driven approach based on research with expert supervisors, Cohesive Model of Supervision unifies existing models’ central premises in a meaningful manner and emphasizes the understated areas of supervision practice.

Behavioral Health Training For Integrated Behavioral Health: A Delphi Study, Nicholas Schmoyer, Lisa Corbin, Jessica Huffman, Gülşah Kemer

Counseling & Human Services Faculty Publications

Using a classical Delphi design, the authors used an interdisciplinary panel of behavioral health experts in integrated behavioral health (IBH) to identify foundational skills and knowledge counselor educators need to teach clinical mental health counselors for IBH practice. Eighty-eight statements were identified. Implications are provided for counseling and other behavioral health educators.

Confidentiality In Addiction Treatment: Navigating 42 Cfr Part 2 Within Human Services, Chaniece Winfield, Jessica Huffman

Counseling & Human Services Faculty Publications

Recent federal legislation, including the Mental Health Parity and Addiction Equity Act (MHPAE) and the Comprehensive Addiction and Recovery Act (CARA), has placed greater emphasis on quality integrated health care, with a focus on access, treatment options, and evidence-based practices. Changes to Federal 42 CFR privacy protections also impact individuals seeking substance use disorder treatment, either as a primary diagnosis or comorbidity. Human service professionals, as generalists in the behavioral health field, provide vital treatment, recovery, and prevention services for individuals with substance use and addictive disorders. This paper explores the implications of these legislative changes, particularly regarding privacy protections …

19.2 Ceus, Albright Aaron, Peighton Corley, Yusuf Barburoglu, Jeff Moe

Counseling & Human Services Faculty Publications

[Introduction] WLCO-2024-0077.R1 Heteronormative and cisnormative language in Southern University counseling and Title IX Offices

1. This study utilized the document analysis is a five step process including all EXCEPT

a. Gaining access to the documents via the web

b. Understanding hope and why the texts are produced.

c. Utilizing previous research to validate ideas or themes in the texts.

d. Determining the accuracy of the documents

e. Linking the documents with other website observations to triangulate results

f. Deconstructing the texts using a code book.

2. One of the most commun issues the research found was that the University websites …

Navigating Recovery: Insights From Distance Learning Human Services Students' Abstinence Experience, Chaniece Winfield, Jill Kivikoski, Catalina Kraft

Counseling & Human Services Faculty Publications

With the rise in overdose and problematic drug use in the United States, it is crucial to develop competent human service practitioners in addiction treatment and recovery settings. This qualitative study explores the virtual abstinence experience of distance learning human services students, using Mezirow’s transformative learning theory to examine how a 21-day experiential abstinence prompts critical reflection and perspective transformation. The study investigates the socio-emotional and physiological factors influencing participants' progress toward sobriety, including cravings, withdrawal, isolation, and relapse triggers. Findings highlight how participants' critical reflection leads to a deeper understanding of addiction and recovery, as well as an enhanced …

Ally With Ai: An Icebreaker To Unlock Career Aspirations For Online Or Hybrid Organizational Behavior Cohorts, Jyro B. Triviño

Leadership and Strategy Faculty Publications

Modern organizational behavior classroom, which are increasing in size, diversity, and complexity, are shifting to online and hybrid learning environments, challenging the use of traditional icebreaker activities. This paper introduces a 15-minute icebreaker designed to address these issues while integrating the principles of Kolb's experiential learning theory and fostering social capital through peerr engagement in an online setting. By leveraging the availability of generative AI, students prompt a template code to unlock their career aspirations and stimulate social connections among their classmates. This provides an innovative teaching model for meeting the foundational icebreaker goal while serving a suitable tool for …

Cfl Learners’ Real-Time Processing Of Chinese Radicals: An Eye-Tracking Study, Yihsuan Wood, Jeffrey Jack Green, Ellen Knell, Yu Liu

Faculty Publications

This study used eye-tracking to investigate the real-time processing of phonetic and semantic radicals (components of Chinese characters that give clues to their pronunciation and meaning) by intermediate-level university Chinese foreign language (CFL) learners. Additionally, the study examined how knowledge and awareness of radicals affect real time character processing. Real-time radical processing involves identifying radicals and understanding their phonetic or semantic roles, while real-time character processing includes recognizing radicals and instantly comprehending entire characters’ meanings and pronunciations. This study’s first task focuses on radical processing, where CFL learners use radical knowledge to interpret multiple characters simultaneously. The second task extends …

Effects Of Group Theraplay On Emotional Regulation And Social Interaction Skills In Children With Emotional And Behavior Disorders, Andrea Hutchison

Graduate Research Papers

Childhood mental health has gained significant attention in recent years. Poor childhood mental health is quickly becoming a major problem in the United States. The impacts of this problem are wide-reaching, affecting families, communities, and schools. Play therapy is one well-known intervention that is often used to alleviate symptoms of mental disorders in children. This study focuses primarily on one play therapy modality: Theraplay®, which is an attachment-based intervention that can be delivered in group and dyadic settings. The purpose of this study is to examine the literature that exists regarding the effectiveness of Theraplay®, specifically Group Theraplay®. Specific questions …

Use Of E-Cigarettes And Other Substances And Related Psychiatric Symptoms In Undergraduate Students, Grant L. Saba

Senior Honors Theses and Projects

This study evaluated the role that use of alcohol and e-cigarettes had in the development of dependence and demand of each other, along with symptoms of depression and anxiety in undergraduate college students. It tested four hypotheses: (1) that these symptoms are related to more frequent e-cigarette use, (2) they are related to problematic alcohol dependence, (3) alcohol demand will be higher in e-cigarette users, and (4) e-cigarette demand will be higher in problematic drinkers. 173 undergraduate students completed self-report inventories describing their alcohol dependence, e-cigarette dependence, depression, and anxiety, along with completing two hypothetical purchase tasks where they were …

Online And In-Person Intimate Partner Violence: The Role Of Relationship Initiation Context, Jesse John

Senior Honors Theses and Projects

Intimate partner violence (IPV) is a pervasive phenomenon, and cisgender women and sexual and gender minority (SGM) individuals are particularly affected. Despite the prevalence of internet usage and online dating among young adults, less research has examined how IPV manifests across relationships in which interactions are predominantly online, as well as those that begin online and transition to predominantly in-person interactions (i.e. hybrid). This study's primary aims are to examine the rates of IPV and nondating technology-facilitated sexual victimization among SGM and nonSGM emerging adults and explore how IPV victimization and mental health outcomes vary based on the extent to …

Ai And Strategic Power: An Analysis Of Ai In Cyberwarfare, Krystal J. Correal

Senior Honors Theses and Projects

Artificial intelligence (AI) is intertwined in nearly all aspects of civilian life and is becoming progressively embedded into global conflict in novel ways. AI’s role in cyberwarfare is altering the structure of strategic power. This paper explores how the weaponized application of AI in cyberwarfare, both in military and public use, work to benefit states with advanced AI capabilities in kinetic and non-kinetic forms while undermining those without. With the focus on superpowered states, such as the U.S., China, and Russia, and a representative non-superpower, Ukraine, the study examines the basic requirements for AI dominance: resources (financial and other), technological …

Negotiating Faith: Relations Between English-Dominant Churches And Maya Immigrants In Northeast Ohio, Abigayle D. Breitner

Senior Honors Theses and Projects

In recent decades, members of Guatemalan Maya communities have immigrated to the United States, bringing their religious identities with them. Most Maya immigrants are Catholics or Protestant Christians with varying relationships to United States-based churches in the towns where they settle. This paper departs from ethnographic work in two northeast Ohio towns with a particularly large Maya immigrant population. I consider how members of predominantly white, English-speaking churches engage with growing Maya congregations in northeast Ohio with a focus on the negotiation of Maya worshipers' desires for autonomy or partnership, and the power relationships inherent in that process. I argue …

Racial Capitalism: The Political Economy Of American Punishment, Naomi Barbour

Senior Honors Theses and Projects

This research examines how the criminal justice industrial complex and existing political incentives have shaped American penology, ultimately contributing to the disenfranchisement and unequal representation of marginalized groups. It identifies a significant historical shift in U.S. penal philosophy, moving from rehabilitation to retribution, arguing that this shift coincided with the rise of economic interests in the criminal justice system, facilitating the emergence of the criminal justice industrial complex. The research further examines the effects of this changing environment, arguing that the growing influence of profit-driven entities, including private prison companies, has played a crucial role in radicalizing criminal justice policies, …

From Dictatorship To Sectarianism: Iraq's Domestic Politics And Minority Rights (1979-2023), Hiba Alkhuzaee

Senior Honors Theses and Projects

This study looks at how Iraq’s domestic politics have changed, moving from Saddam Hussein’s authoritarian rule to the post-2003 era that’s been heavily shaped by sectarian divisions. It focuses on how Shi’a communities were systematically oppressed under Saddam’s Sunni-led Ba’athist regime and then compares that to the frustrations many Sunnis have faced under the mostly Shi’a-led government that came after the U.S. invasion. By looking at government policies, shifts in society, and the current status of minority rights, I explore how sectarianism has shaped governance, complicated the Kurdish issue, and affected things like inter-sect marriages between Shi’a and Sunni Muslims. …

Classification Of Ghost Job Listings: A Two Step Bert Approach, Caleb Mathison

Senior Honors Theses and Projects

Ghost jobs are advertised positions where companies have no intent to hire which create significant frustration for job seekers. This study explores how to automatically detect these fake listings using public data. Analyzing 849 LinkedIn job postings, I developed a two-step detection method. First, I calculated a ghost job score based on warning signs like listing duration and vague descriptions. Second, I used a BERT neural network to analyze the text patterns. The results demonstrate that machine learning can identify deceptive hiring practices, offering a new way to measure labor market inefficiencies.

White Racial Identity, Climae Change, And Social Attitudes, Alyssa Engle

Senior Honors Theses and Projects

This study examined how symbolic racism, political conservativism, and White racial identity predicts attitudes toward climate change among White Americans. Prior research suggests that racial resentment vaticinates social and political judgments beyond explicitly racial domains, including environmental issues and policies which disproportionately harm Black and marginalized communities. Building on this prior research, the present study investigated whether racial identity dimensions predict climate change distress, and whether symbolic racism mediates associations between conservative political orientation and climate concern. Seventythree White undergraduate students completed measures of racial identity, symbolic racism, distrust in climate science, political conservatism, and climate distress. As predicted, a …

Application Of Physics-Informed Neural Networks On Crop Yield Prediction At Multiple Scales, Aditya P. Prabhu, Pratishtha Poudel, James V. Krogmeier

Discovery Undergraduate Interdisciplinary Research Internship

Accurately predicting crop yields is a critical challenge in sustainable agriculture, food security, and farm management. Traditional process-based models rely on agronomic domain knowledge, crop physiology and statistical approaches, while purely data-driven approaches leverage machine learning or deep learning models using meteorological and spatial data. Unfortunately, these black-box models(Data-drive approaches) often lack interpretability and fail to incorporate well-established physical principles. This project explores a hybrid approach by implementing Physics Informed Neural Networks, mainly, physics-based recurrent neural networks (PI-RNNs) for time-series yield prediction. PINNs allow for the integration of scientific knowledge directly into the model by embedding physical laws as constraints …

Quantifying Riverine Plastic Pollution Using Participatory Science And Trash Traps, Nancy Lauer, Madison Haley, Emily Sutton, Rob Clark, Hannah Woodburn, Emma Crider, Kaity D’Angelo, Cecilia Kammire, Brandon Jones, David Caldwell, Taylor Register, Emily Fritz, Samantha Krop, Riley Lewis, Lisa Rider, Edgar Miller, Stephanie Stephens, Louisa Pitney, Emma Kaufman, Emma Stewart, Jason A. Somarelli, Michelle B. Nowlin

Faculty Scholarship

Local governments and environmental nonprofits are increasingly using trash traps to intercept and remove escaped plastics and other litter from stormwater systems and surface waters. In this paper, we demonstrate the utility of these devices for collecting data that provide insights into riverine litter sources and solutions. Between 2021 and 2024, seven Waterkeeper organizations in North Carolina maintained 21 in‐stream trash traps in watersheds across the state and trained staff and volunteers to record the types and quantities of litter during cleanouts. Over this period, Waterkeeper organizations and their volunteers documented 150,750 pieces of litter captured by traps. Captured litter …

The Social Cost Of Plastic To The United States, Nancy Lauer, Tibor Vegh, Michelle Nowlin, John Virdin, Jason Somarelli

Faculty Scholarship

No abstract provided.

Political Turbulence And Aviation Safety: A Cross-National Analysis Of Political Stability's Effects On Aviation Accidents, Léa Faure, Lilliam Maria Cáceres Malachowski

Journal of Aviation/Aerospace Education & Research

To what extent does political stability affect aviation safety? This research aims to link domestic political conditions and public safety through the consideration of aviation accident frequency. Political instability can indeed have profound effects on reducing overall public safety in a variety of domains through its influence on public policies. Reduced regulations and governance efforts can appear in contentious contexts for less-prioritized fields. This could influence the reemergence of technical aviation risk factors like crew training and performance, maintenance issues, infrastructure problems, human errors, etc. This would highlight a correlation between such political instability and weaker aviation safety regulations, investments …

The Emotional Landscape Of Aviation Pilots: Analysis Of Online Professional Forums Using Natural Language Processing, Adrienne S. Renwick, Leo Gonzalez, Charles L. Silber, Alyson Mullen, Cass Dykeman, Adam Stewart, Jennifer C. Ross, James Geisler

Journal of Aviation/Aerospace Education & Research

This study investigated burnout related to emotions in three categories of pilots: commercial passenger, commercial cargo, and military. While pilot burnout has been previously studied, challenges in self-reporting limit understanding. This study extends previous research by analyzing pilots' anonymous online forum posts to gain insight into burnout-related emotions. Natural Language Processing was conducted with the RoBERTa-base-go_emotions model, which analyzed 1,130,530 online forum posts from commercial passengers, commercial cargo, and military pilots for 27 emotion categories and one absence of emotion category (i.e., neutral). An exploratory composite score reflecting burnout-related emotional expression omnibus burnout score was calculated using seven burnout-related emotions …

Charting A Path For Writing In Aviation: The Intersection Of Wac And Collegiate Flight Training, Kayla D. Taylor, Lindsey Ives

Graduate Student Works

Understanding how genre conventions shape written communication within collegiate flight programs is an emerging area of WAC research. Collegiate flight students, who will enter the aviation industry in a variety of roles, must be able to write in various genres, including incident and accident reports, in ways that allow a range of readers to partake in a proactive safety culture. This study explored how supplemental discipline-specific guidance affected the writing quality of incident report narratives composed by students at a flight school within an accredited university in the United States. Participants were either given no guidance, bullet-point guidelines, or examples …